“O, two—no, let me see—three. White, and Black—”
“And Yellow,” put in Tom with an air of wisdom.
“And Red and Canoe,” added Mr. Percival, with a smile.
“So many! What are they good for?”
“Canoes, tents and—nurses.”
“Nurses!”
“The growth of birches is so rapid that they are excellent for planting beside other trees which are less hardy, so that the birches, or ‘nurses,’ as the gardeners call them, may shelter the babies from extreme heat or cold.”
“How funny! I knew, of course, that a garden of young trees was called a nursery!”
“Then the real Canoe Birch, which isn’t common hereabouts, was formerly much used by the Indians for canoes and wigwams.”
“How did they make the pieces stay?”