“Well，” continued the East Wind， “when they were driven out of the garden of paradise，it sunk into the earth; but it retained its warm sunshine， its balmy air， and all its splendor.The fairy queen lives there， in the island of happiness， where death never comes， and all isbeautiful. I can manage to take you there to-morrow， if you will sit on my back. But now don'ttalk any more， for I want to go to sleep;” and then they all slept.
When the prince awoke in the early morning， he was not a little surprised at finding himselfhigh up above the clouds. He was seated on the back of the East Wind， who held himfaithfully; and they were so high in the air that woods and fields， rivers and lakes， as theylay beneath them， looked like a painted map.
“Good morning，” said the East Wind. “You might have slept on a while; for there is verylittle to see in the flat country over which we are passing unless you like to count thechurches; they look like spots of chalk on a GREen board.” The green board was the name hegave to the green fields and meadows.
“It was very rude of me not to say good-bye to your mother and your brothers，” said theprince.
“they will excuse you， as you were asleep，” said the East Wind; and then they flew onfaster than ever.
the leaves and branches of the trees rustled as they passed. When they flew over seas andlakes， the waves rose higher， and the large ships dipped into the water like diving swans. Asdarkness came on， towards evening， the GREat towns looked charming; lights weresparkling， now seen now hidden， just as the sparks go out one after another on a piece ofburnt paper. The prince clapped his hands with pleasure; but the East Wind advised him not toexpress his admiration in that manner， or he might fall down， and find himself hanging on achurch steeple. The eagle in the dark forests flies swiftly; but faster than he flew the EastWind. The Cossack， on his small horse， rides lightly o'er the plains; but lighter still passedthe prince on the winds of the wind.
“there are the Himalayas， the highest mountains in Asia，” said the East Wind. “We shallsoon reach the garden of paradise now.”
then， they turned southward， and the air became fragrant with the perfume of spicesand flowers. Here figs and pomegranates GREw wild， and the vines were covered with clustersof blue and purple grapes. Here they both descended to the earth， and stretched themselveson the soft grass， while the flowers bowed to the breath of the wind as if to welcome it. “Arewe now in the garden of paradise?” asked the prince.
“No， indeed，” replied the East Wind; “but we shall be there very soon. Do you see thatwall of rocks， and the cavern beneath it， over which the grape vines hang like a GREencurtain? Through that cavern we must pass. Wrap your cloak round you; for while the sunscorches you here， a few steps farther it will be icy cold. The bird flying past the entrance tothe cavern feels as if one wing were in the region of summer， and the other in the depths ofwinter.”
“So this then is the way to the garden of paradise?” asked the prince， as they entered thecavern. It was indeed cold; but the cold soon passed， for the East Wind spread his wings，and they gleamed like the brightest fire. As they passed on through this wonderful cave， theprince could see GREat blocks of stone， from which water trickled， hanging over their headsin fantastic shapes. Sometimes it was so narrow that they had to creep on their hands andknees， while at other times it was lofty and wide， like the free air. It had the appearance ofa chapel for the dead， with petrified organs and silent pipes. “We seem to be passing throughthe valley of death to the garden of paradise，” said the prince.
But the East Wind answered not a word， only pointed forwards to a lovely blue light whichgleamed in the distance. The blocks of stone assumed a misty appearance， till at last theylooked like white clouds in moonlight. The air was fresh and balmy， like a breeze from themountains perfumed with flowers from a valley of roses. A river， clear as the air itself，sparkled at their feet， while in its clear depths could be seen gold and silver fish sporting in thebright water， and purple eels emitting sparks of fire at every moment， while the broad leavesof the water-lilies， that floated on its surface， flickered with all the colors of the rainbow. Theflower in its color of flame seemed to receive its nourishment from the water， as a lamp issustained by oil. A marble bridge， of such exquisite workmanship that it appeared as ifformed of lace and pearls， led to the island of happiness， in which bloomed the garden ofparadise. The East Wind took the prince in his arms， and carried him over， while the flowersand the leaves sang the sweet songs of his childhood in tones so full and soft that no humanvoice could venture to imitate. Within the garden GREw large trees， full of sap; but whetherthey were palm-trees or gigantic water-plants， the prince knew not. The climbing plants hungin garlands of green and gold， like the illuminations on the margins of old missals or twinedamong the initial letters. Birds， flowers， and festoons appeared intermingled in seemingconfusion. Close by， on the grass， stood a group of peacocks， with radiant tails outspreadto the sun. The prince touched them， and found， to his surprise， that they were not reallybirds， but the leaves of the burdock tree， which shone with the colors of a peacock's tail. Thelion and the tiger， gentle and tame， were springing about like playful cats among the greenbushes， whose perfume was like the fragrant blossom of the olive. The plumage of thewood-pigeon glistened like pearls as it struck the lion's mane with its wings; while theantelope， usually so shy， stood near， nodding its head as if it wished to join in the frolic.The fairy of paradise next made her appearance. Her raiment shone like the sun， and herserene countenance beamed with happiness like that of a mother rejoicing over her child. Shewas young and beautiful， and a train of lovely maidens followed her， each wearing a brightstar in her hair. The East Wind gave her the palm-leaf， on which was written the history of thephoenix; and her eyes sparkled with joy. She then took the prince by the hand， and led himinto her palace， the walls of which were richly colored， like a tulip-leaf when it is turned to thesun. The roof had the appearance of an inverted flower， and the colors grew deeper andbrighter to the gazer. The prince walked to a window， and saw what appeared to be the treeof knowledge of good and evil， with Adam and Eve standing by， and the serpent near them. “I thought they were banished from paradise，” he said.