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A SMALL kingdom
was once situated
upon an island in
the Indian Ocean,
over which reigned
a monarch who
had three sons,
Osmyn, Nadab,
and Selim. The
king their father
loved these young
princes with so
equal an affection
that he never
could decide in
his own mind which of them should be his successor
to the throne of Guzan, the name of his
kingdom; although, if any one of the youths
merited the honor more than another, it was without
doubt the youngest of all three, who was
called Selim. This prince appeared to possess
all the virtue requisite in a ruler who would
govern well; and at the age of twelve years, he
was far more advanced in learning and accomplishments
than any of his brothers, besides
being an especial favorite with the subjects of
the old king. It is not much to be wondered at,
then, that he soon became an object of jealousy
and dislike in the eyes of his brothers.

Nevertheless, the envious young princes carefully
concealed their uneasiness, and constantly
displayed towards him much outward affection.
They would often discourse with him, too, upon
the difficulty it might involve to divide the sovereignty
after their father's death; on which occasions
Selim would remark:

“It must not be divided. One of us alone
must reign.”

“But what will then become of the others?”
asked Osmyn, the elder, after hearing this, as
usual, from his younger brother.

“Let them support the throne, as princes,”
answered Selim.

“That's very well said,” cried Nadab, the
second brother; “but I fear we shall dispute
about the matter, unless we settle it beforehand.
Now, brethren, listen to what I have to say. I
have heard of an astrologer who dwells upon the
mountain Caucasus, which as you well know is
also the abode of the most powerful genii. This
astrologer is possessed of such potent arts that he
can rule the stars and the most subtle spirits, and
moreover, his mind is stored with all the wisdom
of the past and knowledge of the future. I

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propose, therefore, that we obtain permission of the
king, our father, to depart upon a journey of
pleasure, and that we then seek the astrologer
in disguise, to inquire of him who is to succeed
to the throne of Guzan, without revealing to him
our name or station. He shall judge between
us which is to reign, and I, for one, agree to
receive his decision as the command of Heaven.
The chosen one shall possess the crown at our
father's death, and the two others, departing
from Guzan, shall seek other fields of adventure,
and strive, by their valor, to conquer kingdoms
for themselves.”

This scheme appeared to promise so much
harmony and good understanding, that it found
immediate favor in the mind of Selim; for the
unsuspecting young prince did not for a moment
suspect that his brothers had conceived any design
further than that which Nadab communicated.
So he yielded his consent at once, and
the old king of Guzan was straightway petitioned
to furnish his sons with a vessel, to proceed
as they averred, upon a pilgrimage, in which
pleasure might be combined with pious duty.
It was not long before everything was arranged,
and the three brothers, after tenderly embracing
their father, and promising a speedy return, set
out on their expedition to seek the astrologer.

They crossed the Indian Ocean without any
adventure, except being upon one occasion
chased by Ali Naro, a water pirate of those seas,
from whose pursuit they escaped by the superior
skill of their own ship. But as the desire to see
the astrologer was uppermost in their minds,
they stopped at none of the ports in any of the
waters which they traversed, until they reached
at last the harbor nearest to that mysterious
mountain, which, from time immemorial, has
been noted as the dwelling-place of genii, gries,
afrits and other supernatural beings, subjects of
the great Solomon. Here they disembarked,
and prepared to continue their journey, first,
however, disguising themselves as wandering
dervishes, in order to test the astrologer's skill,
without discovering to him their character.

After a toilsome march, and difficult ascent of
the mountain, our three princes reached, at
length, the entrance of a cavern wherein the powerful
astrologer Rahbek lived the life of a hermit.
The first object that met their eyes was
a grated iron door, from within which they heard
the voice of Rahbek raised in prayer. They
knocked loudly, but received no answer. After
pausing a little while, they redoubled their blows.
Then the solemn voice from within was heard
in reply to their summons.

“Sons of a king!” said the voice, “tarry a
moment, and be not impatient. He whose hand
created not only man, but all the heavens and
the earth, claims my service before mere mortals.
I shall be with you soon.”

The sons of the king of Guzan were, as may
be imagined, not a little startled at finding they
were known to Rahbek, even before he had cast
his eyes upon them. They waited respectfully
till he had concluded his devotions. But when
at last the astrologer opened the iron gate, how
much was their wonder increased, to have each
of them called by his own proper name, and the
object of their journey immediately mentioned.

“It is not difficult, princes,” said the aged
magician, in a very solemn tone, “to satisfy
your curiosity; nevertheless, the endeavor to
penetrate the future is always a perilous undertaking.
Let me warn you that he who shall be
designated as the successor of the king your
father will run the risk of losing his life before
returning to Guzan, and that his brothers will
one day become his most cruel enemies.”

These words startled the princes exceedingly,
and Selim the youngest endeavored to dissuade
his brothers from pursuing the inquiry any further;
but the elder princes, recovering from their
alarm, opposed his wise counsel, and bidding
him hold his peace, pressed the astrologer to declare
at once their destiny.

“If nothing can deter you from your design,”
said Rahbek, “hearken then to me. Descend
the mountain, as you came, and at the close of
one day's journey, you will encounter a woman
who will reveal to you which of the three is destined
to wear the crown of Guzan. Peace be
with you!”

The astrologer returned to his cave, and the
three princes set out on their homeward journey.
At the close of day, they reached a small plain,
surrounded by mountains, in the centre of which
a thick smoke arose out of a hole not larger
than the mouth of a well. A female was sitting
upon a rock, very near the opening.

“O,” said Osmyn, “this is doubtless she
whom Rahbek told us we should meet.” So approaching
the woman, this prince communicated
to her the words of the old astrologer.

She appeared to listen attentively, and when
Osmyn had finished, directed the three brothers
to take off their slippers and throw them, one

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after the other, into the hole beside her. Osmyn
was the first to obey; but scarcely had his slippers
entered the aperture, when a frightful noise
was heard, and immediately the shoes were
vomited forth, and fell at the prince's feet, all
black with smoke, and half burned. Nadab's
turn followed, and he was treated in exactly the
same manner; but when Selim, the last, threw
his sandals in, no noise at all was heard, the
smoke disappeared for an instant, and the slippers
were cast out of the furnace, without a mark or
stain.

“It is thou, then, my lord,” said the old woman,
making an obeisance to the young man,
“who art destined to be king of Guzan. This is
the sign by which thou art recognized! Put on
thy slippers, O prince, and continue thy way!”

If Selim, as was very natural, felt satisfaction
at the omen which revealed to him so high a destiny,
it is not to be marvelled at, that the envy
and hatred of his brothers should be increased,
nor that they should speedily conclude to put
into execution a resolution which they had long
before formed, to remove the unfortunate prince
from their path as soon as possible. Concealing
their wicked feelings, however, they pretended
to be satisfied with the decrees of fate, and willing
that their brother should be exalted. But
on reaching the seashore, and re-embarking in
the ship to return to the Isle of Guzan, they began
to consult together, on all occasions, and to
lay various plans for disposing of Selim, without
drawing suspicion on themselves; and it was
not a great while before they had decided upon
a project by which to destroy the unfortunate
favorite of destiny.