he melons, we can have a good time today at
least."

"Just as you say," chorused the girls; and bundling the soiled, sticky
children into the carriage with them, they drove on to the little brown
house.

As the team drew up in front of the gate the group of workers on the
porch started to their feet in surprise, but Peace called, "Go on with
your sewing! This is my company! They are going to look at my twenty
watermelons to see if they are any good; and then I am going to charge
them five dollars for them."

The laughing young people came up the walk to meet the embarrassed
mistress of the house, and the situation was briefly explained. "Our
League is planning for a lawn social tomorrow night," said one young
lady.

"Ice-cream and cake," added the second.

"With watermelons for a side-dish," the young man put in.

"And we thought we could get better melons if we came out here in the
country to buy them," said the fourth member of the party.

"The melon patch belongs to Peace," Gail told them. "We think she has
some pretty good fruit. Come this way and see for yourself."

"Oh, what big ones!" cried the visiting quartette. "Surely you won't
sell all these for five dollars?"

"No, only twenty," answered Peace gravely. "You can't have the two
biggest ones, and of course you don't want the crooked fellers. Mike
says they will sell for twenty-five cents each in Martindale."

So the twenty splendid melons were cut and loaded into the wagon, Peace
was paid a spandy new five-dollar bill, and the visitors departed
merrily. The child watched them out of sight, still holding fast to her
money, and then turned to Gail, sighing contentedly, "Now we can go to
the Fair! I've had an awful job getting rid of those things, but they
are gone at last, and here is the money. I 'xpect Mike will be mad as
hops, but he didn't know beans when he said they weren't ripe. I've
raised melons enough so I know."

"But, dearie," interrupted the oldest sister, "you mustn't spend your
money so recklessly for our pleasure. It will take almost half of that
five dollars just to pay our way into the grounds, and another dollar
for carfare."

"Then it's lucky Mike didn't sell the melons for me," said Peace, "or I
'xpect we'd have had to walk. I sold those watermelons just so's we all
could go to the Fair, Gail, and now you mustn't say no."

"Then I won't," suddenly whispered the tired mother-sister, seeing the
longing in the somber brown eyes