"We stood in a spacious court, the blue sky overhead, velvety grass
underfoot and the windows of the house all around us. Most of these
were open and in some of them were caged birds singing gloriously, and
against all the sills were window-boxes full of flowers. Flowering ivy
and climbing roses trailed here and there up the sides of the building,
and there were so many rose bushes about in the gardens that the scent
of them was quite heavy in the air. A small fountain stood at either
end of the enclosure, in which curious small silver fish jumped and
splashed about in the late afternoon sun.
"In the exact center of the court stood a large shrub about eight feet
tall. It was beautifully trimmed and perfectly conical in form. The
thick foliage was a dark, bright green, and the whole bush was covered
with pure yellow flowers. They looked very much like velvety yellow
pansies. I walked over and touched one. It was stiff and hard and
shone with a metallic luster. It had evidently been on the bush for
some time, as the buds and new blossoms were as soft as any flower.
"'If my father could but see it,' I murmured. 'If he had even a tiny
plant I am sure it would prolong his life.'
"'You shall have a seed, dear Prince,' said the old gentleman, 'and it
will grow very quickly, you shall see. Perhaps I did not tell you that
only one seed is formed every seven years and that from the blossoms
which comes out first on the seventh day of the seventh month, the day
when the plant begins its yearly period of bloom. The seed which I
have saved for you ripened only a few days ago, so you are very
fortunate.'
"He went back into the house and returned with a small golden box from
which he took a gold ring set with a valuable black diamond. He
pressed a spring and the stone lifted, disclosing a small seed lying in
the cavity. He shut the spring down again.
"'Put this on your finger,' he said, 'and do not open it until you are
safely at home and in your father's conservatory. Plant it in an
unpretentious pot at night, and do not tell anyone what it is, but
watch it every day yourself. The fairy too will watch it and pick the
blossoms for you, as no mortal can do that. She will pick the seed
flower as soon as it blooms, so that the Evil Magician may not secure
the seed.'
"I thanked him with tears in my eyes and hoped that I might see the
good fairy when I reached home.
"The old gentleman then took me over the house, which was indeed as
magnificent as he had said, and after that we went to see the grounds
and the immense wall.
"'We will have to ride,' said he, and led the way to the stables where
stood his two horses, fine sleek animals. A colored boy, who of course
like the other servants, was a fairy, harnessed them, and after riding
through the park and past the lovely gardens we came to a great gateway
in the high wall.
"The old gentleman reached down and touched a button at the side and
the gates swung slowly open, closing again as soon as we had passed out.
"Out there were more trees set well apart and at some distance from the
wall, and beyond that the yellow desert sands stretched away in the
distance. We rode along beside the wall, which on this side faced the
west. I was surprised to see that the whole wall was set with mirrors
of magnifying glass, now reflecting the gorgeous colors of the sunset
as it glowed in between the trees. It would have been beautiful had it
not been for the frightful reflections of ourselves and the horses.
They loomed large and distorted before us, and the old gentleman
explained to me that he never had blinders on the horses excepting when
they were riding beside the wall. He had tried riding without the
blinders one day, but his horse had bolted in fright, and he had great
difficulty in getting him inside again.
"'Now I can understand,' I said, 'why I thought I saw a lake when I was
traveling towards this oasis. And now too I know what kind of giants
chase all those who attempt to cross the desert.'
"'Yes,' answered the old gentleman smiling, 'it is a wise precaution of
the fairy's, and very harmless, but I should like to hear what the
travelers tell.'
"The mirrors stretched right across the oasis, which was of a very
irregular shape, and by the time we arrived again at the main gate and
entered the grounds it was nearly dark.
"Dinner was ready, and after it was over the old gentleman told me I
had better leave about midnight so as to be back in the village before
it was light enough for anyone to see me.
"'But how am I to get back so quickly?' I asked.
"'The way you came,' replied the old gentleman.
"'But what if Bowser will not carry the basket?' I cried. 'He has
eaten all the peaches now, and I have no more.'
"'Yes,' he replied, 'but this time you will be on Bowser's back, and I
can promise you he will take you over in very quick time, for he has
been shut up in his cage without any supper and by midnight will be so
hungry that he will not lose any time in reaching the nearest peach
orchard. I am sorry to think that some poor farmer will suffer, but it
is the only way you can get safely back.'
"I thanked him for this further evidence of his kindness and the
evening passed very quickly in conversation. I had to do most of the
talking, as the two old people had heard no news of the world since the
fairy's last visit, and listened intently to all I could tell them."