After a few minutes -- for at first he felt a little frightened at his strange position -- the monkey began to enjoy himself vastly , and asked the shark a thousand questions about the fish and the sea-weeds and the oddly-shaped things that floated past them , and as the shark always gave him some sort of answer , the monkey never guessed that many of the objects they saw were as new to his guide as to himself . The sun had risen and set six times when the shark suddenly said , ` My friend , we have now performed half our journey , and it is time that I should tell you something . ' ` What is it ? ' asked the monkey . ` Nothing unpleasant , I hope , for you sound rather grave ? ' ` Oh , no ! Nothing at all . It is only that shortly before we left I heard that the sultan of my country is very ill , and that the only thing to cure him is a monkey 's heart . ' ` Poor man , I am very sorry for him , ' replied the monkey ; ` but you were unwise not to tell me till we had started . ' ` What do you mean ? ' asked the shark ; but the monkey , who now understood the whole plot , did not answer at once , for he was considering what he should say . ` Why are you so silent ? ' inquired the shark again . ' I was thinking what a pity it was you did not tell me while I was still on land , and then I would have brought my heart with me . ' ` Your heart ! Why is n't your heart here ? ' said the shark , with a puzzled expression . ` Oh , no ! Of course not . Is it possible you do n't know that when we leave home we always hang up our hearts on trees , to prevent their being troublesome ?
However , perhaps you wo n't believe XXXXX , and will just think I have invented it because I am afraid , so let us go on to your country as fast as we can , and when we arrive you can look for my heart , and if you find it you can kill me . '
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