e and made his
departure, "that all the neighbours will believe we have something to
do with fairies."

"I shouldn't wonder," chuckled Sir Simon, "and I will get the Lady
Mayoress to send you both two costumes that will help the illusion
enormously."

"I do wonder what they will be like," mused Christine; "I do so love
dressing up."

"So does the Lady Mayoress, my dear," laughed Sir Simon, "so I am sure
both of you will get on capitally together, and really she is the life
and soul of a children's gathering. I don't know how I should get on
without her."

"It certainly seems very strange," remarked Sir Simon, when at length
he and the Writer were left alone, "that Lal has not given any sort of
sign; this is undoubtedly the night of all nights that he ought to show
he is pleased."

Sir Simon helped himself to a third cigar, and a second
Creme-de-Menthe, and after drawing back the curtains, looked anxiously
down into Trafalgar Square for at least the twentieth time that evening.

The lights of London twinkled gaily, lighting the Square up in
fairy-like brilliancy of colours. Signs were to be seen in plenty;
they burst from the tall roofs of houses, in coloured electric lights,
which worked out advertisements for Foods, Patent Medicines, brands of
Cigarettes, brands of Whisky; nearly everything, in fact, that one
could not be reasonably in need of at that time of night; but still the
Pleasant-Faced Lion remained obdurate and made no sign at all of ever
having been alive.

"There is one thing that both Mum and I insist upon," commenced Sir
Simon.

"What's that, Dad?"

"Directly we leave the Mansion House, and I may say at once that
although it is undoubtedly very stately, and all that sort of thing, we
neither of us feel at home there, and for my part, I would as soon live
in the British Museum--directly we leave, I insist that you come back
to your old home and live with us, and complete the old happy party we
three used to make."

"All right, Dad, I'll do that, I promise you."

"And now that you have made a name and fortune for yourself in spite of
my doing everything I could to prevent you----"

"No, no, Dad, that isn't fair, and really, you know, I don't believe we
could help ourselves, everything has come about exactly as Lal arranged
it."

"I am very angry with Lal and his tricks, and if I thought he would
listen to me for one minute, I would go down now and--Good gracious
alive!" broke off Sir S