The Prince, watching from the hill-top, could scarcely believe that these two awful scourges a/Nature, which had so long devastated his country, were actually dead. But when he had looked on for half an hour, and only a river ran where the Remora had been, while the body of the Firedrake lay stark and cold, he humed to the spot.
Drawing the sword of sharpness he hacked off, at two blows, the iron head and the tail of the Firedrake. They were a weary weight to cany; but in a few strides of the shoes of swiftness he was at his castle, where he threw down his burden and nearly fainted with excitement and fatigue.
But the castle clock struck half past seven; dinner was at eight, and the poor Prince crawled on hands and knees to the garret. Here he put on the wishing-cap; wished for a pint of champagne, a hot bath, and his best black velvet and diamond suit. In a moment these were provided; he bathed, dressed, drank a glass of wine, packed up the head and tail of the Firedrake, sat down on the flying carpet, and knocked at the door of the English Ambassador as the clocks were striking eight in Gluckstein.
Punctuality is the politeness of princes; and a prince is polite when he is in love!
The Prince was received at the door by a stout porter and led into the hall, where several butlers met him, and he laid the mortal remains of the Firedrake under the cover of the flying carpet.
Then he was led upstairs, and he made his bow to the pretty lady, who, of course, made him a magnificent curtsy. She seemed prettier and kinder than ever. The Prince was so happy that he never noticed how something went wrong about the dinner. The ambassador looked about, and seemed to miss someone, and spoke in a low voice to one of the servants, who answered also in a low voice, and what he said seemed to displease me ambassador. But the Prince was so busy in talking to his lady, and in eating his dinner too, that he never observed anything unusual. He had never been at such a pleasant dinner!
Chapter XII
A Terrible Misfortune When the ladies left, and the Prince and the other gentlemen were alone, the ambassador appeared more gloomy than ever.
At last he took the Prince into a corner on pretense of showing him a rare statue. "Does Your Royal Highness not know," he asked, "that you are in considerable danger?"
"Stiti?" said the Prince, thinking of the Firedrake.
The ambassador did not know what he meant, for he had never heard of the fight, but he answered gravely: "Never more than now."
Then he showed the Prince two proclamations, which had been posted all about the town.
Here is the first:
Whereas,
Our eldest son, Prince Prigio, hath of late been guilty of several crimes and misdemeanours.
First: By abandoning the post of danger against the Firedrake, whereby our beloved sons, Prince Alphonso and Prince Enrico, have perished, and been overdone by thai monster.
Secondly: By attending an unseemly revel in the town of Gluckstein, where he brawled in the streets.
Thirdly: By trying to seduce away the hearts of our loyal subjects in that city, and to blow up a party against our crown and our peace.
This is to give warning,
That whoever consorts with, comforts, aids or abets the said Prince Prigio, is thereby a partner in his treason; and That a reward of FIVE THOUSAND PURSES will be given to whosoever brings the said prince, alive, to our Castle of Falkenstein.
And here is the second proclamation;
Whereas,
Our dominions have lately been devastated by a Firedrake (the Salamander Furiosus of Buffon);
This is to advise all,
That whosoever brings the homs and tail of the said Firedrake to our Castle of Falkenstein, shall receive FIVE THOUSAND PURSES, the position of Crown Prince, with the usual perquisites, and the hand of the King's niece, the Lady Molinda.
"H'm," said the Prince, "I did not think His Majesty wrote so weU," and he would have liked to say: "Don't you think we might join the ladies?"
"But. sir," said the ambassador, "the streets are lined with soldiers; and I know not how you have escaped them.
Here. under my roof, you are safe for the moment; but a prolonged stay-excuse my inhospitality-could not but strain the harmonious relations which prevail between the Government of Pantouflia and that which I have the honour to represent."
"We don't want to fight; and no more, I think, do you," said the Prince, smiling.
"Then how does Your Royal Highness mean to treat the proclamations?"
"Why, by winning these ten thousand purses. I can tell you Ј1,000,000 is worth having," said the Prince- "I'll deliver up the said prince, alive, at Falkenstein this very night; also the horns and tail of the said Firedrake. But I don't want to marry my Cousin Molly."
"May I remind Your Royal Highness that Falkenstein is three hundred miles away? Moreover, my head butler, Benson, disappeared from the house before dinner, and I fear he went to warn Captain Kopzoffski that you are here'."
"That is nothing." said the Prince, "but, my dear Lord Kelso, may I not have the pleasure of presenting Lady Rosalind with a little gift, the forfeit of a game which 1 lost to her last night, merely the head and tail of a Firedrake which I stalked this morning?"
The ambassador was so very astonished that he ran straight upstairs, forgetting his manners, and crying: "Linda! Linda! come down at once; here's a surprise for you!"
Lady Rosalind came sweeping down, with a smile on her kind face. She guessed what it was, though the Prince had said nothing about it at dinner.
"Lead the way, Your Royal Highness!" cried the ambassador, and tfie Prince, offering Lady Rosalind his arm, went out into the halt, where he saw neither his carpet nor the horns and tail of the Firedrake!
He turned quite pale, and said: "Will you kindly ask me servants where the little Persian prayer-rug and the parcel which I brought with me have been placed?"
Lord Ketso rang the bell, and in came all the servants, with William, the under-butler, at their head.
"William," said his lordship, "where have you put His Royal Highness's parcel and his carpet?"
"Please, your lordship," said William, "we think Benson have took them away with him."
"And where is Benson?" *'We don't know, your lordship. We think he have been come for!"
"Come for-by whom?"
William stammered, and seemed at a loss for a reply.
"Quick! Answer! What do you know about it?"
William said at last, rather as if he were making a speech:
"Your Royaliness, and my lords and ladies, it was like this.
His Royaliness corned in with a rug over his arm and summat under it. And he lays it down on that there seat, and Thomas shows him into the droring room. Then Benson says: 'Dinner'll be ready in five minutes; how tired I do feel!' Then he takes the Hbbuty of sitting hisself down on His Royaliness's rug, and he says, asking your pardon, 'I've had about enough of service here, I'm about tired, and I thinks of bettering myself. 1 wish I was at the King's court, and butler.'
But before the words was out of his mouth, off he flies like a shot through the open door, and His Royaliness's parcel with him. I run to the door, and there he was flying right hover the town, in a northerly direction. And mat's all I know; for I would not tell a lie, not if it was never so. And me, and Thomas-as didn't see it-and cook, we thinks as how Benson was come for. And cook says as she don't wonder at it, neither; for a grumblinger, more illconditioneder-"
"Thank you, William," said Lord Kelso, "that will do; you can go, for the present."
Chapter XIII
Surprises The Prince said nothing, the ambassador said nothing. Lady Rosalind said never a word till they were in the drawing room. It was a lovely warm evening, and the French windows were wide open on the balcony, which looked over the town and away north to the hills. Below them flowed by the clear, green water of the Gluckthal. And still nobody said a wordAt last the Prince spoke: "This is a very strange story.