"Oh," she laughed gayly, "I used to dream of marryin' a prince—all girls do. But there ain't any princes now to marry."
"No, that's true," he assented. "The old world hasn't any use for princes now." And then, "But why did you want to marry a prince?" he asked.
"Oh, I don't know. It's just fairy tales. Haven't you ever lived in a fairy tale and loved a princess?"
"Yes, I've lived in a fairy tale, but I've never loved a princess."
"I guess if everybody knew," said Beth with conviction, "the princes in Europe are a pretty bad lot."
"Yes," said Peter slowly, "I guess they are."
She paused a moment, looking into the fire. And then, "Were you ever acquainted with any princes in Europe, Mr. Nichols?"
Peter smiled. "Yes, Beth. I did know one prince rather intimately—rather too intimately."
"Oh. You didn't like him?"
"No, not much. He was an awful rotter. The worst of it was that he had good instincts and when he went wrong, he went wrong in spite of 'em. You see—he was temperamental."