{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_55587/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_55587","id":"gutenberg_55587","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/55587","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Adventure","Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Fairy tales -- Arab countries","Folklore -- Arab countries"],"text":"[Illustration]\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n[Illustration: \u0644\u0627 \u0644\u0627\u0628\u0631\u0627\u0631 \u0643\u0644\u0651 \u0634\u064a \u062a\u0628\u0631]\n\n \u201cTO THE PURE ALL THINGS ARE PURE.\u201d\n (Puris omnia pura)\n\n \u2014_Arab Proverb._\n\n \u201cNiuna corrotta mente intese mai sanamente parole.\u201d\n\n \u2014\u201c_Decameron_\u201d\u2014_conclusion_.\n\n \u201cErubuit, posuitque meum Lucretia librum\n Sed coram Bruto. Brute! recede, leget.\u201d\n\n \u2014_Martial._\n\n \u201cMieulx est de ris que de larmes escripre,\n Pour ce que rire est le propre des hommes.\u201d\n\n \u2014RABELAIS.\n\n\u201cThe pleasure we derive from perusing the Thousand-and-One Stories makes\nus regret that we possess only a comparatively small part of these truly\nenchanting fictions.\u201d\n\n \u2014CRICHTON\u2019S \u201c_History of Arabia_.\u201d\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n[Illustration]\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n_A PLAIN AND LITERAL TRANSLATION OF THE ARABIAN NIGHTS ENTERTAINMENTS.\nNOW ENTITULED_\n\n\n\n\n _THE BOOK OF THE_\n Thousand Nights and a Night\n\n _WITH INTRODUCTION EXPLANATORY NOTES ON THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF\n MOSLEM MEN AND A TERMINAL ESSAY UPON THE HISTORY OF THE NIGHTS_\n\n VOLUME IX.\n\n\n BY\n RICHARD F. BURTON\n\n[Illustration]\n\n PRINTED BY THE BURTON CLUB FOR PRIVATE SUBSCRIBERS ONLY\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n\n\n\n Shammar Edition\n\nLimited to one thousand numbered sets, of which this is\n\n Number _547_\n\n\n\n\n PRINTED IN U. S. A.\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n\n\n\n TO ALEXANDER BAIRD OF URIE.\n\n\n MY DEAR BAIRD,\n\n I avail myself of a privilege of authorship, not yet utterly\n obsolete, to place your name at the head of this volume. Your long\n residence in Egypt and your extensive acquaintance with its\n \u201cpolitic,\u201d private and public, make you a thoroughly competent judge\n of the merits and demerits of this volume; and encourage me to hope\n that in reading it you will take something of the pleasure I have\n had in writing it.\n\n RICHARD F. BURTON.\n\n TANGIER, _December 31st, 1885_.\n\n\n\n\n CONTENTS OF THE NINTH VOLUME.\n\n\n PAGE\n\n ALI NUR AL-DIN AND MIRIAM THE GIRDLE-GIRL (Continued) 1\n\n (_Lane omits, III. 572._)\n\n THE MAN OF UPPER EGYPT AND HIS FRANKISH WIFE 19\n\n (_Lane omits._)\n\n THE RUINED MAN OF BAGHDAD AND HIS SLAVE-GIRL 24\n\n (_Lane, Anecdote of a Man of Baghdad and His Slave-Girl, III. 572_)\n\n KING JALI\u2019AD OF HIND AND HIS WAZIR SHIMAS: FOLLOWED BY THE HISTORY\n OF KING WIRD KHAN, SON OF KING JALI\u2019AD, WITH HIS WOMEN AND\n WAZIRS 32\n\n _a._ THE MOUSE AND THE CAT 35\n\n _b._ THE FAKIR AND HIS JAR OF BUTTER 40\n\n _c._ THE FISHES AND THE CRAB 43\n\n _d._ THE CROW AND THE SERPENT 46\n\n _e._ THE WILD ASS AND THE JACKAL 48\n\n _f._ THE UNJUST KING AND THE PILGRIM PRINCE 50\n\n _g._ THE CROWS AND THE HAWK 53\n\n _h._ THE SERPENT-CHARMER AND HIS WIFE 56\n\n _i._ THE SPIDER AND THE WIND 59\n\n _j._ THE TWO KINGS 65\n\n _k._ THE BLIND MAN AND THE CRIPPLE 67\n\n _l._ THE FOOLISH FISHERMAN 93\n\n _m._ THE BOY AND THE THIEVES 95\n\n _n._ THE MAN AND HIS WIFE 98\n\n _o._ THE MERCHANT AND THE ROBBERS 100\n\n _p._ THE JACKALS AND THE WOLF 103\n\n _q._ THE SHEPHERD AND THE ROGUE 106\n\n _r._ THE FRANCOLIN AND THE TORTOISES 113\n\n CONCLUSION OF THE HISTORY OF KING WIRD KHAN 115\n\n ABU KIR THE DYER AND ABU SIR THE BARBER 134\n\n (_Lane, III. 580, The Story of Aboo Seer and Aboo Keer._)\n\n ABDULLAH THE FISHERMAN AND ABDULLAH THE MERMAN 165\n\n (_Lane, III. 627. The Story of \u2019Abd Allah of the Land and \u2019Abd Allah of\n the Sea._)\n\n HARUN AL-RASHID AND ABU HASAN, THE MERCHANT OF OMAN 188\n\n IBRAHIM AND JAMILAH 207\n\n ABU AL-HASAN OF KHORASAN 229\n\n KAMAR AL-ZAMAN AND THE JEWELLER\u2019S WIFE 246\n\n ABDULLAH BIN FAZIL AND HIS BROTHERS 304\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Eighty-ninth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Nur al-Din\nheard the voice singing these verses he said in himself, \u201cVerily this be\nthe Lady Miriam chanting without hesitation or doubt or suspicion of one\nfrom without.[1] Would Heaven I knew an my thought be true and if it be\nindeed she herself or other self!\u201d And regrets redoubled upon him and he\nbemoaned himself and recited these couplets:\u2014\n\n When my blamer saw me beside my love \u273f Whom I met in a site that lay\n open wide,\n I spake not at meeting a word of reproach \u273f Though oft it comfort sad\n heart to chide;\n Quoth the blamer, \u201cWhat means this silence that bars \u273f Thy making answer\n that hits his pride?\u201d\n And quoth I, \u201cO thou who as fool dost wake, \u273f To misdoubt of lovers and\n Love deride;\n The sign of lover whose love is true \u273f When he meets his belov\u00e8d is mum\n to bide.\u201d\n\nWhen he had made an end of these verses, the Lady Miriam fetched inkcase\nand paper and wrote therein:\u2014\u201cAfter honour due to the Basmalah,[2] may\nthe peace of Allah be upon thee and His mercy and blessings be! I would\nhave thee know that thy slave-girl Miriam saluteth thee, who longeth\nsore for thee; and this is her message to thee. As soon as this letter\nshall fall into thy hands, do thou arise without stay and delay and\napply thyself to that she would have of thee with all diligence and\nbeware with all wariness of transgressing her commandment and of\nsleeping. When the first third of the night is past, (for that hour is\nof the most favourable of times) apply thee only to saddling the two\nstallions and fare forth with them both to the Sultan\u2019s Gate.[3] If any\nask thee whither thou wend, answer, I am going to exercise the steeds,\nand none will hinder thee; for the folk of this city trust to the\nlocking of the gates.\u201d Then she folded the letter in a silken kerchief\nand threw it out of the latticed window to Nur al-Din, who took it and\nreading it, knew it for the handwriting of the Lady Miriam and\ncomprehended all its contents. So he kissed the letter and laid it\nbetween his eyes; then, calling to mind that which had betided him with\nher of the sweets of love-liesse, he poured forth his tears whilst he\nrecited these couplets:\u2014\n\n Came your writ to me in the dead of the night \u273f And desire for you\n stirr\u00e8d heart and sprite;\n And, remembered joys we in union joyed, \u273f Praised the Lord who placed us\n in parting plight.\n\nAs soon as it was dark Nur al-Din busied himself with making ready the\nstallions and patiented till the first watch of the night was past;\nwhen, without a moment delay, Nur al-Din the lover full of teen, saddled\nthem with saddles of the goodliest, and leading them forth of the\nstable, locked the door after him and repaired with them to the\ncity-gate, where he sat down to await the coming of the Princess.\nMeanwhile, Miriam returned forthright to her private apartment, where\nshe found the one-eyed Wazir seated, elbow-propt upon a cushion stuffed\nwith ostrich-down; but he was ashamed to put forth his hand to her or to\nbespeak her. When she saw him, she appealed to her Lord in heart,\nsaying, \u201cAllahumma\u2014O my God\u2014bring him not to his will of me nor to me\ndefilement decree after purity!\u201d Then she went up to him and made a show\nof fondness for him and sat down by his side and coaxed him, saying, \u201cO\nmy lord, what is this aversion thou displayest to me? Is it pride or\ncoquetry on thy part? But the current byword saith:\u2014An the\nsalam-salutation be little in demand, the sitters salute those who\nstand.[4] So if, O my lord, thou come not to me neither accost me, I\nwill go to thee and accost thee.\u201d Said he, \u201cTo thee belong favour and\nkindness, O Queen of the earth in its length and breadth; and what am I\nbut one of thy slaves and the least of thy servants. Indeed, I was\nashamed to intrude upon thine illustrious presence, O unique pearl, and\nmy face is on the earth at thy feet.\u201d She rejoined, \u201cLeave this talk and\nbring us to eat and drink.\u201d Accordingly he shouted to his eunuchs and\nwomen an order to serve food, and they set before them a tray containing\nbirds of every kind that walk and fly and in nests increase and\nmultiply, such as sand-grouse and quails and pigeon-poults and lambs and\nfatted geese and fried poultry and other dishes of all sorts and\ncolours. The Princess put out her hand to the tray and began to eat and\nfeed the Wazir with her fair finger-tips and kiss him on the mouth. They\nate till they had enough and washed their hands, after which the\nhandmaidens removed the table of food and set on the service of wine. So\nPrincess Miriam filled the cup and drank and gave the Wazir to drink and\nserved him with assiduous service, so that he was like to fly for joy\nand his breast broadened and he was of the gladdest. When she saw that\nthe wine had gotten the better of his senses, she thrust her hand into\nher bosom and brought out a pastile of virgin Cretan-Bhang, which she\nhad provided against such an hour, whereof if an elephant smelt a\ndirham\u2019s weight, he would sleep from year to year. She distracted his\nattention and crumbled the drug into the cup: then, filling it up,\nhanded it to the Wazir, who could hardly credit his senses for delight.\nSo he took it and kissing her hand, drank it off, but hardly had it\nsettled in his stomach when he fell head foremost to the ground. Then\nshe rose and filling two great pairs of saddle-bags with what was light\nof weight and weighty of worth of jewels and jacinths and precious\nstones, together with somewhat of meat and drink, donned harness of war\nand armed herself for fight. She also took with her for Nur al-Din what\nshould rejoice him of rich and royal apparel and splendid arms and\narmour, and shouldering the bags (for indeed her strength equalled her\nvaliancy), hastened forth from the new palace to join her lover. On this\nwise fared it with the Lady Miriam; but as regards Nur al-Din,\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninetieth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Lady\nMiriam left the new palace, she went straightways to meet her lover for\nindeed she was as valiant as she was strong; but Nur al-Din the\ndistracted, the full of teen, sat at the city-gate hending the horses\u2019\nhalters in hand, till Allah (to whom belong Majesty and Might) sent a\nsleep upon him and he slept\u2014glory be to Him who sleepeth not! Now at\nthat time the Kings of the Islands had spent much treasure in bribing\nfolk to steal the two steeds or one of them; and in those days there was\na black slave, who had been reared in the islands skilled in\nhorse-lifting; wherefore the Kings of the Franks seduced him with wealth\ngalore to steal one of the stallions and promised him, if he could avail\nto lift the two, that they would give him a whole island and endue him\nwith a splendid robe of honour. He had long gone about the city of\nFrance in disguise, but succeeded not in taking the horses, whilst they\nwere with the King; but, when he gave them in free gift to the Wazir and\nthe monocular one carried them to his own stable, the blackamoor thief\nrejoiced with joy exceeding and made sure of success, saying in himself,\n\u201cBy the virtue of the Messiah and the Faith which is no liar, I will\ncertainly steal the twain of them!\u201d Now he had gone out that very night,\nintending for the stable, to lift them; but, as he walked along, behold,\nhe caught sight of Nur al-Din lying asleep, with the halters in his\nhands. So he went up to the horses and loosing the halters from their\nheads, was about to mount one of them and drive the other before him,\nwhen suddenly up came the Princess Miriam, carrying on her shoulders the\ncouple of saddle-bags. She mistook the black for Nur al-Din and handed\nhim one pair of bags, which he laid on one of the stallions: after which\nshe gave him the other and he set it on the second steed, without word\nsaid to discover that it was not her lover. Then they mounted and rode\nout of the gate[5] in silence till presently she asked, \u201cO my lord Nur\nal-Din, what aileth thee to be silent?\u201d Whereupon the black turned to\nher and cried angrily, \u201cWhat sayst thou, O damsel?\u201d When she heard the\nslave\u2019s barbarous accents, she knew that the speech was not of Nur\nal-Din; so raising her eyes she looked at him and saw that he was a\nblack chattel, snub-nosed and wide-mouthed, with nostrils like ewers;\nwhereupon the light in her eyes became night and she asked him, \u201cWho art\nthou, O Shaykh of the sons of Ham and what among men is thy name?\u201d He\nanswered, \u201cO daughter of the base, my name is Mas\u2019\u00fad, the lifter of\nhorses, when folk slumber and sleep.\u201d She made him no reply, but\nstraightway baring her blade, smote him on the nape and the blade came\nout gleaming from his throat-tendons, whereupon he fell earthwards,\nweltering in his blood, and Allah hurried his soul to the Fire and\nabiding-place dire. Then she took the other horse by the bridle and\nretraced her steps in search of Nur al-Din, whom she found lying, asleep\nand snoring, in the place where she had appointed him to meet her,\nhending the halters in hand, yet knowing not his fingers from his feet.\nSo she dismounted and gave him a cuff,[6] whereupon he awoke in affright\nand said to her, \u201cO my lady, praised be Allah for thy safe coming!\u201d Said\nshe \u201cRise and back this steed and hold thy tongue!\u201d So he rose and\nmounted one of the stallions, whilst she bestrode the other, and they\nwent forth the city and rode on awhile in silence. Then said she to him,\n\u201cDid I not bid thee beware of sleeping? Verily, he prospereth not who\nsleepeth.\u201d He rejoined, \u201cO my lady, I slept not but because of the\ncooling of my heart by reason of thy promise. But what hath happened, O\nmy lady?\u201d So she told him her adventure with the black, first and last,\nand he said, \u201cPraised be Allah for safety!\u201d Then they fared on at full\nspeed, committing their affair to the Subtle, the All-wise and\nconversing as they went, till they came to the place where the black lay\nprostrate in the dust, as he were an Ifrit, and Miriam said to Nur\nal-Din, \u201cDismount; strip him of his clothes and take his arms.\u201d He\nanswered, \u201cBy Allah, O my lady, I dare not dismount nor approach him.\u201d\nAnd indeed he marvelled at the blackamoor\u2019s stature and praised the\nPrincess for her deed, wondering the while at her valour and\nstout-heartedness. They fared on lustily and ceased not so doing all\nthat night and halted not till the day broke with its shine and sheen\nand the sun shone bright upon plain and height when they came to a wide\nriverino lea wherein the gazelles were frisking gracefully. Its surface\nwas clothed with green and on all sides fruit trees of every kind were\nseen: its slopes for flowers like serpents\u2019 bellies showed, and birds\nsang on boughs aloud and its rills in manifold runnels flowed. And\nindeed it was as saith the poet and saith well and accomplisheth the\nhearer\u2019s desire:\u2014\n\n Rosy red Wady hot with summer-glow, \u273f Where twofold tale of common\n growth was piled.\n In copse we halted wherein bent to us \u273f Branches, as bendeth nurse o\u2019er\n weanling-child.\n And pure cold water quenching thirst we sipped: \u273f To cup-mate sweeter\n than old wine and mild:\n From every side it shut out sheen of sun \u273f Screen-like, but wooed the\n breeze to cool the wild:\n And pebbles, sweet as maidens deckt and dight \u273f And soft as threaded\n pearls, the touch beguiled.\n\nAnd as saith another:\u2014\n\n And when birdies o\u2019er warble its lakelet, it gars \u273f Longing[7] lover to\n seek it where morning glows;\n For likest to Paradise lie its banks \u273f With shade and fruitage and fount\n that flows.\n\nPresently Princess Miriam and Nur al-Din alighted to rest in this\nWady\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-first Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Princess\nMiriam and Nur al-Din alighted in that valley, they ate of its fruits\nand drank of its streams, after turning the stallions loose to pasture:\nthen they sat talking and recalling their past and all that had befallen\nthem and complaining one to other of the pangs of parting and of the\nhardships suffered for estrangement and love-longing. As they were thus\nengaged, behold, there arose in the distance a dust-cloud which spread\ntill it walled the world, and they heard the neighing of horses and\nclank of arms and armour. Now the reason of this was, that after the\nPrincess had been bestowed in wedlock upon the Wazir who had gone in to\nher that night, the King went forth at daybreak, to give the couple good\nmorrow, taking with him, after the custom of Kings with their daughters,\na gift of silken stuffs and scattering gold and silver among the eunuchs\nand tire-women, that they might snatch at and scramble for it. And he\nfared on escorted by one of his pages; but when he came to the new\npalace, he found the Wazir prostrate on the carpet, knowing not his head\nfrom his heels; so he searched the place right and left for his\ndaughter, but found her not; whereat he was troubled sore with concern\ngalore and his wits forlore. Then he bade bring hot water and virgin\nvinegar and frankincense[8] and mingling them together, blew the mixture\ninto the Wazir\u2019s nostrils and shook him, whereupon he cast the Bhang\nforth of his stomach, as it were a bit of cheese. He repeated the\nprocess, whereupon the Minister came to himself and the King questioned\nhim of his case and that of his daughter. He replied, \u201cO mighty King, I\nhave no knowledge of her save that she poured me out a cup of wine with\nher own hand; and from that tide to this I have no recollection of aught\nnor know I what is come of her.\u201d When the King heard this, the light in\nhis eyes became night, and he drew his scymitar and smote the Wazir on\nthe head, that the steel came out gleaming from between his grinder\nteeth. Then, without an instant delay, he called the grooms and syces\nand demanded of them the two stallions: but they said, \u201cO King, the two\nsteeds were lost in the night and together with them our chief, the\nMaster of Horse; for, when we awoke in the morning, we found all the\ndoors wide open.\u201d Cried the King, \u201cBy the faith of me and by all wherein\nmy belief is stablished on certainty, none but my daughter hath taken\nthe steeds, she and the Moslem captive which used to tend the Church and\nwhich took her aforetime! Indeed I knew him right well and none\ndelivered him from my hand save this one-eyed Wazir; but now he is\nrequited his deed.\u201d Then the King called his three sons, who were three\ndoughty champions, each of whom could withstand a thousand horse in the\nfield of strife and the stead where cut and thrust are rife; and bade\nthem mount. So they took horse forthwith and the King and the flower of\nhis knights and nobles and officers mounted with them and followed on\nthe trail of the fugitives till Miriam saw them, when she mounted her\ncharger and baldrick\u2019d her blade and took her arms. Then she said to Nur\nal-Din, \u201cHow is it with thee and how is thy heart for fight and strife\nand fray?\u201d Said he, \u201cVerily, my steadfastness in battle-van is as the\nsteadfastness of the stake in bran.[9]\u201d And he improvised and said:\u2014\n\n O Miriam thy chiding I pray, forego; \u273f Nor drive me to death or\n injurious blow:\n How e\u2019er can I hope to bear fray and fight \u273f Who quake at the croak of\n the corby-crow?\n I who shiver for fear when I see the mouse \u273f And for very funk I bepiss\n my clo\u2019!\n I love no foin but the poke in bed, \u273f When coynte well knoweth my\n prickle\u2019s prow;\n This is rightful rede, and none other shows \u273f Righteous as this in my\n sight, I trow.\n\nNow when Miriam heard his speech and the verse he made, she laughed and\nsmilingly said, \u201cO my lord Nur al-Din, abide in thy place and I will\nkeep thee from their ill grace, though they be as the sea-sands in\nnumber. But mount and ride in rear of me, and if we be defeated and put\nto flight, beware of falling, for none can overtake thy steed.\u201d So\nsaying, she turned her lance-head towards foe in plain and gave her\nhorse the rein, whereupon he darted off under her, like the stormy gale\nor like waters that from straitness of pipes out-rail. Now Miriam was\nthe doughtiest of the folk of her time and the unique pearl of her age\nand tide; for her father had taught her, whilst she was yet little, on\nsteeds to ride and dive deep during the darkness of the night in the\nbattle tide. When the King saw her charging down upon them, he knew her\nbut too well and turning to his eldest son, said, \u201cO Bartaut,[10] thou\nwho art surnamed Ras al-Killaut,[11] this is assuredly thy sister Miriam\nwho chargeth upon us, and she seeketh to wage war and fight fray with\nus. So go thou out to give her battle: and I enjoin thee by the Messiah\nand the Faith which is no liar, an thou get the better of her, kill her\nnot till thou have propounded to her the Nazarene faith. An she return\nto her old creed, bring her to me prisoner; but an she refuse, do her\ndie by the foulest death and make of her the vilest of examples, as well\nas the accursed which is with her.\u201d Quoth Bartaut, \u201cHearkening and\nobedience\u201d; and, rushing out forthright to meet his sister, said to her,\n\u201cO Miriam, doth not what hath already befallen us on thine account\nsuffice thee, but thou must leave the faith of thy fathers and\nforefathers and follow after the faith of the Vagrants in the lands,\nthat is to say, the faith of Al-Islam? By the virtue of the Messiah and\nthe Faith which is no liar, except thou return to the creed of the Kings\nthy Forebears and walk therein after the goodliest fashion, I will put\nthee to an ill death and make of thee the most shameful of ensamples!\u201d\nBut Miriam laughed at his speech and replied, \u201cWell-away! Far be it that\nthe past should present stay or that he who is dead should again see\nday! I will make thee drink the sourest of regrets! By Allah, I will not\nturn back upon the faith of Mohammed son of Abdullah, who made salvation\ngeneral; for his is the True Faith; nor will I leave the right road\nthough I drain the cup of ruin!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-second Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Miriam\nexclaimed to her brother, \u201cWell-away! Heaven forfend that I turn back\nfrom the faith of Mohammed Abdullah-son who made salvation general; for\nhis is the Right Road nor will I leave it although I drain the cup of\nruin.\u201d When the accursed Bartaut heard this, the light in his eyes\nbecame night, the matter was great and grievous to him and between them\nthere befel a sore fight. The twain swayed to and fro battling\nthroughout the length and breadth of the valley and manfully enduring\nthe stress of combat singular, whilst all eyes upon them were fixed in\nadmiring surprise: after which they wheeled about and foined and feinted\nfor a long bout and as often as Bartaut opened on his sister Miriam a\ngate of war,[12] she closed it to and put it to naught, of the\ngoodliness of her skill and her art in the use of arms and her cunning\nof cavalarice. Nor ceased they so doing till the dust overhung their\nheads vault-wise and they were hidden from men\u2019s eyes; and she ceased\nnot to baffle Bartaut and stop the way upon him, till he was weary and\nhis courage wavered and his resolution was worsted and his strength\nweakened; whereupon she smote him on the nape, that the sword came out\ngleaming from his throat tendons and Allah hurried his soul to the Fire\nand the abiding-place which is dire. Then Miriam wheeled about in the\nbattle-plain and the stead where cut and thrust are fain; and championed\nit and offered battle, crying out and saying, \u201cWho is for fighting? Who\nis for jousting? Let come forth to me to-day no weakling or nidering;\nay, let none come forth to me but the champions who the enemies of The\nFaith represent, that I may give them to drink the cup of ignominious\npunishment. O worshippers of idols, O miscreants, O rebellious folk,\nthis day verily shall the faces of the people of the True Faith be\nwhitened and theirs who deny the Compassionate be blackened!\u201d Now when\nthe King saw his eldest son slain, he smote his face and rent his dress\nand cried out to his second son, saying, \u201cO Bart\u00fas, thou who art\nsurnamed Khara al-S\u00fas,[13] go forth, O my son, in haste and do battle\nwith thy sister Miriam; avenge me the death of thy brother Bartaut and\nbring her to me a prisoner, abject and humiliated!\u201d He answered,\n\u201cHearkening and obedience, O my sire,\u201d and charging down drave at his\nsister, who met him in mid-career, and they fought, he and she, a sore\nfight, yet sorer than the first. Bartus right soon found himself unable\nto cope with her might and would have sought safety in flight, but of\nthe greatness of her prowess could not avail unto this sleight; for, as\noften as he turned to flee, she drave after him and still clave to him\nand pressed him hard, till presently she smote him with the sword in his\nthroat, that it issued gleaming from his nape, and sent him after his\nbrother. Then she wheeled about in the mid-field and plain where cut and\nthrust are dealed, crying out and saying, \u201cWhere be the Knights? Where\nbe the Braves? Where is the one-eyed Wazir, the lameter, of the crooked\nfaith[14] the worthy believer?\u201d Thereupon the King her father cried out\nwith heart in bleeding guise and tear-ulcerated eyes, saying, \u201cShe hath\nslain my second son, by the virtue of the Messiah and the Faith which is\nno liar!\u201d And he called aloud to his youngest son, saying, \u201cO Fasy\u00e1n,\nsurnamed Salh al-Suby\u00e1n,[15] go forth, O my son, to do battle with thy\nsister and take of her the blood-wreak for thy brothers and fall on her,\ncome what may; and whether thou gain or thou lose the day[16]; and if\nthou conquer her, slay her with foulest slaughter!\u201d So he drave out to\nMiriam, who ran at him with the best of her skill and charged him with\nthe goodliness of her cleverness and her courage and her cunning in\nfence and cavalarice, crying to him, \u201cO accursed, O enemy of Allah and\nthe Moslems, I will assuredly send thee after thy brothers and woeful is\nthe abiding-place of the Miscreants!\u201d So saying, she unsheathed her\nsword and smote him and cut off his head and arms and sent him after his\nbrothers and Allah hurried his soul to the Fire and the abiding-place\ndire. Now when the Knights and the riders who rode with her sire saw his\nthree sons slain, who were the doughtiest of the folk of their day,\nthere fell on their hearts terror of the Princess Miriam, awe of her\noverpowered them; they bowed their heads earthwards and they made sure\nof ruin and confusion, disgrace and destruction. So with the flames of\nhate blazing in heart they turned their backs forthright and addressed\nthemselves to flight. When the King saw his sons slain and on his flying\ntroops cast sight, there fell on him bewilderment and affright, whilst\nhis heart also was afire for despight. Then quoth he to himself, \u201cIn\nvery sooth Princess Miriam hath belittled us; and if I venture myself\nand go out against her alone, haply she will gar me succumb and slay me\nwithout ruth, even as she slew her brothers, and make of me the foulest\nof examples, for she hath no longer any desire for us nor have we of her\nreturn any hope. Wherefore it were the better rede that I guard mine\nhonour and return to my capital.\u201d So he gave reins to his charger and\nrode back to his city. But when he found himself in his palace, fire was\nloosed in his heart for rage and chagrin at the death of his three\ngallant sons and the defeat of his troops and the disgrace to his\nhonour; nor did he abide half an hour ere he summoned his Grandees and\nOfficers of state and complained to them of that his daughter Miriam had\ndone with him of the slaughter of her brothers and all he suffered\ntherefrom of passion and chagrin, and sought advice of them. They all\ncounselled him to write to the Vicar of Allah in His earth, the\nCommander of the Faithful, Harun al-Rashid, and acquaint him with his\ncircumstance. So he wrote a letter to the Caliph, containing, after the\nusual salutations, the following words. \u201cWe have a daughter, Miriam the\nGirdle-girl hight, who hath been seduced and debauched from us by a\nMoslem captive, named Nur al-Din Ali, son of the merchant Taj al-Din of\nCairo, and he hath taken her by night and went forth with her to his own\ncountry; wherefore I beg of the favour of our lord the Commander of the\nFaithful that he write to all the lands of the Moslems to seize her and\nsend her back to us by a trusty messenger.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the\ndawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-third Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the King of\nFrance wrote to the Caliph and Prince of True Believers, Harun\nal-Rashid, a writ humbling himself by asking for his daughter Miriam and\nbegging of his favour that he write to all the Moslems, enjoining her\nseizure and sending back to him by a trusty messenger of the servants of\nhis Highness the Commander of the Faithful; adding, \u201cAnd in requital of\nyour help and aidance in this matter, we will appoint to you half of the\ncity of Rome the Great, that thou mayst build therein mosques for the\nMoslems, and the tribute thereof shall be forwarded to you.\u201d And after\nwriting this writ, by rede of his Grandees and Lords of the land, he\nfolded the scroll and calling his Wazir, whom he had appointed in the\nstead of the monocular Minister, bade him seal it with the seal of the\nkingdom, and the Officers of state also set hands and seals thereto;\nafter which the King bade the Wazir bear the letter to Baghdad,[17] the\nPalace of Peace, and hand it into the Caliph\u2019s own hand, saying, \u201cAn\nthou bring her back, thou shalt have of me the fiefs of two Emirs and I\nwill bestow on thee a robe of honour with twofold fringes of gold.\u201d The\nWazir set out with the letter and fared on over hill and dale, till he\ncame to the city of Baghdad, where he abode three days, till he was\nrested from the way, when he sought the Palace of the Commander of the\nFaithful and when guided thereto he entered it and craved audience. The\nCaliph bade admit him; so he went in and kissing ground before him,\nhanded to him the letter of the King of France, together with rich gifts\nand rare presents beseeming the Commander of the Faithful. When the\nCaliph read the writ and apprehended its significance, he commanded his\nWazir to write, without stay or delay, despatches to all the lands of\nthe Moslems, setting out the name and favour of Princess Miriam and of\nNur al-Din, stating how they had eloped and bidding all who found them\nlay hands on them and send them to the Commander of the Faithful, and\nwarning them on no wise in that matter to use delay or indifference. So\nthe Wazir wrote the letters and sealing them, despatched them by\ncouriers to the different Governors, who hastened to obey the Caliph\u2019s\ncommandment and addressed themselves to make search in all the lands for\npersons of such name and favour. On this wise it fared with the\nGovernors and their subjects; but as regards Nur al-Din and Miriam the\nGirdle-girl, they fared on without delay after defeating the King of\nFrance and his force and the Protector protected them, till they came to\nthe land of Syria and entered Damascus-city. Now the couriers of the\nCaliph had foregone them thither by a day and the Emir of Damascus knew\nthat he was commanded to arrest the twain as soon as found, that he\nmight send them to the Caliph. Accordingly, when they entered the city,\nthe secret police[18] accosted them and asked them their names. They\ntold them the truth and acquainted them with their adventure and all\nthat had betided them; whereupon they knew them for those of whom they\nwere in search and seizing them, carried them before the Governor of the\ncity. He despatched them to the city of Baghdad under escort of his\nofficers who, when they came thither, craved audience of the Caliph\nwhich he graciously granted; so they came into the presence; and,\nkissing ground before him, said, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, this is\nMiriam the Girdle-girl, daughter of the King of France, and this is the\ncaptive Nur al-Din, son of the merchant Taj al-Din of Cairo, who\ndebauched her from her sire and stealing her from his kingdom and\ncountry fled with her to Damascus, where we found the twain as they\nentered the city, and questioned them. They told us the truth of their\ncase: so we laid hands on them and brought them before thee.\u201d The Caliph\nlooked at Miriam and saw that she was slender and shapely of form and\nstature, the handsomest of the folk of her tide and the unique pearl of\nher age and her time; sweet of speech[19] and fluent of tongue, stable\nof soul and hearty of heart. Thereupon she kissed the ground between his\nhands and wished him permanence of glory and prosperity and surcease of\nevil and enmity. He admired the beauty of her figure and the sweetness\nof her voice and the readiness of her replies and said to her, \u201cArt thou\nMiriam the Girdle-girl, daughter of the King of France?\u201d Answered she,\n\u201cYes, O Prince of True Believers and Priest of those who the Unity of\nAllah receive and Defender of the Faith and cousin of the Primate of the\nApostles!\u201d Then the Caliph turned to Nur al-Din Ali and seeing him to be\na shapely youth, as he were the shining full moon on fourteenth night,\nsaid to him, \u201cAnd thou, art thou Ali Nur al-Din, son of the merchant Taj\nal-Din of Cairo?\u201d Said he, \u201cYes, O Commander of the Faithful and stay of\nthose who for righteousness are care-full!\u201d The Caliph asked, \u201cHow\ncometh it that thou hast taken this damsel and fled forth with her of\nher father\u2019s kingdom?\u201d So Nur al-Din proceeded to relate to the\nCommander of the Faithful all his past, first and last; whereat the\nCaliph was astonied with extreme astonishment and diverted and\nexclaimed, \u201cHow manifold are the sufferings that men suffer!\u201d\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-fourth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Caliph\nHarun al-Rashid asked Nur al-Din of his adventure and was told of all\nthat had passed, first and last, he was astonied with extreme\nastonishment and exclaimed, \u201cHow manifold are the sufferings that men\nsuffer!\u201d Then he turned to the Princess and said to her, \u201cKnow, O\nMiriam, that thy father, the King of France, hath written to me anent\nthee. What sayst thou?\u201d She replied, \u201cO Vicar of Allah on His earth and\nExecutor of the precepts of His prophet and commands to man\u2019s\nunworth,[20] may He vouchsafe thee eternal prosperity and ward thee from\nevil and enmity! Thou art Viceregent of Allah in His earth and I have\nentered thy Faith, for that it is the creed which Truth and\nRighteousness inspire; and I have left the religion of the Miscreants\nwho make the Messiah a liar,[21] and I am become a True Believer in\nAllah the Bountiful and in the revelation of His compassionate Apostle.\nI worship Allah (extolled and exalted be He!) and acknowledge Him to be\nthe One God and prostrate myself humbly before Him and glorify Him; and\nI say before the Caliph:\u2014Verily, I testify that there is no god but\n_the_ God and I testify that Mohammed is the Messenger of God, whom He\nsent with the Guidance and the True Faith, that He might make it\nvictorious over every other religion, albeit they who assign partners to\nGod be averse from it.[22] Is it therefore in thy competence, O\nCommander of the Faithful, to comply with the letter of the King of the\nheretics and send me back to the land of the schismatics who deny The\nFaith and give partners to the All-wise King, who magnify the Cross and\nbow down before idols and believe in the divinity of Jesus, for all he\nwas only a creature? An thou deal with me thus, O Viceregent of Allah, I\nwill lay hold upon thy skirts on the Day of Muster before the Lord and\nmake my complaint of thee to thy cousin the Apostle of Allah (whom God\nassain and preserve!) on the Day when wealth availeth not neither\nchildren save one come unto Allah wholehearted[23]!\u201d Answered the\nCaliph, \u201cO Miriam, Allah forfend that I should do this ever! How can I\nsend back a Moslemah believer in the one God and in His Apostle to that\nwhich Allah hath forbidden and eke His Messenger hath forbidden?\u201d Quoth\nshe, \u201cI testify that there is no God but _the_ God and that Mohammed is\nthe Apostle of God!\u201d Rejoined the Caliph, \u201cO Miriam, Allah bless and\ndirect thee in the way of righteousness! Since thou art a Moslemah and a\nbeliever in Allah the One, I owe thee a duty of obligation and it is\nthat I should never transgress against thee nor forsake thee, though be\nlavished unto me on thine account the world full of gold and gems. So be\nof good cheer and eyes clear of tear; and be thy breast broadened and\nthy case naught save easy. Art thou willing that this youth Ali of Cairo\nbe to thee man and thou to him wife?\u201d Replied Miriam, \u201cO Prince of True\nBelievers, how should I be other than willing to take him to husband,\nseeing that he bought me with his money and hath entreated me with the\nutmost kindness and, for crown of his good offices, he hath ventured his\nlife for my sake many times?\u201d So the Caliph summoned the Kazi and the\nwitnesses and married her to him assigning her a dowry and causing the\nGrandees of his realm be present and the marriage day was a notable.\nThen he turned to the Wazir of the French King, who was present, and\nsaid to him, \u201cHast thou heard her words? How can I her send back to her\nfather the Infidel, seeing that she is a Moslemah and a believer in the\nUnity? Belike he will evil entreat her and deal harshly with her, more\nby token that she hath slain his sons, and I shall bear blame for her on\nResurrection-day. And indeed quoth the Almighty \u2019Allah will by no means\nmake a way for the Infidels over the True Believers.[24]\u2019 So return to\nthy King and say to him:\u2014Turn from this thing and hope not to come at\nthy desire thereof.\u201d Now this Wazir was a Zany: so he said to the\nCaliph, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, by the virtue of the Messiah and\nthe Faith which is no liar, were Miriam forty times a Moslemah and forty\ntimes thereto, I may not depart from thee without that same Miriam! And\nif thou send her not back with me of free will, I will hie me to her\nsire and cause him despatch thee an host, wherewith I will come upon you\nfrom the landward and the seaward; and the van whereof shall be at your\ncapital city whilst the rear is yet on the Euphrates[25] and they shall\nlay waste thy realms.\u201d When the Caliph heard these words from the\naccursed Wazir of the King of France, the light in his face became night\nand he was wroth at his speech with exceeding wrath and said to him, \u201cO\ndamned one, O dog of the Nazarenes, art thou come to such power that\nthou durst assail me with the King of the Franks?\u201d Then quoth he to his\nguards, \u201cTake this accursed and do him die\u201d; and he repeated this\ncouplet[26]:\u2014\n\n This be his recompense who will \u273f Oppose and thwart his betters\u2019 will.\n\nThen he commanded to cut off the Wazir\u2019s head and burn his body; but\nPrincess Miriam cried, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, soil not thy sword\nwith the blood of this accursed.\u201d So saying, she bared her brand and\nsmote him and made his head fly from his corpse, and he went to the\nhouse of ungrace; his abode was Gehenna, and evil is the abiding-place.\nThe Caliph marvelled at the force of her fore-arm and the strength of\nher mind, and they carried the dead Wazir forth of the pavilion and\nburnt him. Then the Commander of the Faithful bestowed upon Nur al-Din a\nsplendid robe of honour and assigned to him and her a lodging in his\npalace. Moreover, he appointed them solde and rations, and commanded to\ntransport to their quarters all they needed of raiment and furniture and\nvessels of price. They sojourned awhile in Baghdad in all delight of\nlife and solace thereof till Nur al-Din longed for his mother and\nfather. So he submitted the matter to the Caliph and sought his leave to\nrevisit his native land and visit his kinsfolk, and he granted him the\npermission he sought and calling Miriam, commended them each to other.\nHe also loaded them with costly presents and rarities and bade write\nletters to the Emirs and Olema and notables of Cairo the God-guarded,\ncommending Nur al-Din and his wife and parents to their care and\ncharging them honour them with the highmost honour. When the news\nreached Cairo, the merchant Taj al-Din joyed at the return of his son\nand Nur al-Din\u2019s mother likewise rejoiced therein with passing joy. The\nEmirs and the notables of the city went forth to meet him, in obedience\nto the Caliph\u2019s injunctions, and indeed it was for them a right\nnote-worthy day, wherein foregathered the lover and the beloved and the\nseeker attained the sought. Moreover, all the Emirs made them\nbride-feasts, each on his own day, and joyed in them with joy exceeding\nand vied in doing them honour, one the other succeeding. When Nur al-Din\nforegathered with his mother and father, they were gladdened in each\nother with the utmost gladness and care and affliction ceased from them,\nwhilst his parents joyed no less in the Princess Miriam and honoured her\nwith the highmost honour. Every day, there came to them presents from\nall the Emirs and great merchants, and they were in new delight and\ngladness exceeding the gladness of festival. Then they ceased not\nabiding in solace and pleasance and good cheer and abounding prosperity,\neating and drinking with mirth and merriment, till there came to them\nthe Destroyer of delights and Sunderer of societies, Waster of houses\nand palace-domes and Peopler of the bellies of the tombs. So they were\nremoved from worldly stead and became of the number of the dead; and\nglory be to the Living One, who dieth not and in whose hand are the keys\nof the Seen and the Unseen! And a tale was also told by the Emir Shuj\u00e1\u2019\nal-Din,[27] Prefect of Cairo anent\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 1:\n\n Arab. \u201cWa l\u00e1 rajma ghaybin:\u201d lit. = without stone-throwing\n (conjecture) of one latent.\n\nFootnote 2:\n\n _i.e._ saying Bismillah, etc. See vol. v. 206.\n\nFootnote 3:\n\n Where he was to await her.\n\nFootnote 4:\n\n As a rule, amongst Moslems the rider salutes the man on foot and the\n latter those who sit. The saying in the text suggests the Christian\n byword anent Mohammed and the Mountain, which is, I need hardly say,\n utterly unknown to Mahommedans.\n\nFootnote 5:\n\n The story-teller does not remember that \u201cthe city-folk trust to the\n locking of the gates\u201d (dccclxxxix.); and forgets to tell us that the\n Princess took the keys from the Wazir whom she had hocussed. In a\n carefully corrected Arabic Edition of The Nights, a book much wanted,\n the texts which are now in a mutilated state would be supplied with\n these details.\n\nFootnote 6:\n\n Which probably would not be the last administered to him by the\n Amazonian young person, who after her mate feared to approach the dead\n blackamoor must have known him to be cowardly as Cairenes generally\n are. Moreover, he had no shame in his poltroonery like the recreant\n Fellah-soldiers, in the wretched Saw\u00e1kin campaign against the noble\n S\u00fad\u00e1ni negroids, who excused their running away by saying, \u201cWe are\n Egyptians\u201d _i.e._ too good men and Moslems to lose our lives as\n becomes you Franks and dog-Christians. Yet under Mohammed Ali the\n Great, Fellah-soldiers conquered the \u201ccolligated\u201d Arabs (Pilgrimage\n iii. 48) of Al-As\u00edr (Ophir) at Bissel and in Wahhabi-land and put the\n Turks to flight at the battle of Naz\u00edb, and the late General Jochmus\n assured me that he saved his command, the Ottoman cavalry in Syria, by\n always man\u0153uvring to refuse a pitched battle. But Mohammed Ali knew\n his men. He never failed to shoot a runaway, and all his officers,\n even the lieutenants, were Turks or Albanians. Sa\u2019id Pasha was the\n first to appoint Fellah-officers and under their command the Egyptian\n soldier, one of the best in the East, at once became the worst. We\n have at last found the right way to make them fight, by officering\n them with Englishmen, but we must not neglect the shooting process\n whenever they dare to turn tail.\n\nFootnote 7:\n\n \u201cAl-walh\u00e1n\u201d (as it should be printed in previous places, instead of\n Al-walah\u00e1n) is certainly not a P.N. in this place.\n\nFootnote 8:\n\n Arab. \u201cKundur,\u201d Pers. and Arab. manna, mastich, frankincense, the\n latter being here meant.\n\nFootnote 9:\n\n So Emma takes the lead and hides her lover under her cloak during\n their flight to the place where they intended to lie concealed. In\n both cases the women are the men.\n\nFootnote 10:\n\n Or \u201cBart\u00fat,\u201d in which we recognise the German Berthold.\n\nFootnote 11:\n\n _i.e._ Head of Killaut which makes, from the Muh\u00edt, \u201cthe name of a son\n of the sons of the Jinn and the Satans.\u201d\n\nFootnote 12:\n\n _i.e._ attacked her after a new fashion: see vol. i. 136.\n\nFootnote 13:\n\n _i.e._ Weevil\u2019s dung; hence Suez = Suways the little weevil, or\n \u201clittle Sus\u201d from the Maroccan town: see The Mines of Midian p. 74 for\n a note on the name. Near Gibraltar is a fiumara called Guadalajara\n _i.e._ Wady al-Khara, of dung. \u201cBart\u00fas\u201d is evidently formed \u201con the\n weight\u201d of \u201cBart\u00fat;\u201d and his metonym is a caricature, a chaff fit for\n Fellahs.\n\nFootnote 14:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Din al-a\u2019raj,\u201d the perverted or falsified Faith,\n Christianity having been made obsolete and abolished by the Mission of\n Mohammed, even as Christianity claims to have superseded the Mosaic\n and Noachian dispensations. Moslems are perfectly logical in their\n deductions, but logic and truth do not always go together.\n\nFootnote 15:\n\n The \u201cBreaker of Wind\u201d (faswah = a fizzle, a silent crepitus) \u201cson of\n Children\u2019s dung.\u201d\n\nFootnote 16:\n\n Arab. \u201cAmm\u00e1 laka au \u2019alayk\u201d lit. = either to thee (be the gain) or\n upon thee (be the loss). This truly Arabic idiom is varied in many\n ways.\n\nFootnote 17:\n\n In addition to what was noted in vol. iii. 100 and viii. 51, I may\n observe that in the \u201cMasnavi\u201d the \u201cBaghdad of Nulliquity\u201d is opposed\n to the Ubiquity of the World. The popular derivation is Bagh (the\n idol-god, the slav \u201cBog\u201d) and d\u00e1d a gift, he gave (Persian). It is\n also called Al-Zaur\u00e1 = a bow, from the bend of the Tigris where it was\n built.\n\nFootnote 18:\n\n Arab. \u201cJaw\u00e1s\u00eds\u201d plur. of J\u00e1s\u00fas lit. the spies.\n\nFootnote 19:\n\n The Caliph could not \u201csee\u201d her \u201csweetness of speech\u201d; so we must\n understand that he addressed her and found out that she was fluent of\n tongue. But this idiomatic use of the word \u201csee\u201d is also found in the\n languages of Southern Europe: so Camoens (Lus. i. ii.), \u201cOuvi * * *\n vereis\u201d lit. = \u201chark, you shall see\u201d which sounds Hibernian.\n\nFootnote 20:\n\n Here \u201cFarz\u201d (Koranic obligation which it is mortal sin to gainsay)\n follows whereas it should precede \u201cSunnat\u201d (sayings and doings of the\n Apostle) simply because \u201cFarz\u201d jingles with \u201cArz\u201d (earth.)\n\nFootnote 21:\n\n Moslems, like modern Agnostics, hold that Jesus of Nazareth would be\n greatly scandalized by the claims to Godship advanced for him by his\n followers.\n\nFootnote 22:\n\n Koran ix. 33: See also v. 85. In the passage above quoted Mr. Rodwell\n makes the second \u201cHe\u201d refer to the deity.\n\nFootnote 23:\n\n Koran xxvi. 88, 89. For a very indifferent version (and abridgment) of\n this speech, see Saturday Review, July 9, 1881.\n\nFootnote 24:\n\n Koran iv. 140.\n\nFootnote 25:\n\n Arab. \u201cFur\u00e1t\u201d from the Arab. \u201cFaruta\u201d = being sweet, as applied to\n water. Al-Fur\u00e1t\u00e1ni = the two sweet (rivers), are the Tigris and\n Euphrates. The Greeks, who in etymology were satisfied with Greek,\n derived the latter from \u03b5\u1f50\u03c6\u03c1\u03b1\u03b9\u03bd\u03b5\u1fd6\u03bd (to gladden, l\u00e6tificare, for which\n see Pliny and Strabo, although both are correct in explaining\n \u201cTigris\u201d) and Selden remarks hereon, \u201cTalibus nugis nugantur Gr\u00e6culi.\u201d\n But not only the \u201cGr\u00e6culi\u201d; _e.g._ Parkhurst\u2019s good old derivations\n from the Heb. \u201cFarah\u201d of fero, fructus, Freya (the Goddess), frayer\n (to spawn), friand, fry (of fish), etc., etc.\n\nFootnote 26:\n\n The great Caliph was a poet; and he spoke verses as did all his\n contemporaries: his lament over his slave-girl Haylanah (Helen) is\n quoted by Al-Suyuti, p. 305.\n\nFootnote 27:\n\n \u201cThe Brave of the Faith.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n THE MAN OF UPPER EGYPT AND HIS FRANKISH WIFE.\n\n\nWe lay one night in the house of a man of the Sa\u2019\u00edd or Upper Egypt, and\nhe entertained us and entreated us hospitably. Now he was a very old man\nswart with exceeding swarthiness, and he had little children, who were\nwhite, of a white dashed with red. So we said to him, \u201cHarkye, such an\none, how cometh it that these thy children are white, whilst thou\nthyself art passing swart?\u201d And he said, \u201cTheir mother was a Frankish\nwoman, whom I took prisoner in the days of Al-Malik al-N\u00e1sir Sal\u00e1h\nal-D\u00edn,[28] after the battle of Hatt\u00edn,[29] when I was a young man.\u201d We\nasked, \u201cAnd how gottest thou her?\u201d and he answered, \u201cI had a rare\nadventure with her.\u201d Quoth we, \u201cFavour us with it;\u201d and quoth he:\u2014With\nall my heart! You must know that I once sowed a crop of flax in these\nparts and pulled it and scutched it and spent on it five hundred gold\npieces; after which I would have sold it, but could get no more than\nthis therefor, and the folk said to me, \u201cCarry it to Acre: for there\nthou wilt haply make good gain by it.\u201d Now Acre was then in the hands of\nthe Franks[30]; so I carried my flax thither and sold part of it at six\nmonths\u2019 credit. One day, as I was selling, behold, there came up a\nFrankish woman (now \u2019tis the custom of the women of the Franks to go\nabout the market streets with unveiled faces), to buy flax of me, and I\nsaw of her beauty what dazed my wits. So I sold her somewhat of flax and\nwas easy with her concerning the price; and she took it and went away.\nSome days after, she returned and bought somewhat more flax of me and I\nwas yet easier with her about the price; and she repeated her visits to\nme, seeing that I was in love with her. Now she was used to walk in\ncompany of an old woman to whom I said, \u201cI am sore enamoured of thy\nmistress. Canst thou contrive for me to enjoy her?\u201d Quoth she, \u201cI will\ncontrive this for thee; but the secret must not go beyond us three, me,\nthee and her; and there is no help but that thou be lavish with money,\nto boot.\u201d And I answered, saying, \u201cThough my life were the price of her\nfavours \u2019twere no great matter.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-fifth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the old woman said\nto the man, \u201cHowever the secret must not go beyond us three, to wit me,\nthee and her; and there is no help but thou be lavish of thy money to\nboot.\u201d He replied, \u201cThough my life were the price of her favours \u2019twere\nno great matter.\u201d So it was agreed (continued the man of Upper Egypt),\nthat I should pay her fifty dinars and that she should come to me;\nwhereupon I procured the money and gave it to the old woman. She took it\nand said, \u201cMake ready a place for her in thy house, and she will come to\nthee this night.\u201d Accordingly I went home and made ready what I could of\nmeat and drink and wax candles and sweetmeats. Now my house overlooked\nthe sea and \u2019twas the season of summer; so I spread the bed on the\nterrace roof. Presently, the Frank woman came and we ate and drank, and\nthe night fell dark. We lay down under the sky, with the moon shining on\nus, and fell to watching the shimmering of the stars in the sea: and I\nsaid to myself, \u201cArt thou not ashamed before Allah (to whom belong Might\nand Majesty!) and thou a stranger, under the heavens and in presence of\nthe deep waters, to disobey Him with a Nazarene woman and merit the\ntorment of Fire?\u201d Then said I, \u201cO my God, I call Thee to witness that I\nabstain from this Christian woman this night, of shamefastness before\nThee and fear of Thy vengeance!\u201d So I slept till the morning, and she\narose at peep of day full of anger and went away. I walked to my shop\nand sat there; and behold, presently she passed, as she were the moon,\naccompanied by the old woman who was also angry; whereat my heart sank\nwithin me and I said to myself, \u201cWho art thou that thou shouldst refrain\nfrom yonder damsel? Art thou Sar\u00ed al-Sakat\u00ed or Bishr Barefoot or Junayd\nof Baghdad or Fuzayl bin \u2019Iy\u00e1z[31]?\u201d Then I ran after the old woman and\ncoming up with her said to her, \u201cBring her to me again;\u201d and said she,\n\u201cBy the virtue of the Messiah, she will not return to thee but for an\nhundred ducats!\u201d Quoth I, \u201cI will give thee a hundred gold pieces.\u201d So I\npaid her the money and the damsel came to me a second time; but no\nsooner was she with me than I returned to my whilome way of thinking and\nabstained from her and forbore her for the sake of Allah Almighty.\nPresently she went away and I walked to my shop, and shortly after the\nold woman came up, in a rage. Quoth I to her, \u201cBring her to me again;\u201d\nand quoth she, \u201cBy the virtue of the Messiah, thou shalt never again\nenjoy her presence with thee, except for five hundred ducats, and thou\nshalt perish in thy pain!\u201d At this I trembled and resolved to expend the\nwhole price of my flax and therewith ransom my life. But, before I could\nthink, I heard the crier proclaiming and saying, \u201cHo, all ye Moslems,\nthe truce which was between us and you is expired, and we give all of\nyou Mahometans who are here a week from this time to have done with your\nbusiness and depart to your own country.\u201d Thus her visits were cut off\nfrom me and I betook myself to getting in the price of my flax which men\nhad bought upon credit, and to bartering what remained in my hands for\nother goods. Then I took with me fair merchandise and departed Acre with\na soul full of affection and love-longing for the Frankish woman, who\nhad taken my heart and my coin. So I journeyed till I made Damascus,\nwhere I sold the stock in trade I had brought from Acre, at the highest\nprice, because of the cutting off of communication by reason of the term\nof truce having expired; and Allah (extolled and exalted be He!)\nvouchsafed me good gain. Then I fell to trading in captive slave-girls,\nthinking thus to ease my heart of its pining for the Frankish woman, and\nin this traffic engaged I abode three years, till there befel between\nAl-Malik al-N\u00e1sir and the Franks what befel of the action of Hattin and\nother encounters and Allah gave him the victory over them, so that he\ntook all their Kings prisoners and he opened[32] the coast[33] cities by\nHis leave. Now it fortuned one day after this, that a man came to me and\nsought of me a slave-girl for Al-Malik al-Nasir. Having a handsome\nhandmaid I showed her to him and he bought her of me for an hundred\ndinars and gave me ninety thereof, leaving ten still due to me, for that\nthere was no more found in the royal treasury that day, because he had\nexpended all his monies in waging war against the Franks. Accordingly\nthey took counsel with him and he said, \u201cCarry him to the treasury[34]\nwhere are the captives\u2019 lodging and give him his choice among the\ndamsels of the Franks, so he may take one of them for the ten\ndinars.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-sixth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that whenas\nAl-Malik al-Nasir said, \u201cGive him his choice to take one of the girls\nfor the ten dinars that are due to him;\u201d they brought me to the\ncaptives\u2019 lodging and showed me all who were therein, and I saw amongst\nthem the Frankish damsel with whom I had fallen in love at Acre and knew\nher right well. Now she was the wife of one of the cavaliers of the\nFranks. So I said, \u201cGive me this one,\u201d and carrying her to my tent,\nasked her, \u201cDost thou know me?\u201d She answered, \u201cNo;\u201d and I rejoined, \u201cI\nam thy friend, the sometime flax-merchant with whom thou hadst to do at\nAcre and there befel between us what befel. Thou tookest money of me and\nsaidest, \u2018Thou shalt never again see me but for five hundred dinars.\u2019\nAnd now thou art become my property for ten ducats.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cThis is\na mystery. Thy faith is the True Faith and I testify that there is no\ngod but _the_ God and that Mohammed is the Messenger of God!\u201d And she\nmade perfect profession of Al-Islam. Then said I to myself, \u201cBy Allah, I\nwill not go in unto her till I have set her free and acquainted the\nKazi.\u201d So I betook myself to Ibn Shadd\u00e1d[35] and told him what had\npassed and he married me to her. Then I lay with her that night and she\nconceived; after which the troops departed and we returned to Damascus.\nBut within a few days there came an envoy from the King of the Franks,\nto seek the captives and the prisoners, according to the treaty between\nthe Kings. So Al-Malik al-Nasir restored all the men and women captive,\ntill there remained but the woman who was with me and the Franks said,\n\u201cThe wife of such an one the Knight is not here.\u201d Then they asked after\nher and making strict search for her, found that she was with me;\nwhereupon they demanded her of me and I went in to her sore concerned\nand with colour changed; and she said to me, \u201cWhat aileth thee and what\nevil assaileth thee?\u201d Quoth I, \u201cA messenger is come from the King to\ntake all the captives, and they demand thee of me.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cHave no\nfear, bring me to the King and I know what to say before and to him.\u201d I\ncarried her into the presence of the Sultan Al-Malik al-Nasir, who was\nseated, with the envoy of the King of the Franks on his right hand, and\nI said to him, \u201cThis is the woman that is with me.\u201d Then quoth the King\nand the envoy to her, \u201cWilt thou go to thy country or to[36] thy\nhusband? For Allah hath loosed thy bonds and those of thy fellow\ncaptives.\u201d Quoth she to the Sultan, \u201cI am become a Moslemah and am great\nwith child, as by my middle ye may see, and the Franks shall have no\nmore profit of me.\u201d The envoy asked, \u201cWhether is dearer to thee, this\nMoslem or thy first husband the knight such an one?;\u201d and she answered\nhim even as she had answered the Sultan. Then said the envoy to the\nFranks with him, \u201cHeard ye her words?\u201d They replied, \u201cYes.\u201d And he said\nto me, \u201cTake thy wife and depart with her.\u201d So I took her and went away;\nbut the envoy sent after me in haste and cried, \u201cHer mother gave me a\ncharge for her, saying, My daughter is a captive and naked: and I would\nhave thee carry her this chest. Take it thou and deliver it to her.\u201d\nAccordingly I carried the chest home and gave it to her. She opened it\nand found in it all her raiment as she had left it and therein I saw the\ntwo purses of fifty and an hundred dinars which I had given her,\nuntouched and tied up with my own tying, wherefore I praised Almighty\nAllah. These are my children by her and she is alive to this day and\n\u2019twas she dressed you this food. We marvelled at his story and at that\nwhich had befallen him of good fortune, and Allah is All-knowing. But\nmen also tell a tale anent the\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 28:\n\n _i.e._ Saladin. See vol. iv. p. 116.\n\nFootnote 29:\n\n Usually called the Horns of Hattin (classically Hittin) North of\n Tiberias where Saladin by good strategy and the folly of the Franks\n annihilated the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem. For details see the\n guide-books. In this action (June 23, 1187), after three bishops were\n slain in its defence, the last fragment of the True Cross (or rather\n the cross verified by Helena) fell into Moslem hands. The Christians\n begged hard for it, but Saladin, a conscientious believer, refused to\n return to them even for ransom \u201cthe object of their iniquitous\n superstition.\u201d His son, however, being of another turn, would have\n sold it to the Franks who then lacked money to purchase. It presently\n disappeared and I should not be surprised if it were still lying, an\n unknown and _inutile lignum_ in some Cairene mosque.\n\nFootnote 30:\n\n \u2019Akk\u00e1 (Acre) was taken by Saladin on July 29, 1187. The Egyptian\n states that he was at Acre in 1184 or three years before the affair of\n Hattin (Night dcccxcv.).\n\nFootnote 31:\n\n Famous Sufis and ascetics of the second and third centuries A.H. For\n Bishr Barefoot, see vol. ii. p. 127. Al-Sakati means \u201cthe old-clothes\n man;\u201d and the names of the others are all recorded in D\u2019Herbelot.\n\nFootnote 32:\n\n _i.e._ captured, forced open their gates.\n\nFootnote 33:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-S\u00e1hil\u201d _i.e._ the seaboard of Syria; properly Ph\u0153nicia or\n the coast-lands of Southern Palestine. So the maritime lowlands of\n continental Zanzibar are called in the plur. Saw\u00e1hil = \u201cthe shores\u201d\n and the people Saw\u00e1h\u00edl\u00ed = Shore-men.\n\nFootnote 34:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Khiz\u00e1nah\u201d both in Mac. Edit. and Breslau x, 426. Mr. Payne\n has translated \u201ctents\u201d and says, \u201cSaladin seems to have been encamped\n without Damascus and the slave-merchant had apparently come out and\n pitched his tent near the camp for the purposes of his trade.\u201d But I\n can find no notice of tents till a few lines below.\n\nFootnote 35:\n\n Bah\u00e1 al-D\u00edn ibn Shadd\u00e1d, then K\u00e1zi al-Askar (of the Army) or\n Judge-Advocate-General under Saladin.\n\nFootnote 36:\n\n _i.e._ \u201cabide with\u201d thy second husband, the Egyptian.\n\n\n\n\n RUINED MAN OF BAGHDAD AND HIS SLAVE-GIRL.\n\n\nThere was of old time in Baghdad a man of condition, who had inherited\nfrom his father abounding affluence. He fell in love with a slave-girl;\nso he bought her and she loved him as he loved her; and he ceased not to\nspend upon her, till all his money was gone and naught remained thereof;\nwhereupon he sought a means of getting his livelihood, but availed not\nto find any. Now this young man had been used, in the days of his\naffluence, to frequent the assemblies of those who were versed in the\nart of singing and had thus attained to the utmost excellence therein.\nPresently he took counsel with one of his intimates, who said to him,\n\u201cMeseems thou canst find no better profession than to sing, thou and thy\nslave-girl; for on this wise thou wilt get money in plenty and wilt eat\nand drink.\u201d But he misliked this, he and the damsel, and she said to\nhim, \u201cI have bethought me of a means of relief for thee.\u201d He asked,\n\u201cWhat is it?;\u201d and she answered, \u201cDo thou sell me; thus shall we be\ndelivered of this strait, thou and I, and I shall be in affluence; for\nnone will buy the like of me save a man of fortune, and with this I will\ncontrive for my return to thee.\u201d He carried her to the market and the\nfirst who saw her was a H\u00e1shim\u00ed[37] of Bassorah, a man of good breeding,\nfine taste and generosity, who bought her for fifteen hundred dinars.\n(Quoth the young man, the damsel\u2019s owner), When I had received the\nprice, I repented me and wept, I and the damsel; and I sought to cancel\nthe sale; but the purchaser would not consent. So I took the gold in a\nbag, knowing not whither I should wend, now my house was desolate of\nher, and buffeted my face and wept and wailed as I had never done\nbefore. Then I entered a mosque and sat shedding tears, till I was\nstupefied and losing my senses fell asleep, with the bag of money under\nmy head by way of pillow. Presently, ere I could be ware, a man plucked\nthe bag from under my head and ran off with it at speed: whereupon I\nstarted up in alarm and affright and would have arisen to run after him;\nbut lo! my feet were bound with a rope and I fell on my face. Then I\ntook to weeping and buffeting myself, saying, \u201cThou hast parted with thy\nsoul[38] and thy wealth is lost!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-seventh Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young man\ncontinued:\u2014So I said to myself, \u201cThou hast parted with thy soul and thy\nwealth is lost.\u201d Then, of the excess of my chagrin, I betook myself to\nthe Tigris and wrapping my face in my gown, cast myself into the stream.\nThe bystanders saw me and cried, \u201cFor sure, this is because of some\ngreat trouble that hath betided him.\u201d They cast themselves in after me\nand bringing me ashore, questioned me of my case. I told them what\nmisadventure had befallen me and they condoled with me. Then an old man\nof them came to me and said, \u201cThou hast lost thy money, but why goest\nthou about to lose thy life and become of the people of The Fire?[39]\nArise, come with me, that I may see thy lodging.\u201d I went with him to my\nhouse and he sat with me awhile, till I waxed calmer, and becoming\ntranquil I thanked him and he went away. When he was gone, I was like to\nkill myself, but bethought me of the Future and the Fire; so I fared\nforth my house and fled to one of my friends and told him what had\nbefallen me. He wept for pity of me and gave me fifty dinars, saying,\n\u201cTake my advice and hie thee from Baghdad forthright and let this\nprovide thee till thy heart be diverted from the love of her and thou\nforget her. Thy forbears were Secretaries and Scribes and thy\nhandwriting is fine and thy breeding right good: seek out, then, whom\nthou wilt of the Intendants[40] and throw thyself on his bounty; thus\nhaply Allah shall reunite thee with thy slave-girl.\u201d I hearkened to his\nwords (and indeed my mind was strengthened and I was somewhat comforted)\nand resolved to betake myself to W\u00e1sit,[41] where I had kinsfolk. So I\nwent down to the river-side, where I saw a ship moored and the sailors\nembarking goods and goodly stuffs. I asked them to take me with them and\ncarry me to Wasit; but they replied, \u201cWe cannot take thee on such wise,\nfor the ship belongeth to a Hashimi.\u201d However I tempted them with\npromise of passage-money and they said, \u201cWe cannot embark thee on this\nfashion;[42] but, if it must be, doff those fine clothes of thine and\ndon sailor\u2019s gear and sit with us as thou wert one of us.\u201d I went away\nand buying somewhat of sailors\u2019 clothes, put them on; after which I\nbought me also somewhat of provisions for the voyage; and, returning to\nthe vessel, which was bound for Bassorah, embarked with the crew. But\nere long I saw my slave-girl herself come on board, attended by two\nwaiting-women; whereupon what was on me of chagrin subsided and I said\nin myself, \u201cNow shall I see her and hear her singing, till we come to\nBassorah.\u201d Soon after, up rode the Hashimi, with a party of people, and\nthey embarked aboard the ship, which dropped down the river with them.\nPresently the Hashimi brought out food and ate with the damsel, whilst\nthe rest ate amidships. Then said he to her, \u201cHow long this abstinence\nfrom singing and permanence in this wailing and weeping? Thou art not\nthe first that hath been parted from a beloved!\u201d Wherefore I knew what\nshe suffered for love of me. Then he hung a curtain before her along the\ngunwale and calling those who ate apart, sat down with them without the\ncurtain; and I enquired concerning them and behold they were his\nbrethren.[43] He set before them what they needed of wine and dessert,\nand they ceased not to press the damsel to sing, till she called for the\nlute and tuning it, intoned these two couplets:\u2014\n\n The company left with my love by night, \u273f Nor forbore to fare with my\n heart\u2019s delight:\n And raged, since their camels off paced, a fire \u273f As of Ghaz\u00e1[44]-wood\n in the lover\u2019s sprite.\n\nThen weeping overpowered her and she threw down the lute and ceased\nsinging; whereat the folk were troubled and I slipped down a-swoon. They\nthought I was possessed[45] and one of them began reciting exorcisms in\nmy ear; nor did they cease to comfort her and beseech her to sing, till\nshe tuned the lute again and chaunted these couplets twain:\u2014\n\n I stood and bewailed who their loads had bound \u273f And far yode but still\n in my heart are found:\n I drew near the ruins and asked of them \u273f And the camp was void and lay\n waste the ground.\n\nThen she fell down in a fainting-fit and weeping arose amongst the folk;\nand I also cried out and fainted away. The sailors were startled by me\nand one of the Hashimi\u2019s pages said to them, \u201cHow came ye to take this\nmadman on board?\u201d So they said one to other, \u201cAs soon as we come to the\nnext village, we will set him ashore and rid us of him.\u201d When I heard\nthis, I was sore troubled but I heartened and hardened myself, saying in\nthought, \u201cNothing will serve me to deliver myself from their hands,\nexcept I make shift to acquaint her with my presence in the ship, so she\nmay prevent my being set ashore.\u201d Then we sailed when we came hard by a\nhamlet[46] and the skipper said, \u201cCome, let us go ashore.\u201d Therewith\nthey all landed, save myself: and as evening fell I rose and going\nbehind the curtain took the lute and changed its accord, mode[47] by\nmode, and tuning it after a fashion of my own,[48] that she had learnt\nof me, returned to my place in the ship;\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the\ndawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-eighth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young man\ncontinued:\u2014I returned to my place in the ship; and presently the whole\nparty came on board again and the moon shone bright upon river and\nheight. Then said the Hashimi to the damsel, \u201cAllah upon thee, trouble\nnot our joyous lives!\u201d So she took the lute, and touching it with her\nhand, gave a sob, that they thought her soul had fled her frame, and\nsaid, \u201cBy Allah, my master and teacher is with us in this ship!\u201d\nAnswered the Hashimi, \u201cBy Allah, were this so, I would not forbid him\nour conversation! Haply he would lighten thy burthen, so we might enjoy\nthy singing: but his being on board is far from possible.\u201d However she\nsaid, \u201cI cannot smite lute-string or sing sundry airs I was wont to sing\nwhilst my lord is with us.\u201d Quoth the Hashimi, \u201cLet us ask the sailors;\u201d\nand quoth she, \u201cDo so.\u201d He questioned them, saying, \u201cHave ye carried\nanyone with you?\u201d; and they answered, \u201cNo.\u201d Then I feared lest the\nenquiry should end there; so I laughed and said, \u201cYes; I am her master\nand taught her whenas I was her lord.\u201d Cried she, \u201cBy Allah, that is my\nlord\u2019s voice!\u201d Thereupon the pages carried me to the Hashimi, who knew\nme at first sight and said to me, \u201cOut on thee! What plight is this in\nwhich I see thee and what hath brought thee to such condition?\u201d I\nrelated to him all that had befallen me of my affair, weeping the while,\nand the damsel made loud wail from behind the curtain. The Hashimi wept\nwith sore weeping, he and his brethren, for pity of me, and he said, \u201cBy\nAllah, I have not drawn near this damsel nor enjoyed her, nor have I\neven heard her sing till this day! I am a man to whom Allah hath been\nample and I came to Baghdad but to hear singing and seek my allowances\nof the Commander of the Faithful. I accomplished both my needments and\nbeing about to return home, said to myself, \u2018Let us hear some what of\nthe singing of Baghdad.\u2019 Wherefore I bought this damsel, knowing not\nthat such was the case with you twain; and I take Allah to witness that,\nwhen I reach Bassorah I will free her and marry her to thee and assign\nyou what shall suffice you, and more; but on condition that, whenever I\nhave a mind to hear music, a curtain shall be hung for her and she shall\nsing to me from behind it, and thou shalt be of the number of my\nbrethren and boon-companions.\u201d Hereat I rejoiced and the Hashimi put his\nhead within the curtain and said to her, \u201cWill that content thee?\u201d;\nwhereupon she fell to blessing and thanking him. Then he called a\nservant and said to him, \u201cTake this young man and do off his clothes and\nrobe him in costly raiment and incense him[49] and bring him back to\nus.\u201d So the servant did with me as his master bade him and brought me\nback to him, and served me with wine, even as the rest of the company.\nThen the damsel began singing after the goodliest fashion and chanted\nthese couplets:\u2014\n\n They blamed me for causing my tears to well \u273f When came my beloved to\n bid farewell:\n They ne\u2019er tasted the bitters of parting nor felt \u273f Fire beneath my ribs\n that flames fierce and fell!\n None but baffled lover knows aught of Love, \u273f Whose heart is lost where\n he wont to dwell.\n\nThe folk rejoiced in her song with exceeding joy and my gladness\nredoubled, so that I took the lute from the damsel and preluding after\nthe most melodious fashion, sang these couplets:\u2014\n\n Ask (if needs thou ask) the Compassionate, \u273f And the generous donor of\n high estate.\n For asking the noble honours man \u273f And asking the churl entails bane and\n bate:\n When abasement is not to be \u2019scaped by wight \u273f Meet it asking boons of\n the good and great.\n Of Grandee to sue ne\u2019er shall vilify man, \u273f But \u2019tis vile on the vile of\n mankind to \u2019wait.\n\nThe company rejoiced in me with joy exceeding and they ceased not from\npleasure and delight, whilst anon I sang and anon the damsel, till we\ncame to one of the landing-places, where the vessel moored and all on\nboard disembarked and I with them. Now I was drunken with wine and\nsquatted on my hams to make water; but drowsiness overcame me and I\nslept, and the passengers returned to the ship which ran down stream\nwithout any missing me, for that they also were drunken, and continued\ntheir voyage till they reached Bassorah. As for me I awoke not till the\nheat of the sun aroused me, when I rose and looked about me, but saw no\none. Now I had given my spending-money to the damsel and had naught\nleft: I had also forgotten to ask the Hashimi his name and where his\nhouse was at Bassorah and his titles; thus I was confounded and my joy\nat meeting the damsel had been but a dream; and I abode in perplexity\ntill there came up a great vessel wherein I embarked and she carried me\nto Bassorah. Now I knew none there much less the Hashimi\u2019s house, so I\naccosted a grocer and taking of him inkcase and paper,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-ninth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Baghdad\nman who owned the maid entered Bassorah, he was perplexed for not\nknowing the Hashimi\u2019s house. So I accosted (said he) a grocer and,\ntaking of him inkcase and paper, sat down to write. He admired my\nhandwriting and seeing my dress stained and soiled, questioned me of my\ncase, to which I replied that I was a stranger and poor. Quoth he, \u201cWilt\nthou abide with me and order the accounts of my shop and I will give\nthee thy food and clothing and half a dirham a day for ordering the\naccompts of my shop?\u201d; and quoth I, \u201c\u2019Tis well,\u201d and abode with him and\nkept his accounts and ordered his income and expenditure for a month, at\nthe end of which he found his income increased and his disbursements\ndiminished; wherefore he thanked me and made my wage a dirham a day.\nWhen the year was out, he proposed to me to marry his daughter and\nbecome his partner in the shop. I agreed to this and went in to my wife\nand applied me to the shop. But I was broken in heart and spirit, and\ngrief was manifest upon me; and the grocer used to drink and invite me\nthereto, but I refrained for melancholy. I abode on this wise two years\ntill, one day, as I sat in the shop, behold, there passed by a parcel of\npeople with meat and drink, and I asked the grocer what was the matter.\nQuoth he, \u201cThis is the day of the pleasure-makers, when all the\nmusicians and dancers of the town go forth with the young men of fortune\nto the banks of the Ubullah river[50] and eat and drink among the trees\nthere.\u201d The spirit prompted me to solace myself with the sight of this\nthing and I said in my mind, \u201cHaply among these people I may foregather\nwith her I love.\u201d So I told the grocer that I had a mind to this and he\nsaid, \u201cUp and go with them an thou please.\u201d He made me ready meat and\ndrink and I went till I came to the River of Ubullah, when, behold, the\nfolk were going away: I also was about to follow, when I espied the Rais\nof the bark wherein the Hashimi had been with the damsel and he was\ngoing along the river. I cried out to him and his company who knew me\nand took me on board with them and said to me, \u201cArt thou yet alive?\u201d;\nand they embraced me and questioned me of my case. I told them my tale\nand they said, \u201cIndeed, we thought that drunkenness had gotten the\nbetter of thee and that thou hadst fallen into the water and wast\ndrowned.\u201d Then I asked them of the damsel, and they answered, \u201cWhen she\ncame to know of thy loss, she rent her raiment and burnt the lute and\nfell to buffeting herself and lamenting and when we returned with the\nHashimi to Bassorah we said to her, \u201cLeave this weeping and wailing.\u201d\nQuoth she, \u201cI will don black and make me a tomb beside the house and\nabide thereby and repent from singing.[51] We allowed her so to do and\non this wise she abideth to this day.\u201d Then they carried me to the\nHashimi\u2019s house, where I saw the damsel as they had said. When she\nespied me, she cried out a great cry, methought she had died, and I\nembraced her with a long embrace. Then said the Hashimi to me, \u201cTake\nher;\u201d and I said, \u201c\u2019Tis well: but do thou free her and according to thy\npromise marry her to me.\u201d Accordingly he did this and gave us costly\ngoods and store of raiment and furniture and five hundred dinars,\nsaying, \u201cThis is the amount of that which I purpose to allow you every\nmonth, but on condition that thou be my cup-companion and that I hear\nthe girl sing when I will.\u201d Furthermore, he assigned us private quarters\nand bade transport thither all our need; so, when I went to the house, I\nfound it filled full of furniture and stuffs and carried the damsel\nthither. Then I betook me to the grocer and told him all that had\nbetided me, begging to hold me guiltless for divorcing his daughter,\nwithout offence on her part; and I paid her her dowry[52] and what else\nbehoved me.[53] I abode with the Hashimi in this way two years and\nbecame a man of great wealth and was restored to the former estate of\nprosperity wherein I had been at Baghdad, I and the damsel. And indeed\nAllah the Bountiful put an end to our troubles and loaded us with the\ngifts of good fortune and caused our patience to result in the\nattainment of our desire: wherefore to Him be the praise in this world\nand the next whereto we are returning.[54] And among the tales men tell\nis that of\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 37:\n\n A descendant of H\u00e1shim, the Apostle\u2019s great-grandfather from whom the\n Abbasides were directly descended. The Ommiades were less directly\n akin to Mohammed, being the descendants of Hashim\u2019s brother, Abd\n al-Shams. The Hashimis were famed for liberality; and the quality\n seems to have been inherited. The first H\u00e1shim got his name from\n _crumbling_ bread into the Sar\u00edd or brewis of the Meccan pilgrims\n during \u201cThe Ignorance.\u201d He was buried at Ghazzah (Gaza) but his tomb\n was soon forgotten.\n\nFootnote 38:\n\n _i.e._ thy lover.\n\nFootnote 39:\n\n _i.e._ of those destined to hell; the especial home of Moslem\n suicides.\n\nFootnote 40:\n\n Arab. \u201c\u2019Umm\u00e1l\u201d (plur. of \u2019\u00c1mil) viceroys or governors of provinces.\n\nFootnote 41:\n\n A town of Ir\u00e1k Arabi (Mesopotamia) between Baghdad and Bassorah built\n upon the Tigris and founded by Al-Hajjaj: it is so called because the\n \u201cMiddle\u201d or half-way town between Basrah and Kufah. To this place were\n applied the famous lines:\u2014\n\n \u201cIn good sooth a right noble race are they;\n Whose men \u201cyea\u201d can\u2019t say nor their women \u201cnay.\u201d\n\nFootnote 42:\n\n _i.e._ robed as thou art.\n\nFootnote 43:\n\n _i.e._ his kinsfolk of the Hashimis.\n\nFootnote 44:\n\n See vol. ii. 24.\n\nFootnote 45:\n\n Arab. \u201cSur\u2019itu\u201d = I was possessed of a Jinn, the common Eastern\n explanation of an epileptic fit long before the days of the Evangel.\n See vol. iv. 89.\n\nFootnote 46:\n\n Arab. \u201cZ\u00ed\u2019ah,\u201d village, feoff or farm.\n\nFootnote 47:\n\n Arab. \u201cTar\u00edkah.\u201d\n\nFootnote 48:\n\n \u201cMost of the great Arab musicians had their own peculiar fashion of\n tuning the lute, for the purpose of extending its register or\n facilitating the accompaniment of songs composed in uncommon keys and\n rhythms or possibly of increasing its sonority, and it appears to have\n been a common test of the skill of a great musician, such as Ishac\n el-Mausili or his father Ibrahim, to require him to accompany a\n difficult song on a lute purposely untuned. As a (partial) modern\n instance of the practice referred to in the text, may be cited\n Paganini\u2019s custom of lowering or raising the G string of the violin in\n playing certain of his own compositions. According to the Kitab\n el-Aghani, Ishac el-Mausili is said to have familiarized himself, by\n incessant practice, with the exact sounds produced by each division of\n the strings of the four course lute of his day, under every imaginable\n circumstance of tuning.\u201d It is regrettable that Mr. Payne does not\n give us more of such notes.\n\nFootnote 49:\n\n See vol. vii. 363 for the use of these fumigations.\n\nFootnote 50:\n\n In the Mac. Edit. \u201cAylah\u201d for Ubullah: the latter is one of the\n innumerable canals, leading from Bassorah to Ubullah-town a distance\n of twelve miles. Its banks are the favourite pleasure-resort of the\n townsfolk, being built over with villas and pavilions (now no more)\n and the orchards seem to form one great garden, all confined by one\n wall. See Jaubert\u2019s translation of Al-Idrisi, vol. i. pp. 368\u201369. The\n Aylah, a tributary of the Tigris, waters (I have noted) the Gardens of\n Bassorah.\n\nFootnote 51:\n\n Music having been forbidden by Mohammed who believed with the vulgar\n that the Devil has something to do with it. Even Paganini could not\n escape suspicion in the nineteenth century.\n\nFootnote 52:\n\n The \u201cMahr,\u201d or Arab dowry consists of two parts, one paid down on\n consummation and the other agreed to be paid to the wife, contingently\n upon her being divorced by her husband. If she divorce him this\n portion, which is generally less than the half, cannot be claimed by\n her; and I have related the Persian abomination which compels the\n woman to sacrifice her rights. See vol. iii. p. 304.\n\nFootnote 53:\n\n _i.e._ the cost of her maintenance during the four months of single\n blessedness which must or ought to elapse before she can legally marry\n again.\n\nFootnote 54:\n\n Lane translates most incompletely, \u201cTo Him, then, be praise, first and\n last!\u201d\n\n\n\n\n KING JALI\u2019AD OF HIND AND HIS WAZIR SHIMAS; FOLLOWED BY THE HISTORY OF\n KING WIRD KHAN, SON OF KING JALI\u2019AD, WITH HIS WOMEN AND WAZIRS.[55]\n\n\nThere was once in days of yore and in ages and times long gone before,\nin the land of Hind, a mighty King, tall of presence and fair of favour\nand goodly of parts, noble of nature and generous, beneficent to the\npoor and loving to his lieges and all the people of his realm. His name\nwas Jal\u00ed\u2019\u00e1d and under his hand were two and-seventy Kings and in his\ncities three hundred and fifty Kazis. He had three score and ten Wazirs\nand over every ten of them he set a premier. The chiefest of all his\nministers was a man called Shim\u00e1s[56] who was then[57] two-and-twenty\nyears old, a statesman of pleasant presence and noble nature, sweet of\nspeech and ready in reply; shrewd in all manner of business, skilful\nwithal and sagacious, for all his tender age, a man of good counsel and\nfine manners versed in all arts and sciences and accomplishments; and\nthe King loved him with exceeding love and cherished him by reason of\nhis proficiency in eloquence and rhetoric and the art of government and\nfor that which Allah had given him of compassion and brooding care[58]\nwith his lieges for he was a King just in his Kingship and a protector\nof his peoples, constant in beneficence to great and small and giving\nthem that which befitted them of good governance and bounty and\nprotection and security and a lightener of their loads in taxes and\ntithes. And indeed he was loving to them each and every, high and low,\nentreating them with kindness and solicitude and governing them in such\ngoodly guise as none had done before him. But, with all this, Almighty\nAllah had not blessed him with a child, and this was grievous to him and\nto the people of his reign. It chanced, one night, as Jali\u2019ad[59] lay in\nhis bed, occupied with anxious thought of the issue of the affair of his\nKingdom, that sleep overcame him and he dreamt that he poured water upon\nthe roots of a tree,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased\nto say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundredth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the King saw\nhimself in his vision pouring water upon the roots of a tree, about\nwhich were many other trees; and lo and behold! there came fire out of\nthis tree and burnt up every growth which encompassed it; whereupon\nJali\u2019ad awoke affrighted and trembling, and calling one of his pages\nsaid to him, \u201cGo fetch the Wazir Shimas in all haste.\u201d So he betook\nhimself to Shimas and said to him, \u201cThe King calleth for thee forthright\nbecause he hath awoke from his sleep in affright and hath sent me to\nbring thee to him in haste.\u201d When Shimas heard this, he arose without\nstay or delay and going to the King, found him seated on his bed. He\nprostrated himself before him, wishing him permanence of glory and\nprosperity, and said, \u201cMay Allah not cause thee grieve, O King! What\nhath troubled thee this night, and what is the cause of thy seeking me\nthus in haste?\u201d The King bade him be seated; and, as soon as he sat\ndown, began telling his tale and said to him, \u201cI have dreamt this night\na dream which terrified me, and \u2019twas, that methought I poured water\nupon the roots of a tree where about were many other trees and as I was\nthus engaged, lo and behold! fire issued therefrom and burnt up all the\ngrowths that were around it; wherefore I was affrighted and fear took\nme. Then I awoke and sent to bid thee to me, because of thy knowledge\nand skill in the interpretation of dreams and of that which I know of\nthe vastness of thy wisdom and the greatness of thine understanding.\u201d At\nthis Shimas the Wazir bowed his head groundwards awhile and presently\nraising it, smiled; so the King said to him, \u201cWhat deemest thou, O\nShimas? Tell me the truth of the matter and hide naught from me.\u201d\nAnswered Shimas, \u201cO King, verily Allah Almighty granteth thee thy wish\nand cooleth thine eyes; for the matter of this dream presageth all good,\nto wit, that the Lord will bless thee with a son, who shall inherit the\nKingdom from thee, after thy long life. But there is somewhat else I\ndesire not to expound at this present, seeing that the time is not\nfavourable for interpretation.\u201d The King rejoiced in these words with\nexceeding joy and great was his contentment; his trouble departed from\nhim, his mind was at rest and he said, \u201cIf the case be thus of the happy\npresage of my dream, do thou complete to me its exposition when the\nfitting time betideth: for that which it behoveth not to expound to me\nnow, it behoveth that thou expound to me when its time cometh, so my joy\nmay be fulfilled, because I seek naught in this save the approof of\nAllah extolled and exalted be He!\u201d Now when the Wazir Shimas saw that\nthe King was urgent to have the rest of the exposition, he put him off\nwith a pretext; but Jali\u2019ad assembled all the astrologers and\ninterpreters of dreams of his realm and as soon as they were in the\npresence related to them his vision, saying, \u201cI desire you to tell me\nthe true interpretation of this.\u201d Whereupon one of them came forward and\ncraved the King\u2019s permission to speak, which being granted, he said,\n\u201cKnow, O King, that thy Wazir Shimas is nowise unable to interpret this\nthy dream; but he shrank from troubling thy repose: wherefore he\ndisclosed not unto thee the whole thereof: but, an thou suffer me to\nspeak I will expose to thee that which he concealed from thee.\u201d The King\nreplied, \u201cSpeak without respect for persons, O interpreter, and be\ntruthful in thy speech.\u201d The interpreter said, \u201cKnow then, O King, that\nthere will be born to thee a boy-child who shall inherit the Kingship\nfrom thee, after thy long life; but he shall not order himself towards\nthe lieges after thy fashion; nay, he shall transgress thine ordinances\nand oppress thy subjects, and there shall befal him what befel the Mouse\nwith the Cat[60]; and I seek refuge with Almighty Allah[61]!\u201d The King\nasked, \u201cBut what is the story of the Cat and the Mouse?\u201d; and the\ninterpreter answered \u201cMay Allah prolong the King\u2019s life! They tell the\nfollowing tale of\n\n\n _THE MOUSE AND THE CAT_.\u201d\n\nA Grimalkin, that is to say, a Cat, went out one night to a certain\ngarden, in search of what she might devour, but found nothing and became\nweak for the excess of cold and rain that prevailed that night. So she\nsought for some device whereby to save herself. As she prowled about in\nsearch of prey, she espied a nest at the foot of a tree, and drawing\nnear unto it, sniffed thereat and purred till she scented a Mouse within\nand went round about it, seeking to enter and seize the inmate. When the\nMouse smelt the Cat, he turned his back to her and scraped up the earth\nwith his forehand, to stop the nest-door against her; whereupon she\nassumed a weakly voice and said, \u201cWhy dost thou thus, O my brother? I\ncome to seek refuge with thee, hoping that thou wilt take pity on me and\nharbour me in thy nest this night; for I am weak because of the\ngreatness of my age and the loss of my strength, and can hardly move. I\nhave ventured into thy garden to-night, and how many a time have I\ncalled upon death, that I might be at rest from this pain! Behold, here\nam I at thy door, prostrate for cold and rain and I beseech thee, by\nAllah, take of thy charity my hand and bring me in with thee and give me\nshelter in the vestibule of thy nest; for I am a stranger and wretched\nand \u2019tis said:\u2014Whoso sheltereth a stranger and a wretched one in his\nhome his shelter shall be Paradise on the Day of Doom. And thou, O my\nbrother, it behoveth thee to earn eternal reward by succouring me and\nsuffering me abide with thee this night till the morning, when I will\nwend my way.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying\nher permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and First Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that quoth the Cat\nto the Mouse, \u201cSo suffer me to night with thee this night, after which I\nwill wend my way.\u201d Hearing these words the Mouse replied, \u201cHow shall I\nsuffer thee enter my nest seeing that thou art my natural foe and thy\nfood is of my flesh? Indeed I fear lest thou false me, for that is of\nthy nature and there is no faith in thee, and the byword saith:\u2014It\nbefitteth not to entrust a lecher with a fair woman nor a moneyless man\nwith money nor fire with fuel. Neither doth it behove me to entrust\nmyself to thee; and \u2019tis said:\u2014Enmity of kind, as the enemy himself\ngroweth weaker groweth stronger.\u201d The Cat made answer in the faintest\nvoice, as she were in most piteous case, saying, \u201cWhat thou advancest of\nadmonitory instances is the truth and I deny not my offences against\nthee; but I beseech thee to pardon that which is past of the enmity of\nkind between me and thee; for \u2019tis said:\u2014Whoso forgiveth a creature like\nhimself, his Creator will forgive him his sins. \u2019Tis true that whilome I\nwas thy foe, but here am I a suitor for thy friendship, and they say,\n\u201cAn thou wilt have thy foe become thy friend, do with him good. O my\nbrother, I swear to thee by Allah and make a binding covenant with thee\nthat I will hurt thee nevermore and for the best of reasons, to wit,\nthat I have no power thereto; wherefore place thy trust in Allah and do\ngood and accept my oath and covenant.\u201d Quoth the Mouse, \u201cHow can I\naccept the covenant of one between whom and me there is a rooted enmity,\nand whose wont it is to deal treacherously by me? Were the feud between\nus aught but one of blood, this were light to me; but it is an enmity of\nkind between souls, and it is said:\u2014Whoso trusteth himself to his foe is\nas one who thrusteth hand into a serpent\u2019s[62] mouth.\u201d Quoth the Cat,\nfull of wrath, \u201cMy breast is strait and my soul is faint: indeed I am\n_in articulo mortis_ and ere long I shall die at thy door and my blood\nwill be on thy head, for that thou hadst it in thy power to save me in\nmine extremity: and this is my last word to thee.\u201d Herewith the fear of\nAllah Almighty overcame the Mouse and ruth gat hold upon his heart and\nhe said in himself, \u201cWhoso would have the succour of Allah the Most High\nagainst his foe, let him entreat him with compassion and kindness show.\nI rely upon the Almighty in this matter and will deliver this Cat from\nthis her strait and earn the divine reward for her.\u201d So he went forth\nand dragged into his nest the Cat, where she abode till she was rested\nand somewhat strengthened and restored, when she began to bewail her\nweakness and wasted strength and want of gossips. The Mouse entreated\nher in friendly guise and comforted her and busied himself with her\nservice; but she crept along till she got command of the issue of the\nnest, lest the Mouse should escape. So when the nest-owner would have\ngone out after his wont, he drew near the Cat; whereupon she seized him\nand taking him in her claws, began to bite him and shake him and take\nhim in her mouth and lift him up and cast him down and run after him and\ncranch him and torture him.[63] The Mouse cried out for help, beseeching\ndeliverance of Allah and began to upbraid the Cat, saying, \u201cWhere is the\ncovenant thou madest with me and where are the oaths thou swarest to me?\nIs this my reward from thee? I brought thee into my nest and trusted\nmyself to thee: but sooth he speaketh that saith:\u2014Whoso relieth on his\nenemy\u2019s promise desireth not salvation for himself. And again:\u2014Whoso\nconfideth himself to his foe deserveth his own destruction. Yet do I put\nmy trust in my Creator, for He will deliver me from thee.\u201d Now as he was\nin this condition, with the Cat about to pounce on him and devour him,\nbehold, up came a huntsman, with hunting dogs trained to the chase. One\nof the hounds passed by the mouth of the nest and hearing a great\nscuffling, thought that within was a fox tearing somewhat; so he crept\ninto the hole, to get at him, and coming upon the Cat, seized on her.\nWhen she found herself in the dog\u2019s clutches, she was forced to take\nthought anent saving herself and loosed the Mouse alive and whole\nwithout wound. Then the hound brake her neck and dragging her forth of\nthe hole, threw her down dead: and thus was exemplified the truth of the\nsaying, \u201cWho hath compassion shall at the last be compassionated. Whoso\noppresseth shall presently be oppressed.\u201d \u201cThis, then, O King,\u201d added\nthe interpreter, \u201cis what befel the Mouse and the Cat and teacheth that\nnone should break faith with those who put trust in him; for whoever\ndoth perfidy and treason, there shall befal him the like of that which\nbefel the Cat. As a man meteth, so shall it be meted unto him, and he\nwho betaketh himself to good shall gain his eternal reward. But grieve\nthou not, neither let this trouble thee, O King, for that assuredly thy\nson, after his tyranny and oppression, shall return to the goodliness of\nthy policy. And I would that yon learned man, thy Wazir Shimas, had\nconcealed from thee naught in that which he expounded unto thee; and\nthis had been well-advised of him, for \u2019tis said:\u2014Those of the folk who\nmost abound in fear are the amplest of them in knowledge and the most\nemulous of good.\u201d The King received the interpreter\u2019s speech with\nsubmission and gifted him and his fellows with rich gifts; then,\ndismissing them he arose and withdrew to his own apartments and fell to\npondering the issue of his affair. When night came, he went in to one of\nhis women, who was most in favour with him and dearest to him of them\nall, and lay with her: and ere some four months had passed over her, the\nchild stirred in her womb, whereat she rejoiced with joy exceeding and\ntold the King. Quoth he, \u201cMy dream said sooth, by Allah the Helper!\u201d;\nand he lodged her in the goodliest of lodgings and entreated her with\nall honour, bestowing on her store of rich gifts and manifold boons.\nThen he sent one of his pages to fetch his Wazir Shimas and as soon as\nhe was in the presence told the Minister what had betided, rejoicing and\nsaying, \u201cMy dream is come true and I have won my wish. It may be this\nburthen will be a man-child and inherit the Kingship after me; what\nsayest thou of this, O Shimas?\u201d But he was silent and made no reply,\nwhereupon cried the King, \u201cWhat aileth thee that thou rejoicest not in\nmy joy and returnest me no answer? Doth the thing mislike thee, O\nShimas?\u201d Hereat the Wazir prostrated himself before him and said, \u201cO\nKing, may Allah prolong thy life! What availeth it to sit under the\nshade of a tree, if there issue fire therefrom, and what is the delight\nof one who drinketh pure wine, if he be choked thereby, and what doth it\nprofit to quench one\u2019s thirst with sweet cool water, if one be drowned\ntherein? I am Allah\u2019s servant and thine, O King; but there are three\nthings[64] whereof it besitteth not the understanding to speak, till\nthey be accomplished; to wit, the wayfarer, till he return from his way,\nthe man who is in fight, till he have overcome his foe, and the pregnant\nwoman, till she have cast her burthen.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn\nof day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Second Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that after Shimas\nhad enumerated to the King the three things whereof it besitteth not the\nunderstanding to speak save after they are done, he continued, \u201cFor\nknow, O King, that he, who speaketh of aught before its accomplishment\nis like the Fakir who had hung over his head the jar of clarified\nbutter.[65]\u201d \u201cWhat is the story of the Fakir,\u201d asked the King, \u201cand what\nhappened to him?\u201d Answered the Wazir, \u201cO King, they tell this tale anent\n\n\n _THE FAKIR AND HIS JAR OF BUTTER_.[66]\u201d\n\nA Fakir[67] abode once with one of the nobles of a certain town, who\nmade him a daily allowance of three scones and a little clarified butter\nand honey. Now such butter was dear in those parts and the Devotee laid\nall that came to him together in a jar he had, till he filled it and\nhung it up over his head for safe keeping. One night, as he sat on his\nbed staff in hand, he fell a-musing upon the butter and the greatness of\nits price and said in himself:\u2014Needs must I sell all this butter I have\nby me and buy with the price an ewe and take to partner therein a\nFellah[68] fellow who hath a ram. The first year she will bear a male\nlamb and a female and the second a female and a male and these in their\nturn will bear other males and other females, nor will they give over\nbearing females and males, till they become a great matter. Then will I\ntake my share and vent thereof what I will. The males I will sell and\nbuy with them bulls and cows, which will also increase and multiply and\nbecome many; after which I will purchase such a piece of land and plant\na garden therein and build thereon a mighty fine[69] palace. Moreover, I\nwill get me robes and raiment and slaves and slave-girls and hold a\nwedding never was seen the like thereof. I will slaughter cattle and\nmake rich meats and sweetmeats and confections and assemble all the\nmusicians and mimes and mountebanks and player-folk and after providing\nflowers and perfumes and all manner sweet herbs I will bid rich and\npoor, Fakirs and Olema, captains and lords of the land, and whoso asketh\nfor aught, I will cause it to be brought him; and, I will make ready all\nmanner of meat and drink and send out a crier to cry aloud and say,\n\u201cWhoso seeketh aught, let him ask and get it.\u201d Lastly I will go in to my\nbride, after her unveiling and enjoy her beauty and loveliness; and I\nwill eat and drink and make merry and say to myself, \u201cVerily, hast thou\nwon thy wish,\u201d and will rest from devotion and divine worship. Then in\ndue time my wife will bear me a boy, and I shall rejoice in him and make\nbanquets in his honour and rear him daintily and teach him philosophy\nand mathematics and polite letters;[70] so that I shall make his name\nrenowned among men and glory in him among the assemblies of the learned;\nand I will bid him do good and he shall not gainsay me, and I will\nforbid him from lewdness and iniquity and exhort him to piety and the\npractice of righteousness; and, I will bestow on him rich and goodly\ngifts; and, if I see him obsequious in obedience, I will redouble my\nbounties towards him: but, an I see him incline to disobedience, I will\ncome down on him with this staff. So saying, he raised his hand, to beat\nhis son withal but the staff hit the jar of butter which overhung his\nhead, and brake it; whereupon the shards fell upon him and the butter\nran down upon his head, his rags and his beard. So his clothes and bed\nwere spoiled and he became a caution to whoso will be cautioned.\n\u201cWherefore, O King,\u201d added the Wazir, \u201cit behoveth not a man to speak of\naught ere it come to pass.\u201d Answered the King, \u201cThou sayest sooth! Fair\nfall thee for a Wazir! Verily the truth thou speakest and righteousness\nthou counsellest. Indeed, thy rank with me is such as thou couldst\nwish[71] and thou shalt never cease to be accepted of me.\u201d Thereupon the\nWazir prostrated himself before the King and wished him permanence of\nprosperity, saying, \u201cAllah prolong thy days and thy rank upraise! Know\nthat I conceal from thee naught, nor in private nor in public aught; thy\npleasure is my pleasure, and thy displeasure my displeasure. There is no\njoy for me save in thy joyance and I cannot sleep o\u2019 nights an thou be\nangered against me, for that Allah the Most High hath vouchsafed me all\ngood through thy bounties to me; wherefore I beseech the Almighty to\nguard thee with His angels, and to make fair thy reward whenas thou\nmeetest Him.\u201d The King rejoiced in this, whereupon Shimas arose and went\nout from before him. In due time the King\u2019s wife bare a male child, and\nthe messengers hastened to bear the glad tidings and to congratulate the\nSovran, who rejoiced therein with joy exceeding and thanked all with\nabundant thanks, saying, \u201cAlhamdolillah\u2014laud to the Lord\u2014who hath\nvouchsafed me a son, after I had despaired, for He is pitiful and\nruthful to His servants.\u201d Then he wrote to all the lieges of his land,\nacquainting them with the good news and bidding them to his capital; and\ngreat were the rejoicings and festivities in all the realm. Accordingly\nthere came Emirs and Captains, Grandees and Sages, Olema and literati,\nscientists and philosophers from every quarter to the palace and all\npresenting themselves before the King, company after company, according\nto their different degrees, gave him joy, and he bestowed largesse upon\nthem. Then he signed to the seven chief Wazirs, whose head was Shimas,\nto speak, each after the measure of his wisdom, upon the matter which\nconcerned him the most. So the Grand Wazir Shimas began and sought leave\nof the King to speak, which being granted, he spake as follows.[72]\n\u201cPraised be Allah who brought us into existence from non-existence and\nwho favoureth His servants with Kings that observe justice and equity in\nthat wherewith He hath invested them of rule and dominion, and who act\nrighteously with that which he appointeth at their hands of provision\nfor their lieges; and most especially our Sovereign by whom He hath\nquickened the deadness of our land, with that which He hath conferred\nupon us of bounties, and hath blessed us of His protection with ease of\nlife and tranquillity and fair dealing! What King did ever with his folk\nthat which this King hath done with us in fulfilling our needs and\ngiving us our dues and doing us justice, one of other, and in abundant\ncarefulness over us and redress of our wrongs? Indeed, it is of the\nfavour of Allah to the people that their King be assiduous in ordering\ntheir affairs and in defending them from their foes; for the end of the\nenemy\u2019s intent is to subdue his enemy and hold him in his hand; and many\npeoples[73] bring their sons as servants unto Kings, and they become\nwith them in the stead of slaves, to the intent that they may repel\nill-willers from them.[74] As for us, no enemy hath trodden our soil in\nthe days of this our King, by reason of this passing good fortune and\nexceeding happiness, that no describer may avail to describe, for indeed\nit is above and beyond all description. And verily, O King, thou art\nworthy of this highest happiness, and we are under thy safeguard and in\nthe shadow of thy wings, may Allah make fair thy reward and prolong thy\nlife![75] Indeed, we have long been diligent in supplication to Allah\nAlmighty that He would vouchsafe an answer to our prayers and continue\nthee to us and grant thee a virtuous son, to be the coolth of thine\neyes: and now Allah (extolled and exalted be He!) hath accepted of us\nand replied to our petition\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day\nand ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Third Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Shimas the Wazir\nsaid to the King, \u201cAnd now Almighty Allah hath accepted of us and\nanswered our petition and brought us speedy relief, even as He did to\nthe Fishes in the pond of water.\u201d The King asked, \u201cAnd how was that, and\nwhat is the tale?\u201d; and Shimas answered him, \u201cHear, O King the story of\n\n\n _THE FISHES AND THE CRAB_.\u201d\n\nIn a certain place there was a piece of water, wherein dwelt a number of\nFishes, and it befel that the pond dwindled away and shrank and wasted,\ntill there remained barely enough to suffice them and they were nigh\nupon death and said, \u201cWhat will become of us? How shall we contrive and\nof whom shall we seek counsel for our deliverance?\u201d Thereupon arose one\nof them, who was the chiefest in wit and age, and cried, \u201cThere is\nnothing will serve us save that we seek salvation of Allah; but let us\nconsult the Crab and ask his advice: so come ye all[76] and hie we\nhimwards and hear his rede for indeed he is the chiefest and wisest of\nus all in coming upon the truth.\u201d Each and every approved of the Fish\u2019s\nadvice and betook themselves in a body to the Crab, whom they found\nsquatted in his hole, without news or knowledge of their strait. So they\nsaluted him with the salam and said, \u201cO our lord, doth not our affair\nconcern thee, who art ruler and the head of us?\u201d The Crab returned their\nsalutation, replying, \u201cAnd on you be The Peace! What aileth you and what\nd\u2019ye want?\u201d So they told him their case and the strait wherein they were\nby reason of the wastage of the water, and that, when it should be dried\nup, destruction would betide them, adding, \u201cWherefore we come to thee,\nexpecting thy counsel and what may bring us deliverance, for thou art\nthe chiefest and the most experienced of us.\u201d The Crab bowed his head\nawhile and said, \u201cDoubtless ye lack understanding, in that ye despair of\nthe mercy of Allah Almighty and His care for the provision of His\ncreatures one and all. Know ye not that Allah (extolled and exalted be\nHe!) provideth all His creatures without account and that He\nfore-ordained their daily meat ere He created aught of creation and\nappointed to each of His creatures a fixed term of life and an allotted\nprovision, of His divine All might? How then shall we burthen ourselves\nwith concern for a thing which in His secret purpose is indite?\nWherefore it is my rede that ye can do naught better than to seek aid of\nAllah Almighty, and it behoveth each of us to clear his conscience with\nhis Lord, both in public and private, and pray Him to succour us and\ndeliver us from our difficulties; for Allah the Most High disappointeth\nnot the expectation of those who put their trust in Him and rejecteth\nnot the supplications of those who prefer their suit to Him. When we\nhave mended our ways, our affairs will be set up and all will be well\nwith us, and when the winter cometh and our land is deluged, by means of\na just one\u2019s prayer, He will not cast down the good He hath built up. So\n\u2019tis my counsel that we take patience and await what Allah shall do with\nus. An death come to us, as is wont, we shall be at rest, and if there\nbefal us aught that calleth for flight, we will flee and depart our land\nwhither Allah will.\u201d[77] Answered all the fishes with one voice \u201cThou\nsayst sooth, O our lord: Allah requite thee for us with weal!\u201d Then each\nreturned to his stead, and in a few days the Almighty vouchsafed unto\nthem a violent rain and the place of the pond was filled fuller than\nbefore. \u201cOn like wise, O King,\u201d continued Shimas, \u201cwe despaired of a\nchild being born to thee, and now that God hath blessed us and thee with\nthis well-omened son, we implore Him to render him blessed indeed and\nmake him the coolth of thine eyes and a worthy successor to thee and\ngrant us of him the like of that which He hath granted us of thee; for\nAlmighty Allah disappointeth not those that seek Him and it behoveth\nnone to cut off hope of the mercy of his God.\u201d Then, rose the second\nWazir and saluting the King with the salam spake, after his greeting was\nreturned, as follows: \u201cVerily, a King is not called a King save he give\npresents and do justice and rule with equity and show munificence and\nwisely govern his lieges, maintaining the obligatory laws and apostolic\nusages established among them and justifying them, one against other,\nand sparing their blood and warding off hurt from them; and of his\nqualities should be that he never abide incurious of the poor and that\nhe succour the highest and lowest of them and give them each the rights\nto them due, so that they all bless him and are obedient to his command.\nWithout doubt, a King who is after this wise of his lieges is beloved\nand gaineth of this world eminence and of the next honour and favour\nwith the Creator thereof. And we, the body politic of thy subjects,\nacknowledge in thee, O King, all the attributes of kingship I have\nnoted, even as it is said:\u2014The best of things is that the King of a\npeople be just and equitable, their physician skilful and their teacher\nexperience-full, acting according to his knowledge. Now we enjoy this\nhappiness, after we had despaired of the birth of a son to thee, to\ninherit thy kingship; however, Allah (extolled be His name!) hath not\ndisappointed thine expectation, but hath granted thy petition, by reason\nof the goodliness of thy trust in Him and thy submission of thine\naffairs to Him. Then fair fall thy hope! There hath betided thee that\nwhich betided the Crow and the Serpent.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cWhat was\nthat?\u201d; and the Wazir answered, \u201cHear, O King, the tale of\n\n\n _THE CROW AND THE SERPENT_.\u201d\n\nA crow once dwelt in a tree, he and his wife, in all delight of life,\ntill they came to the time of the hatching of their young, which was the\nmidsummer season, when a Serpent issued from its hole and crawled up the\ntree wriggling around the branches till it came to the Crows\u2019 nest,\nwhere it coiled itself up and there abode all the days of the summer,\nwhilst the Crow was driven away and found no opportunity to clear his\nhome nor any place wherein to lie. When the days of heat were past, the\nSerpent went away to its own place and quoth the Crow to his wife, \u201cLet\nus thank Almighty Allah, who hath preserved us and delivered us from\nthis Serpent, albeit we are forbidden from increase this year. Yet the\nLord will not cut off our hope; so let us express our gratitude to Him\nfor having vouchsafed us safety and soundness of body: indeed, we have\nnone other in whom to confide, and if He will and we live to see the\nnext year, He shall give us other young in the stead of those we have\nmissed this year.\u201d Next summer when the hatching-season came round, the\nSerpent again sallied forth from its place and made for the Crows\u2019 nest:\nbut, as it was coiling up a branch, a kite swooped down on it and struck\nclaws into its head and tare it, whereupon it fell to the ground\na-swoon, and the ants came out upon it and ate it.\u201d[78] So the Crow and\nhis wife abode in peace and quiet and bred a numerous brood and thanked\nAllah for their safety and for the young that were born to them. In like\nmanner, O King, continued the Wazir, \u201cit behoveth us to thank God for\nthat wherewith He hath favoured thee and us in vouchsafing us this\nblessed child of good omen, after despair and the cutting off of hope.\nMay He make fair thy future reward and the issue of thine affair!\u201d\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fourth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nsecond Wazir had ended with the words, \u201cAllah make fair thy future\nreward and the issue of thine affair!\u201d; the third Wazir presently rose\nand said, \u201cRejoice, O just King, in the assurance of present prosperity\nand future felicity; for him, whom the denizens of Earth love, the\ndenizens of Heaven likewise love; and indeed Almighty Allah hath made\naffection to be thy portion and hath stablished it in the hearts of the\npeople of thy kingdom; wherefore to Him be thanks and praise from us and\nfrom thee, so He may deign increase His bounty unto thee and unto us in\nthee! For know, O King, that man can originate naught but by command of\nAllah the Most High and that He is the Giver and all good which\nbefalleth a creature hath its end and issue in Him. He allotteth His\nfavours to His creatures, as it liketh Him; to some he giveth gifts\ngalore while others He doometh barely to win their daily bread. Some He\nmaketh Lords and Captains, and others Recluses, who abstain from the\nworld and aspire but to Him, for He it is who saith:\u2014I am the Harmer\nwith adversity and the Healer with prosperity. I make whole and make\nsick. I enrich and impoverish. I kill and quicken: in my hand is\neverything and unto Me all things do tend. Wherefore it behoveth all men\nto praise Him. Now, especially thou, O King, art of the fortunate, the\npious, of whom it is said:\u2014The happiest of the just is he for whom Allah\nuniteth the weal of this world and of the next world; who is content\nwith that portion which Allah allotteth to him and who giveth Him thanks\nfor that which He hath stablished. And indeed he that is rebellious and\nseeketh other than the dole which God hath decreed unto him and for him,\nfavoureth the wild Ass and the Jackal.\u201d[79] The King asked, \u201cAnd what is\nthe story of the twain?\u201d; the Wazir answered, \u201cHear, O King, the tale of\n\n\n _THE WILD ASS AND THE JACKAL_.\u201d\n\nA certain Jackal was wont every day to leave his lair and fare forth\nquesting his daily bread. Now one day, as he was in a certain mountain,\nbehold, the day was done and he set out to return when he fell in with\nanother Jackal who saw him on the tramp, and each began to tell his mate\nof the quarry he had gotten. Quoth one of them, \u201cThe other day I came\nupon a wild Ass and I was anhungred, for it was three days since I had\neaten; so I rejoiced in this and thanked Almighty Allah for bringing him\ninto my power. Then I tear out his heart and ate it and was full and\nreturned to my home. That was three days ago, since which time I have\nfound nothing to eat, yet am I still full of meat.\u201d When the other\nJackal heard his fellow\u2019s story, he envied his fulness and said in\nhimself, \u201cThere is no help but that I eat the heart of a wild Ass.\u201d So\nhe left feeding for some days, till he became emaciated and nigh upon\ndeath and bestirred not himself neither did his endeavour to get food,\nbut lay coiled up in his earth. And whilst he was thus, behold, one day\nthere came out two hunters trudging in quest of quarry and started a\nwild Ass. They followed on his trail tracking him all day, till at last\none of them shot at him a forked[80] arrow, which pierced his vitals and\nreached his heart and killed him in front of the Jackal\u2019s hole. Then the\nhunters came up and finding him dead, pulled out the shaft from his\nheart, but only the wood came away and the forked head abode in the\nAss\u2019s belly. So they left him where he lay, expecting that others of the\nwild beasts would flock to him; but, when it was eventide and nothing\nfell to them, they returned to their abiding-places. The Jackal, hearing\nthe commotion at the mouth of his home, lay quiet till nightfall, when\nhe came forth of his lair, groaning for weakness and hunger, and seeing\nthe dead Ass lying at his door, rejoiced with joy exceeding till he was\nlike to fly for delight and said, \u201cPraised be Allah who hath won me my\nwish without toil! Verily, I had lost hope of coming at a wild Ass or\naught else; and assuredly[81] the Almighty hath sent him to me and drave\nhim fall to my homestead.\u201d Then he sprang on the body and tearing open\nits belly, thrust in his head and with his nose rummaged about its\nentrails, till he found the heart and tearing a tid-bit swallowed it:\nbut, as soon as he had so done, the forked head of the arrow struck deep\nin his gullet and he could neither get it down into his belly nor bring\nit forth of his throttle. So he made sure of destruction and said, \u201cOf a\ntruth it beseemeth not the creature to seek for himself aught over and\nabove that which Allah hath allotted to him. Had I been content with\nwhat He appointed to me, I had not come to destruction.\u201d \u201cWherefore, O\nKing,\u201d added the Wazir, \u201cit becometh man to be content with whatso Allah\nhath distributed to him and thank Him for His bounties to him and cast\nnot off hope of his Lord. And behold, O King, because of the purity of\nthy purpose and the fair intent of thy good works, Allah hath blessed\nthee with a son, after despair: wherefore we pray the Almighty to\nvouchsafe him length of days and abiding happiness and make him a\nblessed successor, faithful in the observance of thy covenant, after thy\nlong life.\u201d Then arose the fourth Wazir and said, \u201cVerily, an the King\nbe a man of understanding, a frequenter of the gates of wisdom,\u201d\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the fourth\nWazir arose and said, \u201cVerily an the King be a man of understanding, a\nfrequenter of the gates of wisdom, versed in science, government and\npolicy, and eke upright in purpose and just to his subjects, honouring\nthose to whom honour is due, revering those who are digne of reverence,\ntempering puissance with using clemency whenas it behoveth, and\nprotecting both governors and governed, lightening all burthens for them\nand bestowing largesse on them, sparing their blood and covering their\nshame and keeping his troth with them. Such a King, I say, is worthy of\nfelicity both present and future worldly and otherworldly, and this is\nof that which protecteth him from ill-will and helpeth him to the\nstablishing of his Kingdom and the victory over his enemies and the\nwinning of his wish, together with increase of Allah\u2019s bounty to him and\nHis favouring him for his praise of Him and the attainment of His\nprotection. But an the King be the contrary of this, he never ceaseth\nfrom misfortunes and calamities, he and the people of his realm; for\nthat his oppression embraceth both stranger far and kinsman near and\nthere cometh to pass with him that which befel the unjust King with the\npilgrim Prince.\u201d King Jali\u2019ad asked, \u201cAnd how was that?\u201d and the Wazir\nanswered, \u201cHear, O King, the tale of\n\n\n _THE UNJUST KING AND THE PILGRIM PRINCE_.\u201d\n\nThere was once in Mauritania-land[82] a King who exceeded in his rule, a\ntyrant, violent and over severe, who had no respect for the welfare or\nprotection of his lieges nor of those who entered his realm; and from\neveryone who came within his Kingdom his officers took four-fifths of\nhis monies, leaving him one-fifth and no more. Now Allah Almighty\ndecreed that he should have a son, who was fortunate and God-favoured\nand seeing the pomps and vanities of this world to be transient as they\nare unrighteous, renounced them in his youth and rejected the world and\nthat which is therein and fared forth serving the Most High, wandering\npilgrim-wise over wolds and wastes and bytimes entering towns and\ncities. One day, he came to his father\u2019s capital and the guards laid\nhands on him and searched him but found naught upon him save two gowns,\none new and the other old.[83] So they stripped the new one from him and\nleft him the old, after they had entreated him with contumely and\ncontempt; whereat he complained and said, \u201cWoe to you, O ye oppressors!\nI am a poor man and a pilgrim,[84] and what shall this gown by any means\nprofit you? Except ye restore it to me, I will go to the King and make\ncomplaint to him of you.\u201d They replied, \u201cWe act thus by the King\u2019s\ncommand: so do what seemeth good to thee.\u201d Accordingly he betook himself\nto the King\u2019s palace and would have entered; but the chamberlains denied\nhim admittance, and he turned away, saying in himself, \u201cThere is nothing\nfor me except to watch till he cometh out and complain to him of my case\nand that which hath befallen me.\u201d And whilst he waited, behold, he heard\none of the guards announce the King\u2019s faring forth; whereupon he crept\nup, little by little, till he stood before the gate; and presently when\nthe King came out, he threw himself in his way and after blessing him\nand wishing him weal, he made his complaint to him informing him how\nscurvily he had been entreated by the gatekeepers. Lastly he gave him to\nknow that he was a man of the people of Allah[85] who had rejected the\nworld seeking acceptance of Allah and who went wandering over earth and\nentering every city and hamlet, whilst all the folk he met gave him alms\naccording to their competence. \u201cI entered this thy city\u201d (continued he),\n\u201choping that the folk would deal kindly and graciously with me as with\nothers of my condition[86]; but thy followers stopped me and stripped me\nof one of my gowns and loaded me with blows. Wherefore do thou look into\nmy case and take me by the hand and get me back my gown and I will not\nabide in thy city an hour.\u201d Quoth the unjust King, \u201cWho directed thee to\nenter this city, unknowing the custom of its King?\u201d; and quoth the\npilgrim, \u201cGive me back my gown and do with me what thou wilt.\u201d Now when\nthe King heard this, his temper changed for the worse and he said, \u201cO\nfool,[87] we stripped thee of thy gown, so thou mightest humble thyself\nto us; but since thou makest this clamour I will strip thy soul from\nthee.\u201d Then he commanded to cast him into gaol, where he began to repent\nof having answered the King and reproached himself for not having left\nhim the gown and saved his life. When it was the middle of the night, he\nrose to his feet and prayed long and prayerfully, saying, \u201cO Allah, Thou\nart the Righteous Judge; Thou knowest my case and that which hath\nbefallen me with this tyrannical King, and I, Thine oppressed servant,\nbeseech Thee, of the abundance of Thy mercy, to deliver me from the hand\nof this unjust ruler and send down on him Thy vengeance; for Thou art\nnot unmindful of the unright of every oppressor. Wherefore, if Thou know\nthat he hath wronged me, loose on him Thy vengeance this night and send\ndown on him Thy punishment; for Thy rule is just and Thou art the Helper\nof every mourner, O Thou to whom belong the power and the glory to the\nend of time!\u201d When the gaoler heard the prayer of the poor prisoner he\ntrembled in every limb, and behold, a fire suddenly broke out in the\nKing\u2019s palace and consumed it and all that were therein, even to the\ndoor of the prison,[88] and none was spared but the gaoler and the\npilgrim. Now when the gaoler saw this, he knew that it had not befallen\nsave because of the pilgrim\u2019s prayer; so he loosed him and fleeing with\nhim forth of the burning, betook himself, he and the King\u2019s son, to\nanother city. So was the unjust King consumed, he and all his city, by\nreason of his injustice, and he lost the goods both of this world and\nthe next world. \u201cAs for us, O auspicious King\u201d continued the Wazir, \u201cwe\nneither lie down nor rise up without praying for thee and thanking Allah\nthe Most High for His grace in giving thee to us, tranquil in reliance\non thy justice and the excellence of thy governance; and sore indeed was\nour care for thy lack of a son to inherit thy kingdom, fearing lest\nafter thee there betide us a King unlike thee. But now the Almighty hath\nbestowed His favours upon us and done away our concern and brought us\ngladness in the birth of this blessed child; wherefore we beseech the\nLord to make him a worthy successor to thee and endow him with glory and\nfelicity enduring and good abiding.\u201d Then rose the fifth Wazir and said,\n\u201cBlessed be the Most High,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the fifth Wazir\nsaid, \u201cBlessed be the Most High, Giver of all good gifts and graces the\nmost precious! But to continue: we are well assured that Allah favoureth\nwhoso are thankful to Him and mindful of His faith; and thou, O\nauspicious King, art far-famed for these illustrious virtues and for\njustice and equitable dealing between subject and subject and in that\nwhich is acceptable to Allah Almighty. By reason of this hath the Lord\nexalted thy dignity and prospered thy days and bestowed on thee the good\ngift of this august child, after despair, wherefrom there hath betided\nus gladness abiding and joys which may not be cut off; for we before\nthis were in exceeding cark and passing care, because of thy lack of\nissue, and full of concern bethinking us of all thy justice and gentle\ndealing with us and fearful lest Allah decree death to thee and there be\nnone to succeed thee and inherit the kingdom after thee, and so we be\ndivided in our counsels and dissensions arise between us and there befal\nus what befel the Crows.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cAnd what befel the Crows?\u201d;\nand the Wazir answered saying, \u201cHear O auspicious King, the tale of\n\n\n _THE CROWS AND THE HAWK_.\u201d\n\nThere was once, in a certain desert, a spacious Wady, full of rills and\ntrees and fruits and birds singing the praises of Allah the One of\nAll-might, Creator of day and night; and among them was a troop of\nCrows, which led the happiest of lives. Now they were under the sway and\ngovernment of a Crow who ruled them with mildness and benignity, so that\nthey were with him in peace and contentment; and by reason of their\nwisely ordering their affairs, none of the other birds could avail\nagainst them. Presently it chanced that there befel their chief the doom\nirrevocably appointed to all creatures and he departed life[89];\nwhereupon the others mourned for him with sore mourning, and what added\nto their grief was that there abided not amongst them like him one who\nshould fill his place. So they all assembled and took counsel together\nconcerning whom it befitted for his goodness and piety to set over them:\nand a party of them choose one Crow, saying, \u201cIt beseemeth that this be\nKing over us;\u201d whilst others objected to him and would none of him; and\nthus there arose division and dissension amidst them and the strife of\nexcitement waxed hot between them. At last they agreed amongst\nthemselves and consented to sleep the night upon it and that none should\ngo forth at dawn next day to seek his living, but that all must wait\ntill high morning, when they should gather together all in one place.\n\u201cThen,\u201d said they, \u201cwe will all take flight at once and whichsoever\nshall soar above the rest in his flying, he shall be accepted of us as\nruler and be made King over us.\u201d The fancy pleased them; so they made\ncovenant together and did as they had agreed and took flight all, but\neach of them deemed himself higher than his fellow; wherefore quoth this\none, \u201cI am highest,\u201d and that, \u201cNay; that am I.\u201d Then said the lowest of\nthem, \u201cLook up, all of you, and whomsoever ye find the highest of you,\nlet him be your chief.\u201d So they raised their eyes and seeing the Hawk\nsoaring over them, said each to other, \u201cWe agreed that which bird soever\nshould be the highest of us we will make king over us, and behold, the\nHawk is the highest of us: what say ye to him?\u201d And they all cried out,\n\u201cWe accept of him.\u201d Accordingly they summoned the Hawk and said to him,\n\u201cO Father of Good,[90] we have chosen thee ruler over us, that thou\nmayst look into our affair.\u201d The Hawk consented, saying, \u201cInshallah, ye\nshall win of me abounding weal.\u201d So they rejoiced and made him their\nKing. But after awhile, he fell to taking a company of them every day\nand betaking himself with them afar off to one of the caves, where he\nstruck them down and eating their eyes and brains, threw their bodies\ninto the river. And he ceased not doing on this wise, it being his\nintent to destroy them all till, seeing their number daily diminishing,\nthe Crows flocked to him and said, \u201cO our King, we complain to thee\nbecause from the date we made thee Sovran and ruler over us, we are in\nthe sorriest case and every day a company of us is missing and we know\nnot the reason of this, more by token that the most part thereof are the\nhigh in rank and of those in attendance on thee. We must now look after\nour own safety.\u201d Thereupon the Hawk waxed wroth with them and said to\nthem, \u201cVerily, ye are the murtherers, and ye forestall me with\naccusation!\u201d So saying, he pounced upon them and tearing to pieces half\na score of their chiefs in front of the rest, threatened them and drave\nthem out sorely cuffed and beaten, from before him. Hereat they repented\nthem of that which they had done and said, \u201cWe have known no good since\nthe death of our first King especially in the deed of this stranger in\nkind; but we deserve our sufferings even had he destroyed us one by one\nto the last of us, and there is exemplified in us the saying of him that\nsaith, \u201cWhoso submitteth him not to the rule of his own folk, the foe\nhath dominion over him, of his folly.\u201d And now there is nothing for it\nbut to flee for our lives, else shall we perish.\u201d So they took flight\nand dispersed to various places. \u201cAnd we also, O King,\u201d continued the\nWazir, \u201cfeared lest the like of this befal us and there become ruler\nover us a King other than thyself; but Allah hath vouchsafed us this\nboon and hath sent us this blessed child, and now we are assured of\npeace and union and security and prosperity in our Mother-land. So\nlauded be Almighty Allah and to Him be praise and thanks and goodly\ngratitude! And may He bless the King and us all his subjects and\nvouchsafe unto us and him the acme of felicity and make his life-tide\nhappy and his endeavour constant!\u201d Then arose the sixth Wazir and said,\n\u201cAllah favour thee with all felicity, O King, in this world and in the\nnext world! Verily, the ancients have left us this saying:\u2014Whoso prayeth\nand fasteth and giveth parents their due and is just in his rule meeteth\nhis Lord and He is well pleased with him. Thou hast been set over us and\nhast ruled us justly and thine every step in this hath been blessed;\nwherefore we beseech Allah Almighty to make great thy reward eternal and\nrequite thee thy beneficence. I have heard what this wise man hath said\nrespecting our fear for the loss of our prosperity, by reason of the\ndeath of the King or the advent of another who should not be his\nparallel, and how after him dissensions would be rife among us and\ncalamity betide from our division and how it behoved us therefore to be\ninstant in prayer to Allah the Most High, so haply He might vouchsafe\nthe King a happy son, to inherit the kingship after him. But, after all,\nthe issue of that which man desireth of mundane goods and wherefor he\nlusteth is unknown to him and consequently it behoveth a mortal to ask\nnot of his Lord a thing whose end he wotteth not; for that haply the\nhurt of that thing is nearer to him than its gain and his destruction\nmay be in that he seeketh and there may befal him what befel the\nSerpent-charmer, his wife and children and the folk of his house.\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventh Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the sixth\nWazir said, \u201cIt behoveth not a man to ask of his Lord aught whereof he\nignoreth the issue for that haply the hurt of that thing may be nearer\nthan its gain, his destruction may be in that he seeketh and there may\nbefal him what befel the Serpent-charmer, his children, his wife and his\nhousehold,\u201d the King asked, \u201cWhat was that?\u201d; and the Wazir answered,\n\u201cHear, O King the tale of\n\n\n _THE SERPENT-CHARMER AND HIS WIFE_.\u201d\n\nThere was once a man, a Serpent-charmer,[91] who used to train serpents,\nand this was his trade; and he had a great basket,[92] wherein were\nthree snakes but the people of his house knew this not. Every day he\nused to go round with this pannier about the town gaining his living and\nthat of his family by showing the snakes, and at eventide he returned to\nhis house and clapped them back into the basket privily. This lasted a\nlong while; but it chanced one day, when he came home, as was his wont,\nhis wife asked him, saying, \u201cWhat is in this pannier?\u201d; and he replied,\n\u201cWhat wouldest thou with it? Is not provision plentiful with you? Be\nthou content with that which Allah hath allotted to thee and ask not of\naught else.\u201d With this the woman held her peace; but she said in\nherself, \u201cThere is no help but that I search this basket and know what\nis there.\u201d So she egged on her children and enjoined them to ask him of\nthe pannier and importune him with their questions, till he should tell\nthem what was therein. They presently concluded that it contained\nsomething to eat and sought every day of their father that he should\nshow them what was therein; and he still put them off with pleasant\npretences and forbade them from asking this. On such wise they abode\nawhile, the wife and mother still persisting in her quest till they\nagreed with her that they would neither eat meat nor drain drink with\ntheir father, till he granted them their prayer and opened the basket to\nthem. One night, behold, the Serpent-charmer came home with great plenty\nof meat and drink and took his seat calling them to eat with him: but\nthey refused his company and showed him anger; whereupon he began to\ncoax them with fair words, saying, \u201cLookye, tell me what you would have,\nthat I may bring it you, be it meat or drink or raiment.\u201d Answered they,\n\u201cO our father, we want nothing of thee but that thou open this pannier\nthat we may see what is therein: else we will slay ourselves.\u201d He\nrejoined, \u201cO my children, there is nothing good for you therein and\nindeed the opening of it will be harmful to you.\u201d Hereat they redoubled\nin rage for all he could say, which when he saw, he began to scold them\nand threaten them with beating, except they returned from such\ncondition; but they only increased in anger and persistence in asking,\ntill at last he waxed wroth and took a staff to beat them, and they fled\nfrom before him within the house. Now the basket was present and the\nSerpent-charmer had not hidden it anywhere; so his wife left him\noccupied with the children and opened the pannier in haste, that she\nmight see what was therein. Thereupon behold, the serpents came out and\nfirst struck their fangs into her and killed her; then they hied round\nabout the house and slew all, great and small, who were therein; except\nthe Serpent-charmer, who left the place and went his way. \u201cIf then, O\nauspicious King,\u201d continued the Wazir, \u201cthou consider this, thou wilt be\nconvinced that it is not for a man to desire aught save that which God\nthe Great refuseth not to him; nay, he should be content with what He\nwilleth. And thou, O King, for the overflowing of thy wisdom and the\nexcellence of thine understanding, Allah hath cooled thine eyes with the\nadvent of this thy son, after despair, and hath comforted thy heart;\nwherefore we pray the Almighty to make him of the just successors\nacceptable to Himself and to his subjects.\u201d Then rose the seventh Wazir\nand said, \u201cO King, I know and certify all that my brethren, these\nMinisters wise and learned, have said in the presence, praising thy\njustice and the goodness of thy policy and proving how thou art\ndistinguished in this from all Kings other than thyself; wherefore they\ngave thee the preference over them. Indeed, this be of that which is\nincumbent on us, O King, and I say:\u2014Praised be Allah in that He hath\nguerdoned thee with His gifts and vouchsafed thee of His mercy, the\nwelfare of the realm; and hath succoured thee and ourselves, on\ncondition that we increase in gratitude to Him; and all this no\notherwise than by thine existence! What while thou remainest amongst us,\nwe fear not oppression neither dread unright, nor can any take\nlong-handed advantage of our weakness! and indeed it is said, The\ngreatest good of a people is a just King and their greatest ill an\nunjust King; and again, Better dwell with rending lions than with a\ntyrannous Sultan. So praised be Almighty Allah with eternal praise for\nthat He hath blessed us with thy life and vouchsafed thee this blessed\nchild, whenas thou wast stricken in years and hadst despaired of issue!\nFor the goodliest of the gifts in this world is a virtuous sire, and it\nis said, Whoso hath no progeny his life is without result and he leaveth\nno memory. As for thee, because of the righteousness of thy justice and\nthy pious reliance on Allah the Most High, thou hast been vouchsafed\nthis happy son; yea, this blessed[93] child cometh as a gift from the\nMost High Lord to us and to thee, for the excellence of thy governance\nand the goodliness of thy long-sufferance; and in this thou hast fared\neven as fared the Spider and the Wind.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cAnd what is the\nstory of the Spider and the Wind?\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the King\nasked, \u201cAnd what is the story of the twain?\u201d; the Wazir answered, \u201cGive\near, O King, to the tale of\n\n\n _THE SPIDER AND THE WIND_.\u201d\n\nA spider once attached herself to a high gate[94] and a retired and span\nher web there and dwelt therein in peace, giving thanks to the Almighty,\nwho had made this dwelling-place easy to her and had set her in safety\nfrom noxious reptiles. On this wise she abode a long while, still giving\nthanks to Allah for her ease and regular supply of daily bread, till her\nCreator bethought Him to try her and make essay of her gratitude and\npatience. So he sent upon her a strong east Wind, which carried her\naway, web and all, and cast her into the main. The waves washed her\nashore and she thanked the Lord for safety and began to upbraid the\nWind, saying, \u201cO Wind, why hast thou dealt thus with me and what good\nhast thou gotten by bearing me hither from my abiding-place, where\nindeed I was in safety, secure in my home on the top of that gate?\u201d\nReplied the Wind, saying, \u201cO Spider, hast thou not learnt that this\nworld is a house of calamities; and, say me, who can boast of lasting\nhappiness that such portion shall be thine? Wottest thou not that Allah\ntempteth His creatures in order to learn by trial what may be their\npowers of patience? How, then, doth it beset thee to upbraid me, thou\nwho hast been saved by me from the vasty deep?\u201d \u201cThy words are true, O\nWind,\u201d replied the Spider, \u201cyet not the less do I desire to escape from\nthis stranger land into which thy violence hath cast me.\u201d The Wind\nrejoined, \u201cCease thy blaming; for right soon I will bear thee back and\nreplace thee in thy place, as thou wast aforetime.\u201d So the Spider waited\npatiently, till the north-east Wind left blowing and there arose a\nsouth-west Wind, which gently caught her up and flew with her towards\nher dwelling-place; and when she came to her abode, she knew it and\nclung to it. \u201cAnd we,\u201d continued the Wazir, \u201cbeseech Allah (who hath\nrewarded the King for his singleness of heart and patience and hath\ntaken pity on his subjects and blessed them with His favour and hath\nvouchsafed the King this son in his old age, after he had despaired of\nissue and removed him not from the world, till He had blessed him with\ncoolth of eyes and bestowed on him what He hath bestowed of Kingship and\nEmpire!) to vouchsafe unto thy son that which He hath vouchsafed unto\nthee of dominion and Sultanship and glory! Amen.\u201d Then said the King,\n\u201cPraised be Allah over all praise and thanks be to Him over all thanks!\nThere is no god but He, the Creator of all things, by the light of whose\nsigns we know the glory of His greatness and who giveth kingship and\ncommand over his own country to whom He willeth of His servants! He\nchooseth of them whomso He please to make him His viceroy and viceregent\nover His creatures and commandeth him to just and equitable dealing with\nthem and the maintenance of religious laws and practices and right\nconduct and constancy in ordering their affairs to that which is most\nacceptable to Him and most grateful to them. Whoso doth thus and obeyeth\nthe commandment of his Lord, his desire attaineth and the orders of his\nGod maintaineth; so Providence preserveth him from the perils of the\npresent world and maketh ample his recompense in the future world; for\nindeed He neglecteth not the reward of the righteous. And whoso doth\notherwise than as Allah biddeth him sinneth mortal sin and disobeyeth\nhis Lord, preferring his mundane to his supra-mundane weal. He hath no\ntrace in this world and in the next no portion: for Allah spareth not\nthe unjust and the mischievous, nor doth He neglect any of His servants.\nThese our Wazirs have set forth how, by reason of our just dealing with\nthem and our wise governance of affairs, Allah hath vouchsafed us and\nthem His grace, for which it behoveth us to thank Him, because of the\ngreat abundance of His mercies: each of them hath also spoken that\nwherewith the Almighty inspired Him concerning this matter, and they\nhave vied one with another in rendering thanks to the Most High Lord and\npraising Him for His favours and bounties. I also render thanks to Allah\nfor that I am but a slave commanded; my heart is in His hand and my\ntongue in His subjection, accepting that which He adjudgeth to me and to\nthem, come what may thereof. Each one of them hath said what passed\nthrough his mind on the subject of this boy and hath set forth that\nwhich was of the renewal of divine favour to us, after my years had\nreached the term when confidence faileth and despair assaileth. So\npraised be Allah who hath saved us from disappointment and from the\nalternation of rulers, like to the alternation of night and day! For\nverily, this was a great boon both to them and to us; wherefore we\npraise Almighty Allah who hath given a ready answer to our prayer and\nhath blessed us with this boy and set him in high place, as the\ninheritor of the kingship. And we entreat Him, of His bounty and\nclemency, to make him happy in his actions, prone to pious works, so he\nmay become a King and a Sultan governing his people with justice and\nequity, guarding them from perilous error and frowardness, of His grace,\ngoodness and generosity!\u201d When the King had made an end of his speech,\nthe sages and Olema rose and prostrated themselves before Allah and\nthanked the King; after which they kissed his hands and departed, each\nto his own house, whilst Jali\u2019ad withdrew into his palace, where, he\nlooked upon the new-born and offered up prayers for him and named him\nWird Kh\u00e1n.[95] The boy grew up till he attained the age of twelve,[96]\nwhen the King being minded to have him taught the arts and sciences,\nbade build him a palace amiddlemost the city, wherein were three hundred\nand threescore rooms,[97] and lodged him therein. Then he assigned him\nthree wise men of the Olema and bade them not be lax in teaching him day\nand night and look that there was no kind of learning but they instruct\nhim therein, so he might become versed in all knowledge. He also\ncommanded them to sit with him one day in each of the rooms by turn and\nwrite on the door thereof that which they had taught him therein of\nvarious kinds of lore and report to himself, every seven days, whatso\ninstructions they had imparted to him. So they went in to the Prince and\nstinted not from educating him day nor night, nor withheld from him\naught of that they knew; and presently there appeared in him readiness\nto receive instruction such as none had shown before him. Every seventh\nday his governors reported to the King what his son had learnt and\nmastered, whereby Jali\u2019ad became proficient in goodly learning and fair\nculture, and the Olema said to him, \u201cNever saw we one so richly gifted\nwith understanding as is this boy: Allah bless thee in him and give thee\njoy of his life!\u201d When the Prince had completed his twelfth year, he\nknew the better part of every science and excelled all the Olema and\nsages of his day: wherefore his governors brought him to his sire and\nsaid to him, \u201cAllah gladden thine eyes, O King, with this auspicious\nyouth! We bring him to thee, after he hath learnt all manner knowledge,\nand there is not one of the learned men of the time nor a scientist who\nhath attained to that whereto he hath attained of science.\u201d The King\nrejoiced in this with joy exceeding and thanking the Almighty prostrated\nhimself in gratitude before Allah (to whom belong Majesty and Might!),\nsaying, \u201cLaud be to the Lord for His mercies incalculable!\u201d Then he\ncalled his Chief Wazir and said to him, \u201cKnow, O Shimas, that the\ngovernors of my son are come to tell me that he hath mastered every kind\nof knowledge and there is nothing but they have instructed him therein,\nso that he surpasseth in this all who forewent him. What sayst thou, O\nShimas?\u201d Hereat the Minister prostrated himself before Allah (to whom\nbelong Might and Majesty!) and kissed the King\u2019s hand, saying, \u201cLoath is\nthe ruby-stone, albe it be bedded in the hardest rock on hill, to do\naught but shine as a lamp, and this thy son is such a gem; his tender\nage hath not hindered him from becoming a sage and Alhamdolillah\u2014praised\nbe Allah\u2014for that which He deigned bestow on him! But to-morrow I will\ncall an assembly of the flower of the Emirs and men of learning and\nexamine the Prince and cause him speak forth that which is with him in\ntheir presence, Inshallah!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Ninth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the King\nJali\u2019ad heard the words of his Wazir Shimas, he commanded the\nattendance of the keenest-witted[98] of the Olema and most\naccomplished of the learned and sages of his dominions, and they all\npresented themselves on the morrow at the door of the palace,\nwhereupon the King bade admit them. Then entered Shimas and kissed the\nhands of the Prince, who rose and prostrated himself to the Minister:\nbut Shimas said, \u201cIt behoveth not the lion-whelp to prostrate himself\nto any of the wild beasts, nor besitteth it that Light prostrate\nitself to shade.\u201d Quoth the Prince, \u201cWhenas the lion-whelp seeth the\nleopard,[99] he riseth up to him and prostrateth himself before him,\nbecause of his wisdom, and Light prostrateth itself to shade for the\npurpose of disclosing that which is therewithin.\u201d Quoth Shimas, \u201cTrue,\nO my lord; but I would have thee answer me anent whatso I shall ask\nthee, by leave of His Highness and his lieges.\u201d And the youth said,\n\u201cAnd I, with permission of my sire, will answer thee.\u201d So Shimas began\nand said, \u201cTell me what is the Eternal, the Absolute, and what are the\ntwo manifestations[100] thereof and whether of the two is the abiding\none?\u201d Answered the Prince, \u201cAllah (to whom belong Might and Majesty!)\nis the Eternal, the Absolute; for that He is Alpha, without beginning,\nand Omega without end. Now his two manifestations are this world and\nthe next; and the abiding one of the two is the world to come.\u201d (\u00bf)\n\u201cThou sayst truly and I approve thy reply: but I would have thee tell\nme, how knowest thou that one of Allah\u2019s manifestations is this world\nand the other the world to come?\u201d\u2014\u201cI know this because this world was\ncreated from nothingness and had not its being from any existing\nthing; wherefore its affair is referable to the first essence.\nMoreover, it is a commodity swift of ceasing, the works whereof call\nfor requital of action and this postulateth the reproduction[101] of\nwhatso passeth away: so the next world is the second manifestation.\u201d\n(\u00bf) \u201cNow inform me how knowest thou that the world to come is the\nabiding one of the two existences?\u201d\u2014\u201cBecause it is the house of\nrequital for deeds done in this world prepared by the Eternal sans\nsurcease.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWho are the people of this world most to be praised\nfor their practice?\u201d\u2014\u201cThose who prefer their weal in the world to come\nbefore their weal in this world.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cAnd who is he that preferreth\nhis future to his present welfare?\u201d\u2014\u201cHe who knoweth that he dwelleth\nin a perishing house, that he was created but to vade away and that,\nafter vading away, he will be called to account; and indeed, were\nthere in this world one living and abiding for ever, he would not\nprefer it to the next world.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cCan the future life subsist\npermanently without the present?\u201d\u2014\u201cHe who hath no present life hath no\nfuture life: and indeed I liken this world and its folk and the goal\nto which they fare with certain workmen, for whom an Emir buildeth a\nnarrow house and lodgeth them therein, commanding each of them to do a\ncertain task and assigning to him a set term and appointing one to act\nas steward over them. Whoso doeth the work appointed unto him, the\nsteward bringeth him forth of that straitness; but whoso doeth it not\nwithin the stablished term is punished. After awhile, behold, they\nfind honey exuding from the chinks of the house,[102] and when they\nhave eaten thereof and tasted its sweetness of savour, they slacken in\ntheir ordered task and cast it behind their backs. So they patiently\nsuffer the straitness and distress wherein they are, with what they\nknow of the future punishment whereto they are fast wending, and are\ncontent with this worthless and easily won sweetness: and the Steward\nleaveth not to fetch every one of them forth of the house, for ill or\ngood, when his appointed period shall have come. Now we know the world\nto be a dwelling wherein all eyes are dazed, and that each of its folk\nhath his set term; and he who findeth the little sweetness that is in\nthe world and busieth himself therewith is of the number of the lost,\nsince he preferreth the things of this world to the things of the next\nworld: but whoso payeth no heed to this poor sweetness and preferreth\nthe things of the coming world to those of this world, is of those who\nare saved.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cI have heard what thou sayest of this world and the\nnext and I accept thine answer; but I see they are as two placed in\nauthority over man; needs must he content them both, and they are\ncontrary one to other. So, if the creature set himself to seek his\nlivelihood, it is harmful to his soul in the future: and if he devote\nhimself to the next world, it is hurtful to his body; and there is no\nway for him of pleasing these two contraries at once.\u201d\u2014\u201cIndeed, the\nquest of one\u2019s worldly livelihood with pious intent and on lawful wise\nis a viaticum for the quest of the goods of the world to come, if a\nman spend a part of his days in seeking his livelihood in this world,\nfor the sustenance of his body, and devote the rest of his day to\nseeking the goods of the next world, for the repose of his soul and\nthe warding off of hurt therefrom; and indeed I see this world and the\nother world as they were two Kings, a just and an unjust.\u201d Asked\nShimas, \u201cHow so?\u201d and the youth began the tale of\n\n\n _THE TWO KINGS_.\n\nThere were once two Kings, a just and an unjust; and this one had a land\nabounding in trees and fruits and herbs; but he let no merchant pass\nwithout robbing him of his monies and his merchandise, and the traders\nendured this with patience, by reason of their profit from the fatness\nof the earth in the means of life and its pleasantness, more by token\nthat it was renowned for its richness in precious stones and gems. Now\nthe just King, who loved jewels, heard of this land and sent one of his\nsubjects thither, giving him much specie and bidding him pass with it\ninto the other\u2019s realm and buy jewels therefrom. So he went thither;\nand, it being told to the unjust King that a merchant was come to his\nkingdom with much money to buy jewels withal, he sent for him to the\npresence and said to him, \u201cWho art thou and whence comest thou and who\nbrought thee thither and what is thy errand?\u201d Quoth the merchant, \u201cI am\nof such and such a region, and the King of that land gave me money and\nbade me buy therewith jewels from this country; so I obeyed his bidding\nand came.\u201d Cried the unjust King, \u201cOut on thee! Knowest thou not my\nfashion of dealing with the people of my realm and how each day I take\ntheir monies? How then comest thou to my country? And behold, thou hast\nbeen a sojourner here since such a time!\u201d Answered the trader, \u201cThe\nmoney is not mine, not a mite of it; nay, \u2019tis a trust in my hands, till\nI bring its equivalent to its owner.\u201d But the King said, \u201cI will not let\nthee take thy livelihood of my land or go out therefrom, except thou\nransom thyself with this money all of it.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the\ndawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Tenth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the unjust\nRuler said to the trader who came to buy jewels from his country, \u201c\u2019Tis\nnot possible for thee to take thy livelihood of my land except thou\nransom thy life with this money, all of it; else shalt thou die.\u201d So the\nman said in himself, \u201cI am fallen between two Kings, and I know that the\noppression of this ruler embraceth all who abide in his dominions: and\nif I satisfy him not, I shall lose both life and money (whereof is no\ndoubt) and shall fail of my errand; whilst, on the other hand, if I give\nhim all the gold, it will most assuredly prove my ruin with its owner,\nthe other King: wherefore no device will serve me but that I give this\none a trifling part thereof and content him therewith and avert from\nmyself and from the money perdition. Thus shall I get my livelihood of\nthe fatness of this land, till I buy that which I desire of jewels; and,\nafter satisfying the tyrant with gifts, I will take my portion of the\nprofit and return to the owner of the money with his need, trusting in\nhis justice and indulgence, and unfearing that he will punish me for\nthat which this unjust King taketh of the treasure, especially if it be\nbut a little.\u201d Then the trader called down blessings on the tyrant and\nsaid to him, \u201cO King, I will ransom myself and this specie with a small\nportion thereof, from the time of my entering thy country to that of my\ngoing forth therefrom.\u201d The King agreed to this and left him at peace\nfor a year, till he bought all manner jewels with the rest of the money\nand returned therewith to his master, to whom he made his excuses,\nconfessing to having saved himself from the unjust King as before\nrelated. The just King accepted his excuse and praised him for his wise\ndevice and set him on his right hand in his divan and appointed him in\nhis kingdom an abiding inheritance and a happy life-tide.[103] Now the\njust King is the similitude of the future world and the unjust King that\nof the present world; the jewels that be in the tyrant\u2019s dominions are\ngood deeds and pious works. The merchant is man and the money he hath\nwith him is the provision appointed him of Allah. When I consider this,\nI know that it behoveth him who seeketh his livelihood in this world to\nleave not a day without seeking the goods of the world to come, so shall\nhe content this world with that which he gaineth of the fatness of the\nearth and satisfy the other world with that which he spendeth of his\nlife in seeking after it.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cAre the spirit[104] and the body alike\nin reward and retribution, or is the body, as the luster of lusts and\ndoer of sinful deeds, and especially affected with punishment?\u201d \u201cThe\ninclination to lusts and sins may be the cause of earning reward by the\nwithholding of the soul therefrom and the repenting thereof; but the\ncommand[105] is in the hand of Him who doth what He will, and things by\ntheir contraries are distinguished. Thus subsistence is necessary to the\nbody, but there is no body without soul; and the purification of the\nspirit is in making clean the intention in this world and taking thought\nto that which shall profit in the world to come. Indeed, soul and body\nare like two horses racing for a wager or two foster-brothers or two\npartners in business. By the intent are good deeds distinguished and\nthus the body and soul are partners in actions and in reward and\nretribution, and in this they are like the Blind man and the Cripple\nwith the Overseer of the garden.\u201d Asked Shimas, \u201cHow so?\u201d; and the\nPrince said, \u201cHear, O Wazir, the tale of\n\n\n _THE BLIND MAN AND THE CRIPPLE_.\u201d\n\nA Blind man and a Cripple were travelling-companions and used to beg\nalms in company. One day they sought admission into the garden of some\none of the benevolent, and a kind-hearted wight, hearing their talk,\ntook compassion on them and carried them into his garden, where he left\nthem after plucking for them some of its produce and went away, bidding\nthem do no waste nor damage therein. When the fruits became ripe, the\nCripple said to the Blind man, \u201cHarkye, I see ripe fruits and long for\nthem; but I cannot rise to eat thereof; so go thou arise, for thou art\nsound of either leg, and fetch us somewhat that we may eat.\u201d Replied the\nBlind, \u201cFie upon thee! I had no thought of them, but now that thou\ncallest them to my mind, I long to eat of them and I am impotent unto\nthis, being unable to see them; so how shall we do to get at them?\u201d At\nthis moment, behold, up came the Overseer of the garden, who was a man\nof understanding, and the Cripple said to him, \u201cHarkye, O Overseer! I\nlong for somewhat of those fruits; but we are as thou seest; I am a\ncripple and my mate here is stone-blind: so what shall we do?\u201d Replied\nthe Overseer, \u201cWoe to you! Have ye forgotten that the master of the\ngarden stipulated with you that ye should do nothing whereby waste or\ndamage befal it: so take warning and abstain from this.\u201d But they\nanswered, \u201cNeeds must we get our portion of these fruits that we may eat\nthereof: so tell us some device whereby we shall contrive this.\u201d When\nthe Overseer saw that they were not to be turned from their purpose, he\nsaid, \u201cThis, then, is my device, O Cripple, let the Blind bear thee on\nhis back and take thee under the tree whose fruit pleaseth thee, so thou\nmayst pluck what thou canst reach thereof.\u201d Accordingly the Blind man\ntook on his back the Cripple who guided him, till he brought him under a\ntree, and he fell to plucking from it what he would and tearing at its\nboughs till he had despoiled it: after which they went roundabout and\nthroughout the garden and wasted it with their hands and feet, nor did\nthey cease from this fashion, till they had stripped all the trees of\nthe garth. Then they returned to their place and presently up came the\nmaster of the garden, who, seeing it in this plight, was wroth with sore\nwrath and coming up to them said, \u201cWoe to you! What fashion is this? Did\nI not stipulate with you that ye should do no damage in the garden?\u201d\nQuoth they, \u201cThou knowest that we are powerless to come at any of the\nfruit, for that one of us is a cripple and cannot rise and the other is\nblind and cannot see that which is before him: so what is our offence?\u201d\nBut the master answered, \u201cThink ye I know not how ye wrought and how ye\nhave gone about to do waste in my garden? I know, as if I had been with\nthee, O Blind, that thou tookest the Cripple pick-a-back and he showed\nthee the way till thou borest him to the trees.\u201d Then he punished them\nwith grievous punishment and thrust them out of the garden. Now the\nBlind is the similitude of the body which seeth not save by the spirit,\nand the Cripple that of the soul, for that it hath no power of motion\nbut by the body; the garden is the works, for which the creature is\nrewarded or punished, and the Overseer is the reason which biddeth to\ngood and forbiddeth from evil. Thus the body and the soul are partners\nin reward and retribution.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhich of the learned men is most worthy\nof praise, according to thee?\u201d\u2014\u201cHe who is learned in the knowledge of\nAllah and whose knowledge profiteth him.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cAnd who is this?\u201d\u2014\u201cWhoso\nis intent upon seeking to please his Lord and avoid His wrath.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cAnd\nwhich of them is the most excellent?\u201d\u2014\u201cHe who is most learned in the\nknowledge of Allah.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cAnd which is the most experienced of\nthem?\u201d\u2014\u201cWhoso in doing according to his knowledge is most constant.\u201d (\u00bf)\n\u201cAnd which is the purest-hearted of them?\u201d\u2014\u201cHe who is most assiduous in\npreparing for death and praising the Lord and least of them in hope, and\nindeed he who penetrateth his soul with the awful ways of death is as\none who looketh into a clear mirror, for that he knoweth the truth, and\nthe mirror still increaseth in clearness and brilliance.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat are\nthe goodliest of treasures?\u201d\u2014\u201cThe treasures of heaven.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhich is\nthe goodliest of the treasures of Heaven?\u201d\u2014\u201cThe praise of Allah and His\nmagnification.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhich is the most excellent of the treasures of\nearth?\u201d\u2014\u201cThe practice of kindness.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eleventh Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Wazir\nShimas asked the King\u2019s son, saying, \u201cWhich is the most excellent of the\ntreasures of earth?\u201d he answered, \u201cThe practice of kindness.\u201d So the\nMinister pursued, \u201cTell me of three several and different things,\nknowledge and judgment and wit, and of that which uniteth\nthem.\u201d\u2014\u201cKnowledge cometh of learning, judgment of experience and wit of\nreflection, and they are all stablished and united in reason. Whoso\ncombineth these three qualities attaineth perfection and he who addeth\nthereto the piety and fear of the Lord is in the right course.\u201d (\u00bf)\n\u201cTake the case of a man of learning and wisdom, endowed with right\njudgment, luminous intelligence and a keen wit and excelling, and tell\nme can desire and lust change these his qualities?\u201d\u2014\u201cYes; for these two\npassions, when they enter into a man, alter his wisdom and understanding\nand judgment and wit, and he is like the Ossifrage[106] which, for\nprecaution against the hunters, abode in the upper air, of the excess of\nhis subtlety; but, as he was thus, he saw a fowler set up his nets and\nwhen the toils were firmly staked down bait them with a bit of meat;\nwhich when he beheld, desire and lust thereof overcame him and he forgot\nthat which he had seen of springes and of the sorry plight of all birds\nthat fell into them. So he swooped down from the welkin and pouncing\nupon the piece of meat, was meshed in the same snare and could not win\nfree. When the fowler came up and saw the Ossifrage taken in his toils\nhe marvelled with exceeding marvel and said, \u201cI set up my nets, thinking\nto take therein pigeons and the like of small fowl; how came this\nOssifrage to fall into it?\u201d It is said that when desire and lust incite\na man of understanding to aught, he considereth the end thereof and\nrefraineth from that which they make fair and represseth with his reason\nhis lust and his concupiscence; for, when these passions urge him to\naught, it behoveth him to make his reason like unto a horseman skilled\nin horsemanship who mounting a skittish horse, curbeth him with a sharp\nbit,[107] so that he go aright with him and bear him whither he will. As\nfor the ignorant man, who hath neither knowledge nor judgment, while all\nthings are obscure to him and desire and lust lord it over him, verily\nhe doeth according to his desire and his lust and is of the number of\nthose that perish; nor is there among men one in worse case than he.\u201d\n(\u00bf) \u201cWhen is knowledge profitable and when availeth reason to ward off\nthe ill effects of desire and lust?\u201d\u2014\u201cWhen their possessor useth them in\nquest of the goods of the next world, for reason and knowledge are\naltogether profitable; but it befitteth not their owner to expend them\nin the quest of the goods of this world, save in such measure as may be\nneedful for gaining his livelihood and defending himself from its\nmischief; but to lay them out with a view to futurity.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat is\nmost worthy that a man should apply himself thereto and occupy his heart\nwithal?\u201d\u2014\u201cGood works and pious.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cIf a man do this it diverteth him\nfrom gaining his living: how then shall he do for his daily bread\nwherewith he may not dispense?\u201d\u2014\u201cA man\u2019s day is four-and-twenty hours,\nand it behoveth him to employ one-third thereof in seeking his living,\nanother in prayer and repose and the other in the pursuits of\nknowledge;[108] for a reasonable man without knowledge is a barren land,\nwhich hath no place for tillage, tree-planting or grass-growing. Except\nit be prepared for tilth and plantation no fruit will profit therein;\nbut, if it be tilled and planted, it bringeth forth goodly fruits. So\nwith the man lacking education; there is no profit in him till knowledge\nbe planted in him: then doth he bear fruit.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat sayst thou of\nknowledge without understanding?\u201d\u2014\u201cIt is as the knowledge of a\nbrute[109] beast, which hath learnt the hours of its foddering and\nwaking, but hath no reason.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cThou hast been brief in thine answer\nhere anent; but I accept thy reply. Tell me, how shall I guard myself\nagainst the Sultan?\u201d\u2014\u201cBy giving him no way to thee.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cAnd how can I\nbut give him way to me, seeing that he is set in dominion over me and\nthat the reins of my affair be in his hand?\u201d\u2014\u201cHis dominion over thee\nlieth in the duties thou owest him; wherefore, an thou give him his due,\nhe hath no farther dominion over thee.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat are a Wazir\u2019s duties\nto his King?\u201d\u2014\u201cGood counsel and zealous service both in public and\nprivate, right judgment, the keeping of his secrets and that he conceal\nfrom his lord naught of that whereof he hath a right to be informed,\nlack of neglect of aught of his need with the gratifying of which he\nchargeth him, the seeking his approval in every guise and the avoidance\nof his anger.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cHow should the Wazir do with the King?\u201d\u2014\u201cAn thou be\nWazir to the King and wouldst fain become safe from him, let thy hearing\nand thy speaking to him surpass his expectation of thee and be thy\nseeking of thy want from him after the measure of thy rank in his\nesteem, and beware lest thou advance thyself to a dignity whereof he\ndeemeth thee unworthy, for this would be like presuming against him. So,\nif thou take advantage of his mildness and raise thee to a rank beyond\nthat which he deemeth thy due, thou wilt be like the hunter, whose wont\nit was to trap wild beasts for their pelts and cast away the flesh. Now\na lion used to come to that place and eat of the carrion; and in course\nof time, he made friendship with the hunter, who would throw meat to him\nand wipe his hands on his back, whilst the lion wagged his tail.[110]\nBut when the hunter saw his tameness and gentleness and submissiveness\nto him, he said to himself, \u201cVerily this lion humbleth himself to me and\nI am master of him, and I see not why I should not mount him and strip\noff his hide, as with the other wild beasts.\u201d So he took courage and\nsprang on the lion\u2019s back, presuming on his mildness and deeming himself\nsure of him; which when the lion saw, he raged with exceeding rage and\nraising his fore paw, smote the hunter, that he drove his claws into his\nvitals; after which he cast him under foot and tare him in pieces and\ndevoured him. By this we may know that it behoveth the Wazir to bear\nhimself towards the King according to that which he seeth of his\ncondition and not presume upon the superiority of his own judgment, lest\nthe King become jealous of him.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twelfth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the youth,\nthe son of King Jali\u2019ad, said to Shimas the Wazir, \u201cIt behoveth the\nMinister to bear himself towards the Monarch according to that which he\nseeth of his condition, and not to presume upon the superiority of his\nown judgment lest the King wax jealous of him.\u201d Quoth Shimas, \u201cHow shall\nthe Wazir grace himself in the King\u2019s sight?\u201d\u2014\u201cBy the performance of the\ntrust committed to him and of loyal counsel and sound judgment and the\nexecution of his commands.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cAs for what thou sayest of the Wazir\u2019s\nduty to avoid the King\u2019s anger and perform his wishes and apply himself\ndiligently to the doing of that wherewith he chargeth him, such duty is\nalways incumbent on him: but how, an the King\u2019s whole pleasure be\ntyranny and the practice of oppression and exorbitant extortion; and\nwhat shall the Wazir do, if he be afflicted by intercourse with this\nunjust lord? An he strive to turn him from his lust and his desire, he\ncannot do this, and if he follow him in his lusts and flatter him with\nfalse counsel, he assumeth the weight of responsibility herein and\nbecometh an enemy to the people. What sayst thou of this?\u201d\u2014\u201cWhat thou\nspeakest, O Wazir, of his responsibility and sinfulness ariseth only in\nthe case of his abetting the King in his wrong-doing; but it behoveth\nthe Wazir, when the King taketh counsel with him of the like of this, to\nshow forth to him the way of justice and equity and warn him against\ntyranny and oppression and expound to him the principles of righteously\ngoverning the lieges; alluring him with the future reward that\npertaineth to this and restraining him with warning of the punishment he\notherwise will incur. If the King incline to him and hearken unto his\nwords, his end is gained, and if not, there is nothing for it but that\nhe depart from him after courteous fashion, because in parting for each\nof them is ease.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat are the duties of the King to his subjects\nand what are the obligations of the lieges to their lord?\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cThey shall\ndo whatso he ordereth them with pure intent and obey him in that which\npleaseth him and pleaseth Allah and the Apostle of Allah. And the lieges\ncan claim of the lord that he protect their possessions and guard their\nwomen,[111] even as it is their duty to hearken unto him and obey him\nand expend their lives freely in his defence and give him his lawful due\nand praise him fairly for that which he bestoweth upon them of his\njustice and bounty.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cHave his subjects any claim upon the King\nother than that which thou hast said?\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cYes: the rights of the subjects\nfrom their Sovran are more binding than the liege lord\u2019s claim upon his\nlieges; for that the breach of his duty towards them is more harmful\nthan that of their duty towards him; because the ruin of the King and\nthe loss of his kingdom and fortune befal not save by the breach of his\ndevoir to his subjects: wherefore it behoveth him who is invested with\nthe kingship to be assiduous in furthering three things, to wit, the\nfostering of the faith, the fostering of his subjects and the fostering\nof government; for by the ensuing of these three things, his kingdom\nshall endure.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cHow doth it behove him to do for his subjects\u2019\nweal?\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cBy giving them their due and maintaining their laws and\ncustoms[112] and employing Olema and learned men to teach them and\njustifying them, one of other, and sparing their blood and defending\ntheir goods and lightening their loads and strengthening their hosts.\u201d\n(\u00bf) \u201cWhat is the Minister\u2019s claim upon the Monarch?\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cNone hath a more\nimperative claim on the King than hath the Wazir, for three reasons:\nfirstly, because of that which shall befal him from his liege lord in\ncase of error in judgment, and because of the general advantage to King\nand commons in case of sound judgment: secondly, that folk may know the\ngoodliness of the degree which the Wazir holdeth in the King\u2019s esteem\nand therefore look on him with eyes of veneration and respect and\nsubmission[113]; and thirdly, that the Wazir, seeing this from King and\nsubjects, may ward off from them that which they hate and fulfil to them\nthat which they love.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cI have heard all thou hast said of the\nattributes of King and Wazir and liege and approve thereof: but now tell\nme what is incumbent in keeping the tongue from lying and folly and\nslandering good names and excess in speech.\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cIt behoveth a man to\nspeak naught but good and kindness and to talk not of that which\ntoucheth him not; to leave detraction nor carry talk he hath heard from\none man to his enemy, neither seek to harm his friend nor his foe with\nhis Sultan and reck not of any (neither of him from whom he hopeth for\ngood nor of him whom he feareth for mischief) save of Allah Almighty;\nfor He indeed is the only one who harmeth or profiteth. Let him not\nimpute default unto any nor talk ignorantly, lest he incur the weight\nand the sin thereof before Allah and earn hate among men; for know thou\nthat speech is like an arrow which once shot none can avail to recall.\nLet him also beware of disclosing his secret to one who shall discover\nit, lest he fall into mischief by reason of its disclosure, after\nconfidence on its concealment; and let him be more careful to keep his\nsecret from his friend than from his foe; for the keeping a secret with\nall folk is of the performance of faithful trust.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cTell me how a\nman should bear himself with his family and friends.\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cThere is no rest\nfor a son of Adam save in righteous conduct: he should render to his\nfamily that which they deserve and to his brethren whatso is their due.\u201d\n(\u00bf) \u201cWhat should one render to one\u2019s kinsfolk?\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cTo parents, submission\nand soft speech and affability and honour and reverence. To brethren\ngood counsel and readiness to expend money for them and assistance in\ntheir undertakings and joyance in their joy and grieving for their grief\nand closing of the eyes toward the errors that they may commit; for,\nwhen they experience this from a man, they requite him with the best of\ncounsel they can command and expend their lives in his defence;\nwherefore, an thou know thy brother to be trusty, lavish upon him thy\nlove and help him in all his affairs.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn\nof day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirteenth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the youth, the\nson and heir of King Jali\u2019ad, when questioned by the Wazir upon the\nsubjects aforesaid, returned him satisfactory replies; when Shimas\nresumed, \u201cI see that brethren are of two kinds, brethren of trust and\nbrethren of society.[114] As for the first who be friends, there is due\nto them that which thou hast set forth; but now tell me of the others\nwho be acquaintances.\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cAs for brethren of society thou gettest of them\npleasance and goodly usance and fair speech and enjoyable company; so be\nthou not sparing to them of thy delights, but be lavish to them thereof,\nlike as they are lavish to thee, and render to them that which they\nrender to thee of affable countenance and an open favour and sweet\nspeech; so shall thy life be pleasant and thy words be accepted of\nthem.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cTell me now of the provision decreed by the Creator to all\ncreatures. Hath He allotted to men and beasts each his several provision\nto the completion of his appointed life-term; and if this allotment be\nthus, what maketh him who seeketh his livelihood to incur hardships and\ntravail in the quest of that which he knoweth must come to him, if it be\ndecreed to him, albeit he incur not the misery of endeavour; and which,\nif it be not decreed to him, he shall not win, though he strive after it\nwith his uttermost striving? Shall he therefore stint endeavour and in\nhis Lord put trust and to his body and his soul give rest?\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cIndeed, we\nsee clearly that to each and every there is a provision distributed and\na term prescribed; but to all livelihood are a way and means, and he who\nseeketh would get ease of his seeking by ceasing to seek; withal there\nis no help but that he seek his fortune. The seeker is, however, in two\ncases; either he gaineth his fortune or he faileth thereof. In the first\ncase, his pleasure consisteth in two conditions; first, in the having\ngained his fortune, and secondly, in the laudable[115] issue of his\nquest; and in the other case, his pleasure consisteth, first, in his\nreadiness to seek his daily bread, secondly, in his abstaining from\nbeing a burthen to the folk, and thirdly, in his freedom from liability\nto blame.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat sayst thou of the means of seeking one\u2019s\nfortune?\u201d\u2014\u2014\u201cA man shall hold lawful that which Allah (to whom belong\nMight and Majesty) alloweth, and unlawful whatso He forbiddeth.\u201d\nReaching this pass the discourse between them came to an end, and Shimas\nand all the Olema present rose and prostrating themselves before the\nyoung Prince, magnified and extolled him, whilst his father pressed him\nto his bosom and seating him on the throne of kingship, said, \u201cPraised\nbe Allah who hath blessed me with a son to be the coolth of mine eyes in\nmy lifetime!\u201d Then said the King\u2019s son to Shimas in presence of all the\nOlema, \u201cO sage that art versed in spiritual questions, albeit Allah have\nvouchsafed to me but scanty knowledge, yet do I comprehend thine intent\nin accepting from me what I proffered in answer concerning that whereof\nthou hast asked me, whether I hit or missed the mark therein, and belike\nthou forgavest my errors; but now I am minded to question thee anent a\nthing, whereof my judgment faileth and whereto my capacity is\ninsufficient and which my tongue availeth not to set forth, for that it\nis obscure to me, with the obscurity of clear water in a black vessel.\nWherefore I would have thee expound it to me so no iota thereof may\nremain doubtful to the like of me, to whom its obscurity may present\nitself in the future, even as it hath presented itself to me in the\npast; since Allah, even as He hath made life to be in lymph[116] and\nstrength in food and the cure of the sick in the skill of the leach, so\nhath He appointed the healing of the fool to be in the learning of the\nwise. Give ear, therefore, to my speech.\u201d Replied the Wazir, \u201cO luminous\nof intelligence and master of casuistical questions, thou whose\nexcellence all the Olema attest, by reason of the goodliness of thy\ndiscretion of things and thy distribution[117] thereof and the justness\nof thine answers to the questions I have asked thee, thou knowest that\nthou canst enquire of me naught but thou art better able than I to form\na just judgment thereon and expound it truly: for that Allah hath\nvouchsafed unto thee such wisdom as He hath bestowed on none other of\nmen. But inform me of what thou wouldst question me.\u201d Quoth the Prince,\n\u201cTell me from what did the Creator (magnified be His all-might!) create\nthe world, albeit there was before it naught and there is naught seen in\nthis world but it is created from something; and the Divine Creator\n(extolled and exalted be He!) is able to create things from\nnothing,[118] yet hath His will decreed, for all the perfection of His\npower and grandeur, that He shall create naught but from something.\u201d The\nWazir replied, \u201cAs for those, who fashion vessels of potter\u2019s clay,[119]\nand other handicraftsmen, who cannot originate one thing save from\nanother thing, they are themselves only created entities: but, as for\nthe Creator, who hath wrought the world after this wondrous fashion, an\nthou wouldst know His power (extolled and exalted be He!) of calling\nthings into existence, extend thy thought and consider the various kinds\nof created things, and thou wilt find signs and instances, proving the\nperfection of His puissance and that He is able to create the ens from\nthe non-ens: nay, He called things into being, after absolute\nnon-existence, for the elements which be the matter of created things\nwere sheer nothingness. I will expound this to thee, so thou mayst be in\nno scepticism thereof, and the marvel-signs of the alternation of Night\nand Day shall make this clear to thee. When the light goeth and the\nnight cometh, the day is hidden from us and we know not the place where\nit abideth; and when the night passeth away with its darkness and its\nterror, the day cometh and we know not the abiding-place of the\nnight.[120] In like manner, when the sun riseth upon us, we know not\nwhere it hath laid up its light, and when it setteth, we ignore the\nabiding-place of its setting: and the examples of this among the works\nof the Creator (magnified be His name and glorified be His might;)\nabound in what confoundeth the thought of the keenest-witted of human\nbeings.\u201d Rejoined the Prince, \u201cO sage, thou hast set before me of the\npower of the Creator what is incapable of denial; but tell me how He\ncalled His creatures into existence.\u201d Answered Shimas, \u201cHe created them\nby the sole power of His one Word,[121] which existed before time, and\nwherewith he created all things.\u201d Quoth the Prince, \u201cThen Allah (be His\nname magnified and His might glorified!) only willed the existence of\ncreated things, before they came into being?\u201d Replied Shimas, \u201cAnd of\nHis will, He created them with His one Word and but for His speech and\nthat one Word, the creation had not come into existence.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fourteenth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that after the\nKing\u2019s son had asked his sire\u2019s Wazir the casuistical questions\naforesaid, and had received a sufficient answer, Shimas said to him, \u201cO\ndear my son,[122] there is no man can tell thee other but this I have\nsaid, except he twist the words handed down to us of the Holy Law and\nturn the truths thereof from their evident meaning. And such a\nperversion is their saying that the Word hath inherent and positive\npower and I take refuge with Allah from such a misbelief! Nay, the\nmeaning of our saying that Allah (to whom belong Might and Majesty)\ncreated the world with His Word is that He (exalted be His name!) is One\nin His essence and His attributes and not that His Word hath independent\npower. On the contrary, power is one of the attributes of Allah, even as\nspeech and other attributes of perfection are attributes of Allah\n(exalted be His dignity and extolled be His empery!); wherefore He may\nnot be conceived without His Word, nor may His Word be conceived without\nHim; for, with His Word, Allah (extolled be His praise!) created all His\ncreatures, and without His Word, the Lord created naught. Indeed, He\ncreated all things but by His Word of Truth, and by Truth are we\ncreated.\u201d Quote the Prince, \u201cI comprehend that which thou hast said on\nthe subject of the Creator and from thee I accept this with\nunderstanding; but I hear thee say that He created the world by His Word\nof Truth. Now Truth is the opposite of Falsehood; whence then arose\nFalsehood with its opposition unto Truth, and how cometh it to be\npossible that it should be confounded therewith and become doubtful to\nhuman beings, so that they need to distinguish between the twain? And\ndoth the Creator (to whom belong Might and Majesty) love Falsehood or\nhate it? An thou say He loveth Truth and by it created all things and\nabhorreth Falsehood, how came the False, which the Creator hateth, to\ninvade the True which He loveth?\u201d Quoth Shimas, \u201cVerily Allah the Most\nHigh created man all Truth[123], loving His name and obeying His word,\nand on this wise man had no need of repentance till Falsehood invaded\nthe Truth whereby he was created by means of the capability[124] which\nAllah had placed in him, being the will and the inclination called lust\nof lucre.[125] When the False invaded the True on this wise, right\nbecame confounded with wrong, by reason of the will of man and his\ncapability and greed of gain, which is the voluntary side of him\ntogether with the weakness of human nature: wherefore Allah created\npenitence for man, to turn away from him Untruth and stablish him in\nTruth; and He created for him also punishment, if he should abide in the\nobscurity of Falsehood.\u201d Quoth the Prince, \u201cTell me how came Untruth to\ninvade Truth, so as to be confounded therewith and how became man liable\nto punishment and so stood in need of repentance.\u201d Replied Shimas, \u201cWhen\nAllah created man with Truth, He made him loving to Himself and there\nwas for him neither repentance nor punishment; but he abode thus till\nAllah put in him the soul, which is of the perfection of humanity,\nalbeit naturally inclined to lust which is inherent therein. From this\nsprang the growth of Untruth and its confusion with Truth, wherewith man\nwas created and with the love whereof his nature had been made; and when\nman came to this pass, he declined from the Truth with disobedience and\nwhoso declineth from the Truth falleth into Falsehood.\u201d Said the Prince,\n\u201cThen Falsehood invaded Truth only by reason of disobedience and\ntransgression?\u201d Shimas replied, \u201cYes: and it is thus because Allah\nloveth mankind, and of the abundance of His love to man He created him\nhaving need of Himself, that is to say, of the very Truth: but\noftentimes man lapseth from this by cause of the inclination of the soul\nto lusts and turneth to frowardness, wherefore he falleth into Falsehood\nby the act of disobeying his Lord and thus deserveth punishment; and by\nputting away from himself Falsehood with repentance and by the returning\nto the love of the Truth, he meriteth future reward.\u201d Quoth the Prince,\n\u201cTell me the origin of sin, whilst all mankind trace their being to\nAdam, and how cometh it that he, being created of Allah with truth, drew\ndisobedience on himself; then was his disobedience coupled with\nrepentance, after the soul had been set in him, that his issue might be\nreward or retribution? Indeed, we see some men constant in sinfulness,\ninclining to that which He loveth not and transgressing in this the\noriginal intent and purpose of their creation, which is the love of the\nTruth, and drawing on themselves the wrath of their Lord, whilst we see\nothers constant in seeking the satisfaction of their Creator and obeying\nHim and meriting mercy and future recompense. What causeth this\ndifference prevailing between them?\u201d Replied Shimas, \u201cThe origin of\ndisobedience descending upon mankind is attributable to Iblis, who was\nthe noblest of all that Allah (magnified be His name!) created of\nangels[126] and men and Jinn, and the love of the Truth was inherent in\nhim, for he knew naught but this; but whenas he saw himself unique in\nsuch dignity, there entered into him pride and conceit, vainglory and\narrogance which revolted from loyalty and obedience to the commandment\nof His Creator; wherefore Allah made him inferior to all creatures and\ncast him out from love, making his abiding-place to be in disobedience.\nSo when he knew that Allah (glorified be His name!) loved not\ndisobedience and saw Adam and the case wherein he was of truth and love\nand obedience to his Creator, envy entered into him and he devised some\ndevice to pervert Adam from the truth, that he might be a partaker with\nhimself in Falsehood; and by this, Adam incurred chastisement for his\ninclining to disobedience, which his foe made fair to him, and his\nsubjection to his lusts, whenas he transgressed the charge of his Lord,\nby reason of the appearance of Falsehood. When the Creator (magnified be\nthe praises of Him and hallowed be the names of Him!) saw the weakness\nof man and the swiftness of his inclining to his enemy and leaving the\ntruth, He appointed to him, of His mercy, repentance, that therewith he\nmight arise from the slough[127] of inclination to disobedience and\ntaking the arms and armour of repentance, overcome therewith his foe\nIblis and his hosts and return to the Truth, wherein he was created.\nWhen Iblis saw that Allah (magnified be His praise!) had appointed him a\nprotracted term,[128] he hastened to wage war upon man and to beset him\nwith wiles, to the intent that he might oust him from the favour of his\nLord and make him a partaker with himself in the wrath which he and his\nhosts had incurred; wherefore Allah (extolled be His praises!) appointed\nunto man the capability of penitence and commanded him to apply himself\nto the Truth and persevere therein; and forbade him from disobedience\nand frowardness and revealed to him that he had on the earth an enemy\nwarring against him and relaxing not from him night nor day. Thus hath\nman a right to future reward, if he adhere to the Truth, in the love of\nwhich his nature was created; but he becometh liable to punishment, if\nthe flesh master him and incline him to lusts.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived\nthe dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifteenth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the young\nPrince had questioned Shimas touching disputed points of olden time and\nhad been duly answered, he presently said, \u201cNow tell me by what power is\nthe creature able to transgress against his Creator, seeing that His\nomnipotence is without bounds, even as thou hast set forth, and that\nnaught can overcome Him or depart from His will? Deemest thou not that\nHe is able to turn His creatures from this disobedience and compel them\neternally to hold the Truth?\u201d Answered Shimas, \u201cIn very sooth Almighty\nAllah (honoured be His name!) is just and equitable and loving-kind to\nthe people of His affection.[129] He created His creatures with justice\nand equity and of the inspiration of His justice and the overflowing of\nHis mercy, He gave them kingship over themselves, that they should do\nwhatever they might design. He showeth them the way of righteousness and\nbestoweth on them the power and ability of doing what they will of good:\nand if they do the opposite thereof, they fall into destruction and\ndisobedience.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cIf the Creator, as thou sayest, have granted to\nmankind power and ability[130] and they by reason thereof are empowered\nto do whatso they will, why then doth He not come between them and that\nwhich they desire of wrong and turn them to the right?\u201d\u2014\u201cThis is of the\ngreatness of His mercy and the goodliness of His wisdom; for, even as\naforetime he showed wrath to Iblis and had no mercy on him, even so he\nshowed Adam mercy, by means[131] of repentance, and accepted of him,\nafter He had been wroth with him.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cHe is indeed mere Truth, for He\nit is who requiteth every one according to his works, and there is no\nCreator save Allah who hath power over all things. But tell me, hath He\ncreated that which He loveth and that which He loveth not or only that\nwhich He loveth?\u201d\u2014\u201cHe created all things, but favoureth only that which\nhe loveth.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat reckest thou of two things, one whereof is\npleasing to God and earneth future reward for him who practiseth it and\nthe other offendeth Allah and entaileth lawful punishment upon the\ndoer?\u201d\u2014\u201cExpound to me these two things and make me to apprehend them,\nthat I may speak concerning them.\u201d \u201cThey are good and evil, the two\nthings inherent in the body and in the soul.\u201d\u2014\u201cO wise youth, I see that\nthou knowest good and evil to be of the works which the soul and the\nbody combine to do. Good is named good, because it is in favour with\nGod, and evil is termed ill, for that in it is His ill-will. Indeed, it\nbehoveth thee to know Allah and to please Him by the practice of good,\nfor that He hath bidden us to this and forbidden us to do evil.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cI\nsee these two things, to wit, good and evil, to be wrought only by the\nfive senses familiarly known in the body of man, which be the\nsensorium[132] whence proceed speech, hearing, sight, smell and touch.\nNow I would have thee tell me whether these five senses were created\naltogether for good or for evil.\u201d\u2014\u201cApprehend, O man, the exposition of\nthat whereof thou askest and it is a manifest proof; so lay it up in\nthine innermost thought and take it to thy heart. And this it is that\nthe Creator (extolled and exalted be He!) created man with Truth and\nimpressed him with the love thereof and there proceedeth from it no\ncreated thing save by the puissance of the Most High, whose trace is in\nevery phenomenon. He[133] (extol we Him and exalt we Him!) is not apt\nbut to the ordering of justice and equity and beneficence, and He\ncreated man for the love of Him and set in him a soul, wherein the\ninclination to lusts was innate and assigned him capability and ableness\nand appointed the Five Senses aforesaid to be to him a means of winning\nHeaven or Hell.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cHow so?\u201d\u2014\u201cIn that He created the Tongue for\nspeech, the Hands for action, the Feet for walking and the Eyes for\nseeing and the Ears for hearing, and upon each bestowed especial power\nand incited them to exercise and motion, bidding each of them do naught\nsave that which pleaseth Him. Now what pleaseth Him in Speech is\ntruthfulness and abstaining from its opposite, which is falsehood; and\nwhat pleaseth Him in Sight is turning it unto that which He loveth and\nleaving the contrary, which is turning it unto that which He hateth,\nsuch as looking unto lusts: and what pleaseth Him in Hearing is\nhearkening to naught but the True, such as admonition and that which is\nin Allah\u2019s writ and leaving the contrary, which is listening to that\nwhich incurreth the anger of Allah; and what pleaseth Him in the Hands\nis not hoarding up that which He entrusteth to them, but expending it in\nsuch way as shall please Him and leaving the contrary, which is avarice\nor spending in sinfulness that which He hath committed to them; and what\npleaseth Him in the Feet is that they be constant in the pursuit of\ngood, such as the quest of instruction, and leave its contrary, which is\nthe walking in other than the way of Allah. Now respecting the rest of\nthe lusts which man practiseth, they proceed from the body by command of\nthe soul. But the lusts which proceed from the body are of two kinds,\nthe lust of reproduction and the lust of the belly. As for the former,\nthat which pleaseth Allah thereof is that it be not other than\nlawful[134] and He is displeased with it if contrary to His law. As for\nthe lust of the belly, eating and drinking, what pleaseth Allah thereof\nis that each take naught save that which the Almighty hath appointed him\nbe it little or mickle, and praise the Lord and thank Him: and what\nangereth Him thereof is that a man take that which is not his by right.\nAll precepts other than these are false, and thou knowest that Allah\ncreated every thing and delighteth only in Good and commandeth each\nmember of the body to do that which He hath made on it incumbent, for\nthat He is the All-wise, the All-knowing.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWas it foreknown unto\nAllah Almighty (exalted be His power!) that Adam, by eating of the tree\nfrom which He forbade him and whence befel what befel, would leave\nobedience for disobedience?\u201d\u2014\u201cYes, O sage youth. This was foreknown unto\nAllah Almighty ere He created Adam; and the proof and manifestation\nattached thereto is the warning He gave him against eating of the tree\nand His informing him that, if he ate of the fruit he would be\ndisobedient. And this was in the way of justice and equity, lest Adam\nshould have an argument wherewith he might excuse himself against his\nLord. When, therefore, he fell into error and calamity and when disgrace\nwaxed sore upon him and reproach, this passed to his posterity after\nhim; wherefore Allah sent Prophets and Apostles and gave to them Books\nand they taught us the divine commandments and expounded to us what was\ntherein of admonitions and precepts and made clear to us and manifest\nthe way of righteousness and explained to us what it behoved us to do\nand what to leave undone. Now we are endowed with Freewill and he who\nacteth within these lawful limits winneth his wish and prospereth, while\nwhoso transgresseth these legal bounds and doeth other than that which\nthese precepts enjoin, resisteth the Lord and is ruined in both Abodes.\nThis then is the road of Good and Evil. Thou knowest that Allah over all\nthings is Omnipotent and created not lusts for us but of His pleasure\nand volunty and He bade us use them in the way of lawfulness, so they\nmight be to us a good; but, when we use them in the way of sinfulness\nthey are to us an evil. Therefore what of righteous we compass is from\nAllah Almighty, and what of wrongous from ourselves[135] His creatures,\nnot from the Creator, exalted be He herefor with highmost\nexaltation!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say\nher permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixteenth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nyouth, King Jali\u2019ad\u2019s son had questioned Shimas concerning these\nsubtleties and had been duly answered, he pursued, \u201cThat which thou hast\nexpounded to me concerning Allah and His creatures I understand; but\ntell me of one matter, concerning which my mind is perplexed with\nextreme wonderment, and that is that I marvel at the sons of Adam, how\ncareless they are of the life to come and at their lack of taking\nthought thereof and their love to this world, albeit they know that they\nmust needs leave it and depart from it, whilst they are yet young in\nyears.\u201d\u2014\u201cYes, verily; and that which thou seest of its changefulness and\ntraitorousness with its children is a sign that Fortune to the fortunate\nwill not endure nor to the afflicted affliction; for none of its people\nis secure from its changefulness and even if one have power over it and\nbe content therewith, yet there is no help but that his estate change\nand removal hasten unto him. Wherefore man can put no trust therein nor\nprofit by that which he enjoyeth of its gilding and glitter[136]; and we\nknowing this will know that the sorriest of men in condition are those\nwho are deluded by this world and are unmindful of the other world; for\nthat whatso of present ease they enjoy will not even the fear and misery\nand horrors which will befal them after their removal therefrom. Thus\nare we certified that, if the creature knew that which will betide him\nwith the coming of death[137] and his severance from that which he\nenjoyeth of pleasure and delight, he would cast away the world and that\nwhich is therein; for we are certified that the next life is better for\nus and more profitable.\u201d Said the Prince, \u201cO sage, thou hast dispelled\nthe darkness that was upon my heart by the light of thy shining lamp and\nhast directed me into the right road I must tread on the track of Truth\nand hast given me a lantern whereby I may see.\u201d Then rose one of the\nlearned men who were in the presence and said, \u201cWhen cometh the season\nof Prime, needs must the hare seek the pasture as well as the elephant;\nand indeed I have heard from you twain such questions and solutions as I\nnever before heard; but now leave that and let me ask you of somewhat.\nTell me, what is the best of the goods of the world?\u201d Replied the\nPrince, \u201cHealth of body, lawful livelihood and a virtuous son.\u201d (\u00bf)\n\u201cWhat is the greater and what is the less?\u201d\u2014\u201cThe greater is that to\nwhich a lesser than itself submitteth and the less that which submitteth\nto a greater than itself.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat are the four things wherein concur\nall creatures?\u201d\u2014\u201cMen concur in meat and drink, the sweet of sleep, the\nlust of women and the agonies of death.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat are the three things\nwhose foulness none can do away?\u201d\u2014\u201cFolly, meanness of nature, and\nlying.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat is the best kind of lie,[138] though all kinds are\nfoul?\u201d\u2014\u201cThat which averteth harm from its utterer and bringeth gain.\u201d\n(\u00bf) \u201cWhat kind of truthfulness is foul, though all kinds are\nfair?\u201d\u2014\u201cThat of a man glorying in that which he hath and vaunting\nhimself thereof.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWhat is the foulest of foulnesses?\u201d\u2014\u201cWhen a man\nboasteth himself of that which he hath not.\u201d (\u00bf) \u201cWho is the most\nfoolish of men?\u201d\u2014\u201cHe who hath no thought but of what he shall put in his\nbelly.\u201d Then said Shimas, \u201cO King, verily thou art our King, but we\ndesire that thou assign the kingdom to thy son after thee, and we will\nbe thy servants and lieges.\u201d So the King exhorted the Olema and others\nwho were in the presence to remember that which they had heard and do\naccording thereto and enjoined them to obey his son\u2019s commandment, for\nthat he made him his heir-apparent,[139] so he should be the successor\nof the King his sire; and he took an oath of all the people of his\nempire, literates and braves and old men and boys, to mention none\nother, that they would not oppose him in the succession nor transgress\nagainst his commandment. Now when the Prince was seventeen years old,\nthe King sickened of a sore sickness and came nigh to die; so, being\ncertified that his decease was at hand, he said to the people of his\nhousehold, \u201cThis is disease of Death which is upon me; wherefore do ye\nsummon my son and kith and kin and gather together the Grandees and\nNotables of my empire, so not one of them may remain except he be\npresent.\u201d Accordingly they fared forth and made proclamation to those\nwho were near and published the summons to those who were afar off, and\nthey all assembled and went in to the King. Then said they to him, \u201cHow\nis it with thee, O King, and how deemest thou for thyself of these thy\ndolours?\u201d Quoth Jali\u2019ad, \u201cVerily, this my malady is mortal and the shaft\nof death hath executed that which Allah Almighty decreed against me:\nthis is the last of my days in the world here and the first of my days\nin the world hereafter.\u201d Then said he to his son, \u201cDraw near unto me.\u201d\nSo the youth drew near, weeping with weeping so sore, that he well nigh\ndrenched the bed, whilst the King\u2019s eyes welled tears and all who were\npresent wept. Quoth Jali\u2019ad, \u201cWeep not, O my son; I am not the first\nwhom this Inevitable betideth; nay, it is common to all that Allah hath\ncreated. But fear thou the Almighty and do good deeds which shall\nprecede thee to the place whither all creatures tend and wend. Obey not\nthy lusts, but occupy thy soul with lauding the Lord in thy standing up\nand thy sitting down, in thy waking and in thy sleeping. Make the Truth\nthe aim of thine eyes; this is the last of my speech with thee and\u2014The\nPeace.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventeenth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when King\nJali\u2019ad charged his son with such injunctions and made him his heir to\nsucceed him in his reign, the Prince said, \u201cO dear father mine,[140]\nthou knowest that I have ever been to thee obedient and thy commandment\ncarrying out, mindful of thine injunctions and thine approof seeking;\nfor thou hast been to me the best of fathers; how, then, after thy\ndeath, shall I depart from that which contenteth thee? And now, having\nfairly ordered my nurture thou art about to depart from me and I have no\npower to bring thee back to me; but, an I be mindful of thy charge, I\nshall be blessed therein and great good fortune shall betide me.\u201d Quoth\nthe King, and indeed he was in the last agony of departing life, \u201cDear\nmy son, cleave fast unto ten precepts, which if thou hold, Allah shall\nprofit thee herewith in this world and the next world, and they are as\nfollows. Whenas thou art wroth, curb thy wrath; when thou art afflicted,\nbe patient; when thou speakest be soothfast; when thou promisest,\nperform; when thou judgest, do justice; when thou hast power, be\nmerciful; deal generously by thy governors and lieutenants; forgive thy\nfoes; be lavish of good offices to thine adversary, and stay thy\nmischief from him. Observe also other ten precepts,[141] wherewith Allah\nshall profit thee among the people of thy realm, to wit, when thou\ndividest, be just; when thou punishest, oppress not; when thou engagest\nthyself, fulfil thine engagement; hearken to those that give thee loyal\ncounsel; when offence is offered to thee, neglect it; abstain from\ncontention; enjoin thy subjects to the observance of the divine laws and\nof praiseworthy practices; abate ignorance with a sharp sword; withhold\nthy regard from treachery and its untruth; and, lastly, do equal justice\nbetween the folk, so they may love thee, great and small, and the wicked\nand corrupt of them may fear thee.\u201d Then he addressed himself to the\nEmirs and Olema which were present when he appointed his son to be his\nsuccessor, saying, \u201cBeware ye of transgressing the commandment of your\nKing and neglecting to hearken to your chief, for therein lieth ruin for\nyour realm and sundering for your society and bane for your bodies and\nperdition for your possessions; and your foe would exult over you. Well\nye wot the covenant ye made with me, and even thus shall be your\ncovenant with this youth and the troth which plighted between you and me\nshall be also between you and him; wherefore it behoveth you to give ear\nunto and obey his commandment, for that in this is the well-being of\nyour conditions. So be ye constant with him anent that wherein ye were\nwith me and your estate shall prosper and your affairs be fair; for\nbehold, he hath the Kingship over you and is the lord of your fortune,\nand\u2014The Peace?\u201d Then the death-agony[142] seized him and his tongue was\nbridled: so he pressed his son to him and kissed him and gave thanks\nunto Allah; after which his hour came and his soul fared forth. All his\nsubjects and the people of his court mourned and keened over him and\nthey shrouded him and buried him with pomp and honour and reverence;\nafter which they returned with the Prince and clad him in the royal\nrobes and crowned him with his father\u2019s crown and put the seal-ring on\nhis finger, after seating him on the Throne of Sovranship. The young\nKing ordered himself towards them, after his father\u2019s fashion of\nmildness and justice and benevolence, for a little while till the world\nwaylaid him and entangled him in its lusts, whereupon, its pleasures\nmade him their prey and he turned to its gilding and gewgaws, forsaking\nthe engagements which his father had imposed upon him and casting off\nhis obedience to him, neglecting the affairs of his reign and treading a\nroad wherein was his own destruction. The love of women waxed stark in\nhim and came to such a pass that, whenever he heard tell of a beauty, he\nwould send for her and take her to wife; and after this wise, he\ncollected women more in number than ever had Solomon, David-son, King of\nthe children of Israel. Also he would shut himself up with a company of\nthem for a month at a time, during which he went not forth neither\nenquired of his realm or its rule nor looked into the grievances of such\nof his subjects as complained to him; and if they wrote to him, he\nreturned them no reply. Now when they saw this and witnessed his neglect\nof their affairs and lack of care for their interests and those of the\nstate, they were assured that ere long some calamity would betide them\nand this was grievous to them. So they met privily one with other and\ntook counsel together blaming their King, and one of them said to the\nrest, \u201cCome, let us go to Shimas, Chief of the Wazirs, and set forth to\nhim our case and acquaint him with that wherein we are by reason of this\nKing, so he may admonish him; else, in a little, calamity will dawn upon\nus, for the world hath dazzled the Sovran with its delights and seduced\nhim with its snares.\u201d Accordingly, they repaired to Shimas and said to\nhim, \u201cO wise man and prudent, the world hath dazed the King with its\ndelights and taken him in its toils, so that he turneth unto vanity and\nworketh for the undoing of the state. Now with the disordering of the\nstate the commons will be corrupted and our affairs will run to ruin. We\nsee him not for days and months nor cometh there forth from him any\ncommandment to us or to the Wazir or any else. We cannot refer aught of\nour need to him and he looketh not to the administration of justice nor\ntaketh thought to the condition of any of his subjects, in his disregard\nof them.[143] And behold we are come to acquaint thee with the truth of\nthings, for that thou art the chiefest and most accomplished of us and\nit behoveth not that calamity befal a land wherein thou dwellest, seeing\nthat thou art most able of any to amend this King. Wherefore go thou and\nspeak with him: haply he will hearken to thy word and return unto the\nway of Allah.\u201d[144] So Shimas arose forthright and repairing to the\npalace, foregathered with the first page he could find and said to him,\n\u201cFair my son, I beseech thee ask leave for me to go in to the King, for\nI have an affair, concerning which I would fain see his face and\nacquaint him therewith and hear what he shall answer me thereanent.\u201d\nAnswered the page, \u201cO my lord, by Allah, this month past hath he given\nnone leave to come in to him, nor have I all this time looked upon his\nface; but I will direct thee to one who shall crave admission for thee.\nDo thou lay hold of such a blackamoor slave who standeth at his head and\nbringeth him food from the kitchen. When he cometh forth to go to the\nkitchen, ask him what seemeth good to thee; for he will do for thee that\nwhich thou desirest.\u201d So the Wazir repaired to the door of the kitchen\nand sat there a little while, till up came the black and would have\nentered the kitchen; but Shimas caught hold of him and said to him,\n\u201cDear my son, I would fain stand in presence of the King and speak with\nhim of somewhat especially concerneth him; so prithee, of thy kindness,\nwhen he hath ended his undurn-meal and his temper is at its best, speak\nfor me and get me leave to approach him, so I may bespeak him of that\nwhich shall suit him.\u201d \u201cI hear and obey,\u201d answered the black and taking\nthe food carried it to the King, who ate thereof and his temper was\nsoothed thereby. Then said the black to him, \u201cShimas standeth at the\ndoor and craveth admission, so he may acquaint thee with matters that\nspecially concern thee.\u201d At this the King was alarmed and disquieted and\ncommanded to admit the Minister.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighteenth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the King\nbade the blackamoor admit Shimas, the slave went forth to him and bade\nhim enter; whereupon he went in and falling prone before Allah, kissed\nthe King\u2019s hands and blessed him. Then said the King, \u201cWhat hath betided\nthee, O Shimas, that thou seekest admission unto me?\u201d He answered, \u201cThis\nlong while have I not looked upon the face of my lord the King and\nindeed I longed sore for thee; and now, behold, I have seen thy\ncountenance and come to thee with a word which I would lief say to thee,\nO King stablished in all prosperity!\u201d Quoth the King, \u201cSay what seemeth\ngood to thee;\u201d and quoth Shimas, \u201cI would have thee bear in mind O King,\nthat Allah Almighty hath endowed thee with learning and wisdom, for all\nthe tenderness of thy years, such as He never vouchsafed unto any of the\nKings before thee, and hath fulfilled the measure of his bounties to\nthee with the Kingship; and He loveth not that thou depart from that\nwherewith He hath endowed thee unto other than it, by means of thy\ndisobedience to Him; wherefore it behoveth thee not to levy war\nagainst[145] Him with thy hoards but of His injunctions to be mindful\nand unto His commandments obedient. Indeed, I have seen thee, this while\npast, forget thy sire and his charges and reject his covenant and\nneglect his counsel and words of wisdom and renounce his justice and\ngood governance, remembering not the bounty of Allah to thee neither\nrequiting it with gratitude and thanks to Him.\u201d The King asked, \u201cHow so?\nAnd what is the manner of this?;\u201d and Shimas answered, \u201cThe manner of it\nis that thou neglectest to administer the affairs of the state and that\nwhich Allah hath committed unto thee of the interests of thy lieges and\nsurrenderest thyself to thy lower nature in that which it maketh fair to\nthee of the slight lusts of the world. Verily it is said that the\nwelfare of the state and of the Faith and of the folk is of the things\nwhich it behoveth the King to watch; wherefore it is my rede, O King,\nthat thou look fairly to the issue of thine affair, for thus wilt thou\nfind the manifest road wherein is salvation, and not accept a trifling\npleasure and a transient which leadeth to the abyss of destruction, lest\nthere befal thee that which befel the Fisherman.\u201d The King asked, \u201cWhat\nwas that?\u201d; and Shimas answered, \u201cThere hath reached me this tale of\n\n\n _THE FOOLISH FISHERMAN_.\u201d\n\nA Fisherman went forth to a river for fishing therein as was his wont;\nand when he came thither and walked upon the bridge, he saw a great fish\nand said in himself, \u201c\u2019Twill not serve me to abide here, but I will\nfollow yonder fish whitherso it goeth, till I catch it, for it will\nrelieve me from fishing for days and days.\u201d So he did off his clothes\nand plunged into the river after the fish. The current bore him along\ntill he overtook it and laid hold of it, when he turned and found\nhimself far from the bank. But albeit he saw what the stream had done\nwith him, he would not loose the fish and return, but ventured life and\ngripping it fast with both hands, let his body float with the flow,\nwhich carried him on till it cast him into a whirlpool[146] none might\nenter and come out therefrom. With this he fell to crying out and\nsaying, \u201cSave a drowning man!\u201d And there came to him folk of the keepers\nof the river and said to him, \u201cWhat ailed thee to cast thyself into this\ngreat peril?\u201d Quoth he, \u201cIt was I myself who forsook the plain way\nwherein was salvation and gave myself over to concupiscence and\nperdition.\u201d Quoth they, \u201cO fellow, why didst thou leave the way of\nsafety and cast thyself into this destruction, knowing from of old that\nnone may enter herein and be saved? What hindered thee from throwing\naway what was in thy hand and saving thyself? So hadst thou escaped with\nthy life and not fallen into this perdition, whence there is no\ndeliverance; and now not one of us can rescue thee from this thy ruin.\u201d\nAccordingly the man cut off all his hopes of life and lost that which\nwas in his hand and for which his flesh had prompted him to venture\nhimself, and died a miserable death. \u201cAnd I tell thee not this parable,\nO King,\u201d added Shimas, \u201cbut that thou mayest leave this contemptible\nconduct that diverteth thee from thy duties and look to that which is\ncommitted to thee of the rule of thy folk and the maintenance of the\norder of thy realm, so that none may see fault in thee.\u201d The King asked,\n\u201cWhat wouldst thou have me do?\u201d And Shimas answered, \u201cTo-morrow, an thou\nbe well and in good case,[147] give the folk leave to come in to thee\nand look into their affairs and excuse thyself to them and promise them\nof thine own accord good governance and prosperity.\u201d Quoth the King, \u201cO\nShimas, thou hast spoken sensibly and rightly; and to-morrow, Inshallah,\nI will do that which thou counsellest me.\u201d So the Wazir went out from\nhim and told the lieges all he had said to him; and, when morning\nmorrowed, the King came forth of his privacy and bade admit the people,\nto whom he excused himself, promising them that thenceforward he would\ndeal with them as they wished, wherewith they were content and departed\neach to his own dwelling.[148] Then one of the King\u2019s wives, who was his\nbest-beloved of them and most in honour with him, visited him and seeing\nhim changed of colour and thoughtful over his affairs, by reason of that\nwhich he had heard from his chief Wazir, said to him, \u201cO King, how is it\nthat I see thee troubled in mind? Hast thou aught to complain of?\u201d\nAnswered he, \u201cNo: but my pleasures have distracted me from my duties.\nWhat right have I to be thus negligent of my affairs and those of my\nsubjects? If I continue on this wise, soon, very soon, the kingdom will\npass out of my hand.\u201d She rejoined, \u201cI see, O King, that thou hast been\nduped by the Wazirs and Ministers, who wish but to torment and entrap\nthee, so thou mayst have no joyance of this thy kingship neither feel\nease nor taste delight; nay, they would have thee consume thy life in\nwarding off trouble from them, till thy days be wasted in travail and\nweariness and thou be as one who slayeth himself for the benefit of\nanother or like the Boy and the Thieves.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cHow was\nthat?\u201d and she answered, \u201cThey tell the following tale anent\n\n\n _THE BOY AND THE THIEVES_.\u201d\n\nSeven Thieves once went out to steal, according to their custom, and\nfell in with a Boy, poor and orphaned to boot, who besought them for\nsomewhat to eat. One of them asked him, \u201cWilt go with us, O Boy, and we\nwill feed thee and give thee drink, clothe thee and entreat thee\nkindly?\u201d And he answered, \u201cNeeds must I go with you whitherso ye will\nand ye are as my own kith and kin.\u201d So they took him and fared on with\nhim till they came to a garden, and entering, went round about therein,\ntill they found a walnut-tree laden with ripe fruit and said to him, \u201cO\nBoy, wilt thou enter this garden with us and swarm up this tree and eat\nof its walnuts thy sufficiency and throw the rest down to us?\u201d He\nconsented and entered with them,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Nineteenth Night,\n\nShe said. It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Boy\nconsented and entered with the Thieves, one of them said to other \u201cLook\nwhich is the lightest and smallest of us and make him climb the tree.\u201d\nAnd they said, \u201cNone of us is slighter than this Boy.\u201d So they sent him\nup into the tree and said to him, \u201cO Boy, touch not aught of the fruit,\nlest some one see thee and work thee a mischief.\u201d He asked, \u201cHow then\nshall I do?\u201d, and they answered, \u201cSit among the boughs and shake them\none by one with all thy might, so that which is thereon may fall, and we\nwill pick it up. Then, when thou hast made an end of shaking down the\nfruit, come down and take thy share of that which we have gathered.\u201d\nAccordingly he began to shake every branch at which he could come, so\nthat the nuts fell and the thieves picked them up and ate some and hid\nother some till all were full, save the Boy who had eaten naught. As\nthey were thus engaged, behold, up came the owner of the garden who,\nstanding to witness the spectacle, enquired of them, \u201cWhat do ye with\nthis tree?\u201d They replied \u201cWe have taken naught thereof; but we were\npassing by and seeing yonder Boy on the tree, took him for the owner\nthereof and besought him to give us to eat of the fruit. Thereat he fell\nto shaking one of the branches, so that the nuts dropped down, and we\nare not at fault.\u201d Quoth the master to the Boy, \u201cWhat sayst thou?\u201d; and\nquoth he, \u201cThese men lie; but I will tell thee the truth. It is that we\nall came hither together and they bade me climb the tree and shake its\nboughs that the nuts might fall down to them, and I obeyed their\nbidding.\u201d Said the master, \u201cThou hast cast thyself into sore calamity;\nbut hast thou profited by eating aught of the fruit?\u201d; and he said, \u201cI\nhave eaten naught thereof.\u201d Rejoined the owner of the garden, \u201cNow know\nI thy folly and thine ignorance in that thou hast wrought to ruin\nthyself and profit others.\u201d Then said he to the Thieves, \u201cI have no\nresort against you, so wend your ways!\u201d But he laid hands on the Boy and\npunished him. \u201cOn like wise,\u201d added the favourite, \u201cthy Wazirs and\nOfficers of state would sacrifice thee to their interests and do with\nthee as did the Thieves with the Boy.\u201d Answered the King, \u201cThou sayst\nsooth, and speakest truth: I will not go forth to them nor leave my\npleasures.\u201d Then he passed the night with his wife in all delight till\nthe morning, when the Grand Wazier arose and, assembling the Officers of\nstate, together with those of the lieges who were present with them,\nrepaired with them to the palace-gate, congratulating one another and\nrejoicing. But the door opened not nor did the King come forth unto them\nnor give them leave to go in to him. So, when they despaired of him,\nthey said to Shimas, \u201cO excellent Wazir and accomplished sage, seest\nthou not the behaviour of this lad, young of years and little of wit,\nhow he addeth to his offences falsehood? See how he hath broken his\npromise to us and hath not performed that for which he engaged unto us,\nand this sin it behoveth thee join unto his other sins; but we beseech\nthee go in to him yet again and discover what is the cause of his\nholding back and refusal to come forth; for we doubt not but that the\nlike of this action cometh of his corrupt nature, and indeed he is now\nhardened to the highest degree.\u201d Accordingly, Shimas went in to the King\nand bespake him, saying, \u201cPeace be with thee, O King! How cometh it that\nI see thee give thyself up to these slight pleasures and neglect the\ngreat affair whereto it behoveth thee sedulously apply thyself? Thou art\nlike unto a man who had a milch-camel and, coming one day to milk her,\nthe goodness of her milk made him neglect to hold fast her halter; which\nwhenas she felt, she haled herself free and made off into the wold. Thus\nthe man lost both milk and camel and the loss that betided him surpassed\nhis gain. Wherefore, O King, do thou look unto that wherein is thy\nwelfare and the weal of thy subjects; for, even as it behoveth not a man\nto sit for ever at the kitchen door, because of his need unto food, so\nshould he not alway company with women, by reason of his inclination to\nthem. And as a man should eat but as much food as will guard him from\nthe pains of hunger and drink but what will ward off the pangs of\nthirst, in like manner it behoveth the sensible man to content himself\nwith passing two of the four-and-twenty hours of his day with women and\nexpend the rest in ordering his own affairs and those of his people. For\nto be longer than this in company with women is hurtful both to mind and\nbody, seeing that they bid not unto good neither direct thereto:\nwherefore it besitteth not a man to accept from them or word or deed,\nfor indeed it hath reached me that many men have come to ruin through\ntheir women, and amongst others a certain man who perished through\nconversation with his wife at her command.\u201d The King asked, \u201cHow was\nthat?\u201d and Shimas answered, saying, \u201cHear, O King, the tale of\n\n\n _THE MAN AND HIS WIFE_.\u201d\n\nThey relate that a certain man had a wife whom he loved and honoured,\ngiving ear to her speech and doing according to her rede. Moreover, he\nhad a garden, which he had newly planted with his own hand, and was wont\nto go thither every day, to tend it and water it. One day his wife asked\nhim, \u201cWhat hast thou planted in thy garden?\u201d: and he answered, \u201cAll thou\nlovest and desirest, and I am assiduous in tending and watering it.\u201d\nQuoth she, \u201cWilt thou not carry me thither and show it to me, so I may\nlook upon it and offer thee up a pious prayer for its prosperity, seeing\nthat my orisons are effectual?\u201d Quoth he, \u201cI will well; but have\npatience with me till the morrow, when I will come and take thee.\u201d So\nearly on the ensuing day, he carried her to the garden which he entered\nwith her. Now two young men saw them enter from afar and said each to\nother, \u201cYonder man is an adulterer and yonder woman an adulteress, and\nthey have not entered this garden but to commit adultery.\u201d Thereupon\nthey followed the couple to see what they would do, and hid themselves\nin a corner of the garden. The man and his wife after entering abode\nawhile therein, and presently he said to her, \u201cPray me the prayer thou\ndidst promise me;\u201d but she replied, saying, \u201cI will not pray for thee,\nuntil thou do away my desire of that which women seek from men.\u201d Cried\nhe, \u201cOut on thee, O woman! Hast thou not thy fill of me in the house?\nHere I fear scandal, especially as thou divertest me from my affairs.\nFearest thou not that some one will see us?\u201d Quoth she, \u201cWe need have no\ncare for that, seeing that we do neither sin nor lewdness; and, as for\nthe watering of the garden, that may wait, because thou canst water it\nwhen thou wilt.\u201d And she would take neither excuse nor reason from him,\nbut was instant with him in seeking carnal coition. So he arose and lay\nwith her, which when the young men aforesaid saw, they ran upon them and\nseized them,[149] saying, \u201cWe will not let you go, for ye are\nadulterers, and except we have carnal knowledge of the woman, we will\nreport you to the police.\u201d Answered the man, \u201cFie upon you! This is my\nwife and I am the master of the garden.\u201d They paid no heed to him, but\nfell upon the woman, who cried out to him for succour, saying, \u201cSuffer\nthem not to defile me!\u201d Accordingly he came up to them, calling out for\nhelp; but one of them turned on him and smote him with his dagger and\nslew him.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twentieth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that after slaying\nthe husband the two young men returned to the wife and ravished her.\n\u201cThis I tell thee, O King,\u201d continued the Wazir, \u201cbut that thou mayst\nknow that it becometh not men to give ear unto a woman\u2019s talk neither\nobey her in aught nor accept her judgment in counsel. Beware, then, lest\nthou don the dress of ignorance, after the robe of knowledge and wisdom,\nand follow perverse rede, after knowing that which is righteous and\nprofitable. Wherefore pursue thou not a paltry pleasure, whose trending\nis to corruption and whose inclining is unto sore and uttermost\nperdition.\u201d When the King heard this from Shimas he said to him,\n\u201cTo-morrow I will come forth to them, an it be the will of Allah the\nMost High.\u201d So Shimas returned to the Grandees and Notables who were\npresent and told them what the King had said. But this came to the ears\nof the favourite wife; whereupon she went in to the King and said to\nhim, \u201cThe subjects of a King should be his slaves; but I see, O King,\nthou art become a slave to thy subjects, because thou standest in awe of\nthem and fearest their mischief.[150] They do but desire to make proof\nof thine inner man; and if they find thee weak, they will disdain thee;\nbut, if they find thee stout and brave, they will dread thee. On this\nwise do ill Wazirs with their King, for that their wiles are many; but I\nwill make manifest unto thee the truth of their malice. An thou comply\nwith the conditions they demand, they will cause thee cease ruling and\ndo their will; nor will they leave leading thee on from affair to\naffair, till they cast thee into destruction; and thy case will be as\nthat of the Merchant and the Robbers.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cHow was that?\u201d\nand she answered, \u201cI have heard tell this tale anent\n\n\n _THE MERCHANT AND THE ROBBERS_.\u201d\n\nThere was once a wealthy Merchant, who set out for a certain city\npurposing to sell merchandise there, and when he came thither, he hired\nhim a lodging wherein he took up his abode. Now certain Robbers saw him,\nmen wont to lie in wait for merchants, that they might rob their goods;\nso they went to his house and sought some device whereby to enter in,\nbut could find no way thereto, and their Captain said, \u201cI\u2019ll manage you\nhis matter.\u201d Then he went away and, donning the dress of a leach, threw\nover his shoulder a bag containing somewhat of medicines, after which he\nset out, crying, \u201cWho lacks a doctor?\u201d and fared on till he came to the\nmerchant\u2019s lodging and him sitting eating the noonday dinner. So he\nasked him, \u201cDost thou need thee a physician?;\u201d and the trader answered,\n\u201cI need naught of the kind; but sit thee down and eat with me.\u201d The\nthief sat down facing him and began to eat. Now this merchant was a\n_belle fourchette_; and the Robber seeing this, said to himself, \u201cI have\nfound my chance.\u201d Then he turned to his host and said to him, \u201c\u2019Tis but\nright for me to give thee an admonition; and after thy kindness to me, I\ncannot hide it from thee. I see thee to be a great eater and the cause\nof this is a disorder in thy stomach; wherefore unless thou take speedy\nmeasures for thy cure, thine affair will end in perdition.\u201d Quoth the\nmerchant, \u201cMy body is sound and my stomach speedy of digestion, and\nthough I be a hearty eater, yet is there no disease in my body, to Allah\nbe the praise and the thanks!\u201d Quoth the Robber, \u201cIt may appear thus\nunto thee; but I know thou hast a disease incubating in thy vitals and\nif thou hearken to me, thou wilt medicine thyself.\u201d The Merchant asked,\n\u201cAnd where shall I find him who knoweth my remedy?\u201d; and the Robber\nanswered \u201cAllah is the Healer; but a physician like myself cureth the\nsick to the best of his power.\u201d Then the other said, \u201cShow me at once my\nremedy and give me thereof.\u201d Hereupon he gave him a powder, wherein was\na strong dose of aloes,[151] saying, \u201cUse this to-night;\u201d and he\naccepted it gratefully. When the night came, the Merchant tasted\nsomewhat of the powder and found it nauseous of gust; nevertheless he\nmisdoubted not of it, but swallowed it all and therefrom found ease that\nnight. Next night the thief brought him another powder, wherein was yet\nmore aloes, and he took it: it purged him that night, but he bore\npatiently with this and rejected it not. When the Robber saw that he\ngave ear unto his word and put trust in him nor would gainsay him in\naught, he brought him a deadly drug[152] and gave it to him. The\nMerchant swallowed it and no sooner had he done this than that which was\nin his stomach fell down and his bowels were rent in sunder, and by the\nmorrow he was a dead man; whereupon the Robbers came and took all the\nmerchandise and monies that belonged to him. \u201cThis I tell thee, O King,\u201d\nadded the favourite \u201cbut that thou mayst not accept one word from these\ndeluders; else will there befal thee that whereby thou wilt destroy\nthyself.\u201d Cried the King, \u201cThou sayst sooth; I will not go forth to\nthem.\u201d Now when the morning morrowed, the folk assembled together and\nrepairing to the King\u2019s door, sat there the most part of the day, till\nthey despaired of his coming forth, when they returned to Shimas and\nsaid to him, \u201cO sage philosopher and experienced master, seest thou not\nthat this ignorant lad doth naught but redouble in falsehood to us?\nVerily \u2019twere only reasonable and right to take the Kingdom from him and\ngive it to another, so our affairs may be ordered and our estates\nmaintained; but go thou in to him a third time and tell him that naught\nhindereth us from rising against him and taking the Kingship from him\nbut his father\u2019s goodness to us and that which he required from us of\noaths and engagements. However, to-morrow, we will all, to the last of\nus, assemble here with our arms and break down the gate of the\ncitadel[153]; and if he come forth to us and do that which we wish, no\nharm is yet done[154]; else we will go in to him and slay him and put\nthe Kingdom in the hand of other than he.\u201d So the Wazir Shimas went in\nto him and said, \u201cO King, that grovellest in thy gusts and thy lusts,\nwhat is this thou dost with thyself? Would Heaven I wot who seduced thee\nthereto! An it be thou who sinnest against thyself, there hath ceased\nfrom thee that which we knew in thee aforetime of integrity and wisdom\nand eloquence. Could I but learn who hath thus changed thee and turned\nthee from wisdom to folly and from fidelity to iniquity and from\nmildness to harshness and from acceptation of me to aversion from me!\nHow cometh it that I admonish thee thrice and thou acceptest not mine\nadmonition and that I counsel thee rightfully and still thou gainsayest\nmy counsel? Tell me, what is this child\u2019s play and who is it prompteth\nthee thereunto? Know that the people of thy Kingdom have agreed together\nto come in to thee and slay thee and give thy Kingdom to another. Art\nable to cope with them all and save thyself from their hands or canst\nquicken thyself after being killed? If, indeed, thou be potent to do all\nthis, thou art safe and hast no occasion for my rede; but an thou have\nany concern for thy life and thy kingship, return to thy sound sense and\nhold fast thy reign and show forth to the folk the power of thy prowess\nand persuade the people with thine excuse, for they are minded to tear\naway that which is in thy hand and commit it unto other, being resolved\nupon revolt and rebellion, led thereto by that which they know of thy\nyouth and thy self-submission to love-liesse and lusts; for that stones,\nalbeit they lie long under water, an thou withdraw them therefrom and\nsmite one upon other, fire will be struck from them. Now thy lieges are\nmany folk and they have taken counsel together against thee, with a\ndesign to transfer the Kingship from thee to another and accomplish upon\nthee whatso they desire of thy destruction. So shalt thou fare as did\nthe Jackals with the Wolf.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-first Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir\nShimas concluded with saying, \u201cAnd they shall accomplish upon thee\nwhatso they desire of thy destruction: so shalt thou fare as fared the\nJackals with the Wolf.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cHow was that?\u201d and the Wazir\nanswered, \u201cThey tell the following tale of\n\n\n _THE JACKALS AND THE WOLF_.\u201d\n\nA pack of Jackals[155] went out one day to seek food, and as they\nprowled about in quest of this, behold, they happened upon a dead camel\nand said in themselves, \u201cVerily we have found wherewithal we may live a\ngreat while; but we fear lest one of us oppress the other and the strong\nbear down the weak with his strength and so the puny of us perish.\nWherefore it behoveth us seek one who shall judge between us and appoint\nunto each his part, so the force-full may not lord it over the feeble.\u201d\nAs they consulted together on such subject, suddenly up came a Wolf, and\none of the Jackals said to the others, \u201cRight is your rede; let us make\nthis Wolf judge between us, for he is the strongest of beasts and his\nfather was Sultan over us aforetime; so we hope in Allah that he will do\njustice between us.\u201d Accordingly they accosted the Wolf and acquainting\nhim with what they had resolved concerning him said, \u201cWe make thee judge\nbetween us, so thou mayst allot unto each of us his day\u2019s meat, after\nthe measure of his need, lest the strong of us bear down the weak and\nsome of us destroy other of us.\u201d The Wolf accepted the governance of\ntheir affairs and allotted to each of them what sufficed him that day;\nbut on the morrow he said in his mind, \u201cAn I divide this camel amongst\nthese weaklings, no part thereof will come to me, save the pittance they\nwill assign to me, and if I eat it alone, they can do me no harm, seeing\nthat they are a prey to me and to the people of my house. Who, then, is\nthe one to hinder me from taking it all for myself? Surely, \u2019tis Allah\nwho hath bestowed it on me by way of provision without any obligation to\nany of them. It were best that I keep it for myself, and henceforth I\nwill give them naught.\u201d Accordingly, next morning when the Jackals came\nto him, as was their wont, and sought of him their food, saying, \u201cO Abu\nSirh\u00e1n,[156] give us our day\u2019s provender,[157]\u201d he answered saying, \u201cI\nhave nothing left to give you.\u201d Whereupon they went away in the sorriest\nplight, saying, \u201cVerily, Allah hath cast us into grievous trouble with\nthis foul traitor, who regardeth not Allah nor feareth Him; but we have\nneither stratagem nor strength on our side.\u201d Moreover one of them said,\n\u201cHaply \u2019twas but stress of hunger that moved him to this; so let him eat\nhis fill to-day, and to-morrow we will go to him again.\u201d Accordingly, on\nthe morrow, they again betook themselves to the Wolf and said to him, \u201cO\nFather of Foray, we gave thee authority over us, that thou mightest\napportion unto each of us his day\u2019s meat and do the weak justice against\nthe strong of us, and that, when this provaunt is finished, thou\nshouldst do thine endeavour to get us other and so we be always under\nthy watch and ward. Now hunger is hard upon us, for that we have not\neaten these two days; so do thou give us our day\u2019s ration and thou shalt\nbe free to dispose of all that remaineth as thou wilt.\u201d But the Wolf\nreturned them no answer and redoubled in his hardness of heart and when\nthey strave to turn him from his purpose he would not be turned. Then\nsaid one of the Jackals to the rest, \u201cNothing will serve us but that we\ngo to the Lion and cast ourselves on his protection and assign unto him\nthe camel. If he vouchsafe us aught thereof, \u2019twill be of his favour,\nand if not, he is worthier of it than this scurvy rascal.\u201d So they\nbetook themselves to the Lion and acquainted him with that which had\nbetided them from the Wolf, saying, \u201cWe are thy slaves and come to thee\nimploring thy protection, so thou mayst deliver us from this Wolf, and\nwe will be thy thralls.\u201d When the Lion heard their story, he was jealous\nfor Almighty Allah[158] and went with them in quest of the Wolf who,\nseeing him approach addressed himself to flight; but the Lion ran after\nhim and seizing him, rent him in pieces and restored their prey to the\nJackals. \u201cThis showeth,\u201d added Shimas, \u201cthat it fitteth no King to\nneglect the affairs of his subjects; wherefore do thou hearken to my\nrede and give credit to the words which I say to thee.\u201d Quoth the King,\n\u201cI will hearken to thee and to-morrow, Inshallah, I will go forth to\nthem.\u201d Accordingly Shimas went from him and returning to the folk, told\nthem that the King had accepted his advice and promised to come out unto\nthem on the morrow. But, when the favourite heard this saying reported\nof Shimas and was certified that needs must the King go forth to his\nsubjects, she betook herself to him in haste and said to him, \u201cHow great\nis my wonder at thy submissiveness and thine obedience to thy slaves!\nKnowest thou not that these Wazirs are thy thralls? Why then dost thou\nexalt them to this highmost pitch of importance that they imagine them\nit was they gave thee this kingship and advanced thee to this rank and\nthat it is they who confer favours on thee, albeit they have no power to\ndo thee the least damage? Indeed, \u2019tis not thou who owest submission to\nthem; but on the contrary they owe it to thee, and it is their duty to\ncarry out thine orders. How cometh it then, that thou art so mightily\naffrighted at them? It is said:\u2014Unless thy heart be like iron, thou art\nnot fit to be a Sovran. But thy mildness hath deluded these men, so that\nthey presume upon thee and cast off their allegiance, although it\nbehoveth that they be constrained unto thy obedience and enforced to thy\nsubmission. Therefore an thou hasten to accept their words and leave\nthem as they now are and vouchsafe to them the least thing against thy\nwill, they will weigh heavily upon thee and require other concessions of\nthee, and this will become their habit. But, an thou hearken to me, thou\nwilt not advance any one of them to power neither wilt thou accept his\nword nor encourage him to presume upon thee; else wilt thou fare with\nthem as did the Shepherd with the Rogue.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cHow was\nthat?\u201d and she answered, \u201cThey relate this adventure of\n\n\n _THE SHEPHERD AND THE ROGUE_.[159]\n\nThere was once a Shepherd, who fed a flock of sheep in the wold and kept\nover them strait watch. One night, there came to him a Rogue thinking to\nsteal some of his charges and finding him assiduous in guarding them,\nsleeping not by night nor neglecting them by day, prowled about him all\nthe livelong night, but could plunder nothing from him. So, when he was\nweary of striving, he betook himself to another part of the waste and\ntrapping a lion, skinned him and stuffed his hide with bruised\nstraw[160]; after which he set it up on a high place in the desert,\nwhere the Shepherd might see it and be assured thereof. Then he accosted\nthe Shepherd and said to him, \u201cYonder lion hath sent me to demand his\nsupper of these sheep.\u201d The Shepherd asked, \u201cWhere is the lion?\u201d and the\nRogue answered, \u201cLift thine eyes: there he standeth.\u201d So the Shepherd\nraised his eyes and seeing the semblance deemed it a very lion and was\nmuch affrighted;\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to\nsay her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-second Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nShepherd saw the semblance of the lion, he deemed it a very lion and was\naffrighted with the sorest fright, trembling for dread; so he said to\nthe thief, \u201cO my brother take what thou wilt, I will not gainsay thee.\u201d\nAccordingly the Rogue took what he would of the sheep and redoubled in\ngreed by reason of the excess of the Shepherd\u2019s fear. Accordingly, every\nlittle while, he would hie to him and terrify him, saying, \u201cThe lion\nhath need of this and requireth that, and his intent is to do thus and\nthus,\u201d and take his sufficiency of the sheep; and he stinted not to do\nthus with him, till he had wasted the most part of his flock. \u201cThis, O\nKing,\u201d added the favourite, \u201cI tell thee only that thou suffer not the\nGrandees of thy realm to be deluded by thy mildness and easiness of\ntemper and presume on thee; and, in right rede, their death were better\nthan that they deal thus with thee.\u201d Quoth the King, \u201cI accept this thy\ncounsel and will not hearken to their admonition neither will I go out\nunto them.\u201d On the morrow the Wazirs and Officers of State and heads of\nthe people assembled; and, taking each with him his weapon, repaired to\nthe palace of the King, so they might break in upon him and slay him and\nseat another in his stead. When they came to the door, they required the\ndoorkeeper to open to them; but he refused, whereupon they sent to fetch\nfire, wherewith to burn down the doors and enter. The doorkeeper,\nhearing what they said went in to the King in haste and told him that\nthe folk were gathered together at the gate, adding, \u201cThey required me\nto open to them, but I refused; and they have sent to fetch fire to burn\ndown the doors withal, so they may come into thee and slay thee. What\ndost thou bid me do?\u201d Quoth the King in himself, \u201cVerily, I am fallen\ninto uttermost perdition.\u201d Then he sent for the favourite; and, as soon\nas she came, said to her, \u201cIndeed, Shimas never told me aught but I\nfound it true, and now great and small are come purposing to slay me and\nthee: and because the doorkeeper would not open to them, they have sent\nto fetch fire, to burn the doors withal: so will the house be burnt and\nwe therein. What dost thou counsel me to do?\u201d She replied, \u201cNo harm\nshall betide thee, nor let thine affair affright thee. This is a time\nwhen the simple rise against their Kings.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cWhat dost thou\ncounsel me to do and how shall I act in this affair?\u201d Quoth she, \u201cMy\nrede is that thou fillet thy head and feign thyself sick: then send for\nthe Wazir Shimas, who will come and see the plight wherein thou art; and\ndo thou say to him:\u2014Verily I purposed to go forth to the folk this day;\nbut this malady hindered me. So go thou out to them and acquaint them\nwith my condition and tell them that to-morrow I will fare forth without\nfail to them and do their need and look into their affairs, so they may\nbe reassured and their rage may subside. Then do thou summon ten of thy\nfather\u2019s slaves, stalwart men of strength and prowess, to whom thou\ncanst entrust thyself, hearing to thy best and complying with thy\ncommandment, surely keeping thy secret and lief to thy love; and charge\nthem on the morrow to stand at thy head and bid them suffer none of the\nfolk to enter, save one by one; and all who enter do thou say:\u2014Seize\nthem and do them die. An they agree with thee upon this, to-morrow set\nup thy throne in the Divan[161] and open thy doors. When the folk see\nthat thou hast opened to them their minds will be set at ease and they\nwill come to thee with a whole heart, and seek admission to thee. Then\ndo thou admit them, one after one, even as I said to thee and work with\nthem thy will; but it behoveth thee begin by slaying Shimas, their chief\nand leader; for he is the Grand Wazier and head of the matter. Therefore\ndo him die first and after put all the rest to death, one after other,\nand spare none whom thou knowest to have broken with thee his covenant;\nand in like way slaughter all whose violence thou fearest. An thou deal\nthus with them, there will be left them no power to make head against\nthee; so shalt thou be at rest from them with full repose, and shalt\nenjoy thy kingship in peace and do whatso thou wilt; and know that there\nis no device that will profit thee more than this.\u201d Quoth the King,\n\u201cVerily, this thy counsel is just and that which thou biddest me is to\nthe point and I will assuredly do as thou directest.\u201d So he called for a\nfillet and bound his head therewith and shammed sickness. Then he sent\nfor the Grand Wazir and said to him, \u201cO Shimas, thou knowest that I love\nthee and hearken to the counsel of thee and thou art to me as brother\nand father both in one; also thou knowest that I do all thou biddest me\nand indeed thou badest me go forth to the lieges and sit to judge\nbetween them. Now I was assured that this was right rede on thy part,\nand purposed to go forth to them yesterday; but this sickness assailed\nme and I cannot sit up. It hath reached me that the folk are incensed at\nmy failure to come forth to them and are minded of their mischief to do\nwith me that which is unmeet for that they know not what ailment aileth\nme. So go thou forth to them and acquaint them with my case and the\ncondition I am in; and excuse me to them, for I am obedient to their\nbidding and will do as they desire; wherefore order this affair and\nengage thyself for me herefor, even as thou hast been a loyal counsellor\nto me and to my sire before me, and it is of thy wont to make peace\nbetween the people. To-morrow, Inshallah, I will without fail come forth\nto them, and peradventure my sickness will cease from me this night, by\nthe blessing of the purest intent and the good I purpose them in my\nheart.\u201d So Shimas prostrated himself to Allah and called down blessings\non the King and kissed his hand, rejoicing at this. Then he went forth\nto the folk and told them what he had heard from the King and forbade\nthem from that which they had a mind to do, acquainting them with what\nexcused the King for his absence and informing them that he had promised\nto come forth to them on the morrow and deal with them according to\ntheir desires; whereupon they dispersed and hied them to their\nhouses.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-third Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Shimas went from\nthe presence to the ringleaders of the commons and said to them,\n\u201cTo-morrow the Sovran will come forth to you and will deal with you as\nye desire.\u201d So they hied them to their homes. On such wise fared it with\nthem; but as regards the Monarch, he summoned ten slaves of gigantic\nstature,[162] men of hard heart and prow of prowess, whom he had chosen\nfrom amongst his father\u2019s body-guards; and said to them, \u201cYe know the\nfavour, esteem and high rank ye held with my sire and all the bounties,\nbenefits and honours he bestowed on you, and I will advance you to yet\nhigher dignity with me than this. Now I will tell you the reason thereof\nand ye are under safeguard of Allah from me. But first I will ask you\nsomewhat, wherein if ye do my desire, obeying me in that which I shall\nbid you and conceal my secret from all men, ye shall have of me largesse\nand favour surpassing expectation. But above all things obedience!\u201d The\nten thralls answered him with one mouth and in sequent words, saying,\n\u201cWhatso thou biddest us, O our liege, that we will do, nor will we\ndepart in aught from thy commandment, for thou art our lord and master.\u201d\nQuoth the King, \u201cAllah allot you weal! Now will I tell you the reason\nwhy I have chosen you out for increase of honour with me. Ye know how\nliberally my father dealt with the folk of his realm and the oath he\ntook from them on behalf of me and how they promised him that they would\nnot break faith with me nor gainsay the bidding of me; and ye saw how\nthey did yesterday, whenas they gathered all together about me and would\nhave slain me. Now I am minded to do with them somewhat; and \u2019tis this,\nfor that I have considered their action of yesterday and see that naught\nwill restrain them from its like save exemplary chastisement: wherefore\nI perforce charge you privily to do to death whom I shall point out to\nyou, to the intent that I may ward off mischief and calamity from my\nrealm by slaying their leaders and Chiefs; and the manner thereof shall\nbe on this wise. To-morrow I will sit on this seat in this chamber and\ngive them admission to me one by one, coming in at one door and going\nout at another; and do ye, all ten, stand before me and be attentive to\nmy signs: and whoso entereth singly, take him and drag him into yonder\nchamber and kill him and hide his corpse.\u201d The slaves answered, \u201cWe\nhearken to thy hest and obey thy order\u201d: whereupon he gave them gifts\nand dismissed them for the night. On the morrow he summoned the thralls\nand bade set up the royal seat: then he donned his kingly robes and\ntaking the Book of law-cases[163] in his hands, posted the ten slaves\nbefore him and commanded to open the doors. So they opened the doors and\nthe herald proclaimed aloud, saying, \u201cWhoso hath authority, let him come\nto the King\u2019s carpet[164]!\u201d Whereupon up came the Wazirs and Prefects\nand Chamberlains and stood, each in his rank. Then the King bade admit\nthem, one after one, and the first to enter was Shimas, according to the\ncustom of the Grand Wazir; but no sooner had he presented himself before\nthe King, and ere he could beware, the ten slaves gat about him, and\ndragging him into the adjoining chamber, despatched him. On like wise\ndid they with the rest of the Wazirs and Olema and Notables, slaying\nthem, one after other, till they made a clean finish.[165] Then the King\ncalled the headsmen and bade them ply sword upon all who remained of the\nfolk of valour and stowre: so they fell on them and left none whom they\nknew for a man of mettle but they slew him, sparing only the proletaires\nand the refuse of the people. These they drove away and they returned\neach to his folk, whilst the King secluded himself with his pleasures\nand surrendered his soul to its lusts, working tyranny, oppression and\nviolence, till he outraced all the men of evil who had forerun him.[166]\nNow this King\u2019s dominion was a mine of gold and silver and jacinths and\njewels and the neighbouring rulers, one and all, envied him this empire\nand looked for calamity to betide him. Moreover, one of them, the King\nof Outer Hind, said in himself, \u201cI have gotten my desire of wresting the\nrealm from the hand of yonder silly lad, by reason of that which hath\nbetided of his slaughter of the Chiefs of his State and of all men of\nvalour and mettle that were in his country. This is my occasion to\nsnatch away that which is in his hand, seeing he is young in years and\nhath no knowledge of war nor judgment thereto, nor is there any left to\ncounsel him aright or succour him. Wherefore this very day will I open\non him the door of mischief by writing him a writ wherein I will flyte\nhim and reproach him with that which he hath done and see what he will\nreply.\u201d So he indited him a letter to the following effect:\u2014\u201cIn the name\nof Allah the Compassionating, the Compassionate * And after * I have\nheard tell of that which thou hast done with thy Wazirs and Olema and\nmen of valiancy * and that whereinto thou hast cast thyself of calamity\n* so that there is neither power nor strength left in thee to repel\nwhoso shall assail thee, more by token that thou transgressest and\norderest thyself tyrannously and profligately * Now Allah hath assuredly\ngiven me the conquering of thee and the mastery over thee and into my\nhand hath delivered thee; wherefore do thou give ear to my word and obey\nthe commandment of me and build me an impregnable castle amiddlemost the\nsea * An thou can not do this, depart thy realm and with thy life go\nflee * for I will send unto thee, from the farthest ends of Hind, twelve\nhordes[167] of horse, each twelve thousand fighting-men strong, who\nshall enter thy land and spoil thy goods and slay thy men and carry thy\nwomen into captivity * Moreover, I will make my Wazir, Bad\u00ed\u2019a captain\nover them and bid him lay strait siege to thy capital till the master he\nbe; * and I have bidden the bearer of this letter that he tarry with\nthee but days three * So, an thou do my demand, thou shalt be saved;\nelse will I send that which I have said unto thee.\u201d Then he sealed the\nscroll and gave it to a messenger, who journeyed with it till he came to\nthe capital of Wird Khan and delivered it to him. When the King read it,\nhis strength failed him, his breast waxed strait and he made sure of\ndestruction, having none to whom he might resort for aid or advice.\nPresently he rose and went in to his favourite wife who, seeing him\nchanged of colour, said to him, \u201cWhat mattereth thee, O King?\u201d Quoth he,\n\u201cThis day I am no King, but slave to the King.\u201d And he opened the letter\nand read it to her, whereupon she fell to weeping and wailing and\nrending her raiment. Then he asked her, \u201cHast thou aught of rede or\nresource in this grievous strait?\u201d; but she answered, \u201cWomen have no\nresource in time of war, nor have women any strength or aught of\ncounsel. \u2019Tis men alone who in like of this affair have force and\ndiscourse and resource.\u201d When the King heard her words, there befel him\nthe utmost regret and repentance and remorse for that he had\ntransgressed against his Wazirs and Officers and Lords of his land,\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-fourth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when King\nWird Khan heard the words of his favourite wife there befel him the\nutmost regret and repentance for having transgressed against and slain\nhis Wazirs and the chiefs of his state, and he would that he had died\nere there came to him the like of these shameful tidings. Then he said\nto his women, \u201cVerily, there hath betided me from you that which befel\nthe Francolin and the Tortoises.\u201d Asked they, \u201cWhat was that?\u201d, and he\nanswered, \u201cMen tell this tale of\n\n\n _THE FRANCOLIN AND THE TORTOISES_.\u201d\n\nIt is said that sundry Tortoises dwelt once in a certain island\nabounding in trees and fruiterers and rills, and it fortuned, one day,\nthat a Francolin, passing over the island, was overcome with the fiery\nheat and fatigue and being in grievous suffering stayed his flight\ntherein. Presently, looking about for a cool place, he espied the resort\nof the Tortoises and alighted down near their home. Now they were then\nabroad foraging for food, and when they returned from their\nfeeding-places to their dwelling, they found the Francolin there. His\nbeauty pleased them and Allah made him lovely in their eyes, so that\nthey exclaimed \u201cSubh\u00e1na \u2019ll\u00e1h,\u201d extolling their Creator and loved the\nFrancolin with exceeding love and rejoiced in him, saying one to other,\n\u201cForsure this is of the goodliest of the birds;\u201d and all began to caress\nhim and entreat him with kindness. When he saw that they looked on him\nwith eyes of affection, he inclined to them and companioned with them\nand took up his abode with them, flying away in the morning whither he\nwould and returning at eventide to pass the night by side of them. On\nthis wise he continued a long while until the Tortoises, seeing that his\ndaily absence from them desolated them and finding that they never saw\nhim save by night (for at dawn he still took flight in haste and they\nknew not what came of him, for all that their love grew to him), said\neach to other, \u201cIndeed, we love this Francolin and he is become our true\nfriend and we cannot bear parting from him, so how shall we devise some\ndevice tending to make him abide with us always? For he flieth away at\ndawn and is absent from us all day and we see him not save by night.\u201d\nQuoth one of them, \u201cBe easy, O my sisters: I will bring him not to leave\nus for the turn of an eye.\u201d and quoth the rest, saying, \u201cAn thou do\nthis, we will all be thy thralls.\u201d So, when the Francolin came back from\nhis feeding-place and sat down amongst them, that wily Tortoise drew\nnear unto him and called down blessings on him, giving him joy of his\nsafe return and saying, \u201cO my lord, know that Allah hath vouchsafed thee\nour love and hath in like manner set in thy heart the love of us,\nwhereby thou art become to us a familiar friend and a comrade in this\ndesert. Now the goodliest of times for those who love one another is\nwhen they are united and the sorest of calamities for them are absence\nand severance. But thou departest from us at peep of day and returnest\nnot to us till sundown, wherefore there betideth us extreme desolation.\nIndeed this is exceeding grievous to us and we abide in sore longing for\nsuch reason.\u201d The Francolin replied, \u201cIndeed, I love you also and yearn\nfor you yet more than you can yearn for me, nor is it easy for me to\nleave you; but my hand hath no help for this, seeing that I am a fowl\nwith wings and may not wone with you always, because that is not of my\nnature. For a bird, being a winged creature, may not remain still, save\nit be for the sake of sleep o\u2019 nights; but, as soon as it is day, he\nflieth away and seeketh his morning-meal in what place soever pleaseth\nhim.\u201d Answered the Tortoise, \u201cSooth thou speakest! Nevertheless he who\nhath wings hath no repose at most seasons, for that the good he getteth\nis not a fourth part of what ill betideth him, and the highmost aims of\nthe creature are repose and ease of life. Now Allah hath bred between us\nand thee love and fellowship and we fear for thee, lest some of thine\nenemies catch thee and thou perish and we be denied the sight of thy\ncountenance.\u201d Rejoined the Francolin, \u201cTrue! But what rede hast thou or\nresource for my case?\u201d Quoth the Tortoise, \u201cMy advice is that thou pluck\nout thy wing-feathers, wherewith thou speedest thy flight, and tarry\nwith us in tranquillity, eating of our meat and drinking of our drink in\nthis pasturage, that aboundeth in trees rife with fruits yellow-ripe and\nwe will sojourn, we and thou, in this fruitful stead and enjoy the\ncompany of one another.\u201d The Francolin inclined to her speech, seeking\nease for himself, and plucked out his wing-feathers, one by one, in\naccordance with the rede approved of by the Tortoise; then he took up\nhis abode with them and contented himself with the little ease and\ntransient pleasure he enjoyed. Presently up came a Weasel[168] and\nglancing at the Francolin, saw that his wings were plucked, so that he\ncould not fly, whereat he rejoiced with joy exceeding and said to\nhimself, \u201cVerily yonder Francolin is fat of flesh and scant of feather.\u201d\nSo he went up to him and seized him, whereupon the Francolin called out\nto the Tortoises for help; but when they saw the Weasel hend him, they\ndrew apart from him and huddled together, choked with weeping for him,\nfor they witnessed how the beast tortured him. Quoth the Francolin, \u201cIs\nthere aught with you but weeping?\u201d; and quoth they, \u201cO our brother, we\nhave neither force nor resource nor any course against a Weasel.\u201d At\nthis the Francolin was grieved and cutting off all his hopes of life\nsaid to them, \u201cThe fault is not yours, but mine own fault, in that I\nhearkened to you and plucked out my wing-feathers wherewith I used to\nfly. Indeed I deserve destruction for having obeyed you, and I blame you\nnot in aught.\u201d \u201cOn like wise,\u201d continued the King, \u201cI do not blame you,\nO women; but I blame and reproach myself for that I remembered not that\nye were the cause of the transgression of our father Adam, by reason\nwhereof he was cast out from the Garden of Eden and for that I forgot ye\nare the root of all evil and hearkened to you, in mine ignorance, lack\nof sense and weakness of judgment, and slew my Wazirs and the Governors\nof my State, who were my loyal advisers in all mine actions and my glory\nand my strength against whatsoever troubled me. But at this time find I\nnot one to replace them nor see I any who shall stand me in their stead;\nand I fall into utter perdition.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-fifth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the King blamed\nhimself saying, \u201c\u2019Twas I that hearkened to you in mine ignorance and\nslew my Wazirs so that now I find none to stand in their stead; and\nunless Allah succour me with one of sound judgment, who shall guide me\nto that wherein is my deliverance, I am fallen into utter perdition.\u201d\nThen he arose and withdrew into his bedchamber, bemoaning his Wazirs and\nwise men and saying, \u201cWould Heaven those lions were with me at this\ntime, though but for an hour; so I might excuse myself unto them and\nlook on them and bemoan to them my case and the travail that hath\nbetided me after them!\u201d And he abode all his day sunken in the sea of\ncark and care neither eating nor drinking. But as soon as the night fell\ndark, he arose and changing his raiment, donned old clothes and\ndisguised himself and went forth at a venture to walk about the city, so\nhaply he might hear from any some word of comfort. As he wandered about\nthe main streets, behold, he chanced upon two boys who had sought a\nretired seat by a wall and he observed that they were equal in age, or\nabout twelve years old. As they talked together he drew near them\nwhereas he might hear and apprehend what they said, unseen of them, and\nheard one say to the other, \u201cListen, O my brother, to what my sire told\nme yesternight of the calamity which hath betided him in the withering\nof his crops before their time, by reason of the rarity of rain and the\nsore sorrow that is fallen on this city.\u201d Quoth the other, \u201cWottest thou\nnot the cause of this affliction?\u201d; and quoth the first, \u201cNo! and, if\nthou ken it, pray tell it me.\u201d Rejoined the other, \u201cYes, I wot it and\nwill tell it thee. Know that I have heard from one of my father\u2019s\nfriends that our King slew his Wazirs and Grandees, not for aught of\noffence done of them, but only by reason of his love for women and\ninclination to them; for that his Ministers forbade him from this, but\nhe would not be forbidden and commanded to do them die in obedience to\nhis wives. Thus he slew Shimas my sire, who was his Wazir and the Wazir\nof his father before him and the chief of his council; but right soon\nthou shalt see how Allah will do with him by reason of his sins against\nthem and how He shall avenge them of him.\u201d The other boy asked, \u201cWhat\ncan Allah do now that they are dead?\u201d; and his fellow answered, \u201cKnow\nthat the King of Outer Hind[169] maketh light of our monarch, and hath\nsent him a letter berating him and saying to him:\u2014Build me a castle\namiddlemost the sea, or I will send unto thee Badi\u2019a my Wazir, with\ntwelve hordes of horse, each twelve thousand strong, to seize upon thy\nkingdom and slay thy men and carry thee and thy women into captivity.\nAnd he hath given him three days\u2019 time to answer after the receipt of\nthat missive. Now thou must know, O my brother, that this King of Outer\nHind is a masterful tyrant, a man of might and prowess in fight, and in\nhis realm are much people; so unless our King make shift to fend him off\nfrom himself, he will fall into perdition, whilst the King of Hind,\nafter slaying our Sovran, will seize on our possessions and massacre our\nmen and make prize of our women.\u201d When the King heard this their talk,\nhis agitation increased and he inclined to the boys, saying, \u201cSurely,\nthis boy is a wizard, in that he is acquainted with this thing without\nlearning it from me; for the letter is in my keeping and the secret also\nand none hath knowledge of such matter but myself. How then knoweth this\nboy of it? I will resort to him and talk with him and I pray Allah that\nour deliverance may be at his hand.\u201d Hereupon the King approached the\nboy softly and said to him, \u201cO thou dear boy, what is this thou sayest\nof our King, that he did ill of the evilest in slaying his Wazirs and\nthe Chiefs of his State? Indeed he sinned against himself and his\nsubjects and thou art right in that which thou sayest. But tell me, O my\nson, whence knowest thou that the King of Outer Hind hath written him a\nletter, berating him and bespeaking him with the grievous speech whereof\nthou tellest?\u201d The boy replied, \u201cO brother, I know this from the\nsand[170] wherewith I take compt of night and day and from the saying of\nthe ancients:\u2014No mystery from Allah is hidden; for the sons of Adam have\nin them a spiritual virtue which discovereth to them the darkest\nsecrets.\u201d Answered Wird Khan, \u201cTrue, O my son, but whence learnedest\nthou geomancy and thou young of years?\u201d Quoth the boy, \u201cMy father taught\nit me;\u201d and quoth the King, \u201cIs thy father alive or dead?\u201d \u201cHe is dead,\u201d\nreplied the boy. Then Wird Khan asked, \u201cIs there any resource or device\nfor our King, whereby to ward off from himself and his kingdom this sore\ncalamity?\u201d And the boy answered, saying, \u201cIt befitteth not that I speak\nwith thee of this; but, an the King send for me and ask me how he shall\ndo to baffle his foe and get free of his snares, I will acquaint him\nwith that wherein, by the power of Allah Almighty, shall be his\nsalvation.\u201d Rejoined Wird Khan, \u201cBut who shall tell the King of this\nthat he may send for thee and invite thee to him?\u201d The boy retorted, \u201cI\nhear that he seeketh men of experience and good counsel, so I will go up\nwith them to him and tell him that wherein shall be his welfare and the\nwarding off of this affliction from him; but, an he neglect the pressing\nmatter and busy himself with his love-liesse among his women and I go to\nhim of my own accord designing to acquaint him with the means of\ndeliverance, he will assuredly give orders to slay me, even as he slew\nthose his Wazirs, and my courtesy to him will be the cause of my\ndestruction. Wherefore the folk will think slightly of me and belittle\nmy wit and I shall be of those of whom it is said:\u2014He whose science\nexcelleth his sense perisheth by his ignorance.\u201d When the King heard the\nboy\u2019s words, he was assured of his sagacity; and the excellence of his\nmerit was manifest and he was certified that deliverance would betide\nhim and his subjects at the boy\u2019s hands. So presently he resumed the\ncolloquy and asked him, \u201cWhence art thou and where is thy home?\u201d; and\nthe boy answered, \u201cThis is the wall of our house.\u201d The King took note of\nthe place and farewelling the boy, returned to his palace in high\nspirits. There he changed his clothes and called for meat and wine,\nforbidding his women from him; and he ate and drank and returned thanks\nto Allah the Most High and besought Him of succour and deliverance; and\nhe craved His pardon and forgiveness for that which he had done with his\nWazirs and Olema and turned to Him with sincere repentance, imposing on\nhimself many a prayer and long fasting, by way of discipline-vow. On the\nmorrow, he called one of his confidential eunuchs and describing to him\nthe boy\u2019s home, bade him repair thither and bring him to his presence\nwith all gentleness. Accordingly the slave sought out the boy and said\nto him, \u201cThe King summoneth thee, that good may betide thee from him and\nthat he may ask thee a question; then shalt thou return safe and sound\nto thy dwelling.\u201d Asked the boy, \u201cWhat is the King\u2019s need of me that he\nbiddeth me to him on this wise?\u201d; and the eunuch answered, \u201cMy lord\u2019s\noccasion with thee is question and answer.\u201d \u201cA thousand times hearkening\nand a thousand times obeying the commandment of the King!\u201d replied the\nboy and accompanied the slave to the palace. When he came into the\npresence, he prostrated himself before Allah and after salaaming, called\ndown blessings on the King who returned his salutation and bade him be\nseated.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-sixth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the boy\nappeared before the King and saluted him with the salam, Wird Khan\nreturned his salutation and bade him be seated. So he sat down and the\nKing asked him, \u201cKnowest thou who talked with thee yesternight?\u201d\nAnswered the boy, \u201cYes;\u201d and the King said, \u201cAnd where is he?\u201d \u201c\u2019Tis he\nwho speaketh with me at this present,\u201d said the boy. Rejoined the King,\n\u201cThou sayst sooth, O friend,\u201d and bade set him a chair beside his own,\nwhereon he made him sit and called for meat and drink. Then they talked\nawhile and the King said, \u201cHo thou the Wazir,[171] in our talk\nyesternight thou toldest me that thou hadst a device whereby thou\ncouldst defend us from the malice of the King of Hind. What is this\ncontrivance and how shall we man\u0153uvre to ward off his mischief from us?\nTell me, that I may make thee chief of those who speak with me in the\nrealm and choose thee to be my Grand Wazir and do according to thy\njudgment in all thou counsellest me and assign thee a splendid\nhonorarium.\u201d Answered the boy, \u201cO King, keep thy honorarium to thyself\nand seek counsel and policy of thy women, who directed thee to slay my\nfather Shimas and the rest of the Wazirs.\u201d When the King heard this, he\nwas ashamed and sighed and said, \u201cO thou dear boy, was Shimas indeed thy\nsire?\u201d The boy replied, \u201cShimas was indeed my sire, and I am in truth\nhis son.\u201d Whereupon the King bowed his head, whilst the tears ran from\nhis eyes, and he craved pardon of Allah. Then said he, \u201cO boy, indeed I\ndid this of my ignorance and by the evil counsel of the women; for\n\u2018Great indeed is their malice\u2019[172]: but I beseech thee to forgive me\nand I will set thee in thy father\u2019s stead and make thy rank higher than\nhis rank. Moreover, an thou do away from us this retribution sent down\nfrom Heaven, I will deck thy neck with a collar of gold and mount thee\non the goodliest of steeds and bid the crier make proclamation before\nthee, saying:\u2014This is the lief[173] boy, the Wazir who sitteth in the\nsecond seat after the King! And touching what thou sayest of the women,\nI have it in mind to do vengeance on them at such time as Almighty Allah\nshall will it. But tell me now what thou hast with thee of counsel and\ncontrivance, that my heart may be content.\u201d Quoth the boy, \u201cSwear to me\nan oath that thou wilt not gainsay me in whatso I shall say to thee and\nthat I from that which I fear shall be safe;\u201d and quoth the King, \u201cThis\nis the covenant of Allah between me and thee, that I will not go from\nthy word and that thou shalt be my chief counsellor and whatsoever thou\nbiddest me, that will I do; and the Almighty Lord is witness betwixt us\ntwain whatso I say.\u201d Therewith the boy\u2019s breast waxed broad and the\nfield of speech was opened to him wide and he said, \u201cO King, my rede to\nthee is that thou await the expiration of the delay appointed to thee\nfor answering the courier of the King of Hind; and when he cometh before\nthee seeking the reply, do thou put him off to another day. With this he\nwill excuse himself to thee, on the ground of his master having\nappointed him certain fixed days, and importune for an answer; but do\nthou rebut him and defer him to another day, without specifying what day\nit be. Then will he go forth from thee angered and betake himself into\nthe midst of the city and speak openly among the folk, saying:\u2014O people\nof the city, I am a courier of the King of Outer Hind, who is a monarch\nof great puissance and of determination such as softeneth iron. He sent\nme with a letter to the King of this city appointing to me certain days,\nsaying:\u2014An thou be not with me by the time appointed, my vengeance shall\nfall on thee. Now, behold, I went in to the King of this city and gave\nhim the missive, which when he had read, he sought of me a delay of\nthree days, after which he would return me an answer to the letter and I\nagreed to this of courtesy and consideration for him. When the three\ndays were past, I went to seek the reply of him, but he delayed me to\nanother day; and now I have no patience to wait longer; so I am about to\nreturn to my lord, the King of Outer Hind, and acquaint him with that\nwhich hath befallen me; and ye, O folk, are witnesses between me and\nhim. All this will be reported to thee and do thou send for him and\nspeak him gently and say to him:\u2014O thou who seekest thine own ruin, what\nhath moved thee to blame us among our subjects? Verily, thou deservest\npresent death at our hands; but the ancients say:\u2014Clemency is of the\nattributes of nobility. Know that our delay in answering arose not from\nhelplessness on our part, but from our much business and lack of leisure\nto look into thine affair and write a reply to thy King.\u201d Then call for\nthe scroll and read it again and laugh loud and long and say to the\ncourier:\u2014Hast thou a letter other than this? If so, we will write thee\nan answer to that also. He will say, I have none other than this letter;\nbut do thou repeat thy question to him a second time and a third time,\nand he will reply, I have none other at all. Then say to him, Verily,\nthis thy King is utterly witless in that he writeth us the like of this\nwrit seeking to arouse our wrath against him, so that we shall go forth\nto him with our forces and domineer over his dominions and capture his\nkingdom. But we will not punish him this time for his unmannerly manners\nas shown in this letter, because he is wanting in wit and feeble of\nforesight, and it beseemeth our dignity that we first warn him not to\nrepeat the like of these childish extravagances; and if he risk his life\nby returning to the like of this, he will deserve speedy destruction.\nIndeed, methinks this King of thine who sent thee on such errand must be\nan ignorant fool, taking no thought to the issue of things and having no\nWazir of sense and good counsel, with whom he may advise. Were he a man\nof mind, he had taken counsel with a Wazir, ere sending us the like of\nthis laughable letter. But he shall have a reply similar to his script\nand surpassing it; for I will give it to one of the boys of the school\nto answer. Then send for me; and, when I come to the presence, bid me\nread the letter and reply thereto.\u201d When the King heard the boy\u2019s\nspeech, his breast broadened and he approved his proposal and his device\ndelighted him. So he conferred gifts upon him and installing him in his\nfather\u2019s office, sent him away rejoicing. And as soon as expired the\nthree days of delay which he had appointed, the courier presented\nhimself and going in to the King, demanded the answer; but he put him\noff to another day; whereupon he went to the end of the carpet-room[174]\nand spake with unseemly speech, even as the boy had foresaid. Then he\nbetook himself to the bazar and cried, \u201cHo, people of this city, I am a\ncourier of the King of Outer Hind and came with a message to your\nmonarch who still putteth me off from a reply. Now the term is past\nwhich my master limited to me and your King hath no excuse, and ye are\nwitnesses unto this.\u201d When these words reached the King, he sent for\nthat courier and said to him, \u201cO thou that seeketh thine own ruin, art\nthou not the bearer of a letter from King to King, between whom are\nsecrets, and how cometh it that thou goest forth among the folk and\npublishest Kings\u2019 secrets to the vulgar? Verily, thou meritest\nretribution from us, but this we will forbare, for the sake of returning\nan answer by thee to this fool of a King of thine: and it befitteth not\nthat any return to him reply but the least of the boys of the school.\u201d\nThen he sent for the Wazir\u2019s son, who came and prostrating himself\nbefore Allah, offered up prayers for the King\u2019s lasting glory and long\nlife; whereupon Wird Khan threw him the letter, saying, \u201cRead that\nletter and write me an acknowledgment thereof in haste.\u201d The boy took\nthe letter and read it, smiled; then he laughed; then he laughed aloud\nand asked the King, \u201cDidst thou send for me to answer this letter?\u201d\n\u201cYes,\u201d answered Wird Khan, and the boy said, \u201cO King, methought thou\nhadst sent for me on some grave occasion; indeed, a lesser than I had\nanswered this letter but \u2019tis thine to command, O puissant potentate.\u201d\nQuoth the King, \u201cWrite the reply forthright, on account of the courier,\nfor that he is appointed a term and we have delayed him another day.\u201d\nQuoth the boy, \u201cWith the readiest hearkening and obedience,\u201d and pulling\nout paper and inkcase[175] wrote as follows:\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived\nthe dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-seventh Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the boy took\nthe letter and read it, he forthright pulled out inkcase and paper and\nwrote as follows:\u2014\u201cIn the name of Allah the Compassionating, the\nCompassionate! Peace be upon him who hath gotten pardon and deliverance\nand the mercy of the Merciful! But after. O thou who pretendest thyself\na mighty King and art but a King in word and not in deed, we give thee\nto know that thy letter hath reached us and we have read it and have\ntaken note of that which is therein of absurdities and peregrine\nextravagances, whereby we are certified of thine ignorance and ill-will\nto us. Verily, thou hast put out thy hand to that whereunto thou canst\nnever reach; and, but that we have compassion on Allah\u2019s creatures and\nthe lieges, we had not held back from thee. As for thy messenger, he\nwent forth to the market-streets and published the news of thy letter to\ngreat and small, whereby he merited retaliation from us; but we spared\nhim and remitted his offence, of pity for him, seeing that he is\nexcusable with thee and not for aught of respect to thyself. As for that\nwhereof thou makest mention in thy letter of the slaying of my Wazirs\nand Olema and Grandees, this is the truth and this I did for a reason\nthat arose with me, and I slew not one man of learning but there are\nwith me a thousand of his kind, wiser than he and cleverer and wittier;\nnor is there with me a child but is filled with knowledge, and I have,\nin the stead of each of the slain, of those who surpass in his kind,\nwhat is beyond count. Each man of my troops also can cope with an horde\nof thine, whilst, as for monies I have a manufactory that maketh every\nday a thousand pounds of silver, besides gold, and precious stones are\nwith me as pebbles; and as for the people of my possessions I cannot set\nforth to thee their goodliness and abundance of means. How darest thou,\ntherefore, presume upon us and say to us, Build me a castle amiddlemost\nthe main? Verily, this is a marvellous thing, and doubtless it ariseth\nfrom the slightness of thy wit; for hadst thou aught of sense, thou\nhadst enquired of the beatings of the billows and the waftings of the\nwinds. But wall it off from the waves and the surges of the sea and\nstill the winds, and we will build thee the castle. Now as for thy\npretension that thou wilt vanquish me, Allah forfend that such thing\nshould befal and the like of thee should lord it over us and conquer our\nrealm! Nay, the Almighty hath given me the victory over thee, for that\nthou hast transgressed against me and rebelled without due cause. Know,\ntherefore, that thou hast merited retribution from the Lord and from me;\nbut I fear Allah in respect of thee and thy subjects[176] and will not\ntake horse against thee except after warning. Wherefore, an thou also\nfear Allah, hasten to send me this year\u2019s tribute; else will I not turn\nfrom my design to ride forth against thee with a thousand thousand[177]\nand an hundred thousand fighting-men, all furious giants on elephants,\nand I will range them round about my Wazir and bid him besiege thee\nthree years, in lieu of the three days\u2019 delay thou appointedst to thy\nmessenger, and I will make myself master of thy dominion, except that I\nwill slay none save thyself alone and take captive therefrom none but\nthy Harim.\u201d Then the boy drew his own portrait in the margin of the\nletter and wrote thereunder the words: \u201cThis answer was written by the\nleast of the boys of the school.\u201d After this he sealed it and handed it\nto the King, who gave it to the courier, and the man, after taking it\nand kissing the King\u2019s hands went forth from him thanking Allah and the\nSovran for his royal clemency to him and marvelling at the boy\u2019s\nintelligence. He arrived at the court of the King, his master, on the\nthird day after the expiration of the term appointed to him, and found\nthat he had called a meeting of his council, by reason of the failure of\nthe courier to return at the time appointed. So he went in to the King\nand prostrating himself before him, gave him the letter. The King took\nit and questioned him of the cause of his tarrying and how it was with\nKing Wird Khan. So he told him all he had seen with his own eyes and\nheard with his own ears; whereat the King\u2019s wit was confounded and he\nsaid, \u201cOut on thee! What tale is this thou tellest me of the like of\nthis King?\u201d Answered the courier, \u201cO mighty monarch, here am I in thy\npresence,[178] but open the letter and read it, and the truth of my\nspeech will be manifest to thee.\u201d So the King opened the letter and read\nit and seeing the semblance of the boy who had written it, made sure of\nthe loss of his kingdom and was perplexed anent the end of his affair.\nThen, turning to his Wazirs and Grandees, he acquainted them with what\nhad occurred and read to them the letter, whereat they were affrighted\nwith the sorest affright and sought to sooth the King\u2019s terror with\nwords that were only from the tongue, whilst their hearts were torn\npiecemeal with palpitations of alarm. But Badi\u2019a (the Chief Wazir)\npresently said, \u201cKnow, O King, that there is no profit in that which my\nbrother Wazirs have proffered, and it is my rede that thou write this\nKing a writ and excuse thyself to him therein, saying:\u2014I love thee and\nloved thy father before thee and sent thee not this letter by the\ncourier except only to prove thee and try thy constancy and see what was\nin thee of valiancy and thy proficiency in matters of practick and\ntheorick and skill in enigmas and that wherewith thou art endowed of all\nperfections. So we pray Almighty Allah to bless thee in thy kingdom and\nstrengthen the defences of thy capital and add to thy dominion, since\nthou art mindful of thyself and managest to accomplish every need of thy\nsubjects. And send it to him by another courier.\u201d Exclaimed the King,\n\u201cBy Allah of All-might! \u2019tis a marvel of marvels that this man should be\na mighty King and ready for war, after his slaughter of all the wise men\nof his kingdom and his counsellors and the captains of his host and that\nhis realm should be populous and prosper after this and there should\nissue therefrom this prodigious power! But the marvelousest of all is\nthat the little ones of its schools should return the like of this\nanswer for its King. Verily, of the vileness of my greed I have kindled\nthis fire upon myself and lieges, and I know not how I shall quench it,\nsave by taking the advice of this my Wazir.\u201d Accordingly he gat ready a\ncostly present, with eunuchs and slaves manifold, and wrote the\nfollowing reply:\u2014\u201cIn the name of Allah the Compassionating, the\nCompassionate! To proceed: O Glorious King Wird Khan, son of my dear\nbrother, Jali\u2019ad, may the Lord have mercy on thee and continue thee!\nThine answer to our letter hath reached us and we have read it and\napprehended its contents and see therein that which gladdeneth us and\nthis is the utmost of that which we sought of Allah for thee; so we\nbeseech Him to exalt thy dignity and stablish the pillars of thy state\nand give thee the victory over thy foes and those who purpose thee\nfrowardness. Know, O King, that thy father was my brother and that there\nwere between us in his lifetime pacts and covenants, and never saw he\nfrom me aught save weal, nor ever saw I from him other than good; and\nwhen he deceased and thou tookest seat upon the throne of his kingship,\nthere betided us the utmost joy and gladness; but, when the news reached\nus of that which thou didst with thy Wazirs and the Notables of thy\nState, we feared lest the report of thee should come to the ears of some\nKing other than ourselves and he should presume against thee, for that\nwe deemed thee negligent of thine affairs and of the maintenance of thy\ndefences and neglectful of the interests of thy kingdom; so we let write\nunto thee what should arouse thy spirit. But, when we saw that thou\nreturnedest us the like of this reply, our heart was set at ease for\nthee, may Allah give thee enjoyment[179] of thy kingdom and stablish\nthee in thy dignity! And so peace be with thee.\u201d Then he despatched the\nletter and the presents to Wird Khan with an escort of an hundred\nhorse,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-eighth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the monarch\nof Outer Hind, after making ready his presents, despatched them to King\nWird Khan, with an escort of an hundred horse, who fared on till they\ncame to his court and saluting him, presented letter and gifts. The King\nread the writ and lodged the leader of the escort in a befitting place,\nentreating him with honour and accepting the presents he presented. So\nthe news of this was bruited abroad among the folk and the King rejoiced\ntherein with joy exceeding. Then he sent for the boy, the son of Shimas,\nand the Captain of the hundred horse; and, entreating the young Wazir\nwith honour, gave him the letter to read; whilst he himself blamed the\nKing\u2019s conduct to the Captain who kissed his hands and made his excuses\nto him, offering up prayers for the continuance of his life and the\npermanence of his prosperity. The King thanked him for this and bestowed\nupon him honours and largesse and gave to all his men what befitted them\nand made ready presents to send by them and bade the boy Wazir indite an\nanswer to their King\u2019s letter. So the boy wrote a reply, wherein, after\nan address[180] beautiful exceedingly, he touched briefly on the\nquestion of reconciliation and praised the good breeding of the envoy\nand of his mounted men, and showed it, when duly finished, to the King\nwho said to him, \u201cRead it, O thou dear boy, that we may know what is\nwritten[181] therein.\u201d So the boy read the letter in the presence of the\nhundred horse, and the King and all present marvelled at its ordinance\nof style and sense. Then the King sealed the letter and delivering it to\nthe Captain of the hundred horse, dismissed him with some of his own\ntroops, to escort him as far as the frontier of his country. The Captain\nreturned, confounded in mind at that which he had seen of the boy\u2019s\nknowledge and thanking Allah for the speedy accomplishment of his errand\nand the acceptance of peace, to the King of Outer Hind. Then going in to\nthe presence, he delivered the presents and handed to him the letter,\ntelling him what he had seen and heard, whereat the King rejoiced with\njoy exceeding and rendered lauds to his Lord the Most High and honoured\nthe Captain commending his care and zeal and advancing him in rank. And\nfrom that hour he woned in peace and tranquillity and all happiness. As\nfor King Wird Khan, he returned to the paths of righteousness,\nabandoning his evil ways and repenting to Allah with sincere penitence;\nand he gave up womanising altogether and applied himself wholly to the\nordering of the affairs of his realm and the governance of his people in\nthe fear of Allah. Furthermore, he made the son of Shimas Wazir in his\nfather\u2019s stead, and the chief after himself in his realm and keeper of\nhis secrets and bade decorate his capital for seven days and likewise\nthe other cities of his kingdom. At this the subjects rejoiced and fear\nand alarm ceased from them and they were glad in the prospect of justice\nand equity and instant in prayer for the King and for the Minister who\nfrom him and them had done away this trouble. Then said the King to the\nWazir, \u201cWhat is thy rede for the assuring of the state and the\nprospering of the people and the return of the realm to its aforetime\nstate as regards Captains and Councillors?\u201d Answered the boy, \u201cO King of\nhigh estate, in my judgment it behoveth before all, that thou begin by\nrending out from thy heart the root of wickedness and leave thy\ndebauchery and tyranny and addiction to women; for, an thou return to\nthe root of transgression, the second backsliding will be worse than the\nfirst.\u201d The King asked, \u201cAnd what is the root of sinfulness that it\nbehoveth me to root out from my heart?\u201d; and was answered by the Wazir,\nlittle of years but great of wit, \u201cO King the root of wickedness is\nsubjection to the desire of women and inclining to them and following\ntheir counsel and contrivance; for the love of them changeth the\nsoundest wit and corrupteth the most upright nature, and manifest proofs\nbear witness to my saying, wherein an thou meditate them and follow\ntheir actions and consequences with eyes intent, thou wilt find a loyal\ncounsellor against thy own soul and wilt stand in no need whatever of my\nrede. Look, then, thou occupy not thy heart with the thought of\nwomankind and do away the trace of them from thy mind, for that Allah\nthe Most High hath forbidden excessive use of them by the mouth of His\nprophet Moses, so that quoth a certain wise King to his son:\u2014O my son,\nwhen thou succeedest to the kingdom after me, frequent not women\novermuch, lest thy heart be led astray and thy judgment be corrupted;\nfor that overmuch commerce with them leadeth to love of them, and love\nof them to corruption of judgment. And the proof of this is what befel\nour Lord Solomon, son of David, (peace be upon the twain of them!) whom\nAllah specially endowed with knowledge and wisdom and supreme dominion,\nnor vouchsafed He to any one of the Kings his predecessors the like of\nthat which He gave him; and women were the cause of his father\u2019s\noffending. The examples of this are many, O King, and I do but make\nmention of Solomon to thee for that thou knowest that to none was given\nsuch dominion as that with which he was invested, so that all the Kings\nof the earth obeyed him. Know then, O King, that the love of women is\nthe root of all evil and none of them hath any judgment: wherefore it\nbehoveth a man use them according to his need and not incline to them\nwith utter inclination for that will cast him into corruption and\nperdition. An thou hearken to my words, all thine affairs will prosper;\nbut, an thou neglect them thou wilt repent, whenas repentance will not\nprofit thee.\u201d Answered the King, \u201cVerily, I have left my whilome\ninclination to women\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased\nsaying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Twenty-ninth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O mighty monarch, that King Wird Khan\nsaid to his Wazir, \u201cIndeed, I have left my whilome inclination to women\nand have altogether renounced my infatuation for them; but how shall I\ndo to punish them in retaliation of their misdeeds? For the slaying of\nthy sire Shimas was of their malice and not of my own will, and I know\nnot what ailed my reason that I consented with their proposal to slay\nhim.\u201d Then he cried, \u201cAh me!\u201d and groaned and lamented, saying,\n\u201cWell-away and alas for the loss of my Wazir and his just judgment and\nadmirable administration and for the loss of his like of the Wazirs and\nHeads of the State and of the goodliness of their apt counsels and\nsagacious!\u201d \u201cO King,\u201d quoth the boy-minister, \u201cKnow that the fault is\nnot with women alone, for that they are like unto a pleasing stock in\ntrade, whereto the lusts of the lookers-on incline. To whosoever lusteth\nand buyeth, they sell it, but whoso buyeth not, none forceth him to buy;\nso that the fault is of him who buyeth, especially if he know the\nharmfulness of that merchandise. Now, I warn thee, as did my sire before\nme, but thou acceptedest not to his counsel.\u201d Answered the King, \u201cO\nWazir, indeed I have fixed this fault upon myself, even as thou hast\nsaid, and I have no excuse except divine foreordainment.\u201d Rejoined the\nWazir, \u201cO King, know that Almighty Allah hath created us and endowed us\nwith capability and appointed to us freewill and choice; so, if we will,\nwe do, and if we will, we do not. The Lord commanded us not to do harm,\nlest sin attach to us; wherefore it befitteth us to take compt of whatso\nis right to do, for that the Almighty biddeth us naught but good in all\ncases and forbiddeth us only from evil; but what we do, we do of our own\ndesign, be it fair or faulty.\u201d Quoth the King, \u201cThou sayest sooth, and\nindeed my fault arose from my surrendering myself to my lusts, albeit\noften and often my better self warned me from this and thy sire Shimas\nalso warned me often and often; but my lusts overcame my wits. Hast thou\nthen with thee aught that may withhold me from again committing this\nerror and whereby my reason may be victorious over the desires of my\nsoul?\u201d Quoth the Wazir, \u201cYes: I can tell thee what will restrain thee\nfrom relapsing into this fault, and it is that thou doff the garment of\nignorance and don that of understanding, and disobey thy passions and\nobey thy Lord and revert to the policy of the just King thy sire, and\nfulfil thy duties to Allah the Most High and to thy people and apply\nthyself to the defence of thy faith and the promotion of thy subjects\u2019\nwelfare and rule thyself aright and forbear the slaughter of thy people;\nand look to the end of things and sever thyself from tyranny and\noppression and arrogance and lewdness, and practise justice, equity and\nhumility and bow before the bidding of the Almighty and apply thyself to\ngentle dealing with those of His creatures over whom He set thee and be\nassiduous as it besitteth thee in fulfilling their prayers unto thee. An\nthou be constant herein may thy days be serene and may Allah of His\nmercy pardon thee and make thee loved and feared of all who look on\nthee; so shall thy foes be brought to naught, for the Omnipotent shall\nrout their hosts and thou shalt have acceptance with Him and of His\ncreatures be dreaded and to them endeared.\u201d Quoth the King, \u201cIndeed thou\nhast quickened my vitals and illumined my heart with thy sweet speech\nand hast opened the eyes of my clear-seeing after blindness; and I am\nresolved to do whatso thou hast set forth to me, with the help of the\nAlmighty, leaving my former case of lust and sinfulness and bringing\nforth my soul from durance vile to deliverance and from fear to safety.\nSo it behoveth thee to be joyful hereat and contented, for that I am\nbecome to thee as a son, maugre my more of age, and thou to me as a dear\nfather, despite thy tenderness of years, and it hath become incumbent on\nme to do mine utmost endeavour in all thou commandest me. Wherefore I\nthank the bounty of Allah and thy bounty because He hath vouchsafed me,\nby thee, fair fortune and goodly guidance and just judgment to ward off\nmy cark and care; and the security of my lieges hath been brought about\nby thy hand, through the excellence of thy knowledge and the goodliness\nof thy contrivance. And thou, from this hour, shalt be the counsellor of\nmy kingdom and equal to myself in all but sitting upon the throne; and\nwhatso thou dost shall be law to me and none shall disobey thy word,\nyoung in years though thou be, for that thou art old in wit and\nknowledge. So I thank Allah who deigned grant thee to me, that thou\nmayst guide me into the way of salvation and out of the crooked paths of\nperdition.\u201d Quoth the Wazir, \u201cO auspicious King, know that no merit is\ndue to me for giving thee loyal counsel; for that to succour thee by\ndeed and word is one of the things which is incumbent on me, seeing that\nI am but a plant of thy bounty; and not I alone, but one before me was\noverwhelmed with thy beneficence; so that we are both alike partakers in\nthy honours and favours, and how shall we not acknowledge this? Moreover\nthou, O King, art our shepherd and ruler and he who wardeth off from us\nour foes, and to whom are committed our protection and our guardian,\nconstant in endeavour for our safety. Indeed, though we lavished our\nlives in thy service, yet should we not fulfil that which is incumbent\non us of gratitude to thee; but we supplicate Allah Almighty, who hath\nset thee over us and made thee our ruler, and beseech Him vouchsafe thee\nlong life and success in all thine enterprises and not to make trial of\nthee with afflictions in thy time, but bring thee to thy desire and make\nthee to be reverenced till the day of thy death and lengthen thine arms\nin generosity, so thou mayst have command over every wise man and subdue\nevery wicked man and all the wise and brave be found with thee in thy\nrealm and all the ignorant and cowardly be plucked out from thy reign;\nand we pray Him to withhold from thy people scarcity and calamity and\nsow among them the seed of love and friendship and cause them to enjoy\nof this world its prosperity and of the next felicity, of His grace and\nbounty and hidden mercies. Amen![182] For He is over all things\nOmnipotent and there is naught difficult unto Him, to Him all things\ntend.\u201d When the King heard the Wazir\u2019s prayer, he was mightily rejoiced\nand inclined to him with his whole heart, saying, \u201cKnow, O Wazir, thou\nart to me in lieu of brother and son and father, and naught but death\nshall divide me from thee. All that my hand possesseth thou shalt have\nthe disposal of and, if I have no child to succeed me, thou shalt sit on\nmy throne in my stead; for thou art the worthiest of all the folk of my\nrealm, and I will invest thee with my Kingship in the presence of the\nGrandees of my state and appoint thee my heir apparent to inherit the\nkingdom after me, Inshallah!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day\nand ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirtieth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that King Wird Khan\nsaid to the son of Shimas the whilome Wazir, \u201cPresently I will name thee\nmy successor and make thee my heir apparent: and I will call the\nGrandees of mine Empire to witness thereto.\u201d Then he summoned his\nSecretary and bade him write to all the Lords of his land, convoking\nthem at his Court, and caused proclamation to be made in his city to all\nthe townsfolk great and small, bidding every one of the Emirs and\nGovernors and Chamberlains and other officers and dignitaries to his\npresence as well as the Olema and Literati learned in the law. He held\nto boot a grand Divan and made a banquet, never was its like seen\nanywhere and thereto he bade all the folk, high and low. So they\nassembled and abode in merry making, eating and drinking a month\u2019s\nspace; after which the King clothed the whole of his household and the\npoor of his Kingdom and bestowed on the men of knowledge abundant\nlargesse. Then he chose out a number of the Olema and wise men who were\nknown to the son of Shimas, and caused them go in to him, bidding him\nchoose out of them six that he might make them Wazirs under commandment\nof the boy. Accordingly he selected six of the oldest of them in years\nand the best in wits and fullest of lore and the quickest of memory and\njudgment, and presented them to the King, who clad them in Wazirial\nhabit saying, \u201cYe are become my Ministers, under the commandment of this\nmy Grand Wazir, the son of Shimas. Whatsoever he saith to you or biddeth\nyou to do, ye shall never and in no wise depart from it, albeit he is\nthe youngest of you in years; for he is the eldest of you in intellect\nand intelligence.\u201d Then he seated them upon chairs, adorned with gold\nafter the usage of Wazirs, and appointed to them stipends and\nallowances, bidding them choose out such of the notables of the kingdom\nand officers of the troops present at the banquet as were aptest for the\nservice of the state, that he might make them Captains of tens and\nCaptains of hundreds and Captains of thousands and appoint to them\ndignities and stipends and assign them provision, after the manner of\nGrandees. This they did with entire diligence and he bade them also\nhandsel all who were present with large gifts and dismiss them each to\nhis country with honour and renown; he also charged his governors to\nrule the people with justice and enjoined them to be tender to the poor\nas well as to the rich and bade succour them from the treasury,\naccording to their several degrees. So the Wazirs wished him permanence\nof glory and continuance of life, and he commanded to decorate the city\nthree days, in gratitude to Allah Almighty for mercies vouchsafed to\nhim. Such was the case with the King and his Wazir, Ibn Shimas, in the\nordinance of his kingdom through his Emirs and Governors; but as regards\nthe favourite women, wives, concubines and others who, by their malice\nand perfidy, had brought about the slaughter of the Wazirs and had well\nnigh ruined the realm, as soon as the Court was dissolved and all the\npeople had departed, each to his own place, after their affairs had been\nset in order, the King summoned his boy-Minister, the son of Shimas, and\nthe other six Wazirs and taking them apart privily, said to them, \u201cKnow,\nO Wazirs, that I have been a wanderer from the right way, drowned in\nignorance, opposed to admonition, a breaker of facts and promises and a\ngainsayer of good counsellors; and the cause of all this was my being\nfooled by these women and the wiles whereby they beset me and the\nglozing lure of their speech, whereby they seduced me to sin and my\nacceptance of this, for that I deemed the words of them true and loyal\ncounsel, by reason of their sweetness and softness; but lo, and behold!\nthey were deadly poison. And now I am certified that they sought but to\nruin and destroy me, wherefore they deserve punishment and retribution\nfrom me, for justice sake, that I may make them a warning to whoso will\nbe warned. And what say your just judgments anent doing them to die?\u201d\nAnswered the boy Wazir, \u201cO mighty King, I have already told thee that\nwomen are not alone to blame, but that the fault is shared between them\nand the men who hearken to them. However, they deserve punishment and\nrequital for two reasons: firstly for the fulfilment of thy word,\nbecause thou art the supreme King; and secondly, by reason of their\npresumption against thee and their seducing thee and their meddling with\nthat which concerneth them not and whereof it befitteth them not even to\nspeak. Wherefore they have right well deserved death; yet let that which\nhath befallen them suffice them, and do thou henceforth reduce them to\nservants\u2019 estate. But it is thine to command in this and in other than\nthis.\u201d Then one of the Wazirs seconded the counsel of Ibn Shimas; but\nanother of them prostrated himself before the King and said to him,\n\u201cAllah prolong the King\u2019s life! An thou be indeed resolved to do with\nthem that which shall cause their death, do with them as I shall say to\nthee.\u201d Asked Wird Khan, \u201cAnd what is that?\u201d; and the Wazir answered,\n\u201c\u2019Twere best that thou bid some of thy female slaves carry the women who\nplayed thee false to the apartment, wherein befel the slaughter of thy\nWazirs and wise men and imprison them there; and bid that they be\nprovided with a little meat and drink, enough to keep life in their\nbodies. Let them never be suffered to go forth of that place, and\nwhenever one of them dies, let her abide among them, as she is, till\nthey die all, even to the last of them. This is the least of their\ndesert, because they were the cause of this great avail; ay, and the\norigin of all the troubles and calamities that have befallen in our\ntime; so shall there be verified in them the saying of the Sayer:\u2014Whoso\ndiggeth his brother a pit shall surely himself fall into it, albeit of\nlong safety he have benefit.\u201d The King accepted the Wazir\u2019s counsel and\nsending for four stalwart female slaves, committed the offending women\nto them, bidding them bear them into the place of slaughter and imprison\nthem there and allow them every day a little coarse food and a little\ntroubled water. They did with them as he bade; wherefore the women\nmourned with sore mourning, repenting them of that which they had done\nand lamenting with grievous lamentation. Thus Allah gave them their\nreward of abjection in this world and prepared for them torment in the\nworld to come; nor did they cease to abide in that murky and noisome\nplace, whilst every day one or other of them died, till they all\nperished, even to the last of them;[183] and the report of this event\nwas bruited abroad in all lands and countries. This is the end of the\nstory of the King and his Wazirs and subjects, and praise be to Allah\nwho causeth peoples to pass away, and quickeneth the bones that rot in\ndecay; Him who alone is worthy to be glorified and magnified alway and\nhallowed for ever and aye! And amongst the tales they tell is one of\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 55:\n\n Lane omits because it is \u201cextremely puerile\u201d this most characteristic\n tale, one of the two oldest in The Nights which Al-Mas\u2019udi mentions as\n belonging to the Haz\u00e1r Afs\u00e1neh (See Terminal Essay). Von Hammer\n (Preface in Tr\u00e9butien\u2019s translation p. xxv.) refers the fables to an\n Indian (Egyptian?) origin and remarks, \u201csous le rapport de leur\n antiquit\u00e9 et de la morale qu\u2019ils renferment, elles m\u00e9ritent la plus\n grande attention, mais d\u2019un autre c\u00f4t\u00e9 elles ne sont rien moins qu\u2019\n amusantes.\u201d\n\nFootnote 56:\n\n Lane (iii. 579) writes the word \u201cShemmas\u201d: the Bresl. Edit. (viii. 4)\n \u201cSh\u00edm\u00e1s.\u201d\n\nFootnote 57:\n\n _i.e._ When the tale begins.\n\nFootnote 58:\n\n Arab. \u201cKhafz al-jin\u00e1h\u201d drooping the wing as a brooding bird. In the\n Koran (lvii. 88) \u201clowering the wing\u201d = demeaning oneself gently.\n\nFootnote 59:\n\n The Bresl. Edit. (viii. 3) writes \u201cKil\u2019\u00e1d\u201d: Tr\u00e9butien (iii. 1) \u201cle roi\n Djilia.\u201d\n\nFootnote 60:\n\n As the sequel shows the better title would be, \u201cThe Cat and the Mouse\u201d\n as in the headings of the Mac. Edit. and \u201cWhat befel the Cat with the\n Mouse,\u201d as a punishment for tyranny. But all three Edits. read as in\n the text and I have not cared to change it. In our European\n adaptations the mouse becomes a rat.\n\nFootnote 61:\n\n So that I may not come to grief by thus daring to foretell evil\n things.\n\nFootnote 62:\n\n Arab. \u201cAf\u2019\u00e0,\u201d pl. Af\u00e1\u2019\u00ed = \u1f44\u03c6\u03b9\u03c2, both being derived from O. Egypt. Hfi,\n a worm, snake. Af\u2019\u00e0 is applied to many species of the larger ophidia,\n all supposed to be venomous, and synonymous with \u201cSall\u201d (a malignant\n viper) in Al-Mutalammis. See Preston\u2019s Al-Hariri, p. 101.\n\nFootnote 63:\n\n This apparently needless cruelty of all the feline race is a strong\n weapon in the hand of the Eastern \u201cDahr\u00ed\u201d who holds that the world is\n God and is governed by its own laws, in opposition to the religionists\n believing in a Personal Deity whom, moreover, they style the Merciful,\n the Compassionate, etc. Some Christians have opined that cruelty came\n into the world with \u201coriginal Sin;\u201d but how do they account for the\n hideous waste of life and the fearful destructiveness of the fishes\n which certainly never learned anything from man? The mystery of the\n cruelty of things can be explained only by a Law without a Law-giver.\n\nFootnote 64:\n\n The three things not to be praised before death in Southern Europe are\n a horse, a priest and a woman; and it has become a popular saying that\n only fools prophesy before the event.\n\nFootnote 65:\n\n Arab. \u201cSamn\u201d = butter melted and skimmed. See vol. i. 144.\n\nFootnote 66:\n\n This is a mere rechauff\u00e9 of the Barber\u2019s tale of his Fifth Brother\n (vol. i. 335). In addition to the authorities there cited I may\n mention the school reading-lesson in Addison\u2019s Spectator derived from\n Galland\u2019s version of \u201cAlnaschar and his basket of Glass;\u201d the Persian\n version of the Hitopadesa or \u201cAnw\u00e1r-i-Suhayli\u201d (Lights of Canopes) by\n Husayn V\u00e1\u2019iz; the Foolish Sachali of \u201cIndian Fairy Tales\u201d (Miss\n Stokes); the allusion in Rabelais to the fate of the \u201cShoemaker and\n his pitcher of milk\u201d and the \u201cDialogues of creatures moralised\u201d\n (1516), whence probably La Fontaine drew his fable, \u201cLa Laiti\u00e8re et le\n Pot au lait.\u201d\n\nFootnote 67:\n\n Arab. \u201cN\u00e1sik,\u201d a religious, a man of Allah from Nask, devotion:\n somewhat like S\u00e1lik (Dabistan iii. 251).\n\nFootnote 68:\n\n The well-known Egyptian term for a peasant, a husbandman, extending\n from the Nile to beyond Mount Atlas.\n\nFootnote 69:\n\n This is again, I note, the slang sense of \u201c\u2019Az\u00edm,\u201d which in classical\n Arabic means simply great.\n\nFootnote 70:\n\n Arab. \u201cAdab\u201d; see vol. i. 132. It also implies mental discipline, the\n culture which leads to excellence, good manners and good morals; and\n it is sometimes synonymous with literary skill and scholarship. \u201cIlm\n al-Adab,\u201d says Haji Khalfah (Lane\u2019s Lex.), \u201cis the science whereby man\n guards against error in the language of the Arabs spoken or written.\u201d\n\nFootnote 71:\n\n _i.e._ I esteem thee as thou deservest.\n\nFootnote 72:\n\n The style is intended to be worthy of the statesman. In my \u201cMission to\n Dahome\u201d the reader will find many a similar scene.\n\nFootnote 73:\n\n The Bresl. Edit. (vol viii. 22) reads \u201cTurks\u201d or \u201cThe Turk\u201d in lieu of\n \u201cmany peoples.\u201d\n\nFootnote 74:\n\n _i.e._ the parents.\n\nFootnote 75:\n\n The humour of this euphuistic Wazirial speech, purposely made somewhat\n pompous, is the contrast between the unhappy Minister\u2019s praises and\n the result of his prognostication. I cannot refrain from complimenting\n Mr. Payne upon the admirable way in which he has attacked and mastered\n all the difficulties of its abstruser passages.\n\nFootnote 76:\n\n Arab. \u201cHalumm\u00fa\u201d plur. of \u201cHalumma\u201d = draw near! The latter form is\n used by some tribes for all three numbers; others affect a dual and a\n plural (as in the text). Preston (Al-Hariri, p. 210) derives it from\n Heb. \u05d4\u05dc\u05d5\u05dd but the geographers of Kufah and Basrah (who were not\n etymologists) are divided about its origin. He translates (p. 221)\n \u201cHalumma Jarran\u201d = being the rest of the tale in continuation with\n this, _i.e._ in accordance with it, like our \u201cand so forth.\u201d And in p.\n 271, he makes Halumma = Hayya _i.e._ hither! (to prayer, etc).\n\nFootnote 77:\n\n This is precisely the semi-fatalistic and wholly superstitious address\n which would find favour with Moslems of the present day: they still\n prefer \u201ccalling upon Hercules\u201d to putting their shoulders to the\n wheel. Mr. Redhouse had done good work in his day but of late he has\n devoted himself, especially in the \u201cMesnevi,\u201d to a rapprochement\n between Al-Islam and Christianity which both would reject (see supra,\n vol. vii. p. 135). The Calvinistic predestination as shown in the term\n \u201cvessel of wrath,\u201d is but a feeble reflection of Moslem fatalism. On\n this subject I shall have more to say in a future volume.\n\nFootnote 78:\n\n The inhabitants of temperate climates have no idea what ants can do in\n the tropics. The Kafirs of South Africa used to stake down their\n prisoners (among them a poor friend of mine) upon an ant-hill and they\n were eaten atom after atom in a few hours. The death must be the\n slowest form of torture; but probably the nervous system soon becomes\n insensible. The same has happened to more than one hapless invalid,\n helplessly bedridden, in Western Africa. I have described an invasion\n of ants in my \u201cZanzibar,\u201d vol. ii. 169; and have suffered from such\n attacks in many places between that and Dahomey.\n\nFootnote 79:\n\n Arab. \u201cSa\u2019lab.\u201d See vol. iii. 132, where it is a fox. I render it\n jackal because that cousin of the fox figures as a carrion-eater in\n Hindu folk-lore, the Hitopadesa, Panchopakhyan, etc. This tale, I need\n hardly say, is a mere translation; as is shown by the Kath\u00e1 s.s. \u201cBoth\n jackal and fox are nicknamed Joseph the Scribe (T\u00e1lib Y\u00fasuf) in the\n same principle that lawyers are called landsharks by sailors.\u201d (P. 65,\n Moorish Lotus Leaves, etc., by George D. Cowan and R. L. N. Johnston,\n London, Tinsleys, 1883.)\n\nFootnote 80:\n\n Arab. \u201cSahm mush\u2019ab\u201d not \u201cbarbed\u201d (at the wings) but with double\n front, much used for birding and at one time familiar in the West as\n in the East. And yet \u201cbarbed\u201d would make the fable read much better.\n\nFootnote 81:\n\n Arab. \u201cla\u2019lla,\u201d usually = haply, belike; but used here and elsewhere =\n forsure, certainly.\n\nFootnote 82:\n\n Arab. \u201cMaghrib\u201d (or in full Maghrib al-Aks\u00e1) lit. = the Land of the\n setting sun for whose relation to \u201cMauritania\u201d see vol. vii. 220. It\n is almost synonymous with \u201cAl-Gharb\u201d = the West whence Portugal\n borrowed the two Algarves, one being in Southern Europe and the other\n over the straits about Tangier-Ceuta; fronting Spanish Trafalgar,\n _i.e._ Taraf al-Gharb, the edge of the West. I have noted (Pilgrimage\n i. 9) the late Captain Peel\u2019s mis-translation \u201cCape of Laurels\u201d\n (Al-Gh\u00e1r).\n\nFootnote 83:\n\n Even the poorest of Moslem wanderers tries to bear with him a new suit\n of clothes for keeping the two festivals and Friday service in the\n Mosque. See Pilgrimage i. 235; iii. 257, etc.\n\nFootnote 84:\n\n Arab. \u201cS\u00e1yih\u201d lit. a wanderer, subaudi for religious and ascetic\n objects; and not to be confounded with the \u201cpilgrim\u201d proper.\n\nFootnote 85:\n\n _i.e._ a Religious, a wandering beggar.\n\nFootnote 86:\n\n This was the custom of the whole Moslem world and still is where\n uncorrupted by Christian uncharity and contempt for all \u201cmen of God\u201d\n save its own. But the change in such places as Egypt is complete and\n irrevocable. Even in 1852 my Dervish\u2019s frock brought me nothing but\n contempt in Alexandria and Cairo.\n\nFootnote 87:\n\n Arab \u201cYa j\u00e1hil,\u201d lit. = O ignorant. The popular word is Ahmak which,\n however, in the West means a maniac, a madman, a Santon; \u201cBohl\u00ed\u201d being\n = a fool.\n\nFootnote 88:\n\n The prison according to the practice of the East being in the palace:\n so the Moorish \u201cKasbah,\u201d which lodges the Governor and his guard,\n always contains the jail.\n\nFootnote 89:\n\n Arab. \u201cTuwuffiya,\u201d lit. = was received (into the grace of God), an\n euphemistic and more polite term than \u201cm\u00e1ta\u201d = he died. The latter\n term is avoided by the Founder of Christianity; and our Spiritualists\n now say \u201cpassed away to a higher life,\u201d a phrase embodying a theory\n which, to say the least, is \u201cnot proven.\u201d\n\nFootnote 90:\n\n Arab. \u201cY\u00e1 Ab\u00e1 al-Khayr\u201d = our my good lord, sir, fellow, etc.\n\nFootnote 91:\n\n Arab. \u201cH\u00e1wi\u201d from \u201cHayyah,\u201d a serpent. See vol. iii. 145. Most of the\n Egyptian snake-charmers are Gypsies, but they do not like to be told\n of their origin. At Baroda in Guzerat I took lessons in\n snake-catching, but found the sport too dangerous; when the animal\n flies, the tail is caught by the left hand and the right is slipped up\n to the neck, a delicate process, as a few inches too far or not far\n enough would be followed by certain death in catching a Cobra. At last\n certain of my messmates killed one of the captives and the\n snake-charmer would have no more to do with me.\n\nFootnote 92:\n\n Arab. \u201cSallah,\u201d also Pers., a basket of wickerwork. This article is\n everywhere used for lodging snakes from Egypt to Morocco.\n\nFootnote 93:\n\n Arab. \u201cMub\u00e1rak.\u201d It is a favourite name for a slave in Morocco; the\n slave-girl being called Mub\u00e1rakah; and the proverb being, \u201cBlessed is\n the household which hath neither M\u2019b\u00e1rk nor M\u2019b\u00e1rkah\u201d (as they\n contract the words).\n\nFootnote 94:\n\n The Bresl. Edit. (viii. 48) instead of the Gate (B\u00e1b) gives a B\u00e1dhanj\n = a Ventilator; for which latter rendering see vol. i. 257. The\n spider\u2019s web is Koranic (lxxxi. 40) \u201cVerily frailest of all houses is\n the house of the spider.\u201d\n\nFootnote 95:\n\n Prob. from the Persian Wird = a pupil, a disciple.\n\nFootnote 96:\n\n And yet, as the next page shows the youth\u2019s education was complete in\n his twelfth year. But as all three texts agree, I do not venture upon\n changing the number to six or seven, the age at which royal education\n outside the Harem usually begins.\n\nFootnote 97:\n\n _i.e._ One for each day in the Moslem year. For these object-lessons,\n somewhat in Kindergarten style, see the Book of Sindibad or The Malice\n of Women (vol. vi. 126).\n\nFootnote 98:\n\n Arab. \u201cJah\u00e1bizah\u201d plur. of \u201cJahbiz\u201d = acute, intelligent (from the\n Pers. Kahbad or Kihbad?).\n\nFootnote 99:\n\n Arab. \u201cNimr\u201d in the Bresl. Edit. viii. 58. The Mac. Edit. suggests\n that the leopard is the lion\u2019s Wazir.\n\nFootnote 100:\n\n Arab. \u201cKaun\u201d lit. = Being, existence. Tr\u00e9butien (iii. 20), has it,\n \u201cQu\u2019est-ce que l\u2019\u00eatre (God), l\u2019existence (Creation), l\u2019\u00eatre dans\n l\u2019existence (the world), et la dur\u00e9e de l\u2019\u00eatre dans l\u2019existence (the\n other world).\n\nFootnote 101:\n\n _i.e._ for the purpose of requital. All the above is orthodox Moslem\n doctrine, which utterly ignores the dictum \u201cex nihilo nihil fit;\u201d and\n which would look upon Creation by Law (Darwinism) as opposed to\n Creation by miracle (_e.g._ the Mosaic cosmogony) as rank blasphemy.\n On the other hand the Eternity of Matter and its transcendental\n essence are tenets held by a host of Gnostics, philosophers and\n Eastern Agnostics.\n\nFootnote 102:\n\n This is a Moslem _lieu commun_; usually man is likened to one\n suspended in a bottomless well by a thin rope at which a rodent is\n continually gnawing and who amuses himself in licking a few drops of\n honey left by bees on the revetement.\n\nFootnote 103:\n\n A curious pendent to the Scriptural parable of the Unjust Steward.\n\nFootnote 104:\n\n Arab. \u201cR\u00fah\u201d Heb. Ruach: lit. breath (spiritus) which in the animal\n kingdom is the surest sign of life. See vol. v. 29. Nothing can be\n more rigidly materialistic than the so-called Mosaic law.\n\nFootnote 105:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Amr\u201d which may also mean the business, the matter, the\n affair.\n\nFootnote 106:\n\n Arab. \u201cUk\u00e1b al-k\u00e1sir,\u201d lit. = the breaker eagle.\n\nFootnote 107:\n\n Arab. \u201cLij\u00e1m shad\u00edd:\u201d the ring-bit of the Arabs is perhaps the\n severest form known: it is required by the Eastern practice of pulling\n up the horse when going at full speed and it is too well known to\n require description. As a rule the Arab rides with a \u201clady\u2019s hand\u201d and\n the barbarous habit of \u201changing on by the curb\u201d is unknown to him. I\n never pass by Rotten Row or see a regiment of English Cavalry without\n wishing to leave riders nothing but their snaffles.\n\nFootnote 108:\n\n We find this orderly distribution of time (which no one adopts) in\n many tongues and many forms. In the Life of Sir W. Jones (vol. i. p.\n 193, Poetical Works etc.) the following occurs, \u201cwritten in India on a\n small piece of paper\u201d:\u2014\n\n Sir Edward Coke\n\n \u201cSix hours to sleep, in law\u2019s grave study six!\n Four spend in prayer,\u2014the rest on Heaven fix!\u201d\n\n Rather:\n\n \u201cSeven hours to law, to soothing slumber seven;\n Ten to the world allot, and all to Heaven!\u201d\n\n But this is not practical. I must prefer the Chartist distribution:\n\n Six hours sleep and six hours play:\n Six hours work and six shillings a day.\n\n Mr. Froude (Oceana) speaks of New Zealanders having attained that\n ideal of operative felicity:\u2014\n\n Eight to work, eight to play;\n Eight to sleep and eight shillings a day.\n\nFootnote 109:\n\n Arab. \u201cBah\u00edmah,\u201d mostly = black cattle: see vol. iv. 54.\n\nFootnote 110:\n\n As a rule when the felid\u00e6 wag their tails, it is a sign of coming\n anger, the reverse with the canid\u00e6.\n\nFootnote 111:\n\n In India it is popularly said that the Rajah can do anything with the\n Ryots provided he respects their women and their religion\u2014not their\n property.\n\nFootnote 112:\n\n Arab. \u201cSunan\u201d for which see vol. v. 36, 167. Here it is = Rasm or\n usage, equivalent to our precedents, and held valid, especially when\n dating from olden time, in all matters which are not expressly\n provided for by Koranic command. For instance a Hind\u00ed Moslem (who\n doubtless borrowed the customs from Hind\u00fas) will refuse to eat with\n the Kafir and when the latter objects that there is no such\n prohibition in the Koran will reply, \u201cNo: but it is our Rasm.\u201d As a\n rule the Anglo-Indian is very ignorant on this essential point.\n\nFootnote 113:\n\n Lit. \u201clowering the wings,\u201d see supra p. 33.\n\nFootnote 114:\n\n _i.e._ friends and acquaintances.\n\nFootnote 115:\n\n Arab. \u201cHam\u00eddah\u201d = praiseworthy or satisfactory.\n\nFootnote 116:\n\n Not only alluding to the sperm of man and beast; but also to the\n \u201cNeptunist\u201d doctrine held by the ancient Greeks and Hindus and\n developed in Europe during the last century.\n\nFootnote 117:\n\n Arab. \u201cTaks\u00edm\u201d dividing into parts, analysis.\n\nFootnote 118:\n\n This is the usual illogical contention of all religions. It is not the\n question whether an Almighty Being can do a given thing: the question\n is whether He has or has not done it.\n\nFootnote 119:\n\n Upon the old simile of the potter I shall have something to say in a\n coming volume.\n\nFootnote 120:\n\n A fine specimen of a peculiarity in the undeveloped mind of man, the\n universal confusion between things objective as a dead body and states\n of things as death. We begin by giving a name, for facility of\n intercourse, to phases, phenomena and conditions of matter; and,\n having created the word we proceed to supply it with a fanciful\n entity, _e.g._ \u201cThe Mind (a useful term to express the aggregate\n action of the brain, nervous system etc.) of man is immortal.\u201d The\n next step is personification as Time with his forelock, Death with his\n skull and Night (the absence of light) with her starry mantle. For\n poetry this abuse of language is a sine qua non, but it is deadly foe\n to all true philosophy.\n\nFootnote 121:\n\n Christians would naturally understand this \u201cOne Word\u201d to be the \u03bb\u03cc\u03b3\u03bf\u03c2\n of the Platonists, adopted by St. John (comparatively a late writer)\n and by the Alexandrian school, Jewish (as Philo Jud\u00e6us) and Christian.\n But here the tale-teller alludes to the Divine Word \u201cKun\u201d (be!)\n whereby the worlds came into existence.\n\nFootnote 122:\n\n Arab. \u201cYa bunayy\u00ed\u201d a dim. form lit. \u201cO my little son!\u201d an affectionate\n address frequent in Russian, whose \u201clittle father\u201d (under \u201cBog\u201d) is\n his Czar.\n\nFootnote 123:\n\n Thus in two texts. Mr. Payne has, \u201cVerily God the Most High created\n man after His own image, and likened him to Himself, all of Him truth,\n without falsehood; then He gave him dominion over himself and ordered\n him and forbade him, and it was man who transgressed His commandment\n and erred in his obedience and brought falsehood upon himself of his\n own will.\u201d Here he borrows from the Bresl. Edit. viii. 84 (five first\n lines). But the doctrine is rather Jewish and Christian than Moslem:\n Al-Mas\u2019\u00fadi (ii. 389) introduces a Copt in the presence of Ibn Tut\u00fan\n saying, \u201cPrince, these people (designing a Jew) pretend that Allah\n Almighty created Adam (_i.e._ mankind) after His own image\u201d (\u2019Al\u00e0\n S\u00farati-h).\n\nFootnote 124:\n\n Arab. \u201cIstit\u00e1\u2019ah\u201d = ableness _e.g._ \u201cAl-hajj \u2019inda \u2019l-Istit\u00e1\u2019ah\u201d =\n Pilgrimage when a man is able thereto (by easy circumstances).\n\nFootnote 125:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Kasab,\u201d which phrenologists would translate\n \u201cacquisitiveness.\u201d The author is here attempting to reconcile man\u2019s\n moral responsibility, that is Freewill, with Fate by which all human\n actions are directed and controlled. I cannot see that he fails to\n \u201capprehend the knotty point of doctrine involved\u201d; but I find his\n inability to make two contraries agree as pronounced as that of all\n others, Moslems and Christians, that preceded him in the same path.\n\nFootnote 126:\n\n The order should be, \u201cmen, angels and Jinn,\u201d for which see vol. i. p.\n 10. But \u201cangels\u201d here takes precedence because Iblis was one of them.\n\nFootnote 127:\n\n Arab. \u201cWartah\u201d = precipice, quagmire, quicksand and hence sundry\n secondary and metaphorical significations, under which, as in the\n \u201cSamitic\u201d (Arabic) tongues generally, the prosaical and material sense\n of the word is clearly evident. I noted this in Pilgrimage iii. 66,\n and was soundly abused for so saying by a host of Sciolists.\n\nFootnote 128:\n\n _i.e._ Allowing the Devil to go about the world and seduce mankind\n until Doomsday when \u201cauld Sootie\u2019s\u201d occupation will be gone. Surely\n \u201cProvidence\u201d might have managed better.\n\nFootnote 129:\n\n _i.e._ to those who deserve His love.\n\nFootnote 130:\n\n Here \u201cIstit\u00e1\u2019ah\u201d would mean capability of action, _i.e._ freewill,\n which is a mere word like \u201cfree trade.\u201d\n\nFootnote 131:\n\n Arab. \u201cBi al-taubah\u201d which may also mean \u201cfor (on account of his)\n penitence.\u201d The reader will note how the learned Shimas \u201cdodges\u201d the\n real question. He is asked why the \u201cOmnipotent, Omniscient did not\n prevent (_i.e._ why He created) sin?\u201d He answers that He kindly\n permitted (_i.e._ created and sanctioned) it that man might repent.\n Proh pudor! If any one thus reasoned of mundane matters he would be\n looked upon as the merest fool.\n\nFootnote 132:\n\n Arab. \u201cMahall al-Zauk,\u201d lit. = seat of taste.\n\nFootnote 133:\n\n Mr. Payne translates \u201cit\u201d _i.e._ the Truth; but the formula following\n the word shows that Allah is meant.\n\nFootnote 134:\n\n Moslems, who do their best to countermine the ascetic idea inherent in\n Christianity, are not ashamed of the sensual appetite; but rather the\n reverse. I have heard in Persia of a Religious, highly esteemed for\n learning and saintly life who, when lodged by a disciple at Shiraz,\n came out of his sleeping room and aroused his host with the words\n \u201cShahwat d\u00e1ram!\u201d equivalent to our \u201cI want a woman.\u201d He was at once\n married to one of the slave-girls and able to gratify the demands of\n the flesh.\n\nFootnote 135:\n\n Koran iv. 81, \u201cWhatever good betideth thee is from God, and whatever\n betideth thee of evil is from thyself\u201d: rank manich\u00e6ism is pronounced\n as any in Christendom.\n\nFootnote 136:\n\n Arab. \u201cZukhruf\u201d which Mr. Payne picturesquely renders \u201cpainted gawds.\u201d\n\nFootnote 137:\n\n It is the innate craving in the \u201cAryan\u201d (Iranian, not the Turanian)\n mind, this longing to know what follows Death, or if nothing follow\n it, which accounts for the marvellous diffusion of the so-called\n Spiritualism which is only Swedenborgianism systematised and carried\n out into action, amongst nervous and impressionable races like the\n Anglo-American. In England it is the reverse; the obtuse sensitiveness\n of a people bred on beef and beer has made the \u201cReligion of the\n Nineteenth Century\u201d a manner of harmless magic, whose miracles are\n table-turning and ghost seeing whilst the prodigious rascality of its\n prophets (the so-called Mediums) has brought it into universal\n disrepute. It has been said that Catholicism must be true to co-exist\n with the priest and it is the same with Spiritualism proper, by which\n I understand the belief in a life beyond the grave, a mere\n continuation of this life; it flourishes (despite the Medium) chiefly\n because it has laid before man the only possible and intelligible idea\n of a future state.\n\nFootnote 138:\n\n See vol. vi. p. 7. The only lie which degrades a man in his own\n estimation and in that of others, is that told for fear of telling the\n truth. _Au reste_, human society and civilised intercourse are built\n upon a system of conventional lying; and many droll stories illustrate\n the consequences of disregarding the dictum, _la v\u00e9rit\u00e9 n\u2019est pas\n toujours bonne \u00e0 dire_.\n\nFootnote 139:\n\n Arab. \u201cWal\u00ed\u2019ahd\u201d which may mean heir-presumptive (whose heirship is\n contingent) or heir-apparent.\n\nFootnote 140:\n\n Arab. \u201cY\u00e1 abati\u201d = O my papa (which here would sound absurd).\n\nFootnote 141:\n\n All the texts give a decalogue; but Mr. Payne has reduced it to a\n heptalogue.\n\nFootnote 142:\n\n The Arabs who had a variety of an\u00e6sthetics never seem to have studied\n the subject of \u201ceuthanasia.\u201d They preferred seeing a man expire in\n horrible agonies to relieving him by means of soporifics and other\n drugs: so I have heard Christians exult in saying that the sufferer\n \u201ckept his senses to the last.\u201d Of course superstition is at the bottom\n of this barbarity; the same which a generation ago made the silly\n accoucheur refuse to give ether because of the divine (?) saying \u201cIn\n sorrow shalt thou bring forth children.\u201d (Gen. iii. 16). In the\n Bosnia-Herzegovina campaign many of the Austrian officers carried with\n them doses of poison to be used in case of being taken prisoners by\n the ferocious savages against whom they were fighting. As many\n anecdotes about \u201cEasing off the poor dear\u201d testify, the\n Euthanasia-system is by no means unknown to the lower classes in\n England. I shall have more to say on this subject.\n\nFootnote 143:\n\n See vol. iii. p. 253 for the consequences of royal seclusion of which\n Europe in the present day can contribute examples. The lesson which it\n teaches simply is that the world can get on very well without\n royalties.\n\nFootnote 144:\n\n The grim Arab humour in the text is the sudden change for the worse of\n the good young man. Easterns do not believe in the Western saw, \u201cNemo\n repente fuit turpissimus.\u201d The spirited conduct of the subjects finds\n many parallels in European history, especially in Portugal: see my\n Life of Camoens p. 234.\n\nFootnote 145:\n\n Arab. \u201cMuh\u00e1rabah\u201d lit. = doing battle; but is sometimes used in the\n sense of gainsaying or disobeying.\n\nFootnote 146:\n\n Arab. \u201cDuw\u00e1mah\u201d (from \u201cduw\u00e1m\u201d = vertigo, giddiness) also applied to a\n boy\u2019s whip-top.\n\nFootnote 147:\n\n Arab. \u201cKhayr o (wa) \u00c1fiyah,\u201d a popular phrase much used in\n salutations, &c.\n\nFootnote 148:\n\n Another instance, and true to life, of the democracy of despotism in\n which the express and combined will of the people is the only absolute\n law. Hence Russian autocracy is forced into repeated wars for the\n possession of Constantinople which, in the present condition of the\n Empire, would be an unmitigated evil to her and would be only too glad\n to see a Principality of Byzantium placed under the united protection\n of the European Powers. I have treated of this in my paper on the\n \u201cPartition of Turkey,\u201d which first appeared, headed the \u201cFuture of\n Turkey,\u201d in the _Daily Telegraph_, of March 7, 1880, and subsequently\n by its own name in the _Manchester Examiner_, January 3, 1881. The\n main reason why the project is not carried out appears to be that the\n \u201cpoliticals\u201d would thereby find their occupation gone and they\n naturally object to losing so fine a field of action. So Turkey still\n plays the r\u00f4le of the pretty young lady being courted by a rabble of\n valets.\n\nFootnote 149:\n\n Good Moslems are bound to abate such scandals; and in a case of the\n kind even neighbours are expected to complain before the Chief of\n Police. This practice forms \u201cVigilance Committees\u201d all over the\n Mahommedan East: and we may take a leaf out of their books if\n dynamite-outrages continue.\n\nFootnote 150:\n\n But a Hadis, attributed to Mohammed, says, \u201cThe Prince of a people is\n their servant.\u201d See Matth. xx. 26\u201327.\n\nFootnote 151:\n\n Easterns are well aware of the value of this drug which has become the\n base of so many of our modern medicines.\n\nFootnote 152:\n\n The strangest poison is mentioned by Sonnini who, as a rule, is a\n trustworthy writer. Noticing the malignity of Egyptian women he\n declares (p. 628, English trans.) that they prepare a draught\n containing a quant. suff. of menstruous discharge at certain phases of\n the moon, which produces symptoms of scurvy; the gums decay, the\n teeth, beard and hair fall off, the body dries, the limbs lose\n strength and death follows within a year. He also asserts that no\n counterpoison is known and if this be true he confers a boon upon the\n Locust\u00e6 and Brinvilliers of modern Europe. In Morocco \u201cTa\u2019am\u201d is the\n vulgar name for a mixture of dead men\u2019s bones, eyes, hair and similar\n ingredients made by old wives and supposed to cause a wasting disease\n for which the pharmacop\u0153ia has no cure. Dogs are killed by needles\n cunningly inserted into meat-balls; and this process is known\n throughout the Moslem world.\n\nFootnote 153:\n\n Which contained the Palace.\n\nFootnote 154:\n\n Arab. \u201cL\u00e1 baas.\u201d See Night vol. iv. 164.\n\nFootnote 155:\n\n For Ta\u2019lab (Sa\u2019lab) see supra, p. 48. In Morocco it is undoubtedly the\n red or common fox which, however, is not gregarious as in the text.\n\nFootnote 156:\n\n See vol. iii. 146.\n\nFootnote 157:\n\n Arab. \u201cMuunah\u201d which in Morocco applies to the provisions furnished\n gratis by the unfortunate village-people to travellers who have a\n passport from the Sultan: its root is Maun = supplying necessaries.\n \u201cThe name is supposed to have its origin in that of _Manna_, the\n miraculous provision bestowed by the bounty of Heaven on the\n Israelites while wandering in the deserts of Arabia.\u201d Such is the\n marvellous information we find in p. 40, \u201cMorocco and the Moors\u201d by\n John Drummond Hay (Murray, 1861).\n\nFootnote 158:\n\n _i.e._ He resolved to do them justice and win a reward from Heaven.\n\nFootnote 159:\n\n Arab. \u201cLuss\u201d = thief, robber, rogue, rascal, the Persian \u201cLuti\u201d of\n popular usage. This is one of the many \u201cSimpleton stories\u201d in which\n Eastern folk-lore abounds. I hear that Mr. Clouston is preparing a\n collection, and look forward to it with interest.\n\nFootnote 160:\n\n Arab. \u201cTibn\u201d; for which see vol. i. 16.\n\nFootnote 161:\n\n A fanciful origin of \u201cD\u00edv\u00e1n\u201d (here an audience-chamber) which may mean\n demons (plural of D\u00edv) is attributed to a King of Persia. He gave a\n series of difficult documents and accounts to his scribes and\n surprised at the quickness and cleverness with which they were ordered\n exclaimed, \u201cThese men be Divs!\u201d Hence a host of secondary meanings as\n a book of Odes with distichs rhymed in alphabetical order and so\n forth.\n\nFootnote 162:\n\n In both cases the word \u201cJab\u00e1birah\u201d is used, the plur. of Jabb\u00e1r, the\n potent, especially applied to the Kings of the Canaanites and giants\n like the mythical Og of Bashan. So the Heb. Jabb\u00farah is a title of the\n Queens of Judah.\n\nFootnote 163:\n\n Arab. \u201cKit\u00e1b al-Kaz\u00e1\u201d = the Book of Judgments, such as the Kazi would\n use when deciding cases in dispute, by legal precedents and the Rasm\n or custom of the country.\n\nFootnote 164:\n\n _i.e._ sit before the King as referee, etc.\n\nFootnote 165:\n\n This massacre of refractory chiefs is one of the _grand moyens_ of\n Eastern state-craft, and it is almost always successful because\n circumstances require it; popular opinion approves of it and it is\n planned and carried out with discretion and secrecy. The two familiar\n instances in our century are the massacre of the Mamelukes by Mohammed\n Ali Pasha the Great and of the turbulent chiefs of the Omani Arabs by\n our ancient ally Sayyid Sa\u2019\u00edd, miscalled the \u201cIm\u00e1m of Maskat.\u201d\n\nFootnote 166:\n\n The metaphor (Sabaka) is from horse-racing, the Arabs being, I have\n said, a horsey people.\n\nFootnote 167:\n\n Arab. \u201cKurd\u00fas\u201d = A body of horse.\n\nFootnote 168:\n\n Arab. \u201cIbn \u2019Irs.\u201d See vol. iii. 147.\n\nFootnote 169:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Hind-al-Aks\u00e1.\u201d The Sanskrit Sindhu (lands on the Indus\n River) became in Zend \u201cHendu\u201d and hence in Arabic Sind and Hind, which\n latter I wish we had preserved instead of the classical \u201cIndia\u201d or the\n poetical \u201cInd.\u201d\n\nFootnote 170:\n\n _i.e._ by geomancy: see vol. iii. 269 for a note on Al-Raml. The\n passage is not in the Mac. Edit.\n\nFootnote 171:\n\n This address gave the boy Wazirial rank. In many parts of Europe,\n England included, if the Sovereign address a subject with a title not\n belonging to him, it is a disputed point if the latter can or cannot\n claim it.\n\nFootnote 172:\n\n Koran, chapter of Joseph xii. 28, spoken by Potiphar after Joseph\u2019s\n innocence had been proved by a witness in Potiphar\u2019s house or\n according to the Talmud (Sepher H\u00e1djascher) by an infant in the\n cradle. The texts should have printed this as a quotation (with\n vowel-points).\n\nFootnote 173:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-\u2019Az\u00edz,\u201d alluding to Joseph the Patriarch entitled in Egypt\n \u201cAz\u00edz al-Misr\u201d = Magnifico of Misraim (Koran xii. 54). It is generally\n believed that Ismail Pasha, whose unwise deposition has caused the\n English Government such a host of troubles and load of obloquy,\n aspired to be named \u201c\u2019Az\u00edz\u201d by the Porte; but was compelled to be\n satisfied with Khad\u00edv (vulg. written Khedive, and pronounced even\n \u201cK\u00e9div\u00e9\u201d), a Persian title, which simply means prince or Rajah, as\n Khad\u00edv-i-Hind.\n\nFootnote 174:\n\n _i.e._ The Throne room.\n\nFootnote 175:\n\n For the \u201cDaw\u00e1t\u201d or wooden inkcase containing reeds see vol. v. 239 and\n viii. 178. I may remark that its origin is the Egyptian \u201cPes,\u201d of\n which there is a specimen in the British Museum inscribed, \u201cAm\u00e1sis the\n good god and Lord of the two Lands.\u201d\n\nFootnote 176:\n\n _i.e._ I am governed by the fear of Allah in my dealings to thee and\n thy subjects.\n\nFootnote 177:\n\n Arabic has no single word for million although the Moroccans have\n adopted \u201cMily\u00fan\u201d from the Spaniards (see p. 100 of the Rudimentos del\n \u00c1rabe vulgar que se habla en el imperio de Marruccos por El P. Fr.\n Jos\u00e8 de Lerchundi, Madrid 1872). This lack of the higher numerals, the\n reverse of the Hindu languages, makes Arabic \u201carithmology\u201d very\n primitive and almost as cumbrous as the Chinese.\n\nFootnote 178:\n\n _i.e._ I am thy slave to slay or to pardon.\n\nFootnote 179:\n\n Arab. \u201cMatta\u2019aka \u2019llah\u201d = Allah permit thee to enjoy, from the root\n mata\u2019, whence cometh the Maroccan Mat\u00e1\u2019i = my, mine, which answers to\n Bit\u00e1\u2019i in Egypt.\n\nFootnote 180:\n\n Arab. \u201cKhit\u00e1b\u201d = the exordium of a letter preceding its\n business-matter and in which the writer displays all his art. It ends\n with \u201cAmm\u00e1 ba\u2019d,\u201d lit. = but after, equivalent to our \u201cTo proceed.\u201d\n This \u201cKhit\u00e1b\u201d is mostly skipped over by modern statesmen who will say,\n \u201cNow after the nonsense let us come to the sense\u201d; but their\n secretaries carefully weigh every word of it, and strongly resent all\n shortcomings.\n\nFootnote 181:\n\n Strongly suggesting that the King had forgotten how to read and write.\n So not a few of the Am\u00edrs of Sind were analphabetic and seemed rather\n proud of it: \u201ca Baloch cannot write, but he always carries a\n signet-ring.\u201d I heard of an old English lady of the past generation in\n Northern Africa who openly declared \u201cA Warrington shall never learn to\n read or write.\u201d\n\nFootnote 182:\n\n Arab. \u201c\u00c1min,\u201d of which the Heb. form is Amen from the root Amn =\n stability, constancy. In both tongues it is a particle of affirmation\n or consent = it is true! So be it! The Hebrew has also \u201cAmanah\u201d =\n verily, truly.\n\nFootnote 183:\n\n To us this seems a case of \u201chard lines\u201d for the unhappy women; but\n Easterns then believed and still believe in the divinity which doth\n hedge in a King, in his reigning by the \u201cgrace of God,\u201d and in his\n being the Viceregent of Allah upon earth; briefly in the old faith of\n loyalty which great and successful republics are fast making obsolete\n in the West and nowhere faster than in England.\n\n\n\n\n ABU KIR THE DYER AND ABU SIR THE BARBER.\n\n\nThere dwelt once, in Alexandria city, two men, of whom one was a dyer,\nby name Ab\u00fa K\u00edr, and the other a barber Ab\u00fa S\u00edr;[184] and they were\nneighbours in the market-street, where their shops stood side by side.\nThe dyer was a swindler and a liar, an exceeding wicked wight, as if\nindeed his head-temples were hewn out of a boulder rock or fashioned of\nthe threshold of a Jewish synagogue, nor was he ashamed of any shameful\nwork he wrought amongst the folk. It was his wont, when any brought him\ncloth for staining, first to require of him payment under pretence of\nbuying dye-stuffs therewith. So the customer would give him the wage in\nadvance and wend his ways, and the dyer would spend all he received on\nmeat and drink; after which he would sell the cloth itself as soon as\never its owner turned his back and waste its worth in eating and\ndrinking and what not else, for he ate not but of the daintiest and most\ndelicate viands nor drank but of the best of that which doth away the\nwit of man. And when the owner of the cloth came to him, he would say to\nhim, \u201cReturn to me to-morrow before sunrise and thou shalt find thy\nstuff dyed.\u201d So the customer would go away, saying to himself, \u201cOne day\nis near another day,\u201d and return next day at the appointed time, when\nthe dyer would say to him, \u201cCome to-morrow; yesterday I was not at work,\nfor I had with me guests and was occupied with doing what their wants\nrequired till they went: but to-morrow before sunrise come and take thy\ncloth dyed.\u201d So he would fare forth and return on the third day, when\nAbu Kir would say to him, \u201cIndeed yesterday I was excusable, for my wife\nwas brought to bed in the night and all day I was busy with manifold\nmatters; but to-morrow, without fail, come and take thy cloth dyed.\u201d\nWhen the man came again at the appointed time, he would put him off with\nsome other pretence, it mattered little what, and would swear to\nhim;\u2014\u2014Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-first Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that every time the\nowner of an article came to the dyer he would put him off with any\npretext[185] and would swear to him; nor would he cease to promise and\nswear to him, as often as he came, till the customer lost patience and\nsaid, \u201cHow often wilt thou say to me, \u2018To-morrow?\u2019 Give me my stuff: I\nwill not have it dyed.\u201d Whereupon the dyer would make answer, \u201cBy Allah,\nO my brother, I am abashed at thee; but I must tell the truth and may\nAllah harm all who harm folk in their goods!\u201d The other would exclaim,\n\u201cTell me what hath happened;\u201d and Abu Kir would reply, \u201cAs for thy stuff\nI dyed that same on matchless wise and hung it on the drying rope but\n\u2019twas stolen and I know not who stole it.\u201d If the owner of the stuff\nwere of the kindly he would say, \u201cAllah will compensate me;\u201d and if he\nwere of the ill-conditioned, he would haunt him with exposure and\ninsult, but would get nothing of him, though he complained of him to the\njudge. He ceased not doing thus till his report was noised abroad among\nthe folk and each used to warn other against Abu Kir who became a byword\namongst them. So they all held aloof from him and none would be\nentrapped by him save those who were ignorant of his character; but, for\nall this, he failed not daily to suffer insult and exposure from Allah\u2019s\ncreatures. By reason of this his trade became slack and he used to go to\nthe shop of his neighbour the barber Abu S\u00edr and sit there, facing the\ndyery and with his eyes on the door. Whenever he espied any one who knew\nhim not standing at the dyery-door, with a piece of stuff in his hand,\nhe would leave the barber\u2019s booth and go up to him saying, \u201cWhat seekest\nthou, O thou?\u201d; and the man would reply, \u201cTake and dye me this thing.\u201d\nSo the dyer would ask, \u201cWhat colour wilt thou have it?\u201d For, with all\nhis knavish tricks his hand was in all manner of dyes; but he was never\ntrue to any one; wherefore poverty had gotten the better of him. Then he\nwould take the stuff and say, \u201cGive me my wage in advance and come\nto-morrow and take the stuff.\u201d So the stranger would advance him the\nmoney and wend his way; whereupon Abu Kir would carry the cloth to the\nmarket-street and sell it and with its price buy meat and vegetables and\ntobacco[186] and fruit and what not else he needed; but, whenever he saw\nany one who had given him stuff to dye standing at the door of his shop,\nhe would not come forth to him or even show himself to him. On this wise\nhe abode years and years, till it fortuned one day that he received\ncloth to dye from a man of wrath and sold it and spent the proceeds. The\nowner came to him every day, but found him not in his shop; for,\nwhenever he espied any one who had claim against him, he would flee from\nhim into the shop of the barber Abu Sir. At last, that angry man finding\nthat he was not to be seen and growing weary of such work, repaired to\nthe Kazi and bringing one of his serjeants to the shop, nailed up the\ndoor, in presence of a number of Moslems, and sealed it, for that he saw\ntherein naught save some broken pans of earthenware to stand him instead\nof his stuff; after which the serjeant took the key, saying to the\nneighbours, \u201cTell him to bring back this man\u2019s cloth then come to\nme[187] and take his shop key;\u201d and went his way, he and the man. Then\nsaid Abu Sir to Abu Kir, \u201cWhat ill business is this?[188] Whoever\nbringeth thee aught thou losest it for him. What hath become of this\nangry man\u2019s stuff?\u201d Answered the dyer, \u201cO my neighbour, \u2019twas stolen\nfrom me.\u201d \u201cProdigious!\u201d exclaimed the barber. \u201cWhenever any one giveth\nthee aught, a thief stealeth it from thee! Art thou then the\nmeeting-place of every rogue upon town? But I doubt me thou liest: so\ntell me the truth.\u201d Replied Abu Kir, \u201cO my neighbour, none hath stolen\naught from me.\u201d Asked Abu Sir, \u201cWhat then dost thou with the people\u2019s\nproperty?\u201d; and the dyer answered, \u201cWhenever any one giveth me aught to\ndye, I sell it and spend the price.\u201d Quoth Abu Sir, \u201cIs this permitted\nthee of Allah?\u201d and quoth Abu Kir, \u201cI do this only out of poverty,\nbecause business is slack with me and I am poor and have nothing.\u201d[189]\nAnd he went on to complain to him of the dulness of his trade and his\nlack of means. Abu Sir in like manner lamented the little profit of his\nown calling, saying, \u201cI am a master of my craft and have not my equal in\nthis city; but no one cometh to me to be polled, because I am a pauper;\nand I loathe this art and mystery, O my brother.\u201d Abu Kir replied, \u201cAnd\nI also loathe my own craft, by reason of its slackness; but, O my\nbrother, what call is there for our abiding in this town? Let us depart\nfrom it, I and thou, and solace ourselves in the lands of mankind,\ncarrying in our hands our crafts which are in demand all the world over;\nso shall we breathe the air and rest from this grievous trouble.\u201d And he\nceased not to commend travel to Abu Sir, till the barber became wishful\nto set out; so they agreed upon their route,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived\nthe dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-second Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abu Kir\nceased not his praises of wayfaring to Abu Sir till the barber became\nwishful to depart; so they agreed upon their route, at which decision\nAbu Kir rejoiced and improvised these lines:\u2014\n\n Leave thy home for abroad an wouldst rise on high, \u273f And travel whence\n benefits five-fold rise;\n The soothing of sorrow and winning of bread, \u273f Knowledge, manners and\n commerce with good men and wise.\n An they say that in travel are travail and care, \u273f And disunion of\n friends and much hardship that tries;\n Yet to generous youth death is better than life \u273f In the house of\n contempt betwixt haters and spies.\n\nWhen they agreed to travel together Abu Kir said to Abu Sir, \u201cO my\nneighbour, we are become brethren and there is no difference between us,\nso it behoveth us to recite the F\u00e1tihah[190] that he of us who gets work\nshall of his gain feed him who is out of work, and whatever is left, we\nwill lay in a chest; and when we return to Alexandria, we will divide it\nfairly and equally.\u201d \u201cSo be it,\u201d replied Abu Sir, and they repeated the\nOpening Chapter of the Koran on this understanding. Then Abu Sir locked\nup his shop and gave the key to its owner, whilst Abu Kir left his door\nlocked and sealed and let the key lie with the Kazi\u2019s serjeant; after\nwhich they took their baggage and embarked on the morrow in a\ngalleon[191] upon the salt sea. They set sail the same day and fortune\nattended them, for, of Abu Sir\u2019s great good luck, there was not a barber\nin the ship albeit it carried an hundred and twenty men, besides captain\nand crew. So, when they loosed the sails, the barber said to the dyer,\n\u201cO my brother, this is the sea and we shall need meat and drink; we have\nbut little provaunt with us and haply the voyage will be long upon us;\nwherefore methinks I will shoulder my budget and pass among the\npassengers, and may be some one will say to me:\u2014Come hither, O barber,\nand shave me, and I will shave him for a scone or a silver bit or a\ndraught of water: so shall we profit by this, I and thou too.\u201d \u201cThere\u2019s\nno harm in that,\u201d replied the dyer and laid down his head and slept,\nwhilst the barber took his gear and water-tasse[192] and throwing over\nhis shoulder a rag, to serve as napkin (because he was poor), passed\namong the passengers. Quoth one of them, \u201cHo, master, come and shave\nme.\u201d So he shaved him, and the man gave him a half-dirham;[193]\nwhereupon quoth Abu Sir, \u201cO my brother, I have no use for this bit;\nhadst thou given me a scone \u2019twere more blessed to me in this sea, for I\nhave a shipmate and we are short of provision.\u201d So he gave him a loaf\nand a slice of cheese and filled him the tasse with sweet water. The\nbarber carried all this to Abu Kir and said, \u201cEat the bread and cheese\nand drink the water.\u201d Accordingly he ate and drank, whilst Abu Sir again\ntook up his shaving gear and, tasse in hand and rag on shoulder, went\nround about the deck among the passengers. One man he shaved for two\nscones and another for a bittock of cheese, and he was in demand,\nbecause there was no other barber on board. Also he bargained with every\none who said to him, \u201cHo, master, shave me!\u201d for two loaves and a\nhalf-dirham, and they gave him whatever he sought, so that, by sundown,\nhe had collected thirty loaves and thirty silvers with store of cheese\nand olives and botargoes.[194] And besides these he got from the\npassengers whatever he asked for and was soon in possession of things\ngalore. Amongst the rest he shaved the Captain,[195] to whom he\ncomplained of his lack of victual for the voyage, and the skipper said\nto him, \u201cThou art welcome to bring thy comrade every night and sup with\nme and have no care for that so long as ye sail with us.\u201d Then he\nreturned to the dyer, whom he found asleep; so he roused him; and when\nAbu Kir awoke, he saw at his head an abundance of bread and cheese and\nolives and botargoes and said, \u201cWhence gottest thou all this?\u201d \u201cFrom the\nbounty of Allah Almighty,\u201d replied Abu Sir. Then Abu Kir would have\nfallen to, but the barber said to him, \u201cEat not of this, O my brother;\nbut leave it to serve us another time; for know that I shaved the\nCaptain and complained to him of our lack of victual: whereupon quoth\nhe:\u2014Welcome to thee! Bring thy comrade and sup both of ye with me every\nnight. And this night we sup with him for the first time.\u201d But Abu Kir\nreplied, \u201cMy head goeth round with sea-sickness and I cannot rise from\nmy stead; so let me sup off these things and fare thou alone to the\nCaptain.\u201d Abu Sir replied, \u201cThere is no harm in that;\u201d and sat looking\nat the other as he ate, and saw him hew off gobbets, as the quarryman\nheweth stone from the hill-quarries and gulp them down with the gulp of\nan elephant which hath not eaten for days, bolting another mouthful ere\nhe had swallowed the previous one and glaring the while at that which\nwas before him with the glowering of a Ghul and blowing as bloweth the\nhungry bull over his beans and bruised straw. Presently up came a sailor\nand said to the barber, \u201cO craftsmaster, the Captain biddeth thee come\nto supper and bring thy comrade.\u201d Quoth the barber to the dyer, \u201cWilt\nthou come with us?\u201d; but quoth he, \u201cI cannot walk.\u201d So the barber went\nby himself and found the Captain sitting before a tray whereon were a\nscore or more of dishes and all the company were awaiting him and his\nmate. When the Captain saw him he asked, \u201cWhere is thy friend?\u201d; and Abu\nSir answered, \u201cO my lord, he is sea-sick.\u201d Said the skipper, \u201cThat will\ndo him no harm; his sickness will soon pass off; but do thou carry him\nhis supper and come back, for we tarry for thee.\u201d Then he set apart a\nporringer of Kab\u00e1bs and putting therein some of each dish, till there\nwas enough for ten, gave it to Abu Sir, saying, \u201cTake this to thy chum.\u201d\nHe took it and carried it to the dyer, whom he found grinding away with\nhis dog-teeth[196] at the food which was before him, as he were a camel,\nand heaping mouthful on mouthful in his hurry. Quoth Abu Sir, \u201cDid I not\nsay to thee:\u2014Eat not of this? Indeed the Captain is a kindly man. See\nwhat he hath sent thee, for that I told him thou wast sea-sick.\u201d \u201cGive\nit here,\u201d cried the dyer. So the barber gave him the platter, and he\nsnatched it from him and fell upon his food, ravening for it and\nresembling a grinning dog or a raging lion or a Rukh pouncing on a\npigeon or one well-nigh dead for hunger who seeing meat falls ravenously\nto eat. Then Abu Sir left him and going back to the Captain, supped and\nenjoyed himself and drank coffee[197] with him; after which he returned\nto Abu Kir and found that he had eaten all that was in the porringer and\nthrown it aside, empty.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-third Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Abu Sir\nreturned to Abu Kir he saw that he had eaten all that was in the\nporringer and had thrown it aside empty. So he took it up and gave it to\none of the Captain\u2019s servants, then went back to Abu Kir and slept till\nthe morning. On the morrow he continued to shave, and all he got by way\nof meat and drink he gave to his shipmate, who ate and drank and sat\nstill, rising not save to do what none could do for him, and every night\nthe barber brought him a full porringer from the Captain\u2019s table. They\nfared thus twenty days until the galleon cast anchor in the harbour of a\ncity; whereupon they took leave of the skipper and landing, entered the\ntown and hired them a closet in a Khan. Abu Sir furnished it and buying\na cooking pot and a platter and spoons[198] and what else they needed,\nfetched meat and cooked it; but Abu Kir fell asleep the moment he\nentered the Caravanserai and awoke not till Abu Sir aroused him and set\nthe tray of food[199] before him. When he awoke, he ate and saying to\nAbu Sir, \u201cBlame me not, for I am giddy,\u201d fell asleep again. Thus he did\nforty days, whilst, every day, the barber took his gear and making the\nround of the city, wrought for that which fell to his lot,[200] and\nreturning, found the dyer asleep and aroused him. The moment he awoke he\nfell ravenously upon the food, eating as one who cannot have his fill\nnor be satisfied; after which he went asleep again. On this wise he\npassed other forty days and whenever the barber said to him, \u201cSit up and\nbe comfortable[201] and go forth and take an airing in the city, for\n\u2019tis a gay place and a pleasant and hath not its equal among the\ncities,\u201d he would reply, \u201cBlame me not, for I am giddy.\u201d Abu Sir cared\nnot to hurt his feelings nor give him hard words; but, on the\nforty-first day, he himself fell sick and could not go abroad; so he\nengaged the porter of the Khan to serve them both, and he did the\nneedful for them and brought them meat and drink whilst Abu Kir would do\nnothing but eat and sleep. The man ceased not to wait upon them on this\nwise for four days, at the end of which time the barber\u2019s malady\nredoubled on him, till he lost his senses for stress of sickness; and\nAbu Kir, feeling the sharp pangs of hunger, arose and sought in his\ncomrade\u2019s clothes, where he found a thousand silver bits. He took them\nand, shutting the door of the closet upon Abu Sir, fared forth without\ntelling any; and the doorkeeper was then at market and thus saw him not\ngo out. Presently Abu Kir betook himself to the bazar and clad himself\nin costly clothes, at a price of five hundred half-dirhams; then he\nproceeded to walk about the streets and divert himself by viewing the\ncity which he found to be one whose like was not among cities; but he\nnoted that all its citizens were clad in clothes of white and blue,\nwithout other colour. Presently he came to a dyer\u2019s and seeing naught\nbut blue in his shop, pulled out to him a kerchief and said, \u201cO master,\ntake this and dye it and win thy wage.\u201d Quoth the dyer, \u201cThe cost of\ndyeing this will be twenty dirhams;\u201d and quoth Abu Kir, \u201cIn our country\nwe dye it for two.\u201d \u201cThen go and dye it in your own country! As for me,\nmy price is twenty dirhams and I will not bate a little thereof.\u201d \u201cWhat\ncolour wilt thou dye it?\u201d \u201cI will dye it blue.\u201d \u201cBut I want it dyed\nred.\u201d \u201cI know not how to dye red.\u201d \u201cThen dye it green.\u201d \u201cI know not how\nto dye green.\u201d \u201cYellow.\u201d \u201cNor yet yellow.\u201d Thereupon Abu Kir went on to\nname the different tints to him, one after other, till the dyer said,\n\u201cWe are here in this city forty master-dyers, not one more nor one less;\nand when one of us dieth, we teach his son the craft. If he leave no\nson, we abide lacking one, and if he leave two sons, we teach one of\nthem the craft, and if he die, we teach his brother. This our craft is\nstrictly ordered, and we know how to dye but blue and no other tint\nwhatsoever.\u201d Then said Abu Kir, \u201cKnow that I too am a dyer and wot how\nto dye all colours; and I would have thee take me into thy service on\nhire, and I will teach thee everything of my art, so thou mayst glory\ntherein over all the company of dyers.\u201d But the dyer answered, \u201cWe never\nadmit a stranger into our craft.\u201d Asked Abu Kir, \u201cAnd what if I open a\ndyery for myself?\u201d; whereto the other answered, \u201cWe will not suffer thee\nto do that on any wise;\u201d whereupon he left him and going to a second\ndyer, made him the like proposal; but he returned him the same answer as\nthe first; and he ceased not to go from one to other, till he had made\nthe round of the whole forty masters; but they would not accept him\neither to master or apprentice. Then he repaired to the Shaykh of the\nDyers and told him what had passed, and he said, \u201cWe admit no strangers\ninto our craft.\u201d Hereupon Abu Kir became exceeding wroth and going up to\nthe King of that city, made complaint to him, saying, \u201cO King of the\nage, I am a stranger and a dyer by trade\u201d; and he told him whatso had\npassed between himself and the dyers of the town, adding, \u201cI can dye\nvarious kinds of red, such as rose-colour and jujube-colour and various\nkinds of green, such as grass-green and pistachio-green and olive and\nparrot\u2019s wing, and various kinds of black, such as coal-black and\nKohl-black, and various shades of yellow, such as orange[202] and\nlemon-colour,\u201d and went on to name to him the rest of the colours. Then\nsaid he, \u201cO King of the age, all the dyers in thy city can not turn out\nof hand any one of these tincts, for they know not how to dye aught but\nblue; yet will they not admit me amongst them, either to master or\napprentice.\u201d Answered the King, \u201cThou sayst sooth for that matter, but I\nwill open to thee a dyery and give thee capital and have thou no care\nanent them; for whoso offereth to do thee let or hindrance, I will hang\nhim over his shop-door.\u201d Then he sent for builders and said to them, \u201cGo\nround about the city with this master-dyer, and whatsoever place\npleaseth him, be it shop or Khan or what not, turn out its occupier and\nbuild him a dyery after his wish. Whatsoever he biddeth you, that do ye\nand oppose him not in aught.\u201d And he clad him in a handsome suit and\ngave him two white slaves to serve him, and a horse with housings of\nbrocade and a thousand dinars, saying, \u201cExpend this upon thyself against\nthe building be completed.\u201d Accordingly Abu Kir donned the dress and\nmounting the horse, became as he were an Emir. Moreover the King\nassigned him a house and bade furnish it; so they furnished it for\nhim.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-fourth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the King\nassigned a house to Abu Kir and bade furnish it and he took up his abode\ntherein. On the morrow he mounted and rode through the city, whilst the\narchitects went before him; and he looked about him till he saw a place\nwhich pleased him and said, \u201cThis stead is seemly;\u201d whereupon they\nturned out the owner and carried him to the King, who gave him as the\nprice of his holding, what contented him and more. Then the builders\nfell to work, whilst Abu Kir said to them, \u201cBuild thus and thus and do\nthis and that,\u201d till they built him a dyery that had not its like;\nwhereupon he presented himself before the King and informed him that\nthey had done building the dyery and that there needed but the price of\nthe dye-stuffs and gear to set it going. Quoth the King, \u201cTake these\nfour thousand dinars to thy capital and let me see the first fruits of\nthy dyery.\u201d So he took the money and went to the market where, finding\ndye-stuffs[203] plentiful and well-nigh worthless, he bought all he\nneeded of materials for dyeing; and the King sent him five hundred\npieces of stuff, which he set himself to dye of all colours and then he\nspread them before the door of his dyery. When the folk passed by the\nshop, they saw a wonder-sight whose like they had never in their lives\nseen; so they crowded about the entrance, enjoying the spectacle and\nquestioning the dyer and saying, \u201cO master, what are the names of these\ncolours?\u201d Quoth he, \u201cThis is red and that yellow and the other green\u201d\nand so on, naming the rest of the colours. And they fell to bringing him\nlongcloth and saying to him, \u201cDye it for us like this and that and take\nwhat hire thou seekest.\u201d When he had made an end of dyeing the King\u2019s\nstuffs, he took them and went up with them to the Divan; and when the\nKing saw them he rejoiced in them and bestowed abundant bounty on the\ndyer. Furthermore, all the troops brought him stuffs, saying, \u201cDye for\nus thus and thus;\u201d and he dyed for them to their liking, and they threw\nhim gold and silver. After this his fame spread abroad and his shop was\ncalled the Sultan\u2019s Dyery. Good came in to him at every door and none of\nthe other dyers could say a word to him, but they used to come to him\nkissing his hands and excusing themselves to him for past affronts they\nhad offered him and saying, \u201cTake us to thine apprentices.\u201d But he would\nnone of them for he had become the owner of black slaves and handmaids\nand had amassed store of wealth. On this wise fared it with Abu Kir; but\nas regards Abu Sir, after the closet door had been locked on him and his\nmoney had been stolen, he abode prostrate and unconscious for three\nsuccessive days, at the end of which the Concierge of the Khan, chancing\nto look at the door, observed that it was locked and bethought himself\nthat he had not seen and heard aught of the two companions for some\ntime. So he said in his mind, \u201cHaply they have made off, without paying\nrent,[204] or perhaps they are dead, or what is to do with them?\u201d And he\nwaited till sunset, when he went up to the door and heard the barber\ngroaning within. He saw the key in the lock; so he opened the door and\nentering, found Abu Sir lying, groaning, and said to him, \u201cNo harm to\nthee: where is thy friend?\u201d Replied Abu Sir, \u201cBy Allah, I came to my\nsenses only this day and called out; but none answered my call. Allah\nupon thee, O my brother, look for the purse under my head and take from\nit five half-dirhams and buy me somewhat nourishing, for I am sore\nanhungered.\u201d The porter put out his hand and taking the purse, found it\nempty and said to the barber, \u201cThe purse is empty; there is nothing in\nit.\u201d Whereupon Abu Sir knew that Abu Kir had taken that which was\ntherein and had fled and he asked the porter, \u201cHast thou not seen my\nfriend?\u201d Answered the doorkeeper, \u201cI have not seen him these three days;\nand indeed methought you had departed, thou and he.\u201d The barber cried,\n\u201cNot so; but he coveted my money and took it and fled seeing me sick.\u201d\nThen he fell a-weeping and a-wailing but the doorkeeper said to him, \u201cNo\nharm shall befal thee, and Allah will requite him his deed.\u201d So he went\naway and cooked him some broth, whereof he ladled out a plateful and\nbrought it to him; nor did he cease to tend him and maintain him with\nhis own monies for two months\u2019 space, when the barber sweated[205] and\nthe Almighty made him whole of his sickness. Then he stood up and said\nto the porter, \u201cAn ever the Most High Lord enable me, I will surely\nrequite thee thy kindness to me; but none requiteth save the Lord of His\nbounty!\u201d Answered the porter, \u201cPraised be He for thy recovery! I dealt\nnot thus with thee but of desire for the face of Allah the Bountiful.\u201d\nThen the barber went forth of the Khan and threaded the market-streets\nof the town, till Destiny brought him to the bazar wherein was Abu Kir\u2019s\ndyery, and he saw the vari-coloured stuffs dispread before the shop and\na jostle of folk crowding to look upon them. So he questioned one of the\ntownsmen and asked him, \u201cWhat place is this and how cometh it that I see\nthe folk crowding together?\u201d; whereto the man answered, saying, \u201cThis is\nthe Sultan\u2019s Dyery, which he set up for a foreigner Abu Kir hight; and\nwhenever he dyeth new stuff, we all flock to him and divert ourselves by\ngazing upon his handiwork, for we have no dyers in our land who know how\nto stain with these colours; and indeed there befel him with the dyers\nwho are in the city that which befel.\u201d[206] And he went on to tell him\nall that had passed between Abu Kir and the master-dyers and how he had\ncomplained of them to the Sultan who took him by the hand and built him\nthat dyery and gave him this and that: brief, he recounted to him all\nthat had occurred. At this the barber rejoiced and said in himself,\n\u201cPraised be Allah who hath prospered him, so that he is become a master\nof his craft! And the man is excusable, for of a surety he hath been\ndiverted from thee by his work and hath forgotten thee; but thou actedst\nkindly by him and entreatedst him generously, what time he was out of\nwork; so, when he seeth thee, he will rejoice in thee and entreat thee\ngenerously, even as thou entreatedst him.\u201d According he made for the\ndoor of the dyery and saw Abu Kir seated on a high mattress spread upon\na bench beside the doorway, clad in royal apparel and attended by four\nblackamoor slaves and four white Mamelukes all robed in the richest of\nraiment. Moreover, he saw the workmen, ten negro slaves, standing at\nwork; for, when Abu Kir bought them, he taught them the craft of dyeing,\nand he himself sat amongst his cushions, as he were a Grand Wazir or a\nmighty Monarch putting his hand to naught, but only saying to the men,\n\u201cDo this and do that.\u201d So the barber went up to him and stood before\nhim, deeming he would rejoice in him when he saw him and salute him and\nentreat him with honour and make much of him; but, when eye fell upon\neye, the dyer said to him, \u201cO scoundrel, how many a time have I bidden\nthee stand not at the door of the workshop? Hast thou a mind to disgrace\nme with the folk, thief[207] that thou art? Seize him.\u201d So the\nblackamoors ran at him and laid hold of him; and the dyer rose up from\nhis seat and said, \u201cThrow him.\u201d Accordingly they threw him down and Abu\nKir took a stick and dealt him an hundred strokes on the back; after\nwhich they turned him over and he beat him other hundred blows on his\nbelly. Then he said to him, \u201cO scoundrel, O villain, if ever again I see\nthee standing at the door of this dyery, I will forthwith send thee to\nthe King, and he will commit thee to the Chief of Police, that he may\nstrike thy neck. Begone, may Allah not bless thee!\u201d So Abu Sir departed\nfrom him, broken-hearted by reason of the beating and shame that had\nbetided him; whilst the bystanders asked Abu Kir, \u201cWhat hath this man\ndone?\u201d He answered, \u201cThe fellow is a thief, who stealeth the stuffs of\nfolk.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-fifth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Abu Kir beat\nAbu Sir and thrust him forth he said to those present, \u201cHe is a thief\nwho stealeth the stuffs of folk; he hath robbed me of cloth, how many a\ntime! and I still said in myself:\u2014Allah forgive him! He is a poor man;\nand I cared not to deal roughly with him; so I used to give my customers\nthe worth of their goods and forbid him gently; but he would not be\nforbidden: and if he come again, I will send him to the King, who will\nput him to death and rid the people of his mischief.\u201d And the bystanders\nfell to abusing the barber after his back was turned. Such was the\nbehaviour of Abu Kir; but as regards Abu Sir, he returned to the Khan,\nwhere he sat pondering that which the dyer had done by him and he\nremained seated till the burning of the beating subsided, when he went\nout and walked about the markets of the city. Presently, he bethought\nhim to go to the Hammam-bath; so he said to one of the townsfolk, \u201cO my\nbrother, which is the way to the Baths?\u201d Quoth the man, \u201cAnd what manner\nof thing may the Baths be?\u201d and quoth Abu Sir, \u201c\u2019Tis a place where\npeople wash themselves and do away their dirt and defilements, and it is\nof the best of the good things of the world.\u201d Replied the townsman, \u201cGet\nthee to the sea,\u201d but the barber rejoined, \u201cI want the Hammam-baths.\u201d\nCried the other, \u201cWe know not what manner of thing is the Hammam, for we\nall resort to the sea; even the King, when he would wash, betaketh\nhimself to the sea.\u201d When Abu Sir was assured that there was no bath in\nthe city and that the folk knew not the Baths nor the fashion thereof,\nhe betook himself to the King\u2019s Divan and kissing ground between his\nhands called down blessings on him and said, \u201cI am a stranger and a\nBath-man by trade, and I entered thy city and thought to go to the\nHammam; but found not one therein. How cometh a city of this comely\nquality to lack a Hammam, seeing that the bath is of the highest of the\ndelights of this world?\u201d Quoth the King, \u201cWhat manner of thing is the\nHammam?\u201d So Abu Sir proceeded to set forth to him the quality of the\nbath, saying, \u201cThy capital will not be a perfect city till there be a\nHammam therein.\u201d \u201cWelcome to thee!\u201d said the King and clad him in a\ndress that had not its like and gave him a horse and two blackamoor\nslaves, presently adding four handmaids and as many white Mamelukes: he\nalso appointed him a furnished house and honoured him yet more\nabundantly than he had honoured the dyer. After this he sent builders\nwith him saying to them, \u201cBuild him a Hammam in what place soever shall\nplease him.\u201d So he took them and went with them through the midst of the\ncity, till he saw a stead that suited him. He pointed it out to the\nbuilders and they set to work, whilst he directed them, and they wrought\ntill they builded him a Hammam that had not its like. Then he bade them\npaint it, and they painted it rarely, so that it was a delight to the\nbeholders; after which Abu Sir went up to the King and told him that\nthey had made an end of building and decorating the Hammam, adding,\n\u201cThere lacketh naught save the furniture.\u201d The King gave him ten\nthousand dinars wherewith he furnished the Bath and ranged the napkins\non the ropes; and all who passed by the door stared at it and their mind\nwas confounded at its decorations. So the people crowded to this\nspectacle, whose like they had never in their lives seen, and solaced\nthemselves by staring at it and saying, \u201cWhat is this thing?\u201d To which\nAbu Sir replied, \u201cThis is a Hammam;\u201d and they marvelled thereat. Then he\nheated water and set the bath a-working,[208] and he made a jetting\nfountain in the great basin, which ravished the wit of all who saw it of\nthe people of the city. Furthermore, he sought of the King ten Mamelukes\nnot yet come to manhood, and he gave him ten boys like moons; whereupon\nAbu Sir proceeded to shampoo them, saying, \u201cDo in this wise with the\nbathers.\u201d Then he burnt perfumes and sent out a crier to cry aloud in\nthe city, saying, \u201cO creatures of Allah, get ye to the Baths which be\ncalled the Sultan\u2019s Hammam!\u201d So the lieges came thither and Abu Sir bade\nthe slave-boys wash their bodies. The folk went down into the tank and\ncoming forth, seated themselves on the raised pavement, whilst the boys\nshampooed them, even as Abu Sir had taught them; and they continued to\nenter the Hammam and do their need therein gratis and go out, without\npaying, for the space of three days. On the fourth day the barber\ninvited the King, who took horse with his Grandees and rode to the\nBaths, where he put off his clothes and entered; then Abu Sir came in to\nhim and rubbed his body with the bag-gloves, peeling from his skin\ndirt-rolls like lamp-wicks and showing them to the King, who rejoiced\ntherein, and clapping his hand upon his limbs heard them ring again for\nvery smoothness and cleanliness[209]; after which thorough washing Abu\nSir mingled rose-water with the water of the tank and the King went down\ntherein. When he came forth, his body was refreshed and he felt a\nlightness and liveliness such as he had never known in his life. Then\nthe barber made him sit on the da\u00efs and the boys proceeded to shampoo\nhim, whilst the censers fumed with the finest lign-aloes.[210] Then said\nthe King, \u201cO master is this the Hammam?\u201d; and Abu Sir said, \u201cYes.\u201d Quoth\nthe King, \u201cAs my head liveth, my city is not become a city indeed but by\nthis Bath,\u201d presently adding, \u201cBut what pay takest thou for each\nperson?\u201d Quoth Abu Sir, \u201cThat which thou biddest will I take;\u201d whereupon\nthe King cried, \u201cTake a thousand gold pieces for every one who washeth\nin thy Hammam.\u201d Abu Sir, however, said, \u201cPardon, O King of the age! All\nmen are not alike, but there are amongst them rich and poor, and if I\ntake of each a thousand dinars, the Hammam will stand empty, for the\npoor man cannot pay this price.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cHow then wilt thou do\nfor the price!\u201d; and the barber answered, \u201cI will leave it to their\ngenerosity.[211] Each who can afford aught shall pay that which his soul\ngrudgeth not to give, and we will take from every man after the measure\nof his means. On this wise will the folk come to us and he who is\nwealthy shall give according to his station and he who is wealth-less\nshall give what he can afford. Under such condition the Hammam will\nstill be at work and prosper exceedingly; but a thousand dinars is a\nMonarch\u2019s gift, and not every man can avail to this.\u201d The Lords of the\nRealm confirmed Abu Sir\u2019s words, saying, \u201cThis is the truth, O King of\nthe age! Thinkest thou that all folk are like unto thee, O glorious\nKing[212]?\u201d The King replied, \u201cYe say sooth; but this man is a stranger\nand poor and \u2019tis incumbent on us to deal generously with him, for that\nhe hath made in our city this Hammam whose like we have never in our\nlives seen and without which our city were not adorned nor hath gotten\nimportance; wherefore, an we favour him with increase of fee \u2019twill not\nbe much.\u201d But the Grandees said, \u201cAn thou wilt guerdon him be generous\nwith thine own monies, and let the King\u2019s bounty be extended to the poor\nby means of the low price of the Hammam, so the lieges may bless thee;\nbut, as for the thousand dinars, we are the Lords of thy Land, yet do\nour souls grudge to pay it; and how then should the poor be pleased to\nafford it?\u201d Quoth the King, \u201cO my Grandees, for this time let each of\nyou give him an hundred dinars and a Mameluke, a slave girl and a\nblackamoor;\u201d and quoth they, \u201c\u2019Tis well; we will give it; but after\nto-day whoso entereth shall give him only what he can afford, without\ngrudging.\u201d \u201cNo harm in that,\u201d said the King; and they gave him the\nthousand gold pieces and three chattels. Now the number of the Nobles\nwho were washed with the King that day was four hundred souls;\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-sixth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the number of\nthe Nobles who were washed with the King that day were four hundred\nsouls; so that the total of that which they gave him was forty thousand\ndinars, besides four hundred Mamelukes and a like number of negroes and\nslave-girls.[213] Moreover the King gave him ten thousand dinars,\nbesides ten white slaves and ten handmaidens and a like number of\nblackamoors; whereupon coming forward Abu Sir kissed the ground before\nhim and said, \u201cO auspicious Sovereign, lord of justice, what place will\ncontain me all these women and slaves?\u201d Quoth the King, \u201cO weak o\u2019 wit,\nI bade not my nobles deal thus with thee but that we might gather\ntogether unto thee wealth galore; for may be thou wilt bethink thee of\nthy country and family and repine for them and be minded to return to\nthy mother-land; so shalt thou take from our country muchel of money to\nmaintain thyself withal, what while thou livest in thine own country.\u201d\nAnd quoth Abu Sir, \u201cO King of the age, (Allah advance thee!) these white\nslaves and women and negroes befit only Kings and hadst thou ordered me\nready money, it were more profitable to me than this army; for they must\neat and drink and dress, and whatever betideth me of wealth, it will not\nsuffice for their support.\u201d The King laughed and said, \u201cBy Allah thou\nspeakest sooth! They are indeed a mighty host, and thou hast not the\nwherewithal to maintain them; but wilt thou sell them to me for an\nhundred dinars a head?\u201d Said Abu Sir, \u201cI sell them to thee at that\nprice.\u201d So the King sent to his treasurer for the coin and he brought it\nand gave Abu Sir the whole of the price without abatement[214] and in\nfull tale; after which the King restored the slaves to their owners,\nsaying, \u201cLet each of you who knoweth his slaves take them; for they are\na gift from me to you.\u201d So they obeyed his bidding and took each what\nbelonged to him; whilst Abu Sir said to the King, \u201cAllah ease thee, O\nKing of the age, even as thou hast eased me of these Ghuls, whose\nbellies none may fill save Allah[215]!\u201d The King laughed, and said he\nspake sooth; then, taking the Grandees of his Realm from the Hammam\nreturned to his palace; but the barber passed the night in counting out\nhis gold and laying it up in bags and sealing them; and he had with him\ntwenty black slaves and a like number of Mamelukes and four slave girls\nto serve him. Now when morning morrowed, he opened the Hammam and sent\nout a crier to cry, saying, \u201cWhoso entereth the Baths and washeth shall\ngive that which he can afford and which his generosity requireth him to\ngive.\u201d Then he seated himself by the pay-chest[216] and customers\nflocked in upon him, each putting down that which was easy to him, nor\nhad eventide evened ere the chest was full of the good gifts of Allah\nthe Most High. Presently the Queen desired to go to the Hammam, and when\nthis came to Abu Sir\u2019s knowledge, he divided the day on her account into\ntwo parts, appointing that between dawn and noon to men and that between\nmidday and sundown to women.[217] As soon as the Queen came, he\nstationed a handmaid behind the pay-chest; for he had taught four\nslave-girls the service of the Hammam, so that they were become expert\nbath-women and tire-women. When the Queen entered, this pleased her and\nher breast waxed broad and she laid down a thousand dinars. Thus his\nreport was noised abroad in the city, and all who entered the bath he\nentreated with honour, were they rich or poor; good came in upon him at\nevery door and he made acquaintance with the royal guards and got him\nfriends and intimates. The King himself used to come to him one day in\nevery week, leaving with him a thousand dinars and the other days were\nfor rich and poor alike; and he was wont to deal courteously with the\nfolk and use them with the utmost respect. It chanced that the King\u2019s\nsea-captain came in to him one day in the bath; so Abu Sir did off his\ndress and going in with him, proceeded to shampoo him and entreated him\nwith exceeding courtesy. When he came forth, he made him sherbet and\ncoffee; and when he would have given him somewhat, he swore that he\nwould not accept from him aught. So the captain was under obligation to\nhim, by reason of his exceeding kindness and courtesy and was perplexed\nhow to requite the bath-man his generous dealing. Thus fared it with Abu\nSir: but as regards Abu Kir, hearing all the people recounting wonders\nof the Baths and saying, \u201cVerily, this Hammam is the Paradise of this\nworld! Inshallah, O such an one, thou shalt go with us to-morrow to this\ndelightful bath,\u201d he said to himself, \u201cNeeds must I fare like the rest\nof the world, and see this bath that hath taken folk\u2019s wits.\u201d So he\ndonned his richest dress and mounting a she-mule and bidding the\nattendance of four white slaves and four blacks, walking before and\nbehind him, he rode to the Hammam. When he alighted at the door, he\nsmelt the scent of burning aloes-wood and found people going in and out\nand the benches full of great and small. So he entered the vestibule and\nsaw Abu Sir, who rose to him and rejoiced in him: but the dyer said to\nhim, \u201cIs this the way of well-born men? I have opened me a dyery and am\nbecome master-dyer of the city and acquainted with the King and have\nrisen to prosperity and authority: yet camest thou not to me nor askest\nof me nor saidst, Where\u2019s my comrade? For my part I sought thee in vain\nand sent my slaves and servants to make search for thee in all the Khans\nand other places; but they knew not whither thou hadst gone, nor could\nany one give me tidings of thee.\u201d Said Abu Sir, \u201cDid I not come to thee\nand didst thou not make me out a thief and bastinado me and dishonour me\nbefore the world?\u201d At this Abu Kir made a show of concern and asked,\n\u201cWhat manner of talk is this? Was it thou whom I beat?\u201d: and Abu Sir\nanswered, \u201cYes, \u2019twas I.\u201d Whereupon Abu Kir swore to him a thousand\noaths that he knew him not and said, \u201cThere was a fellow like thee, who\nused to come every day and steal the people\u2019s stuff, and I took thee for\nhim.\u201d And he went on to pretend penitence, beating hand upon hand and\nsaying, \u201cThere is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the\nGlorious, the Great? Indeed we have sinned against thee; but would that\nthou hadst discovered thyself to me and said, I am such an one! Indeed\nthe fault is with thee, for that thou madest not thyself known unto me,\nmore especially seeing that I was distracted for much business.\u201d Replied\nAbu Sir, \u201cAllah pardon thee,[218] O my comrade! This was foreordained in\nthe Secret Purpose, and reparation is with Allah. Enter and put off thy\nclothes and bathe at thine ease.\u201d Said the dyer, \u201cI conjure thee, by\nAllah, O my brother, forgive me!\u201d; and said Abu Sir, \u201cAllah acquit thee\nof blame and forgive thee! Indeed this thing was decreed to me from all\neternity.\u201d Then asked Abu Kir, \u201cWhence gottest thou this high degree?\u201d;\nand answered Abu Sir, \u201cHe who prospered thee prospered me; for I went up\nto the King and described to him the fashion of the Hammam and he bade\nme build one.\u201d And the dyer said, \u201cEven as thou art beknown of the King,\nso also am I;\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased\nsaying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-seventh Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Abu Kir\nand Abu Sir were exchanging reproof and excuse, the dyer said to him,\n\u201cEven as thou art beknown of the King, so also am I; and, Inshallah,\u2014God\nwilling\u2014I will make him love and favour thee more than ever, for my\nsake, he knoweth not that thou art my comrade, but I will acquaint him\nof this and commend thee to him.\u201d But Abu Sir said, \u201cThere needeth no\ncommendation; for He who moveth man\u2019s heart to love still liveth; and\nindeed the King and all his court affect me and have given me this and\nthat.\u201d And he told him the whole tale and said to him, \u201cPut off thy\nclothes behind the chest and enter the Hammam, and I will go in with\nthee and rub thee down with the glove.\u201d So he doffed his dress and Abu\nSir, entering the bath with him, soaped him and gloved him and then\ndressed him and busied himself with his service till he came forth, when\nhe brought him dinner and sherbets, whilst all the folk marvelled at the\nhonour he did him. Then Abu Kir would have given him somewhat; but he\nswore that he would not accept aught from him and said to him, \u201cShame\nupon such doings! Thou art my comrade, and there is no difference\nbetween us.\u201d Then Abu Kir observed, \u201cBy Allah, O my comrade, this is a\nmighty fine Hammam of thine, but there lacketh somewhat in its\nordinance.\u201d Asked Abu Sir, \u201cAnd what is that?\u201d and Abu Kir answered, \u201cIt\nis the depilatory,[219] to wit, the paste compounded of yellow arsenic\nand quicklime which removeth the hair with comfort. Do thou prepare it\nand next time the King cometh, present it to him, teaching him how he\nshall cause the hair to fall off by such means, and he will love thee\nwith exceeding love and honour thee.\u201d Quoth Abu Sir, \u201cThou speakest\nsooth, and Inshallah, I will at once make it.\u201d Then Abu Kir left him and\nmounted his mule and going to the King said to him, \u201cI have a warning to\ngive thee, O King of the age!\u201d \u201cAnd what is thy warning?\u201d asked the\nKing; and Abu Kir answered, \u201cI hear that thou hast built a Hammam.\u201d\nQuoth the King, \u201cYes: there came to me a stranger and I builded the\nBaths for him, even as I builded the dyery for thee; and indeed \u2019tis a\nmighty fine Hammam and an ornament to my city;\u201d and he went on to\ndescribe to him the virtues of the bath. Quoth the dyer, \u201cHast thou\nentered therein?\u201d; and quoth the King, \u201cYes.\u201d Thereupon cried Abu Kir,\n\u201cAlhamdolillah\u2014praised be God,\u2014who saved thee from the mischief of\nyonder villain and foe of the Faith, I mean the bath-keeper!\u201d The King\nenquired, \u201cAnd what of him?\u201d; and Abu Kir replied, \u201cKnow, O King of the\nage that, an thou enter the Hammam again, after this day, thou wilt\nsurely perish.\u201d \u201cHow so?\u201d said the King; and the dyer said, \u201cThis\nbath-keeper is thy foe and the foe of the Faith, and he induced thee not\nto stablish this Bath but because he designed therein to poison thee. He\nhath made for thee somewhat and he will present it to thee when thou\nenterest the Hammam, saying:\u2014This is a drug which, if one apply to his\nparts below the waist, will remove the hair with comfort. Now it is no\ndrug, but a drastic dreg and a deadly poison; for the Sultan of the\nChristians hath promised this obscene fellow to release to him his wife\nand children, an he will kill thee; for they are prisoners in the hands\nof that Sultan. I myself was captive with him in their land, but I\nopened a dyery and dyed for them various colours, so that they\nconciliated the King\u2019s heart to me and he bade me ask a boon of him. I\nsought of him freedom and he set me at liberty, whereupon I made my way\nto this city and seeing yonder man in the Hammam, said to him, \u201cHow\ndidst thou effect thine escape and win free with thy wife and children?\u201d\nQuoth he, \u201cWe ceased not to be in captivity, I and my wife and children,\ntill one day the King of the Nazarenes held a court whereat I was\npresent, amongst a number of others; and as I stood amongst the folk, I\nheard them open out on the Kings and name them, one after other, till\nthey came to the name of the King of this city, whereupon the King of\nthe Christians cried out Alas! and said, \u201cNone vexeth me[220] in the\nworld, but the King of such a city![221] Whosoever will contrive me his\nslaughter I will give him all he shall ask.\u201d So I went up to him and\nsaid, \u201cAn I compass for thee his slaughter, wilt thou set me free, me\nand my wife and my children?\u201d The King replied \u201cYes; and I will give\nthee to boot whatso thou shalt desire.\u201d So we agreed upon this and he\nsent me in a galleon to this city, where I presented myself to the King\nand he built me this Hammam. Now, therefore, I have nought to do but to\nslay him and return to the King of the Nazarenes, that I may redeem my\nchildren and my wife and ask a boon of him.\u201d Quoth I:\u2014And how wilt thou\ngo about to kill him?; and quoth he:\u2014By the simplest of all devices; for\nI have compounded him somewhat wherein is poison; so, when he cometh to\nthe bath, I shall say to him:\u2014Take this paste and anoint therewith thy\nparts below the waist for it will cause the hair[222] to drop off. So he\nwill take it and apply it to himself and the poison will work in him a\nday and a night, till it reacheth his heart and destroyeth him; and\nmeanwhile I shall have made off and none will know that it was I slew\nhim.\u201d \u201cWhen I heard this,\u201d added Abu Kir, \u201cI feared for thee, my\nbenefactor, wherefore I have told thee of what is doing.\u201d As soon as the\nKing heard the dyer\u2019s story, he was wroth with exceeding wrath and said\nto him, \u201cKeep this secret.\u201d Then he resolved to visit the Hammam, that\nhe might dispel doubt by supplying certainty; and when he entered, Abu\nSir doffed his dress and betaking himself as of wont to the service of\nthe King, proceeded to glove him; after which he said to him, \u201cO King of\nthe age, I have made a drug which assisteth in plucking out the lower\nhair.\u201d Cried the King, \u201cBring it to me\u201d: so the barber brought it to him\nand the King, finding it nauseous of smell, was assured that it was\npoison; wherefore he was incensed and called out to his guards, saying,\n\u201cSeize him!\u201d Accordingly they seized him and the King donned his dress\nand returned to his palace, boiling with fury, whilst none knew the\ncause of his indignation; for, of the excess of his wrath he had\nacquainted no one therewith and none dared ask him. Then he repaired to\nthe audience-chamber and causing Abu Sir to be brought before him, with\nhis elbows pinioned, sent for his Sea-captain and said to him, \u201cTake\nthis villain and set him in a sack with two quintals of lime unslacked\nand tie its mouth over his head. Then lay him in a cock-boat and row out\nwith him in front of my palace, where thou wilt see me sitting at the\nlattice. Do thou say to me:\u2014Shall I cast him in? and if I answer, \u201cCast\nhim!\u201d throw the sack into the sea, so the quicklime may be slaked on him\nto the intent that he shall die drowned and burnt.\u201d[223] \u201cHearkening and\nobeying;\u201d quoth the Captain and taking Abu Sir from the presence carried\nhim to an island facing the King\u2019s palace, where he said to him, \u201cHo\nthou, I once visited thy Hammam and thou entreatedst me with honour and\naccomplishedst all my needs and I had great pleasure of thee: moreover,\nthou swarest that thou wouldst take no pay of me, and I love thee with a\ngreat love. So tell me how the case standeth between thee and the King\nand what abominable deed thou hast done with him that he is wroth with\nthee and hath commanded me that thou shouldst die this foul death.\u201d\nAnswered Abu Sir, \u201cI have done nothing, nor weet I of any crime I have\ncommitted against him which meriteth this!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the\ndawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-eighth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nSea-captain asked Abu Sir the cause of the King\u2019s wrath with him, he\nreplied, \u201cBy Allah, O my brother I have committed no crime against him\nwhich meriteth this!\u201d Rejoined the Captain, \u201cVerily, thou wast high in\nrank with the King, such as none ever won before thee, and all who are\nprosperous are envied. Haply some one was jealous of thy good fortune\nand threw out certain hints concerning thee to the King, by reason\nwhereof he is become enraged against thee with rage so violent: but be\nof good cheer; no harm shall befal thee; for, even as thou entreatedst\nme generously, without acquaintanceship between me and thee, so now I\nwill deliver thee. But, an if I release thee, thou must abide with me on\nthis island till some galleon sail from our city to thy native land,\nwhen I will send thee thither therein.\u201d Abu Sir kissed his hand and\nthanked him for that; after which the Captain fetched the quicklime and\nset it in a sack, together with a great stone, the size of a man,\nsaying, \u201cI put my trust in Allah!\u201d[224] Then he gave the barber a net,\nsaying, \u201cCast this net into the sea, so haply thou mayst take somewhat\nof fish. For I am bound to supply the King\u2019s kitchen with fish every\nday; but to-day I have been distracted from fishing by this calamity\nwhich hath befallen thee, and I fear lest the cook\u2019s boys come to me in\nquest of fish and find none. So, an thou take aught, they will find it\nand thou wilt veil my face,[225] whilst I go and play off my practice in\nfront of the palace and feign to cast thee into the sea.\u201d Answered Abu\nSir, \u201cI will fish the while; go thou and God help thee!\u201d So the Captain\nset the sack in the boat and paddled till he came under the palace,\nwhere he saw the King seated at the lattice and said to him, \u201cO King of\nthe age, shall I cast him in?\u201d \u201cCast him!\u201d cried the King, and signed to\nhim with his hand, when lo and behold!; something flashed like leven and\nfell into the sea. Now that which had fallen into the water was the\nKing\u2019s seal-ring; and the same was enchanted in such way that, when the\nKing was wroth with any one and was minded to slay him, he had but to\nsign to him with his right hand, whereon was the signet-ring, and\ntherefrom issued a flash of lightning, which smote the object, and\nthereupon his head fell from between his shoulders; and the troops\nobeyed him not, nor did he overcome the men of might save by means of\nthe ring. So, when it dropped from his finger, he concealed the matter\nand kept silence, for that he dared not say, \u201cMy ring is fallen into the\nsea,\u201d for fear of the troops, lest they rise against him and slay him.\nOn this wise it befel the King; but as regards Abu Sir, after the\nCaptain had left him on the island he took the net and casting it into\nthe sea presently drew it up full of fish; nor did he cease to throw it\nand pull it up full, till there was a great mound of fish before him. So\nhe said in himself, \u201cBy Allah, this long while I have not eaten fish!\u201d;\nand chose himself a large fat fish, saying, \u201cWhen the Captain cometh\nback, I will bid him fry it for me, so I may dine on it.\u201d Then he cut\nits throat with a knife he had with him; but the knife stuck in its\ngills and there he saw the King\u2019s signet-ring; for the fish had\nswallowed it and Destiny had driven it to that island, where it had\nfallen into the net. He took the ring and drew it on his little\nfinger,[226] not knowing its peculiar properties. Presently, up came two\nof the cook\u2019s boys in quest of fish and seeing Abu Sir, said to him, \u201cO\nman, whither is the Captain gone?\u201d \u201cI know not,\u201d said he and signed to\nthem with his right hand; when, behold, the heads of both underlings\ndropped off from between their shoulders. At this Abu Sir was amazed and\nsaid, \u201cWould I wot who slew them!\u201d And their case was grievous to him\nand he was still pondering it, when the Captain suddenly returned and\nseeing the mound of fishes and two men lying dead and the seal-ring on\nAbu Sir\u2019s finger, said to him, \u201cO my brother, move not thy hand whereon\nis the signet-ring; else thou wilt kill me.\u201d Abu Sir wondered at this\nspeech and kept his hand motionless; whereupon the Captain came up to\nhim and said, \u201cWho slew these two men?\u201d \u201cBy Allah, O my brother I wot\nnot!\u201d \u201cThou sayst sooth; but tell me whence hadst thou that ring?\u201d \u201cI\nfound it in this fish\u2019s gills.\u201d \u201cTrue,\u201d said the Captain, \u201cfor I saw it\nfall flashing from the King\u2019s palace and disappear in the sea, what time\nhe signed towards thee,[227] saying, Cast him in. So I cast the sack\ninto the water, and it was then that the ring slipped from his finger\nand fell into the sea, where this fish swallowed it, and Allah drave it\nto thee, so that thou madest it thy prey, for this ring was thy lot; but\nkennest thou its property?\u201d Said Abu Sir, \u201cI knew not that it had any\nproperties peculiar to it;\u201d and the Captain said, \u201cLearn, then, that the\nKing\u2019s troops obey him not save for fear of this signet-ring, because it\nis spelled, and when he was wroth with any one and had a mind to kill\nhim, he would sign at him therewith and his head would drop from between\nhis shoulders; for there issued a flash of lightning from the ring and\nits ray smote the object of his wrath, who died forthright.\u201d At this,\nAbu Sir rejoiced with exceeding joy and said to the Captain, \u201cCarry me\nback to the city;\u201d and he said, \u201cThat will I, now that I no longer fear\nfor thee from the King; for, wert thou to sign at him with thy hand,\npurposing to kill him, his head would fall down between thy hands; and\nif thou be minded to slay him and all his host, thou mayst slaughter\nthem without let or hindrance.\u201d So saying, he embarked him in the boat\nand bore him back to the city;\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day\nand ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Thirty-ninth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Captain\nembarked with Abu Sir he bore him back to the city, so Abu Sir landed\nand going up to the palace, entered the council-chamber, where he found\nthe King seated facing his officers, in sore cark and care by reason of\nthe seal-ring and daring not tell any of his folk anent its loss. When\nhe saw Abu Sir, he said to him, \u201cDid we not cast thee into the sea? How\nhast thou contrived to come forth of it?\u201d Abu Sir replied, \u201cO King of\nthe age, whenas thou badest throw me into the sea, thy Captain carried\nme to an island and asked me of the cause of thy wrath against me,\nsaying:\u2014What hast thou done with the King, that he should decree thy\ndeath? I answered, By Allah, I know not that I have wrought him any\nwrong! Quoth he:\u2014Thou wast high in rank with the King, and haply some\none envied thee and threw out certain hints concerning thee to him, so\nthat he is become incensed against thee. But when I visited thee in thy\nHammam, thou entreatedst me honourably, and I will requite thee thy\nhospitality to me by setting thee free and sending thee back to thine\nown land. Then he set a great stone in the sack in my stead and cast it\ninto the sea; but, when thou signedst to him to throw me in, thy\nseal-ring dropped from thy finger into the main, and a fish swallowed\nit. Now I was on the island a-fishing, and this fish came up in the net\nwith others; whereupon I took it, intending to broil it; but, when I\nopened its belly, I found the signet-ring therein; so I took it and put\nit on my finger. Presently, up came two of the servants of the kitchen,\nquesting fish, and I signed to them with my hand, knowing not the\nproperty of the seal-ring, and their heads fell off. Then the Captain\ncame back, and seeing the ring on my finger, acquainted me with its\nspell; and behold, I have brought it back to thee, for that thou\ndealtest kindly by me and entreatedst me with the utmost honour, nor is\nthat which thou hast done me of kindness lost upon me. Here is thy ring;\ntake it! But an I have done with thee aught deserving of death, tell me\nmy crime and slay me and thou shalt be absolved of sin in shedding my\nblood.\u201d So saying, he pulled the ring from his finger and gave it to the\nKing who, seeing Abu Sir\u2019s noble conduct, took the ring and put it on\nand felt life return to him afresh. Then he rose to his feet and\nembracing the barber, said to him, \u201cO man, thou art indeed of the flower\nof the well-born! Blame me not, but forgive me the wrong I have done\nthee. Had any but thou gotten hold of this ring, he had never restored\nit to me.\u201d Answered Abu Sir, \u201cO King of the age, an thou wouldst have me\nforgive thee, tell me what was my fault which drew down thine anger upon\nme, so that thou commandedst to do me die.\u201d Rejoined the King, \u201cBy\nAllah, \u2019tis clear to me that thou art free and guiltless in all things\nof offence since thou hast done this good deed; only the dyer denounced\nthee to me in such and such words;\u201d and he told him all that Abu Kir had\nsaid. Abu Sir replied, \u201cBy Allah, O King of the age, I know no King of\nthe Nazarenes nor during my days have ever journeyed to a Christian\ncountry, nor did it ever come into my mind to kill thee. But this dyer\nwas my comrade and neighbour in the city of Alexandria where life was\nstraitened upon us; therefore we departed thence, to seek our fortunes,\nby reason of the narrowness of our means at home, after we had recited\nthe Opening Chapter of the Koran together, pledging ourselves that he\nwho got work should feed him who lacked work; and there befel me with\nhim such and such things.\u201d Then he went on to relate to the King all\nthat had betided him with Abu Kir the dyer; how he had robbed him of his\ndirhams and had left him alone and sick in the Khan-closet and how the\ndoor-keeper had fed him of his own monies till Allah recovered him of\nhis sickness, when he went forth and walked about the city with his\nbudget, as was his wont, till he espied a dyery, about which the folk\nwere crowding; so he looked at the door and seeing Abu Kir seated on a\nbench there, went in to salute him, whereupon he accused him of being a\nthief and beat him a grievous beating; brief, he told him his whole\ntale, from first to last, and added, \u201cO King of the age, \u2019twas he who\ncounselled me to make the depilatory and present it to thee, saying:\u2014The\nHammam is perfect in all things but that it lacketh this; and know, O\nKing of the age, that this drug is harmless and we use it in our land\nwhere \u2019tis one of the requisites of the bath; but I had forgotten it:\nso, when the dyer visited the Hammam I entreated him with honour and he\nreminded me of it, and enjoined me to make it forthwith. But do thou\nsend after the porter of such a Khan and the workmen of the dyery and\nquestion them all of that which I have told thee.\u201d Accordingly the King\nsent for them and questioned them one and all and they acquainted him\nwith the truth of the matter. Then he summoned the dyer, saying, \u201cBring\nhim barefooted, bareheaded and with elbows pinioned!\u201d Now he was sitting\nin his house, rejoicing in Abu Sir\u2019s death; but ere he could be ware,\nthe King\u2019s guards rushed in upon him and cuffed him on the nape, after\nwhich they bound him and bore him into the presence, where he saw Abu\nSir seated by the King\u2019s side and the door-keeper of the Khan and\nworkmen of the dyery standing before him. Quoth the door-keeper to him,\n\u201cIs not this thy comrade whom thou robbedst of his silvers and leftest\nwith me sick in the closet doing such and such by him?\u201d And the workmen\nsaid to him, \u201cIs not this he whom thou badest us seize and beat?\u201d\nTherewith Abu Kir\u2019s baseness was made manifest to the King and he was\ncertified that he merited torture yet sorer than the torments of Munkar\nand Nak\u00edr.[228] So he said to his guards, \u201cTake him and parade him about\nthe city and the markets;\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fortieth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the King\nheard the words spoken by the door-keeper of the Caravanserai and the\nworkmen of the dyery, he was certified of the vileness of Abu Kir; so he\nupbraided him with flout and fleer and said to his guards, \u201cTake him and\nparade him about the city and the market-streets; then set him in a sack\nand cast him into the sea.\u201d Whereupon quoth Abu Sir, \u201cO King of the age,\naccept my intercession for him, for I pardon him all he hath done with\nme.\u201d But quoth the King, \u201cAn thou pardon him all his offences against\nthee, I cannot pardon him his offences against me.\u201d And he cried out,\nsaying, \u201cTake him.\u201d So they took him and paraded him about the city,\nafter which they set him in a sack with quicklime and cast him into the\nsea, and he died, drowned and burnt. Then said the King to the barber,\n\u201cO Abu Sir, ask of me what thou wilt and it shall be given thee.\u201d And he\nanswered, saying, \u201cI ask of thee to send me back to my own country, for\nI care no longer to tarry here.\u201d Then the King gifted him great store of\ngifts, over and above that which he had whilome bestowed on him; and\namongst the rest a galleon freighted with goods; and the crew of this\ngalleon were Mamelukes; so he gave him these also, after offering to\nmake him his Wazir whereto the barber consented not. Presently he\nfarewelled the King and set sail in his own ship manned by his own crew;\nnor did he cast anchor till he reached Alexandria and made fast to the\nshore there. Then they landed and one of his Mamelukes, seeing a sack on\nthe beach, said to Abu Sir, \u201cO my lord, there is a great heavy sack on\nthe sea-shore, with the mouth tied up and I know not what therein.\u201d So\nAbu Sir came up and opening the sack, found therein the remains of Abu\nKir, which the sea had borne thither. He took it forth and burying it\nnear Alexandria, built over the grave a place of visitation and endowed\nit with mortmain writing over the door these couplets:\u2014\n\n Man is known among men as his deeds attest; \u273f Which make noble origin\n manifest:\n Backbite not, lest other men bite thy back; \u273f Who saith aught, the same\n shall to him be addrest:\n Shun immodest words and indecent speech \u273f When thou speakest in earnest\n or e\u2019en in jest.[229]\n We bear with the dog which behaves itself \u273f But the lion is chained lest\n he prove a pest:\n And the desert carcases swim the main \u273f While union-pearls on the\n sand-bank rest[230]:\n No sparrow would hustle the sparrow-hawk, \u273f Were it not by folly and\n weakness prest:\n\n A-sky is written on page of air, \u273f \u201cWho doth kindly of kindness shall\n have the best!\u201d\n \u2019Ware of gathering sugar from bitter gourd:[231] \u273f \u2019Twill prove to its\n origin like in taste.\n\nAfter this Abu Sir abode awhile, till Allah took him to Himself, and\nthey buried him hard by the tomb of his comrade Abu Kir; wherefore that\nplace was called Abu Kir and Abu Sir; but it is now known as Abu Kir\nonly. This, then, is that which hath reached us of their history, and\nglory be to Him who endureth for ever and aye and by whose will\ninterchange the night and the day. And of the stories they tell is one\nanent\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 184:\n\n Ab\u00fa S\u00edr is a manifest corruption of the old Egyptian Pousiri, the\n Busiris of our classics, and it gives a name to sundry villages in\n modern Egypt where it is usually pronounced \u201cB\u00fas\u00edr.\u201d Ab\u00fa K\u00edr lit. =\n the Father of Pitch, is also corrupted to Abou Kir (Bay); and the\n townlet now marks the site of jolly old Canopus, the Chosen Land of\n Egyptian debauchery.\n\nFootnote 185:\n\n It is interesting to note the superior gusto with which the Eastern,\n as well as the Western tale-teller describes his scoundrels and\n villains whilst his good men and women are mostly colourless and\n unpicturesque. So Satan is the true hero of Paradise-Lost and by his\n side God and man are very ordinary; and Mephistopheles is much better\n society than Faust and Margaret.\n\nFootnote 186:\n\n Arab. \u201cDukh\u00e1n,\u201d lit. = smoke, here tobacco for the Chibouk, \u201cTimb\u00e1k\u201d\n or \u201cTumb\u00e1k\u201d being the stronger (Persian and other) variety which must\n be washed before smoking in the Sh\u00edshah or water-pipe. Tobacco is\n mentioned here only and is evidently inserted by some scribe: the\n \u201cweed\u201d was not introduced into the East before the end of the\n sixteenth century (about a hundred years after coffee), when it\n radically changed the manners of society.\n\nFootnote 187:\n\n Which meant that the serjeant, after the manner of such officials,\n would make him pay dearly before giving up the key. Hence a very\n severe punishment in the East is to \u201ccall in a policeman\u201d who\n carefully fleeces all those who do not bribe him to leave them in\n freedom.\n\nFootnote 188:\n\n Arab. \u201cM\u00e1 D\u00e1hiyatak?\u201d lit. \u201cWhat is thy misfortune?\u201d The phrase is\n slighting if not insulting.\n\nFootnote 189:\n\n Amongst Moslems the plea of robbing to keep life and body together\n would be accepted by a good man like Abu Sir, who still consorted with\n a self-confessed thief.\n\nFootnote 190:\n\n To make their agreement religiously binding. See vol. iv. 36.\n\nFootnote 191:\n\n Arab. \u201cGhaliy\u00fan\u201d many of our names for craft seem connected with\n Arabic: I have already noted \u201cCarrack\u201d = harr\u00e1k; to which add Uskuf in\n Marocco pronounced \u2019Skuff = skiff; Kat\u00edrah = a cutter; B\u00e1rijah = a\n barge; etc., etc.\n\nFootnote 192:\n\n The patient is usually lathered in a big basin of tinned brass, a\n \u201cMambrino\u2019s helmet\u201d with a break in the rim to fit the throat; but the\n poorer classes carry only a small cup with water instead of soap and\n water ignoring the Italian proverb, \u201cBarba ben saponata mezza fatta\u201d =\n well lathered is half shaved. A napkin fringed at either end is\n usually thrown over the Figaro\u2019s shoulder and used to wipe the razor.\n\nFootnote 193:\n\n Arab. \u201cNusf.\u201d See vol. ii. 37.\n\nFootnote 194:\n\n Arab. \u201cBat\u00e1rikh\u201d the roe (sperm or spawn) of the salted Fas\u00edkh (fish)\n and the B\u00far\u00ed (_mugil cephalus_) a salt-water fish caught in the Nile\n and considered fair eating. Some write But\u00e1rgh\u00e1 from the old Egyptian\n town Bur\u00e1t, now a ruin between Tinnis and Damietta (Sonnini).\n\nFootnote 195:\n\n Arab. \u201cKapt\u00e1n,\u201d see vol. iv. 85.\n\nFootnote 196:\n\n Arab. \u201cAny\u00e1b,\u201d plur. of N\u00e1b applied to the grinder teeth but mostly to\n the canines or eye teeth, tusks of animals etc. (See vol. vii. p. 339)\n opp. to Saniyah, one of the four central incisors, a camel in the\n sixth year and horse, cow, sheep and goat in fourth year.\n\nFootnote 197:\n\n The coffee (see also vol. viii. 274) like the tobacco is probably due\n to the scribe; but the tale appears to be comparatively modern. In The\n Nights men eat, drink and wash their hands but do not smoke and sip\n coffee like the moderns. See my Terminal Essay \u00a7 2.\n\nFootnote 198:\n\n Arab. \u201cMi\u2019lakah\u201d (Bresl. Edit. x, 456). The fork is modern even in the\n East and the Moors borrow their term for it from fourchette. But the\n spoon, which may have begun with a cockle-shell, dates from the\n remotest antiquity.\n\nFootnote 199:\n\n Arab. \u201cSufrah\u201d properly the cloth or leather upon which food is\n placed. See vol. i. 178.\n\nFootnote 200:\n\n _i.e._ gaining much one day and little another.\n\nFootnote 201:\n\n Lit. \u201cRest thyself\u201d _i.e._ by changing posture.\n\nFootnote 202:\n\n Arab. \u201c\u2019Unn\u00e1bi\u201d = between dark yellow and red.\n\nFootnote 203:\n\n Arab. \u201cN\u00edlah\u201d lit. = indigo, but here applied to all the materials for\n dyeing. The word is the Sansk. \u0928\u0940\u0932 growth probably came from India\n although during the Crusaders\u2019 occupation of Jerusalem it was\n cultivated in the valley of the lower Jordan. I need hardly say that\n it has nothing to do with the word \u201cNile\u201d whose origin is still sub\n judice. And yet I lately met a sciolist who pompously announced to me\n this philological absurdity as a discovery of his own.\n\nFootnote 204:\n\n Still a popular form of \u201cbilking\u201d in the Wak\u00e1lahs or Caravanserais of\n Cairo: but as a rule the Baww\u00e1b (porter or doorkeeper) keeps a sharp\n eye on those he suspects. The evil is increased when women are\n admitted into these places; so periodical orders for their exclusion\n are given to the police.\n\nFootnote 205:\n\n Natives of Egypt always hold this diaphoresis a sign that the disease\n has abated and they regard it rightly in the case of bilious\n remittents to which they are subject, especially after the hardships\n and sufferings of a sea-voyage with its alternations of fasting and\n over-eating.\n\nFootnote 206:\n\n Not simply, \u201csuch and such events happened to him\u201d (Lane); but, \u201ca\n curious chance befel him.\u201d\n\nFootnote 207:\n\n Arab. \u201cHar\u00e1mi,\u201d lit. = one who lives on unlawful gains; popularly a\n thief.\n\nFootnote 208:\n\n _i.e._ he turned on the water, hot and cold.\n\nFootnote 209:\n\n Men are often seen doing this in the Hammam. The idea is that the skin\n when free from sebaceous exudation sounds louder under the clapping.\n Easterns judge much by the state of the perspiration, especially in\n horse-training, which consists of hand-gallops for many successive\n miles. The sweat must not taste over salt and when held between thumb\n and forefinger and the two are drawn apart must not adhere in\n filaments.\n\nFootnote 210:\n\n Lit. \u201cAloes for making Nadd;\u201d see vol. i. 310. \u201cEagle-wood\u201d (the Malay\n Aigla and Agallochum the Sansk. Agura) gave rise to many corruptions\n as lignum aloes, the Portuguese P\u00e1o d\u2019 Aguila etc. \u201cCalamba\u201d or\n \u201cCalambak\u201d was the finest kind. See Colonel Yule in the \u201cVoyage of\n Linschoten\u201d (vol. i. 120 and 150). Edited for the Hackluyt Soc. (1885)\n by my learned and most amiable friend, the late Arthur Cooke Burnell.\n\nFootnote 211:\n\n The Hammam is one of those unpleasant things which are left \u201cAl\u00e0\n j\u00fadi-k\u201d = to thy generosity; and the higher the bather\u2019s rank the more\n he or she is expected to pay. See Pilgrimage i. 103. In 1853 I paid at\n Cairo 3 piastres and twenty paras, something more than sixpence, but\n now five shillings would be asked.\n\nFootnote 212:\n\n This is something like the mythical duchess in England who could not\n believe that the poor were starving when sponge-cakes were so cheap.\n\nFootnote 213:\n\n This magnificent \u201cBakhshish\u201d must bring water into the mouths of all\n the bath-men in the coffee-house assembly.\n\nFootnote 214:\n\n _i.e._ the treasurer did not, as is the custom of such gentry, demand\n and receive a large \u201cBakhshish\u201d on the occasion.\n\nFootnote 215:\n\n A fair specimen of clever Fellah chaff.\n\nFootnote 216:\n\n In the first room of the Hammam, called the Maslakh or\n stripping-place, the keeper sits by a large chest in which he deposits\n the purses and valuables of his customers and also makes it the\n _caisse_ for the pay. Something of the kind is now done in the\n absurdly called \u201cTurkish Baths\u201d of London.\n\nFootnote 217:\n\n This is the rule in Egypt and Syria and a clout hung over the door\n shows that women are bathing. I have heard, but only heard, that in\n times and places when eunuchs went in with the women youths managed by\n long practice to retract the testicles so as to pass for castratos. It\n is hard to say what perseverance may not effect in this line; witness\n Orsini and his abnormal development of hearing, by exercising muscles\n which are usually left idle.\n\nFootnote 218:\n\n This reference to Allah shows that Abu Sir did not believe his\n dyer-friend.\n\nFootnote 219:\n\n Arab. \u201cDaw\u00e1\u201d (lit. remedy, medicine) the vulgar term: see vol. iv.\n 256: also called Rasmah, N\u00farah and many other names.\n\nFootnote 220:\n\n Arab. \u201cM\u00e1 Kahara-n\u00ed\u201d = or none hath overcome me.\n\nFootnote 221:\n\n Bresl. Edit. \u201cThe King of Isb\u00e1niya.\u201d For the \u201cIshb\u00e1n\u201d (Spaniards) an\n ancient people descended from Japhet son of Noah and who now are no\n more, see Al-Mas\u2019udi (Fr. Transl. i. 361). The \u201cHerodotus of the\n Arabs\u201d recognises only the \u201cJal\u00e1likah\u201d or Gallicians, thus bearing\n witness to the antiquity and importance of the Gallego race.\n\nFootnote 222:\n\n Arab. \u201cSha\u2019r,\u201d properly, hair of body, pile, especially the pecten.\n See Burckhardt (Prov. No. 202), \u201cgrieving for lack of a cow she made a\n whip of her bush,\u201d said of those who console themselves by building\n Castles in Spain. The \u201cparts below the waist\u201d is the decent Turkish\n term for the privities.\n\nFootnote 223:\n\n The drowning is a martyr\u2019s death, the burning is a foretaste of\n Hell-fire.\n\nFootnote 224:\n\n Meaning that if the trick had been discovered the Captain would have\n taken the barber\u2019s place. We have seen (vol. i. 63) the Prime Minister\n superintending the royal kitchen and here the Admiral fishes for the\n King\u2019s table. It is even more na\u00efve than the Court of Alcin\u00f6us.\n\nFootnote 225:\n\n Bresl. Edit. xi. 32: _i.e._ save me from disgrace.\n\nFootnote 226:\n\n Arab. \u201cKhinsir\u201d or \u201cKhinsar,\u201d the little finger or the middle finger.\n In Arabic each has its own name or names which is also that of the\n corresponding toe _e.g._ Ibh\u00e1m (thumb); Sabb\u00e1bah, Musabbah or Da\u201d\u00e1ah\n (forefinger); Wast\u00e1 (medius); Binsir (annularis, ring-finger) and\n Khinsar (minimus). There are also names for the several spaces between\n the fingers. See the English Arabic Dictionary (London, Kegan Paul and\n Co., 1881) by the Revd. Dr. Badger, a work of immense labour and\n research but which I fear has been to the learned author a labour of\n love not of profit.\n\nFootnote 227:\n\n Meaning of course that the King signed towards the sack in which he\n supposed the victim to be, but the ring fell off before it could take\n effect. The Eastern story-teller often balances his multiplicity of\n words and needless details by a conciseness and an elliptical style\n which make his meaning a matter of divination.\n\nFootnote 228:\n\n See vol. v. iii.\n\nFootnote 229:\n\n This couplet was quoted to me by my friend the Rev. Dr. Badger when he\n heard that I was translating \u201cThe Nights\u201d: needless to say that it is\n utterly inappropriate.\n\nFootnote 230:\n\n For a similar figure see vol. i. 25.\n\nFootnote 231:\n\n Arab. \u201cHanzal\u201d: see vol. v. 19.\n\n\n\n\n ABDULLAH[232] THE FISHERMAN AND ABDULLAH THE MERMAN.\n\n\nThere was once a Fisherman named Abdullah, who had a large family, to\nwit, nine children and their mother, so was he poor, very poor, owning\nnaught save his net. Every day he used to go to the sea a-fishing, and\nif he caught little, he sold it and spent the price on his children,\nafter the measure of that which Allah vouchsafed him of provision; but,\nif he caught much, he would cook a good mess of meat and buy fruit and\nspend without stint till nothing was left him, saying to himself, \u201cThe\ndaily bread of to-morrow will come to-morrow.\u201d Presently, his wife gave\nbirth to another child, making a total of ten, and it chanced that day\nthat he had nothing at all; so she said to him, \u201cO my master, see and\nget me somewhat wherewithal I may sustain myself.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cI am going\n(under favour of Almighty Allah) this day seawards to fish on the luck\nof this new-born child, that we may see its fair fortune;\u201d and quoth\nshe, \u201cPut thy trust in Allah!\u201d So he took his net and went down to the\nsea-shore, where he cast it on the luck of the little one, saying, \u201cO my\nGod, make his living of ease not of unease, and abundant, not scant!\u201d\nThen he waited awhile and drew in the net, which came up full of rubbish\nand sand and pebbles and weeds, and he saw therein no sign of fish\nneither muchel nor little. He cast it again and waited, then drew it in,\nbut found no catch in it, and threw it a third and a fourth and a fifth\ntime; still not a single fish came up. So he removed to another place\nbeseeching his daily bread of Allah Almighty and thus he kept working\ntill the end of the day, but caught not so much as a minnow;[233]\nwhereat he fell a-marvelling in himself and said self-communing, \u201cHath\nAllah then created this new-born child without lot of provision? This\nmay never, never be. He who slitteth the corners of the lips hath\npledged Himself for its provision, because Almighty Allah is the\nBountiful, the Provider!\u201d[234] So saying, he shouldered his net and\nturned him homewards, broken-spirited and heavy at heart about his\nfamily, for that he had left them without food, more by token that his\nwife was in the straw. And as he continued trudging along and saying in\nhimself, \u201cHow shall I do and what shall I say to the children to-night?\u201d\nhe came to a baker\u2019s oven and saw a crowd about it; for the season was\none of dearth and in those days food was scant with the folk; so people\nwere proffering the baker money, but he paid no heed to any of them, by\nreason of the dense crowd. The fisherman stood looking and snuffing the\nsmell of the hot bread (and indeed his soul longed for it, by reason of\nhis hunger), till the baker caught sight of him and cried out to him,\n\u201cCome hither, O fisherman!\u201d So he went up to him, and the baker said,\n\u201cDost thou want bread?\u201d But he was silent. Quoth the baker, \u201cSpeak out\nand be not ashamed, for Allah is bountiful. An thou have no silver, I\nwill give thee bread and have patience with thee till weal betide thee.\u201d\nAnd quoth the fisherman, \u201cBy Allah, O master, I have indeed no money!\nBut give me bread enough for my family, and I will leave thee this net\nin pawn till the morrow.\u201d Rejoined the baker, \u201cNay, my poor fellow, this\nnet is thy shop and the door of thy daily subsistence; so an thou pawn\nit, wherewithal wilt thou fish? Tell me how much will suffice thee?\u201d;\nand replied the fisherman, \u201cTen half-dirhams\u2019 worth.\u201d[235] So he gave\nhim ten Nusfs\u2019 worth of bread and ten in silver saying, \u201cTake these ten\nNusfs and cook thyself a mess of meat therewith; so wilt thou owe me\ntwenty, for which bring me fish to-morrow; but, an thou catch nothing\nagain, come and take thy bread and thy ten Nusfs, and I will have\npatience with thee till better luck betide thee,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-first Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the baker said\nto the fisherman, \u201cTake whatso thou needest and I will have patience\nwith thee till better luck betide thee, after the which thou shalt bring\nme fish for all thou owest me.\u201d Said the fisherman, \u201cAlmighty Allah\nreward thee, and requite thee for me with all good!\u201d Then he took the\nbread and the coins and went away, glad at heart, and buying what he\ncould returned to his wife whom he found sitting up, soothing the\nchildren, who were weeping for hunger, and saying to them, \u201cAt once your\nfather will be here with what ye may eat.\u201d So he set the bread before\nthem and they ate, whilst he told his wife what had befallen him, and\nshe said, \u201cAllah is bountiful.\u201d[236] On the morrow, he shouldered his\nnet and went forth of his house, saying, \u201cI beseech thee, O Lord, to\nvouchsafe me this day that which shall whiten my face with the\nbaker!\u201d[237] When he came to the sea-shore, he proceeded to cast his net\nand pull it in; but there came up no fish therein; and he ceased not to\ntoil thus till ended day but he caught nothing. Then he set out\nhomewards, in great concern, and the way to his house lay past the\nbaker\u2019s oven; so he said in himself, \u201cHow shall I go home? But I will\nhasten my pace that the baker may not see me.\u201d When he reached the shop,\nhe saw a crowd about it and walked the faster, being ashamed to face his\ncreditor; but the baker raised his eyes to him and cried out to him,\nsaying, \u201cHo, fisherman! Come and take thy bread and spending-money.\nMeseems thou forgettest.\u201d Quoth Abdullah, \u201cBy Allah, I had not\nforgotten; but I was ashamed to face thee, because I have caught no fish\nthis day;\u201d and quoth the baker, \u201cBe not ashamed. Said I not to thee, At\nthy leisure,[238] till better luck betide thee?\u201d Then he gave him the\nbread and the ten Nusfs and he returned and told his wife, who said,\n\u201cAllah is bountiful. Better luck shall yet betide thee and thou shalt\ngive the baker his due, Inshallah.\u201d He ceased not doing on this wise\nforty days, betaking himself daily to the sea, from the rising of the\nsun to the going down thereof, and returning home without fish; and\nstill he took bread and spending-money of the baker, who never once\nnamed the fish to him nor neglected him nor kept him waiting like the\nfolk,[239] but gave him the bread and the ten half-dirhams without\ndelay. Whenever the fisherman said to him, \u201cO my brother, reckon with\nme,\u201d he would say, \u201cBe off:[240] this is no time for reckoning. Wait\ntill better luck betide thee, and then I will reckon with thee.\u201d And the\nfisherman would bless him and go away thanking him. On the\none-and-fortieth day, he said to his wife, \u201cI have a mind to tear up the\nnet and be quit of this life.\u201d She asked, \u201cWhy wilt thou do this?\u201d; and\nhe answered, \u201cMeseems there is an end of my getting my daily bread from\nthe waters. How long shall this last? By Allah, I burn with shame before\nthe baker and I will go no more to the sea, so I may not pass by his\noven, for I have none other way home; and every time I pass he calleth\nme and giveth me the bread and the ten silvers. How much longer shall I\nrun in debt to him?\u201d The wife replied, \u201cAlhamdolillah\u2014lauded be the\nLord, the Most High, who hath inclined his heart to thee, so that he\ngiveth thee our daily bread! What dislikest thou in this?\u201d; and the\nhusband rejoined, \u201cI owe him now a mighty great sum of dirhams, and\nthere is no doubt but that he will demand his due.\u201d \u201cHath he vexed thee\nwith words?\u201d \u201cNo, on the contrary, he still refuseth to reckon with me,\nsaying:\u2014Wait till better luck betide thee.\u201d \u201cIf he press thee, say to\nhim:\u2014Wait till there come the good luck for which we hope, thou and I.\u201d\n\u201cAnd when will the good luck come that we hope for?\u201d \u201cAllah is\nbountiful.\u201d \u201cSooth thou speakest!\u201d So saying he shouldered his net and\nwent down to the sea-side, praying, \u201cO Lord provide thou me, though but\nwith one fish, that I may give it to the baker!\u201d And he cast his net\ninto the sea and pulling it in, found it heavy; so he tugged at it till\nhe was tired with sore travail. But when he got it ashore, he found in\nit a dead donkey swollen and stinking; whereat his senses sickened and\nhe freed it from the net, saying, \u201cThere is no Majesty and there is no\nMight save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great! Indeed, I can no more! I\nsay to that wife of mine:\u2014There is no more provision for me in the\nwaters; let me leave this craft. And she still answereth me:\u2014Allah is\nbountiful: good will presently betide thee. Is this dead ass the good\nwhereof she speaketh?\u201d And he grieved with the sorest grief. Then he\nturned to another place, so he might remove from the stench of the dead\ndonkey, and cast his net there and waited a full hour: then he drew it\nin and found it heavy. Thereupon quoth he, \u201cGood; we are hauling up all\nthe dead donkeys in the sea and ridding it of its rubbish.[241]\u201d However\nhe gave not over tugging at the net, till blood came from the palms of\nhis hands, and when he got it ashore, he saw a man[242] in it and took\nhim for one of the Ifrits of the lord Solomon, whom he was wont to\nimprison in cucurbits of brass and cast him into the main, believing\nthat the vessel had burst for length of years and that the Ifrit had\ncome forth and fallen into the net; wherefore he fled from him, crying\nout and saying, \u201cMercy, mercy, O Ifrit of Solomon!\u201d But the Adamite\ncalled out to him from within the net and said, \u201cCome hither, O\nfisherman, and flee not from me; for I am human like thyself. Release\nme, so thou mayst get a recompense for me of Allah.\u201d Whenas he heard\nthese words, the fisherman took heart and coming up to him, said to him,\n\u201cArt thou not an Ifrit of the Jinn?\u201d; and replied the other, \u201cNo: I am a\nmortal and a believer in Allah and His Apostle.\u201d Asked the fisherman,\n\u201cWho threw thee into the sea?\u201d; and the other answered, \u201cI am of the\nchildren of the sea, and was going about therein, when thou castest the\nnet over me. We are people who obey Allah\u2019s commandments and show\nloving-kindness unto the creatures of the Almighty, and but that I fear\nand dread to be of the disobedient, I had torn thy net; but I accept\nthat which the Lord hath decreed unto me; wherefore by setting me free\nthou becomest my owner and I thy captive. Wilt thou then set me free for\nthe love[243] of Almighty Allah and make a covenant with me and become\nmy comrade? I will come to thee every day in this place, and do thou\ncome to me and bring me a gift of the fruits of the land. For with you\nare grapes and figs and water-melons and peaches and pomegranates and so\nforth, and all thou bringest me will be acceptable unto me. Moreover,\nwith us are coral and pearls and chrysolites and emeralds and rubies and\nother gems, and I will fill thee the basket, wherein thou bringest me\nthe fruit, with precious stones of the jewels of the sea.[244] What\nsayst thou to this, O my brother?\u201d Quoth the fisherman, \u201cBe the Opening\nChapter of the Koran between thee and me upon this!\u201d So they recited\ntogether the F\u00e1tihah, and the fisherman loosed the Merman from the net\nand asked him, \u201cWhat is thy name?\u201d He replied, \u201cMy name is Abdullah of\nthe sea; and if thou come hither and see me not, call out and say,\n\u201cWhere art thou, O Abdullah, O Merman?\u201d; and I will be with thee.\u201d\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-second Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah of the\nsea thus enjoined the other, \u201cAn thou come hither and see me not, call\nout and say, Where art thou, O Abdullah. O Merman? and I will be with\nthee forthwith. But thou, what is thy name?\u201d Quoth the fisherman, \u201cMy\nname also is Abdullah;\u201d and quoth the other, \u201cThou art Abdullah of the\nland and I am Abdullah of the Sea; but tarry here till I go and fetch\nthee a present.\u201d And the fisherman repented him of having released him\nand said to himself, \u201cHow know I that he will come back to me? Indeed,\nhe beguiled me, so that I loosed him, and now he will laugh at me.[245]\nHad I kept him, I might have made a show of him for the diversion of the\ncity-folk and taken silver from all men and gone with him to the houses\nof the great.\u201d And he repented him of having set him free and said,\n\u201cThou hast let thy prey from thy hand away.\u201d But, as he was thus\nbemoaning his folly in releasing the prisoner, behold, Abdullah the\nmerman returned to him, with both hands full of pearls and coral and\nsmaragds and rubies and other gems, and said to him, \u201cTake these, O my\nbrother, and excuse me; had I a fish-basket[246] I would have filled it\nfor thee.\u201d Abdullah the fisherman rejoiced and took the jewels from the\nMerman who said to him, \u201cEvery day come hither, before sunrise,\u201d and\nfarewelling him, went down into the sea; whilst the other returned to\nthe city, rejoicing, and stayed not walking till he came to the baker\u2019s\noven and said to him, \u201cO my brother, good luck is come to us at last; so\ndo thou reckon with me.\u201d Answered the baker, \u201cThere needeth no\nreckoning. An thou have aught, give it me: and if thou have naught, take\nthy bread and spending-money and begone, against weal betide thee.\u201d\nRejoined the fisherman, \u201cO my friend, indeed weal hath betided me of\nAllah\u2019s bounty, and I owe thee much money; but take this.\u201d So saying, he\ntook for him a handful of the pearls and coral and rubies and other\njewels he had with him (the handful being about half of the whole), and\ngave them to the baker, saying, \u201cGive me some ready money to spend this\nday, till I sell these jewels.\u201d So the baker gave him all the money he\nhad in hand and all the bread in his basket and rejoiced in the jewels,\nsaying, \u201cI am thy slave and thy servant.\u201d Then he set all the bread on\nhis head and following the fisherman home, gave it to his wife and\nchildren, after which he repaired to the market and brought meat and\ngreens and all manner fruit. Moreover, he left his oven and abode with\nAbdullah all that day, busying himself in his service and fulfilling all\nhis affairs. Said the fisherman, \u201cO my brother, thou weariest thyself;\u201d\nand the baker replied, \u201cThis is my duty, for I am become thy servant and\nthou hast overwhelmed me with thy boons.\u201d Rejoined the fisherman, \u201c\u2019Tis\nthou who wast my benefactor in the days of dearth and distress.\u201d And the\nbaker passed that night with him enjoying good cheer and became a\nfaithful friend to him. Then the fisherman told his wife what had\nbefallen him with the Merman, whereat she rejoiced and said, \u201cKeep thy\nsecret, lest the government come down upon thee;\u201d but he said, \u201cThough I\nkeep my secret from all men, yet will I not hide it from the baker.\u201d On\nthe morrow, he rose betimes and, shouldering a basket which he had\nfilled in the evening with all manner fruits, repaired before sunrise to\nthe sea-shore, and setting down the crate on the water-edge called out,\n\u201cWhere art thou, O Abdullah, O Merman?\u201d He answered, \u201cHere am I, at thy\nservice;\u201d and came forth to him. The fisherman gave him the fruit and he\ntook it and plunging into the sea with it, was absent a full hour, after\nwhich time he came up, with the fish-basket full of all kinds of gems\nand jewels. The fisherman set it on his head and went away; and, when he\ncame to the oven, the baker said to him, \u201cO my lord, I have baked thee\nforty bunns[247] and have sent them to thy house; and now I will bake\nsome firsts and as soon as all is done, I will bring it to thy house and\ngo and fetch thee greens and meat.\u201d Abdullah handed to him three\nhandsful of jewels out of the fish-basket and going home, set it down\nthere. Then he took a gem of price of each sort and going to the\njewel-bazar, stopped at the Syndic\u2019s shop and said to him, \u201cBuy these\nprecious stones of me.\u201d \u201cShow them to me,\u201d said the Shaykh. So he showed\nthem to him and the jeweller said, \u201cHast thou aught beside these?\u201d; and\nAbdullah replied, \u201cI have a basket-full at home.\u201d The Syndic asked, \u201cAnd\nwhere is thine house?\u201d and the fisherman answered, \u201cIn such a quarter\u201d;\nwhereupon the Shaykh took the jewels from him and said to his followers,\n\u201cLay hold of him, for he is the thief who stole the jewellery of the\nQueen, the wife of our Sultan.\u201d And he bade beat him. So they\nbastinadoed him and pinioned him; after which the Syndic and all the\npeople of the jewel-market arose and set out for the palace, saying, \u201cWe\nhave caught the thief.\u201d Quoth one, \u201cNone robbed such an one but this\nvillain,\u201d and quoth another, \u201c\u2019Twas none but he stole all that was in\nsuch an one\u2019s house;\u201d and some said this and others said that. All this\nwhile he was silent and spake not a word nor returned a reply, till they\nbrought him before the King, to whom said the Syndic, \u201cO King of the\nage, when the Queen\u2019s necklace was stolen, thou sentest to acquaint us\nof the theft, requiring of us the discovery of the culprit; wherefore I\nstrove beyond the rest of the folk and have taken the thief for thee.\nHere he standeth before thee, and these be the jewels we have recovered\nfrom him.\u201d Thereupon the King said to the chief eunuch, \u201cCarry these\njewels for the Queen to see, and say to her, Are these thy property thou\nhast lost?\u201d So the eunuch took the jewels and went in with them to the\nQueen, who seeing their lustre marvelled at them and sent to the King to\nsay, \u201cI have found my necklace in my own place and these jewels are not\nmy property; nay, they are finer than those of my necklace. So oppress\nnot the man;\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying\nher permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-third Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the King\u2019s\nwife sent to the King to say, \u201cThese are not my property; nay, these\ngems are finer than those of my necklace. So oppress not this man; but,\nif he will sell them, buy them for thy daughter Umm al-Su\u2019\u00fad,[248] that\nwe may set them in a necklace for her.\u201d When the eunuch returned and\ntold the King what the Queen said, he damned the Syndic of the\njewellers, him and his company, with the damnation of \u00c1d and\nTham\u00fad,[249] and they said to him, \u201cO King of the age, we knew this man\nfor a poor fisherman and deemed such things too much for him,[250] so we\nsupposed that he had stolen them.\u201d Cried the King, \u201cO ye filthy\nvillains, begrudge ye a True Believer good fortune? Why did ye not make\ndue enquiry of him? Haply Allah Almighty hath vouchsafed him these\nthings from a source whereupon he reckoned not. Why did ye make him out\na thief and disgrace him amongst the folk? Begone, and may Allah never\nbless you!\u201d So they went out affrighted and the King said to Abdullah,\n\u201cO man (Allah bless thee in all He hath bestowed on thee!), no harm\nshall befal thee; but tell me truly, whence gottest thou these jewels;\nfor I am a King yet have I not the like of them.\u201d The fisherman replied,\n\u201cO King of the age, I have a fish-basket full of them at home and the\ncase is thus and thus.\u201d Then he told him of his friendship with the\nMerman, adding, \u201cWe have made a covenant together that I shall bring him\nevery day a basket full of fruit and that he shall fill me the basket\nwith these jewels.\u201d Quoth the King, O man this is thy lucky lot; but\nwealth needeth rank,[251] I will defend thee for the present against\nmen\u2019s domineering; but haply I shall be deposed or die and another rule\nin my stead, and he shall slay thee because of his love of the goods of\nthis world and his covetousness. So I am minded to marry thee to my\ndaughter and make thee my Wazir and bequeath thee the kingdom after me,\nso none may hanker for thy riches when I am gone. Then said he, \u201cHie\nwith this man to the Hammam.\u201d So they bore him to the Baths and bathed\nhis body and robed him in royal raiment, after which they brought him\nback to the King, and he made him his Wazir and sent to his house\ncouriers and the soldiers of his guard and all the wives of the\nnotables, who clad his wife and children in Kingly costume and mounting\nthe woman in a horse-litter, with the little child in her lap, walked\nbefore her to the palace, escorted by the troops and couriers and\nofficers. They also brought her elder children in to the King who made\nmuch of them, taking them in his lap and seating them by his side; for\nthey were nine children male and the King had no son and heir nor had he\nbeen blessed with any child save this one daughter, Umm al-Su\u2019ud hight.\nMeanwhile the Queen entreated Abdullah\u2019s wife with honour and bestowed\nfavours on her and made her Waziress to her. Then the King bade draw up\nthe marriage contract between his daughter and Abdullah of the Land[252]\nwho assigned to her, as her dower, all the gems and precious stones in\nhis possession, and they opened the gates of festival. The King\ncommanded by proclamation to decorate the city, in honour of his\ndaughter\u2019s wedding. Then Abdullah went in unto the Princess and abated\nher maidenhead. Next morning the King looked out of the lattice and saw\nAbdullah carrying on his head a fish-crate full of fruit. So he called\nto him, \u201cWhat hast thou there, O my son-in-law, and whither wendest\nthou?\u201d The fisherman replied, \u201cTo my friend Abdullah the Merman;\u201d and\nthe King said, \u201cO my son-in-law, this is no time to go to thy comrade.\u201d\nQuoth Abdullah, \u201cIndeed, I fear to break tryst with him, lest he reckon\nme a liar and say:\u2014The things of the world have diverted thee from me;\u201d\nand quoth the King, \u201cThou speakest sooth: go to thy friend and God help\nthee!\u201d So he walked through the city on his way to his companion; and,\nas he went, he heard the folk who knew him say, \u201cThere goeth the King\u2019s\nson-in-law to exchange fruit for gems;\u201d whilst those who knew him not\nsaid, \u201cHo, fellow, how much a pound? Come, sell to me.\u201d And he answered,\nsaying, \u201cWait till I come back to thee,\u201d for that he would not hurt the\nfeelings of any man. Then he fared on till he came to the sea-shore and\nforegathered with his friend Abdullah the Merman, to whom he delivered\nthe fruit, receiving gems in return. He ceased not doing thus till one\nday, as he passed by the baker\u2019s oven, he found it closed; and so he did\nten days, during which time the oven remained shut and he saw nothing of\nthe baker. So he said to himself, \u201cThis is a strange thing! Would I wot\nwhither the baker went!\u201d Then he enquired of his neighbour, saying, \u201cO\nmy brother, where is thy neighbour the baker and what hath Allah done\nwith him?\u201d; and the other responded, \u201cO my lord, he is sick and cometh\nnot forth of his house.\u201d \u201cWhere is his house?\u201d asked Abdullah; and the\nother answered, \u201cIn such a quarter.\u201d So he fared thither and enquired of\nhim; but, when he knocked at the door, the baker looked out of window\nand seeing his friend the fisherman, full basket on head, came down and\nopened the door to him. Abdullah entered and throwing himself on the\nbaker embraced him and wept, saying, \u201cHow dost thou, O my friend? Every\nday, I pass by thine oven and see it unopened; so I asked thy neighbour,\nwho told me that thou wast sick; therefore I enquired for thy house,\nthat I might see thee.\u201d Answered the baker, \u201cAllah requite thee for me\nwith all good! Nothing aileth me; but it reached me that the King had\ntaken thee, for that certain of the folk had lied against thee and\naccused thee of being a robber, wherefore I feared and shut shop and hid\nmyself.\u201d \u201cTrue,\u201d said Abdullah and told him all that had befallen him\nwith the King and the Shaykh of the jewellers\u2019 bazar, adding \u201cMoreover,\nthe King hath given me his daughter to wife and made me his Wazir;\u201d and,\nafter a pause, \u201cSo do thou take what is in this fish-basket to thy share\nand fear naught.\u201d Then he left him, after having done away from him his\naffright, and returned with the empty crate to the King, who said to\nhim, \u201cO my son-in-law, \u2019twould seem thou hast not foregathered with thy\nfriend the Merman to-day.\u201d Replied Abdullah, \u201cI went to him but that\nwhich he gave me I gave to my gossip the baker, to whom I owe kindness.\u201d\n\u201cWho may be this baker?\u201d asked the King; and the fisherman answered, \u201cHe\nis a benevolent man, who did with me thus and thus in the days of my\npoverty and never neglected me a single day nor hurt my feelings.\u201d Quoth\nthe King, \u201cWhat is his name?\u201d; and quoth the fisherman \u201cHis name is\nAbdullah the Baker; and my name is Abdullah of the Land and that of my\nfriend the merman Abdullah of the Sea.\u201d Rejoined the King, \u201cAnd my name\nalso is Abdullah; and the servants of Allah[253] are all brethren. So\nsend and fetch thy friend the baker, that I may make him my Wazir of the\nleft.\u201d[254] So he sent for the baker who speedily came to the presence,\nand the King invested him with the Wazirial uniform and made him Wazir\nof the left, making Abdullah of the Land his Wazir of the right.\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-fourth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the King made\nhis son-in-law, Abdullah of the Land, Wazir of the right and Abdullah\nthe baker Wazir of the left. In such condition the fisherman abode a\nwhole year, every day carrying for the Merman the crate full of fruit\nand receiving it back, full of jewels; and when fruit failed from the\ngardens, he carried him raisins and almonds and filberts and walnuts and\nfigs and so forth; and all that he brought for him the Merman accepted\nand returned him the fish-basket full of jewels according to his custom.\nNow it chanced one day that he carried him the crate, full of dry[255]\nfruits as was his wont, and his friend took them from him. Then they sat\ndown to converse, Abdullah the fisherman on the beach and Abdullah the\nMerman in the water near the shore, and discoursed; and the talk went\nround between them, till it fell upon the subject of sepulchres; whereat\nquoth the Merman, \u201cO my brother, they say that the Prophet (whom Allah\nassain and save!) is buried with you on the land. Knowest thou his\ntomb?\u201d Abdullah replied, \u201cYes; it lieth in a city called Yathrib.[256]\u201d\nAsked the Merman, \u201cAnd do the people of the land visit it?\u201d \u201cYes,\u201d\nanswered the fisherman, and the other said, \u201cI give you joy, O people of\nthe land, of visiting[257] that noble Prophet and compassionate, which\nwhoso visiteth meriteth his intercession! Hast thou made such\nvisitation, O my brother?\u201d Replied the fisherman, \u201cNo: for I was poor\nand had not the necessary sum[258] to spend by the way, nor have I been\nin easy case but since I knew thee and thou bestowedst on me this good\nfortune. But such visitation behoveth me after I have pilgrimed to the\nHoly House of Allah[259] and naught withholdeth me therefrom but my love\nto thee, because I cannot leave thee for one day.\u201d Rejoined the Merman,\n\u201cAnd dost thou set the love of me before the visitation of the tomb of\nMohammed (whom Allah assain and save!), who shall intercede for thee on\nthe Day of Review before Allah and shall save thee from the Fire and\nthrough whose intercession thou shalt enter Paradise? And dost thou, for\nthe love of the world, neglect to visit the tomb of thy Prophet[260]\nMohammed, whom God bless and preserve?\u201d Replied Abdullah, \u201cNo, by Allah,\nI set the visitation of the Prophet\u2019s tomb above all else, and I crave\nthy leave to pray before it this year.\u201d The Merman rejoined, \u201cI grant\nthee leave, on condition that when thou shalt stand by his sepulchre\nthou salute him for me with the Salam. Furthermore I have a trust to\ngive thee; so come thou with me into the sea, that I may carry thee to\nmy city and entertain thee in my house and give thee a deposit; which\nwhen thou takest thy station by the Prophet\u2019s tomb, do thou lay thereon,\nsaying:\u2014O apostle of Allah, Abdullah the Merman saluteth thee and\nsendeth thee this present, imploring thine intercession to save him from\nthe Fire.\u201d Said the fisherman, \u201cO my brother, thou wast created in the\nwater and water is thy abiding-place and doth thee no hurt, but, if thou\nshouldst come forth to the land, would any harm betide thee?\u201d The Merman\nreplied, \u201cYes; my body would dry up and the breezes of the land would\nblow upon me and I should die.\u201d Rejoined the fisherman, \u201cAnd I, in like\nmanner, was created on the land and the land is my abiding-place; but,\nan I went down into the sea, the water would enter my belly and choke me\nand I should die.\u201d Retorted the other, \u201cHave no fear for that, for I\nwill bring thee an ointment, wherewith when thou hast anointed thy body,\nthe water will do thee no hurt, though thou shouldst pass the lave of\nthy life going about in the great deep: and thou shalt lie down and rise\nup in the sea and naught shall harm thee.\u201d Quoth the fisherman, \u201cAn the\ncase be thus, well and good; but bring me the ointment, so that I may\nmake trial of it;\u201d and quoth the Merman, \u201cSo be it;\u201d then, taking the\nfish-basket disappeared in the depths. He was absent awhile, and\npresently returned with an unguent as it were the fat of beef, yellow as\ngold and sweet of savour. Asked the fisherman, \u201cWhat is this, O my\nbrother?\u201d; and answered the Merman, \u201c\u2019Tis the liver-fat of a kind of\nfish called the Dand\u00e1n,[261] which is the biggest of all fishes and the\nfiercest of our foes. His bulk is greater than that of any beast of the\nland, and were he to meet a camel or an elephant, he would swallow it at\na single mouthful.\u201d Abdullah enquired, \u201cO my brother, what doth this\nbaleful beast?\u201d; and the Merman replied, \u201cHe eateth of the beasts of the\nsea. Hast thou not heard the saying:\u2014Like the fishes of the sea:\nforcible eateth feeble?[262]\u201d \u201cTrue; but have you many of these Dandans\nin the sea?\u201d \u201cYes, there be many of them with us. None can tell their\ntale save Almighty Allah.\u201d \u201cVerily, I fear lest, if I go down with thee\ninto the deep a creature of this kind fall in with me and devour me.\u201d\n\u201cHave no fear: when he seeth thee, he will know thee for a son of Adam\nand will fear thee and flee. He dreadeth none in the sea as he dreadeth\na son of Adam; for that an he eateth a man he dieth forthright, because\nhuman fat is a deadly poison to this kind of creature; nor do we collect\nits liver-speck save by means of a man, when he falleth into the sea and\nis drowned; for that his semblance becometh changed and ofttimes his\nflesh is torn; so the Dandan eateth him, deeming him the same of the\ndenizens of the deep, and dieth. Then we light upon our enemy dead and\ntake the speck of his liver and grease ourselves so that we can\nover-wander the main in safety. Also, wherever there is a son of Adam,\nthough there be in that place an hundred or two hundred or a thousand or\nmore of these beasts, all die forthright an they but hear him\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-fifth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah of the\nSea said to Abdullah of the Land, \u201cAnd if a thousand or more of this\nkind hear an Adamite cry a single cry, forthright all die nor hath one\nof them power to remove from his place; so, whenever a son of Adam\nfalleth into the sea, we take him and anoint him with this fat and go\nround about the depths with him, and whenever we see a Dandan or two or\nthree or more, we bid him cry out and they all die forthright for his\nonce crying.\u201d Quoth the fisherman, \u201cI put my trust in Allah;\u201d and,\ndoffing his clothes, buried them in a hole which he dug in the beach;\nafter which he rubbed his body from head to heels with that ointment.\nThen he descended into the water and diving, opened his eyes and the\nbrine did him no hurt. So he walked right and left, and if he would, he\nrose to the sea-face, and if he would, he sank to the base. And he\nbeheld the water as it were a tent over his head; yet it wrought him no\nhurt. Then said the Merman to him, \u201cWhat seest thou, O my brother?\u201d; and\nsaid he, \u201cO my brother, I see naught save weal[263]; and indeed thou\nspakest truth in that which thou saidst to me; for the water doth me no\nhurt.\u201d Quoth the Merman, \u201cFollow me.\u201d So he followed him and they ceased\nnot faring on from place to place, whilst Abdullah discovered before him\nand on his right and left mountains of water and solaced himself by\ngazing thereon and on the various sorts of fish, some great and some\nsmall, which disported themselves in the main. Some of them favoured\nbuffaloes[264] others oxen and others dogs and yet others human beings;\nbut all to which they drew near fled, whenas they saw the fisherman, who\nsaid to the Merman, \u201cO my brother, how is it that I see all the fish, to\nwhich we draw near, flee from us afar?\u201d Said the other, \u201cBecause they\nfear thee, for all things that Allah hath made fear the son of\nAdam.[265]\u201d The fisherman ceased not to divert himself with the marvels\nof the deep, till they came to a high mountain and fared on beside it.\nSuddenly, he heard a mighty loud cry and turning, saw some black thing,\nthe bigness of a camel or bigger, coming down upon him from the liquid\nmountain and crying out. So he asked his friend, \u201cWhat is this, O my\nbrother?\u201d; and the Merman answered, \u201cThis is the Dandan. He cometh in\nsearch of me, seeking to devour me; so cry out at him, O my brother, ere\nhe reach us; else he will snatch me up and devour me.\u201d Accordingly\nAbdullah cried out at the beast and behold, it fell down dead; which\nwhen he saw, he said, \u201cGlorified be the perfection of God and His\npraise! I smote it not with sword nor knife; how cometh it that, for all\nthe vastness of the creature\u2019s bulk, it could not bear my cry, but\ndied?\u201d Replied the Merman, \u201cMarvel not, for, by Allah, O my brother,\nwere there a thousand or two thousand of these creatures, yet could they\nnot endure the cry of a son of Adam.\u201d Then they walked on, till they\nmade a city, whose inhabitants the fisherman saw to be all women, there\nbeing no male among them; so he said to his companion, \u201cO my brother,\nwhat city is this and what are these women?\u201d \u201cThis is the city of women;\nfor its inhabitants are of the women of the sea.\u201d \u201cAre there any males\namong them?\u201d \u201cNo!\u201d \u201cThen how do they conceive and bear young, without\nmales[266]?\u201d \u201cThe King of the sea banisheth them hither and they\nconceive not neither bear children. All the women of the sea, with whom\nhe is wroth, he sendeth to this city, and they cannot leave it; for,\nshould one of them come forth therefrom, any of the beasts of the sea\nthat saw her would eat her. But in other cities of the main there are\nboth males and females.\u201d Thereupon asked the fisherman, \u201cAre there then\nother cities than this in the sea?\u201d; and the Merman answered, \u201cThere are\nmany.\u201d Quoth the fisherman, \u201cAnd is there a Sultan over you in the sea?\u201d\n\u201cYes,\u201d quoth the Merman. Then said Abdullah \u201cO my brother, I have indeed\nseen many marvels in the main!\u201d But the Merman said, \u201cAnd what hast thou\nseen of its marvels[267]? Hast thou not heard the saying:\u2014The marvels of\nthe sea are more manifold than the marvels of the land?\u201d \u201cTrue,\u201d\nrejoined the fisherman and fell to gazing upon those women, whom he saw\nwith faces like moons and hair like women\u2019s hair, but their hands and\nfeet were in their middle and they had tails like fishes\u2019 tails. Now\nwhen the Merman had shown him the people of the city, he carried him\nforth therefrom and fore-walked him to another city, which he found full\nof folk, both males and females, formed like the women aforesaid and\nhaving tails; but there was neither selling nor buying amongst them, as\nwith the people of the land, nor were they clothed, but went all naked\nand with their shame uncovered. Said Abdullah \u201cO my brother, I see males\nand females alike with their shame exposed[268],\u201d and the other said,\n\u201cThis is because the folk of the sea have no clothes.\u201d Asked the\nfisherman, \u201cAnd how do they when they marry?\u201d The Merman answered, \u201cThey\ndo not marry; but every one who taketh a liking to a female doth his\nwill of her.\u201d Quoth Abdullah, \u201cThis is unlawful! Why doth he not ask her\nin marriage and dower her and make her a wedding festival and marry her,\nin accordance with that which is pleasing to Allah and His Apostle?\u201d;\nand quoth the other, \u201cWe are not all of one religion: some of us are\nMoslems, believers in The Unity, others Nazarenes and what not else; and\neach marrieth in accordance with the ordinances of his creed; but those\nof us who marry are mostly Moslems.\u201d The fisherman continued, \u201cYe are\nnaked and have neither buying nor selling among you: of what then is\nyour wives\u2019 dowry? Do ye give them jewels and precious stones?\u201d The\nMerman rejoined, \u201cGems with us are only stones without worth: but upon\nthe Moslem who is minded to marry they impose a dowry of a certain\nnumber of fishes of various kinds that he must catch, a thousand or two\nthousand, more or less, according to the agreement between himself and\nthe bride\u2019s father. As soon as he bringeth the amount required, the\nfamilies of the bride and bridegroom assemble and eat the\nmarriage-banquet; after which they bring him in to his bride, and he\ncatcheth fish and feedeth her; or, if he be unable, she catcheth fish\nand feedeth him.\u201d Enquired the fisherman, \u201cAnd how if a woman commit\nadultery?\u201d; and the other replied, \u201cIf a woman be convicted of this\ncase, they banish her to the City of Women; and if she be with child by\nher gallant, they leave her till she be delivered; then, if she give\nbirth to a girl, they banish her with her, calling her adulteress,\ndaughter of adulteress, and she abideth a maid till she die; but, if the\nwoman give birth to a male child, they carry it to the Sultan of the\nSea, who putteth it to death.\u201d Abdullah marvelled at this and the Merman\ncarried him to another city and thence to another and yet another, till\nhe had diverted him with the sight of eighty cities, and he saw the\npeople of each city unlike those of every other. Then said he to the\nMerman, \u201cO my brother, are there yet other cities in the main?\u201d; whereto\nsaid the other, \u201cAnd what hast thou seen of the cities of the sea and\nits wondrous spectacles? By the virtue of the noble Prophet, the benign,\nthe compassionate, were I to show thee every day a thousand cities for a\nthousand years, and in each city a thousand marvels, I should not have\nshown thee one carat of the four-and-twenty carats of the cities of the\nsea and its miracles! I have but shown thee our own province and\ncountry, nothing more.\u201d The fisherman thus resumed, \u201cO my brother, since\nthis is the case, what I have seen sufficeth me, for I am a-weary of\neating fish, and these fourscore days I have been in thy company, thou\nhast fed me, morning and night, upon nothing but raw fish, neither\nbroiled nor boiled.\u201d \u201cAnd what is broiled and boiled?\u201d \u201cWe broil fish\nwith fire and boil it in water and dress it in various ways and make\nmany dishes of it.\u201d \u201cAnd how should we come by fire in the sea? We know\nnot broiled nor boiled nor aught else of the kind.\u201d \u201cWe also fry it in\nolive-oil and oil of sesame[269].\u201d \u201cHow should we come by olive-oil and\noil of sesame in the sea? Verily we know nothing of that thou namest.\u201d\n\u201cTrue, but O my brother, thou hast shown me many cities; yet hast thou\nnot shown me thine own city.\u201d \u201cAs for mine own city, we passed it a long\nway, for it is near the land whence we came, and I left it and came with\nthee hither, thinking only to divert thee with the sight of the greater\ncities of the sea.\u201d \u201cThat which I have seen of them sufficeth me; and\nnow I would have thee show me thine own city.\u201d \u201cSo be it,\u201d answered\nAbdullah of the Sea; and, returning on his traces, carried him back\nthither and said to him, \u201cThis is my city.\u201d Abdullah of the Land looked\nand saw a city small by comparison with those he had seen; then he\nentered with his comrade of the deep and they fared on till they came to\na cave. Quoth the Merman, \u201cThis is my house and all the houses in the\ncity are like this, caverns great and small in the mountains; as are\nalso those of every other city of the sea. For whoso is minded to make\nhim a house must repair to the King and say to him, \u2018I wish to make me a\nhouse in such a place.\u2019 Whereupon the King sends with him a band of the\nfish called \u2018Peckers,\u2019[270] which have beaks that crumble the hardest\nrock, appointing for their wage a certain quantum of fish. They betake\nthemselves to the mountain chosen by the intended owner and therein\npierce the house, whilst the owner catcheth fish for them and feedeth\nthem, till the cave is finished, when they wend their ways and the\nhouse-owner taketh up his abode therein. On such wise do all the people\nof the sea; they traffic not one with other nor serve each other save by\nmeans of fish; and their food is fish and they themselves are a kind of\nfish[271].\u201d Then he said to him, \u201cEnter!\u201d So Abdullah entered and the\nMerman cried out, saying, \u201cHo, daughter mine!\u201d when behold, there came\nto him a damsel with a face like the rondure of the moon and hair long,\nhips heavy, eyes black-edged and waist slender; but she was naked and\nhad a tail. When she saw Abdullah of the Land she said to her sire, \u201cO\nmy father, what is this No[272]-tail thou hast brought with thee?\u201d He\nreplied, \u201cO my daughter this is my friend of the land, from whom I used\nto bring thee the fruits of the ground. Come hither and salute him with\nthe salam.\u201d So she came forward and saluted the fisherman with loquent\ntongue and eloquent speech; and her father said to her, \u201cBring meat for\nour guest, by whose visit a blessing hath betided us[273]:\u201d whereupon\nshe brought him two great fishes, each the bigness of a lamb, and the\nMerman said to him, \u201cEat.\u201d So he ate for stress of hunger, despite\nhimself; because he was tired of eating fish and they had naught else\nsave fish. Before long, in came the Merman\u2019s wife, who was beautiful of\nform and favour and with her two children, each having in his hand a\nyoung fish, which he craunched as a man would craunch a cucumber. When\nshe saw the fisherman with her husband, she said, \u201cWhat is this\nNo-Tail?\u201d And she and her sons and their sister came up to him and fell\nto examining the back parts of Abdullah of the Land, and saying, \u201cYea,\nby Allah, he is tailless!\u201d; and they laughed at him. So he said to the\nMerman, \u201cO my brother, hast thou brought me hither to make me a butt and\na laughing-stock for thy children and thy consort?\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-sixth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah of the\nLand said to Abdullah of the Sea, \u201cO my brother, hast thou brought me\nhither to make me a butt and a laughing-stock for thy children and thy\nconsort?\u201d Cried the Merman, \u201cPardon, O my brother! Those who have no\ntails are rare among us, and whenever one such is found, the Sultan\ntaketh him, to make fun of him, and he abideth a marvel amongst us, and\nall who see him laugh at him. But, O my brother, excuse these young\nchildren and this woman, for they lack wits.\u201d Then he cried out to his\nfamily, saying, \u201cSilence!\u201d; so they were afraid and held their peace;\nwhilst he went on to soothe Abdullah\u2019s mind. Presently, as they were\ntalking, behold, in came some ten Mermen, tall and strong and stout, and\nsaid to him, \u201cO Abdullah, it hath reached the King that thou hast with\nthee a No-tail of the No-tails of the earth.\u201d Answered the Merman, \u201cYes;\nand this is he; but he is not of us nor of the children of the sea. He\nis my friend of the land and hath come to me as a guest and I purpose to\ncarry him back to the land.\u201d Quoth they, \u201cWe cannot depart but with him;\nso, an thou have aught to say, arise and come with him before the King;\nand whatso thou wouldst say to us, say thou that same to the King.\u201d Then\nquoth the Merman to the fisherman, \u201cO my brother, my excuse is manifest,\nand we may not disobey the King: but go thou with me to him and I will\ndo my best to deliver thee from him, Inshallah! Fear not, for he deemeth\nthee of the children of the sea; but, when he seeth thee, he will know\nthee to be of the children of the land, and he will surely entreat thee\nhonourably and restore thee to the land.\u201d And Abdullah of the Land\nreplied, \u201c\u2019Tis thine to decide, I will trust in Allah and wend with\nthee.\u201d So he took him and carried him to the King, who, when he saw him,\nlaughed at him and said, \u201cWelcome to the No-tail!\u201d And all who were\nabout the King began to laugh at him and say, \u201cYea, by Allah, he is\ntailless!\u201d Then Abdullah of the Sea came forward and acquainted the King\nwith the fisherman\u2019s case, saying, \u201cThis man is of the children of the\nland and he is my comrade and cannot live amongst us, for that he loveth\nnot the eating of fish, except it be fried or boiled; wherefore I desire\nthat thou give me leave to restore him to the land.\u201d Whereto the King\nreplied, \u201cSince the case is so, and he cannot live among us, I give thee\nleave to restore him to his place, after due entertainment,\u201d presently\nadding, \u201cBring him the guest-meal.\u201d So they brought him fish of various\nkinds and colours and he ate, in obedience to the royal behest; after\nwhich the King said to him, \u201cAsk a boon of me.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cI ask of thee\nthat thou give me jewels;\u201d and the King said, \u201cCarry him to the\njewel-house and let him choose that whereof he hath need.\u201d So his friend\ncarried him to the jewel-house and he picked out whatso he would, after\nwhich the Merman brought him back to his own city and pulling out a\npurse, said to him, \u201cTake this deposit and lay it on the tomb of the\nProphet, whom Allah save and assain!\u201d And he took it, knowing not what\nwas therein. Then the Merman went forth with him, to bring him back to\nland, and by the way he heard singing and merrymaking and saw a table\nspread with fish and folk eating and singing and holding mighty high\nfestival. So Abdullah of the Land said to his friend, \u201cWhat aileth these\npeople to rejoice thus? Is there a wedding among them?\u201d Replied Abdullah\nof the Sea, \u201cNay; one of them is dead.\u201d Asked the fisherman, \u201cThen do\nye, when one dieth amongst you, rejoice for him and sing and feast?\u201d;\nand the Merman answered, \u201cYes: and ye of the land, what do ye?\u201d Quoth\nAbdullah of the Land, \u201cWhen one dieth amongst us, we weep and keen for\nhim and the women beat their faces and rend the bosoms of their raiment,\nin token of mourning for the dead.\u201d But Abdullah the Merman stared at\nhim with wide eyes and said to him, \u201cGive me the deposit!\u201d So he gave it\nto him. Then he set him ashore and said to him, \u201cI have broken off our\ncompanionship and our amity; wherefore from this day forward thou shalt\nno more see me, nor I see thee.\u201d Cried the fisherman, \u201cWhy sayst thou\nthis?\u201d; and the other said, \u201cAre ye not, O folk of the land, a deposit\nof Allah?\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cWhy then,\u201d asked the Merman, \u201cis it grievous to you\nthat Allah should take back His deposit and wherefore weep ye over it?\nHow can I entrust thee with a deposit for the Prophet (whom Allah save\nand assain!), seeing that, when a child is born to you, ye rejoice in\nit, albeit the Almighty setteth the soul therein as a deposit; and yet,\nwhen he taketh it again, it is grievous to you and ye weep and mourn?\nSince it is hard for thee to give up the deposit of Allah, how shall it\nbe easy to thee to give up the deposit of the Prophet?[274] Wherefore we\nneed not your companionship.\u201d Saying thus he left him and disappeared in\nthe sea. Thereupon Abdullah of the Land donned his dress and taking the\njewels, went up to the King, who met him lovingly and rejoiced at his\nreturn saying, \u201cHow dost thou, O my son-in-law, and what is the cause of\nthine absence from me this while?\u201d So he told him his tale and\nacquainted him with that which he had seen of marvels in the sea,\nwhereat the King wondered. Then he told him what Abdullah the Merman had\nsaid[275]; and the King replied, \u201cIndeed \u2019twas thou wast at fault to\ntell him this.\u201d Nevertheless, he continued for some time to go down to\nthe shore and call upon Abdullah of the Sea, but he answered him not nor\ncame to him; so, at last, he gave up all hope of him and abode, he and\nthe King his father-in-law and the families of them both in the happiest\nof case and the practice of righteous ways, till there came to them the\nDestroyer of Delights and the Severer of societies and they died all.\nWherefore glory be to the Living, who dieth not, whose is the empire of\nthe Seen and the Unseen, who over all things is Omnipotent and is\ngracious to His servants and knoweth their every intent! And amongst the\ntales they tell is one anent\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 232:\n\n The tale begins upon the model of \u201cJ\u00fadar and his Brethren,\u201d vi. 213.\n Its hero\u2019s full name is Abdu\u2019ll\u00e1hi = Slave of Allah, which vulgar\n Egyptians pronounce Abdallah and purer speakers, Badawin and others,\n Abdullah: either form is therefore admissible. It is more common among\n Moslems but not unknown to Christians especially Syrians who borrow it\n from the Syriac Alloh. Mohammed is said to have said, \u201cThe names most\n approved by Allah are Abdu\u2019llah, Abd al-Rahm\u00e1n (Slave of the\n Compassionate) and such like\u201d (Pilgrimage i. 20).\n\nFootnote 233:\n\n Arab. \u201cS\u00edrah\u201d here probably used of the Nile-sprat (_Clupea Sprattus_\n Linn.) or Sardine of which Forsk says, \u201cSardinn in Al-Yaman is applied\n to a Red Sea fish of the same name.\u201d Hasselquist the Swede notes that\n Egyptians stuff the Sardine with marjoram and eat it fried even when\n half putrid.\n\nFootnote 234:\n\n _i.e._ by declaring in the Koran (lxvii. 14; lxxiv. 39; lxxviii. 69;\n lxxxviii. 17), that each creature hath its appointed term and lot;\n especially \u201cThinketh man that he shall be left uncared for?\u201d (xl. 36).\n\nFootnote 235:\n\n Arab. \u201cNusf,\u201d see vol. ii. 37.\n\nFootnote 236:\n\n Arab. \u201cAllah Kar\u00edm\u201d (which Turks pronounce Kyer\u00edm) a consecrated\n formula used especially when a man would show himself resigned to\n \u201csmall mercies.\u201d The fisherman\u2019s wife was evidently pious as she was\n poor; and the description of the pauper household is simple and\n effective.\n\nFootnote 237:\n\n This is repeated in the Mac. Edit. pp. 496\u201397; an instance amongst\n many of most careless editing.\n\nFootnote 238:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl\u00e0 mahlak\u201d (vulg.), a popular phrase, often corresponding with\n our = Take it coolly.\n\nFootnote 239:\n\n For \u201cHe did not keep him waiting, as he did the rest of the folk.\u201d\n Lane prefers \u201cnor neglected him as men generally would have done.\u201d But\n we are told supra that the baker \u201cpaid no heed to the folk by reason\n of the dense crowd.\u201d\n\nFootnote 240:\n\n Arab. \u201cRuh!\u201d the most abrupt form, whose sound is coarse and offensive\n as the Turkish yell, \u201cGyel!\u201d = come here!\n\nFootnote 241:\n\n Bresl. Edit. xi. 50\u201351.\n\nFootnote 242:\n\n Arab. \u201c\u00c1dam\u00ed\u201d = an Adamite, one descended from the mythical and\n typical Adam for whom see Philo Jud\u00e6us. We are told in one place a few\n lines further on that the merman is of humankind; and in another that\n he is a kind of fish (Night dccccxlv). This belief in mermen, possibly\n originating with the caricatures of the human face in the intelligent\n seal and stupid manatee, is universal. Al-Kazwini declares that a\n waterman with a tail was dried and exhibited, and that in Syria one of\n them was married to a woman and had by her a son \u201cwho understood the\n languages of both his parents.\u201d The fable was refined to perfect\n beauty by the Greeks: the mer-folk of the Arabs, Hindus and\n Northerners (Scandinavians, etc.) are mere grotesques with green hair,\n etc. Art in its highest expression never left the shores of the\n Mediterranean, and there is no sign that it ever will.\n\nFootnote 243:\n\n Here Lane translates \u201cWajh\u201d lit. \u201cthe desire of seeing the face of\n God,\u201d and explains in a note that a \u201cMuslim holds this to be the\n greatest happiness that can be enjoyed in Paradise.\u201d But I have noted\n that the tenet of seeing the countenance of the Creator, except by the\n eyes of spirit, is a much disputed point amongst Moslems.\n\nFootnote 244:\n\n Artful enough is this contrast between the squalid condition of the\n starving fisherman and the gorgeous belongings of the Merman.\n\nFootnote 245:\n\n Lit. \u201cVerily he laughed at me so that I set him free.\u201d This is a fair\n specimen of obscure conciseness.\n\nFootnote 246:\n\n Arab. \u201cMishannah,\u201d which Lane and Payne translate basket: I have\n always heard it used of an old gunny-bag or bag of plaited\n palm-leaves.\n\nFootnote 247:\n\n Arab. \u201cKaff Shurayk\u201d applied to a single bun. The Shurayk is a bunn,\n an oblong cake about the size of a man\u2019s hand (hence the term \u201cKaff\u201d =\n palm) with two long cuts and sundry oblique crosscuts, made of\n leavened dough, glazed with egg and Samn (clarified butter) and\n flavoured with spices (cinnamon, curcuma, artemisia and prunes\n _mahalab_), and with aromatic seeds, (R\u00edhat al-\u2019ajin) of which Lane\n (iii. 641) specifies aniseed, nigella, absinthium, (Artemisia\n arborescens) and K\u00e1f\u00farah (A. camphorata Monspeliensis) etc. The\n Shurayk is given to the poor when visiting the tombs and on certain\n f\u00eates.\n\nFootnote 248:\n\n \u201cMother of Prosperities.\u201d\n\nFootnote 249:\n\n Tribes of pre-historic Arabs who were sent to Hell for bad behaviour\n to Prophets S\u00e1lih and H\u00fad. See vol. iii. 294.\n\nFootnote 250:\n\n \u201cToo much for him to come by lawfully.\u201d\n\nFootnote 251:\n\n To protect it. The Arab. is \u201cJ\u00e1h\u201d = high station, dignity.\n\nFootnote 252:\n\n The European reader, especially feminine, will think this a hard fate\n for the pious first wife but the idea would not occur to the Moslem\n mind. After bearing ten children a woman becomes \u201cUmm al-ban\u00e1ti w\u2019\n al-ban\u00edn\u201d = a mother of daughters and sons, and should hold herself\n unfit for love-disport. The seven ages of womankind are thus described\n by the Arabs and I translate the lines after a well-known (Irish)\n model:\u2014\n\n From ten years to twenty\u2014\n Of beauty there\u2019s plenty.\n From twenty to thirty\u2014\n Fat, fair and alert t\u2019ye.\n From thirty to forty\u2014\n Lads and lasses she bore t\u2019ye.\n From forty to fifty\u2014\n An old \u2019un and shifty.\n From fifty to sixty\u2014\n A sorrow that sticks t\u2019ye.\n From sixty to seventy\u2014\n A curse of God sent t\u2019ye.\n\n For these and other sentiments upon the subject of women and marriage\n see Pilgrimage ii. 285\u201387.\n\nFootnote 253:\n\n Abdullah, as has been said, means \u201cservant or rather slave of Allah.\u201d\n\nFootnote 254:\n\n Again the \u201cCome to my arms, my slight acquaintance,\u201d of the\n Anti-Jacobin.\n\nFootnote 255:\n\n Arab. \u201cNukl,\u201d _e.g._ the _quatre mendiants_ as opposed to \u201cF\u00e1kihah\u201d =\n fresh fruit. The Persians, a people who delight in gross practical\n jokes, get the confectioner to coat with sugar the droppings of sheep\n and goats and hand them to the bulk of the party. This pleasant\n confection is called \u201cNukl-i-peshkil\u201d\u2014dung-drag\u00e9es.\n\nFootnote 256:\n\n The older name of Mad\u00ednat al-Nabi, the city of the Prophet; vulg.\n called Al-Medinah _per excellentiam_. See vol. iv. 114. In the Mac.\n and Bul. texts we have \u201cTayyibah\u201d = the goodly, one of the many titles\n of that Holy City: see Pilgrimage ii. 119.\n\nFootnote 257:\n\n Not \u201cvisiting the tomb of\u201d etc. but visiting the Prophet himself, who\n is said to have declared that \u201cZiy\u00e1rah\u201d (visitation) of his tomb was\n in religion the equivalent of a personal call upon himself.\n\nFootnote 258:\n\n Arab. \u201cNafakah\u201d; for its conditions see Pilgrimage iii. 224. I have\n again and again insisted upon the Anglo-Indian Government enforcing\n the regulations of the Faith upon pauper Hindi pilgrims who go to the\n Moslem Holy Land as beggars and die of hunger in the streets. To an\n \u201cEmpire of Opinion\u201d this is an unmitigated evil (Pilgrimage iii. 256);\n and now, after some thirty-four years, there are signs that the\n suggestions of common sense are to be adopted. England has heard of\n the extraordinary recklessness and inconsequence of the British-Indian\n \u201cfellow subject.\u201d\n\nFootnote 259:\n\n The Ka\u2019abah of Meccah.\n\nFootnote 260:\n\n When Moslems apply \u201cNab\u00ed!\u201d to Mohammed it is in the peculiar sense of\n \u201cprophet\u201d (\u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c6\u03ae\u03c4\u03b7\u03c2) = one who speaks _before_ the people, not one who\n predicts, as such foresight was abjured by the Apostle. Dr. A.\n Neubauer (The Athen\u00e6um No. 3031) finds the root of \u201cNab\u00ed!\u201d in the\n Assyrian Nabu and Heb. Noob (occurring in Exod. vii. i. \u201cAaron thy\n brother shall be thy prophet.\u201d _i.e._ orator, speaker before the\n people), and holds it to be a Canaanite term which supplanted \u201cRoeh\u201d\n (the Seer) _e.g._ 1 Samuel ix. 9. The learned Hebraist traces the cult\n of Nebo, a secondary deity in Assyria to Palestine and Ph\u0153nicia,\n Palmyra, Edessa (in the Nebok of Abgar) and Hierapolis in Syria or\n Mabug (Nabog?).\n\nFootnote 261:\n\n I cannot find \u201cDand\u00e1n\u201d even in Lib. Quintus de Aquaticis Animalibus of\n the learned Sam. Bochart\u2019s \u201cHierozo\u00efcon\u201d (London, 1663) and must\n conjecture that as \u201cDand\u00e1n\u201d in Persian means a tooth (vol. ii. 83) the\n writer applied it to a sun-fish or some such well-fanged monster of\n the deep.\n\nFootnote 262:\n\n A favourite proverb with the Fellah, when he alludes to the Pasha and\n to himself.\n\nFootnote 263:\n\n An euphemistic answer, _unbernfen_ as the Germans say.\n\nFootnote 264:\n\n It is a temptation to derive this word from _b\u0153uf \u00e0 l\u2019eau_, but I fear\n that the theory will not hold water. The \u201cbuffaloes\u201d of Alexandria\n laughed it to scorn.\n\nFootnote 265:\n\n Here the writer\u2019s zoological knowledge is at fault. Animals, which\n never or very rarely see man, have no fear of him whatever. This is\n well-known to those who visit the Gull-fairs at Ascension Island,\n Santos and many other isolated rocks; the hen birds will peck at the\n intruder\u2019s ankles but they do not rise from off their eggs. For\n details concerning the \u201cGull-fair\u201d of the Summer Islands consult p. 4\n \u201cThe History of the Bermudas,\u201d edited by Sir J. H. Lefroy for the\n Hakluyt Society, 1882. I have seen birds on Fernando Po peak quietly\n await a second shot; and herds of antelopes, the most timid of\n animals, in the plains of Somali-land only stared but were not\n startled by the report of the gun. But Arabs are not the only\n moralists who write zoological nonsense; witness the notable verse,\n\n Birds in their little nests agree,\n\n when the feathered tribes are the most pugnacious of breathing beings.\n\nFootnote 266:\n\n Lane finds these details \u201csilly and tiresome or otherwise\n objectionable,\u201d and omits them.\n\nFootnote 267:\n\n Meaning, \u201cThou hast as yet seen little or nothing.\u201d In most Eastern\n tongues a question often expresses an emphatic assertion. See vol. i.\n 37.\n\nFootnote 268:\n\n Easterns wear as a rule little clothing but it suffices for the\n essential purposes of decency and travellers will live amongst them\n for years without once seeing an accidental \u201cexposure of the person.\u201d\n In some cases, as with the Nubian thong-apron, this demand of modesty\n requires not a little practice of the muscles; and we all know the\n difference in a Scotch kilt worn by a Highlander and a cockney\n sportsman.\n\nFootnote 269:\n\n Arab. \u201cSh\u00edraj\u201d = oil extracted from rape seed but especially from\n sesame. The Persians pronounce it \u201cS\u00edraj\u201d (apparently unaware that it\n is their own word \u201cSh\u00edrah\u201d = juice in Arabic garb) and have coined a\n participle \u201cMusayrij\u201d _e.g._, B\u00fa-imusayrij, taint of sesame-oil\n applied especially to the Jews who very wisely prefer, in Persia and\n elsewhere, oil which is wholesome to butter which is not. The Moslems,\n however, declare that its immoderate use in cooking taints the\n exudations of the skin.\n\nFootnote 270:\n\n Arab. \u201cNakk\u00e1r\u00fan,\u201d probably congeners of the redoubtable \u201cDand\u00e1n.\u201d\n\nFootnote 271:\n\n Bresl. Edit. xi. 78. The Mac. says \u201cThey are all fish\u201d (Kullu-hum) and\n the Bul. \u201cTheir food (aklu-hum) is fish.\u201d\n\nFootnote 272:\n\n Arab. \u201cAz\u2019ar,\u201d usually = having thin hair. The general term for\n tailless is \u201cabtar.\u201d See Koran cviii. 3, when it means childless.\n\nFootnote 273:\n\n A common formula of politeness.\n\nFootnote 274:\n\n Bresl. Edit. xi. 82; meaning, \u201cYou will probably keep it for\n yourself.\u201d Abdullah of the Sea is perfectly logical; but grief is not.\n We weep over the deaths of friends mostly for our own sake:\n theoretically we should rejoice that they are at rest; but practically\n we are afflicted by the thought that we shall never again see their\n pleasant faces.\n\nFootnote 275:\n\n _i.e._ about rejoicing over the newborns and mourning over the dead.\n\n\n\n\n TALE OF HARUN AL-RASHID AND ABU HASAN, THE MERCHANT OF OMAN.\n\n\nThe Caliph Harun Al-Rashid was one night wakeful exceedingly; so he\ncalled Masrur and said to him as soon as he came, \u201cFetch me Ja\u2019afar in\nhaste.\u201d Accordingly, he went out and returned with the Wazir, to whom\nsaid the Caliph, \u201cO Ja\u2019afar wakefulness hath mastered me this night and\nforbiddeth sleep from me, nor wot I what shall drive it away from me.\u201d\nReplied Ja\u2019afar, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, the wise say:\u2014Looking on\na mirror, entering the Hammam-bath and hearkening unto song banish care\nand chagrin.\u201d He rejoined, \u201cO Ja\u2019afar I have done all this, but it hath\nbrought me naught of relief, and I swear by my pious forbears unless\nthou contrive that which shall abate from me this insomny, I will smite\nthy neck.\u201d Quoth Ja\u2019afar, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, wilt thou do\nthat which I shall counsel thee?\u201d whereupon quoth the Caliph, \u201cAnd what\nis that thou counselleth?\u201d He replied, \u201cIt is that thou take boat with\nus and drop down Tigris River with the tide to a place called Karn\nal-Sirat, so haply we may hear what we never heard or see what we never\nsaw, for \u2019tis said:\u2014The solace of care is in one of three things; that a\nman see what he never before saw or hear what he never yet heard or\ntread an earth he erst hath never trodden. It may be this shall be the\nmeans of remedying thy restlessness, O Commander of the Faithful,\nInshallah! There, on either sides of the river, are windows and\nbalconies one facing other, and it may be we shall hear or see from one\nof these somewhat wherewith our hearts may be heartened.\u201d Ja\u2019afar\u2019s\ncounsel pleased the Caliph, so he rose from his place and taking with\nhim the Wazir and his brother Al-Fazl and Isaac[276] the boon-companion\nand Abu Nowas and Abu Dalaf[277] and Masrur the Sworder\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-seventh Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Caliph\narose from his seat with Ja\u2019afar and the rest of the party, all entered\nthe wardrobe, where they donned merchant\u2019s gear. Then they went down to\nthe Tigris and embarking in a gilded boat, dropped down with the stream,\ntill they came to the place they sought, when they heard the voice of a\ndamsel singing to the lute and chanting these couplets:\u2014\n\n To him when the wine cup is near I declare, \u273f While in coppice loud\n shrilleth and trilleth Haz\u00e1r,\n \u201cHow long this repining from joys and delight? \u273f Wake up for this life\n is a borrowed ware!\u201d\n Take the cup from the hand of the friend who is dear \u273f With languishing\n eyelids and languorous air.\n I sowed on his cheek a fresh rose, which amid \u273f His side-locks the fruit\n of granado-tree bare.\n\n Thou wouldst deem that the place where he tare his fair cheek[278] \u273f\n Were ashes, while cheeks hues incendiary wear.\n Quoth the blamer, \u201cForget him! But where\u2019s my excuse \u273f When his\n side-face is growing the downiest hair[279]?\u201d\n\nWhen the Caliph heard this, he said, \u201cO Ja\u2019afar, how goodly is that\nvoice!\u201d; and the Wazir replied, \u201cO our lord, never smote my hearing\naught sweeter or goodlier than this singing! But, good my lord, hearing\nfrom behind a wall is only half hearing; how would it be an we heard it\nfrom behind a curtain?\u201d Quoth the Caliph, \u201cCome, O Ja\u2019afar, let us play\nthe parasites with the master of this house; and haply we shall look\nupon the songstress, face to face;\u201d and quoth Ja\u2019afar, \u201cI hear and I\nobey.\u201d So they landed and sought admittance; when behold, there came out\nto them a young man, fair of favour, sweet of speech and fluent of\ntongue, who said to them, \u201cWell come and welcome, O lords that honour me\nwith your presence! Enter in all comfort and convenience!\u201d So they went\nin (and he with them) to a saloon with four faces, whose ceiling was\ndecorated with gold and its walls adorned with ultramarine.[280] At its\nupper end was a da\u00efs, whereon stood a goodly row of seats[281] and\nthereon sat an hundred damsels like moons. The house-master cried out to\nthem and they came down from their seats. Then he turned to Ja\u2019afar and\nsaid to him \u201cO my lord, I know not the honourable of you from the more\nhonourable: Bismillah! deign he that is highest in rank among you favour\nme by taking the head of the room, and let his brethren sit each in his\nseveral stead.\u201d So they sat down, each according to his degree, whilst\nMasrur abode standing before them in their service; and the host asked\nthem, \u201cO my guests, with your leave, shall I set somewhat of food before\nyou?\u201d and they answered, \u201cYes.\u201d Hearing this he bade his handmaids bring\nfood, whereupon four damsels with girded waists placed in front of them\na table, whereon were rare meats of that which flieth and walketh earth\nand swimmeth seas, sand-grouse and quails and chickens and pigeons; and\nwritten on the raised edge of the tray were verses such as sorted with\nthe entertainment. So they ate till they had enough and washed their\nhands, after which said the young man, \u201cO my lords, if you have any\nwant, let us know it, that we may have the honour of satisfying it.\u201d\nThey replied, \u201c\u2019Tis well: we came not to thy dwelling save for the sake\nof a voice we heard from behind the wall of thy house, and we would fain\nhear it again and know her to whom it belongeth. So, an thou deem right\nto vouchsafe us this favour, it will be of the generosity of thy nature,\nand after we will return whence we came.\u201d Quoth the host, \u201cYe are\nwelcome;\u201d and, turning to a black slave-girl, said to her, \u201cFetch me thy\nmistress such an one.\u201d So she went away and returning with a chair of\nchinaware, cushioned with brocade, set it down: then withdrew again and\npresently returned with a damsel, as she were the moon on the night of\nits full, who sat down on the chair. Then the black girl gave her a bag\nof satin wherefrom she brought out a lute, inlaid with gems and jacinths\nand furnished with pegs of gold.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-eighth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\ndamsel came forward, she took her seat upon the chair and brought out\nfrom its case a lute and behold, it was inlaid with gems and jacinths\nand furnished with pegs of gold. Then she tuned its strings, even as\nsaith the poet of her and her lute in these lines:\u2014\n\n She sits it in lap like a mother fond \u273f And she strikes the strings that\n can make it speak:\n And ne\u2019er smiteth her right an injurious touch \u273f But her left repairs of\n her right the wreak.[282]\n\nThen she strained the lute to her bosom, binding over it as mother\nbendeth over babe, and swept the strings which complained as child to\nmother complaineth; after which she played upon it and began improvising\nthese couplets:\u2014\n\n An Time my lover restore me I\u2019ll blame him fain, \u273f Saying, \u201cPass, O my\n dear, the bowl and in passing drain\n The wine which hath never mixed with the heart of man \u273f But he passes to\n joy from annoy and to pleasure from pain.\u201d\n Then Zephyr arose to his task of sustaining the cup: \u273f Didst e\u2019er see\n full Moon that in hand the star hath ta\u2019en?[283]\n How oft I talked thro\u2019 the night, when its rounded Lune \u273f Shed on\n darkness of Tigris \u2019bank a beamy rain!\n And when Luna sank in the West \u2019twas as though she\u2019d wave \u273f O\u2019er the\n length of the watery waste a gilded glaive.\n\nWhen she had made an end of her verse, she wept with sore weeping and\nall who were in the place wept aloud till they were well-nigh dead; nor\nwas there one of them but took leave of his wits and rent his raiment\nand beat his face, for the goodliness of her singing. Then said\nAl-Rashid, \u201cThis damsel\u2019s song verily denoteth that she is a lover\ndeparted from her beloved.\u201d Quoth her master, \u201cShe hath lost father and\nmother;\u201d but quoth the Caliph, \u201cThis is not the weeping of one who hath\nlost mother and father, but the yearning of one who hath lost him she\nloveth.\u201d And he was delighted with her singing and said to Isaac, \u201cBy\nAllah, never saw I her like!\u201d; and Isaac said, \u201cO my lord, indeed I\nmarvel at her with utterest marvel and am beside myself for delight.\u201d\nNow Al-Rashid with all this stinted not to look upon the house-master\nand note his charms and the daintiness of his fashion; but he saw on his\nface a pallor as he would die; so he turned to him and said, \u201cHo,\nyouth!\u201d and the other said, \u201cAdsum!\u2014at thy service, O my lord,\u201d The\nCaliph asked, \u201cKnowest thou who we are?\u201d; and he answered, \u201cNo.\u201d Quoth\nJa\u2019afar, \u201cWilt thou that I tell thee the names of each of us?\u201d; and\nquoth the young man \u201cYes;\u201d when the Wazir said, \u201cThis is the Commander\nof the Faithful, descendant of the uncle of the Prince of the Apostles,\u201d\nand named to him the others of the company; after which quoth Al-Rashid,\n\u201cI wish that thou acquaint me with the cause of the paleness of thy\nface, whether it be acquired or natural from thy birth-tide.\u201d Quoth he,\n\u201cO Prince of True Believers, my case is wondrous and my affair\nmarvellous; were it graven with gravers on the eye-corners it were a\nwarner to whoso will be warned.\u201d Said the Caliph, \u201cTell it to me: haply\nthy healing may be at my hand.\u201d Said the young man, \u201cO Commander of the\nFaithful, lend me thine ears and give me thy whole mind.\u201d And he, \u201cCome;\ntell it me, for thou makest me long to hear it.\u201d So the young man\nbegan:\u2014Know then, O Prince of True Believers, that I am a merchant of\nthe merchants of the sea and come from Oman city, where my sire was a\ntrader and a very wealthy trader having thirty ships trafficking upon\nthe main, whose yearly hire was thirty thousand dinars; and he was a\ngenerous man and had taught me writing and all whereof a wight hath\nneed. When his last hour drew near, he called me to him and gave me the\ncustomary charge; then Almighty Allah took him and admitted him to His\nmercy and may He continue the Commander of the Faithful on life! Now my\nlate father had partners trading with his coin and voyaging on the\nocean. So one day, as I sat in my house with a company of merchants, a\ncertain of my servants came in to me and said, \u201cO my lord, there is at\nthe door a man who craveth admittance to thee!\u201d I gave leave and he came\nin, bearing on his head a something covered. He set it down and\nuncovered it, and behold it was a box wherein were fruits out of season\nand herbs conserved in salt and fresh, such as are not found in our\nland. I thanked him and gifted him with an hundred dinars, and he went\naway grateful. Then I divided these things amongst my friends and guests\nwho were present and asked them whence they came. Quoth they, \u201cThey come\nfrom Bassorah,\u201d and praised them and went on to portray the beauties of\nBassorah and all agreed that there was naught in the world goodlier than\nBaghdad and its people. Then they fell to describing Baghdad and the\nfine manners of its folk and the excellence of its air and the beauty of\nits ordinance, till my soul longed for it and all my hopes clave to\nlooking upon it. So I arose and selling my houses and lands, ships and\nslaves, negroes and handmaids, I got together my good, to wit, a\nthousand thousand dinars, besides gems and jewels, wherewith I freighted\na vessel and setting out therein with the whole of the property, voyaged\nawhile. Then I hired a barque and embarking therein with all my monies\nsailed up the river some days till we arrived at Baghdad. I enquired\nwhere the merchants abode and what part was pleasantest for domicile and\nwas answered, \u201cThe Karkh quarter.\u201d So I went thither and hiring a house\nin a thoroughfare called the Street of Saffron, transported all my goods\nto it and took up my lodging therein for some time. At last one day\nwhich was a Friday, I sallied forth to solace myself taking with me\nsomewhat of coin. I went first to a cathedral-mosque, called the Mosque\nof Mansur, where the Friday service was held, and when we had made an\nend of congregational prayers, I fared forth with the folk to a place\nhight Karn al-Sirat, where I saw a tall and goodly mansion, with a\nbalcony overlooking the river-bank and pierced with a lattice-window. So\nI betook myself thither with a company of folk and sighted there an old\nman sitting, handsomely clad and exhaling perfumes. His beard forked\nupon his breast in two waves like silver-wire, and about him were four\ndamsels and five pages. So I said to one of the folk, \u201cWhat is the name\nof this old man and what is his business?\u201d; and the man said, \u201cHis name\nis T\u00e1hir ibn al-Al\u00e1a, and he is a keeper of girls: all who go into him\neat and drink and look upon fair faces.\u201d Quoth I, \u201cBy Allah, this long\nwhile have I wandered about in search of something like this!\u201d\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Forty-ninth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young\nmerchant cried, \u201cBy Allah this long while I have gone about in search of\nsomething like this!\u201d So I went up to the Shaykh, O Commander of the\nFaithful, and saluting him said to him, \u201cO my lord, I need somewhat of\nthee!\u201d He replied, \u201cWhat is thy need?\u201d and I rejoined, \u201c\u2019Tis my desire\nto be thy guest to-night.\u201d He said, \u201cWith all my heart; but, O my son,\nwith me are many damsels, some whose night is ten dinars, some forty and\nothers more. Choose which thou wilt have.\u201d Quoth I, \u201cI choose her whose\nnight is ten dinars.\u201d And I weighed out to him three hundred dinars, the\nprice of a month; whereupon he committed me to a page, who carried me to\na Hammam within the house and served me with goodly service. When I came\nout of the Bath he brought me to a chamber and knocked at the door,\nwhereupon out came a handmaid, to whom said he, \u201cTake thy guest!\u201d She\nmet me with welcome and cordiality, laughing and rejoicing, and brought\nme into a mighty fine room decorated with gold. I considered her and saw\nher like the moon on the night of its fulness having in attendance on\nher two damsels as they were constellations. She made me sit and seating\nherself by my side, signed to her slave-girls who set before us a tray\ncovered with dishes of various kinds of meats, pullets and quails and\nsand-grouse and pigeons. So we ate our sufficiency, and never in my life\nate I aught more delicious than this food. When we had eaten she bade\nremove the tray and set on the service of wine and flowers, sweetmeats\nand fruits; and I abode with her a month in such case. At the end of\nthat time, I repaired to the Bath; then, going to the old man, I said to\nhim, \u201cO my lord, I want her whose night is twenty dinars.\u201d \u201cWeigh down\nthe gold,\u201d said he. So I fetched money and weighed out to him six\nhundred dinars for a month\u2019s hire, whereupon he called a page and said\nto him, \u201cTake thy lord here.\u201d Accordingly he carried me to the Hammam\nand thence to the door of a chamber, whereat he knocked and there came\nout a handmaid, to whom quoth he, \u201cTake thy guest!\u201d She received me with\nthe goodliest reception and I found in attendance on her four\nslave-girls, whom she commanded to bring food. So they fetched a tray\nspread with all manner meats, and I ate. When I had made an end of\neating and the tray had been removed, she took the lute and sang thereto\nthese couplets:\u2014\n\n O waftings of musk from the Babel-land! \u273f Bear a message from me which\n my longings have planned:\n My troth is pledged to that place of yours, \u273f And to friends there\n \u2019biding\u2014a noble band;\n And wherein dwells she whom all lovers love \u273f And would hend, but she\n cometh to no man\u2019s hand.\n\nI abode with her a month, after which I returned to the Shaykh and said\nto him, \u201cI want the forty dinar one.\u201d \u201cWeigh out the money,\u201d said he. So\nI weighed out to him twelve hundred dinars, the mensual hire, and abode\nwith her one month as it were one day, for what I saw of the comeliness\nof her semblance and the goodliness of her converse. After this I went\nto the Shaykh one evening and heard a great noise and loud voices; so I\nasked him, \u201cWhat is to do?\u201d; and he answered, saying, \u201cThis is the night\nof our remarkablest nights, when all souls embark on the river and\ndivert themselves by gazing one upon other. Hast thou a mind to go up to\nthe roof and solace thyself by looking at the folk?\u201d \u201cYes,\u201d answered I,\nand went up to the terrace-roof,[284] whence I could see a gathering of\npeople with flambeaux and cressets, and great mirth and merriment. Then\nI went up to the end of the roof and beheld there, behind a goodly\ncurtain, a little chamber in whose midst stood a couch of\njuniper[285]-wood plated with shimmering gold and covered with a\nhandsome carpet. On this sat a lovely young lady, confounding all\nbeholders with her beauty and comeliness and symmetry and perfect grace,\nand by her side a youth, whose hand was on her neck; and he was kissing\nher and she kissing him. When I saw them, O Prince of True Believers, I\ncould not contain myself nor knew where I was, so dazed and dazzled was\nI by her beauty: but, when I came down, I questioned the damsel with\nwhom I was and described the young lady to her. \u201cWhat wilt thou with\nher?\u201d asked she; and I, \u201cShe hath taken my wit.\u201d \u201cO Abu al-Hasan, hast\nthou a mind to her?\u201d \u201cAy, by Allah! for she hath captivated my heart and\nsoul.\u201d \u201cThis is the daughter of Tahir ibn al-Alaa; she is our mistress\nand we are all her handmaids; but knowest thou, O Abu al-Hasan, what be\nthe price of her night and her day?\u201d \u201cNo!\u201d \u201cFive hundred dinars, for she\nis a regret to the heart of Kings!\u201d[286] \u201cBy Allah, I will spend all I\nhave on this damsel!\u201d So saying I lay, heartsore for desire, through the\nlivelong night till the morning, when I repaired to the Hammam and\npresently donned a suit of the richest royal raiment and betaking myself\nto Ibn al-Alaa, said to him, \u201cO my lord, I want her whose night is five\nhundred dinars.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cWeigh down the money.\u201d So I weighed out to\nhim fifteen thousand dinars for a month\u2019s hire and he took them and said\nto the page, \u201cCarry him to thy mistress such an one!\u201d Accordingly he\ntook me and carried me to an apartment, than which my eyes never saw a\ngoodlier on the earth\u2019s face and there I found the young lady seated.\nWhen I saw her, O Commander of the Faithful, my reason was confounded\nwith her beauty, for she was like the full moon on its fourteenth\nnight,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fiftieth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young man\ncontinued to describe before the Prince of True Believers the young\nlady\u2019s characteristics, saying:\u2014She was like the full moon on her\nfourteenth night, a model of grace and symmetry and loveliness. Her\nspeech shamed the tones of the lute, and it was as it were she whom the\npoet meant in these verses:\u2014\n\n She cried while played in her side Desire, \u273f And Night o\u2019er hung her\n with blackest blee:\u2014\n \u201cO Night shall thy murk bring me ne\u2019er a chum \u273f To tumble and futter\n this coynte of me?\u201d\n And she smote that part with her palm and sighed \u273f Sore sighs and a\n weeping continued she:\u2014\n \u201cAs the toothstick beautifies teeth e\u2019en so \u273f Must prickle to coynte as\n a toothstick be.\n O Moslems, is never a stand to your tools, \u273f To assist a woman\u2019s\n necessity?\u201d\n Thereat rose upstanding beneath its clothes \u273f My yard, as crying, \u201cAt\n thee! at thee!\u201d\n And I loosed her trouser-string, startling her: \u273f \u201cWho art thou?\u201d and I\n said, \u201cA reply to thy plea!\u201d\n And began to stroke her with wrist-thick yard, \u273f Hurting hinder cheeks\n by its potency:\n And she cried as I rose after courses three \u273f \u201cSuit thy gree the\n stroke!\u201d and I\u2014\u201csuit thy gree!\u201d\n\nAnd how excellent is the saying of another![287]\u2014\n\n A fair one, to idolaters if she her face should show, They\u2019d leave their\n idols and her face for only Lord would know.\n If in the Eastward she appeared unto a monk, for sure, He\u2019d cease from\n turning to the West and to the East bend low;\n And if into the briny sea one day she chanced to spit, Assuredly the\n salt sea\u2019s floods straight fresh and sweet would grow.\n\nAnd that of another:\u2014\n\n I looked at her one look and that dazed me \u273f Such rarest gifts of mind\n and form to see,\n When doubt inspired her that I loved her, and \u273f Upon her cheeks the\n doubt showed showily.\n\nI saluted her and she said to me, \u201cWell come and welcome, and fair\nwelcome!\u201d; and taking me by the hand, O Prince of True Believers, made\nme sit down by her side; whereupon, of the excess of my desire, I fell\na-weeping for fear of severance and pouring forth the tears of the eye,\nrecited these two couplets:\u2014\n\n I love the nights of parting though I joy not in the same \u273f Time haply\n may exchange them for the boons of Union-day:\n And the days that bring Union I unlove for single thought, \u273f Seeing\n everything in life lacking steadfastness of stay.\n\nThen she strave to solace me with soft sweet speech, but I was drowned\nin the deeps of passion, fearing even in union the pangs of disunion,\nfor excess of longing and ecstasy of passion; and I bethought me of the\nlowe of absence and estrangement and repeated these two couplets:\u2014\n\n\n I thought of estrangement in her embrace \u273f And my eyes rained tears\n red as \u2019Andam-wood.\n So I wiped the drops on that long white neck; \u273f For camphor[288] is wont\n to stay flow of blood.\n\nThen she bade bring food and there came four damsels, high-bosomed girls\nand virginal, who set before us food and fruits and confections and\nflowers and wine, such as befit none save kings. So, O Commander of the\nFaithful, we ate, and sat over our wine, compassed about with blooms and\nherbs of sweet savour, in a chamber suitable only for kings. Presently,\none of her maids brought her a silken bag, which she opened and taking\nthereout a lute, laid it in her lap and smote its strings, whereat it\ncomplained as child complaineth to mother, and she sang these two\ncouplets:\u2014\n\n Drink not pure wine except from hand of slender youth \u273f Like wine for\n daintiness and like him eke the wine:\n For wine no joyance brings to him who drains the cup \u273f Save bring the\n cup-boy cheek as fair and fain and fine.\n\nSo, I abode with her, O Commander of the Faithful, month after month in\nsimilar guise, till all my money was spent; wherefore I began to bethink\nme of separation as I sat with her one day and my tears railed down upon\nmy cheeks like rills, and I became not knowing night from light. Quoth\nshe, \u201cWhy dost thou weep?\u201d; and quoth I, \u201cO light of mine eyes, I weep\nbecause of our parting.\u201d She asked, \u201cAnd what shall part me and thee, O\nmy lord?\u201d; and I answered, \u201cBy Allah, O my lady, from the day I came to\nthee, thy father hath taken of me, for every night, five hundred dinars,\nand now I have nothing left. Right soothfast is the saw:\u2014Penury maketh\nstrangerhood at home and money maketh a home in strangerhood; and indeed\nthe poet speaks truth when he saith:\u2014\n\n Lack of good is exile to man at home; \u273f And money shall house him\n where\u2019er he roam.\u201d\n\nShe replied, \u201cKnow that it is my father\u2019s custom, whenever a merchant\nabideth with him and hath spent all his capital, to entertain him three\ndays; then doth he put him out and he may return to us nevermore. But\nkeep thou thy secret and conceal thy case and I will so contrive that\nthou shalt abide with me till such time as Allah will;[289] for, indeed,\nthere is in my heart a great love for thee. Thou must know that all my\nfather\u2019s money is under my hand and he wotteth not its full tale; so,\nevery morning, I will give thee a purse of five hundred dinars which do\nthou offer to my sire, saying:\u2014Henceforth, I will pay thee only day by\nday. He will hand the sum to me, and I will give it to thee again, and\nwe will abide thus till such time as may please Allah.\u201d[289] Thereupon I\nthanked her and kissed her hand; and on this wise, O Prince of True\nBelievers, I abode with her a whole year, till it chanced on a certain\nday that she beat one of her handmaids grievously and the slave-girl\nsaid, \u201cBy Allah, I will assuredly torture thy heart, even as thou hast\ntortured me!\u201d So she went to the girl\u2019s father and exposed to him all\nthat had passed, first and last, which when Tahir ibn Alaa heard he\narose forthright and coming in to me, as I sat with his daughter, said,\n\u201cHo, such an one!\u201d; and I said, \u201cAt thy service.\u201d Quoth he, \u201c\u2019Tis our\nwont, when a merchant grow poor with us, to give him hospitality three\ndays; but thou hast had a year with us, eating and drinking and doing\nwhat thou wouldst.\u201d Then he turned to his pages and cried to them, \u201cPull\noff his clothes.\u201d They did as he bade them and gave me ten dirhams and\nan old suit worth five silvers; after which he said to me, \u201cGo forth; I\nwill not beat thee nor abuse thee; but wend thy ways and if thou tarry\nin this town, thy blood be upon thine own head.\u201d So I went forth, O\nCommander of the Faithful, in my own despite, knowing not whither to\nhie, for had fallen on my heart all the trouble in the world and I was\noccupied with sad thought and doubt. Then I bethought me of the wealth\nwhich I had brought from Oman and said in myself, \u201cI came hither with a\nthousand thousand dinars, part price of thirty ships, and have made away\nwith it all in the house of yonder ill-omened man, and now I go forth\nfrom him, bare and broken-hearted! But there is no Majesty and there is\nno Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!\u201d Then I abode three\ndays in Baghdad, without tasting meat or drink, and on the fourth day\nseeing a ship bound for Bassorah, I took passage in her of the owner,\nand when we reached our port, I landed and went into the bazar, being\nsore anhungered. Presently, a man saw me, a grocer, whom I had known\naforetime, and coming up to me, embraced me, for he had been my friend\nand my father\u2019s friend before me. Then he questioned me of my case,\nseeing me clad in those tattered clothes; so I told him all that had\nbefallen me, and he said, \u201cBy Allah, this is not the act of a sensible\nman! But after this that hath befallen thee what dost thou purpose to\ndo?\u201d Quoth I, \u201cI know not what I shall do,\u201d and quoth he, \u201cWilt thou\nabide with me and write my outgo and income and thou shalt have two\ndirhams a day, over and above thy food and drink?\u201d I agreed to this and\nabode with him, O Prince of True Believers, selling and buying, till I\nhad gotten an hundred dinars; when I hired me an upper chamber by the\nriver-side, so haply a ship should come up with merchandise, that I\nmight buy goods with the dinars and go back with them to Baghdad. Now it\nfortuned that one day, there came ships with merchandise, and all the\nmerchants resorted to them to buy, and I went with them on board, when\nbehold, there came two men out of the hold and setting themselves chairs\non the deck, sat down thereon. The merchants addressed themselves to the\ntwain with intent to buy, and the man said to one of the crew, \u201cBring\nthe carpet.\u201d Accordingly he brought the carpet and spread it, and\nanother came with a pair of saddle-bags, whence he took a budget and\nemptied it on the carpet; and our sights were dazzled with that which\nissued therefrom of pearls and corals and jacinths and carnelians and\nother jewels of all sorts and colours.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn\nof day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-first Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young\nmerchant, after recounting to the Caliph the matter of the bag and its\ncontaining jewels of all sorts, continued:\u2014Presently, O Commander of the\nFaithful, said one of the men on the chairs, \u201cO company of merchants, we\nwill sell but this to-day, by way of spending-money, for that we are\nweary.\u201d So the merchants fell to bidding one against other for the\njewels and bid till the price reached four hundred dinars. Then said to\nme the owner of the bag (for he was an old acquaintance of mine, and\nwhen he saw me, he came down to me and saluted me), \u201cWhy dost thou not\nspeak and bid like the rest of the merchants?\u201d I said, \u201cO my lord, by\nAllah, the shifts of fortune have run against me and I have lost my\nwealth and have only an hundred dinars left in the world.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cO\nOm\u00e1ni, after this vast wealth, can only an hundred dinars remain to\nthee?\u201d And I was abashed before him and my eyes filled with tears;\nwhereupon he looked at me and indeed my case was grievous to him. So he\nsaid to the merchants, \u201cBear witness against me that I have sold all\nthat is in this bag of various gems and precious stones to this man for\nan hundred gold pieces, albeit I know them to be worth so many thousand\ndinars, and this is a present from me to him.\u201d Then he gave me the\nsaddle-bag and the carpet, with all the jewels that were thereon, for\nwhich I thanked him, and each and every of the merchants present praised\nhim. Presently I carried all this to the jewel-market and sat there to\nsell and buy. Now among the precious stones was a round amulet of the\nhandiwork of the masters,[290] weighing half a pound: it was red of the\nbrightest, a carnelian on both whose sides were graven characts and\ncharacters, like the tracks of ants; but I knew not its worth. I sold\nand bought a whole year, at the end of which I took the amulet[291] and\nsaid, \u201cThis hath been with me some while, and I know not what it is nor\nwhat may be its value.\u201d So I gave it to the broker who took it and went\nround with it and returned, saying, \u201cNone of the merchants will give me\nmore than ten dirhams for it.\u201d Quoth I, \u201cI will not sell it at that\nprice;\u201d and he threw it in my face and went away. Another day I again\noffered it for sale and its price reached fifteen dirhams; whereupon I\ntook it from the broker in anger and threw it back into the tray. But a\nfew days after, as I sat in my shop, there came up to me a man, who bore\nthe traces of travel, and saluting me, said, \u201cBy thy leave, I will turn\nover what thou hast of wares.\u201d Said I, \u201c\u2019Tis well,\u201d and indeed, O\nCommander of the Faithful, I was still wroth by reason of the lack of\ndemand for the talisman. So the man fell to turning over my wares, but\ntook nought thereof save the amulet, which when he saw, he kissed his\nhand and cried, \u201cPraised be Allah!\u201d Then said he to me, \u201cO my lord, wilt\nthou sell this?\u201d; and I replied, \u201cYes,\u201d being still angry. Quoth he,\n\u201cWhat is its price?\u201d And I asked, \u201cHow much wilt thou give?\u201d He\nanswered, \u201cTwenty dinars\u201d: so I thought he was making mock of me and\nexclaimed, \u201cWend thy ways.\u201d But he resumed, \u201cI will give thee fifty\ndinars for it.\u201d I made him no answer, and he continued, \u201cA thousand\ndinars.\u201d But I was silent, declining to reply, whilst he laughed at my\nsilence and said, \u201cWhy dost thou not return me an answer?\u201d \u201cHie thee\nhome,\u201d repeated I and was like to quarrel with him. But he bid thousand\nafter thousand, and I still made him no reply, till he said, \u201cWilt thou\nsell it for twenty thousand dinars?\u201d I still thought he was mocking me;\nbut the people gathered about me and all of them said, \u201cSell to him, and\nif he buy not, we will all up and at him and drub him and thrust him\nforth the city.\u201d So quoth I to him, \u201cWilt thou buy or dost thou jest?\u201d;\nand quoth he, \u201cWilt thou sell or dost thou joke?\u201d I said, \u201cI will sell\nif thou wilt buy;\u201d then he said, \u201cI will buy it for thirty thousand\ndinars; take them and make the bargain;\u201d so I cried to the bystanders,\n\u201cBear witness against him,\u201d adding to him, \u201cBut on condition that thou\nacquaint me with the virtues and profit of this amulet for which thou\npayest all this money.\u201d He answered, \u201cClose the bargain, and I will tell\nthee this;\u201d I rejoined, \u201cI sell it to thee;\u201d and he retorted, \u201cAllah be\nwitness of that which thou sayst and testimony!\u201d Then he brought out the\ngold and giving it to me took the amulet, and set it in his bosom; after\nwhich he turned to me and asked, \u201cArt thou content?\u201d Answered I, \u201cYes,\u201d\nand he said to the people, \u201cBear witness against him that he hath closed\nthe bargain and touched the price, thirty thousand dinars.\u201d Then he\nturned to me and said, \u201cHarkye, my poor fellow, hadst thou held back\nfrom selling, by Allah I would have bidden thee up to an hundred\nthousand dinars, nay, even to a thousand thousand!\u201d When I heard these\nwords, O Commander of the Faithful, the blood fled my face, and from\nthat day there overcame it this pallor thou seest. Then said I to him,\n\u201cTell me the reason of this and what is the use of this amulet.\u201d And he\nanswered, saying, \u201cKnow that the King of Hind hath a daughter, never was\nseen a thing fairer than she, and she is possessed with a falling\nsickness.[292]\u201d So the King summoned the Scribes and men of science and\nDivines, but none of them could relieve her of this. Now I was present\nin the assembly; so I said to him, \u201cO King, I know a man called\nSa\u2019adu\u2019ll\u00e1h the Babylonian, than whom there is not on the face of the\nearth one more masterly in these matters, and if thou see fit to send me\nto him, do so.\u201d Said he, \u201cGo to him;\u201d and quoth I, \u201cBring me a piece of\ncarnelian.\u201d Accordingly he gave me a great piece of carnelian and an\nhundred thousand dinars and a present, which I took, and with which I\nbetook myself to the land of Babel. Then I sought out the Shaykh and\nwhen he was shown to me I delivered to him the money and the present,\nwhich he accepted and sending for a lapidary, bade him fashion the\ncarnelian into this amulet. Then he abode seven months in observation of\nthe stars, till he chose out an auspicious time for engraving it, when\nhe graved upon it these talismanic characters which thou seest, and I\ntook it and returned with it to the King.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the\ndawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-second Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young man\nsaid to the Commander of the Faithful:\u2014So after the Shaykh had spoken, I\ntook this talisman and returned with it to the King. Now the Princess\nwas bound with four chains, and every night a slave-girl lay with her\nand was found in the morning with her throat cut. The King took the\namulet and laid it upon his daughter who was straightway made whole. At\nthis he rejoiced with exceeding joy and invested me with a vest of\nhonour and gave alms of much money; and he caused set the amulet in the\nPrincess\u2019s necklace. It chanced, one day, that she embarked with her\nwomen in a ship and went for a sail on the sea. Presently, one of her\nmaids put out her hand to her, to sport with her, and the necklace brake\nasunder and fell into the waves. From that hour the possessor[293] of\nthe Princess returned to her, wherefore great grief betided the King and\nhe gave me much money, saying, \u201cGo thou to Shaykh Sa\u2019adu\u2019llah and let\nhim make her another amulet, in lieu of that which is lost.\u201d I journeyed\nto Babel, but found the old man dead; whereupon I returned and told the\nKing, who sent me and ten others to go round about in all countries, so\nhaply we might find a remedy for her: and now Allah hath caused me\nhappen on it with thee.\u201d Saying these words, he took from me the amulet,\nO Commander of the Faithful, and went his ways. Such, then, is the cause\nof the wanness of my complexion. As for me, I repaired to Baghdad,\ncarrying all my wealth with me, and took up my abode in the lodgings\nwhere I lived whilome. On the morrow, as soon as it was light, I donned\nmy dress and betook myself to the house of Tahir ibn al-Alaa, that haply\nI might see her whom I loved, for the love of her had never ceased to\nincrease upon my heart. But when I came to his home, I saw the balcony\nbroken down and the lattice builded up; so I stood awhile, pondering my\ncase and the shifts of Time, till there came up a serving-man, and I\nquestioned him, saying, \u201cWhat hath God done with Tahir ibn al-Alaa?\u201d He\nanswered, \u201cO my brother, he hath repented to Almighty Allah.[294]\u201d Quoth\nI, \u201cWhat was the cause of his repentance?\u201d; and quoth he, \u201cO my brother,\nin such a year there came to him a merchant, by name Abu al-Hasan the\nOmani, who abode with his daughter awhile, till his wealth was all\nspent, when the old man turned him out, broken-hearted. Now the girl\nloved him with exceeding love, and when she was parted from him, she\nsickened of a sore sickness and came nigh upon death. As soon as her\nfather knew how it was with her, he sent after and sought for Abu\nal-Hasan through the lands, pledging himself to bestow upon whoso should\nproduce him an hundred thousand dinars; but none could find him nor come\non any trace of him; and she is now hard upon death.\u201d Quoth I, \u201cAnd how\nis it with her sire?\u201d and quoth the servant, \u201cHe hath sold all his\ngirls, for grief of that which hath befallen him, and hath repented to\nAlmighty Allah.\u201d Then asked I, \u201cWhat wouldst thou say to him who should\ndirect thee to Abu al-Hasan the Omani?\u201d; and he answered, \u201cAllah upon\nthee, O my brother, that thou do this and quicken my poverty and the\npoverty of my parents[295]!\u201d I rejoined, \u201cGo to her father and say to\nhim, Thou owest me the reward for good news, for that Abu al-Hasan the\nOmani standeth at the door.\u201d With this he set off trotting, as he were a\nmule loosed from the mill, and presently came back, accompanied by\nShaykh Tahir himself, who no sooner saw me than he returned to his house\nand gave the man an hundred thousand dinars which he took and went away\nblessing me. Then the old man came up and embraced me and wept, saying,\n\u201cO my lord, where hast thou been absent all this while? Indeed, my\ndaughter hath been killed by reason of her separation from thee; but\ncome with me into the house.\u201d So we entered and he prostrated himself in\ngratitude to the Almighty, saying, \u201cPraised be Allah who hath reunited\nus with thee!\u201d Then he went in to his daughter and said to her, \u201cThe\nLord hath healed thee of this sickness;\u201d and said she, \u201cO my papa, I\nshall never be whole of my sickness, save I look upon the face of Abu\nal-Hasan.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cAn thou wilt eat a morsel and go to the Hammam, I\nwill bring thee in company with him.\u201d Asked she, \u201cIs it true that thou\nsayst?\u201d; and he answered, \u201cBy the Great God, \u2019tis true!\u201d She rejoined,\n\u201cBy Allah, if I look upon his face, I shall have no need of eating!\u201d\nThen said he to his page, \u201cBring in thy lord.\u201d Thereupon I entered, and\nwhen she saw me, O Prince of True Believers, she fell down in a swoon,\nand presently coming to herself, recited this couplet:\u2014\n\n Yea, Allah hath join\u00e8d the parted twain, \u273f When no thought they thought\n e\u2019er to meet again.\n\nThen she sat upright and said, \u201cBy Allah, O my lord, I had not deemed to\nsee thy face ever more, save it were in a dream!\u201d So she embraced me and\nwept, and said, \u201cO Abu al-Hasan, now will I eat and drink.\u201d The old man\nher sire rejoiced to hear these words and they brought her meat and\ndrink and we ate and drank, O Commander of the Faithful. After this, I\nabode with them awhile, till she was restored to her former beauty, when\nher father sent for the Kazi and the witnesses and bade write out the\nmarriage-contract between her and me and made a mighty great\nbride-feast; and she is my wife to this day and this is my son by her.\u201d\nSo saying he went away and returned with a boy of rare beauty and\nsymmetry of form and favour to whom said he, \u201cKiss the ground before the\nCommander of the Faithful.\u201d He kissed ground before the Caliph, who\nmarvelled at his beauty and glorified his Creator; after which Al-Rashid\ndeparted, he and his company, saying, \u201cO Ja\u2019afar, verily, this is none\nother than a marvellous thing, never saw I nor heard I aught more\nwondrous.\u201d When he was seated in the palace of the Caliphate, he cried,\n\u201cO Masrur!\u201d who replied, \u201cHere am I, O my lord!\u201d Then said he, \u201cBring\nthe year\u2019s tribute of Bassorah and Baghdad and Khorasan, and set it in\nthis recess.[296]\u201d Accordingly he laid the three tributes together and\nthey were a vast sum of money, whose tale none might tell save Allah.\nThen the Caliph bade draw a curtain before the recess and said to\nJa\u2019afar, \u201cFetch me Abu al-Hasan.\u201d Replied Ja\u2019afar, \u201cI hear and obey,\u201d\nand going forth, returned presently with the Omani, who kissed ground\nbefore the Caliph, fearing lest he had sent for him because of some\nfault that he had committed when he was with him in his house. Then said\nAl-Rashid, \u201cHarkye, O Omani!\u201d and he replied, \u201cAdsum, O Prince of True\nBelievers! May Allah ever bestow his favours upon thee!\u201d Quoth the\nCaliph, \u201cDraw back yonder curtain.\u201d Thereupon Abu al-Hasan drew back the\ncurtain from the recess and was confounded and perplexed at the mass of\nmoney he saw there. Said Al-Rashid, \u201cO Abu al-Hasan, whether is the\nmore, this money or that thou didst lose by the amulet[297]?\u201d; and he\nanswered, \u201cThis is many times the greater, O Commander of the Faithful!\u201d\nQuoth the Caliph, \u201cBear witness, all ye who are present, that I give\nthis money to this young man.\u201d So Abu al-Hasan kissed ground and was\nabashed and wept before the Caliph for excess of joy. Now when he wept,\nthe tears ran down from his eyelids upon his cheeks and the blood\nreturned to its place and his face became like the moon on the night of\nits fulness. Whereupon quoth the Caliph, \u201cThere is no god but _the_ God!\nGlory be to Him who decreeth change upon change and is Himself the\nEverlasting who changeth not!\u201d Saying these words, he bade fetch a\nmirror and showed Abu al-Hasan his face therein, which when he saw, he\nprostrated himself, in gratitude to the Most High Lord. Then the Caliph\nbade transport the money to Abu al-Hasan\u2019s house and charged the young\nman not to absent himself from him, so he might enjoy his company as a\ncup-companion. Accordingly he paid him frequent visits, till Al-Rashid\ndeparted to the mercy of Almighty Allah; and glory be to Him who dieth\nnot the Lord of the Seen and the Unseen! And among tales they tell is\none touching\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 276:\n\n _i.e._ Ishak of Mosul, for whom see vol. iv. 119. The Bresl. Edit. has\n Faz\u00edl for Fazl.\n\nFootnote 277:\n\n Abu Dalaf al-Ijili, a well-known soldier equally famed for liberality\n and culture.\n\nFootnote 278:\n\n Arab. \u201cTakhm\u00edsh,\u201d alluding to the familiar practice of tearing face\n and hair in grief for a loss, a death, etc.\n\nFootnote 279:\n\n _i.e._ When he is in the very prime of life and able to administer\n _fiers coups de canif_.\n\n For ladies e\u2019en of most uneasy virtue\n Prefer a spouse whose age is short of thirty.\n\n Don Juan 1. 62.\n\nFootnote 280:\n\n Arab. \u201cL\u00e1zuward:\u201d see vol. iii. 33\n\nFootnote 281:\n\n Arab. \u201cSidillah.\u201d The Bresl. Edit. (v. 99), has, \u201ca couch of ivory and\n ebony, whereon was that which befitted it of mattresses and cushions *\n * * * and on it five damsels.\u201d\n\nFootnote 282:\n\n _i.e._ As she untunes the lute by \u201cpinching\u201d the strings\n over-excitedly with her right, her other hand retunes it by turning\n the pegs.\n\nFootnote 283:\n\n _i.e._ The slim cupbearer (Zephyr) and fair-faced girl (Moon) handed\n round the bubbling bowl (star).\n\nFootnote 284:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Sath\u201d whence the Span. Azotea. The lines that follow are\n from the Bresl. Edit. v. 110.\n\nFootnote 285:\n\n This \u201c\u2019Ar\u2019ar\u201d is probably the Callitris quadrivalvis whose resin\n (\u201cSandarac\u201d) is imported as varnish from African Mogador to England.\n Also called the Thuja, it is of cypress shape, slow growing and finely\n veined in the lower part of the base. Most travellers are agreed that\n it is the Citrus-tree of Roman Mauritania, concerning which Pliny\n (xiii. 29) gives curious details, a single table costing from a\n million sesterces (\u00a3900) to 1,400,000. For other details see p. 95.\n \u201cMorocco and the Moors,\u201d by my late friend Dr. Leared (London: Sampson\n Low, 1876).\n\nFootnote 286:\n\n _i.e._ Kings might sigh for her in vain.\n\nFootnote 287:\n\n These lines are in vol. viii. 279. I quote Mr. Payne.\n\nFootnote 288:\n\n A most unsavoury comparison to a Persian who always connects camphor\n with the idea of a corpse.\n\nFootnote 289:\n\n Arab. \u201cIl\u00e0 m\u00e1 sh\u00e1a\u2019 ll\u00e1h\u201d _i.e._ as long as you like.\n\nFootnote 290:\n\n _i.e._ of gramarye.\n\nFootnote 291:\n\n Arab. \u201cTa\u2019w\u00edz\u201d = the Arab Tilasm, our Talisman, a charm, an amulet;\n and in India mostly a magic square. The subject is complicated and\n occupies in Herklots some sixty pages, 222\u2013284.\n\nFootnote 292:\n\n The Bul. and Mac. Edits. give the Princess\u2019s malady, in error, as D\u00e1a\n al-Sud\u00e1\u2019 (megrims), instead of D\u00e1a al-Sar\u2019 (epilepsy), as in the\n Bresl. Edit. The latter would mean that she is possessed by a demon,\n again the old Scriptural fancy (see vol. v. 28). The subject is highly\n fitted for romance but not for a \u201cserious\u201d book which ought to know\n better.\n\nFootnote 293:\n\n Arab Al-\u2019\u00c1riz = the demon who possessed her.\n\nFootnote 294:\n\n _i.e._ He hath renounced his infamous traffic.\n\nFootnote 295:\n\n Alluding to the favourite Eastern saying, \u201cThe poor man hath no life.\u201d\n\nFootnote 296:\n\n In this and the following lines some change is necessary for the\n Bresl. and Mac. texts are very defective. The Arabic word here\n translated \u201crecess\u201d is \u201cAyw\u00e1n,\u201d prop. a hall, an open saloon.\n\nFootnote 297:\n\n _i.e._ by selling it for thirty thousand gold pieces, when he might\n have got a million for it.\n\n\n\n\n IBRAHIM AND JAMILAH.[298]\n\n\nAl-Khas\u00edb,[299] Wazir of Egypt, had a son named Ibrah\u00edm, than whom there\nwas none goodlier, and of his fear for him, he suffered him not to go\nforth, save to the Friday prayers. One day, as the youth was returning\nfrom the mosque, he came upon an old man, with whom were many books; so\nhe lighted down from his horse and seating himself beside him, began to\nturn over the tomes and examine them. In one of them he espied the\nsemblance of a woman which all but spoke, never was seen on the earth\u2019s\nface one more beautiful; and as this captivated his reason and\nconfounded his wit, he said to the old man, \u201cO Shaykh, sell me this\npicture.\u201d The bookseller kissed ground between his hands and said, \u201cO my\nlord, \u2019tis thine without price.[300]\u201d Ibrahim gave him an hundred dinars\nand taking the book in which was the picture, fell to gazing upon it and\nweeping night and day, abstaining from meat and drink and sleep. Then\nsaid he in his mind, \u201cAn I ask the bookseller of the painter of this\npicture, haply he will tell me; and if the original be living, I will\nseek access to her; but, if it be only a picture, I will leave doting\nupon it and plague myself no more for a thing which hath no real\nexistence.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying\nher permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-third Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the youth\nIbrahim said in his mind, \u201cAn I ask the bookseller of the painter of\nthis picture, haply he will tell me; and, if it be only a picture, I\nwill leave doting upon it and plague myself no more for a thing which\nhath no real existence.\u201d So on the next Friday he betook himself to the\nbookseller, who sprang up to receive him, and said to him, \u201cOh uncle,\ntell me who painted this picture.\u201d He replied, \u201cO my lord, a man of the\npeople of Baghdad painted it, by name Abu al-K\u00e1sim al-Sandal\u00e1ni who\ndwelleth in a quarter called Al-Karkh; but I know not of whom it is the\nportraiture.\u201d So Ibrahim left him without acquainting any of his\nhousehold with his case, and returned to the palace, after praying the\nFriday prayers. Then he took a bag and filling it with gold and gems to\nthe value of thirty thousand dinars, waited till the morning, when he\nwent out, without telling any, and presently overtook a caravan. Here he\nsaw a Badawi and asked him, \u201cO uncle, what distance is between me and\nBaghdad?\u201d; and the other answered, \u201cO my son, where art thou, and where\nis Baghdad[301]? Verily, between thee and it is two months\u2019 journey.\u201d\nQuoth Ibrahim, \u201cO nuncle, an thou wilt guide me to Baghdad, I will give\nthee an hundred dinars and this mare under me that is worth other\nthousand gold pieces;\u201d and quoth the Badawi, \u201cAllah be witness of what\nwe say! Thou shalt not lodge this night but with me.\u201d So Ibrahim agreed\nto this and passed the night with him. At break of dawn, the Badawi took\nhim and fared on with him in haste by a near road, in his greed for the\nmare and the promised good; nor did they leave wayfaring till they came\nto the walls of Baghdad, when said the wildling, \u201cPraised be Allah for\nsafety! O my lord, this is Baghdad.\u201d Whereat Ibrahim rejoiced with\nexceeding joy and alighting from the mare, gave her to the Desert-man,\ntogether with the hundred dinars. Then he took the bag and entering the\ncity walked on, enquiring for the quarter Al-Karkh and the station of\nthe merchants, till Destiny drave him to a by-way, wherein were ten\nhouses, five fronting five, and at the farther end was a two-leaved door\nwith a silver ring. By the gate stood two benches of marble, spread with\nthe finest carpets, and on one of them sat a man of handsome aspect and\nreverend, clad in sumptuous clothing and attended by five Mamelukes like\nmoons. When the youth Ibrahim saw the street, he knew it by the\ndescription the bookseller had given him; so he salamed to the man, who\nreturned his salutation and bidding him welcome, made him sit down and\nasked him of his case. Quoth Ibrahim, \u201cI am a stranger man and desire of\nthy favour that thou look me out a house in this street where I may take\nup my abode.\u201d With this the other cried out, saying, \u201cHo,\nGhaz\u00e1lah[302]!\u201d; and there came forth to him a slave-girl, who said, \u201cAt\nthy service, O my lord!\u201d Said her master, \u201cTake some servants and fare\nye all and every to such a house and clean it and furnish it with whatso\nis needful for this handsome youth.\u201d So she went forth and did his\nbidding; whilst the old man took the youth and showed him the house; and\nhe said, \u201cO my lord, how much may be the rent of this house?\u201d The other\nanswered, \u201cO bright of face, I will take no rent of thee whilst thou\nabidest therein.\u201d Ibrahim thanked him for this and the old man called\nanother slave-girl, whereupon there came forth to him a damsel like the\nsun, to whom said he, \u201cBring chess.\u201d So she brought it and one of the\nservants set the cloth;[303] whereupon said the Shaykh to Ibrahim, \u201cWilt\nthou play with me?\u201d; and he answered, \u201cYes.\u201d So they played several\ngames and Ibrahim beat him, when his adversary exclaimed, \u201cWell done, O\nyouth! Thou art indeed perfect in qualities. By Allah, there is not one\nin Baghdad can beat me, and yet thou hast beaten me!\u201d Now when they had\nmade ready the house and furnished it with all that was needful, the old\nman delivered the keys to Ibrahim and said to him, \u201cO my lord, wilt thou\nnot enter my place and eat of my bread?\u201d He assented and walking in with\nhim, found it a handsome house and a goodly, decorated with gold and\nfull of all manner pictures and furniture galore and other things, such\nas tongue faileth to set out. The old man welcomed him and called for\nfood, whereupon they brought a table of the make of Sana\u2019a of Al-Yaman\nand spread it with all manner rare viands, than which there was naught\ncostlier nor more delicious. So Ibrahim ate his sufficiency, after which\nhe washed his hands and proceeded to inspect the house and furniture.\nPresently, he turned to look for the leather bag, but found it not and\nsaid in himself, \u201cThere is no Majesty and there is no Might save in\nAllah, the Glorious, the Great! I have eaten a morsel worth a dirham or\ntwo and have lost a bag wherein is thirty thousand dinars\u2019 worth: but I\nseek aid of Allah!\u201d And he was silent and could not speak\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-fourth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the youth\nIbrahim saw that his bag was lost, he was silent and could not speak for\nthe greatness of his trouble. Presently his host brought the chess and\nsaid to him, \u201cWilt thou play with me?\u201d; and he said, \u201cYes.\u201d So they\nplayed and the old man beat him. Ibrahim cried, \u201cWell done!\u201d and left\nplaying and rose: upon which his host asked him, \u201cWhat aileth thee, O\nyouth?\u201d whereto he answered, \u201cI want the bag.\u201d Thereupon the Shaykh rose\nand brought it out to him, saying, \u201cHere it is, O my lord. Wilt thou now\nreturn to playing with me?\u201d \u201cYes,\u201d replied Ibrahim. Accordingly they\nplayed and the young man beat him. Quoth the Shaykh, \u201cWhen thy thought\nwas occupied with the bag, I beat thee: but, now I have brought it back\nto thee, thou beatest me. But, tell me, O my son, what countryman art\nthou:\u201d Quoth Ibrahim, \u201cI am from Egypt,\u201d and quoth the oldster, \u201cAnd\nwhat is the cause of thy coming to Baghdad?\u201d; whereupon Ibrahim brought\nout the portrait and said to him, \u201cKnow, O uncle, that I am the son of\nAl-Khasib, Wazir of Egypt, and I saw with a bookseller this picture,\nwhich bewildered my wit. I asked him who painted it and he said, \u201cHe who\nwrought it is a man, Abu al-Kasim al-Sandalani hight, who dwelleth in a\nstreet called the Street of Saffron in the Karkh quarter of Baghdad.\u201d So\nI took with me somewhat of money and came hither alone, none knowing of\nmy case; and I desire of the fulness of thy favour that thou direct me\nto Abu al-Kasim, so I may ask him of the cause of his painting this\npicture and whose portrait it is. And whatsoever he desireth of me, I\nwill give him that same.\u201d Said his host, \u201cBy Allah, O my son, I am Abu\nal-Kasim al-Sandalani, and this is a prodigious thing how Fate hath thus\ndriven thee to me!\u201d Now when Ibrahim heard these words, he rose to him\nand embraced him and kissed his head and hands, saying, \u201cAllah upon\nthee, tell me whose portrait it is!\u201d The other replied, \u201cI hear and I\nobey,\u201d and rising, opened a closet and brought out a number of books,\nwherein he had painted the same picture. Then said he, \u201cKnow, O my son,\nthat the original of this portrait is my cousin, the daughter of my\nfather\u2019s brother, whose name is Ab\u00fa al-Lays.[304] She dwelleth in\nBassorah of which city her father is governor, and her name is\nJam\u00edlah\u2014the beautiful. There is not on the face of the earth a fairer\nthan she; but she is averse from men and cannot hear the word \u2018man\u2019\npronounced in her presence. Now I once repaired to my uncle, to the\nintent that he should marry me to her, and was lavish of wealth to him;\nbut he would not consent thereto: and when his daughter knew of this she\nwas indignant and sent to me to say, amongst other things:\u2014An thou have\nwit, tarry not in this town; else wilt thou perish and thy sin shall be\non thine own neck.[305] For she is a virago of viragoes. Accordingly I\nleft Bassorah, broken-hearted, and limned this likeness of her in books\nand scattered them abroad in various lands, so haply they might fall\ninto the hands of a comely youth like thyself and he contrive access to\nher and peradventure she might fall in love with him, purposing to take\na promise of him that, when he should have possession of her, he would\nshow her to me, though I look but for a moment from afar off.\u201d When\nIbrahim son of Al-Khasib heard these words, he bowed his head awhile in\nthought and Al-Sandalani said to him, \u201cO my son, I have not seen in\nBaghdad a fairer than thou, and meseems that, when she seeth thee, she\nwill love thee. Art thou willing, therefore, in case thou be united with\nher and get possession of her, to show her to me, if I look but for a\nmoment from afar?\u201d Ibrahim replied, \u201cYes;\u201d and the painter rejoined,\n\u201cThis being so, tarry with me till thou set out.\u201d But the youth\nretorted, \u201cI cannot tarry longer; for my heart with love of her is all\nafire.\u201d \u201cHave patience three days,\u201d said the Shaykh, \u201ctill I fit thee\nout a ship, wherein thou mayst fare to Bassorah.\u201d Accordingly he waited\nwhilst the old man equipped him a craft and stored therein all that he\nneeded of meat and drink and so forth. When the three days were past, he\nsaid to Ibrahim, \u201cMake thee ready for the voyage; for I have prepared\nthee a packet-boat furnished with all thou requirest. The craft is my\nproperty and the seamen are of my servants. In the vessel is what will\nsuffice thee till thy return, and I have charged the crew to serve thee\ntill thou come back in safety.\u201d Thereupon Ibrahim farewelled his host\nand embarking, sailed down the river till he came to Bassorah, where he\npulled out an hundred dinars for the sailors, but they said, \u201cWe have\ngotten our hire of our lord.\u201d However he replied, \u201cTake this by way of\nlargesse; and I will not acquaint him therewith.\u201d So they took it and\nblessed him. Then the youth landed and entering the town asked, \u201cWhere\ndo the merchants lodge?\u201d and was answered, \u201cIn a Khan called the Khan of\nHamad\u00e1n.\u201d[306] So he walked to the market wherein stood the Khan, and\nall eyes were fixed upon him and men\u2019s sight was attracted to him by\nreason of his exceeding beauty and loveliness. He entered the\ncaravanserai, with one of the sailors in his company; and, asking for\nthe porter, was directed to an aged man of reverend aspect. He saluted\nhim and the doorkeeper returned his greeting; after which Ibrahim said\nto him, \u201cO uncle, hast thou a nice chamber?\u201d He replied, \u201cYes,\u201d and\ntaking him and the sailor, opened to them a handsome room decorated with\ngold, and said, \u201cO youth, this chamber befitteth thee.\u201d Ibrahim pulled\nout two dinars and gave them to him, saying, \u201cTake these to\nkey-money.\u201d[307] And the porter took them and blessed him. Then the\nyouth Ibrahim sent the sailor back to the ship and entered the room,\nwhere the doorkeeper abode with him and served him, saying, \u201cO my lord,\nthy coming hath brought us joy!\u201d Ibrahim gave him a dinar, and said,\n\u201cBuy us herewith bread and meat and sweetmeats and wine.\u201d Accordingly\nthe doorkeeper went to the market; and, buying ten dirhams\u2019 worth of\nvictual, brought it back to Ibrahim and gave him the other ten dirhams.\nBut he cried to him, \u201cSpend them on thyself;\u201d whereat the porter\nrejoiced with passing joy. Then he ate a scone with a little\nkitchen[308] and gave the rest to the concierge, adding, \u201cCarry this to\nthe people of thy household.\u201d The porter carried it to his family and\nsaid to them, \u201cMethinketh there is not on the face of the earth a more\ngenerous than the young man who has come to lodge with us this day, nor\nyet a pleasanter than he. An he abide with us, we shall grow rich.\u201d Then\nhe returned to Ibrahim and found him weeping; so he sat down and began\nto rub[309] his feet and kiss them, saying, \u201cO my lord, wherefore\nweepest thou? May Allah not make thee weep!\u201d Said Ibrahim, \u201cO uncle, I\nhave a mind to drink with thee this night;\u201d and the porter replied,\n\u201cHearing and obeying!\u201d So he gave him five dinars and said, \u201cBuy us\nfresh fruit and wine;\u201d and presently added other five, saying, \u201cWith\nthese buy also for us dessert[310] and flowers and five fat fowls and\nbring me a lute.\u201d The doorkeeper went out and, buying what he had\nordered, said to his wife, \u201cStrain this wine and cook us this food and\nlook thou dress it daintily, for this young man overwhelmeth us with his\nbounties.\u201d She did as he bade her, to the utmost of desire; and he took\nthe victuals and carried them to Ibrahim son of the Sultan.\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-fifth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that then they ate and\ndrank and made merry, and Ibrahim wept and repeated the following\nverses:\u2014\n\n O my friend! an I rendered my life, my sprite, \u273f My wealth and whatever\n the world can unite;\n Nay, th\u2019 Eternal Garden and Paradise[311] \u273f For an hour of Union my\n heart would buy\u2019t!\n\nThen he sobbed a great sob and fell down a-swoon. The porter sighed, and\nwhen he came to himself, he said to him, \u201cO my lord, what is it gars\nthee weep and who is she to whom thou alludest in these verses? Indeed,\nshe cannot be but as dust to thy feet.\u201d But Ibrahim arose and for all\nreply brought out a parcel of the richest raiment that women wear and\nsaid to him, \u201cTake this to thy Harim.\u201d So he carried it to his wife and\nshe returned with him to the young man\u2019s lodging and behold, she found\nhim weeping, quoth the doorkeeper to him, \u201cVerily, thou breakest our\nhearts! Tell us what fair one thou desirest, and she shall be naught\nsave thy handmaid.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cO uncle, know that I am the son of\nAl-Khasib, Wazir of Egypt, and I am enamoured of Jamilah, daughter of\nAbu al-Lays the Governor.\u201d Exclaimed the porters wife, \u201cAllah! Allah! O\nmy brother, leave this talk, lest any hear of us and we perish. Verily\nthere is not on earth\u2019s face a more masterful than she, nor may any name\nto her the word \u2018man,\u2019 for she is averse from men. Wherefore, O my son,\nturn from her to other than her.\u201d Now when Ibrahim heard this, he wept\nwith sore weeping and the doorkeeper said to him, \u201cI have nothing save\nmy life; but that I will risk for thy love and find thee a means of\nwinning thy will.\u201d Then the twain went out from him, and on the morrow\nhe betook himself to the Hammam and donned a suit of royal raiment,\nafter which he returned to his lodging, when behold, the porter and his\nwife came in to him and said, \u201cKnow, O my lord, that there is a\nhumpbacked tailor here who seweth for the lady Jamilah. Go thou to him\nand acquaint him with thy case; haply he will show thee the way of\nattaining thine aim.\u201d So the youth Ibrahim arose and betaking himself to\nthe shop of the humpbacked tailor, went in to him and found with him ten\nMamelukes as they were moons. He saluted them with the salam, and they\nreturned his greeting and bade him welcome and made him sit down; and\nindeed they rejoiced in him and were amazed at his charms and\nloveliness, especially the hunchback who was confounded at his beauty of\nform and favour. Presently he said to the Gobbo, \u201cI desire that thou sew\nme up my pocket;\u201d and the tailor took a needleful of silk and sewed up\nhis pocket which he had torn purposely; whereupon Ibrahim gave him five\ndinars and returned to his lodging. Quoth the tailor, \u201cWhat thing have I\ndone for this youth, that he should give me five gold pieces?\u201d And he\npassed the night, pondering his beauty and generosity. And when morning\nmorrowed Ibrahim repaired to the shop and saluted the tailor, who\nreturned his salam and welcomed him and made much of him. Then he sat\ndown and said to the hunchback, \u201cO uncle, sew up my pocket, for I have\nrent it again.\u201d Replied the tailor, \u201cOn my head and eyes, O my son,\u201d and\nsewed it up; whereupon Ibrahim gave him ten ducats and he took them,\namazed at his beauty and generosity. Then said he, \u201cBy Allah, O youth,\nfor this conduct of thine needs must be a cause, this is no matter of\nsewing up a pocket. But tell me the truth of thy case. An thou be in\nlove with one of these boys,[312] by Allah, there is not among them a\ncomelier than thou, for they are each and every as the dust at thy feet;\nand behold, they are all thy slaves and at thy command. Or if it be\nother than this, tell me.\u201d Replied Ibrahim, \u201cO uncle, this is no place\nfor talk, for my case is wondrous and my affair marvellous.\u201d Rejoined\nthe tailor, \u201cAn it be so, come with me to a place apart.\u201d So saying, he\nrose up in haste and took the youth by the hand and carrying him into a\nchamber behind the shop, said, \u201cNow tell me thy tale, O youth!\u201d\nAccordingly Ibrahim related his story first and last to the tailor, who\nwas amazed at his speech and cried, \u201cO youth, fear Allah for\nthyself:[313] indeed she of whom thou speakest is a virago and averse\nfrom men. Wherefore, O my brother, do thou guard thy tongue, else thou\nwilt destroy thyself.\u201d When Ibrahim heard the hunchback\u2019s words, he wept\nwith sore weeping and clinging to the tailor\u2019s skirts said, \u201cHelp me, O\nmy uncle, or I am a dead man; for I have left my kingdom and the kingdom\nof my father and grandfather and am become a stranger in the lands and\nlonely; nor can I endure without her.\u201d When the tailor saw how it was\nwith him, he pitied him and said, \u201cO my son, I have but my life and that\nI will venture for thy love, for thou makest my heart ache. But by\nto-morrow I will contrive thee somewhat whereby thy heart shall be\nsolaced.\u201d Ibrahim blessed him and returning to the khan, told the\ndoorkeeper what the hunchback had said, and he answered, \u201cIndeed, he\nhath dealt kindly with thee.\u201d Next morning, the youth donned his richest\ndress and taking a purse of gold, repaired to the Gobbo and saluted him.\nThen he sat down and said, \u201cO uncle, keep thy word with me.\u201d Quoth the\nhunchback, \u201cArise forthright and take thee three fat fowls and three\nounces[314] of sugar-candy and two small jugs which do thou fill with\nwine; also a cup. Lay all these in a budget[315] and to-morrow, after\nthe morning-prayers, take boat with them, saying to the boatman:\u2014I would\nhave thee row me down the river below Bassorah. An he say to thee, \u201cI\ncannot go farther than a parasang\u201d do thou answer:\u2014As thou wilt; but,\nwhen he shall have come so far, lure him on with money to carry thee\nfarther; and the first flower-garden thou wilt descry after this will be\nthat of the lady Jamilah. Go up to the gate as soon as thou espiest it\nand there thou wilt see two high steps, carpeted with brocade, and\nseated thereon a Quasimodo like me. Do thou complain to him of thy case\nand crave his favour: belike he will have compassion on thy condition\nand bring thee to the sight of her, though but for a moment from afar.\nThis is all I can do for thee; and unless he be moved to pity for thee,\nwe be dead men, I and thou. This then is my rede and the matter rests\nwith the Almighty.\u201d Quoth Ibrahim, \u201cI seek aid of Allah; whatso He\nwilleth becometh; and there is no Majesty and there is no Might save in\nAllah!\u201d Then he left the hunchback tailor and returned to his lodging\nwhere, taking the things his adviser had named, he laid them in a bag.\nOn the morrow, as soon as it was day, he went down to Tigris bank, where\nhe found a boatman asleep; so he awoke him and giving him ten sequins,\nbade him row him down the river below Bassorah. Quoth the man, \u201cO my\nlord, it must be on condition that I go no farther than a parasang; for\nif I pass that distance by a span, I am a lost man, and thou too.\u201d And\nquoth Ibrahim, \u201cBe it as thou wilt.\u201d Thereupon he took him and dropped\ndown the river with him till he drew near the flower-garden, when he\nsaid to him, \u201cO my son, I can go no farther; for, if I pass this limit,\nwe are both dead men.\u201d Hereat Ibrahim pulled out other ten dinars and\ngave them to him, saying, \u201cTake this spending-money and better thy case\ntherewithal.\u201d The boatman was ashamed to refuse him and fared on with\nhim crying, \u201cI commit the affair to Allah the Almighty!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-sixth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nyouth Ibrahim gave the boatman other ten dinars, the man took them,\nsaying, \u201cI commit the affair to Allah the Almighty!\u201d and fared on with\nhim down stream. When they came to the flower-garden, the youth sprang\nout of the boat, in his joy, a spring of a spear\u2019s cast from the land,\nand cast himself down, whilst the boatman turned and fled. Then Ibrahim\nfared forward and found all as it had been described by the Gobbo: he\nalso saw the garden-gate open, and in the porch a couch of ivory,\nwhereon sat a humpbacked man of pleasant presence, clad in gold-laced\nclothes and hending in hand a silvern mace plated with gold. So he\nhastened up to him and seizing his hand kissed it; whereupon asked the\nhunchback, \u201cWho art thou and whence comest thou and who brought thee\nhither, O my son?\u201d And indeed, when the man saw Ibrahim Khasib-son, he\nwas amazed at his beauty. He answered, \u201cO uncle, I am an ignorant lad\nand a stranger;\u201d and he wept. The hunchback had pity on him and taking\nhim up on the couch, wiped away his tears and said to him, \u201cNo harm\nshall come to thee. An thou be in debt, may Allah settle thy debt: and\nif thou be in fear, may Allah appease thy fear!\u201d Replied Ibrahim, \u201cO\nuncle, I am neither in fear nor am I in debt, but have money in plenty,\nthanks to Allah.\u201d Rejoined the other, \u201cThen, O my son, what is thy need\nthat thou venturest thyself and thy loveliness to a place wherein is\ndestruction?\u201d So he told him his story and disclosed to him his case,\nwhereupon the man bowed his head earthwards awhile, then said to him,\n\u201cWas he who directed thee to me the humpbacked tailor?\u201d \u201cYes,\u201d answered\nIbrahim, and the keeper said, \u201cThis is my brother, and he is a blessed\nman!\u201d presently adding, \u201cBut, O my son, had not affection for thee sunk\ninto my heart, and had I not taken compassion on thee, verily thou wert\nlost, thou and my brother and the doorkeeper of the Khan and his wife.\nFor know that this flower-garden hath not its like on the face of the\nearth and that it is called the Garden of the Wild Heifer,[316] nor hath\nany entered it in all my life long, save the Sultan and myself and its\nmistress Jamilah; and I have dwelt here twenty years and never yet saw\nany else attain to this stead. Every forty days the Lady Jamilah cometh\nhither in a bark and landeth in the midst of her women, under a canopy\nof satin, whose skirts ten damsels hold up with hooks of gold, whilst\nshe entereth, and I see nothing of her. Natheless, I have but my life\nand I will risk it for the sake of thee.\u201d Herewith Ibrahim kissed his\nhand and the keeper said to him, \u201cSit by me, till I devise somewhat for\nthee.\u201d Then he took him by the hand and carried him into the\nflower-garden which, when he saw, he deemed it Eden, for therein were\ntrees intertwining and palms high towering and waters welling and birds\nwith various voices carolling. Presently, the keeper brought him to a\ndomed pavilion and said to him, \u201cThis is where the Lady Jamilah\nsitteth.\u201d So he examined it and found it of the rarest of pleasances,\nfull of all manner paintings in gold and lapis lazuli. It had four\ndoors, whereto man mounted by five steps, and in its centre was a\ncistern of water, to which led down steps of gold all set with precious\nstones. Amiddlewards the basin was a fountain of gold, with figures,\nlarge and small, and water jetting in gerbes from their mouths; and\nwhen, by reason of the issuing forth of the water, they attuned\nthemselves to various tones, it seemed to the hearer as though he were\nin Eden. Round the pavilion ran a channel of water, turning a Persian\nwheel[317] whose buckets[318] were silvern covered with brocade. To the\nleft of the pavilion[319] was a lattice of silver, giving upon a green\npark, wherein were all manner wild cattle and gazelles and hares, and on\nthe right hand was another lattice, overlooking a meadow full of birds\nof all sorts, warbling in various voices and bewildering the hearers\u2019\nwits. Seeing all this the youth was delighted and sat down in the\ndoorway by the gardener, who said to him, \u201cHow seemeth to thee my\ngarden?\u201d Quoth Ibrahim, \u201c\u2019Tis the Paradise of the world!\u201d Whereat the\ngardener laughed. Then he rose and was absent awhile and presently\nreturned with a tray, full of fowls and quails and other dainties\nincluding sweetmeats of sugar, which he set before Ibrahim, saying, \u201cEat\nthy sufficiency.\u201d So he ate his fill, whereat the keeper rejoiced and\ncried, \u201cBy Allah, this is the fashion of Kings and sons of Kings[320]!\u201d\nThen said he, \u201cO Ibrahim, what hast thou in yonder bag?\u201d Accordingly he\nopened it before him and the keeper said, \u201cCarry it with thee; \u2019twill\nserve thee when the Lady Jamilah cometh; for when once she is come, I\nshall not be able to bring thee food.\u201d Then he rose and taking the youth\nby the hand, brought him to a place fronting the pavilion, where he made\nhim an arbour[321] among the trees and said to him, \u201cGet thee up here,\nand when she cometh thou wilt see her and she will not see thee. This is\nthe best I can do for thee and on Allah be our dependence! Whenas she\nsingeth, drink thou to her singing, and whenas she departeth thou shalt\nreturn in safety whence thou camest, Inshallah!\u201d Ibrahim thanked him and\nwould have kissed his hand, but he forbade him. Then the youth laid the\nbag in the arbour and the keeper said to him, \u201cO Ibrahim, walk about and\ntake thy pleasure in the garth and eat of its fruits, for thy mistress\u2019s\ncoming is appointed to be to-morrow.\u201d So he solaced himself in the\ngarden and ate of its fruits; after which he nighted with the keeper.\nAnd when morning morrowed and showed its sheen and shone, he prayed the\ndawn-prayer and presently the keeper came to him with a pale face, and\nsaid to him, \u201cRise, O my son, and go up into the arbour: for the\nslave-girls are come to order the place, and she cometh after\nthem;\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-seventh Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the keeper\ncame to Ibrahim Khasib-son in the Garden he said to him, \u201cRise, O my\nson, and go up into the arbour; for the slave-girls are come to order\nthe place and she cometh after them. So beware lest thou spit or sneeze\nor blow thy nose[322]; else we are dead men, I and thou.\u201d Hereupon\nIbrahim rose and went up into his nest, whilst the keeper fared forth,\nsaying, \u201cAllah grant thee safety, O my son!\u201d Presently behold, up came\nfour slave-girls, whose like none ever saw, and entering the pavilion,\ndoffed their outer dresses and washed it. Then they sprinkled it with\nrose-water and incensed it with ambergris and aloes-wood and spread it\nwith brocade. After these came fifty other damsels, with instruments of\nmusic, and amongst them Jamilah, within a canopy of red brocade, whose\nskirts the handmaidens bore up with hooks of gold, till she had entered\nthe pavilion, so that Ibrahim saw naught of her nor of her raiment. So\nhe said to himself, \u201cBy Allah, all my travail is lost! But needs must I\nwait to see how the case will be.\u201d Then the damsels brought meat and\ndrink and they ate and drank and washed their hands, after which they\nset her a royal chair and she sat down; and all played on instruments of\nmusic and with ravishing voices incomparably sang. Presently, out ran an\nold woman, a duenna, and clapped hands and danced, whilst the girls\npulled her about, till the curtain was lifted and forth came Jamilah\nlaughing. Ibrahim gazed at her and saw that she was clad in costly robes\nand ornaments, and on her head was a crown set with pearls and gems.\nAbout her long fair neck she wore a necklace of unions and her waist was\nclasped with a girdle of chrysolite bugles, with tassels of rubies and\npearls. The damsels kissed ground before her, and, \u201cWhen I considered\nher\u201d (quoth Ibrahim), \u201cI took leave of my senses and wit and I was dazed\nand my thought was confounded for amazement at the sight of loveliness\nwhose like is not on the face of the earth. So I fell into a swoon and\ncoming to myself, weeping-eyed, recited these two couplets:\u2014\n\n I see thee and close not mine eyes for fear \u273f Lest their lids prevent me\n beholding thee:\n An I gazed with mine every glance these eyne \u273f Ne\u2019er could sight all the\n loveliness moulding thee.\u201d\n\nThen said the old Kahram\u00e1nah[323] to the girls, \u201cLet ten of you arise\nand dance and sing.\u201d And Ibrahim when looking at them said in himself,\n\u201cI wish the lady Jamilah would dance.\u201d When the handmaidens had made an\nend of their pavane, they gathered round the Princess and said to her,\n\u201cO my lady, we long for thee to dance amongst us, so the measure of our\njoy may be fulfilled, for never saw we a more delicious day than this.\u201d\nQuoth Ibrahim to himself, \u201cDoubtless the gates of Heaven are open[324]\nand Allah hath granted my prayer.\u201d Then the damsels bussed her feet and\nsaid to her, \u201cBy Allah, we never saw thee broadened of breast as\nto-day!\u201d Nor did they cease exciting her, till she doffed her outer\ndress and stood in a shift of cloth of gold,[325] broidered with various\njewels, showing breasts which stood out like pomegranates and unveiling\na face as it were the moon on the night of fulness. Then she began to\ndance, and Ibrahim beheld motions he had never in his life seen their\nlike, for she showed such wondrous skill and marvellous invention, that\nshe made men forget the dancing of bubbles in wine-cups and called to\nmind the inclining of the turbands from head[326]-tops: even as saith of\nher the poet[327]:\u2014\n\n A dancer whose form is like branch of B\u00e1n! \u273f Flies my soul well nigh as\n his steps I greet:\n While he dances no foot stands still and meseems \u273f That the fire of my\n heart is beneath his feet.\n\nAnd as quoth another[328]:\u2014\n\n A dancer whose figure is like a willow-branch: my soul almost quitteth\n me at the sight of her movements.\n No foot can remain stationary at her dancing, she is as though the fire\n of my heart were beneath her feet.\n\nQuoth Ibrahim:\u2014As I gazed upon her, she chanced to look up and caught\nsight of me whereupon her face changed and she said to her women, \u201cSing\nye till I come back to you.\u201d Then, taking up a knife half a cubit long,\nshe made towards me, crying, \u201cThere is no Majesty and there is no Might\nsave in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!\u201d Now when I saw this, I\nwell-nigh lost my wits; but, whenas she drew near me and face met face,\nthe knife dropped from her hand, and she exclaimed, \u201cGlory to Him who\nchangeth men\u2019s hearts!\u201d Then said she to me, \u201cO youth, be of good cheer,\nfor thou art safe from what thou dost fear!\u201d Whereupon I fell to\nweeping, and she to wiping away my tears with her hand and saying, \u201cO\nyouth, tell me who thou art, and what brought thee hither.\u201d I kissed the\nground before her and seized her skirt; and she said, \u201cNo harm shall\ncome to thee; for, by Allah, no male hath ever filled mine eyes[329] but\nthyself! Tell me, then, who thou art.\u201d So I recited to her my story from\nfirst to last, whereat she marvelled and said to me, \u201cO my lord, I\nconjure thee by Allah, tell me if thou be Ibrahim bin al-Khasib?\u201d I\nreplied, \u201cYes!\u201d and she threw herself upon me, saying, \u201cO my lord, \u2019twas\nthou madest me averse from men; for, when I heard that there was in the\nland of Egypt a youth than whom there was none more beautiful on earth\u2019s\nface, I fell in love with thee by report, and my heart became enamoured\nof thee, for that which reached me of thy passing comeliness, so that I\nwas, in respect of thee, even as saith the poet:\u2014\n\n Mine ear forewent mine eye in loving him; \u273f For ear shall love before\n the eye at times.\n\n\u201cSo praised be Allah who hath shown thy face! But, by the Almighty, had\nit been other than thou, I had crucified the keeper of the garden and\nthe porter of the Khan and the tailor and him who had recourse to them!\u201d\nAnd presently she added, \u201cBut how shall I contrive for somewhat thou\nmayst eat, without the knowledge of my women?\u201d Quoth I, \u201cWith me is\nsomewhat we may eat and drink;\u201d and I opened the bag before her. She\ntook a fowl and began to morsel me and I to morsel her; which when I\nsaw, it seemed to me that this was a dream. Then I brought out wine and\nwe drank, what while the damsels sang on; nor did they leave to do thus\nfrom morn to noon, when she rose and said, \u201cGo now and get thee a boat\nand await me in such a place, till I come to thee: for I have no\npatience left to brook severance.\u201d I replied, \u201cO my lady, I have with me\na ship of my own, whose crew are in my hire, and they await me.\u201d\nRejoined she, \u201cThis is as we would have it,\u201d and returning to her\nwomen,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-eighth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Lady\nJamilah returned to her women, she said to them, \u201cCome, let us go back\nto our palace.\u201d They replied, \u201cWhy should we return now, seeing that we\nuse to abide here three days?\u201d Quoth she, \u201cI feel an exceeding\noppression in myself, as though I were sick, and I fear lest this\nincrease upon me.\u201d[330] So they answered, \u201cWe hear and obey,\u201d and\ndonning their walking-dresses went down to the river-bank and embarked\nin a boat; whereupon behold, the keeper of the garden came up to Ibrahim\nand said to him, knowing not what had happened, \u201cO Ibrahim, thou hast\nnot had the luck to enjoy the sight of her, and I fear lest she have\nseen thee, for \u2019tis her wont to tarry here three days.\u201d Replied Ibrahim,\n\u201cShe saw me not nor I her; for she came not forth of the pavilion.\u201d[331]\nRejoined the keeper, \u201cTrue, O my son, for, had she seen thee, we were\nboth dead men: but abide with me till she come again next week, and thou\nshalt see her and take thy fill of looking at her.\u201d Replied the Prince,\n\u201cO my lord, I have with me money and fear for it: I also left men behind\nme and I dread lest they take advantage of my absence.\u201d[332] He\nretorted, \u201cO my son \u2019tis grievous to me to part with thee;\u201d and he\nembraced and farewelled him. Then Ibrahim returned to the Khan where he\nlodged, and foregathering with the doorkeeper, took of him all his\nproperty and the porter said, \u201cGood news, Inshallah!\u201d[333] But Ibrahim\nsaid, \u201cI have found no way to my want, and now I am minded to return to\nmy people.\u201d Whereupon the porter wept; then taking up his baggage, he\ncarried them to the ship and abade him adieu. Ibrahim repaired to the\nplace which Jamilah had appointed him and awaited her there till it grew\ndark, when, behold, she came up, disguised as a bully-boy with rounded\nbeard and waist bound with a girdle. In one hand she held a bow and\narrows and in the other a bared blade, and she asked him, \u201cArt thou\nIbrahim, son of Al-Khasib, lord of Egypt?\u201d \u201cHe I am,\u201d answered the\nPrince; and she said, \u201cWhat ne\u2019er-do-well art thou, who comest to\ndebauch the daughters of Kings? Come: speak with the Sultan.\u201d[334]\nTherewith (quoth Ibrahim) I fell down in a swoon and the sailors\ndied[335] in their skins for fear; but, when she saw what had betided\nme, she pulled off her beard and throwing down her sword, ungirdled her\nwaist whereupon I knew her for the Lady Jamilah and said to her, \u201cBy\nAllah, thou hast rent my heart in sunder!\u201d[336] adding to the boatmen,\n\u201cHasten the vessel\u2019s speed.\u201d So they shook out the sail and putting off,\nfared on with all diligence; nor was it many days ere we made Baghdad,\nwhere suddenly we saw a ship lying by the river-bank. When her sailors\nsaw us, they cried out to our crew, saying, \u201cHo, such an one and such an\none, we give you joy of your safety!\u201d Then they drave their ship against\nour craft and I looked and in the other boat beheld Abu al-Kasim\nal-Sandalani who when he saw us exclaimed, \u201cThis is what I sought: go ye\nin God\u2019s keeping; as for me, I have a need to be satisfied!\u201d Then he\nturned to me and said, \u201cPraised be Allah for safety! Hast thou\naccomplished thine errand?\u201d I replied, \u201cYes!\u201d Now Abu al-Kasim had a\nflambeau before him; so he brought it near our boat,[337] and when\nJamilah saw him, she was troubled and her colour changed: but, when he\nsaw her, he said, \u201cFare ye in Allah\u2019s safety. I am bound to Bassorah, on\nbusiness for the Sultan; but the gift is for him who is present.\u201d[338]\nThen he brought out a box of sweetmeats, wherein was Bhang and threw it\ninto our boat: whereupon quoth I to Jamilah, \u201cO coolth of mine eyes, eat\nof this.\u201d But she wept and said, \u201cO Ibrahim, wottest thou who that is?\u201d\nand said I, \u201cYes, \u2019tis such an one.\u201d Replied she, \u201cHe is my first\ncousin, son of my father\u2019s brother[339] who sought me aforetime in\nmarriage of my sire; but I would not accept of him. And now he is gone\nto Bassorah and most like he will tell my father of us.\u201d I rejoined, \u201cO\nmy lady he will not reach Bassorah, till we are at Mosul.\u201d But we knew\nnot what lurked for us in the Secret Purpose. Then (continued Ibrahim) I\nate of the sweetmeat, but hardly had it reached my stomach when I smote\nthe ground with my head; and lay there till near dawn, when I sneezed\nand the Bhang issued from my nostrils. With this, I opened my eyes and\nfound myself naked and cast out among ruins; so I buffeted my face and\nsaid in myself, \u201cDoubtless this is a trick Al-Sandalani hath played me.\u201d\nBut I knew not whither I should wend, for I had upon me naught save my\nbag-trousers.[340] However, I rose and walked on a little, till I\nsuddenly espied the Chief of Police coming towards me, with a posse of\nmen with swords and targes;[341] whereat I took fright and seeing a\nruined Hammam hid myself there. Presently, my foot stumbled upon\nsomething; so I put my hand to it, and it became befouled with blood. I\nwiped my hand upon my bag-trousers, unknowing what had befouled it, and\nput it out a second time, when it fell upon a corpse whose head came up\nin my hand. I threw it down, saying, \u201cThere is no Majesty and there is\nno Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!\u201d; and I took refuge in\none of the corner-cabinets of the Hammam. Presently the Wali stopped at\nthe bath-door and said, \u201cEnter this place and search.\u201d So ten of them\nentered with cressets, and I of my fear retired behind a wall and\nlooking upon the corpse, saw it to be that of a young lady[342] with a\nface like the full moon; and her head lay on one side and her body clad\nin costly raiment on the other. When I saw this, my heart fluttered with\naffright. Then the Chief of Police entered and said, \u201cSearch the corners\nof the bath.\u201d So they entered the place wherein I was, and one of them\nseeing me, came up hending in hand a knife half a cubit long. When he\ndrew near me, he cried, \u201cGlory be to God, the Creator of this fair face!\nO youth, whence art thou?\u201d Then he took me by the hand and said, \u201cO\nyouth, why slewest thou this woman?\u201d Said I, \u201cBy Allah, I slew her not,\nnor wot I who slew her, and I entered not this place but in fear of\nyou!\u201d And I told him my case, adding, \u201cAllah upon thee, do me no wrong,\nfor I am in concern for myself!\u201d Then he took me and carried me to the\nWali who, seeing the marks of blood on my hand said, \u201cThis needeth no\nproof: strike off his head!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day\nand ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-ninth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Ibrahim\ncontinued:\u2014Then they carried me before the Wali and he, seeing the\nbloodstains on my hand, cried, \u201cThis needeth no proof: strike off his\nhead!\u201d Now hearing these words, I wept with sore weeping the tears\nstreaming from my eyes and recited these two couplets[343]:\u2014\n\n We trod the steps that for us were writ, \u273f And whose steps are written\n he needs must tread;\n And whose death is decreed in one land to be \u273f He ne\u2019er shall perish in\n other stead.\n\nThen I sobbed a single sob and fell a-swoon; and the headsman\u2019s heart\nwas moved to ruth for me and he exclaimed, \u201cBy Allah, this is no\nmurtherer\u2019s face!\u201d But the Chief said, \u201cSmite his neck.\u201d So they seated\nme on the rug of blood and bound my eyes; after which the sworder drew\nhis sword and asking leave of the Wali, was about to strike off my head,\nwhilst I cried out, \u201cAlas, my strangerhood!\u201d when lo and behold! I heard\na noise of horse coming up and a voice calling aloud, \u201cLeave him! Stay\nthy hand, O Sworder!\u201d Now there was for this a wondrous reason and a\nmarvellous cause; and \u2019twas thus. Al-Khasib, Wazir of Egypt, had sent\nhis Head Chamberlain to the Caliph Harun al-Rashid with presents and a\nletter, saying, \u201cMy son hath been missing this year past, and I hear\nthat he is in Baghdad; wherefore I crave of the bounty of the Viceregent\nof Allah that he make search for tidings of him and do his endeavour to\nfind him and send him back to me with the Chamberlain.\u201d When the Caliph\nread the missive, he commanded the Chief of Police to search out the\ntruth of the matter, and he ceased not to enquire after Ibrahim, till it\nwas told him that he was at Bassorah, whereupon he informed the Caliph,\nwho wrote a letter to the viceroy and giving it to the Chamberlain of\nEgypt, bade him repair to Bassorah and take with him a company of the\nWazir\u2019s followers. So, of his eagerness to find the son of his lord, the\nChamberlain set out forthright and happened by the way upon Ibrahim, as\nhe stood on the rug of blood. When the Wali saw the Chamberlain, he\nrecognised him and alighted to him and as he asked, \u201cWhat young man is\nthat and what is his case?\u201d The Chief told him how the matter was and\nthe Chamberlain said (and indeed he knew him not for the son of the\nSultan[344]) \u201cVerily this young man hath not the face of one who\nmurthereth.\u201d And he bade loose his bonds; so they loosed him and the\nChamberlain said, \u201cBring him to me!\u201d and they brought him, but the\nofficer knew him not his beauty being all gone for the horrors he had\nendured. Then the Chamberlain said to him, \u201cO youth, tell me thy case\nand how cometh this slain woman with thee.\u201d Ibrahim looked at him and\nknowing him, said to him, \u201cWoe to thee! Dost thou not know me? Am I not\nIbrahim, son of thy lord? Haply thou art come in quest of me.\u201d With this\nthe Chamberlain considered him straitly and knowing him right well,\nthrew himself at his feet; which when the Wali saw, his colour changed;\nand the Chamberlain cried to him, \u201cFie upon thee, O tyrant! Was it thine\nintent to slay the son of my master Al-Khasib, Wazir of Egypt?\u201d The\nChief of Police kissed his skirt, saying \u201cO my lord,[345] how should I\nknow him? We found him in this plight and saw the girl lying slain by\nhis side.\u201d Rejoined the Chamberlain, \u201cOut on thee! Thou art not fit for\nthe office. This is a lad of fifteen and he hath not slain a sparrow; so\nhow should he be a murtherer? Why didst thou not have patience with him\nand question him of his case?\u201d Then the Chamberlain and the Wali cried\nto the men, \u201cMake search for the young lady\u2019s murtherer.\u201d So they\nre-entered the bath and finding him, brought him to the Chief of Police,\nwho carried him to the Caliph and acquainted him with that which had\noccurred. Al-Rashid bade slay the slayer and sending for Ibrahim, smiled\nin his face and said to him, \u201cTell me thy tale and that which hath\nbetided thee.\u201d So he recounted to him his story from first to last, and\nit was grievous to the Caliph, who called Masrur his Sworder, and said\nto him, \u201cGo straightway and fall upon the house of Abu al-Kasim\nal-Sandalani and bring me him and the young lady.\u201d The eunuch went forth\nat once and breaking into the house, found Jamilah bound with her own\nhair and nigh upon death; so he loosed her and taking the painter,\ncarried them both to the Caliph, who marvelled at Jamilah\u2019s beauty. Then\nhe turned to Al-Sandalani and said, \u201cTake him and cut off his hands,\nwherewith he beat this young lady; then crucify him and deliver his\nmonies and possessions to Ibrahim.\u201d They did his bidding, and as they\nwere thus, behold, in came Abu al-Lays governor of Bassorah, the Lady\nJamilah\u2019s father, seeking aid of the Caliph against Ibrahim bin\nal-Khasib Wazir of Egypt and complaining to him that the youth had taken\nhis daughter. Quoth Al-Rashid, \u201cHe hath been the means of delivering her\nfrom torture and slaughter.\u201d Then he sent for Ibrahim, and when he came,\nhe said to Abu al-Lays, \u201cWilt thou not accept of this young man, son of\nthe Soldan of Egypt, as husband to thy daughter?\u201d Replied Abu al-Lays,\n\u201cI hear and I obey Allah and thee, O Commander of the Faithful;\u201d\nwhereupon the Caliph summoned the Kazi and the witnesses and married the\nyoung lady to Ibrahim. Furthermore, he gave him all Al-Sandalani\u2019s\nwealth and equipped him for his return to his own country, where he\nabode with Jamilah in the utmost of bliss and the most perfect of\nhappiness, till there came to them the Destroyer of delights and the\nSunderer of societies; and glory be to the Living who dieth not! They\nalso relate, O auspicious King, a tale anent\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 298:\n\n The tale is not in the Bresl. Edit.\n\nFootnote 299:\n\n Al-Khas\u00edb (= the fruitful) was the son of \u2019Abd al-Ham\u00edd and intendant\n of the tribute of Egypt under Harun al-Rashid, but neither Lord nor\n Sultan. Lane (iii. 669) quotes three couplets in his honour by Abu\n Now\u00e1s from p. 119 of \u201cElmacini (Al-Mak\u00edn) Historia Saracenica.\u201d\n\n If our camel visit not the land of Al-Khasib, what man after Al-Khasib\n shall they visit?\n For generosity is not his neighbour; nor hath it sojourned near him;\n but generosity goeth wherever he goeth:\n He is a man who purchaseth praise with his wealth, and who knoweth\n that the periods of Fortune revolve.\n\nFootnote 300:\n\n The old story \u201cAl\u00e0 j\u00fadi-k\u201d = upon thy generosity, which means at least\n ten times the price.\n\nFootnote 301:\n\n _i.e._ The distance is enormous.\n\nFootnote 302:\n\n A gazelle; but here the slave-girl\u2019s name.\n\nFootnote 303:\n\n See vol. ii. 104. Herklots (Pl. vii. fig. 2) illustrates the cloth\n used in playing the Indian game, Pach\u00eds\u00ed. The \u201cboard\u201d is rather\n European than Oriental, but it has of late years spread far and wide,\n especially the backgammon board.\n\nFootnote 304:\n\n _i.e._ \u201cFather of the Lion.\u201d\n\nFootnote 305:\n\n Or as we should say, \u201cThy blood will be on thine own head.\u201d\n\nFootnote 306:\n\n Called after the famous town in Persian Mesopotamia which however is\n spelt with the lesser aspirate. See p. 144. The Geographical works of\n S\u00e1dik-i-Ispah\u00e1ni, London; Oriental Transl. Fund, 1882. Hamdan (with\n the greater aspirate) and Hamdun mean only the member masculine, which\n may be a delicate piece of chaff for the gallery.\n\nFootnote 307:\n\n Arab. \u201cHulw\u00e1n al-mift\u00e1h,\u201d for which see vol. vii. 212. Mr. Payne\n compares it with the French denier \u00e0 Dieu, given to the concierge on\n like occasions.\n\nFootnote 308:\n\n Arab. \u2019Udm, a relish, the Scotch \u201ckitchen,\u201d Lat. Opsonium, Ital.\n Companatico and our \u201cby-meat.\u201d See vol. iv. 128.\n\nFootnote 309:\n\n Arab. \u201cKabasa\u201d = he shampoo\u2019d. See vol. ii. 17.\n\nFootnote 310:\n\n Arab. \u201cNukl.\u201d See supra p. 177.\n\nFootnote 311:\n\n Arab. Jannat al-Khuld and Firdaus, two of the Heavens repeatedly\n noticed.\n\nFootnote 312:\n\n The na\u00efvet\u00e9 is purely Horatian, that is South European versus North\n European.\n\nFootnote 313:\n\n _i.e._ \u201cHave some regard for thy life.\u201d\n\nFootnote 314:\n\n Arab. \u201cAw\u00e1k\u201d plur. of \u00dakiyyah a word known throughout the Moslem East.\n As an ounce it weighs differently in every country and in Barbary\n (Mauritania) which we call Morocco, it is a nominal coin containing\n twelve Fl\u00fas (ful\u00fas) now about = a penny. It is a direct descendant\n from the \u201cUk\u201d or \u201cWuk\u201d (ounce) of the hieroglyphs (See Sharpe\u2019s Egypt\n or any other Manual) and first appeared in Europe as the Greek \u03bf\u1f50\u03b3\u03ba\u03af\u03b1.\n\nFootnote 315:\n\n Arab. \u201cK\u00e1rah\u201d usually a large bag.\n\nFootnote 316:\n\n Arab. \u201cL\u00fal\u00faah,\u201d which may mean the Union-pearl; but here used in the\n sense of \u201cwild cow,\u201d the bubalus antelope, alluding to the _farouche_\n nature of Miss Jamilah. We are also told infr\u00e0 that the park was full\n of \u201cWuh\u00fash\u201d = wild cattle.\n\nFootnote 317:\n\n Arab. \u201cS\u00e1kiyah,\u201d the venerable old Persian wheel, for whose music see\n Pilgrimage ii. 198. But \u201cSakiyah\u201d is also applied, as here, to the\n water-channel which turns the wheel.\n\nFootnote 318:\n\n Arab. \u201cKaw\u00e1d\u00eds,\u201d plur. of \u201cK\u00e1d\u00fas,\u201d the pots round the rim of the\n Persian wheel: usually they are of coarse pottery.\n\nFootnote 319:\n\n In the text \u201cS\u00e1kiyah\u201d a manifest error for \u201cKubbah.\u201d\n\nFootnote 320:\n\n Easterns greatly respect a _belle fourchette_, especially when the\n eater is a lover.\n\nFootnote 321:\n\n Arab. \u201c\u2019Ar\u00edshah,\u201d a word of many meanings, tent, nest, vine-trellis,\n etc.\n\nFootnote 322:\n\n To spit or blow the nose in good society is \u201cvulgar.\u201d Sneezing\n (Al-\u2019Atsah) is a complicated affair. For Talmudic traditions of death\n by sneezing see Lane (M. E. chapt. viii). Amongst Hindus sneezing and\n yawning are caused by evil spirits whom they drive away by snapping\n thumb and forefinger as loudly as possible. The pagan Arabs held\n sneezing a bad omen, which often stopped their journeys. Moslems\n believe that when Allah placed the Soul (life?) in Adam, the dry clay\n became flesh and bone and the First Man, waking to life, sneezed and\n ejaculated \u201cAlhamdolillah;\u201d whereto Gabriel replied, \u201cAllah have mercy\n upon thee, O Adam!\u201d Mohammed, who liked sneezing because accompanied\n by lightness of body and openness of pores, said of it, \u201cIf a man\n sneeze or eructate and say \u2018Alhamdolillah\u2019 he averts seventy diseases\n of which the least is leprosy\u201d (Juz\u00e1m); also, \u201cIf one of you sneeze,\n let him exclaim, \u2018Alhamdolillah,\u2019 and let those around salute him in\n return with, \u2018Allah have mercy upon thee!\u2019 and lastly let him say,\n \u2018Allah direct you and strengthen your condition.\u2019\u201d Moderns prefer,\n \u201cAllah avert what may joy thy foe!\u201d = (our God bless you!) to which\n the answer is \u201cAlhamdolillah!\u201d Mohammed disliked yawning (Suab\u00e1 or\n Thuab\u00e1), because not beneficial as a sneeze and said, \u201cIf one of you\n gape and cover not his mouth, a devil leaps into it.\u201d This is still a\n popular superstition from Baghdad to Morocco.\n\nFootnote 323:\n\n A duenna, nursery governess, etc. See vol. i. 231.\n\nFootnote 324:\n\n For this belief see the tale called \u201cThe Night of Power,\u201d vol. vi.\n 180.\n\nFootnote 325:\n\n The Anglo-Indian \u201cKincob\u201d (Kimkh\u2019\u00e1b); brocade, silk flowered with gold\n or silver.\n\nFootnote 326:\n\n Lane finds a needless difficulty in this sentence, which is\n far-fetched only because Kuus (cups) requires Ruus (head-tops) by way\n of jingle. It means only \u201c\u2019Twas merry in hall when beards wag all.\u201d\n\nFootnote 327:\n\n The Mac. Edit. gives two couplets which have already occurred from the\n Bul. Edit. i. 540.\n\nFootnote 328:\n\n The lines are half of four couplets in vol. iv. 192; so I quote Lane.\n\nFootnote 329:\n\n _i.e._ none hath pleased me. I have quoted the popular saying, \u201cThe\n son of the quarter filleth not the eye.\u201d _i.e._ women prefer stranger\n faces.\n\nFootnote 330:\n\n Here after the favourite Oriental fashion, she tells the truth but so\n enigmatically that it is more deceptive than an untruth; a good\n Eastern quibble infinitely more dangerous than an honest downright\n lie. The consciousness that the falsehood is part fact applies a salve\n to conscience and supplies a force lacking in the mere fib. When an\n Egyptian lies to you look straight in his eyes and he will most often\n betray himself either by boggling or by a look of injured innocence.\n\nFootnote 331:\n\n Another true lie.\n\nFootnote 332:\n\n Arab. \u201cYastagh\u00edb\u00fan\u00ed,\u201d lit. = they deem my absence too long.\n\nFootnote 333:\n\n An euphemistic form of questioning after absence: \u201cIs all right with\n thee?\u201d\n\nFootnote 334:\n\n Arab. \u201cKallim al-Sultan!\u201d the formula of summoning which has often\n occurred in The Nights.\n\nFootnote 335:\n\n Lane translates \u201cAlmost died,\u201d Payne \u201cwell-nigh died;\u201d but the text\n says \u201cdied.\u201d I would suggest to translators\n\n Be bould, be bould and every where be bould!\n\nFootnote 336:\n\n He is the usual poltroon contrasted with the manly and masterful girl,\n a conjunction of the lioness and the lamb sometimes seen in real life.\n\nFootnote 337:\n\n That he might see Jamilah as Ibrahim had promised.\n\nFootnote 338:\n\n A popular saying, _i.e._, les absents ont toujours tort.\n\nFootnote 339:\n\n Who had a prior right to marry her, but not against her consent after\n she was of age.\n\nFootnote 340:\n\n Arab. \u201cSirw\u00e1l.\u201d In Al-Hariri it is a singular form (see No. ii. of the\n twelve riddles in Ass. xxiv.); but Mohammed said to his followers\n \u201cTuakhkhiz\u00fa\u201d (adopt ye) \u201cSar\u00e1w\u00edl\u00e1t.\u201d The latter is regularly\n declinable but the broken form Sar\u00e1w\u00edl is imperfectly declinable on\n account of its \u201cheaviness,\u201d as are all plurals whose third letter is\n an Alif followed by i or \u00ed in the next syllable.\n\nFootnote 341:\n\n Arab. \u201cMatarik\u201d from mitrak or mitrakah a small wooden shield coated\n with hide. This even in the present day is the policeman\u2019s equipment\n in the outer parts of the East.\n\nFootnote 342:\n\n \u201cArab. \u201cSab\u00edyah\u201d for which I prefer Mr. Payne\u2019s \u201cyoung lady\u201d to Lane\u2019s\n \u201cdamsel\u201d; the latter should be confined to J\u00e1riyah as both bear the\n double sense of girl and slave (or servant) girl. \u201cBint\u201d again is\n daughter, maid or simply girl.\n\nFootnote 343:\n\n The sense of them is found in vol. ii. 41.\n\nFootnote 344:\n\n Here the text is defective, but I hardly like to supply the omission.\n Mr. Payne introduces from below, \u201cfor that his charms were wasted and\n his favour changed by reason of the much terror and affliction he had\n suffered.\u201d The next lines also are very abrupt and unconnected.\n\nFootnote 345:\n\n Arab. \u201cY\u00e1 Maul\u00e1ya!\u201d the term is still used throughout Moslem lands;\n but in Barbary where it is pronounced \u201cMool\u00e1ee\u201d Europeans have\n converted it to \u201cMuley\u201d as if it had some connection with the mule.\n Even in Robinson Crusoe we find \u201cmuly\u201d or \u201cMoly Ismael\u201d (chapt. ii.);\n and we hear the high-sounding name Maul\u00e1-i-Idr\u00eds, the patron saint of\n the Sunset Land, debased to \u201cMuley Dr\u00eds.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n ABU AL-HASAN OF KHORASAN.[346]\n\n\nThe Caliph Al-Mu\u2019tazid Bi \u2019llah[347] was a high-spirited Prince and a\nnoble-minded lord; he had in Baghdad six hundred Wazirs and of the\naffairs of the folk naught was hidden from him. He went forth one day,\nhe and Ibn Hamd\u00fan,[348] to divert himself with observing his lieges and\nhearing the latest news of the people; and, being overtaken with the\nheats of noonday, they turned aside from the main thoroughfare into a\nlittle by-street, at the upper end whereof they saw a handsome and\nhigh-builded mansion, discoursing of its owner with the tongue of\npraise. They sat down at the gate to take rest, and presently out came\ntwo eunuchs as they were moons on their fourteenth night. Quoth one of\nthem to his fellow, \u201cWould Heaven some guest would seek admission this\nday! My master will not eat but with guests and we are come to this hour\nand I have not yet seen a soul.\u201d The Caliph marvelled at their speech\nand said, \u201cThis is a proof of the house-master\u2019s liberality: there is no\nhelp but that we go in to him and note his generosity, and this shall be\na means of favour betiding him from us.\u201d So he said to the eunuch, \u201cAsk\nleave of thy lord for the admission of a company[349] of strangers.\u201d For\nin those days it was the Caliph\u2019s wont, whenas he was minded to observe\nhis subjects, to disguise himself in merchant\u2019s garb. The eunuch went in\nand told his master, who rejoiced and rising, came out to them in\nperson. He was fair of favour and fine of form and he appeared clad in a\ntunic of N\u00edsh\u00e1p\u00far[350] silk and a gold laced mantle; and he dripped with\nscented waters and wore on his hand a signet ring of rubies. When he saw\nthem, he said to them, \u201cWell come and welcome to the lords who favour us\nwith the utmost of favour by their coming!\u201d So they entered the house\nand found it such as would make a man forget family and fatherland for\nit was like a piece of Paradise.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixtieth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nCaliph entered the mansion, he and the man with him, they saw it to be\nsuch as would make one forget family and fatherland, for it was like a\npiece of Paradise. Within it was a flower-garden, full of all kinds of\ntrees, confounding sight and its dwelling-places were furnished with\ncostly furniture. They sat down and the Caliph fell to gazing at the\nhouse and the household gear. (Quoth Ibn Hamd\u00fan), I looked at the Caliph\nand saw his countenance change, and being wont to know from his face\nwhether he was amused or anangered, said to myself, \u201cI wonder what hath\nvexed him.\u201d Then they brought a golden basin and we washed our hands,\nafter which they spread a silken cloth and set thereon a table of\nrattan. When the covers were taken off the dishes, we saw therein meats\nrare as the blooms of Prime in the season of their utmost scarcity,\ntwofold and single, and the host said, \u201cBismillah, O my lords! By Allah,\nhunger pricketh me; so favour me by eating of this food, as is the\nfashion of the noble.\u201d Thereupon he began tearing fowls apart and laying\nthem before us, laughing the while and repeating verses and telling\nstories and talking gaily with pleasant sayings such as sorted with the\nentertainment. We ate and drank, then removed to another room, which\nconfounded beholders with its beauty and which reeked with exquisite\nperfumes. Here they brought us a tray of fruits freshly-gathered and\nsweetmeats the finest flavoured, whereat our joys increased and our\ncares ceased. But withal the Caliph (continued Ibn Hamdun) ceased not to\nwear a frowning face and smiled not at that which gladdened all souls,\nalbeit it was his wont to love mirth and merriment and the putting away\nof cares, and I knew that he was no envious wight and oppressor. So I\nsaid to myself, \u201cWould Heaven I knew what is the cause of his moroseness\nand why we cannot dissipate his ill-humour!\u201d Presently they brought the\ntray of wine which friends doth conjoin and clarified draughts in\nflagons of gold and crystal and silver, and the host smote with a\nrattan-wand on the door of an inner chamber, whereupon behold, it opened\nand out came three damsels, high-bosomed virginity with faces like the\nsun at the fourth hour of the day, one a lutist, another a harpist and\nthe third a dancer-artiste. Then he set before us dried fruits and\nconfections and drew between us and the damsels a curtain of brocade,\nwith tassels of silk and rings of gold. The Caliph paid no heed to all\nthis, but said to the host, who knew not who was in his company, \u201cArt\nthou noble?\u201d[351] Said he, \u201cNo, my lord; I am but a man of the sons of\nthe merchants and am known among the folk as Ab\u00fa al-Hasan Ali, son of\nAhmad of Khorasan.\u201d Quoth the Caliph, \u201cDost thou know me, O man?\u201d; and\nquoth he, \u201cBy Allah, O my lord, I have no knowledge of either of your\nhonours!\u201d Then said I to him, \u201cO man, this is the Commander of the\nFaithful, Al-Mu\u2019tazid Bi\u2019llah grandson of Al-Mutawakkil al\u00e0\u2019llah.\u201d[352]\nWhereupon he rose and kissed the ground before the Caliph, trembling for\nfear of him, and said, \u201cO Prince of True Believers, I conjure thee, by\nthe virtue of thy pious forbears, an thou have seen in me any\nshortcomings or lack of good manners in thy presence, do thou forgive\nme!\u201d Replied the Caliph, \u201cAs for that which thou hast done with us of\nhonouring and hospitality nothing could have exceeded it; and as for\nthat wherewith I have to reproach thee here, an thou tell me the truth\nrespecting it and it commend itself to my sense, thou shalt be saved\nfrom me; but, an thou tell me not the truth, I will take thee with\nmanifest proof and punish thee with such punishment as never yet\npunished any.\u201d Quoth the man, \u201cAllah forbid that I tell thee a lie! But\nwhat is it that thou reproachest to me, O Commander of the Faithful?\u201d\nQuoth the Caliph, \u201cSince I entered thy mansion and looked upon its\ngrandeur, I have noted the furniture and vessels therein, nay even to\nthy clothes, and behold, on all of them is the name of my grandfather\nAl-Mutawakkil ala \u2019llah.\u201d[353] Answered Abu al-Hasan, \u201cYes, O Commander\nof the Faithful (the Almighty protect thee), truth is thine inner garb\nand sincerity is thine outer garment and none may speak otherwise than\ntruly in thy presence.\u201d The Caliph bade him be seated and said, \u201cTell\nus.\u201d So he began, \u201cKnow, O Commander of the Faithful, that my father\nbelonged to the markets of the money-changers and druggists and\nlinendrapers and had in each bazar a shop and an agent and all kinds of\ngoods. Moreover, behind the money-changer\u2019s shop he had an apartment,\nwhere he might be private, appointing the shop for buying and selling.\nHis wealth was beyond count and to his riches there was none amount; but\nhe had no child other than myself, and he loved me and was tenderly fain\nof me. When his last hour was at hand, he called me to him and commended\nmy mother to my care and charged me to fear Almighty Allah. Then he\ndied, may Allah have mercy upon him and continue the Prince of True\nBelievers on life! And I gave myself up to pleasure and eating and\ndrinking and took to myself comrades and intimates. My mother used to\nforbid me from this and to blame me for it, but I would not hear a word\nfrom her, till my money was all gone, when I sold my lands and houses\nand naught was left me save the mansion wherein I now dwell, and it was\na goodly stead, O Commander of the Faithful. So I said to my mother, \u201cI\nwish to sell the house;\u201d but she said, \u201cO my son, an thou sell it, thou\nwilt be dishonoured and wilt have no place wherein to take shelter.\u201d\nQuoth I, \u201c\u2019Tis worth five thousand dinars, and with one thousand of its\nprice I will buy me another house and trade with the rest.\u201d Quoth she,\n\u201cWilt thou sell it to me at that price?\u201d; and I replied, \u201cYes.\u201d\nWhereupon she went to a coffer and opening it, took out a porcelain\nvessel, wherein were five thousand dinars. When I saw this meseemed the\nhouse was all of gold and she said to me, \u201cO my son, think not that this\nis of thy father\u2019s good. By Allah, O my son, it was of my own father\u2019s\nmoney and I have treasured it up against a time of need; for, in thy\nfather\u2019s day I was a wealthy woman and had no need of it.\u201d I took the\nmoney from her, O Prince of True Believers, and fell again to feasting\nand carousing and merrymaking with my friends, unheeding my mother\u2019s\nwords and admonitions, till the five thousand dinars came to an end,\nwhen I said to her, \u201cI wish to sell the house.\u201d Said she, \u201cO my son, I\nforbade thee from selling it before, of my knowledge that thou hadst\nneed of it; so how wilt thou sell it a second time?\u201d Quoth I, \u201cBe not\nlongsome of speech with me, for I must and will sell it;\u201d and quoth she,\n\u201cThen sell it to me for fifteen thousand dinars, on condition that I\ntake charge of thine affairs.\u201d So I sold her the house at that price and\ngave up my affairs into her charge, whereupon she sought out the agents\nof my father and gave each of them a thousand dinars, keeping the rest\nin her own hands and ordering the outgo and the income. Moreover she\ngave me money to trade withal and said to me, \u201cSit thou in thy father\u2019s\nshop.\u201d So I did her bidding, O Commander of the Faithful, and took up my\nabode in the chamber behind the shop in the market of the\nmoney-changers, and my friends came and bought of me and I sold to them;\nwhereby I made good cheape and my wealth increased. When my mother saw\nme in this fair way, she discovered to me that which she had treasured\nup of jewels and precious stones, pearls, and gold, and I bought back my\nhouses and lands that I had squandered and my wealth became great as\nbefore. I abode thus for some time, and the factors of my father came to\nme and I gave them stock-in-trade, and I built me a second chamber\nbehind the shop. One day, as I sat there, according to my custom, O\nPrince of True Believers, there came up to me a damsel, never saw eyes a\nfairer than she of favour, and said, \u201cIs this the private shop of Abu\nal-Hasan Ali ibn Ahmad al-Khorasani?\u201d Answered I, \u201cYes,\u201d and she asked,\n\u201cWhere is he?\u201d \u201cHe am I,\u201d said I, and indeed my wit was dazed at the\nexcess of her loveliness. She sat down and said to me, \u201cBid thy page\nweigh me out three hundred dinars.\u201d Accordingly I bade him give her that\nsum and he weighed it out to her and she took it and went away, leaving\nme stupefied. Quoth my man to me, \u201cDost thou know her?\u201d; and quoth I,\n\u201cNo, by Allah!\u201d He asked, \u201cThen why didst thou bid me give her the\nmoney?\u201d; and I answered, \u201cBy Allah, I knew not what I said, of my\namazement at her beauty and loveliness!\u201d Then he rose and followed her,\nwithout my knowledge, but presently returned, weeping and with the mark\nof a blow on his face. I enquired of him what ailed him, and he replied,\n\u201cI followed the damsel, to see whither she went; but, when she was aware\nof me, she turned and dealt me this blow and all but knocked out my\neye.\u201d After this, a month passed, without her coming, O Commander of the\nFaithful, and I abode bewildered for love of her; but, at the end of\nthis time, she suddenly appeared again and saluted me, whereat I was\nlike to fly for joy. She asked me how I did and said to me, \u201cHaply thou\nsaidst to thyself, What manner of trickstress is this, who hath taken my\nmoney and made off?\u201d Answered I, \u201cBy Allah, O my lady, my money and my\nlife are all thy very own!\u201d With this she unveiled herself and sat down\nto rest, with the trinkets and ornaments playing over her face and\nbosom. Presently, she said to me, \u201cWeigh me out three hundred dinars.\u201d\n\u201cHearkening and obedience,\u201d answered I and weighed out to her the money.\nShe took it and went away and I said to my servant, \u201cFollow her.\u201d So he\nfollowed her, but returned dumbstruck, and some time passed without my\nseeing her. But, as I was sitting one day, behold, she came up to me and\nafter talking awhile, said to me, \u201cWeigh me out five hundred dinars, for\nI have need of them.\u201d I would have said to her, \u201cWhy should I give thee\nmy money?\u201d; but my love immense hindered me from utterance; for, O\nPrince of True Believers, whenever I saw her, I trembled in every joint\nand my colour paled and I forgot what I would have said and became even\nas saith the poet:\u2014\n\n \u201c\u2019Tis naught but this! When a-sudden I see her \u273f Mumchance I bide nor a\n word can say her.\u201d\n\nSo I weighed out for her the five hundred ducats, and she took them and\nwent away; whereupon I arose and followed her myself, till she came to\nthe jewel-bazar, where she stopped at a man\u2019s shop and took of him a\nnecklace. Then she turned and seeing me, said, \u201cPay him five hundred\ndinars for me.\u201d When the jeweller saw me, he rose to me and made much of\nme, and I said to him, \u201cGive her the necklace and set down the price to\nme.\u201d He replied, \u201cI hear and obey,\u201d and she took it and went away;\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-first Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abu Hasan the\nKhorasani thus pursued his tale:\u2014So I said to the jeweller, \u201cGive her\nthe necklace and set down the price to me.\u201d Then she took it and went\naway; but I followed her, till she came to the Tigris and boarded a boat\nthere, whereupon I signed with my hand to the ground, as who should say,\n\u201cI kiss it before thee.\u201d She went off laughing, and I stood watching\nher, till I saw her land and enter a palace, which when I considered, I\nknew it for the palace of the Caliph Al-Mutawakkil. So I turned back, O\nCommander of the Faithful, with all the cares in the world fallen on my\nheart, for she had of me three thousand dinars, and I said to myself,\n\u201cShe hath taken my wealth and ravished my wit, and peradventure I shall\nlose my life for her love.\u201d Then I returned home and told my mother all\nthat had befallen me, and she said, \u201cO my son, beware how thou have to\ndo with her after this, or thou art lost.\u201d When I went to my shop, my\nfactor in the drug-market, who was a very old man, came to me and said,\n\u201cO my lord, how is it that I see thee changed in case and showing marks\nof chagrin? Tell me what aileth thee.\u201d So I told him all that had\nbefallen me with her and he said, \u201cO my son, this is indeed one of the\nhandmaidens of the palace of the Commander of the Faithful and haply she\nis the Caliph\u2019s favourite concubine: so do thou reckon the money as\nspent for the sake of Almighty Allah[354] and occupy thyself no more\nwith her. An she come again, beware lest she have to do with thee and\ntell me of this, that I may devise thee some device lest perdition\nbetide thee.\u201d Then he fared forth and left me with a flame of fire in my\nheart. At the end of the month behold, she came again and I rejoiced in\nher with exceeding joy. Quoth she, \u201cWhat ailed thee to follow me?\u201d; and\nquoth I, \u201cExcess of passion that is in my heart urged me to this,\u201d and I\nwept before her. She wept for ruth of me and said, \u201cBy Allah, there is\nnot in thy heart aught of love-longing but in my heart is more! Yet how\nshall I do? By Allah, I have no resource save to see thee thus once a\nmonth.\u201d Then she gave me a bill saying, \u201cCarry this to such an one of\nsuch a trade who is my agent and take of him what is named therein.\u201d But\nI replied, \u201cI have no need of money; be my wealth and my life thy\nsacrifice!\u201d Quoth she, \u201cI will right soon contrive thee a means of\naccess to me, whatever trouble it cost me.\u201d Then she farewelled me and\nfared forth, whilst I repaired to the old druggist and told him what had\npassed. He went with me to the palace of Al-Mutawakkil which I knew for\nthat which the damsel had entered; but the Shaykh was at a loss for a\ndevice. Presently he espied a tailor sitting with his prentices at work\nin his shop, opposite the lattice giving upon the river bank and said to\nme, \u201cYonder is one by whom thou shalt win thy wish; but first tear thy\npocket and go to him and bid him sew it up. When he hath done this, give\nhim ten dinars.\u201d \u201cI hear and obey,\u201d answered I and taking with me two\npieces[355] of Greek brocade, went to the tailor and bade him make of\nthem four suits, two with long-sleeved coats and two without. When he\nhad finished cutting them out and sewing them, I gave him to his hire\nmuch more than of wont, and he put out his hand to me with the clothes;\nbut I said, \u201cTake them for thyself and for those who are with thee.\u201d And\nI fell to sitting with him and sitting long: I also bespoke of him other\nclothes and said to him, \u201cHang them out in front of thy shop, so the\nfolk may see them and buy them.\u201d He did as I bade him, and whoso came\nforth of the Caliph\u2019s palace and aught of the clothes pleased him, I\nmade him a present thereof, even to the doorkeeper. One day of the days\nthe tailor said to me, \u201cO my son, I would have thee tell me the truth of\nthy case; for thou hast bespoken of me an hundred costly suits, each\nworth a mint of money, and hast given the most of them to the folk. This\nis no merchant\u2019s fashion, for a merchant calleth an account for every\ndirham, and what can be the sum of thy capital that thou givest these\ngifts and what thy gain every year? Tell me the truth of thy case, that\nI may assist thee to thy desire;\u201d presently adding, \u201cI conjure thee by\nAllah, tell me, art thou not in love?\u201d \u201cYes,\u201d replied I; and he said,\n\u201cWith whom?\u201d Quoth I, \u201cWith one of the handmaids of the Caliph\u2019s\npalace;\u201d and quoth he, \u201cAllah put them to shame! How long shall they\nseduce the folk? Knowest thou her name?\u201d Said I, \u201cNo;\u201d and said he,\n\u201cDescribe her to me.\u201d So I described her to him and he cried, \u201cOut on\nit! This is the lutanist of the Caliph Al-Mutawakkil and his pet\nconcubine. But she hath a Mameluke[356] and do thou make friends with\nhim; it may be he shall become the means of thy having access to her.\u201d\nNow as we were talking, behold, out walked the servant in question from\nthe palace, as he were a moon on the fourteenth night; and, seeing that\nI had before me the clothes which the tailor had made me, and they were\nof brocade of all colours, he began to look at them and examine them.\nThen he came up to me and I rose and saluted him. He asked, \u201cWho art\nthou?\u201d and I answered, \u201cI am a man of the merchants.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cWilt\nthou sell these clothes?\u201d; and quoth I, \u201cYes.\u201d So he chose out five of\nthem and said to me, \u201cHow much these five?\u201d Said I, \u201cThey are a present\nto thee from me in earnest of friendship between me and thee.\u201d At this\nhe rejoiced and I went home and fetching a suit embroidered with jewels\nand jacinths, worth three thousand dinars, returned therewith and gave\nit to him. He accepted it and carrying me into a room within the palace,\nsaid to me, \u201cWhat is thy name among the merchants?\u201d Said I, \u201cI am a man\nof them.[357]\u201d He continued, \u201cVerily I misdoubt me of thine affair.\u201d I\nasked, \u201cWhy so?\u201d and he answered, \u201cBecause thou hast bestowed on me a\ncostly gift and won my heart therewith, and I make certain that thou art\nAbu al-Hasan of Khorasan the Shroff.\u201d With this I fell a-weeping, O\nPrince of True Believers; and he said to me, \u201cWhy dost thou weep? By\nAllah, she for whom thou weepest is yet more longingly in love with thee\nthan thou with her! And indeed her case with thee is notorious among all\nthe palace women. But what wouldst thou have?\u201d Quoth I, \u201cI would have\nthee succour me in my calamity.\u201d So he appointed me for the morrow and I\nreturned home. As soon as I rose next morning, I betook myself to him\nand waited in his chamber till he came in and said to me, \u201cKnow that\nyesternight when, after having made an end of her service by the Caliph,\nshe returned to her apartment, I related to her all that had passed\nbetween me and thee and she is minded to foregather with thee. So stay\nwith me till the end of the day.\u201d Accordingly I stayed with him till\ndark, when the Mameluke brought me a shirt of gold-inwoven stuff and a\nsuit of the Caliph\u2019s apparel and clothing me therein, incensed me[358]\nand I became like the Commander of the Faithful. Then he brought me to a\ngallery with rows of rooms on either side and said to me, \u201cThese are the\nlodgings of the Chief of the slave-girls; and when thou passest along\nthe gallery, do thou lay at each door a bean, for \u2019tis the custom of the\nCaliph to do this every night\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day\nand ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-second Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Mameluke\nsaid to Abu Hasan, \u201cWhen thou passest along the gallery set down at each\ndoor a bean for \u2019tis the custom of the Caliph so to do, till thou come\nto the second passage on thy right hand, when thou wilt see a door with\na marble threshold.[359] Touch it with thy hand or, an thou wilt, count\nthe doors which are so many, and enter the one whose marks are thus and\nthus. There thy mistress will see thee and take thee in with her. As for\nthy coming forth, verily Allah will make it easy to me, though I carry\nthee out in a chest.\u201d Then he left me and returned, whilst I went on,\ncounting the doors and laying at each a bean. When I had reached the\nmiddle of the gallery, I heard a great clatter and saw the light of\nflambeaux coming towards me. As the light drew near me, I looked at it\nand behold, the Caliph himself, came surrounded by the slave-girls\ncarrying waxen lights, and I heard one of the women[360] say to another,\n\u201cO my sister, have we two Caliphs? Verily, the Caliph whose perfumes and\nessences I smelt, hath already passed by my room and he hath laid the\nbean at my door, as his wont; and now I see the light of his flambeaux,\nand here he cometh with them.\u201d Replied the other, \u201cIndeed this is a\nwondrous thing, for disguise himself in the Caliph\u2019s habit none would\ndare.\u201d Then the light drew near me, whilst I trembled in every limb; and\nup came an eunuch, crying out to the concubines and saying, \u201cHither!\u201d\nWhereupon they turned aside to one of the chambers and entered. Then\nthey came out again and walked on till they came to the chamber of my\nmistress and I heard the Caliph say, \u201cWhose chamber is this?\u201d They\nanswered, \u201cThis is the chamber of Shajarat al-Durr.\u201d And he said, \u201cCall\nher.\u201d So they called her and she came out and kissed the feet of the\nCaliph, who said to her, \u201cWilt thou drink to-night?\u201d Quoth she, \u201cBut for\nthy presence and the looking on thine auspicious countenance, I would\nnot drink, for I incline not to wine this night.\u201d Then quoth the\nCommander of the Faithful to the eunuch, \u201cBid the treasurer give her\nsuch necklace;\u201d and he commanded to enter her chamber. So the waxen\nlights entered before him and he followed them into the apartment. At\nthe same moment, behold, there came up a damsel, the lustre of whose\nface outshone that of the flambeau in her hand, and drawing near she\nsaid, \u201cWho is this?\u201d Then she laid hold of me and carrying me into one\nof the chambers, said to me, \u201cWho art thou?\u201d I kissed the ground before\nher saying, \u201cI implore thee by Allah, O my lady, spare my blood and have\nruth on me and commend thyself unto Allah by saving my life!\u201d; and I\nwept for fear of death. Quoth she, \u201cDoubtless, thou art a robber;\u201d and\nquoth I, \u201cNo, by Allah, I am no robber. Seest thou on me the signs of\nthieves?\u201d Said she, \u201cTell me the truth of thy case and I will put thee\nin safety.\u201d So I said, \u201cI am a silly lover and an ignorant, whom passion\nand my folly have moved to do as thou seest, so that I am fallen into\nthis slough of despond.\u201d Thereat cried she, \u201cAbide here till I come back\nto thee;\u201d and going forth she presently returned with some of her\nhandmaid\u2019s clothes wherein she clad me and bade me follow her; so I\nfollowed her till she came to her apartment and commanded me to enter. I\nwent in and she led me to a couch, whereon was a mighty fine carpet, and\nsaid, \u201cSit down here: no harm shall befal thee. Art thou not Abu\nal-Hasan Ali the Khorasani, the Shroff?\u201d I answered, \u201cYes,\u201d and she\nrejoined, \u201cAllah spare thy blood given thou speak truth! An thou be a\nrobber, thou art lost, more by token that thou art dressed in the\nCaliph\u2019s habit and incensed with his scents. But, an thou be indeed Abu\nal-Hasan, thou art safe and no hurt shall happen to thee, for that thou\nart the friend of Shajarat al-Durr, who is my sister and ceaseth never\nto name thee and tell us how she took of thee money, yet wast thou not\nchagrined, and how thou didst follow her to the river bank and madest\nsign as thou wouldst kiss the earth in her honour; and her heart is yet\nmore aflame for thee than is thine for her. But how camest thou hither?\nWas it by her order or without it? She hath indeed imperilled thy\nlife[361]. But what seekest thou in this assignation with her?\u201d I\nreplied, \u201cBy Allah, O my lady, \u2019tis I who have imperilled my own life,\nand my aim in foregathering with her is but to look on her and hear her\npretty speech.\u201d She said, \u201cThou hast spoken well;\u201d and I added, \u201cO my\nlady, Allah is my witness when I declare that my soul prompteth me to no\noffence against her honour.\u201d Cried she, \u201cIn this intent may Allah\ndeliver thee! Indeed compassion for thee hath gotten hold upon my\nheart.\u201d Then she called her handmaid and said to her, \u201cGo to Shajarat\nal-Durr and say to her:\u2014Thy sister saluteth thee and biddeth thee to\nher; so favour her by coming to her this night, according to thy custom,\nfor her breast is straitened.\u201d The slave-girl went out and presently\nreturning, told her mistress that Shajarat al-Durr said, \u201cMay Allah\nbless me with thy long life and make me thy ransom! By Allah, hadst thou\nbidden me to other than this, I had not hesitated; but the Caliph\u2019s\nmigraine constraineth me and thou knowest my rank with him.\u201d But the\nother said to her damsel, \u201cReturn to her and say:\u2014Needs must thou come\nto my mistress upon a private matter between thee and her!\u201d So the girl\nwent out again and presently returned with the damsel, whose face shone\nlike the full moon. Her sister met her and embraced her; then said she,\n\u201cHo, Abu al-Hasan, come forth to her and kiss her hands!\u201d Now I was in a\ncloset within the apartment; so I walked out, O Commander of the\nFaithful, and when my mistress saw me, she threw herself upon me and\nstrained me to her bosom, saying, \u201cHow camest thou in the Caliph\u2019s\nclothes and his ornaments and perfumes? Tell me what hath befallen\nthee.\u201d So I related to her all that had befallen me and what I had\nsuffered for affright and so forth; and she said, \u201cGrievous to me is\nwhat thou hast endured for my sake and praised be Allah who hath caused\nthe issue to be safety, and the fulfilment of safety is in thy entering\nmy lodging and that of my sister.\u201d Then she carried me to her own\napartment, saying to her sister, \u201cI have covenanted with him that I will\nnot be united to him unlawfully; but, as he hath risked himself and\nincurred these perils, I will be earth for his treading and dust to his\nsandals!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-third Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that quoth the damsel\nto her sister, \u201cI have covenanted with him that I will not be united to\nhim unlawfully; but, as he hath risked himself and incurred these\nperils, I will be earth for his treading and dust to his sandals!\u201d\nReplied her sister, \u201cIn this intent may Allah deliver him!\u201d; and my\nmistress rejoined, \u201cSoon shalt thou see how I will do, so I may lawfully\nforegather with him and there is no help but that I lavish my heart\u2019s\nblood to devise this.\u201d Now as we were in talk, behold, we heard a great\nnoise and turning, saw the Caliph making for her chamber, so engrossed\nwas he by the thought of her; whereupon she took me, O Prince of True\nBelievers and hid me in a souterrain[362] and shut down the trap-door\nupon me. Then she went out to meet the Caliph, who entered and sat down,\nwhilst she stood between his hands to serve him, and commanded to bring\nwine. Now the Caliph loved a damsel by name Banjah, who was the mother\nof Al-Mu\u2019tazz bi \u2019llah[363]; but they had fallen out and parted; and in\nthe pride of her beauty and loveliness she would not make peace with\nhim, nor would Al-Mutawakkil, for the dignity of the Caliphate and the\nkingship, make peace with her neither humble himself to her, albeit his\nheart was aflame with passion for her, but sought to solace his mind\nfrom her with her mates among the slave-girls and with going in to them\nin their chambers. Now he loved Shajarat al-Durr\u2019s singing: so he bade\nher sing, when she took the lute and tuning the strings sang these\nverses:\u2014\n\n The world-tricks I admire betwixt me and her; \u273f How, us parted, the\n World would to me incline:\n I shunned thee till said they, \u201cHe knows not Love;\u201d \u273f I sought thee till\n said they, \u201cNo patience is mine!\u201d\n Then, O Love of her, add to my longing each night \u273f And, O Solace, thy\n comforts for Doomsday assign!\n Soft as silk is her touch and her low sweet voice \u273f Twixt o\u2019er much and\n o\u2019er little aye draweth the line:\n And eyne whereof Allah said \u201cBe ye!\u201d and they \u273f Became to man\u2019s wit like\n the working of wine.\n\nWhen the Caliph heard these verses, he was pleasured with exceeding\npleasure, and I also, O Commander of the Faithful, was pleasured in my\nhiding-place, and but for the bounty of Almighty Allah, I had cried out\nand we had been disgraced. Then she sang also these couplets:\u2014\n\n I embrace him, yet after him yearns my soul \u273f For his love, but can\n aught than embrace be nigher?\n I kiss his lips to assuage my lowe; \u273f But each kiss gars it glow with\n more flaming fire;\n \u2019Tis as though my vitals aye thirst unquencht \u273f Till I see two souls\n mixt in one entire.\n\nThe Caliph was delighted and said, \u201cO Shajarat al-Durr, ask a boon of\nme.\u201d She replied, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, I ask of thee my\nfreedom, for the sake of the reward thou wilt obtain therein.[364]\u201d\nQuoth he, \u201cThou art free for the love of Allah;\u201d whereupon she kissed\nground before him. He resumed, \u201cTake the lute and sing me somewhat on\nthe subject of my slave-girl, of whom I am enamoured with warmest love:\nthe folk seek my pleasure and I seek hers.\u201d So she took the lute and\nsang these two couplets:\u2014\n\n My charmer who spellest my piety[365] \u273f On all accounts I\u2019ll have thee,\n have thee,\n Or by humble suit which besitteth Love \u273f Or by force more fitting my\n sovranty.\n\nThe Caliph admired these verses and said, \u201cNow, take up thy lute and\nsing me a song setting out my case with three damsels who hold the reins\nof my heart and make rest depart; and they are thyself and that wilful\none and another I will not name, who hath not her like.[366] So she took\nthe lute and playing a lively measure, sang these couplets:\u2014\n\n Three lovely girls hold my bridle-rein \u273f And in highest stead my heart\n over-reign.\n I have none to obey amid all mankind \u273f But obeying them I but win\n disdain:\n This is done through the Kingship of Love, whereby \u273f The best of my\n kingship they made their gain.\n\nThe Caliph marvelled with exceeding marvel at the aptness of these\nverses to his case and his delight inclined him to reconciliation with\nthe recalcitrant damsel. So he went forth and made for her chamber\nwhither a slave-girl preceded him and announced to her the coming of the\nCaliph. She advanced to meet him and kissed the ground before him; then\nshe kissed his feet and he was reconciled to her and she was reconciled\nto him. Such was the case with the Caliph; but as regards Shajarat\nal-Durr, she came to me rejoicing and said, \u201cI am become a free woman by\nthy blessed coming! Surely Allah will help me in that which I shall\ncontrive, so I may foregather with thee in lawful way.\u201d And I said,\n\u201cAlhamdolillah!\u201d Now as we were talking, behold her Mameluke-eunuch\nentered and we related to him that which had passed, when he said,\n\u201cPraised be Allah who hath made the affair to end well, and we implore\nthe Almighty to crown His favours with thy safe faring forth the\npalace!\u201d Presently appeared my mistress\u2019s sister, whose name was F\u00e1tir,\nand Shajarat al-Durr said to her, \u201cO my sister, how shall we do to bring\nhim out of the palace in safety; for indeed Allah hath vouchsafed me\nmanumission and, by the blessing of his coming, I am become a free\nwoman.\u201d Quoth Fatir, \u201cI see nothing for it but to dress him in woman\u2019s\ngear.\u201d So she brought me a suit of women\u2019s clothes and clad me therein;\nand I went out forthwith, O Commander of the Faithful; but, when I came\nto the midst of the palace, behold, I found the Caliph seated there,\nwith the eunuchs in attendance upon him. When he saw me, he misdoubted\nof me with exceeding doubt, and said to his suite, \u201cHasten and bring me\nyonder handmaiden who is faring forth.\u201d So they brought me back to him\nand raised the veil from my face, which when he saw, he knew me and\nquestioned me of my case. I told him the whole truth, hiding naught, and\nwhen he heard my story, he pondered my case awhile, without stay or\ndelay, and going into Shajarat al-Durr\u2019s chamber, said to her, \u201cHow\ncouldst thou prefer before me one of the sons of the merchants?\u201d She\nkissed ground between his hands and told him her tale from first to\nlast, in accordance with the truth; and he hearing it had compassion\nupon her and his heart relented to her and he excused her by reason of\nlove and its circumstances. Then he went away and her eunuch came in to\nher and said, \u201cBe of good cheer; for, when thy lover was set before the\nCaliph, he questioned him and he told him that which thou toldest him,\nword by word.\u201d Presently the Caliph returned and calling me before him,\nsaid to me, \u201cWhat made thee dare to violate the palace of the\nCaliphate?\u201d I replied, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, \u2019twas my ignorance\nand passion and my confidence in thy clemency and generosity that drave\nme to this.\u201d And I wept and kissed the ground before him. Then said he,\n\u201cI pardon you both,\u201d and bade me be seated. So I sat down and he sent\nfor the Kazi Ahmad ibn Abi Duw\u00e1d[367] and married me to her. Then he\ncommanded to make over all that was hers to me and they displayed her to\nme[368] in her lodging. After three days, I went forth and transported\nall her goods and gear to my own house; so every thing thou hast seen, O\nCommander of the Faithful, in my house and whereof thou misdoubtest, is\nof her marriage-equipage. After this, she said to me one day, \u201cKnow that\nAl-Mutawakkil is a generous man and I fear lest he remember us with ill\nmind, or that some one of the envious remind him of us; wherefore I\npurpose to do somewhat that may ensure us against this.\u201d Quoth I, \u201cAnd\nwhat is that?;\u201d and quoth she, \u201cI mean to ask his leave to go the\npilgrimage and repent[369] of singing.\u201d I replied, \u201cRight is this rede\nthou redest;\u201d but, as we were talking, behold, in came a messenger from\nthe Caliph to seek her, for that Al-Mutawakkil loved her singing. So she\nwent with the officer and did her service to the Caliph, who said to\nher, \u201cSever not thyself from us;\u201d[370] and she answered, \u201cI hear and I\nobey.\u201d Now it chanced one day, after this, she went to him, he having\nsent for her, as was his wont; but, before I knew, she came back, with\nher raiment rent and her eyes full of tears. At this I was alarmed,\nmisdoubting me that he had commanded to seize upon us, and said, \u201cVerily\nwe are Allah\u2019s and unto Him shall we return! Is Al-Mutawakkil wroth with\nus?\u201d She replied, \u201cWhere is Al-Mutawakkil? Indeed Al-Mutawakkil\u2019s rule\nis ended and his trace is blotted out!\u201d Cried I, \u201cTell me what has\nhappened;\u201d and she, \u201cHe was seated behind the curtain, drinking, with\nAl-Fath bin Kh\u00e1k\u00e1n[371] and Sadakah bin Sadakah, when his son\nAl-Muntasir fell upon him, with a company of the Turks,[372] and slew\nhim; and merriment was turned to misery and joy to weeping and wailing\nfor annoy. So I fled, I and the slave-girl, and Allah saved us.\u201d When I\nheard this, O Commander of the Faithful, I arose forthright and went\ndown stream to Bassorah, where the news reached me of the falling out of\nwar between Al-Muntasir and Al-Musta\u2019\u00edn bi \u2019llah;[373] wherefore I was\naffrighted and transported my wife and all my wealth to Bassorah. This,\nthen, is my tale, O Prince of True Believers, nor have I added to or\ntaken from it a single syllable. So all that thou seest in my house,\nbearing the name of thy grandfather Al-Mutawakkil, is of his bounty to\nus, and the fount of our fortune is from thy noble sources;[374] for\nindeed ye are people of munificence and a mine of beneficence.\u201d The\nCaliph marvelled at his story and rejoiced therein with joy exceeding:\nand Abu al-Hasan brought forth to him the lady and the children she had\nborne him, and they kissed ground before the Caliph, who wondered at\ntheir beauty. Then he called for inkcase and paper and wrote Abu\nal-Hasan a patent of exemption from taxes on his lands and houses for\ntwenty years. Moreover, he rejoiced in him and made him his\ncup-companion, till the world parted them and they took up their abode\nin the tombs, after having dwelt under palace-domes; and glory be to\nAllah, the King Merciful of doom. And they also tell a tale concerning\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 346:\n\n Lane omits this tale because \u201cit is very similar, but inferior in\n interest, to the Story told by the Sultan\u2019s Steward.\u201d See vol. i. 278.\n\nFootnote 347:\n\n Sixteenth Abbaside A.H. 279\u2013289 (= A.D. 891\u2013902). \u201cHe was comely,\n intrepid, of grave exterior, majestic in presence, of considerable\n intellectual power and the fiercest of the Caliphs of the House of\n Abbas. He once had the courage to attack a lion\u201d (Al-Siyuti). I may\n add that he was a good soldier and an excellent administrator, who was\n called Saff\u00e1h the Second because he refounded the House of Abbas. He\n was exceedingly fanatic and died of sensuality, having first kicked\n his doctor to death, and he spent his last moments in versifying.\n\nFootnote 348:\n\n Hamd\u00fan bin Ism\u00e1\u2019\u00edl, called the K\u00e1tib or Scribe, was the first of his\n family who followed the profession of a Nad\u00edm or Cup-companion. His\n son Ahmad (who is in the text) was an oral transmitter of poetry and\n history. Al-Siy\u00fati (p. 390) and De Slane I. Khall (ii. 304) notice\n him.\n\nFootnote 349:\n\n Probably the Caliph had attendants, but the text afterwards speaks of\n them as two. Mac. Edit. iv. p. 558, line 2; and a few lines below,\n \u201cthe Caliph and the man with him.\u201d\n\nFootnote 350:\n\n Arab. \u201cNays\u00e1b\u00far,\u201d the famous town in Khorasan where Omar-i-Khayy\u00e1m\n (whom our people will call Omar Khayy\u00e1m) was buried and where his tomb\n is still a place of pious visitation. A sketch of it has lately\n appeared in the illustrated papers. For an affecting tale concerning\n the astronomer-poet\u2019s tomb, borrowed from the Nig\u00e1rist\u00e1n see the\n Preface by the late Mr. Fitzgerald whose admirable excerpts from the\n Rubaiyat (101 out of 820 quatrains) have made the poem popular among\n all the English-speaking races.\n\nFootnote 351:\n\n Arab. \u201cA-Shar\u00edf anta?\u201d (with the Hamzah-sign of interrogation) = Art\n thou a Shar\u00edf (or descendant of the Apostle)?\n\nFootnote 352:\n\n Tenth Abbaside (A.H. 234\u2013247 = 848\u2013861), grandson of Al-Rashid and\n born of a slave-concubine. He was famous for his hatred of the Alides\n (he destroyed the tomb of Al-Husayn) and claimed the pardon of Allah\n for having revised orthodox traditionary doctrines. He compelled the\n Christians to wear collars of wood or leather and was assassinated by\n five Turks.\n\nFootnote 353:\n\n His father was Al-Mu\u2019 tasim bi\u2019llah (A.H. 218\u2013227 = 833\u2013842) the son\n of Al-Rashid by M\u00e1ridah a slave-concubine of foreign origin. He was\n brave and of high spirit, but destitute of education; and his personal\n strength was such that he could break a man\u2019s elbow between his\n fingers. He imitated the apparatus of Persian kings; and he was called\n the \u201cOctonary\u201d because he was the 8th Abbaside; the 8th in descent\n from Abbas; the 8th son of Al-Rashid; he began his reign in A.H. 218;\n lived 48 years; was born under Scorpio (8th Zodiacal sign); was\n victorious in 8 expeditions; slew 8 important foes and left 8 male and\n 8 female children. For his introducing Turks see vol. iii. 81.\n\nFootnote 354:\n\n _i.e._ as if it were given away in charity.\n\nFootnote 355:\n\n Arab. \u201cShukkah,\u201d a word much used in the Zanzibar trade where it means\n a piece of longcloth one fathom long. See my \u201cLake Regions of Central\n Africa,\u201d vol. i. 147, etc.\n\nFootnote 356:\n\n He is afterwards called in two places \u201cKh\u00e1dim\u201d = eunuch.\n\nFootnote 357:\n\n A courteous way of saying, \u201cNever mind my name: I wish to keep it\n hidden.\u201d The formula is still popular.\n\nFootnote 358:\n\n Arab. \u201cBakhkharan\u00ed\u201d _i.e._ fumigated me with burning aloes-wood,\n Calumba or similar material.\n\nFootnote 359:\n\n In sign of honour. The threshold is important amongst Moslems: in one\n of the Mameluke Soldans\u2019 sepulchres near Cairo I found a granite slab\n bearing the \u201ccartouche\u201d (shield) of Khufu (Cheops) with the four\n hieroglyphs hardly effaced.\n\nFootnote 360:\n\n _i.e._ One of the concubines by whose door he had passed.\n\nFootnote 361:\n\n Epistasis without the prostasis, \u201cAn she ordered thee so to do:\u201d the\n situation justifies the rhetorical figure.\n\nFootnote 362:\n\n Arab. \u201cSard\u00e1b\u201d see vol. i, 340.\n\nFootnote 363:\n\n Thirteenth Abbaside A.H. 252\u2013255 (= 866\u2013869). His mother was a Greek\n slave called Kab\u00edhah (Al-Mas\u2019udi and Al-Siyuti); for which \u201cBanjah\u201d is\n probably a clerical error. He was exceedingly beautiful and was the\n first to ride out with ornaments of gold. But he was impotent in the\n hands of the Turks who caused the mob to depose him and kill him\u2014his\n death being related in various ways.\n\nFootnote 364:\n\n _i.e._ The reward from Allah for thy good deed.\n\nFootnote 365:\n\n Arab. \u201cNusk\u201d abstinence from women, a part of the Zahid\u2019s asceticism.\n\nFootnote 366:\n\n Arab. \u201cMun\u00e1zirah\u201d the verbal noun of which, \u201cMun\u00e1zarah,\u201d may also mean\n \u201cdispute.\u201d The student will distinguish between \u201cMunazarah\u201d and\n Munafarah = a contention for precedence in presence of an umpire.\n\nFootnote 367:\n\n The Mac. Edit. gives by mistake \u201cAb\u00fa D\u00e1\u00fad\u201d: the Bul. correctly \u201cAb\u00fa\n Duw\u00e1d.\u201d He was K\u00e1zi al-Kuz\u00e1t (High Chancellor) under Al-Mu\u2019tasim,\n Al-Wasik bi \u2019llah (Vathek) and Al-Mutawakkil.\n\nFootnote 368:\n\n Arab. \u201cZaff\u00fa\u201d = they led the bride to the bridegroom\u2019s house; but here\n used in the sense of displaying her as both were in the palace.\n\nFootnote 369:\n\n _i.e._ renounce the craft which though not sinful (har\u00e1m) is makr\u00fah or\n religiously unpraiseworthy; Mohammed having objected to music and\n indeed to the arts in general.\n\nFootnote 370:\n\n Arab. \u201cL\u00e1 tankati\u2019\u00ed;\u201d do not be too often absent from us. I have\n noticed the whimsical resemblance of \u201cKat\u2019\u201d and our \u201ccut\u201d; and here\n the metaphorical sense is almost identical.\n\nFootnote 371:\n\n See Ibn Khallikan ii. 455.\n\nFootnote 372:\n\n The Turkish body-guard. See vol. iii. 81.\n\nFootnote 373:\n\n Twelfth Abbaside (A.H. 248\u2013252 = 862\u2013866) the son of a slave-concubine\n Mukh\u00e1r\u00edk. He was virtuous and accomplished, comely, fair-skinned,\n pock-marked and famed for defective pronunciation; and he first set\n the fashion of shortening men\u2019s capes and widening the sleeves. After\n many troubles with the Turks, who were now the Pr\u00e6torian guard of\n Baghdad, he was murdered at the instigation of Al-Mu\u2019tazz, who\n succeeded him, by his Chamberlain Sa\u2019id bin Sal\u00edh.\n\nFootnote 374:\n\n Arab. \u201cUs\u00fal,\u201d his forbears, his ancestors.\n\n\n\n\n KAMAR AL-ZAMAN AND THE JEWELLER\u2019S WIFE.[375]\n\n\nThere was once, in time of old, a merchant hight Abd al-Rahm\u00e1n, whom\nAllah had blessed with a son and daughter, and for their much beauty and\nloveliness, he named the girl Kaubab al-Sab\u00e1h and the boy Kamar\nal-Zam\u00e1n.[376] When he saw what Allah had vouchsafed the twain of beauty\nand loveliness, brilliancy and symmetry, he feared for them the evil\neyes[377] of the espiers and the jibing tongues of the jealous and the\ncraft of the crafty and the wiles of the wicked and shut them up from\nthe folk in a mansion for the space of fourteen years, during which time\nnone saw them save their parents and a slave-girl who served them. Now\ntheir father could recite the Koran, even as Allah sent it down, as also\ndid his wife, wherefore the mother taught her daughter to read and\nrecite it and the father his son till both had gotten it by heart.\nMoreover, the twain learned from their parents writing and reckoning and\nall manner of knowledge and polite letters and needed no master. When\nKamar al-Zaman came to years of manhood, the wife said to her husband,\n\u201cHow long wilt thou keep thy son Kamar al-Zaman sequestered from the\neyes of the folk? Is he a girl or a boy?\u201d He answered, \u201cA boy.\u201d Rejoined\nshe, \u201cAn he be a boy, why dost thou not carry him to the bazar and seat\nhim in thy shop, that he may know the folk and they know him, to the\nintent that it may become notorious among men that he is thy son, and do\nthou teach him to sell and to buy. Peradventure somewhat may befal thee;\nso shall the folk know him for thy son and he shall lay his hand on thy\nleavings. But, an thou die, as the case now is, and he say to the\nfolk:\u2014I am the son of the merchant Abd al-Rahman, verily they will not\nbelieve him, but will cry, We have never seen thee and we knew not that\nhe had a son, wherefore the government will seize thy goods and thy son\nwill be despoiled. In like manner the girl; I mean to make her known\namong the folk, so may be some one of her own condition may ask her in\nmarriage and we will wed her to him and rejoice in her.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cI\ndid thus of my fear for them from the eyes of the folk\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-fourth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nMerchant\u2019s wife spake to him in such wise, he replied, \u201cI did thus of my\nfear for them from the eyes of the folk and because I love them both and\nlove is jealous exceedingly and well saith he who spoke these verses:\u2014\n\n Of my sight I am jealous for thee, of me, \u273f Of thyself, of thy stead, of\n thy destiny:\n Though I shrined thee in eyes by the craze of me \u273f In such nearness irk\n I should never see:\n Though thou wert by my side all the days of me \u273f Till Doomsday I ne\u2019er\n had enough of thee.\n\nSaid his wife, \u201cPut thy trust in Allah, for no harm betideth him whom He\nprotecteth, and carry him with thee this very day to the shop.\u201d Then she\nclad the boy in the costliest clothes and he became a seduction to all\nwho on him cast sight and an affliction to the heart of each lover\nwight. His father took him and carried him to the market, whilst all who\nsaw him were ravished with him and accosted him, kissing his hand and\nsaluting him with the salam. Quoth one, \u201cIndeed the sun hath risen in\nsuch a place and blazeth in the bazar,\u201d and another, \u201cThe rising-place\nof the full moon is in such a quarter;\u201d and a third, \u201cThe new moon of\nthe Festival[378] hath appeared to the creatures of Allah.\u201d And they\nwent on to allude to the boy in talk and call down blessings upon him.\nBut his father scolded the folk for following his son to gaze upon him,\nbecause he was abashed at their talk, but he could not hinder one of\nthem from talking; so he fell to abusing the boy\u2019s mother and cursing\nher because she had been the cause of his bringing him out. And as he\ngazed about he still saw the folk crowding upon him behind and before.\nThen he walked on till he reached his shop and opening it, sat down and\nseated his son before him: after which he again looked out and found the\nthoroughfare blocked with people for all the passers-by, going and\ncoming, stopped before the shop to stare at that beautiful face and\ncould not leave him; and all the men and women crowded in knots about\nhim, applying to themselves the words of him who said:\u2014\n\n Thou madest Beauty to spoil man\u2019s sprite \u273f And saidst, \u201cO my servants,\n fear My reprove:\u201d\n But lovely Thou lovest all loveliness \u273f How, then, shall thy servants\n refrain from Love?\n\nWhen the merchant Abd al-Rahman saw the folk thus crowding about him and\nstanding in rows, both women and men, to fix eyes upon his son, he was\nsore ashamed and confounded and knew not what to do; but presently there\ncame up from the end of the bazar a man of the wandering Dervishes, clad\nin haircloth, the garb of the pious servants of Allah and seeing Kamar\nal-Zaman sitting there as he were a branch of B\u00e1n springing from a mound\nof saffron, poured forth copious tears and recited these two couplets:\u2014\n\n A wand uprising from a sandy knoll, \u273f Like full moon shining brightest\n sheen, I saw;\n And said, \u201cWhat is thy name?\u201d Replied he \u201cL\u00fal\u00fa\u201d \u273f \u201cWhat (asked I) Lily?\u201d\n and he answered \u201cL\u00e1, l\u00e1!\u201d[379]\n\nThen the Dervish fell to walking, now drawing near and now moving\naway,[380] and wiping his gray hairs with his right hand, whilst the\nheart of the crowd was cloven asunder for awe of him. When he looked\nupon the boy, his eyes were dazzled and his wit confounded, and\nexemplified in him was the saying of the poet:\u2014\n\n While that fair-faced boy abode in the place, \u273f Moon of breakfast-f\u00eate\n he lit by his face,[381]\n Lo! there came a Shaykh with leisurely pace \u273f A reverend trusting to\n Allah\u2019s grace,\n And ascetic signals his gait display\u2019d.\n He had studied Love both by day and night \u273f And had special knowledge of\n Wrong and Right;\n Both for lad and lass had repined his sprite, \u273f And his form like\n toothpick was lean and slight,\n And old bones with faded skin were o\u2019erlaid.\n In such arts our Shaykh was an Ajam\u00ed[382] \u273f With a catamite ever in\n company;\n In the love of woman, a Platonist he[383] \u273f But in either versed to the\n full degree,\n And Zaynab to him was the same as Zayd.[384]\n Distraught by the Fair he adored the Fair \u273f O\u2019er Spring-camp wailed,\n bewept ruins bare.[385]\n\n Dry branch thou hadst deemed him for stress o\u2019 care, \u273f Which the morning\n breeze swayeth here and there,\n For only the stone is all hardness made!\n In the lore of Love he was wondrous wise \u273f And wide awake with\n all-seeing eyes.\n Its rough and its smooth he had tried and tries \u273f And hugged buck and\n doe in the self-same guise\n And with greybeard and beardless alike he play\u2019d.[386]\n\nThen he came up to the boy and gave him a root[387] of sweet basil,\nwhereupon his father put forth his hand to his pouch and brought out for\nhim some small matter of silver, saying, \u201cTake thy portion, O Dervish,\nand wend thy ways.\u201d He took the dirhams, but sat down on the\nmasonry-bench alongside the shop and opposite the boy and fell to gazing\nupon him and heaving sigh upon sigh, whilst his tears flowed like\nsprings founting. The folk began to look at him and remark upon him,\nsome saying, \u201cAll Dervishes are lewd fellows,\u201d and other some, \u201cVerily,\nthis Dervish\u2019s heart is set on fire for love of this lad.\u201d Now when Abd\nal-Rahman saw this case, he arose and said to the boy, \u201cCome, O my son,\nlet us lock up the shop and hie us home, for it booteth not to sell and\nbuy this day; and may Almighty Allah requite thy mother that which she\nhath done with us, for she was the cause of all this!\u201d Then said he, \u201cO\nDervish, rise, that I may shut my shop.\u201d So the Dervish rose and the\nmerchant shut his shop and taking his son, walked away. The Dervish and\nthe folk followed them, till they reached their place, when the boy went\nin and his father, turning to the Dervish, said to him, \u201cWhat wouldst\nthou, O Dervish, and why do I see thee weep?\u201d He replied, \u201cO my lord, I\nwould fain be thy guest this night, for the guest is the guest of\nAlmighty Allah.\u201d Quoth the merchant, \u201cWelcome to the guest of God:\nenter, O Dervish!\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased\nsaying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-fifth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nmerchant, the father of Kamar al-Zaman, heard the saying of the Dervish,\n\u201cI am Allah\u2019s guest,\u201d he replied, \u201cWelcome to the guest of God: enter, O\nDervish!\u201d But he said to himself, \u201cAn the beggar be enamoured of the boy\nand sue him for sin, needs must I slay him this very night and bury him\nsecretly. But, an there be no lewdness in him, the guest shall eat his\nportion.\u201d Then he brought him into a saloon, where he left him with\nKamar al-Zaman, after he had said privily to the lad, \u201cO my son, sit\nthou beside the Dervish when I am gone out and sport with him and\nprovoke him to love-liesse and if he seek of thee lewdness, I who will\nbe watching you from the window overlooking the saloon will come down to\nhim and kill him.\u201d So, as soon as Kamar al-Zaman was alone in the room\nwith the Dervish, he sat down by his side and the old man began to look\nupon him and sigh and weep. Whenever the lad bespake him, he answered\nhim kindly, trembling the while and would turn to him groaning and\ncrying, and thus he did till supper was brought in, when he fell to\neating, with his eyes on the boy but refrained not from shedding tears.\nWhen a fourth part of the night was past and talk was ended and\nsleep-tide came, Abd al-Rahman said to the lad, \u201cO my son, apply thyself\nto the service of thine uncle the Dervish and gainsay him not:\u201d and\nwould have gone out; but the Dervish cried to him, \u201cO my lord, carry thy\nson with thee or sleep with us.\u201d Answered the merchant, \u201cNay, my son\nshall lie with thee: haply thy soul may desire somewhat, and he will\nlook to thy want and wait upon thee.\u201d Then he went out leaving them both\ntogether, and sat down in an adjoining room which had a window giving\nupon the saloon. Such was the case with the merchant; but as to the lad,\nas soon as his sire had left them, he came up to the Dervish and began\nto provoke him and offer himself to him, whereupon he waxed wroth and\nsaid, \u201cWhat talk is this, O my son? I take refuge with Allah from Satan\nthe Stoned! O my Lord, indeed this is a denial of Thee which pleaseth\nThee not! Avaunt from me, O my son!\u201d So saying, the Dervish arose and\nsat down at a distance; but the boy followed him and threw himself upon\nhim, saying, \u201cWhy, O Dervish, wilt thou deny thyself the joys of my\npossession, and I with a heart that loveth thee?\u201d Hereupon the Dervish\u2019s\nanger redoubled and he said, \u201cAn thou refrain not from me, I will summon\nthy sire and tell him of thy doings.\u201d Quoth the lad, \u201cMy father knoweth\nmy turn for this and it may not be that he will hinder me: so heal thou\nmy heart. Why dost thou hold off from me? Do I not please thee?\u201d\nAnswered the Dervish, \u201cBy Allah, O my son, I will not do this, though I\nbe hewn in pieces with sharp-edged swords!\u201d; and he repeated the saying\nof the poet:\u2014\n\n Indeed my heart loves all the lovely boys \u273f As girls; nor am I slow to\n such delight,\n But, though I sight them every night and morn, \u273f I\u2019m neither of Lot\u2019s\n folk[388] nor wencher-wight.\n\nThen he shed tears and said, \u201cArise, open the door, that I may wend my\nway, for I will lie no longer in this lodging.\u201d Therewith he rose to his\nfeet; but the boy caught hold of him, saying, \u201cLook at the fairness of\nmy face and the cramoisy of my cheeks and the softness of my sides and\nthe lusciousness of my lips.\u201d Moreover he discovered to him calves that\nwould shame wine and cup-carrier[389] and gazed on him with fixed glance\nthat would baffle enchanter and enchantments; for he was passing of\nloveliness and full of blandishment, even as saith of him one of the\npoets who sang:\u2014\n\n I can\u2019t forget him, since he rose and showed with fair design \u273f Those\n calves of legs whose pearly shine make light in nightly gloom:\n Wonder not an my flesh uprise as though \u2019twere Judgment-day \u273f When every\n shank shall bar\u00e8d be and that is Day of Doom.[390]\n\nThen the boy displayed to him his bosom, saying, \u201cLook at my breasts\nwhich be goodlier than the breasts of maidens and my lip-dews are\nsweeter than sugar-candy. So quit scruple and asceticism and cast off\ndevoutness and abstinence and take thy fill of my possession and enjoy\nmy loveliness. Fear naught, for thou art safe from hurt, and leave this\nhebetude for \u2019tis a bad habit.\u201d And he went on to discover to him his\nhidden beauties, striving to turn the reins of his reason with his\nbendings in graceful guise, whilst the Dervish turned away his face and\nsaid, \u201cI seek refuge with Allah! Have some shame, O my son[391]! This is\na forbidden thing I deem and I will not do it, no, not even in dream.\u201d\nThe boy pressed upon him, but the Dervish got free from him and turning\ntowards Meccah addressed himself to his devotions. Now when the boy saw\nhim praying, he left him till he had prayed a two-bow prayer and\nsaluted,[392] when he would have accosted him again; but the Dervish\nagain repeated the intent[393] and prayed a second two-bow prayer, and\nthus he did a third and a fourth and a fifth time. Quoth the lad, \u201cWhat\nprayers are these? Art thou minded to take flight upon the clouds? Thou\nlettest slip our delight, whilst thou passest the whole night in the\nprayer-niche.\u201d So saying, he threw himself upon the Dervish and kissed\nhim between the eyes; but the Shaykh said, O my son, put Satan away from\nthine estate and take upon thee obedience of the Compassionate.\u201d Quoth\nthe other, \u201cAn thou do not with me that which I desire, I will call my\nsire and say to him, The Dervish is minded to do lewdness with me.\nWhereupon he will come in to thee and beat thee till thy bones be broken\nupon thy flesh.\u201d All this while Abd al-Rahman was watching with his eyes\nand hearkening with his ears, and he was certified that there was no\nfrowardness in the Dervish and he said to himself, \u201cWere he a lewd\nfellow, he had not stood out against all this importunity.\u201d The boy\ncontinued to beguile the Dervish and every time he expressed purpose of\nprayer, he interrupted him, till at last he waxed wroth with passing\nwrath and was rough with him and beat him. Kamar al-Zaman wept and his\nfather came in and having wiped away his tears and comforted him said to\nthe Dervish, \u201cO my brother, since thou art in such case, why didst thou\nweep and sigh when thou sawest my son? Say me, is there a reason for\nthis?\u201d He replied, \u201cThere is;\u201d and Abd al-Rahman pursued, \u201cWhen I saw\nthee weep at his sight, I deemed evil of thee and bade the boy do with\nthee thus, that I might try thee, purposing in myself, if I saw thee sue\nhim for sin, to come in upon thee and kill thee. But, when I saw what\nthou didst, I knew thee for one of those who are virtuous to the end.\nNow Allah upon thee, tell me the cause of thy weeping!\u201d The Dervish\nsighed and said, \u201cO my lord, chafe not a closed[394] wound.\u201d But the\nmerchant said, \u201cThere is no help but thou tell me;\u201d and the other\nbegan:\u2014Know thou that I am a Dervish who wander in the lands and the\ncountries, and take warning by the display[395] of the Creator of Night\nand Day. It chanced that one Friday I entered the city of Bassorah in\nthe undurn.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say\nher permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-sixth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Dervish\nsaid to the merchant:\u2014Know, then, that I a wandering mendicant chanced\none Friday to enter the city of Bassorah in the undurn and saw the shops\nopen and full of all manner of wares and meat and drink; but the place\nwas deserted and therein was neither man nor woman nor girl nor boy: nor\nin the markets and the main streets was there dog or cat nor sounded\nsound nor friend was found. I marvelled at this and said to myself, \u201cI\nwonder whither the people of the city be gone with their cats and dogs\nand what hath Allah done with them?\u201d Now I was anhungred so I took hot\nbread from a baker\u2019s oven and going into the shop of an oilman, spread\nthe bread with clarified butter and honey and ate. Then I entered the\nshop of a sherbet-seller and drank what I would; after which, seeing a\ncoffee-shop open, I went in and found the pots on the fire, full of\ncoffee;[396] but there was no one there. So I drank my fill and said,\n\u201cVerily, this is a wondrous thing! It seemeth as though Death had\nstricken the people of this city and they had all died this very hour,\nor as if they had taken fright at something which befel them and fled,\nwithout having time to shut their shops.\u201d Now whilst pondering this\nmatter, lo! I heard a sound of a band of drums beating; whereat I was\nafraid and hid myself for a while: then, looking out through a crevice,\nI saw damsels, like moons, come walking through the market, two by two,\nwith uncovered heads and faces displayed. They were in forty pairs, thus\nnumbering fourscore and in their midst a young lady, riding on a horse\nthat could hardly move his legs for that which was upon it of silvern\ntrappings and golden and jewelled housings. Her face was wholly\nunveiled, and she was adorned with the costliest ornaments and clad in\nthe richest of raiment and about her neck she wore a collar of gems and\non her bosom were necklaces of gold; her wrists were clasped with\nbracelets which sparkled like stars, and her ankles with bangles of gold\nset with precious stones. The slave-girls walked before her and behind\nand on her right and left and in front of her was a damsel bearing in\nbaldric a great sword, with grip of emerald and tassels of\njewel-encrusted gold. When that young lady came to where I lay hid, she\npulled up her horse and said, \u201cO damsels, I hear a noise of somewhat\nwithin yonder shop: so do ye search it, lest haply there be one hidden\nthere, with intent to enjoy a look at us, whilst we have our faces\nunveiled.\u201d So they searched the shop opposite the coffee-house[397]\nwherein I lay hid, whilst I abode in terror; and presently I saw them\ncome forth with a man and they said to her, \u201cO our lady, we found a man\nthere and here he is before thee.\u201d Quoth she to the damsel with the\nsword, \u201cSmite his neck.\u201d So she went up to him and struck off his head;\nthen, leaving the dead man lying on the ground, they passed on. When I\nsaw this, I was affrighted; but my heart was taken with love of the\nyoung lady. After an hour or so, the people reappeared and every one who\nhad a shop entered it; whilst the folk began to come and go about the\nbazars and gathered around the slain man, staring at him as a curiosity.\nThen I crept forth from my hiding place by stealth, and none took note\nof me, but love of that lady had gotten possession of my heart, and I\nbegan to enquire of her privily. None, however, gave me news of her; so\nI left Bassorah, with vitals yearning for her love; and when I came upon\nthis thy son, I saw him to be the likest of all creatures to the young\nlady; wherefore he reminded me of her and his sight revived the fire of\npassion in me and kindled anew in my heart the flames of love-longing\nand distraction. And such is the cause of my shedding tears!\u201d Then he\nwept with sore weeping till he could no more and said, \u201cO my lord, I\nconjure thee by Allah, open the door to me, so I may gang my gate!\u201d\nAccordingly Abd al-Rahman opened the door and he went forth. Thus fared\nit with him; but as regards Kamar al-Zaman, when he heard the Dervish\u2019s\nstory, his heart was taken with love of the lady and passion gat the\nmastery of him and raged in him longing and distraction; so, on the\nmorrow, he said to his sire, \u201cAll the sons of the merchants wander about\nthe world to attain their desire, nor is there one of them but his\nfather provideth for him a stock-in-trade wherewithal he may travel and\ntraffic for gain. Why, then, O my father, dost thou not outfit me with\nmerchandise, so I may fare with it and find my luck?\u201d He replied, \u201cO my\nson, such merchants lack money; so they send their sons to foreign parts\nfor the sake of profit and pecuniary gain and provision of the goods of\nthe world. But I have monies in plenty nor do I covet more: why then\nshould I exile thee? Indeed, I cannot brook to be parted from thee an\nhour, more especially as thou art unique in beauty and loveliness and\nperfect grace and I fear for thee.\u201d But Kamar al-Zaman said, \u201cO my\nfather, nothing will serve but thou must furnish me with merchandise\nwherewithal to travel; else will I fly from thee at unawares though\nwithout money or merchandise. So, an thou wish to solace my heart, make\nready for me a stock-in-trade, that I may travel and amuse myself by\nviewing the countries of men.\u201d Abd al-Rahman, seeing his son enamoured\nof travel, acquainted his wife with this, saying, \u201cVerily thy son would\nhave me provide him with goods, so he may fare therewith to far regions,\nalbeit Travel is Travail.[398]\u201d Quoth she, \u201cWhat is there to displease\nthee in this? Such is the wont of the sons of the merchants and they all\nvie one with other in glorifying globe-trotting and gain.\u201d Quoth he,\n\u201cMost of the merchants are poor and seek growth of good; but I have\nwealth galore.\u201d She replied, \u201cMore of a good thing hurteth not; and, if\nthou comply not with his wish, I will furnish him with goods of my own\nmonies.\u201d Quoth Abd al-Rahman, \u201cI fear strangerhood for him, inasmuch as\ntravel is the worst of trouble;\u201d but she said, \u201cThere is no harm in\nstrangerhood for him when it leadeth to gaining good; and, if we consent\nnot, our son will go away and we shall seek him and not find him and be\ndishonoured among the folk.\u201d The merchant accepted his wife\u2019s counsel\nand provided his son with merchandise to the value of ninety thousand\ngold pieces, whilst his mother gave him a purse containing forty\nbezel-stones, jewels of price, the least of the value of one of which\nwas five hundred ducats, saying, \u201cO my son, be careful of this jewellery\nfor \u2019twill be of service to thee.\u201d Thereupon Kamar al-Zaman took the\njewels and set out for Bassorah,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of\nday and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-seventh Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Kamar al-Zaman\ntook the jewels and set out for Bassorah after he had laid them in a\nbelt, which he buckled about his waist; and he stayed not till there\nremained aught but a day\u2019s journey between that city and himself; when\nthe Arabs came out upon him and stripped him naked and slew his men and\nservants; but he lay himself down among the slain and wallowed in their\nblood, so that the wildlings took him for dead and left him without even\nturning him over and made off with their booty. When the Arabs had gone\ntheir ways, Kamar al-Zaman arose, having naught left but the jewels in\nhis girdle, and fared on nor ceased faring till he came to Bassorah. It\nchanced that his entry was on a Friday and the town was void of folk,\neven as the Dervish had informed him. He found the market-streets\ndeserted and the shops wide open and full of goods; so he ate and drank\nand looked about him. Presently, he heard a band of drums beating and\nhid himself in a shop, till the slave-girls came up, when he looked at\nthem; and, seeing the young lady riding amongst them, love and longing\novercame him and desire and distraction overpowered him, so that he had\nno force to stand. After awhile, the people reappeared and the bazars\nfilled. Whereupon he went to the market and repairing to a jeweller and\npulling out one of his forty gems sold it for a thousand dinars,\nwherewith he returned to his place and passed the night there; and when\nmorning morrowed he changed his clothes and going to the Hammam came\nforth as he were the full moon. Then he sold other four stones for four\nthousand dinars and sauntered solacing himself about the main streets of\nBassorah, clad in the costliest of clothes; till he came to a market,\nwhere he saw a barber\u2019s shop. So he went in to the barber who shaved his\nhead; and, clapping up an acquaintance with him, said to him, \u201cO my\nfather, I am a stranger in these parts and yesterday I entered this city\nand found it void of folk, nor was there in it any living soul, man nor\nJinni. Then I saw a troop of slave-girls and amongst them a young lady\nriding in state:\u201d and he went on to tell him all he had seen. Said the\nbarber, \u201cO my son, hast thou told any but me of this?\u201d; and he said,\n\u201cNo.\u201d The other rejoined, \u201cThen, O my son, beware thou mention this\nbefore any but me; for all folk cannot keep a secret and thou art but a\nlittle lad and I fear lest the talk travel from man to man, till it\nreach those whom it concerneth and they slay thee. For know, O my son,\nthat this thou hast seen, none ever kenned nor knew in other than this\ncity. As for the people of Bassorah they are dying of this annoy; for\nevery Friday forenoon they shut up the dogs and cats, to hinder them\nfrom going about the market-streets, and all the people of the city\nenter the cathedral-mosques, where they lock the doors on them,[399] and\nnot one of them can pass about the bazar nor even look out of casement;\nnor knoweth any the cause of this calamity. But, O my son, to-night I\nwill question my wife concerning the reason thereof, for she is a\nmidwife and entereth the houses of the notables and knoweth all the city\nnews. So Inshallah, do thou come to me to-morrow and I will tell thee\nwhat she shall have told me.\u201d With this Kamar al-Zaman pulled out a\nhandful of gold and said to him, \u201cO my father, take this gold and give\nit to thy wife, for she is become my mother.\u201d Then he gave him a second\nhandful, saying, \u201cTake this for thyself.\u201d Whereupon quoth the barber, \u201cO\nmy son, sit thou in thy place, till I go to my wife and ask her and\nbring thee news of the true state of the case.\u201d So saying, he left him\nin the shop and going home, acquainted his wife with the young man\u2019s\ncase, saying, \u201cI would have thee tell me the truth of this\ncity-business, so I may report it to this young merchant, for he hath\nset his heart on weeting the reason why men and beasts are forbidden the\nmarket-streets every Friday forenoon; and methinks he is a lover, for he\nis open-handed and liberal, and if we tell him what he would trow, we\nshall get great good of him.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cGo back and say to him:\u2014Come,\nspeak with thy mother, my wife, who sendeth her salam to thee and saith\nto thee, Thy wish is won.\u201d Accordingly he returned to the shop, where he\nfound Kamar al-Zaman sitting awaiting him and repeated him the very\nwords spoken by his spouse. Then he carried him in to her and she\nwelcomed him and bade him sit down; whereupon he pulled out an hundred\nducats and gave them to her, saying, \u201cO my mother, tell me who this\nyoung lady may be.\u201d Said she, \u201cKnow, O my son, that there came a gem to\nthe Sultan of Bassorah from the King of Hind, and he was minded to have\nit pierced. So he summoned all the jewellers in a body and said to them,\nI wish you to drill me this jewel. Whoso pierceth it, I will give him\nwhatsoever he shall ask; but if he break it, I will cut off his head. At\nthis they were afraid and said, O King of the age, a jewel is soon\nspoilt and there are few who can pierce them without injury, for most of\nthem have a flaw. So do not thou impose upon us a task to which we are\nunable; for our hands cannot avail to drill this jewel. However, our\nShaykh[400] is more experienced than we.\u201d Asked the King, \u201cAnd who is\nyour Shaykh?\u201d; and they answered, \u201cMaster Obayd: he is more versed than\nwe in this art and hath wealth galore and of skill great store.\nTherefore do thou send for him to the presence and bid him pierce thee\nthis jewel.\u201d Accordingly the King sent for Obayd and bade him pierce the\njewel, imposing on him the condition aforesaid. He took it and pierced\nit to the liking of the King, who said to him, \u201cAsk a boon of me, O\nmaster!\u201d; and said he, \u201cO King of the age, allow me delay till\nto-morrow.\u201d Now the reason of this was that he wished to take counsel\nwith his wife, who is the young lady thou sawest riding in procession;\nfor he loveth her with exceeding love, and of the greatness of his\naffection for her, he doth naught without consulting her; wherefore he\nput off asking till the morrow. When he went home, he said to her:\u2014\u201cI\nhave pierced the King a jewel and he hath granted me a boon which I\ndeferred asking till to-morrow, that I might consult thee. Now what dost\nthou wish, that I may ask it?\u201d Quoth she, \u201cWe have riches such as fires\nmay not consume; but, an thou love me, ask of the King to make\nproclamation in the streets of Bassorah that all the townsfolk shall\nevery Friday enter the mosques, two hours before the hour of prayer, so\nnone may abide in the town at all great or small except they be in the\nmosques or in the houses and the doors be locked upon them, and that\nevery shop of the town be left open. Then will I ride with my\nslave-women through the heart of the city and none shall look on me from\nwindow or lattice; and every one whom I find abroad I will kill.\u201d[401]\nSo he went in to the King and begged of him this boon, which he granted\nhim and caused proclamation to be made amongst the Bassorites\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-eighth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\nJeweller begged his boon, the King bade proclamation be made amongst the\nBassorites to the effect aforesaid, but the people objected that they\nfeared for their goods from the cats and dogs; wherefore he commanded to\nshut the animals up till the folk should come forth from the Friday\nprayers. So the jeweller\u2019s wife fell to sallying forth every Friday, two\nhours before the time of congregational prayer, and riding in state\nthrough the city with her women; during which time none dareth pass\nthrough the market-place nor look out of casement or lattice. \u201cThis,\nthen, is what thou wouldest know and I have told thee who she is; but, O\nmy son, was it thy desire only to have news of her or hast thou a mind\nto meet her?\u201d Answered he, \u201cO my mother, \u2019tis my wish to foregather with\nher.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cTell me what valuables thou hast with thee\u201d; and quoth\nhe, \u201cO my mother, I have with me precious stones of four sorts, the\nfirst worth five hundred dinars each, the second seven hundred, the\nthird eight hundred and the fourth a thousand ducats.\u201d She asked, \u201cArt\nthou willing to spend four of these?\u201d; and he answered, \u201cI am ready to\nspend all of them.\u201d She rejoined, \u201cThen, arise, O my son, and go\nstraight to thy lodging and take a bezel-gem of those worth five hundred\nsequins, with which do thou repair to the jewel market and ask for the\nshop of Master Obayd, the Shaykh of the Jewellers. Go thither and thou\nwilt find him seated in his shop, clad in rich clothes, with workmen\nunder his hand. Salute him and sit down on the front shelf of his\nshop;[402] then pull out the jewel and give it to him, saying, \u201cO\nmaster, take this stone and fashion it into a seal-ring for me with\ngold. Make it not large, a Misk\u00e1l[403] in weight and no more; but let\nthe fashion of it be thy fairest.\u201d Then give him twenty dinars and to\neach of his prentices a dinar. Sit with him awhile and talk with him and\nif a beggar approach thee, show thy generosity by giving him a dinar, to\nthe intent that he may affect thee, and after this, leave him and return\nto thy place. Pass the night there, and next morning, take an hundred\ndinars and bring them and give them to thy father the barber, for he is\npoor.\u201d Quoth Kamar al-Zaman, \u201cBe it so,\u201d and returning to his\ncaravanserai, took a jewel worth five hundred gold pieces and went with\nit to the jewel-bazar. There he enquired for the shop of Master Obayd,\nShaykh of the Jewellers, and they directed him thereto. So he went\nthither and saw the Shaykh, a man of austere aspect and robed in\nsumptuous raiment with four journeymen under his hand. He addressed him\nwith \u201cPeace be upon you!\u201d and the jeweller returned his greeting and\nwelcoming him, made him sit down. Then he brought out the jewel and\nsaid, \u201cO master, I wish thee to make me this jewel into a seal-ring with\ngold. Let it be the weight of a Miskal and no more, but fashion it\nexcellently.\u201d Then he pulled out twenty dinars and gave them to him,\nsaying, \u201cThis is the fee for chasing and the price of the ring shall\nremain.\u201d[404] And he gave each of the apprentices a gold piece,\nwherefore they loved him, and so did Master Obayd. Then he sat talking\nwith the jeweller and whenever a beggar came up to him, he gave him a\ngold piece and they all marvelled at his generosity. Now Master Obayd\nhad tools at home, like those he had in the shop, and whenever he was\nminded to do any unusual piece of work, it was his custom to carry it\nhome and do it there, that his journeymen might not learn the secrets of\nhis wonderful workmanship.[405] His wife used to sit before him, and\nwhen she was sitting thus and he looking upon her,[406] he would fashion\nall manner of marvellously wroughten trinkets, such as were fit for none\nbut kings. So he went home and sat down to mould the ring with admirable\nworkmanship. When his wife saw him thus engaged, she asked him, \u201cWhat\nwilt thou do with this bezel-gem?\u201d; and he answered, \u201cI mean to make it\ninto a ring with gold, for \u2019tis worth five hundred dinars.\u201d She\nenquired, \u201cFor whom?\u201d; and he answered, \u201cFor a young merchant, who is\nfair of face, with eyes that wound with desire, and cheeks that strike\nfire and mouth like the seal of Sulaym\u00e1n and cheeks like the bloom of\nNu\u2019m\u00e1n and lips red as coralline and neck like the antelope\u2019s long and\nfine. His complexion is white dashed with red and he is well-bred,\npleasant and generous and doth thus and thus.\u201d And he went on to\ndescribe to her now his beauty and loveliness and then his perfection\nand bounty and ceased not to vaunt his charms and the generosity of his\ndisposition, till he had made her in love with him; for there is no\nsillier cuckold than he who vaunteth to his wife another man\u2019s handsome\nlooks and unusual liberality in money matters. So, when desire rose high\nin her, she said to him, \u201cIs aught of my charms found in him?\u201d Said he,\n\u201cHe hath all thy beauties; and he is thy counterpart in qualities.\nMeseemeth his age is even as thine and but that I fear to hurt thy\nfeelings, I would say that he is a thousand times handsomer than thou\nart.\u201d She was silent, yet the fire of fondness was kindled in her heart.\nAnd the jeweller ceased not to talk with her and to set out Kamar\nal-Zaman\u2019s charms before her till he had made an end of moulding the\nring; when he gave it to her and she put it on her finger, which it\nfitted exactly. Quoth she, \u201cO my lord, my heart loveth this ring and I\nlong for it to be mine and will not take it from my finger.\u201d Quoth he,\n\u201cHave patience! The owner of it is generous, and I will seek to buy it\nof him, and if he will sell it, I will bring it to thee. Or if he have\nanother such stone, I will buy it and fashion it for thee into a ring\nlike this.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying\nher permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Sixty-ninth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the jeweller\nsaid to his wife, \u201cHave patience! The owner of it is generous and I will\nseek to buy it of him; and, if he will sell it, I will bring it to thee;\nor, if he have another such stone I will buy it and fashion it for thee\ninto a ring like this.\u201d On this wise it fared with the jeweller and his\nwife; but as regards Kamar al-Zaman, he passed the night in his lodging\nand on the morrow he took an hundred dinars and carried them to the old\nwoman, the barber\u2019s wife, saying to her, \u201cAccept these gold pieces,\u201d and\nshe replied, \u201cGive them to thy father.\u201d So he gave them to the barber\nand she asked, \u201cHast thou done as I bade thee?\u201d He answered, \u201cYes,\u201d and\nshe said, \u201cGo now to the Shaykh, the jeweller, and if he give thee the\nring, put it on the tip of thy finger and pull it off in haste and say\nto him, O master, thou hast made a mistake; the ring is too tight. He\nwill say, O merchant, shall I break it and mould it again larger? And do\nthou say, It booteth not to break it and fashion it anew. Take it and\ngive it to one of thy slave-women. Then pull out another stone worth\nseven hundred dinars and say to him, Take this stone and set it for me,\nfor \u2019tis handsomer than the other. Give him thirty dinars and to each of\nthe prentices two, saying, These gold pieces are for the chasing and the\nprice of the ring shall remain. Then return to thy lodging for the night\nand on the morrow bring me two hundred ducats, and I will complete thee\nthe rest of the device.\u201d So the youth went to the jeweller, who welcomed\nhim and made him sit down in his shop; and he asked him, \u201cHast thou done\nmy need?\u201d \u201cYes,\u201d answered Obayd and brought out to him the seal-ring;\nwhereupon he set it on his finger-tip and pulling it off in haste,\ncried, \u201cThou hast made a mistake, O master;\u201d and threw it to him,\nsaying, \u201c\u2019Tis too strait for my finger.\u201d Asked the jeweller, \u201cO\nmerchant, shall I make it larger?\u201d But he answered, \u201cNot so; take it as\na gift and give it to one of thy slave-girls. Its worth is trifling,\nsome five hundred dinars; so it booteth not to fashion it over again.\u201d\nThen he brought out to him another stone worth seven hundred sequins and\nsaid to him, \u201cSet this for me: \u2019tis a finer gem.\u201d Moreover he gave him\nthirty dinars and to each of his workmen two. Quoth Obayd, \u201cO my lord we\nwill take the price of the ring when we have made it.\u201d[407] But Kamar\nal-Zaman said, \u201cThis is for the chasing, and the price of the ring\nremains over.\u201d So saying, he went away home, leaving the jeweller and\nhis men amazed at the excess of his generosity. Presently the jeweller\nreturned to his wife and said, \u201cO Hal\u00edmah,[408] never did I set eyes on\na more generous than this young man, and as for thee, thy luck is good,\nfor he hath given me the ring without price, saying, Give it to one of\nthy slave-women.\u201d And he told her what had passed, adding, \u201cMethinks\nthis youth is none of the sons of the merchants, but that he is of the\nsons of the Kings and Sultans.\u201d Now the more he praised him, the more\nshe waxed in love-longing, passion and distraction for him. So she took\nthe ring and put it on her finger, whilst the jeweller made another one,\na little larger than the first. When he had finished moulding it, she\nput it on her finger, under the first, and said, \u201cLook, O my lord, how\nwell the two rings show on my finger! I wish they were both mine.\u201d Said\nhe, \u201cPatience! It may be I shall buy thee this second one.\u201d Then he lay\nthat night and on the morrow he took the ring and went to his shop. As\nfor Kamar al-Zaman, as soon as it was day, he repaired to the barber\u2019s\nwife and gave her two hundred dinars. Quoth she, \u201cGo to the jeweller and\nwhen he giveth thee the ring, put it on thy finger and pull it off again\nin haste, saying:\u2014Thou hast made a mistake, O master! This ring is too\nlarge. A master like thee, when the like of me cometh to him with a\npiece of work, it behoveth him to take right measure; and if thou hadst\nmeasured my finger, thou hadst not erred. Then pull out another stone\nworth a thousand dinars and say to him:\u2014Take this and set it, and give\nthis ring to one of thy slave-women. Give him forty ducats and to each\nof his journeyman three, saying, This is for the chasing, and for the\ncost of the ring, that shall remain. And see what he will say. Then\nbring three hundred dinars and give them to thy father the barber, that\nhe may mend his fortune withal, for he is a poor man.\u201d Answered Kamar\nal-Zaman, \u201cI hear and obey,\u201d and betook himself to the jeweller, who\nwelcomed him and making him sit down, gave him the ring. He took it and\nput it on his finger; then pulled it off in haste and said, \u201cIt behoveth\na master like thee, when the like of me bringeth him a piece of work, to\ntake his measure. Hadst thou measured my finger, thou hadst not erred;\nbut take it and give it to one of thy slave-women.\u201d Then he brought out\nto him a stone worth a thousand sequins and said to him, \u201cTake this and\nset it in a signet-ring for me after the measure of my finger.\u201d Quoth\nObayd, \u201cThou hast spoken sooth and art in the right;\u201d and took his\nmeasure, whereupon he pulled out forty gold pieces and gave them to him,\nsaying, \u201cTake these for the chasing and the price of the ring shall\nremain.\u201d Cried the jeweller, \u201cO my lord, how much hire have we taken of\nthee! Verily, thy bounty to us is great!\u201d \u201cNo harm,\u201d replied Kamar\nal-Zaman and sat talking with him awhile and giving a dinar to every\nbeggar who passed by the shop. Then he left him and went away, whilst\nthe jeweller returned home and said to his wife, \u201cHow generous is this\nyoung merchant! Never did I set eyes on a more open-handed or a comelier\nthan he, no, nor a sweeter of speech.\u201d And he went on to recount to her\nhis charms and generosity and was loud in his praise. Cried she, \u201cO thou\nlack-tact,[409] since thou notest these qualities in him, and indeed he\nhath given thee two seal-rings of price, it behoveth thee to invite him\nand make him an entertainment and entreat him lovingly. When he seest\nthat thou affectest him and cometh to our place, we shall surely get\ngreat good of him; and if thou grudge him the banquet do thou bid him\nand I will entertain him of my monies.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cDost thou know me to\nbe niggardly, that thou sayest this Say?\u201d; and quoth she, \u201cThou art no\nniggard, but thou lackest tact. Invite him this very night and come not\nwithout him. An he refuse, conjure him by the divorce oath and be\npersistent with him.\u201d \u201cOn my head and eyes,\u201d answered he and moulded the\nring till he had finished it, after which he passed the night and went\nforth on the morrow to his shop and sat there. On this wise it was with\nhim; but as for Kamar al-Zaman, he took three hundred dinars and\ncarrying them to the old wife, gave them to her for the barber, her\nhusband. Said she, \u201cMost like he will invite thee to his house this day;\nand if he do this and thou pass the night there, tell me in the morning\nwhat befalleth thee and bring with thee four hundred dinars and give\nthem to thy father.\u201d Answered he, \u201cHearing and obeying;\u201d and as often as\nhe ran out of money, he would sell some of his stones. So he repaired to\nthe jeweller, who rose to him and received him with open arms, greeted\nhim heartily and clapped up companionship with him. Then he gave him the\nring, and he found it after the measure of his finger and said to the\njeweller, \u201cAllah bless thee, O prince of artists! The setting is\nconformable but the stone is not to my liking.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived\nthe dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventieth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Kamar al-Zaman\nsaid to the jeweller, \u201cThe setting is conformable to my wishes, but the\nstone is not to my liking. I have a handsomer than this: so take the\nseal-ring and give it to one of thy slave-women.\u201d Then he gave him a\nfourth stone and an hundred dinars, saying, \u201cTake thy hire and excuse\nthe trouble we have given thee.\u201d Obayd replied, \u201cO merchant, all the\ntrouble thou hast given us thou hast requited us and hast overwhelmed us\nwith thy great bounties: and indeed my heart is taken with love of thee\nand I cannot brook parting from thee. So, Allah upon thee, be thou my\nguest this night and heal my heart.\u201d He rejoined, \u201cSo be it; but needs\nmust I go to my Khan, that I may give a charge to my domestics and tell\nthem that I shall sleep abroad to-night, so they may not expect me.\u201d\n\u201cWhere dost thou lodge?\u201d asked the jeweller; and he answered, \u201cIn such a\nKhan.\u201d Quoth Obayd, \u201cI will come for thee there;\u201d and quoth the other,\n\u201c\u2019Tis well.\u201d So the jeweller repaired to the Khan before sundown,\nfearing lest his wife should be anangered with him, if he returned home\nwithout his guest; and, carrying Kamar al-Zaman to his house, seated him\nin a saloon that had not its match. Halimah saw him, as he entered, and\nwas ravished with him. They talked till supper was served when they ate\nand drank; after which appeared coffee and sherbets, and the jeweller\nceased not to entertain him with talk till eventide, when they prayed\nthe obligatory prayers. Then entered a handmaid with two cups[410] of\nnight drink, which when they had drunk, drowsiness overcame them and\nthey slept. Presently in came the jeweller\u2019s wife and seeing them\nasleep, looked upon Kamar al-Zaman\u2019s face and her wit was confounded at\nhis beauty. Said she, \u201cHow can he sleep who loveth the fair?\u201d and,\nturning him over on his back, sat astraddle upon his breast. Then, in\nthe mania of her passion for him, she rained down kisses on his cheeks,\ntill she left a mark upon them and they became exceeding red and his\ncheek bones shone; and, she sucked his lips, till the blood ran out into\nher mouth; but with all this, her fire was not quenched nor her thirst\nassuaged. She ceased not to kiss and clip him and twine leg with leg,\ntill the fore-brow of Morn grew white and the dawn broke forth in light;\nwhen she put in his pocket four cockals[411] and went away. Then she\nsent her maid with something like snuff, which she applied to their\nnostrils and they sneezed and awoke, when the slave-girl said, \u201cO my\nlords, prayer is a duty; so rise ye and pray the dawn-prayer.\u201d And she\nbrought them basin and ewer.[412] Quoth Kaman al-Zamar \u201cO master, \u2019tis\nlate and we have overslept ourselves;\u201d and quoth the jeweller, \u201cO my\nfriend verily the air of this room is heavy; for, whenever I sleep in\nit, this happens to me.\u201d Rejoined Kamar al-Zaman, \u201cTrue,\u201d and proceeded\nto make the Wuzu ablution; but, when he put the water to his face, his\ncheeks and lips burned him. Cried he, \u201cProdigious! If the air of the\nroom be heavy and we have been drowned in sleep, what aileth my cheeks\nand lips that they burn me?\u201d And he said to the jeweller, \u201cO master, my\ncheeks and lips burn me.\u201d The other replied, \u201cI guess this cometh of the\nmosquito-bites.\u201d \u201cStrange!\u201d said Kamar al-Zaman. \u201cHath this thing\nhappened to thee?\u201d Replied Obayd, \u201cNo! But whenever I have by me a guest\nlike thee, he complaineth in the morning of the mosquito-bites, and this\nhappeneth only when he is like thee beardless. If he be bearded the\nmosquitoes sting him not, and naught hindereth them from me but my\nbeard. It seems mosquitoes love not bearded men.\u201d[413] Rejoined Kamar\nal-Zaman, \u201cTrue.\u201d Then the maid brought them early breakfast and they\nbroke their fast and went out. Kamar al-Zaman betook himself to the old\nwoman, who exclaimed, when she saw him, \u201cI see the marks of joyance on\nthy face: tell me what thou hast seen.\u201d Said he, \u201cI have seen nothing.\nOnly I supped with the house-master in a saloon and prayed the\nnight-prayer, after which we fell asleep and woke not till morning.\u201d She\nlaughed and said, \u201cWhat be those marks on thy cheeks and lips?\u201d He\nanswered, \u201c\u2019Twas the mosquitoes of the saloon that did this with me;\u201d\nand she rejoined, \u201c\u2019Tis well. But did the same thing betide the house\nmaster?\u201d He retorted, \u201cNay; but he told me that the mosquitoes of that\nsaloon molest not bearded men, but sting those only who have no hair on\nface, and that whenever he hath for guest one who is beardless, the\nstranger awaketh complaining of the mosquito-bites; whereas an he have a\nbeard, there befalleth him naught of this.\u201d Said she, \u201cSooth thou\nspeakest: but say me, sawest thou aught save this?\u201d And he answered, \u201cI\nfound four cockals in my pocket.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cShow them to me.\u201d So he\ngave them to her and she laughed and said, \u201cThy mistress laid these in\nthy pocket.\u201d He asked, \u201cHow so?\u201d And she answered, \u201c\u2019Tis as if she said\nto thee, in the language of signs:[414]\u2014An thou wert in love, thou\nwouldst not sleep, for a lover sleepeth not: but thou has not ceased to\nbe a child and fit for nothing but to play with these cockals. So what\ndrave thee to fall in love with the fair? Now she came to thee by night\nand finding thee asleep, scored thy cheeks with her kisses and left thee\nthis sign. But that will not suffice her of thee and she will certainly\nsend her husband to invite thee again to-night; so, when thou goest home\nwith him, hasten not to fall asleep, and on the morrow bring me five\nhundred dinars and come and acquaint me with what hath passed, and I\nwill perfect for thee the device.\u201d Answered he, \u201cI hear and obey,\u201d and\nwent back to the Khan. Thus it befel him; but as regards the jeweller\u2019s\nwife, she said to her husband, \u201cIs the guest gone?\u201d Answered he, \u201cYes,\nbut, O Halimah,[415] the mosquitoes plagued him last night and scarified\nhis cheeks and lips, and indeed I was abashed before him.\u201d She rejoined,\n\u201cThis is the wont of the mosquitoes of our saloon; for they love none\nsave the beardless. But do thou invite him again to-night.\u201d So he\nrepaired to the Khan where the youth abode, and bidding him, carried him\nto his house, where they ate and drank and prayed the night-prayer in\nthe saloon, after which the slave-girl entered and gave each of them a\ncup of night-drink,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased\nsaying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-first Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the slave-girl\nwent in to the twain and gave each of them a cup of night-drink, and\nthey drank and fell asleep. Presently, in came Halimah and said, \u201cO\ngood-for-nothing, how canst thou sleep and call thyself a lover? A lover\nsleepeth not!\u201d Then she mounted on his breast and ceased not to come\ndown upon him with kisses and caresses, biting and sucking his lips and\nso forth, till the morning, when she put in his pocket a knife and sent\nher handmaid to arouse them. And when the youth awoke, his cheeks were\non fire, for excess of redness, and his lips like coral, for dint of\nsucking and kissing. Quoth the jeweller, \u201cDid the mosquitoes plague thee\nlast night?\u201d; and quoth the other, \u201cNay!\u201d; for he now knew the conceit\nand left complaining. Then he felt the knife in his pocket and was\nsilent; but when he had broken his fast and drunk coffee, he left the\njeweller and going to the Khan; took five hundred dinars of gold and\ncarried them to the old woman, to whom he related what had passed,\nsaying, \u201cI slept despite myself, and when I woke at dawn I found nothing\nbut a knife in my pocket.\u201d Exclaimed the old trot, \u201cMay Allah protect\nthee from her this next night! For she saith to thee by this sign, An\nthou sleep again, I will cut thy throat. Thou wilt once more be bidden\nto the jeweller\u2019s house to-night,[416] and if thou sleep, she will slay\nthee.\u201d Said he, \u201cWhat is to be done?\u201d; and said she, \u201cTell me what thou\natest and drankest before sleeping.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cWe supped as was our\nwont and prayed the night-prayer, after which there came in to us a\nmaid, who gave each of us a cup of night-drink, which when I had drunk,\nI fell asleep and awoke not till the morning.\u201d Quoth the old woman, \u201cThe\nmischief is in the cup: so, when the maid giveth it to thee, take it\nfrom her, but drink not and wait till the master of the house have\ndrunken and fallen asleep; then say to her, Give me a draught of water,\nand she will go to fetch thee the gugglet. Then do thou empty the cup\nbehind the pillow and lie down and feign sleep. So when she cometh back\nwith the gugglet, she will deem that thou hast fallen asleep, after\nhaving drunk off the cup, and will leave thee; and presently the case\nwill appear to thee; but beware of disobeying my bidding.\u201d Answered he,\n\u201cI hear and I obey,\u201d and returned to the Khan. Meanwhile the jeweller\u2019s\nwife said to her husband, \u201cA guest\u2019s due honour is three nights\u2019\nentertainment: so do thou invite him a third time\u201d; whereupon he betook\nhimself to the youth and inviting him, carried him home and sat down\nwith him in the saloon. When they had supped and prayed the\nnight-prayer, behold, in came the handmaid and gave each of them a cup.\nHer master drank and fell asleep; but Kamar al-Zaman forbore to drink,\nwhereupon quoth the maid, \u201cWilt thou not drink, O my lord?\u201d Answered he,\n\u201cI am athirst, bring me the gugglet.\u201d Accordingly she went to fetch it,\nand he emptied the cup behind the pillow and lay down. When the slave\ngirl returned, she saw him lying down and going to her mistress said,\n\u201cHe hath drunk off the cup and fallen asleep;\u201d whereupon quoth Halimah\nto herself, \u201cVerily, his death is better than his life.\u201d Then, taking a\nsharp knife, she went in to him, saying, \u201cThree times, and thou notedst\nnot the sign, O fool![417] So now I will rip up thy maw.\u201d When he saw\nher making for him knife in hand, he opened his eyes and rose, laughing;\nwhereupon said she, \u201c\u2019Twas not of thine own wit, that thou camest at the\nmeaning of the sign, but by the help of some wily cheat; so tell me\nwhence thou hadst this knowledge.\u201d \u201cFrom an old woman,\u201d replied he,\n\u201cbetween whom and me befel such and such;\u201d and he told her all that had\npassed. Quoth she, \u201cTo-morrow go thou forth from us and seek her and\nsay, Hast thou any further device in store? And if she answer, I have,\ndo thou rejoin, Then do thy best that I may enjoy her publicly. But, if\nshe say, I have no means of doing that, and this is the last of my\ndevices, put her away from thy thought, and to-morrow night my husband\nwill come to thee and invite thee. Do thou come with him and tell me and\nI will consider what remaineth to be done.\u201d Answered he, \u201cThere is no\nharm in that!\u201d Then he spent the rest of the night with her in embracing\nand clipping, plying the particle of copulation in concert[418] and\njoining the conjunctive with the conjoined,[419] whilst her husband was\nas a cast-out nunnation of construction.[420] And they ceased not to be\nthus till morning, when she said to him, \u201c\u2019Tis not a night of thee that\nwill content me, nor a day; no, nor yet a month nor a year; but it\u2019s my\nintent to abide with thee the rest of my life. Wait, however, till I\nplay my husband a trick which would baffle the keenest-witted and win\nfor us our wishes. I will cause doubt to enter into him, so that he\nshall divorce me, whereupon I will marry thee and go with thee to thine\nown country; I will also transport all his monies and hoards to thy\nlodging and will contrive thee the ruin of his dwelling-place and the\nblotting out of his traces. But do thou hearken to my speech and obey me\nin that I shall say to thee and gainsay me not.\u201d He replied, \u201cI hear and\nI obey: in me there is none opposition.\u201d Then said she, \u201cGo to the Khan\nand, when my husband cometh to thee and inviteth thee, say to him:\u2014O my\nbrother, a son of Adam is apt to be burdensome, and when his visits grow\nover frequent, both generous and niggard loathe him.[421] How then shall\nI go with thee every night and lie I and thee, on the saloon? An thou\nwax not chagrined with me, thy Harim will bear me grudge, for that I\nhinder thee from thine. Therefore if thou have a mind to my company,\ntake me a house beside thine own and we will abide thus, now I sitting\nwith thee till the time of sleep, and now with me thou. Then I will go\nto my place and thou to thy Harim and this will be a better rede than\nthat I hinder thee from thy Harim every night. Then will he come to me\nand take counsel with me, and I will advise him to turn out our\nneighbour, for the house wherein he liveth is our house and he renteth\nit of us; and once thou art in the house, Allah will make easy to us the\nrest of our scheme.\u201d And presently she added, \u201cGo now and do as I bid\nthee.\u201d Answered he, \u201cI hear and obey;\u201d whereupon she left him and went\naway, whilst he lay down and feigned to be asleep. Presently, the\nhandmaid came and aroused them; and when the jeweller awoke, he said to\nhis guest, \u201cO merchant have the mosquitoes worried thee?\u201d He replied,\n\u201cNo,\u201d and Obayd said, \u201cBelike thou art grown used to them.\u201d Then they\nbroke their fast and drank coffee, after which they fared forth to their\naffairs, and Kamar al-Zaman betook himself to the old crone, and related\nto her what had passed,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased to say her permitted say.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-second Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Kamar\nal-Zaman betook himself to the old crone, he related to her what had\npassed, saying, \u201cShe spake to me this and that, and I answered her thus\nand thus. Now say me, hast thou any farther device for bringing me to\nenjoy her publicly?\u201d Quoth she, \u201cO my son, here endeth my contrivance,\nand now I am at the term of my devices.\u201d Upon this he left her and\nreturned to the Khan where, as eventide evened, the jeweller came to him\nand invited him. He said, \u201cI cannot go with thee.\u201d Asked the merchant,\n\u201cWhy so? I love thee and cannot brook separation from thee. Allah upon\nthee come with me!\u201d The other replied, \u201cAn it be thy wish to continue\nour comradeship and keep up the friendship betwixt thee and me, take me\na house by the side of thine own, and when thou wilt, thou shalt pass\nthe evening with me and I with thee; but, as soon as the time of sleep\ncometh, each of us shall hie him to his own home and lie there.\u201d Quoth\nObayd, \u201cI have a house adjoining mine, which is my own property: so go\nthou with me to-night and to-morrow I will have the house untenanted for\nthee.\u201d Accordingly he went with him and they supped and prayed the\nnight-prayer, after which the jeweller drank the cup of drugged[422]\nliquor and fell asleep: but in Kamar al-Zaman\u2019s cup there was no trick;\nso he drank it and slept not. Then came the jeweller\u2019s wife and sat\nchatting with him through the dark hours, whilst her husband lay like a\ncorpse. When he awoke in the morning as of wont, he sent for his tenant\nand said to him, \u201cO man, quit me the house, for I have need of it.\u201d \u201cOn\nmy head and eyes,\u201d answered the other and voided the house to him,\nwhereupon Kamar al-Zaman took up his abode therein and transported\nthither all his baggage. The jeweller passed that evening with him, then\nwent to his own house. On the next day, his wife sent for a cunning\nbuilder and bribed him with money to make her an underground-way[423]\nfrom her chamber to Kamar al-Zaman\u2019s house, with a trap-door under the\nearth. So, before the youth was ware, she came in to him with two bags\nof money and he said to her, \u201cWhence comest thou?\u201d She showed him the\ntunnel and said to him, \u201cTake these two bags of his money.\u201d Then she sat\nwith him, the twain toying and tumbling together till the morning, when\nshe said, \u201cWait for me, till I go to him and wake him, so he may go to\nhis shop, and I return to thee.\u201d He sat expecting her, whilst she went\naway and awoke her husband, who made the Wuzu-ablution and prayed and\nwent to his shop. As soon as he was gone, she took four bags and,\ncarrying them through the Souterrain to Kamar al-Zaman, said to him,\n\u201cStore these up;\u201d then she sat with him awhile, after which she retired\nto her home and he betook himself to the bazar. When he returned at\nsundown, he found in his house ten purses and jewels and much besides.\nPresently the jeweller came to him and carried him to his own house,\nwhere they passed the evening in the saloon, till the handmaid came in\naccording to custom, and brought them the drink. Her master drank and\nfell asleep, whilst naught betided Kamar al-Zaman for that his cup was\nwholesome and there was no trick therein. Then came Halimah who sat down\na-toying with him, whilst the slave-girl transported the jeweller\u2019s\ngoods to Kamar al-Zaman\u2019s house by the secret passage. Thus they did\ntill morning, when the handmaid awoke her lord and gave them to drink\ncoffee, after which they went each his own way. On the third day the\nwife brought out to him a knife of her husband\u2019s, which he had chased\nand wrought with his own hand, and which he priced at five hundred\ndinars. But there was no knife like it and because of the eagerness with\nwhich folk sought it of him, he had laid it up in a chest and could not\nbring himself to sell it to any one in creation. Quoth she, \u201cTake this\nknife and set it in thy waist-shawl and go to my husband and sit with\nhim. Then pull out the knife and say to him, \u201cO master, look at this\nknife I bought to-day and tell me if I have the worst or the best of the\nbargain. He will know it, but will be ashamed to say to thee, This is my\nknife; so he will ask thee, Whence didst thou buy it and for how much?;\nand do thou make answer:\u2014I saw two Levantines[424] disputing and one\nsaid to the other, Where hast thou been? Quoth his companion, I have\nbeen with my mistress, and whenever I foregather with her, she giveth me\nten dirhams; but this day she said to me, My hand is empty of silver for\nthee to-day, but take this knife of my husband\u2019s. So I took it and\nintend to sell it. The knife pleased me and hearing his tale I said to\nhim, Wilt thou sell it to me? when he replied, Buy. So I got it of him\nfor three hundred gold pieces and I wonder whether it was cheap or dear.\nAnd note what he will say to thee. Then talk with him awhile and rise\nand come back to me in haste. Thou wilt find me awaiting thee at the\ntunnel-mouth, and do thou give me the knife.\u201d Replied Kamar al-Zaman, \u201cI\nhear and I obey,\u201d and taking the knife set it in his waist-shawl. Then\nhe went to the shop of the jeweller, who saluted him with the salam and\nwelcomed him and made him sit down. He spied the knife in his\nwaist-shawl, at which he wondered and said to himself, \u201cThat is my\nknife: who can have conveyed it to this merchant?\u201d And he fell a-musing\nand saying in his mind, \u201cI wonder an it be my knife or a knife like it!\u201d\nPresently Kamar al-Zaman pulled it out and said to him, \u201cHarkye, master;\ntake this knife and look at it.\u201d Obayd took it and knew it right well,\nbut was ashamed to say, \u201cThis is my knife;\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the\ndawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say,\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-third Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\njeweller took the knife from Kamar al-Zaman, he knew it, but was ashamed\nto say, \u201cThis is my knife.\u201d So he asked, \u201cWhere didst thou buy it?\u201d\nKamar al-Zaman answered as Halimah had charged him, and the jeweller\nsaid, \u201cThe knife was cheap at that price, for it is worth five hundred\ndinars.\u201d But fire flamed in his heart and his hands were tied from\nworking at his craft. Kamar al-Zaman continued to talk with him, whilst\nhe was drowned in the sea of solicitudes, and for fifty words wherewith\nthe youth bespoke him, he answered him but one; for his heart ached and\nhis frame was racked and his thoughts were troubled and he was even as\nsaith the poet:\u2014\n\n I have no words though folk would have me talk \u273f And who bespeak me find\n me thought-waylaid:\n Plunged in the Care-sea\u2019s undiscovered depths, \u273f Nor aught of difference\n see \u2019twixt man and maid!\n\nWhen Kamar al-Zaman saw his case thus changed, he said to him, \u201cBelike\nthou art busy at this present,\u201d and leaving him, returned in hottest\nhaste to his own house, where he found Halimah standing at the\npassage-door awaiting him. Quoth she \u201cHast thou done as I bade thee?\u201d;\nand quoth he, \u201cYes.\u201d She asked, \u201cWhat said he to thee?\u201d; and he\nanswered, \u201cHe told me that the knife was cheap at that price, for that\nit was worth five hundred dinars: but I could see that he was troubled;\nso I left him and know not what befel him after that.\u201d Cried she, \u201cGive\nme the knife and reck thou not of him.\u201d Then she took the knife and\nrestoring it to its place, sat down. Now after Kamar al-Zaman\u2019s\ndeparture fire flamed in the jeweller\u2019s heart and suspicion was sore\nupon him and he said to himself, \u201cNeeds must I get up and go look for\nthe knife and cut down doubt with certainty.\u201d So he rose and repaired to\nhis house and went in to his wife, snorting like a dragon;[425] and she\nsaid to him, \u201cWhat mattereth thee, O my lord?\u201d He asked, \u201cWhere is my\nknife?\u201d and she answered, \u201cIn the chest,\u201d and smote hand upon breast,\nsaying, \u201cO my grief! Belike thou hast fallen out with some one and art\ncome to fetch the knife to smite him withal.\u201d Said he, \u201cGive me the\nknife. Let me see it.\u201d But said she, \u201cNot till thou swear to me that\nthou wilt not smite any one therewith.\u201d So he swore this to her and she\nopened the chest and brought out to him the knife and he fell to turning\nit over, saying, \u201cVerily, this is a wondrous thing!\u201d Then quoth he to\nher, \u201cTake it and lay it back in its place;\u201d and she, \u201cTell me the\nmeaning of all this.\u201d He answered, \u201cI saw with our friend a knife like\nthis,\u201d and told her all that had passed between himself and the youth,\nadding, \u201cBut, when I saw it in the chest, my suspicion ended in\ncertainty.\u201d Said she, \u201cHaply thou misdoubtedst of me and deemedst that I\nwas the Levantine\u2019s mistress and had given him the knife.\u201d He replied,\n\u201cYes; I had my doubts of this; but, when I saw the knife, suspicion was\nlifted from my heart.\u201d Rejoined she, \u201cO man, there is now no good in\nthee!\u201d And he fell to excusing himself to her, till he appeased her;\nafter which he fared forth and returned to his shop. Next day, she gave\nKamar al-Zaman her husband\u2019s watch, which he had made with his own hand\nand whereof none had the like, saying, \u201cGo to his shop and sit by his\nside and say to him:\u2014I saw again to-day him whom I saw yesterday. He had\na watch in his hand and said to me, Wilt thou buy this watch? Quoth I,\nWhence hadst thou it?; and quoth he, I was with my mistress and she gave\nme this watch. So I bought it of him for eight-and-fifty gold pieces.\nLook at it: is it cheap at that price or dear? Note what he shall say to\nthee; then return to me in haste and give me the watch.\u201d So Kamar\nal-Zaman repaired to the jeweller and did with him as she had charged\nhim. When Obayd saw the watch, he said, \u201cThis is worth seven hundred\nducats;\u201d and suspicion entered into him. Then the youth left him and\nreturning to the wife, gave her back the watch. Presently, her husband\nsuddenly came in snorting, and said to her, \u201cWhere is my watch?\u201d Said\nshe, \u201cHere it is;\u201d and he cried, \u201cGive it to me.\u201d So she brought it to\nhim and he exclaimed, \u201cThere is no Majesty and there is no Might save in\nAllah, the Glorious, the Great!\u201d; and she too exclaimed, \u201cO man, there\nis something the matter with thee. Tell me what it is.\u201d He replied,\n\u201cWhat shall I say? Verily, I am bewildered by these chances!\u201d And he\nrecited these couplets[426]:\u2014\n\n Although the Merciful be doubtless with me,\n Yet am I sore bewildered, for new griefs\n Have compassed me about, or ere I knew it,\n I have endured till Patience self became\n Impatient of my patience.\u2014I have endured\n Waiting till Heaven fulfil my destiny.\u2014\n I have endured till e\u2019en endurance owned\n How I bore up with her; (a thing more bitter\n Than bitter aloes) yet though a bitterer thing\n Is not, than is that drug, it were more bitter\n To me should Patience leave me unsustained.\n\nThen said he to his wife, \u201cO woman, I saw with the merchant our friend,\nfirst my knife, which I knew, for that its fashion was a device of my\nown wit, nor doth its like exist; and he told me of it a story that\ntroubled the heart: so I came back and found it at home. Again to-day I\nsee him with the watch, whose fashion also is of my own device, nor is\nthere the fellow of it in Bassorah, and of this also he told me a story\nthat saddened my heart. Wherefore I am bewildered in my wit and know not\nwhat is to come to me.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cThe purport of thy speech is that\nthou suspectedst me of being the friend of that merchant and his leman,\nand eke of giving him thy good; so thou camest to question me and make\nproof of my perfidy; and, had I not shown thee the knife and the watch,\nthou hadst been certified of my treason. But since, O man, thou deemest\nme this ill deme, henceforth I will never again break with thee bread\nnor drain with thee drink, for I loathe thee with the loathing of\nprohibition.[427]\u201d So he gentled her and excused himself till he had\nappeased her and returned, repenting him of having bespoken her thus, to\nhis shop, where he sat\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-fourth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the\njeweller quitted his wife, he repented having bespoken her thus and,\nreturning to his shop, he sat there in disquiet sore and anxiety galore,\nbetween belief and unbelief. About eventide he went home alone, not\nbringing Kamar al-Zaman with him: whereupon quoth his wife, \u201cWhere is\nthe merchant?\u201d; and quoth he, \u201cIn his lodgings.\u201d She asked, \u201cIs the\nfriendship between thee and him grown cold?\u201d and he answered, \u201cBy Allah,\nI have taken a dislike to him, because of that which hath betided me\nfrom him.\u201d[428] Quoth she, \u201cGo fetch him, to please me.\u201d So he arose and\nwent in to Kamar al-Zaman in his house; where he saw his own goods\nstrewn about and knew them. At this sight, fire was kindled in his heart\nand he fell a-sighing. Quoth the youth, \u201cHow is it that I see thee\nmelancholy?\u201d Obayd was ashamed to say, \u201cHere are my goods in thy house:\nwho brought them hither?\u201d; so he replied only, \u201cA vexation hath betided\nme; but come thou with me to my house, that we may solace ourselves\nthere.\u201d The other rejoined, \u201cLet me be in my place: I will not go with\nthee.\u201d But the jeweller conjured him to come and took him to his house,\nwhere they supped and passed the evening together, Kamar al-Zaman\ntalking with the jeweller, who was drowned in the sea of solicitude and\nfor a hundred words, wherewith the guest bespoke him, answered him only\none word. Presently, the handmaid brought them two cups of drink, as\nusual, and they drank; whereupon the jeweller fell asleep, but the youth\nabode on wake, because his cup was not drugged. Then came Halimah and\nsaid to her lover, \u201cHow deemest thou of yonder cornuted, who is drunken\nin his heedlessness and weeteth not the wiles of women? There is no help\nfor it but that I cozen him into divorcing me. To-morrow, I will\ndisguise myself as a slave-girl and walk after thee to his shop, where\ndo thou say to him, O master, I went to-day into the Khan of\nAl-Yasirj\u00edyah, where I saw this damsel and bought her for a thousand\ndinars. Look at her for me and tell me whether she was cheap at that\nprice or dear. Then uncover to him my face and breasts and show all of\nme to him; after which do thou carry me back to thy house, whence I will\ngo to my chamber by the secret passage, so I may see the issue of our\naffair with him.\u201d Then the twain passed the night in mirth and\nmerriment, converse and good cheer, dalliance and delight till dawn,\nwhen she returned to her own place and sent the handmaid to arouse her\nlawful lord and her lover. Accordingly they arose and prayed the\ndawn-prayer and brake their fast and drank coffee, after which Obayd\nrepaired to his shop and Kamar al-Zaman betook himself to his own house.\nPresently, in came Halimah to him by the tunnel, in the guise of a\nslave-girl, and indeed she was by birth a slave-girl.[429] Then he went\nout and she walked behind him, till he came to the jeweller\u2019s shop and\nsaluting him, sat down and said, \u201cO master, I went into the Khan of\nAl-Yasirjiyah to-day, to look about me, and saw this damsel in the\nbroker\u2019s hands. She pleased me; so I bought her for a thousand dinars\nand I would have thee look upon her and see if she be cheap at that\nprice or no.\u201d So saying, he uncovered her face and the jeweller saw her\nto be his own wife, clad in her costliest clothes, tricked out in her\nfinest trinkets and kohl\u2019d and henna\u2019d, even as she was wont to adorn\nherself before him in the house. He knew with full knowledge her face\nand dress and trinkets, for those he had wrought with his own hand, and\nhe saw on her fingers the seal-rings he had newly made for Kamar\nal-Zaman, whereby he was certified with entire assurance that she was\nindeed his very wife. So he asked her, \u201cWhat is thy name, O\nslave-girl?\u201d; and she answered, \u201cHalimah,\u201d naming to him her own name;\nwhereat he was amazed and said to the youth, \u201cFor how much didst thou\nbuy her?\u201d He replied, \u201cFor a thousand dinars\u201d; and the jeweller\nrejoined, \u201cThou hast gotten her gratis; for her rings and clothes and\ntrinkets are worth more than that.\u201d Said Kamar al-Zaman, \u201cMay Allah\nrejoice thee with good news! Since she pleaseth thee, I will carry her\nto my house;\u201d and Obayd said, \u201cDo thy will.\u201d So he took her off to his\nhouse, whence she passed through the secret passage to her own apartment\nand sat there. Meanwhile, fire flamed in the jeweller\u2019s heart and he\nsaid to himself, \u201cI will go see my wife. If she be at home, this\nslave-girl must be her counterpart, and glory be to Him who alone hath\nno counterpart! But, if she be not at home, \u2019tis she herself without a\ndoubt.\u201d Then he set off running, and coming to his house, found his wife\nsitting in the same clothes and ornaments he had seen upon her in the\nshop; whereupon he beat hand upon hand, saying, \u201cThere is no Majesty and\nthere is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!\u201d \u201cO man,\u201d\nasked she, \u201cart thou mad or what aileth thee? \u2019Tis not thy wont to do\nthus, and needs must it be that something hath befallen thee.\u201d Answered\nhe, \u201cIf thou wilt have me tell thee be not vexed.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cSay on\u201d;\nso he said, \u201cOur friend the merchant hath bought a slave-girl, whose\nshape is as thy shape and her height as thy height; moreover, her name\nis even as thy name and her apparel is the like of thine apparel. Brief,\nshe resembleth thee in all her attributes, and on her fingers are\nseal-rings like thy seal-rings and her trinkets are as thy trinkets. So,\nwhen he displayed her to me, methought it was thyself and I was\nperplexed concerning my case. Would we had never seen this merchant nor\ncompanied with him; and would he had never left his own country and we\nhad not known him, for he hath troubled my life which before was serene,\ncausing ill-feeling to succeed good faith and making doubt to enter into\nmy heart.\u201d Said she, \u201cLook in my face, belike I am she who was with him\nand he is my lover and I disguised myself as a slave-girl and agreed\nwith him that he should display me to thee, so he might lay a snare for\nthee.\u201d He replied, \u201cWhat words are these? Indeed, I never suspected that\nthou wouldst do the like of this deed.\u201d Now this jeweller was unversed\nin the wiles of women and knew not how they deal with men, nor had he\nheard the saying of him who said:\u2014\n\n A heart bore thee off in chase of the fair, \u273f As fled Youth and came Age\n wi\u2019 his hoary hair:\n Layl\u00e0 troubles me and love-joys are far; \u273f And rival and risks brings us\n cark and care.\n An would\u2019st ask me of woman, behold I am \u273f In physic of womankind wise\n and ware:\n When grizzleth man\u2019s head and his monies fail, \u273f His lot in their love\n is a poor affair.\n\nNor that of another:[430]\u2014\n\n Gainsay women; he obeyeth Allah best, who saith them nay And he prospers\n not who giveth them his bridle-rein to sway;\n For they\u2019ll hinder him from winning to perfection in his gifts, Though a\n thousand years he study, seeking after wisdom\u2019s way.\n\nAnd a third:\u2014\n\n Women Satans are, made for woe of man: \u273f To Allah I fly from such\n Satanesses!\n Whom they lure by their love he to grief shall come \u273f And lose bliss of\n world and the Faith that blesses.\n\nSaid she, \u201cHere am I sitting in my chamber; so go thou to him forthright\nand knock at the door and contrive to go in to him quickly. An thou see\nthe damsel with him \u2019tis a slave-girl of his who resembleth me (and\nGlory be to Him who hath no resemblance![431]) But, an thou see no\nslave-girl with him, then am I myself she whom thou sawest with him in\nthe shop, and thine ill thought of me will be stablished.\u201d \u201cTrue,\u201d\nanswered Obayd, and went out leaving her, whereupon she passed through\nthe hidden passage and seating herself by Kamar al-Zaman, told him what\nhad passed, saying, \u201cOpen the door quickly and show me to him.\u201d Now, as\nthey were talking, behold, there came a knocking at the door. Quoth\nKamar al-Zaman, \u201cWho is at the door?\u201d; and quoth the jeweller, \u201cI, thy\nfriend; thou displayedst to me thy slave-girl in the bazar, and I\nrejoiced for thee in her, but my joy in her was not completed; so open\nthe door and let me look at her again.\u201d Rejoined he, \u201cSo be it,\u201d and\nopened the door to him, whereupon he saw his wife sitting by him. She\nrose and kissed their hands; and he looked at her; then she talked with\nhim awhile and he saw her not to be distinguished from his wife in aught\nand said, \u201cAllah createth whatso He will.\u201d Then he went away more\ndisheartened than before and returned to his own house where he saw his\nwife sitting, for she had foregone him thither by the souterrain.\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-fifth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young lady\nforewent her spouse by the souterrain as he fared through the door and\nsat down in her upper chamber;[432] so as soon as he entered she asked\nhim, \u201cWhat hast thou seen?\u201d and he answered, \u201cI found her with her\nmaster; and she resembleth thee.\u201d Then said she, \u201cOff to thy shop and\nlet this suffice thee of ignoble suspicion and never again deem ill of\nme.\u201d Said he, \u201cSo be it: accord me pardon for what is past.\u201d And she,\n\u201cAllah grant thee grace!\u201d;[433] whereupon he kissed her right and left\nand went back to his shop. Then she again betook herself to Kamar\nal-Zaman through the underground passage, with four bags of money, and\nsaid to him, \u201cEquip thyself at once for the road and be ready to carry\noff the money without delay, against I devise for thee the device I have\nin mind.\u201d So he went out and purchased mules and loaded them and made\nready a travelling litter, he also bought Mamelukes and eunuchs and\nsending, without let or hindrance, the whole without the city, returned\nto Halimah and said to her, \u201cI have made an end of my affairs.\u201d Quoth\nshe, \u201cAnd I on my side am ready; for I have transported to thy house all\nthe rest of his monies and treasures and have left him nor little nor\nmuch, whereof he may avail himself. All this is of my love for thee, O\ndearling of my heart, for I would sacrifice my husband to thee a\nthousand times. But now it behoveth, thou go to him and farewell him,\nsaying:\u2014I purpose to depart after three days and am come to bid thee\nadieu: so do thou reckon what I owe thee for the hire of the house, that\nI may send it to thee and acquit my conscience. Note his reply and\nreturn to me and tell me; for I can no more: I have done my best, by\ncozening him, to anger him with me and cause him to put me away, but I\nfind him none the less infatuated with me. So nothing will serve us but\nto depart to thine own country.\u201d And quoth he, \u201cO rare! an but swevens\nprove true!\u201d[434] Then he went to the jeweller\u2019s shop and sitting down\nby him, said to him, \u201cO master, I set out for home in three days\u2019 time,\nand am come to farewell thee. So I would have thee reckon what I owe\nthee for the hire of the house, that I may pay it to thee and acquit my\nconscience.\u201d Answered Obayd, \u201cWhat talk is this? Verily, \u2019tis I who am\nindebted to thee. By Allah, I will take nothing from thee for the rent\nof the house, for thou hast brought down blessings upon us! However,\nthou desolatest me by thy departure, and but that it is forbidden to me,\nI would certainly oppose thee and hinder thee from returning to thy\ncountry and kinsfolk.\u201d Then he took leave of him, whilst they both wept\nwith sore weeping and the jeweller went with him, and when they entered\nKamar al-Zaman\u2019s house, there they found Halimah who stood before them\nand served them; but when Obayd returned home, he found her sitting\nthere; nor did he cease to see her thus in each house in turn, for the\nspace of three days, when she said to Kamar al-Zaman, \u201cNow have I\ntransported to thee all that he hath of monies and hoards and carpets\nand things of price, and there remaineth with him naught save the\nslave-girl, who used to come in to you with the night-drink: but I\ncannot part with her, for that she is my kinswoman and she is dear to me\nas a confidante. So I will beat her and be wroth with her and when my\nspouse cometh home, I will say to him:\u2014I can no longer put up with this\nslave-girl nor stay in the house with her; so take her and sell her.\nAccordingly he will sell her and do thou buy her, that we may carry her\nwith us.\u201d Answered he, \u201cNo harm in that.\u201d So she beat the girl and when\nthe jeweller came in, he found her weeping and asked her why she wept.\nQuoth she, \u201cMy mistress hath beaten me.\u201d He then went in to his wife and\nsaid to her, \u201cWhat hath that accursed girl done, that thou hast beaten\nher?\u201d She replied, \u201cO man, I have but one word to say to thee, and \u2019tis\nthat I can no longer bear the sight of this girl; so take her and sell\nher, or else divorce me.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cI will sell her that I may not\ncross thee in aught;\u201d and when he went out to go to the shop he took her\nand passed with her by Kamar al-Zaman. No sooner had he gone out than\nhis wife slipped through the underground passage to Kamar al-Zaman, who\nplaced her in the litter, before the Shaykh her husband reached him.\nWhen the jeweller came up and the lover saw the slave-girl with him, he\nasked him, \u201cWhat girl is this?\u201d; and the other answered, \u201c\u2019Tis my\nslave-girl who used to serve us with the night-drink; she hath disobeyed\nher mistress who is wroth with her and hath bidden me sell her.\u201d Quoth\nthe youth, \u201cAn her mistress have taken an aversion to her, there is for\nher no abiding with her; but sell her to me, that I may smell your scent\nin her, and I will make her handmaid to my slave Halimah.\u201d \u201cGood,\u201d\nanswered Obayd: \u201ctake her.\u201d Asked Kamar al-Zaman, \u201cWhat is her price?\u201d;\nbut the jeweller said, \u201cI will take nothing from thee, for thou hast\nbeen bountiful to us.\u201d So he accepted her from him and said to Halimah,\n\u201cKiss thy lord\u2019s hand.\u201d Accordingly, she came out from the litter and\nkissing Obayd\u2019s hand, remounted, whilst he looked hard at her. Then said\nKamar al-Zaman, \u201cI commend thee to Allah, O Master Obayd! Acquit my\nconscience of responsibility.[435]\u201d Answered the jeweller, \u201cAllah acquit\nthee! and carry thee safe to thy family!\u201d Then he bade him farewell and\nwent to his shop weeping, and indeed it was grievous to him to part from\nKamar al-Zaman, for that he had been his friend and friendship hath its\ndebtorship; yet he rejoiced in the dispelling of the doubts which had\nbefallen him anent his wife, since the young man was now gone and his\nsuspicions had not been stablished. Such was his case; but as regards\nKamar al-Zaman, the young lady said to him, \u201cAn thou wish for safety,\ntravel with me by other than the wonted way.\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived\nthe dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-sixth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Halimah\nsaid to Kamar al-Zaman, \u201cAn thou wish for safety, travel with me by\nother than the wonted way,\u201d he replied, \u201cHearing and obeying;\u201d and,\ntaking a road other than that used by folk, fared on without ceasing\nfrom region to region till he reached the confines of Egypt-land[436]\nand sent his sire a letter by a runner. Now his father the merchant Abd\nal-Rahman was sitting in the market among the merchants, with a heart on\nfire for separation from his son, because no news of the youth had\nreached him since the day of his departure; and while he was in such\ncase the runner came up and cried, \u201cO my lords, which of you is called\nthe merchant Abd al-Rahman?\u201d They said, \u201cWhat wouldst thou of him?\u201d; and\nhe said, \u201cI have a letter for him from his son Kamar al-Zaman, whom I\nleft at Al-Ar\u00edsh.[437]\u201d At this Abd al-Rahman rejoiced and his breast\nwas broadened and the merchants rejoiced for him and gave him joy of his\nson\u2019s safety. Then he opened the letter and read as follows:\u2014\u201cFrom Kamar\nal-Zaman to the merchant Abd al-Rahman. And after Peace be upon thee and\nupon all the merchants! An ye ask concerning us, to Allah be the praise\nand the thanks. Indeed we have sold and bought and gained and are come\nback in health, wealth and weal.\u201d Whereupon Abd al-Rahman opened the\ndoor[438] of rejoicing and made banquets and gave feasts and\nentertainments galore, sending for instruments of music and addressing\nhimself to festivities after rarest fashion. When Kamar al-Zaman came to\nAl-S\u00e1lihiyah,[439] his father and all the merchants went forth to meet\nhim, and Abd al-Rahman embraced him and strained him to his bosom and\nsobbed till he swooned away. When he came to himself he said, \u201cOh, \u2019tis\na boon day O my son, whereon the Omnipotent Protector hath reunited us\nwith thee!\u201d And he repeated the words of the bard:\u2014\n\n The return of the friend is the best of all boons, \u273f And the joy-cup\n circles o\u2019 morns and noons:\n So well come, welcome, fair welcome to thee, \u273f The light of the time and\n the moon o\u2019 full moons.\n\nThen, for excess of joy, he poured forth a flood of tears from his eyes\nand he recited also these two couplets:\u2014\n\n The Moon o\u2019 the Time,[440] shows unveil\u00e8d light; \u273f And, his journey\n done, at our door doth alight:\n His locks as the nights of his absence are black \u273f And the sun upstands\n from his collar\u2019s[441] white.\n\nThen the merchants came up to him and saluting him, saw with him many\nloads and servants and a travelling litter enclosed in a spacious\ncircle.[442] So they took him and carried him home; and when Halimah\ncame forth from the litter, his father held her a seduction to all who\nbeheld her. So they opened her an upper chamber, as it were a treasure\nfrom which the talismans had been loosed;[443] and when his mother saw\nher, she was ravished with her and deemed her a Queen of the wives of\nthe Kings. So she rejoiced in her and questioned her; and she answered,\n\u201cI am wife to thy son;\u201d and the mother rejoined, \u201cSince he is wedded to\nthee we must make thee a splendid marriage-feast, that we may rejoice in\nthee and in my son.\u201d On this wise it befel her; but as regards the\nmerchant Abd al-Rahman, when the folk had dispersed and each had wended\nhis way, he foregathered with his son and said to him, \u201cO my son, what\nis this slave-girl thou hast brought with thee and for how much didst\nthou buy her[444]?\u201d Kamar al-Zaman said, \u201cO my father, she is no\nslave-girl; but \u2019tis she who was the cause of my going abroad.\u201d Asked\nhis sire, \u201cHow so?\u201d; and he answered, \u201c\u2019Tis she whom the Dervish\ndescribed to us the night he lay with us; for indeed my hopes clave to\nher from that moment and I sought not to travel save on account of her.\nThe Arabs came out upon me by the way and stripped me and took my money\nand goods, so that I entered Bassorah alone and there befel me there\nsuch and such things;\u201d and he went on to relate to his parent all that\nhad befallen him from commencement to conclusion. Now when he had made\nan end of his story, his father said to him, \u201cO my son, and after all\nthis didst thou marry her?\u201d \u201cNo; but I have promised her marriage.\u201d \u201cIs\nit thine intent to marry her?\u201d \u201cAn thou bid me marry her, I will do so;\notherwise I will not marry her.\u201d Thereupon quoth his father, \u201cAn thou\nmarry her, I am quit of thee in this world and in the next, and I shall\nbe incensed against thee with sore indignation. How canst thou wed her,\nseeing that she hath dealt thus with her husband? For, even as she did\nwith her spouse for thy sake, so will she do the like with thee for\nanother\u2019s sake, because she is a traitress and in a traitor there is no\ntrusting. Wherefore an thou disobey me, I shall be wroth with thee; but,\nan thou give ear to my word, I will seek thee out a girl handsomer than\nshe, who shall be pure and pious, and marry thee to her, though I spend\nall my substance upon her; and I will make thee a wedding without equal\nand will glory in thee and in her; for \u2019tis better that folk should say,\nSuch an one hath married such an one\u2019s daughter, than that they say, He\nhath wedded a slave-girl sans birth or worth.\u201d And he went on to\npersuade his son to give up marrying her, by citing in support of his\nsay, proofs, stories, examples, verses and moral instances, till Kamar\nal-Zaman exclaimed, \u201cO my father, since the case is thus, \u2019tis not right\nand proper that I marry her.\u201d And when his father heard him speak on\nsuch wise, he kissed him between the eyes, saying, \u201cThou art my very\nson, and as I live, O my son, I will assuredly marry thee to a girl who\nhath not her equal!\u201d Then the merchant set Obayd\u2019s wife and her handmaid\nin a chamber high up in the house and, before locking the door upon the\ntwain, he appointed a black slave-girl to carry them their meat and\ndrink and he said to Halimah, \u201cYe shall abide imprisoned in this\nchamber, thou and thy maid, till I find one who will buy you, when I\nwill sell you to him. An ye resist, I will slay ye both, for thou art a\ntraitress, and there is no good in thee.\u201d Answered she, \u201cDo thy will: I\ndeserve all thou canst do with me.\u201d Then he locked the door upon them\nand gave his Harim a charge respecting them, saying, \u201cLet none go up to\nthem nor speak with them, save the black slave-girl who shall give them\ntheir meat and drink through the casement of the upper chamber.\u201d So she\nabode with her maid, weeping and repenting her of that which she had\ndone with her spouse. Meanwhile Abd al-Rahman sent out the\nmarriage-brokers to look out a maid of birth and worth for his son, and\nthe women ceased not to make search, and as often as they saw one girl,\nthey heard of a fairer than she, till they came to the house of the\nShaykh al-Islam[445] and saw his daughter. In her they found a virgin\nwhose equal was not in Cairo for beauty and loveliness, symmetry and\nperfect grace, and she was a thousand-fold handsomer than the wife of\nObayd. So they told Abd al-Rahman of her and he and the notables\nrepaired to her father and sought her in wedlock of him. Then they wrote\nout the marriage contract and made her a splendid wedding; after which\nAbd al-Rahman gave bride-feasts and held open house forty days. On the\nfirst day, he invited the doctors of the law and they held a splendid\nnativity[446]: and on the morrow, he invited all the merchants, and so\non during the rest of the forty days, making a banquet every day to one\nor other class of folk, till he had bidden all the Olema and Emirs and\nAntients[447] and Magistrates, whilst the kettle-drums were drummed and\nthe pipes were piped and the merchant sat to greet the guests, with his\nson by his side, that he might solace himself by gazing on the folk, as\nthey ate from the trays. Each night Abd al-Rahman illuminated the street\nand the quarter with lamps and there came every one of the mimes and\njugglers and mountebanks and played all manner play; and indeed it was a\npeerless wedding. On the last day he invited the Fakirs, the poor and\nthe needy, far and near, and they flocked in troops and ate, whilst the\nmerchant sat, with his son by his side.[448] And among the paupers,\nbehold, entered Shaykh Obayd the jeweller and he was naked and weary and\nbare on his face the marks of wayfare. When Kamar al-Zaman saw him, he\nknew him and said to his sire, \u201cLook, O my father, at yonder poor man\nwho is but now come in by the door.\u201d So he looked and saw him clad in\nworn clothes and on him a patched gown[449] worth two dirhams: his face\nwas yellow and he was covered with dust and was as he were an offcast of\nthe pilgrims.[450] He was groaning as groaneth a sick man in need,\nwalking with a tottering gait and swaying now to the right and then to\nthe left, and in him was realized his saying who said[451]:\u2014\n\n Lack-gold abaseth man and doth his worth away, Even as the setting sun\n that pales with ended day.\n He passeth \u2019mongst the folk and fain would hide his head; And when\n alone, he weeps with tears that never stay.\n Absent, none taketh heed to him or his concerns; Present, he hath no\n part in life or pleasance aye.\n By Allah, whenas men with poverty are cursed, But strangers midst their\n kin and countrymen are they!\n\nAnd the saying of another:\u2014\n\n The poor man fares by everything opposed: \u273f On him to shut the door\n Earth ne\u2019er shall fail:\n Thou seest men abhor him sans a sin, \u273f And foes he finds tho\u2019 none the\n cause can tell:\n The very dogs, when sighting wealthy man, \u273f Fawn at his feet and wag the\n flattering tail;\n Yet, an some day a pauper loon they sight, \u273f All at him bark and,\n gnashing fangs, assail.\n\nAnd how well quoth a third:\u2014\n\n If generous youth be blessed with luck and wealth, \u273f Displeasures fly\n his path and perils fleet:\n His enviers pimp for him and par\u2019site-wise \u273f E\u2019en without tryst his\n mistress hastes to meet.\n When loud he farts they say \u201cHow well he sings!\u201d \u273f And when he\n fizzles[452] cry they, \u201cOh, how sweet!\u201d\n\n\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-seventh Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when his son\nsaid to Abd al-Rahman, \u201cLook at yonder pauper!\u201d he asked, \u201cO my son, who\nis this?\u201d And Kamar al-Zaman answered, \u201cThis is Master Obayd the\njeweller, husband of the woman who is imprisoned with us.\u201d Quoth Abd\nal-Rahman, \u201cIs this he of whom thou toldest me?\u201d; and quoth his son,\n\u201cYes; and indeed I wot him right well.\u201d Now the manner of Obayd\u2019s coming\nthither was on this wise. When he had farewelled Kamar al-Zaman, he went\nto his shop and thence going home, laid his hand on the door, whereupon\nit opened and he entered and found neither his wife nor the slave-girl,\nbut saw the house in sorriest plight, quoting in mute speech his saying\nwho said[453]:\u2014\n\n The chambers were like a bee-hive well stocked: when their bees quitted\n it, they became empty.\n\nWhen he saw the house void, he turned right and left and presently went\nround about the place, like a madman, but came upon no one. Then he\nopened the door of his treasure-closet, but found therein naught of his\nmoney nor his hoards; whereupon he recovered from the intoxication of\nfancy and shook off his infatuation and knew that it was his wife\nherself who had turned the tables upon him and outwitted him with her\nwiles. He wept for that which had befallen him, but kept his affair\nsecret, so none of his foes might exult over him nor any of his friends\nbe troubled, knowing that, if he disclosed his secret, it would bring\nhim naught but dishonour and contumely from the folk; wherefore he said\nin himself, \u201cO Obayd, hide that which hath betided thee of affliction\nand ruination; it behoveth thee to do in accordance with his saying who\nsaid:\u2014\n\n If a man\u2019s breast with bane he hides be straiten\u00e8d, \u273f The breast that\n tells its hidden bale is straiter still.\u201d\n\nThen he locked up his house and, making for his shop, gave it in charge\nof one of his apprentices to whom said he, \u201cMy friend the young merchant\nhath invited me to accompany him to Cairo, for solacing ourselves with\nthe sight of the city, and sweareth that he will not march except he\ncarry us with him, me and my wife. So, O my son, I make thee my steward\nin the shop, and if the King ask for me, say thou to him:\u2014He is gone\nwith his Harim to the Holy House of Allah[454].\u201d Then he sold some of\nhis effects and bought camels and mules and Mamelukes, together with a\nslave-girl[455], and placing her in a litter, set out from Bassorah\nafter ten days. His friends farewelled him and none doubted but that he\nhad taken his wife and gone on the Pilgrimage, and the folk rejoiced in\nthis, for that Allah had delivered them from being shut up in the\nmosques and houses every Friday. Quoth some of them, \u201cAllah grant he may\nnever return to Bassorah, so we may no more be boxed up in the mosques\nand houses every Friday!\u201d; for that this usage had caused the people of\nBassorah exceeding vexation. Quoth another, \u201cMethinks he will not return\nfrom this journey, by reason of the much-praying of the people of\nBassorah against him[456].\u201d And yet another, \u201cAn he return, \u2019twill not\nbe but in reversed case[457].\u201d So the folk rejoiced with exceeding joy\nin the jeweller\u2019s departure, after they had been in mighty great\nchagrin, and even their cats and dogs were comforted. When Friday came\nround, however, the crier proclaimed as usual that the people should\nrepair to the mosques two hours before prayer-time or else hide\nthemselves in their houses, together with their cats and dogs; whereat\ntheir breasts were straitened and they assembled in general assembly and\nbetaking themselves to the King\u2019s divan, stood between his hands and\nsaid, \u201cO King of the age, the jeweller hath taken his Harim and departed\non the pilgrimage to the Holy House of Allah: so the cause of our\nrestraint hath ceased to be, and why therefore are we now shut up?\u201d\nQuoth the King, \u201cHow came this traitor to depart without telling me?\nBut, when he cometh back from his journey, all will not be save\nwell[458]: so go ye to your shops and sell and buy, for this vexation is\nremoved from you.\u201d Thus far concerning the King and the Bassorites; but\nas for the jeweller, he fared on ten days\u2019 journey, and as he drew near\nBaghdad, there befel him that which had befallen Kamar al-Zaman, before\nhis entering Bassorah; for the Arabs[459] came out upon him and stripped\nhim and took all he had and he escaped only by feigning himself dead. As\nsoon as they were gone, he rose and fared on, naked as he was, till he\ncame to a village, where Allah inclined to him the hearts of certain\nkindly folk, who covered his shame with some old clothes; and he asked\nhis way, begging from town to town, till he reached the city of Cairo\nthe God-guarded. There, burning with hunger, he went about alms-seeking\nin the market-streets, till one of the townsfolk said to him, \u201cO poor\nman, off with thee to the house of the wedding-festival and eat and\ndrink; for to-day there is open table for paupers and strangers.\u201d Quoth\nhe, \u201cI know not the way thither\u201d: and quoth the other, \u201cFollow me and I\nwill show it to thee.\u201d He followed him, till he brought him to the house\nof Abd al-Rahman and said to him, \u201cThis is the house of the wedding;\nenter and fear not, for there is no doorkeeper at the door of the\nfestival.\u201d Accordingly he entered and Kamar al-Zaman knew him and told\nhis sire who said, \u201cO my son, leave him at this present: belike he is\nanhungered: so let him eat his sufficiency and recover himself and after\nwe will send for him.\u201d So they waited till Obayd had eaten his fill and\nwashed his hands and drunk coffee and sherbets of sugar flavoured with\nmusk and ambergris and was about to go out, when Abd al-Rahman sent\nafter him a page who said to him, \u201cCome, O stranger, and speak with the\nmerchant Abd al-Rahman.\u201d \u201cWho is he?\u201d asked Obayd; and the man answered,\n\u201cHe is the master of the feast.\u201d Thereupon the jeweller turned back,\nthinking that he meant to give him a gift, and coming up to Abd\nal-Rahman, saw his friend Kamar al-Zaman and went nigh to lose his\nsenses for shame before him. But Kamar al-Zaman rose to him and\nembracing him, saluted him with the salam, and they both wept with sore\nweeping. Then he seated him by his side and Abd al-Rahman said to his\nson, \u201cO destitute of good taste, this is no way to receive friends! Send\nhim first to the Hammam and despatch after him a suit of clothes of the\nchoicest, worth a thousand dinars[460].\u201d Accordingly they carried him to\nthe bath, where they washed his body and clad him in a costly suit, and\nhe became as he were Consul of the Merchants. Meanwhile the bystanders\nquestioned Kamar al-Zaman of him, saying, \u201cwho is this and whence\nknowest thou him?\u201d Quoth he, \u201cThis is my friend, who lodged me in his\nhouse and to whom I am indebted for favours without number, for that he\nentreated me with exceeding kindness. He is a man of competence and\ncondition and by trade a jeweller, in which craft he hath no equal. The\nKing of Bassorah loveth him dearly and holdeth him in high honour and\nhis word is law with him.\u201d And he went on to enlarge before them on his\npraises, saying, \u201cVerily, he did with me thus and thus and I have shame\nof him and know not how to requite him his generous dealing with me.\u201d\nNor did he leave to extol him, till his worth was magnified to the\nbystanders and he became venerable in their eyes; so they said, \u201cWe will\nall do him his due and honour him for thy sake. But we would fain know\nthe reason why he hath departed his native land and the cause of his\ncoming hither and what Allah hath done with him, that he is reduced to\nthis plight?\u201d Replied Kamar al-Zaman, \u201cO folk, marvel not, for a son of\nAdam is still subject to Fate and Fortune, and what while he abideth in\nthis world, he is not safe from calamities. Indeed he spake truly who\nsaid these couplets:\u2014\n\n The world tears man to shreds, so be thou not \u273f Of those whom lure of\n rank and title draws:\n Nay; \u2019ware of slips and turn from sin aside \u273f And ken that bane and bale\n are worldly laws:\n How oft high Fortune falls by least mishap \u273f And all things bear inbred\n of change a cause!\n\nKnow that I entered Bassorah in yet iller case and worse distress than\nthis man, for that he entered Cairo with his shame hidden by rags; but I\nindeed came into his town with my nakedness uncovered, one hand behind\nand another before; and none availed me but Allah and this dear man. Now\nthe reason of this was that the Arabs stripped me and took my camels and\nmules and loads and slaughtered my pages and serving-men; but I lay down\namong the slain and they thought that I was dead, so they went away and\nleft me. Then I arose and walked on, mother-naked, till I came to\nBassorah where this man met me and clothed me and lodged me in his\nhouse; he also furnished me with money, and all I have brought back with\nme I owe to none save to Allah\u2019s goodness and his goodness. When I\ndeparted, he gave me great store of wealth and I returned to the city of\nmy birth with a heart at ease. I left him in competence and condition,\nand haply there hath befallen him some bale of the banes of Time, that\nhath forced him to quit his kinsfolk and country, and there happened to\nhim by the way the like of what happened to me. There is nothing strange\nin this; but now it behoveth me to requite him his noble dealing with me\nand do according to the saying of him who saith:\u2014\n\n O who praisest Time with the fairest appraise, \u273f Knowest thou what Time\n hath made and unmade?\n What thou dost at least be it kindly done,[461] \u273f For with pay he pays\n shall man be repaid.\n\nAs they were talking and telling the tale, behold, up came Obayd as he\nwere Consul[462] of the Merchants; whereupon they all rose to salute him\nand seated him in the place of honour. Then said Kamar al-Zaman to him,\n\u201cO my friend, verily, thy day[463] is blessed and fortunate! There is no\nneed to relate to me a thing that befel me before thee. If the Arabs\nhave stripped thee and robbed thee of thy wealth, verily our money is\nthe ransom of our bodies, so let not thy soul be troubled; for I entered\nthy city naked and thou clothedst me and entreatedst me generously, and\nI owe thee many a kindness. But I will requite thee.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-eighth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Kamar al-Zaman\nsaid to Master Obayd the jeweller, \u201cVerily I entered thy city naked and\nthou clothedst me and I owe thee many a kindness. But I will requite\nthee and do with thee even as thou didst with me; nay, more: so be of\ngood cheer and eyes clear of tear.\u201d And he went on to soothe him and\nhinder him from speech, lest he should name his wife and what she had\ndone with him; nor did he cease to ply him with saws and moral instances\nand verses and conceits and stories and legends and console him, till\nthe jeweller saw his drift and took the hint and kept silence concerning\nthe past, diverting himself with the tales and rare anecdotes he heard\nand repeating in himself these lines:\u2014\n\n On the brow of the World is a writ; an thereon thou look, \u273f Its contents\n will compel thine eyes tears of blood to rain:\n For the World never handed to humans a cup with its right, \u273f But with\n left it compelled them a beaker of ruin to drain.\n\nThen Kamar al-Zaman and his father took Obayd and carrying him into the\nsaloon of the Harim, shut themselves up with him; and Abd al-Rahman said\nto him, \u201cWe did not hinder thee from speaking before the folk, but for\nfear of dishonour to thee and to us: but now we are private; so tell me\nall that hath passed between thee and thy wife and my son.\u201d So he told\nhim all, from beginning to end, and when he had made an end of his\nstory, Abd al-Rahman asked him, \u201cWas the fault with my son or with thy\nwife?\u201d He answered, \u201cBy Allah, thy son was not to blame, for men must\nneeds lust after women, and \u2019tis the bounden duty of women to defend\nthemselves from men. So the sin lieth with my wife, who played me false\nand did with me these deeds[464].\u201d Then Abd al-Rahman arose and taking\nhis son aside, said to him, \u201cO my son, we have proved his wife and know\nher to be a traitress; and now I mean to prove him and see if he be a\nman of honour and manliness, or a wittol.[465]\u201d \u201cHow so?\u201d asked Kamar\nal-Zaman; and Abd al-Rahman answered, \u201cI mean to urge him to make peace\nwith his wife, and if he consent thereto and forgive her, I will smite\nhim with a sword and slay him and kill her after, her and her maid, for\nthere is no good in the life of a cuckold and a quean[466]; but, if he\nturn from her with aversion I will marry him to thy sister and give him\nmore of wealth than that thou tookest from him.\u201d Then he went back to\nObayd and said to him, \u201cO master, verily, the commerce of women\nrequireth patience and magnanimity and whoso loveth them hath need of\nfortitude, for that they order themselves viper-wise towards men and\nevilly entreat them, by reason of their superiority over them in beauty\nand loveliness: wherefore they magnify themselves and belittle men. This\nis notably the case when their husbands show them affection; for then\nthey requite them with hauteur and coquetry and harsh dealing of all\nkinds. But, if a man be wroth whenever he seeth in his wife aught that\noffendeth him, there can be no fellowship between them; nor can any hit\nit off with them who is not magnanimous and long-suffering; and unless a\nman bear with his wife and requite her foul doing with forgiveness, he\nshall get no good of her conversation. Indeed, it hath been said of\nthem:\u2014Were they in the sky, the necks of men would incline them-wards;\nand he who hath the power and pardoneth, his reward is with Allah. Now\nthis woman is thy wife and thy companion and she hath long consorted\nwith thee; wherefore it behoveth that thou entreat her with indulgence\nwhich in fellowship is of the essentials of success. Furthermore, women\nfail in wit and Faith,[467] and if she have sinned, she repenteth and\nInshallah she will not again return to that which she whilome did. So\n\u2019tis my rede that thou make peace with her and I will restore thee more\nthan the good she took; and if it please thee to abide with me, thou art\nwelcome, thou and she, and ye shall see naught but what shall joy you\nboth; but, an thou seek to return to thine own land. For that which\nfalleth out between a man and his wife is manifold, and it behoveth thee\nto be indulgent and not take the way of the violent.\u201d Said the jeweller,\n\u201cO my lord, and where is my wife?\u201d and said Abd al-Rahman, \u201cShe is in\nthat upper chamber, go up to her and be easy with her, for my sake, and\ntrouble her not; for, when my son brought her hither, he would have\nmarried her, but I forbade him from her and shut her up in yonder room,\nand locked the door upon her saying in myself:\u2014Haply her husband will\ncome and I will hand her over to him safe; for she is fair of favour,\nand when a woman is like unto this one, it may not be that her husband\nwill let her go. What I counted on is come about and praised be Allah\nAlmighty for thy reunion with thy wife! As for my son, I have sought him\nanother woman in marriage and have married him to her: these banquets\nand rejoicings are for his wedding, and to-night I bring him to his\nbride. So here is the key of the chamber where thy wife is: take it and\nopen the door and go in to her and her handmaid and be buxom with her.\nThere shall be brought you meat and drink and thou shalt not come down\nfrom her till thou have had thy fill of her.\u201d Cried Obayd, \u201cMay Allah\nrequite thee for me with all good, O my lord!\u201d and taking the key, went\nup, rejoicing. The other thought his words had pleased him and that he\nconsented thereto; so he took the sword and following him unseen, stood\nto espy what should happen between him and his wife. This is how it\nfared with the merchant Abd al-Rahman; but as for the jeweller, when he\ncame to the chamber-door, he heard his wife weeping with sore weeping\nfor that Kamar al-Zaman had married another than her, and the handmaid\nsaying to her, \u201cO my lady, how often have I warned thee and said, Thou\nwilt get no good of this youth: so do thou leave his company. But thou\nheededst not my words and spoiledst thy husband of all his goods and\ngavest them to him. After the which thou forsookest thy place, of thine\nfondness and infatuation for him, and camest with him to this country.\nAnd now he hath cast thee out from his thought and married another and\nhath made the issue of thy foolish fancy for him to be durance vile.\u201d\nCried Halimah, \u201cBe silent, O accursed! Though he be married to another,\nyet some day needs must I occur to his thought. I cannot forget the\nnights I have spent in his company and in any case I console myself with\nhis saying who said:\u2014\n\n O my lords, shall he to your mind occur \u273f Who recurs to you only sans\n other mate?\n Grant Heaven you ne\u2019er shall forget his state \u273f Who for state of you\n forgot own estate!\n\nIt cannot be but he will bethink him of my affect and converse and ask\nfor me, wherefore I will not turn from loving him nor change from\npassion for him, though I perish in prison; for he is my love and my\nleach[468] and my reliance is on him that he will yet return to me and\ndeal fondly with me.\u201d When the jeweller heard his wife\u2019s words, he went\nin to her and said to her, \u201cO traitress, thy hope in him is as the hope\nof Iblis[469] in Heaven. All these vices were in thee and I knew not\nthereof; for, had I been ware of one single vice, I had not kept thee\nwith me an hour. But now I am certified of this in thee, it behoveth me\nto do thee die, although they put me to death for thee, O traitress!\u201d\nand he clutched her with both hands and repeated these two couplets:\u2014\n\n O fair ones forth ye cast my faithful love \u273f With sin, nor had ye aught\n regard for right:\n How long I fondly clung to you, but now \u273f My love is loathing and I hate\n your sight.\n\nThen he pressed hardly upon her windpipe and brake her neck, whereupon\nher handmaid cried out \u201cAlas, my mistress!\u201d Said he, \u201cO harlot, \u2019tis\nthou who art to blame for all this, for that thou knewest this evil\ninclination to be in her and toldest me not.[470]\u201d Then he seized upon\nher and strangled her. All this happened while Abd al-Rahman stood,\nbrand in hand, behind the door espying with his eyes and hearing with\nhis ears. Now when Obayd the jeweller had done this, apprehension came\nupon him and he feared the issue of his affair and said to himself, \u201cAs\nsoon as the merchant learneth that I have killed them in his house, he\nwill surely slay me; yet I beseech Allah that He appoint the taking of\nmy life to be while I am in the True Belief!\u201d And he abode bewildered\nabout his case and knew not what to do; but, as he was thus behold, in\ncame Abd al-Rahman from his lurking-place without the door and said to\nhim, \u201cNo harm shall befal thee, for indeed thou deservest safety. See\nthis sword in my hand. \u2019Twas in my mind to slay thee, hadst thou made\npeace with her and restored her to favour, and I would also have slain\nher and the maid. But since thou hast done this deed, welcome to thee\nand again welcome! And I will reward thee by marrying thee to my\ndaughter, Kamar al-Zaman\u2019s sister.\u201d Then he carried him down and sent\nfor the woman who washed the dead: whereupon it was bruited abroad that\nKamar al-Zaman had brought with him two slave-girls from Bassorah and\nthat both had deceased. So the people began to condole with him saying,\n\u201cMay thy head live!\u201d and \u201cMay Allah compensate thee!\u201d And they washed\nand shrouded them and buried them, and none knew the truth of the\nmatter. Then Abd al-Rahman sent for the Shaykh al-Islam and all the\nnotables and said, \u201cO Shaykh, draw up the contract of marriage between\nmy daughter Kaukab al-Sal\u00e1h[471] and Master Obayd the jeweller and set\ndown that her dowry hath been paid to me in full.\u201d So he wrote out the\ncontract and Abd al-Rahman gave the company to drink of sherbets, and\nthey made one wedding festival for the two brides the daughter of the\nShaykh al-Islam and Kamar al-Zaman\u2019s sister; and paraded them in one\nlitter on one and the same night; after which they carried Kamar\nal-Zaman and Obayd in procession together and brought them in to their\nbrides.[472] When the jeweller went in to Abd al-Rahman\u2019s daughter, he\nfound her handsomer than Halimah and a thousand-fold lovelier. So he\ntook her maidenhead and on the morrow, he went to the Hammam with Kamar\nal-Zaman. Then he abode with them awhile in pleasance and joyance, after\nwhich he began to yearn for his native land: so he went in to Abd\nal-Rahman and said to him, \u201cO uncle, I long for my own country, for I\nhave there estates and effects, which I left in charge of one of my\nprentices; and I am minded to journey thither that I may sell my\nproperties and return to thee. So wilt thou give me leave to go to my\ncountry for that purpose?\u201d Answered the merchant, \u201cO my son, I give thee\nleave to do this and there be no fault in thee or blame to thee for\nthese words, for \u2018Love of mother-land is a part of Religion\u2019; and he who\nhath not good in his own country hath none in other folks\u2019 country. But,\nhaply, an thou depart without thy wife, when thou art once come to thy\nnative place, it may seem good to thee to settle there, and thou wilt be\nperplexed between returning to thy wife and sojourning in thine own\nhome; so it were the righter rede that thou carry thy wife with thee;\nand after, an thou desire to return to us, return and welcome to you\nboth; for we are folk who know not divorce and no woman of us marrieth\ntwice, nor do we lightly discard a man.\u201d[473] Quoth Obayd, \u201cUncle, I\nfear me thy daughter will not consent to journey with me to my own\ncountry.\u201d Replied Abd al-Rahman, \u201cO my son, we have no women amongst us\nwho gainsay their spouses, nor know we a wife who is wroth with her\nman.\u201d The jeweller cried, \u201cAllah bless you and your women!\u201d and going in\nto his wife, said to her, \u201cI am minded to go to my country: what sayst\nthou?\u201d Quoth she, \u201cIndeed, my sire had the ordering of me, whilst I was\na maid, and when I married, the ordering all passed into the hands of my\nlord and master, nor will I gainsay him.\u201d Quoth Obayd, \u201cAllah bless thee\nand thy father, and have mercy on the womb that bare thee and the loins\nthat begat thee!\u201d Then he cut his thongs[474] and applied himself to\nmaking ready for his journey. His father-in-law gave him much good and\nthey took leave each of other, after which the jeweller and his wife\njourneyed on without ceasing, till they reached Bassorah where his\nkinsmen and comrades came out to meet him, doubting not but that he had\nbeen in Al-Hij\u00e1z. Some rejoiced at his return, whilst others were vexed,\nand the folk said one to another, \u201cNow will he straiten us again every\nFriday, as before, and we shall be shut up in the mosques and houses,\neven to our cats and our dogs.\u201d On such wise it fared with him; but as\nregards the King of Bassorah, when he heard of his return, he was wroth\nwith him; and sending for him, upbraided him and said to him, \u201cWhy didst\nthou depart, without letting me know of thy departure? Was I unable to\ngive thee somewhat wherewith thou mightest have succoured thyself in thy\npilgrimage to the Holy House of Allah?\u201d Replied the jeweller, \u201cPardon, O\nmy lord! By Allah, I went not on the pilgrimage! but there have befallen\nme such and such things.\u201d Then he told him all that had befallen him\nwith his wife and with Abd al-Rahman of Cairo and how the merchant had\ngiven him his daughter to wife, ending with these words, \u201cAnd I have\nbrought her to Bassorah.\u201d Said the King, \u201cBy the Lord, did I not fear\nAllah the Most High, I would slay thee and marry this noble lady after\nthy death, though I spent on her mints of money, because she befitteth\nnone but Kings. But Allah hath appointed her of thy portion and may He\nbless thee in her! So look thou use her well.\u201d Then he bestowed largesse\non the jeweller, who went out from before him and abode with his wife\nfive years, after which he was admitted to the mercy of the Almighty.\nPresently the King sought his widow in wedlock; but she refused, saying,\n\u201cO King, never among my kindred was a woman who married again after her\nhusband\u2019s death; wherefore I will never take another husband, nor will I\nmarry thee, no, though thou kill me.\u201d Then he sent to her one who said,\n\u201cDost thou seek to go to thy native land?\u201d And she answered, \u201cAn thou do\ngood, thou shalt be requited therewith.\u201d So he collected for her all the\njeweller\u2019s wealth and added unto her of his own, after the measure of\nhis degree. Lastly he sent with her one of his Wazirs, a man famous for\ngoodness and piety, and an escort of five hundred horse, who journeyed\nwith her, till they brought her to her father; and in his home she\nabode, without marrying again, till she died and they died all. So, if\nthis woman would not consent to replace her dead husband with a Sultan,\nhow shall she be compared with one who replaced her husband, whilst he\nwas yet alive, with a youth of unknown extraction and condition, and\nespecially when this was in lewd carriage and not by way of lawful\nmarriage? So he who deemeth all women alike,[475] there is no remedy for\nthe disease of his insanity. And glory be to Him to whom belongeth the\nempire of the Seen and the Unseen and He is the Living, who dieth not!\nAnd among the tales they tell, O auspicious King, is one of\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 375:\n\n Lane rejects this tale because it is \u201cextremely objectionable; far\n more so than the title might lead me to expect.\u201d But he quotes the\n following marginal note by his Shaykh:\u2014\u201cMany persons (women) reckon\n marrying a second time amongst the most disgraceful of actions. This\n opinion is commonest in the country-towns and villages; and my\n mother\u2019s relations are thus distinguished; so that a woman of them,\n when her husband dieth or divorceth her while she is young, passeth in\n widowhood her life, however long it may be, and disdaineth to marry a\n second time.\u201d I fear that this state of things belongs to the good old\n days now utterly gone by; and the loose rule of the stranger,\n especially the English, in Egypt will renew the scenes which\n characterised Sind when Sir Charles Napier hanged every husband who\n cut down an adulterous wife. I have elsewhere noticed the ignorant\n idea that Moslems deny to women souls and seats in Paradise, whilst\n Mohammed canonised two women in his own family. The theory arose with\n the \u201cFathers\u201d of the Christian Church who simply exaggerated the\n misogyny of St. Paul. St. Ambrose commenting on Corinthians i. ii.,\n boldly says:\u2014\u201cFeminas ad imaginem Dei factas non esse.\u201d St. Thomas\n Aquinas and his school adopted the Aristotelian view, \u201cMulier est\n erratum natur\u00e6, et mas occasionatus, et per accidens generatur; atque\n id\u00e8o est monstrum.\u201d For other instances see Bayle s. v. Gediacus\n (Revd. Simon of Brandebourg) who in 1695 published a \u201cDefensio Sexus\n muliebris,\u201d a refutation of an anti-Socinian satire or squib,\n \u201cDisputatio perjucunda, Mulieres homines non esse,\u201d Parisiis, 1693.\n But when Islam arose in the seventh century, the Christian learned\n cleverly affixed the stigma of their own misogyny upon the Moslems ad\n captandas f\u0153minas and in Southern Europe the calumny still bears\n fruit. Mohammed (Koran, chapt. xxiv.) commands for the first time, in\n the sixth year of his mission, the veiling and, by inference, the\n seclusion of women, which was apparently unknown to the Badawin and,\n if practised in the cities was probably of the laxest. Nor can one but\n confess that such modified separation of the sexes, which it would be\n impossible to introduce into European manners, has great and notable\n advantages. It promotes the freest intercourse between man and man,\n and thus civilises what we call the \u201clower orders\u201d: in no Moslem land,\n from Morocco to China, do we find the brutals without manners or\n morals which are bred by European and especially by English\n civilisation. For the same reason it enables women to enjoy fullest\n intimacy and friendship with one another, and we know that the best of\n both sexes are those who prefer the society of their own as opposed to\n \u201cquite the lady\u2019s man\u201d and \u201cquite the gentleman\u2019s woman.\u201d It also adds\n an important item to social decorum by abolishing _e.g._ such\n indecencies as the \u201cballroom _flirtation_\u201d\u2014a word which must be\n borrowed from us, not translated by foreigners. And especially it\n gives to religious meetings, a tone which the presence of women\n modifies and not for the better. Perhaps, the best form is that\n semi-seclusion of the sex, which prevailed in the heroic ages of\n Greece, Rome, and India (before the Moslem invasion), and which is\n perpetuated in Christian Armenia and in modern Hellas. It is a\n something between the conventual strictness of Al-Islam and the\n liberty, or rather licence, of the \u201cAnglo-Saxon\u201d and the\n \u201cAnglo-American.\u201d And when England shall have cast off that peculiar\n insularity which makes her differ from all civilised peoples, she will\n probably abolish three gross abuses, time-honoured scandals, which\n bear very heavily on women and children. The first is the Briton\u2019s\n right to will property away from his wife and offspring. The second is\n the action for \u201cbreach of promise,\u201d salving the broken heart with\n pounds, shillings, and pence: it should be treated simply as an\n exaggerated breach of contract. The third is the procedure popularly\n called \u201cCrim. Con.,\u201d and this is the most scandalous of all: the\n offence is against the rights of property, like robbery or burglary,\n and it ought to be treated criminally with fine, imprisonment and in\n cases with corporal punishment after the sensible procedure of Moslem\n law.\n\nFootnote 376:\n\n \u201cMoon of the age,\u201d a name which has before occurred.\n\nFootnote 377:\n\n The Malocchio or gettatura, so often noticed.\n\nFootnote 378:\n\n The crescent of the month Zu \u2019l-Ka\u2019dah when the Ramazan-fast is\n broken. This allusion is common. Comp. vol. i. 84.\n\nFootnote 379:\n\n This line contains one of the Yes, Yes and No, No trifles alluded to\n in vol. ii. 60. Captain Lockett (M. A. 103) renders it \u201cI saw a fawn\n upon a hillock whose beauty eclipsed the full moon. I said, What is\n thy name? she answered _Deer_. What my _Dear_ said I, but she replied,\n _no_, no!\u201d To preserve the sound I have sacrificed sense: L\u00fal\u00fa is a\n pearl L\u00ed? l\u00ed? (= for me, for me?) and L\u00e1! L\u00e1! = no! no! See vol. i.\n 217. I should have explained a line which has puzzled some readers,\n\n \u201cA sun (face) on wand (neck) in knoll of sand (hips) she showed\u201d etc.\n\nFootnote 380:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-huwayn\u00e1,\u201d a rare term.\n\nFootnote 381:\n\n Bright in the eyes of the famishing who is allowed to break his fast.\n\nFootnote 382:\n\n Mr. Payne reads \u201cMaghrabi\u201d = a Mauritanian, Marocean, the Moors (not\n the Moorish Jews or Arabs) being a race of Sodomites from highest to\n lowest. But the Mac. and Bul. Edit. have \u201cAjami.\u201d\n\nFootnote 383:\n\n For \u201cIshk uzri\u201d = platonic love see vol. i. 232; ii. 104.\n\nFootnote 384:\n\n Zaynab (Zenobia) and Zayd are generic names for women and men.\n\nFootnote 385:\n\n _i.e._ He wrote \u201cKas\u00eddahs (= odes, elegies) after the fashion of the\n \u201cSuspended Poems\u201d which mostly open with the lover gazing upon the\n traces of the camp where his beloved had dwelt. The exaggerated\n conventionalism of such exordium shows that these early poems had been\n preceded by a host of earlier pieces which had been adopted as canons\n of poetry.\n\nFootnote 386:\n\n The verses are very mal-\u00e0-propos, like many occurring in The Nights,\n for the maligned Shaykh is proof against all the seductions of the\n pretty boy and falls in love with a woman after the fashion of Don\n Quixote. Mr. Payne complains of the obscurity of the original owing to\n abuse of the figure enallage; but I find them explicit enough,\n referring to some debauched elder after the type of Abu Now\u00e1s.\n\nFootnote 387:\n\n Arab. \u201c\u2019Irk\u201d = a root which must here mean a sprig, a twig. The basil\n grows to a comparatively large size in the East.\n\nFootnote 388:\n\n Arab. \u201cL\u00e1it\u201d = one connected with the tribe of Lot, see vol. v. 161.\n\nFootnote 389:\n\n For the play upon \u201cS\u00e1ki\u201d (oblique case of s\u00e1k, leg-calf) and S\u00e1ki a\n cupbearer see vol. ii. 327.\n\nFootnote 390:\n\n \u201cOn a certain day the leg shall be bared and men shall be called upon\n to bow in adoration, but they shall not be able\u201d (Koran, lxviii. 42).\n \u201cBaring the leg\u201d implies a grievous calamity, probably borrowed from\n the notion of tucking up the skirts and stripping for flight. On the\n dangerous San Francisco River one of the rapids is called\n \u201cTira-calcoens\u201d = take off your trousers (Highlands of the Brazil, ii.\n 35). But here the allusion is simply ludicrous and to a Moslem\n blasphemous.\n\nFootnote 391:\n\n Arab. \u201cIstahi,\u201d a word of every day use in reproof. So the Hindost.\n \u201cKuchh sharm nah\u00edn?\u201d hast thou no shame? Shame is a passion with\n Orientals and very little known to the West.\n\nFootnote 392:\n\n _i.e._ Angels and men saying, \u201cThe Peace (of God) be on us and on all\n righteous servants of Allah!\u201d This ends every prayer.\n\nFootnote 393:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-N\u00edyah,\u201d the ceremonial purpose or intent to pray, without\n which prayer is null and void. See vol. v. 163. The words would be \u201cI\n purpose to pray a two-bow prayer in this hour of deadly danger to my\n soul.\u201d Concerning such prayer see vol. i. 142.\n\nFootnote 394:\n\n Arab. \u201cS\u00e1kin\u201d = quiescent, Let a sleeping hound lie.\n\nFootnote 395:\n\n Arab. \u201c\u00c1s\u00e1r\u201d lit. traces _i.e._ the works, the mighty signs and\n marvels.\n\nFootnote 396:\n\n The mention of coffee now frequently occurs in this tale and in that\n which follows; the familiar use of it showing a comparatively late\n date, and not suggesting the copyist\u2019s hand.\n\nFootnote 397:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Kahwah,\u201d the place being called from its produce. See\n Pilgrimage i. 317\u201318.\n\nFootnote 398:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Ghurbah Kurbah:\u201d the translation in the text is taken from\n my late friend Edward Eastwick, translator of the Gulistan and author\n of a host of works which show him to have been a ripe Oriental\n scholar.\n\nFootnote 399:\n\n The fiction may have been suggested by the fact that in all Moslem\n cities from India to Barbary the inner and outer gates are carefully\n shut during the noontide devotions, _not_ \u201cbecause Friday is the day\n on which creation was finished and Mohammed entered Al-Medinah;\u201d but\n because there is a popular idea that in times now approaching the\n Christians will rise up against the Moslems during prayers and will\n repeat the \u201cSicilian Vespers.\u201d\n\nFootnote 400:\n\n _i.e._ the syndic of the Guild of Jewellers.\n\nFootnote 401:\n\n This is an Arab Lady Godiva of the wrong sort.\n\nFootnote 402:\n\n This is explained in my Pilgrimage i. 99 et seq.\n\nFootnote 403:\n\n About three pennyweights. It varies, however, everywhere and in\n Morocco the \u201cMezkal\u201d as they call it is an imaginary value, no such\n coin existing.\n\nFootnote 404:\n\n _i.e._ over and above the value of the gold, etc.\n\nFootnote 405:\n\n This was the custom of contemporary Europe and more than one master\n cutler has put to death an apprentice playing Peeping Tom to detect\n the secret of sword-making.\n\nFootnote 406:\n\n Among Moslems husbands are divided into three species; (1) of \u201cBahr\u201d\n who is married for love; (2) of \u201cDahr,\u201d for defence against the world,\n and (3) of \u201cMahr\u201d for marriage-settlements (money). Master Obayd was\n an unhappy compound of the two latter; but he did not cease to be a\n man of honour.\n\nFootnote 407:\n\n The Mac. Edit. here is a mass of blunders and misprints.\n\nFootnote 408:\n\n The Mac. Edit. everywhere calls her \u201cSabiyah\u201d = the young lady and\n does not mention her name Hal\u00edmah = the Mild, the Gentle till the\n cmlxxivth Night. I follow Mr. Payne\u2019s example by introducing it\n earlier into the story, as it avoids vagueness and repetition of the\n indefinite.\n\nFootnote 409:\n\n Arab. \u201cAd\u00edm al-Zauk,\u201d = without savour, applied to an insipid\n mannerless man as \u201cb\u00e1rid\u201d (cold) is to a fool. \u201cAhl Zauk\u201d is a man of\n pleasure, a voluptuary, a hedonist.\n\nFootnote 410:\n\n Arab. \u201cFinj\u00e1n\u201d the egg-shell cups from which the Easterns still drink\n coffee.\n\nFootnote 411:\n\n Arab. \u201cAw\u00e1shik\u201d a rare word, which Dozy translates \u201cosselet\u201d (or\n osselle) and Mr. Payne, \u201chucklebones,\u201d concerning which he has obliged\n me with this note. Chambaud renders osselet by \u201cpetit os avec lequel\n les enfants jouent.\u201d Hucklebone is the hip-bone but in the plural it\n applies to our cockals or cockles: Latham gives \u201chucklebone,\u201d (or\n cockal), one of the small vertebr\u00e6 of the coccygis, and Littleton\n translates \u201cTalus,\u201d a hucklebone, a bone to play with like a dye, a\n play called cockal. (So also in Rider). Hucklebones and knucklebones\n are syn.: but the latter is modern and liable to give a false idea,\n besides being tautological. It has nothing to do with the knuckles and\n derives from the German \u201cKn\u00f6chel\u201d (dialectically Kn\u00f6chelein) a\n bonelet.\n\nFootnote 412:\n\n For ablution after sleep and before prayer. The address of the\n slave-girl is perfectly natural; in a Moslem house we should hear it\n this day nor does it show the least sign of \u201cfrowardness.\u201d\n\nFootnote 413:\n\n The perfect stupidity of the old wittol is told with the driest Arab\n humour.\n\nFootnote 414:\n\n This is a rechauff\u00e9 of the Language of Signs in \u201cAz\u00edz and Az\u00edzah\u201d vol.\n ii. 302.\n\nFootnote 415:\n\n In the Mac. Edit. \u201cY\u00e1 Ful\u00e1nah\u201d = O certain person.\n\nFootnote 416:\n\n Arab. \u201cLaylat al-K\u00e1bilah,\u201d lit. = the coming night, our to-night; for\n which see vol. iii. 349.\n\nFootnote 417:\n\n Arab. \u201cYa Ahmak!\u201d which in Marocco means a madman, a maniac, a Santon.\n\nFootnote 418:\n\n The whole passage has a grammatical double entendre whose application\n is palpable. Harf al-Jarr = a particle governing the noun in the\n genitive or a mode of thrusting and tumbling.\n\nFootnote 419:\n\n Arab. Al-Silah = conjunctive (sentence), also coition; Al-Maus\u00fal = the\n conjoined, a grammatical term for relative pronoun or particle.\n\nFootnote 420:\n\n Arab. \u201cTanw\u00edn al-Iz\u00e1fah ma\u2019z\u00fal\u201d = the nunnation in construction cast\n out. \u201cTanw\u00edn\u201d (nunnation) is pronouncing the vowels of the\n case-endings of a noun with n\u2014un for u (nominative)\u2014in for i\n (genitive) and\u2014an for a (accusative). This nunnation expresses\n indefiniteness, _e.g._ \u201cMalikun\u201d = a king, any king. When the noun is\n made definite by the Ma\u2019rifah or article (al), the Tanw\u00edn must be\n dropped, _e.g._ Al-Maliku = the King; Al-Malikun being a grammatical\n absurdity. In construction or regimen (iz\u00e1fah) the nunnation must also\n disappear, as Maliku \u2019l-Hindi = the King of Hind (a King of Hind would\n be Malikun min Mul\u00faki \u2019l-Hindi = a King from amongst the Kings of\n Hind). Thus whilst the wife and the lover were conjoined as much as\n might be, the hocussed and sleeping husband was dismissed (ma\u2019z\u00fal =\n degraded) like a nunnation dropped in construction. I may add that the\n terminal syllables are invariably dropped in popular parlance and none\n but Mr. G. Palgrave (who afterwards ignored his own assertion) ever\n found an Arab tribe actually using them in conversation although they\n are always pronounced when reading the Koran and poetry.\n\nFootnote 421:\n\n This was a saying of Mohammed about over-frequency of visits, \u201cZur\n ghibban, tazid hubban\u201d = call rarely that friendship last fairly. So\n the verse of Al-Mutanabbi,\n\n \u201cHow oft familiarity breeds dislike.\u201d\n\n Preston quotes Jesus ben Sirach, \u03bc\u1f74 \u1f14\u03bc\u03c0\u03b9\u03c0\u03c4\u03b5 \u1f35\u03bd\u03b1 \u03bc\u1f74 \u1f10\u03c0\u03c9\u03c3\u03b8\u1fc7\u03c2, \u03ba\u03b1\u1f76 \u03bc\u1f74\n \u03bc\u03b1\u03ba\u03c1\u1f70\u03bd \u1f00\u03c6\u03af\u03c3\u03c4\u03c9 \u1f35\u03bd\u03b1 \u03bc\u1f74 \u1f10\u03c0\u03b9\u03bb\u03b7\u03c3\u03b8\u1fc7\u03c2. Also Al-Hariri (Ass. xv. of \u201cThe\n Legal\u201d; De Sacy p. 478 l. 2.) \u201cVisit not your friend more than one day\n in a month, nor stop longer than that with him!\u201d Also Ass. xvi. 487,\n 8. \u201cMultiply not visits to thy friend.\u201d None so disliked as one\n visiting too often (Preston p. 352). In the Cent nouvelles (52)\n Nouvelles (No. lii.) the dying father says to his son:\u2014Jamais ne vous\n hantez tant en l\u2019ostel de votre voisin que l\u2019on vous y serve de pain\n bis. In these matters Moslems follow the preaching and practice of the\n Apostle, who was about as hearty and genial as the \u201cGreat Washington.\u201d\n But the Arab had a fund of dry humour which the Anglo-American lacked\n altogether.\n\nFootnote 422:\n\n Arab. \u201c\u2019Amal\u201d = action, operation. In Hindostani it is used (often\n with an Alif for an Ayn) as intoxication _e.g._ Amal p\u00e1n\u00ed strong\n waters and applied to Shar\u00e1b (wine), Bozah (Beer), T\u00e1d\u00ed (toddy or the\n fermented juice of the T\u00e1d, _Borassus flabelliformis_), Nary\u00e1li (juice\n of the cocoa-nut tree), Saynddi (of the wild date, _Elate\n Sylvestris_), Afy\u00fan (opium and its preparations as post = poppy seeds)\n and various forms of _Cannabis Sativa_, as Ganja, Charas, Madad, Sabzi\n etc. for which see Herklots\u2019 Glossary.\n\nFootnote 423:\n\n Arab. \u201cSard\u00e1b,\u201d mostly an underground room (vol. i. 340) but here a\n tunnel.\n\nFootnote 424:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-L\u00e1wandiyah\u201d; this and the frequent mention of coffee and\n presently of a watch (s\u00e1\u2019ah) show that the tale in its present state,\n cannot be older than the end of the sixteenth century.\n\nFootnote 425:\n\n Arab. \u201cSu\u2019b\u00e1n,\u201d vol. i. 172.\n\nFootnote 426:\n\n The lines have occurred in vol. i. 238; where I have noted the punning\n \u201cSabr\u201d = patience or aloes. I quote Torrens: the Templar, however,\n utterly abolishes the pun in the last couplet:\u2014\n\n The case is not at my command; but in fair Patience hand \u273f I\u2019m set by\n Him who order\u2019th all and doth such case command.\n\n \u201cAmr\u201d here = case (circumstance) or command (order) with a suspicion\n of reference to Murr = myrrh, bitterness. The reader will note the\n resignation to Fate\u2019s decrees which here and in host of places\n elevates the tone of the book.\n\nFootnote 427:\n\n _i.e._ as one loathes that which is prohibited, and with a loathing\n which makes it unlawful for me to cohabit with thee.\n\nFootnote 428:\n\n This is quite natural to the sensitive Eastern.\n\nFootnote 429:\n\n Hence, according to Moslem and Eastern theory generally her lewd and\n treasonable conduct. But in Egypt not a few freeborn women and those\n too of the noblest, would beat her hollow at her own little game. See\n for instance the booklet attributed to Jal\u00e1l al-Siy\u00fat\u00ed and entitled\n Kit\u00e1b al-\u00cdz\u00e1h (Book of Explanation) f\u00ed \u2019Ilm al-Nik\u00e1h (in the Science\n of Carnal Copulation). There is a copy of it in the British Museum;\n and a friend kindly supplied me with a lithograph from Cairo; warning\n me that there are doubts about the authorship.\n\nFootnote 430:\n\n These lines have occurred in vol. iii. 214: I quote Mr. Payne.\n\nFootnote 431:\n\n This ejaculation, as the waw shows, is parenthetic; spoken either by\n Halimah, by Shahrazad or by the writer.\n\nFootnote 432:\n\n Arab. \u201cKasr\u201d here meaning an upper room.\n\nFootnote 433:\n\n To avoid saying, I pardon thee.\n\nFootnote 434:\n\n A proverbial saying which here means I could only dream of such good\n luck.\n\nFootnote 435:\n\n A good old custom amongst Moslems who have had business transactions\n with each other: such acquittance of all possible claims will be\n quoted on \u201cJudgment-Day,\u201d when debts will be severely enquired into.\n\nFootnote 436:\n\n Arab. \u201cKutr (tract or quarter) Misr,\u201d vulgarly pronounced \u201cMasr.\u201d I\n may remind the reader that the Assyrians called the Nile-valley\n \u201cMusur\u201d whence probably the Heb. Misraim a dual form denoting Upper\n and Lower Egypt which are still distinguished by the Arabs into Sa\u2019id\n and Misr. The hieroglyphic term is Ta-mera = Land of the Flood; and\n the Greek Aigyptos is probably derived from Kahi-Ptah (region of the\n great God Ptah) or Ma Ka Ptah (House of the soul of Ptah). The word\n \u201cCopt\u201d or \u201cKopt,\u201d in Egyptian \u201cKubti\u201d and pronounced \u201cGubti,\u201d contains\n the same consonants.\n\nFootnote 437:\n\n Now an unimportant frontier fort and village dividing Syria-Palestine\n from Egypt and famed for the French battle with the Mamelukes (Feb.\n 19, 1799) and the convention for evacuating Egypt. In the old times it\n was an important site built upon the \u201cRiver of Egypt\u201d now a dried up\n Wady; and it was the chief port of the then populous Najab or South\n Country. According to Abulfeda it derived its name (the \u201cboothy,\u201d the\n nest) from a hut built there by the brothers of Joseph when stopped at\n the frontier by the guards of Pharaoh. But this is usual Jewish\n infection of history.\n\nFootnote 438:\n\n Arab. \u201cB\u00e1b\u201d which may also = \u201cChapter\u201d or category. See vol. i., 136\n and elsewhere (index). In Egypt \u201cB\u00e1b\u201d sometimes means a sepulchral\n cave hewn in a rock (plur. B\u00edb\u00e1n) from the Coptic \u201cB\u00edb.\u201d\n\nFootnote 439:\n\n _i.e._ \u201cThe Holy,\u201d a town some three marches (60 miles) N. East of\n Cairo; thus showing the honour done to our unheroic hero. There is\n also a S\u00e1lihiyah quarter or suburb of Damascus famous for its cemetery\n of holy men; but the facetious Cits change the name to Z\u00e1lliniyah =\n causing to stray; in allusion to its Kurdish population. Baron von\n Hammer reads \u201cle faubourg Adelieh\u201d built by Al-Malik Al-Adil and\n founded a chronological argument on a clerical error.\n\nFootnote 440:\n\n Kamar al-Zaman; the normal pun on the name; a practice as popular in\n the East as in the West, and worthy only of a pickpocket in either\n place.\n\nFootnote 441:\n\n Arab. \u201cAzr\u00e1r\u201d plur. of \u201cZirr\u201d and lit. = \u201cbuttons,\u201d _i.e._ of his robe\n collar from which his white neck and face appear shining as the sun.\n\nFootnote 442:\n\n Arab. \u201cD\u00e1irah\u201d = the usual inclosure of Kan\u00e1ts or tent-flaps pitched\n for privacy during the halt.\n\nFootnote 443:\n\n _i.e._ it was so richly ornamented that it resembled an enchanted\n hoard whose spells, hiding it from sight, had been broken by some\n happy treasure seeker.\n\nFootnote 444:\n\n The merchant who is a \u201cstern parent\u201d and exceedingly ticklish on the\n Pundonor saw at first sight her servile origin which had escaped the\n mother. Usually it is the other way.\n\nFootnote 445:\n\n Not the head of the Church, or Chief Pontiff, but the Chief of the\n Olema and Fukah\u00e1 (F\u00e1kihs or D.D.\u2019s.) men learned in the Law\n (divinity). The order is peculiarly Moslem, in fact the succedaneum\n for the Christian \u201chierarchy,\u201d an institution never contemplated by\n the Founder of Christianity. This title shows the modern date of the\n tale.\n\nFootnote 446:\n\n Arab. \u201cMaulid,\u201d prop. applied to the Birth-feast of Mohammed which\n begins on the 3rd day of Rab\u00ed al-Awwal (third Moslem month) and lasts\n a week or ten days (according to local custom), usually ending on the\n 12th and celebrated with salutes of cannon, circumcision-feasts,\n marriage banquets, Zikr-litanies, perlections of the Koran and all\n manner of solemn festivities including the \u201cpowder-play\u201d (L\u00e1b\n al-B\u00e1r\u00fat) in the wilder corners of Al-Islam. It is also applied to the\n birth-festivals of great Santons (as Ahmad al-Badawi) for which see\n Lane M. E. chapt. xxiv. In the text it is used like the Span.\n \u201cFuncion\u201d or the Hind. \u201cTam\u00e1sh\u00e1,\u201d any great occasion of merrymaking.\n\nFootnote 447:\n\n Arab. \u201cSan\u00e1jik\u201d plur. of Sanjak (Turk.) = a banner, also applied to\n the bearer (ensign or cornet) and to a military rank mostly\n corresponding with Bey or Colonel.\n\nFootnote 448:\n\n I have followed Mr Payne\u2019s ordering of the text which, both in the\n Mac. and Bul. Edits., is wholly inconsequent and has not the excuse of\n rhyme.\n\nFootnote 449:\n\n Arab. \u201cJilb\u00e1b,\u201d a long coarse veil or gown which in Barbary becomes a\n \u201cJall\u00e1biyah,\u201d a striped and hooded cloak of woollen stuff.\n\nFootnote 450:\n\n _i.e._ a broken down pilgrim left to die on the road.\n\nFootnote 451:\n\n These lines have occurred in vol. i. 272. I quote Mr. Payne.\n\nFootnote 452:\n\n Note the difference between \u201cZirt,\u201d the loud crepitus and \u201cFaswah\u201d the\n susurrus which Captain Grose in his quaint \u201cLexicum Balatronicum,\u201d\n calls a \u201cfice\u201d or a \u201cfoyse\u201d (from the Arabic Fas, faswah?)\n\nFootnote 453:\n\n These lines have occurred in Night dcxix, vol. vi. 246: where the pun\n on Khaliyah is explained. I quote Lane.\n\nFootnote 454:\n\n The usual pretext of \u201cGod bizness,\u201d as the Comoro men call it. For the\n title of the Ka\u2019abah see my Pilgrimage vol. iii. 149.\n\nFootnote 455:\n\n This was in order to travel as a respectable man; he could also send\n the girl as a spy into the different Harims to learn news of the lady\n who had eloped.\n\nFootnote 456:\n\n A polite form of alluding to their cursing him.\n\nFootnote 457:\n\n _i.e._ on account of the King taking offence at his unceremonious\n departure.\n\nFootnote 458:\n\n _i.e._ It will be the worse for him.\n\nFootnote 459:\n\n I would here remind the reader that \u201c\u2019Arabiyyun\u201d pl. \u2019Urb is a man of\n pure Arab race, whether of the Ahl al-Madar (= people of mortar,\n _i.e._ citizens) or Ahl al-Wabar (= tents of goat or camel\u2019s hair);\n whereas \u201cA\u2019r\u00e1biyyun\u201d pl. A\u2019r\u00e1b is one who dwells in the Desert whether\n Arab or not. Hence the verse:\u2014\n\n They name us Al-A\u2019r\u00e1b but Al-\u2019Urb is our name.\n\nFootnote 460:\n\n I would remind the reader that the Din\u00e1r is the golden denarius (or\n solidus) of Eastern Rome while the Dirham is the silver denarius,\n whence denier, danaro, d\u00ednheiro, etc., etc. The oldest dinars date\n from A. H. 91\u201392 (= 714\u201315) and we find the following description of\n one struck in A. H. 96 by Al-Walid the VI. Ommiade:\u2014\n\n Obverse.\u2502Area. \u201cThere is no il\u00e1h but Allah: He is one: He hath no\n \u2502 partner.\u201d\n\n \u2502Circle. \u201cMohammed is the Messenger of Allah who hath sent him\n \u2502 with the true Guidance and Religion that he\n \u2502 manifest it above all other Creeds.\u201d\n\n Reverse.\u2502Area. \u201cAllah is one: Allah is Eternal: He begetteth not, nor is\n \u2502 He begot.\u201d\n\n \u2502Circle. \u201cBismillah: This Dinar was struck anno 96.\u201d\n\n See \u201c\u2019Il\u00e2m-en-Nas\u201d (warnings for Folk) a pleasant little volume by Mr.\n Godfrey Clarke (London, King and Co., 1873), mostly consisting of the\n minor tales from The Nights, especially this group between Nights\n ccxlvii. and cdlxi.; but rendered valuable by the annotations of my\n old friend, the late Frederick Ayrton.\n\nFootnote 461:\n\n The reader will note the persistency with which the duty of universal\n benevolence is preached.\n\nFootnote 462:\n\n Arab. from Pers. \u201cShah-bandar\u201d: see vol. iv. 29.\n\nFootnote 463:\n\n _i.e._ of thy coming, a popular compliment.\n\nFootnote 464:\n\n This is the doctrine of the universal East; and it is true concerning\n wives and widows, not girls when innocent or rather ignorant.\n According to Western ideas Kamar al-Zaman was a young scoundrel of the\n darkest dye whose only excuse were his age, his inexperience and his\n passions.\n\nFootnote 465:\n\n Arab. \u201cDayy\u00fas\u201d prop. = a man who pimps for his own wife and in this\n sense constantly occurring in conversation.\n\nFootnote 466:\n\n This is taking the law into one\u2019s own hands with a witness; yet\n amongst races who preserve the Pundonor in full and pristine force,\n _e.g._ the Afghans and the Persian Iliy\u00e1t, the killing so far from\n being considered murder or even justifiable homicide would be highly\n commended by public opinion.\n\nFootnote 467:\n\n Arab. \u201cN\u00e1kis\u00e1tu \u2019aklin wa d\u00edn\u201d; the words are attributed to the\n Prophet whom we find saying, \u201cVerily in your wives and children ye\n have an enemy, wherefore beware of them\u201d (Koran lxiv. 14); compare 1\n Cor. vii. 28, 32. But Ma\u00eetre Jehan de Meung went farther,\n\n Toutes \u00eatez, serez ou f\u00fbtes,\n De faict ou de volont\u00e9, putes.\n\nFootnote 468:\n\n Arab. Hab\u00edb\u00ed wa tab\u00edb\u00ed, the common jingle.\n\nFootnote 469:\n\n Iblis and his connection with Diabolos has been noticed in vol. i. 13.\n The word is foreign as well as a P.N. and therefore is imperfectly\n declined, although some authorities deduce it from \u201cablasa\u201d = he\n despaired (of Allah\u2019s mercy). Others call him Al-H\u00e1ris (the Lion)\n hence Eve\u2019s first-born was named in his honour Abd al-Haris. His\n angelic name was Az\u00e1z\u00edl before he sinned by refusing to prostrate\n himself to Adam, as Allah had commanded the heavenly host for a trial\n of faith, not to worship the first man, but to make him a Keblah or\n direction of prayer addressed to the Almighty. Hence he was ejected\n from Heaven and became the arch-enemy of mankind (Koran xviii. 48). He\n was an angel but related to the Jinn: Al-Bayz\u00e1wi, however (on Koran\n ii. 82), opines that angelic by nature he became a Jinn by act. Ibn\n Abbas held that he belonged to an order of angels who are called Jinn\n and begot issue as do the nasn\u00e1s, the Gh\u00fal and the Kutrub which,\n however, are male and female, like the pre-Adamite man-woman of\n Genesis, the \u201cbi-une\u201d of our modern days. For this subject see\n Terminal Essay.\n\nFootnote 470:\n\n As usual in the East and in the West the husband was the last to hear\n of his wife\u2019s ill conduct. But even Othello did not kill Emilia.\n\nFootnote 471:\n\n _i.e._ Star of the Morning: the first word occurs in Bar Cokba\n Barchocheba = Son of the Star, _i.e._, which was to come out of Jacob\n (Numbers xxiv, 17). The root, which does not occur in Heb., is Kaukab\n to shine. This Rabbi Akilah was also called Bar Cozla = Son of the\n Lie.\n\nFootnote 472:\n\n Here some excision has been judged advisable as the names of the\n bridegrooms and the brides recur with damnable iteration.\n\nFootnote 473:\n\n See the note by Lane\u2019s Shaykh at the beginning of the tale. The\n contrast between the vicious wife of servile origin and the virtuous\n wife of noble birth is fondly dwelt upon but not exaggerated.\n\nFootnote 474:\n\n _i.e._ those of his water skins for the journey, which as usual\n required patching and supplying with fresh handles after long lying\n dry.\n\nFootnote 475:\n\n A popular saying also applied to men. It is usually accompanied with\n showing the open hand and a reference to the size of the fingers. I\n find this story most interesting from an anthropological point of\n view; suggesting how differently various races regard the subject of\n adultery. In Northern Europe the burden is thrown most unjustly upon\n the man, the woman who tempts him being a secondary consideration; and\n in England he is absurdly termed \u201ca seducer.\u201d In former times he was\n \u201cparaded\u201d or \u201ccalled out,\u201d now he is called up for damages, a truly\n ignoble and shopkeeper-like mode of treating a high offence against\n private property and public morality. In Anglo-America, where English\n feeling is exaggerated, the lover is revolver\u2019d and the woman is left\n unpunished. On the other hand, amongst Eastern and especially Moslem\n peoples, the woman is cut down and scant reckoning is taken from the\n man. This more sensible procedure has struck firm root amongst the\n nations of Southern Europe where the husband kills the lover only when\n he still loves his wife and lover-like is furious at her affection\n being alienated.\n\n Practically throughout the civilised world there are only two ways of\n treating women. Moslems keep them close, defend them from all kinds of\n temptations and if they go wrong kill them. Christians place them upon\n a pedestal, the observed of all observers, expose them to every danger\n and if they fall, accuse and abuse them instead of themselves. And\n England is so grandly logical that her law, under certain\n circumstances, holds that Mrs. A. has committed adultery with Mr. B.\n but Mr. B. has not committed adultery with Mrs. A. Can any absurdity\n be more absurd? Only \u201csummum jus, summa injuria.\u201d See my Terminal\n Essay. I shall have more to say upon this curious subject, the\n treatment of women who can be thoroughly guarded only by two things,\n firstly their hearts and secondly by the \u201cSpanish Padlock.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n ABDULLAH BIN FAZIL AND HIS BROTHERS[476]\n\n\nThe Caliph Harun al-Rashid was one day examining the tributes of his\nvarious provinces and viceroyalties, when he observed that the\ncontributions of all the countries and regions had come into the\ntreasury, except that of Bassorah which had not arrived that year. So he\nheld a Divan because of this and said, \u201cHither to me with the Wazir\nJa\u2019afar;\u201d and when they brought him into the presence he thus bespoke\nhim, \u201cThe tributes of all the provinces have come into the treasury,\nsave that of Bassorah, no part whereof hath arrived.\u201d Ja\u2019afar replied,\n\u201cO Commander of the Faithful, belike there hath befallen the governor of\nBassorah something that hath diverted him from sending the tribute.\u201d\nQuoth the Caliph, \u201cThe time of the coming of the tribute was twenty days\nago; what then, can be his excuse for that, in this time, he hath\nneither sent it nor sent to show cause for not doing so?\u201d And quoth the\nMinister, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, if it please thee, we will send\nhim a messenger.\u201d Rejoined the Caliph, \u201cSend him Abu Ishak\nal-Mausili,[477] the boon companion,\u201d and Ja\u2019afar, \u201cHearkening and\nobedience to Allah and to thee, O Prince of True Believers!\u201d Then he\nreturned to his house and summoning Abu Ishak, wrote him a royal writ\nand said to him, \u201cGo to Abdullah bin Fazil, Viceroy of Bassorah, and see\nwhat hath diverted him from sending the tribute. If it be ready, do thou\nreceive it from him in full and bring it to me in haste, for the Caliph\nhath examined the tributes of the provinces and findeth that they are\nall come in, except that of Bassorah: but an thou see that it is not\nready and he make an excuse to thee, bring him back with thee, that he\nmay report his excuse to the Caliph with his own tongue.\u201d Answered Abu\nIshak, \u201cI hear and I obey;\u201d and taking with him five thousand horse of\nJa\u2019afar\u2019s host set out for Bassorah. Now when Abdullah bin Fazil heard\nof his approach, he went out to meet him with his troops, and led him\ninto the city and carried him to his palace, whilst the escort encamped\nwithout the city walls, where he appointed to them all whereof they\nstood in need. So Abu Ishak entered the audience-chamber and sitting\ndown on the throne, seated the governor beside himself, whilst the\nnotables sat round him, according to their several degrees. After\nsalutation with the salam Abdullah bin Fazil said to him, \u201cO my lord, is\nthere for thy coming to us any cause?;\u201d and said Abu Ishak, \u201cYes, I come\nto seek the tribute; for the Caliph enquireth of it and the time of its\ncoming is gone by.\u201d Rejoined Abdullah bin Fazil, \u201cO my lord, would\nHeaven thou hadst not wearied thyself nor taken upon thyself the\nhardships of the journey! For the tribute is ready in full tale and\ncomplete, and I purpose to despatch it to-morrow. But, since thou art\ncome, I will entrust it to thee, after I have entertained thee three\ndays; and on the fourth day I will set the tribute between thine hands.\nBut it behoveth us now to offer thee a present in part requital of thy\nkindness and the goodness of the Commander of the Faithful.\u201d There is no\nharm in that,\u201d said Abu Ishak. So Abdullah bin Fazil dismissed the Divan\nand carrying him into a saloon that had not its match, bade set a tray\nof food before him and his companions. They ate and drank and made merry\nand enjoyed themselves; after which the tray was removed and there came\ncoffee and sherbets. They sat conversing till a third part of the night\nwas past, when they spread for Abu Ishak bedding on an ivory couch\ninlaid with gold glittering sheeny. So he lay down and the viceroy lay\ndown beside him on another couch; but wakefulness possessed Abu Ishak\nand he fell to meditating on the metres of prosody and poetical\ncomposition, for that he was one of the primest of the Caliph\u2019s\nboon-companions and he had a mighty fine fore-arm[478] in producing\nverses and pleasant stories; nor did he leave to lie awake improvising\npoetry till half the night was past. Presently, behold, Abdullah bin\nFazil arose, and girding his middle, opened a locker,[479] whence he\nbrought out a whip; then, taking a lighted waxen taper, he went forth by\nthe door of the saloon.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Seventy-ninth Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Abdullah bin\nFazil went forth by the door of the saloon deeming Abu Ishak asleep, the\nCaliph\u2019s cup-companion, seeing this, marvelled and said in himself,\n\u201cWhither wendeth Abdullah bin Fazil with that whip? Perhaps he is minded\nto punish some body. But needs must I follow him and see what he will do\nthis night.\u201d So he arose and went out after him softly, very softly,\nthat he might not be seen and presently saw him open a closet and take\nthence a tray containing four dishes of meat and bread and a gugglet of\nwater. Then he went on, carrying the tray and secretly followed by Abu\nIshak, till he came to another saloon and entered, whilst the\ncup-companion stood behind the door and, looking through the chink, saw\na spacious saloon, furnished with the richest furniture and having in\nits midst a couch of ivory plated with gold glittering sheeny, to which\ntwo dogs were made fast with chains of gold. Then Abdullah set down the\ntray in a corner and tucking up his sleeves, loosed the first dog, which\nbegan to struggle in his hands and put its muzzle to the floor, as it\nwould kiss the ground before him, whining the while in a weak voice.\nAbdullah tied its paws behind its back and throwing it on the ground,\ndrew forth the whip and beat it with a painful beating and a pitiless.\nThe dog struggled, but could not get free, and Abdullah ceased not to\nbeat it with the same whip till it left groaning and lay without\nconsciousness. Then he took it and tied it up in its place, and\nunbinding the second dog, did with him as he had done with the first;\nafter which he pulled out a kerchief and fell to wiping away their tears\nand comforting them, saying, \u201cBear me not malice; for by Allah, this is\nnot of my will, nor is it easy to me! But it may be Allah will grant you\nrelief from this strait and issue from your affliction.\u201d And he prayed\nfor the twain what while Abu Ishak the cup-companion stood hearkening\nwith his ears and espying with his eyes, and indeed he marvelled at his\ncase. Then Abdullah brought the dogs the tray of food and fell to\nmorselling them with his own hand, till they had enough, when he wiped\ntheir muzzles and lifting up the gugglet, gave them to drink; after\nwhich he took up the tray, gugglet and candle and made for the door. But\nAbu Ishak forewent him and making his way back to his couch, lay down;\nso that he saw him not, neither knew that he had walked behind him and\nwatched him. Then the governor replaced the tray and the gugglet in the\ncloset and returning to the saloon, opened the locker and laid the whip\nin its place; after which he doffed his clothes and lay down. But Abu\nIshak passed the rest of that night pondering this affair neither did\nsleep visit him for excess of wonderment, and he ceased not to say in\nhimself, \u201cI wonder what can be the meaning of this!\u201d Nor did he leave\nwondering till day break, when they arose and prayed the dawn-prayer.\nThen they set the breakfast[480] before them and they ate and drank\ncoffee, after which they went out to the divan. Now Abu Ishak\u2019s thought\nwas occupied with this mystery all day long but he concealed the matter\nand questioned not Abdullah thereof. Next night, he again followed the\ngovernor and saw him do with the two dogs as on the previous night,\nfirst beating them and then making his peace with them and giving them\nto eat and to drink; and so also he did the third night. On the fourth\nday he brought the tribute to Abu Ishak who took it and departed,\nwithout opening the matter to him. He fared on, without ceasing, till he\ncame to Baghdad, where he delivered the tribute to the Caliph, who\nquestioned him of the cause of its delay. Replied he, \u201cO Commander of\nthe Faithful, I found that the governor of Bassorah had made ready the\ntribute and was about to despatch it; and had I delayed a day, it would\nhave met me on the road. But, O Prince of True Believers, I had a\nwondrous adventure with Abdullah bin Fazil; never in my life saw I its\nlike.\u201d \u201cAnd what was it, O Abu Ishak?\u201d asked the Caliph. So he replied,\n\u201cI saw such and such;\u201d and, brief, acquainted him with that which the\ngovernor had done with the two dogs, adding, \u201cAfter such fashion, I saw\nhim do three successive nights, first beating the dogs, then making his\npeace with them and comforting them and giving them to eat and drink, I\nwatching him, and he seeing me not.\u201d Asked the Caliph, \u201cDidst thou\nquestion him of the cause of this?\u201d; and the other answered, \u201cNo, as thy\nhead liveth, O Commander of the Faithful.\u201d Then said Al-Rashid, \u201cO Abu\nIshak, I command thee to return to Bassorah and bring me Abdullah bin\nFazil and the two dogs.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful, excuse\nme from this; for indeed Abdullah entertained me with exceedingly\nhospitable entertainment and I became ware of this case with chance\nundesigned and acquainted thee therewith. So how can I go back to him\nand bring him to thee? Verily, if I return to him, I shall find me no\nface for shame of him; wherefore \u2019twere meet that thou send him another\nthan myself, with a letter under thine own hand, and he shall bring him\nto thee, him and the two dogs.\u201d But quoth the Caliph, \u201cIf I send him\nother than thyself, peradventure he will deny the whole affair and say,\nI\u2019ve no dogs. But if I send thee and thou say to him, I saw them with\nmine own eyes, he will not be able to deny that. Wherefore nothing will\nserve but that thou go and fetch him and the two dogs; otherwise I will\nsurely slay thee.\u201d[481]\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and\nceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eightieth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Caliph\nHarun al-Rashid said to Abu Ishak, \u201cNothing will serve but that thou go\nand fetch him and the two dogs; otherwise I will surely slay thee.\u201d Abu\nIshak replied, \u201cHearing and obeying, O Commander of the Faithful: Allah\nis our aidance and good is the Agent. He spake sooth who said, \u201cMan\u2019s\nwrong is from the tongue;[482] and \u2019tis I who sinned against myself in\ntelling thee. But write me a royal rescript[483] and I will go to him\nand bring him back to thee.\u201d So the Caliph gave him an autograph and he\ntook it and repaired to Bassorah. Seeing him come in the governor said,\n\u201cAllah forfend us from the mischief of thy return, O Abu Ishak! How\ncometh it I see thee return in haste? Peradventure the tribute is\ndeficient and the Caliph will not accept it?\u201d Answered Abu Ishak, \u201cO\nEmir Abdullah, my return is not on account of the deficiency of the\ntribute, for \u2019tis full measure and the Caliph accepteth it; but I hope\nthat thou wilt excuse me, for that I have failed in my duty as thy guest\nand indeed this lapse of mine was decreed of Allah Almighty.\u201d Abdullah\nenquired, \u201cAnd what may be the lapse?\u201d and he replied, \u201cKnow that when I\nwas with thee, I followed thee three following nights and saw thee rise\nat midnight and beat the dogs and return; whereat I marvelled, but was\nashamed to question thee thereof. When I came back to Baghdad, I told\nthe Caliph of thine affair, casually and without design, whereupon he\ncharged me to return to thee, and here is a letter under his hand. Had I\nknown that the affair would lead to this, I had not told him, but\nDestiny foreordained thus.\u201d And he went on to excuse himself to him;\nwhereupon said Abdullah, \u201cSince thou hast told him this, I will bear out\nthy report with him, lest he deem thee a liar, for thou art my friend.\nWere it other than thou, I had denied the affair and given him the lie.\nBut now I will go with thee and carry the two dogs with me, though this\nbe to me ruin-rife and the ending of my term of life.\u201d Rejoined the\nother, \u201cAllah will veil[484] thee, even as thou hast veiled my face with\nthe Caliph!\u201d Then Abdullah took a present beseeming the Commander of the\nFaithful and mounting the dogs with him, each on a camel, bound with\nchains[485] of gold, journeyed with Abu Ishak to Baghdad, where he went\nin to the Caliph and kissed ground before him. He deigned bid him sit;\nso he sat down and brought the two dogs before Al-Rashid, who said to\nhim, \u201cWhat be these dogs, O Emir Abdullah?\u201d Whereupon they fell to\nkissing the floor between his hands and wagging their tails and weeping,\nas if complaining to him. The Caliph marvelled at this and said to the\ngovernor, \u201cTell me the history of these two dogs and the reason of thy\nbeating them and after entreating them with honour.\u201d He replied, \u201cO\nVicar of Allah, these be no dogs, but two young men, endowed with beauty\nand seemliness, symmetry and shapeliness, and they are my brothers and\nthe sons of my father and mother.\u201d Asked the Caliph, \u201cHow is it that\nthey were men and are become dogs?\u201d; and he answered, \u201cAn thou give me\nleave, O Prince of True Believers, I will acquaint thee with the truth\nof the circumstance.\u201d Said Al-Rashid, \u201cTell me and \u2019ware of leasing, for\n\u2019tis of the fashion of the hypocrites, and look thou tell truth, for\nthat is the Ark[486] of safety and the mark of virtuous men.\u201d Rejoined\nAbdullah, \u201cKnow then, O viceregent of Allah, when I tell thee the story\nof these dogs, they will both bear witness against me: an I speak sooth\nthey will certify it and if I lie they will give me the lie.\u201d Cried the\nCaliph, \u201cThese are of the dogs; they cannot speak nor answer; so how can\nthey testify for thee or against thee?\u201d But Abdullah said to them, \u201cO my\nbrothers, if I speak a lying word, do ye lift your heads and stare with\nyour eyes; but, if I say sooth hang down your heads and lower your\neyes.\u201d Then said he to the Caliph:\u2014Know, O Commander of the Faithful,\nthat we are three brothers by one mother and the same father. Our sire\u2019s\nname was Fazil and he was so named because his mother bare two sons at\none birth, one of whom died forthright and the other twin remained\nalive, wherefore his sire named him Fazil\u2014the Remainder. His father\nbrought him up and reared him well, till he grew to manhood when he\nmarried him to our mother and died. Our mother conceived a first time\nand bare this my first brother, whom our sire named Mans\u00far; then she\nconceived again and bare this my second brother, whom he named\nN\u00e1sir[487]; after which she conceived a third time and bare me, whom he\nnamed Abdullah. My father reared us all three till we came to man\u2019s\nestate, when he died, leaving us a house and a shop full of coloured\nstuffs of all kinds, Indian and Greek and Khor\u00e1s\u00e1ni and what not,\nbesides sixty thousand dinars. We washed him and buried him to the ruth\nof his Lord, after which we built him a splendid monument and let pray\nfor him prayers for the deliverance of his soul from the fire and held\nperlections of the Koran and gave alms on his behalf, till the forty\ndays[488] were past; when I called together the merchants and nobles of\nthe folk and made them a sumptuous entertainment. As soon as they had\neaten, I said to them, \u201cO merchants, verily this world is ephemeral, but\nthe next world is eternal, and extolled be the perfection of Him who\nendureth always after His creatures have passed away! Know ye why I have\ncalled you together this blessed day?\u201d And they answered, \u201cExtolled be\nAllah sole Scient of the hidden things.[489]\u201d Quoth I, \u201cMy father died,\nleaving much of money, and I fear lest any have a claim against him for\na debt or a pledge[490] or what not else, and I desire to discharge my\nfather\u2019s obligations towards the folk. So whoso hath any demand on him,\nlet him say:\u2014He oweth me so and so, and I will satisfy it to him, that I\nmay acquit the responsibility of my sire.[491]\u201d The merchants replied,\n\u201cO Abdullah, verily the goods of this world stand not in stead of those\nof the world to come, and we are no fraudful folk, but all of us know\nthe lawful from the unlawful and fear Almighty Allah and abstain from\ndevouring the substance of the orphan. We know that thy father (Allah\nhave mercy on him!) still let his money lie with the folk,[492] nor did\nhe suffer any man\u2019s claim on him to go un-quitted, and we have ever\nheard him declare:\u2014I am fearful of the people\u2019s substance. He used\nalways to say in his prayers, O my God, Thou art my stay and my hope!\nLet me not die while in debt. And it was of his wont that, if he owed\nany one aught, he would pay it to him, without being pressed, and if any\nowed him aught he would not dun him, but would say to him, At thy\nleisure. If his debtor were poor, he would release him from his\nliability and acquit him of responsibility; and if he were not poor and\ndied in his debt, he would say, Allah forgive him what he owed me! And\nwe all testify that he owed no man aught.\u201d Quoth I, \u201cMay Allah bless\nyou!\u201d Then I turned to these my brothers and said, \u201cOur father owed no\nman aught and hath left us much money and stuffs, besides the house and\nthe shop. Now we are three and each of us is entitled to one third part.\nSo shall we agree to waive division and wone copartners in our wealth\nand eat together and drink together, or shall we apportion the stuffs\nand the money and take each his part?\u201d Said they, \u201cWe will divide them\nand take each his share.\u201d (Then Abdullah turned to the two dogs and said\nto them, \u201cDid it happen thus, O my brothers?\u201d; and they bowed their\nheads and lowered their eyes, as to say, \u201cYes.\u201d) Abdullah continued:\u2014I\ncalled in a departitor from the Kazi\u2019s court, O Prince of True\nBelievers, and he distributed amongst us the money and the stuffs and\nall our father had left, allotting the house and shop to me in exchange\nfor a part of the coin and clothes to which I was entitled. We were\ncontent with this; so the house and shop fell to my share, whilst my\nbrothers took their portion in money and stuffs. I opened the shop and\nstocking it with my stuffs bought others with the money apportioned to\nme, over and above the house and shop, till the place was full, and I\nsat selling and buying. As for my brothers, they purchased stuffs and\nhiring a ship, set out on a voyage to the far abodes of folk. Quoth I,\n\u201cAllah aid them both! As for me, my livelihood is ready to my hand and\npeace is priceless.\u201d I abode thus a whole year, during which time Allah\nopened the door of fortune to me and I gained great gains, till I became\npossessed of the like of that which our father had left us. One day, as\nI sat in my shop, with two fur pelisses on me, one of sable and the\nother of meniver,[493] for it was the season of winter and the time of\nthe excessive cold, behold, there came up to me my two brothers, each\nclad in a ragged shirt and nothing more, and their lips were white with\ncold, and they were shivering. When I saw them in this plight, it was\ngrievous to me and I mourned for them\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn\nof day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-first Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah bin\nFazil continued to the Caliph:\u2014When I saw them in this plight, it was\ngrievous to me and I mourned for them and my reason fled my head. So I\nrose and embraced them and wept over their condition: then I put on one\nof them the pelisse of sable and on the other the fur coat of meniver\nand, carrying them to the Hammam, sent thither for each of them a suit\nof apparel such as befitted a merchant worth a thousand.[494] When they\nhad washed and donned each his suit, I carried them to my house where,\nseeing them well nigh famished, I set a tray of food before them and ate\nwith them, caressing them and comforting them. (Then he again turned to\nthe two dogs and said to them, \u201cWas this so, O my brothers?\u201d; and they\nbent their heads and lowered their eyes.) So Abdullah continued:\u2014When\nthey had eaten, O Vicar of Allah, quoth I to them, \u201cWhat hath befallen\nyou and where are your goods?\u201d; and quoth they, \u201cWe fared up the\nriver,[495] till we came to a city called Cufa, where we sold for ten\ndinars the piece of stuff that had cost half a ducat and that which cost\nus a ducat for twenty. So we profited greatly and bought Persian stuffs\nat the rate of ten sequins per piece of silk worth forty in Bassorah.\nThence we removed to a city called Al-Karkh[496] where we sold and\nbought and made gain galore and amassed of wealth great store.\u201d And they\nwent on to set forth to me the places and the profits. So I said to\nthem, \u201cSince ye had such good luck and lot, how cometh it that I see you\nreturn naked?\u201d They sighed and answered, \u201cO our brother, some one must\nhave evileyed us, and in travel there is no trusting. When we had gotten\ntogether these monies and goods, we freighted a ship therewith and set\nsail, intending for Bassorah. We fared on three days and on the fourth\nday we saw the sea rise and fall and roar and foam and swell and dash,\nwhilst the waves clashed together with a crash, striking out sparks like\nfire[497] in the darks. The winds blew contrary for us and our craft\nstruck upon the point of a bill-projected rock, where it brake up and\nplunged us into the river, and all we had with us was lost in the\nwaters. We abode struggling on the surface a day and a night, till Allah\nsent us another ship, whose crew picked us up and we begged our way from\ntown to town, suffering mighty sore hardships and selling our\nbody-clothes piecemeal, to buy us food, till we drew near Bassorah; nor\ndid we make the city till we had drained the draught of a thousand\nmiseries. But, had we come safely off with that which was by us, we had\nbrought back riches that might be evened with those of the King: but\nthis was fore ordained to us of Allah.\u201d I said, \u201cO my brothers, let not\nyour hearts be grieved, for wealth is the ransom of bodies and safety is\nproperty. Since Allah hath written you of the saved, this is the end of\ndesire, for want and wealth are but as it were illusions of dreams and\nGod-gifted is he who said:\u2014\n\n If a man from destruction can save his head \u273f Let him hold his wealth as\n a slice of nail.\n\nI continued, \u201cO my brothers we will suppose that our sire died to-day\nand left us all this wealth that is with me, for I am right willing to\nshare it with you equally.\u201d So I fetched a departitor from the Kazi\u2019s\ncourt and brought out to him all my money, which he distributed into\nthree equal parts, and we each took one. Then said I to them, \u201cO my\nbrothers, Allah blesseth a man in his daily bread, if he be in his own\ncountry: so let each of you open him a shop and sit therein to get his\nliving; and he to whom aught is ordained in the Secret Purpose,[498]\nneeds must he get it.\u201d Accordingly, I helped each of them to open a shop\nand filled it for him with goods, saying to them, \u201cSell and buy and keep\nyour monies and spend naught thereof; for all ye need of meat and drink\nand so forth I will furnish to you.\u201d I continued to entreat them\ngenerously, and they fell to selling and buying by day and returning at\neventide to my house where they lay the night; nor would I suffer them\nto expend aught of their own substance. But, whenever I sat talking with\nthem, they would praise travel and proclaim its pleasures and vaunt the\ngains they had made therein; and they ceased not to urge me to accompany\nthem in travelling over foreign parts. (Then he said to the dogs, \u201cWas\nthis so, O my brothers?\u201d and they again bowed their heads and lowered\ntheir eyes in confirmation of his words). He continued:\u2014On such wise, O\nVicar of Allah, they continued to urge me and tempt me to travel by\nvaunting the great gains and profit to be obtained thereby till I said\nto them, \u201cNeeds must I fare with you for your sake!\u201d Then I entered into\na contract of partnership with them and we chartered a ship and packing\nup all manner of precious stuffs and merchandise of every kind,\nfreighted it therewith; after which we embarked in it all we needed and,\nsetting sail from Bassorah, launched out into the dashing sea, swollen\nwith clashing surge whereinto whoso entereth is lone and lorn and whence\nwhoso cometh forth is as a babe new-born. We ceased not sailing on till\nwe came to a city of the cities, where we sold and bought and made great\ncheape. Thence we went on to another place, and we ceased not to pass\nfrom land to land and port to port, selling and buying and profiting,\ntill we had gotten us great wealth and much advantage. Presently, we\ncame to a mountain,[499] where the captain cast anchor and said to us,\n\u201cO passengers, go ye ashore; ye shall be saved from this day,[500] and\nmake search; it may be ye shall find water.\u201d So all landed I amongst the\ncrowd, and dispersed about the island in search of water. As for me, I\nclimbed to the top of the mountain, and whilst I went along, lo and\nbehold! I saw a white snake fleeing and followed by a black dragon, foul\nof favour and frightful of form, hotly pursuing her. Presently he\novertook her and clipping her, seized her by the head and wound his tail\nabout her tail, whereupon she cried out and I knew that he purposed to\nrape her. So I was moved to ruth for her and taking up a lump of\ngranite,[501] five pounds or more in weight, hurled it at the dragon. It\nsmote him on the head and crushed it, and ere I knew, the white snake\nchanged and became a young girl bright with beauty and loveliness and\nbrilliancy and perfect grace, as she were the shining full moon, who\ncame up to me and kissing my hands, said to me, \u201cAllah veil thee with\ntwofold veils, one from shame in this world and the other from the flame\nin the world to come on the day of the Great Upstanding, the day when\nneither wealth nor children shall avail save to him who shall come to\nAllah with a sound heart!\u201d[502] And presently she continued, \u201cO mortal,\nthou hast saved my honour and I am indebted to thee for kindness,\nwherefore it behoveth me to requite thee.\u201d So saying, she signed with\nher hand to the earth, which opened and she descended thereinto: then it\nclosed up again over her and by this I knew that she was of the Jinn. As\nfor the dragon, fire was kindled in him and consumed him and he became\nashes. I marvelled at this and returned to my comrades, whom I\nacquainted with whatso I had seen, and we passed the night in the\nisland. On the morrow the Captain weighed anchor and spread the sails\nand coiled the ropes and we sailed till the shore faded from our gaze.\nWe fared on twenty days, without seeing or land or bird, till our water\ncame to an end and quoth the Rais to us, \u201cO folk, our fresh water is\nspent.\u201d Quoth we, \u201cLet us make for land; haply we shall find water.\u201d But\nhe exclaimed, \u201cBy Allah, I have lost my way and I know not what course\nwill bring me to the seaboard.\u201d Thereupon betided us sore chagrin and we\nwept and besought Almighty Allah to guide us into the right course. We\npassed that night in the sorriest case: but God-gifted is he who said:\u2014\n\n How many a night have I spent in woes \u273f That would grizzle the\n suckling-babe with fear:\n\n But morrowed not morn ere to me there came \u273f \u2018Aidance from Allah and\n victory near.\u2019[503]\n\nBut when the day arose in its sheen and shone, we caught sight of a high\nmountain and rejoiced therein. When we came to its skirts, the Captain\nsaid to us, \u201cO folk, go ashore and seek for water.\u201d So we all landed and\nsought water but found none, whereat we were sore afflicted because we\nwere suffering for want of it. As for me, I climbed up to the\nmountain-top and on the other side thereof I saw a spacious circle[504]\ndistant from us an hour\u2019s journey or more. Presently I called my\ncompanions and as soon as they all rejoined me, said to them \u201cLook at\nyonder basin behind this mountain; for I see therein a city high of base\nand a strong-cornered place girt with sconce and rampartry, pasturage\nand lea and doubtless it wanteth not water and good things. So hie we\nthither and fetch drink therefrom and buy what we need of provisions,\nmeat and fruit, and return. But they said, \u201cWe fear lest the city-folk\nbe Kafirs ascribing to Allah partners and enemies of The Faith and lay\nhand on us and take us captive or else slay us; so should we cause the\nloss of our own lives, having cast ourselves into destruction and evil\nemprise. Indeed, the proud and presumptuous are never praiseworthy, for\nthat they ever fare in danger of calamities, even as saith of such an\none a certain poet:\u2014\n\n Long as earth is earth, long as sky is sky, \u273f The o\u2019erproud is blamed\n tho\u2019 from risk he fly!\n\nSo we will not expose ourselves to peril.\u201d I replied, \u201cO folk, I have no\nauthority over you; so I will take my brothers and go to yonder city.\u201d\nBut my brothers said to me, \u201cWe also fear this thing and will not go\nwith thee.\u201d Quoth I, \u201cAs for me, I am resolved to go thither, and I put\nmy trust in Allah and accept whatsoever He shall decree to me. Do ye\ntherefore await me, whilst I wend thither and return to you twain.\u201d\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-second Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah said,\n\u201cDo ye twain await me whilst I wend thither and return to you.\u201d So I\nleft them and walked on till I came to the gate of the place and saw it\na city of building wondrous and projection marvellous, with boulevards\nhigh-towering and towers strong-builded and palaces high-soaring. Its\nportals were of Chinese iron, rarely gilded and graven on such wise as\nconfounded the wit. I entered the gateway and saw there a stone bench,\nwhereon sat a man bearing on his fore-arm a chain of brass, whereto hung\nfourteen keys; so I knew him to be the porter of the city and that it\nhad fourteen gates. I drew near him and said to him, \u201cPeace be with\nthee!\u201d; but he returned not my salam and I saluted him a second and a\nthird time; but he made me no reply. Then I laid my hand on his shoulder\nand said to him, \u201cHo thou, why dost thou not return my salam? Art thou\nasleep or deaf or other than a Moslem, that thou refrainest from\nexchanging the salutation?\u201d But he answered me not neither stirred; so I\nconsidered him and saw that he was stone. Quoth I, \u201cVerily an admirable\nmatter! This is a stone wroughten in the semblance of a son of Adam and\nwanting in naught save speech!\u201d Then I left him and entering the city,\nbeheld a man standing in the road: so I went up to him and scrutinised\nhim and found him stone. Presently, as I walked adown the broadways, and\nsaw that this was every where the case, I met an old woman bearing on\nher head a bundle of clothes ready for washing; so I went up to her and\nexamining her, saw that she was stone, and the bundle of clothes on her\nhead was stone also.[505] Then I fared for the market, where I saw an\noilman with his scales set up and fronted by various kinds of wares such\nas cheese and so forth, all of stone. Moreover, I saw all manner of\ntradesmen seated in their shops and men and women and children, some\nstanding and some sitting; but they were all stone; and the stuffs were\nlike spiders\u2019 webs. I amused myself with looking upon them, and as often\nas I laid hold upon a piece of stuff, it powdered in my hands like dust\ndispread. Presently I saw some chests and opening one of them, found it\nfull of gold in bags; so I laid hold upon the bags, but they crumbled\naway in my grasp, whilst the gold abode unchanged. I carried off of it\nwhat I could carry and said to myself, \u201cWere my brothers with me, they\nmight take of this gold their fill and possess themselves of these\nhoards which have no owner.\u201d Then I entered another shop and found\ntherein more than this, but could bear away no more than I had borne. I\nleft this market and went on to another and thence to another and\nanother, much enjoying the sight of all manner of creatures of various\nkinds, all several stones, even to the dogs and the cats, till I came to\nthe goldsmiths\u2019 bazar, where I saw men sitting in their shops, with\ntheir stock-in-trade about them, some in their hands and others in\ncrates of wickerwork. When I saw this, O Commander of the Faithful, I\nthrew down the gold and loaded myself with goldsmiths\u2019 ware, as much as\nI could carry. Then I went on to the jewel-market and saw there the\njewellers seated in their shops, each with a tray before him, full of\nall sorts of precious stones, jacinths and diamonds and emeralds and\nbalass rubies and so forth: but all the shop-keepers were stones;\nwhereupon I threw away the goldsmiths\u2019 ware and carried off as many\njewels as I could carry, regretting that my brothers were not with me,\nso they might take what they would of those costly gems. Then I left the\njewel-market and went on till I came to a great door, quaintly gilded\nand decorated after the fairest fashion, within which were wooden\nbenches and in the porch sat eunuchs, and body-guards; horsemen, and\nfootmen and officers of police each and every robed in the richest of\nraiment; but they were all stones. I touched one of them and his clothes\ncrumbled away from his body like cobwebs. Then I passed through the door\nand saw a palace without equal for its building and the goodliness of\nthe works that were therein. Here I found an audience-chamber, full of\nGrandees and Wazirs and Officers and Emirs, seated upon chairs and every\none of them stone. Moreover, I saw a throne of red gold, crusted with\npearls and gems, and seated thereon a son of Adam arrayed in the most\nsumptuous raiment and bearing on his head a Chosr\u00f6an[506] crown,\ndiademed with the finest stones that shed a light like the light of day;\nbut, when I came up to him, I found him stone. Then I went on to the\ngate of the Harim and entering, found myself in the Queen\u2019s\npresence-chamber, wherein I saw a throne of red gold, inlaid with pearls\nand gems, and the Queen seated thereon. On her head she wore a crown\ndiademed with finest jewels, and round about her were women like moons,\nseated upon chairs and clad in the most sumptuous clothing of all\ncolours. There also the eunuchry, with their hands upon their\nbreasts,[507] were standing in the attitude of service, and indeed this\nhall confounded the beholder\u2019s wits with what was therein of quaint\ngilding and rare painting and curious carving and fine furniture. There\nhung the most brilliant lustres[508] of limpid crystal, and in every\nglobe[509] of the crystal was an unique jewel, whose price money might\nnot fulfil. So I threw down that which was with me, O Prince of True\nBelievers, and fell to taking of these jewels what I could carry,\nbewildered as to what I should bear away and what I should leave; for\nindeed I saw the place as it were a treasure of the treasures of the\ncities. Presently I espied a wicket[510] standing open and within it a\nstaircase: so I entered and mounting forty steps, heard a human voice\nreciting the Koran in a low tone. I walked towards that sound till I\ncame to the main door hung with a silken curtain, laced with wires of\ngold whereon were strung pearls and coral and rubies and cut emeralds\nwhich gave forth a light like the light of stars. The voice came from\nbehind the curtain: so I raised it and discovered a gilded door, whose\nbeauty amazed the mind. I passed through the door and found myself in a\nsaloon as it were a hoard upon earth\u2019s surface[511] and therein a girl\nas she were the sun shining fullest sheen in the zenith of a sky serene.\nShe was robed in the costliest of raiment and decked with ornaments the\nmost precious that could be and withal she was of passing beauty and\nloveliness, a model of symmetry and seemliness, of elegance and perfect\ngrace, with waist slender and hips heavy and dewy lips such as heal the\nsick and eyelids lovely in their langour, as it were she of whom the\nsayer spake when he said:\u2014\n\n My best salam to what that robe enrobes of symmetry, \u273f And what that\n blooming garth of cheek enguards of rosy blee:\n It seems as though the Pleiades depend upon her brow; \u273f And other lights\n of Night in knots upon her breast we see:\n Did she but don a garment weft of Rose\u2019s softest leaf, \u273f The leaf of\n Rose would draw her blood[512] when pluckt that fruit from tree:\n And did she crache in Ocean\u2019s face, next Morn would see a change \u273f To\n sweeter than the honeycomb of what was briny sea:\n And did she deign her favours grant to grey-beard staff-en-propped \u273f\n He\u2019d wake and rend the lion\u2019s limbs for might and valiancy.\n\nThen Abdullah continued:\u2014O Prince of True Believers, as soon as I saw\nthat girl I fell passionately in love with her and going straight up to\nher, found her seated on a high couch, reciting by heart and in grateful\nmemory the Book of Allah, to whom belong honour and glory! Her voice was\nlike the harmony of the gates of Heaven, when Rizwan openeth them, and\nthe words came from her lips like a shower of gems; whilst her face was\nwith beauty dight, bright and blossom-white, even as saith the poet of a\nsimilar sight:\u2014\n\n O thou who gladdenest man by speech and rarest quality; \u273f Grow longing\n and repine for thee and grow beyond degree!\n In thee two things consume and melt the votaries of Love; \u273f The dulcet\n song of David joined with Joseph\u2019s brilliancy.\n\nWhen I heard her voice of melody reciting the sublime Koran, my heart\nquoted from her killing glances, \u2018Peace, a word from a compassionating\nLord;\u2019[513] but I stammered[514] in my speech and could not say the\nsalam-salutation aright, for my mind and sight were confounded and I was\nbecome as saith the bard:\u2014\n\n Love-longing urged me not except to trip in speech o\u2019er free; \u273f Nor,\n save to shed my blood I passed the campment\u2019s boundary:\n I ne\u2019er will hear a word from those who love to rail, but I \u273f Will\n testify to love of him with every word of me.\n\nThen I hardened myself against the horrors of repine and said to her,\n\u201cPeace be with thee, O noble Lady, and treasured jewel! Allah grant\nendurance to the foundation of thy fortune fair and upraise the pillars\nof thy glory rare!\u201d Said she, \u201cAnd on thee from me be peace and\nsalutation and high honour, O Abdullah, O son of Fazil! Well come and\nwelcome and fair welcome to thee, O dearling mine and coolth of mine\neyne!\u201d Rejoined I, \u201cO my lady, whence wottest thou my name and who art\nthou and what case befel the people of this city, that they are become\nstones? I would have thee tell me the truth of the matter, for indeed I\nam admiring at this city and its citizens and that I have found none\nalive therein save thyself. So, Allah upon thee, tell me the cause of\nall this, according to the truth!\u201d Quoth she, \u201cSit, O Abdullah, and\nInshallah, I will talk with thee and acquaint thee in full with the\nfacts of my case and of this place and its people; and there is no\nMajesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!\u201d\nSo I sat me down by her side and she said to me, \u201cKnow, O Abdullah, (may\nAllah have mercy on thee!) that I am the daughter of the King of this\ncity and that it is my sire whom thou sawest seated on the high stead in\nthe Divan, and those who are round about him were the Lords of his land\nand the Guards of his empery. He was a King of exceeding prowess and had\nunder his hand a thousand thousand and sixty thousand troopers. The\nnumber of the Emirs of his Empire was four-and-twenty thousand, all of\nthem Governors and Dignitaries. He was obeyed by a thousand cities,\nbesides towns, hamlets and villages; and sconces and citadels, and the\nEmirs[515] of the wild Arabs under his hand were a thousand in number,\neach commanding twenty thousand horse. Moreover, he had monies and\ntreasures and precious stones and jewels and things of price, such as\neye never saw nor of which ear ever heard.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the\ndawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-third Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Princess,\ndaughter to the King of the Stone-city, thus continued:\u2014Verily, O\nAbdullah my father had monies and hoards, such as eye never saw and of\nwhich ear never heard. He used to debel Kings and do to death champions\nand braves in battle and in the field of fight, so that the Conquerors\nfeared him and the Chosro\u00ebs[516] humbled themselves to him. For all\nthis, he was a miscreant in creed ascribing to Allah partnership and\nadoring idols, instead of the Lord of worship; and all his troops were\nof images fain in lieu of the All-knowing Sovereign. One day of the days\nas he sat on the throne of his Kingship, compassed about with the\nGrandees of his realm, suddenly there came in to him a Personage, whose\nface illumined the whole Divan with its light. My father looked at him\nand saw him clad in a garb of green,[517] tall of stature and with hands\nthat reached beneath his knees. He was of reverend aspect and awesome\nand the light[518] shone from his face. Said he to my sire, \u201cO rebel, O\nidolater, how long wilt thou take pride in worshipping idols and\nabandoning the service of the All-knowing King? Say:\u2014I testify that\nthere is no god but _the_ God and that Mohammed is His servant and His\nmessenger. And embrace Al-Islam, thou and thy tribe; and put away from\nyou the worship of idols, for they neither suffice man\u2019s need nor\nintercede. None is worshipful save Allah alone, who raised up the\nheavens without columns and spread out the earths like carpets in mercy\nto His creatures.\u201d[519] Quoth my father, \u201cWho art thou, O man who\nrejectest the worship of idols, that thou sayst thus? Fearest thou not\nthat the idols will be wroth with thee?\u201d He replied, \u201cThe idols are\nstones; their anger cannot prejudice me nor their favour profit me. So\ndo thou set in my presence thine idol which thou adorest and bid all thy\nfolk bring each his image: and when they are all present, do ye pray\nthem to be wroth with me and I will pray my Lord to be wroth with them,\nand ye shall descry the difference between the anger of the creature and\nthat of the Creator. For your idols, ye fashioned them yourselves and\nthe Satans clad themselves therewith as with clothing, and they it is\nwho spake to you from within the bellies of the images,[520] for your\nidols are made and the maker is my God to whom naught is impossible. An\nthe True appear to you, do ye follow it, and if the False appear to you\ndo ye leave it.\u201d Cried they, \u201cGive us a proof of thy god, that we may\nsee it;\u201d and quoth he, \u201cGive me proof of _your_ gods.\u201d So the King bade\nevery one who worshipped his Lord in image-form to bring it, and all the\narmies brought their idols to the Divan. Thus fared it with them; but as\nfor me, I was sitting behind a curtain, whence I could look upon my\nfather\u2019s Divan, and I had an idol of emerald whose bigness was as the\nbigness of a son of Adam. My father demanded it, so I sent it to the\nDivan, where they set it down beside that of my sire, which was of\njacinth, whilst the Wazir\u2019s idol was of diamond.[521] As for those of\nthe Grandees and Notables, some were of balass-ruby and some of\ncarnelian, others of coral or Comorin aloes-wood and yet others of ebony\nor silver or gold; and each had his own idol, after the measure of his\ncompetence; whilst the idols of the common soldiers and of the people\nwere some of granite, some of wood, some of pottery and some of mud; and\nall were of various hues yellow and red; green, black and white. Then\nsaid the Personage to my sire, \u201cPray your idol and these idols to be\nwroth with me.\u201d So they aligned the idols in a Divan,[522] setting my\nfather\u2019s idol on a chair of gold at the upper end, with mine by its\nside, and ranking the others each according to the condition of him who\nowned it and worshipped it. Then my father arose and prostrating himself\nto his own idol, said to it, \u201cO my god, thou art the Bountiful Lord, nor\nis there among the idols a greater than thyself. Thou knowest that this\nperson cometh to me, attacking thy divinity and making mock of thee;\nyea, he avoucheth that he hath a god stronger than thou and ordereth us\nleave adoring thee and adore his god. So be thou wrath with him, O my\ngod!\u201d And he went on to supplicate the idol; but the idol returned him\nno reply neither bespoke him with aught of speech; whereupon quoth he,\n\u201cO my god, this is not of thy wont, for thou usedst to answer me, when I\naddressed thee. How cometh it that I see thee silent and speaking not?\nArt thou unheeding or asleep?[523] Awake; succour me and speak to me!\u201d\nAnd he shook it with his hand; but it spake not neither stirred from its\nstead. Thereupon quoth the Personage, \u201cWhat aileth thine idol that it\nspeaketh not?\u201d; and quoth the King, \u201cMethinks he is absent-minded or\nasleep.\u201d Exclaimed the other, \u201cO enemy of Allah, how canst thou worship\na god that speaketh not nor availeth unto aught and not worship my God,\nwho to prayers deigns assent and who is ever present and never absent,\nneither unheeding nor sleeping, whom conjecture may not ween, who seeth\nand is not seen and who over all things terrene is omnipotent? Thy god\nis powerless and cannot guard itself from harm; and indeed a stoned\nSatan had clothed himself therewith as with a coat that he might debauch\nthee and delude thee. But now hath its devil departed; so do thou\nworship Allah and testify that there is no god but He and that none is\nworshipful nor worship-worth but Himself; neither is there any good but\nHis good. As for this thy god, it cannot ward off hurt from it; so how\nshall it ward off harm from thee? See with thine own eyes its\nimpotence.\u201d So saying, he went up to the idol and dealt it a cuff on the\nneck, that it fell to the ground; whereupon the King waxed wroth and\ncried to the bystanders, \u201cThis froward atheist hath smitten my god. Slay\nhim!\u201d So they would have arisen to smite him, but none of them could\nstir from his place. Then he propounded to them Al-Islam; but they\nrefused to become Moslems and he said, \u201cI will show you the wroth of my\nLord.\u201d Quoth they, \u201cLet us see it!\u201d So he spread out his hands and said,\n\u201cO my God and my Lord, Thou art my stay and my hope; answer Thou my\nprayer against these lewd folk, who eat of Thy good and worship other\ngods. O Thou the Truth, O Thou of All-might, O Creator of Day and Night,\nI beseech Thee to turn these people into stones, for Thou art the\nPuissant nor is aught impossible to Thee, and Thou over all things are\nomnipotent!\u201d And Allah transformed the people of this city into stones;\nbut, as for me, when I saw the manifest proof of His deity, I submitted\nmyself to Him and was saved from that which befel the rest. Then the\nPersonage drew near me and said \u201cFelicity[524] was fore-ordained of\nAllah to thee and in this a purpose had He.\u201d And he went on to instruct\nme and I took unto him the oath and covenant.[525] I was then seven\nyears of age and am now thirty years old. Then said I to him, \u201cO my\nlord, all that is in the city and all its citizens are become stones by\nthine effectual prayer, and I am saved, for that I embraced Al-Islam at\nthy hands. Wherefore thou art become my Shaykh; so do thou tell me thy\nname and succour me with thy security and provide me with provision\nwhereon I may subsist.\u201d Quoth he, \u201cMy name is Abu al-\u2019Abb\u00e1s al-Khizr\u201d;\nand he planted me a pomegranate-tree, which forthright grew up and\nfoliaged, flowered and fruited, and bare one pomegranate; whereupon\nquoth he, \u201cEat of that wherewith Allah the Almighty provideth thee and\nworship Him with the worship which is His due.\u201d Then he taught me the\ntenets of Al-Islam and the canons of prayer and the way of worship,\ntogether with the recital of the Koran, and I have now worshipped Allah\nin this place three-and-twenty years. Each day the tree yieldeth me a\npomegranate which I eat and it sustaineth me from tide to tide; and\nevery Friday, Al-Khizr (on whom be peace!) cometh to me and \u2019tis he who\nacquainted me with thy name and gave me the glad tidings of thy soon\ncoming hither, saying to me, \u201cWhen he shall come to thee, entreat him\nwith honour and obey his bidding and gainsay him not; but be thou to him\nwife and he shall be to thee man, and wend with him whitherso he will.\u201d\nSo, when I saw thee, I knew thee and such is the story of this city and\nof its people, and the Peace!\u201d Then she showed me the pomegranate-tree,\nwhereon was one granado, which she took and eating one-half thereof\nherself, gave me the other to eat, and never did I taste aught sweeter\nor more savoury or more satisfying than that pomegranate. After this, I\nsaid to her, \u201cArt thou content, even as the Shaykh Al-Khizr charged\nthee, to be my wife and take me to mate; and art thou ready to go with\nme to my own country and abide with me in the city of Bassorah?\u201d She\nreplied, \u201cYes, Inshallah: an it please Almighty Allah. I hearken to thy\nword and obey thy hest without gainsaying.\u201d Then I made a binding\ncovenant with her and she carried me into her father\u2019s treasury, whence\nwe took what we could carry and going forth that city, walked on till we\ncame to my brothers, whom I found searching for me. They asked, \u201cWhere\nhast thou been? Indeed thou hast tarried long from us, and our hearts\nwere troubled for thee.\u201d And the captain of the ship said to me, \u201cO\nmerchant Abdullah, the wind hath been fair for us this great while, and\nthou hast hindered us from setting sail.\u201d And I answered, \u201cThere is no\nharm in that: ofttimes slow[526] is sure and my absence hath wrought us\nnaught but advantage, for indeed, there hath betided me therein the\nattainment of our hopes and God-gifted is he who said:\u2014\n\n[Illustration]\n\n I weet not, whenas to a land I fare \u273f In quest of good, what I shall\n there obtain;\n Or gain I fare with sole desire to seek; \u273f Or loss that seeketh me when\n seek I gain.\n\nThen said I to them, \u201cSee what hath fallen to me in this mine absence;\u201d\nand displayed to them all that was with me of treasures and told them\nwhat I had beheld in the City of Stone, adding, \u201cHad ye hearkened to me\nand gone with me, ye had gotten of these things great gain.\u201d\u2014\u2014And\nShahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-fourth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah bin\nFazil said to his shipmates and to his two brothers, \u201cHad ye gone with\nme, ye had gotten of these things great gain.\u201d But they said, \u201cBy Allah,\nhad we gone, we had not dared to go in to the King of the city!\u201d Then I\nsaid to my brothers, \u201cNo harm shall befal you; for that which I have\nwill suffice us all and this is our lot.[527]\u201d So I divided my booty\ninto four parts according to our number and gave one to each of my\nbrothers and to the Captain, taking the fourth for myself, setting aside\nsomewhat for the servants and sailors, who rejoiced and blessed me: and\nall were content with what I gave them, save my brothers who changed\ncountenance and rolled their eyes. I perceived that lust of lucre had\ngotten hold of them both; so I said to them, \u201cO my brothers, methinketh\nwhat I have given you doth not satisfy you; but we are brothers and\nthere is no difference between us. My good and yours are one and the\nsame thing, and if I die none will inherit of me but you.\u201d And I went on\nto soothe them. Then I bore the Princess on board the galleon and lodged\nher in the cabin, where I sent her somewhat to eat and we sat talking, I\nand my brothers. Said they, \u201cO our brother, what wilt thou do with that\ndamsel of surpassing beauty?\u201d And I replied, \u201cI mean to contract\nmarriage with her, as soon as I reach Bassorah and make a splendid\nwedding and go in to her there.\u201d Exclaimed one of them, \u201cO my brother,\nverily, this young lady excelleth in beauty and loveliness and the love\nof her is fallen on my heart; wherefore I desire that thou give her to\nme and I will espouse her.\u201d And the other cried, \u201cI too desire this:\ngive her to me, that I may espouse her.\u201d \u201cO my brothers,\u201d answered I,\n\u201cindeed she took of me an oath and a covenant that I would marry her\nmyself; so, if I give her to one of you, I shall be false to my oath and\nto the covenant between me and her, and haply she will be\nbroken-hearted, for she came not with me but on condition that I marry\nher. So how can I wed her to other than myself? As for your both loving\nher, I love her more than you twain, for she is my treasure-trove, and\nas for my giving her to one of you, that is a thing which may not be.\nBut, if we reach Bassorah in safety, I will look you out two girls of\nthe best of the damsels of Bassorah and demand them for you in marriage\nand pay the dower of my own monies and make one wedding and we will all\nthree go into our brides on the same night. But leave ye this damsel,\nfor she is of my portion.\u201d They held their peace, and I thought they\nwere content with that which I had said. Then we fared onwards for\nBassorah, and every day I sent her meat and drink; but she came not\nforth of the cabin, whilst I slept between my brothers on deck. We\nsailed thus forty days, till we sighted Bassorah city and rejoiced that\nwe were come near it. Now I trusted in my brothers and was at my ease\nwith them, for none knoweth the hidden future save Allah the Most High;\nso I lay down to sleep that night; but, as I abode drowned in slumber, I\nsuddenly found myself caught up by these my brothers, one seizing me by\nthe legs and the other by the arms, for they had taken counsel together\nto drown me in the sea for the sake of the damsel. When I saw myself in\ntheir hands, I said to them, \u201cO my brothers, why do ye this with me?\u201d\nAnd they replied, \u201cIll-bred that thou art, wilt thou barter our\naffection for a girl?: we will cast thee into the sea, because of this.\u201d\nSo saying, they threw me overboard. (Here Abdullah turned to the dogs\nand said to them, \u201cIs this that I have said true O my brothers or not?\u201d;\nand they bowed their heads and fell awhining, as if confirming his\nspeech; whereat the Caliph wondered). Then Abdullah resumed;\u2014O Commander\nof the Faithful, when they threw me into the sea, I sank to the bottom;\nbut the water bore me up again to the surface, and before I could think,\nbehold a great bird, the bigness of a man, swooped down upon me and\nsnatching me up, flew up with me into upper air. I fainted and when I\nopened my eyes, I found myself in a strong-pillared place, a\nhigh-builded palace, adorned with magnificent paintings and pendants of\ngems of all shapes and hues. Therein were damsels standing with their\nhands crossed over their breasts and, behold in their midst was a lady\nseated on a throne of red gold, set with pearls and gems, and clad in\napparel whereon no mortal might open his eyes, for the lustre of the\njewels wherewith they were decked. About her waist she wore a girdle of\njewels no money could pay their worth and on her head a three-fold tiara\ndazing thought and wit and dazzling heart and sight. Then the bird which\nhad carried me thither shook and became a young lady bright as sun\nraying light. I fixed my eyes on her and behold, it was she whom I had\nseen in snake form on the mountain and had rescued from the dragon which\nhad wound his tail around her. Then said to her the lady who sat upon\nthe throne, \u201cWhy hast thou brought hither this mortal?\u201d; and she\nreplied, \u201cO my mother, this is he who was the means of veiling my\nhonour[528] among the maidens of the Jinn.\u201d Then quoth she to me,\n\u201cKnowest thou who I am?\u201d; and quoth I, \u201cNo.\u201d Said she, I am she who was\non such a mountain, where the black dragon strave with me and would have\nforced my honour, but thou slewest him.\u201d And I said, \u201cI saw but a white\nsnake with the dragon.\u201d She rejoined, \u201c\u2019Tis I who was the white snake;\nbut I am the daughter of the Red King, Sovran of the Jann and my name is\nSa\u2019\u00eddah.[529] She who sitteth there is my mother and her name is\nMub\u00e1rakah, wife of the Red King. The black dragon who attacked me and\nwould have done away my honour was Wazir to the Black King, Darf\u00edl by\nname, and he was foul of favour. It chanced that he saw me and fell in\nlove with me; so he sought me in marriage of my sire, who sent to him to\nsay, \u201cWho art thou, O scum of Wazirs, that thou shouldst wed with Kings\u2019\ndaughters?\u201d Whereupon he was wroth and sware an oath that he would\nassuredly do away my honour, to spite my father. Then he fell to\ntracking my steps and following me whithersoever I went, designing to\nravish me; wherefore there befel between him and my parent mighty fierce\nwars and bloody jars, but my sire could not prevail against him, for\nthat he was fierce as fraudful and as often as my father pressed hard\nupon him and seemed like to conquer he would escape from him, till my\nsire was at his wits\u2019 end. Every day I was forced to take new form and\nhue; for, as often as I assumed a shape, he would assume its contrary,\nand to whatsoever land I fled he would snuff my fragrance and follow me\nthither, so that I suffered sore affliction of him. At last I took the\nform of a snake and betook myself to the mountain where thou sawest me;\nwhereupon he changed himself to a dragon and pursued me, till I fell\ninto his hands, when he strove with me and I struggled with him, till he\nwearied me and mounted me, meaning to have his lustful will of me: but\nthou camest and smotest him with the stone and slewest him. Then I\nreturned to my own shape and showed myself to thee, saying:\u2014I am\nindebted to thee for a service such as is not lost save with the son of\nadultery.[530] So, when I saw thy brothers do with thee this treachery\nand throw thee into the sea, I hastened to thee and saved thee from\ndestruction, and now honour is due to thee from my mother and my\nfather.\u201d Then she said to the Queen, \u201cO my mother, do thou honour him as\ndeserveth he who saved my virtue.\u201d So the Queen said to me, \u201cWelcome, O\nmortal! Indeed thou hast done us a kindly deed which meriteth honour.\u201d\nPresently she ordered me a treasure-suit,[531] worth a mint of money,\nand store of gems and precious stones, and said, \u201cTake him and carry him\nin to the King.\u201d Accordingly, they carried me in to the King in his\nDivan, where I found him seated on his throne, with his Marids and\nguards before him; and when I saw him my sight was blent for that which\nwas upon him of jewels; but when he saw me, he rose to his feet and all\nhis officers rose also, to do him worship. Then he saluted me and\nwelcomed me and entreated me with the utmost honour, and gave me of that\nwhich was with him of good things; after which he said to some of his\nfollowers, \u201cTake him and carry him back to my daughter, that she may\nrestore him to the place whence she brought him.\u201d So they carried me\nback to the Lady Sa\u2019idah, who took me up and flew away with me and my\ntreasures. On this wise fared it with me and the Princess; but as\nregards the Captain of the galleon, he was aroused by the splash of my\nfall, when my brothers cast me into the sea, and said, \u201cWhat is that\nwhich hath fallen overboard?\u201d Whereupon my brothers fell to weeping and\nbeating of breasts and replied, \u201cAlas, for our brother\u2019s loss! He\nthought to do his need over the ship\u2019s side[532] and fell into the\nwater!\u201d Then they laid their hands on my good, but there befel dispute\nbetween them because of the damsel, each saying, \u201cNone shall have her\nbut I.\u201d And they abode jangling and wrangling each with other and\nremembered not their brother nor his drowning and their mourning for him\nceased. As they were thus, behold Sa\u2019idah alighted with me in the midst\nof the galleon\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased\nsaying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-fifth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah bin\nFazil continued, \u201cAs they were thus, behold, Sa\u2019idah alighted with me in\nthe midst of the galleon and when my brothers saw me, they embraced me\nand rejoiced in me, saying, \u201cO our brother, how hast thou fared in that\nwhich befel thee? Indeed our hearts have been occupied with thee.\u201d Quoth\nSa\u2019idah, \u201cHad ye any heart-yearnings for him or had ye loved him, ye had\nnot cast him into the sea; but choose ye now what death ye will die.\u201d\nThen she seized on them and would have slain them; but they cried out,\nsaying, \u201cIn thy safeguard, O our brother!\u201d Thereupon I interceded and\nsaid to her, \u201cI claim of thine honour not to kill my brothers.\u201d Quoth\nshe, \u201cThere is no help but that I slay them, for they are traitors.\u201d But\nI ceased not to speak her fair and conciliate her till she said, \u201cTo\ncontent thee, I will not kill them, but I will enchant them.\u201d So saying,\nshe brought out a cup and filling it with sea-water, pronounced over it\nwords that might not be understood; then saying, \u201cQuit this human shape\nfor the shape of a dog;\u201d she sprinkled them with the water, and\nimmediately they were transmewed into dogs, as thou seest them, O Vicar\nof Allah.\u201d Whereupon he turned to the dogs and said to them, \u201cHave I\nspoken the truth, O my brothers?\u201d And they bowed their heads, as they\nwould say, \u201cThou hast spoken sooth.\u201d At this he continued, \u201cThen she\nsaid to those who were in the galleon:\u2014Know ye that Abdullah bin Fazil\nhere present is become my brother and I shall visit him once or twice\nevery day: so, whoso of you crosseth him or gainsayeth his bidding or\ndoth him hurt with hand or tongue, I will do with him even as I have\ndone with these two traitors and bespell him to a dog, and he shall end\nhis days in that form, nor shall he find deliverance.\u201d And they all said\nto her, \u201cO our lady, we are his slaves and his servants every one of us\nand will not disobey him in aught.\u201d Moreover, she said to me, \u201cWhen thou\ncomest to Bassorah, examine all thy property and if there lack aught\nthereof, tell me and I will bring it to thee, in whose hands and in what\nplace soever it may be, and will change him who took it into a dog. When\nthou hast magazined thy goods, clap a collar[533] of wood on the neck of\neach of these two traitors and tie them to the leg of a couch and shut\nthem up by themselves. Moreover, every night, at midnight, do thou go\ndown to them and beat each of them a bout till he swoon away; and if\nthou suffer a single night to pass without beating them, I will come to\nthee and drub thee a sound drubbing, after which I will drub them.\u201d And\nI answered, \u201cTo hear is to obey.\u201d Then said she, \u201cTie them up with ropes\ntill thou come to Bassorah.\u201d So I tied a rope about each dog\u2019s neck and\nlashed them to the mast, and she went her way. On the morrow we entered\nBassorah and the merchants came out to meet me and saluted me, and no\none of them enquired of my brothers. But they looked at the dogs and\nsaid to me, \u201cHo, such and such,[534] what wilt thou do with these two\ndogs thou hast brought with thee?\u201d Quoth I, \u201cI reared them on this\nvoyage and have brought them home with me.\u201d And they laughed at them,\nknowing not that they were my brothers. When I reached my house, I put\nthe twain in a closet and busied myself all that night with the\nunpacking and disposition of the bales of stuffs and jewels. Moreover,\nthe merchants were with me being minded to offer me the salam; wherefore\nI was occupied with them and forgot to beat the dogs or chain them up.\nThen without doing them aught of hurt, I lay down to sleep, but suddenly\nand unexpectedly there came to me the Red King\u2019s daughter Sa\u2019idah and\nsaid to me, \u201cDid I not bid thee clap chains on their necks and give each\nof them a bout of beating?\u201d So saying, she seized me and pulling out a\nwhip, flogged me till I fainted away, after which she went to the place\nwhere my brothers were and with the same scourge beat them both till\nthey came nigh upon death. Then said she to me, \u201cBeat each of them a\nlike bout every night, and if thou let a night pass without doing this,\nI will beat thee;\u201d and I replied, \u201cO my lady, to-morrow I will put\nchains on their necks, and next night I will beat them nor will I leave\nthem one night unbeaten.\u201d And she charged me strictly to beat them and\ndisappeared. When the morning morrowed it being no light matter for me\nto put fetters of iron on their necks, I went to a goldsmith and bade\nhim make them collars and chains of gold. He did this and I put the\ncollars on their necks and chained them up, as she bade me; and next\nnight I beat them both in mine own despite. This befel in the Caliphate\nof Al-Mahdi,[535] third of the sons of Al-Abbas, and I commended myself\nto him by sending him presents, so he invested me with the government\nand made me viceroy of Bassorah. On this wise I abode some time and\nafter a while I said to myself, \u201cHaply her wrath is grown cool;\u201d and\nleft them a night unbeaten, whereupon she came to me and beat me a bout\nwhose burning I shall never forget long as I live. So, from that time to\nthis, I have never left them a single night unbeaten during the reign of\nAl-Mahdi; and when he deceased and thou camest to the succession, thou\nsentest to me, confirming me in the government of Bassorah. These twelve\nyears past have I beaten them every night, in mine own despite, and\nafter I have beaten them, I excuse myself to them and comfort them and\ngive them to eat and drink; and they have remained shut up, nor did any\nof the creatures of Allah know of them, till thou sentest to me Abu\nIshak the boon-companion, on account of the tribute, and he discovered\nmy secret and returning to thee, acquainted thee therewith. Then thou\nsentest him back to fetch me and them; so I answered with \u2018Hearkening\nand obedience,\u2019 and brought them before thee, whereupon thou\nquestionedst me and I told thee the truth of the case; and this is my\nhistory.\u201d The Caliph marvelled at the case of the two dogs and said to\nAbdullah, \u201cHast thou at this present forgiven thy two brothers the wrong\nthey did thee, yea or nay?\u201d He replied, \u201cO my lord, may Allah forgive\nthem and acquit them of responsibility in this world and the next!\nIndeed, \u2019tis I who stand in need of their forgiveness, for that these\ntwelve years past I have beaten them a grievous bout every night!\u201d\nRejoined the Caliph, \u201cO Abdullah, Inshallah, I will endeavour for their\nrelease and that they may become men again, as they were before, and I\nwill make peace between thee and them; so shall you live the rest of\nyour lives as brothers loving one another; and like as thou hast\nforgiven them, so shall they forgive thee. But now take them and go down\nwith them to thy lodging and this night beat them not, and to-morrow\nthere shall be naught save weal.\u201d Quoth Abdullah, \u201cO my lord, as thy\nhead liveth, if I leave them one night unbeaten, Sa\u2019idah will come to me\nand beat me, and I have no body to brook beating.\u201d Quoth the Caliph,\n\u201cFear not, for I will give thee a writing under my hand.[536] An she\ncome to thee, do thou give her the paper and if, when she has read it,\nshe spare thee, the favour will be hers; but, if she obey not my\nbidding, commit thy business to Allah and let her beat thee a bout and\nsuppose that thou hast forgotten to beat them for one night and that she\nbeateth thee because of that: and if it fall out thus and she thwart me,\nas sure as I am Commander of the Faithful, I will be even with her.\u201d\nThen he wrote her a letter on a piece of paper, two fingers broad, and\nsealing it with his signet-ring, gave it to Abdullah, saying, \u201cO\nAbdullah, if Sa\u2019idah come, say to her:\u2014The Caliph, King of mankind, hath\ncommanded me to leave beating them and hath written me this letter for\nthee; and he saluteth thee with the salam. Then give her the warrant and\nfear no harm.\u201d After which he exacted of him an oath and a solemn pledge\nthat he would not beat them. So Abdullah took the dogs and carried them\nto his lodging, saying to himself, \u201cI wonder what the Caliph will do\nwith the daughter of the Sovran of the Jinn, if she cross him and\ntrounce me to-night! But I will bear with a bout of beating for once and\nleave my brothers at rest this night, though for their sake I suffer\ntorture.\u201d Then he bethought himself awhile, and his reason said to him,\n\u201cDid not the Caliph rely on some great support, he had never forbidden\nme from beating them.\u201d So he entered his lodging and doffed the collars\nfrom the dogs\u2019 necks, saying, \u201cI put my trust in Allah,\u201d and fell to\ncomforting them and saying, \u201cNo harm shall befal you; for the Caliph,\nfifth[537] of the sons of Al-Abbas, hath pledged himself for your\ndeliverance and I have forgiven you. An it please Allah the Most High,\nthe time is come and ye shall be delivered this blessed night; so\nrejoice ye in the prospect of peace and gladness.\u201d When they heard these\nwords, they fell to whining with the whining of dogs,\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad\nperceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-sixth Night,\n\nShe resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah bin\nFazil said to his brothers, \u201cRejoice ye in the prospect of comfort and\ngladness.\u201d And when they heard his words they fell to whining with the\nwhining of dogs, and rubbed their jowls against his feet, as if blessing\nhim and humbling themselves before him. He mourned over them and took to\nstroking their backs till supper time; and when they set on the trays he\nbade the dogs sit. So they sat down and ate with him from the tray,\nwhilst his officers stood gaping and marvelling at his eating with dogs\nand all said, \u201cIs he mad or are his wits gone wrong? How can the Viceroy\nof Bassorah city, he who is greater than a Wazir, eat with dogs? Knoweth\nhe not that the dog is unclean[538]?\u201d And they stared at the dogs, as\nthey ate with him as servants eat with their lords,[539] knowing not\nthat they were his brothers; nor did they cease staring at them, till\nthey had made an end of eating, when Abdullah washed his hands and the\ndogs also put out their paws and washed; whereupon all who were present\nbegan to laugh at them and to marvel, saying, one to other, \u201cNever in\nour lives saw we dogs eat and wash their paws after eating!\u201d Then the\ndogs sat down on the divans beside Abdullah, nor dared any ask him of\nthis; and thus the case lasted till midnight, when he dismissed the\nattendants and lay down to sleep and the dogs with him, each on a couch;\nwhereupon the servants said one to other, \u201cVerily, he hath lain down to\nsleep and the two dogs are lying with him.\u201d Quoth another, \u201cSince he\nhath eaten with the dogs from the same tray, there is no harm in their\nsleeping with him; and this is naught save the fashion of madmen.\u201d\nMoreover, they ate not anything of the food which remained in the tray,\nsaying, \u201c\u2019Tis unclean.\u201d Such was their case; but as for Abdullah, ere he\ncould think, the earth clave asunder and out rose Sa\u2019idah, who said to\nhim, \u201cO Abdullah, why hast thou not beaten them this night and why hast\nthou undone the collars from their necks? Hast thou acted on this wise\nperversely and in mockery of my commandment? But I will at once beat\nthee and spell thee into a dog like them.\u201d He replied, \u201cO my lady, I\nconjure thee by the graving upon the seal-ring of Solomon David-son (on\nthe twain be peace!) have patience with me till I tell thee my cause and\nafter do with me what thou wilt.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cSay on,\u201d and quoth he,\n\u201cThe reason of my not punishing them is only this. The King of mankind,\nthe Commander of the Faithful, the Caliph Harun al-Rashid, ordered me\nnot to beat them this night and took of me oaths and covenants to that\neffect; and he saluteth thee with the salam and hath committed to me a\nmandate under his own hand, which he bade me give thee. So I obeyed his\norder for to obey the Commander of the Faithful is obligatory; and here\nis the mandate. Take it and read it and after work thy will.\u201d She\nreplied, \u201cHither with it!\u201d So he gave her the letter and she opened it\nand read as follows, \u201cIn the name of Allah, the Compassionating, the\nCompassionate! From the King of mankind, Harun al-Rashid, to the\ndaughter of the Red King, Sa\u2019idah! But, after. Verily, this man hath\nforgiven his brothers and hath waived his claim against them, and we\nhave enjoined them to reconciliation. Now, when reconciliation ruleth,\nretribution is remitted, and if you of the Jinn contradict us in our\ncommandments, we will contrary you in yours and traverse your\nordinances; but, an ye obey our bidding and further our orders, we will\nindeed do the like with yours. Wherefore I bid thee hurt them no hurt,\nand if thou believe in Allah and in His Apostle, it behoveth thee to\nobey and us to command.[540] So an thou spare them, I will requite thee\nwith that whereto my Lord shall enable me; and the token of obedience is\nthat thou remove thine enchantment from these two men, so they may come\nbefore me to-morrow, free. But an thou release them not, I will release\nthem in thy despite, by the aid of Almighty Allah.\u201d When she had read\nthe letter, she said, \u201cO Abdullah, I will do nought till I go to my sire\nand show him the mandate of the monarch of mankind and return to thee\nwith the answer in haste.\u201d So saying, she signed with her hand to the\nearth, which clave open and she disappeared therein, whilst Abdullah\u2019s\nheart was like to fly for joy and he said, \u201cAllah advance the Commander\nof the Faithful!\u201d As for Sa\u2019idah, she went in to her father; and,\nacquainting him with that which had passed, gave him the Caliph\u2019s\nletter, which he kissed and laid on his head. Then he read it and\nunderstanding its contents said, \u201cO my daughter, verily, the ordinance\nof the monarch of mankind obligeth us and his commandments are effectual\nover us, nor can we disobey him: so go thou and release the two men\nforthwith and say to them:\u2014Ye are freed by the intercession of the\nmonarch of mankind. For, should he be wroth with us, he would destroy us\nto the last of us; so do not thou impose on us that which we are\nunable.\u201d Quoth she, \u201cO my father, if the monarch of mankind were wroth\nwith us, what could he do with us?\u201d; and quoth her sire, \u201cHe hath power\nover us for several reasons. In the first place, he is a man and hath\nthus pre-eminence over us[541]; secondly he is the Vicar of Allah; and\nthirdly, he is constant in praying the dawn-prayer of two bows[542];\ntherefore were all the tribes of the Jinn assembled together against him\nfrom the Seven Worlds they could do him no hurt. But he, should he be\nwroth with us would pray the dawn-prayer of two bows and cry out upon us\none cry, when we should all present ourselves before him obediently and\nbe before him as sheep before the butcher. If he would, he could command\nus to quit our abiding-places for a desert country wherein we might not\nendure to sojourn; and if he desired to destroy us, he would bid us\ndestroy ourselves, whereupon we should destroy one another. Wherefore we\nmay not disobey his bidding for, if we did this, he would consume us\nwith fire nor could we flee from before him to any asylum. Thus is it\nwith every True Believer who is persistent in praying the dawn-prayer of\ntwo bows; his commandment is effectual over us: so be not thou the means\nof our destruction, because of two mortals, but go forthright and\nrelease them, ere the anger of the Commander of the Faithful fall upon\nus.\u201d So she returned to Abdullah and acquainted him with her father\u2019s\nwords, saying, \u201cKiss for us the hands of the Prince of True Believers\nand seek his approval for us.\u201d Then she brought out the tasse and\nfilling it with water, conjured over it and uttered words which might\nnot be understood; after which she sprinkled the dogs with the water\nsaying, \u201cQuit the form of dogs and return to the shape of men!\u201d\nWhereupon they became men as before and the spell of the enchantment was\nloosed from them. Quoth they, \u201cI testify that there is no god but _the_\nGod and I testify that Mohammed is the Apostle of God!\u201d Then they fell\non their brother\u2019s feet and hands, kissing them and beseeching his\nforgiveness: but he said, \u201cDo ye forgive me;\u201d and they both repented\nwith sincere repentance, saying, \u201cVerily, the damned Devil lured us and\ncovetise deluded us: but our Lord hath requited us after our deserts,\nand forgiveness is of the signs of the noble.\u201d And they went on to\nsupplicate their brother and weep and profess repentance for that which\nhad befallen him from them[543]. Then quoth he to them, \u201cWhat did ye\nwith my wife whom I brought from the City of Stone?\u201d Quoth they, \u201cWhen\nSatan tempted us and we cast thee into the sea, there arose strife\nbetween us, each saying, I will have her to wife. Now when she heard\nthese words and beheld our contention, she knew that we had thrown thee\ninto the sea; so she came up from the cabin and said to us:\u2014Contend not\nbecause of me, for I will not belong to either of you. My husband is\ngone into the sea and I will follow him. So saying, she cast herself\noverboard and died.\u201d Exclaimed Abdullah, \u201cIn very sooth she died a\nmartyr[544]! But there is no Majesty and there is no Might save in\nAllah, the Glorious, the Great!\u201d Then he wept for her with sore weeping\nand said to his brothers, \u201cIt was not well of you to do this deed and\nbereave me of my wife.\u201d They answered, \u201cIndeed, we have sinned, but our\nLord hath requited us our misdeed and this was a thing which Allah\ndecreed unto us, ere He created us.\u201d And he accepted their excuse; but\nSa\u2019idah said to him, \u201cHave they done all these things to thee and wilt\nthou forgive them?\u201d He replied, \u201cO my sister, whoso hath power[545] and\nspareth, for Allah\u2019s reward he prepareth.\u201d Then said she, \u201cBe on thy\nguard against them, for they are traitors;\u201d and farewelled him and fared\nforth.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-seventh Night,\n\nShe said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah, when\nSa\u2019idah warned him and blessed him and went her ways, passed the rest of\nthe night with his brothers and on the morrow, he sent them to the\nHammam and clad each of them, on his coming forth, in a suit worth a\nhoard of money. Then he called for the tray of food and they set it\nbefore him and he ate, he and his brothers. When his attendants saw the\ntwain and knew them for his brothers they saluted them and said to him,\n\u201cO our lord, Allah give thee joy of thy reunion with thy dear brothers!\nWhere have they been this while?\u201d He replied, \u201cIt was they whom ye saw\nin the guise of dogs; praise be to Allah who hath delivered them from\nprison and grievous torment!\u201d Then he carried them to the Divan of the\nCaliph and kissing ground before Al-Rashid wished him continuance of\nhonour and fortune and surcease of evil and enmity.\u201d Quoth the Caliph,\n\u201cWelcome, O Emir Abdullah! Tell me what hath befallen thee.\u201d And quoth\nhe, \u201cO Commander of the Faithful (whose power Allah increase!) when I\ncarried my brothers home to my lodging, my heart was at rest concerning\nthem, because thou hadst pledged thyself to their release and I said in\nmyself, \u201cKings fail not to attain aught for which they strain, inasmuch\nas the divine favour aideth them.\u201d So I took off the collars from their\nnecks, putting my trust in Allah, and ate with them from the same tray,\nwhich when my suite saw, they made light of my wit and said each to\nother, \u201cHe is surely mad! How can the governor of Bassorah who is\ngreater than the Wazir, eat with dogs?\u201d Then they threw away what was in\nthe tray, saying, \u201cWe will not eat the dogs\u2019 orts.\u201d And they went on\nbefool my reason, whilst I heard their words, but returned them no reply\nbecause of their unknowing that the dogs were my brothers. When the hour\nof sleep came, I sent them away and addressed myself to sleep; but, ere\nI was ware, the earth clave in sunder and out came Sa\u2019idah, the Red\nKing\u2019s daughter, enraged against me, with eyes like fire.\u201d And he went\non to relate to the Caliph all what had passed between him and her and\nher father and how she had transmewed his brothers from canine to human\nform, adding, \u201cAnd here they are before thee, O Commander of the\nFaithful!\u201d The Caliph looked at them and seeing two young men like\nmoons, said, \u201cAllah requite thee for me with good, O Abdullah, for that\nthou hast acquainted me with an advantage[546] I knew not! Henceforth,\nInshallah, I will never leave to pray these two-bow orisons before the\nbreaking of the dawn, what while I live.\u201d Then he reproved Abdullah\u2019s\nbrothers for their past transgressions against him and they excused\nthemselves before the Caliph, who said, \u201cJoin hands[547] and forgive one\nanother and Allah pardon what is past!\u201d Upon which he turned to Abdullah\nand said to him, \u201cO Abdullah, make thy brothers thine assistants and be\ncareful of them.\u201d Then he charged them to be obedient to their brother\nand bade them return to Bassorah after he had bestowed on them abundant\nlargesse. So they went down from the Caliph\u2019s Divan whilst he rejoiced\nin this advantage he had obtained by the action aforesaid, to wit,\npersistence in praying two inclinations before dawn, and exclaimed, He\nspake truth who said, \u201cThe misfortune of one tribe fortuneth another\ntribe.\u201d[548] On this wise befel it to them from the Caliph; but as\nregards Abdullah, he left Baghdad carrying with him his brothers in all\nhonour and dignity and increase of quality, and fared on till they drew\nnear Bassorah, when the notables and chief men of the place came out to\nmeet them and after decorating the city brought them thereinto with a\nprocession which had not its match and all the folk shouted out\nblessings on Abdullah as he scattered amongst them silver and gold.\nNone, however, took heed to his brothers; wherefore jealousy and envy\nentered their hearts, for all he entreated them tenderly as one tenders\nan ophthalmic eye; but the more he cherished them, the more they\nredoubled in hatred and envy of him: and indeed it is said on the\nsubject:\u2014\n\n I\u2019d win good will of every one, but whoso envies me \u273f Will not be won on\n any wise and makes mine office hard:\n How gain the gree of envious wight who coveteth my good, \u273f When naught\n will satisfy him save to see my good go marr\u2019d?\n\nThen he gave each a concubine that had not her like, and eunuchs and\nservants and slaves white and black, of each kind forty. He also gave\neach of them fifty steeds all thoroughbreds and they got them guards and\nfollowers; and he assigned to them revenues and appointed them solde and\nstipends and made them his assistants, saying to them, \u201cO my brothers, I\nand you are equal and there is no distinction between me and you\ntwain,\u201d\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her\npermitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-eighth Night,\n\nShe continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Abdullah\nassigned stipends to his brothers and made them his assistants, saying,\n\u201cO my brothers, I and you are equal and there is no distinction between\nme and you twain, and after Allah and the Caliph, the commandment is\nmine and yours. So rule you at Bassorah in my absence and in my\npresence, and your commandments shall be effectual; but look that ye\nfear Allah in your ordinances and beware of oppression, which if it\nendure depopulateth; and apply yourselves to justice, for justice, if it\nbe prolonged, peopleth a land. Oppress not the True Believers, or they\nwill curse you and ill report of you will reach the Caliph, wherefore\ndishonour will betide both me and you. Go not therefore about to\nviolence any, but whatso ye greed for of the goods of the folk, take it\nfrom my goods, over and above that whereof ye have need; for \u2019tis not\nunknown to you what is handed down in the Koran of prohibition versets\non the subject of oppression and Allah-gifted is he who said these\ncouplets:\u2014\n\n Oppression ambusheth in sprite of man \u273f Whom naught withholdeth save the\n lack of might:\n The sage shall ne\u2019er apply his wits to aught \u273f Until befitting time\n direct his sight:\n The tongue of Wisdom woneth in the heart; \u273f And in his mouth the tongue\n of foolish wight.\n Who at occasion\u2019s call lacks power to rise \u273f Is slain by feeblest who\n would glut his spite.\n A man may hide his blood and breed, but aye \u273f His deeds on darkest\n hiddens cast a light.\n Wights of ill strain with ancestry as vile \u273f Have lips which never spake\n one word aright:\n And who committeth case to hands of fool \u273f In folly proveth self as fond\n and light;\n And who his secret tells to folk at large \u273f Shall rouse his foes to work\n him worst despight.\n Suffice the generous what regards his lot \u273f Nor meddles he with aught\n regards him not.\n\nAnd he went on to admonish his brothers and bid them to equity and\nforbid them from tyranny, doubting not but they would love him the\nbetter for his boon of good counsel[549] and he relied upon them and\nhonoured them with the utmost honour; but notwithstanding all his\ngenerosity to them, they only waxed in envy and hatred of him, till, one\nday, the two being together alone, quoth Nasir to Mansur, \u201cO my brother,\nhow long shall we be mere subjects of our brother Abdullah, and he in\nthis estate of lordship and worship? After being a merchant, he is\nbecome an Emir, and from being little, he is grown great: but we, we\ngrow not great nor is there aught of respect or degree left us; for,\nbehold, he laugheth at us and maketh us his assistants! What is the\nmeaning of this? Is it not that we are his servants and under his\nsubjection? But, long as he abideth in good case, our rank will never be\nraised nor shall we be aught of repute; wherefore we shall not fulfil\nour wish, except we slay him and win to his wealth, nor will it be\npossible to get his gear save after his death. So, when we have slain\nhim, we shall become lords and will take all that is in his treasuries\nof gems and things of price and divide them between us. Then will we\nsend the Caliph a present and demand of him the government of Cufah, and\nthou shalt be governor of Cufah and I of Bassorah. Thus each of us shall\nhave formal estate and condition, but we shall never effect this, except\nwe put him out of the world!\u201d Answered Mansur, \u201cThou sayest sooth, but\nhow shall we do to kill him?\u201d Quoth Nasir, \u201cWe will make an\nentertainment in the house of one of us and invite him thereto and serve\nhim with the uttermost service. Then will we sit through the night with\nhim in talk and tell him tales and jests and rare stories till his heart\nmelteth with sitting up when we will spread him a bed, that he may lie\ndown to sleep. When he is asleep, we will kneel upon him and throttle\nhim and throw him into the river; and on the morrow, we will say:\u2014His\nsister the Jinniyah came to him, as he sat chatting with us, and said to\nhim:\u2014O thou scum of mankind, who art thou that thou shouldst complain of\nme to the Commander of the Faithful? Deemest thou that we dread him? As\nhe is a King, so we too are Kings, and if he mend not his manners in our\nregard we will do him die by the foulest of deaths. But meantime I will\nslay thee, that we may see what the hand of the Prince of True Believers\navaileth to do. So saying, she caught him up and clave the earth and\ndisappeared with him which when we saw, we swooned away. Then we revived\nand we reck not what is become of him. And saying this we will send to\nthe Caliph and tell him the case and he will invest us with the\ngovernment in his room. After awhile, we will send him a sumptuous\npresent and seek of him the government of Cufah, and one of us shall\nabide in Bassorah and the other in Cufah. So shall the land be pleasant\nto us and we will be down upon the True Believers and win our wishes.\u201d\nAnd quoth Mansur, \u201cThou counsellest well, O my brother,\u201d and they agreed\nupon the murther. So Nasir made an entertainment and said to Abdullah,\n\u201cO my brother, verily I am thy brother, and I would have thee hearten my\nheart thou and my brother Mansur and eat of my banquet in my house, so I\nmay boast of thee and that it may be said, The Emir Abdullah hath eaten\nof his brother Nasir\u2019s guest meal; when my heart will be solaced by this\nbest of boons.\u201d Abdullah replied, \u201cSo be it, O my brother; there is no\ndistinction between me and thee and thy house is my house; but since\nthou invitest me, none refuseth hospitality save the churl.\u201d Then he\nturned to Mansur and said to him, \u201cWilt thou go with me to thy brother\nNasir\u2019s house and we will eat of his feast and heal his heart?\u201d Replied\nMansur, \u201cAs thy head liveth, O my brother, I will not go with thee,\nunless thou swear to me that, after thou comest forth of brother Nasir\u2019s\nhouse, thou wilt enter my house and eat of my banquet! Is Nasir thy\nbrother and am not I thy brother? So, even as thou heartenest his heart,\ndo thou hearten mine.\u201d Answered Abdullah, \u201cThere is no harm in that:\nwith love and gladly gree! When I come out from Nasir\u2019s house, I will\nenter thine, for thou art my brother even as he.\u201d So he kissed his hand\nand going forth of the Divan, made ready his feast. On the morrow,\nAbdullah took horse and repaired, with his brother Mansur and a company\nof his officers, to Nasir\u2019s house, where they sat down, he and Mansur\nand his many. Then Nasir set the trays before them and welcomed them; so\nthey ate and drank and sat in mirth and merriment; after which the trays\nand the platters were removed and they washed their hands. They passed\nthe day in feasting and wine-drinking and diversion and delight till\nnightfall, when they supped and prayed the sundown prayers, and the\nnight orisons; after which they sat conversing and carousing, and Nasir\nand Mansur fell to telling stories whilst Abdullah hearkened. Now they\nthree were alone in the pavilion, the rest of the company being in\nanother place, and they ceased not to tell quips and tales and rare\nadventures and anecdotes, till Abdullah\u2019s heart was dissolved within him\nfor watching and sleep overcame him.\u2014\u2014And Shahrazad perceived the dawn\nof day and ceased saying her permitted say.\n\n\n Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Eighty-ninth Night,\n\nShe pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Abdullah\nwas a-wearied with watching and wanted to sleep, they also lay beside\nhim on another couch and waited till he was drowned in slumber and when\nthey were certified thereof they arose and knelt upon him: whereupon he\nawoke and seeing them kneeling on his breast, said to them, \u201cWhat is\nthis, O my brothers?\u201d Cried they, \u201cWe are no brothers of thine, nor do\nwe know thee unmannerly that thou art! Thy death is become better than\nthy life.\u201d Then they gripped him by the throat and throttled him, till\nhe lost his senses and abode without motion; so that they deemed him\ndead. Now the pavilion wherein they were overlooked the river; so they\ncast him into the water; but, when he fell, Allah sent to his aid a\ndolphin[550] who was accustomed to come under that pavilion because the\nkitchen had a window that gave upon the stream; and, as often as they\nslaughtered any beast there, it was their wont to throw the refuse into\nthe river and the dolphin came and picked it up from the surface of the\nwater; wherefore he ever resorted to the place. That day they had cast\nout much offal by reason of the banquet; so the dolphin ate more than of\nwont and gained strength. Hearing the splash of Abdullah\u2019s fall, he\nhastened to the spot, where he saw a son of Adam and Allah guided him so\nthat he took the man on his back and crossing the current made with him\nfor the other bank, where he cast his burthen ashore. Now the place\nwhere the dolphin cast up Abdullah was a well-beaten highway, and\npresently up came a caravan and finding him lying on the river bank,\nsaid, \u201cHere is a drowned man, whom the river hath cast up;\u201d and the\ntravellers gathered around to gaze at the corpse. The Shaykh of the\ncaravan was a man of worth, skilled in all sciences and versed in the\nmystery of medicine and, withal, sound of judgment: so he said to them,\n\u201cO folk, what is the news?\u201d They answered, \u201cHere is a drowned man;\u201d\nwhereupon he went up to Abdullah and examining him, said to them, \u201cO\nfolk, there is life yet in this young man, who is a person of condition\nand of the sons of the great, bred in honour and fortune, and Inshallah\nthere is still hope of him.\u201d Then he took him and clothing him in dry\nclothes warmed him before the fire; after which he nursed him and tended\nhim three days\u2019 march till he revived; but he was passing feeble by\nreason of the shock, and the chief of the caravan proceeded to medicine\nhim with such simples as he knew, what while they ceased not faring on\ntill they had travelled thirty days\u2019 journey from Bassorah and came to a\ncity in the land of the Persians, by name \u2019A\u00faj.[551] Here they alighted\nat a Khan and spread Abdullah a bed, where he lay groaning all night and\ntroubling the folk with his groans. And when morning morrowed the\nconcierge of the Khan came to the chief of the caravan and said to him,\n\u201cWhat is this sick man thou hast with thee? Verily, he disturbeth us.\u201d\nQuoth the chief, \u201cI found him by the way, on the river-bank and well\nnigh drowned; and I have tended him, but to no effect, for he recovereth\nnot.\u201d Said the porter, \u201cShow him to the Shaykhah[552] R\u00e1jihah.\u201d \u201cWho is\nthis Religious?\u201d asked the chief of the caravan, and the door-keeper\nanswered, \u201cThere is with us a holy woman, a clean maid and a comely,\ncalled Rajihah, to whom they present whoso hath any ailment; and he\npasseth a single night in her house and awaketh on the morrow, whole and\nailing nothing.\u201d Quoth the chief, \u201cDirect me to her;\u201d and quoth the\nporter, \u201cTake up thy sick man.\u201d So he took up Abdullah and the\ndoorkeeper forewent him, till he came to a hermitage, where he saw folk\nentering with many an ex voto offering and other folk coming forth,\nrejoicing. The porter went in, till he came to the curtain,[553] and\nsaid, \u201cPermission, O Shaykhah Rajihah! Take this sick man.\u201d Said she,\n\u201cBring him within the curtain;\u201d and the porter said to Abdullah,\n\u201cEnter.\u201d So he entered and looking upon the holy woman, saw her to be\nhis wife whom he had brought from the City of Stone. And when he knew\nher she also knew him and saluted him and he returned her salam. Then\nsaid he, \u201cWho brought thee hither?\u201d; and she answered, \u201cWhen I saw that\nthy brothers had cast thee away and were contending concerning me, I\nthrew myself into the sea; but my Shaykh Al-Khizr Abu al-\u2019Abb\u00e1s took me\nup and brought me to this hermitage, where he gave me leave to heal the\nsick and bade cry in the city:\u2014Whoso hath any ailment, let him repair to\nthe Shaykhah Rajihah; and he also said to me:\u2014Tarry in this hermitage\ntill the time betide, and thy husband shall come to thee here. So all\nthe sick used to flock to me and I rubbed them and shampoo\u2019d them and\nthey awoke on the morrow whole and sound; whereby the report of me\nbecame noised abroad among the folk, and they brought me votive gifts,\nso that I have with me abundant wealth. And now I live here in high\nhonour and worship, and all the people of these parts seek my prayers.\u201d\nThen she rubbed him and by the ordinance of Allah the Most High, he\nbecame whole. Now Al-Khizr used to come to her every Friday night, and\nit chanced that the day of Abdullah\u2019s coming was a Thursday.[554]\nAccordingly, when the night darkened he and she sat, after a supper of\nthe richest meats, awaiting the coming of Al-Khizr, who made his\nappearance anon and carrying them forth of the hermitage, set them down\nin Abdullah\u2019s palace at Bassorah, where he left them and went his way.\nAs soon as it was day, Abdullah examined the palace and knew it for his\nown; then, hearing the folk clamouring without, he looked forth of the\nlattice and saw his brothers crucified, each on his own cross. Now the\nreason of this was as ensueth. When they had thrown him into the Tigris,\nthe twain arose on the morrow, weeping and saying, \u201cOur brother! the\nJinniyah hath carried off our brother!\u201d Then they made ready a present\nand sent it to the Caliph, acquainting him with these tidings and suing\nfrom him the government of Bassorah. He sent for them and questioned\nthem and they told him the false tale we have recounted, whereupon he\nwas exceeding wroth.[555] So that night he prayed a two-bow prayer\nbefore daybreak, as of his wont, and called upon the tribes of the Jinn,\nwho came before him subject-wise, and he questioned them of Abdullah:\nwhen they sware to him that none of them had done him aught of hurt and\nsaid, \u201cWe know not what is become of him.\u201d Then came Sa\u2019idah, daughter\nof the Red King, and acquainted the Caliph with the truth of Abdullah\u2019s\ncase, and he dismissed the Jinn. On the morrow, he subjected Nasir and\nMansur to the bastinado till they confessed, one against other:\nwhereupon the Caliph was enraged with them and cried, \u201cCarry them to\nBassorah and crucify them there before Abdullah\u2019s palace.\u201d Such was\ntheir case; but as regards Abdullah, when he saw his brothers crucified,\nhe commanded to bury them, then took horse and repairing to Baghdad,\nacquainted the Caliph with that which his brothers had done with him,\nfrom first to last and told him how he had recovered his wife; whereat\nAl-Rashid marvelled and summoning the Kazi and the witnesses, bade draw\nup the marriage-contract between Abdullah and the damsel whom he had\nbrought from the City of Stone. So he went in to her and woned with her\nat Bassorah till there came to them the Destroyer of Delights and the\nSeverer of societies; and extolled be the perfection of the Living, who\ndieth not! Moreover, O auspicious King, I have heard a tale anent.\n\n-----\n\nFootnote 476:\n\n Lane owns that this is \u201cone of the most entertaining tales in the\n work,\u201d but he omits it because its chief and best portion is\n essentially the same as \u201cThe story of the First of the Three Ladies of\n Baghdad.\u201d The truth is he was straightened for space by his publisher\n and thus compelled to cut out some of the best stories in The Nights.\n\nFootnote 477:\n\n _i.e._ Ibrahim of Mosul, the musician poet often mentioned in The\n Nights. I must again warn the reader that the name is pronounced\n Is-h\u00e1k (like Isaac with a central aspirate) not Ish\u00e1k. This is not\n unnecessary when we hear Tait-shill for Tait\u2019s hill and\n \u201cFrederick-shall\u201d for Friedrich, shall.\n\nFootnote 478:\n\n _i.e._ He was a proficient, an adept.\n\nFootnote 479:\n\n Arab. from Pers. D\u00fal\u00e1b = a waterwheel, a buttery, a cupboard.\n\nFootnote 480:\n\n Arab. \u201cFut\u00far,\u201d the chhot\u00ed h\u00e1zir\u00ed of Anglo-India or breakfast proper,\n eaten by Moslems immediately after the dawn-prayer except in Ram\u00e1z\u00e1n.\n Amongst sensible people it is a substantial meal of bread and boiled\n beans, eggs, cheese, curded milk and the pastry called fat\u00edrah,\n followed by coffee and a pipe. See Lane M. E. chapt. v. and my\n Pilgrimage ii. 48.\n\nFootnote 481:\n\n This \u201coff-with-his-head\u201d style must not be understood literally. As I\n have noted, it is intended by the writer to show the Kingship and the\n majesty of the \u201cVicar of Allah.\u201d\n\nFootnote 482:\n\n Lit. \u201cthe calamity of man (ins\u00e1n) is from the tongue\u201d (lis\u00e1n).\n\nFootnote 483:\n\n For Khatt Shar\u00edf, lit. = a noble letter, see vol. ii. 39.\n\nFootnote 484:\n\n Arab. \u201cAllah yastura-k\u201d = protect thee by hiding what had better be\n hidden.\n\nFootnote 485:\n\n Arab. \u201cJan\u00e1z\u00edr\u201d = chains, an Arabised plural of the Pers. Zanj\u00edr with\n the metathesis or transposition of letters peculiar to the vulgar;\n \u201cJan\u00e1z\u00edr\u201d for \u201cZan\u00e1j\u00edr.\u201d\n\nFootnote 486:\n\n Arab. \u201cSaf\u00ednah\u201d = (Noah\u2019s) Ark, a myth derived from the Baris of Egypt\n with subsequent embellishments from the Babylonian deluge-legends: the\n latter may have been survivals of the days when the waters of the\n Persian Gulf extended to the mountains of Eastern Syria. Hence I would\n explain the existence of extinct volcanoes within sight of Damascus\n (see Unexplored Syria i. p. 159) visited, I believe, for the first\n time by my late friend Charles F. Tyrwhitt-Drake and myself in May,\n 1871.\n\nFootnote 487:\n\n Mansur and N\u00e1sir are passive and active participles from the same\n root, Nasr = victory; the former means triumphant and the latter\n triumphing.\n\nFootnote 488:\n\n The normal term of Moslem mourning, which Mohammed greatly reduced\n disliking the abuse of it by the Jews who even in the present day are\n the strictest in its observance.\n\nFootnote 489:\n\n An euphuistic and euphemistic style of saying, \u201cNo, we don\u2019t know.\u201d\n\nFootnote 490:\n\n Arab. \u201cRahan,\u201d an article placed with him in pawn.\n\nFootnote 491:\n\n A Moslem is bound, not only by honour but by religion, to discharge\n the debts of his dead father and mother and so save them from\n punishment on Judgment-day. Mohammed who enjoined mercy to debtors\n while in the flesh (chapt. ii. 280, etc.) said \u201cAllah covereth all\n faults except debt; that is to say, there will be punishment\n therefor.\u201d Also \u201cA martyr shall be pardoned every fault but debt.\u201d On\n one occasion he refused to pray for a Moslem who died insolvent. Such\n harshness is a curious contrast with the leniency which advised the\n creditor to remit debts by way of alms. And practically this mild view\n of indebtedness renders it highly unadvisable to oblige a Moslem\n friend with a loan.\n\nFootnote 492:\n\n _i.e._ he did not press them for payment; and, it must be remembered,\n he received no interest upon his monies, this being forbidden in the\n Koran.\n\nFootnote 493:\n\n Al-Mas\u2019\u00fadi (chap. xvii.) alludes to furs of Sable (Sam\u00far), hermelin\n (Al-Farwah) and Bort\u00e1s (Turkish) furs of black and red foxes. For\n Sam\u00far see vol. iv. 57. Sinj\u00e1b is Persian for the skin of the grey\n squirrel (_Mus lemmus_, the lemming), the meniver, erroneously\n miniver, (menu vair) as opposed to the ermine = (_Mus Armenius_, or\n _mustela erminia_.) I never visit England without being surprised at\n the vile furs worn by the rich, and the folly of the poor in not\n adopting the sheepskin with the wool inside and the leather well\n tanned which keeps the peasant warm and comfortable between Croatia\n and Afghanistan.\n\nFootnote 494:\n\n Arab. \u201cT\u00e1jir Alf\u00ed\u201d which may mean a thousand dinars (\u00a3500) or a\n thousand purses (= \u00a35,000). \u201cAlf\u00ed\u201d is not an uncommon P.N., meaning\n that the bearer (Pasha or pauper) had been bought for a thousand left\n indefinite.\n\nFootnote 495:\n\n Tigris-Euphrates.\n\nFootnote 496:\n\n Possibly the quarter of Baghdad so called and mentioned in The Nights\n more than once.\n\nFootnote 497:\n\n For this fiery sea see Sind Revisited i. 19.\n\nFootnote 498:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-Ghayb\u201d which may also mean \u201cin the future\u201d (unknown to man).\n\nFootnote 499:\n\n Arab. \u201cJabal\u201d; here a mountainous island: see vol. i. 140.\n\nFootnote 500:\n\n _i.e._ ye shall be spared this day\u2019s miseries. See my Pilgrimage vol.\n i. 314, and the delight with which we glided into Mars\u00e1 Damghah.\n\nFootnote 501:\n\n Arab. \u201cS\u00faw\u00e1n\u201d = \u201cSyenite\u201d (= granite) also used for flint and other\n hard stones. See vol. i. 238.\n\nFootnote 502:\n\n Koran xxiv. Male children are to the Arab as much prized an object of\n possession as riches, since without them wealth is of no value to him.\n Mohammed, therefore, couples wealth with children as the two things\n wherewith one wards off the ills of this world, though they are\n powerless against those of the world to come.\n\nFootnote 503:\n\n An exclamation derived from the Surat Nasr (cx. 1) one of the most\n affecting in the Koran. It gave Mohammed warning of his death and\n caused Al-Abb\u00e1s to shed tears; the Prophet sings a song of victory in\n the ixth year of the Hijrah (he died on the xth) and implores the\n pardon of his Lord.\n\nFootnote 504:\n\n Arab. \u201cD\u00e1irah,\u201d a basin surrounded by hills. The words which follow\n may mean, \u201cAn hour\u2019s journey or more in breadth.\u201d\n\nFootnote 505:\n\n These petrified folk have occurred in the \u201cEldest Lady\u2019s Tale\u201d (vol.\n i. 165), where they are of \u201cblack stone.\u201d\n\nFootnote 506:\n\n Arab. \u201cT\u00e1j Kisrawi,\u201d such as was worn by the Chosroes Kings. See vol.\n i. 75.\n\nFootnote 507:\n\n The familiar and far-famed Napoleonic pose, with the arms crossed over\n the breast, is throughout the East the attitude assumed by slave and\n servant in presence of his master. Those who send statues to\n Anglo-India should remember this.\n\nFootnote 508:\n\n Arab. \u201cTa\u2019 \u00e1l\u00edk\u201d = hanging lamps, often in lantern shape with coloured\n glass and profuse ornamentation; the Maroccan are now familiar to\n England.\n\nFootnote 509:\n\n Arab. \u201cKidrah,\u201d lit. = a pot, kettle: it can hardly mean \u201can\n interval.\u201d\n\nFootnote 510:\n\n The wicket or small doorway, especially by the side of a gate or\n portal, is called \u201cthe eye of the needle\u201d and explains Matt. xix. 24,\n and Koran vii. 38. In the Rabbinic form of the proverb the camel\n becomes an elephant. Some have preferred to change the Koranic Jamal\n (camel) for Habl (cable) and much ingenuity has been wasted by\n Christian commentators on Mark x. 25, and Luke xviii. 25.\n\nFootnote 511:\n\n _i.e._ A \u201cKanz\u201d (enchanted treasury) usually hidden underground but\n opened by a counter-spell and transferred to earth\u2019s face. The reader\n will note the gorgeousness of the picture.\n\nFootnote 512:\n\n Oriental writers, Indian and Persian, as well as Arab, lay great\n stress upon the extreme delicacy of the skin of the fair ones\n celebrated in their works, constantly attributing to their heroines\n bodies so sensitive as to brook with difficulty the contact of the\n finest shift. Several instances of this will be found in the present\n collection and we may fairly assume that the skin of an Eastern\n beauty, under the influence of constant seclusion and the unremitting\n use of cosmetics and the bath, would in time attain a pitch of\n delicacy and sensitiveness such as would in some measure justify the\n seemingly extravagant statements of their poetical admirers, of which\n the following anecdote (quoted by Ibn Khellikan from the historian Et\n Teberi) is a fair specimen. Ardeshir ibn Babek (Artaxerxes I.), the\n first Sassanian King of Persia (A.D. 226\u2013242), having long\n unsuccessfully besieged El Hedr, a strong city of Mesopotamia\n belonging to the petty King Es Satiroun, at last obtained possession\n of it by the treachery of the owner\u2019s daughter Nezireh and married the\n latter, this having been the price stipulated by her for the betrayal\n to him of the place. \u201cIt happened afterwards that, one night, as she\n was unable to sleep and turned from side to side in the bed, Ardeshir\n asked her what prevented her from sleeping. She replied, \u2018I never yet\n slept on a rougher bed than this; I feel something irk me.\u2019 He ordered\n the bed to be changed, but she was still unable to sleep. Next\n morning, she complained of her side, and on examination, a myrtle-leaf\n was found adhering to a fold of the skin, from which it had drawn\n blood. Astonished at this circumstance, Ardeshir asked her if it was\n this that had kept her awake and she replied in the affirmative. \u2018How\n then,\u2019 asked he, \u2018did your father bring you up?\u2019 She answered, \u2018He\n spread me a bed of satin and clad me in silk and fed me with marrow\n and cream and the honey of virgin bees and gave me pure wine to\n drink.\u2019 Quoth Ardeshir, \u2019The same return which you made your father\n for his kindness would be made much more readily to me\u2019; and bade bind\n her by the hair to the tail of a horse, which galloped off with her\n and killed her.\u201d It will be remembered that the true princess, in the\n well-known German popular tale, is discovered by a similar incident to\n that of the myrtle-leaf. I quote this excellent note from Mr. Payne\n (ix. 148), only regretting that annotation did not enter into his plan\n of producing The Nights. Amongst Hindu story-tellers a phenomenal\n softness of the skin is a _lieu commun_: see Vikram and the Vampire\n (p. 285, \u201cOf the marvellous delicacy of their Queens\u201d); and the Tale\n of the Sybarite might be referred to in the lines given above.\n\nFootnote 513:\n\n \u201c(55) Indeed joyous on that day are the people of Paradise in their\n employ; (56) In shades, on bridal couches reclining they and their\n wives: (57) Fruits have they therein and whatso they desire. (58)\n \u2018Peace!\u2019 shall be a word from a compassionating Lord.\u201d Koran xxxvi.\n 55\u201358, the famous Chapt. \u201cY\u00e1 S\u00edn;\u201d which most educated Moslems learn\n by heart. See vol. iii. 19. In addition to the proofs there offered\n that the Moslem Paradise is not wholly sensual I may quote, \u201cNo soul\n wotteth what coolth of the eyes is reserved (for the good) in\n recompense of their works\u201d (Koran lxx. 17). The Paradise of eating,\n drinking, and copulating which Mr. Palgrave (Arabia, i. 368) calls \u201can\n everlasting brothel between forty celestial concubines\u201d was preached\n solely to the baser sort of humanity which can understand and\n appreciate only the pleasures of the flesh. To talk of spiritual joys\n before the Badawin would have been a _non-sens_, even as it would be\n to the roughs of our great cities.\n\nFootnote 514:\n\n Arab. \u201cLajlaj\u201d lit. = rolling anything round the mouth when eating;\n hence speaking inarticulately, being tongue-tied, stuttering, etc.\n\nFootnote 515:\n\n The classical \u201cPhylarchs,\u201d who had charge of the Badawin.\n\nFootnote 516:\n\n \u201cThe Jab\u00e1birah\u201d (giant-rulers of Syria) and the \u201cAk\u00e1sirah\u201d\n (Chosro\u00ebs-Kings of Persia).\n\nFootnote 517:\n\n This shows (and we are presently told) that the intruder was Al-Khizr,\n the \u201cGreen Prophet,\u201d for whom see vol. iv. 175.\n\nFootnote 518:\n\n _i.e._ of salvation supposed to radiate from all Prophets, esp. from\n Mohammed.\n\nFootnote 519:\n\n This formula which has occurred from the beginning (vol. i. 1) is\n essentially Koranic: See Chapt. li. 18\u201319 and passim.\n\nFootnote 520:\n\n This trick of the priest hidden within the image may date from the\n days of the vocal Memnon, and was a favourite in India esp. at the\n shrine of Somnauth (Soma-n\u00e1th), the Moon-god, Atergatis Aphrodite,\n etc.\n\nFootnote 521:\n\n Arab. \u201cAlm\u00e1s\u201d = Gr. Adamas. In opposition to the learned ex-Professor\n Maskelyne I hold that the cutting of the diamond is of very ancient\n date. Mr. W. M. Flinders Patrie (The Pyramids and Temples of Gizah,\n London: Field and Tuer, 1884) whose studies have thoroughly demolished\n the freaks and unfacts, the fads and fancies of the \u201cPyramidists,\u201d and\n who may be said to have raised measurement to the rank of a fine art,\n believes that the Euritic statues of old Egypt such as that of Khufu\n (Cheops) in the Bulak Museum were drilled by means of diamonds.\n Athen\u00e6us tells us (lib. v.) that the Indians brought pearls and\n diamonds to the procession of Ptolemy Philadelphus; and this suggests\n cutting, as nothing can be less ornamental than the uncut stone.\n\nFootnote 522:\n\n _i.e._ as if they were holding a \u201cDurbar\u201d; the King\u2019s idol in the Sadr\n or place of honour and the others ranged about it in their several\n ranks.\n\nFootnote 523:\n\n These words are probably borrowed from the taunts of Elijah to the\n priests of Baal (I Kings xviii. 27). Both Jews and Moslems wilfully\n ignored the proper use of the image or idol which was to serve as a\n Keblah or direction of prayer and an object upon which to concentrate\n thought and looked only to the abuse of the ignobile vulgus who\n believe in its intrinsic powers. Christendom has perpetuated the\n dispute: Romanism affects statues and pictures! Greek orthodoxy\n pictures and not statues and the so-called Protestantism ousts both.\n\nFootnote 524:\n\n Arab. \u201cSa\u2019\u00e1dah\u201d = worldly prosperity and future happiness.\n\nFootnote 525:\n\n Arab. \u201cAl-\u2019Ahd wa al-M\u00eds\u00e1k\u201d the troth pledged between the Mur\u00edd or\n apprentice-Darwaysh and the Shaykh or Master-Darwaysh binding the\n former to implicit obedience etc.\n\nFootnote 526:\n\n Arab. \u201cTaakh\u00edr,\u201d lit. postponement and meaning acting with\n deliberation as opposed to \u201cAjal\u201d (haste), precipitate action\n condemned in the Koran lxv. 38.\n\nFootnote 527:\n\n _i.e._ I have been lucky enough to get this and we will share it\n amongst us.\n\nFootnote 528:\n\n _i.e._ of saving me from being ravished.\n\nFootnote 529:\n\n Sa\u2019\u00eddah = the auspicious (fem.): Mub\u00e1rakah, = the blessed; both names\n showing that the bearers were Moslemahs.\n\nFootnote 530:\n\n _i.e._ the base-born from whom base deeds may be expected.\n\nFootnote 531:\n\n Arab. \u201cBadlat Kun\u00faz\u00edyah\u201d = such a dress as would be found in enchanted\n hoards (Kun\u00faz): _e.g._ Prince Esterhazy\u2019s diamond jacket.\n\nFootnote 532:\n\n The _lieu d\u2019aisance_ in Eastern crafts is usually a wooden cage or\n framework fastened outside the gunwale, very cleanly but in foul\n weather very uncomfortable and even dangerous.\n\nFootnote 533:\n\n Arab. \u201cGhull,\u201d a collar of iron or other metal, sometimes made to\n resemble the Chinese Kza or Cangue, a kind of ambulant pillory,\n serving like the old stocks which still show in England the veteris\n vestigia ruris. See Davis, \u201cThe Chinese,\u201d i. 241. According to\n Al-Siy\u00fati (p. 362) the Caliph Al-Mutawakkil ordered the Christians to\n wear these Ghulls round the neck, yellow head-gear and girdles, to use\n wooden stirrups and to place figures of devils before their houses.\n The writer of The Nights presently changes Ghull to \u201cchains and\n fetters of iron.\u201d\n\nFootnote 534:\n\n Arab. \u201cY\u00e1 ful\u00e1n,\u201d O certain person! See vol. iii. 191.\n\nFootnote 535:\n\n Father of Harun al-Rashid A.H. 158\u2013169 (= 775\u2013785) third Abbaside who\n both in the Mac. and the Bul. Edits. is called \u201cthe fifth of the sons\n of Al-Abbas.\u201d He was a good poet and a man of letters, also a fierce\n persecutor of the \u201cZindiks\u201d (Al-Siyuti 278), a term especially applied\n to those who read the Zend books and adhered to Zoroastrianism,\n although afterwards applied to any heretic or atheist. He made many\n changes at Meccah and was the first who had a train of camels laden\n with snow for his refreshment along a measured road of 700 miles\n (Gibbon, chapt. lii.). He died of an accident when hunting: others say\n he was poisoned after leaving his throne to his sons Musa al-Hadi and\n Harun al-Rashid. The name means \u201cHeaven-directed\u201d and must not be\n confounded with the title of the twelfth Shi\u2019ah Im\u00e1m Mohammed Abu\n al-K\u00e1sim born at Sarramanrai A.H. 255 whom Sale (sect. iv.) calls\n \u201cMahdi or Director\u201d and whose expected return has caused and will\n cause so much trouble in Al-Islam.\n\nFootnote 536:\n\n This speciosum miraculum must not be held a proof that the tale was\n written many years after the days of Al-Rashid. Miracles grow apace in\n the East and a few years suffice to mature them. The invasion of\n Abraha the Abyssinia took place during the year of Mohammed\u2019s birth;\n and yet in an early chapter of the Koran (No. cv.) written perhaps\n forty-five years afterwards, the small-pox is turned into a puerile\n and extravagant miracle. I myself became the subject of a miracle in\n Sind which is duly chronicled in the family-annals of a certain Pir or\n religious teacher. See History of Sindh (p. 230) and Sind Revisited\n (i. 156).\n\nFootnote 537:\n\n In the texts, \u201cSixth.\u201d\n\nFootnote 538:\n\n Arab. \u201cNajis\u201d = ceremonially impure especially the dog\u2019s mouth like\n the cow\u2019s mouth amongst the Hindus; and requiring after contact the\n Wuzu-ablution before the Moslem can pray.\n\nFootnote 539:\n\n Arab. \u201cAkl al-hashamah\u201d (hashamah = retinue; hishmah = reverence,\n bashfulness) which may also mean \u201cdecorously and respectfully,\u201d\n according to the vowel-points.\n\nFootnote 540:\n\n _i.e._ as the Viceregent of Allah and Vicar of the Prophet.\n\nFootnote 541:\n\n For the superiority of mankind to the Jinn see vol. viii. 5; 44.\n\nFootnote 542:\n\n According to Al-Siyuti, Harun Al-Rashid prayed every day a hundred\n bows.\n\nFootnote 543:\n\n As the sad end of his betrothed was still to be accounted for.\n\nFootnote 544:\n\n For the martyrdom of the drowned see vol. i, 171, to quote no other\n places.\n\nFootnote 545:\n\n _i.e._ if he have the power to revenge himself. The sentiment is\n Christian rather than Moslem.\n\nFootnote 546:\n\n _i.e._ the power acquired (as we afterwards learn) by the regular\n praying of the dawn-prayer. It is not often that The Nights condescend\n to point a moral or inculcate a lesson as here; and we are truly\n thankful for the immunity.\n\nFootnote 547:\n\n Arab. \u201cMus\u00e1fahah\u201d which, I have said, serves for our shaking hands:\n and extends over wide regions. They apply the palms of the right hands\n flat to each other without squeezing the fingers and then raise the\n latter to the forehead. Pilgrimage ii. 332, has also been quoted.\n\nFootnote 548:\n\n Equivalent to our saying about an ill wind, etc.\n\nFootnote 549:\n\n A proof of his extreme simplicity and bonhomie.\n\nFootnote 550:\n\n Arab. \u201cD\u00e1rf\u00edl\u201d = the Gr. \u03b4\u03b5\u03bb\u03c6\u03af\u03c2 later \u03b4\u03b5\u03bb\u03c6\u03af\u03bd suggesting that the\n writer had read of Arion in Herodotus i. 23.\n\nFootnote 551:\n\n \u2019A\u00faj; I can only suggest, with due diffidence, that this is intended\n for K\u00fach the well-known Baloch city in Persian Carmania (Kirm\u00e1n) and\n meant by Richardson\u2019s \u201cKoch u buloch.\u201d But as the writer borrows so\n much from Al-Mas\u2019udi it may possibly be A\u00fak in S\u00edst\u00e1n where stood the\n heretical city \u201cSh\u00e1drak,\u201d chapt. cxxii.\n\nFootnote 552:\n\n _i.e._ The excellent (or surpassing) Religious. Shaykhah, the fem. of\n Shaykh, is a she-chief, even the head of the dancing-girls will be\n entitled \u201cShaykhah.\u201d\n\nFootnote 553:\n\n The curtain would screen her from the sight of men-invalids and\n probably hung across the single room of the \u201cZ\u00e1wiyah\u201d or hermit\u2019s\n cell. The curtain is noticed in the tales of two other reverend women;\n vols. iv. 155 and v. 257.\n\nFootnote 554:\n\n Abdullah met his wife on Thursday, the night of which would amongst\n Moslems be Friday night.\n\nFootnote 555:\n\n _i.e._ with Sa\u2019idah.\n\n\n END OF VOL. IX.\n\n[Illustration: \u0648\u0627\u0644\u0633\u0644\u0627\u0645]\n\n\n\n\n INDEX\n\n\n Ab\u00e1 al-Khayr = my good sir, etc., 54\n\n Ab\u00fa al-Lays (Pr. N.) = Father of the Lion, 211\n\n Ab\u00fa Dalaf al-Ijil\u00ed (a soldier famed for liberality and culture), 189\n\n Ab\u00fa K\u00edr = Father of the Pitch (Abou Kir), 134\n\n Ab\u00fa S\u00edr (corruption of Pousiri = Busiris), 134\n\n Ab\u00fa Sirh\u00e1n = wolf, 104\n\n Acquittance of all possible claims after business transactions, 285\n\n \u00c1d and Tham\u00fad (pre-historic tribes), 174\n\n Adab = scholarship, 41\n\n \u00c1dam\u00ed = an Adamite (opposed to Jinn), 169\n\n Ad\u00edm al-Zauk = lack-tact, 206\n\n Admiral (fishing for the King\u2019s table), 159\n\n Adultery (son of = base born), 331\n\n Af\u2019\u00e0 = \u1f44\u03c6\u03b9\u03c2 (a snake), 37\n\n Ahd (Al-) wa al-Mis\u00e1k = oath and covenant, 327\n\n Ahmad bin Ab\u00ed Duw\u00e1d (High Chancellor to the Abbasides), 244\n\n \u201cAidance from Allah and victory are near\u201d, 317\n\n Ak\u00e1sirah = Chosro\u00ebs-Kings, 323\n\n Akl al-Hishmah = eating decorously, 337\n\n Akka = Acre, 19\n\n Al\u00e0 j\u00fadi-k = to thy generosity, 150; 208\n\n Al\u00e0 mahlak = at thy leisure, 168\n\n All will not be save well = it will be the worse for him, 293\n\n Allah (will make no way for the Infidels over the True Believers), 16\n\n \u2014\u2014 (I seek refuge with), 35\n\n \u2014\u2014 (he was jealous for Almighty), 104\n\n \u2014\u2014 (I fear Him in respect of = I am governed by Him in my dealings\n with), 123\n\n \u2014\u2014 (pardon thee, showing that the speaker does not believe in another\u2019s\n tale), 154\n\n \u2014\u2014 (the Provider), 166\n\n \u2014\u2014 (for the love of), 170\n\n \u2014\u2014 (Kar\u00edm = God is bountiful), 167\n\n \u2014\u2014 (grant thee grace = pardon thee), 283\n\n \u2014\u2014 (yastura-k = will veil thee), 309\n\n \u2014\u2014 (sole Scient of the hidden things be extolled), 311\n\n \u2014\u2014 (raised the heavens without columns), 324\n\n Alm\u00e1s = Gr. Adamas, 325\n\n Aloes (well appreciated in Eastern medicine), 100\n\n \u2014\u2014 (the finest used for making Nadd), 150\n\n \u2019Amal = action, operation (applied to drugs etc.), 274\n\n \u00c1m\u00edn (Amen) = So it be!, 131\n\n Amm\u00e1 laka au \u2019alayka = either to thee (the gain) or upon thee (the\n loss), 11\n\n Amr (Al) = command, matter, affair, 67\n\n Analphabetic Amirs, 126\n\n Angels (taking precedence in the order of created beings), 81\n\n Animals (have no fear of man), 181\n\n Ants (a destructive power in tropic climates), 46\n\n Any\u00e1b (pl. of N\u00e1b) = grinder teeth, 140\n\n A\u2019r\u00e1b = dwellers in the Desert, 293\n\n \u2019Ar\u00edsh (Al-) frontier town between Egypt and Palestine, 286\n\n \u2019Ar\u00edshah = arbour, etc., 219\n\n Arithmology (cumbrous in Arabic for the lack of the higher numerals),\n 123\n\n \u00c1s\u00e1r = traces, 255\n\n A-Shar\u00edf anta = art thou a noble?, 231\n\n \u2019Atsah = sneezing, 220\n\n \u2019A\u00faj = Persian town K\u00fach (?), 347\n\n Aw\u00e1k = pl. of Uk\u00edyyah _q.v._, 216\n\n \u2019Aw\u00e1shik = hucklebones, cockles, 268\n\n Az\u2019ar = having thin hair; tailless, 185\n\n Az\u00edm (in the slang sense of \u201cmighty fine\u201d), 40\n\n Az\u00edz (Al-) al-Mizr = Magnifico of Misraim, 119\n\n\n B\u00e1b = gate, etc. (sometimes for a sepulchral cave), 286\n\n Badlat Kun\u00faz\u00edyah = treasure-suit, 331\n\n Baghd\u00e1d of Nullity (opposed to the Ubiquity of the World), 13\n\n Bah\u00e1 al-D\u00edn ibn Shadd\u00e1d (Judge Advocate General under Saladin), 23\n\n Bah\u00edmah = black cattle, 71\n\n Bakhkharan\u00ed = he incensed me, 238\n\n Bakhshish (to make a bath-man\u2019s mouth water), 151\n\n Bartaut = Berthold, 8\n\n Basmalah = saying, Bismill\u00e1h, 1\n\n Bat\u00e1rikh = roe, spawn, 139\n\n Bath (setting it a-working = turning on the water), 149\n\n Belle fourchette (greatly respected), 219\n\n Bilking (popular form of), 145\n\n Bishr Barefoot (Sufi ascetic), 21\n\n Breslau edition quoted, 33; 42; 59; 63; 156; 159; 169; 185; 187\n\n Brethren (for kinsfolk), 26\n\n \u2014\u2014 (of trust and brethren of society = friends and acquaintances), 75\n\n Bunn = kind of cake, 72\n\n Buffalo = b\u0153uf \u00e0 l\u2019eau (?), 181\n\n Bulak ed. quoted, 185\n\n Burning (a foretaste of Hell-fire), 158\n\n\n\n Caliphs:\u2014\n Mu\u2019tazid (Al-), 229\n Mutawakkil (Al-), 232\n Mu\u2019tasim (Al-), _ib._\n\n Carelessness of the story-teller, 4\n\n Carpet (let him come to the King\u2019s = before the King as referee), 110\n\n Carpet-room = Throne-room, 121\n\n Citadel (contains the Palace), 102\n\n \u201cCloth\u201d (not \u201cboard\u201d for playing chess), 209\n\n Clothing and decency, 182\n\n Clout (hung over the door of a bath shows that women are bathing), 153\n\n Coffee (mention of probably due to the scribe), 141\n\n \u2014\u2014 (its mention shows a comparatively late date), 255\n\n \u201cCome to my arms, my slight acquaintance\u201d, 177\n\n Conciseness (verging on obscurity), 171\n\n Confusion (universal in the undeveloped mind of man), 78\n\n Contrast (artful, between squalor and gorgeousness), 170\n\n Cousin (has a prior right to marry a cousin), 225\n\n Cowardice of the Fellah (how to be cured), 5\n\n Craft (many names for, connected with Arabic), 138\n\n Creation from nothing, 77\n\n Crescent of the breakfast-f\u00eate, 250\n\n Cruelty (the mystery of explained only by a Law without a Law-giver),\n 37\n\n Curtain (screens a reverend woman from the sight of men-invalids), 347\n\n\n D\u00e1irah = circle, inclosure, 287\n\n \u2014\u2014 (for a basin surrounded by hills), 317\n\n Dand\u00e1n (monstrous fish), 179\n\n D\u00e1rf\u00edl = dolphin, 346\n\n Daw\u00e1 = medicine (for a depilatory), 155\n\n Daw\u00e1t = wooden inkcase with reed-pens, 122\n\n Day (when wealth availeth not), 16\n\n \u2014\u2014 (ye shall be saved from its misery), 215\n\n Dayy\u00fas = pimp, wittol, 297\n\n Debts (of dead parents sacred to the children), 311\n\n Delicacy of the female skin, 321\n\n Democracy of despotism, 94\n\n Devil (allowed to go about the world and seduce mankind), 82\n\n Diamond (its cutting of very ancient date), 325\n\n Diaphoresis (a sign of the abatement of a disease), 146\n\n D\u00edn al-a\u2019raj = the perverted faith, 11\n\n Din\u00e1r = denarius (description of one), 294\n\n D\u00edv\u00e1n (fanciful origin of the word), 108\n\n Don Juan quoted, 190\n\n Drowning (a martyr\u2019s death), 158\n\n Dukh\u00e1n = smoke (meaning tobacco for the Chibouk), 156\n\n D\u00fal\u00e1b = waterwheel; buttery; cupboard, 306\n\n Durbar of idols, 325\n\n Duw\u00e1mah = whirlpool, 93\n\n\n Egypt (derivation of the name), 286\n\n Elliptical style of the Eastern story-teller, 160\n\n Emirs (of the wild Arabs = Phylarchs), 322\n\n Emma (hides her lover under her cloak), 8\n\n Epistasis without prostasis, 240\n\n Euphemistic speech, 180; 224\n\n Euphuistic speech, 43\n\n Euthanasia and an\u00e6sthetics, 90\n\n \u201cEye of the needle\u201d (for wicket-door), 320\n\n Eyes (no male has ever filled mine = none has pleased me), 222\n\n\n Fak\u00edr (the, and his jar of butter; congeners of the tale), 40\n\n Farz (mentioned after Sunnah because jingling with Arz), 15\n\n Fasy\u00e1n Salh al-Suby\u00e1n (Pr. N.) = Fizzle, Dung of Children, 11\n\n Faswah = susurrus, 291\n\n Fatalism and predestination, 45\n\n Fate and Freewill, 80\n\n Fath (Al-) bin Khak\u00e1n (boon companion), 245\n\n F\u00e1tihah (pronounced to make an agreement binding), 138\n\n Fellah = peasant, husbandman, 40\n\n Fellah chaff, 152\n\n Fingers (names of), 160\n\n Finj\u00e1n = egg-shell cup for coffee, 268\n\n Firdaus = Paradise, 214\n\n Fire = Hell (home of suicides), 25\n\n \u201cForcible eateth feeble\u201d, 179\n\n Fore-arm (for proficiency), 306\n\n Freedom (granted to a slave for the sake of reward from Allah), 243\n\n Fumigations (to exorcise demons, etc.), 29\n\n Fur\u00e1t = Euphrates (derivation of the name), 17\n\n Fut\u00far = breakfast, 307\n\n Fuzayl bin \u2019Iy\u00e1z (Sufi ascetic), 21\n\n\n Gate (of war opened), 9\n\n Gates (of Heaven are open), 221\n\n \u2014\u2014 (shut during Friday devotion), 259\n\n Ghaliy\u00fan = galleon, 138\n\n Ghaz\u00e1lah = gazelle (a slave-girl\u2019s name), 209\n\n Ghayb (Al-) = secret purpose; future, 314\n\n Ghaz\u00e1-wood, 27\n\n Ghull = iron collar, 333\n\n Gh\u00fals (whose bellies none may fill but Allah), 152\n\n Ghurbah (Al-) Kurbah = \u201cTravel is Travail\u201d, 257\n\n Gift (is for him who is present), 225\n\n Godiva (an Arabic of the wrong sort), 261\n\n Good news, Inshallah = is all right with thee?, 224\n\n Gourd (Ar. Hanzal), 165\n\n Grammatical double entendre, 272\n\n Green garb (distinguishing mark of Al-Khizr), 324\n\n Guadalajara = Wady al-Khar (of dung), 10\n\n\n Hab\u00edb\u00ed wa tab\u00edb\u00ed = my love and leach, 299\n\n Hal\u00edmah = the mild, the gentle (fem.), 265\n\n Halumm\u00fa = draw near (plur.), 44\n\n Hamad\u00e1n (town in Persian Ir\u00e1k), 212\n\n Ham\u00edd (fem. Ham\u00eddah) = praiseworthy, satisfactory, 76\n\n Hanzal = gourd, 165\n\n Har\u00e1m\u00ed = one who lives on unlawful gains, 147\n\n Harf al-Jarr = particle governing the oblique case, mode of thrusting,\n tumbling, 272\n\n Hark, you shall see, 14\n\n Har\u00fan al-Rash\u00edd (as a poet), 17\n\n \u2014\u2014 (said to have prayed every day a hundred bows), 339\n\n H\u00e1shim\u00ed = descendant of H\u00e1shim, 24\n\n Hatt\u00edn (battle of), 19\n\n H\u00e1w\u00ed = Serpent-charmer, 56\n\n Haz\u00e1r Afs\u00e1neh (tales from the), 32\n\n Hind (Al-) al-Aks\u00e0 = Outer Hind or India, 116\n\n Honey (simile for the delights of the World), 64\n\n House (the Holy of Allah = Ka\u2019abah), 178\n\n Hulw\u00e1n al-mift\u00e1h = denier \u00e0 Dieu, 212\n\n Huwayn\u00e1 (Al-) = now drawing near and now moving away, 250\n\n\n Ibl\u00eds = Diabolos, 300\n\n Ibn Hamd\u00fan (transmitter of poetry and history), 229\n\n Ibn \u2019Irs = weasel, 114\n\n Ibrah\u00edm of Mosul, 304\n\n \u2019Irk = root, also sprig, twig, 251\n\n Ishk \u2019uzr\u00ed (in the sense of platonic love), 250\n\n Istahi = have some shame, 255\n\n Istit\u00e1\u2019ah = ableness, 80\n\n \u2014\u2014 (= freewill), 83\n\n\n Jab\u00e1birah (pl. of Jabb\u00e1r = giants), 109\n\n \u2014\u2014 (= conquerors), 323\n\n Jabal = mountain (for mountainous island), 315\n\n J\u00e1h = high station, dignity, 174\n\n Jah\u00e1bizah (pl. of Jahbiz) = acute, intelligent, 62\n\n Jal\u00e1likah = Gallicians, 156\n\n Jan\u00e1zir (for Zan\u00e1jir) = chains, 309\n\n Jannat al-Khuld = the Eternal Garden, 214\n\n Jaw\u00e1s\u00eds (pl. of J\u00e1s\u00fas) = spies (for secret police), 13\n\n Jilb\u00e1b = gown, 290\n\n Junayd al-Baghd\u00e1d\u00ed (Sufi ascetic), 21\n\n\n Kabasa = he shampoo\u2019d, 213\n\n K\u00e1d\u00fas (pl. Kaw\u00e1d\u00eds) = pot of a water-wheel, 218\n\n Kaff Shurayk = a single \u201cBunn\u201d _q.v._, 172\n\n Kahram\u00e1nah = duenna etc., 221\n\n Kahwah (Al-) = coffee-house, 256\n\n Kallim al-Sult\u00e1n (formula of summoning), 224\n\n Kamar al-Zam\u00e1n = Moon of the Age, 247\n\n Kanz = enchanted treasure, 320\n\n Kapt\u00e1n = Captain, 139\n\n K\u00e1rah = budget, large bag, 216\n\n Karkh (Al-), quarter of Baghd\u00e1d, 313\n\n Kasab (Al-) = acquisitiveness, 80\n\n Kas\u00eddahs (their conventionalism), 250\n\n Kasr = upper room, 283\n\n Kaukab al-Sal\u00e1h = Star of the morning, 301\n\n Kaun = being, existence, 63\n\n Kh\u00e1dim = eunuch, 237\n\n Khadiv (not Kedive), Prince, 119\n\n Khafz al-Jin\u00e1h = lowering the wing (demeaning oneself gently), 33\n\n Kh\u00e1liyah (pun on), 291\n\n Khara al-S\u00fas = Weevil\u2019s dung, 10\n\n Khatt Shar\u00edf = noble letter, 309\n\n Khayr wa\u2019\u00c1fiyah = well and in good ease, 94\n\n Khinsir = little (or middle) finger, 160\n\n Khit\u00e1b = exordium, 126\n\n Khiz\u00e1nah (Al-) = treasury, 22\n\n Kidrah = pot, kettle, lamp-globe, 320\n\n Killing (of an unfaithful wife commended by public opinion), 297\n\n Kimkh\u00e1b = brocade, 221\n\n Kit\u00e1b al-Kaz\u00e1 = book of law-cases, 110\n\n Koran quoted (ix. 33), 15\n\n \u2014\u2014 (xxvi. 88, 89; iv. 140), 16\n\n \u2014\u2014 (lvii. 88), 33\n\n \u2014\u2014 (lxxxi. 40), 59\n\n \u2014\u2014 (xii. 28), 119\n\n \u2014\u2014 (xl. 36; lxvii. 14; lxxiv. 39; lxxviii. 69; lxxxviii. 17), 166\n\n \u2014\u2014 (cviii. 3), 185\n\n \u2014\u2014 (xxiv.), 316\n\n \u2014\u2014 (cx. 1), 317\n\n \u2014\u2014 (xxxvi. 55\u201358), 322\n\n \u2014\u2014 (li. 18\u201319), 324\n\n Kundur = frankincense, 7\n\n Kurd\u00fas = body of horse, 111\n\n Kutr Misr = tract of Egypt, 286\n\n\n La\u2019alla = haply, belike; forsure, certainly, 49\n\n L\u00e1 baas = no harm is (yet) done, 102\n\n L\u00e1 rajma ghaybin = without stone-throwing of secrecy, 1\n\n L\u00e1 tankati\u2019\u00ed = sever not thyself from us, 245\n\n L\u00e1it = one acting like the tribe of Lot, sodomite, 253\n\n Lajlaj = rolling in the mouth, stammering, 322\n\n Lane quoted, 32; 33; 146; 168; 170; 171; 182; 221; 222; 224; 226; 229;\n 246; 291; 304; 307\n\n L\u00e1wandiyah (Al-) = Levantines, 275\n\n Laylat al-K\u00e1bilah = to-night, 271\n\n L\u00e1zuward = Ultramarine, 190\n\n Legs (shall be bared on a certain day), 253\n\n Lie (only degrading if told for fear of telling the truth), 87\n\n \u2014\u2014 (simulating truth), 223\n\n Lieu d\u2019aisance (in Eastern crafts), 332\n\n Light (of salvation shining from the face of Prophets), 324\n\n Lij\u00e1m shad\u00edd = sharp bit, 70\n\n Loathing of prohibition, 279\n\n Lot (this is ours = I have been lucky and will share with you), 328\n\n L\u00fal\u00faah = Union-pearl; wild cow, 218\n\n Luss = thief, robber, 106\n\n Lymph (alluding to the \u201cNeptunist\u201d doctrine), 77\n\n\n M\u00e1 D\u00e1hiyatak = What is thy misfortune?, 137\n\n Mahd\u00ed (Al-), Caliph, 334\n\n M\u00e1 kahara-n\u00ed = none vexeth (or has overcome) me, 156\n\n Maghrib (al-Aks\u00e0) = the land of the setting sun, 50\n\n Mahall al-Zauk = seat of taste, sensorium, 83\n\n Mahr = dowry (mode of its payment), 32\n\n Maintenance (of a divorced woman during \u2019Iddah), 32\n\n Male children (as much praised as riches), 316\n\n Malik (Al-) al-N\u00e1sir (Sultan Saladin), 19\n\n Malocchio or Gettatura (evil eye), 247\n\n Man (created after God\u2019s likeness), 79\n\n \u2014\u2014 (I am one of them = never mind my name), 238\n\n \u2014\u2014 (of the people of Allah = a Religious), 51\n\n \u2014\u2014 (his wrong is from the tongue), 309\n\n Mankind (superior to the Jinn), 339\n\n Mans\u00far (Pr. N.) = triumphant, 310\n\n Ma\u2019rifah = article, 272\n\n Martyrdom of the drowned, 340\n\n Massacre (the _grand moyen_ of Eastern state-craft), 110\n\n Mat\u00e1rik (pl. of Mitrak) = targes, 225\n\n Matta\u2019aka \u2019ll\u00e1h = Allah permit thee to enjoy, 125\n\n Maulid = nativity, 289\n\n Maus\u00fal (Al-) = the conjoined (for relative pronoun or particle), 272\n\n Meniver = menu vair (Mus lemmus), 312\n\n Menstruous discharge (made use of as a poison), 101\n\n Mer-folk (refined with the Greeks, grotesques with other nations), 169\n\n Messiah (made a liar by miscreants), 15\n\n Mi\u2019lakah = spoon, 141\n\n Miracles (growing apace in the East), 336\n\n Mishannah = old gunny-bag, 171\n\n Misk\u00e1l = about three penny weights, 262\n\n Mohammed (sent with the guidance and True Faith), 15\n\n Money (let lying with the folk = not dunned for), 311\n\n Moon (taking in hand the star = girl handing round the cups), 192\n\n Moslem (on a journey, tries to bear with him a new suit of clothes for\n the festivals and Friday service), 51\n\n \u2014\u2014 (bound to discharge the debts of his dead parents), 311\n\n \u2014\u2014 (doctrine ignores the dictum \u201cex nihilo nihil\u201d), 63\n\n Moslems (deal kindly with religious mendicants), 51\n\n \u2014\u2014 (not ashamed of sensual appetite), 84\n\n \u2014\u2014 (bound to abate scandals amongst neighbours), 98\n\n \u2014\u2014 (husbands among them divided into three classes), 263\n\n Mourning (normal term of forty days), 311\n\n Mub\u00e1rak = blessed (a favourite slave-name), 58\n\n Mub\u00e1rakah = the blessed (fem.), 330\n\n Muh\u00e1rabah = doing battle, 92\n\n Mun\u00e1zarah = dispute, 243\n\n Mun\u00e1zirah = like (fem.), _ib._\n\n Munkar and N\u00e1kir, 163\n\n Mus\u00e1fahah = joining hands, 342\n\n Music (forbidden by Mohammed), 31\n\n Musta\u2019\u00edn bi \u2019ll\u00e1h (Caliph), 246\n\n Mu\u2019tas\u00edm (Al-) bi \u2019ll\u00e1h (Caliph), 232\n\n Mutawakkil (Al-) \u2019al\u00e0 \u2019ll\u00e1h (Caliph), _ib._\n\n Mu\u2019tazid (Al-) bi \u2019ll\u00e1h (Caliph), 229\n\n Mu\u2019tazz (Al-) bi \u2019ll\u00e1h (Caliph), 242\n\n Muunah = provender, 104\n\n\n Nab\u00ed = prophet, 178\n\n Nafakah = sum necessary for the expenses of pilgrimage, 178\n\n Na\u00efvet\u00e9 (of the Horatian kind), 215\n\n Najis = ceremonially impure, 337\n\n N\u00e1kis\u00e1tu \u2019aklin wa d\u00edn = failing in wit and faith, 298\n\n Nakk\u00e1r = Pecker (a fabulous fish), 184\n\n Names (approved by Allah), 165\n\n Napoleonic pose (attitude assumed by a slave), 320\n\n N\u00e1sik = a devotee, 40\n\n N\u00e1sir (Pr. N.) = triumphing, 310\n\n Nays\u00e1b\u00far (town in Khorasan), 230\n\n Nemo repente fuit turpissimus (not believed in by Easterns), 91\n\n N\u00edlah = indigo, dye-stuff, 144\n\n New moon of the Festival = Crescent of the breakfast, 249; 250\n\n Nimr = leopard, 63\n\n N\u00edyah (Al-) = ceremonial intention of prayer, 254\n\n Nukl = quatre mendiants, dessert, 177; 213\n\n Nusf = half-dirham, 139; 167\n\n Nusk = piety, abstinence from women, 243\n\n\n \u201cOff-with-his-head\u201d style (not to be taken literally), 308\n\n Omar-i-Khayy\u00e1m (astronomer-poet), 230\n\n Othello (even he does not kill Emilia), 300\n\n\n Paradise (of the Moslem not wholly sensual), 322\n\n Parent (ticklish on the Pundonor), 288\n\n Pay-chest (of a Hamm\u00e1m-bath), 152\n\n Payne quoted, 22; 28; 79; 84; 86; 89; 171; 212; 224; 226; 227; 250;\n 251; 265; 268; 282; 290\n\n Pearls (resting on the sand-bank), 164\n\n People of His affection = those who deserve His love, 82\n\n Persians (delighting in practical jokes), 177\n\n Petrified folk, 318\n\n Pilgrimage quoted\n\n \u2014\u2014 (i. 9), 50\n\n \u2014\u2014 (i. 235), 51\n\n \u2014\u2014 (iii. 66), 81\n\n \u2014\u2014 (i. 20), 165\n\n \u2014\u2014 (ii. 285\u2013287), 175\n\n \u2014\u2014 (iii. 224, 256), 178\n\n \u2014\u2014 (i. 99), 262\n\n \u2014\u2014 (ii. 48), 307\n\n \u2014\u2014 (i. 314), 315\n\n Pilgrims (offcast of the = a broken down pilgrim left to die on the\n road), 290\n\n Poisons in the East, 101\n\n Policeman (called in, a severe punishment in the East), 137\n\n Poltroon (contrasted with a female tiger lamb), 224\n\n Potter (simile of the), 77\n\n Power (whoso has it and spareth for Allah\u2019s reward he prepareth), 340\n\n Praying against (polite form of cursing), 293\n\n Presence (I am in thy = thy slave to slay or pardon), 124\n\n Price (without abatement = without abstracting a large bakhshish), 152\n\n \u2014\u2014 (shall remain), 262\n\n Priest hidden within an image (may date from the days of Memnon), 324\n\n Prince (of a people is their servant), 99\n\n Prison (in the King\u2019s Palace), 52\n\n Pun, 278; 287\n\n\n Question (expressing emphatic assertion), 182\n\n\n Rahan = pledge, 311\n\n Rank (thine is with me such as thou couldst wish = I esteem thee as\n thou deservest), 41\n\n \u2014\u2014 (conferred by a Sovereign\u2019s addressing a person with a title), 119\n\n R\u00e1s al-Killaut = head of Killaut (a son of the sons of the Jinn), 8\n\n Ridding the sea of its rubbish, 169\n\n River (the, = Tigris-Euphrates), 313\n\n Robbing (to keep life and body together an acceptable plea), 137\n\n R\u00fah = spirit, breath of life, 67\n\n Ruh = be off!, 168\n\n\n Sa\u2019\u00e1dah = worldly prosperity and future happiness, 327\n\n Sabaka = he outraced, 111\n\n Sab\u00edyah = young lady, 226\n\n Sabr = patience; aloes (pun on), 278\n\n Saf\u00ednah = (Noah\u2019s) Ark, 310\n\n S\u00e1hil (Al-) = the coast (Ph\u0153nicia), 22\n\n Sahm mush\u2019ab = forked (not barbed) arrow, 48\n\n Sa\u2019\u00eddah = the auspicious (fem.), 330\n\n S\u00e1ki and S\u00e1k\u00ed, 253\n\n S\u00e1kin = quiescent (applied to a closing wound), 255\n\n S\u00e1kiyah = water-wheel, 218\n\n Sa\u2019lab = fox, 48; 103\n\n S\u00e1lihiyah = the Holy (name of a town), 287\n\n Sallah = basket of wickerwork, 56\n\n Salutation (from a rider to a man on foot and from the latter to one\n sitting), 1\n\n Saluting after prayer, 254\n\n Samn = clarified butter, 39\n\n San\u00e1jik = banners, ensigns, &c., 290\n\n Sand (knowing from the = geomancy), 117\n\n Sar\u00e1w\u00edl = bag-trousers (plural or singular), 225\n\n Sard\u00e1b = souterrain, 241\n\n \u2014\u2014 (tunnel), 274\n\n Sar\u00ed al-Sakat\u00ed (Sufi ascetic), 21\n\n Saw\u00e1h\u00edl\u00ed = shore-men, 22\n\n S\u00e1yih = wanderer (not \u201cpilgrim\u201d), 51\n\n Scoundrels (described with superior glee), 135\n\n Sea (striking out sparks), 314\n\n Seclusion (royal, and its consequences), 91\n\n Secrets of workmanship (withheld from Apprentices), 263\n\n Seeing sweetness of speech = finding it out in converse, 14\n\n Sha\u2019r = hair of the body, pile, 157\n\n Shaving (process of), 139\n\n Shaykh (after the type of Ab\u00fa Now\u00e1s), 251\n\n \u2014\u2014 (for syndic of a Guild), 260\n\n \u2014\u2014 (al-Islam = chief of the Olema), 289\n\n Shaykhah R\u00e1jihah = the excellent Religious, 347\n\n Sh\u00edraj = sesame oil, 184\n\n Shop (front-shelf of, a seat for visitors), 262\n\n Shuj\u00e1\u2019 al-D\u00edn (Pr. N.) = the Brave of the Faith, 18\n\n Shukkah = piece of cloth, 236\n\n Sidillah = seats, furniture, 190\n\n Signs (language of), 269\n\n Silah = conjunctive sentence; coition, 272\n\n Sin (permitted that man might repent), 83\n\n \u2014\u2014 (thy shall be on thine own neck), 211\n\n Singing (not har\u00e1m = sinful, but makr\u00fah = objectionable), 245\n\n S\u00edrah = minnow, sprat, 166\n\n Skin (free from exudation sounds louder under the clapping of the\n hand), 150\n\n \u2014\u2014 (extreme delicacy of the female), 321\n\n Slave-girl (free, not forward in her address), 268\n\n \u2014\u2014 (lewd and treacherous by birth), 280\n\n \u2014\u2014 (to be sent as a spy into the Harims), 292\n\n Sneezing (etiquette of), 220\n\n Sons (brought as servants unto Kings), 43\n\n \u201cSoul\u201d (for lover), 25\n\n Spider-web frailest of houses (Koranic), 59\n\n Spiritualism (the religion of the nineteenth century), 86\n\n Spoon (Ar. Mi\u2019lakah), 141\n\n Steward (pendent to the parable of the unjust), 66\n\n Style (intended to be worthy of a statesman), 42\n\n Su\u2019b\u00e1n = dragon, 277\n\n Submission (Ar. Khafz al-Jin\u00e1h = lowering the wings), 74\n\n Sufrah = cloth or leather upon which food is placed, 141\n\n Sunan (used for Rasm = usage, customs), 74\n\n Sur\u2019itu = I was possessed of a Jinn, 27\n\n Suw\u00e1n = Syenite, 316\n\n Suways (Suez) = little weevil, or \u201clittle S\u00fas\u201d, 10\n\n Swevens (an they but prove true), 284\n\n\n Taakh\u00edr = acting with deliberation, 328\n\n Ta\u2019\u00e1l\u00edk = hanging lamps, 320\n\n Tail (wagging of, a sign of anger with felid\u00e6), 72\n\n T\u00e1j Kisraw\u00ed = Chosroan crown, 319\n\n T\u00e1jir Alf\u00ed = a merchant worth a thousand (left indefinite), 313\n\n Takhm\u00edsh = tearing the face in grief, 190\n\n Taks\u00edm = distribution, analysis, 77\n\n Tanw\u00edn al-Iz\u00e1fah = the nunnation in construction, 272\n\n Tar\u00edkah = musical mode, modulation, 27\n\n Taubah (Bi al-) = by means or on account of penitence, 83\n\n Thongs (of the waterskins cut, preparatory to departure), 302\n\n Three hundred and three score rooms = one for each day of the Moslem\n year, 61\n\n Three things (not to be praised before death), 39\n\n Threshold (marble one in sign of honour), 238\n\n Tibn = bruised straw, 106\n\n Timb\u00e1k (Tumb\u00e1k) = stronger variety of Tobacco, 136\n\n Time (distribution of), 71\n\n Title (used by a Sovereign in addressing a person confers the rank),\n 119\n\n Tobacco (its mention inserted by some scribe), 136\n\n Too much for him (to come by lawfully), 174\n\n Torrens quoted, 278\n\n Toutes putes, 298\n\n Trafalgar = Taraf al-Gharb (edge of the West), 50\n\n Translators (should be \u201cbould\u201d), 224\n\n Treasure (resembling one from which the talismans have been loosed),\n 287\n\n Tr\u00e9butien quoted, 33, 63\n\n Tribe (the misfortune of one fortuneth another), 342\n\n Truth (told so as to be more deceptive than a lie), 223\n\n Tuning (peculiar fashion of Arab musicians with regard to it), 27\n\n Turbands (inclining from the head-tops), 221\n\n Turkey (Future of), 94\n\n Turks (forming the body-guard of the Abbasides), 245\n\n Tuwuffiya = he was received (into the grace of God), 54\n\n\n Ubullah (canal leading from Bassorah to Ubullah-town), 31\n\n Udm = \u201ckitchen\u201d, 213\n\n Uk\u00e1b al-K\u00e1sir = the breaker eagle, 69\n\n \u00dakiyyah (pl. Aw\u00e1k) = ounce, 216\n\n Umm al-ban\u00e1t wa\u2019l-ban\u00edn = mother of daughters and sons, 175\n\n Umm al-Su\u2019\u00fad (Pr. N.) = Mother of Prosperities, 173\n\n \u2019Umm\u00e1l (pl. of \u2019\u00c1mil = governor), 26\n\n \u201cUnbernfen\u201d, 180\n\n \u2019Unn\u00e1b\u00ed = between dark yellow and red (jujube-colour), 143\n\n \u2019Urb = Arabs of pure race, 293\n\n Us\u00fal = forbears, ancestors, 246\n\n\n Veiling her honour = saving her from being ravished, 330\n\n \u201cVigilance Committees\u201d (for abating scandals), 98\n\n Visit (confers a blessing in polite parlance), 185\n\n Visits (should not be over-frequent), 273\n\n\n Wa = and (introducing a parenthetic speech), 282\n\n Walh\u00e1n (Al-), no Pr. N., 6\n\n Wal\u00ed \u2019ahd = heir presumptive, 87\n\n Wartah = precipice, quagmire, etc., 81\n\n W\u00e1sit = middle (town of Ir\u00e1k \u2019Arab\u00ed), 26\n\n Weal (I see naught but), 180\n\n Weeping (over dead friends), 187\n\n Wicket (small doorway at the side of a gate), 320\n\n Wife (contrast between vicious servile and virtuous of noble birth),\n 302\n\n Wird (Pers.) = pupil, disciple, 61\n\n Wittol (pictured with driest Arab humour), 269\n\n Women (to be respected by the King), 73\n\n \u2014\u2014 (\u201cgreat is their malice\u201d), 119\n\n \u2014\u2014 (a case of hard lines for them), 134\n\n \u2014\u2014 (their marrying a second time reckoned disgraceful), 246\n\n \u2014\u2014 (the sin lieth with them), 297\n\n \u2014\u2014 (fail in wit and faith), 298\n\n \u2014\u2014 (practically only two ways of treating them), 303\n\n \u2014\u2014 (delicacy of their skin), 321\n\n Womankind (seven ages of), 175\n\n Word (the creative \u201cKun\u201d), 78\n\n\n Y\u00e1 abati = O dear father mine!, 88\n\n \u2014\u2014 ahmak = O fool!, 271\n\n \u2014\u2014 bunayy\u00ed = O dear my son!, 79\n\n \u2014\u2014 ful\u00e1n = O certain person!, 324\n\n \u2014\u2014 ful\u00e1nah = O certain person! (fem.), 270\n\n \u2014\u2014 j\u00e1hil = O ignorant!, 52\n\n \u2014\u2014 maul\u00e1ya = O my lord!, 228\n\n Yastagh\u00edb\u00fan\u00ed = they take advantage of my absence, 224\n\n Yathrib (old name of Al-Medinah), 177\n\n Yes, Yes and No, No trifles, 250\n\n\n Zaff\u00fa = they conducted her (in the sense of \u201cthey displayed her\u201d), 245\n\n Zaur\u00e1 (Al-) = the bow (name of Baghd\u00e1d), 13\n\n Zaynab and Zayd (generic names for women and men), 250\n\n Z\u00ed\u2019ah = village, hamlet, farm, 27\n\n Zirt = crepitus ventris, 291\n\n Ziy\u00e1rah = visiting the Prophet (\u2019s tomb), 178\n\n Zukhruf = glitter, tinsel, 86\n\n Zur ghibban tazid hubban = call rarely that friendship last fairly, 273\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n\n\n\n TRANSCRIBER\u2019S NOTES\n\n\n 1. Added missing footnote anchor on p. 143.\n 2. Added missing footnote number on p. 318.\n 3. Silently corrected simple spelling, grammar, and typographical\n errors.\n 4. Retained anachronistic and non-standard spellings as printed.\n 5. Enclosed italics font in _underscores_.\n 6. Superscripts are denoted by a carat before a single superscript\n character or a series of superscripted characters enclosed in curly\n braces, e.g. M^r. or M^{ister}.\n\nA Plain and Literal Translation of the Arabian Nights Entertainments,\nNow Entituled the Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night","title":"The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night \u2014 Volume 09 (of 10)","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":167244}