rince Bulbo
said, 'Prince Giglio, may I have the honour of taking a glass of wine
with you?' Giglio WOULDN'T answer. All his talk and his eyes were for
Countess Gruffanuff, who you may be sure was pleased with Giglio's
attentions--the vain old creature! When he was not complimenting her,
he was making fun of Prince Bulbo, so loud that Gruffanuff was always
tapping him with her fan, and saying--'Oh, you satirical Prince! Oh,
fie, the Prince will hear!' 'Well, I don't mind,' says Giglio, louder
still. The King and Queen luckily did not hear; for Her Majesty was a
little deaf, and the King thought so much about his own dinner, and,
besides, made such a dreadful noise, hobgobbling in eating it, that
he heard nothing else. After dinner, His Majesty and the Queen went to
sleep in their arm-chairs.

This was the time when Giglio began his tricks with Prince Bulbo, plying
that young gentleman with port, sherry, madeira, champagne, marsala,
cherry-brandy, and pale ale, of all of which Master Bulbo drank without
stint. But in plying his guest, Giglio was obliged to drink himself,
and, I am sorry to say, took more than was good for him, so that the
young men were very noisy, rude, and foolish when they joined the ladies
after dinner; and dearly did they pay for that imprudence, as now, my
darlings, you shall hear!

Bulbo went and sat by the piano, where Angelica was playing and singing,
and he sang out of tune, and he upset the coffee when the footman
brought it, and he laughed out of place, and talked absurdly, and fell
asleep and snored horridly. Booh, the nasty pig! But as he lay there
stretched on the pink satin sofa, Angelica still persisted in thinking
him the most beautiful of human beings. No doubt the magic rose which
Bulbo wore caused this infatuation on Angelica's part; but is she the
first young woman who has thought a silly fellow charming?

Giglio must go and sit by Gruffanuff, whose old face he, too,
every moment began to find more lovely. He paid the most outrageous
compliments to her:--There never was such a darling--Older than he
was?--Fiddle-de-dee! He would marry her--he would have nothing but her!

To marry the heir to the throne! Here was a chance! The artful hussy
actually got a sheet of paper, and wrote upon it, 'This is to give
notice that I, Giglio, only son of Savio, King of Paflagonia, hereby
promise to marry the charming and virtuous Barbara Griselda, Countess
Gruffanuff, and widow of the late Jenk