"No," said he, "I shall not do that; but give me leave to sit opposite
to it, that although I see not the master of a family so dear to me, I
may at least behold the place where he used to sit."
When the magician had made choice of a place, and sat down, he began
to enter into discourse with Aladdin's mother.
"My good sister," said he, "do not be surprised at your never having
seen me all the time you have been married to my brother Mustapha of
happy memory. I have been forty years absent from this country, which
is my native place as well as my late brother's. During that time I
have traveled into the Indies, Persia, Arabia, and Syria, and
afterward crossed over into Africa, where I took up my abode in Egypt.
At last, as it is natural for a man, I was desirous to see my native
country again, and to embrace my dear brother; and finding I had
strength enough to undertake so long a journey, I made the necessary
preparations, and set out. Nothing ever afflicted me so much as
hearing of my brother's death. But God be praised for all things! It
is a comfort for me to find, as it were, my brother in a son, who has
his most remarkable features."
The African magician, perceiving that the widow wept at the
remembrance of her husband, changed the conversation, and turning
toward her son, asked him, "What business do you follow? Are you of
any trade?"
At this question the youth hung down his head, and was not a little
abashed when his mother answered, "Aladdin is an idle fellow.
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