But you are such a terror!
What with this game of yours at your age, too, to get children
out of doors!
GAFFER. God bless my soul! So I'm already as bad as autumn wind
and sun, eh! But, friend, I know something, too, of the game of
keeping them indoors. When my day's work is over I am coming in
to make friends with this child of yours. [Exit]
[AMAL enters]
AMAL. Uncle, I say, Uncle!
MADHAV. Hullo! Is that you, Amal?
AMAL. Mayn't I be out of the courtyard at all?
MADHAV. No, my dear, no.
AMAL. See, there where Auntie grinds lentils in the quirn, the
squirrel is sitting with his tail up and with his wee hands he's
picking up the broken grains of lentils and crunching them.
Can't I run up there?
MADHAV. No, my darling, no.
AMAL. Wish I were a squirrel!--it would be lovely. Uncle, why
won't you let me go about?
MADHAV. Doctor says it's bad for you to be out.
AMAL. How can the doctor know?
MADHAV. What a thing to say! The doctor can't know and he reads
such huge books!
AMAL. Does his book-learning tell him everything?
MADHAV. Of course, don't you know!
AMAL [With a sigh] Ah, I am so stupid! I don't read books.
MADHAV. Now, think of it; very, very learned people are all like
you; they are never out of doors.
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