"Do you want toys, books, dolls ?" "Might I," quavered Mary, "might I have a bit of earth ?" In her eagerness she did not realize how queer the words would sound and that they were not the ones she had meant to say.

Mr.Craven looked quite startled.
"Earth!" he repeated.

"What do you mean ?" "To plant seeds in--to make things grow--to see them come alive," Mary faltered.
He gazed at her a moment and then passed his hand quickly over his eyes.
"Do you--care about gardens so much," he said slowly.
"I didn't know about them in India," said Mary.

"I was always ill and tired and it was too hot.

I sometimes made little beds in the sand and stuck flowers in them.