The secret garden

MAGIC 297in the garden. Even gray days pleased him. Hewould lie on the grass" watching things growing,"he said. If you watched long enough, he declared,you could see buds unsheath themselves. Alsoyou could make the acquaintance of strange busyinsect things running about on various unknownbut evidently serious errands, sometimes carryingtiny scraps of straw or feather or food, orclimbing blades of grass as if they were trees fromwhose tops one could look out to explore thecountry. A mole throwing up its mound at theend of its burrow and making its way out at lastwith the long-nailed paws which looked so likeelfish hands, had absorbed him one whole morning.Ants' ways, beetles' ways, bees' ways, frogs'ways, birds' ways, plants' ways, gave him a newworld to explore and when Dickon revealed themall and added foxes' ways, otters' ways, ferrets'ways, squirrels' ways, and trout's and water-rats'and badgers' ways, there was no end to the thingsto talk about and think over.And this was not the half of the Magic. Thefact that he had really once stood on his feet hadsettold him of the spellColin thinking tremendously and when Maryshe had worked he was excitedand approved of it greatly. He talked of itconstantly.*'Of course there must be lots of Magicin the