Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-07-31

there was the open Sesame his
own secret knock, two fierce twin
raps, with. one little lonesome one
afterward-and this was unfailing.
safe inside, he saw himself Standing
on a big, polar bear-skin rug, the
door tight-loc1ed against all comera
an expectant baby figure, with his
little hand clasped in his fathers.
The white rug was the magic en-.
trance to the Never Never Country,
known only to those two
He could hear his own shrill treble:
Wishing House, Wishing House,
where are your"
Then the deeper voice quite un.
recognizable as his father's) answer
ing:
Here I am. Master: here | ami
And instantly the room vanished
and they were in Never Never Land.
and before them reared the biggest
house in the world, with a row Of
white pillars across its front mile
high.
Valiant drew deep breath. Some
magic of time and place was repaint-
ing that dead and dusty infancy in.
sudden delicate lights and filrny
colors. What had been but blurred
under exposures on the retina of his
brain became all at once elfin pic.
lures. weird and spectre like as the
dissolving views of camera obscura.
He and his father had lived alone
In Wishing House. No one else had
possessed the secret Not his moth
er. Not even the more portentious
uy1 he In
own the vast hotel in which thew
lived Qn such respect did she seem
to be held by the servants), who
wore cracking black silk and a big
bunch of keys for a sole ornament.
and who had called him her lamb"
No, in the Never Never Land there
had been only his father and he
Yet they were anything but lonely,
for the country was inhabited by
good-natured friendly savages, as
black as a lump of coal, most of
them with curly white hair. These
talked in queer language, but, of
course, his father and he could I'M
derstand them perfectly These saw
ages had curious and enthralling
customs and strange. cuddling songs
that made one sleepy, and all these
his father knew by heart. They lived
in little square huts around Wishing
House, made of sticks, and had doz.
ems and dozens of children who wore
no clothes and liked to dance in the
sun and eat cherries. They were
very useful barbarians. too, for they
chopped the wood and built the fires
and made the horses coats shine
for he and his father would have
scorned to walk, and went galloping
like the wind everywhere The for
ests about were filled with small
brown eats, tremendously furry, with
long whiskers and sharp, beady black
eyes, and sometimes they woulo hunt
these on horseback; but they never
caught them, because the cats can
run just a little bit faster than the
horses.
Christmas time at home was not so
very exciting, but at Wishing House
what a time they had Then all the
savages and their wives and children
received presents, and he and his
father had a dreadfully scary, sl1iv-
cry time remembering them ALL be-
cause some had so many children
hAits hcAh OQt VI anu. ItdQ u
use numbers instead. So there was al.
ways the narrowing fear that one
might inadvertently be left out, and
sometimes they couldn't remember
the last one till the very final min
ute. After the Christmas turkey the
oldest and blacklist savage of all
would come in where his father and
he sat at the table, with a pudding
as big as gold chariot in the circus.
and the pudding, by some magic
spell, would set itself on fire, while
he carried it round the table, with
all the other savages marching after
him. This was the most awe-inspir-
ing spectacle of all Christmases at
other places were a long way apart,
but they came as often as they were
wanted at Wishing House, which. he
recalled. was very often indeed.
John Valiant felt an odd beating
of the heart and a Tightening of the
throat. for he saw another scene. too.
1t was the one hushed and horrible
night, after the spell had failed and
the door had refused to open for a
long time, when dread things had
been happening that he could not
uilucl Sbdiiu, WHtIl DlS man Win
gold eyeglasses, who smelled of
some curious sickish-sweet perfume.
came and took him by the hand and
led him into room where his father
lay in bed very gray and quiet
The white hand on the coverlet
had beckoned to him and he had
gone close up to the bed, standing
very straight, his heart beating fast
and hard.
joint" the word had been almost
whisper, very tense and anxious.
very distinct. John, you're little
boy, and father is going away"
Toto Wishing House?'
The gray lips had smiled then, ever
so little, and sadly. mo, John.
Take me with YOU father, Take
me with you, and let us find it.'
His voice trembled then, and he had
had to gulp hard.