Coco Bolo: King of the Floating IslandsHamp, Sidford F. (Sidford Frederick)
Science
Coco Bolo: King of the Floating Islands
Hamp, Sidford F. (Sidford Frederick)
California -- Juvenile fiction; Fantasy fiction; Kings and rulers -- Juvenile fiction; Sisters -- Juvenile fiction
"That's who it is!" cried the dragon, leaning over the edge of
the tower and calling down to the King. "I can see him now. He's
just come through the cloud-wall. Hooray, for the Archbishop of
Timbuctoo-and-a-half!"
With that, the enthusiastic Lobsterneck dived head-first down his
staircase, with a clash as though someone had flung a shovelful of
tenpenny nails on a stone pavement, bolted out of the arched doorway,
and galloped off down the hill toward the beach to welcome the
Archbishop.
"Come on!" shouted the King; and away he went, himself, down the hill,
followed by Margaret and Frances, the little Coco Bolos, the Admiral,
the Court Crier and all the courtiers, everyone of them running so
fast that stumpy-legged Periwinkle, the only one who had not had any
aëro-plane water, was the last in the race.
As soon as they arrived at the pier, they saw the raft slowly
approaching, escorted on all sides by the whole pack of dog-fish. It
was a trim and well built raft, about as big as a bedroom floor, with
a mast in the middle, to which was attached a square sail, blown out
tight by the wind. On top of the mast, having evidently been scared
up there by the barking of the dog-fish, sat a big gray cat; while in
front of the sail, holding his crozier in one hand and kissing the
other to the people ashore stood the Archbishop, himself.
To Margaret and Frances, who had never seen one before, an Archbishop
was almost as much of a curiosity as a snap-dragon. At the same time,
however, they had formed in their own minds a sort of picture of what
an Archbishop would be like, expecting to find him a dignified old
gentleman, dressed in black, with a bald head, a long white beard, and
most probably wearing a pair of gold-rimmed spectacles.
What was their surprise, therefore, when, as the raft drew near,
they saw that the Archbishop of Timbuctoo-and-a-half was not by any
means the kind of person they had imagined. He was a jaunty young
gentleman with a neat little black moustache; instead of gold-rimmed
spectacles, he wore in his right eye an eyeglass which he kept in
place with difficulty by screwing up one corner of his mouth; on his
shoulders, concealing all but his white silk stockings and red shoes,
he wore a purple cloak embroidered all over with gold lace; while, most
noticeable of all, on his head was an archbishop's mitre of ample size
and antique design.
Slowly the raft glided forward, until it presently bumped gently
against the pier, when the frisky Archbishop, using his crozier as a
jumping pole, leaped lightly upon the steps, and running up them with
hand extended, he cried:
"Well, Coco, how goes it? How are you, old block; and how are all the
little chips? All cheerful and smiling as usual? Ah!"--catching sight
of the two little girls--"You have guests, I see. Won't you present me?"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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