The Little Lame Prince Read online

  CHAPTER V.

  No doubt you think Prince Dolor was unhappy. If you had seen him as hesat patiently untying his wonderful cloak, which was done up in a verytight parcel, using his deft little hands, and knitting his brows withdetermination, while his eyes glistened with pleasure, you might havechanged your opinion.

  When Prince Dolor had carefully untied all the knots, the cloak beganto undo itself. Slowly unfolding, it laid itself down on the carpet,as flat as if it had been ironed; the split joined with a little sharpcrick-crack, and the rim turned up all round till it was breast-high;for the meantime the cloak had grown and grown, and become quite largeenough for one person to sit in it, as comfortable as if in a boat.

  The Prince watched it rather anxiously; it was such an extraordinarything. However, he was no coward, but a thorough boy, who, if he hadbeen like other boys, would doubtless have grown up daring andadventurous--a soldier--a sailor, or the like. As it was, he couldonly show his courage by being afraid of nothing, and by doing boldlyall that was in his power. And I am not sure but that in this way heshowed more real valor than if he had had six pairs of proper legs.

  He said to himself, "What a goose I am! As if my dear godmother wouldever have given me anything to hurt me. Here goes!"

  So, with one of his active leaps, he sprang right into the middle of thecloak, where he squatted down, wrapping his arms tight round his knees,for they shook a little and his heart beat fast. But there he sat,waiting for what might happen next.

  PRINCE DOLOR MADE A SNATCH AT THE TOPMOST TWIG OF THETALLEST TREE. [PAGE 32.]]

  Nothing did happen, and he began to think nothing would when herecollected the words. "Abracadabra, dum, dum, dum!"

  He repeated them, laughing all the while, they seemed such nonsense.And then--and then--

  The cloak rose, slowly and steadily at first, only a few inches, thengradually higher and higher, till it nearly touched the skylight. PrinceDolor's head actually bumped against the glass.

  Then he suddenly remembered his godmother's command--"Open theskylight!"

  Without a moment's delay he began searching for the bolt, the cloakremaining balanced in the air. The minute the window was opened, out itsailed--right into the clear fresh air, with nothing between it and thecloudless blue. Prince Dolor had never felt such delicious sensationbefore.

  The happiness of the Prince cannot be described, when he got out ofHopeless Tower, and found himself for the first time in the pure openair, with the sky above him and the earth below.

  True, there was nothing but earth and sky; no houses, no trees, norivers, mountains, seas--not a beast on the ground, or a bird in theair. But to him even the level plain looked beautiful; and then therewas the glorious arch of the sky, with a little young moon sitting inthe west like a baby queen. And the evening breeze was so sweet andfresh, it kissed him like his godmother's kisses; and by-and-by a fewstars came out, first two or three, and then quantities--quantities! sothat when he began to count them, he was utterly bewildered.

  By this time, however, the breeze had become cold and as he had, as hesaid, no outdoor clothes, poor Prince Dolor began to shiver.

  "Perhaps I had better go home," thought he.

  But how--for in his excitement the other words which his godmother hadtold him to use had slipped his memory, and the cloak only went fasterand faster, skimming on through the dusky, empty air.

  The poor little Prince began to feel frightened. What if his wonderfultraveling-cloak should keep on thus traveling, perhaps to the world'send, carrying with it a poor, tired, hungry boy.

  "Dear godmother," he cried pitifully, "do help me! Tell me just thisonce and I'll never forget again."

  Instantly the words came to him and he repeated them. "Abracadabra, tum,tum, ti!" The cloak began to turn slowly, and immediately started back,as fast as ever, in the direction of the tower.

  The skylight he found exactly as he had left it, and he slipped in aseasily as he had gotten out. He had scarcely reached the floor when heheard his nurse's voice outside.

  "Bless us! what has become of your Royal Highness all this time? To sitstupidly here at the window until it is quite dark and leave theskylight open too. Prince, what can you be thinking of? You are thesilliest boy I ever knew."

  But he did not mind what she said.

  The instant Prince Dolor got off the cloak it folded itself up into atiny parcel and rolled itself into the farthest corner of the room. Ifthe nurse had seen it she would have taken it for a mere bundle ofrubbish. She brought in the supper and lit the candles, her face asunhappy as usual. But Prince Dolor only saw, hidden in the corner wherenobody else would see it, his wonderful traveling-cloak. He ateheartily, scarcely hearing his nurse's grumbling.

  "Poor woman!" he thought, "_she_ hasn't a traveling-cloak!"

  And when he crept into his little bed, where he lay awake a good whilewatching the stars, his chief thought was, "I must be up very earlyto-morrow morning and get my lessons done, and then I'll go travelingall over the world on my beautiful cloak."

  So, next day, he opened his eyes with the sun, and went with a goodheart to his lessons, which for the first time he found dull, and theinstant they were over he crept across the floor, undid the shabbylittle bundle, climbed on a chair, and thence to the table so as tounbar the skylight; said his magic charm, and was away out of the windowin a minute.

  He was accustomed to sit so quietly always, that his nurse, though onlyin the next room did not miss him, and she could not have missed himanyway for the clever godmother made an image, which she set on thewindow-sill reading and which looked so like Prince Dolor that anycommon observer would never have guessed the difference.

  And all this while the happy little fellow was away floating in the airon his magic cloak, and seeing all sorts of wonderful things--or theyseemed wonderful to him, who had hitherto seen nothing at all.

  First, there were the flowers that grew on the plain, which, wheneverthe cloak came near enough, he strained his eyes to look at; they weretiny, but very beautiful.

  "I wonder," he thought, "whether I could see better through a pair ofglasses like those my nurse reads with, and takes such care of. How Ishould take care of them too! if only I had a pair!"

  Immediately he felt a pair of the prettiest gold spectacles ever seen;and looking downwards, he found that, though ever so high above theground, he could see every blade of grass, every tiny bud andflower--nay, even the insects that walked over them.

  "Thank you, thank you!" he cried to his dear godmother, whom he feltsure had sent them. He amused himself for ever so long, gazing down uponthe grass, every square foot of which was a mine of wonders.

  Then, just to rest his eyes, he turned them up to the sky, at which hehad looked so often and seen nothing.

  Now he saw a long, black wavy line, moving on in the distance. Lookingat it through his spectacles, he discovered that it was a long string ofbirds, flying one after the other, their wings moving steadily and theirheads pointed in one direction, as steadily as if each were a littleship.

  "They must be the passage-birds flying seaward!" cried the boy, who hadread a little about them. "Oh! how I should like to see them quiteclose, and to know where they come from, and where they are going!"

  The cloak gave a sudden bound forward, and he found himself high up inthe air, in the very midst of the birds.

  "Oh I wish I were going with you, you lovely creatures!" cried the boy."I'm getting so tired of this dull plain, and the dreary and lonelytower. I do so want to see the world! Pretty swallows, dear swallows,tell me what it looks like--the beautiful, wonderful world!"

  But the birds flew past and the boy looked after them with envy. Then hesettled himself down in the centre of the cloak, feeling quite sad andlonely.

  "I think I'll go home," said he, and repeated his "Abracadabra, tum tum,ti!" with a rather heavy heart. The more he had, the more he wanted.

  He did not like to vex his godmother by calling for her, and telling herhow unhappy h
e was, in spite of all her goodness; so he just kept histrouble to himself, went back to his lonely tower, and spent three daysthere without attempting another journey on his traveling-cloak.