"I have
come to reclaim my gift."
"What cruelty led you to bestow it upon me?" asked the prince.
"The king, your father, would have been dissatisfied with any ordinary
present from me," said the magician, "forgetting that the
responsibilities of common gifts, and very limited power, are more
than enough for most men to deal with. But I have not neglected you. I
was the wise woman who brought you up. Again, I was the hermit, as
your dog was sage enough to discover. I am come now to reclaim what
has caused you such suffering."
"Alas!" cried the prince, "why is your kindness so tardy? If you have
not forgotten me, why have you withheld this benefit till it is too
late for my happiness? My friend is dumb, my wife is dead, my dog is
hanged. When wishes cannot reach these, do you think it matters to me
what I may command?"
"Softly, prince," said the magician; "I had a reason for the delay.
But for these bitter lessons you would still be the slave of the
violent temper which you have conquered, and which, as it was no gift
of mine, I could not remove. Moreover, when the spell which made all
things bend to your wish is taken away, its effects also are undone.
Godson! I recall my gift."
As the magician spoke the glass sides of the coffin melted into the
air, and the princess sprang up, and threw herself into her husband's
arms. The dog also rose, stretched himself, and wagged his tail. The
dumb nobleman ran to tell the good news to the king, and all the
counsellors came back in a long train from the bottom of the sea, and
set about the affairs of state as if nothing had happened.
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