are the sons of the famous
Nathan Ben-Sadi, who gave us the names of Izif, Izouf, and Izaf. From
our earliest years we were taught the secrets of magic, and as we were
all born under the same stars we shared the same happiness and the same
troubles.

'Our mother died before I can remember, and when we were fifteen our
father was seized with a dangerous illness which no spells could cure.
Feeling death draw near, he called us to his bedside and took leave of
us in these words:

'"My sons, I have no riches to bequeath to you; my only wealth was those
secrets of magic which you know. Some stones you already have, engraved
with mystic signs, and long ago I taught you how to make others. But you
still lack the most precious of all talismans--the three rings belonging
to the daughters of Siroco. Try to get possession of them, but take heed
on beholding these young girls that you do not fall under the power of
their beauty. Their religion is different from yours, and further, they
are the betrothed brides of the sons of the Bassa of the Sea. And to
preserve you from a love which can bring you nothing but sorrow, I
counsel you in time of peril to seek out the daughter of Moizes the
Rabbi, who cherishes a hidden passion for Izaf, and possesses the Book
of Spells, which her father himself wrote with the sacred ink that was
used for the Talmud." So saying, our father fell back on his cushions
and died, leaving us burning with desire for the three rings of the
daughters of Siroco.

'No sooner were our sad duties finished than we began to make inquiries
where these young ladies were to be found, and we learned after much
trouble that Siroco, their father, had fought in many wars, and that his
daughters, whose beauty was famous throughout all the land, were named
Aurora, Argentine, and Zelida.'

At the second of these names, both the Bassa and his son gave a start
of surprise, but they said nothing, and Izaf went on with his story.

'The first thing to be done was to put on a disguise, and it was in the
dress of foreign merchants that we at length approached the young
ladies, taking care to carry with us a collection of fine stones which
we had hired for the occasion. But alas! it was to no purpose that
Nathan Ben-Sadi had warned us to close our hearts against their charms!
The peerless Aurora was clothed in a garment of golden hue, studded all
over with flashing jewels; the fair-haired Argentine wore a dress of
silver, and th