midnight
`` It is what it is , and I do not desire it any shorter . '' `` Oh ! I see that I have vexed you , '' returned the fairy . `` Nevertheless , I am one of your best friends , and so I shall take the liberty of always -- '' She would doubtless have gone on talking till midnight ; but the prince , unable to bear it any longer , here interrupted her , thanked her for her hospitality , bade her a hasty adieu , and rode away . He traveled for a long time , half over the world , but he heard no news of Princess Darling . However , in each place he went to , he heard one remarkable fact -- the great length of his own nose . The little boys in the streets jeered at him , the peasants stared at him , and the more polite ladies and gentlemen whom he met in society used to try in vain to keep from laughing , and to get out of his way as soon as they could .