daily labour of
cutting wood, and bringing it upon three asses, which were his
whole substance, to town to sell.

One day, when Ali Baba was in the forest, and had just cut wood
enough to load his asses, he saw at a distance a great cloud of
dust, which seemed to be driven towards him: he observed it very
attentively, and distinguished soon after a body of horse. Though
there had been no rumour of robbers in that country, Ali Baba
began to think that they might prove such, and without
considering what might become of his asses, was resolved to save
himself. He climbed up a large, thick tree, whose branches, at a
little distance from the ground, were so close to one another
that there was but little space between them. He placed himself
in the middle, from whence he could see all that passed without
being discovered; and the tree stood at the base of a single
rock, so steep and craggy that nobody could climb up it.

The troop, who were all well mounted and armed, came to the foot
of this rock, and there dismounted. Ali Baba counted forty of
them, and, from their looks and equipage, was assured that they
were robbers. Nor was he mistaken in his opinion: for they were a
troop of banditti, who, without doing any harm to the
neighbourhood, robbed at a distance, and made that place their
rendezvous; but what confirmed him in his opinion was, that every
man unbridled his horse, tied him to some shrub, and hung about
his neck a bag of corn which they brought behind them. Then each
of them took his saddle wallet, which seemed to Ali Baba to be
full of gold and silver from its weight. One, who was the most
personable amongst them, and whom he took to be their captain,
came with his wallet on his back under the tree in which Ali Baba
was concealed, and making his way through some shrubs, pronounced
these words so distinctly, "Open, Sesame," that Ali Baba heard
him. As soon as the captain of the robbers had uttered these
words, a door opened in the rock; and after he had made all his
troop enter before him, he followed them, when the door shut
again of itself.

The robbers stayed some time within the rock, and Ali Baba, who
feared that some one, or all of them together, might come out and
catch him, if he should endeavour to make his escape, was obliged
to sit patiently in the tree. He was nevertheless tempted to get
down, mount one of their horses, and lead another, driving his
asses before him with all the haste he could t