68 PRINCE PRIGIO.

 

about it: how the carpet was one of a number
of fairy properties, which had been given him
at his christening; and how so long a time had
gone by before he discovered them; and how,
probably, the carpet had carried the butler
where he had said he wanted to go—namely, to
the king’s Court at Falkenstein.

- Tt would not matter so much,” added the
prince, ‘only I had relied on making my peace
with his majesty, my father, by aid of those
horns and that tail. He was set on getting
them ; and if the Lady Rosalind had not ex-
pressed a wish for them, they would to-day
have been in his possession.”

‘*Oh, sir, you honour us too highly,” mur-
mured Lady Rosalind; and the prince blushed
and said:

“Not at all! Impossible!”

Then, of course, the ambassador became
quite certain that his daughter was admired
by the crown prince, who was on bad terms
with the king of the country; and a more
uncomfortable position for an ambassador—
however, they are used to them.

‘‘ What on earth am I to do with the young

man?” he thought. ‘‘He can’t stay here for
ever; and without his carpet he can’t get away,
for the soldiers have orders to seize him as soon
as he appears in the street. And in the mean-
time Benson will be pretending that he killed
the Firedrake—for he must have got to Falken-

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