Tom Wants to Build a Ship. 9

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in. The two pieces of land he wished most
to go to, were freezing cold Iceland, and
burning hot India. He wished to see real live
white bears and roaring lions and tigers with
his own eyes, and not merely in pictures.
And after he had travelled all over Iceland
and India, he meant to go to Arabia, and
ride on the back of a camel across the sandy
desert, and sleep in a white tent at night.

In the drawing-room there were some tall
plants that had come from these hot countries.
They liked to stay indoors by the fire, how-
ever bright the sun might be shining outside,
and however much the flowers in the garden
might be enjoying it. They were different
from them altogether, and had different
names. Also, Tom knew that the oranges
he ate. at dessert were picked off the trees in
these countries, where they grew like apples
on the apple-trees here; and in the drawers
of the cabinet in the study there were rows
of pretty shells which had been found on the
shores far away across the sea. But these.
were not nearly all, for the house was full of