il twisted
round her head. 'Ah, traitress!' he exclaimed, and ordering the horses
to be turned round, he drove the elder daughter, quivering with rage, to
the old woman who had sought to deceive him. With his hand on the hilt
of his sword he demanded Lizina in so terrific a voice that the mother
hastened to the well to draw her prisoner out. Lizina's clothing and her
star shone so brilliantly that when the prince led her home to the king,
his father, the whole palace was lit up. Next day they were married, and
lived happy ever after; and all the cats, headed by old Father Gatto,
were present at the wedding.

How To Find Out A True Friend

Once upon a time there lived a king and queen who longed to have a son.
As none came, one day they made a vow at the shrine of St. James that
if their prayers were granted the boy should set out on a pilgrimage as
soon as he had passed his eighteenth birthday. And fancy their delight
when one evening the king returned home from hunting and saw a baby
lying in the cradle.

All the people came crowding round to peep at it, and declared it was
the most beautiful baby that ever was seen. Of course that is what they
always say, but this time it happened to be true. And every day the boy
grew bigger and stronger till he was twelve years old, when the king
died, and he was left alone to take care of his mother.

In this way six years passed by, and his eighteenth birthday drew near.
When she thought of this the queen's heart sank within her, for he was
the light of her eyes' and how was she to send him forth to the unknown
dangers that beset a pilgrim? So day by day she grew more and more
sorrowful, and when she was alone wept bitterly.

Now the queen imagined that no one but herself knew how sad she was, but
one morning her son said to her, 'Mother, why do you cry the whole day
long?'

'Nothing, nothing, my son; there is only one thing in the world that
troubles me.'

'What is that one thing?' asked he. 'Are you afraid your property is
badly managed? Let me go and look into the matter.'

This pleased the queen, and he rode off to the plain country, where his
mother owned great estates; but everything was in beautiful order, and
he returned with a joyful heart, and said, 'Now, mother, you can be
happy again, for your lands are better managed than anyone else's I have
seen. The cattle are thriving; the fields are thick with corn, and soon
they will be ripe for harvest.'

'Tha