“That wasn’t quite honest, was it, Royal? for they won’t keep fresh more than two days.”
“Well,” said Royal, “and she won’t have patience to water them more than one day.”
“That’s equivocation,” said Miss Anne.
“Equivocation?” repeated Royal; “what do you mean by that?”
“It is when anything you say has two senses, and it is true in one sense, and not true in another; and you mean to have any person understand it in the sense in which it is not true.”
“What do you mean by that?” said Lucy.
“Why, I will give you an example. Once there was a boy who told his brother William, that there was a black dog up in the garret, and William ran up to see. His brother came up behind him, and, when they opened the garret door, he pointed to an old andiron, such as are called dogs, and said, ‘See! there he is, standing on three legs.’”
Royal laughed very heartily at this story. He was much more amused at the waggery of such a case of equivocation, than impressed with the dishonesty of it.
“Miss Anne,” said he, “I don’t see that there was any great harm in that.”
“Equivocation is not wrong always,” said Miss Anne. “Riddles are often equivocations.”