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Page 42
"I must be the strongest man in all the world!"
thought the charcoal-burner, as he proudly resumed his
way, "for Choggenmugger has been the terror of Regos
since the world began, and I alone have been able to
destroy the beast. Yet it is singular' that never
before did I discover how powerful a man I am."
He met no further adventure and at midday reached a
little clearing in the forest where stood his humble
cabin.
"Great news! I have great news for you," he shouted,
as his wife and little daughter came to greet him.
"King Gos has been conquered by a boy Prince from the
far island of Pingaree, and I have this day -- unaided
-- destroyed Choggenmugger by the might of my strong
arm.
This was, indeed, great news. They brought Nikobob
into the house and set him in an easy chair and made
him tell everything he knew about the Prince of
Pingaree and the fat King of Gilgad, as well as the
details of his wonderful fight with mighty
Choggenmugger.
"And now, my daughter," said the charcoalburner, when
all his news had been related for at least the third
time, "here is a pretty present I have brought you
from the city."
With this he drew the shoes from the pocket of his
coat and handed them to Zella, who gave him a dozen
kisses in payment and was much pleased with her gift.
The little girl had never worn shoes before, for her
parents were too poor to buy her such luxuries, so now
the possession of these, which were not much worn,
filled the child's heart with joy. She admired the red
leather and the graceful curl of the pointed toes. When
she tried them on her feet, they fitted as well as if
made for her.
All the afternoon, as she helped her mother with the
housework, Zella thought of her pretty shoes. They
seemed more important to her than the coming to Regos
of the conquering Prince of Pingaree, or even the death
of Choggenmugger.
When Zella and her mother were not working in the
cabin, cooking or sewing, they often searched the
neighboring forest for honey which the wild bees
cleverly hid in hollow trees. The day after Nikobob's
return, as they were starting out after honey, Zella
decided to put on her new shoes, as they would keep the
twigs that covered the ground from hurting her feet.
She was used to the twigs, of course, but what is the
use of having nice, comfortable shoes, if you do not
wear them?
So she danced along, very happily, followed by her
mother, and presently they came to a tree in which was
a deep hollow. Zella thrust her hand and arm into the
space and found that the tree was full of honey, so she
began to dig it out with a wooden paddle. Her mother,
who held the pail, suddenly cried in warning:
"Look out, Zella; the bees are coming!" and then the
good woman ran fast toward the house to escape.
Zella, however, had no more than time to turn her
head when a thick swarm of bees surrounded her, angry
because they had caught her stealing their honey and
intent on stinging the girl as a punishment. She knew
her danger and expected to be badly injured by the
multitude of stinging bees, but to her surprise the
little creatures were unable to fly close enough to her
to stick their dart-like stingers into her flesh. They
swarmed about her in a dark cloud, and their angry
buzzing was terrible to hear, yet the little girl
remained unharmed.
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