"Why?" the stout female wanted to know. "Do they really eat metal?"
"I doubt it. One of them ate a couple of pounds of Earth candy a tourist gave him last time and he seemed to enjoy it without ill effects."
"Without ill effects!" Ppon excogitated. "You should have seen Ztul afterward, boy!"
"Look, Mac." A short fat human offered Hsoj a small silver coin and then five larger brown ones. "Which would you rather have?"
"Them." Hsoj pointed unhesitatingly to the brown coins.
A smile rippled covertly through the tourists.
"They're a simple and child-like people, but really so good-natured," Sam footnoted.
All of us gave simple good-natured smiles as Hsoj accepted the gift of the brown coins.
"Keep up the good work," I projected. "We can use all the copper we can get."
"You like metal, dear?" a female asked Hsoj. She unfastened a belt from around her waist. "Would you take this in exchange for some of your pretty things?"