The secret garden — Chapter Twelve Meeting Uncle Archibald

　　"Don"t look so frightened," he said in a worried voice. "Of course you don"t make trouble. You may do what you want?"

　　"Can I?" Mary said. She looked him in the eyes for the first time.

　　"Of course you can. You are only a little girl, and I am your guardian. I am a bad guardian for a child, because I am always sick and busy and unhappy. But I want you to be happy and comfortable. I don"t know anything about children, but Mrs. Medlock and Martha will make sure you have what you need. Now that I have seen you, I think Mrs. Sowerby was right. She was brave to speak to me, but she said intelligent things. Play outside as much as you like. You may go wherever you want. Is there anything you want? Toys, books, or clothes?"

　　"Please, sir," said Mary shyly, looking at the ground, "Could I have a small piece of land?"

　　Her uncle looked very surprised.

　　"Land!" he said. "What do you mean?"

　　"To make a small garden -- to plant things -- to watch them grow," whispered Mary.

　　Her uncle walked slowly across the room. He seemed to be remembering something, or thinking about something. "Do you care about gardens so much?"

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