“That’s not the way to talk to a fairy prince,” objected Alice.  “You should speak more politely.”

“Never mind him, he doesn’t know any better,” went on the mud turtle.  “I will now give you my reasons.  In the first place I did not want to scare that boy after the way you frightened him.  He had been punished enough, I thought.  Besides, if I had turned him into a lion or an elephant he would have run through the woods, scaring every one he met, and that would not have been right.  And the reason I didn’t change him into a bug or a mosquito was because he might fly away, and then, when the magic spell had passed off, and he was changed back into a boy again, the transformation might have happened in the air, and he would fall right down on somebody’s head, and that would never do, never, never, not in a year and a half.  So I concluded not to do anything to him.”

“I don’t believe you could have changed him into anything at all,” said Uncle Wiggily, quite boldly.  “I don’t even believe you are a fairy prince.”

“There it goes again!” cried the mud turtle, and he wept big tears that made a little puddle of water.  “Very few persons do believe in me.  But I assure you I am a fairy prince,” he added, “and, what’s more, all I would have had to say to that boy was ‘Oskaluluhinniumhaddy,’ and he would have been turned into anything I liked.  But I see you still do not believe me—­that is, all but Alice.  So I will just do a magic trick for you.  Return here in an hour, and in this very spot you shall find a round stone.  Take a rock and break open the stone and you will see what happens.”

So the Wibblewobble children and Uncle Wiggily went away, wondering what was going to happen.  They came back in an hour, and, sure enough, right where the mud turtle had been standing was a large, round stone.

“Wonderful!” cried Alice.

“Let’s see what’s inside,” suggested Jimmie.

So he and Uncle Wiggily took up a rock, and hit that stone once, and they hit it twice, and they hit it three times, and, at the third blow, if that stone didn’t break open, and out stepped the mud turtle fairy prince!  He was right inside that stone!  Now, wasn’t that a magic trick?  I think so, anyhow.

“Oh, tell us how you did it!” begged Lulu.

“It was very simple, very simple,” said the turtle, as he flicked a bit of mud off his nose.  “You see, I just rolled myself up in some soft clay, and then made it round like a stone.  Then I stayed in the sun until it was baked as hard as a rock, and then I rolled along here to wait for you.  Very simple, indeed.  But, now, do you believe I am a fairy prince?” And they all declared they did, even Uncle Wiggily, and Alice said three times:  “We salute thee, fairy prince.”  Oh, it was as good as a play!

Well, now, let’s see about to-morrow night.  How about a story of the rat who took the eggs?  Do you think you would like that?  Very well, then, you shall hear it, providing my golden slipper doesn’t fall off.