have the least hope except Brownie
herself, who, however, was absolutely confident. She was led before
his grace, and the doctor putting a finger carelessly on the ducal
heart, which for convenience' sake was reached by a little trap-door in
his diamond shirt, had begun to say mechanically, 'Cold, qui--,' when
he stopped abruptly.

'What's this?' he cried, and first he shook the heart like a watch, and
then he put his ear to it.

'Bless my soul!' cried the doctor, and by this time of course the
excitement among the spectators was tremendous, fairies fainting right
and left.

[Illustration: They warned her]

Everybody stared breathlessly at the Duke, who was very much startled,
and looked as if he would like to run away. 'Good gracious me!' the
doctor was heard muttering, and now the heart was evidently on fire,
for he had to jerk his fingers away from it and put them in his mouth.

The suspense was awful.

Then in a loud voice, and bowing low, 'My Lord Duke,' said the
physician elatedly, 'I have the honour to inform your excellency that
your grace is in love.'

You can't conceive the effect of it. Brownie held out her arms to the
Duke and he flung himself into them, the Queen leapt into the arms of
the Lord Chamberlain, and the ladies of the court leapt into the arms
of her gentlemen, for it is etiquette to follow her example in
everything. Thus in a single moment about fifty marriages took place,
for if you leap into each other's arms it is a fairy wedding. Of
course a clergyman has to be present.

How the crowd cheered and leapt! Trumpets brayed, the moon came out,
and immediately a thousand couples seized hold of its rays as if they
were ribbons in a May dance and waltzed in wild abandon round the fairy
ring. Most gladsome sight of all, the Cupids plucked the hated fools'
caps from their heads and cast them high in the air. And then Maimie
went and spoiled everything.

She couldn't help it. She was crazy with delight over her little
friend's good fortune, so she took several steps forward and cried in
an ecstasy, 'O Brownie, how splendid!'

Everybody stood still, the music ceased, the lights went out, and all
in the time you may take to say, 'Oh dear!' An awful sense of her
peril came upon Maimie; too late she remembered that she was a lost
child in a place where no human must be between the locking and the
opening of the gates; she heard the murmur of an angry multitude; she
saw a thousand sw