Types of Children's Literature: A Collection of the World's Best Literature for Children, For Use in Colleges, Normal Schools and Library Schools
General
Types of Children's Literature: A Collection of the World's Best Literature for Children, For Use in Colleges, Normal Schools and Library Schools
Children's literature
When the sultan returned to his palace, he ordered his jewels to be
brought out, and the jewelers took a great quantity, particularly those
Aladdin had made him a present of, which they soon used, without making
any great advance in their work. They came again several times for
more, and in a month's time had not finished half their work. In short,
they used all the jewels the sultan had, and borrowed of the vizier,
but yet the work was not half done.
Aladdin, who knew that all the sultan's endeavors to make this window
like the rest were in vain, sent for the jewelers and goldsmiths, and
not only commanded them to desist from their work, but ordered them to
undo what they had begun, and to carry all their jewels back to the
sultan and to the vizier. They undid in a few hours what they had been
six weeks about, and retired, leaving Aladdin alone in the hall. He
took the lamp which he carried about him, rubbed it, and presently the
genie appeared. "Genie," said Aladdin, "I ordered thee to leave one of
the four and twenty windows of this hall imperfect, and thou hast
executed my commands punctually; now I would have thee make it like the
rest." The genie immediately disappeared. Aladdin went out of the hall,
and returning soon after, found the window, as he wished it to be, like
the others.
In the meantime, the jewelers and goldsmiths repaired to the palace,
and were introduced into the sultan's presence; where the chief
jeweler, presenting the precious stones which he had brought back,
said, in the name of all the rest, "Your Majesty knows how long we have
been upon the work you were pleased to set us about, in which we used
all imaginable industry. It was far advanced, when prince Aladdin
commanded us not only to leave off, but to undo what we had already
begun, and bring your Majesty your jewels back." The sultan asked them
if Aladdin had given them any reason for so doing, and they answering
that he had given them none, he ordered a horse to be brought, which he
mounted, and rode to his son-in-law's palace, with some few attendants
on foot. When he came there, he alighted at the staircase, which led up
to the hall with the twenty-four windows, and went directly up to it,
without giving previous notice to Aladdin; but it happened that at that
very juncture Aladdin was opportunely there, and had just time to
receive him at the door.
The sultan, without giving Aladdin time to complain obligingly of his
not having given notice, that he might have acquitted himself with the
more becoming respect, said to him, "Son, I come myself to know the
reason why you commanded the jewelers to desist from work, and take to
pieces what they had done."
Aladdin disguised the true reason, which was, that the sultan was not
rich enough in jewels to be at so great an expense, but said, "I beg of
you now to see if anything is wanting."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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