Smash, bother, jabber! -'
Here Curdie stopped, either because he could not find a rhyme to
'jabber', or because he remembered what he had forgotten when he
woke up at the sound of Irene's labours, that his plan was to make
the goblins think he was getting weak. But he had uttered enough
to let Irene know who he was.
'It's Curdie!' she cried joyfully.
'Hush! hush!' came Curdie's voice again from somewhere. 'Speak
softly.'
'Why, you were singing loud!' said Irene.
'Yes. But they know I am here, and they don't know you are. Who
are you?'
'I'm Irene,' answered the princess. 'I know who you are quite
well. You're Curdie.'
'Why, how ever did you come here, Irene?'
'My great-great-grandmother sent me; and I think I've found out
why. You can't get out, I suppose?'
'No, I can't. What are you doing?'
'Clearing away a huge heap of stones.'
'There's a princess!' exclaimed Curdie, in a tone of delight, but
still speaking in little more than a whisper. 'I can't think how
you got here, though.'
'my grandmother sent me after her thread.'
'I don't know what you mean,' said Curdie; 'but so you're there, it
doesn't much matter.
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