It is told anent a man, one of the Kings of Orient-land, that he
had three sons, of whom the eldest one day of the days heard the
folk saying, "In such a place there is a bird hight the shrilling
Philomelet,[FN#290] which transmews everyone who comes to it into
a form of stone. Now when the heir apparent heard this report he
went to his father and said, "'Tis my desire to fare forth and to
get that marvellous bird;" and said the father, "O my son, thou
wouldst work only to waste thy life-blood and to deprive us of
thee; for that same bird hath ruined Kings and Sultans, not to
speak of Bashas and Sanjaks,[FN#291] men in whose claws[FN#292]
thou wouldst be as nothing." But the son replied, "Needs must I
go and if thou forbid my going I will kill myself." So quoth his
father, "There is no Majesty and no Might save in Allah, the
Glorious, the Great;" and saith the son, "Affects are affected
and steps are sped towards a world that is vile and distributed
daily bread."[FN#293] Then he said to him, "O my child, set out
upon thy journey and mayest thou win to thy wish." Hereupon they
prepared for him somewhat of victual and he went forth on his
wayfare. But before departing he took off his seal-ring from his
finger and gave it to his second brother saying, "O my brother,
an this signet press hard upon thy little finger do thou know and
make certain that mishap hath happened to me." So the second
Prince took it and put it upon his minim finger, after which the
eldest youth farewelled his father and his mother and his
brothers and the Lords of the land and departed seeking the city
wherein the Bird woned. He ceased not travelling by nights and
days, the whole of them, until he reached the place wherein was
the bird Philomelet whose habit it was to take station upon his
cage between mid-afternoon and sunset, when he would enter it to