my dear little friends,

i have again to thank you for the many kind and delightful letters which i have received from all parts of the world, and i cannot tell you how happy i am to find that i have succeeded so well in pleasing you with my stories.

what am i to say to the little boy who wrote, and begged “that, if the wallypug came to stay with me again, would i please invite him too?” or to the other dear little fellow who came to me with tears in his eyes, to tell me that some superior grown-up person had informed him that “there[10] never was a wallypug, and it was all just a pack of nonsense”; that “girlie never went to why at all, and that in fact there was no such place in existence”?

i can only regretfully admit that, sooner or later as we grow up to be men and women, there are bound to be many fond illusions which are one by one ruthlessly dispelled, and that many of the dreams and thoughts which, in our younger days, we cherish most dearly, the hard, matter-of-fact world will always persist in describing as “a pack of nonsense.” however, for many of us fortunately, this tiresome time has not yet arrived, and for the present we will refuse to give up our poor dear wallypug—for whom i declare i have as great an affection and regard, as the most enthusiastic of my young readers.

you will see that in the following story i have described my own experiences during a recent visit to the remarkable land over which his majesty[11] reigns as a “kind of king”, and i may tell you that, amongst all of the extraordinary creatures that i met there, there was not one who expressed the slightest doubt as to the reality of what was happening; while for my own part, i should as soon think of doubting the existence of the fairies themselves, as of the simple, kind-hearted, little wallypug.

there now! i hope that i have given quite a clear and lucid explanation, and one which will prevent you from being made unhappy by any doubts which may arise in your mind as to the possibility, or probability, of this story. please don’t forget to write to me again during the coming year.

believing me to be as ever,

your affectionate friend,

g. e. farrow.