Down in Bluebell Wood

"You need a boat to be a pirate," said Oliver, he thought it was time to say something before his two friends came to blows.

"A boat?" said Spike looking up to Oliver on the tree branch, "what sort of a boat?"

"Yes," said Cyril sitting up quickly, "what sort of a boat? "

"Any sort of a boat, a boat  boat - if it floats it's a boat, and if it's a boat it floats," said Oliver, he was full of wise old sayings, not that Spike or Cyril understood half of them, Oliver turned  his head to look at the pond and closed his eyes again.

"Ah," said Cyril, "boats float, like tin cans and things."

 "Tin cans are too small," said Spike, "and they are round, boats are sort of - well- boaty shape."

He wasn't quite sure of what shape it should be but he was certain it wasn't round.

"Boats can be round," said Oliver, "but it's better if  they're  not. "

They sat and pondered the problem for a while, Spike lay on his back again and rubbed his tummy, Cyril sat up and studied the piles of dirt that Monty Mole was making.

"If," said Spike, "it was a sort of squashy round, round in the middle but not round at the ends, like  pointy  round."

"Sounds a funny shape to me," said Cyril.