"Tot who?" she demanded.
"Tot Tompum," murmured the boy.
"Tompum! That doesn't mean anything," said Dot, decidedly.
This positive statement seemed to annoy the little fellow. He raised his eyes half shyly a moment and said, in a louder voice:
"Papa Tompum cuts the grass, an' makes the flowers grow. I'm Tot Tompum."
"Oh," said Dot; "you must mean Thompson. Thompson's the gardener, I know, and gardeners make the flowers grow and cut the grass."
The boy nodded his head twice as if to say she was right.
"Gard'ner," he repeated. "Papa Tompum. I'm Tot Tompum."
Then he took courage to look up again, and seeing a friendly smile upon Dot's face he asked boldly, "Who is you?"
"Oh, I'm Dot," she answered, sitting down beside him. "My whole name is Dot Freeland."