THE MYSTERIOUS DOOR

By Ruth Plumly Thompson
Author of Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz, King Kojo, etc.

This story first appeared in the Philadelphia Public Ledger, November 5, 1916

There was once a Prince who had the misfortune to be in love with two Princesses at the same time. They were both so lovely and so charming that, try as he would, he could not decide which to marry. When he was with Princess Helene he felt sure that she was the one, but no sooner had he decided this definitely in his mind than he would encounter Princess Daphne, and her beauty immediately set his heart in a whirl and the whole matter would be at a standstill again. Matters went on in this unsatisfactory manner for some time, till finally the Prince in his perplexity consulted with the chiefest of his wise men.

The old wise man bade the Prince to cease from worrying. "Return in one day and three hours from now and I shall have thought the matter over," said he. So, in one day and three hours the Prince again mounted to the old fellow's tower, They talked together for possibly ten minutes, saying this, that and the other. Then the Prince clapped the old gentleman upon the back and clattered down the stairs in a high good humor.

Next day both Princesses and their mothers received invitations to visit the Prince's palace, and what clipping, stitching, shopping time there was getting them ready, for, needless to say, each Queen mother desired her daughter to marry the Prince. And the Prince's palace, too, was in a whirl of preparation, for entertaining two Princesses and two Queens is a terribly important matter.

The Prince welcomed his two Princesses with a burst of magnificence, with feastings and entertainments of every description. After a week had slipped pleasantly away, the Prince found himself no nearer a decision than before. Pretending to receive an urgent letter from a neighboring kingdom, he took an affectionate leave of his guests, begging them to make themselves at home in his absence. "There is but one thing I request of you"--(this he whispered to each Princess before leaving)--"upon NO condition venture into the north passageway."

Princess Daphne heard the injunction with a thrill of pleasure. "It is a test!" said she over and over. "And I shall win it, for Helene is the most curious creature in the world!" So she promptly imparted the information to her mama and the two began at once to make preparations for the wedding and were so taken up with silks, satins, embroideries and laces that they gave the matter hardly thought. To be really truthful, these matters were extremely important to Princess Daphne anyway, and she was never so happy as when choosing new dresses. Princess Helene was, as Daphne had said, "very curious!" and though she did everything in her power to keep from thinking of the north passageway, it seemed as if her feet carried her in that direction every day without her conscious consent. She had mentioned the matter to nobody, for surely if the Prince had wanted them to know he would have told them, she concluded sensibly. She rode in the mornings and went swimming in the afternoons in the royal pool and danced in the evenings with the polite gentlemen of the court, for she was a very lively and merry little Princess. But all the time she kept wondering and wondering about that passageway till finally she could endure it no longer.

Meanwhile, Princess Daphne grew more and more engrossed with her wedding preparations.

In all of her walks and dreams she thought of how she would conduct herself once she was married to the Prince. And, as is often the case with folks who think a deal upon one subject, she often spoke aloud, never dreaming that any one heard her.

"I will do this and that," quoth the Princess. "I will obey his slightest wish, for 'twould be madness to do otherwise and surely more is to be gained in this way. I will dress more grandly than any Princess in the world and no mean or common person shall approach me!" Thus she schemed and planned how she should wheedle the greatest amount of gold from the Prince, and whenever she met Princess Helene would shake her head pityingly, for she felt quite sure the poor dear thing could never pass the Prince's test.

And quite right she was, for one day, not long after the Prince's departure, Princes Helene went tiptoeing down the forbidden passage. At the very end was a great black door with a golden knob. "Do not open!" read a large sign nailed on the door.

"Oh, dear!" sighed the Princess, trying to peep through the keyhole. "Oh, dear!" Then she began reasoning half aloud. "Whatever made the Prince tell me about it if he did not want me to go in? I've just GOT to know what's in there.

"But I DO love the Prince!" she murmured softly, pausing with her hand upon the knob, "but if he doesn't love me enough to forgive me, then I'd better not marry him!" she finished breathlessly. Open went the door and in rushed the impetuous Princess, right into the arms of--well, whom to you s'pose?--the Prince himself.

"You dear, little, human sweetheart!" chuckled the Prince. "You--" Well, what more he said was entirely too much for me to repeat or you to listen to, but it all amounted to one thing, "Would she marry him?"

"And, indeed, she would!" And so they were--er--married, of course. For it seemed that the Prince wanted just a natural, human sort of a Princess, not a Princess who was always doing what she though he wanted her to do. And, for my part, I think the old wise man was a sly fox in the matter, don't you?

THE FORGETFUL POET

By Ruth Plumly Thompson

A puzzle from the Philadelphia Public Ledger, August 27, 1916.

The Forgetful Poet must be home from his vacation judging from the poem he has sent you:

I s'pose you're all going
Skip-lickety HOP
As fast as you can
To the stationer's ____!

To buy some new pens
And some books and some pads--
Eh, lassies, MY lassies?
Eh, laddies, my ____

Oh, 'tis fun to go 'way
But it's fine to come back
And hang up your hat
On the homey old ____!

I hope you can fill in the spaces, for, as usual, the dear fellow has forgotten to finish his verses.

Copyright © 2001 Eric Shanower and David Maxine. All rights reserved.

THE LAND OF THE CIVILIZED MONKEYS

The Twelfth Surprise from The Magical Monarch of Mo
by L. Frank Baum

Author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Flying Girl and Her Chum, Queen Zixi of Ix, The Boy Fortune Hunters in Yucatan, etc.

 
I must now tell you of a very strange adventure that befell Prince Zingle, which, had it not turned out exactly as it did, might have resulted in making him a captive for life in a remarkable country.

By consulting Smith's History of Prince Zingle you will notice that from boyhood he had a great passion for flying kites, and unlike other boys, he always undertook to make each kite larger than the last one. Therefore his kites grew in size, and became larger and larger, until at length the Prince made one twice as tall as himself.

When it was finished he was very proud of this great kite, and took it out to a level place to see how well it would fly, being accompanied by many of the people of Mo, who took considerable interest in the Prince's amusement.

There happened to be a strong south wind blowing and, fearing the kite might get away from him, Zingle tied the string around his waist. It flew beautifully at first, but pulled so hard the Prince could scarcely hold it.

At last, when the string was all let out, there came a sudden gust of wind, and in an instant poor Zingle was drawn into the air as easily as an ordinary kite draws its tail. Up and up he soared, and the kite followed the wind and carried him over many countries until the strength died out of the air, when the kite slowly settled toward the earth and landed the Prince in the top of a tall tree.

He now untied the string from his waist and fastened it to a branch of the tree, as he did not wish to lose the kite after all his bother in making it.

Then he began to climb down to the ground, but on reaching the lower branches he was arrested by a most curious sight.

Standing on the ground, and gazing up at him, were a dozen monkeys, all very neatly dressed and all evidently filled with surprise at the Prince's sudden appearance in the tree.

"What a very queer animal!" exclaimed an old monkey who wore a tall silk hat and had white kid gloves on his hands. Gold spectacles rested on his nose, and he pointed toward the Prince with a gold-headed cane. By his side was a little girl monkey dressed in pink skirts and a blue bonnet. When she saw Zingle she clung to the old monkey's hand and seemed frightened.

"Oh, Grandpapa!" she cried. "Take me back to Mamma. I'm afraid the strange beast will bite me."

Just then a big monkey wearing a blue coat with brass buttons and swinging a short club in his hand strutted up to them and said, "Don't be afraid, little one. The beast can't hurt you while I'm around!"

And then he tipped his cap over his left ear and shook his club at the Prince, as if he did not know what fear meant.

Two monkeys who were dressed in red jackets and carried muskets in their hands now came running up and, having looked at Zingle with much interest, they called for someone to bring them a strong rope.

"We will capture the brute and put him in the Zoo," said one of the soldier monkeys.

"What kind of animal is it?" asked the other.

"I do not know. But some of our college professors can doubtless tell, and even if they can't they will give it some scientific name that will satisfy the people just as well."

All this time Prince Zingle remained clinging to the branches of the tree. He could not understand a word of the monkey language and therefore had no idea what they were talking about, but he judged from their actions that the monkeys were not friendly. When they brought a long and stout rope, and prepared to throw one end of it over his head, in order to capture him, he became angry and called out to them:

"Stop--I command you! What is the meaning of this strange conduct? I am Prince Zingle, eldest son of the Monarch of Mo, and since I have been blown into your country through an accident, I certainly deserve kind treatment at your hands."

But this speech had no meaning in the ears of the monkeys, who said to one another: "Hear him bark! He jabbers away almost as if he could talk!"

By this time a large crowd of monkeys had surrounded the tree. Some were barefooted boy monkeys, and some lady monkeys dressed in silken gowns and gorgeous raiment of the latest mode, and others men monkeys of all sorts and conditions. There were dandified monkeys and sober-looking business monkeys, as well as several who appeared to be politicians and officials of high degree.

"Stand back, all of you!" shouted one of the soldiers. "We're going to capture this remarkable beast for the royal menagerie. Unless you stand out of the way he may show fight and bite someone."

So they moved back to a safe distance, and the soldier monkey prepared to throw a rope.

"Stop!" cried Zingle again. "Do you take me for a thief, that you try to bind me? I am a prince of the royal blood, and unless you treat me respectfully I shall have my father, the King, march his army on you and destroy your whole country."

"He barks louder," said the soldier. "Look out for him; he may be dangerous."

The next moment he threw the rope and caught poor Zingle around his arms and body, so that he was helpless. Then the soldier monkey pulled hard on the rope, and Prince Zingle fell out of the tree to the ground.

At first the monkeys all pressed backward, as if frightened, but their soldiers cried out, "We've got him! He can't bite now."

Then one of them approached the Prince and punched him with a stick, saying, "Stand up!"

Zingle did not understand the words, but he resented being prodded with the stick, so he sprang up and rushed on the soldier, kicking the stick from his hands, his own arms being bound by the rope.

The monkeys screamed and rushed in every direction, but the other soldier came behind the Prince and knocked him down with the butt of his gun. Then he tied the Prince's legs with another rope, and, seeing him thus bound, the crowd of monkeys, which had scattered and fallen over one another in their efforts to escape, came creeping timidly back and looked on him with fear and trembling.

"We've subdued him at last," remarked the soldier who had been kicked. "But he's a very fierce animal, and I shall take him to the zoo and lock him in one of the strongest cages."

So they led poor Zingle away to where the Royal Zoological Gardens were located, and there they put him into a big cage with iron bars. The door was fastened with two great padlocks.

Before very long every monkey in the country learned that a strange beast had been captured and brought to the zoo. Soon a large crowd had gathered before Zingle's cage to examine him.

"Isn't he sweet!" said a lady monkey who held a green parasol over her head and wore a purple veil on her face.

"Sweet!" grunted a man monkey standing beside her. "He's the ugliest-looking brute I ever saw! Scarcely has any hair on him at all, and no tail, and very little chin. I wonder where on earth the creature came from?"

"It may be once of those beings from whom our race is descended," said another onlooker. "The professors say we evolved from some primitive creature of this sort."

"Heaven forbid!" cried a dandy monkey, whose collar was so high that it kept tipping his hat over his eyes. "If I thought such a creature as that was one of my fore-fathers, I should commit suicide at once."

Zingle had been sitting on the floor of his cage and wondering what was to become of him in this strange country of monkeys, and now, to show his authority, one of the keepers took a long stick and began to poke the Prince to make him stand up.

"Stop that!" shouted the angry captive, and catching hold of the stick he jerked it from the keeper's hand and struck him a sharp blow on the head with it.

All the lady monkeys screamed at this, and the men monkeys exclaimed, "What an ugly disposition the beast has!"

The children monkeys began to throw peanuts between the bars of the cage, and Zingle, who had now become very hungry, picked them up and ate them. This act so pleased the little monkeys that they shouted with laughter.

At last two solemn-looking monkeys with gray hair, wearing long black coats and white neckties, came up to the cage, where they were greeted with much respect by the other monkeys.

"So this is the strange animal," said one of the newcomers, putting on his spectacles and looking sharply at the captive. "Do you recognize the species, Professor?"

The other aged monkey also regarded the Prince critically before he answered:

"I cannot say I have ever seen a specimen of this genus before. But one of our textbooks mentions an obscure animal called Homo Peculiaris, and I have no doubt this is one of that family. I shall write an article on the creature and claim he is a Homo, and without doubt the paper will create quite a stir in the scientific world."

"See here," suddenly demanded Prince Zingle, standing up and shaking the bars of his cage, "are you going to give me anything to eat? Or do you expect me to live on peanuts forever?"

Not knowing what he said, none of the monkeys paid any attention to this question. But one of the professor monkeys appeared to listen attentively, and then remarked to his friend, "There seems to be a smoothness and variety of sound in his speech that indicates that he possesses some sort of language. Had I time to study this brute, I might learn his method of communicating with his fellows. Indeed, there is a possibility that he may turn out to be the missing link."

However, since the professor had not yet learned his language, Prince Zingle was obliged to remain hungry. The monkeys threw several coconuts into the cage, but the prisoner did not know what kind of fruit these were. After several attempts to bite the hard shell, he decided they were not good to eat.

Day after day now passed away and, although crowds of monkeys came to examine Zingle in his cage, the poor Prince grew very pale and thin for lack of proper food, while the continuance of his unhappy imprisonment made him sad and melancholy.

"Could I but escape and find my way back to my father's valley," he moaned wearily, "I should be willing to fly small kites forever afterward."

Often he begged them to let him go, but the monkeys gruffly commanded him to "stop his jabbering," and poked him with long sticks that had sharp points, so that the Prince's life became one of great misery.

At the end of about two weeks a happy relief came to Zingle, for then a baby hippopotamus was captured and brought to the royal zoo, and after this the monkeys left the Prince's cage and crowded around that of the new arrival.

Finding himself thus deserted, Prince Zingle began to seek a means of escape from his confinement. His first attempt was to break the iron bars, but soon he found they were too big and strong. Then he shook the door with all his strength, but the big padlocks held firm and could not be broken. Then the prisoner gave way to despair, and threw himself on the floor of the cage, and wept bitterly.

Suddenly he heard a great shout from the direction of the cage where the baby hippopotamus was confined. The Prince rose to his feet and walked to the bars and attempted to look out and discover what was causing the excitement. To his astonishment he found he was able to thrust his head between two of the iron bars, having grown so thin through hunger and abuse that he was much smaller than when the monkeys had first captured him. He realized at once that if his head would pass between the bars, his body could be made to do so likewise. So he struggled bravely, and at last succeeded in squeezing his body between the bars and leaping safely to the ground.

Finding himself at liberty, the Prince lost no time in running to the tree where he had left his kite. But on the way some of the boy monkeys discovered him and raised a great cry, which soon brought hundreds of his enemies in pursuit.

Zingle had a good start, however, and soon reached the tree. Quickly he climbed up the trunk and branches until he had gained the limb where the string of his kite was still fastened. He untied the cord, wound it around his waist several times and then, finding a strong north wind blowing, he skillfully tossed the kite into the air. At once it filled and mounted to the sky, lifting Zingle from the tree and carrying him with perfect ease.

It was fortunate he got away at that moment, for several of the monkeys had scrambled up the tree after him, and were almost near enough to seize him by the legs when, to their surprise, he shot into the air. Indeed, so amazed were they by this remarkable escape of their prisoner that the monkeys remained staring into the air until Prince Zingle had become a little speck in the sky above them and finally disappeared.

That was the last our Prince ever saw of the strange country of the monkeys, for the wind carried his kite straight back to the Valley of Mo. When Zingle found himself above his father's palace, he took out his pocket knife and cut the string of the kite, and immediately fell headforemost into a pond of custard that lay in the back yard, where he dived through a floating island of whipped cream and disappeared from view.

Nuphsed, who was sitting on the bank of the custard lake, was nearly frightened into fits by this sight, and he ran to tell the King that a new meteor had fallen and ruined one of his floating islands.

Thereupon the Monarch and several of his courtiers rushed out and found Prince Zingle swimming ashore. The King was so delighted at seeing his lost son again that he clasped him joyfully in his arms.

The next moment he regretted this act, for his best ermine robe was smeared its whole length with custard, and would need considerable cleaning before it would be fit to wear again.

The Prince and the King soon changed their clothes, and then there was much rejoicing throughout the land. Of course the first thing Zingle asked for was something to eat, and before long he was sitting at a table heaped with all sorts of good things plucked fresh from the trees.

The people crowded around him, demanding the tale of his adventures, and their surprise was equaled only by their horror when they learned he had been captured by a band of monkeys, and shut up in a cage because he was thought to be a dangerous wild beast.

Experience is said to be an excellent teacher, although a very cruel one. Prince Zingle had now seen enough of foreign countries to remain contented with his own beautiful Valley, and, although it was many years before he again attempted to fly a kite, it was noticed that, when he at last did indulge in that sport, the kite was of a very small size. 

Copyright © 2001 Eric Shanower and David Maxine. All rights reserved.

THE LITTLE GINGERBREAD MAN

By Ruth Plumly Thompson Author of Kabumpo in Oz, "The Wizard of Pumperdink", "King, King! Double King!", etc. 

Originally published in 1923 by the Royal Baking Powder Company.


A ROYAL TIME

Once on a time there was a King
As cross as any bear,
He shook the cook and often took
A handful of his hair!
(And this was quite a shame because
He hadn't much to spare.)

But then, a wretched cook he was,
Which complicated things,
And sure as whales have fins and tails
Poor cooking makes poor Kings!

Now, this one flung folks right and left
And scolded without cause,
And, perched upon his throne, he made
A lot of dreadful laws.

And what you s'pose the last one was?
The last one, mercy sake!
Forbade his subjects to indulge
In any kind of cake.
Im--agine, and the Princess Posy's
Birthday right at hand.
A birthday and no cake;
Dismay and horror filled the land!

No Cakes in Jalapomp, No Buns--
The law said,--and No Tarts.
The Princess sighed, the Courtiers cried
Just fit to break their hearts.
"Without a cake a birthday's like
A King without a crown,"
The cook explained, and when he added
With a puzzled frown--

"Where shall we stick the candles, Sire?"
"Oh, stick them in your head!"
The old King muttered crossly
As he shuffled off to bed,
"And may a Gooch fly off with you!"
Yes, that is what he said.

But luckily, it happened that a
Little Flour Fairy heard
The whole affair and off she flew
And told it word for word
To the Queen of all the Flour Folk
Who in a castle grand
All built of wooden bowls and spoons
Rules over Cookry Land.

And there she was a-baking
Out of fragrant gingerbread
A little man who from the pan
Rose as we rise from bed,
For all the cakes that this Queen makes
Are alive in Cookry Town,
And you can see them any day
Go skipping up and down.

And as the good Queen listened
To the little Fairy's tale,
The little man of gingerbread
With resolution pale
Spoke up; said he, "Here's work for me
Allow ME to persuade
This naughty King that cake's the thing
Provided it is made
The ROYAL way. I'll start to-day,
I'll call for volunteers."
And call he did so loudly
All the cakes pricked up their ears.

"For the honor of good cakes, who'll go
To Jalapomp?" he cried.
"I will," a sugar cooky said
And hurried to his side.

Then smoking and lighthearted
Came a lovely buckwheat cake,
A doughnut rolled up jauntily
And next, for sugar sake!
A bluff and hearty muffin-eer
And after him a funny
And awful sticky little tricky
Fat old cin'min bunny.
"I'll go a-hopping," said the Bun
And winked his raisin eyes,
Then came a little chocolate cake
Of lovely shape and size.

"Right!" cried the Queen.
"You all shall go
And take this little book
And in the can, brave Gingerbread Man,
Is something for the cook."

And then the Queen of Cookry Land
Clapped both her hands. Next minute
Down swooped a chocolate aeroplane
And all the cakes jumped in it.
Then off they sped to Jalapomp
And very swiftly too,
Ten miles a minute is the least
A chocolate plane will do.

Under a pickle tree the King
Of Jalapomp sat reading,
When straight above his kingly head
The chocolate plane came speeding.

"I smell fresh cakes!" the King did cry
In a voice of wrath and thunder,
"Who's baking cakes in Jalapomp
And breaking laws, I wonder?"
He sniffed and then he sniffed again
And not with rage--but zest,
"Of all the cakes I ever smelled
Sniff! Sniff! These are the best."
No wonder! Each cake in the plane
Was fresh and smoking slightly.
"Hello!" called Johnny Gingerbread
And waved his cap politely.

The King looked up and when he saw
Cakes all alive and tempting--
He lost his anger then and there
And found himself relenting.

Now running from the left and right
Came everyone to see
The leader of the Flying Corps,
Their hero soon to be.

"Ahem!" coughed Johnny Gingerbread,
"You've made a law, I hear,
Against all cakes in Jalapomp--
We cannot come too near."

"Oh, please come down," the Princess cried,
"Please do, my little honey."
"You would not have us break the law,
It's safer here," said Bunny.

Then Cin'min Bunny wagged his ears,
"If we were on the ground
I'm very much afraid we'd have
To pass ourselves around!"

"Please do," the King begged, jumping up.
"But how about the law?
We must not trespass," said the Bun,
And the poor King dropped his jaw.

With each look he grew hungrier,
And said with much ado,
"When I forbade the use of cake
It was not meant for you.
Our cook could never make good cake,
His cakes were quite detestible,
Heavier than a keg of nails
And just as indigestible.

"If he could make such cakes as you
I'd break the law myself,
And have a dozen cooky jars
Upon the pantry shelf."

"Hurray!" cried Johnny Gingerbread,
"When all is said and spoken,
He can, and that obnoxious law
Is just as good as broken.
"Good cakes are good for everyone
But 'specially are they good
For boys and girls.
Remember this:
Good cake is also FOOD.

"Good cakes are light and tasty
And," his voice grew loud and louder,
"Good cakes like us are baked with care
And ROYAL BAKING POWDER!"

"Then give me some," the poor cook pleaded
With a frantic spring,
"And I will make a cake that's fit
To set before a king!"

"And it will be my birthday cake,"
The Princess cried in glee,
"Oh, thank you, Johnny Gingerbread,
Do please come down to me!"

But little Johnny Gingerbread
Just winked his sugar eye
And whispered to the others,
"It's time for us to fly,
For when that edict really breaks
We'll all be little angel cakes!"

But first he tossed the ROYAL BAKING
POWDER to the cook
And down beside it fell the magic
Royal Cooking Book.

That very day cook baked a cake
So flaky, sweet and light,
The King embraced and raised him
To a ROYAL COOK and Knight.

And when his friends all questioned him
The cook winked both his eyes,
"Who uses Royal Baking Powder's
Simply bound to rise."

Since then his cooking has improved
In every single way
And the King grows more contented
And sweeter every day.
In fact I think without a question
His temper came from indigestion.

Now Johnny Gingerbread goes flying
From Cookry Town each day
To take his news to other folks,
In places far away.
He flies around from town to town,
And drops his Books and Powder down,
So everyone can have good cakes,
The kind that ROYAL always makes.

Copyright © 2001 Eric Shanower and David Maxine. All rights reserved. 

THE MAGIC SPECTACLES

By Ruth Plumly Thompson
Author of The Hungry Tiger of Oz, King Kojo, etc. 

Originally published in the Philadelphia Public Ledger, January 30 - February 6, 1916


Once upon a time there was a king who was no longer young and wishing to see his only daughter suitably married and his kingdom wisely bestowed ere his death, he issued a proclamation bidding all the princes of the surrounding realms to present themselves at his court that he might choose among them a husband for his daughter. This should not surprise you, as it seemed to be quite the usual thing for ancient kings to do--at least, all the kings of whom I have read. The proclamation also stated that the prince bringing with him the gift most pleasing to the princess would certainly be chosen. As you can well imagine, this caused no end of excitement in the country round about.

The highways leading to the palace were soon crowded with princes determined to win the kingdom and the princess, whose charms were such that even without a kingdom, she would not have been wanting for a husband. Some came with their whole retinue of servants, others came unattended, some rode in gold chariots, some in silver, others who wished to appear especially gorgeous, came riding on elephants and camels. Such confusion! Such running to and fro among the palace servants to attend to all their highnesses. Such a grumbling among the royal cooks; indeed, it is a wonder the poor old queen was not driven crazy with it all. As for the princess, she grew so stiff from continually curtseying that she retired to her tower and refused to welcome another one, and so crowded did the palace become that the two princes arriving last were obliged to satisfy themselves with quarters in the stable.

The king, seeing what a commotion he had brought about his ears, hastily appointed the next morning for the presentation of gifts. "For," as he said to the queen, "with all of these gentlemen eating up my money, there will soon be none left to bestow!"

So early next morning the princes filed through the royal salon and so many there were that it was quite 5 o'clock before the last two princes wound up the procession. As for the gifts, the princess was scarce visible behind the stack, for each prince left his offering at her feet. There were dozens of ruby and diamond necklaces, shimmering brocades, a dog so tiny he could sit upon the palm of one's hand, music boxes and trained birds, an Arabian horse, rugs, chests, golden chairs, and soup tureens all jumbled together, and dear only knows what not besides. But the princess had not so much as smiled at any one of them and seemed inclined not to choose at all. The poor king was quite worn out and had tied his silk handkerchief around his head, which ached sadly from the squawking of the birds and music boxes, etc.

At 5 o'clock, as I have said before, came the last two princes and one was but indifferent to look upon, being neither very tall not yet very short and in no wise remarkable, but the other, ah! he was a prince, indeed, tall and strong with flashing black eyes. He stepped confidently up to the princess and dropping gracefully on one knee, proffered her a tiny leather case. "This, gracious lady, will enable you to know your enemies!" said the prince. Curious for the first time, the princess eagerly opened the case and was much astonished to find--what do you think? A pair of smoked spectacles. "With these MAGIC SPECTACLES you can see the evil which exists in every creature's heart and thus protect yourself from all harm!" continued the Prince.

"Ah!" muttered the old king, "would that I possessed such a treasure!" Even the princess was interested now and setting the spectacles upon her small nose turned upon her chief lady in waiting! Mercies! Away flew the pleasant companion she had known and in her place an ugly tempered scold who shook the serving maids and boxed the ears of the cook's children when no one was looking. The princess drew away from the lady in waiting, though, of course, the poor woman could not guess what she had seen. Now she turned to the next lady in waiting only to see this trusted friend slipping one of the diamond necklaces into her pocket. And so it went, no matter where she looked she found evil, fancy even in her royal father, for turning upon him suddenly, the father she knew faded away and in his place she saw a miserly old man counting off his money bags in a deep cellar that she had never know to exist. "Is it not a wonderful gift?" chuckled the prince, rubbing his hands together delightedly.

"Let me try them! Let me try them!" urged the king, and the princess quietly passed them to her father. "What a wicked world this is!" she reflected sadly. "Only yesterday everything was so different. Oh, well, it is a good thing I am to possess these magic spectacles," and she began running over in her mind all the people she would try them on. Meanwhile, a terrible commotion had arisen, for the king had no sooner put on the spectacles than he began loudly calling for the guards. Looking at his prime minister, he saw him opening the money boxes and stuffing the gold into his pockets. Every one he looked at he saw cheating him in some way or other. The magic spectacles showed what every one thought and what they were plotting and no matter what evil they had done, whether it was months and months ago, the king saw it all now! He fairly tore his hair with rage and disgust and the courtiers could not imagine what had happened.

In the very midst of the excitement, the second prince stepped up to the princess. In the general confusion he had been entirely forgotten. The king waved him angrily aside. "The princess accepts the magic spectacles!" he announced haughtily. The princess was about to nod her head "Yes," when she caught sight of a case in the second prince's hands exactly like the one that had contained the dark spectacles.

"Would your highness care to look at my gift?" asked the prince, and so pleasant was his voice and though no one would have called him handsome, there was that about him which compelled the princes to look at the gift. She snapped open the leather case and there was another pair of spectacles--only this pair was pink! "To enable you to know your friends!" said the second prince, as the princess continued to gaze in astonishment at the spectacles. The first prince grew quite indignant at this and tried to push the second prince aside, but he stood his ground firmly and just then a remarkable thing happened.

The king caught his daughter by the arm and thrusting the smoked spectacles into her hands, whispered something in her ear. Can you guess what? The princess immediately put them on and looked at the first prince. "Oh! Oh!" she cried in distress, "I can never marry him!" No wonder, dears and ducks, for through the smoked glasses the prince appeared quite differently, kicking the dogs in his stable and whipping his horse, pushing aside a lame old beggar man; in fact, showing himself as he really was, cruel and selfish.

Hardly knowing what she did, the princess turned to the second prince and looked at him through the evil spectacles. But he changed never a whit, indeed, he looked even pleasanter than before. So wrought up was the Princess that she declared upon the spot that she would marry him and no one else, and though it was declared afterward to have been unbecoming in a princess, she threw her arms about his neck.

Whereupon the prince immediately set the pink spectacles upon her nose and straightway everything changed. For the pink spectacles showed one all the hidden good in people and when once you know something good about a person it is hard to think evil of him. The waiting woman they showed taking care of her blind sister with great tenderness and patience, indeed, they showed so many good points in everybody that the princess had never suspected, that she became merry as a lark,

The first prince took his smoked glasses and departed in a temper and the second prince, whose name was as sensible as himself, being just plain John, married the princess next day amid general rejoicing. And with the magic pink spectacles to help them they found so much good in their subjects that their kingdom became the happiest place in the world. 

Copyright © 2001 Eric Shanower and David Maxine. All rights reserved.

TALE OF A TROLL

By Ruth Plumly Thompson
Author of The Royal Book of Oz, Kabumpo in Oz, etc.

Originally published in the Philadelphia Public Ledger, Oct. 14, 1917 


Speaking of trolls (what's that you say, you weren't speaking of 'em) - well, no matter, let me tell you about Grimplekin, a droll little troll who got lost in a bowl. Of batter - I had to put this in another sentence because batter would not rhyme with troll. Well, I regret to say that Grimplekin was very fond of staying out early and often neglected his work. The special work of the trolls, you know, is making the bread rise, and each little fellow has a certain number of kitchens to visit each night. Most trolls live in the north countries, so do not be surprised when I tell you that Grimplekin lived in Norway. But after all that is not so important as our story.

One night Grimplekin had lingered longer than ever over a game of dories, which, by the way, is quite like checkers, and when he finally started out to make his rounds 'twas almost time for the cocks to crow. Yawning and gaping he dragged himself sleepily along, snapping his fingers over the pans of batter the good wives had set to rise (bread will not rise without this trollish finger snapping, let me tell you), and grumbling crossly to himself over the number of them. Finally he came to the last cottage. He made short work of the pans and climbed slowly to the top of a big bowl which stood at the end of the row. Snapping his fingers over the dough he sat down on the rim of the bowl to rest and whatever do you 'spose. First his head nodded forward, then it nodded backward, then he fell asleep, then he fell into the bowl, down, down, down into the soft dough and it closed over his head. Snugly as if he were tucked in his own little bed Grimplekin slept. Indeed he had never had so warm and soft a bed. "Too much moss," he mumbled drowsily, waking up after ever so long a nap. Then he tried to sit up to throw off his moss comforter, for, of course, he supposed himself in his own bed. He could not move and every minute it was growing warmer, for, my dears and ducks, it was morning and bread and troll were merrily baking in the big brick oven.

Oh, what a fix! Exerting all his strength Grimplekin finally freed his hands. Then he reached into his pocket and got his little knife. Slish, slash, he began cutting himself free from the soft hot bread. Fortunately trolls are used to heat, but even so it was terribly stuffy. Soon he had made a little open place in the center of the loaf and pulling off a piece of the soft bread he sat down to mop his brow and try to think of a way to get out. The thought of the sharp breadknife sent a shiver of dismay down his crooked little back, despite the heat, and in a panic he began tearing his way up toward the top of the loaf.

He had gotten about half way up when something hard hit him on the head and knocked him down again. He picked himself up crossly -- there it was again. This time he grasped it firmly, only to have it give way and land him again on the floor of the loaf. It was the straw with which the good dame was testing the bread, and imagine her astonishment to have it jerked out of her hands and disappear into the loaf. "I must have dropped it," she murmured to herself in puzzled tones; then as the loaves were just a nice brown she forgot all about it in hustling them out of the oven.

Poor Grimplekin, how he was jostled and bumped around in the little hole he had made in the center of the loaf, and worst of all he lost himself. That is to say, when a sudden turn stood him on his head, he quite forgot which way was toward the top, which way toward the end of the loaf. But fortunately he had a compass and with its aid he began working toward the top crust, only to find when he had scooped his way up that it was too hard and thick for him to cut through. In rage and fright he bumped his head against that imprisoning crust and vowed never again to fall asleep over his work.

All day he pecked away with his little knife and at last fell asleep with exhaustion on the bottom of the loaf. There was, of course, no way for Grimplekin to tell that it was the next morning, for inside of a loaf of bread there is no night or day, only a queer sort of twilight. But Grimplekin did know that he was hungry and thirsty. His hunger he satisfied by nibbling a few crumbs from his prison walls, but there was nothing with which to parch his poor dry little throat, and this set him to work harder than ever.

"Funny how this loaf of bread crackles," said the housewife giving it a shake that sent Grimplekin head over heels. But just then her good husband called loudly for his breakfast, so she set the loaf down and hurried off.

But please do not think that little Grimplekin was cut in two by the sharp breadknife or that he died of thirst. No indeedy. After school that day, along came the children and tiptoeing past the room where their mother was sewing went into the kitchen. One took a glass of jelly and one picked up the very loaf the little troll was in and away they pattered to have a tea party in the doll house. Almost breathless from bumping about and quite sure that his end was near Grimplekin climbed again to the top of the loaf as soon as it was set down. But in truth his release was at hand, very much so, for at that minute the little girl anxious to begin stuck her pudgy fist right through the top of the loaf. In a flash Grimplekin seized the tiny thumb, and with a shriek the hand was withdrawn. Two springs and the little troll had disappeared leaving the children gasping, half with terror and half with delight.

Of course when they told their mother about the queer little man she exclaimed, "Nonsense!" But you and I know that grown-ups are very dense about fairy folk and that is why they never see them. And as you can well believe Grimplekin was very particular after that where he went to sleep and I am glad to report that he attended to his work before cock's crow. 

Copyright © 2001 Eric Shanower and David Maxine. All rights reserved.