Of course that caused everyone to want to help Sue, and in a short time Farmer Ames was brought to the scene. He looked at her tongue, felt her nose, turned back her eyelids, and asked many questions before he got at the truth. Then he laughed.
“Want to know what I calls her disorder? Too much cabbage! She’s got colic. Sam and I will have her fixed in no time.” Then he hurried to the kitchen and brewed a potion that for evil smell was wicked enough to cure anything on earth, or under the earth. This was poured down Sue’s throat and by morning she was all right again.
But not so Natalie’s garden! First thing, after getting out doors before breakfast, Natalie ran to inspect the damages done by Sue. But the sight was more overwhelming than she had thought for.
“Oh, oh, OH!” she screamed, wringing her hands in despair.
All within hearing of that shriek ran to comfort her.
“Just look at what that terrible cow did to my beauties!” cried Natalie, pointing at several tomato vines which were broken off short at the soil and lay wilting. Many cabbages were partly chewed off their stems, and a number of kohl-rabi and turnips were cut off short like the tomato vines, and were drying in the sun.
When Mrs. James ran to join the distressed girls, she examined the drying plants and then said: “Sue didn’t do all this, Natalie. A cut-worm has gone through your garden during the night. Perhaps the flashlight attracted him here and then he did his damage.”
“But Sue ate the cabbages!” was Natalie’s only satisfaction.
“Yes, and the Corporation must pay for them,” said Mrs. James.
All but Janet and Natalie went slowly back to the house, then the former said consolingly: “Nat, I’ll pay for those poor vines and plants, because I can feed them to my pigs and save on the feed.”