The man said, “We had a child, but it died. We will treat you just like the child who died.” He meant he would adopt him. “All things which I have are yours,” said the father.
The young man did not speak. He wished to go homeward.
“Whatever you say I will do it for you,” said the father. “Even if you desire to go homeward, it shall be so,” he said.
At last the young man spoke of going homeward.
“If you say, ‘I will go homeward riding a horse of such a color, O father!’ it shall be so,” said the father.
“Fie!” said the woman. “Heretofore we were deprived of our child. The young man who has just come home is like him. Give him one thing which you have.”
“I make you my child. I will give you something. Whatever I desire I always make with it, when I wish to have anything,” said the father. He had a piece of iron and when he wished anything he used to point at the iron.
“O father, I wish to go homeward riding a horse with very white hair. I also desire a mule with very white hair, and a good saddle,” said the young man.
“Come, go there. Open the door of that stable. When you wish to see us again, you shall see us. When you will go homeward, you will say, ‘Come, O father, I desire to go homeward,’” said the father.
The young man went homeward. He made the rocks open suddenly by pointing at them with the iron. He went up, making the ground echo under the horse’s feet. When he pushed aside a very large rock which was in his way, he found himself again on the surface of the earth. The horse and mule were very sudden in their movements. They shied at every step. They sniffed the odor of a bad land.