the Second Gunkus,
with almost equal skill, captured the one from her left ones. They ran
with them toward the little stream, and Sara was so curious to know
what they meant to do with them that she followed unconsciously.

Now this was, indeed, the saddest little stream Sara had ever seen.
Its source was hidden in mist, and after it passed through the rainbow
arch it disappeared somewhere, as if the earth had swallowed it. But
all along its banks, where Sara could see it, sat great frogs, with
their green pocket handkerchiefs to their eyes; and every now and then
the most dismal sounds escaped them. Sara did not need to be told that
they were Sobs--anybody would have known it.

Looking closely, Sara could see in the water hundreds of little black
fish, decorated with silver dots and streaks. As the Gunki approached
the stream with Sara's tears, all the Sobs began to sob at once, and
at the sound the little black fish all stuck their wide, greedy mouths
up out of the water. The Gunki fed the tears to the two nearest, and
then they all sank again, with a great splashing and flouncing.

"You see, Miss," explained the First Gunkus (who seemed to have taken
a great liking to Sara, in spite of all the trouble she had caused him),
"we have to feed 'em all the mad tears. The sad ones turn into
these."

Sara looked where he pointed, and there, at her feet, she saw numbers
of little blue-eyed flowers. They were extremely pretty, and by far
the pleasantest things she had seen in this Vale; but even they had a
sad little fragrance, and each eye had a dewdrop on it. Sara found
that, if she looked at them long, she felt a lump coming in her throat;
and at last she turned to her friends and said what she had been
trying to get up courage to say from the first, "Please--I don't like
this place! I want to go!"

"There, there, dear," said the Teacup, soothingly, looking as if she
had been dreading the worst, and it had come.

"We has orders, Miss," said the First Gunkus, stepping up, "that we
must keep you here three-quarters of an hour, and show you the whole
Vale, Miss."

"Whose orders?" faltered Sara.

For a moment the Gunki looked quite wild and disorganized. Then the
First Gunkus collected himself and said quite firmly,

"Just orders, Miss--without any whose."

"But I can tell you why, dear," interrupted the Teacup soothingly, as
if she hoped to distract Sara's mind. "I've heard my Saucer say why.
It's so children can