II
1.King Midas sat at table waiting for little Marigold.She was crying bitterly as she came into the room，and sobbing as if her heart would break.
2.“How now，my little lady？”cried Midas.“Pray，what is the matter with you，this bright morning？”
Marigold held out her hand，with one of the roses which Midas had turned into gold.
“Beautiful！”cried her father.“And what is there in this splendid golden rose to make you cry？”
3.“Ah，dear father，it is not beautiful.It is the ugliest flower that ever grew.As soon as I was dressed I ran into the garden to gather some roses for you.But，oh dear，dear me！all the beautiful roses are spoilt.They no longer smell sweetly，and they are all quite yellow.”
“Pooh，my dear little girl，don’t cry about it，”said Midas.“Sit down and eat your breakfast.”
4.Meanwhile he poured out a cup of coffee，andlifted it to his lips.He was astonished to find that the instant his lips touched the coffee it became moltengold，and the next moment it hardened into a lump.
5.He took a nice little trout on his plate，and carefully touched its tail with his finger.To his horrorit was at once changed.Its little bones were now golden wires，and its fins and tail were thin plates of gold.
“I don‘t quite see，”thought he to himself，“how I am to get any breakfast.”
6.He now tried one of the smoking hot cakes，and then helped himself to a boiled egg.Alas！both were changed into hard yellow gold.Hoping that by being very quick he might manage to get something to eat，King Midas next snatched a hot potato，and attempted to cram it into his mouth and swallow it in a hurry.
7.But the Golden Touch was too quick for him.He found his mouth full of hot metal，which so burned his tongue that he roared aloud，and jumping up from the table，began to dance and stamp about the room，both with pain and fright.
8.“Father，dear father！”cried little Marigold，“pray，what is the matter？What has happened to you？Have you burned your mouth？”
“Ah，my dear child，”answered Midas sadly，“I don’t know what is to become of your poor father！”
9.Wishing to comfort him，pretty Marigold jumped up from her chair，and，running to Midas，threw her arms around him.He kissed her.He felt that his little daughter‘s love was worth a thousand times more than what he had gained by the Golden Touch.
“My precious Marigold！”cried he.
10.But Marigold made no answer.The moment the lips of Midas touched her fore-head a change had taken place.Her sweet，rosy face became of a glittering yellow colour，with yellow tear-drops on her cheeks.Little Marigold was a human child no longer，but a golden statue.
11.Poor King Midas！He stood at first dumb withdespair.Then he began to wring his hands，and cried，“Would that I were the poorest man in all the wide world，if only my dear child were restoredto me！”