GRIFFEN THE HIGH FLIER 89 



" Great king," he said, " we had in our coun- 

 try a knight, noble, and brave, and kind, who in 

 an unlucky moment had the misfortune to lose 

 the greater part of his senses. I have searched 

 for them in every nook and corner of the known 

 world, but, alas, I cannot find them. The un- 

 fortunate knight himself is at this moment some- 

 where in the Dark Continent, useless alike to him- 

 self and his country. As a last resort I have 

 come to you, knowing how wise you are, to ask 

 whether there are not some superfluous senses 

 lying about, unclaimed, in your kingdom." 



" That is a fine horse that you ride," said the 

 king. " He must be a swift traveler." 



" He is very fleet, indeed," answered Astolpho. 

 " Why, sir, he can girdle the earth in forty 

 minutes." 



" Then, how long would it take him to fly to 

 the moon ? " 



" He has never been there, but I suppose it 

 would not require very long — say, not more than 

 twenty minutes — half as long as to go round the 

 earth." 



" Then, if you are willing to make the jour- 

 ney," said Prester John, " I doubt not but you will 

 find there the thing that you are looking for. For 



