Chapter V Crumbs and Waffles
Sara beheld such an entrancing sight the next morning that her dimplesnearly escaped from her control while she was putting them into thedimple-holder. The Snimmy leaped up with a wild sniff, only to sinkdown again, trembling, as Sara shooed the little rollicking thingssafely down through the opening.
For it had indeed snowed in the night; the whole glittering Garden wasas white as the Snoodle. The pool was unfrozen, and in her accustomedplace within it sat the Echo of the Plynck, looking wonderfully happyand refreshed; the bark of the Gugollaph-tree was again a healthy,dazzling blue, and the branches were piled with little ridges offluffy-looking snow, which produced a delightful effect. And amongthem, with her happy golden feet in the snow, and her rosy plumesfluffed out, sat the Plynck, looking as softly dazzling as a snowysunrise. An army of Gunki were busily mowing the deep snow withscintillating long-handled ice-sickles. It flew up in clouds as theymowed, and another army of Gunki was engaged in catching it in basketsand spreading it smoothly down again. One and all, they seemed deeplyabsorbed in this useful work.
Still a third crew of Gunki were engaged in helping Schlorge reset thestump. They had got it nearly into place by the time Sara arrived. Itwas a tremendous engineering feat, and had evidently required anynumber of ropes and pulleys and things.
Sara could see that the ropes were made of taffy, but she could notimagine where they had found enough pulley-bones to supply all thepulleys. So she asked Schlorge about it, and he explained with greatrelish that they had used the wish-bones of the Fractions themselves.
"Oh, we've made 'em useful!" said Schlorge, triumphantly. "We've usedeverything about 'em except their conceit. We didn't want that, so wejust raked it up into piles and burned it."
As he talked, Schlorge was busy fitting the stump exactly to the rootthat was left in the ground, so that it would grow back just rightwhen the snow melted.
"I have to hurry," explained Schlorge, working away with an anxiousexpression, "because I have an announcement to make to you--a messagefrom Avrillia."
"Oh, do hurry!" cried Sara, clapping her hands so recklessly thatSchlorge looked up from his work to say, "Take care--I don't mend themknuckles ones, you know."
So Sara sat down very quietly on the snow near by, keeping a watchfuleye out for the Gunki with the keen ice-sickles, and sitting verystill so that she would not disturb Schlorge. And in a very littlewhile, indeed, the work was finished, and Schlorge scrambled eagerlyupon the stump and arranged his hands. Then he began:
"I'm requested to say On this glickering day That Avrillia is feeding the Birds; And if Sara will come She will find her at home, With waffles and welcoming words."
The Garden of the Plynck Page 8
