where he had hidden them.
He was cramming them into his pockets with very little thought for their
feelings, when he happened to remember his sister's baby-house, which
not only had parlors, bedrooms, and dining-rooms in plenty, but was well
furnished with everything which the heart of little people could desire.
This he begged very humbly of the new king, and having it granted him he
packed his family into it, making them as comfortable as their reduced
circumstances would allow. A grinning footman strapped the box on the
back of the Prince as an organ-grinder carries his organ; then he
helped him out of the palace with a sudden push which had nearly sent
him headlong down the steps. Laughing pages ran before him, and the
Prince recalled the many times he had tweaked their noses and stuck pins
in the calves of their legs. Everybody seemed heartily glad to see him
go.

"Good riddance to bad rubbish!" quoth the palace hound; "you will never
again put my meat up a tree where I cannot get it."

"Get out with you!" snapped the royal cat. "I'm glad you are turned out
of the house. Let us hope a body can take a nap in comfort now, without
having her tail stepped on or snuff sprinkled in her face."

"Don't trouble yourself ever to come back," screeched the peacock,
hoarsely. "For my part, I'm tired of having my handsomest tail-feathers
snatched out by the handful. I'm sure I trust I shall never set eyes on
you again."

So it was with all the animals in the royal gardens. The deer, the emus,
the gazelles, the swans, the flamingoes, the parrots, even his own
particular white mice and spotted guinea pigs, declared that they were
glad he was going, and hoped he might never come back any more. Not a
creature did anything but rejoice as the royal beggar was tumbled rudely
out from his own father's gardens and left standing alone in the
highway, already heartily sorry for his prank, and quite at his wits'
end as to what to do with the Court which he carried in his baggage.

[Illustration]

V

Considering that Prince Vance had never done anything at all for
himself, not even so much as to tie his own shoe-strings, it was a
pretty hard lot for him to be turned out into the world to get his own
living, and take care of the whole Court besides. At first he was almost
tempted to throw away the box and all his relatives with it; but
although of course he could not be expected to think so much of his
father and mother now