ly, unfinished, and took refuge with his wife and
children in the drawing-room, much to their surprise. I believe he
actually drank a cup of tea; and although I have often looked in since,
I have never caught him again, drinking alone at least."

"But does he drink less? Have you done him any good?"

"I hope so; but I am sorry to say I can't feel sure about it."

"Humph! Humph! Humph!" grunted various shadow throats.

"I had such fun once!" cried another. "I made such game of a young
clergyman!"

"You have no right to make game of anyone."

"Oh yes, I have--when it is for his good. He used to study his
sermons--where do you think?"

"In his study, of course. Where else should it be?"

"Yes and no. Guess again."

"Out amongst the faces in the streets."

"Guess again."

"In still green places in the country?"

"Guess again."

"In old books?"

"Guess again."

"No, no. Tell us."

"In the looking glass. Ha! ha! ha!"

"He was fair game; fair shadow game."

"I thought so. And I made such fun of him one night on the wall! He had
sense enough to see that it was himself, and very like an ape. So he
got ashamed, turned the mirror with its face to the wall, and thought a
little more about his people, and a little less about himself. I was
very glad; for, please your majesty,"--and here the speaker turned
towards the king--"we don't like the creatures that live in the
mirrors. You call them ghosts, don't you?"

Before the king could reply, another had commenced. But the story about
the clergyman had made the king wish to hear one of the shadow-sermons.
So he turned him towards a long Shadow, who was preaching to a very
quiet and listening crowd. He was just concluding his sermon.

"Therefore, dear Shadows, it is the more needful that we love one
another as much as we can, because that is not much. We have no such
excuse for not loving as mortals have, for we do not die like them. I
suppose it is the thought of that death that makes them hate so much.
Then again, we go to sleep all day, most of us, and not in the night,
as men do. And you know that we forget everything that happened the
night before; therefore, we ought to love well, for the love is short.
Ah! dear Shadow, whom I love now with all my shadowy soul, I shall not
love thee to-morrow eve, I shall not know thee; I shall pass thee in
the crowd and never dream that the Shadow whom I now love is near me
then. Happy Shades! for we only remember our t