through, and he next passed successively three courts,
surrounded by deep ditches filled with running water, with birds of
brilliant plumage flying about the banks. Everything around was rare and
beautiful, but the Prince scarcely raised his eyes to all these wonders.
He thought only of the Princess and where he should find her, but in
vain he opened every door and searched in every corner; he neither saw
Rosalie nor anyone else. At last there was no place left for him to
search but a little wood, which contained in the centre a sort of hall
built entirely of orange-trees, with four small rooms opening out of
the corners. Three of these were empty except for statues and wonderful
things, but in the fourth the Invisible Prince caught sight of Rosalie.
His joy at beholding her again was, however, somewhat lessened by seeing
that the Prince of the Air was kneeling at her feet, and pleading his
own cause. But it was in vain that he implored her to listen; she only
shook her head. 'No,' was all she would say; 'you snatched me from
my father whom I loved, and all the splendour in the world can never
console me. Go! I can never feel anything towards you but hate and
contempt.' With these words she turned away and entered her own
apartments.

Unknown to herself the Invisible Prince had followed her, but fearing to
be discovered by the Princess in the presence of others, he made up his
mind to wait quietly till dark; and employed the long hours in writing a
poem to the Princess, which he laid on the bed beside her. This done, he
thought of nothing but how best to deliver Rosalie, and he resolved to
take advantage of a visit which the Prince of the Air paid every year to
his mother and brothers in order to strike the blow.

One day Rosalie was sitting alone in her room thinking of her troubles
when she suddenly saw a pen get up from off the desk and begin to write
all by itself on a sheet of white paper. As she did not know that it was
guided by an invisible hand she was very much astonished, and the moment
that the pen had ceased to move she instantly went over to the table,
where she found some lovely verses, telling her that another shared her
distresses, whatever they might be, and loved her with all his heart;
and that he would never rest until he had delivered her from the hands
of the man she hated. Thus encouraged, she told him all her story, and
of the arrival of a young stranger in her father's palace, whose looks
had