here. How can we get down? You can fly, but must I slide down the
chain again?"

"Oh dear, no," said the cuckoo, "by no means. You have only to stretch
out your feather mantle, flap it as if it was wings--so"--he flapped his
own wings encouragingly--"wish, and there you'll be."

"Where?" said Griselda bewilderedly.

"Wherever you wish to be, of course," said the cuckoo. "Are you ready?
Here goes."

"Wait--wait a moment," cried Griselda. "Where am I to wish to be?"

"Bless the child!" exclaimed the cuckoo. "Where _do_ you wish to be? You
said you wanted to visit the country of the Nodding Mandarins."

"Yes; but am I to wish first to be in the palace in the great saloon?"

"Certainly," replied the cuckoo. "That is the entrance to Mandarin Land,
and you said you would like to see through it. So--you're surely ready
now?"

"A thought has just struck me," said Griselda. "How will you know what
o'clock it is, so as to come back in time to tell the next hour? My
aunts will get into such a fright if you go wrong again! Are you sure we
shall have time to go to the mandarins' country to-night?"

"Time!" repeated the cuckoo; "what is time? Ah, Griselda, you have a
_very_ great deal to learn! What do you mean by time?"

"I don't know," replied Griselda, feeling rather snubbed. "Being slow or
quick--I suppose that's what I mean."

"And what is slow, and what is quick?" said the cuckoo. "_All_ a matter
of fancy! If everything that's been done since the world was made till
now, was done over again in five minutes, you'd never know the
difference."

[Illustration: MANDARINS NODDING.]

"Oh, cuckoo, I wish you wouldn't!" cried poor Griselda; "you're worse
than sums, you do so puzzle me. It's like what you said about nothing
being big or little, only it's worse. Where would all the days and hours
be if there was nothing but minutes? Oh, cuckoo, you said you'd amuse
me, and you do nothing but puzzle me."

"It was your own fault. You wouldn't get ready," said the cuckoo.
"_Now_, here goes! Flap and wish."

Griselda flapped and wished. She felt a sort of rustle in the air, that
was all--then she found herself standing with the cuckoo in front of the
Chinese cabinet, the door of which stood open, while the mandarins on
each side, nodding politely, seemed to invite them to enter. Griselda
hesitated.

"Go on," said the cuckoo, patronizingly; "ladies first."

Griselda went on. To her surprise, inside the cabinet it was quite