Sky Island
by L. Frank Baum · English · Gutenberg #39159 · 328,552 chars · public domain (US)
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Title: Sky Island
Author: L. Frank Baum
Illustrator: John R. Neill
Release date: March 15, 2012 [eBook #39159]
Language: English
Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/39159
Credits: Produced by Chuck Greif, Broward County Libraries and the
Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SKY ISLAND ***
Produced by Chuck Greif, Broward County Libraries and the
Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
[Illustration: This Book Belongs To]
SKY ISLAND
[Illustration]
THE FAMOUS OZ BOOKS
By L. Frank Baum:
THE WIZARD OF OZ
THE LAND OF OZ
OZMA OF OZ
DOROTHY AND THE WIZARD IN OZ
THE ROAD TO OZ
THE EMERALD CITY OF OZ
THE PATCHWORK GIRL OF OZ
TIK-TOK OF OZ
THE SCARECROW OF OZ
RINKITINK IN OZ
THE LOST PRINCESS OF OZ
THE TIN WOODMAN OF OZ
THE MAGIC OF OZ
GLINDA OF OZ
CHICAGO THE REILLY & LEE CO. _Publishers_
SKY ISLAND
_Being the Further Exciting Adventures
of Trot and Cap'n Bill after Their
Visit to the Sea Fairies_
By
L. FRANK BAUM
AUTHOR OF THE SEA FAIRIES, THE EMERALD CITY OF OZ,
DOROTHY AND THE WIZARD IN OZ, OZMA OF OZ,
THE ROAD TO OZ, THE LAND OF OZ, ETC.
[Illustration]
ILLUSTRATED BY
JOHN R. NEILL
The Reilly & Lee Co.
Chicago
[Illustration]
COPYRIGHT 1912. BY L. FRANK BAUM
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOG
CARD NO. 78-125373
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
To
MY SISTER
MARY LOUISE BREWSTER
[Illustration]
A LITTLE TALK TO MY READERS
With "The Sea Fairies," my book for 1911, I ventured into a new field of
fairy literature and to my delight the book was received with much
approval by my former readers, many of whom have written me that they
like Trot "almost as well as Dorothy." As Dorothy was an old, old friend
and Trot a new one, I think this is very high praise for Cap'n Bill's
little companion. Cap'n Bill is also a new character who seems to have
won approval, and so both Trot and the old sailor are again introduced
in the present story, which may be called the second of the series of
adventures of Trot and Cap'n Bill.
But you will recognize some other acquaintances in "Sky Island." Here,
for instance, is Button-Bright, who once had an adventure with Dorothy
in Oz, and without Button-Bright and his Magic Umbrella you will see
that the story of "Sky Island" could never have been written. As
Polychrome, the Rainbow's Daughter, lives in the sky, it is natural that
Trot and Button-Bright meet her during their adventures there.
This story of Sky Island has astonished me considerably, and I think it
will also astonish you. The sky country is certainly a remarkable
fairyland, but after reading about it I am sure you will agree with me
that our old Mother Earth is a very good place to live upon and that
Trot and Button-Bright and Cap'n Bill were fortunate to get back to it
again.
By the way, one of my little correspondents has suggested that I print
my address in this book, so that the children may know where letters
will reach me. I am doing this, as you see, and hope that many will
write to me and tell me how they like "Sky Island." My greatest
treasures are these letters from my readers and I am always delighted to
receive them.
L. FRANK BAUM.
"OZCOT"
at HOLLYWOOD
in CALIFORNIA
[Illustration]
LIST OF CHAPTERS
CHAPTER
1--A MYSTERIOUS ARRIVAL 13
2--THE MAGIC UMBRELLA 23
3--A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE 37
4--THE ISLAND IN THE SKY 48
5--THE BOOLOOROO OF THE BLUES 55
6--THE SIX SNUBNOSED PRINCESSES 65
7--GHIP-GHISIZZLE PROVES FRIENDLY 74
8--THE BLUE CITY 80
9--THE TRIBULATION OF TROT 91
10--THE KING'S TREASURE CHAMBER 101
11--BUTTON-BRIGHT ENCOUNTERS THE BLUE WOLF 112
12--THROUGH THE FOG BANK 119
13--THE PINK COUNTRY 130
14--TOURMALINE THE POVERTY QUEEN 138
15--THE SUNRISE TRIBE AND THE SUNSET TRIBE 147
16--ROSALIE THE WITCH 160
17--THE ARRIVAL OF POLYCHROME 168
18--MAYRE, QUEEN OF THE PINK COUNTRY 179
19--THE WAR OF THE PINKS AND BLUES 187
20--GHIP-GHISIZZLE HAS A BAD TIME 193
21--THE CAPTURE OF CAP'N BILL 201
22--TROT'S INVISIBLE ADVENTURE 214
23--THE GIRL AND THE BOOLOOROO 222
24--THE AMAZING CONQUEST OF THE BLUES 233
25--THE RULER OF SKY ISLAND 245
26--TROT CELEBRATES HER VICTORY 252
27--THE FATE OF THE MAGIC UMBRELLA 263
28--THE ELEPHANT'S HEAD COMES TO LIFE 270
29--TROT REGULATES THE PINKIES 275
30--THE JOURNEY HOME 280
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
A MYSTERIOUS ARRIVAL
CHAPTER 1.
[Illustration]
"Hello," said the boy.
"Hello," answered Trot, looking up surprised. "Where did you come from?"
"Philadelphia," said he.
"Dear me," said Trot; "you're a long way from home, then."
"'Bout as far as I can get, in this country," the boy replied, gazing
out over the water. "Isn't this the Pacific Ocean?"
"Of course."
"Why of course?" he asked.
"Because it's the biggest lot of water in all the world."
"How do you know?"
"Cap'n Bill told me," she said.
"Who's Cap'n Bill?"
"An old sailorman who's a friend of mine. He lives at my house, too--the
white house you see over there on the bluff."
"Oh; is that your home?"
"Yes," said Trot, proudly. "Isn't it pretty?"
"It's pretty small, seems to me," answered the boy.
"But it's big enough for mother and me, an' for Cap'n Bill," said Trot.
"Haven't you any father?"
"Yes, 'ndeed; Cap'n Griffith is my father; but he's gone, most of the
time, sailin' on his ship. You mus' be a stranger in these parts, little
boy, not to know 'bout Cap'n Griffith," she added, looking at her new
acquaintance intently.
Trot wasn't very big herself, but the boy was not quite as big as Trot.
He was thin, with a rather pale complexion and his blue eyes were round
and earnest. He wore a blouse waist, a short jacket and knickerbockers.
Under his arm he held an old umbrella that was as tall as he was. Its
covering had once been of thick brown cloth, but the color had faded to
a dull drab, except in the creases, and Trot thought it looked very
old-fashioned and common. The handle, though, was really curious. It was
of wood and carved to resemble an elephant's head. The long trunk of the
elephant was curved to make a crook for the handle. The eyes of the
beast were small red stones, and it had two tiny tusks of ivory.
The boy's dress was rich and expensive, even to his fine silk stockings
and tan shoes; but the umbrella looked old and disreputable.
"It isn't the rainy season now," remarked Trot, with a smile.
The boy glanced at his umbrella and hugged it tighter.
"No," he said; "but umbrellas are good for other things 'sides rain."
"'Fraid of gett'n' sun-struck?" asked Trot.
He shook his head, still gazing far out over the water.
"I don't b'lieve this is bigger than any other ocean," said he. "I can't
see any more of it than I can of the Atlantic."
"You'd find out, if you had to sail across it," she declared.
"When I was in Chicago I saw Lake Michigan," he went on dreamily, "and
it looked just as big as this water does."
"Looks don't count, with oceans," she asserted. "Your eyes can only see
jus' so far, whether you're lookin' at a pond or a great sea."
"Then it doesn't make any difference how big an ocean is," he replied.
"What are those buildings over there?" pointing to the right, along the
shore of the bay.
"That's the town," said Trot. "Most of the people earn their living by
fishing. The town is half a mile from here an' my house is almost a half
mile the other way; so it's 'bout a mile from my house to the town."
The boy sat down beside her on the flat rock.
"Do you like girls?" asked Trot, making room for him.
"Not very well," the boy replied. "Some of 'em are pretty good fellows,
but not many. The girls with brothers are bossy, an' the girls without
brothers haven't any 'go' to 'em. But the world's full o' both kinds,
and so I try to take 'em as they come. They can't help being girls, of
course. Do you like boys?"
"When they don't put on airs, or get rough-house," replied Trot. "My
'sperience with boys is that they don't know much, but think they do."
"That's true," he answered. "I don't like boys much better than I do
girls; but some are all right, and--you seem to be one of 'em."
"Much obliged," laughed Trot. "You aren't so bad, either, an' if we
don't both turn out worse than we seem we ought to be friends."
He nodded, rather absently, and tossed a pebble into the water.
"Been to town?" he asked.
"Yes. Mother wanted some yarn from the store. She's knittin' Cap'n Bill
a stocking."
"Doesn't he wear but one?"
"That's all. Cap'n Bill has one wooden leg," she explained. "That's why
he don't sailor any more. I'm glad of it, 'cause Cap'n Bill knows
ev'rything. I s'pose he knows more than anyone else in all the world."
"Whew!" said the boy; "that's taking a good deal for granted. A
one-legged sailor can't know much."
"Why not?" asked Trot, a little indignantly. "Folks don't learn things
with their legs, do they?"
"No; but they can't get around, without legs, to find out things."
"Cap'n Bill got 'round lively 'nough once, when he had two meat legs,"
she said. "He's sailed to 'most ev'ry country on the earth, an' found
out all that the people in 'em knew, and a lot besides. He was
shipwrecked on a desert island, once, and another time a cannibal king
tried to boil him for dinner, an' one day a shark chased him seven
leagues through the water, an'--"
"What's a league?" asked the boy.
"It's a--a distance, like a mile is; but a league isn't a mile, you
know."
"What is it, then?"
"You'll have to ask Cap'n Bill; he knows ever'thing."
"Not ever'thing," objected the boy. "I know some things Cap'n Bill don't
know."
"If you do you're pretty smart," said Trot.
"No; I'm not smart. Some folks think I'm stupid. I guess I am. But I
know a few things that are wonderful. Cap'n Bill may know more'n I do--a
good deal more--but I'm sure he can't know the same things. Say, what's
your name?"
"I'm Mayre Griffith; but ever'body calls me 'Trot.' It's a nickname I
got when I was a baby, 'cause I trotted so fast when I walked, an' it
seems to stick. What's _your_ name?"
"Button-Bright."
"How did it happen?"
"How did what happen?"
"Such a funny name."
The boy scowled a little.
"Just like your own nickname happened," he answered gloomily. "My father
once said I was bright as a button, an' it made ever'body laugh. So they
always call me Button-Bright."
"What's your real name?" she inquired.
"Saladin Paracelsus de Lambertine Evagne von Smith."
"Guess I'll call you Button-Bright," said Trot, sighing. "The only other
thing would be 'Salad,' an' I don't like salads. Don't you find it hard
work to 'member all of your name?"
"I don't try to," he said. "There's a lot more of it, but I've forgotten
the rest."
"Thank you," said Trot. "Oh, here comes Cap'n Bill!" as she glanced over
her shoulder.
Button-Bright turned also and looked solemnly at the old sailor who came
stumping along the path toward them. Cap'n Bill wasn't a very handsome
man. He was old, not very tall, somewhat stout and chubby, with a round
face, a bald head and a scraggly fringe of reddish whisker underneath
his chin. But his blue eyes were frank and merry and his smile like a
ray of sunshine. He wore a sailor shirt with a broad collar, a short
peajacket and wide-bottomed sailor trousers, one leg of which covered
his wooden limb but did not hide it. As he came "pegging" along the
path, as he himself described his hobbling walk, his hands were pushed
into his coat pockets, a pipe was in his mouth and his black neckscarf
was fluttering behind him in the breeze like a sable banner.
Button-Bright liked the sailor's looks. There was something very
winning--something jolly and care-free and honest and sociable--about
the ancient seaman that made him everybody's friend; so the strange boy
was glad to meet him.
"Well, well, Trot," he said, coming up, "is this the way you hurry to
town?"
"No, for I'm on my way back," said she. "I did hurry when I was going,
Cap'n Bill, but on my way home I sat down here to rest an' watch the
gulls--the gulls seem awful busy to-day, Cap'n Bill--an' then I found
this boy."
Cap'n Bill looked at the boy curiously.
"Don't think as ever I sawr him at the village," he remarked. "Guess as
you're a stranger, my lad."
Button-Bright nodded.
"Hain't walked the nine mile from the railroad station, hev ye?" asked
Cap'n Bill.
"No," said Button-Bright.
The sailor glanced around him.
"Don't see no waggin, er no autymob'l'," he added.
"No," said Button-Bright.
"Catch a ride wi' some one?"
Button-Bright shook his head.
"A boat can't land here; the rocks is too thick an' too sharp,"
continued Cap'n Bill, peering down toward the foot of the bluff on which
they sat and against which the waves broke in foam.
"No," said Button-Bright; "I didn't come by water."
Trot laughed.
"He must 'a' dropped from the sky, Cap'n Bill!" she exclaimed.
Button-Bright nodded, very seriously.
"That's it," he said.
"Oh; a airship, eh?" cried Cap'n Bill, in surprise. "I've hearn tell o'
them sky keeridges; someth'n' like flyin' autymob'l's, ain't they?"
"I don't know," said Button-Bright; "I've never seen one."
Both Trot and Cap'n Bill now looked at the boy in astonishment.
"Now, then, lemme think a minute," said the sailor, reflectively.
"Here's a riddle for us to guess, Trot. He dropped from the sky, he
says, an' yet he did'nt come in a airship!
"'Riddlecum, riddlecum ree;
What can the answer be?'"
Trot looked the boy over carefully. She didn't see any wings on him. The
only queer thing about him was his big umbrella.
"Oh!" she said suddenly, clapping her hands together; "I know now."
"Do you?" asked Cap'n Bill, doubtfully. "Then you're some smarter ner I
am, mate."
"He sailed down with the umbrel!" she cried. "He used his umbrel as a
para--para--"
"Shoot," said Cap'n Bill. "They're called parashoots, mate; but why, I
can't say. Did you drop down in that way, my lad?" he asked the boy.
"Yes," said Button-Bright; "that was the way."
"But how did you get up there?" asked Trot. "You had to get up in the
air before you could drop down, an'--oh, Cap'n Bill! he says he's from
Phillydelfy, which is a big city way at the other end of America."
"Are you?" asked the sailor, surprised.
Button-Bright nodded again.
"I ought to tell you my story," he said, "and then you'd understand. But
I'm afraid you won't believe me, and--" he suddenly broke off and looked
toward the white house in the distance--"Didn't you say you lived over
there?" he inquired.
"Yes," said Trot. "Won't you come home with us?"
"I'd like to," replied Button-Bright.
"All right; let's go, then," said the girl, jumping up.
The three walked silently along the path. The old sailorman had refilled
his pipe and lighted it again, and he smoked thoughtfully as he pegged
along beside the children.
"Know anyone around here?" he asked Button-Bright.
"No one but you two," said the boy, following after Trot, with his
umbrella tucked carefully underneath his arm.
"And you don't know us very well," remarked Cap'n Bill. "Seems to me
you're pretty young to be travelin' so far from home, an' among
strangers; but I won't say anything more till we've heard your story.
Then, if you need my advice, or Trot's advice--she's a wise little girl,
fer her size, Trot is--we'll freely give it an' be glad to help you."
"Thank you," replied Button-Bright; "I need a lot of things, I'm sure,
and p'raps advice is one of 'em."
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE MAGIC UMBRELLA
CHAPTER 2.
When they reached the neat frame cottage which stood on a high bluff a
little back from the sea and was covered with pretty green vines, a
woman came to the door to meet them. She seemed motherly and good and
when she saw Button-Bright she exclaimed:
"Goodness me! who's this you've got, Trot?"
"It's a boy I've just found," explained the girl. "He lives way off in
Phillydelphy."
"Mercy sakes alive!" cried Mrs. Griffith, looking into his upturned
face; "I don't believe he's had a bite to eat since he started. Ain't
you hungry, child?"
"Yes," said Button-Bright.
"Run, Trot, an' get two slices o' bread-an'-butter," commanded Mrs.
Griffith. "Cut 'em thick, dear, an' use plenty of butter."
"Sugar on 'em?" asked Trot, turning to obey.
"No," said Button-Bright, "just bread-an'-butter's good enough when
you're hungry, and it takes time to spread sugar on."
"We'll have supper in an hour," observed Trot's mother, briskly; "but a
hungry child can't wait a whole hour, I'm sure. What are you grinning
at, Cap'n Bill? How dare you laugh when I'm talking? Stop it this
minute, you old pirate, or I'll know the reason why!"
"I didn't, mum," said Cap'n Bill, meekly, "I on'y--"
"Stop right there, sir! How dare you speak when I'm talking?" She turned
to Button-Bright and her tone changed to one of much gentleness as she
said: "Come in the house, my poor boy, an' rest yourself. You seem tired
out. Here, give me that clumsy umbrella."
"No, please," said Button-Bright, holding the umbrella tighter.
"Then put it in the rack behind the door," she urged. The boy seemed a
little frightened.
"I--I'd rather keep it with me, if you please," he pleaded.
"Never mind," Cap'n Bill ventured to say, "it won't worry him so much to
hold the umbrella, mum, as to let it go. Guess he's afraid he'll lose
it, but it ain't any great shakes, to my notion. Why, see here,
Butt'n-Bright, we've got half-a-dozen umbrels in the closet that's
better ner yours."
"Perhaps," said the boy. "Yours may look a heap better, sir, but--I'll
keep this one, if you please."
"Where did you get it?" asked Trot, appearing just then with a plate of
bread-and-butter.
"It--it belongs in our family," said Button-Bright, beginning to eat and
speaking between bites. "This umbrella has been in our family years, an'
years, an' years. But it was tucked away up in our attic an' no one ever
used it 'cause it wasn't pretty."
[Illustration]
"Don't blame 'em much," remarked Cap'n Bill, gazing at it curiously;
"it's a pretty old-lookin' bumbershoot." They were all seated in the
vine-shaded porch of the cottage--all but Mrs. Griffith, who had gone
into the kitchen to look after the supper--and Trot was on one side of
the boy, holding the plate for him, while Cap'n Bill sat on the other
side.
"It _is_ old," said Button-Bright. "One of my great-great-grandfathers
was a Knight--an Arabian Knight--and it was he who first found this
umbrella."
"An Arabian Night!" exclaimed Trot; "why, that was a magic night, wasn't
it?"
"There's diff'rent sorts o' nights, mate," said the sailor, "an' the
knight Button-Bright means ain't the same night you mean. Soldiers used
to be called knights, but that were in the dark ages, I guess, an'
likely 'nough Butt'n-Bright's great-gran'ther were that sort of a
knight."
"But he said an Arabian Knight," persisted Trot.
"Well, if he went to Araby, or was born there, he'd be an Arabian
Knight, wouldn't he? The lad's gran'ther were prob'ly a furriner, an'
yours an' mine were, too, Trot, if you go back far enough; for Ameriky
wasn't diskivered in them days."
"There!" said Trot, triumphantly, "didn't I tell you, Button-Bright,
that Cap'n Bill knows ever'thing?"
"He knows a lot, I expect," soberly answered the boy, finishing the last
slice of bread-and-butter and then looking at the empty plate with a
sigh; "but if he really knows everthing he knows about the Magic
Umbrella, so I won't have to tell you anything about it."
"Magic!" cried Trot, with big, eager eyes; "did you say _Magic_ Umbrel,
Button-Bright?"
"I said 'Magic.' But none of our family knew it was a Magic Umbrella
till I found it out for myself. You're the first people I've told the
secret to," he added, glancing into their faces rather uneasily.
"Glory me!" exclaimed the girl, clapping her hands in ecstacy; "it must
be jus' _elegant_ to have a Magic Umbrel!"
Cap'n Bill coughed. He had a way of coughing when he was suspicious.
"Magic," he observed gravely, "was once lyin' 'round loose in the world.
That was in the Dark Ages, I guess, when the magic Arabian Nights was.
But the light o' Civilization has skeered it away long ago, an' magic's
been a lost art since long afore you an' I was born, Trot."
"I know that fairies still live," said Trot, reflectively. She didn't
like to contradict Cap'n Bill, who knew "ever'thing."
"So do I," added Button-Bright. "And I know there's magic still in the
world--or in my umbrella, anyhow."
"Tell us about it!" begged the girl, excitedly.
"Well," said the boy, "I found it all out by accident. It rained in
Philadelphia for three whole days, and all the umbrellas in our house
were carried out by the family, and lost or mislaid, or something, so
that when I wanted to go to Uncle Bob's house, which is at Germantown,
there wasn't an umbrella to be found. My governess wouldn't let me go
without one, and--"
[Illustration]
"Oh," said Trot; "do you have a governess?"
"Yes; but I don't like her; she's cross. She said I couldn't go to Uncle
Bob's because I had no umbrella. Instead she told me to go up in the
attic and play. I was sorry 'bout that, but I went up in the attic and
pretty soon I found in a corner this old umbrella. I didn't care how it
looked. It was whole and strong and big, and would keep me from getting
wet on the way to Uncle Bob's. So off I started for the car, but I found
the streets awful muddy, and once I stepped in a mud-hole way up to my
ankle.
"'Gee!' I said, 'I wish I could fly through the air to Uncle Bob's.'
"I was holding up the open umbrella when I said that, and as soon as I
spoke, the umbrella began lifting me up into the air. I was awful
scared, at first, but I held on tight to the handle and it didn't pull
very much, either. I was going pretty fast, for when I looked down, all
the big buildings were sliding past me so swift that it made me dizzy,
and before I really knew what had happened the umbrella settled down and
stood me on my feet at Uncle Bob's front gate.
"I didn't tell anybody about the wonderful thing that had happened,
'cause I thought no one would believe me. Uncle Bob looked sharp at the
thing an' said: 'Button-Bright, how did your father happen to let you
take that umbrella?' 'He didn't,' I said. 'Father was away at the
office, so I found it in the attic an' I jus' took it.' Then Uncle Bob
shook his head an' said I ought to leave it alone. He said it was a
fam'ly relic that had been handed down from father to son for many
generations. But I told him my father had never handed it to me, though
I'm his son. Uncle Bob said our fam'ly always believed that it brought
'em good luck to own this umbrella. He couldn't say why, not knowing its
early history, but he was afraid that if I lost the umbrella bad luck
would happen to us. So he made me go right home to put the umbrella back
where I got it. I was sorry Uncle Bob was so cross, and I didn't want to
go home yet, where the governess was crosser 'n he was. I wonder why
folks get cross when it rains? But by that time it had stopped raining,
for awhile, anyhow, and Uncle Bob told me to go straight home and put
the umbrella in the attic an' never touch it again.
"When I was around the corner I thought I'd see if I could fly as I had
before. I'd heard of Buffalo, but I didn't know just where it was; so I
said to the umbrella: 'Take me to Buffalo.'
"Up in the air I went, just as soon as I said it, and the umbrella
sailed so fast that I felt as if I was in a gale of wind. It was a long,
long trip, and I got awful tired holding onto the handle, but just as I
thought I'd have to let go I began to drop down slowly, and then I found
myself in the streets of a big city. I put down the umbrella and asked
a man what the name of the city was, and he said 'Buffalo.'"
"How wonderful!" gasped Trot. Cap'n Bill kept on smoking and said
nothing.
"It was magic, I'm sure," said Button-Bright. "It surely couldn't have
been anything else."
"P'raps," suggested Trot, "the umbrella can do other magic things."
"No," said the boy; "I've tried it. When I landed in Buffalo I was hot
and thirsty. I had ten cents, car fare, but I was afraid to spend it. So
I held up the umbrella and wished I had an ice-cream soda; but I didn't
get it. Then I wished for a nickel to buy an ice-cream soda with; but I
didn't get that, either. I got frightened and was afraid the umbrella
didn't have any magic left, so to try it I said: 'Take me to Chicago.' I
didn't want to go to Chicago, but that was the first place I thought of,
and so I said it. Up again I flew, swifter than a bird, and I soon saw
this was going to be another long journey; so I called out to the
umbrella: 'Never mind; stop! I guess I won't go to Chicago. I've changed
my mind, so take me home again.' But the umbrella wouldn't. It kept
right on flying and I shut my eyes and held on. At last I landed in
Chicago, and then I was in a pretty fix. It was nearly dark and I was
too tired and hungry to make the trip home again. I knew I'd get an
awful scolding, too, for running away and taking the family luck with
me, so I thought that as long as I was in for it I'd better see a good
deal of the country while I had the chance. I wouldn't be allowed to
come away again, you know."
"No, of course not," said Trot.
"I bought some buns and milk with my ten cents and then I walked around
the streets of Chicago for a time and afterward slept on a bench in one
of the parks. In the morning I tried to get the umbrella to give me a
magic breakfast, but it won't do anything but fly. I went to a house and
asked a woman for something to eat and she gave me all I wanted and
advised me to go straight home before my mother worried about me. She
didn't know I lived in Philadelphia. That was this morning."
"This mornin'!" exclaimed Cap'n Bill. "Why, lad, it takes three or four
days for the railroad trains to get to this coast from Chicago."
"I know," replied Button-Bright, "but I didn't come on a railroad train.
This umbrella goes faster than any train ever did. This morning I flew
from Chicago to Denver, but no one there would give me any lunch. A
policeman said he'd put me in jail if he caught me begging, so I got
away and told the umbrella to take me to the Pacific Ocean. When I
stopped I landed over there by the big rock. I shut up the umbrella and
saw a girl sitting on the rock, so I went up and spoke to her. That's
all."
"Goodness me!" said Trot; "if that isn't a fairy story I never heard
one."
"It _is_ a fairy story," agreed Button-Bright. "Anyhow, it's a magic
story, and the funny part of it is, it's true. I hope you believe me;
but I don't know as I'd believe it myself, if it hadn't been me that it
happened to."
"I believe ev'ry word of it!" declared Trot, earnestly.
"As fer me," said Cap'n Bill slowly, "I'm goin' to believe it, too,
by'm'by, when I've seen the umbrel fly once."
"You'll see me fly away with it," asserted the boy. "But at present it's
pretty late in the day, and Philadelphia is a good way off. Do you
s'pose, Trot, your mother would let me stay here all night?"
"Course she would!" answered Trot. "We've got an extra room with a nice
bed in it, and we'd love to have you stay--just as long as you want
to--wouldn't we, Cap'n Bill?"
"Right you are, mate," replied the old man, nodding his bald head.
"Whether the umbrel is magic or not, Butt'n-Bright is welcome."
Mrs. Griffith came out soon after, and seconded the invitation, so the
boy felt quite at home in the little cottage. It was not long before
supper was on the table and in spite of all the bread-and-butter he had
eaten Button-Bright had a fine appetite for the good things Trot's
mother had cooked. Mrs. Griffith was very kind to the children, but not
quite so agreeable toward poor Cap'n Bill. When the old sailorman at
one time spilled some tea on the tablecloth Trot's mother flew angry and
gave the culprit such a tongue-lashing that Button-Bright was sorry for
him. But Cap'n Bill was meek and made no reply. "He's used to it, you
know," whispered Trot to her new friend; and, indeed, Cap'n Bill took it
all cheerfully and never minded a bit.
Then it came Trot's turn to get a scolding. When she opened the parcel
she had bought at the village it was found she had selected the wrong
color of yarn, and Mrs. Griffith was so provoked that Trot's scolding
was almost as severe as that of Cap'n Bill. Tears came to the little
girl's eyes, and to comfort her the boy promised to take her to the
village next morning with his magic umbrella, so she could exchange the
yarn for the right color.
Trot quickly brightened at this promise, although Cap'n Bill looked
grave and shook his head solemnly. When supper was over and Trot had
helped with the dishes she joined Button-Bright and the sailorman on the
little porch again. Dusk had fallen and the moon was just rising. They
all sat in silence for a time and watched the silver trail that topped
the crests of the waves far out to sea.
"Oh, Button-Bright!" cried the little girl, presently; "I'm so glad
you're going to let me fly with you--way to town and back--to-morrow.
Won't it be fine, Cap'n Bill?"
"Dunno, Trot," said he. "I can't figger how both o' you can hold on to
the handle o' that umbrel."
Trot's face fell.
"I'll hold on to the handle," said Button-Bright, "and she can hold on
to me. It doesn't pull hard at all. You've no idea how easy it is to fly
that way--after you get used to it."
"But Trot ain't used to it," objected the sailor. "If she happened to
lose her hold and let go, it's good-bye Trot. I don't like to risk it,
for Trot's my chum, an' I can't afford to lose her."
"Can't you tie us together, then?" asked the boy.
"We'll see; we'll see," replied Cap'n Bill, and began to think very
deeply. He forgot that he didn't believe the umbrella could fly, and
after Button-Bright and Trot had both gone to bed the old sailor went
out into the shed and worked awhile before he, too, turned into his
"bunk." The sandman wasn't around and Cap'n Bill lay awake for hours
thinking of the strange tale of the Magic Umbrella before he finally
sank into slumber. Then he dreamed about it, and waking or dreaming he
found the tale hard to believe.
[Illustration]
A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE
CHAPTER 3.
They had early breakfasts at Trot's house, because they all went to bed
early and it is possible to sleep only a certain number of hours if one
is healthy in body and mind. And right after breakfast Trot claimed
Button-Bright's promise to take her to town with the Magic Umbrella.
"Any time suits me," said the boy. He had taken his precious umbrella to
bed with him and even carried it to the breakfast table, where he stood
it between his knees as he ate; so now he held it close to him and said
he was ready to fly at a moment's notice. This confidence impressed
Cap'n Bill, who said with a sigh:
"Well, if you _must_ go, Trot, I've pervided a machine that'll carry you
both comf'table. I'm summat of an inventor myself, though there ain't
any magic about me."
Then he brought from the shed the contrivance he had made the night
before. It was merely a swing seat. He had taken a wide board that was
just long enough for both the boy and girl to sit upon, and had bored
six holes in it--two holes at each end and two in the middle. Through
these holes he had run stout ropes in such a way that the seat could not
turn and the occupants could hold on to the ropes on either side of
them. The ropes were all knotted together at the top, where there was a
loop that could be hooked upon the crooked handle of the umbrella.
[Illustration]
Button-Bright and Trot both thought Cap'n Bill's invention very clever.
The sailor placed the board upon the ground while they sat in their
places, Button-Bright at the right of Trot, and then the boy hooked the
rope loop to the handle of the umbrella, which he spread wide open.
"I want to go to the town over yonder," he said, pointing with his
finger to the roofs of the houses that showed around the bend in the
cliff.
At once the umbrella rose into the air; slowly, at first, but quickly
gathering speed. Trot and Button-Bright held fast to the ropes and were
carried along very easily and comfortably. It seemed scarcely a minute
before they were in the town, and when the umbrella set them down just
in front of the store--for it seemed to know just where they wanted to
go--a wondering crowd gathered around them. Trot ran in and changed the
yarn, while Button-Bright stayed outside and stared at the people who
stared at him. They asked questions, too, wanting to know what sort of
an aëroplane this was, and where his power was stored, and lots of other
things; but the boy answered not a word. When the little girl came back
and took her seat Button-Bright said:
"I want to go to Trot's house."
The simple villagers could not understand how the umbrella suddenly
lifted the two children into the air and carried them away. They had
read of airships, but here was something wholly beyond their
comprehension.
Cap'n Bill had stood in front of the house, watching with a feeling akin
to bewilderment the flight of the Magic Umbrella. He could follow its
course until it descended in the village and he was so amazed and
absorbed that his pipe went out. He had not moved from his position when
the umbrella started back. The sailor's big blue eyes watched it draw
near and settle down with its passengers upon just the spot it had
started from.
Trot was joyous and greatly excited.
"Oh, Cap'n, it's gal-lor-ious!" she cried in ecstasy. "It beats ridin'
in a boat or--or--in anything else. You feel so light an' free
an'--an'--glad! I'm sorry the trip didn't last longer, though. Only
trouble is, you go too fast."
Button-Bright was smiling contentedly. He had proved to both Trot and
Cap'n Bill that he had told the truth about the Magic Umbrella, however
marvelous his tale had seemed to them.
"I'll take you on another trip, if you like," said he, "I'm in no hurry
to go home and if you will let me stay with you another day we can make
two or three little trips with the family luck."
"You mus' stay a whole week," said Trot, decidedly. "An' you mus' take
Cap'n Bill for an air-ride, too."
"Oh, Trot! I dunno as I'd like it," protested Cap'n Bill, nervously.
"Yes, you would. You're sure to like it."
"I guess I'm too heavy," he said.
"I'm sure the umbrella could carry twenty people, if they could be
fastened to the handle," said Button-Bright.
"Solid land's pretty good to hold on to," decided Cap'n Bill. "A rope
might break, you know."
"Oh, Cap'n Bill! You're scared stiff," said Trot.
"I ain't, mate; it ain't that at all. But I don't see that human
critters has any call to fly in the air, anyhow. The air were made for
the birds, an'--an' muskeeters, an'--"
"An' flyin'-fishes," added Trot. "I know all that, Cap'n; but why wasn't
it made for humans, too, if they can manage to fly in it? We breathe the
air, an' we can breathe it high up, just as well as down on the earth."
"Seein' as you like it so much, Trot, it would be cruel for me to go
with Butt'n-Bright an' leave you at home," said the sailor. "When I were
younger--which is ancient history--an' afore I had a wooden leg, I could
climb a ship's ropes with the best of 'em, an' walk out on a boom, or
stand atop a mast. So you know very well I ain't skeert about the
highupness."
"Why can't we all go together?" asked the boy. "Make another seat,
Cap'n, and swing it right under ours; then we can all three ride
anywhere we want to go."
"Yes, do!" exclaimed Trot. "And, see here, Cap'n; let's take a day off
and have a picnic. Mother is a little cross, to-day, and she wants to
finish knitting your new stockin'; so I guess she'll be glad to get rid
of us."
"Where'll we go?" he asked, shifting on his wooden leg uneasily.
"Anywhere; I don't care. There'll be the air-ride there, an' the
air-ride back, an' that's the main thing with _me_. If you say you'll
go, Cap'n, I'll run in an' pack a basket of lunch."
"How'll we carry it?"
"Swing it to the bottom of your seat."
The old sailor stood silent a moment. He really longed to take the
air-ride but was fearful of danger. However, Trot had gone safely to
town and back and had greatly enjoyed the experience.
"All right," he said; "I'll risk it, mate, although I guess I'm an old
fool for temptin' fate by tryin' to make a bird o' myself. Get the
lunch, Trot, if your mother'll let you have it, and I'll rig up the
seat."
He went into the shed and Trot went to her mother. Mrs. Griffith, busy
with her work, knew nothing of what was going on in regard to the flight
of the Magic Umbrella. She never objected when Trot wanted to go away
with Cap'n Bill for a day's picnicking. She knew the child was perfectly
safe with the old sailor, who cared for Trot even better than her mother
would have done. If she had asked any questions to-day, and had found
out they intended to fly in the air, she might have seriously objected;
but Mrs. Griffith had her mind on other things and merely told the girl
to take what she wanted from the cupboard and not bother her. So Trot,
remembering that Button-Bright would be with them and had proved himself
to be a hearty eater, loaded the basket with all the good things she
could find.
By the time she came out, lugging the basket with both hands, Cap'n Bill
appeared with the new seat he had made for his own use, which he
attached by means of ropes to the double seat of the boy and girl.
"Now, then, where'll we go?" asked Trot.
"Anywhere suits me," replied Cap'n Bill.
They had walked to the high bluff overlooking the sea, where a gigantic
acacia tree stood on the very edge. A seat had been built around the
trunk of the tree, for this was a favorite spot for Trot and Cap'n Bill
to sit and talk and watch the fleet of fishing boats sail to and from
the village.
When they came to this tree Trot was still trying to think of the most
pleasant place to picnic. She and Cap'n Bill had been every place that
was desirable and near by, but to-day they didn't want a near-by spot.
They must decide upon one far enough away to afford them a fine trip
through the air. Looking far out over the Pacific, the girl's eyes fell
upon a dim island lying on the horizon line--just where the sky and
water seemed to meet--and the sight gave her an idea.
"Oh, Cap'n Bill!" she exclaimed, "let's go to that island for our
picnic. We've never been there yet, you know."
The sailor shook his head.
"It's a good many miles away, Trot," he said; "further than it looks to
be, from here."
"That won't matter," remarked Button-Bright; "the umbrella will carry us
there in no time."
"Let's go!" repeated Trot. "We'll never have another such chance, Cap'n.
It's too far to sail or row, and I've always wanted to visit that
island."
"What's the name of it?" inquired Button-Bright, while the sailor
hesitated how to decide.
"Oh, it's got an awful hard name to pernounce," replied the girl, "so
Cap'n Bill and I jus' call it 'Sky Island,' 'cause it looks as if it was
half in the sky. We've been told it's a very pretty island, and a few
people live there and keep cows and goats, and fish for a living. There
are woods and pastures and springs of clear water, and I'm sure we would
find it a fine place for a picnic."
"If anything happened on the way," observed Cap'n Bill, "we'd drop in
the water."
"Of course," said Trot; "and if anything happened while we were flyin'
over the land we'd drop there. But nothing's goin' to happen, Cap'n.
Didn't Button-Bright come safe all the way from Philydelfy?"
"I think I'd like to go to Sky Island," said the boy. "I've always flown
above the land, so far, and it will be something new to fly over the
ocean."
"All right; I'm agree'ble," decided Cap'n Bill. "But afore we starts on
such a long journey, s'pose we make a little trial trip along the coast.
I want to see if the new seat fits me, an' make certain the umbrel will
carry all three of us."
"Very well," said Button-Bright. "Where shall we go?"
"Let's go as far as Smuggler's Cove, an' then turn 'round an' come back.
If all's right an' shipshape, then we can start for the island."
They put the broad double seat on the ground and then the boy and girl
sat in their places and Button-Bright spread open the Magic Umbrella.
Cap'n Bill sat in his seat just in front of them, all being upon the
ground.
"Don't we look funny?" said Trot, with a chuckle of glee. "But hold fast
the ropes, Cap'n, an' take care of your wooden leg."
Button-Bright addressed the umbrella, speaking to it very respectfully,
for it was a thing to inspire awe.
"I want to go as far as Smuggler's Cove, and then turn around in the air
and come back here," he said.
At once the umbrella rose into the air, lifting after it, first the seat
in which the children sat, and then Cap'n Bill's seat.
"Don't kick your heels, Trot!" cried the sailor in a voice that proved
he was excited by his novel experience; "you might bump me in the nose."
"All right," she called back; "I'll be careful."
It was really a wonderful, exhilarating ride, and Cap'n Bill wasn't long
making up his mind he liked the sensation. When about fifty feet above
the ground the umbrella began moving along the coast toward Smuggler's
Cove, which it soon reached. Looking downward, Cap'n Bill suddenly
exclaimed:
"Why, there's a boat cast loose, an' it's goin' to smash on the rocks.
Hold on a minute, Butt'n-Bright, till we can land an' drag it ashore."
"Hold on a minute, Umbrella!" cried the boy.
But the Magic Umbrella kept steadily upon its way. It made a circle over
the Cove and then started straight back the way it had come.
"It's no use, sir," said Button-Bright to the sailor. "If I once tell it
to go to a certain place, the umbrella will go there, and nowhere else.
I've found that out before this. You simply _can't_ stop it."
"Won't let you change your mind, eh?" replied Cap'n Bill. "Well, that
has its advantidges, an' its disadvantidges. If your ol' umbrel hadn't
been so obstinate we could have saved that boat."
"Never mind," said Trot, briskly; "here we are safe back again. Wasn't
it jus' the--the fascinatingest ride you ever took, Cap'n?"
"It's pretty good fun," admitted Cap'n Bill. "Beats them aëroplanes an'
things all holler, 'cause it don't need any regulatin'."
"If we're going to that island we may as well start right away," said
Button-Bright, when they had safely landed.
"All right; I'll tie on the lunch-basket," answered the sailor. He
fastened it so it would swing underneath his own seat and then they all
took their places again.
"Ready?" asked the boy.
"Let'er go, my lad."
"I want to go to Sky Island," said Button-Bright to the umbrella, using
the name Trot had given him.
The umbrella started promptly. It rose higher than before, carrying the
three voyagers with it, and then started straight away over the ocean.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE ISLAND IN THE SKY
CHAPTER 4.
They clung tightly to the ropes, but the breeze was with them, so after
a few moments, when they became accustomed to the motion, they began to
enjoy the ride immensely.
Larger and larger grew the island, and although they were headed
directly toward it, the umbrella seemed to rise higher and higher into
the air the farther it traveled. They had not journeyed ten minutes
before they came directly over the island, and looking down they could
see the forests and meadows far below them. But the umbrella kept up its
rapid flight.
"Hold on, there!" cried Cap'n Bill. "If it ain't keerful the ol' thing
will pass way by the island."
"I--I'm sure it has passed it already," exclaimed Trot "What's wrong,
Button-Bright? Why don't we stop?"
Button-Bright seemed astonished too.
"Perhaps I didn't say it right," he replied, after a moment's thought.
Then, looking up at the umbrella, he repeated, distinctly: "I said I
wanted to go to Sky Island! Sky Island; don't you understand?"
The umbrella swept steadily along, getting farther and farther out to
sea and rising higher and higher toward the clouds.
"Mack'rel an' herrings!" roared Cap'n Bill, now really frightened;
"ain't there any blamed way at all to stop her?"
"None that I know of," said Button-Bright, anxiously.
"P'raps," said Trot, after a pause during which she tried hard to think,
"p'raps 'Sky Island' isn't the name of that island, at all."
"Why, we know very well it ain't the name of it," yelled Cap'n Bill,
from below. "We jus' called it that 'cause its right name is too hard to
say."
"That's the whole trouble, then," returned Button-Bright. "Somewhere in
the world there's a real Sky Island, and having told the Magic Umbrella
to take us there, it's going to do so."
"Well, I declare!" gasped the sailorman; "can't we land anywhere else?"
"Not unless you care to tumble off," said the boy. "I've told the
umbrella to take us to Sky Island, so that's the exact place we're bound
for. I'm sorry. It was your fault for giving me the wrong name."
They glided along in silence for a while. The island was now far behind
them, growing small in the distance.
"Where do you s'pose the real Sky Island can be?" asked Trot presently.
"We can't tell anything about it until we get there," Button-Bright
answered. "Seems to me I've heard of the Isle of Skye, but that's over
in Great Britain, somewhere the other side of the world; and it isn't
Sky Island, anyhow."
"This miser'ble ol' umbrel is too pertic'ler," growled Cap'n Bill. "It
won't let you change your mind an' it goes ezzac'ly where you say."
"If it didn't," said Trot, "we'd never know where we were going."
"We don't know now," said the sailor. "One thing's certain, folks: we're
gett'n' a long way from home."
"And see how the clouds are rolling just above us," remarked the boy,
who was almost as uneasy as Cap'n Bill.
"We're in the sky, all right," said the girl. "If there could be an
island up here, among the clouds, I'd think it was there we're going."
"Couldn't there be one?" asked Button-Bright. "Why couldn't there be an
island in the sky that would be named Sky Island?"
"Of course not!" declared Cap'n Bill. "There wouldn't be anything to
hold it up, you know."
"What's holding _us_ up?" asked Trot.
"Magic, I guess."
"Then magic might hold an island in the sky.... Whee-e-e-e! what a black
cloud!"
It grew suddenly dark, for they were rushing through a thick cloud that
rolled around them in billows. Trot felt little drops of moisture
striking her face and knew her clothing was getting damp and soggy.
[Illustration]
"It's a rain cloud," she said to Button-Bright, "and it seems like an
awful big one, 'cause it takes so long for us to pass through it."
The umbrella never hesitated a moment. It made a path through the length
of the heavy black cloud at last and carried its passengers into a
misty, billowy bank of white, which seemed as soft and fleecy as a
lady's veil. When this broke away they caught sight of a majestic
rainbow spanning the heavens, its gorgeous colors glinting brightly in
the sun, its arch perfect and unbroken from end to end. But it was only
a glimpse they had, for quickly they dove into another bank of clouds
and the rainbow disappeared.
Here the clouds were not black, nor heavy, but they assumed queer
shapes. Some were like huge ships, some like forest trees, and others
piled themselves into semblances of turreted castles and wonderful
palaces. The shapes shifted here and there continually and the voyagers
began to be bewildered by the phantoms.
"Seems to me we're goin' down," called Trot.
"Down where?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"Who knows?" said Button-Bright. "But we're dropping, all right."
It was a gradual descent. The Magic Umbrella maintained a uniform speed,
swift and unfaltering, but its path through the heavens was now in the
shape of an arch, as a flying arrow falls. The queer shapes of the
clouds continued for some time, and once or twice Trot was a little
frightened when a monstrous airy dragon passed beside them, or a huge
giant stood upon a peak of cloud and stared savagely at the intruders
into his domain. But none of these fanciful, vapory creatures seemed
inclined to molest them or to interfere with their flight and after a
while the umbrella dipped below this queer cloudland and entered a
clear space where the sky was of an exquisite blue color.
"Oh, look!" called Cap'n Bill. "There's land below us."
The boy and girl leaned over and tried to see this land, but Cap'n Bill
was also leaning over and his big body hid all that was just underneath
them.
"Is it an island?" asked Trot, anxiously.
"Seems so," the old sailor replied. "The blue is around all one side of
it an' a pink sunshine around the other side. There's a big cloud just
over the middle; but I guess it's surely an island, Trot, an' bein' as
it's in the sky, it's likely to be Sky Island."
"Then we shall land there," said the boy confidently. "I knew the
umbrella couldn't make a mistake."
Presently Cap'n Bill spoke again.
"We're goin' down on the blue part o' the island," he said. "I can see
trees, an' ponds, an' houses. Hold tight, Trot! Hold tight,
Butt'n-Bright! I'm afeared we're a-goin' to bump somethin'!"
They were certainly dropping very quickly, now, and the rush of air made
their eyes fill with water, so that they could not see much below them.
Suddenly the basket that was dangling below Cap'n Bill's seat struck
something with a loud thud and this was followed by a yell of anger.
Cap'n Bill sat flat upon the ground, landing with a force that jarred
the sailorman and made his teeth click together, while down upon him
came the seat that Trot and Button-Bright occupied, so that for a moment
they were all tangled up.
"Get off from me! Get off from my feet, I say!" cried an excited voice.
"What in the Sky do you mean by sitting on my feet? Get off! Get off at
once!"
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE BOOLOOROO OF THE BLUES
CHAPTER 5.
Cap'n Bill suspected that these remarks were addressed to him, but he
couldn't move just then because the seat was across him, and a boy and
girl were sprawling on the seat. As the Magic Umbrella was now as
motionless as any ordinary umbrella might be, Button-Bright first
released the catch and closed it up, after which he unhooked the crooked
handle from the rope and rose to his feet. Trot had managed by this time
to stand up and she pulled the board off from Cap'n Bill. All this time
the shrill, excited voice was loudly complaining because the sailor was
on his feet, and Trot looked to see who was making the protest, while
Cap'n Bill rolled over and got on his hands and knees so he could pull
his meat leg and his wooden leg into an upright position, which wasn't a
very easy thing to do.
Button-Bright and Trot were staring with all their might at the queerest
person they had ever seen. They decided it must be a man, because he
had two long legs, a body as round as a ball, a neck like an ostrich and
a comical little head set on the top of it. But the most curious thing
about him was his skin, which was of a lovely sky-blue tint. His eyes
were also sky-blue, and his hair, which was trained straight up and
ended in a curl at the top of his head, was likewise blue in color and
matched his skin and his eyes. He wore tight-fitting clothes made of
sky-blue silk, with a broad blue ruffle around his long neck, and on his
breast glittered a magnificent jewel in the form of a star, set with
splendid blue stones.
If the blue man astonished the travelers they were no less surprised by
his surroundings, for look where they might, everything they beheld was
of the same blue color as the sky above. They seemed to have landed in a
large garden, surrounded by a high wall of blue stone. The trees were
all blue, the grass was blue, the flowers were blue and even the pebbles
in the paths were blue. There were many handsomely carved benches and
seats of blue wood scattered about the garden, and near them stood a
fountain, made of blue marble, which shot lovely sprays of blue water
into the blue air.
But the angry inhabitant of this blue place would not permit them to
look around them in peace, for as soon as Cap'n Bill rolled off his toes
he began dancing around in an excited way and saying very disrespectful
things of his visitors.
"You brutes! you apes! you miserable white-skinned creatures! How dare
you come into my garden and knock me on the head with that awful basket
and then fall on my toes and cause me pain and suffering? How dare you,
I say? Don't you know you will be punished for your impudence? Don't you
know the Boolooroo of the Blues will have revenge? I can have you
patched for this insult, and I will--just as sure as I'm the Royal
Boolooroo of Sky Island!"
"Oh, is this Sky Island, then?" asked Trot.
"Of course it's Sky Island. What else could it be? And I'm its
Ruler--its King--its sole Royal Potentate and Dictator. Behold in the
Personage you have injured the Mighty Quitey Righty Boolooroo of the
Blues!" Here he strutted around in a very pompous manner and wagged his
little head contemptuously at them.
"Glad to meet you, sir," said Cap'n Bill. "I allus had a likin' for
kings, bein' as they're summat unusual. Please 'scuse me for a-sittin'
on your royal toes, not knowin' as your toes were there."
"I won't excuse you!" roared the Boolooroo. "But I'll punish you. You
may depend upon that."
"Seems to me," said Trot, "you're actin' rather imperlite to strangers.
If anyone comes to our country to visit us, we always treat 'em decent."
"_Your_ country!" exclaimed the Boolooroo, looking at them more
carefully and seeming interested in their appearance. "Where in the Sky
did you come from, then, and where is your country located?"
"We live on the Earth, when we're at home," replied the girl.
"The Earth? Nonsense! I've heard of the Earth, my child, but it isn't
inhabited. No one can live there because it's just a round, cold, barren
ball of mud and water," declared the Blueskin.
"Oh, you're wrong about that," said Button-Bright.
"You surely are," added Cap'n Bill.
"Why, we live there ourselves," cried Trot.
"I don't believe it. I believe you are living in Sky Island, where you
have no right to be, with your horrid white skins. And you've intruded
into the private garden of the palace of the Greatly Stately Irately
Boolooroo, which is a criminal offense; and you've bumped my head with
your basket and smashed my toes with your boards and bodies, which is a
crime unparalleled in all the history of Sky Island! Aren't you sorry
for yourselves?"
"I'm sorry for you," replied Trot, "'cause you don't seem to know the
proper way to treat visitors. But we won't stay long. We'll go home,
pretty soon."
"Not until you have been punished!" exclaimed the Boolooroo, sternly.
"You are my prisoners."
"Beg parding, your Majesty," said Cap'n Bill, "but you're takin' a good
deal for granted. We've tried to be friendly an' peaceable, an' we've
'poligized for hurtin' you; but if that don't satisfy you, you'll have
to make the most of it. You may be the Boolooroo of the Blues, but you
ain't even a tin whistle to us, an' you can't skeer us for half a
minute. I'm an ol' man, myself, but if you don't behave I'll spank you
like I would a baby, an' it won't be any trouble at all to do it,
thank'e. As a matter o' fact, we've captured your whole bloomin' blue
island, but we don't like the place very much, and I guess we'll give it
back. It gives us the blues--don't it, Trot?--so as soon as we eat a
bite o' lunch from our basket we'll sail away again."
"Sail away? How?" asked the Boolooroo.
"With the Magic Umbrel," said Cap'n Bill, pointing to the umbrella that
Button-Bright was holding underneath his arm.
"Oh, ho! I see--I see," said the Boolooroo, nodding his funny head. "Go
ahead, then, and eat your lunch."
He retreated a little way to a marble seat beside the fountain, but
watched the strangers carefully. Cap'n Bill, feeling sure he had won the
argument, whispered to the boy and girl that they must eat and get away
as soon as possible, as this might prove a dangerous country for them to
remain in. Trot longed to see more of the strange blue island, and
especially wanted to explore the magnificent blue palace that adjoined
the garden, and which had six hundred tall towers and turrets; but she
felt that her old friend was wise in advising them to get away quickly.
So she opened the basket and they all three sat in a row on a stone
bench and began to eat sandwiches and cake and pickles and cheese and
all the good things that were packed in the lunch basket.
They were hungry from the long ride, and while they ate they kept their
eyes busily employed in examining all the queer things around them. The
Boolooroo seemed quite the queerest of anything, and Trot noticed that
when he pulled the long curl that stuck up from the top of his head a
bell tinkled somewhere in the palace. He next pulled at the bottom of
his right ear, and another far-away bell tinkled; then he touched the
end of his nose and still another bell was faintly heard. The Boolooroo
said not a word while he was ringing the bells, and Trot wondered if
that was the way he amused himself. But now the frown died away from his
face and was replaced by a look of satisfaction.
"Have you nearly finished?" he inquired.
"No," said Trot; "we've got to eat our apples yet."
"Apples--apples? What are apples?" he asked.
Trot took some from the basket.
"Have one?" she said. "They're awful good."
The Boolooroo advanced a step and took the apple, which he regarded with
much curiosity.
"Guess they don't grow anywhere but on the Earth," remarked Cap'n Bill.
"Are they good to eat?" asked the Boolooroo.
"Try it and see," answered Trot, biting into an apple herself.
The Blueskin sat down on the end of their bench, next to Button-Bright,
and began to eat his apple. He seemed to like it, for he finished it in
a hurry, and when it was gone he picked up the Magic Umbrella.
"Let that alone!" said Button-Bright, making a grab for it. But the
Boolooroo jerked it away in an instant and standing up he held the
umbrella behind him and laughed aloud.
"Now, then," said he, "you can't get away until I'm willing to let you
go. You are my prisoners."
"I guess not," returned Cap'n Bill, and reaching out one of his long
arms, the sailorman suddenly grasped the Boolooroo around his long, thin
neck and shook him until his whole body fluttered like a flag.
"Drop that umbrel--drop it!" yelled Cap'n Bill, and the Boolooroo
quickly obeyed. The Magic Umbrella fell to the ground and Button-Bright
promptly seized it. Then the sailor let go his hold and the King
staggered to a seat, choking and coughing to get his breath back.
"I told you to let things alone," growled Cap'n Bill. "If you don't
behave, your Majesty, this Blue Island'll have to get another
Boolooroo."
"Why?" asked the Blueskin.
"Because I'll prob'ly spoil you for a king, an' mebbe for anything else.
Anyhow, you'll get badly damaged if you try to interfere with us--an'
that's a fact."
"Don't kill him, Cap'n Bill," said Trot, cheerfully.
"Kill me? Why, he couldn't do that," observed the King, who was trying
to rearrange the ruffle around his neck. "Nothing can kill me."
"Why not?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"Because I haven't lived my six hundred years yet. Perhaps you don't
know that every Blueskin in Sky Island lives exactly six hundred years
from the time he is born."
"No; I didn't know that," admitted the sailor.
"It's a fact," said the King. "Nothing can kill us until we've lived to
the last day of our appointed lives. When the final minute is up, we
die; but we're obliged to live all of the six hundred years, whether we
want to or not. So you needn't think of trying to kill anybody on Sky
Island. It can't be done."
"Never mind," said Cap'n Bill. "I'm no murderer, thank goodness, and I
wouldn't kill you if I could--much as you deserve it."
"But isn't six hundred years an awful long time to live?" questioned
Trot.
"It seems like it, at first," replied the King, "but I notice that
whenever any of my subjects get near the end of their six hundred, they
grow nervous and say the life is altogether too short."
"How long have you lived?" asked Button-Bright.
The King coughed again and turned a bit bluer.
"That is considered an impertinent question in Sky Island," he
answered; "but I will say that every Boolooroo is elected to reign three
hundred years, and I've reigned not quite--ahem!--two hundred."
"Are your kings elected, then?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"Yes, of course; this is a Republic, you know. The people elect all
their officers, from the King down. Every man and every woman is a
voter. The Boolooroo tells them whom to vote for, and if they don't obey
they are severely punished. It's a fine system of government, and the
only thing I object to is electing the Boolooroo for only three hundred
years. It ought to be for life. My successor has already been elected,
but he can't reign for a hundred years to come."
"I think three hundred years is plenty long enough," said Trot. "It
gives some one else a chance to rule, an' I wouldn't be s'prised if the
next king is a better one. Seems to me you're not much of a Boolooroo."
"That," replied the King, indignantly, "is a matter of opinion. I like
myself very much, but I can't expect you to like me, because you're
deformed and ignorant."
"I'm not!" cried Trot.
"Yes, you are. Your legs are too short and your neck is nothing at all.
Your color is most peculiar, but there isn't a shade of blue about any
of you, except the deep blue color of the clothes the old ape that
choked me wears. Also, you are ignorant, because you know nothing of Sky
Island, which is the Center of the Universe and the only place anyone
would care to live."
"Don't listen to him, Trot," said Button-Bright; "he's an ignorant
himself."
Cap'n Bill packed up the lunch basket. One end of the rope was still
tied to the handle of the basket and the other end to his swing seat,
which lay on the ground before them.
"Well," said he, "let's go home. We've seen enough of this Blue Country
and its Blue Boolooroo, I guess, an' it's a long journey back again."
"All right," agreed Trot, jumping up.
Button-Bright stood on the bench and held up the Magic Umbrella, so he
could open it, and the sailor had just attached the ropes when a thin
blue line shot out from behind them and in a twinkling wound itself
around the umbrella. At the same instant another blue cord wound itself
around the boy's body, and others caught Trot and Cap'n Bill in their
coils, so that all had their arms pinned fast to their sides and found
themselves absolutely helpless.
[Illustration]
THE SIX SNUBNOSED PRINCESSES
CHAPTER 6.
The Boolooroo was laughing and dancing around in front of them as if
well pleased. For a moment the prisoners could not imagine what had
happened to them, but presently half a dozen Blueskins, resembling in
shape and costume their ruler but less magnificently dressed, stepped in
front of them and bowed low to the Boolooroo.
"Your orders, most Mighty, Flighty, Tight and Righty Monarch, have been
obeyed," said the leader.
"Very well, Captain. Take that umbrella and carry it to my Royal
Treasury. See that it is safely locked up. Here's the key, and if you
don't return it to me within five minutes I'll have you patched."
The Captain took the key and the Magic Umbrella and hastened away to the
palace. Button-Bright had already hooked the ropes to the elephant-trunk
handle, so that when the Captain carried away the umbrella he dragged
after him first the double seat, then Cap'n Bill's seat, which was
fastened to it, and finally the lunch-basket, which was attached to the
lower seat. At every few steps some of these would trip up the Captain
and cause him to take a tumble, but as he had only five minutes' time in
which to perform his errand he would scramble to his feet again and dash
along the path until a board or the basket tripped him again.
They all watched him with interest until he had disappeared within the
palace, when the King turned to his men and said:
"Release the prisoners. They are now quite safe, and cannot escape me."
So the men unwound the long cords that were twined around the bodies of
our three friends, and set them free. These men seemed to be soldiers,
although they bore no arms except the cords. Each cord had a weight at
the end, and when the weight was skillfully thrown by a soldier it wound
the cord around anything in the twinkling of an eye and held fast until
it was unwound again.
Trot decided these Blueskins must have stolen into the garden when
summoned by the bells the Boolooroo had rung, but they had kept out of
sight and crept up behind the bench on which our friends were seated,
until a signal from the king aroused them to action.
The little girl was greatly surprised by the suddenness of her capture,
and so was Button-Bright. Cap'n Bill shook his head and said he was
afeared they'd get into trouble. "Our mistake," he added, "was in
stoppin' to eat our lunch. But it's too late now to cry over spilt
milk."
"I don't mind; not much, anyhow," asserted Trot, bravely. "We're in no
hurry to get back; are we, Button-Bright?"
[Illustration]
"I'm not," said the boy. "If they hadn't taken the umbrella I wouldn't
care how long we stopped in this funny island. Do you think it's a fairy
country, Trot?"
"Can't say, I'm sure," she answered. "I haven't seen anything here yet
that reminds me of fairies; but Cap'n Bill said a floating island in the
sky was sure to be a fairyland."
"I think so yet, mate," returned the sailor. "But there's all sorts o'
fairies, I've heard. Some is good, an' some is bad, an' if all the
Blueskins are like their Boolooroo they can't be called fust-class."
"Don't let me hear any more impudence, prisoners!" called the Boolooroo,
sternly. "You are already condemned to severe punishment, and if I have
any further trouble with you, you are liable to be patched."
"What's being patched?" inquired the girl.
The soldiers all laughed at this question, but the King did not reply.
Just then a door in the palace opened and out trooped a group of girls.
There were six of them, all gorgeously dressed in silken gowns with many
puffs and tucks and ruffles and flounces and laces and ribbons,
everything being in some shade of blue, grading from light blue to deep
blue. Their blue hair was elaborately dressed and came to a point at the
top of their heads.
The girls approached in a line along the garden path, all walking with
mincing steps and holding their chins high. Their skirts prevented their
long legs from appearing as grotesque as did those of the men, but their
necks were so thin and long that the ruffles around them only made them
seem the more absurd.
"Ah," said the King, with a frown, "here come the Six Snubnosed
Princesses--the most beautiful and aristocratic ladies in Sky Island."
"They're snubnosed, all right," observed Trot, looking at the girls
with much interest; "but I should think it would make 'em mad to call
'em that."
"Why?" asked the Boolooroo, in surprise. "Is not a snubnose the highest
mark of female beauty?"
"Is it?" asked the girl.
"Most certainly. In this favored island, which is the Center of the
Universe, a snubnose is an evidence of high breeding which any lady
would be proud to possess."
[Illustration]
The Six Snubnosed Princesses now approached the fountain and stood in a
row, staring with haughty looks at the strangers.
"Goodness me, your Majesty!" exclaimed the first; "what queer,
dreadful-looking creatures are these? Where in all the Sky did they come
from?"
"They say they came from the Earth, Cerulia," answered the Boolooroo.
"But that is impossible," said another Princess. "Our scientists have
proved that the Earth is not inhabited."
"Your scientists'll have to guess again, then," said Trot.
"But how did they get to Sky Island?" inquired the third snubnosed one.
"By means of a Magic Umbrella, which I have captured and put away in my
Treasure Chamber," replied the Boolooroo.
"What will you do with the monsters, papa?" asked the fourth Princess.
"I haven't decided yet," said the Boolooroo. "They're curiosities, you
see, and may serve to amuse us. But as they're only half civilized I
shall make them my slaves."
"What are they good for? Can they do anything useful?" asked the fifth.
"We'll see," returned the King, impatiently. "I can't decide in a hurry.
Give me time, Azure; give me time. If there's anything I hate it's a
hurry."
"I've an idea, your Majesty," announced the sixth Snubnosed Princess,
whose complexion was rather darker than that of her sisters, "and it has
come to me quite deliberately, without any hurry at all. Let us take the
little girl to be our maid--to wait upon us and amuse us when we're
dull. All the other ladies of the court will be wild with envy, and if
the child doesn't prove of use to us we can keep her for a living
pincushion."
"Oh! Ah! That will be fine!" cried all the other five, and the Boolooroo
said:
"Very well, Indigo; it shall be as you desire." Then he turned to Trot
and added: "I present you to the Six Lovely Snubnosed Princesses, to be
their slave. If you are good and obedient you won't get your ears boxed
oftener than once an hour."
"I won't be anybody's slave," protested Trot. "I don't like these
snubnosed, fussy females an' I won't have anything to do with 'em."
"How impudent!" cried Cerulia.
"How vulgar!" cried Turquoise.
"How unladylike!" cried Sapphire.
"How silly!" cried Azure.
"How absurd!" cried Cobalt.
"How wicked!" cried Indigo. And then all six held up their hands as if
horrified.
The Boolooroo laughed.
"You'll know how to bring her to time, I imagine," he remarked, "and if
the girl isn't reasonable and obedient, send her to me and I'll have her
patched. Now, then, take her away."
But Trot was obstinate and wouldn't budge a step.
"Keep us together, your Majesty," begged Cap'n Bill. "If we're to be
slaves, don't separate us, but make us all the same kind o' slaves."
"I shall do what pleases me," declared the Boolooroo, angrily. "Don't
try to dictate, old Moonface, for there's only one Royal Will in Sky
Island, and that's my own."
He then gave a command to a soldier, who hastened away to the palace and
soon returned with a number of long blue ribbons. One he tied around
Trot's waist and then attached to it six other ribbons. Each of the Six
Snubnosed Princesses held the end of a ribbon, and then they turned and
marched haughtily away to the palace, dragging the little girl after
them.
"Don't worry, Trot," cried Button-Bright; "we'll get you out of this
trouble pretty soon."
"Trust to us, mate," added Cap'n Bill; "we'll manage to take care o'
you."
"Oh, I'm all right," answered Trot, with fine courage; "I'm not afraid
of these gawkies."
But the princesses pulled her after them and soon they had all
disappeared into one of the entrances to the Blue Palace.
"Now, then," said the Boolooroo, "I will instruct you two in your future
duties. I shall make old Moonface--"
"My name's Cap'n Bill Weedles," interrupted the sailor.
"I don't care what your name is; I shall call you old Moonface," replied
the king, "for that suits you quite well. I shall appoint you the Royal
Nectar Mixer to the Court of Sky Island, and if you don't mix our
nectar properly I'll have you patched.
"How do you mix it?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"I don't mix it; it's not the Boolooroo's place to mix nectar," was the
stern reply. "But you may inquire of the palace servants and perhaps the
Royal Chef or the Majordomo will condescend to tell you. Take him to the
servants' quarters, Captain Ultramarine, and give him a suit of the
royal livery."
So Cap'n Bill was led away by the chief of the soldiers, and when he had
gone the king said to Button-Bright:
"You, slave, shall be the Royal Bootblue. Your duty will be to keep the
boots and shoes of the royal family nicely polished with blue."
"I don't know how," answered Button-Bright, surlily.
"You'll soon learn. The Royal Steward will supply you with blue paste,
and when you've brushed this on our shoes you must shine them with
Q-rays of Moonshine. Do you understand?"
"No," said Button-Bright.
Then the Boolooroo told one of the soldiers to take the boy to the
shoeblue den and have him instructed in his duties, and the soldier
promptly obeyed and dragged Button-Bright away to the end of the palace
where the servants lived.
[Illustration]
GHIP-GHISIZZLE PROVES FRIENDLY
CHAPTER 7.
The Royal Palace was certainly a magnificent building, with large and
lofty rooms and superb furnishings, all being in shades of blue. The
soldier and the boy passed through several broad corridors and then came
to a big hall where many servants were congregated. These were staring
in bewilderment at Cap'n Bill, who had been introduced to them by
Captain Ultramarine. Now they turned in no less surprise to examine the
boy, and their looks expressed not only astonishment but dislike.
The servants were all richly attired in blue silk liveries and they
seemed disposed to resent the fact that these strangers had been added
to their ranks. They scowled and muttered and behaved in a very
unfriendly way, even after Captain Ultramarine had explained that the
newcomers were merely base slaves, and not to be classed with the free
royal servants of the palace.
One of those present, however, showed no especial enmity to
Button-Bright and Cap'n Bill, and this Blueskin attracted the boy's
notice because his appearance was so strange. He looked as if he were
made of two separate men, each cut through the middle and then joined
together, half of one to half of the other. One side of his blue hair
was curly and the other half straight; one ear was big and stuck out
from the side of his head, while the other ear was small and flat; one
eye was half shut and twinkling while the other was big and staring; his
nose was thin on one side and flat on the other, while one side of his
mouth curled up and the other down. Button-Bright also noticed that he
limped as he walked, because one leg was a trifle longer than the other,
and that one hand was delicate and slender and the other thick and
hardened by use.
"Don't stare at him," a voice whispered in the boy's ear; "the poor
fellow has been patched, that's all."
Button-Bright turned to see who had spoken and found by his side a tall
young Blueskin with a blue-gold chain around his neck. He was quite the
best looking person the boy had seen in Sky Island and he spoke in a
pleasant way and seemed quite friendly. But the two-sided man had
overheard the remark and he now stepped forward and said, in a careless
tone:
"Never mind; it's no disgrace to be patched in a country ruled by such a
cruel Boolooroo as we have. Let the boy look at me, if he wants to; I'm
not pretty, but that's not my fault. Blame the Boolooroo."
"I--I'm glad to meet you, sir," stammered Button-Bright. "What is _your_
name, please?"
"I'm now named Jimfred Jonesjinks, and my partner is called Fredjim
Jinksjones. He's busy at present guarding the Treasure Chamber, but I'll
introduce you to him when he comes back. We've had the misfortune to be
patched, you know."
"What is being patched?" asked the boy.
"They cut two of us in halves and mismatch the halves--half of one to
half of the other, you know--and then the other two halves are patched
together. It destroys our individuality and makes us complex creatures,
so it's the worst punishment than can be inflicted in Sky Island."
"Oh," said Button-Bright, alarmed at such dreadful butchery; "doesn't it
hurt?"
"No; it doesn't hurt," replied Jimfred, "but it makes one frightfully
nervous. They stand you under a big knife, which drops and slices you
neatly in two--exactly in the middle. Then they match half of you to
another person who has likewise been sliced--and there you are, patched
to someone you don't care about and haven't much interest in. If your
half wants to do something, the other half is likely to want to do
something different, and the funny part of it is you don't quite know
which is your half and which is the other half. It's a terrible
punishment, and in a country where one can't die or be killed until he
has lived his six hundred years, to be patched is a great misfortune."
"I'm sure it is," said Button-Bright, earnestly. "But can't you ever
get--get--_un_-patched again?"
"If the Boolooroo would consent, I think it could be done," Jimfred
replied; "but he never will consent. This is about the meanest Boolooroo
who ever ruled this land, and he was the first to invent patching people
as a punishment. I think we will all be glad when his three hundred
years of rule are ended."
"When will that be?" inquired the boy.
"Hush-sh-sh!" cried everyone, in a chorus, and they all looked over
their shoulders as if frightened by the question. The officer with the
blue-gold chain pulled Button-Bright's sleeve and whispered:
"Follow me, please." And then he beckoned to Cap'n Bill and led the two
slaves to another room, where they were alone.
"I must instruct you in your duties," said he, when they were all
comfortably seated in cosy chairs with blue cushions. "You must learn
how to obey the Boolooroo's commands, so he won't become angry and have
you patched."
"How could he patch _us_?" asked the sailorman, curiously.
"Oh, he'd just slice you all in halves and then patch half of the boy to
half of the girl, and the other half to half of you, and the other half
of you to the other half of the girl. See?"
"Can't say I do," said Cap'n Bill, much bewildered. "It's a reg'lar
mix-up."
"That's what it's meant to be," explained the young officer.
"An' seein' as we're Earth folks, an' not natives of Sky Island, I've an
idea the slicing machine would about end us, without bein' patched,"
continued the sailor.
"Oh," said Button-Bright; "so it would."
"While you are in this country you can't die till you've lived six
hundred years," declared the officer.
"Oh," said Button-Bright; "that's different, of course. But who are you,
please?"
"My name is Ghip-Ghi-siz-zle. Can you remember it?"
"I can 'member the 'sizzle,'" said the boy; "but I'm 'fraid the
Gwip--Grip--Glip----"
"Ghip-Ghi-siz-zle," repeated the officer, slowly. "I want you to
remember my name, because if you are going to live here you are sure to
hear of me a great many times. Can you keep a secret?"
"I can try," said Button-Bright.
"I've kep' secrets--once in a while," asserted Cap'n Bill.
"Well, try to keep this one. I'm to be the next Boolooroo of Sky
Island."
"Good for you!" cried the sailor. "I wish you was the Boolooroo now,
sir. But it seems you' ve got to wait a hundred years or more afore you
can take his place."
Ghip-Ghisizzle rose to his feet and paced up and down the room for a
time, a frown upon his blue face. Then he halted and faced Cap'n Bill.
"Sir," said he, "there lies all my trouble. I'm quite sure the present
Boolooroo has reigned three hundred years next Thursday; but he claims
it is only two hundred years, and as he holds the Royal Book of Records
under lock and key in the Royal Treasury, there is no way for us to
prove he is wrong."
"Oh," said Button-Bright. "How old is the Boolooroo?"
"He was two hundred years old when he was elected," replied
Ghip-Ghisizzle. "If he has already reigned three hundred years, as I
suspect, then he is now five hundred years old. You see, he is trying to
steal another hundred years of rule, so as to remain a tyrant all his
life."
"He don't seem as old as that," observed Cap'n Bill, thoughtfully. "Why,
I'm only sixty, myself, an' I guess I look twice as old as your king
does."
"We do not show our age in looks," the officer answered. "I am just
about your own age, sir--sixty-two my next birth-day--but I'm sure I
don't look as old as you."
"That's a fact," agreed Cap'n Bill. Then he turned to Button-Bright and
added: "Don't that prove Sky Island is a fairy country, as I said?"
"Oh, I've known that all along," said the boy. "The slicing and
patching proves it, and so do lots of other things."
"Now, then," said Ghip-Ghisizzle, "let us talk over your duties. It
seems you must mix the royal nectar, Cap'n Bill. Do you know how to do
that?"
"I'm free to say as I don't, friend Sizzle."
"The Boolooroo is very particular about his nectar. I think he has given
you this job so he can find fault with you and have you punished. But we
will fool him. You are strangers here, and I don't want you imposed
upon. I'll send Tiggle to the royal pantry and keep him there to mix the
nectar. Then when the Boolooroo, or the Queen, or any of the Snubnosed
Princesses call for a drink, you can carry it to them and it will be
sure to suit them."
"Thank'e, sir," said Cap'n Bill; "that's real kind of you."
"Your job, Button-Bright, is easier," continued Ghip-Ghisizzle.
"I'm no bootblack," declared the boy. "The Boolooroo has no right to
make me do his dirty work."
"You're a slave," the officer reminded him; "and a slave must obey."
"Why?" asked Button-Bright.
"Because he can't help himself. No slave ever wants to obey, but he just
has to. And it isn't dirty work at all. You don't black the royal boots
and shoes; you merely blue them with a finely perfumed blue paste. Then
you shine them neatly and your task is done. You will not be humiliated
by becoming a bootblack. You'll be a bootblue."
"Oh," said Button-Bright. "I don't see much difference, but perhaps it's
a little more respectable."
"Yes; the Royal Bootblue is considered a high official in Sky Island.
You do your work at evening or early morning, and the rest of the day
you are at liberty to do as you please."
"It won't last long, Button-Bright," said Cap'n Bill, consolingly.
"Somethin's bound to happen pretty soon, you know."
"I think so myself," answered the boy.
"And now," remarked Ghip-Ghisizzle, "since you understand your new
duties, perhaps you'd like to walk out with me and see the Blue City and
the glorious Blue Country of Sky Island."
"We would that!" cried Cap'n Bill, promptly.
So they accompanied their new friend through a maze of passages--for the
palace was very big--and then through a high arched portal into the
streets of the City. So rapid had been their descent when the umbrella
landed them in the royal garden that they had not even caught a glimpse
of the Blue City, so now they gazed with wonder and interest at the
splendid sights that met their eyes.
[Illustration]
THE BLUE CITY
CHAPTER 8.
The Blue City was quite extensive, and consisted of many broad streets
paved with blue marble and lined with splendid buildings of the same
beautiful material. There were houses and castles and shops for the
merchants and all were prettily designed and had many slender spires and
imposing turrets that rose far into the blue air. Everything was blue
here, just as was everything in the Royal Palace and gardens, and a blue
haze overhung all the city.
"Doesn't the sun ever shine?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"Not in the blue part of Sky Island," replied Ghip-Ghisizzle. "The moon
shines here every night, but we never see the sun. I am told, however,
that on the other half of the Island--which I have never seen--the sun
shines brightly but there is no moon at all."
"Oh," said Button-Bright; "is there another half to Sky Island?"
"Yes; a dreadful place called the Pink Country. I'm told everything
there is pink instead of blue. A fearful place it must be, indeed!" said
the Blueskin, with a shudder.
"I dunno 'bout that," remarked Cap'n Bill. "That Pink Country sounds
kind o' cheerful to me. Is your Blue Country very big?"
[Illustration]
"It is immense," was the proud reply. "This enormous City extends a half
mile in all directions from the center, and the country outside the City
is fully a half mile further in extent. That's very big, isn't it?"
"Not very," replied Cap'n Bill, with a smile. "We've cities on the Earth
ten times bigger--an' then some big besides. We'd call this a small town
in our country."
"Our Country is thousands of miles wide and thousands of miles
long--it's the great United States of America!" added the boy,
earnestly.
Ghip-Ghisizzle seemed astonished. He was silent a moment, and then he
said:
"Here in Sky Island we prize truthfulness very highly. Our Boolooroo is
not very truthful, I admit, for he is trying to misrepresent the length
of his reign, but our people as a rule speak only the truth."
"So do we," asserted Cap'n Bill. "What Button-Bright said is the honest
truth--every word of it."
"But we have been led to believe that Sky Island is the greatest country
in the universe--meaning, of course, our half of it, the Blue Country."
"It may be for you, perhaps," the sailor stated, politely, "an' I don't
imagine any island floatin' in the sky is any bigger. But the Universe
is a big place an' you can't be sure of what's in it till you've
traveled, like we have."
"Perhaps you are right," mused the Blueskin; but he still seemed to
doubt them.
"Is the Pink side of Sky Island bigger than the Blue side?" asked
Button-Bright.
"No; it is supposed to be the same size," was the reply.
"Then why haven't you ever been there? Seems to me you could walk across
the whole island in an hour," said the boy.
"The two parts are separated by an impassable barrier," answered
Ghip-Ghisizzle. "Between them lies the Great Fog Bank."
"A fog bank? Why, that's no barrier!" exclaimed Cap'n Bill.
"It is, indeed," returned the Blueskin. "The Fog Bank is so thick and
heavy that it blinds one, and if once you got into the Bank you might
wander forever and not find your way out again. Also it is full of
dampness that wets your clothes and your hair until you become
miserable. It is furthermore said that those who enter the Fog Bank
forfeit the six hundred years allowed them to live, and are liable to
die at any time. Here we do not die, you know; we merely pass away."
"How's that?" asked the sailor. "Isn't 'pass'n' away' jus' the same as
dyin'?"
"No, indeed. When our six hundred years are ended we march into the
Great Blue Grotto, through the Arch of Phinis, and are never seen
again."
"That's queer," said Button-Bright. "What would happen if you didn't
march through the Arch?"
"I do not know, for no one has ever refused to do so. It is the Law, and
we all obey it."
"It saves funeral expenses, anyhow," remarked Cap'n Bill. "Where is this
Arch?"
"Just outside the gates of the City. There is a mountain in the center
of the Blue land, and the entrance to the Great Blue Grotto is at the
foot of the mountain. According to our figures the Boolooroo ought to
march into this Grotto a hundred years from next Thursday, but he is
trying to steal a hundred years and so perhaps he won't enter the Arch
of Phinis. Therefore, if you will please be patient for about a hundred
years, you will discover what happens to one who breaks the Law."
"Thank'e," remarked Cap'n Bill. "I don't expect to be very curious, a
hundred years from now."
"Nor I," added Button-Bright, laughing at the whimsical speech. "But I
don't see how the Boolooroo is able to fool you all. Can't any of you
remember two or three hundred years back, when he first began to rule?"
"No," said Ghip-Ghisizzle; "that's a long time to remember, and we
Blueskins try to forget all we can--especially whatever is unpleasant.
Those who remember are usually the unhappy ones; only those able to
forget find the most joy in life."
During this conversation they had been walking along the streets of the
Blue City, where many of the Blueskin inhabitants stopped to gaze
wonderingly at the sailor and the boy, whose strange appearance
surprised them. They were a nervous, restless people and their
egg-shaped heads, set on the ends of long thin necks, seemed so
grotesque to the strangers that they could scarcely forbear laughing at
them. The bodies of these people were short and round and their legs
exceptionally long, so when a Blueskin walked he covered twice as much
ground at one step as Cap'n Bill or Button-Bright did. The women seemed
just as repellent as the men, and Button-Bright began to understand that
the Six Snubnosed Princesses were, after all, rather better looking than
most of the females of the Blue Country and so had a certain right to be
proud and haughty.
There were no horses nor cows in this land, but there were plenty of
blue goats, from which the people got their milk. Children tended the
goats--wee Blueskin boys and girls whose appearance was so comical that
Button-Bright laughed whenever he saw one of them.
Although the natives had never seen before this any human beings made as
Button-Bright and Cap'n Bill were, they took a strong dislike to the
strangers and several times threatened to attack them. Perhaps if
Ghip-Ghisizzle, who was their favorite, had not been present, they would
have mobbed our friends with vicious ill-will and might have seriously
injured them. But Ghip-Ghisizzle's friendly protection made them hold
aloof.
By and by they passed through a City gate and their guide showed them
the outer walls, which protected the City from the country beyond. There
were several of these gates, and from their recesses stone steps led to
the top of the wall. They mounted a flight of these steps and from their
elevation plainly saw the low mountain where the Arch of Phinis was
located, and beyond that the thick, blue-gray Fog Bank, which constantly
rolled like billows of the ocean and really seemed, from a distance,
quite forbidding.
"But it wouldn't take long to get there," decided Button-Bright, "and if
you were close up it might not be worse than any other fog. Is the Pink
Country on the other side of it?"
"So we are told in the Book of Records," replied Ghip-Ghisizzle. "None
of us now living know anything about it, but the Book of Records calls
it the 'Sunset Country,' and says that at evening the pink shades are
drowned by terrible colors of orange and crimson and golden-yellow and
red. Wouldn't it be horrible to be obliged to look upon such a sight? It
must give the poor people who live there dreadful headaches."
"I'd like to see that Book of Records," mused Cap'n Bill, who didn't
think the discription of the Sunset Country at all dreadful.
"I'd like to see it myself," returned Ghip-Ghisizzle, with a sigh; "but
no one can lay hands on it because the Boolooroo keeps it safely locked
up in his Treasure Chamber."
"Where's the key to the Treasure Chamber?" asked Button-Bright.
"The Boolooroo keeps it in his pocket, night and day," was the reply.
"He is afraid to let anyone see the Book, because it would prove he has
already reigned three hundred years next Thursday, and then he would
have to resign the throne to me and leave the Palace and live in a
common house."
"My Magic Umbrella is in that Treasure Chamber," said Button-Bright,
"and I'm going to try to get it."
"Are you?" inquired Ghip-Ghisizzle, eagerly. "Well, if you manage to
enter the Treasure Chamber, be sure to bring me the Book of Records. If
you can do that I will be the best and most grateful friend you ever
had!"
"I'll see," said the boy. "It ought not to be hard work to break into
the Treasure Chamber. Is it guarded?"
"Yes; the outside guard is Jimfred Jinksjones, the double patch of the
Fredjim whom you have met, and the inside guard is a ravenous creature
known as the Blue Wolf, which has teeth a foot long and as sharp as
needles."
"Oh," said Button-Bright. "But never mind the Blue Wolf; I must manage
to get my umbrella, somehow or other."
They now walked back to the palace, still objects of much curiosity to
the natives, who sneered at them and mocked them but dared not interfere
with their progress. At the palace they found that dinner was about to
be served in the big dining hall of the servants and dependents and
household officers of the royal Boolooroo. Ghip-Ghisizzle was the
Majordomo and Master of Ceremonies, so he took his seat at the end of
the long table and placed Cap'n Bill on one side of him and
Button-Bright on the other, to the great annoyance of the other
Blueskins present, who favored the strangers with nothing pleasanter
than envious scowls.
The Boolooroo and his Queen and daughters--the Six Snubnosed
Princesses--dined in formal state in the Banquet Hall, where they were
waited upon by favorite soldiers of the Royal Bodyguard. Here in the
servants' hall there was one vacant seat next to Button-Bright which was
reserved for Trot; but the little girl had not yet appeared and the
sailorman and the boy were beginning to be uneasy about her.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE TRIBULATION OF TROT
CHAPTER 9.
The apartments occupied by the Six Snubnosed Princesses were so
magnificent that when Trot first entered them, led by her haughty
captors, she thought they must be the most beautiful rooms in all the
world. There was a long and broad reception room, with forty-seven
windows in it, and opening out of it were six lovely bedchambers, each
furnished in the greatest luxury. Adjoining each sleeping room was a
marble bath, and each Princess had a separate boudoir and a dressing
room. The furnishings were of the utmost splendor, blue-gold and blue
gems being profusely used in the decorations, while the divans and
chairs were of richly carved bluewood upholstered in blue satins and
silks. The draperies were superbly embroidered and the rugs upon the
marble floors were woven with beautiful scenes in every conceivable
shade of blue.
When they first reached the reception room Princess Azure cast herself
upon a divan while her five sisters sat or reclined in easy chairs, with
their heads thrown back and their blue chins scornfully elevated. Trot,
who was much annoyed at the treatment she had received, did not hesitate
to seat herself, also, in a big easy chair.
"Slave!" cried Princess Cerulia, "fetch me a mirror."
"Slave!" cried Princess Turquoise, "a lock of my hair is loosened; bind
it up."
"Slave!" cried Princess Cobalt, "unfasten my shoes; they're too tight."
"Slave!" cried Princess Sapphire, "bring hither my box of blue
chocolates."
"Slave!" cried Princess Azure, "stand by my side and fan me."
"Slave!" cried Princess Indigo, "get out of that chair. How dare you sit
in our presence!"
"If you're saying all those things to me," replied Trot, "you may as
well save your breath. I'm no slave." And she cuddled down closer in the
chair.
"You _are_ a slave!" shouted the six, all together.
"I'm not!"
"Our father, the Revered and Resplendent Royal Ruler of the Blues, has
made you our slave," asserted Indigo, with a yawn.
"But he can't," objected the little girl. "I'm some Royal an' Rapturous
an' Ridic'lous myself, an' I won't allow any cheap Boolooroo to order me
'round."
"Are you of royal birth?" asked Azure, seeming surprised.
"Royal! Why, I'm an American, Snubnoses, and if there's anything royaler
than an American I'd like to know what it is."
The Princesses seemed uncertain what reply to make to this speech and
began whispering together. Finally Indigo said to Trot:
"We do not think it matters what you were in your own country, for
having left there you have forfeited your rank. By recklessly intruding
into our domain you have become a slave, and being a slave you must obey
us or suffer the consequences."
"What cons'quences?" asked the girl.
"Dare to disobey us and you will quickly find out," snapped Indigo,
swaying her head from side to side on its long, swan-like neck, like the
pendulum of a clock.
"I don't want any trouble," said Trot, gravely. "We came to Sky Island
by mistake, and wanted to go right away again; but your father wouldn't
let us. It isn't our fault we're still here, an' I'm free to say you're
a very dis'gree'ble an' horrid lot of people, with no manners to speak
of, or you'd treat us nicely."
"No impertinence!" cried Indigo, savagely.
"Why, it's the truth," replied Trot.
Indigo made a rush and caught Trot by both shoulders. The Princess was
twice the little girl's size and she shook her victim so violently that
Trot's teeth rattled together. Then Princess Cobalt came up and slapped
one side of the slave's face and Princess Turquoise ran forward and
slapped the other side. Cerulia gave Trot a push one way and Sapphire
pushed her the other way, so the little girl was quite out of breath and
very angry when finally her punishment ceased. She had not been much
hurt, though, and she was wise enough to understand that these
Princesses were all cruel and vindictive, so that her safest plan was to
pretend to obey them.
"Now, then," commanded Princess Indigo, "go and feed my little blue dog
that crows like a rooster."
"And feed my pretty blue cat that sings like a bird," said Princess
Azure.
"And feed my soft blue lamb that chatters like a monkey," said Princess
Cobalt.
"And feed my poetic blue parrot that barks like a dog," said Princess
Sapphire.
"And feed my fuzzy blue rabbit that roars like a lion," said Princess
Turquoise.
"And feed my lovely blue peacock that mews like a cat," said Princess
Cerulia.
"Anything else?" asked Trot, drawing a long breath.
"Not until you have properly fed our pets," replied Azure, with a
scowl.
"What do they eat, then?"
"Meat!"
"Milk!"
"Clover!"
"Seeds!"
"Bread!"
"Carrots!"
"All right," said Trot; "where do you keep the menagerie?"
"Our pets are in our boudoirs," said Indigo, harshly. "What a little
fool you are!"
"Perhaps," said Trot, pausing as she was about to leave the room, "when
I grow up I'll be as big a fool as any of you."
Then she ran away to escape another shaking, and in the first boudoir
she found the little blue dog curled up on a blue cushion in a corner.
Trot patted his head gently and this surprised the dog, who was
accustomed to cuffs and kicks. So he licked Trot's hand and wagged his
funny little tail and then straightened up and crowed like a rooster.
The girl was delighted with the queer doggie and she found some meat in
a cupboard and fed him out of her hand, patting the tiny creature and
stroking his soft blue hair. The doggie had never in his life known
anyone so kind and gentle, so when Trot went into the next boudoir the
animal followed close at her heels, wagging his tail every minute.
The blue cat was asleep on a window seat, but it woke up when Trot
tenderly took it in her lap and fed it milk from a blue-gold dish. It
was a pretty cat and instantly knew the little girl was a friend--vastly
different from its own bad-tempered mistress--so it sang beautifully, as
a bird sings, and both the cat and the dog followed Trot into the third
boudoir.
Here was a tiny baby lamb with fleece as blue as a larkspur and as soft
as silk.
"Oh, you darling!" cried Trot, hugging the little lamb tight in her
arms. At once the lamb began chattering, just as a monkey chatters, only
in the most friendly and grateful way, and Trot fed it a handful of
fresh blue clover and smoothed and petted it until the lamb was eager to
follow her wherever she might go.
When she came to the fourth boudoir a handsome blue parrot sat on a blue
perch and began barking as if it were nearly starved. Then it cried out:
"Rub-a-dub, dub,--
Gimme some grub!"
Trot laughed and gave it some seeds, and while the parrot ate them she
stroked gently his soft feathers. The bird seemed much astonished at the
unusual caress, and turned upon the girl first one little eye and then
the other, as if trying to discover why she was so kind. He had never
experienced kind treatment in all his life. So it was no wonder that
when the little girl entered the fifth boudoir she was followed by the
parrot, the lamb, the cat and the dog, who all stood beside her and
watched her feed the peacock, which she found strutting around and
mewing like a cat for his dinner. Said the parrot:
"I spy a peacock's eye
On every feather--I wonder why?"
The peacock soon came to love Trot as much as the other bird and all the
beasts did, and it spread its tail and strutted after her into the next
boudoir--the sixth one. As she entered this room Trot gave a start of
fear, for a terrible roar, like the roar of a lion, greeted her. But
there was no lion there; a fuzzy blue rabbit was making all the noise.
"For goodness sake, keep quiet," said Trot. "Here's a nice blue carrot
for you. The color seems all wrong, but it may taste jus' as good as if
it was red."
Evidently it did taste good, for the rabbit ate it greedily. When it was
not roaring the creature was so soft and fluffy that Trot played with it
and fondled it a long time after it had finished eating, and the rabbit
played with the cat and the dog and the lamb and did not seem a bit
afraid of the parrot or the peacock. But, all of a sudden, in pounced
Princess Indigo, with a yell of anger.
"So, this is how you waste your time, is it?" exclaimed the Princess,
and grabbing Trot's arm she jerked the girl to her feet and began
pushing her from the room. All the pets began to follow her, and seeing
this, Indigo yelled at them to keep back. As they paid no attention to
this command the princess seized a basin of water and dashed the fluid
over the beasts and birds, after which she renewed her attempt to push
Trot from the room. The pets rebelled at such treatment, and believing
they ought to protect Trot, whom they knew to be their friend, they
proceeded to defend her. The little blue dog dashed at Indigo and bit
her right ankle, while the blue cat scratched her left leg with its
claws and the parrot flew upon her shoulder and pecked her ear. The lamb
ran up and butted Indigo so that she stumbled forward on her face, when
the peacock proceeded to pound her head with his wings. Indigo,
screaming with fright, sprang to her feet again, but the rabbit ran
between her legs and tripped her up, all the time roaring loudly like a
lion, and the dog crowed triumphantly, as a rooster crows, while the cat
warbled noisily and the lamb chattered and the parrot barked and the
peacock screeched: "me-ow!"
Altogether, Indigo was, as Trot said, "scared stiff," and she howled for
help until her sisters ran in and rescued her, pulling her through the
bedchamber into the reception room.
When she was alone Trot sat down on the floor and laughed until the
tears came to her eyes, and she hugged all the pets and kissed them
every one and thanked them for protecting her.
"That's all right;
We like a fight,"
declared the parrot, in reply.
The Princesses were horrified to find Indigo so scratched and bitten,
and they were likewise amazed at the rebellion of their six pets, which
they had never petted, indeed, but kept in their boudoirs so they could
abuse them whenever they felt especially wicked or ill-natured. None of
the snubnosed ones dared enter the room where the girl was, but they
called through a crack in the door for Trot to come out instantly. Trot,
pretending not to hear, paid no attention to these commands.
Finding themselves helpless and balked of their revenge, the Six
Snubnosed Princesses finally recovered from their excitement and settled
down to a pleasant sisterly quarrel, as was their customary amusement.
Indigo wanted to have Trot patched, and Cerulia wanted her beaten with
knotted cords, and Cobalt wanted her locked up in a dark room, and
Sapphire wanted her fed on sand, and Turquoise wanted her bound to a
windmill, and so between these various desires they quarrelled and
argued until dinner time arrived.
Trot was occupying Indigo's room, so that Princess was obliged to dress
with Azure, not daring to enter her own chamber, and the two sisters
quarrelled so enthusiastically that they almost came to blows before
they were ready for dinner.
Before the Six Snubnosed Princesses went to the Royal Banquet Hall,
Cobalt stuck her head through a crack of the door and said to Trot:
"If you want any dinner, you'll find it in the servants' hall. I advise
you to eat, for after our dinner we will decide upon a fitting
punishment for you, and then I'm sure you won't have much appetite."
"Thank you," replied the girl; "I'm right hungry, jus' now."
She waited until the snubnosed sextette had pranced haughtily away and
then she came out, followed by all the pets, and found her way to the
servants' quarters.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE KING'S TREASURE CHAMBER
Chapter 10.
All the Blueskins assembled in the servants' hall were amazed to see the
pets of the Princesses trailing after the strange little girl, but Trot
took her place next to Button-Bright at the table, and the parrot
perched upon her shoulder, while the peacock stood upon one side of her
chair, and the lamb upon the other, and the cat and dog lay at her feet,
and the blue rabbit climbed into her lap and cuddled down there. Some of
the Blueskins insisted that the animals and birds must be put out of the
room, but Ghip-Ghisizzle said they could remain, as they were the
favored pets of the lovely Snubnosed Princesses.
Cap'n Bill was delighted to see his dear little friend again, and so was
Button-Bright, and now that they were reunited--for a time, at
least--they paid little heed to the sour looks and taunting remarks of
the ugly Blueskins and ate heartily of the dinner, which was really very
good.
The meal was no sooner over than Ghip-Ghisizzle was summoned to the
chamber of his Majesty the Boolooroo, but before he went away he took
Trot and Cap'n Bill and Button-Bright into a small room and advised them
to stay there until he returned, so that the servants and soldiers would
not molest them.
"My people seem to dislike strangers," said the Majordomo, thoughtfully,
"and that surprises me because you are the first strangers they have
ever seen. I think they imagine you will become favorites of the
Boolooroo and of the Princesses, and that is why they are jealous and
hate you."
"They needn't worry 'bout that," replied Trot; "the Snubnoses hate me
worse than the people do."
"I can't imagine a bootblue becoming a royal favorite," grumbled
Button-Bright.
"Or a necktie mixer," added Cap'n Bill.
"You don't mix neckties; you're a nectar mixer," said Ghip-Ghisizzle,
correcting the sailor. "I'll not be gone long, for I'm no favorite of
the Boolooroo, either, so please stay quietly in this room until my
return."
The Majordomo found the Boolooroo in a bad temper. He had finished his
dinner, where his six daughters had bitterly denounced Trot all through
the meal and implored their father to invent some new and terrible
punishment for her. Also his wife, the Queen, had made him angry by
begging for gold to buy ribbons with. Then, when he had retired to his
own private room, he decided to send for the umbrella he had stolen from
Button-Bright, and test its magic powers. But the umbrella, in his
hands, proved just as common as any other umbrella might. He opened it
and closed it, and turned it this way and that, commanding it to do all
sorts of things; but of course the Magic Umbrella would obey no one but
a member of the family that rightfully owned it. At last the Boolooroo
threw it down and stamped upon it and then kicked it into a corner,
where it rolled underneath a cabinet. Then he sent for Ghip-Ghisizzle.
"Do you know how to work that Magic Umbrella?" he asked the Majordomo.
"No, your Majesty; I do not," was the reply.
"Well, find out. Make the Whiteskins tell you, so that I can use it for
my own amusement."
"I'll do my best, your Majesty," said Ghip-Ghisizzle.
"You'll do more than that, or I'll have you patched!" roared the angry
Boolooroo. "And don't waste any time, either, for as soon as we find out
the secret of the umbrella I'm going to have the three strangers marched
through the Arch of Phinis--and that will be the end of them."
"You can't do that, your Majesty," said the Majordomo.
"Why can't I?"
"They haven't lived six hundred years yet, and only those who have lived
that length of time are allowed to march through the Arch of Phinis into
the Great Blue Grotto."
The King looked at him with a sneer.
"Has anyone ever come out of that Arch alive?" he asked.
"No," said Ghip-Ghisizzle. "But no one has ever gone into the Blue
Grotto until his allotted time was up."
"Well, I'm going to try the experiment," declared the Boolooroo. "I
shall march these three strangers through the Arch, and if by any chance
they come out alive I'll do a new sort of patching--I'll chop off their
heads and mix 'em up, putting the wrong head on each of 'em. Ha, ha!
Won't it be funny to see the old Moonface's head on the little girl? Ho,
Ho! I really hope they'll come out of the Great Blue Grotto alive!"
"I also hope they will," replied Ghip-Ghisizzle.
"Then I'll bet you four button-holes they don't. I've a suspicion that
once they enter the Great Blue Grotto that's the last of them."
Ghip-Ghisizzle went away quite sad and unhappy. He did not approve the
way the strangers were being treated and thought it was wicked and cruel
to try to destroy them.
During his absence the prisoners had been talking together very
earnestly.
"We must get away from here, somehow 'r other," said Cap'n Bill; "but o'
course we can't stir a step without the Magic Umbrel."
"No; I must surely manage to get my umbrella first," said Button-Bright.
"Do it quick, then," urged Trot, "for I can't stand those snubnoses much
longer."
"I'll do it to-night," said the boy.
"The sooner the better, my lad," remarked the sailor; "but seein' as the
Blue Boolooroo has locked it up in his Treasure Chamber, it mayn't be
easy to get hold of."
"No; it won't be easy," Button-Bright admitted. "But it has to be done,
Cap'n Bill, and there's no use waiting any longer. No one here likes us,
and in a few days they may make an end of us."
"Oh, Button-Bright! There's a Blue Wolf in the Treasure Chamber!"
exclaimed Trot.
"Yes; I know."
"An' a patched man on guard outside," Cap'n Bill reminded him.
"I know," repeated Button-Bright.
"And the key's in the King's own pocket," added Trot, despairingly.
The boy nodded. He didn't say how he would overcome all these
difficulties, so the little girl feared they would never see the Magic
Umbrella again. But their present position was a very serious one and
even Cap'n Bill dared not advise Button-Bright to give up the desperate
attempt.
When Ghip-Ghisizzle returned he said:
"You must be very careful not to anger the Boolooroo, or he may do you a
mischief. I think the little girl had better keep away from the
Princesses for to-night, unless they demand her presence. The boy must
go for the King's shoes and blue them and polish them and then take them
back to the Royal Bedchamber. Cap'n Bill won't have anything to do, for
I've ordered Tiggle to mix the nectar."
"Thank 'e, friend Sizzle," said Cap'n Bill.
"Now follow me and I will take you to your rooms."
He led them to the rear of the palace, where he gave them three small
rooms on the ground floor, each having a bed in it. Cap'n Bill's room
had a small door leading out into the street of the City, but
Ghip-Ghisizzle advised him to keep this door locked, as the city people
would be sure to hurt the strangers if they had the chance to attack
them.
"You're safer in the palace than anywhere else," said the Majordomo,
"for there is no way you can escape from the island, and here the
servants and soldiers dare not injure you for fear of the Boolooroo."
He placed Trot and her six pets--which followed her wherever she
went--in one room, and Cap'n Bill in another, and took Button-Bright
away with him to show the boy the way to the King's bedchamber. As they
proceeded they passed many rooms with closed doors, and before one of
these a patched Blueskin was pacing up and down in a tired and sleepy
way. It was Jimfred Jinksjones, the double of the Fredjim Jonesjinks
they had talked with in the servants' hall, and he bowed low before the
Majordomo.
"This is the King's new bootblue, a stranger who has lately arrived
here," said Ghip-Ghisizzle, introducing the boy to the patched man.
"I'm sorry for him," muttered Jimfred. "He's a queer looking chap, with
his pale yellow skin, and I imagine our cruel Boolooroo is likely to
patch him before long, as he did me--I mean us."
"No, he won't," said Button-Bright, positively. "The Boolooroo's afraid
of me."
"Oh, that's different," said Jimfred. "You're the first person I ever
knew that could scare our Boolooroo."
They passed on, and Ghip-Ghisizzle whispered: "That is the Royal
Treasure Chamber."
Button-Bright nodded. He had marked the place well, so he couldn't miss
it when he wanted to find it again.
When they came to the King's apartments there was another guard before
the door, this time a long-necked soldier with a terrible scowl.
"This slave is the Royal Bootblue," said Ghip-Ghisizzle to the guard.
"You will allow him to pass into his Majesty's chamber to get the royal
shoes and to return them when they are blued."
"All right," answered the guard. "Our Boolooroo is in an ugly mood
to-night. It will go hard with this little short-necked creature if he
doesn't polish the shoes properly."
Then Ghip-Ghisizzle left Button-Bright and went away, and the boy passed
through several rooms to the Royal Bedchamber, where his Majesty sat
undressing.
"Hi, there! What are you doing here?" he roared, as he saw
Button-Bright.
"I've come for the shoes," said the boy.
The king threw them at his head, aiming carefully, but Button-Bright
dodged the missiles and one smashed a mirror while the other shattered a
vase on a small table. His Majesty looked around for something else to
throw, but the boy seized the shoes and ran away, returning to his own
room.
While he polished the shoes he told his plans to Cap'n Bill and Trot,
and asked them to be ready to fly with him as soon as he returned with
the Magic Umbrella. All they need to do was to step out into the street,
through the door of Cap'n Bill's room, and open the umbrella.
Fortunately, the seats and the lunch-basket were still attached to the
handle--or so they thought--and there would be nothing to prevent their
quickly starting on the journey home.
They waited a long time, however, to give the Boolooroo time to get to
sleep, so it was after midnight when Button-Bright finally took the
shoes in his hand and started for the Royal Bedchamber. He passed the
guard of the Royal Treasury and Fredjim nodded good-naturedly to the
boy. But the sleepy guard before the King's apartments was cross and
surly.
"What are you doing here at this hour?" he demanded.
"I'm returning his Majesty's shoes," said Button-Bright.
"Go back and wait till morning," commanded the guard.
"If you prevent me from obeying the Boolooroo's orders," returned the
boy, quietly, "he will probably have you patched."
This threat frightened the long-necked guard, who did not know what
orders the Boolooroo had given his Royal Bootblue.
"Go in, then," said he; "but if you make a noise and waken his Majesty,
the chances are you'll get yourself patched."
"I'll be quiet," promised the boy.
Indeed, Button-Bright had no desire to waken the Boolooroo, whom he
found snoring lustily with the curtains of his high-posted bed drawn
tightly around him. The boy had taken off his own shoes after he passed
the guard and now he tiptoed carefully into the room, set down the royal
shoes very gently and then crept to the chair where his Majesty's
clothes were piled. Scarcely daring to breathe, for fear of awakening
the terrible monarch, the boy searched in the royal pockets until he
found a blue-gold key attached to a blue-gold chain. At once he decided
this must be the key to the Treasure Chamber, but in order to make sure
he searched in every other pocket--without finding another key.
Then Button-Bright crept softly out of the room again, and in one of the
outer rooms he sat down near a big cabinet and put on his shoes. Poor
Button-Bright did not know that lying disregarded beneath that very
cabinet at his side was the precious umbrella he was seeking, or that he
was undertaking a desperate adventure all for nothing. He passed the
long-necked guard again, finding the man half asleep, and then made his
way to the Treasure Chamber. Facing Jimfred he said to the patched man,
in a serious tone:
"His Majesty commands you to go at once to the corridor leading to the
apartments of the Six Snubnosed Princesses and to guard the entrance
until morning. You are to permit no one to enter or to leave the
apartments."
"But--good gracious!" exclaimed the surprised Jimfred; "who will guard
the Treasure Chamber?"
"I am to take your place," said Button-Bright.
"Oh, very well," replied Jimfred; "this is a queer freak for our
Boolooroo to indulge in, but he is always doing something absurd. You're
not much of a guard, seems to me, but if anyone tries to rob the
Treasure Chamber you must ring this big gong, which will alarm the whole
palace and bring the soldiers to your assistance. Do you understand?"
"Yes," said Button-Bright.
Then Fredjim stalked away to the other side of the palace to guard the
Princesses, and Button-Bright was left alone with the key to the
Treasure Chamber in his hand. But he had not forgotten that the
ferocious Blue Wolf was guarding the interior of the Chamber, so he
searched in some of the rooms until he found a sofa-pillow, which he put
under his arm and then returned to the corridor.
He placed the key in the lock and the bolt turned with a sharp click.
Button-Bright did not hesitate. He was afraid, to be sure, and his heart
was beating fast with the excitement of the moment, but he knew he must
regain the Magic Umbrella if he would save his comrades and himself from
destruction, for without it they could never return to the Earth. So he
summoned up his best courage, opened the door, stepped quickly
inside--and closed the door after him.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
BUTTON-BRIGHT ENCOUNTERS THE BLUE WOLF
CHAPTER 11.
A low, fierce growl greeted him. The Treasure Chamber was pretty dark,
although the moonlight came in through some of the windows, but the boy
had brought with him the low brass lamp that lighted the corrider and
this he set upon a table beside the door before he took time to look
around him.
The Treasure Chamber was heaped and crowded with all the riches the
Boolooroo had accumulated during his reign of two or three hundred
years. Piles of gold and jewels were on all sides and precious ornaments
and splendid cloths, rare pieces of carved furniture, vases, bric-a-brac
and the like, were strewn about the room in astonishing profusion.
Just at the boy's feet crouched a monstrous animal of most fearful
aspect. He knew at a glance it was the terrible Blue Wolf and the sight
of the beast sent a shiver through him. The Blue Wolf's head was fully
as big as that of a lion and its wide jaws were armed with rows of long,
pointed teeth. Its shoulders and front legs were huge and powerful, but
the rest of the wolf's body dwindled away until at the tail it was no
bigger than a dog. The jaws were therefore the dangerous part of the
creature, and its small blue eyes flashed wickedly at the intruder.
Just as the boy made his first step forward the Blue Wolf sprang upon
him with its enormous jaws stretched wide open. Button-Bright jammed the
sofa-pillow into the brute's mouth and crowded it in as hard as he
could. The terrible teeth came together and buried themselves in the
pillow, and then Mr. Wolf found he could not pull them out
again--because his mouth was stuffed full. He could not even growl or
yelp, but rolled upon the floor trying in vain to release himself from
the conquering pillow.
Button-Bright paid no further attention to the helpless animal but
caught up the blue-brass lamp and began a search for his umbrella. Of
course he could not find it, as it was not there. He came across a small
book, bound in light blue leather, which lay upon an exquisitely carved
center-table. It was named, in dark blue letters stamped on the leather,
"The Royal Record Book," and remembering that Ghip-Ghisizzle longed to
possess this book Button-Bright hastily concealed it inside his blouse.
Then he renewed his search for the umbrella, but it was quite in vain.
He hunted in every crack and corner, tumbling the treasures here and
there in the quest, but at last he became positive that the Magic
Umbrella had been removed from the room.
The boy was bitterly disappointed and did not know what to do next. But
he noticed that the Blue Wolf had finally seized an edge of the
sofa-pillow in its sharp claws and was struggling to pull the thing out
of his mouth; so, there being no object in his remaining longer in the
room, where he might have to fight the wolf again, Button-Bright went
out and locked the door behind him.
While he stood in the corridor wondering what to do next a sudden
shouting reached his ears. It was the voice of the Boolooroo, crying:
"My Key--my Key! Who has stolen my golden Key?" And then there followed
shouts of soldiers and guards and servants and the rapid pattering of
feet was heard throughout the palace.
Button-Bright took to his heels and ran along the passages until he came
to Cap'n Bill's room, where the sailorman and Trot were anxiously
awaiting him.
"Quick!" cried the boy; "we must escape from here at once or we will be
caught and patched."
"Where's the umbrel?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"I don't know. I can't find it. But all the palace is aroused and the
Boolooroo is furious. Come, let's get away at once!"
"Where'll we go?" inquired Trot.
"We must make for the open country and hide in the Fog Bank, or in the
Arch of Phinis," replied the boy.
They did not stop to argue any longer, but all three stepped out of the
little door into the street, where they first clasped hands, so they
would not get separated in the dark, and then ran as swiftly as they
could down the street, which was deserted at this hour by the citizens.
They could not go very fast because the sailorman's wooden leg was
awkward to run with and held them back, but Cap'n Bill hobbled quicker
than he had ever hobbled before in all his life, and they really made
pretty good progress.
They met no one on the streets and continued their flight until at last
they came to the City Wall, which had a blue-iron gate in it. Here was a
Blueskin guard, who had been peacefully slumbering when aroused by the
footsteps of the fugitives.
"Halt!" cried the guard, fiercely.
Cap'n Bill halted long enough to grab the man around his long neck with
one hand and around his long leg with the other hand. Then he raised the
Blueskin in the air and threw him far over the wall. A moment later they
had unfastened the gate and fled into the open country, where they
headed toward the low mountain whose outlines were plainly visible in
the moonlight.
The guard was now howling and crying for help. In the city were
answering shouts. A hue and cry came from every direction, reaching as
far as the palace. Lights began to twinkle everywhere in the streets and
the Blue City hummed like a beehive filled with angry bees.
"It won't do for us to get caught now," panted Cap'n Bill, as they ran
along. "I'm more afeared o' them Blue citizens ner I am o' the Blue
Boolooroo. They'd tear us to pieces, if they could."
Sky Island was not a very big place, especially the blue part of it, and
our friends were now very close to the low mountain. Presently they
paused before a grim archway of blue marble, above which was carved the
one word: "Phinis." The interior seemed dark and terrible as they
stopped to regard it as a possible place of refuge.
"Don't like that place, Cap'n," whispered Trot.
"No more do I, mate," he answered.
"I think I'd rather take a chance on the Fog Bank," said Button-Bright.
Just then they were all startled by a swift flapping of wings, and a
voice cried in shrill tones:
"Where are you, Trot?
As like as not
I've been forgot!"
Cap'n Bill jumped this way and Button-Bright that, and then there
alighted on Trot's shoulder the blue parrot that had been the pet of the
Princess Cerulia.
Said the bird:
"Gee! I've flown
Here all alone.
It's pretty far,
But here we are!"
and then he barked like a dog and chuckled with glee at having found his
little friend.
In escaping from the palace Trot had been obliged to leave all the pets
behind her, but it seemed that the parrot had found some way to get free
and follow her. They were all astonished to hear the bird talk--and in
poetry, too--but Cap'n Bill told Trot that some parrots he had known had
possessed a pretty fair gift of language, and he added that this blue
one seemed an unusually bright bird.
"As fer po'try," said he, "that's as how you look at po'try. Rhymes come
from your head, but real po'try from your heart, an' whether the blue
parrot has a heart or not he's sure got a head."
Having decided not to venture into the Arch of Phinis they again started
on, this time across the country straight toward the Fog Bank, which
hung like a blue-gray cloud directly across the center of the island.
They knew they were being followed by bands of the Blueskins, for they
could hear the shouts of their pursuers growing louder and louder every
minute, since their long legs covered the ground more quickly than our
friends could possibly go. Had the journey been much farther the
fugitives would have been overtaken, but when the leaders of the
pursuing Blueskins were only a few yards behind them they reached the
edge of the Fog Bank and without hesitation plunged into its thick mist,
which instantly hid them from view.
The Blueskins fell back, horrified at the mad act of the strangers. To
them the Fog Bank was the most dreadful thing in existence and no
Blueskin had ever ventured within it, even for a moment.
"That's the end of those short-necked Yellowskins," said one, shaking
his head. "We may as well go back and report the matter to the
Boolooroo."
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THROUGH THE FOG BANK
CHAPTER 12.
It was rather moist in the Fog Bank.
"Seems like a reg'lar drizzle," said Trot. "I'll be soaked through in a
minute." She had been given a costume of blue silk, in exchange for her
own dress, and the silk was so thin that the moisture easily wetted it.
"Never mind," said Cap'n Bill. "When it's a case of life 'n' death,
clo's don't count for much. I'm sort o' drippy myself."
Cried the parrot, fluttering his feathers to try to keep them from
sticking together:
"Floods and gushes fill our path--
This is not my day for a bath!
Shut it off, or fear my wrath."
"We can't," laughed Trot. "We'll jus' have to stick it out till we get
to the other side."
"Had we better go to the other side?" asked Button-Bright, anxiously.
"Why not?" returned Cap'n Bill. "The other side's the only safe side for
us."
"We don't know that, sir," said the boy. "Ghip-Ghisizzle said it was a
terrible country."
"I don't believe it," retorted the sailor, stoutly. "Sizzle's never been
there, an' he knows nothing about it. 'The Sunset Country' sounds sort
o' good to me."
"But how'll we ever manage to get there?" inquired Trot. "Aren't we
already lost in this fog?"
"Not yet," said Cap'n Bill. "I've kep' my face turned straight ahead,
ever since we climbed inter this bank o' wetness. If we don't get
twisted any, we'll go straight through to the other side."
It was no darker in the Fog Bank than it had been in the Blue Country.
They could see dimly the mass of fog, which seemed to cling to them, and
when they looked down they discovered that they were walking upon white
pebbles that were slightly tinged with the blue color of the sky.
Gradually this blue became fainter, until, as they progressed,
everything became a dull gray.
"I wonder how far it is to the other side," remarked Trot, wearily.
"We can't say till we get there, mate," answered the sailor in a
cheerful voice. Cap'n Bill had a way of growing more and more cheerful
when danger threatened.
"Never mind," said the girl; "I'm as wet as a dish rag now, and I'll
never get any wetter."
"Wet, wet, wet!
It's awful wet, you bet!"
moaned the parrot on her shoulder.
"I'm a fish-pond, I'm a well;
I'm a clam without a shell!"
"Can't you dry up?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"Not this evening, thank you, sir;
To talk and grumble I prefer,"
replied the parrot, dolefully.
They walked along more slowly now, still keeping hold of hands; for
although they were anxious to get through the Fog Bank they were tired
with the long run across the country and with their day's adventures.
They had had no sleep and it was a long time past midnight.
"Look out!" cried the parrot, sharply; and they all halted to find a
monstrous frog obstructing their path. Cap'n Bill thought it was as big
as a whale, and as it squatted on the gray pebbles its eyes were on a
level with those of the old sailor.
"Ker-chug, ker-choo!" grunted the frog; "what in the Sky is _this_
crowd?"
"W--we're--strangers," stammered Trot; "an' we're tryin' to 'scape from
the Blueskins an' get into the Pink Country."
"I don't blame you," said the frog, in a friendly tone. "I hate those
Blueskins. The Pinkies, however, are very decent neighbors."
"Oh, I'm glad to hear that!" cried Button-Bright. "Can you tell us,
Mister--Mistress--good Mr. Frog--eh--eh--your Royal Highness--if we're
on the right road to the Pink Country?"
The frog seemed to laugh, for he gurgled in his throat in a very funny
way.
"I'm no Royal Highness," he said. "I'm just a common frog; and a little
wee tiny frog, too. But I hope to grow, in time. This Fog Bank is the
Paradise of Frogs and our King is about ten times as big as I am."
"Then he's a big un, an' no mistake," admitted Cap'n Bill. "I'm glad you
like your country, but it's a mite too damp for us, an' we'd be glad to
get out of it."
"Follow me," said the frog. "I'll lead you to the border. It's only
about six jumps."
He turned around, made a mighty leap and disappeared in the gray mist.
Our friends looked at one another in bewilderment.
"Don't see how we can foller that lead," remarked Cap'n Bill; "but we
may as well start in the same direction."
"Brooks and creeks,
How it leaks!"
muttered the parrot;
"How can we jog
To a frog in a fog?"
The big frog seemed to understand their difficulty, for he kept making
noises in his throat to guide them to where he had leaped. When at last
they came up to him he made a second jump--out of sight, as before--and
when they attempted to follow they found a huge lizard lying across the
path. Cap'n Bill thought it must be a giant alligator, at first, it was
so big; but he looked at them sleepily and did not seem at all
dangerous.
"O, Liz--you puffy Liz--
Get out of our way and mind your biz,"
cried the parrot.
"Creep-a-mousie, crawl-a-mousie, please move on!
We can't move a step till you are gone."
"Don't disturb me," said the lizard; "I'm dreaming about parsnips. Did
you ever taste a parsnip?"
"We're in a hurry, if it's the same to you, sir," said Cap'n Bill,
politely.
[Illustration]
"Then climb over me--or go around--I don't care which," murmured the
lizard. "When they're little, they're juicy; when they're big, there's
more of 'em; but either way there's nothing so delicious as a parsnip.
There are none here in the Fog Bank, so the best I can do is dream of
them. Oh, parsnips--par-snips--p-a-r-snips!" He closed his eyes sleepily
and resumed his dreams.
Walking around the lizard they resumed their journey and soon came to
the frog, being guided by its grunts and croaks. Then off it went again,
its tremendous leap carrying it far into the fog. Suddenly Cap'n Bill
tripped and would have fallen flat had not Trot and Button-Bright held
him up. Then he saw that he had stumbled over the claw of a gigantic
land-crab, which lay sprawled out upon the pebbly bottom.
"Oh; beg parding, I'm sure!" exclaimed Cap'n Bill backing away.
"Don't mention it," replied the crab, in a tired tone. "You did not
disturb me, so there is no harm done."
"We didn't know you were here," explained Trot.
"Probably not," said the crab. "It's no place for me, anyhow, for I
belong in the Constellations, you know, with Taurus and Gemini and the
other fellows. But I had the misfortune to tumble out of the Zodiac some
time ago. My name is Cancer--but I'm not a disease. Those who examine
the heavens in these days, alas! can find no Cancer there."
"Yes, we can, sir,
Mister Cancer!"
said the parrot, with a chuckle.
"Once," remarked Cap'n Bill, "I sawr a picter of you in an almanac."
"Ah; the almanacs always did us full justice," the crab replied, "but
I'm told they're not fashionable now."
"If you don't mind, we'd like to pass on," said Button-Bright.
"No; I don't mind; but be careful not to step on my legs. They're
rheumatic, it's so moist here."
They climbed over some of the huge legs and walked around others. Soon
they had left the creature far behind.
"Aren't you rather slow?" asked the frog, when once more they came up to
him.
"It isn't that," said Trot. "You are rather swift, I guess."
The frog chuckled and leaped again. They noticed that the fog had caught
a soft rose tint, and was lighter and less dense than before, for which
reason the sailor remarked that they must be getting near to the Pink
Country.
On this jump they saw nothing but a monstrous turtle, which lay asleep
with its head and legs drawn into its shell. It was not in their way, so
they hurried on and rejoined the frog, which said to them:
"I'm sorry, but I'm due at the King's Court in a few minutes and I can't
wait for your short, weak legs to make the journey to the Pink Country.
But if you will climb upon my back I think I can carry you to the border
in one more leap."
"I'm tired," said Trot, "an' this awful fog's beginnin' to choke me.
Let's ride on the frog, Cap'n."
"Right you are, mate," he replied, and although he shook a bit with
fear, the old man at once began to climb to the frog's back. Trot seated
herself on one side of him and Button-Bright on the other, and the
sailor put his arms around them both to hold them tight together.
"Are you ready?" asked the frog.
"Ding-dong!" cried the parrot;
"All aboard! let 'er go!
Jump the best jump that you know."
"Don't--don't! Jump sort o' easy, please," begged Cap'n Bill.
But the frog was unable to obey his request. Its powerful hind legs
straightened like steel springs and shot the big body, with its
passengers, through the fog like an arrow launched from a bow. They
gasped for breath and tried to hang on, and then suddenly the frog
landed just at the edge of the Fog Bank, stopping so abruptly that his
three riders left his back and shot far ahead of him.
They felt the fog melt away and found themselves bathed in glorious rays
of sunshine; but they had no time to consider this change because they
were still shooting through the air, and presently--before they could
think of anything at all--all three were rolling heels over head on the
soft grass of a meadow.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE PINK COUNTRY
CHAPTER 13.
When the travelers could collect their senses and sit up they stared
about them in bewilderment, for the transition from the sticky, damp fog
to this brilliant scene was so abrupt as to daze them at first.
It was a Pink Country, indeed. The grass was a soft pink, the trees were
pink, all the fences and buildings which they saw in the near distance
were pink--even the gravel in the pretty paths was pink. Many shades of
color were there, of course, grading from a faint blush rose to deep
pink verging on red, but no other color was visible. In the sky hung a
pink glow, with rosy clouds floating here and there, and the sun was not
silvery white, as we see it from the Earth, but a distinct pink.
The sun was high in the sky, just now, which proved the adventurers had
been a long time in passing through the Fog Bank. But all of them were
wonderfully relieved to reach this beautiful country in safety, for
aside from the danger that threatened them in the Blue Country, the
other side of the island was very depressing. Here the scene that
confronted them was pretty and homelike, except for the prevailing color
and the fact that all the buildings were round, without a single corner
or angle.
Half a mile distant was a large City, its pink tintings glistening
bravely in the pink sunshine, while hundreds of pink banners floated
from its numerous domes. The country between the Fog Bank and the City
was like a vast garden, very carefully kept and as neat as wax.
The parrot was fluttering its wings and pruning its feathers to remove
the wet of the fog. Trot and Button-Bright and Cap'n Bill were all
soaked to the skin and chilled through, but as they sat upon the pink
grass they felt the rays of the sun sending them warmth and rapidly
drying their clothes; so, being tired out, they laid themselves
comfortably down and first one and then another fell cosily asleep.
It was the parrot that aroused them.
"Look out--look out--
There's folks about!"
it screamed;
"The apple-dumplings, fat and pink,
Will be here quicker than a wink!"
Trot started up in alarm and rubbed her eyes; Cap'n Bill rolled over and
blinked, hardly remembering where he was; Button-Bright was on his feet
in an instant. Advancing toward them were four of the natives of the
Pink Country.
Two were men and two were women, and their appearance was in sharp
contrast to that of the Blueskins. For the Pinkies were round and
chubby--almost like "apple-dumplings," as the parrot had called
them--and they were not very tall, the highest of the men being no
taller than Trot or Button-Bright. They all had short necks and legs,
pink hair and eyes, rosy cheeks and pink complexions, and their faces
were good-natured and jolly in expression.
The men wore picturesque pink clothing and round hats with pink feathers
in them, but the apparel of the women was still more gorgeous and
striking. Their dresses consisted of layer after layer of gauzy tucks
and ruffles and laces, caught here and there with bows of dainty ribbon.
The skirts--which of course were of many shades of pink--were so fluffy
and light that they stuck out from the fat bodies of the Pinkie women
like the skirts of ballet-dancers, displaying their chubby pink ankles
and pink kid shoes. They wore rings and necklaces and bracelets and
brooches of rose-gold set with pink gems, and all four of the new
arrivals, both men and women, carried sharp-pointed sticks, made of
rosewood, for weapons.
They halted a little way from our adventurers and one of the women
muttered in a horrified voice: "Blueskins!"
"Guess again! The more you guess
I rather think you'll know the less,"
retorted the parrot; and then he added grumblingly in Trot's ear: "Blue
feathers don't make bluebirds."
"Really," said the little girl, standing up and bowing respectfully to
the Pinkies, "we are not Blueskins, although we are wearing the blue
uniforms of the Boolooroo and have just escaped from the Blue Country.
If you will look closely you will see that our skins are white."
"There is some truth in what she says," remarked one of the men,
thoughtfully. "Their skins are not blue, but neither are they white. To
be exact, I should call the skin of the girl and that of the boy a muddy
pink, rather faded, while the skin of the gigantic monster with them is
an unpleasant brown."
Cap'n Bill looked cross for a minute, for he did not like to be called a
"gigantic monster," although he realized he was much larger than the
pink people.
"What country did you come from?" asked the woman who had first spoken.
"From the Earth," replied Button-Bright.
"The Earth! The Earth!" they repeated. "That is a country we have never
heard of. Where is it located?"
"Why, down below, somewhere," said the boy, who did not know in which
direction the Earth lay. "It isn't just one country, but a good many
countries."
"We have three countries in Sky Island," returned the woman. "They are
the Blue Country, the Fog Country and the Pink Country; but of course
this end of the Island is the most important."
"How came you in the Blue Country, from whence you say you escaped?"
asked the man.
"We flew there by means of a Magic Umbrella," explained Button-Bright;
"but the wicked Boolooroo stole it from us."
"Stole it! How dreadful," they all cried in a chorus.
"And they made us slaves," said Trot.
"An' wanted fer to patch us," added Cap'n Bill, indignantly.
"So we ran away and passed through the Fog Bank and came here," said
Button-Bright.
The Pinkies turned away and conversed together in low tones. Then one of
the women came forward and addressed the strangers.
"Your story is the strangest we have ever heard," said she; "and your
presence here is still more strange and astonishing. So we have decided
to take you to Tourmaline and let her decide what shall be your fate."
"Who is Tourmaline?" inquired Trot, doubtfully, for she didn't like the
idea of being "taken" to anyone.
"The Queen of the Pinkies. She is the sole Ruler of our country, so the
word of Tourmaline is the Law of the Land."
"Seems to me we've had 'bout enough of kings an' queens," remarked Cap'n
Bill. "Can't we shy your Tut--Tor--mar-line--or whatever you call
her--in some way, an' deal with you direct?"
"No. Until we prove your truth and honor we must regard you as enemies
of our race. If you had a Magic Umbrella you may be magicians and
sorcerers, come here to deceive us and perhaps betray us to our natural
enemies, the Blueskins."
"Mud and bricks--fiddlesticks!
We don't play such nasty tricks,"
yelled the parrot, angrily, and this caused the Pinkies to shrink back
in alarm, for they had never seen a parrot before.
"Surely this is magic!" declared one of the men. "No bird can talk
unless inspired by witchcraft."
"Oh, yes; parrots can," said Trot.
But this incident had determined the Pinkies to consider our friends
prisoners and to take them immediately before their Queen.
"Must we fight you?" asked the woman, "or will you come with us
peaceably?"
"We'll go peaceable," answered Cap'n Bill. "You're a-makin' a sad
mistake, for we're as harmless as doves; but seein' as you're
suspicious we'd better have it out with your Queen first as last."
Their clothing was quite dry by this time, although much wrinkled and
discolored by the penetrating fog, so at once they prepared to follow
the Pinkies. The two men walked on either side of them, holding the
pointed sticks ready to jab them if they attempted to escape, and the
two women followed in the rear, also armed with sharp sticks.
So the procession moved along the pretty roadways to the City, which
they soon reached. There was a strong high wall of pink marble around it
and they passed through a gate made of pink metal bars and found
themselves in a most delightful and picturesque town. The houses were
big and substantial, all round in shape, with domed roofs and circular
windows and doorways. In all the place there was but one street--a
circular one that started at the gate and wound like a corkscrew toward
the center of the City. It was paved with pink marble and between the
street and the houses that lined both sides of it were gardens filled
with pink flowers and pink grass lawns, which were shaded by pink trees
and shrubbery.
As the Queen lived in the very center of the city the captives were
obliged to parade the entire length of this street, and that gave all
the Pink Citizens a chance to have a good look at the strangers. The
Pinkies were every one short and fat and gorgeously dressed in pink
attire, and their faces indicated that they were contented and happy.
They were much surprised at Cap'n Bill's great size and wooden leg--two
very unusual things in their experience--and the old sailor frightened
more than one Pinky boy and girl and sent them scampering into the
houses, where they viewed the passing procession from behind the window
shutters, in comparative safety. As for the grown people, many of them
got out their sharp-pointed sticks to use as weapons in case the
strangers attacked them or broke away from their guards. A few, more
bold than the others, followed on at the tail of the procession, and so
presently they all reached an open, circular place in the exact center
of the Pink City.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
TOURMALINE THE POVERTY QUEEN
CHAPTER 14.
The open space which they entered was paved with pink marble and around
it were two rows of large pink statues, at least life-size and
beautifully sculptured. All were set upon nicely carved pink pedestals.
They were, of course, statues of Pinky men and women and all had bands
of pink metal around their foreheads, in the center of each band being a
glistening pink jewel.
About the middle of the open space inside the statues, which appeared to
be the public meeting place of the Pinkies, was a small, low house,
domed like all the other houses but built of a coarse pink stone instead
of the fine marble to be seen everywhere else. It had no ornamentation,
being exceedingly plain in appearance. No banners floated from it; no
flowers grew near it.
"Here," said one of their guides, as the procession halted before the
little stone building, "is the palace of Tourmaline, who is our Queen."
"What! that little cabin?" exclaimed Trot.
"Of course. Did you suppose a palace would be like one of our handsome
residences?" asked the woman, evidently surprised.
"I thought it would be better," said the girl. "All the palaces I've
seen were splendid."
"A splendid palace!" exclaimed one of the Pinkies, and then they looked
at one another in amazement and seemed to doubt that their ears had
heard aright.
"These intruders are very peculiar people," remarked a man in the crowd.
"They seem very ignorant, poor things!" said another, in reply.
"Come!" commanded the woman who led the party; "you three must follow me
to the presence of Tourmaline. The people must wait outside, for there
is no room for them in the palace."
So they followed her through the low archway, and in a room beyond, very
simply furnished, sat a young girl engaged in darning a pair of pink
stockings. She was a beautiful girl of about seventeen years of age, not
fat like all the rest of the Pinkies, but slender and well formed
according to our own ideas of beauty. Her complexion was not a decided
pink but a soft rosy tint not much deeper than that of Trot's skin.
Instead of a silken gown, furbelowed like all the others they had seen
women wear in this land, Tourmaline was dressed in a severely plain robe
of coarse pink cloth much resembling bedticking. Across her brow,
however, was a band of rose gold, in the center of which was set a
luminous pink jewel which gleamed more brilliantly than a diamond. It
was her badge of office, and seemed very incongruous when compared with
her poor raiment and simple surroundings.
As they entered, the girl sighed and laid down her work. Her expression
was patient and resigned as she faced her audience.
"What is it, Coralie?" she asked the woman.
"Here are three strange people, Tourmaline," was the reply, "who say
they have entered our country through the Fog Bank. They tell a queer
story of an escape from the Blueskins, so I decided to bring them to
you, that you may determine their fate."
The Queen gazed upon our friends with evident interest. She smiled--a
little sadly--at Trot, seemed to approve Button-Bright's open, frank
face and was quite surprised because Cap'n Bill was so much bigger than
her own people.
"Are you a giant?" she asked the sailor, in a soft, sweet voice.
"No, your Majesty," he replied; "I'm only ----"
"Majesty!" she exclaimed, flushing a deeper pink. "Are you addressing
that word to me?"
"O' course, ma'am," answered Cap'n Bill; "I'm told that's the proper way
to speak to a Queen."
"Perhaps you are trying to ridicule me," she continued, regarding the
sailor's face closely. "There is nothing majestic about me, as you know
very well. Coralie, do you consider 'majesty' a proper word to use when
addressing a Queen?" she added, appealing to the Pinky woman.
"By no means," was the prompt reply.
"What shall I call her, then?" inquired Cap'n Bill.
"Just Tourmaline. That is her name, and it is sufficient," said the
woman.
"The Ruler of a country ought to be treated with great respec',"
declared Trot, a little indignantly, for she thought the pretty little
queen was not being properly deferred to.
"Why?" asked Tourmaline, curiously.
"Because the Ruler is the mos' 'risticratic person in any land,"
explained the little girl. "Even in America ever'body bows low to our
President, an' the Blueskins are so 'fraid o' their Boolooroo that they
tremble whenever they go near him."
"But surely that is all wrong," said Tourmaline gravely. "The Ruler is
appointed to protect and serve the people, and here in the Pink Country
I have the full power to carry out the laws. I even decree death, when
such a punishment is merited. Therefore I am a mere agent to direct the
laws, which are the Will of the People, and am only a public servant,
obliged constantly to guard the welfare of my subjects."
"In that case," said Button-Bright, "you're entitled to the best there
is, to pay for your trouble. A powerful ruler ought to be rich and to
live in a splendid palace. Your folks ought to treat you with great
respect, as Trot says."
"Oh, no," responded Tourmaline quickly; "that would indeed be very
wrong. Too much should never be given to anyone. If, with my great
power, conferred upon me by the people, I also possessed great wealth, I
might be tempted to be cruel and overbearing. In that case my subjects
would justly grow envious of my superior station. If I lived as
luxuriously as my people do, and had servants and costly gowns, the good
Pinkies would say that their Queen had more than they themselves--and it
would be true. No; our way is best. The Ruler, be it king or queen, has
absolute power to rule, but no riches--no high station--no false
adulation. The people have the wealth and honor, for it is their due.
The Queen has nothing but the power to execute the laws, to adjust
grievances and to compel order."
"What pays you, then, for all your bother?" asked Trot.
"I have one great privilege. After my death a pink marble statue of me
will be set up in the Grand Court, with the statues of the other Kings
and Queens who have ruled this land, and all the Pinkies in ages to
come will then honor me as having been a just and upright queen. That is
my reward."
"I'm sorry for you, ma'am," said Cap'n Bill. "Your pay for bein' a queen
is sort o' like a life-insurance. It don't come due till after you're
dead, an' then you can't get much fun out o' it."
"I did not choose to be the Queen," answered Tourmaline, simply. "A
misfortune of birth placed me here and I cannot escape my fate. It is
much more desirable to be a private citizen, happy and care free. But we
have talked long enough of myself. Tell me who you are, and why you have
come here."
Between them they told the story of how the Magic Umbrella had taken
them to Sky Island, which they did not know, when they started, was
anywhere in existence. Button-Bright told this, and then Trot related
their adventures among the Blueskins and how the Boolooroo had stolen
the umbrella and prevented them from going home again. The parrot on her
shoulder kept interrupting her continually, for the mention of the
Boolooroo seemed to make the bird frantic with rage.
"Naughty, naugh-ty Boo-loo-roo!
He's the worst I ev-er knew!"
the parrot repeated over and over again.
Cap'n Bill finished the story by telling of their escape through the
Fog Bank. "We didn't know what your Pink Country was like, o' course,"
he said, "but we knew it couldn't be worse than the Blue Country, an' we
didn't take any stock in their stories that the Fog Bank would be the
death o' us."
"Pretty wet! Pretty wet
Was the journey, you can bet!"
declared the parrot, in conclusion.
"Yes, it was wet an' sticky, all right," agreed the sailor; "but the big
frog helped us an' we got through all right."
"But what can you do here?" asked Tourmaline. "You are not like my
people, the Pinkies, and there is no place for you in our country."
"That's true enough," said Cap'n Bill; "but we had to go somewhere, an'
this was the likeliest place we could think of. Your Sky Island ain't
very big, so when we couldn't stay in the Blue Country, where ever'body
hated us, or in the Fog Bank, which ain't healthy an' is too wet for
humans to live in for long, we nat'rally were forced to enter the Pink
Country, where we expected to find nice people."
"We _are_ nice," said Tourmaline; "but it is our country--not yours--and
we have no place here for strangers. In all our history you are the
first people from outside our borders who have ever stepped a foot in
our land. We do not hate you, as you say the Blueskins do, nor are we
savage or cruel; but we do not want you here and I am really puzzled
what to do with you."
"Isn't there a law to cover this case?" asked Coralie.
"I do not remember any such law," replied the queen; "but I will search
in the Great Book and see if I can find anything that refers to strange
people entering our land."
"If not," said the woman, "you must make a law. It is your duty."
"I know," answered Tourmaline; "but I hope such a responsibility will
not fall upon my shoulders. These poor strangers are in a very
uncomfortable position and I wish I could help them to get back to their
own country."
"Thank you," said Trot. "We wish so, too. Haven't you any fairies here?"
"Oh, there are fairies, of course, as there are everywhere," answered
Tourmaline; "but none that we can call to our assistance, or command to
do our bidding."
"How about witches?" asked Button-Bright.
"I know of one witch," said Tourmaline, thoughtfully, "but she is not
very obliging. She says it makes her head ache to perform witchcraft and
so she seldom indulges in it. But, if there is no other way, I may be
obliged to call upon Rosalie for help. I'll look in the Great Book
first. Meantime you will go home with Coralie, who will feed you and
give you entertainment. To-morrow morning come to me again and then I
will decree your fate."
The little Queen then picked up her stocking and began to darn the holes
in it, and Coralie, without any formal parting, led the strangers from
the miserable palace.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE SUNRISE TRIBE AND THE SUNSET TRIBE
CHAPTER 15.
Although Trot and her comrades were still prisoners they were far more
comfortable than they had been in the Blue Country. Coralie took them to
her own home, where she lived in great luxury, being one of the
prominent women of the Pinkies. In this country the women seemed fully
as important as the men, and instead of being coddled and petted they
performed their share of the work, both in public and private affairs,
and were expected to fight in the wars exactly as the men did.
Our friends learned considerable about the Pinkies during that afternoon
and evening, for their hostess proved kind and agreeable and frankly
answered all their questions. Although this half of Sky Island was no
larger than the Blue Country, being no more than two miles square, it
had several hundred inhabitants. These were divided into two tribes,
which were called the Sunrise Tribe and the Sunset Tribe. The Sunrise
Tribe lived in the eastern half of the Pink Country and the Sunset Tribe
in the west half, and there was great rivalry between them and,
sometimes, wars.
It was all a question of social importance. The Sunrise Tribe claimed
that every day the sun greeted them first of all, which proved they were
the most important; but, on the other hand, the Sunset Tribe claimed
that the sun always deserted the other tribe and came to them, which was
evidence that they were the most attractive people. On Sky Island--at
least on the Pink side--the sun arose in wonderful splendor, but also it
set in a blaze of glory, and so there were arguments on both sides and
for want of something better to argue about, the Pinkies took this queer
subject as a cause of dispute.
Both Tribes acknowledged Tourmaline their Queen and obeyed the laws of
the country, and just at this time there was peace in the land and all
the inhabitants of the east and west were friendly. But they had been
known, Coralie said, to fight one another fiercely with the sharp
sticks, at which times a good many were sure to get hurt.
"Why do they call this an Island?" asked Button-Bright. "There isn't any
water around it, is there?"
"No, but there is sky all around it," answered Coralie; "and, if one
should step off the edge, he would go tumbling into the great sky and
never be heard of again."
"Is there a fence around the edge?" asked Trot.
"Only a few places are fenced," was the reply. "Usually there are rows
of thick bushes set close to the edge, to prevent people from falling
off. Once there was a King of the Pinkies who was cruel and overbearing
and imagined he was superior to the people he ruled, so one day his
subjects carried him to the edge of the island and threw him over the
bushes."
"Goodness me!" said Trot. "He might have hit some one on the Earth."
"Guess he skipped it, though," added Cap'n Bill, "for I never heard of a
Pinky till I came here."
"And I have never heard of the Earth," retorted Coralie. "Of course
there must be such a place, because you came from there, but the Earth
is never visible in our sky."
"No," said Button-Bright, "'cause it's _under_ your island. But it's
there, all right, and it's a pretty good place to live. I wish I could
get back to it."
"So do I, Button-Bright!" exclaimed Trot.
"Let's fly!" cried the parrot, turning his head so that one bright
little eye looked directly into the girl's eye. "Say good-bye and let's
fly through the sky, far and high!"
"If we only had my umbrella, we'd fly in a minute," sighed
Button-Bright. "But the Boolooroo stole it."
"Naugh-ty, naugh-ty Boo-loo-roo;
What a wicked thing to do!"
wailed the parrot; and they all agreed with him.
[Illustration]
Coralie belonged to the Sunset Tribe, as she lived west of the queen's
palace, which was the center of the Pink Country. A servant came to the
room where they were conversing, to state that the sun was about to set,
and at once Coralie arose and took the strangers to an upper balcony,
where all the household had assembled.
The neighboring houses also had their balconies and roofs filled with
people, for it seemed all the Sunset Tribe came out every night to
witness the setting of the sun. It was really a magnificent sight and
Trot scarcely breathed as the great golden ball sank low in the sky and
colored all the clouds with gorgeous tints of orange, red and yellow.
Never on the Earth was there visible such splendor, and as the little
girl watched the ever-changing scene she decided the Sunset Tribe was
amply justified in claiming that the West was the favored country of the
sun.
"You see," said Cap'n Bill, "the sky is all around us, an' we're high
up; so the sun really loses itself in the clouds an' leaves a trail of
beauty behind him."
"He does that!" agreed Trot. "This is almost worth comin' for, Cap'n."
"But not quite," said Button-Bright, sadly. "I'd get along without the
sunset if only we could go home."
They went in to dinner, after this, and sat at Coralie's own table, with
her husband and children, and found the meal very good. After a pleasant
evening, during which no reference was made to their being prisoners,
they were shown to prettily furnished rooms--all in pink--and slept
soundly in the soft beds provided for them.
Trot wakened early the next morning and went out on the balcony to see
the sunrise. The little girl was well repaid, for the splendor of the
rising sun was almost equal to that of the setting sun. Surely this was
a wonderful country and much more delightful than the Blue side of the
island, where the sun was hidden by the great Fog Bank and only the moon
was visible.
When she went in she found that both Button-Bright and Cap'n Bill were
up and dressed, so they decided to take a walk before breakfast. No one
restrained them or interfered with them in any way.
"They know we can't get away," observed the sailor, "so they don't need
to watch us."
"We could go into the Fog Bank again," suggested Trot.
"We could, mate, but we won't," answered Cap'n Bill. "If there's no way
for us to get clean off'n Sky Island, I'd rather stay with the Pinkies
than with the Blues."
"I wonder what they'll do with us," said Button-Bright. "The Queen seems
like a nice girl and I don't think she'll hurt us, whatever happens."
They walked freely along the circular street, seeing such sights as the
Pink City afforded, and then returned to Coralie's house for breakfast.
Coralie herself was not there, as she had been summoned to the Queen's
palace, but her husband looked after the guests and when breakfast was
finished he said to them:
"I am to take you to Tourmaline, who has promised to decide your fate
this morning. I am curious to know what she will do with you, for in all
our history we have never before had strangers intrude upon us."
"We're curious, too," said Trot; "but we'll soon find out."
As they walked down the street they observed that the sky was now
covered with dark clouds, which entirely hid the sun.
"Does it ever rain here?" inquired Button-Bright.
"Certainly," answered Coralie's husband; "that is the one drawback of
our country; it rains quite often, and although it makes the flowers and
the grass grow I think rain is very disagreeable. I am always glad to
see the rainbow, which is a sign that the sun will shine again."
"Looks like rain now," remarked Cap'n Bill.
"It does," said the man, glancing at the sky. "We must hurry, or we may
get wet."
"Haven't you any umbrellas?" asked Button-Bright.
"No; we don't know what umbrellas are," replied the Pinky man.
It did not rain at once and they reached Tourmaline's wretched hut in
safety. There they found quite a number of Pinkies assembled, and a
spirited discussion was taking place when they arrived.
"Come in, please," said Tourmaline, opening the door for them, and when
they had entered she placed a pinkwood bench for them to sit upon and
went back to her throne, which was a common rocking-chair.
At her right were seated six men and women of the Sunrise Tribe and on
her left six men and women of the Sunset Tribe, among the latter being
Coralie. The contrast between the plain, simple dress of the Queen and
the gorgeous apparel of her Counselors was quite remarkable, yet her
beauty far surpassed that of any of her people and her demeanor was so
modest and unassuming that it was difficult for the prisoners to believe
that her word could decree life or death and that all the others were
subservient to her. Tourmaline's eyes were so deep a shade of pink that
they were almost hazel, and her hair was darker than that of the others,
being a golden-red in color. These points, taken with her light pink
skin and slender form, rendered her distinctive among the Pinkies,
whatever gown she might wear.
When the strangers were seated she turned to them and said:
"I have searched through the Great Book of Laws and found nothing about
foreign people entering our land. There is a law that if any of the
Blueskins break through the Fog Bank they shall be driven back with
sharp sticks; but you are not Blueskins, so this Law does not apply to
you. Therefore, in order to decide your fate, I have summoned a Council
of twelve of my people, who will vote as to whether you shall be
permitted to remain here or not. They wanted to see you before they cast
their final vote, that they may examine you carefully and discover if
you are worthy to become inhabitants of the Pink Country."
"The rose is red, the violet's blue,
But Trot is sweeter than the two!"
declared the parrot in a loud voice. It was a little verse Cap'n Bill
had taught the bird that very morning, while Trot was seeing the sun
rise.
The Pinkies were startled and seemed a little frightened at hearing a
bird speak so clearly. Trot laughed and patted the bird's head in return
for the compliment.
"Is the Monster Man whose legs are part wood a dangerous creature?"
asked one of the Sunrise Tribe.
"Not to my friends," replied Cap'n Bill, much amused. "I s'pose I could
fight your whole crowd o' Pinkies, if I had to, an' make you run for
your lives; but bein' as you're friendly to us you ain't in any danger."
The sailor thought this speech was diplomatic and might "head off any
trouble," but the Pinkies seemed uneasy and several of them picked up
their slender, pointed sticks and held them in their hands. They were
not cowardly, but it was evident they mistrusted the big man, who on
Earth was not considered big at all, but rather undersized.
"What we'd like," said Trot, "is to stay here, cosy an' peaceable, till
we can find a way to get home to the Earth again. Your country is much
nicer than the Blue Country, and we like you pretty well, from what
we've seen of you; so, if you'll let us stay, we won't be any more
trouble to you than we can help."
They all gazed upon the little girl curiously, and one of them said:
"How strangely light her color is! And it is pink, too, which is in her
favor. But her eyes are of that dreadful blue tint which prevails in the
other half of Sky Island, while her hair is a queer color all unknown to
us. She is not like our people and would not harmonize with the
universal color here."
"That's true," said another; "the three strangers are all inharmonious.
If allowed to remain here they would ruin the color scheme of the
country, where all is now pink."
"In spite of that," said Coralie, "they are harmless creatures and have
done us no wrong."
"Yes, they have," replied a nervous little Sunrise man; "they wronged us
by coming here."
"They could not help doing that," argued Coralie, "and it is their
misfortune that they are here on Sky Island at all. Perhaps, if we keep
them with us for awhile, they may find a way to return safely to their
own country."
"We'll fly through the sky by-and-by--ki-yi!" yelled the parrot with
startling suddenness.
"It that true?" asked a Pinky, seriously.
"Why, we would if we could," answered Trot. "We flew to this island,
anyhow."
"Perhaps," said another, "if we pushed them off the edge they could fly
down again. Who knows?"
"We know," answered Cap'n Bill hastily. "We'd tumble, but we wouldn't
fly."
"They'd take a fall--
And that is all!"
observed the parrot, fluttering its wings.
There was silence for a moment, while all the Pinkies seemed to think
deeply. Then the Queen asked the strangers to step outside while they
counseled together. Our friends obeyed, and leaving the room they
entered the courtyard and examined the rows of pink marble statues for
nearly an hour before they were summoned to return to the little room in
Tourmaline's palace.
"We are now ready to vote as to your fate," said the pretty Queen to
them. "We have decided there are but two things for us to do: either
permit you to remain here as honored guests or take you to an edge of
the island and throw you over the bushes into the sky."
They were silent at hearing this dreadful alternative, but the parrot
screamed shrilly:
"Oh, what a dump! Oh, what a jump!
Won't we all thump when we land with a bump?"
"If we do," said Cap'n Bill, thoughtfully, "we'll none of us know it."
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
ROSALIE THE WITCH
CHAPTER 16.
Trot and Button-Bright had now become worried and anxious, for they knew
if they were tossed over the edge of the island they would be killed.
Cap'n Bill frowned and set his jaws tight together. The old sailor had
made up his mind to make a good fight for his boy and girl, as well as
for his own life, if he was obliged to do so.
The twelve Counselors then voted, and when the vote was counted
Tourmaline announced that six had voted to allow the strangers to remain
and six to toss them over the bushes.
"We seem evenly divided on this matter," remarked the Queen, with a
puzzled look at her Council.
Trot thought the pretty Queen was their friend, so she said:
"Of course you'll have the deciding vote, then, you being the Ruler."
"Oh, no," replied Tourmaline. "Since I have asked these good people to
advise me it would be impolite to side against some of them and with the
others. That would imply that the judgment of some of my Counselors is
wrong, and the judgment of others right. I must ask some one else to
cast the deciding vote."
"Who will it be, then?" inquired Trot. "Can't I do it? Or Cap'n Bill, or
Button-Bright?"
Tourmaline smiled and shook her head, while all the Counselors murmured
their protests.
"Let Trot do it
Or you'll rue it!"
advised the parrot, and then he barked like a dog and made them all
jump.
"Let me think a moment," said the Queen, resting her chin on her hand.
"A Pink can think
As quick's a wink!"
the parrot declared.
But Tourmaline's thoughts required time and all her Counselors remained
silent and watched her anxiously.
At last she raised her head and said:
"I shall call upon Rosalie the Witch. She is wise and honest and will
decide the matter justly."
The Pinkies seemed to approve this choice, so Tourmaline rose and took a
small pink paper parcel from a drawer. In it was a pink powder which she
scattered upon the seat of a big armchair. Then she lighted this powder,
which at first flashed vivid pink and then filled all the space around
the chair with a thick pink cloud of smoke. Presently the smoke cleared
away, when they all saw seated within the chair Rosalie the Witch.
This famous woman was much like the other Pinkies in appearance except
that she was somewhat taller and not quite so fat as most of the people.
Her skin and hair and eyes were all of a rosy pink color and her gown
was of spider-web gauze that nicely matched her complexion. She did not
seem very old, for her features were smiling and attractive and pleasant
to view. She held in her hand a slender staff tipped with a lustrous
pink jewel.
All the Pinkies present bowed very respectfully to Rosalie, who returned
the salutation with a dignified nod. Then Tourmaline began to explain
the presence of the three strangers and the difficulty of deciding what
to do with them.
"I have summoned you here that you may cast the deciding vote," added
the Queen. "What shall we do, Rosalie: allow them to remain here as
honored guests, or toss them over the bushes into the sky?"
Rosalie, during Tourmaline's speech, had been attentively examining the
faces of the three Earth people. Now she said:
"Before I decide I must see who these strangers are. I will follow their
adventures in a vision, to discover if they have told you the truth.
And, in order that you may all share my knowledge, you shall see the
vision as I see it."
She then bowed her head and closed her eyes.
"Rock-a-bye, baby, on a tree-top;
Don't wake her up or the vision will stop,"
muttered the parrot; but no one paid any attention to the noisy bird.
Gradually a pink mist formed in the air about the Witch and in this mist
the vision began to appear.
First, there was Button-Bright in the attic of his house, finding the
Magic Umbrella. Then his first flight was shown, and afterward his trip
across the United States until he landed on the bluff where Trot sat. In
rapid succession the scenes shifted and disclosed the trial flights,
with Trot and Cap'n Bill as passengers, then the trip to Sky Island and
the meeting with the Boolooroo. No sound was heard, but it was easy from
the gestures of the actors for the Pinkies to follow all the adventures
of the strangers in the Blue Country. Button-Bright was greatly
astonished to see in this vision how the Boolooroo had tested the Magic
Umbrella and in a fit of rage cast it into a corner underneath the
cabinet, with the seats and lunch basket still attached to the handle by
means of the rope. The boy now knew why he could not find the umbrella
in the Treasure Chamber, and he was provoked to think he had several
times been quite close to it without knowing it was there. The last
scene ended with the trip through the Fog Bank and the assistance
rendered them by the friendly frog. After the three tumbled upon the
grass of the Pink Country the vision faded away and Rosalie lifted her
head with a smile of triumph at the success of her witchcraft.
"Did you see clearly?" she asked.
"We did, O Wonderful Witch!" they declared.
"Then," said Rosalie, "there can be no doubt in your minds that these
strangers have told you the truth."
"None at all," they admitted.
"What arguments are advanced by the six Counselors who voted to allow
them to remain here as guests?" inquired the Witch.
"They have done us no harm," answered Coralie, speaking for her side;
"therefore we should, in honor and justice, do them no harm."
Rosalie nodded. "What arguments have the others advanced?" she asked.
"They interfere with our color scheme, and do not harmonize with our
people," a man of the Sunrise Tribe answered.
Again Rosalie nodded, and Trot thought her eyes twinkled a little.
"I think I now fully comprehend the matter," said she, "and so I will
cast my vote. I favor taking the Earth people to the edge of the island
and casting them into the sky."
For a moment there was perfect silence in the room. All present realized
that this was a decree of death to the strangers.
Trot was greatly surprised at the decision and for a moment she thought
her heart had stopped beating, for a wave of fear swept over her.
Button-Bright flushed red as a Pinky and then grew very pale. He crept
closer to Trot and took her hand in his own, pressing it to give the
little girl courage. As for Cap'n Bill, he was watching the smiling face
of the Witch in a puzzled but not hopeless way, for he thought she did
not seem wholly in earnest in what she had said.
"The case is decided," announced Tourmaline, in a clear, cold voice.
"The three strangers shall be taken at once to the edge of the island
and thrown over the bushes into the sky."
"It's raining hard outside," announced Coralie, who sat near the door;
"why not wait until this shower is over?"
"I have said 'at once'," replied the little Queen, with dignity, "and so
it must be at once. We are accustomed to rain, so it need not delay us,
and when a disagreeable duty is to be performed the sooner it is
accomplished the better."
"May I ask, ma'am," said Cap'n Bill, addressing the Witch, "why you have
decided to murder of us in this cold-blooded way?"
"I did not decide to murder you," answered Rosalie.
"To throw us off the island will be murder," declared the sailor.
"Then they cannot throw you off," the Witch replied.
"The Queen says they will."
"I know," said Rosalie; "but I'm quite positive her people can't do it."
This statement astonished all the Pinkies, who looked at the Witch
inquiringly.
"Why not?" asked Tourmaline.
"It is evident to me," said the Witch, speaking slowly and distinctly,
"that these Earth people are protected in some way by fairies. They may
not be aware of this themselves, nor did I see any fairies in my vision.
But, if you will think upon it carefully, you will realize that the
Magic Umbrella has no power in itself, but is enchanted by fairy powers,
so that it is made to fly and to carry passengers through the air _by
fairies_. This being the case, I do not think you will be allowed to
injure these favored people in any way; but I am curious to see in what
manner the fairies will defend them, and therefore I voted to have them
thrown off the island. I bear these strangers no ill will, nor do I
believe they are in any danger. But since you, Tourmaline, have
determined to attempt this terrible thing at once, I shall go with you
and see what will happen."
Some of the Pinkies looked pleased and some troubled at this speech, but
they all prepared to escort the prisoners to the nearest edge of the
island. The rain was pouring down in torrents and umbrellas were
unknown; but all of them, both men and women, slipped gossamer raincoats
over their clothing which kept the rain from wetting them. Then they
caught up their sharp sticks and, surrounding the doomed captives,
commanded them to march to meet their fate.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE ARRIVAL OF POLYCHROME
CHAPTER 17.
Cap'n Bill had determined to fight desperately for their lives, but he
was a shrewd old sailorman and he found much that was reasonable in the
Witch's assertion that fairies would protect them. He had often wondered
how the Magic Umbrella could fly and obey spoken commands, but now he
plainly saw that the thing must be directed by some invisible power, and
that power was quite likely to save them from the cruel death that had
been decreed. To be sure, the Magic Umbrella was now in the Blue
Country, and the fairies that directed its flight might be with the
umbrella instead of with them, yet the old sailor had already
experienced some strange adventures in Trot's company and knew she had
managed to escape every danger that had threatened. So he decided not to
fight until the last moment, and meekly hobbled along the street, as he
was commanded to do. Trot was also encouraged by the Witch's
suggestion, for she believed in fairies and trusted them; but
Button-Bright could find no comfort in their situation and his face was
very sad as he marched along by Trot's side.
If they had followed the corkscrew windings of the street it would have
been a long journey to the outer edge of the Pink Country, but
Tourmaline took a short cut, leading them through private gardens and
even through houses, so that they followed almost a bee line to their
destination. It rained all the way and the walking was very
disagreeable; but our friends were confronting an important crisis in
their strange adventures and with possible death at their journey's end
they were in no hurry to arrive there.
Once free of the City they traversed the open country, and here they
often stepped into sticky pink mud up to their ankles. Cap'n Bill's
wooden leg would often go down deep and stick fast in this mud, and at
such times he would be helpless until two of the Pinkies--who were a
strong people--pulled him out again.
The parrot was getting its feathers sadly draggled in the rain and the
poor bird soon presented a wet and woebegone appearance.
"Soak us again--
Drown us with rain!"
it muttered in a resigned tone; and then it would turn to Trot and moan:
"The rose is red, the violet's blue;
The Pinkies are a beastly crew!"
The country was not so trim and neatly kept near the edge, for it was
evident the people did not care to go too near to the dangerous place.
There was a row of thick bushes, which concealed the gulf below, and as
they approached these bushes the rain abruptly ceased and the clouds
began to break and drift away in the sky.
"Two of you seize the girl and throw her over," said Tourmaline, in a
calm, matter-of-fact way, "and two others must throw the boy over. It
may take four, perhaps, to lift the huge and ancient man."
"More'n that," said Cap'n Bill, grimly. "I'm pretty sure it'll take all
o' you, young lady, an' the chances are you won't do it then."
They had halted a short distance from the bushes and now there suddenly
appeared through a rift in the clouds an immense Rainbow. It was
perfectly formed and glistened with a dozen or more superb tintings that
were so vivid and brilliant and blended into one another so exquisitely
that every one paused to gaze enraptured upon the sight.
Steadily, yet with wonderful swiftness, the end of the great bow
descended until it rested upon the pink field--almost at the feet of
the little party of observers. Then they saw, dancing gaily upon the
arch, a score of beautiful maidens, dressed in fleecy robes of rainbow
tints which fluttered around them like clouds.
"The Daughters of the Rainbow!" whispered Tourmaline, in an awed voice,
and the Witch beside her nodded and said: "Fairies of the sky. What did
I tell you, Tourmaline?"
Just then one of the maidens tripped lightly down the span of the arch
until near the very end, leaning over to observe the group below. She
was exquisitely fair, dainty as a lily and graceful as a bough swaying
in the breeze.
"Why, it's Polychrome!" exclaimed Button-Bright, in a voice of mingled
wonder and delight. "Hello, Polly! Don't you remember me?"
"Of course I remember Button-Bright," replied the maiden, in a sweet,
tinkling voice. "The last time I saw you was in the Land of Oz."
"Oh!" cried Trot, turning to stare at the boy with big, wide-open eyes;
"were you ever in the Land of Oz?"
"Yes," he answered, still looking at the Rainbow's Daughter; and then he
said appealingly: "These people want to kill us, Polly. Can't you help
us?"
"Polly wants a cracker!--Polly wants a cracker!" screeched the parrot.
Polychrome straightened up and glanced at her sisters.
[Illustration]
"Tell Father to call for me in an hour or two," said she. "There is
work for me to do here, for one of my old friends is in trouble."
With this she sprang lightly from the rainbow and stood beside
Button-Bright and Trot, and scarcely had she left the splendid arch when
it lifted and rose into the sky. The other end had been hidden in the
clouds and now the Rainbow began to fade gradually, like mist, and the
sun broke through the clouds and shot its cheering rays over the Pink
Country until presently the Rainbow had vanished altogether and the only
reminder of it was the lovely Polychrome standing among the wondering
band of Pinkies.
"Tell me," she said gently to the boy, "why are you here, and why do
these people of the sky wish to destroy you?"
In a few hurried words Button-Bright related their adventure with the
Magic Umbrella, and how the Boolooroo had stolen it and they had been
obliged to escape into the Pink Country.
Polychrome listened and then turned to the Queen.
"Why have you decreed death to these innocent strangers?" she asked.
"They do not harmonize with our color scheme," replied Tourmaline.
"That is utter nonsense," declared Polychrome, impatiently. "You're so
dreadfully pink here that your color, which in itself is beautiful, has
become tame and insipid. What you really need is some sharp contrast to
enhance the charm of your country, and to keep these three people with
you would be a benefit rather than an injury to you."
At this the Pinkies looked downcast and ashamed, while only Rosalie the
Witch laughed and seemed to enjoy the rebuke.
"But," protested Tourmaline, "the Great Book of Laws says our country
shall harbor none but the Pinkies."
"Does it, indeed?" asked the Rainbow's Daughter. "Come, let us return at
once to your City and examine your Book of Laws. I am quite sure I can
find in them absolute protection for these poor wanderers."
They dared not disobey Polychrome's request, so at once they all turned
and walked back to the City. As it was still muddy underfoot the
Rainbow's Daughter took a cloak from one of the women, partly rolled it
and threw it upon the ground. Then she stepped upon it and began walking
forward. The cloak unrolled as she advanced, affording a constant carpet
for her feet and for those of the others who followed her. So, being
protected from the mud and wet, they speedily gained the City and in a
short time were all gathered in the low room of Tourmaline's palace,
where the Great Book of Laws lay upon a table.
Polychrome began turning over the leaves, while the others all watched
her anxiously and in silence.
"Here," she said presently, "is a Law which reads as follows: 'Everyone
in the Pink Country is entitled to the protection of the Ruler and to a
house and a good living, except only the Blueskins. If any of the
natives of the Blue Country should ever break through the Fog Bank they
must be driven back with sharp sticks.' Have you read this Law,
Tourmaline?"
"Yes," said the Queen; "but how does that apply to these strangers?"
"Why, being in the Pink Country, as they surely are, and not being
Blueskins, they are by this Law entitled to protection, to a home and
good living. The Law does not say 'Pinkies,' it says any who are in the
Pink Country."
"True," agreed Coralie, greatly pleased, and all the other Pinkies
nodded their heads and repeated: "True--true!"
"The rose is red, the violet's blue,
The law's the thing, because it's true!"
cried the parrot.
"I am indeed relieved to have you interpret the Law in this way,"
declared Tourmaline. "I knew it was cruel to throw these poor people
over the edge, but that seemed to us the only thing to be done."
"It was cruel and unjust," answered Polychrome, as sternly as her sweet
voice could speak. "But here," she added, for she had still continued to
turn the leaves of the Great Book, "is another Law which you have also
overlooked. It says: 'The person, whether man or woman, boy or girl,
living in the Pink Country who has the lightest skin, shall be the
Ruler--King or Queen--as long as he or she lives, unless some one of a
lighter skin is found, and this Ruler's commands all the people must
obey.' Do you know this Law?"
"Oh, yes," replied Tourmaline. "That is why I am the Queen. You will
notice my complexion is of a lighter pink than that of any other of my
people."
"Yes," remarked Polychrome, looking at her critically, "when you were
made Queen without doubt you had the lightest colored skin in all the
Pink Country. But now you are no longer Queen of the Pinkies,
Tourmaline."
Those assembled were so startled by this statement that they gazed at
the Rainbow's Daughter in astonishment for a time. Then Tourmaline
asked:
"Why not, your Highness?"
"Because here is one lighter in color than yourself," pointing to Trot.
"This girl is, by the Law of the Great Book, the rightful Queen of the
Pinkies, and as loyal citizens you are all obliged to obey her commands.
Give me that circlet from your brow, Tourmaline."
Without hesitation Tourmaline removed the rose-gold circlet with its
glittering jewel and handed it to Polychrome, who turned and placed it
upon Trot's brow. Then she called in a loud, imperative voice:
"Greet your new Queen, Pinkies!"
One by one they all advanced, knelt before Trot and pressed her hand to
their lips.
"Long live Queen Mayre!" called out Cap'n Bill, dancing around on his
wooden leg in great delight; "vive la--vive la--ah, ah--Trot!"
"Thank you, Polly," said Button-Bright gratefully. "This will fix us all
right, I'm sure."
"Why, I have done nothing," returned Polychrome, smiling upon him; "it
is the Law of the Country. Isn't it surprising how little most people
know of their Laws? Are you all contented, Pinkies?" she asked, turning
to the people.
"We are!" they cried. Then several of the men ran out to spread the news
throughout the City and Country, so that a vast crowd soon began to
gather in the Court of the Statues.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
MAYRE, QUEEN OF THE PINK COUNTRY
CHAPTER 18.
Polychrome now dismissed all but Button-Bright, Cap'n Bill, Rosalie the
Witch and the new Queen of the Pinkies. Tourmaline hastened away to her
father's house to put on a beautiful gown all covered with flounces and
ribbons, for she was glad to be relieved of the duties of Queen and was
eager to be gaily dressed and one of the people again.
"I s'pose," said Trot, "I'll have to put on one of Tourmaline's common
pink dresses."
"Yes," replied Polychrome, "you must follow the customs of the country,
absurd though they may be. In the little sleeping chamber adjoining this
room you will find plenty of gowns poor enough for the Queen to wear.
Shall I assist you to put one on?"
"No," answered Trot, "I guess I can manage it alone."
When she withdrew to the little chamber the Rainbow's Daughter began
conversing with the Witch, whom she urged to stay with the new queen and
protect her as long as she ruled the Pink Country. Rosalie, who longed
to please the powerful Polychrome, whose fairy powers as Daughter of the
Rainbow were far superior to her own witchcraft, promised faithfully to
devote herself to Queen Mayre as long as she might need her services.
By the time Trot was dressed in pink, and had returned to the room,
there was an excited and clamorous crowd assembled in the court, and
Polychrome took the little girl's hand and led her out to greet her new
subjects.
The Pinkies were much impressed by the fact that the Rainbow's Daughter
was their new Queen's friend, and that Rosalie the Witch stood on Trot's
left hand and treated her with humble deference. So they shouted their
approval very enthusiastically and pressed forward one by one to kneel
before their new Ruler and kiss her hand.
The parrot was now on Cap'n Bill's shoulder, for Trot thought a Queen
ought not to carry a bird around; but the parrot did not mind the change
and was as much excited as anyone in the crowd.
"Oh, what bliss to kiss a miss!" he shouted, as Trot held out her hand
to be kissed by her subjects; and then he would scream:
"We're in the sky and flyin' high:
We're goin' to live instead of die,
It's time to laugh instead of cry;
Oh, my! ki-yi! ain't this a pie!"
Cap'n Bill let the bird jabber as he pleased, for the occasion was a
joyful one and it was no wonder the parrot was excited.
And, while the throng shouted greetings to the Queen, suddenly the great
Rainbow appeared in the sky and dropped its end right on the Court of
the Statues. Polychrome stooped to kiss Trot and Button-Bright, gave
Cap'n Bill a charming smile and Rosalie the Witch a friendly nod of
farewell. Then she sprang lightly upon the arch of the Rainbow and was
greeted by the bevy of dancing, laughing maidens who were her sisters.
"I shall keep watch over you, Button-Bright," she called to the boy.
"Don't despair, whatever happens, for behind the clouds is always the
Rainbow!"
"Thank you, Polly," he answered, and Trot also thanked the lovely
Polychrome--and so did Cap'n Bill. The parrot made quite a long speech,
flying high above the arch where Polychrome stood and then back to Cap'n
Bill's shoulder. Said he:
"We Pollys know our business, and we're--all--right!
We'll take good care of Cap'n Bill and Trot and Button-Bright
You watch 'em from the Rainbow, and I'll watch day and night,
And we'll call a sky policeman if trouble comes in sight!"
Suddenly the bow lifted and carried the dancing maidens into the sky.
The colors faded, the arch slowly dissolved and the heavens were clear.
Trot turned to the Pinkies.
"Let's have a holiday to-day," she said. "Have a good time and enjoy
yourselves. I don't jus' know how I'm goin' to rule this country, yet,
but I'll think it over an' let you know."
Then she went into the palace hut with Cap'n Bill and Button-Bright and
Rosalie the Witch, and the people went away to enjoy themselves and talk
over the surprising events of the day.
"Dear me," said Trot, throwing herself into a chair, "wasn't that a
sudden change of fortune, though? That Rainbow's Daughter is a pretty
good fairy. I'm glad you knew her, Button-Bright."
"I was sure something would happen to save you," remarked Rosalie, "and
that was why I voted to have you thrown off the edge. I wanted to
discover who would come to your assistance, and I found out. Now I have
made a friend of Polychrome and that will render me more powerful as a
Witch, for I can call upon her for assistance whenever I need her."
"But--see here," said Cap'n Bill; "you can't afford to spend your time
a-rulin' this tucked-up country, Trot."
"Why not?" asked Trot, who was pleased with her new and important
position.
"It'd get pretty tiresome, mate, after you'd had a few quarrels with the
Pinkies, for they expec' their Queen to be as poor as poverty an' never
have any fun in life."
"You wouldn't like it for long, I'm sure," added Button-Bright,
seriously.
Trot seemed thoughtful.
"No; I don't know's I would," she admitted. "But as long as we stay here
it seems a pretty good thing to be Queen. I guess I'm a little proud of
it. I wish mother could see me rulin' the Pinkies--an' Papa Griffith,
too. Wouldn't they open their eyes?"
"They would, mate; but they can't see you," said Cap'n Bill. "So the
question is, what's to be done?"
"We ought to get home," observed the boy. "Our folks will worry about us
and Earth's the best place to live, after all. If we could only get hold
of my Magic Umbrella, we'd be all right."
"The rose is red, the violet's blue,
But the umbrel's stole by the Boo-loo-roo!"
screamed the parrot.
"That's it," said Cap'n Bill; "the Boolooroo's got the umbrel, an' that
settles the question."
"Tell me," said Rosalie; "if you had your Magic Umbrella, could you fly
home again in safety?"
"Of course we could," replied Button-Bright.
"And would you prefer to go home to remaining here?"
"We would, indeed!"
"Then why do you not get the umbrella?"
"How?" asked Trot, eagerly.
The Witch paused a moment. Then she said:
"You must go into the Blue Country and force the Boolooroo to give up
your property."
"Through the Fog Bank?" asked Cap'n Bill, doubtfully.
"And let the Boolooroo capture us again?" demanded Button-Bright, with a
shiver.
"An' have to wait on the Snubnoses instead of bein' a Queen!" said Trot.
"You must remember that conditions have changed, and you are now a
powerful Ruler," replied Rosalie. "The Pinkies are really a great
nation, and they are pledged to obey your commands. Why not assemble an
army, march through the Fog Bank, fight and conquer the Boolooroo and
recapture the Magic Umbrella?"
"Hooray!" shouted Cap'n Bill, pounding his wooden leg on the floor;
"that's the proper talk! Let's do it, Queen Trot."
"It doesn't seem like a bad idea," added Button-Bright.
"Do you think the Pinkies could fight the Blueskins?" asked Trot.
"Why not?" replied the sailorman. "They have sharp sticks, an' know how
to use 'em, whereas the Blueskins have only them windin'-up cords, with
weights on the ends."
"The Blueskins are the biggest people," said the girl.
"But they're cowards, I'm sure," declared the boy.
"Anyhow," the sailor remarked, "that's our only hope of ever gett'n'
home again. I'd like to try it, Trot."
"If you decide on this adventure," said Rosalie, "I believe I can be of
much assistance to you."
"That'll help," asserted Cap'n Bill.
"And we've one good friend among the Blueskins," said Button-Bright.
"I'm sure Ghip-Ghisizzle will side with us, and I've got the Royal
Record Book, which proves that the Boolooroo has already reigned his
lawful three hundred years."
"Does the book say that?" inquired Trot, with interest.
"Yes; I've been reading it."
"Then Sizzle'll be the new Boolooroo," said the girl, "an' p'raps we
won't have to fight, after all."
"We'd better go prepared, though," advised Cap'n Bill, "fer that awful
ol' Boolooroo won't give up without a struggle. When shall we start?"
Trot hesitated, so they all looked to Rosalie for advice.
"Just as soon as we can get the army together and ready," decided the
Witch. "That will not take long--perhaps two or three days."
"Good!" cried Cap'n Bill, and the parrot screamed:
"Here's a lovely how-d'y'-do--
We're going to fight the Boo-loo-roo!
We'll get the Six Snubnoses, too,
And make'em all feel mighty blue."
"Either that or the other thing," said Trot. "Anyhow, we're in for it."
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE WAR OF THE PINKS AND BLUES
CHAPTER 19.
Much to the surprise of the Earth people the Pinkies made no objection
whatever to undertaking the adventure. Their lives were so monotonous
and uninteresting that they welcomed anything in the way of excitement.
This march through the unknown Fog Bank to fight the unknown Blueskins
aroused them to enthusiasm, and although the result of the expedition
could not be foretold and some of them were almost certain to get hurt,
they did not hesitate to undertake the war.
It appeared that Coralie was Captain of the Sunset Tribe and a man named
Tintint the Captain of the Sunrise Tribe. Tintint had a very pink skin
and eyes so faded in their pink color that he squinted badly in order to
see anything around him. He was a fat and pompous little fellow and
loved to strut up and down his line of warriors twirling his long
pointed stick so that all might admire him.
By Rosalie's advice the Army of Conquest consisted of one hundred
Sunsets and one hundred Sunrises. Many more were eager to go, but the
Witch thought that would be enough. The warriors consisted of both men
and women, equally divided, and there was no need to provide uniforms
for them because their regular pink clothing was a distinctive uniform
in itself. Each one bore a long pointed stick as the main weapon and had
two short pointed sticks stuck in his belt.
While the army was getting ready, Rosalie the Witch went to the central
edge of the Fog Bank and fearlessly entered it. There she called for the
King of the Giant Frogs, who came at her bidding, and the two held an
earnest and long talk together.
Meantime Cap'n Bill had the army assembled in the Court of the Statues,
where Queen Mayre appeared and told the Pinkies that the sailorman was
to be Commander in Chief of the Expedition and all must obey his
commands. Then Cap'n Bill addressed the army and told what the Fog Bank
was like. He advised them all to wear their raincoats over their pretty
pink clothes, so they would not get wet, and he assured them that all
the creatures to be met with in the Fog were perfectly harmless.
"When we come to the Blue Country, though," he added, "you're liable to
be pretty busy. The Blueskins are tall an' lanky, an' ugly an' fierce,
an' if they happen to capture you, you'll all be patched--which is a
deep disg
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