The words of the alderman made him more anxious than ever to visit the
earth, and so he walked thoughtfully home, and put a few lumps of ice
in the stove to keep him warm, and sat down to think how he should
manage the trip.
You see, everything went by contraries in the Moon, and when the Man
wished to keep warm he knocked off a few chunks of ice and put them in
his stove; and he cooled his drinking water by throwing red-hot coals
of fire into the pitcher. Likewise, when he became chilly he took off
his hat and coat, and even his shoes, and so became warm; and in the
hot days of summer he put on his overcoat to cool off.
All of which seems very queer to you, no doubt; but it was n't at all
queer to the Man in the Moon, for he was accustomed to it.
Well, he sat by his ice-cool fire and thought about his journey to the
earth, and finally he decided the only way he could get there was to
slide down a moonbeam.
So he left the house and locked the door and put the key in his
pocket, for he was uncertain how long he should be gone; and then he
went to the edge of the moon and began to search for a good strong
moonbeam.
At last he found one that seemed rather substantial and reached right
down to a pleasant-looking spot on the earth; and so he swung himself
over the edge of the moon, and put both arms tight around the moonbeam
and started to slide down.
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