matter. There was a cry at the back of the platform. The King had
fallen in a fit. But few at the moment were thinking of him. The
people were throwing up their caps and dancing joyously.
"John! John!" they shouted. "We knew the silver Cross which the holy
John always wore when he went about doing good to us. Oh, we remember
now! We shall never again forget! John! Hurrah for his son John!"
John himself stood bewildered, and the animals around him shivered and
looked surprised. They were not used to such tumults. Suddenly John
felt his hand clasped softly. The little Princess was at his side,
looking up in his face and smiling through tears. "Dear John!" she
said. "Now you are safe. Now you will be our brother indeed!"
"Yes, he is safe," said the Hermit, embracing the boy tenderly. "My
John! My brother's son! Oh, how I have longed to tell you and claim
you for my nephew! But I vowed that I would wait until you had proved
yourself worthy of him, worthy of the name by which I christened you.
And you are worthy, O my dear John, even to wear the silver Cross!"
"I do not understand yet," said John. "Who am I? And why do the
people shout my name and seem to love me so much?"
"You are the son of John, the holy friend of the people," answered the
Hermit.
"But you, my father,--for so I must call you still," said John; "who
are you, and how came you to be living in the forest?"
"I was but a humble servant of God," said the Hermit. "But when King
Cyril died, and my brother and you were gone, there was not happiness
for me in the city of sorrow. I became an exile. I fled to the forest
with the hunted animals who were my brother's friends. And there I
made a home for them, a kingdom of my own, with Brutus for my prime
minister. And there, after many years, you came to find me, my dear
son! It was a miracle!"
Now the Prince came forward and laid his hand timidly on John's
shoulder. "John," he said, "now you know how less than ever you have
reason to love the rulers of this land. But oh, John! I beg you to
forgive us. Be my brother, John; and if you can forget, let me be your
friend!"
"My brother and friend!" cried John; and the two hugged each other
affectionately, while Brutus leaped up and licked the face first of
one, then of the other, and the other animals frisked joyously.
"Hurrah! Hurrah!" shouted the people, "They are like good King Cyril
and his friend the holy John. Let it be so! Let it be so! Hurrah!
Hurrah!"
CONCLUSION
And so it turned out to be. For soon the old King died, worn out by
wicked passions, and Prince Hugh became King. Then began a new order
of things. The land was now a happy kingdom, full of love and peace.
Like his uncle, the new monarch became known as the Good King. In his
realm was never hunting or cruel sport. The houses of his subjects
were full of pets. And the palace itself was a perfect menagerie, so
that John called it "The Ark." There were hundreds of new four-footed
friends in the park and palace; and hundreds of two-footed friends in
the trees and dovecotes. To and fro they went between the city and the
forest. For all ways were safe now to wandering creatures. A highroad
was made connecting the King's city with the Hermit's wood. And the
path to the door of the hut was worn smooth. For this soon became a
favorite place of pilgrimage.
There in the Forest Kingdom lived the good Hermit and John his nephew,
with their circle of pets. And these also went back and forth between
the forest and the city. For John was the Prince's dear friend and
companion, and spent many weeks of the year in the palace with the two
whom he loved. His pets were as eagerly welcomed there as he. Brutus
had his own rug by the young King's fireplace. The wolf made a
faithful guardian of the palace gate, while John was inside. Bruin
wandered about the halls at his pleasure. The cat purred contentedly
on the brocade furniture, with ever-new kittens frisking about her.
The raven often perched on the back of King Hugh's chair and made wise
sounds. And while waiting to carry a message to the Hermit in the
forest, the carrier pigeon loved to nestle in the arms of the young
Princess, who grew prettier and prettier every day.
To the Kingdom in the Forest came folk from everywhere. The quiet of
the Hermit's retreat was often broken. But nevertheless the old man
was happy. For he saw his boy fast growing into the man he had hoped
him to be, the copy of his father, beloved John. With the silver Cross
on his bosom, the strange, merry smile ever on his face, and a kind
word always on his lips, John ministered to all who needed him; and he
went far and wide to find them. He was always happy, whatever he might
be doing; alone with the Hermit and his animal friends; helping the
troubled and the ailing; wandering with Brutus and the wolf through the
still lonely parts of the wood; studying the never-failing wonders of
the Kingdom in the Forest. But he was happiest of all, perhaps, when
the King and Princess came to visit him, as they loved to do,--without
servants or followers, with only an animal or two. For this country
was the safest and most peaceful in the world.
[Illustration: King and Princess came to visit him.]
Then they would all dress in simple green and brown and go out into the
forest to ramble and to become acquainted with the wild creatures.
There they met the old friends of the wood who had not gone with the
others on that famous pilgrimage. And the deer, the fox, the squirrel,
the rabbits, and the birds were always glad to see them.
Here John could teach the young King to tumble and turn somersaults to
his heart's delight, without any one to say, "How undignified!" For
whatever the friendly beasts and birds thought of these antics, they
never spoke critically of the matter.
Here also John taught the Princess the secret lore of the forest, so
that she became almost as wise and skillful as he. But no one could
say, "How unladylike!" For she grew sweeter and dearer every day.
And the good old Hermit watched them always with loving eyes.
End of Project Gutenberg's John of the Woods, by Abbie Farwell Brown