The bee., 1897-04-15

over very thoughtfully and finally said
between tho whiffs Of his pipe: Lady,
the Lord must have sent you to me, be-
cause. Of all the people living in the Ber-
mudas, alone perhaps can help you.
l haven't much, only my little farm
hero and these rude huts, but if you
win accept one of the latter as a tenn
porary dwelling it is yours for as long
as you may wish to stay. AS for food,
If You can put up with my fare of milk
and sweet potatoes, with now and then
a bit Of meat and all the fish you want,
! to be caught in the bay, you are wei
come No, don't thank me, - he said rs
tried to express my gratitude. g have
been thinking Of making some one this
same'offer for the privilege of pleasant
company, for am getting old and have
lived too long alone. Indeed you will
do me favor by accepting my offer"
The very next day we had removed
our Belongings to one of the huts, which
promised TO serve us as well as il it
! were palatial mansion in that favored
land whore ono may pass the entire day
ont 1icrs As tho physician had or
dcrcd my mother to spend all the time
possible in the open air, it mattered lit
= tie what kind of rooftrcc sheltered us
at night. And, so far as / was concerned,
it was Il joy TO wander in the shade of
those fragrant trees and along the beach,
where shells Of every hue were abundant
and where the crystal waters covered
the gardens Of sea plants. Seeing that
! liked to work about the flower garden
and knowing that he might speak TO me
frankly, my aged friend suggested that
i make an attempt TO wrest livelihood
from the soil.
Il am too old" he said, "to embark
in any new adventures; but, if You
want TO try it, why there's the garden,
with as rich q soil as anywhere, aud
hero are all the tools and seeds you need.
You seem like strong and sensible
young lady. Nobody need know what
you are doing, as my place is so secluded,
and all tho time your mother will be
getting her health while you are gain
ing strength and perhaps making money.
There arc three or four things that pay
here III Burmuda These are potatoes,
onions. arrowroot and Easter lilies,
The first threo arc too difficult for you
to manage, but the last, it seems TO me,
would be easy to cultivate and pleasant
to raise. Now, one corner of that plot il
already planted with Easter bulbs, ant
If you will take tho care Of them of my
hands shall feel greatly obliged ant
win divide the profits with you into th'
bargain. "
Womanlize, jumped at this generous
offer, and, to mako long story short
tended those lilies so assiduously that
even the first season s profits were very
satisfactory. The second seasons wer'
much moro so, and the third and f0urtl
found us with surplus Of cash to on
credit and half the little vale plantcC
with bulbs.
Our good old friend died tho fourtl
year Of our stay, but left us life inter
est in his estate for small considera
ton, and we continued in tho occupa
ton which We had found so pleasant
and which promised to Lo SO profitable
My mother regainod her health an,
frcm choice worked with me in the gar
den, while myself had become so at
tached to the place and so contented a
my labors that doubt if anything Il
the world could draw me away.
There arc Objectionable features, @
course, mainly depending upon WON
ans performance Of what is usually don
by men, Tho middlemen doubtless roll
bed me at times, the lilies did not al
ways arrive in New York in good con
dition, and sometimes tho bulbs woul
be injured by protracted sea voyage
} Again, land cannot be purchased her
/ by alien Americans, ms the Bermuda
| constitute u military colony, and onl
. those loyal and subject TO the BIRTHS
+. queen can own real estate, but Ion
/ leases arc easy to obtain, and thus a
? danger of forfeiture is obviated.
And there is also a peculiar satisfaC
. ton in the reflection that all this love
$ Illness was, in a sense, the creation {
y my own hands, a sensation only under
A stood by these who have gardens of thei
@ own. SARA EEDIcoTT STANDBY.