“Then behold they brought bowls of silver, wherein was water to wash and towels of linen, some green and some white; and I washed.  And in a little while the man sat down at the table.  And I sat next to him, and below me sat all the maidens, except those who waited on us.  And the table was of silver, and the cloths upon the table were of linen.  And no vessel was served upon the table that was not either of gold or of silver or of buffalo horn.  And our meat was brought to us.  And verily, Kay, I saw there every sort of meat, and every sort of liquor that I ever saw elsewhere; but the meat and the liquor were better served there than I ever saw them in any other place.

“Until the repast was half over, neither the man nor any one of the damsels spoke a single word to me; but when the man perceived that it would be more agreeable for me to converse than to eat any more, he began to inquire of me who I was.  Then I told the man who I was and what was the cause of my journey, and said that I was seeking whether any one was superior to me, or whether I could gain mastery over all.  The man looked upon me, and he smiled and said, ’If I did not fear to do thee a mischief, I would show thee that which thou seekest.’  Then I desired him to speak freely.  And he said:  ’Sleep here to-night, and in the morning arise early, and take the road upwards through the valley, until thou readiest the wood.  A little way within the wood thou wilt come to a large sheltered glade, with a mound in the centre.  And thou wilt see a black man of great stature on the top of the mound.  He has but one foot, and one eye in the middle of his forehead.  He is the wood-ward of that wood.  And thou wilt see a thousand wild animals grazing around him.  Inquire of him the way out of the glade, and he will reply to thee briefly, and will point out the road by which thou shalt find that which thou art in quest of.’

“And long seemed that night to me.  And the next morning I arose and equipped myself, and mounted my horse, and proceeded straight through the valley to the wood, and at length I arrived at the glade.  And the black man was there, sitting upon the top of the mound; and I was three times more astonished at the number of wild animals that I beheld than the man had said I should be.  Then I inquired of him the way and he asked me roughly whither I would go.  And when I had told him who I was and what I sought, ‘Take,’ said he, ’that path that leads toward the head of the glade, and there thou wilt find an open space like to a large valley, and in the midst of it a tall tree.  Under this tree is a fountain, and by the side of the fountain a marble slab, and on the marble slab a silver bowl, attached by a chain of silver, that it may not be carried away.  Take, the bowl and throw a bowlful of water on the slab.  And if thou dost not find trouble in that adventure, thou needest not seek it during the rest of thy life.’