Hashem, looking through tiny crack door, almost burst with pride as his gorgeous pink masterpiece was set down Prince

"Many happy returns of your eighteenth birthday ! " cried the Courtiers, jumping feet and waving their napkins enthusiastically

" ! ! " chuckled Pompadore, bowing low " but one of many more ! " sound strange, but Pumperdink being in Oz, one eighteenth birthdays as one cares Pompa's tenth and while the courtiers drank his health the Prince made ready to blow out the birthday candles

"That's right, blow 'em all out at once ! " cried King So Pompa puffed out his cheeks and blew like porpoise; so did Queen Pozy Prime Pumper; so did everybody They blew until every dish table skipped and sank back exhausted in their chairs, but the candles burned as merrily as ever

Then Kabumpo took hand--or rather trunk He watching the proceedings twinkling little eyes Now tremendous breath, pointed his trunk straight cake and blew with all his strength Every candle went out-- but stars ! , the great pink cake exploded force that half the Courtiers were flung under the table rest knocked unconscious by flying fragments of icing tumblers and plates

"Treason ! " screamed Pompus, the first to recover shock "Who dared put gunpowder cake ? " Brushing the icing nose, he glared around angrily The first person to catch his eye was Hashem, the cook who stood trembling door-way

"Dip him ! " shouted the King furiously Chief dipper, only too glad of an excuse to escape, seized poor Hashem "And him ! " ordered the King, as Eejabo tried to sidle room "And them ! " as all the other footmen started to run Forming his victims in line the Chief Dipper marched them sternly banquet hall

"Oyez ! Oyez Everybody shall be dipped ! " mumbled the Prime Pumper, feebly raising his head

"Oh, no ! Oh, no ! Nothing sort ! " snapped the King, fanning poor Queen Pozy Pink with plate She had fainted dead away

" the meaning outrage ? " shouted Pompus, his anger rising again

"How should ? " wheezed Kabumpo, dragging Prince Pompadore from beneath the table and pouring jug of cream over his head

"Something hit me," moaned the Prince, opening his eyes

" it did ! " said Kabumpo "The cake hit you Made great hit all--that cake ! " The Elegant Elephant looked ruefully at his silk robe of state, hopelessly smeared with icing; then put his trunk head, for something hard had struck him eyes floor and found round shiny object which about to show the King when Pompus pounced upon tall scroll sitting upright tumbler confusion moment it had escaped his attention

"Perhaps explain," spluttered the King breaking the seal Queen Pozy Pink opened her eyes with sigh Courtiers, crawling out from beneath the table, looked up anxiously, for everyone was still dazed tremendous explosion Pompus read the scroll to himself with popping eyes and then began to dance up and down in frenzy

" it ? it ? " cried the Queen, trying to read over his shoulder Then she gave well-bred scream and fainted away arms of General Quakes, who had come up behind her ?

the Prime Pumper had recovered sufficiently to remember that reading scrolls and court papers was his business Somewhat unsteadily he walked over and took the scroll King

"Oyez ! Oyez ! " he faltered, pounding table "Oh, never mind that ! " rumbled Kabumpo, flapping his ears "Let's hear what it says ! " "Know ye, " began the old man in high shaky voice, "know ye that unless ye Prince of ye ancient and honorable Kingdom of Pumperdink wed ye Proper Fairy Princess in ye proper span ye Kingdom of Pumperdink shall disappear forever and even longer from ye Gilliken country of Oz J G " "What ? " screamed Pompadore, bounding feet "Me ? But I don't want to marry ! " "You'll have to," groaned the King, with wave scroll The Courtiers sat staring at one another in dazed disbelief courtyard came the splash and splutter luckless footmen dismal creaking stone bucket

"Oh ! " wailed Pompa, throwing up his hands " worst eighteenth birthday I've ever had I'll never have another as long as I live ! "

Chapter 2 Picking Proper Princess

"What shall first ? " groaned the King, holding his head with both hands "Let me think ! "

"Right," said Kabumpo "Think by all means "

So the great hall was cleared King, mysterious scroll spread out before him, thought and thought and thought But make much headway, for, as he explained over and over to Queen Pozy, who-with Pompadore, the Elegant Elephant Prime-Pumper-- had remained to help him, "How is one where the Proper Princess, and how is one the proper time for Pompa to wed her ? "

Who was J G ? How did the scroll get cake ?

The more the King thought about these questions, the more wrinkled his forehead became

"Why ! We're liable to wake up any morning and find ourselves gone," he announced gloomily "How does it feel to disappear, I wonder ? "

"I suppose it would give one rather gone feeling, but I don't believe it would hurt--much ! " volunteered Kabumpo, glancing uneasily over his shoulder "Perhaps not, but it get us anywhere My idea is to marry the prince at once to Proper Princess, "

"You're in great hurry to marry me off, aren't you," said Pompadore sulkily " part, I don't want to marry at all ! "

"Well, that's very selfish of you Pompa," said the King in grieved voice " your poor old father to disappear ? "

" your poor old father," choked the Prime Pumper, rolling up his eyes "How about me ? "

Oh, you-- disappear ," said the Prince unfeelingly

"It all started wretched cake," sighed the Queen " positive the scroll flew cake "

" it did ! " cried Pompus " send cook and question him "

So Hashem, very wet and blue dip, was brought King

"A fine cook ! " roared Pompus, "mixing gun powder and scrolls in birthday cake "

"But I didn't " wailed Hashem, falling knees "Only eggs, your Highness--very best eggs--sugar, flour, spice and -"

"Bombshells ! " cried the King angrily

"The cake disappeared party, your Majesty ! " cried Eejabo

Everyone jumped sudden interruption, and Eejabo, who had crept in unnoticed, stepped throne

"Disappeared," continued Eejabo hoarsely, dripping blue water all over the royal rugs "One minute there pantry table Next minute- gone ! " croaked Eejabo flinging up his hands and shrugging his shoulders

"Then, before fellow could turn around, back 'Tweren't our fault if magic got mixed , and here dipped for nothing ! "

"Well, why didn't you say so before ! " asked the King in exasperation

"Fine chance I had anything ! " sniffed Eejabo, wringing out his lace ruffles

"eh-rr- the day off, my good man," said Pompus, with an apologetic cough-- "And you also," with wave at Hashem Very stiffly the two walked door

"It's an off day , all right," said Eejabo ungraciously, and without as bow the two disappeared

" you were bit hasty, my love," murmured Queen Pozy, looking after them with troubled little frown

"Well, who wouldn't be ! " cried Pompus, ruffling up his hair "Here liable to disappear any minute and all is to stand around and criticize me Begone ! " he puffed angrily, as page stuck his head door

"No use shouting at people to Begone," said the Elegant Elephant testily "We'll all begone soon enough "

Queen Pozy began to weep into her silk handkerchief, which sight so affected Prince Pompadore that he rushed forward and embraced her tenderly

"I'll marry ! " cried the Prince impulsively "I'll do anything ! The trouble aren't any Fairy Princesses around here ! "

" ," said the King

" -- ! " screamed the Prime Pumper, bounceing up suddenly "Oyez, Oyez ! Has your Majesty forgotten Faleero, royal Princess be the proper one ! "

"Fa--leero ! " trumpeted the Elegant Elephant, sitting down with terrific thud "That awful old creature ? You ashamed of yourself ! "

"Silence ! " thundered the King

"Nonsense ! " trumpeted Kabumpo "She's thousand years old and as ugly as stone Lukoogoo Don't you marry her, Pompa "

"I command him to marry her ! " cried the King opening his eyes very wide and bending forward

"Faleero ? " gasped the Prince, scarcely believing his ears No wonder Pompadore was shocked Faleero, although Princess in her own right and of royal fairy descent, was so unattractive that in all her thousand years of life no one had wished to marry her She lived in small hut great forest kingdom next to Pumperdink and did nothing all day but gather faggots Her face was long and lean, her hair thin and black and her nose so large made of cauliflower "Ugh ! " groaned Prince Pompadore, falling back on Kabumpo for support

"Well, she's Princess and fairy-- the in any Kingdom I don't see why so fussy ! " said the King Fretfully

"Shall I tell her Royal Highness great and good fortune that has befallen her ? " asked the Prime Pumper, starting door

" at once," snapped Pompus Just then scream of fright and pain, for round shiny object had flown air and struck him head "What ? "

The Prime Pumper looked suspiciously Elegant Elephant Kabumpo glared back

"A-a warning ! " stuttered the Prime Pumper, afraid that Kabumpo had flung the offending missile "A warning, your Majesty ! "

"It's nothing kind," said the King angrily

"You're getting old, Pumper and stupid It's--why it's door knob ! Who dares to hit me with door knob ? "

"It hit me once," mumbled Kabumpo, shifting uneasily from one foot other three "How does it strike you ? "

"As an outrageous piece of impertinence ! " spluttered Pompus, turning red as turkey cock

"Perhaps it has something scroll," suggested Queen Pozy, taking it King "See ! gold and all the door knobs palace are ivory And look ! Here are some initials ! "

Sure enough ! gold and very center were the initials P .