ddle. 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.

When she realized this, Zella was no longer afraid but continued to
ladle out the honey until she had secured all that was in the tree.
Then she returned to the cabin, where her mother was weeping and
bemoaning the fate of her darling child, and the good woman was greatly
astonished to find Zella had escaped injury.

Again they went to the woods to search for honey, and although the
mother always ran away whenever the bees came near them, Zella paid no
attention to the creatures but kept at her work, so that before supper
time came the pails were again filled to overflowing with delicious
honey.

"With such good fortune as we have had this day," said her mother, "we
shall soon gather enough honey for you to carry to Queen Cor." For it
seems the wicked Queen was very fond of honey and it had been Zella's
custom to go, once every year, to the City of Coregos, to carry the
Queen a supply of sweet honey for her table. Usually she had but one
pail.

"But now," said Zella, "I shall be able to carry two pailsful to the
Queen, who will, I am sure, give me a good price for it."

"True," answered her mother, "and, as the boy Prince may take it into
his head to conquer Coregos, as well as Regos, I think it best for you
to start on your journey to Queen Cor tomorrow morning. Do you not
agree with me, Nikobob?" she added, turning to her husband, the
charcoal-burner, who was eating his supper.

"I agree with you," he replied. "If Zella must go to the City of
Coregos, she may as well start to-morrow morning."

Chapter Ten

The Cunning of Queen Cor

You may be sure the Queen of Coregos was not well pleased to have King
Gos and all his warriors living in her city after they had fled from
their own. They were savage