t night; but she saw nothing of
those for whom she was looking.

The Princess and the Absolute Fool journeyed on until near the close
of the afternoon, when the sky began to be overcast, and it looked
like rain. They were then not far from a large piece of water; and at
a little distance, they saw a ship moored near the shore.

"I shall seek shelter on board that ship," said the Princess.

"It is going to storm," remarked the Absolute Fool. "I should prefer
to be on dry land."

"As the land is not likely to be very dry when it rains," said the
Princess, "I prefer a shelter, even if it is upon wet water."

"Women will always have their own way," muttered the Absolute Fool.

The ship belonged to a crew of Amazon sailors, who gave the Princess
a hearty welcome.

"You may go on board if you choose," said the Absolute Fool to the
Princess, "but I shall not risk my life in a ship manned by women."

"It is well that you are of that opinion," said the Captain of the
Amazons, who had heard this remark; "for you would not be allowed to
come on board if you wished to. But we will give you a tent to
protect you and the horse in case it should rain, and will send you
something to eat."

"While the Princess was taking tea with the Amazon Captain, she told
her about the Prince, and how she was trying to find him.

"Good!" cried the Captain. "I will join in the search, and take you
in my ship. Some of my crew told me that yesterday they saw a young
man, who looked like a prince, riding along the shore of a lake which
adjoins the one we are on. In the morning we will sail after him. We
shall keep near the shore, and your servant can mount your horse and
ride along the edge of the lake. From what I know of the speed of
this vessel, I think he can easily keep up with us."

Early in the morning, the Amazon Captain called her crew together.
"Hurrah, my brave girls!" she said. "We have an object. I never sail
without an object, and it lights me to get one. The purpose of our
present cruise is to find the Prince of whom this Princess is in
search; and we must spare no pains to bring him to her, dead or
alive."

Luckily for her peace of mind, the Princess did not hear this speech.
The day was a fine one, and before long the sun became very hot. The
ship was sailing quite near the land, when the Absolute Fool rode
down to the water's edge, and called out that he had something very
important to communicate to the Princess. As he w