THE HOUSE OF HARFANG "Go on, Pole, do your stuff," whispered Scrubb.
Jill found that her mouth was so dry that she couldnt speak a word. She nodded savagely at Scrubb.
Thinking to himself that he would never five her (or Puddleglum either), Scrubb licked his lips and shouted up to the King giant.
"If you please, Sire, the Lady of the Green Kirtle salutes you by us and said youd like to have us for your Autum.」
The giant King and Queen looked at each other, o each other, and smiled in a way that Jill didly like. She liked the Kier than the Queen. He had a fine, curled beard and a straight eagle-like nose, and was really rather good- looking as giants go. The Queen was dreadfully fat and had a double and a fat, powdered face - which isnt a very hing at the best of times, and of course looks much worse when it is ten times too big. Then the King put out his tongue and licked his lips. Anyone might do that:
but his tongue was so very large and red, and came out so uedly, that it gave Jill quite a shock.
"Oh, what good children!" said the Queen. ("Perhaps shes the nie after all," thought Jill.)
"Yes indeed," said the King. "Quite excellent children. We wele you to our court.
Give me your hands.」
He stretched down his great right hand - very and with any number s on the fingers, but also with terrible pointed nails. He was much too big to shake the hands which the children, in turn, held up to him; but he shook the arms.
"And whats that?" asked the King, pointing to Puddleglum.
"Reshpeckobiggle," said Puddleglum.
"Oh!" screamed the Queen, gathering her skirts close about her ankles. "The horrid thing!
Its alive.」
"Hes quite all right, your Majesty, really, he is," said Scrubb hastily. "Youll like him much better when you get to know him. Im sure you will.」
I hope you wont lose all i in Jill for the rest of the book if I tell you that at this moment she began to cry. There was a good deal of excuse for her. Her feet and hands and ears and nose were still only just beginning to thaw; melted snow was trig off her clothes; she had had hardly anything to eat or drink that day; and her legs were ag so that she felt she could not go on standing much longer. Anyway, it did mood at the moment than anything else would have done, for the Queen said: "Ah, the poor child! My lord, we d to keep uests standing. Quick, some of you! Take them away. Give them food and wine and baths. fort the little girl. Give her lollipops, give her dolls, give her physics, give her all you think of - possets and fits and caraways and lullabies and toys. Dont cry, little girl, or you wont be good for anything when the feast es.」
Jill was just as indignant as you and I would have been at the mention of toys and dolls; and, though lollipops and fits might be all very well in their way, she very much hoped that something more solid would be provided. The Queens foolish speech, however, produced excelles, for Puddleglum and Scrubb were at once picked up by gigantitlemen-in-waiting, and Jill by a gigantic maid of honour, and carried off to their rooms.
Jills room was about the size of a church, and would have been rather grim if it had not had a r fire on the hearth and a very thick crimson carpet on the floor. And here delightful things began to happen to her. She was handed over to the Queens old Nurse,
who was, from the giants point