“Well, of all homely houses this is the homeliest!” said Harold. “I wonder what they do in rainy weather with the steps on the outside!”
The man who lived next door evidently believed the only way to build a house was to have all the rooms on the ground floor so as to do away with climbing stairs.
The next man had few windows and small ones at that, seeming to like a cool, dark house; while his next door neighbor delighted in light and windows and had so many that his house was called the glass house; and so on, and so on. One liked one thing, another liked its opposite and each built as he pleased.
The grounds surrounding these houses were quite as characteristic of different tastes as the houses. Some yards were laid out in set flower-beds, others with the flowers running wild and untrained while still others had not a flower or shrub to break the even roll of the grass-sown lawn.
Some of the people had their meals served three times a day, some four times, and some only twice. Some went to bed with the chickens and got up with the Sun while others went to bed at Sunrise, after a night of merry-making or dancing. Some believed in study, others in passing the time as best one can only looking out for the fun of the moment; while still others thought only of the future; and, as there are no Mrs. Grundys, each one did as he pleased and no unpleasant or unkind remarks were made.
All the inhabitants attend strictly to their own business and let others do the same.
“After all, then, these queer people living in their quaint houses have one custom which it would be well for our Earth people to emulate,” said the Prince, in which all the rest of the party laughingly acquiesced.
CHAPTER XIII.
To the east of the North Star our travelers saw a beautiful rose-tinted island and, on consulting Mercury, found it to be the Isle of Candy. On it everything was composed of sweets of some kind. Chocolate took the place of soil, while the benches in the parks were made of twisted molasses candy. Soda waters of different shades and color filled the fountains and looked beautiful as well as inviting as they sparkled in the sunlight. The summer-houses were made of peanut candy representing spotted stone, and the lovely little pagodas throughout the park were of white paste all fluted and carved. The very gravel and walks were made of mixed candies resembling different colored pebbles.
In the very centre of the island was a marvelous castle of sparkling rock candy while its water-pipes ran lemonade, wine and sparkling champagne. A lovely rose-bush clambered over its white porch and on this bush were beautiful pink roses all of candy. This castle was situated on a knoll that sloped to a miniature lake of clear mineral water while on its surface floated tiny canoes of sassafras and cinnamon bark. On the same lake were trim little steamers made of cream candy with striped peppermint sticks for smoke-stacks. On the banks of this lake were candied violets and crystalized sour-grass. Everything to be seen both far and near was a perfect imitation of some natural object. There were candy animals and birds in the park and, had you breakfasted in the castle, you would have been served with candy mutton-chops and candy eggs on candy toast.