y story (said the old man), so please attend.

This hind that you see with me is my wife. We have no children of our
own, therefore I adopted the son of a favorite slave, and determined to
make him my heir.

My wife, however, took a great dislike to both mother and child, which
she concealed from me till too late. When my adopted son was about ten
years old I was obliged to go on a journey. Before I went I entrusted
to my wife's keeping both the mother and child, and begged her to take
care of them during my absence, which lasted a whole year. During this
time she studied magic in order to carry out her wicked scheme. When
she had learnt enough she took my son into a distant place and changed
him into a calf. Then she gave him to my steward, and told him to look
after a calf she had bought. She also changed the slave into a cow,
which she sent to my steward.

When I returned I inquired after my slave and the child. "Your slave
is dead," she said, "and as for your son, I have not seen him for two
months, and I do not know where he is."

I was grieved to hear of my slave's death, but as my son had only
disappeared, I thought I should soon find him. Eight months, however,
passed, and still no tidings of him; then the feast of Bairam came.

To celebrate it I ordered my steward to bring me a very fat cow to
sacrifice. He did so. The cow that he brought was my unfortunate
slave. I bound her, but just as I was about to kill her she began to
low most piteously, and I saw that her eyes were streaming with tears.
It seemed to me most extraordinary, and, feeling a movement of pity, I
ordered the steward to lead her away and bring another. My wife, who
was present, scoffed at my compassion, which made her malice of no
avail. "What are you doing?" she cried. "Kill this cow. It is the
best we have to sacrifice."

To please her, I tried again, but again the animal's lows and tears
disarmed me.

"Take her away," I said to the steward, "and kill her; I cannot."

The steward killed her, but on skinning her found that she was nothing
but bones, although she appeared so fat. I was vexed.

"Keep her for yourself," I said to the steward, "and if you have a fat
calf, bring that in her stead."

In a short time he brought a very fat calf, which, although I did not
know it, was my son. It tried hard to break its cord and come to me.
It threw itself at my feet, with its head on the ground, as if it
wished to excite m