good? My soul is afraid, for I hear that the date-tree has borne well, and the dates are fine, so I am afraid of sending you and missing eating the dates." And he said, "Have patience to-day, and let me go, father, and see my luck, whether you will eat dates, or miss them."
His wife said, "Master, let the child go, and let us try, perhaps we shall get dates and eat them—or we shall miss them—let the child go, then." And he said, "My wife, I do not refuse the child's going, but my heart distrusts him." And she said, "Never mind, master, let the child go." And he said, "Father, to-morrow if you, and I, and mother be alive, to-morrow you shall eat dates, father." And he said, "Your brothers said just the same, 'Father, you shall eat dates,' and I have eaten none." And he said, "Come, be off to the plantation."
When he reached the garden, he told all the slaves of the plantation, "Go and sleep." And they said, "Ah, master, shall we leave you by yourself?" And he said, "The night will not eat me, that I should fear it." And they said, "Very well, master, good-bye." And he said, "Good-bye to you."
And that youth went inside and slept, and slept soundly till one o'clock struck, and he arose and came to the date-tree. And he sat chewing parched Indian corn, and with the corn there was some sandy grit; and he chewed the corn, and when he was inclined to dose, he chewed the grit with it, and woke himself up, and thus he employed himself till the bird came, and he saw it.
The bird said, "There is no one here," for he was sitting some distance from the date-tree. And when it alighted where the date-tree was, the youth arose; and when it was going to stretch out its beak to eat the dates, he caught hold of its wing.
The bird flew away from where the date-tree was, and
