the house barefooted and full of my plan. Upstairs I went to a window opening
on the shed roof. Out I got, and creeping carefully along till I came near the tree, I stood up, and suddenly crowed like
the little rooster. Nelly looked up, and stared, and laughed, and clapped her hands when she saw what I was going to do.
“‘I’m afraid you’ll slip and get hurt.’
“‘Don’t care if I do; I’ll have those plums if I break my neck doing it,’ and half sliding, half walking, I went down the
sloping roof, till the boughs of the tree were within my reach.
“‘Hurrah!’ cried Nelly, dancing down below, as my first shake sent a dozen plums rattling round her.
“‘Hurrah!’ cried I, letting go one branch and trying to reach another. But as I did so my foot slipped, I tried to catch something
to hold by, but found nothing, and with a cry, down I fell, like a very big plum on the grass below.
“Fortunately the shed was low, the grass was thick, and the tree broke my fall, but I got a bad bump and a terrible shaking.
Nelly thought I was killed, and began to cry with her mouth full. But I picked myself up in a minute, for I was used to such
tumbles, and didn’t mind the pain half as much as the loss of the plums.
“‘Hush! Debby will hear and spoil all the fun. I said I’d get ’em and I have. See what lots have come down with me.’
“So there had, for my fall shook the tree almost as much as it did me, and the green and purple fruit lay all about us.
“By the time the bump on my forehead had swelled as big as a nut, our aprons were half full, and we sat down to enjoy ourselves.
But we didn’t. O dear, no! For many of the plums were not ripe, some were hurt by the birds, some crushed in falling, and
many as hard as stones. Nelly got stung by a wasp, my head began to ache, and we sat looking at one another rather dismally,
when Nelly had a bright idea.
“‘Let’s cook ’em, then they’ll be good, and we can put some away in our little pails for tomorrow.’
“‘That will be splendid! There’s a fire in the kitchen, Debby always leaves the kettle on, and we can use her saucepan, and
I know where the sugar is, and we’ll have a grand time.’
“In we went, and fell to work very quietly. It was a large, open fireplace, with the coals nicely covered up, and the big
kettle simmering on the hook. We raked open the fire, put on the saucepan, and in it the best of our plums, with water enough
to spoil them. But we didn’t know that, and felt very important as we sat waiting for it to boil, each armed with a big spoon,
while the sugar box stood between us ready to be used.
“How slow they were, to be sure! I never knew such obstinate things, for they wouldn’t soften, though they danced about in
the boiling water, and bobbed against the cover as if they were doing their best.
“The sun began to get low, we were afraid Debby would come down, and still those dreadful plums wouldn’t look like sauce.
At last they began to burst, the water got a lovely purple, we put lots of sugar in, and kept tasting till our aprons and
faces were red, and our lips burnt with the hot spoons.
“‘There’s too much juice,’ said Nelly, shaking her head wisely. ‘It ought to be thick and nice like mamma’s.’
“‘I’ll pour off some of the juice, and we can drink it,’ said I, feeling that I’d made a mistake in my cooking.
“So Nelly got a bowl, and I got a towel and lifted the big saucepan carefully off. It was heavy and hot, and I was a little
afraid of it, but didn’t like to say so. Just as I began to pour, Debby suddenly called from the top of the stairs, ‘Children,
what under the sun are you doing?’
“It startled us both. Nelly dropped the bowl and ran. I dropped the saucepan and didn’t run, for a part of the hot juice splashed
upon my bare feet and ankles, and made me scream with dreadful pain.
“Down rushed Debby to find me dancing about the
on the shed roof. Out I got, and creeping carefully along till I came near the tree, I stood up, and suddenly crowed like
the little rooster. Nelly looked up, and stared, and laughed, and clapped her hands when she saw what I was going to do.
“‘I’m afraid you’ll slip and get hurt.’
“‘Don’t care if I do; I’ll have those plums if I break my neck doing it,’ and half sliding, half walking, I went down the
sloping roof, till the boughs of the tree were within my reach.
“‘Hurrah!’ cried Nelly, dancing down below, as my first shake sent a dozen plums rattling round her.
“‘Hurrah!’ cried I, letting go one branch and trying to reach another. But as I did so my foot slipped, I tried to catch something
to hold by, but found nothing, and with a cry, down I fell, like a very big plum on the grass below.
“Fortunately the shed was low, the grass was thick, and the tree broke my fall, but I got a bad bump and a terrible shaking.
Nelly thought I was killed, and began to cry with her mouth full. But I picked myself up in a minute, for I was used to such
tumbles, and didn’t mind the pain half as much as the loss of the plums.
“‘Hush! Debby will hear and spoil all the fun. I said I’d get ’em and I have. See what lots have come down with me.’
“So there had, for my fall shook the tree almost as much as it did me, and the green and purple fruit lay all about us.
“By the time the bump on my forehead had swelled as big as a nut, our aprons were half full, and we sat down to enjoy ourselves.
But we didn’t. O dear, no! For many of the plums were not ripe, some were hurt by the birds, some crushed in falling, and
many as hard as stones. Nelly got stung by a wasp, my head began to ache, and we sat looking at one another rather dismally,
when Nelly had a bright idea.
“‘Let’s cook ’em, then they’ll be good, and we can put some away in our little pails for tomorrow.’
“‘That will be splendid! There’s a fire in the kitchen, Debby always leaves the kettle on, and we can use her saucepan, and
I know where the sugar is, and we’ll have a grand time.’
“In we went, and fell to work very quietly. It was a large, open fireplace, with the coals nicely covered up, and the big
kettle simmering on the hook. We raked open the fire, put on the saucepan, and in it the best of our plums, with water enough
to spoil them. But we didn’t know that, and felt very important as we sat waiting for it to boil, each armed with a big spoon,
while the sugar box stood between us ready to be used.
“How slow they were, to be sure! I never knew such obstinate things, for they wouldn’t soften, though they danced about in
the boiling water, and bobbed against the cover as if they were doing their best.
“The sun began to get low, we were afraid Debby would come down, and still those dreadful plums wouldn’t look like sauce.
At last they began to burst, the water got a lovely purple, we put lots of sugar in, and kept tasting till our aprons and
faces were red, and our lips burnt with the hot spoons.
“‘There’s too much juice,’ said Nelly, shaking her head wisely. ‘It ought to be thick and nice like mamma’s.’
“‘I’ll pour off some of the juice, and we can drink it,’ said I, feeling that I’d made a mistake in my cooking.
“So Nelly got a bowl, and I got a towel and lifted the big saucepan carefully off. It was heavy and hot, and I was a little
afraid of it, but didn’t like to say so. Just as I began to pour, Debby suddenly called from the top of the stairs, ‘Children,
what under the sun are you doing?’
“It startled us both. Nelly dropped the bowl and ran. I dropped the saucepan and didn’t run, for a part of the hot juice splashed
upon my bare feet and ankles, and made me scream with dreadful pain.
“Down rushed Debby to find me dancing about the
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