Now this was, as Tiny said, “Too beautiful for anything!” especially as the early apples and all the berries were about gone, and the children were beginning to wonder what they could find to send next.
CHAPTER XXIV.
THE CIRCULAR CITY, CONTINUED.
They wrote to Mr. Thorpe. Of course they did! They promised the moss and roots, and told him how glad they were that the people had been pleased with what they sent, and would he be so very kind as to write and tell them whether he had heard of anybody who had tried the apple dumplings?
“And if any of your people are ill, dear Mr. Thorpe,” wrote Tiny, in her share of the letter, “and there is anything particular that you would like for them, will you please tell us, and perhaps it will be something we can send you.”
The answer to this letter was delightfully prompt. Yes, several of the women who had shared the apples had “tried” the dumplings, and been much pleased with them. Were there any more nice cheap dishes? And would it be too much trouble to print the recipes in large, clear letters? Some of the poor people who could read print quite easily could not read writing at all. And there was “something particular.” It was almost impossible for any of “his people” to buy pure milk, and he felt sure that many little children were suffering and dying for want of proper food. If he might have only two or three quarts a week of really pure, sweet milk, he would give it to those who most needed it.
“But perhaps,” he wrote, “it is not in your power to supply this want, and if it is not, you must not be troubled. God never asks for any service which we cannot, with His help, render to Him, and the knowledge of this should keep us from fretting when we cannot carry out all our wishes and plans.”
