The Old Alchemist

Once upon a time, there was an old man whose daughter was married to a handsome young lad. The young couple led a happy life, except for one problem: the new husband spent all his time dreaming of a way to turn dirt into gold. In those days people who did that were known as alchemists. Soon enough, he ran through all of his inheritance, and the young wife had to struggle to buy food each day. Desperate, she begged her husband to find a job.

                "I am on the verge of a breakthrough!" he insisted. "When I succeed in turning dirt into gold, we will be rich beyond our wildest dreams!"

                Finally the young wife went to her father about the problem. He was surprised to learn that his son-in-law was an alchemist, but he promised to help his daughter and he asked to see the young man the next day. The young man arrived reluctantly, expecting a scolding. To his surprise, his father-in-law confided in him, "When I was young I, too, was an alchemist!"

                The father-in-law asked about the young man's work, and the two of them spent the whole afternoon talking. Finally the old man cried, "Why, you have done everything I did when I was your age! You are surely on the verge of a breakthrough. But you need one more ingredient in order to change dirt into gold, and I have only recently discovered this secret." The old man paused. "I am too old to undertake the task," he sighed. "It requires too much work."

                "I can do it, dear father!" cried the young man. "Hmm, perhaps you can," said the old man. Then he leaned over and whispered, "The secret ingredient is a silver powder that grows only on banana leaves. You must plant the bananas yourself and cast certain spells on the seeds. Then when the plant grows, the powder on the leaves will become magical."

                "How much powder do we need?" the young man asked.

"Two pounds," the old man replied.

                The son-in-law thought out loud. "Why, that would require hundreds of banana plants!"

                "Yes," sighed the old man, "and that is why I cannot complete the work myself."

                "Do not fear!" said the young man, "I will!" And so the old man taught his son-in-law the magic spells and loaned him money to start the project.

                The next day, the young man bought some land and cleared it. He dug the ground himself, just as the old man had told him to do, planted the bananas, and murmured the magic spells over the planted seeds. Each day he examined the seedlings, keeping weeds and pests away. When the plants bore fruit, he collected the silver powder from the banana leaves. There was scarcely any powder on each plant, so the young man had to buy more land and cultivate more bananas. It took several years, but finally the young man collected two pounds of the magic dust. He rushed to his father-in-law's house.

                "I have the magic powder!" the cried with excitement.

                "Wonderful!" rejoiced the old man. "Now I can show you how to turn dirt into gold! But first you must bring your wife here. We need her help." The young man was puzzled, but obeyed. When his wife appeared, the old man asked his daughter, "While your husband was collecting the banana powder, what did you do with the bananas?"

                "Why I sold them," the daughter said, "and that is how we earned a living."

                "Did you save any money?" asked the father.

                "Yes," she replied.

                "May I see it?" asked the old man. So his daughter hurried home and returned with several bags. The old man opened them, saw that they were full of gold, and poured the coins on the floor. Then he took a handful of dirt, and put it next to the gold.

                "You see," he said, turning to his son-in-law, "you have changed dirt into gold!"

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