“Uncle Roger says Peter’s father wasn’t exactly lazy,” said the Story Girl. “The trouble was, there were so many other things he liked better than work.”
“I wonder if he’ll ever come back to his family,” said Cecily. “Just think how dreadful it would be if OUR father had left us like that!”
“Our father is a King,” said Felicity loftily, “and Peter’s father was only a Craig. A member of our family COULDN’T behave like that.”
“They say there must be a black sheep in every family,” said the Story Girl.
“There isn’t any in ours,” said Cecily loyally.
“Why do white sheep eat more than black?” asked Felix.
“Is that a conundrum?” asked Cecily cautiously. “If it is I won’t try to guess the reason. I never can guess conundrums.”
“It isn’t a conundrum,” said Felix. “It’s a fact. They do—and there’s a good reason for it.”
We stopped picking apples, sat down on the grass, and tried to reason it out—with the exception of Dan, who declared that he knew there was a catch somewhere and he wasn’t going to be caught. The rest of us could not see where any catch could exist, since Felix solemnly vowed, ‘cross his heart, white sheep did eat more than black. We argued over it seriously, but finally had to give it up.
“Well, what is the reason?” asked Felicity.