Page:The book of wonder voyages (1919).djvu/201

 dost thou bid us do? If thou wilt we will dry thee up seas and remove mountains from their places." So Hasan rejoiced and said: "Who are ye, and what be your names and your races, and to what tribes do ye belong?" They replied: "We are seven Kings, each ruling over seven tribes of the Jinn, and Satans and Marids, flyers and divers, dwellers in mountains and wastes and wolds and haunters of the seas; so bid us do whatso thou wilt, for whoso possesseth this rod hath dominion over us." And Hasan rejoiced exceedingly, as did his wife and the old woman. And he said: "I would have you carry me forthwith to the city of Bagdad, me and my wife, and this honest woman." And they answered: "O our lord, we are of the covenant of our lord, Solomon son of David, and he made us sware that we would bear none of the sons of Adam upon our backs. But we will harness the horses of the Jinn and they shall carry thee and thy company to thy country." "How far are we from Bagdad?" asked Hasan. "Seven years' journey for a diligent horseman," they replied. At this Hasan marveled and said: "Then how came I hither in less than a year?" And they replied: "Allah softened to thee the hearts of his pious servants." And he asked again, "When ye have mounted me upon your steeds, in how many days will they bring us to Bagdad?" They answered: "They will carry you thither under the year, but not till ye have endured terrible perils and hardships, and horrors, and we cannot promise thee safety."