“Ah!” She patted the glistening neck of her mare.  So he had purposely tried to avoid her?  Why?  She stole a sly glance at him.  Why were not kings molded in this form?  All the kings she had met had something the matter with them, crooked legs, weak eyes, bald, young, or old, and daft over gaming-tables and opera-dancers.  And the one man among them all—­at least she had been informed that the king of Jugendheit was all of a man—­had politely declined.  There was some chagrin in this for her, but no bitterness or rancor.  In truth, she was more chagrined on her father’s account than on her own.

“You should have taken the south pass.  It was lovely yesterday.”

“Perhaps this way has been wisest.”

“Are you become afraid of me?” archly.

“Yes, your Highness.”  If he had looked at her instead of his horse’s ears, and smiled, all would have been well.

She instantly regretted the question.  “I am sorry that I have become an ogress.”

“To me your highness is the most perfect of women.  I am guilty of lese-majesty.”

“I shall not lock you up,” she said, and added under her breath, “as my good father would like to!  Besides,” she continued aloud, “I rather like to set the court by the ears.  Whoever heard of a serene highness doing the things I do?  I suppose it is because I have known years of freedom, freedom of action, of thought, of speech.  These habits can not change at once.  In fact, I do not believe they ever will.  But the duke, my father, is good; he understands and trusts me.  Ah, but I shall lead some king a merry life!” with a wicked gleam in her eyes.

“Frederick of Jugendheit?”

“Is it true that you have not heard yet?  I have declined the honor.”

“Your highness?”

“My serene highness,” with a smile.  “This, of course, is as yet a state secret; and my reason for telling you is not a princess’, but a woman’s.  Solve it if you can.”

Carmichael fumbled the reins blindly.  “They say that he is a handsome young man.”

“What has that to do with it?  The interest he takes in his kingdom is positively negative.  I have learned that he has been to his capital but twice since he was fifteen.  He is even now absent on a hunting trip in Bavaria, and his coronation but a few days off.  There will be only one king in Jugendheit, and that will be the prince regent.”

“He has done tolerably well up to the present,” observed Carmichael, welcoming this change.  “Jugendheit is prosperous; it has a splendid army.  The prince regent is a fine type of man, they say, rugged, patient, frugal and sensible.”

“There is an instance where he made a cruel blunder.”

“No man is infallible,” said he, wondering what this blunder was.

“I suppose not.  Look!  The artillery is firing.”

Boom-boom!  They saw the smoke leap from the muzzles of the cannon, and it seemed minutes before the sound reached them.