flannel shirt and pea jacket and his sailor cap; but although he was
in the water and had been underneath the surface, the cloth still
seemed dry and warm. As he dived down and came up again, the drops
flashed from his head and the fringe of beard, but he never needed
to wipe his face or eyes at all.

Trot, too, was having queer experiences and enjoying them. When she
ducked under water, she saw plainly everything about her as easily
and distinctly as she had ever seen anything above water. And by
looking over her shoulder she could watch the motion of her new
tail, all covered with pretty iridescent pink scales, which gleamed
like jewels. She wore her dress the same as before, and the water
failed to affect it in the least.

She now noticed that the mermaids were clothed, too, and their
exquisite gowns were the loveliest thing the little girl had ever
beheld. They seemed made of a material that was like sheeny silk,
cut low in the neck and with wide, flowing sleeves that seldom
covered the shapely, white arms of her new friends. The gowns had
trains that floated far behind the mermaids as they swam, but were
so fleecy and transparent that the sparkle of their scales might be
seen reaching back of their waists, where the human form ended and
the fish part began. The sea fairies wore strings of splendid pearls
twined around their throats, while more pearls were sewn upon their
gowns for trimmings. They did not dress their beautiful hair at all,
but let it float around them in clouds.

The little girl had scarcely time to observe all this when the
princess said, "Now, my dear, if you are ready, we will begin our
journey, for it is a long way to our palaces."