room. He never saw the beautiful ladies and
the gorgeous dresses. Worse than all, he never saw the Queen herself
at all. All thoughts of being a Prince had flown out of his head. As
though he had been bewitched, he had only one idea.

There was a mouse somewhere!

He was no longer Thomas the Prince in Disguise, he was only Thomas "the
good mouser."

He crept forward cautiously, sniffing as he went, and slid noiselessly
up to the Queen's great chair. Yes, there was the mouse peeping out
from behind one of the golden legs. Thomas sprang forward.

"What is that cat doing here?" called out the Queen. "Send him out of
the room immediately."

A dozen hands were stretched forward to seize the unfortunate Thomas.
He saw the mouse run like a dart towards a hole in the wall. He dashed
after it.

Then ensued such a hue and cry as never was seen. People rushed here,
and rushed there, and stepped on each other's toes, and tore each
other's gowns. Several ladies fainted, and everyone hurried in pursuit
of Thomas.

He ran this way and that, and turned and twisted himself in every
direction. At last he found himself near the door, and slipped out
with the whole crowd after him. He ran and ran till he had
outdistanced them all, and even then he still ran on from mere fright.

It was a very draggled and dishevelled Thomas that appeared next
morning at the stable door of his old home in the country.

"Hm, I thought so," said the old stable cat when she at last recognised
him. "Cat you were born, and cat you will remain all the rest of your
days. King of England indeed!"

Thomas has no Private History now.

HEY, DIDDLE, DIDDLE!

"_Live merrily_"

Hey, diddle, diddle!
The Cat and the Fiddle,
The Cow jumped over the moon.
The little Dog laughed to see such sport,
And the Dish ran away with the Spoon.

Once upon a time in a large white farm-house upon an open moor there
lived a Wizard.

As you know, wizards work very hard; and about once a year, usually
towards the middle of March, they take a holiday--and then very
extraordinary things happen.

One March night this particular Wizard set off upon his holiday as
usual.

Before he went he looked round to see that everything was tidy and in
its place. Yes, there was the Cat dozing in front of the fire. The
Fiddle was standing upright in a corner of the room. The Dish was on
the dresser and the Spoon in the basket. The little Dog was g