Once upon a time--let me call
it a fairy story," said I, drawing down a palm leaf as if to read the
tale from its blades. "Once upon a time, in a country far from ours,
there lived a Prince and a Princess. The Prince was rather a bad
fellow. His faith in his wife was not the best. And he made a vow
that if ever children came he would make them as evil as himself. Not
long after the good fairy brought two children to her godchild, the
Princess. Remembering the vow made by the Prince, the good fairy
carried away one of the children, and no one knew anything about it
save the Princess and the fairy. When the remaining child was two
years old the Princess died. The child from then on grew like a wild
flower. The Prince did his best to spoil her, but the good fairy
watched over her, just as carefully as she watched over the child she
had hidden away. By and by the wicked Prince died. The child reached
womanhood. The good fairy went away and left her; perhaps she now gave
her whole attention to the other." I let the palm leaf slip back, and
drew down a fresh one, Phyllis watching me with interest.
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