` Well , ' said the merchant , ` come with me , and I will take you to a good Mussulman , where you will have everything you desire at a small charge . ' Neangir consented , and the two walked together through several streets till they reached the house recommended by the Jewish merchant . By his advice the young man paid in advance the last gold piece that remained to him for his food and lodging . As soon as Neangir had dined he shut himself up in his room , and thrusting his hand into the folds of his turban , drew out his beloved portrait . As he did so , he touched a sealed letter which had apparently been hidden there without his knowledge , and seeing it was written by his foster-mother , Zinebi , he tore it eagerly open . Judge of his surprise when he read these words : ` My dearest Child , -- This letter , which you will some day find in your turban , is to inform you that you are not really our son . We believe your father to have been a great lord in some distant land , and inside this packet is a letter from him , threatening to be avenged on us if you are not restored to him at once . We shall always love you , but do not seek us or even write to us . It will be useless . ' In the same wrapper was a roll of paper with a few words as follows , traced in a hand unknown to Neangir : ` Traitors , you are no doubt in league with those magicians who have stolen the two daughters of the unfortunate Siroco , and have taken from them the talisman given them by their father . You have kept my son from me , but I have found out your hiding-place and swear by the Holy Prophet to punish your crime . The stroke of my scimitar is swifter than the lightning . ' The unhappy Neangir on reading these two letters -- of which he understood absolutely nothing -- felt sadder and more lonely than ever . It soon dawned on him that he must be the son of the man who had written to Mohammed and his wife , but he did not know where to look for him , and indeed thought much more about the people who had brought him up and whom he was never to see again . To shake off these gloomy feelings , so as to be able to make some plans for the future , Neangir left the house and walked briskly about the city till darkness had fallen . He then retraced his steps and was just crossing the threshold when he saw something at his feet sparkling in the moonlight . He picked it up , and discovered it to be a gold watch shining with precious stones . He gazed up and down the street to see if there was anyone about to whom it might belong , but there was not a creature visible . So he put it in his sash , by the side of a silver watch which he had bought from the Jew that morning . The possession of this piece of good fortune cheered Neangir up a little , ` for , ' thought he , ' I can sell these jewels for at least a thousand sequins , and that will certainly last me till I have found my father . '
And consoled XXXXX this reflection he laid both watches beside him and prepared to sleep .
So To by for from into of on than till