r of Causes, rode on to the Place of
Gifts and dismounted at the platform. Everything happened just as Jamila
had foretold; when one or two watches of the night had passed, he saw
that the open ground around him was full of such stately and splendid
animals as he had never seen before. By-and-by, they made way for a
wonderfully big lion, which was eighty yards from nose to tail-tip,
and was a magnificent creature. The prince advanced and saluted it;
it proudly drooped its head and forelocks and paced to the platform.
Seventy or eighty others were with it, and now encircled it at a little
distance. It laid its right paw over its left, and the prince took the
kerchief Jamila had given him for the purpose, and rubbed the dust and
earth from its face; then brought forward the game he had prepared, and
crossing his hands respectfully on his breast stood waiting before it.
When it wished for food he cut off pieces of the meat and put them in
its mouth. The serving lions also came near and the prince would have
stayed his hand, but the king-lion signed to him to feed them too. This
he did, laying the meat on the platform. Then the king-lion beckoned the
prince to come near and said: 'Sleep at ease; my guards will watch.'.
So, surrounded by the lion-guard, he slept till dawn, when the king lion
said good-bye, and gave him a few of his own hairs and said: 'When you
are in any difficulty, burn one of these and I will be there.' Then it
went off into the jungle.

Prince Almas immediately started; he rode till he came to the parting of
the ways. He remembered quite well that the right-hand way was short and
dangerous, but he bethought himself too that whatever was written on his
forehead would happen, and took the forbidden road. By-and-by he saw a
castle, and knew from what Jamila had told him that it was the Place of
Clashing Swords. He would have liked to go back by the way ho had
come, but courage forbade, and he said, 'What has been preordained from
eternity will happen to me,' and went on towards the castle. He was
thinking of tying his horse to a tree which grew near the gate when a
negro came out and spied him. 'Ha!' said the wretch to himself, 'this is
good; Taram-taq has not eaten man-meat for a long time, and is craving
for some. I will take this creature to him.' He took hold of the
prince's reins, and said: 'Dismount, man-child! Come to my master. He
has wanted to eat man-meat this long time back.' 'What nonsense are
y