5 Men from Mars
There was no floating inside the Space Hotel. Thegravity-making machine saw to that. So
once the docking had been triumphantly¹ achieved, Mr Wonka,Charlie, Grandpa Joe and
Mr and Mrs Bucket were able to walk out of the Great GlassElevator into the lobby of the
Hotel. As for Grandpa George, Grandma Georgina andGrandma Josephine, none of them
had had their feet on the ground for over twenty years andthey certainly weren't going to
change their habits now. So when the floating stopped, they allthree plopped right back
into bed again and insisted that the bed, with them in it, bepushed into the Space Hotel.
Charlie gazed around the huge lobby. On the floor there was athick green carpet. Twenty tremendous chandeliers hungshimmering from the ceiling. The walls were covered withvaluable pictures and there were big soft armchairs all over theplace. At the far end of the room there were the doors of fivelifts. The group stared in silence at all this luxury. Nobodydared speak. Mr Wonka had warned them that every wordthey uttered would be picked up by Space Control in Houston,so they had better be careful. A faint humming noise camefrom somewhere below the floor, but that only made thesilence more spooky. Charlie took hold of Grandpa Joe's handand held it tight. He wasn't sure he liked this very much. Theyhad broken into the greatest machine ever built by man, theproperty of the United States Government, and if they werediscovered and captured as they surely must be in the end,what would happen to them then? Jail for life? Yes, orsomething worse.
Mr Wonka was writing on a little pad. He held up the pad. Itsaid: ANYBODY HUNGRY?
The three old ones in the bed began waving their arms andnodding and opening and shutting their mouths. Mr Wonkaturned the paper over. On the other side it said: THEKITCHENS OF THIS HOTEL ARE LOADED WITH LUSCIOUSFOOD, LOBSTERS², STEAKS, ICE-CREAM. WE SHALL HAVEA FEAST TO END ALL FEASTS.
Suddenly, a tremendous booming voice came out of aloudspeaker hidden somewhere in the room. 'ATTENTION!'
boomed the voice and Charlie jumped. So did Grandpa Joe.
Everybody jumped, even Mr Wonka. 'ATTENTION THEEIGHT FOREIGN ASTRONAUTS! THIS IS SPACE CONTROLIN HOUSTON, TEXAS, U.S.A.! YOU ARE TRESPASSING³ ONAMERICAN PROPERTY! YOU ARE ORDERED TO IDENTIFYYOURSELVES IMMEDIATELY! SPEAK NOW!'
'Ssshhh!' whispered Mr Wonka, finger to lips.
There followed a few seconds of awful silence. Nobody movedexcept Mr Wonka who kept saying 'Ssshhh! Ssshhh!'

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