' But
he said, 'None of thy horses pleases me, and I will ride none
but that on which I came.' 'And where is thy horse?' asked the
King. 'Atop of thy palace,' answered the prince, and the King
said, 'In what part of my palace?' 'On the roof,' replied the
prince. 'Out on thee!' quoth the King. 'This is the first sign
thou hast given of madness. How can the horse be on the roof?
But we shall soon see if thou speak truth or falsehood.' Then
he turned to one of his chief officers and said to him, 'Go to
my palace and bring me what thou findest on the roof.' And all
the people marvelled at the prince's words, saying, 'How can a
horse come down the steps from the roof? Verily this is a thing
whose like we never heard.'
Meanwhile, the King's messenger repaired to the palace,
accompanied by other of the royal officers, and mounting to the
roof, found the horse standing there,--never had they looked on
a handsomer; but when they drew near and examined it, they saw
that it was made of ebony and ivory; whereat they laughed to
each other, saying, 'Was it of the like of this horse that the
youth spoke? Surely, he must be mad; but we shall soon see the
truth of his case.
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