THE MYSTERIOUS SHIN SHIRA BY G. E. FARROW AUTHOR OF The WALLYPUG of WHY [Illustration] ILLUSTRATED BY W. G. EASTON LONDON HENRY FROWDE HODDER & STOUGHTON CONTENTS PAGE Mystery No. I SHIN SHIRA APPEARS 9 Mystery No. II SHIN SHIRA AND THE DRAGON 23 Mystery No. III THE MAGIC CARPET 33 Mystery No. IV SHIN SHIRA AND THE DUCHESS 50 Mystery No. V SHIN SHIRA AND THE LAME DUCK 65 Mystery No. VI SHIN SHIRA AND THE DIAMOND 81 Mystery No. VII SHIN SHIRA AND THE ROC 98 Mystery No. VIII SHIN SHIRA AND THE MAD BULL 114 Mystery No. IX SHIN SHIRA AND THE QUEEN OF HEARTS 130 Mystery No. X and Last SHIN SHIRA DISAPPEARS 146 LIST OF COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS _To face page_ "A SHORT DISTANCE BEYOND LAY A TERRIBLE DRAGON" (_See page 28_) _Frontispiece_ "THE EXECUTIONER IN HIS AGITATION DROPPED HIS AXE" 20 "WE FLOATED AWAY OVER THE ROOFS OF THE HOUSES" 38 "SHIN SHIRA PLACED THEM IN THE CRYSTAL BOWL" 58 "HIS PINIONS WERE STRONG AND MIGHTY" 108 "THIS WAS CAREFULLY SET BEFORE THE KING" 138 MYSTERY NO. I SHIN SHIRA APPEARS It was very remarkable how I first came to make his acquaintance at all. Shin Shira I mean. I had been sitting at my desk, writing, for quite along time, when suddenly I heard, as I thought, a noise in another partof the room. I turned my head hastily and looked towards the door, butit was fast closed and there was apparently nobody in the room butmyself. "Strange!" I murmured, looking about to try and discover what had causedthe sound, and then my eyes lighted, to my great surprise, upon a pairof bright yellow morocco shoes with very long, pointed toes, standing onthe floor in front of a favourite little squat chair of mine which Icall "the Toad. " I gazed at the yellow shoes in amazement, for they certainly did notbelong to me, and they had decidedly not been there a short time before, for I had been sitting in the chair myself. I had just got up to examine them, when, to my utter astonishment, I sawa pair of yellow stockings appearing above them; an instant later, alittle yellow body; and finally, the quaintest little head that I haveever seen, surmounted by a yellow turban, in the front of which a largejewel sparkled and shone. It was not the turban, however, but the face beneath it which claimed mygreatest attention, for the eyes were nearly starting out of the headwith fright, and the expression was one of the greatest anxiety. It gave way, however, to reassurance and content directly the little manhad given a hurried glance round the room, and he sank comfortably downinto "the Toad" with a sigh of relief. "Phew!" he exclaimed, drawing out a little yellow fan from his sleeveand fanning himself vigorously, "that _was_ a narrow squeak! I reallydon't think that I've been in such a tight corner before for two hundredyears at least. " And he tucked his fan away again and beamed upon mecomplacently. I was so astounded at the sudden appearance of this remarkable littlepersonage that for the moment I quite lost the use of my tongue; and inthe meantime my little visitor was glancing about the room with piercingeyes that seemed to take in everything. "H'm!--writer, I suppose?" he said, nodding his head towards my desk, which was as usual littered with papers. "What line? You don't look veryclever, " and he glanced at me critically from under his bushy eyebrows. "I only write books for children, " I answered, "and one doesn't have tobe very clever to do that. " "Oh, children!" said the little Yellow Dwarf--as I had begun to call himin my own mind. "No, you don't have to be _clever_, but you have tobe--er--by the way, do you write fairy stories?" he interrupted himselfto ask. "Sometimes, " I answered. "Ah! then I can put you up to a thing or two. I'm partly a fairymyself. "You see, it's this way, " he went on hastily, seeing, I suppose, thatI looked somewhat surprised at this unexpected piece of information. "Some hundreds of years ago--oh! ever so many--long before the presentJapanese Empire was founded, in fact, there was a man named Shin ShiraScaramanga Manousa Yama Hawa----" "Good gracious!" I exclaimed. "Don't interrupt, " said the little Yellow Dwarf, "it's rude, andbesides, you make me forget--I can't even think now what the rest of thegentleman's name was--but anyhow, he was an ancestor of mine, and thatmuch of his name belongs to me. " "How much?" I inquired. "Shin Shira Scaramanga Manousa Yama Hawa, " repeated the Yellow Dwarf;"but you needn't say it all, " he added hastily, seeing, I suppose, thatI looked rather distressed, "Shin Shira will do; in fact, that's what Iam always called. Well, to continue. This ancestor of mine, part ofwhose name I bear, did something or other to offend hisgreat-grandmother, who was a very influential sort of a fairy--I _could_tell you the whole story, but it's a very long one and I'll have to tellyou that another time--and she was so angry with him that she condemnedhim to appear or disappear whenever she liked and at whatever time orplace that she chose, for ever. " "For ever?" I inquired incredulously. "Why not?" asked Shin Shira. "Fairies, you know, are immortal, and my ancestor had fairy blood in his veins. Well, to make a longstory short, the spell, or whatever you choose to call it, which hisgreat-grandmother cast over him, didn't work in him, nor in his son, noreven in his grandson; but several hundreds of years afterwards _I_ wasborn, and then it suddenly took effect, and I have always been afflictedwith the exceedingly uncomfortable misfortune of having to appear ordisappear whenever the old lady likes, and in whatever place shechooses. "It's terribly awkward at times, for one minute I may be in China takingtea with a Mandarin of the Blue Button, and have to disappear suddenly, turning up a minute later in a first-class carriage on the UndergroundRailway, greatly to the surprise and indignation of the passengers, especially if it happens to be over-crowded without me, as it veryoften is. "Not but what it has its advantages too, " he added thoughtfully, "andthis very power of being able to disappear suddenly has just got me outof a most serious dilemma. " "Won't you tell me about it?" I inquired with considerable curiosity, for I was beginning to be very interested in this singular littleperson's account of himself. "With pleasure, " said Shin Shira; and settling himself more comfortablyin "the Toad, " resting his elbows on the arms of the chair, and placingthe tips of his fingers together, he told me the following story. "The very last place in which I appeared before turning up here, was inthe grounds of the Palace belonging to the Grand Panjandrum--" "Where is that situated, if you please?" I ventured to inquire. Shin Shira gave me a quick glance. "Do you mean to say that you actually don't even know where the land ofthe Grand Panjandrum is?" he asked. "H'm! well, " he continued as I shookmy head, "I remarked a short time ago that you didn't _look_ veryclever, but really, I couldn't have believed that you were so ignorantas all that. You'd better look it up in your atlas when I am gone, Ican't bother to explain where it is now--but to resume my story. Iappeared there, as I said, and in the middle of the kitchen garden allamongst the cabbages and beans. "I could at first see nobody about, but at last I heard somebodysinging, and presently came upon a man carrying a basket in which weresome cabbages that he had evidently just gathered. "Although he was singing so cheerfully, his head was bound up with ahandkerchief, and I could see that his face was badly swollen. "When he had come a little nearer, I bowed politely and inquired of himwhat place it was, for my surroundings were quite strange to me, itbeing my first visit to the neighbourhood. "He told me where I was, and explained that he was the GrandPanjandrum's Chief Cook, and that he had been to gather cabbages to makean apple pie with. " I was about to ask how this was possible, when I caught Shin Shira'seye, and I could see by the light in it that he was expecting me to makesome inquiry; but I was determined that he should not again have theopportunity of remarking upon my ignorance, so I held my tongue and saidnothing, as though gathering cabbages in order to make an apple pie wasthe most natural thing in the world to do. He waited for a moment and then continued-- "I stood talking to the man for some time, and at last I asked what wasthe matter with his face. "'I've the toothache, ' he said ruefully, 'and that's why I was singing;I'm told that it's a capital remedy. ' "'I'll see if I can't find a better one, ' said I, taking up this littlebook, which I always carry with me. " And Shin Shira held out for myinspection a tiny volume bound in yellow leather, with golden clasps, which was attached to his girdle by a long golden chain. "This, " he explained, "is a very remarkable book, and has been in ourfamily for many hundreds of years. It contains directions what to do inany difficulty whatsoever, with the aid of the fairy power, which, as Ihave told you, I inherit from my fairy ancestor. "The only difficulty is that, as I am partly a mortal, _sometimes_(owing perhaps to my fairy great-great-great-grandmother being in a badtemper at the moment) the fairy spell refuses to work, and then I amleft in the lurch. "This time, however, it worked splendidly, for I had only to turn to theword 'Toothache' to discover that the fairy remedy was to 'rub the_other_ side of the face with a stinging nettle, and the pain andswelling would instantly disappear. ' "Fortunately there were plenty of nettles to be found in a neglectedcorner of the garden, and I quickly applied the remedy, which worked, asthe saying is, 'like magic, ' for the Grand Panjandrum's Chief Cook'sface resumed its normal size at once, and the pain vanished immediately. "It is needless to say that he was very grateful, and we were walkingback to the Palace, where he had just promised to regale me with some ofthe choicest viands in his larder, when we met, coming towards us, amost doleful-looking individual, clothed in black and wearing a mostwoebegone visage. "'It's the Court Physician, ' said the Cook; 'I wonder why he is lookingso melancholy. May I venture to ask, sir, ' he inquired respectfully, 'the occasion of your sorrow?' "'I am to be executed to-morrow by the Grand Panjandrum's order, ' saidthe Court Physician dolefully, wiping a tear of self-pity from his eye. "The Chief Cook shrugged his shoulders. 'H'm!' said he, 'if _that's_ thecase, and His Supreme Importance has ordered your execution, nobody canpossibly prevent it, and there is nothing left but to grin and bear it. ' "'No, ' said the Court Physician indignantly. 'I may have to bear it, butI shall _not_ grin. I absolutely refuse! They can't do more than killme, and I _won't_ grin, so there!' "The Chief Cook looked horrified. 'It's one of the laws of the land, ' hesaid, 'that whenever one suffers anything at the hands of the GrandPanjandrum, one must grin and bear it; it's a most terrible offence notto do so. ' "'I don't care, ' said the Court Physician recklessly, 'I shan't grin, and there's an end of it. ' "'Why are you sentenced to death?' I asked. "'His Supreme Importance, the Grand Panjandrum, has had the toothachefor three days, and I have been unable to subdue it without drawing thetooth, which His Supreme Importance refuses to permit me to do, and in afit of temper yesterday he said that if he were not better to-day Ishould be executed to-morrow--and it's worse. ' "The Chief Cook looked at me delightedly. "'If _that's_ all, ' he said, 'this gentleman, whose name I amunfortunately unacquainted with, has a remedy which will soon get youout of your trouble, and I shouldn't wonder if, after all, His SupremeImportance's toothache were the means of raising us all to honour anddistinction;' and he proceeded to tell the Court Physician how I hadbeen successful in ridding _him_ of the toothache. "The Court Physician was greatly interested, and after I had read to himthe directions in the book, he suggested that he should take me to thePalace at once and into the presence of the Grand Panjandrum. "'For no doubt the operation must be performed by yourself, since youalone possess the fairy power, ' said he. And so we made the best of ourway to the beautiful building which I could see in the distance. "I wish I could describe to you the magnificence of that marvellousplace. The jewelled windows and golden staircase; the wonderful velvetycarpets and silken hangings; the hundreds of silent servants dressed inthe beautiful royal livery of the Grand Panjandrum, who flitted aboutexecuting immediately the slightest wish echoed in that wonderful place. "But it is sufficient to say that, after a lot of ceremony, I was atlast ushered into the presence of the Grand Panjandrum himself. "It is forbidden to anyone, under the most awful penalties, to describeHis Supreme Importance's appearance, so I cannot tell you what he waslike; but I found him suffering the most excruciating agony with thetoothache, and with his face even more swollen than the Chief Cook's hadbeen. "At a sign from the Court Physician I quickly prepared my nettle leaves, which we had thought to gather on our way to the palace, and began torub them gently on the Grand Panjandrum's cheek, on the opposite side ofhis face to that which was swollen. "To my horror and amazement, they had no effect whatever, exceptimmediately to raise a terrible rash upon His Supreme Importance'scheek, and to cause him such pain that he called out angrily that itwas worse than the toothache itself. "I hurriedly and anxiously consulted my little book to see if by anymischance I had failed in carrying out any of the directions; but no, there it was in black and white--'rub the _other_ side with a stingingnettle. ' "I showed it to the Court Physician, and he said-- "'Try the "other" side, then: you've rubbed one side, try the other. ' "So in fear and trembling I begged His Supreme Importance's permissionto apply the remedy to his other cheek, and after some demur he agreed, but making it a condition that if it failed to act I was to beimmediately beheaded. "You may imagine with what anxiety I awaited the result of myexperiment, and how carefully I rubbed the nettles on. "It was all in vain: the rash spread under the nettles and the swellinggrew greater than ever--evidently my fairy power refused to work--andthe Grand Panjandrum was in a fearful rage. "'Fetch the Executioner!' he cried, in terrible tones. 'I will see thisimpostor executed before my eyes!' And twenty slaves flew to obey hiscommand. "'Grin!' whispered the Court Physician behind his hand, 'grin and bearit; it's the only thing to be done. ' [Illustration: "The Executioner in his agitation dropped his axe. "] "I gave him a wrathful glance, and was about to speak, when at a signfrom the Grand Panjandrum, two powerful slaves sprang forward and boundand gagged me. "There was a sound of approaching footsteps, and from another entrancethe Executioner appeared, followed by some slaves carrying the block. "I thought my last moment had arrived, but just then, to my intensedelight, I felt a curious sensation, which told me that I was about todisappear. "My feet went first (this is not always the case), and then my legs, andI could see the amazement with which the Grand Panjandrum and all theassembled company were regarding the, to them, extraordinary phenomenon. "The Executioner in his agitation dropped his axe, and stoodopen-mouthed regarding what was left of me; and, although I was ratheranxious lest they should make an attempt to chop off my head before itfinally disappeared, I managed despite my gag to 'grin' in the GrandPanjandrum's face, and an instant later I found myself here. " Shin Shira, having finished his story, drew his little fan from hissleeve and sat fanning himself with great composure, while he regardedmy doubtless astonished face with considerable amusement. "I--I'll put that story down at once, if you don't mind, " I stammered, hurrying to my desk and getting out some papers. The drawer stuck, and it was some seconds before I could get it open, and when I turned round again, to my great dismay, Shin Shira had almostdisappeared. The little yellow shoes were still there and part of a stocking, buteven as I watched them they too disappeared, the long pointed toes ofthe shoes waggling a kind of farewell--or so I thought--and my strangelittle visitor had vanished. MYSTERY NO. II SHIN SHIRA AND THE DRAGON It was during my holidays in Cornwall that I next met Shin Shira. I had ridden by motor-car from Helston to the Lizard, and afterscrambling over rugged cliffs for some time, following the white stonesput by the coastguards to mark the way, I found myself at last at themost beautiful little bay imaginable, called Kynance Cove. The tide was low, and from the glittering white sands, tall jagged rocksrose up, covered with coloured seaweed; which, together with the deepblue and green of the sky and sea, made a perfect feast of colour forthe eyes. On the shore I met an amiable young guide, who, for sixpence, undertookto show me some caves in the rocks which are not generally discovered byvisitors. They were very fine caves, one of them being called The Princess'sParlour; and while we were exploring this, I suddenly heard a roar as ofsome mighty animal in terrible pain. I turned to the guide with, I expect, rather a white face, for anexplanation. He smiled at my alarm, however, and told me that it was "only theBellows, " and suggested a visit to the spot whence the sound proceeded. We scrambled out of the cave and descended to the sands again, andpassing behind a tall rock called The Tower, we saw a curious sight. From between two enormous boulders came at intervals a great cloud offine spray, which puffed up into the air for about twenty feet, accompanied by the roaring noise that I had previously noticed. My youngguide explained to me that the noise and the spray were caused by theair in the hollow between the two boulders being forcibly expelledthrough a narrow slit in the rocks as each wave of the incoming tideentered. Having made this quite clear to me, he took his departure, warning me not to remain too long on the sands, as the tide was comingin rather rapidly. I sat for some time alone on the rocks, gazing with fascinated interestat the curious effect produced by the clouds of spray coming from "theBellows, " and was at last just turning to go when I started in surprise, for there, sitting on another rock just behind me, was the little YellowDwarf, Shin Shira, energetically fanning himself with the little yellowfan which I had noticed at our previous meeting. "Oh! it's you, is it?" he remarked, when he caught sight of my face. "Ithought I recognised the back view; you see it was the last I saw of youwhen I paid you that visit in your study. " "And disappeared so very suddenly, " I answered, going up and offering myhand, for I was very pleased to see the little man again. [Illustration] "I was _obliged_ to. You know of my unfortunate affliction in having toappear or disappear whenever my fairy great-great-great-grandmotherwishes. _He's_ safe enough, isn't he?" he added, inconsequently noddinghis head towards "the Bellows. " "Who is? What do you mean?" I inquired. "The dragon, of course, " said Shin Shira. "The dragon!" I exclaimed. "Certainly--you know that there's a dragon imprisoned behind thoserocks, don't you?" I laughed. "No, " I said, "although I must admit that I was at first inclined tothink that something of the sort was concealed there. I've had it allexplained to me, though, " and I proceeded to inform him of what theguide had told me concerning the matter. "Pooh! Rubbish! He doesn't know what he's talking about, " said ShinShira contemptuously; "I'll tell you the real story of those rocks as itoccurred, let's see--about eight or nine hundred years ago. I rememberit quite well, for it was one of those occasions when I was _most_distressed at having to disappear at what was for me the very worstpossible moment. " I settled myself comfortably on the rocks beside Shin Shira and preparedto listen with great interest. "Let's think for a moment, " said the little Yellow Dwarf, looking abouthim. "It began--oh, yes! I know now. In that cave over yonder--I was eightor nine hundred years younger then, and a very warm-blooded andimpressionable young fellow at that time; and I can remember beingstruck with the extreme beauty of the charming Princess whom Idiscovered in tears there when I suddenly appeared. "The cave itself was hung about with the most beautiful silken curtainsand tapestries, and on the floor were spread rugs and carpets andcushions of Oriental magnificence. Tiny tables, inlaid with ivory andmother-of-pearl, were scattered about, on which were caskets filled withbeautiful jewels and rare curios from foreign lands. "The Princess herself was reclining on one of the cushions, sobbing asthough her heart would break, and her beautiful hair was lying indishevelled glory about her shoulders. "I was afraid of alarming her, so I coughed slightly to attract herattention. "She started up immediately with a look of terror, but was calmed in aninstant when she saw who it was. "'Oh!' she cried, 'have you slain him? You must have done in order tohave reached here. Oh! have you come to save me?' and she looked at mewith wild, eager eyes. "'Calm yourself, fair lady!' said I. 'What is it that alarms you? Besure that I will do all in my power to protect you from any evil thatthreatens you. ' "'The Dragon!' gasped the Princess. 'Have you not slain him? How elsecan you have entered? He lies at the door of the cave. ' "She caught me by the hand and led me to the entrance, and then, clasping one hand over her eyes and shuddering with terror, she pointedto where, a short distance beyond, under the shadow of some rocks, lay aterrible Dragon, watching with cruel and expectant eyes for any preythat might come his way. "'I cannot get away from here except I pass him, and I have beenimprisoned here now for two days, ' sobbed the Princess. 'The King, myfather, must indeed be distraught at my absence, ' and she burst intofresh weeping. "I pressed her to tell me how she came there, and she explained to methat one day, while walking on the sands with one of her maidens inattendance, they had together discovered this cave, which was onlyaccessible at low tide; and they had secretly brought the rugs andtapestries and other furniture with which the cave was filled and made abower of it, to which the Princess was wont to retire whenever shewished to be alone. "And, venturing here two days since without attendance, the Princesshad found, when she had wished to depart, the terrible monster lying inher path. "'And so, ' she cried, 'I have been a prisoner all this time. ' "I cheered her as well as I was able, and turned to my little book tosee if by chance it gave me any directions how I might slay a Dragon bymeans of my fairy powers; and I read there that though one might notslay it (for a Dragon lives for a thousand years), one might rob it ofits power by casting at it a jewel of great brilliancy, at the same timewishing that he might become dazed and impotent till one could escape, and it would be so. "I told this to the Princess, and she hastened to unfasten from herbosom a jewel of great value set in gold of curious workmanship, whichshe gave to me, imploring me at the same time to do immediately as thebook directed. "'Nay, ' said I, 'the jewel is yours; you must cast it at the Dragon, andI will _wish_ that the fairies may aid us. ' "And so we stood at the door of the cave, and the Dragon, seeing us, came forward with wide-opened jaws. "The Princess clung to my arm with one hand, but with the other she castthe jewel, while with all my desire I wished that my fairy powers mightnot fail me now. "Whether, however, it was that the fairies willed it so, or perchancebecause she was a girl, the Princess's aim was not straight, and shehit, not the Dragon, but a great boulder in the shadow of which he waslurking; and then a truly remarkable thing occurred, for the boulder, immediately it was struck by the jewel, tumbled forward, and fallingupon one beside it, imprisoned the Dragon between the two, where he hasremained to this day. " And Shin Shira pointed dramatically to the rocks, from which an extralarge puff of spray belched forth, with a groan and a cry which almostconvinced me that what he told me must be true. "And what became of the Princess after that?" I inquired, being anxiousto hear the end of the story. "Why, " resumed Shin Shira, "we picked up the jewel and hurried away fromthe spot, and presently came at the top of the cliffs to the Castle, theruins of which may still be seen up yonder--to where the King dwelt. "I cannot tell you with what joy the Princess was received, nor withwhat honour and favour I was rewarded by the King--and, indeed, by allof the people--as the Princess's deliverer. "It is enough to say that the King called a great assembly of people, and before them all said that as a fitting reward he should give me thefairest jewel in all his kingdom, and handed me the very stone which hadbeen cast at the Dragon, and which was valuable beyond price, being oneof the most perfect and flawless stones in the world. "I was glad enough to have the gem, but I had fallen madly in love withthe Princess's beauty, so I made bold to remind the King that thefairest jewel in his kingdom was not the gem he had given me, but thePrincess, his daughter. "The answer pleased the King and the people, though I remember sometimessadly, even now, that the Princess's face fell as she heard the Kingdeclare that his word should be kept, and the fairest jewel of all, eventhe Princess herself, should be mine. "But now, alas! comes the sorrowful part, for, before the ceremony of ourmarriage could be completed, I was doomed by the fairies to disappear, and so I lost for ever my beautiful bride, " and Shin Shira gave a deepsigh. "The jewel though, " he added, "remained mine, and I have alwaysworn it in the front of my turban in honour and memory of the lovelyPrincess. You may like to see it, " and Shin Shira reached up to his headfor the turban in which I had noticed the jewel sparkling only a momentbefore. It was gone! "Dear me! I'm disappearing again myself, I'm afraid, " said Shin Shira, looking down at his legs, from which the feet had already vanished. "Good-bye!" he had just time to call out, before he departed in a littleyellow flicker. "Hi! Hi!" I heard voices shouting, and looking up to the cliffs I sawsome people waving frantically. "Come up quickly, or you'll be cut off, "they shouted. And I hurried along the sands, only just in time, for I had been sointerested in Shin Shira's story that I had not noticed how the tide hadbeen creeping up. I shall have a good look at that jewel in Shin Shira'sturban next time I see him--and as for "the Bellows, " I hardly knowwhich explanation to accept, Shin Shira's or that of the guide. MYSTERY NO. III THE MAGIC CARPET It was just at the end of the school term, and I had received a letterfrom my young cousin Lionel, who was at Marlborough, reminding me of mypromise that he should spend a part at least of his holidays with me. "Mind you're at the station in time, " he had said; "and, I say! pleasedon't call me Lionel if there are any of our fellows about, it sounds sokiddish. Just call me Sutcliffe, and I'll call you sir--as you're soold--like we do the masters. Oh yes! and there's something I want you tobuy for me, very particularly--it's for my study. I've got a study thisterm, and I share it with a fellow named Gammage. He's an awfully goodegg!" "What extraordinary language schoolboys do manage to get hold of, " Ithought as I re-read the letter while bowling along in the cab on myway to the station, which, a very few minutes later, came in sight, theplatform being crowded with parents, relatives and friends waiting tomeet the train by which so many Marlburians were travelling. There was a shriek from an engine, and a rattle and clatter outside thestation, as the train, every window filled with boys' excited faces, came dashing up to the platform. "There's my people!" "There's Tom!" "Hi! hi! Here I am!" "There's thepater with the trap!" "Hooray!" To the accompaniment of a babel of crieslike these, and amidst an excited scramble of half-wild schoolboys, Iat last discovered my small cousin. "There he is!" he said, pointing me out to a young friend who was withhim; and coming up he hurriedly offered his hand. "How are you, _Sutcliffe_?" I asked, remembering his letter. "All right, thanks, " he replied. "This is Gammage. I wanted to show youto him. He wouldn't believe I had a cousin as old as you are. See, Gammage?" Gammage looked at me and nodded. "'Bye, Sutcliffe; good-bye, sir, " saidhe, raising his hat to me and hurrying off to his "people. " "I say! don't forget the rug, Sutcliffe!" he bawled over his shoulderbefore finally disappearing. "Oh no! I say, sir! _That's_ what I want to ask you about, " saidSutcliffe, scrambling into the taxi, and settling himself down with alittle nod of satisfaction. "What?" I inquired, as we bowled out of the station. "Why, a rug for my--our--study, " said the boy. "Gammage has bought noend of things to make our room comfortable, and they've sent me up somepictures and chairs and things from home--and--it would be awfullydecent of you if you'd buy me a rug to put in front of the fire-place. It's rather cheek to ask, but you generally give me something when Icome over to see you, and I arranged with Gammage to say I'd rather havethat than anything. What sort of a shop do you get rugs at? Couldn't weget it on our way now, and then it would be done with? I might forget toask you about it later on. " "What sort of a rug do you want?" I asked, as the taxi turned intoTottenham Court Road. "Oh, I don't know, sir. Any sort of an ordinary kind of rug will do. There's some in that window; one of those would do. " I stopped the taxi and we got out. The window was filled with Orientalrugs and carpets, and a card in their midst stated that they were "arecent consignment of genuine old goods direct from Arabia. " "Oh, they're too expensive, I expect, " I remarked, as we stood amongst asmall crowd of people in front of the window, "those Oriental rugs aregenerally so--" But Sutcliffe suddenly nudged my arm, and, with an amused twinkle in hiseye, called my attention to a remarkable little figure standing besidehim, dressed in an extraordinary yellow costume, and wearing a turban. "Why! bless me! It's Shin Shira!" I exclaimed. "I hadn't noticed youbefore. " "No, " said the Yellow Dwarf, "I've only just appeared. How very strangemeeting you here!" I told him what we were doing, and introduced my young cousin, who wasgreatly interested and somewhat awe-struck at the extraordinary littlepersonage in the Oriental costume, whose remarkable appearance wascausing quite a sensation amongst the bystanders. "Oh, these rugs, " he said, looking at them casually. "No, I don't fancythey are much good for your purpose, they seem to be too--hullo!" hesuddenly cried excitedly, "what's that? Good gracious! I really believeit's--Why, yes! I'm sure of it! I recognise it quite well by thepattern. There's not another in the world like it. How could it possiblyhave got here?" "What _are_ you talking about?" I asked. "Why, this carpet, " cried Shin Shira, pointing excitedly to a veryquaint-looking Oriental rug in the corner of the window. "It's the MagicCarpet which everybody has read about in the _Arabian Nights_. Itenables anybody in whose possession it is to travel anywhere theywish--surely you must have heard about it. " "No!" cried Lionel, his eyes sparkling with eagerness, "not really? Oh, sir! Do--_do_ please buy it--it will be simply ripping! Do! do! Why, itwill be better than an aeroplane. " I had never in my life before seen my cousin so excited about anything. "I should certainly advise you to purchase it, " whispered Shin Shira. "It is a very valuable rug, and no doubt you would find it very usefulin many ways. " I must confess to a considerable amount of curiosity myself as weentered the shop and asked to be shown the carpet which Shin Shiradeclared to be endued with such remarkable properties. It was a very handsome one, and the shopkeeper showed it to us with aconsiderable amount of pride. "It's a genuine article, sir, " he told me. "Came over only last weekfrom Arabia in a special parcel purchased by our agent in Baghdad--Ibelieve it's very old. These foreigners know how to make things whichwill last. " I inquired the price, and hesitated considerably when I found that itwas far in excess of the amount I had intended to pay for a rug. However, Lionel seemed so very eager, and Shin Shira assured me sopositively that it was really a bargain, that, with a sigh at what Ifeared was a great piece of extravagance on my part, I took out my purseand paid for it. "To where shall I send it?" inquired the shopkeeper. "Let's ride home on it and save the cab fare, " whispered Shin Shira, pulling me down to his level by my sleeve. "Good gracious!" I exclaimed. "Why not? It will be the quickest way home, and certainly the leastexpensive, " persuaded the little Yellow Dwarf. "But--but--" I protested. Shin Shira had already spread the carpet on the ground, and pullingLionel on to it, beckoned me to follow. Half mechanically I obeyed his instructions, and had no sooner sat downon it, cross-legged, as I saw that Shin Shira and Lionel were doing, than the little Yellow Dwarf cried out something in a language which Isupposed to be Arabic--and immediately we began to rise into the air. [Illustration: "We floated away over the roofs of the houses. "] I shall never forget the expression of dismay on the countenance of theshopkeeper and his assistants, when they saw us slowly floating in theair towards the door. "Open it! open it, somebody!" shouted Shin Shira, and abewildered-looking customer who had just entered instinctively pulledthe handle. Before we knew where we were, we found ourselves out in theopen air with a shouting, gesticulating, excited crowd watching us as werose higher and higher, and floated away over the roofs of the houses. The sensation, I must admit, was a pleasant one, and, despite a slightfeeling of nervousness (which, however, young Sutcliffe did not appearto share), I quite enjoyed the journey to my flat. There were, fortunately, but very few people about, and we arrived atthe door without attracting much attention. One nervous old lady, at whose feet we descended somewhat suddenly, didthreaten to call the police--saying rather angrily that "What withmotor-cars and such-like, " she "didn't know what we were a-coming to, and it wasn't safe for a respectable lady to walk about the streets, what with one thing and another. " I managed, however, to soothe her ruffled feelings, and, rolling the rugup carefully, we went up to the flat. I threw myself into a chair in thestudy, thoroughly tired out and not a little bewildered by the strangeevents of the morning. Lionel, however, was full of excitement, and eager to be off again for aride on the marvellous Magic Carpet. "I say! you know! but it's the rippingest thing I've ever heard of. Why, we'll be able to go anywhere. Just think what an awful lot we'll save inrailway fares and cabs and those sort of things. I suppose anybody canuse it?" he inquired, turning to Shin Shira. "Oh yes, of course, " declared the little Yellow Dwarf, "so long as yousay, out loud, where you want to go to. " "Oh! Do let's go out again--just for a little while, " pleaded Lionel. "Can't we go to Gammage's? He lives over at Wimbledon. It's quite easyto get to, and it won't take long. We could be back to lunch, and Ishould _so_ like him to see the Magic Carpet. Do come, sir. " "No, " I replied, shaking my head, "I'm too tired. You two can go if youlike, only be back in an hour and a half. " "Oh, jolly!" cried Lionel. "Come on, please--let's start at once. " And he picked up the carpet under his arm. "I think it would attract less attention if, instead of starting fromthe pavement, we went out of the window, " said Shin Shira. "What do yousay?" "By all means, " I replied, "if you think best, " for you see, havingridden on it myself, I felt perfectly safe in trusting my young cousinon the Magic Carpet, and I felt sure that Shin Shira would not let himcome to any harm. So we opened the window, and a minute later the two were gaily floatingaway out of sight, both energetically waving their pocket-handkerchiefsuntil they disappeared. I could tell by the noise in the street that their strange method ofconveyance was attracting considerable attention; but as I felt thankfulto note, no one seemed to connect their appearance with my rooms. The next hour or so passed quickly enough, and I did not begin to get inthe least anxious till I heard the clock strike two, and then I suddenlyrealised that they were over half-an-hour late. "Oh, they're all right, " I consoled myself with thinking. "I expectGammage is so interested in the wonderful carpet that they can't getaway. " When three hours had passed, however, and there was no sign of theirreturn, I began to get seriously alarmed. "What can have happened?" I thought, and, to add to my discomfiture, atelegram arrived from Lionel's parents inquiring if he had arrived inLondon safely from Marlborough. I was able to reply, truthfully, that he _had_ arrived safely, but, ashour after hour passed by without any trace of either Shin Shira or theboy, I became more and more disturbed. At last I could stand it no longer, but putting on my hat, I hurried offto the nearest Police Station. "H'm! What do you say, sir?" said the Police Inspector whom I foundthere, seated before a large open book, when in a broken voice I hadhurriedly explained that I feared that my young cousin was lost. "Wentoff in company with a foreign-looking gent--Just describe him to me, please, as near as you can. " I described Shin Shira's appearance as accurately as I could, and thePolice Inspector looked up hurriedly and gave me a searching glance. "Do you mean to say the gent was going about the streets dressed like_that_?" he asked, when I had told him about Shin Shira's yellow costumeand turban. "Yes, " I replied in some confusion, "he is a foreigner, you know, and--" "Where does he come from?" "From Japan, I think, or China, or--" "What's his name?" "Shin Shira Scaramanga Manousa Yama Hama is his full name, but--" The Police Inspector laid down his pen and stared again at me. "It's a curious name, " said he; "I'll get you to write it down for me. Idon't think I should be surprised at _anything_ happening to _anyone_with a name like that. Where do you say they were going?" "Well, " I explained, "they set out to go to Wimbledon to see a--" "Wimbledon? Let's see, from Kensington they'd go by train I suppose, from High Street Station, and change at--" "No, no, " I interrupted, "they didn't go by train at all, they--" andhere I paused, for I suddenly reflected how exceedingly unlikely theInspector would be to believe me if I told him exactly _how_ they setout for Wimbledon. "You see, " I began by way of explanation, "I boughta rug this morning that--" "Excuse me, sir, " said the Inspector somewhat impatiently, "would youmind keeping to the subject. How did Mr. Shin--er--the foreigner I mean, and your cousin go to Wimbledon? If they didn't go by train, did theydrive or go by motor, or what?" "Well, I was trying to tell you. You see, I bought a rug this morning, that--" "I _don't_ want to hear about your rug, sir, " said the Inspector quiteangrily. "If you wish us to try and find the young gentleman you mustanswer my questions properly. How did he set out to go to Wimbledon?Come, come! Let's begin at the beginning. Which way did they turn whenthey left your door?" "You see, they didn't exactly leave by the door, " I began. "How did they go then, out of the window?" asked the Inspector in asomewhat sarcastic voice. "Yes, " I replied, "that's just how they did go. " The Inspector looked bewildered. "Look here, sir, " he said at last, "you told me when you gave me yourname and address that you lived in a flat at Kensington on the secondfloor, and now you tell me that your cousin and a foreign gentlemanwith an outlandish name and dressed like a Guy Fawkes, left your houseby the window. Really!" "So they _did_, " I explained; "you see, I bought a rug this morningthat--" "_Bother_ the rug, sir!" shouted the Inspector, angrily throwing downhis pen. "If you _won't_ listen to what I have to say, " I said with some amountof dignity, "how can I possibly tell you what I know? I am_endeavouring_ to explain that my cousin and the gentleman left in avery remarkable manner by means of a Magic Carpet, which--" "Excuse me, sir, " said the Inspector, getting up from his seat andshowing me the door, "it strikes me that it's a lunatic asylum you wantand not a Police Station. I haven't any time to waste with people whocome here with stories like that. Good-evening!" And he shut the door, leaving me outside on the step. I went to several other stations, and finally to Scotland Yard, but Icould get no one to believe my extraordinary story; and at last I wentto bed quite bewildered and in a terribly anxious frame of mind, leavingthe lights burning and the windows wide open in case the wanderersreturned during the night. The next day, not hearing any news, I was obliged to telegraph forLionel's father and mother; and I had a terrible scene with them, forthey reproached me over and over again for letting their son venture outupon the Magic Carpet. "You must have known, " said my aunt tearfully, "that it was dangerous totrust to such heathenish and out-of-date methods of travelling, and nowthe poor dear boy is probably transformed or bewitched, or donesomething terrible to by this wretched Yellow Dwarf friend of yours, with the awful name. It's really disgraceful of you to have let him goat all!" And so, amid the most bitter reproaches, although I left no stoneunturned in my hopeless search for Lionel and Shin Shira, several daysflew by, till one morning I nearly leaped from my chair in surprise anddelight, at seeing the following report in the paper-- "EXTRAORDINARY RESCUE AT SEA "By Marconigram comes a message from mid-ocean that two days ago the S. S. _Ruby_, from Liverpool to New York, picked up at sea, under extraordinary circumstances, an English school-boy who states that he was travelling by means of a Magic Carpet, which he was unable to manage. He was found to be in a state of complete exhaustion, but has since recovered, and appears to be a lively, intelligent lad. He will be landed at New York. " It is needless to say that my uncle and myself lost no time in puttingourselves in communication with the steamship people, and of coursefound that the rescued lad was no other than Lionel. His father and I crossed over by the next boat, and found him happy andwell and being made a tremendous fuss of by everybody at the hotel wherewe had arranged for him to stay till our arrival. "Of course, " he explained in telling us all about it, "everything wentall right at first, and we went to Gammage's house in no time, but hewas out. We landed in the garden, and nobody saw us, and I went up tothe front door and knocked, and when I found Gammage wasn't at home Ijust went back to Shin Shira and asked where else we could go, because Ididn't want to go home so soon. "'How would you like to go over to France?' he said; 'we could do it inabout twenty minutes. ' "So of course I said yes, and we were crossing the Channel all rightwhen he suddenly began to disappear. "You can guess I was in an awful funk when I found myself alone on thebeastly old carpet, and I couldn't manage it at all. I suppose it wasbecause I couldn't speak the language; Shin Shira used Arabic orsomething, wasn't it? I tried all sorts of things too, a little bit ofFrench--you know, 'Avez-vous la plume de ma soeur?' and 'Donnez-moi dupain, ' and things like that out of my French exercises, but it didn'tdo any good: we only went out to sea. [Illustration] "It was frightfully cold all night, and I couldn't sleep at all, and Ibegan to get awfully hungry; but the next morning about eleven o'clock Ibegan to descend very slowly and gradually down to the sea. I thought Iwas going to be drowned, but fortunately just before I touched the waterthey saw me from the _Ruby_, and sent a boat out to pick me up. Everybody was awfully decent on board, and I had plenty of grub andchanged my clothes. A fellow who was going over with his people lent mehis while mine were being dried. "Then when I got to New York your cable message was there waiting forme, so I knew it was all right. " We were very thankful to have found the boy again, and within threeweeks we were happily home once more, and the adventure with the MagicCarpet was a thing of the past. The carpet itself was left floating out at sea, and from that day tothis I have not heard of it again. MYSTERY NO. IV SHIN SHIRA AND THE DUCHESS It all began with the collar-stud--at least I put it down at that. You see, I was dressing rather nervously to go to a charity "At Home" atthe Duchess of Kingslake's. I had not met the lady previously, but someyoung friends of mine had been invited to the "At Home, " and they hadpersuaded the Duchess to ask me too. I do not know many titled people, and had never before visited a reallive Duchess, so I was just telling myself that I must really be on myvery best behaviour, and above all, that I must not be late in arriving. The card had mentioned "4 to 6. 30, " and it was past three o'clock now. I was just struggling to fix my collar, which was rather stiff andtight, when suddenly the stud popped out and rolled away to--where? Down I got on my hands and knees, and groped about in every directionthat I could think of. I lit a candle, and searched in every availablehiding-place; but no--no collar-stud could be anywhere found. And the time was going on. I rang the bell for Mrs. Putchy, myhousekeeper. "Please, Mrs. Putchy, send at once to the nearest hosier's and buy me aplain collar-stud, and kindly ask Mary to get back as quickly aspossible. I am expecting the cab every moment. " "It is at the door, sir, " said Mrs. Putchy; "and I don't know, I'm sure, where Mary will be able to get a collar-stud for you to-day. This isThursday, you know, sir, early closing day. " Too true. It was indeed _most_ unfortunate. In my neighbourhood all theshops close at two o'clock Thursdays, and it would have been as easy tobuy a collar-stud as an elephant at Kensington just then. What was to be done? A sudden inspiration struck me. I ran across to the study, and undoing my desk, I found a littleyellow-covered book attached to a golden chain which I had picked upjust after my friend Shin Shira had vanished the last time he hadvisited me. It was the book which the fairies had given him, and containeddirections as to what to do when in any difficulty. I hurriedly turnedto the letter C, intending to look for "collar-stud"--but, to my greatdisappointment, there was no such word to be found. "Of course not, " I suddenly thought; "the people who live in the landfrom which Shin Shira comes don't wear such things, " and I let my mindwander back to my little friend with his yellow silk costume and turban. "Hullo! though, " I exclaimed a moment later, "what's this?" My eyes had caught the words "_To obtain your wishes_" at the top of oneof the pages. I hastily read what followed, and gathered from what was written that_anybody_ could have at least _two_ wishes granted by the fairies if heonly went about it in the right way and followed the given directionsclosely. It appeared that one must hop round three times, first on onefoot and then on the other, repeating the following words aloud, andwishing very hard-- "Fairies! fairies! grant my wishes, You can do so if you will, Birds and beasts and little fishes One and all obey you still. Fairies! Please to show me how You can grant my wishes _now_. " Of course _I_ immediately wished for a collar-stud, and I was justhopping round on my right leg for the third time, having begun with theleft one, when Mrs. Putchy entered the room. She looked rather surprised at seeing me engaged in what must haveseemed to her rather an extraordinary occupation, but she is so used tostrange things happening with me that she made no remark, except topoint to a spot just in front of the fire-place, where, to my greatsurprise, I could see the very collar-stud which I had wanted. "Extraordinary!" I exclaimed, as I picked it up. "I could have declaredthat it was not there a minute ago, for as you know, Mrs. Putchy, Isearched everywhere for it. " "The cabman, sir, is getting impatient, " said Mrs. Putchy, as she putdown my coat and hat which she had thoughtfully brought to my room. "Well, we won't keep him waiting long now, " I smilingly said as Ihurriedly completed my dressing, and a very few minutes later, the cabwas quickly bowling me towards my destination. The mansion near Grosvenor Square, at which the Duchess resided, was avery grand one, and red carpet was laid down the steps and across thepavement for the convenience of the guests, who were arriving in largenumbers at the same time as myself. Fortunately, just inside the hall Imet my little friends the Verrinder children; Vera, the little girl, looking very pretty in her white party frock; and her two brothers, Dickand Fidge, full of excitement and high spirits. They fastened on me at once and dragged me most unceremoniously up toour hostess, who it appears was Vera's godmother, and introduced me intheir own fashion. "This is the gentleman who tells stories, godmamma, " said Vera. "And knows all about the Wallypug and the Dodo and Shin Shira, and allsorts of things, " declared Dick. "And if you ask him--" began Fidge, when the Duchess interrupted him. "Really, children, you mustn't rattle on so. I am very pleased to meetyour friend, and I trust that he will have an enjoyable afternoon, " andthe lady smiled graciously and held out the tips of her fingers for meto shake. I bowed as politely as I knew how, and, following the children, was soonin the large drawing-room, which was already half filled with youngpeople who had come to the "At Home. " It appeared that a very grand personage indeed was to be present. A reallive Princess was coming to receive purses of money which the childrenhad collected themselves, on behalf of the poor and sick in the East-endof London; and, after the purses had been given, there was to be a kindof concert and entertainment. Footmen were walking about with tea and cakes of all sorts, and the timepassed very pleasantly, till presently there was a commotion at thedoor, and Her Royal Highness the Princess entered and was led to the endof the room, where a tiny little girl presented a beautiful bouquet offlowers. The Princess made a gracious little speech, saying how glad she was tocome on behalf of the poor people to receive the purses of money whichthe children had collected; and then as they passed up one by one andlaid their purses on the silver tray beside her, she had a smile and alittle happy nod for each of them. It was a very pretty sight, but soon over, for the Princess, who isdevoted to good works, had to hurry away to another work of charity in adistant part of London. We were all sorry when she went, but were not allowed to get dull, foralmost immediately afterwards the concert began. Several ladies and gentlemen sang, and a wonderful boy-pianist playedsome music of his own composing; a little girl played the violindelightfully; and a very humorous gentleman was giving a musical sketchat the piano and making us all laugh very much, when I suddenly noticedthat the Duchess, who was sitting by herself on a settee, had raised herlorgnette and was staring curiously, and rather apprehensively, atsomething beside her. It was yellow in colour and seemed to grow larger every minute. I hadimagined at first that it was a cushion, but now it suddenly occurred tome that it was Shin Shira appearing. Of course! and a minute or two later there he sat, cross-legged, composedly fanning himself on the settee beside the Duchess. I could see her draw her skirts aside and regard the little Yellow Dwarfin a puzzled and bewildered manner; and, as soon as the musical sketchwas concluded, she called one of the footmen to her and told him to"remove that extraordinary-looking person immediately. " Vera and the boys, however, had caught sight of Shin Shira, and flewforward to claim acquaintance with him. "It's Shin Shira, you know, godmamma. He's a friend of the gentlemanwho came with us--and--" "He was not invited, " said the Duchess, looking with great disfavour atthe little Yellow Dwarf, "and it was exceedingly impertinent of yourfriend to bring him without an invitation--I am displeased. " "Madam, " said Shin Shira, getting down to the floor and bowing low inthe Oriental manner, "you are mistaken in thinking that I came with afriend. I--er--appeared, because I was _obliged_ to do so--I--" The Duchess came over to where I was sitting. "_Do_ you know this person?" she inquired, pointing with her glassestowards Shin Shira. "Who and what is he? Did you bring him here, and ifso why?" "I am acquainted with the gentleman, Duchess, " I admitted, "but he didnot come with me. I can tell you, however, that now he is here he can bemade very useful in entertaining your guests--he is a conjurer of veryremarkable powers, and I've no doubt whatever but that he would be onlytoo happy to exercise them for the amusement of the company. " "That is a different matter, " said the Duchess, evidently somewhatmollified. "You may introduce me. " I went to fetch Shin Shira, and had soon performed the necessaryceremony. "The Duchess would be very much obliged if you would perform someconjuring tricks, as I know you will do with pleasure, " I whispered. "Delighted, I'm sure, " replied the little Yellow Dwarf; "that is onething which I flatter myself I can do very well, owing to my fairypowers, " and so it was arranged that he was to begin immediately. I cannot possibly tell you of all the wonderful things he showed us. Hemade flowers grow straight up from the carpet, and turned a gentleman'swalking-stick into a kind of Christmas-tree, upon which hung a littlepresent for every child in the room: a fan for each of the ladies, and asuitable gift for each of the gentlemen. This was a most popular trick, it is needless to say, and the numerousladies and gentlemen who had by this time joined the party were asdelighted as were the children themselves. Shin Shira had become quite a centre of attraction, and the Duchesssmiled at me approvingly. "Your friend is a great acquisition, " she remarked, coming over to thesettee on which I was seated. "Look! look! whatever is he going to donow?" I was as interested and puzzled as herself, for, knowing of theextraordinary powers which my little friend possessed, I could neverbe sure what to expect from him in the way of the marvellous. [Illustration: "Shin Shira placed them in the Crystal Bowl. "] This time it was really a most interesting trick. First of all he turned an inkstand into a large clear crystal bowl, andplaced it on a little table which stood in front of him. Then he askedfor anything to be given to him which the owner wished to disappear. Several gentlemen gave their watches, and one or two ladies laughinglytook off their bracelets and handed them to Shin Shira, who immediatelyplaced them in the crystal bowl. To our utter astonishment, each article as it was placed into the bowlvanished from sight, and Shin Shira turned the bowl upside down to showthat nothing was inside. "It's really most marvellous, " murmured the Duchess, taking off a mostvaluable diamond ornament and handing it to the Yellow Dwarf. "Pleasemake this disappear too. I shall value it more highly than ever if Iknow that it has been through such a wonderful adventure. " Shin Shira bowed, and taking the jewelled ornament from the lady, hedropped it into the bowl, where it at once shared the same fate as theother articles. "Ha! Hum!" said a grave and somewhat pompous voice, "our friend heremight readily become a very dangerous person if he exercised hisremarkable gifts in private, and made things disappear in thisextraordinary fashion, and then refused to produce them again. Eh? Ha!Hum!" "Yes--ha! ha! very good. Ha! ha!" laughed a number of people who werestanding near to the guest who had spoken. "That's the Lord Chief Justice, " explained a gentleman who stood nearme. "That's why everybody is laughing; it's considered very improper notto laugh when the Lord Chief Justice makes a joke--however feeble itis. " I hardly listened to what he was saying, though, for I had suddenlynoticed something which caused me a good deal of anxiety. Shin Shira was beginning to look very thin and vapoury about the head, and, while I was watching him, to my horror, he began to vanishpiecemeal till he had entirely disappeared from sight, after giving me astrange, apologetic look. The people clapped and stamped and laughed, evidently imagining that itwas all part of the trick--but I--_I_ knew differently, and scarcelydared realise what it all meant for me. For a few minutes everybody waited patiently for him to appear again, and clapped and stamped in great good humour. Presently, however, theybegan to get rather tired and impatient, and, after we had waited forabout twenty minutes, the delay began to get very awkward. "Why doesn't he come back?" inquired the Duchess, in an impatient voice, coming over to where I was standing. "The delay is becoming veryembarrassing. " I turned very red, I am afraid, for I hardly liked to explain that theprobability was that he would _not_ come back at all. "Several of my guests are wanting to go early, and they must have theirjewellery before they depart, " she continued. "Can you not tell him tohurry up?" "I--I--I--am--afraid n--not, " I stammered. "But you _must_, " insisted the lady. "He's your friend, and you broughthim here, and I shall look to you to--" "Oh, Duchess! I'm sorry to interrupt your charming party, but will youplease ask the clever little gentleman who made my diamond and rubybracelet disappear if he would kindly return it, as I really must begoing, " said a lady, hurrying up. "And my emerald chain, dear Duchess. ""And my gold and pearl locket, " chimed in several other voices. "Yes, you simply must fetch him back somehow, " said the Duchess, clutching my arm nervously. "You see my guests are beginning to getalarmed. You must!--you must!" "B-but I can't--it's impossible, " I endeavoured to explain. The Duchess grew pale. "Do you mean to say, " she gasped, "that the manhas _really_ disappeared--and--and taken the things with him? It's tooterrible--too dreadful! What _am_ I to do? And all my guests! What willthey think of me? Oh! _Do--do_--do something! I don't mind so much aboutmy beautiful diamond pendant, but do somehow get back the thingsbelonging to my guests. You brought him here. You _must_!" The grown-up guests were whispering together in little anxious andindignant groups, and things were beginning to look very serious--soserious that I sank into a chair and buried my head in my hands, tryingto think of some possible way out of the difficulty. The Duchess was almost in tears, and several ladies were trying toconsole her, when suddenly I thought of a means of escape. Of course!the wish! I had another wish left according to what the little book hadtold me. I had _wished_ for a collar-stud, and had found my own. _Perhaps_ if I wished for the jewellery-- The thought no sooner entered my head than I jumped up and began hoppingon one leg repeating-- "Fairies, fairies! grant my wishes, You can do so if you will, Birds and beasts and--" "Oh, he's mad, he's gone mad. Hold him, somebody!" cried the Duchesswhen she saw me hopping about in what must have appeared to her a _most_eccentric manner; but, though several gentlemen came up and caught holdof me, I managed to get round three times on one leg, and three times onthe other, repeating the magic rhyme, and then I wished--_wished_ ashard as ever I could--for the jewellery to be found, before I sank downexhausted with my struggle. Then a most remarkable thing happened, for the gentleman who had beenpointed out to me as the Lord Chief Justice, and who had apparently beenmore indignant than anyone else at the disappearance of the jewellery, suddenly began behaving in a very strange manner too, diving his handsfirst into one pocket and then into another and muttering--"Strange!remarkable! Most extraordinary!" and finally drawing out from every partof his clothing watches, chains, rings, bracelets and jewellery of allkinds, till _every_ missing article, including the Duchess's diamondpendant, was restored to its proper owner. There was a pause at first, and then everybody began to talk atonce--laughing and protesting that "of course they all _knew_ it waspart of the trick, and they weren't _really_ anxious at all, " and so on, and I knew that the situation was saved. Even the Duchess beamed and admitted that it was "really _quite_ themost marvellous performance she had ever seen, " and thanked me over andover again for having introduced such a remarkable conjurer to herparty. The guests were all equally delighted, and amidst the laughterand chatter that followed, the Verrinder children and myself made goodour escape, and I felt very thankful that the fairies' "wish" had got meout of what at one time bid fair to have been a very awkwardpredicament. * * * * * The Duchess called on me the next day to thank me again, and to askwhere she might write to my little friend to thank him also. Thisinformation, however, I was naturally unable to impart. MYSTERY NO. V SHIN SHIRA AND THE LAME DUCK It was during the summer holidays and my young cousin Lionel was stayingwith me again. We had been spending the hot afternoon strolling aboutKensington Gardens, and had just been enjoying a cup of tea and somecakes under the trees at the little refreshment place near the AlbertMemorial. "I think we'd better be going home now, " I said. "We'll get a motor-'busat the gate. " "Oh! must we go yet?" pleaded Lionel. "It's so jolly out here under thetrees. Let's walk home past the Round Pond. " "I've some letters to write before dinner, " said I, "but--" "Oh, bother the old letters!" interrupted Lionel. "It won't take muchlonger to walk, and you'll get them done all right. Come on!" With a sigh of resignation, I not altogether unwillingly let the youngscamp have his way. It was the best part of the day: the lengthening shadows and the coolbreeze which had sprung up made walking very enjoyable. We had nearly reached the Round Pond when I heard a startled"squ-a-a-k!" at my feet, and a lame duck struggled up from the grass andlimped painfully off. "Poor thing!" cried Lionel, who was a kind-hearted little chap. "Younearly trod on it. I wonder how it got to be lame. " "Some boys, " said an indistinct voice close at hand, "some boys threw astone at it this afternoon and injured its leg. " We looked round in great surprise, for there seemed to be nobody aboutto account for the voice; but presently I could just discern ShinShira's face and yellow turban appearing. "Can't shake hands yet, " said he, nodding amiably, "for they haven'tarrived at present, but I've no doubt they'll be here shortly. " "I wonder how he'd get on if he wanted to scratch his nose, " whisperedLionel, who had a keen sense of the ridiculous. "It's rude to whisper in company, " said Shin Shira severely, evidentlyaware that some remark had been made about himself--"but there, you'reonly a boy, and boys are--Hullo! here come my legs! that's all right! Ithought I shouldn't have to wait long for them. Where are you off to?"and the little Yellow Dwarf hurried up to us now that he was quitecomplete. "Oh, we're just walking home, " I replied, "only Lionel had a fancy topass the Round Pond on our way; the little model yachts one often seesthere are very amusing to watch. " "Yes, " agreed Shin Shira. "There's one been left behind to-day, " hecontinued. "The boys who threw the stone at the duck were seen by thepark keeper, and when he came after them they ran away, leaving theirboat behind them. Serve them right if they lose it. " "Oh, yes! There it is now!" cried Lionel, running towards the edge ofthe Round Pond. "What a jolly little yacht. Why, it's a perfect model, "and he regarded it with the greatest admiration. He took it from thewater and inspected it carefully. "I say!" he cried excitedly, "wouldn't it be ripping if we could becomesmall enough to go for a sail in it!" "It's a very simple matter to arrange, if you wish it, " remarked ShinShira composedly. "D-do you really m-mean that it would be possible for you to make us astiny as that?" stammered Lionel in his eagerness, his eyes bright withexcitement. "I couldn't do it, but the fairies might, " said the Dwarf, taking up thelittle yellow book which I had restored to him after our last adventure. "But should we be able to return to our proper size again?" I inquiredcarefully, for I remembered from previous experience that Shin Shira'smagical powers had an unfortunate habit of going wrong at times. "Without the least doubt, " replied he; "in fact, from the time that youare reduced to the size which you desire to be, you very graduallyincrease, till your original size is reached. " "Then there's no danger?" I hazarded. "None whatever, " was the reassuring reply. "Then do, _do_ please let us be 'reduced, '" pleaded Lionel eagerly. "Very well, then, " said I. "And do you propose that we should go for atrip in the model yacht?" "Of course!" declared Lionel. "Put it in the water then, " said Shin Shira, "and I'll see what I cando. " Lionel quickly put down the boat, and stood watching Shin Shira to seewhat would happen. The little Yellow Dwarf was busily gathering pebbles from the edge ofthe pond, examining each carefully, and then throwing them down again inwhat appeared to be an aimless and unintelligible manner. Presently, however, he said, "There's _one_, " and putting a stonecarefully away in his belt, he continued to search till he had foundanother like it. "And there's the other, " he said, coming towards us. "Now then, all you have to do is to swallow these two little whitestones and wish to be--let's see--an inch and a quarter high, and thereyou are. " "It seems rather a venturesome proceeding, " I said, hesitatingly. "Oh no! it'll be all right! Come along! Let's swallow them!" criedLionel, suiting the action to the word and popping one of the stonesinto his mouth without further ado. He immediately became so small that I had some difficulty in seeing himat all amongst the stones at the edge of the Pond. "Are you not going to swallow one of the stones too?" I inquired of theDwarf before swallowing mine. "No, I think not, " was the reply. "I'll remain as I am, I think, incase you may require assistance of a kind which only a larger personthan yourself could afford. " I then swallowed my stone, and immediately became almost as tiny as mysmall cousin, having, for my part, wished to be reduced to the height ofan inch and a half, thinking that _some_ sort of distinction ought to bepreserved in our relative sizes. "There!" exclaimed Lionel in a vexed voice, when I had joined him. "It'sno use after all! How on earth are we going to get on board?" "Ah!" cried Shin Shira, laughing good-humouredly and now looking, to us, like a good-natured giant, towering as he did high above our heads. "_Now_ you see the wisdom of my having remained as I am. I can simplylift you on board and push the boat off for you too. " Suiting the action to the word, he very gently and carefully picked upfirst Lionel and then me from the ground and placed us on board theyacht, then gave the boat a little shove which, though he didn't intendit to do so, sent us both sprawling on the deck and the boat itself wellout into the water. I think I have mentioned that a slight breeze had sprung up, and thePond was rippled over with tiny waves, upon which our yacht dancedmerrily, the sails having filled out with wind which drove her along ata fine rate. Lionel was running all over the deck examining everything eagerly. "I wish there was a real cabin, " he said; "this is only a dummy one, andI find a lot of the ropes to the sails won't act properly. I wonder howyou steer the thing, too. " "By means of the rudder, I should imagine, " I said. "Of course!" exclaimed Lionel impatiently; "any baby would know that;but this one is fastened up so tightly that I can't move it. " "Well, never mind, " said I, "it is evidently set in the right direction;for see, we are heading straight across the Pond, and there's Shin Shirawalking round to be there to meet us when we go ashore, " and I settledmyself down comfortably to enjoy the pleasant trip. "Hullo! Look at that!" cried Lionel a moment or two later, pointing tothe shore. The lame duck had been disturbed by Shin Shira's passing, and was slowlywaddling towards the water. "She's coming in!" declared Lionel. "By Jove! doesn't she look a sizenow we're so tiny!" The boy was right, for, to us, the duck now appeared a formidablemonster of strange and uncouth shape. Her bill, as she came quackinginto the water, opened and shut in an alarming manner, revealing thefact that, if she desired to do so, she could make a meal of us at onegulp. Somewhat to our dismay, she seemed impelled by some vague curiosity toswim in our direction, and the situation began to get distinctlyalarming as she drew nearer and nearer. "What on earth shall we do?" exclaimed Lionel. "I hope to goodness sheisn't going to attack us. It would be too silly to be swallowed by aduck. " "I fancy she's only coming to have a look at us, " I said, "and at anyrate, if we shouted at her loudly if she came too near it would probablyfrighten her away. " This seemed to be the only thing to do, and as the duck continued toswim directly towards us we both began to shout and wave our arms aboutin what must have appeared to Shin Shira a perfectly mad fashion. The noise, however, seemed to have the desired effect, for the duckpaused, looked at us in a puzzled manner for a moment, and then turnedtail and began moistening her bill in the water, lifting her head andshaking it after each mouthful, as their habit is. "I wish she'd get out of the way, " said Lionel anxiously. "We shall runinto her directly, she's right in our course, " and he began to shoutvigorously again, in the hope of startling her. I added my voice to his, and we both yelled our loudest, with not theslightest effect, however, for the duck continued unconcernedly to enjoyherself in her own fashion in the middle of the lake. Presently whatLionel had feared came to pass, and with a bump which sent us both offour feet, the yacht was driven straight on to the duck, which gave aterrific "Quack!" and swam off in a hurry. "Our bowsprit's broken, " announced Lionel, directly he had recovered hisfeet, "and it's fallen in the water and is dragging the sails withit--and--look out!" This as a gust of wind filled the mainsail andcaused the boat to careen over on to her side in a highly dangerousmanner. "Look out!" and this time another and a stronger gust completed thematter, and the sail touched the water and immediately became saturated, so that the boat could not right itself. "Well, we shan't sink, that's one thing, " I said, for Lionel was lookingat me in an alarmed manner. "The water cannot get into the hull, thanksto there not being a 'real' cabin and the hatches only being sham ones. " "That's all very well, " said Lionel, though giving a little sigh ofrelief at my reassuring words, "but we can't stop here for ever. Ishould like to know how we are to get ashore. " Shin Shira, who had seen our accident, was shouting and gesticulating atthe edge of the Pond, but the wind was blowing in his direction andcarried the sound of his voice away from us, so that we couldn't hear asingle word of what he was saying. "I suppose eventually we shall drift ashore, " I said hopefully. "Yes, but not for hours and hours perhaps, " said Lionel dolefully, "because the wind may change, you know, and besides it's getting dusk. " "It certainly isn't a very pleasant look-out, " I agreed. "I can't seewhat we are to do, unless--I say! what's that big box floating towardsus?" Lionel looked in the direction in which I was pointing. "It's an empty match-box, " he said uninterestedly; "that's no good. " "I'm not so sure about that, " said I. "Try and get hold of it as itdrifts this way. I've an idea. " "I can't see what good an empty match-box can be to us, " grumbledLionel, doing his best, however, to aid me in capturing the prize as itblew against the side of the overturned yacht, which we at last did withsome difficulty. It was a very large box and had evidently been in the water for sometime; the paper around it had become unstuck from the sides and hungloose in the water beside it. "We must get the paper at all cost, and pray be careful not to tear it, "I cried. "Whatever for?" asked Lionel in amazement. "Do as you're told and don't ask questions, " I replied rather crossly, for I was very anxious to try an experiment which I had in my mind. Sowe hauled the paper aboard and stretched it on the bulwarks to dry. Then we hauled the broken bowsprit aboard and freed it from the brokenropes with our pen-knives--a long and difficult job--and by the time wehad finished, the paper which had been around the box had become dry andquite stiff by reason of the gum with which it had been stuck to thesides of the box. "Oh, I see!" cried Lionel, as I clambered on to the box (which wasfastened by a rope to the side of the yacht) and began to cut a hole inthe middle. "You're going to make a raft. " "I'm going to try to, " I answered grimly, for I wasn't at all sure thatmy experiment would be a success. By dint of real hard work, cutting and contriving, however, we dideventually succeed in making a raft of a sort, the stiff paper, fixed tothe broken bowsprit, making a capital sail; and somewhat in fear andtrembling, we both got aboard and pushed off from the derelict yacht. All went well for some time till we were nearing the shore, and then Inoticed something which caused me grave alarm. We were both growing rapidly! The raft, which had before been quitelarge enough to support us, was now low down in the water with ourweight, and there was great danger of the water getting into the insideof the box, in which case it would undoubtedly sink. Lionel noticed the difficulty at the same time as myself, for he gave mea startled glance. "We're getting bigger, " he said. "Do you think the raft will hold out?" "I don't think so, " I replied, "but we're quite near the water's edgenow--perhaps I could swim ashore with you. " "Good gracious! I can swim twice that distance myself, thank you. Why, Ibeat Mullings Major hollow in the swimming competition last term, andhe's four years older than me, and--" Whatever Lionel was going to add was lost, for at that instant he had toput his boasted prowess to the test. The box, having filled with waterjust as I had feared it would do, sank slowly down, and we were left inthe water. Fortunately Lionel's boast was not a vain one, and he reached the shorebefore I did, laughing and wringing the water out of his clothes. "Well, it's good to be on dry land once more at any rate, " he said, asI waded ashore, "isn't it?" "Yes, " I agreed, looking about to see if I could discover any traces ofShin Shira in the dusk. "There he is!" at last cried Lionel, "but his head has vanished, andthere are only his legs and arms waving about. _They_ won't be much useto us, and--by Jove! yes! Look, here comes that wretched old duck afterus. We'll have to cut, " and he gathered up his things and set theexample. It was quite true; the old duck had evidently come to the conclusionthat we were something dainty to eat--in the frog line probably--and waswaddling towards us as quickly as her game leg would allow. Fortunately we were soon able to out-distance her; and having fixed ourlatitude by Kensington Palace, which we could just see in the distance, we set out for the gate. To our tiny, but rapidly growing bodies the distance seemed aninterminable one, especially as darkness was now quickly falling. Wecould see the lights in Kensington, but they seemed far, far away; andto add to our dismay, when at last, tired and exhausted, we did reachthe gate, it was only to find it closed for the night, and that duringour journey from the Pond we had grown too big to be able to squeezethrough the railings. We waited a few minutes uncertain what to do, till presently a cab camein sight, the horse walking leisurely and the cabby evidently on thelook-out for a fare. "Cabby! cabby!" I called, and Lionel added his shrill voice to mine. The cabman looked about in bewilderment. "Here, by the Park gates!" I yelled, and he got down from his seat andcame over to where we were standing. "Well, I'm blowed!" he exclaimed when he had had a good look at us. "What the Dickens are you? Kids or dwarfs or what?" "Never mind what we are, cabby; get us out of here somehow, and drive ushome to Kensington Square, and I'll give you a sovereign. " "Will you, though?" said the cabby. "Well, I'm gaun to do it, but thequestion is--how? I'll go and knock up the park keeper. " "No, no, don't do that!" I said hastily. "He'll want such a lot ofexplanations, and we're wet and uncomfortable and anxious to get home. Do please try and think of some way of getting us out without having tocall him. " Our cabby was a man of resource, for having considered for a moment, hebacked the horse close against the gate, stood on the top and loweredthe horse's nosebag by means of a long rope which he kept by him in caseof emergencies, and cried-- "Now then, get in there, one at a time, and I'll soon have you overhere. " Lionel got in first, and as the cabby had said, was easily hauled up anddeposited on the top of the cab. I followed, and in a very short space of time we were both inside thecab and rattling home at a good pace. I got the cabby to knock at the door, and Mrs. Putchy, to whom I quicklyexplained everything, gave him a sovereign for me. In a very few minutesLionel and I were warm and comfortable each in our respective beds. In the morning we had both grown to our original sizes, and theadventure of the day before was nothing but a memory. MYSTERY NO. VI SHIN SHIRA AND THE DIAMOND I was exceedingly surprised a few weeks after our latest adventure withthe little Yellow Dwarf to receive the following extraordinary letterfrom him. It was dated from Baghdad, and bore two very unusual postagestamps, which Lionel promptly claimed for his collection. "Kind and obliging Sir, " it began, "I am in great and serious trouble and in danger of my life, and I appeal to you to come to my assistance by the first boat. I will explain everything when we meet, but kindly do not delay, as everything depends upon your presence here. "Again beseeching you not to delay, "Your miserable and much-afflicted friend, "SHIN SHIRA SCARAMANGA MANOUSA YAMA HAWA. "P. S. --Inquire for me at the State Prison, Baghdad. " "Well!" I exclaimed, after perusing this remarkable epistle, "of all theextraordinary requests I have ever received this is the strangest. Thisman, whom I have only met at the most half-a-dozen times in my life, expects me to neglect my work and rush off to Baghdad, of all places inthe world, to his assistance, because he has got into some trouble whichhas landed him in the State Prison there. I always thought somehow thatthose uncanny powers which he possesses would get him into seriousdifficulties at some time or another. I'll send him a letter statingthat I cannot go to him. " And here I endeavoured to dismiss Shin Shiraand his affairs from my mind. I was so worried about the matter, however, that I couldn't settle towork, so I lit my pipe and settled myself in my easy-chair to think thematter out. Poor little fellow! If he really was in such desperate straits it seemedvery heartless to leave him to his fate if in any way I could be of realassistance to him; and, after all, I could work almost as well while Iwas away as I could at home, and the voyage would probably give meplenty of new ideas for my book. I thought of all the kind things thelittle chap had done for me, and how he had always somehow come to therescue when I had been in difficulties in my adventures with him; andfinally I came to the conclusion that it would be most ungrateful andselfish of me if I let anything stand in the way of my going to myfriend's assistance. I had no sooner made up my mind on this point than I called a cab andset out at once for Messrs. Cook's office and booked a passage by thenext steamer. I will not tell you anything about the somewhat uninteresting journeyeither by sea or land, with the exception that when I at last steppedashore in an Oriental port, I found in the curious costumes and strangesurroundings many things to amuse me and to wonder at. The entire journey on the whole, however, was decidedly tedious, and Iwas very glad to find myself at last in the ancient city of Baghdad. I went at once to the British Consul there and told him my object incoming to the city. "Shin Shira!" he exclaimed. "Why, there is scarcely anything talkedabout in these days but Shin Shira. He has stolen one of the mostvaluable crown jewels, and was caught with it in his possession. Despite the indisputable evidence against him, however, he persists indeclaring his innocence, and pleads that, with the assistance of afriend from London, he can prove it conclusively. I suppose, sir, thatyou are the friend from London. " I told him that I was, and that I was deeply grieved to hear of thetrouble that Shin Shira was in, and that I felt convinced that there wassome mistake in the matter which could somehow or other be cleared up. "I should be very glad to think so, " said the Consul, shaking his head, "but I fear it is hopeless. You see, the stone--an almost pricelessdiamond--was actually found in his possession. But come, you will beanxious to see your friend as soon as possible. I will come with you tothe prison and see that you are admitted. " The kind-hearted official called his carriage, and together we drovethrough the unfamiliar narrow streets to the dismal-looking building inwhich my poor friend was confined. A brief consultation with the authorities and the signing of variouspapers made me free to enter the prison, and having thanked the Consulfor his kind offices, I was led away by one of the officials to aterribly dark dungeon, in which, crouched in a corner, I found my poorfriend Shin Shira, looking the picture of misery. His face lit up with a smile of hope, however, when he saw me, and hiswhole aspect changed. "My friend! my deliverer!" he cried, using all kinds of extravagantOriental phrases to express his delight at seeing me. "Ah! at last youhave come, and I shall be saved! May all the blessings of Allah be onyour head!" The official withdrew, locking the door carefully behind him, havingfirst given me to understand by various signs that he would return forme in about half-an-hour. "Well, now, " I inquired, when we were alone, "what is this terribletrouble which has brought you here? What have you been doing?" "Nothing!" declared Shin Shira solemnly. "Nothing whatever to merit thispunishment. It is all a horrible mistake. Let me begin at the beginning. About two months ago, after a series of my usual adventures, I suddenlyappeared here in Baghdad. Now I have been acquainted with the city formany, many years--in fact, ever since the time of Sinbad the Sailor, whom I knew quite well, and with whom I was at one time very friendly. Well, I have many times appeared here since then, and on each occasion Ihave taken a great interest in the place on account of oldassociations. I have made many friends here, too; so when I found myselfhere once more I was greatly delighted, and was making my way to theBazaar, where I knew I should be sure to find some acquaintances, whengreatly to my surprise I saw several passers-by stop and stare at mecuriously and then, whispering amongst themselves, follow me at somedistance behind. [Illustration] "It could not be my clothing which was attracting all this attention, for it was more or less of the same pattern to which they wereaccustomed. I caught sight of myself in a polished steel mirror in oneof the shops in the Bazaar, and stole a glance at myself, but could seenothing wrong. What could be the cause? I had not long to wait, however, before I found out to my cost what was wrong. "The crowd following me had increased in size, and at last two enormousmen in uniform came up and seized me by my arms, and I was immediatelysurrounded by a throng of curious faces. "'Where did you get that diamond?' demanded one of my captors, pointingto my turban, in which, as you know, I always wear the jewel which thePrincess gave me. "'Oh that! That was given to me many years ago by a friend--aPrincess--who has been dead now for many hundreds of years, ' I said. "'Many hundreds of years? And you say she was a friend of yours?'exclaimed the man. 'Absurd!' "'Preposterous!' declared the other. 'Look here! If you can't give ussome more reasonable explanation than that, we shall take you off atonce to the Chief Magistrate, and charge you with having stolen it. ' "'But why?' I gasped. 'Why should you think that I have stolen it?' "'A diamond of exactly that size and colour has disappeared from amongstthe Crown jewels, and it strikes me very forcibly that this is the veryone. ' "It was in vain for me to protest. I was taken before the Magistrate, and experts were called to examine the jewel. "They weighed it and examined it carefully through powerful magnifyingglasses, and finally unanimously agreed that it was indeed the missingjewel. "I was closely cross-questioned as to how it came into my possession, and also as to my movements during the past six months. My explanationswere considered most unsatisfactory, and no one would believe me;consequently I was thrown into prison and condemned to death. It wasonly by the most earnest pleading that I managed to gain time for you toget here, as I assured them that you would be able to put everythingright, and explain matters to their entire satisfaction. " "I?" I stammered. "I am very, very sorry for you, my poor friend, and Iwould do anything to help you, but what am I to say or do which willconvince them when you tell me that you have failed to do so?" "It is easy--easy, " declared Shin Shira hopefully. "Now attend carefullyto what I say. I am of course not allowed outside the prison walls, andthere is no one here whom I would dare to trust with an importantcommission. "Now I want you to go at once to the Bazaar, and find a man namedMustapha, a dealer in old curiosities; and, without letting him knowwhom it is for, purchase from him a large round crystal which you willfind in his shop. He will probably want a lot of money for it, butwhatever he asks offer him just half, and you will find that after a lotof argument he will let you have it at that. These Oriental shopkeepersare all like that. And then, having secured the crystal, hurry back hereand the rest will be easy. " Although I could not in the least see what Shin Shira wanted the crystalfor, I was careful to execute his commission to the letter. I found no difficulty in reaching the Bazaar, and, once there, soonfound out Mustapha. I did not like the look of the man at all. He was a fawning, obsequious little man, with shifting eyes which neverlooked you straight in the face. He stood bowing and smiling and rubbing his hands when I entered theshop and asked to see the crystal. "Ah yea--very fine crystal--for those who know how to use it. Veryvallyble--lot money. You know this? You got?" and he gave me a searchingglance with his little bead-like eyes. "Oh yes, I can pay for it if I want it, " I said, "but what do you call a_lot_ of money? How much do you want for it?" [Illustration] He named a price which I knew to be very excessive, and I shook my headdecidedly. "No! too much!" I declared. "Oh! but see! Beautiful crystal!" he argued. "No, " I replied, "too much! I'll give you half, " and I began to walkunconcernedly out of the shop. "And you give me little present besides?" pleaded Mustapha. "Not a penny, " said I. The man gave a little sigh. "Oh well, you take him, " he said. "Not enough money, but Mustapha verypoor, must sell him. I wrap him up for you, see!" I paid him the money and hurried out of the shop, for I must confessthat I had taken a great dislike to the little man with his smooth, oilymanner. However, I had got the crystal, and that was the main thing. I hastened back to the prison, and after a long argument with theauthorities, I managed to gain permission to see the prisoner once more. I found Shin Shira all eagerness to know if I had secured the crystal, and when he saw it in my hand, his joy knew no bounds. "Now it is all easy, " said he, "and I shall soon be free. This is aMagic Crystal, and by wishing very hard to see any particular object andgazing at it steadily for a moment or two, you will see just what youwish to see reflected in it. Now I'm just going to wishto--er--to--er--er--o--o-h! I'm going to vanish! To think that I've beenhere all this time hoping every day that I should be able to disappear, and now, just as I was about to get myself free--I--good-bye--!" And to my horror, the little Yellow Dwarf suddenly faded away, and I wasleft alone in the dungeon. I say to my horror, for what was I to say when the jailer appeared? Howwas I to account for the prisoner's escape? I was just puzzling aboutthese things when the door opened and the jailer hurriedly came to tellme the time allowed for my visit was up. He saw at once that Shin Shira was not there, and in a great state ofexcitement plied me with questions. I felt, however, that the best thing to do was to preserve silence: itwould at least gain time; so I shook my head and pretended not tounderstand a word of what he was saying in his broken English. The man doubly locked the door and hurried off to inform his superiorofficers, and I was left alone once more. My eyes fell upon the crystal, and I suddenly thought of what Shin Shirahad said. Holding it carefully in my hands, I wished to see the realthief who had stolen the crown jewel. A vague mist spread over the crystal, which gradually cleared away, andI distinctly saw revealed the features of--Mustapha. Then I wished tosee what he had done with the stone, and after gazing a moment or twolonger, I saw him take it down to a cellar under his shop and bury it ina tin box under a stone, which he lifted up from the floor. That was enough for me. When the jailer and the other officers camehurrying back I was ready for them. "Where is the prisoner?" they demanded. "He has escaped, " I replied coolly. "What!" they exclaimed. "You dare to admit this, and that you assistedhim to do so? You shall take his place here, and will no doubt receivethe punishment which was intended for him. " "He is an innocent man, " said I calmly, "and ought never to have beenimprisoned. He did not steal the diamond. " "How can you say that when we found it upon him? Why, he was actuallyimpudent enough to go walking about in the street with it boldly stuckin his turban. " "The stone he was wearing was his own, and he had every right, to wearit where and how he liked, " I replied steadily. "His own! Pooh! a likely story. Where is the missing jewel then? Can youtell me that?" "Yes, " I replied, to their great astonishment. "And the thief?" they questioned eagerly. "I know who he is too. Take me before the Magistrate at once, and I willsoon restore the lost jewel. " My assured tone of voice seemed somewhat to impress the officials, andthey left me for a few moments to consult amongst themselves as to whatwas best to be done. Presently they returned and told me to follow them. [Illustration] I found myself conducted to a plainly-furnished room where adignified-looking gentleman was seated at a table strewn with papers. Helooked up at me sharply as we entered the room, and addressing me inexcellent English, said-- "What is this extraordinary story I hear about the escape of theprisoner Shin Shira, and that you are prepared to inform us of anotherperson who has, as you say, the crown jewel in his possession?" "It is true, " said I, "and if you will allow some of your officers toaccompany me into the Bazaar I will point out the thief at once, andshow you where he has hidden the stone. " The Magistrate thought for a moment. "I will come with you myself, " hesaid at last. "Have ready six men to accompany us, " he commanded; and afew minutes later we were on our way to Mustapha's shop. The wretched man gave a start and turned very pale when he saw us, butendeavouring to put a bold face upon it, he came bowing and cringingtowards us, smiling and wringing his hands. "What an honour to my poor house!" he exclaimed. "How unworthy am I toreceive such august guests!" "We've come to see if you have any more crystals like the one I boughtof you to-day, Mustapha, " I said. "Alas! honoured patron, none!" cried Mustapha in a relieved voice, thinking that he now knew the object of our visit. "Think--think, Mustapha, " said I. "Have you no piece of clear glassthat could be used in its place?" [Illustration: "I took up the stone. "] "Alas, none!" he replied, shaking his head. "Look about, " said I. "Here in the shop--and down in the cellar. " The little man's face turned green. "The cellar? Noble patron, how should I find such a thing there?" "Lead the way and I will try to show you, " said I; and despite hisagonised protests, the trembling wretch was made to lead us to the veryspot where the jewel was hidden. I took up the stone and showed the Magistrate the box in which thediamond was concealed, while Mustapha grovelled on the ground, pleadingfor mercy. What followed was a matter of course. The merchant Mustapha wasarrested, I was released and commissioned to let Shin Shira know that ifhe applied in person for his jewel it would be returned to him, and anapology offered for his unwarranted arrest. And so I was set free--a stranger and alone in Baghdad. MYSTERY NO. VII SHIN SHIRA AND THE ROC When I found myself alone in Baghdad after my extraordinary adventurewith the Magic Crystal, my first intention was to return at once toEngland. I found, however, that it would be impossible for me to do so for atleast four days; so I prepared to make the best of matters by doing alittle sight-seeing while I was still confined to the ancient andinteresting city. There were two additional reasons which made the delay less disagreeableto me. The first one was that I might possibly happen to meet Shin Shira againbefore I departed; and the other was that, on the second day of my stay, I saw a printed notice to the effect that, according to the ancientusage of the country relating to condemned prisoners, all of Mustapha'sgoods were to be immediately sold by public auction, and the moneyrealised was to be confiscated by the Crown. I had noticed a number of very quaint and curious articles in the shop, and thought that it would be an excellent opportunity for me to purchasesome souvenirs of my visit, to take back with me to England. The sale took place the next day, and I was able to secure severalinteresting pieces, which have a place in my study to this day. In fact, I was tempted to buy so many things that I began to fear that I shouldsoon not have enough money left to take me back again to London; and Iwas just about to leave the auction, in order to be out of the way oftemptation, when I caught sight of the quaintest, most uncanny-lookingbrass lamp being offered for sale that you could possibly imagine. It was slightly damaged too, and looked very old, so I hoped that itmight be going very cheap. I was right, and to my great delight it was knocked down to me for amere trifle. Clutching my treasures about me, I hurried back to my hotel, and spentthe whole of the rest of the day examining and admiring my purchases. The lamp, though, pleased me most of all, although it was so old andbattered. It was so very quaint and uncommon, and so typically Orientalin design--in fact, I felt sure there was not another like it in theworld. The time came, however, for packing up, and I had to get everythingready for the morning, so that I might be in time for the early train. I had carefully wrapped up the other things, and was just taking a lastlook at the lamp before putting it into the bag, when, turning aroundfor no apparent reason, I caught sight of a yellow turban on the floor. "Dear me!" I thought, "I suppose I must have brought this away from theBazaar, with my other things, by mistake. What a nuisance! Now I shallhave to take it back again, I suppose, or--No! it's Shin Shira's. Andhere comes the rest of him!" for I could see a little hazy yellow figuregradually growing out of nothing. "Ah! just in time, I see, " said the little fellow, when he had quiteappeared. "I did so hope that I should be able to be visible againbefore you left Baghdad. Well, how did you get on? You've got out ofprison, I'm glad to see. " I told him about the crystal, and how I discovered that it was Mustaphawho stole the diamond. "Phew!" he whistled when he heard this. "I felt sure someone had stolenit, but I didn't think of Mustapha. I never liked the man, though, personally, and I'm glad he's found out at last. He has done a lot ofharm to many people in Baghdad, and he will be rightly punished. What isto be done with _my_ diamond?" he inquired anxiously. "Oh, you're to have it back whenever you like to go for it, and you'llreceive an apology at the same time, " said I. "Very well, then, I'm off to get it first thing in the morning, " saidthe little fellow gleefully. "I prize that stone far above its intrinsicvalue, for it was given to me by my beautiful Princess, you know, and Iwould not lose it for anything. But, I say! what's that curious-lookingold lamp in your hand? May I look at it?" I handed it over to him. "It's just a little thing which took my fancy at Mustapha's sale, andwhich I picked up for a trifle, " said I. "It's very dirty--wants cleaning badly, " declared Shin Shira. "Why, Ibelieve it's solid brass, though it looks like rusty iron in its presentneglected state, " and he seized a duster which was lying handy and gavethe lamp several smart rubs. "Just as I thought, " said he, going on vigorously with the polishing. "Why, it's splendid--" "Oh!" I exclaimed, sinking into a chair. "See! see what you've done!" An enormous form was rising from the floor, and presently stood beforeus making a deep salaam. "W-who are you?" I stammered. "The Slave of the Lamp, Master, " said he. "Good gracious!" I exclaimed, "you don't mean to say that this is--" "Aladdin's lamp, " burst in Shin Shira. "I thought somehow that it lookedfamiliar. I knew Aladdin well, and I've often handled this lamp before. " "Impossible!" I exclaimed, gazing at the big black giant who stood, withhis arms folded, in dignified silence before us. "Nothing is impossible in the East, " said Shin Shira, "as you'll quicklyfind out if you remain here long. And now--now that you are thepossessor of Aladdin's lamp--what are you going to do with it?" "I--I don't know, " I stammered. "I must have time to think. " "I should have diamonds, " advised Shin Shira: "they're so easy to carryand can always be converted into money. Command him to bring you a bagfull of diamonds of all sizes. " "But, but, " I said hesitatingly, as visions of untold wealth floatedbefore my eyes, "will he really do it?" "Try him and see, " said Shin Shira. So I took the lamp in my hand, andrather nervously commanded the Slave to bring me a bag of diamonds. [Illustration] The Slave fell to the ground and touched his head to the floor, payingme the deepest mark of respect. "Alas, Master, that it should be so, but you ask your slave that whichis impossible, unless you would have me take from the shops that whichis not thine. " "Not for worlds, " I interrupted. "But how is it that you cannot get methe diamonds from the mines as you used to do for your former MasterAladdin in the olden days?" A bitter smile spread over the Slave's face. "The age, Master, has greatly changed, and now the mines in Africa, which were known only to us, are being worked by greedy men with noisymachinery, and we may not be seen there under peril of death. This isthe will of the Spirit of the Lamp of whom I am the Slave, and who alsocalls you Master, though you will never see her. " "Oh, well then, that's all knocked on the head, " I said to Shin Shira, who had been listening attentively. "I'll dismiss the man now, shall I, and we'll talk over what's best to be done?" Shin Shira nodded, so I told the Slave I had no further use for him atthe moment, and he vanished. I stood looking at my little friend in great bewilderment. "It is a great power to possess, " I said, regarding the lamp with aweand amazement. "I hope I shan't do anything foolish with it. " "Don't be silly, " said Shin Shira crossly. "I only wish I had yourchance. Why, you can do _anything_ with a power like that. Leave it tome to think over for to-night, and I'll tell you the best thing to do inthe morning. " "But I'm starting for England the first thing to-morrow, " I objected. "Oh! you must put that off for the present, " was the decided reply. "I'll be here about eleven, and we'll talk over what's best to be done. Good-night!" and the little fellow held out his hand and strutted off. I slept very little that night, as you may imagine, and all sorts ofvague ideas came into my head as to what I should do with the wonderfulpower which had so mysteriously come within my grasp. I had arrived at no definite decision as to what was best to be done, however, by eleven the next morning, when, punctual to the minute, ShinShira, looking very spruce and alert, knocked at my door. I noticed with considerable interest that he wore in his turban thediamond which I had so often admired, and he saw me looking at it atonce. "Yes, " he said, with a series of little nods, "it was very easy. An hourago I called on the Chief Magistrate, and found him full of apologiesand quite convinced that he had made a grievous mistake. It appears thatthe original diamond, which Mustapha stole, when found, had some of thegold setting still attached to it, proving beyond doubt that it was themissing jewel, so that my own was returned to me; and the Magistrateeven insisted on providing a new aigrette and in having it replaced inmy turban by a skilled person. So here it is, " and he took off hishead-dress and regarded it with considerable pride. "But now to youraffairs. I am still in favour of the idea of the diamonds. " "But how--" I began, when Shin Shira interrupted me. "Are you game for a very exciting adventure?" said he. "I--don't know. " I hesitated. "I seem to have had about enough ofexciting adventures. " "It will be something to write about, " suggested the Dwarf, "and willundoubtedly make your fortune. " "Well, " I said, "what is it? Let's hear. " "Do you remember where Sinbad the Sailor got _his_ diamonds from?" "Yes, of course!" I replied, for I knew my _Arabian Nights_ by heart. "Very well, then, " said Shin Shira. "All you've got to do is to get theSlave of the Lamp to bring us the Roc, which I happen to know is stillalive; we can then fasten ourselves to his claws, and he will fly backto his home with us, and there, as you know, the ground is strewn withprecious stones. " "But why not send the Slave for them?" I argued. "He evidently doesn't know where they are, and it's as well to keep himignorant on the subject, in case the lamp passed out of your power, inwhich case he might use his knowledge in favour of his next master. And, besides, the Roc couldn't carry him there. " "He wouldn't have to, " said I. "The Slave evidently has the power ofbeing able to transport himself to any place at will. " "But _we_ don't know where to direct him to, " said Shin Shiraimpatiently. He was evidently bent upon carrying out his project, and atlast I somewhat weakly consented to his proposal. I rubbed the lamp and summoned the Slave, who appeared promptly asbefore. "I'm sorry to ask such a difficult thing, but can you catch the Roc forme and bring it here?" said I, somewhat apologetically. "It shall be here, Master, in twenty minutes, " replied the Slaveimperturbably, vanishing again at a wave from my hand. "I don't know, I'm sure, what I want diamonds for, when I have such awilling servant, " I grumbled, still rather unwilling to venture uponwhat I regarded as an uncanny undertaking. "He can't provide you with money, " said Shin Shira. "Why not?" I asked. "He'd have either to steal it or make it. If he did the latter itwouldn't be legal, and, besides, if it was found out, you might bearrested for circulating unauthorised coin. " "Oh, very well, then, let's go on this wild-goose chase if you're sobent upon it, " I said, seeing that he was determined to have his way. Afew minutes later we heard a great commotion in the courtyard, andlooking from the balcony we saw my Slave carrying by the legs anenormous bird, who turned his head about from side to side, staringstupidly at everything around him. Shin Shira bustled about and gotropes and straps, and with the assistance of the landlord and one ortwo onlookers, we were soon harnessed in quite an ingenious manner tothe claws of our strange steed (if one may call him so). [Illustration: "His pinions were strong and mighty. "] The Slave released him, and the Roc immediately flew slowly up into theair, violently shaking his claws now and then in a vain endeavour to getrid of the unusual weight. Fortunately, however, the straps and ropes, which had been fastened over the bird's back as well, were very strong, and so the worst thing that happened to us was a thorough shaking. This was of no consequence, and when I realised that I was quite safe, Ibegan actually to enjoy the strange experience of being carried throughthe air, I knew not whither. In this case, however, the distance was notnearly so great as one might have expected, for leaving the city, thegreat bird soared over a tract of forest land, above one or two moretowns, and so out into the open desert, in the midst of which was arange of rocky mountains. His pinions were strong and mighty, so that heflew very rapidly, and in a little less than two hours he had alightedon a kind of tableland, at the top of one of the mountain peaks, and wewere at our journey's end. There was no doubt but that we were at the right place, for the groundwas strewn with stones which, though uncut, sparkled, in the placeswhere they had been chipped or broken, with a hundred differentbrilliant colours and shades. Shin Shira drew his knife and quickly cut the ropes and straps whichbound us to the now struggling bird, and he was soon released from hisuncomfortable burden. He shook himself once or twice and preened his great feathers, and thenstalked off to where an enormous nest could be seen in a cleft in therocks. I have no doubt the patient and stupid bird told his mate in birdlanguage what a very strange and uncomfortable experience he had had, and at all events he kept out of our sight from that moment. Shin Shira at once busied himself by gathering some of the largest gemsas quickly as possible; and taking from his pockets some strong linenbags which he had thoughtfully provided, he handed two to me and told meto fill them for myself. This I did, and also put several into my various pockets. I was justabout to say that I thought we had sufficient, when Shin Shira called myattention to a balloon hovering just above our heads. There were two people in the basket, and they were peering at us overthe edge through glasses. Presently one of them shouted an order, and the balloon quicklydescended, so that we could hear the rush of escaping gas as it wasbeing released. "Hullo there!" shouted a voice over our heads, "who are you? We've neverbefore heard that these mountains were inhabited. " "Neither are they, " replied Shin Shira. "We are geologists from Baghdad, and are taking home specimens of the rocks and stones. " "Oh, we're going to Baghdad. Can we give you a lift?" said the voicekindly, and the balloon descended still further, till at last we wereable to see the two occupants distinctly. "It's really very kind of you;--I--I think we will accept your offer, "said I, while Shin Shira frowned disapproval. "Don't go, " he whispered, "we can get some more precious stones if wewait a little longer. " "But how are we to get back?" I answered. "The Magic Lamp, " said he. "Oh, but I've left that behind at the hotel, " I replied. "In that case, " said Shin Shira regretfully, "there's nothing else to bedone, I suppose. " So we thankfully accepted the aeronauts' kind invitation, and were soonfloating comfortably towards Baghdad. I must confess that it was far more pleasant than the outward journeyhad been. Before we got to Baghdad, though, Shin Shira had the misfortune todisappear, much to the horror of the aeronauts, who thought he hadfallen out of the basket, and who would scarcely credit my explanationwhen I told them of Shin Shira's peculiar misfortune in this respect. He left the two bags of precious stones behind him, and they stoodbeside mine at the bottom of the basket. For a few minutes the balloon, being freed from Shin Shira's weight, rapidly ascended, but presently there was a terrible escape of gas andwe began to descend again at a great rate. "Throw out the ballast!" cried one of the aeronauts, and the other, seeing the four bags of what he thought were worthless stones, in hishaste and eagerness thrust them overboard. I was too alarmed at the moment to notice what he was doing, and it wasonly when matters had been put right, by stopping the escape of gas, that I realised what had happened. It was useless, however, to cry over spilt milk, and all my thought nowwas to get back to the hotel in safety. This we eventually did, and my ballooning friends accepted my invitationto take dinner at the hotel with me, so that after my adventure of theday I had a very pleasant evening. It was not till the next morning thatI discovered that Aladdin's Lamp had vanished--had, in fact, probablybeen stolen. There was nothing left to do now but to set out for England, which Ieventually reached; and on arriving in London, and having the stoneswhich I had brought back in my pockets valued, I found that there weremany worthless ones among them, and that the few good ones, when sold, only realised sufficient to pay the rather heavy expenses of my journeyto and from Baghdad, with a very little over for myself to repay me forthe loss of my time. MYSTERY NO. VIII SHIN SHIRA AND THE MAD BULL The Verrinder children were in a state of great excitement and glee, forwe were going to spend the day at Burnham Beeches. The plan was to drive over in a wagonette and have a picnic under thetrees in the middle of the day. Lionel was amongst the party, and Lady Betty, a young friend of theVerrinders, so that we were a merry crowd as we scrambled into thewagonette. "It doesn't matter about your being old, " said Fidge, snuggling up to meand catching hold of my arm; "you're not like most grown-ups, and don'tmind us larking about a bit. " "I hope not, " I said smilingly. "Besides, he isn't old, " chimed in Lady Betty, "at least not very, " shequalified. "He hasn't even got a beard, and if he wasn't a little bitgrown-up he couldn't afford to take us about, " she added practically. "I expect we'll have some jolly decent grub, " I heard Dick whisper toLionel. "Mrs. Putchy makes ripping pastry. I know, because we used tostay at his place sometimes before you came. " Marjorie looked up from her book and smiled and nodded across at me. "It's lovely, " she said, as we drove along. "We're going to have aperfectly splendid day. " We were sitting three aside, and there was just comfortable room for us;and when we had got well into the country I began to tell the youngerones, Fidge and Lady Betty, a story. Marjorie closed her book too andleaned forward to listen, but the two big boys, evidently considering it_infra dig_. To listen to anything so childish, were eagerly comparingschool experiences. Dick was at Harrow and Lionel at Marlborough, sothey had a lot to talk about. Presently, in the middle of my story, Marjorie called out, withoutlooking up, "Move further along, Dick, don't crowd so. " "I'm not!" retorted Dick, "it's you. I can't move any further withoutcrowding Lionel out of the trap. " "Oh, it's this cushion, " cried Marjorie, turning about and trying toremove what looked at first like a yellow silk cushion beside her. It was evidently too heavy though, and she gave a start as she touchedit. "Why!" she exclaimed, "it's got something alive in it!" We all turned around to see what she meant, and at once I knew that itwas Shin Shira appearing. "Oh, jolly!" cried all the children but Lionel, when I explained to themwhat was happening. "It's all very well, and he's good fun and all that, " said my youngcousin, "but if you'd had the experience that I had with his old MagicCarpet, you'd be very careful not to have much to do with him--he'srather dangerous. " "But think of the adventures you have with him, " said Dick enviously. "Iwouldn't funk it if he asked me to go anywhere with him. " "Who's funking it?" demanded Lionel angrily. "Well, _you_ didn't seem to have much desire to repeat your experiences, my friend, " laughed Shin Shira. "My head and ears just happened toarrive in time for me to gather that. " Lionel turned very red. "Oh well, sir, I did have rather a rough time onthe Magic Carpet, you know. " "So you did, so you did, " agreed Shin Shira, amiably beaming on us all. "And where may all you young people be off to this fine day?" "We're having a picnic, " said Lady Betty shyly. "Going to have, you mean, " corrected Fidge. "It isn't a picnic till youbegin to eat, you know. " "Would you mind if I joined you?" asked the Yellow Dwarf, appealing tome. "Well, it strikes me that you have done so, " I laughed; "but we shall bedelighted with your company if you care to stay. " "That's all right then, " said Shin Shira, settling down comfortably;"there's nothing I should like better this warm day, " and he took offhis turban and rubbed his little bald head with a yellow silkhandkerchief. The sight of the jewel in it reminded him to ask me what became of thetwo bags of diamonds he left in the basket of the balloon when hedisappeared on our way back to Baghdad. I told him what had happened, and how I had lost all of mine except thefew almost worthless ones which I had put in my pocket. "I was rather more fortunate, " said Shin Shira, "for amongst those whichI saved were one or two very valuable ones, and several more which I cansell at a very good price when it becomes necessary. " "But I thought you could have whatever you wished for?" said Dick. "Oh no, " replied the Dwarf, "not money, you know--almost anything else, but not money, because, you see, it wouldn't be legal to make money, andI can tell you I have often found it very awkward to have appeared in astrange place with no money at all in my pocket. I have indeed once ortwice almost been tempted to sell even the jewel which the Princess gaveme. Now fortunately that will never be necessary. " "What part of Burnham Beeches do you wish me to drive to, sir?" askedthe coachman at this moment; "we're just coming to the village. " "Oh, you'd better put the horses up at the stables, and get a man tohelp you with the hampers, and we'll walk on to the wood. You know whereI generally have luncheon. " "Very well, sir!" said the man, touching his hat with his whip andstopping at the old-fashioned inn in the village. We were all very glad to stretch our legs after the long ride, andhaving had some lemonade and fruit at a little shop in the High Street, we quite enjoyed the walk up to the wood. Here under the trees in a beautiful spot we sat down to wait for the menwith the hampers. After waiting for some time with growing impatience, our coachman turnedup with a rueful face. "There ain't no hamper, sir, " he said. "What?" I exclaimed. "No hamper! What do you mean?" "There ain't no hamper in the trap, sir. I didn't have it up in front, so I thought you had it in with you. Do you think it's fallen out, sir?" "By Jove, sir!" cried Lionel suddenly, "it's my fault. You told me tosee that the man put the hampers on in front, and I clean forgot allabout it. " If it hadn't been such a serious matter it would have been highlyamusing to watch the blank dismay depicted on every face on hearing thisdisastrous news. "What on earth are we to do?" exclaimed Dick, with almost tragicconcern. "There's only one thing to be done, I suppose, " said I resignedly, aftersending the man away; "we shall have to return to the village and haveour luncheon at the inn. " "It won't be a picnic at all then, " pouted Lady Betty ruefully. Shin Shira was the only one who did not seem distressed about thematter. He had seated himself cross-legged on the ground under one ofthe old Beeches, and was slowly turning over the leaves of the littleyellow book fastened to his belt with a golden chain, which he alwayswore. "I think I can be of some assistance to you here, " said he, getting upafter a time and coming towards me. "Has anybody some paper and apencil?" [Illustration] This seemed a strange request at such a moment, but between us wemanaged to find what he asked for. The Dwarf suddenly tore the paper into seven parts, handing us each oneand keeping one for himself. "Now, " said he, "each of you write on the piece of paper the name ofsomething you would wish for luncheon. " He handed me the pencil first, and just for fun I wrote "Lobster salad. " Marjorie wrote "Game pie. " Dick thought that "Pies and tarts and plenty of them" was a suitablething to ask for. Lionel could imagine nothing more to be desired than "Ham and tonguesandwiches. " Lady Betty wanted "Fruit and nuts, " and Fidge, after various painfulattempts, wrote "Something nice to drink. " Shin Shira read them out one by one. "Yes, " he said, "they're all very well, but how are you going to eatthem when you have got them? Now you see what I wish for, " and hecarefully wrote on his slip of paper, "Tablecloth, serviettes, plates, dishes, knives, forks, spoons, salt, pepper, mustard, oil, vinegar, glasses and a corkscrew. " "There!" he exclaimed, "I think that will putus right. Now watch carefully. You see there is no deception!" and helaughingly rolled up his sleeves like a professional conjurer. He placed the paper upon which he had written his list into his turban, shaking it violently. To our surprise, in a few seconds it sounded as though there wassomething in it, and an instant later he drew forth from it a neatlyfolded snow-white tablecloth, the serviettes, spoons, forks, and in factall the articles which he had named. He set the children to work laying the cloth, while he placed the otherlists in his turban, and in turn, beginning with a deliciouslyfresh-looking lobster salad, and a large game pie, he brought forthevery one of the good things which had been wished for. Fidge's "something nice to drink" turned out to be bottles of lemonade, milk, soda water, and a bottle of wine for the grown-ups. A more delicious feast it would be impossible to imagine. We were just sitting down to enjoy it, and I had stuck the knife andfork into the game pie, when Marjorie sprang up with a little scream, brushing something from her face. "Ough! a horrid caterpillar!" she cried. "And here's another!" declared Fidge, knocking one from his coat. "And an earwig!" exclaimed Dick, picking one up from the cloth. "Oh! and spiders!" screamed Lady Betty, jumping up and shaking herfrock. "Dear! dear! this will never do!" I said, for the place was swarmingwith insects, owing to the very dry summer which we had had. "There ought to be a marquee like we had at the choir treat, " saidFidge. "Oh, I vote we get on with the grub, " said Dick greedily. "The insectswon't kill us. " "No, but a marquee would certainly be more comfortable, " said ShinShira. "Come into the meadow just over there, and I'll see if I canprovide one. " Leaving Lionel to guard our feast, the rest of us all trailed after him, over the fence into the meadow, which was carpeted with soft long grass. "The only thing is, I can't exactly remember what a marquee is like, " hesaid. "Think, my dear boy, what the one was like which you had in yourmind. " "Why, it had four poles, one at each corner, " said Fidge, "and some ironthings connecting them at the top, and it was covered all over and roundthe sides with some stripey stuff. Then there were ropes and things, andpegs driven into the ground to tie the poles to, and a trestle table andtwo long forms each side. That's all. Oh, yes, and Piggott & Son, Tentmakers, was written in big letters on the stripey stuff. " "Ah!" said Shin Shira, "I think I shall be able to imagine itsufficiently well now. I'll try, " and after consulting his little yellowbook again for instructions, he called for a stick, which the boys sooncut from the hedge, and marked out a large square space in the meadow;and then, using some magic words, he waved the stick three times, andthere stood the very marquee which Fidge had described, even to thewords Piggott & Son, Tentmakers, on the canvas covering. "Now go and bring the luncheon, children, and we'll try again, " saidShin Shira, in a rare good humour with himself (the little fellow wasevidently delighted to find that his fairy powers were acting so wellto-day); and soon we were seated around the table, which, I mustconfess, I found a more comfortable way of enjoying my luncheon. To say that we did full justice to the good things provided, is butmildly describing the way the food disappeared. The two elder boys in particular seemed as though they would never leaveoff, but at last we settled down comfortably to the fruit and nuts, andwere just discussing what we should do with the marquee and itscontents, when we suddenly all started to our feet in alarm. A loud bellowing, combined with a dull sound of galloping hoofs, told usthat something was coming our way. I rushed to the door and looked out. "Good heavens! A mad bull!" I cried, "tearing this way at a furiouspace. " Shin Shira sprang to the opening. "I'll attract him in another direction, and while he is after me you allescape over the fence, " he cried hurriedly, and snatching a red silkhandkerchief from Lionel's pocket, he rushed out into the open. The bull paused, and though I frantically shouted to Shin Shira to comeback, the brave little fellow flourished the red handkerchief to attractthe creature's attention. With a bellow of anger the infuriated animal, holding his head down, tore after the Dwarf, who ran with surprisingswiftness in the opposite direction to the marquee. [Illustration] "Now children, quickly!" I cried, catching Lady Betty by the hand, andwe all made for the fence as quickly as possible. We were no sooner in safety than we turned to see how our gallant littlefriend was faring. The yellow figure, still waving the red handkerchief, was running aheadof the bull, but to our great distress we could see that the beast wasgaining on him. "Oh dear! he'll never reach the other side in time, " cried Marjorie, hiding her eyes in her hands and sinking to the ground in a panic offear and fright. Presently the boys gave an excited shout--"Hurrah! Bravo!" they cried, jumping from the fence and skipping about, tossing their caps into theair in an excess of relief. I sat down beside Marjorie and explained toher what had happened. The bull was rapidly gaining on Shin Shira and the little fellow wasbecoming exhausted, when, by a happy chance, at that very moment hebegan to disappear, and before the bull could reach him he had vanishedaltogether. The bull was rushing frantically about, bellowing and snorting andlooking in vain for him, and at last, turning his attention to themarquee, he dashed into it, ripping up the canvas and over-turning thetable, smashing the dishes, and altogether making a most terrificcommotion. Now that we were all safe we could make light of the loss of themarquee and its contents, and could even smile at the quaint remark ofLady Betty when she said solemnly-- "In future I shall prefer to picnic where there are spiders, instead ofwhere mad bulls are about. In fact, I shall rather like spiders afterthis: they're so gentle and don't bellow at all. " The boys were still watching the havoc which the bull was creating, whenthey noticed a man walking towards us beside the fence. He was a big, burly farmer and looked very angry. "Now then, " he cried, in a surly voice, "what do you mean by all this?" "I don't understand you, " I answered. "I speak plain English, don't I?" he said. "Wasn't it you that's beentrampling in my long grass, and building tents and what not on privateproperty? I'll learn you that I won't have no strangers in my meadows, Ican tell ye. " "I'm very sorry if I've done any harm, " said I, "and I'm sure if--" "_If_ you've done any harm!" shouted the farmer. "Look at all that longgrass trampled down all over the meadow. " "Yes, " I interrupted, "but it was your bull which did that. " "He wouldn't have done it if you hadn't teased him, " said the farmerobstinately. "I saw one of you myself teasing him with a red rag andmaking him furious. I'm not going to have any of it. Off you come withme to the police station. " "No, no, I can't do that, " I cried in alarm; "I have these children withme. " "People shouldn't take children out if they can't do without gettinginto mischief, " grumbled the farmer. "No, you come along of me, " and hecaught hold of my arm. "I'll give you my card, " I said, "and if you have any serious complaintto make you can write to me. " "Aye, a likely story; and when I write to you, as likely as not I'llfind you've given me a wrong address. " "Come back with me then to the inn: they know me there and will tell youwhether or no the address is a correct one. " The old farmer was gradually persuaded to this course, though hegrumbled all the way there that I ought to be "locked up, " while thechildren, thoroughly subdued, walked in silence behind us. "You'll have to pay a pretty penny for damages, " said he warningly, whenhe had satisfied himself at the inn that I was known as "a gentlemanwho often drove over there in the summer, and always paid for what hehad. " I assured him that he should have what was just, and when he had gone Iordered tea in the arbour at the end of the old-fashioned garden, andover it we forgot the unfortunate, but exciting, termination to ourpicnic. We arrived home quite safely. Sure enough, a few days afterwards Ireceived a preposterous claim for damage to the farmer's grass, which Ileft my solicitor to deal with; and more extraordinary still, I had aclaim from Messrs. Piggott & Son for damages to a tent, which they"could not trace as having been hired to me, but which I must have hiredat some time or another, since it bore their name marked as they onlymarked their tents let out on hire. " This letter also went to my solicitor, and to this day I've heardnothing further about either matter. MYSTERY NO. IX SHIN SHIRA AND THE QUEEN OF HEARTS It was many months after this last adventure before I saw my friend ShinShira again. The summer was past, and it was the time of fires and warm drawncurtains. One evening, after dinner, I was sitting alone in my study, puzzling over a chess problem, when the servant brought me a card onwhich I read-- "DR. SHIN SHIRA SCARAMANGA MANOUSA YAMA HAWA. " "Oh!" I laughed, "show him in at once, please. " For I had been longingfor an opportunity of thanking the gallant little fellow for the braveryhe had shown in the matter of the mad bull--a bravery to which some ofus, at all events, probably owed our lives. "Come in, come in! Delighted to see you!" I cried, getting up andmaking him comfortable in "the Toad, " the chair which I know he likesbest. I got out the tobacco jar, and we were soon chatting comfortablyover our pipes. "By the way, " I said, picking up his card again and looking at it, whenwe had exhausted most of the topics of conversation which came to ourminds, "I didn't know before that you were a doctor. " "Oh, I don't practise, and I seldom use the title except on my cards. Itwas given to me by the King of Hearts very many years ago. Ha-ha-ha!"And Shin Shira laughed heartily at what was evidently a humorousrecollection. "Won't you tell me about it, please?" said I. "I don't know, " replied the Dwarf, "that there is much to tell. "It was while I was travelling round the world in my earlier days, and Ihad come, in the course of my wanderings, upon the country ruled over bythe King of Hearts and his most charming Queen. "Talk about turtle-doves! I had never seen such a perfectly devotedcouple before in my life. They were like a pair of happy lovers, although they must have been married several years before I knew them. "I happened to appear at their Majesties' dinner-table one evening whenthey were dining alone, just as dinner was being served. "Of course they were greatly astonished at seeing me suddenly appear intheir presence, especially as I arrived at a particularly awkwardmoment, when, the servants being busy with the dishes and having theirbacks turned, the King was squeezing her Majesty's hand under the table, and looking lovingly into her eyes. "The King turned to the Lord Chief Butler, when that official returned, and looking at me curiously, said, 'It's very thoughtless of me, but Ido not remember that I invited any guests for this evening. ' "'I had heard nothing of it either, your Majesty, ' said the Lord ChiefButler, pursing up his lips and looking at me severely. 'Shall I requestthe Lord High Footman and the Lord Under Footman to remove the person?' "'By no means, ' said the King kindly; 'I will ask him myself what bringshim here. ' "'It was a matter of compulsion, rather than of inclination, yourMajesty, ' said I. And I explained as well as I was able the curiousaffliction from which I suffer, of having to appear and disappear at thefairies' pleasure. "'Most interesting--most!' said the Queen, smiling sweetly, 'and weshould be most inhospitable if we did not make you welcome here for solong as the fairies will spare you to us. ' "This gracious speech, and the Queen's beauty, quite won my heart, andputting my hand on my heart, I bowed in the most graceful manner that Icould command. "The Lord Chief Butler, seeing that I was in favour with theirMajesties, now brought me a plate, and some glasses, and waited upon memost obsequiously. "'Tarts, my lord!' he announced, handing me a silver dish on which werepiled some rather stodgy-looking jam affairs. "'No thank you, ' I replied. "The man looked horrified, and the King and Queen greatly embarrassed bymy refusal. 'Er--tarts--er--your Highness, --er--her Majesty's own make, 'whispered the Lord Chief Butler. "'Oh, then by all means I will change my mind, ' said I gallantly, and Itook two of the tarts on my plate, while the King and Queen looked onapprovingly. "I can safely say that in all my wanderings, through all these years, Ihave never before or since tasted such exceedingly unpleasant tarts. "I hesitate to say more, out of respect to the most beautiful andgracious Queen who ever lived, but I could say a great deal. "However, I managed to get through them, even to the bitter end, andhad the satisfaction of seeing her Majesty look greatly delighted. "'I really must have another one, my love, ' declared the King; 'they aremost delicious, made as they were by your own royal and beautifulhands. ' "'No--no--dearest, ' smiled the Queen, her pride in her pastry battlingwith her consideration for her husband's health, 'you have already hadtwo. ' "'Perhaps, my darling, you are right, ' replied the King, with a sigh ofrelief, and hurriedly motioning to the Lord Chief Butler to remove hisplate. "'Perhaps our guest, though--' began the Queen sweetly. "'No--no--thank you, your Majesty, ' I hastened to say. 'Inever--_never_--by any chance indulge in more than two, under doctor'sstrict orders. ' "'Very well then, ' said her Majesty, 'we will have dessert. ' "The rest of the dinner was uneventful, and I was more and moreimpressed as the time went on with the gracious and simple bearing ofthe exalted personages of whom I was an uninvited guest. "At last her Majesty rose, gave me a bow, and was led with old-fashionedcourtesy by his Majesty to the door, which was thrown open by theservants, and the King and I were left alone to our coffee and cigars. After we had talked on various subjects for some time, I ventured toexpress my admiration of, and devotion to, the gracious lady who hadjust left us, and the King's eyes sparkled with delight. "'You may well admire her, sir; she is rightly beloved for hergraciousness and beauty from one end of my kingdom to the other, and herthoughtfulness and kindness to myself are beyond expression. "'I _must_ tell you of a little incident (which you have just shared in)to prove to you how wholly devoted she is to my interests. "'I have, as many other royal personages have at times, some difficultyin regulating my affairs so as to make both ends meet comfortably. "'Her Majesty knew of this, and immediately began to take cookinglessons with a view to cooking for us when we are alone, and thus savingexpenses in the kitchen. The tarts you tasted to-day are her Majesty'sfirst attempt. ' "'R-eally!' I murmured, seeing that the King paused as though heexpected me to say something. "'Yes, ' continued his Majesty, 'and to-morrow she has made me promiseto catch her some blackbirds, with which to make a pie. ' "'Catch them?' I cried; 'why not shoot them?' "'Oh! the Queen wouldn't think of letting me do anything so cruel, sheis _so_ tender-hearted. But you'll come with me to-morrow, and help meto catch some, won't you?' "I assured his Majesty that unless I had unfortunately to disappearbefore then, I should be delighted, and we went up to join her Majestyin the drawing-room. "We found the Queen surrounded by her Maids of Honour, of whom some weresitting at the tambour frames, others doing fine embroidery, while twoof their number were at the piano playing and singing. "I was presented to these ladies, and, at the Queen's request, relatedsome of the extraordinary adventures which, as you know, have, at onetime or another in my long career, befallen me. The evening was quite asuccess, and I felt that I had indeed fallen upon my feet in suchcharming company. "At a moderately early hour we retired, and in the morning, soon afterbreakfast, his Majesty and I started on our expedition in quest ofblackbirds for the Queen's pie. "Her Majesty and the Maids of Honour watched us start off from thebalcony, and several retainers followed at a respectful distance, carrying various bags and implements of which I could not even imaginethe uses. "When we had got some distance from the Castle, his Majesty whispered tome confidentially that he must confess that he didn't know much aboutthis sort of thing. "'Er--do you recommend--er--_salt_ for blackbirds?' he inquiredanxiously. "'What for?' I asked. "'To put on their tails, you know, ' said the King. 'I have arecollection of hearing something, somewhere, about catching birds byputting salt on their tails. But perhaps that doesn't refer toblackbirds?' he added. "I couldn't help smiling a little at the simple, good-natured, inexperienced King, but suggested immediately afterwards that some grainscattered before and inside a sieve propped up with a stick, to whichsome string was attached, would probably be a more effectual way ofcatching the birds. "'What a brilliant idea!' said the King. 'I'll send the salt back andorder some sieves, grain, sticks and string, as you suggest. Is thereanything else?' "'Something to put the birds in if we catch any, your Majesty, ' said I. "'Oh! I've thought of that, ' said the King, 'and have several basketsready. ' "The men were soon back with the sieves, and I quickly rigged up two ofthem as traps; and having baited them, I showed the King how to hide andpull the string directly one of the birds was under the sieve. "Fortunately, blackbirds seemed to abound in that country, and therewere soon several fluttering about, pecking at and picking up the grain. "Presently, one got under my sieve, and pulling the support away by thestring, I was fortunate enough to catch it. The King was delighted, andthe more so when a few minutes afterwards he trapped two at once, in thesame manner. "After this, the 'sport, ' if it could be called so, became fast andfurious, and ended in our catching four-and-twenty birds between us. "This the King considered would be sufficient, so we set off to theCastle again, the men bearing the baskets in triumph before us. "'Oh! the dear, sweet little things!' cried Her Majesty, when she wasshown our captives, 'and how clever of you to have caught them all!They'll make a perfectly lovely pie!' And she set off in high glee tothe kitchens, to try her hand at the culinary art again. [Illustration: "This was carefully set before the King. "] "The afternoon was spent in the beautiful gardens surrounding theCastle, playing fives, for which there was a specially built court, andpractising at archery, so that the time quickly passed, till we werecalled in by the first dinner gong. "The Maids of Honour, together with some of the State Ministers, joinedus at dinner, and I could see that the Queen, though sweet and graciousas ever, was very anxious as the dinner proceeded. "Presently there was a flourish of trumpets heard at the door, and twopages appeared, bearing a silver salver upon which was an enormous pie. This was carefully set before the King, and his Majesty, after smilingat the Queen rather nervously, put the knife into the crust and removeda portion of it. "Immediately afterwards, there was a great commotion heard from insidethe pie, and first one bird and then another began to sing, hopping outof the pie and on to the table, evidently delighted at regaining itsliberty. "Finally, amid the breathless silence of all about the table, they flewoff through the open window, and nothing was left but the crust. "The Queen sat back in her chair looking half-triumphant andhalf-ashamed. "'I'm afraid it isn't a very satisfactory pie, from the eating point ofview, ' she faltered, 'but I _couldn't_ have the poor pretty littlethings killed, and so I put them in the dish alive, and when the crust, which I baked separately, was nearly cold, I cut a hole in the top, sothat they could breathe, and put it over them. ' "'It does your heart much credit, my love, ' cried the King, 'and, thethought of cutting a hole in the crust was a very kind one. ' "And indeed, wherever and in whatever country I have been since thattime, many years ago, and have related the story, the ladies of thatcountry have always made a hole in the top of their pies, in honour ofthe beautiful and kind Queen who first invented it. "I did not hear much more of the conversation which followed thisepisode, for unfortunately, just then, I felt myself disappearing, andhad only just time to incline my head respectfully to the King and Queenbefore I had vanished. " "But, " I remarked, when Shin Shira left off speaking, "you haven't toldme yet how you came to get the title of 'Doctor. '" "Oh, that's all part of the same story, " said Shin Shira, refilling hispipe; "it has a sequel. About seven months after the events which I havenarrated" (you'll have noticed that Shin Shira loved using long wordswhen he could), "I found myself again in the same country, and I thoughtI could not leave it without paying my respects to the amiable King andQueen; so, one fine afternoon, I made my way up to the Castle. [Illustration] "I found the King in his counting-house, industriously counting out hismoney. He left off when he saw me, though, and came forward to greet meheartily. "'The Queen, bless her! will be as delighted to see you as I am, ' saidhe; 'we'll go and find her. I fancy I know where she is. ' "He led the way at once to the parlour, and there we found her Majestylooking sweet and amiable as ever. "She was rather confused at being discovered in the act of eating somebread and honey. "'I am suffering from a very poor appetite, ' her Majesty explained, after she had made me welcome, 'and have eaten nothing at all to-day, and just now I fancied a little honey, for which I have a great liking. ' "'I hope your Majesty is not unwell, that your appetite is so feeble?' Iinquired with great solicitation. "'Oh no!' replied the Queen, with an effort at brightness; 'I'm a littleworried, that's all. ' "'We're all worried, more or less, ' chimed in the King. '_You_ rememberthat blackbird pie, don't you?' "'Yes, your Majesty, of course I do, ' said I, smiling at therecollection. "'Well, those birds, the ones which were put into it, have become veryspiteful and dangerous. They have taken to haunting the precincts of theCastle, and attack the servants when they go into the garden, particularly the laundry maids; for, when they go into the garden tohang out the clothes, they have to use both hands to do so, and thenthese wretched birds fly down and peck at their noses. One poor creaturelost hers altogether, with the result that all of the maids have givennotice, and we can't get laundry maids for love or money. ' "'It's very trying, ' said the Queen; 'the poor King has to wear histhings much longer than he should, and I have a difficulty in evengetting a clean pocket-handkerchief. ' "It was a curious difficulty to be in, certainly, and I felt veryanxious to help them if I could, so I asked permission to be allowed tovisit the servants' hall, and talk to the maids on the subject. "This was readily given, and I spoke to them as earnestly as I couldabout their good Queen and mistress, and how willing and eager theyought to be to do everything they could for her. "I could see that they felt this keenly themselves, for some of themwere in tears when I spoke of the Queen's goodness to everybody abouther. "'B--but our precious noses, sir!' sobbed one good-natured girl; 'wecan't afford to lose them, can we now?' "'No, ' I said, 'but I have thought of a way by which it will be quitesafe for you to go into the garden. "'Now, like good creatures, the first thing in the morning, set to andget some laundry work done, and I'll go out and hang up some of theclothes, and you'll see that the birds won't hurt me. ' "They all agreed to this, and the good-natured girl who had been cryingsaid, 'I'll come with you, if you like, and show you how to hang thethings up. ' "'So you shall, ' said I, and went up to my room to make preparations forthe morning. "It was quite simple. I sent for some coloured wax, and having made awooden model of a nose, I made on it some little waxen cases which couldbe worn over one's own nose, and _then_, if the birds pecked at it, itwouldn't matter in the least. "In the morning, the wax cases were quite set and hard, and when themaid and I went out to hang up the clothes, it was great fun to see thebewilderment of a large blackbird when he flew away with the maid'sfalse nose, and she calmly stuck on another. "The birds soon gave up their evil ways after that, but for some months, as a precaution, the maids never ventured out without a nose protector. "It was for this useful invention that the King of Hearts bestowed onme the title of 'Doctor to His Majesty's Household. '" "H'm!" I remarked, when he had finished, "it's a very remarkable story. I seem to have heard of some of the incidents before, somehow. " "Very likely, very likely, " said Shin Shira, "Well, I must be goingnow. " And he shook hands and went out by the door, in a sensible way foronce. As he went out of the house, I heard him singing softly-- "The Queen of Hearts, she made some tarts All on a summer's day"-- And then he changed his song to-- "Sing a song of sixpence, A pocketful of rye, Four-and-twenty blackbirds Baked in a pie. "The maid was in the garden Hanging out the clothes, And along came a blackbird And nipped off her nose. " And I remembered then why his story had seemed so familiar. MYSTERY NO. X AND LAST SHIN SHIRA DISAPPEARS The day after my little friend had related to me his experiences in theland of the King and Queen of Hearts, I was surprised to receive aportmanteau addressed to me, which, on my opening it, I found to containthe little yellow costume, including the turban with the diamondornament, which Shin Shira had always worn. There was no note enclosed, and I naturally wondered very much what hadoccasioned this strange parcel being sent to me. I had no means of communicating with Shin Shira, and so had to wait withwhat patience I could summon for an explanation from him. I had not long to wait, fortunately, for in the afternoon of the sameday the little fellow burst in upon me, clothed in a frock coat, tallhat and regulation costume of a gentleman in easy circumstances. I must say he was not nearly such a picturesque looking person as he hadbeen in his Oriental dress. He threw himself into a chair and seemedoverflowing with news. "I've decided to settle down, " he said breathlessly. "I didn't tell youyesterday because my arrangements were not quite completed, but I'vebegun now, and I'm going to settle down. " "What _do_ you mean?" I inquired, utterly bewildered by my friend'sabrupt statement. "Why, " he began, "I'm tired of this constant changing from one place toanother; and as I've not had to disappear now for some time, I've cometo the conclusion that the fairies have overlooked the misdeeds of myancestors and are going to give me a rest. I've taken a house in thehighly respectable neighbourhood of Russell Square, and I've furnishedit by means of my fairy powers with everything that is necessary;besides this, I've realised the full value of all my precious stones, except, of course, that which the dear Princess gave me, and have openeda banking account. There!" and the little fellow sat back, evidentlyfeeling quite exhausted by his long speech and vainly searching for hislittle fan, which, of course, was not there. I scarcely knew what to say to this surprising statement, and waited forfurther developments before replying. "I've engaged a housekeeper tolook after me, and two servants also; and--as you see--have discarded myOriental costume for one more suitable to this country and climate; Isent you my old costume and turban by a trustworthy messenger thismorning, having changed at my tailor's into the attire in which you seeme. I hope it has arrived safely?" I assured him that it had, and sent for the portmanteau in order that hemight see for himself. "That's all right, then, " he said with a sigh of relief; "and now I wantto hand you this blank cheque which I have signed, and, in case Idisappear, I want you to draw out the whole amount standing to myaccount at the bank at the time, so that I may be able to get it in caseI appear again. I have an idea that I shall not have to undergo thesechanges many more times. Of course, if I never come back, the money willbe yours, as I have no one else to leave it to. " I thanked him very heartily for the trust he reposed in me, and assuredhim that his wishes should be carried out to the letter. "That's all right, then!" he exclaimed in a tone of satisfaction; "andnow I want to arrange for a nice little party at my new home to act as akind of--er--home warming--I think you call it. Ask the children and anyof your friends who know me, and, if you let me know beforehand how manyare coming, I will arrange for what, I hope, will turn out to be a veryenjoyable evening. " We fixed the date, and after my little friend had gone, I wroteinformally, as Shin Shira wished, to as many of my friends as would belikely to wish to come, to ask them to attend. Nearly everybody accepted--for the little fellow was a great favouritewith everybody who knew him--and, as Shin Shira looked in every day toknow how the replies were coming in, I was able to tell him in a fewdays that we might expect from twenty to twenty-five guests. From then till the date fixed Shin Shira was very busy, and I only sawhim once or twice, and on the eventful day I did not see him at all. The Verrinder children were coming in the carriage with me, and, according to arrangement, we were the first to arrive. There was an awning at the door and a red carpet laid down the stepsand across the pavement; the house was brilliantly lighted, andevidently grand preparations had been going on. I hurried up the steps, followed by Marjorie, Dick and Fidge. The servant who stood at the open door, and who knew me by sight, waslooking very anxious, and whispered, "The housekeeper would like tospeak to you at once in the dining-room, sir. " "Anything the matter?" I asked. "Yes, sir, the master--he--he can't be found, " said the man. I hurried down to the dining-room, and found the housekeeper in her bestblack silk dress, looking even more distressed than the manservant hadbeen. "The master, sir, " she began at once when I entered the room. "Whatever_is_ to be done? He can't be found anywhere--and the guests beginning toarrive--" "Never mind, " said I, after thinking a moment. "I've no doubt he'll behere presently--and, in the meantime, as I know most if not all of theguests, I'll receive them, and explain that he has probably been calledaway and will no doubt be back presently. " I hurried up into the drawing-room, and found that by this time severalguests had arrived, and were looking greatly surprised at finding nohost to receive them. I apologised for my friend as well as I was able, and pointed out thatprobably he would soon return, and, in the meantime, he would doubtlesswish us to make ourselves at home. We found everything arranged for our comfort. Professional singers gavean excellent concert in the drawing-room--an excellent supper was serveddownstairs. The children were not forgotten, and, while the concert had beenproceeding in the drawing-room, an amusing entertainment was providedfor them in another room. Beside each plate at supper, also, there was alittle present, chosen carefully, and our names written distinctly oneach. Everything was thoroughly well thought out and provided for--but--therewas no host to receive our thanks and to bid us "good-bye" when we went. The whole affair, therefore, though I naturally did my best for myfriend's sake to "keep things going, " concluded rather flatly, and Iwent home after it was all over feeling not a little depressed andanxious. I called the next day, and the day after, but Shin Shira had notreturned, nor had anything been heard of, or from him. It was most mysterious, and I could only account for it by the fact thatthe fairies may have, in fact _must_ have, caused him to disappear oncemore. The housekeeper told me, on my inquiring of her, that he had been athome the whole of the day on which the party had been held, superintending all the arrangements, and had gone up early to his roomto dress, and from that time all trace of him had been lost. I was very sorry, and the more so as days and weeks flew by and nothinghappened to give us any clue as to his whereabouts. After a couple of months, I told the servants that they had better seekother situations, and when they had done so I let them go. I closed thehouse, and waited for events. It must have been quite a year later when I received the followingletter-- "_Isle of San Sosta_, "_ South Pacific. _ "MY DEAR FRIEND, "I write once more to let you know that I am again in great trouble, but this time there is nothing in which you can help me, though I know, in the goodness of your heart, you would wish to do so if it were possible. "When, in accordance with the fairies' decree, to which I must always most humbly bow, I was called upon to disappear at the very moment when I was hoping to welcome my guests to my newly established home, I found myself most unexpectedly in this place. "It is an island very little known, and far out of the beaten track of vessels. "Once a year, however, a trader calls, bringing and taking letters and exchanging for the produce of this place such necessities as we require from more civilised lands. "The people of this country are very simple and of primitive habits, so much so that it is the custom here if a maiden remains unmarried after a certain age, and becomes a burden to her parents, to turn her out of the community, and leave her to seek food for herself or starve in the desert. "This cruel and unnatural law I have constantly tried to get altered, and the King and his advisers consent to do so only on one condition, and that is, that I find a husband for the only unmarried daughter of the King, who is at present an outcast in the wilderness, being of most uncomely appearance and greatly deformed. "I have been out into the wilderness to see the poor creature myself. She is indeed in a pitiful plight, being far from fair to look upon, and gaunt and thin with exposure and suffering. "I conversed with her and found her intelligent, and patient under her great afflictions; in fact, her sad case so touched my heart that, not only for her sake, but for the sake of the other unfortunate maidens who, unless this cruel law is altered, may have to suffer a fate similar to hers, I have decided to marry her myself, and thus rescue her and others who may follow her. "I think of my sweet Princess and feel that she would approve--for never shall I see her dear face again--and in making this marriage she would know I was inclined to it from pity and not from any untruthfulness to her most dear memory. "The stone she gave me I cannot bear to see any more, and this I ask you to keep _until I claim it again_; all my other goods and the money in the bank I leave to you absolutely. "I feel that I may never see you again, and if this be so, accept my hearty and devoted thanks for all you have done for me. Think of me sometimes and "Believe me to be, "Your friend always, "SHIN SHIRA SCARAMANGA MANOUSA YAMA HAWA. " I sat a long while after I had read this letter, thinking of all thestrange happenings since I had known my little friend. I had grown quite to love and respect him, and when I thought of thenoble and chivalrous deed he intended performing in order to save thepoor creature in that far-off island, I felt that he was indeed worthyof all admiration. I got down a map, and tried in vain to find the island he mentioned. Itwas not marked in any of those which I had by me. Then I found the portmanteau which Shin Shira had left with me, andlooked at the little yellow costume, which reminded me so much of myfriend. In lifting it from the bag, something heavy dropped from between thefolds. It was the Magic Crystal. I held it in my hand, and wished Icould see what Shin Shira was doing at that moment. The thought had nosooner entered my head than I gave an exclamation of surprise. A mist in which vague figures were moving filled the crystal, andpresently I could see distinctly a large crowd of people gatheredtogether. A man and woman stood beneath a canopy--the man I soonperceived was Shin Shira himself, still clothed in the immaculate frockcoat and tall hat in which I had last seen him dressed. The woman was apoor, deformed thing and pitifully plain--her gaudy dress and manyjewels but helped to point the contrast. Before them stood a priest, and at the side the King, surrounded by hiswarriors. It was evidently the celebration of a wedding, and theceremony was over, for the bridegroom led the bride from under thecanopy and knelt with her before the King, who stretched out his handsas though he were giving them his blessing--and then, to myastonishment, a most marvellous thing happened. A blaze of light flashedacross the scene, and a beautiful being, who I am convinced was theFairy Queen herself, floated down from the heights above, accompanied bya crowd of beings nearly as beautiful as herself. She waved her wandthree times, and the bride became a beautiful Princess, and Shin Shiragrew tall, young and handsome in an instant. The King and his court gazed in amazement at the scene, and the Princessfell into Shin Shira's arms. The Fairy waved her wand again, and a bright crown appeared on ShinShira's head, in which flashed a single stone of great brilliancy. Atthe same instant the jewel vanished from the yellow turban beside me. The crystal grew clear as the beautiful scene faded away, and that wasthe last glimpse I ever had of my little friend. I often think of him, and I like to imagine, as, indeed, I believe to bethe case, that the fairies have restored to him his full powers, andthat the bride he had so unselfishly wedded turned out to be the veryPrincess to whom he had been faithful throughout his long life. It may be so--if the crystal spoke truly. Who knows? THE END