Page:The jade story book; stories from the Orient (IA jadestorybooksto00cous).pdf/123

Rh was something they longed for, but which never came to them.

Ordinary people have a dread of death, but these were very different, for they looked upon it as something very much to be desired. How they wished it could come to them, so that they could enter the happy land of Paradise!

To Opulo everything seemed to be upside down. He had come here hoping to live forever, and found the inhabitants wishing more than anything else that they could die. They had tried everything they could think of to bring this about, but without success. No one could even make himself ill, try as hard as he might; he couldn't even raise a corn on his toe.

But Opulo was happy, for he had found what he sought. He assured himself that he would never tire of living, and was the only contented man on the island.

He changed from his former mode of living, and instead of doing nothing, he set himself up in business. And now that he had something to do, time passed very quickly.