The latter made a few inquiries as to the morning's
progress, and the capable answers testified to the knowledge of the
learners. The dinner did credit to Miss Heald's skill; it was well
cooked and daintily served. Winona was full of admiration; her culinary
experience was limited so far to cakes and scones; she felt that she
would have been very proud if she had compounded that stew, and baked
those custards. When the meal was finished the students tramped forth
again to their outdoor labor, while Miss Heald cleared away. Winona
begged to be allowed to help her, and was initiated into the mysteries
of the very latest and most sanitary method of washing up, with the aid
of mop, dish-rack, and some patent appliances. It was so interesting
that she quite enjoyed it. She swept the kitchen, filled kettles at the
pump, and did several other odd jobs; then, everything being left in an
absolutely immaculate condition, Miss Heald declared that she was ready,
and offered to take her companion for a tour of inspection round the
farm.

The little holding had been well planned, and was skillfully arranged.
In front was the garden, a large piece of ground stretching down to the
hedge that bordered the road. Miss Carson's original idea had been the
culture of flowers, partly for the sale of their blossoms, and partly
for the preservation of their seeds, but the national need of producing
food crops during the war had induced her to plant almost the whole of
it with fruit and vegetables. At present it somewhat resembled a village
allotment. Patches of peas and broad beans were coming up well. Groups
of gooseberry bushes were thriving. Strawberry beds were being carefully
weeded, and two of the students were erecting posts round them, over
which nets would be hung later on to protect the fruit from the birds.

"Birds are our greatest pest here," explained Miss Heald. "One may like
them from a natural history point of view, but you get to hate the
little wretches when you see them devouring everything wholesale.
They've no conscience. Those small coletits can creep through quite fine
meshes, and simply strip the peas, and the blackbirds would guzzle all
day if they had the chance. I want to borrow an air gun and pot at them,
but Miss Carson won't let me. She's afraid I might shoot some of the
other students."

A row of cucumber frames and some greenhouses stood at the bottom of the
garden. The latter were mostly devoted to young tomat