nt he lifted her from the arms of her dead
mother; indeed, he did not seem to know that there was anyone else in
the world to love.

Now Diamantina, for that was her name, did not reach her fifteenth
birthday without proposals for marriage from every country under heaven;
but be the suitor who he might, the king always said him nay.

Behind the palace a large garden stretched away to the foot of some
hills, and more than one river flowed through. Hither the princess would
come each evening towards sunset, attended by her ladies, and gather
herself the flowers that were to adorn her rooms. She also brought with
her a pair of scissors to cut off the dead blooms, and a basket to put
them in, so that when the sun rose next morning he might see nothing
unsightly. When she had finished this task she would take a walk through
the town, so that the poor people might have a chance of speaking with
her, and telling her of their troubles; and then she would seek out her
father, and together they would consult over the best means of giving
help to those who needed it.

But what has all this to do with the White Slipper? my readers will ask.

Have patience, and you will see.

Next to his daughter, Balancin loved hunting, and it was his custom to
spend several mornings every week chasing the boars which abounded in
the mountains a few miles from the city. One day, rushing downhill as
fast as he could go, he put his foot into a hole and fell, rolling into
a rocky pit of brambles. The king's wounds were not very severe, but his
face and hands were cut and torn, while his feet were in a worse plight
still, for, instead of proper hunting boots, he only wore sandals, to
enable him to run more swiftly.

In a few days the king was as well as ever, and the signs of the
scratches were almost gone; but one foot still remained very sore, where
a thorn had pierced deeply and had festered. The best doctors in the
kingdom treated it with all their skill; they bathed, and poulticed, and
bandaged, but it was in vain. The foot only grew worse and worse, and
became daily more swollen and painful.

After everyone had tried his own particular cure, and found it fail,
there came news of a wonderful doctor in some distant land who had
healed the most astonishing diseases. On inquiring, it was found that he
never left the walls of his own city, and expected his patients to come
to see him; but, by dint of offering a large sum of money, the king
per