To the King's Palace
"WHAT, allow me to ask, is your grade of sugar?" inquired the Captain,
with much politeness. "You do not seem to be the best loaf, but I
suppose that of course you are solid."
"Solid what?" asked Chubbins.
"Solid sugar," replied the Captain.
"We're not sugar at all," explained Twinkle. "We're just meat."
"Meat! And what is that?"
"Haven't you any meat in your city?"
"No," he replied, shaking his head. "Well, I can't explain exactly what
meat is," she said; "but it isn't sugar, anyway."
At this the Captain looked solemn.
"It isn't any of my business, after all," he told them. "The king must
decide about you, for that's _his_ business. But since you are not made
of sugar you must excuse me if I decline to converse with you any
longer. It is beneath my dignity."
"Oh, that's all right," said Twinkle.
"Where we came from," said Chubbins, "meat costs more a pound than sugar
does; so I guess we're just as good as you are."
But the Captain made no reply to this statement, and before long they
stopped in front of a big sugar building, while a crowd of sugar people
quickly gathered.
"Stand back!" cried the Captain, and the sugar soldiers formed a row
between the children and the sugar citizens, and kept the crowd from
getting too near. Then the Captain led Twinkle and Chubbins through a
high sugar gateway and up a broad sugar walk to the entrance of the
building.
"Must be the king's castle," said Chubbins.
"The king's palace," corrected the Captain, stiffly.
"What's the difference?" asked Twinkle.
But the sugar officer did not care to explain.
Brown sugar servants in plum-colored sugar coats stood at the entrance
to the palace, and their eyes stuck out like lozenges from their sugar
faces when they saw the strangers the Captain was escorting.
But every one bowed low, and stood aside for them to pass, and they
walked through beautiful halls and reception rooms where the sugar was
cut into panels and scrolls and carved to represent all kinds of fruit
and flowers.
"Isn't it sweet!" said Twinkle.
"Sure it is," answered Chubbins.
And now they were ushered into a magnificent room, where a stout little
sugar man was sitting near the window playing upon a fiddle, while a
group of sugar men and women stood before him in respectful attitudes
and listened to the music.
Twinkle knew at once that the fiddler was the king, because he had a
sugar crown upon his head. His Majesty was made of very white and
sparkling cut loaf-sugar, and his clothing was formed of the same pure
material. The only color about him was the pink sugar in his cheeks and
the brown sugar in his eyes. His fiddle was also of white sugar, and the
strings were of spun sugar and had an excellent tone.
When the king saw the strange children enter the room he jumped up and
exclaimed:
"Bless my beets! What have we here?"
"Mortals, Most Granular and Solidified Majesty," answered the Captain,
bowing so low that his forehead touched the floor. "They came in by the
ancient tunnel."
"Well, I declare," said the king. "I thought that tunnel had been
stopped up for good and all."
"The stone above the door slipped," said Twinkle, "so we came down to
see what we could find."
"You must never do it again," said his Majesty, sternly. "This is our
own kingdom, a peaceful and retired nation of extra refined and
substantial citizens, and we don't wish to mix with mortals, or any
other folks."
"We'll go back, pretty soon," said Twinkle.
"Now, that's very nice of you," declared the king, "and I appreciate
your kindness. Are you extra refined, my dear?"
"I hope so," said the girl, a little doubtfully.
"Then there's no harm in our being friendly while you're here. And as
you've promised to go back to your own world soon, I have no objection
to showing you around the town. You'd like to see how we live, wouldn't
you?"
"Very much," said Twinkle.
"Order my chariot, Captain Brittle," said his Majesty; and the Captain
again made one of his lowly bows and strutted from the room to execute
the command.
The king now introduced Chubbins and Twinkle to the sugar ladies and
gentlemen who were present, and all of them treated the children very
respectfully.