o go for Bar
Shalmon himself.

"Nay, I will go," said the princess; "it will be impossible for my
husband to resist me."

She selected a large number of attendants, and the swift flight of the
princess and her retinue through the air caused a violent storm to
rage over the lands they crossed. Like a thick black cloud they
swooped down on the land where Bar Shalmon dwelt, and their weird
cries seemed like the wild shrieking of a mighty hurricane. Down they
swept in a tremendous storm such as the city had never known. Then, as
quickly as it came, the storm ceased, and the people who had fled into
their houses, ventured forth again.

The little son of Bar Shalmon went out into the garden, but quickly
rushed back into the house.

"Father, come forth and see," he cried. "The garden is full of strange
creatures brought by the storm. All manner of creeping, crawling
things have invaded the garden--lizards, toads, and myriads of
insects. The trees, the shrubs, the paths are covered, and some shine
in the twilight like tiny lanterns."

Bar Shalmon went out into the garden, but he did not see toads and
lizards. What he beheld was a vast array of demons and goblins and
sprites, and in a rose-bush the princess, his wife, shining like a
star, surrounded by her attendant fairies. She stretched forth her
arms to him.

"Husband mine," she pleaded, "I have come to implore thee to return to
the land of Ergetz with me. Sadly have I missed thee; long have I
waited for thy coming, and difficult has it been to appease my
father's anger. Come, husband mine, return with me; a great welcome
awaits thee."

"I will not return," said Bar Shalmon.

"Kill him, kill him," shrieked the demons, and they surrounded him,
gesticulating fiercely.

"Nay, harm him not," commanded the princess. "Think well, Bar
Shalmon, ere you answer again. The sun has set and night is upon us.
Think well, until sunrise. Come to me, return, and all shall be well.
Refuse, and thou shalt be dealt with as thou hast merited. Think well
before the sunrise."

"And what will happen at sunrise, if I refuse?" asked Bar Shalmon.

"Thou shalt see," returned the princess. "Bethink thee well, and
remember, I await thee here until the sunrise."

"I have answered; I defy thee," said Bar Shalmon, and he went indoors.

Night passed with strange, mournful music in the garden, and the sun
rose in its glory and spread its golden beams over the city. And with
the coming of the