hance of killing Ali Baba was
gone for the present; but he pretended great eagerness to see
Morgiana, and Abdallah began to play and Morgiana to dance. After she
had performed several dances, she drew her dagger and made passes with
it, sometimes pointing it at her own breast, sometimes at her
master's, as if it were part of the dance. Suddenly, out of breath,
she snatched the tabor from Abdallah with her left hand, and, holding
the dagger in her right, held out the tabor to her master. Ali Baba
and his son put a piece of gold into it, and Cogia Hassan, seeing that
she was coming to him, pulled out his purse to make her a present;
but while he was putting his hand into it, Morgiana plunged the dagger
into his heart.

"Unhappy girl!" cried Ali Baba and his son, "what have you done to
ruin us?" "It was to preserve you, master, not to ruin you," answered
Morgiana. "See here," opening the false merchant's garment and showing
the dagger; "see what an enemy you have entertained! Remember, he
would eat no salt with you, and what more would you have? Look at him!
he is both the false oil merchant and the Captain of the Forty
Thieves."

Ali Baba was so grateful to Morgiana for thus saving his life that he
offered her to his son in marriage, who readily consented, and a few
days after the wedding was celebrated with great splendor. At the end
of a year Ali Baba, hearing nothing of the two remaining robbers,
judged they were dead, and set out to the cave. The door opened on
his saying: "Open, Sesame!" He went in, and saw that nobody had been
there since the Captain left it. He brought away as much gold as he
could carry, and returned to town. He told his son the secret of the
cave, which his son handed down in his turn, so the children and
grandchildren of Ali Baba were rich to the end of their lives.

By the courtesy of Messrs. Longmans, Green & Co.,
publishers of "The Blue Fairy Book," edited by Andrew
Lang.

THE SECOND VOYAGE OF SINDBAD THE SAILOR

I designed, after my first voyage, to spend the rest of my days at
Bagdad, but it was not long ere I grew weary of an indolent life, and
I put to sea a second time, with merchants of known probity. We
embarked on board a good ship, and after recommending ourselves to
God, set sail. We traded from island to island, and exchanged
commodities with great profit. One day we landed on an island covered
with several sorts of fruit trees, but we could see neither m