Meanwhile, the Doctor had recovered sufficiently to sit up. He was a pitiful-looking object. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair stood up as if he had had a bad dream. "Oh, give me my stone! Oh, give me my precious stone! Oh!" moaned the doleful old quack.
Mouwou growled, showing her great white teeth and raising her terrible paw, at which he became silent.
But so angered was Mousan by the false Doctor's wicked trick, that he rushed upon him, grabbed his eyebrow whiskers, and dragged him off howling.
Scarcely had the two disappeared from view of the others, than the quack sprang like a tiger upon the young prince and bore him to the ground; then he placed his hand upon the boy's mouth to prevent him from yelling for help.
"Now!" hissed the furious Hu-Mok, who was twice as strong as any ordinary man, "I shall teach you a thing or two!" Mousan struggled to escape, but the strong one planted a heavy foot on his neck and kept it there till he was senseless. Cautiously the villain looked around lest some one should see, then dragged his victim to his den.
When the princess had revived completely, the bear persuaded her to mount her back again. Bruin at this time had not guessed that there was anything wrong with her other charge; so when the princess asked her where Mousan was, she merely replied that he had gone to punish the Doctor.
They had not gone very far when they saw a snake charming a little bird. The bird could not move from its perch, but stood screaming and flapping its wings in terror. The old bear rushed at the reptile and struck it a deadly blow. At once the grateful bird flew to its rescuers. It perched upon the shoulder of the girl and rubbed its smooth feathers against her cheek, while the snake wiggled away to die.
So this queer trio passed through the woods, the bird on Chonwa's shoulder and the girl on the bear's back. They were surprised and delighted when they came to a little thatched shanty on which was a sign with the words, "Rest for the Weary."
"Do let us rest here till Mousan catches up!" begged eager Chonwa. She dismounted, approached the house, and peered in. There she saw, to her delight, a beautiful woman lying on a couch reading.
She knocked gently and the woman came out smiling, and holding a glass of wine. Chonwa was very thirsty but when she was about to take the drink, the woman opened her mouth, and behold, a cloven tongue darted out!