"Then I will leave you now," said Belkis, "and I expectyou to make good maps from now on. And remember this," headded, "I want you to forget about dragons."

"Yes, I promise," said Mister Gibberling. "I will forgetall about dragons."

"See that you do," said Belkis, "or I will hear of it andI will return. You would not like that."

"No, no I wouldn't!"

"Then good-bye." And Belkis spread his great wings androse into the sky. No one in the kingdom ever saw him again.

After that, though, the king came to listen to Williammore than he did to his other advisers, and soon William becamehis first adviser and his old first adviser became his newfourth adviser.

And Mister Gibberling went on to draw beautiful maps,showing all of the things he had seen other kingdoms and riversand lakes and other mountains, valleys and plateaus anddeserts, ports and pastures, farms and granaries. His maps werequite good, and after a time people were no longer afraid ofdragons and they began to go over the mountains and to tradewith people in other kingdoms, and to learn of them, and tohave other people come to visit them.

After a time, the king came to realize that his kingdomwas not so large as he had once thought it to be, and heencouraged commerce, to make his kingdom prosper and grow.

One day, though, while he was studying one of the newmaps, the king said, "My, but there are so many seas in theworld!"

"Yes, sire," said William. "That appears to be true."

"I wonder what lies beyond them?" asked the king.

"Perhaps they go on forever and ever," said William, "orperhaps there are other lands beyond them."

The king nodded. "I believe I will ask the RoyalCartographer," he said, "since he has recently had a