TURNED TO STONE.
“Good gracious! what’s that?” inquired the Dodo, as the screams continued.
“We’d better go and see,” said Dick, practically running off in the direction of the lake, followed by the others.
On passing the clump of trees and evergreens, which obstructed their view, they discovered the Little Panjandrum, in a great state of agitation, hiding behind the official Umbrella, his body-attendant lying prone on the ground in a state of abject fear; while the rest of the suite, having cast aside their musical instruments, were rushing away, shouting lustily.
On the opposite side of the path stood a few of the prehistoric creatures which accompanied the children on their excursion to the Crystal Palace.
They were looking at the Little Panjandrum with a mild surprise, and seemed quite at a loss to know what all the hullabaloo was about.
The Little Panjandrum and suite are alarmed.
“Gulla—hubly—olla—bolee!” shouted the Little Panjandrum, pointing to the animals with his umbrella.
“Oh, they’re all right, your Importance,” said the Dodo; “they are friends of mine.”
“Friends, indeed!” exclaimed the Ambassador, coming from where he had been hiding behind a tree. “Pretty friends! What do you call the creatures?”
“Oh, there’s the Archæopteryx, you know, and the Eterædarium, and the Palæo——”
“Stop! stop!” interrupted the Ambassador, as each of the animals mentioned bowed gravely. “I absolutely decline to know creatures with names like those. I’m sure they are not respectable, and I’m not at all sure, even now, that they are not dangerous; however, I shall know how to deal with them presently. The penalty for alarming the Little Panjandrum is a very severe one.” And he frowned very sternly at the creatures, who looked rather uncomfortable, and waddled off in the direction of the lake, whispering together in a decidedly scared way.
“You didn’t tell me you had all these hideous objects with you,” continued the Ambassador, addressing the Dodo.
“I thought you knew,” stammered the unlucky bird; “they are prehistoric, you know,” he added, apologetically.
There was some consolation, he was allowed to wear his gloves.
“That only makes it worse,” declared the Ambassador. “In that case they ought to be dead, every one of them, ever so long ago. They have no right to be prowling about at a highly-respectable place like the Crystal Palace. No wonder there’s nobody about; they’ve frightened them away, that’s what it is. And you’re to blame as much as anybody for bringing them here.”
“I didn’t!” gasped the Dodo.
“You did,” said the Ambassador, emphatically. “You said they were your friends; so they must have come with you. And I’ll tell you what, in order to prevent you from picking up any more undesirable acquaintances, you shall just commence your duties as Umbrella Bearer at once,” and, untying the ribbons by which the Little Panjandrum’s attendant was attached to His Importance, the Ambassador, bringing forth a heavy pair of chains from his capacious pockets, proceeded to chain the Dodo up to the Little Panjandrum’s waistband.
The poor Dodo looked the picture of misery as the Umbrella was put into his hand.
“M—may I have m—my gloves?” he whimpered.
The Ambassador, after considering a minute, gave his consent, on the score that it might improve his appearance, and caused the black attendant to hunt for the missing one, which had been thrown down on the ground near to the roundabout.
He soon returned with it, and the Dodo, with a delighted chuckle, put the pair on, and, after smoothing them carefully, regarded his hands very complacently, and seemed to consider having them some compensation for the degraded occupation to which he had been put.
“I’ll go now and settle the others,” declared the Ambassador. “What did you say their names were?” he inquired, sternly, of the Dodo.
The poor bird called out the names one by one, and the Ambassador carefully entered them in his pocket-book, and then stalked majestically away in the direction of the lake, while the Little Panjandrum settled himself on a gaudily-colored rug, which the black attendant carefully spread on the ground at his feet, and with a self-satisfied smile on his little round face gravely twiddled his thumbs and took no notice of anybody.
“Go and see what he does to them,” whispered the Dodo, referring to the Ambassador and the creatures.
Nothing loth, the children ran off to the lake to see what was happening. Pushing aside the bushes, they could see the Ambassador standing on the edge of the path, waving a wand in one hand, while in the other he flourished a legal-looking document.
"In the name of the Panjandrum, I command you."
The prehistoric creatures were scrambling through the water, and getting as far away as possible on to the islands in the middle of the lake.
“All you Palæotheriums, Eterædariums, Archæopteryx, Megatheriums, Pleisiosauruses, Ichthyosauruses, and other prehistoric wretches, in the name of the Panjandrum, I command you—be turned into stone.”
When the Ambassador uttered these terrible words a most singular thing happened. In whatever attitude the creatures were they remained so; and gradually each assumed a stony and lifeless expression, and the spell or incantation which the Ambassador had pronounced had evidently taken effect.
The children were very much alarmed, and ran back to the Dodo, and in a hurried whisper informed him of what had occurred.
“Turned all the prehistoric animals into stone, has he?” said the bird, gleefully; “then I can see a splendid way out of my troubles. Wait till the Ambassador returns, and you will see some capital fun.” And the Dodo struck a rigid attitude, and remained in that position, totally disregarding the questions with which the children plied him.