King recognised him at once, and looked about uneasily for the attendants whom he knew should be near. It is safe to say that he came to his feet and bowed deeply, even in humility.
"I am resting, your Highness," he said meekly.
"Don't you know any better than to come in here?" demanded the Prince. Truxton turned very red.
"I am sorry. I'll go at once."
"Oh, I'm not going to put you out," hastily exclaimed the Prince, coming down the slope. "But you are old enough to know better. The guards might shoot you if they caught you here." He came quite close to the trespasser. King saw the scratch on his nose. "Oh, I know you now. You are the gentleman who picked up my crop yesterday. You are an American." A friendly smile illumined his face.
"Yes, a lonely American," with an attempt at the pathetic.
"Where's your home at?"
"New York. Quite a distance from here."
"You ever been in Central Park?"
"A thousand times. It isn't as nice as this one."
"It's got amilies--no, I don't mean that," supplemented the Prince, flushing painfully. "I mean--an-i-muls," very deliberately. "Our park has no elephunts or taggers. When I get big I'm going to set out a few in the park. They'll grow, all right."
"I've shot elephants and tigers in the jungle," said Truxton. "I tell you they're no fun when they get after you, wild. If I were you I'd set 'em out in cages."
"P'raps I will." The Prince seemed very thoughtful.
"Won't you sit down, your Highness?"
The youngster looked cautiously about. "Say, do you ever go fishing?" he demanded eagerly.
"Occasionally."
"You won't give me away, will you?" with a warning frown. "Don't you tell Jacob Fraasch. He's the steward. I--I know a fine place to fish. Would you mind coming along? Look out, please! You're awful big and they'll see you. I don't know what they'd do to us if they ketched us. It would be dreadful. Would you mind sneaking, mister? Make yourself little. Right up this way."
The Prince led the way up the bank, followed by the amused American, who stooped so admirably that the boy, looking back, whispered that it was "just fine." At the top of the knoll, the Prince turned into a little shrub-lined path leading down to the banks of the pool almost directly below the rocky face of the grotto.
"Don't be afraid," he whispered to his new friend. "It ain't very deep, if you should slip in. But you'd scare the fish away. Gee, it's a great place to catch 'em. They're all red, too. D'you ever see red fish?"