about Allie's criticism and her resentment thereat.

"I got my own way of enjoyin' myself, an' I don't care what people
think," she declared, with some heat.

"Quite right. It's none of their darned business, Ma."

"She thinks I'm kind of crazy an'--I guess I am. But it comes from
livin' so long in the heat an' the drought an' allus wantin' things I
couldn't have--allus bein' sort of thirsty in the head. When you want
things all your life an' never have 'em, you get so you _play_ you've
got 'em."

The man nodded. "You had a hard time. Your life was starved. I'm so
glad the money came in time."

"You see, I never had time to play, or a good place to play in, even
when I was a little girl. But this is like--like books I've read."

"Are these mountains what you thought they would be?"

"Oh, they're better!" Ma breathed. "It's too bad Allie's got to spoil
ever'thing."

"I shall speak to her. We won't let her spoil anything. Now tell me how
you play."

But Ma flushed faintly, and for some time longer she refused her
confidence. It didn't matter; it was all an old woman's foolishness;
nobody would understand. Gray was not insistent; nevertheless, before
long they were on their way toward the glen.

It was a glorious morning, the forest was beautiful, and as the two
strolled through it Ma's companion told her many things about trees and
flowers and birds and bees that she had never dreamed of. Now Gray's
natural history was shockingly inaccurate, nevertheless it was
interesting, and it was told in a manner both whimsical and sprightly.
He made up outrageous stories, and he took no shame in seriously
recounting experiences of his own that Ma knew were wholly imaginary.
She told him, finally:

"Sakes alive! You're as crazy as I am."

This he denied with spirit. Forests were enchanted places, and trolls
dwelt in the mountains. There was no question about that; most people
never took time to see them, that was all. Now as for him, he had
actually beheld naiads and dryads, nixies and pixies, at play--at least
he had practically been upon the point of seeing them. Ma, herself,
must have come across places they had just left, but probably she had
lacked the patience to await their return or the faith to woo them into
being. There were little woods people, too, no bigger than your thumb,
whose drinking goblets were acorn cups, and whose plates were shiny
leaves. He showed her how to set a fairy tablecloth with her
han