trol of himself. He gazed, and
then he advanced in a manner so determined that Cinderella drew back,
leaving him alone with the sleeper, save for the Cupid on the pillow
and the lady of honor asleep in her chair.

"It _is_ the Sleeping Beauty!" exclaimed Everychild. Somehow or other
he knew positively. He knelt down beside her and gazed at her
reverently. Slowly and gently he reached for the hand nearest him.
_He took it into his own; and then--he never could have told what put
it into his head to do so!--he shyly kissed the beautiful hand_.

And the Sleeping Beauty? She sighed and opened her eyes. For an
instant she gazed dreamily at the ceiling. Then she sat up, placing
her feet on the floor. With wonder and delight she leaned a little
forward, her eyes fixed on Everychild's.

And then she said, in a voice which would have set the birds to
singing, if there had been any near by--

"Is it you, my prince? You have waited a long while!"

CHAPTER XXIII

THE AWAKENING

No sooner had the Sleeping Beauty spoken than a number of things began
to happen.

The other sleepers in the room opened their eyes.

The lady of honor was the first to attract attention. She stirred and
placed her fingers against her lips in a very elegant manner to
suppress a yawn. Then she exclaimed very audibly: "Bless my soul--I
must have dropped off for a moment!"

The sergeant of the guard was seen to open his eyes and glare very
suspiciously at the spear-bearer nearest to him. He exclaimed, upon
noting the stupid expression in the spear-bearer's eyes--"Ah-ha! I
caught you asleep, did I?"

To which the spear-bearer replied nervously, "Not to say asleep,
exactly, I just closed my eyes because a bit of smoke got into them."

The scullion by the fireplace opened his eyes and sat quite still for
an instant, all his attention concentrated upon the others in the room,
at whom, however, he was afraid to look. It was his aim to conceal
from them the fact that he had been asleep.

The kettle on the crane in the fireplace began to sing cheerfully and
an appetizing odor arose. Flames began to dance in the fireplace.

The lady of honor with affected testiness addressed the Sleeping
Beauty. "It's high time you were stirring, I should say," was her
comment. "It seems to me we are all becoming quite indolent!"

The Sleeping Beauty would not respond to her mood of bustling levity.
She gazed wonderingly and patiently at the la