“Had we better take an umbrella?” asked Gran’pa. “One usually carries an umbrella when one goes to town. It might rain.” “Perhaps it would be as well to take the Magic Umbrella with us,” the Princess laughed, although she could not understand just why Gran’pa should wish to carry one, for it very seldom rained in the beautiful City. [Illustration] So the happy visitors walked down the great steps of the Castle with the Princess and her old friends and into the shopping center of the City of Nite, where all the kindly faced people bowed to them all as they passed. The Princess stopped and talked with the people and gave presents to the little children whom they met. At the first store they came to Gran’pa tried to buy some peanuts, but the shopkeeper would not accept anything for them. “You couldn’t pay anyhow,” Johnny laughed. “You haven’t any Moon money, it’s all Earth money in your purse.” “To be sure it is,” Gran’pa replied. “I had forgotten that!” The Princess took them into all the ice cream parlors and candy stores in the City, and when they returned to the Castle all were loaded with bundles. As they neared the steps of the Castle, Gran’pa shouted, “Look at the crowd near the Castle door. It must be people who have come to see you about something!” The Princess looked worried. “No,” she replied, “they would never crowd about the Castle door in such a disorderly manner. Something has happened!” Just as they started up the long flight of steps, the crowd separated and as the people fell back on either side a tall form dashed out of the doorway waving his crooked stick and shouting hoarsely. “Old Jingles, the Magician!” the Princess cried as she sank to the steps. [Illustration] CHAPTER XII GRAN’MA TWEAKS OLD JINGLES’ NOSE Gran’ma, Janey and Mrs. Tiptoe rushed to the Princess and, raising her between them, they half carried and half dragged her back down the marble steps. The Chief of Detectives, the Dancing Master, Johnny and Gran’pa sprang up the steps to meet the Magician. But the Chief of Detectives and Johnny caught their feet together and went tumbling to the foot of the hard stone steps, where they lay dazed. The Dancing Master, who was very active, sprang up the steps two at a time and met the Magician on the broad landing and attacked him, although he scarcely reached to the Magician’s waist. Old Jingles struck at the Dancing Master with his cane, but the Dancing Master dodged in under the blow and grappled with the Magician. The good people of Nite were terror stricken, and stood motionless as the two struggled together. Finally the Magician pulled his tiny bellows from his pocket and blew it toward the Dancing Master’s back, and the Dancing Master fell to the steps, just as Gran’pa struck the bellows from the Magician’s hand with his cane.