"S'pose
we go to walk a little ways?"
"I don't know as my mother'd like to have me do that."
"Oh yes, she would; she won't care. Come along! I'll get my hat."
Hannah Maria dashed over the sheet into the entry and got her hat off
the peg; then she and Mehitable started. They strolled up the country
road. Mehitable trundled her doll-carriage carefully; once in a while
she looked in to see if the doll was all right.
"Isn't that carriage kind of heavy for you to drag all alone?" inquired
Hannah Maria.
"No; it isn't very heavy."
"I had just as lief help you drag it as not."
Hannah Maria reached down and took hold by one side of the handle of the
doll-carriage, and the two girls trundled it together.
There were no houses for a long way. The road stretched between
pasture-lands and apple-orchards. There was one very fine orchard on
both sides of the street a quarter of a mile below Hannah Maria's house.
The trees were so heavily loaded with green apples that the branches
hung low over the stone walls. Now and then there was among them a tree
full of ripe yellow apples.
"Don't you like early apples?" asked Hannah Maria.
Mehitable nodded.
"Had any?"
"No."
"They don't grow in your field, do they?"
Mehitable shook her head. "Mother makes pies with our apples, but
they're not mellow 'nough to eat now," she replied.
"Well," said Hannah Maria, "we haven't got any.
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