Page:The Princess of Cozytown.pdf/86

 stared with astonishment, but the King pulled out his violet silk handkerchief and wept kingly tears upon it. The King's word is a King's word, however; so he handed his daughter over to Tonto, and they were married upon the spot, with splendor and magnificence. Next day the two went to housekeeping with a great many silver teaspoons and coffee pots, and the Princess immediately began crocheting her husband a pair of green worsted slippers.

That was the beginning of the trouble, for Tonto was color blind,—most giants are. When the dimpled Princess presented him with the slippers he said, "Ah, my dear little wife, what beautiful blue slippers."

"They are green, my love," said the Princess softly. "I think not, my dear," said Tonto gently but firmly, "they are blue."

"Green," said the Princess a little more firmly still. "Blue," said Tonto.

"Green," said the Princess. "I say that they are blue," said Tonto sullenly.

"I say they are green," cried the Princess stamping her foot. "Blue," "Green," "Blue," "Green," they shouted at each other till they both grew as hoarse as crows. It was disgraceful!

Next a frightful thing happened. Looking at Tonto, the Princess saw that his eyes were as large as saucers. Now his mouth began to widen. Now his head began to swell and swell until it almost filled the room. Shrieking with terror the Princess flung herself out of the window. Just in time, too, for the next minute Tonto shot up into a giant again, and the house, with all the silver teaspoons and coffee pots, hung round his neck like a dog collar. Off rushed the Princess to her father's palace, and the last I heard of her she had just begun work on the thirty-nine thousand three hundred and forty-third pair of worsted slippers. They were blue.