"Why, I thought the country was just the place to make money for missions," cried Marty. "There's 'first-fruits' and such things that are a great deal easier got at in the country than in town. And I have heard of children raising missionary corn and potatoes, and having missionary hens that laid the very best kind of eggs regularly every day, that brought a high price." "Yes, but who's going to buy the things up here? Folks all have their own corn and potatoes and hens. And how'd we children get a few little things miles and miles to market?" Marty was rather taken aback by this view of the subject. "The children I read about got _somebody_ to buy their things," she said. She was rather discouraged because Evaline was not more enthusiastic about missions, and thought there was no use trying to further the cause in this region; but fortunately she happened to tell Almira what they had been talking of, and she took up the subject as warmly as Marty could wish, saying she thought it would be very nice to have a missionary circle of some sort. "Ruth has talked to me about it," she said, "and I promised to help, but we can't seem to get the children interested." "Aren't there _any_ interested, not even enough to begin with?" inquired Marty. "Well, there are Ruth's two brothers and sister, and I think Joe and Maria Pratt, who live just beyond Campbell's, might be talked into it. Then there's Eva, but she doesn't seem to care much about it." "I care a great deal more since I heard Marty tell about her band," Evaline declared, "and I wouldn't mind belonging to something of the kind, only I don't see where I'd get any money to give." "We'd try to manage that," said Almira. After that for a few days there was a good deal of talk among them all on the subject, and some reading aloud afternoons from Marty's missionary books. Finally Mrs. Stokes said she thought it would be a very good thing for the young people in the neighborhood to have a society, and proposed that Almira and the little girls should go over and spend the next afternoon with Ruth, when they could talk the matter over. CHAPTER XV. THE MOUNTAIN MISSION-BAND. "I am very glad Marty came up here this summer, for I do believe, with her to help us, we shall get the mission-band started at last," said pretty, blue-eyed Ruth Campbell, after they had all been talking for an hour or so as hard as their tongues could go. When she had learned what her visitors' errand was, she had called her sister and brothers and had sent Hugh over for Maria and Joe Pratt. Then they had quite a conference on the shady porch, Ruth sewing busily all the while. "I'm afraid I can't help much," said Marty. "Why, you have helped and are helping ever so much. You've got Evaline all worked up, and Maria too, and by telling us what you do in your band you have given us many hints for ours."