Philly had a bit of india-rubber in his letter, which was written with
very black ink on a big sheet of foolscap:

"I was once a naughty man,
And I hid beneath the bed,
To steal your india-rubbers,
But I chewed them up instead.

"Then you called out, 'Who is there?'
I was thrown most in a fit,
And I let the india-rubbers fall--
All but this little bit.

"I'm sorry for my naughty ways,
And now, to make amends,
I send the chewed piece back again,
And beg we may be friends.

"ROBBER."

"Just listen to mine," said Cecy, who had all along pretended to be as
much surprised as anybody, and now behaved as if she could hardly wait
till Philly's was finished. Then she read aloud:

"TO CECY.

"If I were a bird
And you were a bird,
What would we do?