The Iceberg Express | Page 4

there are mountains in the sea," said the little
mermaid. "Of course, you have seen nothing but their tops. What is that
little rocky ledge over yonder, where the white lighthouse stands, but
the stony top of a hill rising from the bottom of the sea? And what are

those pretty green islands, with their clusters of trees and grassy slopes,
but the summits of hills lifted out of the water?"
"Oh!" said Mary Louise, with a gasp. "You do know geography, don't
you? Is it pretty, away down there under the waves?" she added
wistfully.
The mermaid smiled very sweetly as she answered, "Yes, it is. There
are many wonderful things to see, and many strange beautiful things to
hear under the sea! I will comb your hair with my magic comb," and
she ran the pearly comb gently through Mary Louise's hair.
"Over the sea the white ships sail, Out through the mist and the
rollicking gale, While deep below the mermaids swim With their finny
tails so neat and trim. So please, little magic comb, don't fail To give
Mary Louise a mermaid tail."
And the more she combed the longer grew the pretty curls, until, to the
astonishment of Mary Louise, she found her hair trailing down to her
very feet. The breeze suddenly blew it to one side, and there on the
sand, instead of her two little shoes, was a mermaid's tail, with a
flippy-floppy fin on the end!
"Come with me," said the mermaid, and without a moment's hesitation
Mary Louise followed her into the water and out beyond the breakers,
swimming as easily as if she had always been a little mermaid, instead
of a girl who wore tan shoes.
"Where are we going?" asked Mary Louise, as the dim line of the shore
disappeared and there was nothing in sight but the great, restless ocean.
The mermaid did not answer, but looked about intently, as if trying to
find something.
"What are you looking for?" asked Mary Louise, for she was a curious
little girl, and forgot one question as soon as she asked another.
"Oh, there it is!" exclaimed the mermaid. "Come with me. Hold your

hands out before you like this and dive down!"
"But where are we going?" again asked Mary Louise as they sank
lower and lower in the sea.
"Oh, I forgot," answered the mermaid, turning with a smile to her little
companion; "I was so busy looking for the subway entrance that I
forgot your question."
"Goodness!" cried Mary Louise. "I didn't know there was a subway in
the sea!"
"To be sure," answered the mermaid. "The track lies along the bottom
of the ocean. It's not a railroad train we're going to take, but a water
train that comes all the way from the Northern seas, sweeping on like a
river in the sea. Wait till we get down there. You'll see how fast it
goes."
Mary Louise was too astonished to speak.
"The Pullman cars," continued the mermaid, "are icebergs. They come
from the North every summer to take a trip South."
"Whew!" shivered Mary Louise. "I think we ar near one now, for I feel
quite cold."
Sure enough, she was right, for there close at hand was a great white
object.
"All aboard!" shouted a big polar bear. "Watch your step!"
The mermaid helped Mary Louise to slide on a projecting ledge, and
off they went.
"Now we can enjoy the scenery," laughed the mermaid, as she arranged
her tail in an artistic curve and brushed back her hair, which had been
swept over her eyes by the swift action of the water.
"The train never stops, you know, until it reaches its destination, but

that need not interfere with our getting off any time we please should
you wish to visit any pretty spot we pass on our journey."
Just at that moment there was a tremendous crash and Mary Louise
found herself thrown off into the water, while a muffled roar rolled
through the depths of the ocean.

The Coral Palace

"Why, the ocean is full of cracked ice!" exclaimed Mary Louise, as she
and the mermaid rose to the surface and looked about them. "I wonder
what it was that caused such a tremendous crash?"
"Perhaps the Whale Ice Trust is after a big ice supply," replied the
mermaid with a laugh. "The ocean depths are no longer a quiet place
since this dreadful hot weather set in. Just the other day I heard the
King of the Mermen say that they were about to send a note of protest
to Neptune for violating the laws of Merland!"
"I don't know much about it," said Mary Louise, "except that it's very
inconvenient to have one's voyage disturbed in such