nodded at them.

"Good-day to you," he said. "I was just thinking at that moment about
a steamboat and a cannon and a real balloon. Strange, wasn't it?"

Immediately the Prince found a steamboat in his right hand and a cannon
in his left; while outside the window floated a charming balloon, just
large enough for himself and Princess Pansy.

"Wait a minute," cried the Prince, as the grasshopper jumped on to the
window-sill again. "I want to tell you all about--"

"No need to do that," chuckled the grasshopper. "You don't suppose
I've been a crab and a gorse bush and an iceberg and a silver birch
tree for nothing, do you?"

That time he really hopped away to nowhere at all, and the children
have never seen him since. This does not matter in the least, however,
for they are not likely to want his help again; the Lady Emmelina is
always kept in her proper place now, and the Princess is no longer
bewitched by her. It is only reasonable to suppose that the Fairy
Zigzag had something to do with the change in the Lady Emmelina, but
the Fairy Zigzag says that she never troubled herself about it at all.
However that may be, the children have never had an unhappy moment
since Prince Perfection went out into the world to find the doll that
came straight from Fairyland.

[Illustration: "WILL YOU COME AND PLAY WITH ME, LITTLE WISDOM?"]

THOSE WYMPS AGAIN

There was great consternation in Fairyland, for it was suddenly
discovered that the sun had been shining crookedly all the morning. It
was consequently two hours later than anybody thought it was; and this,
as it happened, was a very serious matter, for all the fairies had been
invited to the christening of the little Prince Charming, and it would
never do for them to arrive late. Of course, the wymps were at the
bottom of it and the sun had no idea that he was not shining quite in
his usual way; but no one in Fairyland had time to trouble about that,
and, without waiting even for the butterflies to be harnessed, away
flew all the fairies in a regular scurry. Now, even fairies are apt to
do stupid things sometimes, especially when they are flustered and the
wymps have been at work; so there may be some excuse for what they did
on that particular morning. The fact is, they were so anxious to
arrive in time to give their christening presents to the royal baby,
that when they met a christening party coming along the road they never
stopped to see whether