Page:The jade story book; stories from the Orient (IA jadestorybooksto00cous).pdf/60

44 and pretended that he was her daughter.

One day, not long after this, as the Magician was walking in his garden he saw a little girl (as he thought) playing about, and asked her who she was. She told him she was the Malee's daughter, and the Magician said, "You are a very pretty little girl, and to-morrow you shall take a present of flowers from me to the beautiful lady who lives in the tower."

This delighted the young Prince, who went immediately to inform the Malee's wife.

Now it happened that when Balna was married her husband had given her a small gold ring on which her name was engraved, and she had put it on her little son's finger when he was a baby, and later on it was enlarged, so that he was still able to wear it. The Malee's wife advised him to fasten this ring to the bouquet he was to present to his mother, and she would surely recognize it.

This the young Prince did the next day when he took the flowers to the imprisoned Princess. Balna knew the ring at once, and