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 in 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 cer- tainly 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 on 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
CHAPTER 1
A MYSTERIOUS ARRIVAL
"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 in 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 Tot 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 roughhouse," 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 were 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.' I'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 carefree 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 today, 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, have 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'ls, 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 didn't 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."
CHAPTER 2
THE MAGIC UMBRELLA
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,
Button-Bright, we've got half-a-dozen umbrellas 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."
"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 ever'thing, 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--"
"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 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 tomorrow.
Won't it be fine, Cap'n Bill?"
"Dunno, Trot," said he. "I can't figger how both of 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 goodbye 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 a while 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.
CHAPTER 3
A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE
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.
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
aeroplane this was and where his power was stored and lots of other
things, but the boy answered not a sound. 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."
"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 skeered 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 today, 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 we'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 today 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
nearby, but today they didn't want a nearby 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 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' 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 disadvantiges. 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
aeroplanes 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 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.
CHAPTER 4
THE ISLAND IN THE SKY
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 pace.
"Hold on, there!" cried Cap'n Bill. "If it ain't keerful, the ol'
thing will pass 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! 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. "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 solemnly.
"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 wouldn'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 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 such 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!"
CHAPTER 5
THE BOOLOOROO OF THE BLUES
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 inhabitants 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 and 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 of 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 faraway 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 with 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 someone 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.
CHAPTER 6
THE SIX SNUBNOSED PRINCESSES
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 up 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?"
"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 snub nose 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 snub nose is an evidence of high breeding which any lady
would be proud to possess."
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 Major-domo 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 lad 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 soldiers
promptly obeyed and dragged Button-Bright away to the end of the palace
where the servants lived.
CHAPTER 7
GHIP-GHISIZZLE PROVES FRIENDLY
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 (sic--that?) 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--UNpatched 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 cozy 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 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 age, sir--sixty-two my next birthday--but I'm sure I don't
look as old as that."
"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.
CHAPTER 8
THE BLUE CITY
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?"
"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
for bidding.
"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 description 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.
CHAPTER 9
THE TRIBULATION OF TROT
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 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 milk. "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 demands.
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 quarreled 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
quarreled 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.
CHAPTER 10
THE KING'S TREASURE CHAMBER
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 be. 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 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 buttonholes 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 tonight," 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 tonight 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 tonight. 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 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.
CHAPTER 11
BUTTON-BRIGHT ENCOUNTERS THE BLUE WOLF
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 corridor, 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. His 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 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, bumbling the treasures here and there in the
quest, but at last he became positive that the Magic Umbrella was not
there.
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, saying "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.
t'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 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-grey 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."
CHAPTER 12
THROUGH THE FOG BANK
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 if 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 dishrag 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 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, herk-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 the 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