All the castle is in confusion. Chamberlains and stewards run up and down the marble staircases. In the galleries are pages and beautifully dressed courtiers, who go from one group to another, asking the news, and the ladies-in-waiting make their deep curtsies, drying their eyes all the time with their pretty lace handkerchiefs. The doctors are gathered together in a consultation, and outside the door of their room the prince"s tutor and groom are walking about. And out there by the stables rises a plaintive whinny. The stable boys have forgotten the Prince"s chestnut, and she is calling miserably for some one to give her something to eat.
And the king. Where is His Majesty the King? He is shut up alone in a room at the end of the castle. Kings do not like to be seen weeping. As for the Queen, that is different. She is seated by the pillow of the little prince, her beautiful face bathed in tears, and she sobs out loud before everybody, just as if she hadbeen a draper"s wife.
The little prince is whiter than the laces of his bed, and he lies with closed eyes. One might think he was sleeping, but he isn"t. Presently he turns to his mother, and says :
"My queen mother, why are you crying so? Is it that you really believe I am going to die? "The queen tries to speak, and cannot.
" Don"t cry, then, my queen mother. You forget that I am a prince. Princes don"t die like this. "The queen weeps more bitterly than before, and the little prince begins to be frightened.
"Listen, " he said; "I am not going to let Death come and take me, and I know quite well how to prevent it. Let forty big soldiers come at once and stand guard round our bed. Let a hundred heavy guns watch night and day, with the fuse ready, under our windows. It will be bad for Death if he dares approach. "To humour him, the queen gives the order. Cannon roll into the courtyard, and forty huge soldiers, halberds in hand, walk into the chamber and stand by the walls. They are old campaigners, and their moustaches are grey. The little prince claps his hands when he sees them, and, recognizing one of them, he calls to him :
"Lorrain, Lorrain! "
The old soldier steps towards the bed.
"You know that I love you, dear old Lorrain. Let me see your big sword. If Death comes to take me you"ll have to kill him, won"t you? ""Yes, your Highness, " says Lorrain, and two great tears trickle down his bronzed face.
Here the chaplain comes up to the little prince and talks to him a long time, softly, and shows him the crucifix. The little prince seems very much surprised, and suddenly interrupts :
"I understand quite well what you are telling me, Sir Priest. But all the same, couldn"t my little cousin Beppo die instead of me, if I gave him a lot of money? "The chaplain goes on talking in a low voice, and the little prince seems more and more astonished. When the priest had finished, he sighs, and says :
"All you say is very sad, Sir Priest. But one thing comforts me. Up there, in the heaven among the stars, I shall still be a prince. I know that the good God is a kinsman, and will remember to treat me according to my rank. " Then he turns to his mother, and adds: " Let some one bring me my finest clothes, my ermine doublet, and my velvet shoes. I want to let the angels see me looking nice, and enter heaven dressed like a prince. "A third time, the chaplain bends over the bed and talks to the little prince in a low voice. Before he has half finished, the king"s son interrupts him angrily.
"Why, then, " he cries, "to be a prince is to be nothing at all ! "Refusing to listen to anything more, the little prince turns to the wall and weeps bitterly.
Alphonse Daudet.
General.- "Sceptre and crown must humble down, and in the dust be equal made with the poor crooked scythe and spade. " The Dauphin, heir to the French throne, was in this case a boy with an exalted opinion of his rank, his importance, his divine right. Pick out speeches that indicate it. What feeling is uppermost in your mind after reading the story? A halberd was a long-handled weapon, partly axe and partly spear; ermine is the fur of a kind of weasel found in the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and America, white on the body of the animal, and black on the tail; a doublet was a close-fitting garment, with or without sleeves, for males; it went from the neck to below the waist, somewhat like a pull-over. Find pictures of these things.
Lesson 52
PIPPA"S SONG
The year"s at the spring And day"s at the morn; Morning"s at seven;The hillside"s dew-pearled; The lark"s on the wing; The snail"s on the thorn; God"s in His heaven:
All"s right with the world.
Robert Browning
Lesson 53
NG lOCHINVAR
Oh, young Lochinvar is come out of the west;
Through all the wide Border his steed was the best;And, save his good broad-sword, he weapon had none;He rode all unarmed, and he rode all alone.
So faithful in love, and so dauntless in war,There never was knight like the young Lochinvar.
He stayed not for brake, and he stopped not for stone; He swam the Esk River where ford there was none; But, ere he alighted at Netherby gate,The bride had consented-the gallant came late; For a laggard in love and a dastard in warWas to wed the fair Ellen of brave Lochinvar.
So boldly he entered the Netherby hall,
"Mong bridesmen, and kinsmen, and brothers, and all: Then spake the bride"s father, his hand on his sword (For the poor craven bridegroom said never a word), "Ho! come ye in peace here, or come ye in war,Or to dance at our bridal, young Lord Lochinvar? ""I long wooed your daughter, my suit you denied; Love swells like the Solway, but ebbs like its tide; And now am I come, with this lost love of mine, To lead but one measure, drink one cup of wine. There are maidens in Scotland, more lovely by far,That would gladly be bride to the young Lochinvar. "The bride kissed the goblet; the knight took it up; He quaffed off the wine, and he threw down the cup. She looked down to blush,and she looked up to sigh,
With a smile on her lips and a tear in her eye.
He took her soft hand ere her mother could bar;"Now tread we a measure! " said young Lochinvar.