Page:Burnett - Two Little Pilgrims' Progress A Story of the City Beautiful.djvu/135

Rh grew, and one who lived at the bottom of the sea and knew the fishes by name, and strode about among them. And each one was commanded to build a palace or to make his people work; and they grew so interested that in the end each one wanted his palace and his people to be the most wonderful of all. And so the city was built, and we are in it, Robin, though we are only twelve years old and nobody cares about us."

"Yes," said Robin, "and the city is as much ours as if we were the Great Genie himself. Meg, who was the Great Genie. What was he?"

"I don't know," said Meg; "nobody knows. He is that—that"—she gave a sudden, queer little touch to her forehead and one to her side. "That, you know, Rob! The thing that thinks—and makes us want to do things and be things. Don't you suppose so, Rob?"

"The thing that made us want so to come here that we could not bear not to come," said Robin. "The thing that makes you make up stories about everything, and always have queer thoughts?"

"Yes—that!" said Meg; "and everyone has some of it—and there are such millions of people, and so there is enough to make the Great Genie. Robin, come along, let us go to the palace the picture Genie built,