save that the queen was
very anxious and uneasy, nobody could tell why. One remarkable
circumstance was, that she had Pirlipat's cradle most scrupulously
guarded. Not only were there lifeguardsmen always at the doors of
the nursery, but--over and above the two head nurses close to the
cradle--there had always to be six other nurses all round the room at
night. And what seemed rather a funny thing, which nobody could
understand, was that each of these six nurses had always to have a cat
in her lap, and to keep on stroking it all night long, so that it might
never stop purring.

"'It is impossible that you, my reader, should know the reason of all
these precautions; but I do, and shall proceed to tell you at once.

"'Once upon a time, many great kings and very grand princes were
assembled at Pirlipat's father's court, and very great doings were
toward. Tournaments, theatricals, and state balls were going on on the
grandest scale, and the king, to show that he had no lack of gold and
silver, made up his mind to make a good hole in the crown revenues
for once, and launch out regardless of expense. Wherefore (having
previously ascertained, privately, from the state head master
cook that the court astronomer had indicated a propitious hour for
pork-butching), he resolved to give a grand pudding-and-sausage
banquet. He jumped into a state carriage, and personally invited all
the kings and the princes--to a basin of soup, merely--that he might
enjoy their astonishment at the magnificence of the entertainment. Then
he said to the queen, very graciously:

"'"My darling, _you_ know exactly how I like my puddings and sausages!"

"The queen quite understood what this meant. It meant that she should
undertake the important duty of making the puddings and the sausages
herself, which was a thing she had done on one or two previous
occasions. So the chancellor of the exchequer was ordered to issue out
of store the great golden sausage-kettle, and the silver _casseroles_.
A great fire of sandal-wood was kindled, the queen put on her damask
kitchen apron, and soon the most delicious aroma of pudding-broth rose
steaming out of the kettle. This sweet smell penetrated into the very
council chamber. The king could not control himself.

"'"Excuse me for a few minutes, my lords and gentlemen," he cried,
rushed to the kitchen, embraced the queen, stirred in the kettle a
little with his golden sceptre, and then went back, easier in his mind