“ ‘Are you ready, Stubbins?’ ”
“Are you ready, Stubbins?” asked John Dolittle.
“Yes, Doctor,” said I, making sure my pencil point would last awhile.
“Good,” said he.—“Put it down”:
The Doctor—“Do you like this stationary life—I mean, living in the same place all the time, unable to move?”
The Lilies—(Several of them seemed to answer in chorus)—“Why, yes—of course. Being stationary doesn’t bother us. We hear about all that is going on.”
The Doctor—“From whom, what, do you hear it?”
The Lilies—“Well, the other plants, the bees, the birds, bring us news of what is happening.”
The Doctor—“Oh, do you communicate with the bees and the birds?”
The Lilies—“Why, certainly, of course!”