“Lots of it,” said the Meteor. “News is happening every minute.” “He means any news of the Evening Star or the Equator,” said Nimbus. “No,” said the Meteor. “In fact I had forgotten all about them in the excitement.” “What excitement?” demanded Nimbus. “Why,” said the Meteor, “the most astonishing things are happening. In Chicago grapefruits are growing on Wabash Avenue, monkeys are swarming up the Tribune Building on Madison Street, and they are raising tobacco and watermelons on Drexel Boulevard.” “Gracious,” said Jack Frost, “and this is the middle of January! What can that mean?” “Great news,” sang out a voice overhead, and another Meteor settled in among them. “Snow has all melted in Duluth,” he said, “and there is an unprecedented sale of palmleaf fans all through that part of the country.” Before any one could express surprise at this astonishing information a third Meteor and a fourth alighted. “It is ninety degrees in the shade in Winnipeg,” said the third Meteor, “and they are picking cocoanuts in Quebec. The baseball season has opened in Iceland.” “Hotter still in Norway,” said the fourth Meteor, who had just arrived; “oldest inhabitant never remembers such sultry weather. Eskimos are now wearing mosquito nets instead of furs, and they’re catching crocodiles in the Arctic Ocean. The icebergs have begun to boil.” “This won’t do!” cried Jack Frost excitedly. “All the work that I’ve been at for centuries is being undone. I’ll soon have to organize a syndicate to attend to my business if this keeps up. Whatever can have happened?” Another Meteor came in just then with still more tidings. “Great schools of whales are passing Cape Nome,” he said, “all going north. They’re picking strawberries off the tundras there, and they are advertising hot springs for rheumatism in a glacier.” Nimbus, who had been sitting with knitted brows, suddenly leaped to his feet, and slapped the conductor on the back with such violence that that gentleman fell forward against the Equine Ox. “I know what it is,” shouted Nimbus. “The Equator is up there. That’s what’s making all this trouble!” “Then far be it from me to stay here,” said Jack Frost, preparing to start at once. “I’m not going to have all my good icebergs and glaciers melted like ice cream. It took me countless centuries to make some of them.” “Oh, never mind your old icebergs and glaciers,” said Nimbus. “The point is that we’ve located the Equator and we can stop him before he catches the Evening Star. He can only thaw a radius of a few miles at one time, now that he’s shrunk so, so you don’t need to worry at all about his undoing your work.” “Well, anyway, we must go up there,” said Jack Frost. “We certainly must,” said Nimbus, “and as soon as possible. I expect Aurora Borealis will be reporting him at any time now.” At that exact moment the sky lighted up with pink splendor that waved and flickered and danced over the heavens.