Tom gave Joe the brush. He did not smile, but for the first time that day he was a very happy boy. He sat down and ate Joe’s apple.
More friends came to laugh at Tom, but soon they all wanted to paint too. By the afternoon Tom had three balls, an old knife, a cat with one eye, and an old blue bottle, and a lot of other exciting things. He was the richest boy in St Petersburg, and the fence – all thirty metres of it – was a beautiful white. He went back to the house.
‘Aunt Polly, can I go and play now?’
Aunt Polly came out of the house to look. When she saw the beautiful white fence, she was very pleased. She took Tom into the house and gave him an apple.
‘Well, you can go and play. But don’t come home late.’ Tom quickly took a second apple and ran off.
