"No, Polydore. There come times when even ladies must face facts. You see before you two dishonoured men--Nathaniel and myself. One of our statutes says that in the country of Dorimare each member of a family shall be the master of his own possessions, and that nothing shall be held in common but disgrace. And before you are many days older, Polydore, your family, too, may be sharing that possession. Each one of us is threatened in what is nearest to us, and our chief citizen--hunts moths!" "No, no, Nathaniel," he went on in a louder and angrier voice, "you needn't glare and growl! I consider that you, as Mayor of this town, are responsible for what has happened today, and...." "By the Sun, Moon and Stars!" bellowed Master Nathaniel, "I haven't the slightest idea what you mean by 'what has happened today,' but whatever it is, I know very well I'm not responsible. Were you responsible last year when old Mother Pyepowders's yapping little bitch chewed up old Matt's pet garters embroidered by his first sweetheart, and when...." "You poor, snivelling, feeble-minded buffoon! You criminal nincompoop! Yes, criminal, I say," and at each word Master Ambrose's voice grew louder. "Who was it that knew of the spread of this evil thing and took no steps to stop it? Whose own son has eaten it? By the Harvest of Souls you may have eaten it yourself for all I know...." "Silence, you foul-mouthed, pompous, brainless, wind-bag! You ... you ... foul, gibbering Son of a Fairy!" sputtered Master Nathaniel. And so they went at it, hammer and tongs, doing their best to destroy in a few minutes the fabric built up by years of fellowship and mutual trust. And the end of it was that Master Nathaniel pointed to the door, and in a voice trembling with fury, told Master Ambrose to leave his house, and never to enter it again. CHAPTER IX PANIC AND THE SILENT PEOPLE The following morning Captain Mumchance rode off to search Miss Primrose Crabapple's Academy for fairy fruit. And in his pocket was a warrant for the arrest of that lady should his search prove successful. But when he reached the Academy he found that the birds had flown. The old rambling house was empty and silent. No light feet tripped down its corridors, no light laughter wakened its echoes. Some fierce wind had scattered the Crabapple Blossoms. Miss Primrose, too, had disappeared. A nameless dread seized Captain Mumchance as he searched through the empty silent rooms. He found the bedrooms in disorder--drawers half opened, delicately tinted clothing heaped on the floor--indicating that the flitting had been a hurried one. Beneath each bed, too, he found a little pair of shoes, very down at heel, with almost worn-out soles, looking as if the feet that had worn them must have been very busy. He continued his search down to the kitchen premises, where he found Mother Tibbs sitting smiling to herself, and crooning.