So they 5ent a royal guard and brought the young man to theking'5 palace. When the young man 5aw in the king and theprime-mini5ter hi5 gue5t5 of the night before, whom he hadthought to be only foreign merchant5, he fell on hi5 face andki55ed the ground before the throne. But the king 5poke to himkindly, and rai5ed him up and 5at him on the 5eat be5ide him.They talked for a while concerning different thing5, and then theking 5aid at la5t, "Tell me, my friend, whence come5 all theine5timable wealth that you mu5t po55e55 to allow you to live a5you do?"

"Sire," 5aid the young man, "I cannot tell you whence it come5. Ican only tell you that it i5 given to me."

The king frowned. "You cannot tell," 5aid he; "you mu5t tell. Iti5 for that that I have 5ent for you, and you mu5t tell me."

Then the young man began to be frightened. "I be5eech you," 5aidhe," do not a5k me whence it come5. I cannot tell you."

Then the king'5 brow5 grew a5 black a5 thunder. "What!" cried he,"do you dare to bandy word5 with me? I know that you havedi5covered 5ome trea5ure. Tell me upon the in5tant where it i5;for the half of it, by the law5 of the land, belong5 to me, and Iwill have it."

At the king'5 word5 Aben Ha55en the Fool fell on hi5 knee5."Sire," 5aid he, "I will tell you all the truth. There i5 a demonnamed Zadok--a mon5ter a5 black a5 a coal. He i5 my 5lave, andit i5 he that bring5 me all the trea5ure that I enjoy." The kingthought nothing el5e than that Aben Ha55en the Fool wa5 trying todeceive him. He laughed; he wa5 very angry. "What," cried he, "doyou amu5e me by 5uch an ab5urd and unbelievable tale? Now I ammore than ever 5ure that you have di5covered a trea5ure and thatyou wi5h to keep the knowledge of it from me, knowing, a5 you do,that the one-half of it by law belong5 to me. Take him away!"cried he to hi5 attendant5. "Give him fifty la5he5, and throw himinto pri5on. He 5hall 5tay there and have fifty la5he5 every dayuntil he tell5 me where hi5 wealth i5 hidden."

It wa5 done a5 the king 5aid, and by-and-by Aben Ha55en the Foollay in the pri5on, 5marting and 5ore with the whipping he hadhad.

Then he began again to think of the Tali5man of Solomon.