"Not a lion," cried the clown, rising on his hind legs and hastily removing his lion head. Chapter 4 Mustafa's Mandate There was a moment of absolute silence following Notta's disclosure. With his lion body and clown head he presented an amazing and ridiculous appearance. Nothing like this had ever been seen in Mudge, and the Mudgers simply gaped with astonishment. "Steady now, Bob," whispered the clown, putting his lion paw around the little boy. "All we have to do is to be polite--rule two, you know!" Mustafa was the first to recover. "Not a lion!" cried the Monarch of Mudge hoarsely. "Why, how dare you disappoint me like this? Did you hear that, Tazzywaller, Panny, Mixtuppa--all of you? He says he's not a lion." A sob of rage choked Mustafa's voice. "I apologize for not being a lion," said Notta, in a polite, slightly shaky voice. "Ten thousand pardons!" "Ten thousand puddings!" screamed Mustafa furiously. "Puddings by all means, if your Highness prefers them," corrected Notta hastily. "I told you there were no more lions in Mudge," wheezed Tazzywaller with a triumphant glance at Panapee. "I knew it wasn't a lion all along." "Well, what is it then?" asked Mustafa angrily. "The little fellow's a boy of some kind, but this other?" He waved scornfully at the poor clown. "A wizard, your Highness!" hissed Panapee. "A wizard, that's what he is." "Now don't call me names," begged Notta, extending the front paws of his disguise. "I'm Notta." "Not a wizard, I suppose," said Tazzywaller scornfully. "Why don't you ask him how he got here?" sighed Mixtuppa, reasonably enough. Notta stared curiously at the large head of Mixtuppa, wagging through the blue curtain. Perhaps here was someone who would understand politeness. "Madam, your Highness, gracious and lovely lady," began the clown with a deep bow, "we fell into this charming country through no fault of our own." "Well, it wasn't our fault; we have no faults here," snapped Mustafa ungraciously. "How did you get past the lion enclosure?" demanded Panapee. "How do you explain this being a lion one minute and a creature of another sort the next?" "Well, there is something very queer about it," admitted Notta, rubbing his forehead in a puzzled way. "One minute Bob and I were in a circus doing a bit of a trick and--" "I knew it was a trick," exclaimed Panapee triumphantly. "He admits it!" "Silence!" cried Mustafa, who was beginning to enjoy the recital. "You were in a circus? Tazzywaller, what is a circus?" "It's a show," explained Notta hastily, for he could tell by the puzzled faces of the Mudgers that they had never heard of such a thing. "And we were in it. I put Bob on my shoulder and shouted a silly rhyme, and in a flash he is gone. I shout it again and I'm gone too!" "Gone where?" asked Mustafa, rubbing his chin. "To here," replied Notta, gazing about him uneasily. "Funny how a little verse could carry us so far. He recited: