; and edged with diamonds of ice. In it were stored all
the mysteries which the wind had ever overheard; there were secrets,
confessions, vows, merry laughs, and simple words. And sure enough, in
the corner of the chest lay the rest of Malvolia's spell--a row of
little, old-fashioned, dusty words; the words: "Until he finds someone
brave enough to marry him."

So the good poodle learned the words by heart, thanked the Giant, and
hurried home with the message. When he came to the King's palace, he
ran, barking with joy, right into the King's own room. There he saw the
unhappy parents.

"Have you found the last of the sentence?" cried the Queen.

"Yes," said Poldo. "The spell will end when the prince marries."

That very evening the King and the Queen sent forth ambassadors to ask
for the hand of the loveliest princess of all Fairyland, Princess Adatha
of the Adamant Mountains. But so afraid was Adatha of being turned into
something else, that she refused the offer.

The King and the Queen then made a request for the hand of Princess
Alicia of the Crystal Lakes. But Alicia also was afraid of being turned
into something else, and she too refused the alliance. So did the
Princess of the Golden Coasts, the Princess of the Seven Cities, and
many others. Finally the only princess left in all Fairyland was a
princess who herself lay under an enchantment. A jealous witch had
turned her golden hair bright blue, and given her a nose a foot long.
This unhappy maiden was the only princess willing to accept poor
Rolandor.

The wedding day arrived. The Prince, though perhaps a little pale from
his confined life, looked very handsome, and led his ugly bride to the
altar like a man. Just exactly as the marriage ceremony was half over, a
spasm contorted the muscles of the Prince's face; the poor young man
felt strongly inclined to sneeze. Though he could be seen making heroic
efforts to control the impulse, the audience got very nervous and
panicky.

All was in vain! The Prince sneezed, "Ker choo!" A terrific clap of
thunder rent the air, and everybody looked about to see what had
happened.

The effect of the sneeze was an odd one. As it had occurred exactly at
the moment when the Prince was half-married, the spell had reacted upon
itself. "Just like a kick from a gun," Dr. Pill said next day.

The cats became dogs again, and the dogs became cats; the elm trees
became cross, elderly gentlemen looking for their families; the po