“Oh my! Good gracious me!” exclaimed a voice as we approached the entrance to the palace and looking up we the Cockatoo perched on a window-sill. “Just look at these creatures. What a color. Why, why,” she exclaimed, peering at us closely, “I’m bothered if it isn’t the Wallypug and the Hatless Man, and the great Mr. A. Fish, Esq. Where have you been? What did you come back for? What do you want?” she screamed.  
“It’s dud of your busidess,” replied A. Fish, Esq., shortly.
 
“Oh! isn’t it,” said the Cockatoo furiously. “I’ll soon show you whether it’s none of my business or not. To begin with, the Wallypug and the headless traitor”—
 
“Do you mean me?” I interrupted, “because I am not headless yet, you know.”
 
“Headless, or hatless, it’s all the same,” said the Cockatoo, “you might as well run about without your head for all the good it is to you,” she added . “Well you two are escaped prisoners,” she ran on, “and I shall see that you are locked up again, so there.”
 
“But it was all a mistake,” said His mildly.
 
“What was?” yelled the bird.
 
“What I said about a ’horse a horse, my kingdom for a horse!’ you know,” said the Wallypug.
 
“Why don’t you say what you mean then?” cried the Cockatoo. “Well, I shall have you locked up anyhow. Here, Crocodile,” she shouted, “just come and arrest these creatures will you?”
 
“Shan’t!” replied a voice from within; “who are you ordering about. If you want them arrested, do it yourself. I’m not going to do as you tell me, so there! besides, all the prisoners have been set free that Madame sentenced, you know that well enough?”
 
“Yah! Down with him, down with Crocodiles; down with pale-blue Wallypugs and hatless men; down with fishes of all sorts. Down with everybody and everything; down with——.”
 
We did not stop to hear any more of her ravings, but passed through and up into the Doctor-in-Law’s old rooms.
 
We found him looking very weak and ill, but he recognized us all, and held out his hand to the Wallypug, who told him encouragingly that he would soon be well again.
 
“Yes, ad thed I’ll teach you elocutiod for dothig,” promised A. Fish, Esq.
 
The Doctor-in-Law smiled faintly, and whispered that what was keeping him back most was the thought of the heavy doctor’s bill which he would have to pay when he got better.
 
The good-natured little Wallypug made him very happy by to pay this amount for him, and we left the little man looking very much brighter than when we entered.
 
The rest of the morning was spent in his Majesty’s private apartments, discussing all sorts of plans for the future, for, as the Wallypug very properly remarked, now that the Mother-in-Law had gone he should have a freer hand in the administration of affairs.
 
A. Fish, Esq., busied himself in preparing an elaborate lecture, which he said he would deliver in public on the morrow, on the “Unreasonableness of Misunderstandability,” and which would, he hoped, clearly explain away the mistake which had been made, in accusing his Majesty of treason, in connection with his unfortunate recitation of “A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!”
 
While we were thus busily engaged there came an impatient tap-tap-tapping at the door, and on opening it we beheld the Crow looking more disreputably untidy than ever. He carried a large bundle of papers and a pen. “Ahem!” he began importantly, “I call on behalf of the Daily Whyer a new paper which I have just established, and which I am happy to say has already an enormous circulation in Why. It is very cheap (four copies for a penny), and contains an enormous amount of totally unreliable information; besides which there is a page to domestic matters, highly interesting to ladies, and includes recei............