aking a speech:

"Your royaliness, and my lords and ladies, it was like this. His
royaliness comed in with a rug over his arm, and summat under it. And
he lays it down on that there seat, and Thomas shows him into the
droring-room. Then Benson says: 'Dinner'll be ready in five minutes; how
tired I do feel! 'Then he takes the libbuty of sitting hisself down
on his royaliness's rug, and he says, asking your pardon, 'I 've
had about enough of service here. I 'm about tired, and I thinks of
bettering myself. I wish I was at the king's court, and butler.'

[Illustration: Page 65]

But before the words was out of his mouth, off he flies like a shot
through the open door, and his royaliness's parcel with him. I run to
the door, and there he was, flying right hover the town, in a northerly
direction. And that's all I know; for I would not tell a lie, not if it
was hever so. And me, and Thomas--as didn't see it,--and cook, we thinks
as how Benson was come for. And cook says as she don't wonder at it,
neither; for a grumblinger, more ill-conditioneder--"

"Thank you, William," said Lord Kelso; "that will do; you can go, for
the present."

[Illustration: Chapter Thirteen]

CHAPTER XIII.--_Surprises_

THE prince said nothing, the ambassador said nothing, Lady Rosalind said
never a word till they were in the drawing-room. It was a lovely warm
evening, and the French windows were wide open on the balcony, which
looked over the town and away north to the hills. Below them flowed the
clear, green water of the Gluckthal And still nobody said a word. At
last the prince spoke: "This is a very strange story, Lord Kelso!"

"Very, sir!" said the ambassador. "But true," added the prince; "at
least, there is no reason in the nature of things why it shouldn't be
true."

"I can hardly believe, sir, that the conduct of Benson, whom I always
found a most respectable man, deserved--"

"That he should be 'come for,'" said the prince. "Oh, no; it was a mere
accident, and might have happened to any of us who chanced to sit down
on my carpet."

And then the prince told them, shortly, all about it: how the carpet
was one of a number of fairy properties, which had been given him at
his christening; and how so long a time had gone by before he discovered
them; and how, probably, the carpet had carried the butler where he had
said he wanted to go--namely, to the king's Court at Falkenstein.

"It would not matter so much," added the pri