"How are we to show seeds in use?" I asked.
Jones was stumped and so was Larsen—even Jimmie had no idea. We all looked at Charlie when he said, "I remember seeing a good display of garden seeds once."
"Well," I said, "what was it?"
"As near as I can describe it, it was fixed like this," said Charlie. "The floor of the window was covered with soil divided into little plots. Each plot had a single variety of seeds arranged on top of it in orderly rows. In the center of each plot was a 'talking' sign something to this effect:
GIANT BEANS
A 5¢ package is sufficient for fifty square feet of soil. They should, under normal conditions, produce —— pints of beans, worth at retail $3.75.
"I don't remember the price, the ground space, nor the production," confessed Charlie, "but that's the general idea. The five cents' worth of seeds (or whatever the amount was) was visualized. The amount of ground they required was then given, and, after that, the average production and its value. At the rear of the window all kinds of gardening tools were arranged—each one price-ticketed, of course."
"That's splendid," I said, enthusiastically. "We'll appoint you a committee of one to find out what seeds to buy and all about them."
"I don't know the first thing about gardening," objected Charlie, "and will be more than glad if you'll let some one else do it."
I was about to insist when, in an undertone, he added, "Believe me, Mr. Black, I've a very real reason for asking you to excuse me."