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| Once there lived a simple man named Ali Baba. Ali Baba lived in a distant city in Persia. A poor man, he lived with his wife in a mud hut and sold sticks in the market. His brother Kasim,on the other hand, sold carpets, and lived in a big house with his rich wife. |
| One day, Ali Baba was in the forest gathering wood, when he heard horseman galloping towards him. Fearing that they might be robbers,he climbed in a tree to hide. He was right; with their evil looks, bad language, and weapons, these men were definitely robbers. There were forty of them all together. They dismounted their horses, unloading bags of valuables. A wicked man, who appeared to be their leader, strode towardsa rocky mountain nearby. He shouted "Open Sesame!" and before Ali Baba's very eyes, a passageway opened in the mountain, allowing the robbersforced him to go in with their loaded sacks. Ali Baba self to stay motionless in the tree, and after a bit, the door opened again. The robbers came out,their leader shouting "Close Sesame!" before they all galloped away. |
| Trembling with fear, Ali Baba climbed down from the tree. He was still getting over the shock of what he saw. He repeated the strange words to himself: "Open Sesame." The rock opened up to his absolute wonderment. Entering the cave with a flare, Ali Baba found himself surrounded by treasure he could not have imagined in his wildest dreams. Rich silks and carpets, pots of silver and gold, precious stones and vases, and bags filled with money. The poor stick collector could not believe his eyes. He bit into a gold coin to assure himself that it was real. He thought a bit, then decided that nobody would notice a few coins missing. After filling four bags, he uttered that magic phrase: "Close sesame" and returned home to tell his wife of their good fortune. |
| Ali Baba's wife was overjoyed with their newfound wealth. Because there were too many coins to count, she ran to Kasim's wife to borrow a measure. Kasim's wife became suspicious, knowing that Ali Baba was poor and did not have much to measure. So, she brushed a bit of tar across the bottom of the measuring pail. When the pail was returned, Kasim's wife was surprised to see what had stuck to it. It was a gold coin! She told her husband Kasim, who echoed her own thoughts: "Where did they get gold from? They are the poorest of the poor!" Kasim went to his brother to ask for an explanation. Ali Baba innocently told him the story, but asked him to keep it a secret. Kasim quickly promised, yet his mind was already calculating a plot. |
| The next morning, Kasim started for the forest with his mules. When he reached the moutain, he uttered the magic words: "Open Sesame," and entered the cave.With his heart pounding, he crammed as much gold as he could into the saddle bags. But the bags were so stuffed with treasure, Kasim could not lift them. He was still figuring out what to leave behind, when lo and behold- the robbers had returned! Finding the entrance already open, they rushed inside with drawn swords. The robbers killed unlucky Kasim, chopping his body into four quarters and leaving them at the entrance of the cave. This would serve as a bloody warning for anyone else who dared to enter the cave. |
| When night fell, and Kasim had still not returned, his wife became worried. She ran to Ali Baba, who tried to comfort her, reassuring her that he'd be back by morning. But morning came and there was still no Kasim, so Ali Baba set out for the cave. What he found there made him break down and weep with emotion. He gathered his wits, and wrapped the remains of his brother in a rug. When Kasim's wife saw what happened to her husband, she died of a broken heart. Ali Baba and his family went to live in Kasim's palace. There, he met Morgantina, who told Ali Baba that Kasim's remains could be put together again before being buried. She went to an old cobbler named Mustafa, and bribed him to come and stitch the body together. She blindfolded him and led him to and from Ali Baba's house, so he would not know where he did the work. He was led back to his shop blindfolded, and given a bag of gold for his trouble.Then it was announced that Kasim had died, and a funeral was held without betraying the secret of his death. |
| Meanwhile, the leader of the thieves had discovered that the body of Kasim had been removed. He ordered one of his men to go into the city to find out what happened. The theif had a hole in the sole of his boot, so he stopped at the cobblers. There, he met a cobbler who was bursting to tell someone of his good luck. Mustafa described to the thief how he sewed a body back together in exchange for gold. At once, the robber new he was on the right track. He offered Mustafa another bag of gold if he would show him the place where he'd done the sewing. The cobbler agreed at once, then remembered that this was impossible; he had been blindfolded. The robber suggested that if he was blindfolded again, he may be able to retrace his steps and remember the turns he made. They tried this plan and sure enough, Mustafa led him to the palace of Ali Baba. The robber handed over the bag of gold. He then proceeded to mark the door with red chalk, before hurrying away to inform his leader. |
| Dusk fell, and as Morgantina was about to enter the palace, she noticed the strange mark on the door. Her suspicions aroused, she quickly drew a red cross on all of the other doors on the street. In the dead of night, the wicked band arrived to take their revenge, but at the sight of all the red crosses, they stopped in their tracks. Which was the right door? They had been foiled, Morgantina had unknowingly saved her master's life. The robbers returned to the forest, and the leader of the gang put his man to the sword for giving him a false lead. He decided that he would do the job himself. Disguised as a merchant, the leader went back to Mustafa the cobbler. Delighted at the idea of earning more money, Mustafa took the robber to Ali Baba's palace. This time, instead of marking the door, the leader memorized the exact location of the place and street. |
| Back at the hideout, the wicked leader ordered two of his men to buy nineteen mules and thirty eight giant jars. He then instructed each of his men to hide in a jar, filling the last jar with oil. The leader then loaded the jars on the mules, and set out for the city. It was dark when they reached Ali Baba's palace. The leader took advantage of Ali Baba's kindness, claiming that he was an oil merchant who needed lodging for the night. Ali Baba readily agreed, allowing the man to drive his mules into the yard, and unload his jars. The leader set the jars in rows, whispering to the men that when they heard the signal, they were to leap from the jars and kill everyone in the palace. |
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Well it appeared as though everything would go smoothly...but it didn't! Who was clever enough to stop the evil plan?
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