30 THE ADVENTURES OF PRINCE HEMPSEED.

The little prince understood in a moment that the dog
and the birds were to share his
punishment; for, like him, they
had not eaten all day.

* And I was making myself miser-
able! I was crying!” he said,
“and these poor creatures suffer
without a complaint. Have ani-
mals more sense than I? Is it
for them to furnish me with
examples of patience?”

So far from complaining to his
little master, the dog, who was
= chained up, stretched out his
neck as far as he could to lick
the prince’s hands, barking in a
plaintive manner at the same time.

Poor Chatterbox, the magpie, said to him in her prettiest
tone, “A halfpenny! a halfpenny!”—and the canaries
flapped their wings joyfully as he approached their cage.

Then the little prince felt comforted.

Having tasted the pleasure of resignation, by means of
the lesson taught him by beings less sensible than himself,
he said, ‘‘ No! it is impossible that my father could have
meant these harmless creatures to suffer a punishment
which I alone have deserved. His orders have not been
rightly understood; and in all this I can easily perceive the
spite of that wicked Rol.”

From that moment his mind was made up. He was
bent upon a great plan!

It was now night; and the servants were obliged to
pass through the darkness of the terrace to reach the ban-
queting-room.

Prince Hempseed boldly placed himself in the way; and
when Rol passed with two splendid plates of nice things, he
drew his sword, saying, “This is for you, or those are for me!”