Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 5.djvu/147

125 in supplication to God the Most High, but, as he was thus engaged, there flew down from the heights of the air a great black bird, which had tarried behind the rest, and kissed the hermit’s hands. The latter asked it of the Castle of Jewels, and it replied, saying, ‘O hermit, when I and my brothers were fledglings, we dwelt behind the mountain Caf on a hill of crystal, in the midst of a great desert, and our father and mother used to go and come with our food every day. They went out one day, [in quest of food,] and were absent from us seven days and hunger was sore upon us; but on the eighth day they returned, weeping, and we asked them the reason of their absence. Quoth they, “A Marid swooped down on us and carried us off to the Castle of Jewels and brought us before King Shehlan, who would have slain us; but we told him that we had left a young brood behind us; so he spared our lives [and let us go].” And were my parents yet in the bonds of life,’ added the bird, ‘they would give thee news of the castle.’

When Janshah heard this, he wept and besought the hermit to bid the bird carry him to the nest he spoke of on the crystal hill, behind the mountain Caf. So the hermit said to the bird, ‘I desire thee to obey this youth in whatsoever he may command thee.’ ‘I hear and obey,’ answered the bird and taking Janshah on its back, flew with him days and nights, till it set him down on the hill of crystal and said, ‘This is where our nest was.’ Janshah begged it to carry him farther on to where the old birds used to forage for food. So it took him up again and flew on with him seven nights and eight days, till it set him down on the top of a high hill, named Kermous, and left him there, saying, ‘I know of no land behind this hill.’ Then it flew away and Janshah sat down on the hill-top and fell asleep. When he awoke, he saw somewhat gleaming afar off [as it were lightning] and filling