"But isn't Guernsey between England and France?" asked Willie. "Yes, certainly." "Well, then, I think you will find, uncle, that Guernsey is about twenty-six miles from France, and England is only twenty-one miles from France, between Calais and Dover." "My mathematical master," said George, "has been trying to induce me to accept the axiom that 'if equals be multiplied by equals the products are equal.'" "It is self-evident," pointed out Mr. Filkins. "For example, if 3 feet equal 1 yard, then twice 3 feet will equal 2 yards. Do you see?" "But, Mr. Filkins," asked George, "is this tumbler half full of water equal to a similar glass half empty?" "Certainly, George." "Then it follows from the axiom that a glass full must equal a glass empty. Is that correct?" "No, clearly not. I never thought of it in that light." "Perhaps," suggested Mr. Allgood, "the rule does not apply to liquids." "Just what I was thinking, Allgood. It would seem that we must make an exception in the case of liquids." "But it would be awkward," said George, with a smile, "if we also had to except the case of solids. For instance, let us take the solid earth. One mile square equals one square mile. Therefore two miles square must equal two square miles. Is this so?" "Well, let me see! No, of course not," Mr. Filkins replied, "because two miles square is four square miles." "Then," said George, "if the axiom is not true in these cases, when is it true?" Mr. Filkins promised to look into the matter, and perhaps the reader will also like to give it consideration at leisure. "Look here, George," said his cousin Reginald Woolley: "by what fractional part does four-fourths exceed three-fourths?" "By one-fourth!" shouted everybody at once. "Try another one," George suggested. "With pleasure, when you have answered that one correctly," was Reginald's reply. "Do you mean to say that it isn't one-fourth?" "Certainly I do." Several members of the company failed to see that the correct answer is "one-third," although Reginald tried to explain that three of anything, if increased by one-third, becomes four. "Uncle John, how do you pronounce 't-o-o'?" asked Willie. "'Too," my boy." "And how do you pronounce 't-w-o'?" "That is also 'too.'" "Then how do you pronounce the second day of the week?" "Well, that I should pronounce 'Tuesday,' not 'Toosday.'" "Would you really? I should pronounce it 'Monday.'" "If you go on like this, Willie," said Uncle John, with mock severity, "you will soon be without a friend in the world." "Can any of you write down quickly in figures 'twelve thousand twelve hundred and twelve pounds'?" asked Mr. Allgood. His eldest daughter, Miss Mildred, was the only person who happened to have a pencil at hand. "It can't be done," she declared, after making an attempt on the white table-cloth; but Mr. Allgood showed her that it should be written, "L13,212."