Non-Stop Genie

This is a story I heard in my childhood, but I do not remember from whom

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a very intelligent young man. One day, as he was rummaging in the cellar of his parents' house for old books to read, he found an old lamp. He had read wonderful stories about genies that came out of lamps to grant wishes, and so he rubbed the side of the lamp.

As soon as he rubbed the side, he heard a rumbling sound from within the lamp. The lamp started shaking, and he dropped it to the ground. There were fumes at the spout of the lamp, and then, with a flash, out came a genie !!

The genie said, "My name Non-Stop Genie! Thank you for freeing me from the lamp. You are now my master and I shall do whatever you will ask of me." The young man was somewhat shaken, but quickly gathered his wits, and asked the genie, "How many wishes do I have ? And what kind of a name is Non-Stop Genie ?"

"You have an unlimited number of wishes. However, you must keep me engaged at all times. The moment I will not have an order to fulfill, I shall kill you, and return to the prison inside the lamp. This is why I am known as Non-Stop Genie."

The young man got rather scared by this, and immediately ordered the genie to arrange all the books in the cellar in neat piles. He thought that the genie would be occupied for at least a few hours, and started mounting the stairs, when the genie called to him, "It is done, Master. What shall I do next ?"

Surprised, the man asked the genie to now order the books by title. Again, the genie was back in less than a minute, waiting for his next order. This time, the man decided to send the genie on a long journey, so he said, "Go get me some snow from the north and south poles." This time, the genie was even faster. He was back within a flash. Seeing this magic, the man was baffled.

The genie promptly reminded him that since no new order seemed forthcoming, he would have to proceed to kill his master. The need for self-preservation became a lubricant and set into motion the gears of the young man's mind, jammed by the rust of fear.

He said, "Go get me a 100 metre long pole".

The genie got it.

"Now plant it in the ground in the backyard."

"Done, Master. What am I to do next ?"

"Now cover this pole with oil and then climb up to the top of the pole."

The genie said, "As you wish, my Master." and started climbing up the oiled-up pole. Every time he would climb an inch, he would slip back to where he started from. Thus, the clever young man saved himself from the "Non-Stop Genie".