
THE PECULIAR HISTORY OF THE CHEWING-GUM MAN.
Chapter II.
ORDER:
In a ramshackle Southern hamlet, three mischievous siblings—Willie, Wallie, and Huldy Ann—set out to create the world’s largest chewing‑gum sculpture. Their colossal gum man rises taller than the local hotel, its lopsided eyes, barrel‑nose and extendable limbs assembled with slapstick ingenuity. As the soft figure stiffens, townsfolk gather to marvel, laugh, and watch the ridiculous creation wobble under the summer sun.
Word of the towering treat spreads, drawing crowds who climb its arms, race beneath its legs, and even try to hitch rides on its massive hands. The gum man’s slow melt and the town’s frantic attempts to keep it upright turn everyday life into a carnival of chaos, culminating in an unexpected encounter with a runaway train that threatens to send the trio careening into new misadventures. Listeners will find the tale’s blend of folk humor and surreal imagination a delightfully odd ride.
Language
en
Duration
~17 minutes (16K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by David Edwards, Anne Storer, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
Release date
2009-12-12
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1866–1951
Best remembered for the nonsense classic "The Purple Cow," this lively American writer and humorist helped shape the playful spirit of literary San Francisco in the 1890s. He also had a knack for reinvention, moving between poetry, illustration, criticism, and children's books with easy wit.
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