“The little maid is a born gardener,” chuckled her grandfather, when he was told of it; “’tis the folk that talks to their flowers that gets the best out of them.”

“If talking’ll do it, her rose-bush will be covered thick, then,” laughed her grandmother.

“I wish I could send some of my roses to mother,” sighed Jessie; “mother loves roses,” and the tears came into her eyes.  “Granny, do you think my roses will all be gone before mother comes for me?”

“Your—­mother!  Is she coming?” Patience was so taken aback that she spoke in almost a dismayed tone, and Jessie, with her loving little heart and quick ears, noticed it and was hurt.  It sounded to her as though her granny did not want her mother; and her chin quivered and her eyes filled, for she wanted her mother very much, and every one else should want her too, she thought.

Her grandfather saw the poor little quivering lips and tear-filled eyes, and understood.  “The rose may be past,” he said cheerfully, “for the time, any way, but we’ll have flowers of some kind ready for mother whenever she comes.  ’Tis you and I, little maid, will see to that, won’t we?  We must make it our business to have something blooming all the year round, then we’ll be sure to be right.”

Jessie looked up at him gratefully, and the tears changed to smiles.  Something told her that granp would be glad to see mother whenever she came.  The thought of growing flowers for her was a lovely one, too; it seemed to bring her mother nearer; and, though granny and granp were so kind, oh, she did want her so very, very much.  She wanted her to see the garden and the house, and the kitten, and to have bacon and eggs for breakfast, and milk in her tea, and nice butter on her bread.

Then, in the midst of these thoughts, something that granny was saying caught her attention, and, for the moment, drove all other thoughts out of her head.

“I’ve been thinking I’d better go into Norton this afternoon, and do some shopping,” she remarked to granp, “for the child must have some clothes, and as soon as possible, too; and I reckon I’d better take her with me, though she really isn’t fit, her boots and her hat are so shabby; but it’ll be better to have her there to be fitted, especially the first time.”

“Oh, she doesn’t look so bad,” answered granp cheerfully.  “If she keeps smiling at folks they won’t notice her hat nor her boots neither.”

Granny was not so sure of that.  Her pride was a little hurt at the thought of taking such a shabbily-clad little granddaughter into the shops where she was well known.  However, hats and boots required to be tried on, so there was nothing for it but to make the best of things, and Jessie was to be taken to Norton.

What a day of wonders that was to Jessie!  It seemed almost as though there were too many good things crowded into one twenty-four hours.