ith all his Court, and behind him the
cannons and infantry. Now came rocking-horses, heavily laden with
band-boxes, in which were towns, villages, theatres, fortresses,
kitchens, and so forth, and all the furniture and cooking utensils;
behind these followed the little baggage-waggons, and tin and
wooden coaches crammed full of passengers; then people on foot, of
all sorts, in every fashion of dress from the time of Adam to the
present day. After all these came long droves of animals, large and
small, out of all the Noah's-arks and menageries which had been in
the waggon,--first the tame and then the wild animals, the latter
accompanied by tin Bedouins and Circassians, who had to watch lest
the little roaring beasts should devour each other or any other
harmless beings. And all the while Harlequins, Scaramouches, and
Pantaloons kept jumping and skipping about in the procession, and
by their tricks and merriment kept all the people in good heart and
humour on the long and arduous march.

Meanwhile a large fleet of magnetic ships, with tin swans, ducks,
and fishes swimming around them, floated in state on the wonderful
brook, along the bank of which the procession marched. Now let the
Reader picture to himself this interminable multitude advancing in
the beautiful green woods, all amidst lilies-of-the-valley, violets
and buttercups, lettuce-leaves, nettles, and ferns, marching over
hill and dale, in a sparkling sunshine, and with a blue sky
overhead,--and withal the toil and efforts of the little wights,
the creaking of wheels, the cracking of whips, the word of command
resounding through the ranks, the music and singing when the path
was smooth and easy, and the cries and shrieks upon the bad
roads,--how pretty and animated and merry the whole scene must have
been! No wonder indeed that, along the whole way which the
procession journeyed, the birds came out of the trees and hedges,
the beetles crept out of the flowers, even the worms and snails
came out of their hiding-places, all full of curiosity to see the
sight; and no wonder too that they were all impressed with great
admiration for Prince Nutcracker, who ruled over such a splendid
people, and even made long travels with them!

After long and arduous toil, and incredible efforts, the Colony
arrived at the large Nutfield, of which we have before heard.

[Illustration: Fourth Chapter.]

CHAPTER THE FOURTH.

NUTCRACKER IS BETROTHED TO THE PRINCESS OF R