it was gone. He searched everywhere for it, but without success.
Finally, seeing the man who had made the suggestion about the teeth, he
asked him if he knew where it was.

"Yes," replied the man, "and if you will follow me I'll show you where
it is."

"Will you give it back to me? I made it, and have a right to it."

"Oh, if you must have it, you shall."

With that he led the way into the palace of the prince, and there, among
the most precious works of art in the collection, stood the faun. The
young sculptor cried out in alarm, declaring that the Prince Lorenzo
would never forgive the introduction of so rude a piece of work among
his treasures of sculpture. To his astonishment the man declared that he
was himself the Prince Lorenzo de' Medici, and that he set the highest
value upon this work.

"I am your protector and friend," he added. "Henceforth you shall be
counted as my son, for you are destined to become one of the great
masters of art."

This was overwhelming good-fortune. Lorenzo de' Medici was a powerful
nobleman, known far and wide to be a most expert judge of works of art.
His approval was in itself fame and fortune.

Filled with joy, the lad went straightway to his father's house, which
he had been forbidden to enter, and, forcing his way into Ludovico's
presence, told him what had happened. The father refused to believe the
good news until Michael led him into Lorenzo's presence.

When the prince, by way of emphasizing his goodwill, offered Ludovico
any post he might choose, he asked for a very modest place indeed,
saying, with bitter contempt, that it was good enough "for the father of
a mason."

THE WICKEDEST MAN IN THE WORLD.

Precisely at what time the faithful and affectionate subjects of his
Majesty Ivan IV., Czar of all the Russias, conferred upon him his pet
name, "The Terrible," history neglects to inform us, but we are left in
no uncertainty as to the entire appropriateness of the title, which is
now inseparably linked with his baptismal name. He inherited the throne
at the age of three years, and his early education was carefully
attended to by his faithful guardians, who snubbed and scared him, in
the hope that they might so far weaken his intellect as to secure a
permanent control over him, and through him govern Russia as they
pleased. They made a footstool of him sometimes, and a football at
others, and, under their system of training, the development of those
qualitie