So on they went for a long time; and in the afternoon the grasshopper
began to get very tired, and did not make anything like such long jumps
as he had done at first. They were going down a grassy hill, and had
just reached the bottom, when Ting-a-ling heard some one calling him.
Looking around him in astonishment, he saw that it was a little fairy of
his acquaintance, younger than himself, named Parsley, who was sitting
in the shade of a wide-spreading dandelion.

"Hello, Parsley!" cried Ting-a-ling, reining up. "What are you doing
there?"

"Why you see, Ting-a-ling," said the other, "I came out to look for the
Princess."--

"You!" cried Ting-a-ling; "a little fellow like you!"

"Yes, _I_!" said Parsley; "and Sourgrass and I rode the same butterfly;
but by the time we had come this far, we got too heavy, and Sourgrass
made me get off."

"And what are you going to do now?" said Ting-a-ling.

"O, I'm all right!" replied Parsley. "I shall have a butterfly of my own
soon."

"How's that?" asked Ting-a-ling, quite curious to know.

"Come here!" said Parsley; and so Ting-a-ling got off his grasshopper,
and led it up close to his friend. "See what I've found!" said Parsley,
showing a cocoon that lay beside him. "I'm going to wait till this
butterfly's hatched, and I shall have him the minute he comes out."

The idea of waiting for the butterfly to be hatched, seemed so funny to
Ting-a-ling, that he burst out laughing, and Parsley laughed too, and so
did the grasshopper, for he took this opportunity to slip his head out
of the bridle, and away he went!

Ting-a-ling turned and gazed in amazement at the grasshopper skipping up
the hill; and Parsley, when he had done laughing, advised him to hunt
around for another cocoon, and follow his example.

Ting-a-ling did not reply to this advice, but throwing his bridle to
Parsley, said, "There, you would better take that. You may want it when
your butterfly's hatched. I shall push on."

"What! walk?" cried Parsley.

"Yes, walk," said Ting-a-ling. "Good-by."

So Ting-a-ling travelled on by himself for the rest of the day, and it
was nearly evening when he came to a wide brook with beautiful green
banks, and overhanging trees. Here he sat down to rest himself; and
while he was wondering if it would be a good thing for him to try to get
across, he amused himself by watching the sports and antics of various
insects and fishes that were enjoying themselves that fine summer
evening. Plenty of butterflies and dragon-flies were there, but
Ting-a-ling knew that he could never catch one of them, for they were
nearly all the time over the surface of the water; and many a big fish
was watching them from below, hoping that in their giddy flights, some
of them would come near enough to be snapped down for supper. There were
spiders, who shot over the surface of the brook as if they had been
skating; and all sorts of beautiful bugs and flies were there,--green,
yellow, emerald, gold, and black. At a short distance, Ting-a-ling saw a
crowd of little minnows, who had caught a young tadpole, and, having
tied a bluebell to his tail, were now chasing the affrighted creature
about. But after a while the tadpole's mother came out, and then the
minnows caught it!

While watching all these lively creatures, Ting-a-ling fell asleep, and
when he awoke, it was dark night. He jumped up, and looked about him.
The butterflies and dragon-flies had all gone to bed, and now the great
night-bugs and buzzing beetles were out; the katydids were chirping in
the trees, and the frogs were croaking among the long reeds. Not far
off, on the same side of the brook, Ting-a-ling saw the light of a fire,
and so he walked over to see what it meant. On his way, he came across
some wild honeysuckles, and, pulling one of the blossoms, he sucked out
the sweet juice for his supper, as he walked along. When he reached the
fire, he saw sitting around it five men, with turbans and great black
beards. Ting-a-ling instantly perceived that they were magicians, and,
putting the honeysuckle to his lips, he blew a little tune upon it,
which the magicians hearing, they said to one another, "There is a fairy
near us." Then Ting-a-ling came into the midst of them, and, climbing up
on a pile of cloaks and shawls, conversed with them; and he soon heard
that they knew, by means of their magical arts, that the Princess had
been stolen the night before, by the slaves of a wicked dwarf, and that
she was now locked up in his castle, which was on top of a high
mountain, not far from where they then were.

[Illustration]

"I shall go there right off," said Ting-a-ling.

"And what will you do when you get there?" said the youngest magician,
whose name was Zamcar. "This dwarf is a terrible little fellow, and the
same one who twisted poor Nerralina's head, which circumstance of course
you remember. He has numbers of fierce slaves, and a great castle. You
are a good little fellow, but I don't think you could do much for the
Princess, if you did go to her."

Ting-a-ling reflected a moment, and then said that he would go to his
friend, the Giant Tur-il-i-ra; but Zamcar told him that that tremendous
individual had gone to the uttermost limits of China, to launch a ship.
It was such a big one, and so heavy, that it had sunk down into the
earth as tight as if it had grown there, and all the men and horses in
the country could not move it. So there was nothing to do but to send
for Tur-il-i-ra. When Ting-a-ling heard this, he was disheartened, and
hung his little head. "The best thing to do," remarked Alcahazar, the
oldest of the magicians, "would be to inform the King and his army of
the place where the Princess is confined, and let them go and take her
out."

"O no!" cried Ting-a-ling, who, if his body was no larger than a very
small pea-pod, had a soul as big as a water-melon. "If the King knows
it, up he will come with all his drums and horns, and the dwarf will
hear him a mile off and either kill the Princess, or hide her away. If
we were all to go to the castle, I should think we could do something
ourselves." This was the longest speech that Ting-a-ling had ever made;
and when he was through, the youngest magician said to the others that
he thought it was growing cooler, and the others agreed that it was.
After some conversation among themselves in an exceedingly foreign
tongue, these kind magicians agreed to go up to the castle, and see what
they could do. So Zamcar put Ting-a-ling in the folds of his turban, and
the whole party started off for the dwarf's castle. They looked like a
company of travelling merchants, each one having a package on his back
and a great staff in his hand. When they reached the outer gate of the
castle, Alcahazar, the oldest, knocked at it with his stick, and it was
opened at once by a shiny black slave, who, coming out, shut it behind
him, and inquired what the travellers wanted.

"Is your master within?" asked Alcahazar.

"I don't know," said the slave.

"Can't you find out?" asked the magician.

"Well, good merchant, perhaps I might; but I don't particularly want to
know," said the slave, as he leaned back against the gate, leisurely
striking with his long sword at the night-bugs and beetles that were
buzzing about.

"My friend," said Alcahazar, "don't you think that is rather a careless
way of using a sword? You might cut somebody."

"That's true," said the slave. "I didn't think of it before;" but he
kept on striking away, all the same.

"Then stop it!" said Alcahazar, the oldest magician, striking the sword
from his hand with one blow of his staff. Upon this, up stepped
Ormanduz, the next oldest, and whacked the slave over his head; and then
Mahallah, the next oldest, struck him over the shoulders; and Akbeck, the
next oldest, cracked him on the shins; and Zamcar, the youngest, punched
him in the stomach; and the slave sat down, and begged the noble
merchants to please stop. So they stopped, and he humbly informed them
that his master was in.

"We would see him," said Alcahazar.

"But, sirs," said the slave, "he is having a grand feast."

"Well," said the magician, "we're invited."

"O noble merchants!" cried the slave, "why did you not tell me that
before?" and he opened wide the gate, and let them in. After they had
passed the outer gate, which was of wood, they went through another of
iron, and another of brass, and another of copper, and then walked
through the court-yard, filled with armed slaves, and up the great
castle steps; at the top of which stood the butler, dressed in gorgeous
array.

"Whom have you here, base slave?" cried the gorgeous butler.

"Five noble merchants, invited to my lord's feast," said the slave,
bowing to the ground.

"But they cannot enter the banqueting hall in such garbs," said the
butler. "They cannot be noble merchants, if they come not nobly dressed
to my lord's feast."

"O sir!" said Alcahazar, "may your delicate and far-reaching
understanding be written in books, and taught to youth in foreign lands,
and may your profound judgment ever overawe your country! But allow us
now to tell you that we have gorgeous dresses in these our packs. Would
we soil them with the dust of travel, ere we entered the halls of my
lord the dwarf?"

The butler bowed low at this address, and caused the five magicians to
be conducted to five magnificent chambers, where were slaves, and
lights, and baths, and soap, and towels, and wash-rags, and
tooth-brushes; and each magician took a gorgeous dress from his pack,
and put it on, and then they were all conducted (with Ting-a-ling still
in Zamcar's turban) to the grand hall, where the feast was being held.
Here they found the dwarf and his guests, numbering a hundred, having a
truly jolly time. The dwarf, who was dressed in white (to make him look
larger), was seated on a high red velvet cushion at the end of the hall,
and the company sat cross-legged on rugs, in a great circle before him.
He was drinking out of a huge bottle nearly as big as himself, and
eating little birds; and judging by the bones that were left, he must
have eaten nearly a whole flock of them. When he saw the five magicians
entering, he stopped eating, and opened his eyes in amazement, and then
shouted to his servants to tell him who these people were, who came
without permission to his feast; but as no one knew, nobody answered.
The guests, seeing the stately demeanor and magnificent dresses of the
visitors, thought that they were at least five great monarchs.

"My lord the dwarf," said Alcahazar, advancing toward him, "I am the
king of a far country; and passing your castle, and hearing of your
feast, I have made bold to come and offer you some of the sweet-tasting
birds of my kingdom." So saying, he lifted up his richly embroidered
cloak, and took from under it a great silver dish containing about two
hundred dozen hot, smoking, delicately cooked, fat little birds. Under
the dish were fastened lamps of perfumed oil, all lighted, and keeping
the savory food nice and hot. Making a low bow, the magician placed the
dish before the dwarf, who tasted one of the birds, and immediately
clapped his hands with joy. "Great King!" he cried, "welcome to my
feast! Slaves, quick! make room for the great king!" As there was no
vacant place, the slaves took hold of one of the guests, and gave him
what the boys would call a "hist," right through the window, and
Alcahazar took his place. Then stepped forward Ormanduz, and said, "My
lord the dwarf, I am also the king of a far country, and I have made
bold to offer you some of the wine of my kingdom." So saying, he lifted
his gold-lined cloak, and took from beneath it a crystal decanter,
covered with gold and ruby ornaments, with one hundred and one
beautifully carved silver goblets hanging from its neck, and which
contained about eleven gallons of the most delicious wine. He placed it
before the dwarf, who, having tasted the wine, gave a great cheer, and
shouted to his slaves to make room for this mighty king. So the slaves
took another guest by the neck and heels, and sent him, slam-bang,
through the window, and Ormanduz took his place. Then stepped forward
Mahallah, and said, "My lord the dwarf, I am also the king of a far
country, and I bring you a sample of the venison of my kingdom." So
saying, he raised his velvet cloak, trimmed with diamonds, and took from
under it a whole deer, already cooked, and stuffed with oysters,
anchovies, buttered toast, olives, tamarind seeds, sweet-marjoram, sage,
and many other herbs and spices, and all piping hot, and smelling
deliciously. This he put down before the dwarf, who, when he had tasted
it, waved his goblet over his head, and cried out to the slaves to make
room for this mighty king. So the slaves seized another guest, and out
of the window, like a shot, he went, and Mahallah took his place. Then
Akbeck stepped up, and said, "My lord the dwarf, I am also the king of a
far country, and I bring you some of the confections of my dominions."
So saying, he took from under his cloak of gold cloth, a great basket of
silver filagree work, in which were cream-chocolates, and burnt almonds,
and sponge-cake, and lady's fingers, and mixtures, and gingernuts, and
hoar-hound candy, and gum-drops, and fruit-cake, and cream candy, and
mintstick, and pound-cake, and rock candy, and butter taffy, and many
other confections, amounting in all to about two hundred and twenty
pounds. He placed the basket before the dwarf, who tasted some of these
good things, and found them so delicious, that he lay on his back and
kicked up his heels in delight, shouting to his slaves to make room for
this great king. As the next guest was a big, fat man, too heavy to
throw far, he was seized by four slaves, who walked him Spanish right
out of the door, and Akbeck took his place. Then Zamcar stepped forward
and said, "My lord the dwarf, I also am king of a far country, and I
bring you some of the fruit of my dominions." And so saying, he took
from beneath his gold and purple cloak, a great basket filled with
currants as big as grapes, and grapes as big as plums, and plums as big
as peaches, and peaches as big as cantaloupes, and cantaloupes as big as
water-melons, and water-melons as big as barrels. There were about
nineteen bushels of them altogether, and he put them before the dwarf,
who, having tasted some of them, clapped his hands, and shouted to his
slaves to make room for this mighty king; but as the next guest had very
sensibly got up and gone out, Zamcar took his seat without any delay.
Then Ting-a-ling, who was very much excited by all these wonderful
performances, slipped down out of Zamcar's turban, and, running up
towards the dwarf, cried out, "My lord the dwarf, I am also the king of
a far country, and I bring you"--and he lifted up his little cloak; but
as there was nothing there, he said no more, but clambered up into
Zamcar's turban again. As nobody noticed or heard him, so great was the
bustle and noise of the festivity, his speech made no difference one way
or the other. After everybody had eaten and drunk until they could eat
and drink no more, the dwarf jumped up and called to the chief butler,
to know how many beds were prepared for the guests; to which the butler
answered that there were thirty beds prepared. "Then," said the dwarf,
"give these five noble kings each one of the best rooms, with a down
bed, and a silken comfortable; and give the other beds to the
twenty-five biggest guests. As to the rest, turn them out!" So the dwarf
went to bed, and each of the magicians had a splendid room, and
twenty-five of the biggest guests had beds, and the rest were all turned
out. As it was pouring down rain, and freezing, and cold, and wet, and
slippery (for the weather was very unsettled on this mountain), and all
these guests, who now found themselves outside of the castle gates,
lived many miles away, and as none of them had any hats, or knew the way
home, they were very miserable indeed.

[Illustration]

Alcahazar did not go to bed, but sat in his room and reflected. He saw
that the dwarf had given this feast on account of his joy at having
captured the Princess, and thus caused grief to the King and Prince, and
all the people; but it was also evident that he was very sly, and had
not mentioned the matter to any of the company. The other magicians did
not go to bed either, but sat in their rooms, and thought the same
thing; and Ting-a-ling, in Zamcar's turban, was of exactly the same
opinion. So, in about an hour, when all was still, the magicians got up,
and went softly over the castle. One went down into the lower rooms, and
there were all the slaves, fast asleep; and another into one wing of the
castle, and there were half the guests, fast asleep; and another into
the other wing, and there were the rest of the guests, fast asleep; and
Alcahazar went into the dwarf's room, in the centre of the castle, and
there was he, fast asleep, with one of his fists shut tight. The
magician touched his fist with his magic staff, and it immediately
opened, and there was a key! So Alcahazar took the key, and shut up the
dwarf's hand again. Zamcar went up to the floor, near the top of the
house, and entered a large room, which was empty, but the walls were
hung with curtains made of snakes' skins, beautifully woven together.
Ting-a-ling slipped down to the floor, and, peeping behind these
curtains, saw the hinge of a door; and without saying a word, he got
behind the curtain; and, sure enough, there was a door! and there was a
key-hole! and in a minute, there was Ting-a-ling right through it! and
there was the Princess in a chair in the middle of a great room, crying
as if her heart would break! By the light of the moon, which had now
broken through the clouds, Ting-a-ling saw that she was tied fast to the
chair. So he climbed up on her shoulder, and called her by name; and
when the Princess heard him and knew him, she took him into her lovely
hands, and kissed him, and cried over him, and laughed over him so much,
that her joy had like to have been the death of him. When she got over
her excitement, she told him how she had been stolen away; how she had
heard her favorite cat squeak in the middle of the night, and how she
had got up quickly to go to it, supposing it had been squeezed in some
door, and how the wicked dwarf, who had been imitating the cat, was just
outside the door with his slaves; and how they had seized her, and bound
her, and carried her off to this castle, without waking up any of the
King's household. Then Ting-a-ling told her that his five friends were
there, and that they were going to see what they could do; and the
Princess was very glad to hear that, you may be sure. Then Ting-a-ling
slipped down to the floor, and through the key-hole; and as he entered
the room where he had left Zamcar, in came Alcahazar with the key and
the other magicians with news that everybody was asleep. When
Ting-a-ling had told about the Princess, Alcahazar pushed aside the
curtains, unlocked the door with the key, and they all entered the next
room.

There, sure enough, was the Princess Aufalia; but, right in front of
her, on the floor, squatted the dwarf, who had missed his key, and had
slipped up by a back way! The magicians started back on seeing him; the
Princess was crying bitterly, and Ting-a-ling ran past the dwarf (who
was laughing too horribly to notice him), and climbing upon the
Princess's shoulder, sat there among her curls, and did his best to
comfort her.

"Anyway," said he, "_I_ shall not leave you again," and he drew his
little sword, and felt as big as a house. The magicians now advanced
towards the dwarf; but he, it seems, was a bit of a magician himself,
for he waved a little wand, and instantly a strong partition of iron
wire rose up out of the floor, and, reaching from one wall to the other,
separated him completely from the five men. The magicians no sooner saw
this, than they cried out, "O ho! Mr. Dwarf, is that your game?"

"Yes," said the little wretch, chuckling; "can you play at it?"

"A little," said they; and each one pulled from under his cloak a long
file; and filing the partition from the wall on each side, which only
needed a few strokes from their sharp files, they pulled it entirely
down. But before the magicians could reach him, the dwarf again waved
his wand, and a great chasm opened in the floor before them, which was
too wide to jump over, and so deep that the bottom could not be seen.

"O ho!" cried the magicians; "another game, eh!"

"Yes indeed," cried the dwarf. "Just let me see you play at _that_."

Each of the magicians then took from under his magic cloak a long board,
and, putting them over the chasm, they began to walk across them. But
the dwarf jumped up and waved his wand, and water commenced to fall on
the boards, where it immediately froze; and they were so slippery, that
the magicians could hardly keep their feet, and could not make one step
forward. Even standing still, they came very near falling off into the
chasm below. "I suppose you can play at that," said the dwarf; and the
magicians replied.

[Illustration]

"O yes!" and each one took from under his cloak a pan of ashes, and
sprinkled the boards, and walked right over. But before they reached the
other edge, the dwarf pushed the chair, which was on rollers, up against
the wall behind him, which opened; and instantly the Princess,
Ting-a-ling, and the dwarf disappeared, and the wall closed up. Without
saying a word, the magicians each drew from beneath his cloak a pickaxe,
and they cut a hole in the wall in a few minutes. There was a large room
on the other side, but it was entirely empty. So they sat down, and got
out their magical calculators, and soon discovered that the Princess was
in the lowest part of the castle; but the magical calculators being a
little out of order, they could not show exactly her place of
confinement. Then the five hurried down-stairs, where they found the
slaves still asleep; but one poor little boy, whose business it was to
get up early every morning and split kindling wood, having had none of
the feast, was not very sleepy, and woke up when he heard footsteps near
him. The magicians asked him if he could show them to the lowest part of
the castle. "All right," said he; "this way;" and he led them to where
there was a great black hole, with a windlass over it. "Get in the
bucket," said he, "and I will lower you down."

"Bucket!" cried Alcahazar. "Is that a well?"

"To be sure it is," said the boy, who had nothing on but the
baby-clothes he had worn ever since he was born; and which, as he was
now about ten years old, had split a good deal in the back and arms, but
in length they were very suitable.

"But there can be no one down there," said the magician. "I see deep
water."

"Of course there is nobody there," replied the boy. "Were you told to go
down there to meet anybody? Because, if you were, you had better take
some tubs down with you, to sit in. But all I know about it is, that
it's the lowest part of this old hole of a castle."

"Boy," said Alcahazar, "there is a young lady shut up down here
somewhere. Do you know where she is?"

"How old is she?" asked the boy.

"About seventeen," said the magician.

"O then! if she is no older than that, I should think she'd be in the
preserve-closet, if she knew where it was," and the boy pointed to a
great door, barred and locked, where the dwarf, who had a very sweet
tooth, kept all his preserves locked up tight and fast. Zamcar stooped
and looked through the key-hole of this door, and there, sure enough,
was the Princess! So the boy proved to be smarter than all the
magicians. Each of our five friends now took from under his cloak a
crowbar, and in a minute they had forced open the great door. But they
had scarcely entered, when the dwarf, springing on the arm of the chair
to which the Princess was still tied, drew his sword, and clapped it to
her throat, crying out, that if the magicians came one step nearer, he
would slice her head off.

"O ho!" cried they, "is that your game?"

"Yes indeed," said the chuckling dwarf; "can you play at it?"

The magicians did not appear to think that they could; but Ting-a-ling,
who was still on the Princess's shoulder, though unseen by the dwarf,
suddenly shouted, "I can play!" and in an instant he had driven his
little sword into the dwarf's eye, who immediately sprang from the chair
with a howl of anguish. While he was yelling and skipping about, with
his hands to his eyes, the poor boy, who hated him worse than pills,
clapped a great jar of preserves over him, and sat down on the bottom of
the jar! The magicians then untied the Princess; and as she looked weak
and faint, Zamcar, the youngest, took from under his cloak a little
table, set with everything hot and nice for supper; and when the
Princess had eaten something and taken a cup of tea, she felt a great
deal better. Alcahazar lifted up the jar from the dwarf, and there was
the little rascal, so covered up with sticky jam, that he could not
speak and could hardly move. So, taking an oil-cloth bag from under his
cloak, Alcahazar dropped the dwarf into it, and tied it up, and hung it
to his girdle. The two youngest magicians made a sort of chair out of a
shawl, and they carried the Princess on it between them, very
comfortably; and as Ting-a-ling still remained on her shoulder, she
began to feel that things were beginning to look brighter. They then
asked the poor boy what he would like best as a reward for what he had
done; and he said that if they would shut him up in that room, and lock
the door tight, and lose the key, he would be happy all the days of his
life. So they left the boy (who knew what was good, and was already
sucking away at a jar of preserved green-gages) in the room, and they
shut the door and locked it tight, and lost the key; and he lived there
for ninety-one years, eating preserves; and when they were all gone, he
died. All that time he never had any clothes but his baby-clothes, and
they got pretty sticky before his death. Then our party left the castle;
and as they passed the slaves still fast asleep, the three oldest
magicians took from under their cloaks watering-pots, filled with water
that makes men sleep, and they watered the slaves with it, until they
were wet enough to sleep a week. When they went through the gates of
copper, brass, iron, and wood, they left them all open behind them. They
had not gone far before they saw seventy-five men, all sitting in a row
at the side of the road, and looking woefully indeed. They had been wet
to the skin, and were now frozen stiff, not one of them being able to
move anything but his eyelids, and they were all crying as if their
hearts would break. So the magicians stopped, and the three oldest each
took from under his cloak a pair of bellows, and they blew hot air on
the poor creatures until they were all thawed. Then Alcahazar told them
to go up to the castle, and take it for their own, and live there all
the rest of their lives. He informed them that the dwarf was his
prisoner, and that the slaves would sleep for a week.

[Illustration]

When the seventy-five guests (for those who had been taken from the
feast, had joined their comrades) heard this, they all started up, and
ran like deer for the castle; and when they reached it, they woke up
their comrades, and took possession, and lived there all their lives.
The man who had been first thrown through the window, and who had broken
the way through the glass for the others, was elected their chief,
because he had suffered the most; and excepting the trouble of doing
their own work for a week, until the slaves awoke, these people were
very happy ever afterwards.

It was just daylight when our party left the dwarf's castle, and by the
next evening they had reached the palace. The army had not got back, and
there was no one there but the ladies of the Princess. When these saw
their dear mistress, there was never before such a kissing, and hugging,
and crying, and laughing. Ting-a-ling came in for a good share of praise
and caressing; and if he had not slipped away to tell his tale to the
fairy Queen, there is no knowing what would have become of him. The
magicians sat down outside of the Princess's apartments, to guard her
until the army should return; and the ladies would have kissed and
hugged them, in their gratitude and joy, if they had not been such
dignified and grave personages.

Now, the King, the Prince, and the great army, had gone miles and miles
away in the opposite direction to the dwarf's castle, and the Princess
and her ladies could not think how to let them know what had happened.
As for ringing the great bell, they knew that that would be useless, for
they would never hear it at the distance they were, and so they wished
that they had some fireworks to set off. Therefore Zamcar, the youngest
magician, offered to go up to the top of the palace and set off some.
So, when he got up to the roof, he lifted up his cloak, and took out
some fireworks, and set them off; and the light shone for miles and
miles, and the King and all his army saw it. The King had just begun to
feel tired, and to think that he would pitch his tent, and rest for the
night by the side of a pleasant stream they had reached, when he saw the
light from the palace, and instantly knew that there had been tidings of
the Princess,--kings are so smart, you know. So, when his slaves came to
ask him where they should pitch his tent, he shouted, "Pitch it in the
river! 'Tention, army! Right about face, for home,--MARCH!" and away the
whole army marched for home, the band playing the lively air of

  "Cream cakes for supper,
      Heigh O! Heigh O!
  O! Cream cakes for supper,
      Heigh O! Heigh O!"--

so as to keep up the spirits of the tired men. When they approached the
palace, which was all lighted up, there was the Princess standing at the
great door, in her Sunday clothes, and looking as lovely as a full-blown
rose. The King jumped from his high-mettled racer, and went up the
steps, two at a time; but the Prince, springing from his fiery steed
bounded up three steps at once, and got there first. When he and the
King had got through hugging and kissing the Princess, her Sunday
clothes looked as if they had been worn a week.

[Illustration]

"Now then for supper," said the King, "and I hope it's ready." But the
Princess said never a word, for she had forgotten all about supper; and
all the ladies hung their heads, and were afraid to speak. But when they
reached the great hall, they found that the magicians had been at work,
and had cooked a grand supper. There it was, on ever so many long
tables, all smoking hot, and smelling delightfully. So they all sat
down, for there was room enough for every man, and nobody said a word
until he was as tight as a drum.

When they had all had enough, and were just about to begin to talk,
there were heard strains of the most delightful soft music; and
directly, in at a window came the Queen of the fairies, attended by her
court, all mounted on beautiful golden moths and dragon-flies. When they
reached the velvet table in front of the throne, where the King had been
eating, with his plate on his lap, they arranged themselves in a circle
on the table, and the Queen spoke out in a clear little voice, that
could have been heard almost anywhere, and announced to the King that
the little Ting-a-ling, who now wore her royal scarf, was the preserver
of his daughter.

"O ho!" said the King; "and what can I do for such a mite as you, my
fine little fellow?"

Then Ting-a-ling, who wanted nothing for himself, and only thought of
the good of his people, made a low bow to the King, and shouted at the
top of his voice, "Your royal gardeners are going to make asparagus beds
all over our fairy pleasure grounds. If you can prevent that, I have
nothing more to ask."

"Blow, Horner, blow!" cried the King, "and hear, all men! If any man,
woman, or child, from this time henceforward forever, shall dare to set
foot in the garden now occupied by the fairies, he shall be put to
death, he and all his family, and his relations, as far as they can be
traced. Take notice of that, every one of you!"

Ting-a-ling then bowed his thanks, and all the people made up their
minds to take very particular notice of what the King had said.

Then the magicians were ordered to come forward and name their reward;
but they bowed their heads, and simply besought the King that he would
grant them seven rye straws, the peeling from a red apple, and the heel
from one of his old slippers. What in the name of common sense they
wanted with these, no one but themselves knew; but magicians are such
strange creatures! When these valuable gifts had been bestowed upon
them, the five good magicians departed, leaving the dwarf for the King
to do what he pleased with. This little wretch was shut up in an iron
cage, and every day was obliged to eat three codfish, a bushel of Irish
potatoes, and eleven pounds of bran crackers, and to drink a gallon of
cambric tea; all of which things he despised from the bottom of his
miserable little heart.

[Illustration]

"Now," cried the King, "all is settled, and let everybody go to bed.
There is room enough in the palace for all to sleep to-night. Form in
line, and to bed,--MARCH!" So they all formed in line, and began to
march to bed, to the music of the band; and the fairies, their little
horns blowing, and with Ting-a-ling at the post of honor by the Queen,
took up their line of march, out of the window to the garden, which was
to be, henceforward forever, their own. Just as they were all filing
out, in flew little Parsley on the back of his butterfly, which had been
hatched out at last.

"Hello!" cried he. "Is it all over?"

"Pretty nearly," said Ting-a-ling. "It's just letting out. How came you
to be so late?"

"Easy enough," said poor little Parsley. "Of all the mean things that
ever was the pokiest long time in unwrapping its wings, this butterfly's
the meanest."




THE MAGICAL MUSIC.


There was once an excessively mighty King, Barradin the Great, who died,
leaving no sons or daughters, or any relation on the face of the earth,
to inherit his crown. So his throne, at the time of which I write, was
vacant. This mighty King had been of a very peculiar disposition. Unlike
other potentates, he took no delight in going to war, or in cutting off
people's heads, or in getting married, or building palaces. But he was a
great musician. All that he cared for, seemed to be music; and the whole
of his leisure time, with a great many of his business hours, was
occupied in either composing or performing music of some kind. Everybody
around him was obliged to be musical; and if one was not so, it would be
of no use for him to apply for any situation. His Prime Minister played
on the violin, his Secretary performed on the horn, while his Treasurer
was superb upon the great drum. Every time the Royal Council met, the
minutes of the last meeting, all set to music, were sung by the
Secretary; and when the King made a speech, he always sung it in a
magnificent bass voice, accompanied by a full orchestra. If any one
wished to present a petition, he was always sure of having it granted,
if he could but sing it excellently well, and even folks who were good
at whistling were favorably received at court. The example of the King
was followed by the people. They nearly always talked to some tune, and
every one but the very poorest owned an instrument.

So this mighty monarch never went to war, or cut off people's heads, or
married more than once; and as for building palaces, it was of no use,
for he had as many as he wanted, already. The last ten years of his life
were occupied, almost entirely, in the composition of a wonderful piece
of music, in which he sought, by means of perseverance and magic, to
combine all the beauties and difficulties of the science. He had
scarcely finished it, when he died; and it was generally supposed that
if he had not worked so hard at it, he would have lived much longer.

The composition was not long, for you could have sung it in ten minutes,
that is, if you could have sung it at all; which is by no means likely,
for had that been the case (and you had lived in those days) you might
have ruled over the country. For, just before the mighty King died, he
made a decree to this effect,--that his successor on the throne should
be the man, woman, or child who could, at sight, sing that piece of
music.

So the music was put up against a marble tablet in the great hall of the
royal palace, and there were six judges appointed,--the most
distinguished professors of music in the country,--and these sat on
great velvet chairs, three on each side of the music, and anybody might
come to try who chose.

You may well believe that the people came in crowds, for nearly every
one wished to be king or queen, as the case might be. This music had a
very singular effect upon most of those who did not succeed in singing
it. They nearly all went crazy. The first few notes were easy, and they
were so beautiful, that it was enough to make any one crazy to think
that they could not sing the rest of it,--not to mention missing the
crown. The Prime Minister had, on this account, a great asylum built, to
which the disappointed candidates were immediately conveyed, and the
house was very soon filled. Indeed, it was often necessary to build
extensions to the main building, and it was not long before this was the
largest edifice in the country. It is true, that although every one
failed to sing the music, they did not all go crazy; but they were taken
to the asylum the same as the rest, and if they were not crazy when they
got there, they soon became so, and thus it amounted to pretty much the
same thing in the end. Well, the judges sat in their chairs until they
died at a good old age, and they were succeeded by others just as
learned. Latterly there were not so many applications as there used to
be, but still, every few days, some one went out to the asylum. Years
passed, and the offices of the judges became sinecures; but they had to
sit there all the same, just as if they expected to be busy; and they
might have been seen, whenever anybody chose to step in during the day,
sitting there with their chins on their breasts, fast asleep. The Prime
Minister, and after him his son, ruled the country very well, and people
began to feel as if they didn't care if they never had a king or a queen
to govern them. As a rule, they all felt very comfortable without
anything of the kind.

Now it so happened that about this time a certain young Prince,
accompanied by an old gentleman (to take care of him), was travelling in
this great kingdom. His father's dominion was very many miles away; but
the Prince had been journeying in this direction for quite a long time,
taking things easily, and seeing everything that was to be seen. His
mother had died when he was quite young, and his father had lately
married the daughter of a gnome, probably because their estates
joined,--his stretching for many miles over the surface of the earth,
while hers lay immediately beneath them. The Prince did not like his
gnome step-mother (who was, you know, one of those large underground
fairies, who are more like human beings than any others), and when a
little gnome-baby was born, he could stand it no longer, and so obtained
permission of his father to travel for the good of his body and mind. So
he had been going from country to country until he reached the capital
city of the great kingdom.

[Illustration]

There the Prince saw enough to fill him with wonder for the rest of his
life. His old friend, Trumkard, took him day by day into the bazaars,
and the palaces, and the mosques, and hundreds of places just as nice.
One beautiful evening the Prince set out for a walk by himself through
the city. The gentle twilight still tinged the sky with gold, and the
soft breeze from the river, that passed through fruit-gardens and
vineyards on its way to the city, smelt of peaches, and grapes, and
plums, and oranges, and pomegranates, and pineapples, and was truly very
delicious. Everything was lovely, and the Prince felt good and happy.
The very beggars, when he had passed them, blessed the happy stars that
had caused them to be born during his life-time, so noble and generous
was the Prince this evening. Strolling along, he came to the palace of
the mighty King. The Prince knew the palace; for Trumkard had taken him
into it, and had shown him the six judges sitting in their velvet
chairs, and the magical music hanging up against the marble tablet
between them. He knew all about the music, and the conditions attached
to it, but, not being much of a musician, he had never felt inclined to
try it. So he walked through the royal courts and vestibules, and into
the great hall where stood the six chairs,--empty, and covered with
silken covers to keep the dust off during the night. And the music was
concealed by a great plate of gold which was locked over it every night.
He met but few persons; for every one who was not detained by some
particular duty, had gone out-of-doors that lovely night. Here and
there, a porter, or a black eunuch, or a soldier or two, he met; but as
every one who saw him, knew him instantly for a prince of good blood, he
could, of course, wander where he pleased. He passed on among the golden
columns and sculptured doorways, and under vaulted and arabesque
ceilings, until he came to a door of mother-of-pearl, which had a golden
lock, an alabaster knob, and a diamond key-hole. It turned easily on
silver hinges, and the Prince passed by it into a beautiful garden. He
had never been in such a place of loveliness. The trees were hung with
many soft-colored lamps, and the fruit glittered and shone in gorgeous
colors on the branches. Every night-bird sang, and every night-flower
was giving forth its fragrance. In the middle of the garden was a
fountain, the waters of which rose in a single jet from the centre, and
then, as they fell back into the basin, each of their thousand drops
struck upon a silver harp-string, causing the most delightful sounds to
fill the air, and mingle with the songs of the birds and the perfume of
the flowers. Around the great basin were silken cushions on which the
Prince reclined, and the goldfish that were swimming in the basin came
up to him to be fed. There also came the ruby fish, that shines as red
as blood, and the zimphare, or transparent fish, which is as colorless
as the water, and can only be discovered by a green knot on its head and
another on its tail.

There were also many other fish, as the balance-fish, which comes up to
the top of the water equally balanced, having at each end of its body
expansions like the pans of scales. These are its mouths, and if one
puts a crumb into one of them without having put one into the other, it
turns right over, and sinks to the bottom. So, when this fish is
properly fed, it always gets two crumbs at a time. Then there was the
gelatine fish, that has no mouth at all, but is very soft and pulpy, and
all that is necessary is to drop some crumbs upon his back, and they
immediately soak in. Also the great flob was there, who came clattering
and clanking up from the bottom of the basin, with his hard shells and
heavy claws, as if he was the greatest fish alive. But for all that he
opened his mouth so wide, and shut it upon a little crumb with a snap
loud enough for a loaf of bread, his throat was so small that that
little crumb nearly choked him. All these fishes the Prince fed from
golden baskets filled with crumbs, and placed around the basin for the
convenience of those who wished to amuse themselves by feeding the fish.
When he was tired of this sport, he rose and entered the palace again by
another door. He had not walked far along an alabaster corridor, before
he saw a door open, and an old woman come out. She had in her hand a
silver waiter, on which was the remains of a delicious little supper,
the scent of which seemed so charming to the Prince that it made him
feel as hungry as a bear in the springtime. The old woman, who was busy
munching some of the pieces of cake, and sucking the bones of the little
birds that were left, did not notice him; and, hoping to find some more
good things where these came from, he slipped in at the door, before the
old woman shut it, and entered a large and beautiful room, lighted by a
single lamp that hung from the ceiling. At the upper end of this
apartment, he was surprised to see a beautiful young Princess, who was
sitting in an arm-chair, fast asleep, with a guitar on the floor at her
feet. Around the room were placed musical instruments of all kinds; but
there was no one there to play on them but the Princess, and she was
fast asleep.

There was a breeze in the room, that seemed to come and go like the
waves of the sea; and the Prince could not imagine what occasioned it,
for all the doors and windows were closed. However, looking upwards, he
saw, behind the Princess's chair, the reason of the wind and the lady's
slumber. Standing behind her, with his feet on the floor and his head
high up in the obscurity of the ceiling, was a great Nimshee, or evil
spirit of the ocean, who was fanning her with his wings, and had put her
to sleep with their slow and dreamy motion. With his great eyes glowing
like meteors in the dimness of the upper part of the room, the Nimshee
glared at the Prince, and waved his wings faster and stronger. But our
young friend was not afraid of him--not a bit. He walked softly round
the room once or twice, and then, returning to the Princess, spoke to
her. She did not awake, and the Prince called her louder and louder, and
at last, putting his hand on her shoulder, he shook her; but still she
slept. He felt that he must awaken her, and seizing the guitar that lay
at her feet, he held it close to her ear, and struck the strings loudly.
The Princess opened her eyes with a start; and as she awoke, the
Nimshee, beating his breast with his wings, gave a great roar like the
waves beating in a storm against a rocky coast, and flew away. The
Princess blushed a little when she first saw the Prince, but he was so
polite that she soon recovered herself, and they conversed quite
pleasantly.

She explained the meaning of the musical instruments in the room, by
stating that she had a great passion for music, and the good people of
the palace brought her a new instrument nearly every day; but she never
sat down to play any of them but she went almost immediately to sleep.
She could not imagine the reason for this; but the Prince knew very well
that the Nimshee had put her to sleep to-day at any rate, and he had no
doubt but that he was always at the bottom of it. He said nothing to
her, however, of what he had seen, as he perceived that she did not know
it, and he did not wish to frighten her.

She said she had taken her guitar that evening, as soon as she had
finished her supper, but had fallen asleep as usual. She asked the
Prince, "Do you play?" and he said, "Only a little;" and then they
walked around the room, and looked at all the instruments, to see if
there were any that the Prince could play on better than the rest. He
wished her to perform, but she urged him, and he soon saw a hand-organ,
and said he was pretty sure that he could play on that. So he tried,
and, sure enough, he could play very well, and the Princess sat down on
the floor by him, and he played for almost an hour and three quarters,
and they were both very much pleased. Then the Prince's arm got tired,
and he stopped and asked the Princess to tell him her history. She said
she was a little ashamed to tell him her story, because he might think
that she was not of as good descent as himself; but the Prince
insisting, she told him that her mother was a water-woman.

[Illustration]

"A mermaid, I suppose?" said the Prince.

"O no!" she cried, "none of those low things with fish-tails, but a real
princess of the ocean. She lived in a splendid palace at the bottom of
the sea, and fell in love with a prince of the earth, who left his
father's kingdom, and went down there and married her.

"I remember my father very well," continued the beautiful Princess. "He
was a fine, handsome man, but our climate never seemed to agree with
him. He could not smoke under the water, and he often used to have aches
which helped to make him unhappy. Before he died, he said that he would
give all the treasures of the ocean for a pipe and a piece of dry
flannel. When he left her, mother pined away, and soon died too, when I
was only about twelve years old. I was very lonely, but, as I was the
daughter of a water-princess and a land-prince, I could go where I
pleased, either on shore or in the water."

"Amphibious like?" said the Prince.

"I don't know anything about that," she replied; "but I used to like to
walk about on the sea-shore, for everything was so different from what I
had been accustomed to,--birds, you know, and all that sort of thing."

"O yes," said the Prince, "it must have been very different to you
indeed; but I was going to say to you, a little while ago, that you need
not think me above you, for I am half-brother to a gnome."

"O, I am glad to hear that," she said; "I was afraid you would make fun
of me."

"As if I could!" said the Prince, reproachfully.

So she went on with her story.

"One day, about a year ago, when I was quite grown up, I met some ladies
who lived here at the palace, and they wanted me to come home with them,
and I did; and I have lived here ever since, and like it very much. They
are all very kind, and if I didn't sleep so much, I should be very
happy."

The Prince now proposed to the Princess, and she accepted him, and then
she sat down to a harp to give him a little music. The Prince's
presence, in some way (perhaps because he was half-brother to a gnome),
prevented the appearance of the Nimshee; and for the first time since
she had been in the palace, she played without hindrance, and her music
was perfectly charming; and with tears of joy in his eyes, the Prince
sat wishing she would play forever. After a while, however, she got
tired and stopped; and when they turned around, they saw the room was
filled by the people of the palace, who had come to hear this delicious
music. They were nearly all wiping their eyes with their
handkerchiefs,--they were so much affected--and they could not find
words good enough with which to praise the playing of the Princess. Such
music they had never heard before.