"I must be getting old," said Grandfather Mole. "I'm growing more careless every day. I didn't mean to dig my way above ground." And then, thrusting his long nose right into the dirt, he began to burrow out of sight.
"Stop! Please stop!" Jolly Robin besought him. "I want to ask you a question about digging."
Grandfather Mole pulled his nose out of the ground.
"What's your question?" he inquired.
"It's about Grunty Pig," Jolly Robin began.
"I thought you said it was about digging," Grandfather Mole grumbled. And he started to burrow once more.
"So it is!" Jolly exclaimed. "I want to know how long it will take Grunty Pig to dig up the apple tree where I live."
Again Grandfather Mole paused.
"It all depends," he muttered. "It all depends on how much of his time he spends at digging."
"He works every day," said Jolly Robin. "A good, long while every day!"