"Captives," said he, speaking in his clear, sweet voice, "in our first interview you defied me, and both the mermaid queen and the princess declared they could not die.

But if that is a true statement, as I have yet to discover, there are various ways to make you miserable and unhappy, and this I propose to do in order to amuse myself at your expense.

You have been brought here to undergo the first trial of strength between us." None of the prisoners replied to this speech, so Zog turned to one of his slaves and said, "Rivivi, bring in the Yell-Maker." Rivivi was a big fellow, brown of skin and with flashing, black eyes.

He bowed to his master and left the room by an archway covered with heavy draperies.

The next moment these curtains were violently pushed aside, and a dreadful sea creature swam into the hall.