After rambling and climbing about for half an hour, the boys went down to the flat rock, under the hemlock, with large bunches of plants and flowers in their hands. Here they sat another half hour, looking over their specimens, and putting them into their books. At length, Rollo picked up a singular-looking thing, which was lying down by the side of the stone under the tree. It was about as big as his thumb, and somewhat pointed at the ends. It was black, and rather glossy, and the surface was marked regularly with little ridges. James could not imagine what it was; but Rollo told him that he thought it must be a hemlock-seed. The truth was, that it was a great chrysalis, though Rollo did not find it out till long afterwards.
“A hemlock-seed!” said James.
“Yes,” said Rollo; “I have seen the cones which grow on fir-trees, and they are a good deal like this.”
“But they are not so handsome,” said James.
“I know it,” said Rollo; “they are not so handsome. This is the most beautiful one I ever saw.”
“We can plant it,” said James, “next spring.”
“Yes,” said Rollo; “and then we can have a great hemlock-tree near our house.”
“But we shall have to wait a great many years,” said James.
“O, no, not a great many,” said Rollo. “It is such a great seed, I think it would grow pretty fast.”
But James did not like the idea of planting it very well. He proposed that they should keep it, for a curiosity, in their museum. Rollo insisted, at first, upon planting it; but at length, reflecting that it was not then the right season to plant it, he concluded to put it into the museum, with his raspberry-seeds, until the next spring, and to plant it then.