Page:Turkish fairy tales and folk tales (1901).djvu/153

 Meanwhile the youth hid himself in the neighbouring mountain, and there awaited the good news.

When the Wind-Demon awoke from his forty days' sleep he again presented himself at the damsel's door. "Depart from before my eyes," cried the girl. "Here hast thou been doing nothing but sleep these forty days, so that life has been a loathsome thing to me all the while."

The Demon rejoiced that he was allowed to be in the room along with the damsel, and in his happiness asked her what he should give her to help her to while away the time.

"What canst thou give me," said the girl, "seeing that thou thyself art but wind? Now if at least thou hadst a talisman, that, at any rate, would be something to while away the time with."

"Alas! my Sultana," replied the Demon, "my talisman is far away, in the uttermost ends of the earth, and one cannot fetch it hither in a little instant. If only we had some such brave man as thy Mehmed was, he perhaps might be able to go for it."

The damsel was now more curious than ever about the talisman, and she coaxed and coaxed till at last she persuaded the Demon to tell her about the talisman, but not till she had granted his request that he might sit down quite close to her. The damsel could not refuse him that happiness, so he sat down