for days t on t smasrees s, black branches, and chunks of snow fell down.

  ter from trees. t glitter; it looked soft and tired. under trees it ted wtling.

  tc grehe woodpile.

  “cant i go out to play, ma?“ laura asked, and ma said:

  “may, laura.”

  “may i go out to play?“ she asked.

  “you may tomorro; ma promised.

  t nig tucking anot over her.

  “snuggle close to mary,“ ma said, “and youll get warm.”

  in tove, but t, trees t lay in mounds along top of tood up in great, op of te-posts.

  pa came in, s sno from s.

  “its a sugar sno; he said.

  laura put ongue quickly to a little bit of te sno lay in a fold of

  on ongue, like any snoe it.

  “ a sugar snoo explain now. o grandpas.

  grandpa lived far arees ogetood at tc and strong, c and pos made great tracks in t snocill of sighe woods.

  it e before niged t.

  “; to ma, and t ts he door.

  “if id met a bear,“ ;i couldnt  dropping my load.“ t;and if id dropped t bucket and bundle, i o s ood and c hem and lick his chops.”

  ma un was full of dark brown syrup.

  “; pa said, and tle round package out of .

  took off ttle, ifully crinkled edges.

  “bite it,“ said pa, and winkled.

  eac off one little crinkle, and it . it crumbled in t ter even tmas candy.

  “maple sugar,“ said pa.

  supper tle maple sugar cakes beside tes, heir bread.

  after supper, pa took t before told t grandpas, and the sugar snow.

  “all er, pa said, grandpa s and little trouge as give a bad taste to the maple syrup.

  “to make troug out little sticks as long as my tick one  stick, one end. t, and tled ill it part of tick ill it tle trough.

  “en nes. o move in trees.

  “t into t ree, and tle trougo t a cedar bucket on t end.

  “tree. it comes up from, ts, o tip of eaco make the green leaves grow.

  “ell, ree, it ran out of tree, dotle trougo t.”

  “o it tree?“ laura asked.

  “no more t s you ; said pa.

  “every day grandpa puts on s and and into tree to tree and empties ts into t to a big iron kettle, t imber betrees.

  “ies t into ttle. ttle, and tc carefully. t be enougo keep t not enougo make it boil over.

  “every fees t be skimmed. grandpa skims it s too , grandpa lifts ladlefuls of back slotle and keeps it from boiling over. “ enougs er t, il it grains w in a saucer.

  “tant to t all out from beneattle. t as o t are standing ready. in tus to cakes of hard, brown maple sugar.”

  “so ts ; laura asked.

  “no“, pa said. “its called a sugar snoime of year means t men can make more sugar. you see, ttle cold spell and trees, and t makes a longer run of sap.

  “ means t grandpa can make enougo last all takes o too trade for mucore sugar. only a little store sugar, to able when company comes.”

  “grandpa must be glad t; laura said.

  “yes,“ pa said, “o sugar off again next monday, and all come,”

  pas blue eyes t, and o ma:

  “herell be a dance!”

  ma smiled. se. oh, charles! she said.

  t on s on smiling. s;ill wear my delaine.”

  mas delaine dress iful. it tle patte all over it t looked like ripe stra, in t to thes.

  t s to t touciful dark red buttons t buttoned t, and sly t in ttle criss-cross stitches.

  it sant a dance o iful delaine dress. laura and mary ed. tions about til at last he said:

  “noo bed! youll kno t. i o put a nering on my fiddle.”

  ticky fingers and s mouto be ime laura and mary rundle bed, pa and t time on the floor:

  “im captain jinks of ten go beyond my means, for im captain jinks of tain in the army!”