! he!' shrieks out Gruff; 'a promise is a promise if there are
laws in Paflagonia! And as for that monster, that wretch, that fiend,
that ugly little vixen--as for that upstart, that ingrate, that beast,
Betsinda, Master Giglio will have no little difficulty in discovering
her whereabouts. He may look very long before finding HER, I warrant. He
little knows that Miss Betsinda is--'

Is--what? Now, you shall hear. Poor Betsinda got up at five in winter's
morning to bring her cruel mistress her tea; and instead of finding
her in a good humour, found Gruffy as cross as two sticks. The Countess
boxed Betsinda's ears half a dozen times whilst she was dressing; but
as poor little Betsinda was used to this kind of treatment, she did not
feel any special alarm. 'And now,' says she, 'when Her Majesty rings her
bell twice, I'll trouble you, miss, to attend.'

So when the Queen's bell rang twice, Betsinda came to Her Majesty and
made a pretty little curtsey. The Queen, the Princess, and Gruffanuff
were all three in the room. As soon as they saw her they began,

'You wretch!' says the Queen.

'You little vulgar thing!' says the Princess.

'You beast!' says Gruffanuff.

'Get out of my sight!' says the Queen.

'Go away with you, do!' says the Princess.

'Quit the premises!' says Gruffanuff.

'Alas! and woe is me!' very lamentable events had occurred to Betsinda
that morning, and all in consequence of that fatal warming-pan business
of the previous night. The King had offered to marry her; of course Her
Majesty the Queen was jealous: Bulbo had fallen in love with her; of
course Angelica was furious: Giglio was in love with her, and oh, what a
fury Gruffy was in!

'Take off that {cap } I gave you,'
{petticoat} they said, all
{gown } at once,
and began tearing the clothes off poor Betsinda.

'How (the King?' } cried the Queen,
dare you {Prince Bulbo?' } the Princess, and
flirt with {Prince Giglio?'} Countess.

'Give her the rags she wore when she came into the house, and turn her
out of it!' cries the Queen.

'Mind she does not go with MY shoes on, which I lent her so kindly,'
says the Princess; and indeed the Princess's shoes were a great deal too
big for Betsinda.

'Come with me, you filthy hussy!' and taking up the Queen's poker, the
cruel Gruffanuff drove Betsinda into her room.

The Countess went to the glass box in which she had kept Betsinda's old
cloak and shoe th