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I looked, and he cut out with clean, sharp strokes all those long shoots

but one, carefully leaving the wood and bark s half the tree away

"You've left one, sir," I said

"Yes, Grant, I've left one; and I'll show you why Do you see this old

hard bough?"

I nodded

"Well, this one has done its work, so I' shoot take its place"

"But it has no fruit buds on it," I said quickly

"No, Grant; but it will have next year; and that's one thing we

gardeners always have to do with stone-fruit trees--keep cutting out the

old wood and letting the young shoots take the old branches' place"

"Why, sir?" I asked

"Because old branches bear se fruit is worth more than twice as much as small Give me the

saw"

I handed him the thin-bladed saw, and he rapidly cut out the old hard

bough, close down to the place where it branched fro me the tool, he knelt down on a pad of carpet he

carried in his tre his sharp pruning-knife he cut off