ow hastened to gather together as much of it as
possible; but when he was ready to go he could not remember what to say
for thinking of his great riches. Instead of "Sesame," he said: "Open,
Barley!" and the door remained fast. He named several different sorts of
grain, all but the right one, and the door still stuck fast. He was so
frightened at the danger he was in that he had as much forgotten the
word as if he had never heard it.

About noon the robbers returned to their cave, and saw Cassim's mules
roving about with great chests on their backs. This gave them the alarm;
they drew their sabres, and went to the door, which opened on their
Captain's saying: "Open, Sesame!" Cassim, who had heard the trampling of
their horses' feet, resolved to sell his life dearly, so when the door
opened he leaped out and threw the Captain down. In vain, however, for
the robbers with their sabres soon killed him. On entering the cave they
saw all the bags laid ready, and could not imagine how anyone had got in
without knowing their secret. They cut Cassim's body into four quarters,
and nailed them up inside the cave, in order to frighten anyone who
should venture in, and went away in search of more treasure.

As night drew on Cassim's wife grew very uneasy, and ran to her
brother-in-law, and told him where her husband had gone. Ali Baba did
his best to comfort her, and set out to the forest in search of Cassim.
The first thing he saw on entering the cave was his dead brother. Full
of horror, he put the body on one of his asses, and bags of gold on the
other two, and, covering all with some fagots, returned home. He drove
the two asses laden with gold into his own yard, and led the other to
Cassim's house. The door was opened by the slave Morgiana, whom he knew
to be both brave and cunning. Unloading the ass, he said to her: "This
is the body of your master, who has been murdered, but whom we must bury
as though he had died in his bed. I will speak with you again, but now
tell your mistress I am come." The wife of Cassim, on learning the fate
of her husband, broke out into cries and tears, but Ali Baba offered to
take her to live with him and his wife if she would promise to keep
his counsel and leave everything to Morgiana; whereupon she agreed, and
dried her eyes.

Morgiana, meanwhile, sought an apothecary and asked him for some
lozenges. "My poor master," she said, "can neither eat nor speak, and
no one knows what his distemper is