Lom goes Blackberrying. 235

“Very well,” said Archie. “I’m quite
ready. Give me the basket.”

Tom looked as though he had been fighting,
instead of only picking and eating blackberries.
His jacket-sleeve was torn, and his face and
_ hands were scratched and stung with nettles.
To make matters worse, in jumping back from
the hedge on to the road, he slipped and fell
into the ditch. It was not deep enough to
drown him, but quite deep enough to soak
through his boots, and cover his stockings
with nasty brown mud, and make him look
like a water-plant just pulled up by the roots.
Archie was very sorry for him, and helped to
drag him out as quick as he could.

“What shall we do?” said he, looking at
Tom’s soaking boots and black stockings.

“Never mind,” said Tom. ‘“ The black-
berries are safe. I’m thankful they did not
fall in with me, because it would have been
worse than picking up the tadpoles to have
picked ¢hem up. You goon. Id rather the
blackberries were carried in safe. I'll stand a
minute in the sun to dry.”