noon
When he suggested tactfully , however , that it was now necessary that his guest and Midget separate , a difficulty arose . Shirley Sumner refused point blank to leave the premises . She liked Bryce for his hair and because he had been so kind to her ; she was a stranger in Sequoia , and now that she had found an agreeable companion , it was far from her intention to desert him . So Miss Sumner stayed and helped Bryce weed his carrots , and since as a voluntary labourer she was at least worth her board , at noon Bryce brought her in to Mrs. Tully with a request for luncheon . When he went to the mill to carry in the kindling for the cook , the young lady returned rather sorrowfully to the Hotel Sequoia , with a fervent promise to see him the next day . She did , and Bryce took her for a long ride up into the Valley of the Giants and showed her his mother 's grave . The gray squirrels were there , and Bryce gave Shirley a bag of pine-nuts to feed them .