d to such a coward."

The Prince had nearly reached the place opposite to which the ship
was moored, when the Princess, who had been awakened by the noise of
the combat, appeared upon the deck of the vessel. The moment she saw
the Prince, she felt convinced that he was certainly the one for whom
she was looking. Fearing that the pursuing Amazons might kill him,
she sprang from the vessel to his assistance; but her foot caught in
a rope, and instead of reaching the shore, she fell into the water,
which was here quite deep, and immediately sank out of sight. The
Prince, who had noticed her just as she sprang, and who felt equally
convinced that she was the one for whom he was searching, stopped his
flight and rushed to the edge of the bank. Just as the Princess rose
to the surface, he reached out his hand to her, and she took it.

"Philopena!" cried the Prince.

"You have won," said the Princess, gayly shaking the water from her
curls, as he drew her ashore.

At the request of the Princess, the pursuing Amazons forbore to
assail the Prince, and when the Captain and the Mate had descended
from the tree, every thing was explained.

Within an hour, the Prince and Princess, after taking kind leave of
the Gryphoness, and Water Sprite, and of the Amazon sailors, who
cheered them loudly, rode away to the city of the Princess; while the
three servants of the Inquisitive Dwarf returned to their master to
report what had happened.

The Absolute Fool was in a very bad humor; for he was obliged to go
back on foot, having left his horse in the kingdom where he had so
narrowly escaped being killed; and, besides this, he had had his hair
pulled; and had not been treated with proper respect by either the
Princess or the Gryphoness. He felt himself deeply injured. When he
reached home, he determined that he would not remain in a position
where his great abilities were so little appreciated. "I will do
something," he said, "which shall prove to the world that I deserve
to stand among the truly great. I will reform my fellow beings, and I
will begin by reforming the Inquisitive Dwarf." Thereupon he went to
his master, and said:

"Sir, it is foolish and absurd for you to be meddling thus with the
affairs of your neighbors. Give up your inquisitive habits, and learn
some useful business. While you are doing this, I will consent to
manage your affairs."

The Inquisitive Dwarf turned to him, and said: "I have a great desire
to know t