this morning, I can go swimming this
afternoon," muttered Jimmie. "Dad didn't say the whole thing had to be
weeded today, did he?"

"He wants the new heads of lettuce transplanted, and all the onions
weeded," answered Mother Morrison. "You know you were asked to tend to
those a week ago, Jimmie."

Jimmie flung himself out of the house in rather a bad temper. He did
not like to transplant lettuce and the onions must be weeded by hand.
Other vegetables could be handled with a hoe, or the garden cultivator,
but the eight long rows of new onions must be carefully done down on
one's hands and knees.

"Jimmie!" said a little voice at his elbow as he got the trowel and the
wheelbarrow from the toolhouse. "Jimmie?"

"Well, what do you want?" demanded Jimmie shortly.

"I'll--I'll help you," offered Sister timidly.

"You can't," said Jimmie. "Last time you crammed the lettuce plants in
so hard they died over night."

"But I'll bring the water for 'em, in the watering-pot, and I can weed
onions--I know how to do that," insisted Sister humbly.

"I won't need the watering-pot," said Jimmie more graciously. "I'll use
the hose on them all tonight. I wonder if you could weed the onions?"

"Oh, yes!" Sister assured him eagerly. "You watch me, Jimmie."

She fell on her fat little knees, and began to pull the weeds from a
long row of onions.

The sun was hot and the row was very long. Before she reached the
middle of it, the perspiration was running down Sister's face, and her
hands were damp and grimy.

"Look here," Jimmie called to her anxiously, on his way back for more
lettuce plants, "don't you want to rest? And why don't you wear a
sunbonnet, or something?"

Sister stood up, straightening her aching little shoulders.

"Sunbonnets are hot," she explained carefully. "And I don't want to
rest, Jimmie. I'll go get a drink of water and then I'll weed some
more."

"Bring me a drink, too, will you?" Jimmie called after her.

When she brought it he forgot to say thank you because one of his
friends had ridden past on his bicycle and this reminded Jimmie that he
had meant to do something to his own wheel that morning. So he drank
the water Sister carried out to him without a word because he was
cross, and when we're cross we do not always remember to be polite.

Sister went steadily at the weeding again, and after a while Jimmie
finished the lettuce, and began to weed an onion row himself.

"You can stop if you want t