all; for
_her_ kitten liked to hear stories. Phonny, at this, laughed again,
and then Malleville, appearing to be still more displeased, said that
she was not any more childish than Phonny himself was.

By this time Beechnut, as Phonny called him, had come up. He was
driving a cart. The cart was loaded with wood. The wood consisted of
small and dry sticks, which Beechnut had gathered together in the
forest.

"Beechnut," said Phonny, "are you going into the woods again for
another load?"

"Yes," said Beechnut.

"And may I go with you?" said Phonny.

"Yes," said Beechnut.

"And I?" said Malleville.

"Yes," said Beechnut.

Beechnut drove on into the yard, and at length stopped near a great
woodpile. Beechnut began to throw off the wood. Phonny climbed up into
the cart too, to help Beechnut unload. Malleville sat down upon a log
lying near to see.

While they were at work thus, throwing off the wood, Phonny, instead
of taking the smallest sticks that came in his way, tried always to
get hold of the largest. He had three motives for doing this, all
mingled together. The first was a pleasure in exercising his own
strength; the second, a desire to show Malleville that he was no
child; and the third, to make a display of his strength to Beechnut.

After a while, when the load had been about half thrown off, Phonny
stopped his work, straightened himself up with an air of great
self-satisfaction and said,

"Malleville says I am childish; do you think I am, Beechnut?"

"No," said Malleville, "I did not say so." She began to be a little
frightened at this appeal to Beechnut.

"Yes," said Phonny, "you certainly did."

"No," said Malleville.

"What did you say?" asked Phonny.

"I said I was not childish myself, any more than you."

"Well, that is the same thing," said Phonny.

Malleville was silent. She thought that it was a different thing, but
she did not know very well how to explain the difference.

In the mean time Beechnut went on unloading the wood.

"Do _you_ think I am childish at all, Beechnut," said Phonny.

"Why I don't know," said Beechnut, doubtfully. "I don't know how many
childish things it is necessary for a boy to do, in order to be
considered as childish in character; but I have known you to do _two_
childish things within half an hour."

Phonny seemed a little surprised and a little confused at this, and
after a moment's pause he said:

"I know what one of them is, I guess."

"Wha