Page 26 (1/2)

And so are you

Laura’s said only:

Sweets to the sweet

The pieces of candy were exactly the saer than Mary’s

They all went back through the sand to the wagon on the lake shore Pa fed the horses, on the bottoht for their dinner Ma opened the picnic box

They all sat on the waron and ate bread and butter and cheese, hard-boiled eggs and cookies The waves of Lake Pepin curled up on the shore at their feet and slid back with the s sound

After dinner, Pa went back to the store to talk awhile with otherCarrie quietly until she went to sleep But Laura and Mary ran along the lake shore, picking up pretty pebbles that had been rolled back and forth by the waves until they were polished smooth

There were no pebbles like that in the Big Woods

When she found a pretty one, Laura put it in her pocket, and there were so many, each prettier than the last, that she filled her pocket full Then Pa called, and they ran back to the wagon, for the horses were hitched up and it was tio home

Laura was so happy, when she ran through the sand to Pa, with all those beautiful pebbles in her pocket But when Pa picked her up and tossed her into the wagon, a dreadful thing happened

The heavy pebbles tore her pocket right out of her dress The pocket fell, and the pebbles rolled all over the bottoon box

Laura cried because she had torn her best dress

Ma gave Carrie to Pa and came quickly to look at the torn place Then she said it was all right

“Stop crying, Laura,” she said “I can fix it” She showed Laura that the dress was not torn at all, nor the pocket The pocket was a little bag, sewed into the sea under it Only the seaood as new

“Pick up the pretty pebbles, Laura,” Ma said “And another tireedy”