“To be sure!” agreed Mrs. Merrill, “that’s the reason we stop so often. This is the strawberry and lettuce country and every time we stop we take on piles of express that will go to hungry folks up north. Now you know how we get our early lettuce and berries and what sort of a place it comes from.”
“Yes, I know it,” said Mary Jane, “but couldn’t we eat some now.”
“Yes, Mother, couldn’t we?” urged Alice, “just look at those berries!” she added as a team of horses pulled a great wagon by their window—a wagon piled high with crates of strawberries, as they could tell by the glimpses of red fruit inside.
Just then a little negro boy came by their window peddling berries and Mrs. Merrill was able to buy a box of berries for the girls—berries so clean and sweet and ripe that they could be eaten at once without a thought of washing or of sugar.
As the train pulled up for another stop some fifteen minutes later, the Pullman conductor came into their car and spoke to Mrs. Merrill.
“There’s something at this stop that your girls may enjoy seeing,” he said, “and if you will allow me to escort you—”
“Something my girls should see?” questioned Mrs. Merrill in surprise.
“You see, madam,” explained the man, “the cook on the diner we carry has made friends with the pigs on the way and he always likes the children aboard the train to see the fun.”
“Sounds like Greek to me,” said Mrs. Merrill still more puzzled, “but if there is something my girls should see, let’s see it—we don’t want to miss anything!” And taking Mary Jane’s hand and motioning Alice to come too, she followed the conductor through the train.
They went through two cars, then, as the train was just jerking to a stop, the man quickly pulled open the vestibule door and hurried them down the steps to the ground. Ahead of them—just the next car—was the diner. At the high door of the kitchen end of the diner stood a grinning negro. He was dressed all in spotless white and his face fairly shone with joy. In his hands he held a great bucket which was poised as though he was about to empty it out of the door.