Magic Faraway Tree (8 page)

 

   
"Goodness! Doesn't it look exciting?" said Bessie. "I wonder where
Moon-Face and Silky are."
"There they are-over there-on that round-about!" cried Jo. "Look-Silky
is riding a tiger that is going up and down all the time-and Moon-Face is on a
giraffe! Let's get on, too!"
Off they all ran. As soon as Moon-Face and Silky saw the children, they screamed
with joy and waved their hands. The roundabout stopped and the children got on.
Bessie chose a white rabbit. Fanny rode on a lion and felt very grand. Jo went
on a bear and Dick chose a horse.

 

   
"So glad you came!" cried Silky. "We waited and waited for you.
Oh-we're off! Hold tight!"
The roundabout went round and round and round. The children shouted for joy, because
it went so fast. "Let's have six rides without getting off!" cried Jo.
So they did -and dear me, weren't they giddy when they did at last get off. They
rolled about like sailors!
"I feel like sitting down with six ice-creams," said Bessie. At once
an ice-cream man rode up and handed them out thirty-six ice-creams. It did look
a lot. When Jo had divided them all out equally there were six each. And how delicious
they were! Everybody managed six quite easily.

 

   
"And now, what about me driving that railway engine!" cried Jo, jumping
up. "I've always wanted to do that. Would you all like to be my passengers?
Well, come on, then!"
And off they all raced to where the railway train was stopping at a little station.
"Hi! hie!" yelled Jo to the driver. "I want to drive your train!"
"Come along up, then," said the driver, jumping down. "The engine
is just ready to go!"
12.

 

   
The Land of Do-As-You-Please.

 

   
Jo jumped up into the cab of the engine. A bright fire was burning there. He looked
at ail the shining handles and wheels.

 

   
"Shall I know which is which?" he asked the driver.

 

   
"Oh, yes," said the driver. "That's the starting wheel-and that's
to make the whistle go-and that's to go slow-and that's to go fast. You can't
make a mistake. Don't forget to stop at the stations, will you? And oh-look out
for the level-crossing gates, in case they are shut. It would be a pity to bump
into them and break them."
Jo felt tremendously excited. Dick looked up longingly. "Jo! Could I come
too?" he begged. "Do let me. Just to watch you."
"All right," said Jo. So Dick hopped up on to the engine. The girls,
Moon-Face and Silky got into a carriage just behind. The guard ran up the platform
waving a green flag and blowing his whistle.

 

   
"The signal's down!" yelled Dick. "Go on, Jo! Start her up!"
Jo twisted the starting wheel. The engine began to chuff-chuff-chuff and moved
out of the station. The girls gave a squeal of delight.

 

   
"Jo's really driving the train!" cried Bessie. "Oh isn't he clever!
He's wanted to drive an engine all his life!"
The engine began to go very fast-too fast. Jo pulled the "Go Slow" handle,
and it went more slowly. He was so interested in what he was doing that he didn't
notice he was coming to a station. He shot right through it!
"Jo!" cried Dick, "you've gone by a station. Gracious, the passengers
waiting there did look cross-and oh, look, a lot of them in our train wanted to
get out there!"
Sure enough quite a number of angry people were looking out of the carriage windows,
yelling to Jo to stop.

 

   
Jo went red. He pulled the "Stop" handle. The engine stopped. Then Jo
pulled the "Go Backwards" handle and the train moved slowly backwards
to the station. It stopped there and Jo and Dick had the pleasure of seeing the
passengers get out and in. The guard came rushing up.

 

   
"You passed the station, you passed the station!" he cried. "Don't
you dare to pass my station again without stopping!"
"All right, all right," said Jo. "Now then-off we go again!"
And off they went.

 

   
"Keep a look-out for stations, signals, tunnels and level crossings, Dick,"
said Jo. So Dick stuck his head out and watched.

 

   
"Level crossing!" he cried. "The gates are shut! Slow down, Jo,
slow down!"
But unluckily Jo pulled the "Go Fast" handle instead of the "Go
Slow" and the train shot quickly to the closed gates of the level-crossing.
Just as the engine had nearly reached them a
little man rushed out of the cabin near by and flung the gates open just in time!
"You bad driver!" he shouted as the train roared past. "You might
have broken my gates!"
"That was a narrow squeak," said Jo. "What's this coming now, Dick?"
"A tunnel," said Dick. "Whistle as you go through in case anyone
is walking in it."
So Jo made the engine whistle loudly. It really was fun. It raced through the
dark tunnel and came out near a station.

 

   
"Stop! Station, Jo!" cried Dick. And Jo stopped. Then on went the train
again, whistling loudly, rushing past signals that were down.

 

   
Then something happened. The "Go Slow" and the "Stop" handles-wouldn't
work! The train
raced on and on past stations, big and small, through tunnels, past signals that
were up, and behaved just as if it had gone mad.

 

   
"I say!" said Dick in alarm, "what's gone wrong, Jo?"
Jo didn't know. For miles and miles the train tore on, and all the passengers
became alarmed. And then, as the train drew near a station, it gave a loud sigh,
ran slowly and then stopped all by itself.

 

   
And it was the very same station it had started from! The driver of the train
was there, waiting.

 

   
"So you're back again," he said. "My, you've been quick."
"Well, the engine didn't behave itself very well," said Jo, stepping
down thankfully. "It just ran away the last part of the journey. It wouldn't
stop anywhere!"
"Oh, I dare say it wanted to get back to me," said the driver, climbing
into the engine-cab. "It's a monkey sometimes. Come along and drive it again
with me."
"No, thank you," said Jo. "I think I've had enough. It was fun,
though."
The girls, Moon-Face and Silky, got out of their carriages. They had been rather
frightened the last part of the journey, but they thought Jo was very clever to
drive the train by himself.

 

   
They all left the station. "Now what shall we do?" said Moon-Face.

 

   
"I want to ride on an elephant," said Fanny at once.
"There aren't any," said Bessie. But no sooner had she spoken than the
children saw six big grey elephants walking solemnly up to them, swaying a little
from side to side.

 

   
"Oh, look, look!" yelled Fanny, nearly mad with excitement. "There
are my elephants. Six of them! We can all have a ride!"
Each elephant had a rope ladder up its left side. The children, Moon-Face and
Silky climbed up and sat on a comfortable seat on the elephant's backs. Then the
big creatures set off, swaying through the crowds.

 

   
It was simply lovely. Fanny did enjoy herself. She called to the others. "Wasn't
this a good idea of mine, everybody? Aren't we high up? And isn't it fun?"
"It is fun," said Moon-Face, who had never even seen art elephant before,
and would certainly never have thought of riding on one if he had. "Oh, goodness-my
rope ladder has slipped off my elephant! Now I shall never be able to get down!
I'll have to ride on this elephant all my life long!"
Everybody laughed-but Moon-Face was really alarmed. When the children had had
enough of riding they all climbed down their rope ladders-but poor Moon-Face sat
up high, tears pouring down his fat cheeks.

 

   
"I tell you I can't get down," he kept saying. "I'm up here for
good!"
The elephant stood patiently for a little while. Then it got tired of hearing
Moon-Face cry. It
swung its enormous trunk round, wound it gently round Moon-Face's waist, and lifted
him down to the ground. Moon-Face was so surprised that he couldn't speak a word.

 

   
At last he found his tongue. "What did the elephant lift me down with?"
he asked. "His nose!"
"No, his trunk," said Jo, laughing. "Didn't you know that elephants
had trunks, Moon-Face?"
"No," said Moon-Face, puzzled. "I'm glad he didn't pack me in his
trunk and take me away for luggage!"
The children roared with laughter. They watched the big elephants walking off.

 

   
"What shall we do now?" said Jo. "Dick, what do you want to do?"
"Well, I know I can't do it -but wouldn't I just love to have a paddle in
the sea!" said Dick.

 

   
"Oooh-that would be nice!" said Fanny, who loved paddling too. "But
there isn't any sea here."
Just as she said that she noticed a sign-post near by. It pointed away from them
and said, in big letters, "TO THE SEA."
"Goodness!" said Fanny. "Look at that! Come on, everyone!"
Off they all went, running the way that the signpost pointed. And, after going
round two corners, there,-sure enough, was the blue, blue sea, lying bright and
calm in the warm sunshine! Shining golden sands stretched to the little waves.

 

   
"Oh, goody, goody!" cried Dick, taking off his 92
shoes and socks at once. "Come on, quickly?'
Soon everyone was paddling in the warm sea. Moon-Face and Silky had never paddled
before, but they loved it just as much as the children did. Dick paddled out so
far that he got his shorts soaking wet.

 

   
"Oh, Dick! You are wet!" cried Bessie. "Come back!"
"This is the Land of Do-As-You-Please, isn't it?" shouted Dick, dancing
about in the water and getting wetter than ever. "Well, I shall get as wet
as I like, then!"
"Let's dig an ENORMOUS castle!" cried Moon-Face. "Then we can all
sit on the top of it when the sea comes up."
"We can't," said Silky, suddenly looking sad.

 

   
"Why not? Why not?" cried Jo in surprise. "Isn't this the Land
of Do-As-You-Please?"
"Yes," said Silky. "But it's time we went back to the Faraway Tree.
This land will soon be on the move-and nice as it is, we don't want to live here
for ever."
"Gracious, no," said Jo. "Our mother and father couldn't possibly
do without us! Dick! Dick! Come in to shore! We're going home!"
Dick didn't want to be left behind. He waded back at once, his shorts dripping
wet, and his jersey splashed, too. They all made their way to the hole that led
down through the cloud to the Faraway Tree.

 

   
"We did have a lovely time," sighed Jo, looking back longingly at the
gay land he was leaving
behind. "It's one of the nicest lands that has ever been at the top of the
Tree."
They all felt tired as they crowded into Moon-Face's room. "Don't fall asleep
before you get home," said Moon-Face. "Take cushions, all of you."
They went down the slippery-slip, yawning. They made their way home and fell into
bed, tired out but happy. And in the morning their mother spoke in surprise to
Dick.

 

   
"Dick, how is it that your shorts and jersey are so wet this morning?"
"I paddled too deep in the sea," said Dick-and he couldn't think why
his Aunt Polly said he was a naughty little story-teller!
13-The Land of Toys.

 

   
One afternoon Silky came to see the children as they were all working hard in
the garden. She leaned over the gate and called to them.

 

   
"Hallo! I've come to tell you something!"
"Oh, hallo, Silky dear!" cried everyone. "Come along in. We can't
stop work because we've got to finish clearing this patch before tea."
Silky came in. She sat down on the barrow. "The old Saucepan Man wants to
give a party," she said. "And he says, will you come?"
"Is it his birthday?" asked Jo.
"Oh, no. He doesn't know when his birthday is," said Silky. "He
says he hasn't got one. This is just a party. You see, the Land of Goodies is
coming soon, and Saucepan thought it would be a fine idea to go there with a large
basket and collect as many good things to eat as he can find, and then give a
party in Moon-Face's room, so that we can eat all the things."
"That sounds fine!" said Dick, who loved eating good things. "When
shall we come?"
"To-morrow," said Silky. "About three o'clock. Will you be all
right?"
"Oh, yes," said Bessie: "Mother says we've been very good this
week, so she is sure to let us come to the Saucepan Man's party to-morrow. We'll
be there! When is Saucepan going to get the goodies to eat?"
"To-morrow morning," said Silky. "He says that the Land of Goodies
will be there then. Well, good-bye. I won't stay and talk to-day, as I said I'd
make some Pop Biscuits and Google Buns for the tea to-morrow as well. I might
make some Toffee Shocks, too."
Silky went. The children talked joyfully of the party next day.

 

   
"Hope there will be treacle pudding," said Dick.

 

   
"Treacle pudding! At a tea-party!" said Bessie.

 

   
"Well, why not?" said Dick. "It's most delicious. I hope there
will be pink and yellow jelly, too."
Everyone felt excited when the next afternoon came. Mother said they might go,
but she wouldn't let them put on their best clothes.

 

   
"Not if you are going to climb trees," she said. "And Dick, please
don't get your clothes wet this time. If you do, you'll have to stay in bed all
day whilst I dry them."
The children ran to the Enchanted Wood. They had to climb up the tree in the ordinary
way, for there was no rope that day. Up they went, shouting a greeting to the
owl in his room, to the Angry Pixie, and to Dame Washalot.

 

   
They reached Moon-Face's house. He and Silky were setting out cups and saucers
and plates ready for all the goodies that Saucepan was going to bring back. Silky
handed a bag round. "Have a Toffee Shock?" she said.

 

   
Now, all the children except Dick had had Toffee Shocks before, and, providing
you knew, what the toffee did it was all right. But if you didn't, it was rather
alarming.

 

   
A Toffee Shock gets bigger and bigger and bigger as you suck it, instead of smaller
and smaller -and when it is so big that there is hardly room for it in your mouth
it suddenly explodes-and goes to nothing. Jo, Bessie and Fanny watched Dick as
he sucked his Toffee Shock, nudging one another and giggling.