h sounds as reached them
were no longer menacing. "I do believe they haven't done cheering for us
yet!" said the Queen. "And some of them seem to be waving flags! I
shouldn't be the least surprised, Clarence, if your wedding next week
goes off quite well after all!"

"I wish it _would_ go off," he said, "but there's no chance of that
now!"

"Well, it's no good being gloomy about it. Er--Forelle may turn out to
be charming when we come to know her. Which reminds me, dear boy, you
might tell her we should be delighted if she can come to tea here some
afternoon before the ceremony."

"She could easily slip up through the fountain," suggested Edna. "I
shall be anxious to see how she does her hair. Let me see--didn't you
say it was green, Clarence?"

"Oh, give her hair a rest!" he replied.

"I saw before we left England," said the Queen tactfully, "that green
hair was going to be quite the fashion this season. But, however strange
she may be to society, we should remember, Edna, my love, that she will
shortly become one of ourselves and treat her with every civility. We
must avoid anything that might offend her Father."

Queen Selina was inclined that afternoon to take a more roseate view of
the future. She felt herself once more secure on the throne now that all
the dangers which had threatened to overturn it had been averted. The
rival Queen would soon be landed in England, where, even if she ever
heard of her rights, she would be powerless to claim them. Of the three
persons who knew or might discover the truth, the Marshal was dead, the
Court Godmother might just as well be so for all the harm she could do,
and the Baron was on his way to a land from which he would never return.

As for Mirliflor, it would not be difficult to persuade him that some
blunder of the Baron's must have caused the stork-car to go astray, and
it was quite possible that when the Prince had abandoned all hope of
recovering Miss Heritage he would return to Edna.

"Look at the dear people now!" she cried, as she looked down on the
square, "they're actually forming a procession to march up to the Palace
and thank us again!... Yes, they really are! It's quite wonderful the
effect Clarence's self-sacrifice has had--it seems to have rallied them
_all_ round the Throne. But I _knew_ it would, if it was put to them in
the right way.... Did you hear that?" she asked later, when the
procession had reached an angle of the zigzag incline which was d