“Dunno,” says I.
“Bet they do,” says he. “I’m goin’ out to find out about it. Comin’?”
We set out to walk. It took us ’most an hour to get there, and when we did get there those barns looked even bigger than I had remembered them. We went right through the gate and up to a little house marked “Office.” There were two men in there, one in overalls and another slim man, not exactly dressed up, but not looking as if he spent much time washing out stalls. Catty rapped on the door, and the man in overalls looked up and said to come in.
“I’m looking for the boss,” says Catty. “I’m him,” says the man in overalls. “What is it?”
“You got fine, white, clean-lookin’ barns,” says Catty.
The man that didn’t have overalls sort of grinned, and the boss he kind of grinned, too. “Much ’bleeged,” says he. “Is that what you come to say?”
“No,” says Catty. “What I come to say was that that biggest barn with Number Three painted on it don’t look as good as the rest. Seems like it needed paintin’.”
Both men laughed. “Now I call that neighborly,” says the boss. “Wasn’t figgerin’ on offerin’ to paint it for us, was you?”
“I was,” says Catty, and both the men laughed again.
“Fetch your brush?” says the boss.