words, than he found himself on the very spot where the magician had last left him, and no sign of cave or opening, nor disturbance of the earth. Returning God thanks to find himself once more in the world, he made the best of his way home. When he got within his mother’s door, the joy of seeing her and his weakness for want of sustenance made him so faint that he remained for a long time as dead. As soon as he recovered, he related to his mother all that had happened to him, and they were both vehement in their complaints of the cruel magician. Aladdin slept soundly till late the next morning, when the first thing he said to his mother was that he wished she would give him his breakfast. “Alas! child,” said she, “I have not a bit of bread to give you; you ate up all the provisions I had in the house yesterday; but I have a little cotton which I have spun; I will go and sell it, and buy bread and something for our dinner.” “Mother,” replied Aladdin, “keep your cotton for another time, and give me the lamp I brought home with me yesterday; I will go and sell it, and the money I get for it will serve both for breakfast and dinner, and perhaps supper too.”
Aladdin’s mother took the lamp and said to her son, “Here it is, but it is very dirty; if it were a little cleaner I believe it would bring something more.” She took some fine sand and water to clean it; but had no sooner begun to rub it, than in an instant a hideous genie of gigantic size appeared and said in a voice of thunder, “What wouldst thou
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