Hal and Mab began to understand what a wonderful earth this of ours is,
and how much comes out of the brown soil which, with the help of the air,
the rain and sunlight, can take a tiny seed, no larger than the head of a
pin, and make from it a great, big green tomato vine, that blossoms and
then has on it red tomatoes, which may be eaten or sold for money. And the
beans and carrots did the same, each one coming from a small seed.

Sammie Porter came out two or three times and watched Hal and Mab selling
things at their vegetable store. The little boy seemed to be wondering
what was going on, and Hal and Mab told him as well as they could.

"Sammie goin' to have a 'mato store," he said when the two Blake children
had sold all their things, and were moving their empty boxes and door into
the barn. "Me goin' to sell 'matoes."

"I wonder what he will do?" said Mab.

"Maybe he'll take a lot of things from his father's garden," suggested
Hal. "We better tell him not to."

"Well, Mr. Porter is working among his potatoes so I guess Sammie can't do
much harm," Mab said.

A little later she and Hal happened to look out in front and they saw a
queer sight. Sammie was drawing along the sidewalk his little express
wagon, in which he had piled some tomatoes. They were large, ripe ones,
and he must have picked them from his father's vines, since he could not
get through the fence into the Blake gardens.

"Oh, Sammie!" cried Mab, running out to him, "What are you doing with
those tomatoes?"

"Sammie goin' have a 'mato store an' sell 'em like you an' Hal. You want
come my 'mato store?" he asked, looking up and smiling.

"No, I guess we have all the tomatoes we want," laughed Hal.

Sammie did not seem to worry about this. Maybe he thought some one else
would buy his vegetables. He wheeled his cart up near his own front fence,
on the grass and sat down beside it.

"'Mato store all ready," he said. "People come an' buy now."

But though several persons passed they did not ask Sammie how much his
tomatoes were. They may have thought he was only playing, and that his
tomatoes were not good ones, though they really were nice and fresh.

"We'd better go tell his father or mother," suggested Mab to her brother.
"I don't believe they know he's here."

"Guess they don't," Hal agreed. "Come on; he might get hurt out there all
alone."

Brother and sister started into the Porter yard. They did not see Sammie's
mother, but his fat