THE BOOK OF BETTY BARBER.
“There seem to be always two together,” said Ellessdee. “He drops them in couples.”
On they ran until they came to a place where several roads met.
“Well, here’s another,” cried Sois.
“And another,” said Repeater, “at the foot of the sign-post.”
“We must stop a minute,” said Ellessdee. “I want to rest, and you must pack your boxes away, Thirteen-fourteenths. I’m sure your pockets are full.”
“We'll all rest,” said Tare.
“Indeed we will,” said Tret, and he threw himself down on the ground.
But the Fraction did not sit down, though he stood still.
“I wonder which path we ought to take,” he said, looking up at the sign-post above his head.
It was a difficult question, for there were several roads meeting.
“To Nonsense Land, To Music Land, To Paint Land, To Sum Land, To Rhyme Land, To the Tall Tall Tree,” read Sois, staring up at the sign-post.
“And we don’t know which way he went,” said Thirteen-fourteenths.
“We must divide into parties,” said Sois.
“It seems to me that some of us ought to go back home,” said Ellessdee. “If we don’t find the book, we shall have to put all those bits of paper together; for you know, some way or other, we must get those sums right.”
Tare looked at Tret, and yawned a big yawn. “I’m tired,” he said.
“If a man drops twelve boxes, how many will he drop?” said Sois.
“He may drop hundreds and hundreds,” said Ellessdee, “and men may come and men may go, but I can’t go on for ever, with all those sums waiting to be done at home.”
“But the book!” said Thirteen-fourteenths. “We must find the book. Now listen, I have a plan: Sois shall run for five minutes towards Music Land, Ellessdee shall run for the same time
