“And you want to be rich?” said the gentleman.
“Yes, sir. I thought I’d try to be,” said Fred.
“What for?”
“What for? Why—why—so as to have the money.”
“And what would you do with the money, if you had it?”
“I’d—I’d use it,” said Fred, beginning to feel that he had come to debating school without sufficiently understanding the question.
“Do you see that pile of large stones near my barn?” said the gentleman. “I’ll give you those, and lend you a wheelbarrow to get them home.”
“I thank you,” said Fred; “but I don’t want them. They’re of no use.”
“O, yes, they are! You can build a house with them,” said the gentleman.
“But I’m not ready to build a house,” said Fred. “I haven’t any land to build it on, nor any other materials, nor anything to put into it; and I’m not old enough to be married and keep house.”