ad no one of
her own age to play with, and often she felt very lonely, and she was
always asking her father to bring her someone to play with.

"By my troth," he would reply, "but that were no easy matter, for thou
art a royal Princess, and it befits not that such as thou shouldst play
with children of less noble blood."

Then little Princess Jean would go back to her splendid nurseries with
the tears rolling down her cheeks, wishing with all her heart that she
had been born just an ordinary little girl.

King Aylmer had gone away on a hunting expedition one day, and Princess
Jean was playing alone as usual, in her nursery, when she heard the
sound of her father's horn outside the castle walls, and the old porter
hurried across the courtyard to open the gate. A moment later the King's
voice rang through the hall, calling loudly for old Elspeth, the nurse.

The old dame hurried down the broad staircase, followed by the little
Princess, who was surprised that her father had returned so early from
his hunting, and what was her astonishment to see him standing, with all
his nobles round him, holding a fair-haired boy in his arms.

The boy's face was very white, and his eyes were shut, and the little
Princess thought that he was dead, and ran up to a gray-haired baron,
whose name was Athelbras, and hid her face against his rough hunting
coat.

But old Elspeth ran forward and took the boy's hand in hers, and laid
her ear against his heart, and then she asked that he might be carried
up into her own chamber, and that the housekeeper might be sent after
them with plenty of blankets, and hot water, and red wine.

When all this had been done, King Aylmer noticed his little daughter,
and when he saw how pale her cheeks were, he patted her head and said,
"Cheer up, child, the young cock-sparrow is not dead; 'tis but a swoon
caused by the cold and wet, and methinks when old Elspeth hath put a
little life into him, thou wilt mayhap have found a playfellow."

Then he called for his horse and rode away to hunt again, and Princess
Jean was once more left alone. But this time she did not feel lonely.

Her father's wonderful words, "Thou wilt mayhap have found a
playfellow," rang in her ears, and she was so busy thinking about them,
sitting by herself in the dark by the nursery fire, that she started
when old Elspeth opened the door of her room and called out, "Come,
Princess, the young gentleman hath had a sweet sleep, and would