Too true.  It was indeed most unfortunate.  In my neighbourhood all the shops close at two o’clock Thursdays, and it would have been as easy to buy 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 little yellow-covered book attached to a golden chain which I had picked up just after my friend Shin Shira had vanished the last time he had visited me.

It was the book which the fairies had given him, and contained directions as to what to do when in any difficulty.  I hurriedly turned to the letter C, intending to look for “collar-stud”—­but, to my great disappointment, there was no such word to be found.

“Of course not,” I suddenly thought; “the people who live in the land from which Shin Shira comes don’t wear such things,” and I let my mind wander 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 one of 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 he only went about it in the right way and followed the given directions closely.  It appeared that one must hop round three times, first on one foot and then on the other, repeating the following words aloud, and wishing 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 just hopping round on my right leg for the third time, having begun with the left one, when Mrs. Putchy entered the room.

She looked rather surprised at seeing me engaged in what must have seemed to her rather an extraordinary occupation, but she is so used to strange things happening with me that she made no remark, except to point to a spot just in front of the fire-place, where, to my great surprise, I could see the very collar-stud which I had wanted.

“Extraordinary!” I exclaimed, as I picked it up.  “I could have declared that it was not there a minute ago, for as you know, Mrs. Putchy, I searched everywhere for it.”

“The cabman, sir, is getting impatient,” said Mrs. Putchy, as she put down 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 I hurriedly completed my dressing, and a very few minutes later, the cab was quickly bowling me towards my destination.

The mansion near Grosvenor Square, at which the Duchess resided, was a very grand one, and red carpet was laid down the steps and across the pavement for the convenience of the guests, who were arriving in large numbers at the same time as myself.  Fortunately, just inside the hall I met my little friends the Verrinder children; Vera, the little girl, looking very pretty in her white party frock; and her two brothers, Dick and Fidge, full of excitement and high spirits.