upon the stair while he went on. At the end of the passage
he found a door ajar, and, peering through, saw right into a great
stone hall, where a huge fire was blazing, and through which men in the
king's livery were constantly coming and going. Some also in the same
livery were lounging about the fire. He noted that their colours were
the same as those he himself, as king's miner, wore; but from what he
had seen and heard of the habits of the place, he could not hope they
would treat him the better for that.

The one interesting thing at the moment, however, was the plentiful
supper with which the table was spread. It was something at least to
stand in sight of food, and he was unwilling to turn his back on the
prospect so long as a share in it was not absolutely hopeless. Peeping
thus, he soon made UP his mind that if at any moment the hall should be
empty, he would at that moment rush in and attempt to carry off a dish.
That he might lose no time by indecision, he selected a large pie upon
which to pounce instantaneously. But after he had watched for some
minutes, it did not seem at all likely the chance would arrive before
suppertime, and he was just about to turn away and rejoin Lina, when he
saw that there was not a person in the place. Curdie never made up his
mind and then hesitated. He darted in, seized the pie, and bore it
swiftly and noiselessly to the cellar stair.

CHAPTER 18

The King's Kitchen

Back to the cellar Curdie and Lina sped with their booty, where, seated
on the steps, Curdie lighted his bit of candle for a moment. A very
little bit it was now, but they did not waste much of it in examination
of the pie; that they effected by a more summary process. Curdie
thought it the nicest food he had ever tasted, and between them they
soon ate it up. Then Curdie would have thrown the dish along with the
bones into the water, that there might be no traces of them; but he
thought of his mother, and hid it instead; and the very next minute
they wanted it to draw some wine into. He was careful it should be
from the cask of which he had seen the butler drink.

Then they sat down again upon the steps, and waited until the house
should be quiet. For he was there to do something, and if it did not
come to him in the cellar, he must go to meet it in other places.
Therefore, lest he should fall asleep, he set the end of the helve of
his mattock on the ground, and seated himself on the cross part,