“What is that?”

“A pomegranate.”

“We know what you have been doing,” said the King, and had his head cut off.  My story is finished.

* * * * *

THE LANGUAGE OF THE BEASTS

Once upon a time there was a man who had much goods.  One day he went to market.  There came a greyhound, which ate some meat.  The butcher gave it a blow, which made it yelp.  Seeing this, the heart of the man was touched with compassion.  He bought of the butcher half a piece of meat and flung it to the greyhound.  The dog took it and went away.  It was the son of a king of the nether world.

Fortune changed with the man.  He lost all his possessions, and began to wash for people.  One day, he had gone to wash something, he stretched it on the sand to dry.  A jerboa appeared with a ring in its ear.  The man ran after it, killed it, hid the ring, made a fire, cooked the jerboa and ate it.  A woman came out of the earth, seized him, and demanded, “Haven’t you seen my son, with an ear-ring?”

“I haven’t seen anybody,” he answered; “but I saw a jerboa which had a ring in its ear.”

“It is my son.”  She drew him under the earth and told him:  “You have eaten my son, you have separated me from him.  Now I will separate you from your children, and you shall work in the place of my son.”  He who was changed into a greyhound saw this man that day, and said to him:  “It is you who bought some meat for a greyhound and threw it to him?”

“It is I.”

“I am that greyhound.  Who brought you here?”

“A woman,” answered the man, and he recounted all his adventure.

“Go and make a complaint to the King,” answered the other.  “I am his son.  I’ll tell him:  ‘This man did me a good service,’ When he asks you to go to the treasure and take as much money as you wish, answer him:  ’I don’t want any.  I only want you to spit a benediction into my mouth,’ If he asks you, ‘Who told you that?’ answer, ‘Nobody.’”

The man went and found the King and complained of the woman.  The King called her and asked her:  “Why have you taken this man captive?”

“He ate my son.”

“Why was your son metamorphosed into a jerboa?  When men see one of those they kill him and eat him.”  Then addressing the man:  “Give her back the ear-ring.”  He gave it to her.

“Go,” said the King, “take this man to the place from which you brought him.”

The son of the King then said to his father:  “This man did me a favor; you ought to reward him.”

The King said to him:  “Go to the treasure, take as much money as you can.”

“I don’t want money,” he answered; “I want you to spit into my mouth a benediction.”

“Who told you that?”

“Nobody.”

“You will not be able to bear it.”

“I will be able.”

“When I have spat into your mouth, you will understand the language of beasts and birds; you will know what they say when they speak; but if you reveal it to the people you will die.”