“Well,” said Rollo, “we can pick them all up together now, and separate them when we get home.”
As he said this, he threw in a handful of small apples among the good ones which George had been putting in.
“Be still,” said George; “you must [pg 143]not do so. I tell you we must not mix them at all.” And he poured the apples out upon the ground again.
“O, I'll tell you what we will do,” said James; “we will get a load of little ones first, and then the big ones. I want to see the pigs eat them up.”
But George thought it was best to take the big ones first, and so they had quite a discussion about it, and a great deal of time was lost before they could agree.
Thus they went on for some time, discussing every thing, and each wanting to do the work in his own way. They did not dispute much, it is true, for neither of them wished to make difficulty. But each thought he might direct as well as the others, and so they had much talk and clamor, and but very little work. When one wanted the wagon to be on one side of the tree, the others wanted it the other; and when George thought it was time to draw the load along towards home, Rollo and James thought it was not nearly full enough. So they were all pulling in different directions, and made very slow progress in their work. It took them a long time to get their wagon full.
[pg 144]When they got the load ready, and were fairly set off on the road, they went on smoothly and pleasantly for a time, until they got up near the door of the garden-house, when Rollo was going to turn the wagon round so as to back it up to the door, and George began to pull in the other direction.
“Not so, Rollo,” said George; “go right up straight.”
“No,” said Rollo, “it is better to back it up.”
James had something to say, too; and they all pulled, and talked loud and all together, so that there was nothing but noise and clamor. In the mean time, the wagon, being pulled every way, of course did not move at all.