physical training. The prince was sent to a riding-school when still a tiny child, and showed great skill and daring. His Uncle Fernando, with whom he was a favorite, was almost as proud as was the king, of the boy's sportsmanship. He made the prince fine presents of armor and dogs, and once sent him a spirited pony. By the time Prince Baltasar was six years old, he could ride his mount like a little man, sitting erect in the saddle with perfect ease. He had, of course, many fine clothes, as became a prince, and he liked to wear a certain green velvet embroidered jacket, with a bright-colored sash tied diagonally across his breast with the fringed ends fluttering behind. With this costume he had a high-crowned, broad-brimmed hat which was very jaunty. As a crowning touch, his gauntlets and riding-boots gave him a look of real manliness. Dressed in this way he had many a fine gallop along the country roads, exercising the plump little pony, which was so well fed in the royal stables that it needed a brisk gallop now and then. The pony was as playful as his rider, and knew how to please his master.
Of course a prince could not ride unattended. His riding-master or some courtier followed at a suitable distance to see that no harm befell the boy. Sometimes this attendant would go on ahead, wheel around, and watch the little cavalier approach. Then how proudly the six-year-old boy would square his shoulders and sit at attention. To teach him how to bear himself as a king, he was given a baton, the symbol of authority, and told how to carry it, and
