TURNED TO STONE.
"Good gracious! what's that?" inquired the Dodo, as the screams
continued.
"We'd better go and see," said Dick, practically running off in the
direction of the lake, followed by the others.
On passing the clump of trees and evergreens, which obstructed their
view, they discovered the Little Panjandrum, in a great state of
agitation, hiding behind the official Umbrella, his body-attendant lying
prone on the ground in a state of abject fear; while the rest of the
suite, having cast aside their musical instruments, were rushing away,
shouting lustily.
On the opposite side of the path stood a few of the prehistoric
creatures which accompanied the children on their excursion to the
Crystal Palace.
They were looking at the Little Panjandrum with a mild surprise, and
seemed quite at a loss to know what all the hullabaloo was about.
[Illustration: The Little Panjandrum and suite are alarmed.]
"Gulla--hubly--olla--bolee!" shouted the Little Panjandrum, pointing to
the animals with his umbrella.
"Oh, they're all right, your Importance," said the Dodo; "they are
friends of mine."
"Friends, indeed!" exclaimed the Ambassador, coming from where he had
been hiding behind a tree. "Pretty friends! What do you call the
creatures?"
"Oh, there's the Archaeopteryx, you know, and the Eteraedarium, and the
Palaeo----"
"Stop! stop!" interrupted the Ambassador, as each of the animals
mentioned bowed gravely. "I absolutely decline to know creatures with
names like _those_. I'm sure they are not respectable, and I'm not at
all sure, even now, that they are not dangerous; however, I shall know
how to deal with _them_ presently. The penalty for alarming the Little
Panjandrum is a very severe one." And he frowned very sternly at the
creatures, who looked rather uncomfortable, and waddled off in the
direction of the lake, whispering together in a decidedly scared way.
"You didn't tell me you had all these hideous objects with you,"
continued the Ambassador, addressing the Dodo.
"I thought you knew," stammered the unlucky bird; "they are prehistoric,
you know," he added, apologetically.
[Illustrastion: There was some consolation, he was allowed to wear his
gloves.]
"That only makes it worse," declared the Ambassador. "In that case they
ought to be dead, every one of them, ever so long ago. They have no
right to be prowling about at a highly-respectable place like the
Crystal Palace. No wonder there's nobody about; they've frightened them
away, that's what it is. And you're to blame as much as anybody for
bringing them here."
"I didn't!" gasped the Dodo.
"You did," said the Ambassador, emphatically. "You said they were your
friends; so they _must_ have come with you. And I'll tell you what, in
order to prevent you from picking up any more undesirable acquaintances,
you shall just commence your duties as Umbrella Bearer at once," and,
untying the ribbons by which the Little Panjandrum's attendant was
attached to His Importance, the Ambassador, bringing forth a heavy pair
of chains from his capacious pockets, proceeded to chain the Dodo up to
the Little Panjandrum's waistband.
The poor Dodo looked the picture of misery as the Umbrella was put into
his hand.
"M--may I have m--my gloves?" he whimpered.
The Ambassador, after considering a minute, gave his consent, on the
score that it _might_ improve his appearance, and caused the black
attendant to hunt for the missing one, which had been thrown down on
the ground near to the roundabout.
He soon returned with it, and the Dodo, with a delighted chuckle, put
the pair on, and, after smoothing them carefully, regarded his hands
very complacently, and seemed to consider having them some compensation
for the degraded occupation to which he had been put.
"I'll go now and settle the others," declared the Ambassador. "What did
you say their names were?" he inquired, sternly, of the Dodo.
The poor bird called out the names one by one, and the Ambassador
carefully entered them in his pocket-book, and then stalked majestically
away in the direction of the lake, while the Little Panjandrum settled
himself on a gaudily-colored rug, which the black attendant carefully
spread on the ground at his feet, and with a self-satisfied smile on his
little round face gravely twiddled his thumbs and took no notice of
anybody.
"Go and see what he does to them," whispered the Dodo, referring to the
Ambassador and the creatures.
Nothing loth, the children ran off to the lake to see what was
happening. Pushing aside the bushes, they could see the Ambassador
standing on the edge of the path, waving a wand in one hand, while in
the other he flourished a legal-looking document.
[Illustration: "In the name of the Panjandrum, I command you."]
The prehistoric creatures were scrambling through the water, and getting
as far away as possible on to the islands in the middle of the lake.
"All you Palaeotheriums, Eteraedariums, Archaeopteryx, Megatheriums,
Pleisiosauruses, Ichthyosauruses, and other prehistoric wretches, in the
name of the Panjandrum, I command you--_be turned into stone_."
When the Ambassador uttered these terrible words a most singular thing
happened. In whatever attitude the creatures were they remained so; and
gradually each assumed a stony and lifeless expression, and the spell or
incantation which the Ambassador had pronounced had evidently taken
effect.
The children were very much alarmed, and ran back to the Dodo, and in a
hurried whisper informed him of what had occurred.
"Turned all the prehistoric animals into stone, has he?" said the bird,
gleefully; "then I can see a splendid way out of my troubles. Wait till
the Ambassador returns, and you will see some capital fun." And the Dodo
struck a rigid attitude, and remained in that position, totally
disregarding the questions with which the children plied him.