WHAT is the news of the day,
Good neighbors, I pray?
They say the balloon
Is gone up to the moon.
It was the day of the county fair. Puss, Junior, had bought his ticket
and stood looking about him uncertain what to do.
"They say the balloon has gone up to the moon," cried the crowd.
"Why, I've been up to the moon," said Puss, Junior, "but never will I
get excited over that?" But, nevertheless, he walked up to the balloon
man and asked. "When does your next balloon go up?"
"In about five minutes," replied the owner of the air craft. "We have an
ascension every half hour."
"Well," replied our little hero, "I would like to be one of your
passengers!"
"Pay your shilling and you shall have a seat in the basket," answered
the owner.
[Illustration]
After waiting for perhaps an hour the basket car was filled. My, how the
people cheered as the balloon ascended, and when it had almost reached
the clouds Puss leaned over the edge of the basket and threw little
notes down to the people below. "Tell my good friends that Puss in
Boots, Junior, has gone up in a balloon," he wrote on one of them.
On another, he scribbled, "Puss in Boots, Junior, is about to visit the
Man in the Moon."
"You had better be careful," said the owner of the balloon, "how do I
know we'll reach the moon?"
"If you follow my directions you will," replied Puss, Junior, "for I
have been there before and, to tell you the truth, it is a most
remarkable place. The moon is an unexplored country."
"Well, I'll take your word for it," said the navigator of the balloon
express. "I don't know much about these sky roads, but if you'll kindly
consent to tell me where to steer my air craft, perhaps we'll reach the
moon without a mishap."
"Trust to me," said Puss, Junior, "for I have traveled far and if I
don't know the way to the moon, my name is not Puss in Boots, Junior."
So the owner of the balloon steered the big air craft straight up to the
sky. Oh, dear me! But strange things will happen! For as they were
sailing along as smoothly as could be, there came a sudden gust of
wind, and the balloon, instead of pointing for the big, round moon that
shone like a silver dollar overhead, suddenly swerved to one side and
before anyone could say "Jack Robinson" there was a dreadful explosion
and Puss and his fellow passengers found themselves falling to the
earth.
"Good gracious!" exclaimed Puss. "What's the matter?"
Before his question was answered the balloon crashed into a big willow
tree.