"I was just thinking, your Majesty," replied the Enchanted Banjo, "while we have all been talking about Wishing Wands and the like, about a funny thing of that sort that once happened within my own experience. I made up a song about it the other night, and if you care to hear it, I will sing it to you."
"Very well," said the Fairy Queen; and so the Banjo began, in a rich, full voice:
THE COME-ALL-YE OF PAT McGLORY
Come all ye fine young gintlemin, I"ll tell to ye a story Concernin" one that I knew well; his name was Pat McGlory.
One mornin" whin the cow had died that helped him run his dairy He sat him down an" cried an" cried--when up there leapt a Fairy.
O, ho, ho, ho! Um, ha, ha, ha!
The Fairy wore a golden crown, wid di"monds in aich wing, An" anny one would know at once he was the Fairy King.
He looked one moment at poor Pat--this splendid little Fairy-- Then whispered soft an" sootherin": "Ye"ll have a bran" new dairy."
He waved his wand a time or two, an" Pat got lean an" slim, An" whin the Fairy started off, why Pat wint after him!
O, ho, ho, ho! Um, ha, ha, ha!
He popped into a hole that was near by thim in the ground An" Pat came slidin" after him wid: "King, where are we bound?"
The king he answered not a word, but stopped and touched a stone An" there they were in one big hall befoor a golden throne.
The king he sat upon the throne, an" thin he said, said he: "Because I like you, Pat, my lad, I"ll give you wishes three."
O, ho, ho, ho! Um, ha, ha, ha!
Thin Pat he thought about the things he needed most right now, An" said: "I can"t make up my mind. I wisht I had a cow."
The king he waved his shinin" wand, and said: "Look by yer side."
An" there there stood a splindid cow--"twas all of four feet wide.
Thin Pat he started out wid her, an" first thing that he knew He found th" cow was far too wide, he couldn"t drive her through.
O, ho, ho, ho! Um, ha, ha, ha!
"I wish," he said unthinkin" like, "I wisht I had you home."
Thin--whist! They lit upon his barn, a-straddle of the comb.
An" thin the cow began to jump an" she began to bawl, An" Pat kept skippin" back an" forth for fear that he would fall.
"O, cow!" he cried. "Nice cow, dear cow! Sure I don"t know yourname, I only wisht you"s back within the place from whince you came."
O, ho, ho, ho! Um, ha, ha, ha!
At once there was no splindid cow at all for him to see-- An" if you count thim you will find he"d had his wishes three.
Come all ye fine young gintlemin, remimber now the story: Whinever you"ve a chance to wish, don"t wish like Pat McGlory.
O, ho, ho, ho! Um, ha, ha, ha!
"Well," said Lulu, "it seems to me that Pat McGlory was not very bright, for he got nothing at all for his wishes."
"There are more persons like that than would at first be supposed by any one not in this business," said the Banjo.
[Ill.u.s.tration: The Twisted Shadow of the King]
CHAPTER x.x.xI
THE MESSENGERS OF THE FAIRY QUEEN
"My dear friends," said the Fairy Queen after they had arrived once more at the palace, "I must tell you more about this Wicked Fairy Gobo. He was once one of my trusted workmen in the valley where you have seen the Mother of Gold. You know how necessary it is for the greatest of care and secrecy to be observed by every person permitted within those walls; for should any unfaithful servant allow that secret to become known, or should he leave the gate open, or should he do any one of a hundred dangerous things, then all would be lost.
"Now this is what the Wicked Fairy Gobo did; he became covetous of the gold which he saw all about him, and began, as mortals do, to think this gold worth more than everything else. In short, he was willing to do anything, if only he might control all this gold. It was he who planned to open the gates and let in wicked persons who would have robbed me. My faithful friend the White Cricket told me of this, and at once I banished Gobo from the Valley of Gold, and changed the mountains all about, and made new gates, and secured new sentinels and guards of the valley; so that Gobo never again could find the way thither. He has been my enemy ever since, although hitherto I have never punished him, beyond confining him to yonder mountain; whence it was his privilege to emerge twice a year. You see what he has done. Jealous that I should hear from the King so often, Gobo has taken the shadow and with it the White Cricket, so that I could telephone no longer. Now in order that I may once more hear from the King, I shall send him back, in your hands, my dears, the Cricket for his telephone; and I shall send him back also his shadow, after I have restored it to its proper shape. And I shall send him also my hope; and I shall send him the message which I have whispered in your ears."
"But see the poor shadow, how badly it is bent," said Lulu. "It does not look in the least like the King as we know him."
"I shall hope to be able to straighten out the shadow," said the Queen.
"It is only the Wicked Fairy who has destroyed its beauty for the time."
"But," asked Zuzu curiously, "why do you take so great an interest in the King of the Island of Gee-Whiz? It always seemed to me that he acted very strangely; for sometimes he was friendly toward the Fairies and sometimes not; and often he wanted more gold."
"Ah! that is it," said the Queen, sighing, "it was always that gold! It was the Wicked Fairy Gobo who put such notions in his head; but let us hope that all will yet be well. I beseech you now to hold tight to your Wishing Wands, and on no account make another wish until you are in the presence of the King himself.
"But now it is time that you rested after these journeys through my realm. You may join Fofo and Fifi for a time in the Fairy gardens, and say good-by to them; then the best thing you can do is to eat your supper of cakes and honey, and sleep soundly in readiness for the journey up the Golden Ladder. It was my wish, as I have told you, to make you my pages, and to keep you here in my realm for ever, for you are very good children indeed; but now I love and trust you so much that I am going to make you my messengers instead of my pages, and let you go away again for a little time. In order that you may be happy and contented, perhaps the Enchanted Banjo will now play for us."
So saying she handed the Enchanted Banjo to Zuzu, and at once as he and Lulu placed their hands upon the Banjo it began to sing for them.
FAREWELL TO THE FAIRIES
Farewell, Fairies, gay and good; You who haunt the Christmas Wood, You of that thrice happy band Which lives down in Candy-land, You who idle in the shade By the Lake of Lemonade; Farewell, Fairies; thus we sigh When we come to say good-by.
You that in the world of dreams Sail in bubble-boats the streams; You that hide beneath the gra.s.s Chanting to us as we pa.s.s; You that flash among the trees Laughing at the honey-bees-- Tears come sadly to each eye When we come to say good-by.
Farewell, Fairies, one and all-- Some day we shall come and call To you from the border-land In the speech you understand-- So and so, and thus and thus-- Then you will remember us.
But to-day we may but sigh Now that we must say good-by.
Then the Queen bent over each little pillow and spoke softly:
"Before you fall asleep I shall kiss you each good night and good-by; for when you awaken you will be far away."
As she kissed Zuzu and Lulu, they began to feel very drowsy, but before they had time to reason it out to themselves, they were both fast asleep. The last thing they knew was the soft kiss of the Fairy Queen; and the last thing they saw was the room of the fairy palace, very beautiful, seeming to fade away and become more distant and indistinct.
[Ill.u.s.tration]
CHAPTER x.x.xII
THE RETURN TO THE ISLAND
When they awoke, Zuzu and Lulu rubbed their eyes very hard, and looked around them in wonder; as, indeed, well they might. They were now not in the fairy palace at all, but once more alone, and at the top of the Golden Ladder, whose long lines they could see far, far below them, shining like the beams of the sun at evening or morning. Near by them rose the walls of the rocky pa.s.s in which lived Jankow, the Dragon, and near them was the end of the tail of the Dragon. They could hear its harsh voice coming to their ears very plainly.
"Do not be afraid," said Zuzu to Lulu, "for I am sure that the Fairy Queen will protect us, even though we do not see her at the moment. We shall be quite safe, also, because I have the wooden leg of the Dragon; and here I have the shadow of the King, all straight and fine and new again; and you have the White Cricket in your pocket; so I am sure they will all be glad to see us back again when we tell them where we have been."
At the same time, although Zuzu spoke boldly, both he and Lulu kept very close to the wall as they edged along the narrow opening from the top of the Golden Ladder to the front of the gorge where the head of the Dragon lay.
The Dragon was engaged in loud roaring as usual, but his voice was hoa.r.s.e and weary. Instead of sitting up straight upon his front feet, he leaned over against the side of the rock-wall in a very sad sort of way.