Rhodes punched a few holes in the cover
with his pocket-knife; and after a little hesitation I picked the
fennel-stalk with the worm on it, and laid it carefully in the box,
making sure that the cover was tight. The box was then taken to the
house and deposited on a bench in the porch, for Aunt Susan objected to
entertaining this new boarder indoors.
"I gave my worm his breakfast the next morning before I had my own, and,
forgetting my aversion, sat by the open box and watched him eat, as his
strong jaws made clean work with leaf and stem.
"'He isn't so ugly, after all, Charlie,' I said; 'he is almost handsome
for a worm, with all those bright colors on him,'
"Then Charlie caught a little of my enthusiasm, and said _he_ meant to
keep a worm too. So he searched the fennel-bush and found three, and
tumbled them unceremoniously into the box.
"'Now they'll have good times together,' said he; 'that fellow was awful
lonesome shut up by himself,'
"At Aunt Susan's suggestion I improved my worm-house by removing the top
of the box and stretching mosquito-netting across, fastening it securely
along the edges lest my prisoners should escape. And it was well I took
this precaution; for, though for several days they made no attempt to
get away, and seemed to do nothing but eat and sleep, one morning I
found my largest and handsomest worm in a very disturbed and restless
condition.
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