The old uncle heard them cry and ran out of the palace and into the yard, and into the street, and on into the forest, and so far as we know he may be running yet.
The prince became king, but he never heard anything more of his fairy godmother and her gray cloak.
BENNY IN BEASTLAND
How a visit to Beastland cured a little boy of cruelty to animals.
This is a story of a little boy who made a visit to Beastland where all the animals go when they die. The boy’s name was Benjamin, but everybody called him Benny. He was a cruel little boy, and threw stones at all the dogs, and cats and birds that he saw. Sometimes he hurt the poor animals, and often he killed the little birds.
After a while the animals all ran, and the birds flew away when he came in sight. The dogs would not play with him, but ran under the house when they saw him coming; the cats climbed up the trees or over the fence, and the birds flew over into the next yard. “We will not stay near such a cruel little boy,” they all said.
One day a poor dog passed in front of Benny’s house. The dog was very tired and hungry, and not knowing Benny he stopped as if he would ask for a bone or a piece of bread. But Benny picked up a big rock and threw it at him and broke the poor dog’s leg. Then he ran away and hid to keep from hearing the poor dog howl with pain.
That night Benny could not sleep. He covered his head up in the bed clothes, and shut his eyes tight, and put his fingers in his ears, but he still saw the poor dog and heard his pitiful cries. After a while, as he lay very still trying to go to sleep, he heard a scratching at the window sill, and looking up he saw a big dog climbing in the window.
“What do you want?” he asked.