flesh, when blood
And poison issued from the gaping wounds;
Then, as he floundered on the earth exhausted,
Seizing the fragment of a flinty rock,
Gushtasp beat out the brains, and soon the beast
In terrible struggles died. Two deadly fangs
Then wrenched he from the jaws, to testify
The wonderful exploit he had performed.

When he descended from the mountain, these two teeth were delivered to
Ahrun, and they were afterwards conveyed to the king, who could not
believe his own eyes, but ascended the mountain himself to ascertain the
fact, and there he beheld with amazement the dragon lifeless, and
covered with blood. "And didst thou thyself kill this terrific dragon?"
said he. "Yes," replied Ahrun. "And wilt thou swear to God that this is
thy own achievement? It must be either the exploit of a demon, or of a
certain Kaianian, who resides in this neighborhood." But there was no
one to disprove his assertion, and therefore the king could no longer
refuse to surrender to him his youngest daughter.

And now between Gushtasp, and Mabrin, and Ahrun, the warmest friendship
subsisted. Indeed they were seldom parted; and the three sisters
remained together with equal affection. One day Kitabun, the wife of
Gushtasp, in conversation with some of her female acquaintance, let out
the secret that her husband was the person who killed the wolf and the
dragon.

No sooner was this story told, than it spread, and in the end reached
the ears of the queen, who immediately communicated it to the king,
saying:--"This is the work of Gushtasp, thy son-in-law, of him thou hast
banished from thy presence--of him who nobly would not disclose his
name, before Mabrin and Ahrun had attained the object of their wishes."
The king said in reply that it was just as he had suspected; and sending
for Gushtasp, conferred upon him great honor, and appointed him to the
chief command of his army.

Having thus possessed himself of a leader of such skill and intrepidity,
he thought it necessary to turn his attention to external conquest, and
accordingly addressed a letter to Alias, the ruler of Khuz, in which he
said:--"Thou hast hitherto enjoyed thy kingdom in peace and
tranquillity; but thou must now resign it to me, or prepare for war."
Alias on receiving this imperious and haughty menace collected his
forces together, and advanced to the contest, and the king of Rum
assembled his own troops with equal expedition, under the direction of
Gu