gainst the
wishes of the old Ki."

"That is certainly encouraging," said Nerle.

When the captains had gone and left them to themselves, the esquire
confided to his master his expectations in the following speech:

"This High Ki sounds something terrible and fierce in my ears, and as
they are doubtless a pair, they will be twice terrible and fierce.
Perhaps his royal doublets will torture me most exquisitely before
putting me to death, and then I shall feel that I have not lived in
vain."

They slept in comfortable beds that night, although an empty twin bed
stood beside each one they occupied. And in the morning they were
served another excellent meal, after which the captains escorted them
again to the twin palaces of the Ki and the Ki-Ki.

There the two pairs of rulers met them and headed the long procession
of soldiers toward the palace of the High Ki. First came a band of
music, in which many queer sorts of instruments were played in pairs by
twin musicians; and it was amusing to Nerle to see the twin drummers
roll their twin drums exactly at the same time and the twin trumpets
peal out twin notes. After the band marched the double Ki-Ki and the
double Ki, their four bodies side by side in a straight line. The
Ki-Ki had left their musical instruments in the palace, and now wore
yellow gloves with green stitching down the backs and swung gold-headed
canes jauntily as they walked. The Ki stooped their aged shoulders and
shuffled along with their hands in their pockets, and only once did
they speak, and that was to roar "Great Kika-koo!" when the Ki-Ki
jabbed their canes down on the Ki's toes.

Following the Ki-Ki and the Ki came the prince and Nerle, escorted by
the twin captains, and then there were files of twin soldiers bringing
up the rear.

Crowds of twin people, with many twin children amongst them, turned out
to watch the unusual display, and many pairs of twin dogs barked
together in unison and snapped at the heels of the marching twin
soldiers.

By and by they reached the great wall surrounding the High Ki's palace,
and, sure enough, there was never a gate in the wall by which any might
enter. But when the Ki and the Ki-Ki had blown a shrill signal upon
two pairs of whistles, they all beheld two flights of silver steps
begin to descend from the top of the wall, and these came nearer and
nearer the ground until at last they rested at the feet of the Ki.
Then the old men began ascending the st