Matthew had become his best friend. The gardener constantly thought out pleasant surprises for Mux, who showed a decided taste for farming. If Matthew had to do some important work where Mux was in his way, he always devised a plan to keep the boy amused elsewhere: “Go down there to the raspberry hedge, Mux!” he would say. “The berries are finest and biggest there, because the sun has cooked them through. Go to the plum tree afterwards and wait for me!” Mux would obey promptly, wandering over to the plum tree from the raspberry bushes, which he had lightened considerably. He then would sit thoughtfully under the plum tree, waiting till Matthew returned. The gardener then shook the tree so mightily that a flood of golden plums came rolling down over Mux, who could freely enjoy the wealth about him. If Matthew could not be found and Cornelli and Dino were busy with their own plans and did not need him, Mux knew another friend who always gave him a good reception, that friend was Esther. He loved to find her in the vegetable garden, which was also full of surprises for him. It was like a marvel to the little boy that the green peas hung here in abundance, whereas they were only served at home on feast days. He became quite scared when Esther picked a basketful. But when he warned her, saying, “Don’t take them all, for then we won’t have any more,” she only laughed and said: “They always grow again; in a week there will be plenty more.” If Mux looked a little timidly at the large cabbage heads, Esther said to him: “Don’t be afraid of them, Mux. If I cook cabbage, everybody else likes it so much that you won’t have to eat it at all, and you can take the potatoes which I serve with it.” Mux often accompanied Esther to the kitchen, where he soon picked up a lot of useful knowledge. There was no pastry the exact recipe of which as well as how it tasted Mux could not tell. In this manner he lived through heavenly days. They were no less heavenly for the other children. Dino and Cornelli had started the large undertaking of laying out Martha’s garden after their own plan. They were so busy inventing things and carrying them out that they could hardly ever be found. Agnes struggled with Dino for first place in Cornelli’s affection, but Dino was always the victor. Cornelli never forgot that he had been her first friend, who had held fast to their friendship. For this she remained faithful to him. It was a consolation to Agnes that she could play on the lovely piano whenever she wanted to and that Cornelli was always home in the evenings, when she could sing with her. Mr. Hellmut would sit in his arm-chair while the two girls sang one song after another, and he could never hear enough. Beaming with joy, he would say to Mrs. Halm from time to time: “The child has her mother’s voice, except that her mother’s voice was still fuller and softer.”