I seem to hear the earth tremble , ' he said ; ' I think he can not be very far off . ' ` Mount me at once , ' answered the horse , ` and I will gallop as fast as I can . ' And he set off so fast that the earth seemed to fly from under his hoofs . ` Look back once more , ' he said , after a short time , ` and see if he is in sight . ' ' I see a cloud and a flame , ' answered the prince ; ` but a long way off . ' ` We must make haste , ' said the horse . And shortly after he said : ` Look back again ; he ca n't be far off now . ' The prince turned in his saddle , and exclaimed : ` He is close behind us , in a minute the flame from his horse 's nostrils will reach us . ' ` Then throw the brush on the ground , ' said the horse . And the prince threw it , and in an instant the brush was changed into such a thick wood that even a bird could not have got through it , and when the old man got up to it the roan horse came suddenly to a stand-still , not able to advance a step into the thick tangle . So there was nothing for the magician to do but to retrace his steps , to fetch an axe , with which he cut himself a way through the wood . But it took him some time , during which the prince and the black horse got on well ahead . -LSB- Illustration : How The Magician Was Thwarted by The BRUSH -RSB- But once more they heard the sound of pursuing feet . ` Look back , ' said the black horse , ` and see if he is following . ' ` Yes , ' answered the prince , ` this time I hear him distinctly . ' ` Let us hurry on , ' said the horse . And a little later he said : ` Look back now , and see if he is in sight . ' ` Yes , ' said the prince , turning round , ' I see the flame ; he is close behind us . ' ` Then you must throw down the whip , ' answered the horse . And in the twinkling of an eye the whip was changed into a broad river .
When the old man got up to it he urged the roan horse into the water , but as the water mounted higher and higher , the magic flame which gave the magician all his power grew smaller and smaller , till , XXXXX a fizz , it went out , and the old man and the roan horse sank in the river and disappeared .
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