THE PLAIN ABOVE THE CLOUDS.
I have already mentioned how high the mountains were between Noland and
the land of Ix; but at the north of the city of Nole were mountains much
higher—so high, indeed, that they seemed to pierce the clouds, and it
was said the moon often stopped on the highest peak to rest. It was not
one single slope up from the lowlands; but first there was a high
mountain, with a level plain at the top; and then another high mountain,
rising from the level and capped with a second plain; and then another
mountain, and so on; which made them somewhat resemble a pair of stairs.
So that the people of Nole, who looked upon the North Mountains with
much pride, used to point them out as “The Giant’s Stairway,” forgetting
that no giant was ever big enough to use such an immense flight of
stairs.
Many people had climbed the first mountain, and upon the plain at its
top flocks of sheep were fed; and two or three people boasted they had
climbed the second steep; but beyond that the mountains were all unknown
to the dwellers in the valley of Noland. As a matter of fact, no one
lived upon them; they were inhabited only by a few small animals and an
occasional vulture or eagle which nested in some rugged crag.
But at the top of all was an enormous plain that lay far above the
clouds, and here the Roly-Rogues dwelt in great numbers.
I must describe these Roly-Rogues to you, for they were unlike any other
people in all the world. Their bodies were as round as a ball—if you can
imagine a ball fully four feet in thickness at the middle. And their
muscles were as tough and elastic as india-rubber. They had heads and
arms resembling our own, and very short legs; and all these they could
withdraw into their ball-like bodies whenever they wished, very much as
a turtle withdraws its legs and head into its shell.
The Roly-Rogues lived all by themselves in their country among the
clouds, and there were thousands and thousands of them. They were
quarrelsome by nature, but could seldom hurt one another; because, if
they fought, they would withdraw their arms and legs and heads into
their bodies, and roll themselves at one another with much fierceness.
But when they collided they would bounce apart again, and little harm
was done.
In spite of their savage dispositions the Roly-Rogues had as yet done no
harm to any one but themselves, as they lived so high above the world
that other people knew nothing of their existence. Nor did they
themselves know, because of the clouds that floated between, of the
valleys which lay below them.
But, as ill luck would have it, a few days after King Bud’s army had
defeated the army of Ix, one of the Roly-Rogues, while fighting with
another, rolled too near the edge of the plain whereon they dwelt, and
bounded down the mountain-side that faced Noland. Wind had scattered the
clouds, so his fellows immediately rolled themselves to the edge and
watched the luckless Roly-Rogue fly down the mountain, bounce across the
plain, and thence speed down the next mountain. By and by he became a
dot to their eyes, and then a mere speck; but as the clouds had just
rolled away for a few moments the Roly-Rogues could see, by straining
their eyes, the city of Nole lying in the valley far below.
It seemed, from that distance, merely a toy city, but they knew it must
be a big place to show so far away; and since they had no cities of
their own, they became curious to visit the one they had just
discovered.
The ruler of the Roly-Rogues, who was more quarrelsome than any of the
rest, had a talk with his chief men about visiting the unknown city.
“We can roll down the mountain just as our brother did,” he argued.
“But how in the world could we ever get back again?” said one of the
chiefs, sticking his head up to look with astonishment at the ruler.
“We don’t want to get back,” said the other, excitedly. “Some one has
built many houses and palaces at the foot of the mountains, and we can
live in those, if they are big enough and if there are enough of them.”
[Illustration: “ALL THE HUNDREDS AND THOUSANDS OF ROLY-ROGUES THAT WERE
IN EXISTENCE ASSEMBLED UPON THE EDGE OF THEIR PLAIN, AND, AT THE WORD OF
THEIR RULER, HURLED THEMSELVES DOWN THE MOUNTAIN WITH TERRIBLE CRIES AND
WENT BOUNDING AWAY TOWARD THE PEACEFUL CITY OF NOLE.”]
“Perhaps the people won’t let us,” suggested another chief, who was not
in favor of the expedition.
“We will fight them and destroy them,” retorted the ruler, scowling at
the chief as if he would make him ashamed of his cowardice.
“Then we must all go together,” said a third chief; “for, if only a few
go, we may find ourselves many times outnumbered and at last be
overcome.”
“Every Roly-Rogue in the country shall go!” declared the ruler, who
brooked no opposition when once he had made up his mind to a thing.
On the plain grew a grove of big thorn-trees, bearing thorns as long and
sharp as swords; so the ruler commanded each of his people to cut two of
the thorns, one for each hand, with which to attack whatever foes they
might meet when they reached the unknown valley.
Then, on a certain day, all the hundreds and thousands of Roly-Rogues
that were in existence assembled upon the edge of their plain, and, at
the word of their ruler, hurled themselves down the mountain with
terrible cries and went bounding away toward the peaceful city of Nole.