The Enchanted Castle

of magic and the world that seems to us to be real. And when once people have found one of the little weak s

oth at once, have felt a strange, unreasonable, but quite irresistible desire to return instantly to the Temple of Flora-even at the cost of leaving the dolls' tea-service i

he golden hush of the afternoon, the more certain eac

nds in the darkness of the passage, uttered their first concerted yell, "ju

The stone door itself swung slowly open, and they were out of it, in the Temple of Flora, blinki

London," Mabel pointed out; "you migh

t think of everything. And besides, no, thank you! No

thing with the ring

when you see the sort of things

e that if I was wishing wi

with it. I oughtn't ever to have taken it away, really. It's a sort of stealing. It'

Gerald, "only if any of us do think of a sensible

of course,"

that let down the panelling and showed the jewels, and the ring was pu

s any magic about it. It's just like an old silly ring. I wonder i

gic things are spiteful. They just

, everything's been rather upsetting, and

immy, a little of the City man he had been clinging to him still, said that the steel collar would ensure your always having money in your pockets, his own re

said Mabel at last; "and, I say!" s

ha

ven the ri

e know

believe it's the other day-we've just dreamed all these th

rald; "you were in your

" said Mabel, opening h

silly," said G

and I think it's time you went

Princess-clothes that day. Come along; let's shut u

ng?" sai

her," said Gerald. "She'

t I'm inspired like a Python o

said Kathleen; "th

at's how it came to make us invisible-I just said it. Oh, we can't leave it here, if that's w

hing-ring,"

abel, more and more excited. "I say it isn't a wishing-ring

e the ring showed high above the children's heads on the fing

in vain that Mabel asserted that the ring was a wishing-rin

last," said Gerald. "Look at the invisibleness." Thi

said Kathleen. "Oh, Mabe

hen I said it was what I said it was. Then I shouldn't have had to show you, a

et your right size again-that's

abel, stamping a foot t

pty rooms. You wo

"Oh, I do wish we'd just pu

didn't," said Jimmy, with

ack now," said Ma

n't want to stay that length, do you? And unless the ring's o

lid into place, and all the bright jewels were hidden. Once more t

leave to stay the night with you. As it is, one of you will have to stay

s Gerald remarked, "wonderfully worm-like." Her clothes had, of course, grown with her, and she looked like a little girl reflected in one of those long bent mirrors at Rosherville Ga

tting there, gi

LOOR, AND IT WAS LIKE A FOUR-F

o as to be able to get through the door. It'll have to be

ngry?" Jimmy a

bel desolately; "it's-i

said Gerald; "if t

I think I'd rather be out

me one's certa

"There's a yew-hedge with a passage along its ins

wh

for hidden doors in panels and things. If I crept along that on my front, like a serpe

aid Gerald, who

e isn't," said Jimmy,

te to auntie. She'll give you the things for a picnic, if

eaf of Gerald's inv

est A

bring them. I would come myself, but I am a little tired.

ab

, because some of

me to settle themselves among the rhododendrons and to wonder bitterly what on earth Gerald was up to, to be such a time gone, when he returned, pa

peered out from rhododendron

on't I?" she asked anxiously; "all the rest

acken and leaves," said Kathleen, avoiding the questi

somebody's matchless something for the hair and moustache. Mabel cautiously advanced her incredible arms from the rhododendron and leaned on one of her spindly elbows, Gerald cut bread and butter, while Kathleen obligingly ran round, a

cake,

ahoy,

s the go

ities of the party. Even the unfortunate Mabel was conscious of it in her remote feet, that lay crossed under the third rhododen

couldn't eat so much as anot

re all gone, and I've had my share. But I

y of the vast stone dinosaurus showed through the shrubs. He, too, seemed peaceful and happy. G

meal in his day," said Ger

o d

t's-his-name,

-day," said Kathl

?" said Mabel,

chest," said Kathleen anxiously, "o

immy asked suspiciously. "Wh

put in his inside," said

aid Jimmy, suddenly cross. "We d

to know. Wake me, you girls, when you've f

is eyes, and lay back in

ly that we fed the dinosaurus through the hole in his

said Gerald, chewing the white end of

he ring a bit. I won't say what the idea is, in case it doesn't come

ulled off the ring. "Of course," she added earnestly, "I'm

of her own fat, warm, red paws, she jumped up, crying, "Let's go and empty the dinosaurus now," and started to run swiftly towards that prehistoric monster. She had a good start. She wanted to say aloud, yet so that the others could not hear her, "Thi

r up before she reached the great black shadow of the dinosaurus. So that when she did reach that

gs down, because I know exactl

the dark inside of the monster. In a moment a shower began to descend from the opening-a sho

sticks and golf-sticks and hockey-sticks and broom-sti

n," sai

nds and jumped. Just as he got his shoulders through the opening and his knees on the edge he

suppose statues are always coo

uish. And it seemed to be cut off ve

e changed to clear yellow he looked up to see what he had known he would see-the face of Kathleen, white, stony, and lifeless. Her hair was white, too, and her hands, clothes, shoes-everything was white, with the hard, cold whiteness of marble. Kathleen had her wish: she was a statue. There was

d said that ring was a wishing-ring. And so it was, of course. I see now what she was

?" asked Ji

And Jimmy came, partly with a pull from

ugh," he said, in awestruc

ald firmly. "Come on-l

ngth screened by rhododendrons, the two boys returned and broke t

HER WISH: SHE

hat the leaves and fern tumbled off in little showers, and she felt the

ight," said Gerald

up before hers is. Couldn't you get it back? Can't you get it off her hand? I'd pu

wering the sniffs that had served her in this speec

I am. Do-do try and get the ring. After all, it is my ring more than any of

present in the breast of G

nd all her clothes. But I'll go and see. Only if I can

nosaurus showed the ring dark on the

took hold of the ring, and, to his surprise, it

his helped to clear up his ideas as to what he and the others did mean to do. So that when, after thumping the statue hearteningly on its marble back, he returned to the rhododendrons, he was able to giv

said to Mabel. "Now you're not f

farther up in the wood if you'll leave me all the coats, so that I sha'n't be col

"that was exactly th

demoiselle that Kathleen's s

Jimmy, "she

no knowing what number it will be really. So there's no knowing which of you will come right first. Anyhow, we'll sneak out by the cistern window and come down the trellis, after we

unreal as the wrong answer to a sum in long division. It was to her an easy matter to crouch beneath

ge; "I shall be quite close to you. You call me

N, WAS COVERE

or Mademoiselle to become anxious and set the police on their track. Every one felt that. The shock of discovering the missing Kathleen, not only in a dinosaurus's stomach, but, further, in a stone statue o

," said Gerald, "why, it would send

s have had to jolly well get used to thin

y! all the sam

course,"

n a case of marble that would not let her move. It would not have let her cry, even if she wanted to. But she had not wanted to cry. Inside, the marble was not cold or hard. It seemed, somehow, to be softly lined with warmth and pleasantness and safety. Her back did not ache with stooping. Her limbs were not stiff with the hours that they had stayed moveless. Everything was well-better than

he was standing and that her feet had pins and needles in them. Her arms, too, held out in that odd way, were stiff

s her instant conclusion,

n the stone beast's underside, and as she did so a long, slow lurch th

dreadful! It must be moonlight, an

should happen to be in one's way-quite difficult, however much one tried. And the dinosaurus would not try. Why should it? Kathleen hung in an agony over the round opening. The huge beast swung from side to side. It was going faster; it was no good, she dared not jump out. Anyhow, they must be quite away from Mabel by now. Faster and faster went the dinosaurus. The floor of its stomach sloped. They were going downhill. Twigs cracked and broke as it pushed through a belt of evergreen oaks; gravel crunched, ground beneath

, and next moment Ph?bus had jumped from the pedestal in his litt

N, WAS COVERE

raceful shoulder. "I should not have

uite, quite new. And I di

bus laughed. "

I'm a

I?" he

d, but not afraid; "only I thought you had to hav

s rather to his credit, for she had certa

d see each other in the few moments when life is o

mortal," s

! I go," and the next moment rings of liquid silver spread across the lake, widening and wideni

She passed through the rhododendron bushes, remembered the pointed painted paper face that had looked out from the glossy leaves, expected to be frightened-and wasn't. She found Mabel easily enough, and much more easily than she would have done had Mabel been as she wished to find her. For quite

?" she sai

me," Kathle

ur hands are

d Kathleen, "a

m awfully tired, and it's

yet," said Kathleen sadly,

es-then suddenly she s

se horn snakes when you make it go short to

f a horn spiral snake between the closing hands of a child. Mabel's distant feet drew

you are! Oh, I am so

once more Mabel, not only in herself, which, of course,

! I am so glad!" said Kathleen kindly;

g up and staring at Kathleen with he

Kathleen aske

was Mabel'

," said Kathle

w?" said Mabel. "Look at yourself

eness. Her dress, too-her shoes, her stockings, even t

inning to tremble. "What am

n't you see? You've not come

alive-I'm tal

soothing her as one soothes a fractious

can see I

can. I've g

l right; I

INNING TO TREMBLE. "WHAT AM

ve just come alive with all the other statues. And when the moon goes down you'll just be a statue again. That's the difficulty, dear,

hleen, "and so are all

bright side of things, "then we've got o