They reached the old orchard, and ran about among the trees picking up apples--now the little soft yellow crab apples--then the huge, round, ruddy pippins--next the golden-coat bell apples, oblong and mellow, which had dropped from pure ripeness from the autumn boughs.
Verty had often climbed into the old trees, and filled his cap with the speckled eggs of black-birds, or found upon the fence here, embowered in the foliage, the slight nests of doves, each with its two eggs, white and transparent almost; and the recollection made him smile.
They gathered a number of the apples, and then strolled on, and eat a moment with the pleasant overseer's wife.
A number of little curly-headed boys had been rolling like apples on the grass as they approached; fat-armed and chubby-legged, and making devoted advances to Longears, who, descending from his dignity, rolled with them in the sunshine.

These now approached, and the young girls patted their heads, and Mr.Ralph gave them some paternal advice, and the good housewife, spinning in her cane-bottom chair with straight tall back, smiled pleasantly, and curtsied.
The baby (there always was a baby at the overseer's) soon made his appearance, as babies will do everywhere; and then the unfortunate young curly-heads of riper age were forced to return once more to the grass and play with Longears--they were forgotten.
To describe the goings on of the two young ladies with that baby is wholly out of the question.

They quarreled for it, chucked it in their arms, examined its toes with critical attention, and conversed with it in barbarous baby language, which was enough, Ralph said, to drive a man distracted.

They asked it various questions--were delighted with its replies--called its attention to the chickens--and evidently labored under the impression that it understood.

They addressed the baby uniformly in the neuter gender, and requested to know whether it was not their darling.