"You must take myself and my husband, and my servants, and this
beautiful house, to the other side of the Red Sea, [94] and leave my
daughter and her husband here."
When the young couple awoke in the morning, they found themselves
in the old castle, and their snuff-box was gone. They look for it
everywhere, but it is useless.
The young man will not wait an instant longer at home. He must start
off at once to find his castle and his snuff-box. He takes a horse,
and as much gold as the horse can carry, and he goes on, and on, and
on, and on. He searches through all the towns in the neighbourhood
until he had finished all his money. He searched, but he did not
find it anywhere. But he went looking out still, feeding his horse
as best he could, and begging for himself. Some one told him that he
ought to go to the moon--that he makes a very long journey, and that
he might guide him. He goes far, far, far away, on, and on, and on,
and at last he arrives. He finds an old woman, who says to him--
"What do you come to do here? My son devours all creatures of all
sorts; and, if you will trust me, you will be off before his arrival."
He tells her his misfortunes--how that he had a snuff-box of great
power, which has been stolen from him, and that he is now without
anything, far from his wife, and stripped of everything, "and perhaps
your son, in his journeys, has seen my palace, with its golden laths
and tiles of diamonds, and the other ornaments of gold and silver."
At that moment the moon appeared, and said to his mother that he
smelt some one. His mother told him how that there was a wretched
man who had lost everything; that he was come to him (for help), and
that he would guide him. The moon told him to show himself. He comes,
and asks him if he has not seen a house with beams of gold and with
tiles of diamonds, and the rest of gold and silver; and he tells him
how it was taken away from him.
He answers, "No;" that he has not seen it, but that the sun makes
longer journeys than he, and of greater extent, and that he would do
better to go to him.
He goes off again, on, and on, and on, with his horse, whom he
nourished as he could, and begging for himself. At length he arrives
at the sun's house. He finds an old woman, who said to him,
"Where do you come from? Be off from here! Do you not know that my
son eats all Christians?"
He said to her, "No! I will not go away. I am so wretched that I do
not care if he does eat me."
And he tells her how he has lost everything; that he had a house,
which had not its equal, with beams of gold and tiles of diamonds,
and all the ornaments of gold and precious stones; and that he had
been going about looking for it so long a time, and that there was
no man so wretched as he. This woman hides him. The sun comes out
and says to his mother--
"I smell the smell of a Christian, and I must eat him."
The mother tells him that it was an unfortunate man who had lost his
all, that he had come to speak to him, and begs him to take pity on
him. He tells her to bring him out. Then the young man comes and
asks the sun if he has seen a palace which has its equal nowhere,
with its laths of gold and its tiles of diamonds, and the rest of
gold and silver. The sun says to him:
"No, but the south wind searches everything that I cannot see. He
enters into every corner, he does, and if any one ought to know he
will know."
Our poor man then sets off again, feeding his horse how he could and
begging for himself, and he comes at length to the house of the south
wind. [95] He finds an old woman carrying water, and who was filling
a great many barrels. She said to him:
"What are you thinking of to come here? My son eats up everything
when he arrives hungry and furious. You must beware of him."
He says to her, "It is all the same to me. Let him eat me; I am so
wretched that I fear nothing."
And he tells her how he had a beautiful house which had not its
equal in all the world, and with it all sorts of riches, and that,
"Having abandoned my wife, I am seeking it, and I am come to consult
your son, being sent by the sun."
She hides him under the staircase. The south wind arrives as if he
meant to tear the house up, and very thirsty. Before beginning to drink
he smells the smell of the race of Christians, and said to his mother:
"Out with what you have hidden," and that he must begin by eating him.