Sugaf-Loaf City
SUGAR-LOAF Mountain was hollow inside, for the children stood facing a
great dome that rose so far above their heads that it seemed almost as
high as the sky. And underneath this dome lay spread out the loveliest
city imaginable. There were streets of houses, and buildings with round
domes, and slender, delicate spires reaching far up into the air, and
turrets beautifully ornamented with carvings. And all these were white
as the driven snow and sparkling in every part like millions of
diamonds--for all were built of pure loaf-sugar! The pavements of the
streets were also loaf-sugar, and the trees and bushes and flowers were
likewise sugar; but these last were not all white, because all sugar is
not white, and they showed many bright colors of red sugar and blue
sugar and yellow, purple and green sugar, all contrasting most prettily
with the sparkling white buildings and the great white dome overhead.
This alone might well astonish the eyes of children from the outside
world, but it was by no means all that Twinkle and Chubbins beheld in
that first curious look at Sugar-Loaf City. For the city was inhabited
by many people--men, women and children--who walked along the streets
just as briskly as we do; only all were made of sugar. There were
several different kinds of these sugar people. Some, who strutted
proudly along, were evidently of pure loaf-sugar, and these were of a
most respectable appearance. Others seemed to be made of a light brown
sugar, and were more humble in their manners and seemed to hurry along
as if they had business to attend to. Then there were some of sugar so
dark in color that Twinkle suspected it was maple-sugar, and these folks
seemed of less account than any of the others, being servants, drivers
of carriages, and beggars and idlers.
Carts and carriages moved along the streets, and were mostly made of
brown sugar. The horses that drew them were either pressed sugar or
maple-sugar. In fact, everything that existed in this wonderful city was
made of some kind of sugar.
Where the light, which made all this place so bright and beautiful, came
from, Twinkle could not imagine. There was no sun, nor were there any
electric lights that could be seen; but it was fully as bright as day
and everything showed with great plainness.
While the children, who stood just inside the archway through which they
had entered, were looking at the wonders of Sugar-Loaf City, a file of
sugar soldiers suddenly came around a corner at a swift trot.
"Halt!" cried the Captain. He wore a red sugar jacket and a red sugar
cap, and the soldiers were dressed in the same manner as their Captain,
but without the officer's yellow sugar shoulder-straps. At the command,
the sugar soldiers came to a stop, and all pointed their sugar muskets
at Twinkle and Chubbins.
"Surrender!" said the Captain to them. "Surrender, or I'll--I'll--"
He hesitated.
"What will you do?" said Twinkle.
"I don't know what, but something very dreadful," replied the Captain.
"But of course you'll surrender."
"I suppose we'll have to," answered the girl.
"That's right. I'll just take you to the king, and let him decide what
to do," he added pleasantly.
So the soldiers surrounded the two children, shouldered arms, and
marched away down the street, Twinkle and Chubbins walking slowly, so
the candy folks would not have to run; for the tallest soldiers were
only as high as their shoulders.
"This is a great event," remarked the Captain, as he walked beside them
with as much dignity as he could muster. "It was really good of you to
come and be arrested, for I haven't had any excitement in a long time.
The people here are such good sugar that they seldom do anything wrong."