154 The Upsidedownians.

lastly, some soup made from the roots of a plant
which grew on the island.

“You are surprised,” said the old man, ‘that
We serve our soup last, but the reason is simple.
You see, standing as we Upsidedownians do, so
much of the time, with our heads down, our stom-
achs get, after a while, turned topsy-turvy, so that
we are obliged to begin with the dessert, and end
with the soup, in order that our dinner may be
properly digested.”

And Uncle Jack said, “I see,” for he really
was not quite sure, whether he himself was stand-
ing on his head or his heels. “But why,” he
asked, “do you walk on your hands at all?”

“YT will tell you,” said the old man. “ This
then is the history of our people. Our great-great-
great grandparents were people who lived in a
country far from here. They were not satisfied
there. They thought everything was wrong, and
longed to go to some far-away land, where they
could make a new world, with everything their
own way. They went off in a big ship and sailed
and sailed for a year and a day, but every land