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"Alas, prince," she said, with a deeper sigh than before, "you have
guessed rightly in supposing me an unwilling prisoner in this gorgeous
place. I am the daughter of the king of the Ebony Isle, of whose fame
you surely must have heard. At my father's desire I was married to a
prince who was my own cousin; but on my very wedding day, I was snatched
up by a genius, and brought here in a faint. For a long while I did
nothing but weep, and would not suffer the genius to come near me; but
time teaches us submission, and I have now got accustomed to his
presence, and if clothes and jewels could content me, I have them in
plenty. Every tenth day, for five and twenty years, I have received a
visit from him, but in case I should need his help at any other time, I
have only to touch a talisman that stands at the entrance of my chamber.
It wants still five days to his next visit, and I hope that during that
time you will do me the honour to be my guest."
Heading One
I was too much dazzled by her beauty to dream of refusing her offer,
and accordingly the princess had me conducted to the bath, and a rich
dress befitting my rank was provided for me. Then a feast of the most
delicate dishes was served in a room hung with embroidered Indian
fabrics.
Next day, when we were at dinner, I could maintain my patience no
longer, and implored the princess to break her bonds, and return with me
to the world which was lighted by the sun.
"What you ask is impossible," she answered; "but stay here with me
instead, and we can be happy, and all you will have to do is to betake
yourself to the forest every tenth day, when I am expecting my master
the genius. He is very jealous, as you know, and will not suffer a man
to come near me."
Heading Two
"Princess," I replied, "I see it is only fear of the genius that
makes you act like this. For myself, I dread him so little that I mean
to break his talisman in pieces! Awful though you think him, he shall
feel the weight of my arm, and I herewith take a solemn vow to stamp out
the whole race."
The princess, who realized the consequences of such audacity,
entreated me not to touch the talisman. "If you do, it will be the ruin
of both of us," said she; "I know genii much better than you." But the
wine I had drunk had confused my brain; I gave one kick to the talisman,
and it fell into a thousand pieces.
Hardly had my foot touched the talisman when the air became as dark
as night, a fearful noise was heard, and the palace shook to its very
foundations. In an instant I was sobered, and understood what I had
done. "Princess!" I cried, "what is happening?"
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"Alas!" she exclaimed, forgetting all her own terrors in anxiety for
me, "fly, or you are lost."
I followed her advice and dashed up the staircase, leaving my hatchet
behind me. But I was too late. The palace opened and the genius
appeared, who, turning angrily to the princess, asked indignantly, "What
is the matter, that you have sent for me like this?"
"A pain in my heart," she replied hastily, "obliged me to seek the
aid of this little bottle. Feeling faint, I slipped and fell against the
talisman, which broke. That is really all."
"You are an impudent liar!" cried the genius. "How did this hatchet
and those shoes get here?"
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- Item three
"I never saw them before," she answered, "and you came in such a
hurry that you may have picked them up on the road without knowing it."
To this the genius only replied by insults and blows. I could hear the
shrieks and groans of the princess, and having by this time taken off my
rich garments and put on those in which I had arrived the previous day,
I lifted the trap, found myself once more in the forest, and returned to
my friend the tailor, with a light load of wood and a heart full of
shame and sorrow.
The tailor, who had been uneasy at my long absence, was, delighted to
see me; but I kept silence about my adventure, and as soon as possible
retired to my room to lament in secret over my folly. While I was thus
indulging my grief my host entered, and said, "There is an old man
downstairs who has brought your hatchet and slippers, which he picked up
on the road, and now restores to you, as he found out from one of your
comrades where you lived. You had better come down and speak to him
yourself." At this speech I changed colour, and my legs trembled under
me. The tailor noticed my confusion, and was just going to inquire the
reason when the door of the room opened, and the old man appeared,
carrying with him my hatchet and shoes.
"I am a genius," he said, "the son of the daughter of Eblis, prince
of the genii. Is not this hatchet yours, and these shoes?" Without
waiting for an answer--which, indeed, I could hardly have given him, so
great was my fright--he seized hold of me, and darted up into the air
with the quickness of lightning, and then, with equal swiftness, dropped
down towards the earth. When he touched the ground, he rapped it with
his foot; it opened, and we found ourselves in the enchanted palace, in
the presence of the beautiful princess of the Ebony Isle. But how
different she looked from what she was when I had last seen her, for she
was lying stretched on the ground covered with blood, and weeping
bitterly.
"Traitress!" cried the genius, "is not this man your lover?"
She lifted up her eyes slowly, and looked sadly at me. "I never saw
him before, she answered slowly. I do not know who he is."
"What!" exclaimed the genius, "you owe all your sufferings to him,
and yet you dare to say he is a stranger to you!"
"But if he really is a stranger to me," she replied, "why should I
tell a lie and cause his death?"
"Very well," said the genius, drawing his sword, "take this, and cut
off his head."
"Alas," answered the princess, "I am too weak even to hold the sabre.
And supposing that I had the strength, why should I put an innocent man
to death?"
"You condemn yourself by your refusal," said the genius; then turning
to me, he added, "and you, do you not know her?"
"How should I?" I replied, resolved to imitate the princess in her
fidelity. "How should I, when I never saw her before?"
"Cut her head off," then, "if she is a stranger to you, and I shall
believe you are speaking the truth, and will set you at liberty."
Continued
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