SALLY AND BEDELIA ARE PRESENTED AT COURT
PRECEDED by their guide, Sally and Bedelia passed between the great
doors of the Palace and into a mighty circular hall that was lighted
from above by a huge dome of golden colored glass, which cast a soft
and sunshiny radiance over everything. In the center of the hall rose
a wide and winding spiral staircase, heavily carpeted with deep yellow
velvet, whose bordering melted away into soft browns and russets. Sally
thought she had never seen anything more lovely than the color scheme
of this imperial hall, with its rich woodwork of carved golden oak, and
the golden light flooding everything.
Twelve great doors opened out of the hall and they were now ushered
with great ceremony through the one directly facing the wide entrance
and were received by a splendidly dressed court page, while the private
promptly saluted and went about his business.
When Sally, with heart thumping in a most uncomfortable manner,
ventured to lift her eyes from the pavement of tessellated marble,
she beheld a most magnificently appointed apartment of regal size,
thronged with courtiers and ladies-in-waiting, all in splendid court
dress; while at the further end rose a gorgeous throne upon which were
seated two of the handsomest dolls she had ever seen. She suddenly felt
herself very plain and insignificant in the midst of all this splendor.
But there was no time for personal criticism, for she was being rapidly
conducted up the hall by the gorgeous page, who was at the same time
loudly announcing her name and that of her companion. The child felt
herself blushing to the roots of her hair as she dropped her prettiest
curtsy, and dreadfully aware in the midst of her embarrassment that
Bedelia was attracting attention from all directions. In fact, that
personage possessed most strikingly original ideas of court etiquette
and, having made a most extraordinary bow, proceeded to lick the hand
of royalty which had been most graciously extended to be kissed. This
performance gave birth to a ripple of laughter, which at once broke the
ice. The courtiers crowded around Sally and Bedelia, while the King and
Queen descended from their throne and proceeded to make themselves most
agreeable to the strangers.
The Queen was a most beautiful blond, with large, blue eyes—Sally
noticed that they had real, black lashes—and a bewildering wealth of
golden curls, which she wore floating over her shoulders and whose
luster put to shame her golden crown. She wore a splendid gown of
white satin, embroidered with threads of gold, over which opened a
robe of purple velvet lined with ermine. A splendid court train swept
far behind her, and she was, furthermore, adorned with all the family
rhinestones, which made a prodigious sparkling and glittering and
appeared very magnificent indeed.
The King was a very tall and finely-built doll, with very dark hair and
eyes. His dress was of royal purple velvet, slashed with white satin.
He, also, wore a crown of fine gold and a splendid signet ring set
with a large ruby, upon which Bedelia gazed with suspicious interest.
Noticing her interested expression and following the direction of
her glances, Sally began inwardly to quake, and resolved that the
mischievous little bear should be separated as far from the King as
possible. An unkind fate, however, willed it otherwise, for the Queen,
who felt rather afraid of Bedelia, promptly linked her arm in Sally’s
and the two walked slowly down the long hall, leaving the King to
follow with the little bear. Truth to tell, Her Majesty was extremely
curious with regard to this new kind of doll, which was neither made of
china nor stuffed with sawdust, and she pressed Sally’s hand and patted
her arm, consumed with curiosity, although disliking to ask of what
material she could possibly be made.
Sally was destined to have her ideas concerning royalty turned
topsy-turvy. Indeed, all her previous notions, obtained from well
authenticated books, pictured kings and queens as quite the reverse of
what she was really finding them. The idea of a king promenading arm in
arm with a Teddy Bear, or with any kind of a bear, as far as that went!
She could not help smiling to herself to think how angry Bedelia would
be could she know of what she herself was thinking. For Bedelia had
always considered herself a most important little personage, and quite
good enough society for kings and queens, too.
While these thoughts were chasing each other through Sally’s brain, the
Queen was interestedly, if furtively examining the little girl’s dress
and her beautiful, lustrous braids which reached below her waist. Much
was her secret astonishment to discover that the latter were not glued
on, as were her own golden tresses. This she could not fail to consider
a serious detriment, for she was the proud possessor of numerous wigs,
and simply exchanged one for another as soon as it became mussed up, a
proceeding which she considered vastly superior to having the tiresome
combing and curling done with one’s own head for a foundation, which
must be the case with Sally, of course.
In fact, the Queen was rapidly coming to the conclusion that Sally was
a most delightful problem and one very worth while solving. To this end
she informed the pages that no one else would be given audience, and
insisted that Sally and Bedelia should spend the rest of the day at the
Palace.
In the meantime Bedelia had been amusing the King, who found himself
highly entertained by this entirely new species of toy animal. He had
never before beheld anything like her, although very well acquainted
with every specimen in his kingdom. Toyland was destitute of Teddy
Bears, a fact that greatly astonished Bedelia, who did not know whether
to be mad or glad on account of it, and concerning which she later on
demanded an explanation of the Sign Post. However, he declared with a
solemn shake of his head that a question of such momentous import must
needs be referred to the Polly-nosed Saphead, a personage concerning
whom Bedelia was already burning with curiosity.
However, the King declared Bedelia to be very good company for the
time being. And, though Sally was shaking in her shoes for fear of
what she might next consider it proper to do, she behaved herself in
such a bright and comical manner that His Majesty declared he would
immediately find out why none of her species had ever before penetrated
into Toyland.
Bedelia privately decided that she would herself find out before he
did, or know the reason why. However, she intimated nothing of the
kind, and as the Queen just then suggested that they make a tour of the
Palace and grounds, the subject was dismissed for the time at least.
The Queen now threw her long train over her arm and settling her golden
crown a little more firmly on her golden curls, she caught Sally’s hand
and the two moved towards the door, followed by the King and Bedelia.
The latter had, as a matter of course, taken the King’s arm, and now
marched along with her nose in the air, greatly to the astonishment
of the scandalized court ladies, very few of whom had enjoyed a like
honor. His Royal Highness was too much amused and diverted to feel any
embarrassment. Truth to tell, life in Toyland had been dull of late,
the same thing happening every day without change or variation, and the
King was beginning to be horribly bored. Bedelia had dropped from the
sky, as it seemed, in the very nick of time.
The quartet proceeded through the crowd of respectfully bowing
courtiers to the big doors at the lower end of the room and passed
through them into the outer hall. The royal automobile was in waiting,
and after a general tour of the Palace the party stepped into it and
started for a ride through the charming country.
As they reached the edge of the town, they beheld the Walking House
patiently awaiting developments and, both King and Queen desiring to
look it over, the party descended at once and proceeded to examine it.
The position of guide was, of course, snapped up by Bedelia, whose
fluency of speech fitted her very well for such work.
The King inspected everything with the greatest interest, noting many
improvements unknown in Toyland, Both King and Queen insisted on being
introduced to all the dolls, and made themselves most delightfully
agreeable.
The little bear now noticed for the first time the absence of Peter
Pan, a fact which she had hitherto passed by, owing no doubt to the
very good time she was enjoying. Squatting on her haunches in the
kitchen while she devoured a big, red apple—for she considered that the
claims of the inner man preceded even those of royalty—she revolved the
matter in her mind, finally coming to the conclusion that there could
be but one reason for Peter’s absence: that after their disappearance
from the doll’s house, he had discovered some means of returning to
his original size, and had availed himself of it, probably finding
the society of the doll’s house uncongenial minus Sally and Bedelia,
and preferring that of his cubs. Bedelia devoutly hoped that he had
preserved a portion of the “restorer,” as she mentally styled it, for
herself and Sally. Greatly as she was enjoying herself, she certainly
had no intention of remaining as she was for the term of her natural
life. Playing at being dolls was all very well for a season, but was
scarcely satisfying enough for a perpetual diet. Besides, there was her
family. She wondered how Tom and Jerry and Little Breeches were getting
along without her. It was something of a consolation to feel that Peter
Pan was with them in her absence.
Bedelia’s brain worked quickly, if it was made of silk ravelings! And
she had firmly settled the whole matter in her own mind long before she
had finished the red apple.
When she had taken the last bite and had carefully extracted the
seeds, of which, squirrel-like, she was extremely fond, she dropped
the core into the coal scuttle, wiped her paws and muzzle on Dinah’s
best apron which happened to be freshly done up and airing before the
fire, and betook herself upstairs to find out what had been going on
in her absence. As she passed the basement door, she saw the Little
Lamb scurrying out of it, but thought nothing of the incident and sped
upstairs to the drawing-room from which issued the sounds of lively
conversation.
The King and Queen had explored every nook and corner of the Walking
House, and now expressed a most lively desire to see it walk, a request
with which the House stubbornly refused to comply. Firmly planted upon
its pedal extremities, which had to all intents and purposes turned
themselves back into castors again, it stoutly resisted all coaxing
and persuasion; and the project was finally abandoned, much to the
disappointment of their Royal Highnesses and the chagrin of Sally.
The Queen declared it high time to be on the move, as they had brought
along an elaborate luncheon which was to be served wherever they felt
like stopping, and it was already along toward noon. Therefore they all
climbed into the auto and presently rolled away, waving good-bye to the
dolls, who were assembled in front of the house to see them go.
[Illustration]
A second auto with the servants and luncheon followed at a convenient
distance. There was no dust to take for the roads were all neatly
covered with velvet carpet whenever the King and Queen went abroad. The
automobile having been wound up just before it left the garage, there
was no fear of its running down, and even if it had, Sally felt quite
sure that her golden key would have been quite sufficient to start it
up again.
The child could not but think that the King and Queen looked
exceedingly comical automobiling in their royal robes and jeweled
crowns. The long train of the Queen was dreadfully in the way, and was
always overflowing the sides of the auto and having to be re-arranged,
while her golden crown wabbled to such an alarming extent that she was
obliged to hold on to it with both hands, a proceeding which was not at
all comfortable. Nor was the King any better off, but rather worse, for
the Queen’s long and carefully dressed hair admitted of hat-pins and
formed a much better receptacle for a crown than did his own short and
curly locks.
However, the little party was a very merry one in spite of wabbly
crowns and inconvenient court-trains. And great was the fun and
laughter as they sped gaily along through the charming country.
Presently they crossed a rustic bridge and turned into a beautiful
strip of woods, and here the Queen declared that their luncheon should
be served. It was, indeed, a lovely location. A silvery stream rippled
by and formed a charming cascade, the water having been turned on from
headquarters for the benefit of the royal party. A number of birds
of brilliant plumage hopped about among the green branches, most of
them warbling sweetly. That they had all been wound up for the special
occasion Sally did not for a moment doubt, but she was already so well
accustomed to this sort of thing that she did not in the least mind
it or consider it queer. As for Bedelia, she had never noticed the
difference.
Just then the servants who had been approaching, bearing the big hamper
in which the lunch had been packed, suddenly dropped it and retreated
with every semblance of terror. Sally’s heart sank into her boots, and
she glanced nervously over her shoulders to ascertain if Bedelia were
missing. But the little bear was close behind and with the rest of the
party rushed forward to see what on earth ailed the royal servants.
The hamper lay upon the ground, while in one side yawned a great hole.
And within appeared a long, solemn face, terminated by a considerable
growth of beard. For Mary did not always find it quite convenient to
shave her Little Lamb as often as was really necessary. The goat’s
beard had sprouted, although the horns had not, and was proving a great
nuisance to everybody concerned.
In a moment the solution of the whole thing burst upon Bedelia. She
remembered having seen the Little Lamb skipping out of the basement
door and surmised that he must have hidden himself in the automobile
until they were all under way and had then chewed a hole in the side of
the hamper, as he could not unfasten the lid, and finally managed to
squeeze himself in by dint of throwing out a number of articles utterly
valueless to goats but considered quite indispensable to royalty. Of
course all this had taken place behind the backs of the servants, who
evidently had never once looked around.
Poor Sally, who recognized at the first glance the countenance of the
Little Lamb, felt that it would have been a huge relief had the ground
opened and made one mouthful of her. She was too much scandalized, as
well as too honest, to join in the terrified exclamations of the royal
couple, who, however, had but short space in which to express their
emotions. Not seeing any good reason why he should remain in his rather
cramped quarters, which he would have deserted much sooner had he not
feared to jump from the rapidly moving auto, the Little Lamb suddenly
wriggled out through the hole in the hamper’s side and taking nimbly to
his heels, scampered away and disappeared among the trees, leaving the
royal party to mourn over its departed feast.