Faithful John bade the King stay behind on the ship, and wait for him.
“Perhaps I shall bring the princess with me,” said he, “therefore see
that everything is in order; have the golden vessels set out and the
whole ship decorated.” Then he gathered together in his apron all kinds
of gold things, went on shore and walked straight to the royal palace.
When he entered the courtyard of the palace, a beautiful girl was
standing there by the well with two golden buckets in her hand, drawing
water with them. And when she was just turning round to carry away the
sparkling water she saw the stranger, and asked who he was. So he
answered, “I am a merchant,” and opened his apron, and let her look in.
Then she cried, “Oh, what beautiful gold things!” and put her pails
down and looked at the golden wares one after the other. Then said the
girl, “The princess must see these, she has such great pleasure in
golden things, that she will buy all you have.” She took him by the
hand and led him upstairs, for she was the waiting-maid. When the
King’s daughter saw the wares, she was quite delighted and said, “They
are so beautifully worked, that I will buy them all of thee.” But
Faithful John said, “I am only the servant of a rich merchant. The
things I have here are not to be compared with those my master has in
his ship. They are the most beautiful and valuable things that have
ever been made in gold.” She wanted to have everything brought to her
there, but he said, “There are so many of them that it would take a
great many days to do that, and so many rooms would be required to
exhibit them, that your house is not big enough.” Then her curiosity
and longing were still more excited, until at last she said, “Conduct
me to the ship, I will go there myself, and behold the treasures of
thine master.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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