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collected small dry sticks. His uncle burnt an incense and said mysterious words. Aladdin tried to run away,[29] but the magician caught him and gave him a blow.[30]

      The poor boy asked, “Why do you beat me?”

      His uncle answered, “My son, obey me, and shortly you will forget all your troubles.”

      Suddenly the earth opened. There appeared a square flat stone with a brass ring in the middle.

      The wizard said to Aladdin, “If you do what I tell you, you will become richer than all the kings put together.[31] There is buried here a treasure[32] which is deposited in your name. No one else may touch it. Put your hand to the ring and raise the stone, only you have the power to open it. This treasure is immense. It is all for you and for me.”

      So poor Aladdin said, “O my uncle, command me and I will obey you.”

      And the wizard said to him, “You are like my own child! Go to that ring and lift it. And repeat your name and the names of your father and mother.”

      So Aladdin said the names of his parents and lifted the stone. Before him lay[33] twelve steps.

      The wizard said to him, “Aladdin, descend carefully there. You will find a place divided into three large halls. In each hall you will see four golden jars. Don’t touch anything, or you will die. Leave them and go on to the fourth hall. You will find a door. Open the door, enter, and you will see a garden full of fruit trees. Then you will see a ladder of about fifty steps. Come to a niche in a terrace. There stands a lighted lamp. Bring it to me.”

      He gave a ring to Aladdin, and said, “My son, this ring will guard you. You will become the richest man in the world!”

      So Aladdin went down into the cave. He found the halls and the golden jars. Then he came to the garden and went through it till he found the ladder. He climbed the ladder, took the Lamp, and went down into the garden.

      The trees were all covered with precious stones instead of fruit. Each tree was of a different kind and had different jewels, of all colours, green and white and yellow and red and other colours. Aladdin gathered pockets full of them and said, “I will gather these glass fruits and play with them at home.”

      When he came to the steps, he was unable to climb them by himself, without help. And he called to the magician, “O my uncle, give me your hand and help me to get up.” The wizard replied, “Give me the Lamp, it is very heavy.”

      But Aladdin answered, “No, the Lamp is not heavy at all. Give me only your hand, and when I am up,[34] I will give you the Lamp.”

      But the wizard wanted only the Lamp and became very angry. The wizard cried, “You silly boy! You will stay here for ever![35]” He said magical words and threw the stick into the fire. Immediately the earth closed again. Aladdin remained under the ground. The magician was just a stranger and no uncle of Aladdin. He read in his magic books about a wonderful Lamp. This Lamp could make him the most powerful man in the world. He heaped the earth over Aladdin. Then he went away.

      But as for[36] Aladdin, he began to call his uncle. He shouted, and no one answered him. Then he understood that the stranger was no uncle at all.[37] So Aladdin began to weep.

      Then he began to look for[38] an exit. The doors were shut. But he noticed the ring! The false uncle gave him a ring and said, “This ring will guard you from all danger.”

      So Aladdin rubbed the ring. Immediately a Jinn appeared before him and cried, “Here I am, your slave, between your hands. Ask what you want, for I see the ring of my master.”

      When Aladdin saw the Jinn, he was very afraid. But the Jinn said, “Ask what you want, I am your servant, for the ring is on your hand.”

      Aladdin said, “Deliver me from this place!” And the earth opened, and he found himself outside.[39]

      Aladdin came back home. He told his mother what happened and showed her the Lamp and the fruits.

      Aladdin said to his mother, “Ah, my mother, that false uncle wanted to kill me! He is a sorcerer, a liar.”

      In the morning his mother said to him, “We don’t have anything to eat.”

      Aladdin replied, “Mother, give me the Lamp. I think we can sell it.”

      She brought the Lamp. But it was very dirty, so she said, “We need to clean and polish it.”

      She took a handful of sand and began to rub the lamp. Instantly a great Jinn appeared. “I am the Slave of the Lamp. What do you want?” The mother was very afraid and could not say a word.

      Aladdin said, “O Slave of the Lamp, I am hungry. Bring me something to eat!” The Jinn brought him a magnificent tray, made of pure silver. On the tray there were twelve golden dishes of various delicious foods and two silver cups of clear water.

      So they began to eat. After that Aladdin said, “The false uncle didn’t want gold or silver. He ordered me to bring him the Lamp. He knew its great value. But he tried to kill me, and he went away, so now this Lamp is mine. It will make us rich.”

      When they ate all the food, Aladdin sold one of the golden plates. Then the Jinn gave him another set of plates. Thus they lived happily for many years.

      And he learned that the “fruits” which he gathered in the Treasury were not of glass or crystal. These things were precious stones. And he knew that he was very rich.

      One day Aladdin heard an order from the Sultan, “Let all the people close their stores and shops and stay home! The daughter of the Sultan will go to and from the bath.”

      When Aladdin heard this order, he said, “All the people talk of her beauty. I want to see her face!” But this was very difficult because she always went veiled.[40]

      So Aladdin began to think about how to see the face of the daughter of the Sultan. It seemed best to him[41] to stand behind the door of the bath so as to see her face when she came in. He went to the bath before her and stood behind the door. When the daughter of the Sultan appeared, she lifted her veil, and Aladdin saw her face. It was like a sun or a pearl of great price. He fell in love with her at first sight.[42]

      He returned to his mother. His mother spoke to him, but he did not reply and did not eat. So she asked, “O my son, what happened to you? Are you sick?”

      Then Aladdin turned to his mother and said to her, “O my mother, I am well and not sick at all. But I saw the daughter of the Sultan. I fell in love with her. I want to marry her!”

      When his mother heard his words, she feared, “O my son! You are mad. She is the Sultan’s daughter.”

      Aladdin answered, “No, I’m not mad. I will win the lovely princess! I cannot live without her. I will marry her.”

      His mother said to him, “But who will tell Sultan about it? You can not tell him yourself. You must find a right person.[43]”

      Aladdin answered, “I have you! Please ask the Sultan about his daughter.”

      His mother said, “Cast

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