" On hearing these words, they replied: "We
have not concealed this affair from thee but in our concern for thy
welfare, lest thou shouldst become like us, and the same affliction that
hath befallen us happen also to thee." I said, however: "Ye must
positively inform me of this matter." "We give thee good advice," said
they, "and do thou receive it, and ask us not respecting our case;
otherwise thou wilt become blind of one eye, like us"--but I still
persisted in my request; whereupon they said: "O young man, if this
befall thee, know that thou wilt be banished from our company." They
then all arose, and, taking a ram, slaughtered and skinned it, and said
to me: "Take this knife with thee, and introduce thyself into the skin
of the ram, and we will sew thee up in it, and go away; whereupon a bird
called the roc will come to thee, and, taking thee up by its talons,
will fly away with thee, and set thee down upon a mountain: then cut
open the skin with this knife, and get out, and the bird will fly away.
Thou must arise, as soon as it hath gone, and journey for half a day,
and thou wilt see before thee a lofty palace, encased with red gold, set
with various precious stones such as emeralds and rubies; and if thou
enter it thy case will be as ours; for our entrance into that palace was
the cause of our being blind of one eye; and if one of us would relate
to thee all that hath befallen him, his story would be too long for thee
to hear."

They then sewed me up in the skin, and entered their palace; and soon
after, there came an enormous white bird, which seized me, and flew away
with me, and set me down upon the mountain; whereupon I cut open the
skin, and got out; and the bird, as soon as it saw me, flew away. I rose
up quickly, and proceeded toward the palace, which I found to be as they
had described it to me; and when I had entered it, I beheld, at the
upper end of a saloon, forty young damsels, beautiful as so many moons,
and magnificently attired, who, as soon as they saw me, exclaimed:
"Welcome! Welcome! O our master and our lord! We have been for a month
expecting thee. Praise be to God who hath blessed us with one who is
worthy of us, and one of whom we are worthy!" After having thus greeted
me, they seated me upon a mattress, and said; "Thou art from this day
our master and prince, and we are thy handmaids, and entirely under thy
authority." They then brought to me some refreshments, and, when I had
eaten and drun