ny of her people, and her demeanor was so modest and
unassuming that it was difficult for the prisoners to believe that her
word would decree life or death and that all the others were
subservient to her. Tourmaline's eyes were so deep a shade of pink that
they were almost hazel, and her hair was darker than that of the
others, being a golden-red in color. These points, taken with her
light-pink skin and slender form, rendered her distinctive among the
Pinkies, whatever gown she might wear.

When the strangers were seated, she turned to them and said, "I have
searched through the Great Book of Laws and found nothing about foreign
people entering our land. There is a law that if any of the Blueskins
break through the Fog Bank, they shall be driven back with sharp
sticks; but you are not Blueskins, so this Law does not apply to you.
Therefore, in order to decide your fate, I have summoned a Council of
twelve of my people, who will vote as to whether you shall be permitted
to remain here or not. They wanted to see you before they cast their
final vote, that they may examine you carefully and discover if you are
worthy to become inhabitants of the Pink Country."

"The rose is red, the violet's blue,
But Trot is sweeter than the two!"

declared the parrot in a loud voice. It was a little verse Cap'n Bill
had taught the bird that very morning while Trot was seeing the sun
rise.

The Pinkies were startled and seemed a little frightened at hearing a
bird speak so clearly. Trot laughed and patted the bird's head in
return for the compliment. "Is the Monster Man whose legs are part wood
a dangerous creature?" asked one of the Sunrise Tribe.

"Not to my friends," replied Cap'n Bill, much amused. "I s'pose I could
fight your whole crowd of Pinkies if I had to, an' make you run for
your lives, but bein' as you're friendly to us, you ain't in any
danger." The sailor thought this speech was diplomatic and might "head
off any trouble," but the Pinkies seemed uneasy, and several of them
picked up their slender, pointed sticks and held them in their hands.
They were not cowardly, but it was evident they mistrusted the big man,
who on Earth was not considered big at all, but rather undersized.

"What we'd like," said Trot, "is to stay here, cozy an' peaceable, till
we can find a way to get home to the Earth again. Your country is much
nicer than the Blue Country, and we like you pretty well from what
we've seen of you, so if yo