“One morning, when Madam Ahavzi had gone out, one of the little dogs, which had never been treated very kindly by her, but which little Mouk had petted and paid great attention to, came and pulled his wide trousers and made signs to Mouk to follow him.
“Mouk, who had always been fond of playing with the little dog, followed it, and it led him into the bedroom of his mistress and showed him a little door he had never seen before. The door was ajar, and Mouk entering found himself in the room he had so long wished to enter. He peered about in every corner to see if he could find any money, but all in vain. Nothing but old clothes and strangely-shaped vases were lying about. One of these attracted his attention, for it was of crystal and had a number of beautiful figures engraved upon it. He took it up to examine it, but alas, to his horror, it had a cover which he had not noticed and which slipped off and broke into a thousand pieces.
Seeing an enormous pair of slippers, he made up his mind to take them. (P. [66].)
“For some moments he was rooted to the spot with terror. His fate was now decided, for if he did not run away he was quite certain the old woman would kill him. He took a glance around to see which of the old woman’s possessions would be most useful to him upon his journey. Seeing an enormous pair of slippers, he made up his mind to take them, for his own shoes were worn out; moreover it was quite certain that with the big slippers on, no one could accuse him of still standing in his childhood’s shoes, so he quickly exchanged shoes, took a fine walking stick, which had a handle carved in the form of a lion’s head, and going to his own room donned the turban and cloak that had been his father’s, and left the house and town as fast as his legs could carry him. Once outside the town he still continued running, for he was afraid the old woman would overtake and punish him; but at length he grew very weary, for his little body had to support such a large head that he was soon overcome with fatigue. But when he would have stopped he could not, the big shoes kept urging him on, and he guessed at length they must be magic shoes. He did not know how to prevent them dragging him along, but, driven to despair, he cried out, as though to a pair of restive horses, ‘Stop, stop, oh! stop,’ and the slippers immediately stopped and Mouk threw himself upon the ground quite worn out.
“He was delighted with the slippers, for, after all, he felt he had gained something for his work which would probably assist him on in the world and help him to make his fortune. But in spite of his pleasure fatigue overcame him and he fell asleep and dreamt. In his dream the little dog, which had assisted him in obtaining the slippers, appeared to him and said, ‘Dear Mouk, you do not seem to quite understand the use of the slippers. Turn round on the heel, when you have them on, three times, and you will then be able to fly wherever you please. With the little stick you will be able to find treasure, for wherever gold is buried it will strike the earth three times and where silver is buried twice.’ Such was little Mouk’s dream, and when he awoke he determined to make a trial in order to discover if the dream had any truth in it. He put on the slippers and, lifting one foot in the air, turned round on the heel of the other. But it was a difficult task and the poor little fellow’s enormous head dragged him sometimes this way and sometimes the other, so that he fell over two or three times before he finally succeeded. But succeed he did, and then, wishing himself to be transported to the nearest town, he found himself raised in the air and flying through the clouds like the wind, and before he could grasp what was happening he was in a market place, where many booths had been set up and where innumerable people were running to and fro.
“He went in and out among them, but presently decided to seek a quieter street, for in the crowded market folks constantly trod upon his big slippers and nearly threw him down, or else his long dagger stuck into the people and he then had some difficulty in avoiding the blows rained upon him.
“Little Mouk now began to set his wits to work as to how he was to earn a piece of money. It is true that he had a staff which could discover hidden treasure, but where could he find a place all in a moment where gold and silver lay hidden?
“He might have exhibited himself in a booth and received money for it, but was too proud to do so. Then it struck him his swift running might be the means of earning him a livelihood and decided to offer his services as a courier.
“Thinking it likely that the king might pay the highest sum for such service, he enquired the way to the palace.