Mother was going to make me a birthday cake
with three thousand and fifty-six candles on it;
but now, of course, there will be no celebration,
for I fear I shall not get home in time for it."
"Three thousand and fifty-six years!" cried
Betsy. "Why, I had no idea anything could live
that long!"
"My respected Ancestor, whom I would call a
stupid old humbug if I had not reformed, is so old
that I am a mere baby compared with him," said
Quox. "He dates from the beginning of the world,
and insists on telling us stories of things that
happened fifty thousand years ago, which are of no
interest at all to youngsters like me. In fact,
Grandpa isn't up to date. He lives altogether in
the past, so I can't see any good reason for his
being alive to-day.... Are you people able to see
your way, or shall I turn on more light?"
"Oh, we can see very nicely, thank you; only
there's nothing to see but ourselves," answered
Betsy.
This was true. The dragon's big eyes were like
headlights on an automobile and illuminated the
Tube far ahead of them. Also he curled his tail
upward so that the electric light on the end of it
enabled them to see one another quite clearly. But
the Tube itself was only dark metal, smooth as
glass but exactly the same from one of its ends to
the other. Therefore there was no scenery of
interest to beguile the journey.
They were now falling so gently that the trip
was proving entirely comfortable, as the Jinjin
had promised it would be; but this meant a
longer journey and the only way they could
make time pass was to engage in conversation.
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