“But we haven’t any dolls to live in the houses!” exclaimed Frances suddenly.

“That’s easy,” said Alice; “I’ve made dolls before.  Grandmother showed me how years ago.  Come on and we’ll get some.”

She led the girls back to the orchard, where by now tiny green apples were lying on the ground, scattered there by the summer winds.

“You girls get all the apples you can while I get the toothpicks.”  And she ran to the house.

“What does she mean?” asked Frances, who wasn’t used to this sort of play.

“I don’t know, but let’s do what she says and then we’ll find out,” answered Mary Jane, who had great confidence in this big sister of hers.  They filled their skirts with apples of all sizes and hurried back to the front yard where Alice, carrying a box of toothpicks, met them.

“Now we’ll all make dolls,” said Alice as she spread out the picks.  “Use the biggest apples for the body; stick in two toothpicks for arms and two for legs.  And a middle-sized apple makes the head.  Then take another toothpick and mark out eyes and nose and mouth—­so!” And she set up the finished doll for the girls to see.

Frances and Mary Jane picked up apples and went to work too, and first thing they knew there was a doll standing in front of each house.  They were just starting on animals, pigs and horses and cows which Alice showed them how to make, when Grandmother came out with a pitcher of lemonade and a basket of cookies.  So the burr making turned into a party which lasted till Mr. Westland came tooting along the road and Frances had to go home.

EARNING MONEY

“Now if I only had a camera,” said Alice as she and Mary Jane and her grandmother were sitting out on the back porch one morning, shelling peas for dinner, “I’d take a picture of you both.  Wouldn’t it make a good one?”

Grandmother looked at Mary Jane.  The sunshine splattered through the cracks between the vine-covered lattice and shone on her bobbed brown hair, on her pink play dress and on the bright green pea pods in her lap.  Mary Jane looked at her grandmother and saw the snow white hair, the kindly face that smiled above the big work apron and the busy hands.

“Wouldn’t it, though!” they both exclaimed at exactly the same minute.  And then they all three had a good laugh.

“All the same I wish I had a camera,” insisted Alice.

“Does your mother think you’re old enough to know how to use one?” asked Grandmother.

“Old enough, Grandmother!” exclaimed Mary Jane.  “Alice’s twelve!” And the way she said twelve showed that she thought twelve was very, very old indeed.

Grandmother smiled and Alice added, “She’s willing I should have one, Grandmother, only I must buy it myself.  And saving money out of my allowance is slow work.  I’ve a dollar now but I need seventy-five cents more.”