"And how many States are there now?"
There was no response to this. How many boys or men, even, can tell offhand the number at the present time?
"There were 48 before we sailed. How many, if any, were added since I do not know."
The next day the boys were anxious to set to work on the flag. There was plenty of the ramie cloth at hand, but it was quite yellow. George noticed this, and said: "It seems to me we shall have to be content with making the flag red, yellow and blue, that is, if we can get the red and the blue."
"No," was the Professor's rejoinder; "we must make it red, white and blue."
"But how can we make the ramie cloth white?"
"By bleaching it."
That was a new idea; to make white cloth.
"How can we do it?"
"Wet it and put it in the sun. If we want to hurry it up we can use some chloride of lime."