oked around for something else
to throw, but the boy seized the shoes and ran away, returning to his
own room.

While he polished the shoes he told his plans to Cap'n Bill and Trot
and asked them to be ready to fly with him as soon as he returned with
the Magic Umbrella. All they need to do was to step out into the
street, through the door of Cap'n Bill's room, and open the umbrella.
Fortunately, the seats and the lunch-basket were still attached to the
handle--or so they thought--and there would be nothing to prevent their
quickly starting on the journey home.

They waited a long time, however, to give the Boolooroo time to get to
sleep, so it was after midnight when Button-Bright finally took the
shoes in his hand and started for the Royal Bedchamber. He passed the
guard of the Royal Treasury and Fredjim nodded good-naturedly to the
boy. But the sleepy guard before the King's apartments was cross and
surly.

"What are you doing here at this hour?" he demanded.

"I'm returning his Majesty's shoes," said Button-Bright.

"Go back and wait till morning," commanded the guard.

"If you prevent me from obeying the Boolooroo's orders," returned the
boy quietly, "he will probably have you patched."

This threat frightened the long-necked guard, who did not know what
orders the Boolooroo had given his Royal Bootblue. "Go in, then," said
he, "but if you make a noise and waken his Majesty, the chances are
you'll get yourself patched."

"I'll be quiet," promised the boy.

Indeed, Button-Bright had no desire to waken the Boolooroo, whom he
found snoring lustily with the curtains of his high-posted bed drawn
tightly around him. The boy had taken off his own shoes after he passed
the guard and now he tiptoed carefully into the room, set down the
royal shoes very gently and then crept to the chair where his Majesty's
clothes were piled. Scarcely daring to breathe for fear of awakening
the terrible monarch, the boy searched in the royal pockets until he
found a blue-gold key attached to a blue-gold chain. At once he decided
this must be the key to the Treasure Chamber, but in order to make sure
he searched in every other pocket--without finding another key.

Then Button-Bright crept softly out of the room again, and in one of
the outer rooms he sat down near a big cabinet and put on his shoes.
Poor Button-Bright did not know that lying disregarded beneath that
very cabinet at his side was the precious umbrella he was seekin