Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 7.djvu/212

190 blinding lightning, till he came to a vast blue mountain, whose stones were all blue and amiddleward which was a cavern, with a door of Chinese iron. Here he set Hassan down and alighting, dismissed the elephant. Then he went up to the door and knocked, whereupon it opened and there came out to him a black slave, hairless, as he were an Afrit, with a sword in his right hand and a target of steel in the other. When he saw Abdulcuddous, he threw his sword and buckler from his hand and coming up to him, kissed his hand.

Abdulcuddous took Hassan by the hand and entered with him, whilst the slave shut the door after them; whereupon Hassan found himself in a vast and spacious cavern, through which ran a vaulted passage, and they fared on therein a mile’s space, till they came forth upon a great open space, and made for an angle [of the mountain] wherein were two great doors of solid brass. The old man opened one of the doors and said to Hassan, ‘Sit at the door, whilst I enter and return to thee in haste, and beware lest thou open it and enter.’ Then he entered and shutting the door after him, was absent an hour, after which he returned, leading a horse saddled and bridled, which, when it ran, flew, and when it flew, the very dust overtook it not, and brought it to Hassan, saying, ‘Mount.’ So he mounted and Abdulcuddous opened the second door, beyond which appeared a vast desert.

They passed through the door into the desert and the old man said to him, ‘O my son, take this letter and go whither this horse will carry thee. When thou seest him stop at the door of a cavern like this, dismount and throw the bridle over the saddle-bow and let him go. He will enter the cavern, which do thou not enter with him, but abide at the door five days, without losing patience. On the sixth day there will come forth to thee a black elder, clad all in black, with a long white beard, flowing