Prince Ricardo of Pantouflia | Page 8

palace. Bidding
the tradesmen enter, he showed them a large collection of
miscellaneous things: an old cap or two, a pair of boots of a sort long
out of fashion, an old broadsword, a shabby old Persian rug, an ivory
spy- glass, and other articles. These were, in fact, the fairy presents,
which had been given to the king at his christening, and by aid of
which (and his natural acuteness) he had, in his youth, succeeded in

many remarkable adventures.
The caps were the Wishing Cap and the Cap of Darkness. The rug was
the famous carpet which carried its owner through the air wherever he
wished to go. The sword was the Sword of Sharpness. The ivory glass
showed you anyone you wanted to see, however far off. The boots were
the Seven-league Boots, which Hop-o'-my-Thumb stole from the Ogre
about 1697. There were other valuable objects, but these were the most
useful and celebrated. Of course the king did not tell the tradesmen
what they were.
"Now, gentlemen," said his Majesty, "you see these old things. For
reasons which I must ask you to excuse me for keeping to myself, I
wish you to provide me with objects exactly and precisely similar to
these, with all the look of age."
The tradesmen examined the objects, each choosing that in his own line
of business.
"As to the sword, sire," said the cutler, "it is an Andrea Ferrara, a fine
old blade. By a lucky accident, I happen to have one at home in a small
collection of ancient weapons, exactly like it. This evening it shall be at
your Majesty's disposal."
"Perhaps, Herr Schnitzler, you will kindly write an order for it, as I
wish no one of you to leave the palace, if you can conveniently stay, till
your business is finished."
"With pleasure, your Majesty," says the cutler.
"As to the old rug," said the upholsterer, "I have a Persian one quite
identical with it at home, at your Majesty's service."
"Then you can do like Herr Schnitzler," who was the cutler.
"And I," said the hatter, "have two old caps just like these, part of a
bankrupt theatrical stock."

"We are most fortunate," said the king.
"The boots, now I come to think of it, are unimportant, at least for the
present. Perhaps we can borrow a pair from the theatre."
"As for the glass," said the optician, "if your Majesty will allow me to
take it home with me--"
"I am afraid I cannot part with it," said the king; "but that, too, is
unimportant, or not very pressing."
Then he called for a servant, to order luncheon for the shopkeepers, and
paper for them to write their orders on. But no one was within hearing,
and in that very old part of the palace there were no bells.
"Just pardon me for an instant, while I run downstairs," said his
Majesty; "and, it seems a strange thing to ask, but may I advise you not
to sit down on that carpet? I have a reason for it."
In fact, he was afraid that someone might sit down on it, and wish he
was somewhere else, and be carried away, as was the nature of the
carpet.
King Prigio was not absent a minute, for he met William on the stairs;
but when he came back, there was not one single person in the
turret-room!
"Where on earth are they?" cried the king, rushing through all the
rooms in that part of the castle. He shouted for them, and looked
everywhere; but there was not a trace of tailor, hatter, optician,
swordmaker, upholsterer.
The king hastened to a window over the gate, and saw the sentinels on
duty.
"Hi!" he called.
And the sentinels turned round, looked up, and saluted.

"Have you seen anyone go out?" he cried.
"No one, sire," answered the soldiers.
The king, who began to guess what had happened, hurried back to the
turret-room.
There were all the tradesmen with parcels under their arms.
"What means this, gentlemen?" said his Majesty, severely. "For what
reason did you leave the room without my permission?"
They all knelt down, humbly imploring his compassion.
"Get up, you donkeys!" said the king, forgetting his politeness. "Get up,
and tell me where you have been hiding yourselves."
The hatter came forward, and said:
"Sire, you will not believe me; indeed, I can scarcely believe it
myself!"
"Nor none of us can't," said the swordmaker. "We have been home, and
brought the articles. All orders executed with punctuality and dispatch,"
he added, quoting his own advertisement without thinking of it.
On this the swordmaker took out and exhibited the Andrea Ferrara
blade, which was exactly like the Sword of Sharpness.
The upholsterer undid his parcel, and there was