Prince Caraaralzaman having seen all things in order, came to the tent where the princess was sleeping.  He entered, and sat down without making any noise, intending to take a nap himself; but observing the princess’s girdle lying by her, he took it up, and looked upon the diamonds and rubies one by one.  In doing so, he saw a little purse hanging to it, tied fast with a riband; he felt it, and found there was something in it:  being desirous to know what it was, he opened the purse, and took out a cornelian engraved with unknown characters and figures.  This cornelian, said the prince to himself, must have something extraordinary in it, or my princess would not be at the trouble to carry it with her; and, indeed, it was Badoura’s talisman, or a scheme of her nativity drawn from the constellations of heaven, which the queen of China had given her daughter as a charm that would keep her from all harm as long as she had it about her.

The prince, to see what the talisman was, took it out to the light, the tent being dark; and, while he was holding it up in his hand, a bird darted down from the air, and snatched it away.

Your majesty may easily conceive the concern and grief of prince Camaralzaman, when he saw the bird fly away with the talisman*[Footnote:  There is an adventure like this in the romance of Peter of Provence and the Fair Maguelona, which was taken from the Arabic.] .  He was more troubled at it than words can express, and cursed his unseasonable curiosity, by which means he had lost a treasure that was so exceedingly precious, and so much valued by his dear princess.

The bird, having got her prize, pitched upon the ground, not far off, with the talisman in her mouth.  The prince drew near it, in hopes she would drop it; but, as he approached, the bird took wing, and pitched again on the ground further off.  Camaralzaman followed her; and the bird, having swallowed the talisman, took a small flight further off still.  The prince, being very dexterous at a mark, thought to kill her with a stone, and still followed.  The further she flew, the more eager he grew in pursuing, keeping her always in view.  Thus the bird drew him along from hill to valley, and from valley to hill, all day; every step leading him out of the way from the field where he left his camp and the princess Badoura:  and, instead of perching at night on a bush, where he might probably have taken her, she roosted on a high tree, safe from his pursuit.  The prince vexed to the heart for taking so much pains to no purpose, thought of returning to the camp; but, alas! he thought of it too late.  Whither could he go? which way return? how could he find out the untracked way of the mountains, and the untrodden paths of the vallies?  Darkness spread over the heavens; and night, with the fatigues of the day’s labour, would not suffer him to undertake so soon to return the way he came, were there any hopes of his finding it.  Ah! said the despairing lover, if I knew which way to return, how durst I appear before my princess without her talisman?  Overwhelmed with such afflicting thoughts, and tired with his pursuit of the bird, sleep came upon him, and he lay down under a tree, where he passed the night.