Mr. Downes: “I think the King of Lapland dreams.”
Man of Snow: “What he dream of then?”
Mr. Downes: “He dreams that he had supper in some West Indian isle; for in Lapland no oranges, no pinies, no watermelons grow, no plantains, no banana.”
Man of Snow: “Me never say they did grow there.”
When the Man of Snow said this we all of us together cried out, “Oh! Oh!” meaning what a story he was telling.
Man of Snow: “Me never mean to say so. Me have great big hothouse, all glass, where fruit grow; and other t’ing me have brought over in fine large ship. Me very rich king; hab everything me wish.”
Mr. Downes: “Rich, dost thou say, in money or in land?”
Man of Snow: “In money, to be sure. Me have large chest full of gold—Lapland gold and guineas, too—my friend and brother, the King of England, send me; and me have plenty land, too. Large fields of rice—no, not rice; rice not grow in Lapland—me know dat very well. Me mean to say, large plantation of sugar cane.”
Mr. Downes: “Nor doth the sugar cane in Lapland grow.”
Man of Snow: “Me know that very well—me just going to say so. But me try to make him grow; me try to bring new tings into my country; me try to get horses and oxen, and sheep, and deer, and dogs, and many bullfrogs, and rattlesnakes. Me want to change scorpions and mosquitoes into butterflies and lady-birds. Me want to have all manner of fine house for fine birds—parrots and macaws, with green wings and scarlet tails and blue breasts, and topknots; and peacocks and birds of paradise and a great pond of gold and silver fishes. And me mean to build great big bamboo house for all these, twice as high as my head.”