“ ‘As to why I fall, it is because that is the only way in which I can do my share of the things that must be done. My chief duty is to nurture and refresh everything that grows; and as that can best be accomplished by falling on or about them, therefore that is the thing I do.’ ”
When this story was completed, there suddenly broke out such a hum of conversation that it was quite a little time before the Prince [[104]]was able to announce that, by special request, the Official Recorder had consented to give a contribution towards the evening’s entertainment.
And this is what he said:—
THE DOOR MAT’S STORY
“Once upon a time, a long while ago, I met a wandering Scribe who told me how he had once heard a Door Mat and a Bass Broom talking to each other. Strange as it may seem, they appear to have made many shrewd observations, and, put into rhyme, this is the gist of what the Scribe said:—
This is the tale of the front Door Mat,
And this is the pith of his learning:
He who aspires as a brave man should;
She who desires what a sweet maid would;