in. "There is no sign of man or habitation."

He prepared to board the vessel again, but the sailors would not allow
him. The boatswain stood in the bow and threatened him with a sword.
Bar Shalmon raised the twig to ward off the blow and struck the ship
which shivered from stern to stern again.

"Is not this proof that the vessel is bewitched?" cried the sailors,
and when the captain sternly bade them remember that Bar Shalmon was
their master, they threatened him too.

Bar Shalmon, amused at the fears of the men, again struck the vessel
with the twig. Once more it trembled. A third time he raised the
twig.

"If the ship is bewitched," he said, "something will happen after the
third blow."

"Swish" sounded the branch through the air, and the third blow fell on
the vessel's bow. Something did happen. The ship almost leaped from
the sand, and before Bar Shalmon could realize what had happened it
was speeding swiftly away.

"Come back, come back," he screamed, and he could see the captain
struggling with the helm. But the vessel refused to answer, and Bar
Shalmon saw it grow smaller and smaller and finally disappear. He was
alone on an uninhabited desert land.

"What a wretched plight for the richest man in the world," he said to
himself, and the next moment he realized that he was in danger indeed.

A terrible roar made him look around. To his horror he saw a lion
making toward him. As quick as a flash Bar Shalmon ran to the tree and
hastily scrambled into the branches. The lion dashed itself furiously
against the trunk of the tree, but, for the present, Bar Shalmon was
safe. Night, however, was coming on, and the lion squatted at the foot
of the tree, evidently intending to wait for him. All night the lion
remained, roaring at intervals, and Bar Shalmon clung to one of the
upper branches afraid to sleep lest he should fall off and be
devoured. When morning broke, a new danger threatened him. A huge
eagle flew round the tree and darted at him with its cruel beak. Then
the great bird settled on the thickest branch, and Bar Shalmon moved
stealthily forward with a knife which he drew from his belt. He crept
behind the bird, but as he approached it spread its big wings, and Bar
Shalmon, to prevent himself being swept from the tree, dropped the
knife and clutched at the bird's feathers. Immediately, to his dismay,
the bird rose from the tree. Bar Shalmon clung to its back with all
his might.

Higher and higher soa