“Make yourselves at home--you’re quite welcome,” continued the small voice. “Is this YOUR home?” asked Coppertop. “Yes, more or less. Let me explain,” went on the little voice. “My name is Mr. A. Tom--Atom for short.” “’Es, very short!” interrupted Kiddiwee, looking down grandly upon the little creature. “You shouldn’t say that!” cried Coppertop; “he might be offended, and we’re in his house, you know.” “’Es, and I wish we weren’t,” said Kiddiwee, wearily; “it’s drefful stuffy, it is.” “Yes, I know,” agreed Coppertop; “but don’t say so, it sounds so rude. We’ll just ask him to tell us the nearest way to the South Wind’s Castle.” “I will,” volunteered Tibbs. “Please, Mr. Adam----” “Atom--ATOM! Not Adam! Mr. A. Tom.” “Well, Mr. Atom, please----” repeated Tibbs, rather confused by his mistake. “Please, Mr. Atom, can you tell us where the South Wind’s Castle is?” “Still in the same place, I should imagine,” answered the merry little man, with a twinkling eye. “Unless it has moved,” he added. “Oh, please, he means how can we get there?” cried Coppertop, coming to the rescue. “Well, you can run there, walk there, jump there, fly there, or think there! But you’re far too small as you are to undertake a journey like that. Bless me, you’d spend all your time climbing over the snowflakes.” At this the children looked very crestfallen. “But, my dears,” continued Mr. Atom, “it is a very simple thing for me--with a wave of my hand and the use of a magic spell--thus--to cause you to become any size you may wish.” Mr. Atom stretched out one hand towards the children, and with the other he beckoned to the snow, saying at the same time, “Elementi-allione!” As the strange little person said this, the snow on either side of the children melted away, and they found themselves growing. “Oh, how funny!” cried Coppertop, as she felt herself getting larger and larger. “Oh, Mr. Atom! However can you do it?” “It’s a ripping feeling!” cried Tibbs. “I feel as if I could jump over a house.” And still they continued to grow, larger and larger. “Hallo! Where is Mr. Atom gone?” exclaimed Tibbs. “I can’t see him at all.” “I’m here, sure enough,” said a tiny voice, which seemed to come from everywhere at once. “Only you are getting so large that you can’t see me, except with a microscope.” And still they grew. Then came a crash and a crunch, and a shower of snow fell all round them. And, to their surprise, they found that their heads had smashed through the snow under which they had been concealed, and they were once more able to look out upon the great white world. “We are still growing!” cried Tibbs. “We shall be giants soon,” replied Coppertop; “but I only hope our clothes grow as well, or we shall look too silly for words.” “How lovely to be giants!” cried Kiddiwee, gleefully. And now the world round them seemed to be growing very small. “The Clerk of the Weather did us little harm with his blizzard after all,” remarked Tibbs.