first he thought it had all been a dream; but when he looked for the letter he had put under his pillow, he found it was gone, and in its place was a case with the Order

of the Golden Fleece in diamonds, a magnificent present from the generous Perez the Mouse in exchange for his first tooth. (Perhaps I had better explain to English children that in King Bubi’s country the Order of the Golden Fleece is like our Order of the Garter, the greatest honour the King can give.)

The King and Perez the Mouse knelt down too

The little King, however, paid no attention to his beautiful present, and let it lie unnoticed on the bed, while, leaning on his elbow, he lay very busy thinking. *Then, suddenly, he asked the Queen in a very solemn voice, ‘Mama! Why do poor children say the same

prayer as I do, “Our Father which art in Heaven”?’ The Queen answered, ‘Because He is as much their Father as He is yours.’ Then said the King thoughtfully, ‘We must be brothers.’ ‘Yes, my darling, they are your brothers,’ answered the Queen. *Bubi’s eyes were filled with astonishment, and, in a choky voice, he asked, ‘Then why am I a King and have everything I want, while they are poor and have nothing?’

The Queen gave him a squeeze, and, kissing him again on his forehead, said, ‘Because you are the eldest brother, which is what being King really means. *You understand,

darling? God has given you everything in order that your younger brothers should want for nothing.’ ‘I never knew this before,’ said Bubi, shaking his head, and, without thinking any more about his present, he began to say his prayers, as he did every morning; and, as he prayed, it seemed to him that all the poor little boys in the kingdom came round him with their hands clasped, and that he, the eldest brother, spoke for them all when he prayed ‘Our Father which art in Heaven.’

King Bubi grew up to be a great ruler. *He always asked God’s help in all he did, and returned

thanks for his happiness, ever saying, speaking for all his subjects, poor and rich, good and bad, ‘Our Father which art in Heaven’; and when he died, a very old man, and his good soul arrived at the gates of Heaven, he knelt down and prayed as usual, ‘Our Father.’ And, as he prayed, the gates were opened wide by thousands of poor little children to whom he had been King, that is to say, eldest brother here on earth.

The dreadful Don Pedro

P.S.

The Spanish story which was written, once upon a time, to amuse a real little boy King, ends here; but I cannot help adding that it does seem a pity not to try and get Perez the Mouse to come to England. * The only way to manage this will be to take great pains over your copies and spelling, so that when your first tooth comes out you will be able to write a nice, tidy, polite letter to him. If you put it under your pillow at night I am nearly sure you will find it gone and a present

in its place in the morning. Perhaps you may even feel the same little soft tickle on your forehead that King Bubi did; but I do not promise for certain that you will see kind Mr. Mouse, because he is rather shy.

A.M.M.

Elvira recited