Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves – Part 1
(Tales from Arabian Nights)
A long time ago, there lived two brothers – Kassim and Ali Baba, in a certain far away kingdom of Persia. Kassim, the elder brother was very greedy and crooked. By unfair means he had earned a lot of money. Whereas Ali Baba was a poor woodcutter and could hardly meet his end.
One day as was his usual routine, Ali Baba was chopping wood in the forest. Suddenly he heard the hoofs of horses and voices of few men. Startled he turned around, curious to see who they would be.
Seeing so many men on horses, Ali Baba was sure that they could be thieves and getting scared he immediately climbed a tree. Perched on the top of the tree, he saw the men on the horses approaching fast. They stopped and alighted from their horses. He saw a bearded tall man, who looked like their leader, leading the crowd to a massive boulder. He shouted, ”Open Sesame.” Lo and behold! The boulder gave away. The men entered the hole.
Ali Baba counted the men as they entered. In totally they were forty men who carried with them something bundled in cloth. He did not move from his position. He was scared and curious too. He thought to himself, ”Who could be these people be? They seem to carrying heavy bundles with them. What could it be? Are thy robbers?”
