{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_57468/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_57468","id":"gutenberg_57468","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/57468","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Category: Short Stories","Tales -- Iran","Tales, Tamil","Tales, Urdu"],"text":"Produced by Barbara Tozier, Bill Tozier and the Online\nDistributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This\nfile was produced from images generously made available\nby The Internet Archive)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n A GROUP OF\n EASTERN ROMANCES\n AND STORIES\n FROM THE PERSIAN, TAMIL, AND URDU.\n\n _WITH INTRODUCTION, NOTES, AND APPENDIX_\n BY W. A. CLOUSTON,\n\n AUTHOR OF \u201cPOPULAR TALES AND FICTIONS\u201d AND THE \u201cBOOK OF\n NOODLES\u201d; EDITOR OF THE \u201cBOOK OF SINDIBAD,\u201d THE\n \u201cBAKHTYAR NAMA,\u201d ETC.\n\n \u201cWho is he, that is now wholly overcome with idleness or\n otherwise involved in a labyrinth of worldly cares and troubles\n and discontents, that will not be much lightened in his mind\n by reading some enticing story, true or feigned?\u201d\u2014BURTON\u2019S\n _Anatomy of Melancholy_.\n\n PRIVATELY PRINTED.\n\n MDCCCLXXXIX.\n\n EDITION\u2014_300 Copies._\n\n\n\n\nTO FORSTER FITZGERALD ARBUTHNOT, ESQ.,\n\nMEMBER OF THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND.\n\n\n MY DEAR ARBUTHNOT,\n\n Since you have always been warmly interested in my own works as\n well as in Oriental Literature generally, allow me to Dedicate\n to you the present collection of Eastern Tales. This I do with\n the greater pleasure, knowing that no man is more able than\n yourself to appreciate their value for the comparative study\n of popular fictions, and also to recognise their entertaining\n qualities.\n\n Believe me,\n\n Yours ever faithfully,\n\n W. A. CLOUSTON.\n\n GLASGOW, _April, 1889_.\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE.\n\n\nIt has been justly remarked that \u201cthe literature of a nation furnishes\nthe best guide to researches into its character, manners, and opinions,\nand no department of literature contains a more ample store of data\nin this respect than the light and popular part consisting of tales,\nromances, and dramatic pieces.\u201d The lighter literature of medi\u00e6val Europe\naffords us an insight into customs, manners, and superstitions which\nhave long passed away; but in \u201cthe unchanging East\u201d the literature of\nthe Asiatic races, produced at the same period, continues to reflect\nthe sentiments and habits of the Hind\u00fas, Buddhists, and Muslims at the\npresent day. For among Asiatics belief in astrology, magic, divination,\ngood and bad omens, and evil spirits (r\u00e1kshasas, d\u00edvs, jinn, etc.) who\nare ever eager to injure human beings is still as prevalent as when\nthe oldest of their popular tales and romances were first written. The\nchild-like, wonder-loving Oriental mind delights in stories of the\nsupernatural, and the more such narratives exceed the bounds of human\npossibility the greater is the pleasure derived from them;\u2014like our own\npeasantry, who believed (and not so long since) in \u201cghosts, fairies,\ngoblins, and witches,\u201d as well as in the frequent apparition of Satan\nin various forms to delude the benighted traveller, and were fond of\nlistening to \u201ctales of the wild and wonderful\u201d during the long winter\nevenings.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe following collection comprises fairly representative Eastern tales;\nsome of which are of common life and have nothing in them of the\nsupernatural, while in others may be found all the machinery of typical\nAsiatic fictions: gorgeous palaces constructed of priceless gems; wealth\ngalore; enchantments; magical transformations; fairies and jinn, good\nand evil. Those who think that they are \u201csensible, practical men\u201d (and\nare therefore _not_ sensible) would not condescend to read \u201csuch a pack\nof lies\u201d; but there be men, I wot, who entertain no particularly high\nopinion of themselves, to whom what poor Mr. Buckle called \u201cthe lying\nspirit of Romance\u201d is often a great solace amidst the stern realities of\nwork-a-day life, and, carried away in imagination to regions where all is\n_as it ought to be_, they for a brief season quite forget \u201clife and its\nills, duns and their bills.\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nBut few words are necessary to explain the design of the present\nwork. I found the four romances diverting and many of their incidents\npeculiarly interesting from a comparative folk-lore point of view; and\nI felt encouraged by the friendly reception of my _Book of Sindib\u00e1d_ to\nreproduce them as a companion volume and as a farther contribution to\nthe study of popular fictions. It may be considered by some readers that\nmy notes are too copious. I know that foot-notes have been likened to\nrunaway knocks, calling one downstairs for nothing; but as the book is\nnot specially designed for Eastern scholars (who indeed require none of\nthe information that I could furnish), I was desirous that nothing likely\nto be obscure to the ordinary reader should pass without explanation and\nillustration; and since these foot-notes have considerably swelled the\nbulk of the book and I shall certainly not profit by them, I trust they\nwill not prove altogether useless or superfluous. The abstract of the\nromance of Hatim Ta\u00ef\u2014which was an afterthought\u2014and the other matter in\nthe Appendix will be, I venture to think, interesting to readers \u201cof all\nranks and ages.\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nIt only remains to express my thanks, in the first place, to the learned\nOrientalist Mr. Edward Rehatsek, of Bombay, for kindly permitting me to\nreprint his translations from the Persian, with which I have taken a few\nliberties, but had he revised them himself, I feel sure he would have\nmade very similar alterations: I much regret that want of space prevented\nme from reproducing more of the shorter stories. In the next place, I\n(and the reader also, if I am not mistaken) have to thank Pandit Nat\u00e9sa\nS\u00e1str\u00ed, of Madras, for his translation of the Tamil romance, which I\nhave entitled \u201cThe King and his Four Ministers.\u201d I must also acknowledge\nmy great indebtedness to Dr. Chas. Rieu, of the British Museum, whose\ncourtesy, great as everybody knows it is, I fear was very frequently\nsorely tried by my \u201canxious inquiries\u201d; and to Prof. E. Fagnan, of the\n\u00c9cole des Lettres, Algiers, and Mr. E. H. Whinfield, who has done good\nwork in Persian literature, for their kind investigations regarding an\ninedited Turkish story-book. Private friends want no public recognition,\nbut I should consider myself ungrateful did I omit to place also on\nrecord my obligations in the course of this work to Dr. David Ross,\nPrincipal of the E.C. Training College, Glasgow, to Mr. Leonard C.\nSmithers, Sheffield, and finally, but certainly not least of all, to my\nold and trusty friend Mr. Hugh Shedden, Grangemouth. With so much help it\nmay well be thought my work might have been of higher quality than I fear\nis the case; but there is an ancient saying about expecting \u201cgrapes of\nthorns,\u201d which I have made my excuse in a former work.\n\n W. A. C.\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS.\n\n\n PAGE\n\n INTRODUCTION xix\n\n HISTORY OF NASSAR 3\n Story of Shah Manssur 12\n Story of Hatim Ta\u00ef and the Benevolent Lady 46\n The Painter\u2019s Story 53\n The Washerman\u2019s Story 58\n The Blind Man\u2019s Story 60\n The Benevolent Lady\u2019s Story 64\n Story of Prince Kasharkasha 69\n CONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY OF NASSAR 98\n Story of the Foolish Hermit 112\n Story of the Treacherous Vaz\u00edr 114\n Story of the Unlucky Shoayb 118\n CONCLUSION OF THE HISTORY OF NASSAR 137\n\n HISTORY OF FARRUKHR\u00daZ.\n\n CHAPTER I.\n\n How three brothers set out on a trading journey\u2014How the\n youngest is cruelly abandoned by his elder brethren\u2014How\n he meets with royal favour 147\n\n CHAPTER II.\n\n The hero\u2019s quest of a throne of marvellous gems 154\n\n CHAPTER III.\n\n The hero goes in quest of four treasure-trees, and is\n married to the Queen of the Fairies 166\n\n CHAPTER IV.\n\n How the hero pretended to visit Paradise, and caused all\n his enemies to perish 182\n\n\n THE KING AND HIS FOUR MINISTERS 193\n Story of the Lost Camel 194\n Story of the Hunter and His Faithful Dog 206\n Story of the Br\u00e1hman\u2019s Wife and the Mung\u00fas 211\n Story of the Faithless Wife and the Ungrateful Blind Man 215\n Story of the Wonderful Mango Fruit 220\n Story of the Poisoned Food 226\n Story of the Br\u00e1hman and the Rescued Snake 231\n\n THE ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd.\n\n Proem 237\n\n CHAPTER I.\n\n The Astrologers\u2019 prediction at the birth of our\n hero\u2014His Father is struck with blindness\u2014His four\n Brothers set out in quest of the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed,\n to restore their Father\u2019s sight\u2014He secretly follows\n them\u2014They fall into the toils of Dilbar, an artful\n courtesan, who fleeces them and makes them prisoners 240\n\n CHAPTER II.\n\n The Prince determines to rescue his Brethren\u2014He takes\n service with a nobleman, and makes friends with\n Dilbar\u2019s confidante, by whose instructions he turns the\n tables on Dilbar, and wins all her wealth and her own\n person\u2014He tells Dilbar of his design to obtain the Rose\n of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and she warns him of the dangers he must\n encounter\u2014He relates the _Story of the Br\u00e1hman and the\n Lion_\u2014Dilbar exhorts our hero before his departure 247\n\n CHAPTER III.\n\n Showing how the Prince is helped in his quest by\n a friendly Demon\u2014Marries Mahm\u00fada, a beautiful\n girl\u2014Reaches the Garden of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed and plucks the\n Rose\u2014Seeing the Fairy Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed asleep, falls in love\n with her\u2014Returns with Mahm\u00fada and rejoins Dilbar, who\n liberates his Brethren, before the three set out for\n his own country\u2014On the way he is deprived of the Rose\n by his Brethren, who return home, and by means of the\n Flower restore their Father\u2019s sight 259\n\n CHAPTER IV.\n\n Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, on awaking, discovers that her Rose has been\n stolen, sets out in search of the thief disguised as a\n man, and takes service with the Prince\u2019s Father, the\n King of the East\u2014The Fairies build a grand Palace for\n the Prince, like that of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\u2014The King hears of the\n new Palace\u2014_Story of the Princess and the Demon who\n exchanged Sexes_\u2014The Prince\u2019s Father and Brethren,\n with Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed (disguised), visit him at his Palace,\n and he discloses himself 272\n\n CHAPTER V.\n\n Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed returns to her own country, and there writes\n a love-letter to the Prince, who sets out to visit\n her\u2014The Mother of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed discovers that her daughter\n is in love with a human being, tosses the Prince high\n up into the air, and imprisons Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\u2014The Prince\n falls into a river, emerges from it in safety, obtains\n several magical articles, is changed into a young\n woman, then into a foul-visaged Abyssinian, and finally\n regains his own form 288\n\n CHAPTER VI.\n\n The Prince comes to the Castle of a fierce Demon\n called Sh\u00e1h Pykar, where he finds R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, cousin of\n Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, a prisoner\u2014He rescues her from the Demon\n and conveys her to her parents\u2014He obtains Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed in\n Marriage and returns with his beauteous Fairy Bride to\n his own Palace 303\n\n CHAPTER VII.\n\n Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed goes to the Court of Indra, where she sings\n and dances\u2014The Deity, enraged at her love for a human\n being, pronounces a curse upon her\u2014The Prince goes\n to Ceylon, where he finds Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed confined in a\n Temple, the lower part of her body being turned into\n marble\u2014Chitrawat, the daughter of the R\u00e1j\u00e1, falls in\n love with him, and on his declining her overtures he\n is thrown into prison 316\n\n CHAPTER VIII.\n\n The Prince is married to Chitrawat, but, visiting\n Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed every night, his new bride complains to her\n Father of his indifference, and the R\u00e1j\u00e1 sends spies\n to dog his steps\u2014The Temple is discovered and razed\n to the ground, and the Prince is in despair 329\n\n CHAPTER IX.\n\n Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed is re-born in the house of a Farmer\u2014When she\n is of marriageable age the Prince and Chitrawat meet\n her and they all three proceed to his own country,\n where he is welcomed affectionately by Dilbar and\n Mahm\u00fada\u2014Bahr\u00e1m, the son of Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak\u2019s Vaz\u00edr,\n falls in love with R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, the cousin of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed 335\n\n CHAPTER X.\n\n Bahr\u00e1m is long love-sick, but by the help of two\n sympathising fairy damsels is finally united to the\n beautiful R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, and all ends happily 343\n\n PERSIAN STORIES.\n\n THE THREE DECEITFUL WOMEN 355\n Trick of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s Wife 358\n Trick of the Baz\u00e1r-Master\u2019s Wife 376\n Trick of the Kutw\u00e1l\u2019s Wife 384\n THE ENVIOUS VAZ\u00cdR 390\n THE BLIND BEGGAR 402\n THE K\u00c1ZI OF GHAZN\u00cd AND THE MERCHANT\u2019S WIFE 414\n THE INDEPENDENT MAN AND HIS TRAVELLING COMPANIONS 425\n THE KING WHO LEARNED A TRADE 434\n THE HIDDEN TREASURE 442\n THE DEAF MAN AND HIS SICK FRIEND 446\n THE GARDENER AND THE LITTLE BIRD 448\n\n APPENDIX.\n Hatim Ta\u00ef and the Benevolent Lady 455\n Abstract of the Romance of Hatim Ta\u00ef 456\n The Painter\u2019s Story 471\n The Washerman\u2019s Story 476\n The Blind Man\u2019s Story 477\n Story of Prince Kasharkasha 479\n Story of the Unlucky Shoayb 489\n History of Farrukhr\u00faz 493\n The Ungrateful Brothers 493\n The Three Expeditions 496\n The Expedition to Paradise 500\n The King and his Four Ministers 504\n Bengal\u00ed oral Version 504\n Story of the Woman who knew the Language of Animals 505\n Story of the King and his Faithful Horse 507\n Story of the Wonderful Fruit 507\n Kashm\u00edr\u00ed oral Version 507\n Story of the Merchant and his Faithful Dog 509\n Story of the Woman who knew the Language of Animals 510\n Story of the King and his Falcon 510\n Story of the Lost Camel 511\n Story of the Hunter and his Faithful Dog 513\n Story of the Br\u00e1hman\u2019s Wife and the Mung\u00fas 515\n Story of the Faithless Wife and the Ungrateful Blind Man 516\n Story of the Wonderful Mango Fruit 517\n Story of the Poisoned Food 518\n Story of the Br\u00e1hman and the Rescued Snake 518\n The Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed 519\n The Magical Flower 520\n The Prince and Dilbar playing Backgammon 522\n The Br\u00e1hman and the Lion 531\n The Princess and the D\u00edv who exchanged Sexes 532\n The Prince obtains a Snake-Gem 540\n The Prince conceals the Snake-Gem in his Thigh 541\n Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed at Indra\u2019s Court 544\n Bahr\u00e1m transformed into a Bird 545\n Persian Stories.\n The Three Deceitful Women 546\n The K\u00e1z\u00ed and the Merchant\u2019s Wife 555\n The Hidden Treasure 558\n The Deaf Man and his Sick Friend 561\n The Gardener and the Little Bird 563\n Additional Notes 568\n\n INDEX.\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTION.\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTION.\n\n\nMan has been variously described as a laughing, a cooking, and a\nclothes-wearing animal, for no other animal laughs, or cooks, or wears\nclothes. Perhaps another definition might be added, namely, that he is a\n_story-telling_ animal. From bleak Greenland to the sunny islands that\nbe-gem the South Pacific, there seems to be no race so low in the scale\nof humanity as not to possess a store of legends and tales, which take\ntheir colouring from the ways of life and the habits of the people among\nwhom they are found domiciled. But notwithstanding the very considerable\nnumber of popular tales that have been collected from various parts of\nthe world, their origin and general diffusion are still involved in\nobscurity. The germs from which some of them sprang may have originated\nsoon after men became sentient beings. It is possible, though not very\nprobable, that the ideas on which are based the more simple fictions\nwhich are found to be similar\u2014_mutatis mutandis_\u2014among Non-Aryan as well\nas Aryan races were independently conceived; but this concession does\nnot apply to tales and stories of more elaborate construction, where the\nincidents and their very sequence are almost identical\u2014in such cases\nthere must have been deliberate appropriation by one people from another.\nAnd assuredly not a few of the tales which became orally current in\nEurope during the middle ages through the preaching monks and the merry\nminstrels were directly imported from the East. But even when a tale has\nbeen traced through different countries till it is discovered in a book,\nthe date of which is known to be at least 200 B.C., it does not follow,\nof course, that the author of the book where it occurs was the actual\ninventor of it. Men are much more imitative than inventive, and there is\nevery reason to believe that the Buddhists and the Br\u00e1hmans alike simply\nadapted for their own purposes stories and apologues which had for ages\nupon ages been common to the whole world. All that is now maintained\nby the so-called \u201cBenfey school\u201d is that many of the Western popular\ntales current orally, as well as existing in a literary form, during the\nmedi\u00e6val times which are found in old Indian books reached Europe from\nSyria, having travelled thither from India through Persia and Arabia, and\nthat this importation of Eastern fictions had been going on long before\nthe first crusades.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhatever our modern European authors may do in the production of their\nnovels (the _novel_ has no existence in the East), it is certain that\nAsiatic writers do not attempt the invention of new \u201csituations\u201d and\nincidents. They have all along been content to use such materials as\ncame ready to hand, both by taking stories out of other books, and\ndressing them up according to their own taste and fancy, and by writing\ndown tales which they had heard publicly or privately recited.[1] Indeed\nthey usually mention quite frankly in the prefaces to their books from\nwhence they derived their materials. Thus, Somadeva tells us that his\n_Kath\u00e1 Sarit S\u00e1gara_ (Ocean of the Streams of Story), of the 11th\ncentury, is wholly derived from a very much older Sanskrit work, of the\n6th century, the _Vrihat Kath\u00e1_ (Great Story), of Gunadhya; and Nakhshab\u00ed\nstates that his _T\u00fati N\u00e1ma_ (Parrot Book) is chiefly an abridgment, in\nmore elegant language, of an older Persian work composed in a prolix\nstyle, which was translated from a book \u201coriginally written in the Indian\ntongue.\u201d So we need not expect to find much originality in later Eastern\ncollections,[2] though they are of special interest to students of the\ngenealogy of popular tales in so far as they contain incidents, and even\nentire stories and fables, out of ancient books now lost, which have\ntheir parallels and analogues in European folk-lore.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe first two romances in the present work form the third _b\u00e1b_, or\nchapter, of a Persian collection of moral tales and anecdotes entitled\n_Mahb\u00fab ul-Kal\u00fab_, or the Delight of Hearts, written by Barkhurd\u00e1r bin\nMahm\u00fad Turkman Far\u00e1h\u00ed, surnamed Mumt\u00e1z, concerning whom all that is\nknown is given by himself in what Dr. Rieu terms \u201ca diffuse preface,\nwritten in a stilted and ambitious style.\u201d In early life[3] he quitted\nhis native place, Far\u00e1h, for Marv Sh\u00e1hij\u00e1n, where he entered the service\nof the governor, Asl\u00e1n Kh\u00e1n, and two years afterwards he proceeded to\nIspah\u00e1n and became secretary to Hasan Kul\u00ed Kh\u00e1n Sh\u00e1ml\u00fa: both am\u00edrs\nflourished during the reign of Sh\u00e1h Sultan Husain, A.H. 1105-1135\n(A.D. 1693-1722). At Ispah\u00e1n he heard in an assembly a pleasing tale,\nwhich, at the request of his friends, he \u201cadorned with the flowers of\nrhetoric,\u201d under the title of _Hik\u00e1y\u00e1t-i Ra\u2019n\u00e1 \u00fa Z\u00edb\u00e1_. In course of\ntime he added other stories, until he had made a large collection,\ncomprising no fewer than four hundred tales and anecdotes, divided into\nan introduction, eight _b\u00e1bs_, and a _kh\u00e1timah_, or conclusion, and he\nentitled the work _Mahfil-\u00e1r\u00e1_\u2014\u2018Adorner of the Assembly.\u2019 After a visit\nto his native place, he went to Her\u00e1t, where he remained for some time,\nand thence he set out on a pilgrimage to the shrine at Mashad. But on his\nway he was attacked by a band of Kuzzaks in the desert, who robbed him\nof everything, including the precious manuscript of his _Mahfil-\u00e1r\u00e1_.\nReturning to Ispah\u00e1n, it may be presumed, though he does not specify\n\u201cthe place of security,\u201d he re-wrote from memory his collection of tales,\ndividing the work into an introduction, five _b\u00e1bs_, and a _kh\u00e1timah_.\nThe work is formed on the plan of the _Gulist\u00e1n_, or Rose-Garden, of\nthe illustrious Persian poet Sa\u2019d\u00ed, each section being devoted to the\nexemplification of a special subject or theme. The introduction comprises\ndissertations\n\n (1) On the necessity of Politeness;\n\n (2) On the behaviour of a householder, so as to obtain for\n himself happiness in this world and the next;\n\n (3) On the Education of Children;\n\n (4) On the advantages of following a Trade or Profession;\n\n (5) On Hospitality;\n\n (6) On gratitude for the benefits received from God.\n\nThen follow Five Chapters:\n\n I\u2014On Civility, Humility, and Modesty, the virtues on which\n amicable intercourse with all conditions of men is based.\n\n II\u2014On Good Manners and abstention from injuring others by word\n or deed.\n\n III\u2014On Equanimity in Prosperity and Adversity, and Resignation\n to the will of God in all things.\n\n IV\u2014On Friendship, or Association: the choice of a suitable\n Companion, and the rejection of an uncongenial or base one.\n\n V\u2014On the Advantages of Contentment and the Meanness of Envy and\n Covetousness.\n\n Conclusion: Story of Ra\u2019n\u00e1 and Z\u00edb\u00e1.\n\nThe Persian text of this large collection of Tales was printed at Bombay\nin 1852. There are two MS. copies in the British Museum, one of which\nis described by Dr. Rieu as being embellished with two _\u2019unv\u00e1ns_, or\nornamental head-pieces, gold-ruled margins, and 55 miniatures in the\nPersian style.\n\nIn 1870 Mr. Edward Rehatsek published, at Bombay, a translation of\nthe two Tales contained in the third chapter of the _Mahb\u00fab ul-Kal\u00fab_\nunder the title of _Fortune and Misfortune_, which are reproduced in\nthe present volume as the _History of Nassar_ (properly N\u00e1sir) and the\n_History of Farrukhr\u00faz_, the Tales being quite distinct from each other.\n\n * * * * *\n\nI\u2014In the HISTORY OF NASSAR, son of the Merchant of Baghd\u00e1d, the _motif_\nis that Fate, or Destiny, is paramount in all human affairs, and so long\nas Fortune frowns all the efforts of men to better their condition are\nutterly futile: an essentially Asiatic notion, and quite foreign to the\nsentiments of the more manly and self-relying Western races. It must be\nallowed, however, that there seems to be a mysterious factor in human\nlife which we call \u201cluck,\u201d against which it were vain to struggle;\u2014only\nit is seldom to be recognised until it has worked out its purpose! How,\nfor example, are we to account for a soldier escaping uninjured after\ntaking an active part in many battles, while his comrade by his side is\nshot dead at the first fire of the enemy? There are certainly lucky and\nunlucky men who have done little or nothing to bring about their own good\nor ill fortune. \u201cFate,\u201d says Defoe, \u201cmakes footballs of men: kicks some\nupstairs and some down. Some are advanced without honour, and others\nare suppressed without infamy. Some are raised without merit; some are\ncrushed without crime. And no man knows, by the beginning of things,\nwhether his course will end in a peerage or a pillory.\u201d And a Persian\npoet chants in melancholy strain:\n\n Strive not to grapple with the grasp of Fate;\n Canst thou with feebleness success combine?\n All vain, \u2019gainst Destiny thy watchful state;\n Go thou, and to its force thyself resign.\n\nBut the Bard of Rydal Mount\u2014the Christian Philosopher, whose grand poetry\nis out of vogue in these \u201cdouble-distilled\u201d days\u2014tells us that\n\n One adequate support\n For the calamities of mortal life\n Exists\u2014one only: an assured belief\n That the procession of our fate, howe\u2019er\n Sad or disturbed, is ordered by a Being\n Of infinite benevolence and power;\n Whose everlasting purposes embrace\n All accidents, converting them to good.\n\nAnd it may be safely asserted that no great things were ever done by any\nman whose actions were controlled by a belief in mere \u201cluck.\u201d The great\nAmerican poet lustily sings:\n\n Let us then be up and doing,\n With a heart for any fate;\n Still achieving, still pursuing,\n Learn to _labour_ and to _wait_.\n\nThe Sinhalese have a number of proverbs about \u201cluck\u201d which might very\nsuitably serve as mottoes for the Tale of N\u00e1sir and the subordinate\nstories of Mans\u00far and of Shoayb; for instance, they say: \u201cIt hails\nwhenever an unlucky man goes abroad\u201d; and again: \u201cEven if the unlucky man\nhave a gold coin in his purse, he is sure to be accused of having stolen\nit.\u201d In the tale of Prince Kasharkasha, when the ruined merchant comes\nto the young king whom he had formerly befriended, he is dismissed with\na small sum of money, the king fearing lest his old friend\u2019s ill-luck\nshould also affect him: an idea which is constantly cropping up in\nAsiatic stories; though, by the way, it does not appear that the worthy\nmerchant had himself any such fear when he so generously relieved the\nprince from his bitter distress.\n\nIt can hardly be said that the \u201cmoral\u201d to be drawn from the career of\nN\u00e1sir is a very elevating one. The three pieces of wholesome advice\nbestowed on him by his father\u2019s ancient friend, and enforced with such\nappropriate stories, did the young traveller little good; for we find him\ngo on blundering out of one scrape into another, until his \u201clucky star\u201d\nis once more in the ascendant. And in the case of poor Mans\u00far, though\nhe does ultimately attain wealth and ease through his own exertions,\nyet he was in the first instance indebted to sheer luck in discovering\na treasure-crock in an old ruin. From one point of view, there is droll\nhumour in some of the incidents in these tales, more especially in\nN\u00e1sir\u2019s unlucky exhibitions of his accomplishments before the king; and\nin the narrative of the misfortunes of poor Shoayb, whom another king\nstrove so persistently to benefit, disregarding the counsel of his prime\nminister and setting at defiance the evident decree of Fate;\u2014though one\ncannot help regretting that he should have been expelled from the country\nafter all he had suffered. Let us believe that ere long his \u201crun of\nill-luck\u201d came to an end!\n\n * * * * *\n\nII\u2014The HISTORY OF FARRUKHR\u00daZ may be considered as exemplifying the\nSinhalese proverb which asserts that \u201cthe teeth of the dog that barks\nat the lucky man will fall out;\u201d for did not all the vile schemes of\nthe envious vaz\u00edrs, to compass the death of this Favourite of Fortune,\nturn to his advantage and finally to their own well-merited destruction?\nTrue, he was very near losing his good fortune when he parted with\nthe talismanic ring, and, by the art magic of Kashank the \u2019Ifr\u00edt, was\nchanged to an old barber in Damascus; but here again have we not an\nillustration of another Sinhalese proverb which says that \u201cyou cannot\neven kick away good luck\u201d? In this spirited little romance the interest\nis well sustained throughout, and the scene in Damascus will, I think,\nfavourably compare with some of the facetious tales in the _Arabian\nNights_. Variants and analogues of the principal incidents are given in\nthe Appendix.\n\n * * * * *\n\nIII\u2014THE KING AND HIS FOUR MINISTERS, which is now for the first time\npresented in English, has been translated from the Tamil, at my\nsuggestion, by my friend Pandit S. M. Nat\u00e9sa S\u00e1str\u00ed, of Madras, who is\nalready known in this country to students of the migrations of popular\ntales from his _Folk-Lore in Southern India_, published at Bombay,\nand his translation of another Tamil romance, _Madanak\u00e1mar\u00e1jankadai_,\nunder the title of _Dravidian Nights Entertainments_, published at\nMadras: London agents for both works, Messrs. Tr\u00fcbner & Co. The Tamil\ntitle is _Alak\u00e9sa Kath\u00e1_, or Story of (King) Alak\u00e9sa, and a short but\nnot quite accurate account of it is given by Dr. H. H. Wilson in his\nmost valuable _Descriptive Catalogue of the Oriental MSS. etc. in the\nMackenzie Collection_, published at Calcutta, 1828, vol. i, p. 220. Dr.\nWilson describes the work as \u201ca story of the r\u00e1j\u00e1 of Alakap\u00far and his\nfour ministers, who, being falsely accused of violating the sanctity of\nthe inner apartments, vindicate their innocence and disarm the king\u2019s\nwrath by narrating a number of stories.\u201d It is, however, only one of the\nministers who is believed by the r\u00e1j\u00e1 and the r\u00e1n\u00ed to have thus offended,\nand his three colleagues successively urge the r\u00e1j\u00e1 to inquire into all\nthe circumstances of the affair before proceeding to punish him, and they\nsupport their arguments with Tales showing the deplorable evils which may\nresult from inconsiderate actions. An aged minister of the r\u00e1j\u00e1\u2019s father\nthen comes before the king and relates a story to the same purpose,\nand he is followed by the accused minister, who also tells a story as\na warning against hasty decisions, after which he not only makes his\ninnocence manifest, but shows how he had saved the r\u00e1j\u00e1 and his spouse\nfrom a terrible fatality.[4]\n\nIn the Appendix of the present work will be found abstracts of Bengal\u00ed\nand Kashm\u00edr\u00ed oral variants of this Tale, the frame of which was evidently\nsuggested by that of the Book of Sindib\u00e1d, of which the numerous European\nversions are commonly known under the title of the _History of the Seven\nWise Masters of Rome_, where a young prince is falsely accused, as\nJoseph was by the wife of Potiphar, and his father the king orders him\nto be put to death; but he alternately reprieves and condemns him during\nseven days, in consequence of his Seven Vaz\u00edrs, day after day, and the\nLady, night after night, relating to the king stories of the wickedness\nof women and of the depravity of men, till at length the innocence of the\nprince is proved, and the wanton, treacherous lady is duly punished.\u2014The\nleading tale of the Turkish _History of the Forty Vaz\u00edrs_ (which has been\ncompletely translated into English by Mr. E.J.W. Gibb; London: Mr. George\nRedway) is on the same plan, though the stories related by the Vaz\u00edrs and\nthe Lady are almost all different.\n\nTo the sporadic part of the great Sindib\u00e1d family of romances belongs\nalso the Persian work entitled _Bakhty\u00e1r N\u00e1ma_, in which a stranger youth\nbecomes the king\u2019s favourite and is raised to a position of great honour\nand dignity, which excites the envy of the king\u2019s Ten Vaz\u00edrs, who cause\nhim to be accused of violating the royal haram, and the young man is\nreprieved from day to day through his relating eloquently stories showing\nthe lamentable consequences of precipitation, and he is ultimately found\nto be guiltless, and, moreover, to be the king\u2019s own son, whom he and his\nqueen had abandoned in a desert when newly born, as they were flying for\ntheir lives.\u2014Another group of tales pertaining to the same cycle is found\nin the Breslau printed Arabic text of the _Alf Layla wa Layla_ (Thousand\nand One Nights), under the title of \u201cKing Shah Bakht and his Vaz\u00edr\nEr-Rahwan,\u201d where the king is induced by the machinations of some of his\ncourtiers to believe that his favourite minister Er-Rahwan should slay\nhim within twenty-eight days; and the Vaz\u00edr, being condemned to death,\nobtains a respite by relating to the king each night an interesting story\nuntil the supposed fatal period is past, when the king is convinced of\nhis fidelity.[5]\n\nNeither the name of the author nor the date of the _Alak\u00e9sa Kath\u00e1_ is\nknown, but it is supposed to have been written in the 16th century.\nIt is one of the very few Asiatic collections in which the tales are\nall unobjectionable, and while these are found in much older Indian\nstory-books, they present some curious variations, and are moreover\nof considerable interest as illustrating Hind\u00fa popular beliefs and\nsuperstitions.\n\nAs European medi\u00e6val writers were in the habit of piously prefixing\nthe sign of the cross to their compositions, and Muhammedan authors\ninvariably begin their books with the formula, \u201cIn the Name of God, the\nmost Merciful, the most Compassionate,\u201d so Hind\u00fa writers always commence\nby invoking the assistance of Ganesa, the god of wisdom. Accordingly\nthe _Alak\u00e9sa Kath\u00e1_ opens thus: \u201cBefore relating in Tamil the story of\nthe Four Ministers, which is admired by the whole world, O Mind! adore\nand serve him who is the elder of the trident-armed and the remover of\nobstacles\u201d\u2014that is, Ganesa, who is said to be the son of Siva and his\nspouse Parvati, or of the latter only. Ganesa is represented as having\nthe head of an elephant, which was perhaps originally a symbol of his\nsagacity, but is accounted for in one of the later legends regarding this\ndeity as follows: The goddess Parvati wished to take a bath one day in\nher mansion, Kailasa, during the absence of her lord, Siva. Her female\nattendants were engaged in some domestic duties, but she must have her\nbath, and there must be a servant to guard the door. So Parvati rubbed\nher body with her hands, and of the scurf created a man, whom she ordered\nto watch outside the door, and allow no one to enter. It so happened\nthat Siva returned before his spouse had finished bathing, and he was\nopposed by the newly-formed man, whose head he immediately struck off,\nand then he entered the bath-room. This intrusion Parvati regarded as a\nvery great insult, and when she learned that her guard at the door was\nslain her rage knew no bounds. She demanded that her first son, as she\ntermed him, should be restored to life, and Siva, vexed at his rashness,\ntold his _ganas_ (armies of dwarfs: troops of celestials) to search for\nhim who slept with his head to the north, to kill him, and place his head\non the neck of the murdered guard. The ganas, after wandering long and\nfar, found only an elephant asleep in that position, so they brought his\nhead and fixed it on the neck of the man whom Siva had slain, when, lo!\nhe at once rose up alive, a man in body, with the head of an elephant.\nSiva then appointed him lord of his ganas (_Ganesa_) and adopted him as\nhis son.\u2014This curious legend is the cause of all Hind\u00fas never sleeping\nwith their heads to the north. Ganesa is said to have written down the\n_Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_ from the dictation of Vyasa, the reputed author of that\nepic. He is represented with four hands, in one of which he holds a\nshell, in another a discus, in the third a trident, or club, and in the\nfourth a water-lily.[6]\n\n * * * * *\n\nIV\u2014THE ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd was originally written, in the Persian language,\nby Shaykh Izzat Ull\u00e1h, of Bengal, in the year of the Hijra 1124, or\nA.D. 1712. It was translated into Urd\u00fa in the beginning of the present\ncentury, by Nih\u00e1l Chand, a native of Delhi, but, from his residence in\nLahore, surnamed Lahor\u00ed. He entitled his version of the romance _Mazhab-i\n\u2019Ishk_, which signifies the Doctrine of Love; but when the Urd\u00fa text was\nfirst printed, under the care of Dr. Gilchrist, at Calcutta, in 1804, it\nbore the original Persian title, _Gul-i Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed_; the second edition,\npublished in 1814, by T. Roebuck, bears the Urd\u00fa title.\n\nM. Garcin de Tassy published an abridgment (in French) of the Urd\u00fa\nversion of the ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd in the _Journal Asiatique_, vol. xvi,\n1835, omitting the snatches of verse with which the author has liberally\ngarnished his narrative.[7] A complete English translation, with the\nverses done into prose, by Lieut. R. P. Anderson, was published at Delhi\nin 1851, and the Urd\u00fa version was again rendered into English, with the\npoetry done into tolerably fair verse, by Thomas Philip Manuel, and\npublished at Calcutta in 1859. For the version in the present work I\nhave used both G. de Tassy\u2019s French abridgment and Manuel\u2019s English\ntranslation, following the former when the narrative seemed to be rather\nprolix, and the latter when I found the French _savant_ too brief in\nspecially interesting episodes, thus, I trust, making a readable version\nof this charming romance.\n\nIn the Appendix will be found copious parallels, analogues, and\nillustrations of the chief incidents in the ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd, which\ntherefore calls for only a few general remarks in this place. It cannot\nbe said that there is much originality in the romance, most of the\nincidents being common to the folk-tales of the several countries of\nIndia, but they are here woven together with considerable ingenuity, and\nthe interest of the narrative never flags. It may in fact be regarded as\na typical Asiatic Tale, in which is embodied much of the folk-lore of\nthe East. Like all fairy tales, it has no particular \u201cmoral,\u201d for the\nhero achieves all his wonderful enterprises with the aid of super-human\nbeings and by means of magical fruits, etc. The various and strange\ntransformations which he undergoes in the course of his adventures are\nstill believed to be quite possible by Muslims and Hind\u00fas alike. We very\nfrequently read in Eastern tales of fountains the waters of which have\nthe property of changing a man who drinks of them or bathes in them into\na woman, and of transforming a monkey into a man, and _vice versa_. But\nthis romance is, I think, singular in representing the hero, after having\nbeen changed into a young woman, as actually becoming a mother! In the\naccount of his transformation to an Abyssinian, and beset by a shrewish\nwife and a pack of clamorous children, there is not a little humour. The\nmagical things which he obtains through overhearing the conversation of\nbirds are familiar to the folk-tales of Europe as well as to those of\nAsia, and I have treated of them fully in the first volume of my _Popular\nTales and Fictions_.\n\nWe must regard the first part of this romance\u2014down to the end of the\nthird chapter\u2014as belonging to the wide cycle of folk-tales in which a\nnumber of brothers set out in quest of some wonderful and much desired\nobject, and the youngest is always the successful one; but he is deprived\nof the prize by his envious and malicious brothers, who generally throw\nhim into a well, and returning home claim the credit of the achievement.\nIn the end, however, the young hero exposes the fraud, and his rascally\nand cowardly brethren are put to shame. Several of the incidents in the\nbrothers\u2019 quest of the magical Rose with which to cure their father\u2019s\nsight are paralleled in the story of the Water of Life, in Grimm\u2019s\n_Kinder und Hausm\u00e4rchen_, and in the Norse and German stories of the\nGolden Bird. Thus in our romance the four elder princes, through their\npleasure-seeking disposition, fall into the toils of an artful courtesan,\nwhile the youngest pluckily proceeds to fairyland and procures the Rose\nof Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, of which his brothers deprive him on his way home. In such\nstories as I have mentioned the elder brothers, if not deservedly\nenchanted in some manner on the road, waste their time at a wayside inn,\nand the younger is aided in his quest by some animal, troll, or dwarf,\nto whom he had done a friendly turn: in our romance the young prince is\nhelped by a good-natured d\u00edv, or demon.\n\nThe prediction of the astrologers, with which the romance begins, that\nif the king should ever cast his eyes on his newly-born son he should\ninstantly become blind, has many analogues in other Eastern tales. For\nexample, in the _Bakhty\u00e1r N\u00e1ma_ we read that a king of Persia, after\nbeing long childless, one night, in a dream, is addressed by an aged man:\n\u201cThe Lord has complied with thy request and to-morrow thou shalt have a\nson, but in his seventh year a lion shall seize and carry him off to the\ntop of a mountain, from which he shall fall, rolling in blood and clay.\u201d\nThe vaz\u00edrs say that the decrees of Destiny cannot be withstood, but the\nking declares that he will do so, and then summons his astrologers, who\nsay that the king after twenty years shall perish by the hand of his\nown son. The king causes an underground dwelling to be constructed, in\nwhich he places his child and the nurse. When the prince is seven years\nof age, a lion rushes into the cave, devours the nurse, carries off the\nboy, and drops him down a mountain. The child is found by one of the\nking\u2019s secretaries, who causes him to be properly educated. In course of\ntime the youth is appointed armour-bearer to the king, who, of course,\ndoes not know that he is his own son, and in fighting with an enemy who\nhad invaded his kingdom, in the confusion of the battle, the youth cuts\noff the king\u2019s hand, supposing him to be on the enemy\u2019s side, and before\ndying the king ascertains that his son had caused his death.\n\nIn the _Bagh o Bah\u00e1r_ (see the Appendix, page 478), a young prince, in\nconsequence of a prediction of the astrologers that he was menaced with\ngreat danger until his fourteenth year, is confined in a vault lined with\nfelt, in order that he should not behold the sun and the moon till the\nfatal period was passed. In Mr. Ralston\u2019s _Tibetan Tales_, the diviners\ndeclare to a king that he shall have a son who shall take his life and\nusurp the royal power, setting the diadem on his own head. And we have a\nfamiliar instance in the Arabian tale of the Third Calender, where the\nastrologers having predicted that the newly-born son of a jeweller should\nbe killed when fifteen years old by \u2019Aj\u00edb the son of King Khasib, the\nchild is placed in an underground apartment in an island. In the Turkish\nstory-book known as the _History of the Forty Vas\u00edrs_, the soothsayers\npredict that a king\u2019s son shall be much afflicted and wander in strange\nlands, with tribulation and pain for his companions, from his thirtieth\ntill he has attained his sixtieth year. In the Norwegian story of Rich\nPeter the Pedlar the star-gazers foretell that his daughter should one\nday wed a poor man\u2019s son. And in classical legends we have the story of\nDanae, the daughter of Acrisius, king of Argos, by Eurydice, who was\nconfined in a brazen tower because an oracle had said that his daughter\u2019s\nson should put him to death.\n\n * * * * *\n\nV\u2014THE PERSIAN STORIES have been selected from a collection translated by\nMr. Edward Rehatsek, and published at Bombay in 1871, under the title of\n_Amusing Stories._ They occur in the Persian work, _Mahb\u00fab ul-Kal\u00fab_,\nof which some account has been given in connection with the first two\nromances in the present volume. The first of these stories, that of the\nThree Deceitful Women, is very diverting, and, as I have shown in the\nAppendix, has its counterparts in France and Spain. It belongs to the\nnumerous stories of the Woman\u2019s Wiles cycle, and certainly represents\nthe ladies in no very amiable character. But as a set-off to this tale\nof the depravity of women\u2014the subject of many European medi\u00e6val stories\nand jests, as well as of Asiatic fictions\u2014we have also stories of the\nwickedness of men, such as that of the Envious Vaz\u00edr and that of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\nof Ghazn\u00ed\u2014\u201cblackguards both\u201d!\n\n\n\n\nHISTORY OF NASSAR.\n\n\n\n\nHISTORY OF NASSAR, THE SON OF KHOJA HUMAYUN, THE MERCHANT OF BAGHDAD.\n\n\nDuring the reign of the Abbaside Khal\u00edfs there lived in the city of\nBaghd\u00e1d a merchant called Khoja[8] Hum\u00e1y\u00fan, who was very rich, highly\nrespected, and prosperous in all his dealings. The caravan of his good\nfortune had for a long time travelled in the lands of success; the hand\nof detriment was never extended towards the skirts of his wealth; nor\ndid the sim\u00fam of loss and misfortune ever blow in the gardens of his\nprosperity; so that he passed all his days in the cradle of happiness and\ncontent. One day he happened to repose in a retired part of his mansion\non the couch of gladness, when he beheld suddenly two kites overhead\ncontending for something. After the Khoja had been looking at them for\nsome time, he perceived that from the claws of one something was hanging\nwhich the other wanted to snatch away. Whilst he was wondering the\nobject fell to the ground, and on examining it he found it to be a small\nbundle which contained three rubies, a diamond, and four pearls, all of\nunequalled beauty and price. The Khoja was at first highly pleased at\nthis occurrence, and joyfully considered it as an additional sign of his\ngood fortune, and recited this distich:\n\n Whom prosperity favours,\n Jewels rain upon his head.\n\nBut, as he was a man of great discernment and experience, he looked at\nthis affair in another light, on second thoughts, and considered it as\na mystery, which made him uneasy. He had a grown and intelligent son,\ncalled Nassar, whom he privately addressed thus: \u201cMy beloved son, it is\nwell-nigh eighty years since I began to navigate the ocean of life in the\nskiff of prosperity, and it has never deserted me, nor have the autumnal\nblasts of reverse ever withered the freshness of my affluence. But as\nthe splendour of every morn of happiness is followed by the darkness and\nnight of decrease and misfortune, and the leaves of the rosy volume of\ncomfort are scattered by the whirlwind of distress; and as\n\n Fate has not lit a lamp of content\n Which the storm of adversity has not extinguished;\n\nI conclude from this incident that as the hum\u00e1i[9] of my good success\nhas reached the zenith, the caravan of my prosperity will soon deflect\nfrom the path of my destiny: the ship of my happiness may become wrecked\nin the ocean of adversity; and, for all I know, the treasure I possess\nmay become a prey to the whale of reverse, poverty and misery. This\nanticipation may be realised very soon, but as I have spent a life of\nhappiness and content, and have gratified all the desires of a man, I\nwish for nothing more; therefore, if misfortune beset me, I trust I shall\nbe able patiently to endure its bitterness. But since you have not seen\nthe ups and downs of life, or experienced any reverse, I do not think it\nfitting that you should continue to live with me, and it is in conformity\nwith the dictates of prudence that you spend some time in travelling; for\nwise men have said that travel is a polish which rubs off the rust of\ncarelessness from the speculum of a man\u2019s mind and a sovereign cure for\ninexperience:\n\n Travel lights the lamp of perfection in a man;\n When a pearl is taken out of the sea it is appreciated.[10]\n\nIn Sh\u00edr\u00e1z, the seat of learning,\u201d continued the Khoja, \u201cI have a friend\nnamed Khayrand\u00edsh, who was my companion in several journeys, and to\nwhom I have done some good. You must go to him and say: \u2018I wish you to\nsurrender to me the deposit my father entrusted you with when you were\ncompanions on the road of Bahrayn.\u2019 After receiving that article from\nKhayrand\u00edsh, take prudence and caution for your guide and go to the\nMaghrab\u00ed country,[11] because there is much chance of acquiring worldly\ngoods there, and no one ever returned from it empty-handed. Consider that\nprecious object as a means to procure you a livelihood, for by presenting\nit to one of the kings or grandees of those parts it will soon ensure\nyou attention; and I for my part shall make over all I possess to my\nrelatives and friends, and shall devote myself solely to the worship of\nGod.\u201d\n\nNassar made his preparations and departed for Sh\u00edr\u00e1z, the seat of\nlearning; but he had scarcely proceeded two stages in that direction when\na eunuch in the Khal\u00edf\u2019s service, intending to abscond, had at midnight\nabsented himself from the royal haram with a casket of jewels which he\nhad abstracted. He walked with great apprehension through the streets in\nsearch of the dwelling of his accomplice, whence he intended to proceed\nfarther at the break of day; but as the night was very dark he missed the\nhouse, and, by the decree of Fate, entered the mansion of Khoja Hum\u00e1y\u00fan,\nwhich happened to be open. On looking round he soon discovered his\nmistake, so he wandered about the house trying to find his way out, but\nthe Khoja\u2019s slaves having in the meantime locked the entrance as usual,\nhe had no alternative but to conceal himself in a corner and there remain\ntill morning.\n\nBut the Khal\u00edf\u2019s treasurer soon discovered that the eunuch had decamped\nwith the casket, and caused proclamation to be made, that any person\nharbouring the culprit should at once hand him over to the police,\nfailing which his property should be confiscated. The royal officials\nmade fruitless search all night, but at break of day, when the eunuch\nof night had retired and the prince of morn established himself in the\npalace of the horizon, one of the attendants of the court, who was a\nmortal enemy of Khoja Hum\u00e1y\u00fan, passing his house, perceived the eunuch\nand took him before the Khal\u00edf; and, considering this a good opportunity\nof avenging himself on his foe, he said: \u201cKhoja Hum\u00e1y\u00fan, who trusted\nin his wealth and dignity, has committed this crime by instigating the\neunuch to the deed and afterwards secreting him in his house.\u201d The Khal\u00edf\nwell knew the Khoja\u2019s loyalty and honesty, had often bestowed favours\nupon him, and was aware that such an act was not at all consistent with\nhis disposition; but as the sun of prosperity, in consequence of the\ncelestial rotations, had deflected from him and set in the west of\nmisfortune;[12] and the night of distress was intent on obscuring the\nprecincts of his comfort and destroying the volume of his happiness with\nthe scissors of extinction; and as the stratagems of enemies have results\nlike the bites of snakes and scorpions, the insidious words of the\nadversary so inflamed the Khal\u00edf\u2019s wrath that he ordered Khoja Hum\u00e1y\u00fan\u2019s\nproperty to be confiscated, his house razed, and himself expelled from\nthe city without giving him the least opportunity of uttering a word in\nhis own defence.\n\nOn the same day when the sim\u00fam of this catastrophe destroyed Khoja\nHum\u00e1y\u00fan\u2019s rose-garden of prosperity, Nassar\u2019s courser of safety also met\nwith an accident on his journey. In the vicinity of Sh\u00edr\u00e1z a party of\nrobbers fell upon him and deprived him of everything he possessed; and,\nexchanging the robes of affluence and wealth for poverty and nudity, he\narrived in the city in great distress, and having found the dwelling\nof Khayrand\u00edsh, he made him acquainted with his father\u2019s injunction.\nKhayrand\u00edsh received him in the most friendly manner possible, and said:\n\u201cDear youth, I am entirely at your service, and was desirous to be\nhonoured by a message from your father, whose casket with his seal upon\nit is in my charge. But the laws of hospitality require that a guest\nwho adorns my poor hut with the light of his presence should abide with\nme during three days, in order that I may entertain him to the best of\nmy ability;[13] and this applies especially to you, whose presence I\nconsider as a great blessing. After the expiration of three days I shall\ndeliver the deposit into your hands.\u201d To this proposal Nassar agreed, and\nKhayrand\u00edsh rejoiced him with his amity, and provided him with a very\nhandsome wardrobe.\n\nWhen the golden lamp of the glorious sun entered the lantern of the west,\nand the amber-haired belle of evening removed the veil from her face,\nKhayrand\u00edsh placed the best food and drink on the table of intimacy, and\nafter conversing on various subjects with his guest, he spoke to him\nas follows: \u201cFriend, it appears that worldly prosperity has left Khoja\nHum\u00e1y\u00fan, and that he has sent you in pursuit of it; for I have lately had\na fearful dream and was very uneasy about his circumstances. So tell me\nnow what you intend to do with the deposit.\u201d Nassar acquainted him with\nhis intention to go to the Maghrab\u00ed country, and with the injunctions\nof his father. Khayrand\u00edsh replied: \u201cAs the travellers in the path of\nrectitude and probity ought to guide those who wander in the desert of\nerror and inexperience, and as I am under great obligations to your\nfather, I consider it my duty to be useful to you. Since you have never\nbefore been from home and have spent all your days in affluence, I fear\nyou will not be able to perform the journey satisfactorily:\n\n Travel is not easy\u2014its dangers are boundless;\n Difficulties accompany it in all directions.\n\nBut as divine grace is the escort of all who intend to journey in the\npath of trust in God, I leave you to the guardianship of divine mercy to\nprotect you from all dangers. I shall, however, give you three counsels,\nand hope you will profit by them.\u201d Nassar rejoined: \u201cIt is the first duty\nof young men to listen to the counsels of intelligent and upright men;\ntherefore speak, for I shall follow them.\u201d Khayrand\u00edsh then spake thus:\n\n\nFIRST ADVICE.\n\n\u201cThough the deceitful bride of the world may look at you from the corner\nof her eye, and may try to bias your mind by her coquettish movements,\nlose not the reins of self-possession from your hands, because worldly\nprosperity is unsubstantial as the mirage, and the honey of its favour\nleaves only the bitterness of deception.\n\n Give not thy heart to the love of the world,\n For it has destroyed thousands like thee.\n\nWhen the hum\u00e1i of worldly prosperity spreads its wings over you, covet\nnot its favours, for it will change at last and regret only will remain.\n\n Be not intent on riches and dignity;\n For, like henna, they are not lasting.[14]\n\nProsperity is fickle, and when it has turned its back, all efforts\nto recall it are futile. The favours and frowns of the world are the\nharbingers of the caravan of prosperity and adversity, for both depend in\nevery individual case from the propitious or unpropitious consequences\nof the rotation of the stars of the times, and are connected with them\nlike the sun with shadows;[15] nor can they be altered by the foresight\nof Lukman, or by the wisdom of a thousand Platos. And such efforts may\nbe compared to the vain longings of procuring spring in the depth of\nwinter, or for the light of day at midnight. Thus all the struggles of\nShah Manssur were fruitless, and he reaped only sorrow from them.\u201d Nassar\nasked: \u201cWhat is the story of Shah Manssur?\u201d Khayrand\u00edsh thereupon related\nthe\n\n\n_Story of Shah Manssur_.\n\nOnce upon a time there was a man called Shah Manssur, from the\nneighbourhood of Nishap\u00far, who lived in affluence, but deceitful fortune\nhad spread the chess-board of hypocrisy, had mated and abandoned him in\nthe desert of affliction. After he lost all his property, he sat down in\nthe lap of misery, and finding all his efforts to better his condition\nfruitless, he set out for India. When he arrived in Kab\u00fal he was equally\ndisappointed, so he went one day into the baz\u00e1r, hoping to find\nemployment as a porter. There he waited till evening, and every man found\noccupation excepting himself. He began involuntarily to shed tears, and\none of the principal merchants, who was returning home from the palace\nof the Am\u00edr, saw him, and, concluding that he was suffering from some\nwrong done to him, asked him the cause of his distress. Manssur informed\nhim of his circumstances, upon which the merchant took him to his house,\nand next morning told him that as he was in need of an attendant he\nmight stay until he could find something more to his advantage. Shah\nManssur accordingly entered into the merchant\u2019s service, and gained by\nhis diligence the approbation of his master, but raised the envy of his\nfellow servants and incurred the ill-will of his mistress. One day he\nfelt somewhat indisposed, and the merchant\u2019s wife sent him some poison\nas a medicine,[16] but as his distemper was slight he made no use of the\nremedy, and kept it in his pocket. Now the merchant had a little son whom\nShah Manssur was wont to carry about, and who was so much accustomed to\nhim that whenever he cried Manssur only could quiet him. It so happened\nthat this day the child would not cease weeping, and Shah Manssur was\nobliged to take him into the street, hoping to divert him by looking\nat the passers-by. Having a little business to despatch, he set the\nchild for a moment against a wall, which unfortunately fell and covered\nhim. Shah Manssur was in despair and made a great outcry, whereupon the\nmerchant came out and asked him why he made such a noise. He told his\nmaster of the accident, at which the merchant was disconsolate, and\nthe people flocked from all directions wishing to kill Shah Manssur.\nMeanwhile the ruins of the wall were removed, and on the child being\nextricated he was found alive and perfectly uninjured. The father and\nmother of the child were in an ecstasy of joy at his fortunate escape,\nand all the people wondered. Shah Manssur fell on his knees and thanked\nthe Most High, and everybody rejoiced. A man in the crowd proposed that\na medicine be administered to the child, and Shah Manssur immediately\nproduced from his pocket that sent to him by the merchant\u2019s wife, and\nhanded it to his master, but as soon as the child had swallowed it he\nfell into convulsions and expired. The child\u2019s parents were in despair,\nespecially the mother, who threatened to commit suicide if Shah Manssur\nwere suffered to live, because, as she said, he had poisoned her son.\nHereupon the merchant\u2019s servants tied Manssur to a post, and ill-treated\nhim so much that he fainted, and was abandoned for dead.\n\nIn the evening he began to revive and moaned piteously. The merchant\nwas an intelligent man and could hardly believe Shah Manssur to have\nbeen so ungrateful as to kill his child deliberately with poison, so\nhe approached the supposed culprit and besought him to speak the truth.\nManssur said that as he was deeply grateful for the kindness he had\nreceived from his master and greatly attached to the child, the thought\nof committing such a crime could not have entered his mind; and that\nhe had only given to the child a remedy which had been sent to himself\nby his mistress when he was slightly indisposed. The merchant at once\nperceived his wife\u2019s treachery and was convinced of Shah Manssur\u2019s\ninnocence; but nevertheless he told him that he could no longer retain\nhim in his service; so he loosed his bonds and dismissed him. Naked and\nwounded, as he was, Shah Manssur walked away and took refuge in the\noutskirts of the city with an old woman, at whose house he used to stay\nin better times when on his commercial journeys. Having explained to\nher his case, she received him kindly and set about curing his wounds.\nThis old woman had a son who was carrying on an amorous intrigue with a\nneighbour\u2019s wife. He happened to be absent on that night at a friend\u2019s\nhouse, but his paramour was ignorant of this, and having waited till her\nhusband was asleep she hastened to her lover\u2019s house, which she found in\ndarkness, and mistaking Shah Manssur for him she approached his couch.\nThe wounded man thought it was his old landlady, and began to thank her\nfor her kind solicitude. In the meantime the husband of the adulterous\nwoman had missed her and made his appearance in the old woman\u2019s house.\nShe had just got up to ascertain the cause of the disturbance, and on\nperceiving a man standing with a naked sword at the door, she concluded\nhe was a thief, and at once ran up to the roof of her house and raised an\nalarm, which caused all the people of the district to sally forth with\nsticks and swords; but the adulterous woman ran off by way of the river,\nwhich was the shortest, to her house and went instantly to bed. In the\nconfusion her husband was struck by many stones thrown at him when making\nhis escape, but at last he arrived home and overwhelmed his wife with\nreproaches; she, however, yawned, pretended to awake from sleep, turned\nfrom one side to the other, and asked what was the hour of the night.\nBut the infuriated husband would not be deceived by this subterfuge, but\nvehemently accused her of being unfaithful, and even drew his sword. Upon\nthis the woman cried aloud: \u201cO Muslims! my husband is killing me!\u201d and\nthe police officers, who were at that moment returning from the alarm\nthat had been raised by the old woman, caught the words and ran to the\nhouse, when the husband violently struck one of them with his sword, and\nafter a brief struggle was taken into custody.\n\nAfter the woman had thus got rid of her husband the wasps of lust again\nstung her, and being anxious to know whether her lover was sick she\nonce more approached Shah Manssur\u2019s couch, awoke him and began her\novertures. The old woman\u2019s son, who had been at a neighbour\u2019s, hearing of\nthe disturbance in his mother\u2019s house, went home. On his way, however,\nwhen passing near the dwelling of his paramour, he went in, and finding\nthe house empty he concluded that she had gone in search of himself. He\nwas not aware, of course, of Shah Manssur being the guest of his mother,\nand when he reached home he lit a candle and went into his room, where\nbeholding his paramour with a strange man, he exclaimed: \u201cI have got a\ncurious substitute to-night!\u201d The woman fled in terror, but Shah Manssur\nfell into the grasp of the young man. The noise of the struggle again\nawoke the old woman, who, as before, thought that thieves had broken\ninto the house, and ran to the roof of the house and screamed loudly.\nHer son, supposing Shah Manssur to be the thief, told her that he had\ntaken him. The old woman tried in vain to undeceive him; but he, incited\nby his jealousy and rage, struck her, on which she raised a great noise,\naccusing him of wishing to kill her, till some neighbours came and\ndragged him off to prison.\n\nNotwithstanding all that had taken place the adulterous woman could not\nrest and again repaired to Shah Manssur, who was this time frightened at\nher re-appearance, ascribing to her all the mischief that had happened\nduring the night, and believing her to be an evil spirit was considering\nhow he might get rid of her. The old woman\u2019s sister, overhearing the\nconversation, approached the door to listen. Meanwhile the imprisoned\nhusband had bribed his jailor, escaped from custody, and made his\nappearance at the old woman\u2019s house, where mistaking her sister for his\nown wife he wounded her with his sword. The noise again made the landlady\nget up, and in the tumult the faithless wife took to her heels, as did\nalso her husband, who believed that he had grievously wounded her and\nchuckled in his heart at the deed. She was, however, very swift-footed,\nand when he reached home he found her again in bed and to all appearance\nasleep. Pretending to be just awaking, she asked what he wanted, and he\ntold her he was greatly astonished to behold her safe and sound after he\nhad killed her at the old woman\u2019s house. The wife sarcastically remarked\nthat men are once a-year subject to lunatic influences which affect their\nminds. Quoth the man: \u201cPossibly this may be the case with me, as I have\nbeen greatly disturbed in my mind during the last two days; you have done\nwell to inform me of this.\u201d\n\nWhen the old woman came out from her house she saw no one except her\nsister, who was severely wounded. She was amazed, and said to herself:\n\u201cAll the tumult and mischief of this night occurred on account of the\npresence of this man.\u201d So when it was morning she spoke to Shah Manssur,\nsaying: \u201cDear sir, as these misfortunes have happened, my son has been\nthrown into prison, and my sister will perchance die of her wound; and\nas, moreover, my son is very self-willed and incensed against you, it\nwill be best for you to remove from this house.\u201d Shah Manssur accordingly\nleft the place and began with great pains to travel towards Gazn\u00edn,\nbearing the load of misery on the back of sorrow, and reading the\nthrenody of his misfortunes.[17]\n\nAfter some time he was overtaken by a man riding on a camel, who accosted\nhim and had compassion for his wretched condition. The man informed\nhim that his name was Baba Fys, that his camel was laden with silk\nbelonging to Khoja Fyra, the vaz\u00edr of the Am\u00edr of Gazn\u00edn, who was of a\nvery benevolent disposition and would no doubt assist him. He then took\nShah Manssur on his camel, and, dreading the dangers of the night, he\nproceeded with great speed. The swift motion and his wounds so distressed\nShah Manssur that he earnestly desired Baba Fys to set him down again,\nin order that he might pass the night in tranquility and thus be able to\ncontinue his journey in the morning. But his companion told him that to\nstop at such a place was by no means advisable, since in the vicinity\nthere was a mountain pass to which many animals resorted under the\nleadership of a monkey named Paykar, who had plundered many caravans.\nBy the prayers of the Lord Sulayman, they could now do mischief only\nduring the night, and therefore they kept the pass obstructed all day,\nso that travellers must necessarily hasten through it in the night, but\nafter that the road was quite safe, and then he might rest himself.\nShah Manssur, however, was in such great distress, and so determined to\nalight, that Baba Fys, unwilling to abandon him to his fate, was obliged\nto comply with his request. They agreed to sleep and relieve each other\nby turns, but had rested only a short time when they perceived a camel\napproaching them, ridden by a monkey and guided by a bear. Many other\nanimals of dreadful aspect also came running and attacked the camel.\nHereupon Baba Fys began to lament, and accused Shah Manssur of having\nbrought him into all this trouble. This attracted the attention of the\nmonkey, who made a sign to the wild beasts, which immediately pulled\nBaba Fys to the ground, bit off his ears and then retired. This incident\nso disconcerted Baba Fys that he was ashamed to continue his journey to\nGazn\u00edn, and, after bitterly upbraiding his companion for being the cause\nof his mishap, he returned to Kab\u00fal.\n\nShah Manssur, though wretched and on foot, resumed his journey, and\nat last reached Gazn\u00edn. As it was winter and the city noted for its\ncoldness, he strolled about till he came to a bath-house, when he said\nto himself: \u201cThis is a warm place, so I will spend the night in it.\u201d\nAccordingly, saluting the keeper, he walked in. The keeper said: \u201cYoung\nman, you appear to be a stranger; where do you come from? where are\nyou travelling to? and what is your occupation?\u201d Manssur replied: \u201cI\nam a traveller, and the caravan of misfortunes has brought me to this\ncountry.\u201d The bath-keeper then asked him: \u201cDid you happen to meet on\nyour way a camel-rider named Baba Fys?\u201d He replied: \u201cWe were companions,\nbut in the desert we were attacked by wild beasts, who bit off his ears,\nand therefore he has returned to Kab\u00fal.\u201d On hearing this the heart of\nthe bath-keeper became hot as a blacksmith\u2019s furnace, seething from the\nflames of grief, and he exclaimed: \u201cWhat more distressing news could you\ntell me? He is my brother; the camel was my property; and I borrowed\nthe price of the silk. I must of necessity go home to-night and consult\nmy relatives on this affair; and as the vaz\u00edr, who is the owner of this\nbath and is at present sick, intends to come here in the morning, I was\nordered to warm the bath well. Do you therefore put fire into it, and\nto-morrow I will pay you for your trouble. Take care, however, to stir up\nthe fuel from time to time, so that the bath may become properly heated.\u201d\nAfter giving these instructions to Manssur, he departed to his house.\nBut as Manssur was fatigued and glad to be in a warm place, he soon fell\nasleep; and on awaking he found the fire was extinguished, so he got\nup, and in his anxiety and inexpertness he stirred the fire so as to\nbreak part of the floor above it, in consequence of which the water in\nthe reservoir rushed down and completely put out the fire again, at the\nsame time scalding Manssur, who fled from the place in great fear. When\nthe vaz\u00edr arrived at the bath in the morning he began to tremble from\nthe cold, and his malady so increased that he fainted. His attendants\nimmediately seized the bath-keeper, who asserted, in excuse, that it was\nall the fault of the fireman, who had run away. But the vaz\u00edr suddenly\ndying in consequence of having caught cold, his son gave orders that both\nthe bath-keeper and the fireman should be put to death.\n\nManssur, however, had made good his escape from Gazn\u00edn, and was\njourneying towards Lahore when he fell in with a caravan, of which one of\nthe merchants engaged him as his servant. As Manssur was well acquainted\nwith his duties, he diligently guarded his master\u2019s goods, and soon\ngained his confidence. When the caravan had entered into one of the\npargannas of Lahore, as all the provisions were exhausted, each merchant\ngave his servant a quantity of goods to exchange for victuals. Manssur\nbartered the goods he had received from his master very profitably, and\nreturned with various kinds of provisions before any of his companions,\nat which his master was so well pleased that he said to him: \u201cI hear\nthat there are many wealthy persons in this parganna. Take therefore some\ngoods of high price and dispose of them, and I will give you half the\nprofits.\u201d Accordingly, Manssur selected merchandise of nearly the value\nof five hundred tom\u00e1ns,[18] which he sold for a thousand and returned.\nHis master gave him three hundred tom\u00e1ns, saying: \u201cLet this sum be the\ncapital of your business, which you will in a short time increase and\nbe thus enabled to return to your own country.\u201d Shah Manssur gratefully\nreceived the merchant\u2019s generous gift, and, having bought suitable goods,\nagain repaired to the parganna, and hawked them about till he arrived at\nthe gate of an elegant and magnificent mansion, which he concluded to\nbe the property of some noble or grandee, and thought the owner might\npossibly buy all his stock of merchandise. So he deposited his wares\nin the shade of a wall and leaned against it, watching the door of the\nhouse. Presently a maiden resembling a h\u00far\u00ed[19] in stature, with the\nserenity of the moon in her countenance, and with bewitching eyes, came\nout of the house with a pitcher in her hand for the purpose of taking\nwater from the river; and Shah Manssur thus addressed her: \u201cI am at your\nservice\u2014\n\n The glances of your eyes are wonderful;\n Whoever beholds them is on the top of felicity.\u201d\n\nBut the maiden replied:\n\n \u201cThis is not the place where every caravan stops;\n The lion of every desert is here distrusted.\u201d\n\nHaving thus spoken the damsel went her way, leaving Shah Manssur\ndisappointed. But after a while she returned and inquired of him: \u201cWhy\ndo you stop here?\u201d He answered: \u201cI am waiting on rosy-cheeked ladies,\nand my heart is stored with all sorts of services for them.\u201d Quoth the\ndamsel: \u201cBring your goods into the house that I may buy them.\u201d So he took\nup his wares and followed the girl, who walked very rapidly. They passed\nthrough a corridor with several doors, and arrived in the court-yard of\nthe mansion, which was a great and lofty edifice of much beauty, having\nmany apartments elegantly furnished, but untenanted. When he had looked\naround and rested himself for a while, he perceived that the maiden had\ndisappeared. At last he concluded it would be best for him to leave the\nplace; but as he was roaming from one apartment to another he lost his\nway, and finding no way of exit became frightened, yet continued his\nsearch until he reached a hall from the ceiling of which a golden disk\nwas suspended by chains encrusted with precious stones. On both sides of\nthe disk small globular bells were dangling, and upon it there was a\nphial of glass. The statue of a lion of marble bound in chains occupied\none side of the apartment. While Shah Manssur viewed this scene with\namazement, the same girl entered with a rod in her hand. As he was about\nto address her, she exclaimed: \u201cHa! madman, you have walked into the trap\nat last!\u201d and struck the lion so that he began to roar, and the disk,\nthe chains, and the little bells shook and jingled, accompanied by great\nnoises, shoutings, and lamentations, which terrified Shah Manssur, who\nanxiously wished to make his escape. Meanwhile the phial on the disk\nemitted a green substance mingled with flames, which ascended into the\nair and filled the apartment with darkness: Shah Manssur almost fainted;\nand when the smoke and the flame had subsided, a viper lifted its head\nout of the phial, from which it finally emerged and entered the mouth of\nthe lion. Soon after this the lion sneezed, and from his brains a spider\nescaped, which gradually increased in size until it became as large as a\nsheep; when it made a still greater effort its skin burst, from which an\nold hag of miserable aspect, dreadful as a goblin and ugly as a satyr,\ncame forth, embraced Shah Manssur very ardently, kissed him, and emitted\nfrom her cadaverous mouth a disgusting liquid which covered his face. Her\nputrid breath was like burning sulphur, and made him cough and almost\ngive up the ghost. This dreadful hag, however, doubled her caresses, and\nwould not leave him until he fainted away. When he came to his senses\nhe cried out piteously: \u201cO most gracious lady, deliver me from this\ncalamity!\u201d But she replied: \u201cYour request cannot be gratified;\u201d and then,\ngiving him a substance to smell at, he again became unconscious.\n\nThus Shah Manssur continued during nearly forty days in the grasp\nof misfortune. The wretched hag made her appearance once every day,\ntormenting him, and causing him to faint for the gratification of her\nwicked lust. One day, however, when she was about the same business,\nshe pulled out a mirror from her pocket and looking into it with great\nconsternation, was suddenly transformed into a spider, crawled into the\nmouth of the lion, whence she again issued in the form of a serpent,\nascended to the disk and disappeared in the phial. Then Shah Manssur\nwent into the court-yard and tried whether he could escape from the\nplace. There the girl met him and said: \u201cI am astonished that she has\nnot thrown you into a trance;\u201d upon which Manssur told her all that had\noccurred, and the girl said: \u201cShe has a foe in J\u00e1bolk\u00e1, whose machination\nshe learns from that mirror, because whenever he attempts to ruin this\nwicked fairy his figure appears in it, and the accursed one departs\nto combat him.\u201d Then exclaimed Shah Manssur bitterly: \u201cO cruel and\nmerciless woman! the torments which I have suffered in this house are the\nconsequences of my having by your coquetry been decoyed into it; and now\nperhaps you will be compassionate enough to let me depart.\u201d The damsel\nreplied: \u201cYoung man, I have, like yourself, been caught in this shoreless\nwhirlpool, and have been made the instrument of alluring poor victims,\nwhom she was in the habit of using for the gratification of her wicked\ndesires and afterwards destroying. Whenever I disobeyed her she punished\nme severely. Her name is Henn\u00e1na the Witch, and she is a descendant of\nthe sorcerers of the time of Kolyas, whom the accursed Pharaoh sent\nagainst the Lord Moses (salutation to him).[20] This iniquitous wretch\nkeeps a similar establishment in Hind\u00fast\u00e1n: she is able, like the wind,\nto transport herself in a moment from the eastern to the western parts of\nthe world, and to carry the flames of misfortune to all places.\u201d\n\nShah Manssur then asked the girl: \u201cHow did you fall into her power?\u201d She\nreplied: \u201cKnow that my father is the chief of Agra and is possessed of\ngreat wealth. He had betrothed me to my cousin, who set out for Ban\u00e1res\nto procure the paraphernalia of the wedding ceremony; and when the report\nof my beauty and other qualities had spread through that city, the Am\u00edr\nverified it, was desirous to marry me, and said to my relatives: \u2018I\nhave heard that you have a beautiful girl, and I wish to take her for\na wife.\u2019 My father and my relatives consented; but as I was deeply in\nlove with my uncle\u2019s son, I became very indignant and exclaimed: \u2018To\nhow many men will you give your daughter? It is many years since you\nbetrothed me to my cousin, and though he is absent at Ban\u00e1res for the\npurpose of procuring the things needful for a household, I consider\nmyself as under his protection, and shall never accept of another husband\nas long as I am alive. Do not try to force me, for I would rather commit\nsuicide.\u2019 This resolute declaration had the effect I desired, and, after\nholding a consultation with our relatives, my father determined that we\nshould all flee to Ban\u00e1res. I was dressed in male garments, and when\nnight approached was taken out of the city and given in charge of two\nconfidential servants who were to explain everything to my cousin, and\nwe began our journey on fleet Arab steeds. After we had travelled for\nthree days a fearful wind and thunderstorm overtook us in the desert,\nduring which I became separated from my escort and was left alone. As\nI was roaming about I arrived at a green spot where I discovered a\nfountain, and feeling thirsty I alighted from my horse, which at once\ntook to flight, and in my vain pursuit of it I chanced to meet an old\nwoman who was weeping piteously and crying aloud: \u2018O unhappy fate! have\nyou at last in my old age and weakness thrown me into such a state that\nI must become the prey of wild beasts? Would to God some friend could\ntake me by the hand and deliver me from this danger!\u2019 I came forward and\nsaid: \u2018Old woman, what has happened to you?\u2019 She answered: \u2018I was going\non a pilgrimage to Makka, and when our caravan entered this desert it\nwas plundered by robbers. Here have I been for two days without a morsel\nof food. Young man, have pity on my age and helplessness; deliver me\nfrom this calamity, and convey me to a place of security, that you may\nbe rewarded for your good act.\u2019 I had compassion on the wretched old\nwoman and was considering what I could do for her, when she handed me\nan apple, of which I had no sooner eaten a small piece than I sneezed\nand fainted; nor was I sensible of aught until I again opened my eyes\nand found myself in this place with that accursed witch. When she saw me\npale and frightened, she exclaimed: \u2018Let nothing dismay you, for your\nlife is not in danger from me;\u2019 and thinking I was a man, she commenced\nto fondle me, but I soon undeceived her. Since that time four years have\nelapsed, during which, being myself miserable, I was compelled to entice\nhelpless men into her snares. Nevertheless, one day I conceived that I\nmight escape and secretly left the house, but I was instantly transformed\ninto a she-dog, and was pursued by all the dogs in the town, so that I\nwas again obliged to return to this place. But now I shall propose to\nyou a means of escape, on condition that you convey me in safety to my\nfriends.\u201d Shah Manssur eagerly replied: \u201cI promise to do whatever you\nrequire of me,\u201d and the girl went on to say: \u201cWhen the phial is broken\nthe witch must die; request her therefore to give you tidings concerning\nyour family, and as soon as she disappears you must strike the phial with\na stone so as to break it.\u201d[21]\n\nWhilst they were conversing they perceived the accursed hag approaching.\nSo the maiden left the apartment; and when the witch saw Shah Manssur\nweeping she asked him the reason, to which he answered: \u201cIt is now a long\ntime since I was separated from my country, and I have had a fearful\ndream which afflicts me sorely.\u201d Quoth the hag: \u201cBe not distressed;\nI shall instantly give you information regarding your relatives;\u201d so\nsaying, she went to the phial, disappeared and quickly returned, and\nminutely described to him the dwelling as well as the condition of his\nparents and relatives. Manssur was astonished at the accuracy of her\ndescription, but, dissembling, said to her: \u201cI cannot believe all this,\nbecause my country is far distant and you have returned in half a minute.\nUnless you bring me a token that you have really been there I cannot\ntrust you.\u201d Quoth the witch: \u201cWhat kind of token do you desire?\u201d Manssur\nreplied: \u201cIn the garden of our house is a tree on which I once climbed,\nwhen a portion of my belt was torn off, which I tied to a branch. If you\nbring me a rag of the belt I shall then believe you.\u201d When he had said\nthis the witch went again to the phial, and, as before, disappeared.\nThis time the girl brought Shah Manssur a stone; he invoked the aid of\nGod the Most High, and striking the phial, it flew into pieces. Then the\nlion roared, the chains clanked, the little bells jingled, a fearful\nnoise was heard, some blood dripped from the ceiling of the apartment\nto the ground, and the magical apparatus, the furniture, the chambers,\nand the entire edifice vanished, leaving Shah Manssur and the maiden\nstanding together in a cemetery, and both poured forth their thanks to\nthe Most High. Then the girl said: \u201cMy dear friend, from hence to Agra\nis ten days\u2019 journey;\u201d and handing him some costly pearls she added,\n\u201ctry to convey me quickly to my parents, and buy with these pearls all\nthat is necessary for me on the way.\u201d Shah Manssur purchased a camel\nwith a litter and a slave for the damsel, and sent her off to her own\ncountry, after which he set out on foot, and in a destitute condition,\nfor Burhanp\u00far.\n\nWhen Shah Manssur arrived at his destination he heard that the Am\u00edr of\nBurhanp\u00far, while hunting, had lost a precious gem from the hilt of his\nsword, and had issued an order that all the citizens should go next\nmorning to the hunting ground in search of it. So rich and poor, gentle\nand simple, left the city and roamed about. Shah Manssur joined the\ncrowd, and was fortunate enough to find the lost gem. On presenting it\nto the Am\u00edr he was highly pleased, praised him greatly, and questioned\nhim as to his connections and circumstances; after which he gave him in\ncharge of one of his chamberlains to provide for him as soon as possible.\nIt happened, however, that the Am\u00edr died suddenly, and the reward\npromised to Manssur came to nothing.\n\nThe son of the Am\u00edr succeeded his father. One day a merchant presented\nhim with a parrot that could speak with great eloquence, and the new Am\u00edr\nentrusted it to the care of the chamberlain, who took the bird home,\nand having sent for Manssur said to him: \u201cTake the utmost care of this\nparrot, for it may become the means of introducing you to the Am\u00edr, and\nof your obtaining the reward which his father promised you.\u201d[22] Manssur\ntook charge of the bird and carried it away; but when he got into the\nstreet the people were all so anxious to see it and pressed so much upon\nhim that he thought it would be better to take the parrot out of the cage\nand carry it in his hand. But unluckily it escaped from his grasp and\nflew to the top of the chamberlain\u2019s haram. Manssur had great trouble in\nclimbing the wall, and just as he had succeeded the parrot again flitted\naway and alighted on the roof of one of the haram apartments. Shah\nManssur was so frightened that he said nothing to the eunuch and other\nservants, but threw up a cord, by means of which he contrived to reach\nthe spot; but once more the parrot started off, and in so doing moved\na tile which fell on the head of the chief lady of the chamberlain\u2019s\nharam and killed her there and then. The eunuchs and maid-servants, on\ndiscovering this fatal mishap, raised their voices in lamentation, which\ncaused the chamberlain to leave his office and run into the haram, where\nhe found everyone in a state of great agitation, and Shah Manssur a\ncaptive in the hands of the eunuchs, and he at once ordered the culprit\nto be beaten and thrown into prison, where the poor fellow was kept for\nsome time and tormented every day until he found a favourable opportunity\nand escaped.\n\nShah Manssur fled to Guzerat, where he wandered about in great distress,\nsometimes hiring himself out as a labourer and sometimes as a porter.\nOne day, when he was unable to obtain either food or employment, he\ndetermined to sell the ring with which the neighbour\u2019s wife had presented\nhim.[23] He was chiefly induced to take this step by sniffing the\nappetising fumes of roast meat in passing a cook\u2019s shop, the owner of\nwhich he approached, and requesting something to eat offered the ring in\npledge for the price. But when the cook looked at the ruby set in the\nbeazle and then at the poverty-stricken figure of Shah Manssur, he felt\nsure that he could not be the lawful possessor of such a gem but must\nhave stolen it, and that, not knowing its real value, he was ready to\npart with it for a meal. Now it chanced that during the preceding night\nsome thieves had broken into the treasury of the Am\u00edr and stolen a great\nquantity of gold, silver, precious stones, and valuables of all kinds;\nand this audacious robbery had become known throughout the city and the\npolice were busy searching the baz\u00e1rs and private houses for the thieves.\nSo the cook said to Shah Manssur: \u201cFriend, you do not look like the owner\nof such a ring as this;\u2014come, tell me where you got it?\u201d \u201cWhat business\nhave you thus to question me?\u201d replied Manssur. \u201cEither give me something\nto eat or return me the ring.\u201d These words gave rise to a dispute, which\nculminated in a fight, wherein the neighbours took the part of the cook,\nand on the arrival of the police on the scene they took the ring from\nthe cook, and thinking it to be one of the articles stolen from the\ntreasury they dragged Shah Manssur before their superintendent, and\nreported that they had recovered a portion of the stolen treasure and\ncaptured the thief.\n\nIt happened that a notorious robber named Obayd was at that time, with\nforty companions, carrying on great depredations which the police were\nunable to prevent, and his fame had so widely spread through Hind\u00fast\u00e1n\nthat day and night no one could breathe in peace. It is even said that a\nfew days before the robbery of the Am\u00edr\u2019s treasury Obayd sent a message\nto the police superintendent, to be on his guard, as he was coming.\nConsequently, when the superintendent saw Manssur he supposed him to be\nObayd, loaded him with heavy chains, and sent him to the Am\u00edr, together\nwith the ring, for the purpose of ingratiating himself and displaying\nhis zeal in the service. But when the Am\u00edr looked at Shah Manssur, he\nsaid: \u201cI have always heard that Obayd is a powerful and strong man; this\nfellow is weak and looks like an arrant coward: he may possibly be an\naccomplice, but he cannot be Obayd himself.\u201d The superintendent, however,\nreplied: \u201cMay your highness live for ever! This man, who seems so feeble,\nis strong and bold, and so nimble that he can jump through a finger-ring.\nBut now that he has been captured by me his powerful limbs have shrunk\ntogether from fear; and I shall put him to the torture forthwith to\ncompel him to tell the truth.\u201d Said the Am\u00edr to Shah Manssur: \u201cWho are\nyou? and whence have you obtained this ruby?\u201d He replied, \u201cMay the Am\u00edr\nlive long! I am a stranger, and the ring is my own property. I have come\nto this country on account of the great name and the good report which I\nhave heard of the Am\u00edr. I have fallen into the hands of the police, but I\nhave no knowledge at all of the robbery of your highness\u2019 treasury.\u201d The\napparatus of torture was then brought, and Shah Manssur, being suspended\nby the heels of punishment, forgot in his misery the name of Obayd and\nsaid, \u201cI am Zubayr, and have robbed the treasury.\u201d Now there was a famous\nrobber of the name of Zubayr, so the Am\u00edr believed the poor fellow\u2019s\nstatement and remarked: \u201cHe may be Zubayr.\u201d The superintendent said to\nhis men: \u201cTake good care of this man to-night, and in the morning we\nshall again examine him.\u201d Accordingly they took Manssur to prison, all\nbelieving him to be the robber Zubayr. On the way all the people who had\nbeen robbed by Zubayr rushed up to Manssur and demanded their property;\nbut the superintendent said: \u201cDo not be uneasy. I shall get back to the\nlast farthing everything he has taken from you.\u201d\n\nWhen night set in special watchmen were appointed to guard the prison,\nand vaunting their own bravery and fidelity, they took charge of the four\ncorners thereof. Shah Manssur was unable to sleep, and was thinking how\nthe morning would dawn on his innocent head, when he heard sounds of\nstriking and digging. It was midnight, and he hearkened to the sounds\nwith fear and trembling, till suddenly the wall opened, from which a hand\ngrasping a sword protruded, at which Manssur became so terrified that he\nnearly fainted, for he weened it was a man belonging to the police. A\nvoice, however, exclaimed: \u201cFriend, be not afraid. I have come to save\nyou. We have no time to lose in explanations;\u201d and with these words a\nstrong man seized Shah Manssur with his fetters and chains, carried him\nout of the prison, let him down the wall of the fort by a rope, and\nconveyed him quickly to a ruin at a distance of nearly three farasangs.\nWhen he arrived there he placed Manssur on his feet, and raising a\ngreat stone which covered the entrance to an underground chamber, they\ndescended into it, and there he set poor Manssur free from his heavy\nbonds, after which he thus addressed him: \u201cYoung man, be comfortable and\nrest yourself, for I know you have suffered much.\u201d Then placing before\nhim different kinds of delicious food, he added: \u201cEat cheerfully, for\nyour misfortunes are now ended.\u201d\n\nAfter Shah Manssur had eaten he went to sleep; and when he awoke he spoke\nthus to his deliverer: \u201cGenerous and kind man, although honesty radiates\nfrom your august countenance and I feel happy in your company, yet, as\nit is my fate to wander in the desert of grief and to fall perpetually\nfrom one calamity to another, you would greatly relieve my apprehensions\nby informing me of the motives of your kind act.\u201d The man replied: \u201cI\nam the robber of the Am\u00edr\u2019s treasury! But when I learned that you, an\ninnocent man, had been imprisoned in my stead, I considered it my duty\nto liberate you, and for that purpose I have been obliged to kill many\nof the watchmen. To-morrow, when everything becomes known, there will\nbe great excitement and the police will be in pursuit of me. This is a\nsecure refuge where no one can discover you; and when the storm is over I\nshall find means to convey you out of all danger.\u201d Shah Manssur replied\nby expressing his deep feeling of gratitude to his deliverer.\n\nNext morning at sun-rise the superintendent was informed that a number of\nwatchmen had been killed and that Zubayr had been carried off through an\nopening in the wall. At this unpleasant news he was much disconcerted,\nand ran at once to the palace to make his report. The Am\u00edr was furious\nand exclaimed: \u201cYou rascal! is this how you have taken care of your\nprisoner? This comes only through your gross negligence. I shall hear\nnone of your excuses. Produce the man, else I shall punish you and\nignominiously expel you from my service.\u201d\n\nWhen the people of the town learned what had happened, all who had been\nplundered by Zubayr accused the superintendent of having connived at the\nprisoner\u2019s escape and clamoured for the restitution of their property.\nSo he asked for a month\u2019s respite and despatched three thousand men in\nsearch of the robber. But after vainly searching in all directions they\nreturned, and those who had been robbed confiscated the superintendent\u2019s\nproperty, and the Am\u00edr expelled him from the city.\n\nMeanwhile the deliverer of Shah Manssur kept him company during the day\nand went forth at night in order to ascertain what was going on in the\ncity; and when he heard of the superintendent\u2019s downfall he hastened\nback and said to Manssur: \u201cPraise be to God! the danger is over, and it\nis time for me to send you to your own country.\u201d But quoth Shah Manssur:\n\u201cDear friend, I have a difficulty which I wish you to solve for me.\u201d\nSaid the man: \u201cSpeak.\u201d Shah Manssur continued: \u201cSince I have had the\npleasure of your acquaintance, I have discovered nothing improper in your\ncharacter; but it is utterly incomprehensible to me how you, who are\nendowed with such noble sentiments, can have selected the occupation of a\nrobber.\u201d His liberator answered:\n\n\u201cMy occupation was formerly quite different. Know that my name is Junayd\nMuhtashim, and I am a scion of a noble and opulent family. In this\nneighbourhood there is a tract of country with flowing rivers, spacious\nmeadows, fertile lands, many houses and numberless gardens. All that\ndistrict belonged to me and was inhabited by my retainers and servants,\nand I cheerfully paid all taxes to the Am\u00edr, who was for many years\nmy friend. In course of time, however, the exactions of the government\nofficials became very heavy; judges, tax-gatherers, and accountants were\nsent to me whose rapacity it was difficult to satisfy, and I became\ngreatly distressed. I repeatedly made complaints to the Am\u00edr, and\nendeavoured to convince him that he could be powerful only so long as he\ntreated his subjects with justice, and that oppression could result in\nnothing but unhappiness and confusion. But all my advice proved futile,\nand when his delegates came again I took refuge in a fort and answered\ntherefrom. After several days had passed in this way, I heard that it was\nthe intention of the Am\u00edr to plunder me, so I conveyed all my moveable\nproperty into the stronghold and prepared to stand a siege. When the Am\u00edr\nbecame aware that he could not very easily get at me, he seized the sheep\nand cattle which I possessed outside of the city, and ultimately I was\nable to take refuge with my retainers in Hyder\u00e1b\u00e1d, whither some persons\ncame and bought of me all the landed property I had in Guzerat; but as\nI could in no other way recover the value of the goods and cattle which\nthe Am\u00edr had forcibly taken from me, I secretly returned to Guzerat to\npay myself from his own treasury or in any other way, and no one has been\nable to interfere with me.[24] But you, my friend, must no longer remain\nin this place. I have a courser, swift like lightning, to whom fifty\nfarasangs are an easy stage: mount and ride on him to Hyder\u00e1b\u00e1d, where I\nshall induce my friends to send you comfortably to Nishap\u00far.\u201d\n\nHaving written a few words to his relatives, explained to Shah Manssur\nthe position of his house, and presented him with a costly diamond, he\ntook affectionate leave of him, wished him God-speed, led him out of\nthe underground apartment, and said: \u201cWait a moment till I bring you\na horse.\u201d He presently returned with a steed, which when Manssur had\nmounted, \u201cThis courser,\u201d said his deliverer, \u201cwell knows the road, and\nwhen you reach Hyder\u00e1b\u00e1d you must throw the reins on his neck, and he\nwill carry you without fail to the threshold of my house;\u201d so saying, he\nled him on to the highway and again bade him farewell.\n\nShah Manssur prosecuted his journey with great rapidity till he arrived\nat Hyder\u00e1b\u00e1d, and remembering the injunctions he had received, allowed\nthe horse to go where it pleased. Thus he rode through the streets till\nsuddenly a man recognised the horse, and proceeding to Junayd\u2019s house\nintimated that a stranger was coming mounted on his horse. Some of\nJunayd\u2019s relatives at once went out and asked Shah Manssur where he got\nthe animal he bestrode. He replied: \u201cThe horse is my own, and you have\nno right to question me.\u201d These words so incensed the people that they\ninstantly surrounded him and pulled him off the horse, saying: \u201cThis\nanimal belongs to us. Come\u2014tell us the truth as to how you obtained\nit.\u201d Shah Manssur, believing them to be a pack of rascals who wished to\ndeprive him of the horse, began to use insulting language towards them.\nBy this time a great number of people had gathered round the horse and\nthey cried out: \u201cWe know this animal: it belongs to Junayd, and these\nare his relatives. You must produce some token of your honesty.\u201d As soon\nas Manssur learned that these were the friends of Junayd he began to\nfumble in his pocket for the letter he had received from him, but could\nnot find it\u2014on the road he had lost both the letter and the diamond; so\nall his assertions that the horse had been given to him by the owner\nwere discredited. They declared to him plainly that he had either\nkilled Junayd or robbed him; and then they beat Manssur most cruelly\nand imprisoned him until the matter could be cleared up. He was kept in\nconfinement till one of his accusers fell dangerously ill, and tormented\nby the stings of his conscience, when he was set at liberty.\n\nShah Manssur now reflected: \u201cMy remaining in Hind\u00fast\u00e1n is of no use, for\ncalamities dog me at every step. Alas for the time which I have lost\nin roaming about in this country! It were better that I should return\nhome, and if the Most High please, he can make me happy and cause me to\nprosper there.\u201d A caravan was proceeding from Hyder\u00e1b\u00e1d to Ir\u00e1n,[25]\nand Manssur, sad and disappointed, travelled along with it. On reaching\nthe outskirts of Nishap\u00far, he said to himself: \u201cTo make my appearance in\nthis destitute and miserable condition, after a journey from Hind\u00fast\u00e1n,\nwould distress my friends and cause my enemies to rejoice. Therefore I\nwill remain here until nightfall and then enter the town and go to my\nfriends.\u201d He took refuge in a dilapidated building, where he mourned\nand wept over his sad fate. After a while an owl flew in, pursued by an\neagle, and sought protection of Shah Manssur, who took up a stone to\nthrow at the eagle. The stone, however, struck the wall and displaced\na brick, when a quantity of gold ashraf\u00eds[26] fell to the ground. Shah\nManssur ran to the place and there found a pot full of gold and silver.\nHe stuffed his pockets with gold coins and then concealed the pot in\nan obscure corner of the ruin, fervently thanking God for this happy\ntermination of his travels and misfortunes.[27]\n\nHe remained in the ruin all night, and in the morning he did not\nenter Nishap\u00far but went to Kazvyn, where he took an apartment in the\ncaravanserai, changed his habiliments, and bought a large quantity of\nthe finest merchandise, a string of camels, and three slaves, and made\nhis entrance into Nishap\u00far rejoicing. He was most kindly received by his\nrelatives and friends, and in course of time he removed the whole of the\ntreasure from the ruin to his own house. Thus he lived in comfort and\nprosperity, made several journeys to the country of R\u00fam and to that of\nthe Franks,[28] by which he obtained large profits, so that he finally\nbecame the owner of seven hundred strings of valuable camels.\n\nOne day when he was sitting with his friends and relating his unhappy\nadventures in Hind\u00fast\u00e1n, he mentioned also the affair of the witch, and\nasked whether they had seen her about the place. They replied: \u201cWe were\nsitting together one day in this very house, when a strange cat made its\nappearance, looked at each of us attentively, and instantly vanished. Not\nlong afterwards it came again, ran with great speed up yonder tree, and\nimmediately falling down, seemed to be in the agony of death, but when we\nwent up to the animal it had already expired.\u201d Quoth Shah Manssur: \u201cThat\nwas the same witch whose captive I had been for some time, until at last\nI contrived to send her here and escape;\u201d and at this explanation they\nwere greatly amazed.[29]\n\nShah Manssur once took a large quantity of merchandise, with many\nattendants, to the country of Tabr\u00edz, which was at that time under the\nTurkish government. He waited on the Am\u00edr of Tabr\u00edz, associated with him,\nand so gained his favour that he made him his vaz\u00edr; and when the Am\u00edr\ndied, the citizens, being pleased with the kind and just disposition of\nShah Manssur in his capacity of vaz\u00edr, petitioned the sultan to make him\nAm\u00edr, a request which was readily granted, and Shah Manssur governed in\nTabr\u00edz for many years until he died.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cMy dear Nassar,\u201d continued Khayrand\u00edsh, \u201cI have related this narrative\nto make you understand that a man cannot attain the object of his desires\nby irregular wanderings and inordinate appetites; but if he be patient he\nwill succeed. The world is a coquette, and the more she is courted the\nmore coy and prudish she becomes, but if left unnoticed she will try to\ngain our favours.\u201d\n\n\nSECOND ADVICE.\n\n\u201cIt is necessary to guard oneself from the wiles and snares of our\nfellow-beings, and not to trust implicitly in persons whose character is\nneither known nor tried. Whoever walks among thorns must do so with great\ncare and precaution. This world resembles a picture-gallery with many\napartments, each of which has its own peculiar attractions; but a man who\nshould spend all his time in the contemplation and enjoyment thereof,\nto the neglect and disregard of his daily avocations, would injure his\nown interests. Therefore he is prudent who runs not after every fleeting\nillusion, but bridles his desires lest he be disappointed and rendered\nunhappy, like the geomancer, the washerman, and the painter, who lost\ncontrol of their passions and were drowned in the ocean of misfortunes\nand errors, grieving over their troubles, which they were unable to\nremedy.\u201d Then Khayrand\u00edsh told Nassar the\n\n\n_Story of Hatim Ta\u00ef and the Benevolent Lady_.\n\nIt is related that when Hatim Ta\u00ef[30] was dispensing his bounty one day\nin a hall which had forty doors, by every one of which the destitute\nmight be admitted, a darvesh entered and thus addressed him: \u201cO vernal\ncloud of liberality! the mead of hope expects to be irrigated by you. O\nhusbandman of the field of beneficence, the aspirants to your favours are\nin attendance to receive your refreshing showers, and this gleaner from\nthe store-houses of your bounty was by the guide of hope directed to the\nprosperous mansion of your generosity!\n\n Bestow gifts, O noble individual,\n For liberality is the lamp in the assembly of Faith.\n Whoever gives a dirham to a mendicant\n Is favourably regarded by God.\n The umbrella of victory, in both worlds,\n Overshadows the glorious heads of the liberal.\u201d\n\nHatim ordered one hundred d\u00ednars[31] to be given to the darvesh, who\nagain entered by another door and reiterated his petition, and again\nobtained one hundred d\u00ednars. Thus he repeated his request until he had\ncome in by all the forty doors, and had obtained the same sum at each of\nthem. After that he reappeared at the first door and proffered the same\nrequest, upon which an attendant said to him: \u201cDarvesh, you have made\nthe round of all the entrances and were disappointed at none. How is it\nthat your greediness is not yet satisfied, and that you have exposed\nyourself to a refusal?\u201d The darvesh heaved a deep sigh and replied: \u201cThe\nfame of Hatim, which extends over the whole world, has induced me to\ntravel from China to this place. But in that country there is a lady more\nliberal than he, inasmuch as her largesses surpass the most extravagant\nexpectations of those who receive them, so that a hundred Hatims could\nnot equal in many years the sums which she disburses in one day.\u201d When\nthe darvesh had thus spoken he disappeared, and Hatim became desirous of\nascertaining the truth of his statement, so he departed for China, and,\narrived there, considering how he might accomplish his object, he walked\nabout the streets.\n\nHe perceived great crowds of people hastening away and inquired the\nreason, when a man answered: \u201cIn this city there was a man of the name\nof Nassar-ullah, who possessed immense riches. He left a daughter who\ndistributes in great profusion\u2014and has done so for several years\u2014money\nto all persons. If you wish to know whether I speak the truth, you have\nonly to follow the crowd.\u201d Accordingly Hatim went along with the people,\nand arrived at a beautiful palace where servants dressed in rich garments\nreceived everyone who wished to enter. Within the palace Hatim saw a\nlarge assembly reposing on silken couches, with tables before them on\nwhich the finest dainties were placed in rich variety and abundance.\nAfter the repast was over a confidential servant appeared with a platter\nfull of pieces of paper on which different sums were written; and to\nevery person who was about to depart he handed one of those papers. When\nHatim\u2019s turn came he also received one, and the assembly broke up. As the\npeople arrived at the gate each man handed his paper to a servant, who\ngave him in return a bag full of gold according to the amount specified\non the little ticket. Hatim was so much astonished at what he had seen\nthat he was constantly thinking of the immense riches of the lady, and\nwas extremely anxious to obtain an interview with her. So he requested\na chamberlain to procure him the honour of an audience, and on being\nadmitted into the presence of that queen he addressed her as follows:\n\u201cMost exalted lady of the mansions of liberality, and h\u00far\u00ed of the castles\nof felicity!\n\n May the rose of your nature constantly\n Be blooming joyfully in the spring of generosity!\n The hand of your liberality, beauteous fairy,\n Is shedding jewels like the vernal cloud.\n Your servant has a difficulty,\n Which causes him great anxiety:\n If you grant my petition,\n I shall humbly explain it.\u201d\n\nThat idol of high prosperity gave permission, and Hatim spake thus: \u201cI\nhear that the stream of your extraordinary liberality has for several\nyears flowed with undiminished vigour, and I am curious to know how you\nobtained such enormous wealth.\u201d Quoth the lady: \u201cEvery assembly receives\nlight from its lamp, and the destiny of every individual is traced out\non his forehead by the hand of divine providence.\n\n Love was the bulbul\u2019s, and beauty the rose\u2019s share;\n Liberal persons are the treasurers of the mercy of God.\n\nThe state of my affairs is connected with a tale which I shall\ncommunicate to you on two conditions: First, I am informed that at\npresent there exists a man of the name of Hatim, whose liberality is so\nfar famed that in spite of my having for a number of years made it my\nbusiness to grant to all persons the richest and most abundant gifts,\nmy name is not even heard of except in this country; therefore I am so\njealous of Hatim that I wish you to kill him. Secondly, I have heard that\nin the neighbourhood of Khat\u00e1 there is an exceedingly high mountain, in a\ncave of which a blind man has dwelt for many years, who never utters any\nwords save these:\n\n \u2018If you possess one barley-corn of justice,\n You will never have half a grain of sorrow,\u2019\n\nand I desire to know his reason for constantly repeating these words.\u201d\n\nHatim drew the finger of acquiescence over the face of content, took\nhis leave, and set out for the cave indicated by the lady. There he\nfound a blind man, whom he requested to relate his adventures. But the\nblind man replied: \u201cMy good friend, what can have instigated you to make\nsuch a request? I have no doubt that your mind is often exercised with\nproblems which you cannot solve; and I pray you to consider this question\nas one of them.\u201d Hatim, however, went on to say: \u201cPersons of a kindly\ndisposition generally comply with the requests of the importunate, and I\nhope you will not allow me to depart from this place without affording me\nthe desired information.\u201d Then quoth the blind man: \u201cI shall withdraw the\nveil from the surface of the mystery on one condition: It is long since\nI heard that there is a washerman in Khat\u00e1 who goes every morning to the\nbank of the river and does nothing but look at a tree which is there,\nleap about like a madman, sigh deeply, and repeat these verses:\n\n \u2018Alas, that your picture has left my sight,\n And left my golden chalice empty of the wine of joy!\n It is the wish of my heart that once more I may meet her.\u2019\n\nNow, my good friend, if you acquaint me with the story of that washerman,\nI shall have no objection to relate to you my own history.\u201d\n\nAccordingly Hatim proceeded in quest of the washerman, and finding the\nblind man\u2019s account of him perfectly accurate, he was not a little\nastonished at his actions and said to him: \u201cFriend, if you would kindly\ninform me why you act in this strange manner, I might be able to help\nyou in your troubles and perhaps liberate you from your affliction.\u201d But\nthe washerman sighed and only said in reply: \u201cThe wound of my heart no\nmedicine can heal, nor can any advice help me. I am incurable, and the\ngrief of my heart would only be augmented were I to reveal it.\n\n I had better hide my sorrow from empirics;\n Perchance the divine mercy will cure my grief.\u201d\n\nQuoth Hatim: \u201cYoung man, stand not on ceremony with me, for I shall not\nquit hold of your skirt until you have told me your adventures.\u201d Then\nsaid the washerman: \u201cI also have a great curiosity regarding a certain\nmatter, and if you will satisfy it I shall relate to you my story. Know\nthat in M\u00e1chin there is a man who paints on a board, during the whole\nyear, a picture of the handsomest kind, which he sells in the baz\u00e1r\nat the end of the year for a thousand d\u00ednars, and then returns the\nmoney and breaks his picture to pieces. I wish to learn the reason of\nthis proceeding.\u201d \u201cAlas, and woe is me!\u201d exclaimed Hatim. \u201cInto what a\nlabyrinth of troubles have I fallen, to be thus required to solve one\nenigma after another!\u201d He had, however, no alternative but to go to the\ncity of M\u00e1chin, and it so chanced that he arrived there at the time when\nthe painter had brought his picture to the baz\u00e1r and was surrounded by\nsuch a great crowd of people that Hatim could only get near him as a\nbidder, and assisted at the sale until the painter broke his picture and\ngathered up the fragments, when the crowd dispersed with exclamations of\nregret. Hatim then visited the painter and addressed him, saying: \u201cYoung\nman, what is your opinion regarding hospitality?\u201d In reply the painter\nrecited these verses:\n\n \u201cA guest is a flower from the garden of prosperity and mercy;\n He is the fruit of the spring of happiness.\n Whoever is inhospitable injures his own soul.\u201d\n\nHe received Hatim in a very friendly manner, and inquired of him: \u201cTo\nwhat circumstance may I ascribe the happiness of being visited by you?\u201d\nQuoth Hatim: \u201cThe mysterious force which attracts kindred spirits to each\nother has made me trespass on your retirement.\u201d After an interchange\nof courtesies they became quite intimate, and Hatim, anxious to attain\nhis object, said to the painter: \u201cDear friend, I conjure you, by the\nobligations which you have already conferred on me, to explain the cause\nof what I have witnessed this day,\u201d and he thus complied:\n\n\n_The Painter\u2019s Story_.\n\nIn former times, when the refreshing clouds of youth and strength watered\nthe grove of my life, I decked out my imagination with the variegated\nrobes of pleasure, and during the greater portion of that period the buds\nof all kinds of desires blossomed, and the ardent longings to embrace the\nfairy of enjoyment took possession of my heart. I had a delightful garden\nin which I walked about one day according to my usual custom, when I\nbeheld two serpents fighting. One was black, the other white; the latter\nseemed to be the weaker and about to succumb to its antagonist; and,\nas every one who removes a thorn from the path of a bare-footed person\nperforms a good action, I drew my scymetar and struck off the head of\nthe black serpent. That very moment the sky became darkened, something\nroared in the air, a phial fell to the earth and was shattered to pieces,\nat the same time the white serpent disappeared. I was astonished at\nwhat had taken place, but again returned to the garden next day to walk\nabout in it. In passing near the bank of a river I observed a white hand\nprotruding from the water, each finger of which was adorned with a ring\nset with precious stones of a brilliancy never before seen by the eyes of\nman. The desire of possessing such gems incited me to seize one of the\nfingers, when the hand drew me instantly into the river, and on opening\nmy eyes I found myself in a garden like Paradise, full of the most\nbeautiful flowers and trees. When I had recovered from my confusion and\nastonishment I began to stroll about that spacious garden until I reached\na splendid building, which I entered, and discovered a person seated on a\nthrone surrounded by attendants. I approached and humbly saluted him; he\nreceived me kindly, called me nearer, and said: \u201cI am surprised to behold\nyou in this place.\u201d To which I answered: \u201cMay it please your exalted\nmajesty, I have not intruded, but was forced to come into this region,\u201d\nand I explained the whole affair. Then quoth he: \u201cOn account of the\nbenefit you have conferred on our family, we were extremely anxious to\nsee you.\u201d On hearing these words I began to consider to what nation this\nman might belong, and what good service I could possibly have rendered\nhim, when he proceeded to say: \u201cI know that you are thinking of me. My\nname is Zayn al-Mafakhir. From Ma-varannahr, which is inhabited by men,\nthe country as far as China is in my power; and, except my ancestors,\nnone of the fairies or genii can enter it. I am obeyed by more than\nthirty thousand genii and fairies. I have a daughter called Subayha, who\nis innocent and beautiful. One of the chief genii had fallen in love with\nher and wished to marry her, and with this object had sent a messenger to\nenter into negotiations; but, as enmity and strife existed between us, I\nrefused to have anything to do with him. This so incensed the suitor that\nhe despatched a genie to steal my daughter; but my spies having informed\nme of his proceedings, I constantly watched the girl. She was, however,\nwont to visit your garden, and two days ago she happened to be there when\nJarbua assumed the form of a black serpent, and had almost effected his\npurpose when you passed by and killed him. Subayha told me of this, and I\nresolved to make you her husband.\u201d\n\nWhen the maiden was shown to me, her bewitching eye at once captured\nthe fawn of the repose of my heart; and on beholding the extraordinary\nattractions of her person I fell ardently in love with her; and Zayn\nal-Mafakhir said: \u201cSubayha belongs to you. But, as the nature of a\nfairy is entirely different from that of a human being, you must never\ncontradict or irritate her, but obey her in all things, lest the\nthread of your affection be snapped in twain.\u201d I promised to follow\nthese injunctions most faithfully; married Subayha; obtained all the\nnecessaries for housekeeping; and Zayn al-Mafakhir went to reside in\nanother place, leaving his palace with all its furniture and servants for\nour use. In due course my wife gave birth to a son, and at the moment a\nwolf appeared, to whom she threw the infant, and he walked off with it.\nOn seeing this act of cruelty my heart was sorely grieved for my child,\nbut on account of my promise I could not say anything, and renewed my\nintimacy with her. After this we had three more children, two of whom\nshe threw to wolves and the third into the fire; and each time I was\noverwhelmed with sorrow, until one day, when a grandee of that region\nsent me some rich food, and I was just about to begin to eat it with\nperfect zest when my wife dashed it from me, at which patience forsook\nme, and I said to her: \u201cDarling, in every thing my only desire is to\nplease you, and I have never failed in my duty towards you. But what gave\noccasion for your unkindness? Three of my children you have given to\nwolves, the fourth you have cast into the fire, and sorrow for their loss\nhad well-nigh killed me, though I did not complain to you; and now you\nhave thrown away the most delicious food. Surely these are all tokens of\nyour displeasure and even hatred!\u201d The fuel of these words set the oven\nof the lady\u2019s anger in a blaze, and she exclaimed:\n\n \u201cTo expect fidelity from a weak man\n Is like mistaking a drop of water for a pearl.\n\nYoung man, on the day of our union you promised not to ask the reason of\nanything I should do. The children whom you thought I had given to wolves\nand thrown into the fire were simply delivered to their nurses, and all\nare alive and well.\u201d Hereupon she showed me our four children, who were\nextremely beautiful. Then she continued: \u201cThe food which I threw away had\nbeen poisoned by a malevolent genie, and had you eaten of it you would\nhave immediately perished. But now that you have been so thoughtless I\ncan no longer remain with you.\u201d Having thus spoken, she became suddenly\nchanged into a dove and darkness covered the sky. When it was daylight,\nthe palace, with its furniture and ornaments, its garden and servants,\nhad disappeared, and I found myself in a cemetery, dressed in the same\ngarb as on the day when I went to walk in my garden.\n\nFor some time after this event I wandered about the streets and baz\u00e1rs\nlike a madman, until my relatives applied various remedies which quieted\nthe excited condition of my mind; but no medicine could heal my grief. In\nour neighbourhood there dwelt a painter who was well skilled in drawing\nportraits, and I became his pupil to enable myself to perpetuate the\nmemory of my love and soothe my grief. I attained skill to paint the\nlikenesses of my wife and children, in which occupation I take such\ndelight that I complete every year a large picture and sell it for a\nhigh price; but, as my jealousy does not allow me to let such precious\ntreasures fall into the possession of strangers, I break the picture to\npieces. O my friend, the felicity I enjoyed is gone for ever, and I spend\nmy life in misery.\n\n * * * * *\n\nAs soon as Hatim had heard this narrative he hastened back to the\nwasherman and related it to him, who in his turn now told Hatim the story\nof his adventures, as follows:\n\n\n_The Washerman\u2019s Story_.\n\nI have followed the business of a washerman for many years. My occupation\nbrought me every day to this place, and once, when I was here as usual,\nI observed a dove alighting on a tree. The bird was so beautiful that\nI left off my work to admire it. After a while it shook its wings,\nits skin opened, and a h\u00far\u00ed-like damsel was revealed to my sight. She\ndescended from the tree and seated herself in my lap. I rubbed the sleeve\nof astonishment over my eyes and exclaimed: \u201cWhat happiness has fallen\nto my lot! O most beauteous lady, I am ready to sacrifice my life to\nyou, and to make you the companion of my joys and sorrows.\u201d But the\ndamsel replied: \u201cYoung man, this is not a fitting time for jesting. I\nhave come a long way, and feeling very weary I wish to repose for a\nwhile.\u201d So she laid her head in my lap and fell asleep, while I pondered\nmy good fortune and future enjoyment. Meantime another and still more\nbeautiful dove settled on a branch of the tree, and presently turned\ninto a heart-ravishing maiden. Desirous to please her, I expressed some\ncompliments, to which she thus responded: \u201cMen are of weak intellects\nand so fickle that they bestow every moment their affection on a new\nobject. One eye needs not two pupils and one scabbard cannot contain\ntwo swords. Let no one be thirsty in a river, or wish for flowers in a\ngarden.\u201d On hearing these sarcastic remarks I gently removed the head of\nthe first lady from my lap and said to the second: \u201cI renounce a thousand\nmistresses like this for half a glance of your eyes,\u201d adding many other\ncomplimentary expressions which pleased her so much that she also laid\nher head in my lap and fell asleep. Soon afterwards a third dove alighted\non the tree, and was like the others transformed into a beautiful girl.\nForgetting what I had said to the other ladies, I fell violently in love\nwith her, but while I was trying to ingratiate myself with the new comer,\nthe two others awoke, and all three upbraided me in this strain: \u201cO\nfaithless and ignorant wretch! are you not ashamed of your unsteady and\nchameleon-like nature, and do you not know that the first condition of\nlove is fidelity! Who could ever expect attachment from thee?\n\n The morning brings light, the evening night;\n Nor can a bat perceive the sun.\u201d\n\nWhen they had thus spoken they assumed the forms of doves again and flew\naway, leaving me to regret my folly and repent of my fickleness. Many\nyears have come and gone since then, but I can never forget the happiness\nwhich I might have enjoyed, and so I roam about in despair.\n\n * * * * *\n\nHatim took leave of the washerman and proceeded to the cave in the\nmountain where he related the history of the fickle lover to the blind\nman, who now told him his own history in these words:\n\n\n_The Blind Man\u2019s Story_.\n\nIn former times I was a skilful geomancer,[32] and one day I visited a\ntradesman in the town with whom I had some business, on the conclusion of\nwhich he requested me to cast his horoscope. I complied, and it appeared\nthat he was to find a treasure. I informed him of this, but he smiled\nincredulously and said: \u201cI am too well acquainted with my own destitute\ncondition. What you say is impossible, and I cannot permit you to jest\nat my expense.\u201d I repeated the operation, and the result being the same,\nI swore that there was no joke at all in the matter. Quoth he: \u201cWhere,\nthen, is this treasure?\u201d Said I: \u201cIn this very house.\u201d The door was then\nlocked and we both began to dig with great energy until we came upon a\nlarge stone, which having removed, we found that it had covered a well.\nAfter consultation it was agreed that he should go down and I was to\nremain above to receive the treasure. Accordingly, my friend having\nprovided himself with a basket, I let him down by a rope, and when he had\nfilled the basket with gold, I drew it up, and thus we continued until an\nimmense heap of gold and gems lay beside me. Then I thought to myself:\n\u201cIt is possible that if I pull him up again he may try to get rid of me,\nand so deprive me of my life as well as of a share of this treasure. I\nhad better leave him in the well, remove these riches privily, and pass\nthe rest of my life in comfort.\u201d When my friend found that I did not\nagain lower the basket he began to suspect my design, and cried to me\nfrom the bottom of the well: \u201cBrother, do not harbour any evil thoughts\nabout me, for I shall never forget your kindness, and we shall make an\nequal division of the whole treasure. Draw me up, I beseech you.\u201d But I\nwould not comply, because I considered that a secret in the possession\nof two persons is soon divulged, and both are disappointed. I therefore\ntook no notice of his lamentations, and was thinking how I might remove\nthe treasure without the knowledge of any one, and concluded that the\nfirst thing to be done was to cover up the well so that I should be freed\nfrom any apprehensions concerning my partner, and then carry off the\ngold and silver by piecemeal. With these ideas I walked about the house\nand considered that it would be advisable to wait till nightfall, when I\nshould cover the well and take away a portion of the treasure. But when\nthe night set in it occurred to me that I might be attacked by robbers\nor that some other mishap might befal me, so I thought it would be more\nprudent to wait for the break of day, and then with a quiet mind carry\noff my wealth, and thus thinking, I fell asleep.\n\nNow my friend happened to have a mortal enemy who was waiting for an\nopportunity to kill him, and being desirous that night of giving effect\nto his purpose he came to the house, fastened a rope to the wall, and\nby means of it climbed to the roof, from which he descended into the\napartment where I was sleeping. The sound of the man\u2019s footsteps awoke\nme, and I leapt up affrighted, crying: \u201cWho is there?\u201d The man, mistaking\nme for the owner of the house, caught hold of me and threw me violently\non the floor. \u201cFriend,\u201d said I, \u201cif you want gold and silver, take it,\nbut spare my life.\u201d \u201cDo you wish to deceive me,\u201d said the ruffian,\n\u201cand escape by such a subterfuge? You are as poor as a beggar, and I\nshall make you walk the streets as one.\u201d Thereupon he took an awl and\npiercing both my eyes with it blinded me for ever, he being in the\nhand of Providence the instrument of punishing me for my covetousness.\nAfter having thus avenged himself on his enemy, as he thought, the man\nwished to leave the house, but in the darkness he tumbled into the\nwell and broke his leg. The tradesman, supposing it was myself who had\nthus fallen into the well, exclaimed: \u201cFriend, you are wonderfully\ncovetous, and thereby have not only brought me to this misery but have\nyourself now become my partner in misfortune.\u201d But his enemy, mistaking\nhim for some one whom the tradesman had thus confined, said to him: \u201cI\nhave punished the man who has imprisoned you in this well.\u201d Presently,\nhowever, he began to cry out from the pain occasioned by his broken leg,\nwhen the tradesman at once discovered it was not I who had become his\nfellow-prisoner. I need hardly say that I passed the night in great pain\nfrom my blinded eyes.\n\nNext day the tradesman\u2019s son returned home from a journey to foreign\nlands, where he had gained much wealth. On entering the house he was\nastonished to find me holding both my hands to my eyes and a heap of\ntreasure by the side of the open well, and to hear me exclaiming: \u201cI\nwas comfortable without this treasure, but my covetousness has for ever\ndeprived me of my sight,\u201d and the lamentations of the two men at the\nbottom of the well. He ordered a slave to draw them up, and to his\nsurprise and joy the first to appear was the young man\u2019s father, who told\nhim all that had occurred, and when the other man had also been pulled\nout, he discovered that his enemy was uninjured and that it was I whom he\nhad blinded. The tradesman forgave us both, but his enemy died soon after\nthese occurrences.\n\nI was conveyed to this cave, and every day, morning and evening, two\nsmall loaves are thrown in to me. I have been in this place many years,\nbut have never ceased to repent of my covetousness.\n\n * * * * *\n\nHatim, having thus ascertained the histories of those three men, at once\nreturned to the bountiful lady and related them to her, after which she\ntold him her own story, as she had promised:\n\n\n_The Benevolent Lady\u2019s Story_.\n\nMy father was a wealthy merchant of this country, and very intimate with\nall its ruling powers, until he died, when I inherited his property and\nlived in comfort. One day as I was sitting at a window I observed a large\ncompany of devotees, preceded by a man reputed to be of great sanctity,\nwho bore the marks of piety in his countenance. Whenever he stopped a\nchair was placed for him, and the people stood reverently around him,\nwiping with their sleeves the dust from his skirts and shoes; and in\nthis manner the procession entered the city. Seeing the stature of\nthat person invested with the robe of piety and devotion, I was curious\nto ascertain what famed hermit or saint he might be, and despatched a\nservant to make inquiries. He returned soon and said: \u201cThis is Mullah\nTamurtash, the ascetic, who has in the school of abstinence studied the\ndivine laws and performs his devotions in the hermitage of Ab\u00fa Tuchmah\nand is now come to the city at the invitation of the people to preach\nand pray.\u201d On learning this I considered it incumbent on me to pay a\ncompliment to so holy a personage, so the next day I made up a few\npresents and said to a slave: \u201cTake this to the holy ascetic, and request\nhis prayers for me at the throne of Grace.\u201d My messenger was received\nwith great kindness, and examined on every circumstance connected with\nmy affairs. During the ensuing night an alarm of \u201cthieves\u201d was raised\nin my house, and when I awoke I found that a number of men had walked\noff with all the valuables they could lay hands on, and I sent a servant\nin pursuit of them to discover where they deposited my property. The\nservant on his return informed me that everything had been conveyed to\nthe abode of the ascetic. I immediately proceeded to the king\u2019s palace\nand stated my case to him, but was not a little surprised to receive this\nreply: \u201cThis foolish and impudent woman,\u201d said the king, \u201cspeaks like\nan infidel, and ought to be expelled from the city lest some calamity\nshould befall us on account of her wickedness. To asperse the character\nof a man who has all his life walked in the path of virtue is enough to\ncall down the wrath of God on our own heads.\u201d I was accordingly driven\nout of the city, poor and helpless, and journeyed on foot till I reached\na village, where I obtained shelter in the house of a respectable man;\nand having, as my sole property, a ruby ring, I managed, by means of my\nhost, to sell it for ten thousand dirhams, and as one of the agents of my\nfather was established in Hind\u00fast\u00e1n I determined to go to that country.\nHaving purchased a camel and a slave, I set out on my journey and in\ndue time arrived safely at the house of my father\u2019s agent, to whom I\nrelated my misfortunes. In short, I remained some time in Hind\u00fast\u00e1n and\nengaged in commerce, through which I accumulated immense wealth. I then\nresolved to return to China, and, having provided myself with seventy\npowerful, valiant, and intelligent slaves and put on men\u2019s attire,\nproceeded to trade from town to town until I reached my native city. I\nreadily obtained an audience of the king, to whom I presented a number of\nvaluable gifts, and soon it was reported far and wide that a very rich\nmerchant had arrived from Hind\u00fast\u00e1n with a great company of attendants.\nOne day I gave a quantity of gold and silver to a slave and ordered him\nto carry it to Tamurtash the ascetic, with my humble request that he\nwould remember me in his prayers. At night I ordered all my attendants\nto arm themselves and to be on the alert, but keep quiet and concealed.\nI was not deceived in my expectation, for about the middle of the night\nthe ascetic with his followers came, and throwing ropes over the wall got\ninto the courtyard with the design of plundering my house. Suddenly my\nservants leapt forth from their ambush and captured the ascetic with his\nforty accomplices, all of whom I caused to be confined in chains. As soon\nas morning dawned I went to the palace and made my statement, when the\nking ordered the police immediately to search for the thieves. \u201cO King,\u201d\nsaid I, \u201call the robbers are already captured, and if you will permit,\nI shall bring them into your presence.\u201d When the king and his courtiers\nbeheld Tamurtash the ascetic and his disciples they were amazed, and\nthe king straightway caused them all to be put to death, saying: \u201cThat\nwoman stated the truth the first time also, but we gave no credit to her\nwords; she has suffered innocently, and now we have no means to make good\nour error.\u201d But I replied, smiling: \u201cThat poor woman am I, O King,\u201d and\nrelated the whole affair. The king approved of what I had done, and made\nover to me all the property of the ascetic.[33]\n\n\u201cNow, my friend,\u201d continued the lady, \u201cyears have passed since I\ncommenced to bestow the most abundant gifts from that property, and no\ndiminution appears in it. But in spite of all my liberality my fame is\nnot known beyond this country, while that of Hatim is patent and manifest\nin the world like the sun. You have promised to bring me the head of\nHatim, but you have not kept your word.\u201d Hatim answered: \u201cI am myself\nHatim, and my head is at your disposal,\u201d and drawing his sword he laid it\nbefore the lady. She was greatly moved and said: \u201cTrue greatness consists\nnot merely in liberality but in hazarding our lives for those of our\nfriends, and that you have done. The pre-eminence is therefore yours.\nHitherto I have abstained from accepting the addresses of any man, but\nyour beauty and liberality induce me to offer you my hand.\u201d Hatim was\nhighly pleased, drew the hand of response over the eyes of acquiescence,\nmarried her, and lived with her happily for many years until they were\nparted by death.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhen Khayrand\u00edsh had ended this tale he said to Nassar: \u201cI have related\nthese stories to impress on your mind the fact that whoever abandons\nthe reins of his heart to the promptings of foolish illusions, and the\nvain imaginings of his animal passions, will fare like the Painter, the\nWasherman, and the Blind Man, will reap only disappointment, carry on\nhis back the load of bitter memories, and during his whole life taste\nnothing but the beverage of shame and repentance.\u201d\n\n\nTHIRD ADVICE.\n\n\u201cAlthough Fortune may smile on a man,\u201d continued Khayrand\u00edsh, \u201cand\ndistinguish him above his peers, he should be provident and prudent,\nand must not despise the counsel of his friends. He must also be on his\nguard against enemies, else he will, like Kasharkasha the son of the king\nof Fars,[34] fall into the power of his foes, and the rose-grove of his\ncontentment will be withered by the autumn of grief, and all his life he\nwill be a wanderer in the deserts of repentance.\u201d Nassar asked: \u201cHow was\nthat?\u201d And Khayrand\u00edsh began to relate the\n\n\n_Story of Prince Kasharkasha_.\n\nThere was a king of Fars called Far\u00edd\u00fan[35] who had a son named\nKasharkasha, whom he educated and kept with himself till he was seventy\nyears old. The young prince then, wishing to visit India, said to\nhis father: \u201cSince travel enlightens the understanding and entails\nexperience, it is my desire to wander by land and sea in the capacity\nof a merchant.\u201d Quoth the king: \u201cBeloved son, I would please you in all\nthings, but separation from you will break my heart, and I am unwilling\nto part with you.\u201d But neither these words nor any other entreaties could\ninduce the prince to forego his purpose, and he was at last allowed to\ndepart. His father gave him abundance of money and a number of faithful\nattendants, and said to him: \u201cTravelling, my son, is often attended by\nmisfortunes; and in case you should fall into distress, I advise you to\nvisit the merchant Sadullah, who lives in Baghd\u00e1d, and is greatly devoted\nto and willing to do anything for me.\u201d Then giving his seal-ring to\nKasharkasha he added: \u201cShow Sadullah this signet as a voucher for your\nfamily and connections.\u201d[36]\n\nKasharkasha bade adieu to his father, assumed the dress of a merchant,\nand journeyed to India, where he acquired large profits by commerce, and\nthen went to the country of the Franks, and became so rich that he bought\na thousand Indian and Turkish slaves, who constantly waited on him. But a\ncraving for dominion and power is inherent in the nature of all scions of\nroyalty, and therefore all Kasharkasha\u2019s great wealth could not satisfy\nhim, and he coveted a crown. He said to himself: \u201cEvery undertaking must\nsucceed if the proper means be employed in its pursuit. A kingdom is\ngained by valour and a good army; and, thanks be to God, I possess both,\nand prosperity will second my efforts. Indeed, which of my ancestors ever\ndebased himself by trading? I cannot live in such an unworthy manner; for\nvoluntarily to descend from a high to a lower position is against common\nsense and betokens a mean disposition. In these regions there are many\ntowns and principalities which I may easily conquer, and in truth most\nof the royal personages who attained great fame began only on a small\nscale and enlarged their possessions by degrees.\u201d After this Kasharkasha\ntravelled from place to place in the country of the Franks, seeking for\nan opportunity to carry out his design. One day he approached a great\ncity, and beheld an army composed entirely of cavalry, which belonged to\nthe king of the city, who, on discovering the squadron of Kasharkasha,\nimagined it to be that of an enemy and sent a messenger to make\ninquiries. The young prince stated to the envoy that he was a merchant\nfrom Hind\u00fast\u00e1n, and in his turn asked some questions, to which the envoy\nreplied: \u201cThis is Tytmyran, and this is the Jaly\u00e1k of Tytmyran, who is on\na hunting excursion.\u201d When the messenger returned with the answer of the\nyoung prince, the Jaly\u00e1k of Tytmyran rode to visit Kasharkasha, who met\nhim half-way and saluted him courteously, because the lamp of politeness\nemits so great a glare as to conceal and overshadow any plans that men\nharbour in their minds.\n\nOn seeing the courteous demeanour of Kasharkasha the Jaly\u00e1k at once\nconcluded that he could not but be of lofty birth, and invited him\nto make an excursion into the surrounding country. The young prince\ngracefully complied, and their intimacy increased more and more during\nthe day. They came to a high building, near which the king alighted,\nand went into it. After a short space he again came out, and in tears.\nKasharkasha asked the cause of his grief, but the king replied that on\nanother occasion he would acquaint him with the particulars. When they\nentered the city a suitable place was assigned to the young prince and\nhis followers, and the king taking the hand of Kasharkasha thus addressed\nhim: \u201cEvery man bears in his countenance signs of his character, and\nin our first interview I discovered you to be of noble descent and the\nscion of a royal family. I also had a son of extraordinary beauty and\naccomplishments. He was very fond of hunting and roaming everywhere, and\nonce he took leave of me for two months and departed with a number of\ntrustworthy attendants. I counted the days of his absence impatiently,\nand when the time for his return elapsed I dreaded that some misfortune\nhad befallen my son, and despatched some of my officers in search of\nhim, all of whom returned without success. I was so overpowered by\nmelancholy that I wept day and night, until at last, after a whole year\nhad passed, my son made his appearance quite alone, in a destitute\ncondition and almost naked. As soon as I saw him I exclaimed: \u2018Beloved\nson, how has the dust of this languidness settled on the skirts of your\nhappy disposition? and how has your beauty faded? What has become of your\nservants and goods?\u2019\n\n\u201cMy son replied: \u2018Dear father, my heart suffers from a wound which no\nmedicine can cure. Do not ask me any questions, because my case is a sad\none.\u2019 Then he took from his bosom a portrait, which he contemplated,\nsaying:\n\n \u2018When I began to worship the person of my love,\n My soul ascended to my lips and I lost my peace.\n A ray of love\u2019s favour had alighted on my head,\n But, alas! I have lost my love!\u2019\n\n\u2018Dear father,\u2019 he continued, \u2018after we embarked in our boat we sailed\npleasantly for almost a week, when a contrary wind arose and we lost all\ncontrol over our vessel. Thus we were tossed about during forty days,\nwhen the tempest ceased and we came in sight of land. We made haste to\ngo on shore, but we knew not to what country or nation it belonged. We\nstrolled about and came to a beautiful meadow luxuriant with vegetation,\nwhere we hunted and thus advanced till we arrived at a cultivated\ntract of land in which was a magnificent palace. On asking a man for\ninformation regarding this country he answered: \u201cYou are in Kashm\u00edr, and\nthat palace is the abode of the daughter of Khoja Fayssur, the vaz\u00edr of\nKashm\u00edr. She is wont to pass a few months here every year during the\nseason of flowers.\u201d In one of my rambles I chanced to meet a lady of\nexquisite beauty, and though I had fallen in love with her I did not dare\nto address her, but sent her a fervent declaration of my love through\nan old woman, requesting the favour of an interview. The reply which I\nreceived was most discouraging; nevertheless I continued my rambles in\nthe grounds of the palace to enjoy the happiness of an occasional glance\nat my idol. While I was thus standing one day, she dropped a paper from\nabove, and on opening it I found it contained her portrait. This was a\ngreat joy to me, but it was soon turned to grief when I heard that the\nlady had departed to the city. I could do nothing better than follow her\nand endeavour to obtain a meeting. At last my passion became a mania, and\nas I cared nothing for money affairs my attendants gradually deserted\nme, so that I was at last left alone and fell into a state of the utmost\ndestitution. The dominant idea, however, still supported me that I should\nyet be happy although at present a houseless beggar in the streets. One\nnight the police were about to seize me, but I ran off at the top of my\nspeed and sought refuge in a house, exclaiming: \u201cIs there anyone here who\npossesses kindness enough to save a man from the whirlpool of misery?\u201d A\nperson opened the door and admitted me, saying: \u201cRest yourself here this\nnight, and trust in the mercy of God.\u201d I was tired and reclined against\nthe wall, when suddenly I heard the tones of a harp and of a woman\u2019s\nvoice in the adjoining apartment, and my curiosity prompted me to look\nthrough an aperture at the scene. I beheld a h\u00far\u00ed-like maiden playing\non a harp and warbling like a nightingale. The amorous melody and the\ntones of the instrument produced such an enervating effect on me that\nI could no longer stand, and falling on the floor, which was of weak\nconstruction, it gave way and I was precipitated with it on the master\nof the house, who was sitting in the room below, and he was killed on\nthe spot. The girl who had been singing rose up and cried: \u201cA robber has\nkilled my master!\u201d This soon brought all the neighbours into the house:\nthey instantly seized and bound me, and gave me so many blows that my\nwhole body was a mass of bruises. Then I was dragged before the Am\u00edr, who\nordered me to be taken to prison. It chanced that the jailer was a man\nwho had formerly been in my service, and he burst into tears on seeing\nme in such a condition. When I had informed him of my reason for coming\nto Kashm\u00edr and of the unhappy accident, he said: \u201cFear nothing\u2014you are\nsafe.\u201d He dressed me in other clothes and sent me out to a friend of his\nown; while he put my garments on the corpse of a man who had died that\nday and been buried in the cemetery. When the police came in the morning\nto take me before the Am\u00edr to be beheaded, they were disappointed, and\nreported that the culprit had been so severely beaten on being captured\nthat he had died during the night. The Am\u00edr remarked: \u201cIf the man was\ninnocent, the guilt of his death cannot be attached to me,\u201d to which\nthe chief of the police rejoined: \u201cThat is true; but the people had no\nright to kill the man. This affair ought not to be lightly regarded,\nfor those who beat him are guilty of murder.\u201d The Am\u00edr then ordered him\nto carefully investigate the whole affair. Accordingly the chief of\nthe police assembled all the inhabitants of that quarter of the town,\nintending to fine each one of them in a sum of money, and having caused\nthe corpse to be brought before him, he said: \u201cYe impudent fellows, how\nmany kings or governments are in this city?\u201d They replied: \u201cOne.\u201d He\ncontinued: \u201cIf there be but one king here, why have you taken justice in\nyour own hand and killed this man?\u201d The people asked in amazement: \u201cWhom\nhave we killed?\u201d \u201cThis man,\u201d said he, \u201cwho was captured on suspicion of\nbeing a robber and whom you have ill-treated so as to cause his death.\u201d\nBut when the people looked at the dead man they declared: \u201cThis is not\nthe robber whom we seized and beat. He was a young man of fair complexion\nand having black hair; of strong make and healthy appearance. This is\nthe body of a man who was of middle age and sickly; we know not who has\nkilled him.\u201d Quoth the superintendent: \u201cThere is no use in denying the\nmatter,\u201d and he called for the instruments of torture for the purpose\nof eliciting a confession; when one of the bystanders, having examined\nthe features of the corpse, suddenly cried out: \u201cThis is my father,\nKhoja Fays, the gladiator, who not long since performed before the Am\u00edr\nof Kab\u00fal, and returning home, drank some arrack, which gave him the\ncolic, so that he was obliged to take to his bed. He was visited by some\nfriends, who advised him to send for Ratyl the glazier, who is so famed\nfor his skill that he excels all the physicians of the age. I brought\nhim to the bedside of my father, and he prescribed something which was\nof no avail: my father died, and we buried him.\u201d Here the superintendent\nexclaimed: \u201cYou stupid fellow, who asked for your testimony?\u201d But the\nman would not submit to be brow-beaten, and said: \u201cSee what our chief\nof police has come to! For the sake of gain he takes believers who have\ndied out of their graves! I shall at once bring the doctor, the muezzin,\nthe grave-digger, and the mullah. To-morrow we shall bring the affair\nbefore the Am\u00edr, and you, my friends, will be my witnesses. Come with\nme.\u201d A number of persons followed him, which vexed the superintendent,\nwho said to those that still remained: \u201cDo not be deceived by the\nravings of that fool; for I shall not let you escape without a fine.\u201d\nAt these words another section of the crowd became excited and cried:\n\u201cThe superintendent is in league with a pack of scoundrels whom he sends\nout in the night to rob people, and gets his share of the plunder. When\nany robbers are caught he allows them to escape, and in their stead he\nsubstitutes disinterred corpses. Is there no king in this place? Is\nit not enough that one of us was killed, and now we are to pay a fine\nbesides?\u201d Just then the son of the dead man returned with his witnesses,\nall of whom accused the superintendent, who, however, was supported by\nhis own officers and another crowd of armed men; so that presently both\nparties came to blows, blood was shed, and several men were killed and\nwounded. When the Am\u00edr heard that the superintendent was the cause of\nthe disturbance, he was displeased, and his enemies so worked on the\nmind of the Am\u00edr that the superintendent was ordered to be hanged and\nthe jailer who had saved my life was installed in his place. One day\nafter these occurrences I perceived a multitude of people assembled in\nthe streets and asked the cause of my friend, the new chief of police.\nHis answer was: \u201cTo-day the daughter of the vaz\u00edr has died, and all this\npopular excitement is on that account.\u201d This news upset all my hopes\nand I at once quitted my friend\u2019s house and journeyed till I came to the\nsea-shore where I found some men embarking for the country of the Franks;\nI accompanied them, and finally arrived here.\u2019\n\n\u201cWhen my son had ended his recital,\u201d continued the king, \u201che sighed\nheavily and added: \u2018Beloved father, as a dutiful son I should have obeyed\nand never left you, and thus I should not have fallen into the misery I\nendure. I beseech you to sweep away my transgressions with the besom of\nkindness, and to wash away the filth of my sins with the limpid stream\nof pardon.\u2019 Having uttered these words he expired. My grief for him\ncan never be appeased, and the edifice from which I came out weeping\nis his tomb. As I have now no son, I often wonder which of my enemies\nwill succeed to my kingdom when I am no more. You are, I am sure, a\nman of noble blood and good disposition. May I request you to acquaint\nme with your affairs?\u201d Kasharkasha most willingly complied, and when\nhe had concluded, the king spoke as follows: \u201cI am prosperous in all\nthings and respected by friend and foe. But I have passed the meridian\nof life, and purpose devoting the remainder of it to the duties I owe\nto my Creator. And though I have meditated about and sought for some\none who might take upon himself a portion of my royal affairs and be a\ncompanion of my solitude, I have found none so worthy as yourself.\u201d As\nKasharkasha was ardently wishing for such a high station, he joyfully\nreplied: \u201cMay the beautiful leaves of the king\u2019s book of life never be\nscattered as long as the world-illuming sun moves in the firmament! I am\nready to obey your commands.\u201d Accordingly the Am\u00edr assembled the grandees\nof his kingdom and spake to them thus: \u201cI inform you that this royal\nprince, Kasharkasha, who has dwelt for some time in this city, is by me\nappointed to be my successor, as I have no heir. Therefore I desire every\none who loves and obeys me to obey him likewise.\u201d All the vaz\u00edrs and\ngrandees drew the finger of acquiescence over the eyes of affirmation,\nand the Am\u00edr dressed the prince in the costly robe of a viceroy and said\nto him: \u201cDear friend, I have seven vaz\u00edrs, yet I trust the direction of\nall important affairs to Khoja Bihr\u00faz, whose sincere friendship I have\ntried on the touchstone of experience and never discovered a flaw in\nhis noble character. Therefore, though you are endowed with the innate\nsagacity of noble personages, as you are not familiar with the laws\nand customs of this country, I recommend you never to act without his\nadvice, in order that the affairs of our kingdom may prosper.\u201d Then the\nJaly\u00e1k divorced the bride of royalty, married her to Kasharkasha, and\nretired to a corner of repose.[37] Kasharkasha, who had been so greatly\nfavoured by his good luck, without any efforts on his own part, sat\nvery joyfully on the throne of dignity and power, when, by the decree\nof Providence, the Jaly\u00e1k was removed from this terrestrial abode; and\nas the desire of self-aggrandisement, coupled with unlimited dominion,\ndestroys contentment and begets an inordinate longing for greater power,\nKasharkasha indulged in ambitious schemes and resolved to conquer some of\nthe neighbouring kingdoms. On this project he consulted all his vaz\u00edrs,\nwho readily approved of it, and even still more inflamed his ambition.\nWhen the turn of Bihr\u00faz came he said: \u201cMay the ready-money of prosperity\nbe always present in the treasury of the hopes of the king, and may the\njoyful season of perpetual spring always gladden his heart! This is not\nthe time for attack, but rather for defence. Many potentates of the\ncountry of the Franks have attempted to conquer this land; they came\nwith countless hosts, but were all repulsed by the Jaly\u00e1k, whose fame is\nyet remembered among them: soon, however, they will learn of the change\nwhich has taken place, and your majesty will have enough to do in warding\noff their attacks.\u201d Kasharkasha paid no attention to this warning, and,\nconfiding in the approbation of all the other vaz\u00edrs, he marched to R\u00e1ml,\nwhich is a country belonging to the Franks, and when he arrived there he\nhalted, and despatched the following letter to Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h, the king of\nR\u00e1ml:\n\n\u201cThe title-ornament of this epistle is the name of that Sovereign of the\nvolume of whose world-adorning book of omnipotence of existence of all\ncreatures is but one dot. Secondly, as all nations of men are connected\nby the sameness of their species, and as it is incumbent upon the mighty\nto protect the feeble; and if they treat their subjects well they will\nreap blessings; therefore we send you our kind salutations, and inform\nyou that as it is our intention to hunt in these regions, and as you\nwould be unable to endure the brightness of our countenance, even as a\nbat cannot look at the sun, and we fear that if you were to behold a part\nof our army and warlike preparations, bodily and mental diseases might\nbefall you;\u2014we advise you to surrender the keys of your fortress to the\nbearer of this letter, on pain of incurring our displeasure.\u201d\n\nFutt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h read the letter and returned his answer as follows: \u201cWe were\nastonished at the folly and presumption of your missive, and defy you\nto do your worst.\u201d After despatching these lines the king hastened out\nwith his forces to attack Kasharkasha, who had in the meanwhile received\ninformation from his spies that in his rear another king of the Frank\ncountry was in ambush. He was considering how to act with one enemy in\nfront and another in his rear when the countless hosts of Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h\ncame in sight, and there was no option but to await the issue. The enemy\nadvanced, attacked Kasharkasha, and the battle raged fiercely, for\nboth armies fought with great bravery; at last, however, Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h\nprevailed and Kasharkasha fled. In the morning he was a king, and in the\nevening a beggar, fleeing from his pursuers. On the second day his horse\nwas so exhausted that he was obliged to walk on foot until he arrived\nat a spring, where having quenched his thirst he lay down and slept. A\nshepherd who had been searching for a lost sheep happened to come to the\nspot, and seeing a young man in costly garments stretched at full length,\nhis covetousness induced him to throw a stone, which, however, missed\nthe intended victim. Kasharkasha jumped up, and seeing a man of helpless\nappearance he asked: \u201cWho are you?\u201d The man replied: \u201cI am a shepherd.\nWho are you yourself? and what right have you at the spring where I daily\nwater the sheep of the king? Your inauspicious presence here has caused\nthe water to become muddy. All my sheep are scattered over the desert,\nand how shall I answer for them to the king?\u201d So saying, he suddenly\nleapt on Kasharkasha, divested him of his fine clothes and left him his\nown rags in exchange; then tying both the hands and feet of the prince,\nhe went his way.\n\nAfter Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h had won the battle, captured the army of his foe, and\nplundered his treasury, he could find no trace of Kasharkasha; so he\nsent off a number of men in search of him, some of whom arrived at the\nspring, and discovering a man there with his hands and feet tied, asked\nhim who he was. Kasharkasha guessed they were servants of Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h\nwho had come to look for him, and replied: \u201cI am a shepherd, and came\nhere with my flock, when a young man, from whose forehead the marks of\nroyalty radiated, approached and asked me for a sheep, but I said they\nall belonged to the king and I was not at liberty to dispose of any of\nthem. Upon this he became so incensed that he tied my hands and feet and\nthen walked off with a sheep. Since you have arrived here so opportunely,\nI request you to liberate me from my bonds.\u201d The men believed that he had\ngiven them information about Kasharkasha, so they loosed him, and giving\nhim some food, hastened off in search of the fugitive. For this lucky\nescape Kasharkasha thanked the Most High, and speeding to a mountain not\nfar from the spring, he found there refuge in a cave.\n\nMeanwhile the emissaries of Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h were scouring the plain and at\nlength caught sight of the shepherd while he was trying to catch the\nhorse of Kasharkasha. They said to each other: \u201cWe must not allow him\nto get at the horse;\u201d and when the shepherd perceived that they meant\nto seize him he thought that they were the servants of Kasharkasha who\nhad come in pursuit of him, so he cried out: \u201cMy good friends, I have\ncommitted an error. I hope you will pardon my transgression;\u201d and he\nbegan to undress himself. But they replied: \u201cKasharkasha, we are not\nsuch fools as to let you go if you give us your clothes. We have been in\nquest of you for the last three or four days and have taken no rest. Your\ngarments alone cannot reward our pains, and Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h will require an\naccount of you; so come along with us.\u201d Quoth the shepherd: \u201cThe affair\nbetween your master and me has only taken place to-day; why should you be\nseeking me these three or four days?\u201d The pursuers said to one another:\n\u201cHe has lost his kingdom and become crazy. We must convey him at once to\nour king.\u201d On hearing these words the shepherd wished to make use of the\nsword of Kasharkasha, but being too awkward to do so, he threw it on the\nground and wielded his own staff in such a manner as to kill one of his\ncaptors, when the others closed round him, tied his hands, and set him on\na horse, saying: \u201cKasharkasha, do not struggle now that the boat of your\nprosperity has become a wreck and is sunk into the ocean of misfortune,\nfor it will be of no use.\u201d Quoth the shepherd: \u201cI swear by the souls of\nP\u00edr Siah Posh, Baj\u00e1k, Baba Ali Mest, and Mezar Mongal, that I had no idea\nhe was a king. My covetousness induced me to rob him of his clothes; I\nhope you will pardon my incivility.\u201d \u201cYou simulate folly,\u201d they replied.\n\u201cDo you not remember that you wrote a letter to the king, and after\nmarching with so large an army against him do you not know that he is\na sovereign? You say that you have robbed him of his clothes; but these\nwords are very silly, considering that you were of elegant speech and\ngreat intellect, and that you sat on a royal throne.\u201d \u201cYou are talking\nbook-words,\u201d said the shepherd: \u201cI have never learned to read\u2014what do I\nknow about letters and armies? I have done no farther harm than taken\nhis clothes. Besides, it is not usual for kings to come into the desert\nalone and on foot. As it is, he might have met with a worse man than\nmyself, who would have killed him. I beseech you, for God\u2019s sake, take\nthe clothes and let me go; because there is no one to take care of my\nsheep, and if anything happen to them I shall have to atone for it by the\nloss of all that I possess.\u201d The men now looked at each other and smiled.\nThey then said: \u201cKasharkasha, if you have gone mad on account of the loss\nof your kingdom it is no wonder, but it is a marvel that you are still\nalive.\u201d Quoth the shepherd: \u201cWhy have you changed my name? I am called\nKallam ed-D\u00edn Ahmed and you hail me always by the name of Kasharkasha.\nPerhaps you mean to sell me?\u201d While they were thus going along, talking\nand laughing, they came to a small village, some of the inhabitants of\nwhich recognised the shepherd and asked him: \u201cWhere have you got these\nfine clothes? Who are these men? Why have they tied your hands?\u201d He said:\n\u201cI have robbed a man of these clothes, and these men have caught me and\nare taking me to the king. I am willing to abandon the clothes but they\nwill not abandon me. I beseech you, by the favour of P\u00edr Muhammed Jendah\nPoosh, to give them anything they ask for my freedom, and I shall repay\nyou in goats.\u201d Several of the headmen of the village now stepped forward\nand addressed the king\u2019s messengers: \u201cGood friends, Kallam ed-D\u00edn Ahmed\nconfesses his fault, and he has acted wrongly. But of what use would it\nbe to take him before the king? We have agreed to prepare a good roast\nfor you if you will let him go.\u201d But they laughed and said: \u201cThis is\nKasharkasha, the king of Tytmyran, who succeeded the Jaly\u00e1k, and having\nwantonly attacked our sovereign was put to flight. The king has sent a\nthousand men in pursuit of him, and has promised to confer dignity and\nwealth on his captor. We have searched for him without resting for more\nthan three days, and it is not likely that we shall now let him go free.\nAll his speeches come from a disordered mind.\u201d Hearing this the villagers\nwere astonished and silenced.\n\nThe messengers of Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h proceeded to the city, and on their arrival\nthe rumour soon spread that they had taken Kasharkasha. The shepherd was\nbrought into the presence of the king, and the splendour of the court so\ndazzled him that he lost his speech, and the king thus addressed him:\n\u201cYou fool, do sovereigns and high personages indite such letters? Now\nshall I ignominiously kill you, as a warning to all presumptuous and\nfoolish persons.\u201d When the shepherd heard this sentence he was roused,\nand exclaimed: \u201cO king, I swear, by the soul of Baba Nasym Sermest, that\nI made that very day a vow of repentance to go on pilgrimage to the tomb\nof Baba Jany and never again to commit such an act. Indeed the clothes\nare present and at hand. I possess several ewes big with young which I\nshall give you if you set me free. I have the sheep of one hundred men\nunder my charge, and were any accident to befal them all my friends\nand relatives would be unable to make compensation on my account,\u201d and\nhe wept bitterly. Futt\u00e1l Sh\u00e1h asked in astonishment: \u201cHow does this\nreply agree with our question?\u201d Upon this all the assembly smiled, and\na merchant present, who had been at Tytmyran and knew the person of\nKasharkasha, kissed the floor of civility, and said: \u201cO king, this is not\nKasharkasha. He is a man of handsome appearance and fair speech; this\nis an ignorant boor.\u201d Hereupon the king first questioned the shepherd\nclosely and then his captors, who stated their case, after which he\ndeclared: \u201cBoth parties are right; Kasharkasha was at the spring and\nhas purposely misled you. At present there is no use of making further\nefforts, because he has gained time to go wherever he pleased.\u201d Then he\ngave the shepherd five thousand dirhams and dismissed him.\n\nSoon after Kasharkasha had concealed himself in the mountain cave he\nwas driven out of it by hunger, and descending into the plain wandered\nfrom town to town, scratching the wound of the loss of his kingdom and\nof the treasure of prosperity with the nails of regret and sorrow,\nand keeping it fresh with the salt of repentance, until he arrived in\nTurkey. There it occurred to him one day that his father had told him,\nin case his good fortune should desert him, to visit the merchant Khoja\nSadullah, who would aid him. So he proceeded to Baghd\u00e1d and found the\nhouse of the merchant, who was a very kind-hearted man, and happened at\nthe time to be going on a visit to the Khal\u00edf, with whom he stood in high\nfavour. On seeing Kasharkasha he concluded from his mean attire that he\nwas a mendicant and ordered one of his attendants to give him alms, on\nreceiving which the prince burst into tears. When Khoja Sadullah asked\nhim why he wept, he produced his father\u2019s signet, which when the Khoja\nexamined, \u201cThis ring,\u201d said he, \u201cbelongs to King Far\u00edd\u00fan of Fars. I gave\nit to him; but how came it into your possession?\u201d Kasharkasha replied:\n\u201cHe is my father. The desire to travel has separated me from him, and\nthe instability of fortune has reduced me to this pitiable state.\u201d Khoja\nSadullah warmly embraced and welcomed him, saying: \u201cForget all your\ntroubles and be comforted; because you will again become lucky, and this\nunpropitious condition will depart from the horoscope of your felicity.\nAll men are subject to reverses of fortune, but the end is frequently\nvery happy. My life and property are at your service.\u201d Then he sent the\nprince to the bath, provided him with a costly wardrobe, assigned to him\na number of apartments fit for a royal personage, and appointed fifty\nslaves to wait on him, all of whom he ordered to obey and try to please\nhim. Thus Fortune again smiled on Kasharkasha and he spent his days in\ncomfort and felicity.\n\nOne day he was walking on the roof of the house and chanced to look into\nthe haram of the Khoja, having mistaken it for that of another dwelling.\nThe wife of the Khoja was in the open court-yard when his eye alighted on\nthe countenance of that heart-ravishing beauty, which so captivated him\nthat his person became more attenuated every day. He kept the matter to\nhimself, but one of his attendants reported it to the Khoja, who seemed\nto pay no attention, but nevertheless went to his wife and said to her:\n\u201cDarling of my soul, I have a request to make to you, but on condition\nthat you swear to comply with it.\u201d The lady took the required oath, and\nthe Khoja continued: \u201cI divorce you.\u201d She asked: \u201cOf what fault has the\nbud sprouted in the rose-grove of my imagination? And what crime have I\ncommitted to deserve your abhorrence and to be separated from you?\u201d Quoth\nthe Khoja: \u201cGod forbid that I should have experienced from you anything\nsave kindness and love; but I have been compelled to part with you.\u201d\n\nThe Khoja, having thus divorced his wife, went to Kasharkasha and spoke\nto him as follows: \u201cI have been made aware of your condition, and your\nwish shall be gratified in a few days. The woman whom you have seen is\nthe foster-sister of Farrukhz\u00e1d the merchant. Her husband died a few\ndays ago, and her time of mourning is not yet over. Her brother, my most\nintimate friend, is in Basra, and I have sent a man to him to sue for her\nhand in your behalf\u2014be of good cheer.\u201d Kasharkasha was highly pleased,\nand the Khoja amused him until the time required by the law was expired.\nThen he sent for the K\u00e1z\u00ed, and Kasharkasha was married to the lady in due\nform. In the evening the Khoja led his former wife to the apartments of\nthe prince; and, when she beheld the unparalleled beauty and comeliness\nof her new husband, she whispered to the Khoja: \u201cAlthough you have\ndivorced me, I thank God that I am to be the spouse of this youth.\u201d When\nthe Khoja had taken his leave, the prince asked the lady: \u201cWhat did you\njust now whisper to the Khoja?\u201d She replied: \u201cYoung man, I was the wife\nof the Khoja and we lived together very happily, but he has without any\ncause divorced me and married me to you; so I said to him, when I beheld\nyou, and he had no longer any power over me: \u2018Although you have divorced\nme without cause, I am delighted to be the wife of this young man, who\nseems to be a great deal better than yourself.\u2019\u201d As soon as Kasharkasha\nlearned that she had been the wife of the Khoja he drew the hand of\nrefusal over the breast of his desires and said:\n\n \u201cTo overcome one\u2019s own lust is victory;\n To master one\u2019s own passion is bravery indeed.\n\nGod forbid that I should touch this woman, for I consider her unlawful to\nme.\u201d So he slept that night alone, and in the morning apologised to her,\nsaying: \u201cI was somewhat indisposed and unable to keep your company. Pray\nhave patience for a few days till I recover fully.\u201d\n\nIn this manner some days passed, when the prince, conversing with the\nKhoja about his own country, said to him: \u201cIt is now a long time since\nI left my dear father, and though I have in your company and by your\nkind services forgotten all my misfortunes, I nevertheless feel a very\ngreat desire to rejoin him.\u201d Therefore the Khoja loaded twenty strings\nof camels with costly goods and sent them under the care of fifty\ntrustworthy slaves with Kasharkasha. Taking affectionate leave of his\nbenefactor and promising always most gratefully to remember his great\nkindness, the prince departed on the road to Fars. When he arrived in\nthe vicinity of the capital he sent the glad tidings to his father, who\nhastened to meet him. They entered the city together, and King Far\u00edd\u00fan\nwas so rejoiced at the happy event that he opened his treasury and\ndistributed much money among the people. After some time he abdicated the\ngovernment in favour of his beloved son, and died, leaving him his sole\nheir and successor.\n\nIn the meantime Kasharkasha\u2019s kind-hearted benefactor suffered a reverse\nof fortune. One day Sadullah was informed that an agent whom he had\ndespatched to Hind\u00fast\u00e1n was returned, but had been shipwrecked and lost\neverything. The Khoja piously observed: \u201cHe from whose favour all that\nis in this world depends is able to make good this loss.\u201d But a week\nlater news reached him that another of his agents had been plundered by\nrobbers. Soon after this second calamity the Khal\u00edf of Baghd\u00e1d died, and\nwas succeeded by Mutassim,[38] who had long nourished ill-will against\nthe Khoja, therefore he confiscated all the merchant\u2019s property. Khoja\nSadullah, now reduced to absolute poverty, determined to go to Fars\nand take refuge with Kasharkasha. He contrived to collect a sum of\nmoney among the merchants for the expenses of his journey, and quitting\nBaghd\u00e1d proceeded as far as Tabr\u00edz, where he fell sick and spent all\nhis little store of money. At last he recovered his health, but being\nunable to proceed on his journey he resolved to apply to the Am\u00edr for\nsome assistance. During the preceding night a robbery had been committed\nin the Am\u00edr\u2019s treasury, and a number of suspected persons were brought\nto the palace, among whom Sadullah unwittingly took his place, and was\nalong with them committed to prison to await the trial. They were all\nkept in confinement for several months, and tortured daily to draw from\nthem acknowledgment of their guilt, until at length the real thieves\nwere discovered in another quarter and the suspected persons were all\ndischarged.\n\nWith a broken heart Sadullah resumed his journey to Fars, and chanced to\narrive at the royal palace at the time when Kasharkasha was holding a\nlevee and receiving petitions from his subjects. He entered the hall of\naudience and made his obeisance, but, as Kasharkasha did not recognise\nhim in his wretched plight, Sadullah\u2019s salutation was not returned.\nAfter trying in vain to attract the notice of the king, Sadullah stepped\na little apart from the crowd and thus addressed Kasharkasha: \u201cO King,\nwhy does your highness disdain to look at me? I am Khoja Sadullah, the\nmerchant, of Baghd\u00e1d, who was always devoted to your family. But now\nfortune has turned its face from me, and I am come to seek refuge at your\ncourt.\u201d The king turned to one of the attendants and said: \u201cGive one\nhundred of the government sheep in charge of this man, and give him also\ntwo loaves every day.\u201d Then he said to Sadullah: \u201cMy good friend, we have\nappointed you to be one of our shepherds; take good care of your flock.\u201d\nKhoja Sadullah thought this proceeding very strange, and said to himself:\n\u201cWhat meanness is this on the part of the king, to appoint me to be a\nshepherd! However, though I have occupied a high station, I must obey\nand perform the duties of a shepherd till something better turns up.\u201d So\nhe took a staff, a sling, a bag, and a dog, and went every day with the\nother shepherds to pasture his flock, and soon learned the business. But\nan epidemic broke out which carried off daily several of his sheep until\nevery one had perished. Then thought Sadullah: \u201cSince my entire flock\nhas died, it seems that I am not even fit to be a shepherd.\u201d One day the\nking observed the Khoja approaching with a great load on his back, and\nasked him: \u201cHow are the sheep?\u201d Quoth Sadullah: \u201cMay the flock of the\nking\u2019s health and comfort be always on the increase and remain unscathed\nby the touch of the wolf of misfortune, and abide under the protection of\nthe Shepherd of divine favour! Thanks to my unlucky destiny, an epidemic\nhas carried off all the sheep, and I have brought their brands.\u201d The\nking smiled and said: \u201cGive him another hundred sheep.\u201d These, however,\nalso died, and likewise a third hundred, so that the Khoja was ashamed\nto show his face. But the fourth flock entrusted to him became more\nplump every day; no evil befell them; all the ewes threw twin lambs; and\nwhen the king next called for the Khoja he made his appearance with a\nnumber of sprightly and nimble lambs, and a quantity of butter, cheese,\nand milk. The king said to him: \u201cO Khoja, what do you now think of your\nsheep?\u201d He answered: \u201cMay the game of prosperity and the fawn of life\nremain within the grasp of the brave lion of the king\u2019s happiness, as\nlong as the flock of stars browse in the meadow of the sky, and as long\nas the sun continues to travel in the firmament! Thanks be to the Most\nHigh, by the blessing of the king\u2019s good fortune, the contrary wind of my\nill-luck has become appeased, the lamp of success has been kindled, the\nsheep of the king are all safe and sound, and my disgrace is wiped off.\u201d\nAt these words the king rose from his place, fell on the Khoja\u2019s neck,\nand exclaimed: \u201cDear friend, your fate had taken such a mischievous turn\nthat had I entrusted you with my kingdom you would have lost it, and it\nwas prudent to wait till your luck changed. It was against my will that I\nkept you in so mean an occupation until that calamity withdrew its foot\nfrom the circle of your destiny. But now the obscurity of misfortune has\ndisappeared and the light of prosperity illumines the speculum of your\nhopes. Do whatever you please; you are welcome to govern my kingdom.\u201d\nSo saying, he seated the Khoja on the throne of intimacy, overwhelmed\nhim every moment with renewed kindness, and said to him: \u201cI have a\nfoster-sister seated within the curtains of innocence and modesty; if you\nmarry her you will oblige me greatly.\u201d The Khoja consented, and was for\nthe second time espoused to his own wife. When night set in the lady was\nbrought to the Khoja, who recognised her with no little astonishment,\nexclaiming: \u201cMy love, I meet you again!\u201d Said the lady: \u201cKhoja, the\nprince learnt the first night the true circumstances and has never\ntouched me, or even seen my face till the moment when he surrendered me\nback to you.\u201d Kasharkasha made the Khoja his vaz\u00edr, and they all lived\nhappily together for many years until they at last quaffed the beverage\nof death, left this rewardless abode, and departed to the mansions of\neternal joy.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhen Khayrand\u00edsh had concluded this story he said: \u201cNassar, I have\nrelated this narrative to impress on your mind that self-conceit and\npresumptuousness are very great obstacles to happiness. Had Prince\nKasharkasha followed the advice of his minister Bihr\u00faz when he succeeded\nto the kingdom of Tytmyran, and not attacked Futt\u00e1l Shah, his dominion\nwould have been permanent, and the autumnal blasts of misfortune would\nnot have injured the rose-garden of his comfort and happiness:\n\n You will be happy in both worlds,\n If you moderate your desires.\u201d\n\n\nCONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY OF NASSAR.\n\nAfter the usual three days of hospitality had passed and Khayrand\u00edsh had\nimparted his counsels to Nassar, he brought forth the deposit entrusted\nto him by Nassar\u2019s father, and handing it to him, said: \u201cAlmost twenty\nyears have elapsed since your father gave this casket into my charge, but\nI know not what it contains; if you have no objection we will see what is\nin it.\u201d Nassar at once opened the packet and took out a mirror cut out of\na piece of emerald and surrounded with a number of other precious stones.\nIn the centre of the mirror was a peacock whose eyes were constantly\nmoving and whose feathers changed their colours every moment; and the\nworkmanship was so exquisite and delicate that Khayrand\u00edsh and Nassar\nwere perfectly amazed, while the former exclaimed: \u201cMy dear friend, no\nsovereign has ever possessed so admirable an object, and it is probable\nthat you will not be able to sell it to a private individual except at a\nprice far below its real value. Therefore you should present it to some\nmighty king, and it may thus become to you the cause of great prosperity.\nShow it to no one during your journey, lest it should excite the cupidity\nof some person.\u201d Nassar most willingly promised to follow his friend\u2019s\nadvice, and received from him a ring with the injunction that should any\ncalamity befall him he must go to Aleppo and show it to a pious recluse\ncalled Ab\u00fa Jurj\u00e1s, who would do his utmost to help him. After taking\nleave of Khayrand\u00edsh he departed in the company of some men who were\ntravelling to Egypt, where they all arrived in safety. Nassar happened to\nmeet the king of that country, who was on a hunting excursion with a very\nnumerous retinue. He saluted the monarch very humbly and presented to\nhim the mirror as a gift, which the king accepted, and on his return to\nthe capital invested Nassar with a robe of honour[39] in full court, and\nalso took into his hand the mirror, the workmanship of which he greatly\nadmired, as did also his courtiers. Then the king said to Nassar: \u201cYou\nappear to be well educated. Pray, what is your greatest accomplishment?\u201d\nHe replied: \u201cYour majesty\u2019s humble servant is skilled in several arts,\nbut especially in archery.\u201d After this the king gave him in charge of one\nof his officials, who took him to his house and showed him much attention.\n\nDuring the night the official felt very unwell, and there being no\nservant at hand, he went to a cupboard and taking out an apple began to\npeel it; and while thus engaged some plaster fell down from the ceiling,\nwhich caused him to run out of the room in great fear, and stumbling\nin the dark he fell on the knife which he still held in his hand, and\nreceived from it a wound in consequence of which he expired on the\nspot. When this accident became known, the eunuchs, the servants, and\nthe inmates of the haram were so confused that they accused each other\nof having murdered their master, and at last they came to blows, and\nseveral of them were wounded and killed. In the morning the unfortunate\noccurrence was reported to the king, who was much grieved at the loss of\na most faithful minister, and appointed his son to succeed him in the\nservice.\n\nSome time afterwards Nassar ventured to make his appearance at court,\nand was respectfully standing in the line of persons near the throne,\nwhen the monarch observed him and exclaimed: \u201cYoung man, we have heard of\nyour archery but have never seen it. Now we wish to have a proof of it.\u201d\nNassar desired that a ring should be tied to a hair and suspended at a\ndistance of seventy paces. Then he shot an arrow through the ring without\nmoving it, and repeated the feat thirty-nine times more.[40] The king and\nhis courtiers were astonished at his skill, while the spectators uttered\nshouts of approbation; and the king was considering how to reward him\nwhen an explosion of gunpowder took place in the manufactory close by,\nwhich destroyed the building and killed more than a thousand persons; but\nNassar escaped unhurt. This catastrophe so occupied the mind of the king\nthat he rose up in a melancholy mood, forgot Nassar, and retired to his\nprivate apartments.\n\nIn course of time the king resumed his customary duties and amusements,\nand it happened one day while engaged in the chase that an eagle flew\nnear him, when he called out: \u201cIs there any one who can strike that eagle\nwhile he is flying?\u201d Nassar immediately responded to the call, and the\neagle fell to the ground pierced through by his arrow. The king wished to\nreward him on the spot, but the arrow, after passing through the eagle\u2019s\nbody, having struck the eye of the king\u2019s horse it became restive, began\nto gallop, and a helter-skelter race followed, but the horse could not\nbe stopped, until, one of its legs going into a hole in the ground, it\nthrew its rider, and dragged him hanging by one foot in the stirrup,\ninto a very rapid stream. When the attendants beheld their sovereign\nin such great peril they hastened to save him, which they did, but not\nbefore he had swallowed a great quantity of water, was wounded, and more\ndead than alive, and about five hundred men had been drowned. One of the\nking\u2019s servants said to Nassar: \u201cYour archery is very unlucky, since for\nevery arrow that you shoot hundreds of men lose their lives.\u201d The king\nwas taken in a litter to the palace, and only recovered his health after\nforty days\u2019 medical treatment.\n\nWhen the bodies of the king\u2019s followers were taken out of the water the\nother attendants pierced the heart of Nassar with the shafts of irony\nand disapprobation, and he concluded that, as he had been so many times\nthwarted in his purpose of deserving the favour of the king, it would be\nadvisable for him to quit the scene of his exploits lest his life should\nbe endangered. He was yet undecided where to go when he perceived on\nthe opposite bank of the river a village, which he resolved to visit.\nThe current was very rapid, but he entered the water saying to himself:\n\u201cLet happen what will, my cup of bitterness is already brimful.\u201d As he\nwas crossing, the water became so deep that his horse began to swim,\nand the violence of the flood soon swept Nassar from its back. He was\na good swimmer, but his arms and accoutrements were heavy, so that he\nwas obliged to throw away everything, and landed on the other side in a\nstate of nudity. He waited for the evening, being ashamed thus to enter\nthe village, and when it was dark he roamed about the streets until\nhe found a mosque, in a corner of which he concealed himself, naked,\nstarving, and tired as he was. It happened that a party of thieves had\nplundered the house of the village headman, and about midnight brought\ntheir booty into the mosque for the purpose of dividing it. They kindled\nlights and made some noise, and Nassar, awaking from sleep and dazzled\nby the lights, fancied it was morning and that the people had come to\nprayer. As he had a good voice, he said to himself: \u201cGreat blessings and\nrewards are in store for those who call the faithful to prayer, and if I\ndo so, possibly the Most High may open the portals of abundance to my\ndestiny.\u201d And so he ascended to the minaret and pronounced the usual form\nof invocation, which when the robbers heard they weened that the morning\nhad already dawned while they had been so deeply absorbed in dividing\ntheir plunder as to forget the lapse of time. Therefore they made haste\nto finish the division, then extinguished the lights, and with their\nbundles on their backs were flying from the mosque when they were met by\nNassar, who stopped them and said: \u201cO ye bouquet-binders in the garden\nof piety and devotion, now is the opportune time to seek the benefits\nobtainable in the house of God, and this is the place for kindling the\nlamp of prayer and supplication! Whither are you going? Have you not\nheard that any person coming to the mosque for the performance of his\nmatutinal duty must remain there till sunrise?\u201d The thieves took him for\nthe muezzin,[41] who wished to detain them till he could hand them over\nto justice, and, one of them having given him a box on the ear, they all\nran off at the top of their speed. Nassar, now certain that they could\nnot be of the pious, ran after the thieves, and being an excellent boxer\nand swordsman, attacked them boldly, and snatching the weapon from one of\nthem he struck about him to such purpose that he killed one and wounded\nseveral of the others, upon which they abandoned their plunder and fled.\n\nNassar was at a loss what to do with the booty and the corpse, fearing\nlest he should be held responsible for all that had occurred, and thus\nfall into fresh danger. Some people, who lived near the mosque, having\nbeen aroused from their slumbers by the untimely call from the minaret,\nsaid one to another: \u201cSurely that fellow has gone mad, since he calls to\nmorning prayer before midnight is past;\u201d and when they heard the noise\nof the scuffle they imagined that some vagabonds of the village, whom\nSatan had seduced to adopt the doctrines of the S\u00faf\u00eds, were holding their\nnocturnal assembly in the mosque.[42] So they hastened thither to expel\nthe intruders; but when they entered they saw only Nassar, who was saying\nto himself: \u201cI wonder from what poor fellow the thieves have stolen this\nproperty.\u201d When the folk beheld a man standing alone and muttering to\nhimself they at once concluded he was a s\u00faf\u00ed in one of his ecstacies, who\nhad thus stripped himself naked; and as they walked according to the\ncommandments of the Most High and in conformity with the holy law of the\nProphet, and hated all s\u00faf\u00eds, innovators, and enthusiasts, they burst\ninto reproaches against them, crying: \u201cO ye transgressors of the divine\ncommands and destroyers of the ordinances of the Refuge of Prophecy;[43]\nwho degrade the house of God to a brothel, by the wiles of Satan, who\nhas made you his own, and is your guide in irreligious proceedings! What\nbreach is this that you wish to make in Isl\u00e1m?\u201d Nassar mistook them for\nthe thieves who had come back to recover their plunder and wished to\ndeceive him with such speeches, so he said: \u201cYou rogues, I shall not be\ncircumvented by your tricks,\u201d and seizing the sword which was still near\nhim he wounded one of them and put the others to flight. Then he tied a\nrope to the neck of the wounded man and said: \u201cCome, tell the truth. From\nwhat house have you stolen these goods?\u201d But the man, knowing nothing of\nthe robbers, believed him to be a s\u00faf\u00ed in a trance, speaking nonsense,\nand replied: \u201cO you wretched vagabond and fanatic and transgressor of the\ndivine commands! I know not what you say. Have I not come hither from my\nhouse on account of the tumult which you made?\u201d\n\nMeanwhile the other villagers who had been driven away by Nassar went\nto the officials and thus addressed them: \u201cIs Isl\u00e1m no longer dominant\nin this country, that hypocrites and infidels are allowed to enter the\nmosque and desecrate it with their orgies? People who live near the\nmosque hear every night the diabolical revellings of a pack of vagabonds.\nLast night they again entered the mosque, and, contrary to law, shouted\nthe call to prayer in the middle of the night. They have even sorely\nwounded one of the faithful, and we do not know what has become of him.\u201d\nThe officials ordered a party of constables to accompany them and to\nseize the law-breakers; and when they entered the mosque they found\nNassar still engaged in examining his prisoner, and mistaking them also\nfor the thieves he wounded one of them likewise. \u201cS\u00faf\u00ed,\u201d they exclaimed,\n\u201cwhat impudence and wickedness is this? Do pious and virtuous men ever\nfight and kill the servants of God in the mosque?\u201d Quoth Nassar: \u201cYou\nvile robbers! you cannot deceive me. I intend to slay you all this night,\nto deserve the reward of God.\u201d When they saw him speaking so boldly,\nnaked as he was, they said: \u201cLook at the presumption of this s\u00faf\u00ed, to\nbehave in such a manner in the mosque!\u201d By this time, the morning having\ndawned, numbers of the people came to prayer, and Nassar fled, with the\nsword in his hand, and wounded several persons who attempted to stop him.\nBut he ran so fast that no one was able to overtake him, and his pursuers\nthen returned to their homes. Soon afterwards, however, a company of\ns\u00faf\u00eds came into the village and were at once accused of having committed\nthe robbery; a general tumult ensued and many men were slain or wounded.\nUltimately the affair came before the king of Egypt, who caused the s\u00faf\u00eds\nto be punished and fined, although they were entirely innocent of the\ncrime laid to their charge.\n\nNassar now wandered from town to town, pursued by misfortunes. One day\nthe king of Egypt asked his courtiers what had become of him, but they\ncould only reply that in consequence of the various calamities that\nfollowed his archery feat he had disappeared. His majesty observed that\nfor these accidents Nassar was in no way accountable, because they had\nall occurred by the decree of Fate, and he despatched messengers in\nevery direction to search for him. Nassar was at last discovered in a\nvillage, in a very destitute and miserable condition. He was carried to\nthe capital, and before bringing him into the king\u2019s presence it was\nnecessary to take him to the bath, after which his majesty received\nhim with great kindness and inquired of him: \u201cAre you skilled in any\nother things besides archery?\u201d Nassar bowed his head and replied: \u201cI am\nacquainted with military tactics, mathematics, commerce, mineralogy,\nboxing, fencing, and also with cooking.\u201d[44] Quoth the king: \u201cAll\nthese accomplishments adorn the character of a man, none of them,\nhowever, can equal your skill in archery; but when you acquired it your\ndestiny was unpropitious and the moon was evidently in the mansion of\nthe Scorpion.[45] It will therefore be proper for you to abstain from\nshooting arrows and to practice other arts until the lucky hour comes\nwhen these calamities have disappeared from your horoscope. This day I\nwish to give a banquet, and you must exhibit your skill in boxing; and as\nyou tell me that you also possess a knowledge of the art of cooking, I\ngive you leave to prepare any dishes you please, for it is long since I\nwas able to relish any kind of food.\u201d\n\nAccordingly Nassar made various savoury dishes, and when he had finished\nhis work the king commanded him to show his skill in boxing until the\ndinner hour. Nassar said that he was ready to box and wrestle with two\nhundred men who excelled in these arts, and when they were produced he\nvery easily vanquished them one after another.[46] The king gave orders\nthat more men should be brought, but to his astonishment none could be\nfound willing to encounter such a formidable antagonist. But recollecting\nthat he possessed a Circassian slave named F\u00edr\u00faz Bakht, lately presented\nto him by the Sultan of Turkey, who was skilled in wrestling, he ordered\nhim to attack Nassar. The slave caught Nassar about the loins so forcibly\nthat his own hands bled, but he was unable to move him a hair\u2019s breadth\nfrom the spot where he stood. To be brief, they wrestled long and\nskilfully, the Circassian trying two hundred different tricks without\neffect. At last, however, Nassar turned the game and lifted F\u00edr\u00faz Bakht\nfrom the ground with as much ease as if he were a child; but the slave so\nfirmly grasped a pillar of the shed in which the sport was taking place\nthat Nassar could not pull him from it; and making a final effort he\ntugged so hard that along with F\u00edr\u00faz Bakht he wrenched the pillar away,\nwhich killed the slave and about twenty of the spectators by a portion of\nthe roof falling down on them after its support had been thus withdrawn.\nThe king, with all his attendants, fled from the place in alarm, and the\nbanquet, which was to be one of joy, became one of mourning.\n\nAlthough the king was greatly affected by this sad accident he said to\nhis courtiers: \u201cAs this event only took place by the immutable decree\nof Fate, I can in no way blame the young stranger; and if I lose my\nlife together with my kingdom, a thousand accidents such as this will\nnot influence me against him.\u201d The courtiers tried to comfort the king,\nbut as he was very melancholy their efforts were fruitless. When the\ntable-decker made his appearance and announced that the dinner prepared\nby Nassar was ready to be served up, the king said: \u201cThough we have at\npresent no inclination to eat anything, yet, as the dinner is prepared,\ncause it to be brought in.\u201d When, however, the king had tasted some of\nthe dishes he found them to be more delicious than aught he had ever\neaten before; and, thus seduced, he ate so heartily that he became ill,\nand having but lately recovered from sickness he was unable to digest the\nfood, and only recovered after a long course of medicine.\n\nBut that magnanimous and kind-hearted monarch, albeit he had never been\nsick before he had come in contact with Nassar, would ascribe neither his\nindisposition nor the other calamities to that circumstance, but to the\ndecrees of Fate, and bore him no ill-will. He invested Nassar with a robe\nof honour, made him various presents, and was about to appoint him to\na high office, when one of the vaz\u00edrs, who had by his natural sagacity\nguessed the king\u2019s purpose, said that, although his majesty was of a\nliberal and kind disposition and Nassar a deserving person, yet it would\nbe inadvisable to bestow on him any great favours at the present time,\nbecause experience had abundantly shown that the withering blasts of his\nunfortunate destiny had not yet ceased to blow, and only mischief would\nbe the result. Therefore, he went on to say, it would be better to give\nhim a considerable sum of money and dismiss him, with the injunction to\nremain in some other place until his destiny had changed for the better,\nwhen he might return to the service of the king, whose favours, if now\nbestowed, would be thrown away. He continued: \u201cIt is also certain that\nin the same way as all efforts to aid persons who are predestined to be\nunfortunate are in vain, so also the devotional and religious wishes of\nsilly though well-meaning men are of little avail to them.\u201d The king\nasked: \u201cHow is that?\u201d Upon which the vaz\u00edr related the\n\n\n_Story of the Foolish Hermit_.\n\nAt the time of the rising of the Sun of Prophecy, the glance of an\nangel of the Court of Unity[47] chanced to alight on the hermitage of\nan ascetic, whom he beheld sedulously engaged in all the duties of\nreligion; and he was so pleased that he was curious to know what should\nbe the reward of all this piety. Then the allocution reached him from\nthe Lord of Omniscience: \u201cAngel, pray that this mystery be revealed to\nthee.\u201d Accordingly the angel made his supplication and was informed that\nthe reward of the ascetic should be very inconsiderable; whereat he was\nso astonished that he said: \u201cO God! how can this be the reward of a whole\nlife of piety? I consider it as insufficient for a single day. What\nwisdom is concealed in this matter?\u201d Then he heard this order: \u201cVisit\nhim in human form, and learn the state of the case.\u201d The angel obeyed,\nand, after being by the power of the Most High transformed into a man,\nhe visited the hermit and became so intimate with him that he lived for\nseveral days in his cell, which being situated in a pleasant and fertile\nregion, with abundance of springs and flowers, the angel said one day\nto the hermit: \u201cArise, let us enjoy a walk in this delightful place.\u201d\nAccordingly they went out together, and when they entered a paradise-like\nmeadow, and beheld the freshness of the parti-coloured vegetation,\nthey praised the Almighty. Said the angel: \u201cHermit, be grateful to God\nfor having adorned the neighbourhood of your cell like a paradise with\nsprings and flowers and crowned every blade of grass with the diadem\nof loveliness and fertility.\u201d The ascetic replied: \u201cMy dear brother, I\nalways enjoy the pleasantness of this locality because it abounds in\ngrass and water, so that many animals might be fattened here. But I am\nconstantly burning with grief that God has no ass whom I might comfort\nand feed in this place, and might for his sake acquire a higher merit in\nthe next world.\u201d When the angel was thus made aware of the littleness\nof the hermit\u2019s mind, by this silly wish, he left him, and resuming\nhis proper form the divine allocution reached him: \u201cHave you seen the\nintelligence and wisdom of the hermit?\u201d[48]\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe vaz\u00edr continued: \u201cA sovereign must also use very great care in the\nchoice of his ministers, otherwise he may fare like the king of Basra,\nwho had a very ambitious and wicked vaz\u00edr.\u201d Quoth the king of Egypt: \u201cHow\nwas that?\u201d and the minister began to relate the\n\n\n_Story of the Treacherous Vaz\u00edr_.\n\nIn ancient times there was a king of Basra who was very kind-hearted and\nliberal. He had a good vaz\u00edr, worthy of his confidence, who assiduously\nattended to all his duties and was very faithful; but death overtook him,\nand the king, who was for some time undecided what to do, ultimately\nappointed in his place a man of great ambition, who secretly entertained\na design of usurping the throne; and being in want of an accomplice he\nbribed a eunuch to introduce him to one of the ladies of the haram. But\nwhen he had become accustomed to the pleasures which awaited him in the\nfond embraces of love, he thought that it would be dangerous to carry out\nhis purpose very hastily, so he drew the lady into his secret, and now\nneglected the eunuch who had assisted him thus far and who consequently\nmade a vow to avenge himself on the ungrateful vaz\u00edr.\n\nOne night the king had a very unpleasant dream: a scorpion crawled\nfrom his sleeve into his shoe, and when he attempted to take it out it\nbit him. In the morning the sultan related his dream to some of his\ncourtiers, and as they could offer no satisfactory explanation of it he\nsaid: \u201cYou are only groping in the dark, and we must wait till a skilful\ninterpreter can be found.\u201d\n\nThe eunuch, who had heard the attendants conversing on the subject and\nthought this a favourable opportunity to revenge himself on the vaz\u00edr,\nsaid that he was able to interpret the dream; and on being brought before\nthe king spake as follows: \u201cThe interpretation is, that one of your\nmajesty\u2019s highest officials has withdrawn his head from the circle of\nobedience: by means of a eunuch he has gained admission into the royal\nharam, which he visits every night, and carries on a love-intrigue with\none of the ladies; and moreover he entertains the most wicked design,\nat a fitting opportunity, of depriving your majesty of life (which God\nforbid!) and usurping the throne himself;\u2014and there is a high degree of\nprobability that the official is no other than the vaz\u00edr.\u201d On hearing\nthis the king was wroth, but concealed his feelings, so that he should\nnot compromise his dignity, and exclaimed: \u201cBase wretch! there is nothing\nto warrant such a suspicion, unless, perhaps, some spite which you\nharbour against the vaz\u00edr, and in consequence of which you malign him;\u201d\nand he ordered the eunuch to be instantly put to death. But the king,\nthough inclined to give some credit to the eunuch\u2019s story, could hardly\nbelieve that a man such as his vaz\u00edr, whom he had raised from a low\nposition and made a sharer in the government of the kingdom, could be so\nungrateful as to covet his throne and purpose depriving him of life.\n\nDuring the past night the vaz\u00edr had as usual visited his paramour, and\nthey had then agreed to murder the king on the following night, but they\nwot not of what was in store for them. The king, who had been rendered\nuneasy by the revelation of the eunuch, entered his private apartments\nin the evening, and then secretly despatched a confidential servant to\nsee whether the vaz\u00edr was in his own house. When the messenger returned\nwith the information that the vaz\u00edr was not at home, the king had no\nlonger any doubts, and knew that if the vaz\u00edr had entered the haram\nhe must have done so from the water-side. He quietly summoned all the\nwatchmen and said to them: \u201cLast night I dreamt that thieves entered the\nharam, and I am very uneasy; therefore I command you to kill any person\neither entering or issuing from it.\u201d After the sentries had returned to\ntheir posts the king himself went into the haram, and, accompanied by\nsome trusty eunuchs, rushed into the room where he supposed the vaz\u00edr\nand the lady slept, and there discovering another guilty couple he slew\nthem, and the former escaped.[49] While a eunuch ran after the vaz\u00edr and\nhis paramour, the king went out to see whether all the sentries were at\ntheir posts; and as soon as they perceived him they stabbed him to death,\naccording to his own order. Meanwhile the eunuch pursued the vaz\u00edr, who\nalso went out by the water-side, was also mistaken in the darkness for\na robber, and met the same fate as his master. Then the other eunuchs\nwho were in search of the vaz\u00edr, and were not aware of the king\u2019s order,\nalso issued by the same door and were all killed by the guards; so that\nin the morning when the dead bodies were counted they amounted to forty.\nOn discovering the body of the king the people greatly deplored the\nmisfortune, and, considering that he with all his attendants had been\nkilled in consequence of a conspiracy, they laid hold of the watchmen and\nput them to death, after which the kingdom fell into a state of anarchy.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe vaz\u00edr added that this narrative exemplified how one individual may\nbecome the cause of the death of many, and that from the misfortunes\nwhich followed Nassar\u2019s exploits it plainly appeared that he was also one\nof the number of those ill-fated wretches, and that the misadventures of\nShoayb of Baghd\u00e1d likewise supported his statement. Quoth the king: \u201cHow\nis that?\u201d whereupon the vaz\u00edr related the\n\n\n_Story of the Unlucky Shoayb_.\n\nIn days of yore there dwelt in the city of Baghd\u00e1d a rich man called\nShoayb, but various calamities befell him so that he became extremely\npoor and quitted the country, and his ill-luck followed him wheresoever\nhe went, and in spite of all his diligence and skill he was unable to\nsucceed in any affair which he undertook. One day he approached a river\nand discovered three men engaged in fishing, and as he had never seen\nthis occupation exercised he looked on with much interest. The three\nfishermen, seeing that he was in a very destitute condition, easily\ninduced him to enter their service, on condition that they should give\nhim as his wages one fish for breakfast and another for supper.[50] After\nhe had been a few days thus employed the river began to decrease in\nvolume and also the fish in number, so that they caught only a tenth of\nthe quantity which they used to get formerly. At last they could catch\nonly one fish in a whole day, and were reduced to such straits that they\nresolved to go in quest of some other kind of work.\n\nOne day the sultan happened to pass that way and perceived to his\ngreat astonishment that there was scarcely any water in the river. He\nquestioned the fishermen, who stated their case, when the vaz\u00edr of the\nking, who was a very intelligent man, asked them: \u201cHas any stranger come\namong you during these days and been taken into partnership with you?\u201d\nThey pointed to Shoayb and said: \u201cThis man is a stranger among us.\u201d Then\nShoayb was examined, and he recounted his former wealthy condition and\nhis present destitution in such appropriate and eloquent language that\nthe king and his vaz\u00edr, as well as all the attendants, were greatly\namazed, and when he had ended his narrative the vaz\u00edr said: \u201cTo stay any\nlonger in this place is contrary to the dictates of prudence!\u201d So they\nall returned to the city, and on their way the king asked the vaz\u00edr:\n\u201cWhy did you make those inquiries and then become so disconcerted by the\nanswers you received that, by your declaration that it would be unsafe\nto stay any longer there, you almost forced us away from the place?\u201d\nThe vaz\u00edr saluted the king and thus replied: \u201cMost gracious sovereign,\nwhen your majesty asked for the cause of the river\u2019s decrease I thought\nof three causes: First, that perhaps these fishermen had for several\ndays forgotten God and the Prophet, and that therefore such a calamity\nhad befallen them; because it is certain that when men give way to evil\nhabits, the genii and demons are permitted to injure them and to destroy\ntheir prospects even as the withering blasts of autumn deprive the roses\nof their freshness and bloom. Secondly, that perchance these fishermen\nhad in some way injured either your majesty or the inhabitants of this\ndistrict, for which they were thus punished. Thirdly, that possibly a\nstranger had come amongst these fishermen, and that on account of the\nmisfortunes which follow his heels they as his partners are compelled to\nparticipate in them, and therefore I questioned that stranger regarding\nhis history; when I discovered that he had brought his ill-luck with him,\nin consequence of which the river itself has nearly dried up.\u201d Quoth the\nking: \u201cI have full confidence in your intelligence and experience, but I\nput no faith in your theories of good and ill-luck, because both are mere\nexpressions and depend entirely upon circumstances. Thus, for instance,\nif a man be intelligent and honest, and manage his affairs properly, he\nwill certainly have good luck, but a careless fool must naturally meet\nwith ill luck:\n\n Every man is master of his own fortune\n According to his character and strength of mind:[51]\n\n One, as Lukman,[52] wise and opportune;\n The other as crazy Majn\u00fan[53] you will find.\n The bulbul[54] among roses dwells,\n The owl in ruins dark abides;\n But intellect every ascent tells,\n And the fool his own folly chides.\u201d\n\nThe vaz\u00edr responded: \u201cWhat your majesty says is but the sequel of my\nassertion, because the intellectual qualities of every individual depend\nupon his horoscope and the propitious or unpropitious positions of the\nstars, and according to these a man is either lucky or unlucky. Moreover,\nwe frequently see that intelligent and good men do not prosper, while\nfools and rogues succeed in all their undertakings.\u201d[55] Quoth the\nking: \u201cThis I believe, because sometimes an intelligent man has not that\npractical turn required in the management of affairs and is thereby\nunable to overcome difficulties.\u201d[56] To this the vaz\u00edr rejoined: \u201cWhat\nargument can your majesty adduce in favour of the prosperous condition of\nHind\u00fas, Jews, Christians, and infidels, who are more powerful than the\nprofessors of Isl\u00e1m, most of whom are in need of the aid of those nations\naddicted to error?\u201d To this question the king could give no satisfactory\nanswer, but he nevertheless said: \u201cNo matter what arguments you may bring\nforward, I shall not believe your assertion.\u201d The conversation was still\nturning on this subject when they entered the city, and the king said:\n\u201cLet this matter stand over until I can prove that I am right;\u201d to which\nthe vaz\u00edr replied: \u201cIf your majesty can prove the contrary of what I have\nstated, I am willing that my blood be spilled and lapped by the dogs in\nthe streets.\u201d\n\nNext morning the king secretly called one of his confidential servants,\nand handing him a bag of gold said: \u201cGo without the knowledge of any one\nto the river, take the young stranger to whom we spoke yesterday apart,\nand give him this gold. Bid him leave the company of the fishermen, go\nto the bath, put on good clothes, and wait the day after to-morrow on\nhorseback in such a place until farther orders.\u201d The attendant set out\nwith the gold, and on coming up to the fishermen he was perplexed, as he\ncould not distinguish which of them was the stranger. At last he called\none of the fishermen aside and asked: \u201cWhich is the young stranger with\nwhom the vaz\u00edr conversed yesterday?\u201d Quoth the man: \u201cWhy do you want\nhim?\u201d \u201cI have some business with him,\u201d answered the king\u2019s messenger.\nThe fisherman, who was a cunning fellow, suspected that the vaz\u00edr had\nsent the stranger something, so he assumed a doleful aspect and said\nin a melancholy voice: \u201cI am that poor stranger,\u201d on which the servant\ntook out the gold secretly, and giving it to the man, at the same time\ndelivered the king\u2019s message; and the fisherman did not return to his\ncompanions, but immediately ran to the city, where he purchased a fleet\nhorse and fled in the direction of Tabr\u00edz.\n\nOn the appointed day the king took the vaz\u00edr towards the river, and\nlooked in all directions for Shoayb, whom they could not discover, until,\nreaching the bank, they saw him with two of the fishermen. The king at\nonce surmised that the absence of the third was to be ascribed to the\nmistake of his servant; accordingly he said nothing to his vaz\u00edr, but\nwhen he returned to the palace he reprimanded the careless attendant and\nsent him to prison. Then he took another bag of gold and delivered it to\nan intelligent servant with the same directions as before. He went to\nthe river, and calling Shoayb privately apart, asked him: \u201cAre you the\nstranger among the fishermen?\u201d But Shoayb, suspecting that this man might\nbe the precursor of a caravan of fresh misfortunes, answered: \u201cI am one\nof the fishermen.\u201d Then said the man: \u201cGo and send the young stranger to\nme.\u201d Shoayb went and told one of the fishermen that a servant of the king\nwanted to see him, and when he came the man handed him the bag of gold,\nwithout asking any questions, delivered the king\u2019s orders, and departed.\nThe fisherman was at first astonished at his good luck, but afterwards\nsaid to himself: \u201cGifts such as this are merely tokens of the munificence\nof sovereigns. Probably when the king was here and saw our distress the\nMost High inspired him with pity for us.\u201d So he concealed the bag at a\ndistance from Shoayb and his companion; but the latter, having watched\nall his movements and observed that a servant of the king had given him\nsomething which he was now hiding, resolved to make away with him and\npossess the treasure. Accordingly, having sent Shoayb to the city on some\nerrand, he took the net and said to his comrade: \u201cCome, let us throw the\nnet, for I have just seen a very large fish.\u201d His unsuspecting partner\ncomplied, and when he drew near, the intending murderer pushed him into\nthe river, but his own hand becoming entangled in the net he also fell\ninto the water and both perished.\n\nIt happened that the fisherman who intended to flee to Tabr\u00edz was not\nwell acquainted with the road, and after travelling all day lay down to\nsleep. When he awoke he found that his horse had strayed away and went in\npursuit of it; but having proceeded some distance he recollected that he\nhad left the bag of gold, which was under his head while he slept, and\nreturned for it, but in his haste he missed the spot, not only for an\nhour or two but he was utterly unable to discover it after three days\u2019\nsearch, during which period he had nothing to eat or drink. He found\nhis way back to the capital in a state of great exhaustion, and had no\nalternative but to betake himself again to his old business on the river.\nWhen he arrived there he beheld Shoayb alone and asked him where his two\ncomrades had gone. Shoayb told him that they had sent him four days ago\nto the town on an errand, and when he returned they were absent and had\nnot yet made their appearance.\n\nMeanwhile the king again made an excursion with the vaz\u00edr, and when they\nreached the bank of the river they saw Shoayb with another man. Therefore\nthe king concluded that the gold had been again received by the wrong\nperson and he became very angry. On his return to the palace he punished\nthe servant, and said to himself: \u201cI am surely singular among kings,\nnot to possess a man able to execute this business properly.\u201d Then he\ndespatched a third attendant to the river, telling him that he would\nsee there two men, one of whom belonged to the country, the other was a\nstranger, and to be sure he brought the latter with him. When the servant\ncame up to the two men he asked: \u201cWhich of you two is the stranger?\u201d\nThe fisherman, having obtained the second bag of gold on pretence of\nbeing the stranger and believing that the king was conferring gifts on\nsuch persons and that the servant had brought more money, replied: \u201cI\nam the stranger who has no share in the comforts of this world. What\ndo you want with me?\u201d Quoth the servant: \u201cThe king wishes to see you.\u201d\nBut when the fisherman heard the king mentioned, reflecting that he had\nreceived the bag of gold on the previous occasion without having a right\nto it, he began to tremble; he had no excuse, however, and followed the\nmessenger. When he was brought into the royal presence the king at once\nsaw that he was not the man he had sought to benefit and resolved to\npunish him. \u201cAre you,\u201d demanded he, \u201cthe stranger who lives with the\nfishermen?\u201d The man replied: \u201cYes.\u201d Then quoth the king: \u201cAs you are the\nfellow in consequence of whose unpropitious advent the water of the river\nhas become diminished and the fish in it few in number, you are worthy\nof death.\u201d On seeing his joyous expectations come to such an end the\nfisherman began to moan and said: \u201cMay it please your majesty, I am not\nthat stranger. But as this world is not our permanent abode, and we are\nall sojourners in it, I said that I am a stranger.\u201d But the king\u2019s wrath\nwas not appeased by the man\u2019s supplications, and he was immediately made\nto drink of the beverage of death. Thus on account of the misfortunes of\nShoayb all the three fishermen lost their lives.\n\nShoayb, who had remained by the river, now reflected that, as the\nking\u2019s messengers had several times been there and always asked for the\nstranger, and as his companions had disappeared, it would not be safe for\nhim to continue longer in that place, especially as it appeared probable\nthat the king bore enmity to strangers; and therefore he betook himself\nto the city, so that when the king again sent a messenger he could find\nno one, and his majesty was once more disappointed in his well-meant\nefforts to assist the poor stranger.\n\nOne night the king was walking about the city in disguise,[57]\naccompanied by some of his courtiers, when he saw a crowd in the baz\u00e1r\nassembled round a man whose hands were tied, and addressing him in this\nstrain: \u201cIn consequence of the unpropitious sight of your unhallowed\nperson, that misfortune has befallen Khoja Naym. He was so rich that\nevery morning and evening one thousand men partook of the banquet of his\nliberality, and by your ill luck he was overwhelmed by such a calamity.\u201d\nWhen the king looked well at the man he recognised Shoayb as the object\nof the reproaches and vituperation of the crowd. So he went aside and\nsaid to his attendants: \u201cSave this man in any way you can from the grasp\nof this mob; for he is the individual we are in search of.\u201d The courtiers\nmixed with the crowd and asked: \u201cWho is this man? And what has he done to\nKhoja Naym?\u201d The people answered: \u201cYesterday morning the Khoja was riding\nout to meet the caravan from Egypt, with the intention of purchasing some\ngoods, and as soon as his eye caught sight of this fellow he immediately\nfell down from his horse and expired.[58] We have been some time in\nsearch of him, and now that we have found him we are going to retaliate\non him the death of Khoja Naym.\u201d The royal attendants said: \u201cSuch events\ntake place by the decrees of Providence. You persecute this guiltless man\nin vain, for according to the law no crime can be brought home to him.\nYou ought rather to give alms and solace the poor, to please God, and\nfor the pardon of the Khoja. Indeed, should any evil happen to this man\nyou will have to account for it to the king.\u201d But the people of Khoja\nNaym would not listen to reason, and pulled the man on one side while the\ncourtiers, who were not recognised in the darkness, pulled him on the\nother side, and the quarrel resulted in a fight, during which several\npersons were wounded and one of the courtiers was killed. Amidst the\nconfusion, however, Shoayb contrived to make his escape.\n\nWhen the people of Khoja Naym had fled and the crowd was dispersed, the\nking walked away with his attendants, who carried the body of the slain\ncourtier along with them. On their way to the palace they were met by\nthe police, who mistook them for robbers carrying a dead comrade, and\nattempted to arrest them. The king and his men drew their swords and\nresisted, so that a fight again ensued, which ended in the whole party\nbeing captured after several persons had been killed and wounded on both\nsides. On taking their prisoners to the guard-house the police discovered\nthat they had arrested their own king and became so terrified that they\ntook to their heels. The king arrived at the palace, with his courtiers,\nso fatigued and wounded that he was unable to rise from his couch for\nseveral days. Nevertheless he issued orders to fine, imprison, and punish\nthe people of Khoja Naym, who had during the night attacked certain\npersons in the baz\u00e1r and had even killed one of their number.\n\nOn the following evening the king ordered two intimate friends to come to\nhis private apartments, when he spoke to them as follows: \u201cAlthough at\npresent all appearances are in favour of the vaz\u00edr\u2019s assertion, yet I am\nunwilling to concede that it is true. You must go again in search of that\nstranger, and possibly we may at last get hold of him.\u201d But the courtiers\nreplied: \u201cIt is not advisable that your majesty should take any more\ntrouble in this matter, lest it should result in greater misfortunes.\u201d\n\u201cI see,\u201d said the king, \u201cthat I cannot entrust this service to any one,\nand therefore I must go myself.\u201d Accordingly, when evening was somewhat\nadvanced, he set out with a number of attendants, and while strolling\nthrough the baz\u00e1rs, he chanced to look into the public bath-house, and\nthere he saw Shoayb sitting in earnest conversation with the fireman, and\nsent a servant to call him out. When Shoayb had come into the street his\nmajesty said to him: \u201cI am in great favour with the king. I had a brother\nresembling you in stature and features who was also in the royal service,\nand just when he had been appointed to a high office an accident hastened\nhim to the next world. No one, however, knows of this but myself; and as\nI am very desirous that the position to which he was promoted should be\nenjoyed by a member of my family, I propose to substitute you in his\nstead, and present you to the king; and after you receive his favours\nyou will be sent to your post in the country, whereby the dark night of\nyour reverses will be changed to the bright morning of happiness.\u201d Shoayb\njoyfully agreed to this proposal, and the king, handing a purse to an\nattendant, said to him: \u201cTake charge of this man; to-morrow take him to\nthe bath, and purchase with this gold whatever is required. I shall also\nsend the necessary costume and on the following day present him to his\nmajesty.\u201d\n\nAs Shoayb and the royal servant were proceeding along together, the\nlatter asked Shoayb to carry the gold for a short while, and just then\none of the king\u2019s elephants, that had become mad and broken loose,\nrushing through the street overthrew the servant and trampled him to\ndeath. This so frightened Shoayb that he would not remain in the place,\nand having no other acquaintance, he returned to the fireman of the\nbath-house. When Shoayb entered, the man perceived the bag in his hand,\nand fancied he had brought some delicious food; but as Shoayb showed\nno signs of wishing him to partake of it, he resolved to possess it\nby a stratagem. He kindled some dry wood over the bath, and, suddenly\naffecting to be in great distress, exclaimed: \u201cWoe is me! the roof has\ncaught fire, and as the bath-house is close to the baz\u00e1r it will also\nbecome a prey to the flames!\u201d Then handing a bucket to Shoayb, he said:\n\u201cBrother, fill this bucket at the river and come back quickly that we\nmay extinguish the fire, from which the whole world is in danger!\u201d\nShoayb took the bucket and went out; but as soon as he had disappeared\nthe cupidity of the fireman would not allow him first to extinguish the\nflames, but impelled him to examine the bag, and when to his astonishment\nhe found it full of gold he exclaimed joyfully: \u201cThis is indeed great\nluck!\u201d But while he was concealing the treasure in an aperture in the\nwall the flames increased so much that they enveloped the whole roof,\nand some sparks falling on the heaps of fuel around the building kindled\nthem, and attracted the people of the quarter to the scene, where they\nfound the covetous man burnt to a cinder. Meanwhile the conflagration\nincreased, being fanned by the wind, and it was only put out with great\nlabour, and after much property was destroyed and many persons lost their\nlives.\n\nWhile Shoayb was going to fetch water he lost his way, and met a party\nof thieves carrying on their backs the plunder which they had just taken\nfrom a house. As soon as they caught sight of him they compelled him also\nto carry a burden, and proceeded to the town-wall, which they scaled by\nthrowing up a rope-ladder, and in the same manner they descended on the\nother side. They walked on until they reached a cemetery, where they\ndeposited their booty, and then proposed to kill Shoayb, but one of\nthe gang, more merciful than his comrades, said: \u201cFriends, is it not\nenough that we steal, but we must also commit murder? This man can do\nus no harm.\u201d Others, however, replied: \u201cA head which is cut off cannot\nspeak;\u201d and the discussion was becoming very warm when one of the king\u2019s\nspies chanced to pass by, and hearing voices issuing from the vault, he\nlistened and soon ascertained what was going on. Then he rode quickly\nto the town and brought a number of armed men, with whom he rushed into\nthe vault, and killed all the thieves. After they had examined the\nplunder and were beginning to remove it, they discovered in a corner a\nman crouching down, with his hands tied, and asked him: \u201cWho are you?\u201d\nShoayb replied that he was a poor stranger who had been robbed and was\njust about to be killed when they arrived. The men bade him take of the\nplunder whatever belonged to him, and he was not slow in appropriating\na Kur\u00e1n[59] with several other articles and walked away. As soon as\nthe morning dawned and the city gates were opened Shoayb entered; but\nas the householder who had been robbed immediately gave notice to the\nauthorities, they were on the alert; and he himself happening to be\nnear the gate by which Shoayb entered at once recognised his own Kur\u00e1n\nand the other things the unlucky man was carrying. The servants of the\nhouseholder caught hold of him and said: \u201cWhere have you got these\narticles?\u201d He replied: \u201cThey are my property.\u201d Shoayb was, of course,\ntaken for a thief, and the servants tied his hands and were about to\nbring him before the authorities, when the armed men who had slain the\nrobbers returned, after having secreted the plunder and thrown the bodies\ninto the river. When they found Shoayb in this difficulty, they knew that\nif he were tortured he would make a confession and bring all of them into\ntrouble, and that they would not be credited with having taken their\nplunder from the thieves but would be considered as robbers themselves,\nand thus forfeit their lives. So they determined to liberate Shoayb,\nand, assembling a great number of their friends, they demanded that the\ninnocent prisoner should be delivered to them. This was refused, and a\nfight ensued which swelled to such dimensions that about a thousand men\nwere killed, and a rumour spread that an enemy had invaded the capital.\nThe king at once despatched a body of ten thousand men, with orders to\nquell the tumult at any price, which they did, and brought a multitude\nof prisoners, including Shoayb, into the presence of the king.\n\nNow the vaz\u00edr, when the king discussed the subject of Shoayb\u2019s\nmisfortunes with him, knew that his majesty would endeavour to disprove\nhis assertions, so he had appointed some men to watch occurrences day and\nnight, and to keep a record of every misfortune which should befall the\npeople on account of Shoayb. They performed their duties very faithfully,\nand had by this time compiled a document of considerable length. And\nwhen the king discovered Shoayb among the prisoners and the wounded who\nhad been brought before him, he inwardly acknowledged his error and\nwas convinced that the vaz\u00edr was right. The first man whom he called\nforth from the assembly was the owner of the stolen property, which\nhe identified in the hands of Shoayb of Baghd\u00e1d, and many others bore\nwitness to the truth of his statement. Then quoth the king to Shoayb:\n\u201cI know that you are not a thief and a robber, and it is probable that\nhe who is not a thief is also not a liar. I therefore command you to\ngive a true account of this business.\u201d The poor fellow in reply related\nevery circumstance from his going to fetch water till his falling among\nthieves, and so on to the end. Then the king thus spake to the armed men\nof his spy: \u201cCupidity spoils everything in this world. Had you simply\ncaptured the thieves and brought them to me you would have deserved a\nreward. But by taking their plunder you have become their accomplices\nand the cause of so great confusion and slaughter. You are worthy of\ndeath, but as you have slain the thieves I pardon you; at the same time\nI command you to restore the goods to the owners and leave the city\ntogether with Shoayb.\u201d After the people had been dismissed the vaz\u00edr\nproduced the document in which the calamities connected with Shoayb were\nrecorded, and it was found that within the space of twelve days one\nthousand five hundred men had lost their lives, besides the injuries\nsuffered by those who had been wounded and had lost their property.\n\n\nCONCLUSION OF THE HISTORY OF NASSAR.\n\nHaving thus ended his third example, the vaz\u00edr added: \u201cAs this story\nlikewise clearly shows the truth of my assertion, your majesty would\ndo well to dismiss Nassar to a distant country until the rust of his\nmisfortunes is wiped off the mirror of his circumstances, when you may\nsafely receive him again into your royal favour.\u201d The king of Egypt\napproved of this advice, and ordered the vaz\u00edr to give Nassar a thousand\nd\u00ednars and send him away. The vaz\u00edr immediately sent for Nassar and gave\nhim the money; he even apologised to Nassar, and desired him to return\nafter his fortune had become more propitious, when his majesty would\nreceive him most graciously, and reward him handsomely.\n\nNassar was very sad and knew not where to go, till he recollected that\nKhayrand\u00edsh had given him a ring which he was to show at Aleppo to his\nfriend Ab\u00fa Jurj\u00e1s, if he should fall into any troubles and be in need\nof assistance. So he set out for that city. On the way he came to a\ndelightful meadow, adorned with trees and flowers, and as he was fatigued\nhe lay down near a beautiful spring, and, placing the gold he had\nreceived from the vaz\u00edr under his head, soon fell asleep. Presently he\nwas awoke by a voice exclaiming: \u201cYoung man, this is a perilous place for\nresting or sleeping in. Arise, and save your life!\u201d He leaped up hastily\nand fled. After a while he recollected that he had forgotten his gold,\nbut was afraid to return; and considering this also as a consequence of\nhis ill-luck he continued his journey.\n\nWhen he arrived in the vicinity of the hermitage of Ab\u00fa Jurj\u00e1s, he beheld\nit in a state of neatness and cleanliness. From its walls blessings and\nfelicities radiated; but he could find no trace of the hermit. After\nlooking all round, he perceived a man sleeping on a couch, and said to\nhimself: \u201cThis must be the hermit, who has probably spent the night in\ndevotion and is now sleeping.\u201d Accordingly he waited till evening, but\nthe hermit did not move. Then thought Nassar: \u201cAlthough it is uncivil to\nawaken any one from sleep, yet as this man would be sorry to miss the\ntime for evening prayers I must disturb him.\u201d He therefore went forward\nand shook the hermit slightly, but still he did not move. He perceived a\nslip of paper on the pillow which contained these words:\n\n\u201cFortunate youth! on the bank of the river of life no tree grows which\nis not blown down by the wind of Fate. In a vision I was informed that\nyou would come hither, but whilst I was alive I expected you in vain.\nBut since the goblet of my existence has become filled to-day, I could\nnot postpone my departure, and, bowing my head obediently to the summons\nof the omnipotent Sovereign, I laid myself down on my death-bed. I\nam perfectly aware of what you have come to seek. Dread nothing: all\nyour reverses will soon be turned to prosperity. Friend, I have three\ninjunctions to communicate to you: First, that you wash my corpse and\nbury it in this place; secondly, that as soon as you have the means you\nbuild a chapel here, so that whenever people see it they may remember\nme, and their kind wishes may rejoice my soul, for nothing is more\nuseful to those who sleep on the pillow of death than the prayers of\nthe living for their pardon; and, thirdly, that every Friday[60] night\nfrankincense or other perfumes be burnt over my tomb, because wherever\nthat is done angels of mercy alight. On account of the hardships which\nyou have hitherto suffered, your fortune will henceforward be very great.\nIn the neighbourhood of this spot there is a spring called the Fountain\nof Al-Kamyss, which was a place where Muslim fairies were wont to amuse\nthemselves, and therefore infidel genii have dried it up. You must during\nthe space of forty days[61] go to that place every day and pray God to\ncause the water again to flow. As soon as by divine command the water\nreappears, you must perform the sacred ablution of gratitude to the\nAlmighty, when all the filth of your misfortunes will be removed and the\nfairies will everywhere shower happiness on your head.\u201d\n\nAfter Nassar had read the paper he washed and buried the body of the\nhermit. Then he betook himself to the fountain and prayed during forty\ndays, at the end of which period the water again began to flow and fishes\nappeared in it, by order of the Almighty, and each fish bore a jewel in\nits ear and a ring in its mouth. The fishes exclaimed: \u201cPraise be to\nthe Most High!\u201d and saluted Nassar, who was very much astonished at the\nspectacle. Then a white fish more beautiful than all the others raised\nits head from the water, brought the purse of gold which Nassar had left\nin the meadow when he was scared away by the warning voice, and said:\n\u201cHappy young man! this is your property. Be not amazed at the sight of\nus, for, though we are now in the form of fishes, we are in reality\nfairies, and live according to the ordinances of Isl\u00e1m; and for this\nreason we usually assume the shape of fish, because they are the most\ninnocent of God\u2019s creatures.[62] This fountain is our abode and place\nof amusement. When the malevolent genii had, on account of their enmity\ntowards us, dried up this spring, we were compelled to wander about; but\nnow that, by the blessing of your advent, the water has again appeared,\nwe are engaged in praising God and in thanking you. Young man, in the\nmeadow where you slept near a fountain we warned you to depart, because\nthat region is the abode of a tremendous dragon which has destroyed\nnumberless people by its fiery breath, and no one has been able to kill\nit. The astrologers have predicted that a stranger will destroy the\nmonster, and the king of the country, who has no offspring, has made\na vow that he will abdicate the throne in favour of that fortunate\nstranger. We shall reward your good deed by killing the dragon and\nbringing you a sign, whereby you shall obtain the bride of royalty and\ngain every day a hundredfold more than your father Khoja Hum\u00e1y\u00fan has\nlost.\u201d\n\nThen the fairies brought forth various savoury dishes, of which they\ninvited him to eat, while they went and slew the dragon, after which\nthey vanished. But soon a great tempest and dust enveloped the whole\nfirmament in confusion and darkness; and when all the noise and turmoil\nhad passed away, the surface of the fountain became slightly agitated,\nand the fishes again appeared, and placed the head of the dragon, which\nwas of monstrous size, on the brim of the spring. Then one of the fairy\nfishes addressed Nassar, saying: \u201cThis dragon was sleeping in the shadow\nof a mountain; we went with seventy thousand fairies to the spot where\nthe monster lay, and separating half of the mountain threw it on the\ndragon, which immediately perished\u2014its last agonies caused the tempest\nand darkness. Although the service which we have thus done to you is\nas nothing compared with the favour you have conferred upon us, yet as\nevery return, be it ever so slight, is acceptable, we have been happy to\nserve you; and, please God, we shall hereafter consider it as our highest\npleasure to gratify every one of your wishes. And now you may depart to\nthe city.\u201d\n\nNassar went away accordingly; and when the people saw the head of the\ndragon they notified the event to the capital, from which immense crowds\nissued, so that not less than twenty thousand persons met Nassar and\nescorted him with great pomp into the city, the people constantly bowing\nand thanking him for the great benefit he had conferred on them. Just\nthen the good king was on his deathbed, and, having no son, his ministers\ndid not know who should be his successor. But when they heard of Nassar\u2019s\nentrance into the city they instantly conveyed him before the dying king,\nwho was rejoiced to learn that the dragon was slain, kissed Nassar on\nthe forehead, offered his thanksgivings to the Most High, murmuring:\n\u201cIf I must die, I have now no other wish.\u201d Then he handed his diadem\nand royal signet to Nassar, and said to the vaz\u00edr: \u201cHe is indeed a good\nservant who obeys his sovereign on his deathbed; therefore now let every\none who loves me pay his allegiance to Nassar.\u201d With one accord the\nministers and others who were present did homage to Nassar and elevated\nhim to the throne of royalty.\n\nWhen the king died Nassar began to govern. He fulfilled the last wishes\nof the hermit. He sent messengers to Baghd\u00e1d to bring his father Khoja\nHum\u00e1y\u00fan with all his relatives, and on their arrival, with great ceremony\nand pomp, the father rejoiced to meet his son like Jacob when he was\nbrought to Joseph. Nassar appointed his father to be his vaz\u00edr and\nbestowed high stations on all his kindred; he also wrote a letter to the\nking of Egypt, which he sent with many gifts, informing him of the happy\nturn his destiny had taken. Thus Nassar, although for some time in the\ngripe of various misfortunes, became ultimately very happy and spent his\nlife in great comfort.\n\n\n\n\nHISTORY OF FARRUKHR\u00daZ.\n\n\n\n\nHISTORY OF FARRUKHR\u00daZ, THE FAVOURITE OF FORTUNE.[63]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\n HOW THREE BROTHERS SET OUT ON A TRADING JOURNEY\u2014HOW THE\n YOUNGEST IS CRUELLY ABANDONED BY HIS ELDER BRETHREN\u2014HOW HE\n MEETS WITH ROYAL FAVOUR.\n\n\nIn ancient times there lived in Kashm\u00edr a jeweller called Khoja Marj\u00e1n,\nwho was very lucky in all his dealings and amassed great wealth. He had\nthree sons, the two elder of whom were of a foolish and lazy disposition,\nand one day the Khoja said to them: \u201cAccording to the requirements of\nthis world, everyone must do something for his living. You may have\nheard that at first I was only the servant of a jeweller, yet I have, by\ndint of industry, overcome all obstacles, so that in this city there is\nno person who is richer than myself. It would be a pity if you were, in\nyour folly, to trust in my opulence and engage in no occupation, because\nin this way many who had the greatest expectations were disappointed\nand reduced to misery. If any man, though he be rich, knows only how to\nspend and never to gain, it is very probable that he will exhaust all his\nresources. Therefore as our business is commerce, which is promoted by\ntrading in different places, I desire you to gain your livelihood in that\nmanner as long as I am alive, and for this purpose I shall give to each\nof you some goods, and thus you may carry on business.\u201d[64]\n\nThe name of the Khoja\u2019s third son was Farrukhr\u00faz; he was a great deal\nmore intelligent than his brothers and therefore loved his father more;\nso, after the Khoja had delivered the promised goods to his two elder\nsons, he privately handed to Farrukhr\u00faz a small casket, saying: \u201cMy dear\nson, the true touchstone of young men is travel, by which their ability\nappears. Although none of you has yet made a journey, the results of\nwhich might show your skill and intelligence, yet my paternal love\nwhispers to me that you are the worthiest of my sons. In this casket\nthere is a cock which skilful artisans have carved from a single ruby and\ninserted inside of it various contrivances, so that it is such a great\ncuriosity that its like has not been seen in the world. Keep it secret\nfrom your brothers, so that should you fall into trouble you may still\nhelp yourself by presenting it as a gift to some king.\u201d\n\nThe three brothers, having received each his portion of goods from\ntheir father, began to journey to Ir\u00e1n, and arrived first at the city\nof Her\u00e1t, which was at that time governed with justice and equity. In\nthat delightful place the two elder sons of Khoja Marj\u00e1n spent all their\ntime in pleasure, but Farrukhr\u00faz engaged himself in business. One day\nhe ventured to admonish his brothers, but they stretched forth the neck\nof impudence and refused to listen to his advice. At last, however,\ntheir dissipated ways reduced them to poverty, and such was their misery\nthat they purposed committing suicide. Farrukhr\u00faz took pity on them and\ngave them some of his own goods, saying: \u201cDear brothers, you have only\nyourselves to blame for what has happened.\u201d They soon squandered their\nbrother\u2019s bounty, and when he requested them to continue the journey,\nthey replied that they had no resources at all and would not move from\nthat place. So Farrukhr\u00faz was obliged to leave them and proceeded to the\ncity of Sh\u00edr\u00e1z, where he traded for some time, gained much wealth, and\nbecame acquainted with a most excellent man named Zayn al-Mof\u00e1herin, who\npresented him with a ring when he was about to depart and said: \u201cAs men\nare everywhere beset by dangers, especially in travelling, I give you\nthis ring, and in case you should fall into distress you must show it to\na friend of mine in Mos\u00fal, whose name is Hab\u00edb, and he will aid you.\u201d\n\nFarrukhr\u00faz then departed for Tabr\u00edz, where he opened a shop, and having\nmade very large profits he resolved to proceed to the country of the\nFranks, and purchased various kinds of merchandise required in that part\nof the world, which he placed on the backs of twenty strings of camels.\nOn reaching Baghd\u00e1d he stopped there for some time on account of his\ncommercial transactions; and it happened one day, when he was walking\nabout the baz\u00e1r as usual, that he remarked among the porters two men\nexactly resembling his brothers, but they were so dirty and ragged, with\ntheir hair and beards unkempt, that he was at first unwilling to approach\nthem, and they did not appear to recognise him. He ordered one of his\nservants to call them aside, and when they came he burst into tears, and\nthey also wept and were ashamed to look in his face. He gave to each of\nthem a quantity of goods, saying: \u201cMy dear brothers, those that walk in\nthe streets of safety will never be assailed by the dust of trouble. You\nmay return home with the goods I have given you.\u201d But they replied: \u201cWhy\nshould we separate from so kind and loving a brother? We wish to obey and\nfollow you wherever you go.\u201d\n\nIn short, the three brothers left Baghd\u00e1d together and travelled towards\nthe country of the Franks. But when the two ne\u2019er-do-well brothers\ndiscovered the wealth of Farrukhr\u00faz the flames of envy and cupidity were\nkindled in the oven of their hearts, and one said to the other: \u201cWhat is\nthe use of such a life, that we should be subject to our younger brother?\nWe shall earn only shame in the sight of our father and everybody, and so\nlong as we live the stain of despondency and poverty will never disappear\nfrom our characters, while he will always enjoy honour and respect. We\nmust in some way cause his death, so as to obtain possession of his\nproperty, after which we may return home and say that a fatal mishap has\nbefallen him.\u201d Thus did those two ungrateful men wipe from the tablets of\ntheir minds, with the water of treachery and faithlessness, the benefits\nthey had received, and having agreed about the crime they watched for an\nopportunity to perpetrate it.\n\nOn arriving in the vicinity of the Frank country they embarked in\na vessel, which carried a skiff, and one day the brothers said to\nFarrukhr\u00faz: \u201cCome, let us all three get down into the boat, which is\nquite empty, and we may rest ourselves better in it than in this ship.\u201d\nFarrukhr\u00faz consented, and when they had all gone down into the skiff the\ntwo seniors said it would be more comfortable to have some bedding, and\nwent back into the ship to fetch it, leaving Farrukhr\u00faz in the little\nboat, who presently perceived to his great consternation that it had been\ncast loose and was gradually drifting away from the vessel. The sailors\nnoticed this occurrence when it was too late to recover their boat.\nFarrukhr\u00faz at once concluded that this had been done by his brothers,\nbut, considering that lamentation is of no avail, he thanked God that he\nhad nothing more to fear from his brothers, and trusting to the mercy\nof the Most High, who is able to deliver us from all dangers, he fell\nasleep. Nor did he indeed encounter the least peril, for on the third day\nhis skiff arrived safely on the coast of Yaman.[65]\n\nFarrukhr\u00faz went on shore, hoping to discover some inhabited place, when\nthe king of Yaman, who happened to be on a hunting excursion, came in\nsight with a splendid cavalcade, so he drew near the prince, made his\nobeisance, and spoke as follows: \u201cYour majesty\u2019s humble servant has\ntasted of the bitterness of misfortune, and hope impels him to prostrate\nhimself at your feet.\u201d The king stopped and looked at Farrukhr\u00faz,\nwho took out the cock given to him by his father and presented it to\nhis majesty, who was greatly pleased with the gift. To all questions\nFarrukhr\u00faz returned very intelligent answers, and in a few days he so\nwon the affection of the king that he said to him: \u201cI thank God for\nhaving become acquainted with such a prudent and honest man as you are.\nSpeak your mind freely to me on all subjects.\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz replied: \u201cMay\nthe light of your majesty\u2019s most happy government always remain shining\nin the assembly of prosperity, and may it always be protected in the\nlantern of divine favour from every wind of adversity! Your humble\nservant desires only to behold the glory of your majesty; and, as he\nhas experienced reverses of fortune, he craves merely permission to\nsojourn for a time under the protection of this government.\u201d The king\nreadily agreed to his request, and assigned a lodging with the means of\nsubsistence to Farrukhr\u00faz, who was assiduous in attending court, and\nsucceeded in ingratiating himself so well that he became one of the\nfavourites of the king, and was appointed to so high a station that the\nother counsellors, secretaries, and great officials became such in name\nonly, because the authority of Farrukhr\u00faz had in all matters become\nparamount.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\n THE HERO\u2019S QUEST OF A THRONE OF MARVELLOUS GEMS.\n\n\nThis elevation of a stranger to the highest post did not fail to excite\nuniversal jealousy and envy, and all the courtiers sought an opportunity\nof removing Farrukhr\u00faz. On a certain occasion the king gave a great\nbanquet, at which the wonderful cock was exhibited, and when the repast\nwas over the king thus addressed his guests: \u201cYou have all seen the\nworld, but you have at no royal court beheld a curiosity such as this\nwhich Farrukhr\u00faz has presented to me.\u201d The envious courtiers replied:\n\u201cThat is true; but we conceive that if your majesty were to order a\nthrone to be constructed of white chrysolites, yellow emeralds, and red\ndiamonds, it would surpass anything ever possessed by any sovereign.\u201d\nQuoth the king, smiling: \u201cYou are wishing for an impossibility, because\nI have never heard that there exist white chrysolites, yellow emeralds,\nor red diamonds; but if so, they are probably so rare that sufficient\nof them could not be obtained for a ring, not to speak of a throne.\u201d\nThe courtiers rejoined: \u201cAny affair that can possibly be accomplished\nis open to the competition of skilful and experienced persons.\u201d In this\nstrain they continued until they succeeded in exciting in the king a\ndesire to possess such a throne, so he asked them: \u201cWho then can procure\na sufficient quantity of such precious stones with which to construct\na throne?\u201d To this question they unanimously replied: \u201cThe business may\nbe accomplished by a very intelligent man, and we know of no other than\nFarrukhr\u00faz who is qualified to undertake it, seeing that he has already\nbrought a curiosity the like of which is not to be found in the world.\u201d\nBut the king said that, as Farrukhr\u00faz had become so useful to him, he\ncould not dispense with his presence. Farrukhr\u00faz, however, rose from his\nplace and offered his services, promising to return within the space of\nforty days.[66] So the king gave him the required leave of absence, and\nhe proceeded, according to the advice of Zayn al-Mof\u00e1herin, to Mos\u00fal, in\nsearch of the hermit Hab\u00edb, whom he found in a cave near that town.\n\nThe hermit was a devout old man, reposing himself in perfect innocence\nand piety in the mansion of tranquillity and asceticism, with a mind free\nfrom the shackles of animal passions, and engaged in humbly praising\nand worshipping the Bestower of all gifts. Farrukhr\u00faz made his sal\u00e1m,\npresented the ring of Zayn al-Mof\u00e1herin, and was welcomed by the hermit,\nwho said: \u201cI am glad to see you\u2014I know the ring of my friend; and as it\nhas been during my whole life a pleasure to assist all true believers, I\nrequest you to inform me of your wants.\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz explained his case,\nafter which the hermit continued: \u201cAlthough no one has ever returned\ndisappointed from this place, I must inform you that your enemies have\ncontrived to send you in search of objects the attainment whereof they\nconceived to be impossible, and indeed the affair is a very difficult\none. Let us however trust in God, who is able to help us.\u201d\n\nAbout sunset the hermit offered up the customary prayers, after which he\nsaid to Farrukhr\u00faz: \u201cBy divine inspiration I learn that in Syria there\nis a mountain near which is a spot inhabited by genii and fairies, who\npossess many of the precious stones you require. They are stored in the\ntreasury of their king, but no man has dared to approach the place since\nthe time of King Sulayman (on whom be blessings!). At present, however,\na son of the king of the fairies is suffering from lunacy, which greatly\ndistresses his father. All physicians who tried to cure him entirely\nfailed; but I shall teach you a prayer which will restore him to health,\nand the king will very gratefully reward you.\u201d Then the hermit taught\nFarrukhr\u00faz the prayer, and giving him a staff, said: \u201cThis staff is made\nfrom the cocoa-nut tree of Ceylon, one of whose numerous properties\nis that it conveys its owner safely through all dangers to the place\nof its destination.[67] The various genii and sorcerers harbouring\nenmity towards mankind assume different forms and infest the road, and\naccomplish the ruin of many travellers. There is no doubt but they will\nalso lay snares for you, and should you be so foolish as to lose this\nstaff you will fall into troubles from which you may never escape.\u201d\n\nFarrukhr\u00faz then took his leave of the hermit, started on his journey,\nand arrived after several days within the dominions of the fairies,\nentering a pleasant meadow adorned with beautiful flowers and rivulets.\nThe fragrant vegetation and salubrious air which he inhaled exhilarated\nFarrukhr\u00faz, and invited him to walk about in that delightful spot.\nHe soon perceived a group of beauteous fairies sitting around one of\ntheir own sex, who seemed to be their queen, on seeing whom he was so\nfascinated by her attractions that he stood still as if petrified, but\nhis heart palpitated violently. A fairy presently approached him, and\ntaking him by the hand drew him into the circle. He completely forgot\nthe admonitions of the hermit, and chatted with the fairy damsel very\npleasantly, till they all leapt up nimbly and taking him along with\nhim, walked till they came to a palace which the ladies entered, but\nFarrukhr\u00faz was turned away by the male attendants with these words: \u201cThis\nis not a place where any stranger may freely go in and out.\u201d Accordingly\nhe sat down in melancholy and expectation, and after a short space one\nof those heart-ravishers issued forth to call him. Farrukhr\u00faz quickly\narose to obey the joyful summons, but a gate-keeper met him half-way,\nsaying: \u201cThe laws of courtesy prohibit any one from entering the private\napartments of high personages armed; it would be highly improper for\nyou to pay your respects to the queen of this country with a staff in\nyour hand.\u201d Then he took the staff from Farrukhr\u00faz, who rushed in as if\nintoxicated with the desire of beholding the object of his adoration.\nWhen he entered, he found himself in a paradise-like place containing a\nthrone ornamented with innumerable gems, on which that beauty reposed\nlike the world-illuming sun, with all the attendant ladies seated around\nher, conversing, playing on musical instruments, laughing, eating, and\ndrinking.\n\nFarrukhr\u00faz was rejoiced at beholding this scene, and flattered himself\nthat he might soon become more closely acquainted with the occupant\nof the throne, considering himself as already happier than a thousand\nkings of Yaman. Nor was he disappointed in his expectations; for the\ncharming queen addressed him in the most gratifying terms; dallied with\nhim amorously; and having asked for a goblet of wine she sipped some\nof it, and handing it to him desired him to quaff the contents. But no\nsooner had Farrukhr\u00faz done so than he became transformed into a monkey,\nwith dugs full of milk, and several young monkeys tugging at them, in\nthe midst of a shoreless ocean, and floating on a piece of timber. He\nlooked in all directions, but perceived no land, and awaking, in his\nbitter grief, from his sleep of carelessness, he recollected the advice\nof Hab\u00edb the hermit and the loss of his staff. But his self-reproaches\navailed him nothing, while the little monkeys pulled away at the teats\nand were even manifesting their enmity; but the maternal kindness of a\nmonkey, with which he had been invested, prevented him from retaliating.\nIn this manner he spent several days without food, drink, sleep, or rest,\nsuffering from the burning heat of the sun, and imploring the mercy\nof the Almighty to rescue him from this peril, till at last after the\nexpiration of seven days a ship came in sight, from which a beautiful\nlady descended into a skiff with two attendants. The skiff was rowed\nabout the sea till it approached the piece of timber on which Farrukhr\u00faz\nwas sitting, when he began to moan most pitifully after the manner of\nmonkeys, which attracted the attention of the lady and she said to her\nattendants: \u201cUnless I am greatly mistaken, I again behold an effect\nof the wickedness of that God-forgetting fairy, who has changed this\npoor wretch into a monkey.\u201d Then she uttered a magic spell, upon which\nFarrukhr\u00faz sneezed and immediately recovered his human shape. The piece\nof timber drew near the skiff, and as soon as Farrukhr\u00faz stepped into it\nhe perceived he was in a garden with the beautiful lady and several other\npersons, when he exclaimed: \u201cPraise be to God! I experience wonderful\nchanges!\u201d The lady took him by the hand, congratulated him on his\ndelivery, and said: \u201cBe of good cheer. I have, by divine Providence, been\nguided to this spot, and have thus been enabled to save you. Others have\nfallen into the same snare like yourself and have lost their lives, while\nyou have come forth unscathed from the whirlpool of calamity.\u201d\n\nFor a while the lady promenaded with Farrukhr\u00faz, and then they proceeded\nto a splendid mansion, wherein was a throne encrusted with jewels on\nwhich she took her seat, and was waited upon by legions of attendants.\nPresently most delicious food was brought to Farrukhr\u00faz, who broke his\nfast of seven days, and having satisfied his hunger and recovered his\nstrength he was obliged to relate his adventures. Then quoth the lady:\n\u201cSince cunning and hatred have brought so much trouble on your head,\nperhaps kindness may now do somewhat to aid you. Know that the wicked\nfairy who has injured you is my sister. Her name is Naf\u00edsa, and we are\nboth the daughters of King N\u00fabah\u00e1r, who reigned supreme over all the\nfairies of this country; but after our father\u2019s death my sister was for\nsome time led astray from the true faith by an infidel genie who got her\ninto his power, and even now she tries to injure Muslims as much as she\ncan.\u201d Having thus spoken, she whispered to a fairy, who went away and\nreturned with the staff which the hermit Hab\u00edb had given to Farrukhr\u00faz,\nand of which the other fairies had deprived him. Farrukhr\u00faz thanked the\nqueen, who then said: \u201cI should be glad if you were to remain here and\nlive with me, but I wish not to detain you. Yet I beseech you to return,\nbecause that comfort which you may enjoy here you will never find among\nmen and their follies. In the meanwhile, however, you may go in quest of\nthe precious stones you are in want of: the king whose son is subject\nto fits of lunacy is my uncle, and he possesses a countless store of\nthe gems you require, but is in great distress on account of his son\u2019s\nmalady.\u201d Then she sent one of her courtiers with Farrukhr\u00faz to inform her\nuncle that he would cure the prince.\n\nFarrukhr\u00faz left the park with the fairy courtier, and at the gate there\nwas a box wherein he was requested to take his position and close his\neyes, and on opening them after a moment he perceived that he had\nbeen transported into a royal palace, the like of which, for beauty,\nmagnificence, and decoration, no human eye had ever beheld. There he saw\na monarch seated on a throne with great pomp and surrounded by numerous\ncourtiers, all of whom were in deep mourning. He was presented by his\nguide to the king, who said to him: \u201cYoung man, considering that human\nbeings excel all other earthly creatures in beneficence and happiness,\nI welcome your advent. I am informed that you have come to cure my\nson, and if you do so I shall feel myself indebted to you as long as\nI live.\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz replied: \u201cExalted sovereign, although every cure\ndepends in the first place upon the mercy of the Most High, your humble\nservant possesses a supplication in which he has the fullest confidence,\nand hopes by means of it to effect a cure.\u201d The king then gave orders\nto produce the prince, who was accordingly brought forth in bonds and\nchains. He wept by turns like a vernal cloud and smiled like a fresh\nrose; he had also fits of a violent character. As soon as Farrukhr\u00faz cast\nhis eyes upon the afflicted prince he opened the portals of eloquence\nwith the name of God and recited the prayer which he had learned of\nHab\u00edb the hermit. When he had completed the invocation the prince\nrecovered the perfect use of his intellect and was cured; he sneezed a\nfew times, thanked God, and asked: \u201cFor what cause have I been put in\nchains?\u201d At these words the king manifested his joy, kissed the prince,\nand delivered him from his chains, and all the fairies rejoiced. Then\nquoth the sultan to Farrukhr\u00faz: \u201cI cannot express to you my gratitude\nin words, nor am I able to reward you. May God requite you!\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz\nopened the lips of civility, saying: \u201cI am delighted with the fortunate\nresult of my prayer,\u201d and preferred his request for the precious stones,\nwhen the king immediately caused immense quantities of white chrysolites,\nyellow emeralds, and red diamonds to be brought from the treasury, and\nordered a skilful genie to construct a throne with the gems, which was\ninstantly done. When it was evening a genie called Tahmat\u00e1n, who moved\nwith the celerity of lightning, departed with the throne to the kingdom\nof Yaman, accompanied by Farrukhr\u00faz, to whom the king of the fairies said\naffectionately: \u201cTake this ring, which has been kept for many ages in the\ntreasury of my ancestors, and the possession of which is connected with\nnumerous blessings; keep it always on your finger, and it will preserve\nyou from all misfortunes, except when you are in a state of ceremonial\nuncleanness, because the Ineffable Name is written on it;[68] and if\nyou keep it with you when in such a condition you will become subject to\nfits of epilepsy and lunacy, and it will return to our treasury, nor will\nany mortal be able to cure you except ourselves. Whenever any difficulty\noccurs to you, turn the ring on the forefinger of your right hand, and\nask aid of the victorious spirit of Sulayman (on whom be blessing!), when\ninstantly a genie will make his appearance, to whom you may entrust any\nservice and he will accomplish it. But you must not let it be seen by\nwicked demons, who are the sworn enemies of mankind, lest they should\ndeprive you of this talisman.\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz thanked the king and was taken\nup by Tahmat\u00e1n with the throne at midnight and set down in Yaman before\ndaybreak.\n\nWhen Farrukhr\u00faz had departed in quest of the wonderful gems, the envious\nvaz\u00edrs and secretaries were delighted, believing that he would never\nreturn. But the king was grieved at being separated from his favourite\nand impatiently counted the days of his absence. At last he said to\nhis courtiers: \u201cWhat need had I of such a throne, since the society of\nsuch a friend was more valuable to me than a thousand thrones of king\nSulayman? Perchance Farrukhr\u00faz has been unable to attain his object and\nis ashamed to return.\u201d The vaz\u00edrs professed to agree with the king\u2019s\nopinion, being afraid to contradict him. On the fortieth day, however,\nFarrukhr\u00faz brought the throne to the palace before any of the vaz\u00edrs\nor secretaries had made their appearance. At the joyful sight the king\nembraced and kissed him affectionately, and ordered all the great drums\nof gladness to be beaten. The grandees, who were yet in their own houses,\nwere astonished at the sounds they heard, and when they learned what\nhad happened they were confused and dismayed. On going to the palace,\nand seeing that the honour which Farrukhr\u00faz had before enjoyed was\ngreatly increased, they said one to another: \u201cThe luck of this man is\ntruly marvellous, since he has accomplished what everybody considered an\nimpossibility.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\n THE HERO GOES IN QUEST OF FOUR TREASURE-TREES, AND IS MARRIED\n TO THE QUEEN OF THE FAIRIES.\n\n\nThe king of Yaman again gave a grand banquet, at which the wonderful cock\nwas exhibited beside the magnificent throne which Farrukhr\u00faz had brought\nfrom fairyland, and which was greatly admired by the assembled people.\nThe vaz\u00edrs were obliged to conceal their malevolence, and after giving\nutterance to many expressions of admiration they said: \u201cAlthough your\nmajesty\u2019s humble servants and well-wishers are unable to produce anything\nthemselves, yet they consider it their duty to suggest anything which\nmight increase your glory. If four date-trees of gold, having fruits and\nleaves of jewels, were placed at the four corners of this throne there\nis no doubt your majesty would be unequalled as the possessor of costly\nand rare objects, and no monarch on earth could pretend to the least\nshadow of equality with our king.\u201d[69] The sultan smiled disdainfully\nand said: \u201cSuch a wish cannot be realised; for, though I have perused\nmany biographical and historical works, I have never read that anything\nof this kind exists in the world.\u201d They replied: \u201cMay it please your\nmajesty, there is nothing which will not yield to skill and intelligent\nefforts.\u201d Quoth the king: \u201cWho, then, is able to procure those objects?\u201d\n\u201cFarrukhr\u00faz is the man,\u201d said the vaz\u00edrs. \u201cGod forbid,\u201d exclaimed the\nking, \u201cthat I should burden him with this affair, seeing that I am\nalready under great obligations to him. Propose some one else.\u201d After\nthe conversation had thus continued for some time, Farrukhr\u00faz stood up\nand said: \u201cIf your majesty will give me leave, I shall be most happy\nto undertake this business.\u201d The king hesitated long, but ultimately\npermitted him to go, on condition that he returned at the end of six\nmonths.\n\nFarrukhr\u00faz accordingly departed in quest of the treasure-trees, and\nwhen he was well out of the city he took the signet-ring given to him\nby the king of the fairies and put it on his finger, when immediately\nan afr\u00edt[70] of dreadful aspect, large as an elephant and fierce as a\ndragon, appeared before him, and bowing humbly said: \u201cI am Kashank the\nafr\u00edt whom the king of the fairies has sent to serve you, and I have\ncome to execute your orders.\u201d \u201cI wish to see her majesty the queen of\nthe fairies,\u201d rejoined Farrukhr\u00faz, upon which the afr\u00edt Kashank drew the\nfinger of obedience over the eyes of acquiescence, and taking Farrukhr\u00faz\non his back ascended into the sky.\n\nAfter the fairy queen had despatched Farrukhr\u00faz to her cousin to cure\nhis son, she sent a number of afr\u00edts for her sister Naf\u00edsa, who had\nill-treated Farrukhr\u00faz, and when she was brought the queen spoke to\nher thus: \u201cSinful woman! how is it that you always afflict Muslims,\nwho are of all men by their piety and devotion the greatest favourites\nin the courts of Unity? How had poor Farrukhr\u00faz offended you that you\nshould change him into a monkey?\u201d Then the queen would have punished\nher, but all the fairies pleaded in her favour and Naf\u00edsa was pardoned.\nBut so far from feeling grateful for this clemency, Naf\u00edsa, to avenge\nthe humiliation which she had been forced to endure at the court of her\nsister, plotted with a number of malevolent genii against Queen B\u00e1n\u00fa.\nKnowing that her sister wished to marry Farrukhr\u00faz, and that he had cured\nthe prince and obtained from his father such a powerful talisman as the\nsignet-ring, she said to her complotters: \u201cIt is likely that the love\nwhich Farrukhr\u00faz entertains for Queen B\u00e1n\u00fa will induce him to visit her\npresently, and as she has so deeply insulted me you must kill him and\nthus disappoint her. Let one of my damsels be dressed to resemble Queen\nB\u00e1n\u00fa, and send her with a suitable retinue to meet Farrukhr\u00faz, who will\nmistake her for the queen and marry her. In his attentions to her he\nwill become careless about the ring, so that you will be able to take it\nfrom his finger and then easily put him to death.\u201d Matters having been\nthus arranged, they waited for the appearance of Farrukhr\u00faz. It happened\nalso that Kashank the afr\u00edt, whom the king of the fairies had sent to\nFarrukhr\u00faz, was a friend and well-wisher of Naf\u00edsa, so he informed her\nof his errand, and she in return disclosed to him her scheme, upon which\nhe said: \u201cBe not dismayed; make all arrangements for your damsel to meet\nFarrukhr\u00faz in the spot where you first saw him, and I shall bring him\nthither.\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhen Kashank took up Farrukhr\u00faz he ascended higher than any flight of\nimagination could conceive, but on coming over the country of Syria\nhe gradually lowered himself and set Farrukhr\u00faz down in the fairy\npark, saying: \u201cHappy mortal! as the secrets of our minds are known to\nour true friends and reflected to each other in the mirrors of their\nhearts, the queen has obtained the glad tidings of your propitious\nadvent, and will to-day throw a halo of felicity by meeting you with a\nnumerous company in this very place. I have brought you here to see your\nlove.\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz was charmed with this information, and presently was\nintroduced to one of Naf\u00edsa\u2019s maids, dressed to personate Queen B\u00e1n\u00fa,\nseated on a throne, and surrounded by numerous attendants, in great pomp\nand dignity. He was deceived by her striking resemblance to the queen,\nand, losing self-possession, eagerly ran to meet her, and they fell into\neach other\u2019s arms. After the first ebullition of joy was over, she\ninvited him to seat himself on the throne by her side, and conversed\nwith him on his adventures. On being informed of the envy of the vaz\u00edrs\nshe said: \u201cBeloved friend, are you not disgusted to live among persons\nwho are unable to appreciate your merits and send you on such errands?\nI entreat you by your love not to expose yourself to farther dangers,\nand never to return to that place. Remain with me, and let us both be\nhappy.\u201d While she was thus cajoling Farrukhr\u00faz her attendants gradually\ndisappeared, and when they were quite alone she threw her arms around\nhis neck and kissed him. Farrukhr\u00faz had no sooner yielded to the impulse\nof his passions than he felt that his mind was becoming deranged; his\nhead became dizzy and he closed his eyes, and on opening them again he\ncould find no trace of his mistress, and the whole scene was changed. He\nheard the wind blowing and thunders roaring; his mind was confused; he\nbegan to babble incoherently, and at last was drowned in the ocean of\nunconsciousness. When he recovered from his trance he found that he had\nassumed the form of an old barber in Damascus, and was just then engaged\nin shaving the head of a customer, having in his shop the utensils\nrequired in the trade and a number of apprentices standing round him. He\nwas amazed at this new scene, and thought within himself: \u201cWhat have I\ncome to?\u201d and recollecting the signet-ring, with the injunction of the\nking of the fairies, he began to weep bitterly.\n\nThe man whom he was shaving saw him moving his lips, muttering something,\nand shaking his head; so he said to him: \u201cBarber, what is the matter\nwith you? Perhaps you are calculating the income of your trade, or have\nbeen long in the bath, the fumes of which have muddled your brains, that\nyou have stopped shaving my head.[71] Be quick! The police magistrate\nhas invited a large number of high personages to be his guests to-day,\nand there is no one except myself to make the necessary arrangements for\nthe repast.\u201d But Farrukhr\u00faz was so absorbed in his thoughts about Queen\nB\u00e1n\u00fa that he paid not the least attention to what his customer said, at\nwhich the latter became wroth and expostulated, whereupon Farrukhr\u00faz,\nwho imagined him to be the afr\u00edt Kashank, threw away his razor, and tore\nhis own clothes from top to bottom, strewed dust on his head, struck\nthe man several times, began to weep, and exclaimed: \u201cWicked afr\u00edt! the\nking of the fairies warned me to be on my guard against such as you, and\nnot let them see the ring. I disregarded this injunction and trusted\nin you. By your perfidy I have lost a talisman which is more valuable\nthan the diadem of Iskandar or the goblet of Jamsh\u00edd![72] I have been\ndeprived of the society of my mistress and become subject to fits of\nlunacy and epilepsy, and have lost my happiness. You are not satisfied\nwith having thus reduced me to misery, but you even now rail at me.\u201d The\ncustomer jumped up, bareheaded as he was, and ran into the baz\u00e1r, pursued\nby Farrukhr\u00faz shouting: \u201cMuslims! seize on Kashank the afr\u00edt, who has\ndeeply wronged me, and destroyed my peace of mind!\u201d As he was thus\nbawling and running after the man, his girdle became loose and falling to\nhis feet he stumbled and fell to the ground, breaking his brow and losing\na great quantity of blood.\n\nWhen the people saw the servant of the police magistrate running\nbare-headed, and a decrepit old barber pursuing him and falling down\nwounded, as they knew the other man to be a very bad character, they\nconcluded that he must have injured the barber, so they assailed\nFarrukhr\u00faz with questions, to all of which he only replied: \u201cSeize the\nafr\u00edt Kashank, who has done me damage of the value of a thousand tom\u00e1ns!\u201d\nThe people said: \u201cWe know him to be the servant of the police magistrate\nand a very great scoundrel. He may have injured you, but his name is\nnot Kashank the afr\u00edt. He has now escaped, but if you submit your case\nto his master he will be punished.\u201d Then the people bound up his wound\nand accompanied him to the magistrate. Farrukhr\u00faz tumbled headlong into\nthe office and shouted: \u201cMuslims, by the treachery of Kashank the afr\u00edt\nmy happiness has been destroyed!\u201d Several high personages happened to\nbe with the magistrate just then and were astonished at the intrusion,\nbut still more so when Farrukhr\u00faz threw a stone in their midst; and as a\nfew days before an astrologer had predicted that bloodshed and slaughter\nwould take place in the country, they considered this as an omen and all\nran away, while the magistrate retired to his women\u2019s apartments.[73]\nFarrukhr\u00faz rushed into the street, calling out: \u201cSeize Kashank the\nafr\u00edt, who has changed the spring of my peace into the autumn of misery!\u201d\nThe people fancied that a thief had escaped from the magistrate\u2019s house\nand many of them ran after the fugitives shouting: \u201cCatch Kashank the\nafr\u00edt, who has run away from the house of the magistrate!\u201d But no one\nknew who Kashank was.\n\nIt happened that a very tall, dark-complexioned fellow, with a long\ndishevelled beard and hair, and dressed in rags, had arrived from the\ndesert and was walking about the streets. As he had never before seen\nsuch a mob, he got frightened at the noise and began to run like a goblin\nof the wilderness, and the people, thinking him to be either Kashank the\nafr\u00edt or the escaped thief, seized and bound him. Farrukhr\u00faz the maniac,\ntaking the man for Kashank, then sprang forward, and striking him,\nexclaimed: \u201cPerfidious wretch! why have you deprived me of my mistress\nand my ring, and thus precipitated me into the abyss of misery?\u201d The man\nof the desert was astonished, but thought that it might possibly be the\ncustom thus to speak to outsiders who intruded themselves into the city.\nWhen the mob perceived the embarrassed countenance and uncouth figure of\nthe stranger, they also took him for Kashank the afr\u00edt and said: \u201cThere\nis no doubt but he has greatly injured the barber.\u201d At last many people\nassembled, and seeing Farrukhr\u00faz lamenting in the most pitiful manner\nthey began to reproach the stranger, saying: \u201cO Kashank, are you not\nashamed of having done such wrong to this old barber?\u201d The man of the\ndesert, who had during his whole life never been in a town, supposed this\nto be the usual mode of accosting strangers, so he made no reply, merely\nshaking his head like the goat of Akhfash.[74] The Am\u00edr of the city\nhappened to return at this time from a hunting excursion, and, seeing the\nexcited crowd in the street through which he passed, sent a chamberlain\nto make inquiries. He returned with the information that a fellow,\nKashank the afr\u00edt by name, had deprived the barber of his wife, together\nwith a costly ring. When Farrukhr\u00faz beheld the royal cavalcade he shouted\nthe more, but all that the Am\u00edr and his courtiers could learn from him\nwas: \u201cWoe is me! The whirlwind of the treachery of Kashank the afr\u00edt has\nextinguished the lamp of my happiness, and the fire of his oppression\nhas melted my soul and my life!\u201d The Am\u00edr was of a very kind disposition\nand would not suffer even the poorest of his subjects to be wronged, and\nhe said: \u201cIt appears that this peasant has so injured the poor old barber\nas to cause him to lose his senses;\u201d then calling to the stranger, who\nwas now greatly confused, he exclaimed: \u201cWretch, why have you wronged\nthis poor man?\u201d The man of the desert, unable to say anything, merely\nshook his head as before. At this the Am\u00edr smiled and observed: \u201cHere\nwe have a strange plaintiff and an equally strange defendant, neither\nof whom we are able to understand.[75] Is any one present who was a\nwitness of the outrage?\u201d Hereupon several persons came forward who had\nbeen in the shop when the barber was shaving the servant of the police\nmagistrate, and next day the latter appeared at the court, but nothing\ncould be elicited inculpating either him or the man from the desert, and\nthey were merely required to give securities for their good behaviour,\nwhile Farrukhr\u00faz was sent to the hospital for lunatics.\n\n * * * * *\n\nAs soon as Naf\u00edsa had, with the assistance of Kashank, succeeded in\nderanging the mind of Farrukhr\u00faz, they sought for the ring but could\nnot find it. Then quoth Naf\u00edsa: \u201cMy object was not so much to obtain\npossession of the ring as to prevent Queen B\u00e1n\u00fa from meeting her lover,\nand therefore we must kill him.\u201d But Kashank, who had some experience of\nlife, replied: \u201cO queen of the universe, though, for the sake of gaining\nyour approbation, I have become unfaithful to my sovereign, I shall not\ncommit this new crime, the consequences of which were irreparable. This\nyoung man has done much good by curing the son of the king, who will be\nhighly displeased at what has happened, but if we execute this second\npart of your scheme we shall certainly jeopardise our own lives.\u201d So it\nwas concluded to spare the life of Farrukhr\u00faz, whom the afr\u00edt transported\nto Damascus, where he arrived early in the morning, and perceived only a\nbarber\u2019s shop open, the owner of which he seized and threw into the sea,\nputting Farrukhr\u00faz in his stead after having by a magic spell caused him\nto assume the form of the old man. For this reason, wise and intelligent\nmen have warned people never to open their shops before sunrise, because\nif they do so they become liable to be injured by genii and demons.\n\nAfter committing this diabolical crime, Kashank waited the next day on\nthe king of the fairies, who immediately asked about Farrukhr\u00faz. The\nafr\u00edt replied: \u201cMay it please your exalted majesty, a misfortune has\nbefallen Farrukhr\u00faz. He was merely sent by the king of Yaman on some\nbusiness to the river Nile, and when I brought him thither the water\nbecame very rough, and the afr\u00edt Hank\u00e1l, who is one of his enemies, and\ndwells in Egypt, and persecutes human beings, issued from the stream\nwith seventy afr\u00edts of extraordinary power, and as I was unable to cope\nwith them, they dragged Farrukhr\u00faz under the water and separated his\nhead from his body, which immediately rose again to the surface and\nbecame the prey of voracious beasts, so that I was compelled to return\nin great distress.\u201d At first the king believed this statement, but his\nvaz\u00edr Akht\u00e1r said to him: \u201cAs I know the evil disposition of Kashank, I\nintended to dissuade your majesty from appointing him to this business,\nespecially as he had been still more led astray by Naf\u00edsa, and it is most\nprobable that she has had something to do in this matter, since she has\non a former occasion injured Farrukhr\u00faz and bears bitter enmity towards\nQueen B\u00e1n\u00fa.\u201d Then the king examined Kashank more closely but without\neffect, and finally imprisoned him till farther orders.\n\nThe following day one of the treasurers came before the king with a\nring in his hand and said: \u201cThis is the ring which your majesty gave to\nFarrukhr\u00faz, and which has returned to the treasury.\u201d This betokened that\nFarrukhr\u00faz was still alive, and the king sending for Kashank showed him\nthe ring and told him that he would extort the truth from him by force.\nJust then one of the king\u2019s serving genii, who had for some time been\nwandering among men for the purpose of avenging his brother\u2019s death,\nmade his appearance, and stated that he had seen at Damascus a lunatic\nwho was constantly complaining of Kashank and was probably Farrukhr\u00faz.\nThe king at once delivered the ring to an afr\u00edt with orders to bring\nFarrukhr\u00faz, which was done accordingly, and as soon as Farrukhr\u00faz saw the\nking he wept bitterly, but the king embraced and comforted him. Then the\nking of the fairies sent for Kashank, Naf\u00edsa, and Queen B\u00e1n\u00fa, the two\nformer of whom he reproved and imprisoned, and to the latter he said:\n\u201cThough it is not customary for fairies to marry human beings, yet as\nthis young man has conferred great benefits on us, I have resolved to\nespouse him to you after the orthodox Muslim manner.\u201d Queen B\u00e1n\u00fa replied:\n\u201cNoble uncle! I consider you as my father and shall obey you as long as\nI live.\u201d The matrimonial ceremony was celebrated in due form and the\nhappy couple were full of joy. Some time afterwards Farrukhr\u00faz informed\nthe king of his promise to the sultan of Yaman, and said that if he were\nallowed a year\u2019s leave of absence he would then return and never more\nseparate from them. The king and the queen B\u00e1n\u00fa consented, and caused the\nrequired four treasure-trees to be carried to Yaman by seventy faithful\nafr\u00edts, whom Farrukhr\u00faz accompanied.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\n HOW THE HERO PRETENDED TO VISIT PARADISE, AND CAUSED ALL HIS\n ENEMIES TO PERISH.\n\n\nNow the courtiers of the sultan of Yaman had been all the time exulting\nin the belief that Farrukhr\u00faz would not return; but the king was\nconfident that he would soon make his appearance. One month before the\nleave had expired news was brought that Farrukhr\u00faz was come back with\nthe treasure-trees on four elephants and himself riding on a fifth. The\nking at once marched out with his army to meet him, and when they were\nin sight of each other they alighted and embraced with the greatest\nmanifestations of joy.[76] They rode side by side into the city amidst\nthe acclamations of the people, and in the palace a throne was placed for\nFarrukhr\u00faz, on which he seated himself. When the four golden date-trees\nwere set around the sultan\u2019s throne and everything was arranged with the\nutmost splendour, the envious vaz\u00edrs and secretaries were full of chagrin\nand said to each other: \u201cThis man\u2019s luck is most extraordinary, for he\nsucceeds in whatever he undertakes, and he has so eclipsed us that the\nking cares little for any person besides him.\u201d\n\nThe golden date-trees being placed one at each corner of the throne\nwhich Farrukhr\u00faz had first procured, with the wonderful cock in front\nof it, and all the grandees being assembled, the king said: \u201cWhat else\nbesides these rare objects and so dear a friend can contribute to augment\nthe happiness and glory of a monarch?\u201d Quoth the envious courtiers:\n\u201cMay your majesty live for ever! Indeed there is nothing in this world\nso splendid as this spectacle we at present behold; and to make your\nfelicity complete it would only be necessary to convey this news to the\neternal world\u2014to inform the forefathers of your majesty who now occupy\nthe chief places in Paradise; and, as they enjoy the closest intimacy\nwith the angels of mercy and their prayers meet with acceptance, it would\nbe well to request a prolongation of your life, which would doubtless\nbe granted.\u201d The king replied, full of astonishment: \u201cYou ask indeed\nsomething very foolish and unattainable.\u201d But they said: \u201cMay it please\nyour majesty, all things in this world depend upon good luck, and as long\nas it serves a man he will easily succeed in anything he may undertake;\nand, praise be to the Most High, such is your majesty\u2019s case.\u201d\n\nAs opinions expressed by different persons find generally an approbative\nresponse, though they may be absurd, and the flames into which they fan\nthe imagination cannot be extinguished by every intellect, so these\nsuggestions made an impression on the mind of the king, who thought\nthere could be no harm in discussing the matter, so he inquired: \u201cWho can\nundertake such a business?\u201d To this the envious vaz\u00edrs replied with one\nvoice: \u201cFarrukhr\u00faz is the happy man who is successful in everything!\u201d\nBut the king said: \u201cI have scarcely recovered from the grief I suffered\non account of his absence and only begun to enjoy the happiness of his\npresence; how, then, could I again separate from him? You must propose\nsome one else.\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz, seeing the turn things had taken, arose and\nthus addressed the king: \u201cAs long as your majesty\u2019s slave is alive, he\nis always ready to obey your behests. If I obtain leave for one year I\nshall accomplish the business.\u201d As no other person offered his services,\nthe king reluctantly consented to part with his favourite. Farrukhr\u00faz\nsuggested that all the letters should be prepared, and that every one who\nhad a relative or friend in the other world might send him a message.\nAccordingly the king dictated to one of his secretaries the following\nepistle:\n\n\u201cIn consequence of the intimation of the Sovereign of the decrees of\nFate, of whose power the existence of all creatures is but one sign, our\nglorious relatives and ancestors have left this terrestrial abode for the\neternal Paradise, and having thus been delivered of all the vicissitudes\nof Fortune, they have left me to inherit their just and righteous\ngovernment, so that I have, by the boundless favour of the Giver of all\ngifts, become very happy and have no wishes unfulfilled. I have therefore\nsent this letter by my devoted servant Farrukhr\u00faz to set the minds of\nmy beloved ancestors at rest on this subject. And as I am aware that\nthey are immersed in the shoreless ocean of the divine mercy, and I fear\nlest the thread of my life may be suddenly snapped, I cannot enjoy my\nhappiness as I ought; and since those denizens of the holy regions of the\nKingdom of Pardon are closely connected with and befriended by the angels\nof mercy and the cherubim of the courts of Unity, I trust they will\nbe able to obtain the prolongation of the terrestrial existence of my\nlife. I do not venture to draw out this request to greater length; and,\nmaking my obeisance, I crave that the bearer of this, Farrukhr\u00faz, who is\nindispensable to my comfort, be not detained beyond the space of a few\ndays.\u201d\n\nThe vaz\u00edrs and secretaries followed the example of their sovereign and\nalso wrote affectionate letters to their beatified relatives; and when\nall the letters were written the king sealed them and gave them to\nFarrukhr\u00faz. When the sultan asked Farrukhr\u00faz how he meant to depart for\nthe next world, he requested a large quantity of dry wood to be piled\nup. After more than a thousand ass-loads of fuel had been accumulated,\nFarrukhr\u00faz kissed the sultan\u2019s hand, bade him farewell, and desired\nthe fire to be kindled at the four corners of the pile; and when he\nwas enveloped in smoke he put the magic ring on his finger and was in\na twinkling transported by afr\u00edts to the presence of the king of the\nfairies and the queen B\u00e1n\u00fa, to whom he related his adventures, and they\nhighly approved of his stratagem.\n\nIn that delightful region Farrukhr\u00faz spent a whole year joyfully with his\nbeloved spouse B\u00e1n\u00fa, and when his leave of absence was almost expired\nhe told her that this was the last service he should perform for the\nsultan of Yaman, after which he should be entirely devoted to her. The\nking of the fairies said they wished only to please him, and he might\nact as he thought fit. So Farrukhr\u00faz wrote various replies on the part\nof the spirits in Paradise for the sultan of Yaman and his vaz\u00edrs and\nsecretaries, after which the afr\u00edts conveyed him to Yaman.\n\nThe sultan and all the people were sorely grieved at the departure of\nFarrukhr\u00faz on his last enterprise, but not so the vaz\u00edrs, who rejoiced\nand said one to another: \u201cIt is wonderful that a young man who was so\nvery intelligent should have thus voluntarily destroyed himself! He\ncannot possibly return.\u201d And even the king almost despaired of again\nseeing his favourite; nevertheless on the day appointed for his return he\nheld a grand levee, at which all the grandees were ordered to be present.\nThe vaz\u00edrs of course obeyed the summons, whispering to each other: \u201cOur\nsultan is indeed a fool! A whole year has elapsed since he saw a man\nburnt to ashes and now he expects him to return.\u201d Their exultation was,\nhowever, soon ended on hearing the approach of Farrukhr\u00faz announced among\ntumultuous acclamations of joy; and when he actually appeared the king\nwas almost frantic with ecstasy, kissed him fervently, and exclaimed:\n\u201cNow am I the happiest of men!\u201d Then his majesty made inquiries regarding\nhis blessed ancestors, and Farrukhr\u00faz took out the letters, saying: \u201cMost\nexalted sovereign, no man is able to describe the multifarious pleasures\nof Paradise\u2014the sweetness of the climate, the beauty of the flowers,\nthe graces of the h\u00far\u00eds, the splendid palaces of that beatified abode;\nand your majesty will not have any idea of them until you participate\nyourself in those delights. Indeed I was very reluctant to leave that\nblessed region. Your majesty\u2019s exalted father is in paradise, and your\nmother is his partner;[77] your other relatives enjoy appropriate\ndignities and are waited upon by many h\u00far\u00eds and slaves.\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz\nhaving concluded, the sultan thanked him, and began to read the letter\nfrom Paradise, which contained many compliments, and stated that his\nancestors had prepared for his acceptance many costly presents which they\nwould entrust to such of his vaz\u00edrs, secretaries, and other officials\nwhose names were written in a list given to Farrukhr\u00faz, and for this\npurpose they were to come at once to Paradise\u2014their own relatives\nmoreover being extremely desirous of seeing them; therefore they were in\nno way to elude this command, on pain of incurring the displeasure of\nthe Most High, but, as they were necessary to carry on the government of\nYaman, they should be sent back to the earth at the end of forty days.[78]\n\nThis message having been communicated to the vaz\u00edrs and other officials,\nthe king commanded them to be ready next morning to set out for Paradise,\nand they at once perceived that their lives were in danger. The sultan,\nreading their thoughts in their terrified countenances, exclaimed: \u201cO\nye besotted fools! All intelligent and pious men labour during their\nwhole lives to attain Paradise, and you ought to be delighted with the\nmessage you have just received. Get quickly ready to depart!\u201d Accordingly\nthey were obliged to feign acquiescence and prepare for death. Then said\nFarrukhr\u00faz to the sultan: \u201cThough there are many roads, none is shorter\nthan that by which your majesty\u2019s humble servant departed.\u201d So the\nsultan caused a great quantity of wood to be piled up and about fifty\nof those wicked and envious men to be placed upon it. When the fire was\nkindled and began to distress them, they pleaded for mercy, and said: \u201cWe\nacknowledge our fault and repent of it. Hereafter we shall never envy or\nslander any one.\u201d But their entreaties were not heeded and they became a\nprey to the flames.\n\nAfter this the sultan counted the days, and when the fortieth arrived he\nsaid to Farrukhr\u00faz: \u201cTo-day our friends should return, and I am expecting\nthem.\u201d But when it was evening and there was no sign of them, the sultan\nsaid to his favourite: \u201cWise men have said that the road to the next\nworld is full of dangers, and I begin to fear that some accident has\nbefallen our friends.\u201d Hereupon Farrukhr\u00faz exclaimed: \u201cMay it please\nyour majesty, that is a road which not everybody can travel upon,\u201d and\nproceeded to relate the truth of the whole affair, adding: \u201cThe greatest\nservice I have rendered your majesty was to purge the kingdom of those\nvillains, because they would, by their conspiracies and treacherous\nmachinations, at last have succeeded in ruining the country.\u201d When the\nsultan became fully aware of the wickedness of the vaz\u00edrs he thanked\nFarrukhr\u00faz and said: \u201cSo long as I have you what more vaz\u00edrs do I need?\nAnd as I possess no offspring I make you my successor.\u201d Farrukhr\u00faz\nkissed the ground of obedience and replied: \u201cMay power and dominion\never belong to your majesty! I have sojourned here to serve you and to\nremove those wretches. But as I am connected with the fairies, I have\nno longer the option to remain here. I shall however bring my parents\nand relatives, and beg your majesty to receive them under the shadow\nof your protection.\u201d The sultan agreed to this proposal and by order\nof Farrukhr\u00faz the afr\u00edts brought his whole family to Yaman, and they\nwere most happy to meet him. The sultan made Khoja Marj\u00e1n, the father\nof Farrukhr\u00faz, his vaz\u00edr, and appointed his other relatives to various\nstations.\n\nWhen the leave of Farrukhr\u00faz had expired he bade adieu to the sultan and\nhis relatives, and departing to the land of the fairies he joined his\nspouse Queen B\u00e1n\u00fa, and whilst he lived never omitted to visit his friends\nat Yaman once every six months. At last, however, all responded to the\nunavoidable behest of the sovereign of destiny, and, being divested of\nthe borrowed garments of this perishable life, departed to the regions of\neternity.\n\n\n\n\nTHE KING AND HIS FOUR MINISTERS.\n\n\n\n\nTHE KING AND HIS FOUR MINISTERS.\n\n Though the commands of royalty pervade\n The world, yet sovereigns ever should remember,\n The light of justice must direct their path.\n\n _Hind\u00fa Drama._\n\n\nThere was a city called Alak\u00e1puri, famous for all the riches that sea and\nland can yield, and inhabited by people speaking different languages. In\nthat city reigned a king named Alak\u00e9sa,[79] who was a storehouse of all\nexcellent qualities. He was so just a king that during his reign the cow\nand the tiger amicably quenched their thirst side by side in the same\npond, and the kite and the parrot laid their eggs in the same nest, as\nthough they were \u201cbirds of a feather.\u201d[80] The women never deviated from\nthe path of virtue, and regarded their husbands as gods.[81] Timely\nrain refreshed the soil, and all Alak\u00e9sa\u2019s subjects lived in plenty and\nhappiness. In short, Alak\u00e9sa was the body and his subjects the soul of\nthat body, for he was upright in all things.\n\n\n_Story of the Lost Camel._\n\nNow there was in Alak\u00e1puri a rich merchant who lost a camel one day. He\nsearched for it without success in all directions, and at last reached\na road which he was informed led to another city, called Mathurapuri,\nthe king of which was named Mathur\u00e9sa. He had under him four excellent\nministers, whose names were Bodhaditya, Bodhachandra, Bodhavyapaka, and\nBodhavibhishana. These four ministers being, for some reason, displeased\nwith the king quitted his dominions, and set out for another country.\nAs they journeyed along they observed the track of a camel, and each\nmade a remark on the peculiar condition of the animal, judging from its\nfootsteps and other indications on the road.[82] Presently they met the\nmerchant who was searching for his camel, and, entering into conversation\nwith him, one of the travellers inquired if the animal was not lame in\none of the legs; another asked if it was not blind in the right eye;\nthe third asked if its tail was not unusually short; and the fourth\ninquired if it was not suffering from colic. They were all answered in\nthe affirmative by the merchant, who was convinced that they must have\nmet the animal, and eagerly demanded where they had seen it. They replied\nthat they had seen traces of the camel, but not the camel itself, which\nbeing inconsistent with the minute description they had given of it, the\nmerchant accused them of having stolen the beast, and immediately applied\nto King Alak\u00e9sa for redress. On hearing the merchant\u2019s story, the king\nwas equally impressed with the belief that the travellers must know what\nhad become of the camel, and sending for them threatened them with his\ndispleasure if they did not confess the truth. How could they know, he\ndemanded, that the camel was lame or blind, or whether the tail was\nlong or short, or that it was suffering from any malady, unless they had\nit in their possession? In reply, they each explained the reasons which\nhad induced them to express their belief in these particulars. The first\ntraveller said: \u201cI noticed in the footmarks of the animal that one was\ndeficient, and I concluded accordingly that it was lame in one of its\nlegs.\u201d The second said: \u201cI noticed that the leaves of the trees on the\nleft side of the road had been snapped or torn off, whilst those on the\nright side were untouched, whence I concluded that the animal was blind\nof his right eye.\u201d The third said: \u201cI saw some drops of blood on the\nroad, which I conjectured had flowed from the bites of gnats or flies,\nand I thence concluded that the camel\u2019s tail was shorter than usual, in\nconsequence of which he could not brush the insects away.\u201d The fourth\nsaid: \u201cI observed that while the forefeet of the animal were planted\nfirmly on the ground the hind ones appeared to have scarcely touched\nit, whence I guessed that they were contracted by pain in the belly of\nthe animal.\u201d When the king heard their explanations he was much struck\nby the sagacity of the travellers, and, giving 500 pagodas[83] to the\nmerchant who had lost the camel, he made the four young men his principal\nministers, and bestowed on each of them several villages as free gifts.\n\nFrom that time these four young men became the confidential advisers\nof King Alak\u00e9sa in all important affairs of state, and, as night is\nthe house of sins, they in turn kept a regular watch in the city of\nAlak\u00e1puri, each patrolling the streets during three hours of the night.\nThus they continued to faithfully serve King Alak\u00e9sa, till, one night,\nthe _First Minister_, when his watch was over, proceeded, as usual,\nto see whether the royal bedchamber was properly guarded; after which\nhe went to the temple of the goddess K\u00e1l\u00ed, where he heard what seemed\nto him the voice of a woman, lamenting and sobbing in great distress.\nConcealing himself behind the _v\u00e1d_-tree of the temple, he called out:\n\u201cWho are you, poor woman? And why do you thus weep?\u201d At once the cries\nceased, and a voice from the temple inquired: \u201cWho art thou that thus\nquestionest me?\u201d Then the minister knew that it was K\u00e1l\u00ed herself who\nwept; so he threw himself on the ground, and, rising up, exclaimed: \u201cO\nmy mother!\u2014K\u00e1l\u00ed!\u2014Sambhavi!\u2014Mah\u00e1mayi![84] Why should you thus bitterly\nweep?\u201d Quoth K\u00e1l\u00ed: \u201cWhat is the use of my revealing it to thee? Canst\nthou render any assistance?\u201d The minister said that, if he had but her\nfavour, there was nothing he could not do. Then the goddess told him that\na calamity was about to come upon the king, and fearing that such a good\nmonarch was soon to disappear from the world she wept. The thought of\nsuch a misfortune caused the minister to tremble; he fell down before the\ngoddess, and with tears streaming from his eyes besought her to save him.\nK\u00e1l\u00ed was much gratified to observe his devotion to his master, and thus\naddressed him:\n\n\u201cKnow, then, that your king will be in danger of three calamities\nto-morrow, any one of which were sufficient to cause his death. First of\nall, early in the morning there will come to the palace several carts\ncontaining newly-reaped paddy grains. The king will be delighted at this,\nand immediately order a measure of the paddy to be husked and cooked\nfor his morning meal. Now, the field in which that paddy grew was the\nabode of serpents, two of which were fighting together one day, when\nthey emitted poison, which has permeated those grains. Therefore, the\nmorning meal of your king will contain poison, but only in the first\nhandful will it take effect, and he will die. Should he escape, another\ncalamity is in store for him at noon. The king of Vijayanajara[85] will\nsend to-morrow some baskets of sweetmeats. In the first basket he has\nconcealed arrows. King Alak\u00e9sa, suspecting no treachery, will order the\nfirst basket to be opened in his presence, and will meet his death by\nthat device. And, even should he escape this second calamity, a third\nwill put an end to his life to-morrow night. A deadly serpent will\ndescend into his bedroom, by means of the chain of his hanging cot, and\nbite him. But, should he be saved from this last misfortune, Alak\u00e9sa will\nlive long and prosperously, till he attains the age of a hundred and\ntwenty years.\u201d\n\nThus spake K\u00e1l\u00ed, in tones of sorrow, for she feared that the king should\nlose his life by one of these three calamities. The minister prostrated\nhimself on the ground, and said that if the goddess would but grant him\nher favour he was confident he could contrive to avert all the threatened\nevils from the king. K\u00e1l\u00ed smiled and disappeared; and the minister,\ntaking her kind smile as a token of her favour, returned home and slept\nsoundly.\n\nAs soon as morning dawned, the _First Minister_ arose, and, having made\nthe customary ablutions, proceeded to the palace. He took care to reveal\nto no one the important secret communicated to him by the goddess\u2014not\neven to his three colleagues. The sun was not yet two _ghatikas_[86]\nabove the horizon when several carts containing the finest paddy grains,\nspecially selected for the king\u2019s use, came into the courtyard of the\npalace. Alak\u00e9sa was present, and ordered a measure of it to be at once\nhusked and cooked. The coming in of the carts and the king\u2019s order so\nexactly coincided with K\u00e1l\u00ed\u2019s words that the minister began to fear\nthat he was quite unequal to the task of averting the fatality; yet\nthe recollection of the smile of the goddess inspired him with fresh\nresolution, and he at once went to the palace-kitchen and requested the\nservants to inform him when the king was about to go to dinner. After\nissuing orders for the storing of the grain, King Alak\u00e9sa retired to\nperform his morning ablutions and other religious duties.\n\nMeanwhile a carriage containing the pots of sweetmeats sent by the king\nof Vijayanajara drove up to the palace, and the emissary who accompanied\nthe present told the royal servants that his master had commanded him\nto deliver it to King Alak\u00e9sa in person. The _First Minister_ well\nunderstood the meaning of this, and, promising to bring the king, went\ninto the palace, caused one of the servants to be dressed like Alak\u00e9sa,\nand conducted him to the carriage. The officer of the Vijayanajara king\nplaced the first pot before the supposed Alak\u00e9sa, who at once opened it,\nwhen, lo! there darted forth several arrows, one of which pierced his\nheart, and he fell dead on the spot.[87] In an instant the emissary was\nseized and bound, and the officers began to lament the death of their\ngood king. But the fatal occurrence spread rapidly through the palace,\nand soon the real Alak\u00e9sa made his appearance on the scene. The officers\nnow beheld one Alak\u00e9sa dead and fallen to the ground, pierced by the\narrow, and another standing there alive and well. The _First Minister_\nthen related how, suspecting treachery, he brought out a servant of the\npalace dressed like the king, and how he had been slain in place of his\nroyal master. Alak\u00e9sa thanked the minister for having so ingeniously\nsaved his life, and went into the palace. Thus was one of the three\ncalamities to the king averted by the faithful Bodhaditya.\n\nWhen it was the hour for dinner, the king and his courtiers all sat\ndown, with the exception of the _First Minister_, who remained standing,\nwithout having taken a leaf for his own use.[88] The king, observing\nthis, with a smile pointed out a leaf to him, but Bodhaditya would not\nsit: he wished to be near the king and to abstain from eating on that\noccasion. So the king allowed him to have his own way. The food having\nbeen served on the leaves, the hands of all, including the king, were\nmingling the rice, gh\u00ed, and dhal for the first course. Near the king\nstood his faithful minister Bodhaditya, and when the king raised the\nfirst handful to his mouth, \u201cStop, my master,\u201d cried he; \u201cI have long\nhoped for this handful as a present to me from your royal hands. I pray\nyou give it to me, and feed upon the rest of the rice on your leaf.\u201d This\nwas uttered more in a tone of command than of request, and the king was\nhighly incensed at what he naturally considered as insolence on the part\nof the minister. For such a request, especially when made to a king,\nis deemed nothing less than an insult, while to refuse it is equally\noffensive. So, whatever thoughts may have passed through Alak\u00e9sa\u2019s mind,\nrecollecting how the minister had that morning saved his life, he gave\nhim the handful of rice, which Bodhaditya received with delight, feeling\ngrateful for the favour of the goddess in being the means of averting\nthis second calamity. Far different, however, were the sentiments of the\nking and the assembled company. One and all declared Bodhaditya to be an\ninsolent, proud fellow; but the king, while secretly blaming himself for\nhaving allowed him to use so much familiarity, suppressed his anger, in\nconsideration of the important service the minister had rendered him in\nthe affair of the arrows.\n\nOn the approach of night the heart of the _First Minister_ throbbed\nviolently, for the third calamity predicted by the goddess was yet to\nbe encountered. His watch being ended, before retiring to rest he went\nto examine the royal bedroom, where he saw the light burning brightly,\nand the king and queen asleep side by side in the ornamented swing-cot,\nwhich was suspended from the roof by four chains. Presently he perceived\nwith horror a fierce black snake, the smell of which is enough to kill\na man, slowly gliding down the chain near the head of the queen. The\nminister noiselessly went forward, and, with a single stroke of his sharp\nsword, cut the venomous brute in two. Bodhaditya, to avoid disturbing any\nperson at such an hour of the night, threw the pieces over the canopy of\nthe bed, rejoicing at having thus averted the third and last calamity.\nBut a fresh horror then met his eyes: a drop of the snake\u2019s poison had\nfallen on the bosom of the queen, which was exposed in the carelessness\nof slumber. \u201cAlas, sacred goddess!\u201d he muttered, \u201cwhy do you thus raise\nup new obstacles in my efforts to avert the evil which you predicted? I\nhave done what I could to save the king, and in this last trial I have\nkilled his beloved queen! How can I remove the poison from her bosom?\nHow can I profane that sacred spot with my hand? But I regard her even\nas my own mother; and do not children draw their nourishment from the\nbreasts of their mothers?\u201d Having thus briefly reflected, he wiped off\nthe poison from the queen\u2019s bosom with the tip of his little finger,\nand in case the contact of the venom with his finger should endanger\nhis own life he cut the tip of it off and threw it on the canopy. Just\nthen the queen awoke, and perceiving a man hastily leaving the room she\ncried: \u201cWho are you?\u201d The minister respectfully answered: \u201cMost venerable\nmother, I am your son Bodhaditya,\u201d and at once retired. Upon this the\nqueen thought within herself: \u201cAlas, is there a good man in this world?\nHitherto have I regarded this Bodhaditya as my son; but now he has basely\ntaken the opportunity of thus disgracing me when my lord and I were sound\nasleep. I shall inform the king of this affair, and have that wretch\u2019s\nhead struck off before the morning.\u201d Accordingly she gently awakened the\nking, and, with tears trickling down her beauteous face, she told him\nwhat had occurred, and concluded with these words: \u201cTill now, my lord,\nI considered that I was wife to you alone; but this night your First\nMinister has made me doubt it, since to my question, \u2018Who are you?\u2019\nhe answered, without any shame, \u2018I am Bodhaditya,\u2019 and went away.\u201d On\nhearing of this violation of the sanctity of his bedchamber. Alak\u00e9sa was\ngreatly enraged, and determined to put to death such an unprincipled\nservant, but first to communicate the affair to his three other ministers.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhen the _Second Minister\u2019s_ watch was over he went to inspect the guard\nat the royal bedchamber, and Alak\u00e9sa hearing his footstep inquired who\nwas there. \u201cYour servant, Bodhachandra, most royal lord,\u201d was the reply.\n\u201cEnter, Bodhachandra,\u201d said the king. \u201cI have somewhat to communicate\nto you.\u201d Then Alak\u00e9sa, almost choking with rage, told him of the gross\noffence of which his colleague the First Minister had been guilty, and\ndemanded to know whether any punishment could be too severe. Bodhachandra\nhumbled himself before the king, and thus replied: \u201cMy lord, such a\ncrime merits a heavy requital. Can one tie up fire in one\u2019s cloth,[89]\nand think that, as it is but a small spark, it will do no harm? How,\nthen, can we excuse even slight deviations from the rules of propriety?\nTherefore, if Bodhaditya be really guilty he must be signally punished.\nBut permit me to represent to your majesty the advisability of carefully\ninquiring into this matter before proceeding to judgment. We ought to\nascertain what reasons he had for such a breach of the zan\u00e1na[90] rules;\nfor should we, carried away by anger, act rashly in this affair, we may\nrepent when repentance is of no avail. As an example I shall, with your\nmajesty\u2019s permission, relate a story.\u201d The king having at once given his\nconsent, the _Second Minister_ began to relate the\n\n\n_Story of the Hunter and his Faithful Dog_.\n\nThere dwelt in a certain forest a hunter named Ugravira, who was lord of\nthe woods, and as such had to pay a fixed sum of money to the king of\nthe country. It chanced once that the king unexpectedly demanded of him\none thousand five hundred _pons_.[91] The hunter sold all his property\nand realised only a thousand pons, and was perplexed how to procure the\nrest of the required amount. At length he bethought him of his dog, which\nwas of the best kind, and was beloved by him more than aught else in\nthe whole world. He took his dog to an adjacent town, where he pledged\nhim to a merchant named Kub\u00e9ra for five hundred pons, at the same time\ngiving the merchant his bond for the loan. Before going away, the\nhunter, with tears in his eyes, thus addressed the intelligent animal:\n\u201cMrigasinha[92]\u2014O my faithful friend! do not leave thy new master until I\nhave paid him back the money I have borrowed of him. Obey and serve him,\neven as thou hast ever obeyed and served me.\u201d\n\nSome time after this, the merchant Kub\u00e9ra had to leave home and proceed\nwith his goods to foreign countries; so he called the hunter\u2019s dog to\nhis side, and bade him watch at his doors and prevent the intrusion of\nrobbers and other evil disposed persons. The dog indicated, both by his\neyes and his tail, that he perfectly understood his instructions. Then\nthe merchant, having enjoined his wife to feed the dog three times every\nday with rice and milk, set out on his travels. The dog kept his watch\noutside of the house, and for a few days the merchant\u2019s wife fed him\nregularly three times a day. But this kind treatment was not to continue.\nShe had for her paramour a wicked youth of the Setti caste,[93] who,\nsoon after the departure of Kub\u00e9ra, became a constant visitor at the\nmerchant\u2019s house. The faithful dog instinctively surmised that his new\nmaster would not approve of such conduct; so one night when the youth\nwas leaving the house Mrigasinha sprang on him like an enraged lion,\nand, seizing him by the throat, sent that evil-doer to the other world.\nThe merchant\u2019s wife, hearing the scuffle, ran to the spot to save her\nlover, but found him dead. Though extremely grieved at the loss of her\nparamour, she had the presence of mind to immediately carry the body to\nthe garden at the back of the house, where she concealed it in a great\npit, and covered it with earth and leaves, vainly thinking that she had\nthus concealed her own shame. This was not done, however, without being\nobserved by the watchful dog; and henceforth the merchant\u2019s wife hated\nhim with a deadly hatred. She no longer gave him food, and the poor\ncreature was fain to eat such grains of rice as he found adhering to the\nleaves thrown out of the house after meals, still keeping guard at the\ndoor.\n\nAfter an absence of two months the merchant returned, and the dog, the\nmoment he saw him, ran up to him and rolled himself on the ground at\nhis feet; then seizing the merchant\u2019s cloth he dragged him to the very\nspot in the garden where the youth\u2019s body was hidden, and began to\nscratch the ground, at the same time looking into the merchant\u2019s face and\nhowling dismally, from which Kub\u00e9ra concluded that the dog wished him\nto examine the place. Accordingly he dug up the spot and discovered the\nbody of the youth, whom, indeed, he had suspected of being his wife\u2019s\nparamour. In a great fury he rushed into the house and commanded his\nwife, on pain of instant death, to relate the particulars of this affair\nwithout concealing anything. The wretched woman, seeing that her sin was\ndiscovered, confessed all, upon which her husband exclaimed: \u201cDisgrace\nof womankind! you have not a fraction of the virtue possessed by this\nfaithful brute, which you have, out of revenge, allowed to starve. But\nwhy should I waste words on thee? Depart, and let me see your face no\nmore!\u201d So saying, he thrust her out of the house. Then the merchant fed\nthe dog with milk, rice, and sugar, after which he said to that lion of\nbeasts: \u201cThou trusty friend! language fails to express my gratitude to\nthee. The five hundred pons which I lent thy old master the hunter are as\nnothing compared with thy services to me, by which I consider the debt\nas more than paid. What must be the feelings of the hunter without thy\ncompanionship! I now give thee leave to return to him.\u201d The merchant took\nthe hunter\u2019s bond, and tearing it slightly at the top as a token that it\nwas cancelled, he placed it in the dog\u2019s mouth, and sending him back to\nhis former master, the dog set off to the forest.\n\nNow by this time the hunter had contrived to save up the five hundred\npons, and with the money and interest due thereon he was going to the\nmerchant to redeem his bond and reclaim the dog. To his great surprise,\nhe met Mrigasinha on the way, and as soon as the dog perceived him he\nran up to him to receive his caresses. But the hunter immediately\nconcluded that the poor brute, in his eagerness to rejoin him, had run\naway from the merchant, and determined to put him to death. Accordingly\nhe plucked a creeper, and fastening it round the dog\u2019s neck tied it to a\nbranch of a tree, and the faithful creature, who was expecting nothing\nbut kindness from his old master, was by him most cruelly strangled. The\nhunter then continued his journey, and on reaching the merchant\u2019s house\nhe laid down the money before him. \u201cMy dear friend,\u201d said Kub\u00e9ra, \u201cthe\nimportant service your dog rendered me, in killing my wife\u2019s paramour,\nhas amply repaid your debt, so I gave him permission to return to you,\nwith your bond in his mouth. Did you not meet him on your way? But why\ndo you look so horrified? What have you done to the dog?\u201d The hunter,\nto whom everything was now only too clear, threw himself on the ground,\nlike a huge tree cut at the roots, and, after telling Kub\u00e9ra how he had\ninconsiderately slain the faithful dog, stabbed himself with his dagger.\nThe merchant, grieved at the death of both the dog and the hunter, which\nwould not have occurred had he waited until the latter came to redeem his\nbond, snatched the weapon out of the hunter\u2019s breast and also stabbed\nhimself. The news of this tragedy soon reached the forest, and the wife\nof the hunter, not wishing to survive her lord, threw herself into a well\nand was drowned. Lastly, even the wife of the merchant, finding that so\nmany fatalities were due to her own misconduct, and that she was despised\nby the very children in the streets, put an end to her wretched life.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cThus,\u201d added the _Second Minister_, \u201cfive lives were lost in consequence\nof the hunter\u2019s rashness. Therefore I would respectfully beseech your\nmajesty to investigate the case of Bodhaditya, and to refrain from acting\nmerely under the influence of anger.\u201d Having thus spoken, Bodhachandra\nobtained leave to retire to his own house.\n\n * * * * *\n\nAt the end of the third watch of the night, Bodhavyapaka, the _Third\nMinister_ of King Alak\u00e9sa, went to see whether the royal bedchamber\nwas properly guarded, and the king, summoning him into his presence,\ntold him of the First Minister\u2019s crime, upon which Bodhavyapaka, after\nmaking due obeisance, thus spake: \u201cMost noble king, such a grave crime\nshould be severely punished, but it behoves us not to act before having\nascertained that he is guilty beyond doubt; for evil are the consequences\nof precipitation, in proof which I know a story, which I will relate,\nwith your majesty\u2019s leave:\n\n\n_Story of the Br\u00e1hman\u2019s Wife and the Mung\u00fas_.\n\nOn the banks of the Ganges, which also flows by the most holy city of\nBen\u00e1res, there is a town named Mithila, where dwelt a very poor Br\u00e1hman\ncalled Vidyadhara. He had no children, and to compensate for this want,\nhe and his wife tenderly nourished in their house a mung\u00fas.[94] It was\ntheir all in all\u2014their younger son, their elder daughter\u2014their elder son,\ntheir younger daughter, so fondly did they regard that little creature.\nThe deity Visvesvara[95] and his spouse Visalakshi observed this, and\nhad pity for the unhappy pair; so by their divine power they blessed\nthem with a son.[96] This most welcome addition to their family did not\nalienate the affections of the Br\u00e1hman and his wife from the mung\u00fas; on\nthe contrary, their attachment to it increased, for they believed that\nit was because of their having adopted the pet that a son had been born\nto them. So the child and the mung\u00fas were brought up together, as twin\nbrothers, in the same cradle.\n\nIt happened one day, when the Br\u00e1hman had gone out to beg alms of the\npious and charitable, that his wife went into the garden to cull some\npot-herbs, leaving the child asleep in his cradle and by his side the\nmung\u00fas kept guard. An old snake, which was living in the well in the\ngarden, crept into the house and under the cradle, and was beginning to\nclimb into it to bite the child when the mung\u00fas fiercely attacked it and\ntore it into several pieces, thus saving the life of the Br\u00e1hman\u2019s little\nson, and the venomous snake, that came to slay, itself lay dead beneath\nthe cradle. Pleased at having performed such an exploit, the mung\u00fas ran\ninto the garden to show the Br\u00e1hman\u2019s wife its blood-smeared mouth, but\nshe rashly mistook the deliverer of her child for his destroyer, and with\none stroke of the knife in her hand, with which she was cutting herbs,\nshe killed the faithful creature, and then hastened into the house to see\nher dead son. But there she found the child in his cradle alive and well,\nonly crying at the absence of his little companion the mung\u00fas, and under\nthe cradle lay the great serpent cut in pieces. The real state of affairs\nwas now evident, and the Br\u00e1hman presently returning home, his wife told\nhim of her rash act and then put an end to her life. The Br\u00e1hman, in his\nturn, disconsolate at the death of the mung\u00fas and his wife, slew his\nchild and then killed himself.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cAnd thus,\u201d added the _Third Minister_, \u201cby one rash act four creatures\nperished, so true is it that precipitation results in a series of\ncalamities. Do not, then, condemn Bodhaditya before his guilt is clearly\nproved.\u201d Alak\u00e9sa having then given Bodhavyapaka the signal to retire, he\nquitted the presence and went home.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhen the watch of the _Fourth Minister_, Bodhavibhishana, was terminated,\nhe visited the private apartments of the king (who had been meanwhile\npondering the stories he had heard), and was called into the sleeping\nchamber by Alak\u00e9sa, and informed of his colleague\u2019s unpardonable offence.\nThe Minister, after due prostration, thus addressed his royal master:\n\u201cGreat King, I can scarcely bring myself to believe that Bodhaditya could\never be guilty of such a crime, and I would respectfully remind your\nmajesty that it would not be consistent with your world-wide reputation\nfor wisdom and justice were you to pronounce judgment in this case\nwithout having inquired into all the circumstances. Evil and injustice\nresult from hasty decisions and actions, of which a striking illustration\nis furnished in the\n\n\n_Story of the Faithless Wife and the Ungrateful Blind Man_.\n\nIn the town of Mithila there lived a young Br\u00e1hman who, having a quarrel\nwith his father-in-law, set out on a pilgrimage to Ban\u00e1res. Going through\na forest he met a blind man, whose wife was leading him by means of a\nstick, one end of which she held in her hand, and her husband holding\nthe other end was following her. She was young and fair of face, and the\npilgrim made signs to her that she should go with him and leave her blind\nhusband behind. The proposal thus signified pleased this wanton woman, so\nshe told her husband to sit under a tree for a few minutes while she went\nand plucked him a ripe mango.[97] The blind man sat down accordingly,\nand his wife went away with the Br\u00e1hman.[98] After waiting a long time\nin expectation of his wife\u2019s return, and no person coming near him (for\nit was an unfrequented place), her infidelity became painfully apparent\nto him and he bitterly cursed both her and the villain who had enticed\nher from him. For six days he remained at the foot of the tree, in\nwoeful condition, without a morsel of rice or a drop of water, and he\nwas well-nigh dead when at length he heard the sound of footsteps near\nhim, and cried faintly for help. A man of the Setti caste and his wife\ncame up to him, and inquired how he happened to be in such a plight. The\nblind man told them that his wife had deserted him and gone away with a\nyoung Br\u00e1hman, whom they had met, leaving him there alone and helpless.\nHis story excited the compassion of the Setti and his wife. They gave\nhim to eat of the small quantity of rice they had with them, and, having\nsupplied him with water to quench his thirst, the Setti bade his wife\nlead him with his stick. The woman, though somewhat reluctant to walk\nthus in company with a man who was not her husband, yet reflecting that\ncharitable actions ought never to be left undone, complied with her\nlord\u2019s request, and began to lead the blind man. After travelling in this\nmanner for a day, the three reached a town, and took up their abode for\nthe night in the house of a friend of the Setti, where the latter and his\nwife gave the blind man a share of their rice before tasting a morsel\nthemselves.\n\nAt daybreak the next morning they advised him to try to provide for\nhimself in some way in that town, and prepared to resume their journey.\nBut the blind man, forgetting all the kindness they had shown him, began\nto raise an alarm, crying out: \u201cIs there no king in this city to protect\nme and give me my rights? Here is a Setti rascal taking away my wife with\nhim. As I am blind, she denies that I am her husband, and follows that\nrogue. But will not the king give me justice?\u201d The people in the street\nat once reported these words to the king, who caused inquiry to be made\ninto the matter. The fact of the Setti\u2019s wife having led the blind man\nseemed to indicate that the latter, and not the Setti, was the woman\u2019s\nhusband, and the king foolishly concluded that both the Setti and his\nwife were the real criminals. Accordingly he sentenced the Setti to the\ngallows, because he had attempted to entice away a married woman, and\nhis wife to be burnt in the kiln, as she had wished to forsake her\nhusband, and he a blind man. When these sentences were pronounced the\nblind man was thunderstruck. The thought that by a deliberate lie he had\ncaused the death of two innocent persons now stung him to the heart. By\nthis lie he expected that the Setti only should be punished, and that the\nwoman should be made over to him as his own wife, but now he found that\nshe also was condemned to death. \u201cVile wretch that I am!\u201d said he. \u201cI do\nnot know what sins I committed in a former life to be thus blind now.[99]\nMy real wife, too, deserted me; and I, heaping sins upon sins, have\nnow by a false report sent to death an innocent man and his wife, who\nrescued me from a horrible fate and tended to all my wants last night.\nO Mah\u00e1mayi! what punishment you have in reserve for me, I know not!\u201d\nThis soliloquy, being overheard by some bystanders, was communicated to\nthe king, who, bitterly reproaching himself for having so rashly acted,\nat once released the good Setti and his wife, and caused the ungrateful\nblind man to be burnt in the kiln.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cThus you see, my lord,\u201d added the _Fourth Minister_, \u201chow nearly that\nking had plunged into a gulf of crime by his rashness. Therefore, my\nmost noble king, I would respectfully and humbly request you to consider\nwell the case of Bodhaditya, and punish him severely if he be found\nreally guilty.\u201d Having thus spoken, he obtained leave to depart.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe night was now over: darkness, the harbourer of vice, had fled away;\nthe day dawned. King Alak\u00e9sa left his bedchamber, bathed and made his\nreligious ablutions, and after breakfasting summoned a council of all his\nfather\u2019s old ministers and advisers. Alak\u00e9sa took his seat in the midst\nof the assembly: anger was clearly visible in his countenance; his eyes\nhad lost their natural expression and had turned very red; his breath\nwas as hot as that of a furnace. He thus addressed them: \u201cKnow ye all,\nthe ministers of my father and of myself, that last night, during the\nfirst watch, my First Minister, Bodhaditya, while I and my queen were\nasleep in our chamber, came and touched with his finger the bosom of my\nqueen. Consider well the gravity of this crime, and express your opinions\nas to what punishment he merits.\u201d Thus spake King Alak\u00e9sa; but all the\nministers, not knowing what answer to return, hung down their heads in\nsilence. Among those present was an aged minister named _Manuniti_, who\ncalled Bodhaditya to his side and privately learned the whole story. He\nthen humbly bowed before the king, and thus spake: \u201cMost noble king, men\nare not always wise; and, before replying to your majesty\u2019s question, I\nbeg permission to relate in your presence the story of a king in whose\nreign a certain benevolent action was repaid with disgrace and ignominy:\n\n\n_Story of the Wonderful Mango Fruit_.\n\nOn the banks of the K\u00e1v\u00e9ri there was a city called Tiruvidaimarudur,\nwhere ruled a king named Chakraditya. In that city there lived a poor\nBr\u00e1hman and his wife, who, having no children, brought up in their house\na young parrot as tenderly as if it had been their own offspring. One\nday the parrot was sitting on the roof of the house, basking itself in\nthe morning sun, when a large flock of parrots flew past, talking to\neach other about certain mango fruits. The Br\u00e1hman\u2019s parrot asked them\nwhat were the peculiar properties of those fruits, and was informed that\nbeyond the seven oceans there was a great mango tree, the fruit of which\ngave perpetual youth to the person who ate of it, however old and infirm\nhe might be. On hearing of this wonder the Br\u00e1hman\u2019s parrot requested\npermission to accompany them, which being granted, they all continued\ntheir flight. When at length they arrived at the mango tree, all ate of\nits fruit; but the Br\u00e1hman\u2019s parrot reflected: \u201cIt would not be right\nfor me to eat of this fruit; I am still young, while my adopted parents,\nthe poor Br\u00e1hman and his wife, are very old. So I shall give them this\nfruit, and they will become young and blooming by eating it.\u201d And that\nsame evening the good parrot brought the fruit to the Br\u00e1hman, and\nexplained to him its extraordinary properties. But the Br\u00e1hman thought\nwithin himself: \u201cI am a beggar. What although I should become young and\nlive for ever or should die this very moment? Our king is very good and\ncharitable. If such a great man should eat of this fruit and renew his\nyouth, he would confer the greatest benefits on mankind. Therefore I will\ngive this mango to our good king.\u201d\n\nIn pursuance of this self-denying resolution, the poor Br\u00e1hman proceeded\nto the palace and presented the fruit to the king, at the same time\nrelating how he had obtained it, and its qualities. The king richly\nrewarded the Br\u00e1hman for his gift and sent him away. Then he began\nto reflect thus: \u201cHere is a fruit which can bestow perpetual youth\non the person who eats it. I should gain this great boon for myself\nalone, and what happiness could I expect in such circumstances, without\ncorresponding friends and subjects? I shall therefore not eat this mango\nfruit, but plant it carefully in my garden, and it will in time become a\ntree, which will bear much fruit having the same wonderful virtue, and my\nsubjects shall, every one, eat of the fruit and, with myself, be endowed\nwith everlasting youth.\u201d So calling his gardener the king gave him the\nfruit and he planted it in the royal presence. In due course of time the\nfruit grew into a fine tree, and during the spring season it began to bud\nand blossom and bear fruit. The king, having fixed upon an auspicious\nday for cutting one of the mango fruits, gave it to his domestic\nchaplain, who was ninety years old, in order that his youth should be\nrenewed. But no sooner had the priest tasted it than he fell down dead.\nAt this unexpected calamity the king was both astonished and deeply\ngrieved. When the old priest\u2019s wife heard of her husband\u2019s sudden death,\nshe came and prayed the king to allow her to perform _sati_ with him on\nthe same funeral pyre, which increased the king\u2019s sorrow; but he gave her\nthe desired permission, and himself superintended all the ceremonies of\nthe cremation.\n\nKing Chakraditya then sent for the poor Br\u00e1hman and demanded of him\nhow he had dared to present a poisonous fruit to his king. The Br\u00e1hman\nreplied: \u201cMy lord, I brought up a young parrot in my house, in order to\nconsole me for having no son. That parrot brought me the fruit one day,\nand told me of its wonderful properties. Believing that the parrot spoke\ntruth, I presented it to your majesty, never for a moment suspecting it\nto be poisonous.\u201d The king listened to the poor Br\u00e1hman\u2019s words, but\nthought that the priest\u2019s death should be avenged. So he consulted his\nministers, who recommended, as a slight punishment, that the Br\u00e1hman\nshould be deprived of his left eye. This was done accordingly, and on\nhis return home, when his wife saw his condition, she asked the reason\nof such mutilation. \u201cMy dear,\u201d said he, \u201cthe parrot we have fostered\nso tenderly is the cause of this.\u201d And they resolved to break the\nneck of the treacherous bird. But the parrot, having overheard their\nconversation, thus addressed them: \u201cMy kind foster parents, everyone must\nbe rewarded for the good actions or punished for the evil deeds of his\nprevious life.[100] I brought you the fruit with a good intention, but\nmy sins in my former life have given it a different effect. Therefore, I\npray you to kill me and bury me with a little milk in a pit. And, after\nmy funeral ceremony is over, I request you to undertake a pilgrimage to\nBan\u00e1res to clear yourself of your sins.\u201d So the old Br\u00e1hman and his wife\nkilled their pet parrot and buried it as directed, after which, overcome\nwith grief, they set out on a pilgrimage to the holy city.\n\nMeanwhile the king commanded his gardener to set guards over the\npoison-tree, and to allow no one to eat of its fruit; and all the\ninhabitants soon came to know that the king had a mango tree in his\ngarden, the fruit of which was deadly poison. Now there was in the city\nan old washerwoman, who had frequent quarrels with her daughter-in-law,\nand one day, being weary of her life, she left the house, threatening\nto eat of the poison-tree and die. The young parrot who was killed for\nhaving brought the poisonous mango fruit was re-born as a green parrot,\nand was waiting an opportunity to demonstrate the harmless nature of the\ntree; and when he saw the old woman approach with a determination to\nput an end to her life by eating of its fruit, he plucked one with his\nbeak and dropped it down before her. The old woman rejoiced that Fate\nsanctioned her death, and greedily ate the fruit, when, lo! instead of\ndying she became young and blooming again. Those who had seen her leave\nthe house a woman over sixty years of age were astonished on seeing her\nreturn as a handsome girl of sixteen and learning that the wonderful\ntransformation was caused by the supposed poisonous mango tree. The\nstrange news soon reached the king, who, in order to test the tree still\nfarther, ordered another fruit of it to be brought and gave it to a\ngoldsmith of more than ninety years of age, who had embezzled some gold\nwhich had been entrusted to him to make into ornaments for the ladies of\nthe palace, and was on that account undergoing imprisonment.[101] When he\nhad eaten the fruit, he, in his turn, became a young man of sixteen.\n\nThe king was now convinced that the fruit of this mango tree, so far from\nbeing poisonous, had the power of converting decrepit age into lusty and\nperennial youth. But how did the old priest die by eating of it? It was\nby a mere accident. One day a huge serpent was sleeping on a branch of\nthe mango tree, and its head was placed over a fruit: poison dropped from\nits mouth and fell on the rind of that fruit. The gardener, who had no\nknowledge of this, when asked to bring a fruit for the priest, happened\nto bring the one on which the poison had fallen, and the priest having\neaten it died. And now the king caused proclamation to be made throughout\nhis kingdom that all who pleased might come and partake of the mango\nfruit, and everyone ate of it and became young. But King Chakraditya\u2019s\nheart burnt within him at the remembrance of his ill-treatment of the\npoor Br\u00e1hman, who had returned with his wife from Ban\u00e1res. So he sent for\nhim, explained his mistake, and gave him a fruit to eat, which having\ntasted, the aged Br\u00e1hman became young, and his eye was also restored to\nhim. But the greatest loss of all, that of the parrot who brought the\nfruit from beyond the seven oceans, remained irreparable.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cThus, my lord,\u201d continued the aged minister, _Manuniti_, \u201cit behoves\nus not to act precipitately in this affair of Bodhaditya, which we must\ncarefully sift before expressing our opinion as to the punishment he may\ndeserve at your majesty\u2019s hands.\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhen Manuniti had concluded his story of the wonderful mango fruit, King\nAlak\u00e9sa ordered his four ministers to approach the throne, and then, with\nan angry countenance, he thus addressed Bodhaditya: \u201cWhat excuse have you\nfor entering my bedchamber without permission, and thus violating the\nrules of decency?\u201d The _First Minister_ humbly begged leave to relate\nto his majesty a story of how a Br\u00e1hman fed a hungry traveller, and had\nafterwards to endure the infamy of having caused that traveller\u2019s death,\nand on King Alak\u00e9sa signifying his consent, thus began:\n\n\n_The Story of the Poisoned Food_.\n\nThere was a city called Vijayanagara, to the north of which flowed a\nsmall river with topes[102] on both banks. One day a young Br\u00e1hman\npilgrim came and sat down to rest by the side of the stream, and,\nfinding the place very cool and shady, he resolved to bathe, perform his\nreligious ablutions, and make his dinner off the rice which he carried\ntied up in a bundle. Three days before there had come to the same spot\nan old Br\u00e1hman, whose years numbered more than threescore and ten; he\nhad quarrelled with his family, and fled from his house to die. Since\nhe reached that place he had tasted no food, and the young pilgrim\nfound him lying in a pitiable state, and placed near him a portion of\nhis rice. The old man arose, and proceeded to the rivulet in order to\nwash his feet and hands, and pronounce a holy incantation or two before\ntasting the food. While thus engaged, a kite, carrying in its beak a\nhuge serpent, alighted upon the tree at the foot of which was the rice\ngiven by the pilgrim to the old man, and while the bird was feasting\non the serpent, some of its poison dropped on the rice; and the old\nBr\u00e1hman, in his hunger, did not observe it on his return; he greedily\ndevoured some of the rice, and instantly fell down dead. The young\npilgrim, seeing him prone on the ground, ran to help him, but found that\nlife was gone; and, concluding that the old man\u2019s hasty eating after\nhis three days\u2019 fast must have caused his death, and being unwilling to\nleave his corpse to be devoured by kites and jackals, he determined to\ncremate it before resuming his journey. With this object he ran to the\nneighbouring village, and reporting to the people what had occurred on\nthe tope, requested their assistance in the cremating of the old man\u2019s\nbody. The villagers, however, suspected that the young pilgrim had killed\nand robbed the old Br\u00e1hman; so they laid hold of him, and, after giving\nhim a severe flogging, imprisoned him in the village temple of K\u00e1l\u00ed.\nAlas, what a reward was this for his kind hospitality! and how was he\nrepaid for his beneficence! The unhappy pilgrim gave vent to his sorrows\nin the form of verses in praise of the goddess in whose temple he was\na prisoner; for he was a great pandit, versed in the four Vedas,[103]\nand the six Sastras,[104] and the sixty-four varieties of knowledge.\nOn hearing the pilgrim\u2019s verses, the rage of the goddess descended on\nthe villagers who had so rashly accused and punished him for a crime\nof which he was innocent. Suddenly the whole village was destroyed by\nfire, and the people lost all their property and were houseless. In\ntheir extremity they went to the temple of K\u00e1l\u00ed, and humbly requested\nthe goddess to inform them of the cause of the calamity which had thus\nunexpectedly come upon them. The goddess infused herself into the person\nof one of the villagers, and thus responded: \u201cKnow ye, unkind villagers,\nthat ye have most unjustly scourged and imprisoned in our presence\nan innocent, charitable, and pious Br\u00e1hman. The old man died from the\neffects of poison, which dropped from a serpent\u2019s mouth on some rice\nat the foot of a tree when it was being devoured by a kite. Ye did not\nknow of this; nevertheless, ye have maltreated a good man without first\nmaking due inquiry as to his guilt or innocence. For this reason we\nvisited your village with this calamity. Beware, and henceforward avoid\nsuch sins.\u201d So saying, K\u00e1l\u00ed departed from the person through whom she had\nmanifested herself.[105] Then the villagers perceived the grievous error\ninto which they had fallen. They released the good pilgrim and implored\nhis forgiveness, which he readily granted. And thus was an innocent man\ncharged with murder in return for his benevolent actions.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cEven so,\u201d continued Bodhaditya, \u201cmy most noble sovereign, I have\nthis day had to endure the infamy of having violated the zan\u00e1na for\nsaving your valuable life.\u201d He then sent for a thief who was undergoing\nimprisonment, and gave him the handful of rice which he had the\npreceding day snatched from the king at dinner, and the thief having\neaten it instantly died.[106] He next caused a servant to go to the royal\nbedchamber, and fetch from the canopy of the couch the pieces of the\nserpent and his little finger-tip, which he laid before the wonder-struck\nking and the counsellors, and then addressed his majesty as follows: \u201cMy\nmost noble king and ye wise counsellors, it is known to you all that we\nfour ministers keep watch over the town during the four quarters of the\nnight, and mine is the first watch. Well, while I was on duty the day\nbefore yesterday, I heard a weeping voice in the direction of the temple.\nI proceeded to the spot, and discovered the goddess sobbing bitterly. She\nrelated to me how three calamities were awaiting the king on the morrow.\nThe first of them was the arrows despatched by the king of Vijayanajara\nas sweetmeats to our sovereign; the second was the poisoned rice, and the\nthird the serpent. In trying to avert these calamities I have committed\nthe offence of entering the zan\u00e1na.\u201d And he thereupon explained the\naffair from first to last.\n\nKing Alak\u00e9sa and the whole assembly were highly delighted at the fidelity\nand devotion of Bodhaditya; for it was now very evident that he had done\nnothing amiss, but had saved the life of the king on three occasions,\nand indeed also the life of the queen by wiping off the serpent\u2019s poison\nwhich had fallen on her bosom. Then Alak\u00e9sa, in explanation of the\nsaying, \u201ceating the protector,\u201d related the\n\n\n_Story of the Br\u00e1hman and the Rescued Snake_.\n\nIn the country of Uttara there lived a Br\u00e1hman named Kusalanadan, who had\na wife and six sons. All were in a state of prosperity for some time, but\nthe entrance of Saturn into the Br\u00e1hman\u2019s horoscope turned everything\nupside down. The once prosperous Br\u00e1hman became poor, and was reduced to\ngo to the neighbouring woods to gather bamb\u00fa-rice with which to feed his\nhungry family.[107] One day, while plucking the bamb\u00fa ears, he saw a bush\nclose by in flames, in the midst of which was a serpent struggling for\nits life. The Br\u00e1hman at once ran to its rescue, and stretching towards\nit a long green stick the reptile crept on to it and escaped from the\nflames, and then spread its hood and with a hissing sound approached\nto sting its rescuer. The Br\u00e1hman began to weep and bewail his folly\nin having saved the ungrateful creature, which being observed by the\nserpent it asked him: \u201cO Br\u00e1hman, why do you weep?\u201d Said the old man:\n\u201cYou now purpose to kill me; is this the reward for my having saved your\nlife?\u201d \u201cTrue, you have rescued me from a terrible death, but how am I\nto appease my hunger?\u201d replied the serpent. The Br\u00e1hman said: \u201cYou speak\nof your hunger, but who is to feed my old wife and six hungry children\nat my house?\u201d The serpent, seeing the anxiety of the Br\u00e1hman, emitted a\nprecious gem from its hood,[108] and bade him take it home and give it to\nhis wife for household expenses, after which to return to the wood to be\ndevoured. The old man agreed, and, solemnly promising to return without\nfail, went home. Having given the gem to his family, and told them of his\npact with the serpent, the Br\u00e1hman went back to the wood. The serpent had\nmeanwhile reflected upon his own base ingratitude. \u201cIs it right,\u201d thought\nhe, \u201cto kill him who saved me from the flames? No! I shall rather perish\nof hunger, if I cannot find a prey to-day, than slay my protector.\u201d So,\nwhen the old Br\u00e1hman returned, true to his word, the serpent presented\nhim with another valuable gem, and after expressing a wish that he should\nlive long and happily with his wife and children, went its own way, while\nthe Br\u00e1hman returned joyously to his home.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cEven as the serpent purposed acting towards its benefactor,\u201d continued\nthe king, \u201cso did I, in my rage, intend putting to death my faithful\nminister and the protector of my life, Bodhaditya; and to free myself\nfrom this grievous sin there is no penance I should not undergo.\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nThen King Alak\u00e9sa ordered a thousand Br\u00e1hmans to be fed every day\nduring his life, and many rich gifts to be distributed in temples as\natonement for his great error. And from that day Bodhaditya and his\nthree colleagues enjoyed still more of the royal favour. With those four\nfaithful ministers King Alak\u00e9sa lived a most happy life and had a most\nprosperous reign.\n\nMAY THERE BE PROSPERITY TO ALL!\n\n\n\n\nTHE ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd.\n\n\n\n\nTHE ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd.\n\n\nPROEM.\n\nEvery praise is due to that Almighty Creator whose mercy has given\ngrace and perfection to this garden of the earth. The flowers, like the\nloveliest brides, reflect the lustre of his beauty; what power, then, has\nthe pen, a dry and withered reed as it is, to record his excellencies?\n\n Each blushing rose-leaf still exhales\n Those heavenly paradisal gales,\n Creator, which thy power proclaim,\n And make the bulbul praise thy name.\n The unexpanded buds confess\n Thy glory, and thy power express;\n And all the loveliness of earth\n From thee alone has taken birth.\n The light of Layla\u2019s[1] beauty glows\n Apparent in the blushing rose;\n And in Narcissus still we find\n Sad Majn\u00fan\u2019s hair tossed by the wind.[109]\n O if his mercy rain on me,\n \u2019Twill wash out my impurity,\n And crown my hopes with verdancy;\n But if his wrath its head should rear,\n \u2019Neath Ahmed\u2019s[110] shade we must repair.\n\nThousands of blessings be upon that glorified Prophet, for whom the\nheavens and the earth were created,[111] and the footmarks of whose\nBur\u00e1k[112] are impressed on the foreheads of the sun and moon. From the\nwhole collected works of his power, the world is but a single volume, and\nlife a single chapter. When he found the earth required his presence, he\nleft heaven, and, clothed in human flesh, descended here below. Let us\nturn now to the praise of the king of heroes, namely, Al\u00ed.[113]\n\nWhen the sun had irradiated the face of the earth I determined to dive\ninto the river of contemplation, with a view of gaining some pearls of\nideas therefrom. Many came to hand, yet I was wondering how to use them,\nwhen a voice reached my ear, saying: \u201cO thou, immersed in thought, these\ngems befit only one, and he is Al\u00ed: may peace be on him! Open thy mouth\nin his eulogy, because he is an emperor, the lustre of whose countenance\nhas cast a shade of paleness on the moon, and has redoubled the radiance\nof the sun. If he would give loose to the reins of his charger in the\nseventh heaven, it would raise disturbance among the stars.\u201d\n\nO King of kings, my request from thy mercy is, that thou wouldst prove a\nshelter to me on the day of judgment, and admit me into the ranks of thy\nwhite-faced servants. What shall I add, when it is presumption on my part\nto address thee long!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\n THE ASTROLOGERS\u2019 PREDICTION AT THE BIRTH OF OUR HERO\u2014HIS FATHER\n IS STRUCK WITH BLINDNESS\u2014HIS FOUR BROTHERS SET OUT IN QUEST\n OF THE ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd, TO RESTORE THEIR FATHER\u2019S SIGHT\u2014HE\n SECRETLY FOLLOWS THEM\u2014THEY FALL INTO THE TOILS OF DILBAR, AN\n ARTFUL COURTESAN, WHO FLEECES THEM AND MAKES THEM PRISONERS.\n\n\nThey relate that a king named Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak[114] reigned over a city\nin the eastern part of Hind\u00fast\u00e1n. He had already four sons who were\nwell trained in all the arts and sciences of the time and for courage\ncompared to Rustam,[115] when Providence bestowed on him a fifth, who\nwas beautiful as the moon in her fourteenth night, which scatters the\ndarkness of the world. Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak, full of joy, gave on this occasion\na grand feast, and by the advice of the astrologers called the newly born\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak.[116] The same astrologers, having cast the horoscope[117]\nof the infant prince, declared that he would be endowed with courage\nfar superior to any other mortal, and that genii and men would be\nsubservient to him; but if unfortunately his father should look on him,\nthat very instant he would be deprived of his sight. The king, with\nmixed sensations of pleasure and grief, gave order to his chief vaz\u00edr\nto put the child and his mother in a palace at some distance from the\ncourt, which was done accordingly. After several years the prince became\naccomplished in every science. Being a lover of sport, it chanced one day\nthat he went far into the thick of a forest in pursuit of a deer. True\nit is that what is written by Fate can never be erased. It so happened\nthat the king was also hunting in the same forest that very day, and\nencountered the prince. There is a well-known saying to the effect that\nthe wounded part is always sore, notwithstanding our efforts not to be\nhurt again, and the fugitive slave, fly wherever he will, is sure to\nbe overtaken by his pursuer. The moment that the eyes of the king fell\nupon his son he was struck blind. His minister at once divined the cause\nof his blindness. The king observed, that the sight of a son generally\nincreases the light of his father\u2019s eyes, but in his case the reverse\nhad occurred. Hence it was proper that such a son should be expelled the\nrealm, and the queen, his mother, made to sweep the apartments of his\nharam.\n\nThen physicians equal to Avicenna[118] in learning and skill were called\nto remove the king\u2019s blindness, and they all declared that the only\nremedy was the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed. Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak despatched messengers\nthroughout the land to proclaim that whosoever should procure that\nwonderful flower, or tell where it was to be found, should be handsomely\nrewarded; but without success. Thus year followed year, the king passing\nall his time lamenting and weeping, like Jacob when he mourned for\nJoseph, and like the prophet Job, waiting with impatient anxiety.[119]\nAt last his four sons besought him that they should be allowed to go in\nquest of the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed. The king at first refused, not wishing\nthat the bright lamps of his house should be exposed to dangers, but was\nultimately prevailed upon to yield to their entreaties, and gave order to\nhis vaz\u00edr to prepare everything needful for their journey\u2014money, beasts\nof burden, tents, and attendants. The princes departed and traversed many\nmiles at random.\n\nBy accident they met their brother, T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, who was dragging his\nweary feet far away from his native land. He enquired who they were and\nwhither they were going. In reply they told him how Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak, their\nfather, had lost his sight, and that they were journeying in search\nof the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, prescribed for the removal of his blindness.\nThe prince on hearing this said to himself: \u201cI must try my fortune and\nexperience on the touchstone of the gold of my fate. Perchance I shall\nsucceed in filling the skirt of my gown with the roses of my desire.\u201d\nHaving thus resolved, he went to a nobleman named Sy\u00edd, who on looking at\nhim perceived that the light of his countenance surpassed the glory of\nthe sun, and the dark cluster of his locks, falling upon the fairness of\nhis forehead, resembled the gloom of the clouds passing over the lustre\nof the moon. He asked him: \u201cWho are you, and whence have you come?\u201d T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak answered: \u201cI am a traveller far away from my country, with no\none to sympathise with me in my misfortunes, and none to cheer me with\nthe soothing music of the voice of a friend. There is no one to assist\nand comfort me.\u201d Sy\u00edd on hearing the words of this second Joseph[120] was\nhighly affected and agreed to befriend him.\n\nIt is related that T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak after a long journey reached the city of\nFirdaus,[121] which was then governed by King Rizw\u00e1n. It was evening.\nStanding on the bank of a river, he intended to take up his abode in that\ntown for some time. When the sun had finished his diurnal travel, and\nthe moon, riding on her sable charger, had commenced her ramble in the\neast, the four princes, mounted on their swift-footed horses, entered the\ncity. Their eyes fell on a splendid palace, every window of which was\nhung with screens of the richest brocade. They asked one of the citizens:\n\u201cWhose palace is this?\u201d He answered: \u201cThe owner of this mansion is Dilbar\nLakh\u00ed.\u201d[122] The princes asked: \u201cHow has she obtained such a palace?\u201d\nAnd the man replied: \u201cThis lady is unequalled. In beauty and grace she\nhas no rival on this earth. The sun even would sacrifice himself on her\ncharms as the moth does on the light of the taper;[123] and the moon\nwould hide her diminished glory before the lustre of her charms. For\nthose who court her society she keeps a drum hung on the door, on beating\nwhich, should they be rich enough to pay a lakh of rup\u00eds, they will\nhave the happiness of meeting her.\u201d At these words, the young princes,\nproud of their social position and wealth, wished to gratify their love\nof pleasure, so they approached the door and loudly beat the drum. When\nDilbar heard the sound she could not contain her joy. \u201cWell, well!\u201d she\nsaid, \u201csince the prey seeks to enter my net, it must be caught. Women\nof my trade are always in hopes that some one void of sense and with a\nfull purse will fall into their hands.\u201d She quickly adorned herself with\nrubies, emeralds, diamonds and pearls and sat down to receive the sons of\nZayn ul-Mul\u00fak. She made them sit on a golden seat, and then rosy-cheeked\nslave-girls came and presented them with wine in cups of gold, and with\ndifferent kinds of food in dishes of silver. When half of the night had\npassed in drinking and talking, this artful woman proposed to them that\nthey should play at backgammon by way of amusement, and the princes\nassented with pleasure. The board was brought, and she placed a lamp on\nthe head of a cat, which she had taken great pains to train up to her\ndesigns, and staked a lakh of rup\u00eds on the first game. Before the night\nwas over the princes lost fifteen lakhs of rup\u00eds. In the morning they\ntook leave of Dilbar and returned to their tents. The following night\nthey again went to the mansion of Dilbar, and that designing woman won\nfrom them not only all their money but also their horses, elephants,\nand camels. Then she said to them: \u201cYoung men, seeing that nothing now\nremains to you, I think you had better go home.\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d said they; \u201callow\nus once more to hang on the scale of experiment the gold of our fortune.\nIf the scale incline to our side, we depart with all our property; if it\nfall to your side, we lose everything and become your slaves.\u201d Dilbar\naccepted this proposal and in the twinkling of an eye won the game, and\nthus became absolute mistress of the goods and persons of the sons of\nZayn ul-Mul\u00fak, who were sent at once to keep company with many others in\nthe same predicament. The attendants of the four princes, on learning\ntheir fate, like the petals of the rose which fall in autumn, were in\ngreat trouble and excitement.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\n THE PRINCE DETERMINES TO RESCUE HIS BRETHREN\u2014HE TAKES SERVICE\n WITH A NOBLEMAN, AND MAKES FRIENDS WITH DILBAR\u2019S CONFEDERATE,\n BY WHOSE INSTRUCTIONS HE TURNS THE TABLES ON DILBAR, AND WINS\n ALL HER WEALTH AND HER OWN PERSON\u2014HE TELLS DILBAR OF HIS DESIGN\n TO OBTAIN THE ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd, AND SHE WARNS HIM OF THE\n DANGERS HE MUST ENCOUNTER\u2014HE RELATES THE STORY OF THE BR\u00c1HMAN\n AND THE LION\u2014DILBAR EXHORTS OUR HERO BEFORE HIS DEPARTURE.\n\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak immediately formed the resolution to make an effort to save\nhis brothers. Full of this idea, he presented himself at the door of an\nAm\u00edr and said to the porter: \u201cI am a traveller without means, and wish to\nenter the employment of your master, whose noble qualities I have heard\nmuch praised.\u201d The Am\u00edr admitted T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak into his presence, and,\ncharmed with the beauty and dignity of his features, willingly accepted\nhis offer, and from that day treated him with increasing kindness. When\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak had passed several months in the service of the Am\u00edr, and\nhad saved a considerable sum of money, he said to his master one day that\na friend of his had just arrived in the town, and he was desirous that\nhe should be permitted to go and see him every day and pass a few hours\nin his company. This was most cordially granted, and the prince went\ndaily to the house of the backgammon players, from whom he learned all\nthe rules of the game. When he thought he was able to play with Dilbar\nhe proceeded to her palace. An old woman, the confidante of Dilbar, who\ndid nothing without her advice, opened the door, and the prince threw\nhimself at her feet and burst into tears. She asked him who he was and\nwhat he wanted. \u201cAlas!\u201d he cried, \u201cI am an unhappy traveller, without\nfriends or acquaintances. I have no help but God in this town. My country\nis far east of here. I had a grandmother, but God admitted her into\nParadise,[124] and I am left alone in this world of sorrow! I trace in\nyou a strong resemblance to her, hence have I fallen at your feet. If you\nare pleased to look on me with an eye of kindness and have compassion on\nmy wretched condition, I offer to remain near you and to regard you as my\ngrandmother.\u201d The tone of sincerity with which the prince uttered these\nwords made the heart of the old woman soft as wax. \u201cMy dear young man,\u201d\nsaid she to him, \u201cI am also alone in the world. From this day, therefore,\nI adopt you as my grandson.\u201d Then he told her that he was engaged as a\nservant and would not be able to see her every day, but he would come\nas often as he possibly could. After this, T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak often visited\nthat old woman, and so flattered and wheedled her that he soon became\nthe confidant of her secrets. One day, after talking on indifferent\nsubjects, he asked her how it happened that all who played at backgammon\nwith Dilbar always lost. \u201cMy dear son,\u201d replied she, \u201cit is a very great\nsecret. Take good care never to repeat to anyone what I am going to tell\nyou. Dilbar has trained a cat and a mouse; she has accustomed the cat to\nbear a lamp on her head and the mouse to lie concealed in the shade of\nthe lamp. When the dice do not turn up to suit Dilbar, the cat moves the\nlamp and causes the shadow to go to and fro, while the mouse turns the\ndice again, and in this way Dilbar wins without anyone of those who have\nplayed with her being able to understand the reason.\u201d T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak went\nto the baz\u00e1r and bought a weasel, which he trained to lie in his sleeve,\nand, when he snapped his fingers, to come out suddenly, like a little\npanther. Then he visited the old woman and said to her: \u201cI am weary of\nservice, and if you lend me a thousand rup\u00eds I will try to start some\nbusiness.\u201d The old woman led him into a room, and, showing him all her\nmoney, bade him take what he required. The prince was satisfied with a\nthousand rup\u00eds. Returning to his master, he told him that a friend was\nto be married that day, and he wished to attend the nuptials if the Am\u00edr\nwould give him suitable clothes. The Am\u00edr at once consented, and even\nallowed the prince to take one of his best horses.\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, richly dressed and mounted upon a superb steed, proceeded\nto the house of the artful courtesan. He was no sooner introduced to her\nthan the gambler of the sky closed the chessboard of the sun, in the\nhouse of the west, and threw upon the table of the east the golden dice\nof the stars.[125] \u201cI am told,\u201d said he, \u201cthat you are fond of playing\nbackgammon, and if you please, we can have a few games.\u201d Dilbar at first\nbegged to be excused, but in the end consented to play, and, as usual,\nplaced the lamp upon the head of the cat, staked a thousand rup\u00eds, and\nthrew the dice. The sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da[126] allowed her to win the first game\nwith the aid of the cat and the mouse. At the second, as fortune did\nnot turn in her favour, the cat and the mouse were about to begin their\nold tricks, when T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak snapped his fingers, and the weasel ran\nfuriously out of its master\u2019s sleeve, whereupon the mouse disappeared\nlike lightning, and the cat astonished, fled like the wind, overturning\nthe lamp. The sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da pretended to be in a great rage, and exclaimed:\n\u201cArtful woman! What tricks are you playing? How is it that you have not\na proper lamp in a house so elegantly furnished?\u201d At these words Dilbar\nwas confused, and beads of perspiration appeared on her brow. She caused\na candlestick to be brought and then the game was resumed. In his turn\nthe prince had the advantage, and gained that night seven crores of\nrup\u00eds. In the morning he told Dilbar that he was obliged to return and\nbreakfast with the king, and went away, leaving with her the money he had\nwon, and promising to come again at night.\n\nThe prince came at the time appointed, and after they had partaken of\nsome food, they began to play for a crore of rup\u00eds, and by midnight he\nhad won all Dilbar\u2019s hoarded money, which amounted to one hundred crores\nof rup\u00eds.[127] Dilbar, in despair, wished to play next for her furniture,\nin the hope of winning, and afterwards recovering what she had lost. But\nshe was not any more fortunate than before, and the prince said: \u201cWell,\nwhat shall we do now? Do you wish to play once more with me? If I lose,\nI will give you a thousand rup\u00eds; if I win, you will give up all the\nprinces you have kept prisoners by deceit and cheating.\u201d Dilbar agreed\nto the proposal, and in a twinkling the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da had again won the\ngame. Then she said: \u201cIf I win, I will keep all that I have lost; if I\nlose, not only will everything belong to you, but I shall be your slave.\u201d\nIn this last throw fortune was once more propitious to T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak.\n\u201cHappy young man!\u201d she cried, \u201cwith the help of God and your horoscope\nyou have made me your slave. That game which all the kings of the world\nhad played in vain throughout their lives is at last in thy hand. Now\nconsider this as thy house. Bind me to thee by the ties of wedlock, and\npass here the rest of thy days in affluence and grandeur.\u201d \u201cNo, no,\u201d\nsaid the prince; \u201cI cannot consent to it. An important affair occupies\nmy mind. If God grant me success in it, you also shall be happy. I exact\nfrom you that you abandon the life you have been leading, and wait for\nme twelve years, employing yourself in the service of the Most High.\u201d\nDilbar earnestly implored him to confide his secret to her. \u201cListen,\nthen,\u201d said he. \u201cMy name is T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak. I am the son of Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak,\nthe king of an eastern country, who lost his sight by an accident, and\nlearned physicians have unanimously declared that his blindness can only\nbe cured by the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed. My brothers set out in quest of this\nmarvellous flower. I was secretly with them, and when I learned that they\nhad been ensnared by thy wiles, I employed artifice against thee in my\nturn, and thus have I overreached thee. I am determined to search for the\nRose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and if I succeed, all will be well, if not, I shall\ngive up life.\u201d Hearing this Dilbar said: \u201cAlas, what fanciful idea has\ntaken possession of thy reason? Know that the Rose of which you speak is\nin the region of the sun, and not even a bird could succeed in reaching\nit. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed is the daughter of the king of the Jinn, and in her garden\nis that flower. But it is guarded by thousands of _d\u00edvs_.[128] No mortal\ncan approach without their permission. O prince, do not expose yourself\nto such dangers, for, as Sa\u2019d\u00ed says:\n\n Although \u2019tis written, when \u2019tis doomed, we die,\n Yet in the dragon\u2019s mouth, O wherefore fly?\u201d[129]\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak replied: \u201cThe God who changed into a garden of roses the\nfire into which Nimrod caused Abraham to be cast[130] will crown my zeal\nwith success. The sons of men are inferior to d\u00edvs in strength, but they\nare superior in wisdom; for God himself has said: \u2018I have given glory to\nthe children.\u2019\n\n\n_Story of the Br\u00e1hman and the Lion._\n\n\u201cYou may have heard that a Br\u00e1hman passing through a forest saw a lion\nheld fast by a rope and confined in a cage. On perceiving the Br\u00e1hman he\nbegged hard, and humbly said: \u2018O Br\u00e1hman, if you will kindly release me\nI will recompense you some day.\u2019 The simple-minded Br\u00e1hman was affected\nby the words of the lion; but, blind as he was to reason, he did not\nconsider that the lion was his enemy, and that no reliance could be\nplaced on his promises. He opened the door of the cage, unloosed the feet\nof the lion, and set him at liberty. The bloodthirsty beast, as soon as\nhe found himself free, knocked down the Br\u00e1hman, and seizing him by the\nthroat carried him towards his den. The Br\u00e1hman cried: \u201cO lion, I did a\ngood service for you in hopes of getting a fair return, but I see thy\nintentions are evil.\u201d The lion answered: \u2018In my religion the return for\ngood is evil. If you do not believe me let us refer the question to some\none else, and whatever he says will decide the matter.\u2019 That fool agreed.\nIn the forest there grew a tall and umbrageous banyan tree. The lion and\nthe Br\u00e1hman went under its branches and referred the matter to it. Said\nthe banyan: \u2018The lion is in the right. I have always seen that the return\nfor good is evil. Hear, O Br\u00e1hman! I stand on one leg[131] and cast my\nshade on every traveller that passes this way. But whoever takes shelter\nin my shadow is sure, on departing, to pull off one of my branches, to\nmake use of it as a walking-stick in his hand. Now say, is not evil the\nreturn of good?\u2019 The lion asked: \u2018Well, my friend, what sayest thou?\u2019 The\nBr\u00e1hman answered: \u2018Refer the matter to some one else.\u2019 The lion proceeded\na few steps farther and questioned the road on the subject. The road\nanswered: \u2018The lion is right. Listen, O Br\u00e1hman. The traveller deviating\nfrom his path searches for me with the greatest care, and when he finds\nme I lead him to his home. But in return he defiles me.\u2019 The beast went\non again and saw a jackal on a rising ground. He was about to run away,\nwhen the lion called out: \u2018O jackal, do not be afraid. I have come to\nrefer a question to you.\u2019 Said the jackal: \u2018You may say what you please,\nbut keep your distance; for if you approach, I am afraid your presence\nwill render me senseless.\u2019 The lion said: \u2018This Br\u00e1hman has done good to\nme, and I intend to return evil to him. What sayst thou in the matter?\u2019\nThe jackal replied: \u2018I cannot quite understand what you say. How can a\nman who is so insignificant do any service to a lion, who is styled the\nmonarch of the forest? I can never believe such a thing until I have seen\nit with my own eyes.\u2019 The lion said: \u2018Come on, and I will show it to\nyou.\u2019 So the lion and the Br\u00e1hman proceeded and the jackal followed. When\nthey came to the cage the Br\u00e1hman said: \u2018O jackal, the lion was fast\nbound to this, and I freed him. What is your decision?\u2019 Said the jackal:\n\u2018How could such a small cage hold so great a lion? If he would re-enter\nit before me and lie down as before, and then if you should free him I\nshall believe what you say.\u2019 The lion entered the cage and the Br\u00e1hman\ncommenced tying him. The jackal then remarked: \u2018If you make the slightest\ndifference in adjusting the knots, I shall be unable to decide the case.\u2019\nThe Br\u00e1hman bound the lion strongly, and, having fastened the door of\nthe cage, said to the jackal: \u2018In that state I found him.\u2019 \u2018Fool that\nyou were,\u2019 exclaimed the jackal, \u2018to expect good from such a powerful\nbeast. It is laying the axe to your own root to think so. What need have\nyou to give freedom to such an enemy? Go your way now, for the foe is\novercome.\u2019[132]\n\n\u201cO beloved,\u201d continued the prince, \u201cwhoever gives freedom to complaints\nand impatience, which are like the lion confined in the cage of the body,\nand whoever, showing kindness to them, removes the string of resignation,\nalways suffers from his own folly. O Dilbar, I have related this fable\nto show that the body cannot overcome the mind. It is proper for thee\nto release the princes of the East and the West, and God will release\nthee from the pains of hell. But until my return be very careful of my\nbrothers. And now give me leave to depart.\u201d\n\nDilbar Lakh\u00ed answered:\n\n \u201cDo not leave me sad and lonely;\n Unattended, why depart?\n Wherefore grieve a heart that loves thee?\n Wherefore crush this widowed heart?\n As the shell is thirsty for the\n Drops, that make it teem with pearl,[133]\n So my heart is longing for thee,\n While thy sails thou dost unfurl.\n Lo, the storm blows fierce and furious,\n Leave not thou the joys of home:\n Stranger to the world, O wherefore,\n Joseph-wise, in exile roam?\n Long and distant is the journey;\n Hear my words, and stay\u2014O stay!\n Like the moth I\u2019m fluttering round thee,\n Whilst you wish to pass away.\n\nBeloved, take warning from what you have seen. The princely mind was pure\nand clean; and when it fell in the world, the world was dazzled with thy\nbrightness, and became blind. Arise now, and go after the attainment of\nthy desire; but never allow thyself to be prevailed on to play at hazard\nwith the world, who always keeps her backgammon-board open for all.\nBeware, lest, through the assistance of the cat of deceit and the mouse\nof cunning, she turn the dice in her own favour. Then the treasures of\nthy faith will be exhausted, and she will keep thee in bonds for ever.\nIf by the help of the weasel of patience you will expose and overcome\nher wiles, she will then try (she who has subdued kings and mighty\nsovereigns) to captivate thee by her charms, declaring at the same time\nthat she will become thy slave. But should you turn away your gaze from\nher, you will certainly succeed in your undertaking.\u201d[134]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\n SHOWING HOW THE PRINCE IS HELPED IN HIS QUEST BY A FRIENDLY\n DEMON\u2014MARRIES MAHMUDA, A BEAUTIFUL GIRL\u2014REACHES THE GARDEN OF\n BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd AND PLUCKS THE ROSE\u2014SEEING THE FAIRY BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd ASLEEP,\n FALLS IN LOVE WITH HER\u2014RETURNS WITH MAHMUDA AND REJOINS DILBAR,\n WHO LIBERATES HIS BRETHREN, BEFORE THE THREE SET OUT FOR HIS\n OWN COUNTRY\u2014ON THE WAY HE IS DEPRIVED OF THE ROSE BY HIS\n BRETHREN, WHO RETURN HOME, AND BY MEANS OF THE FLOWER RESTORE\n THEIR FATHER\u2019S SIGHT.\n\n\nIt is related that T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak assumed the garb of a darvesh, rubbed\nashes all over his body, and, pronouncing the name of God,[135] set out\non his journey. After some days he entered a forest, so dark on account\nof the number of trees in it that night could not be distinguished from\nday. But the prince was far from losing courage, thinking it was only a\nwave of the ocean of troubles which he had to traverse. \u201cI must,\u201d said\nhe, \u201cdraw closer the girdle of resolution, and, like the salamander,\nplunge into this furnace.\u201d[136] He then penetrated into the forest,\nas dark as ignorance, and swarming with wild beasts of every kind,\nespecially ravenous dragons with gaping mouths. He wandered for a long\ntime, to the right and then to the left; his body was torn by the sharp\nthorns of thickets and his feet were pierced by those of the bab\u00fal, to\nsuch an extent that he was covered with blood. The end of the forest was\nonly reached after great difficulty, and prostrating himself before God,\nhe prayed most earnestly. Then continuing his way he saw a d\u00edv sitting,\nwhom he might have taken for a mountain. When the d\u00edv arose, his head\ntouched the sky, and from his voice like thunder the prince heard the\nfollowing words: \u201cYoung man, how comes it that, of your own free will,\nyou leave the city of life and journey with the feet of your desires in\nthe path of death?\u201d \u201cLearn, you who question me,\u201d replied T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak,\npale and trembling, \u201cthat the life of this fleeting world is a misfortune\nfor me. If it were otherwise I should never throw myself into the jaws\nof death, and should not find myself in the coils of such a sanguinary\nbeing as you. Free me, then, with all speed from the torments which I\nam suffering; for one hour of this existence is like a hundred years\nof anguish.\u201d The d\u00edv was moved to pity. \u201cListen, son of Adam,\u201d said\nhe. \u201cVery far from doing you an injury, I wish to take you under my\nprotection and lend you my aid.\u201d Thus reassured, T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak remained\nwith the d\u00edv, who showed him much friendship, and they were soon as\nthick as milk and sugar. One day the d\u00edv, being well pleased with a meal\nwhich the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da had prepared for him,[137] pressed him to disclose\nhis wishes, swearing by Sulayman[138] that he would accomplish them for\nhim. Then T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak told him that he was most desirous of entering\nthe country of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, upon which the d\u00edv sighed heavily, smote his\nown head, and appeared agitated with the utmost grief. \u201cWhat do you ask,\nmy young man?\u201d said he. \u201cThe country of which you speak is that of the\nking of the fairies, and it is guarded day and night on all sides by ten\nthousand of his slaves. How could I get you there? And yet I must keep my\noath.\u201d He then uttered a loud cry, and presently another d\u00edv appeared, to\nwhom he communicated the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da\u2019s desire, adding: \u201cThou hast the power\nto grant it, and I ask the favour of thee, seeing that I am pledged by a\nterrible oath to aid him.\u201d\n\nNow this second d\u00edv had a sister named Hamm\u00e1la,[139] who was the chief\nguard of the country, and eighteen thousand d\u00edvs were her subordinates.\nHe wrote at once recommending the prince to her, and giving the letter\nto a messenger told T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak to be guided by him. This d\u00edv took the\nprince on his left arm and with his right protected him from the rays of\nthe sun. Thus they proceeded on their way, and arrived in the presence of\nHamm\u00e1la, to whom the d\u00edv consigned both the letter and the prince. She\nsaid to the messenger: \u201cIf my brother had sent me a whole mine of red\nsulphur, or even the ring of Sulayman, it could not have given me more\npleasure than I now feel.\u201d Then she wrote a reply to her brother, saying:\n\u201cI once had occasion to travel through the habitations of man, and thence\nI brought away a girl matchless in beauty, the daughter of a king. Her I\nadopted as my own daughter and called her Mahm\u00fada.[140] She is now in her\nfourteenth year, and bright in beauty as the moon when half-full. For her\nit is evident that God has sent this youth\u2014thanks be to the Lord.\u201d She\nthen dismissed the messenger with this letter, and Mahm\u00fada was at once\nmarried to T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak.\n\nFor some time the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da lived with his protectress and Mahm\u00fada, but\nwithout performing his marital duties, and one day when his spouse\ncomplained to him of his indifference, he informed her that an important\nmatter occupied his thoughts. \u201cI have made a vow,\u201d said he, \u201cto forego\nthe pleasures of this world, even lawful ones, until I have attained my\ndesire.\u201d \u201cBe of good cheer,\u201d rejoined Mahm\u00fada. \u201cIf it please God, I will\nuntie the knot of the thread of hope with the nail of prudence; and I\nwill tell you where to find the town of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed.\u201d On the morrow Hamm\u00e1la\ntook Mahm\u00fada on her knee, as usual, and overwhelmed her with caresses.\nMahm\u00fada then said to her: \u201cMy dear mother, I have a favour to ask of you.\nWill you grant it?\u201d \u201cYes, my child,\u201d said Hamm\u00e1la, kissing her head and\neyes. \u201cThis it is, then: the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da wishes to visit the kingdom of\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed; try to satisfy him.\u201d Hamm\u00e1la at first raised up difficulties,\nbut when she saw that her adopted child would not give up her idea, she\ncalled one of her followers and ordered him to secretly conduct the\nprince into the garden of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, which he did accordingly.\n\nWhen T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak entered this wondrous garden, he found that the ground\nwas of gold, the walls which surrounded it were studded with the rubies\nof Badaksh\u00e1n,[141] and the carnelians of Yaman. Through parterres of\nemeralds flowed streams of rosewater in beds of topaz.[142] Beautiful\nindeed was that grove. The flowers were so bright that had the sun beheld\nthem he would have been covered with the perspiration of shame. The\nclusters of grapes there, vieing in colour with the emerald, were like\nthe Pleiades in heaven; and the narcissus was more graceful than the\nflowing ringlets of the most charming damsel. That garden! If a drop of\nits dew were to fall in the ocean it would make the fishes exhale the\nperfume of roses; and if the sky should hear a single note of its birds,\nit would cease revolving, and stand still to listen to it.[143] If Venus\nheard it, she would dance with joy, and fall on earth in company with\nthe moon. Redder than the fairest fruits was the colour of the fruits\ngrowing there; and much more graceful than the tallest form were the\ncypress-trees that waved therein.[144]\n\nThe prince gazed on all this with pleasure. Suddenly his eyes fell on\nan outer hall, made of ruby and jasper, inlaid with a pond full of\nthe purest rose-water. Its sides were studded with the most precious\nstones, and in the middle of it bloomed a lovely flower, delicate to\nview, and most pleasing in fragrance. The prince concluded that this\nwas the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed. Undressing himself, he plunged into the pond,\nand obtained the flower of his fondest wishes. Investing himself again\nwith his garments, he deposited the flower most carefully in his pocket,\nand turned his steps towards the palace of the princess. A magnificent\nstructure composed of ruby met his eyes. Its doors beamed with the lustre\nwhich once shone on Mount Sinai.[145] Attracted by its beauty the prince\nentered. Every hall was made of rubies. The windows were ornamented with\nscreens of the richest embroidery, the work upon which appeared as stars\nsprinkled on the face of the heavens. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak advanced; but what was\nhis surprise when he perceived a magnificent couch on which was reposing\na slender beauty, fast locked in the arms of sleep! Her hair was\ndishevelled. Slight marks of lamp-black were observable round her closed\neyes,[146] her bodice was loosened, her waistband very much removed from\nits proper place, and her trouser-sleeves were pulled up, and its bunches\nof strings hanging loosely. With her fair hands gracefully laid upon her\nforehead, she was sleeping the sleep of innocent youth. The ruddiness of\nher cheeks brightened the world and cast the sun and moon into the shade.\nThose black eyes would have shamed even the narcissus, and the redness\nof her lips would make the heart of the tulip to bleed. The arch of her\neyebrows made the crescent hide its face, and the locks of night paled\nbefore the shady blackness of her raven hair.\n\n Tall as the cypress of the lawn was she,\n And sweet as honey were her lips so red;\n If seen in all her native brilliancy,\n The stars would lose the lustre which they shed.\n Bright as the pearls her shining teeth were seen;\n Radiant her charms as Pleiades on high;\n She was a rose, the fairest rose, I ween,\n For whom a thousand nightingales would die.\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak was staggered at the sight of so much beauty; but, on\nregaining some degree of strength, he approached the couch and softly\nrecited these verses:\n\n \u201cIf thy charms thou would\u2019st discover,\n Stars would all their light forget,\n And the night would grow the darker,\n Gazing on those locks of jet.\n Glowing in the flush of beauty,\n Careless of the world art thou;\n What am I?\u2014The mightiest princes\n Will before thy beauty bow!\u201d\n\nIn brief, the prince thought within himself that it would be well to\nleave some token of his visit. So he gently took a ring off one of her\nfingers and put his own in its place, murmuring the following lines:\n\n \u201cLike the tulip, lo! I go, a spot upon my suffering heart,\n Dust upon my head, and in my heart a sharp and rankling dart.\n Like me in this scene of woe, who suffers more from Fortune\u2019s power?\n In this garden I have entered, and I go without a flower.\u201d\n\nWhile she was yet sleeping the prince departed, and returned to the abode\nof Hamm\u00e1la, who was waiting for him in the most intense anxiety. When\nshe saw him she smiled with the sincerest pleasure, and passed the time\nin merriment and joy. And when the bride of day had hidden her blushing\nface in the bed of midnight, and evening had shown her murky locks to the\nworld,[147] the prince retired and that night showed every endearment to\nhis spouse. Thus several days passed in pleasure.\n\nOne night T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak sat in the chamber of Mahm\u00fada and conversed with\nher to this effect: \u201cO source of all my happiness! although I here enjoy\ncomfort and everything is ready for my convenience, yet I am longing for\nmy native land.\u201d \u201cRest contented,\u201d she replied, \u201cand to-morrow I shall\nask leave to depart.\u201d Next morning, as usual, Hamm\u00e1la tenderly embraced\nthem, but perceiving them to look sad, she asked them: \u201cWhat can I do to\nplease you, my darlings? Fear not a refusal.\u201d Mahm\u00fada answered: \u201cYour\ntender care anticipates all our desires; but there is one thing we do\nnot find here, namely, the company of beings like ourselves; and so,\nnotwithstanding the violent grief we feel in separating from you, the\nfire of the love of country reduces to ashes our repose and necessitates\nthe employment of the water of return.\u201d Hamm\u00e1la, greatly afflicted by\nthis sudden declaration, cried out: \u201cWhat! have I brought you up with\nso much care, in the hope that you would be my faithful companion, and\nnow you wish to leave me! Alas, you would never have thought of it, if\nI had not married you to the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da. But it is all my own fault.\u201d\nYet seeing that they would not willingly remain with her, she summoned\na d\u00edv, and ordered him to carry the pair to a place which T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak\nwould indicate to him, and bring back a letter intimating their safe\narrival. Then Hamm\u00e1la plucked two hairs out of her head, and giving one\nto the prince and the other to Mahm\u00fada she said: \u201cWhen you need me, put\nthis hair in the fire and I will at once hasten to you with a thousand\nd\u00edvs,\u201d[148] and having received their adieus, a gigantic d\u00edv appeared,\nwho was swifter in his course than the lightning, and told them he was\nat their service. \u201cConduct us then,\u201d said the prince, \u201cto the city of\nFirdaus, and into the garden of the courtesan Dilbar Lakh\u00ed.\u201d The d\u00edv\ntook them upon his shoulders, and quick as thought deposited them in the\nplace indicated. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak then dismissed his guide with a letter to\nHamm\u00e1la, announcing their safe arrival.\n\nWhen the beautiful Dilbar heard the voice of the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da she ran out to\nmeet him, and throwing herself at his feet, returned thanks to God for\nhis safe return. He told all that had occurred to him, and introduced to\nher Mahm\u00fada, whom Dilbar Lakh\u00ed tenderly embraced in token of her sincere\naffection. After a few days T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak made preparations to return to\nhis own country. At the moment of his departure, Dilbar, after having\nhad some conversation with him, ordered his brothers to be brought,\nand he, who was supposed not to know them, begged her to restore them\nto liberty, as she had already done to the princes of the east and the\nwest who had fallen into her power; but she consented only provided she\nshould be allowed to brand them on the back in token of the state of\nslavery to which they had been reduced. The four sons of Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak\nhad no alternative but to submit to be thus branded; but when they had\nwithdrawn T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak ordered each of them to be given a dress of honour\nand a lakh of rup\u00eds to defray the expenses of their journey, and then\nthey set out for their native land. He then sent away Dilbar and Mahm\u00fada,\ndirecting them to wait for him in a certain city, and himself secretly\nfollowed his brothers in order to discover their intentions.\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak stopped at the same inn as his brothers, and, concealed in a\ncorner of the room, he heard their boasting and falsehood with reference\nto the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed. He waited patiently for some time, but at last\ncould endure it no longer, and drawing near them he said to others who\nwere present: \u201cWhat these men say is false; for I alone possess the\nRose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and can show it to you.\u201d Then untying his girdle he\ndrew from it the flower and exhibited it to the impostors, who in fury\nsnatched it from him saying: \u201cLet us see if you speak the truth; for if\nyou deceive us we shall make you pay dearly for it.\u201d They caused a blind\nman to be brought in, applied the rose to his eyes, and instantly his\nsight was restored. Their astonishment and confusion were unbounded, but\nthey not only refused to return the flower to T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, but showered\nblows upon him and chased him from their presence. Then they joyfully\ncontinued their journey, and on reaching the confines of their country\nthey sent a messenger before them to announce their return. This news\nfilled the good king, their father, with joy. To do them honour, he made\na journey of several days to meet them.[149] Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak embraced his\nfour sons and kissed them affectionately. On their part, they gave him\nthe Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, which when he placed to his eyes rendered them as\nbright as the stars. He then offered thanks to God that he had recovered\nhis sight by means of the flower, and in celebration of the happy event\nordered all his subjects, rich and poor, to keep open for a whole year\nthe door of joy and pleasure, and to close the door of sadness and\nsorrow.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\n BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd, ON AWAKING, DISCOVERS THAT HER ROSE HAS BEEN STOLEN,\n SETS OUT IN SEARCH OF THE THIEF DISGUISED AS A MAN, AND TAKES\n SERVICE WITH THE PRINCE\u2019S FATHER, THE KING OF THE EAST\u2014THE\n FAIRIES BUILD A GRAND PALACE FOR THE PRINCE, LIKE THAT OF\n BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd\u2014THE KING HEARS OF THE NEW PALACE\u2014STORY OF THE PRINCESS\n AND THE DEMON WHO EXCHANGED SEXES\u2014THE PRINCE\u2019S FATHER AND\n BRETHREN, WITH BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd (DISGUISED), VISIT HIM AT HIS PALACE,\n AND HE DISCLOSES HIMSELF.\n\n\nLet us now return to Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, whom we left asleep on her beautiful\ncouch. When she awoke she fastened her bodice, put her dress in order,\ndrew the comb through her hair, and went to the lake where grew her\ncherished Rose. On reaching the bank she discovered that the precious\nflower was gone, and at the same moment perceived that she wore a\ndifferent ring from her own. \u201cO Heaven!\u201d cried she, \u201cis it a dream or the\neffect of magic? But no; only a man could have done this deed, for none\nbut a human being could elude the vigilance of the d\u00edvs. None is equal\nto thee in daring, and an ordinary man I am sure thou art not. Gold and\nsilver are stolen by thieves; but thou art not a common robber. If I\ncould but see thee I would lay thy hands on my eyes and kiss them over\nand over. Thou hast made a mine in my bosom and stolen away my heart. To\nthy satisfaction thou hast not seen me; but I doubt not thou hast feasted\nthy eyes with a sight of these lips, and who knows, but thou mayest\nhave tasted the honey therefrom? Thou hast stolen the gold, and the\ncasket only is here.\u201d Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed then returned into her palace and summoned\nher attendants in order to have them punished for their carelessness,\nforgetting the maxim that \u201cwhen the arrow of Fate is shot none can arrest\nit with the shield of prudence,\u201d and said to them: \u201cIf you wish to live,\nbring the thief to me immediately.\u201d They did as desired, but no trace\nwhatever of the thief could be found. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed resolved to go herself\nin quest of him. Rendering herself invisible to all eyes, she reached\nthe capital of Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak, where she beheld everywhere preparations\nbeing made for a festival, and heard on all sides the sound of musical\ninstruments. Curious to know the cause of these rejoicings, she assumed\nthe form of a young man, and inquired of the first person she met: \u201cWhat\nis the reason of the mirth which prevails among the inhabitants of this\ncity?\u201d \u201cThe king,\u201d replied the citizen, \u201cwas blind; but his sons, after\nsearching a long time and coming through unheard-of trials, have at\nlast succeeded in obtaining the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, which has restored\nhis sight. On this account the padish\u00e1h has ordered that every one\nshould give himself up to pleasure for a year, and that the sound of the\n_naubat_[150] should everywhere be heard.\u201d\n\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed, delighted to hear tidings, at least, of her Rose, was in hopes\nof soon discovering the person who had stolen it from her. Returning\nto the bank of the river, she bathed in order to refresh herself after\nthe fatigue of her journey, and having dressed, she proceeded to the\nroyal palace. She was introduced to Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak, who inquired of her\nwho she was, and whence and why she had come. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed answered thus,\nvery composedly: \u201cYour slave comes from the country of the west which\nis called Farrukh.[151] I have left my home in the hope of entering the\nservice of your majesty, and I venture to express the wish that I may be\nadmitted among the number of officers attached to your royal person.\u201d \u201cI\naccept your services,\u201d said the king; \u201cremain with me.\u201d For some time\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed performed her new duties, till one day the four sons of the king\npresented themselves at court. Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak, according to his custom,\nreceived them most affectionately, pressed them to his bosom, kissed\ntheir heads and eyes, and made them sit beside himself. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed asked\nan attendant who these personages were, and was informed that they were\nthe king\u2019s own sons. Then with the touch-stone of discernment she tested\nthe gold of their countenances, and felt convinced that it was not pure.\n\u201cHas the king no other son,\u201d she inquired, \u201cwho went with these in search\nof the Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed?\u201d \u201cHe has not,\u201d was the answer.[152] The fairy\nprincess loved him who had taken possession of her ring, and her heart\ntold her that he was of a quite different stamp from these four sons\nof Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak. In despair, that after so many difficulties she had\ndiscovered traces of her Rose, but still could not find out the one who\nhad plucked it, she cursed the fate which had sported with her prudent\ndevices, and remained convinced that these princes had not plucked the\nRose and that the king had another son. So she resolved to be patient and\nsee what should come from behind the veil of mystery.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhen the four wicked brothers of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak had deprived him of the\nRose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed he was at first confounded, but soon afterwards followed\nthem, and when he arrived at the frontiers of his father\u2019s country, and\nfound himself in a dense jungle full of wild beasts, he recollected\nthe hair which Hamm\u00e1la had given him, and placed it on a fire which he\nlighted by means of a flint. There was not a quarter of it burnt when\nthe fairy presented herself before him, accompanied by a thousand d\u00edvs,\nand asked him in what way she could be of service to him. The prince,\nafter apologising for the liberty he had taken in summoning her, replied\nthat he wished to have, then and in that spot, a palace equal to that\nof Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, upon which the fairy despatched some of her followers to\nthe four corners of the earth, to fetch the rubies of Badaksh\u00e1n, the\ncarnelians of Yaman, and abundance of gold and silver and all kinds of\nprecious stones. Within three days the d\u00edvs returned laden with treasures\nand at once began to erect a palace as instructed by the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da. It\nwas soon finished, and one would have said that it was actually the\npalace of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed. One fourth of the precious stones brought by the\nd\u00edvs could not be used and were deposited in the treasury of the palace.\nWhen all was ready, Hamm\u00e1la reminded the prince that what she had just\ndone for him was on account of her love for Mahm\u00fada, and counselled him\nnever to soil with the dust of sorrow the robe of that damsel, and then\ndeparted.\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak proceeded in great state to seek Dilbar and Mahm\u00fada at the\nplace where they were to wait for him. He provided them with palank\u00edns,\nwhich were decorated with priceless gems and beautiful brocaded curtains,\nand preceded by slaves on horseback, carrying sticks of gold and silver\nin their hands. In this manner did he bring them to his palace, where\nthey passed the time very agreeably.\n\nOne day, as a slave of the prince, named Sa\u2019\u00edd, was strolling through the\nforest he came upon some woodcutters, and asked them whither they were\ncarrying the faggots they had prepared. \u201cWe are,\u201d said they, \u201cmen of\nthe east country, and it is by the sale of our wood that we support our\nfamilies.\u201d The slave desired them to convey their burdens to the house of\nhis master, promising they should be richly recompensed. The men answered\nthat they had never seen any sign of a habitation in that forest. \u201cFollow\nme,\u201d said the slave, \u201cand you will soon be convinced I speak the truth,\nand that my master\u2019s house is not far distant.\u201d The woodcutters complied\nin the hope of gain, and soon arrived near the palace of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak.\nAs the precious stones of which its walls were built reflected the rays\nof the sun, they thought it was a great fire. \u201cMay God preserve us,\u201d\nthey cried, \u201cfrom the devil, who has been stoned![153] We will not go a\nstep farther.\u201d \u201cCalm yourselves,\u201d replied Sa\u2019\u00edd; \u201cwhat you see is not\nfire, but the brilliancy of the stones which cover the walls. Continue to\nfollow me, and fear nothing.\u201d When they reached the palace, Sa\u2019\u00edd brought\nthem before T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, who received them with great kindness, and gave\nto each a handful of pearls and precious stones, saying to them that if\nthey would come and stay with him he would give them every day twice\nas much as they had just received. So they left their own country and\nsettled there. The news spread far and wide, and many others followed\nthe example of the wood-men, and those who went remained in this new\ncity. Every day the Kutw\u00e1l[154] was complaining to the minister of Zayn\nul-Mul\u00fak of the migration of his subjects, and how even in one night a\nthousand had quitted the capital. The minister inquired whither they had\ngone. \u201cI have heard,\u201d said the kutw\u00e1l, \u201cthat in a forest a city has been\nbuilt on foundations of gold, and that a palace has been erected which is\nunequalled in earth. The generosity of the king of that city bids fair to\nerase the name of Hatim[155] from the minds of the people; and such is\nthe fame of his justice that the glory of N\u00fash\u00edrv\u00e1n is eclipsed.\u201d[156]\nThe minister asked: \u201cHow can a man do what is beyond the power of mortals\nto perform?\u201d \u201cBut I have been credibly informed of it many times,\u201d said\nthe kutw\u00e1l. \u201cAnd that powerful God who transformed a man into a woman and\nmetamorphosed a woman into a man can also bestow wealth (which is like\na beautiful woman) on a human being. Have you not heard of the princess\nwho borrowed virility from a d\u00edv and married a wife?\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d answered the\nvaz\u00edr. \u201cAttend then,\u201d said the kutw\u00e1l:\n\n\n_Story of the Princess and the D\u00edv who exchanged sexes_.\n\nIn ancient times there lived a king, who had a hundred beautiful girls\nin his haram yet had no issue by any one of them. At length one of them\ngave birth to a daughter, and afterwards she bore three other children,\nbut every time a female. When she was pregnant for the fourth time the\nking swore that if a daughter was born again he would have both the child\nand the mother destroyed. It happened that a daughter was again born; but\nlovely and fairy-like was the infant. The mother, anxious to preserve\nthe life of her darling, gave out that it was a son, and prevailed upon\nthe astrologers to counsel the king not to see the child\u2019s face for ten\nyears, for should he do so harm would come to him, and the father agreed\nto do as they desired.\n\nWhen the girl grew up in years and understanding, and the prescribed\nperiod was near expiring, the mother explained matters to her, and\nrequested her to assume the garb of a young man and thus appear before\nthe king, so that in this way both their lives might be preserved. The\ndaughter followed her mother\u2019s instructions, and in due course she was\nbetrothed to the daughter of another monarch. When the wedding-day\napproached, the king caused her to be clothed in rich garments, and,\nplacing her in a golden litter, despatched her to the country of the\nbride. The girl sometimes wept and sometimes laughed at the situation in\nwhich she was placed. At last when she reached a dense forest, where she\nhad occasion to stay for the night, she could bear her shame no longer,\nand finding life nothing less than a burden, she left her litter secretly\nand wandered far into the wood, trusting that some beast of prey would\ndestroy her.\n\nAfter roaming about for some time, she found herself under the branches\nof a tall, umbrageous tree, in which dwelt a d\u00edv, who immediately fell\nin love with her beauty. In the shape of a young man he appeared to her,\nand inquired the cause of her distress. The girl told her story frankly,\nupon which the heart of the d\u00edv melted, and he offered to change her\ninto a man and himself into a woman for a short time. She consented to\nthis, and the transformation took place at once, after which she took\nher leave, with a light and happy heart, and rejoined her attendants\nunperceived by any of them. In a few days more they reached the country\nof the bride. The marriage was consummated and the old king returned to\nhis own country. The prince who was originally a princess remained with\nhis spouse until a child was born to him, and then he set out on a visit\nto his father. In passing through the forest he sought out the tree\nand found the d\u00edv sitting there in the form of a woman. \u201cO d\u00edv,\u201d cried\nthe prince, \u201cthrough thy favour I have obtained the wish of my heart.\nTake back your virility and restore my womanhood to me.\u201d But this the\nd\u00edv could not do, as in the form of a woman he had fallen in love with\nanother d\u00edv and expected soon to become a mother. \u201cTherefore,\u201d added the\nd\u00edv, \u201cdo thou retain thy manhood: I am content to remain a woman.\u201d[157]\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe kutw\u00e1l having finished his story, the vaz\u00edr remarked: \u201cGod is great\nand powerful. I do not doubt this; but how a man can act so miraculously\nas you say the ruler of that new city has done, I cannot understand.\nDo you, however, go and inspect that wonderful palace and bring me an\naccount of all that you see.\u201d So the kutw\u00e1l at once proceeded to Mulk-i\nNigh\u00e1r\u00edn,[158] accompanied by a large body of cavaliers. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak,\non hearing of his approach, ordered all the ponds to be filled and the\nfountains to be set playing, and that he should be received in the\nruby-room. When the prince graced the throne with his presence the kutw\u00e1l\nrose, made his obeisance to him, and spoke as follows: \u201cThe news of your\nresidence in this jungle, where you have a palace and a city, has reached\nthe ears of the king, my master, who has sent me to verify the fact. Now\npermit me to explain to you that if you wish to remain independent, you\nmust quit this place without delay. If not, you must put your neck in the\ncollar of submission and present yourself at the court of the king, for\none scabbard cannot hold two swords nor one country be governed by two\nsovereigns.\u201d \u201cIt is true,\u201d replied T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, \u201cthat I have constructed\nbuildings in a place inhabited by wild beasts, but I am only occupied\nhere in the service of the Most High, and I do not covet sovereignty, but\nwish to be regarded as friendly towards your king.\u201d The kutw\u00e1l, satisfied\nwith this declaration, returned to the vaz\u00edr and related to him all\nthat he had seen and heard, whereupon the vaz\u00edr communicated it to Zayn\nul-Mul\u00fak. The fairy Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, who was still in the king\u2019s service, heard\nthe news with joy: she now beheld the Aurora of hope emerge from the\nnight of despair.\n\nMeanwhile Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak bent his head for some time in the collar of\nreflection, then expressed his fear that this new city might one day be\nthe ruin of his kingdom. But the vaz\u00edr represented to him that it was a\nmaxim of the sages, that discretion should be practised towards an enemy\nwho could not be conquered, and therefore he recommended that the king\nshould enter into an allegiance with the stranger. \u201cI consent,\u201d replied\nthe monarch; \u201cand, as no one can arrange this affair so well as yourself,\ndo you go, and kill the serpent without breaking the stick.\u201d[159] The\nsagacious vaz\u00edr accordingly went in great state to visit T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak,\nand was accorded a reception suited to his exalted rank. \u201cYou have\nalready received a visit of a servant of my master, the king,\u201d said the\nvaz\u00edr. \u201cHe has spoken so highly of your qualities that the anger which\nhad become kindled in the heart of the padish\u00e1h, on hearing of your\nsettlement here, has been extinguished, and he purposes himself paying\nyou a visit. What can be better than a union of two rivers of goodness\nand generosity?\u201d T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak replied: \u201cI accept with great pleasure the\nmessage which you bring me on the part of your royal master. I ought to\nhave made the first advance, for the king\u2019s wish which you have conveyed\nto me is also my own.\u201d It was then arranged that the king should come in\na week, and, after the vaz\u00edr had dined with T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak in the most\nsumptuous manner, he returned and gave his master a faithful account of\nhis interview and the wonders of the new city.\n\nThat very night the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da placed Hamm\u00e1la\u2019s hair on the fire, and\nimmediately she appeared with a thousand d\u00edvs. Mahm\u00fada rose to greet her\nmother, who kissed and embraced both her children, and inquired if they\nwere in health. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak answered: \u201cIn your safety is our happiness\nand all our wants are supplied. But in eight days the king of the East\nwill visit me, and I wish you to cause carpets of wool and red and green\nvelvet to be spread on the ground from my palace to his, and erect at\nthe distance of every two miles tents made of fine ermine, with strings\nof gold texture, screens of satin and brocade, and hooks of gold and\nsilver. These tents must be so numerous that every attendant of the king\nmay be accommodated separately.\u201d Hamm\u00e1la gave the necessary orders to her\nfollowers and returned to her own country.\n\nOn the day appointed, the king set out to visit T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, mounted on\nan elephant, in an _am\u00e1ri_[160] of gold, accompanied by his ministers\nand a great number of cavaliers. The four sons of the king, mounted on\ntheir own elephants, were also of the party, while Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed attended as\nan officer of the royal household. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak went one day\u2019s march to\nmeet his father.[161] He paid his respects to him and led him with joy to\nhis palace, and made him sit down in the room of emeralds. The king was\nso astonished that he fell into a kind of stupor. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, on her part,\nalmost lost her reason, when she beheld the prince. His handsome features\npointed him out to her as the stealer of her Rose, and she was confirmed\nin this when she recognised that the palace was an exact copy of her own,\nfor she felt sure that he who had designed it had seen the original. She\nwished at once to make herself known, but her natural timidity restrained\nher, and she resolved to wait patiently for a favourable opportunity to\naccomplish her purpose. Meanwhile a splendid feast was spread out, and\nmusic and song diffused pleasure over all. When every amusement was over,\nthe king and T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak began to converse, and the prince inquired how\nmany sons he had. The king pointed to the four princes and said that\nthese were his only children. \u201cI had one more,\u201d he added, \u201cby gazing\non whose countenance I lost my eyesight. Thanks be to God that I have\nregained it now; but there is no knowing where that child has gone.\u201d T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak asked how it was that the prince had turned away his face from\nduty and left his father\u2019s house, and farther inquired whether any one in\nthe company would be able to recognise him. On this Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak gave\na detailed account of the birth of the lost prince as well as a history\nof his own blindness. He then pointed out one of his vaz\u00edrs, who, he\nsaid, might be able to identify him. The prince turned towards him and\ninquired whether among all present he saw any one who bore a resemblance\nto T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak. The old and experienced man, after gazing steadfastly in\nthe countenance of the speaker, replied that none but the prince himself\npresented any likeness to that person.\n\nHardly were these words uttered than T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak threw himself at the\nfeet of his father, exclaiming: \u201cI am that unfortunate son, who has\nwandered so long from your court in consequence of an adverse destiny\nand my sorrowful horoscope. Blessed be God who has at last permitted me\nto behold your venerable face and embrace your knees!\u201d The king, deeply\nmoved, pressed his young son to his bosom; then he returned thanks to\nGod, saying to T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak that the astrologers who were consulted at\nhis birth had predicted his present illustrious condition. \u201cBut tell\nme, dear son,\u201d he continued, \u201chave you remained free till now, like the\ncypress, without uniting yourself to some beautiful lady?\u201d The prince\nreplied: \u201cI have two wives, whom I shall have the honour to present to\nyour majesty,\u201d and at once he went into the women\u2019s apartments and led\nout Dilbar and Mahm\u00fada, who, however, stopped at the threshold of the\nhall and would not advance farther. The king impatiently exclaimed: \u201cWhy\ndo they not come near me, that my eyes may be illumined and my heart\ndelighted by beholding them?\u201d The prince answered: \u201cMy sovereign, it is\nshame that restrains them. The four princes, your sons, were once in\nbondage to one of them, and bear the tokens on their backs. If you have\nany doubt of this, you can satisfy yourself.\u201d At these words the pallor\nof confusion overspread the faces of the four princes, who immediately\nretired, fearing to be disgraced in public.[162] Then the wives of T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak were introduced to the king, and the prince related their\nhistory; how he bore away the flower from the garden of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed and saw\nher asleep in all her beauty; how his brothers had deprived him of the\nflower; and how he had built his palace in the forest. Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak\nimmediately thought of the mother of his son. \u201cYou,\u201d said he, addressing\nthe prince, \u201chave restored my eyesight and opened the gates of joy to\nme. It is now incumbent on me to communicate the happy tidings to your\nmother, and relieve her from the pains of absence, by restoring her\nlong-lost son to her.\u201d He then arose to depart; and the same night he\npaid a visit to T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak\u2019s mother, begged a thousand pardons for all\nthat he had done to her, and informed her of the return of her son.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\n BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd RETURNS TO HER OWN COUNTRY, AND THERE WRITES A\n LOVE-LETTER TO THE PRINCE, WHO SETS OUT TO VISIT HER\u2014THE MOTHER\n OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd DISCOVERS THAT HER DAUGHTER IS IN LOVE WITH A HUMAN\n BEING, TOSSES THE PRINCE HIGH UP INTO THE AIR AND IMPRISONS\n BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd\u2014THE PRINCE FALLS INTO A RIVER, EMERGES FROM IT IN\n SAFETY, OBTAINS SEVERAL MAGIC ARTICLES, IS CHANGED INTO A YOUNG\n WOMAN, THEN INTO A FOUL-VISAGED ABYSSINIAN, AND FINALLY REGAINS\n HIS OWN FORM.\n\n\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed, who had heard the story of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, could no longer doubt\nbut that he was the ravisher of her Rose and her ring. And when the king\nhad returned to his capital she obtained permission to leave his service,\nand at once returned to her own palace, where she wrote a letter to her\nwell-beloved, with her ring, and entrusted the packet to a fairy named\nSaman-r\u00fa,[163] who was her confidante, desiring her to deliver it to\nPrince T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak when she found him alone and free from the cares of\nthe world. The fairy spread her wings and in the twinkling of an eye\nappeared before the prince and delivered the letter of her mistress. The\nprince at once recognised the ring, opened the letter with the greatest\neagerness, and read as follows:\n\n\u201cI begin in the name of God, who has no equal in the universe. He it is\nwho placed the stars in the heavens and created both genii and men. To\nthe fairy he has given beauty; and yet has he granted superiority to men\nover fairies, for even they are struck by the darts of love. Cast but thy\neyes on the countenance of Layl\u00e1, and she will become Majn\u00fan for thee.\nAnd if the reflex of thy beauty shine on Sh\u00edr\u00edn, she will become her own\nFarh\u00e1d.[164] The sun and the atoms that dance in his beams are equally\nenamoured of thee. The light of love thou hast lightened, and like a moth\nis burned in the flame.\n\n\u201cAfter my compliments to thee, O king of beauty and grace, let me tell\nthee that the arrows which sprang from the bows of thine eyebrows\nhave wounded my heart to its core; and thy raven locks, descending\nluxuriantly, have enchained and enfettered me. Love has triumphed over\nme; he is my master both externally and internally. It is wrong to think\nthat one heart is apprised of the feelings of another; but here am I\nburning, suffering, and no impression is made on thee. Without thee,\nmy house is a scene of woe, and even heaven is hell. I am panting for\nthe life-bestowing elixir of thy kisses. Thy love has deprived me of my\nheart; I should not wonder if I find no portion of it within my breast.\nDo thou accept my virgin love! Thou art the river, and I am dying of\nthirst; come at once and slake it. If you come not, I shall die of a\nbroken heart; but on rising at the day of resurrection, I shall call\nthee to account. What wilt thou answer me then, when I ask thee why thou\ndidst kill me? But this is enough. My feelings will be apparent from\nthis.\u201d[165]\n\nOn reading Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\u2019s letter the fire of love which was concealed in the\nheart of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak was fiercely kindled. Impatient as mercury, he\nwished at once to behold her who had charmed him and whom he had himself\ninspired with love. Meanwhile he took the pen in his hand and thus\nreplied:\n\n\u201cO thou, who knowest well how to burn the heart of thy lover, the whole\nstyle of thy letter shows that thou art fully inclined to oppress my\nsuffering bosom. Thou art beautiful; thou art indeed the robber that\nwaits for his prey in the path of love. Thine eyebrows are like swords,\nand in thine eyes lurk enchantments and lightnings to captivate and burn\nthe soul. The rose-bud is ashamed before thy countenance, and the ruby\ncolourless before thy lips. I am an atom; thou art the sun indeed. O thou\ncharming beauty, and lovelier than the idols of China![166] every word\nof thy letter has made a lasting impression on my heart. I have passed\nmy nights in sighs and groans. The impress of thy countenance will never\nbe erased from the tablet of my memory. As long as the moon shall retain\nher light, so long shall my heart retain thy love. Never think that I\nshall forget thee; not for a moment shall my heart lose the idea of thy\nenchanting charms. Thy name fills me with impatience. When first I heard\nit I undertook to endure every trouble. I made friendship with the d\u00edvs\nto induce them to convey me to thy fairy-land. I saw thee, and the wound\nof my heart was terribly enlarged. Is it that a spark from my heart has\nfallen on thine, or has the lightning of desire struck thee? Yet I ought\nnot to confide any more of my secrets to the pen; as it is said: \u2018The pen\nshould not be admitted into the secrets of lovers.\u2019 Enough now.\u201d\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak applied to this letter, as a seal, his moist eye tinted with\n_surma_,[167] and handed it to Sam\u00e1nr\u00fa, charging the fairy to say many\nthings from him to Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed which he could not express in writing, and\nthe fairy, taking her leave, soon discharged her commission.\n\nWhen Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed saw that the love of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak was still more violent\nthan her own, and that union alone could calm their mutual impatience,\nshe summoned Hamm\u00e1la at once, who presently appeared before the princess,\ntrembling at the peremptory command like the willow of Egypt; but\nfinding her in tears, she expressed her concern. \u201cWretched go-between,\u201d\nsaid Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, in anger, \u201cit is thou who hast kindled the fire which\nconsumes me and caused my present condition, by giving to thy son-in-law\nthe means of coming here. Wherefore, in order to repair thy fault, do\nthou bring quickly to me this dearly beloved being.\u201d \u201cIs it for such a\ntrifle,\u201d replied Hamm\u00e1la, with a smile, \u201cthat your cheeks are wet and\nyour beauty disfigured? Rise and wash yourself, and let the smile return\nto your lips, for I will at once bring T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak to you\u2014nothing is\neasier.\u201d Swiftly flew Hamm\u00e1la and came to the prince. \u201cArise, thou moth,\u201d\nsaid she smilingly, \u201cthy candle invites thee.\u201d On hearing these welcome\nwords the prince fell at her feet. Hamm\u00e1la raised him, pressed him in\nher arms, and placing him on her shoulder carried him to the realm of\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed.\n\n * * * * *\n\nIn the meantime Jam\u00edla Khat\u00fan[168] was informed that her daughter\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed was in love with a human being. She flew into a violent rage,\nand severely scolded her, saying that she was a disgrace to the fairies.\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed, laying her fingers on her ears, denied the assertion, and\ndeclared that she was still ignorant of the meaning of love, and that\nonly in a dream had she seen a human being. It was after this scene that\nHamm\u00e1la arrived with the prince, and when Saman-r\u00fa came, and privately\ninformed Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed that her lover was in the garden; she told her to keep\nhim concealed in some place of safety, as she had, much against her will,\nto remain with her mother till the greater part of the night was past.\n\nJam\u00edla Khat\u00fan at last fell asleep, and Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed arose without disturbing\nher mother, and with palpitating bosom, alternating between fear and\ndesire, she proceeded to the place where her lover was hidden. So\nviolent were the feelings of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak on beholding Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed that he\nswooned. She ran up to him, and placed his head on her knees, when her\nsweet breath had the effect of the essence of roses on the prince, who\nsoon recovered consciousness, and on opening his eyes and seeing all\nher concern for him, he considered himself as the personification of\nhappiness. Unfortunately, Jam\u00edla Khat\u00fan awoke about the middle of the\nnight and arose; and, seeing the garden lit up by the rays of the moon,\nwalked out in front of the very spot where the lovers were reposing in\neach other\u2019s arms, believing themselves in perfect security. On seeing\nthem the flames of anger broke out in her heart, and taking up T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak she hurled him like a stone from a sling into the regions of\nmagic, and then slapped Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed until the hue of her cheeks was equal to\nthat of the reddest tulip. After this she conveyed her to the garden of\nIram, the residence of her father, F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h,[169] to whom she disclosed\nall she had witnessed. F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h appointed a number of fairies to\ndivert his daughter\u2019s heart from human love. But in vain did they busy\nthemselves with this object night and day without intermission: the\nmore they spoke the more she loved; the more they tried to extinguish\nthe flame the more it blazed. They saw plainly that love had made a home\nin her heart, so at last they told F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h that all their efforts\nwere of no avail, and he, finding her deaf to all good counsel, threw a\ntalismanic influence over her, and Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed found herself confined in\ngolden fetters.\n\nWhen Jam\u00edla Khat\u00fan had hurled T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak up in the air, he fell into\nan unknown sea, the waves of which tossed him to and fro. Now like a\npearl he would sink to the bottom, and now like a bubble rise to the\nsurface. After remaining some days in this condition he at last reached\nthe shore of a green island: so true it is that even death cannot lay his\nhand on the life of lovers. The heat of the sun reanimating his body,\nhe regained his strength and could rise up and walk. Eager to get away\nfrom this island, he collected the branches of trees, and having joined\nthem together in the form of a raft, invoked the name of God,[170] cast\nit into the sea and placed himself on it. After drifting on the sea for\nseveral days he reached a shore which skirted a frightful desert. At\nnight, through fear of wild beasts, he climbed a tree, but ere long he\nheard a rumbling sound on the south side of the desert, and presently\nperceived a monstrous dragon approach and place itself at the foot of\nthe tree into the branches of which he had climbed. The dragon brought\nfrom its mouth a serpent which emitted a gem so brilliant that it lighted\nup the jungle for many miles. The wild beasts and birds came to dance\nbefore the dragon; they were soon rendered senseless and all devoured by\nthe monster, after which the serpent swallowed the gem and re-entered\nthe mouth of the dragon, who departed the way it had come. The prince\nwished he could obtain possession of the gem, for which purpose he long\nremained in thought, devising a plan, but morning dawned before he came\nto any determination. He then walked towards the shore and brought away\nfrom there a heavy lump of clay. In the evening he again climbed the tree\nand sat patiently. When the dragon came and repeated the scene of the\nprevious evening, the prince threw the lump of clay down on the gem, and\nhaving thus covered it the whole forest was plunged into darkness, so\nthat the dragon and the serpent knocked their heads against the stones\nand died.[171] On the morrow T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak came down from the tree, and\ntaking the precious gem from beneath the clay placed it in his girdle,\nand set out in hopes of finding some inhabited spot. He walked on for\nseveral days without success, sleeping at night among the branches of\ntrees.\n\nIt happened one night, as he had secured himself in a tree where a\n_maina_[172] had its nest, he heard the little ones ask their mother what\ntreasures there were in the jungle. She replied: \u201cAs you proceed towards\nthe south there is on the edge of a lake a tree of enormous height. Any\none placing a piece of its bark on his head will become invisible to all,\nwhile everything is visible to him; but no person can go to that tree,\nbecause it is guarded by a huge dragon, which neither sword nor arrow can\nwound.\u201d The young ones inquired: \u201cHow, then, could any one reach there?\u201d\nThe maina answered: \u201cIf a courageous and prudent man should go to the\nborder of the lake, he must leap into it, when the dragon will attack\nhim, and he will be changed into a raven, and must then place himself\non one of the western branches of that tree, where he will find green\nand red fruits. Should he eat one of the red fruits, he will regain his\noriginal form; and by eating a green fruit he will become invulnerable,\nand by placing one in his girdle he could travel through the air. The\nleaves will heal wounds, and its wood open the strongest locks and break\nthe most solid bodies.\u201d T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak listened most attentively to this\nconversation, and resolved to profit by it.[173]\n\nIn the morning he went to the lake, and the dragon darted forth to attack\nhim. The prince leaped into the water, and was changed into a raven; then\nflying to the tree, he ate of the red fruit, and recovering his proper\nform plucked some green fruits and placed them in his girdle; of one of\nthe branches he made a staff, and, taking some of the healing leaves and\na piece of the bark sufficient to make an invisible cap, he flew away.\nHe soon left the jungle and arrived at an inhabited place. He cut open a\npart of his thigh, placed the gem in it, and by aid of the leaves healed\nthe wound in a moment.\n\nAfter proceeding a short distance he came to the marble border of a\nlake, around which grew the most beautiful flowers. On seeing the\nclear and cool water he felt a strong desire to bathe in it, so he at\nonce undressed himself and dived into the pond; but when he came to\nthe surface again he saw neither the lake nor the place where he was\nbefore, but found himself near a strange city, and, what was stranger\nstill, he felt that he was no longer a man, but metamorphosed into a\nbeautiful young woman, with cheeks like the jasmine flower. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak\nwas greatly concerned at this wonderful change, but in the meantime he\nsaw no remedy but patience. He sat down, quite ashamed, when a young\nman, passing by, saw, as he supposed, the features of a h\u00far\u00ed, and asked\nby what accident he came there. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak replied: \u201cMy father was\na merchant, and it was his custom to take me with him on his trading\njourneys. We came into this forest with a caravan, and at midnight\nrobbers attacked us, pillaged all our goods, and killed my father and\nseveral others. The rest fled, and I only am left in the midst of this\nsolitude, without shelter, or strength to go farther.\u201d \u201cIf you take me\nas your husband,\u201d said the young man, \u201cI will lead you to my house, in\nwhich you may rule as mistress.\u201d With the form of a woman the prince was\nalso endowed with her nature, and becoming at once enamoured of the youth\nhe followed him and duly became his wife. In course of time a son was\nborn, and on the fortieth day he went to bathe in a lake which was near\nthe house.[174] When he withdrew his head from the water, he saw nothing\nof what surrounded him a moment before, but found himself changed into\na young Abyssinian. Presently a hideous negress appeared before him,\nand seizing him by the girdle exclaimed: \u201cO man without feeling! for\nthree days have thy children suffered from hunger, and I have never\nceased searching for you! Where hast thou been hiding thyself? But never\nmind\u2014what is done is done. Come now, where is the wood which thou hast\ncollected? Give it to me, that I may sell it and procure food for our\nstarving children.\u201d \u201cGreat God!\u201d cried T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, turning his eyes\ntowards heaven, \u201chow long wilt thou keep me in this state of affliction?\nFrom the day when the mother of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed tossed me into the sea, I have\nnot breathed a single moment free from the clutches of misfortune.\u201d In\nshort, that sable hag pulled him, _nolens volens_, to her dwelling.\nArrived there, a crowd of children surrounded him, crying: \u201cFather!\nfather! what hast thou brought for us?\u201d Then the negress gave him an axe,\nand told him to go into the forest and cut some wood for the support of\nhis family. The prince quitted the cottage, and as he went along called\nto mind that it was by plunging into a lake that his form had been twice\nchanged, and he resolved to make a third trial. Accordingly he dived\ninto the waters of the first lake on his way, lifted up his head, and\nfound himself restored to his original shape, and on the border of the\nlake where he had taken his first plunge. He returned thanks to God, and\ndetermined never again to bathe in any lake. His magical cap and stick\nhe found lying on the very spot where he had placed them before leaping\ninto the lake which changed his sex, and taking them up he departed\nthence.\n\nMy friends,[175] those very lakes which T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak should have avoided\nare the pleasures of this world, which, like the mirage, deceive man.\nIt was not necessary for him to fill his pitcher from every stream, nor\nto smell the flowers of every garden. Thorns have often the appearance\nof roses, and seem to be even more beautiful. If you enter into the\nworld to lay hold of the pearl of pleasure, you will lose your hat\nand stick,\u2014images of the goodness and power of God, and so, like T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak, you will cease to have the noble form of men. When you return\nto yourself you go to the brink of the stream of the remembrance of God\nand plunge into it; and drawing out your head, you again find the hat and\nstick of grace.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\n THE PRINCE COMES TO THE CASTLE OF A FIERCE DEMON CALLED\n SHAH PYKAR, WHERE HE FINDS RUH-AFZA, COUSIN OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd, A\n PRISONER\u2014HE RESCUES HER FROM THE DEMON AND CONVEYS HER TO HER\n PARENTS\u2014HE OBTAINS BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd IN MARRIAGE AND RETURNS WITH HIS\n BEAUTEOUS FAIRY BRIDE TO HIS OWN PALACE.\n\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, after suffering every inconvenience, determined at last\nto leave the earth altogether, and, by the aid of the green fruit which\nhe had with him, to travel about in the air. One day he passed over a\nmountain so high that by its side K\u00e1f would seem a mere hillock, and of\ngranite so hard that mount Bist\u00e1n[176] would be reduced to powder by\ncollision with one of its rocks. On the summit was a beautiful palace,\nconstructed of precious stones, into which he entered from curiosity. He\nlooked around but found no living creature, and was walking through the\nrooms when his ears caught a wailing sound, and going towards the place\nwhence it issued he discovered a beautiful damsel extended on a couch and\nweeping very bitterly. The prince, taking off his hat and thus making\nhimself visible, begged her to explain how and why she was there. \u201cI am\na fairy,\u201d said she, \u201cand am called R\u00fah-afz\u00e1.[177] My father, Muzaffar\nSh\u00e1h,[178] rules over the island of Firdaus.[179] One day I had gone to\nthe Garden of Iram[180] to visit my cousin Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, who was unwell, and\non my return a d\u00edv with black countenance carried me away and brought\nme here. Then he wished me to yield to his passion, but I refused,\nand hence he persecutes me, and tries by all means to increase my\nsufferings.\u201d The prince asked what was her cousin\u2019s malady, and R\u00fah-afz\u00e1\nreplied: \u201cShe loves a human being, whom she contrived to bring into her\npresence, but she has been separated from him, and my uncle keeps her in\nclose confinement.\u201d At these words T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak could not suppress his\nsighs, and with pale cheeks and tears in his eyes confessed that he was\nthe human creature whom Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed loved. \u201cAlas!\u201d added he, \u201cwhile she is\nsuffering in prison, I am pining away and wandering in search of her.\u201d\nThen he told R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 all his own history, and the recital so touched the\nbeautiful fairy that she declared herself willing to do all in her power\nto help the lovers if she were freed from the d\u00edv. \u201cBe not afraid,\u201d said\nthe prince; \u201cno one can prevent your going. Come with me, and if the d\u00edv\nshould appear, I shall settle matters with him. My only difficulty is\nthat I am without weapons.\u201d The fairy directed him to the armoury of the\nd\u00edv, from which he took a sword of the purest water. Then touching with\nhis magic stick the chains which bound her feet they broke in pieces,\nand they took their way to the island of Firdaus. But they had only\nproceeded a short distance when a horrible noise was heard behind them.\n\u201cTake care,\u201d cried R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 to the prince\u2014\u201chere is my terrible enemy!\u201d\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, with great presence of mind, drew his magic cap from under\nhis arm and put it on the head of his lovely companion, and then turned\nto confront the d\u00edv. \u201cAccursed one!\u201d cried the prince, \u201cadvance not a\nstep farther, if you would not be made a corpse by a single blow.\u201d The\nd\u00edv grinned, showing his great teeth, and sneeringly asked: \u201cWho has\never heard of a sparrow wishing to fight with the s\u00edmurgh,[181] or an\nant with an elephant? I should blush to stain my hand with the blood of\na fly, and strike at a handful of earth\u2014I, who can turn aside mount K\u00e1f\nwith a back stroke of my hand. Give me up my mistress and depart.\u201d \u201cThou\nvile and lewd wretch,\u201d exclaimed T\u00e1j ul Mul\u00fak, \u201cdost thou dare to call\nR\u00fah-afz\u00e1 thy mistress? Had I not been restrained by the grace of God,\nere this time I should have torn thy foul tongue out of thy mouth.\u201d The\nd\u00edv burnt with anger at these words, and lifting up a stone weighing a\nhundred _m\u00e1ns_[182] threw it at the prince, upon which the latter, to\navoid it, by virtue of the green fruit which he carried with him, rose up\ninto the air, and with his magic staff dealt such a blow on the neck of\nthe d\u00edv that he trembled all over. Then the d\u00edv uttered loud cries, and\npresently a great number of other d\u00edvs, ox-headed and elephant-bodied,\ncame to his assistance and joined in battle against the sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da, who\nafter a most formidable engagement proved victorious, and those of his\nfoes who survived fled in dismay. But no sooner was the field cleared\nof the enemy than T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak fainted in consequence of his exertions.\nThe beautiful R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, seeing this, ran up to him, laid her hand like\na rose-leaf on his bosom, and with her fragrant breath recalled him to\nconsciousness, and, giving him back his magic cap, warmly praised his\nvalorous achievement. Then they continued their journey, and arriving\nat the capital of Firdaus, R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, leaving the prince in a garden\nbelonging to herself, and bearing her own name, proceeded to her father\u2019s\npalace, where she was received by Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h and her mother with every\ntoken of affection. R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 told them of her adventures, but concealed\nthe fact of her deliverer being the lover of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed. Her father at\nonce proceeded to the garden and thanked T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak for rescuing his\ndaughter, and overwhelmed him with tokens of respect and honour.\n\nMuzaffar Sh\u00e1h then wrote a letter to F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h, acquainting him of the\nreturn of R\u00fah-afz\u00e1. The monarch read it with joy, and induced Jam\u00edla\nKhat\u00fan to go and see her niece. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed wished to accompany her, which\ngave great pleasure to her mother, because she thought that the journey\nwould remove the mildew of sorrow from the mirror of her heart. Jam\u00edla\nunloosed the chains which bound Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and both departed together\nfor the island of Firdaus. When Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h was informed of their\narrival he sent his daughter to meet them. R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 greeted her aunt\nmost heartily, kissed her forehead, fell at her feet, and then exchanged\ncongratulations suitable to the occasion; after which she whispered to\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed: \u201cBe you glad also, for I have brought a physician who will\ncure your disease, by prescribing the sherbet of love to you.\u201d The\nheart of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed was full of joy, but she did not venture to reply\nbefore her mother. Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h and Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1[183] showed the greatest\nkindness to their sister and her daughter. The door of speech was opened\nand different things were talked about, especially the manner in which\nR\u00fah-afz\u00e1 had been rescued. The following morning Jam\u00edla Khat\u00fan wished\nto take farewell of her niece, but the latter entreated her to allow\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed to remain a few days longer with her. Jam\u00edla consented to leave\nher for a week with her cousin, and returned to the garden of Iram. Then\nR\u00fah-afz\u00e1 led Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed to that part of the palace where T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak was\ndwelling. As soon as they drew near the chamber a doleful sound was heard\nfrom within. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed asked: \u201cWho is this groaning?\u201d Her cousin answered:\n\u201cIt is a new victim. Come, if you wish, and I will show him to you.\u201d At\nlast she prevailed upon Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed to enter the chamber, and brought her\ninto the presence of the prince. The moment the eyes of the lovers fell\non each other patience was lost, sense remained dormant, the reins of\ndiscretion dropped from their hands, love triumphed over all, and they\nran forward and embraced with all the warmth which genuine passion can\nalone inspire. They wept for joy, and blotted out with their tears the\nremembrance of the sorrows which had caused their long separation. The\nlovers remained together, and gave themselves up to mutual tokens of\naffection until at last the day arrived when Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed was obliged to\nreturn to her parents. R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 promised to use her utmost efforts to\nget them united, and persuaded them to await with patience the course of\nevents. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed yielded to this advice and returned home.\n\nMeanwhile R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 related in detail to her mother the history of the\nlove of her cousin and T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak. After the recital Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 held\nher head for a long time bowed down in the collar of reflection, and\nthen said to her daughter: \u201cAlthough the union of a man with a fairy be\nan unusual thing, yet, as this mortal has delivered you from a cruel\nbondage, I ought, out of gratitude, to save him from some sorrow and\nenable him to succeed in his object.\u201d Having taken this resolution, she\ncalled for a skilful painter and caused him to draw the portrait of T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak, and then proceeded to the garden of Iram, where she stayed a\nfew days with F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h and Jam\u00edla Khat\u00fan. One day in conversation with\nthe latter she addressed her as follows: \u201cMy dear sister, a pearl of\nbeautiful water is only useful when shown in a necklace. Why do you allow\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed to pine away in virginity?\u201d \u201cPerhaps you have already heard,\u201d\nreplied Jam\u00edla, \u201cthat my daughter has placed her affections on a human\nbeing. She does not wish to be united to one of her own race. What can I\ndo in this matter? Must I give up the customs of our ancestors? Should I\nallow my daughter to make a marriage which has never before taken place\namongst us?\u201d \u201cTrue,\u201d rejoined Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1, \u201cit is unwise to place a precious\ngem in the hands of one who cannot appreciate it; but if you knew all\nthe merits of the human race you would never entertain such thoughts as\nthese. Hear me: man is the most perfect of the creatures of God.[184] He\nis the image of the Deity, is glorified by all, and is considered as the\nlord of the creation. His sway extends over the elements, and, clothed in\nthe garments of virtue, he is more than a sovereign on earth. The light\nof God beams in him. Every attribute of the Deity has its corresponding\nrepresentation on earth; but in man alone can we find all the several\nvirtues bound, as it were, in a single volume. Each leaf that trembles to\nthe gale is a leaf of the works of the Creator.[185] O Jam\u00edla Khat\u00fan, man\nis a superior creature, and we are but his servants. What an honour it is\ntherefore to be allied to a superior.\u201d By such words Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 endeavoured\nto extinguish in the heart of her sister the hatred which she had for\nthe human race. \u201cThat is all very well,\u201d said Jam\u00edla, \u201cbut to a man my\ndaughter shall never be given.\u201d Thereupon Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 placed T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak\u2019s\nportrait in her hands, saying: \u201cTell me, if ever the pen of destiny has\ndrawn such a handsome face in the world. Make haste, then, to unite this\nlovely jasmine to that rose of beauty.\u201d At length Jam\u00edla consented to\nbestow her daughter on the prince, and Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 returned to Firdaus, and\nreported the result of her expedition.\n\nJam\u00edla related to her husband, F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h, the conversation she had\nwith her sister, and showed him the likeness of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, which he\nsent to Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, with the message that he was willing she should marry\nthe young prince of the East, since such was her desire. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed at\nonce recognised her dearly beloved, and felt that this change in the\nsentiments of her parents was due to R\u00fah-afz\u00e1. So she hastened to her\nfather, and said: \u201cSire, children ought to obey their parents, therefore\nI accept the husband whom you offer me. Were he a d\u00edv or an Abyssinian,\nI would consider him as one of the youths of paradise, or as the Moon of\nCanaan.\u201d[186] F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h at once gave orders to make preparations for the\nmarriage. All the houses were decorated with gold, and songs and dances\nresounded throughout the city. Letters of invitation were despatched\neverywhere; troops of fairies came to swell the festive gathering. The\nwine went gaily round,[187] and plates with cakes and sweets. F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h\ntreated all with princely hospitality. As the festivities began well, so\nthey ended. In the island of Firdaus the same arrangements were made by\nMuzaffar Sh\u00e1h and the same ceremonies performed.\n\nOn the day before the marriage orders were given to the am\u00edrs and vaz\u00edrs\nthat they should array themselves in the most brilliant garments. The\narmy was directed to be drawn out. Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 also adorned herself with the\nmost precious jewels, and her maids and attendants were as splendidly\ndecorated. At last, when the auspicious moment arrived,[188] they brought\nthe prince, arrayed in royal robes, and placed him on a throne of state.\nA gorgeous turban adorned his head, whence descended long folds of\nflowing cloth, richly embroidered with pearls and flowers. His neck was\nsurrounded with wreaths of valuable pearls, and his wrists encircled with\nthe precious _nauratan_.[189] He was then placed on a beautiful horse,\ncaparisoned in the richest fashion. Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h, with several other\nsovereigns, rode in the train. The palank\u00edns of the ladies followed.\nWhen the procession arrived at the palace of F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h he sent some of\nhis officers to conduct them to the reception room where the company had\nassembled. Jam\u00edla and Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 then came forward, the former as mother\nof the bride, the latter as fulfilling the same duty for the bridegroom.\nThe prince and princess were duly united in marriage, and congratulations\nresounded throughout the hall. Wines and sherbets were passed round\nabundantly. The singers only ceased their love-songs when sleep overtook\nthem, and then they reposed in each other\u2019s arms as on cushions.\n\nIn the morning, as the prince went to the bath, R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 came into the\nnuptial chamber and found Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed still asleep, and perceived on her\ncheeks the marks of the teeth of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak,[190] and on her bosom\nthe trace of his hands tinged with _mehnd\u00ed_.[191] Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h and\nHusn-\u00e1r\u00e1 soon took their leave of their relations and set out for\ntheir own country. Some time after, T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, with the consent of\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed, asked permission to quit the palace of F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h. In giving\nhis sanction, the king of the fairies presented the prince with a great\nnumber of slaves of both sexes, and, besides the dowry of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed,\nready money for the journey; and many articles of use and ornament were\nalso bestowed on him, a mere catalogue of the names of which would fill\na volume. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, attended with every pomp and magnificence, took\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed to his own palace. Dilbar and Mahm\u00fada on beholding him were\nrestored to joy, and the dry field of their hope was again refreshed\nwith the shower of gladness. The beauty and grace of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, however,\nfilled them with confusion, but the fairy tenderly embraced them both\nand assured them that she would never disturb their domestic happiness.\nThey spent their time in peace and mutual love and never had the least\njealousy or rivalry between themselves. The prince passed his days with\nthese rosy-lipped beauties, immersed in a sea of bliss.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\n BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd GOES TO THE COURT OF INDRA, WHERE SHE SINGS AND\n DANCES\u2014THE DEITY, ENRAGED AT HER LOVE FOR A HUMAN BEING,\n PRONOUNCES A CURSE UPON HER\u2014THE PRINCE GOES TO CEYLON, WHERE HE\n FINDS BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd CONFINED IN A TEMPLE, THE LOWER PART OF HER BODY\n BEING TURNED INTO MARBLE\u2014CHITRAWAT, THE DAUGHTER OF THE R\u00c1J\u00c1,\n FALLS IN LOVE WITH HIM, AND ON HIS DECLINING HER OVERTURES HE\n IS THROWN INTO PRISON.\n\n\nIndian writers say, that there was a city called Amarnagar, whose\ninhabitants were immortal, the king of which, named Indra,[192] passed\nhis days and nights in joyful festivities, and the food of his soul was\nsong and dancing. His sway extended over all the world of the jinn, and\nhis court was constantly attended by the par\u00eds, who danced before him.\nOne night Indra observed that Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, the daughter of F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h, had\nnot been present for some time, and demanded to know the reason. \u201cIt is,\u201d\nreplied one of the par\u00eds, \u201cbecause she has been caught in the net of love\nby a man, and, intoxicated with this passion, she is constantly with him\nand has no longer any dislike for his race.\u201d On hearing this Indra was\ngreatly enraged, and directed several fairies to bring her instantly. By\nan a\u00ebrial chariot they were carried to the garden of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, where\nthey awoke Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, told her of the wrath of Indra and intimated his\ncommand. She was therefore compelled to accompany them to Amarnagar, and,\ntrembling, came before the king, and with folded hands paid her dutiful\nrespects; but the king, casting on her a look of anger, reprimanded her\nwith great severity, and ordered that she should be thrown into the\nfire, so that her body might lose the odour which the contact with a\nmortal had imparted to it. The fairies put her accordingly into a furnace\nwhere she was reduced to ashes; after which they recited a charm over\na basin of water, and sprinkling it on the ashes restored her to life.\nThus purified, she came before Indra, and began to dance. With her first\nmotion, she trod upon the hearts of the spectators, and in one turn\nthrew the beholders out of themselves: every mouth applauded her, every\ntongue commended her. When she had ended, she saluted the assembly and\nreturned in the same chariot to her garden. After bathing in rose-water\nshe rejoined her lord. On the morrow she rose up according to her custom,\nand conducted herself all day in her usual manner till night came, when\nshe again ascended to the court of Indra to repeat the proceedings of\nthe preceding night; and thus she continued for some time, T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak\nsuspecting nothing.\n\nOne night, however, while she was at the court of Indra, the prince\nawoke, and finding her not by his side sought her in vain both on the\nterrace and in the garden. He went to sleep again, and, meanwhile,\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed returned and lay down on the marital couch. The prince was much\nastonished, on awaking in the morning, to find her by his side, but,\nfeigning to know nothing of her absence, he determined to discover the\nsecret. Before lying down on his couch next night, he cut his finger and\nput salt on the wound to prevent him from dropping asleep. At midnight\nthe flying chariot appeared, and just as Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed was about to mount\nit the prince, without being perceived, fastened himself firmly to one\nof the corners, and they were speedily at the gate of Indra. There the\nprince saw what he had never before seen as regards immortal beauties;\nand heard what he had never before heard with respect to musical sounds.\nBut when he beheld the terrible purification of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and saw her\nreduced to ashes, he could no longer contain himself, and struck his head\nwith both hands. Presently, boundless was his astonishment when he saw\nhis beloved rise up again from her ashes and advance towards Indra. As\nthe crowd was numerous, he followed her without attracting any attention.\nIt chanced that the musician attending Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed was very old, and could\nnot, from infirmity, perform his duties properly.[193] The prince\napproached the musician, and said in a whisper: \u201cIf you are tired with\nplaying, I will take your place for a short time with much pleasure,\nas I am considered skilful in this exercise.\u201d The old man accepted\nthe proposal and handed him the instrument. No sooner had the prince\nstruck the first note than the movements of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed grew animated and\nravishing. Indra was so delighted that he took from his neck a collar, of\nthe value of nine lakhs of rup\u00eds, and cast it before Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, who, in a\nretrograde movement, gave it in charge of the clever musician. When the\nfestivities were over Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed returned home, and went as usual to bathe\nin the tank of rose-water. Meanwhile T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak gained his couch and\nfeigned to be fast asleep.\n\nWhen morning dawned the prince related to Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed his adventure of the\nprevious night, confirming the truth of his narrative by showing her\nthe necklace of Indra. She expressed her fears lest a repetition of the\nadventure should cause them distress, but said she would that night try\nher fate by taking him with her. Accordingly the prince accompanied her\nto the court of Indra, and was presented by her to the king as a skilled\nmusician; and as soon as the prince began to play and Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed to dance,\nthe assembly were overcome with astonishment, and Indra exclaimed: \u201cAsk\nwhat thou desirest, and I will give it to thee.\u201d[194] Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed replied:\n\u201cGreat king, I am in want of nothing, save that you will give me this\nmusician and let me go.\u201d At these words Indra, in anger, and regarding\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed as a courtesan, said that as he had given his word he must not\ndraw back from it; but for twelve years the lower half of her body should\nbe of marble.[195]\n\n Fate, alas! ordaineth still,\n Grief and joy are twin-born here:\n Now \u2019tis spring with laughing flowers,\n Now \u2019tis autumn bleak and sere!\n A crown adorns the head to-day,\n In the grave it lies to-morrow!\n Now like flowers the heart expands,\n Now \u2019tis spotted all with sorrow!\n Pleasures vanish fast away,\n Short-lived is the sunny day!\n\nIt is related that Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed immediately after her transformation\ndisappeared, and T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak rolled on the ground through excess of\ngrief; but the fairies, pitying his condition, took him up and cast him\nin a forest on earth. For three days he remained there without sense\nor motion. On the fourth he opened his eyes, and found, instead of his\nbeloved, nothing but thorns in his arms. He wandered on every side,\ncalling upon Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and asking every tree to direct him to her. One\nday he arrived on the banks of a pond. Beautiful stairs were on each side\nand trees loaded with fruits were planted everywhere. The prince waited\nfor a moment, then bathed, and laid himself down under the shade of a\ntree, and thinking of his beloved he fell asleep. It happened that a\nnumber of fairies alighted there, and after bathing in the pond, sat down\nto dry their hair. The eyes of one falling on the prince, she observed\nto her companions: \u201cThere is the musician of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed.\u201d The moment that\nthese words were heard by T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak he opened his eyes, arose, came\nbefore the fairies, and, weeping, inquired if they knew where Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\nwas. Their hearts melted within them. They said they had not seen her,\nbut had heard that she was in a temple in Ceylon, the gates of which\nremained closed during the day and were open during the night; adding\nthat Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\u2019s body was changed to stone from her waist downward. The\nprince inquired in what direction was her present abode, and how far it\nwas from the place where they were standing. They answered: \u201cLeaving out\nthe inconvenience of travel, if a person were to journey all his life he\nwould never reach it.\u201d T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak despaired on hearing this, and then,\nbidding adieu to life, commenced dashing his head against the stones. The\nfairies, compassionating his case, consulted among themselves, with a\nview of devising such measures as would enable them to carry him to the\ndesired quarter, and there leave him to the fate that might befall him.\nThey removed him instantly, and, in the saying of a word, placed him in\nthe land of Ceylon.\n\nAfter a moment his despair was somehow cheered with hope. He gazed upon\na city which rivalled Paradise in loveliness, surrounded as it was with\nevery surprising object. Not one of the men or women appeared to be\nugly there. Nay, the very trees were so symmetrical as to strike the\nbeholder with wonder. Rambling about, he at last found himself in the\npublic thoroughfare, where he met a Br\u00e1hman, who was a devotee. Of him\nhe inquired: \u201cIn what shrines do you offer up your prayers?\u201d The Br\u00e1hman\nanswered: \u201cIn that of R\u00e1j\u00e1 Chitrasan,[196] who governs this country.\u201d The\nprince next asked: \u201cHow many temples are there in this city?\u201d The Br\u00e1hman\nsatisfied his inquiries, and then added, that lately a new temple had\nbeen discovered in the south, the doors of which were never opened during\nthe day, and no one knew what it contained. The prince was delighted at\nthis intelligence, and took his way as pointed out, until he reached\nthe building and sat down patiently. In the night one of its doors\nsuddenly opened. He entered and found Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed half in her original form\nand half petrified, reclining against the wall. On beholding him she\nwas much astonished, and inquired how he had come thither. The prince\ngave a faithful account of his adventures. The night was then passed\nin conversation. And when morning was about to dawn Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed bade him\ndepart, \u201cfor,\u201d said she, \u201cif the sunbeams find you here you will be\nchanged into a shape like mine.\u201d She then pulled out a pearl from her\nearring and gave it to the prince, and desired him to sell it and use the\nproceeds for his own subsistence for a few days. The prince took it to\nthe city and sold it for some thousands of rup\u00eds. He then bought a house,\nand having furnished it, engaged a number of servants. It was usual with\nhim to pass his nights with Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed and return home in the morning, and\nthus several years rolled away.\n\nIn the meantime the prince had become acquainted with many of the\ninhabitants, who generally undertook to escort him through the city. In\none of his walks he came upon a party of naked creatures, on whom every\nmark of poverty was visible. He observed that these men, although in the\ngarb of beggars, had still some tokens of nobility in their features,\nand inquired: \u201cWhat may be the cause of this?\u201d His friends answered that\nsome of those individuals were actually princes, and some the sons of\nnobles, but they were all the victims of love.[197] \u201cThe R\u00e1j\u00e1 Chitrasan\nhas a daughter named Chitrawat,[198] who is as bright as the moon\u2014nay,\nmore, she is a star in the heaven of loveliness. Amongst women she is\nperfectly unrivalled. Grace is visible in her steps and magic in her\neyes.[199] Thousands die before her arching eyebrows, and hundreds of\nthousands are entrapped in her raven tresses: those tresses that are\ndarker than night\u2014nay, darker than the fate of her lovers. Her eyes teem\nwith nectar and poison. In one moment they can kill, in another, restore\nto life. In her love there is nothing but suffering, sorrow, and loss of\nreputation.[200] In brief, she is really a fairy, whose charms enslave\nboth infidels and Muslims. But what is worse, she has two companions\nwhose beauty has also wrecked the peace of many. One is the daughter of\na betel-seller[201] and is called Nirmal\u00e1;[202] the other is the child of\na gardener and is called Chapal\u00e1.[203] All three are sincerely attached\nto each other. Sitting or rising, in all concerns of life, they are\ninseparable companions. Moreover, each is at liberty to choose her own\nhusband. But hitherto none has proved so fortunate as to be honoured with\nthe favour of either of those beauties.\u201d\n\nSome time after this the prince found himself under the balcony of\nthe Princess Chitrawat, and beheld thousands gazing longingly on her\nbright features, even as the bulbul regards the blushing beauties of\nthe rose. Like maniacs, they were blubbering amongst themselves, while\nshe, the proud beauty, sat on her balcony exulting at the view of their\nsufferings. It was at this moment that T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak appeared. Their\neyes met. The shaft of love passed at once through her heart. She was\nwounded. Her patience was lost, and sense forsook her for the time.\nDown she fell, and her attendants ran and lifted her up. They sprinkled\nrose-water on her face, put a scent-bottle to her nostrils, and she\npresently revived. She was, however, still motionless and speechless,\nand although several inquired the cause of her indisposition, she\nreturned not a word in answer, but continued gazing steadfastly in the\nsame direction. Then it was that Nirmal\u00e1 looked down from the window\nand discovered the prince; and after hearing all the circumstances of\nthe case from Chitrawat, comforted her friend thus: \u201cO princess, your\nsufferings distract me, and make me lose my equanimity. Why are you\nanxious? Your father has already made you mistress of your own hand, and\nit depends upon your choice to marry any one you may love. Be comforted:\nthe youth on the black charger shall be thine, though he should be even\nan angel. Depend on me; I will entrap him in such a way that escape\nwill be altogether impossible.\u201d She then deputed a female go-between to\nundertake the work.\n\nBoldly did this woman come forward, and seizing the reins of the prince\u2019s\nhorse, \u201cKnowest thou,\u201d she asked him, \u201cthat the poor are sacrificed and\nlovers impaled here? The fair lady of this palace can bind the hearts\nof all in her glossy tresses, and at one glance cast them dead upon\nthe earth. Whence is thy boldness, that thou castest thy glance on the\nmansions of kings? Art thou a spark able to melt the hearts of the fair\nones, and to dissolve their stony nature? Whence art thou? What country\ndost thou inhabit? Where is thy native land? And what is thy family?\u201d T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak at once divined that she was sent by some one, and answered:\n\u201cSilence! Do not re-open my wounds. My native land is brighter than the\nsun, and the name of it is known to emperors. Tell the person who has\ndeputed you, not to cast a glance on such a distressed traveller as\nmyself, nor harbour any thoughts in her heart that may have the slightest\nreference to love:\n\n Go to him who will approve thee;\n Love him only who can love thee.\u201d\n\nThe artful go-between then ascertained that he was a prince of the East,\nthat his name was T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, and that his connections were high. These\nparticulars she communicated to Chitrawat.\n\nAfter this the prince frequently passed along the same road, so that\nhe might have an opportunity of looking up at the balcony. Even as the\nmoon wanes from her fourteenth night, so did the health and spirits of\nthe princess, who pined inwardly for him. She tried long to keep the\nsecret to herself, but her attempt was in vain. In a few days even her\nparents came to know of her sufferings. Her father, the king, employed\nan accomplished dame to repair to T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, and try all her arts\nto bring about a marriage between him and his daughter; at all events,\nto endeavour by every means to gain his heart. The woman faithfully\nperformed her mission and dwelt long on commendations of the charms of\nthe princess. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak returned his respects to the king, and said\nthat he was a wanderer from his country, that he had exchanged the robes\nof royalty for the troubles of travelling, and that he had alienated\nhimself from relations and friends; therefore, to propose an alliance\nwith him was like tracing figures on water and tying the wind in a napkin.\n\nWhen this message was delivered to the r\u00e1j\u00e1 it made him sadly thoughtful,\nand drove him to ask counsel of his minister, who assured him that it\nwas not a difficult matter for the king to bring a houseless stranger\ninto subjection. He even offered to undertake such measures as should\nultimately entrap him; and his plan was to bring a charge of theft\nagainst the prince. Now it so happened that the pecuniary resources\nof T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak were altogether exhausted, and, as he was purposing\napplying to Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, he recollected the jewel which he had taken from\nthe serpent and concealed in his thigh.[204] He sent for a surgeon and\nhad the jewel taken out, afterwards curing the wound by means of his\nwonderful ointment. When he had fully recovered, he took the gem to the\nbaz\u00e1r; but every jeweller was struck with surprise, and declared himself\nunable to pay the price. They informed the vaz\u00edr that a stranger had\ncome into the city, wishing to dispose of a jewel which none but the\nking could purchase. The minister on hearing this caused the stranger\nto be arrested and brought before him, and knowing him to be the prince\nwith whom Chitrawat was in love, he lost no time in bringing a charge of\nrobbery against him and committing him to prison. He then told the king\nthat the bird that had flown away from the cage was ensnared again, and\nwould doubtless comply with the wishes of the sovereign.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\n THE PRINCE IS MARRIED TO CHITRAWAT, BUT, VISITING BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd\n EVERY NIGHT, HIS NEW BRIDE COMPLAINS TO HER FATHER OF HIS\n INDIFFERENCE, AND THE R\u00c1J\u00c1 SENDS SPIES TO DOG HIS STEPS\u2014THE\n TEMPLE IS DISCOVERED AND RAZED TO THE GROUND, AND THE PRINCE IS\n IN DESPAIR.\n\n\nR\u00e1j\u00e1 Chitrasan used every endeavour to make the prince suffer all the\nwoes of imprisonment to compel him to marry his daughter; but what\ncaused the greatest pang in the heart of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak was his absence\nfrom Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed. Night and day he wailed and dashed his head against the\nwalls and door, till at length the gaoler informed the king that the new\nprisoner was suffering much, and if not soon released would certainly\ndie, and his blood would be on the king\u2019s head. To this the king answered\nnot a word, but sending for his daughter desired her to go to the prison\nand cast the shadow of her bright face on the prince. \u201cPerhaps,\u201d said\nhe, \u201clike the moth, he may flutter in the lustre of your beauty, and his\npride be reduced to ashes.\u201d\n\nChitrawat received these instructions with delight. She adorned herself\nwith all care, and thus heightened the effect of all her natural\ncharms, and attended by Nirmal\u00e1 and Chapal\u00e1, like the moon with Venus\nand Mercury in her train, she proceeded to the prison. On entering,\nthis Zulaykh\u00e1 encountered her lover, whose beauty was still equal to\nthat of Joseph.[205] In all her loveliness she stood before him. Her\nteeth glittered like pearls of the purest water, and the redness of her\nlips would have shamed the blushing ruby. Her neck shone with silvery\nwhiteness. As she moved, the richest odours were diffused from her\ngarments, and _\u2019itr_[206] breathed around her person. Her almond eyes\nwere enchanting to behold, and her amber cheeks spread fragrance far and\nnear. The dimples on her chin attracted the hearts of all beholders; but\nvirgin modesty forbade her to expose to view the pomegranates of her\nbreasts. Nothing, however, would attract the notice of the prince. In a\nword, when Chitrawat found that the magic of her eyes and the fascination\nof her brow had no effect upon the heart of the prince, she fell before\nhim and struggled with her sufferings. Then it was that the prince felt\npity and drew her to his arms, and consented to marry her, for he saw\nthat unless he did so there was no chance of his release.\n\nNirmal\u00e1 communicated the happy intelligence to the r\u00e1j\u00e1, and informed him\nthat the princess had returned home successful in the object she had in\nview. The r\u00e1j\u00e1 immediately ordered the liberation of the prince, caused\nhim to be taken to a splendid bath and arrayed in royal garments, after\nwhich he appointed a mansion for his use. In an auspicious hour he joined\nhim and his daughter in wedlock according to the rites and ceremonies of\nthe country. When T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak entered the chamber of Chitrawat, he found\nNirmal\u00e1 and Chapal\u00e1 in attendance. They received him with great warmth,\nwhich was not returned by the prince.\n\nWhen a quarter of the night was over, he rose from the nuptial couch, and\ntook his way towards Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\u2019s temple, where that fairy, not having seen\nhim for some time, was longing for his return. As soon as her eyes fell\non the prince her heart rejoiced, but the moment she saw his hands and\nfeet tinged with the hue of myrtle, her jasmine-like face reddened with\nanger.[207] \u201cWell, prince,\u201d said she, in a taunting manner, \u201cyou have\ncome at last; but what a fashion you have adopted! You have drowned the\nname of lover, and shamed the character of faith on earth. Henceforward\nnever dare to love, or proclaim yourself a lover. What hast thou done,\nO cruel one? Is this thy gratitude, that, while I am changed to a stone\nhere, thy fingers boast the redness of the myrtle? Whilst I pine here in\nloneliness, thou reposest on the couch of luxury; and while my heart is\nbreaking for thee, thou enjoyest pleasures with some other rosy-coloured\ndamsel! While I die here for thee, how canst thou be happy, O T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak?\u201d\n\nOn hearing these words the prince expressed the sincerest regret, and\nanswered: \u201cBeloved, whither are your thoughts wandering? Although I am\na famous prince, yet I regard myself as your slave\u2014all that is mine is\nalso thine. From the day when I first beheld you, nothing has pleased me\nso much as the sight of your charms. Friends, luxuries, mirth, music, my\nmind disowns them all alike, being constantly fixed on you. And since I\nam entirely your own, how can I be attracted by the beauty of others?\nDo not mistrust me: my love is too sincere to suffer any change, and\nthe allegiance I owe you can never be turned aside. I can never have any\nconcern with others when I have placed life and death in your hands.\nBut what could I do? I was powerless and in prison. I had no intention\nwhatever of marrying another, but had I not done so, there was no hope of\nrelease. If I had not complied with the wish of another, how could I have\nseen you again? I should have died in confinement, and you would have\nremained pining in this temple. Hence I married.\u201d[208]\n\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed replied in wrath: \u201cWhy have recourse to such falsehoods? Can\nany one be married by compulsion? It is sufficient: I have examined your\nfaith and love. May you be happy! I will remain content with my misery,\nknowing well that in the day of distress none but God is our friend.\u201d\nWith a breaking heart did the prince hear these words. He heaved a deep\nsigh and wept. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed could not endure this; she joined him in tears,\nand both continued sobbing for some time. At last the prince fell at her\nfeet and she raised and embraced him. \u201cI am not seriously angry with\nyou,\u201d she said; \u201call that I have spoken was but to try your fidelity. I\nam happy in your happiness, and am the last person to be indignant with\nyou.\u201d In this way they went on, till the prince explained how he was\ncompelled to marry Chitrawat, and at length succeeded in dispelling all\nsuspicions from her mind.[209] When morning dawned he returned home, and\ntook his place beside his new bride.\n\nThus night after night the prince passed with Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and the day in\nconversation with Chitrawat, who was naturally very much out of temper at\nsuch conduct. She wondered how it was that her own charms had no effect\non the heart of her husband, and ultimately complained to her father of\nthe ungracious manner in which she was treated by the prince. Spies were\nappointed by the king to watch the nocturnal movements of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak.\nThey discovered him wending his way to the temple of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, where he\npassed the night, and whence he returned at early dawn. When the king was\ninformed of this, he caused the temple to be demolished and the stones\ncast into an adjacent stream. On the following night, T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, as\nusual, went to visit Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and finding no vestige of the temple, he\nrolled on the ground and exclaimed:\n\n \u201cIf I of thee a trace could find,\n To that spot I\u2019d willing go;\n But I\u2019m powerless: if the earth\n Would open wide, I\u2019d sink below!\u201d\n\nAt length, overcome by despair, he gave free vent to his tears, and\nfinally returned home. For some days sorrow and hopelessness were his\ninseparable companions; but when he became convinced that another\nmeeting with Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed could never take place, and that his grief was\nof no avail, he turned his attention to the enchanting conversation of\nChitrawat, and then it was that the buds of her hopes expanded, touched\nby the zephyr of his love, and the shell of her desire was made fragrant\nwith the pearls of his affection.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\n BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd IS RE-BORN IN THE HOUSE OF A FARMER\u2014WHEN SHE IS OF\n MARRIAGEABLE AGE THE PRINCE AND CHITRAWAT MEET HER AND THEY\n ALL THREE PROCEED TO HIS OWN COUNTRY, WHERE HE IS WELCOMED\n AFFECTIONATELY BY DILMAR AND MAHMUDA\u2014BAHRAM, THE SON OF ZAYN\n UL-MULUK\u2019S VAZ\u00cdR, FALLS IN LOVE WITH RUH-AFZA, THE COUSIN OF\n BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd.\n\n\nThey say that the ground on which the temple of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed once stood\nwas tilled by a farmer, who sowed it with mustard-seed. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak\noften repaired thither to gaze upon the fields, which were spread with\ncarpets of the richest verdure. When the plants emerged from the soil and\nblossomed the prince visited the fields each morning and evening, and\nthus addressed them:\n\n \u201cFlowers of the field! how fare ye here?\n Love\u2019s fragrance in your bloom I find;\n From earth emerging ye appear\u2014\n Say, where\u2019s the charmer of my mind?\u201d\n\nIn due time the mustard-plants ripened, and the farmer reaped his crop\nand put it in the oil press. Peasants are generally accustomed to try\nthe first fruits of their fields themselves. Hence it happened that the\nfarmer\u2019s wife, partaking of a dish prepared with the oil thus produced,\nbecame pregnant, although she had hitherto been sterile. In due course\nshe gave birth to a fairy-faced daughter, whose presence illumined the\nheretofore dark abode of the farmer. It was soon noised abroad that\na hitherto sterile woman had brought forth a fair daughter through\nthe virtue of some mustard oil. As for the infant, the neighbours all\ndeclared that, while even now the splendour of her countenance eclipsed\nthat of the moon, when she should have reached her fourteenth year it\nwould excel the glory of the sun itself.\n\nWhen T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak heard of this wonderful occurrence, he summoned the\nfarmer and his babe to his presence; and the moment he cast his eyes upon\nthe latter, he recognised the features of his beloved, and was convinced\nthat Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed had been thus re-born in the farmer\u2019s humble abode.[210]\nHe gave the farmer a large sum of money and desired him to bring up the\ninfant with every possible care. When she was seven years of age, many\nwere the applications made for her hand in marriage; but the farmer,\nremembering that the prince had shown a deep interest in her welfare,\nknew not how to decide. To all he replied that when the girl came to\nbe of marriageable age, she should have free permission to choose her\nhusband. When she was on the verge of her tenth year,[211] T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak\nsent a messenger to her father, demanding the hand of his daughter in\nmarriage. The farmer trembled when he heard this, saying: \u201cHow can a poor\nfarmer dare to make the king\u2019s son-in-law the husband of his daughter?\nShould I even do so, the result must be that her position will be that\nof a slave; and I cannot think of such a fate for my lovely child.\u201d When\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed heard him thus soliloquise, \u201cFather,\u201d said she, \u201chear me. My\nname is Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and I am a fairy. Do not be anxious on my account; for\nthe rose is always destined to grace the head, and the pearl to adorn\nthe princely diadem. In answer, desire the prince to wait for a few days\nmore.\u201d The messenger of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak returned and gave him an account of\nall that he had heard. The prince was highly delighted; his sorrows all\nvanished. He rewarded the messenger and dismissed him.\n\nThe dark days of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed having passed away, troops of fairies now came\nto visit her, and with them Saman-r\u00fa, enrobed with richly-embroidered\ngarments, and glittering with jewels, and seated on a golden throne.\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed changed her dress, put on her ornaments, and when all was ready\nshe addressed her father, saying: \u201cHitherto I have been your guest; now\nI am about to depart.\u201d She then led him behind the house, and pointed\nout a spot which contained hidden treasures under ground. Then she left\nhim, and ascending the throne, guided by her attendant fairies, alighted\nin the mansion where T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak was sitting in company of Chitrawat,\nNirmal\u00e1, and Chapal\u00e1. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed entered the chamber alone. On approaching\nChitrawat she embraced her with sisterly affection. Chitrawat was so\nmuch struck with the beauty of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed that she sank on her sofa quite\nexhausted. Then Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed recounted her adventures to T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, and\nheard his in return. She asked Chitrawat if her heart still glowed with\nlove for the prince, \u201cbecause, if so, my house is yours.\u201d Chitrawat\nreplied: \u201cI live only in the prince; and when he departs, how can I\ncontinue to live? I am ready to go with you.\u201d\n\nOn a sign from Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, her attendants made themselves visible; and it\nis related that when they appeared, Ceylon was so densely filled that no\nspace of four fingers\u2019 breadth even was left unoccupied:[212] confusion\nreigned throughout the city. Even the king was dismayed, and sought the\nshelter of his palace. The moment he entered T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak rose to greet\nhim. He went a few steps in advance, and led the king to a seat on his\nown throne. He then gave him a detailed history of his love for Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed.\nFor some time the king seemed much distressed; but at length signs of joy\nwere visible in his countenance, and rising from his seat he placed the\nhands of his daughter into those of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, saying: \u201cI trust my only\nchild to you; not, indeed, as a rival, but as a slave. My only hope is,\nthat you will not withhold your kindness from one who is bound to regard\nyou as her superior.\u201d He then gave them leave to depart.\n\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak ascended the fairy throne; Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed and Chitrawat sat on\neither side of him; while Nirmal\u00e1 and Chapal\u00e1 stood respectfully before\nthem. In a moment the throne alighted on the threshold of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak\u2019s\npalace, and the two princesses entered. Bahr\u00e1m,[213] the son of the\nminister of Zayn-ul-Mul\u00fak, who had been left in charge of the palace and\ngardens of the prince, came forth to welcome his master and mistress\nhome. T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak received him graciously, accepted his presents,[214]\nand rewarded him with a robe of honour. He then entered the palace, and\nwas received with the utmost delight by Mahm\u00fada and Dilbar, with whom, as\nwell as with Chitrawat and Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, the stream of life glided through\npeace and tranquility.\n\n * * * * *\n\nHistorians relate that T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak addressed letters to F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h,\nMuzaffar Sh\u00e1h, and his father, communicating to them the happy\nintelligence of his return. The perusal of these letters afforded much\npleasure to the recipients, who forthwith set out to meet him. F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h\nand Jam\u00edla Khat\u00fan set out for the East attended by splendid equipages.\nMuzaffar Sh\u00e1h and Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 followed their example. Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak, with\nhis lawful wife for his companion, and his army preceding him, went after\nthe other princes to the country of Nigh\u00e1r\u00edn,[215] which they reached\nin a few days. They observed that its vicinity was so crowded with men\nand fairies that there was not sufficient space left to plant a seed of\nsesamum even.[216] T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak and Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed were highly delighted to\nreceive their guests. Sorrow departed from the heart of each. Nought\nwas heard but songs and music\u2014nought was seen save dancing and mirth.\nWith the fourth day the feast ended, and the princes departed, highly\npleased with the hospitality of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak. But Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed prevailed upon\nR\u00fah-afz\u00e1 to remain with her a few days longer, and a carnelian room was\nset apart for her sleeping chamber.\n\nIt happened one night, when R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 was sleeping near the window, that\nher flowing locks descended therefrom, and a bright gem was glittering\nin one of the ribbons that tied her tresses. At that time Bahr\u00e1m was\nroving about, enjoying the moonlight scene. As he approached the window,\nhis eyes fell on the gem glittering there. He thought that a dragon was\nholding his jewel in his mouth.[217] But on looking more attentively,\nhe perceived that it was a ruby glittering in a lock of hair which\nhad escaped from the window. He then supposed that the room must be\noccupied by Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and that the lock of hair was hers. All that\nnight he knew no rest. When morning dawned he could restrain himself\nno longer. He asked Saman-r\u00fa whose chamber that was, and she told him\nit was R\u00fah-afz\u00e1\u2019s. The moment he heard this the fire of love blazed in\nhis heart, and maniac-like he wandered to and fro. The next midnight he\nwatched for an opportunity, applied a scaling-ladder to the window,\nand entered the chamber. There he saw the rival of Venus sleeping\ngracefully on a golden bed. Beholding this, he became senseless, like\none intoxicated, and as he was yet a stranger to the pleasure which\nwas now stealing through his veins, incontinently he threw himself on\nthe bed, embraced the fairy and kissed her rapturously. That instant\nR\u00fah-afz\u00e1 started up and found that the intruder was Bahr\u00e1m; and though\nshe secretly loved him, she was displeased at this breach of the rules of\ndecency. She pretended to be highly offended and slapped him till he was\nfairly pushed out of the window, and Bahr\u00e1m retired weeping to his own\napartment.\n\nNext morning R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 begged permission of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed to depart: and\nalthough the latter endeavoured to persuade her to prolong her visit,\nshe was resolute, for she was well aware that if Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed came to know\nof the incident of the last night, she would laugh at her and plague her\nwith her sarcastic remarks. At length she bade adieu to her fair hostess,\nand set out for the island of Firdaus. But love accompanied her; for her\nthoughts were only of Bahr\u00e1m. No comfort came to her by day, and no rest\nthrough the live-long night. Her eyes were always moist with tears, and\nthe sim\u00fam of grief withered the bloom of her cheeks.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\n BAHRAM IS LONG LOVE-SICK, BUT BY THE HELP OF TWO SYMPATHISING\n FAIRY DAMSELS IS FINALLY UNITED TO THE BEAUTIFUL RUH-AFZA, AND\n ALL ENDS HAPPILY.\n\n\nMeanwhile Bahr\u00e1m became thinner and thinner every day; but Saman-r\u00fa alone\nknew the cause. She was constantly advising him to chase away from his\nheart that love for a person of another race, which could only render\nhim unhappy. \u201cThe example,\u201d said she, \u201cof the perfect union which exists\nbetween T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak and Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed should not lead you astray. It is a\nhappy exception. But it is contrary to the nature of things for a human\nbeing to join himself to one of etherial substance.\u201d These words made\nno impression on the mind of Bahr\u00e1m, and when she saw that the thorn of\nlove had pierced so deeply into his heart that it was hopeless to attempt\nits extraction, she declared that all she could do was to conduct him to\nFirdaus. Bahr\u00e1m eagerly accepted this offer, and Saman-r\u00fa then clothed\nhim in women\u2019s apparel, which suited him well, as he was yet beardless,\nand carried him through the air to Firdaus, to the house of her sister,\ncalled Banafsh\u00e1,[218] who was hair-dresser to R\u00fah-afz\u00e1. The latter was\ndelighted at seeing Saman-r\u00fa, and at once asked who was the young lady\nwhom she had brought with her. \u201cShe is one of my friends,\u201d said she,\n\u201cwho desires to see this country. I have taken the liberty of bringing\nher to you, in hopes that you will be so good as to show her all the\nsights.\u201d \u201cCertainly,\u201d said Banafsh\u00e1; \u201cI am willing to do anything that\nmight please you.\u201d After this Saman-r\u00fa returned to Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and Bahr\u00e1m\nremained in the house of Banafsh\u00e1, who showed her every kindness, led\nher each day into a different garden, and pointed out everything worth\nseeing; in the evening she discharged her duties as hair-dresser to\nR\u00fah-afz\u00e1.\n\nOne evening Banafsh\u00e1 presented Bahr\u00e1m to her young mistress, as a friend\nof Saman-r\u00fa. She at once recognised Bahr\u00e1m, in spite of his disguise, but\ndissembled so well that he believed she did not know him. She induced\nBanafsh\u00e1 to leave the young person with her. Therefore she withdrew and\nBahr\u00e1m remained with his mistress. And when the Eternal Designer of the\naffairs of this world had illumed the earth with the clear light of the\nmoon, R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 led Bahr\u00e1m into her private chamber, and said: \u201cWhat is\nyour name, madam?\u201d He replied: \u201cI have had no name for a long time: I\nonly know yours.\u201d \u201cWhy have you come here?\u201d \u201cAsk the taper: it will\ntell you why the moth throws itself into the flame.\u201d These pleasant\nwords gratified R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, but, affecting a severe countenance, she\nsaid: \u201cYou are deceiving me; for I observe from your words that you are\nnot a woman. You have entered here by false pretences, and have thus\nexposed my honour to the wind. Say, yourself, what punishment does such\nhardihood deserve?\u201d Poor Bahr\u00e1m, who was quite ignorant of the artifices\nof coquetry, and remembered the hard blows of his mistress on a former\noccasion, thought that she was about to strike him again and drive him\nfrom her presence. He trembled through fear and repeated these verses:\n\n \u201cKill me; for better \u2019tis to die before\n Thy sight, than live to suffer more and more.\u201d\n\nThen he fell down quite unconscious, and R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, not being able to\ncarry her feigned severity farther, ran up to him, put his head on her\nknees, showered kisses on him, and by the sweet perfume of her breath\nbrought back his senses.\n\nWhen Bahr\u00e1m opened his eyes he perceived that he had assumed the _r\u00f4le_\nof the Rose and R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 that of the Nightingale.[219] Soon did he forget\nhis former vexations. R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, who was violently in love with him,\ndid not wish him to leave her, so to conceal him from the looks of the\nmalicious she fastened round his neck a talisman which changed him into\na bird.[220] In this form she kept him in a golden cage, which was hung\nup before her eyes during the day, but at night she caused him to come\nout, and restored him to his proper shape. This continued for some time;\nbut, as the Hind\u00fa proverb says, \u201clove and musk cannot be long hidden\u201d;\nand Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 began to suspect that all was not as it should be with her\ndaughter. One morning, at daybreak, she went to her daughter\u2019s chamber,\nand beating her, exclaimed: \u201cYou have drowned yourself in a vase full of\nwater! You are lost to all shame! You have disgraced the name of your\nfather! Let me at least know the name of your audacious accomplice,\nelse I will strangle you with my own hands!\u201d These violent words caused\nR\u00fah-afz\u00e1 to tremble. \u201cDispel, my dear mother,\u201d said she, \u201cyour vain\ndream. I have never seen a mortal but at a distance. Should a kind\nmother believe the gossiping reports of strangers?\u201d But in spite of her\nmost vehement protestations, her mother believed her not; she insisted\nthat the ravisher who was in the house should be seized and punished\nas he deserved. By her order cunning spies were employed to search for\nBahr\u00e1m\u2014in the earth, the air, and the sea, but without success: they\nwere all ignorant of the secret of the golden cage.[221] Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1,\ndespairing at the failure of her spies, scolded her daughter\u2019s maids, and\nthreatened them with the wrath of Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h; whereupon one of them,\ncalled Gul-rukh,[222] pointed out the mysterious cage, saying that she\nhad often observed R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, both night and day, caressing the dove which\nwas shut up in it;\u2014might it not be surmised that there was some secret\nin that circumstance? Immediately Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 proceeded to her daughter\u2019s\nchamber and seized hold of the cage. R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, with horror and dismay,\nsaw her beloved bird in the talons of the falcon; but, trembling for\nherself, she dared not utter a word, still less could she snatch it out\nof the hands of the fowler of destiny. Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1 carried the cage to her\nhusband, who drew out the bird, and felt its wings and all its feathers\nto see if he could discover any talisman. At last he found what was on\nthe bird\u2019s neck, and on removing it, Bahr\u00e1m appeared before him in his\nnatural form. The attendants were greatly astonished, and Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h,\nwild with passion, said to Bahr\u00e1m: \u201cWicked wretch! fear you not my anger?\nDeath alone can punish thy audacity!\u201d \u201cSire,\u201d replied Bahr\u00e1m, \u201cI fear not\ndeath; but I shall deeply regret my beloved mistress in leaving life;\nand even in my grave a stream of blood will flow from my eyes.\u201d[223] The\nanger of Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h, far from being appeased by these words, increased\nto such a height that he gave orders to his people to go outside the city\nand throw Bahr\u00e1m into the fire, so that he should be reduced to ashes.\n\nBy good fortune, T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak and Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed were at that moment walking\ntogether in the garden of Iram, and as they were not far from\nJaz\u00edna-Firdaus, they determined to visit R\u00fah-afz\u00e1. On going thither they\npassed the very spot where Bahr\u00e1m was about to be burnt. He was already\non the fatal pyre, with the flames surrounding him. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, seeing the\npyre and the great crowd around it, ordered her chariot to draw near and\ncried out: \u201cExtinguish the fire and bring that young man to me. I shall\ncause a thousand of you to be put to death, if you do not\u2014ay, and raze\nall your houses to the ground!\u201d These threats greatly disconcerted the\nofficials, so they put out the fire and led Bahr\u00e1m before the princess,\nwho made him enter her chariot, and conducted him into a quiet garden,\nwhere leaving him with T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, she then proceeded to visit Muzaffar\nSh\u00e1h and Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1, who received her with the greatest kindness, and after\nembracing her, inquired the occasion of her visit. \u201cIt is mere chance,\u201d\nsaid she, \u201cwhich brings me to you; but I have seen on my way hither an\nincident which caused me great pain: some of your people were about to\nburn the son of my father-in-law\u2019s vaz\u00edr, and, but for my interference,\nhe would ere this have been reduced to ashes. Why did you dream of giving\nsuch instructions? Would his death change anything that has occurred?\nWould it efface the _tika_[224] of slander? Supposing a hundred persons\nalready know of the adventure of R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, presently it will be known\nto thousands. What you should rather do is pardon Bahr\u00e1m his fault, and\nmarry him to your daughter; for he is full of spirit and of a handsome\nappearance. If you despise human nature so much, why did you marry me to\nT\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak? Is there any difference between your daughter and me?\u201d\n\nMuzaffar Sh\u00e1h bent his head on hearing this remonstrance, and said he\nwould think over it. Then Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed went in search of R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 and found\nher in tears; but patting her on the head she said smilingly: \u201cYou have\ncried enough; wash yourself, change your dress, and come forth from your\ncell. I have brought back your lover, safe and sound, and hope that you\nwill soon be married.\u201d R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 thanked Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed and embraced her most\naffectionately, and the cousins remained together all night.[225] On the\nmorrow Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed led R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 before her parents to be reconciled to them,\nafter which she set out with T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak and Bahr\u00e1m for Jaz\u00edra-i Iram.\nShe related to her father and mother the story of R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 and Bahr\u00e1m,\nand persuaded them to do for the latter, without loss of time, what her\nuncle had done for T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak. They agreed, and, having clothed Bahr\u00e1m\nin royal robes, proceeded in great state to Firdaus, where suitable\narrangements had been made to receive the marriage procession, which soon\narrived at the palace of Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h. The wedding guests were conducted\ninto the reception room, where dance and music continued the whole night.\nAfter the ceremony of the collar and betel, they brought the bridegroom\ninto the interior of the palace, in order to accomplish the formalities\nwhich still remained to be performed. Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed behaved towards Bahr\u00e1m\nas though she had been his sister. She held for him the Kur\u00e1n and the\nlooking-glass, and made him drink the cup half-emptied by R\u00fah-afz\u00e1.[226]\nWhen all these ceremonies had been performed, Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h and Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1\ngave to their daughter, on the day of separation, a considerable dowry,\ngreat quantity of ready money as well as jewels and slaves. F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h\nand T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak at the head of the nuptial procession returned to\nJaz\u00edr-i Iram, where they continued the festive rejoicings for several\ndays, after which Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed and her devoted husband conducted Bahr\u00e1m and\nhis bride in great splendour to Mulk-i Nigh\u00e1r\u00edn. The father and mother\nof Bahr\u00e1m were overjoyed at the sight of their beloved son, and warmly\nexpressed their gratitude to Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, who had brought him such great\ngood fortune. To celebrate the marriage of his son, the vaz\u00edr gave a\ngrand banquet, to which great and small were alike invited, and even\nthe king himself honoured it with his presence. The festival continued\nfor several days. Everybody received presents; money was distributed\nin abundance\u2014all were delighted. After the king had been escorted back\nto his palace and all the guests had retired to their homes, Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\nsummoned Hamm\u00e1la, and ordered her to transport her palace to that spot,\nwhich was soon accomplished, when she presented it to R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 and Bahr\u00e1m\nfor their residence. Thus terminated the adventures of these lovers: each\nwas content and happy.\n\nMAY GOD GRANT TO EACH OF US THE LIKE FAVOUR!\n\n\n\n\nPERSIAN STORIES.\n\n\n\n\nPERSIAN STORIES.\n\n\n\n\nTHE THREE DECEITFUL WOMEN.\n\n\nOnce on a time there were three whales of the sea of fraud and\ndeceit\u2014three dragons of the nature of thunder and the quickness of\nlightning\u2014three defamers of honour and reputation\u2014in other words, three\nmen-deceiving, lascivious women, each of whom had, from the chancery\nof her cunning, issued the diploma of turmoil to a hundred cities and\ncountries, and in the arts of fraud they accounted Satan as an admiring\nspectator in the theatre of their stratagems. One of them was sitting\nin the court of justice of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s embraces; the second was the\nprecious gem of the baz\u00e1r-master\u2019s diadem of compliance; and the third\nwas the beazle and ornament of the signet-ring of the life and soul of\nthe superintendent of police. They were constantly entrapping the fawns\nof the prairie of deceit, with the grasp of cunning, and plundering the\nwares of the caravan of tranquility of the hearts of both strangers and\nacquaintances by means of the edge of the scimitar of fraud.[227]\n\nOne day this trefoil of roguery met at the public bath, and, according\nto their homogeneous nature, they intermingled as intimately as a comb\nwith the hair: they tucked up the garment of amity to the waist of\nunion, entered the tank of agreement, seated themselves in the hot-house\nof love, and poured from the dish of folly, by means of the key of\nhypocrisy, the water of profusion upon the head of intercourse; they\nrubbed with the brush of familiarity and the soap of affection the\nstains of jealousies from each other\u2019s limbs. After a while, when they\nhad brought the pot of concord to boil by the fire of mutual laudation,\nthey warmed the bath of association with the breeze of kindness and came\nout.[228] In the dressing-room all three of them happened simultaneously\nto find a ring, the gem of which surpassed the imagination of the\nJeweller of Destiny,[229] and the like of which he had never beheld in\nthe store-house of possibility. The finger of covetousness of each of\nthe three ladies pointed to the ring, and the right of its possession\nbecame the object of dispute among them. But after their controversy had\nbeen protracted to an undue length, the mother of the bathman,[230] who\nhad for years practised under the sorceress Shamsah[231] and had learnt\nall sorts of tricks from her, stepped forward and said: \u201cI am a woman\nwho has seen the world, and I have experienced many events of this\nkind. Something has occurred to me with reference to this matter, and if\nyou will listen to my advice your difficulty will be solved. As I am a\nfaithful and honest person,\u201d the old woman continued, \u201cyou may entrust\nthis ring to me. Each of you must sow the seed of deception into the\nfield of her husband\u2019s folly, and she whose arrow of fraud shall settle\ndeepest in the target of her husband\u2019s imbecility, and the rose of whose\nact, being watered by the art and care of diligence, shall flourish more\nthan the plants of her competitors, shall, after due investigation by\nmyself, be put in possession of the much-coveted ring.\u201d All three of them\nagreed to this proposal, and surrendered the ring to the old hag. The\nwife of the K\u00e1z\u00ed said: \u201cI shall be the first who writes the incantation\nupon the name of the K\u00e1z\u00ed.\u201d Accordingly they dressed in the robe of\ncunning, put on the mantle of deception, and departed to their respective\ndomiciles.\n\n\n_The Trick of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s Wife._\n\nIn the first place, the wife of the K\u00e1z\u00ed sat down in the court of\nmeditation and arrangement, and having for the purpose of solving this\nproblem opened the directory of falsehood, she perused it with great\ndiligence, scanning it from paragraph to paragraph, from the preface\nto the conclusion. It so happened that a carpenter who was the K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s\nneighbour had long paid attentions to the wife of the latter. He chopped\nthe tablet of his heart with the axe of uneasiness, and scratched the\nboard of his body with the plane of lamentation; he was in constant\nmotion like a saw, and though all his limbs were like a grating turned\ninto eyes, and he was sitting on the chair of expectation, he was not\nable to attain his object; so that the hatchet of longing and burning\nfelled the palm-tree of his patience and equanimity, and his heart was\nperforated by the auger of this grief. As the wife of the K\u00e1z\u00ed was\naware of the sufferings of the carpenter, she called her confidential\nslave-girl and said to her: \u201cO thou Violet[232] of the garden of harmony,\nthe flower of whose body I have so long cherished in the parterre of\neducation! I have a little business which I mean to discharge this day\nby the aid of thy intimacy. If thou wilt accomplish it cheerfully, I\nshall ransom thee with my own money, and rejoice thy heart with various\ngifts.\u201d The girl replied: \u201cWhatever my mistress orders, it is my duty\nto perform.\u201d The wife of the K\u00e1z\u00ed said: \u201cGo, unobserved by any one, to\nthe carpenter and tell him that the flame of his love has taken effect\non my heart; that I am aware of his having suffered torments on account\nof my unkindness; and that on the day of resurrection I shall have to\nanswer for the sufferings I have caused to him: I am quite embarrassed\nin this matter, and, in order to remove this awful responsibility, I am\nprepared now to make good my past transgressions, and to meet him if\nhe will dig an underground passage between this house and his own, so\nthat we may be enabled to pluck the roses of mutual love whenever we\nchoose, and communicate freely by means of this passage.\u201d The maid went\nto the carpenter, and caused by the nectar of her eloquence this message\nto bloom in his garden of hope. He presented the girl with a thousand\nd\u00ednars[233] and said:\n\n \u201cI would ransom thee with my life,\n O idol of the garden of purity!\n I shall gird my loins for thy service\n In a hundred thousand places.\n\nIt is a lifetime since I began to burn on the thread of exclusion and\nseparation, and put the collyrium of longing into the eye of desire to\nbehold that paragon of the world.\n\n Melancholy for thee inspires my breast;\n Desire for thee permeates my heart!\n Thy behests I shall never disobey;\n Thy will I shall follow with my soul.\u201d\n\nThe carpenter dug a spacious passage between the two houses, and the lady\narrived by means of it in her lover\u2019s domicile. When the carpenter beheld\nthe Jacob\u2019s house of mourning of his heart illuminated by the Joseph\u2019s\nlamp of the coveted interview, he said:\n\n \u201cWelcome, my faithful idol!\n My hut is the envy of Paradise.\n Come, moon-like mistress, come!\n Come, tender sweetheart, come!\n Thy elegant speech is coquetry;\n Thy gait is graceful as the rose:\n Thou art the cynosure of love!\n Thou art the model of tenderness!\u201d\n\nAfter mutual congratulations and compliments, that title-page of the\nledger of amorous intrigues said to the carpenter: \u201cTo-morrow I shall\ncome here, and you must bring the K\u00e1z\u00ed to marry me to you.\u201d When the\nlady had explained the particulars of this matter to him, he drew the\nhand of obedience over the eyes of compliance; and when on the next day\nthe k\u00e1z\u00ed of the morn placed the seal of brilliancy upon the volume of\nthe firmament, and the shaykh-sun seated himself upon the carpet of the\nOrient and manifested himself by the consequence of light and brightness,\nthe K\u00e1z\u00ed hastened from his haram to the court of justice. His tender\nmistress, however, betook herself to the house of the carpenter, who\nforgot the grief of separation, dressed himself in gaudy clothes, and\nwaiting on the K\u00e1z\u00ed said: \u201cO spreader of the superficies of the law, and\nstrengthener of the pillars of the affairs of mankind,\n\n No matter in this world can be\n Arranged without thy intervention.\u201d\n\nWhen the K\u00e1z\u00ed perceived from this allocution that the carpenter came\non business, and concluded that it might be something profitable, he\nreplied: \u201cGreeting to you! And may the mercy of God be upon your fathers\nand ancestors, fortunate and blessed man! Welcome! Rest yourself awhile;\nsmoke tobacco and drink coffee, whilst you are acquainting me with your\nintentions.\u201d The carpenter said: \u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, I am a bridegroom and am very\nrestless to-day on that account: my bride is sitting in the house. As\nthe moon is this day in the first mansion of the Balance, and in the two\nhours and nine minutes that are elapsing of the day it has a triangular\naspect with the sun, a hexagonal one with Jupiter, is in opposition\nto Mercury, out of the influence of the Scorpion and the remaining\nill-boding influences, therefore I am of good cheer; and as the hour to\ntie the matrimonial knot is quite propitious, I request your lordship\nquickly to perform the ceremony.\u201d[234]\n\nAs soon as the K\u00e1z\u00ed heard about a wedding, he put the turban of\ncovetousness on his head, took the rosary of thanksgivings into his hand,\nand went with the carpenter to the house of the latter. When he entered\nhe exclaimed: \u201cOpen, O opener of portals!\u201d but when his eyes alighted\non the bride and he recognised in her the mistress of his own haram, a\nthousand suspicions beset him; nevertheless he composed himself as well\nas he was able, but could not help thinking: \u201cThis is a very wonderful\nbusiness; and I have never seen two persons resembling each other so\nmuch.\u201d While he thus plunged the pen of his mind into the inkstand of\nmeditation and amazement, the carpenter exclaimed: \u201cMy lord, the time is\npassing, and what is the use of delaying?\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed looked up, and again\nscrutinised the lady, but found no difference between her and his wife,\nso he cried: \u201cPraise be to God! There is no power nor strength but by\nhis will!\u201d Then putting his hand to his breast he said: \u201cWhat memory is\nthis?\u201d and arose from his place. The carpenter asked: \u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, where are\nyou going?\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed replied: \u201cMy good fellow, my \u2018Key of prosperity\u2019\nhas been left in the house, and there is a prayer in it that must be\nrecited before pronouncing the matrimonial formula, in order to procure\nthe mutual enjoyment of the newly married couple.\u201d Accordingly he went\nto the house, but was forestalled by his spouse, who entered it through\nthe secret passage and lay down on her bed. When the K\u00e1z\u00ed arrived and\nsaw his wife in this position he said: \u201cI ask pardon of God from all\nthat displeases him in words, deeds, thoughts, or intentions! To what\na strange suspicion have I given way! May God forgive me!\u201d His wife,\non hearing these exclamations, yawned and turned from one side to the\nother, and said: \u201cViolet, did I not tell you to allow no one to enter\nthis room, so that I might repose for a time?\u201d Quoth the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cBeloved\npartner! there is no stranger. Excuse me, and pardon me for having\nharboured evil suspicions concerning thee.\u201d The wife replied: \u201cPerhaps\nyou have become mad!\u201d\n\nThe K\u00e1z\u00ed again returned to the carpenter\u2019s house, but his wife had\npreceded him and was sitting in her former place. As soon as he looked at\nher the same suspicions overwhelmed him, and he exclaimed in amazement:\n\u201cO Lord of glory! I have fallen into a strange predicament, and am, as it\nwere, between two screws of the horns of a dilemma that presses me, on\nthe one hand, quickly to perform the ceremony, and, on the other hand,\nrather to defer it.\u201d Then said the carpenter: \u201cMy lord K\u00e1z\u00ed, I see you\ndespondent and hesitating in this business; and although you ought not\nto expect anything from me because I am your neighbour, yet I will give\nyou these thousand d\u00ednars to hasten your proceedings, because the time\nis elapsing.\u201d No sooner did the K\u00e1z\u00ed see the money than he put it at\nonce into his pocket and began: \u201cIn the name of God, the Merciful, the\nClement,\u201d and continued to read the matrimonial formula till he arrived\nat the words, \u201cI marry,\u201d when he perceived a black mole on the corner of\nhis wife\u2019s lip, which he had so often kissed. He felt uneasy, and the\nsugar of the thousand d\u00ednars was bitter in the palate of his greediness,\nhe again lowered his head into the collar of meditation and said within\nhimself: \u201cO assembly of genii and men! are you able to withdraw\nyourselves from the precincts of heaven and earth?\u201d The carpenter\nexclaimed: \u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, I really do not know the reason of your delay, nor\nfrom the fountain of what pretence the water of this procrastination\nis gushing.\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed smiled and thus replied: \u201cO carpenter, we are\nthe sureties of legal affairs, the successors of the prophets, and the\npontiffs of the laws and canons of the ways of guidance. In every affair\nthat we perform we must attentively consider a thousand subtleties, lest\nwe should become liable to blame in the next world by the commission of\na fault. Why are you in such haste? All affairs in this world succeed\nonly by civility and patience, and not by confusion and impatience.\nThou resemblest that shepherd who was one day engaged in pasturing his\nflock and became very thirsty. As a village was very near, he left his\nsheep and entered it to look for water. He happened to pass near a tree\nunder the shadow of which a schoolmaster was teaching a crowd of boys.\nAfter looking for a while, he perceived the teacher reposing and issuing\norders, and the boys humbly obeying him in all things and occupied in\nmelodiously rehearsing their lessons. This sort of employment disgusted\nthe shepherd with his own calling, and he thought: \u2018While I am able to\nlearn this trade, I do not see why I should spend my whole life to no\nprofit by running about the fields with a lot of sheep. I must change\nthe profession of a shepherd for that of a schoolmaster, and then I\nshall spend my days in comfort, like this man.\u2019 Accordingly he stepped\nforward and said: \u2018My good master, I have a great inclination to learn\nyour business; please instruct me in it.\u2019 When the master looked at the\nfigure and aspect of the shepherd, he was astonished, and saw he was an\nignorant fellow who had no capacity. For the sake of fun, however, he\ntook a piece of paper, wrote the alphabet on it, and said to the man:\n\u2018Be seated, and read this.\u2019 The shepherd asked: \u2018Why do you not teach\nme from these large books?\u2019 Said the master: \u2018You are but a beginner,\nand you cannot read books till you have learned the alphabet.\u2019 Quoth the\nshepherd: \u2018Master, what letters are you speaking about? Please fill me\nwith them now, for my flock roams about without a shepherd, and I have\nno time to sit down and learn the alphabet.\u2019 The schoolmaster smiled\nat this and drove the shepherd away. O carpenter,\u201d continued the K\u00e1z\u00ed,\n\u201cdo not fancy every business to be easy. Now I meditate and study how\nto divide the possessions of a certain wealthy man, who died yesterday,\namong thirty-two men who have inherited them. This has just occurred to\nmy mind, and I was engaged in multiplication and division.\u201d Then the\nK\u00e1z\u00ed again glanced at the lady, and beginning to feel uneasy arose once\nmore. The carpenter asked: \u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, what fancy is moving you now, and\ncauses you to look so confused?\u201d Said the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cThis transaction is one\nof the greatest importance according to the religious law. It cannot\nbe performed unless after the general ablution, about the completeness\nof which a doubt has just arisen in my mind; therefore I must return to\nmy house and renew it.\u201d The carpenter answered: \u201cYou can wash yourself\nhere.\u201d Quoth the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cNo, by God! I never perform my ablutions with\nwater which I have not seen before, and I have all the arrangements for\npurification in my house.\u201d\n\nThe K\u00e1z\u00ed returned to his house accordingly, but his wife went before him\nthrough the passage, and was reading a book when he entered her room.\nHe exclaimed: \u201cI ask forgiveness from God, and I repent of all my sins\nand transgressions.\u201d The lady looked at him in astonishment, and said:\n\u201cThis day I perceive the neck of your intellect confined in the halter\nof a lunatic fit. How many times have you come and again gone away after\nholding a soliloquy as madmen are wont to do! If you have become subject\nto such a distemper, and do not take the proper steps to cure it, I shall\nnot be your nurse.\u201d Said the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cO Bilk\u00eds[235] of the compact of\nprudence and innocence, to-day I have indulged in a suspicion regarding\nthee: I have made a mistake\u2014forgive me!\u201d The wife answered: \u201cThe worst\npeople in the world are those who indulge in evil imputations, and those\nof yours must be expiated.\u201d She then gave a few d\u00ednars to Violet, bidding\nher distribute them among the poor as a penitential expiation. After this\nthe K\u00e1z\u00ed took an apple from his pocket, cut it in twain, and gave one\nmoiety to his wife, saying: \u201cThough apples have many qualities, the chief\nof them is to increase conjugal love: I intend to go to the bath.\u201d\n\nPutting the other half of the apple in his pocket, the K\u00e1z\u00ed returned\nto the house of the carpenter. His wife preceded him as usual, and sat\ndown in her place. When he drew near he saw the half of the apple in her\nhand, and was greatly amazed, but said nothing, for fear of offending\nthe carpenter, who cried out: \u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, tell me for God\u2019s sake what you\nhave to say, and why is all this going and coming and all this delay?\nIf this affair is disagreeable to you, I shall bring Shaykh Jaht\u00e1s,\nor Mullah Allam-Abhuda, the servant of the college, to perform the\nmatrimonial ceremony. O K\u00e1z\u00ed, I expected more kindness from you as a\nneighbour. This business is not worth so much haggling about, and if you\nwish more than the thousand, take these five hundred d\u00ednars.\u201d When the\nK\u00e1z\u00ed saw this additional sum of money he was overpowered by covetousness\nand exclaimed: \u201cI take refuge with God from the lapidated Satan![236]\nI marry and couple!\u201d Then his eye again alighted on the countenance\nof his wife and he saw she wore the ruby necklace which he had bought\nfor three thousand d\u00ednars. He shook his head and said: \u201cEvery now and\nthen I must somehow stop: I do not know what is again distracting my\nattention,\u201d and he glanced once more at his wife. Quoth the carpenter:\n\u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, your amorous looks have convinced me that your desires are\ncentred in the possession of this lady, for your eyes constantly wander\nover her countenance. If this be the case, do not make a secret of it,\nthat we may consult her opinion on the matter.\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed thought within\nhimself, that, as the carpenter was an ignorant and illiterate man, he\nmight play a trick on him, and recite something else instead of the\nmarriage formula, so that, if his suspicions proved to be well-founded,\nhe might be able to annul the marriage. So he sat down on his haunches\nand recited: \u201cIazgh\u00e1ra, Iajarg\u00e1ra Aftanys Salank\u00e1, D\u00e1ma Talkuv\u00e1ra,\u201d etc.\nThen he spoke to the carpenter: \u201cSay, \u2018I agree.\u2019\u201d But as the carpenter\nhad frequently heard the marriage formula, he answered: \u201cK\u00e1z\u00ed, this is\na formula read to country fellows and retainers. I have given thee one\nthousand five hundred d\u00ednars to marry me like one of the grandees. I am\nnot a child to be thus played with: this formula is not worth twenty\nd\u00ednars. Either return me the money or recite the proper manly formula.\u201d\nQuoth the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cYou are but a working man, carpenter, why then do you\nentertain such high pretensions? I have just now read to you the formula\nwhich I made use of in marrying Mullah Abdullah, the householder in the\nmarket, yet you want a formula used for grandees, scholars, and judges,\nand to give me a headache!\u201d The carpenter replied: \u201cI also covet science\nand distinction.\u201d Said the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cHow will you convince me of that?\u201d The\ncarpenter continued: \u201cI know the story of the \u2018Sun and Moon.\u2019[237] I have\nheard the tale of \u2018Sayf ul-Mul\u00fak and Badya\u2019\u00e1 ul-Jum\u00e1l.\u2019 I have likewise\nseen \u2018The Road to the Mosque.\u2019 My father used to pass once every day\nnear the school-house of Mullah Namatullah Kylak.\u201d Said the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cThere\nis no science or perfection higher than this. I did not know the degree\nor limit which thou hast attained.\u201d[238] In consequence of this irony\nof the K\u00e1z\u00ed, the carpenter put a feather in his bonnet[239] and said:\n\u201cThere is no excuse.\u201d Once more the K\u00e1z\u00ed attempted to begin the formula,\nbut when he looked at the half of the apple that was in the lady\u2019s\nhand, he cried: \u201cWoman, give me that half-apple!\u201d She complied, and the\nK\u00e1z\u00ed took the other half from his pocket, and by placing the two halves\ntogether he found them to fit exactly. The carpenter exclaimed: \u201cK\u00e1z\u00ed,\napparently some jugglery is going on here! What delusion are you subject\nto every moment?\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed replied: \u201cI have done this simply to produce\nconjugal love between you.\u201d Then he again rose and wanted to go to his\nhouse for the purpose of verifying his surmises, but the lady turned to\nthe carpenter and said: \u201cFoolish man, hast thou brought me here to marry\nme, or to make a laughing-stock of me? I have never before seen such\nproceedings. I think his eyes have become subject to [the disease called]\npearl-water.\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed took no notice of these remarks, but hastened\nto his house, where his wife met him with these words: \u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, thou\nresemblest those people who have the pearl-water in their eyes.\u201d Said\nhe: \u201cThere is no God but _the_ God! The other woman has spoken the same\nthing. Tell me at all events what is the distemper called pearl-water.\u201d\nHis wife answered: \u201cPearl-water is a humour caused by heavy particles in\nthe stomach rising into the head, and from thence descending into the\neyelids, which injures the eyes, so that different persons appear to be\nthe same, and cannot be distinguished from each other. If this malady is\nnot cured it degenerates into blindness.\u201d Quoth the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cPerhaps this\nis because I have not kept my depraved appetite in subjection. Several\ndays ago I was with the superintendent of police in the house of K\u00e1vas\nthe Armenian, who had died; we went there to take an inventory of his\ngoods and chattels for the Am\u00edr. The children of Khoja K\u00e1vas had, by way\nof a sweetmeat, something baked in hog\u2019s blood; as I was hungry and this\nfood happened to be delicious, I ate somewhat freely of it; and as it had\nbeen prepared from the property of the deceased man, it may possibly have\nhad its consequences.\u201d[240]\n\nA third time the K\u00e1z\u00ed returned to the carpenter\u2019s house, and when he\nbeheld his wife, and glanced stealthily at her, the lady was wroth\nand said to the carpenter: \u201cThis fellow is every now and then casting\namorous glances at me, and through my connection with thee I have lost my\nreputation. Either drive him away or forfeit my company.\u201d Quoth the K\u00e1z\u00ed:\n\u201cRespectable virgin and honourable lady, in all matters consideration is\nuseful.\u201d The carpenter lost his patience and exclaimed: \u201cYou have nearly\nkilled me with your folly and loquacity. I do not wish any longer for\nmarriage. If thou hast considered this woman worthy of thy haram, why\nhast thou for so long a time been undecided?\u201d Whilst the carpenter was\nthus talking, they heard the voice of the muezzin, and he exclaimed:\n\u201cAlas, it is noon[241]\u2014the propitious hour has elapsed!\u201d Said the K\u00e1z\u00ed:\n\u201cYou are a carpenter; you know how to handle the saw and the axe, to\nmake windows and doors. But what idea have you of the rotation of the\nspheres\u2014about good and bad stars and hours? This science belongs to our\nprofession.\u201d Then taking an almanac from his pocket and opening it, he\nsaid: \u201cThe moon is a luminary of quick motion. Yesterday she entered the\nsign of the Balance, but has so quickly travelled through the degrees\nthat she feels tired to-day and is still reposing, and will not travel\nto-morrow. From hour to hour till to-morrow, inclusive, wedding dinners\nand other feasts are propitious. I shall now go to my house and prepare\na medicine for the pearl-water of my eyes, as it will probably hinder me\nfrom studying.\u201d But the carpenter and the lady seized the K\u00e1z\u00ed, one on\neither side, and said: \u201cMayhap the affairs of this world are only a play!\nBy Allah, we shall not let thee go ere thou hast tied the matrimonial\nknot.\u201d Quoth the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cLet me go, else I shall immediately write a\nmandate for the capital punishment of both of you.\u201d They rejoined: \u201cMay\nthe columns of the house of Khoja Ratyl, the merchant, fall upon you, if\nyou do us the least harm!\u201d Upon this the K\u00e1z\u00ed turned his face upwards\nand prayed: \u201cO Judge of the court of justice of destiny, protect me\nfrom the evil of all mad persons and from all malefactors, and grant me\nhealth and peace! Thou judgest\u2014thou art the sovereign Judge!\u201d As he had\nno alternative now but to marry the lady to the carpenter, and as at\nthat time it was customary for the bride to kiss the hand of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\nafter the termination of the ceremony, the lady stepped forward for this\npurpose; but the K\u00e1z\u00ed was so anxious to mark his wife for identification\nafterwards, that he struck her such a blow on the cheek with his clenched\nhand as to cause her to bleed profusely. Then he ran into his own house,\nwhere he found his wife disfiguring her face and crying out: \u201cI renounce\nsuch an adulterous husband, who is carrying on an intrigue with the\ncarpenter\u2019s wife.\u201d She and her maids then took him by the throat and\npulled off his turban, and he fled into the street. The carpenter, who\nhad heard the noise, came out, and seeing him with his head uncovered\nplaced his own turban on it, and said: \u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, women are of an imperfect\nunderstanding, and quarrels between husbands and wives have taken place\nat all times. If you have lost your senses, this can easily be remedied\nby taking up your lodging for a few days in a madhouse, until your spouse\nrepents of her deed.\u201d And so the K\u00e1z\u00ed went to repose himself in a lunatic\nasylum.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe secret-knowing bulbul of the musical-hall of narratives, namely, the\npen, thus continues its melody: After the wife of the K\u00e1z\u00ed had severed\nthe robe of his conjugal authority with the scissors of deceit, she again\nstitched it with the needle of fraud, and invested with it the bosom of\nthe wretched K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s imbecility by means of the above-narrated tricks.\nThen she sent word to her two accomplices, that she had drawn the bow of\nmachination to its utmost extent by the exertion of her skill, that she\nhad with the arrow thereof hit the target of the conditions stipulated,\nand that now the field was free to them for the display of their cunning.\n\n\n_The Trick of the Baz\u00e1r-Master\u2019s Wife._\n\nThe blandly-ambling pea-fowl of the pen continues the narrative as\nfollows: Now it was the turn of the baz\u00e1r-master\u2019s wife, whose tricks\nwere of a kind to instruct Ibl\u00eds in the laws of deceit and fraud.[242]\nShe began to weigh all kinds of stratagems in the balance of meditation,\nto enable her to decide what course of roguery would be best for her\nobject. She happened to have a nurse who had also attained the highest\ndegree of intrigue by the instigations of Ibl\u00eds, and was her assistant\nin all her devices; so calling this woman, and anointing with the balsam\nof flattery the limbs of her attachment, she said: \u201cO beloved and kind\nmother, the ornaments and pictures of my house of fraud and cunning are\nthe offspring of thy instructions. It is long since the bond of amity\nwas torn between me and my husband. In spite of all my endeavours, I am\nunable to cope with his sagacity; but I trust in thy affection, and hope\nthat we shall be able to arrange this matter by thy assistance.\u201d The\nnurse answered: \u201cOrnament of the tribe of the lovely!\n\n My soul is longing and my eyes waiting,\n Both to be sacrificed at thy behest.\n\nAs long as the child of the spirit remains in the cradle of my body, and\nthe milk of motion and rest circulates in the members of it, I cannot\navoid obeying thy commands. I sincerely comply with all thy orders.\u201d Then\nsaid the wife of the baz\u00e1r-master: \u201cAs I was one day coming from the\nbath, the son of a banker was walking in the lane. And when the smoke\nof the torch of my tenderness reached his nostrils, he fell from the\ncourser of the intellect upon the ground of insensibility and followed me\neverywhere with groans and sighs; but the vanity of seeing myself beloved\nallowed me not to sprinkle the rose-water of a glance upon the face of\nhis expectation. When he arrived at the door of my house, he sobbed, and\nthen went away. I know that the bird of his heart is captivated by the\npursuit after the grain of this phantom, and is imprisoned in the meshes\nof exclusion. I want thee to go to him and convey to him the following\nmessage: \u2018From that day when the chamberlain of carelessness hindered\nme from admitting thee to the intimacy of an interview, I dreamed every\nnight fearful dreams, and am to this day at all times so much plunged\ninto the drowning waters of uneasiness, that it has become plain to me\nthat all this is the consequence of thy disappointment and exclusion. Now\nI wish to remedy my incivility by promenading a little in the gardens\nof thy love and attachment. As the baz\u00e1r-master will be engaged till\nthe morning in some business, the house will not be encumbered by his\npresence. So put on a woman\u2019s veil, bring wine and the requisites for\namusement, and come hither, that we may sweeten our palates with the\nhoney of meeting each other.\u2019\u201d\n\nAfter the lady had despatched her nurse to the banker\u2019s son, the\nbaz\u00e1r-master arrived, and his wife thus addressed him: \u201cBeloved husband,\nto-morrow, one of the principal ladies of the town, whose acquaintance\nI have made at the bath, will come to me on a visit. As it is for my\ninterest to receive her with all possible courtesy, you must remain in\nthe town-hall to-morrow until evening. Send in the supplies required for\na handsome entertainment, and please to arrange all in such a manner as\nwe shall not reap shame from anything.\u201d The baz\u00e1r-master lighted the lamp\nof acquiescence in the assembly of compliance and said: \u201cLet it be so.\u201d\n\nWhen the banker of morn sat down in the shop of the horizon, and when the\nunalloyed gold of the sun stamped in the mint of creation with the legend\nof brilliancy, and the light began to ascend towards the meridian of the\nsphere, the son of the banker put on costly garments, perfumed himself,\nand threw over his clothes a large veil, and taking under it a flask of\nruby-coloured wine, proceeded with a thousand joyful expectations to the\nmansion of his mistress, who had, like the crescent moon on a festive\neve, gone to meet him with open arms as far as the vestibule of the\nhouse, saying:\n\n \u201cTo-day my moon visits me with joy,\n And renews the covenant of love with his light.\n\nThou art welcome! For the rays of thy sun-like countenance have made\nmy humble cottage the object of jealousy of the palaces of Europe, and\ndelightful, like Paradise!\n\n Come! For without thee I cannot endure life:\n The eyelids of my repose meet not sleep without thee.\n I wish not for the water of immortality through Khizr:\n Thy cheeks are not less to me than immortality.\u201d\n\nThe lady took him into the interior apartments, divested him of the veil,\nthrew the hand of amity over the neck of his affection, begged his pardon\nfor her past offence, entangled with kindness the feet of his heart in\nthe stirrup-leathers of hope, then entirely undressed him, and said:\n\u201cRest thyself comfortably in this secret apartment until I go and bring\nthe requisites for company and music, when we shall enjoy ourselves.\u201d\nShe went out and said to her female attendants: \u201cWhen I go in again,\nyou must call the baz\u00e1r-master into the house and say: \u2018Our lady has\nbrought a strange man, with whom she is amusing herself and drinking\nwine.\u2019\u201d Then she returned to the young man and kept him company. In the\nmeantime her husband was informed of what was going on in his house, and\nbecoming greatly excited, sent in a servant to inquire. The lady said\nto the youth, in seeming perplexity: \u201cThis coming of my husband is not\nwithout a cause\u2014perhaps he has a notion that you are here.\u201d The youth,\ntrembling with terror, said: \u201cAlas, I shall lose my life through this\naffair; for the baz\u00e1r-master is jealous, and will injure me.\u201d Then the\nlady opened a chest and said to the young man: \u201cConceal yourself in this\nchest until I see what will come of the business;\u201d and having locked\nthe box and put away the youth\u2019s clothes, she met her husband, who was\ninflamed like an oven. Throwing her arms round his neck, she exclaimed:\n\u201cDarling of my soul! I see thee greatly discomposed and confused\u2014what\nis it?\u201d He replied: \u201cMy reason is unwilling to put faith in what I have\nheard, and I want you to tell me the truth.\u201d The lady smiled and said:\n\u201cWhat thou hast heard is quite true. The lamp of my heart was for a long\ntime blazing in the assembly of love towards a young man; the palm-tree\nof his imagination likewise bore the fruit of attachment to me; and now I\nhave brought him and am in his company. Love is innate in human nature,\nbut has never manifested itself between me and thee. Hast thou not\nheard of Layl\u00e1 and Majn\u00fan, or read the story of Y\u00fazuf and Zulaykh\u00e1? Is\nthere anyone in the world who has not felt the pangs of love? He in the\nmother-shell of whose heart affection finds no refuge has indeed reaped\nno fruit from the spring of life.\n\n Love is the ornament of the rose-grove of the heart;\n It is the guide and leader to each mansion.\n The breast is a lamp whose flame is love;\n The heart is a shell, and love the pearl in it.\n The lamp without a flame is the grave;\n Without a pearl the shell has no light.\n\nO baz\u00e1r-master!\u201d she continued, \u201cthere is no man or woman who has not\ntasted the pleasures of this passion; it is inherent in life, and its\nexhilarating breezes invigorate the rose-garden of politeness. There is\nno animate being whose nostrils have not been perfumed by the fragrance\nof the garden of love: perhaps I have no heart, and am no human being?\nHow long shall I dwell with thee? In all circumstances a change of\nclimate becomes necessary. My unfortunate friend has been long prostrated\non the bed of sickness for the love which he bears to me, and on account\nof his exclusion. Humanity and compassion are the chief corner-stones of\nIsl\u00e1m, and what shall I answer on the day of resurrection if I do not act\nin compliance with these two duties? Hast thou not heard that a mendicant\nmust not be sent away unrelieved, and that if an ant creep away with one\ngrain the stores will not be diminished?\n\n No harm befalls the granary\n If a poor ant obtains half a grain.\n\nA hundred thousand persons drink water from one fountain, and several\npeople eat fruit from one date-tree. What deficiency will be entailed\nupon the rose-grove of my tenderness if the odour of a rose bring\ntranquility to the nostrils of an unfortunate man? Quench the thirst of\na thirsty man with a drop of water, and rescue a fainting one from the\nlabyrinth of distress; for good acts are a dam to misfortunes. Be not\nmelancholy, O baz\u00e1r-master, for in the banquet of my existence the plates\nof my tender delicacies are so numerous that a thousand persons like\nthyself may be satisfied by them for many years.\u201d\n\nThe baz\u00e1r-master said, with astonishment: \u201cWorthless, foolish, and vain\nwoman, what senseless words are you saying?\u201d She replied: \u201cI swear, by\nthe gratitude due for thy affection and friendship, that everything I\nsaid was only fun and dissimulation. But if you have any doubts on the\nsubject come and see for yourself.\u201d She then led the way, and her husband\nfollowed her until they reached her chamber. When he beheld the youth\u2019s\nclothes, the arrangements for drinking, and the decorations, he began to\nblaze up like a flame, and to ferment like a tub of wine\u2014in short, he was\nquite beside himself, and asked: \u201cWhere is the young man?\u201d She answered:\n\u201cHe is in that chest. I have concealed him in it, and if you do not\nbelieve it, take the key\u2014open and look.\u201d The baz\u00e1r-master had no sooner\ntaken the key than his wife burst into laughter, clapped her hands, and\nexclaimed: \u201cI remember, but you forget!\u201d Her husband threw down the key,\nand said: \u201cMiserable woman, you have destroyed my patience. Was it worth\nwhile thus to trifle with my affection?\u201d With these words he left the\nhouse; but during the conversation the young man was like one suspended\nbetween death and life. When it was evening the lady opened the chest,\nand said to him: \u201cLeave this place quickly, and remove the spectacle of\nthis intention from your eyes, for you were near being invested with the\nrobe of a lover.\u201d The young man thanked God for having preserved his\nlife, and fled precipitately.[243]\n\n * * * * *\n\nAfter the bird of the baz\u00e1r-master\u2019s wife had laid this egg in the nest\nof deceit, she informed the spouse of the superintendent of police that\nshe had also spread her net and captured the coveted game; and that now,\nthe field being free, she was prepared to see what fruit the tree of her\nfriend\u2019s accomplishments would bear.\n\n\n_The Trick of the Wife of the Superintendent of Police._\n\nThe narrator of this tale causes the rose-bud of his rhetoric to\nblossom from the dew of composition as follows: When the wife of the\nsuperintendent of police was apprised that her turn had come, she\nrevolved and meditated for some time what trick she was to play off upon\nher lord, and after coming to a conclusion she said to him one evening:\n\u201cTo-morrow I wish that we should both enjoy ourselves at home without\ninterruption, and I mean to prepare some cakes.\u201d He replied: \u201cVery well,\nmy dear; I have longed for such an occasion.\u201d The lady had a servant\nwho was very obedient and always covered with the mantle of attachment\nto her. Next morning she called this lad and said to him: \u201cI have long\ncontemplated the Hyacinth[244] grove of thy symmetrical stature. I know\nthat thou travelest constantly and faithfully on the road of compliance\nwith all my wishes, and that thou seekest to serve me. I have a little\nbusiness which I wish thee to do for me.\u201d The lad answered: \u201cI shall be\nhappy to comply.\u201d Then the lady gave him a thousand d\u00ednars and said: \u201cGo\nto the convent which is in our neighbourhood, give this money to one of\nthe Kalandars,[245] and say: \u2018A prisoner whom the Am\u00edr had surrendered\nto the police escaped last night. He resembles thee greatly; and as the\nsuperintendent of police is unable to give account of his prisoner to\nthe Am\u00edr, he has despatched a man to take thee instead of the escaped\ncriminal. I have compassion for thee and mean to rescue thee. Take this\nsum of money; give me thy dress, and flee from this town; for if thou\nremainest till the morning thou wilt be subject to torture and lose thy\nlife.\u2019\u201d\n\nThe lad acted as he was ordered; brought the Kalandar\u2019s garments and\nhanded them to his mistress. When it was morning the lady said to her\nhusband: \u201cI know you have long wished to eat sweetmeats, and, if you\nwill allow me, I will make some to-day.\u201d He said: \u201cVery well.\u201d His wife\nthen made all things ready and began to bake the sweetmeats, when the\nsuperintendent of police said: \u201cLast night a theft was committed in\nsuch a place and I sat up late to extort confessions; and as I have had\na sleepless night, I feel tired and wish to repose a little.\u201d The lady\nanswered: \u201cVery well;\u201d so her husband reclined on the pillow of rest;\nand when the sweetmeats were ready she took a portion, and after putting\nan opiate into one she roused him, saying: \u201cHow long will you sleep?\nThis is a day of feasting and pleasure, not of sleep and laziness. Lift\nup your head and see if I have made the sweets according to your taste.\u201d\nHe raised his head and ate a piece of the hot cake and presently a deep\nsleep overcame him. The lady at once undressed her husband and put on\nhim the Kalandar\u2019s garments, and the slave-boy shaved his beard and made\ntattoo marks on his body.\n\nWhen night had set in the lady called to the slave-boy: \u201cHyacinth, take\nthe superintendent on thy back and carry him to the convent in the place\nof that Kalandar, and should he wish to return home in the morning do\nnot allow him.\u201d The lad obeyed; and towards morning the superintendent\nrecovered his senses a little, but as the opiate had made his palate very\nbitter he became extremely thirsty. He fancied he was in his own house\nand bawled out: \u201cNarcissus,[246] bring water.\u201d The other Kalandars awoke,\nand after hearing several shouts of this kind they concluded he was under\nthe effects of bhang and said: \u201cPoor fellow! The narcissus is in the\ngarden. This is the convent of sufferers, and there are green garments\nenough here. Arise and sober thyself; for the morning and harbinger of\nbenefits, as well as of the acquisition of victuals for subsistence,\nis approaching.\u201d When the superintendent heard these words he thought\nthey were in a dream, for he had not yet fully recovered his senses. He\nsat quietly, but was amazed on beholding the vaults and ceiling of the\nconvent. He got up, looked at the clothes in which he was dressed, and\nat the marks tattooed on his body, and began to doubt whether he was\nawake or asleep. He washed his face, and perceived that the caravan of\nhis mustachios had likewise departed from the plain of his countenance.\nIn this state of perplexity he went out of the monastery and proceeded\nto his house. There his wife and servants had made their arrangements\nand were expecting his arrival. Approaching the door and knocking for\nadmission, Hyacinth demanded: \u201cWhom seekest thou, O Kalandar?\u201d \u201cI want\nto enter the house.\u201d Quoth the slave-boy: \u201cEvidently thou hast taken\nthy morning draught of bhang more copiously than usual, since thou\nhast thus foolishly mistaken the road to thy convent. Depart! This is\nnot the place in which vagabond Kalandars are harboured. This is the\nmansion of the superintendent of the police, and if the s\u00edmurgh should\nlook uncivilly at this place from his fastness in the west of Mount\nK\u00e1f,[247] the wings of his impertinence would be at once singed.\u201d The\nsuperintendent replied: \u201cWhat nonsense is this thou art speaking? Get out\nof my way, for I do not relish thy imbecile prattle.\u201d But when he would\nhave entered, Hyacinth dealt him a blow on the shoulder with a bludgeon,\nwhich the superintendent returned with a box on the ear, and they began\nto wrestle together. Just then the lady and her slave-girls rushed forth\nfrom the rear and assailed the superintendent with sticks and stones,\nshouting: \u201cThis Kalandar wishes in broad daylight to force his way into\nthe house of the superintendent, who is unfortunately sick, else he would\nhave hanged the rascal.\u201d By this time all the neighbours were assembled\nbefore the house, and on seeing the Kalandar\u2019s shameless proceedings they\nexclaimed: \u201cLook at that impudent Kalandar, who wants forcibly to enter\nthe house of the superintendent!\u201d Ultimately the crowd amounted to more\nthan five hundred persons, and the superintendent was put to flight,\npursued by all the boys of the town, who pelted him with stones.\n\nAt a distance of three farsangs from the town was a village, where the\nsuperintendent concealed himself in a corner of the mosque. In the\nevenings he went from house to house and begged for food to sustain life,\nuntil his beard grew again and the tattoo marks began to disappear.\nWhenever any one inquired for the superintendent at his house, the\nanswer was, that the gentleman was sick. After a month had passed, the\ngrief of separation and the misery of his condition had again drawn the\nsuperintendent back to the city. He went to the monastery because fear\nhindered him from going to his own house. His wife happened one day to\ncatch a glimpse of him from a window, and perceived him sitting in the\nsame dress with a company of Kalandars. She felt compassion for him, and\nthought: \u201cHe has had enough of this!\u201d Making a loaf and putting an opiate\ninto it, she said to the slave-boy: \u201cWhen all the Kalandars are asleep,\ngo and place this loaf under the head of the superintendent,\u201d which he\ndid accordingly. When the superintendent awoke during the night and found\nthe loaf, he supposed it had been placed there by one of his companions,\nand ate part of it and fell into a deep sleep. Some hours afterwards, the\nslave-boy, as directed by his mistress, went to the convent, and taking\nthe superintendent on his back carried him home.\n\nWhen it was morning the lady took off the Kalandar\u2019s dress from her\nhusband and clothed him in his own garments, and then began to bake\nsweetmeats as on the former occasion. After some time the gentleman began\nto move, and his wife exclaimed: \u201cO superintendent, do not sleep so much.\nI have told you that we are to spend this day in joy and festivity, and\nit was not right of you to pass the time in this lazy manner. Lift up\nyour head and see the beautiful sweetmeats I have baked for you.\u201d When\nthe superintendent opened his eyes and saw himself dressed in his own\nclothes, the rose-bush of his amazement again brought forth the flowers\nof astonishment, and he cried: \u201cGod be praised! What has happened to\nme?\u201d He sat up, and said: \u201cWife, things have occurred to me which I can\nhardly describe.\u201d Quoth the lady: \u201cFrom your uneasy motions during sleep,\nit appears that you have had very strange dreams.\u201d \u201cStrange dreams!\u201d\nechoed the husband. \u201cFrom the moment I lay down I have experienced the\nmost extraordinary adventures.\u201d The lady rejoined: \u201cAssuredly! Last night\nyou ate food which disagreed with your stomach, and to-day its vapours\nseem to have ascended into your brains, causing you all this distress.\u201d\nSaid he: \u201cYou are right. Last evening I was with a party at the house of\nSerjeant Bahman, where I heartily partook of a pillau, and it has surely\nbeen the cause of all my trouble.\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhen the three companions in the lists of deceit had executed their\ndifferent stratagems, they went according to arrangement to the same\nbath, in order to state their cases to the old hag who had promised to\naward the ring to the most cunning of the three ladies; but to their\nsurprise and chagrin they learned that she had departed to another\ncountry, thus outwitting them all, and kept the coveted ring for herself.\n\n\n\n\nTHE ENVIOUS VAZ\u00cdR.\n\n\nIn days of yore and times of old there was a merchant in Yaman of the\nname of Khoja Bash\u00edr, who was adorned with all good qualities. He enjoyed\nthe intimacy of the king\u2019s society, and the star of his good luck was\nso much in the ascendant with the king\u2019s favour that the splendour of\nthe lamp of his presence was constantly illuming the courtly assembly\nof royalty, which could never for a moment dispense with it. The king\nwas accustomed to avail himself of his advice in all grave and subtle\naffairs, and rewarded him with many favours. But his majesty had a Vaz\u00edr\nof an envious disposition, the merchandise of whose unhappy temper was\nneither current nor acceptable in the warehouse of humane qualities. This\nVaz\u00edr hated Khoja Bash\u00edr because he was superior to himself in ability\nand was much in the king\u2019s intimacy. He thus reasoned with himself: \u201cIt\nis probable that the king will become alienated from me and confer the\nvaz\u00edrate upon Khoja Bash\u00edr. It is every man\u2019s duty to look after his own\naffairs and endeavour to remove his enemies. While Khoja Bash\u00edr continues\nto drink from the cup of life and dress in the robe of royal favours,\nthe colour of distress will never be removed from the face of the sun\nof my quietude, nor can my heart rest for a moment in peace. Therefore\nI must make the utmost efforts and concoct a plan by which Khoja Bash\u00edr\nwill not only lose the regard of the king but be either put to death or\nexiled from this city.\u201d Day and night this purpose was uppermost in his\nmind, until on one occasion he happened to be alone with the sultan, and\navailing himself of the opportunity he said to his majesty:\n\n \u201cO king of high lineage and great power,\n By thy existence the throne\u2019s glory is honoured!\n May the flag of thy prosperity and grandeur always adorn the sphere!\n The very dust of thy court brightens the eye of dignity!\n\nAs, according to the canons of government and the administration of\naffairs, vaz\u00edrs are called the keys of the treasury of the regulations\nof business, and the bankers of the good and evil transactions of the\ngovernments of honoured potentates, I venture to trouble your majesty\nabout a matter which has taken place in opposition to the customs of\nobedience.\u201d The king said: \u201cSpeak,\u201d and the Vaz\u00edr thus proceeded: \u201cTwo\nthings injure the edifice and the dignity of government: one is to\nlightly esteem honoured and respected persons, and the other is to exalt\nthose who are mean and nameless. Every one who seeks the shadow of the\nhuma\u00ed of prosperity and of royalty must for several reasons keep in mind\nthese two things. Khoja Bash\u00edr, the merchant, who is placed on the upper\nseat of your majesty\u2019s proximity and regard, is a man of low extraction,\na criminal, and notorious for his immorality. His wife is an adulteress,\nwho has stepped quite beyond the pale of modesty, and scruples not to\nbe present and to roam in all assemblies and crowds and associate with\nall sorts of vagabonds and profligate persons. And it is a matter of\nastonishment that, with all your perfections and wisdom, your majesty\nshould have fallen into this heedlessness.\u201d As the king had many times\ntried the character of Khoja Bash\u00edr on the touchstone of examination and\nexperience, and had never discovered a flaw in the gem of his essence\nand qualities, he was amazed, and, refusing to assent to the accusations\nof the Vaz\u00edr, he said to him: \u201cIt is scarcely possible that I should\nassociate with a man of that description. I have found him perfect, and\nthe pure gold of his morals void of the dross and alloy of vices. What\nyou say about his character is far from probable, and you must establish\nyour asseveration by witnesses and proofs, that I may believe it, else I\nshall punish you with the utmost severity.\u201d The Vaz\u00edr now regretted and\nrepented of what he had said, but asked the king for a week\u2019s respite;\nand during that time his mind was day and night wandering like a pen over\nthe plain of composition, and meditating by what ruse he might strike the\nlightning of defamation into the granary of the modesty of Khoja Bash\u00edr\u2019s\nwife.\n\nIn that city lived a deceitful old hag, who was well skilled in all\nsorts of cunning tricks. The Vaz\u00edr sent for her, and, after anointing\nall the limbs of her expectations with the oil of promises, he said to\nher: \u201cThere is an engagement between me and the king, and for my purpose\nI require you to bring me, in any way you possibly can, some token from\nKhoja Bash\u00edr\u2019s wife.\u201d The old crone answered: \u201cBy my soul! I shall\nendeavour my utmost to do you this piece of service.\u201d Next day she put on\nan old tattered dress, and assumed the appearance of a poor and destitute\ncreature; and going to the house of Khoja Bash\u00edr, as if to beg, wished\nto enter, but the porter repulsed her, upon which she exclaimed: \u201cO\naccursed one! hast thou not heard that\n\n \u2018Whoever impedes the begging of the poor\n Is a mean wretch, who will go to hell\u2019?\n\nWhat loss wilt thou suffer if I go into the prosperous house of the Khoja\nand the ant of my hope obtain one grain of profit from the storehouse of\nhis succour?\u201d She again put forth the foot of effort to gain admittance,\nbut the porter held his staff before her, and said: \u201cThe Khoja is at\npresent with the king, and I cannot allow any person to enter in his\nabsence.\u201d Hereupon the old woman threw herself upon the ground, and\nscreamed: \u201cThe doorkeeper has killed me!\u201d She bit and wounded her limbs,\nbesmeared them with blood, and cried: \u201cAlas, my little ones will be\norphans!\u201d When the wife of the Khoja heard the clamour of the hag she\nsent the eunuchs out, and when they saw an old woman lying on the ground,\napparently in the agony of death, they asked her: \u201cWho art thou, and what\nhas happened to thee?\u201d She replied: \u201cI am a poor, weak, old woman, and\nhave come to the prosperous mansion of the Khoja in the hope of obtaining\nassistance, but in consequence of my unfounded expectations my life has\nfallen a prey to the winds of annihilation from the beating inflicted\non me by the doorkeeper.\u201d The eunuchs blamed the porter, saying:\n\u201cUnfortunate man! The removal of misfortunes and the attainment of\nhigh degrees are connected with the advent [and relief] of mendicants.\nArt thou not ashamed of having so unmercifully stricken this old\nbeggar-woman?\u201d The porter swore to the untruthfulness of her assertions,\nand related the whole matter, after which the eunuchs communicated the\nfacts to the wife of the Khoja, who was very kind-hearted, and said to\nthem: \u201cBring the poor creature in, by all means, that I may investigate\nher case; for destitute persons and darveshes are the caravan of God\u2019s\nmercy and pity, and to injure them kindles the flame of his anger.\u201d\n\nThe eunuchs wrapped the old hag in a carpet and carried her before the\nKhoja\u2019s wife, who at once applied to her nostrils different perfumes,\nsuch as castor, sandal, and aloe. After a while the old crone opened her\neyes and let loose the general of the caravan of deceit, namely, her\ntongue, in praises and good wishes for the lady, saying: \u201cNoble lady,\nmay you obtain the approbation of God, and may your future circumstances\nbe still more prosperous! Had my weak limbs not been strengthened by\nthe balsam of your kindness, the stamina of my life would have been\ndisturbed by the grasp of death in consequence of the ill-treatment\nwhich I received from the doorkeeper, and my little children would have\nbeen afflicted by the bitter poison of becoming orphans.\u201d Then she began\nfreely to weep and lament, saying: \u201cO treacherous Destiny! thou hast\nthrown me into the heart-burning flames of the death of Khoja T\u00e1vus, my\nhusband. Was it not enough to deprive me of so great a blessing, and\nto subject me to the trials of poverty, and to compel me to seek for a\nprecarious maintenance for my children, and to induce me to do things\nof which my slaves would have been ashamed? O noble lady, I was a woman\nof honour and reputation, and of a very high family, but the reverses\nof Fortune have deprived me of my husband and property, and driven me\naway from the mansion of tranquility and comfort. Every day a thousand\ndestitute and worthy persons were supplied from the table of my bounty.\nBut one day I sent a mendicant away empty-handed, and on that account\nthe torrent of diminution has overthrown the castle of my affluence, and\nreduced me to this needy condition. The poor are the spies of the palace\nof monotheism: to give them alms, and to treat them well, is an occasion\nof the increase of the vernal garden of God\u2019s favour; but to disappoint\nthem brings on the destruction of the mansion of comfort and life.\n\n If thou debar a beggar of aid\n Thou wilt enjoy no pleasure.\n The prayer of the mendicant\n Will preserve thee from ill luck.\n Give thy scraps to the poor,\n That thou mayest always prosper.\n\nO respected and noble lady, the fame of Khoja Bash\u00edr\u2019s liberal\ndisposition has to-day induced me to apply at this place. I came here\neagerly to obtain a morsel of your bounty; but as such an accident has\nbefallen me, God be praised, what other remedy is there but patience and\ngratitude? What use is there to contend with Fate?\u201d\n\nBy this address the old hag had so well sown the seeds of weeping and\nlamentation in the net of incantation, and had so dexterously sung the\nthrenody of her sadness and poverty, that the unsuspecting bird of the\nlady\u2019s simplicity was taken in the meshes of her ruse. The lady wept, and\nbegged her pardon for the injuries she had received from the doorkeeper,\nand said: \u201cWait until the Khoja returns home, and I will give thee gold\nand silver enough for the comfort of the remainder of thy life, and thou\nwilt not need to make any more demands on the liberality of others.\nThough thou seest much property here, I am not able to dispose of it\nwithout my husband\u2019s permission.\u201d The old crone waited till evening, but\nthe Khoja had not returned, so she said: \u201cHonoured lady, the Khoja has\nnot yet come, and my little children, who know that I have taken refuge\nat this threshold, are expecting to participate in his bounty.\u201d The lady\ndivested herself of a robe, handed it to the old trot, and said: \u201cThis\ndress is my own property; sell it and provide for your orphans, until I\nget something handsome for you from the Khoja in the morning.\u201d\n\nThe old woman took the robe and hastened with it to the house of the\nVaz\u00edr, saying to him: \u201cI have obtained an evident token from the wife\nof Khoja Bash\u00edr.\u201d The Vaz\u00edr was extremely rejoiced, and proceeded that\nvery night to the king after the Khoja had departed to say his prayers,\nand, showing the dress, said: \u201cMay the spheres always revolve according\nto the will of your majesty, and may the sun of your prosperity shine\nin the zenith of good fortune! Your humble servant has brought a token\nof the guilt of Khoja Bash\u00edr\u2019s wife, who often comes to me; but, in\nconsideration of my virtue and of the favour which I enjoy from your\nmajesty, as well as because of the good will I bear towards Khoja\nBash\u00edr,[248] I have always tried to dissuade her from her misconduct and\nnever admitted her into my house. Last night, however, for the purpose\nof obtaining some proof of her guilt I sent for her; she was with me\ntill morning, and this is a sign of her presence. Even this evening she\ncame again, but I sent her away. Let this robe be shown to Khoja Bash\u00edr,\nand if he should not recognise it I shall find means to give him the\nparticulars.\u201d The king was greatly displeased, and the vaz\u00edr took his\nleave. When Khoja Bash\u00edr returned the king said nothing to him about the\naffair, and the Khoja, as usual, slept in the palace. But when the belle\nof the morn invested herself with the robe of dawn and seated herself in\nthe edifice of the Orient, the king showed the garment to Khoja Bash\u00edr,\nsaying: \u201cLast night the police met a gang of thieves and took this dress\nfrom them. I wonder whose it may be?\u201d As soon as the Khoja\u2019s eye alighted\non the garment he recognised it, trembled and became pale, and said: \u201cThe\ndress belongs to one of your servant\u2019s household; but as I have been for\nsome time in attendance on your majesty, I do not know what has happened\nin my family.\u201d Then said the king: \u201cYou vile wretch! Are you not ashamed\nto keep so guilty a woman in your house, who spends every night in the\ncompany of a fresh lover? Last night your wife was in the house of the\nVaz\u00edr till morning, and this dress has been brought to me as a proof of\nthe fact. I am in fault to have admitted such an unprincipled fellow into\nmy society.\u201d Khoja Bash\u00edr was thunder-struck; but as he had no reason to\ndoubt his wife\u2019s modesty, he knew that this was a trick of the Vaz\u00edr. He\ntried in vain to undeceive the king, who was so excited that he at once\nissued orders for his execution, and so he was taken from the palace to\nthe place where he was to be put to death.\n\nThe Khoja had a slave-boy who was much attached to him, and he ran to\nthe house and informed his master\u2019s wife of what had happened. The lady\nsaid: \u201cThere is no harm done. I gave away the dress in charity and for\nthe sake of gaining favour with the Most High; nor can the promise which\nhe has given with reference to the beneficent ever fail in its effects,\nand he will not allow any ill to befall the Khoja.\u201d She handed a purse\nof gold to the lad and bade him give it to the executioners, to induce\nthem to delay carrying out the sentence on the Khoja, to which they\nwillingly consented, as they had received many favours from him while\nhe was in the king\u2019s service. In the meantime the Khoja\u2019s wife threw a\nveil over her head and went to the palace, where she found the Vaz\u00edr,\nwho had come to prevent any attempt that might be made to rescue the\nKhoja. The lady exclaimed: \u201cO king, I seek justice from the tyranny and\nwickedness of the Vaz\u00edr!\u201d Said the king: \u201cWhat injustice has the Vaz\u00edr\ndone you?\u201d She answered: \u201cI am a stipendiary of grandees, and in this way\ndo I gain my livelihood. It is almost fifteen years since I began to wait\non the Vaz\u00edr. He promised to give me nine hundred dirhams annually, but\nhe now presumes upon his high station and gives me nothing. Last night\nwhen I asked him for what is due to me he threatened to have me killed.\u201d\nThe Vaz\u00edr was amazed, and on being questioned by the king said: \u201cThis\nwoman speaks what is not true. I swear by the head of your majesty that\nI have never seen her nor do I know her.\u201d Then the lady said: \u201cHe has\nmade a false oath by the head of his benefactor! Let him write down his\nassertion, and if his treachery should become evident to your majesty\nlet him be duly punished.\u201d The Vaz\u00edr arose and scrutinised the face and\nstature of the lady, and then wrote a declaration that he had never seen\nor known this woman, and that if his assertion proved false he would\nresign his life and leave his blood to be licked by the dogs. After the\nVaz\u00edr had delivered this paper to the king, the lady said: \u201cLet it be\nknown to the exalted mind of your majesty that I am the wife of Khoja\nBash\u00edr, the merchant, against whom this tyrannical individual, to satisfy\nhis hatred and envy, concocted this stratagem with reference to me. God\nthe Most High has said that whoever uses cunning towards another shall\nalso be over-reached by cunning.\u201d She then explained the matter fully,\nand added: \u201cAs the Vaz\u00edr declares that he does not know me, how could I\nhave been with him last night?\u201d\n\nThe king became convinced of the treachery of the Vaz\u00edr, who was\noverwhelmed with shame and fell, as it were, into the agonies of death.\nKhoja Bash\u00edr was by the king\u2019s order immediately brought back from the\nplace of execution, and his wife returned to her house. The old hag\nwas produced and examined, but would not confess until the instruments\nof torture were brought, when she spoke as follows: \u201cAs women are of\nimperfect understanding,[249] I cannot be guilty. At the instigation\nof the Vaz\u00edr I entered the house of the Khoja, where that virtuous and\nmodest lady, his wife, took off the robe from her own body and bestowed\nit on me for the sake of God. Disregarding her kindness, the greediness\nof my disposition induced me to transgress the straight path, in order\nto obtain the reward promised to me by the Vaz\u00edr.\u201d The king caused both\nthe Vaz\u00edr and the old hag to be suspended on the gallows. He approved\nthe prudent demeanour of the wife of Khoja Bash\u00edr, begged pardon of the\nKhoja, and installed him into the dignity of the Vaz\u00edr, whose whole\nproperty he bestowed upon him.\n\n\n\n\nTHE BLIND BEGGAR.\n\n\nThere was a man in Tabr\u00edz the orbs of whose vision were deprived of the\nfaculty of seeing, and the stature of his circumstances had lost the robe\nof wealth. He went from house to house begging and was in the habit of\nchanting these verses:\n\n \u201cWhoever turns his face from the road of justice,\n His breast will become a target for the shafts of misfortune.\u201d\n\nOne day he went about according to his custom, and having stopped near a\nrich man\u2019s house, he began to beg, and also recited the above distich.\nThe master of the house refreshed his thirsty lips with the pleasant\nshower of a gift and said: \u201cI have often heard you chant these words;\ntell me your reason for so doing.\u201d The blind man thus replied:\n\n\u201cKind and humane Sir, why do you ask me to relate to you an event which\nis sad, and still rankles in my heart? My birth-place is in Syria, near\nDamascus. My father in the beginning of his career was a hawker, and in\nthat business he considered honesty, piety, and justice as the principal\nstock-in-trade of the shop of his livelihood. By the blessing of these\nupright principles his condition was improved, and day by day the\ndarkness of his poverty was being dispelled by the lamp of prosperity;\nhis wealth gradually increased so much that he became a dealer in jewels,\nand having with some other merchants undertaken an expedition to Bahrayn,\nhe bought there a great quantity of pearls and returned home. He engaged\nin that business with several assistants and the star of his good fortune\nwas daily rising till it culminated, and he became one of the wealthiest\nmen in that country. The diver in the sea of Destiny extracted the pearl\nof my father\u2019s life from the shell of his existence. All his property\nbecame mine; and having sat down in the depository of my father\u2019s welfare\nand ease, I spread like him the carpet of the self-same employment and\noccupation. The tree of greediness for money had struck deep roots in my\nheart; and worldliness had obtained such a complete dominion over me that\nI was deprived once for all of the reins of self-control. In lucrative\nspeculations and mercantile transactions I took dishonesty and fraud\ninto my partnership; and, although I endeavoured to cover the reproving\neye of conscience with the sleeve of prohibition, I was unable to cope\nwith my insatiable greediness. It is considered as very mean to commence\nbusiness in the baz\u00e1r before sunrise, but I was in the habit of doing\nso,[250] and one day, just when I had opened my shop, there came a man\nof sinister aspect, from whose face the jaundice of poverty had wiped\noff the bloom of health. He began to praise God, and, having drawn from\nhis pocket a precious pearl, thus addressed me: \u201cYoung man, I had once\ngreat riches and possessions, but by a sudden reverse of fortune I was\nmade penniless in the twinkling of an eye, and all that has remained to\nme is this pearl. The destitution of my family and my own difficulties\nhave compelled me to offer it for sale in order to ward off other evils,\nuntil the breeze of prosperity again begins to blow towards me.\u201d I took\nthe pearl from his hand, and although it was extremely valuable and I\nwas astonished at its beauty, purity, and splendour, yet, influenced\nby the cunning of our trade, I turned contemptuously towards the man\nand said: \u201cThis pearl is not so precious as you suppose; your poverty,\nhowever, induces me to buy it. What is the price?\u201d Then I pretended to\nbusy myself with something else, but the desire to possess the pearl\nhad pervaded my whole being, and I was afraid lest it should become the\nprey of another dealer. The man replied: \u201cDear friend, though you see\nme now in a state of distress, there was a time when I presented many\nsuch pearls to my friends. It is not worth while to make so much about\nthe sale of a single pearl, and I myself am perfectly aware of its real\nvalue; but as I have come to your shop I should feel ashamed to go\nround the others. Your own skill and knowledge are perfectly competent\nto decide this matter, and you may offer me whatever you think just\nand equitable.\u201d He then handed the pearl to me once more, and though I\ncontended with my greediness to offer him one half of its value my wicked\nnature would not consent. I drew forth twenty dirhams from my pocket and\nplaced them before him. He took the money, and drawing a deep sigh he\nexclaimed: \u201cWhat justice and humanity!\u201d and went his way. I was highly\npleased at having thus obtained a gem for twenty dirhams which would have\nbeen cheap at a thousand. I drew every moment the comb of complacency\nover the mustachios of my shrewdness, and placed the hand of approbation\non the shoulder of my expertness, and never suspected that the day of\nretribution would overtake me.\n\n\u201cOnly two days had elapsed after this transaction when I again opened\nmy shop at sunrise, before any other inhabitant of the baz\u00e1r had begun\nto stir. I was arranging my shop when one of the principal citizens\npassed on horseback, and, thrusting my head out from the door to see who\nthe cavalier was, the horse shied, the rider was thrown violently to\nthe ground and immediately expired. A crowd of attendants that followed\nfell on me, beat me with sticks, and then tied my hands. The other\nshopkeepers, who were unfriendly towards me on account of my greediness\nof gain, began to gather round me; they heartily wished that I might\nfall into some scrape, and much as I tried to explain no one paid any\nattention; but one of them said: \u2018The accumulation of wealth by the\nunworthy and dishonest clearly points to accidents like this.\u2019 So much\nof this kind of talk passed that the majority were convinced of my\nguilt, and declared that I had killed the man. The police, having tied\nmy hands and neck together, took me before the Am\u00edr of Damascus, who was\na rapacious man and coveted riches. He considered this as a very good\nopportunity to attain his end; and the guards also said that, by the\ncoruscation of the Am\u00edr\u2019s star of prosperity, this day a wonderfully\nfat piece of game had fallen into their hands. No time was given me to\nexplain: the Am\u00edr made a sign that I should be decapitated. Some of the\nbystanders, however, pleaded for mercy, and I was fined a thousand gold\nd\u00ednars.\n\n\u201cBy the depredation of this misfortune I was mulcted of more than half\nof my property, and, although the loins of my patience had been crushed\nby the burden of this loss, I again spread out on all sides the net of\nacquisition, and the sportsman of my mind was running about in search\nof the game of wealth, when one day, while I was sitting in my shop,\ntwo well-dressed women came up, one of whom had a baby in her arms,\nthe other carried a casket, and both sat down on the threshold of the\nshop. The woman with the child in her arms took some gold ashraf\u00eds from\nher pocket, and, handing them to the other, said: \u2018Give this money to\nHaji Jal\u00e1l Kazvin\u00ed for the articles which you bought yesterday, and say\nthat I shall send him the balance to-morrow. Tell him also that he must\nquickly procure the jewels which are required, because the wedding is to\ntake place in ten days. I will wait here for you; return speedily with\nan answer.\u2019 When the woman had departed on her errand I became anxious\nfor gain, because I had heard a wedding spoken of and had seen the gold\nashraf\u00eds; so I said to her who remained: \u2018Lady of the haram of modesty,\nwhere have you sent your companion?\u2019 She replied: \u2018The daughter of such\na citizen is to be given in marriage to the vaz\u00edr\u2019s son, and we, being\nattached to the household of the young lady, have come to the baz\u00e1r,\nbecause we were in need of some fine linen and jewels; the first we\nbought yesterday of Haji Jal\u00e1l and have now sent him the price, with\norders to procure the jewels as soon as possible.\u2019 On hearing this, I\npoured a considerable sum of money into the pocket of my imagination,\nand I said to her: \u2018Noble and honoured lady, I have many precious\njewels. Allow me to exhibit them to you, and you may choose those which\nyou consider suitable; there will be no difficulty in agreeing about\nthe price.\u2019 The woman answered: \u2018The lady to whom the jewels are to be\nsubmitted for approbation is very nice in her choice and difficult to\nplease. During the last few days we have shown her many jewels, but she\ndesires to see only high-priced gems; besides, we have already bargained\nwith Haji Jal\u00e1l and bought jewels of him, and he is very considerate\ntowards ourselves.\u2019 When she had spoken thus, I knocked at the door of\ncompliance and observed: \u2018Nor would I be disposed to forfeit your good\nwill, because thereby I should be greatly benefited in the profitable\ntransaction of business with great people.\u2019 She said: \u2018We shall see.\u2019\nWhile we were thus conversing her companion returned and handed her a\nstring of valuable pearls. She cast a glance at me, whispered something\nto her companion, and then continued speaking to her aloud: \u2018Since you\nhave brought them, let them remain also.\u2019 Turning to me, she said: \u2018Show\nus your jewels.\u2019 I produced a small box which contained my principal\nstock, displayed the most rare and beautiful pearls and gems which I\npossessed, and stated the price of each. I also fixed the price of the\npearl which I bought from that stranger at two thousand dirhams. The\nwoman said: \u2018I cannot tell whether they will approve of these or not.\u2019\nShe sealed the box, took out her tablets and wrote something, which she\ndelivered with the box to her companion, and said to me: \u2018I shall remain\nhere, while the lady of the house makes her choice. If you like, you may\nsend somebody with my friend, in order to learn where the house is.\u2019 I\nhad a faithful servant whom I sent along with her companion, and the\nwoman herself sat down in my shop. Presently two men in the baz\u00e1r began\nto quarrel, and when they reached my door they drew their swords and\nbegan to fight. A great crowd gathered quickly, and the men of the Am\u00edr\nalso came to fetch those who had witnessed the affair. They compelled the\nshopkeepers to follow and dragged me also with them. Meanwhile the woman\nremained sitting in my shop with the child in her arms, and said to me:\n\u2018Do not be uneasy about your shop, for I will take care of it till you\nreturn.\u2019 I proceeded a few paces, till it occurred to me that the woman\nmight deceive me, so I said to the butcher whose shop was next to mine:\n\u2018Take care of this woman.\u2019 As he had no knowledge of my transaction with\nher, he supposed that I wished him to take care of the shop only, and\nsaid: \u2018All right.\u2019\n\n\u201cAs some time had elapsed since my servant went with the woman and the\nbox of jewels and had not yet returned, and as the other woman was by\nherself in my shop, I was full of anxiety and went with an oppressed\nheart to the court of the Am\u00edr. When I arrived there all the witnesses\nhad been examined and discharged. I was taken into the presence of the\nAm\u00edr to give my testimony, but being in a very distracted state of mind I\ngave my evidence in a way which did not correspond with that of the other\nwitnesses. The Am\u00edr smiled and said: \u2018This is the wretch who killed such\na man,\u2019 and the people said: \u2018So it is!\u2019 The Am\u00edr continued: \u2018This is the\nreason why his evidence is contradicting that of all the others; such a\nworthless fellow deserves to be severely punished.\u2019 When I was led out\nof the palace I gave a large sum to the officials to induce them to take\nbail of respectable persons and set me at liberty.\n\n\u201cOn returning to my shop, the woman was gone, and my servant was sitting\nalone crying and in sore distress. I asked him what had become of the\njewels and the woman he accompanied; and he in his turn inquired what had\nbecome of the woman he had left in the shop with me. I told him that I\nhad committed her to the care of the butcher, and demanded to know where\nhe had been and what he had done with the box of jewels. He replied:\n\u2018You gave the box to the woman, and ordered me simply to follow her so\nas to learn where the house is, and this I did. I went with her from the\nbaz\u00e1r and passed through several streets until we reached the street of\nthe Forty Virgins; she stopped at the door of a house, before which a\nnumber of respectable people were sitting, and bade me sit down till she\ncame out again. The woman went in, and I remained waiting for her till\nnear noon, but she did not make her appearance. When it was mid-day and\nI heard the voice of the muezzin, and beheld crowds entering the house,\nI supposed that somebody had died there and that the people were going\nto condole with the relatives. After a while they all came out again.\nAt last I asked one of the people: \u201cDoes the woman who went in here not\nintend to come out at all?\u201d The man laughed and said: \u201cWhose house do you\nsuppose this is? And what woman are you speaking about? Step forward,\nthere is none to prohibit you, and see what place this house is.\u201d I\narose from my seat and entered the portico with fear and apprehension,\nand proceeded till I reached the interior of a mosque where I saw people\nengaged in prayer. On the opposite side of the mosque I saw an open\ndoor through which people were also coming and going. Then I knew that\nthe woman must have passed through it. I went out by that door and saw\nwomen like her walking about, but as there was nothing particular in her\ndress by which I might have recognised her, and not knowing her name, I\nwandered through the streets for some time and then hopelessly returned\nto the shop.\u2019[251]\n\n\u201cI was choked with grief at these tidings, and almost lost my senses. I\nwent to the butcher and asked him what had become of the woman whom I had\nleft to his care, and he answered: \u2018When did you entrust a woman to me?\nYou only asked me to look after your shop. When you were gone I noticed a\nwoman sitting there with a child in her arms, and I asked her with whom\nshe had any business, to which she replied: \u201cI want a sum of money from\nthe jeweller.\u201d Presently she brought the child and said: \u201cLet this child\nremain here till I come back,\u201d and went away, and there is the child in\nyour shop.\u2019 I said: \u2018Bring it out, that I may see it.\u2019 The butcher did\nso, and when I raised the veil from its face we discovered that it was a\nplaster figure dressed up as an infant. I said to the butcher: \u2018This is a\nvery strange child!\u2019 He replied: \u2018Leave off joking; go in and inquire for\nthe woman.\u2019 I continued: \u2018I entrusted the woman to your care, and I want\nyou to produce her. She remained in my shop as a pledge for more than\nthree thousand tom\u00e1ns\u2019 worth of jewels.\u2019 He replied: \u2018You fool! Perhaps\nI was your servant, that I should take care of the woman, instead of\nyour doing so yourself!\u2019 I was in so great a state of excitement that I\ntook up his great knife which was lying near me and threw it at him; it\nwounded him in the face. His friends and neighbours seized and carried me\nbefore the Am\u00edr, who ordered them to kill me. But there were many that\nsaid: \u2018This man is crazy: of what use could it be to kill him? Let his\npossessions be confiscated, and himself be expelled from the city, as a\nwarning to others.\u2019\n\n\u201cAll that I possessed was taken from me as a mulct for my crime, and\nbeing driven out of the city, I went away poor and naked. When I reached\nthe desert I lost my road, and wandered about thirsty and hungry for\nten days, bitterly lamenting my misfortunes. Suddenly a man met me and\nmounted me on a camel. Having carried me into the main road, he asked me\nwhether I knew him. I said: \u2018Your voice seems to be that of a friend.\u2019\nHe continued: \u2018I am the man who sold you the pearl for twenty dirhams to\ntry your honesty, and I have it with me now\u2019; and putting his hand into\nhis wallet he drew forth the same pearl and showed it to me, saying:\n\u2018Know that I am King Akabil, and that several thousands of genii are\nsubject to me, and my occupation is to go about in the cities and baz\u00e1rs\nunder various disguises, to discover whether people are honest in their\ndealings. When I find one upright I always remain his friend and helper;\nbut when I see a man who is unjust and fraudulent, I endanger his life\nand property. You ought to know that base actions are unrighteousness\nand deceit towards your fellow beings. On account of your deceitfulness\nand injustice, the granary of your immense property has in a very short\ntime been blown away by the wind of non-existence.\u2019 I began to cry and\ncomplain, but he said: \u2018Remorse is now of no avail,\u2019 and disappeared from\nmy sight. So I came to this country and am wandering about in a state\nof helplessness and destitution, in bitter repentance and grief for my\nformer dishonesty and the loss of my property. Whatever I undertook,\nnothing succeeded, and at last I became blind. Now begging has become my\ntrade; and the reason why I always chant the same distich is that neither\nthe high nor the low should quit the road of honesty and justice, lest\nthey be exiled, like myself, from the abode of peace and prosperity.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nTHE KAZI OF GHAZNI AND THE MERCHANT\u2019S WIFE.\n\n\nDuring the reign of Sultan Mahm\u00fad Sabaktaghin,[252] of Ghazn\u00ed, a man was\ntravelling from Aderbaijan to Hind\u00fast\u00e1n; and when he arrived in Ghazn\u00ed,\nhe was much pleased with the climate and resolved to settle there. As he\nhad great experience in commerce, he went to the baz\u00e1r, became a broker,\nand was very successful in business. He intended to marry, and Fortune\nbeing propitious to him, he entered into a matrimonial alliance with\na virtuous and handsome young woman. By degrees his business became\nmore and more flourishing, and, having accumulated much wealth, he was\nnumbered among the richest merchants. Wishing to extend his transactions\nto Hind\u00fast\u00e1n, he sent goods to that country; but as he had no connections\nor intimate friends who might take charge of his wife till his return,\nthis thought troubled him greatly; and as it is the first duty of a\nrespectable man to be on his guard in this matter, and not to hazard his\nreputation and honour, he determined not to start on his journey till\nhe had provided an asylum for his spouse. The K\u00e1z\u00ed of the city being\nnoted for his piety, virtue, and honour, the merchant said to himself:\n\u201cI cannot do better than entrust the keeping of my wife to so godly and\nhonest a man, who enjoys the esteem of rich and poor; so she shall remain\nin his house until I return from my journey.\u201d\n\nThe merchant hastened to make his obeisance to the K\u00e1z\u00ed, and said: \u201cO\npresident of the judgment-seat of truth and piety, from whose highly\ngifted and penetrating intellect the explanations of religious and\nsecular questions flow, and by whose essentially holy authority the\ncommendatory and prohibitory laws are corroborated\u2014may your most\nrighteous opinion always remain the guide of those who seek to walk in\nthe straight path of piety! I, your humble servant, am an inhabitant of\nthis city, and it is my intention to undertake a journey to Hind\u00fast\u00e1n. I\nhave a young wife, the leaves of whose modesty and virtue are bound up\nin the splendid volume of her natural excellence; and as I have nobody\nwho might protect and take care of her, and lest she should fall under\nthe obloquy of false tongues, I venture to hope that she may find refuge\nwith your lordship.\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed placed the seal of acquiescence upon this\nrequest, and said that he would take charge of her; and the merchant,\nhaving furnished his wife with money to defray all the necessary expenses\nfor a year, delivered her to the K\u00e1z\u00ed, and set out on his journey.\n\nThe lady passed all her time in the house of the K\u00e1z\u00ed in prayer and\ndevotion; and nearly a whole year had elapsed, without the breeze of a\nsingle profane glance having blown on the vernal abode of her face, and\nwithout her having ever heard the bird of a voice in the foliage of her\nears, till one day the K\u00e1z\u00ed unexpectedly made his appearance and looked\nat her, when he perceived the Layl\u00e1-like beauty sitting within the black\nmansion of her musky ringlets, and her sweet tenderness mounted upon the\nface of attractiveness and melancholy, the Majn\u00fan of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s intellect\nbecame troubled, and, Ferh\u00e1d-like, he began to dig the Bist\u00e1n of his\nsoul, which was melting and burning in the censer of distraction. He was\ndesirous of making an attack upon her virtue, but, being aware of her\npure nature and chastity, durst not attempt it. One day, however, when\nhis wife went to the public bath and had left the lady alone to take\ncare of the house, he was so completely dominated by his unlawful passion\nthat he threw skyward the turban of concupiscence and exclaimed:\n\n \u201cThe desired game for which I looked in the skies\n Has now on earth fallen into the net of my good fortune.\u201d\n\nHe locked the door, and commenced his stratagem by complimenting her\nmodesty, and continued to address her in the following strain: \u201cVirtuous\nlady, the reputation of my honesty and piety has spread through the\nworld and penetrated all corners. Even the charms of the h\u00far\u00eds of\nParadise could not seduce my righteous disposition from the road of\nfirm determination, or impel me to transgress the laws of purity; then\nwhy do you avoid me so much? If the absence of intelligence and of the\nknowledge of the true state of things keep your face veiled with the\ncurtain of bashfulness, my obedience to the laws of God and my fear of\neternal punishment at the day of resurrection prohibit me from allowing\nthe fire of sensuality to be kindled within me. I would not disturb your\npeace, even with a single glance of my eye. Be of good cheer, therefore,\nand throw aside the veil of apprehension from your face, for there is\nno danger of sinning; and although it is against the law of God and the\nProphet to exact services from guests, yet as you belong to the house and\nI am dependent on your kindness, I would request you to procure me some\nfood, for I am hungry.\u201d\n\nDrawing the prohibitory veil of bashfulness over her face, the lady\nwaited upon the K\u00e1z\u00ed with all due modesty, and having placed food before\nhim she retired into a corner. Now the K\u00e1z\u00ed had provided himself with a\ndrug which deprives of all sense any one who partakes of it, and he said\nto the lady: \u201cYou know that three kinds of persons will be rejected from\nthe mercy of God on the day of the resurrection and subjected to endless\ntortures: he who eats alone, he who sleeps alone, and he who travels\nalone; and till now it has never happened to me that I did any of these\nthree things. As I am now eating alone, and one who does this has Satan\nfor his companion, and his faith is endangered, why should you not, in\norder to free me from the snares of the Devil, defile your hands by\npartaking of this meal?\u201d He ceased not thus to press the lady till she\nat length sat down near the table and helped herself to some food, into\nwhich the K\u00e1z\u00ed unobserved threw some of the drug. After she had eaten a\nfew morsels she felt faint, and on attempting to rise from the table her\nfeet refused to bear her and she fell senseless on the floor.\n\nThe K\u00e1z\u00ed quickly gathered up the articles that were on the table and\npurposed worse things, when he heard noises outside, which greatly\ndisturbed him, and he was perplexed where to conceal the unconscious\nlady, so that nobody might discover the matter. He thought of the vault\nwhere he kept his money and valuables, which was known only to himself,\nand into it he thrust the lady, and then went out and found that his\nfamily had returned from the bath.\n\nThe K\u00e1z\u00ed asked his family: \u201cWhy did you leave the house empty?\u201d They\nanswered: \u201cWe left the wife of the merchant to take care of the place.\u201d\nQuoth the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cIt is two hours since I came home, and I have seen no\none; why do you trust a stranger? She may have taken away something.\u201d\nThey were all astonished, protested that she was not such a woman, and\nwondered what had become of her. While this talk was going on, the\nmerchant, having just returned from his journey to Hind\u00fast\u00e1n, came to\nthe house of the K\u00e1z\u00ed to inquire for his wife. The K\u00e1z\u00ed said: \u201cIt is\nsome time since your wife left my house, without giving notice or asking\npermission.\u201d But the merchant replied: \u201cO K\u00e1z\u00ed, this is not a time for\njesting; give me back my wife.\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed swore that he was in earnest.\nBut the merchant said: \u201cI am too well acquainted with the nature and\ndisposition of my wife to believe her capable of such conduct. There must\nbe something more in this affair than appears.\u201d At this the K\u00e1z\u00ed affected\nto be wroth, and said: \u201cIt is I who ought to be offended, you foolish\nman. Why do you talk nonsense and needlessly insult us? Go and look for\nyour wife!\u201d\n\nAs the merchant was devotedly attached to his wife, and the smoke of\ndistress was beginning to ascend from the oven of his brain, he tore the\ncollar of patience and hastened to make his complaint to the sultan,\nand, prostrating himself upon the carpet of supplication, he recited\nthese verses:\n\n \u201cO exalted and happy monarch,\n May felicity be the servant of your palace!\n The K\u00e1z\u00ed of the city has done me injustice\n Greater than the blast of the tornado of the west.\n If it be permitted, I will explain\n The injustice of that mean-spirited wretch.\u201d\n\nThe sultan replied: \u201cSet forth your complaint, that I may become\nacquainted with it.\u201d Then the merchant spoke as follows: \u201cI am a native\nof Aderbaijan, and the fame of the justice and protection which the\npoor obtain at the hands of your majesty induced me to settle in this\ncountry, and I have dwelt for some years under the shadow of the sultan\u2019s\nprotection. I had a beautiful and modest wife, and, purposing to travel\nto Hind\u00fast\u00e1n, I committed her a year ago to the charge of the K\u00e1z\u00ed. Now\nI have returned from my journey, the K\u00e1z\u00ed, led away by covetousness,\nrefuses to give up to me my wife.\u201d The sultan ordered the K\u00e1z\u00ed to be\nbrought before him. When he appeared, the sultan asked him what he had\nto say regarding the complaint which the merchant made against him.\nSaid the K\u00e1z\u00ed: \u201cMay the torch of your majesty\u2019s welfare be luminous and\nthe castle of opposition ruinous! This man entrusted his wife to me,\nand it is nearly three months since she quitted my house without giving\nnotice, and up to this time she has not come back, and we have failed to\ndiscover any trace of her.\u201d To this the merchant responded: \u201cSuch conduct\nis inconsistent with the character of my wife, and I do not believe it.\u201d\nThe sultan asked: \u201cWhere are the witnesses?\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed said that several\nneighbours and householders were acquainted with the fact, and wrote down\nthe names of a number of rascals whom he had bribed to give evidence\nin his favour. At a sign from the sultan to the chamberlain they were\nbrought in and confirmed the assertion of the K\u00e1z\u00ed, upon which the sultan\nsaid to the merchant: \u201cAs the K\u00e1z\u00ed has established his statement by\nwitnesses, your complaint falls to the ground,\u201d and the merchant retired\ndisappointed.\n\nNow the sultan was in the habit of walking about the baz\u00e1rs and streets\nof the city occasionally in disguise, mixing among the people, in order\nto discover what they thought of him. That night he left his palace\naccording to his wont, and as he walked about he chanced to pass near\nthe door of a shop where a party of boys were playing at the game of\n\u201cThe King and his Vaz\u00edr.\u201d One of the boys was made king, and said to\nthe others: \u201cAs I am king, you are all under my authority, and you must\nnot seek to evade my commands.\u201d Another boy said: \u201cIf you give unjust\ndecisions like Sultan Mahm\u00fad, we shall soon depose you.\u201d The boy-king\nasked: \u201cWhat injustice has Sultan Mahm\u00fad done?\u201d The other boy answered:\n\u201cTo-day the affair of the merchant came before the sultan. This merchant\nhad confided his wife to the keeping of the K\u00e1z\u00ed, and he hid her in his\nown house. The sultan called for witnesses, and the K\u00e1z\u00ed gained the case\nby producing in court witnesses whom he had previously bribed. It is a\ngreat pity that people should have the administration of justice in their\nhands who are unable to distinguish between right and wrong. Had I been\nin the place of the sultan I should very soon have discovered the truth\nor falsehood of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s witnesses.\u201d\n\nWhen the sultan had heard the conversation of these boys he sighed, and\nreturned to his palace in great agitation of mind; and next morning\nas soon as it was daylight he sent a servant to fetch the boy who had\ncriticised his judgment of the merchant\u2019s case. The boy was brought,\nand the sultan received him in a very friendly manner, saying: \u201cThis\nday you shall be my lieutenant from morning till evening, and I intend\nto allow you to sit in judgment and to act entirely according to your\nown will.\u201d Then the sultan whispered to the chamberlain to invite the\nmerchant to repeat his complaint against the K\u00e1z\u00ed, and the merchant,\nhaving been brought into court, did so. The K\u00e1z\u00ed and his witnesses were\nnext summoned, and when the K\u00e1z\u00ed was about to seat himself the boy said:\n\u201cHo, Master K\u00e1z\u00ed, the leading-strings of justice and the power of tying\nand untying knotty points of law have been long in your hands\u2014how then do\nyou seem to be so ignorant of legal customs? You have been brought into\nthis court as a party in a law suit, and not as an assessor. It is the\nrule that you should stand below, on an equality with your accuser, till\nthe court breaks up, and then you should obey whatever its decision may\nbe.\u201d Then the K\u00e1z\u00ed went and stood near the merchant, and again asserted\nthat the woman had left his house three months ago. The boy asked: \u201cHave\nyou any witnesses?\u201d The K\u00e1z\u00ed pointed to his followers, saying: \u201cThese\nare the witnesses.\u201d The boy called one of them to him, and asked him in\na subdued voice whether he had seen the woman. He said: \u201cYes.\u201d Then he\nasked what signs there were on her person, stature, or face. The man\nbecame embarrassed and said: \u201cShe had a mole on her forehead; one of\nher teeth is wanting; she is of fresh complexion; tall and slender.\u201d\nThe boy asked: \u201cWhat hour of the day was it when she went away from the\nK\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s house?\u201d The man replied: \u201cMorning.\u201d \u201cRemain in this place,\u201d said\nthe boy. Then he called another witness, who thus described the woman:\n\u201cShe is of low stature and is lean; her cheeks are white and red; she\nhas a mole near her mouth; she left the house in the afternoon.\u201d Having\nplaced this man in another corner, the boy called for a third witness,\nwhose evidence contradicted both the others; and gradually he examined\nthem all and found they disagreed from each other in everything. The\nsultan was sitting by the side of the boy and heard all; and when the\nhearing of the witnesses was ended the boy said: \u201cYou God-forgetting\nwretches, why do you give false evidence? Let the instruments of torture\nbe brought that we may find out the truth.\u201d As soon as they heard the\nword torture they all offered to say the truth, and confessed themselves\nto be a set of poor fellows whom the K\u00e1z\u00ed had bribed with a sum of money\nand instructed what to say, and that they knew nothing whatever about the\nwoman. Then the boy called the K\u00e1z\u00ed, and asked him what he had to say in\nthis business. The K\u00e1z\u00ed commenced to tremble and said: \u201cThe truth is as I\nhave stated.\u201d The boy said: \u201cOur K\u00e1z\u00ed is a bold man, and his haughtiness\nhinders him from confessing the truth: the instruments of torture ought\nto be employed.\u201d When the K\u00e1z\u00ed heard this, the fear of torture greatly\ndistressed him, and he confessed the truth. On this the boy kissed the\nfloor of good manners with the lips of obedience and said: \u201cThe rest of\nthis affair is to be settled by the sultan.\u201d The sultan was much pleased\nwith the acuteness and intelligence of the boy, and ordered the K\u00e1z\u00ed to\nbe beheaded and all his property to be given to the merchant\u2019s wife. The\nboy was treated kindly and educated, until by degrees he won the entire\nconfidence of the sultan and became one of his greatest favourites.\n\n\n\n\nTHE INDEPENDENT MAN AND HIS TRAVELLING COMPANIONS.\n\n\nHistorians relate that there were two men of the inhabitants of Kab\u00fal\nsitting in the corner of poverty, fettered with the chains of hardships\nand difficulties. The thunderstorms and disturbance of the whirlpools of\nthe sphere\u2019s revolution had overturned the boat of their possessions, and\nit had become the prey of the whale of destruction. They were screwed in\nthe press of poverty and destitution, like flower-beds from which the\noil is to be squeezed out, and the pain and suffering of distress caused\nthem to change colour at each moment like a chameleon till each day was\nchanged into evening. Although they hastened with the foot of labour and\ndiligence in the performance of their occupations, they could never reach\nthe desired mansion of their object on account of their unpropitious\nfortune and their constant mishaps. The blackness of their morning\ntinctured the night even of the poor with the reflection of grief, and\nthe mirror of their evening imparted new sorrow to orphans.\n\nOne day they said to each other: \u201cIn this country the gates of peace are\nshut upon us, and it is a maxim of the wise that if people meet with\ndifficulties in their own country they ought to remove to another. As the\nliberal Sultan Mahm\u00fad is now reigning, we must go to Ghazn\u00ed and do our\nbest to see him, when perhaps the aroma of his generosity will perfume\nthe nostrils of our intention, and our dilapidated circumstances will be\naltered.\u201d So they set out for Ghazn\u00ed, and on the road they were joined by\na man, the rose-bush of whose disposition was always kept fresh by the\ndew of piety, and who passed his life in contentment, like one of the\nblest. He asked them: \u201cMy brothers, the shoe of what desire have you put\non the foot of your intention? And towards the castle of what pretension\nhave you turned the face of your inclination?\u201d They answered: \u201cSince the\nlamp of each of us has been extinguished by the wind of misfortune, and\nthe thorn of hardships has pierced the feet of our hearts, and as we\ncould not find the plaster in Kab\u00fal by which the wound of our untoward\ncondition might be healed; and hearing that the gates of the generosity\nand liberality of Sultan Mahm\u00fad the Ghaznivide have been opened to the\nrich and poor, and that the banquet of his unbounded graciousness is\nalways spread for the relief of the poor, we hope to re-light the lamp\nof our circumstances at the blaze of his regard.\u201d Those two men of Kab\u00fal\nalso asked the young man about his intention, and he replied: \u201cHaving\nno possessions in my own country, and the day of my well-being having\nreached the evening, I am in pursuit of a lawful means of support, but\nI do not expect aught from Sultan Mahm\u00fad or persons like him. I desire\ngrace and favour of a Sultan, the door of the treasury of whose gifts is\nbesieged by a hundred thousand men as indigent as Sultan Mahm\u00fad, who are\ncontemplating with the eye of hope the storehouse of his infinite grace\nand bounty.\u201d In short, the three travellers pursued their journey in\ncompany till they arrived in Ghazn\u00ed, where they took up their lodging in\na ruined building.\n\nOne night all three of them were sitting together in the ruin, conversing\non various subjects. It happened that Sultan Mahm\u00fad, accompanied by two\nof his intimates, had left the palace to walk about in the moonlight.\nThey passed through several streets and lanes till they came near the\nruin, and, attracted by the voices, they discovered the travellers and\nasked them who they were. The two men of Kab\u00fal replied: \u201cWe are benumbed\nby the crapula of the wine of helplessness and distress; we are veiled\nby the curtain of misery; we are riding the horse of poverty, and are\nroaming through the ups and downs of this world; and now our fate has\nguided us to this place, and we shall see how our affairs terminate.\u201d The\nsultan asked: \u201cWhat are your wishes?\u201d They answered: \u201cIf we tell them,\nthey will never be accomplished; so there is no use in relating them.\u201d\nQuoth the sultan: \u201cSince the inhabitants of this world are bound to aid\neach other, it is your duty to inform me of your desires, in order that\nthe complicated knot of that affair may be disentangled by the help of\nsome one\u2019s nail.\u201d One of them replied: \u201cI was one of the rich and the\nprosperous, and possessed great wealth. This world, which is inconstant\nlike the hues of the chameleon, has ceased to be propitious to me; and\nthe shame of poverty and the disgrace of my family have induced me to\nquit my country. If I were possessed of ten thousand d\u00ednars, I should\nconsider the sum as a capital which might enable me to raise my head\nagain and return to my country.\u201d The other said: \u201cI had a wife sitting\nveiled in the haram of compliance: the loveliness of the sun of her\nfeatures surpassed the rose in beauty, and the moon was lessened in\nsplendour by the rays of her cheeks. I loved her much, and could not live\none moment without her. She died, and the fire of grief has burnt my\nliver, and thrown me into the most unhappy condition. Should his highness\nthe sultan present me with a member of his haram, so that by the sun\nof her presence the mansion of my joy and happiness might become again\nillumined, I would gladly return to my country.\u201d The third companion\nremained silent, and the sultan turning to him asked: \u201cDo you not wish\nfor anything?\u201d He answered: \u201cI have to do with God. I need neither a\nwife nor gold. I turn my face towards the vivifying treasury of God\u2019s\nmercy, by whom desires are granted, who knows the innermost recesses of\nour hearts, and what every one deserves: my wishes are all regulated by\nhis good pleasure. If you are in the enjoyment of God\u2019s favour and are\nable from him to obtain your desires, pray to him for my sake that he may\ngrant me the grace that I should not once draw my breath contrary to his\ngoodwill.\u201d The sultan said nothing, but arose and departed.\n\nWhen the chamberlain of Destiny had opened the gates of life upon the\ninhabited earth, and the world-illuming king, the sun, had seated\nhimself in the azure tent of the upper sky, the sultan ordered the three\nstrangers that were in the ruin to be brought into his presence. When\nthey perceived the sultan, they knew him to be the same man who had been\nwith them the preceding night, and they were under the apprehension that\nhe would be angry with them. The sultan called them forward, and inquired\nof each of them his wants, and the two men of Kab\u00fal repeated what they\nhad said on the previous evening. When the third stranger\u2019s turn came he\nsaid:\n\n \u201cBitter indeed to our lips is the colocynth of mendicancy;\n We have tasted the sweets of liberality from the hands of the\n noble-minded.\n\nO thou illuminated speculum of potentates, as long as the storehouse of\nthe works of God is full of blessings, may the treasury of thy desires\nalso remain plentifully provided with the exhilarating gold, silver, and\njewels of prosperity! Although people in general may be rejoicing with\nthe delicacies of the table of thy bounty, and thyself mayest thereby\ntaste the sweets of good deeds, still those that sit in the tent of\nexquisite feelings have so much refreshed their palates with the honey\nof contentment that they would by no means defile their lips with a\nsingle mouthful which belongs to others.\n\n The palate of the contented has never been sweetened by the liberal;\n The delights of independence are far above the delights which\n liberality can bestow.[253]\n\nMy hopes and expectations are dependent on the threshold of the Eternal\nKing: he will grant to me all that he thinks fit, without my fastening\nmyself on the skirts of petition to any one else, or jeopardising the\nposition of a retiring and modest individual.\u201d\n\nThe sultan tried much, but could not induce the young man to act contrary\nto his avowed principles, and to open his lips to beg for some favour.\nHe gave orders that the man who was in want of a wife should be provided\nwith one of his own damsels, and presented the man who wanted money with\ntwo purses of gold. Then he said: \u201cNow, all three of you, return to your\nown countries.\u201d In obedience to this order they set out together on their\njourney to Kab\u00fal. After proceeding about two parasangs,[254] the man who\nobtained the gold felt tired by carrying it, so he handed it to his\nempty-handed companion, requesting him to carry it for a short time till\nhe had rested himself.\n\nNow the chroniclers relate that when the three men left the presence of\nthe sultan, he turned to his courtiers and said: \u201cThat independent man\nhas put me greatly to shame. He left me as if I were in the position of\na poor man; and although I tried much he would not accept of anything.\u201d\nOne of the courtiers, who was labouring under the asthma of covetousness,\nand as the covetous are the natural enemies of the contented, thus\ngave expression to his innate feelings: \u201cThe sultans and kings of this\nworld are the collectors of the treasury of God; and, according to the\nrequirements of the order of mundane affairs, he grants drafts or letters\nof credit to the poor for the alleviation of their wants, which drafts\nthe rich are bound to accept and honour. Whoever refuses to apply to\nkings for help scorns their favour, and in this manner acts contrary to\nthe will of God, on account of his pride and independence. Such a man is\ncertainly deserving of death, and ought to be so punished.\u201d The sultan\nbecame excited, and ordered one of his chamberlains to proceed on the\nsame road which the three men had taken, and, leaving undisturbed the man\nwho had the gold and him who had the girl, to kill the third person who\nwas empty-handed, and bring his head. It so happened, however, that when\nthe messenger of the sultan overtook them, the independent man carried\nthe gold upon his back, and the possessor of the gold was empty-handed.\nThe chamberlain made no inquiry, but cut off the head of the proprietor\nof the gold and returned with it to the sultan. When the sultan had\nlooked well at the head he exclaimed: \u201cYou are a thoughtless fellow, and\nhave made a mistake.\u201d He despatched forthwith another chamberlain, and\nenjoined him to decapitate that man who was without any burden whatever.\nBut now it fortuned that the possessor of the girl had entrusted her\nfor a time to the independent man, and fallen a little behind. When\nthe messenger came up, he perceived the owner of the girl following\nempty-handed in the wake of the independent man, and immediately cut off\nhis head, and on presenting it to his master, the sultan, after looking\nat it, cried in astonishment: \u201cThis man has also been killed by mistake!\u201d\n\nThe sultan reflected for a while, and when he became calm, perceived that\nthe grace of God had been a bulwark of protection to that independent\nman, which had prevented him from coming to any harm. He summoned another\nattendant, and commanded him to pursue the same road, and bring into his\npresence the man who possessed both the gold and the girl, which he did\naccordingly. As soon as the sultan beheld the man, he smiled, and said:\n\u201cWhat has become of your companions?\u201d He answered: \u201cMay the life of the\nsultan be everlasting, and may the compliant hand of the sweetheart\nProsperity be always round his neck! He who presented them with the gold\nand the maid has in return taken their lives; and indeed whoever prefers\nthe creature to the Creator turns away his face from the threshold of\nreal felicity, has no refuge whither he might flee, will be trampled\nunder the feet of distressing events, and will not pluck a single flower\nfrom the rose-garden of his desires.\n\n Whoever averts his face from his portals\n Will meet with no regard, to whatever door he turns.\u201d\n\nThese observations of the man aroused the sultan from the sleep of\nindolence, and made him aware that this person had tasted the sweets of\nbenefits from the spread-table of the love and knowledge of God; and he\nsaid to him: \u201cThou ornament of the society of obedience to the laws of\nGod! I am very anxious to bestow something upon you, that I may become\ninfinitely your debtor. I adjure you, by God, to ask something of me.\u201d\nThat happy man thus answered: \u201cI have two wishes. The first is, that\nyou send a very considerable sum of money to Kab\u00fal, to recompense the\nheirs of the two men who have been slain without any guilt of their own;\nand the second is, that I may be allowed to enjoy the lease of a small\ndwelling, in which I may carry on the trade of a weaver, and thus earn\nan honest livelihood.\u201d The sultan stroked the face of agreement with the\nfinger of beneficence, and said: \u201cYou flower-gatherer in the gardens of\nbeneficence! I have also three requests to make of you, with which I\ntrust your kindness will comply. The first is, that, should you entertain\nany ill-feeling towards me, I beg you to forget it; the second is, that\nyou pray to God that he may blot out my sins from the book of my actions\nwith reference to those two innocent men; and the third is, that you come\nto me every Friday evening, so that I may profit by my intercourse with\nyou.\u201d The man agreed to all this, and applied himself diligently to his\nbusiness, till his singleness of purpose placed him in possession of the\nkey to prosperity and wealth; and the gates of well-being having become\nopen in correspondence with his expectation, he was enabled to advance\nmoney to the royal treasury whenever it was required, to redeem many\npeople from the penalty of death, and to do much good to worthy and poor\npeople.\n\n\n\n\nTHE KING WHO LEARNED A TRADE.\n\n\nThere was, in days long past and in the country of Aderbaijan, a king\nwho administered justice and cherished wisdom; the tiller of his\nequity-loving nature kept the garden of his kingdom always free of the\nchaff and rubbish of oppression, and preserved, with the light of the\ntorch of high-mindedness and gifts, the surface of the breasts of those\nwho hoped and solicited from the darkness of hardship and destitution.\nBy means of his discernment he became acquainted with the worth and\nstation due to men of skill, and always honoured the high polish of the\nspeculum of accomplishments and perfections with the throne of dignity\nand the place of respect. One day, while he was seated in the palace of\npomp and splendour, dispensing justice and retribution, and engaged in\ndiving into the depths of the circumstances of the people, two men took\nhold of the collar of complaint before him, one of whom had no trade,\nwhile the other was skilful and accomplished; and, although the former\nbrought forward arguments and evidence in support of his claim, and it\nbecame clear that he was in the right, the king purposely turned the\nscales in favour of the clever man, and ordered him that was without a\ntrade to be punished.\n\nThe king had a vaz\u00edr equal to Plato in science, who always drew upon the\nbook of circumstances with the pen of propriety of opinion and prudence\nof arrangement. Wondering at the decision of the king, he rose from his\nplace and said: \u201cO thou leader of the caravan of prosperity of realms,\nby the strokes of whose world-conquering scimitar the peace of the\nbreasts of opponents is destroyed, and from the fruits of whose convoy\nof success the countries of the hearts of the amicable are made populous\nand flourishing! I have a request to make: first, that the skyward-flying\nhuma\u00ed of your gracious disposition may pervade the atmosphere of\ncompliance with my solicitation.\u201d The king said: \u201cExplain.\u201d And the\nvaz\u00edr continued: \u201cI pray that the life of this innocent youth, whose\nguiltlessness must be visible upon the mirror of your majesty\u2019s mind,\nmay be spared for my sake; and that it might be disclosed to me why your\nmajesty pardoned the guilty one and condemned the innocent.\u201d The king\nreplied: \u201cI have absolved him whom you called guilty because I have\narrived at the certainty that he is unblameable and has the right on his\nside. But I do not consider this the proper time to explain the matter,\nwhich, however, will be done as soon as we are alone.\u201d\n\nWhen the tree of the assembly had shed the leaves and fruits of its\nmultitude and the lamp of the apartment of privacy was trimmed and made\nbright, the king spake thus to his vaz\u00edr:\n\n\u201cThou quintessence of acuteness, something happened to me once which\nplunged me into the sea of astonishment. From that time I made a vow to\nshow favour to a man who has a profession, even should he be blameworthy\notherwise, and to punish him who has no trade or occupation, even though\nhe should be my own son; so that the high and the low, seeing this,\nshould be induced to have their children taught trades in due conformity\nwith their circumstances.\n\n\u201cKnow, then, that when my father was yet walking in the garden of life,\nand was sitting upon the throne of happiness and government, on a\ncertain day those who were present at the audience were discussing the\nadvantages of trades and accomplishments; and, although I had made myself\nacquainted with several sciences and accomplishments befitting a royal\nprince, I was desirous of learning some useful craft. I therefore caused\neach one of the tradesmen of the city to exhibit his skill before me,\nin order that I might apply myself to the craft which I should prefer.\nAfter having seen them all, none pleased me so much as mat-making,\nbecause the master of that art had introduced into the specimen which he\nwrought all sorts of pretty figures. The instructor was engaged, and I\nwas taught until I became skilful in this business. One day I happened to\nentertain a desire to make a pleasure excursion on the sea, and, having\ntaken leave of the king, embarked in a boat with a number of companions.\nWe amused ourselves for two days with fishing, but, as all mortals are\nsubject to the vicissitudes of Fortune, on the third day a dreadful storm\narose, the sea was lashed into furious waves, our boat went to pieces,\nand my attendants became food for the palate of the whale of destiny. I\nfloated about on a broken plank with two of my associates for several\ndays, drifting like chaff in the ebb and flow of the abyss, and having\nour throats choked every moment by the gripe of mortal fear. We humbled\nourselves at the footstool of the Answerer of prayer, because no one ever\nbesought him in vain; and by his favour the wind drove the broken plank\ntowards the shore, and all three of us, having landed in safety, made\nour way to an oasis in which were various fruits and aromatic plants,\nnumerous beyond conception. We travelled through this oasis, resting\nduring the night on trees, for fear of wild beasts, and at length reached\nthe city of Baghd\u00e1d. I possessed several rings of great value, and went\nto the baz\u00e1r, accompanied by my friends, in order to procure food. Having\nsold a ring, we entered the shop of a cook, who displayed a great variety\nof dishes, and in whose service a handsome boy was busying himself. We\nhanded the master of the shop a few dirhams desiring him to furnish us\nwith some food. He cast a glance at us and said: \u2018Young men, nobility\nand greatness shine from your foreheads. In this city it is considered\ndisgraceful that youths like yourselves should be eating their food in\nthe baz\u00e1r. There is a handsome room in the neighbourhood to which persons\nlike you are accustomed to resort: do me the favour to proceed thither,\nand I will supply something worthy of you.\u2019 He sent his boy with us, and\nwe soon reached the house, which was very neat and tastefully ornamented.\nAnd we were beginning to amuse ourselves by examining the beautiful\npaintings upon the walls, when the boy said: \u2018I am going to fetch your\nfood.\u2019 As soon as he was gone the floor of the house began to move as\nif a great earthquake had occurred, and we were all precipitated into a\ndeep well, which was dark like the graves of infidels[255] and black as\ntheir hearts.\n\n\u201cNow that cook was a Jew, and an enemy of the Faith; and it was his\npractice to decoy Muslims into this house, and, having thus entrapped\nthem and put them to death, to roast their flesh and sell it to other\nMuslims.[256] Our necks were pledged in this affair, and we were in\nexpectation of what turn it would take when the same youth descended\ninto the well, sword in hand, with the intention of murdering us,\nupon which we said to him: \u2018Friend, what advantage will you derive by\nkilling us unhappy wretches? If gain be your object, we know the trade\nof mat-making, which is very profitable in this city. Bring hither the\ntools and materials necessary for that business, and we will make a mat\nevery day.\u2019 The youth hastened to inform his master of our proposal,\nand we were furnished with the required materials, and began at once\nto make mats, receiving each day a loaf of barley bread. After being\nin this condition for some time, a plan occurred to me through which\nour release might be achieved. I finished a mat with all possible care,\nand worked into the borders of it an account of my circumstances in the\nArabic language. This was during the reign of Har\u00fan er-Rash\u00edd, and I\nthought that if this mat were offered to the khal\u00edf it might be the means\nof our release. The greediness of the Jew having become an obstacle to\nhis circumspection and regard of consequences, he carried the mat to the\npalace of the khal\u00edf, who highly approved of it; but after examining it\nmore minutely he discovered the meaning of the characters in the borders,\nand demanded of the Jew whose work it was and where he had got it. He\nanswered: \u2018I have a friend in Basra who sent it to me.\u2019 The khal\u00edf said:\n\u2018Wait a little, that I may present thee with a reward worthy of it.\u2019 Then\ncalling a servant to him he whispered something in his ear, upon which he\ncame and delivered us from the well and conducted us into the presence of\nHar\u00fan. When the Jew saw us he began to tremble, and the khal\u00edf demanded\nof him: \u2018Who are these men?\u2019 The Jew struck with his hand the ring of\nthe door of negation, and replied: \u2018I do not know.\u2019 Then the instruments\nof torture were ordered to be brought, and when the Jew heard this he\nconfessed everything. The khal\u00edf commanded the Jew to be hung upon the\ntree of punishment, and the poison of perdition to be poured into the\nthroat of his existence.\n\n\u201cMy plan was highly approved of, and I was sent to the bath and presented\nwith rich clothes. The khal\u00edf then asked me about my adventures, which I\nrelated to him from beginning to end. As the long service of my father\nhad laid the khal\u00edf under many obligations to him, and the khal\u00edf knowing\nwell that I was as the apple of my father\u2019s eye, he was the more kind\nto me, and said: \u2018Be of good cheer. Please God, we will help you to\nreturn to your own country.\u2019 After entertaining me for several days, he\npresented me with ten strings of camels and all sorts of things which are\nnecessary or useful to grandees, and dismissed me, with a letter to my\nfather and a guard of fifty men. When I arrived in this city the corpse\nof my father was just being carried to the cemetery. Having mourned for\nthe death of my father, I established myself firmly upon the throne\nof dominion. Although my peace was for some time in jeopardy from the\nmisfortunes I had endured, yet it was by the help of a trade that I\nwas saved. I have perfect confidence in skilful men, and have decided\nalways to honour men who have a profession and despise those that have\nnone.\u201d[257]\n\n\n\n\nTHE HIDDEN TREASURE.\n\n\nThere dwelt in Damascus a man of the name of Zayn al-Arab, with the honey\nof whose life the poison of hardship was always mixed. Day and night he\nhastened like the breeze from north to south in the world of exertion,\nand he was burning brightly like straw, from his endeavours, in the oven\nof acquisition, in order to gain a loaf of bread and to feed his family.\nIn course of time, however, he succeeded in accumulating a considerable\nsum of money, but as he had tasted the bitterness and poison of\ndestitution, and had for a very long time borne the heavy load of poverty\nupon his back, and fearing to lose his property by the chameleon-like\nchanges of Fortune, one night he carried his money out of the city and\nburied it under a tree. After some time had passed he began to miss the\npresence of his treasure and betook himself to the tree, in order that\nhe might refresh his eyes with the sight of it. But when he had dug the\nground at the foot of the tree he discovered that his soul-exhilarating\ndeposit was refreshing the palate of some one else. The morning of his\nprosperity was suddenly changed into the evening of bitterness and of\ndisappointment. He was perplexed as to what friend to confide his secret,\nand to what remedy to fly for the recovery of his treasure. The lancet of\ngrief had pierced the liver of his peace; and the huntsman of distress\nhad tied up the wings and feet of the bird of his serenity.\n\nOne day he went on some business to a learned and wise man of the city,\nwith whom he was on a footing of intimacy, who said to him: \u201cI have for\nsome time past observed the glade of your circumstances destroyed by\nthe burning coals of restlessness, and a sad change in your health, the\ncause of which I do not know, nor do I know what thorn of misfortune has\npierced the foot of your heart, nor what dawn of hardship has risen in\nthe east of your mind.\u201d Zayn al-Arab wept tears of sadness and replied:\n\u201cO thou standard coin from the mint of love! the treachery of Fortune has\nbrought a strange accident upon me, and the bow of Destiny has let fly\nan unpropitious arrow upon my feeble target. I have a heavy heart and a\ngreat sorrow. Were I to reveal it to you perhaps it would be of no use,\nand might also plunge you into grief.\u201d The learned man said: \u201cSince the\nhearts of intimate friends are like looking-glasses, and are receiving\nthe figures of mutual secrets, it is at all times necessary that they\nshould communicate to each other any difficulties which they may fall\ninto, in order that they may be overcome by taking together steps which\nprudence should dictate.\u201d Zayn al-Arab answered: \u201cDear friend, I had some\ngold, and fearing lest it should be stolen, I carried it to such a place\nand buried it under a tree; and when I next visited the spot I found\nthe garment of my beloved Joseph sprinkled with the blood of the wolf of\ndeception.\u201d The learned man rejoined: \u201cThis is a serious mischance, and\nit will be difficult to get on the track of your gold. Perhaps you were\nseen by some person when you concealed it: he who has taken it away will\nsurely have to account for it in the next world, for God is omniscient.\nGive me ten days for consideration of this matter, and it may be that\nsomething will occur to me when I have examined the book of expedients\nand stratagems.\u201d\n\nThat knowing man sat down for the space of ten days in the school of\nmeditation; but after turning over the leaves of the volume of his mind\nfrom the preface to the epilogue he could devise no plan. On the tenth\nday they met in the street, and he said to Zayn al-Arab: \u201cAlthough the\ndiver of my mind has plunged and searched most diligently into this deep\nsea, he has been unable to take hold of the precious pearl of a wise\nplan of operation. May God recompense you from the stores of his hidden\ntreasury!\u201d They were conversing in this way when a lunatic met them and\nasked: \u201cWell, my boys, what is all your secret-mongering about?\u201d The\nlearned man said to Zayn al-Arab: \u201cCome, let us relate our case to this\ncrazy fellow, and see whether some flower will bloom in his mind.\u201d Zayn\nal-Arab replied: \u201cDear friend, when you with all your knowledge have\nfailed to devise aught during ten days\u2019 cogitation, how can we expect to\nobtain any information from this unfortunate, who does not know whether\nit is day or night?\u201d Quoth the learned man: \u201cThere is no telling what\nhe might say to us; but you are aware that the most foolish as well as\nthe wisest have ideas, and a remark, uttered perhaps at random, often\nfurnishes a clue by which the desired end is attained.\u201d Meanwhile a\nlittle boy had approached, and seeing the crazy fellow stopped to observe\nhis antics.\n\nThe two friends explained their case to the lunatic, who, after being\napparently immersed in thought for some time, remarked: \u201cHe who took the\nroot of that tree for a medicine also took the gold,\u201d and then turning\nhis back to them went his way. They consulted with each other as to the\nmeaning of the crazy man\u2019s observation, when the little boy asked what\nkind of a tree it was. Zayn al-Arab replied that it was a jujube-tree.\nThen said the boy: \u201cThis is a simple affair. You ought to inquire of\nall the doctors in the city for whom a medicine compounded of the roots\nof that tree has been prescribed.\u201d The learned man greatly approved\nof the boy\u2019s acuteness and also of the crazy man\u2019s lucky thought; and\nbeing very well acquainted with all the physicians of the city, he made\nhis inquiries till he was informed by one of them that about twenty\ndays before he had prescribed for a merchant named Khoja Samander, who\nsuffered from asthma, and that one of the remedies was the root of that\njujube-tree. The learned man soon discovered the merchant\u2019s house, found\nhim enjoying perfect health, and thus addressed him: \u201cAh, Khoja, all\nthe goods of this world ought to be given up to purchase health. By the\nblessing of God, you have recovered your health, and you ought to restore\nwhat you found at the foot of the jujube-tree, because the owner of it\nis a worthy man, and it was his only possession.\u201d The honest merchant\nreplied: \u201cIt is true, I have found it, and it is with me. If you will\ntell me the amount of the gold I shall deliver it into your hands;\u201d and\nwhen Zayn al-Arab stated the exact sum he obtained his lost money.\n\n\n\n\nTHE DEAF MAN AND HIS SICK FRIEND.\n\n\nA deaf man had a friend, the garden of whose health became withered by\nthe autumnal breeze of sickness, and by it he was laid prostrate on the\nbed of infirmity, and once went on a visit of condolence to him. On the\nroad he said to himself: \u201cWhen I meet the sick man I shall ask him how he\nis. And he will certainly reply: \u2018I feel a little better.\u2019 Then I will\nsay: \u2018God be praised!\u2019 After that I will inquire who his physician is,\nand he will give me the name of the doctor. Then I will say: \u2018He is very\nskilful, and he will soon free you from your disease.\u2019 After that I will\nask what food and medicine he takes. He will tell me, and then I will\nsay: \u2018Both of them are very appropriate for your distemper;\u2019 and having\nrecited the _F\u00e1tiha_,[258] I shall depart.\u201d\n\nHe exercised himself in these questions and answers till he reached the\nhouse of his sick friend, who happened at the time to labour under great\nnausea and depression of spirits. The deaf man asked him: \u201cHow do you\nfeel, my friend?\u201d Said the sick man, in peevish tones: \u201cDo not ask me\u2014I\nam ready to give up the ghost.\u201d The deaf man smiled and said: \u201cGod be\npraised! My prayer has been heard.\u201d After that he asked: \u201cWho is your\nphysician, my friend?\u201d Quoth the sick man: \u201cThe angel of death.\u201d This\npuzzled the deaf man a little, but he answered: \u201cThat is well. I also\nhad him in view, because he is so skilful, and cures every patient he\ntreats.\u201d Then he asked what his food and medicine were. The sick man\nreplied: \u201cPain and distress.\u201d Said the deaf man: \u201cMay they redound to\nyour welfare; both are very proper for your disease.\u201d Then he began to\nrecite the _F\u00e1tiha_, and the sick man said: \u201cMay God forgive you,\u201d and\nthe deaf man took his leave.\n\n\n\n\nTHE GARDENER AND THE LITTLE BIRD.\n\n\nIt is related that a rich man in the city of Balkh possessed a garden\npleasant to behold as the roses on the cheeks of fairies, adorned with\nvarious fragrant plants, blossoming flowers, and fruit-bearing trees. In\nthat garden a little bird took up its abode and amused itself by casting\nthe fruits, whether they were ripe or not, on the ground. Whenever the\ngardener entered and beheld the damage thus occasioned, the bottom of\nhis heart was stung with the thorn of grief, and the blooming verdure of\nthe spring of his joy became withered by the cold blasts of the autumn\nof that event. Though he rubbed the hands of regret much on each other,\nhe could not remedy the evil until he had spread a net in the haunts of\nthe bird, which was soon made a prisoner. When the gardener discovered\nhis good fortune he joyfully leaped from his ambush, caught hold of the\nlittle bird, intending to despatch it to the regions of non-existence. In\nits extremity the feathered captive thus spoke to the gardener: \u201cOrnament\nof the world of intelligence! may the paradise of your good wishes always\nbe the recipient of various divine favours! Consider that if you destroy\nme, your loss cannot be repaired, and that he who dies is saved from\nall the troubles of this world. But as I am to be killed for acts which\nyou deem improper, the love of life impels me to make a statement, if\nyou will permit me, after which you may do as you choose; but remember\nthat patience is a virtue of the high-minded, and hastiness a failing of\nfoolish men.\u201d[259] The gardener, whose wrath had somewhat abated during\nthe address of the little bird, replied: \u201cBefore the whirlwind of death\nblows in the field of your life, you are at liberty to say what you\ndesire to say.\u201d\n\nThe little bird then said: \u201cWise gardener, be aware that in the west\nthere is an oasis which my tribe inhabits, but I left my relatives and\ncame to this spot. The pleasantness of this garden attracted me, and\nfor some time I reposed myself on the branch of a tree. A nightingale\nand a lapwing were sitting together on the top of a date-tree, and a\nlocust was flying towards them which both of them wished to catch. The\nnightingale was fortunate enough to seize it, but the lapwing snatched\nit from its captor\u2019s beak. Hereon the nightingale said: \u2018O lapwing, are\nyou not ashamed to possess yourself of my prey? If you are able, why do\nyou not catch your own game?\u2019 The lapwing replied: \u2018Silence! To get the\nprey is no honour, but it is so to deprive the hunter of his prey.\u2019 Said\nthe nightingale: \u2018This may be true; so I give it up. But, lapwing, I\nhave heard the other birds speak a great deal about you, and now that we\nhave met, and as your species has in the service of the Lord Sulayman\n(salutation to our Prophet and to him!) enjoyed greater proximity to him\nthan has been the lot of any other kind of birds, I wish to know what\ngifts or rewards you have obtained from him for the account which you\nfurnished him of the city of Sab\u00e1 and your help in other matters.\u2019[260]\nThe lapwing replied: \u2018King Sulayman bestowed on our species three gifts:\n(1) Whenever the earth is being dug up for water, we are able to tell\nat what depth it may be found; (2) our heads have been adorned with\nthe crest of nobility; and (3) we are acquainted with the qualities of\nfruits, and know that this year the garden in which we are at present\nhas been subjected to a visitation of God, so that whosoever should eat\nof any of its fruits must immediately die.\u2019 Then the lapwing asked: \u2018Has\nyour species been favoured with any other gifts?\u2019 And the nightingale\nanswered: \u2018We have also been granted three favours: (1) a very melodious\nvoice, which is pleasing to all hearers; (2) we possess the property of\nbeing awake during the night, which we enjoy in common with ascetics and\npious men; and (3) we have been invested with the gaudy robes of love,\nand roses have been assigned for our spouses, whose society we enjoy\nwithout let or hindrance, and in the aspect of whose heart-ravishing\ncheeks we perpetually delight.\u2019\n\n\u201cO most intelligent gardener,\u201d the little bird continued, \u201cwhen I heard\nfrom the lapwing that the fruits of this garden were become deleterious,\nI made haste to pluck and to throw them down, lest any person should\neat of them and be injured. And now if you will promise to liberate me,\nI will communicate to you three maxims, by means of which you may be\nhappy in this world and the next, and friends and foes will alike obey\nyou.\u201d The gardener said: \u201cSpeak!\u201d And the little bird proceeded: \u201cFirst,\nnever trust persons of a low and uncongenial disposition; secondly,\nnever believe impossibilities; and thirdly, never repent of anything\nthat cannot be remedied.\u201d So the gardener relaxed his hold, and the\nlittle bird flew away, perched on a tree, and stretching out its neck,\nexclaimed: \u201cO gardener, if you knew what a treasure you have allowed to\nslip from your hand, you would end your own life. Verily, I have deceived\nyou!\u201d Said the gardener: \u201cHow?\u201d \u201cIn my body is a gem as large as a duck\u2019s\negg, the like of which has never been discovered by the diver into the\nregion of imagination. Had you obtained possession of this jewel you\nmight have lived happily during your whole earthly existence.\u201d When the\ngardener heard these words he tore his robe from top to bottom, strewed\nthe ashes of repentance upon his head, and the brambles of confusion and\nuneasiness sprouted in the wilderness of his heart. As he looked to the\nright and the left how he might again get hold of the little bird, it\nflew to a high tree and said: \u201cHaving now by my cunning escaped from\nyour grasp, I shall take care not to fall into it again. Do not flatter\nyourself that you will get hold of me a second time.\u201d The gardener began\nto weep and heaved every moment deep sighs from the bottom of his heart,\nbut the little bird said jeeringly: \u201cIt is a pity that the name of man\nshould be applied to a silly fellow like yourself. I just communicated\nto you three maxims, all of which you have already forgotten. I advised\nyou not to be deceived by mean and uncongenial persons;\u2014why, then,\nhave you believed my words and set me free? I farther told you not to\nbelieve impossibilities;\u2014then why do you put faith in my words, seeing\nthat nothing could be more absurd than the idea of a weak little bird\nlike myself having in its body a gem as large as a duck\u2019s egg? Lastly, I\nadvised you not to repent of anything which is irreparable, nevertheless\nyou now moan and lament.\u201d After uttering these words the little bird\ndisappeared from the sight of the gardener.\n\n\n\n\nAPPENDIX.\n\n\n\n\nAPPENDIX.\n\n\nHATIM TA\u00cf AND THE BENEVOLENT LADY\u2014p. 46.\n\nThis story seems to have been written down from recollection of some\nof the incidents in the Persian Romance which purports to recount the\nadventures of the renowned Hatim et-Ta\u2019\u00ed, the generous Arab chief\u2014a work\nof uncertain authorship or date. It was probably written about the end\nof the 17th or beginning of the 18th century, as the MS. copy used by\nDr. Duncan Forbes for his English translation, published in 1830, which\nhe procured in 1824, he considered to be at least a hundred years old.\nThe opening of our version\u2014if indeed such it may be styled\u2014is absurdly\ninconsistent with all that is traditionally recorded of Hatim. This\nis how the incident of Hatim and the Darvesh is related in a Persian\nstory-book, according to Dr. Jonathan Scott\u2019s rendering in his _Tales,\nAnecdotes, and Letters from the Arabic and Persian_, published in 1800,\np. 251:\n\nHatim had a large storehouse having 70 entrances, at each of which\nhe used to bestow alms on the poor. After his death his brother, who\nsucceeded him, wished to imitate his great example, but his mother\ndissuaded him from such an attempt, saying: \u201cMy son, it is not in thy\nnature.\u201d He would not attend to her advice, upon which she one day,\nhaving disguised herself as a mendicant, came to one of the doors, where\nher son relieved her; she went to another door and was relieved once\nmore; she then went to a third door, when her son said: \u201cI have given\nthee twice already, and yet thou importunest me again.\u201d \u201cDid I not tell\nthee, my son,\u201d said the mother, discovering herself, \u201cthat thou couldst\nnot equal the liberality of thy brother? I tried him as I have tried\nthee, and he relieved me at each of the 70 doors without asking me a\nquestion; but I knew thy nature and his. When I suckled thee, and one\nnipple was in thy mouth, thou didst always hold thy hand upon the other,\nbut thy brother the contrary.\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nIt is quite ludicrous to represent Hatim as setting out for China to see\na lady who was declared by a wandering darvesh to be far more liberal\nthan himself. From the following abstract of the Romance\u2014which begins\nwhere our story ends\u2014it will be seen that Hatim was actuated by nobler\nmotives in undertaking his several adventures. The opening of the romance\nis reproduced almost in full from Forbes\u2019 translation.\n\n\nABSTRACT OF THE ROMANCE OF HATIM TA\u00cf.\n\nIn the kingdom of Khurasan, during the reign of Kard\u00e1n Sh\u00e1h, there lived\na worthy merchant, of great dignity, named Burzakh, who was on intimate\nterms with the king. He died, leaving an only daughter as his heir,\ntwelve years of age, and the king took her under his protection, saying:\n\u201cShe is my daughter.\u201d Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa esteemed her wealth as no better than\nsand, and she began to distribute it in charity. One day a darvesh,\nattended by forty slaves[261] passed her house while she was seated in\nher balcony. He was the king\u2019s spiritual guide. Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa sent a servant\nto invite him to an entertainment at her house, and he promised to come\nthe next day. She prepared for an offering to him nine suits of silken\ngarments, embroidered with gold, and seven trays of pure solid gold and\nbaskets of fruit. The pride of this darvesh was such that he would not\ntouch the earth when he walked, but had his path paved with bricks of\ngold and silver, and on these alone he placed his feet. On entering the\nhouse of Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa he was presented with trays full of gold and silver.\nHe was amazed at the display of wealth, and resolved that very night to\nseize the treasure. Accordingly he and his forty slaves broke into the\nhouse, killed such as resisted them, and carried off all the treasure.\nHusn B\u00e1n\u00fa and her nurse, concealed in the lattice, saw the thieves and\nknew them. Next day, she complained to the king that the darvesh had\nrobbed her house. This the king refused to believe, calling the darvesh\nthe most holy man of the age; but she declared that he was the fiend\nof the age. Upon this the king in a rage ordered Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa and her\nattendants to be stoned to death, as a warning to others. But the chief\nminister reminded him that she was the daughter of Burzakh the merchant,\nand that by putting her to death he would estrange the hearts of his\nsubjects. So the king spared her life, but caused her to be expelled from\nthe city.\n\nIn the desert, under a shady tree, Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa and her old nurse fell\nasleep; and in a dream a man appeared to Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa, and told her that\nbeneath that tree was buried the treasure of the seven regions, hidden\nthere by the King of Truth, for her sake, and she was to arise and take\npossession thereof. \u201cI am a woman,\u201d she replied, \u201cand how can I bring\nit out of the earth?\u201d The apparition said: \u201cDig the earth with a little\nspade: let the means be applied by thee, and God will grant success.\nMoreover, no one is able forcibly to deprive thee of the treasure. Arise\nand build a city on this spot.\u201d Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa having told of her dream to her\nnurse, they both set to work and dug with a piece of wood, when instantly\nthey saw a pit full of yellow gold, chests full of jewels, cups full of\nrubies, and costly pearls the size of ducks\u2019 eggs. Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa rendered\nthanks to the Most High, then giving some gold to her nurse desired\nher to return to the city and fetch food and raiment, architects and\nlabourers. Just then her foster-brother, in a mendicant\u2019s garb, passed\nby, and he recognised her. Telling him how God had given her wealth\nagain, she requested him to bring thither his relations.\n\nThe foster-brother soon returned with a builder named Mu\u2019am\u00edr. She bids\nhim begin to build a city, but he explains that the king\u2019s permission\nmust be first obtained. So Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa dresses herself in man\u2019s apparel,\nand takes for a present a cup full of rubies and a casket full of\nbrilliant jewels. She gives valuable gifts to the king\u2019s officers,\nrepresenting herself as a merchant newly arrived from abroad and desirous\nof offering presents to the king. His majesty is astonished to see the\npriceless gifts and asks: \u201cSir, whence art thou?\u201d She replies that her\nfather was a merchant of Ir\u00e1n, who died at sea; that she was an orphan\nand without kindred; had heard of his good qualities; had pitched tents\nin a tract of desert, and desired leave to build a city there. The\nking presents her with a dress of honour and adopts her as his son; and\nsuggests that she should rather build her city near the capital and call\nit Sh\u00e1h\u00e1b\u00e1d (_i.e._ king\u2019s city). But Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa prefers the desert, so\nthe king gives her the required permission.\n\nThe city was built in about two years, and Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa visited the king\nonce every month. One day he tells her that he is about to visit his\ndarvesh and prevails on her to accompany him. She invites the darvesh\nto her house, and on his consenting she observes: \u201cBut my house is far\ndistant, and in the capital there is the unoccupied house of Burzakh the\nmerchant.\u201d The king makes it over to her as a free gift. Finding her\nfather\u2019s house has fallen to decay, she has it repaired and furnished\nsplendidly. On the day appointed the darvesh came, and he declined the\njewels offered to him by Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa, who had also displayed vast wealth\nthroughout the apartment; and even at the banquet he pretended that he\ncould not partake of dainty dishes. When the darvesh and his attendants\nhad taken their leave, Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa caused all the golden dishes, etc. to be\nleft as at the banquet, and warned the captain of the watch that she had\nreason to fear being robbed. At night the darvesh and his forty slaves\nentered the house, and having tied up the valuables in bundles were about\nto be off with their plunder\u2014the darvesh himself carrying a cup full of\nrubies in his hand\u2014when the night watch rushed in, seized and secured the\nrobbers, and laid them in prison. Next day when the king opened his court\nHusn B\u00e1n\u00fa appeared,[262] and the kutw\u00e1l brought the prisoners, each with\nhis bundle of booty hanging from his neck, and made his report. The king\nthought the leader of the gang resembled a certain darvesh. Thereupon\nHusn B\u00e1n\u00fa told her story, and the king ordered all the robbers to be\ninstantly put to death. Her father\u2019s property, of which she had been\nformerly robbed, was found in the house of the darvesh, and she presented\nit all to the king. Soon after this occurrence the king visited Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa\nat Sh\u00e1h\u00e1b\u00e1d, and she gave him much gold; then pointing out the source of\nher wealth desired him to cause his attendants to convey it to his own\ntreasury. But when they began to handle the gold, it turned into serpents\nand dragons, which convinced the king that it was devoted to her sole\nuse. She built a house for the entertainment of travellers, each of whom\nreceived a handsome present on leaving, and the fame of her generosity\nwas noised abroad.\n\n * * * * *\n\nHusn B\u00e1n\u00fa, being young, beautiful, and passing rich, had of course many\nsuitors for her hand in marriage, and she one day consulted with her\nnurse as to the best means of securing herself from the importunity of\nworldly men. The nurse said she had seven questions (or tasks), which\nHusn B\u00e1n\u00fa should propose to every suitor, and he who complied with the\nterms which they embraced should be her husband, to which she agreed.\nHer fame being spread far and wide, Prince Munir, the son of the king\nof Kharizm, sent a painter to draw her portrait, which he did from the\nreflection of her face in a vessel full of water[263] and brought it to\nthe prince, who on seeing it became quite frantic from love, and that\nsame night he set out privily for Sh\u00e1h\u00e1b\u00e1d. Obtaining an interview with\nHusn B\u00e1n\u00fa and declaring his passion, she replied: \u201cYou must first answer\nme seven questions. There is a man who constantly exclaims: \u2018_What I\nonce saw I long to see a second time_.\u2019 Inform me where he lives and\nwhat he saw, and then I will put the second question.\u201d The prince takes\nhis leave and wanders about all sad at heart. He is met by Hatim Ta\u00ef,\nwho learns from him the cause of his evident sorrow, and undertakes to\nperform the task for him. Having entertained the prince for three days,\nHatim takes him back to Sh\u00e1h\u00e1b\u00e1d, and they go into the caravanserai\nthere; but Hatim refusing both the food and the gold always presented to\ntravellers, he is taken before Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa, who asks him the reason of this\nstrange conduct. Hatim only desires to look at her face. She tells him\nthat he must first bring her the solution of seven questions, to which\nHatim agrees, on the condition that she would become at his disposal in\nthe event of his succeeding, which condition was at once written and\nsigned and confirmed by witnesses. Then Hatim, leaving the love-struck\nprince at the caravanserai, sets out to obtain an answer to Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa\u2019s\n_First Question_.\n\n * * * * *\n\nAfter many surprising adventures, Hatim at length reaches a desert where\nan old man is crying: \u201c_What I once saw I long to see a second time_,\u201d\nand learns from him that once he was walking on the border of a lake,\nwhen he saw a damsel who took him by the hand and leaped with him into\nthe water, whereupon he found himself in a magnificent garden and beheld\na lovely female form closely veiled; and on venturing to raise the veil\nhe was instantly struck to the ground, and opening his eyes found himself\nin that desert, where he had ever since wandered about, restless and\nforlorn, wishing to see that beauteous fairy once more. Hatim\u2014for whom\nnothing was too difficult, for he had all sorts of talismans\u2014conducts\nthe old man to the fairy, after which he returns with the required\ninformation to Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa.\n\n * * * * *\n\nHis _Second Adventure_ is to ascertain why a man has above his door these\nwords: \u201c_Do good, and cast it on the water_;\u201d who he is, and where his\nhouse is situated. In the course of this expedition he performs three\nadditional tasks in order to obtain for another distracted lover the\ndaughter of a merchant for his wife, the second of which is: Who is the\nman that cries every Friday and why does he cry: \u201c_I have done nothing\nthat will benefit me this night_\u201d? Hatim comes to a sand-hill (having\nbeen directed to the spot by the grateful inhabitants of a town, whose\nlives he had saved by slaying a man-eating monster), and hears the voice.\nAs he advances he discovers a number of the dead rising out of their\ngraves, with angelic countenances and apparelled in splendid robes\u2014all\nsave one, who was covered with dust and ashes and sat on the cold ground,\nwhile the others sat on thrones drinking nectar, and never gave him to\ndrink thereof. This wight sighed heavily and exclaimed: \u201c_Alas, I have\nnot done that which might benefit me this night!_\u201d He tells Hatim that\nhe was a merchant and those around him had been his servants. He was\na great miser, but his servants fed the hungry and clothed the naked.\nOn a journey a gang of robbers attacked and murdered him and all his\nfollowers. \u201cHere they rest as martyrs\u2014_they_ are crowned with glory,\nwhile I am plunged in misery. In the capital of China, my native country,\nare my grandchildren living in abject poverty. In a certain chamber\nof my house is buried an immense treasure, of which no living man has\nknowledge.\u201d Hatim inquires whether it was possible for him to minister to\nhis relief. \u201cProceed to the capital of China,\u201d says the miser\u2019s shade,\n\u201cand find out my house. My name is Y\u00fasuf, and in my day I was well\nknown in all parts of the city. Seek my descendants; tell them of the\ntreasure; divide it into four equal portions; bestow one portion on my\ngrandchildren, and the other three on the poor of the city; then perhaps\nmy case may be ameliorated.\u201d Hatim goes at once to the capital of China,\nbut before he is allowed to enter he must answer three questions put to\nevery stranger by the governor\u2019s daughter. Of course Hatim gives correct\nsolutions of the enigmas, and then complies with the directions of the\nmiser\u2019s ghost.\n\nHe now addresses himself seriously to the solution of the Second\nQuestion of Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa, but he has many wondrous experiences before he\ncomes at length to the bank of a large river, on which is a lofty mansion\nof stone, and over the door is written the motto: \u201c_Do good, and cast\nit on the water_.\u201d Ushered by attendants into the house, Hatim sees a\nvenerable man of a hundred years seated upon a throne, who receives him\nwith great courtesy and causes him to be supplied with refreshments. When\nHatim asks the meaning of the motto over the door, the old man relates\nhis history: In his youth he was a great robber, yet every day he made\ntwo large loaves mixed with sweet oil and sugar, which he threw into\nthe river, saying: \u201cThis I give away, to propitiate Heaven.\u201d One day,\ncontinues the old robber, \u201cI was seized with a sickness and I thought a\nman grasped me by the hand and pointing to the infernal regions said:\n\u2018There is the place destined for thee.\u2019 But two youths, divinely fair,\ncame up and laid hold of me, saying: \u2018We will not permit this man to\nbe cast into hell, sinful though he has been. His future state is in\nParadise, and thither let us carry him.\u2019\u201d They conveyed him accordingly\nto the regions of bliss, and an angel of exalted rank telling them that\nhe had a hundred years yet to live, they brought him back to his house,\nand explained that they were the two loaves he was wont to cast into the\nwater for fishes to feed on. His health was at once restored and he made\ntwo loaves as before. When he went to cast them into the water he found\na hundred d\u00ednars, which he took up and carried to the village, where he\ncaused it to be proclaimed that such a sum of money had been found, but\nno one came to claim it. Next day when he went to the river with the two\nloaves he found another hundred d\u00ednars, and this continued till the eve\nof the eleventh day, when a man appeared to him in the visions of the\nnight and said: \u201cServant of the Almighty, thy two loaves have pleaded thy\ncause in heaven: the merciful Creator has forgiven thy sins. The d\u00ednars\nwhich thou receivest are for thy subsistence, and what is superfluous\ndo thou bestow in charity.\u201d Since then the old robber had built that\nmansion and written the motto over the door, and every day when he went\nto throw the loaves into the river he found a hundred d\u00ednars.[264]\n\n * * * * *\n\nHatim returns with this story to Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa, and she forthwith despatches\nhim on his _Third Adventure:_ \u201cThere is a man who constantly cries:\n\u2018_Injure no one; if you do, evil will overtake you_.\u2019 Find out where that\nman lives, what injury he has done, and what evil has overtaken him.\u201d\nAfter having performed a difficult task on behalf of a despairing lover\nwhom he met on his way, Hatim at length, aided by a band of fairy troops,\narrives at the outskirts of Himyar, where he hears a voice crying these\nwords, and discovers a blind man confined in a cage, which is suspended\nfrom a branch of a tree. Hatim having promised to mend his condition and\nrelieve him, the blind man related his history, as follows:\n\n\u201cI am by occupation a merchant, and my name is Ham\u00edr. When I became of\nage, my father had finished the building of this city, and he called the\nsame after my name. Shortly after my father departed on a sea voyage and\nleft me in charge of the city. I was a free-hearted and social young man,\nand so in a short time expended all the property left under my care by my\nfather. Thus I became surrounded with poverty and want; and as I knew\nthat my father had hidden treasures somewhere in his house I resolved to\ndiscover them if possible. I searched everywhere, but found nothing; and,\nto complete my woe, I received the news of my father\u2019s death, the ship in\nwhich he sailed being wrecked.\n\n\u201cOne day as I was sauntering, mournful and dejected, through the baz\u00e1r,\nI espied a learned man who cried out: \u2018If any one has lost his money\nby theft or otherwise, my knowledge of the occult sciences enables me\nto recover the same, but on condition that I receive one fourth of\nthe amount.\u2019 When I heard this seasonable proclamation, I immediately\napproached the man of science, and stated to him my sad condition and\nhow I had been reduced from affluence to poverty. The sage undertook to\nrestore my wealth, and above all to discover the treasures concealed in\nmy father\u2019s house. I conducted him to the house and showed him every\napartment, which he carefully examined one after another. At length by\nhis art he discovered the stores we were in search of; and when I saw\nthe gold and silver and other valuables, which exceeded calculation,\nthe demon of fraud entered my heart, and I refused to fulfil my promise\nof giving a fourth of the property to the man of wisdom. I offered him\nonly a few small pieces of silver; instead of accepting which, he stood\nfor a few moments in silent meditation, and with a look of scorn said:\n\u2018Do I thus receive the fourth part of your treasure, which you agreed\nto give me? Base man, of what perjury are you guilty!\u2019 On hearing this\nI became enraged, and having struck him several blows on the face I\nexpelled him from my house. In a few days, however, he returned, and\nso far ingratiated himself into my confidence, that we became intimate\nfriends; and night and day he displayed before my sight the various\nhidden treasures contained within the bowels of the earth. One day I\nasked him to instruct me in this wonderful science, to which he answered\nthat no instruction was requisite. \u2018Here,\u2019 said he, \u2018is a composition of\nsurma, and whoever applies the same to his eyes, to him will all the\nwealth of this world become visible.\u2019[265] \u2018Most learned sir,\u2019 I replied,\n\u2018if you will anoint my eyes with this substance, I promise to share with\nyou the half of all such treasures as I may discover.\u2019 \u2018I agree,\u2019 said my\nfriend: \u2018meanwhile let us retire to the desert, where we shall be free\nfrom interruption.\u2019\n\n\u201cWe immediately set out, and when we arrived here I was surprised at\nseeing this cage, and asked my companion whose it was. I received for\nanswer, that it belonged to no one. In short, we both sat down at the\nfoot of this tree, and the sage, having produced the surma from his\npocket, began to apply it to my eyes. But, alas! no sooner had he applied\nthis composition than I became totally deprived of sight. In a voice of\nsorrow I asked him why he had thus treated me, and he replied: \u2018Such is\nthe reward of treachery; and if you wish to recover your sight, you must\nfor some time undergo penance in this cage. You must utter no complaint\nand you shall exclaim from time to time: \u201cDo no evil to any one; if\nyou do, evil will befall you.\u201d\u2019 I entreated the sage to relieve me,\nsaying: \u2018You are a mere mortal like myself, and dare you thus torment\na fellow-creature? How will you account for your deeds to the Supreme\nJudge?\u2019 He answered: \u2018This is the reward of your treachery.\u2019 Seeing him\ninexorable, I begged of him to inform me when and how my sight was to be\nrestored; and he told me, that a noble youth should one day visit me,\nand to him I was to make known my condition, and farther state that in\nthe desert of Himyar there is a certain herb called the Flower of Light,\nwhich the youth was to procure and apply to my eyes, by means of which my\nsight should be restored.\n\n\u201cIt is now three years since he left me in this prison, which, though\nquite open, I cannot quit. Were I to attempt to leave my confinement,\nI should feel the most excruciating pain in my limbs, so as not to\nhave the power of moving, and thus I am compelled to remain. One day,\nshortly after my companion left me, I reflected that I could do nothing\nfor myself while I continued like a bird in this cage, and accordingly\nresolved to quit it at all hazards; but the moment I was outside of\nit the pain that seized my whole body almost killed me. I immediately\nreturned to my prison, and have since that time resigned myself to my\nfate, exclaiming at stated times the words which have attracted your\nattention. Many people have passed by me, but on learning my condition\nthey left me as they found me.\u201d\n\nWhen the man in the cage had ended his story, Hatim bade him be of good\ncheer, for he would at once endeavour to relieve him. By the aid of the\nfairies who had conducted him thither and now carry him through the air\nfor the space of seven days, he arrives in the desert where the Flowers\nof Light shine brilliant as lamps on a festival night, diffusing the\nsweetest perfume far and wide; and, recking naught for the serpents,\nscorpions, and other beasts of prey which infest the place (for he was\nguarded by a powerful talisman), he advances and plucks three of the\nlargest and most brilliant flowers. Returning in the same manner as he\nhad come, he reaches the spot where the blind man Ham\u00edr is imprisoned.\nTaking down the cage, he releases the wretched man, compresses the stalk\nof the flower so that the juice should drop upon his sightless eyeballs,\nand when this has been repeated three times Ham\u00edr opens his eyes, and,\nseeing Hatim, falls prostrate at his feet with a profusion of thanks.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe _Fourth Adventure_ is: \u201cWho is the man that has this motto over\nhis door: \u2018_He who speaks the truth is always tranquil_\u2019; wherein has\nhe spoken the truth, and what degree of tranquility does he enjoy in\nconsequence?\u201d Passing through regions of enchantment, Hatim then comes\nto a city, and discovers the motto written above the gate of a splendid\nmansion. He enters and is received graciously by an old man, who\nentertains him hospitably. Next day he relates his story: He is eight\nhundred years old. In youth he was a great gambler, and having lost all\nhis substance he became a robber. One night he broke into the king\u2019s\npalace, entered one of the chambers, where the daughter of the king was\nsleeping, and seizing all her jewels and a golden lamp that burned beside\nher he made his escape. He fled to a desert, where he found a gang of\nthieves dividing their plunder, to whom he showed his own booty, and\ntheir avarice was aroused so that they were proceeding to take it from\nhim by force, when a tremendous voice was heard close by, at which they\nran off in different directions. Presently a figure appeared before him\nand demanded: \u201cWho art thou?\u201d He told his story. \u201c\u2019Tis well for thee,\u201d\nsaid the figure, \u201cthat thou hast related the whole truth; therefore I\nforgive thy crime, and leave the treasure to thy enjoyment. But swear\nnever to gamble again.\u201d He took the required oath. \u201cWell, keep thy oath,\nand the years of thy life shall reach nine hundred.\u201d Returning to the\ncity with his plunder, his comrades envied his prosperity, and reported\nhim to the chief of the police, who brought him before the king, to whom\nhe told the whole truth as to the source of his wealth, and the king\npardoned him and gave him more gold. Then he wrote that motto over his\ndoor.\n\n * * * * *\n\nHatim\u2019s _Fifth Adventure_ is to bring an account of Mount Nida, whence a\nvoice from time to time proceeds, crying: \u201cCome quickly!\u201d Whereupon one\nof the citizens in the neighbourhood is seized with an uncontrollable\nfrenzy, rushes away to the mountain and is seen no more. This strange\noccurrence Hatim learns is the manner in which the inhabitants taste of\ndeath: when the doomed person approached a rock it split asunder, and\nas soon as he had entered the opening it closed behind him and his soul\nquitted his body.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe _Sixth Adventure_ is to procure Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa a pearl similar to one\nshe already possesses, which is as large as a duck\u2019s egg. Hatim learns\nfrom the conversation of a pair of Nitka birds that their species used\nto \u201clay\u201d such pearls once in thirty years, but this faculty had ceased\nsince the days of Solomon; that only two were on the face of the earth\nnow (all others being at the bottom of the sea), one being in the\npossession of Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa, the other in the treasury of a fairy, who has\nan only daughter: he who can tell the history of that pearl (which Hatim\nhas heard from the well-informed birds) shall have her in marriage and\nthe pearl for her dowry. Needless to add that Hatim is successful in\nhis quest, bestows the young fairy on her lover, who had been unable to\ncomply with her father\u2019s condition, and returns with the pearl to Husn\nB\u00e1n\u00fa.\n\n * * * * *\n\nHatim\u2019s _Seventh Adventure_, and the last, is to bring the lady an\naccount of the bath of Badgird\u2014an enchanted palace erected for the\npreservation of a peerless and priceless diamond by its owner, a powerful\nmagician. The stone is in the body of a parrot, Hatim is told by a bird\nof the same species before entering the hall, and whoever enters shall\nnever return unless he obtain possession of the gem. He will find a bow\nand three arrows laid on a sofa in the hall, and must shoot the arrows\nat the parrot, and if he hit right through its head he will break the\nspell, but if not, he will, like all others before him, be turned to\nmarble. Nothing daunted, Hatim shoots one arrow, and, missing, he becomes\nmarble up to his knees; the second arrow also missing, he becomes marble\nup to his middle; but (placing his reliance in God) when he shoots the\nthird arrow it pierces the head of the parrot and it falls lifeless to\nthe ground. This achievement is immediately followed by a storm of wind,\nthunder, lightning\u2014darkness. And Hatim can see no palace or parrot, but\nat his feet are the bow and arrow and a diamond of dazzling brilliance.\nNo sooner had Hatim seized the diamond than all the marble statues\nstarted into life, being freed from the spell of the enchanter.\n\nReturning to Sh\u00e1h\u00e1b\u00e1d, Hatim presented the diamond to Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa, and,\nas he had now fulfilled all her conditions, she was straightway married\nto Prince Munir, who thus reached the summit of happiness. Hatim then\nreturned to the capital of Yaman, where he was affectionately received\nby his father and mother, and his arrival was hailed with universal joy,\nwhile every house resounded with music and mirth. Shortly after this\nHatim\u2019s father resigned the reins of government into his hand and lived\nin retirement for the remainder of his life, which amounted to twelve\nyears, seven months, and nine days. Hatim reigned long and happily in\nYaman.[266]\n\n * * * * *\n\nSuch is the substance of the wonderful Adventures of Hatim Ta\u00ef, though I\nhave necessarily omitted many details and some rather curious incidents:\nlike a tale in the _Arabian Nights_, out of which spring several other\ntales, each of Hatim\u2019s expeditions led him on to others, which had to be\naccomplished before he could attain the end for which he originally set\nout. He undergoes some extraordinary experiences, too, such as being\nswallowed alive and unhurt by a dragon of such monstrous dimensions that\nhe kept tramping to and fro in its stomach till it was at last obliged,\nfor its internal peace, to eject him and be off; dipping his hand into\na lake in order to drink of the waters, and finding it instantly turned\ninto pure silver\u2014where, O where is _that_ lake?\u2014and coming to another,\nwhich had the property of restoring the _argentine_ member to flesh and\nblood; not to speak of the scenes of enchantment, which indeed seem to\nhave been begot of hashish or a like narcotic. With all its absurdities,\nhowever, the _morale_ of the romance is excellent: the hero goes about\nconstantly doing good; benevolent towards bird and beast as well as to\nmankind; feeding the hungry, relieving the distressed, and binding up the\nbroken heart.\u2014This work is still a first favourite among the Persians,\nwho continue to entertain a firm belief in d\u00edvs, par\u00eds, and many other\nkinds of spirits, good and evil.\n\n * * * * *\n\nOf the three stories which are interwoven with our tale of Hatim and the\nBenevolent Lady but one is represented in the Romance, that of the Blind\nMan, namely, but the details are very different in the two versions.\n\n\n_The Painter\u2019s Story (p. 53)_\n\nbegins with an account of a fight which he witnessed in his garden\nbetween a white snake and a black snake, and seeing the former was about\nto succumb he slew the black snake. This incident also occurs in the\nRomance, when Hatim is returning from his second expedition, only the\nmagnanimous hero does not kill\u2014or even _scotch_\u2014the black snake: he\nsimply shouts, when it lets go its hold of the other and wriggles off.\nThe white snake then becomes a handsome young man, and tells Hatim that\nhe is the son of a king of the jinn, that the black snake is his father\u2019s\nslave, and bears a most deadly enmity towards himself, and so forth\u2014an\nincident found in many Asiatic story-books. The Painter\u2019s subsequent\nexperiences in the subaqueous palace of the king of the jinn do not occur\nin the romance, though the story is known to several collections, and,\nintroduced by the incident of the two snakes, it is found, as follows, in\n_Turkish Evening Entertainments_, a translation,[267] by J. P. Brown, of\na Turkish story-book entitled _\u2019Aj\u00e1\u2019ib el-ma\u2019\u00e1sir wa ghara\u2019ib en-naw\u00e1dir_\n(Wonders of Remarkable Incidents and Rarities of Anecdote), by Ahmed ibn\nHemden, the Ketkhoda, surnamed Suhayl\u00ed (_i.e._ Canopus), who composed it\nfor Mur\u00e1d, the fourth Ottoman sultan, who reigned between A.D. 1623 and\nA.D. 1640:\n\nIn ancient times the sovereign of the country of Sab\u00e1 was a man called\nYeshrah. One day, when this excellent prince was travelling, he came to\nan extensive plain where were two serpents resembling frightful dragons.\nOne of these was white, the other black. They were entwined around each\nother in desperate conflict, and the white one had received a wound in a\nmost tender part of its body. The black serpent being thus victorious,\nthe strength of the white one was exhausted; it could move no more,\nand the black one wreaked its vengeance upon the helpless animal. King\nYeshrah, touched with pity, went to the assistance of the white snake,\nand aided it in its conquered state. He placed a diamond-pointed arrow\nin his bow, and, taking aim at the black snake, he let fly and instantly\nkilled it. The white snake, thus released, crawled away.\n\nOne day the king received a visit from a youth of a handsome exterior,\nwho informed him that he belonged to the race of the jinn, and was the\nwhite serpent rescued by him. The youth then made proffers of service to\nthe king, which he declined, upon which he offered the king his sister\nin marriage. The king, enchanted by her beauty, accepted her, and the\nmarriage took place on the king undertaking to consent to everything\nwhich his wife did, were it good or evil. Soon after the birth of his\nfirst son, a dog approached the queen, who suddenly cast the child into\nthe dog\u2019s mouth, and the dog ran away with it, to the king\u2019s great grief.\nTheir next child, a girl, the queen cast into a brazier, where the infant\nwas immediately consumed. The king was now exceedingly afflicted; but the\nbirth of a second daughter, who was so delicately beautiful on account of\nher resembling the h\u00far\u00eds of Paradise that she was called Bilk\u00eds, somewhat\nreconciled him to his loss. The king implored her not to treat this child\nas she had done the two others, for which she severely rebuked him.\n\nSoon after this a powerful enemy attacked the king, and his own vaz\u00edr,\nsecretly allying himself with the enemy, poisoned the provisions designed\nfor the king\u2019s army. The queen destroyed the provisions, at which the\nking in wrath demanded her reason. The queen explained the affair to her\nhusband, and gave the remaining bread to an animal which fell dead after\neating it. She then said that the king having broken the condition made\non his marriage with her, all intercourse must now cease between them,\nand informed him that the son thrown to the dog was still alive, and\nhad been brought up by a nurse in that form, and that the daughter was\nalso in perfect health, nursed by the fire. Beseeching him to be mindful\nof their daughter Bilk\u00eds, who should succeed to the throne and become\na great and illustrious queen, and promising to send to his succour an\narmy of jinn-soldiers, she disappeared from the king\u2019s sight for ever.\nThe troops of jinn came to his assistance as promised, routed the enemy\u2019s\nforces, and restored the king to his throne. But still he was afflicted\nby the loss of his wife. At length the fatal moment arrived, and he died;\nand his daughter Bilk\u00eds succeeded him on the throne, and her history has\nbeen written elsewhere in a detailed manner.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThus, if we may place any credit in the foregoing story, the\nthrice-renowned Queen of Sheba was jinn-born: no wonder, therefore, if\nshe was a miracle of beauty and wisdom! It does not appear, however,\nwhy her fairy-mother did not dispose of her soon after she was born,\nin the same extraordinary manner as she \u201cmade away\u201d with her previous\nbabes.\u2014Regarding the notion that when a human being unites with one of\na supernatural order there are certain conditions always imposed by the\nlatter, the breaking of which must result in their separation, generally\ntemporary, I take leave to refer the reader to my _Popular Tales and\nFictions_, vol. i, p. 212 ff.\n\nIn more or less different forms the same story is found in the following\nworks: in _Les Mille et un Jours_, which purports to have been\ntranslated, by Petis de la Croix, from a Persian collection entitled\n_Haz\u00e1r \u00fa Yek R\u00faz_, the Thousand and one Days, by a darvesh named Mukhlis,\nof Isfah\u00e1n, from whom M. Petis obtained a copy in 1675, where it is\nentitled \u201cHistoire du Roi Ruzvanschad et de la Princesse Cheheristani,\u201d\nbut in this version the king\u2019s fairy-wife leaves him only for a time;\nin a Turkish story-book, entitled _Al-Faraj ba\u2019d al-Shiddah_, Joy after\nDistress, a work written not later than the 15th century;[268] and in a\ncollection described by Dr. Chas. Rieu in his _Catalogue of Persian MSS.\nin the British Museum_, vol. ii, p. 759, Or. 237, which has no specific\ntitle, the compiler, whose poetical name was Hubb\u00ed, merely calling his\nwork, _Hik\u00e1y\u00e1t-i\u2019Ag\u00edb \u00fa Ghar\u00edb_, Wonderful and Strange Tales. In this\nlast work, the MS. of which is unfortunately imperfect, the final story,\nNo. 34, relates how a king of Yaman, while hunting, saw two snakes,\na white one and a black one, engaged in deadly combat. He sends an\nattendant to kill the black snake and rescue the white one, which was\nhalf dead; which being done, he causes the rescued snake to be laid down\nbeside a spring of water, under the shade of a tree. The snake rallies,\nand after a while crawls away. When the king is asleep at night, the wall\nof his chamber suddenly opens and a fair youth appears. \u201cI am,\u201d says he,\n\u201cthe king of the par\u00eds (fairies). You rescued me from the black snake.\nI am now come to requite your kind act. If you wish it, I will make you\nrich with many treasures.\u201d No more of the MS. remains,[269] but it is not\nunlikely that the sequel was similar to that of the Turkish story cited\nabove.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe battle between the two snakes, which is found so often reproduced\nin Arabian and Persian story-books\u2014though I cannot recollect having met\nwith it in any Indian collection\u2014seems reflected in two incidents in the\nVoyage of Saint Brandan. One day the saint and his companions discover a\nmonstrous sea-serpent on the surface of the water, exhaling fire from its\nnostrils, as it were the roaring flame of a furnace; and while the pious\nvoyagers could not measure its length they were more successful with its\nbreadth, which was \u201cfull fifteen feet, I trow\u201d; presently a monster of\nthe same species appears, and a terrific combat takes place between the\ntwo, until one is torn by his antagonist into _three_ pieces, when the\nvictor sinks down into the sea. After this they see a deadly conflict in\nthe air between a griffin and a dragon.\u2014It is well known to students of\nthe history of popular fictions that many Eastern tales and incidents\nhad found their way into Western literature long before the collection\ncommonly but incorrectly called the _Arabian Nights_, in its existing\nform, was compiled.\n\nAmong the countless absurdities abounding in the _Toldoth Jeshu_, a\nscurrilous \u201clife\u201d of Jesus Christ of Jewish invention\u2014the text of which,\nwith a Latin translation, is given at the end of the second volume of\nWagenseil\u2019s _Tela Ignea Satan\u00e6_, 1681\u2014is an a\u00ebrial conflict between\nJeshu and Rabbi Judas before Queen Helena: \u201cAnd when Jeshu had spoken\nthe incommunicable Name,[270] there came a wind and raised him between\nheaven and earth. Thereupon Judas spake the same Name, and the wind\nraised him also between heaven and earth. And they flew, both of them,\naround in the regions of the air, and all who saw it marvelled. Judas\nthen spake again the Name, and seized Jeshu and sought to cast him to\nthe earth. But Jeshu also spake the Name, and sought to cast Judas\ndown, and they strove one with the other.\u201d Ultimately Judas prevails\nand casts Jeshu to the ground, and the elders seize him; his power\nleaves him; and he is subjected to the tauntings of his captors. Being\nrescued by his disciples, he hastened to the Jordan; and when he had\nwashed therein his power returned, and with the Name he again wrought\nhis former miracles.[271] This \u201cstory\u201d\u2014to employ the term in its nursery\nsense\u2014strongly resembles the equally apocryphal legend of the a\u00ebrial\ncontest at Rome between St. Peter and Simon Magus, in which the apostle\noverthrew the magician.\n\n\n_The Washerman\u2019s Story (p. 58)_\n\ncalls for but slight remark. The fairies who alighted in succession\non the tree in the form of doves, and putting off their feather-dress\nappeared as the most beautiful damsels, belong, of course, to the\nBird-Maiden class, and the Washerman, by his own showing, did not deserve\nto possess any one of them. Could he have decided\u2014but perhaps the trial\nwas too much for him\u2014he might have secured even the last and most\nbewitching of the three, by taking possession of her feather-robe, when\nshe would have no alternative but to follow him wheresoever he might go:\nbut evidently he did not know this. (See the chapter on \u201cBird-Maidens\u201d in\nmy _Popular Tales and Fictions_, vol. i. p. 182 ff.)\n\n\n_The Blind Man\u2019s Story (p. 60)_\n\ndiffers considerably from its representative in the Romance, the story\nof the blind man Ham\u00edr in the cage (_ante_ p. 464ff.); and it is also\nobservable that in our story Hatim does nothing to mitigate the poor\nman\u2019s wretchedness. Both versions agree in treasure being found in a\ndwelling house; but in our story it is the geomancer who is the blind\nman, and his eyes are blinded in mistake by a vindictive neighbour of\nthe friend whom he thought to entrap;\u2014while in the other story it is\nthe man in whose house the treasure was discovered who is blinded by\nthe geomancer, in revenge of the ill-treatment he had received at his\nhands; and it is by the application of _surma_ to his eyes, by means of\nwhich he expected to behold all the hidden treasure of the world, that\nhe is deprived of sight. The analogous tale in our common version of the\n_Arabian Nights_, of the Blind Man Baba Abdullah (it has not yet been\nfound in any Arabic text of the collection), is wholly different in all\nits details until it reaches the catastrophe, when the greedy cameleer,\nafter getting back from the darvesh all his share of the treasure,\nreturns to request the box of salve, which, after having had applied to\nhis left eye and thereby been enabled to see all concealed treasure, he\ninsists\u2014in spite of the repeated warning of the darvesh\u2014on being also\napplied to his right eye, whereupon he instantly becomes stone-blind.\nWidely as the three stories differ one from the other, in details,\nhowever, it is very evident, I think, that they have been independently\nadapted from a common source.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe very climax of absurdity is surely reached by the author of our\nversion of the story of Hatim when he represents the _benevolent_ Lady as\nsaying (p. 50) that she is so jealous of the wide-spread fame of Hatim\nfor liberality that she wishes him to be killed; and when, on his return,\nshe reproaches him for not having brought her Hatim\u2019s head, he replies\nthat he is himself Hatim and that his head is at her disposal, whereupon\nthe lady, struck with such magnanimity, at once consents to marry him.\n\nAccording to tradition, an enemy of Hatim despatched one of his officers\nto slay him and bring his head. When he reached the encampments of the\ntribe of Ta\u2019\u00ed, he was courteously greeted by an Arab, and invited into\nhis tent, where he was treated most hospitably; and in the morning he\ntold his host that he had been sent thither by his master to slay Hatim\nand bring back his head. The host smilingly replied: \u201cI am Hatim; and\nif my head will gratify your master, smite it off without delay.\u201d The\nman hastened away in confusion; and returning to his master told him of\nhis adventure, and the enemy of Hatim ever afterwards loved and esteemed\nhim.\u2014This seems to be the tradition adapted so incongruously by our\nauthor.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe idea of our tale of Hatim and the Benevolent Lady may have been\npartly taken from the Story of the Third Darvesh in the Persian work,\n_Kissa-i Cheh\u00e1r Darvesh_ (Romance of the Four Darveshes), an anonymous\nbook, of uncertain date,[272] where the narrator, a Persian prince, tells\nhow he tried to imitate the generosity of Hatim, by causing a great\npalace to be erected with four gates, at each of which he distributed\ngold and silver to all comers. One day a wandering darvesh receives money\nat each of the gates in succession, and then begins to beg again at\nthe first gate, upon which the prince upbraids him for his greediness,\nand the darvesh retorts, as in our story, that there is a lady to\nwhose liberality there is absolutely no bound. The prince learns that\nthis generous lady is the princess of Basra, and donning the robe of a\ndarvesh he sets out for that city, where he is sumptuously entertained\nfor several days by the servants of the princess, after which he writes\nher a letter, declaring his rank and offering her marriage. He is told\nthat the princess has resolved to marry only him who should bring her\nthe explanation of the singular conduct of a youth in the city of Namr\u00faz\nwho appeared once a month riding on a bull, carrying a vase of gold\nand jewels in his hand, which he smashed in the market-place, and then\nsmote off the head of one of his slaves, immediately afterwards riding\naway again, foaming at the mouth. The royal mendicant undertakes to\nascertain the cause of the youth\u2019s madness (he proves to be in love\nwith a fairy, like the Painter in our tale), and before setting out\nfor Namr\u00faz is admitted into the private chamber of the princess, who\nis concealed behind a curtain, where a slave-girl relates the history\nof her mistress: how she was one of seven daughters of a king, and was\ndriven out of the palace because she would not acknowledge that she\nderived her good fortune from her father, but maintained that it was from\nGod. In the wilderness she meets a darvesh, and discovers underground\nimmense treasures, and so forth.\u2014This story of the princess of Basra is\none of the numerous parallels or analogous tales cited by my friend Mr.\nE. Sidney Hartland in a very able and interesting paper on the \u201cOutcast\nChild\u201d cycle, in the _Folk-Lore Journal_, 1886, vol. iv, p. 308 ff.\n\n\nSTORY OF PRINCE KASHARKASHA.\n\nThe latter part of this tale\u2014where the merchant Sadullah befriends the\nimprudent prince, bestows his own wife on him, afterwards becomes ruined\nin fortune, and visits the now prosperous sovereign, on whom he had\nlavished such favours (pp. 89-97)\u2014has long been current in Europe as well\nas in the East, in various forms. It occurs in the collection of Persian\nTales translated into French by Petis de la Croix, under the title of\n_Les Mille et un Jours_ (first published in 1710-12, 5 vols.), where it\nis entitled: \u201cHistoire de Nasiraddole, roi de Mousel; d\u2019Abderrahmane,\nmarchand de Baghdad; et de la belle Zeineb,\u201d and it is to the following\neffect:\n\nA rich young merchant named Abd er-Rahman, meets with a stranger in a\nconfectioner\u2019s shop in Baghd\u00e1d, and the two soon become very intimate\nfriends. After some time the stranger informs the merchant that he must\nnow return to Mos\u00fal. The merchant says that he himself may soon have to\nvisit that town, and begs to know his friend\u2019s name, so that he may be\nable to inquire for him there. The stranger bids him to come and see him\nat the palace. Abd er-Rahman goes to Mos\u00fal on business and discovers\nthat the stranger is no less a personage than King Nas\u00edr ad-Dole, who\nis delighted to see him and entertains him in the palace for a whole\nyear, after which he returns to Baghd\u00e1d, the king parting with him very\nreluctantly. Arrived in Baghd\u00e1d, the merchant regales his friends and\nacquaintances in the most sumptuous manner, and purchases a number of\nslave-girls, with one of whom, a Circassian beauty called Zaynib, he\nbecomes greatly enamoured. The king of Mos\u00fal comes again to Baghd\u00e1d,\nwithout attendants, and is the honoured and cherished guest of his friend\nthe merchant Abd er-Rahman. One day the king boasts of some beautiful\nslave-girls in his haram in Mos\u00fal, when the merchant, inflamed with wine,\nleads the king into an inner apartment, magnificently furnished, where\nare seated thirty lovely damsels, adorned profusely with the rarest\ndiamonds. The king is perfectly amazed on beholding the peerless beauty\nof Zaynib, and on the following day, in a melancholy tone, informs his\nfriend that he intends returning at once to Mos\u00fal. \u201cHas your majesty\naught to complain of, that you have formed this sudden resolution?\u201d the\nmerchant inquired anxiously. \u201cAll my complaint,\u201d replied the king, \u201cis\nof my destiny\u201d; but when he is about to depart his friend learns from\nhim that he is desperately in love with the fair Zaynib, and then the\nking takes his leave and sets out for Mos\u00fal. Abd er-Rahman then reflects\nthat he should not have shown Zaynib to the king, who must now lead a\nsorrowful life. At length he resolves to send the damsel to his royal\nfriend, and, having ordered her litter to be prepared, sends for Zaynib\nand tells her that she does not now belong to him, but to the king of\nMos\u00fal, whom she saw yesterday;\u2014\u201che is in love with you, and is himself\nlovely.\u201d Zaynib bursts into tears and exclaims: \u201cAh, you no longer love\nme\u2014some other damsel has taken your heart from me!\u201d \u201cNot so,\u201d says he.\n\u201cI swear that I have never loved you so much as I do at this moment.\u201d\n\u201cWhy, then, do you part with me?\u201d \u201cBecause I cannot bear the thought of\nmy friend\u2019s sorrow.\u201d So a number of attendants are sent with Zaynib to\nMos\u00fal, but the king had arrived there before them. When she is ushered\ninto the palace, the king perceives that she is sorrowful, and that his\npresence is distasteful to her\u2014evidently she cannot forget the merchant.\n\nMeanwhile Abd er-Rahman falls into a languishing condition, and one day\nthe grand vaz\u00edr sends officers to apprehend him on a trumped-up charge\nof having spoken disrespectfully of the Khal\u00edf in his cups, made by\ntwo envious courtiers, his enemies. The merchant\u2019s house is razed, his\nwealth is confiscated, and he is to be put to death the next day. But\nthe gaoler, whom the merchant had formerly befriended, takes pity on him\nand secretly sets him at liberty. When the vaz\u00edr learns of this he sends\nfor the gaoler and tells him that if the merchant is not re-captured in\nthe course of twenty-four hours he will certainly suffer in his place.\nThe gaoler answers that he believes the merchant to be innocent of the\ncrime charged against him. In the meantime Abd er-Rahman is concealed\nin a friend\u2019s house and the police are scouring the country in search\nof him, and during their absence from the city he escapes and takes the\nroad to Mos\u00fal. When he enters the palace there, the king simply orders\nhis treasurer to give him two hundred gold sequins. The poor merchant is\nsurprised that the king should bestow such a paltry sum on him, after\nthe sacrifice he had made by presenting the fair Zaynib to his majesty.\nHe takes the money, however, and tries all means of increasing it by\ntrade. At the end of six months he returns to the king and informs him\nthat he has lost fifty of the two hundred sequins by his unfortunate\nspeculations. The king bids his treasurer give him fifty more sequins,\nagain to the surprise of the merchant, who departs once more on a trading\nexpedition, but this time he gains a hundred sequins and returning to\nMos\u00fal he acquaints the king of his success. \u201cMisfortunes are contagious,\u201d\nsaid the king. \u201cI had heard of your disgrace and dared not receive you\ninto my palace again, fearing that your ill luck should affect me and\nput it out of my power to assist you when your star should look more\nfavourably on you. But now you shall live with me.\u201d Next day the king\ntells the merchant that he purposes giving him a good wife. \u201cAlas,\u201d says\nhe, \u201cI cannot think of any woman after my beloved Zaynib.\u201d But the king\ninsists, and that same night the merchant is agreeably surprised to find\nthat the wife given him by his royal friend is none other than Zaynib,\nwhom the king has all along regarded as a sister. Not long after this Abd\ner-Rahman learns that one of his accusers has confessed, and he goes to\nBaghd\u00e1d and recovers part of his wealth, and passes the rest of his life\nat the court of Mos\u00fal.[273]\n\n * * * * *\n\nIn another form the tale of the Two Friends is found in the _Disciplina\nClericalis_ of Peter Alphonsus, a Spanish Jew, of the twelfth century,\nwhence it was probably taken into the _Gesta Romanorum_, the celebrated\nmedi\u00e6val monkish collection of \u201cspiritualised\u201d stories for the use\nof preachers (page 196 of Herrtage\u2019s edition, published by the Early\nEnglish Text Society). It is also found in Boccaccio\u2019s _Decameron_ (Day\nx, novelle 8); and Lydgate, the monk of Bury, of the fifteenth century,\nturned it into verse under the title of \u201cFabula duorum mercatorum,\u201d\nbeginning:\n\n \u201cIn Egipt whilom as I rede and fynde\u201d\n\n(Harleian MS. 2251, lf. 56, preserved in the British Museum); and it\nforms one of the _Fabliaux_ in Le Grand\u2019s collection, of which this is a\ntranslation:\n\nTwo merchants had been for a long time connected in business. They had\nnever seen each other, one residing at Baldak [Baghd\u00e1d?] and the other in\nEgypt; notwithstanding which, from their long correspondence and mutual\nservices, they entertained a reciprocal esteem and friendship as if they\nhad passed their lives together. The Syrian merchant at last became\nvery desirous to have an interview with his correspondent, and set out\non his journey with that intention, after having apprised his friend\nof it. The Egyptian rejoiced heartily at the news, and on his friend\u2019s\napproach went out several leagues to meet him. On his arrival he lodged\nthe Syrian in his own house, and, making a display of his riches and\nall that he possessed, told him that everything was at his disposal. In\norder to amuse his guest, he invited several persons successively to his\ntable. For a week together there was nothing but feasting and pleasure;\nbut in the midst of their enjoyment the traveller was so struck with the\nbeauty of a lady who had one day been present that he fell dangerously\nill. Immediately all the best physicians of the country were sent for. At\nfirst, neither by his pulse nor by any other symptom could they discover\nthe nature of the merchant\u2019s disorder; but at length by his profound\nmelancholy they conjectured that love was the cause. The Egyptian on\nhearing this conjured him to disclose his secret, that the remedy might\nif possible be found. His guest, thus called upon and pressed to declare\nit, acknowledged that he was in love and that without possession of the\nobject of his affection he could not endure life. \u201cBut where to find her\nI know not. I am wholly unacquainted with her name and abode. My eyes\nbeheld her once, to my great misfortune, but day and night her image is\npresent and without her I shall certainly die.\u201d He then fainted away.\nFor several hours he continued in this trance, and was even thought\ndead. Awaking at length, he cast his eyes about the room to discover\nthe object of his passion, but in vain. She was not among the persons\npresent. His friend at last, in order to obtain for him, if possible, a\nsight of his beloved, thought of bringing successively to his bedside\nall the ladies who had been invited to the feasts, or whom he could have\nseen since his arrival in the country. But she was not of the number.\nUltimately the people of the house recollected that there was in an inner\nchamber a young lady whom the Egyptian merchant loved to distraction,\nand had brought up with the greatest care, intending her soon to be his\nwife. She was by his desire introduced. Instantly on seeing her the\nSyrian exclaimed: \u201cThat is she to whom I am to owe either my life or my\ndeath!\u201d The Egyptian merchant demurred for some time; but, with a heroic\nresolution sacrificing his passion to his friendship, he presented the\nlady to his guest. He not only consented to their union but even insisted\non giving her a marriage portion. He made her presents of rich stuffs and\nmoney, and himself took charge of the nuptials, to which he did not fail\nto invite minstrels, who sang pantomimic songs and enlivened the feast\nwith all manner of gaiety.\n\nWhen all these carousals were ended the merchant proceeded to take leave\nof his generous host and to return into his own country. His friends\non his arrival pressed forward to congratulate him. There was a fresh\ncelebration of the nuptials with rejoicings which lasted for a fortnight,\nafter which the merchant and his spouse lived happily together. But\nin the meantime sad misfortunes occurred to the Egyptian merchant: he\nmet with such losses that he was entirely ruined. In this deplorable\nsituation he thought of having recourse to his friend at Baldak, and\ndetermined to visit him there, reckoning on his gratitude for the eminent\nservices which he had rendered him. He was obliged to make this long\njourney on foot and to suffer both hunger and thirst, to endure both heat\nand cold, extremes of misery to which he had hitherto been unaccustomed.\nAt length after much fatigue he arrived about nightfall at Baldak. But at\nthe moment when he was about to enter the city the state of wretchedness\nin which he was excited in him a feeling of shame at proceeding farther.\nHe thought that if he presented himself in the dark to his friend in\nthat miserable state he would not recollect him, and therefore he judged\nit better to wait till morning. With this intention he entered a temple\nwhich was hard by. No sooner did he find himself in this dismal, lonely\nplace than a multitude of melancholy ideas assailed him. \u201cGood God!\u201d\ncried he, \u201cto what a wretched condition has thy will reduced me! Alas, my\nformer affluence renders it still more miserable. I had all that I could\ndesire, and now I find myself an outcast, without property and without\nfriends! Surely in such circumstances death is preferable to existence.\u201d\nWhile he was speaking thus to himself he suddenly heard a great noise in\nthe temple. A murderer had taken flight thither and some of the citizens\nwere following to seize him. They asked the Egyptian whether he had seen\nthe assassin. He, who wished to die and thus terminate at once his shame\nand his sufferings, declared himself the guilty person. He was instantly\nseized, bound, and thrown into prison. The next day he was brought before\nthe judge and being convicted was condemned to the gallows. When the time\nfor the execution arrived a great number of people flocked to the place,\nand amongst them the friend whose life he had saved and in quest of whom\nhe had left his native country. He had not forgotten the obligation, and\nluckily he recognised his friend. But what could he do at this juncture\nto save his life? He could think only of one method, and that was to\ndevote himself for his friend. Having taken this sudden resolution, he\nexclaimed: \u201cGood people, take care what you are about, and do not be\nguilty of the sin of punishing an innocent man. It was I who committed\nthe murder.\u201d This declaration astonished the assembly. The execution\nwas suspended, the merchant was arrested, and they began to unloose the\nstranger. But the real assassin happened to be there, and when he saw\nthem binding the merchant he was seized with remorse. \u201cWhat!\u201d cried he\nto himself, \u201cshall this honest man die for my crimes whilst I escape? I\ncannot escape the vengeance of God! No! I will not charge my conscience\nwith a second offence, but will rather expiate my crime by suffering here\nthan subject myself to the indignation of the Deity, who can punish for\never.\u201d He then made a full confession and was brought before the judges,\nwho, being puzzled at this extraordinary case, referred it to the king,\nwho, no less perplexed than they, sent for the three prisoners, and\npromising them pardon if they would declare the truth, interrogated them\nhimself. Each then recounted with fidelity what had happened, and the\nconsequence was that they were all three pardoned and discharged. The\nSyrian went home with his friend, whom he in his turn had had the good\nfortune to save. He ordered some refreshments to be served up to him, and\nsaid: \u201cIf you choose to reside here, my friend, I call God to witness\nthat you shall never be in want of anything, but shall be as much master\nas myself of all I possess. If you prefer returning to your own country,\nI offer you the half of my wealth, or whatever part you may please to\ntake of it.\u201d The Egyptian declared his desire was rather to return home,\nand he departed, charged with presents.\n\n * * * * *\n\nUnder the title of the \u201cMirror of Friends,\u201d the Spanish novelist Matias\nde los Reyes (1634) relates this favourite story, varying the incidents\nof the _fabliau_ version as above, and with a tragical catastrophe. This\nis an abstract of Reyes\u2019 tale, following Roscoe\u2019s translation, in his\n_Spanish Novelists_, ed. 1832, pp. 17-39:\n\nA young man[274] is placed at the university of Bologna, under the\nguardianship of a friend of his father, named Federico, whose son\nLisardo and he at once become most intimate friends. There was so close\na resemblance between the two youths in person and features that one was\noften mistaken for the other. Four years after entering the university,\nhe falls in love with a pretty girl whom he saw seated at a balcony\u2014it\nis not said how he got introduced to her\u2014and she returns his affection,\nbut insists on their engagement being kept a profound secret. Shortly\nafter this, the father of Laura\u2014such was the sweet name of our youth\u2019s\nsecret _fianc\u00e9e_\u2014proposes that she should marry Lisardo, to which his\nfather Federico most willingly consents, as the young lady\u2019s family are\nof high station and very wealthy. This comes like a thunder-clap upon our\npoor love-sick youth, but he cannot get himself to confess to Lisardo his\ndevoted attachment to Laura. As the time draws near for the marriage he\nfalls dangerously ill\u2014\u201csick of love\u201d; and if his friend tried to \u201cstay\nhim with flagons and comfort him with apples,\u201d he did so in vain\u2014albeit\nwe have high authority for the efficacy of such remedies. At length\nLisardo comes to him one day, and insists upon knowing the secret cause\nof his illness and melancholy, otherwise their friendship must be at an\nend. He then confesses his love for Laura and their private betrothal.\nLisardo reproaches him for not having told him of this before, since he\nwould willingly sacrifice his life for his friend; but even now he will\ncontrive means whereby his friend should be united to the young lady\ninstead of himself.\n\nOn the morning of the marriage-day Lisardo makes his friend dress himself\nin his wedding-garments, and, as they were so like each other, none\npresent at the ceremony suspected but that it was Lisardo who led the\nbride to the altar. Next day, at an early hour, the bridegroom goes into\nLisardo\u2019s room and receives his hearty congratulations; but now comes the\nquestion of how to disclose the affair to Lisardo\u2019s father. After some\ndiscussion they go to Federico and confess the deception that had been\npractised. At first he is very angry but at length consents to explain\neverything to Laura\u2019s father, which he does accordingly, at the same time\nstating that the match is quite as good as was intended, and this is\nere long confirmed by the receipt of documents from our youth\u2019s father\nconveying property and money to him. Soon afterwards the loving couple\nset out for the husband\u2019s home.\n\nTwo years pass away, during which Lisardo has not once communicated with\nhis friend, who now goes to Bologna to ascertain how he fares. He finds\nthat Lisardo\u2019s father is dead and himself gone no one knows where. Then\nhe visits all the chief towns and ports of Italy in quest of him, but\nwithout success. Entering Naples for the second time, he perceives a\nlarge concourse of people in the great square, where there is a scaffold\nerected, on which he sees a youth with his arms pinioned, and the\nexecutioner, sword in hand, by his side. He recognises in the unhappy\nyoung man his friend Lisardo, and, breaking through the crowd, rushes on\nto the scaffold, exclaiming: \u201cThis man is innocent\u2014I am the guilty one!\u201d\nWhen the tumult caused by this singular scene is somewhat allayed, the\nchief magistrate orders both to be taken to prison in the meantime, and,\nas a favour, they are both placed in the same cell. Lisardo reproaches\nhis friend for casting away his life, and he innocent of any crime,\nbut his friend replies that he is convinced that Lisardo is equally\ninnocent, for which Lisardo expresses his gratitude and then proceeds\nto tell his story. His father died worth little money, although he had\na reputation of being very rich, and with a few jewels Lisardo departed\nfrom Bologna. As he journeyed he was attacked by a band of robbers, who\nplundered him and even stripped off his clothes. A humane cottager gave\nhim a ragged coat, and he wandered on, not knowing or caring whither he\nwent. He thought of his friend, but was ashamed to be seen by him in\nsuch a plight. After being sick for six months in a public hospital, he\nresumed his wanderings, and one night took shelter in a cavern. In the\nmorning he was rudely awakened by some peasants, who pointed to the dead\nbody of a man that lay in the cavern, and accused him of the murder.\nPresently the police came and led him off to prison. At his trial he\nsaid nothing in his own defence\u2014for he was weary of life\u2014and he was duly\ncondemned to death. Having heard this sad story, his friend is now more\nthan ever determined to save him by the sacrifice of his own life. But\nwhile they are still conversing the cell door is thrown open, and the\nprison officials inform them that the real murderers of the man have\njust been captured in a gang of desperadoes, who were discovered to be\nthe same that had robbed Lisardo, his jewels having been found in their\npossession. The reaction produced by this sudden intelligence proves too\nmuch for Lisardo\u2019s shattered frame; and, confessing to his friend that\nhe had from the first loved and had never ceased to love the beauteous\nLaura, his devoted spirit took its flight from this earth, leaving his\nfriend for ever disconsolate: \u201cI shall go to him, but he shall not return\nto me!\u201d\n\n\nSTORY OF THE UNLUCKY SHOAYB\u2014p. 110ff.\n\nWas there ever, I wonder, another Shoayb besides the hapless fellow\nof this story? Not only did good fortune actually run after him and\nhe all the while flee from it, as if the pestilence were behind him,\nbut his very presence anywhere was the cause of manifold disasters! If\nthere be not, however, amidst the multitude of the world\u2019s folk-tales\nan exact parallel to the Story of Shoayb, there is one near akin to it,\nfrom Western India, related by M. Putlibai D. H. Wadia, in the _Indian\nAntiquary_, 1886, p. 221, as follows:\n\nOnce upon a time there lived in a certain country a merchant, who was\nformerly very prosperous, but having suffered great losses in trade, he\ncame to be in such poor circumstances that starvation stared him in the\nface. As the king of the country knew him well, his wife advised him to\ngo to court, feeling sure that the king would do something for him. The\nmerchant, however, felt reluctant to go to the king as a suitor, but\nafter suffering great privations for a long time, when he saw that there\nwas nothing left for his family but starvation, he made up his mind to\nfollow his wife\u2019s advice, and one morning presented himself at the court,\nwhich he found crowded with many persons, who had come there on the same\nerrand as himself. This sight rather unnerved him, and he devoutly hoped\nthe king would not recognise him. When his turn came, however, to be\nushered into the royal presence, the king recognised him at once, and\nasked him what he could do for him. The merchant with great hesitation\nrelated his case, and the king, being a very thoughtful man, feared that\nhe would hurt the dignity of one so respectable as the merchant if he\ngave him pecuniary assistance before so many people. So he requested him\nto wait till all had left the court, and then going into his private\napartments he ordered a water-melon to be brought to him, in which he\nmade a hole, and pouring out its contents, he filled it with gold coins.\nThen summoning the merchant before him, he gave him the melon and said:\n\u201cTake this to your family, it is a refreshing fruit, and you will all\nenjoy it this hot day.\u201d The merchant thanked the king and returned\nhomeward very much grieved at receiving only a water-melon when he\nexpected something more substantial. As he was walking along on his way\nhome, he met two travellers, who were very thirsty and looked wistfully\nat the melon he was carrying, and, being of a very generous disposition\nand thinking that they needed the melon more than he did, he gave it to\nthem and walked quickly home empty-handed.\n\nAfter passing many months of privation and misery, he was persuaded by\nhis wife to go to the king a second time, in the hope of better luck. The\nking was, however, much surprised at the merchant\u2019s paying him a second\nvisit so soon after the first; but when he heard that he was as poor as\nbefore, he thought he had invested in trade the money he had given him\nand lost it. He therefore filled a water-melon once more with gold coins\nand presented it to him. The merchant was again disappointed at being\nsent away with such a trifle, but he nevertheless made his obeisance to\nthe king and returned homewards. This time, however, he resolved not to\npart with the fruit, knowing that it would be welcome to his starving\nchildren. He had not gone very far, however, when he met a beggar who\nasked alms of him, saying that he was very hungry. The merchant could not\nresist this appeal, and, having no money, gave the melon to the beggar.\n\nWhen he reached home his wife was sorely vexed at his bad luck, and\nwondered very much why the king, who was reputed to be very charitable,\nshould treat her husband so shabbily as to send him away with a melon\nevery time he went into his presence. Being, however, of a persevering\nnature, she once more persuaded him to go to court and ask the king for\nhelp. He accordingly went there and stood in presence of the king as\nbefore. But this time the king first asked him to explain what use he\nhad made of the two water-melons he had given him. The merchant related\nhow he had given the first to two travellers who were very thirsty, and\nthe second to a hungry beggar who asked him for alms. The king laughed\nat the merchant for what he considered his folly, and told him what the\ntwo melons contained. He then filled another water-melon with jewels in\nthe merchant\u2019s presence, and gave it to him, admonishing him to be very\ncareful of it. The merchant went away rejoicing, full of hope that the\ncontents of the fruit would enable him to start in life anew. Now it\nhappened that as his house was situated on the other side of the river\nwhich passed through the town he had to cross it, and in doing so his\nfoot slipped and the fruit fell into the water and was carried away by\nthe flood. The poor merchant wept over this misfortune, and returned\nhome, cursing his evil star.\n\nHe was now fully persuaded that it was the will of Iswara[275] that he\nshould remain poor; and, thinking it useless, therefore, to struggle\nagainst Destiny, he resolved never to ask anybody for help again, but to\nlive as best he could till it should please Iswara that he should see\nbetter days.\n\n * * * * *\n\nTo the same class, also, belongs No. 104 of the selection of monkish\nLatin Stories edited by Thomas Wright for the Percy Society, of which\nthis is a translation:\n\nThere were two blind men in the Roman state. One of them daily cried\nthrough the town: \u201cHe is well helped whom the Lord wills to help.\u201d The\nother exclaimed: \u201cHe is well helped whom the emperor wills to help.\u201d When\nthey had said this very often, daily, and the emperor had frequently\nheard it, he caused a cake to be made and many talents to be put into\nit, and ordered this cake filled with talents to be given to the blind\nman [who said that he was well helped whom the emperor helped]. Having\nreceived it, and feeling the cake heavy, and meeting the other blind man,\nhe sold him the cake for his children. He who bought the cake, coming\nhome and breaking it, finding it full of money, gave thanks to God, and\nfor the rest of his life ceased to beg. But the other continued to be as\nformerly, and the emperor called him, and said to him: \u201cWhere is the cake\nwhich I ordered to be given you yesterday?\u201d He replied: \u201cI sold it for\na trifle to my companion, because I thought it was raw.\u201d \u201cTruly,\u201d said\nthe emperor, \u201che is well helped whom God helps!\u201d And he turned away and\nrefused to aid the blind beggar.\n\nA similar story is told by Gower in his _Confessio Amantis_, Book v, only\nhere the emperor causes two pasties to be made, into one of which he\nputs some florins and into the other a capon, and the beggars exchange\npasties. Another analogue is found in _Past Days in India_ (London:\n1874), pp. 169-171, where two _fak\u00edrs_ (Hind\u00fa religious mendicants) are\namong the crowd at a grand royal festival, one of whom, to flatter the\nking, bawls out: \u201cKings have all sublunary power, and they give to whom\nthey please; what, then, can the Ruler of Destiny do?\u201d The other, an\nhonest fellow, rebuked him, saying: \u201cWhen the Ruler of Destiny gives,\nwhat can the greatest king do?\u201d With limes in place of pasties, the\nresult is the same as in Gower\u2019s story.[276]\n\n\nHISTORY OF FARRUKHR\u00daZ\n\nThis most entertaining little romance, which all readers would wish\nlonger, may be considered as exemplifying\u2014if we can allow ourselves to\nsuppose such strange occurrences to be possible\u2014the adage that \u201cit is\nbetter to be born lucky than rich.\u201d Unlike most heroes of romance, the\ntroubles of Farrukhr\u00faz are comparatively few and of very brief duration;\nand even while he is in tribulation we feel confident that he will\npresently emerge from it, being so evidently a favourite of Fortune.\nSeveral of the incidents in the tale are peculiarly interesting to\ncomparative \u201cstoriologists.\u201d\n\n\n_The Ungrateful Brothers_\u2014pp. 149-152.\n\nThe diabolical treatment of Farrukhr\u00faz by his two brothers was probably\nadapted from the tale of \u201cThe Witch Shamsah and T\u00e1hir of Basra,\u201d which\noccurs in the Turkish story-book, _Al-Faraj ba\u2019d al-Shiddah_, and of\nwhich the following is the outline:\n\nOne day three jewels were brought to Har\u00fan er-Rash\u00edd, who greatly admired\nthem, but his vaz\u00edr, Fazl bin Rab\u00ed\u2019, told him that a merchant of Basra,\ncalled T\u00e1hir the dog-worshipper, possessed much finer ones. T\u00e1hir is\nsent for, exhibits his thirty unequalled jewels, protests that he is\na good Mussulman, but admits that he has two dogs well cared for, and\nthen proceeds to relate his history: His father \u2019Asim had left a wealthy\nestate to him and his two brothers, who soon squander their shares and\nbecome destitute. He has pity for them and takes them with him on a\ntrading voyage. While he slept on deck, they threw him overboard. He\nescapes on a plank and is cast ashore on the island of Gang, where he\nfinds his two brothers. They trump up a charge against him before the\nking, to whom they had made a present of his favourite slave-girl, and he\nis thrown into a dark pit, where he meets with a youth who is also the\nvictim of a treacherous brother, and whose sweetheart rescues them both.\nWandering forth, they fall in with a caravan, and here again T\u00e1hir meets\nhis brothers, who leave him wounded and almost dead on the road, where\nhe is found by a princess, who has his wounds dressed, and takes him to\nher father\u2019s palace. She is Kamar al-Bahr, the daughter of the king of\nGang, and falls in love with him. They are betrayed to the king, who is\nabout to slay them, but makes them over to his vaz\u00edr, who puts them in a\nboat. They fall in with pirates, who take the princess and leave T\u00e1hir in\nthe boat, which they send adrift. The pirates fight over their prize and\nkill each other, all but one, whom the princess contrives to get rid of\nby poison. T\u00e1hir, drifting in his boat is picked up by a passing ship,\nwhere once more he finds his rascally brothers. They wish to put him to\ndeath, but are persuaded to hand him over to the king of Iram, an island\non which they land.[277] There the two brothers find the princess of\nGang and present her to the king, who immediately becomes madly enamoured\nof her, but she will not yield to his desires. Then he tries to terrify\nher into submission by slaying a prisoner before her eyes, who happens\nto be none other than T\u00e1hir. The king was raising his sword to cut off\nhis head but gave way to her entreaties and released him. By the advice\nand with the help of a kind officer, T\u00e1hir crosses the sea to Jaz\u00edra-i\nFirdaus,[278] the realm of the mighty sorceress Shamsah, where he finds\na paradise indeed, and enters a magnificent but untenanted palace.\nSuddenly he hears an awful sound, and a dragon appears and ascends the\nthrone. It then changes into an old woman\u2014Shamsah herself. She hears his\nstory, takes pity on him, and sends with him an innumerable host of wild\nbeasts to the conquest of Iram. He returns victorious to pay homage to\nShamsah, who gives him his beloved princess in marriage and along with\nher a string of thirty jewels, and two magic vials of green and red oil,\none having the virtue of changing men into beasts, the other that of\nrestoring them to their natural shape. After a while T\u00e1hir returns with\nhis wife to Basra, whither he is soon followed by his two brothers, whom\nhe changes to dogs.\u2014At the intercession of the Khal\u00edf Har\u00fan er-Rash\u00edd,\nT\u00e1hir consents to forgive his brothers and restores them to their human\nform.\n\n * * * * *\n\nIf the idea of the ungrateful conduct of the two brothers towards\nFarrukhr\u00faz was derived from the foregoing tale of T\u00e1hir, the latter\nin its turn, seems to have been adapted from the story of the\ndog-worshipping merchant of Nishap\u00far, in the Persian _Kissa-i Cheh\u00e1r\nDarvesh_, of which the _Bagh o Bah\u00e1r_ is a modern Urd\u00fa version, and\nin the latter we find the story told at very considerable length and\nwith more details and incidents than in the Turkish version, while\nall that relates to the sorcerer Shamsah is peculiar to the latter.\nIt would occupy too much space, in view of what remains to be said\nregarding other tales in our collection, to give even the outline of\nthe Persian original, but it may be mentioned that in place of the two\nwicked brothers being changed to dogs they are confined in cages; while\nthe merchant\u2019s dog, who had often saved his life when attempted by his\nbrothers, and continued faithful to him through all his vicissitudes,\nis adorned with a collar set with priceless rubies and attended by two\nslaves\u2014the merchant thereby indicating, so to say, his approval of the\naphorism of the ancient Hind\u00fa sage, that \u201ca grateful dog is better than\nan ungrateful man.\u201d\u2014In our tale, it will be observed, the two wicked\nbrothers do not reappear after they cut Farrukhr\u00faz adrift.\n\n\n_The Three Expeditions_\u2014p. 154 ff.\n\nIt is a very usual occurrence in folk-tales, as well as in tales of\nmore elaborate construction, for the hero, after becoming the king\u2019s\nchief favourite, to be the mark for the shafts of envy and malice.\nPlots are laid in order to bring about his destruction, and, commonly\nthrough the suggestions of his enviers, the king is induced to despatch\nhim on most perilous adventures\u2014almost invariably three in succession,\nas in our little romance. Sometimes it is the hero\u2019s brothers who are\nenvious of his good fortune and thus seek to cause his death; sometimes\na courtier whom he has supplanted in the king\u2019s favour and patronage.\nWe have examples of both kinds of enviers in Geldart\u2019s _Folk-Lore of\nModern Greece_, an entertaining collection, as well as useful to such as\nare interested in the study of popular fictions. Thus, in the tale of\n\u201cConstantes and the Dragon,\u201d the hero\u2019s elder brother is jealous of his\nfavour with the king, and it is at his suggestion that Constantes is sent\nto procure for the king (1) the Dragon\u2019s diamond ring; (2) the Dragon\u2019s\nhorse and bell; (3) the very Dragon himself. And in the tale of \u201cLittle\nJohn, the Widow\u2019s Son,\u201d the hero, thus styled, becomes the king\u2019s\nhunter, and one day kills (1) a wild beast, whose skin was all covered\nwith precious gems. The king shows this treasure to his courtiers,\nwho declare they have seen nothing like it under heaven. The vaz\u00edr,\nhowever, says the skin is all very well, but if the king had the bones of\nelephants to build a church with, all the kings of the earth would come\nto admire it, and the skin as well. So the young hero is despatched to\nprocure (2) a sufficient quantity of elephants\u2019 bones to build a church\nwith, and returns successful. He is then sent, at the suggestion of the\nvaz\u00edr, to bring the Dragon\u2019s daughter to the king, in which, of course,\nhe also succeeds, and thus the vaz\u00edr\u2019s malice comes all to naught.\n\nWe have three examples from Sweden in _Thorpe\u2019s Yule-Tide Stories_. In\nNo. I of \u201cThe Boy that stole the Giant\u2019s Treasures\u201d a peasant dies and\nleaves his small property to his three sons. The two elder (as in the\nstory of the merchant of Nishap\u00far in the _Cheh\u00e1r Darvesh_, referred\nto, page 495) take all that was valuable, leaving the youngest an old\nsplit kneading-trough for his share. The lads all enter the service of a\nking\u2014the youngest helps in the royal kitchen and is liked by everybody.\nHis two elder brothers are envious of him and induce the king to send\nhim (1) for the Troll\u2019s seven silver ducks; (2) his gold and silver\nbed-quilt; and (3) his golden harp.[279]\u2014In No. II three brothers set out\nin quest of their fortune, and the two elder obtain employment as helpers\nin the royal stables, while the youngest is taken as page to the king\u2019s\nyoung son. His brothers are sorely nettled at his preferment, and consult\nhow they might compass his disgrace. They tell the king of a wonderful\ngolden lantern that shed light over both land and water, and add that\nit ill beseemed a king to lack so precious a treasure. The king asks,\nexcitedly, where this lamp is to be found and who could procure it for\nhim. The brothers reply: \u201cNo one can do that, unless it be our brother\nPinkel. He knows best where the lantern is to be found.\u201d So the king\ndespatches Pinkel to get him the golden lantern, promising to make him\nthe chief person at court should he bring it. Pinkel goes off and returns\nin safety with the (1) lantern; and the king made him the chief person at\ncourt, as he had promised. The brothers, hearing of his success, become\nmore envious than before, and at their suggestion the king sends him to\nprocure (2) the beautiful goat that had horns of the purest gold, from\nwhich little gold bells were suspended, which gave forth a pleasing sound\nwhenever the animal moved; and next (3) the Troll-crone\u2019s fur cloak,\nthat shone like the brightest gold, and was worked with golden threads\nin every seam; after which the king gave him his daughter in marriage,\nand he thus became heir to the kingdom, but his brothers continued to be\nhelpers in the royal stable as long as they lived.\u2014In No. III two poor\nlads roam about the country in search of a livelihood. At length the\nyounger is received by the king among his pages, but the elder goes about\nbegging as before: through the influence of his brother, however, he is\nshortly taken into the king\u2019s service as a stable-boy. The elder brother\nis continually thinking of how he might get the younger disgraced. One\nday when the king visits his stables he praises a favourite horse, upon\nwhich the stable-lad tells him that he knows of a golden horse that\nexcels all horses in the world, but only his brother could procure it. In\nbrief, the hero procures for the king (1) the golden horse; (2) the moon\nlantern; and (3) a princess who had been enchanted.\n\nIn No. 8 of M. Legrand\u2019s _Contes Populaires Grecs_ (Paris, 1881) the\nhero, at the suggestion of the Beardless Man, is sent by the king (1)\nfor the ivory chamber; (2) for the nightingale and wall swallow; and (3)\nfor the belle of the world.\u2014And in M. Ren\u00e8 Basset\u2019s _Contes Populaires\nBerb\u00e8res_ (Paris, 1887), No. 27, the hero is despatched by the king, at\nthe instigation of his enemies, to procure (1) the coral tree; (2) the\npalm tree of the wild beasts; (3) the woman with silver attire; and, of\ncourse, returns successful from each perilous expedition. M. Ren\u00e8 Basset\nin his Notes, pp. 163-166, refers to several parallels or analogues from\nBrittany, Lorraine, the West Highlands of Scotland, etc.\n\nA story from Salsette, entitled \u201cKarne da Pequeno Jo\u00e3o,\u201d by Geo. Fr.\nD\u2019Penha, in the _Indian Antiquary_, 1888, p. 327 ff., is full of interest\nto folk-lorists, apart from its connection with the \u201cenvious brothers\u201d\ncycle: Three brothers, of whom Little John, the youngest, is as usual\nthe only clever one, set out to seek their fortunes. They rest for the\nnight in the abode of an ogre, who resolves to kill them while they are\nasleep and eat all three for breakfast. The ogre has three daughters,\nand he puts white caps on them and red caps on the youths. The two\nelder brothers are soon fast asleep, not so Little John. He suspects\nmischief is brewing, and changes caps with the ogre\u2019s daughters, who are\nconsequently killed by their father in mistake for the three lads. Little\nJohn rouses his two brothers and they cross the river, which the ogre\ncannot do, being unable to swim. In the morning the ogre sees them, and\ncries out that he will make John pay for it yet! They take service with a\nking: John is made a shepherd, the others are given places of trust. John\nputs on one of the caps (he had taken all of them with him) on his head\nand begins to play on his pipe, whereupon all the sheep begin to caper\nand dance. The princess sees this, and gets the cap from him, and so on\ntill she has got the sixth, on the promise of her love. The king, at the\ninstigation of the princess, pays John better wages, and his brothers are\nenvious of his good fortune. Soon after this the king falls ill, and the\ntwo elder brothers suggest to him that John should be sent to fetch (1)\nthe ogre\u2019s parrot. John manages to carry off the bird, and the ogre cries\nafter him that he\u2019ll make him pay for it yet! But John says he\u2019ll come\nagain. In short, John afterwards procures (2) the ogre\u2019s mare; (3) his\ndiamond ring; (4) his sword; (5) his blanket; and (6) the ogre himself.\nAfter each expedition John is promoted to a still higher station till he\nis made vaz\u00edr and finally marries the princess. He does not punish his\nbrothers, the good young man, but raises them to high offices of state.\n\nIn many instances, as in the case of Farrukhr\u00faz, the hero is assisted\nby fairies or other superhuman beings, but with the means by which the\nseemingly impossible tasks are accomplished we have no present concern\nand so I have passed them over. The third and last expedition of\nFarrukhr\u00faz, suggested by the envious vaz\u00edrs of the king of Yaman\u2014who was,\nlike the monarchs of Eastern fictions generally, a credulous blockhead\u2014by\nwhich they made sure to cause the death of the favourite, but which\nended so disastrously for themselves\u2014thus illustrating the saying that\n\u201che who digs a pit for another,\u201d and so forth: the proverb is somewhat\nmusty\u2014namely,\n\n\n_The Expedition to Paradise (p. 183 ff.)_\n\nhas its close parallel in the Kalmuk _Relations of Siddh\u00ed K\u00far_,[280]\nwhich form the first part of Miss Busk\u2019s _Sagas from the Far East_, a\nwork chiefly derived from J\u00fclg\u2019s German translation. In Miss Busk\u2019s\nbook, the story is No. VIII and entitled \u201cHow Ananda the Woodcarver and\nAnanda the Painter strove together,\u201d and, pruned of some redundancies of\nlanguage, this is how it goes:\n\nLong ago there lived two men, a wood-carver and a painter, both named\nAnanda. While they appeared to be on very friendly terms, in reality\njealousy reigned in their hearts. One day the painter presented himself\nbefore the Kh\u00e1n, and told him that his father of blessed memory had\nbeen re-born in the kingdom of the gods, in proof of which he handed\nthe Kh\u00e1n a letter, forged by himself, which stated such to be the fact,\nand directed the Kh\u00e1n to send forthwith Ananda the Woodcarver to the\nkingdom of the gods, to adorn with his cunning a temple which he was\nbuilding\u2014\u201cthe way and means of his coming shall be explained by Ananda\nthe Painter.\u201d The Kh\u00e1n, believing all this to be true, at once sent for\nthe Woodcarver, informed him of his father the late Kh\u00e1n\u2019s message, and\ncommanded him to prepare forthwith to depart for the kingdom of the gods.\nThe Woodcarver knew that this was the device of the Painter, and resolved\nto meet craft with craft, but, dissembling his feelings, asked by what\nmeans he was to win thither. Hereupon the Kh\u00e1n sent for the Painter, and\nordered him to declare the way and manner of the journey to the kingdom\nof the gods. The Painter replied, addressing the Woodcarver: \u201cWhen thou\nhast collected all the materials and instruments appertaining to thy\ncalling, and hast gathered them at thy feet, thou shalt order a pile of\nbeams of wood well steeped in spirit distilled from sesame grain to be\nheaped around thee. Then, to the accompaniment of every solemn-sounding\ninstrument, kindle the pile, and rise to the gods\u2019 kingdom, borne on the\nobedient clouds of smoke as on a swift charger.\u201d\n\nThe Woodcarver durst not refuse the Kh\u00e1n\u2019s behest, but obtained an\ninterval of seven days in order to collect the materials and implements\nof his calling, and also to devise some plan of avenging himself upon\nthe Painter. Returning home he consulted with his wife, who proposed a\nmeans of evading while seeming to obey the Kh\u00e1n\u2019s command. In a field\nbelonging to her husband, not far from the house, she caused a large flat\nstone to be laid, on which the sacrifice was to be consummated, and, at\nnight, beneath it she had an underground passage made communicating with\nthe house. And when the eighth day came, the Kh\u00e1n and all the people\nwere assembled round the pile of wood steeped in spirit distilled from\nsesame grain in the Woodcarver\u2019s field, and in the midst of it stood the\nWoodcarver, calm and impassable, while all kinds of musical instruments\nsent forth their solemn-sounding tones. And when the smoke began to rise\nin concealing density, the Woodcarver pushed aside the stone with his\nfeet and returned to his house by the underground passage. The Painter,\nnever doubting but that he must have fallen a prey to the flames, rubbed\nhis hands, and, pointing to the curling smoke, cried to the people:\n\u201cBehold the spirit of Ananda the Woodcarver ascending to the kingdom of\nthe gods!\u201d And all the people, believing him, echoed his words.\n\nFor the space of a whole month the Woodcarver remained secluded in his\nhouse, daily washing his face with milk and keeping out of the sunshine.\nThen his wife brought him a garment of white gauze, with which he covered\nhimself, and, taking with him a letter which he had forged, he went into\nthe presence of the Kh\u00e1n, who when he saw him said: \u201cThou art returned\nfrom the kingdom of the gods\u2014how didst thou leave my father?\u201d Then he\ngave the forged letter to the Kh\u00e1n, who caused it to be read aloud to the\npeople. The letter stated that the Woodcarver had executed the sculptures\nwell, but it was necessary that they should send thither Ananda the\nPainter, in order that they should be suitably decorated. When the Kh\u00e1n\nheard this letter read he was overjoyed, and he loaded the Woodcarver\nwith rich presents. And then he sent for Ananda the Painter, and told\nhim how his father in the kingdom of the gods required his services. On\nhearing this the Painter was seized with great fear, but when he looked\nat the Woodcarver, all white and radiant from the milk-washing, and clad\nin celestial raiment, as if the light of the gods\u2019 kingdom yet clove to\nhim, and that the fire had not burnt him, neither should it burn himself;\nmoreover, if he refused to go, death must be his portion, while if he\nwent he should, like the Woodcarver, also receive great wealth on his\nreturn. So he consented to have his gear in readiness in seven days. And\nwhen the prescribed day arrived, the Kh\u00e1n, in his robes of state, and\nattended by his ministers and officers, and all the people assembled in\nthe Painter\u2019s field, where was a great pile of wood steeped as before in\nspirit, and in the midst of it they placed the Painter; and, amidst the\nsound of all sorts of musical instruments, they set fire to the pile. At\nfirst the Painter bore the torture, expecting to rise on the clouds of\nsmoke, but soon the extreme pain caused him to shout to the people to\ncome and release him. But the sound of the music\u2014his own device to drown\nthe cries of the Woodcarver\u2014prevailed against him: no one could hear his\ncries, and he perished miserably in the flames.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThis story is doubtless of Buddhist extraction; but it is not very\nprobable that our author was indebted to any Mongolian version such as\nthe foregoing for the materials of the tale he has told so well, in which\nhe represents the vile complotters against the life of Farrukhr\u00faz as\ncrying out for mercy when they saw the awful doom they had brought upon\nthemselves, and the silly King of Yaman as still firm in the belief that\nthey should really go to Paradise and return in safety with his beatified\nancestors\u2019 grand presents.\n\n * * * * *\n\nAs a pendant, I may reproduce, from Professor Basil Hall Chamberlain\u2019s\ninteresting collection of _Aino Folk-Tales_, privately printed for the\nFolk-Lore Society, 1888, the story of \u201cThe Wicked Wizard Punished\u201d (No.\nXXV):\n\nOne day a wizard told a man whom he knew that if any one were to climb\na certain mountain-peak and jump off on to the belt of clouds below,\nhe would be able to ride about on them as on a horse and see the whole\nworld. Trusting in this, the man did as the wizard had told him, and in\nvery truth was enabled to ride about on the clouds. He visited the whole\nworld in this manner, and brought back a map which he had drawn of the\nwhole world, both of men and gods. On arriving back at the mountain-peak\nin Aino-land, he stepped off the cloud on to the mountain, and,\ndescending to the valley, told the wizard how successful and delightful\nthe journey had been, and thanked him for the opportunity kindly granted\nhim of seeing sights so numerous and so strange. The wizard was overcome\nwith astonishment. For what he had told the other man was a lie\u2014a wicked\nlie, invented with the sole intention of causing his death, for he hated\nhim. Nevertheless, seeing that what he had simply meant for an idle tale\nwas apparently an actual fact, he decided to see the world himself in\nthis easy fashion. So, ascending the mountain-peak, and seeing a belt\nof clouds a short way below, he jumped off on to it, but was instantly\ndashed to pieces in the valley below. That night the god of the mountain\nappeared to the good man in a dream, and said: \u201cThe wizard has met with\nthe death which his fraud and folly deserved. You I kept from hurt,\nbecause you are a good man. So when, obedient to the wizard\u2019s advice,\nyou leapt off on to the cloud I bore you up, and showed you the world to\nmake you a wiser man. Let all men learn from this how wickedness leads to\ncondign punishment!\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nSuch a tale as this is not at all likely to have been invented by a race\nso low in the scale of humanity as the Ainos; and we must, I think,\nconsider it as one of the tales and legends which they derived from the\nJapanese. As it is, the story presents a remarkable general resemblance\nto the Mongolian tale of the Woodcarver and the Painter, of which one\nmight almost say it is a reflection or an adaptation.\n\n\nTHE KING AND HIS FOUR MINISTERS.\n\nUnder the title of \u201cStrike, but Hear,\u201d a considerably abridged and\nmodified version of this Tale is given in the Rev. Lal Beh\u00e1ri Day\u2019s\n_Folk-Tales of Bengal_ (London: Macmillan & Co., 1883), of which this is\nthe substance:\n\nA king appoints his three sons to patrol in turn the streets of his\ncapital during the night. It happens that the youngest prince in going\nhis rounds one night sees a very beautiful woman issuing from the palace,\nand he asks to know what business she is bent upon at such an hour.\nShe replies: \u201cI am the guardian deity of this palace. The king will be\nkilled this night, and therefore I am going away.\u201d The prince persuades\nthe goddess to return into the palace and await the event. He enters his\nfather\u2019s bed-chamber and discovers a huge cobra near the royal couch,\nand at once cuts the deadly snake into many pieces, which he puts into\na brass vessel that was in the room. Then seeing that some drops of the\nserpent\u2019s blood had fallen on his step-mother\u2019s bosom, he wraps a piece\nof cloth round his tongue to protect it from the poison, and licks off\nthe blood. The lady awakes, and recognises him as he is leaving the room.\nShe accuses him to the king of having used an unpardonable freedom with\nher. In the morning the king sends for his eldest son and asks him: \u201cIf\na trusted servant should prove faithless, how should he be punished?\u201d\nThe prince replies: \u201cSurely his head should be parted from his body.\nBut before doing so, you should ascertain whether the man is actually\nguilty.\u201d And then he proceeds to relate the\n\n\n_Story of the Woman who knew the Language of Animals_.\n\nThere was in former times a goldsmith who had a grown-up son, whose wife\nwas acquainted with the language of animals, but she kept secret from her\nhusband and all others the fact of her being endowed with such a rare\ngift. It happened one night that she heard a jackal exclaim: \u201cThere is a\ndead body floating on the river; would that some one might give me that\nbody to eat, and for his pains take the diamond ring from the finger of\nthat dead man.\u201d The woman arose from her bed and went to the bank of the\nriver, and her husband, who had not been asleep, got up and followed her\nunobserved. She went into the water, drew the corpse on to the land, and,\nbeing unable to loose the ring from the dead man\u2019s finger, which had\nswelled, she bit off the finger, and, leaving the corpse on the bank of\nthe river, returned home, whither she had been preceded by her husband.\nAlmost petrified by fear, the young goldsmith concluded from what he had\nseen that his wife was not a human being but a _r\u00e1kshas\u00ed_; and early in\nthe morning he hastened to his father and related the whole affair to\nhim\u2014how the woman had got up during the night and gone to the river, out\nof which she dragged a dead body on to the land, and was busy devouring\nit when he ran home in horror at the loathsome sight. The old man was\ngreatly shocked, and advised his son to take his wife on some pretext\ninto the forest, and leave her there to be destroyed by wild beasts. So\nthe husband caused the woman to get herself ready to go on a visit to\nher parents, and after a hasty breakfast they set out. In going through\na dense _jangal_, where the goldsmith purposed abandoning his wife, she\nheard a serpent cry: \u201cO passenger, I pray thee to seize and give me that\ncroaking frog, and take for thy reward the gold and precious stones\nconcealed in yonder hole.\u201d The woman at once seized the frog and threw it\ntowards the serpent, and then began digging into the ground with a stick.\nHer husband quaked with fear, thinking that his gh\u00fal-wife was about to\nkill him; but she called to him, saying: \u201cMy dear husband, gather up all\nthe gold and precious gems.\u201d Approaching the spot with hesitation, he was\nsurprised to perceive an immense treasure laid bare by his wife, who then\nexplained to him how she had learned of it from the snake that lay coiled\nup near them, whose language she understood. Then said he to his wife:\n\u201cIt is now so late that we cannot reach your father\u2019s house before dark,\nand we might be slain by wild beasts. Let us therefore return home.\u201d So\nthey retraced their steps, and approaching the house, the goldsmith said\nto his wife: \u201cDo you, my dear, go in by the back door, while I enter by\nthe front and show my father all this treasure.\u201d The woman accordingly\nwent in by the back door and was met by her father-in-law, who, on seeing\nher, concluded that she had killed and devoured his son, and striking\nher on the head with a hammer which he happened to have in his hand she\ninstantly fell down dead. Just then the son came into the room, but it\nwas too late.\n\n\u201cI have told your majesty this story,\u201d adds the eldest prince, \u201cin order\nthat, before putting the man to death, you should make sure that he is\nguilty.\u201d\n\nThe king then calls his second son, and asks him the same question as he\nhad asked his brother, to which he replies by relating the\n\n\n_Story of the King and his Faithful Horse_.\n\nOnce a king while engaged in the chase was separated from his attendants,\nand seeing what he conceived to be rain-water dropping from the branch of\na tree, being very thirsty, he held his drinking-cup under it until it\nwas nearly filled, and as he was about to put it to his lips his horse\npurposely moved so as to cause the contents to be spilled on the ground,\nupon which the king in a rage drew his sword and killed the faithful\nanimal. But afterwards discovering that what he had taken for rain-water\nwas poison that dropped from a cobra in the tree, his grief knew no\nbounds.\n\nCalling his third son, the king asks him what should be done to the man\nwho proved false to his trust, and the prince tells the\n\n\n_Story of the Wonderful Fruit_\n\nwhich bestowed perennial youth on him who ate of it, with some\nunimportant variations from the same story in our Romance.\n\nThen the youngest prince explained the occasion of his presence in the\nroyal bed-chamber, and how he had saved the king and his consort from the\ncobra\u2019s deadly bite. And his majesty, overjoyed and full of gratitude,\nstrained his faithful son to his heart, and ever afterwards cherished and\nloved him with all a father\u2019s love.\n\n * * * * *\n\nAnother version is orally current in Kashm\u00edr, and, under the title of\n\u201cThe Four Princes,\u201d a translation of it is given by the Rev. J. Hinton\nKnowles in his excellent collection, _Folk-Tales of Kashm\u00edr_, from which\nare extracted the following details:\n\nFour clever and handsome young princes are hated by their step-mother,\nwho persuades her husband the king to cease his personal and secret\ninspection of the city and adjacent towns and villages\u2014which had long\nbeen his custom, going about at night in disguise\u2014and appoint his four\ngrown-up, idle sons to the duties. But still the queen is jealous\nof them, and poisons the king\u2019s mind against them, so that he speaks\nharshly to his worthy sons, without any apparent cause. One night the\nfour princes met together and discussed the altered conduct of the king\ntowards them, and the three younger proposed that they should privily\nquit the country, but this was strenuously opposed by the eldest brother,\nwho suggested that they should rather take turn and patrol the city,\none of them each night, to which they agreed. It happened that the\neldest prince, in the course of his perambulation one night, came past\nthe hut of a Br\u00e1hman, whom he saw gazing out of the open window towards\nthe heavens, and presently heard him say to his wife that he had just\nobserved the king\u2019s star obscured by another star, which indicated that\nhis majesty would die in seven days. His wife asked him how he should\ndie then, and he replied that a black snake would descend from the sky\non the seventh day, enter the royal bed-chamber by the door that opened\ninto the courtyard, and bite the king\u2019s toe, thus causing his death.\nThen the Br\u00e1hman made a sacrifice, and, after prayers and incantations,\nhe told his wife farther, that the king\u2019s life would be saved if one of\nhis relations dug pits in the courtyard on the east side of the palace,\nfilled some with water and the others with milk, and scattered flowers\non the ground between the ponds and the door of the king\u2019s room. He must\nbe ready, sword in hand, outside the door at the appointed time, when\nthe snake will come and swim across the ponds and pass over the flowers,\nafter which it will become comparatively harmless. Then he must strike\nand slay the snake with his sword, and taking some of its warm blood\nsmear it over the king\u2019s toes\u2014thus will he be preserved from evil. The\nprince, having treasured these directions in his memory, on the seventh\nday follows them exactly, and having taken some of the snake\u2019s blood,\ngently opens the door of the king\u2019s chamber and enters, having first tied\na bandage over his eyes, that he should not see the queen. But being thus\nblindfolded he smears the blood on the queen\u2019s toes instead of those\nof the king, which causes her to awake, and to shriek on seeing a man\nglide out of the room, which awakes the king, who recognises his eldest\nson as the intruder. The queen, on discovering the blood on her feet\nconcludes that it was a r\u00e1kshasa, and becomes frantic with fright, but\nher husband sets her mind at rest by telling her that he is now assured\nof the wickedness of his sons, who had employed a demon to destroy them\nboth, and he would have them all executed on the morrow, at which the\nqueen was highly delighted. Then the king causes the four princes to be\nstripped of their royal robes and thrown into a dungeon. In the morning\nthey are brought into the presence of the king, who gives order for their\nimmediate execution, and they are being led away when one of them made\nsigns and prostrated himself before the throne, as if he wished to say\nsomething. \u201cLet him speak,\u201d said the king. \u201cPerhaps he wants to relieve\nhis heart of some foul secret\u2014let him speak.\u201d The prince then began to\nrelate the\n\n\n_Story of the Merchant and his Faithful Dog_,\n\nwhich differs materially from our story of the Hunter and his Dog (p.\n206), but agrees with some versions current in various parts of India: A\nyoung merchant meets four men who are quarrelling over the possession of\na poor dog, which they are dragging about most unmercifully. They tell\nhim it is not an ordinary dog, for their late father charged them not to\nsell it for less than 20,000 rup\u00eds. He gives them the money and takes\nthe dog with him. By-and-by he loses all his wealth through a series of\nunfortunate transactions, and borrows 15,000 rup\u00eds of another merchant\non the security of his dog. One night a gang of robbers break into the\nmerchant\u2019s house and carry off all his valuables. They are followed\nunobserved by the dog, who watches them dig a pit and bury the treasure\nin it, intending to return and share their booty when they might do so\nwith safety. Next day the dog, by means of signs, leads the merchant to\nthe spot where his wealth was hidden, and when it is discovered, full\nof gratitude to the faithful animal, he writes out an acquittance of the\nyoung merchant\u2019s loan, and having related the great service the dog had\ndone him expressed a wish to purchase the dog, for which he enclosed a\ndraft for 30,000 rup\u00eds, and putting the letter in the dog\u2019s mouth, sends\nhim back to his master. As the dog is trotting along he meets his master,\nwho, concluding that he had run away, and that the merchant would quickly\nfollow, determined to kill the animal, and if the merchant should come,\nhe would say: \u201cGive me back my dog, and I will return the money.\u201d But\nwhen he had killed his dog and was about to take the carcase up, in order\nto conceal it, the letter dropped from his mouth, and the young merchant,\nstricken with remorse, fell down insensible.\n\nAnother of the princes then steps forward and relates the\n\n\n_Story of the Woman who knew the Language of Animals_,\n\nwhich does not differ very much from the same tale in the Bengal\u00ed\ncollection, cited on p. 505, above, excepting that in place of a\ngoldsmith the husband is a _shik\u00e1r\u00ed_, or hunter; it is a bracelet set\nwith five precious stones, not a diamond ring that the woman takes off\nthe corpse in the river, and a crow, not a serpent, that tells of the\ntreasure underground; and it is her father-in-law, not her husband, who\naccompanies her, and it is her husband who kills her when she comes home,\nthinking that she had devoured his father.\n\nThe youngest prince next makes his obeisance to his majesty and obtains\nleave to relate the\n\n\n_Story of the King and his Falcon_,\n\nwhich is similar to that of the King and his Faithful Horse in the\nBengal\u00ed version: The king is about to drink of some water he had drawn\nfrom a spring, when his falcon dashed the cup out of his hand, whereupon\nthe thirsty and enraged king drew his sword and killed his favourite\nbird. Afterwards a huge and deadly snake was found coiled up at the head\nof the spring, and too late the king saw that the falcon had saved his\nlife.\n\nHis majesty having heard these stories, now began to suspect that his\nwife had deceived him regarding his four sons, and when the eldest prince\nhad explained the whole affair, and shown the king the pits of water and\nmilk and the body of the serpent, he was fully reconciled to them, and\nabdicating the throne in favour of his eldest son, and appointing the\nothers to be governors of provinces, he retired to the wilderness and\nbecame a hermit.\n\n\n_The Lost Camel_\u2014p. 194.\n\nFew stories are more widely spread than that of the Lost Camel, which\noccurs in the opening of our romance. It was formerly, and perhaps is\nstill, reproduced in school-books as a reading exercise. Voltaire, in\nchapter iii of _Zadig, ou la Destin\u00e9e_, (the substance of which he is\nsaid to have derived from Geuelette\u2019s _Soir\u00e9es Bretonnes_), gives a\nversion in which a lost palfrey and a she-dog are accurately described\nby the \u201csage\u201d from the traces they had left on the path over which they\npassed.\n\nThe oldest known written form of the story of the Lost Camel is in the\ngreat work of Mas\u2019ud\u00ed, the celebrated Arabian historian, \u2018Meadows of Gold\nand Mines of Gems,\u2019 which has not yet been completely translated into\nEnglish.\u2014In an Arabic MS. text of the _Alf Layla wa Layla_ (Thousand\nand one Nights), brought from the East by Wortley Montague, and now in\nthe Bodleian Library, Oxford, it forms an incident in the tale of the\nSultan of Yaman\u2019s Three Sons: After their father\u2019s death the three royal\nyouths quarrel over the succession to the throne, and at length agree\nto submit their respective claims to one of their father\u2019s tributary\nprinces. On the road one of them remarks: \u201cA camel has lately passed this\nway, loaded with grain on one side and with sweetmeats on the other.\u201d\nThe second observes: \u201cAnd the camel is blind of one eye.\u201d The third\nadds: \u201cAnd it has lost its tail.\u201d The owner comes up to them, and on\nhearing their description of his beast forces them to go with him before\nthe king of the country, to whom they explain how they discovered the\ndefects of the camel and its lading. In this form it also occurs in\nthe Turkish collection translated under the title of _Turkish_ Evening\nEntertainments\u2014see _ante_, p. 472\u2014with the addition of a woman riding on\nthe back of the camel, she having got off the animal during a temporary\nhalt, and left her small footprints in the sand.\n\nIn a Siberian version three youths are met by a man, who asks them if\nthey have seen his camel, to which they reply by describing the colour\nand peculiarities of the animal so exactly that he accuses them to the\nprince of the country of having stolen it. \u201cI have lost a camel, my\nlord,\u201d says he; \u201cand when I met these three young men we saluted, and I\ntold them of my loss. One of these youths asked me: \u2018Was thy camel of\na light colour?\u2019 The second: \u2018Was thy camel lame?\u2019 And the third: \u2018Was\nthy camel not blind of an eye?\u2019 I answered \u2018Yes\u2019 to their questions.\nNow decide, my lord. It is evident that these young men have stolen my\ncamel.\u201d Then the prince asked the eldest: \u201cHow did you know that the\ncamel was of a light colour?\u201d He answered: \u201cBy some hairs which had\nfallen on the ground when it rubbed itself against the trees.\u201d The two\nothers gave answers similar to those in our version. Then said the prince\nto the man: \u201cThy camel is lost; go and look for it.\u201d So the stranger\nmounted his horse and departed.[281]\n\n * * * * *\n\nCaptain (now Sir) Richard F. Burton, in his _Scinde, or the Unhappy\nValley_, vol. i, p. 142, thus describes how a _paggi_, or tracker,\nsets about discovering a strayed camel: \u201cHe ties on his slippers with\npackthread, winds his sheet tight round his waist, and squatting upon\nthe ground scrutinises the footprint before he starts, with all the air\nof a connoisseur, making meanwhile his remarks aloud: \u2018He is a little,\nlittle camel\u2014his feet are scarcely three parts grown\u2014he treads lightly\nwith the off foreleg, and turns this toe in\u2014his sole is scarred\u2014he is\nnot laden\u2014there he goes\u2014there\u2014there, he is off to the jungles of Shaykh\nRadhan\u2019.\u201d\n\n\n_The Hunter and his Dog_\u2014p. 206.\n\nA variant of this story is cited from a Cawnpore newspaper in the\n_Asiatic Journal_, vol. xv (new series), Part II, October, 1834, p. 78,\nwhich is to the following effect: A man named Dab\u00ed had a dog called\nBhyro, the faithful companion of his travels, who guarded his goods\nfrom robbers while he slept. He wished to go to a distant part of the\ncountry on a speculation in grain, but had not sufficient funds for this\npurpose. After much cogitation he at length resolved to pledge his dog\nfor 1000 rup\u00eds, and when he applied to several persons was laughed at\nfor his folly; but a wealthy merchant named Dyar\u00e1m gave the money, on\ncondition that it should be paid back within twelve months, taking the\ndog Bhyro in pledge. When eleven months had passed the merchant began\nto bewail the stupidity which had induced him to lend so large a sum on\nso precarious a security. His relentings were, however, premature. One\ndark and dreary night he was aroused from his slumbers by a great noise,\noccasioned by the clashing of swords and the barking of Bhyro. A band\nof armed men had entered the house with intent to plunder, but before\nthey could effect their purpose they had been observed by the faithful\nBhyro, who commenced an attack upon them. Before Dyar\u00e1m could render\nany assistance Bhyro had laid two of the robbers dead at his feet; a\nthird, on the approach of Dyar\u00e1m, aimed a blow at his head, which was\nprevented from taking effect by Bhyro seizing the ruffian by the throat\nand laying him prostrate on the ground. After peace was restored Dyar\u00e1m\ncongratulated himself on having received Bhyro in pledge for Dab\u00ed, by\nwhich act he not only escaped being plundered, but in all probability\nmurdered. Next morning Dyar\u00e1m called Bhyro, and, after caressing him,\nsaid: \u201cThe service you rendered me last night is more than an equivalent\nfor the 1000 rup\u00eds I lent your master; go, faithful creature, I give you\na free discharge from your obligation as security for him.\u201d Bhyro shook\nhis head in token that it was impossible for him to go until his master\nreturned; but Dyar\u00e1m, comprehending his meaning, soon arranged matters,\nby writing a statement of the circumstances, and giving a voucher for the\n1000 rup\u00eds. This document he tied round Bhyro\u2019s neck, which done, Bhyro\nexpressed his delight by leaping about in every direction, and, after\nlicking the hands of Dyar\u00e1m, darted out of the house and set off in quest\nof his master. While these scenes were transpiring in Dyar\u00e1m\u2019s house,\nDab\u00ed was not unmindful of the pledge he had left behind him, and, having\nsucceeded in his speculation, was returning with all haste to redeem it.\nAt his last stage homewards he was surprised to see Bhyro approaching\nhim with every demonstration of joy, but at sight of him Dab\u00ed\u2019s rage was\nkindled, and repulsing Bhyro as he fawned upon him he thus addressed\nhim: \u201cO ungrateful wretch! is this the return you have made for my\nkindness to you? and is this the manner in which you have established my\ncharacter for veracity? You remained faithful to your trust during eleven\nmonths\u2014could you not have held out for thirty short days? You have, by\nyour desertion from your post, entailed dishonour upon me, and for this\nyou shall die.\u201d And, so saying, he drew his sword and slew him. After\nhaving committed this deed, he observed a paper tied round Bhyro\u2019s neck,\nand having read it, his grief was indescribable. To atone in some measure\nfor his rash act, he caused poor Bhyro to be buried on the spot where he\nfell, and a superb monument to be erected over his remains. To the grave\nof Bhyro, even at the present day, resort natives who have been bitten by\ndogs, they believing that the dust collected there, when applied to the\nwounds, is an antidote for hydrophobia.\n\nIt will be observed, on comparison, that the chief difference between\nthis version and the Kashm\u00edr\u00ed story, cited in p. 509, is that in the\nlatter the dog does not venture to attack the robbers, but follows\nthem to the place where they conceal their plunder and next day leads\nhis temporary master to the spot, while in the foregoing the dog Bhyro\nboldly flies at the rascals, and slays or disables three of them, thus\npreserving the house from being robbed. The Tamil version has the dog\u2019s\nkilling the paramour of the merchant\u2019s wife in place of the robbery, and\nthe tragical catastrophe of the suicides of all the characters.\n\nA version given from Oudh, by Mr. G. H. Roberts, of S\u00edt\u00e1p\u00far, in _Indian\nNotes and Queries_, 1887, p. 150, agrees exactly with the Kashm\u00edr\u00ed story.\n\n\n_The Br\u00e1hman\u2019s Wife and the Mung\u00fas_\u2014p. 211.\n\nThis story is of world-wide popularity, and the preceding tale of the\nHunter and his Faithful Dog must be considered as an off-shoot from it.\nIn this country the form in which it is generally known is the legend of\nLlewellyn and his hound Gellert, which has been so finely versified by\nSpencer. I have adduced many variants of the story in the Appendix to my\n_Book of Sindib\u00e1d_, and have treated it still more fully in my _Popular\nTales and Fictions_, vol. ii. pp. 166-186, where, besides versions found\nin the _Sindib\u00e1d_ cycle (including, of course, the European _Seven\nWise Masters_),[282] are given several Indian forms of the story, and\nlastly the oldest known version, from the _Vinaya Pitaka_ of the Chinese\ncollection of Buddhist books, which, according to Dr. S. Beal\u2014one of\nthe greatest living authorities on Chinese Buddhist literature\u2014probably\ndates from the time of Asoka\u2019s Council, B.C. 230. But indeed the story\nmay be many thousands of years old, for there is no reason to suppose it\nto be of Buddhist invention; and we need not be surprised should it be\ndiscovered some day in an Egyptian papyrus.\n\nThis Tamil version is one of three known to me in which it is the mother,\nnot the father, who kills the faithful animal, the others being one\ncurrent in Ceylon, and one from the North-West Provinces, cited in a\nvery entertaining work entitled _Past Days in India_, and also in the\nsmall collection of Indian tales appended by Vermieux to his _Hermit of\nMottee Jhurna_, second edition, p. 101; it is, moreover, singular in\nrepresenting the woman as destroying herself and her husband then killing\nhis little son and afterwards himself\u2014tragic incidents added by the\nauthor probably to enable the supposed narrator to more forcibly impress\non the king\u2019s mind the terrible consequences of acting in affairs of\nmoment with inconsiderateness and precipitation.\n\nAmong the Malays the story is told in this manner: A man left a tame bear\nin charge of his house and of his sleeping child while he was absent from\nhome. On his return he missed the child and found the house in great\ndisorder, as if some desperate struggle had taken place, and the floor\nwas smeared with blood. Hastily concluding that the bear had killed his\nchild, the enraged father slew the animal with his spear, but almost\nimmediately afterwards found the carcase of a tiger, which the faithful\nbear had defeated and killed, and the child emerged unharmed from the\njangal, where it had taken refuge.\n\n\n_The Faithless Wife and the Ungrateful Blind Man_\u2014p. 215.\n\nTwo very bad characters, and the less my readers have to do with such,\nthe better for their own peace of mind, I trow!\u2014There is a tale in the\n_Kath\u00e1 Sarit S\u00e1gara_ of a woman who cruelly abandoned her helpless\nhusband in the _jangal_, and went off with a lusty young fellow, but I\nam unable to say in which chapter of that most valuable and entertaining\ncollection it occurs, though I made a special search for it.\n\nAs a set-off to the faithless wife of the blind man\u2014who afterwards\nproves to be himself an arrant scoundrel\u2014read the touching address of\nDamayanti to her husband the ruined R\u00e1j\u00e1 Nala, when he proposes in the\n_jangal_ that she should return to her parents and leave him to his fate:\n\u201cO king, thinking of thy purpose, my heart trembleth, and all my limbs\nbecome faint. How can I go, leaving thee in the lone woods, despoiled of\nthy kingdom and deprived of thy wealth, thyself without a garment on,\nand worn with hunger and toil? When, in the deep woods, fatigued and\nafflicted with hunger, thou thinkest of thy former bliss, I will, O great\nmonarch, soothe thy weariness. In every sorrow, there is no medicine\nequal unto the wife, say the physicians. It is the truth, O Nala, that I\nspeak unto thee!\u201d[283]\n\n * * * * *\n\nA story somewhat resembling the incident of the blind man and the honest\nSetti will be found in the notes on the ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd, under the\nheading of \u2018The Br\u00e1hman and the Lion.\u2019\n\n\n_The Wonderful Mango Fruit_\u2014p. 220.\n\nAnalogues of this story are found in a Canarese collection entitled\n_Kath\u00e1 Manjar\u00ed_, with a magpie in place of a parrot as the bearer of\nthe youth-renewing fruit, and in the _T\u00fat\u00ed N\u00e1ma_ (or Parrot-Book) of\nNakhshab\u00ed, a work written A.D. 1329, which has not yet been completely\ntranslated into English, and is now generally known from K\u00e1deri\u2019s\nabridgment.\n\nFruits having the property of restoring the youth and vigour of those who\nate of them figure in many Asiatic stories\u2014there is a notable instance in\nthe opening of the Indian collection entitled _Sinhasana Dwatrinsati_,\nor Thirty-two (Tales) of a Throne. And from the East the notion was\nintroduced into the European medi\u00e6val romances; for example, in the\n_Boke of Duke Huon of Burdeux_, \u201cat the bidding of an angel,\u201d I quote\nfrom Mr. Sydney L. Lee\u2019s notes to his edition of the work printed for\nthe Early English Text Society, \u201cHuon gathers three of the Apples of\nYouth, each of which when eaten by a man of eighty or a hundred years old\ntransforms him to a young man of thirty. Huon bestows one of the apples\non the admiral of Tauris and his white hair and beard grow yellow as he\neats it, and he suddenly becomes a youth of strength and beauty. The\nsecond is eaten by the abbot of Cluny, who is 114 years old, with similar\nresults. The third rejuvenates Thierry, emperor of Germany.\u201d\n\n\n_The Poisoned Food_\u2014p. 226.\n\nThis is the third instance in the romance of food being poisoned by\nserpents, and it is of very common occurrence in Eastern fictions. The\noldest known form of the story is found in a Sanskrit collection entitled\n_Vet\u00e1lapanchavinsati_, or Twenty-five (Tales) of a Vet\u00e1la, or Vampyre,\nwhich is given fully in the Appendix to my _Book of Sindib\u00e1d_, and the\nstory occurs in all the Eastern texts of the Sindib\u00e1d cycle. This Tamil\nversion is peculiar in representing an old man as falling a victim to\nthe poison dropped from a snake\u2019s mouth into food given him by a young\npilgrim, and the imprisoning of the latter in the village temple of K\u00e1l\u00ed\nand so forth. In all other versions known to me, the poison is dropped\ninto an open dish of milk carried by a slave-girl on her head, and her\nmaster\u2019s guests, partaking of the milk, all perish.\n\n\n_The Rescued Snake_\u2014p. 231.\n\nWith an important difference, this tale resembles that of the Br\u00e1hman\nand the Lion, p. 254, which is a variant of the world-wide fable of the\nHunter and the Serpent\u2014the difference being that in this case the snake\nultimately rewards its rescuer. In the story of Nala and Damayanti, the\nr\u00e1j\u00e1 rescues a snake from a _jangal_ fire and carries it some distance\nand is about to set it down when the snake says: \u201cCarry me ten steps\nfarther, and count them as you go.\u201d So Nala proceeds, counting the\nsteps\u2014one, two, three; and when he says \u201cten\u201d (Sansk. _dasa_, which means\n\u201cbite\u201d as well as \u201cten\u201d) the snake takes him at his word and bites the\nr\u00e1j\u00e1 on the forehead, upon which he becomes black. But this the snake\ndoes for Nala\u2019s own benefit, that he should not be recognised in his\ndegradation.\n\n\nTHE ROSE OF BAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd.\n\nIn the Introduction to the present collection will be found the few\nparticulars which are known regarding this romance and its original\nPersian author. There is, I think, strong evidence of its being of Hind\u00fa\nextraction. In the absence of any similar work in Sanskrit or one of\nthe vernacular languages of India, we can only suppose that the author\nof the _Gul-i Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed_ drew his materials from various and more or\nless distinct, or separate, fictions; and this supposition seems fully\nborne out by the somewhat loose arrangement of the later incidents.\nThe narrative down to the end of the sixth chapter (p. 315), as I have\ndivided it, is complete in itself: the Prince wins at backgammon the\nimmense wealth of Dilbar, and her own person besides; he is married to\nthe beauteous damsel Mahm\u00fada; he procures the magical Rose; he has a\nsplendid palace erected for him by the fairies, becomes reconciled to\nhis father, and puts his false brothers to shame; and after a number of\nwondrous adventures is united to the fairy Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, and \u201cpassed his time\nwith these rosy-lipped beauties, immersed in a sea of bliss.\u201d Surely\nthis is the usual conclusion of a romance, and all that follows was an\nafterthought. It is, of course, quite in keeping with \u201cthe fitness of\nthings\u201d romantic that the hero should have to undergo some tribulation\nbefore becoming possessed of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed; but that fairy\u2019s subsequent\npunishment by the deity Indra; the hero\u2019s marriage with the princess\nChitrawat; the re-birth of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\u2014which, as I have already remarked,\nis quite out of place in a Muslim work, though very proper in a Hind\u00fa\nstory; and the love-affair of Bahr\u00e1m are evidently incidents which have\nbeen taken out of different tales, albeit we should be sorry to have them\nomitted, for they are all very entertaining.\n\n\nTHE MAGICAL FLOWER\u2014p. 242.\n\nThe quest of a wonderful flower, or other object, having the virtue\nof restoring sight to the blind, or of bestowing perennial youth, or\nof bringing back the dying to life and health, is the theme of many\nfolk-tales. Besides the magical Rose from the garden of the fairy\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed, which cured the king\u2019s blindness (p. 271), we have another\ninstance in the romantic adventures of Hatim Ta\u00ef (_ante_, p. 467), in\nthe case of the blind man confined in a cage; and in the same work\u2014but\nnot mentioned in my epitome of it\u2014we are told that in the course of\nHatim\u2019s Second Adventure he came to the capital of Mahpar\u00ed, the king of\nthe fairies, and learned that his son had become blind. Hatim tries the\neffect of his talisman on the eyes of the young prince, and it removes\nthe pain, but not the blindness. He is then informed that there is a tree\nthat grows amidst the shades of Zulm\u00e1t [or region of darkness, where\nis also the Water of Life], which is named Nandar; and from this tree\ndistils a liquid of such rare virtue that if even a drop of it could be\nprocured it would be the means of restoring the prince\u2019s sight. A fairy\nin love with Hatim gives him a guard of seven thousand troops, and he\nat once sets out on his dangerous journey. Having arrived in the region\nof darkness, Hatim takes some of the wondrous liquid, and returning\nin safety applies a few drops to the prince\u2019s eyes, when his sight is\nimmediately restored.\n\nThe myth of the Water of Life is of ancient date, and it was probably\nintroduced into Europe from the East during the Crusades. In Rabbinical\nlore it is said that Solomon sent one of his officers for the Water of\nImmortality, but when he returned successful the sage monarch would\nhave none of it, because he did not wish to survive all his female\nfavourites! According to the Muslim legend, Alexander despatched the\nmythical prophet Al-Khizar on a similar errand, but no sooner had he\ndrank of the water than it disappeared, and this is how Al-Khizar\npossesses everlasting youth.\n\nA Fountain of Youth figures prominently in the _fabliau_ which chants the\ndelights of the Land of Cockaigne; and in Conrad of Wartzburg\u2019s _Trojan\nWar_ (of the 13th century) Medea obtains water from Paradise to renew\nthe youth of Jason\u2019s father. In the romance of _Huon of Bordeaux_, the\ndoughty hero finds the Fount of Youth on Alexander\u2019s Rock, and bathing in\nit is at once restored to vigorous health.\n\nThe quest of the Rose in the garden of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, to cure the king\u2019s\nblindness, finds an analogue in the German tale of the Water of Life,\nin the collection of the Brothers Grimm\u2014indeed, they are very closely\nallied: A king is sick unto death. The first and the second of his sons\nset out in succession to procure for him the Water of Life, but they\nbehave rudely to a dwarf on the road and he enchants them. The third\nson next undertakes the adventure, and meeting the dwarf is civil and\ncourteous towards him, and in reward the dwarf directs the youth on\nhis way. Following all the instructions of the dwarf, he comes to a\ncastle, which he enters, unhurt by the two lions at the gate. In one\nroom he finds a number of knights in a trance, and taking the rings off\ntheir fingers he puts them on his own. Going into another room he sees\non a table a sword and a loaf, which he also takes. In a third room he\ndiscovers a beautiful damsel on a couch, who welcomes him joyfully, and\nsays that he should have the kingdom if he would free her from the spell\nby which she is bound, and come back in a year and marry her. Returning\nhomeward, the dwarf tells him that the sword would at a single blow slay\na whole army, and the bread would never fail him. But the brave youth\nwill not go home without his brothers, and so the dwarf sets them free.\nWhile the three brothers are sailing in a ship, the two elder substitute\nfor the Water of Life a bottle of sea water, which makes the king worse\nwhen he drinks some of it. Then the two elder brothers give him the real\nwater and he is cured. But in the end, as in our Tale, the hero turns the\ntables on his brethren and marries the princess.\n\nReaders of the _Arabian Nights_ will recollect that Prince Ahmed is\nrequired by his father, at the suggestion of an envious vaz\u00edr, to get him\nsome water from the Lion\u2019s Spring, and his bride, the Par\u00ed B\u00e1n\u00fa, directs\nhim how to win past the lions, and so forth. There can be little doubt\nthat both the German and the Arabian stories have a common origin. Again,\nin the tale of the Envious Sisters, with which our ordinary English\nversion of the _Arabian Nights_ concludes, the Fountain of Golden Water\nhas the property of disenchanting all the princes and nobles who had been\nturned to stone.\u2014But it were tedious to farther multiply examples.\n\n\nTHE PRINCE AND DILBAR PLAYING BACKGAMMON\u2014p. 250.\n\nFrom the most remote times of which any records have been preserved,\nwine, music, dancing, and _dice_ seem to have gone together in the\nEast. The ancient Arabs were passionately addicted to gaming, till\nMuhammed strictly forbade all games of chance; a prohibition which\u2014like\nthat against wine-bibbing\u2014has not been so strictly observed by all his\nfollowers, though Muslims are not, perhaps, so much given to gambling as\nmost other Asiatic peoples. They are excessively fond of chess, which,\nhowever, cannot be included amongst games of pure chance. Of all races,\nthe Chinese are probably the most inveterate gamblers: they will play at\nhazard till they have lost all their possessions, wives, and children,\nand finally their own freedom. In our own country the mania for dice-play\nwas fatally common among the upper and middle classes until within\ncomparatively recent years, and if all stories be true, gaming with cards\nor dice, though forbidden by law, is still only too prevalent, to the\nspeedy ruin of the deluded votaries of the Goddess of Chance. For it\nwould appear that, though some gamesters may win and others of course\nlose, yet nobody is ever a gainer in the end, and hence we must conclude\nthat _all_ the winnings go to\u2014the Devil!\n\nThe Hind\u00fas have always been infatuated gamesters, and of this we have\nample evidence in the noble Indian epic, the _Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_, out of which\none or two notable examples may suffice. In the Second Book (_Sabha\nParva_\u2014Effort Chapter), sections lix-lxvi, Yudhisthira, the eldest of\nthe Pandavas, plays at dice with Shakuni, who by foul means[284] wins\nall his wealth, then his kingdom, then his brothers one by one, then\nYudhisthira himself, and finally his spouse Draupadi. In the Third Book\n(_Vana Parva_\u2014Forest Chapter), sections lix-lxi, R\u00e1j\u00e1 Nala, infatuated\nby K\u00e1l\u00ed, who had possessed him, plays at dice with his brother Pushkara\nand loses his wealth and his kingdom, but refusing to stake his sweet\nqueen Damayanti he goes accompanied by her into exile. Ultimately, having\nexchanged with Vahuka his skill in dice-play for his own wonderful\nknowledge of horses, Nala plays again with his brother and wins back his\nkingdom.[285]\n\nEuropean fiction furnishes analogous incidents to those above cited. For\nexample, in the medi\u00e6val romance of _Guerni de Monglave_, the hero loses\nhis kingdom at a game of chess. In W. Harrison Ainsworth\u2019s novel (or\n\u201cromance\u201d) of _Old Saint Paul\u2019s_, in the chapter entitled \u201cThe Bully and\nthe Gamester\u201d the latter, after losing all his money, is induced to stake\nhis wife on a \u201ccast of the ivories\u201d\u2014and his opponent wins. In Prior\u2019s\n_Danish Ballads_, \u2018Sir Thor and the Maiden Silvermor,\u2019 vol. iii, p.\n151 ff., a damsel stakes her own person on a single throw of dice, and\nloses.\u2014Other instances occur in the early European romances.\n\n * * * * *\n\nIn the latter portion of \u201cAll for a Pansa,\u201d in the Rev. J. Hinton\nKnowles\u2019 _Folk-Tales of Kashm\u00edr_, we have a pretty close parallel to the\nincident of the Prince and Dilbar at the game of nard, or backgammon, but\na very ancient version is found in the following Panj\u00e1b\u00ed legend,[286]\nwhich recounts\n\n\nHow R\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa Played at Chess With R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap For Their Heads.\n\nNews was once brought to King Ras\u00e1l\u00fa that at Kot Bhitaur on the Indus\nlived a certain R\u00e1j\u00e1, Sirikap by name, who was notorious for his\nferocity, and renowned for his skill in chess-playing. King Sirikap\nonly played with those who would accept his conditions, which were: In\nthe first game the stakes were to be horse, clothes, and lands. In the\nsecond game the stake was to be the loser\u2019s head. King Ras\u00e1l\u00fa, who could\nnot bear the thought of a rival in anything, resolved to visit him. So\nhe called his captains together and said: \u201cI am going to try my luck\nagainst King Sirikap. But if I lose the game and forfeit my head, say,\nwhat will you, my followers, do?\u201d One of the officers answered: \u201cYou may\nlose the game, and you may lose your head, O king, but one thing is very\ncertain\u2014if you lose your head, the head of R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap will be forfeited\ntoo. Of this he shall be certified.\u201d\n\nThen the king mounted his horse and rode to Kot Bhitaur, the castle of\nthe \u201chandsome\u201d Sirikap the Beheader. King Sirikap welcomed his brother\nking with every demonstration of affection, and conducted him into his\npalace. \u201cO youth,\u201d said he, \u201cyou must have come from a long distance.\nWhat is the purpose of your visit?\u201d \u201cMy kingdom is Si\u00e1lkot,\u201d answered\nRas\u00e1l\u00fa. \u201cYour fame as a chess-player kindled my ambition, and I have\ncome to play with you; only, as I am now fatigued, let us play, if it\nplease you, to night.\u201d To this Sirikap agreed, and King Ras\u00e1l\u00fa, having\nrefreshed himself, descended from the mountain rock on which the castle\nstood, and walked to the bank of the river. There he saw struggling in\nthe water some small clusters of ants which were being washed away, and\nstooping down he saved them. Then he saw a drowning hedgehog, and, being\na humane man, he saved it also, and one of the attendants begged for it\nto amuse the servants in the castle above. Going a few steps farther, he\ncame to a breakwater, which was close to the castle-rock, and there he\nheard a voice proceeding from the cliff: \u201cO sir, you have come to Kot\nBhitaur to play at chess with R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap. But I warn you that he is a\nmagician.\u201d The astonished attendants looked about them and cried: \u201cWhat\nvoice is this?\u201d but they perceived no one. Then they saw on the sand a\nrepresentation of the game, well figured, and they said to the king: \u201cO\nking\u2014see, here is the game. It is an omen of good fortune. This is your\nconquering day.\u201d At this moment the mysterious voice again issued from\nthe rock: \u201cO prince\u2014for such I perceive you to be\u2014I have been witness of\nyour humanity. To you I may confide my life, being satisfied that you\nwill not betray me. R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap is a man of blood\u2014deep, sudden, and\ntreacherous; but observe what I say, and your life will be saved.\u201d \u201cSpeak\non, O hidden one,\u201d answered King Ras\u00e1l\u00fa. \u201cFirst of all,\u201d continued the\nvoice, \u201cdo you walk along the bank until you see a rat with a black head.\nCatch him and bring him here.\u201d The king obeyed, and returning to the\ncrag he said: \u201cThe rat, O friend, I have found, as you said, but now I\nwould find you.\u201d Climbing up the ledges of the steep rocks, he came to a\nroughly-fashioned cell in the face of the cliff, in which he discovered\na lady of noble birth, chained by her feet to the floor. \u201cWho are you?\u201d\nsaid he; \u201cand whence came you here?\u201d She answered him: \u201cI am one of the\nfive daughters of King Sirikap. My fault was one which I will not reveal\nto you now, but my punishment is imprisonment in this rocky cell. Yet I\nknew, by my power of divination, that a prince would come from a distant\nkingdom, strong and young, and that, having cut off my father\u2019s head, he\nwould release me. In you I behold the prince of my prophetic dreams.\u201d\n\u201cAnd I will release you,\u201d cried the king; \u201cbut first inform me how I am\nto be conqueror at the chess-board.\u201d\n\nThe princess then gave him full instructions how he should proceed in the\ntrial of skill which awaited him. \u201cFirst of all,\u201d said she, \u201cplay with\nthe king only on a Tuesday, as to-day; and, secondly, play only once,\nand let the stake be the head of him who loses. You will proceed thus:\nTie the rat with a string, and keep him near you, as you both sit on the\nfloor, but keep him so that he may be visible. That King Sirikap may not\nsuspect your design, lean your cheek upon your hand, and call out now\nand then: \u2018O R\u00e1j\u00e1 N\u00fal! O R\u00e1j\u00e1 N\u00fal!\u2019 for he was the inventor of the game\nof Chaup\u00far,[287] in which you will be engaged. There are two sets of men\nof eight pieces each, and they are of two different colours. Now at the\ncritical point of the game R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap will give a certain signal, and\nstraightway from his capacious sleeve will issue his magic cat. On her\nhead she bears a light which renders her invisible, and which is also\ninvisible to all but the king himself. The effect of the mysterious light\nis to throw a glamour over the king\u2019s adversary and to dazzle his eyes,\nso that he is unable to see, and during this interval the cat dexterously\ndisposes the pieces in such a way that at the next move King Sirikap wins\nthe game, and his adversary forfeits his wager. But do you, O Prince, in\norder to guard against surprise, keep the rat secure, and now and then\nput your disengaged hand upon it, and now and then take it off, patting\nit playfully. The moment the cat comes forth she will make a dash at the\nrat, and, coming in contact with your hand, the light will fall to the\nground. Then keep her at bay, and the game will be yours for the cowardly\nheart of King Sirikap will begin to quake, and his disordered mind will\nensure his discomfiture.\u201d\n\nHaving received his instructions, King Ras\u00e1l\u00fa returned to the palace, and\nthat night, being the eve of Tuesday, the two kings sat down to play. The\nissue of the game for some time was doubtful; but at last it was evident\nthat a few more moves would decide the result in favour of R\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa;\nwhen his rival made a secret signal, and the magic cat, unseen by any\nbut himself, stole from his sleeve. The moment she did so she caught\nsight of the black-headed rat, and, forgetting her duty to her master,\nshe instantly sprang towards it, but the hand of R\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa, chanced to\nsmite the light from her head and to keep her occupied until he had won\nthe game.\n\nThen sprang the mighty king to his feet and cried to his trembling rival:\n\u201cThe game is won and your head is my prize\u201d; and drawing his long sword\nhe was about to strike off his head, when Sirikap, lifting up his hands,\nimplored a short respite, that he might enter his inner apartments and\nbid farewell to his family. That moment a messenger brought news to him\nthat his queen had been delivered of a daughter. But he heeded it not.\nHis perturbed soul was full of schemes as to how he might escape his\nimpending fate. As he walked sadly from room to room, he said to himself:\n\u201cIf I hide in my own chambers I shall be discovered.\u201d So this idea he\ndismissed from his mind. But in an unfrequented corner his anxious eye\ncaught sight of a large disused drum, and, disregarding his kingly\ndignity, he crept under that, and began to feel himself a little secure.\n\nR\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa was meanwhile pacing the hall with impatient strides, waiting\nfor the return of his adversary. At last he could tarry no longer, so,\ncalling his captains, he summoned King Sirikap to appear. But no answer\nwas made to his call. He then began a careful search of the whole of the\ncastle, feeling satisfied that the king could not have passed his guards\nwho were on the watch at every post. When he came to the drum, the quick\neye of Ras\u00e1l\u00fa detected that it had been recently moved. \u201cAha!\u201d cried he,\n\u201cthe caitiff must be skulking here,\u201d and in another moment he dragged\nthe dishonoured monarch forth by the heels. Then he handed him over to\nhis officers. \u201cAs he was a king,\u201d said he, \u201clodge him in his own palace,\nbut guard him well, for at sunset he must die.\u201d Then turning to Sirikap,\nhe spurned him, saying: \u201cO villain! hundreds of heads you have smitten\noff in your time with your own hand, and all for pastime, yet you never\ngrieved or shed a tear. And now, when the same fate is to be your own,\nyou sneak away and hide yourself in a drum.\u201d\n\nSome time after this there entered the royal soothsayers, and they,\naddressing their fallen master, said: \u201cSir, we have sought for the\ninterpretation of this mystery, why ruin should have visited your house,\nand we conclude that all this calamity is on account of your daughter,\nwhose baneful star has crossed your own. She has come in an evil hour.\nLet her now be slain, and let her head be thrown into the Indus, and your\nlife will be saved.\u201d Sirikap answered: \u201cIf my life depends on her, bring\nme her head, and mine may yet be saved.\u201d So a slave-girl was despatched\nto bring the infant to its father. And as she carried it along from the\napartments of the queen she said: \u201cO what a pretty child! I should like\nto save it.\u201d R\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa, overhearing her, said: \u201cWhither are you taking\nthat child?\u201d The slave-girl answered: \u201cThis is R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap\u2019s child, born\nonly this very night. The Br\u00e1hman soothsayers have told my master that\nhis child is the cause of all his misfortunes, and that her head is to be\ntaken off to save his own.\u201d When R\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa looked at the child he loved\nit, and became very sorrowful, knowing the power of divination. So he\nreturned and said: \u201cO R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap, your head shall be spared on certain\nconditions: First, you must surrender this infant princess in betrothal\nto me. Secondly, you must become my vassal and pay me an annual tribute.\nThirdly, you must consent to have your forehead branded with a red hot\niron, in token of your vassalage. And fourthly, you must discontinue your\nbloody games at chess.\u201d To all these conditions King Sirikap was only too\nglad to agree. So a treaty was drawn up between the two kings, and it was\nconfirmed and ratified in the presence of their principal officers.\n\nAfter this R\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa mounted his horse and was riding away when he\nthought of the princess in her lonely cell. Turning his horse\u2019s head, he\nsought the foot of the cliff and ascended to the cavern. \u201cOf course,\u201d\ncried she, when she saw him, \u201cyou have won the game? But tell me, have\nyou cut off my father\u2019s head?\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d said he, \u201cI have not.\u201d \u201cWhat!\u201d\nreplied she, \u201chave you beaten your antagonist in the game of death, yet\nnot exacted the penalty of his failure? What luckless man are you?\u201d\nThen King Ras\u00e1l\u00fa explained to the princess all the circumstances of\nhis adventure. \u201cBut,\u201d concluded he, \u201cone thing I omitted, namely, to\nstipulate for your deliverance from captivity.\u201d\n\nThe princess, who expected no less than to be espoused to this handsome\nstranger, was overcome with distress. Seeing this, the king, who pitied\nher misfortunes, took up a piece of rock and broke her chain, and then,\nlifting her over his shoulder, he descended with her from the cavern, and\ncarried her up to the palace of R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap, her father, who, seeing\ncompany returning and fearing some new calamity, once more endeavoured\nto conceal himself. But King Ras\u00e1l\u00fa reassured him, and brought him\nforth, and said to him: \u201cBehold, here is your daughter;\u2014now say for what\ncrime was she imprisoned?\u201d \u201cA certain prince,\u201d answered Sirikap, \u201ccame\nto play with me, and my rebellious daughter gave him, to sit upon, my\nfortunate carpet of state. \u2018Aha,\u2019 said I to myself, \u2018so, my lady, there\u2019s\ntreason afloat?\u2019 upon which I ordered her to be perpetually chained and\nimprisoned.\u201d \u201cOne more condition,\u201d said R\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa, with a stern air,\n\u201cmust be added to the others; it is, that you forgive her, and that you\nlet me know within three months that you have made a suitable match for\nher.\u201d Nor could R\u00e1j\u00e1 Sirikap dare to dispute his new lord\u2019s will, but he\nreceived his daughter and provided suitably for her in accordance with\nhis pledged word.\n\nOnce more King Ras\u00e1l\u00fa mounted his charger, and at the head of his brave\ncompanions, whose lance-heads glittered in the sunlight, and whose\naccoutrements clashed merrily, he rode proudly away to his own capital.\nWith him, in a magnificent litter, travelled the infant daughter of\nSirikap, whose name was Kokilan.[288] She it was, who, in after years,\nwhen she grew to woman\u2019s estate, became his beautiful but ill-fated\nconsort.[289]\n\n * * * * *\n\nIt is not likely that our author adapted his story of the Prince and\nDilbar the courtesan from the foregoing legend of R\u00e1j\u00e1 Ras\u00e1l\u00fa: the fact\nthat a similar tale is current in Kashm\u00edr, as already mentioned, would\nseem to indicate that, in more or less different forms, it is known in\nvarious countries of Hind\u00fast\u00e1n. But the Prince\u2019s game with Dilbar, mainly\nto rescue his brothers who had fallen into her toils, finds a curious\nanalogue in the medi\u00e6val European romance which recounts the adventures\nof four brothers, Agravain, Gueret, Galheret, and Gauvain, all of whom\nset out, in different directions, in quest of Lancelot du Lac, according\nto the analysis given by Dunlop, in his _History of Fiction_: Agravain,\nas a _coup d\u2019essai_, kills Druas, a formidable giant, but is in turn\nvanquished by Sorneham, the brother of Druas. His life is spared at the\nrequest of the conqueror's niece, and he is confined in a dungeon, where\nhis preserver secretly brings him refreshments. Gueret also concludes a\nvariety of adventures by engaging Sorneham, and being overcome is shut\nup in the same dungeon with his brother. Galheret, the third of the\nfraternity, comes to a castle where he is invited to play with the lady\nat chess, on the condition that if he wins he is to possess her person\nand castle, but losing, should become her slave. The chessmen are ranged\nin compartments on the floor of a fine hall, are as large as life, and\nglitter with gold and diamonds. Each of them is a fairy and moves on\nbeing touched with a talisman. Galheret loses the game, and is confined\nwith a number of other checkmated wights. Gauvain, however, soon after\narrives, and vanquishes the lady at her own arms; but only asks the\nfreedom of the prisoners, among whom he finds his brother. Having learned\nfrom an elfish attendant of the lady the fate of his two other brothers,\nhe equips himself in the array of the chess-king. In this garb he engages\nSorneham, who, being dazzled with the brightness of his attire, is\neasily conquered, by which means Agravain and Gueret are delivered from\nconfinement.\n\n\n_The Br\u00e1hman and the Lion_\u2014p. 254.\n\nThere are few fables more widely spread than this, certainly in various\nforms, but always with the same result. In another work I have adduced a\nnumber of versions European and Asiatic,[290] and shall content myself\nwith citing in this place a rather unique version from Mrs. Meer Hasan\nAli\u2019s _Observations on the Mussulmans of India_, vol. ii, p. 330ff.:\n\nA certain man is travelling on horseback through an immense forest, and\nobserves fire consuming some bushes, in the centre of which is a great\nsnake, who implores the traveller to save him. The traveller throws down\nhis horse-bag and the snake creeps into it, and when the horseman takes\nit up and releases the snake the latter is about to bite him, and so\nforth. Having appealed to the _p\u00edpal_-tree and received the same answer\nas that of the banyan in our version, the two meet a camel-driver, who\nsays the snake is right\u2014it is \u201cthe way of the world\u201d to return evil for\ngood, and tells his own story: \u201cI was,\u201d says he, \u201csole proprietor of a\nvery fine strong camel, by whose labour I earned a handsome livelihood,\nin conveying goods, and sometimes travellers, from place to place, as\nfortune served me. One day, returning home through an intricate wood, I\napproached a poor blind man, who was seated on the ground lamenting his\nhard fate. Hearing my camel\u2019s feet advance he redoubled his cries of\ndistress, calling loud for help. He told me that he had been attacked by\nrobbers, and that his boy-guide had been forced from him and taken as a\nslave. I seated him on my beast and proceeded with him to the city where\nhe said he resided. Arriving there, I offered to assist the poor man\nto alight, but to my astonishment he began abusing me for my barefaced\nwickedness, collected a crowd about us by his cries for help from his\npersecutor, declared himself the master of the camel, and accused me of\nattempting to rob him now, as I had done his brother before. Hearing this\nplausible speech, the people dragged me before the judge, who sentenced\nme to be thrust out of the city with threat of greater punishment should\nI ever return. Therefore I say, the reward of good is evil.\u201d The fox is\nthen appealed to with the usual result of leaving the ungrateful snake in\nthe flames, there \u201cto fry in his own fat.\u201d\u2014This story of the camel-driver\nis somewhat analogous to that of the Setti and the Blind Man\u2014_ante_, p.\n215ff.\n\n\n_The Princess and the D\u00edv who exchanged Sexes_\u2014p. 279.\n\nThis droll story is of Hind\u00fa extraction, and in much the same form is\nstill current in Southern India. In the \u201cExposition\u201d prefixed to the Abb\u00e9\nDubois\u2019 French translation of the Tamil version of the _Panchatantra_, p.\n15, it is given with a few unimportant variations: The name of the king\nis Nihla-K\u00e9ton,[291] his country is called Anga-Dessa, and his capital,\nBarty-Poura. His wife was long sterile, and after many vows and prayers\nshe at length gave birth to daughters only. Enraged at this, the king\ntells his prime minister, Vahaca, that he purposes divorcing his wife\nand taking another, and Vahaca tries to dissuade him from such a course.\nWhen the queen is again pregnant the minister offers to take her to his\nown house and treat her with every care, to which the king consents. The\nqueen once more gives birth to a girl, and the prime minister announces\nit as a boy, greatly to the king\u2019s delight. He fixes the twelfth day\nfor the _nama-carna_ (name-giving) and intimates his intention of being\npresent at the ceremony. But the minister bribes the _p\u00fahorita_, or royal\nastrologer, to tell the king that in consequence of the unfavourable\naspect of his horoscope he must not see this child or allow it to be\nproduced in public until it is grown up and married, otherwise dire\ncalamities threaten both king and country. During 16 years the king\nmust have his child educated at a distance from the palace, and this is\nundertaken by the prime minister. When the child is 15 the minister tells\nthe king that a wife must be sought out for \u201chim,\u201d and, taking the girl\nwith him, he leads an army against the city of Pattaly-Poura, and there\ndemands the king\u2019s daughter as wife to the \u201cson\u201d of King Nihla-K\u00e9ton, the\nmarriage to take place in five days. These terms are accepted.\u2014Meanwhile\na giant-Br\u00e1hman (_un g\u00e9ant Brahme_), whose abode is in a large tree in\nthe vicinity of the invading army, falls in love with the young princess,\nand demands her of the prime minister, but Vahaca explains that she is\nalready betrothed, and therefore cannot be given to him. He then tells\nthe giant the whole story of the girl\u2019s birth, the concealment of her\nsex, and so forth, imploring his aid, and suggesting that he should\ngive the girl his sex and take hers for five or six nights, till the\nwedding and its festivities be over. The good-natured giant consents and\nexchanges sexes with the princess. The marriage is duly celebrated, soon\nafter which the minister, the metamorphosed prince, and the real princess\nset out to return home. On the way they visit the giant, and the minister\nasks him to resume his proper sex. But he replies that \u201ca neighbouring\ngenie\u201d had fallen in love with him, as a woman\u2014and so on, as in our\nstory.\n\nHere, it will be seen on comparing the two versions, the chief\ndifferences are: the minister takes the place of the mother in deceiving\nthe king as to the sex of the child; the foreign king is compelled to\ngive his daughter in fear of an invading army; the minister prevails with\nthe \u201cgiant\u201d to exchange sexes with the princess, who does not, as in\nour story, go into the forest with the intention of destroying herself\nfrom shame. But in respect of this last incident, we shall find that\nour tale adheres more closely to the original than the Tamil version.\nThe story occurs in the \u201cUdyoga Parva\u201d (Effort Book\u2014the fifth) of the\n_Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_, sections cxc-cxciii:\n\n\nSANSKRIT ORIGINAL.\n\nThe first and best beloved wife of King Drupada had never borne him a\nchild, and the king paid his adorations to Siva for years, in order to\nobtain the boon of a son. He practised the most austere penances, saying:\n\u201cLet a son, and not a daughter, be born unto me, O Mah\u00e1deva! I desire a\nson, that I may revenge myself on Bhishma.\u201d At length the great deity\nsaid to him: \u201cThou shalt have a child who shall be female and male.\nDesist, O king! It will not be otherwise.\u201d Returning to his wife, he\ninformed her of this decision of the great Siva\u2014that his child should be\nfirst female and afterwards become male. In due time the wife of Drupada\ngave birth to a daughter, in accordance with the decree of Destiny, and\nshe gave out that the child was a son. Then Drupada caused all the rites\nfor a male child to be performed in respect of that concealed daughter as\nif she were really a son, and the child was named Sikhandin. And no man\nin all K\u00e1mpilya, save Drupada himself, knew the real sex of the child.\nDrupada bestowed great pains on the education of his child, teaching her\nwriting, and painting, and the like arts. And in arrows and weapons the\nchild became a disciple of Drona.\n\nThen that royal couple fixed upon the daughter of Hiranyavarman, the\nking of the Das\u00e1rnas for wife to Sikhandin. And he gave his daughter to\nSikhandin, who, after the marriage, returned to K\u00e1mpilya. The daughter\nof Hiranyavarman soon came to know that Sikhandin was a woman like\nherself, and bashfully informed her nurses and companions of the fact.\nThen the nurses sent to the king and represented to him everything about\nthe imposture, upon which the king was filled with wrath. He was a\npowerful monarch, with a great army, not easily to be overcome. And he\ndespatched a messenger to Drupada, who, taking the king aside, said to\nhim: \u201cThe king of the Das\u00e1rnas, O monarch, deceived by thee and wroth at\nthe insult that thou hast offered him, hath said these words unto thee:\n\u2018Thou hast humiliated me! Without doubt, it was not wisely done by thee.\nThou didst, from folly, solicit my daughter for thy daughter! O wicked\none, reap now the consequence of that act of deception! I will now slay\nthee, with all thy relatives and advisers!\u2019\u201d Thus addressed, Drupada,\nlike a thief caught in a net, could not at first speak. At length he sent\na sweet speech, saying: \u201cThis is not so,\u201d in order to pacify the king of\nthe Das\u00e1rnas. But he was not thus to be pacified; and, after consulting\nwith his ministers, he again sent an envoy to Drupada, saying: \u201cI will\nslay thee!\u201d Now King Drupada was not naturally courageous, and the\nconsciousness of his offence filled him with fear. He took counsel with\nhis wife as to how they might best escape the wrath of the king of the\nDas\u00e1rnas, for he was already on the march against him with a large army.\n\nMeanwhile Sikhandin, filled with grief, and saying to herself that it\nwas solely on her account that her parents were now in such tribulation,\nresolved on putting an end to her own life. Having formed this\ndetermination, she left home, full of heavy sorrow, and went into a dense\nand solitary forest which was the haunt of a very powerful Yaksha, called\nSthun\u00e1karna. From fear of that Yaksha,[292] man never went into that\nforest. And within it stood a mansion with high walls and a gateway,\nplastered over with powdered earth, and rich with smoke bearing the\nfragrance of fried paddy.[293] Entering that mansion, Sikhandin, the\ndaughter of Drupada, began to reduce herself by foregoing all food for\nmany days. Thereupon the Yaksha, who was endued with kindness, showed\nhimself unto her. And he enquired of her, saying: \u201cFor what object is\nthis endeavour of thine? I will accomplish it\u2014tell me without delay.\u201d\nThus asked, the maiden answered him, repeatedly saying: \u201cThou art unable\nto accomplish it.\u201d The Yaksha, however, rejoined: \u201cI am a follower of\nthe Lord of Treasures [i.e. Kuvera]. I can grant boons, O princess! I\nwill grant thee even that which cannot be given! Tell me what thou hast\nto say.\u201d Thus assured, Sikhandin represented, in detail, everything that\nhad happened, unto that chief of Yakshas called Sthun\u00e1karna. And she\nanswered: \u201cMy father, O Yaksha, will soon meet with destruction. The\nruler of the Das\u00e1rnas marcheth against him in rage. That king cased in\ngolden mail is endued with great might and great courage. Therefore, O\nYaksha, save me, my mother, and my father! Indeed, thou hast already\npledged thyself to relieve my distress. Through thy grace, O Yaksha, I\nwould become a perfect man! As long as that king may not depart from my\ncity, so long, O great Yaksha, show me grace!\u201d Hearing these words of\nSikhandin, that Yaksha, afflicted by Destiny, said, after reflection:\n\u201cBlessed lady, I will certainly do what thou wishest. Listen, however, to\nthe condition I make: For a certain period I will give thee my manhood.\nThou must, however, come back to me in due time. Pledge thyself to do\nso. Possessed of immense power, I am a ranger of the skies, wandering\nat pleasure, and capable of accomplishing whatever I wish. Through my\ngrace, save thy city and thy kinsmen wholly! I will bear thy womanhood,\nO princess! Pledge thy troth to me, and I will do what is agreeable to\nthee.\u201d Sikhandin answered: \u201cO holy one of excellent vows! I will give\nthee back thy manhood. O wanderer of the night! bear thou my womanhood\nfor a short time. After the ruler of the Das\u00e1rnas has departed from my\ncity, I will once more become a maiden and thou wilt become a man.\u201d Then\nthey both made a covenant, and imparted into each other\u2019s body their\nsexes. And the Yaksha became a female, while Sikhandin obtained the\nblazing form of the Yaksha.\n\nThen Sikhandin, having obtained manhood, entered his city in great joy\nand approached his father, to whom he represented everything that had\nhappened; and Drupada became exceedingly glad, and, along with his\nwife, recollected the words of the great Siva. And he forthwith sent a\nmessenger to the ruler of the Das\u00e1rnas, saying: \u201cThis my child _is_ a\nmale. Let it be believed by thee.\u201d Meanwhile the ruler of the Das\u00e1rnas\nhad arrived at K\u00e1mpilya, and Drupada sent a messenger who was well versed\nin the Vedas. But Hiranyavarman addressed the envoy in these words:\n\u201cSay unto that worst of kings: \u2018O thou wicked of understanding! having\nselected my daughter for the wife of thy daughter, thou shall to-day,\nwithout doubt, behold the fruit of that deception.\u2019\u201d When the envoy\nreturned and delivered this message to Drupada, he despatched another\nBr\u00e1hman learned in the Vedas to the ruler of the Das\u00e1rnas, who said to\nhim: \u201cHear, O king, the words of the ruler of the P\u00e1nch\u00e1las: \u2018This my\nchild is really a male. Let it be made clear by means of witnesses.\u2019\u201d\nThen the king of the Das\u00e1rnas sent a number of young ladies of great\nbeauty to ascertain whether Sikhandin was really a male or a female. And\nthose ladies, having ascertained the truth, joyfully told the king of\nthe Das\u00e1rnas that Sikhandin was a powerful person of the masculine sex.\nHearing this testimony, Hiranyavarman was filled with joy, and going to\nhis brother Drupada passed a few days with him in gladness. And the king,\nrejoiced as he was, gave Sikhandin much wealth, many elephants, steeds,\nand kine. And, worshipped by Drupada as long as he stayed, the Das\u00e1rna\nking then departed, having rebuked his daughter. And after Hiranyavarman\nhad departed in joy and with his anger quelled, Sikhandin began to\nrejoice exceedingly.\n\nMeanwhile [some time after the exchange of sexes had taken place] Kuvera,\nthe protector of all the treasures, in the course of a journey came to\nthe house of Sthuna, the Yaksha, and admiring the garlands of flowers\nwith which it was bedecked, he asked his followers why it was that Sthuna\ndid not come out to greet him. And they told him how Sthuna had given his\nown manhood to the daughter of Drupada, taking her womanhood in exchange,\nand therefore he was ashamed to approach him. Hearing this, Kuvera caused\nSthuna to be brought before him; and Sthuna, wearing a feminine form,\ncame thither, and stood before him in shame. And Kuvera said: \u201cSince,\nhumiliating all the Yakshas, thou hast, O thou of sinful deeds, given\naway thy own sex to Sikhandin and taken from her, O thou wicked of\nunderstanding, her womanhood\u2014since, O wicked wretch, thou hast done what\nhath never been done before by anybody;\u2014therefore, from this day, thou\nshalt remain a woman and she shall remain a man!\u201d At these words all\nthe Yakshas attempted to mollify Kuvera for the sake of Sthuna, saying:\n\u201cSet a limit to thy curse!\u201d Then the lord of the Yakshas said: \u201cAfter\nSikhandin\u2019s death, Sthuna will regain his own form. Therefore let this\nhigh-souled Yaksha be freed from his anxiety.\u201d Having said this, Kuvera\ndeparted with his followers.\n\nAnd Sthuna, with that curse denounced on him, continued to live there;\nand when the time arrived, Sikhandin, without losing a moment, came to\nthat wanderer of the night. And approaching his presence he said: \u201cI have\ncome to thee, O holy one!\u201d Sthuna then repeatedly said unto him: \u201cI am\npleased with thee!\u201d Indeed, beholding that prince return to him without\nguile, Sthuna told Sikhandin everything that had happened, adding: \u201cO\nson of a king, for thee have I been cursed by Kuvera. Go now, and live\nhappily amongst men, as thou choosest. Thy coming hither and the arrival\nof Pulastya\u2019s son [_i.e._ Kuvera] were, I think, both ordained from\nbeforehand. And this was incapable of being prevented.\u201d Sikhandin then\nreturned to his city filled with joy.[294]\n\n * * * * *\n\nIt is evident that the Persian and the Tamil versions were not derived\ndirectly from the story in the _Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_, but from some modern\nadaptation, since in both the good-natured d\u00edv has a very different\nreason from that of the Yaksha Sthuna for retaining his adopted sex.\nThe chief features of the Sanskrit original are, however, reproduced\nin the two variants, if we except the actual marriage of the princess,\nthe discovery of her sex, and her father\u2019s cognisance of the whole\naffair from the first, which do not appear in them.\u2014The story is so\nsingular that I think it must be orally current in different countries\nof India, as well as exist in collections in many of the vernacular\nlanguages; and it would be interesting to see what farther modifications\nit has undergone, especially in passing by word of mouth to successive\ngenerations and from place to place.\n\n * * * * *\n\nIn M. Dozon\u2019s _Contes Albanais_ No. 14 presents some analogy to the story\nof the Exchange of Sexes. Here a man with three daughters and no sons\nis called to the wars; he is old, and has no one to take his place. The\nfirst and second daughters express their wish to be married\u2014probably,\nthough it is not expressly stated, in order that one of their husbands\nshould go as the substitute for their aged father. But the youngest\nassumes a man\u2019s dress and goes to the wars in place of him, and slays\na lamia that had long made a feast on the people once every year, for\nwhich she receives in reward a wonderful talking horse, through whose\ncleverness she accomplishes a feat by which she wins a king\u2019s daughter in\nmarriage. The princess, as in the Sanskrit story and in the well-known\nArabian tale, complains to her parents of the coldness of her \u201chusband,\u201d\nand the king lays various snares in hopes of causing the destruction of\nthe disguised heroine, but her horse saves her from all of them. At\nlast the king sends her to \u201cthe church (_sic_) full of serpents,\u201d to\ndemand payment of their arrears of tribute, hoping they would kill the\nobjectionable spouse of his daughter. The money is paid, however, but\nthe serpents, enraged at having to part with so much treasure, cry out:\n\u201cIf thou art a girl, become a boy; if thou art a boy, become a girl,\u201d\nand there and then the heroine found herself actually changed into a\nman; so the serpents thus did her a good turn, instead of the evil one\nthey intended.\u2014M. Dozon, in his _rapprochements_, cites No. 58 of Hahn\u2019s\ncollection of Greek popular tales, in which a man is first changed to a\ngirl, and afterwards, by a giant, back to a man again.\n\n\nTHE PRINCE OBTAINS A SNAKE-GEM\u2014pp. 296, 297.\n\nPrecisely the same incident occurs in the Comte de Caylus\u2019 interesting\ncollection of _Contes Orientaux_, with, strange to say, instead of a\nsnake, a black bull (\u201cun taureau noir\u201d), and the hero, \u201chaving been\nbrought up in the midst of jewels,\u201d knew that the stone was a real\ncarbuncle, and it was of a size he had never before seen.[295]\n\nI have already offered some remarks on the common belief in the East from\nthe most ancient times that serpents have precious stones in their heads\nand are the guardians of treasures concealed in the earth (pp. 232 and\n297), but the subject is so interesting as being a survival, or rather\nrelic, of serpent-worship, that I think the following observations by Mr.\nM. J. Walhouse, the veteran scholar, in the _Indian Antiquary_ for 1875,\npp. 45, 46, may be reproduced here:\n\n\u201cIn the Life of Apollonius Tyan\u00e6us [B.C. 3-A.D. 98] are some marvellous\nstories of large Indian serpents, which the Indians are said to destroy\nas follows: \u2018They spread a silken robe, inwoven with golden letters,\nbefore the entrance of the serpent\u2019s cave, and those letters, being\nmagical, bring on sleep, so that the eyes of the serpent are overcome.\nThen with powerful incantations they so allure it as to be able to cast\nover it the magical robe, which induces sound sleep. Rushing in, the\nIndians cut off its head with an iron axe and take out certain stones\nfound therein; for the heads of most serpents are said to contain\nsmall stones, very beautiful and endowed with a peculiar lustre and\nwonderful virtues. Such a stone was in the ring that Gyges is said to\nhave possessed.\u2019 This is probably an exaggerated version of the Indian\nsnake-charming, and one of the earliest notices of it.\u2026 The American\nIndian tribes believe that in the mountains is a secret valley, inhabited\nby chiefs of the rattlesnake species, which grow to the size of large\ntrees and bear in their foreheads brilliant gems. In Peru is an animal\ncalled carbunculo, which appears only at night. When pursued a valve\nopens in its forehead, and a brilliant object becomes visible, dispelling\nthe darkness and dazzling the pursuers.\u201d\n\n\nTHE PRINCE CONCEALS THE SNAKE-GEM IN HIS THIGH\u2014p. 299.\n\nThis singular mode of concealing jewels\u2014into which Asiatics still very\ncommonly convert their wealth\u2014is said to have been formerly, and perhaps\nis yet occasionally, adopted by travellers. We have another instance in\nthe story of the Young Man who fell in love with a Picture, which occurs\nonly in the Breslau printed Arabic text of the \u201cThousand and One Nights,\u201d\nwhere the hero has luckily some jewels in the flesh of his forearm.\u2014And\nin the _Toldoth Jeshu_ (already cited in connection with the conflict\nbetween the white and black serpents\u2014p. 475) is the following most\nveracious narrative:\n\n\u201cNow at this time the unutterable Name[296] of God was engraved in the\ntemple on the corner-stone. For when King David dug the foundations he\nfound there a stone on which the Name of God was engraved, and he took\nit and placed it in the Holy of Holies. But as the wise men feared lest\nsome ignorant youth should learn the Name and be able to destroy the\nworld\u2014which God avert!\u2014they made by magic two brazen lions, which they\nset before the entrance of the Holy of Holies, one on the right, the\nother on the left. Now if any one were to go within and learn the holy\nName, then the lions would begin to roar as he came out, so that from\nalarm and bewilderment he would lose his presence of mind and forget the\nName.\n\n\u201cAnd Jeshu left Upper Galilee and came secretly to Jerusalem, and he\nwent into the Temple and learned there the holy writing; and after he\nhad written the incommunicable Name on parchment he uttered it, with\nintent that he might feel no pain, and then he cut into his flesh and\nhid the parchment with its inscription therein. Then he uttered the Name\nonce more, and made so that his flesh healed up again. And when he went\nout at the door the lions roared and he forgot the Name. Therefore he\nhasted outside the town, cut into his flesh, took the writing out, and\nwhen he had sufficiently studied the signs he retained the Name in his\nmemory.\u201d[297]\n\nIf there ever was a deliberately trumped-up story, this assuredly is\none\u2014it is altogether absurd and inconsistent. When, I wonder, did King\nDavid dig the foundation of the Temple? Moreover, the temple referred\nto by this miserable, malignant scribbler was not that built by the\nson of David, but the gorgeous pile erected by King Herod. But indeed\nnothing more is needed to show that this idle tale was written for\none sole purpose than the words \u201clest some ignorant _youth_ should\nlearn the Name.\u201d Why \u201csome _youth_\u201d only? Was there not any danger of\nignorant, or curious, or evil-minded grown men attempting to acquire\nthis knowledge?\u2014Then we have the magic lions of brass that were placed\non either side of the entrance of the Holy of Holies! The only \u201cgraven\nimages\u201d we read of as being in the Temple are the cherubim, whose wings\ncanopied the Ark. It is very evident that this most wretched tract\u2014of\nwhich it is said the Jews themselves are now ashamed\u2014was written during\nthe later Middle Ages, when belief was so rife in magic images of metal\nas guardians of treasure or of some other magical contrivance.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe classical story is well known of Zeus, dreading the wrath of Hera\nwhen Semele gave premature birth to Dionysus (Bacchus), sewing up\nthe infant in his thigh, where he came to maturity. And we have an\ninteresting example of the prevalence in India\u2014_mutatis mutandis_\u2014of\nGreek and Roman legends, known to every schoolboy, in a folk-tale\ncontributed to the _Indian Antiquary_ for 1886, p. 367, by (Miss?)\nPutlabi D. H. Wadia, in which seven brothers go on a trading voyage,\nleaving their little sister, Sun\u00e1ba\u00ed J\u00e1i, with their wives, who in their\nabsence ill-treat her shamefully and appoint her tasks very similar\nto those which Venus gave Psyche to do, the last being to bring them\nsome sea-foam. The poor little maid goes to the shore, and observes her\nbrothers\u2019 ship coming in, and runs to meet them. One of the brothers,\nwhen she has told her story, cuts open his thigh and having placed\nher inside the opening sews it up. When they reach home they ask for\ntheir sister and the wives give an evasive reply, upon which they are\nthreatened with dire punishment should any accident have happened to the\nlittle one, and the women having confessed their wickedness, the brother\ndraws Sun\u00e1ba\u00ed J\u00e1i out of his thigh.\n\nIn the Tamil romance entitled _Madnak\u00e1mar\u00e1jankadai_, which has been\ntranslated by my friend Pandit Nat\u00e9sa S\u00e1str\u00ed, of Madras, under the title\nof _Dravidian Nights Entertainments_, a prince one day sees the daughter\nof Indra bathing in a tank, and having purloined her garment takes it\nhome, cuts open his thigh and puts the celestial robe inside, and then\nsews the flesh together. The nymph, like others of the Bird-Maiden class,\nhad no resource but to follow the hero and become his wife.\n\nFrom the East, doubtless, the idea was brought to Europe and utilised\nin the romance of _Huon of Bordeaux_, where we read that the beard and\nmolars of the Saracen am\u00edr\u2014the procuring of which was the condition of\nthe hero\u2019s pardon by Charlemagne\u2014were sewed up by Oberon, King of the\nFairies, in the side of Gerames, the uncle of Duke Huon.[298]\n\n\nBAK\u00c1WAL\u00cd AT INDRA\u2019S COURT\u2014p. 317.\n\nIn the Kashm\u00edr\u00ed tale of Gullala Sh\u00e1h (Mr. Knowles\u2019 collection), a fair\nprincess, Panj Ph\u00fal, falls in love with the hero, and her father, when he\ncomes to know of this, transforms her to wood and causes her to be placed\nin a public garden, as a warning to other fairy damsels not to bestow\ntheir affections on human beings. Gullala Sh\u00e1h, instructed by the vaz\u00edr,\nwhose daughter he had already married, burns the wood, and pouring water\non the ashes, Panj Ph\u00fal, as in Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed\u2019s case, is restored to life.\n\n\nBAHR\u00c1M TRANSFORMED INTO A BIRD\u2014p. 346.\n\nIn No. 16 of the Burmese collection of tales entitled _Decisions of\nthe Princess Thoodhamma Tsari_\u2014which has been translated into English\nby Capt. T. P. Sparks (Maulmain, 1851), and again by Chr. J. Bandow\n(Rangoon, 1881)\u2014a youth is changed into a small parrot by a magic\nthread being tied round his neck, and in that form is captured by some\nbird-catchers in the king\u2019s garden, and presented as a pet to the\nprincess, who discovers and removes the thread, when he becomes once\nmore a handsome young man. Early every morning the princess replaces the\nthread and he is again changed to a parrot; at night she takes off the\nthread; and thus she continues to amuse herself until the consequences\ncould not be any longer concealed, but in the sequel the youth is\npublicly acknowledged as her husband.\n\n * * * * *\n\nSometimes the hero of a popular fiction has the power of transforming\nhimself into a bird or of quitting his own body and animating that of any\ndead animal, as in Mr. Nat\u00e9sa S\u00e1str\u00ed\u2019s _Dravidian Nights Entertainments_,\npp. 8-18, and the idea is also known to European ballads and romances.\nFor instance, in Prior\u2019s _Danish Ballads_, iii, 206, we are told how a\nknight, to gain access to a lady\u2019s bower, becomes a bird and flies in.\nIn his notes, Prior refers to the ballad of \u2018The Earl of Mar\u2019s Daughter\u2019\n(Buchan, i, 49):\n\n \u201cI am a doo the live-lang day,\n A sprightly youth at night;\n This aye gars me appear mair fair\n In a fair maiden\u2019s sight.\u201d\n\nHe also refers to the Netherlandish ballad, \u2018Vogelritter,\u2019 where a knight\ngoes to Cyprus and wins the king\u2019s daughter, whom he had previously\nvisited in the form of a bird, having in his possession a stone which\neffects transformations; and to the \u2018Lai d\u2019Iwenec\u2019, by Marie de France.\n\n\nTHE THREE DECEITFUL WOMEN\u2014p. 355.\n\n_Page 357_\u2014The crafty mother of the bathman is said to have \u201cpractised\nfor years under the sorceress Shamsah\u201d; probably the witch of the same\nname who figures in the story of T\u00e1hir, an extract of which will be found\nin pp. 494, 495.\n\n * * * * *\n\n_Page 370_\u2014The story of \u2018The Sun and the Moon\u2019 (_Mihr \u00fa M\u00e1h_), which the\ncarpenter brags that he knows, is probably the Persian romance of Mihr,\nthe son of K\u00e1hvar Sh\u00e1h, described in Dr. Rieu\u2019s _Catalogue of Persian\nManuscripts in the British Museum_, vol. ii, p. 765 (Add. 15,099), which\nalso occurs in Hubb\u00ed\u2019s collection, entitled _Hik\u00e1y\u00e1t-i\u2019Aj\u00edb \u00fa Ghar\u00edb_,\n(already cited on p. 474), of which Dr. Rieu, in the same Catalogue (ii,\n759, Or. 237), gives the titles of the first nineteen stories, No. 3\nbeing _Mihr \u00fa M\u00e1h_. Dr. Rieu has kindly furnished me with the first part\nof this tale:\n\nIn the kingdom of the East was a mighty king named Kh\u00e1var Sh\u00e1h, who had\nno son. He is told by his astrologers that he is predestined to have\na son, provided the mother be a par\u00ed (or fairy). On the advice of his\nvaz\u00edr, Rushan R\u00e1\u00ef, he asks the help of a devotee called Faylas\u00faf, who\ntells him that he should obtain possession of the book of magic which\nis kept by the witch Naskas in her castle. All three set out with this\nintent, and by means of the Most Great Name (see _ante_, note on p. 163)\nobtain entrance into the castle, and on their way release a dove from\nits cage. Deceived by the wiles of the witch, they are transformed: the\nking, into a lion, the vaz\u00edr, into a lynx, and the devotee, into a fox;\nbut plunging into the waters of the Spring of Job, they are restored to\ntheir natural shape, seek refuge in a hollow tree, and are taken out of\nit by the bird Rukh (or roc) and carried to the top of a mountain. In the\nmeanwhile the released dove, who was no other than R\u00faz-afr\u00faz, daughter\nof Farrukhf\u00e1l, king of the par\u00eds, returns to her parents and tells them\nof her rescue. Then she goes in search of her deliverers; finds them\nasleep, and has them conveyed to her father\u2019s court. Farrukhf\u00e1l waives\nhis objection to a marriage which he deemed a _m\u00e9salliance_, and the\nresult in due time is the birth of a prince, called Mihr. The astrologers\nprophesy that at the age of eighteen grief will come to him through a\npiece of paper. And, in fact, the young man, while out hunting, meets a\nyouth called Mukhtar\u00ed, a rich merchant from Maghrab, who has suffered\nshipwreck and has saved nothing but the portrait of M\u00e1h, the fair\ndaughter of Hil\u00e1l, king of the West. The remainder of the tale deals\nwith the adventures of the love-struck prince in search of the fair one,\nending, of course, with their happy union.[299]\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe tale of \u2018Sayf ul-Mul\u00fak and Bady\u2019\u00e1 ul-Jum\u00e1l,\u2019 which the carpenter\nsays he had also heard, occurs in the _Arabian Nights_; the Turkish\nstory-book _Al-Faraj ba\u2019d al-Shiddah_, or Joy after Distress; the Persian\nTales translated into French by Petis de la Croix, under the title of\n_Les Mille et un Jours_; and it also exists as a separate story in\nMSS. preserved in the British Museum and the Bodleian Library, Oxford.\nIt recounts how a young prince discovers in his father\u2019s treasury the\nportrait of a very beautiful damsel and sets out in quest of her. After\nmany perilous adventures he finally learns from a jinni that the fair\noriginal of the portrait was one of the concubines of King Solomon and\nhad, of course, been dead for many ages.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhether the \u2018Road to the Mosque\u2019, which the carpenter says he has\n\u201cseen,\u201d be the title of a story, or (as is more likely) that of a\ndevotional work, I am unable to say, never having seen it alluded to\nelsewhere.\n\n\n_The Trick of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s Wife_\n\nis a variant of a story found in the Beslau printed Arabic text of the\n\u2018Thousand and One Nights,\u2019 of the Fuller, his Wife, and the Trooper.\nIt also occurs in the _Historia Septem Sapientum Rom\u00e6_, the European\nadaptation of the Book of Sindib\u00e1d, where a crafty Knight of Hungary\nplays the part of the carpenter of our story, and a jealous old baron\nthat of the K\u00e1z\u00ed. The plot of the _Miles Gloriosus_ of Plautus, which\nis very similar to the tale of the crafty Knight, in all likelihood\nsuggested to Boiardo the amusing episode, in his _Orlando Innamorato_,\nof Folderico and Ordauro, which, in its turn, was perhaps adapted in the\n_Seven Wise Masters_. In my _Book of Sindib\u00e1d_, p. 343 ff., and in my\n_Popular Tales and Fictions_, vol. ii, pp. 214-228, are most of the other\nknown versions and variants of this story.\n\n\n_The Trick of the Baz\u00e1r-Master\u2019s Wife_\n\nhas many parallels in Eastern story-books, and the tale seems to have\nbeen, time out of mind, a favourite with Asiatics. In one version there\nis no game of _yad est_ between husband and wife. The lady has her lover\nconcealed in an adjoining apartment, for her husband has come home quite\nunexpectedly. But she tells him plainly of the fact, upon which he\ndemands the key and approaches to open the door of the room, when the\nlady bursts into laughter. He pauses in astonishment, and asks the cause\nof her merriment, to which she replies: \u201cI cannot help laughing at your\nsimplicity, in believing that I should have a lover in the next room, and\ntell you of it.\u201d The husband returns the key and goes away well pleased.\n\n\n_The Trick of the Kutw\u00e1l\u2019s Wife_\n\nresembles the latter part of the Arabian tale of the Fuller, his Wife,\nand the Trooper, where the poor husband is also drugged, his hair\nis cropped, he is dressed as a soldier, and provided with a letter\nrecommending him to be enrolled by the governor of Isfah\u00e1n. In this case,\nhowever, the poor husband is not reclaimed by his artful wife.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWhatever may be the source of this diverting story, it was known in\nFrance as early at least as the 13th century, in the form of _fabliau_\nby Haisiau the Trouv\u00e8re, under the title \u201cDes Trois Dames qui trouverent\nun Anel\u201d (M\u00e9on\u2019s edition of Barbazan, 1808, tome iii, p. 220ff., and Le\nGrand, 1781, tome iv, pp. 163-166), of which the following is the outline:\n\nThree ladies found a ring, and \u201cthey swore by Jesu that she should have\nit who should best beguile her husband to do a good turn to her lover.\u201d\n\nThe _First Lady_, having made her husband drunk, when he is asleep,\ncauses his head to be shaved, dresses him in the habit of a monk, and\ncarries him, assisted by her lover, to the entrance of a convent. When\nhe awakes and finds himself thus transformed he imagines that God, by a\nmiraculous exercise of his grace, had called him to the monastic life. So\nhe presents himself before the abbot and requests to be received among\nthe brethren. The lady hastens to the convent in well-feigned despair,\nand is exhorted to be resigned and to congratulate her husband on the\nsaintly vow he has taken. \u201cMany a good man,\u201d says the poet, \u201chas been\nbetrayed by woman and her harlotry. This one became a monk in the abbey,\nwhere he remained a very long time. Wherefore, I counsel all people who\nhear this story told, that they ought not to trust in their wives, or in\ntheir households, if they have not first proved that they are full of\nvirtues. Many a man has been deceived by women and their treachery. This\none became a monk against right, who would never have been such in his\nlife, if his wife had not deceived him.\u201d\n\nThe _Second Lady_ had some salted and smoked eels which her husband bade\nher cook for dinner on a Friday, but there was no fire in the house.\nUnder the pretext of going to have them cooked on a neighbour\u2019s fire, she\ngoes out and finds her lover, at whose house she remains a whole week. On\nthe following Friday, about the hour of dinner, she enters a neighbour\u2019s\nhouse and asks leave to cook her eels, saying that her husband is angry\nwith her for having no fire, and that she could not dare to go back lest\nhe should cut off her head. As soon as the eels are cooked she carries\nthem home, \u201cpiping hot.\u201d The husband asks her where she has been for\nthe last week, and commences to beat her. She cries for help and the\nneighbours come in, and amongst them the one at whose fire the eels had\nbeen cooked, who swears that the wife had only just left her house,\nand ridicules the man for his assertion that she had been away a whole\nweek. The poor husband gets into a great rage and is locked up for a\nmadman.[300]\n\nThe _Third Lady_ proposes to her lover to marry him, and he thinks that\nshe is merely jesting, seeing she is already married, but she assures\nhim that she is quite in earnest, and even undertakes that her husband\nwill give his consent. The lover is to come for her husband and take him\nto the house of Dan Eustace, where he has a fair niece, whom the lover\nis to pretend he wishes to espouse, if he will give her to him. The lady\nwill go thither, and she will have made her arrangements with Dan Eustace\nbefore they arrive. Her husband cannot but believe that he has left her\nat home, and she will be so apparelled that he cannot recognise her. This\nplan is accordingly carried out. The lover asks the lady\u2019s husband for\nthe hand of his niece in marriage, to which he very willingly consents,\nand thus without knowing it makes him a present of his own wife. \u201cAll his\nlife long the lover possessed her, because the husband gave and did not\nlend her; nor could he ever get her back.\u201d[301]\n\n\u201cNow tell me true,\u201d adds the poet, \u201cwithout any lie, and if you would\njudge rightly and truly, which one of these three best deserved to have\nthe ring?\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nLe Grand, at the end of his modern French prose abridgment of this\n_fabliau_, says that it is told at great length in the tales of the\nSieur d\u2019Ouville, tome iv, p. 255. In the _Faceti\u00e6 Bebelian\u00e6_, p. 86,\nthree women make a wager as to which of them will play the best trick\non her husband. One causes her poor spouse to believe he is a monk, and\nhe goes and sings mass; the second husband believes that he is dead and\nallows himself to be carried on a bier to that mass; and the third sings\nin it stark naked, believing he is clothed. It is also found in the\n_Convivales Sermones_, t. i, p. 200; in the _D\u00e9lices de Verboquet_, p.\n166; and in the Faceti\u00e6 of Lod. Dom\u00e9nichi, p. 172. In the _Contes pour\nRire_, p. 197, three women find a diamond, and the arbiter whom they\nselect promises it to her who concocts the best device for deceiving her\nhusband, but the _ruses_, according to Le Grand, are different from those\nin the _fabliau_. Possibly from this last mentioned version (if not from\nsome old Morisco-Spanish tale, for the idea of the story is certainly\nof Eastern origin) Isidro de Robles, a Spanish novelist, who wrote\nabout the year 1666, adapted his tale of \u2018The Diamond Ring,\u2019 of which\na translation is given by Roscoe in his _Spanish Novelists_, 1832, vol.\niii, pp. 163-214, and the outline of which is as follows:\n\nIn the fair city of Madrid there lived three ladies who were very\nintimate friends. One was the wife of Luca Morena, cashier to a wealthy\nGenoese merchant; the second was the wife of Diego de Morales, a painter,\nemployed in decorating one of the monasteries; the third was the wife\nof Se\u00f1or Geloso, an elderly ill-tempered curmudgeon. It happened one\nday, when the three ladies were standing near a fountain to see a grand\npublic procession, that they simultaneously discovered a diamond ring\nwhich glittered under the water, and when one of them took it up, all\nthree laid claim to it, on various grounds, and they squabbled for its\npossession till one of them proposed they should submit the matter to\na count of their acquaintance whom they saw approaching, to which the\nothers agreed. The count takes charge of the ring and says that it should\nbe the prize of \u201cwhichever of you shall, within the space of the next\nsix weeks, succeed in playing off upon her husband the most clever and\ningenious trick\u2014always having due regard to his honour.\u201d\n\nThe _Cashier\u2019s Wife_ employs an astrologer to waylay her husband on his\nroad home and tell him that he looks seriously ill; then to feel his\npulse and declare that he will be a dead man within 24 hours, so he had\nbetter put his affairs in order. Somewhat alarmed, he reaches home, takes\nlittle supper and goes to bed, but only to toss restlessly about all the\nnight. He is off to business earlier than usual next day, and coming home\nin the evening meets the vicar of the parish and some friends, who are\nalso in the plot. They pretend not to see him, but talk to each other\naloud of Luca Moreno\u2019s sudden death, and express very uncomplimentary\nopinions as to his state in the other world. In great perplexity, he\ncontinues his way and meets the astrologer and the painter (the latter\nis the husband of the second lady, and, strange as it may seem, is also\na party in the plot), talking likewise of his death. He can endure this\nno longer, and accosts them, saying that he is not dead, but they affect\nto take him for his own ghost and run away. Now he thinks he must be\nreally dead, though when and how he died he cannot recollect. Arriving at\nhis house, he finds it shut up, and knocks long and loudly at the door\nbefore the maidservant appears, who asks: \u201cWho is it? You can\u2019t come in,\nfor master is dead.\u201d \u201cWhy,\u201d exclaims the poor cashier, \u201cit is I myself,\nyour master.\u201d \u201cWho calls at this hour? This is the house of mourning,\nfor we are all in grief for the loss of our master.\u201d \u201cHold your tongue,\nyou jade, and let me in, for I am your master.\u201d She replies that _he_,\npoor man, is now engaged counting money in another and a worse world. In\nhis rage he bursts open the door and walks in. His wife on seeing him\npretends to swoon, but leaving her in the care of the maidservant he goes\ndown to the pantry to stay his ravenous appetite, and there indulges in a\nhearty supper, washed down with copious draughts of wine, and then goes\nto bed. In the morning his wife, in gala dress, awakes him, and he thinks\nthat she is dead also, and asks her when he himself died and was buried.\nShe says all that she knows is that he buried last night some of the\nbest wine and dainties provided for the carnival\u2014he must be still drunk\nto talk such nonsense. The astrologer and the painter come, and when\nthey hear his story declare they had not seen him or been from home last\nnight, and, the vicar and his friends making a similar statement, he is\npersuaded the whole affair was a dream, and promises to defray the cost\nof a feast on Shrove Tuesday.\n\nIt is now the turn of the _Second Lady_ to play a trick upon her husband,\nthe painter. \u201cFor this purpose she concerted a plan with a brother of\nhers, who possessed a fine genius for amusing himself at other people\u2019s\nexpense. In the first place they contrived to have a false door made\nat the entrance of the house, on such a plan (then frequently adopted)\nthat it might be easily substituted for the real door at short notice.\nIt was brought thither secretly one night, and concealed in a cellar,\nwhile the brother and two friends lay ready to carry on the intended\nplot in an upper chamber of the house.\u201d The painter returns home as\nusual, and having supped retires to rest. About midnight he is roused\nfrom a deep sleep by the cries of his wife, who pretends to be dying,\nand implores him to go for her confessor, and her old nurse, who knew\nher constitution. He very reluctantly rises and dresses himself, and\nthen sets out in quest of the nurse, who lived at the other end of the\ntown. Meanwhile the old door is removed and the false one substituted,\nand above it a sign is placed bearing the words, \u201cHouse of Public\nEntertainment.\u201d Then, according to arrangement, friends of the lady and\na party of musicians with their instruments arrive, in order to \u201cmake a\nnight of it.\u201d The poor painter, after plodding his weary way in quest of\nthe old nurse, through wind and rain, and knocking at the wrong doors,\nat last returns home, drenched to the skin. But what must have been his\namazement to find his house metamorphosed into a tavern and to hear\nsounds from within of mirth and revelry! He knocks at the door, however,\nand a head is thrust out of an upper window and a voice orders him to be\noff, for the house is full. When he says that the house is his own, he\nis told it has been a tavern for the last 15 years and is finally made\nto beat a retreat by two dogs being let loose on him. Betaking himself\nto his friend Se\u00f1or Geloso (whose turn is yet to come), he relates\nto him all his strange adventures. His friend thinks he is drunk and\naccommodates him for the night in his house. Next morning they go to the\npainter\u2019s house, which has been restored to its former appearance, and\nwhen he tells them of what had happened to him the previous night, his\nwife and her friends assure him that the affair must have been the effect\nof sorcery, at the same time his loving spouse reads him a severe lecture\non his debauched way of life, staying out o\u2019 nights and so forth. It is\nfinally agreed to say no more about the matter.\n\nThe trick played on the jealous, ill-tempered husband of the _Third\nLady_ bears a striking resemblance to that of the Kutw\u00e1l\u2019s wife\u2014_mutatis\nmutandis_. Having plied him with wine till he is \u201cdead drunk,\u201d she sends\nfor her brother, prior of the convent of Capuchins, who comes (as\narranged) with the lay brethren, and, after his head has been shaved\nand he has been dressed in the monastic garb, they carry him off to\nthe convent and place him in a cell. When he awakes he is perplexed at\nthe change that has taken place in his person and place of abode. In\nbrief, he is flogged next day for contumacy and sentenced to eight days\u2019\nimprisonment, with bread and water. This term expired, he is sent out\nwith one of the monks to beg alms, and in the course of their rounds\nthey come to his own house, where seeing his wife at a window he rushes\nin and embraces her. The lady, of course, raises a great outcry, and the\nservants and neighbours hasten to her assistance. The monk explains that\nhe is a crazy brother who fancies every pretty woman he sees is his wife,\nand leads him back to the convent, where he is again soundly flogged\nand put upon a new course of bread and water, so long that his hair and\nbeard were grown again. One night he is treated to a fine supper and a\nbottle of wine containing an opiate, and, when he is asleep, is carried\nback to his house, and on awaking next morning and telling his wife of\nall that he had undergone as a monk, she persuades him that it was but\na distempered dream, and he, glad to find himself in his own house,\npromises to treat her in future with all respect and full confidence in\nher virtue.\n\nThe three ladies proceed next day to the dwelling of the count and\nrelate the tricks they had played their husbands. He says that he cannot\npossibly give the preference to any one of them\u2014they are all equally\nclever\u2014but as the ring is really one he had himself lost the very day\nwhen they found it, he must ask them to accept and divide amongst\nthemselves a purse containing three hundred pistoles, and so the ladies\ntake their leave of the count, in every way satisfied.\n\n\nTHE K\u00c1ZI AND THE MERCHANT\u2019S WIFE\u2014p. 414.\n\nThe latter part of this story will at once remind the reader of the tale\nof Al\u00ed Khoja and the Merchant of Baghd\u00e1d in our common English version\nof the _Arabian Nights_,[302] in which Al\u00ed Khoja, before setting out on\nthe pilgrimage to Makka, places a thousand gold pieces in a jar and fills\nit up with olives, and gives it into the custody of a merchant with whom\nhe was intimate, as a jar of olives merely; and the merchant after the\nKhoja had prolonged his absence far beyond the usual time opened the\njar to take out of it some olives for his wife, who had wished for that\nfruit, and finding the gold underneath abstracted it, and substituted\nfresh olives. The story is too well known to require the repetition of\nthe subsequent details\u2014how judgment was at first given in favour of the\nmerchant, but was afterwards reversed, as in our story of the K\u00e1z\u00ed, by\nthe acuteness of a boy.\n\nIt seems to have been a favourite pastime from ancient times for Asiatic\nyoungsters to play at \u201cthe King and his Ministers.\u201d In the apocryphal\nArabic gospel of the Saviour\u2019s Infancy we read: \u201cIn the month of Adar,\nJesus, after the manner of a king, assembled the boys together. They\nspread their clothes on the ground and he sat down on them. Then they\nput on his head a crown made of flowers, and like chamber-servants stood\nin his presence, on the right and on the left, as if he was a king, and\nwhoever passed that way was forcibly dragged by the boys, saying: \u2018Come\nhither and adore the king; and then go away.\u2019\u201d This passage finds a\nvery remarkable parallel in the Mongolian tales of Ardshi Bordshi\u2014the\nsecond part of Miss Busk\u2019s _Sagas from the Far East_, derived from\nJ\u00fclg\u2019s _Mongolische M\u00e4rchen_, as follows: \u201cIn the neighbourhood of his\n[_i.e._ Ardshi Bordshi\u2019s] residence was a hill where the boys who were\ntending the calves were wont to pass the time by running up and down.\nBut they had also another custom, and it was that whichever of them won\nthe race was king for the day\u2014an ordinary game enough, only that when\nit was played in this place the boy-king thus constituted was at once\nendowed with such extraordinary importance and majesty that every one\nwas constrained to treat him as a real king. He had not only ministers\nand dignitaries among his play-fellows, who prostrated themselves before\nhim, and fulfilled all his behests, but whoever passed that way could not\nchoose but pay him homage also.\u201d\n\nThe Rev. J. Hinton Knowles, in a note to his _Folk-Tales of Kashm\u00edr_,\nthus describes the game of \u201cVaz\u00edr P\u00e1dish\u00e1h,\u201d also called \u201cSuhul,\u201d as it\nis played by the boys in Kashm\u00edr:\n\n\u201cIt is generally played by four youngsters. Four little sticks are\nprovided, of which the bark on one side is peeled off. Any of the four\nchildren throws first. If one should throw three sticks so that they all\nfall on the bark side, then he is appointed _p\u00e1dish\u00e1h_, or king; but if\nnot, they all try and throw till some one succeeds. The next thing is to\nfind out the _vaz\u00edr_. He who throws the sticks so that one of them falls\nwith the bark side up, but the other three with the peeled sides up, is\nappointed to this office. Then an _as\u00far_, or thief, has to be fixed upon.\nHe who throws so that two of his sticks fall with the bark side upwards\nis proclaimed the thief. Lastly a _sayd_, or honest man, has to be found.\nThis part he has to play who throws the sticks so that three of them fall\nwith the bark side upwards. If it should happen that all four of them\nfall with the bark sides up, that thrower has to try again.[303]\n\n\u201cP\u00e1dish\u00e1h, vaz\u00edr, as\u00far, and sayd being known, the real play begins.\nThe as\u00far, or thief, is brought before the king by the vaz\u00edr, who says:\n\u2018O king, peace and health to you; here is a thief.\u2019 The king replies:\n\u2018Whence has he come?\u2019 Then the vaz\u00edr tells him the whole case, and\npunishment has to be inflicted on the criminal. This is the most amusing\npart of the whole play. \u2018Give him Bang\u00e1l\u00ed cannon,\u2019 says the king, and\nthe vaz\u00edr kicks the prisoner\u2019s buttocks; or the king says: \u2018Bring a dog\nin his place from the Lad\u00e1k,\u2019 when the vaz\u00edr takes the prisoner a short\ndistance, and then holding him by the ear pulls him back, while the\nprisoner barks like a dog; or the king says: \u2018Take out the spindle,\u2019 when\nthe vaz\u00edr draws a line with his thumb-nail on the inside of the arm from\nthe elbow-joint to the wrist, and then hits the arm over the line as hard\nas he can with the first and second fingers of his right hand. There are\nmany other words of punishment too numerous to mention here.\u201d\n\nNot a few Eastern stories turn upon the wonderful acuteness of boys in\nsolving difficult questions which have perplexed the profound minds of\ntheir \u201cgrave and reverend\u201d seniors. The reader will find a number of\nexamples cited in my _Popular Tales and Fictions_, vol. ii, pp. 10,\n12-14, one of which, a Mongolian tale, is analogous to that of the\nArabian story of Al\u00ed Khoja\u2019s \u201cpot of olives.\u201d\n\n\nTHE HIDDEN TREASURE\u2014p. 442.\n\nThe indirect source of this story is probably the following tale, from\nthe _Kath\u00e1 Sarit S\u00e1gara_, vol. i, p. 298, of Prof. C. H. Tawney\u2019s\ntranslation, published at Calcutta a few years ago:\n\nThere is a city named Sr\u00e1vast\u00ed, and in it there lived in old time a\nking of the name of Prasenajit, and one day a strange Br\u00e1hman arrived\nin that city. A merchant, thinking he was virtuous because he lived on\nrice in the husk, provided him a lodging there in the house of a Br\u00e1hman.\nThere he was loaded by him every day with presents of unhusked rice and\nother gifts, and gradually by other great merchants also, who came to\nhear his story. In this way the miserly fellow gradually accumulated a\nthousand d\u00ednars, and going to the forest he dug a hole and buried it in\nthe ground, and he went every day and examined the spot. Now one day he\nsaw that the hole in which he had hidden his gold had been re-opened,\nand that all the gold was gone. When he saw that hole empty, his soul\nwas smitten, and not only was there a void in his heart, but the whole\nuniverse seemed to be a void also. And then he came crying to the Br\u00e1hman\nin whose house he lived, and when questioned he told him his whole story;\nand he made up his mind to go to a holy bathing-place and starve himself\nto death. Then the merchant who supplied him with food, hearing of it,\ncame there with others, and said to him: \u201cBr\u00e1hman, why do you long to die\nfor the loss of your wealth? Wealth, like an unseasonable cloud, suddenly\ncomes and goes.\u201d Though plied by him with these and similar arguments, he\nwould not abandon his fixed determination to commit suicide, for wealth\nis dearer to the miser than life itself. But when the Br\u00e1hman was going\nto the holy place to commit suicide, the king Prasenajit himself, having\nheard of it, came and asked him: \u201cBr\u00e1hman, do you know of any mark by\nwhich you can recognise the place where you buried your d\u00ednars?\u201d When the\nBr\u00e1hman heard that, he said: \u201cThere is a small tree in the wood there;\nI buried that wealth at its foot.\u201d When the king heard that he said: \u201cI\nwill find the wealth and give it back to you, or I will give it you from\nmy own treasury; do not commit suicide, Br\u00e1hman.\u201d After saying that,\nand so diverting the Br\u00e1hman from his intention of committing suicide,\nthe king entrusted him to the care of the merchant, and retired to his\npalace. There he pretended to have a headache, and sending out the\ndoorkeeper he summoned all the physicians in the city by proclamation\nwith beat of drum. And he took aside every single one of them and\nquestioned him privately in the following words: \u201cWhat patients have you\nhere, and how many, and what medicines have you prescribed for each?\u201d And\nthey thereupon, one by one, answered all the king\u2019s questions. Then one\namong the physicians, when his turn came to be questioned, said this:\n\u201cThe merchant M\u00e1tridatta has been out of sorts, O king, and this is the\nsecond day that I have prescribed for him _n\u00e1gabal\u00e1_\u201d [the plant _Uraria\nLagopodioides_]. When the king heard that he sent for the merchant and\nsaid to him: \u201cTell me who fetched you the _n\u00e1gabal\u00e1_?\u201d The merchant said:\n\u201cMy servant, your highness.\u201d When the king got this answer from the\nmerchant he quickly summoned the servant and said to him: \u201cGive up that\ntreasure belonging to a Br\u00e1hman, consisting of a store of d\u00ednars, which\nyou found when you were digging at the foot of a tree for _n\u00e1gabal\u00e1_.\u201d\nWhen the king said this to him the servant was frightened, and confessed\nimmediately; and bringing those d\u00ednars, left them there. So the king for\nhis part summoned the Br\u00e1hman, and gave him, who had been fasting in the\nmeanwhile, his d\u00ednars, lost and found again, like a second soul external\nto his body. Thus the king by his wisdom recovered to the Br\u00e1hman his\nwealth, which had been taken away from the tree, knowing that that simple\ngrew in such spots.\n\n * * * * *\n\nMany stories of hidden treasure being stolen and recovered by a clever\ndevice are current in Europe as well as in the East. For example, in\nNo. 74 of the _Cento Novette Antiche_, the oldest Italian collection of\ntales, a blind beggar conceals 100 florins under the floor of a church,\nand is observed by a sharper who next day takes the money away. When the\nblind man finds his treasure gone, he stands at the church-door at the\ntime of service and bids his boy watch all who enter the church and let\nhim know if any one should regard him (the beggar) as if with peculiar\ninterest. The sharp-witted boy observes a man looking at his father and\nsmiling, and when the beggar learns the name of the man, he scrapes\nacquaintance with him, tells him that he has 100 florins concealed under\nthe floor of the church, and expects to receive 100 more in the course of\na day or two, which he had lent out; and begs his new friend to meet him\non such a day when they would lift the stone and deposit the additional\nmoney. The sharper, thinking to get this other sum as well, went\nprivily and replaced the 100 florins he had stolen, and the blind man,\nanticipating he would do so, returned at night and took away his money,\nresolving to part with it no more.\u2014The same story is found in the Breslau\nprinted Arabic text of the \u2018Thousand and one Nights\u2019, and is translated\nby Mr. John Payne in his _Tales from the Arabic_, and also by Sir Richard\nF. Burton in the first volume of his _Supplemental Nights_, under the\ntitle of \u201cThe Melancholist and the Sharper.\u201d A short version is given\nin Gladwin\u2019s _Persian Moonshee_; and another analogous story of buried\ntreasure will be found in Roscoe\u2019s _Spanish Novelists_, ed. 1832, vol.\niii, p. 215-234, entitled \u201cA Prodigious Adventure,\u201d by Isidro de Robles.\n\n\nTHE DEAF MAN AND HIS SICK FRIEND\u2014p. 446.\n\nReaders who are not familiar with the Kur\u00e1n may like to see in English\nthe Muslim \u201cLord\u2019s Prayer,\u201d called _Al-F\u00e1tih\u00e1_, which the Deaf Man\nrecited in presence of his sick friend, so this is it, from Rodwell\u2019s\ntranslation, p. 11:\n\n \u201cIN THE NAME OF GOD, THE COMPASSIONATE, THE MERCIFUL!\n Praise be to God, Lord of the worlds!\n The compassionate, the merciful!\n King on the day of reckoning!\n Thee [only] do we worship, and to thee do we cry for help.\n Guide thou us on the straight path!\n The path of those to whom thou hast been gracious; with whom thou\n art not angry, and who go not astray.\u201d\n\nThis _sura_ is esteemed as the quintessence of the Kur\u00e1n, and is recited\nseveral times in the course of each of the five daily prayers, and on\nmany other occasions.\n\n * * * * *\n\nIt is well known that men afflicted with partial deafness are generally\nunwilling to acknowledge their infirmity, and even resent being talked\nto in a loud tone of voice; though they often betray themselves by the\nanswers they give to questions asked of them, much to the amusement of\ntheir questioners.\u2014A story is told of a deaf Persian who was taking home\na quantity of wheat, and, coming to a river which he must cross, he saw\na horseman approach; so he said to himself: \u201cWhen that horseman comes up\nhe will first salute me, saying, \u2018Peace be with thee!\u2019 Next he will ask,\n\u2018What is the depth of this river?\u2019 and then he will ask, how many _m\u00e1ns_\nof wheat I have with me.\u201d But the deaf man\u2019s surmises were sadly amiss,\nfor when the horseman came up he cried: \u201cHo! my man, what is the depth\nof this river?\u201d The deaf one replied: \u201cPeace be with thee, and the mercy\nof Allah and his blessing!\u201d At this the horseman laughed and said: \u201cMay\nthey cut off thy beard!\u201d to which the deaf one rejoined: \u201cUp to my neck.\u201d\nThe horseman then said: \u201cDust be on thy mouth!\u201d The deaf one placidly\nreplied: \u201cEighty m\u00e1ns of it.\u201d\n\nHere we have a very close parallel to the story of the Deaf Man and his\nSick Friend, and there is a curious Norwegian variant in Sir George W.\nDasent\u2019s _Tales from the Fjeld_, under the title of \u201cGoodman Axeshaft,\u201d\nwhich is to this purpose:\n\nThe wife and daughter of an old ferryman, who was extremely deaf, by\ntheir extravagance plunge him into an ocean of debt and run away from\nhome. The sheriff is to come and seize, and the old man wonders what\nhe\u2019ll say to him. \u201cAh, I\u2019ll begin to cut an axeshaft, and the sheriff\nwill ask me how long it is to be. I\u2019ll answer, \u2018Up as far as that twig\nsticks out.\u2019 Then he\u2019ll ask, \u2018What\u2019s become of the ferry boat?\u2019 and\nI\u2019ll say, \u2018I\u2019m going to tar her, and yonder she lies on the strand,\nsplit at both ends.\u2019 Then he\u2019ll ask, \u2018Where\u2019s your gray mare?\u2019 and I\u2019ll\nsay, \u2018She\u2019s standing in the stable, big with foal.\u2019 And then he\u2019ll ask,\n\u2018Whereabouts is your sheepcote?\u2019 and I\u2019ll answer, \u2018Not far off; when you\nget a bit up the hill you\u2019ll soon see it.\u2019\u201d But when the sheriff comes up\nhe says \u201cGood day\u201d to the old man, who answers: \u201cAxeshaft.\u201d Then he asks:\n\u201cHow far off to the river?\u201d to which the ferryman replies: \u201cUp to this\ntwig,\u201d pointing a little way up the piece of timber. The sheriff stares\nand shakes his head. \u201cWhere\u2019s your wife?\u201d \u201cI\u2019m just going to tar her,\u201d\nand so forth. \u201cWhere\u2019s your daughter?\u201d \u201cIn the stable,\u201d and so on. \u201cTo\nthe deuce with you!\u201d exclaims the sheriff, in a rage. \u201cVery good,\u201d says\nthe old man; \u201cnot far off\u2014when you get a bit up the hill you\u2019ll soon see\nit.\u201d Upon this the sheriff goes off, in sheer despair.\n\n\nTHE GARDENER AND THE LITTLE BIRD\u2014p. 448.\n\nIn medi\u00e6val times the ancient fable of the Fowler and the Little Bird\nwas appropriated by several monkish compilers of _exempla_, designed for\nthe use of preachers; but this version is unique, so far as my knowledge\nof other forms of the fable extends. It has, exclusively, the scene\nbetween the lapwing and the nightingale; the references to the Muslim\nlegend of Solomon\u2019s receiving from a lapwing, or hoopoe, intelligence of\nthe city of Sab\u00e1 (or Sheba) and Queen Bilk\u00eds; and the allegation of the\nnightingale to the gardener that the fruit the bird had destroyed was\npoisonous. The fable is found in the spiritual romance of Barlaam and\nJoasaph (not Josaphat, as the name is commonly written), which is said to\nhave been composed in the first half of the 7th century, by a Greek monk\nnamed John, of the convent of St. Sab\u00e1, at Jerusalem, and\u2014according to\nM. Hermann Zotenberg\u2014redacted by Johannes Damascenus, a Greek Father, of\nthe 8th century, and included in his works. It is now certain that the\nsubstance of this work was derived from Indian sources: the incidents in\nthe youth of Joasaph correspond with those in the early years of Gautama,\nthe founder of Buddhism; while some of the parables contained in the\nromance are found in the _J\u00e1takas_, or Buddhist Birth-stories and others\nin Hind\u00fa books. This is how the fable is told in _Barlaam and Joasaph_:\n\nThey who worship idols are like the bird-catcher who caught one of the\nsmallest birds, which they call the nightingale. As he was about to kill\nand eat it, articulate speech was given to the bird, and it said: \u201cWhat\nwill the killing of me profit thee, man? Thou canst not fill thy belly\nwith me. But if thou set me free, I will give thee three injunctions,\nwhich, if thou observe, will benefit thee all thy life.\u201d He was amazed to\nhear the bird speak, and promised. Then said the nightingale: \u201cNever try\nto reach the unattainable. Rue not a thing that is past. Never believe\na thing that is beyond belief.\u201d Away flies the bird; but, to test the\nman\u2019s common sense, it cries to him: \u201cHow thoughtless thou art! Inside of\nmy body is a pearl larger than the egg of an ostrich, and thou hast not\nobtained it!\u201d Then he repented having let the bird go free, and tried to\ncoax it back by fair offers. But the bird rebuked his folly in so soon\nforgetting all the three injunctions it had given him.\n\n * * * * *\n\nIn this form the fable also occurs in the _Disciplina Clericalis_ of\nPetrus Alphonsus, a Spanish Jew, who was converted to Christianity in\n1106, and who avowedly derived the materials for his work from the\nArabian fabulists, and from this collection it was taken into the\n_Gesta Romanorum_ (see Swan\u2019s translation, ed. 1824, vol. ii, p. 87).\nJohn Lydgate, the monk of Bury, of the 15th century, turned the fable\ninto English verse, under the title of \u201cThe Chorle and the Bird, from a\npamflete in Frenche,\u201d which is conjectured to have been the _fabliau_\n\u201cLe Lai de l\u2019Oiselet,\u201d but this I think is rather doubtful. According to\nLydgate\u2019s poem, a little bird takes up its abode in a laurel-tree in a\nchurl\u2019s garden, and sings merrily all the livelong day. The churl sets a\ntrap (_pantere_) to catch the bird.\n\n It was a verray hevenly melodye,\n Evyne and morowe to here the bryddis songe,\n And the soote sugred armonye\n Of uncouthe varblys and tunys drawen on longe,\n That al the gardeyne of the noys\u00e8 rong,\n Til on a morwe, whan Tytan shone ful clere,\n The birdd was trapped and kaute with a pantere.\n\nThe churl puts the little bird into a fine cage and orders it to sing,\nbut says the bird:\n\n \u201cSong and prison have noon accordaunce,\n Trowest thou I wolle syng in prisoun?\n Song procedethe of joy and of plesaunce,\n And prison causethe dethe and destruccioun;\n Rynging of fetires makethe ne mery sounde,\n Or how shuld he be gladde or jocounde\n Agayne his wylle, that ligthe in chayn\u00e8s bounde?\u201d\n\n\u201cBut let me out,\u201d the bird goes on to say, \u201cso that I may perch again on\nthe laurel-tree, and then I will sing to thee, and moreover,\n\n \u201cI shal the yeve a notable gret gwerdoun,\n Thre grete wysdoms according to resoun,\n More of walewe, take hede what I do profre,\n Thane al the golde that is shet in thi cofre.\u201d\n\nThe three \u201cgreat wisdoms\u201d are the same as those in other versions, and\nthen the little bird says that the churl by setting him free has missed\ngaining a rare treasure, for in his inside is a stone, fully an ounce\nin weight, which has many wonderful properties: making its possessor\nvictorious in battle; he should suffer no poverty or indigence but have\nabundance of wealth; all should do him reverence; it would reconcile\nfoes, comfort the sorrowful, and make heavy hearts light.[304] The churl\nis beside himself with vexation, and the bird calls him a fool for\nbelieving such a rank impossibility.[305]\n\nHusain V\u00e1\u2019iz has re-told the apologue in his _Anv\u00e1r-i Suhayl\u00ed_, or Lights\nof Canopus, a Persian rendering, in prose and verse, of the celebrated\nFables of Bidpa\u00ef with additions, of which this is one. Here, however, the\nnightingale\u2014having been entrapped by the gardener, because it destroyed\nhis roses\u2014does not, when liberated, give the gardener three maxims, but\ntells him that beneath such a tree is a vessel full of gold. The villager\ndigs and finds the treasure, and then asks the bird how it was that he\ncould see a vessel full of gold under the earth, yet not discover the\nsnare above ground; to which the nightingale replies, like a good Muslim:\n\u201cHast thou not heard that \u2018when Fate descends caution is in vain\u2019?\u201d[306]\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe _fabliau_ version, \u201cLe Lai de l\u2019Oiselet,\u201d as found in M\u00e9on\u2019s edition\nof Barbazan\u2019s collection, Paris, 1808, t. iii, 114, and (in modern\nFrench prose) in Le Grand, ed. 1784, t. iii, 430, can hardly have been\nthe original of Lydgate\u2019s poem, as may be seen from the following free\nrendering of Le Grand\u2019s abridgment (in which, however, he omits the\nbird\u2019s statement about the wonderful stone in its body), including a few\nlines from Way\u2019s agreeable English metrical translation:\n\nOnce on a time there was a noble castle surrounded by a wide domain of\nfield and forest, which was first owned by a worthy knight. His son and\nsuccessor wasted his patrimony in riotous living\u2014\u201cye know well,\u201d quoth\nour poet, \u201cthat it needs but one spendthrift heir to bring great wealth\nto nought\u201d; and now the fair castle and domain had become the property of\na rich but sordid churl. This lofty and strong castle had been reared by\nmagic art. A pebble-paved stream flowed round a beauteous orchard, where\ngrew tall and shapely trees, flowers of every hue, and odorous plants;\nand such was the fragrance of the air that it might have arrested a\nman\u2019s parting breath. In the midst of this fair scene a gushing fountain\nsparkled in the sunlight, while near it a lofty pine tree\u2019s deathless\nverdure afforded grateful shade at noontide.\n\nA marvellous bird had fixed his abode in this tufted pine, and ever he\nsat and sang his lay of love in such sweet and moving strains that,\nmatched against his magic melody, the music of viol and full-toned harp\nwere as nought. Such was the power of this wondrous feathered minstrel\nthat his strains could create unutterable joy in the heart of the\ndespairing lover; and should they cease, and the songster take his flight\nfrom this enchanted ground, then would all the goodly scene\u2014castle,\ntrees, flowers, forest\u2014fade away and forever disappear.\n\n \u201cListen, listen, to my lay\n (Thus the merry note did chime),\n All who mighty Love obey,\n Sadly wasting in your prime,\n Clerk and laic, grave and gay;\n Yet do ye, before the rest,\n Gentle maidens, mark me tell!\n Store my lesson in your breast,\n Trust me it shall profit well:\n Hear and heed me, and be blest!\u201d[307]\n\nThe little warbler had no sooner ended his lay of love when he discovered\nthe churl, upon which the bird ordered the river to retire to its source,\nthe flowers to fade, the fruit to wither, and the castle to sink into\nthe earth; for a vile churl should not be suffered to dwell where the\nbeautiful and the brave had once held sweet communion. The churl, having\nheard the melodious strains of the little bird, resolved to capture him\nand sell him for a large sum. Accordingly he set his snare and caught the\nfeathered songster. \u201cWhat injury have I done thee?\u201d cried the little\nbird. \u201cAnd why dost thou doom me to death?\u201d \u201cFear not,\u201d said the churl;\n\u201cI only desire to hear thy song, and will get thee a fine cage and plenty\nof seeds and kernels to eat. But sing thou must, else I\u2019ll wring thy neck\nand pick thy bones.\u201d \u201cAlas,\u201d sighed the pretty captive, \u201cwho can sing\nin prison? And even were I cooked, I could scarce furnish thee with one\nmouthful.\u201d Finding that all entreaties failed to move the hard-hearted\nchurl, the bird then promised that, if set free, he would tell him three\nrare and precious secrets. This offer the churl could not resist, so he\nfreed the little bird, who straightway flew to the summit of the pine\ntree, and then proceeded to disclose the three precious secrets. \u201cFirst\nthen,\u201d said the bird: \u201c_Yield not a ready faith to every tale._\u201d \u201cIs\nthis all your secret?\u201d quoth the fellow, in rising wrath. \u201cI need it\nnot.\u201d \u201cYet,\u201d said the bird, \u201cyou seemed but lately to have forgot it\u2014but\nnow you may hold it fast. My second secret is: _What is lost, \u2019tis wise\nto bear with patience._\u201d At this the churl chafed more and more. \u201cMy\nthird secret,\u201d continued the bird, \u201cis by far the best: _What good thou\nhast, do not cast lightly away._\u201d So saying, the little bird fluttered\nhis wings a moment, and then flew away; and immediately the castle sank\ninto the ground; and the fountain flowed back to its source; and the\nfruits dropped withered from the trees; and the flowers faded\u2014and all the\nbeauteous scene was melted into thin air.\n\n\n_ADDITIONAL NOTES._\n\n_Page 206\u2014Five hundred pons._\u2014It is possible that _pon_, like hun, is\nanother name of a pagoda, a gold coin of the value of 3\u00bd rup\u00eds, which\nhas not been coined in the mints of India since the early part of this\ncentury.\n\n_Page 212\u2014The Want of Children._\u2014In the note on this subject I omitted\nto include Hannah, mother of Samuel, the illustrious Hebrew seer (First\nBook of Samuel, ch. i, v, 9-11, and 20).\u2014Asiatics consider a son as the\n\u201clight,\u201d or the \u201clamp,\u201d of the household; and so it is said of a king, in\nthe opening of the Persian romance entitled _Bah\u00e1r-i D\u00e1nish_, or Garden\nand Spring, by \u2019In\u00e1yatu-\u2019ll\u00e1h: \u201cIn the house of his prosperity the light\n[_i.e._ a son], which is the hope of descending life, beamed not, as the\nblossoms of his house [_i.e._ his women] produced not the fruit of his\nwishes; for which he made grief his companion, and sat lonely, like a\npoint in the centre of the circle of sorrow\u201d\u2014poor fellow!\n\n_Page 391\u2014The Story of the Envious Vaz\u00edr._\u2014I cannot call to mind any\nclose parallel to this, but the incident upon which it turns, that of the\nold hag\u2019s artifice in procuring the lady\u2019s dress, recalls the story of\n\u201cThe Burnt Veil\u201d in the Book of Sindib\u00e1d, where a youth, desperately in\nlove with the virtuous wife of a merchant, employs a crone\u2014who, like too\nmany of her sex in Muslim countries, went about evil-doing, in the guise\nof a devotee\u2014to cause the lady\u2019s husband to put her away on suspicion of\nher being unfaithful. But this slight resemblance is doubtless merely\nfortuitous. The tale of the Envious Vaz\u00edr exhibits more art than is\nusually found in Eastern fictions, especially the _d\u00e9nouement_, where the\nKhoja\u2019s wife cleverly causes the malignant Vaz\u00edr to convict himself of\ngross falsehood.\n\n_Page 430_\u2014The sentiment expressed to Sultan Mahm\u00fad by the Independent\nMan has its analogue in one of the countless traditions of Hatim Ta\u00ef,\nwhich goes thus: They asked Hatim: \u201cHast thou ever seen in the world any\none more noble-minded than thyself?\u201d He replied: \u201cOne day I had offered\na sacrifice of 40 camels, and had gone out with some other chiefs to a\ncorner of the desert. I saw a thorn-cutter, who had gathered together\na bundle of thorns. I said to him: \u2018Why goest thou not to share the\nhospitality of Hatim Ta\u00ef, when a crowd has assembled at his feast?\u2019\nHe replied: \u2018Whoever can eat of the bread of his own labour will not\nput himself under an obligation to Hatim Ta\u00ef.\u2019 This man, in mind and\nmagnanimity, I consider greater than myself.\u201d\n\n_Page 483_\u2014For the original of the story of the Two Merchants see M\u00e9on\u2019s\nedition of Barbazan\u2019s collection of _Fabliaux_, Paris, 1808, tome i, 52,\n\u201cDes Deux Bons Amis Loiax,\u201d and for the modern French prose version see\nLe Grand\u2019s _Fabliaux_, edition 1781, iii, 262.\n\n_Page 499_\u2014Mr. James Moir, Rector, Grammar School, Aberdeen, is the\nauthority (after his mother) for a story in the _Folk-Lore Journal_,\n1884, vol. ii, pp. 68-71, which presents an interesting parallel to the\ntale from Salsette, with a clever girl in place of Little John: Three\nyoung girls are abandoned in a wood by their poverty-stricken parents,\nbecause they have too many mouths to feed. The little maidens arrive at a\ngiant\u2019s house and are granted shelter for the night. The giant resolves\nto kill them and have them cooked for his breakfast in the morning.\nIn order to distinguish in the dark his own three daughters from the\nstranger girls, he places \u201cstrae rapes\u201d round the necks of the latter and\ngold chains round his daughters\u2019 necks, with the result that he puts his\nown offspring to death. Mally Whuppie, the heroine, wakes her sisters\nsoftly and they all escape. They next come to a king\u2019s house, and Mally\nand her sisters are to be married to the three sons of the king, provided\nhe should obtain possession of three wonderful things from the giant:\n(1) his sword from the back of his bed; (2) his purse from beneath his\npillow; and (3) the ring from off the giant\u2019s finger. Mally is successful\nin her two first adventures, and though she is caught by the giant when\ndrawing off his ring, she ultimately escapes by a clever _ruse_.\n\n_Page 510_\u2014The story of the King and his Falcon occurs in many\ncollections, and perhaps one of the oldest versions of it is found in\nCapt. R. C. Temple\u2019s _Legends of the Panj\u00e1b_, vol. i, p. 467, in the\nstory of \u201cPrincess Niwal Dai,\u201d where a snake is seen by the falcon to\ndrop poison into the cup.\n\n_Page 519\u2014The Rose of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed._\u2014I find my conjectures regarding the\nconstruction of this romance are borne out by Garcin de Tassy (_Histoire\nde la Litt\u00e8rature Hindouie_, second edition, Paris, 1870, tome i, p.\n606), in his account of a version in the Hind\u00fast\u00e1n\u00ed Selections by the\nSayy\u00edd Husain, compiled by order of the Military Examiners\u2019 Committee,\nand published at Madras in the year 1849, in 2 vols. He says: \u201cLe\nsecond volume offre la reproduction, en 64 p., des deux tiers du\n_Gul-i Bak\u00e2wal\u00ee_ d\u2019apr\u00e8s la r\u00e9daction de Nih\u00e2l Chand, dont j\u2019ai donn\u00e9\nla traduction en fran\u00e7ais. Hu\u00e7ain s\u2019arr\u00eate au mariage de T\u00e2j ulmul\u00fbk\net de Bak\u00e2wal\u00ee, o\u00f9 devrait en effet finir de r\u00e9cit, le reste \u00e9tant un\nhors-d\u2019\u0153uvre tout \u00e0 fait hindou.\u201d\n\nHe describes a similar romance (tome ii, pp. 531, 532) by Rayh\u00e1n\ned-D\u00edn, of Bengal, written in rhymed couplets (_masnav\u00ed_) and entitled\n_Khiyab\u00e1n-i Rayh\u00e1n_, or Parterres of the Divine Grace, A.H. 1212 (A.D.\n1797-1798): \u201cCet ouvrage,\u201d he says, \u201croule sur le m\u00eame sujet que le\n_Gul-i Bak\u00e2wal\u00ee_; mais, outre qu\u2019il est tout en vers, il est beaucoup\nplus long. Il se divise en quarante chapitres, intitul\u00e9s chacun\n_Gul-gaschn\u00ee_ (Abondance de roses).\u2026 Au surplus, il est bon de rappeler\nici ce que j\u2019ai dit ailleurs, que le _Gul-i Bak\u00e2wal\u00ee_ est une l\u00e9gende\nindienne qui est reproduite dans plusieurs r\u00e9dactions diff\u00e9rentes et m\u00eame\ndans le dialecte des Laskars du Bengale.\u201d\n\nAnother tale, in Persian, entitled _Kissa-i F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h_, if not identical\nwith our romance, seems to be on the same plan, judging from the all-too\nbrief account given of it by Dr. H. H. Wilson in his _Descriptive\nCatalogue of the Mackenzie Collection of Oriental MSS._, vol. ii, p. 137:\n\u201cThe story of Firoz Shah, son of the king of Badaksh\u00e1n, who sought a\nmarvellous flower to cure his father.\u201d\n\n_Page 520_\u2014In the so-called _Suite des Mille et Une Nuits_, by Chavis and\nCazotte (Story of Hab\u00edb, the Arabian Knight), the Am\u00edr Salamis weeps\nhimself blind on hearing a false report of his son Hab\u00edb\u2019s death. The\nhero, when he comes to know of this sore affliction, is told that the\nonly remedy is to be found among the treasures of Solomon, preserved in\na cavern, and going there he finds two flat opals fixed as eyes into a\nvisor, which he takes away, and with them restores his father\u2019s sight.\nAnd the Rabbins say that Jacob wept himself totally blind from grief at\nthe reported death of his son Joseph, and he recovered his sight many\nyears afterwards by applying to his eyes the garment of Joseph, which his\nbrethren brought from Egypt.\n\n_Page 529_\u2014There can be no doubt that the Panj\u00e1b\u00ed legend of Ras\u00e1l\u00fa\u2019s\ngame with Sirikap and the story of the Prince and Dilbar are cousins,\nso to say, not far removed. In the former Ras\u00e1l\u00fa makes it one of the\nconditions of sparing the life of the vanquished Sirikap that he must\nconsent to have his forehead branded with a red-hot iron, \u201cin token of\nhis vassalage,\u201d and another condition is that he forgive his daughter\nwhom he had imprisoned. In the latter the hero compels Dilbar to liberate\nhis four brethren, but she insists on first branding them on their backs,\n\u201cin token of the state of slavery to which they had been reduced.\u201d\u2014It\nseems to me that in the earlier part of the Panj\u00e1b\u00ed legend something must\nhave dropped out in connection with Ras\u00e1l\u00fa\u2019s rescuing the ants and the\nhedgehog from the river (p. 525), since it is usual in folk-tales for\n\u201cthankful animals\u201d to requite their benefactor by rendering him signal\nservices.\n\n\n\n\nFOOTNOTES\n\n\n[1] Story-telling has been quite an art in the East time out of\nmind. Mrs. Meer Hasan Ali, in her _Observations on the Mussulmans of\nIndia_, vol. ii, pp. 81, 82, says: \u201cMany of the ladies entertain women\ncompanions, whose chief business is to tell stories and fables to their\nemployer when she is composing herself to sleep. When the lady is fairly\nasleep the story is stayed, and the companion resumes her employment\nwhen the next nap is sought by her mistress. Among the higher classes\nthe males also indulge in the same practice of being talked to sleep by\ntheir men slaves, and it is a certain introduction, with either sex, to\nthe favour of their employer when one of these dependants has acquired\nthe happy art of \u2018telling the kh\u00e1nie\u2019 (fable) with an agreeable voice\nand manner. The more they embellish a tale by flights of their versatile\nimaginations, so much the greater the merit of the rehearser in the\nopinion of the listeners.\u201d\u2014In the Book of Esther, ch. vi, 1, we read that\non a certain night \u201ccould not the king sleep, and he commanded to bring\nthe book of the records of the chronicles, and they were read before\nthe king.\u201d Well was it for the Hebrew bondsmen that Ahasuerus did not\ncall for a story-teller instead of the \u201cstate journal\u201d!\u2014The practice of\nsleepless khal\u00edfs and sultans sending for story-tellers is referred to\nin many Eastern tales. For an account of public reciters of tales and\nromances see Lane\u2019s _Modern Egyptians_.\n\n[2] But are even the best novels of these days of grace marked by very\nmuch \u201coriginality\u201d? Do not prolific novelists _repeat themselves_? Have\nthey not, for the most part, a limited set of characters, which reappear\nin each succeeding novel? In short, may it not be truly said of them,\nas Burton (not he of _The Nights_, but he of _The Melancholy_) says of\nauthors in general: \u201cThey weave the same web, twist and untwist the same\nrope, and make new books as apothecaries make new mixtures, by pouring\nout of one vessel into another\u201d?\n\n[3] The following particulars regarding the author and his work are\nderived from Dr. Charles Rieu\u2019s _Catalogue of the Persian Manuscripts in\nthe British Museum_, vol. ii, pp. 767-8, Add. 7619, and Or. 1370; and\nfrom Mr. F. F. Arbuthnot\u2019s useful and interesting little work, _Persian\nPortraits: a Sketch of Persian History, Literature, and Politics_\n(London: Quaritch), p. 119. The title of _Shamsah \u00fa Kahkahah_, under\nwhich Mr. Arbuthnot describes this collection, is taken from the names of\na Witch and a Vaz\u00edr who figure in the second _b\u00e1b_.\n\n[4] There is another, but wholly different, Tamil tale, with the same\ntitle, which is described in Taylor\u2019s _Catalogue Raisonn\u00e9 of Oriental\nManuscripts in the Government Library, Madras_, vol. iii, page 460: \u201cA\nking\u2019s daughter forms an attachment at first sight to the stupid son of\nanother king, who cannot read the writing which she conveys to him, but\nshows it to a diseased wretch, who tells him it warns him to flee for his\nlife. The king\u2019s daughter is imposed upon by the leper, kills herself,\nand becomes a disembodied evil spirit, haunting a choultry (or serai for\ntravellers), whom during the night, if they do not answer aright to her\ncries, she strangles, and vampyre-like sucks their blood.\u201d To be brief,\nthe famous Tamil poetess Avaiyar gets leave of the people to sleep in the\nchoultry in order to put an end to this calamity, and having three times\ncomposed a recondite stanza from the strange cries, the evil spirit owns\nherself conquered and departs. She is re-born as an exceedingly clever\nprincess, and tests the learning and poetical skill of her suitors, till\nat last she is won by a poor student.\u2014It will be readily supposed that\nthe chief merit of this story consists in the poetical contests.\n\n[5] The stories related to the king by Prince Bakhty\u00e1r, though calculated\nto caution him against rash judgments, have nothing in common with those\ncontained in the Book of Sindib\u00e1d; while the tales told by Er-Rahwan\n(which have been translated by Sir Richard F. Burton, and included in\nthe first volume of his _Supplemental Nights_) are of a miscellaneous\ncharacter\u2014grave and gay, wise and witty\u2014his sole object being to\nprolong his life by thus amusing the king. The Vaz\u00edr\u2019s recitals are of\nconsiderable importance to \u201cstoriologists\u201d: we find among them analogues\nof Chaucer\u2019s Man of Law\u2019s Tale, Pardoner\u2019s Tale, and Merchant\u2019s Tale, and\nof the well-known legend of St. Eustache (or Placidus), which occurs in\nthe _Gesta Romanorum_, and from which the medi\u00e6val metrical romances of\n_Sir Isumbras_, _Octavian_, _Sir Eglamour_, and _Sir Torrent of Portugal_\nwere derived.\n\n[6] The Tamil text of THE KING AND HIS FOUR MINISTERS has been printed.\nThrough the kindness of the Pandit, I possess two copies, of different\ndates, one of which, printed in 1887, has, by way of frontispiece, four\nfigures, in profile, like those in Egyptian paintings, all looking in the\nsame direction, with their hands raised and the palms joined, in respect\nto the prayer to Ganesa, which is on the opposite page. The first is the\nminister; the second is the king, with a crown not unlike the Pope\u2019s\ntiara, and a sword on his shoulder; the third and fourth are devotees,\nwhose clothing is rather scanty.\n\n[7] \u201cAbr\u00e9g\u00e9 du roman hindoustani intitul\u00e9 la Rose de Bak\u00e2wal\u00ee, par M.\nle professeur Garcin de Tassy\u201d: in _Nouveau Journal Asiatique_, tome\nxvi, p. 193ff. and p. 338ff. This has been reprinted along with other\ntranslations by the learned Professor.\n\n[8] A Khoja is a master of a household, also a teacher; in the\nformer acceptation it is somewhat equivalent to the old English\n\u201cgoodman.\u201d\u2014Gibb\u2019s _History of the Forty Vez\u00edrs_, p. 33.\n\n[9] The hum\u00e1i is a fabulous bird, supposed to bestow prosperity on any\nperson who is overshadowed by its wings.\n\n[10] Oriental writers frequently descant on the advantages of travel; not\nonly because it enlarges the mind (for \u201chome-keeping youths have ever\nhomely wits\u201d), but as a means of acquiring wealth. For some examples, see\nmy _Book of Sindib\u00e1d_.\n\n[11] The name generally given by the Arabs and Persians to the districts\nof Northern Africa west of Egypt.\n\n[12] Belief in judicial astrology\u2014in the influence of the planets over\nthe fortunes of men\u2014prevails throughout the East, as it did in Europe\nuntil comparatively recent times; indeed the delusion appears to have its\nadherents in our own country, even in these \u201cdouble-distilled\u201d days, if\nit be true that _Zadkiel\u2019s Almanack_ has a very large circulation. Truly\n\u201cerror dies hard!\u201d\u2014An Asiatic, before setting out on a journey, being\nmarried, or beginning any important affair, always consults an astrologer\nto learn the precise lucky moment. In one of the _J\u00e1takas_, or Buddhist\nBirth-Stories, a man having missed making a good match for his son,\nbecause he had been told by a spiteful astrologer that the day proposed\nfor the nuptials was inauspicious, a wise old fellow shrewdly remarked:\n\u201cWhat is the use of luck in the stars? Surely getting the girl is the\nluck!\u201d and recited this stanza:\n\n While the star-gazing fool is waiting for luck, the luck goes by;\n The star of luck is luck, and not any star in the sky.\n\nIn the appendix to my edition of the Persian story-book entitled\n_Bakhty\u00e1r N\u00e1ma_, pp. 218-223, may be found some rather droll anecdotes of\nthe blunders of astrologers.\n\n[13] This custom is observed by Muslims in compliance with the precept\nof Muhammed: \u201cWhoever,\u201d said he, \u201cbelieves in God and the day of\nresurrection, must respect his guest; and the time of being kind to him\nis one day and one night; and the period of entertaining him is _three\ndays_; and after that, if he does it longer, it benefits him more; but\nit is not right for a guest to stay in the house of his host so long as\nto incommode him.\u201d In the introduction to the _Arabian Nights_, King\nShahriy\u00e1r entertains his brother, Shah Zam\u00e1n, three days, and on the\nfourth he accompanies him a day\u2019s journey and takes leave of him.\n\n[14] Henna is a preparation made from the leaves of the Egyptian privet\n(_Lawsonia inermis_), with which women in the East stain the tips of\ntheir fingers, the palms of their hands, etc. It imparts a yellowish red\nor deep orange colour, which disappears in a fortnight or three weeks,\nwhen it has to be renewed.\u2014See Lane\u2019s _Modern Egyptians_, ch. i.\n\n[15] See note on page 8.\u2014We have in this passage the _motif_ of the\nromance throughout.\n\n[16] \u201cHell has no fury like a woman scorned!\u201d Besides, the virtuous youth\nmight not keep the secret of her intended intrigue (for such is evidently\nto be understood) to himself.\n\n[17] Stories, such as this, of unfaithful wives outwitting their\nhusbands, with similar mischances, are common in Eastern collections; and\nthe present well-told tale would probably have been very eagerly adapted\nby the early Italian novelists, had they known it, among whom, indeed, it\nhas more than one analogue.\n\n[18] A tom\u00e1n is a Persian gold coin which has varied much in value at\ndifferent periods; at present it is worth about 7s. 2d. of our money.\n\n[19] The h\u00far\u00eds (or, as the term is often written, houries) are the\nblack-eyed nymphs of the Muslim Paradise, of whom Muhammed has promised\nseventy to each believer.\n\n[20] One of the Egyptian magicians who \u201cwithstood Moses,\u201d mentioned by\nArabian writers: their chief was called Simeon, and among the eminent\nmasters of the \u201cart magic\u201d were Sadh\u00far and Ghad\u00far, Jaath and Mossa, Waran\nand Lam\u00e1n, each of whom came attended with his disciples, amounting in\nall to several thousands.\u2014St. Paul, in his second epistle to Timothy,\niii, 8, gives the names of two of the magicians as Jannes and Jambres.\n\n[21] The notion of the life or heart of an ogre, witch, etc., being\nextraneous to the body and concealed in some object\u2014usually very\ndifficult to reach by the heroes who are in their power\u2014is often the\nsubject of the popular fictions of all countries. What is probably the\noldest extant instance of this occurs in an Egyptian romance, preserved\namong the hieratic papyri in the British Museum, which bears to have been\nwritten more than 3000 years ago, or about the period when Moses was,\nin his youth, at the court of Pharaoh. The \u201ccurious\u201d reader may find\nnumerous other examples cited in my _Popular Tales and Fictions_, vol. i,\npp. 347-351.\n\n[22] Parrots often play important parts in Asiatic tales: here, however,\nthe \u201cintelligent\u201d bird, as will be seen presently, works only mischief.\n\n[23] It does not appear from the preceding part of the narrative that the\nhero received any ring from a \u201cneighbour\u2019s wife.\u201d Perhaps something has\nbeen omitted by a copyist of the Persian text.\n\n[24] Many an honest fellow, besides the generous-hearted Obayd, having\nbeen thus beggared by the rapacity of an Asiatic despot, has turned\nrobber in self-defence.\n\n[25] _i.e._, Persia.\n\n[26] An ashraf\u00ed is worth about ten shillings.\n\n[27] It is a favourite plan for extricating an impecunious hero out of\nhis difficulties in Eastern fictions to represent him as finding a great\ntreasure in a ruin. And no doubt such an incident has often occurred\nin Asiatic countries, where\u2014in the absence of such institutions as\nbanks\u2014money and jewels are usually concealed in the earth, old wells,\netc., lest the sovereign or one of his greedy ministers should come to\nknow of any person possessing much wealth, and forthwith confiscate it.\n\n[28] By \u201cR\u00fam\u201d (or Roum) Asiatics generally mean Europe, at least Eastern\nEurope, and \u201cthe land of the Franks\u201d has the same meaning.\n\n[29] This incident recalls popular tales current in our own country\nof witches turning themselves into cats, and some bold fellow smiting\noff a paw of one of the unholy sisterhood thus transformed, and next\nday a woman suspected of witchcraft being found in her bed with one\nof her hands apparently newly amputated.\u2014Similar stories are told of\n_werwolves_, or men having the power of transforming themselves for a\ntime into wolves.\n\n[30] Hatim was chief of the Arab tribe of Ta\u00ef, shortly before the advent\nof Muhammed, and so highly celebrated for his boundless generosity that\nat the present day in Muslim countries no greater compliment can be paid\nto an open-handed man than to call him \u201canother Hatim.\u201d\n\n[31] A gold d\u00ednar is worth about ten shillings.\n\n[32] \u201c_Darb er-Ramal_, or geomancy, by which, from certain marks made at\nrandom on paper, or on sand (whence, according to some, its name), the\nprofessors pretend to discover past, passing, and future events, is, I am\ninformed, mainly founded on astrology.\u201d\u2014Lane\u2019s _Modern Egyptians_, ch.\nxii.\n\n[33] In the East, as in the West, religion is often assumed as a cloak\nof villainy; and the half-naked darveshes who prowl through Muslim towns\nand villages, blowing their horns and bellowing their eternal \u201chakk!\nhakk!\u201d are for the most part lewd rascals; and not a whit better are most\nof those who affect to live as hermits. Muhammed said that \u201cthere is no\nmonkery in Isl\u00e1m,\u201d which is true in one respect, viz., that while a monk\nmust remain a monk all his life, a darvesh may at any time toss away his\nbegging-bowl and return to his former station in society.\n\n[34] Fars, or Farsist\u00e1n, is a province of Persia, the capital of which\nis Sh\u00edr\u00e1z, so much celebrated by H\u00e1fiz and other Persian poets. As the\nNeapolitans have their favourite saying, \u201cSee Naples, and die,\u201d so the\nPersians say that \u201cIf Muhammed had tasted the pleasures of Sh\u00edr\u00e1z, he\nwould have begged Allah to make him immortal there.\u201d\n\n[35] This monarch is not to be confounded with that Far\u00edd\u00fan who was the\nsixth of the first dynasty (P\u00edshd\u00e1d\u00ed) of ancient Persian kings.\n\n[36] Signet-rings were commonly used throughout the East from the\nearliest period of which any records have been preserved. When a king\ngave his signet to any one he was thereby empowered to act in the king\u2019s\nname. Thus in the Book of Esther we read that King Ahasuerus took his\nring from off his finger and gave it first to Haman and afterwards to\nMordecai.\n\n[37] In other words, the king resigned his throne in favour of the\nprince. It seems to have been a common practice for Oriental potentates,\nat a certain period of life, to retire from the cares of state and\nturn ascetics\u2014which was very proper, if all the tales be true of their\nsanguinary doings!\n\n[38] Al-Mu\u2019tasim Billah, was the fourth son of the Khal\u00edf Har\u00fan\ner-Rash\u00edd, and succeeded his second brother, Al-M\u00e1m\u00fan, A.D. 833. He was\nthe first of the Khal\u00edfs who added to his name the title of _Billah_,\nwhich is equivalent to the _Dei Gracia_ of Christian sovereigns.\nAl-Mu\u2019tasim was the 8th Khal\u00edf of the house of Abbas; was born on the\n8th month (Shaban) of the year; ascended the throne in the 218th year\nof the Hijra; lived 48 years; and died on the 18th of the month Rab\u00ed\nI; he fought 8 battles; built 8 palaces; begat 8 sons and 8 daughters;\nhad 8,000 slaves; and had 8,000,000 d\u00ednars and 80,000 dirhams [a dirham\nis a silver coin of the value of sixpence] in his treasury at his\ndeath;\u2014whence Oriental historians gave him the name of Al-Musamman, or\nthe Octonary.\n\n[39] When a Persian monarch desires to show his special regard for any\ngreat man who has come to his court, he presents him with a _khil\u2019at_, or\nrobe of honour, which is often very valuable.\n\n[40] Compared with this what was the archery feat of Locksley (_alias_\nRobin Hood), as described in _Ivanhoe_? It seems to have been a common\npractice in Persia to suspend a finger-ring as the mark and prize in an\narchery competition. A story is told of a Sh\u00e1h who, while on a pleasure\nexcursion to Massala Sh\u00edr\u00e1z, appointed an archery contest for the\namusement of himself and his courtiers. He caused a gold ring, set with\na valuable gem, to be fixed on the dome of \u2019As\u00e1d, and it was announced\nthat whosoever should send an arrow through the ring should obtain it as\nthe reward of his skill. The four hundred skilled archers forming the\nroyal body-guard each shot at the ring without success. It happened that\na boy on a neighbouring house-top was at the same time diverting himself\nwith a little bow, when one of his arrows, shot at random, went through\nthe ring. The boy, having thus obtained the prize, immediately burned his\nbow, shrewdly observing that he had done so in order that the reputation\nof this his first feat should never be impaired. (Sa\u2019d\u00ed\u2019s _Gulist\u00e2n_, or\nRose-Garden, ch. iii). The famous Persian poet and robber-chief Kurrogl\u00fa\nhad a band of 777 men under his command, and Demurchy-ogl\u00fa (_i.e._ the\nson of the blacksmith) offered himself for a vacancy. Kurrogl\u00fa, in order\nto test the nerve of the candidate, bade him sit down; then taking an\napple from his pocket and a ring from his finger, he stuck the ring in\nthe apple, and ordered one of his men to remove the cap from the head of\nthe new comer. Having placed the apple on the young man\u2019s head, Kurrogl\u00fa\nrode to one side and bent his bow and continued to pass one arrow after\nanother through the ring. Out of sixty arrows that were shot not one went\nastray. (Chodzko\u2019s _Popular Poetry of Persia_, pp. 88, 89). Here we have\nthe feat of William Tell\u2014with a difference.\n\n[41] The duty of the muezzin is to chant the call to prayer (_ad\u00e1n_) from\nthe minaret of the mosque five times every day. Blind men are generally\nemployed as muezzins, in order that they should not overlook the\nterraces, or flat roofs, of the houses, where the inmates generally sleep\nduring very hot weather.\n\n[42] The S\u00faf\u00eds are the mystics of Isl\u00e1m, and profess to have attained,\nby meditation, so advanced a stage of spiritual perfection as to render\nthe teachings of the Kur\u00e1n and the ordinary religious observances quite\nunnecessary to them. They are generally considered by the \u201corthodox\u201d\nas arrant infidels. For an interesting account of some of their public\n\u201creligious\u201d performances, see the chapter on the Dancing Darveshes in\nLane\u2019s _Modern Egyptians_.\n\n[43] Muhammed.\n\n[44] In primitive times even kings were proud of their skill in the art\nof cookery. Thus in the charming story of Nala and Damayanti (an episode\nof the great Hind\u00fa epic, the _Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_) the good R\u00e1j\u00e1 is recognised\nby his devoted wife, who had been long separated from him, by some meat\nof his dressing. And in the other grand Indian epic, the _R\u00e1m\u00e1yana_, the\ndemi-god R\u00e1m\u00e1 is represented as killing and cooking the dinner of his\nspouse Sit\u00e1 and himself:\n\n Their thirst allayed, the princes ply the chase,\n And a fat stag soon falls beneath their arrows.\n A fire they kindle next, and dress their prize;\n Then, offering to the gods and manes made,\n With Sit\u00e1 they the social banquet share.\n\nAnd readers of the _Arabian Nights_ will remember how young Bedr ed-D\u00edn\nHasan was discovered by the delicious tarts for the making of which he\nhad been always famed.\n\n[45] One of the signs of the Zodiac.\n\n[46] Wrestling has been from the most ancient times a favourite sport\nin Persia, as it has also been among the Japanese. Due allowance must,\nof course, be made for the Oriental exaggeration here indulged in, of\nrepresenting our hero as throwing two hundred men in succession;\u2014still,\nthe author is not inconsistent, for did not he, single-handed, lay about\nhim boldly and scatter the gang of robbers in the mosque and prove more\nthan a match for the townsfolk?\n\n[47] I presume by the \u201cSun of Prophecy\u201d is meant Muhammed. The \u201cCourt of\nUnity\u201d is Heaven.\n\n[48] This little story is evidently intended as a satire on ascetics\nwhose notions of religious duties spring from their own foolish minds,\nand who are often held up to ridicule by the most eminent Persian poets\nand moralists.\n\n[49] In spite of the vigilance with which women in the East are guarded\nfrom communication with lovers, it is said that men frequently gain\naccess to harams disguised in female apparel, with or without the\nconnivance of the \u201cneutral personages\u201d who are appointed to keep watch\nand ward over the private apartments.\n\n[50] This recalls an incident in the Muslim legend of King Solomon\u2019s\ntemporary degradation, in consequence of his having fallen into\nthe heinous sin of idolatry\u2014a legend adapted from the Jewish\ntraditionists\u2014when \u201cthe wisest man the world e\u2019er saw\u201d became an outcast\nand a vagrant, and took service with a fisherman; his wages being two\nfishes each day.\n\n[51] The wise and witty author of _Hudibras_ partly expresses the same\nsentiment in these lines:\n\n Man is supreme lord and master\n Of his own ruin and disaster,\n Controls his fate, but nothing less\n In ordering his own happiness:\n For all his care and providence\n Is too feeble a defence\n To render it secure and certain\n Against the injuries of fortune;\n And oft, in spite of all his wit,\n Is lost with one unlucky hit,\n And ruined with a circumstance\n And mere punctilio of a chance.\n\n Butler\u2019s _Remains_.\n\nBut the Hind\u00fa sages give forth no uncertain sound on this subject, as\nmay be seen from these verses, which are cited in the _Hitopadesa_, a\nSanskrit version of the celebrated Fables of Bidpa\u00ef:\n\n\u201cAs from a lump of clay a workman makes whatever he pleases, in like\nmanner a man obtains the destiny prepared by himself.\u201d\n\n\u201cFortune waits upon that lion of a man who exerts himself. Abject fellows\nsay: \u2018It is to be given by destiny.\u2019 Put forth manliness with all your\nstrength. If when effort has been made it succeed not, what blame is\nthere in such a case?\u201d\n\n[52] Muslims regard Lukman as the type of human wisdom. He is said to\nhave been an Ethiopian slave and served in the army of the Hebrew king\nDavid. Many striking sayings and fables are ascribed to him, but it is\nmore than doubtful whether he composed any apologues.\n\n[53] The loves of Layl\u00e1 and Majn\u00fan\u2014the Romeo and Juliet of the East\u2014have\nformed the theme of several very beautiful Persian and Turkish poems.\nMajn\u00fan (which means \u201cmad from love:\u201d his proper name was Kays) was the\nson of an Arab chief and deeply enamoured of a maiden of another tribe;\nand on her being married to a foreign and wealthy suitor he became\ndistraught, and fled to the wilderness. When Layl\u00e1 became a widow and met\nher lover once more she found him a raving maniac and died soon after.\nMajn\u00fan expired on her tomb.\n\n[54] Muslim poets are never weary of harping on the fancied love of the\nnightingale (_bulbul_) for the rose, to which he is supposed to pour out\nhis nightly plaint.\n\n[55] \u201cThe philosopher,\u201d says a Persian poet, \u201cdied of grief and distress,\nwhile the blockhead found a treasure in a ruin.\u201d\n\n[56] It is rare indeed to find in Eastern tales such sensible\nobservations put in the mouths of sultans, who are for the most part mere\nlay figures or credulous fools. Mr. R. L. Stevenson has happily described\nthe monarchs that figure in the _Arabian Nights_ as \u201cwooden kings.\u201d Here,\nhowever, we have in this sultan a really sagacious man.\n\n[57] The renowned Har\u00fan er-Rash\u00edd was not the only Oriental monarch fond\nof prowling through his capital after nightfall in disguise: Indian kings\nof the olden time, long before the Muhammedan invasion and subjugation,\nare said to have made it their regular practice. King James the Fifth of\nScotland was wont to adopt all sorts of disguises and go about in quest\nof _amorous_ adventures.\n\n[58] Blighted, as they firmly believed, by the mere sight of the\n_unlucky_ man.\n\n[59] Copies of the Kur\u00e1n are always very beautifully written and often\nilluminated with great taste and splendour, and are very costly. Poor\nShoayb may, however, have been induced to select a Kur\u00e1n out of the\nrobbers\u2019 booty rather from motives of _piety_ than from any desire of\ngain.\u2014I may mention that, although the art of printing is now practised\nboth in Persia and Turkey, copies of the Kur\u00e1n are still multiplied (or\nwere so till very lately) by handwriting, from a superstitious notion\nthat the impure materials employed in printing would profane the sacred\ntext.\n\n[60] Friday is the Muslim Sunday\u2014called _El-Jum\u2019\u00e1_, or the Assembly; but\nit is not observed as a day exclusively devoted to religious exercises,\nlike the \u201cLord\u2019s Day\u201d among our Protestant \u201cevangelicals,\u201d whose motto\nseems to be, \u201cLet us all be unhappy together,\u201d on that day which they\nought rather to regard as a day of pious rejoicing, could they be\nconsistent; nor are the superstitious notions associated with the Sabbath\nin Jewish minds entertained by Muslims regarding the day of _El-Jum\u2019\u00e1_.\n\n[61] The number _forty_ seems to have been always a favourite among\nEastern peoples, and it occurs in the Bible many times in connection\nwith important events. Thus the Flood continued _forty_ days (Gen. vii,\n17); Joseph and his kinsmen mourned _forty_ days for their father Jacob\n(Gen. l, 3); thrice Moses fasted _forty_ days (Exod. xxiv, 18, xxxiv,\n28, and Deut. ix, 9-25); during _forty_ days the Hebrew spies searched\nCanaan (Numb. xiii, 25); Goliath defied the Hebrew army for _forty_\ndays (1 Sam. xvii, 16); Elijah fasted _forty_ days (1 Kings xix, 8);\nNineveh was to be destroyed after _forty_ days (Jonah iii, 4); _forty_\ndays Ezekiel bore the iniquities of the house of Judah, a day for a year\n(Ezek. iv, 6); Christ was tempted by Satan during _forty_ days (Matt.\niv, 2, and Mark i, 13), and he continued _forty_ days on earth after his\nresurrection (Acts i, 3); the Israelites were condemned to wander in the\nwilderness _forty_ years (Numb. xiv, 33).\u2014Muslims mourn _forty_ days for\ntheir dead; and they deem a woman ceremonially unclean during _forty_\ndays after childbirth: among the Israelites the period was forty days\nwhen she had given birth to a male child and eighty days in the case of\na female child.\u2014In the present romance, our unlucky hero, Nassar, is\ndirected by the hermit\u2019s \u201clast will,\u201d as above, to spend _forty_ days in\nprayer for the restoration of the fairies\u2019 fountain; he shoots an arrow\nthrough a finger-ring _forty_ times (p. 100); but his too expert archery\ncaused an accident to the king, from the effects of which his majesty\ndid not recover until he had been \u201c_forty_ days under medical treatment\u201d\n(p. 102); poor Shah Manssur was in the power of the cruel sorceress for\nnearly _forty_ days (p. 26); and the son of the king of Tytmyran was\ntossed about on the sea in a boat for _forty_ days (p. 73). To conclude\nthis long note: _forty_ is the usual number of a gang of robbers in\nEastern tales\u2014that of \u201cAli Baba and the Forty Thieves\u201d will at once occur\nto the reader; and we have another example in the diverting story of\n\u201cAhmed the Cobbler\u201d (Malcolm\u2019s _Sketches of Persia_), where the king\u2019s\ntreasury is plundered by _forty_ robbers.\n\n[62] Excepting, surely, \u201cthe shark and the sun-fish dark\u201d!\n\n[63] \u201cSometimes it happens,\u201d says our author, \u201cthat a man is such a\nfavourite of fortune that if another try to injure him even that will\nturn to his advantage. Good men refrain in thought and word and deed\nfrom injuring their fellow men; but evil-minded men resemble scorpions\nin their nature, stinging everybody without cause, and with no profit to\nthemselves, while the objects of their hatred nevertheless prosper;\u2014as\nwill appear from the following story of the adventures of Farrukhr\u00faz,\nwhose success was promoted by the enmity which the vaz\u00edrs of the king of\nYaman entertained against him.\u201d\n\n[64] A sensible man! He was well aware that frequently \u201criches take unto\nthemselves wings and flee away.\u201d The sons of \u201cself-made\u201d men seldom turn\nout to be of much account\u2014probably because fathers such as Khoja Marj\u00e1n\nare not often found among those whose sole aim in life has been to \u201cmak\u2019\nsiller\u201d!\n\n[65] Or Yemen: the ancient Arabia Felix.\n\n[66] \u201cForty days\u201d again!\u2014see _ante_, note on pp. 140, 141.\n\n[67] A kind of witch\u2019s broomstick, apparently. It is to be regretted that\nour author (or the holy hermit) did not specify the other properties\nof this wonderful staff! Doubtless it also provided the possessor with\n\u201cmeat, drink, and clothing,\u201d in common with similar magical articles\nwhich figure in the fairy tales of all peoples.\n\n[68] Muslims have derived from the Jewish cabbalists the notion of the\nmarvellous efficacy of the \u201cunutterable Name\u201d of God\u2014called by the Arabs\n_El-Ism el-Aazam_, \u201cthe Most Great Name.\u201d It was, they say, engraved\non Solomon\u2019s signet-ring, by means of which he subdued all the genii\nand demons, save one rebellious and powerful genie called Sakhr, who\nconcealed himself in an island in mid-ocean. But the Wise King \u201ctook up\u201d\nwith strange women\u2014with the daughters of idolatrous kings whom he had\nconquered in battle; and to one of those he gave his ring one unlucky\nday, to keep for him while he was at his bath. The demon Sakhr, who had\nbeen prowling invisibly about the palace, in hopes of catching his royal\nenemy at an unguarded moment, assumed Solomon\u2019s form and readily obtained\npossession of the wonder-working ring, and sat on the throne of Israel,\nwhile Solomon\u2014whose appearance was at once changed\u2014was driven forth, to\nwander up and down the land as a beggar. To be brief, the ring was, after\nlong years, found in the maw of a fish\u2014Sakhr having thrown it away when\nhe fled, on being detected as an imposter by the reading of the Law in\nhis presence\u2014and Solomon \u201ccame to his own again.\u201d Solomon\u2019s signet-ring\nfigures frequently in Muslim romances and stories: it was with this\nmagical ring that he sealed the copper vessels into which he conjured\ncertain rebellious genii, and then caused them to be thrown into the sea;\nit also gave him power over all creatures on the earth and in the waters,\nand over the eight winds, which, at his command, wafted through the air,\nwhithersoever he pleased, himself and his army on the marvellous carpet\nwoven for him by genii\u2014to which the poet Bah\u00e1-ed-D\u00edn Zuhayr, of Egypt,\nthus alludes in an address to his lady-love:\n\n \u201cAnd now I bid the very wind\n To speed my loving message on,\n As though I might its fury bind,\n Like Solomon.\u201d\n\nThe wind is a common messenger of love in the amatory poetry of the\nEast;\u2014thus a pre-Islamite Arabian poet exclaims in apostrophising his\nbeloved: \u201cO may the western breeze tell thee of my ardent desire to\nreturn home!\u201d\n\n[69] I reproduce the following notes on treasure-trees from my paper on\nthe Franklin\u2019s Tale (entitled \u201cThe Damsel\u2019s Rash Promise\u201d) in _Originals\nand Analogues of some of Chaucer\u2019s \u201cCanterbury Tales\u201d_ printed for the\nChaucer Society, p. 336:\n\nIn the _Kath\u00e1 Sarit S\u00e1gara_\u2014an ancient Sanskrit story-book\u2014we read of\ntrees with golden trunks, branches of jewels, the clear white flowers of\nwhich were clusters of pearls; golden lotuses, etc. Aladdin, it will be\nremembered, found in the cave, where was deposited the magic lamp, trees\nbearing \u201cfruit\u201d of emeralds and other gems of great price, with which he\ntook care to stuff his pockets.\n\nIn the medi\u00e6val romance of Alexander we are told how the world-conqueror\njousted with Porus for his kingdom, and having overthrown him, he\nfound in the palace of the vanquished monarch innumerable treasures,\nand amongst others a vine of which the branches were gold, the leaves\nemerald, and the fruit of other precious stones\u2014a fiction, says Dunlop,\nwhich seems to have been suggested by the golden vine which Pompey\ncarried away from Jerusalem.\n\nThe garden of Duke Isope, as described in the _Tale of Beryn_ (Supp.\nCanterbury Tales: Ch. Soc., p. 84), had a similar tree:\n\n \u201cIn mydward of this garden stant a feire tre,\n Of alle maner levis that under sky [there] be,\n I-forgit and i-fourmyd, eche in his degre,\n Of sylvir, and of gold\u00e8 fyne, that lusty ben to see.\u201d\n\nAs the treasures coveted by the Arimaspians were guarded by griffins,\nand the golden apples of the Hesperides by a dragon, so this garden of\nDuke Isope was kept by eight \u201ctregetours,\u201d or magicians, who looked like\n\u201cabominabill wormys,\u201d enough to frighten the bravest man on earth.\n\nThe Italian poet Boiardo, in the 12th canto of his _Orlando Innamorato_,\nrepresents the virtuous Tisbina as promising her love to Iroldo, who is\nmadly enamoured of her, on condition that he perform a certain task for\nher: \u201cBeyond the forest of Barbary,\u201d says she, \u201cis a fair garden, which\nhas an iron wall. Herein entrance can be obtained by four gates: one\nLife keeps, Death, another, Poverty, another, and Riches, another. Whoso\ngoes therein must depart by the opposite gate. In the midst is a tree of\nvast height, far as an arrow may mount aloft; that tree is of marvellous\nprice, for whenever it blossoms it puts forth pearls, and it is called\nthe Treasure-Tree, for it has apples of emerald and boughs of gold. A\nbranch of this tree,\u201d adds the fair Tisbina, \u201cI must have, otherwise I am\nin heavy case.\u201d\n\n[70] A species of inferior _jinni_, or genie.\n\n[71] It is a general practice of Muslim men to shave their heads,\nleaving in front a _kakull_, or tuft of hair, in order, according to\nsome writers, that an enemy, in the day of battle, after cutting off the\nhead of any of the faithful whom he had slain, should have wherewithal\nto carry it, and not require to pollute it by thrusting his fingers into\nthe mouth. This bears some resemblance to the tuft which North American\nIndians wear, as a defiance to their foes\u2014to scalp them if they can! The\ntuft on the Muslim\u2019s head, however, serves another purpose, in being\nallowed to grow for some time before he sets out on the pilgrimage to\nMakka, so that, arrived there, he can twist it round his head like a\nturban, as a guard against the fierce Arabian sun. The Br\u00e1hmans also\nshave their heads, leaving a similar tuft, which, like the \u201cpig-tail\u201d of\na Chinaman, is a mark of respectability, and its removal is a very great\ndisgrace.\n\n[72] Iskandar, or Sikandar: Alexander the Great, of whom Muslim writers\nrelate many wonderful stories\u2014especially the Persian poet Nizam\u00ed, in his\nfamous _Sikandar-N\u00e1ma_, or Alexander-Book.\u2014Jamsh\u00edd was the fourth of the\nfirst (or P\u00edshd\u00e1d\u00ed) dynasty of ancient Persian kings. He is said to have\nfounded Persepolis, and introduced the solar year, and ordered the first\nday of it, when the sun entered Aries, to be celebrated by a magnificent\nfestival, which is still observed in Persia, and is called the _N\u00fa R\u00faz_,\nor the New Day. Of his goblet, above referred to, _Jam-i-Jamsh\u00edd_, or\nthe Cup of Jamsh\u00edd, marvellous things are related: it mirrored the whole\nworld, foreshadowed future events, and so forth. It is said that such was\nits lustre that it dazzled all beholders, and hence poets have found it a\nconvenient simile for the brilliant eyes of a pretty girl.\n\n[73] It does not appear that the astrologer\u2019s prediction was\nfulfilled\u2014though a blind man once shot a crow, but, like the astrologer,\nfor one hit he missed a thousand times. A good story is told of an essay\nin the capacity of astrologer on the part of Anvar\u00ed, the celebrated\nPersian poet. It so happened that in 1186 A.D. (581 or 582 A.H.) there\nwas a conjunction of all the planets in the sign of Libra. Anvar\u00ed\npredicted a storm which would eradicate trees and destroy all buildings.\nWhen the fatal day arrived, it was perfectly calm, and there was the\nwhole year so little wind that the people were unable to winnow their\ncorn. The unlucky poet-astrologer was obliged to fly to Balkh, where he\ndied, in the reign of Sultan Al\u00e1-ed-D\u00edn Takash, A.D. 1200 (A.H. 596).\n\nAstrologers having predicted for the year 1523 incessant rains and\ndisastrous floods, the good abbot of St. Bartholomew, in Smithfield,\nLondon, built a house at Harrow-on-the-Hill, and stored it with\nprovisions. Many people followed his example and repaired to high places,\nin order to escape the expected deluge. But no extraordinary rains\noccurring, the disappointed soothsayers pacified the people by confessing\nthemselves mistaken just one hundred years in their calculation!\u2014Readers\nof Chaucer will remember how the arch-rogue Clerk Nicolas, for his own\nwicked ends, predicted, to his simple landlord, the carpenter, that a\nflood was presently to come upon the earth, greater than that which Noah\nand his family \u201crode-out\u201d in the Ark.\n\nMrs. Meer Hasan Ali, in her interesting _Observations on the Mussulmans\nof India_, says: \u201cIt is wonderful the influence which a _naj\u00fam_ [_i.e._\nastrologer] acquires in the houses of many great men in India. Wherever\none of those idlers is entertained he is the oracle to be consulted on\nall occasions. I know those who submit with a childlike docility to the\nnaj\u00fam\u2019s opinion, when their better reason, if allowed sway, would decide\nagainst the astrologer\u2019s prediction. If the naj\u00fam says it is not proper\nfor Naw\u00e1b Sahib and his lady to eat, drink, or sleep, to take medicine,\nto give away or accept any gift, the naj\u00fam has said it, and the naj\u00fam\nmust be right.\u201d (Vol. i, pp. 69, 70.)\n\n[74] Akhfash was a Muhammedan professor of grammar and literature who\nwas so unlucky as not to be able to attract any disciples; he therefore\ntrained a goat and lectured to it, the docile animal approving, doubting,\nor denying his propositions as occasion required, and in course of time,\nwhen it had attracted a very large number of scholars, its functions\nceased.\u2014_E. Rehatsek, the translator._\n\n[75] We have in this scene, between the simple dweller in the desert, the\ninfatuated Farrukhr\u00faz, and the Am\u00edr, a capital example of Oriental humour.\n\n[76] Thus the sultan received our hero on a footing of equality with\nhimself, and the scene recalls the meeting of the two brothers, King\nSh\u00e1hriy\u00e1r and Sh\u00e1h Zam\u00e1n in the opening of the _Arabian Nights_.\n\n[77] Notwithstanding all that has been written by European orientalists\nduring the last half-century regarding the Muhammedan religion, the\nnotion is still widely prevalent that, according to the Kur\u00e1nic\nteachings, women have not souls. The idea is quite preposterous, and must\nhave been set afloat by bigoted Christian \u201cchampions\u201d who wished to throw\ndiscredit on the doctrines of Isl\u00e1m. In the Kur\u00e1n future rewards are\npromised and future punishments are threatened to men and women alike.\nAnd in Muslim stories, which may be considered as faithfully reflecting\nthe general religious belief, women are often spoken of as having gone\nto Paradise at their death, while it is not unusual for the transcriber\nof a book to insert at the end a prayer for the souls of his father and\nmother. Moreover, among the traditions preserved of Muhammed is the\nfollowing, which shows that the Founder of Isl\u00e1m could occasionally\nindulge in a little harmless pleasantry: An old woman came to him one\nday, and asked what should be the lot of such as she in Paradise. The\nProphet replied, that no old women would be there, upon which the poor\ncrone set up a loud wail, but Muhammed presently soothed her by smilingly\nexplaining that all the old women would become young when they entered\nParadise.\n\n[78] Yet again \u201cforty days\u201d!\n\n[79] The name of the king is derived from Alak\u00e1puri, the city of Kav\u00e9ra,\nthe god of riches, and Alak\u00e9sa is therefore an appellation signifying a\nwealthy king.\n\n[80] The Pandit remarks that this kind of statement often occurs in\nstories in proof of the just reign of a monarch. The Hind\u00fa idea is, that\nso long as justice and equity characterised a king\u2019s rule, even beasts\nnaturally inimical were disposed to live in friendship. When timely\nrain fails or famine stalks through the land, turning his eyes from the\nnatural causes, the orthodox Hind\u00fa will say that such a king is now\nreigning over them unjustly, and hence the calamity.\n\n[81] According to a Persian writer, \u201cshe is a perfect woman who considers\nher husband as the most accomplished of men, and thinks all the sons of\nAdam beside quite unworthy of a transient glance from the corner of her\nhalf-shut eyes.\u201d And in the _Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_ we are told that \u201cshe is a good\nwife whose husband is as her very life.\u201d\n\n[82] \u201cDistinguishing the peculiarities of an animal by its footsteps,\netc.,\u201d says the Pandit, \u201cis often met with in Indian stories. Precisely\nthe reverse of this is the tale of the four blind men who disputed about\nthe form of an elephant. One of them had felt only the elephant\u2019s ear,\nand said it was like a winnow; another examined the breast and a foreleg,\nand said it was like a thick stump of wood; the third felt the trunk and\nsaid it was like a heavy crook; while the fourth, having touched only the\ntail, declared it was like a sweeping rake.\u201d\n\n[83] A pagoda is now of the value of about 7s. 6d.\n\n[84] Sambhavi and Mah\u00e1mayi are among the numerous names of K\u00e1l\u00ed, the\ngoddess of destruction, called also Parvati and Durga: the daughter of\nHim\u00e1laya, sovereign of the snowy mountains. She is described as terrible\nin form and very irascible in temper. In her amiable form she is called\nBhav\u00e1ni. To address a deity by a number of appellations, as above, is\nconsidered as the readiest way to secure favour.\u2014Mr. Nat\u00e9sa S\u00e1str\u00ed, in\na note in _Indian Notes and Queries_ for Sept. 1887, p. 215, states\nthat \u201cthe goddess K\u00e1l\u00ed is much worshipped in the Madras Presidency, and\nespecially so during an epidemic. During an outbreak of cholera in Madras\nin 1884, the K\u00e1l\u00ed image in the Minaksh\u00ed temple, near the Dvaja Stambha,\nwas daily propitiated by a thousand pots each of gh\u00ed (clarified butter)\nmilk, oil, etc.\u201d\n\n[85] Vijanajara, now a village in Hospet _t\u00e1luk_, Bellary district,\nMadras Presidency. The proper name of this village is Hampi, but\nVijanajara was the name of the dynasty and the kingdom which had its\ncapital there, and was the last great Hind\u00fa power in the South. Founded\nby two adventurers in the middle of the 14th century, it lasted for two\ncenturies, till its sun went down at T\u00e1likot in 1565 A.D. The ruins of\nHampi cover nine square miles.\u2014Sir W. W. Hunter\u2019s _Imperial Gazetteer of\nIndia_.\n\n[86] A _ghatika_ is twenty-four minutes.\n\n[87] Apparently the arrows were attached to some kind of mechanism which\nshould discharge them on the opening of the pot. \u201cThere is nothing new\nunder the sun\u201d! Dynamite is perhaps a discovery of our own times, but\n\u201cinfernal machines,\u201d which served the purpose of king-killers, are of\nancient date.\n\n[88] Hind\u00fas, at their meals, squat on the ground, with leaves in place of\nearthenware dishes, on which their food is served. The leaves of the palm\nare very large, and each may be cut into a number of \u201cplates.\u201d\n\n[89] A long cloth, which is often the only covering worn by Hind\u00fas.\n\n[90] The women\u2019s apartments; called by Muslims generally \u201cthe haram.\u201d\n\n[91] A sum of money varying, says the Pandit, in different localities in\nthe south of India. In old Chola grants \u201ctwo pons\u201d occurs.\n\n[92] _i.e._ \u201cLion among beasts.\u201d\n\n[93] Setti, or Sethi, is a term applied respectfully to many of the races\nengaged in trade or financial transactions; to the Zoroastrian Pars\u00ed,\nthe Muhammedan Bora, and to Hind\u00fas in the north and south of the Madras\nPresidency, occupied as bankers, merchants and shopkeepers.\n\n[94] A species of weasel, commonly, but incorrectly, written \u201cmungoose,\u201d\nas though the animal was of the _goose_ kind. The mung\u00fas is very expert\nin killing snakes.\n\n[95] Visvesvara: \u201cLord of all,\u201d a name of Siva, the third deity of the\nHind\u00fa triad.\n\n[96] The want of children is doubtless felt more or less keenly by all\nthe races of mankind, but the Hind\u00fa is taught to believe that he cannot\nattain ultimate salvation without leaving a son behind him. The Chinese\nwho hold to their old religion have also a great horror of dying and\nleaving no male offspring to sacrifice to their manes, and to avoid\nsuch a calamity they adopt children when they have none of their own.\nAmong most Asiatic peoples, indeed, a childless wife is generally but\nmost unjustly despised, hence the thousand and one nostrums in which\nHind\u00fa women vainly put faith in expectation of having their sterility\nremoved. We have four notable instances in the Bible of women bearing\nfamous sons after having been long sterile: Sarah, mother of Isaac, the\nHebrew patriarch; Rachel, mother of Joseph, viceroy of Egypt; the wife\nof Manoah, mother of Samson, the Hercules of the Hebrews; and Elizabeth,\nmother of John the Baptist.\u2014After all, sterile wives may console\nthemselves with the reflection that children are not always an unalloyed\nblessing!\n\n[97] \u201cThe most useful, plentiful, and best fruit,\u201d says Forbes, in his\n_Oriental Memoirs_, vol. i, p. 30, \u201cis the mango, which grows abundantly\nall over Hind\u00fast\u00e1n, even in the forests and hedge-rows, on trees equal\nin size to a large English oak, but in appearance and foliage more\nresembling the Spanish chestnut. This valuable fruit varies in shape,\ncolour, and flavour as much as apples do in Europe. The superior kinds\nare extremely delicious, and in the interior resemble the large yellow\npeach of Venice, heightened by the flavour of the orange and agana; and\nso plentiful are mangoes in the hot season throughout most parts of India\nthat during my residence in Guzerat they were sold in the public markets\nfor one rupee the cusly, or 600 lbs. in English weight for half-a-crown.\nThey are a delicacy to the rich, a nutritious food for the poor, who in\nthe mango season require but little other sustenance.\u201d\u2014The skin of the\nmango is described as being smooth and tough; its colour when ripe is\ngrass green, or yellow in many shades, with occasional tinges and streaks\nof bright red; the pulp is as juicy as our wall-fruit. The kernel is of\na hot and rather offensive flavour, but the poor people collect it, and\nwhen dried grind it into flour for bread, which is more wholesome than\nagreeable. An orchard of mango-trees is a small fortune to the possessor,\nand when they are in blossom it forms a luxurious resort to the lovers of\nNature.\u2014_Mrs. Meer Hasan Ali._\n\n[98] \u201cAlas!\u201d says Somadeva, \u201cfickle is the mind of woman!\u201d Again: \u201cA\nwoman desires fresh men, as the humble bee wanders from flower to\nflower.\u201d And again: \u201cA fickle dame is like a sunset\u2014momentarily aglow for\neveryone.\u201d\n\n[99] Compare with this the question asked of Jesus Christ by his\ndisciples (John ix, 2): \u201cMaster, who did sin, _this man_ or his parents,\nthat he was _born_ blind?\u201d from which it would appear some of the Jews\nin those days entertained notions akin to the Hind\u00fa (and Pythagorean)\ndoctrine of metempsychosis.\n\n[100] The parrot, of course, was a human being re-born in that form, in\naccordance with the doctrine of metempsychosis, which is a fundamental\narticle of the Hind\u00fa religion.\n\n[101] It is curious to find goldsmiths and jewellers invariably\nrepresented in Hind\u00fa stories as arrant rogues. In the fine old Indian\ndrama entitled _Mrichchakati_, or the Toy-Cart, it is said: \u201cThere is no\nlotus that has not a stalk, no trader that is not a cheat, no goldsmith\nthat is not a thief.\u201d\n\n[102] Tope, or stupa, a sepulchral memorial monument; a mound-like\nbuilding erected for the preservation of relics. They are found in\nAfghanist\u00e1n, Tibet, Nep\u00e1l, and Western Asia; also in various parts of\nSouthern India. On the demise of Gautama [the founder of Buddhism],\nB.C. 543, his body was consumed, divided into eight portions, and\ndistributed amongst applicants, who erected topes over them. The word\n_tope_ is the same as _st\u2019hupo_ in Pali\u2014a mound or tumulus; st\u2019hupo, or\ntope, is therefore a name common to each kind of tumulus, whether it be\nthe solid temple dedicated to the Supreme Being or the massive mound\nerected over the relics of Buddha, or those of one of his more eminent\nfollowers.\u2014Balfour\u2019s _Cyclop\u00e6dia of India_.\n\n[103] Vedas: \u201cdivine knowledge.\u201d The Vedas are the holy books which are\nthe foundations of the Hind\u00fa religion. They consist of hymns written in\nthe old form of Sanskrit, and, according to the most generally received\nopinion, were composed between 1500 and 1000 B.C. Some scholars have\nthought the oldest of the hymns may be carried back a thousand years\nfarther. The four Vedas are: the Rig-Veda, the Yajur-Veda, the Sama-Veda,\nand the Atharva-Veda, the last being of comparatively modern date.\u2014See\nDowson\u2019s _Classical Dictionary of Hind\u00fa Mythology_.\n\n[104] The six Sastras comprise philosophical systems of the Hind\u00fas: the\nterm Sastra signifies a treatise or rule.\n\n[105] \u201cIt is a very common practice,\u201d remarks the Pandit, \u201cto dupe\nordinary people in this manner in Hind\u00fa temples. Some impostor will\nproclaim to the crowd that the god, or goddess, is then upon him, and\nutter whatever comes uppermost in his mind. He occasionally contrives to\naccomplish his private ends by such revelations. The ignorant are greatly\nmisled by those impostors, and learned Hind\u00fas condemn the practice as\ngross superstition.\u201d\n\n[106] \u201cFiat experimentum in corpore vili.\u201d\n\n[107] Full grown and ripe bamb\u00fa bears a kind of corn which when collected\nand husked resembles wheat. Hunters cook a most delicious food of bamb\u00fa\ngrain and honey.\n\n[108] Not only are serpents popularly believed by Asiatics to be\nguardians of hidden treasures, but they are also said to have most\nvaluable gems in their heads, which they sometimes present to persons who\nhave rendered them good service. This notion was once prevalent in Europe\nregarding toads; and readers of Shakspeare will remember his comparison\nof the uses of adversity to the \u201ctoad, ugly and venomous, which yet\nwears a precious jewel in its head.\u201d A curious serpent legend is current\nin Kandah\u00e1r regarding \u2019Al\u00ed Mard\u00e1n Kh\u00e1n, when governor of that city: A\ncowherd of Kandah\u00e1r lost two or three of his cattle in a certain pasture\nand came to the governor to complain about it. \u2019Al\u00ed Mard\u00e1n Kh\u00e1n ordered\nhim to fill some cowhides with lime, leaving a hole in each, and to place\nthem in the meadow. It appeared that a serpent came daily and carried off\nthe cattle, and on this occasion took away one of the hides, but leaving\na track of lime behind him was traced to his lair. The lime in the hide\ndisagreed with him and so he died. Beside his carcase was found a great\nheap of treasures and the _philosopher\u2019s stone_, which immensely enriched\n\u2019Al\u00ed Mard\u00e1n Kh\u00e1n.\n\n[109] See note 2, p. 122.\n\n[110] Ahmed: \u201cPraiseworthy\u201d; one of the appellations of Muhammed.\n\n[111] \u201cHad it not been for thee, verily the heavens had not been\ncreated.\u201d\u2014_Kur\u00e1n._\n\n[112] Bur\u00e1k was the name of the animal that carried Muhammed on his\nfamous (and fabulous) Night Journey through the Seven Heavens; for an\naccount of which see Muir\u2019s _Life of Mahomet_, ii, 219-222; Lane\u2019s\n_Modern Egyptians_; and D\u2019Herbelot\u2019s _Biblioth\u00e8que Orientale_, art.\n_Borak_.\u2014According to the _Sikandar N\u00e1ma_ (Alexander-Book) of Nizam\u00ed,\nBur\u00e1k was silken as to body, silvern as to hoof, and to such a degree\nswift moving that nothing could equal him.\u2014Canto iv, 12, p. 32 of\nClarke\u2019s translation.\n\n[113] Al\u00ed was the son-in-law of Muhammed, having married Fatima, the\nbeloved daughter of the Prophet. Of the two great sects of Muslims the\n_shi\u2019ahs_ consider Al\u00ed and his immediate descendants (eleven in number)\nas \u201cthe true and only im\u00e1ms\u201d in succession of Muhammed, while the _s\u00fan\u00eds_\nregard the khal\u00edfs\u2014\u2019Umar, Ab\u00fa Bakr, etc.\u2014as the lawful representatives of\nthe Prophet. The Persians and the Indian Muslims are (like our present\nauthor) _shi\u2019ahs_; the Turks and Arabs are _s\u00fan\u00eds_.\n\n[114] \u201cOrnament of kings.\u201d\n\n[115] The Hercules of the Persians, and the principal hero of the _Sh\u00e1h\nN\u00e1ma_ (Book of Kings), Firdaus\u00ed\u2019s great epic.\n\n[116] \u201cCrown of kings.\u201d\n\n[117] It is still a common practice in Persia and India when a child\nis born\u2014especially a son\u2014for an astrologer to be employed to \u201ccast his\nhoroscope\u201d and thereby foretell the child\u2019s career in life. \u201cIn 1670 the\npassion for horoscopes and expounding the stars prevailed in France among\npersons of the first rank. The new-born child was usually presented naked\nto the astrologer, who read the first lineaments in its forehead and the\ntransverse lines in its hands, and thence wrote down its future destiny.\nCatherine de Medicis brought Henry IV, then a child, to old Nostradamus,\nwhom antiquaries esteem more for his Chronicle of Provence than for his\nvaticinating powers. The sight of the reverend seer, with a beard which\n\u2018streamed like a meteor in the air,\u2019 terrified the future hero, who\ndreaded a whipping from so grave a personage. Will it be credited that,\none of these magicians having assured Charles IX that he should live as\nmany days as he should turn about on his heel in an hour, standing on\none leg, his majesty every morning performed that solemn exercise for an\nhour, the principal officers of the court, the judges, the chancellors,\nand the generals likewise, in compliment standing on one leg and turning\nround!\u201d\u2014_Demonologia_, by J. S. F.\n\n[118] Ab\u00fa-S\u00edn\u00e1, or Ab\u00fa \u2019Al\u00ed S\u00edn\u00e1, or Ibn-S\u00edn\u00e1, called generally in Europe\nAvicenna, was a famous physician and philosopher at the court of Baghd\u00e1d.\nBorn, at Bukh\u00e1r\u00e1, A.H. 373 (A.D. 983), died, at Hamad\u00e1n, A.H. 427 (A.D.\n1035). He wrote nearly one hundred books on medicine, most of which are\nnow lost. He was also a poet, and some of his verses are still extant.\n\n[119] The patriarch\u2019s grief for the loss of his favourite son Joseph\nis proverbial among Muslims; but our author has done the \u201cMan of Uz\u201d a\ngreat injustice when he likens him to the blind king, as \u201cwaiting with\nimpatient anxiety\u201d!\n\n[120] A comely youth is always said by Muslim writers to resemble Joseph,\nthe son of Jacob the Hebrew patriarch, who is considered as the type of\nmanly beauty.\n\n[121] Firdaus: Paradise. Here it is probably used as the name of an\nimaginary city; at all events I cannot find that there is any town of the\nname in Persia or India.\n\n[122] Dilbar: \u201cheart-stealer\u201d; and surnamed Lakh\u00ed (as will be seen\npresently) because she required to be paid a _lakh_ (100,000) of rup\u00eds by\nevery man who sought her society. The rup\u00ed (rupee) is nominally valued at\ntwo shillings, but at present it is at considerable discount, being only\nworth from 1s. 6d. to 1s. 8d. of English currency.\n\n[123] The fascination of the moth for the flame of the candle is a\nfavourite simile with Asiatic writers for the love-struck youth and the\nbeauty whose charms have ensnared him. Sa\u2019d\u00ed, in his _Bust\u00e1n_, has a fine\nmystical poem on this subject.\n\n[124] See note on pp. 187-8.\n\n[125] Persian writers are extremely fond of far-fetched conceits. In\ndescribing sunrise they almost invariably borrow metaphors from the\nincidents last related. We have had several examples of this peculiarity\nin the romance of Nassar, as (pp. 6, 7) in the case of the robbery of\nthe royal treasury by one of the eunuchs of the haram, where the author\nbegins his account of next day\u2019s events thus: \u201cWhen the _eunuch_ of\n_night_ had retired and the _prince_ of _morn_ established himself in\nthe _palace_ of the horizon,\u201d and so forth. And here we have the game of\nbackgammon between the hero and Dilbar utilised for a description of the\nnatural phenomenon of sunset.\n\n[126] \u201cSh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da:\u201d _lit._ \u201cking-born,\u201d or son of the king; the usual term\napplied to royal princes in Persia.\n\n[127] A crore is 100 lakhs, or ten millions, according to the Hind\u00fa\nsystem of numeration; but in Persia it is only 5 lakhs, or 500,000. The\nartful Dilbar must have had an enormous amount of wealth, if she lost to\nour hero a hundred crores of rup\u00eds, which even according to the Persian\ncomputation would be equal to five millions of pounds, English money,\nestimating the rup\u00ed at two shillings. After this she\u2019d be fully justified\nin describing herself, as honest Dogberry does with some pride, as \u201cone\nwho has had _losses_ too!\u201d\n\n[128] D\u00edvs (or _deevs_) are similar to the Jinn (or Genii) of Arabian\nmythology. Some are good demons, being faithful Muslims, but those who\nare unbelievers are for the most part malignant and delight in working\nevil on mankind.\n\n[129] A quotation from the _Gulist\u00e1n_, or Rose Garden, of the celebrated\nPersian poet and philosopher Sa\u2019d\u00ed, ch. iii.\u2014Sa\u2019d\u00ed was born, at Sh\u00edr\u00e1z,\ntowards the close of the 12th century, and died, in his native city,\nabout 1291 A.D., having lived upwards of a hundred years.\n\n[130] According to the Kur\u00e1n, because Abraham would not worship idols,\nNimrod cast him into a blazing furnace, which was turned into a\nrose-garden\u2014evidently a distorted version of the story of Nebuchadnezzar\nand the three devout Hebrew youths, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego.\n\n[131] Standing on one leg in presence of a superior is a mark of profound\nrespect in India.\n\n[132] This fable is omitted by Garcin de Tassy.\n\n[133] It is the common belief in the East that pearls are formed in the\noyster out of drops of rain falling into it when the shells are open.\nThis notion is the subject of a mystical poem in Sa\u2019d\u00ed\u2019s _Bust\u00e1n_, or\nGarden of Odours, Book iv, which has been thus translated:\n\n\u201cA drop of rain trickled from a cloud into the ocean; when it beheld the\nbreadth of its waters it was utterly confounded.\n\n\u2018What a place this sea is, and what am I? If it is existent, verily I am\nnon-existent.\u2019\n\nWhilst it was thus regarding itself with the eye of contempt, an oyster\nreceived it into its bosom.\n\nFortune preferred it to a place of honour; for it became a renowned royal\npearl.\n\nBecause it was humble, it found exaltation;\u2014it knocked at the door of\nnonentity, that it might arise into being.\u201d\u2014Robinson\u2019s _Persian Poetry\nfor English Readers_, p. 328.\n\n[134] Here our author makes the courtesan Dilbar discourse most\neloquently and in a highly moral strain. It has always been much easier\nto preach than to practise, I ween!\n\n[135] Good Muslims never commence any undertaking of importance or danger\nwithout first reciting the formula\u2014which is also invariably placed at the\nbeginning of all their writings\u2014\u201cIn the Name of God, the Merciful, the\nCompassionate!\u201d (_Bismillahi er-rahmani er-rahimi_).\n\n[136] \u201cThat a salamander is able to live in flames,\u201d says Sir Thomas\nBrowne, \u201cto endure and put out fire, is an assertion not only of great\nantiquity but confirmed by frequent and not contemptible authority.\u2026\nAll which notwithstanding, there is on the negative authority and\nexperience.\u2026 The ground of this opinion might be some sensible resistance\nof fire observed in the salamander; which being, as Galen determineth,\ncold in the fourth and moist in the third degree, and having also a mucus\nhumidity above and under the skin, by virtue thereof it may a while\nendure flame, which being consumed it can resist no more.\u201d\u2014_Enquiries\ninto Vulgar and Common Errors_, ch. xiv.\n\n[137] See the note on pp. 108-9.\n\n[138] To swear by Solomon, especially by Solomon\u2019s signet-ring, is the\nmost binding oath which the jinn and the fairies can take, since its\nbreach would entail a dreadful punishment.\n\n[139] \u201cHamm\u00e1la\u201d may mean a woman who carries: Garcin de Tassy calls her\n\u201cporteuse.\u201d\n\n[140] \u201cPraiseworthy\u201d: \u201cBelauded.\u201d\n\n[141] Badaksh\u00e1n is a mountainous tract of country in Afgh\u00e1n T\u00farkest\u00e1n,\nfamous for mines yielding the finest rubies, lapis-lazuli, etc.\n\n[142] The romance writers of medi\u00e6val Europe, after the first Crusade,\ndrew largely from Oriental fictions. Thus, for example, in _The Boke\nof Duke Huon of Burdeux_, among the many wonders which the hero sees\nin his journey to the court of the Soudan of Babylon is an underground\nriver, the bed of which was composed of the most precious stones, which\npossessed a variety of curative properties.\n\n[143] \u201cThe heavenly orbs, according to the principles of philosophy,\npossess a reasonable mind.\u201d\u2014_Akhl\u00e1k-i Jal\u00e1l\u00ed._ \u201cThis,\u201d remarks W.F.\nThomson, the translator, \u201cis inferred from continuity of motion and\ninfluence without perceptible external cause, and it seems men\u2019s earliest\nconclusion and the origin of star-worship. Admitting Plato\u2019s notion\nthat souls were introduced, or perhaps kindled, by the heavenly bodies,\nnothing could be more reasonable than to attempt, by observation and\ninduction, to ascertain the influence contributed by each. The premises\nonly are to be attacked; and for these the chiefs of classical as well as\nOriental literature are responsible.\u201d\n\n[144] The cypress, which is in Europe associated with sombre ideas, is by\nAsiatics commonly employed as a comparison for the graceful stature of a\npretty girl.\n\n[145] Muslims are perfectly familiar with the principal narratives in the\nBible, from which the Kur\u00e1n is largely composed.\n\n[146] Asiatic ladies tinge the inner edges of their eyelids with\nlamp-black in order to increase the lustre of the eyes; it is believed,\nmoreover, to strengthen the sight.\n\n[147] See note 1, p. 250.\n\n[148] This incident is common to folk-tales almost everywhere: sometimes\nit is a bird who gives the hero one of his feathers, which serves the\nsame purpose.\n\n[149] This was a very unusual condescension on the part of the monarch,\neven though in honour of his own sons. The common practice (in Persia)\nis for the sh\u00e1h to send a deputation the distance of two days\u2019 journey\nto meet and welcome any distinguished visitors. The deputation is called\n_istikb\u00e1l_, and those sent, _p\u00edsh v\u00e1z_, openers of the way. A day\u2019s\njourney is twenty miles.\n\n[150] Kettle-drum.\n\n[151] \u201cHappy.\u201d\n\n[152] Similar question and answer occur in the story of \u201cThe Sultan\nof Yaman and his Three Sons,\u201d one of the tales translated by Jonathan\nScott from the Wortley-Montague MS. text of the _Alf Layla wa Layla_, or\nThousand and One Nights, which are comprised in the sixth vol. of his\nedition of the _Arabian Nights Entertainments_, p. 81.\n\n[153] According to Muslim ideas, the shooting stars are stones flung\nat demons who approach the portals of heaven to listen to the divine\ncommunications; and Satan is \u201cstoned\u201d every year by the pilgrims at\nMakka\u2014for which see Burton\u2019s _Pilgrimage to Meccah and Medinah_.\n\n[154] Chief of police.\n\n[155] See note on p. 46.\n\n[156] N\u00fash\u00edrv\u00e1n, surnamed _\u2019Adil_, or the Just (the Chosroes of the\nGreeks), was of the Sassanian dynasty of ancient Persian kings, and died,\nafter a very prosperous reign of 48 years, A.D. 579. Muhammed was wont\nto boast of his good fortune in having been born during the reign of so\nwise and just a prince. His dying injunctions to his son and successor,\nHormuz, are thus recorded by Sa\u2019d\u00ed (_Bust\u00e1n_, B. i): \u201cBe thou in heart\nthe guardian of the poor. Be not in bondage to thine own ease. No one\nwill live in comfort in thy kingdom if thou desirest only thine own\ncomfort and sayest, \u2018It is enough.\u2019 He will receive no praise from the\nwise who passeth his nights in sleep whilst the wolf is amidst his flock.\nKeep watch over the necessitous poor; for the peasant it is from which\nthe king deriveth his throne. The king is the tree, the peasant the root:\nthe tree, O my son, deriveth its strength from the root.\u201d\n\n[157] Garcin de Tassy omits this curious story, and another which\nimmediately follows in the original text, related by the vaz\u00edr, of the\nDarvesh and the Nightingale, which I also omit here, as a much better\nversion will be found among the PERSIAN STORIES which follow the present\nromance.\n\n[158] \u201cBeautiful kingdom.\u201d\n\n[159] In other words: \u201cSucceed in this affair without compromising my\ndignity; according to the proverb, \u2018Take care while shunning one evil of\nfalling into another.\u2019\u201d\u2014See Roebuck\u2019s _Persian and Hind\u00fastan\u00ed Proverbs_,\npart ii, p. 118.\n\n[160] The canopy of a howdah, or chair for riding on an elephant, called\n_hauda-am\u00e1ri_\u2014canopied howdah.\n\n[161] See note on page 271.\n\n[162] This recalls an incident in the Indian story of the virtuous\nDevasmit\u00e1, who entraps four suitors, during her husband\u2019s absence on\na trading journey, who visit her in succession, and, while they are\ninsensible from the effects of a narcotic mixed with their wine, causes\neach to be branded on the forehead with a hot iron. The suitors return\nto their own country, where the lady\u2019s husband is residing for a time,\nand Devasmit\u00e1 soon after sets out thither, disguised as a man, where\nshe claims all four as her slaves in presence of the king, causing\nthem to remove their head-gear and expose the brands; and she \u201clets\nthem off\u201d on payment of a large sum of money.\u2014(Tawney\u2019s translation of\nthe _Kath\u00e1 Sarit S\u00e1gara_: Ocean of the Streams of Story, vol. i, pp.\n85-92.)\u2014Henceforward the four rascally brothers of T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak are, as\nthe Icelandic story-tellers say, \u201cout of this tale.\u201d\n\n[163] \u201cJasmine-face.\u201d\n\n[164] Sh\u00edr\u00edn was the beautiful wife of Khusrau Parv\u00edz, king of Persia,\nand Farh\u00e1d, a famous sculptor, was madly enamoured of her. All the\nsculptures on the mountain of Bist\u00e1n are ascribed to Farh\u00e1d\u2019s chisel.\nAccording to the popular tradition, King Parv\u00edz promised that if he cut\nthrough the rock and brought a stream that flowed on the other side of\nthe hill into the valley the lovely Sh\u00edr\u00edn should be his reward. He was\non the point of completing his Herculean labour when Khusrau Parv\u00edz,\nfearing to lose Sh\u00edr\u00edn, sent an old woman to inform him that she was\ndead. Farh\u00e1d was then at the highest parts of the rocks, and on hearing\nthis false report in despair threw himself down headlong, and was dashed\nto pieces.\u2014The story of Farh\u00e1d and Sh\u00edr\u00edn is the subject of several\nbeautiful (often, if not always, mystical) Persian and Turkish poems.\n\n[165] G. de Tassy remarks that \u201ca declaration of love on the part of\na woman, and especially one so passionate, is not according to our\nmanners, but it is so to those of the East; and the numerous Asiatic\nstories which have been translated into European languages have rendered\nit quite familiar to us.\u201d\u2014A very remarkable example is furnished in the\nimmortal tale of Nala and Damayanti (_Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_, section lvi of the\n\u201cVana Parva\u201d), where the virtuous and beautiful daughter of Vidharba thus\naddresses Nala: \u201cO King, love me with proper regard, and command me what\nI shall do for thee. Myself and what of wealth is mine are thine. Grant\nme, O exalted one, thy love in full trust. O giver of the proper honour,\nif thou forsake me who adore thee, for thy sake will I resort to poison,\nor fire, or water, or the rope!\u201d Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed \u201cspared her maiden blushes\u201d (if\nshe _could_ blush) by expressing her love for our hero in writing; but\nDamayanti\u2014all truth and innocence\u2014made her avowal to the god-like king\nof the Nishadhas in words from her own sweet mouth: and who would not be\nenraptured to hear such a soft confession made to him by such a peerless\nQueen of Beauty?\n\n[166] Not the _images_ in Chinese temples, which are described by\ntravellers as very hideous, but the beautiful women of China. Persian\npoets often term pretty girls _idols_, and themselves _idolators_, for\nworshipping them.\n\n[167] _Surma_ is the black ore of antimony, or ter-sulphide. The Muslim\nmen apply antimony to their eyelids, but their women use _kohl_, or\nlamp-black, for this purpose. It is a popular belief among Indian\nMuslims that the finest kind of _surma_ comes from Arabia\u2014from the hills\nof Sinai or Tur, etc. They have a legend that when Moses was on Mount\nSinai he asked that the glory of God should be shown to him. He was\nanswered that his mortal sight could not bear the glory; but through\na chink of the rock a ray of light was allowed to fall on him, and\nthe rock on which the ray fell was melted into antimony. (Balfour\u2019s\n_Cyclop\u00e6dia of India_.)\u2014There is a curious legend current in the Panj\u00e1b\nregarding the origin of the antimony which is found on the summit of\nMount Karangl\u00ed, near Pind D\u00e1dan Kh\u00e1n, in the Jhelan district. A fak\u00edr\n(religious mendicant) once came from Kashm\u00edr and asked the name of the\nmountain, and was told that it was called Karangl\u00ed. He at once exclaimed:\n\u201c_Karangl\u00ed sone rangl\u00ed!_\u201d that is, Karangl\u00ed the gold-coloured; whereupon\nthe mountain became all gold. This frightened the good people of the\nneighbourhood, who dreaded that the place should become a general\nbattle-field for the sake of the gold. So the fak\u00edr said: \u201c_Karangl\u00ed\nsurme rangl\u00ed!_\u201d that is, Karangl\u00ed the antimony-coloured, upon which the\nmountain became all antimony. This antimony is now to be found on the\ntop of it, but as it is surrounded by precipices the antimony cannot be\nreached, and so the people have to wait until pieces of it are washed\ndown by the rains. When procured it is most valuable, and will, if used\nfor eight days, restore to sight all those who have become blind through\nsickness or accident. It cannot, however, cure those who are born blind.\n\n[168] \u201cBeautiful Lady\u201d\u2014\u201cLady Beautiful.\u201d\n\n[169] \u201cHappy King\u201d\u2014\u201cKing Prosperous.\u201d\n\n[170] See note 1, page 259.\n\n[171] In a Buddhist work entitled _W\u00e6sak\u00e1ra-sataka_ (a hundred stanzas)\nis the following: \u201cThe evil man is to be avoided, though he be arrayed\nin the robe of all the sciences, as we flee from the serpent, though\nit be adorned with the _kantha_ jewel.\u201d The natives of Ceylon, says\nSpence Hardy, believe that this gem is to be found in the throat of the\n_nay\u00e1_. \u201cIt emits a light more brilliant than the purest diamond; and\nwhen the serpent wishes to discover anything in the dark it disgorges\nthe substance, swallowing it again when its work is done. It is thought\npossible to obtain the jewel by throwing dust upon it when out of the\nserpent\u2019s mouth; but if the reptile should be killed to obtain it,\nmisfortune would certainly follow.\u201d\u2014_Eastern Monachism_, p. 316. (See\nalso note, _ante_, p. 232.)\n\n[172] A kind of hill-starling.\n\n[173] Our hero understood bird-language, and the author has probably\nomitted to mention that he acquired that knowledge by possessing the\nsnake-stone. In the folk-tales of all countries we find that great\nbenefits accrue to a forlorn hero by his overhearing the conversation\nof birds or beasts, and of demons in Indian stories. The reader will\nfind much to interest him on this subject in an able paper on the\nLanguage of Animals by Mr. J. G. Frazer in the first vol. of the\n_Arch\u00e6ological Review_, 1888; and I may be permitted to refer him also to\nmy Introduction to John Lane\u2019s _Continuation of Chaucer\u2019s Squire\u2019s Tale_,\npublished for the Chaucer Society.\n\n[174] The transformed prince having given birth to a child was\nceremonially unclean for the period of forty days.\u2014See the note on pp.\n140, 141.\n\n[175] Here our author exhorts his readers.\n\n[176] K\u00e1f is a range of mountains which, like a vast ring, enclose the\nCircumambient Ocean (_Bahru-\u2019l-Muh\u00edt_) that surrounds the whole earth,\nwhich, according to the Muhammedan cosmography, is flat, not round.\nThese mountains are composed of green chrysolite, the reflection of\nwhich causes the greenish (or blueish) tint of the sky. (See Mr. E. J.\nW. Gibb\u2019s _Ottoman Poems_, note 6.)\u2014\u201cFrom K\u00e1f to K\u00e1f\u201d: from end to end\nof the earth.\u2014Bist\u00e1n is the famous mountain on which Farh\u00e1d chiselled\nfigures.\n\n[177] \u201cSoul-expander\u201d\u2014\u201cVivifier.\u201d\n\n[178] \u201cVictorious King.\u201d\n\n[179] Here we have a fairy island called \u201cParadise,\u201d as we have before\nhad a city of the same name, where the artful Dilbar resided\u2014p. 244.\n\n[180] A proud and wicked king of Yaman, called Shaddad, according to the\nMuhammedan legend, declared blasphemously: \u201cThere is no necessity for\nParadise for me: I myself will make a Paradise of which no man can have\nbeheld the like.\u201d He sent his officers to find out a suitable spot for a\ngarden, and they discovered such a place on the borders of Syria, where\nShaddad, at an immense cost, caused a palace to be erected of gold and\nsilver bricks in alternate courses, and adorned with the most precious\nstones. In the garden were placed trees of gold and silver, the fruit of\nwhich was amethysts, rubies, and other gems (see also _ante_, p. 166,\nnote on Treasure-trees); and the ground was strewed with musk, ambergris,\nand saffron. They called this place the Rose Garden of Iram. When Shaddad\nwas about to enter it, accompanied by a vast multitude of troops and\nattendants, he was met by the Angel of Death, who forthwith seized his\nimpure soul, and then the lightnings of heaven destroyed all living\ncreatures that were there, and the Rose Garden of Iram became hidden from\nthe sight of men.\u2014In the present romance the abode of the parents of\nBak\u00e1wal\u00ed is called the Garden of Iram, to indicate its magnificence.\n\n[181] One of the numerous legends told by Muslims regarding Solomon\nreappears in the Turkish story-book entitled _Qirq vez\u00edr tar\u00edkh\u00ed_, where\nwe read that the sage Hebrew king despatched the s\u00edmurgh\u2014a fabulous bird,\nsimilar to the _rukh_ (or _roc_) of Arabian fictions\u2014to bring the sparrow\nto his court. But the sparrow, being then with his mate, refused to obey\nthe prophet, or his messenger, and vaunted his prowess and strength,\ndeclaring that he was able to pull down Solomon\u2019s palace. When the\ns\u00edmurgh reported this to Solomon he replied: \u201cThere is no harm in one\nthus bragging in his own house, and before his wife.\u201d\u2014See Gibb\u2019s _Forty\nVez\u00edrs_, p. 97 ff.\n\n[182] The _m\u00e1n_ has varied at different periods and in different parts of\nPersia and India; but our author means us to understand that the stone\nwielded by the demon was very ponderous\u2014three or four hundred pounds\u2019\nweight at the least, which would doubtless be to _him_ as a mere \u201cpebble\nout of the brook\u201d!\n\n[183] \u201cAdorner of Beauty\u201d; the wife of Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h.\n\n[184] Yet we are told that he is \u201ca _little_ lower than the angels\u201d; and\nif he was \u201ccreated perfect,\u201d he has \u201csought out many inventions\u201d! It is\namusing how Muslim writers exaggerate the \u201cdignity\u201d of man: generally he\nis the most contemptible creature on the face of the earth.\n\n[185] Cf. Shakspeare: \u201ctongues in trees,\u201d etc. And the Persian poet\nSa\u2019d\u00ed: \u201cThe foliage of a newly-clothed tree, to the eye of a discerning\nman, displays a volume of the wondrous works of the Creator.\u201d\n\n[186] Joseph, the son of Jacob the Hebrew patriarch.\u2014A most dutiful\nlittle speech this: O the hypocritical young creature!\n\n[187] Although Muhammed strictly prohibited the drinking of wine,\neven more potent liquors are indulged in by many Muslims, especially\nthose of the _shi\u2019ah_ persuasion. The more strict _s\u00fan\u00eds_ create for\nthemselves a \u201cparadise of fools\u201d with narcotics, such as _bang_ and other\npreparations of which opium is the principal ingredient, satisfying\ntheir \u201cconsciences\u201d with the quibble that the holy Prophet does not\nforbid its use in express terms\u2014an omission which is probably due to his\nignorance of such deleterious drugs. The old pagan Arabs were inordinate\nwine-bibbers, as we learn from their poetry, and sanguinary fights were a\nfrequent result between rival factions when they assembled from different\ndistricts at Makka. Muhammed at first attempted, by a \u201crevelation\u201d in the\nKur\u00e1n, to restrain this propensity within reasonable bounds, and finding\nthis of no effect prohibited wine altogether. It seems to have been a\nvery ancient custom among Asiatics to drink wine in the early morning,\nand in the _Mu\u2019allaka_ poems, which were suspended in the Temple at\nMakka before the advent of Muhammed, the \u201cmorning draught\u201d is frequently\nmentioned, with evident _gusto_. The prophet Isaiah exclaims: \u201cWoe unto\nthose that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong\ndrink; that continue till night, till wine inflame them!\u201d\u2014ch. v, 11.\n\n[188] See the note on p. 8.\n\n[189] _Nau Ratn_: \u201cthe Nine Gems,\u201d an ornament worn on the arm, which\nindicates the only gems that are esteemed as precious. They are: the\ndiamond, ruby, emerald, sapphire, topaz, pearl, coral, hyacinth,\ncarbuncle. The inferior gems, such as agate, bloodstone, etc., are mostly\nused for signet-rings.\u2014There is a collection of tales, in the Urd\u00fa,\nentitled _Nauratan_, compiled by Mahj\u00far, and published at Lucknow in the\nyear 1811. It consists of nine stories (hence the title, \u201cNine Jewels\u201d),\nwhich all turn on the deceits (_char\u00edtr_) and tricks of women and are\nmostly taken from the Book of Sindib\u00e1d.\n\n[190] Frequent allusion is made in the _Arabian Nights_ and in Eastern\namatory poetry to this singular kind of caress.\n\n[191] The _henna_ of the Persians\u2014see note on page 11. Mehnd\u00ed is the\n_Lawsonia alba_ of botanists, and the water distilled from its flowers is\nused as a perfume.\n\n[192] Indra, in the Hind\u00fa mythology, is the god of thunder\u2014a\npersonification of the sky. His paradise is Swerga, the capital of which\nis Armar\u00e0vati, or Amarnagar in Urd\u00fa.\n\n[193] He could not, therefore, have been one of the \u201cimmortals,\u201d but of a\nrace like the jinn or the par\u00eds, who are subject to death, though their\nexistence is prolonged greatly beyond that of mere human beings.\n\n[194] This is quite after the manner of Asiatic despots\u2014and the deity\nIndra is here nothing better\u2014and at once recalls a similar incident,\nwhich cost a good man his head: when the daughter of Herodias danced\nbefore King Herod, he was so charmed with that young light-skirt\u2019s\nperformance that he said to her: \u201cAsk whatsoever thou wilt, and I will\ngive it thee\u201d (Mark vi, 22).\n\n[195] This transformation will remind readers of the tale of the young\nKing of the Ebony Isles in the _Arabian Nights_.\u2014The deities of the Hind\u00fa\nmythology are frequently represented as condemning inferior celestials\nwho have offended them to be re-born on the earth, in the form of a human\nbeing, or as some beast, bird, or reptile, so to remain for a certain\nperiod. But this punishment of Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed is more in accordance with Muslim\nideas.\n\n[196] \u201cMark of Beauty.\u201d\n\n[197] Like the one-eyed young men in the Arabian tale of the Second\nKalander, or Royal Mendicant\u2014only _they_ suffered for their curiosity\nwhile these (as we shall just see) were the victims of a hard-hearted\nbeauty.\n\n[198] \u201cPicture-like.\u201d\n\n[199] This recalls Milton\u2019s well-worn lines in his description of \u201cour\ncommon mother\u201d Eve:\n\n \u201cGrace was in every step, heaven in her eye,\n In every gesture dignity and love.\u201d\n\nThe \u201cwitchery,\u201d or \u201cmagic,\u201d of a pretty girl\u2019s eyes is quite as common\na subject of complaint, or admiration, in Western as in Eastern amatory\npoetry: by Muslims it is called \u201cBabylonian magic,\u201d because the Chaldeans\nwere past masters in magical arts.\n\n[200] According to the Hind\u00fas, there are ten stages of love: (1) Love of\nthe eyes; (2) attachment of the mind; (3) the production of desire; (4)\nsleeplessness; (5) emaciation; (6) indifference to objects of sense; (7)\nloss of shame; (8) distraction; (9) fainting; (10) death!\n\n[201] Betel: the areca or Penang nut palm grown in many parts of the\nEast Indies. Its kernel is used as a masticatory in India and elsewhere.\nThe nut is carried in pouches and presented to guests in the houses of\nthe rich on silver trays wrapped in gold and silver leaf, and in this\nform becomes an essential part in all ceremonial visits. Indeed, among\nsome of the inhabitants of the Eastern Archipelago, to refuse the betel\nwhen offered would give unpardonable offence. It is believed to sweeten\nthe breath, strengthen the stomach, and preserve the teeth; and when\nchewed with betel leaf (the Piper betel, _Linn._) it gives the saliva\na red colour, which it imparts also to the lips and gums (_Balfour_).\nThe presentation of betel to visitors is a signal that the audience or\ninterview is ended.\n\n[202] \u201cBlameless\u201d: \u201cspotless.\u201d\n\n[203] \u201cBright.\u201d\n\n[204] See page 299.\n\n[205] The story of Joseph and Potiphar\u2019s wife, Zulaykh\u00e1 (which was her\nname, according to Muslim legends), is a favourite subject of several\nPersian poems. She is said to have visited the young Hebrew slave in\nprison, but he would not gain his liberty at the cost of his chastity.\nPotiphar is represented to have been a eunuch. In the end Zulaykh\u00e1 is\nunited to her beloved Joseph.\n\n[206] _\u2019itr-i gul_\u2014essence of roses. Our term \u201cotto\u201d is a corruption\nof _\u2019itr_ or _\u2019att\u00e1r_, this latter word also signifies a perfumer, or\ndruggist.\u2014Most women, I suppose, are fond of perfumes, but Eastern ladies\nare passionately so, and the description of Chitrawat as being so highly\n\u201cscented\u201d that the finest odours were diffused around her, is fully\nborne out by travellers and Europeans who have resided in Egypt, Turkey,\nPersia, etc. The sole nourishment of par\u00eds, or fairies, it is said,\nconsists of perfumes\u2014a pretty idea, if nothing more.\n\n[207] Because these were signs that he was newly married.\n\n[208] A manly, straightforward, even touching statement in defence of his\nconduct in peculiar circumstances, and such as is rarely met with in an\nEastern tale. Our author is here at his best, and this is saying not a\nlittle.\n\n[209] \u201cThe falling out of faithful friends renewing is of love!\u201d\n\n[210] The doctrine of metempsychosis has no place in the creed of\nIsl\u00e1m and it is quite phenomenal to find such an incident as this\nin a Muhammedan work. Many Persian and Arabian fictions, like the\npresent romance, are of Indian extraction, but the Hind\u00fa characters of\nthe originals are always\u2014with only this exception, as well as I can\nrecollect\u2014changed to good Muslims.\n\n[211] In India early marriages of girls are the almost invariable rule;\nindeed they are often married, or betrothed, in infancy. A Br\u00e1hman girl\nwho grows up without being married loses her caste. The duty of choosing\na husband belongs in the first place to her father, and if he be dead,\nthen to her paternal grandfather if he be alive, then to her brother,\ncousin, and lastly to her mother. If she have reached the age of eight\nyears without having been provided with a husband, she may choose for\nherself.\n\n[212] Oriental hyperbole, of which we have a very striking example in the\nlast verse of the apostle John\u2019s gospel.\n\n[213] Bahr\u00e1m is the Persian name of the planet Mars; and of all who have\never borne the name, the Persian king Bahr\u00e1m-i Gh\u00far (so called from his\npassion for hunting the wild ass) is the most renowned in song or story.\n\n[214] In the East no person ever visits his superior without carrying in\nhis hand a present of some kind, called the _nazar_ in Persian.\u2014See the\nFirst Book of Samuel, ix, 7.\n\n[215] To wit, _Mulk-i Nigh\u00e1r\u00edn_, the country appropriated by T\u00e1j\nul-Mul\u00fak, where he caused his grand palace to be erected by the\nfairies.\u2014See _ante_, p. 281.\n\n[216] A much greater \u201ccrush\u201d than even that in Ceylon!\u2014see preceding page.\n\n[217] See _ante_, notes on pp. 232 and 297.\n\n[218] \u201cViolet.\u201d\n\n[219] \u201cTo account for the allegorical passion entertained by the\nnightingale for the rose, which is the subject of so much beautiful\nimagery in Persian poetry, we must consider,\u201d says Sir William Ouseley,\n\u201cthat the plaintive voice of that sweet bird is first heard at the\nsame season of the year in which the rose begins to blow. By a natural\nassociation of ideas they are therefore connected as the constant and\ninseparable attendants of the spring. It is probable, too, that the\nnightingale\u2019s favourite retreat may be the rose-garden, and the leaves\nof that flower occasionally its food; but it is certain that he is\ndelighted with its odour and sometimes indulges the fragrant luxury (if I\nmay be allowed the expression) to such excess as to fall from the branch\nintoxicated and helpless to the ground.\u201d\u2014_Persian Miscellanies_, p. 91.\n\n[220] The transformation of a man into a bird occurs very often in\nAsiatic fictions: there are numerous instances in the _Kath\u00e1 Sarit\nS\u00e1gara_ and other Indian collections. This is commonly done by fastening\na string round the victim\u2019s neck, or sticking a pin in his head, and\nuttering certain magical words; and by removing the string or the pin the\nman is at once restored to his natural form.\n\n[221] Here, in the original, the pious author thus addresses his reader:\n\u201cMy friend, you are as blind as they! You seek at Heaven\u2019s footstool for\nthe Being who dwells, without your suspecting it, in the habitation of\nyour own heart. You seek far, far away, when he is quite near.\u201d Cf. Acts,\nxvii, 27.\n\n[222] \u201cRose-cheek.\u201d\n\n[223] Oriental poetry abounds in conceits of this kind. Thus W\u00e1sif, the\ncelebrated Persian historian and poet, apostrophises his lady-love:\n\u201cThe impression of the happy moments passed in thy loved presence will\nnever be obliterated from the tablet of my heart, whilst the world\nrevolves and the stars continue their course. The pen of intense love\nhas so vividly written Eternal Affection on the page of my soul, that if\nmy body languish, nay, even if my life expire, that soft impress will\nremain.\u201d\u2014But our own poet Cowley is not a whit less extravagant when he\ndeclares:\n\n \u201cLet Nature, if she please, disperse\n My atoms over all the universe;\n At the last they easily shall\n Themselves know, and together call;\n For thy love, like a mark, is stampt on all\u2014\n\n ALL OVER LOVE!\u201d\n\n[224] The _tika_ is a round piece of clay, paint, or tissue on the\nforehead of a Hind\u00fa, indicating his caste. Amongst Hind\u00fas generally it\nmeans the circular mark made with coloured earths, or unguents, on the\nforehead. It is curious that this purely Hind\u00fa term should have been\nretained by a Muslim writer; but it is another indication of the Indian\norigin of the romance.\n\n[225] Although Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed and R\u00fah-afz\u00e1 are supposed to be fairies, yet they\nact as real flesh-and-blood women. And how like is this charming little\nscene between the two affectionate girls to what has doubtless occurred\nthousands of times amongst ourselves! If there be, as that shrewd\nobserver Sam Slick assures us, \u201ca deal of human natur\u2019 in man,\u201d there is,\nas certainly, a deal of _woman_ nature in woman all the world over.\n\n[226] For descriptions of the marriage ceremonies among the Muhammedans\nof India see Herklots\u2019 translation of the _Qanoon-i Isl\u00e1m_, p. 93 ff.;\n_Observations on the Mussulmans of India_, by Mrs. Meer Hasan Ali, vol.\ni, p. 352 ff.; and a paper on Hind\u00fa and Muhammedan marriage ceremonies,\nby Col. C. Mackenzie, in the _Trans. of the Royal Asiatic Society_, vol.\niii, p. 170 ff.\n\n[227] Truly a most promising beginning! Such is the inflated style which\nalone is appreciated by the modern Persians and the Muslims of India.\nFor since the decline of literature in Persia\u2014which began soon after the\ndeath of the justly-celebrated poet Jam\u00ed, in A.D. 1492\u2014the compositions\nof Persian authors have been chiefly characterised by puerile conceits\nand meaningless plays upon words and phrases, for which indeed the\nlanguage furnishes every facility. Nevertheless, the reader can hardly\nfail to be highly diverted with the following tale, which the writer has\nsimply re-dressed in his own style, for assuredly he was not its inventor.\n\n[228] Here the author is employing the various processes of the Eastern\nbath in describing the chattering of three ladies who have \u201cforegathered\u201d\nthere.\u2014\u201cThe Persian ladies,\u201d says Sir R. Ker Porter, in his _Travels\nin Georgia, Persia_, etc., vol. i, 233, \u201cregard the bath as the place\nof their greatest amusement; they make appointments to meet there, and\noften pass seven or eight hours together in the carpeted saloon, telling\nstories, relating anecdotes, eating sweetmeats, sharing their kalyouns\n[pipes] and embellishing their beautiful forms with all the fancied\nperfection of the East; dyeing their hair and eyebrows; and curiously\nstaining their fair bodies with a variety of fantastic devices, not\nunfrequently with the figures of trees and birds, the sun, moon, and\nstars.\u201d\n\n[229] A purely imaginary personage, of course, invented and introduced by\nthe author, because he had just mentioned a ring set with a fine gem.\u2014The\nreader will find many similar absurdities in the course of the narrative,\nand I need make no farther remark upon them.\n\n[230] Eastern baths are used by men and women on different days of every\nweek.\n\n[231] Shamsah is the name of a sorceress who figures in several Asiatic\nfictions.\n\n[232] Banafsh\u00e1: Violet, the name of the girl.\n\n[233] Sums of money mean nothing in an Eastern story: 1000 d\u00ednars would\nbe equivalent to about 500 pounds, English currency; but were the amount\neven in dirhams the carpenter would be giving the girl 25 pounds\u2014a\nhandsome \u201ctip\u201d indeed!\n\n[234] Among Muslims when the moon is new or full is the preferable time\nfor marriage, but she must be clear of the sign of the Scorpion, which is\nconsidered very unlucky.\n\n[235] Bilk\u00eds, according to Muslim tradition, was the name of the\ncelebrated Queen of Sheba, who visited Solomon \u201cin all his glory.\u201d Many\ncurious legends, or stories, are related, both by the Rabbins and the\nMuslims, regarding Solomon and Bilk\u00eds. It is said that Solomon had been\ntold by some slanderer that she had goats\u2019 feet and legs. In order to\nascertain the fact, he caused the floor of the audience-chamber to be\nlaid with glass or crystal. When Bilk\u00eds entered the chamber and perceived\nwhat looked like clear water on the floor, she gracefully raised the\nskirt of her dress a few inches, to save it from being wetted, and\nSolomon saw, to his great relief, that she had a pair of \u201cnatty\u201d little\nhuman feet. We are told in the Bible that the Queen of Sheba plied the\nsage monarch with \u201chard questions,\u201d but he answered them every one (1\nKings, x, 1-3). So much was Solomon charmed with her sagacity, virtue,\nand modesty, that he ultimately married her.\u2014Our friend the K\u00e1z\u00ed, to\nmollify his wife, calls her a second Bilk\u00eds.\n\n[236] The usual exclamation of a Muslim when he believes the Devil is\nplaying him some mischievous trick.\u2014See note on page 277.\n\n[237] An abstract of this story will be found in the Appendix.\n\n[238] The carpenter is a curious compound of shrewdness and simplicity:\nnot content to vaunt his acquaintance with popular tales, he must add\nthat his father daily passed by a famous school-house\u2014implying that\nthe _knowledge_ supposed to be thus obtained by his parent had been\ntransmitted to himself! The K\u00e1z\u00ed is no doubt \u201call there,\u201d but for his\nlove of money and jealousy of his artful wife. We have the authority of\na certain noble poet that avarice is \u201ca good old-gentlemanly vice\u201d; but\nnobody can say a word in favour of jealousy, the \u201cgreen-eyed monster,\u201d\nwho caused the death of sweet Desdemona.\n\n[239] \u201cPut a feather in his bonnet\u201d is not quite the Eastern expression,\nthough its meaning is thus fairly enough rendered in English: the\ncarpenter may be said, in Biblical phrase, to have \u201cexalted his horn\u201d\u2014as\nthe poet Burns has it in his verses on his first visit to Lord Dare, \u201cup\nhigher yet my bannet!\u201d We used also to say of a man who evidently thought\nhighly of himself that he \u201ccocked his beaver.\u201d\n\n[240] We have also seen in the story of Sh\u00e1h Manssur, p. 18, how the\nunchaste woman made her husband believe that he was mad.\u2014The K\u00e1z\u00ed\nascribes his imaginary ailment to over-eating, but also, as I understand\nit, to the fact that the food of which he partook too freely had been\nbaked in _hog\u2019s blood_. Swine\u2019s flesh is an abomination to the Muslim as\nto the Jew, though the law allows the former to eat any kind of food if\nhe be pressed by hunger and nothing else can be procured. Possibly the\nworthy K\u00e1z\u00ed at the time he was in the house of the deceased K\u00e1vas the\nArmenian\u2014where hog\u2019s flesh and hog\u2019s blood might well be found\u2014thought\nthat his condition, as to appetite, justified his eating of the \u201cfuneral\nbaked meats,\u201d though partly composed of the unclean animal.\n\n[241] The muezzin was proclaiming the hour of prayer.\n\n[242] Ibl\u00eds: Satan. Possibly Ibl\u00eds is a corruption of Diabolus.\u2014Artful,\nintriguing women are often described as being able to pull out the\nDevil\u2019s claws, and Satan himself would confess there was no escaping from\ntheir cunning!\n\n[243] There is an omission in this tale which leaves it practically\npointless, since it is not apparent how the lady\u2019s words, \u201cI remember,\u201d\nshould have sent her husband away without his having opened the chest.\nMuch the same tale occurs in Mr. Gibb\u2019s translation of the Turkish\nstory-book, _Qirq vez\u00edr tar\u00edkh\u00ed_ (\u201cHistory of the Forty Vaz\u00edrs,\u201d p.\n401), in which a man and his wife are playing the game _yad est_, or\n\u201cI remember\u201d\u2014a game that may continue for days, and even weeks, the\nconditions being that neither must accept of anything from the other\nwithout saying, \u201cI remember\u201d; should one of them do so, the other on\nrepeating these words becomes entitled to a forfeit. In the Turkish\nstory, as, quite obviously, in the foregoing, the husband has taken a\n_yad est_ with his wife, and is led by the latter to believe that she had\nmade these preparations as for a feast, and trumped up the story about\nhaving concealed her lover in the chest, in order to take him by surprise\nwhen she should give him the key, and by his omitting to say \u201cI remember\u201d\nshe should win the forfeit.\n\n[244] Sumbul: Hyacinth, the name of the youth.\n\n[245] An order of religious mendicants.\n\n[246] Narkis: Narcissus, the name of one of his servants.\n\n[247] See note on page 303, and note 1 on page 306.\n\n[248] The Vaz\u00edr forgot that he had previously told the king that the\nKhoja was \u201cnotorious for his immorality\u201d\u2014p. 392.\n\n[249] Among the slanderous sayings about women ascribed (falsely, many\nof them, no doubt) to Muhammed is this: \u201cThey are deficient in sense\nand religion, and hence are more disposed than men to practise what is\nunlawful.\u201d\u2014In Eastern tales most magical things are done by women.\n\n[250] In the \u201cHistory of Farrukhr\u00faz\u201d\u2014p. 179\u2014we find that it is dangerous\nto open shops before sunrise, because if shopkeepers do so they become\nliable to be injured by genii and demons; and it will be seen from the\npresent story that the wretched narrator had too much cause to regret his\n\u201cearly opening\u201d practice.\n\n[251] We see from this story that Oriental sharpers are not a whit\nbehind their European brethren in swindling tricks\u2014such as, despite the\npublicity given to them in the newspapers, continue to be perpetrated\nevery day in great cities.\n\n[252] Mahm\u00fad ruled in Ghazn\u00ed from A.D. 997 till A.D. 1030. It was at his\nrequest that the Persian poet Firdaus\u00ed composed his grand epic, the _Sh\u00e1h\nN\u00e1ma_, or Book of Kings.\n\n[253] It is seldom such a sentiment occurs in Eastern books. Alms-giving\nis enjoined by the Kur\u00e1n on all who have anything to give, and the\nrapacity of Asiatic despots has not been conducive to a spirit of\nindependence among their subjects.\n\n[254] A parasang is a Persian measure of three or four miles, more or\nless in different countries.\n\n[255] That is to say, all who are outside the pale of Isl\u00e1m; like\nGentiles with the Jews, and Barbarians with the Greeks.\n\n[256] A most absurd idea, and a foul slander on the \u201cchosen people\u201d\u2014not\nto say that _all_ are to be considered as \u201cIsraelites indeed,\u201d and so\nforth. During the middle ages in Europe it was generally believed that\nthe Jews, on certain of their religious festivals, stole and murdered\nlittle Christian children!\u2014See the Tale of the Prioress in Chaucer\u2019s\n_Canterbury Tales_, and in _Originals and Analogues_ (printed for the\nChaucer Society, pp. 251, 257), \u201cThe Boy killed by a Jew for singing\n\u2018Gaude Maria!\u2019\u201d and \u201cThe Paris Beggar-boy murdered by a Jew for singing\n\u2018Alma redemptoris mater!\u2019\u201d Such idle stories were invented and diligently\ncirculated by the monks, and sore persecution had the unfortunate and\ninnocent Jews to suffer in consequence!\n\n[257] I have read an Indian story very similar to this, in which a\nbrother and sister, children of a king, are accidentally separated, and\nthe young prince falls into the hands of a rascal like the Jew in the\nabove; but I cannot recollect the particular story-book in which it\noccurs.\n\n[258] The first chapter of the Kur\u00e1n; employed by Muslims as the\nPaternoster is among Christians.\n\n[259] The Turks have the proverb: \u201cPatience is of God; haste is of the\nDevil.\u201d\n\n[260] According to the Kur\u00e1n, it was a hoopoe, or lapwing, that brought\nSolomon a description of Sab\u00e1 (or Sheba) and of Bilk\u00eds, its celebrated\nqueen.\n\n[261] Yet once more the number _forty_, which the Jews and their Arabian\ncousins seem always to have regarded with peculiar veneration\u2014see\npages 140, 155, 188, and to the instances there noted I may here add a\nfew others. In the Arabian tale of the Third Calender, his voyage is\nprosperous for _forty_ days, and he is entertained by _forty_ fairy\ndamsels, who absented themselves for _forty_ days. In the tale of Aladdin\nand his Lamp, when his magic palace has disappeared the sultan allows him\n_forty_ days to find it and the princess.\u2014Among other Biblical instances,\n\u201cIsaac was _forty_ years old when he took Rebekah to wife,\u201d Gen. xxv, 20,\nand Esau was of the same age when he wedded two Hittite damsels, Gen.\nxxvi, 34. Eli judged Israel _forty_ years, 1 Samuel, iv, 18. David and\nSolomon each reigned _forty_ years, 2 Samuel, v, 4; 1 Kings, ii, 11, xi,\n42. The \u201ccurious\u201d reader may farther refer to Exodus xxvi, 19; Joshua\nxiv, 7; Judges iii, 11, viii, 28, xiii, 1; 2 Samuel, xv, 7; 1 Kings, vi,\n17, vii, 38; 2 Kings, viii, 9; Ezekiel xxix, 11, 12; Acts xxiii, 21; 2\nCorinthians, xi, 24.\u2014In Wales _forty_ loaves of bread and _forty_ dishes\nof butter are a common quantity in the records of rents paid to the\nbishops of Llandaff. The fee of a bard for his vocal song at a festival\nwas _forty_ pence when he was a disciple, and _twice forty_ for a master.\nThe \u201cunthrifty Heir of Linne,\u201d according to the fine old ballad, tried to\nborrow _forty_ pence of John o\u2019 the Scales, who had become the owner of\nhis lands. And who is not familiar with Wamba\u2019s song, in praise of \u201cForty\nYears,\u201d in Thackeray\u2019s _Rebecca and Rowena_, where we are told that\n\n \u201cForty times over let Michaelmas pass,\n Grizzling hair the brain doth clear;\n Then you know a boy is an ass,\n Then you know the worth of a lass,\n Once you\u2019ve come to Forty Year!\u201d\n\nAnd do we not speak of a buxom dame as \u201cfat, fair, and _forty_\u201d?\n\n[262] Still in man\u2019s attire, of course.\n\n[263] The painter not being permitted to behold her face. This often\noccurs in Persian stories; but I have seen many native pictures of\nPersian women of all classes, which were evidently portraits and could\nnot all have been drawn in the manner above described. Judging from those\npictures, the in-door clothing of Persian ladies is extremely scanty; but\nit should be recollected that they are not seen in the haram apartments\nby any but women and children and very near male relatives. The \u201cfull\u201d\ndress of European ladies is much more reprehensible than the in-door\ndress of their Persian sisters (if indeed that of the latter maybe\nconsidered at all \u201cimproper\u201d), since it exposes the greater part of the\nbosom and the shoulders and the spine to _public view_!\n\n[264] \u201cCast thy bread upon the waters,\u201d saith the Preacher, \u201cand thou\nshalt find it after many days\u201d (Eccl. xi, 1); but here the reformed\nrobber finds it\u2014or rather, more than its equivalent\u2014every day. This\nnotion of the loaves he threw daily into the river reappearing to him in\nthe form of two celestial youths is certainly of Buddhist origin, and\nwas, with many other essentially Buddhist ideas, adopted by the Br\u00e1hmans\nafter they got the upper hand of their rivals and drove them out of\nIndia. In the _Hitopadesa_ (Friendly Counsel), a Sanskrit collection of\napologues and tales, Book iii, fab. 10, a pious soldier is directed in a\nvision by Kuvera, the god of wealth, to stand in the morning behind his\ndoor, club in hand, and the beggar who should come into the court knock\ndown with his club, when he will instantly become a pot full of gold.\nA similar story is found in the Persian _T\u00fat\u00ed N\u00e1ma_ (Parrot Book) of\nNakhshab\u00ed, where a merchant is thus rewarded who had given away all his\nwealth to the poor.\n\n[265] In another part of the romance we read of a wondrous stone, called\nthe Shah-muhra, which, when fastened on the arm, enabled the wearer to\nsee all the treasures of gold and gems that are hid in the bowels of the\nearth.\n\n[266] An abridged and \u201cimproved\u201d version of the romance of _Hatim Ta\u00ef_\nwas printed at Calcutta about the year 1825, of which a translation\u2014by\nJames Atkinson, I understand\u2014reprinted from the Calcutta _Government\nGazette_, appeared in the _Asiatic Journal_, March-June 1829. Whoever may\nhave been the learned M\u00fansh\u00ed that made this version, he has certainly\ntaken most unwarrantable liberties with his original. Thus: Husn B\u00e1n\u00fa\u2019s\nfather dies, leaving her \u201can orphan, _poor_, and unprotected.\u201d She\nhas the misfortune to \u201cattract the admiration of a darvesh,\u201d whom she\n\u201cindignantly spurned from her presence.\u201d The darvesh goes to the king\nand complains that \u201ca certain woman has solicited me to marry her, and\nnot being able to accomplish her object, enraged at my refusal, she has\nbitterly reproached and even beaten me\u201d! The king orders her to be thrust\nout of the city, and so on. The \u201cman\u201d who appears to her in a vision is\nKhoja Khizar, which however is appropriate, that mystical personage being\nthe tutelary friend of good Muslims in distress. He tells her where she\nmay find the \u201ctreasure of the Seven Kings, buried in seven different\nplaces; seven splendid peacock thrones, adorned with gems beyond all\nprice, and one precious pearl of unequalled beauty. All these are thine.\u201d\nThe king on hearing of her \u201cfind\u201d attempts to seize the contents of six\nof the pits of treasure _by force_, but the gold and gems become serpents\nand dragons. In this version it does not appear that the queries, or\nrather tasks, were suggested by the nurse. Altogether it is much inferior\nto the story as translated by Forbes.\n\n[267] Published at New-York, 1850.\n\n[268] I am greatly indebted to the courtesy of Prof. E. Fagnan, of\nthe \u00c9cole des Lettres, Algiers, for many interesting and important\nparticulars regarding this Turkish work, of which several MS. copies\nare preserved in the Biblioth\u00e8que Nationale, Paris\u2014particulars of which\nI have already made some use in _Originals and Analogues of some of\nChaucer\u2019s Canterbury Tales_, printed for the Chaucer Society, and I hope\nsoon to make still farther use of them in another publication.\n\n[269] Dr. Rieu, of the British Museum, kindly furnished me with the above\noutline of the story, so far as it exists in the MS.\n\n[270] See note, page 163.\n\n[271] _The Lost and Hostile Gospels_, p. 83, by the Rev. S. Baring-Gould,\nwho has pointed out the gross anachronism of making the imaginary\nconflict take place in the presence of Queen Helena.\n\n[272] This romance is ascribed by mere popular tradition, and on no solid\nauthority, to the celebrated poet M\u00edr Khusrau, who died in 1324, A.D.\nAuthentic accounts of the poet make no mention of any such work, and it\nis probably to be assigned to a much later date. An incorrect copy of the\n_Cheh\u00e1r Darvesh_ is described in Dr. Rieu\u2019s _Catalogue of the Persian\nMSS. in the British Museum_, vol. ii, p. 762, Add. 8917. In the _Bagh o\nBah\u00e1r_ (Garden and Spring), which is a modern Urd\u00fa amplification, by M\u00edr\nAmman, not always in the best taste, the Story of the Second Darvesh is\nthat of the Third in the Persian original.\n\n[273] In another Persian version, translated by Jonathan Scott, in his\n_Tales, Anecdotes, and Letters from the Arabic and Persian_, p. 253,\nthe prince happens to see the merchant\u2019s wife in her litter, returning\nfrom the pilgrimage to Makka, and falls desperately in love with her. He\nafterwards makes the acquaintance of the merchant, who on learning the\ncause of his illness divorces his wife and makes her over to the prince.\nThe rest of the story is much the same as the above, excepting that the\nprince does not put the merchant\u2019s \u201cluck\u201d to trial but at once receives\nhim heartily and restores to him his wife, whom he had adopted as his\nsister.\n\n[274] The story is told in the first person, and the youth does not give\nhis name, which is rather awkward in making an epitome of it.\n\n[275] Iswara signifies Lord, Master, but is a designation by the Hind\u00fas\nfor the particular deity, Br\u00e1hma, Vishn\u00fa, or Siva, whom they regard as\nthe Supreme Being. In Southern India it is generally applied to Siva,\nalso called Mah\u00e1deva.\u2014_Balfour._\n\n[276] It is significant that the \u201cmaxims\u201d of the beggars are identical\nin the Latin story, in Gower, and in the version from Western India. In\nGower one beggar cries:\n\n \u201cHa, Lord, wel may the man be riche\n Whom that a king list for to riche\u201d;\n\nthe other exclaims:\n\n \u201cBut he is riche and wel bego\n Whom that God wold sende wele.\u201d\n\n[277] In this tale Iram is used as the name of an island of the \u201cupper\nworld,\u201d not that of a garden in fairyland\u2014see p. 304.\n\n[278] _Jaz\u00edra-i Firdaus_, that is, the Island of Paradise\u2014see p. 244,\nwhere the crafty courtesan Dilbar is represented as dwelling in a city\ncalled Firdaus; and p. 304, note 3, where it is the name of an island in\nfairyland.\n\n[279] See also Dasent\u2019s _Popular Tales from the Norse_: \u201cBoots and the\nTroll.\u201d\n\n[280] An adaptation, or imitation, of the Sanskrit series of stories\nentitled _Vet\u00e1lapanchavinsati_, Twenty-five (Tales) of a Vet\u00e1la, or\nVampyre; called in Hind\u00ed, _Baital Pach\u00eds\u00ed_, and in Tamil, _Ved\u00e1la Kadai_.\n\n[281] Radloff\u2019s _Proben der Volksliteratur der T\u00fcrkischen Stamme des\nS\u00fcd-Siberiens_; St. Petersburg: 1870; iii, 389.\u2014The story is also\nfound in the Hebrew _Talmud_: Two slaves are overheard by their master\nconversing about a camel that had preceded them on the road. It was blind\nof an eye, and laden with two skin bottles, one of which contained wine,\nthe other oil. (Hershon\u2019s _Talmudic Miscellany_.)\u2014See also M. Zotenberg\u2019s\n_Chronique de Tabari_, t. ii, 357-361.\n\n[282] In a curious catch-penny imitation of the _Seven Wise Masters_,\ncompiled by one Thomas Howard, about the end of the 17th century, or\nearly in the 18th, entitled the _Seven Wise Mistresses_ (of which I\npossess a well-thumbed copy printed in black letter), the story is told\nof a lady, and a lion who became attached to her in gratitude for her\nhaving pulled a thorn out of his foot\u2014Androcles in petticoats! The lion\nkills a bear that would have slain the lady\u2019s father, and the steward\ncoming up and finding the old gentleman lying prone on the earth,\napparently dead, but, as it turns out, only in a swoon from sheer fright,\nforthwith kills the lion.\n\n[283] _Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_, Book iii (\u2018Vana Parva\u2019), section lxi.\u2014Dean Milman\nhas rendered the ever fresh story of Nala and Damayanti into the most\nelegant English verse.\n\n[284] Possibly Shakuni used loaded dice when it came to his turn to\nthrow. \u201cSome of the virtues may be modern,\u201d says Lord Lytton (I quote\nfrom memory), \u201cbut it is certain that all the vices are ancient: cogged\ndice were found at Pompeii!\u201d\n\n[285] The _Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_ of Krishna-Dwapayana Vyasa. Translated into\nEnglish Prose by Prot\u00e1p Chandra Roy. Now in course of serial issue at\nCalcutta. _Sabha Parva_, fasic. xi, pp. 155-172; _Vana Parva_, fasic.\nxiv, pp. 174-177; 230.\n\n[286] Translated by the Rev. Chas. Swynnerton, in the _Folk-Lore\nJournal_, vol. i, 1883, pp. 134-139.\u2014The same story will be found, at\nmuch greater length, in Captain R. C. Temple\u2019s most valuable collection,\n_Legends of the Panj\u00e1b_, vol. i, p. 48 ff.\n\n[287] Chaup\u00far is the game of chess, played with 16 pieces, and throwing\ndice for each move. For a full description of this game see Captain R. C.\nTemple\u2019s _Legends of the Panj\u00e1b_ vol. i, p. 243.\n\n[288] Kokilan: \u201cCooing-dove.\u201d\n\n[289] The tragical story of Kokilan, with variants, will be found, under\nthe title of \u201cThe Lover\u2019s Heart,\u201d in my _Popular Tales_, &c., vol. ii, p.\n187 ff.\n\n[290] _Popular Tales and Fictions_, vol. i, p. 262 ff.\n\n[291] I follow M. Dubois\u2019 transliteration of the proper names.\n\n[292] Yakshas, in the Hind\u00fa mythology, are a species of jinn, who are\nruled over by Kuvera, the god of wealth.\n\n[293] Paddy (or p\u00e1d\u00ed) is unhusked rice.\n\n[294] Abridged from Prot\u00e1p Chandra Roy\u2019s translation of the\n_Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata_, fasciculus xxxiv, pp. 543-553.\n\n[295] \u201cWhether a carbuncle (which is esteemed the best and biggest of\nrubies) doth flame in the dark,\u201d says Sir Thos. Browne, in his _Enquiries\ninto Vulgar and Common Errors_, B. ii, ch. v, \u201cor shine like a coal in\nthe night, though generally agreed on by common believers, is very much\nquestioned by many.\u201d On this Wilkin, the editor of Browne\u2019s works, 1835,\nvol. ii, p. 354, remarks: \u201cThat which Sir Thomas much doubted has since\nbeen subjected to the test of repeated observations and many curious\nexperiments, by which the phosphorescence of the diamond, sapphire, ruby,\nand topaz, as well as of many minerals and metals, and various other\nbodies, is fully established. Mr. Wedgewood has treated the subject fully\nin the 82nd vol. of the _Philosophical Transactions_. This luminous\nproperty, which seems to be strictly phosphoric, is made apparent by\nsubjecting the body in question to heat in various ways. Several fluids\n(oils, spermaceti, butter, etc.) are luminous at or below the boiling\npoint: minerals and other bodies become so by being sprinkled on a thick\nplate of iron, heated just below visible redness. The gems and several of\nthe harder minerals emit their light upon attrition.\u201d\n\n[296] The _Sham ha-maphrash_, or _Nomen tetragrammaton_\u2014see the note on\npage 163.\n\n[297] Rev. S. Baring-Gould\u2019s _Lost and Hostile Gospels_, pp. 77, 78.\n\n[298] See the old English translation, from the French, by Lord Berners,\n_The Boke of Duke Huon of Burdeux_, ably edited by Mr. Sidney L. Lee for\nthe Early English Text Society, 1887, p. 153.\n\n[299] In the _Catalogue des Manuscrits et Xylographes Orientaux de la\nBiblioth\u00e8que Imperiale Publique de St. Petersburg_, 1852, p. 410, this\ntale is described as a separate romance: \u2018Histoire de Khavershah et de\nMihr et M\u00e1h, ou de Roi de l\u2019Orient, et du Soleil et de la Lune\u2019; the only\nvariations being that in place of the devotee is a philosopher called\nAbid; and Mukhtar\u00ed is the name of the minister of the King of Maghrab,\nthe father of the original of the picture.\u2014There are several mystical and\nerotic poems in Hind\u00ed also entitled _Mihr \u00fa M\u00e1h_: see Garcin de Tassy\u2019s\n_Histoire de la Litt\u00e9rature Hindouie_, second edition, tome i, 179, 187,\nand iii, 47.\n\n[300] The self-same story also occurs in the Calcutta printed Arabic text\nof the \u2018Thousand and One Nights,\u2019 with no variation save that instead of\nsmoked eels the husband gives his wanton wife a fresh fish to cook for\nhis dinner on a Friday (the Muslim Sabbath), and then goes out. When the\nwoman returns on the next Friday her husband begins to scold her, but she\nmakes an outcry which brings in the neighbours, and showing them the fish\nstill _alive_\u2014she had, I suppose, either kept it in water or procured\nanother one; though, how her husband came to give her a live fish does\nnot appear\u2014he is considered mad and loaded with fetters. (See Sir R. F.\nBurton\u2019s translation, vol v, p. 96.)\n\n[301] This seems to be an imperfect version of the story to which the\nTrick of the K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s Wife belongs, with the underground passage somehow\nomitted.\n\n[302] It has not hitherto been found in any Arabic text of the \u2018Book of\nthe Thousand Nights and One Night,\u2019 but there can be no doubt of its\nAsiatic origin.\n\n[303] If there are but four players, and three have already been\nappointed as king, minister, and culprit, it surely follows that there\nis no necessity for the fourth to throw the sticks at all; else, if the\nothers play along with him at throwing for the \u201chonest man,\u201d their former\npositions might, and probably would, be changed. Evidently Mr. Knowles\nhas here described the game as it is played by any number of boys, so\nthat when it came to throw for the \u201chonest man,\u201d the three already\nappointed would stand out and all the others play.\n\n[304] In the _fabliau_ (M\u00e9on\u2019s edition of Barbazan, 1808, iii, 126) the\nlittle bird says:\n\n \u201cIl a en mon cors une piere,\n Qui tant est pr\u00e9cieuse et chiere,\n Bien est de trois onces pesans;\n La vertus est en il si grans,\n Qui en sa baillie l\u2019aroit,\n J\u00e0 riens demander ne saroit,\n Que maintenant ne l\u2019\u00e9ust preste.\u201d\n\n[305] _Lydgate\u2019s Minor Poems_, in vol. ii of the Percy Society\u2019s\npublications, p. 179 ff.\u2014Ritson, the censorious, styles honest Dan\nLydgate \u201ca voluminous, prosaic, drivelling monk.\u201d This is hard measure.\nThat the drivels is just as true as it would be to say that Ritson had no\ngall in his composition. That he is sometimes prosaic can\u2019t be denied;\nbut he has many fine passages of true poetry. If to be voluminous be a\nsin\u2014then may Heaven pity our popular novel-spinners!\n\n[306] _Anv\u00e1r-i Suhayl\u00ed_, by Husain V\u00e1\u2019iz al-K\u00e1shif\u00ed. Translated by Edward\nB. Eastwick, 1854. Ch. i, story 19.\n\n[307] Le Grand omits the bird\u2019s lay, of which these verses are merely the\nexordium.\n\n\n\n\nINDEX.\n\n\n Abraham and Nimrod, 253.\n\n Ab\u00fa S\u00edn\u00e1 (Avicenna), 242.\n\n Afr\u00edts, 168.\n\n Ahmed, 238.\n\n Aino Folk-Tales, 503.\n\n Ainsworth\u2019s Old Saint Paul\u2019s, 523.\n\n Akhfash and his Goat, 177.\n\n Akhl\u00e1k-i Jal\u00e1l\u00ed, 264.\n\n Alak\u00e9sa Kath\u00e1, xxix;\n a different Tamil story, xxx.\n\n Alak\u00e9sa, King, 193.\n\n Albanian Tales, 539.\n\n Alexander, Romance of, 167.\n\n Al-Faraj ba\u2019d al-Shiddah, 474, 493, 547.\n\n Alf Layla wa Layla\u2014_see_ Thousand and One Nights.\n\n Alfonsus, Peter, 482, 564.\n\n Al\u00ed, Muhammed\u2019s son-in-law, 238.\n\n Ali, Mrs. Meer Hasan, xxi, 175, 216, 351, 531.\n\n Almsgiving enjoined by the Kur\u00e1n, 430.\n\n Am\u00e1ri, 284.\n\n Antimony, Legends about, 292.\n\n Anv\u00e1r-i Suhayl\u00ed, 566.\n\n Anvar\u00ed, The Persian poet, 175.\n\n Apocryphal Gospel of the Saviour\u2019s Infancy, 556.\n\n Apollonius Tyan\u00e6us, 541.\n\n Arabian Nights\u2014_see_ Thousand and One Nights.\n\n Arbuthnot, F. F., xxiii.\n\n Arch\u00e6ological Review, 299.\n\n Archery feats, 100.\n\n Ashraf\u00ed, a gold coin, 43.\n\n Asiatic Journal, 470, 513.\n\n Astrologers\u2019 Predictions, xxxviii, 175.\n\n Astrology, 8, 12, 175, 240, 313, 362.\n\n Atkinson, James, 470.\n\n Avaiyar, The Tamil poetess, xxx.\n\n\n Babylonian magic, 324.\n\n Backgammon, 250, 522.\n\n Badaksh\u00e1n, 263.\n\n Bagh o Bah\u00e1r, 478, 495.\n\n Bah\u00e1-ed-D\u00edn Zuhayr, 164.\n\n Bah\u00e1r-i D\u00e1nish, 569.\n\n Bahr\u00e1m, 339.\n\n Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, Romance of: Persian and Urd\u00fa versions and translations, xxxv;\n its construction, 519, 571.\n\n Bakhty\u00e1r N\u00e1ma, xxxi, 8.\n\n Balfour\u2019s Cyclop\u00e6dia of India, 226, 292, 325, 492.\n\n Bamb\u00fa-rice, 231.\n\n Banafsh\u00e1, 343, 359.\n\n Bandow, C. J., 545.\n\n Barbary Tales, 498.\n\n Barbazan\u2019s Fabliaux, 549, 565, 566, 570.\n\n Baring-Gould\u2019s Lost and Hostile Gospels, 476, 542.\n\n Barlaam and Joasaph, 563.\n\n Basset\u2019s Contes Populaires Berb\u00e8res, 498.\n\n Bath, Eastern Ladies at the, 356.\n\n Baz\u00e1r-Master\u2019s Wife, 376, 548.\n\n Beal, Dr. Samuel, 516.\n\n Beggar, The Blind, 402.\n\n Bebelian\u00e6 Faceti\u00e6, 551.\n\n Beggars, The Two, 492.\n\n Benfey school of folk-lorists, xx.\n\n Bengal, Folk-Tales of, 504.\n\n Beryn, Tale of, 167.\n\n Betel, 325.\n\n Bhav\u00e1ni, 197.\n\n Bible, xxi, 27, 70, 140, 212, 218, 253, 310, 313, 320, 339, 340, 347,\n 368, 456, 464, 568.\n\n Bilk\u00eds, Queen of Sheba, 367, 450, 473.\n\n Billah, Al-Mu\u2019tasim, 93.\n\n Bird, The Gardener and the, 448, 563.\n\n Bird-language, 299.\n\n Bird-Maidens, 58, 476.\n\n Birds, Transformation into, 298, 299, 346, 545.\n\n Bismillah, etc., 259.\n\n Bist\u00e1n, 289, 303.\n\n Biting the cheek, 314.\n\n Blind Beggar, 402.\n\n Blind Man\u2019s Story, 60, 464, 477.\n\n Blind Man, The Ungrateful, 215, 516, 532.\n\n Blind Men and Elephant, 195.\n\n Boccaccio\u2019s Decameron, 483.\n\n Boiardo\u2019s Orlando Innamorato, 167, 548.\n\n Br\u00e1hman and Lion, 254, 518, 531.\n\n Br\u00e1hman and Rescued Snake, 231, 518.\n\n Br\u00e1hman\u2019s Wife and the Mung\u00fas, 211, 515.\n\n Brandan, Voyage of St., 475.\n\n Brown, John P., 472.\n\n Brothers, Romance of Four, 530.\n\n Brothers, The Ungrateful, 149, 152, 493.\n\n Browne\u2019s (Sir Thomas) Vulgar Errors, 259, 540.\n\n Buchan\u2019s Scottish Ballads, 545.\n\n Buddhist works, 8, 297, 515, 563.\n\n B\u00falb\u00fal and Rose, 122, 345.\n\n Bur\u00e1k, Muhammed\u2019s celestial steed, 238.\n\n Burmese Tales, 545.\n\n Burton, Sir R. F., xxxii, 277, 512, 550, 561.\n\n Busk\u2019s (Miss) Sagas from the Far East, 500, 556.\n\n Bust\u00e1n of Sa\u2019d\u00ed, 245, 257, 278.\n\n Butler, Samuel, 121.\n\n\n Calenders, 385.\n\n Camel, The Lost, 194, 511.\n\n Camel-driver\u2019s Story, 531.\n\n Caylus\u2019 (Comte de) Contes Orientaux, 540.\n\n Cazotte\u2019s Arabian Tales, 571.\n\n Cento Novelle Antiche, 560.\n\n Chamberlain, Basil Hall, 503.\n\n Chapal\u00e1, 325.\n\n Chaucer\u2019s Canterbury Tales, Analogues of, xxxii, 166, 299, 439, 474.\n\n Chaup\u00far, 526.\n\n Cheh\u00e1r Darvesh, 478, 495.\n\n Children, Want of, 212, 568.\n\n Chitrasan, 322.\n\n Chitrawat, 324.\n\n Chodzko\u2019s Popular Poetry of Persia, 101.\n\n Chosroes, 278.\n\n Clarke\u2019s Sikandar N\u00e1ma, 238.\n\n Confessio Amantis, 492.\n\n Conrad of Wartzburg, 521.\n\n Contes pour Rire, 551.\n\n Convivales Sermones, 551.\n\n Cookery, Kings formerly skilled in, 108, 261.\n\n Cowley\u2019s amatory poetry, 348.\n\n Crore (or karor), in Indian and Persian numeration, 251.\n\n Cypress, 265.\n\n\n Damascenus, Johannes, 563.\n\n Danae, Story of, xxxix.\n\n Danish Ballads, 523, 545.\n\n Darveshes, Dancing, 105.\n\n Darveshes, often rogues, 67.\n\n Darveshes, History of the Four, 478, 495.\n\n Dasent\u2019s Popular Tales from the Norse, xxxix, 497, 562.\n\n Day\u2019s Journey, 271.\n\n Day\u2019s (Lal Beh\u00e1ri) Folk Tales of Bengal, 504.\n\n Deaf Man and his Sick Friend, 446, 561.\n\n Decameron, 483.\n\n Defoe on Fate, xxvi.\n\n D\u2019Herbelot\u2019s Biblioth\u00e8que Orientale, 238.\n\n D\u00e9lices de Verboquet, 551.\n\n Demonologia, 241.\n\n Dice-playing, 522.\n\n Dilbar Lakh\u00ed, 244.\n\n D\u00ednar, a gold coin, 47.\n\n Dirham, a silver coin, 360.\n\n Disciplina Clericalis, 482, 564.\n\n D\u00edvs, 253.\n\n Dog, The Faithful, 206, 509, 513.\n\n Dog-worshipping Merchant, Story of the, 494.\n\n Dom\u00e9nichi\u2019s (Lod.) Faceti\u00e6, 551.\n\n D\u2019Ouville\u2019s (Sieur) Tales, 551.\n\n Dowson\u2019s Hind\u00fa Mythology, 228.\n\n Dozon\u2019s Contes Albanais, 539.\n\n Dravidian Nights Entertainments, 544, 545.\n\n Dubois\u2019 Tamil Panchatantra, 532.\n\n Dunlop\u2019s History of Fiction, 167, 530.\n\n Durga, 197.\n\n\n Eastern Story-Tellers, xxi.\n\n Eastwick, Edward B., 566.\n\n Elephant, Four Blind Men and the, 195.\n\n Errors, Browne\u2019s Vulgar, 259, 540.\n\n European Romances\u2014_see_ Romances.\n\n Eve, Milton\u2019s, 324.\n\n Expeditions, The Three, 496.\n\n\n Fabliaux, 483, 521, 549, 566.\n\n Faceti\u00e6:\n Bebelian\u00e6, 551;\n Dom\u00e9nichi, 551.\n\n Fagnan, Prof. E., 474.\n\n Fairies, not immortal, 318.\n\n Faithless Wife and Ungrateful Blind Man, 215, 516, 532.\n\n Falcon, The Faithful, 510, 570.\n\n Farh\u00e1d and Shir\u00edn, 289.\n\n Far\u00edd\u00fan, 69.\n\n Farrukh, 274.\n\n Farrukhr\u00faz, History of, 147, 493.\n\n Fars, or Farsist\u00e1n, 69.\n\n Fate, or Destiny, xxv, 121.\n\n F\u00e1tih\u00e1, 447, 561.\n\n Firdaus, 244, 304, 495.\n\n Firdaus\u00ed, 240, 414.\n\n F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h, 295.\n\n F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h, Story of, 571.\n\n Flowers, etc., Magical, 242, 467, 520, 572.\n\n Folk-Lore Journal, 479, 570.\n\n Forbes, Dr. Duncan, 455.\n\n Forbes\u2019 Oriental Memoirs, 215.\n\n Fortune and Misfortune, xxv.\n\n Forty, The number, 140, 155, 188, 300, 456.\n\n Forty Vaz\u00edrs, History of the, xxxi, xxxix, 3, 158, 306, 383.\n\n Frazer, James G., 299.\n\n Friends, The Two, 89, 480.\n\n Friday, the Muslim Sabbath, 139.\n\n Fruit, Magical, 220, 298, 507, 517.\n\n\n Gambling maniacs, 522.\n\n Game of Vaz\u00edr P\u00e1dish\u00e1h, 557.\n\n Ganas, xxxiv.\n\n Ganesa, xxxiii.\n\n Garcin de Tassy, xxxv, 256, 281, 290, 547, 569, 570.\n\n Gardener and Little Bird, 448, 563.\n\n Geldart\u2019s Folk-Lore of Modern Greece, 496.\n\n Gems from Snakes, 232, 297, 341, 540.\n\n Gems, Secreting, 299, 541.\n\n Gems, The Nine, 313.\n\n Genie and Solomon\u2019s Ring, 163.\n\n Geomancy, 60.\n\n German Popular Tales, 521.\n\n Gesta Romanorum, xxxii, 482, 564.\n\n Ghatika, 200.\n\n Gibb, E. J. W., xxxi, 3, 303, 306, 383.\n\n Gladwin\u2019s Persian Moonshee, 561.\n\n God, the Merciful, etc., xxxiii, 259, 296.\n\n Goldsmiths, rogues in stories, 224.\n\n Gospels, Lost and Hostile, 476, 542.\n\n Gower\u2019s Confessio Amantis, 492.\n\n Greek Popular Tales, 496, 498, 540.\n\n Grimm, The Brothers, 521.\n\n Guerin de Monglave, 523.\n\n Gueulette\u2019s Soir\u00e9es Bretonnes, 511.\n\n Gulist\u00e1n of Sa\u2019d\u00ed, xxiv, 101, 253, 311.\n\n Gul-rukh, 347.\n\n Gunadhya, xxii.\n\n\n Hair of demon as a charm, 269.\n\n Hahn\u2019s Greek Tales, 540.\n\n Hammal\u00e1, 262.\n\n Hardy\u2019s Eastern Monachism, 297.\n\n Hartland, E. Sidney, 479.\n\n Haste and Patience, 449.\n\n Hatim and his enemy, 478;\n and the thorn-cutter, 569;\n his mother and brother, 455.\n\n Hatim Ta\u00ef, Story of, 46, 455, 520.\n\n Hauda-am\u00e1ri, 284.\n\n Haz\u00e1r \u00fa Yek R\u00faz, 474.\n\n Head, Shaving the, 172.\n\n Heavenly orbs, 264.\n\n Henna, 11, 314.\n\n Herklot\u2019s Qanoon-i Isl\u00e1m, 351.\n\n Hermit, The Foolish, 112.\n\n Herodias\u2019 Daughter, 319.\n\n Herrtage\u2019s Gesta Rom., 483.\n\n Hershon\u2019s Talmudic Miscellany, 512.\n\n Hik\u00e1y\u00e1t-i \u2019Aj\u00edb \u00fa Ghar\u00edb, 474, 546.\n\n Hind\u00fast\u00e1n\u2014_see_ India.\n\n Historia Sept. Sap. Rom., 548.\n\n Hitopadesa, 121, 464.\n\n Hoopoe (or lapwing) and Solomon, 450.\n\n Horoscope, 240.\n\n Horse, The faithful, 507.\n\n Hospitality, Three Days\u2019, 9.\n\n Howdah, 284.\n\n Hubb\u00ed\u2019s Persian Tales, 474, 546.\n\n Huma\u00ef, 5.\n\n Hunter and Dog, 206, 509, 513.\n\n Hunter\u2019s Imperial Gazetteer of India, 199.\n\n H\u00far\u00eds, 23.\n\n Huon of Bordeaux, 264, 518, 521, 544.\n\n Husain V\u00e1\u2019iz, 566.\n\n Husn-\u00e1r\u00e1, 308.\n\n Hyperbole, Oriental, 339, 340, 348.\n\n\n Ibl\u00eds, 376.\n\n Idols, Lovely women called, 291.\n\n \u2019Ifr\u00edts (Afr\u00edts), 168.\n\n Im\u00e1ms, 238.\n\n Independent Man, Story of 425, 569.\n\n India, Balfour\u2019s Cyclop\u00e6dia of, 226, 292, 325, 492.\n\n India: Dowson\u2019s Hind\u00fa Mythology, 228.\n\n India, Hunter\u2019s Imperial Gazetteer of, 199.\n\n India, Marriages in, 337, 351.\n\n India, Observations on the Mussulmans of, xxi, 175, 216, 351, 531.\n\n India, Past Days in, 493, 516.\n\n Indian Antiquary, 489, 499, 541, 543.\n\n Indian drama, 224.\n\n Indian Notes and Queries, 197, 515.\n\n Indian story-books: Alak\u00e9sa Kath\u00e1, xxix, xxxii;\n Bengal\u00ed Folk Tales, 504;\n Dravidian Nights Entertainments (Madanak\u00e1mar\u00e1jankadai), 544, 545;\n Hitopadesa, 121, 464;\n Kashm\u00edr\u00ed Folk-Tales, 507, 524, 544, 557;\n Kath\u00e1 Manjar\u00ed, 517;\n Kath\u00e1 Sarit S\u00e1gara, xxi, 166, 287, 346, 516, 558;\n Panchatantra, 532;\n Panj\u00e1b\u00ed Legends, 524, 526, 570;\n Sinhasana Dwatrinsati, 517;\n Vet\u00e1lapanchavinsati, 500, 518;\n Vrihat Kath\u00e1, xxii.\n\n Ir\u00e1n, 43.\n\n Indra\u2019s Paradise, 316, 544.\n\n Infernal Machines, 201.\n\n Infancy, Apocryphal Gospel of the, 556.\n\n Infidels, all who are not Muslims, 439.\n\n Iram, Rose-Garden of, 304, 494.\n\n Iskandar, 173.\n\n Istikb\u00e1l, 271.\n\n Iswara, 492.\n\n Italian story-books: Decameron, 483;\n Cento Novelle Antiche, 560.\n\n \u2019Itr-igul, 330.\n\n Ivanhoe, 100.\n\n\n Jacob\u2019s sorrow, 242.\n\n Jam\u00ed, the Persian poet, 356.\n\n Jam\u00edla Khat\u00fan, 294.\n\n Jamsh\u00edd, Cup of, 173.\n\n J\u00e1takas, 8, 563.\n\n Jeshu, Toldoth, 475, 542.\n\n Jewellers, rogues in stories, 224.\n\n Jews, Absurd charges against, 439.\n\n Joseph, the son of Jacob, 244, 312;\n and Potiphar\u2019s Wife, 330.\n\n J\u00fclg\u2019s Mongolian Tales, 500, 556.\n\n\n K\u00e1f, Mountains of, 303, 387.\n\n Kalandars, 385.\n\n K\u00e1l\u00ed, the Hind\u00fa goddess, 197.\n\n Kasharkasha, Story of Prince, 69, 479.\n\n Kashm\u00edr, Folk-Tales of, 507, 524, 544, 557.\n\n Kath\u00e1 Manjar\u00ed, 517.\n\n K\u00e1z\u00ed and Merchant\u2019s Wife, 414, 555.\n\n K\u00e1z\u00ed\u2019s Wife, 358, 548.\n\n Kalmuk Tales, 500, 556.\n\n Kashank, the Afr\u00edt, 173.\n\n Kath\u00e1 Sarit S\u00e1gara, xxi, 166, 287, 346, 516, 558.\n\n Khil\u2019at 99.\n\n Khiyab\u00e1n-i Rayh\u00e1n, 571.\n\n Khizar, 470, 521.\n\n Khoja, 3.\n\n King and his faithful Horse, 507;\n and his Falcon, 510, 570.\n\n King and his Four Ministers: plan of the frame-story, xxix;\n Bengal\u00ed oral version, 504;\n Kashm\u00edr\u00ed variant, 507;\n analogues of the tales, 511.\n\n King who learned a trade, 434.\n\n Kings abdicating the throne, 80.\n\n Kings in Eastern stories, 123.\n\n Kings going about in disguise, 128, 427.\n\n Kings, Good Indian, 193.\n\n Kings, Rapacious, 40.\n\n Knowles, Rev. J. H., 507, 524, 544, 557.\n\n Kokilan, 530.\n\n Kur\u00e1n, 187, 238, 253, 265, 312, 447, 450, 561.\n\n Kur\u00e1n, MS. copies of the, 134.\n\n Kurrogl\u00fa, the bandit-poet, 101.\n\n Kutw\u00e1l, 278.\n\n Kutw\u00e1l\u2019s Wife, 384, 549.\n\n Kuvera, 464, 535.\n\n Lady and her Suitors, 287.\n\n Lady\u2019s Story, 64.\n\n Lakh, 244.\n\n Lamp-black as a collyrium, 266.\n\n Lane\u2019s Modern Egyptians, xxi, 11, 60, 105, 238.\n\n Language of Birds, etc., 299, 505, 510.\n\n Layl\u00e1 and Majn\u00fan, 122, 237.\n\n Leaves of the palm used as dishes, 202.\n\n Lee, Sidney L., 518, 544.\n\n Leg, Standing on one, 254.\n\n Le Grand\u2019s Fabliaux, 483, 521, 549, 565, 566, 570.\n\n Legrand\u2019s Contes Populaires Grecs, 498.\n\n Life, or heart, extraneous from the body, 30.\n\n Life, Water of, 520, 521.\n\n Lion and Br\u00e1hman, 254, 518, 531.\n\n Llewellyn and his Dog, 515.\n\n Longfellow, xxvi.\n\n Love declarations in the East, 290.\n\n Love, Ten Stages of, 324.\n\n Love, Victims of, 323.\n\n Lukman the Wise, 122.\n\n Luminous Jewels, 540.\n\n Lydgate, John, 483, 564.\n\n Lytton, Lord, 523.\n\n\n Mackenzie, Colonel Colin, 351.\n\n Madanak\u00e1mar\u00e1jankadai, 544.\n\n Maghrab\u00ed country, 6.\n\n Magic, Babylonian, 324.\n\n Magic Staff, 156.\n\n Magicians, Egyptian, 27.\n\n Magical Fruits, 220, 298, 507, 517.\n\n Magical Flowers etc., 242, 467, 520, 572.\n\n Magical Transformations, 158, 171, 299, 300, 301, 320, 346, 544, 545.\n\n Mah\u00e1bh\u00e1rata, 108, 194, 290, 517, 518, 523, 534.\n\n Mah\u00e1mayi, 197.\n\n Mahb\u00fab ul-Kal\u00fab, xxii, xl.\n\n Mahfil-\u00e1r\u00e1, xxiii.\n\n Mahm\u00fad of Ghazn\u00ed, 414.\n\n Mahm\u00fada, 262.\n\n Maina, 298.\n\n Majn\u00fan and Layl\u00e1, 122, 237.\n\n Malay version of the Mung\u00fas story, 516.\n\n Malcolm\u2019s Sketches of Persia, 141.\n\n Mally Whuppie, 570.\n\n M\u00e1n, a Persian weight, 306.\n\n Mango Fruit, The wonderful, 220, 507, 517.\n\n Mangoes, 215.\n\n Man\u2019s dignity, 310.\n\n Marie de France, 545.\n\n Marriages in India, 337, 351.\n\n Mas\u2019\u00fad\u00ed, 511.\n\n Mehnd\u00ed, 314.\n\n Men smuggled into harams, 117.\n\n Metempsychosis, 218, 223, 336.\n\n Mihr-\u00fa M\u00e1h, Story of, 370, 546.\n\n Miles Gloriosus, 548.\n\n Mille et Un Jours, 474, 480, 547.\n\n Milman, Dean, 517.\n\n Milton\u2019s Eve, 324.\n\n Moir, James, 570.\n\n Money in Eastern Tales, 360.\n\n Moon of Canaan, 312.\n\n Moth and Candle, 245, 257.\n\n Mu\u2019allaka Poems, 313.\n\n Muezzin, 104.\n\n Muhammad, 9, 23, 67, 69, 106, 112, 187, 238, 312, 401.\n\n Muir\u2019s (Sir Wm.) Life of Mahomet, 238.\n\n Mukhlis, of Isfah\u00e1n, 474.\n\n Mulk-i Nigh\u00e1r\u00edn, 281, 340.\n\n Mung\u00fas, The Faithful, 211, 515.\n\n Muslim Sabbath, 139.\n\n Mu\u2019tasim Billah, the Octonary, 93.\n\n Muzaffar Sh\u00e1h, 304.\n\n\n Nakhshab\u00ed, xxii. 464, 517.\n\n Nala and Damayanti, 108, 290, 517, 518, 523.\n\n Name, The Ineffable, 163, 476, 542.\n\n Narkis, 386.\n\n Nassar, History of, its _motif_, xxv.\n\n Naubut, 273.\n\n Nau Ratn, 313.\n\n Netherlandish Ballad, 545.\n\n Nightingale and Rose, 122, 345.\n\n Nimrod and Abraham, 253.\n\n Nirmal\u00e1, 325.\n\n Nizam\u00ed, 173, 238.\n\n Norse Tales, xxxix, 497, 562.\n\n Nostradamus, 241.\n\n Novel writers, xxii.\n\n N\u00fa R\u00faz, 173.\n\n Nush\u00edrv\u00e1n, 278.\n\n\n Octonary, The, 93.\n\n Oriental hyperbole, 339, 340, 348.\n\n Oriental sharpers, 411.\n\n Orientaux, Contes, 540.\n\n Orlando Innamorato, 167, 548.\n\n Ouseley, Sir Wm., 345.\n\n Oyster and Pearl, 257.\n\n\n Paddy, or p\u00e1d\u00ed, 536.\n\n Pagoda, a gold coin, 196.\n\n Painter and Woodcarver, Story of, 500.\n\n Painter\u2019s Story, 53, 471.\n\n Panchatantra, 532.\n\n Panj\u00e1b, Legends of the, 524, 526, 570, 572.\n\n Paradise, Expedition to, 183, 500.\n\n Parasang, 430.\n\n Parrot-Book, xvii, 464, 517.\n\n Parvati, xxxiii, 197.\n\n Patience and haste, 449.\n\n Payne\u2019s (John) Tales from the Arabic, 561.\n\n Pearls from rain-drops, 257.\n\n Penha, G. F. D., 499.\n\n Perfumes, 330.\n\n Persian amatory poetry, 348.\n\n Persian and Hind\u00fast\u00e1n\u00ed Proverbs, 283.\n\n Persian Portraits (Arbuthnot\u2019s), xxiii.\n\n Persian pictures of women, 460.\n\n Persian story-books: Anv\u00e1r-i Suhayl\u00ed, 566;\n Bah\u00e1r-i D\u00e1nish, 569;\n Bakhty\u00e1r l\u00e1ma, xxxi, xxxii, 8;\n Bust\u00e1n, 245, 257, 278;\n Cheh\u00e1r Darvesh, 478, 495;\n F\u00edr\u00faz Sh\u00e1h, 570;\n Gul-i Bak\u00e1wal\u00ed, xxxv;\n Gulist\u00e1n, xxiv, 101, 253, 311;\n Hatim Ta\u00ef, 455, 456;\n Haz\u00e1r \u00fa Yak R\u00faz (Thousand and One Days), 474, 479, 547;\n Hik\u00e1y\u00e1t-i \u2019Aj\u00edb\u00fa Ghar\u00edb, 474, 546.\n\n Persian writers\u2019 style, 250, 267, 348, 350.\n\n Petis de la Croix, 474, 479, 547.\n\n Plautus, 548.\n\n Poisoned Food, 226, 518.\n\n Pon, an Indian coin, 206, 568.\n\n Popular Tales and Fictions (Clouston\u2019s), 30, 474, 476, 515, 530, 531,\n 548, 558.\n\n Porter\u2019s Travels in Georgia, 357.\n\n Potiphar\u2019s Wife, 330.\n\n Predictions, of Astrologers, xxxviii, 175.\n\n Presents to superiors, 340.\n\n Princess and D\u00edv, 279, 532.\n\n Prior\u2019s Danish Ballads, 523, 545.\n\n Proverbs: Roebuck\u2019s Pers. and Hind., 283;\n Sinhalese, about luck, xxvii, xxviii.\n\n\n Qanoon-i Isl\u00e1m, 351.\n\n\n Radloff\u2019s Siberian Tales, 512.\n\n Ralston\u2019s Tibetan Tales, xxxi.\n\n R\u00e1m\u00e1yana, 108.\n\n Ras\u00e1l\u00fa, Legend of R\u00e1j\u00e1, 524, 572.\n\n Rayh\u00e1n ed-D\u00edn, 571.\n\n Rehatsek, E., xxv, xl, 177.\n\n Religious trickery, 229.\n\n Reyes, M. de los, 486.\n\n Rieu, Dr. Chas., xxiii, 474, 475, 478, 546.\n\n Ring, The, 355, 546.\n\n Rings, Signet, 70.\n\n Road to the Mosque, 547.\n\n Robe of honour, 99.\n\n Robinson\u2019s Persian Poetry, 257.\n\n Robles, Isidro de, 551, 561.\n\n Roebuck\u2019s Persian and Hind\u00fast\u00e1n\u00ed Proverbs, 283.\n\n Romance writers, European, 264.\n\n Romances, European: Alexander, 167;\n Agravain, etc., 530;\n Eglamour (Sir), xxxii;\n Guerin de Monglave, 523;\n Huon of Bordeaux, 264, 518, 521, 544;\n Isumbras (Sir), Octavian, Torrent of Portugal, xxxii.\n\n Roscoe\u2019s Spanish Novelists, 486, 552, 561.\n\n Rose and Nightingale, 122, 345.\n\n Roses, Otto of, 330.\n\n Roy, Prot\u00e1p Chandra, 523, 539.\n\n R\u00fah-afz\u00e1, 304.\n\n Rukh (or roc), 306.\n\n R\u00fam, Country of, 44.\n\n Rup\u00ed, Value of, 244.\n\n Rustam, 240.\n\n\n Sa\u2019d\u00ed, the Persian poet, 101, 245, 253, 257, 278, 311.\n\n Sagas from the Far East, 500, 556.\n\n Sakhr, the demon, and Solomon, 163.\n\n Salamander, 259.\n\n Saman-r\u00fa, 288.\n\n Sambhavi, 197.\n\n Sastras, The six, 228.\n\n S\u00e1str\u00ed, Pandit S. M. Nat\u00e9sa, xxix, 193, 195, 197, 229, 544, 545.\n\n Satan, Artful women compared to, 376.\n\n Satan, the stoned one, 277, 369.\n\n Satan\u00e6, Tela Ignea, 475.\n\n Sayf ul-Mul\u00fak, Story of, 370, 547.\n\n Scottish Ballad, 545.\n\n Scott\u2019s edition of the Arabian Nights, 275;\n his Tales from the Arabic and Persian, 455, 482.\n\n Self-made men, 148.\n\n Serpents, Fight between Two, 53, 471, 475.\n\n Serpents, Gems in the heads of, 232, 297, 341, 540.\n\n Setti caste, 207.\n\n Seven Wise Masters, xxx, 515, 548.\n\n Seven Wise Mistresses, 515.\n\n Sexes, The Exchanged, 279, 532.\n\n Shaddad\u2019s Paradise, 304.\n\n Sh\u00e1h\u00e1b\u00e1d, 459.\n\n Shah Bakht and his Vaz\u00edr, xxxii.\n\n Shah Manssur, Story of, 12.\n\n Shah-muhra, 466.\n\n Sh\u00e1h-N\u00e1ma, 240, 414.\n\n Sh\u00e1h-z\u00e1da, 250.\n\n Shamsah the Witch, 357, 493, 546.\n\n Shamsah \u00fa Kahkahah, xxiii.\n\n Shaving the head, 172.\n\n Shi\u2019ahs and S\u00fan\u00eds, 238.\n\n Sh\u00edr\u00e1z, 69.\n\n Sh\u00edr\u00edn and Farh\u00e1d, 289.\n\n Shoayb, Story of, 118, 489.\n\n Siberian Tales, 512.\n\n Siddh\u00ed K\u00far, Relations of, 500.\n\n Signet Rings, 70.\n\n Sikandar-N\u00e1ma, 173, 238.\n\n Simon Magus, 476.\n\n Simurgh, 306, 387.\n\n Sindib\u00e1d, Book of (Clouston\u2019s), 5, 515, 518, 548, 569.\n\n Sinhalese proverbs about luck, xxvii, xxviii.\n\n Sinhasana Dwatrinsati, 517.\n\n Sirikop and Ras\u00e1l\u00fa, 524.\n\n Siva, xxxiii, 212.\n\n Snake and Br\u00e1hman, 231, 518.\n\n Snake-gems\u2014_see_ Serpents.\n\n Solomon: as a fisherman, 119;\n his magic carpet, 164;\n his signet ring, 163, 261;\n and the s\u00edmurgh, 306;\n and the Queen of Sheba, 367, 450;\n and the Water of Life, 520.\n\n Somadeva, xxi, 216.\n\n Spanish Novelists, 486, 552, 561.\n\n Sparks, Capt. T. P., 545.\n\n Spheres, Music of the, 264.\n\n Stephenson, R. L., 123.\n\n Story-Tellers, Eastern, xxi.\n\n S\u00faf\u00eds, 105.\n\n Sumbul, 384.\n\n Sun and Moon, Story of the, 370, 546.\n\n Sunrise, Superstition regarding, 179, 404.\n\n Surma, 292.\n\n Swedish Tales, 497.\n\n Swine\u2019s flesh, 373.\n\n Swynnerton, Rev. Chas., 524.\n\n\n Tabari, Chronique de, 512.\n\n T\u00e1hir and the Witch Shamsah, 493.\n\n T\u00e1j ul-Mul\u00fak, 240.\n\n Talmudic Miscellany, 512.\n\n Tawney, Prof. C. H., 287, 558.\n\n Taylor\u2019s Catalogue of Oriental MSS., xxx.\n\n Tela Ignea Satan\u00e6, 475.\n\n Tell\u2019s feat eclipsed, 101.\n\n Temple, Capt. R. C., 524, 526, 570.\n\n Thackeray, W. M., 457.\n\n Thigh, Jewels etc. concealed in, 299, 541.\n\n Thirty-two Tales of a Throne, 517.\n\n Thompson\u2019s Akhl\u00e1k-i Jal\u00e1l\u00ed, 264.\n\n Thorpe\u2019s Yule-Tide Stories, 497.\n\n Thousand and One Days, 474, 480, 547.\n\n Thousand and One Nights, xxxii, 9, 109, 141, 166, 182, 275, 314, 320,\n 323, 456, 475, 477, 511, 522, 542, 547, 549, 550, 556, 561.\n\n Tibetan Tales, xxxix.\n\n Tika, 349.\n\n Toldoth Jeshu, 475, 542.\n\n Tom\u00e1n, a gold coin, 23.\n\n Tongues in Trees, etc., 311.\n\n Topes, or stupas, 226.\n\n Transformations, Magical, 158, 171, 299, 300, 301, 320, 346, 544, 545.\n\n Travel, Advantages of, 5.\n\n Treasure guarded by dragons and serpents, 167, 232.\n\n Treasure, The Hidden, 442, 558.\n\n Treasure-trees, 166, 304.\n\n Treasure-trove, 43, 123.\n\n Turkish story-books: the Forty Vaz\u00edrs, xxxi, xxxix, 3, 158, 306, 383;\n Turkish Evening Entertainments, 472, 512;\n Al-Faraj ba\u2019d al-Shiddah, 474, 547.\n\n T\u00fat\u00ed N\u00e1ma, xxii, 464, 517.\n\n\n Unity, Court of, 112.\n\n\n Vaz\u00edr, The Envious, 390, 569.\n\n Vaz\u00edr, The Treacherous, 114.\n\n Vaz\u00edrs, The Forty, xxxi, xxxix, 3, 306, 383.\n\n Vedas, The Four, 228.\n\n Verboquet, D\u00e9lices de, 551.\n\n Vermieux\u2019 Indian Tales, 516.\n\n Vet\u00e1lapanchavinsati, 500, 518.\n\n Vijanajara, 199.\n\n Virtuous Devasmit\u00e1 and her Suitors, 287.\n\n Visitors, Meeting, 271, 285.\n\n Visvesvara, 212.\n\n Vogelritter, Ballad of the, 545.\n\n Voltaire\u2019s Zadig, 511.\n\n\n Wadia, P. D. H., 489, 543.\n\n Wagenseil\u2019s Tela Ignea Satan\u00e6, 475.\n\n Walhouse, M. J., 541.\n\n Washerman\u2019s Story, 58, 476.\n\n Was\u00edf\u2019s amatory poetry, 348.\n\n Water of Life, 520, 521.\n\n Way\u2019s Fabliaux, 567.\n\n Wilson, Dr. H. H., xxix, 571.\n\n Wind as messenger of love, 164.\n\n Wine forbidden to Muslims, 312.\n\n Witch Shamsah, 357, 493, 546.\n\n Witches and werwolves, 45.\n\n Wives, Unfaithful, 19, 216.\n\n Woman-nature, 350.\n\n Woman, The perfect, 194.\n\n Woman who knew the language of animals, 505, 510.\n\n Woman\u2019s love scorned, 13.\n\n Women, The Three Deceitful, 355, 546.\n\n Women, addicted to Magic, 401.\n\n Women\u2019s condition in the Muslim Paradise, 187, 248.\n\n Woodcarver and Painter, Story of the, 500.\n\n Wordsworth, xxvi.\n\n Wrestling in Persia, 110.\n\n Wright\u2019s Latin Stories, 492.\n\n Yad-est, Game of, 383.\n\n Yakshas, 535.\n\n Yaman, 152.\n\n Youth, Fountain of, 521.\n\n Yule-Tide Stories, 497.\n\n\n Zadig, 511.\n\n Zan\u00e1na, 206.\n\n Zayn ul-Mul\u00fak, 240.\n\n Zeus and the new-born Dionysus concealed in his thigh, 543.\n\n Zotenberg\u2019s Chronique de Tabari, 512;\n his Barlaam and Joasaph, 563.\n\n Zulaykh\u00e1, Potiphar\u2019s Wife, 330.\n\nPrinted by WILLIAM HODGE & CO., 26 Bothwell Street, Glasgow.","title":"A Group of Eastern Romances and Stories from the Persian, Tamil and Urdu","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":171349}