Produced by Malcolm Farmer and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net [Illustration: "A short distance beyond lay a terrible dragon."] [_See page 28._] THE MYSTERIOUS SHIN SHIRA BY G.E. FARROW AUTHOR OF The WALLYPUG of WHY [Illustration] ILLUSTRATED BY W.G. EASTON LONDON HENRY FROWDE HODDER & STOUGHTON CONTENTS PAGE Mystery No. I SHIN SHIRA APPEARS 9 Mystery No. II SHIN SHIRA AND THE DRAGON 23 Mystery No. III THE MAGIC CARPET 33 Mystery No. IV SHIN SHIRA AND THE DUCHESS 50 Mystery No. V SHIN SHIRA AND THE LAME DUCK 65 Mystery No. VI SHIN SHIRA AND THE DIAMOND 81 Mystery No. VII SHIN SHIRA AND THE ROC 98 Mystery No. VIII SHIN SHIRA AND THE MAD BULL 114 Mystery No. IX SHIN SHIRA AND THE QUEEN OF HEARTS 130 Mystery No. X and Last SHIN SHIRA DISAPPEARS 146 LIST OF COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS _To face page_ "A SHORT DISTANCE BEYOND LAY A TERRIBLE DRAGON" (_See page 28_) _Frontispiece_ "THE EXECUTIONER IN HIS AGITATION DROPPED HIS AXE" 20 "WE FLOATED AWAY OVER THE ROOFS OF THE HOUSES" 38 "SHIN SHIRA PLACED THEM IN THE CRYSTAL BOWL" 58 "HIS PINIONS WERE STRONG AND MIGHTY" 108 "THIS WAS CAREFULLY SET BEFORE THE KING" 138 MYSTERY NO. I SHIN SHIRA APPEARS It was very remarkable how I first came to make his acquaintance at all. Shin Shira I mean. I had been sitting at my desk, writing, for quite a long time, when suddenly I heard, as I thought, a noise in another part of the room. I turned my head hastily and looked towards the door, but it was fast closed and there was apparently nobody in the room but myself. "Strange!" I murmured, looking about to try and discover what had caused the sound, and then my eyes lighted, to my great surprise, upon a pair of bright yellow morocco shoes with very long, pointed toes, standing on the floor in front of a favourite little squat chair of mine which I call "the Toad."