s the answer, 'we are there now!'

'I'm glad of that,' said Hassan; 'I want some light.'

'Very sorry!' exclaimed the Magician.

'And something to eat,' said Hassan.

'Very sorry,' answered the Magician again, but he did not sound sorry in
the least. Hassan thought he sounded quite glad, though there did not
seem much to be glad about. Then Hassan began to stamp about on the
grass just as if he were at home, and he scowled until his forehead was
full of wrinkles, only he might as well have laughed, for there was
nobody to see him.

'Now,' said the Magician, 'I hope you will make yourself quite at home.
Everybody does exactly as he likes here. What should you like to do?'

'You said I could have anything I asked for,' answered Hassan, 'and I
should like something nice to eat.'

'Well,' said the Magician very civilly, 'you can look round and choose
anything you see.'

'What's the use of looking round,' asked Hassan, 'if I can't see
anything?'

'No, no!' cried the Magician very politely, 'of course not. No use at
all.'

'Then why did you tell me to look?' said Hassan.

'Anything you see you may ask for,' said the Magician, as if he were
muttering to himself, 'and anything you ask for you may have.'

Hassan felt so cross at hearing these words again that he flung himself
on the grass and kicked his legs about and began to cry. He always made
a great noise when he cried, but the Magician seemed not to mind in the
least. Presently Hassan fell asleep and dreamed he was at a great feast,
where the table was loaded with large joints of meat, and with turkeys
and pheasants, with a round Christmas pudding at one end. The Magician
was just going to carve, and he said that Hassan might ask for whatever
he saw. 'I'll have turkey first,' Hassan dreamed he said, 'and then
pheasant and then Christmas pudding.' All the things he named were
placed upon a plate at once; only, just as he was going to taste the
turkey, the plate fell to the ground and Hassan awoke. He felt so hungry
and the dream seemed so real, that he sat up and began to feel on the
grass for his plate.

'Hullo!' cried the Magician, 'have you lost anything?'

'I dreamed I was just going to have some turkey,' said Hassan.

'Ah, well!' answered the Magician, 'you may ask for anything you see,
you know.' But it seemed darker than ever; Hassan could see nothing and
he began to feel very miserable indeed. He never learned how long he
stayed with the Magician,