Page:Tales of the Punjab.pdf/200

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THE SNAKE-WOMAN AND KING ALI MARDAN

NCE upon a time King Ali Mardan went out a-hunting, and as he hunted in the forest above the beautiful Dal lake, which stretches clear and placid between the mountains and the royal town of Srinagar, he came suddenly on a maiden, lovely as a flower, who, seated beneath a tree, was weeping bitterly, Bidding his followers remain at a distance, he went up to the damsel, and asked her who she was, and how she came to be alone in the wild forest.

‘O great King, she answered, looking up in his face, ‘I am the Emperor of China’s handmaiden, and as I wandered about in the pleasure-grounds of his palace I lost my way. I know not how far I have come since, but now T must surely die, for l am weary and hungry !’

‘So fair a maiden must not die while Ali Mardan can deliver her, quoth the monarch, gazing ardently on the beautiful girl, So he bade his servants convey her with the greatest care to his summer palace in the Shalimar gardens, where the fountains scatter

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