ighty at first that he would not present more than two
fingers, when an emperor had offered him his whole hand.

It need hardly be said that none of the others seated in the bower
refused to accord the Emperor a fitting greeting. Now that the
first feeling of surprise and embarrassment had passed and the men
were beginning to perceive that he was not a difficult person to
get on with, emperor though he was, they were as eager as was every
one else to hear all about the little girl's rise to royal honours
and her prospective return to her home parish. At last he was on so
friendly a footing with them all that he even consented to sing for
them the song he had learned in the forest.

This was perhaps too great a condescension on his part, but since
they were all so glad for every word he uttered he could not deny
them the pleasure of hearing him sing, also.

And when he raised his voice in song imagine the consternation!
Then his audience was not confined to the group of elderly
gentlemen in the bower, For immediately the old countesses and the
old wives of the old generals who had been sitting on the big sofa
in the drawing room, sipping tea and eating bonbons, and the young
barons and young Court ladies who had been dancing in the ballroom,
all came rushing out to hear him and all eyes were fixed on him,
which was quite the proper thing, as he was an emperor.

The like of that song they had never heard, of course, and as soon
as he had sung it through they wanted him to sing it again. He
hesitated a good while--for one must never be too obliging in such
matters--but they would not be satisfied until he had yielded to
their importunities. And this time, when he came to the refrain,
they all joined in, and when he got to the "boom, boom" the young
barons beat time with their feet and the young Court ladies clapped
their hands to the measure of the tune.

But that was a wonderful lay! As he sang it again and again, with
so many smartly dressed people chiming in; so many pretty young
ladies darting him glances of approval; so many young swains
shouting _bravo_ after every verse, he felt as dizzy as if he had
been dancing. It was as if some one had taken him in their arms and
lifted him into the air.

He did not lose his head, though, but knew all the while that his
feet were still on the earth. Meantime, he had the pleasant
sensation of being elevated far above every one. On the one hand,
he was being borne up by th