Once there ruled in the distant city of Wirani
a king who was both
mighty and wise.
And he was feared for his might and loved
for
his wisdom.
Now, in the heart of that city was a well,
whose water was cool and
crystalline, from which all the inhabitants
drank, even the king
and his courtiers; for there was no other
well.
One night when all were asleep, a witch entered
the city, and poured
seven drops of strange liquid into the well,
and said, “From this
hour he who drinks this water shall become
mad.”
Next morning all the inhabitants, save the
king and his lord
chamberlain, drank from the well and became
mad, even as the witch
had foretold.
And during that day the people in the narrow
streets and in the
market places did naught but whisper to one
another, “The king is
mad.
Our king and his lord chamberlain have lost
their reason.
Surely we cannot be ruled by a mad king.
We must dethrone him.”
That evening the king ordered a golden goblet
to be filled from the
well.
And when it was brought to him he drank deeply,
and gave it
to his lord chamberlain to drink.
And there was great rejoicing in that distant
city of Wirani,
because its king and its lord chamberlain
had regained their reason.
