She wondered if he had strayed away or if the old man had stolen him . Tormented by all kinds of thoughts and fears she wandered on , when suddenly she felt herself wrapped in a thick cloud and carried through the air . She made no resistance and before very long found herself , to her great surprise , in an avenue leading to the palace in which she had been born . No sign of the cloud anywhere . As the princess approached the palace she perceived that everyone was dressed in black , and she was filled with fear as to the cause of this mourning . She hastened on and was soon recognised and welcomed with shouts of joy . Her sister hearing the cheers ran out and embraced the wanderer , with tears of happiness , telling her that the shock of her disappearance had been so terrible that their mother had only survived it a few days . Since then the younger princess had worn the crown , which she now resigned to her sister to whom it by right belonged . But the elder wished to refuse it , and would only accept the crown on condition that her sister should share in all the power . The first acts of the new queen were to do honour to the memory of her dear mother and to shower every mark of generous affection on her sister . Then , being still very grieved at the loss of her little dog , she had a careful search made for him in every country , and when nothing could be heard of him she was so grieved that she offered half her kingdom to whoever should restore him to her . Many gentlemen of the court , tempted by the thought of such a reward , set off in all directions in search of the dog ; but all returned empty-handed to the queen , who , in despair , announced that since life was unbearable without her little dog , she would give her hand in marriage to the man who brought him back . The prospect of such a prize quickly turned the court into a desert , nearly every courtier starting on the quest . Whilst they were away the queen was informed one day that a very ill-looking man wished to speak with her . She desired him to be shown into a room where she was sitting with her sister . On entering her presence he said that he was prepared to give the queen her little dog if she on her side was ready to keep her word . The princess was the first to speak . She said that the queen had no right to marry without the consent of the nation , and that on so important an occasion the general council must be summoned . The queen could not say anything against this statement ; but she ordered an apartment in the palace to be given to the man , and desired the council to meet on the following day . Next day , accordingly , the council assembled in great state , and by the princess 's advice it was decided to offer the man a large sum of money for the dog , and should he refuse it , to banish him from the kingdom without seeing the queen again .
The XXXXX refused the price offered and left the hall .
cheers consent fear loss man nation presence resistance search side