Page:The Princess of Cozytown.pdf/63

 yourself?" roared the King at this juncture, and Jerry, bowing politely, turned to face his Majesty stating that as the goods had not been paid for they had not been stolen, which caused no end of merriment among the Courtiers. Half rising My Lord of Toppertush asked had one ever heard the like—a expecting to be paid—"Why," said he, "a Tailor's bill is like a bird's, which no one can collect." "And like your own which no one would care to," chuckled Jerry, not in the slightest perturbed.

"Oh-ah-ah-ah!" roared the King covering his mouth, (Toppertush did have a nose though.) "Ha ha ha!" Then suddenly recollecting himself he started sternly at the prisoner. "Have you no respect for the crown?" he thundered—"For the crown and what it stands for!" As to that, said Jerry, he didn't see how it stood at all considering what was under it, which set the crowd in the court in such an uproar of laughter that it took all the guards to restore order. And before the King had recovered from his astonishment Jerry snapped his scissors in the air declaring he was a King of his trade, a King and a Maker of Kings. "Why, there's as much power in a pair of shears as in a sceptre," quoth Jerry, "seeing that everything depends on the cut of a man's coat." Tilting his head on one side he caroled—

"I'd know anywhere for a low sneaking tailor," screeched My Lord of Toppertush bouncing to his feet.

"I demand my rights as a man," cried Jerry paying no attention to this. "But you're a man; you're a !" jeered his Majesty, still smarting from Jerry's pun—"A tailor!" "Both," cried Jerry waving his shears. "A Man and a Tailor and a tailor is more than a man—he is the maker of men I tell you!—as important as a Doctor, a