"O Norton, you know I don't know any thing."
"That's all in the air," said Norton. "You can read, I suppose, and write?"
"Yes, I can read and write. But then I haven't been to school in ever so long."
"Never mind that. If we go nine miles an hour, how far shall we have gone if we are out three hours and a half?"
Matilda answered this and several more puzzling questions with pretty prompt correctness.
"You'll do," said Norton. "I knew you were sharp. You can always tell whether a person has a head, by the way he takes hold of numbers." A partial judgment, perhaps; for Norton himself was very quick at them.
"Can you read any thing except English, Pink?" he went on.
"No, Norton. How could I try without being taught?"
"Of course," said Norton. "There's a jolly dog cart--isn't it? Mamma wants you to read a lot of things besides English, I can tell you."
"Latin, and Greek, and German, and French, I am boring at now."
"I like figures better. David is great on languages. Well, Pink, you shan't have 'em all at once. Now I want to ask you another question. What do you think was the greatest battle that was ever fought in the world?"
"Battle? O I don't know any thing about battles, Norton."
"Well, who was the greatest hero, then; the greatest man?"
Matilda pondered, and Norton watched her slyly in the intervals of attending to his ponies.
"I think, Norton, the greatest man I ever heard about, was Moses."
Norton's face quivered with amusement, but he kept it a little turned away from Matilda and asked why she thought so?
"I never heard of anybody who did such great things; nor who had such great things?"
"Had? What did he have?" said Norton. "I never knew he had any thing particular."
"Don't you remember? the Lord spoke with him face to face, as we speak to each other; and once he had a sight of that wonderful glory. It must have been something so wonderful, Norton, for it made Moses' face itself shine with light."
"I mean, that isn't to be taken for real and earnest, you know."
"Yes it is, Norton, for the people were frightened when they saw him, and ran away."
"Pink, Pink, Pink!" exclaimed Norton, and stopped.
"Nothing. And so Moses is your greatest man! That is all you know!"
"Why, who do you know that is greater?" said Matilda.