Berrying

The next morning Amanda helped her mother with the Saturday baking
while Millie and Uncle Amos tended market.

"This hot weather the pies get soft till Sunday if we bake them a'ready
on Friday," Mrs. Reist said to Millie, "so Amanda and I can do the
bakin' while you go to market. I guess we'll have a lot of company
again this Sunday, with church near here."

"All right, let 'em come," said the hired girl composedly. "I don't
care if you don't. It's a good thing we all like company pretty good,
for I think sometimes people take this place for a regular boarding-
house, the way they drop in at any time, just as like when we're ready
to set down for a meal as at any other hour. Philip said last week,
when that Sallie Snyder dropped in just at dinner, that he's goin' to
paint a sign, 'Mad Dog,' and hang it on the gate. But I think we might
as well put one up, 'Meals served at all hours,' but ach, that's
Lancaster County for you!"

Mrs. Reist liked to do her baking early in the day. So it happened that
when Martin Landis stopped in to see Amanda before he went to his work
in the city he saw on the kitchen table a long row of pies ready for
the oven and Amanda deftly rolling the edge of another.

"Whew!" he whistled. "Mrs. Reist, is that your work or Amanda's so
early in the morning?"