hey then came out of the vessel with
various clothes of the most beautiful description, and in the midst of
them was an old sheikh, enfeebled and wasted by extreme age, leading by
the hand a young man cast in the mould of graceful symmetry, and
invested with such perfect beauty as deserved to be a subject for
proverbs. He was like a fresh and slender twig, enchanting and
captivating every heart by his elegant form. The party proceeded to the
trap-door, and, entering it, became concealed from my eyes.

They remained beneath about two hours, or more; after which, the sheikh
and the slaves came out; but the youth came not with them; and they
replaced the earth, and embarked and set sail. Soon after, I descended
from the tree, and went to the excavation. I removed the earth, and,
entering the aperture, saw a flight of wooden steps, which I descended;
and, at the bottom, I beheld a handsome dwelling-place, furnished with a
variety of silken carpets; and there was the youth, sitting upon a high
mattress, with sweet-smelling flowers and fruits placed before him. On
seeing me, his countenance became pale; but I saluted him, and said:
"Let thy mind be composed, O my master: thou hast nothing to fear; for I
am a man, and the son of a king, like thyself: fate hath impelled me to
thee, that I may cheer thee in thy solitude." The youth, when he heard
me thus address him, and was convinced that I was one of his own
species, rejoiced exceedingly at my arrival, his colour returned, and,
desiring me to approach him, he said: "O my brother, my story is
wonderful: my father is a jeweller; he had slaves who made voyages
by his orders, for the purposes of commerce, and he had dealings with
kings; but he had never been blest with a son; and he dreamt that he was
soon to have a son, but one whose life would be short; and he awoke
sorrowful. Shortly after, in accordance with the decrees of God, my
mother gave birth to me; and my father was greatly rejoiced: the
astrologers, however, came to him, and said: Thy son will live fifteen
years: his fate is intimated by the fact that there is in the sea a
mountain called the Mountain of Loadstone, whereon is a horseman on a
horse of brass, on the former of which is a tablet of lead suspended to
his neck; and when the horseman shall be thrown down from his horse, thy
son will be slain: the person who is to slay him is he who will throw
down the horseman, and his name is King Agib, the son of King Khasib