After all, one is best
without eyes! Can you not show me some ugliness for a change? Perhaps
it may be ugliness that I want to see so badly."

"There is nothing ugly in the palace," replied the Queen. "When you
get used to everything you will be able to see how beautiful it all is."

But the Princess sighed and came down from her golden throne and
wandered out into the garden. She walked uncertainly, for now that she
was no longer blind she did not know where she was going. And there,
under the trees where she had been sleeping a few hours back, stood a
man with his face buried in his hands.

"Little lady," he stammered, "I tried to keep away, but--"

Then the little Princess gave a shout of joy and pulled away his hands
and looked into his face for a full minute without speaking. She put
her small, white fingers into every one of his wrinkles, and she
touched every one of his ugly scars, and she drew a deep breath of
satisfaction.

"Just fancy," laughed the little Princess to the Poet; "they have been
trying to persuade me in there that all those Princes and people
are--_beautiful_!"

[Illustration: THE ROCKING-HORSES RUSHED OVER THE GROUND]

The Wonderful Toymaker

Princess Petulant sat on the nursery floor and cried. She was only
eight years old, but she had lived quite long enough to grow extremely
discontented; and the royal household was made very uncomfortable in
consequence.

"I want a new toy," sobbed the little Princess. "Do you expect me to
go on playing with the same toys for ever? I might just as well not be
a Princess at all!"

The whole country was searched in vain for a toy that would be likely
to please the Princess; but, as she already possessed every kind of toy
that has ever been heard of, nobody succeeded in finding her a new one.
So the little Princess went on crying bitterly, and the royal nurses
shook their heads and sighed. Then the King called a council in
despair.

"It is very absurd," grumbled his Majesty, "that my daughter cannot be
kept amused. What is the use of an expensive government and a
well-dressed court, if there are not enough toys for her to play with?
Can no one invent a new toy for the Princess Petulant?"

He looked sternly at all his councillors as he spoke; but his
councillors were so horrified at being expected to invent something
straight out of their heads that no one said anything at all until the
Prime Minister summoned up courage to