six whole months at a time, and then he
would remain awake for six months.

When the prince had watched over him for one month the fakir woke, for
his six months' sleep had come to an end; and when he saw what care
the young prince had taken of him, and how clean his hut was, he was
very much pleased with the King's son, and said to him, "How have you
been able to reach this jungle, to which no man can come? and who are
you? and whence do you come?"

"I am a King's son," answered the prince. "My father's country is a
six months' journey away from this; and I am come to look for a
Bel-Princess. I hear there is a Bel-Princess, and I want to find her.
Can you tell me where she is?"

"It is true that there is one," answered the fakir, "and I know where
she is. She is in the fairies' country, whither no man can go."

This made the young prince very sad. "What shall I do?" he said. "I
have left my father and mother, and have travelled a long, long way to
find the Bel-Princess. And now you tell me I cannot go where she
lives."

"I will help you," said the fakir, "and if you do exactly what I tell
you, you will find her. But, first, stay here with me for a little
while."

So the King's son stayed for another month with the fakir, and took
care of him, and did everything for him, as he did for his own father.

At the end of the month, the fakir gave him his stick, and said to
him, "Now you must go to the fairies' country. It is one week's
journey distant from this jungle. When you get there, you will see a
number of demons and fairies who live in it." Then the fakir took a
little earth from the ground, and put it in the prince's hand. "When
you have come to the fairies' country, in order that they and the
demons may not see you, you must blow all this earth away from the
palm of your hand, and then you will be invisible. You must ride on
till you come to a great plain in the middle of their garden, and on
this plain you will see a large bel-tree and on it one big bel-fruit.
In this fruit is the Bel-Princess. You must throw my stick at it, and
it will fall; but you must take care to catch the fruit in your shawl,
and not let it fall to the ground. Then ride quickly back to me, for
as soon as the fruit falls you will cease to be invisible, and the
fairies and demons who guard the fruit will all come running after
you, and they will all call to you. But take care, take care not to
look behind you when they call you. Ride s