“The dagger, too, was his father’s; this he stuck in the girdle when he set out upon his way, with his staff in hand. “Happy and well content he wandered along. If he spied a piece of broken glass glittering in the sunshine, he put it in his pocket believing it was a diamond. “If he saw the distant cupolas of a mosque shining like fire, or the sea stretched before him as smooth as a mirror, he hurried along thinking for sure he was coming to an enchanted country. But alas! the magic pictures changed as he approached them, and all too soon his weariness and empty stomach reminded him that he was still in the land of mortals. “Thus he wandered on for two whole days and nights, hungry, weary, and dejected, in search of a fortune he began to fear he would never find. The wild fruits were his only food and the hard earth was his bed. On the third morning, from the top of a high hill, he saw a large town. “He could see the glittering crescent and bright coloured flags upon the roofs and it seemed to little Mouk that they beckoned him nearer. He stood a few moments watching the town and its surroundings in surprise. ‘There will little Mouk make his fortune if anywhere,’ he said, and in spite of his fatigue he jumped for joy, then summoning all his strength he began to walk towards the city. But although it appeared so close he did not reach it until mid-day, for his poor little legs almost refused their office, so that he was obliged to rest frequently in the shade of a palm tree. But at length he reached the city gate. He shook out his mantle, re-arranged his turban, spread out his girdle and set his dagger jauntily in it, then, wiping the dust from his shoes, he strode bravely into the city. “He had wandered through several streets, but nowhere had a door been opened to him, nowhere had the folks called out to him as he had imagined they would: ‘Come in, little Mouk, come in, eat drink, and rest your weary little legs.’ “But as he glanced longingly at a fine large house opposite him, a window opened and an old woman popped her head out and began calling out in sing-song tones: “‘Come everyone, The food is done, Decked is the cloth, Come taste the broth, Ye neighbours all Come to my call!’ The house-door opened and little Mouk saw many cats and dogs enter. He stood a moment in doubt as to whether he should answer the invitation, but at length he took courage and went in. A pair of young cats trotted along before him and he decided to follow them, guessing they knew the way to the kitchen better than he did. [Illustration: _THE STORY OF LITTLE MOUK._ _“He decided to follow them.”_] “When Mouk reached the top of the staircase he saw the old woman who had looked out of the window. She looked at him sulkily and asked what he wanted--‘I heard you inviting everyone to partake of your food,’ answered little Mouk, ‘and came in too, because I was so hungry.’