The light in the Lighthouse across the bay blazed out and Kindheart sprang to his feet.
‘I am going to borrow that little boat,’ said he, pointing to a white boat pulled up on the beach, ‘and row over to the Lighthouse. Perhaps some one there can tell us what it is all about.’
When they reached the Lighthouse two figures ran down to the shore and helped them from the boat.
One was that of a little man who smelled strongly of peppermint candy.
‘He is the Candy Man,’ said Sweet-Tooth in a flash. And so he proved to be.
The other figure was that of a neat little lady who held a half-made doll’s dress in her hand.
‘The Toy Lady,’ said Silvertongue and Kindheart in a breath. And this was so too.
The Candy Man and the Toy Lady both talked at once, they were so excited at seeing the Brownies and so anxious to tell their tale.
‘It is the new King’s fault,’ said they, together. ‘He won’t have a bit of noise. He doesn’t want the children to romp and be noisy, and that is why they must go to school all day and never play on the beach. That is why he sent us over here to live. He doesn’t want the children to eat candy nor to play with toys. All the King does from morning till night is to think of different things we mustn’t do and then make signs to tell us so. Bo-Peep Town used to be a gay and merry place to live in, but now we are miserable, just miserable. And the children simply long to have us come back again.’
The Brownies and the Toy Lady and the Candy Man sat up almost all night talking things over. Of course matters couldn’t go on as they were. And once they had made up their minds what to do, they fell to work.