"Oh, John, we have been here so long!" she said. "You
brought me here when we were first married. I was just
a lass then, and you were the smartest young man I ever
saw--at least I thought so."
"Well, Mary," answered John, "I guess we'll try to stay. 30
Perhaps it will all blow over some time."
"Yes, John, it will be like everything else by and by.
But if I were you, I'd fill those holes. The people come
from far and wide on Sundays to see them."
"Mary, I haven't the heart to do that," said the disappointed
man. "You see, when I was digging for treasure
I felt sure I was going to find it, and that kept my heart up. 5
But take a shovel and fill all those holes? I'd rather do
without eggs every Sunday!"
So for six months the heaps of earth stood in the heat and
the frost. Then in the spring the old man took heart and
filled the holes, smoothing the ground until it was as level 10
as before. And soon everybody forgot "Jacobs's folly"
because it was out of sight.
The month of April was warm, and out burst the trees.
"Mary," said John, "the bloom is richer than I've seen
it for many a year; it's a good deal richer than in any of 15
our neighbors' orchards."
The bloom died, and then out came a million little green
things, quite hard. Summer passed. Autumn followed,
and the old trees staggered under their weight of fruit.
The trees were old and needed attention. John's 20
letting in the air to them and turning the soil up to the
frost and sun had renewed their youth. And so, in that
way, he learned that tillage is the way to get treasure
from the earth.
1. What other stories about buried treasure have
you read? What is fascinating about the theme
besides the get-rich-quick idea?
2. In what country is the scene of this story laid?
At about what time? Give evidence in support of
your answer.
3. Do apple trees bear better when the ground is
cultivated around them? Where do you get your first
hint of the end of the story? Is the conclusion
satisfying to you? Was it to John?