458 THE ARABIAN NIGHTS.

looked through, having previously formed a wisn to see the
sultan his father, whom he instantly beheld in perfect health,
sitting on his throne in the midst of his council.

Prince Ali wanted nothing more to convince him that this
tube was the most valuable and rare thing that existed, not
only in the city of Schiraz, but throughout the whole world;
and he thought that if he neglected to purchase it, he should
never again meet with so extraordinary a thing, either at
Schiraz or during his travels, if he spent ten years or more in
the search. He then asked the crier the exact price the owner
had fixed on it, which he was told was forty purses. He imme-
diately took the crier to his khan, and became the purchaser.

After spending some time in seeing various curiosities he
joined a caravan which was ready to depart. No accident dis-
turbed or retarded their progress, and without suffering any
other inconvenience than the fatigue common to so long a jour-
ney, Prince Ali arrived in safety at the same place where his
brother Houssain already was. These two remained together,
expecting the arrival of Prince Ahmed.

This prince had bent his course towards Samarcand, and on
the day after his arrival there, he went to the bezestein. He had
hardly entered the place before he saw a crier carrying an arti-
ficial apple in his hand, which he put up at thirty-five purses.
Prince Ahmed stopped the crier. “Let me see this apple,” he
cried, “and tell me what particular excellence it possesses, that
you should put it up at the very extraordinary price of thirty-
five purses.” The crier gave it into his hand that he might
examine it. “ Sir,” he said, “this apple, if you only consider its
external appearance, is of very little apparent value: but if you
reflect upon its properties, you must confess that it is beyond
all price. In fact, sir, there is no disease, however dangerous,
but it will cure, and this is effected by the easiest of all possible
ways: it is simply to make the sick person smell at it.”

“Tf the account you have been giving might be relied upon,”
replied Prince Ahmed, “Iwill purchase the apple; but can I
be convinced that there is neither prevarication nor exaggeration
in what you have been relating to me ?”

While the crier had been giving this account to the prince of
the apple, many people stopped and listened. One of them
having said that he had a friend who was so dangerously ill that