“Never mind,” sighed the old soldier, “I’ll think of something else. Let’s jump back in the water,” he proposed brightly.
“But if the medicine wears off boiling would be just as bad as burning,” objected Tatters, with a little shudder.
“That’s so,” admitted Grampa. “It seems, my boy, that every cup of soup has at least one fly!”
“There’s a fly on your nose,” screeched Bill, hopping up and down. And so there was—a saucy little fire fly. There were fire flies everywhere—darting here and there among the fire flowers and over the fields of waving fire weeds.
“Better stay,” repeated Prince Forge John hospitably. “Anyway let us show you a bit of the island.”
Grampa nodded, for he did not know what else to do, and so he and the others followed sadly after the Prince and his cortege. There were no houses on Fire Island, but each flame family had its own open fire place. Between stretched meadows of clear blue flame and many beautiful gardens, where, from flowing beds of red hot coals, lovely fire flowers arose.
The stems were of green flame, the tops of yellow, blue and red. The Prince picked a bouquet of these strange posies for Urtha and, to Grampa’s surprise, the fire flowers neither burned the little flower girl nor went out in her hands.
If it had not been for the dreadful thought of burning up that hung over them, the old soldier and Tatters might have enjoyed their trip across the island. But as it was they got little pleasure from it. Even Prince Forge John’s fire works, where all the hearth fires and kitchen fires are manufactured and the Fourth of July roman candles and sparklers are made, aroused in them no enthusiasm. When they reached the other side of the island, the Prince offered each member of the party a box of fire crackers for refreshments and this made Grampa smile in spite of his worry.
“No use setting ourselves off before our time!” chuckled the old soldier, handing them back with a bow. The Prince looked a little hurt, but he and the rest of his company ate up their fire crackers with relish and after Prince Forge John had finished his sixteenth box he had a sudden idea.