THE
YELLOW
DWARF

‘Oh,’ replied he, ‘you need not go any farther to
ascertain that. I can tell you the cause. She has
promised you to me in marriage, and now is so
ungrateful as to repent of her promise.’
‘What!’ exclaimed the princess; ‘the queen, my
mother, promised me to such a hideous creature as
you! Impossible!’
‘Oh, very well,’ replied the Yellow Dwarf; ‘as you
please, young lady. The lions wili soon punish
you for your insolence.’
The lions were about to seize on poor All-fair,
when she cried to the Dwarf, ‘Oh, save me! and I
will promise to marry you, rather than be eaten by
these monsters.’
On saying these words she fainted from terror.
When she recovered from her swoon, she found
herself in her own apartment, and round one of
her fingers was a ring of red hair, so tightly
fastened that she could not remove it. The princess
now became as melancholy as her mother. The
queen and all her court were greatly distressed at
the alteration in the princess, and they concluded
that the most likely way of diverting her thoughts
would be by urging her to marry. The princess
listened to their proposals, and at length consented
to marry the King of the Golden Mines, who had
long tried to gain her affections. This king was
exceedingly rich and powerful.
When all was agreed upon, preparations were
made to celebrate the nuptials in the most mag-
nificent style. The King of the Golden Mines
expended large sums of money in purchasing all
that was splendid and gorgeous, and the palace
glittered with gold and precious stones.
At length the day arrived for the celebration of the
marriage: but as the party were proceeding to
perform the ceremony, they saw an ugly old fairy
approaching them, riding on a box drawn by two
peacocks. Coming up to the queen, she shook
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