“Many things. I study lady tigers that take off their stripes every night and put them on in the morning quite differently and——”
“Why do they do that?” interrupted the girl.
“So they will be in style,” he continued seriously. “And I study dentist birds that repair alligators’ teeth; and mice that fly upside down.”
“Why!” exclaimed the girl somewhat indignantly, “I never heard such stories in my life!”
“That isn’t half,” said Martin. “Be very quiet now. Don’t move. Do you see that fly that lit on my knee? He’s looking for something to eat. There. He’s found it. Maybe I spilled sugar on my pants this morning. But do you see what he’s doing before he eats? He’s washing his face with his forelegs.”
The little girl watched carefully and saw the insect dip its head and bring its arms across its face like a brush. Suddenly she waved at it and the fly spun away.
“I can’t stand them,” she said.
“Just the same,” Martin nodded, “it washed its face.”
“It isn’t as funny as the tiger,” the girl concluded. “Tell me how a tiger can take off its stripes. Does it hurt?”