hes, burs, nuts, berries,
and trailing vines with curious seed pods. There were masses of
brilliant flowers, most of them strange to the Girl, many to the great
average of humanity. While she sat bending over them, beside her the
Harvester delved in the black earth of the woods, or the clay and sand
of the open hillside, or the muck of the lake shore, and lifted large
bagfuls of roots that he later drenched on the floating raft on the
lake, and when they had drained he dried them. Some of them he did not
wet, but scraped and wiped clean and dry. Often after she was sleeping,
and long before she awoke in the morning, he was at work carry-ing
heaped trays from the evaporator to the store-room, and tying the roots,
leaves, bark, and seeds into packages.

While he gathered trillium roots the Girl made drawings of the plant
and learned its commercial value. She drew lady's slipper and Solomon's
seal, and learned their uses and prices; and carefully traced wild
ginger leaves while nibbling the aromatic root. It was difficult to keep
from protesting when the work carried them around the lake shore and
to the pokeberry beds, for the colour of these she loved. It required
careful explanation as to the value of the roots and seeds as blood
purifier, and the argument that in a few more days the frost would level
the bed, to induce her to consent to its harvesting. But when the
case was properly presented, she put aside her drawing and stained her
slender fingers gathering the seeds, and loved the work.

The sun was golden on the lake, the birds of the upland were clustering
over reeds and rushes, for the sake of plentiful seed and convenient
water. Many of them sang fitfully, the notes of almost all of them were
melodious, and the day was a long, happy dream. There was but little
left to gather until ginseng time. For that the Harvester had engaged
several boys to help him, for the task of digging the roots, washing and
drying them, burying part of the seeds and preparing the remainder
for market seemed endless for one man to attempt. After a full day the
Harvester lay before the fire, and his head was so close the Girl's knee
that her fingers were in reach of his hair. Every time he mended the
fire he moved a little, until he could feel the touch of her garments
against him. Then he began to plan for the winter; how they would store
food for the long, cold days, how much fuel would be required, when they
would go to the city for