hat they would find one or two severed heads within if
they cared to collect them, and then, borrowing a charger, he galloped
off to Eswareinmal, impatient to know what had befallen Daphne.

On the Palace terrace there had been a period of painful surprise. The
Crown Prince was the first of the rescue party to return. He would have
much preferred to do so by a back way, but, perceiving that he had been
observed, took the manlier course. "Clarence!" shrieked the Queen as he
limped up with his breastplate and hose covered with mire, a bent sword
and badly dinted helmet, "is she saved?"

"Couldn't tell you, Mater," he replied heavily. "I've done all I could,
and so--and so I came back."

"He's wounded!" cried Ruby tearfully. "Oh, Clarence, was it that horrid
Tuetzi?" for she was effectually disillusioned at last.

"No, Kiddie, no," he said, "_I'm_ all right. Took a bit of a toss,
that's all."

"My poor boy," said his mother, "was it at the Castle? Did the thing
attack you?"

"I never _got_ to the Castle," he replied, "only about half-way. It was
like this. That bally pendant you made me wear, Mater, got unfastened
somehow, slipped down inside my breastplate and was hurting like the
very deuce. So I got off and unbuckled a bit and pitched it away. When I
got on again the horse was all over the shop with me in a jiffy.
Couldn't hold him for toffee! And, before I knew it, I was over the
brute's head. I tried to mount again, but he wouldn't let me. I tried
some other gees, and none of _them_ would. Somehow I seemed to have lost
the knack all at once. So, after I'd come off once or twice more and was
getting a trifle lame, I thought the best thing I could do was to leg it
home."

"Hem!" said his Father. "Rather unfortunate thing to happen just _now_,
my boy!"

"Well, Guv'nor," he replied, "I should never have got there in time,
walking."

"You were quite right to come back, Clarence," said his Mother,
"And--oh, look, look!" she cried suddenly, "our darling is safe after
all! She's coming back in the dove-car!"

The car landed shortly after on the terrace, and Edna was frantically
embraced and plied with questions. "I am _quite_ all right, thank you,"
she said as soon as she had an opportunity of speaking. "Of course it
was a most disagreeable thing to happen to one, and I don't feel equal
to talking about it just yet--but I am very little the worse for it
now."

"But how did you get that awful man to let you go?"