THE MAGICIAN 'S HORSE Once upon a time , there was a king who had three sons . Now it happened that one day the three princes went out hunting in a large forest at some distance from their father 's palace , and the youngest prince lost his way , so his brothers had to return home without him . For four days the prince wandered through the glades of the forest , sleeping on moss beneath the stars at night , and by day living on roots and wild berries . At last , on the morning of the fifth day , he came to a large open space in the middle of the forest , and here stood a stately palace ; but neither within nor without was there a trace of human life . The prince entered the open door and wandered through the deserted rooms without seeing a living soul . At last he came on a great hall , and in the centre of the hall was a table spread with dainty dishes and choice wines . The prince sat down , and satisfied his hunger and thirst , and immediately afterwards the table disappeared from his sight . This struck the prince as very strange ; but though he continued his search through all the rooms , upstairs and down , he could find no one to speak to . At last , just as it was beginning to get dark , he heard steps in the distance and he saw an old man coming towards him up the stairs . ` What are you doing wandering about my castle ? ' asked the old man . To whom the prince replied : ' I lost my way hunting in the forest . If you will take me into your service , I should like to stay with you , and will serve you faithfully . ' ` Very well , ' said the old man . ` You may enter my service . You will have to keep the stove always lit , you will have to fetch the wood for it from the forest , and you will have the charge of the black horse in the stables . I will pay you a florin a day , and at meal times you will always find the table in the hall spread with food and wine , and you can eat and drink as much as you require . ' The prince was satisfied , and he entered the old man 's service , and promised to see that there was always wood on the stove , so that the fire should never die out . Now , though he did not know it , his new master was a magician , and the flame of the stove was a magic fire , and if it had gone out the magician would have lost a great part of his power . One day the prince forgot , and let the fire burn so low that it very nearly burnt out .
Just XXXXX the flame was flickering the old man stormed into the room .
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