第13章

At once I began to grow small.I could feel myself shrinking, shrinking away, and it frightened me terribly, so that I lighted on the ground to think over what was happening.In a few seconds I had shrunk to the size you now see me; but there I remained, getting no smaller, indeed, but no larger.It is certainly a dreadful affliction! After I had recovered somewhat from the shock I began to search for you.It is not so easy to find one's way when a creature is so small, but fortunately Ispied you here in this shed and came to you at once."Cap'n Bill and Trot were much astonished at this story and felt grieved for the poor Ork, but the little man Pessim seemed to think it a good joke.He began laughing when he heard the story and laughed until he choked, after which he lay down on the ground and rolled and laughed again, while the tears of merriment coursed down his wrinkled cheeks.

"Oh, dear! Oh, dear!" he finally gasped, sitting up and wiping his eyes."This is too rich! It's almost too joyful to be true.""I don't see anything funny about it," remarked Trot indignantly.

"You would if you'd had my experience," said Pessim, getting upon his feet and gradually resuming his solemn and dissatisfied expression of countenance.

The same thing happened to me."

"Oh, did it? And how did you happen to come to this island?" asked the girl.

"I didn't come; the neighbors brought me," replied the little man, with a frown at the recollection."They said I was quarrelsome and fault-finding and blamed me because I told them all the things that went wrong, or never were right, and because I told them how things ought to be.So they brought me here and left me all alone, saying that if I quarreled with myself, no one else would be made unhappy.Absurd, wasn't it?""Seems to me," said Cap'n Bill, "those neighbors did the proper thing.""Well," resumed Pessim, "when I found myself King of this island I was obliged to live upon fruits, and Ifound many fruits growing here that I had never seen before.I tasted several and found them good and wholesome.But one day I ate a lavender berry -- as the Ork did -- and immediately I grew so small that I was scarcely two inches high.It was a very unpleasant condition and like the Ork I became frightened.I could not walk very well nor very far, for every lump of earth in my way seemed a mountain, every blade of grass a tree and every grain of sand a rocky boulder.For several days I stumbled around in an agony of fear.Once a tree toad nearly gobbled me up, and if I ran out from the shelter of the bushes the gulls and cormorants swooped down upon me.Finally I decided to eat another berry and become nothing at all, since life, to one as small as I was, had become a dreary nightmare.

"At last I found a small tree that I thought bore the same fruit as that I had eaten.The berry was dark purple instead of light lavender, but otherwise it was quite similar.Being unable to climb the tree, I was obliged to wait underneath it until a sharp breeze arose and shook the limbs so that a berry fell.Instantly I seized it and taking a last view of the world -- as I then thought -- Iate the berry in a twinkling.Then, to my surprise, Ibegan to grow big again, until I became of my former stature, and so I have since remained.Needless to say, Ihave never eaten again of the lavender fruit, nor do any of the beasts or birds that live upon this island eat it."They had all three listened eagerly to this amazing tale, and when it was finished the Ork exclaimed:

"Do you think, then, that the deep purple berry is the antidote for the lavender one?""I'm sure of it," answered Pessim.

"Then lead me to the tree at once!" begged the Ork, "for this tiny form I now have terrifies me greatly."Pessim examined the Ork closely"You are ugly enough as you are," said he."Were you any larger you might be dangerous.""Oh, no," Trot assured him; "the Ork has been our good friend.Please take us to the tree."Then Pessim consented, although rather reluctantly.He led them to the right, which was the east side of the island, and in a few minutes brought them near to the edge of the grove which faced the shore of the ocean.

Here stood a small tree bearing berries of a deep purple color.The fruit looked very enticing and Cap'n Bill reached up and selected one that seemed especially plump and ripe.

The Ork had remained perched upon Trot's shoulder but now it flew down to the ground.It was so difficult for Cap'n Bill to kneel down, with his wooden leg, that the little girl took the berry from him and held it close to the Ork's head.

"It's too big to go into my mouth," said the little creature, looking at the fruit sidewise.

"You'll have to make sev'ral mouthfuls of it, I guess,"said Trot; and that is what the Ork did.He pecked at the soft, ripe fruit with his bill and ate it up very quickly, because it was good.

Even before he had finished the berry they could see the Ork begin to grow.In a few minutes he had regained his natural size and was strutting before them, quite delighted with his transformation.

"Well, well! What do you think of me now?" he asked proudly.

"You are very skinny and remarkably ugly," declared Pessim.

"You are a poor judge of Orks," was the reply."Anyone can see that I'm much handsomer than those dreadful things called birds, which are all fluff and feathers.""Their feathers make soft beds," asserted Pessim.