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Full text of "Key To The Arabic Grammar"

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Call 4f-- Ace N 

No TSCpR 

OSMAWA UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 




Osmania University Library 

Accession 




Title 



This book should be returneon orDeroi the 
marked below. 



The Oaspey- Otto -Saiier Method has become my sole property by 
right of purchase. These books are continually revised. All rights, 
especially those of adaptation and translation into any language, are 
reserved. Imitations and copies are forbidden by law. Suitable 
communications always thankfully received. 

Heidelberg. Julius Orooa. 



Exercise 1. 

The garden is large. The large garden. The small 
house. A beautiful place. The man is beautiful. A 
bad man. The Nile is a river. A just king. The sea 
is great. A beautiful castle. Good bread. The bread 
is good. I am a man. The judge is a good man. Thou 
art tired. He is a good friend. The man is the upright 
friend. The street is wide. 



Exercise 2. 

2 .. > ^ o > 




Exercise 3. 

The grandfather is old. The grandmother is old. 
The small (young) daughter. An honest son. Is the 
garden beautiful? Yes, the garden is beautiful. A 
beautiful hour. The house is old. The house is new. 
The mother is beautiful. The boy is ready. A violent 
whjd. The wind is violent. Art thou tired? Yes, I am 
tired. Art thou the judge? No, I am the physician. 
Is she honest? No, she is bad. The sun is rising. 
The shady tree. The maid-servant is obedient. Cairo. 
The hand is clean. The goose is a bird. The dead 
goose. 

i* 



4 
Exercise 4. 



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Exercise 5. 

The honest teacher. The teachers are honest. The 
flashing eyes. The teachers (fern.) are present. Are 
you contented? No, we are vexed. Two nights and 
two days. Is the judge busy? Yes, he is busy. The 
bakers are industrious. The two girls are absent. The 
tailor and the tailoress are busy. The tailors and the 
tailoresses are industrious. The honest Moslems. Two 
boys are playing. The quarters (of the town) are clean. 



Exercise 6. 

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Exercise 7. 

It is a difficult book. Difficult books. Cairo and 
Damascus are two beautiful cities. The cities are 
beautiful. Easy ways. The sciences are useful. The 
conditions are hard. Permanent rights. He is an 
honest witness. Honest witnesses. The dog is watchful. 
The watchful dogs. The honest hearts. Swift ships. 
The horses are beautiful. The boys are obedient. The 
violent rains. The past times. The mountains are high. 
The Arabic letters. The swords are cutting. The great 
rivers. They are great people. 

Exercise 8. 



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^ 

li AJul t 



Exercise 9. 

The ambassadors are present and the ministers 
are absent. The prince is a captive. Honest friends. 
The people are rich. The high houses are beautiful. 
Useful libraries. The Sultans are great. The spears 
are long. Beautiful gardens. The teachers are con- 
tented and the pupils are industrious. The coffer is 
empty. Rich districts. The great seas. The relatives 
are friends. The precious jewel/ The noble soul. The 
sons are industrious and the daughters are obedient. 



_ g _ 
Exercise 10. 



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9- 



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oLu! X 



Exercise 11, 

The master of the house is absent to-day. The 
rider is on the back of the horse. The prince is absent; 
the servant of the prince is in the house. The key of 
the door of the house. The gates of the city are open. 
Omar is a friend of Zaid. The gardens of Damascus 
are renowned. The boy's dog is watchful. The pupils' 
books are clean. We are the man's friends. The prince's 
castle is in the city. The houses of the city are high. 
The men are present in the assembly. The judge's 
wife is beautiful. The beginning of wisdom is the fear 
of God. One of the prince's houses is in the market. 
You are present in the neighbour's garden. The neigh- 
bour before the house; the companion before the way 
(i.e. Consider the neighbour before you buy a house and 
the companion before undertaking a journey). 



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7 

Exercise 12. 

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(or: 



Exercise 18. 

The boy's teachers are learned. The bad man is 
a dissembler. Abu Bekr's son is rich. The two daughters 
of the minister are beautiful. The wide door of the 
house is open. Is he learned? No, he is stupid. The 
books of the learned are useful. The tribe of the Bani 
Asad is a tribe of the Arabs. The physician's wife is 
beautiful. Is the prince noble of soul? No, he is 
miserly. The tree is shady. The abstinence of Abu 
Bekr is renowned. The eyes of the judge's daughter 
are flashing. A large piece of meat. A small bit of 
bread. The coffee-cup is ready. An iron seat is in 
the garden. The rich sheikh of the tribe* is honest. 



Exercise 14. 

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Exercise 15. 

My hand is clean. Their hands are clean. We are 
between his hands (i.e. before him). pupil, hast 
them thy book? Yes, my teacher, I have my book. 
pupils, have you paper? Yes, teacher, we have 
paper and pen and ink. Abu Bekr has two daughters, 
the name of the older of the two is Hind, and the 
name of the younger of them is Zainab. my lady, 
is thv name Fatima? No, my master, my name is 
Ayesna. The tailors have thread and the carpenters 
have wood. Our house is large and spacious. Your 
garden is small. Your father and our brother are in 
the market. maid-servant, is your master present in 
the house? No, he is in his garden. The lady is 
beautiful, her hands and feet are small. Hast thou a 
watch? Yes, I have a gold watch. Is her brother or 
hfcr sister in the house? Her sister is present, and her 
brother is in the market. 

Exercise 10. 



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Exercise 17. 

This book is useful. This is a difficult book. This 
book of the pupil is dirty. my pupils, these books 
of yours are dirty. These two eyes are killing. The 
glance of these eyes of thine is killing. This is the 
dictionary. This is the maid-servant. That look is 
beautiful. Those persons are of the great. That tree is 
shady. These men are learned. This is a spacious 
house. This is the maid-servant of these persons. This 
maid-servant of those persons is dirty. This garden of 
mine is renowned in our city. Who is present with 
you? Our servant is present with us. What is the 
cause of this misfortune? The cause of this misfortune 
of ours is our carelessness. Why are you present and 
they absent? How many persons are present to-day? 
This is a beautiful woman. 

Exercise 18, 

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Exercise 19. 

Your friend is a pleasant man. The black slave 
is in the red room. The paper is white. The pupils 
have the white paper and the black ink. The red 
cheeks of the girl are pleasant to look at. The Blue River 
and the White River are the origin of the Nile. The women 
are deaf and the men are dumb. He is pale (yellow 
of colour) in his face. This tree is green in the Summer. 
Her eyes are blue and her hair is black. The ignorant 
and lazy man is disgraceful. This way is more difficult 
than that (way), it is the most difficult way of Syria. 
Gold is heavier than silver. The greatest school among 
the Moslems is in the Mosque el-Azhar. Zaid is stupid 
and Omar is more stupid than he. Mohammed is a 
good friend and Hasan is a better friend than he; he 
is the best of my friends. The wind is more violent 
to-day than it was yesterday. 

Exercise 20. 



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11 



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Exercise 21. 

Hast thou written the letter? No, I have not 
written the letter. Have you understood what we have 
said (lit. our speech)? Yes, we have understood what 
you said. The sun rose. The moon set. The traveller 
and his servant made for Damascus and entered the 
city. We went out from the gate of the city. The 
men ascended the mountain and descended. Have you 
drunk the water? No, we did not drink the water, we 
drank the wine. Did you (fern.) and your brother 
break the water-glass? No, we did not break the water- 
glass. I sent these peasants to the governor's house. 
Thou hast returned to thy father's house. The house 
is about half an hour's distance. I made for this 
house and found its owners were rich (of the rich). 
The owner of the house opened for him the gate of 
the court. I went out this day to the hunt. They 
received the guest this night among them. The youth 
rejoiced and asked for food from the man. 



Exercise 22. 




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12 



Exercise 23. 

Has Zaid struck thee? No, Zaid has not struck 
me; but Hind has struck us. Have you understood us? 
Yes, we have understood you. This news reached us. 
We sought him and did not find him. He wrote him 
a letter and sealed it. The men took the wine and 
drank it. The girls fled and are safe. The king grieved 
exceedingly. Have the merchants left their goods? 
Yes, they have left them in the house. I had heard 
important news. They two ate and drank a little wine. 
The Mamlukes were governors in Egypt. Mohammed 
Ali killed them in the citadel of Cairo. His name was 
Selim. He was a great king, possessor of much wealth. 
The men had struck them violently. I was not present 
with you. 

Exercise 24. 



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o^ojojo^G ^o5 ^ s 

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13 



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Exercise 25. 

The youth went out playing in the street. I left 
him playing. We wish you success from God, Dost 
thou know the man? No, I do not know him. Many 
of the rich do not know the value of knowledge. What 
do you want from me? We want from you the price 
of our wares. Wilt thou carry me or shall I carry 
thee? The sheikh was making for the village. They 
will carry the dead to the grave. One of us will have 
carried his master. Whither are you and your brother 
going? We are going to Damascus. The men sat 
smoking. The women sat drinking coffee. We were 
present playing. girl, why do you not write your 
letter? I shall write it afterwards. my companions, 
will you go to the hunt with us? Yes, sir, we shall 
be present with you to-morrow. 

Exercise 20. 



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14 



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Exercise 27. 

The judge wanted you to appear before him. I 
commanded them both to sit. The merchant appeared 
before me to seek the goods. Hast thou opened the 
gate for them that they may come in to us? I shall 
open the gate for them. The judge was present to 
examine the matter. The intelligent man does not 
abandon the little that exists to seek the much that is 
wanting. The men went out to go to the hunt. The 
youth wanted the man to allow him a clean room in 
which to spend the night. I opened the door so as to 
enter the room. 

Exercise 28. 



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15 

Exercise 29. 

The minister did not allow a man to sit by his 
side. Do not abandon thy friend in anxiety. The men 
knew him and did not prevent him from entering and 
he entered. Her heart did not rejoice over anything. 
girl, do not open the door to the strangers. Do not 
grieve O boys. We are tired, so let us sit down a 
minute in this place, Be not angry with us. They 
were not able to return to the city. The boy saw a 
house, and there was no other in that place. The dog 
entered with him and did not leave him. God said: 
let there be light and there was light. 



Exercise BO. 

57 4J u 



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Exercise 81. 

Open the door my mother. boys, do not 
enter, Tell the truth pupils and do not lie. Be 
silent pupil and sit in your place. Where are they 
dwelling? They are dwelling in the market. Abdallah, 
open the door of the house. men, prevent them 
from coining in to us. See mistress what you have 
done. Where art thou going? I am going to the 
market. We were sitting in front of the house. They 
found a woman sitting in a small room. Put on your 



16 

clothes. Ascend this mountain boy. my two 
companions, sit beside me. girls, write your letters. 
A man knocked at the door of a certain wag, and he 
said: "Who is this? 11 He answered him: "I," and he 
said to him: "Go away for, I do not know any of my 
friends, whose name is I." 

Exercise 82, 

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Exercise 33, 

It has been mentioned that Hasan is an amiable 
man. His name was mentioned for his courage. This 
coin was struck in Constantinople. The gates of the 
fortress have been destroyed. Truly Zaid is the striker 
and Omar is the struck. We did not know that you 
were busy at this time. Truly we are God's and we 
are returning to Him. Truly we do not know danger 
or fear. This is known among us. Truly this woman 
was known to me. The man is known by his manner 
of life. Truly the man mentioned is bad. Truly man 
is in loss. An astrologer was crucified and it was said 



_ 17 



to him: Did you see this in your star? And IieTaid: 
I saw a lifting up, but I did not know that it was 
upon a piece of wood. 



Exercise 



5. 






Exercise 35. 

The prince was speaking to his brother and treating 
him in a friendly way and kissing him. Truly the robbers 
were attacking this land. Mohammed AH destroyed the 
Mamlukes. His appearance became as (that) of the 
ramping lion. I kiss thy hands, my father, and have 
not disobeyed thy commands. It will be best that you 
go and inform my father. The night had become dark, 
and the sheikh consulted his men concerning the matter. 
Gird your weapons for (the) defence. Writing (to one) 
is the half of seeing (him). They see about them only 
a dark horizon. my boy, do not interrupt ray speech. 
Truly I see a man in the distance. Truly the men 
examined that neighbourhood and after the examination 
they returned. Return from where thou art (lit. from 
with thee), dog of the Arabs, and if (thou dost) not, 
we will deprive thee of life. We are diligent in seeking 
(to know) about it. He brought the guest into his tent. 
We watched the movements of the robbers. our 
companion, thou hast overwhelmed us by thy friend- 
Key to the Arabic Conversation-Grammar. 2 



18 - 

liness and kindness. The sheikh commanded them to 
go immediately to take the good news to the prince. 
Zaid wanted them to tell his father that he had found 
his son, and that he would be with him on the morrow. 
The sheikh knew that his guest had intercourse with 
the Beduin and associated with them. Man proposes 
and God determines. Let us send him someone to 
inform him of that. Tell us concerning thy name. 



Exercise 36. 

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Exercise 87. 

Do you speak Arabic? Yes, sir, I speak a little. 
Have you spoken to (with) him? We spoke to him 
this morning. We must follow their trace. The prince 
and his brother sat talking about that matter. Verily 
we all show ourselves brave and we want thee to show 
thyself brave also. The sheikh came forward and kissed 
the hands of the vezir. It is best that we should 



19 

separate and follow the road. When the men heard 
that, they came forward all together to his side. His 
feelings played with him as the wind plays with the 
flame. Do you not remember what I commanded you 
maid? people, be slow that we may meet one 
another. I am bold to do this. We were exceedingly 
astonished at him. We left the prince in his tent 
speaking with his son about his brother's affair. 

Exercise 8H. 



U 



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Lo! 



Exercise 89. 

The riders were divided into two divisions. When 
they approached them, behold 1 they were few in (of) 
number. I seek pardon of thee. The prince turned to 
the bearer of the letter. The feeling of the boy was 
stirred on hearing that. The prince and his son came 
together in a tent. I have mixed with many Beduin 
such as these (among the like of these Beduin many) 
in the districts of Syria. A man among them of much 
experience came to him. His heart was rent. My heart 
was inflamed. Speak from where thou art (from with 
thee) and do not approach us. The king sat with his 
brother, while the two talked with one another joyfully. 

2* 



- 20 - 

I have been exceedingly pleased that you have been 
generous to me. Our father expects us now (is in our 
expectation). I did not expect the reward of this deed. 
The governor commanded that these men should be 
flogged with the lash until they confessed the truth. 
One of them came forward and kissed the feet of the 
prince trembling from fear. In the morning all came 
together in the room of the youth. 



Exercise 40. 



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t L IIidJ !Ui JJJ tU U vJL>Jl 



Exercise 41. 

When the king saw that, the world became black 
in his face. boy, why have you become pale (yellow)? 
We saw the girl blush. I saw the blushing of the girl 
They saw riders in the distance and rejoiced. Thou 
knowest that these Beduin esteem no action forbidden. 
Do you think what we have done to be right? All did 
not think this opinion right. He sat enquiring of that 
rider concerning the truth of the matter. We were 
received with great courtesy. We shall meet in the 
future, if God will. I ask pardon of God. The meadows 
have become green. He did not think the event import- 
ant. The Sultan gave us a great reception. 



- 21 
Exercise 42. 

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Exercise 43. 

Then the tablecloth was spread according to the 
custom of the Arabs. The man sat telling him his 
story. He returned to Egypt to join his companions. 
In the night of our preparation for the journey we 
prepared the horses and rode. It was determined (the 
determination was settled) to go to the boundaries of 
Egypt. My uncle informed me that the people of Egypt 
were preparing to make war on the French. We 
determined to go to Cairo. We were compelled to 
oppose him. I thought that fate had become pleasant 
to us and did not know what fate had prepared for us. 
We told him the story. I knew him to be a lover of 
justice. They had prepared for him an extensive 
dwelling. The subjects did not love him. Their hands 
became feeble. I do not think that you oppose me. 
Do you think that possible? The prince went out joy- 
fully. The boy wanted to refrain but the old man 
compelled him. He was greatly pleased at that. I told 



22 

you that I should be prepared for every service. You 
two did not help me with your opinion. My hopes 
have been renewed. girl, have }^ou felt the cold? 
I have not felt it. This valley is surrounded by mul- 
berry trees and tig trees and vineyards extending to 
the sea. It was said to a madman: Count for us the 
madmen; he said: this would be long for me, but I 
will count the intelligent. 

Exercise 44. 

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ttX^J O.y! 2O U-vw.A*J>f *JU - j\ Jj> 

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Exercise 45. 



The old man showed friendliness and courtesy to 
the guest. I believe in God and His angels and His 
apostles and His books and the last day. The robber 
kills the traveller in the night and takes his wealth. 



23 

Take this bread beggar to eat (it). Eat and drink 
until you are satisfied, girl, what are you eating? 
I shall take (some) of this meat. We hope that you 
will honour us with your presence among us. We saw 
them eating. I think that you are not accustomed to 
the food (prepared) in Bedouin fashion. We had all 
become accustomed to this custom. We observed the 
movements of that man. I was sick from the influence 
of the heat. You were later than the time of the 
invitation. I intend to take him with me to Egypt. 
Observe ray condition now. Will you allow me to come 
in to you? I assure you that the condition is so. He 
did not take anyone with him. This word is taken 
from the dictionary. The vezir was not influenced by 
their speech. Fire the gun for him to greet him. The 
thing does not confirm our thoughts. Sa id came and 
asked permission of the prince to speak and he allowed 
him. The commander of the Faithful commanded to 
kill the astrologer. Have you hired this house? I spent 
a thousand piastres. Verily the editor of this book is 
a learned man. The watchmen do not allow anyone 
to enter it. Prepare for the way. He did not confirm 
the news. 

Exercise 46. 



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24 



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IIJ vXtf] *iU al 



Exercise 47. 

Have you asked them about their condition? We 
have asked them about it. I will ask God to help you. 
I did not dare to address her. Verily dreams are 
imaginations not to be regarded. Our intention was to 
reward him. The ambassador announced to us the 
passing of the king. We knew that the prince was 
fleeing to a tribe of the Arabs. We heard that the 
king was passing (notice of the passing of the king 
reached us). I asked Mohammed about his children. 
He deserves a large reward. The reader should have 
known that. Ask Sa c ld about his opinion. (Neither) 
food nor sleep were enjoyable to her. I congratulate 
you on your safe return (returning safe). A man saw 
a philosopher instructing an old man and said to him: 
what are you doing? He said: I am washing an 
Abyssinian, perhaps he will become white. The wall 
said to the peg: why do you split me? It said: ask 
him who hammers me. Ask this old man whence he 
(comes). God will reward you for me with what is 
better for you than my reward. He was asked about 
the price of the fruits. 

Exercise 48. 

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25 

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Exercise 49. 

my Lord make easy and do not make difficult; 
complete with good. It is to be hoped (the hoped for 
is) that you will stay with us in Damascus, We sought 
you and did not find you. girl, put these things 
on the seat. Let him remain. Let me do so. Will 
you arrive in Alexandria shortly? Verily I went to 
Cairo. I arrived some time ago (since a time). Sa'ld 
became greatly excited (fell in great excitement) on 
hearing that news, servant bring the ambassadors 
before me (to my presence). It appears that we did 
not alight on the trace of the son of your master. It 
is your duty to pay our money. The boy thought that 
the anger of the vezir would fall on him. I do not 
know the girl either by name or personally (as to body), 
but I trust she will be very suitable for me. All 
messages that come for us must be care of the editor 
of the journal. I rely on God. Thy duty is the fear 
of God and reliance on Him in joy and harm. You 
have promised us a great reward. How shall I describe 
to you, my friend, the wonders I have seen? Trust 
in God for (and) success is from God. We have agreed 
to meet to morrow in this place. We awoke and hurried 
forward. It will not be made possible for thee to see 
her and speak with her. Verily the Sublime Porte 
agreed to that only on condition that Ibrahim Pasha 
refrained from advancing to Asia Minor. 



26 
Exercise 50. 



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>-o >^ * ) * 



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LA] Uist^o o^U-I! !AP 1*1}^ xUxiiJt A.\>y^ 



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Exercise 51. 

Rise, my boy, and let me sit down. Stay and 
fear not. Rise and flee from (with) us. Tell me- who 
art thou and whence art thou? Do not say so (the 
like of that). The physician said: he will die shortly, 
The time is long to us. May God prolong your life 
(remaining). Prolong your stay with us. This will 
never happen. He went quickly. Again he became 
agitated (the agitations returned to him) and he began 
to imagine that his master was smitten with a thrust; 
and while he was still in this state (in these imaginings) 
the caravan halted for lunch and rest. We sat down 



- 27 - 

to rest and take food. He did not spend the night in 
the village, I wished to travel in the morning. Are 
you going to the left or to the right? Do you want 
to visit us to-morrow? This is our greatest desire (the 
extremity of our desire). My friend will have already 
journeyed to Egypt. Travel, my son, in the com- 
pany of this man. Do you wish me to tell you the 
truth? The custom in that land is to set up a public 
market in every district and to sell and buy in it. It 
is said the troops terrified the land. The man's pride 
increased (the man increased as regards pride). He 
was not able to go to the assembly. The sun had 
inclined to setting. Guard thy tongue; if thou protect 
it, it will protect thee; if thou betray it, it will betray 
thee. You have already seen the insult that has come 
upon me to-day, and you know that insult cannot be 
borne; will you then oppose me, when I wish to take 
revenge on the man, who has insulted me? I spent 
that night in the tent. Verily the merchant had 
appointed Friday for the public auction. He began to 
fear death. The woman wanted to marry her son, and 
chose a girl for him. It was not possible for him to 
reply to the request of vezir. The boy interrupted her 
speech saying: see, my mother, I have become a man. 
He was a great hero, whom the lions fear. The boy 
said to his mother: command me for I am thy obedient 
son. Sa c ld used to hunt the gazelles near those places. 
My soul yearned for thy pleasant company. His steed 
was struck by a bullet. He wanted to defend himself 
and was not able (to do that). Do you think that you 
will terrify me by this threat, while I am not afraid 
of death? The officer advanced to lead him to prison. 
I wanted to repeat the question. The sparks were 
flying from his eyes. You need food. Long life to 
you sir (May our master live). Be calm (Be quiet as 
regards soul) my dear! Do not lose time. I thought 
that you were afflicted with evil. In repetition there 
is benefit. He wandered about in the land to rest his 
soul. He commanded them to choose a governor over 
them. The land is rising against us. We thought 
your opinion correct. The horseman cried out and 
said : who art thou traitor? and he^did - n0t answer 



28 

him. The battle lasted about half an hour. The vezir 
commanded them to obey his commands. I saw that 
my daughter truly inclined to thee and I saw that she 
was worth to be thy wife. The boy went out to help 
me. Will you remain long in Egypt? I do not think 
I shall profit by staying here. You have been of great 
service to us. I was absent from my friend about a 
year. They did not sleep that night. 

Exercise 52* 



) O *, - ~ * y O ^ 



., 

X.+.a.trr >ujy 

* f 9 ' 

^ o^^^ >^ o. 

to -JC^-j i<^^ Sl*! b js.* t .ti.r 



o 



o : \ M I tt o 

v3 v * **H (*^ ^ """" i^^i \3 /*"^ 

JL 4 /k- _ LJlj x, 



- _ w , O f * ) * ) JC-o ^ O ^ ^ O ^ 



29 

O ) * f. ) J $. Jf.^ _->Ox> > ^ ~ J *&~g 

0> fXJtj** t^sXAt! sUUCJt jLu y _juLii 



Exercise 58. 

Why do you weep, my boy? Weep not. We 
asked your pardon (we hoped for excuse from you). 
Have you read what happened to us? We shall read 
it shortly. I have forgotten the name of the girl, but 
have not forgotten the name of her father. Go quickly 
(in haste). Breakfast (then) rest; take supper (then) 
walk about. Verily these trees and herbs are watered 
by the rain-water in the winter, and remain alive in 
the remaining seasons, and the camels feed on them. 
It would be necessary for us to meet him. The shep- 
herd gives the peasant sheep, and takes instead of them 
wheat or straw, or he gives butter and takes instead of 
it dates or tobacco. Sa c id went away among the tents 
claiming that he was one of the sellers. We were pre- 
sent to meet the Pasha. He commanded the men to 
remain afar, and advanced to honour the Pasha, and 
when he approached him, he greeted him, bending his 
head. The king complained of the shortness of the 
respite (time), and said: it is not sufficient to collect this 
amount of wealth. Trust in God and be not anxious. 
Much wine was handed round (the giving to one 
another of wine was much). He determined to 
call him from among the people. Sa'ld wished to 
throw himself on him, and called him. The mother 
called her son to her lap to comfort him. My friend 
wrote me a letter of condolence. A message came to 
him from the Sultan, summoning him to him. What 
I endured before is sufficient for me. Truly men were 
created to endure wars. I give thee one charge and 
hope thou wilt not forget it. He wished to flee, but 
did not escape. Thou wilt remain with us as pledge, 
until God decides between us. Truly they two are 



friends, each of whom calls the other a brother. The 
friends receive thee with greeting. They approached 
the city. We have forgiven thee. May God pardon 
us and you. It is not unknown to us that this mos- 
que was built by command of the Sultan. Those 
gardens are watered from the water of the river. Sa'ld 
walked about in those gardens. The firmament was 
clear. The firmament is clear. Haste is from Satan 
and slowness from the Merciful. This boy is called 
Mohammed. The girl fell in a faint. We spent that 
day in joy. Verily the steed goes with the horseman 
as the gait of the bride. Be not anxious about these 
traitors. When I wished to question him about that, 
ho did not answer me anything, and so I sought his 
traces. She prayed for his welfare. Man does not at- 
tain all that he prays for. Desire what you will. Truly 
the girl is trained in the best way. What you cannot 
decide, time decides. I was called one day to the 
prince. Things remained as they were (in their con- 
dition). The prince died. What is hoped for from thy 
goodness is that thou inform us of your condition. 
Lead us the straight path (Koran, Sura 1). 

Exercise 54. 





o G ,jy^S t^ 



^.O^ ^ O J * > O ) to f 

 - ^ o ^ o > 

U> Lx 



L 



^ o <, - o ^ ^ o ^ i J 

LuJU: LxwJW Uie^ tyO 



- 31 - 



O ^ _ 



^ * ^ ^ 

JL LJb c^-Jil viU oJ3 LJ vi>uwto, J^ 



O.I (V " jAA"j ^ 

Exercise 55. 

Verily I am coming from Damascus and going to 
Cairo. Have you come from the house? We have not 
come from the school. We shall meet next month, if 
God will. Make us swear by what you (fern,) will, that 
we will bring you the money. We brought the news 
to the sheikh. Verily he who fears God is the only 
hero. The people of the district came to the market 
(and) men brought them what they needed in the way 
of food and drink, and many of the inhabitants of the 
city came. I have not seen such a girl as this in the 
course (length) of my life. The people came to see 
that. He gave the sheikh an affectionate greeting. 
It grieved me much that I came late. We saw that 
Salma had despaired of the existence of her husband. 
The upright may do evil (Prov.). When the lights of 
the day were kindled and the armies of the night had 
taken flight, my servant awoke me. The sun lightens 
the earth. You will come, when you wish. I did not 
see good, when I came. You have seen the prepara- 
tion for the journey. If God wills anything (Less. 47.8), 
it is ; and if He does not will it, it is not. Did not 
our letter come to you? He saw them eating and 



32 

drinking. You have not seen such a book as this. 
Are you not ashamed of yourselves, children? Show 
us your deeds, horseman. 



Exercise 56. 

., 

, 



O I ^ J : O ! w -C ., )t* OJ^^.0^ t* * 3 ->o^ O ^ 

.y O l co,l - O yli- ^ j ,J _ jLi 'J^i, ^ 



. ^ , ^^-^. ^ 

XiU^ L*J ^O^ -jUoJl ^ XX^ Lo 



^ O O ^ ,,w C .) ^ 

O Lot 



Exercise 57. 

Good evening (May God give thee an evening with 
good). Good morning. Good are these children! How 
excellent they are! Bad is this loaf! How vile it is! 
It was not possible to journey again, for the camels 
were not of the kind of swift camels. The Arabs are 
not black. We did nod return again. We almost flew 
for joy. His master remained silent. The government 
returned to him, after it had almost gone from his 
hand. Art thou not the son of the prince? I do not 
care for threatening, so long as I am innocent. Since 
our arrival in Egypt I have not seen thee again. They 
remained (busy) with these stories until two parts of 
the night had passed. Verily the Turkish Empire is 
continually occupied with reforms of conditions. I have 
left that land, since I had no aim (in staying) in it, 
and it is not my home. This space of time is not 
small, I fear that I may be incapable of attaining my 
desire. The camel had no more strength to renew the 
journev. We continue travelling. Who can that man 



33 

be? It is to be hoped that your star may be lucky. 
I began to blame myself. We began to cut up the 
flesh, that remained to us, and said: c How pleasing 
is this food/ girl! be quiet. Our quiet is not per- 
fect. We began to prepare to depart. Are not the 
enemies still far from us? The light in their eyes be- 
came darkness and they began to murmur, then they 
withdrew from before us. We almost attained the 
victory over the enemy, and the enemy almost turned 
to flight. We began to build the tent and began to 
converse. I almost forgot my misfortunes. The night 
pitched its tent with its black curtain and we were as 
a ship without a rudder. The prince said: Remain 
with us an honoured plysician. He saw that ray joy 
was only an external joy. I continued to put the me- 
dicines on his chest until he died. The riders spoke 
angrily and the swords flashed and the women wailed, 
then a rider of the enemies rushed upon me and raised 
his lance to wound me with it, thinking I was not 
able to resist him, and I was alone without helper or 
supporter. Truly hunger and weariness had almost 
destroyed them. The anxieties (that weigh) on me are 
not (of) one kind, I have by the grace of God thou- 
sands of them. Since that time he has not again 
returned to us and we have not again heard anything 
of him. It may be that God will open to me the gate 
of comfort. Verily human nature does not despair 
completely and does not cease to expect the attainment 
of what is wished. I have no friend except the grave. 
The world grew dark in my eyes (face), and I almost 
fainted. The highwayman is not a hero. 



Exercise 58. 



^ * s. ^X -o 

JIM *ui 



* 

~~ 



34 



. ^ 

U 3U 



U 

. 

L 



^ ^ 

XJuJ^Ji 



Exercise 59. 

Truly Mt. Hermon is a high mountain, from the 
summit of which you (can) see Damascus. I cannot 
deny the amiability and friendliness with which the 
companions and relatives of my friend surrounded me. 

Then I saw it to be necessary to answer them 
with cold answers, which should correspond with their 
questions. 

Truly I heard a tender voice, as if it were the 
voice of one, whom fate had betrayed and cast into 
misfortune or evil, and I began to hear those sad 
melodies which cut the hearts and soften hard rock 
and at which every obstinate giant becomes tender, 
and I was convinced that there was found here a per- 
son, whom misfortunes had brought to this place, and 
whom the hands of time had broken; then I deter- 



35 

mined to deliver this oppressed man from tho misfor- 
tune which had seized him, and I found a girl of 
extraordinary beauty, and when her veil fell, there 
appeared under it a fresh face which God had adorned 
with a rosy shining colour, and her languid eyes rained 
pearls, which God had made to inflame imaginations and 
pierce hearts and I said to her u Who brought thee 
glorious lady to this place, which no man inhabits?" 
And she said u Do not ask friendly youth concerning 
my affair, for I hear from afar the sound of the sing- 
ing of those wretched ones, who brought me to this 
place." And I said to her "How many are they? 
And who are they? And are they of the strong, the 
brave, from whose hands there is no escape for us?" 
The person who now came was my servant, and 
he came to the place where we were sitting. There 
was before us the sweetest food, we had ever taken in 
the course of our life. I shot at those wretches, who 
deserve the worst death and their chief cried out with 
a cry that disturbed the wild beasts. In the meantime 
Hasan advanced having with him provisions that suf- 
ficed us for ten days, and we went to hunt for partridges 
of which a large number are found on that moun- 
tain and we were not absent more than an hour be- 
fore we hunted many partridges, and we brought them 
back and prepared a supper of them, such as we took 
with unbounded joy. Verily I am a physician, I wander 
about in the land and I came the day before yesterday 
after midnight to the tribe between which and you 
occurred the struggle; and may it not be hidden from 
you prince that I have a sister, who was lost in the> 
battle referred to. I was as one, whom the sight of 
bloodshed had intoxicated. The prince said: Verily 
what I have seen of your boldness and courage, which 
you displayed in the last battle, has induced me to 
that. I began to consider how to find means, which 
would enable me to return to my land of which I did 
not know the amount of distance from that place. 
Verily that from which I hoped that it would deliver 
me from destruction is a means t6 the swift approach 
of my death. And I received a letter (came to me a 
letter) in which was written as follows What has past 

3* 



36 - 

is gone, and what is hoped for is hidden, and thine 
is the hour in which thou art. That is not a thing 
to be mentioned. We spent a number of days that 
made us forget all that we had endured. Verily with 
the measure with which you measure, it will be mea- 
sured to you. 

Exercise 60. 



f> Ux 

LiLJ 



^ ^ ^ ~ w 

^j^. LJ| jy ^cJt Jo 



^L* 3 aU 



o>>-> - ^ 

*^>i jtjJ Lo Js^j/J 



S w^ ., J .. O 

LxJwJOo o\J: 







^ , 

J ! J 



^ o ^ s e. o- 6 o. 

f. | i/ 

j ,Uac x*^ ^ H^ 



- 37 

Exercise 61. 

What is the time? According to me it is twenty 
minutes past eleven. I have prepared the travelling 
equipment on Tuesday the 1 st July 1895. With me 
was a youth who was not more than seventeen years 
old. The city is four hours distant from us. After 
the expiration of five hours we reached the place men- 
tioned. The subscription to our journal in Beirut and 
Lebanon for a year is fourteen francs and in other 
parts eighteen francs. The price of a single copy is a 
piastre. The cost of an advertisement on the last page 
for each line is two piastres and for subscribers sixty 
paras, and on other pages than the last three piastres 
and for subscribers half a franc. The earth revolves on 
its axis once every four and twenty hours. Every circle 
of longitude and latitude is divided into 360 parts called 
degrees, and every degree is divided into 60 minutes, and 
every minute into 60 seconds. The extent of the surface 
of the earth reaches 200 million square miles and it is 
divided into dry land and water and the proportion of the 
dry land to the water is as three to seven. The number 
of inhabitants of the world is about 1200 million souls. 
The surface of the earth is also divided into live zones, 
one hot, and two temperate and two cold. Verily the 
land of Egypt is divided into two parts, a Southern 
and a Northern or Upper and Lower Egypt; and Upper 
Egypt is divided into seven Mudirlyas; as for Lower 
Egypt it is divided into six Mudlrlyas, and in the land 
of Egypt beside these Mudirlyaw are six centres called 
Muhafazas. Verily the Government of Egypt pays to 
the Sublime Porte a tribute, the amount of which is 
about 700000 guineas yearly. 

List of the books wanted from the public bookshop: 
Full piastres. Number. 

40 4 The four plays at 10. 

30 2 The travels of Ibn Batata at 15. 

30 1 The geography of Amln Bey Fikri. 

25 1 The trusty guide of Rifa'at Bey. 

125 ~~1T Total. 

15 Price of cotton for packing and cost of post 
~14- 






w ^ o ^ ^ ^ 



^ o ^ ^ ^ *o^ jo5x-.,^ ., Ox, JO^ s2 ^ <, 

xiu iuLs Lj.yij ^^it x&& jLsil j Oy^j ^bt xsu 

..,&.. o^> , o .,! o ^ ^ ^ oo i, 

*JLjtS| Ujut JO KJuJs^Jt j, . 

' 



-^ < -^ * * * -wjj o,, s o * * * o ^O'O-' o 

IAAA x 



- 39 - 

- ., s o 

\J L&.C 



Exercise 08. 

The teaching of the numerals is to be found in 
the 32 nd and 33 rd lessons of this book. The religion 
of Islam is built on the noble Koran, arid its professors 
are divided into two parties, the first being the Sunnites 
and the second the Shiites. Africa is divided into seven 
parts, the first contains the district, which the Nile and 
its tributaries water, and in it is Egypt; and the second 
is the land of Maghrib and in it is Algeria and Morocco ; 
and the third is East Africa and in it is Zanzibar; 
and the fourth is Central Africa ; and the fifth is West 
Africa; and the sixth is South Africa and in it is the 
Cape Land ; and the seventh consists of the islands be- 
longing to this continent. At 8 o'clock I will do myself 
the honour of coming to you. Your esteemed letter 
dated Monday January 30 th 1887 A.D. corresponding 
to 27 th Rabi' al-awwal 1305 A.H. has reached us. 
Sunrise is at 4 minutes past 2 and midday at 8 minutes 
past 7 and sunset by European time at 52 minutes 
past 4 (8 minutes to 5). I was in your house at a 
quarter past nine, and remained (there) to wait for you 
for half an hour, and at a quarter to ten I left the 
house. We have already learnt firstly the Arabic 
nouns and secondly the verbs, and if God will, we 
shall learn thirdly the particles in the second part of 
this book. Truly the first Sura of the noble Koran 
is called* (its name is) the Fatiha. Take two thirds of 
this loaf and I will take the other third. The little 
festival is in the first days of the month Shawwal. 

Exercise 04. 



40 



OJ >J , ^ O ^ Ji 

J alii l& ^ Lx/> 



3 u xLJh LX$> j, _ ,.LJ 



I O 



^ ^ 

jLxLtJt tv 



^ I o -. s !< - s ^>x xiSoo ^ ^ oo of- 



^ 0/0 



O ,O-0 ,. O ) 



, ,. ^ 

jjJ! ^ L^T*^ C^ C^y^b &jwOL*J! KxAvJl J, li! 

* * f f f 



O O^o^. ^ fc w ^> J jO>: 



os^> o^. ^. fj^o^, * E o ^ S>o o., 

n j, s^-yJ! jwas iijo^i I3i n j rf 



O 

fii H J, ^; ^ ^ , 

" ' "- * 3 * 

O ^ 



1 il^ H i-Lcc 






Exercise 05. 



Every soul tastes death. We travelled swiftly. 
The slaying of Ja'far by the Caliph took place in this 
year. Zaid did this from love to his brother. It is 



_ 41 

said that when the English entered the land of Egypt 
before they seized 'Arabi, one of the English soldiers 
was very drunk, and while he was in this condition, 
an officer passed by him and said to him: What are 
you doing here? And the soldier was very perplexed 
and stooped as if he wanted to search for something. 
And he said: I am searching for 'Arabi. And the 
officer was very much astonished at the smartness 
(excellence) of his excuse (delivering himself) and left 
him and went away. Verily I was very much grieved 
at not seeing you in the house, when I brought the 
books which you wanted in the letter you sent me 
yesterday. The bearer of this permit is entitled to see 
the two gardens al-JazIra and al-Jlza. I thank you 
heartily for sending me the address of your friend. 
After bringing you greeting and peace I inform you 
that I arrived safely in the city of Cairo three days 
ago. Ahmed looked upon that youth and his keenness 
and friendliness with pleasure (admiration). 



Exercise M. 

UXofr L*J L^IJ 

f \ ~ > 50.. 



^UxJ! 

^jgoiU uljfj Lui (or 



42 

Exercise 07. 

Truly I intended to travel, and I arrived at a place 
in which I did not know anyone, and I wandered 
about in it that I might perchance find in it a refuge 
in which I might spend that night. Cairo is the capi- 
tal of the land of Egypt and the residence of his 
Highness the Khedive and the centre of his govern- 
ment; and in the days of the ancient Egyptians that 
place was known as Memphis. I fired at the gazelle, 
but it did not hit (the thing aimed at). They had sent 
the horses to the pasture in those meadows. Verily 
the Europeans call the instrument for measuring heat 
a thermometer. The mosque is the place of worship 
of the Moslems. Christmas is the greatest of the festi- 
vals of the Christians. The quarter of the Isma'lliya 
in the city of Cairo was formerly entirely parks and 
gardens and marshes, in which dwellings and houses 
were seldom seen. dear Ayesha, open the door with 
this key! little 'Abdallah give me a little of this 
meat! He said: Do you accept my invitation to take 
food with me in my house? And we entered and sat 
down on the couches and coffee was put before us, 
then we took food. 



Exercise 08. 



,, G O.O 

-UiJLl ^ 



i 

O...w. J ) WNJI^C: fX^>) )u/vy (-^ -?o 5-w ( ,ci f^j o 
^ 

Ul 



- 43 - 



Exercise 60* 

My horse was of the most excellent kind (of horses). 
Verily it is one of the worst habits for a man to 
mix himself up in what does not concern him. A 
place in which I gain my living is (my) greatest 
home, and people who honour us are (our) family. This 
street is wider now than it was formerly. The wind 
was stronger yesterday than it is to-day. A certain 
Syrian came to Cairo and entered one of the mosques 
to pray, and while he was there, he saw a man with 
his head, hands, feet and eyes bound up and he was 
praying to God saying: U my Lord, heal me! my 
Lord, pardon me and free me from my sicknesses and 
my pains' 1 and other words (he used) besides. And the 
Syrian heard him, and was oppressed and looked at 
him and said: "If God created another than thee anew, 
it would be easier than to set (to work) and patch you 
up." And when the Egyptian heard him, he abused 
him and went away. This porter is more diligent than 
that. The railway leads from Alexandria to Cairo. 
Verily idleness and laziness are sweeter to the taste 
than honey. 

Exercise 70. 

w 

tf 

^-^ 



44 



- li^XAoi U ytfl Ijjsju Luk U Os^t o^Ux 



Exercise 71. 

Stop (0 rny two friends!) let us weep over the 
remembrance of a loved one (Imru'ulqais). A man was 
present before a certain king and the Sultan spoke 
roughly to him, and the man said to him: "Verily 
thou art only like the heaven; when it thunders and 
lightens, then good weather (its good) is near." Then 
his anger was quiet and he was kind to him. They 
gave him many camels and a heavy coat of mail. Verily 
the Prince of the Faithful Harttn ar-Rashld went out 
one day, he and Abu Ya c qub the companion and Ja'far 
the Barmecide and Abu Nowiis and they journeyed in 
the desert. An Arab went out, whom al-Hajjaj had 
made governor over a certain district and he remained 
in it a long time. And when on a certain day an 
Arab of his tribe came down to him, he gave him food 
and the man was hungry, and he asked him concern- 
ing his family and said: "How is my son 'Umeir?" 
He said: u As you wish, he has filled the earth and 
the settlement with men and women." He said: "And 
what has the mother of f Umeir done? 11 He said : "Also 
well." He said: "And how is the house?" He said: 
"Flourishing with its people.'" He said: "And our dog 
Iqa e ?" He said: "He fills the settlement with barking." 
He said: "And how is my camel Zuraiq?" He said: 
"As will rejoice thee." Then he turned to his servant 
and said: "Take away the food" and he took it away 
and the Arab was not satisfied. Then he questioned 
him again and said: "0 blessed of the forelock, repeat 
to me what thou hast mentioned. 1 ' He said: "Ask 
what you will." He said : "And how is my dog Iqa c ?" 
He said: "He is dead. 11 He said: "And what killed 
him? He said: 4; He was choked with one of the 
bones of your camel Zuraiq and died." He said: *'And 
is my camel Zuraiq dead?' 1 He said: "Yes." He said: 



-- 45 ~- 

"And what killed him?" Ho said: "The frequent 
carrying of water to the grave of the mother of f Umeir." 
He said: "And is the mother of f Umeir dead?" He 
said: "Yes." He said: "And what killed her?" He 
said: "Her constant weeping over c Umeir." He said: 
"And is 'Umeir dead?" He said: "Yes." He said: 
"And what killed him?" He said: "The house fell on 
him." He said : "And has the house fallen?' 1 He said: 
"Yes." Then he attacked him with his stick and beat 
him, and he turned and tied from him. 




,^aj .j 

,0 o "o > - O^o^ O o - ^ 

ij 



Exercise 73. 

It is told that a certain rich man had a shepherd, 
who pastured his sheep in one of the steppes, and he 
had appointed him wages in which was a little butter. 
And the shepherd used to keep the butter and stored 
it in a jar be had hanging in his hut. And while he 
was sitting one day in his hut at sunset leaning on his 
stick, he began to reflect on what he should do with the 
butter he had collected. And he said to himself: I will 
take it tomorrow to the market and sell it, and with 
its price will buy a pregnant sheep and it will bring 



46 

me another sheep, then this will become pregnant and 
bear me other sheep with its mother until I have a 
large flock, then I will return the sheep I have now 
to their master and will engage a servant to pasture 
my sheep and will build myself a fine castle and fur- 
nish it with beautiful furniture and jewelled vases and 
fine paintings. And when my son grows up, I will 
bring him a learned and wise teacher, who will teach 
him good manners and wisdom and I will command 
him to obey me and respect me, and if he obeys me 
(good!) and if not, I will strike him with this stick. 
And he lifted his hand with his stick and struck the 
jar and broke it, and the butter fell on his head and 
his beard and his clothes spreading in every direction. 
And he was exceedingly grieved at that, saying: Per- 
haps this is the reward of him who listens to his 
fancies. 



Exercise 74. 

j ?(XL QX^J! *j**\ j^Jf oo 

_ 0f<) w vl , O..OC r 

Lo 



t 



bvXU; U JLixI L 



Lu 



^ 5^ OS 



47 

Exercise 75. 

It is narrated that ar-Rashid was very wakeful 
one night and called Ja'far and said: I want you to 
dispel the restlessness that is in my heart. And the 
vezir said : prince of the Faithful, how can there be 
restlessness in your heart, when God has created many 
things to dispel cares from the careworn and anxiety 
from the anxious, and thou hast power over them. 
And ar-Rashid said: And what are they Ja'far? 
And he said to him: Come let us go up on the 
roof of this castle that we may see the stars and their 
harmony and their exaltation and the moon and the 
beauty of its appearance. And ar-Rashid said: 
Ja'far, my soul is not anxious for any of that. And 
he said: prince of the Faithful, open the castle 
windows that look over the garden and look at the 
beauty of those trees and listen to the sound of the 
twittering of the birds and look at the murmur of the 
rivers and smell the perfume of those flowers. And 
he said: Ja7ar, my soul is not anxious for any of 
that. And he said : prince of the Faithful, open the 
window that looks out on the Tigris that we may see 
those vessels and sailors, how one claps and another 
quotes Mawali. And ar-Rashid said : My soul is not 
anxious for any of that. Ja'far said: Rise prince 
of the Faithful so that we way go down to the private 
stable and see the Arab horses and look at the beauty 
of their colours, both black as the night when it is 
dark and reddish and grey and brown and red and 
white and green and piebald and yellow and of colours 
which confuse the intellects. And ar-Rashid said: My 
soul is not anxious for any of that. And Ja f far said: 
prince of the Faithful, nothing remains but to cut 
off the head of thy slave Ja'far, for I cannot dispel 
the care of our lord. And ar-Rashid laughed and his 
soul was cheered and his trouble passed from him. 
A poet (lit. one of them) has said : The nights are 
pregnant, they will bear every wonderful thing. 



- 48 - 
Exercise 70. 

* %  

>^' ^uJjJ! (- 



Exercise 77. 

A dispute arose between al-Walid ibn c Abd al- 
Malik and his brother Sulaiman. And Sulaiman spoke 
hastily against him something that affected his mother. 
And he opened his mouth to answer him. And behold 
by his side was 'Omar ibn c Abd al- c Az!z and he stop- 
ped his mouth and returned answer to him and said: 
Ibn c Abd al-Malik, (he is) thy brother and the son 
of tliy mother and he has precedence over thee. And 
he said: Abu Haf$, thou hast killed me. He said: 
And what have I done to thee? He said: Thou hast 
returned to my breast (what is) hotter than a coal. 
And he turned to his side and died. 



49 

The Caliph al-Musta c irn was a brave hero and a 
powerful rider, none of the Bani 'l-'Abbas was bolder 
than he or stronger in heart. Ibn abi Dawud said: 
Al-Musta c sim said to me: Abu 'Abdallah, bite me 
on the fore-arm as hard as you can. And I said: 
prince of the Faithful, I do not want to do that (my 
soul is not pleased with that). And he said: Truly it 
will not hurt me and I desire that, for when the points 
of the lances cannot affect it (the arm), how can the 
teeth affect it? 

Exercise 78. 

-.. ^ - 
...u 



U Jo 



Exercise 79. 



I rode towards (making for) Mt. Hermon. We 
journeyed towards Damascus. In the evening the 
relatives of the master of the house came to greet 
me and we spent a pleasant night and I sat for 
some time with them, then I asked permission to 
go and they did not permit me to do that and when 
1 was convinced that it was absolutely necessary to do 
what they wished I acceded to their request. There is 

Key to the Arabic Conversation-Grammar. 4 



no escape on this side of the honey from the stings of 
the bees (Prov, = no rose without thorns). I saw a 
gazelle running quickly as if it were flying. His blood 
was flowing freely. This mountain is not free from 
snow the whole year. The girl fell on her face faint- 
ing. It is absolutely necessary to go away as quickly 
as possible. Whenever we approached the gazelle it 
fled the more quickly and went further away and we 
continued to follow it for a long time, then it vanished 
from our sight. When my soul was plunged into the 
sea of anxieties, I saw Su f da hastening toward me, 
and I said to her: "Where wast thou blood of the 
heart and comfort of the eye? For thine absence 
had cast me into seas of griefs and unrest." Verily 
the robbers all seized me, thinking that I would turn 
in flight. Would that all difficulties were as this, for 
it is an easy matter. Nothing is more desirable to me 
than that. My heart was filled with disturbance and 
grief at the separation of Su c da. My regard increased 
among the Arabs double what it was. The prince said 
to me: "Verily the wound which befell me yesterday 
has begun to cause me more pain and sleeplessness/' 
And I said to him: "Man must be afflicted with pains." 
My beloved did not leave my thoughts by night or by 
day. The journey of the ship resembled the blowing 
of the wind, for the weather was suitable for it. My 
eyes began to shed abundant tears while I was be- 
wailing the evil of my lot and was saying to myself: 
would that that ship had not come, for it drowned 
what was the cause of my rest. I testify that there 
is no god but Allah; I testify that Mohammed is the 
apostle of Allah. The steed fell headlong with me> 
and we both fell on the ground. There is no might 
and no power save in God the Mighty. Rejoice and 
be comforted. 

Exercise 80. 



3u ^ vLsoJl * 3J 



tf A 



- 51 



|,xJ5 oiL. lit _ 



j/ Ls- lit c>Jt aUo 



'oi Lib! 



Exercise 81. 

Thee we serve and thee we ask for help. They 
collected many camels and gave them to him. My 
friends bade me farewell before I left them. I cannot 
prevent myself from blaming them. I will endure the 
hardest afflictions and venture myself from love to 
my friend. Verily the robbers demanded our weapons 
from us and we handed them over to them. The rider 
threw himself on me to take me from their hands. 
When the two parties approached one another they fell 
on one another. We were looking at one another from 
afar. I saw myself far from home and alone among 
those Arabs. The Arab did not know that I was the 
man, whom he was seeking. Some of my thoughts 
began to contradict others. After I had almost drunk 
the cup of death, I saved myself. I began to comfort 

4* 



myself and quieten my cares by play. Where is ray 
beloved now and who will show her to me among these 
waves? What is to be done? Shall I throw myself 
into the sea? I said to her: "Rise and awake now 
that we may provide ourselves with a last look of one 
another." 

Exercise 82, 

^ J G O^S>O, > O , 9 > O s - 

Ju'uJl wJLL 






> O ^ > O ^ , 



lif o^/ c ,| b'^t dUJ 



U . 



JOC ) O ^ 



Exercise 83. 

It is said: A certain merchant lost a purse in 
which were a hundred dinars, and he sent a crier to 
cry it in the markets. And it happened that a man haH 
found it and taken it home and placed it in a chest; 
then he had gone out to the market to announce the 
fact, in case anyone should enquire concerning it. And 
when he heard the crier, he went to him and said : "I 
have found a purse, so describe it, perhaps it is the 
one." And the crier described it, and he found tlie 
description corresponded to it. And the man said: 



53 

"Yes, it is the one, so go with me to my house, I 
will give it to you. And he went with him, and the 
man opened the chest and handed him the purse. And 
the crier was pleased with his honesty although he was 
a poor man and unsuspected of (possessing) it, and 
said to him: "0 man come with me and hand it 
over to its owner and I will endeavour (to get) for 
you a good reward from him." And he went with 
the crier until he brought him to the owner of the 
purse and praised this man in the kindest way, and 
said: u Truly he deserves a good reward. 11 And he 
(the owner) took the purse and sought the dinars 
in it. And he was very miserly, and to give a 
reward was unpleasant to him, and he wanted to con- 
trive to escape from (giving) it. And he claimed 
against the man that he had taken a quantity from it 
and that it was enough reward for him that he should 
give him what he had taken from it, and he began to 
abuse him before the people. Then the man became 
angry and made him hear hard words. Then the 
owner of the purse dragged him to the court-house, 
and complained of him to the governor, and told him 
what had happened and asked him to get for him 
what the man had taken from the purse. And the 
governor examined the man, and he told him how the 
affair had happened. And the governor was a shrewd 
man, and knew that the owner of the purse ^wanted 
to accuse him wrongfully. And he said to him: "O 
such and such an one, I know that thou art a great 
man and do not doubt the truth of what you say, for 
you would not make a false claim ; and I do not doubt 
the honesty of this poor man, for if he had wished 
to act dishonestly, he would have taken the purse 
altogether and would not have enquired for its owner, 
and so I think this purse is not your purse, so return 
it to the man that he may keep it by him until its 
owner appears; and as for you, seek your purse from 
someone else." Then the merchant was troubled and 
said: "0 my lord, I have given him what he has taken 
from it, and, if you wish, I will give him something 
more as well." And he said: "This can never be, for 
it is not allowable that you should take what is not 



54 - 

your property/' And the merchant pressed him hard 
to do that, and he became angry and ordered him to 
be beaten; and took the purse from him, and said to 
him who had found it: "Take this purse, and use it 
as a thing allowed, and leave this rascal to seek his 
purse, which I know is this very one; but avarice has 
made him lose it a second time." 

Exercise 84. 



-, loo* 



jj/" 05 di 

J O ^ ^ w ^ )* ^ ^ ^ O O 

Cfr o.v>3 Lo J^li aJLat^ U \J'-Ai2>- ^X3 



-w 

dJi vi^J'u 



cS^O JO -- 



Exercise 85. 



It is told that a man of the caravan of the Hajj 
was cut off and missed his way and fell in the sand. 



55 

And he began to journey until he came to a tent. 
And he saw in the tent an old woman, and at the door 
of the tent a dog sleeping. And the pilgrim greeted 
the old woman and asked her for food. And the old 
woman said: "Go to that valley and hunt what you 
want of the snakes, that I may roast some of them 
for you and feed you." And the man said: "I dare 
not hunt the snakes." And the old woman said: "I 
will hunt them with you, so do not be afraid." And 
they went and the dog followed them and they took 
as many of the snakes as they needed. And the old 
woman came and began to roast the snakes. And the 
pilgrim saw no way of escape from eating, and feared 
he would die of hunger and leanness, so he ate. Then 
he was thirsty and asked her for water. And she said : 
"There is the vspring fcjo drink." And he went to the 
spring and found the water bitter and salt, but he 
could not escape drinking it and he drank. And he 
returned to the old woman and said: "I am astonished 
at you old woman, and at your staying in this place 
and eating this food." And the old woman said: "What 
kind of land is yours?' 1 And he said: "In our land 
there are wide and spacious houses and ripe fruits and 
sweet waters and good foods and fat meats and much 
cattle and rich springs." ADC! the old woman said: 
"And I have heard all this, so tell me, are you under 
a Sultan who treats you unjustly and when you hav* 
a debt takes your property, upsets your affairs anc 
drives you from your houses and possessions?" Anc 
he said: "That happens sometimes." And she said 
"Behold your excellent food and comfortable living anc 
wonderful sweets with injustice and oppression turn tc 
fatal poison, and our foods with security turn to t 
useful antidote. Have you not heard that the noblesi 
benefit after the benefit of (God's) guidance is healtl 
and security?" (Al-Ghazall). 

Exercise 80. 



.At; 



56 - 



Jo ^) 



,5 L*, 



05 



\j ^Jj 



obb 



o 



yLJl 



C) lXJt IJ^ ^ 



IIS 



oJo ^o, 



rf * 

UJ 6I 






^ 

uf ^JoJ' toU U) c>Ji jj*. 



(X.! J^ j^JI U yv3 



57 

Exercise 87. 

A certain traveller came to make the pilgrimage 
to a city and alighted at (the house of) a friend of 
his. And when the time of his stay had come to an 
end, and he had determined to set out, he told his 
friend that he had a deposit consisting of a quantity 
of cash and jewels and he wanted to leave it with a 
trustworthy person until he returned. And when his 
friend heard that from him, he was ashamed to say 
to him: "Leave it with me" for fear lest ho might 
think that he coveted it. So he advised him to de- 
posit it with the judge. And he took it and went with it 
to the judge and said to him: "Verily I am a stranger 
and want to make the pilgrimage, and 1 have a deposit 
the value of which is so much in cash and jewels, 
and I want to hand it over to his Excellency the 
judge to keep it until I return from the pilgrimage 
and claim it." And the judge said to him: "Yes, take 
this key and open this chest and put it in it and lock 
the chest securely." And he did so and handed over 
the key to the judge and greeted him and departed. 
And when he had accomplished his pilgrimage and 
had returned, he went to the judge to ask for the 
deposit. And he said to him: "Verily I do not know 
you, and as for me, I have many deposits; how shall 
I know if you have a deposit with me?" And he 
disputed with him a long time, then the man went to 
his friend and told him of that and blamed him for 
this advice. Then he took him and went to one of 
the princes who was intimate with the king and told 
him of that matter. And he promised him that he 
would go next day to the judge and sit with him and 
tell him of another matter that concerned him and that 
person who owned the deposit should come in to them 
both and ask for his deposit from the judge. And 
when the morrow came, that prince went to the judge 
and sat down beside him. And when the judge's re- 
spectful greetings on account of his rank had come to 
an end, he said to him: "I hope that (perhaps) the 
cause which has honoured us with your visit is good." 
And he said to him: "It is good for you, if God will" 



58 

And he said: "What is it?" And the prince said to 
him: "Verily the king asked for me last night, and I 
went to him and when the council was finished and 
people had left and I wished to leave, behold he com- 
manded me to stay behind with him. And when we 
were alone, he indicated that he wished to make the 
pilgrimage in the following year and wished to hand 
over the kingdom entirely to one who could be relied 
on and trusted with that until he returned safely. 
And he asked my advice concerning that, and I advised 
him to hand it over to your Excellency on account of 
the reliability and trustworthiness and uprightness 
which we see in you rather than that he should hand 
it over to a notable, who would perhaps violate the law 
or himself covet the kingdom and cause a sedition or 
the like. And that opinion pleased him and he de- 
cided to call a general council after two days and do 
what I advised." And the judge rejoiced exceedingly 
at that and praised him. And behold the owner of 
the deposit came in to them and appeared before the 
judge and greeted and said: U your Excellency the 
judge, I have a deposit with you, and it is such 
and such and I handed it over to you at such and 
such a time." And he had not finished speaking before 
the judge said to him: "Yes, my son, and I remem- 
bered in the night in my sleep and knew you and 
your deposit so take this key and receive your deposit.' 5 
And he took it and greeted and went away, and that 
prince went away also. And after the interval had 
passed according to his promise the judge went to that 
prince and asked him concerning the kingdom and the 
king. And he said to him: "0 judge, we did not 
know how to rescue from you the deposit of the stranger 
pilgrim except by giving you possession of the world 
entirely, but if you possess it, by what means shall we 
rescue it." Then he knew that it was a ruse. 

Exercise 88. 

isJU*^- Ul 



59 



U Ojj lj> - J^jt U 



tots i 



>o^^ ^ ^^-t.^ 

^^ ' ^-5! 



5t-^^ > 

cfejjf OU^CJ O^L 
& ., > y 

s^Ji C yo U Jt i - 
i* JJi- J U 



Exercise 89, 

I must consider my neighbour even if he acts 
unjustly, so I informed him of my intention, even 
though that was unwillingly. I said: "If I get the 
upper hand over the enemies, it is good; and if not, 
then death is sweeter than a bitter life." Your en- 
trance into the gate of sorrow, if you wish, is easy; but 
the going out is hard. I sent Hasan to the top of the 
mountain to observe the robbers, for otherwise the 



- 60 

enemy might have suddenly fallen on us and he 
would have been able to take us captive and kill us. 
What will you do, if we do not allow you to be in a 
position to (do) that? Do not be grieved for me 
dear one if these wretches make rne drink the cup of 
death, for if I die, I die honoured before thy eyes ; and 
if God allots me a fair portion, I am thine and thou 
art mine. If we had not promised thine aged father 
that we would not injure you, we would have destroyed 
you to the last man of you, so go in peace, and you 
must be certain that if you do not find the way, you 
will give yourselves over to misfortune. If you give me 
an honest assurance that you will marry me, I will 
accompany you, where you wish. If you wish, send some- 
one to see if one of your people has seen her. The 
prince said : "Then let the Creator (mighty and glorious 
is He) do what He wishes; and if He heals my wounds, 
and returns ray health to me, I will praise Him for that ; 
and if not, it is His matter; and if I die, then take 
over the leadership of these Arabs." Verily although 
I am far from thy home and thy city, I will use my 
best endeavour to bring thee to it safely. When two 
misfortunes befall a man, the best thing is to choose 
the lighter of them. If God allots me a portion for 
deliverance, he can free me in many ways; arid if He 
wishes to destroy me in the midst of this raging sea, 
then there is no escape from death. The heart among 
friends is the strongest witness, even though it is the 
witness of one. If you had not been worse than both, 
you would not have entered between them. If 
I die, my bones will cry from my grave confirming 
thy kindness and goodness. Man loves honour, even 
if it is empty. If you agree, goodl And if you do 
not agree, I agree. He who endeavours, finds. If you 
remain fixed in your determination, I will you taste 
the reward of your rebellion to the day of your 
death. If it had not been for the number of officers, 
who were round him that crowd would have killed him 
in the road. 



61 



xk* UI/J 



Exercise 90. 






j. - oJ 






u 




j 






UJ U IJJO'LJU ^JsJt ^K |j| ujij> JLJj xJl 



^ 

LJ i-uj ...uuaJti! 



Exercise 91. 



We hoped to attain our purpose shortly, but 
sorrow! for our arrow fell short of the mark. When 
the Arabs knew of our arrival they hastened to meet 
us with joy and shouted at the top of their voices: 
u Welcome to the guest, welcome to the guest!" And 
I said to them: " Verily I am your visitor, O Arabs!" 
And they said: "Welcome to you, welcome to you!" 
The prince said: "Come, let us go Arabs! for the 
Bani f Adwan have come to raid us, and hither with 



62 

the words of him who rouses to the flight! and beware 
of these wretched men who come to raid you I" He 
said to me u May your hands be withered, O most 
wretched man ! with what skill dost thou make my son 
to taste the cup of death? Come and take the reward 
of thy deed!" Ah, my fate has come near! wonder, 
how has this prisoner been able to escape from the 
prince's tent? I shouted at the top of my voice saying: 
"Woe, what a misfortune is this and what a sorrow 1" 
Ah, my dear one, I shall die joyfully, since I have 
seen thee! Praised be the Exalted, the Powerful, who 
has separated us in the deserts and the wildernesses 
and has caused us to be united in the depths of the 
seas! Bring here what seems good to you! The sai- 
lor, who was sick said: U would that I were not 
healed for in death is my rest!" And the other sailors 
began to say: "Hail to the captain, who has rested 
from these toils!" Ah and alas! Misfortune has 
surrounded me from my youth. She said: "Ah, 
what is my cunning? Alas, what is to be done? 
Rain tears on us heaven! And pour thy waves 
sea and drown us and give us rest from this distressful 
life." And I said to her: "Rise beloved! for God 
has not allotted death to us. See a ship advancing!" 

would that I had died, when I was swimming in 
the sea! And I did not let him finish speaking, but said: 
"There is no might and no power save in God the 
Mighty." When I came to the place of my sojourn, 

1 threw myself on my couch but alas! it was a night 
in which I did not taste sleep for a single moment. 
How can I forget thee, when I have seen the tears of 
love flow from thy narcissus eyes, and lo I burn now 
with love of thee and am slain by separation frojn thee. 

Exercise 92. 

S .. > ,C >.>.,-. w2 & ? - 

La UP 



63 



0- 

*J 'US 



Exercise 93. 

al-Mutaqarib: 

Alas ! How bitter is the separation, and how does 
its fire kindle the hearts. (al-Mutanabbi.) 

ar-Rajaz: 

I have seen (strange!) since yesterday five old 
women like vipers. 

ar-Ramal: 

The highway robber is not a hero; he only who 
fears God is a hero. 

al-Wafir. 

If time were to come to (fight) me as a person, 
rny sword would dye red the hair of his scalp. 

al-Kamil: 

Be content with what the Ruler (God) has allotted, 
for He who knows it well has allotted the provision of 
life among us. 

Verily idleness and laziness are sweeter to the 
taste than honey. 

at-Tawll: 

When a fair woman deceives, she keeps her covenant, 
for a part of her covenant is a covenant does not last 
for her. (al-Mutanabbi.) 

Thou yearnest to attain the highest cheaply, but 
there is no rose without thorns (see Exercise 79). 



___ 64 

as-Sarl' : 

I played with a ring with a woman, who was like 
a full moon on a clear starlit night and whenever I 
tried to take it from the soft delicate fingers, she threw 
it in her mouth and I said: "See, she has hidden the 
ring in the ring." 

al-Baslt: 

I have separated from you and lo, what was hard 
with you before separation, after separation is a help. 
When I remember what took place between us, it helps 
my heart in the longing which I feel. 

Not all that man desires reaches him, the winds 
blow with what the ships do not desire. 

al-Mujtathth (Riddle): 

The name of that which has stirred my mind is 
a collection of four letters, and if a fourth of it is taken 

- - ^ 

away (j|t), the remaining letters are jt; (answer ji^). 

al-Munsarih. 

And I said: "Verily the courage of the youth 
makes him see in greed the form of fear. The sun 
stands in the heaven and its distance does not veil it 
from the gaze. 

al-Khafif: 

I would ransom with my fathers life him whom 
I love (see p. 291), and we separated, and God decreed 
after that a union. 

And we separated for a year, and when we met, 
his greeting to me was a farewell. 

Exercise 94. 

It is told (that) a poet had an enemy, and while 
he was travelling one day on a certain road, behold 
his enemy (came). And the poet knew that his enemy 
would kill him without doubt. And he said to him: 
"0 you! I know that death has come, but I pray 
you by God, when you have killed me, go to my house 
and stand at the door and say (metre Tawll): 



65 

O you two daughters, verily your father 1" 

And he promised. Then he killed him and when 

he had finished killing him, he came to his house and 

stood at the door and said: 

you two daughters, verily your father I 

And the poet had two daughters, and when they 

heard that from him, they answered him with one 

voice (mouth): 

"Is slain. Take vengeance on him who has come 

to you." 

Then they held fast to the man and brought him 

to the governor and he made him confess and he 

acknowledged that he had killed him, then he put him 

to death. And God knows best. 



Key to the Arabic Conversation-Grammar. 



66 



Supplement 



Selections. 
From the Koran. 

Sura 1. 

Sura of the opening. 
In the name of God the Merciful the Compassionate! 

Praise to God, Lord of the worlds, the Merciful 
the Compassionate, Possessor of the day of judgement! 
Thee we serve and to Thee we pray for help. Lead us in 
the straight path, the path of those to whom Thou art 
gracious, not of those on whom anger is poured, nor 
of those who go astray. 

Sura 112. 
The Sura of al-Ikhlas. 

Say: He is God, One; God the eternal. He did 
not beget and was not begotten; and none was (ever) 
like Him. 

Sura 113. 
The Sura of the Dawn. 

Say: I take refuge in the Lord of the dawn from 
the evil of what He has created, and from the evil of 
a darkening thing (the moon) when it becomes dark, 
and from the evil of the women who blow on knots, 
and from the evil of an envious man when he envies. 

Sura 114. 
Sui*a of the People. 

Say: I take refuge in the Lord of the people, the 
King of the people, God of the people from the evil of 
the whisperer (Satan), who slinks away, who whispers in 
the hearts of the people, from the jinns and the people. 



67 

Fables 

(from MajanI al-Adab). 
The weasels and the fowls. 

The weasels heard that the fowls were sick, so they 
put on peacocks' skins and came to visit them, and said 
to them: "Peace be upon you fowls! How are you 
and how are your conditions?" And they said: "We 
are well the day we do not see your faces.'* (Its 
moral.) Many show love outwardly and inwardly have 
hatred. 

Two cats and an ape. 

Two cats snatched a piece of cheese and took it to the 
ape to divide it between them. And he divided it into 
two parts, one of them larger than the other, and put them 
in his balance, and the larger weighed down. Then 
he took a piece of it off with his teeth, showing that 
he wanted to make it equal to the smaller. But since 
what he took from it was larger than what was neces- 
sary, the smaller (now) weighed down. Then he did 
to this piece what he had done to the other, then he 
did to the other what he had done to this, and so on 
until the cheese was almost finished. And the two 
cats said to him: "We are content with this division, 
so give us the cheese." And he said: "If you are 
content, justice is not content" and he kept on gnawing 
the heavier piece until he had finished all. And the 
cats returned in grief and disappointment, while they 
were saying: There is no hand (power) except the hand 
of God above us, and no wrongdoer, who is not afflicted 
by a greater wrongdoer. 

A hunter and a sparrow. 

A hunter was hunting sparrows one cold day, and 
he was killing them while his tears flowed. And one 
sparrow said to another: "There is no danger from the 
man. Do you not see him weeping?" And the other 
said to him: "Do not look at his tears, but look at 
what his hands are doing/' 

6* 



68 



A negro. 

A negro in the winter time began to take the 
snow and rub his body with it. And he was asked: 
"Why (do you do) that?" And he said: "Perhaps I shall 
become white." And a wise man said to him: "0 so 
and so, do not tire yourself, for it may be that the 
snow will become black from your body, while it re- 
mains as it was." (Its moral.) Evil can spoil good, 
and rarely does good improve it. 

A lion, a fox and a wolf. 

And it is a parable of one who is exhorted by 
another and follows his example. A lion, a fox and a 
wolf were companions and went out hunting, and they 
took an ass, a hare and a gazelle. And the lion said 
to the wolf: "Divide among us." And he said: "The 
matter is clear. The ass to the lion, the hare to the 
fox and the gazelle to me." And the lion struck him and 
made his head fly. Then he came to the fox and said: 
"How ignorant of booty your companion isl Come 
tell your opinion!" And he said: "0 Abu-1-Harith, 
the thing is clear, the ass for your breakfast, and the 
gazelle for your lunch and eat the hare between times." 
And the lion said to him: "What an excellent (judge) 
you are! Who taught you this law?" And he said: 
"The head of the wolf flying from his body." 

A fox and a hyena. 

It is narrated that the fox was looking into a well, 
when he was thirsty; and by it was a rope at the 
ends of which were two buckets. And he sat in the 
upper bucket and went down and drank. And the 
hyena came and looked into the well and saw the 
moon in the water divided in two parts, and the fox 
was sitting at the bottom of the well. And she said 
to him: "What are you doing here?" And he said to 
her: "I have eaten half of this cheese and the other half 
remains for you, so come down and eat it." And she said : 
"And how shall I come down?" He said: "Sit down in 
the bucket." So she sat down in it and went down, and 



69 

the fox was raised in the other bucket. And when 
they met in the middle of the well, she said to him: 
"What is this?" He said: "The merchants go up and 
down like this." And the Arabs made a proverb of 
the two concerning those two who go up and down. 

The story of the ass and the ox with the farmer. 

(From the U 1001 [Arabian] Nights".) 

He (the narrator) said: A certain merchant had 
possessions and cattle, and had a wife and children. 
And God (who is exalted) had given him knowledge 
of the speech of animals and birds. And the dwelling 
of that merchant was (in) the plains. And he had with 
him in his house an ass and an ox. And one day the 
ox came to the place of the ass and found it swept 
and sprinkled, and in his stall sifted barley and sifted 
straw, while he was lying down resting; and at certain 
times his master rode him, as he needed, and then 
he returned to his (former) state. And one day the 
merchant heard the ox say to the ass: u Mayest thou 
enjoy that! I am tired and you are resting, eating 
sifted barley, and they serve you. And sometimes your 
master rides you and returns, while I am always at 
ploughing and grinding/' And the ass said to him: 
"When you go out to the field and they put the yoke 
on your neck, then lie down and do not rise. And 
if they strike you and you rise, lie down a second 
time, and when they bring you back and put the 
beans before you, do not eat them, as if you were 
weak, and abstain from eating and drinking for a day 
or two days or three, for you will rest from tiredness 
and vigour." And the merchant was listening to what 
they said. And when the driver came to the ox to feed 
him, he ate very little. And the driver went to take the 
ox to the ploughing and found him weak. And the 
merchant said to him: u Take the ass and make him 
plough in his place all to-day/' And the man returned and 
took the ass in place of the ox and made him plough in 
place of him the whole day. And when he returned at 
the end of the day, the ox thanked him for his kindness, 



70 

since he had given him rest from weariness for that 
day. And the ass did not answer him, and repented 
exceedingly. And when the second day arrived, the 
sower came and took the ass and made him plough 
to the end of the day, and the ass did not return 
until his neck was chafed and he was very weak. 
And the ox looked at him and thanked him and 
praised him. And the ass said to him: "I lived rest- 
fully, and only my kindness has injured me." Then 
he said: "Know that I will give you good advice. I 
have heard our master say: If the ox does not rise from 
his place, give him to the slaughterer to kill him and 
make his skin into leather. And I am afraid for you, 
and give you good advice, and peace be on you." And 
when the ox heard the words of the ass, he thanked 
him, and said: "To-morrow morning I will go to the 
field with them." Then the ox ate his food all of it, 
until he licked the stall with his tongue. All that took 
place while their master was listening to what they 
said. And when the morning broke, the merchant went 
out with his wife to the cattle-shed and sat down. 
And the driver came and took the ox and went out. 
And when the ox saw his master, he waved his tail, 
and broke wind and was lively. And the merchant 
laughed until he fell on the back of his head. And 
his wife said: u What are you laughing at?" And he 
said to her: "At a thing that I have seen and heard, 
but which I cannot reveal or I should die." And she 
said: "You must tell me that, and the cause of your 
laughing, even if you should die." And he said to 
her: "I cannot reveal it for fear of *death." And she 
said to him: "You only laughed at me" and she kept 
on pressing him and persisting in talking until she 
overcame him and he was perplexed. Then he sent 
for his children and summoned the judge and the 
witnesses to be present and wished to make his will 
and then reveal to her the secret and die, for he loved 
her exceedingly, because she was the daughter of his 
uncle and the mother of his children and he was a 
hundred and twenty years old. Then he sent for all 
her people and the people of his quarter to be present 
and told them his story, and that when he told anyone 



71 

his secret, lie would die. And all the people who had 
assembled said to her: a We beseech you by God, give 
up this matter that your husband the father of your 
children die not." And she said to them: "I will not 
turn from it until he tells me, even if he die;" and 
they said no more to her. Then the merchant rose 
from their company and went to the stable to wash, 
(intending) then to return and tell' them (the secret) 
and die. And he had a cock under which were fifty 
hens, and he had a dog. And the merchant heard the 
dog addressing the cock and naming him and saying 
to him: "You are joyful and our master is going to 
die," And the cock said to the dog: "And how is 
that?" And the dog told him the story. And the 
cock said to him: "By God, our master is stupid. I have 
fifty wives. I please one and I make another angry; 
and he has only one wife and does not know how to 
make good his affairs with her. Why does he not 
take one of the branches of the mulberry tree to her, 
then go into her room and beat her until she die or 
repent and never ask him concerning anything again/' 
(He i.e. the narrator said): And when the merchant 
heard what the cock said, as he addressed the dog, 
returned to his senses, and determined to beat her and 
to go into her room, after he had cut for her a branch 
of the mulberry tree and had hidden it inside the room, 
and said to her "Come into the room, so that I may 
tell you arid none may see me, then I die." And she 
went in with him then he locked the door of the room 
on them both and fell on her with blows, until she 
fainted. And she said to him: "I repent," then she 
kissed his hands and his feet and repented and went 
out, she with him. And the company rejoiced and her 
family, and they lived (sat) in the most joyful condition 
until death. 



The captain and the artful (thief). 

(From Qata'if al-lataTif by Madame Rosa Sahib.) 

A captain was living in Alexandria and used to 
buy every day the necessaries of his h(uuML*iiLJlifl wav 



72 

of vegetables and meat and the like. And it happened 
one day that after he had left the house half an hour, 
a person came and knocked at the door of the house of 
this captain. And the people of the house heard a 
voice saying: "Take the piece of meat and the vegetables," 
And the maidservant went down, and took the meat 
and the vegetables. And afterwards the man said to 
the maidservant: "The captain charged me that you 
should collect all the copper that is in the house, so 
that I should take it to the tinner; and he gave me 
this requirement, and desires that I shall bring him 
the copper speedily." And the maidservant went up 
and told her mistress that, and the lady answered her: 
"Collect all the copper of the house speedily and give 
it to this man, perhaps your master is in a hurry." 
And the maidservant did according to the command 
of her mistress and filled two large parcels with all 
the copper. And the man carried off one parcel of it, 
and left the second, saying: "When I bring this parcel, 
1 will come back and take the second." And when 
he had carried it off and gone away, the master of the 
house came according to his custom (bringing) with him 
the necessaries of the house, and called the maidservant 
and said: "Come down, take th6 dinner." And she 
said to him : "Have we an entertainment to-day, that you 
sent an hour ago all the necessaries of the house and 
now bring others as well." And the captain said to 
her: "And what necessary is that, and who brought 
it?" The maid answered him: "He whom you sent 
to take the copper to the tinner." And the master of 
the house said: "I did not send anyone at all, and 
this was only an artful man, who has taken the copper." 
And the maid said to him: "He will certainly come 
directly, sir, to take the second parcel of copper/' And 
the master of the house answered her: "When he is 
present to take it, say to him 'Ready' and I will 
come down and seize him." And afterwards the captain 
went upstairs to quarrel with his wife for her stupidity, 
and he went in to make himself comfortable, when 
behold the artful thief was present, and he called the 
maid to take the second parcel. And the captain came 
running out to the courtyard in his underclothing. 



73 - 

And when the thief saw him, he took to flight and 
began to run, and the captain ran after him from lane 
to lane, and from one street to another. And the thief 
ran more quickly than the captain, and therefore 
vanished from his sight, and made more quickly than 
lightning for the captain's house. And he clapt his 
hands and said: "The captain wants his clothes, for 
he has caught the thief, and is at the police-office, and 
wants you to send him the clothes, because he wants 
to dress speedily." And the lady said to the maid : 
u Make haste to give him the clothes, for your roaster 
cannot come back before people without his clothing. 
Then the maid took her master's clothes with his watch 
and all that was in his pockets and gave them to the 
man, and the artful man took them and fled. And 
little time had passed before the master of the house 
arrived and called on the maid to bring his clothes so 
that he might go to judge and informe him of the 
affair. And the maid answered him: "0 sir, did you 
not send just now a person, who took the clothes to 
bring them to you?" And the captain said: "I did 
not send anyone at all." And he began to slap his 
face and to say : "Was he not satisfied with taking the 
copper, but has returned and taken the things also? 
And now you O wife are divorced, and you maid 
are dismissed, you dog's children!" And really the 
captain divorced his wife, and dismissed the maid, and 
the copper and the clothes were lost to him. And see 
this artful thiefl 



Description of Cairo. 

(From the "Compendium of the geography of Egypt" 
by Jirjl Zaidan). 

A canal known as the Canal of Cairo cuts through 
Cairo, passing from South to North, and dividing it 
into two almost equal parts, an Eastern and a Western. 
And the streets of Cairo are divided into two divisions, 
old and new. And by the old streets are meant the 
streets, which were opened before the exalted dynasty 
of Mohammed 'Ali took possession of the Egyptian 



74 

Khedivial throne, that is up to the year 1805 A. D. 
and the new are those which were opened after that. 
And since the oldest part of Cairo is its Eastern part, 
most of the streets and buildings occur in that direction, 
just as the best known of the new streets and buildings 
occur mostly in its Western part; and it may be said 
that the dividing line between these two p&rts is the 
Cairo Canal. 

And the most famous of the old streets, which is 
also really the longest of the streets of Cairo generally 
is a street which cuts the city from North to South, 
beginning at the Bab al-Hasanlya at the North-East 
corner, and ending at the Bab as-Sa c ada at the furthest 
boundary of Cairo on the South. But this long street 
is not all called by one name, but each part of it is 
called by a special name as al-Hasanlya and an-Nahfyasm 
and al-Ghuriya etc. And near to this street is a street 
shorter than it, running parallel to it, skirting the 
canal. It starts from the direction of the Bab ash- 
Sha'riya on the North and ends at the Bab as-Sayyida 
Zainab on the South. And some of the names of its 
parts are the streets ash-Sha c rawi al-barranl and Bain 
as Surain (" bet ween the two walls") and Mansur Pasha 
and Darb al-Jarnamiz etc. And among the old streets, 
which run from East to West is a street extending 
from the Bab al-Bahr near the street Klot Bey and 
ending in the street al-Jammallya, and among the 
names of its parts are the street Bab al-Bahr and the 
street Suq az-Zalat and the street Bab ash-Sha c riya etc. 

And among the new streets are those which cross 
the old streets, such as the new way which by its 
union with the Muskl street cuts Cairo from West to 
East. The Mftski begins at the square al-Azbaklya in 
the West, then joins the new way, which ends outside 
the city at the Eastern hill. 

And among the new streets is the street Moham- 
med c All. And this begins almost at the beginning of 
the Muskt, but goes towards the South-East until it 
ends at the Castle of the Hill near the South-East 
corner of Cairo. And to it belong the street Klot Bey 
and this turns in the direction of the above-mentioned 
street, but begins at the Bab al-Hadtd near the North- 



75 

West corner of Cairo and ends near the Azbaklya, and 
it was due to the efforts of the preceding Khedive, 
who opened this street that he made it and the street 
Mohammed 'All lead in a direct line to the park al- 
Azbaklya; but .some of the owners of property which 
would have had to be destroyed in opening the street 
would not agree with him on the sale of it, and so 
the street had to bend from its straight course, as it 
is now. 

And all the streets above-mentioned were opened 
up, that is, their sites were occupied by buildings which 
were destroyed for them. As for the new streets which 
were built on, they were many; among them being the 
street Fam al-Khallj ( u mouth of the canal") and the street 
al-Munakh and the street ad-DawawIn and many others. 
And all he newly built streets are shaded by trees on 
both sides. 

The Buildings of Cairo and the most famous places in it. 

He who walks about in this city sees in some 
parts of it splendid buildings and beautiful palaces 
surrounded by lovely gardens while their streets are 
shaded by fresh trees. And he sees in other parts 
houses, and if there appear to him in some of them 
traces of prosperity, yet his heart is strained and 
compressed at the sight of them owing to the signs of 
ruin he sees in them, as is the condition in most of 
the buildings of the Eastern part of the city. And in 
the earliest times of 'Cairo those places were reckoned 
among the most beautiful of the Egyptian buldings, and 
the Western part was then a waste land or marsh, from 
which the water did not dry up either in winter or 
summer and which was of no use for building. And 
now the condition is changed and Cairo has begun to 
transfer its glory to what is in its Western part and 
therefore you see in the middle of the district in what 
is called the Jammallya part or the district of the Bab 
al-Futuh ruined and falling houses, and there is no one 
to raise their ruins or repair them. And the prices of 
properties there have become low, not to be compared 
with what they were before, while on the contrary as 



76 

to the Western part the properties in it are improving 
day by day. 

And of what deserves mention in Cairo is its castle 
which is known as the Castle of the hill, and it lies 
towards the South-east corner at the foot of the 
Muqattam. It was built by command of the Sultan 
Yusuf alah ad-din the Ayyubite in the sixth century 
A. H.; and in it is a wonderful well known as the 
Well of Yusuf named after him. And in the castle is 
a large mosque, called the Mosque of Mohammed c Ali 
after Mohammed c Ali Pasha, and in it is his tomb. 

And the Azbaklya is a large garden lying in the 
Western part of Cairo, which was planned and laid 
out in the time of the dynasty of Mohammed 'All, and 
before then it was a large pool into which water flowed 
in the days of flood, and in which it remained during 
the year. 

And in Cairo are many important mosques old 
and new, the oldest of them being the mosque of Ibn 
Tttlttn built in the middle of the third century A. H. in 
the $allba and now it is ruined. And older than this 
is the mosque of c Amr in old Cairo, which is almost 
ruined; and this is the oldest of the mosques of the 
land of Egypt, and 'Amr ibn al-'As built it in al-Fustat 
when he conquered the Egyptian land. 

As for the most important of the mosques of Cairo 
and the most ancient of them after the two above- 
mentioned, it is the mosque al-Azhar; and this was 
built when Cairo was built. And in it is a University 
in which are studied the Moslem sciences and juris- 
prudence, and it is the most famous of the Moslem 
colleges in the world, its pupils being counted by 
thousands. And other mosques are there, which were 
built after this; some of them are ruined and some of 
them are still flourishing. We mention them in accord- 
ance with their antiquity; and they are the mosque 
of al-Hakim by the Bab al-Futtth, ruined; and the 
mosque az-Zahir in the street az-Zahir, which has be- 
come a depot for provisions; and the mosque Qalawun 
in the street an-NahhasIn; and the inosque an-Nasiri 
in the castle; and the mosque of the Sultan Hasan 
near the castle; and the inosque al-Mu ? ayyid and the 



mosque al-Ghuri in the street al-Ghurlya; and the 
mosque of Muhainmed 'All in the castle; and others. 

From the Romance "The wandering Mamluke" 

by Jirjl Zaidan. 
A deep secret. 

And in the morning the monk went out early, as 
his custom was, to excavate the snow-heaps which had 
accumulated on the doors of the rooms and their roofs 
during that night. And when it became light, the guests 
awoke, and after taking coffee and food the slave sought 
a private interview with the abbot (head) of the 
monastery in a room, and they were alone. 

And the slave said: "Have you a place for the 
secret?" The abbot said: "Speak and do not be afraid, 
for we are an assemblage of clerics, we are accustomed 
to guard the secrets of people, we have the secret of 
confession." And the slave said: "1 know that and it 
is this which calls us to rely on you, so know 
honourable father, that we are not from Damascus nor 
from its villages, but as a matter of fact we are from 
the land of Egypt and have come to this land to escape 
from being killed/* 

The abbot said: "And how is that?" 

The slave said: "The lady Jamlla, whom you have 
seen is the wife of a prince of the Mamlukes, who were 
governors in Egypt before the rule of the present Wall 
called Mohammed 'All Pasha al Qawall." 

And the abbot interrupted him saying: "We have 
heard that the Mohammed 'All Pasha mentioned killed 
the princes of the Mamlukes last year in the citadel 
of Cairo craftily calling them to the festival given when 
his son Tasftn went out to fight the Wahhabis." 

And the slave said: "Yes, sir, and the husband of 
this princess was among the number of those called to 
that festival and was killed in the number of those 
who were killed, for we have not heard that anyone 
of them was able to escape from that slaughter. And 
after Mohammed C AH Pasha had killed those princes, 
he permitted his men to kill everyone they met of 



78 

those who followed them in all parts of the land. And 
the Egyptian troops went out with the Arnauts and 
the Moors and others to the houses of the princes and 
busied themselves in killing and plundering and raging 
without pity or consideration. 

And I was in the house of that prince as one of the 
eunuchs of his castle and I had loved him exceedingly; 
and this princess was pregnant and had a boy seven 
years old called Salim. And she asked me to deliver her 
and her son from death and shame, and I knew that 
the (duties of) friendship and true service were clear in 
such a case as this. And we carried what we were 
able to carry of portable and valuable things and went 
out of the city in the darkness of the night on horses to 
the outside of it and hurried our journeying in spite 
of the difficulty in riding for that unfortunate lady, 
until we were a long distance from the city, and we 
arrived at a place where we concealed ourselves until 
the morning. Then we journeyed the following morning, 
and continually pressed on as far as we were able until 
we entered the boundaries of Syria. And do not ask 
what this poor lady suffered of pain and misery or 
what hot tears she shed. 

And we stayed at a house in the district of Gaza, 
and the people there asked about us, and we said. 
u We are from the land of the Turks" to dispel suspicion: 
And after a few months came the time of birth, and 
she bore this boy, whom we named Gharlb ("exile"), 
because he was born in exile. 

And when the birth was over, as I have mentioned, 
we endeavoured to find a means, whereby we might 
forget those misfortunes, and live in a place, which 
would comfort this sad lady for the loss of her hus- 
band. And we learned by enquiry that Mt. Lebanon 
was one of the most excellent places that God had 
created with excellent climate; and our soul longed to 
stay there, especially after we heard of the watchfulness 
of its prince and his care for the quiet of his subjects 
and the rule of safety among them, and apart from 
that I saw in my mistress the princess a special in- 
clination to dwell there without any reason that 
I knew. 



79 

So we departed from Gaza and passed by Jaffa 
and remained there for a time, then we journeyed 
hastily to Acre and there we met with a misfortune, 
that was not less in any way than the first misfortune." 

And the abbot pricked up his ears, sighing at what 
the slave was telling, and was so affected by his story 
that it made his tears fall, for he was a compassionate 
man as is usually the case with those who live a life 
of piety, far from cities. 

And the slave finished his story saying: "Observe, 
honoured father, the lot of this poor lady, for a few 
weeks after our arrival at Acre she lost her eldest son 
in a strange manner." And the abbot said: "And 
how was that?" 

And the slave said: "In Acre we took an isolated 
dwelling in one of the houses on the sea-phore in order 
to rest ourselves and avoid the discovery of our circum- 
stances. And we stayed in that city some weeks en- 
quiring concerning the easiest ways that lead to 
Lebanon and concerning the best of its districts; and 
my mistress the princess, in consideration of the strength 
of her attachment to her son Salmi, because he was 
the image of his father, did not refuse his desire in 
anything. And it happened one day that he saw the 
boys of the quarter (of the city) going on the sea in 
a small boat for pleasure, and asked that he might go 
with them, and his mother was unwilling being afraid 
for him of the depths. And he pressed her, and she 
gave him permission on condition that I should be in 
his company. And the boat carried us a little way to 
sea, and Sallm enjoyed that very much; then we 
returned safely to land. And I had noticed during 
the passage of the boat that the boy's eyes were never 
taken off the sailor for a moment, but that he observed 
his movements and his rests and the manner of using 
the rudder as though he loved the work of the seaman. 

And when we came to the shore we found this 
mother awaiting us, and she kissed the boy, and we 
returned to the house, but unfortunately that sailor 
used to moor his boat near our house and fasten it in 
the evening to a rock there and go home, and when 
passengers came he came to the boat and loosed it 



80 

and took it away, and when he had finished with it, 
he fastened it again in its place. And a few days 
after that the boy went out playing outside the house, 
as was his custom, while we were in the house caring 
for some important matter for Gharlb and we were 
busy for a couple of hours. Then his mother suddenly 
noticed and called out: "Where is Sallra?" And I 
said to her: "I left him playing in front of the house." 
Then we went out searching for him and found 
no trace of him. And she cried out: "Alas, the boy 
is lost." And I began to call him and to seek in- 
formation concerning him in vain. Then I looked at 
the sea and did not see the boat, and for some days 
it had not been unfastened, being made fast to the 
shore; and I said in myself: U I think he has gone in 
it to test himself in sailors' work and the waves have 
driven him, whither we know not." 

And this mother began to cry out and to bewail 
herself and her son and to tear her hair until she 
fainted; and I was in perplexity and began to quieten 
her fear. Then I began to search for the boy in the 
neighbourhood of the house, and sent a crier to proclaim 
him in the markets, but did not get any news of him. 
And after searching for him four days, we despaired 
of meeting him and disliked remaining in that city, 
and the greatest misfortune was that we were not able 
to appear before the government to ask it to search for 
the boy with more care for fear of revealing our affairs 
and that bringing evil on us again. 

And we left Acre in a mournful condition of 
sadness and trouble, and this poor lady did not cease 
weeping night and day until she made her other boy 
ill through suckling him with the milk of cares and 
sadness." He said that, while tears flowed from his 
eyes and the abbot wept with him. Then the slave 
said: u And in short honoured father we came to 
Sidon and there we learnt that this was one of the most 
excellent districts of Lebanon. And we began to go 
from one village to another, and decided to stay in a 
lovely place, and one of those who know (the land) 
guided us to this monastery, and we travelled yesterday 
morning in the hope of reaching you at noon, and a 



81 - 

inau from one of the villages accompanied us the 
greater part of the way, and whenever we asked him 
concerning our destination, he said: "We have arrived, 
for it is no further from us than a stone's throw or 
the length of a mule's halter, or as long as one takes 
to smoke a cigar" or something else. And weariness 
had made us faint and our clothes were soaked with 
the rains, and we suffered extreme pain from the cold, 
and we could not ride on account of the roughness of 
the roads. And the sun set in a place, which we were 
told was the village of Bet et-Dln the residence of the 
prince of .this land. 

And when we came there the man pointed to the 
place of this monastery and said: "Excuse me, for I 
cannot go thither with you" and he bade us farewell 
and returned. All that (took place) while the cold was 
intense and the snows were being heaped up, and many 
blamed us for coming to these places in the winter 
season, but that which is decreed is and is not to be 
destroyed. 

And after we had separated from that man, we 
met a man clothed in a black mantle, of whom it 
seemed that he did not belong to the generality of men. 
And he asked us concerning the direction of our 
journey in all politeness, and we answered him that we 
had taken a vow to go to such and such a, monastery 
and had come now to fulfil it. And he said: "Do you 
wish me to accompany you to that monastery, for I 
see that you are strangers to the country?" We said: 
"Yours is the kindness." And when we came to the 
gate of the monastery, the man stood with us a little, 
then he said: "This is the place, knock and it will be 
opened to you." Then he bade us farewell and went, 
and we thanked him for his kindness and knocked at 
the door of the monastery and entered as you have 
seen us." 

And the abbot was disturbed lest that companion 
should be one of the spies of the prince Bashir and 
should have heard some of what they had said, but 
his attention to the story of Sa c id occupied him more 
than thinking about anything else. 

Key to the Arabic Conversation-Grammar. 6 



82 

And the abbot turned to Sa'id saying: u Be com- 
forted, my son, and be of good cheer, I have guarded 
all that you have said in my breast as a secret, and 
we will ask God, (Praised and exalted be He!) to com- 
fort this poor lady and give her fair patience in her 
sorrows. And if you wish to stay with us, then wel- 
come 1 for you will settle in spaciousness and comfort; 
and if not, then I am prepared to do all you need and 
it makes no difference to me whether you are Christians 
or non-Christians, for we all serve the one powerful 
God, and apart from that, the religion of Islam is the 
religion of our master the Sultan, lord of the land. 



Extracts from Journals. 
1. From the Egyptian journal al-Ahram. 

The Successor of the Pope. 

The German journals are busying themselves at 
present with (the question as to) who will be the suc- 
cessor of the pope, when he dies (lit. u God perfects his 
affair concerning him") and they all complain that the 
French government is trying (to make sure) that this 
successor shall be a French cardinal. And the journal 
"Tageblatt" in Berlin says in an article the title of 
which is 'The truth concerning the Vatican' that 
notwithstanding the good health and sound condition 
of the pope there is much occupation with (the question) 
of the succession after him, and that the next assemblage 
of the Cardinalate will be very important And it 
appears that agreement among them will be impossible 
and that some of them are striving that Cardinal 
Lavigerie may be this successor, and he is supported 
in reference to this by a large party of the foreign 
cardinals and amongst them are some of the German 
and Austrian cardinals. 

Germany. 

On the 7 th of the current month was the anniversary 
of the death of the Empress Augusta, and on it was 



opened a subscription for the erection of a statue to 
her in Berlin. 

The cold is very severe in all Germany, especially 
on its coasts, so that the connecting paths are blotted 
out, and most of them are difficult owing to the quantity 
of snow, that has fallen. 

Fever in Florence. 

Typhus fever is still raging in this city, and its 
inhabitants are still fleeing to the villages and their 
protectors are heavily stricken. And it is certain now 
that its origin was in the bad water of the wells, since 
it appears from the examination of the water of 100 
wells, that 86 of the wells contain the germs of this 
disease. And the municipal authority has commanded 
that they shall be closed and has begun to distribute 
ordinary water to the population, especially to the soldiers 
and the schools and the poor. And a number of 
special stoves have been built to purify by their heat 
some of the materials that contain this sickness. 

Inland letters. 
Shibln al-Kum on the 15 th to our general Commissioner. 

Yesterday (Wednesday) there arrived in our town 
His Excellency Mohammed Bey the Commissioner for 
the public examination of prisons. He was received 
at the station by his Excellency the governor of the 
police and the keeper of the prison. And he inspected 
the prisons of the Mudlrlya, and was pleased with what 
he saw of the order of their condition and the care for 
the works in progress in the building of the reformatory 
to the completing of which he urged the workmen. 

And there came to-day to the Mudlrlya a com- 
munication containing the information that some robbers 
had attacked Muhammad ibn Tabl and Darwish 'Abdal- 
lah the cloth merchants in Manuf as they were returning 
from the market of Sarsanna to their town on the 
road that leads from as-Sarsawlya to the garden ad- 
Dafrawl about 2 o'clock Arabian time yesterday evening, 
and they stole the embroideries they had with them, 

6* 



and fled, taking refuge in the fields. And his Excellency 
the official of the centre Manuf and the Assistant of 
his police went to the place of the occurrence and 
followed the tracks of the robbers until they seized 
three of them, and they were of Manuf and its neigh- 
bourhood. And it was a notable matter for his Excel- 
lency the official and the assistants, worthy of gratitude, 
which we mention adding thereto what we have learnt, 
namely that his Excellency the Mudlr has rewarded 
them for this action in that he has sent them a letter 
thanking them for it, and it is not an extraordinary 
thing, for they deserve praise and thanks. 

We remind the honourable tenderers, especially 
the local ones among them that on the 20 th of the 
current month the offers sent in at the lowest price for 
tenders for the Nile works will be opened, and we 
urge them to send in their offers at once so that the 
advantage may not escape them; and God is the master 
of success. 

Birkat as-Saba'. 
On the 14 th , from our Correspondent. 

I went to-day to the centre as-Sunta and found 
that point flourishing owing to the centre being in it, 
and especially in that its railway station is extremely 
well organised owing to its having been improved this 
year, apart from the fact that its balance of revenue 
for the past year is a balance that calls for great thanks 
to its inspector. 

Then the Assistant of its station, the remarkable 
young man Muhammad Effendi Dhakl is one of those, 
who have studied in the prince's schools; and I have 
found that all praise him in every way and are pleased 
with his excellent integrity in business affairs. 

Local affairs. 

The sky was cloudy yesterday and to-day, and it 
rained but little; as for the air, it was still. 

The number of births in the most important cities 
of the land in the week ending January 18 th of the 



current year amounted to 1323 ; among them were 461 
in the capital, 265 in Alexandria. And the number of 
deaths in the same week amounted to 824; among 
them 334 in the capital and 159 in Alexandria and 
the rest in other cities of the land. 

The imperial diploma from the Sublime Porte has 
reached the respected Monsieuf Mercier confirming his 
appointment as Vice-consul to the honourable French 
government in Damanhur and al- c Atf also. And our 
government has received information of this matter, 
which we esteem fitting owing to what we know con- 
cerning his Excellency of his worth and desert. 

Announcement. 

From the business firm Joanl Zanamrl the well-known 
merchant in the Muskl. 

The firm Joan! Zananui the well-known merchant 
in the Muskl, which was founded in the year 1864 
announces to the public and especially to their esteemed 
customers that in answer to the request of a number 
of their many friends who know the reliability and 
accuracy of their cutting in accordance with the latest 
fashion and their choice of excellent woven material 
and lasting colours, they have received finally from 
the most renowned factories of Europe in France a 
large quantity of ready-made suits for the clothing of 
men and boys and ladies; and all that is clothing for 
the winter season and the approaching feasts ; and also 
shirts and handkerchiefs and stockings and flannels 
and many other sorts, and for the sake of the con- 
venience of customers and friends they have made the 
prices for all the goods extremely moderate HO that it 
is not possible for others to sell at such prices. And if 
anyone honours their firm, he will be pleased with the 
excellence of the goods and their colours and the 
moderateness of their prices and the attention of the 
attendance on customers. 

Announcement. 

The firm Sabatis and Co. well-known for the most 
excellent refreshing drinks does itself the honour to 



86 

announce to its numerous customers that there are to 
be found in its place more than 36 kinds of those drinks 
such as soda-water, lemonade, orange drink and pome- 
granate and beer and other good drinks compounded 
with the greatest care and attention to the condition 
of the climate of Egypt and the religious prohibitions 
of Moslem gentlemen. And there are in the extensive 
famous premises abundant kinds of wine, cognac and 
arak and other spirituous drinks made in the best 
factories of Europe beside various classes of all kinds 
of drinks made on the premises. 

And the place called 'Grand Bar' famous throughout 
all Egypt is ready, for it is open night and day for 
the service of the public with the best class of iced 
drinks. Likewise the Buffet restaurant connected with 
this establishment renowned for its excellent cooking 
and the reliability and flavour of its food promises the 
public the most perfect service of everything it seeks 
together with cleanliness and reliable service and moderate 
prices and everyone who honours it, will find what 
pleases him with God's permission. 

Allan Walderson and Co. in Alexandria. 

Their representation is by a firm in Cairo in the 
Azbaklya in the street Wajh al Birka on the property 
of Mr. Mallka Shalabl, and their representative is Mr. 
Berteau Fatutisha and this firm is one of the best 
known and most advanced of the firms in the land 
of Egypt in the sale of all kinds of steam engines and 
their accessories and is perfectly ready to fulfil all 
demands in the quickest time possible. 

2. From the Syrian journal