At the first halting-place the servants cooked the food. The
queen filled the king's plate and then her own, and then she thought of
the story which her sister had told her. She ordered her servants to go
through the neighbouring village and bring in any one who was hungry and
too poor to buy food. They found none such in the village, but on the
way back they met a starving wood-cutter, and, bringing him to the
queen, told him to listen to the tale which she would tell him. The
queen brought six pearls. Three she gave to the wood-cutter, and three
she kept herself. Then she told him the story of her father and the
wood-fairies. The wood-cutter listened with all attention, and as he
listened his faggot of wood became all of gold. He went away delighted,
promising to worship the sun in the way the wood-fairies had shown to
the Brahman.
Next day the cavalcade reached the second halting-place. Food was
cooked; the queen filled the king's plate and then her own plate, and
again she told her, servants to bring from the neighbouring village any
one who was hungry and too poor to buy food.
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