CONTINUES OUR DRAMATIC READING from the Thousand Nights and a Night. Attacked by hideous man-apes, Sindbad and some of his men become stranded after the apes capture their vessel. They encounter the monstrous, quasi-human, man-eating giant and some are devoured. "Our condition seemed to us so frightful (related Sindbad) that several of my companions thought it would be better to leap from the cliffs and perish in the waves at once rather than await so miserable an end, but I had a plan of escape which I now unfolded to them, and which they at once agreed to attempt.

"Listen, my brothers," I added. "You know that plenty of driftwood lies along the shore. Let us make several rafts and carry them to a suitable place. If our plot succeeds, we can wait patiently for the chance of some passing ship which would rescue us from this fatal island. If it fails, we must quickly take to our rafts; frail as they are, we have more chance of saving our lives with them than we have if we remain here."

All agreed with me, and we spent the day in building rafts, each capable of carrying three persons. At nightfall we returned to ...the... [abode of the]...giant, and one more of our number was sacrificed. But the time of our vengeance was at hand!

As soon as he had finished his horrible repast, he lay down to sleep as before, and when we heard him begin to snore, I, and nine of the boldest of my comrades rose softly and took each a spit which we made red-hot in the fire, and then, at a given signal, we plunged it with one accord into the giant's eye, completely blinding him. Uttering a terrible cry, he sprang to his feet, clutching in all directions to try to seize one of us, but we had all fled different ways as soon as the deed was done and thrown ourselves flat upon the ground in corners where he was not likely to touch us with his feet.

After a vain search, he fumbled about till he found the door and fled out of it howling frightfully. As for us, when he was gone, we made haste to leave the fatal castle and, stationing ourselves beside our rafts, we waited to see what would happen. Our idea was that if, when the sun rose, we saw nothing of the giant and no longer heard his howls, which still came faintly through the darkness, growing more and more distant, we should conclude that he was dead, and that we might safely stay upon the island and need not risk our lives upon the frail rafts.

But alas! morning light showed us our enemy approaching us, supported on either hand by two giants nearly as large and fearful as himself, while a crowd of others followed close upon their heels. Hesitating no longer, we clambered upon our rafts and rowed with all our might out to sea." Next week: The Fourth Voyage!