conversational way, and it was felt that Colonel Jim must have more to
tell them, if he could only get it out.
He seemed to feel, himself, that he owed them explanations, and must
try to make them as clear as possible, for he spoke slowly, and in
longer sentences than he usually employed. He could do this all right
if he liked.
“It was Rose who put him up to it all,” he said. “She’s mad all the
time because she isn’t Wax.”
“And only half Composition,” put in Wooden’s aunt.
“Well, that’s as may be,” said Colonel Jim. “Anyhow, she got him to let
her nurse the Queen, and told him to give out that she was dead. She
wasn’t dead at all, but getting better all the time.”
“Do you mean that _she_ told a story?” asked Wooden, in a voice of
consternation.
“Yes,” said Colonel Jim. “I do.”
“Well,” said Wooden, “I never liked her; but I did not think she would
go so far as that.”
“It’s depravity,” said Wooden’s mother. “That’s what I call it;
positive depravity.”
“Well, that’s as may be,” said Colonel Jim again. “Anyhow, that’s what
she did.”
“How did you find out about Rose so cleverly?” asked Lady Grace.
Colonel Jim looked pleased at being called clever, which he wasn’t
very. “One of my troopers is going to be married to Rose’s maid,” he
said. “She heard them talking--Rose and Selim--and told him about it.
He came and told me. Very proper thing to do. Made him a lance-corporal
on the spot. He marries the maid tomorrow. Shall give them a wedding
present. Silver pepper-castor.”
“Then, where is dear Queen Rosebud?” asked Wooden. “I am so glad she
isn’t dead after all. I wish we could see her.”
“This is my month to be in waiting,” said Lady Grace. “Could you take
me to her, do you think?”
“Afraid that’s impossible,” said Colonel Jim. “Don’t know where she
is. She was taken out of the palace and hidden somewhere.”
“How dreadful it all sounds,” said Wooden. “I shouldn’t have thought
such things could have happened in Toyland. I do hope they give her
enough to eat.”
“I expect she’s having her tea now,” said Wooden’s aunt. “If I was a
Queen, I’d have herrings every day.”
It was a foolish remark, as many of Wooden’s aunt’s remarks were, but
it turned out to be a lucky one, for it reminded Peggy of something she
had heard downstairs, while she was bathing the baby doll.
“I suppose she couldn’t be the lady in the top story!” she said.
They stared at her. “What do you mean, dear? What lady?” asked Wooden.
“When I was downstairs just now,” said Peggy, “Mrs. Emma was getting
tea ready for the lady in the top story, and Mr. Emma said he was
sorry for her being shut up there, and he wondered if she would like a
herring for her tea.”
“Did they give her one?” asked Wooden’s aunt.
“No,” said Peggy. “Mrs. Emma said that as she was Wax she might not
like herrings.”
[Illustration]
“It’s the best fish out of the sea,” said Wooden’s aunt, smacking her
lips. “Lawks! How I wish they’d bring me one!”
“Adone, now!” said Wooden’s mother sharply. “We’re talking about the
Queen in the top story, not about what you’d like to have for your
tea.”
“I don’t know that it is the Queen,” said Peggy. “But there is a lady
on the top story, and she is Wax. I know as much as that.”
“And it’s a good deal to know, dear,” said Wooden fondly. “It was very
clever of you to find it out.”
“Oh, it’s the Queen, right enough,” said Colonel Jim. “Wonder we never
thought of her being here before. Question is now how to get at her. I
wish that Teddy bear was here.”
They all seemed at a loss what to do next, and the suggestions they
made were not very helpful. Wooden thought that it would be a good
thing if Teddy were to bring a very long pole and climb up to the top
of the House of Cards. But it was quite certain that there wasn’t a
pole long enough in the whole of Toyland, or anywhere else. Wooden’s
mother suggested throwing the Queen a rope. But it was equally certain
that nobody could have thrown it far enough. Wooden’s aunt said,
why not telephone to her? But this was silly, because there was no
telephone.
By-and-by they all looked at Peggy, as if they expected her to suggest
something sensible. She did not like to disappoint them, as it was
flattering the way they seemed to believe in her. So she knitted her
brows hard, to see if she could think of something.
“We could do so much more if we weren’t locked up in prison,” she said
at last.
All the dolls looked at one another in admiration, and Wooden said,
“Now, that’s one of the cleverest things I ever heard said, dear. How
these things come into your head I can’t think.”
Peggy didn’t think that what she had said was so clever as all that,
though she had had something further in her mind when she had said it.
But she was pleased at being praised; most of us are; and she wanted to
be as helpful as she could.
“Did you and Teddy make any plan for getting us out of prison?” she
asked, turning to Colonel Jim.
“Now, I wonder what made her think of that?” said Wooden’s mother.
“Well, we did make a plan,” said Colonel Jim; “though how you guessed
it I don’t know, as you couldn’t have heard us talking. Our plan was
this: When I’m ready to go out, I say to Mr. Emma, ‘I should like to
look at the view.’ He says, ‘With pleasure,’ and takes me up to the top
story.”
“But supposing he doesn’t say ‘With pleasure,’” suggested Wooden.
Colonel Jim looked worried. “Teddy bear said he’d say ‘With
pleasure,’” he said. “Never thought of asking what to do if he didn’t.”
“If Teddy said he’d say ‘With pleasure,’ I should think he would,” said
Wooden. “Teddy is flighty, but I have always found his word reliable.”
Colonel Jim brightened. “Well, then, we go up to the top story,” he
said. “Then I look at the view, and I say--let’s see, what is it I say?
I’ve learnt it all up, but it’s difficult to remember. Oh, yes, I know.
I say, ‘What’s that bird flying towards the sea?’ No, that’s wrong. I
say, ‘What’s that bird over there?’ He says, ‘What bird? Where?’ I say,
‘Over there!’ pointing towards the sea. He turns to where I point, you
see, and----”
“But are you sure there will be a bird to point at?” asked Lady Grace.
“If not, won’t it be telling a story?”
“Do you think it will?” asked Colonel Jim. “I shouldn’t like to do
that.”
There was a pause. “I like the plan,” said Wooden, “but that does
rather interfere with it, doesn’t it?”
They all looked at Peggy as if they expected her to find a way out of
the difficulty; and she did so at once. “I think there are sure to be
birds flying about,” she said, “and some of them will be flying towards
the sea.”
Their faces brightened, and Wooden’s aunt slapped her knee. “Now,
doesn’t that beat all?” she said. “How she do think of things, to be
sure! Well, go on, soldier.”
“Directly he says, ‘What bird, where?’” proceeded Colonel Jim, “that’s
my sign. I get behind him. I whip off my cloak. I throw it over his
head. I tie the cord--it’s got a cord, you see--round his arms, so that
he can’t move. Then I say to him, ‘Your keys, please.’ Then I come
downstairs with the keys, unlock the doors, and off we go. Well, that’s
the plan, and if it all goes right I don’t think a better plan was ever
invented. It’s Teddy bear’s plan chiefly, but it was me who thought of
saying, ‘Your keys, please,’ instead of ‘Hand over your keys.’ More
polite.”
The plan was not received with the pleasure that Colonel Jim seemed to
expect. Wooden said doubtfully, “Mr. Emma is a very nice man. He might
not like to have a cloak thrown over his head.”
“Don’t you think he would?” asked Colonel Jim, in a disturbed way. “I
never thought of that. What do you say, Peggy?”
“If you were to treat him as gently as you could,” said Peggy, “and
tell him that he might go downstairs to Mrs. Emma and the baby in five
minutes, when we had all got away, he might not mind so much.”
“He couldn’t do that,” said Colonel Jim. “His legs would be tied up
too. I forgot to say that. Can’t keep everything in your head at once.”
“Try again, dear,” said Wooden hopefully.
“Well, supposing we told Mrs. Emma she could go up and untie him, as we
went out!” suggested Peggy.
“The very thing!” exclaimed Wooden’s mother. “I should never have
thought of that if I had tried for a week.”
They had no time to settle anything further, for at that moment the key
was heard turning in the lock outside. Colonel Jim had just time to put
on his long cloak again before Mr. Emma came into the room.
He seemed not to be in quite such a good temper as before. Directly he
came in, he said to Colonel Jim, “Now, then, my man, you’ve been here
quite long enough. Pot-plants or no pot-plants, it’s time you cleared
out.”
Colonel Jim hesitated. Peggy was afraid for the moment that he had
forgotten the words he had learned so carefully. But they seemed to
come to him all of a sudden. He straightened himself up, and said in a
firm voice, but rather as if he were repeating a lesson, “I should like
to go up to the top story and look at the view.”
Peggy heard Wooden say, “With pleasure,” under her breath, as if she
were helping Mr. Emma to remember his part.
But unfortunately Mr. Emma had not learnt his part. What he did say
was, “Oh, you would, would you? Well, I’m afraid I can’t oblige you.
I’m almost run off my legs with work as it is. Now you come along down
with me.”
[Illustration]
X
PEGGY TALKS TO A ROYAL PRISONER
Colonel Jim threw a despairing look at Peggy; she could just see it
under the hood that he had put over his head. His carefully arranged
plan had gone wrong at the very beginning, and he hadn’t the least
idea what to do next. Of course, he might just as well have thrown
his cloak over Mr. Emma’s head there and then, as done it on the top
of the House of Cards, after pointing to a bird which might not have
been there. But perhaps he did not like to exercise violence before
ladies, or perhaps it never occurred to him to alter the plan so as to
suit the circumstances. At any rate, he prepared to follow Mr. Emma
downstairs without any further ado. If Peggy had not suddenly thought
of something, there would have been an end of any good he had done by
making his way in to them.
As they were going out, Peggy said to Mr. Emma, “If you and Mrs. Emma
have got so much work to do, couldn’t I come down and help you?”
Mr. Emma turned round and beamed at her. “Now, you _are_ a kind little
lady!” he said. “And I don’t know as you can’t help us. Yes, you come
along o’ me, dearie. My missus will be glad to see your pretty little
face, anyhow, and you can talk to her a bit in her own lingo, which I
never could fathom, nohow.”
Peggy was very glad at that moment that she had paid attention to her
French, which gave her this opportunity of helping her doll friends,
though she had been far from thinking that she would ever make such
extraordinary use of it when she had talked as much as she could to
French people during her holidays. She followed Mr. Emma out of the
room, and he locked the door carefully after him, and led the way
downstairs.
Now would have been Colonel Jim’s opportunity, either to throw his
cloak over Mr. Emma, who was in front of him, or else to bolt upstairs
instead of down. If he had done that, Mr. Emma would have had to follow
him, and then they could have had it out together, and Colonel Jim
would probably have won, as he was younger and stronger than Mr. Emma.
But, though as brave as a lion, Colonel Jim had a brain that did not
move very fast. All he could do, as they went downstairs, was to nudge
Peggy with his elbow, and that did not take them very far, for when
she whispered to him, “What is it?” he had nothing to say.
So it rested with her to think of something, and she whispered to
Colonel Jim, unheard by Mr. Emma, whose large feet were making a
considerable noise, “I will try to get upstairs, and see if it is the
Queen who is there; and you and Teddy must try to get in to us again.
Then I will tell you what I have found out.”
Colonel Jim nodded his head repeatedly, and Peggy could only hope that
he had understood what she had said, and would remember it, for she had
not time to say it over again, as they had now reached the ground floor.
Mr. Emma unlocked the big door leading into the market-place, and
Colonel Jim went out. Just as he was going down the steps, Peggy had
another bright idea. She said to Mr. Emma, “We should like this man to
bring us a few more pot-plants later on. I suppose you will let him in,
if he comes.”
But Mr. Emma spoilt that little plan at the beginning, for he said,
“No, dearie, I can’t do that. When he once goes out he stays out.” Then
he locked the door.
[Illustration]
Mrs. Emma was pleased to see Peggy again. She and Mr. Emma had had
their own tea, and she was preparing trays to take up to the prisoners.
Peggy helped her to do this, while Mr. Emma sat by the cradle of his
baby doll, of which he seemed to be very fond. Peggy couldn’t help
going over to have a look at it sometimes, and see it smile and gurgle;
and it delighted Mr. Emma to see her so taken up with his baby doll.
This was a very good thing, for when Peggy said, “Now, I will take up
the trays, if you like,” Mr. Emma replied, “I ought not to let you do
it, I suppose, because I shall have to give you my keys. But I’ve been
so rushed off my legs today that I shan’t be sorry to sit still for
a bit; and you’re such a nice little lady that I really feel as if I
could do anything for you.”
“It is more like Mademoiselle doing something for _you_,” said Mrs.
Emma, with a laugh. But if she had only known, she might not have said
that.
“I know you wouldn’t want to get me into trouble,” said Mr. Emma as he
handed Peggy his keys. “You won’t tell the King now, will you? He’s
Wood, and so am I; but he don’t seem above punishing Woods, if it suits
him, any more than the rest.”
Peggy promised not to tell the King, readily enough. She was not quite
sure that Mr. Emma might not get into trouble, if anything came of her
taking his keys; but she made up her mind to speak up for him when
affairs in Toyland came to be righted, as she hoped they would be.
Selim was only a usurping King, after all, and if Queen Rosebud was
restored to her throne he would not be able to do any harm to Mr. Emma,
or to anybody else.
“First of all,” said Mrs. Emma, “you might take this tray up to the top
story. There is a wax lady there who hasn’t been very well. I should
like her to have her tea first.”
Peggy was almost frightened at the easiness of it all. She had hardly
taken any trouble to bring it about, and here she was with the key to
the Queen’s prison, and her tea-tray in her hands. For she had little
doubt now that it was the Queen who was shut up in the top story. Mrs.
Emma had no idea who she was, but she said she had been ill, and Peggy
knew that the Queen had been ill.
Just as she was going out with the tea-tray, Mrs. Emma said, “Don’t
stay very long, because there are the other trays to take up. But you
might just talk to her a little. She is a nice lady, and it is lonely
for her up there, all by herself.”
This made it all the easier for Peggy, and she started upstairs,
thinking how luckily it had all turned out.
It took her quite a long time to reach the top story. There were four
flights of stairs to each story, and each flight had ten steps. Four
times ten times thirteen are five hundred and twenty all the world
over, and if you ever try going up five hundred and twenty stairs with
a rather heavy tea-tray in your hands you will find that it is no light
matter. However, Peggy got to the top at last, with one or two rests
on the way--But wait a minute. She did not have to go up the last two
flights of stairs, which would have led to the roof, so that takes
twenty off the total, and makes exactly five hundred steps, which is
almost as serious as five hundred and twenty.
She put the tray on the floor outside while she unlocked the door. Then
she knocked at it, and a voice inside said, “Come in.”
She opened the door a little, took up the tea-tray from the floor, and
then pushed the door open with her elbow and went in.
The room was much like the one downstairs, and was quite as comfortably
furnished, but was without the pot-plants which made theirs so bright
and gay. So that it did look rather bare, and not altogether unlike a
prison, in spite of the large window, which showed a magnificent view
of the country. But perhaps what gave it the air of being a prison was
not that, but the sad figure of the lady doll that was sitting in a
chair by the window.
Peggy knew that it must be the Queen, directly she saw her. Indeed,
it was surprising that neither Mr. nor Mrs. Emma had guessed who the
prisoner on the top story really was.
For she looked very royal. She was most delicately made of wax, and
looked a little faded, which would have been accounted for by her great
age. But she was beautiful, too, with young features; for, of course,
dolls do not grow old like human beings, and when they are in Toyland
even breakages do not count.
[Illustration: She looked very royal]
She wore a dress of rich brocade embroidered with seed pearls, rather
like those that you see in pictures of Queen Elizabeth. It was quite
possible that she might have been born about the same time as Queen
Elizabeth, which would have made her very interesting, if she had had a
good memory, and could have talked about all the changes she had seen.
But dolls’ memories are short, and Peggy did not find out how old the
Queen really was, and, indeed, it would not have been good manners to
ask.
When Peggy came in with the tea-tray, the Queen looked surprised, and
said, in a sad but gentle voice, “Who are you? Have you come to take me
home? Why am I kept locked up here?”
Peggy put the tray down on the table, and said, “I am Peggy, your
Majesty. Wooden brought me to Toyland. You said that she might.”
“Why do you call me your Majesty?” asked the Queen. “They said that
if anybody called me that, or I told anybody who I was, I should be
locked up in a dungeon where I could not see the light.”
Peggy felt desperately sorry for her. She had called her “Your Majesty”
quite naturally, for she was very royal, both in appearance and manner,
although she was only a doll. It seemed quite dreadful that she should
be locked up there, and be threatened with still worse imprisonment,
and for no fault of her own at all.
“I know that you are the Queen,” Peggy said, “and I hope that you will
soon be back in your beautiful palace again. They are making plans
outside to rescue you.”
“I can’t understand it,” said the poor Queen, passing her hand wearily
over her brow. “I have always been as nice as I could to everybody. And
yet they told me that the people hate me, because I am Wax, and don’t
want me to be their Queen any longer.”
“That isn’t true,” said Peggy. “That wicked Selim has told everybody
that you are dead, and that you said that he was to be King after you.”
“Oh, I never said that,” said the Queen indignantly. “How can he have
said such a thing? I never said anything like it.”
“That is what he has given out,” said Peggy. “It was Rose who made it
up. She is as wicked as he is.”
The Queen thought for a little time, looking out of the window at the
beautiful view of her own kingdom. Then she looked at Peggy searchingly
and said, “Isn’t it true that my people hate me because I am Wax, and
want to have a Wooden King and Queen in my place? Rose told me that
Selim was going to marry Wooden, who brought you here. I was very sorry
to hear that, because I have always liked Wooden, and I didn’t think
she would want to take my place.”
“Oh, she doesn’t,” said Peggy, speaking as indignantly as the Queen
had done. “Nobody will be more pleased to hear that you are really
alive. And she doesn’t want to marry Selim. She hates him. Why, he has
actually sent her to prison, because she said she didn’t want to marry
him.”
The Queen looked out of the window and did not speak for some time.
Then she said, “I was kind to Selim. When he was brought to me after
he had been wrecked, and had lost everything that he had, I gave him
apartments in my own royal palace, and money every month from my
treasury.”
“He is bad and wicked,” said Peggy. “And Rose is bad, too. She used to
be mine once, and I never liked her. Now I know why.”
“I didn’t like her either,” said the Queen. “She wanted to be my
lady-in-waiting. She said that I ought to have one Composition at
least, and not all Waxes round me. But I said no. Perhaps I would have
a Wood, so as to please the Woods. I chose Wooden herself, and I was
going to appoint her when I fell ill. You are sure that it is not true
that the Woods hate me?”
Peggy assured her again that it was not true, and she seemed much
relieved. “I will not say anything about Selim and Rose,” she said, in
a stately kind of way that was more effective than if she had said how
wicked she thought they were. “When I get back my throne, and put on my
crown again, I shall know what to do. My people have always been good,
and I will not have them taught to tell untruths and to deceive.” She
smiled gently at Peggy. “Why, what would you think of us over there?”
she asked, “if you could not trust us?”
This made Peggy see how trustworthy dolls really were. If they are ever
naughty, it is only because their mistresses like to make them pretend
to be, just for fun. And they are never _really_ naughty, and soon get
over whatever little trouble there may be with them, and are good and
obedient again. Peggy wondered now whether all this might not be owing
to the wise and temperate rule of Queen Rosebud. Perhaps if Selim were
to go on ruling it might all be altered, and dolls might become as bad
as some human beings.
“I am sure when the people know you are alive,” she said, “they will
very soon take you back to your palace. And they will be most awfully
glad to have you reigning over them again.”
“Well, you must tell them,” said the Queen. “I can wait here a little
longer in patience, now that I know things are to be put right. And I
am very pleased to see you here, my dear; but I wish you had come at a
happier time.”
Peggy had never before conversed with a Queen, or indeed with any
royal person, though she had once seen her own King and Queen driving
through London; but she knew somehow that she was being dismissed from
the presence. She kissed the Doll-Queen’s hand, which she had read
somewhere was the proper way to behave, and went out of the room,
leaving Queen Rosebud sitting by the window.
As she went down the five hundred steps, she thought it was rather
extraordinary that the Queen had not said anything about the way in
which she was to be rescued. She had seemed to take it for granted
that when her people knew what had happened, everything would come
right for her. She could leave the details to them.
This seemed to Peggy rather royal, too, and also that she had not
grumbled at all about her imprisonment. Though she was only a doll,
Peggy had gained a great respect for Queen Rosebud.
[Illustration]
XI
THE RELEASE OF PEGGY AND WOODEN
Peggy went down to the kitchen. She had time as she went down the five
hundred stairs, to make up her mind as to whether she should tell Mr.
and Mrs. Emma that the Wax lady on the top floor was the Queen. She
decided not to do so just yet, but to wait a little longer and see what
happened. They might be very indignant at hearing what Selim and Rose
had done, but on the other hand they might be frightened that they
would be punished for having let Peggy see such an important prisoner;
and in that case they would probably not let her see her again. And
Peggy wanted to see Queen Rosebud again.
When Peggy went into the kitchen Mrs. Emma said, “You have been a long
time away, but I know it takes a long time to go up and down those
stairs. How did you find the lady? I hope she liked the tea I sent her.
I gave her some bread and honey instead of bread and butter.”
Peggy thought this rather remarkable, as she remembered the nursery
rhyme about the Queen being in her parlour eating bread and honey.
She wondered whether Mrs. Emma had any suspicion of the prisoner being
the Queen.
Before she could reply Mrs. Emma went on, “I was just saying to my
husband that she is very like what Queen Rosebud was, except for
her crown. Queen Rosebud had no sisters, but I shouldn’t be at all
surprised if she didn’t turn out to be a sort of cousin. If you think
that is likely, I shall ask her to write her name in my birthday book.”
[Illustration: Before she could reply Mrs. Emma went on]
So she seemed to have no suspicion of the truth; but that seemed to be
only because the Queen was not wearing her crown.
“It would be nice to have her name in your book,” said Peggy. “Shall I
take up the other tray now?”
“Yes, dear,” said Mrs. Emma. “And then will you please bring the keys
down? You have been very kind helping us, but of course we must not
forget that you are a prisoner.”