What is 'seven-headed bull' in the dialogue between King and Queen? [closed]
The following is an excerpt from the First Act (The Princess and the Woodcutter) of Make Believe, a play for children, written by A. A. Milne in 1918. Could someone help me understand this play clearly and fully by answering two questions?
Q1. I cannot imagine anything from the expression of ‘the seven-headed bull’. Is this a kind of fortuneteller, wearing something of seven-headed bull, or an animal god?
Q2. In the fairy tales of prince-hunting, interest in one’s meals or appetite has played an important role?
QUEEN: It is a pity that the seven-headed bull died last year.
KING. Yes, he had a way of sorting out competitors for the hand of our beloved one that was beyond all praise. One could have felt quite sure that, had the three competitors been introduced to him, only one of them would have taken any further interest in the matter.
QUEEN (always the housekeeper): And even he mightn't have taken any interest in his meals.
Solution 1:
From Once on a Time by A.A Milne:
To tell the truth, Coronel was a little jealous of his friend. A certain Prince Perivale, who had stayed at his uncle's court, had once been a suitor for Hyacinth's hand; but losing a competition with the famous seven-headed bull of Euralia, which Merriwig had arranged for him, had made no further headway with his suit.
Another instance:
"Ah, well, no doubt they were unsuccessful. No matter, dear, we can easily find you plenty more suitors. Indeed, the subject has been very near my thoughts lately. We'll arrange a little competition, and let them know in the neighbouring countries; there'll be no lack of candidates. Let me see, there's that seven-headed bull; he's getting a little old now, but he was good enough for the last one. We might——"
"I don't want a suitor," said Hyacinth softly. "I have one."
Merriwig leant forward with eagerness.
"My dear, this is indeed news. Tell me all about it. Upon what quest did you send him?"
Hyacinth had felt this coming. Had she lived in modern times she would have expected the question, "What is his income?" A man must prove his worth in some way.
"I haven't sent him away at all yet," she said; "he's only just come. He's been very kind to me, and I'm sure you'll love him."
"Well, well, we'll arrange something for him. Perhaps that bull I was speaking of—— By the way, who is he?"
So, to answer your first question, it seems like the "seven-headed bull" is in fact a bull with seven heads meant to serve as a competition for the Princes.
Some more (possibly irrelevant) info...
In The Princess and the Woodcutter, the Princess says:
PRINCESS. Why, of course! You should read the History Books, Woodcutter. The suitors to the hand of a Princess are always set some trial of strength or test of quality by the King, and the winner marries his daughter.
Since the "seven-headed bull" had died, the competition in this specific Act was to discover the Prince with the kindest heart:
KING (with a sigh). However, those days are over. We must think of a new test. Somehow I think that, in a son-in-law, moral worth is even more to be desired than mere brute strength. Now my suggestion is this: that you should disguise yourself as a beggar woman and approach each of the three princes in turn, supplicating their charity. In this way we shall discover which of the three has the kindest heart. What do you say, my dear?
However, I am not sure what to make of your second question...