zon, ze Prince
Adalbert. You haf made him peenk--guite peenk; and you haf taught him
ze creeket. Id iz sblendid; and you moost rewarded be. Gif me my
burse, Erkelenz."

The slim equerry took a purse from his pocket and handed it to the
grand duke. The grand duke opened it, turned it upside down, poured on
to his palm eleven golden sovereigns, and pressed them with somewhat
clumsy fingers into Pollyooly's hands.

The amazed Pollyooly flushed; and her eyes shone like bright stars; the
family of Lippe-Schweidnitz rose a thousand feet in her estimation.

"Oh! Thank you, your Highness!" she gasped.

"Zere is no zanks--nod none! You haf made Adalbert peenk. You are von
sblendid anchel child. And id iz me to zank you," said the grand duke;
and very gently, for the size of his fingers, he patted her head. Then
he drew himself up and, with a splendid wave of his gigantic hand,
added:

"Und now go and blay wiz Adalbert--blay wiz him always!"

CHAPTER XVI

POLLYOOLY ENTERTAINS ROYALTY

Pollyooly came away from the presence of the grand duke in something of
a daze. She came down the steps in the sea-wall quite unconscious of
the fact that she was not moving over level ground. The eleven golden
sovereigns in her hand felt too good to be true; and at the bottom of
the steps she stopped and counted them with eyes which could hardly
believe what they saw: eleven golden sovereigns.

She gave them into the care of Mrs. Gibson while, in obedience to the
behest of the grand duke, she continued to play rounders.

The game had fallen into a state of suspended animation during her
absence from it. Her return enlivened it. Presently she was again
absorbed in it, playing it with the concentration with which she did
most things, the concentration which is so large a part of genius,
which made her one of the finest grillers of bacon in England. She
forgot the grand duke; she forgot the eleven golden sovereigns; she
thought only of the game; and she drove her team and the perspiring
prince with merciless vigor.

The grand duke watched it closely, now and then applauding in an
excited, ringing voice. Prince Adalbert had performed his one great
exploit and was now declined upon a lower level. He played his best,
obeying with his natural clumsiness the shrieked commands of Pollyooly;
but he did not again arise to a really meritorious feat. Nevertheless,
the grand duke was content with him.

He did not indeed wa