THE SALT OF LIFE

merchants and the chief men of the city began to be
taken. One time,” said the old man, “I myself had three
sons—as noble young men as could be found in the wide
world. One day the chief of the queen’s officers came to
my house and asked me concerning how many sons I had.
I was forced to tell him, and in a little while they were
taken one by one to the queen’s palace, and I never saw
them again.

‘But misfortune, like death, comes upon the young as
well as the old. You yourself have had trouble, or else I
am mistaken. Tell me what lies upon your heart, my
son, for the talking of it makes the burthen lighter.”

The prince did as the old man bade him, and told all of
his story; and so they sat talking and talking until far
into the night, and the old man grew fonder and fonder of
the prince the more he saw of him. So the end of the
matter was that he asked the prince to live with him as
his son, seeing that the young man had now no father and
he no children, and the prince consented gladly enough.

So the two lived together like father and son, and the
good old man began to take some joy in life once more.

But one day who should come riding up to the door but
the chief of the queen’s officers.

“ How is this?” said he to the old man, when he saw
the prince. ‘‘ Did you not tell me that you had but three
sons, and is this not a fourth ?”

It was of no use for the old man to tell the officer that
the youth was not his son, but was a prince who had come
to visit that country. The officer drew forth his tablets
and wrote something upon them, and then went his way,
leaving the old man sighing and groaning. ‘Ah, me!”
said he, ““my heart sadly forebodes trouble.”

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