Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1919-08-05
THE STORIES THE
DEWDROPS TOLD
(Written for the United States
School Garden Army, Depart
ment of the lnterior.)
THE FAIRY WITH THE PINK VEST


Hello, he said.
Dolly looked up, for the voice seem
ed to come from place near the top
of her head. He was sitting on the
fence. He was the largest of all the
Dewdrop Fairies she had seen. He wore
dark green coat and his trousers were
the same color. HIS vest was the love
lest shade of pink deep and bright
with large black buttons down the
front. Dolly thought it very hand
some suit.
az don I live in your garden, he
said; "but the Fairies have told me
so much about you that | thought |
would pay you a little call this morn,
ing
~ m very glad you did," said Dol
ly. She was noticing that his face was
almost as pink as his vest.
"Well, | think il is fine thing for
little girls and boys to have gardens,
and as you seem TO want TO know all
about the things that grow in your
garden | thought perhaps l could tell
you few things
"Oh, j wish you would. But ] don t
even know your name. Did you say
that you don t grow in our garden
Why don 7 youG"
fNo; | grow on the other side of
the fence. You see, your garden is a
very nice garden, but you have hardly
enough ground to raise my plants. We
take a great deal Of room. We have
been called greedy don t know why.
They say we don I get along well with
other plants except our own family.
Well, we are pretty big. OF course, we
have to have plenty of room because
some of us weigh more than good
sized baby. -
81 cant think what you can be, F"
said Dolly, much puzzled.
''Just look over the fence and see il
you know me, said the Fairy with
the pink vest
Dolly carefully put her foot upon the
crosspieee at the bottom of the board
fence and peeped over. The ground on
the other side Of the fence was cover
cd with big vines that seemed to grow
in many directions. The leaves were
big and rather open looking, as though
they had been cut into fancy patterns
with a pair of scissors.
In among the leaves she saw a lot
Of Ia fse. green objects shaped like
eggs. only ever so much bigger.
"oh, | know" she cried. ''You are
the Fairy Of the Watermelon Vine.
Exactly, said ihe Fairy with the
pink vest. 'fNow you see why ven
haven I any of my family on this side
OF the fence. You can I raise water
melons except in big place. Pumpkins
too--they have to have a great deal Of
room to run about in"'
"Do pumpkins rum" cried Dolly.
do they runi | should say-why
AYn't YOU remember Cinderella s
Pumpkin Coaehl Didn't il run
"0h. but the mice pulled it, ;" said
Dolly. wisely. s'It didn't run by Il
self.
Anyway. pumpkins dc run-at
least the vines dO--and 50 do water
melons. You see. we grow so fast that
many Of cur family are-well. you
might say removed while they are
quite young.
ssYou don I mean killedln said Del.
", quite shocked
"f wouldn't 20 50 far a. TO say
that, said the Fairy, "bat we know
that very few Of our plants are allow
ed to live to. grow up. We like a warm
climate best, and Il takes Us quite a
long time to grow, although We do
grow fast. The plants that you see
here are the Kind that ripen easily.
Farther south theF raise those big,
sweet eaes that y1a like 50 much in
the middle of the summer. Our seeds
must De planted in hills quite long
distance apart te give rs room to
spread oat. Some Of rs are solid