[11] The Revised Version renders the phrase “in baskets of silver.”

[12] Joel i. 12.

The children had all enjoyed the “apple-talk,” and they felt that the fruit which they were so accustomed to seeing would now have a new meaning for them.

CHAPTER X.

A FRUITFUL FAMILY:  THE PEACH, ALMOND, PLUM AND CHERRY.

Snowdrops, crocuses, hyacinths and tulips were blooming out of doors and in-doors; the grass looked green and velvety, and the fruit trees were, as John expressed it, “all a-blow.”  The peach trees, without a sign of a leaf, looked, as every one said of them, like immense bouquets of pink flowers, while pear, cherry and plum trees seemed as if they were dressed in white.

One cloudy, windy day, when the petals fell off in showers and strewed the ground, Edith declared that it was snowing; but she soon saw her mistake, and then began to worry because there would be no blossoms left for fruit.

“If the flowers stayed on, there would be no fruit,” said Miss Harson.  “Let me show you just where the little green germ is.”

“Why, of course!” said Malcolm; “it’s in the part that stays on the tree.”

Edith listened intently while her governess showed her the ovary of a blossom safe on the twig where it grew, and explained to her that it was this which, nourished by the sap of the tree, with the aid of the sun and air, would ripen into fruit, while the petals were merely a fringe or ornament to the true blossom.

At Elmridge, scattered here and there through garden and grounds, as Mr. Kyle liked to have them, there were some fruit trees of every kind that would flourish in that part of the country, but there was no orchard; and for this reason Miss Harson had taken the children to see the grand apple-blossoming at Farmer Grove’s.  Two very large pear trees stood one on either side of the lawn, and there were dwarf pear trees in the garden.

“I think pears are nicer than apples,” said Clara as they stood looking at the fine trees, now perfectly covered with their snowy blossoms.

But Malcolm, who found it hard work to be happy on three apples a day, stoutly disagreed with his sister on this point, and declared that nothing was so good as apples.

“How about ice-cream?” asked his governess, when she heard this sweeping assertion.

The young gentleman was silent, for his exploits with this frozen luxury were a constant subject of wonder to his friends and relatives.

“You will notice,” said Miss Harson, “that the shape of these trees is much more graceful than that of the apple tree.  They are tall and slender, forming what is called an imperfect pyramid.  Standard pear trees, like these, give a good shade, and the long, slender branches are well clothed with leaves of a bright, glossy green.  This rich color lasts late into the autumn, and it is then varied with yellow, and often with red and black, spots; so that pear-leaves are not to be despised in gathering autumn-leaf treasures.  The pear is not so useful a fruit as the apple, nor so showy in color; but it has a more delicate and spicy flavor, and often is of an immense size.”