“I didn’t know we were going to see anybody,” replied Henry.
“What should you say, if you should meet Samuel?” inquired Jessie.
“What, our Sam! is he here?” exclaimed Henry, stopping short, and resting his burden upon the ground.
Jessie then related to him the occurrences of the previous afternoon, as they walked on towards the burial-ground. Henry seemed much pleased with the idea of seeing his brother, and hurried along so fast, with his burden, that Jessie could hardly keep up with him.
On reaching the graveyard, as they saw nothing of Sam, they proceeded to the lot where their father and brother were laid, and prepared to set out the trees and shrubs. There was no stone to mark the spot, but Jessie remembered too well the two little gravelly mounds, to need anything to guide her to the locality. Henry threw off his jacket, and went to work in good earnest with his shovel, pausing, every few minutes, to look around in quest of Sam. Jessie, meanwhile, was busy with the hoe and rake, cleaning out and levelling the lot. The holes for the trees required to be large, and as the digging was rather hard, Henry found he had undertaken no trifling task. But he kept steadily at work, hoping, however, that the stronger arm of his brother would soon come, to “spell” him.
The two beeches were at length planted, each near the head of a grave; but Sam had not appeared, though it was half an hour later than the time he had appointed for the interview. Jessie and Henry, though disappointed and dejected, still hoped their brother would appear, thinking that his failure to keep the appointment might be owing to his having no means of telling the exact time of day, where he was. They kept on with their labor, and the shrubs were soon in their places at the foot of the graves, and the whole lot was put in as good order as the time would allow.
But they looked and waited in vain for Sam. He did not appear. After lingering around the burial-ground until it was nearly time for the academy bell to ring, they departed, sadly disappointed, and wondering whether Sam had taken alarm, and left town sooner than he intended, or whether he had agreed to the appointment merely to get rid of the importunities of his sister, and without any idea of keeping his promise. Jessie and Henry felt, however, that they had done a good work, though they had not accomplished the thing for which mainly they set out on their early morning errand.
CHAPTER XV.
SHOW AND SUBSTANCE.
“Mother,” said Ronald, one evening, as the family were sitting together in the twilight, “I wish we had a sugar-orchard. Only think—Charlie Doane and his little brother Tom have made three hundred and ten pounds of sugar, this year, without anybody’s help, and they’re going to have all the money for it. All their father did was to cut a part of the wood. Charlie isn’t fourteen years old, yet, and he’s got lots of money laid up. Why, he says they’ll get all of twenty-five dollars for their maple sugar, this year.”
“What does he intend to do with his money?” inquired Mrs. Page.