that shone so brightly that it dazzled his eyes. Then he turned, and
there was the long flight of glass steps leading up to the golden castle
just as before; so thrusting the magic sword into his belt, he ran
nimbly up and up and up, and not until he reached the very topmost step
did he turn and look back to wave farewell to the Counterpane Fairy
below. She waved her hand to him. "Remember," she called, "beware of
what is little and gray."

He opened the door and went into the five-sided golden hall, and there
were the three doors just as before, and the spider spinning and singing
on the fourth side:

"Now the brave hero is wiser indeed;
He may have failed once, but he still may succeed.
Dull are the emeralds; diamonds are bright;
So is his wisdom that shines as the light."

"The diamond door!" cried Teddy. "Yes, that is the door that I should
have tried. How could I have thought the emerald door was it?" and
opening the diamond door he stepped through it.

He hardly had time to see that he was standing at the top of the glass
steps, before--br-r-r-r!--they had shut up again into a smooth glass
hill, and there he was spinning down them so fast that the wind whistled
past his ears.

In less time than it takes to tell, he was back again for the third time
in the golden garden, with the Counterpane Fairy standing before him,
and he was ashamed to raise his eyes.