"What can be the reason that Ned is so late?" she said, half aloud, to
herself. "He always hastens home to his poor old grandmother as soon as
he has done work. What can make him an hour later than usual? I hope
nothing has happened to him. But, hush!" she continued, after a few
minutes' pause, "surely I hear him coming now."
She was not mistaken, for in a minute or two Ned appeared, running quite
fast up the lane, and in a few moments more he was standing by her side,
panting and breathless.
"Dear grandmother," he exclaimed, as soon as he had recovered breath
enough to speak, "I have a great deal of good news to tell you. Farmer
Tomkyns says he will employ me all through the winter, and pay me the
same wages that he does now. This is one piece of good news. And the
other is, that Mr. Stockwell, the greengrocer, will buy all my apricots,
and give me a good price for them. I am to take them to him next
market-day. I had to wait more than half-an-hour before I could speak to
him, and that made me so late. O how beautiful they are!" continued he,
gazing with admiration at the tree. "O grandmother, how happy I am!"
His grandmother smiled, and said she was glad to hear this good news.
"And now come in and have your tea, child," she added; "for I am sure
you must be hungry.
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