King Merriwig of Euralia sat at breakfast on his castle walls. He lifted the gold cover from the gold dish in front of him, selected a trout and conveyed it carefully to his gold plate. He was a man of simple tastes, but when you have an aunt with the newly acquired gift of turning anything she touches to gold, you must let her practice sometimes. In another age it might have been fretwork.

"Ah," said the King, "here you are, my dear." He searched for his napkin, but the Princess had already kissed him lightly on the top of the head, and was sitting in her place opposite to him.

"Good morning, Father," she said; "I'm a little late, aren't I? I've been riding in the forest."

"Any adventures?" asked the King casually.

"Nothing, except it's a beautiful morning."

"Ah, well, perhaps the country isn't what it was. Now when I was a young man, you simply couldn't go into the forest without an adventure of some sort. The extraordinary things one encountered! Witches, giants, dwarfs. It was there that I first met your mother," he added thoughtfully. "I wish I remembered my mother," said Hyacinth. The King coughed and looked at her a little nervously.

"Seventeen years ago she died, Hyacinth, when you were only six months old. I have been wondering lately whether I haven't been a little remiss in leaving you motherless so long."

The Princess looked puzzled. "But it wasn't your fault, dear, that mother died."

"Oh, no, no, I'm not saying that. As you know, a dragon carried her off and well, there it was. But supposing "--he looked at her shyly--" I had married again." The Princess was startled. "Who?" she asked. The King peered into his flagon. "Well," he said, "there are people."

"If it had been somebody very nice," said the Princess wistfully, "it might have been rather lovely."

The King gazed earnestly at the outside of his flagon. "Why 'might have been?' he said. The Princess was still puzzled. "But I'm grown up," she said; "I don't want a mother so much now." The King turned his flagon round and studied the other side of it. "A mother's--er--tender hand," he said, "is--er--never----" and then the outrageous thing happened.

It was all because of a birthday present to the King of Barodia, and the present was nothing less than a pair of seven-league boots. The King being a busy man, it was a week or more before he had an opportunity of trying those boots. Meanwhile he used to talk about them at meals, and he would polish them up every night before he went to bed. When the great day came for the first trial of them to be made, he took a patronising farewell of his wife and family, ignored the many eager noses pressed against the upper windows of the Palace, and sailed off. The motion, as perhaps you know, is a little disquieting at first, but one soon gets used to it.
ANSWER THE QUESTIONS

1. Why did the king have the gold cover on the gold dish?

А) He was obsessed with gold.

Б) His region was rich in gold.

В) His relative developed the skills of witchcraft.

Г) All he wanted to touch was gold.

2. What adventures did the king have when he was young?

А) The king had mysterious adventures. Б) He had infrequent adventures.

В) He had the only adventure. Г) He had simple adventures.

3. Did the king want to marry again?

А) No, no way.

Б) Yes, he had longed for that change in his life very much.

В) Yes, his daughter insisted.

Г) Yes, but he was a little bit indecisive.

4. Did the princess want the king to marry?

А) Yes, she needed mother very much.

Б) No, she wanted to marry herself.

В) Yes, in case of father’s right choice.

Г) No, because nobody could replace her mother.
5. Why didn’t the king try the seven-league boots at once?

А) He had to wear off the stiffness of his boots

Б) He decided to polish them first.

В) He wanted to discuss them with his wife.

Г) The king was engaged in many activities.