of the ugly Blueskins and ate heartily of the dinner, which was
really very good.

The meal was no sooner over than Ghip-Ghisizzle was summoned to the
chamber of his Majesty the Boolooroo, but before he went away, he
took Trot and Cap'n Bill and Button-Bright into a small room and
advised them to stay there until he returned so that the servants
and soldiers would not molest them. "My people seem to dislike
strangers," said the Majordomo thoughtfully, "and that surprises me
because you are the first strangers they have ever seen. I think
they imagine you will become favorites of the Boolooroo and of the
Princesses, and that is why they are jealous and hate you."

"They needn't worry 'bout that," replied Trot. "The Snubnoses hate
me worse than the people do."

"I can't imagine a bootblue becoming a royal favorite," grumbled
Button-Bright.

"Or a necktie mixer," added Cap'n Bill.

"You don't mix neckties; you're a nectar mixer," said Ghip-Ghisizzle
correcting the sailor. "I'll not be gone long, for I'm no favorite
of the Boolooroo, either, so please stay quietly in this room until
my return."

The Majordomo found the Boolooroo in a bad temper. He had finished
his dinner, where his six daughters had bitterly denounced Trot all
through the meal and implored their father to invent some new and
terrible punishment for her. Also, his wife, the Queen, had made him