For a full half-minute everyone stood speechless, with hands held up and eyes and mouths wide open, until suddenly the Court Crier, who was the first to recover, began ringing his bell and shouting, "Blue paint! Blue paint!" as loud as he could.
Upon this, everybody else shouted, "Blue paint!"—the King and the Admiral and the little Coco Bolos, as well; though Margaret and Frances felt sure that half of them, at least, had no idea what they meant by it, especially as they kept on shouting, "Blue paint!" without ever thinking, seemingly, that it was anybody's business to go and get it.
The only one who seemed to be quite unconcerned was the one who had caused all the rumpus: Thomas A'Becket, himself. Calmly seated on the pier, he proceeded to wash his face with his paws, paying no attention at all to the King and his courtiers, who, standing in a circle around him, continued to shout, "Blue paint!" without intermission.
How long they might have gone on shouting there is no knowing, had not Margaret interfered. Losing patience, she stepped up to the King, and clapping her hand over his mouth just as he had opened it for another shout—the King almost exploded at being so suddenly "corked"—she stooped and called into his ear:
"Why don't you send for your new policeman?"
Coco Bolo, with his eyes turned up, waited till Margaret removed her hand, when he took off his crown with a flourish, and bowing politely, said:
"That's a capital idea of yours. Why didn't I think of it before?"
So saying, he clapped his crown upon his head again and set off running up the middle of the pier, shouting, "Police!" at the top of his voice.
Not a single one of the courtiers had the least idea that there was any such thing as a policeman on the island, but they were a well-trained company, and knowing that the first duty of a courtier is to do as the King does, they all set off running, too, shouting, "Police! Police! Police!"
Just as they got clear of the pier and had started up the hill to the carpenter's shop, round the end of the shop, itself, came the new policeman, running as fast as he could, with a butterfly net in one hand and a pot of blue paint in the other; while behind him ran the carpenter, a gimlet in his right hand and a hollow tooth in his left, calling out, "Hi! Hi! Come back! You're not finished yet!"