“They’re the bulbs Uncle Peter hopes will win the prize.”
“Why do you keep them locked up?” questioned Vevi.
“Because they will be worth their weight in gold if our tulip wins first prize,” Hanny explained. “There are no other bulbs like these anywhere in this country or abroad. Uncle Peter says they are the finest in the world! If we should lose them or if they should rot, we never could replace them.”
“Are they bulbs of the Golden Tulip?” Vevi asked.
“I cannot say,” returned Hanny. “I would like to tell, but I promised Uncle Peter not to give away the secret.”
“The Golden Tulip is the most beautiful one I have seen anywhere,” Vevi insisted. “I think these must be Golden Tulip bulbs.”
Hanny only laughed and put away the bag. Then she carefully locked the little house again.
“I wish the Brownies had a tulip bed,” said Connie after the padlock had been snapped shut. “Miss Mohr might give us a little plot of ground at the library.”
“It is too late to start a tulip bed this spring,” Hanny advised her. “Bulbs should be planted in the fall.”
“Then perhaps the Brownies can have a garden next year. Only then Rosedale may not be having a flower festival.”