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Coco Bolo: King of the Floating Island

<h2>CHAPTER VII COCO BOLO REX</h2> "This way, please," said their guide, waving his hand toward a pair of big glass doors, on each of which was painted a monogram—C. B. R.—with a crown above it. The two little maids pulled open the doors, and Margaret and Frances walking through, found themselves looking down upon a beautiful lawn with lots of little marble-topped tables scattered about it, at which sat numbers of bright-colored little people, drinking tea and eating ice-cream and lady-fingers. Across the middle of the lawn ran a white pathway, at the far end of which was a steep, green bank, forming a sort of raised platform. On this platform, with two little page-boys behind him holding up his scarlet cloak, was a fat little, red-cheeked gentleman with a spiky gold crown on his head, walking to and fro, and every now and then stopping to scoop up bubbles with a silver milk-strainer from a fountain of aëro-plane water. [Pg 85] "The King," whispered the Admiral; and then, putting his hands to his mouth, he shouted: "King's Guests!" At this, all the ladies and gentlemen jumped out of their chairs, and turning to Margaret and Frances made a low bow, while the King, himself, thrusting his milk-strainer into his pocket, ran and leaped from the green bank, the two little boys who had hold of his cloak flying out behind like the tail of a kite. Up the garden ran the King, the two pages still flying out behind, until he had come to where the children stood, when he stopped, straightened his crown, and after casting a glance over his shoulder to see if the pages had recovered their feet, he advanced with both hands stretched out to welcome his guests. "Delighted to see you, Ladies," said he, shaking hands with both of them at once. "Most kind of you to come. What can I offer you by way of refreshment? Here is everything you can think of; and if there's anything you can't think of, you have only to express a wish for it and I'll order it at once." "Thank you very much," replied Margaret, "but we've had refreshment already." "And we're much obliged for the wreaths and slippers," added Frances. [Pg 86] "Not at all," responded the King. "Most condescending of you to wear them. Do the slippers fit?" "Perfectly, thank you." "All right, then," unhooking his scarlet cloak and dropping it upon the ground. "Come on, if you're ready. Race you to the other end!" Away went the fat little King as hard as he could run, all down the center pathway, and having such a good start he would certainly have won had it not been for the aëro-plane bubbles the children had swallowed. As it was, they took such immense steps that they caught the King just as he reached the platform, on top of which they all jumped in a row and flung themselves down on a three-seated throne, like a high-backed church pew, except that it was decorated with gold knobs and had a crown over the middle seat. "Good!" cried the King, clapping his hands. "Everybody won! Distribute the prizes!" At this, all the court ladies and gentlemen came running, the ladies in their wreaths and satin slippers skipping in pairs, weaving their way among the chairs and tables, while the gentlemen, with great agility, leap-frogged over the tops of the tables, all among the cups and saucers, without upsetting one of[Pg 87] them. They all jumped upon the platform and ranged themselves about the throne, clapping their hands with delight when the Court Crier advanced and deposited in the King's lap a wooden box tied with white ribbon. Having cut the ribbon, the King looked all over the box for a keyhole, but could not find one; nor could he pry open the box with his pocket-knife. It was very tantalizing. He was bending over the box, looking for some way of opening it, when Frances noticed a little knob at the back, and thinking that perhaps it might be a spring, she leaned forward and pressed it with her finger. She had guessed right. It was a spring; for the box-lid instantly flew up, hitting the King such a crack under his nose that it made him sneeze. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" exclaimed Frances, clasping her hands. "Not at all," replied His Majesty, very graciously, as he rubbed his nose with the back of his hand; and then, slapping down the lid again, he suddenly burst out laughing. "Ha! Ha!" he cried, kicking up his feet. "Here's a game! Come here, Admiral! Just come here and smell this box! Any gentleman who can tell by the smell what is inside the box shall be allowed to fasten[Pg 88] up his stockings with brass-headed tacks." All the gentlemen-courtiers crowded round at once, eager to compete for the honor, when the Admiral, who had the first turn, stooped over the box to smell it. This was the moment the King was waiting for. He pressed the spring and whack came the lid under the Admiral's nose, causing him to jump into the air and turn a back-somersault right over the heads of the courtiers—a pretty good jump for an admiral, especially with one hand on his nose. Margaret and Frances of course supposed that the courtiers, seeing what had happened to the Admiral, would decline to smell the box. But, not a bit of it: they did not take warning at all. They all came crowding round, elbowing each other for the next turn, and one after another they stooped to smell the box; one after another they received a crack on the nose; and one after another they jumped backwards—the fat ones about ten feet and the thin ones a foot or two further—and there they all stood in a group holding their noses and gazing fixedly at the Court Crier. "Caddy! Caddy!" shouted the Court Crier. Where he came from the children did not observe, but in an instant there was the caddy, box and all. The Court Crier immediately opened the caddy-box,[Pg 89] took out a clean handkerchief and clapped it over his face. "Boo-hoo!" he cried, just once, and then peeped round the edge of the handkerchief to see if that was enough. Apparently, it was not quite enough, for he covered his eyes again and boo-hooed once more, when, perceiving that the Admiral and the courtiers had all let go their noses again and were smiling away as usual, he threw the handkerchief into the box, and holding out the skirts of his long cloak with a finger and thumb of each hand, he went skipping round in a circle, the bell about his neck going clink-clank at every step. "Good!" cried the King, clapping his hands. "Jump for joy!" Thereupon all the courtiers took hands and jumped up and down and back and forth, coming so close up to the throne that Margaret and Frances and the King had to tuck up their feet for fear of having their toes trodden on. "Oh, bother!" exclaimed His Majesty. "I wish they wouldn't crowd so"; and so saying, he jumped up into the seat of his throne and shouted as loud as he possibly could: "DINNER!" At this, the whole company of courtiers, gentlemen[Pg 90] and ladies as well, turned their backs on the throne, and led by the Court Crier, they leaped off the platform, raced up the center pathway and rushed, pell-mell, through the glass doors at the other end; when the Admiral, who had followed close behind, slammed the doors and locked them. Having done so, the Admiral came smiling back again, twirling the key on his finger. "What's that for?" asked Margaret. "Do you always lock the doors for dinner?" "There isn't any dinner," replied the King, slyly screwing up one eye. "It's just a trick of mine to get rid of them whenever they crowd too much." "Do you do it often, then?" asked Margaret. "Oh, yes. Two or three times a day sometimes." "But, don't they ever learn?" cried Frances in surprise. "I shouldn't have thought you could have played the same trick on them more than once—or twice." "Learn!" cried the King. "They never learn! They are the most wooden-headed lot you ever saw. It isn't all fun, being a king," taking off his crown and hanging it over one of the knobs on the back of the throne, "not even a monarch of the Woods—especially the Hardwoods. They are such blockheads!" [Pg 91] The jovial little King looked almost melancholy, which, of course, was against the laws of the Island, but he recovered again in a moment when the Admiral tactfully poked him in the ribs with the door-key and cried, "Cheer up, Rex!" "Ha! Ha!" laughed the King. "No tickling! Come along, Ladies. Let's go and see the dragon. We'll take the children with us." "Oh, yes. Do!" cried Margaret, feeling that if the children went, too, it must be perfectly safe. "How many children are there?" "Six, I think," replied the King. "It is six isn't it, Admiral?" "I believe it is," assented the Admiral. "Though I'm not quite sure whether the carpenter has finished the last one yet." "The carpenter!" cried both little girls, opening their eyes very wide. "Certainly," replied the Admiral. "You didn't suppose it was a job for the blacksmith, did you? But it's a long piece of work, even though the last chip was the smallest of the lot. Coco bolo is such tough stuff, you know, and of course the carpenter has to be extra particular in turning out a Prince." "Oh, so the little Princes are all made of coco bolo, too, are they?" asked Margaret. [Pg 92] "Why, of course, they are," replied the King, rather surprised at the question. "Chips from the old block, you know. There were six chips left after I was finished, and the carpenter has been at work on them ever since; though whether he has completed the last one yet, I don't know. However, we'll soon see." As he said this, the King popped his fingers into his mouth and blew a shrill whistle. Immediately a door in the palace flew open and out came six plump duchesses, with Roman noses and two corkscrew curls apiece, dressed to look like nurses in mob caps and big white aprons, walking one behind the other and each carrying a covered basket on her arm. "Turn 'em out!" shouted the King; whereupon the six plump duchesses turned their six baskets upside down and out fell six little boys, dressed like Floating Island sailor-men, in cherry-colored blouses and green and white striped bloomers. Some of them fell on their backs and some on their heads and some on their noses and knees, but it seemed to make no difference: they all jumped up at once and came running to where Margaret and Frances and Coco Bolo Rex sat on the three-seated throne waiting for them—skipping and frolicking and playing leap-frog and cutting all sorts of capers. [Pg 93] "They've just been dosed," explained the King. "That's what makes them so frisky." "Dosed!" cried Margaret. "I didn't suppose dosing ever made anyone frisky. What do you dose them with?" "Caper sauce," replied the King. "Jolly little chips, aren't they?" "They certainly are," cried Frances; and jumping down from her seat, she ran forward and caught up the youngest, intending to give him a good toss. She found him so heavy, however, that she changed her mind. "Why! What a weight he is!" she exclaimed. "He's only about half as tall as I am, but I believe he weighs as much." "He's made of heavy stuff," explained the King. "But we'll soon mend that. Come along, Chips, and I'll give you a treat." Marching over to the aëro-plane fountain, the King drew the milk-strainer from his pocket, and while the little Princes all stood in a row with their mouths wide open, like young fly-catchers, he fished out half-a-dozen bubbles and with the tip of his finger flipped one down each throat in turn. "Now," said he to Frances. "Try him again. You'll find him a good deal lighter." [Pg 94] He was; the difference was surprising—very surprising indeed to Frances. For, not expecting him to be so light all of a sudden, she tossed the little Prince into the air, when, instead of coming down again, he flew out of her hands; the wind got into his blouse and his bloomers, puffing them out like balloons, and away he went, floating along about ten feet from the ground. [Pg 95] <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

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