"The three young men were thrown out of the house with great violence by the infuriated parent. One young man lost his hat, the second lost his arms and his walking-stick, and the third lost one of his legs.

"Certainly Djorak's love for his daughters was very intense.

"It was this love which was his ruin.

"One day in the presence of the King of his country he boasted of being the father of the three most beautiful young girls in his country.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE KING'S DAUGHTER]

"What an imprudence! The King himself possessed a daughter whose beauty, to say the least of it, was not remarkable, and the King, who was very intelligent, was perfectly well aware of the fact. He was furious when he heard Djorak's boast. He had him arrested and tried before the high court, who decided that the punishment of death was barely sufficient for such an audacious criminal.

"The punishment of death in Djorak's country is by beheading with the sword; a criminal's head is only cut off once--but it is once and for all."

[Ill.u.s.tration]

CHAPTER IX

The elder Flying Fish loses one eye, and the Hen finds it: The Historian wakes up, and Smaly and Redy run out of the house: The Healer mends the paw of the Confectioner.

The Flying-Fish upon their perches now began to shake their wings and then their paws, and last of all their heads.

"Are we really awake?" asked the elder Flying-Fish of the younger.

"It seems to me that we are more or less shaken up," replied the little Flying-Fish.

The two Fish prepared themselves to fly forthwith once more upon their arduous duties, for the Flying-Fish in this country act as sentinels and look-out men, and also cry the hours publicly.

Just as they were about to set off the little Flying-Fish noticed that the other had lost an eye.

"That must have been when I shook my head," exclaimed the elder Flying-Fish with conviction, and both flew down on to the floor to look for the missing eye. The Hen joined them in their search, and as she fluttered down she managed to upset a gla.s.s retort from which an opalescent vapour began to escape.

Soon the whole laboratory was filled with this vapour in layer upon layer of different colours, from deep rose at the base up through violet and pale green to a layer of no colour at all, which was succeeded by a layer of blue.

Through the vapour Smaly and Redy could hear that the Fish and the Hen were continuing their search for the lost eye. Sometimes they were quite near the two little people, although no one could see any one else.

It was the Hen who finally discovered the lost eye.

"Why, it's still shut," said the younger Fish to the elder.

"Doubtless it must have fallen out before I had really shaken myself awake," replied the elder.

Taking the eye from the hands of the Hen, the Fish held it in its cupped paws to shake it, as one shakes a coin, to see whether it will come down heads or tails. When it had been well shaken the eye was open.

The little Fish took the eye and replaced it in the elder Fish's head; then they both flew out, making a buzzing noise like gigantic bluebottles.

The layers of coloured vapour now began to twirl about and mix like wreaths of steam, and once again various objects in the room became visible. The Hen saw that the big toes of the Historian had begun to move, and knowing that these signs of wakefulness would presently mount as far as his head, she hastened back to her little pots of white and yellow paste.

Indeed, the Historian was already almost awake; he had put down his hand and stopped the little snoring machine.

Smaly and Redy joined hands and ran out of the door.

Directly they appeared in the square the Wigs seized hold of them and ran them into the kitchen once more, which by now had been built up again. Smaly and Redy began to hope that the evening was not far off, for they were becoming more and more anxious to see the three girls.

They opened their mouths and began their little chant:

We wish to have three girls, Fine, sweet----

But at this moment Redy noticed that the sun had not moved during all the hours of the siesta. n.o.body had explained to them that since all the Wigs had been asleep the sun had naturally thought it would be ill-mannered to continue his advance.

Redy and Smaly stood alone in the kitchen wondering what to do, when the door opened and a middle-sized man walked in, saying in a severe voice:

"Where the d.i.c.kens have those idiots got to?"

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE HEALER]

Smaly hid himself behind Redy, and Redy hid herself behind a large plant, which grew in one of the ornamental vases at the side of the Chief Contractor's throne.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BORN WITH THE IDEA OF ONE DAY BEING A VERY BIG MAN]

The man who came in had evidently been born with the idea of one day being a very big man. But he had been destined by his parents to become a great Healer, and as soon as he had discovered this it occurred to him that it would be better to be merely of medium height, so that he did not have to make his back ache bending over the beds of sick people.

Therefore he at once left off growing, excepting in girth; and since he always wished to ride about the country it was obvious that he did not want his legs to be too strong, therefore he had small legs, enormous shoulders, a hump both back and front, and a large stomach.

The Healer was accompanied by a page made in the shape of a drum. This drum, besides having the head of a page and two solid little legs mounted upon roller-skates, was hung about with an immense number of instruments, with tubes of gum, sealing-wax, and candles. In one of his hands he carried a funnel made of fish-glue, down which he poured medicine into the mouths of sick people.

In the other he had a corkscrew for pulling out bad teeth.

"It's simply freezing in this horrible kitchen," said the Healer, looking about him. "Where on earth have they got to?" Then turning to the page he added: "Fetch my cloak out of the right-hand pannier."

He gave a shove to the drum, which skated off to the door where two donkeys stood side by side. One donkey could certainly never have supported the Healer, therefore he had to have two, and between them was fastened a comfortable arm-chair. The page came back trailing a large cloak behind him, made of the leaves of aromatic herbs.

When the Healer had put it on he looked like a mound entirely covered with ivy. The bag which he carried slung on his right-hand side was almost hidden by his cloak, so was that on his left.

Upon one of these, which contained little bottles and boxes, one could just read the word "Medicines," and upon the other "Rewards to be taken after medicine."

The Healer continued to call out "Where are they, where are they?"

gazing everywhere through his large single eyegla.s.s, which was so big he could look through it with both eyes at once.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BETWEEN THEM WAS FASTENED A COMFORTABLE ARM-CHAIR]