Full text of "A plain and literal translation of the Arabian nights entertainments, now entitled The book of the thousand nights and a night"

FROM-THE- LIBRARY-OF
TRINITYCOLLEGETORDNTO

TO THE PURE ALL THINGS ARE PURE"
(Puris omnia pura)

Arab Provsrb.

"Niuna corxotta meate intese mai sanamente parole."

''Decameron " conclusion*

" Erwbuit, posuitque meum Lucretia librum

Scd coram Bruto. Brute ! recede, 'leget."

Martiai.

" Mieulx est de ris que de larmes escripre,

Pour ce que rire est le propre des hommes. "

RABKLAIS.

'The pleasure we derive from perusing tha Thpusand-and-Oaa
Stories, makes u regret that we possess only a comparatively small
part of these truly enchanting fictions. "

CRICHTON'S "History of Arabia.

tcjfns*

Kitffjts anb a Kigf)t

NOTES ANTHROPOLOGICAL AND EXPLANATORY

VOLUME V.

RICHARD F. BURTON

PRINTED BY THE BURTON CLUB FOR PRIVATE
SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

Shammar Edition

Limited to one thousand numbered sets,
of which this is

Number^

PRINTED IN U. S. A,

1 8

89033

TO THE CURATORS OF THE BODLEIAN LIBRARY, OXFORD
Etpecially RtVD. B. PRICE and PROFESSOR MAX MULLER

GENTLEMEN,

I take the liberty of placing your names at the head of this Volume which owes
its rarest and raciest passages to your kindly refusing the temporary transfer of the
Wortley Montague MS. from your pleasant library to the care of Dr. Rost, Chiei
Librarian, India Office. As a sop to " bigotry and virtue,'* as a concession to th<
41 Scribes and Pharisees," I had undertaken, in case the loan were granted, not to translate
tales and passages which might expose you, the Curators, to unfriendly comment. But,
possibly anticipating what injury would thereby accrue to the Volume and what sorrow
to my subscribers, you were good enough not to sanction the transfer indeed you refused
it to me twice and for this step my ditnttU will be (or ought to be) truly thankful to
you.

I am, Gentlemen,

Yours obediently,

RICHARD F. BURTON

BODLEIAN LIBRARY,

August <M. 1888.

CONTENTS OF THE FIFTH VOLUME.

PACE

1. THE HISTORY OF THE KING'S SON OF SIND AND THE

LADY FATIMAH ;

2. HISTORY OF THE LOVERS OF SYRIA 19

3. HISTORY OF AL-HAJJAJ BIN YUSUF AND THE YOUNG

SAYYID 37

4. NIGHT ADVENTURE OF HARUN AL-RASHID AND THE

YOUTH MANJAB 61

THE LOVES OF THE LOVERS OP BASSORAH 65

STORY OP THE DARWAYSH AND THE BARBER'S BOY AND THE
GREEDY SULTAN ......... 105

TALE OF THE SIMPLETON HUSBAND 116

NOTE CONCERNING THE * TlRREA BEDE," NlGHT 655 . . .119

5. THE LOVES OF AL-HAYFA AND YUSUF 121

6. THE THREE PRINCES OF CHINA 211

7. THE RIGHTEOUS WAZIR WRONGFULLY GAOLED . . .229

8. THE CAIRENE YOUTH, THE BARBER AND THE CAPTAIN . 241

9. THE GOODWIFE OF CAIRO AND HER FOUR GALLANTS . 251

10. THE TAILOR AND THE LADY AND THE CAPTAIN ... 261

11. THE SYRIAN AND THE THREE WOMEN OF CAIRO . . 271

12. THE LADY WITH TWO COYNTES 279

viii Contents.

13. THE WHORISH WIFE WHO VAUNTED HER VIRTUE . . 287

14. CCELEBS THE DROLL AND HIS WIFE AND HER FOUR

LOVERS 295

15. THE GATE-KEEPER OF CAIRO AND THE CUNNING SHE-

THIEF 307

16. TALE OF MOHSIN AND MUSA 319

17. MOHAMMED THE SHALABI AND HIS MISTRESS AND HIS

WIFE 333

18. THE FELLAH AND HIS WICKED WIFE 345

19. THE WOMAN WHO HUMOURED HER LOVER AT HER

HUSBAND'S EXPENSE ........ 355

20. THE KAZI SCHOOLED BY HIS WIFE 361

21. THE MERCHANT'S DAUGHTER AND THE PRINCE OF

AL-IRAK 371

22. STORY OF THE YOUTH WHO WOULD FUTTER HIS

FATHER'S WIVES 439

23. STORY OF THE TWO LACK-TACTS OF CAIRO AND

DAMASCUS 453

24. TALE OF HIMSELF TOLD BY THE KING 463

CATALOGUE OF WORTLEY MONTAGUE MANUSCRIPT CONTENTS 497

3E5.

BY W. F. K I R B Y.
I. -NOTES ON THE STORIES CONTAINED IN VOL. IV. OF

"SUPPLEMENTAL NIGHTS" 505

II. NOTES ON THE STORIES CONTAINED IN VOL. V. OF

"SUPPLEMENTAL NIGHTS" 513

THE TRANSLATOR'S FOREWORD

THIS volume contains the last of my versions from the Wortley
Montague Codex, and this is the place to offer a short account
of that much be written MS,

In the " Annals of the Bodleian Library," etc., by the Reverend
William Dunn Macray, M.A. (London, Oxford and Cambridge,
1868 : 8vo. p. 206), we find the following official notice :

"A.D. 1803."

"An Arabic MS. in seven volumes, written in 1764-5, and con-
taining what is rarely met with, a complete collection of the
Thousand and one Tales (N.B. an error for "Nights") of
the Arabian Nights Entertainments > was bought from Captain
Jonathan Scott for 50. Mr. Scott published, in 1811, an edition
of the Tales in six volumes (N.B. He reprinted the wretched
English version of Prof. Galland's admirable French, and his
"revisions" and " occasional corrections" are purely imaginative,)
in which this MS. is described, (N.B. after the mos majorum).
He obtained it from Dr. (Joseph) White, the Professor of Hebrew
and Arabic at Oxford, who had bought it at the sale of the library
of Edward Wortley Montague, by whom it had been brought from
the East. (N.B. Dr. White at one time intended to translate it
literally, and thereby eclipse the Anglo-French version.) It is

VOL. v. b

x Translator's Foreword.

noticed in Ouseley's Oriental Collections (Cadell and Davies),
vol. ii. p. 25."

The Jonathan Scott above alluded to appears under various
titles as Mr. Scott, Captain Scott and Doctor Scott. He was an
officer in the Bengal Army about the end of the last century, and
was made Persian Secretary by "Warren Hastings, Esq.," to
whom he dedicated his " Tales, Anecdotes and Letters, translated
from the Arabic and Persian " (Cadell and Davies, London,
1800), and he englished the " Bahar-i-Danish " (A.D. 1799) and
" Firishtah's History of the Dakkhan (Deccan) and of the reigns
of the later Emperors of Hindostan." He became Dr. Scott
because made an LL.D. at Oxford as meet for a " Professor (of
Oriental languages) at the Royal Military and East India
Colleges " ; and finally he settled at Netley, in Shropshire, where
he died.

It is not the fault of English Orientalists if the MS. in question
is not thoroughly well-known to the world of letters. In 1797
Sir Gore Ouseley's "Oriental Collections'* (vol. ii. pp. 25-33)
describes it, evidently with the aid of Scott, who is the authority
for stating that the tales generally appear like pearls strung at
random on the same thread ; adding, " if they are truly Oriental
it is a matter of little importance to us Europeans whether they
are strung on this night or that night." 1 This first and somewhat

1 In the same volume (ii. 161) we also find an ** Introductory Chapter of the
Arabian Tales," translated from an original manuscript by Jonathan Scott, Esq. ;
neither MS. nor translation having any merit. In pp. 34, 35 (ibid.) are noticed the
" Contents of a Fragment of the Arabian Nights procured in India by James Anderson,
Esq., a copy of which " (made by his friend Scott) " is now in the possession of Jonathan
Scott, Esq." (See Scott, vol. vi. p. 451.) For a short but sufficient notice of this
fragment cf. the Appendix (vol. x. p. 497) to my Thousand Nights and a Night, the
able and conscientious work of Mr. W. F. Kirby. " The Labourer and the Flying
Chain" (No. x.) and "The King's Son who escaped death by the ingenuity of his
Father's seven Viziers" (No. xi.) have been translated or rather abridged by Scott in
his "Tales, Anecdotes and Letters " before alluded to, a vol. of pp. 446 containing
scraps from the Persian " Tohfat al-Majalis " and " Hazliyat'Abbid Zahkanf " (Facetiae
of ' Abbid the Jester), with letters from Aurangzeb and other such padding much affected
by the home public in the Early XIX th Century.

Translators Foreword.

imperfect catalogue of the contents was followed in 1811 by a
second, which concludes the six-volume edition of " The

ARABIAN NIGHTS

ENTERTAINMENTS,
Carefully revised^ and occasionally corrected

Jfrom tbc Qrabir.

TO WHICH IS ADDED

A SELECTION OF NEW TALES,

Now first translated

Jfrom tl)c Arabic Originals.

ALSO,

AN INTRODUCTION AND NOTES,

ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE

RELIGION, MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE MAHOMMEDANS."

The sixth volume, whose second title is "Tales | selected
from the Manuscript copy | of the | 1001 Nights | brought to
Europe by Edward Wortley Montague, Esq.," ends with a general
Appendix, of which ten pages are devoted to a description of the
Codex and a Catalogue of its contents. Scott's sixth volume,
like the rest of his version, is now becoming rare, and it is
regretable that when Messieurs Nimmo and Bain reprinted,
in 1882, the bulk of the work (4 vols. 8vo) they stopped short
at volume five.

1 So called from Herr Uri, a Hungarian scholar who first catalogued "The
Contents."

xii Translator's Foreword.

desideratissimi Successor. | Oxonii, | E Typographic Academico |
MDCCCXXXV." This is introduced under the head, Codicis
Arabici Mahommedani Narrationes Fictae sive Historiae Roma-
nenses | in Quarto" (pp. 145-150).

I am not aware that any attempt has been made to trace the
history of the Wortley Montague MS. ; but its internal evidence
supplies a modicum of information.

By way of colophon to the seventh and last volume we have,
" On this wise end to us the Stories of the Kings and histories of
various folk as foregoing in the Thousand Nights and a Night,
perfected and completed, on the eighteenth day of Safar the
auspicious, which is of the months of (the year A. H.) one thousand
one hundred and seventy-eight" ( = A.D. 1764-65).

" Copied by the humblest and neediest of the poor, Omar-al-
Safatf, to whose sins may Allah be Ruthful !

" An thou find in us fault deign default supply,
And hallow the Faultless and Glorify."

The term " Suftah " is now and has been applied for the last
century to the sons of Turkish fathers by Arab mothers, and many
of these Mulattos live by the pen. On the fly-leaf of vol. i. is
written in a fine and flowing Persian (?) hand, strongly contrasting
with the text of the tome, which is unusually careless and bad,
" This Book | The Thousand Nights and a Night of the Acts and
deeds (Sfrat) of the Kings | and what befel them from sundry |
women that were whorish | and witty | and various | Tales |
therein." Below it also is a Persian couplet written in vulgar
Iranian characters of the half-Shikastah type :

Chih goyam, o chih poyam ? Na mf-ddnam hlch o puch.

(What shall I say or whither fly ? * This stuff and this nonsense know not I.)

Moreover, at the beginning of vol. i. is a list of fifteen tales
written in Europeo- Arabic characters, after schoolboy fashion,

Translator's Foreword. xiii

and probably by Scott. In vol. ii. there is no initial list, but by
way of Foreword we read, "This is volume the second of the
Thousand Nights and a Night from the xciii* Night, full and
complete." And the Colophon declares, " And this is what hath
been finished for us of the fourth (probably a clerical error for
" second ") tome of the Thousand Nights and a Night to the
clxxvii th - Night, written on the twentieth day of the month
Sha'bdn A.H., one thousand one hundred and seventy-seven"
( = A.D. 1764). This date shows that the MS. was finished during
the year after incept.

The text from which our MS. was copied must have beeh
valuable, and we have reason to regret that so many passages
both of poetry and prose are almost hopelessly corrupt. Its
tone and tenor are distinctly Nilotic ; and, as Mr. E. Wortley
Montague lived for some time in Egypt, he may have bought it at
the Capital of the Nile-land. The story of the Syrian (v. 468) and
that of the Two Lack-tacts (vi. 262), notably exalt Misr and Cairo
at the expense of Sham and Damascus ; and there are many other
instances of preferring Kemi the Black Soil to the so-called " Holy
Land." The general tone, as well as the special incidents of the book,
argues that the stories may have been ancient, but they certainly
have been modernised. Coffee is commonly used (passim)
although tobacco is still unknown ; a youth learns archery and
gunnery (Zarb al-Risds, vol. vii. 440) ; casting of cannon occurs
(vol. v. 1 86), and in one place (vol. vi. 134) we read of " Taban-
jatayn," a pair of pistols ; the word, which is still popular, being a
corruption of the Persian " Tabdncheh " = a slap or blow, even as
the French call a derringer coup de poing. The characteristic of
this Recueil is its want of finish. The stories are told after per-
functory fashion as though the writer had not taken the trouble to
work out the details. There are no names or titles to the tales,
so that every translator must give his own ; and the endings are
equally unsatisfactory, they usually content themselves, after

xiv Translators Foreword.

"native" fashion, with "Intiha " = finis; and the connection with
the thread of the work must be supplied by the story-teller or the
translator. Headlines were not in use for the 'MSS. of that day,
and the catchwords are often irregular, a new word taking the
place of the initial in the following page.

The handwriting, save and except in the first volume, has the
merit of regularity, and appears the same throughout the succeed-
ing six, except in the rare places (e.g. vi. 92-93), where the lazy
copyist did not care to change a worn-out pen, and continued to
write with a double nib. On the other hand, it is the character of
a village-schoolmaster whose literary culture is at its lowest.
Hardly a sheet appears without some blunder which only in rare
places is erased or corrected, and a few lacunae are supplied by
several hands, Oriental and European, the latter presumably
Scott's. Not unfrequently the terminal word of a line is divided,
a sign of great incuria or ignorance, as "Shahrjbaz" (i. 4),
" Shahr | zad " (v. 309, vi. 106), and " Fawa | jadtu-h "= so I found
him (v. 104). Koranic quotations, almost always lack vowel-
points, and are introduced without the usual ceremony. Poetry
also, that crux of a skilful scribe, is carelessly treated, and often
enough two sets of verse are thrown into one, the first rhyming in
ur, and the second in ir (e.g. vol. v. 256). The rhyme-words also
are repeated within unlawful limits (passim and vol. v. 308, 11. 6
and 11). Verse is thrust into the body of the page (vii. 112)
without signs of citation in red ink or other (iii. 406) ; and rarely
we find it, as it should be, in distichs divided by the normal
conventional marks, asterisks and similar separations. Sometimes
it appears in a column of hemistichs after the fashion of Europe
(iv. in ; iv. 232, etc.) : here (v. 226) a quotation is huddled into
a single line ; there (v. 242) four lines, written as monostichs, are
followed by two distichs in as many lines.

As regards the metrical part Dr. Steingass writes to me, "The
verses in Al-Hayfd and Yusuf, where not mere doggerel, are spoiled

Translators Foreword. xv

by the spelling. I was rarely able to make out even the metre
and I think you have accomplished a feat by translating them as
you have done."

The language of the MS. is generally that of the Fellah and
notably so in sundry of the tales, such as, " The Goodwife of
Cairo and her four Gallants " (v. 444). Of this a few verbal and
phrasal instances will suffice. Adfnf = here am I (v. 198) ;
Ahni (passim, for nahnu) nakhaf = we fear ; 'Alaykf (for 'alaykl)
= on thee ; and generally the long vowel (-ki) for the short (-ki)
in the pronoun of the second person feminine ; Antah (for anta)
= thou (vi. 96) and Antii (for antum) = you (iii. 351) ; Araha
and even aniha, riihat and ruha (for raha) = he went (vii. 74
and iv. 75) and Aruhii (for nihu) = go ye (iv. 179) ; Bakarah
* * allazi (for allatf) = a cow (he) who, etc. ; (see in this
vol., p. 253) and generally a fine and utter contempt for genders,
e.g. Hum (for hunna) masc. for fern. (iii. 91 ; iii. 146 ; and v. 233) ;
Ta'dli (for ta'dl) fern, for masc. (vi. 96 et passim) ; Bfhim (for
bi-him) = with them (v. 367) ; Bi-kam (for bi-kum) = with you
(iii. 142) are fair specimens of long broad vowels supplanting the
short, a peculiarity known in classical Arab., eg. Miftah (for
Miftah) = a key. Here, however, it is exaggerated, e.g. Ba'i'd (for
ba'id) = far (iv. 167) ; Kam (for kam) = how many ? Kiim (for
kum) = you (v. 118) ; Kul-hd (for kul-ha) = tell it (iv. 58) ; Mfn
(for man) = who ? (iii. 89) ; Mirwdd (for Mirwad) = a branding iron ;
Natanashshad (for natanashshad) = we seek tidings (v. 211);
Rajal (pron. Ragil,for Rajul)= a man (iv. 118 and passim) ; Sahal
(for sahal)=easy, facile (iv. 71); Sfr (for sir) = go, be off!
(v. 199) Shfl (for shil) = carry away (i. in) ; and Zahab (for
zahab)=gold (v. 186). This broad Doric or Caledonian articu-
lation is not musical to unaccustomed organs. As in popular
parlance the Dal supplants the Zal ; e.g. Dahaba (for zahaba) =
he went (v. 277 and passim) ; also T takes the place of Th, as
Tult for thulth = one third (iii. 348) and Tamrat (for thamrat) =

xvi Translator's Foreword.

fruit (v. 260), thus generally ignoring the sibilant Th after the
fashion of the modern Egyptians who say Tumm (for thumma)
= again ; " Kattir (for kaththir) Khayrak " = God increase thy
weal, and Lattama (for laththama) = he veiled. Also a general
ignoring of the dual, e.g. Haza 'usfurayn (for 'Usfurani) = these be
birds (vi. 121) ; Nazalu al-Wazirayn (do) = the two Wazirs went
down (vii. 123) ; and lastly Al-Wuzara al-itnayn (for Al- Wazirani)
= the two Wazirs (vii. 1 21). Again a fine contempt for numbers, as
Nanzur ana (for Anzur) = I (we) see (v. 198) and Inni (for inna)
naruhu = indeed I (we) go (iii. 190). Also an equally conscientious
disregard for cases, as Min mal abu-ha (for abf-hd) = out of the
moneys of her sire (iv. 190); and this is apparently the rule of the
writer.

Of Egyptianisms and vulgarisms we have Ant, md ghibtshayy
= thou, hast thou not been absent at all ? with the shayy (a thing)
subjoined to the verb in this and similar other phrases ; Baksish for
Bakhshish (iv. 356) ; Al-Jawaz (for al-zfwaj) = marriage (i. 14) ;
Faki or Fiki (for fakih) = a divine (vi. 207 and passim) ; Finjal
(for finjdn) = a coffee-cup (v. 424, also a Najdf or Central Arabian
corruption) ; Kuwayyis = nice, pretty (iv. 179) ; Layalf (JUV for
lialld W) = lest that (v. 285) ; Luhumat (for luhurn) = meats, a
mere barbarism (v. 247) ; Matah (for Matd) = when ? (v. 464) ;
Ma' ayah (for ma'i) = with me (vi. 13 et passim); Shuwayy (or
shuwayyah) Mayah, a double diminutive (for Muwayy or Muwayh)
= a small little water, intensely Nilotic (iv. 44) ; Mbarih or Em-
barah (for Al-barihah)= yesterday (v. 449) ; Takkat (for Dakkat)
= she rapped (iv. 190) ; tfzbasha and Uzbdshd (for Yuzbashi) =
a centurion, a captain (v. 430 et passim) ; Zaidjah for Zaijah
(vi. 329); Zardghit (for Zaghdn't) = lullilooing (iv. 12) ; Zinah
(for Zind) = adultery, and lastly Zuda (for Zdda) = increased
(iv. 87). Here the reader will cry jam satis ; while the student will
compare the list with that given in my Terminal Essay (vol. x.
168-9).

Translator s Foreword. xvii

The two Appendices require no explanation. No. I. is a
Catalogue of the Tales in the Wortley Montague MS., and No. II.
contains Notes upon the Storiology of the Supplemental Volumes
IV. and V. by the practised pen of Mr. W. F. Kirby. The sheets
during my absence from England have been passed through the
press and sundry additions and corrections have been made by
Dr. Steingass.

In conclusion I would state that my hope was to see this
Volume (No. xv.) terminate my long task ; but circumstance is
stronger than my will and I must ask leave to bring out one more
The New Arabian Nights.

RICHARD F. BURTON.

ATHEN^UM CLUB,

September \st, 1888.

THE HISTORY OF
THE KING'S SON OF SIND

AND

THE LADY FATIMAH

THE HISTORY OF THE KING'S SON OF SIND
AND THE LADY FATIMAH.'

IT is related that whilome there was a King of the many Kings
of Sind who had a son by other than his wife. Now the youth,
whenever he entered the palace, would revile 2 and abuse and
curse and use harsh words to his step-mother, his father's Queen,
who was beautiful exceedingly; and presently her charms were
changed and her face waxed wan and for the excess of what she
heard from him she hated life and fell to longing for death.
Withal she could not say a word concerning the Prince to his
parent. One day of the days, behold, an aged woman (which had
been her nurse) came in to her and saw her in excessive sorrow
and perplext as to her affair for that she knew not what she
could do with her step-son. So the ancient dame said to her, " O
my lady, no harm shall befal thee ; yet is thy case changed into
other case and thy colour hath turned to yellow." Hereupon
the Queen told her all that had befallen her from her step- son of

1 W. M. MS. iv. 165-189: Scott, vi. 238-245) "Story of the Prince of Sind, and
Fatima, daughter of Amir Bin Naomaun" : Gauttier (vi. 342-348) Histoire du Prince
de Sind et de Fatime.

Sind is so called from Sindhu, the Indus (in Pers. Sindab), is the general name of the
riverine valley : in early days it was a great station of the so-called Aryan race, as they
were migrating eastwards into India Proper, and it contains many Holy Places dating
from the era of the Puranas. The Moslems soon made acquaintance with it, and the
country was conquered and annexed by Mohammed bin Kdsim, sent to attack it by the
famous or infamous Hajjaj bin Yusuf the Thakafitc, lieutenant of Al-'Irdk under the
Ommiade Abd al-Malik bin Marwin. For details, see my " Sind Re-visited " : vol. u
chapt. viii.

2 [In MS. " shakhat," a modern word which occurs in Spitta Bey's " Contes Arabet
Modernes," spelt with the palatal instead of the dental, and is translated theft by

injurier." ST.]

4 Supplemental Nights.

harsh language and revilement and abuse, and the other rejoined,
"O my lady, let not thy breast be straitened, and when the
youth shall come to thee and revile and abuse thee, do thou say
him: Pull thy wits somewhat together till such time as thou
shalt have brought back the Lady Fatimah, daughter of 'Amir
ibn al-Nu'uman." The old woman taught her these words by
heart, and anon went forth from her, when the Prince entered by
the door and spoke harsh words and abused and reviled her ; so
his father's wife said to him, " Lower thy tone and pull thy wits
somewhat together, for thou be a small matter until thou shalt
bring back the daughter of the Sultan, hight Fatimah, the
child of 'Amir ibn al-Nu'uman." Now when he heard these words
he cried, " By Allah, 'tis not possible but that I go and return
with the said Lady Fatimah ; " after which he repaired to his sire
and said, " 'Tis my desire to travel ; so do thou prepare for me
provision of all manner wherewith I may wend my way to a far
land, nor will I return until I win to my wish." Hereupon his
father fell to transporting whatso he required of victuals various
and manifold, until all was provided, and he got ready for him
whatso befitted of bales and camels and pages and slaves and
eunuchs and negro chattels. Presently they loaded up and the
youth, having farewelled his father and his friends and his
familiars, set forth seeking the country of Fatimah bint Amir,
and he travelled for the first day and the second day until he
found himself in the middle of the wilds and the Wadys, and
the mountains and the stony wastes. This lasted for two months
till such time as he reached a region wherein were Ghuls and
ferals, and to one and all who met him and opposed him he would
give something of provaunt and gentle them and persuade them
to guide him upon his way. After a time he met a Shaykh well
stricken in years ; so he salamed to him and the other, after
returning his greeting, asked him saying, " What was it brought
thee to this land and region wherein are naught but wild beasts

History of the King's Son of Sind and the Lady Fatimah. 5

and Ghuls ? " whereto he answered, " O Shaykh, I came hither
for the sake of the Lady Fatimah, daughter of 'Amir ibn
al-Nu'uman." Hereat exclaimed the greybeard, " t)eceive not
thyself, for assuredly thou shalt be lost together with what are with
thee of men and moneys, and the maiden in question hath been
the cause of destruction to many Kings and Sultans. Her father
hath three tasks which he proposeth to every suitor, nor owneth
any the power to accomplish a single one, and he conditioned!
that if any fail to fulfil them and avail not so to do, he shall be
slain. But I, O my son, will inform thee of the three which be
these : First the King will bring together an ardabb of sesame
grain and an ardabb of clover-seed and an ardabb of lentils ;
and he will mingle them one with other, and he will say :
Whoso seeketh my daughter to wife, let him set apart each sort,
and whoso hath no power thereto I will smite his neck. And as
all have failed in the attempt their heads were struck off next
morning and were hung up over the Palace gateway. Now the
second task is this : the King hath a cistern * full of water, and he
conditioneth that the suitor shall drink it up to the last drop,
under pain of losing his life ; and the third is as follows : he
owneth a house without doors and windows, and it hath a three
hundred entrances and a thousand skylights and two thousand
closets ; so he covenanteth with the suitor that he make for that
place whatever befitteth of doors and lattices and cabinets, and

1 In the text "Sahrij"; hence the "Chafariz" (fountain) of Portugal, which I
derived (Highlands of the Brazil, i. 46) from " Sakarij." It is a "Moghrabin"
word = fontc, a fountain, preserved in the Brazil and derided in the mother country,
where a New World village is described as

Chafariz,

Joam Antam e a Matriz :

which may be roughly rendered

Parish church,

Pump on the Green and Johnny Birch.

* [Here I suppose the scribe dropped a word, as "yahtaj," or the like, and the
sentence should read : it requires, etc. ST.]

6 Supplemental Nights.

the whole in a single night. Now here is sufficient to engross
thine intellect, O my son, but take thou no heed and I will do
thy task for thee." Quoth the other, " O my uncle, puissance and
omnipotence are to Allah ! " and quoth the Shaykh, " Go, O my
son, and may the Almighty forward the works of thee." So the
Prince farewelled him and travelled for the space of two days,
when suddenly the ferals and the Ghuls opposed his passage and
he gave them somewhat of provaunt which they ate, and after
they pointed out to him the right path. Then he entered upon a
Wady wherein flights of locusts barred the passage, so he scattered
for them somewhat of fine flour which they picked up till they
had eaten their sufficiency. Presently he found his way into
another valley of iron-bound rocks, and in it there were of the
Jann what could not be numbered or described, and they cut
and crossed his way athwart that iron tract. So he came forward
and salam'd to them and gave them somewhat of bread and meat
and water, and they ate and drank till they were filled, after
which they guided him on his journey and set him in the right
direction. Then he fared forwards till he came to the middle
of the mountain, where he was opposed by none, or mankind or
Jinn-kind, and he ceased not marching until he drew near the
city of the Sultan whose daughter he sought to wife. Here he
set up a tent and sat therein seeking repose for a term of three
days; then he arose and walked forwards until he entered the
city, where he fell to looking about him leftwards and rightwards
till he had reached the palace ! of the King. He found there over
the gateway some hundred heads which were hanging up, and he
cried to himself, " Veil me, O thou Veiler ! All these skulls were
suspended for the sake of the Lady Fatimah, but the bye-word
saith : Whoso dieth not by the sword dieth of his life-term,
and manifold are the causes whereas death be singlefold." There-

' ! 7~

1 In text "Sarayah," for " Sarayah," Serai, Government House : vol. ix. 52.

History of the King's Son of Sind and the Lady Fatimah* 7

upon he went forwards to the palace gate And Shahrazad
was surprised by the dawn of day, and fell silent and ceased
saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
"How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the
next night and that was

Jpour f^un&re& an&

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love
and good will ! - It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Prince
went forward to the Palace gate and purposed to enter, but they
forbade him nor availed he to go in ; so he returned to his tents
and there spent the night till dawn. Then he again turned to the
King's Serai and attempted to make entry, but they stayed him
and he was unable to succeed, nor could he attain to the presence
of the Sovran. So he devised with one who was standing at the
door a device to enter the presence, but again he failed in his
object and whenever he craved admission they rejected him
and drave him away saying, " O youth, tell us what may be thy
need ? " Said he, " I have a requirement of the Sultan and my
purport is a business I may transact with him and speech
containeth both private and public matters ; nor is it possible
that I mention my want to any save to the Sovran." So a
Chamberlain of the chamberlains went in to the presence and
reported the affair to the King, who permitted them admit the
stranger, and when he stood before the throne he kissed ground

8 Supplemental Nights.

and deprecated evil for the ruler and prayed for his glory and
permanency, and the Monarch, who marvelled at the terseness of
his tongue and the sweetness of his speech, said to him, " O youth,
what may be thy requirement ? " Quoth the Prince, " Allah
prolong the reign of our lord the Sultan ! I came to thee seeking
connexion with thee through thy daughter the lady concealed
and the pearl unrevealed." Quoth the Sultan, " By Allah, verily
this youth would doom himself hopelessly to die and, Oh the
pity of it for the loquence of his language ; " presently adding,
" O youth, say me, art thou satisfied with the conditions where-
with I would oblige thee ? " and the Prince replied, " O my lord,
Omnipotence is to Allah ; and, if the Almighty empower me to
fulfil thy pact, I shall fulfil it." The King continued, " I have
three tasks to impose upon thee," and the Prince rejoined, " I am
satisfied with all articles thou shalt appoint" Hereupon the
Sovran summoned the writers and witnesses, and they indited the
youth's covenant and gave testimony that he was content there-
with ; and when the Prince had signified his satisfaction and
obligation, the King sent for an ardabb of sesame and an ardabb
of clover-seed and an ardabb of lentils and let mingle all three
kinds one with other till they became a single heap. Then said
the King to the Prince, "Do thou separate each sort by itself
during the course of the coming night, and if dawn shall arise and
every seed is not set apart, I will cut off thy head." Replied the
other, " Hearing and obeying." Then the King bade place all
the mixed heap in a stead apart, and commanded the suitor retire
into solitude ; accordingly, he passed alone into that site and
looked upon that case and condition, and he sat beside the heap
deep in thought, so he set his hand upon his cheek and fell to
weeping, and was certified of death. Anon he arose and going
forwards attempted of himself to separate the various sorts of
grain, but he failed ; and had two hundred thousand thousands of
men been gathered together for the work they had on nowise

History of the Kings Son of Sind and the Lady Fatimak* 9

availed to it. Hereupon he set his right hand upon his cheek l
and he fell to weeping and suffered the first third of the dark hours
to pass, when he said to himself, " There remaineth naught of thy
life save the remnant of this night ! " But the while he was conjec-
turing and taking thought, behold, an army of the locusts to
whom he had thrown the flour upon his road came speeding over
him like a cloud dispread and said to him with the tongue of the
case, 2 " Fear not neither grieve, for we have flocked hither to
solace thee and ward from thee the woe wherein thou art : so take
thou no further heed." Then they proceeded to separate each
kind of grain and set it by itself, and hardly an hour had passed
before the whole sample was distributed grain by grain into its
proper place while he sat gazing thereon. After this the locusts
arose and went their ways, and when morning dawned the Sultan
came forth and took seat in the Hall of Commandment and said
to those who were present, " Arise ye and bring hither the youth
that we may cut off his head." They did his bidding but, when
entering in to the Prince, they found all the different grains piled
separately, sesame by itself and clover-seed alone and lentils
distributed apart, whereat they marvelled and cried, " This thing
is indeed a mighty great matter from this youth, nor could it
befal any save himself of those who came before him or of those
who shall follow after him." Presently they brought him to the
Sultan and said, " O King of the Age, all the grains are sorted ; "
whereat the Sovran wondered and exclaimed, " Bring the whole
before me." And when they brought it he looked upon it with
amazement and rejoiced thereat, but soon recovered himself and
cried, " O youth, there remain to thee two tasks for two nights ;
and if thou fulfil them, thou shalt win to thy wish, and if thou fail
therein, I will smite thy neck." Said the Prince, " O King of the

1 A manner of metonymy, meaning that he rested his cheek upon his right hand.
* For the sig. of this phrase = words suggested by (he circumstances, see vol. i. 121,

io Supplemental Nights.

Age, the All-might is to Allah, the One, the Omnipotent ! " Now
when night drew nigh the King opened to him a cistern and
said, " Drink up all that is herein and leave not of it a drop, nor
spill aught thereof upon the ground, and if thou drain the whole
of it, thou shalt indeed attain to thine aim, but if thou fail
to swallow it, I will smite thy neck." The Prince answered,
" There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the
Glorious, the Great ! " Then he took his seat at the cistern-
mouth and fell to thinking and saying in his mind, " Wherefore,
O certain person, shouldst thou venture thy life and incur the
cruel consequence of this King on account of thy frowardness
to thy father's wife ? and by Allah, this is naught save Jinn-struck
madness on thy part ! " So he placed his left hand upon his
cheek, and in his right was a stick wherewith he tapped and drew
lines in absent fashion upon the ground, 1 and he wept and wailed
until the third of the first part of the dark hours had passed,
when he said in himself, " There remaineth naught of thine age,
ho, Such-an-one, save the remainder of this night." And he
ceased not to be drowned in thought when suddenly a host of
savage beasts and wild birds came up to him and said with the
tongue of the case, " Fear not neither grieve, O youth, for none is
faithless to the food save the son of adultery and thou wast the
first to work our weal, so we will veil and protect thee, and let
there be no sorrowing with thee on account of this matter."
Hereupon they gathered together in a body, birds and beasts,
and they were like unto a lowering cloud, no term to them was
shown and no end was known as they followed in close file one

upon other And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day,

and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth
her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and

1 Mr. Charles M. Doughty ("Arabia Deserta," i. 223), speaks of the Badawin who
"sit beating the time away, and for pastime limning with their driving-sticks (the
Baktir) in the idle land.'*

History of the Kings Son of Sind and the Lady Fatimah. \ I

how enjoyable and delectable ! '* Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night
and that was

3H)t Jpout f^unbrefc an* j^inetg-sebentf) j^igftt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the wild beasts
and the feral birds met one another beside that cistern and each
took his turn thereat and drank without drinking his full l until
naught of water remained in the reservoir and they fell to licking
the sides with their tongues so that anyone seeing it would say
that for the last ten years not a drop of liquid had been stored
therein. And after this they all went their ways. Now as soon
as it was morning-tide the King arose and hied forth the Harem
and taking his seat in the Hall of Commandment said to sundry
of his pages and Chamberlains, " Go bring us tidings of the
cistern." Accordingly they went thither and inspected it but
found no trace of water therein ; so they returned straightway
to the ruler and reported the matter. Hereupon the Sultan was
amazed and his wits were bewildered and he was certified that
none had power to win his daughter for wife save that youth. So
he cried, " Bring him hither," and they fared to fetch him and
presented him in the presence where he salam'd to the Sovran and

1 In text " Lam yanub al-Wahidu min-hum nisf hafTin." [I cannot explain this
entence satisfactory to myself, but by inserting " ilia" after "min-hum." Further I
would read " nassaf " = libavit, delibavit, degustavit (Doty, Suppl. t. v.) and " Hifan,"
pi. of " Hafnah" = handful, mouthful, small quantity, translating accordingly: "and
none took his turn without sipping a few laps." ST. 1

1 2 Supplemental Nights.

deprecated 1 for him and prayed for him. The Sultan greeted him
in return and said, " O Youth, there now remaineth with me but a
single task which if thou accomplish shall save thee and win for
thee my daughter ; however if thou fail therein I will smite thy
neck." "Power is to Allah!" exclaimed the Prince whereat the
Sultan marvelled and said in his mind, " Glory be to God :
the words and works of this youth be wonderful. Whatever I bid
him do he begin neth with naming the name of the Lord whereas
those who forewent him never suffered me hear aught of the sort.
However, the fortunate are Fortune's favourites and Misfortune
never befalleth them." Now when it was night-tide the Sultan
said, " O youth, in very deed this mansion which standeth beside
the palace is brand-new and therein are store of wood and timbers
of every kind, but it lacketh portals and lattices and the finishing
of the cabinets ; so I desire that thou make for it doors and
windows and closets. I have provided thee with everything thou
dost require of carpenter's gear and turner's lathes ; and either
thou shalt work all this during the coming night ; or, if thou be
wanting in aught and morning shall morrow without all the need-
ful being finished, I will cut off thy head. This is the fine of thy
three labours which an thou avail to accomplish thou shalt attain
thine aim and if thou fail thereof I will smite thy neck. Such be
then my last word." Accordingly the Prince arose and faring
from before him entered the unfinished mansion which he found to
be a palace greater and grander than that wherein the King abode.
He cried, " O Veiler, withdraw not Thy veiling!" and he sat
therein by himself (and he drowned in thought) and said, " By
Allah, if at this hour I could find somewhat to swallow I would die
thereby and rest from this toil and trouble have been my lot ; 2 and

1 "Tarajjama" : vol. iv. 242. I shall always translate it by" he deprecated "scil.
evil to the person addressed.

2 [The text, as I read it, has : " In wahadtu (read wajadtu) fi hazih al-Sd'dh shayyan
naakul-hu wa namut bi-hi nartah min haza al-Taab wa'l mashakkah la-akultu-hu " =

History of the Kings Son of Sind and the Lady Fatimah. 1 3

the morning shall not morrow ere I shall find repose nor shall any
one of the town folk solace himself and say : The Sultan is about
to cut off the head of this youth. Withal the bye- word hath
it: Joyance which cometh from Allah is nearer than is thd
eyebrow to the eye, and if Almighty (be He extolled and exalted !)
have determined aught to my destiny, there is no flight therefrom.
Moreover one of the Sages hath said : He released me from
pillar to post and the Almighty bringcth happiness nearhand.
From this time until dawn of day many a matter may proceed from
the Lord wherein haply shall be salvation for me or destruction."
Then he fell to pondering his affair and thinking over his froward-
ness to the wife of his father, after which he said, " The slave
mcditateth and the Lord determineth, nor doth the meditation of
the slave accord with the determination of the Lord." And
while thus drowned in care he heard the sound of the Darabukkah-
drum l and the turmoil of work and the shiftings of voices whilst
the house was full of forms dimly seen and a voice cried out
to him, " O youth, be hearty of heart and sprightly of spirits :
verily we will requite thee the kindness thou wroughtest to us in
providing us with thy provision ; and we will come to thine aidance
this very night, for they who are visiting and assisting thee are of
the Jann from the Valley of Iron." Then they began taking up
the timbers and working them and some turned the wood with
lathes, and other planed the material with planes, whilst others
again fell to painting and dyeing the doors and windows, these
green and those red and those yellow ; and presently they set them
in their several steads, nor did that night go by ere the labour was
perfected and there was no royal palace like unto it, either in
ordinance or in emplacement. Now as morning morrowed the
Sultan went forth to his divan, and when he looked abroad he saw a

if I could find at this hour a something (i.e. in the way of poison) which I might eat
and die thereby and rest from this toil and trouble, I would certainly eat it, etc. ST.]
1 See vol. i. 311 for this " tom-tom " as Anglo-Indians call it.

1 4 Supplemental Nights.

somewhat of magnificence in the mansion which was not to be
found in his palace, so he said in his surprise, " By Allah, the
works of this youth be wondrous and had the joiners and car-
penters loitered over three years upon this work they never would
have fulfilled such task : moreover we ken not by what manner of
means this young man hath been able to accomplish the labour."
Thereupon he sent for the Prince to the presence and robed him
with a sumptuous robe of honour and assigned to him a mighty
matter of money, saying, "Verily thou deservest, O youth, and
thou art the only one who meriteth that thou become to my
daughter baron and she become to thee femme. Presently Sultan
Amir ibn al-Nu'uman bade tie the marriage-tie and led to her in
procession the bridegroom who found her a treasure wherefrom
the talisman had been loosed ; l and the bride rejoiced with even
more joyance than he did by cause of her sire, with his three tasks,
having made her believe that she would never be wedded and
bedded but die a maid, and she had long been in sadness for such
reason. Then the married couple abode with the King their father
for the space of a month, and all this time the camp of the young
Prince remained pitched without the town, and every day he
would send to his pages and eunuchs whatso they needed of meat
and drink. But when that term ended he craved from the Sultan
leave of travel to his own land and his father-in-law answered,
" O youth, do whatso thou ever wishest anent returning to thy
native realm ; " and forthwith fell to fitting out his daughter till
all her preparations were completed and she was found ready for
wayfare together with her body-women and eunuchs. The Prince
having farewelled his father-in-law caused his loads to be loaded
and set out seeking his native country and kingdom ; and he
travelled by day and by night, and he pushed his way through

1 i.e. Whereinto the happy man was able to go, which he could not whilst the spell
was upon the hoard.

History of the King's Son of Sind and the Lady Fatimah. 1 5

Wadys and over mountains for a while of time until he drew near
his own land, and between him and his father's city remained only
some two or three marches. Here suddenly men met him upon
the road and as he asked them the tidings they replied that his sire
was besieged within his capital of Sind by a neighbour King who
had attacked him and determined to dethrone him and make
himself Sovereign and Sultan in his stead. Now when he heard
this account he pushed forward with forced marches till he reached
his father's city which he found as had been reported ; and the old
King with all his forces was girded around within his own walls
nor could he sally out to offer battle for that the foe was more
forceful than himself. Hereupon the Prince pitched his camp and
prepared himself for fight and fray ; and a many of his men rode
with him whilst another many remained on guard at the tents.

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell

silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

6* JFour ^Duntorcfc anfc J2inetp*nint[) .Jiig&t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love
and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Prince
busked him for fight and fray seeking to assault the army of the
King who had besieged his sire, and the two hosts fought together
a strenuous fight and a stubborn. On this wise fared it with them;

1 6 Supplemental Nights.

but as regards the bride, she took patience till such time as her
bridegroom had ridden forth, when she donned her weapons of war
and veiled herself with a face-veil and sallying forth in Mameluke's
habit presently came up with her mate the Prince whom she found
straitened by the multitude of his foes. Now this Princess was
mistress of all manner weapons, so she drew her sword from its
sheath and she laid on load rightwards and leftwards until the wits
of all beholders were wildered and her bridegroom inclined to her
and said, " Verily this Mameluke he is not one of our party." But
she continued battling till the sun rose high in the firmament-vault
when she determined to attacK the ensigns and colours which were
flying after right royal of fashion, and in the midst thereof was the
hostile Sultan. So she smote the ancient who bore the banner
and cast him to the ground and then she made for the King and
charged down upon him and struck him with the side of the sword
a blow so sore that of his affright he fell from his steed. But when
his host saw him unhorsed and prostrate upon the plain they
sought safety in flight and escape, deeming him to be dead ; where-
upon she alighted and pinioned his elbows behind his back and
tied his forearms to his side, and lashed him on te his charger and
bound him in bonds like a captive vile. Then she committed him
to her bridegroom who still knew her not and she departed the
field seeking her camp until she arrived there and entered her
pavilion where she changed her attire and arrayed herself in
women's raiment. After this she sat down expecting the Prince
who, when she had committed to him the captured King, carried
him into the city where he found the gates thrown open. Here-
upon his sire sallied forth and greeted him albeit he recognized
him not but was saying, " Needs must I find the Knight who came
to our assistance." "O my papa," quoth the Prince, "dost thou
not know me ? " and quoth the other, " O young man, I know thee
not ; " whereat the other rejoined, " I am thy son Such-an-one."
But hardly had the old King heard these words when behold, he

History of the King's Son of Sind and the Lady Fatimah. 17

fell upon him and threw his arms round his neck and was like to
lose his sense and his senses for stress of joyance. After a time he
recovered and looking upon the captive King asked him, " What
was it drave thee to come hither and seek to seize from me my
realm ? " and the other answered him with humility and craved
his pardon and promised not again to offend, so he released him
and bade him gang his gait. After this the young Prince went
forth and caused his Harim and his pages and whoso were with
him enter the city and when they were seated in the women's
apartment the husband and wife fell to talking of their journey
and what they had borne therein of toil and travail. At last the
Princess said to him, " O my lord, what became of the King who
besieged thy sire in his capital and who sought to bereave him of
his realm ? " and said he, " I myself took him captive and com-
mitted him to my father who admitted his excuses and suffered
him depart." Quoth she, " And was it thou who capturedst him ? "
and quoth he, " Yea verily, none made him prisoner save myself/'
Hereupon said she, " Thee it besitteth not to become after thy sire
Sovran and Sultan ! " and said he, " Why and wherefore ? " " For
that a lie defameth and dishonoureth the speaker," cried she, " and
thou hast proved thee a liar." " What made it manifest to thee
that I lied ? " asked the Prince, and the Princess answered, " Thou
claimest to have captured the King when it was other than thyself
took him prisoner and committed him to thy hands." He enquired,
" And who was he ? " and she replied, " I know not, withal I had
him in sight." Hereupon the bridegroom repeated his query till at
last she confessed it was she had done that deed of derring-do ; and
the Prince rejoiced much in her. 1 Then the twain made an entry

1 Here ends this tale, ft roost lame and impotent conclusion, in the W. M. MS. iv.
189. Scott (p. 244-5) copied by Gauttier (ri. 348) has, " His father received him with
rapture, and the prince having made an apology to the sultana (!) for his former rude
behaviour, she received his excuses, and having no child of her own readily adopted him
as her son ; so that the royal family lived henceforth in the utmost harmony, till the
death of the sultan and sultana, when the prince succeeded to the empire,"

VOL. V. "*

1 8 Supplemental Nights.

in triumph and the city was adorned and the general joy was
increased. Now his taking to wife the Lady Fatimah daughter of
the Sultan Amir bin Al-Nu'uman so reconciled him to his step-
mother, the spouse of his father the Sovran of Sind, that both
forgot their differences and they lived ever afterwards in harmony
; and haooiness.

HISTORY OF THE LOVERS OF SYRIA.

HISTORY OF THE LOVERS OF SYRIA. 1

IT is stated that of olden times and by-gone there dwelt in the
land of Syria two men which were brothers and whereof one was
wealthy and the other was needy. Now the rich man had a love-
some daughter and a lovely, whilst the poor man had a son who
gave his heart to his cousin as soon as his age had reached his
tenth year. But at that time his father the pauper died and he
was left an orphan without aught of the goods of this world ; the
damsel his cousin, however, loved him with exceeding love and
ever and anon would send him a somewhat of dirhams and this
continued till both of them attained their fourteenth years. Then
the youth was minded to marry the daughter of his uncle, so he
sent a party of friends to her home by way of urging his claim
that the father might wed her to him, but the man rejected them
and they returned disappointed. However, when it was the second
day a body of warm men and wealthy came to ask for the maid in
marriage, and they conditioned the needful conditions and stood
agreed upon the nuptials. Presently the tidings reached the
damsel who took patience till the noon o' night, when she arose
and sought the son of her uncle, bringing with her a sum of two
thousand dinars which she had taken of her father's good and she
knocked softly at the door. Hereupon the youth started from
sleep and went forth and found his cousin who was leading a she-
mule and an ass, so the twain bestrode either beast and travelled
through the remnant of the night until the morning morrowed.
Then they alighted to drink and to hide themselves in fear of being

W. M. MS. iv. 189: Scott (vi. 246-258) "Story of the Lovers of Syria; or, the
Heroine : " Cauttier (iv. 348-354) Histoirt dts Amans de Syric.

22 Supplemental Nights.

seen until the second night fell when they mounted and rode for
two successive days, at the end of which they entered a town
seated on the shore of the sea. Here they found a ship equipped
for voyage, so they repaired to the Ra'is and hired for themselves
a sitting place ; after which the cousin went forth to sell the ass
and the she-mule, and disappeared for a short time. Meanwhile
the ship had sailed with the daughter of his uncle and had left
the youth upon the strand and ceased not sailing day after day for
the space of ten days, and lastly made the port she purposed and
there cast anchor. 1 Thus it befel them ; but as regards. the youth,
when he had sold the beasts he returned to the ship and found
her not, and when he asked tidings thereof they told him that she
had put to sea ; and hearing this he was mazed as to his mind and
sore amated as to his affair, nor wot he whither he should wend.
So he turned him inland sore dismayed. Now when the vessel
anchored in that port quoth the damsel to the captain, " O Ra'is, 2
hie thee ashore and bring for us a portion of flesh and fresh bread,"
and quoth he, " Hearkening and obedience," whereupon he betook
himself to the town. But as soon as he was far from the vesselj
she arose and donning male's dress said to the sailors, " Do ye
weigh anchor and set sail," and she shouted at them with the
shouting of seamen. Accordingly they did as she bade them and
the wind being fair and the weather favourable, ere an hour had
sped they passed beyond sight of land. 3 Presently the captain

1 Scott (vi. 246) comments upon the text : " The master of the ship having weighed
anchor, hoisted sail and departed : the lady in vain entreating him to wait the return of her
beloved, or send her on shore, for he was captivated with her beauty. Finding herself
thus ensnared, as she was a woman of strong mind . . . she assumed a satisfied
air ; and as the only way to preserve her honour, received the addresses of the
treacherous master with pretended complacency, and consented to receive him as a
husband at the first port at which the ship might touch"

2 The captain, the skipper, not the owner: see vols. i. 127; vi. 12; the fern,
(which we shall presently find) is " Ra'isah."

3 Scott (p. 247) has : " At length the vessel anchored near a city, to which the cap-
tain went to make preparations for his marriage ; but the lady, while he was on shore,
addressed the ship's crew, setting forth with such force his treacherous conduct to her-

History of the Lovers of Syria. 23

returned bringing bread and meat but he found ne'er a ship, so
he asked tidings of her and they answered, " Verily she is gone."
Hereupon he was perplext and he fell to striking hand upon hand
and crying out, " O my good and the good of folk ! " and he
repented whenas repentance availed him naught. Accordingly, he
returned to the town unknowing whither he should wend and he
walked about like one blind and deaf for the loss of his craft. But as
regards the vessel, she ceased not sailing with those within till she
cast anchor near a city wherein was a King j and no sooner was
she made fast than the damsel arose and donning her most
sumptuous dress and decorations fell to scattering money amongst
the crew and saying to them, " Hearten your hearts and be not
afraid on any wise ! " In due time the news of a fresh arrival
reached the Ruler, and he ordered his men to bring him tidings
concerning that vessel, and when they went for her and boarded
her they found that her captain was a damsel of virginal semblance
exceeding in beauty and loveliness. So they returned and reported
this to the King who despatched messengers bidding her lodge
with him for they had heightened their praises of her and the
excess of her comeliness, and he said in his mind, " By Allah, an
she prove as they describe her, needs must I marry her. 11 But the
damsel sent back saying, "I am ,a clean maid, nor may I land
alone but do thou send to me forty girls, virgins like myself when

I will disembark together with them." And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is
thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

elf, and offering such rewards if they would convey her to her lover at the port they had
left, that the honest sailors were moved in her favour, agreed to obey her as their
mistress, and hoisting sail, left the master to shift for himself."

24 Supplemental Nights.

*&& ;fffoe Hun&refc anfc jfr

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede, which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the damsel
demanded of the King forty clean maids and said, " We will land,
I and they together," whereto he replied, " The right is with her."
Hereupon he ordered all those about him, the Lords of his land
and the Commons, that each and every who had in the house a
virginal daughter, should bring her to him until the full tale of
forty (the daughter of the Wazir being amongst them) was told
and he sent them on board the ship where the damsel was about
sitting down to supper. But as soon as the maidens came she met
them in her finest attire, none of the number being more beauteous
than herself, and she salam'd to them and invited them into the
cuddy 1 where she bade food be served to them and they ate and
were cheered and solaced, after which they sat down to converse
till it was the middle of the night. Now when sleep prevailed
over the girls they retired to their several berths, and when they
were drowned in slumber, the damsel arose softly and arousing
the crew bade them leave their moorings and shake out their
canvas ; nor did daylight dawn to them ere they had covered a far
distance. As soon as the maidens awoke they saw themselves on
board a ship amid the billows of the main, and as they asked the
Captainess she answered, "Fear not for yourselves or for the
voyage you are making ;" 2 and she gentled them and solaced them

1 In text "Kamrah," = the chief cabin, from the Gr. jca/Aapa = vault; Pers.
Kamar; Lat. "Camera" or " Camara" ; Germ. "Kammer." It is still the popular
term in Egypt for the "cuddy," which is derived from Pers. "Kadah" = a room.

a Scott makes the doughty damsel (p. 249), "relate to them her own adventures, and
assure them that when she should have rejoined her lover, they should, if they chose

History of the Lovers of Syria. 2$

until whatso was in their hearts was allayed. However, touching
the affair of the King, when morrowed the morn he sent to the ship
with an order for the damsel to land with the forty virgins, but
they found not the craft and they returned and reported the same
to their lord, who cried, " By Allah, this be the discreetest of deeds
which none other save she could have done." So he arose without
stay or delay and taking with him the Wazir (both being in dis-
guise), he went down to the shore and looked around but he could
not find what had become of them. And as regards the vessel carry-
ing the virgins she ceased not sailing until she made port beside a
ruined city wherein was none inhabitant, and here the crew cast
anchor and furled their sails when behold, a gang of forty pirate 1
men, ever ready to cut the highway and their friends to betray,
boarded them, crying in high glee, " Let us slay all in her and
carry off whatso we find." When they appeared before the damsel
they would have effected their intent ; but she welcomed them and
said, " Do ye return ashore : we be forty maids and ye forty men
and to each of you shall befal one and I will belong to your
Shaykh, for that I am the Captainess." Now when they heard
this they rejoiced with excessive joy and they said, " Wallahi, our
night shall be a blessed one by virtue of your coming to us ;"
whereto she asked, " Have you with you aught of sheep ?" They
answered, "We have," and quoth she, "Do ye slay of them
somewhat for supper and fetch the meat that we may cook it for
you." So a troop of pirates went off and brought back ten lambs
which they slaughtered and flayed and brittled. Then the damsel
and those with her tucked up their sleeves and hung up their
chauldrons a and cooked the meat after delicatest fashion, and when

it, be honourably restored to their homes ; but in the mean time she hoped they would
contentedly share her fortunes."

1 In text - Fidiwi," see Fida'i " and Fidawiyab," vol. IT. 281.

2 [In the text ' Al-Kirinat," pi. of " Kaian," which occurs in SpitU Bey's tales
under the form "Kazan" on account of the accent It is the Turkish 'JKarghan,"

26 Supplemental Nights.

it was thoroughly done and prepared, they spread the trays and

the pirates came forward one and all, and ate and washed their

hands and they were in high spirits each and every, saying, " This

night I will take to me a girl." Lastly she brought to them coffee

which they drank, but hardly had it settled in their maws when

the Forty Thieves fell to the ground, for she had mixed up with

it flying Bhang 1 and those who had drunk thereof became like

unto dead men. Hereupon the damsel arose without loss of time

and taking in her hand a sharp-grided sword fell to cutting off

their heads and casting them into the sea until she came to the

Shaykh of the Pirates and in his case she was satisfied with

shaving his beard and tearing out his eye-teeth and bidding the

crew cast him ashore. They did as she commanded, after which

she conveyed the property of all the caitiffs and having distributed

the booty amongst the sailors, bade them weigh anchor and shake

out their canvas. On this wise they left that ruined city until they

had made the middle of the main and they fared for a number of

days athwart the billowy deep nor could they hit upon their course

amongst the courses of the sea until Destiny cast them beside a

city. They made fast to the anchorage-ground, and the damsel

arose and donning Mameluke's dress and arraying the Forty

Virgins in the same attire all walked together and paced about the

shore and they were like garden blooms. When they entered the

streets they found all the folk a-sorrowing-, so they asked one of

them and he answered, " The Sultan who over-reigneth this city is

dead and the reign lacketh rule." Now in that stead and under

the hand of the Wazir, was a Bird which they let loose at certain

times, and whenever he skimmed round and perched upon the head

of any man to him they would give the Sultanate. 2 By the decree

vulgarly pronounced " Kazan," and takes in Persian generally the form " Kazkan." In
Night 652 it will be met again in the sense of crucibles. ST.]

1 In text "Banj al-tayyar," i.e. volatile : as we should say, that which flies fastest to
the brain.

8 This marvellous bird, the " Ter-il-bas " (Tayr Taiis?), is a particular kind of peacock

History of the Lovers of Syria. 27

of the Decreer they cast the fowl high in air at the very hour
when the damsel was landing and he hovered above her and
settled upon her head (she being in slave's attire), and the city
folk and the lords of the land cried out, "Strange! passing
strange!" So they flushed the bird from the place where he had
alighted and on the next day they freed him again at a time when
the damsel had left the ship, and once more he came and settled
upon her head. They drove him away, crying, "Oh rare! oh
rare ! " but as often as they started him from off her head he
returned to it and alighted there again. " Marvellous ! " cried the
Wazir, " but Allah Almighty hath done this 1 and none shall object
to what He doeth nor shall any reject what He decreeth." Accord-
ingly, they gave her the Sultanate together with the signet-ring of
governance and the turband of commandment and they seated her
upon the throne of the reign. Hereupon she fell to ordering the
Forty Virgins who were still habited as Mamelukes and they served
the Sultan for a while of time, till one day of the days when the
Wazir came to the presence and said, " O King of the Age, I have
a daughter, a model of beauty and loveliness and I am desirous
of wedding her with the Sovran because one such as thou should
not remain in single blessedness." And Shahrazad was sur-
prised by the dawn of day and fell silent, and ceased saying her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and
tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delect-
able ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I
would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was ~

which is introduced with a monstrous amount of nonsense about " Dagon and his son
Bil-il-Sanan " and made to determine elections by alighting upon the head of one of
the candidates in Chavis and Cazotte, " History of Yamalladdin ( Jamil al-Din), Prince
of Great Katay " (Khdtd = Cathay = China). See Heron, iv. 159.
1 Lit. bath given it to him."

28 Supplemental Nights.

anH

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that quoth the
Wazir to the Sultan, " I have a daughter, a model of beauty and
loveliness, and I am desirous of wedding her with the Sultan,
because one such as thou should not remain in single blessedness."
" Do whatso thou wishest," quoth the King, " and Allah prosper
thy doing." Hereupon the Wazir fell to preparing the marriage-
portion l of his daughter, and of forwarding her affair with the
Sultan, until her wedding appointments 2 and other matters were
completed. After this he caused the marriage-tie be tied, and
he brought her to the supposed Sultan where she lay for the first
night, but the damsel having performed the Wuzii ablution did
naught but pray through the hours of darkness. When dawned
the day the Wazir's wife which was the mother of the maiden
came to look upon her daughter and asked her of her case, and
the bride answered, " All the livelong night hath he passed in
orisons, nor came he near me even once." Quoth the mother,
" O my daughter, this be the first night, and assuredly he was

1 Arab. "Jihaz," the Egypt. "Gahaz," which is the Scotch " tocher," and must
not be confounded with the " Mahr " = dowry, settled by the husband upon the wife.
Usually it consists of sundry articles of dress and ornament, furniture (matting and bedding
carpets, divans, cushions and kitchen utensils), to which the Badawi add "Girbahs"
(water-skins) querns, and pestles with mortars. These are usually carried by camels from
the bride's house to the bridegroom's : they are the wife's property, and if divorced she
takes them away with her and the husband has no control over the married woman's
capital, interest or gains." For other details see Lane M.E. chapt. vi. and Herklots
chapt. xiv. sec. 7.

2 [Arab. "Shuwar" = trousseau, whence the verb "shawwara binta-hu"= he gave a
marriage outfit to his daughter. See Dozy Suppl.s.v* and Arnold's Chrestom. 157, i. ST.]

History of the Lovers of Syria. 29

ashamed, for he is young in years, and he knoweth not what to
do ; haply also his heart hangeth not upon thee ; and he is but a
raw lad. 1 However, on the coming night ye shall both enjoy your
desire." But as soon as it was the evening of the next day the
Sultan went in to his Harim and made the minor ablution, and
abode in prayer through the night until the morrow morrowed,
when again the mother came to see how matters stood, and
she asked her daughter, who answered, "All the dark hours
he hath passed in devotion, and he never approached me " Now
on the third night it happened after like fashion, so the mother
said, " O my daughter, whenever thou shalt see thy husband sitting
by thy side, do thou throw thyself upon his bosom." The bride
did as she was bidden, and casting herself upon his breast cried,
" O King of the Age, haply I please thee not at all ; " whereat said
the other, " O light of mine eyes, thou art a joy to me for ever;
but I am about to confide to thee somewhat and say me canst thou
keep a secret ? " Quoth she, " Who is there like me for hiding
things in my heart ? " and quoth the other, " I am a clean maid,
and my like is thy like, but the reason for my being in man's habit
is that the son of my uncle, who is my betrothed, hath been lost
from me and I have been lost from him, but when Allah shall
decree the reunion of our lots he shall marry thee first and he shall
not pay the bridegroom's visit save unto thee, and after that to
myself." The Wazir's daughter accepted the excuse, and then
arising went forth and brought a pigeon whose weazand she split
and whose blood she daubed upon the snow-white sheet* And
when it was morning and her mother again visited her, the bride

1 Arab. " Ghashim," see vol. ii. 330, It is a favouiite word in Egypt extending to
Badawi-land, and especially in Cairo, where it is looked upon as slighting if not insulting.

The whole of the scene is a replica of the marriage between Kamar al-Zaman and
that notable blackguard the Lady Budur (vol. iii. 211), where also we find the pigeon
slaughtered (p. 289). I have mentioned that the blood of this bird is supposed through,
out the East, where the use of the microscope is unknown, and the corpuscules are never
studied, most to resemble the results of a bursten hymen, and that it is the most used to
deceive the expert eyes of midwives and old matrons. See note to vol. iii. p. 280.

30 Supplemental Nights.

showed her this proof of her pucelage, and she rejoiced thereat and
her father rejoiced also. After this the Sultan ruled for a while of
time, but she was ever in deep thought concerning what device
could be devised in order to obtain tidings of her father and her
cousin and what had wrought with them the changes of times and
tides. So she bade edify a magnificent Hammam and by its side
a coffee house, 1 both nearhand to the palace, and forthwith she
summoned architects and masons and plasterers and painters, and
when all came between her hands she said to them, " Do ye take
a long look at my semblance and mark well my features for I desire
that you make me a carven image 2 which shall resemble me in all
points, and that you fashion it according to my form and figure,
and you adorn it aright and render it to represent my very self in
all proportions, and then bring it to me." They obeyed her order
and brought her a statue which was herself to a nail, so she looked
upon it and was pleased therewith. Then she ordered them set the
image over the Hammam-door, so they placed it there, and after
she issued a firman and caused it to be cried through the city that
whoso should enter that Bath to bathe and drink coffee, should do
so free and gratis and for naught. When this was done the tongues
of the folk were loosed with benison, and they fell to praying for
the Sultan and the endurance of his glory, and the permanence of
his governance till such time as the bruit was spread abroad by the
caravans and travellers, and the folk of all regions had heard of the
Hammam and the coffee-house. Meanwhile the Sultan had sum-
moned two eunuchs and ordered them and repeatedly enjoined them
that whoso might approach the statue and consider it straitly him
should they seize and bring before the presence. Accordingly, the
slaves fared forth and took their seats before the doors of the

1 Scott (p. 254) makes his heroine "erect a most magnificent caravanserai, furnished
with baths hot and cold, and every convenience for the weary traveller." Compare this
device with the public and royal banquet (p. 212) contrived by the slave-girl sultaness,
the charming Zumurrud or Smaragdine in the tale of Ali Shar, vol. iv. 187.

2 In text *' Shakhs," see vol. iii. 26 ; viii. 159.

History of the Lovers of Syria. 3 1

baths. After a while of time the father of the damsel who
had become Sultan wandered forth to seek her, 1 and arrived at
that city, where he heard that whoso entered the Hammam
to bathe and afterwards drank cofiee did this without cost;
so he said in his mind, " Let me go thither and enjoy myself."
Then he repaired to the building and designed to enter, when
behold, he looked at the statue over the gateway, and he stood
still and considered it with the tears flowing adown his cheeks, and
he cried, " Indeed this figure be like her ! " But when the eunuchs
saw him they seized him and carried him away until they had led
him to the Sultan his daughter, who, seeing him, recognised him
forthright, and bade set apart for him an apartment and appointed
to him rations for the time being. The next that appeared was
the son of her uncle, who also had wandered as far as that city
seeking his cousin, and he also having heard the folk speaking
anent a free entrance to the Baths, said in himself, " Do thou get
thee like others to that Hammam and solace thyself." But when
he arrived there he also cast a look at that image and stood before
it and wept for an hour or so as he devoured it with his eyes, when
the eunuchry beholding him seized and carried him off to the Sultan,
who knew him at first sight. So she bade prepare a place for him
and appointed to him rations for the time being. Then also came
the Ra'is of the ship, who had reached that city seeking his lost
vessel, and when the fame of the free Hammam came to his ears,
he said in his mind, " Go thou to the Baths and solace thyself. "
And when he arrived there and looked upon the statue and fixed
his glance upon it he cried out, " Wallahi ! 'tis her very self."
Hereupon the eunuchry seized him and carried him to the Sultan
who seeing him recognized him and placed him in a place apart
for a while of time. Anon the King and the Wazir, who were

' This assemblage of the dramatis person* at the end of the scene, highly artistic and
equally improbable, reminds us of the ending of King Omar bin al-Nu'uman (vol. iii. 112).

32 Supplemental Nights.

responsible for the Forty Virgins came to that city. And Shah-
razad was surprised by the dawn of day, and fell silent, and ceased
to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How
sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delec-
table ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I
would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to
survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

Jtbe f^imfcrft anto Sbebentfc

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ? *' She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating that the King accom-
panied by the Wazir came to that city seeking the lost Forty
Virgins and when the twain had settled there and were stablisht
at ease their souls longed for the Baths and they said each to
other, " Hie we to the Hammam that we may wash away the dirt
which be the result of travel." So they repaired to the place and
as they entered the gateway they looked up and fixed their eyes
upon the statue ; and, as they continued to gaze thereupon, the
eunuchs who sighted them seized them and carried them off to
the Sultan. 1 When they stood between her hands and they
beheld the Forty Mamelukes who were also before her, the Wazir's
glance happened to fall upon his daughter who was on similar wise
in slave's habit, and he looked at her with the tears flowing adown
his cheeks and he said in his mind. " Walldhi ! Verily this Mame-
luke is like my child as like can be." Hereupon the Sultan con-

1 The King and the Minister could not have recognised the portrait as neither had
seen the original.

History of the Lovers of Syria. 33

sidcred the twain 1 and asked them of their case 2 and they answered,
" We be Such-and-such and we are wandering about to seek our
daughter and her nine-and-thirty maidens." Hereupon she
assigned to them also lodgings and rations for the present Lastly
appeared the Pirate which had been Shaykh and comrade of the
Forty Thieves also seeking that city, and albeit he was aweary and
perplext yet he ceased not to wander that he might come upon
the damsel who had slain his associates and who had, shaved his
beard and had torn out his eye teeth. He also when he heard of
the Hammam without charge and the free cofiee-house said in
himself, " Hie thee to that place ! " and as he was entering the
gateway he beheld the image and stood still and fell to speaking
fulsome speech and crying aloud and saying, "By Allah, this
statue is likest to her in stature and size and, by the Almighty, if
I can only lay my hand upon her and seize her I will slaughter
her even as one cutteth a mutton's throat. Ah ! Ah ! an I could
but catch hold of her." As he spake these words the eunuchry
heard him ; so they* seized him and dragged him along and
carried him before the Sultan who no sooner saw him and knew
him than she ordered him to jail. And they imprisoned him for
he had not come to that city save for the shortening of his days
and the lavishing of his life-blood and he knew not what was
predestined to hyu and in very sooth he deserved all that befel
him. Hereupon the damsel bade bring before her, her father and
her cousin and the Ra'is and the King and the Wazir and the
Pirate (while she still bore herself as one who administered the
Sultanate), and when it became night time all began to converse
one with other and presently quoth she to them, " O folk, let each
and every who hath a tale solace us with telling it." Hcreat
quoth one and all of them, " We wist not a recital nor can we

1 In text " Ishtalaka"=he surmised, discovered (a secret).

8 Tn the Arab. " she knew them," but the careless story-teller forgets the first part of
his own story.

VOL. V C

34 Supplemental Nights.

recount one;" and she rejoined, "I will relate unto you an
adventure." They cried, " O King of the Age, pardon us ! for
how shalt thou rehearse us an history and we sit listening
thereto ? >n and she replied, " Forasmuch as you have no say to
say, I will speak in your stead that we may shorten this our night."
Then she continued, " There was a merchant man and a wealthy
with a brother which was needy, and the richard had a daughter
while the pauper had a son. But when the poor man died he left
only the boy who sought to marry the girl his cousin : his paternal
uncle, however, refused him maugre that she loved him and she
was beloved of him. Presently there came a party of substantial
merchants who demanded her in wedlock and obtained her and
agreed upon the conditions ; when her sire was minded to marry
her to their man. This was hard upon the damsel and sore
grievous to her so she said : By Allah, I will mate with none
save with my uncle's son. Then she came to him at midnight
leading a she-mule and an ass and bringing somewhat of her
father's moneys and she knocked at the youth's door and he came
out to her and both went forth, he and she, in the outer darkness
of that murky night and the Veiler veiled her way." Now when
the father .and the cousin heard this adventure they threw them-
selves on her neck, 2 and rejoiced in her until the turn came for
her recounting the tale of the merchant-captain and he also
approved her and was solaced by her words. Then, as she related
the history concerning the King and the Wazir, they said, " By
Allah, this indeed is a sweet story and full of light and leading

1 Story-telling being servile work.

2 [In the MS. "istanatii la"-ha." The translation in the text presupposes the reading
"istanattu" as the loth form of "natt"=he jumped, he leaped. I am inclined to
take it for the 8th form of "sanat," which according to Dozy stands in its 2nd form
" sannat " for " sannat," a transposition of the classical " nassat " =he listened to. The
same word with the same meaning of "listening attentively," recurs in the next
line in the singular, applying to the captain and the following pronoun "la-ha" " refers
in both passages to " Hikdyah," tale, not to the lady-sultan who reveals herself only
later, when she has concluded her narrative. ST.]

History of the Lovers of Syria. 3 5

and our lord the Sultan deserveth for this recital whatso he may
require." But when she came to the Pirate he cried, " Wallahi,

our lord the Sultan, this adventure is a grievous, and Allah
upon thee, tell us some other tale;" whereat all the hearers
rejoined, " By Allah, in very sooth the recital is a pleasing." She
continued to acquaint them with the adventure of the Bird which
invested her with the monarchy and she ended with relating the
matter of the Hammam, at all whereof the audience wondered
and said, ** By Allah, this is a delectable matter and a dainty ; "
but the Pirate cried aloud, " Such story pleaseth me not in any
way for 'tis heavy upon my heart ! " -- And Shahrazad was sur-
prised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that

1 would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

Jptbe l^unlnreU antf j^intf)

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : - With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating that the Pirate cried
out, " This tale is heavy upon my heart ! " Presently the damsel
resumed her speech and said : Wallahi ! it my mother and my
father say sooth this be my sire and that be my cousin and here
standeth the King and there the Wazir and yonder are the Ra'is
and the Pirate, the comrade of the Forty Thieves whose only will
and wish was to dishonour us maidens all. Then she resumed,
addressing the King and his Minister, " These forty Mamelukes

36 Supplemental Nights.

whom you see standing between your hands are the virgin girls
belonging to you." After which she presented the twain with
sumptuous gifts and they took their maidens and with them went
their ways. Next she restored to the Ra'is his ship and freighted
it with her good and he set forth in it on his return voyage. But
as regards the Pirate she commanded her attendants to kindle for
him a furious fire and they lit it till it roared and the sparks flew
high in air, after which they pinioned him and cast him into the
flames, where his flesh was melted before his bones. 1 But as con-
cerned her cousin she caused the marriage tie to be tied between
him and the Wazir's daughter and he paid her his first visit on
that same night and then she ordered her father to knit the
wedding knot with the youth on the next night and when this was
done forthwith he went in unto her. After this she committed to
him the Sultanate and he became a Sovran and Sultan in her
stead, and she bade fetch her mother to that city where her cousin
governed and where her father-in-law the Wazir was chief
Councillor of the realm. On this wise it endured for the length of
their lives, and fair to them were the term and the tide and the
age and the time, and they led of lives the joy fullest and a live-
lihood of the perfectest until they were consumed by the world
and died out generation of the generation. 2

1 Here the converse is probably meant, as we have before seen.

2 Scott ends (p. 258) "Years of unusual happiness passed over the heads of the
fortunate adventurers of this history, until death, the destroyer of all things, conducted
them to a grave which must one day be the resting-place for ages of us all, till the
receiving (?) angel shall sound his trumpet."

HISTORY OF AL-HAJJAJ BIN YUSUF AND
THE YOUNG SAYYID.

'HISTORY OF AL-HAJJAJ BIN YUSUF AND THE
YOUNG SAYYID. 1

IT is related (but Allah is All-knowing) that there was in times of
yore a man named 'Abdullah al-Karkhf and he was wont to tell
the following tale : One day I was present in the assembly of
Al-Hajjdj the son of Yiisuf the Thakaff 2 what time he was

1 Scott (vi. 259-267), <4 Story of Hyjauje, the tyrannical Governor of Coufeh, and
the Young Syed." For the difference between the " Sayyid" (descendant of Hasan)
and the "Sharff," derived from Husayn, see vol. v. 259. Being of the Holy House
the youth can truly deny that he belongs to any place or race, as will be seen in the
sequel.

* This masterful administrator of the Caliphate under the early Ommiades is noticed
in vols. iv. 3, and vii. 97. The succession to the Prophet began as mostly happens in
the proceedings of elective governments, republics, and so forth with the choice of a
nobody, " Abubakr the Veridical," a Meccan merchant, whose chief claim was the
glamour of the Apostolate. A more notable personage, and seen under the same
artificial light, was " 'Omar the Justiciary," also a trader of Meccah, who was murdered
for an act of injustice. In Osman nepotism and corruption so prevailed, while distance
began to dim the Apostolic glories, that the blood-thirsty turbulence of the Arab was
aroused and caused the death of the third Caliph by what we should call in modern
phrase " lynching." Ali succeeded, if indeed we can say that he succeeded at all, to
an already divided empire. He was the only one of the four who could be described
as a man of genius, and therefore he had a host of enemies : he was a poet, a sage,
a moralist and even a grammarian ; brave as a lion, strong as a bull, a successful
and experienced captain, yet a complete failure as a King. A mere child in
mundane matters, he ever acted in a worldly sense as he should have avoided
acting, and hence, after a short and disastrous reign, he also was killed. His two sons,
Hasan and Husayn, inherited all the defects and few of the merits of their sire : Hasan
was a pauvrc (liable, whose chief characteristic was addiction to marriage, and by
poetical justice one of his wives murdered him. Husayn was of stronger mould, but he
fought against the impossible ; for his rival was Mu'dwiyah, the Cavour of the Age, the
longest-headed man in Arabia, and against Yezid, who, like Italy of the present day,
flourished and prospered by the artful game which the far-seeing politician, his father,
had bequeathed to his house the Ommiade. The fourth of this dynasty, 'Abd al- Malik
bin Marwdn, " the Father of Flies," and his successor, Al-Walid, were happy in being
served thoroughly and unscrupulously by Al-Hajjdj, the ablest of lieutenants, whose
speciality it was to take in hand a revolted province, such as Al-Hijaz, Al-Irdk, or
Khorasdn, and to slaughter it into submission ; besides deaths in battle he is computed
to have slain 120,000 men. He was an unflinching preacher of the Divine Right of
Kings and would observe that the Lord says, " Obey Allah an ye can " (conditional),
but as regards royal government " Hearing and obeying " (absolute) ; ergo t all opposition

4O Supplemental Nights.

Governor of Krifah, and the folk around him were seated and for
awe of him prostrated and these were the Emirs and Wazirs and
the Nabobs and the Chamberlains and the Lords of the Land and
the Headmen in command and amongst whom he showed like a
rending lion. And behold, there came to him a man young in
years and ragged of raiment and of case debased and there was
none of blossom upon his cheeks and the World had changed his
cuticle and Need had altered his complexion. Presently he
salam'd and deprecated and was eloquent in his salutation to the
Governor who returned his greeting and looking at him asked,
" Who art thou, O young man, and what hast thou to say and
what is thine excuse for pushing into the assembly of the Kings
even as if, O youth, thou hadst been an invited guest ? * So say

was to be cut down and uprooted. However, despite his most brilliant qualities, his
learning, his high and knightly sense of honour, his insight and his foresight (e.g. in
building Wdsit) , he won an immortality of infamy : he was hated by his contemporaries,
he is the subject of silly tale and offensive legend (e.g., that he was born without anus,
which required opening with instruments, and he was suckled by Satan's orders on
blood), and he is still execrated as the tyrant, per cxcellentiam, and the oppressor of the
Holy Family the children and grand -children of the Apostle.

The traditional hatred of Al-Hajjaj was envenomed by the accession of the Abbasides,
and this dynasty, the better to distinguish itself from the Ommiades, affected love for
the Holy Family, especially Ali and his descendants, and a fanatical hatred against
their oppressors. The following table from Ibn Khaldun (Introduct. xxii.) shows that
the Caliphs were cousins, which may account for their venomous family feud.

'Abd Manaf.
I

Hashim.

Abd al-Muttalib.
1

Abd Shams.
Umayyah.

Al-Abbas,
Abdullah,

Mohammed

Abdullah. Abu Talib.
Mohammed.

Fatimah mairied Ali.

Harb. Abu '1-Aus.
Abu Sufyan. Al-Hakinu

Mu'awiyah. Marwan.
(1st Ommiade.)

. Al- Hasan. Al-Husayn.

Al-Saffdh.
(ist Abbaside.)

1 [The word here translated " invited guest " reads in the MS. *'Mad'ur." In this
form it is no dictionary word, but under the root "D'r" I find in the Muhit:

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf and the Young Sayyid. 41

me, who art thou and whose son art thou ? " " I am the son of my
mother and my father," answered he, and Al-Hajjaj continued,
"In what fashion hast thou come hither?" "In my clothes."
(i) "Whence hast thou come?" "From behind me."
(<) "Whither art thou intending ? " " Before me." (<) "On
what hast thou come ? " " On the ground." ( < ) " Whence art
thou, O young man ?" " I am from the city Misr." (^ ) "Art
thou from Cairo ? " Why askest thou me, O Hajjaj ?"
Whereupon the Lieutenant of Kufah replied, " Verily her ground
is gold and her Nile is rare to behold and her women are a toy
for the conqueror to enjoy, and her men are nor burghers nor
Badawis." Quoth the youth, " I am not of them," and quoth
Al-Hajjaj, " Then whence art thou, O young man ? " " I am
from the city of Syria." (4) " Then art thou from the stubbornest
of places and of the feeblest of races." 2 " Wherefore, O Hajjaj ? "
" For that it is a mixed breed I ween, nor Jew nor Nazarene."
" I am not of them." (4) Then whence art thou, O young
man? " " I am of Khordsdn of 'Ajamf-land." (<) "Thou art
therefore from a place the fulsomest and of faith the infirmest."
"Wherefore, O Hajjaj ?" fe) "Because flocks and herds are
their chums and they are Ajams of the Ajams from whom liberal
deed never comes, and their morals and manners none to praise
presumes and their speech is gross and weighty, and stingy are
their rich and wealthy." " I am not of them." " Then whence
art thou, O young man ? " "I am from Mosul." (i) Then art

" wa 'l-'dmatu takulu fuldnun da'irun ya'nl ghalf/un jafin " = the common people My
such a one is " da'ir," i.e., rude, churlish. " Mad'ur " may be a synonym and rendered
accordingly : as though thou wert a boor or clown. ST.]

1 A neat specimen of the figure anachronism. Al-Hajjaj died in A.H . 95 ( = A.D. 714),
and Cairo was built in A.H. 358 (= A.D. 968).

3 Perfectly true even in the present day. The city was famed for intelligence and
sanguinary fanaticism ; and no stranger in disguise could pass through it without detection
This ended with the massacre of 1840, which brought a new era into the Moslem East.
The men are, as a rule, fine-looking, but they seem to be all show : we bad a corps of
them in the old Bish-Buzuks, who, after a month or two in camp, seemed to have
passed suddenly from youth into old age.

42 Supplemental Nights.

thou from the foulest and filthiest of a Catamite race, whose youth
is a scapegrace and whose old age hath wits as the wits of an
ass." " I am not of them." () Then whence art thou, O young
man ? " "I am from the land of Al-Yaman." (<) " Then art
thou from a clime other than delectable. And why so, O
Hajjaj ? " (<?) " For that their noblest make womanly use of
Murd 1 or beardless boys and the meanest of them tan hides
and the lowest amongst them train baboons to dance, and others
are weavers of Burd or woollen plaids." 2 " I am not of them."
(<j) Then whence art thou, O young man ? " " I am from Meccah."
(<r) Then art thou from a mine of captious carping and ignorance
and lack of wits and of sleep over-abundant, whereto Allah com-
missioned a noble Prophet, and him they belied and they rejected :
so he went forth unto a folk which loved him and honoured him
and made him a conqueror despite the nose of the Meccan churls."
f( I am not of them." (<) Then whence art thou, O young
man ? for verily thou hast been abundant of prate and my heart
longeth to cut off thy pate." 3 Hereupon quoth the youth, " An
I knew thou couldst slay me I had not worshipped any god save
thyself," and quoth Al-Hajjaj, " Woe to thee, and who shall stay
me from slaying thee ? " " To thyself be the woe with measure
enow," cried the youth ; u He shall hinder thee from killing me
who administereth between a man and his heart, 4 and who falseth

1 In text " Yasta'amiluna al-Mrd," which may have a number of meanings, e.g.
"work frowardness" (Maradd), or " work the fruit of the tree Arak " (Marad = wild
capparis) and so forth. I have chosen the word mainly because "Murd" rhymes to
"Burd." The people of Al-Yaman are still deep in the Sotadic Zone and practice;
this they owe partly to a long colonization of the " 'Ajam," or Persians. See my
Terminal Essay, " Pederasty," p. 205.

2 * Burd," plur. of " Burdah " = mantle or woollen plaid of striped stuff: vol. vii. 95.
They are still woven in Arabia, but they are mostly white.

3 So in Tabari (vol. iii. 127) Al-Hajjaj sees a man of haughty mien (Abd al- Rahman
bin Abdullah), and exclaims, " Regarde comme il est orgueilleux : par Dieu, f aurais
enme de lui couper la t$te ! "

4 [The phrase is Koranic (viii. 24) : " Wa 'lamu anna 'lla"ha yahvito bayna '1-mari
wa kalbi-hi," which Rodwell translates: Know that God cometh in between man and
his own heart. ST.)

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusufandtke Young Sayyid. 43

not his promise." " 'Tis He," rejoined Al-Hajjaj, "who directeth
me to thy death ;" but the Youth retorted, * Allah forfend that
He appoint thee to my slaughter ; nay rather art thou com-
missioned by thy Devil, and I take refuge with the Lord from
Satan the stoned." (<) Whence then art thou, O young man ? "
41 1 am from Yathrib." 1 (<) And what be Yathrib ?" * It is
Tayyibah." (<) And what be Tayyibah ? " " Al-Madinah, the
Luminate, the mine of inspiration and explanation and prohibition
and licitation, 2 and I am the seed of the Barm Ghdlib 3 and the
purest scion of the Imam 'AH ibn Abf TaUb (Allah honour his
countenance and accept of him!), and all degree and descent 4
must fail save my descent and degree which shall never be cut
off until the Day of Doom/' Hereupon Al-Hajjaj raged with
exceeding rage and ordered the Youth to execution ; whereat rose
up against him the Lords of the realm and the headmen of the
reign and sued him by way of intercession and stretched out to
him their necks, saying, " Here are our heads before his head
and our lives before his life. By Allah, ho thou the Emir, there
is naught but that thou accept our impetration in the matter of
this Youth, for he is on no wise deserving of death." Quoth

1 " Yathrib," the classical name 'larptWa, one of the multifarious titles of what is called
in full "Madfnat al-Nabi," City of the Prophet, and vulgarly, Al-Madinah, the City.
' Tayyibah," = the good, sweet, or lawful : " Al.Munawwarah"= the enlightened, i>.
by the light of The Faith and the column of (odylic) flame supposed to be based upon the
Prophet's tomb. For more, see my Pilgrimage, ii. 162. I may note how ridiculously the
story-teller displays ignorance in Al-Hajjaj, who knew the Moslem's Holy Land by heart.

* In text " Taawil," = the commentary or explanation of Moslem Holy Writ:
41 Tanzil "= coming down, revelation of the Koran: "Tahrfm " = rendering any
action " haram " or unlawful, and " Tahlil " = the converse, making word or deed
canonically legal. Those are well-known theological terms.

* The Banu Gha"lib, whose eponymous forefather was Ghilib, son of Fihr, the well-
known ancestor of Mohammed.

4 In text " Hasab wa Nasab." It is told of Al-Mu'izz. bi Dmi'llah, first Fatimite
Caliph raised to the throne of Egypt, that be came forward to the elective assembly
and drew his sword halfway out of the scabbard and exclaimed, " Hdza* Natabi" (this
is my genealogy) ; and then cast handfuls of gold amongst the crowd, crying, " Haza
Hasabf" (such is my title to reign.) This is as good as the traditional saying of
Napoleon the Great at his first assuming the iron crown" God gave her to me : woe
for whoso toucheih her' (the crown).

44 Supplemental Nights.

the Governor, " Weary not yourselves for needs must I slay nim ;
and even were an Angel from Heaven to cry out * Kill him not,'
I would never hearken to his cry." Quoth the youth, " Thou
shalt be baffled * O Hajjaj ! Who art thou that an Angel from
Heaven should cry out to thee ' Kill him not/ for thou art of the
vilest and meanest of mankind nor hast thou power to find a path
to my death." Cried Al-Hajjaj, " By Allah, I will not slay thee
except upon a plea I will plead against thee, and convict thee by
thy very words." " What is that, O Hajjaj ? " asked the Youth, and
answered Hajjaj, " I will now question thee, and out of thine own
mouth will I convict thee and strike off thy head. 2 Now say me,
young man : Whereby doth the slave draw near to Allah
Almighty?" " By five things, prayer (i), and fasting (2), and
alms (3), and pilgrimage (4), and Holy War upon the path of
Almighty Allah (5)." "But I draw near to the Lord with the
blood of the men who declare that Hasan and Husayn were the
sons and successors of the Apostle of Allah. 3 Furthermore, O
young man, how can they be born of the Apostle of Almighty
Allah when he sayeth, ' Never was Mohammed the father of any
man amongst you, but he was the Apostle of Allah and the Seal
of the Prophets.' " 4 " Hear thou, O Hajjaj, my answer with
another Koranic verse, 5 ' What the Apostle hath given you, take :

1 [In MS. "takhsa-u," a curious word of venerable yet green old age, used in the
active form with both transitive and intransitive meaning : to drive away (a dog, etc.),
and to be driven away. In the Koran (xxiii. 1 10) we find the imper. " ikhsati " = be ye
driven away, and in two other places (ii. 61, vii. 166), the nomen agentis "khasi" =
" scouted" occurs, as applied to the apes into which the Sabbath-breaking Jews were
transformed. In the popular language of the present day it has become equivalent
with " khdba," to be disappointed, and may here be translated: thou wilt fail
ignbminiously. ST.]

8 Scott introduces (p. 262), "the tyrant, struck with his magnanimity, became calm,
and commanding the executioner to release the youth, said, For the present I forbear,
and will not kill thee unless thy answers to my further questions shall deserve it They
then entered on the following dialogue : Hyjauwje hoping to entrap him in discourse.

3 See the dialogue on this subject between Al-Hajjaj and Yahyd ibn Yamar in Ibn
Khallikan, iv. 60.

4 Surah xxxiii. (The Confederates), v. 40, which ends, " And Allah knoweth all things."
8 Surah lix. (The Emigration), v. 40 : the full quotation would be, " The spoil,

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf and the Young Sayyid. 45

and what he hath refused you, refuse.' Now Allah Almighty
hath forbidden the taking of life, whose destruction is therefore
unlawful." ft) "Thou hast spoken sooth, O young man, but
inform me of what is incumbent on thee every day and every
night ? " The five canonical prayers." ft) " And for every
year?" The fast of the month Ramazan." ft) "And for the
whole of thy life ? " " One pilgrimage to the Holy House of
Allah." (^) " Sooth thou hast said, O young man ; now do thou

inform me" And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of

day, and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And
where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the
coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it
was the next night and that was

fje Jftbe f^un&rcb anlr BTfoelftJ Nfg&t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Al-Hajjaj said,
" Now do thou inform me who is the most excellent of the Arabs
and the noblest and of blood the purest ? " " The Khoraysh."
ft) " And wherefore so ? " " For that the Prophets from them pro-
ceeded." ft) " And what tribe is the knightliest of the Arabs and

taken from the townsfolk and assigned by Allah to His Apostle, belongeth to Allah
and to the Apostle and to his kindred and to the orphan and to the poor and to the
wayfarer, that naught thereof may circulate among such only of you as be rich. What
the Apostle hath given you, take. What he hath refused you, refuse. And fear ye Allah,
for Allah is sure in punishing."

46 Supplemental Nights.

the bravest and the firmest in fight ? " " The Banu Hashim." J
Q) " And wherefore so ? " " For that my grandsire the Imam AH
ibn Abf Talib is of them." (<?) " And who is the most generous of
the Arabs and most steadfast in the guest-rite?" "The Banu
Tayy." (<) "And wherefore so?" "For that Hatim of Tayy 2
was one thereof." (<?) " And who is the vilest of the Arabs and
the meanest and the most miserly, in whom weal is smallest and
ill is greatest?" "The Banu Thakif." 3 (<) "And wherefore
so ? " " Because thou, O Hajjaj, art of them." Thereupon the
Lieutenant of Kufah raged with exceeding rage and ordered the
slaughter of the youth ; but the Grandees of the State rose up and
prayed him for mercy, when he accepted their intercession and
pardoned the offender. After which he said to him, " O young
man, concerning the kid 4 that is in the firmament, tell me be it
male or female ? " for he was minded on this wise to cut short his
words. The young Sayyid replied, " O Hajjaj, draw me aside its
tail, so I may inform thee thereanent." 5 (<) "O young man, say

1 The House of Hashim, great grandfather to the Prophet.

2 Ibn Khallikan (vol. i. 354) warns us that "Al-Tai" means belonging to the Tai
which is a famous tribe. This relative adjective is of irregular formation ; analogy would
require it to be Ta"ii ; but the formation of relative adjectives admits some variations ;
thus from dahr (time] is derived duhrl (temfor&l], and from sahl (a plain}> suhll (plain,
level). The author might also have told us that there is always a reason for such
irregularities ; thus " Dahrt" (from Dahr) would mean a Mundanist, one who believes
in this world and not in a next or another.

3 The " Banu Thakif" was a noble tribe sprung from lyad (Ibn Khallikan i.~358-
363) ; but the ignorant and fanatic scribe uses every means, fair and foul, to defame Al-
Hajjaj. It was a great race and a well known, living about Taif in the Highlands East
of Meccah, where they exist to the present day. Mr. Doughty (loc. cit. ii. 174) men-
tions a kindred of the Juhaynah Badawin called El-Thegif (Thakif) of whom the
M'edinites say * Allah ya'alan Thegif Kuddam takuf (God damn the Thegif ere thou
stand still). They are called " Yamid" (Jews), probably meaning pre-Islamitic Arabs,
and are despised accordingly.

4 In Arab. " Jady" = the Zodiacal sign Capricorn.

5 We find a similar facetia in Mullah Jami (Garden viii.). When a sheep leapt out of
the stream, her tail happened to be raised, and a woolcarder said laughing : "I have
seen thy parts genital." She turned her head and replied, " O miserable, for many a
year I have seen thee mother-naked yet never laughed I." This alludes to the practice
of such artisans who on account of the heat in their workshops and the fibre adhering
to their clothes work in naturalibus. See p. 178, the Beharistdn (Abode of Spring)
Printed by the Kamashastra Society for Private Subscribers only. Benares, 1887.

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf and the Young Sayyid. 47

me on what pasture best grow the horns of the camel ? " " From
leaves of stone." (<) " O lack wit ! do stones bear leaves." " O
swollen of lips and little of wits and wisdom, say me do camels
have horns ? " (<>) " Haply thou art a lover fond, O youth ? "
"Yes! in love drowned." (<) "And whom lovest thou?" "I
love my Lord, of whom I hope that he will turn my annoy into
joy, and who can save me this day from thee, O Hajjaj." (<) " And
dost thou know the Lord ? " " Yes, I do." (d " And whereby hast
thou known Him ? " " By the Book of Him which descended upon
His Prophet- Apostle." Q) "And knowest thou the Koran by
heart?" "Doth the Koran fly from me that I should learn
it by rote?" (<) "Hast thou confirmed knowledge thereof?"
" Verily Allah sent down a book confirmed." l (<) " Hast thou
perused and mastered that which is therein?" "I have." (<)
" Then, O young man, if thou have read and learned what it con-
talneth, tell me which verset is the sublimest (i) and which verset
is the most imperious (2) and which verset is hopefullest (3) and
which verset is fearfullest (4) and which verset is believed by the
Jew and the Nazarene (5) and in which verset Allah speaketh
purely of Himself (6) and in which verset be the Angels mentioned
(7) and which verset alludeth to the Prophets (8) and in which verset
be mentioned the People of Paradise (9) and which verset speaketh
of the Folk of the Fire (10) and which verset containeth tenfold
signs (n) and which verset (12) speaketh of Iblfs (whom Allah
accurse !)." Then quoth the youth, " Listen to my answering, O
Hajjaj, with the aid of the Beneficent King. Now the sublimest

1 This passage is not Koranic, and, according to Prof. Houdas, the word "Muhka-
is never found in the Holy Volume. [The passage is not a literal quotation, but
it evidently alludes to Koran iii. 5 : " Huwa'llazi anzala 'alayka '1-khaba minhu aydtun
muhkamdtun " = He it is who sent down to thee the book, some of whose signs (or
versets) are confirmed. The singular " muhkamatun " is applied (xlvii.) to ' Suratun,"
a chapter, and in both places the meaning of " confirmed " is " not abrogated by later
revelations." Hence in the sequel of my first quotation these portions are called " the
mother (i .*. ground- work) of the book," and the learned Sayyid is not far from the mark
alter all. ST.]

48 Supplemental Nights.

verset in the Book of Allah Almighty is the Throne verse ; l and
the most imperious is the word of Almighty Allah, * Verily Allah
ordereth justice and well-doing and bestowal of gifts upon kith
and kin ' ; 2 and the justest is the word of the Almighty, * Whoso
shall have wrought a mithkal (nay an atom) of good works shall
see it again, and whoso shall have wrought a mithkal (nay an atom)
of ill shall again see it * ; 8 and the fullest of fear is that spoken by
the Almighty, ( Doth not every man of them desire that he enter
into the Paradise hight Al-Na'im ? M and the fullest of hope is the
word of the Almighty, * Say Me, O My worshippers who have
sinned against your own souls, do not despair of Allah's ruth ' ; 5
and the verset which containeth ten signs is the word of the Lord
which saith 6 * Verily in the Creation of the Heavens and the Eartn
and in the shifts of Night and Day and in the ships which pass
through the sea with what is useful to mankind ; and in the rain

1 Surah ii. (The Cow) v. 56, the verse beginning, " Allah ! there be no God but He ;
. . . His Throne overreacheth the Heavens and the Earth," etc.

8 Surah Ixxiii. (The Bee) v. 92; ending with, "And he forbiddeth frowardness and
wrong-doing and oppression ; and He warneth you that haply may ye be warned.'*

8 Surah (Meccah) xcix. vv. 7 and 8 : in text "'MithkalaZarratm," which Mr. Rodwell
(p. 28) englishes " an atom's weight of good," and adds in a foot-note, " Lit. a single
ant." Prof. Houdas would render it, Quiconque aura fait la valeur (fun mitskal de
millet en fait de bien ; but I hardly think that "Zarrah " can mean " Durrah "= millet.
[" Mithkdl" in this context is explained by the commentators by "Wazn"= weight,
this being the original meaning of the word which is a nomen instrumenti of the form
"Mifal," denoting "that by which the gravity of bodies is ascertained." Later on
it became the well-known technical term for a particular weight. " Zarrah," according
to some glossarists, is the noun of unity of " Zarr," the young ones of the ant, an antlet,
which is said to weigh the twelfth part of a " Kitmir"= pedicle of the date-fiuit, or the
hundredth part of a grain of barley, or to have no weight at all. Hence "Mukhkh
al-Zarr," the brains of the antlet, means a thing that does not exist or is impossible to be
found. According to others "Zarrah" is a particle of al-Haba", i.e. of the motes that
are seen dancing in the sunlight, called Sonnenstaubchen " in German, and "atomo
solare"in Italian. Koran xxi. 48 and xxxi. 15 we find the expression "Mithksila
Habbatin min Khardalin " = of the weight of a mustard-seed, used in a similar sense
with the present quotation. ST.]

4 Surah Ixx. 38, Mr. Rodwell (p. 60) translates, " Is it that every man of them would
fain enter the Garden of Delights?"

8 Surah xxxix. 54 : they sinned by becoming apostates from Al-Islam. The verset
ends, ' Verily all sins doth Allah forgive : aye, Gracious, and Merciful is He."

6 Surah ii. 159; the quotation in the MS. is cut short-

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf and tJte Young Sayyid. 49

which Allah sendeth down from Heaven, thereby giving to the
earth life after death, and by scattering thereover all the moving
creatures, and in the change of the winds, and in the clouds which
are made to do service between the Heavens and the Earth are
signs for those who understand ' ; and the verset wherein believe
both Jews and Nazarenes is the word of Almighty Allah, 1 ' The
Jews say the Nazarenes are on naught, and the Christians say the
Jews are on naught, and both speak the sooth for they are on
naught' And the verset wherein Allah Almighty speaketh purely
of Himself is that word of Almighty Allah, 2 'And I created not
Jinn-kind and mankind save to the end that they adore Me ' ; and
the verset which was spoken of the Angels is the word of Almighty
Allah which saith, 5 ' Laud to Thee ! we have no knowledge save
what Thou hast given us to know, and verily Thou art the Know-
ing, the Wise.' And the verset which speaketh of the Prophets is
the word of Almighty Allah that saith 4 'And We have already
sent Apostles before thee : of some We have told thee, and of
others we have told thee naught : yet no Apostle had the power to
come with a sign unless by the leave of Allah. But when Allah's
behest cometh, everything shall be decided with truth ; and then
perish they who entreated it as a vain thing ' ; and the verset which
speaketh of the Folk of the Fire is the word of Almighty Allah
which saith 5 ' O our Lord ! Bring us forth from her (the Fire),
and, if we return (to our sins), we shall indeed be of the evil-
doers ' ; and the verset that speaketh of the People of Paradise is
the word of Almighty Allah, 6 'And they shall say : Laud to the

1 Surah ii. 107 ; the end of the verse is, " Yet both are readers of the Book. So
with like words say they (the pagan Arabs) who have no knowledge."

* Surah li. (The Scattering), v. $6.

* Surah ii. v. 30.

* Surah xl. (The Believer), v. 78. In the text it is fragmentary. I do not see why
Mr. Rod well founds upon this verset a charge against the Prophet of ignorance con-
cerning Jewish history : Mohammed seems to have followed the Talmud and tiadition
rather than the Holy Writ of the Hebrews.

* Surah (The Believers) Ixiv. 108.

* Surah xxxv. (The Creator or The Angels), v. 31 : the sentence concludes in v. 31,

VOL. V. D

5O Supplemental Nights.

Lord who abated to us grief, and verily our lord is Gracious,
Grateful ' ; and the verset which speaketh of Iblis (whom Allah
Almighty accurse !), is the word of Almighty Allah, * ' He said :
(I swear) therefore by Thy Glory, that all of them will I surely
lead astray.' Hereupon Al-Hajjaj exclaimed, " Laud to the Lord
and thanksgiving Who giveth wisdom unto whoso He please !
Never indeed saw I a youth like this youth upon whom the
Almighty hath bestowed wits and wisdom and knowledge for all
the tenderness of his age. But say me, " Who art thou, O young
man " ? Quoth the youth, " I am of the folk of these things, 2 O
Hajjaj." Resumed the Lieutenant, (<) " Inform me concerning
the son of Adam what injure th him and what profiteth him ? "
And the youth replied, " I will, O Hajjaj ; do thou and these
present who are longing for permanency (and none is permanent
save Allah Almighty !) be early the fast to break, nor be over late
supper to make ; and wear light body-clothes in summer and gar
heavy the headgear in winter, and guard the brain with what it
conserveth and the belly with what it preserveth and begin every
meal with salt for it driveth away seventy and two kinds of malady :
and whoso breaketh his fast each day with seven raisins red of hue

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell

silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night, and that was

41 Who of His bounty hath placed us in a Mansion that shall abide for ever, therein no
evil shall reach us, and therein no weariness shall touch us."

1 Surah (" Sad") lix. $4; Iblis, like Satan in the Book of Job, is engaged in dialogue
with the Almighty.* I may here note that Scott (p. 265) has partially translated these
Koranic quotations, but he has given only one reference.

a In text "And min ahli zdlika," of which the vulgar equivalent would be " Kizi"
(for " Kazdlika, Kaza ")= so (it is) !

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusufandthe Young Sayyid. $1

Jftbe ^un&rrt an* Jfourteent!)

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With love

and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the youth
continued to Al-Hajjaj : And whoso breaketh his fast daily
with seven raisins red of hue shall never find in his body aught that
irketh him ; moreover, whoso each morning eateth on the spittle '
three ripe dates all the worms in his belly shall be slain and whoso
exceedeth in diet of boucan'd meat 2 and fish shall find his strength
weakened and his powers of carnal copulation abated ; and beware
lest thou eat beef 3 by cause that 'tis a disease forsure whereas
the soured milk of cows is a remedy secure and clarified butter is
a perfect cure : withal is its hide a succour for use and urc. And
do thou take to thee, O Hajjaj, the greater Salve." 4 Cried the
Lieutenant, ". What may be that ? " and said the youth in reply,
" A bittock of hard bread eaten 5 upon the spittle, for indeed such
food consumeth the phlegm and similar humours which be at

1 fo. On an empty stomach, to "open the spittle" is = to break the fast. Sir Wm.
Gull in his evidence before a Committee of the House of Commons deposed that after
severe labour he found a bunch of raisins as efficacious a "pick-me-up" as a glass of
stimulants. The value of dried grapes to the Alpinist is well known.

Arab. " Al-Kadid" = jerked (charqui = chairecuite) meat-flesh smoked, or (mostly)
sun-dried.

I have noticed (i. 345) one of the blunders in our last unfortunate occupation of
Egypt where our soldiers died uselessly of dysenteric disease because they were rationed
with heating beef instead of digestible mutton.

Arab. " Al-Marhara al-akbar."

[In the text : Al-Kisrat al-yabisah 'ala '1-Rik fa-innaha tukhlik jami'a ma 'ala rum
al-madah min al-balgham," of which I cannot make anything but : a slice of dry bread
(kisrah = piece of bread) on the spittle (i.e. to break the fast), for it absorbs (lit. uses
up, fourth form of " khalik " = to be worn out) all that there may be of phlegm on the
mouth of the stomach. Can it be that the dish " Khushk-nan" (Pcrs. = dry-bread) is
meant, of which the village clown in one of Spitta Bey's tales, when he was treated to It

52 Supplemental Nights.

the mouth of the maw. 1 And let not blood in the hot bath for it
enfeebleth man's force, and gaze not upon the metal pots of the
Balnea because such sight breedeth dimness of vision. Also have
no connection with woman in the Hammam for its consequence is
the palsy ; nor do thou lie with her when thou art full or when
thou art empty or when thou art drunken with wine or when thou
art in wrath nor when lying on thy side, for that it occasioneth
swelling of the testicle-veins; 2 or when thou art under a fruit-
bearing tree. And avoid carnal knowledge of the old woman 3 for
that she taketh from thee and giveth not to thee. Moreover let
thy signet-ring be made of carnelian 4 because it is a guard against
poverty ; also a look at the Holy Volume every morning increaseth
thy daily bread and to gaze at flowing water whetteth the sight
and to look upon the face of children is an act of adoration. And
when thou chancest lose thy way, crave aidance of Allah from
Satan the Stoned." Hereupon quoth Al-Hajjaj, "Allah hath
been copious to thee, O young man for thou hast drowned me in
the depths of thy lore, but now inform me, Where is the seat of thy
dignified behaviour ? " " The two eyes." Q) " And where is the
seat of thy well-doing ? " " My tongue." (<) " And where is the
seat of thy intellect ? " " My brain." Q) " And where is the seat
of thy hearing ? " " The sensorium of mine ears." (<) " And
where is the seat of thy smelling ? " " The sensorium of my nose."

by Harun al-Rashid thought it must be the " Hammam," because he had heard his

grandmother say, that the Hammdm (bath) is the most delightful thing in the world ?

-ST.]

- ' The stomach has two mouths, oesophagic above (which is here alluded to) and

pyloric below.

2 Arab. " 'Irk al-Unsd " = chordae testiculorum, in Engl. simply the cord.

3 The "'Ajuz" is a woman who ceases to have her monthly period : the idea is
engrained in the Eastern mind and I cannot but believe in it seeing the old-young faces
of men who have " married their grandmothers " for money or folly, and what not.

4 Arab. "Al-'Akfk," vol. iii. 179: it is a tradition of the Prophet that the best of
bezels for a signet- ring is the carnelian, and such are still the theory and the practice of
the Moslem East.

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusufandthe Young Sayy id. 53

ft) " And where is the seat of thy taste ? " " My palate." ft) And
where is the seat of thy gladness ? " " My heart." ft) " And
where is the seat of thy sorrow ? " " My soul." Q) " And where
is the seat of thy wrath ? " " My liver." ft) " And where is the
seat of thy laughing ? " " My spleen." l ft) "And where is the
seat of thy bodily strength ?" " My two shoulders." ft) "And
where is that of thy weakness ? " " My two calves." Hereupon
Al-Hajjaj exclaimed, " Laud to the Lord and thanksgiving ; for
indeed, O young man, I see that thou knowest everything. So
tell me somewhat concerning husbandry ? " " The best of corn is
the thickest of cob and the grossest of grain and the fullest sized
of shock." 2 ft) " And what sayest thou concerning palm-trees ? "
" The most excellent is that which the greatest of gathering doth
own and whose height is low-grown and within whose meat is the
smallest stone." ft) " And what dost thou say anent the vine ? "
" The most noble is that which is stout of stem and big of
bunch." ft) " And what sayest thou concerning the Heavens ? "
" This is the furthest extent of man's sight and the dwelling-place
of the Sun and Moon and all the Stars that give light, raised on
high without columns pight and overshadowing the numbers that
stand beneath its height." ft) "And what dost thou say con-
cerning the Earth ? " It is wide dispread in length and breadth."
ft) And what dost thou say anent the rain ? " " The most
excellent is that which filleth the pits and pools and which
overfloweth into the wadys and the rivers." Hereupon quoth

4 Arab. "Tuhal:" in text Tayhil." Mr. Doughty (Arabia Descrta, i. 547)
writes the word "Tahal" and translates it " ague-cake," ijt. the throbbing enlarged
pleen, left after fevers, especially those of Al-Hijizand Khaybar.* [The form "Tayhil"
with a plural "Tawihil " for the usual ' Tihal " = spleen is quoted by Dory from the
valuable Vocabulary published by Schiaparelli, 1871, after an old MS. of the end of the
xiii. century. It has the same relation to the verb " tayhal " = he suffered from the
spleen, which "Tihal" bears to the verb "tuhil," used passively in the same sense*
The name of the disease is TuhaL" ST.]

2 In text " Kasalah" = a shock of corn, assemblage of sheaves. It may be a clerical
error for " Kasabah " = stalk, haulm, straw

54 Supplemental Nights.

Al-Hajjaj, " O young man inform me what women be the best "
And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent
and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dun-
yazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable
and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with
that I would relate to you on the coming night an the King
suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and
that was

anlr

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied : -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Al-Hajjaj said
" O young man, inform me what women be the best and the
most enjoyable/' 1 "One in winning ways excelling and in
comeliness exceeding and in speech killing : one whose brow
glanceth marvellous bright to whoso filleth his eyes with her sight
and to whom she bequeatheth sorrow and blight ; one whose
breasts are small whilst her hips are large and her cheeks are rosy
red and her eyes are deeply black and her lips are full-formed ;
one who if she look upon the heavens even the rocks will be robed
in green, and if she look upon the earth her lips 2 unpierced pearls
shall rain ; one the dews of whose mouth are the sweetest of
waters ; one who in beauty hath no peer nor is there any loveli-

1 Of course the conversation drifts into matters sexual and inter-sexual : in a similar
story, "Tawaddud," the learned slave-girl, "hangs down her head for shame and con-
fusion" (vol. v. 225); but the young Sayyid speaks out bravely as becomes a male
masculant.

2 [In the text : "Allatf lau nazarat ila 'I-samd la-a'shab (fourth form of 'ashab
with the affirmative " la 7 ') al-Safa (pi. of Safdt), wa lau nazarat ila '1-arz la amtar

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf and the Young Sayyid. $ 5

ness can with hers compare : the coolth of the eyes to great and
small ; in fine, one whose praises certain of the poets have sung
in these harmonious couplets : !

41 A fair one to idolaters if she herself should show, They'd leave their idols

and her face for only Lord would know.
If in the Eastward she appeared unto a monk, for once He'd cease from

turning to the West and to the East bend low ;
And into the briny sea one day she chanced to spit, Assuredly the salt sea's

floods straight fresh and sweet would grow."

Hereupon quoth Al-Hajjaj, " Thou hast said well and hast spoken
fair, O young man ; and now what canst thou declare concerning
a maiden of ten years told ? " Quoth the youth, " She is a joy to
behold." (<) " And a damsel of twenty years old ? " " A coolth to
eyes manifold." (<) "And a woman thirty of age ? " " One who the
hearts of enjoyers can engage." (<) u And in her fortieth year ?"
" Fat, fresh and fair doth she appear." (<) " And of the half
century ? " " The mother of men and maids in plenty." (<) " And
a crone of three score?" "Men ask of her never more." (4)
" And when three score and ten ? " " An old trot and remnant
of men." (<) " And one who reacheth four score ? "- " Unfit for
the world and for the faith forlore." (<) " And one of ninety ? "
"Ask not of whoso in Jahfm be" 2 (<) " And a woman who to
an hundred hath owned ? " " I take refuge with Allah from Satan
the Stoned." Then Al-Hajjaj laughed aloud and said, O young
man, I desire of thee even as thou describedst womankind in
prose so thou show me their conditions in verse ; " and the Sayyid,

taghru-ha (read thaghru-hi) Luluan lam yuskab wa rfku-hi min al-Zuldl a'zab (foi
a'rab min al-Zulal)," which I would translate : Who if she look upon the heavens, the
very rocks cover themselves with verdure, and an she look upon the earth, her lips rain
unpierced pearls (words of virgin eloquence) and die dews of whose mouth are sweeter
than the purest water. ST.]

1 These lines have often occurred before : see index (voL x. 443) " Wa lau anunahd !i
'1-Mushrikin," etc. I have therefore borrowed from Mr. Payne* vol iriii 78, whose
version is admirable.

' For the Jahim-hell, see vol, viil III.

56 Supplemental Nights.

having answered, " Hearkening and obedience, O Hajjaj," fell to

improvising these couplets 1 :

" When a maid owns to ten her new breasts arise * And like diver's pearl

with fair neck she hies :
The damsel of twenty defies compare o Tis she whose disport we desire and

prize :
She of thirty hath healing on cheeks of her ; o She's a pleasure, a plant whose

sap never dries :
If on her in the forties thou happily hap o She's best of her sex, hail to him

with her lies !
She of fifty (pray Allah be copious to her !) o With wit, craft and wisdom her

children supplies.
The dame of sixty hath lost some force o Whose remnants are easy to ravenous

eyes :
At three score ten few shall seek her house o Age-threadbare made till

afresh she rise :
The fourscore dame hath a bunchy back o From mischievous eld whom

perforce Love flies:
And the crone of ninety hath palsied head o And lies wakeful o' nights and

in watchful guise ;
And with ten years added would Heaven she bide Shrouded in sea with a

shark for guide ! "

Hereupon Al-Hajjaj laughed aloud and all who were with him in
assembly ; and presently he resumed, " O youth, tell me con-
cerning the first man who spake in verse 2 and that was our
common sire, Adam (The Peace be upon him !) what time Kab/1 3

1 For the Seven Ages of womankind (on the Irish model) see vol. ix. 175. Some
form of these verses is known throughout the Moslem East to prince and peasant. They
usually begin :

From the tenth to the twentieth year * To the gaze a charm doth appear ;
and end with :

From sixty to three score ten On all befal Allah's malison.

a [Here I suppose the word "kal" has been dropped after 'bi '1-shi'r," and it
should be: He (the youth) replied, that was our common sire, Adam, etc. ST.]

3 " Habil" and "Kabil" are the Arab, equivalent of Abel and Cain. Neither are
named in the Koran (Surah v. "The Table," vv. 30-35), which borrows a dialogue
between the brothers derived from the Targum (Jeirus. on Gen. iv. 8) and makes the
raven show the mode of burial to Cain, not to Adam as related by the Jews. Rod-
well's Koran, p. 543.

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusufandthe Young Sayyid. 57

slew Habfl his brother when our forefather improvised these
lines : ;

" Changed I see my country and all thereon ; Earth is now a blackavice,

ugly grown :
The hue and flavour of food is fled o And cheer is fainting from fair face

flown.
An^thou, O Abel, be slain this day o Thy death I bemourn with heart torn

and lone.
Weep these eyes and 'sooth they have right to weep o Their tears are as rills

flowing hills adown.
Kdbil slew Hbil did his brother dead ; o Oh my woe for that lovely face,

ochone!'"

Hereat Al-Hajjaj asked, " O, young man, what drove our ancestoi

to poetry?" whereto answered the youth And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, u And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

dFtbe f^untafc anfc (JBtgfitcent!) jtftg&t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the youth

1 Sit venia verbo : I have the less hesitation in making Adam anticipate the widow
Malone from a profound conviction that some Hibernian antiquary, like Vallancey who
found the Irish tongue in the Punic language of Plautus, shall distinctly prove that our
first forefather spoke Keltic.

58 Supplemental Nights.

replied, " He was driven to poetry by Iblis (whom Allah accurse !)
when he spake in this verse :

" Thou bewailest the land and all thereon o And scant was the breadth of Eden

didst own,
Where thou wast girded by every good o O' life and in rest ever wont to

wone :
But ne'er ceased my wiles and my guile until *< The wind overthrew thee by

folly blown." l

Whereupon quoth Al-Hajjaj, " O young man, inform me concern-
ing the first couplet of verse spoken by the Arab in praise of
munificence ;" and quoth the youth, " O Hajjaj, the first Arabic
distich known to me was spoken by Hatim of Tayy, and 'twas as
follows :

" And the guest I greet ere from me he go o Before wife and weans in my
weal and woe."

Then cried Al-Hajjaj, " Thou hast said well and hast spoken fair,
O young man ; and thy due is incumbent upon us for that thou hast
drowned us in the deeps of thy wisdom." Presently the Lieutenant
of Kufah turning towards one of his eunuchs said, " Bring me at
this very moment a purse containing ten thousand dirhams 2 upon
a charger of red gold and a suit of the rarest of my raiment and a
blood mare the noblest steed of my steeds with a saddle of
gold and a haubergeon ; 3 and a lance of full length and a hand-

1 In text "Rih," wind, gust (of temper), pride, rage. Amongst the Badawin it is
the name given to rheumatism (gout being unknown), and all obscure aching diseases by
no means confined to flatulence or distension. [The MS. has : " il& an kata-ka 'I-'amal
al-rabih," which gives no sense whatever. Sir Richard reads: "katala-ka 'l-'amal
al-rih," and thus arrives at the above translation. I would simply drop a dot oa the
first letter of " kata-ka," reading ' fata-ka," when the meaning of the line as it stands,
would be: until the work that is profitable passed away from thee, i.e., until thou
ceasedst to do good. The word "rabih" is not found in Dictionaries, but it is
evidently an intensive of "rabih" (tijarah rabihah = a profitable traffic) and its root
occurs in the Koran, ii. 15 : "Fa-ma rabihat Tijaratuhum" = but their traffic has not
been gainful. ST.]

2 Arab. "Badrah": see vol. iv. 281. [According to the Kamus, " Badrah " is a
purse of one thousand or ten thousand dirhams, or of seven thousand dindrs. As lower
down it is called " Badrat Zahab," a purse of gold, I would take it here in the third
sense. ST.]

s la text " Zardiyd," for " Zaradiyyah " = a small mail-coat, a light helmet.

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf and the Young Sayyid. 59

maid the handsomest of my slave-girls." The attendant dis-
appeared for a while, and presently brought all this between the
hands of Al-Hajjaj, who said, " O young man, this damsel is the
fairest of my chattels, and this be the purse on a charger of gold,
and this mare is the purest in blood of my steeds together with her
housings, so do thou take whatever thou desirest thereof, either the
mare with all upon her or the purse of gold or the concubine,"
presently saying to himself, " If the young man prefer the purse,
'twill prove that he loveth the world and I will slay him, also if he
choose the girl, he lusteth after womankind, and I will do him die :
but if he take the mare and her furniture, he will show himself the
brave of braves, and he meriteth not destruction at my hands."
Then the youth came forward and took the mare and her appoint-
ments. Now the damsel was standing by the young Sayyid, and
she winked at him with her eye as one saying, " Do thou choose
me and leave all the rest ;" whereupon he began to improvise the
following couplets :

The jingling bridle on Bayard's neck Is dearer to me than what sign thou

deign :
I fear when I fall into straits and fare o Abroad, no comrade in thee to

gain :
I fear when lain on my couch and long o My sickness, thou prove thee nor

fond nor fain :
I fear me that time groweth scant my good c And my hand be strait thou

shalt work me bane :
A helpmate I want shall do what do I c And bear patient the pasture of barren

plain." '

Presently the handmaid answered his verse with the following
couplets :

"Forfend me, Allah, from all thou say'st o Though my left with my right thou

shall hew in twain
A husband's honour my works shall keep And HI wone content with his

smallest gain :
Didst know me well and my nature weet * Thou hadst found me mate of the

meekest strain.

1 Arab. " ' Ind 'unlti Vsinlni " = lit. the thorny shrubs of ground bare of pasture.

60 Supplemental Nights.

Nor all of women are like to sight o Nor all of men are of similar grain.
The charge of a mate to the good belongs * Let this oath by Allah belief
obtain."

Hearing these words Al-Hajjaj exclaimed, " Woe to thee,
O damsel, dost thou answer him in his verse? and do thou
O young man, take the whole, and may Allah give thee no
blessing therein." 1 Answered the young Sayyid, " Here with
them, O Hajjaj, inasmuch as thou hast given them to me, I will
not oppose the order of Allah through thee, but another time
there is no union between us twain, me and thee, as there hath
been this day." Now the city of Al-Hajjaj had two gates the
door of Destruction and the door of Salvation ; and when the
youth asked him, " O Hajjaj, shall I go forth from this or from
that ? " the Lieutenant of Kufah cried, " Issue by this outlet/'
and showed him the Gate of Safety. Then the youth took all
the presents and fared forth by the passage which had been shown
to him, and went his ways and was seen no more. Hereupon the
Grandees of the kingdom said to Al-Hajjaj, " O our lord, how
hast thou given to him these gifts and he hath on nowise thanked
thee, nor wished thee well 2 for thy favours, and yet hast thou
pointed out to him the Gate of Salvation ? " Hereupon he replied,
" Verily, the youth asked direction of me, and it becometh the
director to be trustworthy and no traitor (Allah's curse be upon
him who betrayeth !), and this youth meriteth naught save mercy
by reason of his learning." 3

1 This is another form of "inverted speech," meaning the clean contrary : see vols. ii.
265 ; vi. 262 ; and viii. 179.

2 In text " Lam yakthir Khayrak " : this phrase (pronounced "Kattir Khayrak ") is
the Egyptian (and Moslem) equivalent for our "thank you." Vols. iv. 6; v. 171.
Scott (p. 267) makes Al-Hajjaj end with, " Cursed is he who doth not requite a sincere
adviser, declared our sacred Koran."

3 In the W. M. MS. this tale is followed by the " History of Uns al-Wujud and the
Wazir's daughter Rose-in-hood," for which see vol. v. 32 et seq. Then comes the
long romance "Mdzin of Khordsdn," which is a replica of "Hasan of Bassorah and
the King's daughter of the Jinn" (vol. viii. 7). I have noted (vol. x. 78) that this
story shows us the process of transition from the Persian original to the Arabic copy.
I' Mazin is also the P. N. of an Arab tribe : De Sacy, Chrest. i. 406.

NIGHT ADVENTURE OF HARCJN AL-RASHID
AND THE YOUTH MANJAB.

NIGHT ADVENTURE OF HARUN AL-RASH1D
AND THE YOUTH MANJAB. 1

IT is told in various relations of the folk (but Allah is All-knowing
of His secret purpose and All-powerful and All-beneficent and
All-merciful in whatso of bygone years transpired and amid
peoples of old took place) that the Caliph Hdrun al-Rashfd being
straitened of breast one day summoned his Chief of the Eunuchs
and said to him, " O Masrur ! " Quoth he, " Adsum, O my
lord ; " and quoth the other, " This day my breast is straitened
and I would have thee bring me somewhat to hearten my heart
and consume my care." Replied Masrur, " O my lord, do thou go
forth to thy garden and look upon the trees and the blooms and
the rills and listen to the warblings of the fowls." Harun replied,
"O Masrur, thou hast mentioned a matter which palleth on my
palate 2 nor may my breast be broadened by aught thou hast
commended." Rejoined the Eunuch, " Then do thou enter thy
palace and having gathered thy handmaids before thee, let each
and every say her say whilst all are robed in the choicest of
raiment and ornaments; so shalt thou look upon them and thy
spirits shall be cheered." The Caliph retorted, " O Masrur, we
want other than this ; " whereupon quoth the slave, " O Prince of
True Believers, send after the Wazirs and thy brotherhood of
learned men and let them improvise for thee poetry and set before

1 MS. vol. v. pp. 92-94 : Scott, vol. vi. 343 : Gauttier, vi. 376. The story is a
replica of the Mock Caliph (vol. iv. 130) and the Tale of the First Lunatic (Suppl.
vol. iv.) ; but I have retained it on account of the peculiar freshness and naivete of
treatment which distinguishes it, also as a specimen of how extensively editors and
scriveners can vary the same subject.

3 In text ' Natar " (watching) for " Nataf " (indigestion, disgust).

64 Supplemental Nights.

thee stories whereby shall thy care be solaced." Quoth he, " O
Masrur, naught of this shall profit me." Hereat cried the Eunuch,
" Then, O my lord, I see naught for thee save to take thy sabre
and smite the neck of thy slave : haply and peradventure this may
comfort thee and do away with thy disgust." 1 When the King
Harun al-Rashid heard these words, he laughed aloud and said to
him, " O Masrur, go forth to the gate where haply thou shalt find
some one of my cup-companions." Accordingly he went to the
porte in haste and there came upon one of the courtiers which was
AH ibn Mansur Al-Dimishki and brought him in. The Com-
mander of the Faithful seeing him bade him be seated and said,
" O Ibn Mansur, I would have thee tell me a tale somewhat rare
and strange ; so perchance my breast may be broadened and my
doleful dumps from me depart." Said he, " O Prince of True
Believers, dost thou desire that I relate to thee of the things
which are past and gone or I recount a matter I espied with
my own eyes ? " Al-Rashid 'replied, " An thou have sighted
somewhat worthy seeing relate it to us for hearing is not like
beholding." He rejoined, "O Emir al-Muuminfn, whilst I tell
thee this tale needs must thou lend me ear and mind ; " and the
Caliph 2 retorted, " Out with thy story, for here am I hearkening
to thee with ears and eyes wide awake, so that my soul may
understand the whole of this say." Hereupon Ibn Mansur related
to him

1 Here again we have the formula " Ka'la '1-Rdwf "= the reciter saith, showing the
purpose of the MS. See Terminal Essay, p. 163.

2 It were well to remind the reader that "Khalifah" (never written "Khalif")is
= a viceregent or vicar, i.e. of the Prophet of Allah, not of Allah himself, a sense
which was especially deprecated by the Caliph Abubakr as "vicar" supposes F absence
du chef; or Dieu est present partout et <J tout instant. Ibn Khal. ii. 496.

THE LOVES OF THE LOVERS OF BASSORAH.*

Now when Al-Rashid heard the tale of Ibn Mansur there fell
from him somewhat of his cark and care but he was not wholly
comforted. He spent the night in this case and when it was
morning he summoned the Wazir Ja'afar ibn Yahyd the Barmaki,
and cried to him, " O Ja'afar ! " He replied, " Here am I ! Allah
lengthen thy life, and make permanent thy prosperity." The
Caliph resumed, " Verily my breast is straitened and it hath
passed through my thought that we fare forth, I and thou (and
Eunuch Masrur shall make a third), and we will promenade the
main streets of Baghdad and solace ourselves with seeing its
several places and perad venture I may espy somewhat to hearten
my heart and clear off my care and relieve me of what is with me
of straitness of breast." Ja'afar made answer, " O Commander of
the Faithful, know that thou art Caliph and Regent and Cousin to
the Apostle of Allah and haply some of the sons of the city may
speak words that suit thee not and from that matter may result
other matter with discomfort to thy heart and annoyance to thy
mind, the offender unknowing the while that thou art walking the
streets by night. Then thou wilt command his head to be cut off
and what was meant for pleasure may end in displeasure and wrath
and wrong-doing." Al-Rashid replied, " I swear by the rights of
my forbears and ancestors even if aught mishap to us from the
meanest of folk as is wont to happen or he speak words which
should not be spoken, that I will neither regard them nor reply
thereto, neither will I punish the aggressor, nor shall aught linger
in my heart against the addresser ; but need must I pass through

1 This talc, founded on popular belief in tribadism has already been told in vol. viL
130: in the W.M. MS. it occupies 23 pages (pp. 95-8). Scott (vi. 343) has
"Mesroor retired and brought in Ali Ibn Munsoor Damuskkee, who related to the
Caliph a foolish narrative (!) of two lovers of Bussorah, each of whom was coy when
the other wished to be kind." The respectable Brituher evidently cared not to " read
between the lines."

VOL. V. B

66 Supplemental Nights.

the Bazar this very night." Hereupon quoth Ja'afar to the
Caliph, " O Viceregent of Allah upon earth, do thou be steadfast
of purpose and rely upon Allah ! " * Then they arose and arousing
Masrur doffed what was upon them of outer dress and bag-trousers
and habited themselves each one of them in garments differing
from those of the city folks. Presently they sallied forth by the
private postern and walked from place to place till they came to
one of the highways of the capital and after threading its length
they arrived at a narrow street whose like was never seen about
all the horizons. 2 This they found swept and sprinkled with the
sweet northern breeze playing through it and at the head thereof
rose a mansion towering from the dust and hanging from the
necks of the clouds. Its whole length was of sixty cubits
whereas its breadth was of twenty ells ; its gate was of ebony
inlaid with ivory and plated with plates of yellow brass while
athwart the doorway hung a curtain of sendal and over it was a
chandelier of gold fed with oil of ' Iraki violets which brightened
all that quarter with its light. The King Harun al-Rashid and
the Wazir and the Eunuch stood marvelling at what they saw of
these signs and at what they smelt of the scents breathing from
the clarity 3 of this palace as though they were the waftings of the
perfumed gardens of Paradise and they cast curious glances at the
abode so lofty and of base so goodly and of corners so sturdy,
whose like was never builded in those days. Presently they
noted that its entrance was poikilate .with carvings manifold and
arabesques of glittering gold and over it was a line writ in
letters of lapis lazuli. So Al-Rashid took seat under the

1 In pop. parlance *' Let us be off."

2 Arab. " Al-Afak " plur. of Ufk, " elegant " (as the grammarians say) for the world,
the universe.

3 '[In MS. "Rankah" or " Ranakah," probably for " Raunakah," which usually
means " troubled," speaking of water, but which, according to Schiaparelli's Vocabu-
lista, has also the meaning of " Raunak " = amenitas. As however " Ranakah " taken
as fern, of " Ranak," shares with Raunakah the signification of " troubled," it may
perhaps also be a parallel form to the latter in the second sense. ST.]

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 67

candelabrum with Ja'afar standing on his right and Masrur afoot
to his left and he exclaimed, " O Wazir, this mansion is naught
save in the utmost perfection of beauty and degree ; and verily its
lord must have expended upon it wealth galore and of gold a
store ; and, as its exterior is magnificent exceedingly, so would to
Heaven I knew what be its interior." Then the Caliph cast a
glance at the upper lintel of the door whereupon he saw inscribed
in letters of golden water which glittered in the rays of the
chandelier,

"WHOSO SPEAKETH OF WHAT CONCERNETH HIM NOT SHALL
HEAR WHAT PLEASETH HIM NOT."

Hereupon quoth Al-Rashid, " O Ja'afar, the house-master never
wrote yonder lines save for a reason and I desire to discover what
may be his object, so let us forgather with him and ask him the
cause of this legend being inscribed in this place." Quoth Ja'afar,
" O Prince of True Believers, yonder lines were never written save

in fear of the curtain of concealment being withdrawn." And

Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day, and fell silent and
ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me
to survive ? " Now when it was the next night, and that was

Six IDunfcrcO ana QTbirtn- Court!) /ligijt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Ja'afar the

6B Supplemental Nights.

Barmecide said to the King, " Verily the master of this house
never wrote yonder lines save in fear lest the curtain of conceal-
ment be withdrawn." Hearing this the Caliph held his peace for
a while and fell to pondering this matter then said he, " O Ja'afar,
knock at the door and ask for us a gugglet of water ; " and when
the Wazir did his bidding one of the slaves called out from within
the entrance, " Who is it rappeth at our gate ? " Hereupon said
Masrur to him, " O son of my uncle, open to us the door and give
us a gugglet of water for that our lord thirsteth." The chattel
went in to his master, the young man, Manjab hight, who owned
the mansion, and said, " O my lord, verily there be at our door
three persons who have rapped for us and who ask for a drink of
water." The master asked, "What manner of men may they
be ? " and the slave answered, " One of them sitteth under the
chandelier and another of them standeth by his side and the third
is a black slave between their hands ; and all three show signs of
staidness and dignity than which naught can be more." " Go forth
to them," exclaimed the master, " and say to them : My lord
inviteth you to become of his guests." So the servile went out
and delivered the message, whereat they entered and found five
lines of inscription in different parts of the hall with a candelabrum
overhanging each and every and the whole five contained the
sentence we have before mentioned ; furthermore all the lights
were hung up over the legend that the writing might be made
manifest unto whoso would read it. Accordingly Harun al-Rashid
entered and found a mansion of kingly degree 1 and of marvellous

1 The text has "Martabat Saltanah" (for Sultaniyah) which may mean a royal Divan.
The " Martabah " is a mattress varying in size and thickness, stuffed with cotton and
covered with cloths of various colours and the latter mostly original and admirable of
figuration but now supplanted by the wretched printed calicoes of civilisation. It is
placed upon the ground and garnished with cushions which are usually of length
equalling the width of the mattress and of a height measuring about half of that breadth.
When the "Martabah" is placed upon its "Mastabah" (bench of masonry or timber)
or upon its "Sarir " (a frameworl- of " jarfd" or midribs of the palm), it becomes the
Diwan = divan

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 69

ordinance in the utmost that could be of beauty and ornament
and five black slaves and as many Eunuchs were standing in the
saloon to offer their services. Seeing this the Caliph marvelled
with extreme marvel at the house and the house-master who
greeted them in friendly guise ; after which he to whom the
palace belonged sat down upon a divan and bade Al-Rashid sit
over against him and signed to Ja'afar and Masrur to take their
places in due degree, 1 whilst the negroes and the eunuchs stood
expecting their commands for suit and service. Presently was
brought to them a huge waxen taper which lighted up the whole
of the hall and the young house-master accosted the King and
said to him, " Well come and welcome and /air welcome to our
guests who to us are the most esteemed of folk and may Allah
honour their places ! " Hereupon he began to repeat the follow
ing couplets : 2

" If the house knew who visits it, it would indeed rejoice And stoop to kiss

the happy place whereon her feet have stood ;
And in the voice with which the case, though mute, yet speaks, Exclaim l

1 Wellcome and many a welcome to the generous, and the good.' "

Presently Manjab the master of the house bade bring for his guestsr
meats and viands meet for the great, of all kinds and of every
colour, so they obeyed his orders and when they had eaten their
sufficiency they were served with confections perfumed with rose-
water wondrous fine. Hereupon quoth the youth to Al-Rashid
and those with him, " Almighty Allah make it pleasant to you 3
and blame us not and accept our excuses for what Allah hath
made easy to us at such time of night, and there is no doubt but
that this be a fortunate day when ye made act of presence before
us." They thanked him and Al-Rashid 's breast was broadened
and his heart was heartened and there fell from him all that whilom

1 In text " Bi-iza-huma ; " lit. vis-a-vis to the twain.

* These have occurred vol. i. 176 : I quote Mr. Payne (i. 156).

In text " HannA-kumu 'llah : " see " Hanian," vol. ii. 5.

7o Supplemental Nights.

irked him. Then the youth shifted them from that place to
another room which was the women's apartment ; and here he
seated them upon the highest Divan and bade serve to them a
platter containing fruits of all descriptions and ordered his servants
to bring roast meats and fried meats and when this was done they
set before them the service of wine. Anon appeared four troops
of singers with their instruments of music and each was composed
of five handmaids, so the whole numbered a score and these when
they appeared before the master kissed ground between his hands
and sat down each one in her own degree. Then amongst them
the cups went about and all sorrow was put to rout and the birds
of joyance flapped their wings. This continued for an hour ot
time whilst the guests sat listening to the performers on the lute
and other instruments and after there came forward five damsels
other than the first twenty and formed a second and separate set
and they showed their art of singing in wondrous mode even as
was done by the first troop. Presently on like guise came set after
set till the whole twenty had performed and as Al-Rashid heard
their strains he shook with pleasure And Shahrazad was sur-
prised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

2fl&* SWx f^un&refc an& Wrtg-fiftf) jSt'sfit,

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab* 71

of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating that when Al-Rashid
heard their strains, he shook with pleasure and wonder and joy-
ance and enjoyment until he rent his robes 1 and the house-master
beholding this said to him, " O our lord, be the heart of thine
enemies thus rended asunder ! " Now there was amongst the
handmaids a songstress who began to sing and to improvise these
couplets :

" My world goes strait when thou art a-gone o And when fled from my ken

in my heart dost wone ~
And I love my love with a love as fond o As Jacob him who in pit was

thrown."

Hereupon Ja'afar was delighted with exceeding delight and rent
his raiment even as the Caliph had done, but when the house-
master saw this from him he ordered for the twain a suit of
clothes that befitted them and bade strip them of the rended
garments and clothed them in the new. Presently the young
man said, " O my lords, your time is gleesdme and Allah make it
to you gladsome and broaden your hearts and from you fend
everything loathsome and lasting to you be honour and all that
is blithesome." Hereupon he ordered another damsel to chaunt
that was with her and when Masrur the Eunuch heard it he tare
his garment as had been done by AhRashid and the Wazir, when
the house-master bade bring for him a suit that besitted him and
they donned it after doffing the torn clothes. Then the youth
ordered a handmaid of the fourth set who sang a tune and spake
these couplets :

1 This is usually a sign of grief, a symbolic act which dates from the days of the Heb.
patriarchs (Gen. xxxvii. 29-34) ; but here it is the mark of strong excitement. The
hand is placed within the collar and a strong pull tears the light stuff all down the breast.
Economical men do this in a way which makes darning easy.

3 [The MS. is very indistinct in this place, but by supplying '"an" after "ghibta"
and reading "'aynl " for " 'annf." I have no doubt the words are: Wa in ghibta 'an
'ayni fa-mi ghibta 'an kalbi = and if thou art absent from my eyes, yet thou art not
absent from my heart. The metre is Tawil and the line has occurred elsewhere in the
Nights. ST.]

72 Supplemental Nights.

Thou hast a lover of looks lune-bright e And lighter than crescent ' he shows

to sight ;
For the sheen of the crescent shall ever wane o But he shall grow to a perfect

light." -

Hearing this Manjab the master of the house shrieked out a
mighty loud shriek and tare his upper dress and fell aswoon to the
ground, and as Al-Rashid looked upon him (and he bestrewn in
his fainting fit) he beheld upon his sides the stripes of scourging
with rods and palm-sticks. At this sight he was surprised and
said, " O Ja'afar, verily I marvel at this youth and his generosity
and munificence and fine manners, especially when I look upon
that which hath befallen him of beating and bastinadoing, and in
good sooth this is a wondrous matter." Quoth the other, " O our
lord, haply someone hath harmed him in much money and his enemy
took flight and the owner of the property administered to him this
beating 3 or peradventure someone lied concerning him, and he

1 I have already noted that " HilaV' is the crescent (waxing or waning) for the first
and last two or three nights : during the rest of the lunar month the lesser light is called
" Kamar."

2 The sense is that of Coleridge :

To be beloved is all I need ;
And whom I love I love indeed.

3 There is here something wrong in the text. I cannot help again drawing the
reader's attention to the skilful portraiture of the model Moslem Minister, the unfor-
tunate Ja'afar. He is never described in the third person ; but the simple dialogue
always sets him off as a wise, conciliatory, benevolent, loveable and man-loving
character, whose constant object is to temper the harshness and headstrong errors of a
despotic master as the Caliph is represented to be by way of showing his kingliness.
See vol. i, 102. [The MS. is certainly wrong here, but perhaps it can be righted a little.
It has : " Kad yakun Z R H ahad ff Mai jazfl wa harab al-Maz'un," etc., where
Sir Richard reads "zarra-hu"= he harmed, and Mazghun = the hated one, i.e. enemy. I
have a strong suspicion that in the original from which our scribe copied, the two words
were "zamin" and "al-Mazmun.'' Zamin in the Arabic character would be j.^.
The loop for the " m," if made small, is easily overlooked ; the curve of the "n," if
badly traced, can as easily be mistaken for "r" and a big dot inside the "n" might
appear like a blotted " h " (). Mazmun would become " Maz'un " by simply turning the
" m " loop upwards instead of downwards, an error the converse of which is so frequently
committed in printed texts. Curiously enough the same error occurs p. 192 of the MS.,
where we shall find " na"al" with two 'Ayns instead of "na'mal" with 'Ayn and Mim.
If this conjecture is correct the sense would be : Haply he may have stood security for

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 73

fell into the hands of the rulers and the Sultan bade bastinado
him, or again perchance his tongue tripped and his fate was ful-
filled to him." Quoth Al-Rashid, " O Ja'afar, this youth be not
in the conditions thou hast mentioned to me/' and, replied the
other, " Sooth thou hast said, O our lord ; by cause that indeed
this young man, when we asked him for a gugglet of water invited
us into his place and honoured us with all this honour and
heartened our hearts and this was of the stress of his generosity
and his abundant goodness." Al-Rashid continued to converse
with his Wazir while the young man did not recover from his
swoon for a while of time, when another maiden of the maidens
spoke out reciting these couplets :

" He adorns the branch of his tribal-tree, o Loves the fawn his song as his

sight she see ;
And beauty shines in his every limb o While in every heart he must

stablished be."

Hereat the young man came to himself and shrieked a mighty
loud shriek more violent than the first and put forth his hand to
his garment and rent it in rags and fell swooning a second time,
when his sides were bared more fully than before until the whole
of his back appeared and Al-Rashid was straitened thereby as to
his breast and his patience made protest, and he cried, " O Ja'afar,
there is no help but that I ask concerning the wheals of this
bastinadoing." And as they talked over the matter of the youth
behold, he came to his senses and his slaves brought him a fresh
suit and caused him don it, whereupon Al-Rashid came forward
and said, " O young man, thou hast honoured us and favoured us
and entreated us with such kindness as other than thyself could
never do nor can any requite us with the like ; withal there

someone for much money, and the person for whom security was given, took to flight,
etc. For "ramin" with the ace. see Ibn Jubair ed. by Wright, 77, 2. I may say on
this occasion, that my impression of the Montague MS. is, that it is a blundering copy
of a valuable though perhaps indistinctly written original ST.]

74 Supplemental Nights.

remaineth a somewhat in my heart " And Shahrazad was sur-
prised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is
thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

Sbfx ^unbrefc antr

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ? It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Al-Rashid
said to the youth, the master of the 'house, " Withal there remaineth
a somewhat in my heart which if I manifest not to thee will abide
thereto my displeasure in my thought ; and, albeit there is nothing
to equal that thou hast done with us, still I desire of thee and of
the excellence of thy kindness a fulfilling of thy favour." Said
the youth, " What dost thou wish of me, ho thou the lord ? "
and said the Caliph, ' I would have thee inform me concerning
the scars upon thy sides and let me know for what cause they be
there." Now when the young man heard these words he bowed
his brow groundwards and wept awhile, then he wiped his face and
raised his head and asked, " What hath urged you to this ? But
the fault is from me and I merit a penalty even greater. O sons
of impurity, say me have you not read the lines written over the
doors of my house that here you are speaking of what concerneth
you not and so right soon shall ye hear what pleaseth you not ?
However, had ye never entered my house you would not have

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 75

known of my case and my shame, 1 and withal sooth spoke he who
said amongst his many sayings :

a We sowed kindness-seed but they wrought us wrong o Which is caitiff-work
and a traitor-deed."

Resumed the young man, " O vilest of folk, you asked ot me a
gugglet of water, and I brought you into my house and honoured
and welcomed you and you ate of my victual and my salt, after
which I led you into my Harem with the fancy that ye were honest
men and behold you are no men. Woe to you, what may ye be ? "
On this wise he continued to chide and revile them unknowing
that the Caliph Harun al-Rashid stood before him, and presently
the Prince of True Believers made reply, "We be folk of
Bassorah." " Truth you have spoken," cried the other, " nothing
cometh from Bassorah save the meanest of men and the weakest
of wits but now rise up, O ye dung 2 of mankind, O ye foulest of
folk, and go forth from us and may Allah curse him who speaketh
of whatso concerneth him not." All this and Ja'afar and Masrur
rose to their feet for shame of the youth and of what they had
heard from him of ill language and they went from beside him.
But Al-Rashid's temper was ruffled and his jugulars swelled and
the Hashimi vein stood out between his eyes and he cried, " Woe
to thee, O Ja'afar ! go this moment to Such-an-one the Wali and
bid him muster his men of whom each one must have in hand an
implement of iron, and let him repair to the mansion of this youth
and raze it till it return to be level with the ground, nor let
the morning dawn and show a trace thereof upon the face of
earth." Quoth Ja'afar to Al-Rashid, " O Prince of True Believers,
from the very first we feared for all this, and did we not make
condition on the subject ? However, O our lord, the good man is
not ruined by the good man and this work is not righteous ; nay,

1 In text "'Aurat " = nakedness : see vol. vi. 30.

1 In Arab. 'Unrah " : see Fatimah the Dung in vol. x. I.

76 Supplemental Nights.

'tis wholly unright and one of the sages hath said : The mild in
mind is not known save in the hour of wrath. But, O Prince of
faithful men and O Caliph of the Lord who the worlds dost vice-
reign, thou swarest an oath that although the vilest of men should
ill-speak thee yet wouldest thou not requite him with evil, nor
return him aught of reply nor keep aught of rancour in thy heart
for his unmannerly address. Moreover, O our lord, the youth hath
no default at all and the offence is from us, for that he forbade
and forefended us and wrote up in many a place the warning
words, Whoso speaketh of what concerneth him not, shall hear
what pleaseth him not. Therefore he unmeriteth the pain of
death. Now what we had better do in this case is as follows :
Send thou for the Wali and bid him bring the youth and when he
is present between thy hands, encounter him with kindness that his
fear may find rest and his affright be arrested after which he shall
inform thee of whatso befel him." Cried Al-Rashid, " This is the
right rede and Allah requite thee with weal, O Ja'afar. 'Tis the
like of thee should be Wazir of the Councillors and Counseller of
the Kings." Hereupon Harun al-Rashid returned to his palace in
company with Masrur the eunuch, and they entered the aforesaid
private door whereby they had gone forth, nor was any aware of
them. But when Ja'afar reached his abode he took thought in his
mind as to how he should act and how he should send the Wali
to the young man and bring him into the presence ; and presently
he retraced his way afoot and going to the Chief of Police
acquainted him with the matter of the youth and carefully
described his house and said to him, " Needs must thou bring him
to us in the front of morning, but do thou be courteous in thy
dealing and show him comradeship and startle him not nor cause
him aught of fear." After this Ja'afar dismissed the Wali and
returned to his own quarters. And when the morning morrowed
the Chief of Police having chosen him as escort a single Mame-
luke, made for the house of the youth, and when he had reached it

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 77

knocked at the door, upon which the owner came out to him and
the Wali knew him by the description wherewith Ja'afar had
described him, so he bade him accompany him. Hereat the heart

of the young man fluttered. And Shahrazad was surprised by

the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful
is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night, an the Sovran suffer m6 to survive."
Now when it was the next night and that was

<T be >fx ILJuntart an* CTIjtinj.cigbtb /Ifgftt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the youth's
heart fluttered when the Chief of Police summoned him to go in
his company and he was smitten by sore fear ; but the Wali said
to him, " No harm shall befal thee : obey the summons of the
Commander of the Faithful." Now when he heard these words
Manjab was terrified with sorer alarm and affright, so by leave of
the Wali he entered his house and farewelled his family and
familiars after which he fared forth with the Chief of Police saying,
" Hearkening and obedience to Allah and to the Prince of True
Believers." Then he mounted his beast and the two rode together
until they reached the Palace of the Caliph Harun al-Rashid where
they craved admission to the presence; and, when leave was
granted, the youth went in and standing between the hands of
Harun he encouraged his intent and made his tongue eloquent
and kissed ground between the royal hands and sat respectfully

78 Supplemental Nights.

before him. Then he began with a tongue that was free of fear
and showed naught of apprehension and spake the following
lines :

*' Hail to this place for such be honoured stead o Of God's viceregent known to

all and some :
Palace of Al-Rashid, our lord, which aye o Excelleth Heaven higher still

become :
I haste that may I write what should be writ o And eloquent the writ albe 'tis

dumb."

After which he said, " The peace be upon thee, O Commander
of the Faithful, and Allah prolong thy life and gladden unto thee
what He hath given." Hereat Al-Rashid raised his head, and
returning his greeting signed to the Wazir Ja'afar who, as was his
wont, stood by his side, and the Minister taking the youth's hand,
led him up to Al-Rashid and seated him beside him. " Draw
near me," said Harun al-Rashid, and the young man did accordingly
until he was close to the King who thus addressed him, " O young
man, what is thy name ? " The other replied, " I am Manjab hight
wherefrom hath been cut off all cause of delight and who for a year
hath suffered parlous plight/' " O Manjab," quoth the Caliph,
<c favour for favour and the beginner is the better, and ill for ill
and the first is the worst, and whoso seed of good soweth shall reap
it, and whoso planteth evil shall harvest it, and know thou,
O Manjab, that yesterday we were thy guests, and that in thee was
no default, but we transgressed against thee when thou honouredst
us with most high honour, and favouredst us with the highmost
favours. I desire, however, that thou relate to me the cause of
the blows upon thy body and no harm shall befal thee." The
youth replied, " O Prince of True Believers, an thou desire to hear
my tale order me a cushion to be placed on my right hand, and
deign lend unto me three things, to wit, thine ears and thine eyes
and thy heart, for verily my adventure is wondrous, and were it
graven with needle-gravers on the eye-corners it would be a warn-
ing to whoso would be warned and a matter of thought to whoso

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and tke Youth Man jab. 79

would think. Learn, O Commander of the Faithful, that my father
was a jeweller man, a connoisseur in gems, who owned no son save
myself ; but when I had increased in age and had grown in stature
and Allah had given me comeliness and perfection and beauty and
brilliancy and plenty and good fortune, and my sire had brought
me up with the best of education, Allah vouchsafed to him a
daughter. Now as I had reached the age of twenty years my
parent departed to the ruth of Allah Almighty, bequeathing to me
a thousand thousand dinars and fiefs and tenements and landed
estates, so I let perform for him a sufficiency of mortuary-cere-
monies after committing him to mother earth, and caused read
twenty perlections of the Koran, and bestowed for him in alms a
mighty matter. I abode a-mourning for him a month full told, and
when the term was ended my heart turned to diversion and disport
and eating and drinking, and I made presents and gave away and
doled charities of that my property, and I bought other tenements
at the highest price. After this I purchased me singing damsels
of the greatest value, and whosoever of my friends and companions
was pleased with a musician girl I would hand her over to him
without price ; nay, I would present her in free gift, and if any saw
aught of my belongings which pleased him and said to me, " This
is nice," I would bestow it upon him without money-claim.
Furthermore I robed all my familiars in honourable robes, and
honoured them with the highest honour, lavishing all that was by
me, and whatever my hand possessed, ever quoting these lines :

Rise, O comrade of cup, and to joy incline ; o I've no patience, O brother, from

pressing of wine :
See'st not how night with her hosts be fled o Routed, and morn doth her troops

align?
How with Nadd and ambergris, rarest scents, o Rose laughs and smiles on as

Eglantine ?
This, my lord, is joy, this is pure delight, o Not standing at doors which the

books confine. 11

But when my mother, O Commander of the Faithful, espied these

80 Supplemental Nights.

doings she reproached me, yet would I not be reproved. Then she
saw that my wealth would be wasted, so she divided it between me
and her, to each one half, a moiety for herself and her daughter,
and the rest for myself. And presently she left me carrying away
her good and separated herself from me, abiding afar and leaving
me to enjoy my frivolity and intoxication. I ceased not eating
and drinking and diversion and disport, and enjoying the all-con-
quering faces of the beautiful, 1 until the days smote me with their
shafts, and all my wealth fell away from me and naught remained
to me either above me or below me, and I ceased to be master of
aught. Then my condition waxed strait, and as nothing was left
to me at home I sold the pots and pans until I lacked even a
sleeping-mat, and I used to patch my skirt with my sleeve. And
naught profited me, neither friend nor familiar nor lover, nor
remained there any one of them to feed me with a loaf of bread ;
so my case became hard and the folk entreated me evilly, nor was
there one of my comrades or compeers who would take thought
for me ; nay more, when I met any of them on the road or at
the receptions they would turn away their faces from me. So at
last I took to pulling up the slabs 2 of the house floor and selling
them by way of a livelihood, and one day as I did on this wise, lo and
behold ! there opened in the floor a large vault whereinto I descended.

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day, and fell

silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoy-
able and delectable ; " Quoth she, " And where is this compared
with that I would relate to you on the coming night an the

1 [In the MS. "bi-Wujuh al Fanijat al-Milah." The translator conjectures " al-
fatihat," which he refers to " Wujuh." I read it " al-Ghanijat," in apposition with al-
Milah, and .render : the faces of the coquettish, the fair. See index under "Ghunj." ST.]

2 In text " Ballat," the name still given to the limestone slabs cut in the Torah
quarries South of Cairo. The word is classical, we find in Ibn Khaldun (vol. i.
p. 21, Fr. Trans.) a chief sumomme el-Bait (le pave}> ct cause de sa fermett el de sa force
de caracttre.

Night Adventure of Harun al- Rash id and the Youth Manjab. 8r

King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night,
and that was

an* JFortfetf) jfifgi)t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love
and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the -youth
Manjab continued his tale to Al-Rashid in these words. So I
descended into the vault, O Commander of the Faithful, and
I found there three boxes each containing five bags and every bag
held five thousand gold pieces. I carried forth the whole of them
and set them in an apartment of the apartments and returned the
flag of the floor to its place. Then I pondered what my brethren
and companions had done with me, after which, O Prince of True
Believers, I bought handsome clothes and made my person as it
was before ; and as soon as those men who were with me of yore and
upon whom I had spent my substance in gifts and presents beheld
me on such wise they flocked around me again. I accepted of them
for a device which I purposed carrying out and took patience with
them for a whole month whilst they came to visit me every day.
But when it was the thirty-first day I summoned the Kazi and
his assessors whom I concealed in a private place and ba'de write
a bond and an acceptance for everything they might hear from my
familiars and friends. After this I spread a feast and assembled
all my associates ; and when we had eaten and drunken and made
merry, I drew them on to talk and to each and every whom I had
gifted with a present I said, " Allah upon thee, O Such-an-one,
did I not donate to thee so-and-so without taking any return from
thee ? " And they replied " Yes, thou gavest it to me for naught."
VOL. v. F

82 Supplemental Nights.

I continued, O Prince of True Believers, to address each and all
after this fashion whilst the Kazi and witnesses wrote down against
them everything they heard from them and documented every word
until not one of my friends remained without confession. Then,

Commander of the Faithful, I rose to my feet without delay and
ere anyone could leave the assembly I brought out the Kazi and
his assessors and showed them the writ in the name of everyone,
specifying whatso he had received from the youth Manjab. After
this manner I redeemed all they had taken from me and my hand
was again in possession thereof, and I waxed sound of frame and
my good case returned to me as it had been. Now one day of
the days 1 took thought in my mind, O Prince of True Believers,
that I could open the shop of my sire and I would sit in it as my
parent was wont to do, selling and buying in sumptuous Hindi
cloths and jewelry and precious metals. Accordingly I repaired
to the place, which I found fast locked and the spider had pitched
her web-tent about it ; so I hired a man to wipe it and sweep it
clean of all that was therein. And when the Bazar folk and the
merchants and the masters of shops saw me they rejoiced in me
and came to congratulate me saying, " Praise be to Allah who
opened not the store save for the owner thereof in succession to
his sire." Then I took of merchandise a mighty matter and my
shop became one whose like was not to be looked upon through-
out the market-street, and amongst the goods I laid in were
carnelians of Al-Yaman ; after which I seated me upon my shop-
board that very day and sold and bought and took and gave, and

1 ceased not to be after such wise for nine days. Now when
it was the tenth day I entered the Hammam and came out after
donning a dress which was worth one thousand gold pieces, and my
beauty was increased and my colour waxed sheeny-bright and my
youth looked as though it had been redoubled, and I was not such
but that the women were like to throw themselves upon me. How-
ever, when I returned from the Baths and sat in my store for an hour

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 83

or so behold, I heard a shout that came from the depths of the Bazar
and heard one saying, " Have patience," * when suddenly I looked
up and saw a stare-coloured mule whereon was a saddle of gold
dubbed with pearls and gems, and upon it an old woman was
riding accompanied by three pages. She ceased not going till she
stood at my shop-door where she drew rein and her servants
halted with her. Then she salam'd to me and said, " How long
is't since thou hast opened this store ? " and said I, " This day is
the full tenth." Quoth she, "Allah have ruth upon the owner of
this shop, for he was indeed a merchant." Quoth I, " He was my
parent," and replied she, " Thou art Manjab named and as uniter
of thy friends enfamed." Said I, " Yes ! " whereat she smiled and
questioned me, " And how is thy sister, and what is the condition
of thy mother, and what is the state of thy neighbours ? " " They
are all well/' said I, when said she, " O my son, O Manjab, thou
hast grown up and reached man's estate." Rejoined I, " Whoso
liveth groweth up ; " and she continued, " Say me hast thou a
necklace of gems which is pleasing to the sight ? " I responded,
" With me in the shop are many necklaces but I have better at
home and I will bring them for thee betimes to-morrow if it be
the will of Almighty Allah." When she heard these my words she
returned by the way she came and her pages walked by her side ;
and at the end of the day I went to my mother and informed her
of the adventure how it was with the old woman and she said,
" O my son, O Manjab, verily that ancient dame is a confidential
nurse and she conferreth benefits upon the folk amongst whom
was thy sire before thee : therefore do thou be urgent in bringing
about her business nor do thou forgo thine appointment with her."
The old woman disappeared for a day; but on the next she
returned in her wonted state and when she came to my shop she
said, " O Manjab, arise and mount thy mule, in weal and good

1 ID text " Usburu " = be ye patient, the cry addressed to passengers by the
Grandee's body-guard.

84 Supplemental Nights.

health ! " So I left my store and mounted my she-mule -And
Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this com-
pared with that I would relate to you in the coming night an the
Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night,
and that was

3H)e Six ?^untalj and jfortp-seconti Nigftt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the youth
Manjab said to the Prince of True Believers : So I mounted
my she-mule and I went with the old woman until I came to a
mansion built of stone and wide of gates ; so we dismounted, I and
she, and entered the door, I following after her until we came to
the great hall. There I found, O Prince of True Believers, carpets
of fine silk and embroidered hangings and mattresses of gold-cloth
and vases of the same kind all golden and fine brocades and jars
of porcelain and shelves of crystal ; in fine I saw things which I
may not describe to thee, O Commander of the Faithful. And at
the side of the mansion within were four bench-seats of yellow
brass, plain and without carving and the old woman seated me
upon the highest mattress and she pointed out to me a porch
where stood pourtrayed all manner birds and beasts, and hills
and channels were limned. Now as I cast my eye over these
paintings suddenly a young lady accosted us speaking with a
delicate voice demure and words that the sick and sorry would

Nigkt Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 85

cure and she was behind a hanging and saying, " Whoso hath let
down this curtain let him receive one hundred stripes." Then she
bade withdraw it and they removed it and behold, I felt as though
the lightning were gleaming and glittering and it took away my
sight until my head was near striking the ground, for there stood
before me a young lady of lance-like stature and a face like the
morning bright as though she were a chandelier a-hanging amid
the cressets. She was dressed in sumptuous raiment and was even
as said of her the poet :

"To us she bent whenas Night hung her veil And nigh went she my sense

to turn from right ;
And rang her anklets and her necklace chimed o With dainty music to my

tearful plight.
Showed me that her face a four-fold charm, o Water and fire and pitch and

lamping light."

Then, O Commander of the Faithful, she cried out to the slave
girls, " Woe to you, where is the Nurse," and when she was fetched
between her hands she asked- her, "Hast thou brought the
jeweller ; " and the other answered, " Yea, verily, O lady of love-
liness, and here he is sitting like the full moon when it easteth."
The young lady cried, " O old woman, is this he or is it his ser-
vant ? " ! Whereto she replied, " No, 'tis he himself, O lady of loveli-
ness." Quoth the other, " By the life of my youth, 2 thou deservest
naught for this 8 save whatso thou fanciest not and thou hast

1 The "young person " here begins a tissue of impertinences which are supposed to
show her high degree and her condescension in mating with the jeweller. This is still
4< pretty Fanny's way " amongst Moslems.

7 A " swear " peculiarly feminine, and never to be used by men.

* In text " ' Ala-Akli : " the whole passage is doubtful.

[I would read, and translate the passage as follows : " Mi tastahli 'att hazi ill* shay
li tazann-hu allazi (for "allati," see Suppl. iv. 253) kayyamtini (2nd fern, sing.) min 'ala
akli wa ani zanantu innahu man yujab la-hu al-kiyam ; thumma iltifatat illayya wa
kalat hakazi sirtu ana la-ghazarat al-thiyab al-wasikhat min al-fakr fa-hal mi ghasalta
wajhak ? " = Thou deservest not for this but a thing thou doest not fancy, thou who
madest me rise from before my food, while I thought he was one to whom rising up is
doe. Then she turned towards me, saying, " Am I then in this manner (i.e. like thyself)
a bundle of clothes all dirty from poverty, and hast thou therefore (" fa " indicating the

86 Supplemental Nights.

raised me from before my food * while yet I fancied that he merited
rising up to him." Then she considered me and cried, " Am I then
in this fashion become 2 a bundle of dirty clothes all of poverty,
and say me now, hast thou not even washed thy face ? " But I, O
Prince of True Believers, was still as I came forth from the Ham-
mam and my countenance was shining like unto lightning. Hereat I
made myself exceeding small and it mortified me to hear how she
had found fault with my face and befouled my dress, scorning me
till I became between her hands smaller than the very smallest.
Then she fixed her sight upon me and she said to me, " Thou art
Manjab hight, thou dogs' trysting-site or gatherer of friends as
saith other wight, but by Allah how far be familiars and friends from
thy sight, O thou Manjab hight ! Now, however, do thou look
upon me, O Jeweller man, the while I eat and when my meal shall
end there will be talk." Hereupon, O Commander of the Faithful,
they brought her a crystal platter in a golden basin and therein
were the thighs of fowls ; so she took seat before me and fell to
eating without shyness or difficulty as though in her presence I
were other than a son of Adam. And I stood looking at her
and whenever she raised her wrist to take up a morsel, the dimple 8
became manifest from without, and upon the skin was a tattoo of
green colour and about it jewelled ornaments 4 and armlets of red

effect of a cause) not washed thy face ? " Or to put it in more intelligible English ;
" Am I then like thyself a heap of rags that thou shouldst come to me with unwashed
face?" ST.]

1 Of the respect due to food Lane (M. E. chapt. xiii.) fells the following tale : " Two
servants were sitting at the door of their master's house, eating their dinner, when they
observed a Mameluke Bey with several of his officers, riding along the streets towards
them. One of these servants rose, from respect to the Grandee, who regarding him with
indignation, exclaimed, Which is the more worthy of respect, the bread which is before
thee or myself? Without awaiting a reply, he made, it is said, a well-understood signal
with his hand ; and the unintending offender was beheaded on the spot." I may add
that the hero of the story is said to have been the celebrated "Daftardar" whose
facetious cruelties have still a wide fame in the Nile Valley.

2 I would read (for " Sirtu ana" = I have become) " Sirt' anta " = thou hast become.

3 In text " Mukh ; " lit. = brain, marrow.

4 [In Ar. " Wa zand mujauhar fi-hi Aswir min al-Zahab al-ahmar," which may

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and thi Youth Manjab. 87

gold and a pink dye appeared upon the whiteness of her hand : so
glory be to Him who created her and she was naught but a
seduction to whoso espied her and blessed be Allah .the best of
Creators. May the Almighty have ruth upon the poet who said
concerning the beauty of his lover these couplets :

41 Rise and pass me the wine, O thou son of Mansur ; o And for stopping it

hope not my pardon forsure :
Let it come by the hand of a fair white maid o As though she had fared from

the Heaven of the Hdr :
When we see the figure her wrist adorns 'Tis a musk grain lying on limestone

pure."

Then, O Prince of True Believers, she fell to conversing with me
hending in hand a broidered kerchief wherewith whenever she had
eaten a morsel she wiped her lips and when her sleeve fell from
off her wrist she tucked it up even as the poet said of such :

" Shehideth her face from the folk, o With a wrist whereon Ottars abound ;
And to eye of watcher it seems o Gold shaft on Moon's silvern round."

Now when she had eaten, O Commander of the Faithful, I gazed
at her face and she cried, " O ye women, behold how Manjab
looketh upon me and I am eating till my nature cry enough ; "
presently adding, " O Manjab, what calamity hath befallen thee
that thou comest not forward and eatest not of this food ? " So 1
drew anigh and ate with her, but I was dazed of my wits and sore

amazed at her ways. And Shahrazad was surprised by the

dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!" Quoth she, "And
where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the
coming night, an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it
was the next night and that was

mean : and a fore-arm (became manifest), ornamented with jewel*, on which were brace*
lets of red gold. ST.]

88 Supplemental Nights.

ant* JottjH&tifo Jltgfjt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, '* Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the
watching of this our latter night !" She replied: -- With love
and good will ! It hath reached me O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating that Manjab
continued to the Caliph : Verily I came forward and ate with
her, but I was so dazed of my wits and so sore'amazed at her
beauty and loveliness that as I took up a mouthful to carry it to
my mouth behold, I would carry it to my eyes in consequence of
what befel me from seeing that was in this young lady. And
presently she fell to laughing at me and inclining towards me in
her haughtiness and in beauty's pride, saying at the same time,
" By Allah, indeed this man is a maniac and a Bahlul i 1 where is
thy mouth and how far from thine eye ?" So said I, " By Allah,
O lady of loveliness, I am nor a madman nor a Bahlul, but whilst
looking at thy beauty my wits have fled and I am in condition of
unknowing how I ate." Then she asked me, " Do I please thee,
O Manjab ? " and I answered her " Yes ! Wallahi, O my lady,
indeed thou dost." Quoth she, " What should be the penalty of
him who owning me and my white beauties 2 shall then forsake me
to take other than myself?" and quoth I, " His award should be a
thousand stripes upon his right side and as many upon his left ribs,
together with the cutting off of his tongue and his two hands and
the plucking out of either eye." She cried, " Wilt thou marry me
upon this condition ? " and I replied, " O my lady, dost thou mock
and laugh at me ? " Said she, " No, by Allah, my word is naught
save a true word ; and said I, " I am satisfied and I accept this

1 For this famous type of madman see Suppl. Vol. vi. 155.

2 [Ar. " Ghurrat," which may be bright looks, charms, in general, or according to
Bocthor, fore-locks. The more usual plural of "Ghurrah" is "Ghurar," ST.]

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 89

compact ; however do thou make haste and delay not." But
when she looked at me and heard mine intent regarding the
marriage she shook with joy and pride and she inclined towards
me as she sat before me aad my senses were like to take flight.
Then she rose up and left me for an hour and came back dressed
in sumptuous garments and fairer than before, and purfumes reeked
from her sides as she walked between four handmaidens like unto
the refulgent moon. But I, when I looke'd upon her in this con-
dition, cried out with a loud outcry and fell fainting to the ground
for what befel me from her beauty and perfection : and she had
no design therein, O Commander of the Faithful, save her favour
for me. When I came to myself she said, " O Manjab, what dost
thou say of my beauty and comeliness ? " and I replied, " By
Allah, O lady of loveliness, there is none in this time can be thy
peer." Then quoth she, " An I please thee thou wilt be content
with these conditions ? " whereto quoth I, " Content ! CONTENT ! !
CONTENT ! ! ! " Thereupon she bade summon the Kazi and the
assessors who came without stay or delay and she said to the Judge
" Do thou listen to the condition of this marriage and write from
his word of mouth a bond on oath and under penalty for breaking
it, to the effect that if he betray me and mate with other or by
way of right or of unright, I will smite him a thousand stripes on
his right side and as many on his left ribs and I will cut off his
tongue and his two hands and I will pluck out his either eye."
Said the Kazi to me, " Shall we bear witness against thee with
this condition ?" and when I answered " Yes," he wrote out, O
Commander of the Faithful, his testimony together with the
penalty, while I hardly believed in all this. Presently, she brought
out a tray, whereupon were a thousand miskals of gold and a
thousand dirhams of silver which she scattered among the Kazi
and witnesses ; so they took them and went their ways having
duly tied the marriage-knot and indited the penalty thereto
attached. , Then they served up food and we ate and d-ank and I

go Supplemental Nights.

lay with her that night in the pleasantest of nightmg and the glad-
somest of living and I only desired that morning would never
appear for the stress of what befel me of joyance and delight ;
and, verily, I never saw and never heard and never knew any
that was the like of her. So I abode with her, O Prince of True
Believers, for seven days which passed away as one watch, 1 and on
the eighth she said to me, " O thou Manjab named and for friend
of friends enfamed, do thou take this purse wherein are a thousand
dinars and buy with it merchandise of necklaces and gems and fine
clothes wherewith to beautify thy shop and other things that befit
thee ; for 'tis my will that thou become the greatest of men in the
Bazar and that none therein shall boast of more good than thyself.
Moreover 'tis my wish, O Manjab, that thou fare to thy store at early
dawn and return to me about noon-tide, lest my breast be straitened
by thine absence." Replied I, " Hearkening and obedience;" but,
O Commander of the Faithful, it was mine intent and desire never to
fare forth from her, or by night or by day, from the stress of what
befel me of enjoyment with my bride. Now she was wont every
hour to go don a dress other than that which was upon her, and

1 In the text "Darajah" = an instant ; also a degree (of the Zodiac). We still find
this division of time in China and Japan, where they divide the twenty- four hours into
twelve periods, each of which is marked by a quasi-Zodiacal sign : e.g.
Midnight until 2 a m. is represented by the Rat.
2 a.m. ,, 4 i Ox.

4 o

6 8 ,,

8 10

lo ,, ,, noon

Noon ,, 2 p.m.

2p.m. 4 ,,

4 > 6

6 ,, > 8 ,,

8 ,, 10 ,,

10 ,, ,, midnight

Tiger.

Hare.

Dragon.

Serpent.

Horse.

Ram.

Ape.

Cock

Hog.

Fox.

See p. 27 Edit. ii. ofC. B. Mitford's Tales of Old Japan, a most important contribution
to Eastern folklore.

[" Darajah " is, however, also used for any short space of time ; according to Lane it
is = 4 minutes (i.e. the 24 hours or 1,440 minutes of the astronomical day divided into
3,60 degrees of 4 minutes each), and Bocthor gives it as an equivalent for our instant or
moment. ST.]

Night Adventure of Harun al-Ra skid and the Youth Manjab. 91

when I saw her in that condition I could not contain my passion,
so I would arise and fulfil my need of her and she would do like-
wise. Also, as soon as morn appeared I would repair to my shop
and open it and take seat therein until midday, at which time my
mule would be brought me to ride homewards when she would
meet me alone at the threshold whereupon opened the door of her
apartment. And I would throw my arms round her neck as soon as
she appeared to me till she -and I entered the Harem where I had
no patience from her but was fain to enjoy my desire. After this
she would cry to her women and bid them bring us dinner whereof
I ate with her, and in due time she would 'arise and command
her slave-girls to clean the Hammam and perfume it with pastiles
of lign-aloes and ambergris adding a sufficiency of rosewater.
Then we would enter it, I and she, and doff our dresses when I
again lost patience until I had my will of her twice or three
times. 1 Anon we would wash and wipe ourselves with apron
napkins of thick silk and drying towels of palm-fibre, after which
she would cry aloud to the women who, coming to us at her call,
would bring sherberts and we would drink, I and she, until mid-
afternoon. Then I would mount my she-mule and return to my
store and as evening fell I would order the slave to padlock the
door and I would return to my house. Now I abode in such case
for ten months, but it fortuned one day of the days that, as I was
sitting upon my shop-board, suddenly I saw a Badawi woman
bestriding a she-dromedary and she was marked with a Burka' 2 of
brocade and her eyes danced under her face-veil as though they
were the wantoning eyes of a gazelle. When I looked upon her, O

1 The young fool vaunts his intersexual powers, apparently unknowing that nothing
can be more fatal to love than fulfilling the desires of a woman who, once accustomed
to this high diet, revolts against any reduction of it. He appears to have been a
foliaon by his own tale told to the Caliph and this alone would secure the contempt of
a high-bred and high-spirited girl*

* The "nosebag"; vol. ii. 52, etc. The Badawfyah (Badawi woman) generally
prefers a red colour, in opposition to the white and black of civilisation ; and she of the
Arabian Desert generally disdains to use anything of the kind.

92 Supplemental Nights.

Commander of the Faithful, I was perplexed as to my affair.

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent
and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine,
and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is
this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming
night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was
the next night and that was

-&J)* gbte ^untrrefc an* ;fforts=ftft& jStfiSt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that quoth
Manjab to the Caliph : O Prince of True Believers, when I
beheld the eyes of the Badawi woman under her Burka' which
were like those of a gazelle they tempted my passions herto and
I forgot my oath and its penalty and the Kazi and witnesses.
Then she approached me and said, " Allah give thee long life, O
Chief of the Arabs ; " and said I, " To thee too, O most seemly of
semblance!" Cried she, " O comely of countenance, say me,
hast thou a necklace fine enough for the like of me ; " whereto I
rejoined, " Yes." Then I arose and brought out one to her, but
she seeing it said, " Hast thou naught better than this ? " So I
displayed to her, O Commander of the Faithful, all the necklaces
I had by me in the shop but, none of them pleasing her, I said,
" In all the stores there is naught finer than these." Then* O
Prince of True Believers, she brought out to me from off her neck
a carcanet and said, " I want one such ; " and, as I looked upon it,
I knew that there was nothing like it in my store, and that all I
had by me of collars and jewels and other goods were not worth

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 93

a single grain of that carcanet. So I said to her, " O Winsome of
Eyes, this is a thing whereto none of this time can avail save it be
with the Commander of the Faithful or with his Wazir Ja'afar bin
Yahydthe Barmaki." Quoth she, "Wilt thou buy it of me?"
and quoth I, " I have no power to its price," when she exclaimed,

I require no payment for this necklace, and I want from thee
nothing save a kiss upon thy cheek." Then said I, " O Lady of
loveliness, bussing without treading I trow is like a bowyer
sans a bow," and she replied, "Whoso kisseth surely treadeth."
Then, O Prince of True Believers, she sprang from off her
dromedary and seated herself beside me within my store, so I
arose with her and went into the inner room, she following me
(albeit I expected not this from her), and when we were safely
inside she clasped me to her bosom and encountered me with her
breasts never withal withdrawing her veil from her face. Hereat

1 lost all power over my senses and when I felt her strain me to
her bosom I also strained her to mine, and fulfilled of her my
desire after the fairest fashion. And when this was done she
sprang to her feet even as springeth the lion from his lair, and
flying to the door of the shop swiftlier than a bird and leaving the
necklace with me, she mounted her dromedary and went her
ways. I imagined, O Prince of True Believers, that she would never
return to me at all ; so my heart rejoiced in the necklace which
she had left and I was of that fancy and opinion anent the matter
and manner of her going, when suddenly my pages brought me
the she-mule, and said to me, " O our lord, rise up and fare to
the house, for that our lady hath required thee at this very hour
and she hath caused dinner to be served and sore we fear lest
it wax cold." Therefore, O Commander of the Faithful, I found
it impossible to bathe 1 by reason of the pages which were

1 This ablution of the whole body he was bound to perform after having bad caroa)
knowledge of a woman, and before washing he was in a state of ceremonial impurity.
For "Ghusl," or complete ablution, see vol. v. 80.

94 Supplemental Nights.

standing with the mule at the door of my shop ; so I mounted
and rode home. I entered my house according to my usual habit
when my wife met me and said to me "O my dearling, my
heart hath been occupied with thee this day, for thou has tarried
away from me so long a time and contrary to thy custom is
delaying on such a day as this." Said I, " This morning the
Bazar was crowded exceedingly and all the merchants were
sitting in their shops, nor was it possible for me to rise from my
store whilst the market was so warm." Quoth she, " O my
dearling and coolth of mine eyes, I was at this moment sitting
and reading in the Sublime Volume when there befel me a doubt
concerning a word in the chapter ' Yd Sin ' * and I desire that
thou certify it to me that I may learn it by heart from thee."
Quoth I, " O lady of loveliness, I am unable to touch The Book
much less may I read the Koran ; " and quoth she, " What is the
cause of that ? " Replied I, " I was sleeping at the side of my shop
when I had a polluting dream ; " and she rejoined, " An this thy
speech be sooth-fast thy bag-trowsers must be fouled, so draw
them off that I may see to their washing." I retorted, " Indeed
my trowsers are not bewrayed because I doffed them before lying
down to sleep." Now when she heard these my words, O Com-
mander of the Faithful, she said to a slave of my slaves whose
name was Rayhan, " O man, go and open the shop and bring the
kerchief that is therein." 2 Then said I, " O lady of lovelings, I
presented it in alms-gift to an old woman who was naked of head
and her condition pained me and her poverty, so I largessed it to
her." Rejoined she, *' Say me, was the old woman she who was
mounted on the dromedary, the owner of the valuable necklace
which she sold to thee for a kiss when thou saidst to her :

1 "The Heart of the Koran," chap, xxxvi. see vol. iv. 50.

2 The Mandil apparently had been left in the shop by the black slave-girl. Women
usually carry such articles with them when "on the loose," and in default of water and
washing they are used to wipe away the results of car. cop.

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid ana the Youth Afanjab. 95

O Winsome of Eyes, bussing without treading I trow, is as a
bowyer sans bow." Now when her words were ended, O Com-
mander of the Faithful, she turned to her women and cried to
them, " Bring hither this moment Sa'idfyah, the kitchen-wench,"
and when she came between her hands behold, she was a slave-
girl, a negress, and she was the same in species and substance
who came to me under the form of a Badawi woman with a face-
veil of brocade covering her features. Hereupon my wife drew
the Burka' from before the woman's face and caused her doff
her dress, and when she was stripped she was black as a bit
of charcoal. Now as soon as I saw this, O Viceregent of Allah,
my wits were bewildered and I considered my affair and I knew
not what to do, thinking of the conditions whereto I had con-
sented -- And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and
fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her
sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

Six fgun&rtt) an& Jportg-atxti)

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : - With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Manjab
continued : And I thought of the conditions whereto I had
consented and the penalty which had been written for me by the
Kazi in the presence of his assessors, so I wandered from my right
mind when she looked at me and said, "Is this our compact,

96 Supplemental Nights.

O Manjab hight, thou dogs' trysting-site ? " and when I heard her
speech, O Commander of the Faithful, I hanged my head ground-
wards and could not return a reply, nor even attempt to address
her could I. Said she, " Woe to thee, did I not say to thee :
O Manjab hight, thou who with curs dost unite and no fore-
gatherer with friendly wight ? Woe to thee, and he lied not who
said that in men-kind there be no trust. But how, O Manjab,
didst thou prefer this slave-girl before me and make her my equal
in dress and semblance ? However, O ye women, do ye send and
bring the Kazi and the assessors at this moment and instant."
So they fetched them without stay or delay, and they produced
the obligation which had been written, with the penalty duly
attested by testimony. Then she said to the witnesses, " Read
all that for him," and they did so and asked me, "What hast
thou to say about this obligation and the punishment for breaking
it?" Answered I, a The document is right and fair, nor have I
aught to utter thereanent." Hereupon, O Prince of True Believers,
she summoned the Governor and his officials, and I confessed
before them and bore witness against myself, when they reviled
me and abused me, and I told them the tale full and complete.
But they would not excuse me and they all cried, " Verily, thou
deservest splitting or quartering ; x thou who wouldst abandon this
beauty and perfection and brilliancy and stature and symmetry
and wouldst throw thyself upon a slave-girl black as charcoal ;
thou who wouldst leave this semblance which is like the splendours
of moonlight and wouldst follow yon fulsome figure which
resembleth the murks of night." Hereupon, O Prince of True

1 In Arab. " Shakk." The criminal was hung up by the heels, and the execu-
tioner, armed; with a huge chopper, began to hew him down from the fork till he
reached the neck, when, by a dexterous turn of the blade, he left the head attached to
one half of the body. This punishment was long used in Persia and abolished, they say }
by Fath Ali Shah, on the occasion when an offender so treated abused the royal mother
and women relatives until the knife had reached his vitals. " Kata' al-'Arba'," or
cutting off the four members, equivalent to our "quartering," was also a popular
penalty.

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 97

Believers, she said to the Governor, " Hearken unto what I tell
thee. I bear witness against myself that I have excused him the
cutting off his hand and tongue and the plucking out his eyes ;
but do ye redeem my rights of him by one condition." " And
what may that be ? " asked they ; and she answered, " A thousand
stripes upon his right side, and as many upon his left ribs." Here-
upon, O Commander of the Faithful, they seized me and smote
me upon my right flank until I was estranged from the world, 1
and after they took a handful of salt, which they rubbed upon
the wounds. 1 Then they applied a thousand stripes to my left
ribs, and threw over me a ragged robe wherewith to veil my
shame. But my flanks had been torn open by such a bastinado,
nor did I recover for a space of three days, when I found myself
lying cast-out upon a dunghill. Seeing this my condition, I
pulled myself together, and arising walked to the mansion wherein
I was wont to wone; but I found the door locked with three
padlocks and it was empty and void, nor was voice or sound to be
heard therein at all, and 'twas, as said one of the poets in this
couplet :

" The chambers were like a beehive well stocked ; when the bees quitted
them they became empty." 3

So I lingered there an hour of time, when a woman suddenly came
out from one of the neighbouring houses and asked me, " What
dost thou want, O asker ; and what seekest thou ? " I answered,
" We are in quest of the owners of this mansion ; " and said she,
" Here they were in crowds and then they abandoned it, and may
Allah have mercy upon him who spake these two couplets :

1 In text "Ghibtu 'an al-Dunyd," a popular phrase, meaning simply I fainted.

* This was done to staunch the blood : see the salt- wench in vol. i. 341.

* This couplet has repeatedly occurred : in the preceding volume, Night cdv. (Suppl.
iv. 222) ; and in The Nights (proper), vol. vi. 246. Here I have quoted Lane (A. N. iii.
220), who has not offered a word of comment or of explanation concerning a somewhat
difficult couplet.

VOL. V. C

98 Supplemental Nights.

"They fared and with faring fled rest from me o And my parted heart no

repose can see :
Have ruth on a wight with a heart weighed by woes o Seest not how their door

is without a key ? "

Then indeed I repented, O Commander of the Faithful, over that
I had done and regretted what had befallen me and what had
proceeded from me of ill-deeds, and quoth I to the woman who
had addressed me, "Allah upon thee, O my mistress, say me,

hast thou of their traces any tidings ? " And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent, and ceased saying
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

&e SW* l^un&relf anfc

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night." She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Manjab,
speaking to the woman, said, " O my lady; say me, dost thou
know of their traces any tidings, and hast thou come upon any
manifest news ? " Said she, " This thing was to befal thee of old,
O thou poor fellow, even as quoth the poet in the following
couplets :

*' My tears flow fast, my heart knows no rest * And melts my soul and cares

aye molest :
Would Heaven mine eyeballs their form beheld o And flies my life, and ah \

who shall arrest ?

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 99

Tis wondrous the while shows my form to sight, o Fire burns my vitals with

flamey crest !

Indeed for parting I've wept, and yet o No friend I find to mine aid add rest :
Ho them the Moon in a moment gone o From sight, wilt thou rise to a glance

so blest?
An thou be 'stranged of estrangement who o Of men shall save me ? . Would

God I wist !
Fate hath won the race in departing me o And who with Fate can avail

contest ? "

Then, O Commander of the Faithful, my longings grew and I
poured fast tears in torrents and I was like to choke with my
sobs, so I arose to walk about the city highways and I clung
from wall to wall for what befel me of despight and affright
at the disappearance of them, 1 and as I wandered about I repeated
these verses :

44 To man I'm humbled when my friends lost I o And missed the way of right

where hardships lie :
Sorrow and sickness long have been my lot o To bear, when need was

strong to justify :
Say me, shall any with their presence cheer o Pity my soul ? Then bless

my friend who's nigh !

I kiss your footprints for the love of you, o I greet your envoy e'en albeit
L he lie."

After this, O Prince of True Believers, I remained immersed in
cark and care and anxious thought, and as ever I wandered
about behold, a man met me and said, "'Tis now three days
since they marched away and none wotteth where they have

"*v i r^

alighted." 2 So I returned once more to the mansion-door and
I sat beside it to take my rest when my glance was raised and
fell upon the lintel and I saw attached to it a folded paper which
I hent in hand and found written therein these lines :

" Scant shall avail with judgement just the tear o When at love-humbled heart
man dareth jeer :

1 The plur. masc. for the sing. fern. : see vol. vii. 140.

* He speaks after the recognised conventional fashion, as if reporting the camp-shift
of a Badawi tribe.

loo Supplemental Nights.

I was thy dearling, fain with thee to dwell o But thou transgressedst nor return

canst speer :
And if by every means thou find me not, From thee I fled and other hold

I dear :
I come in dreams to see if sore thy heart ; Let it take patience in its woe

sincere :
Thou dost beweep our union fled, but I o Wist that such weeping brings no

profit clear :
Ho, stander at my door, once honoured guest, o Haply my tidings thou some

day shalt hear."

Thereupon, O Commander of the Faithful, I returned to my
mother and sister and told them the tale of what had betided
me, first and last, and the twain wept over me and my parent
said, " I thought not, O my son, that such case as this would
come down upon thee ; withal every calamity save Death is no
calamity at all ; so be thou of long-suffering, O my child, for the
compensation of patience is upon Allah ; and indeed this that
hath happened to thee hath happened unto many the likes of
thee, and know thou that Fate is effectual and Sort is sealed.
Hast thou not heard the words of the poet who spoke these
couplets : l

The world aye whirleth with its sweet and sour o And Time aye trippeth with

its joy and stowre :
Say him to whom life-change is wilful strange o Right wilful is the world

and risks aye low'r :
See'st now how Ocean overwhelms his marge o And stores the pearl-drop in

his deepest bow'r :
On Earth how many are of leafy trees, o But none- we harvest save what fruit

and flow'r :
See'st not the storm- winds blowing fierce and wild o Deign level nothing save

the trees that tow'r ?
In Heaven are stars and planets numberless o But none save Sun and Moon

eclipse endure.
Thou judgest well the days when Time runs fair Nor fearest trouble from

Fate's evil hour:
Thou wast deceived what time the Nights were fain, o But in the bliss o'

nights 'ware days of bane."

1 See vol. i. 25 for the parallel of these lines.

Night Adventure of Harun al-Rashid and the Youth Manjab. 101

Now when I heard these words of my mother, O Prince of True
Believers, and what she addressed to me of wise sayings and
poetry, I took patience and rendered account to Allah ; -- And
Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with
that I would relate to you on the coming night an the King
suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and
that was

anto JFortp-nmtft JBtgfct,

1 The text inserts here, Saith the Reciter of this adventure and right joyous history
strange as rare," etc.

IO2J Supplemental Nights.

he cried upon the Minister Ja'afar the Barmecide, and said to him,
" O Wazir, unless thou bring me information of this affair and root
out this matter and make manifest to me the condition of this
youth, verily I will smite thy neck." The Minister answered,
" Hearing and obeying : however, do thou, O Commander of the
Faithful, give me three days' delay," and the Caliph rejoined, " I
have granted this to thee. Hereupon Ja'afar went forth like unto
one blind and deaf, unseeing nor hearing aught, and he was per-
plext and distraught as to his affair and continued saying, " Would
Heaven we had not forgathered with this youth, nor ever had seen
the sight of him." And he ceased not faring till he arrived at his
own house, where he changed his dress and fell to threading the
thoroughfares of Baghdad, which in the time of Harun al-Rashid
was a mighty great city, and in every street he entered he sought
intelligence and questioned the folk concerning every affair which
had happened in town from dawn to dark, but he hit upon no
trace nor information manifest touching this matter. On the
second day it was the same, and nothing became known to him
between morning and evening ; but on the third day as he fared
forth he repeated these words :

"With the King be familiar and 'ware his wrath o Nor be wilful when cometh
his order * Do.' "

And he crossed and recrossed the city until it was noon-tide
without aught of novelty appearing to him, so he returned to
his mansion where he had a confidential nurse whom he apprised
of the tidings and, concealing naught from her said, " Verily the
term allowed to me by the King is until set of sun, at which time
unless I bring him the information required he will cut off my
head." Thereupon the Kahramanah went forth and circled through
the city until it was mid-afternoon, but she brought back no fresh
tidings ; whereat Ja'afar cried, " There is no Majesty and there is
no Might, save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!" Now the

Night Adventure of Harun a l-Rashid and tfu Youth Manjab. IOJ

Wazir had a sister who lived single in his home with her women
and eunuchs, and he said to himself, " I will go to my sister Budur
and solace myself by conversing awhile with her and farewell
her: haply Fate is not afar." This sister was yet un wedded
for none dared come forward and propose marriage to her, albeit
in the city of Baghdad not one was her peer in beauty, even
amongst the women of the Caliph. Accordingly he turned towards
her apartment and entered therein, when she met him upon the
threshold of the gate, and as she saw him changed of condition
she cried, " No harm to thee, O my brother, verily thou art altered
in case ; " and he replied, " Indeed I have fallen into evil plight
and into a matter of affright, whereupon naught can deliver me
save the power of Allah of All-might, and unless the affair be made
evident to me by the morning the Caliph will cut off my head."
Then he related to her the affair from beginning to end, and she,
when she heard the words of her brother, waxed wan of colour, and
was altered in case and said, " O brother mine, give me immunity
and a binding bond when I will explain to thee the matter of
this youth." Hereat calmed was his affright, and his heart was
satisfied quite, and he gave her promise of safety and a binding
bond and contract not to harm her ; whereupon said she to him,
" O my brother, womankind was created for mankind, and man-
kind was created for womankind, and albe falsehood is an excuse,
yet soothfastness is more saving and safe-guiding. The whole of this
business is mine and I am she who married him and made with
him that condition which he accepted for himself, being contented
with the covenant and its penalty." Now when Ja'afar heard these
words spoken to him by his sister concerning the case of Manjab,
he outwardly made merry but he inwardly mourned, for that he
had forbidden her to wed, and she had worked this craft and had
given herself away to wife. Hereupon he arose without stay or
delay and fared forth until he went in to the Caliph Harun al-
Rashid whom he blessed and greeted, and the King, having

IO4 Supplemental Nights.

returned his salam, asked him, " Hast thou brought to me the

required tidings, O Ja'afar ? " The Wazir answered, " Yes, O my

lord, the news hath become manifest and 'tis certified to me that

this is a private matter ; and had not the Creator favoured me by

forgathering with the young lady in her substance and accidence and

had I not met her at a term not appointed, I should have been done

to die." Quoth the Caliph, " And who is she that I may requite her

for her deeds and for what she hath practised upon Manjab, who

verily deserveth not that which hath betided him, although he may

have been somewhat in fault/' Then Ja'afar came forward and craved

pardon from the Caliph in token of honour for his sister's sake, and

quoth his lord, " O Ja'afar, thou hast declared that she it is with

whom thou hast forgathered." Quoth Ja'afar, " O Prince of True

Believers, the same is my sister Budur." But when the Caliph

heard these words, he asked, " O Ja'afar, and why did thy sister

do such deed ? " and the Wazir answered, " Whatso is fated shall

take place nor shall any defer the predestined nor forbid it when

decreed, nor hasten it when forbidden. This thing which hath

happened was of no profit to anyone and whatever thou shalt

ordain that shall be done." Thereat Manjab after saluting the

Caliph, accompanied Ja'afar to the house of his sister, and when

they went in the Wazir made peace between the two, and the Caliph

largessed the youth with most sumptuous presents. Now the

Caliph every year at times appointed was accustomed to go by

night in disguise to the house of Manjab accompanied by Ja'afar

for the sake of hearing music, and one night of the nights he said

to the youth, " Alhamdolillah Glory be to God - O Manjab, that I

have caused reunion between thee and Budur, thy beloved ; but I

desire that thou tell me some tale which shall be rare and shall

broaden my breast." The youth replied, " Hearing and obeying,''

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell

silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how

The Darwaysh and the Barber's Boy and the Greedy Sultan. 105

enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this com-
pared with that I would relate to you on the coming night, an the
King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night,
and that was

5* Sbix f^untteU an* Jptftp.first ilfg&t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and goodwill ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the King and
Caliph, Harun al-Rashid. bade the youth Manjab tell him some
tale of the Kings of old and he replied, " Hearkening and
obedience, O Prince of True Believers ; " and thereupon he fell
recounting the

STORY OF THE DARWAYSH AND THE BARBER'S BOV
AND THE GREEDY SULTAN.

IT is related (but Allah is All-knowing of hidden things and All-
wise !) that in the days of a King called Dahmdr 1 there was a
barber who had in his booth a boy for apprentice and one day
of the days there came in a Darwaysh man who took seat and
turning to the lad saw that he was a model of beauty and love-
liness and stature and symmetric grace. So he asked him for a
mirror and when it was brought he took it and considered his face
therein and combed his beard, after which he put hand in pouch
and pulling out an Ashrafi of gold set it upon the looking-glass

1 Scott, in the "Story of the Sultan, the Dirvcshc, and the Barber's son" (vi. 348),
calls the King " Rammaud." The tale is magical and Rosier usian, laid somewhat upon
the lines of " The Physician Duban" ; i. 45.

io6 Supplemental Nights.

which he gave back to the boy. 1 Hereupon the barber turned 1
towards the beggar and wondered in himself and said, " Praise be
to Allah, albeit this man be a Fakir yet he placeth a golden piece
upon the mirror, and surely this is a marvellous matter." . Here-
upon the Darwaysh went his ways, and on the following day he
suddenly made his appearance and entering the booth called for a
looking-glass from the barber's prentice and when it was handed
to him combed his beard after he had looked at his features
therein ; then, bringing forth an Ashrafi, he set it upon the mirror
and gave it back to the boy ; and the barber marvelled yet the
more to see the Fakir rising up and wending his ways. 2 The
beggar ceased not coming every day and gazing at himself in the
glass and laying down his ducat, whereat the barber said to him-
self, " By Allah, indeed this Darwaysh must have some object of
his own and haply he is in love with the lad my prentice and I
fear from the beggar lest he seduce the boy and take him away
from me." Hereat he cried, " O boy, when the Darwaysh shall
come to thee draw thou not anear him ; and when he demandeth
the looking-glass give it not to him ; for I myself will do so." On
the third day behold, the Fakir appeared according to his custom
and asked for the mirror from the boy who wittingly disregarded
him, whereupon he turned towards him and waxed wroth 3 and
was like to slay him.'- The apprentice was terrified at his rage
and gave him the looking-glass whilst he was still an r angered ;

1 This is the custom among Eastern Moslems : the barber, after his operations are
Wer, presents his hand-mirror for the patient to see whether all be satisfactory, saying
at the same time " Na'iman "=may it be pleasurable to thee ! The customer answers
"Allah bring thee pleasure," places the fee upon the looking-glass and returns it to the
shaver. For "Na'iman " see vol. ii- 5.

2 The least that honest Figaro expected to witness was an attempt upon thejboy's
chastity.

3 In text " Tazaghzagha," gen.= he spoke hesitatingly, he scoffed. [I read the
words in the text : " Tazaghghara fihi." The Kamus gives " Zaghara-hu " = he seized
it by force, he took hold of him with violence, and this present fifth form, although not
given in the Dictionaries, has doubtlessly the same meaning. Popularly we may render
it: he pitched into him. ST.]

. The Darwaysh and the Barbels Boy and the Greedy Sultan. 107

but when the man had reviewed himself therein and had combed
his beard and had finished his need, he brought out ten dinars of
gold and setting them upon the mirror handed them to the lad.
Seeing this the barber wondered anew with extreme wonderment,
saying to himself, " By Allah, this Darwaysh cometh daily and
layeth down an Ashrafi, but this day he hath given ten gold
pieces ; withal there accrueth not to me from my shop even half
a piastre of daily wage. However, O Boy, when the man shall
come hither, as is his wont, do thou spread for him a prayer-rug
in the inner room of the shop, lest the people seeing his constant
visits should have ill suspicions of us." , ," Yes ! " said the lad.
So when it was the next day the Fakir came and went into the
ben whither he was shown by the boy, and he followed him till
they were in the innermost of the booth. ^ Now the heart of
this Religious hung to the love of the barber's boy for that he had
of beauty and perfection and he continued frequenting the shop
every day whilst the lad ceased not spreading the rug and
receiving upon the mirror ten Ashrafis. Hereat the barber and
his apprentice rejoiced till one ^ day of the days when the
Darwaysh came to the shaving-shop^ as was his wont, where he
met none but only the boy nor was there any other in sight. So
he asked concerning his employer and the other answered, " O
uncle, my master hath gone forth to solace himself with seeing
the casting of the cannon ; for this day the Sultan and the Wazir
and the Lords of the land will all be present thereat" Said he,
" O my son, go thou with us and we will also enjoy the spectacle
and return before the rest of the folk, ere thy master can be
back, and we will enjoy ourselves and make merry and look at
the sport before I set out upon my journey, for 'tis my intention
this day to go forth about noontide." Quoth the lad, " 'Tis well
O uncle ; " and arising he locked the shop-door and walked with
the Darwaysh till they reached the spot where the cannon were
being cast. There they found the Sultan and the Wazirs and the

io8 Supplemental Nights.

Chamberlains and the Lords of the land and the Grandees of the
realm all standing in a body until presently the workmen took the
crucibles 1 from off the fire. Now the first who went up to them
was the Sultan and he found them full of molten brass : so he
put his hand into his pocket and drew it forth full of gold which
he cast into the melting pots. Then the Grand Wazir walked
forward and did as the King had done and all the Notables who
were present threw cash into the crucibles, bar-silver and piastres
and dollars. Thereat the Darwaysh stepped out of the crowd
and brought from his cowl a reed used as an e*tui 2 wherefrom he drew
a spoon-like ear-picker and cast into one of the crucibles a some-
thing of powder like grain. 3 This he did to each one of the melting
pots ; after which he disappeared from the eyes of the folk and
taking the boy with him returned to the booth and opened it and
said to him, " O my child, when the Sultan shall send after thee
and shall question thee concerning me, do thou tell him that I
am in such a town where shouldst thou come to seek me thou
shalt find me sitting beside the gate." Then he farewelled the
boy, the barber's apprentice, and set forth seeking that city. Such
was the case with these twain ; but as regards the matter of the
King, he ceased not standing there until they had brought the
crucibles to the cannon-moulds and when the folks designed to
pour out their contents they found all therein pure gold. Then

1 In the text Kazanat" (plur. of" Kazan"), afterwards written " Kazat" (a clerical
error ?). They are opposed to the " Kawalib "= moulds. [See note to p. 24. ST.]

2 " Akhraja min Kulahi-hi (Kulah ?) busah."

3 " Akhaza min-hd 'ala ma' lakati '1-Hilal shay misl al-Jinnah."

[I have no doubt that " Kulah " is meant for " Kulah,"" a Dervish's cap. " Busah '
puzzles me. I am inclined to take it for a reed used as a case or sheath, as we shall see
p. 263 of the MS. prince Yiisuf use a " Kasabah " or reed to enclose a letter in it.
' Mi'lakat (popular corruption for * Mil'akat ') al-Hilal" may be the spoon or hollow
part of an ear-picker, Hilal being given by Bocthor as equivalent for " cure-oreille."
Lastly for "al-Jinnah" I would read "al-Habbah "= grain. The article before the
word may indicate that a particular grain is meant perhaps * al-Habbat al-halwah " =
anise seed, or that it stands for ' al-Hubbah," according to Lempriere (A Tour to
Marocco, London 1791, p. 383) a powder employed by the ladies of Marocco to produce
embonpoin t . ST.]

The Darwaysh and the Barbers Boy and the Greedy Sultan. 109

quoth the Sultan to the Wazir and the Notables of his realm,
" Who was it threw aught into the crucibles and what stranger man
happened to be here ? " Quoth they, " We beheld a Darwaysh
man who took some powder and fell to casting thereof a some-
what into the crucibles." Hereupon enquiries were made of the
bystanders and they gave information how that same Darwaysh
was inclined to the barber's apprentice who lived in such a quarter.
Hereupon the Sultan ordered one of his Chamberlains to bring

the boy, And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day

and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth
her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night
and that was

{!)* Sbfx ^unfcrrti auto JFtftgct&frti JBtefct,

I IO Supplemental Nights.

" Hearkening and obedience ;" so he appointed for him an especial
ship and gifted him with various presents and the boy set sail and
voyaged for a short while till he reached the port-town in question.
Here he landed and made for the city-gate and as he entered it
behold, he came face to face with the Darwaysh who was
sitting upon a raised bench, and when he beheld him he salam'd
to him and told him what had taken place. The Fakir at
once arose, and without resisting the lad, went down to
the ship and they shook out the sails and the two voyaged
together until they reached the city of the Sultan. Here the
twain went in to him and kissed ground between his hands and
salam'd to him and their greeting was answered. Now as to the
lad, the King largessed him largely and raised his degree to
Governor and despatched him to one of his provinces therein to
rule j 1 but as for the Darwaysh, he remained beside King Dahmar
the first day and the second until the seventh ; after which quoth
the Sovran, " 'Tis my desire that thou teach me the art and
mystery of making gold ; " whereto the other replied, " Hearing
and obeying, O our lord the Sultan." Presently the Darwaysh
arose ; and, bringing a brazier, 2 ranged thereupon the implements
of his industry and lighted a fire thereunder ; then, fetching a
portion of lead and a modicum of tin and a quant, suff. of copper,
the whole weighing about a quintal, he fanned the flame that was
beneath the crucible until the metal was fluid as water. And
while the Sultan was sitting and looking on and considering the
operation, the Fakir brought out something from a casket and taking
a pinch of it on the ear-picker besprinkled therewith the lead and
copper and the tin which presently became virgin gold. He
repeated this feat once or twice before the King who after that

1 So even in our clay Mustafa bin Ism'afl who succeeded " General Khayru '1-Din "
as Prime Minister to " His Highness Mohammed al-Sadik, Bey of Tunis," began life
as apprentice to a barber, became the varlet of an officer, rose to high dignity and
received decorations from most of the European powers.

* In text " WijaV' a stove, a portable hearth.

The Darwaysh and the Barbels Boy and the Greedy Sultan. 1 1 1

fell to working as the Religious had wrought and turned out in
his presence the purest gold. So the Sultan rejoiced and was
wont to sit before the Darwaysh whatever time his heart chose l
and there and then he gathered together ignoble metals and
besprinkled them with the powder 2 which had been given to him
by the Fakir and all came out of the noblest gold. Now one night
of the nights, as the Sultan was sitting in his Harem and would
have worked as he had wrought in the presence of the Darwaysh,
nothing went right with him ; whereat he was exceedingly sorrowful
and said, " I have neither magnified nor minishcd aught, so how
is this case?" 8 As soon as it was morning he forgathered with
the Fakir and worked in his presence and produced virgin gold ;
so in his surprise he said, " Wallahi, 'tis indeed most marvellous
that whatso I work alone cometh not right and when I have
wrought in presence of the Darwaysh it succeedeth and turneth to
gold." After this the Sultan never transmuted metals save in the
presence of the Fakir, until one day of the days when his breast
was narrowed and he sought recreation in the gardens. Accord-
ingly he rode forth, he and the Lords of the land, taking also the
Darwaysh with him and he went to the riverside, the Monarch pre-
ceding and the Mendicant following together with the suite. And as
the King rode along with a heavy hand upon the reins he grasped
them strongly and his fist closed upon them; but suddenly he relaxed
his grip when his seal-ring flew from his little finger and fell into
the water, where it sank to the bottom. Seeing this the Sultan
drew bridle and halted and said, " We will on no wise remove from
this place till such time as my seal-ring shall be restored to me."
So the suke dismounted, one and all, and designed plunging into

1 [In the text: "Wa sdra kulla-ma* tastari nafsuhu yak'ad kuddima M-Darwish,"
hich I would translate : and each time his heart chose (8th form of " Sarw ") he used
to sit before the Darwaysh), etc. ST.]

* In text " Darin " for " Zarin " = what is powdered, collyrium.

1 The King failed because his " Niyat " or intention was not pure ; that is, he worked
for wealth and not, as the Darwaysh had done, for the good of his brother man.

112 Supplemental Nights.

the stream, when behold, the Fakir finding the King standing
alone and in woeful plight by cause of his signet asked him
saying, " What is to do with thee, O King of the Age, that I find
thee here halted ? " He replied, " Verily my signet-ring of King-
ship * hath dropped from me into the river somewhere about this
place." Quoth the Darwaysh, " Be not grieved, O our lord ;" after
which he brought out from his breast pocket a pencase, and having
drawn from it a bit of bees' wax, he fashioned it into the form of
a man and cast it into the water. Then he stood gazing thereat
when, lo and behold ! the Figure came forth the river with the seal-
ring hanging to its neck and sprang upon the saddle-bow in front
of the Sultan. The King would have taken his signet when the
Form jumped off and approached the Darwaysh who hent the
ring in hand and rubbed it and the Figure at once became wax as
it had been. Hereupon the Darwaysh restored it to his pencase
and said to the Sovran, " Now do thou ride on ! " All this and the
Lords of the land sat gazing upon the Darwaysh and what he had
done ; after which the whole party fared forwards till they reached
the gardens, where they dismounted and took seat and fell to
conversing together. They enjoyed themselves that day and when
evening fell they remounted and sought their homes, and the
Darwaysh returned to the apartment which had been set apart
for him. But presently the Grandees of the realm forgathered
with the Sultan and said to him, " O King of the Age, yon Dar-
waysh requireth of thee exceeding caution seeing that he, whenso
he ever will, availeth to slay everyone in the Palace, and after
doing thee die can raise himself to rule in thy stead." " How
so ? " quoth the King, and quoth they, " In that 'twere easy for
him to make Figures of wax and cause them prevail over thee
and over us, so that they may kill us and he may succeed thee as

1 For the importance attached to this sign of sovereignty see in my Pilgrimage
(ii. 218-19) the trouble caused by the loss of the Prophet's seal-ring (Khdtim) at
Al-Madinah.

The Darwaysh and t/te Barber's Boy and the Greedy Sultan. 113

Sultan ; nor would this be aught of inconvenience to him." Now
when the King heard these words he was afeared and cried, " By
Allah, sooth ye speak, and this is the right rede and one which
may not be blamed indeed ! " presently adding, " And how shall
we manage with this Darwaysh ? " Said they, " Do thou send for
him and summon him and slay him forthright ; and better 'twere
that thou kill him ere he kill thee ; l and if he say thee I will go
and return, suffer him not depart." The Sultan acted after their
counsel and sending to fetch the Fakir -- And Shahrazad was
surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, "How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

anfc

1 The text is somewhat doubtful" Mia kuddlm-ak." [Perhaps it means only
" from before thee," i.e. in thy presence, without letting him out of sight and thereby
giving him a chance of escape. ST.]

VOL. V. "

1 14 Supplemental Nights.

destroy me therefor, and do thou make me aware of my sin, and
then if I merit death kill me or decree to me banishment." Quoth
the King, "There is no help but that Islay thee," 1 and the Dar-
waysh fell to gentling him but it availed him naught ; so as soon
as he was certified that the Sultan would not release him or dismiss
him, he arose and drew a wide ring upon the ground in noose shape
and measuring some fifteen ells, within which he described a lesser
circle. Then he stood up before the Sovran and said, " O King of
the Age, verily this greater circle is the dominion belonging to thee,
whilst the lesser round is mine own realm." So saying he moved
from his place and stepped forwards and passing into the smaller
ring quoth he, " An thy reign, O King of the Age, be not ample for
me I will inhabit my own ; " and forthright upon entering the
lesser circle he vanished from the view of those present. Cried
the Sultan to the Lords of the land, " Seize him J> ; but they availed
not to find him, and after going forth in search they returned and
reported that they could light upon no one. Then said the Sovran,
" He was beside me in this place and passed into the smaller ring ;
so do ye seek for him again ; " and accordingly they went forth
once more but could not see a trace of him. Hereupon the Sultan
repented and cried, " There is no Majesty and there is no Might
save in Allah the Glorious, the Great : verily we have exceeded in
the matter of this Darwaysh and we have hearkened to the words
of hypocrites who caused us to fall into trouble by obeying them
in all they said to me against him. However, whatso they did to
me that will I do unto them." And as soon as it was morning-
tide and the Lords of the land forgathered in the Divan, the Sultan
commanded to slay those who had counselled him to kill the Dar-
waysh, and some of them were done to death and others of them
were banished the country. 2 Now when the Caliph Harun al-

1 This especially is on the lines of "The Physician Duban" ; vol. i. 45.

In text " Wa min-hum man faha," evidently an error of the scribe for " Man nafa-
hir." Scott (vi. 351), after the fashion of the " Improver-school,'* ends the tale, which is

Night Adventure of Harun al-Raskid & the Youth Manjab. \ 15

Rashid heard this narrative from Manjab, he wondered with
extreme wonderment and said to him, " By Allah, O Manjab, thou

deservest to be a cup-companion of the Kings : " so he created

him from that moment his Equerry in honour to the Grand Wazir

Ja'dfar the Barmaki, whereof he had become brother-in-law. Now

after some time Al-Rashid asked from Manjab a tale concerning the
wiles of womankind, and when the youth hung his head ground-
wards and blushed before him, Harun said to him, " O Manjab,
verily the place of the Kings in privacy is also the place for laying
aside gravity." Said Manjab, " O Prince of True Believers, to-
morrow night (Inshallah !) I will tell thee a tale in brief concerning
the freaks of the gender feminine, and what things they do with
their mates." Accordingly when night came on, the Caliph sent
for and summoned Manjab to the presence, and when he came
there he kissed ground and said, " An it be thy will, O Commander
of the Faithful, that I relate thee aught concerning the wiles of
wives, let it be in a private place lest haply one of the slave girls
hear me and any of them report my tale to the Queen." Quoth
Rashid, " This is the right rede which may not be blamed indeed ! "
So he went with him to a private place concealed from the folk,
and took seat, he and the youth, and none beside, when Manjab
related to him the following

somewhat tail-less, after this fashion. "At the same instant, the Sultan and his courtiers
found themselves assaulted by invisible agents, who, tearing off their robes, whipped them
with scourges till the blood flowed in streams from their lacerated backs. At length the
punishment ceased, but the mortification of the Sultan did not end here, for all the gold
which the Dirveshe had transmuted returned to its original metals. Thus, by his unjust
credulity, was a weak Prince punished for his ungrateful folly. The barber and his son
also were not to be found, so that the sultan could gain no intelligence of the Dirveshe,
and he and his courtiers became the laughing-stock of the populace for years after their
merited chastisement." Is nothing to be left for the reader's imagination ?

1 1 6 Supplemental Nights.

TALE OF THE SIMPLETON HUSBAND.*

IT is related that there was a Badawi man who had a wife and he
dwelt under a tent of hair 2 in the desert where, as is the fashion
of Arabs, he used to shift from site to site for the purpose of
pasturing his camels. Now the woman was of exceeding beauty
and comeliness and perfection, and she had a friend (also a Badawi
man) who at all times would come to her and have his wicked will
of her, after which he would wend his ways. But one day of the
days her lover visited her and said, " Wallahi, 'tis not possible but
that what time we sleep together, I and thou, we make merry with
thy husband looking on." -- And Shahrazad was surprised by the
dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O
sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now
when it was the next night and that was

Sbt'x ^un&refc an* Jpfftg-stxtj)

1 See under the same name the story in my Suppl. vol. i. 239 : where the genealogy
and biography of the story is given. I have translated the W. M. version because it adds
a few items of interest. A marginal note of Scott's (in the W. M. MS. v. 196) says that
Ihe " Tale is similar to Lesson iv. in the Tirrea Bede." See note at the end of this
History.

2 For the Badawi tent, see vol. vii. 109.

Tale of the Simpleton Husband. \ 17

was the friend of the Badawi's wife said to her, " Wallahi, 'tis not
possible but that when we make merry, I and thou, thy husband
shall look upon us." Quoth she, " Why should we suffer at such
time of our enjoyment either my husband or any wight to be
present ? " and quoth he, " This must needs be, and unless thou
consent I will take to me a mistress other than thyself." Then
said she, " How shall we enjoy ourselves with my husband looking
on ? This is a matter which may not be managed." Hereupon
the woman sat down and took thought of her affair and how she
should do for an hour or so, and presently she arose and dug her
amiddlemost the tent a hole ' which would contain a man, wherein
she concealed her lover. Now, hard by the tent was a tall syca-
more tree, 2 and as the noodle her husband was returning from the
wild the woman said to him, " Ho thou, Such-an-one ! climb up
this tree and bring me therefrom a somewhat of figs that we may
eat them." Said he, " 'Tis well ; " and arising he swarmed up the
tree-trunk, when she signed to her lover who came out and mounted
and fell to riding upon her. But her mate considered her and
cried aloud, " What is this, O whore : doth a man cavalcade thee
before me and the while I am looking at thee ? " Then he came
down from the tree in haste, but he saw no one, for as soon as the
lover had finished his business the good-wife thrust him into the
hole amiddlemost the tent and covered him with a mat. When
the husband went inside to the booth and met his wife he found
no stranger with her so said she to him, " O man, thou hast sinned
against me, saying : Verily, some one is riding thee ; and thou
hast slandered me by falsely charging me with folly." Quoth he,
44 By Allah I saw thee with my own eyes ; " but quoth she, " Do
thou sit here the while I have a look." Hereupon she arose and

1 In text "Birkah"= a fountain-basin, lake, pond, reservoir. The Bresl. Edit, has
"Sardib"= a souterrain.

1 Arab. " Jummayz" : see vol. iii. 302. In the Bresl. Edit, it is a " tall tree," and
in the European versions always a *' pear-tree," which is not found in Badawi-land

1 1 8 Supplemental Nights

swarmed up the trunk and sat upon one of the branches, and as
she peered at her spouse she shrieked aloud crying, " O man, do
thou have some regard for thine honour. Why do on this wise
and lie down and allow a man to ride thee, and at this moment he
worketh his will on thee." Said her husband, " Beside me there
is neither man nor boy," And said she, " Here I am x looking
at thee from the top of this tree." Quoth he, " O woman, this
place must be haunted, 2 so let us remove hence ; " and quoth she,
" Why change our place ? rather let us remain therein." Here-
upon the Caliph said to Manjab, " By Allah, verily, this woman
was an adulteress ; " and the youth replied, " Amongst womankind
indeed are many more whorish than this. But of that anon ; and
now do thou hear from me and learn of me this marvellous
tale anent

THE LOVES OF AL-HAYFA AND YUSUF.

1 "Adi" in Egyptian (not Arabic) is = that man, the (man) here; "Admf" (in the
text) is = Here am I, me void. Spitta Bey (loc. cit. iv. 20, etc.)

3 Arab. *' Ma'murah." In the Bresl. edit. " the place is full of Jinns and of Marids."
I have said that this supernatural agency, ever at hand and ever credible to Eastezos,
makes this the most satisfactory version of the world - wide tale.

NOTE CONCERNING THE TIRREA BEDE," NIGHT 655.

Scott refers to a tale in the " Bahar-Danush " (Bahar-i-Danish) ; or, " Garden of
Knowledge," translated by himself, story viii. lesson 4 ; chapter xii. vol. iii. pp. 64-68.
Cadell & Co., Strand, London, 1799. Five women come from a town to draw water at
a well ; and, finding there a young Brahmin, become his teachers and undertake to
instruct him in the "Tirrea" or fifth "Veda" there being only four of these Hindu
Scriptures. Each lesson consists of an adventure showing how tocornute a husband, and
the fourth runs as follows. I leave them in Scott's language :

The fourth lady through dread of the arrow of whose cunning the warrior of the fifth
heaven 1 trembled in the sky, like the reed, having bestowed her attention on the pilgrim
bramin (Brahman), despatched him to an orchard ; and having gone home, said to her
husband, " I have heard that in the orchard of a certain husbandman there is a date
tree, the fruit of which is of remarkably fine flavour ; but what is yet stranger, whoever
ascends it, sees many wonderful objects. If to-day, going to visit this orchard, we gather
dates from this tree, and also see the wonders of it, it will not be unproductive of
amusement." In short, she so worked upon her husband with flattering speeches and
caresses, that nolens volens he went to the orchard, and at the instigation of his wife,
ascended the tree. At this instant she beckoned to the bramin, who was previously
seated, expectantly, in a corner of the garden.

The husband, from the top of the tree, beholding what was not fit to be seen, exclaimed
in extreme rage, " Ah ! thou shameless Russian-born 7 wretch, what abominable action is
this?" The wife making not the least answer, the flames of anger seized the mind of
the man, and he began to descend from the tree ; when the bramin with activity and
speed having hurried over the fourth section of the Tirrea Bede, 3 went his way.

VERSE.
The road to repose is that of activity and quickness.

The wife during her husband's descent from the tree having arranged her plan, said,
41 Surely, man, frenzy must have deprived thy brain of the fumes of sense, that having
foolishly set up such a cry, and not reflecting upon thy own disgrace (for here, excepting
thyself, what male is present ?), tfiou wouldst fix upon me the charge of infidelity P "
The husband, when he saw no person near, was astonished, and said to himself,
*' Certainly, this vision must have been miraculous."

The completely artful wife, from the hesitation of her husband, guessed the cause, and
impudently began to abuse him. Then instantly tying her vest round her waist she
ascended the tree. When she had reached the topmost branch, she suddenly cried out,
" O thou shameless man, what abominable action is this ! If thy evil star hath led thee
from the path of virtue, surely thou mightest have in secret ventured upon it. Doubtless
to pull down the curtain of modesty from thy eyes, and with such impudence to commit
such a wicked deed is the very extreme of debauchery."

1 The planet Mars.

* The Asiatics have a very contemptible opinion of the Russians, especially of the
females, whom they believe to be void of common modesty. Our early European
irs have expressed the same idea. SCOTT.
having enjoyed the woman. R.F.B.

1 20 Supplemental Nights.

The husband replied, " Woman, do not ridiculously cry out, but be silent ; for such is the
property of this tree, that whoever ascends it, sees man or woman below in such situations.'*
The cunning wife now came down, and said to her husband, " What a charming garden
and amusing spot is this ! where one can gather fruit, and at the same time behold the
wonders of the world." The husband replied, "Destruction seize the wonders which
falsely accuse man of abomination \ " In short the devilish wife, notwithstanding the
impudence of such an action, escaped safely to her house, and the next day* according
to custom, attending at the well, introduced the bramin to the ladies, and informed them
of her worthy contrivance. 1

1 The reader will doubtless recollect the resemblance which the plot of this lesson
bears to Pope's January and May, and to one of Fontaine's Tales. Eenaiut Olla
acknowledges his having borrowed it from the Brahmins, from whom it may have travelled
through some voyage to Europe many centuries past, or probably having been translated
in Arabic or Persian, been brought by some crusader, as were many Asiatic romances,
which have served as the groundwork of many of our old stories and poems. SCOTT.

THE LOVES OF AL-HAYFA AND YUSUF.

123

THE LOVES OF AL-HAYFA AND YUSUF.'

I HAD a familiar in the Northern region who was called 'Abd al-
Jawdd and he was one of the greatest of merchants there and
made of money ; also he loved voyage and travel, and at whatever
time I visited him and we forgathered, I and he, we exchanged
citations of poetry. Now one day my heart yearned to visit him,
so I repaired to his place and found him there ; and as we came
together we both sat down in friendly converse, I and he ; and he
said to me : " O my brother, do thou hear what happened and was
accomplished for me in these times. I travelled to the land of
Al-Yaman and therein met a familiar who, when we sat down to
talk, I and he, said : O my brother, verily there befel me and
betided me in the land of Al-Hind a case that was strange and an
adventure that was admirable and it ran as follows. There was
erewhile a King of the kings of India and one of her greatest,
who was abundant in money and troops and guards and he was
called Al-Mihrjan. 2 This same was a lord of high degree and a
majestic and he had lived for a long while of his age without
having issue male or female. Wherefor he was full of cark and
care wanting one who after him would preserve his memory, so he

1 In Scott (vi. 352) "Adventures of Aleefa and Eusuff." This long and somewhat
longsome history is by another pen, which is distinguished from the ordinary text by
constant attempts at fine writing, patches of Saj'a or prose-rhyme and profuse poetry,
mostly doggrel. I recommend it to the student as typically Arabian with its preponder-
ance of verse over prose, its threadbare patches made to look meaner by \\itpurpureus
fannus ; its immoderate repetition and its utter disregard of order and sequence. For
the rest it is unedited and it strikes me as a sketch of adventure calculated to charm the
Fellah-audience of a coffee-house, whose delight would be brightened by the normal
accompaniment of a tambourine or a Rababah, the one-stringed viol.

3 This P.N. has occurred in vol. vi. 8, where 1 have warned readers that it must not
be confounded with the title Maharaj " = Great Rajah. Scott (vi. 352) writes
L" Mherejaun," and Gauttier (vi. 380) " Myr-djyhan " (Mir Jahan = Lord Life).

1 24 Supplemental Nights.

said in his mind one night of the nights, " Whenas I die cut off
shall be my name, and effaced shall be my fame nor shall anyone
remember me." So saying he raised both hands to Heaven and
humbled himself before Allah (be He extolled and exalted !) to
vouchsafe him a child who should outlive him with the view that
man might not lose the memory of him. Now one night as he
was sleeping a-bed dreaming and drowned in slumber behold, he
heard a Voice (without seeing any form) which said to him, " O
Mihrjan the Sage, and O King of the Age, arouse thee this
moment and go to thy wife and lie with her and know her
carnally, for she shall indeed conceive of thee at this very hour
and bear thee a child which, an it be a boy shall become thine
aider in all thine affairs but will, an it prove a girl, cause thy ruin
and thy destruction and the uprooting of thy traces." When
Al-Mihrjan heard from the Speaker these words and such sayings,
he left his couch without stay or delay in great joy and gladness
and he went to his wife and slept with her and swived her and as
soon as he arose from off her she said, "O King of the- Age,
verily I feel that I have become pregnant ; and (Inshallah if
Almighty Allah please !) this shall prove the case. 1 When Al-
Mihrjan heard the words of his wife he was glad and rejoiced at
good news and he caused that night be documented in the archives
of his kingdom. Then, when it was morning he took seat upon
the throne of his kingship and summoned the Astrologers and the
Scribes of characts and Students of the skies and told them what
had been accomplished to him in his night and what words he had
heard from the Voice ; whereupon the Sages one and all struck
tables of sand and considered the ascendant. But each and every
of them concealed his thought and hid all he had seen nor would
any return a reply or aught of address would supply ; and said
they, " O King of the Age, verily appearances in dreams hit the

1 I need not infbrm the civilised reader that this " feeling conception" is unknown,
except in tales.

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 125

mark at times and at times fly wide ; for when a man is of a

melancholic humour he seeth in his sleep things which be terrible
and horrible and he waxeth startled thereat : haply this vision
thou hast beheld may be of the imbroglios of dreams so do thou
commit the reins to Him who all overreigns and the best Worker
is He of all that wisheth and willeth He. Now when Al-Mihrjan
heard these words of the Sages and the Star-gazers he gifted and
largessed them and he freed the captives in prison mewed and he
clothed the widows and the poor and nude. But his heart remained
in sore doubt concerning what he had heard from the Voice and "he
was thoughtful over that matter and bewildered and he knew not
what to do ; and on such wise sped those days. Now, however,
returneth the tale to the Queen his Consort who, when her months
had gone by, proved truly to be pregnant and her condition showed
itself, so she sent to inform her husband thereof. He was gladdened
and rejoiced in the good news and when the months of gestation
were completed the labour-pains set in and she was delivered of a
girl-child (praise be to Him who had created and had perfected
what He had produced in this creation !), which was winsome of
face and lovesome of form and fair fashioned of limbs, with cheeks
rosaceous and eyne gracious and eyebrows continuous and perfect
in symmetrical proportion. Now after the midwives delivered her
from the womb and cut her navel-string and kohl'd her eyes,, they
sent for King Al-Mihrjan and informed him that his Queen had
borne a maid-babe, but when the Eunuchs gave this message, his
breast was narrowed and he was bewildered in his wits, and rising
without stay or delay he went to his wife. Here they brought to
him the new-born when he uncovered her face and, noting her
piquancy and elegancy and beauty and brilliancy and size and
symmetry, his vitals fluttered and he was seized with yearning
sorrow for her fate ; and he named her Al-Hayfa 1 for her

1 i.e. "The Slim-wauted." Scott (vi. 352) persistently corrupts the name to
" Aleefa." and Gauttier (vi. 380) follows suit with " Alifc."

126 Supplemental Nights.

seemlihead. Then he gifted the midwife And Shahrazad was
surprised by the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story,
O sister mine and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night and that was

>tx juntos antr

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With love
and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that King
Al-Mihrjan largessed a robe of honour to the midwife and gifted
her with a thousand gold pieces and went forth from beside his
daughter. Then they committed her to wetnurses and drynurses
and governesses who reared her with the fairest rearing, and after she
had reached the age of four they brought to her divines who lessoned
her in the art of writing and of making selections 1 and presently she
approved herself sharp of wits, clever, loquent of tongue, eloquent
of speech, sweet spoken of phrase ; and every day she increased
in beauty and loveliness and stature and perfect grace. And when
she reached the age of fourteen she was well read in science and
she had perused the annals of the past and she had mastered
astrology and geomancy and she wrote with caligraphic pen all
the seven handwritings and she was mistress of metres and modes
of poetry and still she grew in grace of speech. Now as her age
reached her fourteenth year her sire the Sultan chose for her a

1 In text " Al-Istikhraj," />. making " elegant extracts."

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 127

palace and settled her therein and placed about her slave-girls,
high-bosomed virgins numbering an hundred, and each and every
famous for beauty and loveliness ; and presently she selected of
them a score who were all maidenhoods, illustrious for comeliness
and seemliness. These she taught in verse and poetry and in the
strangenesses of history and in striking instruments of mirth and
merriment until they surpassed all the folk of their day ; and she
assiduously enjoined upon them the drinking of wine pure and
new and boon-companionship with choice histories and strange
tales and the rare events of the time. Such was the case with
Al-Hayfa ; but as regards her father, King Al-Mihrjan, as one night
he was lying abed pondering what he had heard from the Voice,
suddenly there addressed him a sound without a form and said,
" O King of the Age/' whereat he was fully aroused by sore terror
and his vitals fluttered and his wits were bewildered and he was
perplexed as to his affair. So he took refuge with Allah from
Satan the Stoned and repeated somewhat of the Koran and fenced
himself about with certain of the holy names of Allah the
Munificent ; then he would have returned to his couch but was
unable, even to place cheek on pillow. Presently sounded the
Voice a second time, saying, " O King of the Age, O Mihrjan,
verily shalt thou die by reason of her ; " and forthwith improvised
the following couplets :

"Ho thou ! Hear, O Mihrjan, what to thee shall be said o Learn the drift of

my words in these lines convey'd :
Thy daughter, Al-Hayfa (the girded round o With good, and with highest of

grade array'd)
Shall bring with right hand to thee ruin-bowl o And reave thee of realm with

the sharp-biting blade." '

Now when Al-Mihrjan had heard what the Voice had spoken of
verse and had produced for him of prose, he was wholly aroused

1 These lines are the merest doggerel of a strolling Rlwl, like all ihcp&es d'occasio
in this MS.

1 28 Supplemental Nights.

from his sleep and became like one drunken with wine who knew
not what he did and his vitals fluttered and increased his cark
and care and anxious thought. So he removed from that site into
another stead and was stirred up and went awandering about. Then
he set his head upon the pillow but was unable to close his eyelids
and the Voice drew nearer and cried upon him in frightful accents
and said, " O Mihrjan, dost thou not hearken to my words and
understand my verse ; to wit, that thy daughter Al-Hayfa shall
bequeath to thee shame and thou shalt perish by cause of her ? "
Then the Unseen One recited these couplets J :

11 1 see thee, O Mihrjan, careless-vain o Who from hearing the words of the
wise dost abstain :

I see Al-Hayfa, by potent lord Upraised in her charms and speech sweet of
strain,

Who shall home thee in grave sans a doubt and she o Shall seize thy king-
ship and reave thy reign."

But when Al-Mihrjan had heard the words of the Voice and what
it had urged upon him of poetry and of prose-addresses, he arose
from his rest in haste and anxiety until Allah caused the morn to
morrow and break in its sheen and it shone, whereupon the King
summoned the Mathematicians and the Interpreters of dreams and
the Commentators on the Koran ; and, when they came between
his hands, he related to them his vision, fully and formally, and
they practised their several arts, making all apparent to them ; but
they concealed the truth and would not reveal it, saying to him,

" Indeed the consequence of thy vision is auspicious." And

Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this com-
pared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an the

1 Which are still worse : two couplets rhyme in ani, and one in dli, which is not
lawful.

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 129

Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night,
and that was

Sbtf IDun&rrt anH ftixtn-fiftlj J

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Astrologers
said to King Al-Mihrjan, " Verily the consequence of thy vision is
auspicious ; " and on the second night Iblis the Accursed appeared
to him under the bodily form of a handsome man and said, " Ho
thou the King, I am he who terrified thee yesternight in thy
dream, for the reason that thou hast ruined the Monastery of the
Archers l wherein I lay homed. However an thou wilt edify it
again I will favour thee with my counsel, ho thou the King!"
Al-Mihrjan replied, " Upon me be its rebuilding an thou wilt
honour me with thy advice, ho thou the Voice ! " Hereupon
Iblis fell to lying with him and saying, " Verily I am thine aider
in building thee a palace by the river Al-Kawd'ib, 2 O thou will of
me and desire of me ! " (Now the folk heard these words spoken
aloud.) Then Al-Mihrjan arose from his sleep joyful and cheerful
and when morning came he summoned the Mathematicians and
Architects and Masons and bade them rebuild the Monastery of
the Archers ; so they obeyed his bidding until they had completed
it in the handsomest fashion and with the best of workmanship.
After that the King ordered they construct for his daughter Al-Hayfa
a palace unsurpassed by any edifice and perfectly builded and

1 In text Dayr Nashshabah," a fancy name.

1 So in text: the name is unknown to me: its lit. meaning would be* "of high*
breasted Virgins."

VOL. V. I

1 30 Supplemental Nights.

decorated, hard by the river Al-Kawa'ib ; moreover that it should be
situate in a wady, a hill-girt plain through which meandered the
stream. So they obeyed his bidding and laid its foundations and
marked with large stones the lines thereof which measured a
parasang of length by a parasang of breadth. Then they showed
their design to the King, who gathering together his army returned
with them to the city. Presently the Architects and Master-
masons fell to building it square of corners and towering in air
;over the height of an hundred ells and an ell ; and amiddlemost
thereof stood a quadrangular hall with four-fold saloons, one
fronting other, whilst in each was set apart a cabinet for private
.converse. At the head of every saloon a latticed window pro-
jected over the garden whereof the description shall follow in its
'place; and they paved the ground with vari-coloured marbles and
alabastrine slabs which were dubbed with bezel stones and onyx 1 !
of Al-Yaman. The ceilings were inlaid with choice gems and :
lapis lazuli and precious metals: the walls were coated with white:
stucco painted over with ceruse 2 and the frieze was covered with,
silver and gold and ultramarine and costly minerals. Then they!
set up for the latticed windows colonnettes of gold and silver andi
noble ores, and the doors of the sitting chamber were made of|

1 In text *' Al-Jay'a," which is a well-omened stone like the 'Akik = carnelian. Thej
'Arabs still retain our mediaeval superstitions concerning precious stones, and of these f
fancies I will quote a few. The ruby appeases thirst, strengthens cardiac action and
averts plague and "thunderbolts." The diamond heals diseases, and is a specific
against epilepsy or the "possession" by evil spirits : this is also the speciality of the
emerald, which, moreover, cures ophthalmia and the stings of scorpions and bites of
venomous reptiles, blinding them if placed before their eyes. The turquoise is
peculiarly auspicious, abating fascination, strengthening the sight, and, if worn in a
ring, increasing the milk of nursing mothers : hence the blue beads hung as necklaces to
cattle. The topaz (being yellow) is a prophylactic against jaundice and bilious diseases.
The bloodstone when shown to men in rage causes their wrath to depart : it arrests
hemorrhage, heals toothache, preserves from bad luck, and is a pledge of long life and
happiness. The " cat's-eye " nullifies Al-Ayn = malign influence by the look, and worn
in battle makes the wearer invisible to, his foe. This is but a '* fist- full out of a donkey- i
load," as the Persians say : the subject is a favourite with Eastern writers.

* Or white lead: in the text it is "Sapidaj," corresponding with the " Isfidaj " ofj
vol. vi. 126.

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 13*

chaunders-wood alternating with ebony which they studded with
jewels and arabesque'd with gold and silver. Also they placed in
each sitting-room a pillar of Comorin lign-aloes and the best of
sandal-wood encrusted with gems; and over the speak-room they
threw cupolas supported upon arches and connecting columns and
lighted in the upper part by skylights of chrystal and carnelian
and onyx. And at the head of each saloon was a couch of juniper-
wood whose four legs were of elephants' ivories studded with
rubies and over each was let down a hanging l of golden weft and
a network of gems, whilst higher than the whole was a latticed
casement adorned with pearls which were threaded upon golden
wire and curtains bearing scented satchels of ambergris. The
furniture of the divans was of raw silk stuffed with ostrich-down
and the cushions were purfled with gold. The floors of all the
saloons were spread with carpets and rugs embroidered with
sendal, and in the heart of the Great Hall amiddlemost the four
saloons rose a marble jet-d'eau, square of shape, whose corners
were cunningly wrought and whose floor and marge were set with
gems of every hue. They also placed upon the edges of that
fountain figures fashioned of gold and silver representing all
manner birds and beasts, each modelled according to his several
tint and peculiar form ; their bellies too were hollow and from the
fountain was conducted a conduit which led the water into their
insides and caused it gush from their mouths so that they jetted
one at other like two hosts about to do battle. After this the
same water returned to the middle of the fountain and thence
flowed into the gardens, of which a description will follow in its
place. 1 Also the walls of the Great Hall were variegated with
wondrous pictures in gold and lapis lazuli and precious materials

1 In the text ' BashkWnah " : corr. of the Pen. ' Peshkhanah"= state-tents tent
forward on the march.

9 This phrase, twice repeated, is the regular formula of the Raw! or professional
retiter ; he most unjustifiably, however, neglects the " Inshallah."

1 3 2 Supplemental Nights.

of every kind, and over the doors of the sitting-places they hung
candelabra of chrystal with chains of gold wherein were set jewels
and jacinths and the costliest stones ; after which they inscribed
upon the entrance of the speak-rooms couplets to the following
purport :

" Clear and clean is our seance from slanderous foe ; o And from envious

rival whose aim is blame :
None hither may come save the cup-boy, and eke o Cup-comrades who never

our fame defame."

Upon the chandeliers themselves were inscribed these lines :

" I am raised in reverence high o'er head o For they see that my gift is the

boon of light :
I'm a pleasure to eyesight, so up with you all, o O Seers, and joy ye the joys

of my sight.'*

And upon the Palace-door was inscribed the following quatrain :

" This Mansion's adorned o As delight to man's eye ;

O'er its door writ is * Welcome/ o So safely draw nigh."

And when they had finished this inscription over the doorway,
they went forth from the entrance which stood at the head of the
Great Hall and proceeded to a square of large space abounding in
trees and enjoyable for rills ; and they surrounded it with a
fencing-wall built of rough stone which they stuccoed over and
figured with various paintings. Then they planted this garden
with all manner fruit-bearing trees and fragrant herbs and flowers
and firstlings of every kind and hue and they trained the branches
after a wonderful fashion, leading under their shade leats and
runnels of cool water ; and the boughs were cunningly dispread so
as to veil the ground which was planted with grains of divers sorts
and greens and all of vegetation that serveth for the food of man.
Also they provided it with a watering wheel whose well was
revetted with alabaster 1 And Shahrazad was surprised by the

1 The revetment of the old wells in Arabia is mostly of dry masonry.

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 133

dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night and that was

Xigtjt,

DUNYAZAD said to her " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the
Architects set up in that palace-garden a water-wheel whose well
was revetted with alabaster and whose wood -work and wheel
were of chaunders-wood, whilst its pitchers were of fine porcelain
and its cordage l was of raw silk. And when they were free of
this work they edified amongst the scented shrubs and blossoms
a towering dome based upon four-square walls of variegated
marbles and alabasters studded with carbuncles 2 and its ceiling
was supported upon columns of the finest stone with joinery of
lign-aloes and sandal, and they dubbed its cupola with jewels and
precious stones and arabesque'd 3 it with gold and silver. Then
they made therein four saloons more, each fronting otheY, and
at the head of one and all was a latticed window impending
over the bloomy shrubs and fragrant herbs ; the colonnettes of

1 [Ar. "Tawinis," with a long final to rhyme with " Kawidfs," instead of the usual
"Tawinis," pi. of M Taunas," which Doxy (Suppl. s.v.) identifies with the Greek
in the sense of cable. ST.]

* In Arab. " Hajdrata '1-Bahramao."

In text "Zamaku-ba."

1 34 Supplemental Nights.

those casements were silvern whilst the shutters were of sandal-
wood plated and studded with precious metals ; and over the
lintels thereof was an ornamental frieze of gold inscribed with
lines of verse which shall be described in its due place. And
they inlaid that frieze with rubies and jacinths until it made the
cupola resemble the domes of Paradise. Moreover they trained
the flowering shrubs and the perfumed herbs to overrun with
their tendrils the casements in the drum of the dome, and when
they had completed the work and had embellished it with all
adornments they pierced for it an entrance and ranged around
it three ramparts which, built up with large stones, were in
breadth seven cubits. Then they edified for the Palace an
impregnable gateway of Chinese steel whereunto led flights of
alabastrine steps which were continued to the highmost parts, and
lastly they derived the river Al-Kawa'ib till it surrounded the
edifice on every side and encircled it as signet-ring girdeth
finger or wristlet wrist. Now when the Architects and Master-
masons had made an end of building the Palace and its domes
and had finished laying out and planting the parterres, they went
in to King Al-Mihrjan and kissing ground between his hands
informed him thereof ; and he, receiving this report, at once took
his daughter, Al-Hayfa, and mounting horse, he and the Lords
of his land rode forth till they reached the river Al-Kawa'ib
which ran at three days' distance from his capital. When he
arrived there and looked upon the Palace and its elevation in
fortalice-form he was pleased therewith and so were all of his
suite and retinue ; whereupon he went up to it and beholding the
ordinance and the ornamentation and the cupolas and the gardens
and the edification and embellishment of the whole, he sent for
the Architects and Master- masons and the artificers whom he
thanked for their work, and he bestowed upon them robes of honour
and gifted and largessed them and assigned to them rations and
pay and allowances. So they kissed ground before, him and

The Loves of A I- Hay ja and Yusuf. 135

went their ways. Then King Al-Mihrjan and his host withdrew
within the Palace, and he bade serve up the trays of viands
and sumptuous food for a banquet, after which he and his abode
three days in eating and drinking and diversion and disport ;
and he gave robes of honour to his Wazirs and Emirs and the
Grandees of his kingdom, and in fine issued orders for their
departure. When they went forth from him, he commanded to
summon Al-Hayfa and her women with all their belongings ;
and she, having made act of presence and having ascended to
the Palace and considered it with its beauty and artifice and
ornamentation, was pleased and rejoiced therein. The father
abode with her three days, and then farewelling her returned to
his capital ; and she on his departure bade her slave-girls dis-
tribute the couches about the saloons placing in each one a seat
of ebony plated with glittering gold, whose legs were of elephant's
ivory, and over one and all they reared canopies of silk and
brocade adorned with jewels and precious metals and bespread
them with mattresses and cushions and pillows, and over the
floor of the palaces they laid down carpets whereupon was
orfrayed this couplet :

" O Friend hereon seated be blythe and gay o Unless hereto bound and debarred
of way. 1 "

Then they set upon them settees for seats whereupon were
inscribed these couplets :

" O Seat, be thy beauty increased evermore ; o Fair fall thee with happiness

choice and meet ;
An I fail in life through my slip and sin, o To-morrow in Heav'n I'll give

thee seat."

Then* the attendants decorated the whole Palace until it became

1 I can see little pertinence in this couplet : but that is not a sine quA non amongst
Arabs. Perhaps, however, the Princess understands that she. is in a gorgeous prison
and relieves her heart by a cunning hint.

* I again omit " Saith the Reciter of this marvellous relation," a formula which
occurs with unpleasant reiteration.

1 36 Supplemental Nights.

like unto one of the Mansions of Heaven, and when the women
had done her bidding Al-Hayfa was much pleased, so she took
one of the slave-girls by the hand and walked with the rest of
them around the Palace considering its artifice and its embellish-
ment, especially the paintings which covered the walls ; and they
rejoiced thereat, marvelling at the cunning decorations and they
were grateful to the Architects who had builded and presented all
these representations. And when Al-Hayfa reached the terrace-
roof of the Palace she descended by its long flight of steps which
led to the river-side, and bidding the door be thrown open she
gazed upon the water which encircled it like ring around finger or
armlet round arm, and admired its breadth and its swiftness of
streaming ; and she magnified the work and admired the gateway
of steel for its strength and power of defence and sued for

pardon of Almighty Allah. 1 And Shahrazad was surprised by

the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful
is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would
relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to
Now when it was the next night and that was

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night! She replied: With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the rfght-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting

1 i-e. she cried " Astaghfiru Mlah (which strangers usually pronounce " Astaffira
'Hah ") ; a pious exclamation, humbling oneself before the Creator, and used in a score
of different senses, which are not to be found in the dictionaries.

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 137

and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Al-Hayfa
sued pardon of Allah the Great and took refuge with the Almighty
from Satan the Stoned, after which said she, * There is no diverter
to whatso is doomed by the Lord nor availeth aught of solicitude
against that commanded by the Omnipotent, the All-puissant ; and
His power is upon me with His destiny and needs must it come
to pass." Then she called for a pencase of gold and she wrote for
placing over the gateway of the Palace the following couplets : !

Behold here's a mansion like " Home of Delight " o Whose sight heals the

sick and abates all blight :
Here are roe-like maidens with breasts high raised o And with charms of the

straightest stature bedight :

Their eyes prey on the lion, the Desert's lord, o And sicken the prostrate love-
felled plight :
Whomso their glances shall thrust and pierce o Naught e'er availeth

mediciner's might :

Here Al-Hayfo scion of noble sire o E'en craven and sinner doth fain invite ;
And here for the drunken wight there abide Five pardons* and bittocks of

bread to bite.
My desire is the maiden who joys in verse, All such I welcome with me to

alight,
And drain red wine in the garth a-morn o Where beasts and birds alf in pairs

unite ;
Where rose and lily and eglantine o And myrtle with scent morning-breeze

delight,
Orange bloom, gillyflower and chamomile o With Jasmine and palm-bud, a

joyful site.
Whoso drinketh not may no luck be his o Nor may folk declare him of

reason right !
Wine and song are ever the will of me o But my morning wine lacks a

comrade-wight.
O who brightenest the Five* do thou rise and fetch o By night for my use

olden wine and bright :

1 In vol. viii. 183, there are two couplets of which the first is here repeated.

2 [Here the translator seems to read ' Khams Ghaffar," = five pardoners, where
however, grammar requires a plural after "khams." I take " khams" to be a clerical
error for " Khamr" = wine, and read the next word '"ukar," which is another name
for wine, but is also used adjectively together with the former, as in the Breslau Edition
iv. 6: "al-Khamr al-'ukar " = choice wine. ST.]

* I understand this as the cupbearer who delights the five

1 38 Supplemental Nights.

O thou reading this writ, prithee comprehend : o Cross the stream I swear

thee by God's All-might !
This is House of Honour may none gainsay: o Cup-comrade shall be whOj

shall self invite ;
For within these gates only women w one, o So of men-folk here thou hast

naught to affright.

When Al-Hayfa had finished her writing and what she had im-
provised of verse and couplets, she bade close the entrance of the
Palace and went up, she and her women, to the higher apartments ;
and the while she was drowned in thought and fell to saying,
" Would Heaven I knew an this mighty guard and ward will
defend Al-Mihrjan and would I wot if this fortalice will fend off
Fate and what fain must be." Then she enjoined her women to
high diet and the drinking of wine and listening to intimate con-
verse and the hearing of songs and musical instruments and
gladness and gaiety for a while of time ; and she felt herself safe
from the shifts of chance and change. Such was her case but now
we will recount (Inshallah !) what further befel her. 1 ,.. In the land
of Sind was a King hight Sahl 2 and he was of the Monarchs of
might, endowed with puissance and prepotency and exalted degree,
abounding in troops and guards and overruling all that fair region.
Now Allah (be He extolled and exalted !) had vouchsafed him a son
than whom was none in his age fairer of semblance : beautiful ex-
ceedingly was he, with a face brighter far than the full moon ; and he
was of tongue eloquent and of pluck puissant, valorous, formidable.
Also he was mighty fond of wine mere and rare and of drinks in
the morning air and of converse with the fair and he delighted in

i ,v

mirth and merriment and he was assiduous in his carousing which
he would never forego during the watches of the night or the

1 In the original we have, " Saith the Sayer of this delectable narrative, the strange
and seld-seen (and presently we will return to the relation full and complete with its
sense suitable and its style admirable), anent what befel and betided of Destinies pre-
destinate and the will of the Lord preordinate which He decreed and determined to His
creatures." I have omitted it for uniformity's sake.

2 Meaning " The easy -tempered." Scott (vi. 354) writes ' Sohul."

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 139

wards of the day. Now for the abundance of his comeliness and
the brilliancy of his countenance, whenever he walked abroad in
the capital he would swathe his face with the Litham, 1 lest wax
madly enamoured of him the woman-kind and all creation, where-
fore he was named the Veiled Yusuf of Beauty. It chanced one
night as he sat carousing with his boon companions that the wine
prevailed over him and he became sprightly and frolicsome ; so
he went forth from the door of his cabinet in a state of drink,
understanding naught and knowing nothing of that he did.
He wandered about the rooms belonging to his father and there
he saw a damsel of the paternal concubines standing at the door of
her bower and his wine so mastered him that he went up to her and
clasped her to his bosom and threw her backwards upon the floor.
She cried aloud to the royal Eunuchs who stood there looking on at
him, not one of them, however, dared arrest him or even draw
near him to free the girl, so he had his will of her and abated her
maidenhead after which he rose up from off her and left her all
bleeding 8 from his assault. Now this slave-girl had been gifted to
his sire and Yusuf left her to recover her condition when he would
have visited her again, but as soon as he had returned to his apart-
ment (and he not knowing what he had done) the Eunuchs took
the damsel (she bleeding as before) and carried her to King Sahl
who seeing her in such case exclaimed, " What man hath done
this to her ? " Said they, " Tis thy son Yusuf;" and he, when he
heard the words of his slaves, felt that this matter was hard upon
him and sent to fetch the Prince. They hastened to bring him,
but amongst the Mamelukes was one lovingly inclined to the youth

In text " Litim = the mouth-band for man: ii. 31, etc. The " Mutalathsinafn " in
North Africa are the races, like* the Tawdrik, whose males wear this face-swathe of
cloth;

* " Drowned in her blood," says the text which to us appears hyperbofe run mad.
So when King Omar (vol. ii. 1*3) violently rapes the unfortunate Princess Abrfzah "the
blood runs down the calves of her legs." This is not ignorance, but that systematic
exaggeration which is held necessary to impressionise an Oriental audience.

140 Supplemental Nights.

who told him the whole tale and how his father had bade the
body-guards summon him to the presence. And when Yusuf had
heard the words of the Mameluke he arose in haste and baldrick'd
his blade and hending his spear in hand he went down to the
stables and saddled him a steed of the noblest blood and likeliest
strain ; then he mounted and, taking with him a score of Mamelukes
his pages, he sallied forth with them through the city gate and
rode on unknowing what was concealed from him in the Secret
Purpose. -- And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day
and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth
her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the King suffer me to survive." Now when it was the next night
and that was

Th* Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 141

puissant fortalice in such power and prepotency and forcefulness
save for a mighty matter and a cause of much consequence.
Would Heaven I wot to whom this belongeth and who dwelleth
therein i " Then he applied his mind and had recourse to the
knowledge of his companions the Mamelukes and he commanded
all his white slaves alight upon the marge of the river for the
purpose of rest, and when they had reposed he asked them, M Who
amongst you will go down to this stream and will over-swim it
and will visit the lord of the Castle and bring us news of it and
tidings of its ownership and discover for us the man to whom
it belongeth ? " But as no one would return him a reply he
repeated his words without any answer and he, when he saw that,
arose forthright and doffed what he had upon him of dress, all
save his shirt only. Then he took his bow and quiver and placing
his clothes with his weapon and arrow-case upon his head he
went down to the river and swam it until he came forth it on the
further side. Here he walked up to the gateway and found an
impregnable entrance all of steel which none might avail to
open, but when he saw the verses thereon inscribed and under-
stood their significance he gave himself joy and was certified of
entering. Then he took from his quiver a pen case and paper
whereupon he inscribed these couplets :

" At your door, O Fountains of weal, I stand * A stranger from home and a-

morning bann'd.
Your grace shall haply forfend my foe o And the hateful band of unfriends

disband :
I have none resort save your gates, the which o With verse like carcanet

see I spann'd :
Ibn Sahl hath 'spied with you safe repair, o So for lonesome stranger approach

command ! "

And when Yusuf had ended his writing, he folded the paper and
made it fast to a shaft ; then he took his bow and arming it drew
the string and aimed the arrow at the upper terrace, where it
dropped within the parapet. Now, by the decree of The Decreer

142 Supplemental Nights.

Al-Hayfa was walking there with her women when the shaft fell
between her feet and the paper became manifest, so she caught
sight of it and took it up and opened it, and having read it
understood its significance. Hereat she rejoiced and congratulated'
herself and her cheeks flushed rosy-red, and presently she went
hastily in the direction of the entrance, whilst her women still
looked down from the terrace upon the doorway and saw Yusuf
a-foot before it. They cried out to their lady, " Verily there
standeth below a youth lovely in his youthfulness, with his face
gladdening as the crescent moon of Sha'aban." J But when
Al-Hayfa heard the words of the women she was glad and gave
herself joy and sensed an oppression of pleasure, whilst her vitals
palpitated and she perspired in her petticoat trowsers. 2 Then
she went down to the gateway which she bade be thrown open,
and seeing Prince Yusuf she smiled in his face and welcomed
him and greeted him. He returned her salam with sweetness of
phrase and softness of words, when said she to him, " Well come
and welcome and good cheer to thee, O thou who dost visit us
and takest refuge in our demesne 3 and in our presence, for that
here thou hast immunity and impunity and civility ; " presently
adding, "Enter into this guarded stead and feel thou no fear
from any foe, for thou has wrought thy wish and hast attained
thine aim and hast won thy will, O fair of face and O perfect of
form, O thou whose countenance excelleth the new moon : here
thou hast preserved thy life and art saved from foeman's strife."
Thereupon she mounted the staircase and he behind her, while
the slave-girls surrounded the twain, and she conversed with him
and cheered him with fair words and welcomed him once more
til! they had entered the Castle saloon, when she took his hand

1 For this allusion see vol. v. 191.

2 This physical sign of delight in beauty is not recognised in the literature of Europe,
and The Nights usually attributes it to old women.

8 In text " Hima" = the private and guarded lands of a Badawi tribe ; viii. 102.

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusvf.

and seated him at the head of the hall. But as Yusuf looked
upon the portalice and the beauty of its building and the
excellence of its ordinance and the high degree of its decorations
which made it like unto the Palaces of Paradise, and as he beheld
that furniture and those couches, with what was over them of
hangings, and the gems and jewels and precious metals which
abounded there, he magnified the matter in his mind and said to
himself, "This place belongeth to none save to a mighty monarch! "
Then Al-Hayfa bade her women bring a bundle of clothing, and
when they had set it between her hands, she opened it and drew
forth a suit of Daylakian * garments and a caftan of Coptick stuff
(fine linen of Misraim purfled with gold), and bestowed them
upon him, and she bound around his head an or-fringed Shash 2
with either end gem-adorned. And when he donned the dress
his countenance became brilliant and its light shone afar, and
his cheeks waxed red as rose, and she seeing this felt her wits
bewildered and was like to faint. However, she soon recovered
herself and said, " This is no mortal : verily he is naught but of

the Hurs of Heaven." Then she bade her women bring food

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day, and fell silent
and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine,
and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is
this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming
night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was
the next night and that was

{EfK Six $JunUrc& ant) ^cbcnttu fount) Xiol)t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

1 In text " Daylaki."

* A small compact white turband and distinctive sign of the True Believers : see
vol. viii. 8.

Supplemental Nights.

the watching of this our latter night !" She replied: With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Al-Hayfa bade
her women bring the food trays, and when they obeyed her bidding
and placed them between the hands of Yusuf, he considered
them and saw that one was made of Yamdnf onyx and another of
red carnelian and a third of rock chrystal, and they bore platters
of gold and silver and porcelain and jasper. Upon them were
ranged dishes furnished with the daintiest food which perplexed
the wits, and sweetmeats and sumptuous meats, such as gazelle's
haunch and venison and fatted mutton and flesh of birds, all the big
and the small, such as pigeon and rock-pigeon, and greens marinated
and viands roasted and fried of every kind and colour and cheeses
and sugared dishes. Then she seated Yusuf beside her and
served him with all manner cates and confections and conjured
him to fall-to and morselled him until he had eaten his sufficiency ;
after which they twain sat together in laughter and enjoyment
each conjoined to other and both cast in the mould of beauty
and loveliness and brilliancy and stature and symmetric grace as
though in the likeness of a rattan-palm. All thi's and Al-Hayfa
rejoiced in Yusuf, but ever and anon she took thought anent her
sire King Al-Mihrjan and his works and she kept saying in her
mind, " Would Heaven I wot will he wed me to this youth so
charming of inner grace; and, if my father be not satisfied there-
with, I will marry my lover in despite of him." And the while Yusuf
quoth to himself, " Would Heaven I wot how my sire will act in
the business of the concubine whose pucelage I did away, and
would Heaven I knew if he have ridden forth in search of me, or
he have lost sight of me and never asked of me." On this wise
either of the twain spoke to themselves, and neither of them believed
in safety, all unknowing what was predestined to them by Him
who saith to a thing, " Be " and it becometh. So Al-Hayfa and

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 145

Yusuf sat drowned in the depths of thought, withal their joyance
and enjoyment made them clean forget that writ for them by
Fate; and the Prince gazing upon the greater tray saw graven
upon its edge these couplets :

" For the gathering of friends and familiars design'd o Between hands of Kings

and Wazirs I'm shrin'd :
Upon me is whatever taste loves and joys o Of flesh and viands all kinds com-

bin'd:
From me fill thee full of these cates and praise o Thy Lord, the Maker of

all mankind.''

Then the attendants placed bread upon the trays, and the Prince
found writ in moulded letters upon the loaves the couplets that
follow :

" And a loaf new-born from the flour of wheat, o White and piping hot from the

oven-heat :
Quoth to me my chider, Be wise and say o Soothe my heart and blame not,

O friend I greet"

Presently the handmaidens piled upon the trays platters of silver
and porcelain (whereof mention hath been made) containing all
that lip and tongue gratify of the meat of muttons in fry and
Katd-grouse and pigeon-poults and quails and things that fly of
every kind and dye which hungry men can long to espy, and
Yusuf saw inscribed upon the china dishes the following couplets :

" Platters of china fair o That all men's eyne ensnare,

None seeth in this our town o China of mould so rare."

Then he looked upon the silver plate and found it graven with
these lines :

11 Plate worked in silver of the brightest white o In height of beauty, O thou

joy to sight,
When fully finisht and when perfect made o Becometh chargers peerless in

delight"

And portrayed upon the porcelain were all that grow and fly of

geese and poultry. Anon a handmaid brought in hand a knife

VOL. v. K

146 Supplemental Nights.

wherewith to carve the meats, and Yusuf looking at the blade
saw upon it letters gold-inlaid and forming these verses :

" I am Wade of finest grain o Wherefrom comes naught of bane :

Fro' my friends aH harm I ward o And thy foes by me be slain ! ''

Hereupon the handmaids ended the ordinance of the table and
set everything in its own stead ; after which the Princess took
seat beside the Prince and said to him, " O my lord, hearten our
heart and deign grace to us and honour us by eating with us:
this indeed be a day of joy for my union with thee and for thy
lighting this my lodging with the splendour of thy semblance so
bright and thy beauty so rare and for thine alighting at my home
and thine opportune kindness and thine inner graciousness, 1 O thou
unique one of the Age and the Time, and O thou who hast no
peer in our day and our tide." Now when Yusuf heard the words
of Al-Hayfa he said to her, "Walldhi, O thou who the moons
adornest and who the sun and the daylight shamest, O lady of
brow flower-bright and of stature elegant-slight, O thou who
passest in beauty and comeliness all mortal beings, O thou with
smile like water sweet and mouth-dews like purest spring and of
speech the softest, I wot thou art the lady of goodness and excel-
lence and generosity and liberality." Then she again fell to
morselling the Prince until they both had a sufficiency of food,
whereupon she bade them fetch water for washing their hands
after meat. And they brought to Yusuf a basin of glittering gold,
when he rejoiced with exceeding exultation the while he was sunk
in meditation, and at times he gazed upon Al-Hayfa and his wits
were bewildered and his senses seduced him to something he would
do with her for the abundance that was in her of beauty and
loveliness. But his reason forbade to him his passion, and quoth
he in his mind, "To everything its own time," And Shahrazad

1 [The words in the text seem to be: " wa Talattuf Alfazak wa Ma'anik al-hisan "
and for the pleasingness of thy sayings and meanings so fine and fair. ST.]

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 47

was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to
say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How
sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delect-
able ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I
would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me
to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

anto

" I'm a Basin gold beautifies o For the hands of the great and the wise :
Abased l for the cleansing of palms, o Washing hands with the water of eyes."

Thereat he considered the ewer and saw inscribed upon it these
lines :

" O rare the Ewer's form whereon must dote o Our hearts and pupils of oui

eyes fain gloat :
Seems ferly fair to all admiring orbs o You seemly body wi' the slender

throat.''

And when he had finished washing his hands and had dried them
with the napkins he pointed at them and spoke these couplets ;

1 [The Arabic seems here to contain a pun, the consonantic outline of "Tasht"
' basin " being the same as of " Ushshat " = she was raining, sprinkling. ST.]

148 Supplemental Nights.

" Groweth my love a-heart and how to hide When o'er the plains of cheek

tear-torrents glide ?
\ veil what love these sobs and moans betray o With narrowed heart I spread

my patience wide.

Farer to the fountain, 1 flow these eyes o Nor seek from other source to be

supplied :

Who loveth, veil of Love his force shall reave, * For tears shall tell his secrets
unespied :

1 for the love of you ain bye -word grown, o My lords, and driven to the

Desert-side ;

While you in heart of me are homed, your home ; o And the heart-dweller
kens what there may bide."

When Prince Yusuf had finished his improvisation arid the poetry
which he produced, Princess Al-Hayfa bussed him upon the brow,
and he seeing this waxed dazed of his wits and right judgment
fled him and he fell fainting to the floor for a while of time. And
when he came to himself he pondered how she had entreated him
and his Passion would have persuaded him to do with her some-
what but Reason forbad and with her force he overcame himself.
After his improvising Al-Hayfa again saluted him on the front and
cried, " Indeed thou hast done well in thy words, O thou with
Crescent's brow ! " Presently she came for the table of wine and
filling a cup drank it off; then she crowned another goblet and
passed it to Yusuf who took it and kissed it while she improvised
some couplets as follows :

" Thy seduction of lips ne'er can I forbear o Nor deny love-confession for

charms so rare :
O thou aim of my eyes, how my longing stay ? o O thou tall of form and long

wavy hair?
Thy rose-hued cheek showeth writ new-writ 2 o Dimming wine my cups in thei

rondure bear."

And presently she added : 3

1 In Arab. " Ya Warid " : see vol. iii. 56.

2 The growing beard and whisker being compared with black letters on a white ground.

3 In the text these seven couplets form one quotation, although the first three rhyme
in uru and the second four in iru.

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 149

" I hid his phantom, by the Lord, but showed My looks the blush his scented

cheek had sent :
How veil the joy his love bestows, when I To blood-red 1 tears on cheek give

open vent,
When his uplighted cheek my heart entires As though a-morn in flame my

heart were pent ?
By Allah, ne'er my love for you I'll change o Though change my body and to

change consent."

And when Al-Hayfa had finished her improvisation and her
poetry, Yusuf drained the goblet and after kissing it returned it to
her ; but he was as one a-swoon. Then she took it from him and
he recovered and presently declaimed for her the following
couplets :

**A maiden in your tribe avails my heart with love to fire* o And how can I

a hidden bear the love my eyes declare ?
The branches of the sand-hill tree remember and recall o What time she softly

bent and showed a grace beyond compare ;
And taught me how those eyne o'erguard the roses of her cheek and knew

to ward them from the hand to cull her charms would dare."

1 This "diapedesis" of bloodstained tears is frequently mentioned in The Nights ;
and the " Bloody Sweat " is well-known by name. The disease is rare and few have
seen it, whilst it has a certain quasi-supernatural sound from the " Agony and bloody
sweat " in the Garden of Gethsemane. But the exudation of blood from the skin was
described by Theophrastus and Aristotle and lastly by Lucan in these lines :

Sic omnia membra

Emisere simul rutilum pro sanguine virus.
Sanguis erant lachrymae, etc.

Of Charles IX. of France Mezaray declares " Le sanr lui rejaillait par fa pores el tout
les conduits de son corps, but the superstitious Protestant holds this to be a "judgment."
The same historian also mentions the phenomenon in a governor condemned to die ; and
Lombard in the case of a general after losing a battle and a nun seized by banditti-
blood oozed from every pore. See Dr. Millingen's " Curiosities of Medical Experience,"
p. 485, London, Bentley, 1839.

a [I read this line : " Fi Hayyi-kum Taflatun|hs(ma M-Fawa'du H-ha" (Basft) " and trans-
late : In your clan there is a maiden of whom my heart is enamoured. In the beginning
of the next line the metre requires ' tazakkarat," which therefore refers to "Aghsun,"
not to the speaker : " the branches remember (and by imitating her movements show
that they remember) the time when she bent aside, and her bending, graceful beyond
compare, taught me that her eyes kept watch over the rose of her cheek and knew how
to protect it from him who might wish to cull it." This little gem of a Mawwll makef
me regret that so many of the snatches of poetry in this MS. are almost hopelessly
corrupted. ST.]

1 50 v Supplemental Nights.

As soon as Yusuf had finished his improvisation and what of
poetry he had produced, Al-Hayfa took seat by his side and fell
to conversing with him in sweetest words with softest smiles, the
while saying, " Fair welcome to thee, O wonder of beauty and
lovesome in eloquence and Oh charming in riant semblance and
lord of high degree and clear nobility : thou hast indeed illumined
our place with the light of thy flower-like forehead and to our
hearts joyance hast thou given and our cares afar hast thou driven
and eke our breasts hast made broad ; and this is a day of festival
to laud, so do thou solace our souls and drain of our wine with us
for thou art the bourne and end and aim of our intent." Then
Al-Hayfa took a cup of chrystal, and crowning it with clear-strained
wine which had been sealed with musk and saffron, she passed it
to Prince Yusuf. He accepted it from her albeit his hand trembled
from what befel him of her beauty and the sweetness of her poetry
and her perfection ; after which he began to improvise these
couplets :

" O thou who drainest thy morning wine o With friends in a bower sweet

blooms enshrine
Place unlike all seen by sight of man In the lands and gardens of best

design ,

Take gladly the liquor that quivers in cup o And elevates man, this clean Maid

of the Vine :
This goblet bright that goes round the room * Nor Chosroes held neither

Nu'uman's line.
Drink amid sweet flowers and myrtle's scent o Orange-bloom and Lily and

Eglantine,
And Rose and Apple whose cheek is dight *> In days that glow with a fiery

shine ;
'Mid the music of strings and musician's gear o Where harp and pipe with the

lute combine ;
An I fail to find her right soon shall I o Of parting perish foredeemed to die ! *

Then Al-Hayfa responded to him in the same rhyme and measure

;, * - . , itto&tseiftntQjftf

and spake to him as. follows :

' O thou who dealest In written line * Whose nature hiding shall e'er decline ;

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 151

And subdued by wine in its mainest might o Like lover drunken by strains

divine, 1
Do thou gaze on our garden of goodly gifts o And all manner blooms that in

wreaths entwine ;

See the birdies warble on every bough o Make melodious music the finest fine.
And each Pippet pipes' and each Curlew cries o And Blackbird and Turtle

with voice of pine ;

Ring-dove and Culver, and eke Haza*r, o And Kata* calling on Quail vicine ;
So fill with the mere and the cups make bright o With bestest liquor, that boon

benign ;
This site and sources and scents I espy With RizwaVs garden compare defy/

And when Al-Hayfa had ended her improvisation and what she
had spoken to him of poetry, and Yusuf had given ear to the
last couplet, he was dazed and amazed and he shrieked aloud and
waxed distraught for her and for the women that were beside
and about her, and after the cry he fell fainting to the ground.
But in an hour 3 he came to, when the evening evened and the
wax candles and the chandeliers were lighted, his desire grew
and his patience flew and he would have risen to his feet and
wandered in his craze but he found no force in his knees. So

he feared for himself and he remained sitting as before. And

1 In the text " Sima'a," lit. hearing, applied idiomatically to the ecstasy of Darwayshes
when listening to esoteric poetry.

1 The birds mentioned in the text are the " Kumri" (turtle-dove), the " Shabaytar "
[also called "Samaytar" and "Abu al-'Ayzar"= the father of the brisk one, a long-
necked water bird of the heron kind. ST.], the Shuhrur (in MS. Suhrur) = a blackbird i
[the Christians in Syria call St. Paul " Shuhrur al-Kanfsah," the blackbird of the Church,
on account of his eloquence. ST.], the " Karawan," crane or curlew (Charadriut
adicnemus) vol. vi. I ; the " Hazar," nightingale or bird of a thousand songs, vol. v.
48; the ' Hamim," ruffed pigeon, culver, vol. v. 49; the "Kali," or sandgrouse
vols. i. 131, if. in, etc. ; and the "Samman " or quail, Suppl. vol. vi. 66.
1 ' The "Si'ah," I may here remark, is the German Stunde> our old "Stound," some-
what indefinite but meaning to the good Moslem the spaces between prayer times. The
classical terms, Al-Zuha (undurn-hour, or before noon) and Maghrib = set of sun, become
in Badawi speech Al-Ghaylah = siesta-time and Ghaybat al-Shams. (Doughty, index.)

152 Supplemental Nights.

compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

" I left my home for a fair young maid o Whose love my night with its light

array'd ;
Yet wot I not what her name may be o Thus ignorance mating with union

forbade .

But when of her gifts I was certified Her gracious form the feat easy made ;
The King of Awe sent my steps to her o And to union with beauty vouchsafed

me aid :
Indeed disgrace ever works me shame o Tho' long, my longing to meet I'm

afraid."

When Al-Hayfa heard his name her great love to him waxed
greater. Then she took the lute upon her lap and caressed it with
her finger-tips when it sighed and sobbed and groaned and moaned 1
and she fell to singing these verses :

1 For the beautiful song of the lute, referred to here, see vol. viii. 281.

The L oves of A l-Hayfa and Yusuf. 1 5 3

" A thousand welcomes hail thy coming fain, o O Yusuf, dearling son of Sahl's

strain :
We read thy letter and we understood o Thy kingly birth from sand that told

it plain : '
I'm thine, by Allah, I the loveliest maid o Of folk and thou to be my husband

deign :
Bruit of his fair soft cheek my love hath won o And branch and root his beauty

grows amain :
He from the Northern Realms to us draws nigh o For King Mihrjan

bequeathing ban and bane ;
And I behold him first my Castle seek o As mate impelled by inspiration

.fain.
The land upstirs he and the reign he rules o From East to West, the King my

father slain ;
But first he flies us for no fault of ours o Upon us wasting senseless words and

vain:
E'en so Creation's Lord hath deigned decree, o Unique in Heaven glorified

be He!" 3

Now when Yusuf heard the words of Al-Hayfa he rejoiced with
exceeding joy and she was gladdened in like manner, after which
he gifted her with all that was upon him of gear and in similar
guise she doffed what dress was upon her and presented it to him. 8
Then she bade the slave girls bring her an especial suit and they
fetched her a second bundle and she clothed Yusuf with what was
therein of sumptuous clothes. After this the Prince abode with
Al-Hayfa as an inmate of her palace for a term of ten days in all
the happiness of life, eating and drinking and enjoying conjugal
intercourse. 4 Presently Almighty Allah (be He extolled and
exalted!) decreed that, when all tidings of Yusuf son of Sahl
were lost, his sire sent in search of him Yahya, 5 his cousin and the
son of his maternal aunt, amongst a troop of twenty knights to

1 Alluding to the "Takht Raml," table of sand, gcomantic table?

1 As before noted, her love enables her to deal in a somewhat of prophetic strain.

1 This scene may sound absurd ; but it is admirable for its materialism. How often
do youthful* lovers find an all-sufficient pastime in dressing themselves up and playing the
game of mutual admiration. It is well nigh worthy of that "silliest and best of love-
stories "Henrietta Temple.

4 The text bluntly says " Wa Nikah," which can mean nothing else.

> Scott calls him " Yiah" ; vi. 354.

1 54 Supplemental Nights.

track his trail and be taught his tidings until Allah (be He
glorified and magnified !) guided him to the pages who had been
left upon the river-bank. Here they had tarried for ten days
whilst the sunshine burnt them and hunger was exterminating
them ; and when they were asked concerning their lord, they gave
notice that he had swum the stream and had gone up to yonder
Castle and had entered therein. " And we know not (they ended)
whether he be alive or dead." So the lord Yahya said to them,
" Is there amongst you any will cross the current and bring us
news of him ? " but not one of them would consent and they
remained in silence and confusion. So he asked them a second
time and a third time yet none would rise up before him and
hearten him to attempt the dangers of the stream, whereupon he
drew forth his ink case of brass and a sheet of paper and he fell
to writing the following verses :

" This day I have witnessed a singular case o Of Yusuf scion to Sahl's dear

race :
Since he fared at undurn his sire was grieved o And the Palace remained but

an empty place :
I liken the youth to full moon 'mid stars o Disappearing and darkening Earth's

bright face.
J Tis my only fear that his heart is harmed, o Brent by Love-fires lacking of

mercy and grace :
By Allah, albeit man's soul thou rule o Among stranger folk thou art but

an ace ! "

Presently he took a reed and grasping it thrust thereinto the
twisted and folded paper, after which he stopped the hole with
wax ; then, lashing it to the surface of the shaft, he set it upon the
bow-handle and drew the string and shot the bolt in the direction
of the Castle, whither it flew and fell at the foot of the staircase
beside the main entrance. It so fortuned at that time a slave-
girl came forth to fill her pitcher with water and she found the
arrow and picked it up and carried it to her lady who was sitting
in the speak-room at converse with Yusuf. Hereupon the Prince

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. I $$

hent the reed in hand and broke it and drew forth the paper which
he opened and read and comprehended. Hereupon he wept with
exceeding great weeping until he fell to the floor a-faint and the
Princess took the note from his grasp and perused it, and it was
hard upon her, so she bade them beat the slave-girl who brought
the writ with an hundred blows and they bastinadoed, her till
she lost her senses. But when Yusuf recovered, he thought of his
pages and his people and his homestead and his family and he
cried to Al-Hayfa, " Wallahi, I have sinned with a great sin when
I left my suite in the desert ; and Satan garred me forget them
and the wine made me mindless of them and banished from my
thought my folk and my home. And now 'tis my desire to fare
and look upon my pages and to forgather with Yahya my cousin,
the son of the King's sister and greet them and dismiss them to their
homesteads, after which I will return to thee forthright." Quoth
she, " By Allah, I may not patient myself away from thee a single
hour otherwise shall my spirit depart my body, and I conjure thee
by the Almighty that thou bid me return to them a reply 1 "
Quoth Prince Yusuf, " What news wilt thou give them ? An thou
say that I never came to thee none will believe ; for indeed my
pages saw me passing into thy Palace -- And Shahrazad was
surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is
thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable I "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With

156 Supplemental Nights.

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting,
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Prince
Yusuf said to the Princess Al-Hayfa, " Indeed my pages saw me
passing into the Palace and have given him * tidings to that effect;"
And she responded to him with fairest response and tenderness of
terms and gem-like verse. Then she took her ink-case and" paper
and a brazen pen and would have written but he forbade her, say-
ing by way of deprecation, " This be not the right rede ! An thou
return a reply my slaves will take it and will bear it to my native
country and will inform the folk of all our adventure : 'tis better
far that I fare to them myself and greet them and going with them
to my own country satisfy my sire, after which I will return to thee
in hottest haste. And do not thou on this wise, for we fear lest
our affair be made public and this our case be reported to thy royal
father, and it prove hard to him by reason that all such talk in the
case of the Kings is to them mighty grievous. Moreover, when he
shall be acquainted with the truth he will either transport thee to
his presence or he shall place over this Palace guards who may
forbid thee from me and forbid me from thee, and this shall be a
cause of our separation each from other." But Al-Hayfa shrieked
aloud when she heard these words and wept and wailing said, " O
my lord, prithee take me with thee, me and my handmaids and all
that be in this my Palace." Said he, " I will not delay from thee
save for the space of my wayfare an I live and Allah Almighty
preserve me." Hereat she wept with loud weeping and groaned,
and love-longing surged up* in her and she fell to repeating the
following couplets :

" Rain, O mine eyeballs, gouts of blood beshed o From clouds of eyelids e'en as

grass turns red .
O mighty bane that beatest on my bones o And oh heart-core, that melts with

fire long-fed !

1 Arab. " Akhbarti.hu," alluding to the lord Yahya."

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 157

My soul's own dearling speedeth on his march o Who can be patient when

his true love sped?
Deal kindly with my heart, have ruth, return o Soon to my Castle nor be long

misled."

And when Al-Hayfa had ended her verse, Yusuf wept with sore
weeping and cried, " By Allah, I had intended to return to thee
after I had fared to them and had settled the matter in hand. But
suffer me dismiss those who have come for me and seek reunion with
thee, Inshallah an it be the will of Allah Almighty." Then he
farewelled her and doffed what he had of dress, and when Al-Hayfa
asked him, " Wherefore take off these clothes ? " he answered l " I
will not inform anyone of our news, and indeed this dress mostly
befitteth womenkind." Then he went forth from her with a grief-
bound heart and she wept and cried, " Help ! Help ! " 2 and all
her women shrieked and shed tears over parting with him. But
as soon as Yusuf passed out of the palace-door he took off the
gown which was upon him and turband'd it around his head
together with his bow and quiver, and he stinted not to stem the
stream until he had reached the further bank where he found and
greeted the lord Yahya and his Mamelukes. They all kissed his
hand, and his cousin enquired of him, " What is the cause of thy
disappearing from these thy men for a space of ten days ? " He
replied, " By Allah, O son of my aunt, when I went up to yonder
Palace, I found there a Youth of the sons of the kings, who wel-
comed and greeted me as a guest and honoured me with the
highmost honour and favoured me with the fullest favour. But
when I would have taken leave of him, the air smote me 8 and fell
upon my loins and laid me up so that I feared to swim the stream

1 Here I presume a "Kila" (quoth he) is omitted; for the next sentence seems
appropriate to Yusuf.

* In Arab. " Tastaghis" = lit. crying out " Wa Ghausih ! "Ho, to my aid !

3 The "Zug" or draught which gave him rheumatism not a romantic complaint for
a young lover. See vol. ii. 9. But his power of sudden invention is somewhat enviable,
and lying is to him, in Hindustani phrase, ' easy s drinking water."

158 Supplemental Nights.

and the unease that was upon me increased, and such is the reason
of my delaying away from you." Then he took horse together
with Yahya and the pages, and they all sought their homes and
'cut across the wilds and the wastes and the vales and the
stony hills until they drew near to their destination and their city
rose clear before eyes of them. As soon as they reached it the tidings
"were told to King Sahl * who made ready for faring forth, he and
the lords of his land, to meet and greet his son and heir Yusuf ;
and meanwhile he bade decorate the capital with the choicest
decorations and ornaments and adornments. The lieges gave one
another joy of their Prince's safe return, and clothed their city in
gala-guise, and the father having met the son alighted from his
steed and embraced him and kissed him between the eyes, and
personally conducting him up to the Palace did him due honour
and largessed him ; and so great and lasting was their joy that the
day of arrival became high holiday. As soon as night fell, Prince
Yusuf repaired to his own Palace where he was met by his mother
and his women who were as full moons a-rising ; and the spouses
numbered three, besides forty concubines. However he turned
away from them and he lay alone that night moaning even as
moaneth the dove for the loss of her mate ; and he regarded not
one of those wives and lemans, and he passed the dark hours in
brooding over the loss of his beloved, and in weeping and in the

reciting of poetry, And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn

of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!" Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive?" Now
when it was the next night and that was

1 Who evidently ignored or had forgotten the little matter of the concubine, so that
incident was introduced by the story-teller for mere wantonness.

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 159

vTfic Sbfo IDunluctJ anto (irtgbnj- second Xtgljt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Yusuf passed
the night weeping and improvising verse, but he let not fall a word
of explanation fearing lest he divulge his secret ; and his spouses
supposed that he was wroth with his sire and knew not what there
was in his vitals of exceeding desire to Al-Hayfa. But when
brake the day he was roused and gazing upon the rise of awaking
Dawn he pondered the happy mornings which had passed ; so he
wept and complained and moaned like the culver and he fell to
reciting these couplets :

44 No joy but you in house and home I know o Save bitter heart and tears that
ever flow ;

Nor with mine eyes I view aught save yourselves Whenas in lowe of love-
desire I glow :

My heart enjoys but gust and greed for you, o Mine eyelids own no joy save
wake and woe :

O blaming me for them, avpunt, by God o Nor leave me fancy-free, worst gift
of foe!"

And when Yusuf has finished his poetry he fell into a fainting tit

and he quivered as quivereth the fowl with cut throat, 1 and he came
not to himself save when the sun had arisen arraying the lowlands
with its rays. Then he waxed wood and sat with eyes at the ground,
a-gazing and not accosting anyone nor answering aught, and lastly
he took to his pillow. These tidings presently reached the King
his father, who accompanied by the Lords of his land came to him

I In text " Mazbuh " = slaughtered for food..

160 Supplemental Nights.

and after greeting him said, " O my son, whom I would ransom
with my life, what contagion hath come upon thee of disease,
and whereof dost thou complain ? " Quoth he, " O my father, the
air hath struck me and hath cut my joints," l and quoth his father,
*' O my son, Almighty Allah vouchsafe ease thee of this thy
disease." Then the King mounted and went forth from him, and
sent a leach which was a Jew 2 of wits penetrating and sagacious.
The man went in to him, and sitting beside him felt his joints and
asked him of his case ; but he held his peace nor would return
aught of reply. So the Israelite knew that he was a lover and in
the depths of love bedrowned ; accordingly he left him and told the
King that the Prince had no complaint save that he was a hot
amourist and distraught of vitals. Hereupon his mother came to
Yusuf and said, " O my son, fear Almighty Allah for thy soul, and
have some regard for thy wives and concubines and yield not to
thy passions which will mislead thee from the path of Allah."
But he deigned not answer her. In this condition he remained
until three days sped, taking no taste of meat or drink, nor finding
pleasure in any stead, nor aught of rest a-bed. Presently he bade
summon a Mameluke of the Mamelukes Hilal hight, and asked
him, " O Hilal, say me wilt thou be my companion in travel ? "
whereto the other answered, " Yea, verily, O my lord, to hear is
to obey thee in all thou devisest and desirest." Hereupon the
Prince bade him saddle a steed of the purest blood, whose name
was " The-Bull-aye-ready~and-for-Battk-day-steady" 3 a beast which

1 i.e. " I suffer from an acute attack of rheumatism "a complaint common in even
the hottest climates.

2 Needless to say that amongst Moslems, as amongst Christians, the Israelite medicine-
man has always been a favourite, despite an injunction in the " Dinim " (Religious Con-
siderations) of the famous Andalusian Yusuf Caro. This most fanatical work, much
studied at Tiberias and Safet (where a printing-press was established in the xvith cen-
tury) decides that a Jewish doctor called to attend a Goi (Gentile) too poor to pay him is
bound to poison his patient if he safely can.

3 Lit. " The Bull-(Taur for Thaur or Saur)-numbered-and-for-battle-day-lengthened."
In p. 30 this charger is called. "The-bull-that-spurneth-danger-on battle-day." See

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 16*1

was a bye-word amongst the folk. The Prince waited until the
firsjt third of the night had gone by when he mounted the courser
and placed Hilal his Mameluke upon the crupper, and they cut
once more the wilds and the wastes until they sighted hard-by the
river Al-Kawa'ib and the Castle of Al-Hayfa rising from its waters.
Hereupon Yusuf fell to the ground in a swoon, and he when he
recovered said to Hilal, " Do thou ungirth the horse's saddle and
hide it within the cave amid the rocks ; " and the Mameluke did as
he was bidden and returned to him. Herewith Prince Yusuf tur-
band'd himself with his clothes and those of his man, and backing
the horse bade Hilal hang on by its tail, then the beast breasted
the stream and ceased not swimming with them until it reached
the farther side. There Yusuf dismounted and knocked at the door
when a confidential handmaid established in the good graces of her
mistress, 1 came down and threw it open, after which she embraced
him and kissed his hands and his breast and his brow between the
eyes. Then she ran up and informed thereof her lady who with
wits bedazed for excess of joy hurried down to him and threw her
arms round his neck, and he threw his arms round hers, and she
clasped him to her bosom, and he clasped her to his, and he kissed
her and she kissed him, and they exchanged accolades, after which
they both of them fell fainting to the floor until the women who
stood by thought that they had been reaped by Death, and that
their latest hour had been doomed. But when they recovered
from their swoon they complained and wept, each lamenting to
other the pains of parting, and lastly she asked him concerning
Hilal, and he answered, " This is a Mameluke of the number of my
Mamelukes. So she marvelled how two men had come upon one

vol. vi. 270 for a iimilar compound name, TJie-Ghut-who-catttk'man-wt-pray-AUah'for.
faftty.

1 In text " Al.Jariyah radih, " the latter word being repeated in p. 282, where it is
Radih a P.N. [Here also I would take it for a P.N., for if it were adjective to
"al-Jariyah " it thould have the article. ST.]
VOL. V.

1 62 Supplemental Nights.

horse, 1 and quoth she to him, " O Yusuf, thou hast indeed tortured
me with thine absence ; " and quoth he to her, " By Allah (and
beside Him God there is none !) my hand never touched or woman
or aught of feminine kind or of she-Jinn or Jinn kind, but in
me desire for thee ever surged up, and wake and in vitals a fiery
ache." Then the Princess bade her handmaids wend with Hilal in
a body to the garden, and when they obeyed her bidding she arose

and walked forth with Yusuf. And Shahrazad was surprised by

dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say*
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, <k How sweet and tasteful is thy
story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth
she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate to you
on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now
when it was the next night and that was

fje g>ix f^unton anto lEigfrtg-fourt!) jBi$t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting, and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Al-Hayfa
walked forth with Yusuf and led him to the saloon of session where
they passed their day in privacy, he and she, and right joyous was
the joy of them twain. After this the Prince abode with her thirty
full-told days in merriment prime and pleasure and wine. But
when that time had elapsed, she said to him, " O light of my eyes,
do thou arise and go up with me to the highmost post of the
Palace that we may look upon this flow of stream and command
a view of these mounts and mountains and these wilds and valleys

1 The " Radif," or back-rider, is common in Arabia, esp. on dromedaries when going
to the Razzia : usually the crupper-man loads the matchlock and his comrade fires it.

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 163

wherein wander the gazelles." Thereupon the twain fared together
and solaced themselves with the spectacle of the antelopes browsing
on the desert growth, when quoth Al-Hayfa, " Ah, O my lord,
would I had for captive one of these herding roes to keep
beside me in the Palace," and quoth he, " By the rights of thine
eyes, and the night of their pupils, I indeed will fill the place with
them." Hereupon he went forth from her in haste, albeit she hung
on to him and forbade him from that, and she invoked upon herself
a mighty strong invocation, yet would he not be stayed, but taking
his horse and saddling it he left his Mameluke Hilal in the Castle
and swam the stream upon his steed, and rode through the wold in
quest of the gazelles. He ceased not chasing them till he had
taken three, 1 which he tied fast and slung upon his courser and rode
back until he had reached the river-bank, and Al-Hayfa sat looking
at him as he pounced upon and snatched up the roes from his
courser's back like a lion and she wondered with extreme wonder-
ment. But when he had made .sure of his place on the water-side
and purposed returning to the palace, lo and behold ! he saw a
batel a manned by sundry men coming towards him down-stream
from the direction of his capital. Now Al-Hayfa, who was in her
bower, expected the craft to be sent, bearing rarities and presents,
by her sire King Al-Mihrjan ; and Yusuf, when he looked upon
its approach, was certified that it came from her father. So he
delayed going down to the river till he had seen what action might
be taken by the batel, but when the Princess sighted it she made
sure of its coming from her sire, so she bade bring paper for note
and a pen of brass wrought wherewith she wrote in verse and lastly
indited to Yusuf these couplets :

" O my need, thou hast left me a-field to fare When come is a craft which our
men doth bear:

1 The text has " thirty," evidently a clerical error.
' Arab. "Sakhtfir" for " Shakhtur," vol. vil.362.

164 Supplemental Nights.

I deem she be sent by Al-Mihrjdn o And it bringeth of provaunt a goodly

share :
So loiter a little, then back to us * And obey my bidding, O Beauty rare. " *

Then she made fast the paper to a shaft and setting it upon a
bow-handle drew the string aiming high in air, and the arrow fell
between the feet of the Prince, who seeing it took it up and read
the writ and comprehended its meaning and full significance.
So he hung back and he turned to wandering amongst the
mountains, but anon he said in himself, " There is no help but
that I discover this matter." Then he dismounted from his steed
and stabled it in a cave hard-by, and having loosed the antelopes
he propped himself against a rock and fell to gazing upon the
batel, which ceased not floating down until it made fast at the
Palace gate. Hereupon there issued from it a youth, singular of
comeliness, whom Al-Hayfa greeted and embraced, and forth-
right led within her Palace. Presently came forth from the batel
the four pages that were therein, and amongst them was a man
hight Mohammed ibn Ibrahim, one of the King's cup-companions,
whereas the youth she had embraced was her cousin, named
Sahlub, the son of her maternal aunt. But when Yusuf looked
upon this lover-like reception, his wits were wildered and the
sparks started from his eyes, and he deprecated and waxed
care-full and indeed he was like one Jinn-mad, and he cried,
" Wallahi, I will stay away from them this night and see whatso
they do." Now Al-Hayfa had left her trusty handmaid at the
Palace gate, saying to her, " Tarry here alone : haply Yusuf shall
return during the dark hours, when do thou open to him the
door." Then she returned to her guests and bade serve the table
of wine and seated Sahlub and Ibn Ibrahim, and took seat
between them after she had hidden the Mameluke Hilal in a
closet and she had disposed of the pages about the Palace-sides.
Then they fell to drinking wine. Such was the case with these ;

1 Doggerel fit only for the coffee-house.

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 165

but as regards Yusuf, he took patience until the dark hours drew
near, when he swam the stream and he came forth it to the Palace-
door, at which he knocked a light knock. Hereupon the porter-
handmaiden opened to him and he accosted her and questioned
her concerning her lady, and was told that she was sitting with
her cousin and the prime favourite and cup-companion of her
sire. So quoth he to the girl, " Say me, canst thou place me in
some commanding place that I may look upon them ? " and she
did accordingly, choosing a site whence he might spy them
without being espied. He gazed at them as one distraught,
while Al-Hayfa engaged them in converse and improvised verse
to them ; and this was so distressful to him that at last he asked
the slave-girl, " Say me, hast thou by thee ink-case and paper ? "

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell

silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her
sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And
where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the
coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night and that was

<T()r ifi }Dunluc& an& l=ig&tii-sixtj) Xigbt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale, that we may cut

short the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied :

With love and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious
King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is
benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating,
that Prince Yusuf took from the handmaid the pen case and
paper, and waxing void of sense through jealousy, fell to writing
the following couplets :

'* Indeed I deemed you of memory true o And our hearts as one that had once
been two;

1 66 Supplemental Nights.

But I found to my sorrow you kept no pact : Q This much and you fain of
unfaith I view.

Ill eye ne'er looketh on aught but Icve o Save when the lover is hater too.

You now to another than us incline o And leave us and homeward path
pursue ;

And if such doings you dare gainsay, o I can summon witness convicting you ;

To the Lion, wild dogs from the fount shall drive o And shall drink them-
selves, is none honour due.

That I'm not of those who a portion take o In love, O Moslems, I know
ye knew."

This done, he folded the paper and gave it to the slave-girl
crying, "Say me, dost thou know where be Hilal?" and as she
replied " Yes," he told her to fetch him. So she went and brought
him, and when he came his lord dismissed the girl on some
pretext; then he opened the Castle-door and turband'd himself
with his gear and that of his Mameluke, and the twain went
down to the river and swam the stream until they reached the
other side. When they stood on terra firma, the Prince found
his horse and saddled and mounted him, taking Hilal upon the
crupper, and rode forth to his own country. Such was the case
with Yusuf ; but as regards Al-Hayfa, when she awoke a-morn,
she asked of her lover and her handmaid handed to her the
letter ; so she took it and read it and mastered its meaning and
significance, after which she wept with excessive weeping until
she fainted and the blood issued from her eyes. Presently she
came to herself and dismissed Sahlub and his companions ; then
she said to Ibn Ibrahim, " Rise thou and depart our presence ;
haply some wight may come to us and swim the stream and pass
into the Palace." But Ibn Ibrahim remained behind while
Sahlub departed with those about him ; and when they had left
the company, Al-Hayfa asked, " O Ibn Ibrahim, say me, canst
thou keep my secret and my being fascinate 1 by love ? " and he
answered, " Yea, verily, O my lady, how should I not conceal

- l In text Ta'ayyun " = influence, especially by the " 'Ayn," or (Evil) Eye.

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 167

it for thee, when thou art my mistress and princess and the
daughter of my master, even though I keep it inside mine eyes ? "
So she continued, " O Ibn Ibrahim, there came to me a youth
named the Veiled Yusuf of Beauty, son of King Sahl, Sovran
of Sind ; and I waxed enamoured of him and he waxed enamoured
of me, and he abode with me two score of days. One day of
the days, quoth I to him : Come up with me to the Palace-roof
that we may gaze upon the view, when we saw from its height
a herd of gazelles, and I cried : Ah that I had one of these !
Hereat said he, By Allah, and by the life of thine eyes and by
the blackness of their pupils, I will in very deed fill thy Palace
therewith ; and with such words he went forth and saddled his
steed and swam the river to the further side, where he rode down
three roes within sight of me. Then I looked city-ward up stream
and saw a batel cleaving the waters, whereby I knew that my
father had sent me somewhat therein ; so I wrote to the Prince
and shot the paper bound to a shaft and bade him hide away
from your faces until ye should have departed. So he concealed
himself within a cave where he tethered his horse, then he sought
tidings of me, and seeing my cousin Sahlub, he was seized by
jealousy. So he lingered till yesternight, when he again swam
the stream and came to the Palace where I had posted Rddih,
the handmaid, bidding her take seat beside the door lest haply
he should enter ; and presently she opened to him and he sought
a place commanding a sight of us, and he saw me sitting with
you twain, and both of you were carousing over your wine. Now
this was sore to him ; so he wrote to me yonder note, and taking
his Mameluke with him, fafed forth to his own folk ; and my
desire is that you hie to him." 1 And Shahrazad was surprised

1 I have somewhat abridged ihe confession of the Princess, who carefully repeats
every word known to the reader. This iteration is no objection in the case of a coffee*
house audience to whom the tale is told bit by bit, but it is evidently unsuited for
reading.

1 68 Supplemental Nights.

by the dawn of day, and fell silent and ceased to say her per-
mitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy
story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth
she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate to
you on the coming night, an the King suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

anfc (Stgfitg.-iscbcntf) Nfgfjt,

DUNYAZAD said to her " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that quoth Al-Hayfa
to Ibn Ibrahim, " I devise that thou hie to Yusuf with this letter ; "
whereto quoth he, " Hearkening is obedience : I will, however,
take this thy writ and wend with it first to my own folk, after
which I will mount my horse and fare to find him." So she
largessed him with an hundred gold pieces and entrusted to him
the paper which contained the following purport in these
couplets :

" What state of heart be this no ruth can hoard ? o And harm a wretch to

whom none aid accord,
But sobs and singulfs, clouds that rain with tears o And seas aye flowing and

with gore outpour'd ;
And flames that rage in vitals sickness-burnt o-The while in heart-core I enfold

them stor'd.
Yet will I hearten heart with thee, O aim ! o O Ravisher, O Moslems' bane

ador'd' :
Ne'er did I look for parting but 'twas doomed o By God Almighty of all the

lords the Lord."

Then Mohammed Ibn Ibrahim took the paper and Al-Hayfa said
to him, " Ho thou ! Inform none that thou wast sitting beside me
on that night." Then he went forth until he drew near his folk

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 169

and there he mounted a she-dromedary and pushed her pace until
he arrived at the capital of Sind. He asked for the son of the
King; and when they had directed him thereto he entered and
found the Prince in privacy ; so he kissed hands and gave him the
writ which he took and opened and read. But when he had
comprehended its object and purport, he turned and returned it
with stern regards until he had well nigh torn it to tatters. Then
he threw it to Ibn Ibrahim who said to him, " O lord of the Time
and the Tide, 'tis not on this wise that the sons of the Kings cast
away an address without returning aught of reply." Quoth he,
" There is no response from me," and quoth Ibn Ibrahim, " O
King of the Age, pity that thou mayest be pitied ! " ! Hereupon
the Prince called for pen-case and paper of note and pen of
brass wrought * and wrote in reply to her poetry the following
couplets :

"Al-Hayfi with verses a-tip of tongue o Comes suing mercy for love so

strong :
She hath no mercy fro* me, but still o She pleadeth a plea that our love was

long:
She falsed, turned face, doubted, recked her naught o And her hard false

heart wrought me traitor's wrong :
Were my heart now changed her love to woo She with quick despisal my

bean had stung :
Were my eyne to eye her, she'd pluck them out o With tip of fingers before

the throng :
Soft and tranquil life for her term she seeks While with hardness and harsh-

ness our souls are wrung."

Then Yusuf folded the paper and handed it to Ibn Ibrahim and
ordered him a robe of honour and an hundred dinars. So he
took them and rode forth until he drew near the Palace of Al-
Hayfa, when he tethered his dromedary and hid her in a cave
whose mouth he walled with stones. Then he went down to the

1 In text " Irham turbaro :" this is one of the few passive verb* still used to
popular parlance.
' This formula will be in future suppressed.

170 Supplemental Nights.

river and swam it till he reached the other side ; and entering
into the presence of Al-Hayfa he drew forth the paper and com-
mitted it to her. But she, after perusing it, wept with sore
weeping and groaned until she swooned away for excess of tears
and for the stress of what had befallen her. Such was the effect
of what she had read in the letter, and she knew not what might
be the issue of all this affair and she was perplext as one drunken
without wine. But when she recovered she called for pen-case and
paper, and she wrote these improvised couplets :

"O Lord of folk, in our age alone o And O Raper of hearts from the bonny

and boon :
I have sent to thee 'plaining of Love's hard works * And my plaint had

softened the hardest stone :
Thou art silent all of my need in love * And with shafts of contempt left me

prone and strown.''

And after she had ended writing she folded her note and gave it
to Ibn IbVahim who took it, and cried to his slaves, " Saddle my
she-dromedary/' after which he mounted and fared until he had"
made the city of Sind. Then he repaired to Yusuf and after
greetings handed the letter to him, but the Prince after perusing
it * threw it in his face, and presently rose and would have left
him. But Ibn Ibrahim followed him and heard him say to his
pages, " Send him back without beating him," and they did
accordingly, after forbidding him the place. So he again bestrode
his she-camel and ceased not pushing on till he arrived at the
Palace of Al-Hayfa where he presented himself in her presence. 2

1 I spare my readers the full formula : " Yiisuf took it and brake the seal (fazza-hu)
and read it and comprehended its contents and purport and significance : and, after
perusing it," etc. These forms, decies repetitce^ may go down with an Eastern atidience,
but would be intolerable in a Western volume. The absence of padding, however,
reduces the story almost toa patchwork of doggerel rhymes, for neither I nor any man
can " make a silk purse from a suille ear."

2 Here again in full we have : "He mounted the she-camel and fared and ceased
not faring until he drew near to the Palace of Al-Hayfa", where he dismounted and con-
cealed his dromedary within the same cave. Then he swam the stream until he had
reached the Castle and here he landed and appeared before Al-Hayfa," etc.

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 171

But when he handed to her the writ she found it was that very
same she had sent to the Prince, so she wept and sorrow was sore
upon her and presently she cried, "O Ibn Ibrahim! what's to
do ? " He replied, " When I delivered thy writ to him, he brake
its seal and read it and threw it in my face : then he rose in wrath
from beside me, and as I followed he bade his slaves and pages
drive me away, adding: I have for her nor answer nor address ;
and this was all he did." When the Princess heard his words,
she felt the matter to be grievous, and she wept unknowing how
she should act, and fainted for awhile, and when she recovered
she said, '' O Ibn Ibrahim, what is this affair and on what wise
shall I behave ? Do thou advise me in my case ; and haply joy
shall come to me from thy hand, for that thou be a Counsellor of
the Kings and their boon-companion. 1 ' " O my lady," he replied,
"do thou not cut off thy tidings from him and haply shall
Almighty Allah change his heart from case to case and per-
adventure insistance overcometh hindrance." * Quoth she, " Had
he sent me a reply I had been rightly directed as to what
I should write, but now I wot not what to indite, and if
this condition long endure I shall die" "Address him again,"
answered he, "and I will fare back once more and fain would
I ransom thee with my life, nor will I return without a

reply." And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and

fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her
sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And
where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the
coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? Now when it
was the next night and that was

1 " 'Tis dogged as doe* it " was the equivalent expression of our British Aristotle, the
late Charles Darwin.

172 Supplemental Nights*

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Ibn Ibrahim
said to Al-Hayfa, " Do thou write to him and there is no help but
that I return to thee with a reply, albe life depart from me."
Then she asked for pen-case and paper and thereon indited the
following couplets :

" Ah would thou knew what I of parting dree o When all my hiddens show for

man to see ;
Passion and longing, pine and lowe o' love o Descend surcharged on the head

of me :
God help the days that sped as branches lopt o I spent in Garden of

Eternity. 1
And I of you make much and of your love o By rights of you, while dearest

dear be ye : 2
May Allah save you, parted though we be, o While bide I parted all

unwillingly :
Then, O my lord, an come thou not right soon o The tomb shall home me for

the love of thee."

And when she had written her reply, she largessed Ibn Ibrahim
with an hundred dinars, after which he returned 3 to the capital of
Sind, where he found Yusuf issuing forth to hunt ; so he handed
to him the letter, and the Prince returning citywards set apart for

1 Arab. " Jannat al-Khuld "= the Eternal Garden : vol. ix. 214.

2 [I read : Wa innf la-ar'akum wa ar'a widada-kum, wa-hakki-kumu antum a'azzu
'1-Wara 'and! = And I make much of you and of your love ; by your rights (upon me,
formula of swearing), you are to me the dearest of mankind. ST.]

3 In text : " He swam the stream and bestrode his she-camel."

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 173

him a fair apartnient and spent the livelong night asking anent
Al-Hayfa. And when it was morning he called for pen-case and
paper whereupon he wrote these improvised couplets :

" You dealt to us a slender dole our love mote satisfy, o Yet nor my gratitude

therefor nor laud of me shalt gain :
I'm none of those console their hearts by couplets or by verse o For breach of

inner faith by one who Hefly breaks the chain :
When so it fortunes she I love a partner gives to me o I wone in single bliss

and let my lover love again :
Take, then, what youth your soul desires ; with him forgather, for o I aim not

at your inner gifts nor woo your charms I deign :
You set for me a mighty check of parting and ill-will o In public fashion and

a-morn you dealt me bale and bane :
Such deed is yours and ne'er shall it, by Allah satisfy o A boy, a slave of

Allah's slaves who still to slave is fain."

Then Prince Yusuf robed Ibn Ibrahim in a robe of green ; and
giving him an hundred gold pieces, entrusted him with the letter
which he carried to Al-Hayfa and handed it to her. She brake
the seal and read it and considered its contents, whereupon she
wept with sore weeping which ended in her shrieking aloud ; and
after she abode perplext as to her affair and for a time she found
no sweetness in meat and drink nor was sleep pleasant to her for
the stress of her love-longing to Yusuf. Also her nature tempted
her to cast herself headlong from the terrace of the Palace ; but
Ibn Ibrahim forbade her saying, " Do thou write to him replies,
time after time ; haply shall his heart be turned and he will return
unto thee." So she again called for writing materials and indited
these couplets, which came from the very core of her heart :

"Thou art homed in a heart nothing else shall invade ; o Save thy love and

thyself naught shall stay in such stead ;
O thou, whose brilliancy lights his brow, o Shaped like sandhill-tree with his

locks for shade,
Forbid Heaven my like to aught else incline o Save you whose beauties none

like display f d :
Art thou no amongst mortals a starless moon o O beauty the dazzle of day

hath array'd ?

1 74 Supplemental Nights.

These she committed * to Ibn Ibrahim who rode again on his route
and forgathered with Prince Yusuf and gave him the letter, whose
contents were grievous to him ; so he took writing materials and
returned a reply in the following verses :

" Cease then to carry missives others write, o O Son of Ibrahim, shun silly

plight :
I'm healed of longing for your land and I o Those days forget and daysters

lost to sight :
Let then Al-Hayfa" learn from me I love o Distance from her and furthest

earthly site.
No good in loving when a rival shows o E'en tho' 'twere victual shared by

other wight ;
These modes and fashions never mind arride o Save him unknowing of hfe

requisite."

Then he entrusted the writ to Ibn Ibrahim, after giving him an
hundred dinars, and he fared forth and ceased not faring till he
had reached the palace of the Princess. Presently he went in and
handed to her the writ, and as soon as she had read it, the contents
seemed to her sore and she wept until her vitals were torn with
sobs. After this she raised her hand 2 heavenwards and invoked
Allah and humbled herself before him and said, " My God, O my
Lord, do Thou soften the heart of Yusuf ibn Sahl and turn* him
mewasds and afflict him with love of me even as thou hast
afflicted me with his love ; for Thou to whatso Thou wishest canst
avail, O bestest of Rulers and O forcefullest of Aiders." Anon
she fell to writing and indited these verses :

"Love rules my bosom and a-morn doth moan & The Voice, ah Love, who

shows strength weakness grown !
His lashes' rapier-blade hath rent my heart ; * That keen curved brand my me

hath overthrown ;
That freshest cheek-rose fills me with, desire ; o Fair fall who plucketh yonder

bloom new-blown !

1 In text " Then she folded the letter and after sealing it," etc.
8 Not "her hands" after Christian fashion.

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 175

Since love befel me for that youth did I o Begin for charms of him my pride

to own :
O thou my hope, I swear by Him did share o Love and decreed thou shouldst

in longing wone,
In so exceeding grief why sight I thee o Jacob made Joseph by the loss

of me?"

She then handed the letter to Ibn Ibrahim, after giving him an
hundred dinars ; and he returned forthright to the city of Sind
and, repairing to Yusuf, gave him the writ which he took and read.
Hereupon the Prince waxed sore sorrowful and said to himself, ' By
Allah, indeed Al-Hayfa cleaveth to love." -- And Shahrazad was
surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is
thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

anto igmetg-fitst

"O thou of stature fair with waist full slight 1 o Surpassing sandhill-branch

and reedlet light ;
I deal in words and gems of speech that melt, o By none 'mid all of mortal

kind indite ;

ID text, Ahyaf," alluding lo Al-Hayfa.

1 76" Supplemental Nights.

From my tribe's lord, a lion rending foes o Moon of Perfections and ' The

Yusuf' night:
Homed in thy home I joyed my joys with maids o High-breasted, 1 virgins

weakening forceful sprite ;
Your songs and touch of lute 'mid trembling wine o Consoled all sorrows,

made all hearts delight,
Till you to other deigned union grant o And I your nature learnt and learnt

aright,
Whereat my vitals failed, sore bane befel, o Pine, disappointment, and

injurious blight.
No virtue dwelleth in the fairest forms o But forms the fairest are by goodness

dight.
How many a maiden deckt with crescent brow o Hath nature dealing injury

and despite ?
Man hath no merit save in kindly mind o And loquent tongue with light of

wits unite." 2

And when Yusuf had ended his poetry he presented an hundred
dinars to Ibn Ibrahim, who took the letter and fell to cutting
through the wilds and the wolds, after which he went in to the
presence of Al-Hayfa and gave her the missive. She wept and
wailed and cried, " O Ibn Ibrahim, this letter is indeed softer than
all forewent it ; and as thou hast brought it to me, O Ibn Ibrahim,
I will largesse thee with two honourable robes of golden brocade
and a thousand dinars." So saying, she called for pen-case and
paper whereupon she indited these couplets :

" O my lord, these words do my vitals destroy, o O thou gem of the earth and

full moon a-sky !
How long this recourse to denial and hate With heart whose hardness

no rocks outvie ?
Thou hast left my spirit in parting-pangs And in fires of farness that flame

on high :
How long shall I 'plain of its inner pains ? * Haps thy grace shall grant me

reunion-joy :
Then pity my vitals and whatso homed * Thy form within me before

I die.*'

1 Arab. " Al-Kawa'ib," also P. N. of the river.

* This is moralising with a witness, and all it means is " handsome is that handsome
does."

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 177

She then handed the paper to Ibn Ibrahim who again set out and
sought the Prince and kissed his hand and gave him the letter ;
whereupon said he, " O Ibn Ibrahim, come not thou again bringing
me aught of missive ever or any more after this one." Quoth Ibn
Ibrahim, "Wherefore, O my lord, shall I not do on such wise ?"
and quoth Yusuf, " Suffer her to learn the fates of menkind."
Said the other, ' I conjure thee, by Allah Almighty, ho thou
the King, inasmuch as thou art of the seed of mighty monarchs,
disappoint her not of her question ; and Allah upon thee, unless
thou show pity to her heart it haply will melt away with melan-
choly and love and madness for thy sake ; and all of this is for
the truth of her affection." Hereupon Yusuf smiled and taking
up his pen wrote these couplets :

44 Stay thy tears ; for hindrance and parting hie, And the endless of Empire

aye glorify :
From my core of heart fly all cark and care o After parting that seemed all

Time defy.
A Lion am I for the love of him o Whom the slanderer's part ne'er can

satisfy :
My mind and soul be this day with you o But my heart and thought are at

enmity :
Thought and mind delight in Love's cruelty o While heart and soul for reunion

cry:
And if mind and thought e'er can overcome o Soul and heart, Re- union thou

ne'er shalt 'spy. 11

And when Yusuf had finished his writing, he gifted Ibrahim with
an hundred dinars and sent him again to Al-Hayfa with the letter,
and she on receiving it shed tears and said, "0 Ibn Ibrahim,
seeing that his soul and heart be with us, Allah Almighty availeth
to turn his thoughts and his fancy and the mind of him." Here-
upon she took writing materials and wrote :

44 Calm, O my lord, thy vitals' painful plight, o O thou whose semblance lighteth

sooty night :
O gladding heart, O sweet of union, Oh o Whose charms the tribe in festal

hours delight :

VOL. V. M

178 Supplemental Nights.

O high in honour passing height of Kings, o O thou with purest blood 'mid

Kings bedight,
Fear's! not the Throne 1 of God (O hope of me !) o When harming heart whereon

all pains alight ?
Then deign thou grant me union, for such wise o Shall rest my heartstrings

and dark care wax bright :
From none, except that Lion o' men AH 2 o Comes pardon proving to mankind

his might."

Then she passed her missive to Ibn Ibrahim giving him an hundred
gold pieces and he pushed his pace till he reached the city of Sind,
where he went in to Yusuf and kissed his hands and feet. The
Prince taking the letter smiled and laughed and said, "O Ibn
Ibrahim, when Allah (be He extolled and exalted !) shall decree
my faring I will fare to them 3 within a short while ; but do thou
return and let know that I intend forgathering with them." Quoth
the other, " Ah ! O my lord, do thou indite her a reply, otherwise
she will have no trust in me ; " so the Prince fell to penning these
lines :

" My vitals restless bide for very jealousy The while my heart must ever

show unfriendly gree :
Yet I obeyed my heart and tore it out for him o Albe man ever holds his

heart in amity ;
And I have heard my lover drives me forth from him o But Allah grant my

prayer of benedicite.
In anxious care I came and sought your side this day o Naught shall the

youth exalt save generosity."

Then Prince Yusuf passed the letter to Ibn Ibrahim who, after
receiving his hundred dinars, repaired to Al-Hayfa and greeted
her 4 informing her the while that her lover was about to make

act of presence. And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of

day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then

1 In text " 'Arsh" = the Ninth Heaven j vol. v. 167.

2 'The Shi'ah doctrine is here somewhat exaggerated.

3 Them " for " her," as has often occurred.

4 In the original " entrusted to her the missive : " whereas the letter is delivered
afterwards.

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 179

quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive?" Now
when it was the next night and that was

$bix JLJunUrcli an* /linrtij-tljtrti Jltgljt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With love

and good will I It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Ibn Ibrahim
said to Al-Hayfa, " Verily Yusuf purposeth to visit thee after a
little while." But when the Princess heard his words she would
not believe him albeit her heart palpitated with pleasure ; where-
upon Ibn Ibrahim improvised to her as follows :

" O thou world-seducer and full moon bright, o Stay thy speech and with boon

of good news requite.
Love pledged me his word he would see thee and said, o Hie thee home and

order the house aright.
I awoke this morning in cark and care, o In tears distraught and in dire

despite ;
For the wrongs and farness thou doom'st me dree Have forced my forces to

fright-full flight. 1 *

And when Ibn Ibrahim had ended his verse, Al-Hayfa joyed with
increased and exceeding joy, and in her delight she answered him
according to the rhyme and rhythm of his verse :

" O who spreadest clouds, 1 Son of Ibrahim hight ; By the Lord who ruleth in
'Arshhis height,

1 The cloud (which contains rain) it always typical of liberality and generous dealing.

1 80 Supplemental Nights.

By Mohammed the bestest of men and by * Th' adorers of yore and the

Ta-HaV might,
By Zemzem, Safa and wall Hatfm 2 * And Ka'abah and glories of Ka'abah's

site,
An this speech be sooth and my dearling come * One thousand, two thousand

dinars are thy right j
And I'll give thee a courser, O Ibrahim's son, * Selle, stirrups and bridle

with gold bedight ;
Six turbands and robes that shall honour show * With that courser the colour

of blackest night.
So hold me not like the most of mankind, * Who joy the fair ones to twit and

flyte."

And when Al-Hayfa had finished her verses, Ibn Ibrahim brought
out to her the letter of the Prince, and as soon as she read it her
heart was comforted and she waxed glad with exceeding gladness
and she bade them present him with largesse of value great and at
thousand dinars upon a china plate. After this she took him by
the hand and led him into a closet and said, " O Ibn Ibrahim, all
that be in this cabinet is a free gift to thee when thott shalt have
brought to me that lover of mine." Such was the case with them ;
but as regards Prince Yusuf, when Ibn Ibrahim left him, he felt
love-lowe aflaming in his heart, and he summoned his Mameluke
Hilal and said to him, " Go saddle for us the steed known by the
name of The Bull-aye-ready-and-for-Battle-day-steady." Here-
upon the slave arose and enselled the courser and Yusuf mounted ;
and, taking his Mameluke on the crupper, pushed his pace (and he
madly in love with Al-Hayfa), 1 and he ceased not faring till he
reached her Palace. He then swam the stream with his Mameluke
hanging on, as before, to the tail, and knocked at the door which
was opened by a damsel hight Nuzhat al-Zaman 3 and she
on recognising him kissed his hands and hurrying to her lady
informed her of his coming. Al-Hayfa hearing of the arrival fell

1 The Koranic chapt. No. xx., revealed at Meccah and recounting the (apocryphal)
history of Moses.

2 The " broken " (wall) to the North of the Ka'abah : Pilgrimage iii. 165.
*.*. " Delight of the Age : " see vol. ii. 81.

Th Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 181

fainting to the ground and when she recovered she found Yusuf
standing beside her head ; so she arose and embraced him for a
long while, after which she improvised and said :

" O thou Pilgrim of Love, after parting far o From us driven by malice of jealous

foe I
My life for the friend in affection comes ; o Naught dearer to me than such

boon can show ;

Full many a writ have I written thee o Nor union nor grace of return I know.
In this world I see him with single heart o O my wish ! and Allah ne'er part

us two.* 1

And when she had ended her verses she bade the slave-girls convey
Ibn Ibrahim and Hilal to the gardens, after which she led Yusuf
to the saloon of session and the twain passed the night together
he and she, in joyance and enjoyment, for that night was indeed a
night of delight. But when Allah bade the morn to morrow,
Al-Hayfa arose and cried, " How short it is for a night : Ah that
it had been longer for us ! but 'tis for me to say even as said Imr
al-Kays 1 in sundry of his verses upon a similar theme :

"On me Night waxeth long nor would I shorten Night ; Yet hasteth Morn

when I for longer Nights would sue :
It brings me union till * My lover's mine ' I cry Yet when with him unite

disunion comes to view."

Now when it was the second day, Al-Hayfa took seat in the

assembly of converse. And Shahrazad was surprised by the

dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O
sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ?" Now when
it was the next night and that was

1 In the text written ' Imriyyu '1-Kays " : for this pre-Islamhic poet see Term. Essay,
p. 258. "The Man of Al-Kays " or worshipper of the Priapus-idol was a marking
figure in Arabian History. The word occurs, with those of Aera, Dusares (Theos Arcs),
Martabu, Allat and Manit in the Nabathaean (Arabian) epigraphs brought by Mr. Doughty
from Arabia Desert a (vol. i. pp. 180-184).

182) > Supplemental Nights*

an& Xfnetg-fourty JBte$t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night." She replied : With love and

good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director,
the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds
fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Al-Hayfa repaired to
the saloon of seance, she and Yusuf, and summoned Ibn Ibrahim
and bade the handmaids bring everything that was in the closet.
They obeyed her bidding and fetched her all the contents, amongst
which were ten robes of honour and three coffers of silk and fine
linen and a packet of musk and a parcel of rubies and pearls and
jacinths and corals and similar objects of high price. And she
conferred the whole of this upon Mohammed ibn Ibrahim, the
while improvising these verses :

u We are noblest of lords amongst men of might ; What we give and

largesse bring the most delight :
And when we strive with our hearts and souls o We strive in public nor rue

our plight.
With me the pact no regret shall breed o Save in head of suspecting

envying wight.
I am none who riseth sans bounteous deed ; o I am none who giveth with

felon sprite.'*

And when Al-Hayfa had ended her poetry, Prince Yusuf largessed 1
Ibn Ibrahim and said to him, "Thou shalt have on my part one
thousand dinars and twenty robes of brocade and an hundred
she-camels and eighty horses (whereof the meanest is worth five
hundred gold pieces and each is saddled with a golden selle), and
lastly forty handmaids." After which he began to improvise
these couplets :

1 In text -' Zakka," which means primarily a, bird feeding her young.

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 183

44 Good signeth man to sight and all men see o Sahl's son is lord of liberality :
Time and the world and mortals one and all o Witness my goodness and for

aye agree :
Who comes for purpose him I gratify o With bobns, though 'twere with eyen-

light of me :
I back my neighbour whenas harmed by o Dolour of debt and foeman's

tyranny :
Whoso hath moneys lacking liberal mind o Though he snatch Fortune 'mid

the vile is he."

And when Yusuf had finished his verse, Ibn Ibrahim arose and
bussed his hands and feet and cried, " Allah dole to thee all thou
desirest." The other replied, " When thou shalt return to our
city, do thou go to my quarters and therefrom take thee whatso I
have promised." Then the Prince and Princess waxed assiduous
in the eating of meat and the drinking of wine ; and this continued
for many successive months 1 until Ibn Ibrahim craved leave to
visit his folk ; and, when he received permission, he took with him
that was light in weight and weighty of worth. And as he set
forth, Al-Hayfa said to him, " When thou shalt return to thy
people in safety, do thou salute for me my sire and name to him a
certain stallion which same he shall largesse to thee and likewise
its saddle and bridle." Hereupon he farewelled them and went
forth and stemmed the stream and withdrawing his she-dromedary
from the cave harnessed her and mounted her and set forth up6n
his desert way, and as soon as he reached the capital of Sind he
went to his folk who greeted him kindly. Now when King Al-
Mihrjan heard of Mohammed ibn Ibrahim's coming he sent to
summon him and as soon as he appeared between his hands he
asked concerning his absence. " O King of the Time and the
Tide," quoth he, " I have been in Yathrib 2 city ;" and indeed he
was one of the cup-companions of Al-Hayfa's father and by the
decree of Destiny he had been ever in high favour with the King.
So the twain sat down to drink wine and as Fortune willed it Ibn

1 In the text " months and yean," the latter seeming d< trop-
1 Or "Yathrib" = Al-Madinah ; vol. iv. 114.

184 Supplemental Nights.

Ibrahim bore about him a letter containing poetry, part of the
correspondence between the Prince and Princess, wherein were
written the names of all three. Now when he was at the height
of his joy he wagged his head and shook off his turband and the
paper fell therefrom into Al-Mihrjan's lap. 1 The King took it and
read it and understood its contents but he kept the case secret
for a while ; presently, however, he dismissed his Courtiers and
Equerries who were around him and forthright bade smite
Mohammed ibn Ibrahim with stripes until his sides were torn.
Then quoth he, " Acquaint me concerning this youth who corre-
spondeth with my daughter, making thee the goer between them
twain, otherwise I will cut off thy head." Quoth Ibn Ibrahim,
" Ho thou the King ; verily this be only poetry which I found in

one of the histories of old." And Shahrazad was surprised by

the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful
is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable I"
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ?"
Now when it was the next night and that was

^IK ftfx juntos antr JJinetgcgftt!) JBfgfct,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love and

good will ! " It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director,
the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds
fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Ibn Ibrahim said to

1 S^ott (vi. 358 et seqq.) who makes Ali bin Ibrahim, " a faithful eunuch," renders
the passage, " by some accident the eunuch's turban unfortunately falling off, the precious
stones (N.B. the lovers' gift) which, with a summary of the adventures (!) of Eusuff and
Aleefa, and his own embassy to Sind, were wrapped in the folds, tumbled upon the

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yvsuf. 185

Al-Mihrjan, * Verily I found this poetry in a tale of the olden
time/' So the King issued orders to smite his neck, when inter-
cession was made for him by a Courtier hight Ta'il al-Wasf, 1
whereupon the King commanded him to jail, whither he was taken
forthright. But as Ibn Ibrahim was being locked up. he said to
the gaoler, " Say me, canst thou bring for me a pen-case and paper
and pen ?" and the other assented, fetching for him whatso he
wanted. So he wrote to Prince Yusuf the following couplets :

J 1 O Yusuf, master mine, for safety fly ; o In sorest danger Ibrahim's son doth

lie:
When from thy side for house and home he sped o Forthright bade Al-Mihrjan

to bring him nigh,
And 'mid th' Assembly highest stead assigned o A seat in public with a sleight

full sly.
A writ thou wrotest bore he on his head o Which fell and picked it up the

King to 'spy :
Tis thus discovered he thy state and raged o With wrath and fain all guidance

would defy.
Then bade he Ibrahim's son on face be thrown o And painful beating to the

bare apply ;
With stripes he welted and he tare his sides o Till force waxed feeble, strength

debility.
So rise and haste thee to thine own and fetch o Thy power, and instant for the

tribe-lands hie ;
Meanwhile I'll busy to seduce his men o Who hear me, O thou princely born

and high ;
For of the painful stress he made me bear o The fire of bane I've sworn him

even I."

Now when Ibn Ibrahim had finished his verse, he said to the gaoler,
"Do thou summon for me the son of my brother hight Mannd' 1
and thou shalt have from me one hundred gold pieces." The man
did his bidding, and when the youth came the uncle gave him
the letter and bespake him as follows : " O son of my brother,
take thou this paper and fare with it to the Castle of Al-Hayfa

1 i.e. "Drawer-out of Descriptions."
' i.e. a Refuser, a Forbidder.

1 86 Supplemental Nights.

and swim the stream, and go up to the building and enter
therein and commit this missive unto a youth whom thou shalt
see sitting beside the Princess. Then do thou greet him with the
salam from me, and inform him of all that I am in and what I
have seen and what thou hast witnessed, and for this service I will
give thee an hundred gold pieces." The nephew took the uncle's
letter and set forth from the first of the night until he drew nigh
the Castle. Such was the case with Ibn Ibrahim and his sending
his nephew Manna' on a mission to the Princess ; but as regards
King Al-Mihrjan, when the morning morrowed and showed its
sheen and shone and the sun uprose with rays a-lowland strown,
he sent to summon Ibn Ibrahim ; and, when they set him between
his hands, he adjured him saying, " O thou ! by the rights of the
God unique in his rule for Unity ; by Him who set up the skies
without prop and stay and dispread the Earths firmly upon the
watery way, unless thou inform me and apprise me rightly and
truly I will order thy head to be struck off this very moment/'
So the cup-companion related to the King the whole affair of
Princess Al-Hayfa and Prince Yusuf, and all that had passed
between the twain ; whereupon Al-Mihrjan asked, " And this
Yusuf from what land may he be ? " " He is son to the Sovran
of Sind, King Sahl," quoth the other, and quoth Al-Mihrjan,
"And is he still in the Palace, or hath he gone to his own
country?" "He was therein," replied Ibn Ibrahim, "but I
know not whether he be yet there, or he be gone thence." Here-
upon Al-Mihrjan commanded his host at once to mount, and all
took horse and rode forth making for the Castle of Al-Hayfa.
Now, between Manna' and King Al-Mihrjan was a march of only
a single night, when the youth went up to the Palace of the
Princess, where he knocked at the door and they opened and
admitted him to the presence of Prince Yusuf. There he handed
to him the letter, which the Prince opened and read ; then he
suddenly rose up crying upon Hilal, whom when he was fetched

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 187

he bade forthwith bring out his steed. Hereat cried Al-Hayfa,
" I ask thee by Allah, O my lord, what may be the news ? " and he
answered her, " Verily when Ibn Ibrahim fared from us to his folk
he was summoned on his arrival by thy sire, and he went to
him and informed him of all that hath befallen us, first and last."
So saying he put the letter into her hands, and she having read it
exclaimed, " O my lord, do thou take me with thee lest haply he
slay me." Answered the Prince, " O end and aim of mine every
wish, we have naught with us save this one steed who availeth
not to carry three ; therefore will thy father overtake us upon the
road and will put us to death one and all. Now the rede that is
right be this, that thou conceal thyself somewhere in the Palace
and charge the slave-girls when thy sire shall come hither, to tell
him that I have carried thee off to mine own country, and for the
rest be thou assured that I will tarry away from thee but a few
days." So saying Yusuf took his horse with him and Hilal his
page a-crupper and swam the river and made for his own land
pushing his pace, and presently he drew within sight of the capital.
Such was the case of Prince Yusuf, son to King Sahl ; but as
regards the matter of King Al-Mihrjan and his host, he ceased not
marching them till such time as he came within sight of the Castle
of his daughter Al-Hayfa ; and this was soon after the departure
of Yusuf. And when he had led hither his host, which was like
unto a dashing sea, he dismounted upon the river-bank that all
might free themselves of their fatigue, after which he summoned
Sahlub and bade him swim the stream and walk up to the Castle
and knock at the door. The youth did as he was bidden, and the
handmaids opened to him and greeted him as he asked for Al-
Hayfa And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day, and

fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her
sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an

1 88 Supplemental Nights.

the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

an&

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- " With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when Sahlub
went up to the Palace, he asked of Al-Hayfa, and the slave-girls
told him that a youth had come thither and had taken her away
and had carried her off to his own country. So he returned to
Al-Mihrjan and informed him thereof, when the King took horse
with all his host and pursued Yusuf with uttermost haste and
hurry until there was between the twain less than a day's march.
But as the Prince drew near his capital on the tenth day he went
in to his sire and told him whatso had befallen him from incept to
conclusion, nor did he hide from him aught ; whereupon King
Sahl mustered his many (all who received from him royal solde
and allowances), and bade them take horse with his son Yusuf.
The troops did accordingly and the Prince rode a-van, and after a
little while the two armies met. Now Ibn Ibrahim had made a
compact with five of the nobles who were the chiefest men of King
Al-Mihrjan's reign and had promised them five hundred thousand
dinars. So when the two hosts were about to engage, an Emir of
the Emirs came forth (and he was one of those whom Ibn Ibrahim
had appointed to watch over Yusuf) and said to the Prince, " O Son
of the King, verily Ibn Ibrahim hath promised five of the nobles
as many hundred thousand dinars of gold the which we may take
and receive from thee." Replied he, "The like sum shall be
thine from me with all thou canst ask of us." Presently the Emir

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusu/. 189

returned from him to Al-Mihrjan and said to him, " Verily I have
asked this youth that he make vain and void the battle between
us twain, but he assented not and sware an oath that he would
never return from affray until the enemies should meet and fight
it out, and that he had with him a mighty host and a conquering
whose van was not known from its rear. 1 Now 'tis my rede that
thou strive to take him prisoner 2 and then do whatso he may
please, especially he being son to thee, King of the mighty Kings
and with him a thousand thousand knights all mailed cap-a-pie
and clothed in steel not one of whom hath any fear of fight."
King Al-Mihrjan waxed wroth at the Emir's speech and cried,
" What words be these ? Shall the Kings of the Age remain
saying of me that a man hath debauched the daughter of Al-
Mihrjan and hath carried her away perforce despite the nose of
her father ? Never shall such thing be spoken of me ; no, never !
But do thou know, ho thou the Amir, that an ye have no taste
for fray nor avail for fight and ye have no training save for bibbing
of wine and ease a* home, I have sworn and swear by Him who
lighted the lucident fires of the Sun and the Moon, none shall
sally forth to do single combat with this youth save I myself."
But when so saying he knew not that was hidden from him in the
World of Secrets. Presently he rushed into the field of fight with
reins floating upon his courser's neck and he renowned it, showing
himself between the foremost files, and he played with the edge of
glaive and spit of spear until men's wits were bewildered and he
improvised the while and cried out the following couplets :

A Ibn Sahl, ho scion of tree abhorr'd ! o Rise, meet me in mcllay and prove thee

lord:
My daughter Ju st snatched, O thou foul of deed, o And approaches! me fearing

the Lion of the horde.

1 i.e. both could not be seen at the same time.

1 [The MS. has T Kh D H, which the translator reads " takhuz-hu." I suspect that
either the second or eighth form of" ahad " is meant, in the sense that thou comest to
an agreement (Ittihad) with him. ST.]

Sup piemen tal Nights.

Hadst come in honour and fairly sued o I had made her thine own with the

best accord ;
But this rape bath o'erwhelmed in dishonour foul o Her sire, and all bounds

thou hast overscor'd."

Now when King Al-Mihrjan finished his verse, Yusuf rushed out
to him, and cried at him with a terrible cry and a terrifying, and
garred his own steed bound upon the battle-plain, where he played
with brand and lance until he cast into oblivion every knight,
reciting in the meantime the following verses :

" I am son to Al-Sahl, O of forbears vile ! o Come forth and fight me sans guile

or wile ;
Thou hast hurt my heart ; O of deed misdone, o So thou com'st to contend with

this rank and file." *

King Al-Mihrjan re-echoed his war-cry, but hardly had he erided
when Yusuf drawing near him answered it with a shout which
enquaked his heart and ravished his reason with sore terror, and
repeated in reply these couplets :

" I am not to be titled of forbears vile o O whose ape-like face doth the tribe

defile !
Nay, I'm rending lion amid mankind, o A hero in wilds where the murks

beguile.
Al-Hayfd befitteth me, only me ; o Ho thou whom men for an ape* revile."

When Yusuf had ended these words, Al-Mihrjan rushed forth and
charged down upon him, and the two drawing nigh each of the
foemen set on the other with a mighty onset and a prodigious.
They fought in duello and lanced out with lance and smote with
sword, and dashed together as they were two ships or two moun-
tains clashing ; and they approached and retired, and the dust-cloud

1 In the MS. v. 327, we find four hemistichs which evidently belong to Al-Mihrjan ;
these are :

Hadst come to court her in fairer guise o I had given Al-Hayfa in bestest style ;
But in mode like this hast thou wrought me wrong o And made Envy gibe me with
jeering smile."

Also I have been compelled to change the next sentence, which in the original is, " And
hardly had King Al-Mihrjan ended his words," etc.

2 In this doggerel, " Kurud " (apes) occurs as a rhyme twice in three couplets.

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 191

arose over them and they disappeared from men's sight. But
hardly had an hour passed by when Yusuf made a final attack
upon his enemy and narrowed his course and barred his way and
pressed him hard ; and, hanging upon his flank, smote him with the
scymitar upon the nape of the neck 1 and caused his head to fall
between his feet, when he slipt from his steed upon the ground,
and he lay stone dead and in his gore drowned. Now as soon as
the folk looked upon Yusuf and what he had dealt to their King
and how he had made his head fly his body and had done him
dead, they turned to take flight. Thereupon Yusuf recognised
Sahlub the cousin of Al-Hayfa, he who had been the cause of
their separation and had roused her wrath against him ; so he
drew near to him and smote him with the bright shining blade on
the right flank, and it came forth gleaming between his left ribs ;
so he fell to the ground drenched with blood, and he was left
prostrate in the dust. And when Yusuf had slain King Al-Mihrjan
and Sahlub, his nephew, the Grandees of the realm came around
him and greeted him with the salam. -- And Shahrazad was
surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

Sbebcn ^unftteft!) Jligljt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thce, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With
love and good will 1 It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the

1 " Upon the poll of his head " ('ala hamati-hi) says the Arabian author, and instantly
stultifies the words.

192 Supplemental Nights.

director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the
Grandees of King Al-Mihrjan's reign saw their Sovran slain, they
flocked to Prince Yusuf and greeted him, marvelling at his beauty
and valour and excellence : then they all agreed to salute him
as their Sultan and they raised him to the rank of King
and sole ruler over them. Presently they led him with them,
and fared seeking the city of Al-Mihrjan until they reached it,
when they adorned the streets on the occasion of his coming.
And King Yusuf having entered his capital took seat on the throne
of his kingship and bade and forbade and deposed and appointed ;
and lastly freed Mohammed ibn Ibrahim from gaol, and established
him his Wazir. Hereupon the new Minister displayed to him the
four wives and the hundred concubines oT King Al-Mihrjan, also
his negro slaves, male and female, whom he found to number two
hundred and four hundred. Moreover, he showed his riches and
rarities and treasuries wherein were found an hundred boxes full
of silk and fine linen, and parcels of pearls and rubies and jacinths
and jewels and precious minerals and other wealth in abundance.
So he distributed the whole amongst his nobles, and largessed
them with excessive largesses ; and his partisans of his subjects
and his guards flocked to him with presents and offerings ; and all
the city-folk gave him joy and rejoiced in him. Then he com-
missioned Ibn Ibrahim to Al-Hayfa, daughter of King Al-Mihrjan,
saying, " Do thou bring her hither to me, her and her handmaids
and all that be in her palace." Accordingly he went forth to Al-
Hayfa's Castle, and ceased not wending till he came to its entrance
where he discovered that King Yusuf had appointed a craft for
the river transport. And when he arrived there and found the
vessel afloat he went in to Al-Hayfa and he greeted her. Then
he related to her what had betided her sire from Yusuf and how
the Prince had slain him after the fashion of what befel ; so she
cried, " There is no Majesty and no Might save in Allah, the

Tk* Loves of At- Hay fa and Yusuf. 193

Glorious, the Great ; and this was writ in the Book of Life ! "
Then she asked Ibn Ibrahim touching her mother, and he answered
that she was sound and safe in her own home which she had
never left nor did any one go in to her ; and, (added he) " she
expecteth thy coming to her." Then he bade carry down her
impediments and her bondmaids and all the good that was in her
Castle until nothing remained, and embarked them upon the craft ;
and presently, mounting her in a litter of sandal-wood plated with
ruddy gold, he set her women in Howdahs ; l and, taking horse
himself, he rode until they drew near the city. And when they
arrived there he went up to King Yusuf whom he informed of
their coming and was told, " Suffer them to be till night shall set
in." Hereupon he took patience, and when came the appointed
term Al-Hayfa went up to the Palace. Now as Allah caused
the morn to morrow and to light the world with its shine and
sheen, King Yusuf sent to summon the Kazi and witnesses and
bade them write his writ of marriage with Al-Hayfa and was
wedded to her by Book and traditional Usage. 2 After this Al-
Hayfa sent to fetch her mother and bore her to her home and their
joy and enjoyment were great and lasting. Now by the decree
of the Decreer anon it befel that the Caliph Al-Maamun waxed
strait of breast one night of the nights : so he summoned a certain
of his courtiers whose name was Ibrahim the Cup-companion; 8
but, as they found him not, he bade bring a man hight Al-Khadfa,
and when he came between his hands quoth he to him " 'Tis a
while since I have seen thee here." Quoth the other, " O Com-
mander of the Faithful, I have been wayfaring about the land of

1 Arab. "Haudaj"=a camel-litter: the word, often corrupted to Hadaj, is now
applied to a rude pack-saddle, a wooden frame of mimosa -timber set upon a " witr " or
pad of old tent-cloth, stuffed with grass and girt with a single cord. Vol. viii. 235.
Burckhardt gives " Maksar," and Doughty (i. 437) " Muksir" as the modern Badawi
term for the crates or litters in which are carded the Shaykhly housewives.

* In text "Sunnah"= the practice, etc., of the Prophet : vol. v. 36, 167.

9 This, as the sequel shows, is the far-lamed Musician, Ibrahim of Mosul : TO .
rii. 113.

VOL. V. If

1 94 Supplemental Nights.

Syria." Continued the Prince of True Believers, " Do thou this
very night broaden the Caliph's heart with a delectable tale ; " and
the other rejoined, " O Viceregent of Allah upon Earth, know
thou an adventure befel me with a youth named the Veiled Yusuf
of Beauty, -son to King Sahl, the friendly ruler of Al-Sind, and with
Al-Hayfa the daughter of King Al-Mihrjan, and 'tis a tale whose
like hath never been heard ; no, never." Hereupon he related to
Al-Maamun the history of the two, first and last, adding, " Further-
more, O Commander of the Faithful, I have learnt that Al-Hayfa
owneth ten handmaidens whose peers are not to be found in thy
Palace, and they are mistresses of all manner instruments of mirth
and merriment and other matters ; and amongst things said of
them by their lady when they marvelled at her good fortune,
" Verily this day I have acquired half a score of slave-girls the like
of which Al-Maamun hath never collected," But when the
Prince of True Believers heard this he gave ear to the tale anent
them during the livelong night till Allah caused the morn to
morrow. Then he sent for Ibrahim the Cup-companion, and to
him coming into the presence the Viceregent of Allah exclaimed,
" Mount without stay and delay taking with thee one thousand
Mamelukes and make thy way to this youth who is King of Al-
Sind * and named * The Veiled Yusuf of Beauty/ and bring me his
ten handmaidens. After which do thou ask concerning his case and
anent his subjects, whether he be just or unjust to the lieges, and
if he be righteous I will robe him in honourable robes and if
otherwise do thou bring him to my presence." Hereupon Ibrahim
took leave of the Caliph and went forth at that very time and tide
intending for Al-Sind, and he ceased not wending till he arrived
there and found Yusuf setting out for the chase. But when the youth

saw the host approaching him And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted

1 In the text King of Al-Sin = China, and in p. 360 of MS. Yusuf is made " King of
China and Sind," which would be much like " King of Germany and Brentford."

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 195

say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
"And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night, and that was

<|)e Sbeben ?D unto* nn& feeronto Xigbt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that, when Yusuf
beheld Ibrahim the Cup-companion, and those in his company, he
returned to the city and took them with him ; yet he knew not
Ibrahim nor did Ibrahim know him. But on entering the capital
he was met by his guards and his soldiers who blessed him and
prayed for him length of days and permanence of rule wherefor
the courtier knew him to be a just King. Yusuf led them to and
lodged them in the House of Hospitality ; after which returning
to his own Palace he sent for Ibrahim and assembled for him a
session and received him with the highmost honour that could be,
and rose to him and greeted him and embraced him and accom-
panied him to the sitting-saloon where the twain took their places.
Then Yusuf bade summon the ten handmaidens with as many
instruments of music ; and, sitting down begirt by them, he
ordered wine be brought. So they set before him flagons and
beakers of chrystal and jewelled cups ; and presently pointing to
the first of the slave-girls whose name is not recorded, bade her
recite somewhat of her pleasantest poetry. So she hent the lute
in hand and set it upon her lap and swept it with a light touch
and caressed it with her finger-tips and smote it after eleven

1 96 Supplemental Nights.

modes; then she returned to the first 1 and recited these
couplets :

*' My heart for parting ever burns with lowe ; o My lids fiery with tear-floods

ever flow :
Ho thou in lover's loving ferly fair, o Cut is the road for those Love gars to

glow.
How many a youth has felt his vitals torn o By slender forms and glances

forceful prow ?
Alas for lover slain by might of Love j * Nor friend avails nor brother true, I

trow ! "

When the first handmaiden had finished, Yusuf rejoiced (as did
Ibrahim the Cup-companion) with excessive joy and the King
bade robe her in a sumptuous robe. Hereupon she drained her
cup and passed it to her compeer whose name was Taknd, and
this second handmaiden taking beaker in hand placed it afore
her and hending the lute smote on it with many a mode ; then,
returning to the first 2 while the wits of all were bewildered, she
improvised the following verses :

" Look on the lute that 'minds of Mangonel ; Whose strings are ropes that

make each shot to tell :
And hole the pipes that sound with shriek and cry, o The pipes that cast a

fearful joyful spell ;
Espy the flagons ranged in serried rank o And crops becrowned with wine

that longs to well."

But when Takna had finished her poetry Yusuf and Ibrahim were
gladdened and the King bade largesse her with a sumptuous robe
and a thousand dinars and she tossed off her cup and passed it to
her successor the third handmaiden Mubdi' 3 hight. She accepted
it and setting it before her took the lute and smote it after
manifold fashions and presently she spake these couplets :

1 This is the full formula repeated in the case of all the ten blessed damsels. I have
spared the patience of my readers.

2 This formula of the cup and lute is defies repetita^ justifying abbreviation .
8 i.e. The Beginner, the Originator.

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 197

41 Love with his painful pine doth rack this frame of me ; o Melts heart and

maims my vitals cruel agony ;
And rail my tears like cloud that rains the largest drops ; o And fails my

hand to find what seek I fain to see :
Thee I conjure, O Yusuf, by Him made thee King o O Sahl-son, Oh our dearest

prop, our dignity,
This man methinks hath come to part us lovers twain o For in his eyes I see

the flame of jealousy."

And when Mubdi' had sung her song, Ibrahim the Cup-companion
and King Yusuf smiled and rejoiced and anon there befel them
what there befel and the two slipt down aswoon ; -- And
Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dun-
yazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable
and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with
that I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran
suffer me to survive?" Now when it was the next night and
that was

gbeben J^un&reU anfc 2Tf)ir& Nfgfti,

1 The Zephyr, or rather the cool north breeze of upper Arabia, vol. viii. 62.

198 Supplemental Nights.

front of her. Then hending in hand the lute she played upon it
with manifold modes and lastly spake these couplets :

" O Blamer, blaming me for draining lonely wine, o Stint carping, I this day

to Holy War incline :
Oh fair reflection she within her wine-cup shows o Her sight makes spirit

dullest earthly flesh refine :
How mention her ? By Allah 'tis forbid- in writ o To note the meaner charms

in Eden-garth divine."

When the fourth handmaiden had ended her verse, Ibrahim
gifted her with one thousand dinars and presented a sumptuous
robe to her owner, then she drank off her cup and passed it to
her compeer hight Al-Badr 1 and she sang the following lines :

" One robbed of heart amid song and wine o And Love that smiteth with babe

of eyne :
His voice to the lute shall make vitals pain o And the wine shall heal all his

pangs and pine :
Hast e'er seen the vile drawing near such draught o Or miser close-fisted

thereto incline ?
The wine is set free in the two-handed jar* o Like sun of summer in Aries'

sign."

When she had finished Ibrahim bade reward her like the rest
with gold and gear and she passed her cup to her compeer whose
name was Radah. 3 The sixth handmaiden drained it and per-
formed in four-and-twenty modes after which she sang these
couplets :

" O thou wine-comrade languor cease to show ; o Hand me the morning

draught and ne'er foreslow ;
And prize fair poesy and sweet musick hear *> And shun the ' say ' and naught

of * said ' beknow :
The wine of day-dawn drunk with joyous throng o From house of Reason

garreth Grief to go :

1 The " Full Moon"; plur. Budur: vols. iii., 228, iv., 249.

2 " Dann "= amphora, Gr d/x^opevs short for d/x,<opeus = having two handles.

3 = " The large-hipped," a form of Rdih.

Tlu Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 199

The man of Kays aye loved his wine right well e And from his lips made
honey'd verse to flow ;

And in like guise 1 came Isa singing sweet * For such was custom of the long-
ago."

When Radah ended her verse and her improvising of mysterious
significance, and secret, King Yusuf and Ibrahim the Cup-com-
panion tore their robes from their bodies until naught remained
upon them save only the bag-breeches about their waists. Then
the twain shrieked aloud and at one moment and they fell fainting
to the floor, unheeding the world and their own selves from the
excess of that was in their heads of wine and hearing of poetry
spoken by the slave-girl. They remained in such condition for a
while of time, after which they recovered though still amazed,
a-drunken. Then they donned other dresses and sat down to
listen as before, when Radah drained her goblet and filled and
passed it to her compeer whose name was Na'fm ; 2 and she taking
her lute, improvised the following verses :

" My poesy-gem showeth clear of shine, * When appears that pearl with cheek

coralline :
*Tis marvel the cloud cannot quench the blaze * That fire in the heart and this

water of eyne !
Then alas for Love who hath made me woe I * Pine that rends and racks limbs

and vitals o' mine :
O thou Well of Poetry well forth thy gems O'er our drink when our cups

overbrim with wine :
And sing in her presence, for Envy hath fled And flies jealous spite and all

joys combine.
Oh the charms of wine which enthral the mind, Clear and clearing sprites

by its sprite refined ! "

When the seventh handmaiden had ended her verses, King Yusuf
and Ibrahim rejoiced with exceeding joy and each of them bade
gil't her with a thousand gold pieces and quoth the courtier, " By
Allah Almighty, none of the Emirs or of the Wazirs or of the

1 In text " Minba'ada-hu " making Jesus of later date than Imr al-Kays.

* i.e. " The Delight " : also a P.N. of one of the Heavens : vols. iii. 19 ; iv. 143*

2oo Supplemental Nights.

Kings or of the Caliphs hath attained excellence like unto this
handmaid. Hereupon Na'im passed her goblet to her compeer
and she, whose name was Surur, 1 tossed it off and taking in hand
her lute, sang these couplets :

" How is't with heart of me all cares waylay * As drowned in surging , tears of

Deluge-day ?
I weep for Time endured not to us twain * As though Time's honour did not

oft betray.

my lord Yusuf, O my ending hope, * By Him who made thee lone on

Beauty's way,

1 dread lest glorious days us twain depart * And youth's bright world be

dimmed to old and grey ;

O Lord ! be Parting's palm for us undyed 2 * Ere death, nor carry this my lord
away."

When the eighth handmaiden had ended her song, the twain
marvelled at her eloquence and were like to rend that was upon

them of raiment And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn

of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And
where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the
coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it
was the next night and that was

an&

1 i.e. Joy, Contentment.

2 In text " La khuzibat Ayday al-Firak," meaning, " may separation never ornament
herself in sign of gladness at the prospect of our parting." For the Khazf b-dye see vol.
iii. 105.

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 201

the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds
fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that King Yusuf and Ibrahim
the Cup-companion were like to rend that was upon them of
raiment and they joyed with extreme joy after hearing what
Suriir had sang to them. Hereupon she passed her cup to her
fellow, hight Zahrat al-Hayy, 1 who took it and recited as follows :

" O cup-boy, I crave thee cup-comrade to be And hearten my heart of its
malady ;

Nor pass me the bowls for I sorely dread o When drunken all dolours of
Love-lowe to dree,

To be vilely reviled in the sittings of men, o To be frowardly treated where
zephyrs play free.

God-blest is the Lute for her melodies * Which pain me with painfullcst
penalty,

With the jewels of speech whose transcendent charms Like fires of Jahfm *
burn the vitals of me.

By Allah, show ruth, be compassionate, * For Allah deals pardon com-
passionately."

Vusuf and Ibrahim, hearing her words, were gladdened with
'excessive gladness and cried to the ninth handmaid, " May the
lord be copious to thee like the fruitful years ! " Then the Cup-
companion bade gift her with one thousand gold pieces as like-
wise did her lord. Hereupon she passed her cup to the tenth
handmaiden known as Muhjat al-Kulub 3 who fell to improvising
these couplets :

M O Blamer, who canst not my case explain ; o Cease, for who blame friends

shall of blame complain ;
And whoso unknoweth the workings of Love Mankind shall reckon him

mean and vain :
Alas for Love, O ye tribe-landers, I * Am weaned that wont nipples of union

to drain.

1 i.e. "Bloom of the Tribe." " Zahrat "= a blossom especially yellow and com-
monly applied to orange-flower. In line to of the same page the careless scribe calls the
girl ' Jauharat (Gem) of the Tribe."

For this Hell, see vol. viii. lit.

Core" or " Life-blood of Hearts."

2O2 Supplemental Nights.

I have learnt the whole of Love's governance * Since my baby days amid

cradles lain.
Forbear by Allah to ask of my state # How shall morn one banned with debtor

bane ?
O thou jewel of speech, thou Yusuf, laud * To the Lord who robed thee with

charms amain !
Deign the God of 'Arsh make thy days endure * In wealth and honour sans

pause or wane ;
E'en as Ishdk's son l every gift conjoined o Amid men, making rulers to serve!

him fain."

When Muhjat al-Kulub ended her song, Yusuf gifted her with a
splendid robe and a thousand gold pieces as eke did Ibrahim, and
presently the courtier said to the handmaiden, " Who is Ibrahim
that thou shouldst sing of him in song ? " She replied, " Wallahi,
O my lord, he is son of Ishak, amongst the pleasant ones sans peer
and a cup-companion to the Caliphs dear and the pearl concealed
and the boon friend of our lord the Commander of the Faithful 1
Al-Maamun and his familiar who to him joy and enjoyment
maketh known. Ah ! happy the man who can look upon him
and forgather with him and company with him before his death ;
and verily by Allah he is the master of the Age and the one Wonder
of the World. Moreover, by the Almighty, O my lord, wert thou
to see this lute fall into his hands, thou wouldst hear it converse in
every language with the tongues of birds and beasts and of the
sons of Adam : and well nigh would the place dance ere he had
improvised a word. And he the horizons can make to joy and
lover with overlove can destroy, nor shall any after his decease
such excellence of speech employ." , ; All this, and Muhjat al-Kulub
knew not who was sitting beside them as she went on to praise
Ibrahim. Hereupon he took the lute from her hand and smote it
till thou hadst deemed that within the instrument lurked babes of
the Jinns 2 which were crying and wailing while spake the strings,

1 Presently explained.

2 In text "Afrakh al-Jinn," lit. = Chicks of the Jinns, a mere vulgarism; see
' Farkh 'Akrab," vol. iv. 46.

The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 203

and in fine King Yusuf imagined that the palace had upflown
with them between heaven and earth. And the handmaidens sang
to his tunes in sore astonishment ; when Ibrahim designed to talk
but King Yusuf cut him short and fell to saying poetry in these
couplets :

" By the rights of our lord who shows ruth in extreme, And Giver and Guide

and boon Prophet we deem,
And by Ka'abah resplendent and all its site And by Zemzem, Sate and

the wall Hatfm,
Lo ! thou 'rt hight Ibrahim, and suppose I say e Thee sooth, my wits thou

must surely esteem :
And thy face shows signalled with clearest eyne o Delivrance followed by Yd

andMfm." 1

Now Ibrahim kept his secret and did not manifest himself to
any, but presently he also improvised and spake in these words
preserving the measure and rhyme:

"By Him who chose Musa, the Speaker, 3 by Him o Who made s Hdshimite

orphan select and supreme !
Ibrahim am I not, but I deem this one o The Caliph who sits by Baghdadian

stream ;
Of his grace the heir of all eloquent arts o And no partner hath he in all gifts

that beseem."

And when Ibrahim had finished his verses, Yusuf said to him,
" By the virtue of Almighty Allah, an I guess aright and my shot 4
go not amiss, thou art Ibrahim the musician ;" but the courtier
retained his incognito and replied, " O my lord, Ibrahim is my
familiar friend and I am a man of Al-Basrah who hath stolen

1 " Ibraa" = deliverance from captivity, etc. Yd = f.and Miro = m, composing the
word << Ibrahim." The guttural is concealed in the Hamzah of Ibrda, a good illustration
of Dr. Stcingass's valuable remarks in Terminal Essay, pp. 273, 275.

2 " Kalim " = one who speaks with another, a familiar. Moses' title is KaJfmu'llah
on account of the Oral Law and certain conversations at Mount Sinai.

3 In text "Istffi" = choice, selection: hence Mustaft = the Chosen Prophet,
Mohammed ; ols. i. 7 ; ii. 40.

4 In text " Jazr" = cutting, strengthening, flow (of tide).

2O4 Supplemental Nights.

from him sundry of his modes and airs for the lute and other
instruments and I have the practice of improvisation." Now when
Ibrahim was speaking behold, there came one of the Caliph's
pages and he walked up to the head of the assembly bearing with
him a letter, which he handed to his lord. But Yusuf put forth
his hand and took it, and after reading the superscription he learnt
that his companion was Ibrahim without doubt or mistake, so he
said to him, " By Allah, O my lord, verily thou hast slighted me,
for that thou hast not informed me of thyself.' 1 Quoth the other,
" By Allah, I feared from thee lest I give thee excess of trouble ;
and quoth Yusuf, " Do thou take to thee all these handmaids
whom the Commander of the Faithful hath bid thee receive."
Ibrahim replied, "Nay, I will not accept from thee the hand-
maidens but rather will I fend from thee the Prince of True
Believers ;" however, King Yusuf rejoined, " I have gifted them
to the Viceregent of Allah : an thou take them not I will send
them by other than thyself." Presently King Yusuf set apart for
the Caliph great store of gifts, and when the handmaidens heard
of that they wept with sore weeping. Ibrahim, hearing their
wailing, found it hard to bear, and he also shed tears for the
sobbing and crying of them ; and presently he exclaimed, " Allah
upon thee, O Yusuf, leave these ten handmaidens by thee and I
will be thy ward with the Prince of True Believers." But Yusuf
answered, " Now by the might of Him who stablished the moun-
tains stable, unless thou bear them away with thee I will despatch
them escorted by another." Hereupon Ibrahim took them and
farewelled King Yusuf and fared forth and hastened his faring
till the party arrived at Baghdad, the House of Peace, where he

went up into the Palace of the Commander of the Faithful

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent
and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine,
and how enjoyable and delectable 1 " Quoth she, " And where is

. The Loves of Al- Hay fa and Yusuf. 205

this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming
night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the
next night and that was

anto Sebentf)

DUNVAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With
love and good will ! " It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when Ibrahim
reached Baghdad and went up to the Palace of the Commander of
the Faithful and stood in the presence he was asked, " What hast
thou brought for us from thy journey, O Ibrahim ? " whereto he
answered, " O our lord, I have come to thee with all thou wiliest
and wishest that of rede be right and of word apposite." Quoth he,
" And what may that be ? " and quoth the other, " The ten
handmaids : " and so saying he set them before the Caliph,
whereupon they kissed ground and did him suit and service and
deprecated for him and greeted him with blessings, and each and
every of them addressed him in tongue most eloquent and with
theme most prevalent. The Prince of True Believers hugely
admired them, marvelling at their deftness of address and their
sweetness of speech which he had never witnessed in any other ;
and he was delighted with their beauty and loveliness and their
stature and symmetrical grace, and he wondered with extreme
wonderment how their lord had consented they should be brought
before him. Then cried he, " O Ibrahim, what hath been thy
case with the owner of these damsels, and did he commit them to
thee despite himself in anger and care or with resignation of mind
and broadening of bosom and joy and satisfaction ? " " O my
lord," said Ibrahim, "verily he made them over to me in none

206 Supplemental Nights.

except the best of dispositions, and Allah give him length of life
for a youth ! How benign was his countenance and how beautiful,
and how perfect and how liberal were his hands and prompt to
act, and how excellent were his wits and how goodly and gracious
was his society and how yielding was his nature and how great
was his dignity and how just were his dealings with his lieges !
By Allah, O Commander of the Faithful, when I went to him
from thee I found him outside his city intending for the hunt and
chase and about to enjoy himself in pleasurable case, but seeing
our coming he met me and salam'd to me and greeted me and
rejoiced in me with extreme joy. All this, and he knew me not
nor did I on my part know him ; but he took me with him and
returned to town, and as we entered he was met by the Lords of
the land and the lieges who prayed for him ; so I knew that man
to be their King and Captain of commandment, also that he was
equitable to his subjects. Then he made me alight in his House
of Hospitality, and went up into his Palace, after which he sent
to call me and I obeyed his summons, when he set apart for me
an apartment under his own roof and taking me by the hand led
me thereto, where I found everything the best that could be.
Anon he despatched for us wine and wax candles and perfumes
and fruits fresh and dry and whatnot of that which becometh such
assembly ; and, when this was done, he bade summon the ten
handmaidens, and they also took their seats in the session, and
they smote their instruments and they sang verse wherein each
one excelled her companion. But one of them insisted in her
song upon the name of me, saying : None availeth to compose
such lines save Ibrahim the Cup-companion, the son of Ishak. Now
I had denied myself to their lord and acquainted him not with my
name ; but when the damsel had finished her verse, I largessed to
her a thousand gold pieces and asked her, Who may be this
Ibrahim whereat thou hast hinted in thy song ? Said she, He is
the boon-companion of the Caliph and he is unique among the

The Loves of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf. 207

pleasant ; then she fell to praising me with praise galore than
which naught could be more, unknowing me the while, until I
took the lute from her hand and smote it with a touch unlike
their play. Hereby their lord discovered me and said in his
verse : Thou art Ibrahim without doubt or mistake ; but Btill I
denied myself replying, I am a man from Al-Basrah and a familiar
of Ibrahim the Master-Musician : And on this wise I answered
him, when behold, there came up to us a page bearing a rescript
from thee. So King Yusuf took it from his hand and read the
address when he made certain that I was Ibrahim, the Cup-com-
panion, and having learnt my name he blamed me saying : O
Ibrahim, thou hast denied thyself to me. O my lord, I replied,
'Twas that I feared for thee excess of trouble ; after which quoth
he, Verily these ten damsels are a free gift from me to the
Commander of the Faithful. Hearing these words I refused to
receive them and promised on my return to the Caliph that I
would defend their lord from all detraction, but he cried, O
Ibrahim, unless thou take them I will forward them with other
than thyself. And lastly, O Prince of True Believers, he pre-
sented to me fifty slave-girls and as many Mamelukes and an
hundred and fifty negro-serviles and twenty steeds of purest blood,
with their housings and furniture, and four hundred she-camels
and twenty pods of musk. l " Then having told his tale, the
Cup-companion fell to commending Yusuf, and the Caliph
inclined ear to him admiring at this man and his generosity
and his openness of hand and the eloquence of his tongue and
the excellence of his manners, until Al-Maamun desired to for-
gather with him and work him weal and gift him with liberal
gifts. Presently the Caliph bade summon the ten handmaidens
and the hour was past supper-tide, at which time Ibrahim the

1 In the text NaEshah " = Per*. " Nafah," derived, I presume, from the tf
' Naf " = belly or testicle, the part which in the musk-deer was supposed to store op
the perfume.

208 Supplemental Nights.

Cup-companion, was seated beside him without other being
present. And as soon as the girls came before him the Caliph
bade them take their seats, and when they obeyed his order the
wine cups went merrily round, and the ten were directed to let
him hear somewhat of their chaunting and playing. So they fell to
smiting their instruments of mirth and merriment and singing
their songs, one after other, and each as she ended her poetry
touched the Caliph with delight until it came to the last of

them, who was hight Muhjat al-Kulub ; And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How
sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! J> Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me
to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

anti Nmtf)

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the last
poetical piece recited by the ten damsels to the Commander of
the Faithful was by Muhjat al-Kulub; and he upon hearing it
rose at once to his feet and shrieked and fell aswoon for an hour
of time. And when he recovered he cried, " By Allah, O Muhjat
al-Kulub and Oh of eyne the coolth, t do thou repeat to me what
thou hast said." Hereupon she touched her instrument with
another touch accompanying the repetition of her poetry in a
style wholly unlike the first, and she repeated her song in the

The Loves of A I- Hay fa and Yusuf. 209

mode and form Nahawand. 1 But when the Caliph heard her, his
wits were wildered, and he rent that was upon him of raiment,
and he fell fainting to the floor until Ibrahim the Cup-companion
and the ten handmaidens deemed him dead. But as he revived
after an hour of time he said to the handmaiden, " O Muhjat al-
Kulub, ask and it shall be granted to thee." " I pray," quoth
she, " first of Allah and then of the Commander of the Faithful
that he restore us, all the ten, unto our lord ; " and he granted
her request after he had gifted them all and largessed them. 2 He
also wrote to their owner, King Yusuf, a royal Rescript appoint-
ing him Sultan over all the kingdoms that were in and about the
land of Al-Sind ; and moreover that whenas the Caliph might
be absent from his good city of Baghdad, Yusuf should take his
place in bidding and forbidding and ordering and governing.
This ended, he despatched the ten slave-girls with a body of his
Chamberlains after giving them wealth galore and of presents and
rarities great store ; and they fared forth from him and ceased not
faring till they reached the city of Al-Sind. Now when the ten
handmaidens drew nigh thereto they sent to inform King Yusuf of
their coming, and he commissioned his Wazir Mohammed bin Ibrahim
to meet and receive them, and he caused them enter the Palace,
wondering the while that his ten bondswomen had not found favour
with the Prince of True Believers. So he summoned them to
his presence and asked them thereanent, and they answered by
relating all that had befallen them ; and presently Muhjat al-Kulub
presented to him the royal Rescript, and when he read it he

1 For Nahavand," the celebrated site in Al-Irak where the Persians sustained
their final defeat at the hands of the Arabs A.H. 21. It is also one of the many
musical measures, like the Ispahdni, the Risti, the Rayhani, the Busalik, the Nari,
etc., borrowed from the conquered 'Ajami.

3 This second half of the story is laid upon the lines of " The Min of Al-Yaman and
his six Slave-girls " : vol. iv. 245.

VOL. V. O

2 TO Supplemental Nights.

increased in joy and delight. 1 Now 2 when supper was over the
Prince of True Believers said to Ibn Ahyam, " Needs must thou
relate unto us a story which shall solace us ; and said the other,
" O Commander of the Faithful, I have heard a tale touching one
of the Kings." "What is that?" asked the Caliph, whereupon
Ibn Ahyam fell to relating the adventures of

1 This history again belongs to the class termed "Abtar" = tailless. In the text we
find for all termination, " After this he (Yusuf) invited Mohammed ibn Ibrahim to lie
that night in the palace." Scott (vi. 364) ends after his own fashion : " They (the
ten girls) recited extempore verses before the caliph, but the subject of each was so
expressive of their wish to return to their beloved sovereign, and delivered in so affecting
a manner, that Mamoon, though delighted with their wit and beauty, sacrificed his own
pleasure to their feelings, and sent them back to Eusuff by the officer who carried the
edict, confirming him in his dominions, where the prince of Sind and the fair Aleefa
continued long, amid a numerous progeny, to live the protectors of their happy
subjects."

2 This tale is headless as the last is tailless. We must suppose that soon after
Mohammed ibn Ibrahim had quitted the Caliph, taking away the ten charmers, Al-
Maamun felt his "breast straitened" and called for a story upon one of his Ra\vis
named Ibn Ahyam. This name is repeated in the text and cannot be a clerical error for
Ibn Ibrahim.

THE THREE PRINCES OF CHINA

2I 3

THE THREE PRINCES OF CHINA.'

WHILOME there was a King in the land of Al-Sin and he had
three male children to whose mother befel a mysterious malady.
So they summoned for her Sages and leaches of whom none could
understand her ailment and she abode for a while of time strown
upon her couch. At last came a learned physician to whom they
described her disorder and he declared, " Indeed this sickness
cannot be healed save and except by the Water of Life, a treasure
that can be trove only in the land Al-'Irak." When her sons
heard these words they said to their sire, " There is no help but
that we make our best endeavour and fare thither and thence
bring for our mother the water in question." Hereupon the King
gat ready for them a sufficiency of provaunt for the way and they
farewelled him and set forth intending for Barbarian-land. 2 The
three Princes ceased not travelling together for seven days, at the
end of which time one said to other, " Let us separate and let each
make search in a different stead, so haply shall we hit upon our
need." So speaking they parted after dividing their viaticum and,
bidding adieu to one another, each went his own way. Now the
eldest Prince ceased not wending over the wastes and none directed
him to a town save after a while when his victual was exhausted
and he had naught remaining to eat. At that time he drew near
to one of the cities where he was met at the entrance by a Jewish
man who asked him saying, " Wilt thou serve, O Moslem ? "

1 Scott (vi. 366) "Adventures of the Three Princes, sons of the Sultan of China."
* In the text " 'Ajam," for which see vol. i. 2, 120. Al-Irak, I may observe, was the

head-quarters of the extensive and dangerous Kharijitc heresy ; and like Syria has ever

a bad name among&t orthodox Moslems.

214 Supplemental Nights

Quoth the youth to himself, " I will take service and haply Allah
shall discover to me my need." Then said he aloud, "I will
engage myself to thee ; " and said the Jew, "Every day thou shalt
serve me in yonder Synagogue, whose floor thou shalt sweep and
dean its mattings and rugs and thou shalt scour the candlesticks."
" Tis well," replied the Prince, after which he fell to serving in the
Jew's house, until one day of the days when his employer said to
him, " O Youth, I will bargain with thee a bargain." " And what
may that be ? " asked the young Prince, and the man answered, " I
will condition with thee for thy daily food a scone and .a half but
the broken loaf thou shalt not devour nor shalt thou break the
whole bread ; yet do thou eat thy sufficiency and whoso doth
contrary to our agreement we will flay 1 his face. So, an it be
thy desire to serve, thou art welcome." Now of his inexperience
the Prince said to him, "We will serve thee;" whereupon his
employer rationed him with a scone and a half and went forth
leaving him in the Synagogue. When it was noon the youth
\vaxed anhungered so he ate the loaf and a half; and about mid-
afternoon the Jew came to him and finding that he had devoured
the bread asked him thereanent and the other answered, " I was
hungry and I ate up all." Cried the Jew, " I made compact with
thee from the beginning that thou shouldst eat neither the whole
nor the broken," and so saying he fared forth from him and
presently brought a party of Jews, who in that town numbered
some fifty head, and they seized the youth and slew him and
bundling up the body in a mat 2 set it in a corner of the Syna-

1 In the Arab. " Salkh," meaning also a peculiar form of circumcision, for which see
Pilgrimage iii. 80-8 1. The Jew's condition was of course a trick, presenting an
impossibility and intended as a mere pretext for murdering an enemy to his faith.
Throughout the Eastern world this idea prevails, and both Sir Moses Montefiore and
M. Cremieux were utterly at fault and certainly knew it when they declared that Europe
was teaching it to Asia. Every Israelite community is bound in self-defence, when the
murder of a Christian child or adult is charged upon any of its members, to court the
most searching enquiry and to abate the scandal with all its might.

2 The text has " Fi Kib," which Scott (vol. vi. 367) renders a mat." [According

The Three Princes of China. 2 1 5

gogue. Such was his case ; but as regards the Cadet Prince, he
ceased not wayfaring and wending from town to town until Fate
at last threw him into the same place where his brother had been
slain and perchance as he entered it he found the same Jew
standing at the Synagogue-door. The man asked him, "Wilt
thou serve, O Moslem ? " and as the youth answered " Yea verily,"
he led the new comer to his quarters. After this the Jew had

patience for the first day and the second day And Shahrazad

was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

&e Seben ^un&refc an& lebentj) JEKgf)t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love and

good will ! " It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director,
the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds
fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the King's son tarried
with the Jewish man the first day and the second day, after which
his employer did with him even as he had done by his brother
before him ; to wit, he slew him and wrapping him in a mat placed
his corpse beside that of the eldest Prince. On this wise it happed
to these twain ; but as regards the youngest of the three, he ceased

to the Muhit " Kib" is a small thick mat used to produce shade, pi. "Kiyib" and
'* Akyab." The same authority says the word is of Persian origin, but this seems an
error, unless it be related to " Keb " with the Yd majhul, which in the Appendix to the
Burhani Kali* is given as synonymous with '< Pech," twist, fold. Under " Bardi" =
papyrus the Muhit mentions that this is the material from which the nrats known by the
of " Akyab " are made.- ST.]

2 1 6 Supplemental Nights.

not travelling from town to town and enduring excessive fatigue
and hunger and nakedness until by decree of Destiny and by
determination of the Predestinator he was thrown into the hands
of the same Jew whom he found standing at the Synagogue-door.
Here the man accosted him, saying, " Wilt thou serve, O Moslem ? "
and the Youth agreeing he imposed upon him the same pact which
he had made with his two brothers, and the Prince said " 'Tis well,
O Master." Then quoth the Jew, " Do thou sweep the Synagogue
and cleanse it and shake out the mats and rugs ; " and quoth the
other, " Good ! " But when the Prince left him and went into the
building, his glance fell upon the two bundles of matting wherein
were wrapped the corpses of his brothers, so he drew near to them
and, raising a corner of the covering, found the bodies stinking
and rotten. Hereat he arose and fared forth the Synagogue and
opening a pit in the ground took up his brothers (and he
sorrowing over them and weeping) and buried them. Then he
returned to the building and, rolling up the mats, heaped them
together and so with the rugs, after which he built a fire under
them until the whole were burnt and after he took down the
candlesticks one and all and brake them to bits. Now when it
was mid-afternoon behold, the Jew came to the Synagogue and
found a bonfire and all the furniture thereof lying in ashes and
when he saw this he buffeted his face and cried, " Wherefore, O
Moslem, hast thou done on such wise ? " Replied the youth.
M Thou hast defrauded me, O Master," and rejoined the Jew, " I
have not cheated thee of aught. However, O Moslem, hie thee
home and bid thy mistress slaughter a meat-offering and cook it
and do thou bring it hither forthright." " 'Tis well, O my
Master," said the Prince. Now the Jew had two boy children in
whom he delighted and the youth going to his house knocked at
the door which was opened to him by the Jewess and she asked,
" What needest thou ? " Quoth the Prince to the Jew's wife, " O
my mistress, my master hath sent me to thee saying : Do thou

The Three Princes of China. 2 1 7

slaughter the two lambs that are with thee and fifty chickens and
an hundred pair l of pigeons, for all the masters are with him in
the Synagogue and 'tis his desire to circumcise the boys. 1 ' 2 The
Jew's wife replied to him, " And who shall slaughter me all this ? "
when he rejoined, " I will." So she brought out to him the lambs
and the chickens and the pigeons and he cut the throats of all.
The Jewess hereupon arose and cried upon her neighbours to aid
her in the cooking until the meats were well done and all were
dished up. Then the youth hending the ten porcelain plates in
hand went with them to a house in the Ghetto 8 and rapped at the
door and said, " My Master hath sent all these to you." Mean-
while the Jew was in the Synagogue unknowing of such doings ;
and as the Prince was setting down the last of the plates which
he carried with him, behold ! the Jew came to that house because
he had noticed his servant's absence, so he repaired thither to see
concerning the business of the meat offering wherewith he had
charged him. He found his home in a state of pother and
up-take and down-set and he asked the folk, "What is the
matter ? " They, related the whole to him and said, Thou
sentest to demand such-and-such," and when he heard this case he

beat his face with his brogue 4 And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted

1 [The text has here " Wasayah," probably a clerical error for "waMiah" (spelt
" Mdyah"), and a hundred pair of pigeons. ST.]

1 Showing utter ignorance of the Jewish rite which must always be performed by the
Mohel, an official of the Synagogue duly appointed by the Sheliach = legatus ; and
within eight days after birth. The rite consists of three operations. Milan the cut ;
Priah = tearing the foreskin and Mezzizah = applying styptics to the wound. The
ktter process has become a matter of controversy and the Israelite community of Paris,
headed by the Chief Rabbi, M. Zadoc Kahin, has lately assembled to discuss the
question. For the difference between Jewish and Moslem circumcision see vol. v. 209.

1 The Jewish quarter (Harah), which the Israelites themselves call " Hater," = a
court-yard, an inclosure. In Mayer's valuable " Conversations-lexicon " the Italian
word is derived from the Talmudic Ghet " = divorce, separation (as parting the
Hebrews from the rest of the population) and the Rev. S. R. Melli, Chief Rabbi of
Trieste, has kindly informed me that the word is Chaldaic.

4 [Ar. " Sarmujah," from Persian " Sar-muzah," a kind of hose or gaiter worn over
a boot.'lST.]

2 1 8 Supplemental Nights.

say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story,

sister mine, and how enjoyable' and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night and that was

fie S>eben f^unirrrtr and todftf) Wgfit,

'DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale, that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night." She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King,
the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that, when the
Jew came to his home and looked around, he found it in the
condition which the youth had contrived, so he beat his face with
his brogue and cried, " O the ruin of my house ! " Suddenly
the Prince entered and his employer asked him, " Wherefore
doest thou on such wise, O Moslem ? " Answered the youth,
" Verily thou hast defrauded me," and rejoined the other, 4< No ;

1 have not cheated thee on any wise." Then said the Jew in his
mind : " Needs must I set a snare for this youth and slay him ; "
so he went in to his wife and said, " Spread for us our beds upon
the terrace-roof; and we will take thereto the young Moslem,
our servant, and cause him lie upon the edge, and when he is
drowned in slumber we will push him between us and roll him
along the floor till he fall down from the terrace and break
to bits his neck." Now by fiat of Fate the youth was standing
and overhearing 1 their words. As soon as it was night-time
the woman arose and spread the beds upon the roof according
as her husband had charged her do ; but about mid-afternoon

1 [Arab. "Yastanft," aor. to the preter. " istanat," which has been explained,
p. 34 ST.]

The Three Princes of China. 219

the Prince bought him half a pound of filberts and placed them
with all care and circumspection in his breast-pocket. Presently
the Jew" said to him, " O Moslem, we design to sleep in the
open air, for the weather is "now summery ;" and said he, "'Tis
well, O my Master." ^ Hereupon the Jew and the Jewess and the
children and the Prince their servant went up to the roof and
the first who lay him down was*the*house-masterr placing his
wife and children beside him.^Then said he to the youth, " Do
thou sleep here upon the side," l when the Prince brought the
filberts out of his breast-pocket and cracked them with his teeth,
and as often as they repeated to him, " Arise, O Moslem, and take
thy place on the couch," he answered them, "Whenas I shall
have eaten these filberts.", ; He ceased not watching them till

. -V-j &"\.

all had lain down and were fast asleep, when he took his place
on the bed between the mother and the two boys. ' Presently the
Jew awoke, and thinking that the youth was sleeping on the
edge, he pushed his wife, and his wife pushed the servant, and
the servant pushed the children towards the terrace- marge, and
both the little ones fell over and their brain-pans 2 were broken
and they died. The Jew hearing the noise of the fall fancied
that none had tumbled save his servant the young Moslem ;
so he rose in joy and 'awoke his wife saying, " Indeed the youth

hath rolled off the terrace-roof and hath been killed." 4 Hereat

r & t *-

the woman sat up, and not finding her boys beside her,*: whilst

** <

the Prince still lay there she wailed and shrieked and buffeted net

M0I

cheeks, and cried to her husband, " Verily none hath fallen save
the children." Hereat he jumped up and attempted to cast the

1 The bed would be made of a carpet or thin mattress strewn upon the stucco flooring
of the terrace-roof. But the ignorant scribe overlooks the fact that by Mosaic law every
Jewish house must have a parapet for the " Sakf " (flat roof), a precaution neglected by
AMslam.

* Good old classical English. In the " Breeches Bible " (A.D. 1586) we read, " But
a certaine woman cast a piece of millstone upon Abimelcch's head and broke his brain-
panne (Judges ix. 33).

22O Supplemental Nights.

youth from the roof; but he, swiftlier than the lightning, sprang
to his feet and shouted at the Jew and filled him with fear, after
which he stabbed him with a knife which was handy, and the
other fell down killed and drowned in the blood he had spilled.
Now the Jew's wife was a model of beauty and of loveliness and
stature and perfect grace, and when the King's son turned upon
her and designed to slay her, she fell at his feet, and kissing them,
placed herself under his protection. Hereupon the youth left her
alive, saying to himself, " This be a woman and indeed she must not
be mishandled ;" l and the Jewess asked him, " O my lord, what is
the cause of thy doing on this wise ? At first thou earnest to me
and toldest me the untruth, such-and-such falsehoods, and secondly,
thou wroughtest for the slaughter of my husband and children.
Answered he, " In truth thy man slew my two brothers wrongously
and causelessly ! " Now when the Jewess heard of this deed
she enquired of him, " And art thou their very brother ? " and he
replied, "In good sooth they were my brethren ; " after which
he related to her the reason of their faring from their father to
seek the Water of Life for their mother's use. Hereat she cried,
" By Allah, O my lord, the wrong was with my mate and not
with thee ; but the Decreed chevisance doth need, nor is there
flight from it indeed ; so do thou abide content. However, as
regards the Water in question, it is here ready beside me, and
if thou wilt carry me along with thee to thy country I will give
thee that same, which otherwise I will withhold from thee ; and
haply my wending with thee may bring thee to fair end."

1 [The words " Trz," protection, in the preceding sentence, " Hurmah " and
"Shatarah " explain each other mutually. The formula "ff 'irzak " (vulg. "arzak,")
I place myself under thy protection, implies an appeal to one's honour (" 'Irz").
Therefore the youth says : " Inna hazih Hurmah lam 'alay-ha Shatarah," i.e. " Truly this
one is a woman (in the emphatic sense of a sacred or forbidden object ; "this woman"
would be " hazih al-Hurmah "), "I must not act vilely or rashly towards her," both
vileness and rashness belonging to the many significations of *' Shatarah," which is most
usually " cleverness." ST.]

The Three Princes of China. 22 1

Quoth the Prince in his mind, " Take her with thee and per-
adventure she shall guide thee to somewhat of good : " and there-
upon promised to bear her away. So she arose and led him into
a closet where she showed him all the hoards of the Jew, ready
moneys and jewellery and furniture and raiment ; and everything
that was with her of riches and resources she committed to the
young Prince, amongst these being the Water of Life. So they
bore away the whole of that treasure and he also carried off the
Jewess, who was beautiful exceedingly, none being her peer in
that day. Then they crossed the wilds and the wastes, intending

for the land of Al-Sin, and they persevered for a while of time.

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day, and fell silent
and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine,
and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where
is this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming
night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was
the next night and that was

&e $>eton |DunUrcb snU Jpourteentft Xtgftt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With

love and good will I It hath reached me O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the young
Prince ceased not wayfaring until the twain drew near to the
capital of China 1 where, by the fiat of Fate and the sealed decree
of Destiny, on entering the walls he found that his father had
fared to the mercy of Allah Almighty, and that the city, being
Kingless, had become like unto a flock of sheep lacking shepherd.

1 In the text " Sind," still confounding this tale with the preceding.

222 Supplemental Nights,

Moreover he was certified that the Lords of his father's land and
the Grandees of the realm and all the lieges were in the uttermost
confusion. He went up to the palace and forgathered with his
mother, and seeing that she had not been healed of her sickness, he
brought her out the Water of Life and gave her to drink some
little thereof whereby health returned to her and she rose from her
couch and took seat and salam'd to him and asked concerning his
brethren. However he concealed his secret thereanent fearing
lest it induce in her weakly state a fresh attack and discovered to
her naught but said, " Verily, we parted at such a place in order
to seek the Water of Life." Then she looked upon his companion
the Jewess (and she cast in the mould of loveliness) and she
questioned him concerning the woman and he recounted t her
the whole affair, first and last, still concealing for the reason
aforesaid, the fate of his brothers. Now on the second day the
bruit went abroad throughout the city that the King's son had
returned ; so the Wazirs and Emirs and the Lords of the land and
all who had their share in governance forgathered with him and
they set him as King and Sultan in the stead of his sire. He took
seat on the throne of his Kingship and bade and forebade and
raised and deposed and so tarried for a while of time, until one day
of the days when he determined to enjoy the hunt and chase and
divert himself in pleasurable case. 1 So he and his host rode
forth the city when his glance fell upon a Badawi girl who was
standing with the Shaykh her father considering his retinue ; and
the age of the maiden might have mastered thirteen years. But
as soon as the King looked upon the girl love of her upon his
heart alighted, and he was thereby engrossed, for she was perfect
in beauty and comeliness. Hereupon he returned to his palace
and sending for her father asked her of him in marriage ; the
Shaykh, however, answered saying, " O our lord the Sultan, I will

1 In text * Intihaba '1 furas," lit. = the snatching of opportunities, a jingle with
"Kanas."

The Three Princes of China. 223

not give up my daughter save to one who hath a handicraft of his
own, 1 for verily trade is a defence against poverty and folk say :
Handicraft an it enrich not still it veileth." 1 Hereupon the King
took thought in himself and said to the Shaykh, " O Man, I am
Sovran and Sultan and with me is abundant good ;" but the other
replied, " O King of the Age, in King-craft there is no trust."
However, of his exceeding love to the girl the Sultan presently
summoned the Shaykh of the Mat-makers and learnt from him
the craft of plaiting and he wove these articles of various colours
both plain and striped. 8 After this he sent for the father of the
damsel and recounted to him what he had done and the Shaykh
said to him " O King of the Age, my daughter is in poor case and
you are King and haply from some matter may befal a serious
matter ; moreover the lieges may say : Our King hath wived
with a Badawi girl." " O Shaykh," replied the King, " all men
are the sons of Adam and Eve." Hereupon the Badawi granted
to him his daughter and got ready her requisites in the shortest
possible time and when the marriage-tie was tied the King went in
unto her and found her like unto a pearl. 4 So he rejoiced in her and

1 [Compare with this episode the viith of Spitta Bey's Tales : Histoire du Prince qui
apprit an metier. ST.]

* if. enables a man to conceal the pressure of impecuniosity.

1 In text " Al-Sadah wa al-Khatayat."

4 Subaudi, " that hath, not been pierced." ' The first night," which is often so por-
lentous a matter in England and upon the Continent (not of North America) is rarely
treated as important by Orientals. A long theoretical familiarity with the worship of
Venus

Leaves not much mystery for the nuptial night.

Such lore has been carefully cultivated by the " young person " with the able assistance of
the ancient dames of the household, of her juvenile companions and co-evalsand especially
of the slave-girls. Moreover not a few Moslems, even Egyptians, the most lecherous
and salacious of men, in all ranks of life from prince to peasant take a pride in respecting
the maiden for a few nights after the wedding-feast extending, perhaps to a whole week
and sometimes more. A brutal haste is looked upon as "low " ; and, as sensible men,
they provoke by fondling and toying Nature to speak ere proceeding to the final and
critical act. In England it is very different. I have heard of brides over thirty years
rid * ho had not the slightest suspicion concerning what complaisance was expected of
them : out of mauvaise honte* the besetting sin of the respectable classes, neither mother
not lather would venture to enlighten the elderly innocents. For a delicate girl to find

224 Supplemental Nights.

felt his heart at rest and after tarrying with her a full-told year,
one chance day of the days he determined to go forth in disguise
and to wander about town and solace himself with its spectacles
alone and unattended. So he went into the vestiary where the
garments were kept and doffing his dress donned a garb which con-
verted him into a Darwaysh. After this he fared forth in early
morning to stroll around the streets and enjoy the sights of the
highways and markets, yet he knew not what was hidden from him
in the World of the Future. Now when it was noon-tide he entered
a street which set off from the Bazar and yet was no thoroughfare, 1

a man introducing himself into her bedroom and her bed, the shock must be severe and
the contact of hirsute breast and hairy limbs with a satiny skin is a strangeness which
must often breed loathing and disgust. Too frequently also, instead of showing the
utmost regard for virginal modesty and innocence (alias ignorance), the bridegroom will
not put a check upon his passions and precipitates matters with the rage of the bull,
mentis in venerem. Even after he hears "the cry" which, as the Arabs say, "must
be cried," he has no mercy : the newly made woman lies quivering with mental agitation
and physical pain, which not a few describe as resembling the tearing out of a back-
tooth, and yet he insists upon repeating the operation, never supposing in his stupidity,
that time must pass before the patient can have any sensation of pleasure and before the
glories and delights of the sensual orgasm bathe her soul in bliss. Hence complaints,
dissatisfaction, disgust, mainly caused by the man's fault, and hence not unfrequently a
permanent distaste for the act of carnal congress. All women are by no means equally
capable of such enjoyment, and not a few have become mothers of many children
without ever being or becoming thoroughly reconciled to it. Especially in the case of
highly nervous temperaments and these seem to be increasing in the United States and
notably in New England the fear of nine months* pains and penalties makes the sex
averse to the " deed of kind." The first child is perhaps welcomed, the second is an
unpleasant prospect and there is a firm resolve not to conceive a third. But such conjugal
chastity is incompatible, except in the case of " married saints," with a bon manage.
The husband, scandalised and offended by the rejection and refusal of the wife, will
seek a substitute more complaisant ; and the spouse also may " by the decree of Destiny "
happen to meet the right man, the man for whom and for whom only every woman will
sweep the floor. And then adieu to prudence and virtue, honour and fair fame. For, I
repeat, it is the universal custom of civilized and Christian Europeans to plant their
womankind upon a pedestal exposed as butts to every possible temptation : and, if they
fall, as must often be expected, to assail them with obloquy and contempt for succumb-
ing to trials imposed upon them by the stronger and less sensitive sex. Far more
sensible and practical, by the side of these high idealists, shows the Moslem who guards
his jewel with jealous care and who, if his " honour," despite every precaution, insist
upon disgracing him, draws, the sabre and cuts her down with the general approbation
and applause of society.

1 [Arab. " 'Ali ghayri tarik," which I would translate "out of the way," like the
Persian "bi- Rah." ST.]

The Three Princes of China. 22$

and this he followed up until he reached the head and end, where
stood a cook 1 making Kababs. So he said to himself, " Enter yon
shop and dine therein." He did so and was met by sundry shop-
men who seeing him in Darwaysh's garb welcomed him and
greeted him and led him within, when he said to them, " I want a
dinner." " Upon the head and the eyes be it," they replied and
conducting him into a room within the shop showed him another
till he came to the place intended when they said to him, " Enter
herein, O my lord." So he pushed open the door and finding in
the closet a matting and a prayer-rug 2 spread thereupon he said to
himself, " By Allah, this is indeed a secret spot, well concealed
from the eyes of folk." Then he went up to the prayer-rug and
would have sat down upon it after pulling off his papooshes, but
hardly had he settled himself in his seat when he fell through the
floor for a depth of ten fathoms. And while falling he cried out,
" Save me, O God the Saviour ; " for now he knew that the people
of that place only pretended to make Kababs and they had digged
a pit within their premises. Also he was certified that each and
every who came in asking for dinner were led to that place where
they found the prayer-rug bespread and supposed that it was set
therein for the use of the diners. But when the Sultan fell from
his seat into the souterrain, he was followed by the thieves who
designed to murther him and to carry off his clothes, even as they

had done to many others. And Shahrazad was surprised by the

dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O
sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
'* And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ?" Now

when it was the next night and that was

1 In text " Kababji " (for Kababji) seller of Kattbf, mutton or kid grilled in small
squares and skewered : see vol. vi. 225.
* In text "Sujjadah;" vol. vi. 193.

VOL. V. *

226 Supplemental Nights.

l^untrrelr anto Sbt

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the King
fell into the pit (and he disguised in Darwaysh-garb) the thieves
sought to slay him and carry off his clothes, when quoth he to
them, " Wherefore kill me when my garments are not worth a
thousand groats 1 and I own not a single one ? However, I have
at hand a handicraft whereat I am ready to work sitting in this
pit and do you take and sell my produce for a thousand faddahs ;
and every day I will labour for you, finishing one and requiring
naught save my meat and drink and perpetual privacy in your
quarters." " At what craft art thou crafty ? " asked they, and he
answered, " At mat-weaving : so do ye bring me a piastre 2 worth
of rushes 3 and the same of yarn." Accordingly they fared forth
and fetched him his need and presently he made a mat and said to
them, "Take ye this and sell it not for less than a thousand
faddahs." They hied out and carried the work to the Bazar where,
as soon as the folk caught sight thereof, they crowded about the
seller, each man offering more until the price had risen to a thousand
and two hundred silvern nusfs. Hereupon said the thieves to
themselves, " By Allah, this Darwaysh can profit us with much
profit and enrich us without other trade ; " so every morning for
ten days they brought him rushes and yarn and he wove for them
a mat which they vended for a like sum, On this wise it happened

1 In text " Faddah " all through.

2 In text "Kirsh" ( = piastre) a word before explained. See Lane (M.E.)
Appendix B.

8 In Arab. " Samdr ; " from the Pers. " Sumar " = a reed, a rush.

The Three Princes of China. 227

to him ; but as regards the Wazirs and Emirs and lords of the
land, they went up to the Council-chamber I for the first day and
the second and the third until the week was ended and they
awaited the coming of their King, but he came not, neither found
they any tidings nor hit they upon any manifest traces and none
knew whither he had wended. So they were sore exercised and
confusion befel with much tittle-tattle of folk ; each one said his
own say nor were they guided by any to what they should do.
Furthermore, as often as they asked of the Harem they were
answered, " We have no tidings of him ; " so they were perplext
and at last they agreed, their King being clean lost, to set up a
Sultan as his successor. However the Wazirs said, " Tarry ye until
Allah shall open unto us a door whereby we shall be rightly
directed to him." Now the King had required from the people of
the pit rushes of various colours, red and green, and when they
fetched them he fell to weaving a mat like those of the striped
sort, whereon he figured by marks and signs the name of the quarter
wherein he was gaoled 2 and discovered to his men the way thereto
and the site itself ; after which he said to the thieves, " Verily this
mat misfitteth every save those in the Royal Palace and its price
is seven thousand faddahs. Do you take it and hie with it to the
Sultan who shall buy it of you and pay you the price." They
obeyed his bidding and wending to the palace of the Grand Wazir
found him sitting with the Lords of the land and with the Nobles
of the realm talking over the matter of the King when behold,
those who brought the mat entered into his presence. Quoth the
Minister, "What be that which is with you ? " and quoth they, " A
mat ! " whereupon he bade them unroll it and they did so before
him ; and he, being sagacious, experienced in all affairs, looked

1 In Arab. " Dfwin : ** vols. vii. 340 ; ix. 1 08.

1 Scott has (vol. vi. 373), <* The desired articles were furnished, and the Sultan setting
to work, in a few days finished a mat, in which he ingeniously contrived to plait ia
flowery characters, known only to himself and his vizier, the account of his situation."

228 Supplemental Nights.

thereat and fell to examining the bundle and turning it about, and
considering it until suddenly he espied the signs thereupon figured.
He at once understood what they meant and he was rightly
directed to the place where the King was confined ; so he arose
without delay and after ordering them to seize those who had
brought the mat took with him a party and went forth, he and
they, after mastering the marks which were upon the weft. He
ceased not wending (and the people of the pit with him under
arrest) until such time as he arrived at the place. Here they went
in and opened the souterrain and brought out the King who was
still in Darwaysh garb. Presently the Wazir sent for the Linkman
and when he appeared they seized all who were in that place and
struck off their heads ; but as for the women they put them into
large sacks * of camel's hair and drowned them in the river : further-
more, they spoiled all that was on that site and the Sultan gave
orders to raze the house until it became level with the ground.
When all this had been done they questioned the Sultan concerning
the cause of that event and he informed them of what had befallen
him from incept to conclusion and lastly he cried, " Wallahi ! the
cause of my escape from this danger was naught save the handi-
craft which I learnt ; to wit, the making of mats, and the Almighty
requite with welfare him who taught me because he was the means
of my release ; and, but for my learning this trade, ye had never
known the way to discover me, seeing that Allah maketh for every
effect a cause." And having on such wise ended this tale Ibn
Ahyam 2 fell to relating to the King the history of

1 In Arab. "Ghirdrah" (plur. "Gharair") = a sack. In Ibn Khali, (iv. pp. 90,
104) it is a large sack for grain and the especial name of a tax on com.

3 In the text " Mohammed ibn Ibrahim," another confusion with the last tale. This
story is followed in the MS. by (i) "The History of the First Brave," (2) "The
History of the Second Brave," and "The Tale of the Noodle and his Asses," which I
have omitted because too feeble for insertion.

THE RIGHTEOUS WAZIR WRONGFULLY
GAOLED.

THE RIGHTEOUS WAZIR WRONGFULLY GAOLED. 1

IT is related that there was a King among the manifold Kings
of Al-Hind, and he had a Wazir which was a right good
counsellor to the realm and pitiful to the lieges and the Fakirs
and merciful to the miserable and just in all his dealings.
Despite this the Grandees of the kingdom hated him and envied
him, and at all times and seasons when he went forth the presence
or returned to his house, one of the Emirs would come forward
and say to the King, " O our lord, verily the Wazir doth of doings

thus and thus/' And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn

of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy
tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth
she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate to
you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

<T!K Sbeben f^untorefc anfc / tocntpnintf) Xtgfjt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut

short the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied :

With love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious
King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is
benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating,
that the Lords of the land, whenever the Wazir was absent

1 Scott (vi. 375) " Story of the Good Vizier unjustly imprisoned." Gautticr (vi. 394)
Histoirt du ban Vizier injustsmtnt empriioimJ.

232 Supplemental Nights.

traduced him and maligned him in the presence of the Sultan,
saying, "The Minister doth such and such doings," and this
continued for a while of time. Now one day of the days, as the
Sultan was sitting in his palace behold, a running messenger
came to him bearing letters from sundry of the provinces which
were in his reign imploring help against their foemen's violence.
" What may be done in this case ? " asked the Sultan, and his
Nobles answered saying, " Send to them the Wazir," but they
spake not this speech save in their resolve to ruin him and
their determination to destroy him. Hereupon the King sent
for him and summoned him and commanded him to journey
to the places in question ; but those of whom the complaints
had been made threw dangers and difficulties in his way. Said
the Wazir, " Hearing and obeying ; " and after preparing himself
for wayfare he set forth on his way. Now the Lords had
despatched letters to the province whither he intended, apprising
the folk of his coming, and saying to them, " Empower him not
with anything, and if you avail to work him aught of wrong,
so do." When the Wazir marched upon those places he was
met by the people with welcomes and deputations to receive him
and offer him presents and rarities and sumptuous gifts, and all
who were therein honoured him with highmost honour. Presently
he sent for their adversaries, and having brought them before him
made peace between the two parties, and their gladness increased
and their sadness ceased, and he tarried with them for a month
full-told ; after which he set out on his homeward march. The
Lords, however, had reported all this to the King and they were
right sore and sorrowful, for that their desire had been the
destruction of the Minister. And one day of the days as the
Wazir was sitting at home, behold, a party of Chamberlains
appeared before him and summoned him to the presence, saying,
" Arise, the King requireth thee." He rose without stay or
delay, and taking horse made for the presence, and ceased not

The Righteous Wasir Wrongfully Gaoled. 233

riding until he had reached the palace and had gone into the King,
who forthright bade throw him into gaol. (Now it happened
that the prison had seven doors.) 1 Cried the Wazir, " There is no
Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the
Great ; and verily we be Allah's and unto Him are we returning !
Would I wot why and wherefore the King hath confined me and
for what cause ; but Omnipotence is Allah's." As soon as the
Minister was quartered in his new quarters the Sovran sent
to interdict his eating any food of flesh-kind, allowing only
bread and cheese and olives and oil, and so left him in durance
vile. Hereupon all the folk applied them to addressing the King
with petitions and to interceding for the captive ; but this was not
possible ; nay, the Sultan's wrath waxed hotter nor did it soon cool,
for the Wazir abode in gaol during the longsome length of seven
years. As last one day of the days that Sultan went forth dis-
guised in Darwaysh-garb and toured about town unattended, and
ceased not walking until he reached and passed before the palace
of the Wazir, where he found a gathering of much folk, some
sweeping and others sprinkling water, and others spreading, 2
whilst the Harem and household were in high glee and gladness.
He stood there amongst the spectators and presently asked what
was doing, and they informed him, saying, " The Wazir returneth
from abroad this night and folk have been informed by messenger
that the Sultan hath deigned restore him to favour and expressed
himself satisfied, so presently we shall see him once more at home."
" Praise be to Allah ! " quoth the King in his mind ; " by the

1 This detail has no significance, though perhaps its object may be to affect the circum-
stantial, a favourite manoeuvre with the Rawi. [It may mean that the prisoner had
to pass through seven gates before reaching it, to indicate its formidable strength and
the hopelessness of all escape, except perhaps by a seven-warded, or as the Arabs would
say, a seven-pinned key of gold. In the modern tale mentioned on p. 223 the kid-
napped Prince and his Wazir are made to pass " through one door after the other until
seven doors were passed," to emphasise the utter seclusion of their hiding place. ST.]

* i.e. the mats and mattresses, rugs and carpets, pillows and cushions which compose
the chain, tables and beds of a well- to-do Eastern lodging.

234 Supplemental Nights.

Almighty, this occurrence hath no cause, and how went the bruit
abroad that the King hath again accepted him ? And now there
is no help but that I forgather with the Wazir and see what there
may be to do and how this occurred." The Sultan increased in
disquietude therefor, so he went and bought a somewhat of bread
and repairing to the gaol (he being still in Fakir's garb) accosted
the gaoler and said to him, "Allah upon thee, O my lord, open to
me the bridewell that I may enter and distribute this provaunt
among the prisoners, for that I have obliged myself to such course
by oath, and the cause is that when suffering from a sickness which
brought me nigh to death's door I vowed a vow and sware a
strong swear that, an Almighty Allah deign heal me, I would buy
somewhat of bread and dole it out to the inmates of the gaol. 1
So here am I come for such purpose." Upon this the man opened
to him the door and he went in and all divided the bread
amongst the captives yet he saw not the Wazir ; so he said to the
gaoler, " Hath any one remained that I may dole to him his
share ? " " O Darwaysh," said the other, " whereof askest thou ? "
and said the Eakir, " O my lord, I have sworn an oath and Allah
upon thee, if there be among the captives any save these I have
seen, do thou tell me thereof." Quoth the man, " There remaineth
none save the Wazir who is in another place, but indeed he is not
in want ;" and quoth the Fakir, " O my lord, my desire is to free
myself from the obligation of mine oath." Accordingly the gaoler
led him in to the Wazir and when the Darwaysh drew nigh the
visitor shrieked and fell fainting to the floor, and the warder seeing
him prostrate left him to himself and went his ways. Hereupon
the Minister came to him and sprinkling somewhat of water upon
his face said to him, " O Darwaysh, there is no harm to thee ! "
So the Fakir arose and said, " O my lord, my heart hath been

1 The pretext was natural. Pious Moslems often make such vows and sometimes
oblige themselves to feed the street dogs with good bread.

The Righteous Wasir Wrongfully Gaoled. 235

upon thee for a while of time ; And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her per-
mitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy
story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth
she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate to you
on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now
when it was the next night and that was

fteben pjunfcrrt anil ^tits-first

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that quoth the
Fakir to the Wazir, " By Allah, O my lord, my heart hath indeed
been with thee for this space of seven years ; and often as I went
to thy mansion, they told me that the Sultan is wroth with the
Wazir ; withal I still awaited for thee until this very day, when I
repaired to thy quarters according to my custom and I found in
thy house much folk, this sweeping and that sprinkling and that
spreading, and all were in joyous case. So I asked of the by-
standers and they informed me that the Sovran hath become satis-
fied with thee and that on the ensuing night thou wilt hie thee home
for that this thy saying is soothfast." l " O Darwaysh," replied the
other, 4<> Tis true that I sent to my household and informed them
thereof, for that I have received welcome news from an event befel
me ; so I bade apprise those at home that the Sultan is satisfied
with me ; and to me, O Darwaysh, hath betided a matter wondrous
and an occurrence marvellous; were it written with needle-gravers

1 In text " Min hakk hizi '1-KaUm sahitu"

236 Supplemental Nights.

upon the eye-corners it had been a warning to whoso would be
warned." The Fakir asked, " And what may be that ? " and the
other answered : By Allah, O Darwaysh, the while I was in the
service of His Highness the King, I was a true counsellor to him
and pitiful to the lieges and I never deceived him nor did I betray
him at any time at all ; and often as he sent me to a place wherein

3?**v

were mutual strife and trouble and wrong and tyranny, I smoothed
matters and pacified the folk and righted wrongs amongst them by
the power of Almighty Allah. But one day of the days, my mind
was set upon riding out to the waste lands about the town and the
gardens thereof, by way of solacing myself; so I embarked in a
little ca'fque * upon the river and when we were amid stream I had
a longing for coffee ; 2 so I said to the boatman, " Abide in this
place and throw out the anchor while we drink coffee."- Hereat
all my suite arose and busied themselves in preparing it until 'twas
ready and I had a finjan 3 worth a treasury 4 of money which they
filled and passed to me. I took it as I was sitting upon the gunwale
of the boat whence it dropped into the stream ; and I was sorely

1 In text " Kaik" and " Kaik-jf," the well-known caique of the Bosphorus, a term
which bears a curious family resemblance to the " Kayak " of the Eskimos.

2 Here coffee is mentioned without tobacco, whereas in more modern days the two
are intimately connected. And the reason is purely hygienic. Smoking increases the
pulsations without strengthening them and depresses the heart -action with a calming and
soothing effect. Coffee, like alcohol, affects the circulation in the reverse way by exciting
it through the nervous system; and not a few authorities advise habitual smokers to end
the day and prepare for rest with a glass of spirits and water. It is to be desired that
the ignorants who write about " that filthy tobacco " would take the trouble to observe its
effects on a large scale, and not base the strongest and extremest opinions, as is the wont
of the Anglo-Saxon Halb-bildung, upon the narrowest and shakiest of vases. In Egypt,
India and other parts of the Eastern world they will find nicotiana used by men, women
and children, of all ranks and ages ; and the study of these millions would greatly
modify the results of observing a few hundreds at home. But, as in the case of opium-
eating, populus vult decipi, the philanthrope does not want to know the truth, indeed he
shrinks from it and loathes it. All he cares for is his own especial " fad."

3 Arab. "Fihjal" systematically repeated for "Finjan" pronounced in Egypt
"Fingan: see vol. viii. 200. [The plural " Fanajil," pronounced Fanagll, occurs in
Spitta Bey's Contes Arabes Modernes, p. 92, and in his Grammar, p. 26, the same
author states that the forms " Fingan " and "Fingal " are used promiscuously. ST.]

For the " Khaznah " (Khazinah) or 10,000 kfs each = ^"5, see vols. ii. 84 ;
iii. 278.

Thi Righteous Wazir Wrongfully Gaoltd. 237

sorrowful therefor, because that cup was a souvenir. Seeing this,
all in the boat arose and sent for a diver who asked, saying, "In
what place hath the finjan fallen that I may seek it ? and do ye
inform me of its whereabouts." So we sought for a pebble in the
caique but we found none, and as I wore upon my finger a signet-
ring which was worth two treasuries of money I drew it off and
cast it into the water crying, " The cup fell from me in this place."
But when the ducker saw me throw my ring he said to me,
" Wherefore, O my lord, hast thou parted with thy seal ? " and
said I to him, "The deed is done." Then he went down and
plunged into the deep for a while and behold he came up grasping
the cup, in the middle of which we saw the signet-ring. Now
when this mighty great matter befel me, I said to myself, " Ho
certain person, there remaineth upon this good luck no better
luck ; and haply there will befal thee somewhat contrary to this." >
However those with me rejoiced at the finding of my two losses,
nor did any fear therefrom my change of state and downfall, but
they wondered and said, " By Allah, this is a rare matter ! " Then
we went forward in the caique until we had reached the place
intended, where we tarried the whole of that day and presently
returned home. But hardly was I settled and had I taken seat in
my home-quarters when behold, a party of Chamberlains of the
King's suite came in to me and said, " The Sultan requireth thee ! "
Accordingly, I arose and mounted horse and rode on till I had
come to the palace and entered the presence ; and I designed to
offer suit and service to the King as was my wont, when suddenly
he cried, " Carry him away." So they bore me off and confined

1 A euphuism meaning some disaster. The text contains a favourite incident in
folk-lore ; the first instance, I believe, being that of Polycrates of Samos according to
Herodotus (lib. iii. 41-42). The theory is supported after a fashion by experience
amongst all versed in that melancholy wisdom the " knowledge of the world.*' As Syr
Cauline the knight philosophically says :

Everye white will have its blacke,
And evcryc sweete its sowre : tic.

238 Supplemental Nights.

me in this place, after which the Sultan sent and interdicted me from
eating a tittle of flesh food, and here I am after the space of seven
years, O Darwaysh, still in the same condition. Now on the morning
of this day my stomach craved for meat, so I said to the gaoler, " O
Such-and-such, 'tis now seven years since I tasted flesh, so take
this ashrafi and bring us an ounce of meat." He accepted the
money saying, " 'Tis well," and went forth from me and brought

me my need. And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day

and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth
her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!" Quoth she, "And
where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the
coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it
was the next night and that was

antr f)trtg--t!w&

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale, that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied : -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting,
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that
the Wazir continued to the Fakir, "Then, O Darwaysh, we
divided the meat (I and the gaoler) with our fingers, and we
washed it and set it upon the hearth, building a fire beneath
it until it was cooked, when we took it off, and after waiting
awhile dished it up and were about to eat it. But it hap-
pened to be noon-tide, and the hour of incumbent orisons, so we
said, "Let us pray our prayers ; " and we arose and made the
Wuzu ablution, and went through the mid-day devotions. After
this we set the plate before us ; and I, removing its cover, put forth

The Righteous Wazir Wrongfully Gaoled. 239

my hand to take up a bit of meat, but as I took it, behold, a mouse
passed over that same morsel with its tail and paws. 1 I cried,
" There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah the
Glorious, the Great ! I have divided this meat with my own hand
and have cooked it myself, so how could this matter have occurred?
However, Allah the Omniscient haply knoweth that the stumbling
stone hath been removed from my path," and this I said, for when
I saw that mouse do on such wise I felt that glad news and good
tidings were coming from the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth.
So I sent to my home and informed them that the Sultan was
satisfied with me, for things when at their worst mend, and in
joyance end ; and I opine, O Darwaysh, that all my troubles have
now ceased. Said to him the Fakir," Alhamdolillah Glory be to
God O my lord, who hath sent thee forerunners of welfare.''
Then he arose from beside the Wazir, and went forth and ceased
not wending until he came to his palace where he doffed his dis-
guise and donned the garments of the Kings, and taking seat upon
the throne of his Kingship summoned the Wazir from his gaol in
all joy, and set him between his hands and gifted him with sump-
tuous gifts. And all displeasure in the Sultan's heart being
removed from the Wazir he committed to him once more the
management of all his affairs. 2 But when Ibn Ahyam (continued
Shahrazad) had ended his history of the Righteous Wazir he
presently began to tell the tale of

* Thus making the food impure and unfit for a religious Moslem to eat. Scott (vi. 378)
has " when a huge rat running from his hole leaped into the dish which was placed upon
/be floor." He is probably thinking of the East Indian "bandycoot."

* In text this tale concludes, " It is ended and this (next) is the History of the Barber."

THE CAIRENE YOUTH. THE BARBER
AND THE CAPTAIN.

THE CAIRENE YOUTH, THE BARBER, AND THE

CAPTAIN.

IT is related that in Misr there was a Youth, a Shalabf, 1 sans peer
for semblance and excellence, and he had to friend a lovely woman
whose husband was a YuzbdsM' or captain. Now whenever that
young man or his playmate would fain conjoin, each with other,
union proved almost impossible and yet his heart was always hanging
to her love and she was in similar state and even more enamoured,
for that he was passing fair of form and feature. One day of the
days the Captain returned home and said to his wife, " I am invited
to such a place this afternoon, therefore an thou require aught
ask it of me ere I go." Cried they, 8 " We want nothing save thy
safety ; " yet were they delighted therewith, and the youth's friend
said, " Alhamdolillah Glory to God this day we will send to a
certain person and bring him hither and we will make merry he
and I." As soon as the husband fared forth his home in order to
visit the gardens according to his invitation, the wife said to a
small boy which was an eunuch beside her, " Ho boy, hie thee to
Such-an-one (the Shalabi) and seek him till thou forgather with
him and say to him : My lady salameth to thee and saith, Come
to her house at this moment." So the little slave went from his
mistress and ceased not wending to seek the Shalabi (her friend) till
he found him in a barber's booth where at that time it was his

1 A dandy, a macaroni, from the Turk. Chelebi, see vol. I. 22. Here the woid it
thoroughly Arabised. In old Turk, it means, a Prince of the blood ; in mod. times a
gentleman, Greek or European.

1 lathe text "tfibasM ( VlLi,! ) or " Utbrfsha, a vile Egyptianism for Yu*bahi
B head of a hundred (men) centurion, captain.

* StiL the household, the Harem, etc. As usual, the masc. is used for the (em.

244 Supplemental Nights.

design to have his head shaved and he had ordered the shaver so
to do. The man said to him, " O, my lord, may this our day be
blessed !" whereupon he brought out from his budget a clean towel,
and going up to the Shalabi dispread it all about his breast.
Then he took his turband and hung it to a peg 1 and placing
a basin before him washed his pate, and was about to poll
it when behold, the boy-slave passed within softly pacing, and!
inclining to him whispered in his ear confidentially between them
twain so that none might overhear them, " My lady So-and-so
sendeth thee many salams and biddeth me let thee know that to-
day the coast is clear, the Captain being invited out to a certain
place. Do thou come to her at once and if thou delay but a little
thou mayst not avail to possess her nor may she possess thee,
and if thou be really reminded to forgather with her come with
all speed." Hearing these words of the boy the lover's wits were
wildered and he could not keep patience ; no, not for a minute ;
and he cried to the Barber, " Dry my head this instant and I will
return to thee, for I am io haste to finish a requirement." With
these words he put his hand into his breast pouch and pulling out
an ashrafi gave it to the Barber, who said in himself, " An he have
given me a gold-piece for wetting his poll, how will it be when I
shall have polled him ? Doubtless he will then gift me with half a
score of dinars ! " Hereupon the youth went forth from the Barber
who followed him saying, " Allah upon thee, O my lord, when
thou shalt have ended thy business, return to me that I may shave
thy scalp and 'twere better that thou come to the shop." " Right
well," said the youth, " we will presently return to thee," and he
continued walking until he drew near the place of his playmate
when suddenly the Barber caught him up a second time And

1 [Ar. " Al-Rashdkah," *a word is not found in the common lexicons. In Dozy and
"Engelmann's Glossary of Spanish and Portuguese words derived from the Arabic,"
it is said to be a fork with three prongs, here probably a hat-stand in the shape of such
a fork. <ST.]

The Cairene Youth > the Barber, and the Captain. 245

Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable 1" Quoth she, "And where is this compared with
that I would relate to you on the coming night an the King
suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and
that was

fte &cbcn ]$un*rrt anfc vT&irtii.fift!) JUfgfct,

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the youth
approached the house of his friends, suddenly the Barber caught
him up hard by thereto and placing himself in front said, " Allah
upon thee, O my lord, do not forget me, but be sure of return to
the shop that I may poll thee." Quoth the youth to him in his
folly, " 'Tis well, O Man, I will certainly come back to thee and
will not forget thy shop." So the lover left him and ganged his
gait and presently went up to the home of his friend, whilst the
Barber stayed expecting him and remained standing at the door ;
and of the denseness of the tonsorial wits would not budge from
that place and would await the youth that he might shave him. Such
was the case with them ; but as regards the Yuzbashi, when he went
forth from his house bent upon seeking his friend who had invited
him, he found that a serious matter of business ] would hinder his
giving the entertainment, so the host said to the Captain, " Allah
upon thee, O my lord, pardon me for I have this day a matter

1 In text " Shi'il "copyist's error for " SMghil," act. part, of " Shughl" = business,
affairs. [Here it sUnds probably for the fuller "Shughl shighil," an urgent
business. ST.]

246 Supplemental Nights.

which will prevent my going forth to the garden and Inshallah^.
God willing on the morrow we will there meet and enjoy our-
selves, we and thou, free and with hearts at rest ; for a man who
hath work in hand may not take his pleasure and his though t5
will remain ever preoccupied." Hereupon quoth the Captain
" Sooth thou hast said, O Such-and-such, and herein there is naught
to excuse of harm or hindrance, and the day's engagement between
us if it be not to-morrow will come after to-morrow." So he fare-
welled his host and left him and returned homewards. Now that
Yuzbashi was a man of honour and sagacity and pluck and spunk
and by nature a brave. He ceased not wending until he had
reached his home where he found the Barber standing at the
house-door and the fellow came up to him and said, " Allah, upon
thee, O my lord, when thou goest within do thou send me down
a handsome youth who went upstairs into this dwelling." The
Yuzbashi turned upon him with a face fiery as ruddy sparks and
cried to him, " What, O Man, dost thou say that one hath gone up
to my house, O pimp, O pander ? * What manner of man can
enter therein and I absent ? " Quoth the Barber, " By Allah, O
my lord, one did go up whilst I stood awaiting him the while he
passed out of my sight ; so when thou art abovestairs do thou send
him down to me, saying : Thine own Barber awaiteth thee at the
entrance below/' Now when the Yuzbashi heard these words, he
waxed wroth with exceeding wrath and going up into his house
with haste and hurry knocked at the inner door which defended
the Harem. The inmates heard him and knew that it was he,
and the Youth fell to piddling in his bag-trowsers ; but the woman
took him and hid him in the shaft of the cistern 2 and going forth
opened the door to her husband. Cried the Yuzbashi, " Of a truth,

1 In text " Ya 'Ars, ya Mu'arras" : vol. i. 338.

2 In Syria most houses have a rain cistern or tank into which the terrace-roof drains
and which looks from above like a well with a cover. The water must have been lo&
when the lover hid himself in the reservoir.

The Cairene Youth^ the Barber, and the Captain. 247

hath any right or reason to say that here in this house is a man ? M|
and she replied, " Oh, the shame of me ! How ever, O my lord, can
there be here a man ? " * So the Yuzbashi went about seeking and
searching but he came not upon any ; then he went down to the
Barber wight and cried, " O Man, I have found none upstairs save
the womenkind ; " but the Barber replied, " By Allah, O my lord,
he went up before my eyes and I am still awaiting him." Then
the Captain hurried away a second time and rummaged about,
high and low, and left no place whereinto he did not pry and spy,
yet he came upon no one. He was perplext at his affair and again
going down to the Barber said to him, " O Man, we have found
none." Still the fellow said to him doggedly " Withal a man did
go within, whilst I who am his familiar here stand expecting him,
and thou sayest forsooth he is not there, albeit he be abovestairs and
after he went in he never came out until this tide." Hereupon the
Captain returned to his Harem a third time and a fourth time unto
the seventh time ; but he found no one ; so he was dazed and amazed
and the going in and faring out were longsome to him. All this
and the youth concealed in the cistern shaft lay listening to their
dialogue and he said, " Allah ruin this rascal Barber ! " but he
was sore afraid and he quaked with fright lest the Yuzbashi slay

1 [In the MS. " Mia Hakk la-hu Asl an 'and-na huna Rajil," a thoroughly popular
phrase. " Min Hakk " and " min Hakkan," where in the adverbial meaning of
Hakkan its grammatical form as an accusative is so far forgotten that it allows itself
to be governed by the preposition " min," is rendered by Bocthor " tout de bon,"
" seVieusemcnt." "Asl" = root has here the meaning of foundation in fact. The
literal translation of the passage would therefore be : " Forsooth, is there any truth in it that
a man is here in our house ? " Min Hakk " has occurred page 235, where the text, quoted
in the note, may perhaps be translated: 4< Of a truth, is this saying soothfast ?" ST.]

1 [The MS. has : Y4 Gharati a-Zay mi huni Rajil ;" " Yi Gharati " will recur
presently, p. 256, along with " yd Musibatt " = Oh ray calamity ! I take it therefore to
be an exclamation of distress from " Gharat " = invasion, with its incidents of devas-
tation, rapine and ruin. It would be the natural outcry of the women left helpless in an
unprotected camp, when invaded by a hostile tribe. In " a-Zay ma" the latter particle
is not the negative, but the pronoun, giving to '* a-Zay" = " in what manner," " how ?"
the more emphatical sense of how ever ? " In the same sense we find it again, infra,
Night 754, "a-Zay mi tafutnl = how canst thou quit me ? I would therefore render :
" Woe me, I am undone, how ever should there be a man here ? " or something to that
purpose ST.]

248 Supplemental Nights.

him and also slay his wife. Now after the eighth time the Captain
came down to the Barber and said to him, " An thou saw him
enter, up along with me and seek for him." The man did
accordingly, but when the two had examined every site, they came
upon no one ; so the Barber was stupefied and said to himself
" Whoso went \ip before me and I looking upon him, whither can
he have wended ? " Then he fell to pondering and presently said,
"By Allah, verily this is a wondrous matter that we have not
discovered him ; " but the Yuzbashi cried fiercely, " By the life of
my head and by Him who created all creatures and numbered thef
numberings thereof, an I find not this fellow needs must I do thee
die." The Barber of his exceeding terror fell to rummaging all
the places but it fortuned that he did not look into the shaft of the
cistern ; however at last he said, " There remaineth for us only the

cistern-shaft ; " And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of

day, and fell silent, and ceased saying her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now
when it was the next night and that was

Je Sbeben ^untafc anfc 2nwtg=sebenrt) Jli$t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-se'eming and worthy celebrating, that the Barber
wight, after he and the Captain had finished their search without
finding anyone, said, "There remaineth to us only the cistern-
shaft ; " so he went and peered therein, but he could 'not use his

The Cairene Youth, the Barber, and the Captain. 249

sight ovcrwell. Hereat the Yuzbashi came up behind him and
cuffed him with a mighty cuff upon the neck and laid him
prostrate and insensible at the mouth of the shaft. Now when
the woman heard the Barber saying, " Let us explore the door
which openeth upon the cistern-shaft," she feared from the Yuz-
bashi, so coming up to him she said, " O my lord, how is it that
thou art a Captain and that thy worth and thy length and thy
breadth are on such wise ; withal thou obeyest the word of a fellow
Jinn-mad * and sayest that there is a man in thine own house.
This is indeed a reproach to thee." So the YuzbaShi of his
stupidity believed her, and approaching the Barber on the edge of
the cistern-shaft cuffed him with a cuff whose excess of violence
dazed him and he fell upon the floor retaining naught of his
senses. When the woman saw this she cried to her husband,
" Pinion his elbows at this moment and suffer me take my due
of him by a sound drubbing, and then let him go." " This is
the right rede," quoth he and after all was done she cried to her
husband, " Come with us above that we enjoy our pleasure, and
Alhamdolillah that thou didst not go to the place of invitation for
I should have been desolate by thine absence this day." So they
ascended and sat together, each beside other, and they sported and
were gladdened and rejoiced ; and after that the Captain lay down
and was presently drowned in slumber. Seeing this the wife arose
and repaired to the cistern-shaft wherefrom she released her
beloved and finding all his clothes in a filthy state from the excess
of what had befallen him of affright penetrating into his heart by
reason of the Yuzbashi, she doffed his dress and bringing a bundle
of clean clothing garbed him therein ; after which his fear was
calmed and his heart comforted and he was set on the right way.
Then she led him to a private stead, wherein they twain, he and
she, took their joyance and had their pleasure and made merry for

1 In Persian be would be called " Barf.stricken," tmilttn by the Fairies.

250 Supplemental Nights

the space of three hours, till such time as each had had fullest will
of other. After this he went forth from her and the Veiler veiled
him. On such wise were the wife's doings ; but as regards what
befel the Barber-man, he ceased not to remain strown on the
ground and dazed by the stress of the blow and he abode there
pinioned for a while. About mid-afternoon the Yuzbashi's wife
went to her husband and awaking him from sleep made for him
coffee which he drank and felt cheered ; and he knew nothing
anent that his spouse had done with her beloved during the while
he slumbered like unto a he-goat. So she said to him, " Rise up and
go we to the man and do thou drub him with the soundest drub-
bing and turn him out." Quoth he, "Yes indeed, by Allah verily
he deserveth this, the pimp ! the pander ! the procurer !" Accord-
ingly he went to him and finding him lying upon the ground
raised him and said to him, " Up with thee and let us seek the
man whereof thou spakest." Hereupon the Barber arose and
went down into the cistern-shaft where he found none and there-
with the Captain laid the fellow upon his back ; and, baring his arms
to his elbows, seized a Nabbut 1 and beat him till he made water in
his bag-trousers ; after which he let him go. So the Barber arose
and he in doleful dumps, and went off from the house and ceased
not wending until he reached his shop about sunset, hardly
believing in his own safety. But (resumed Shahrazad) as regards
the history of the woman who was a fornicatress and an adultress,
I have to relate to thee the following story of

1 A quarter-staff (vols. i, 234 : viii. 186.) opp. to the " Dabbus" or club-stick of the
Badawin, the CaffreY " Knob-kerry, " which is also called by the Arabs. " Kan*, "
pron. "Gana."

THE GOODWIFE OF CAIRO AND HER
FOUR GALLANTS.

THE GOODWIFE OF CAIRO AND HER FOUR

GALLANTS. 1

IT is said that in Misr lived a woman, a model of beauty and
loveliness and stature and perfect grace, who had a difficulty with a
man which was a Kazi and after this fashion it befel. She was the
wife of an Emir 1 and she was wont to visit the Baths once a
month ; and when the appointed term for her going forth had come,
she adorned herself and perfumed herself and beautified herself
and hastened, tripping and stumbling, 8 to the Hammdm. Now
her path passed by the Kazi's court-house where she saw many
a man 4 and she stopped to enjoy the spectacle, upon which the
Judge himself glanced at her with a glance of eyes that bequeathed
to him a thousand sighs and he asked her saying, "O woman,
hast thou any want ?" " No indeed/ 1 answered she, " I have none."
Then he inclined to her and drawing near her said, "O lady
mine and O light of these eyne, is union possible between us
twain ?" She replied, " 'Tis possible " and he enquired of her

1 Scott's "Story of the Lady of Cairo and her four Gallants " (vol. vi, 380):
Gautticr, Histoirt fune Dame du Caire tt de sts Calans (vi. 400) . This tale has travelled
over the Eastern world. See in my vol. vi. 172 "The Lady and her Five Suitors,"
and the " Story of the Merchant's Wife and her Suitors " in Scott's " Tales, Anecdotes,
and Letters" (Cadell, London, 1800), which is in fact a garbled version of the former,
introduced into the repertoire of "The Seven Wazlrs." I translate the W. M. version
of the tale because it is the most primitive known to me ; and I shall point oat tht
portions where it lacks finish.

3 This tide does not appear till p. 463 (vol. v.)of the MS., and it re-appears in
vol. vi. 8.

' i.e. in her haste : the text has " Kharrat." The Persians who rhetorically
exaggerate everything say " rising and sinking like the dust of the road." [I doubt
whether "Kharrat " could have the meaning given to it in the translation. The word in
the MS. has no Tashdid and I think the careless scribe meant it for " Khar aj at," she
went out. ST.]

4 {I read "Nas malmtimln = assembled men, a crowd of people." ST.)

2 54 Supplemental Nights.

when it could be, and she made an appointment with him saying,
" Do thou come to me after supper-time," And Shahrazad was
surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable !"
Quoth she, "And where is this compared with that I would
relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to
survive ?" Now when it was the next night and that was

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the
watching of this our latter night." She replied : -- With love
and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Goodwife
said to the Kazi, " Do thou come to me after supper-time," and
went her ways and entered the Hammam, where she washed her-
self and cleaned herself ; then, coming out thence, she determined
to go home. But she was met on her road by a Gentleman x who
was Shahbandar of the Trader-guild, and he seeing her set his
affections upon her ; so he accosted her, saying, " Is ? t possible that
we ever be merry together ? " Hereat she appointed him to come
when supper was done, after which she left him and ganged her
gait. As she neared her home she was met by a Butcher whose
heart inclined to her, so he addressed her saying, " Is union pos-
sible ? " and she appointed him to visit her an hour after supper
had been eaten. Then she went home and mounting the stairs

1 " Rajul Khwajd : " see vol. vi. 46, etc. For " Shdhbandar " = king of the port, a
harbour- master, whose post I have compared with our " Consul," see vol. iv. 29. It is
often, however, applied to Government officials who superintend trade and levy duties
at inland marts*.

The Good-wife of Cairo and her Four Gallants. 255

took seat in the upper saloon open to the air, where she doffed
her head-veil ! and all that was upon her head. Now in the neigh-
bourhood of her house was a Trader and he had mounted to
the terrace-roof for a reason ; so when the woman bared her
hair and taking up a comb began to dry and prepare it for
dressing, his eyes fell upon her whilst so engaged, and his heart
was engrossed with her love. Presently he sent to her an old
woman ; and she returned him a reply and appointed him to visit
her house during the night after supper-tide. On this wise she had
promised herself to four men. 2 Now the Kazi had got ready for
her a Kohl-style and the Gentleman had prepared for her a fine
suit of clothes and the Butcher had led for her a full-sized ram
and the Trader had set apart for her two pieces of silk. As soon
as it was supper-time, behold, the Kazi repaired to her in privacy
bringing his gift and knocked at the door which he found un-
bolted and she cried to him, " Come in." Accordingly he entered
to her and presented to her that which was with him, but hardly
had he settled himself comfortably in his seat when the Gentle-
man arrived and also rapped. Quoth the Kazi to the Goodwife,
" Who may this be ? " and quoth she, "Fear thou nothing, but
arise and doff thy dress ; " so he stripped himself altogether and
she garbed him in a gaberdine and bonnet 8 and hid him in a closet
and went to open the door. Hereupon appeared the Consul and
she let him in and accepted what he had brought and seated

1 Arab. ' Khimir," a veil or rather a covering for the back of the head. This was
the especial whorishness with which Shahrazad taxes the Goodwife : she had been too
prodigal of her charms, for the occiput and the " back hair" should not be displayed
even to the moon.

9 These four become five in the more finished tale the King, the Wazir, the Kazi, the
Wali or Chief of Police and the Carpenter. Moreover each one is dressed in different
costume, gowns yellow, blue, red and patched with headgear equally absurd.

J In text " Turtur "= the Badawi's bonnet: vol. ii. 143. Mr. Doughty (i. 160)
found at Al-Khuraybah the figure of an ancient Arab wearing a close tunic to the knee
and bearing on poll a coif. At Al-'Ula he was shown an ancient image of a man's head
cut in sandstone : upon the crown was a low pointed bonnet. " Long caps" are also
noticed in i. 562 ; and we ate told that they were " worn in outlandish guise in Arabia."

2 56 Supplemental Nights.

him beside her. But hardly had he settled down when, behold,
there came a knock at the door and he cried, " Who may that be ? "
Said she, " Fear nothing but up and doff thy dress ; " so he arose
and stripped himself and she disguised him in a gaberdine and
bonnet and hid him in another closet all alone. Then she
hastened to the door and suddenly the Flesher-man appeared and
she let him in and led him within and having accepted his present
seated him ; but hardly was he at his ease when the door was again
knocked, whereat he was overcome and affrighted : however, she
said to him, " Fear nothing, but arise and doff thy dress in order
that I may hide thee." So he threw off his clothes and she in-
vested him in a gaberdine and a bonnet and thrust him into a
third cabinet. After this she went and opened the door when
there came to her the Trader who was her neighbour, so she let
him in and took what was with him, and seated him ; and he was
proceeding to sit down in comfort when behold, some one knocked
at the door and he said, " Who may that be ? " Hereupon she
cried, " Oh my honour ! Oh my calamity ! This is my husband
who but yesterday * killed off four men ; however do thou rise up
and doff thy dress." He did as she bade him, upon which she
garbed him in a gaberdine and a bonnet and laid him in a fourth
closet. So these four one and all found themselves in as many
cabinets 2 sorely sorrowful and fearful ; but she went forth and
suddenly her mate the Emir came in and took seat upon a chair
that was in the house. Hereat all four sensed that she had opened
to her husband and had admitted him ; and they said in their
minds, " Yesterday he killed four men and now he will kill me."

1 In text "Embarah" (pron. 'MbsCrah) ; pop. for Al-barihah = the last part of the
preceding day or night, yesterday. The vulgar Egyptian uses it as if it were a corrup-
tion of the Pers. " in bar " = this time. The Arab Badawin pronounce it El-beyrih
(with their exaggerated " Imalah ") and use it not only for "yesterday," but also for
the past afternoon.

2 This device is far inferior in comic effect to the carpenter's press or cabinet of five
compartments, and it lacks the ludicrous catastrophe in which all the lovers make water
upon one another's heads.

T/te Goodwife of Cairo and her Four Gallants. 257

And each and every considered his own affair and determined in
his mind what should happen to him from the husband. Such
was the case with these four ; but as regards the house-master,
when he took seat upon the chair, he fell to chatting with his wife
and asking her saying, " What hast thou seen this day during thy
walk to the Hammam ? " Said she, " O my lord, I have witnessed
four adventures and on every one hangeth a wondrous tale ! " Now
when the four heard the Goodwife speaking these words each of
them said to himself, " Indeed I am a dead man and 'tis the
intention of this woman to peach upon me." Presently her
husband asked her, " What be these four histories ? " and answered
she, " I saw four men each and every of whom was an antic fellow,
a droll, a buffoon ; furthermore, O my lord, one and all of them

were garbed in gaberdine and bonnet." And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, "How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran surfer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was
i

2T!K &ebcn J^uirtrrtt anfc Jfortji-ficst j^igjjt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the woman
said to her husband, " Moreover each of the four was habited in
gaberdine and bonnet" But when the amourists heard these
words every one of them said to himself, " Here be a judgment
this strumpet of a woman hath wrought upon us, the whore ! the
VOL. V.

258 Supplemental Nights.

witch ! " and her husband understanding what she told him asked,
" Wherefore didst thou not bring them hither that the sight might
solace us?" "O my lord," answered she, "had I brought them
what hadst thou said to them ? indeed I fear me thou wouldst
have slain them ! " And he, " No indeed ; I would not have
killed them, for they are but buffoon-folk, and we should have
enjoyed their harlequinades and would have made them dance to
us a wee and all and some tell us tales to gladden our minds ;
after which we would have suffered them depart and go about
their own business." The wife enquired, " And given that they
knew neither dancing nor story-telling what hadst thou done with
them ? " and replied he, " Had the case been as thou sayest and
they ignorant of all this, verily we would have killed them and
cast them into the chapel of ease." The four men hearing such
threatening words muttered to themselves, " There is no Majesty
and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great ; "
but the Kazi said in his mind, " How remain Judge of this city
when I shall have been found garbed in gaberdine and bonnet and
dancing and tale-telling? and indeed this is the greater death.
Allah bring to ruin this adulteress of a woman ! " Then the
Flesher took thought as follows, " How shall I continue to be
Chief of the Butchers when I prance about with a bonnet on my
pate ? this is indeed a painful penalty ! " Then quoth the Gentle-
man, the Consul, " How shall it be with me when I am seen
dancing and donning a bonnet ? indeed death by the sword were
lighter than this ! " Then muttered the Trader which was the
woman's neighbour, " 'Tis easier to kill myself with my own hand
than to endure all such ill." Anon the woman said to her husband,
"Inshallah God willing on the morrow we will bring them
hither to thy house that we may solace ourselves therewith ; " but
said he, "Wallahi, hadst thou brought them this night 'twere
better, for that to-morrow evening I have business in the house of
the Chief Emir." Quoth she to him, " Now grant me immunity

The Goodwife of Cairo and fur Four Gallants. 259

and give me permission and I will arise and bring them to thee at
this moment, but each must come to thee alone and by himself."
Quoth he, " O Woman, leave I do give thee and immunity I do
grant thee ; " whereupon she rose without stay or delay and went
to the closet wherein was the Judge. Then she opened it and
entered, and taking him by the hand dragged him forward and
came out with him and set him before her spouse garbed as he was
in gaberdine and bonnet. The house-master scrutinised him and
was certified of his being the Kazi and said to him, " Blessed be
to thee, O our lord, this bonnet and this gaberdine which become
thee passing well." But the Judge, as he stood before the presence
of the woman's husband, bowed his front downwards and was
clothed as with a garment in the sweat of shame and was sore
abashed, when the Emir said to him, " O our lord the Kazi, do thou
dance for us a wee the baboon dance and rejoice us ; after which
performance do thou tell us a tale that our breasts may thereby be
broadened." But when the man said this to him, the Judge feared
for his life because he had heard and well remembered the words
of the householder and he fell to clapping his palms and prancing
to right and left. Hereupon the Emir laughed consumedly, he and
his wife, and they signed and signalled each to other deriding the
judicial dance, and the Kazi ceased not skipping, until he fell to
the floor for his fatigue. Hereupon the man said to him, " Basta !
Now tell us thy tale that we may rejoice thereat ; then do thou
rise up and go about thy business." " Hearkening and obedience,"
said the Judge and forthright he began to relate the adventure of

THE TAILOR AND THE LADY AND THE
CAPTAIN.

THE TAILOR AND THE LADY AND THE CAPTAIN."

IT is related that a Tailor was sitting in his shop facing a tall
house tenanted by a Yuzbdshi, and this man had a wife who was
unique for beauty and loveliness. Now one day of the days as
she looked out at the latticed window the Snip espied her and
was distraught by her comeliness and seemlihead. So he became
engrossed by love of her and remained all day a-gazing at the
casement disturbed and perturbed, and as often as she approached
the window and peered out therefrom, he would stare at her and
say to her, " O my lady and O core of my heart, good morning to
thee ; and do thou have mercy upon one sore affected by his
affection to thee ; one whose eyes sleep not by night for thy fair
sake." " This pimp be Jinn-mad ! " quoth the Captain's wife,
" and as often as I look out at the window he dareth bespeak me :
haply the folk shall say : Indeed she must needs be his mistress."
But the Tailor persevered in this proceeding for a while of days
until the lady was offended thereby and said in her mind,
" Walldhi, there is no help but that I devise for him a device
which shall make unlawful to him this his staring and casting
sheep's eyes at my casement ; nay more, I will work for ousting
him from his shop." So one day of the days when the Yuzbashi
went from home, his wife arose and adorned and beautified herself,
and donning the bestest of what dresses and decorations she had,
despatched one of her slave-girls to the Tailor instructing her to
say to him : " My lady salameth to thee and biddeth thee come
and drink coffee with her." The handmaiden went to his shop and

1 Scott (vi. 386) "The Cauzce'i story :" Gauttier (vi. 406) does not translate it.

264 Supplemental Nights.

delivered the message ; and he, when hearing these words, 1 waxed

bewildered of wits and rose up quivering in his clothes ; And

Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me
to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

Je Stten ^unfcreK an& JFortB-tJufo jSigfit,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the Tailor
heard the girl's words, he quivered in his clothes ; but indeed he
recked not aught of the wiles of womankind. So after padlocking
his shop he went with her to the house and walked upstairs,
where he was met by the lady with a face like the rondure of the
moon and she greeted him right merrily, and taking him by the
hand led him to a well-mattressed Divan and bade her slave-girl
serve him with coffee, and as he drank it she sat facing him.
Presently the twain fell to conversing, she and he ; and she soothed
him with sweet speech, whilst he went clean out of his mind for
the excess of her beauty and loveliness. This lasted until near
midday, when she bade serve the dinner-trays, and took seat in
front of him, and he began picking up morsels 2 designed for his
lips and teeth, but in lieu thereof thrust them into his eye. She

1 In the text the message is delivered verbatim : this iteration is well fitted for oral
work, with its changes of tone and play of face, and varied "gag"; but it is most
annoying for the more critical reader.

2 Arab. " Lukmah " = a balled mouthful : vols. i. 261, vii. 367.

The Tailor and the Lady and the Captain. 265

laughed at him, but hardly had he swallowed the second mouthful
and the third when behold, the door was knocked, whereupon she
looked out from the casement and cried, " Oh my honour ! this is
my husband." Hereat the man's hands and knees began to quake,
and he said to her, " Whither shall I wend ? " Said she, " Go
into this closet," and forthright she thrust him into a cabinet and
shot the bolt upon him and taking the key she tare out one of
its teeth ' and put it in her pocket. After this she went down
and opened the door to her husband who walked upstairs ; and
finding the dinner trays bespread, asked her, " What is this ? "
She answered, "I and my lover have been dining together."
" And what may be thy lover ? " " Here he is." * " Where may
he be ? " to which she replied, " He is inside this closet." Now
as soon as the Tailor heard her say this say, he piddled in his
bag-breeches and befouled himself and he was in a filthy state
with skiteand piss. 8 Hereupon the Captain asked, " Andwhere's
the key?" and she answered, " Here it is with me." 4 " Bring it
out," said he, so she pulled it from her pocket and handed it to
him. The Captain took the key from his spouse and applying it
to the wooden bolt of the cabinet rattled it to and fro 5 but it
would not open ; so the wife came up to him and cried, "Allah
upon thee, O my lord, what wilt thou do with my playmate ? " Said

1 The " Miftih " (prop. " Miftah ") or key used throughout the Moslem East is a bit
of wood, 7-14 inches long, and provided with 4-10 small iron pins which correspond
with an equal number of holes in the " Dabbah " or wooden bolt If one of these
teeth be withdrawn the lock will not open. Lane (M. E. Introduction) has a sketch of
the " Miftah" and "Dabbah."

* In text " Ayoh " which is here, I hold, a corruption of "1 (or Ayy) hu" = " yes
indeed he." [I take "aywah " (as I would read the word) to be a different spelling for
"aywa" = yes indeed, which according to Spitta Bey, Cr. p. 168 is a contraction of
"Ay (1) wa'llahi," yes by Allah, "What? thy lover P" asks the husband, and she
emphatically affirms the fact, to frighten the concealed tailor. ST.]

3 In the Arab. "Al-Ashkhikh," plur. of " Shakhkh " and literally "the stales"
meaning either dejection. [I read : bi M-Shakhakh," the usual modem word for
orine. " ' Alayya Shakhakh " is : I want to make water* See Doxy Suppl. s.v. ST.]

4 In text " Ahii ma'i "pure Fellah speech.

In the Arab, "laklaka-ha" an onomatopoeia.

266 Supplemental Nights.

he. " I will slay him ! " and said she, " No, 'tis my opinion that thoti
hadst better pinion him and bind him as if crucified to the pillar
in the court floor and then smite him with thy sword upon the neck
and cut off his head ; for I, during my born days, never saw a
criminal put to death and now 'tis my desire to sight one done
to die/' " Sooth is thy speech," quoth he : so Jie took the key and
fitting it into the wooden bolt would have drawn it back, but it
could not move because a tooth had been drawn therefrom and
the while he was rattling at the bolt his wife said to him, " O my
lord, 'tis my desire that thou lop off his hands and his feet until
he shall become marked by his maims ; * and after do thou smite
his neck." "A sensible speech," cried the husband and during
the whole time her mate was striving to pull the bolt she kept
saying to him, " Do this and do that with the fellow," and he
ceased not saying to her, "'Tis well." All this and the Tailor sat
hearkening to their words and melting in his skin ; but at last the
wife burst out laughing until she fell upon her back and her
husband asked her, " Whereat this merriment ? " Answered she,
" I make mock of thee for that thou art wanting in wits and wisdom."
Quoth he, " Wherefore ? " and quoth she, " O my lord, had I a
lover and had he been with me should I have told aught of him to
thee? Nay; I said in my mind : Do such and such with the
Captain and let's see whether he will believe or disbelieve. Now
when I spake thou didst credit me and it became apparent to me
that thou art wanting in wits." Cried he to her, "Allah dis-
appoint thee ! Dost thou make jibe and jape of me ? I also said
in my thoughts : How can a man be with her and she speak of
him in the face of me ? " So he arose and took seat with her, the
twain close together, at the dinner-tray and she fell to morselling
him and he to morselling her, and they laughed and ate until
they had their sufficiency and were filled ; then they washed their

* In text " Ila an yasir Karmu-hu." The t/ Karm originally means cutting a slip of
skin from the camel's nose by way of mark, in lieu of the normal branding.

The Tailor and tlie Lady and the Captain. 267

hands and drank coffee. After this they were cheered and they
toyed together and played the two-backed beast until their
pleasure was fulfilled and this was about mid-afternoon --
And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell
silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night, and that was

anfc dTortg-fiftft Nfgfct,

1 In text " Yazghaz-hd fl shikkati-ha," the verb being probably a clerical error for
" Yazaghzagh," from i/ " Zagh'zagha" = he opened a skin bag.

* This is the far-famed balcony-scene in "Fanny" (of Ernest Fcydeau translated into
English and printed by Vizetelly and Co.) that phenomenal specimen of morbid and
unmasculine French (or rather Parisian) sentiment, which contrasts so powerfully with
the healthy and manly tone of The Nights. Here also the story conveys a moral
lesson and, contrary to custom, the husband has the best of the affair. To prove that
my judgment is not too severe, let me quote the following passages from a well-known
and popular French novelist, translated by an English litterateur and published by a
respectable London firm.

In " A Ladies' Man : " by Guy dc Maupassant, we read :

Page 62. And the conversation, descending from elevated theories concerning love,
strayed into the flowery garden of polished blackguardism. It was the moment of
clever double meanings ; veils raised by words, as petticoats are lifted by the wind ;

268 Supplemental Nights.

and went forth to the Hammam. But as soon as he left the house
she opened the cabinet and brought out the Tailor, saying, " Hast
thou seen what awaiteth thee, O pander, O impure? Now, by
Allah, an thou continue staring at the windows or durst bespeak
me with one single word it shall be the death of thee. This time
I have set thee free, but a second time I will work to the wasting of
thy heart's blood." Cried he, " I will do so no more ; no, never ! "
Thereupon said she to her slave-girl," O handmaid, open to him the
door ; " and she did so, and he fared forth (and he foully bewrayed
as to his nether garments) until he had returned to his shop. Now
when the Emir heard the tale of the Kazi, he rejoiced thereat and
said to him, " Up and gang thy gait ! " so the Judge went off garbed
in his garberdine and bonnet. Then said the house-master to his
wife, " This be one of the four, where's Number Two ? " Hereat

tricks of language, cleverly disguised audacities ; sentences which reveal nude images in
covered phrases, which cause the vision of all that may not be said to flit rapidly before
the eyes of the mind, and allow welUbred people the enjoyment of a kind of subtle and
mysterious love, a species of impure mental contact, due to the simultaneous evocations
of secret, shameful, and longed-for pleasures.

Page 166. George and Madeleine amused themselves with watching all these couples,
the woman in summer toilette and the man darkly outlined beside her. It was a huge
flood of lovers flowing towards the Bois, beneath the starry and heated sky. No sound
was heard save the dull rumble of wheels. They kept passing by, two by two in each
vehicle, leaning back on the seat, clasped one against the other, lost in dreams of desire,
quivering with the anticipation of coming caresses. The warm shadow seemed full of
kisses. A sense of spreading lust rendered the air heavier and more suffocating. All
the couples, intoxicated with the same idea, the same ardour, shed a fever about them.

Page 187. As soon as she was alone with George, she clasped him in her arms,
exclaiming :*" Oh ! my darling Pretty-boy, I love you more and more every day."
The cab conveying them rocked like a ship.
" It is not so nice as our own room," said she.
He answered ; " Oh , no." But he was thinking of Madame Waller.
Page 1 98. He kissed her neck, her eyes, her lips with eagerness, without her being
able to avoid his furious caresses, and whilst repulsing him, whilst shrinking from his
inouth, she, despite herself, returned his kisses. All at once she ceased to struggle,
and, vanquished, resigned, allowed him to undress her. One by one he neatly and
rapidly stripped off the different articles of clothing with the light fingers of a lady's
maid. She had snatched her bodice from his hands to hide her face in it, and remained
standing amidst the garments fallen at her feet. He seized her in his arms and bore
her towards the couch. Then she murmured in his ear in a broken voice, '* I swear to
you, I swear to you, that I have never had a lover."
And he thought " That is all the same to me."

The Tailor and the Lady and the Captain. 269

she arose and opened the closet in which was the Gentleman and
led him out by the hand till he stood before her husband, who
looked hard at him and was certified of him and recognised him
as the Shahbandar ; so he said to him, <( O Khawajah, when didst
thou make thee a droll ? "' but the other returned to him neither
answer nor address and only bowed his brow groundwards. Quoth
the house-master to him, " Dance for us a wee and when thou
shalt have danced do thou tell us a tale." So he fell perforce to
clapping his hands and skipping about until he fell down of fatigue
when he said, " O my lord, there is with me a rare story, and an
exceeding strange if thou of thy grace accord attention to my
words." " Tell on and I will listen to thee," quoth the other,
whereupon said the Gentleman, "'Tis concerning the wiles of
womankind," and fell to relating the adventures of

* In text " Ant* amilla maskhari (for maskharah) matah (for mata)," diomatica
FeUah-loogue.

THE SYRIAN AND THE THREE WOMEN
OF CAIRO.

THE SYRIAN AND THE THREE WOMEN OF CAIRO. 1

THERE, was a man, a Shdmf, who came to the God-guarded city of
Misr al-Kdhirah Misr of Mars and with him was a store of
money and merchandize and sumptuous clothing. He hired for
himself a room in a caravanserai, and having no slave, he was
wont to go forth every day and roam about the city-thoroughfares
and cater for himself. Now this continued for a while of time
till one day of the days, as he was wandering and diverting his
mind by looking to the right and to the left, he was met on the
way by three women who were leaning and swaying one towards
other as they walked on laughing aloud ; and each and every of
the three surpassed her fellow in beauty and loveliness. When he
looked at them his mustachios curled 2 at the sight and he
accosted them and addressed the trio, saying, " May it be that ye
will drink coffee in my lodging ? " " Indeed we will," said they,
"and we will make mirth with thee and exceeding merriment,
passing even the will of thee." Quoth he, " When shall it be ? "
and quoth they, "To-night we will come to thy place ." He con-
tinued, " I am living in a room of Such-and-such a Wakalah." *

1 Scott (Appendix vol. vi. 460) simply entitled this tale "The Syrian." In M.
Houston's "Book of Noodles" (pp. 193-194) we find a man who is searching for
three greater simpletons than his wile, calling himself " Saw ye ever my likt ? " It is
quoted from Campbell's "Popular Tales of the West Highlands" (ii. 385-387), but it
lacks the canopic wit of the Arabo- Egyptian. I may note anent the anecdote of the
Gabies (p. 201), who proposed, in order to make the tall bride on horseback enter the
low village-gate, either to cut off her head or the legs of her steed, that precisely the
same tale is told by the biting wits of Damascus concerning the boobies of Halbun.
Halbiun," as these villagers call their ancient hamlet, is justly supposed to be the
Helbon whose wine is mentioned by Ezekiel in the traffic of Damascus, although others
less reasonably identify it with Halab = Aleppo.

* In text La* bat Shaviribu-hu " = lit. his mustachios played.

* For the - Wakilah," or caravanserai, see vol. i. 266.

VOL. V. S

274 Supplemental Nights.

and they rejoined, " Do thou make ready for us supper and we
will visit thee after the hour of night-prayers." He cried, " These
words are well ; " so they left him and went their ways ; and he,
on the return way home, bought flesh and greens and wine and
perfumes ; then, having reached his room, he cooked five kinds of
meats without including rice and conserves, and made ready
whatso for the table was suitable. Now when it was supper-time
behold, the women came in to him, all three wearing capotes 1
over their dresses, and when they had entered they threw these
cloaks off their shoulders and took their seats as they were moons.
Hereupon the Syrian arose and set before them the food-trays
and they ate their sufficiency, after which he served to them the
table of wine, whereat they filled and passed to him and he
accepted and swilled until his head whirled round, and as often

1 In text " Kabut," plur. Kababit :

Oh ! who is more brave than a dark Suliote,

In his snowy camise and his shaggy capote ? " Childe Harold," Canto II.

And here I cannot but notice the pitiful contrast (on the centenary of the poet's nativity,
Jan. 22nd, '88) between the land of his birth and that of his death. The gallant
Greeks honoured his memory with wreaths and panegyrics and laudatory articles,
declaring that they will never forget the anniversaries of his nativity and his decease.
The British Pharisee and Philistine, true to his miserable creed, ignored all the "real
Lord Byron " his generosity, his devotion to his friends, his boundless charity, and his
enthusiasm for humanity. They exhaled their venom by carping at Byron's poetry
(which was and is to Europe a greater boon than Shakspeare's), by condemning his
morality (in its dirty sexual sense) and in prophesying for him speedy oblivion. Have
these men no shame hi presence of the noble panegyric dedicated by the Prince of
German poets, Goethe, to his brother bard whom he welcomed as a prophet ? Can they
not blush before Heine (the great German of the future), before Flaubert, Alfred de
Musset, Lamartine, Leopardi and a host of Italian, Spanish and Portuguese notables ?
Whilst Engknd will not forgive Byron for having separated from his unsympathetic wife,
the Literary society of Moscow celebrated his centenary with all honour ; and Prof.
Nicholas Storojenko delivered a speech which has found an echo

further west

That his sires' " Islands of the Blest."

He rightly remarked that Byron's deadly sin in the eyes of the Georgian-English people
was his Cosmopolitanism : he was the poetical representative of the Sturm und Drang
period of the xixth century. He reflected, in his life and works, the wrath of noble
minds at the collapse of the cause of freedom and the reactionary tendency of the century.
Evert in the distant regions of Monte Video Byron's hundredth birthday was not
forgotten, and Don Luis Desteffanio's lecture was welcomed by literary society.

The Syrian and the Three Women of Cairo. 275

as he looked at any one of them and considered her in her mould
of beauty and loveliness he was perplext and his wits were wildered.
They ceased not to be after such fashion until the noon o' night,

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell

silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

Stye Sfceben Jimfcre& anto jfottp-stbcnti) Ntgljt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the
Syrian and the three ladies ceased not to persevere in the drinking
of wine until the noon o' night, at which time" he would not
distinguish between masculine and feminine from the excess of
his wine-bibbing, so he said to one of the three, " Allah, upon
thee, O my lady, what may be the name of thee ? " She replied,
41 1 am hight ' Hast-thou-seen-aught-like-me ? ' ' Whereat he ex-
claimed, " No, Wallahi ! " Then he up-propped himself on his
elbow and rising from the ground said to the second, " Thou, O
my lady, and life-blood of my heart, what is thy name ? '
She answered, "I am hight, ' Never-sawest-thou-my-like/ " and
he replied, " Inshallah what Allah willeth O my lady Never-
sawest-thou-my-like." Then said he to the third, " And thou, O
dearling of my heart, what may be the name of thee ? " And
said she, "I am hight ' Look-at-me-and-thou-shalt-know-mc. ' "

2j6 Supplemental Nights.

When he heard these words he cried out with a loud outcry and
fell to the ground saying, " No, by Allah, O my lady, Look-at-me-
and-thou-shalt-know-me." 1 But when the three women regarded
him his reason was upset and they forced upon him more wine-
bibbing whilst he cried to them, " Fill for me, ho my lady Never-
sawest-thou-my-like, and thou too, my lady Hast-thou-seen-aught-
like-me, and eke thou, O my lady Look-at-me-and-thou-shalt-
know-me." And they drove him to drink still more until he fell
to the ground without a vein swelling 2 for he had become drunken
and dead drunk. When they saw him in this condition they doffed
his turband and crowned him with a cap, and fringes projecting
from the peak, 3 which they had brought with them ; then they
arose and finding in his room a box full of raiment and ready
money, they rifled all that was therein. Presently they donned
their dresses and, waiting until the door of the Wakalah was
opened after the call to the morning-prayer, they went their ways
and the Veiler vouchsafed them protection 1 and they left the
Syrian man in his room strown as a tried toper and unknowing
what the women had done with him of their wile and guile. Now
when it was the undurn-hour he awoke from his crapula and
opening his eyes, cried, " Ho my lady Never-sawest-thou-my-like 1
and ho my lady Hast-thou-seen-aught-like-me ! and ho my lady
Look-at-me-and-thou-shalt-know me ! " But none returned to
him any reply. Then he pulled himself together and glanced
carefully around but his sight fell not upon anyone beside him, so
he arose and went to the box wherein he found never a single thing.

1 He cried out thinking of the mystical meaning of such name. So yv&Qi o-eauroV,
would mean in Sufi language Learn from thyself what is thy Lord ; corresponding
after a manner with the Christian " looking up through Nature to Nature's God."

2 The phrase prob. means so drunk that his circulation had apparently stopped.

3 This is the article usually worn by the professional buffoon. The cap of the
"Sutari" or jester of the Arnaut (Albanian) regiments who is one of their profes-
sional braves is usually a felt cone garnished with foxes' brushes.

* In Arab. " Sabbal alayhim (for Alayhinna, the usual rnasc. pro fern.) Al-Sattar" =
lit. the Veiler let down a curtain upon them.

The Syrian and tlte Three Women of Cairo. 277

This restored him to his right senses and he recovered from his
drink and cried, "There is no Majesty and there is no Might save
in Allah, the Glorious, the Great : this be a judgment they have
wrought for me." Then he went forth still wearing the tall fringed
cap and knowing nothing of himself and, when he had issued from
his caravanserai, he cried to everyone he met in the streets, " I
am seeking Hast-thou-seen-aught-like-me ? " and the men would
reply, " No, I never sighted the like of thee ; " and to a second he
would say, " I am looking for one Never-sawest-thou-aught-like-
me ; " and the other would answer, " Indeed, I never beheld thy
fellow ; " then he would ask a third <% Hast thou seen one Look-at-
me-and-thou-shalt-know-me ? " and the questioned would answer,
" Indeed, I have looked at thee but I know thee not at all." And
he ceased not wandering about, bonnet on head, and everyone
who met him by the way returned him the like replies until he
came upon a party of folk who were in front of a barber's booth. 1
There he cried upon them also, " Ah ! Hast-thou-seen-aught-like-
me ! and Ah ! Never-saw<rst-thou-my-like ! and Ah ! Look upon-
me-and-thou-shalt-know-me ! " Hereat, understanding that he was
touched in brain and this was a judgment that had been wrought
upon him, they seized him and forced him irfto the barber's shop
and bringing a mirror set it in his hands. When he looked therein
he found a fool's cap upon his head, so forthwith he tore it off and
took thought and said to those present, " Who of you can guide
me to those three women?" They said to him, "O Syrian,
march off with thyself to thy own land for that the folk of Egypt
can play with the egg and the stone." 2 So he arose without stay
and delay ; then, taking what provaunt was sufficient for the way
and what little of fine raiment had been left to him, he quitted
Cairo intending for his own country. Now the Emir hearing this
tale of the Shahbandar wondered thereof with extreme wonder*

1 The barber being a surgeon and ever ready to bleed a madman.
1 if. Can play off equally well the soft- brained and the hard-beaded.

278 Supplemental Nights.

ment and said to the Gentleman, " An thou have finished do thou
fare forth and go about thy business." Accordingly he went from
him still garbed in gaberdine and bonnet on head when the house-
master asked his wife, " Who of them here remaineth with thee ? "
And she answered, " Have patience and I will bring thee the
third." So she arose and opening another closet summoned the
Flesher and taking him by the hand, whilst he was ashamed and
abashed, led him till he stood before her spouse and the poor
fellow availed not to raise his eyes from the ground. Presently
the husband considered him and knew him and was certified that
he was Such-and-such the Chief Butcher and head of the craft, so
he said to him, " Ho thou the clever one, do thou dance for us a
wee and after that tell us a tale." Accordingly he stood up and
clapped hands and fell to dancing and prancing till such time as
he dropped down for fatigue ; after which he said, " O my lord, I
have by me a tale anent the craft and cunning of women." Asked
the other, '' And what may it be ? " and the Butcher began to relate
the tale of

THE LADY WITH TWO COYNTES.

281

THE LADY WITH TWO COYNTES.

IT is told of a woman which was a fornicatress and adulteress and
a companion of catastrophes and calamities that she was married
to a Kaim-makdm 1 who had none of the will of mankind to
womankind, at all, at all. Now the wife was possessed of beauty
and loveliness and she misliked him for that he had no desire to
carnal copulation, and there was in the house a Syce-man who was
dying for his love of her. But her husband would never quit his
quarters, and albeit her longing was that the horse-keeper might
possess her person and that she and he might lie together, this
was impossible to her. She abode perplext for some sleight
wherewith she might serve her mate, and presently she devised a
device and said to him, " O my lord, verily my mother is dead
and 'tis my wish to hie me and be present at her burial and
receive visits of condolence for her ; and, if she have left aught
by way of heritage, to take it and then fare back to thee." " Thou
mayest go," said he, and said she, " I dread to fare abroad alone and
unattended ; nor am I able to walk, my parent's house being afar.
Do thou cry out to the Syce that he fetch me hither an ass and
accompany me to the house of my mother, wherein I shall lie some
three nights after the fashion of folk." Hereupon he called to the
horse-keeper and when he came before him, ordered the man to
bring an ass 2 and mount his mistress and hie with her ; and the
fellow, hearing these words, was hugely delighted. So he did as

1 I.*, a deputy (governor, etc.) ; in old days the governor of Constantinople ; in these
times a lieutenant-colonel, etc.

* Which, as has been said, is the cab of Modern Egypt, like the gondola and the,
caique. The heroine of the tale is a Nilotic version of " Aurora Floyd.*'

282 Supplemental Nights

he was bidden, but instead of going to the house they twain, he
and she, repaired to a garden carrying with them a flask of wine
and disappeared for the whole day < and made merry and took their
pleasure 1 until set of sun. Then the man brought up the ass
and mounting her thereon went to his own home, where the twain
passed the entire night sleeping in mutual embrace on each other's
bosoms, and took their joyance and enjoyment until it was
morning tide. Hereupon he arose and did with her as before,
leading her to the garden, and the two, Syce and dame, ceased
not to be after this fashion for three days solacing themselves and
making merry and tasting of love-Hesse. On the fourth day
he said to her, " Do thou return with us to the house of the
Kaim-makam," and said she, " No ; not till we shall have spent
together three days more enjoying ourselves, I and thou, and
making merry till such time as I have had my full will of thee
and thou thy full will of me ; and leave we yon preposterous pimp
to lie stretched out, as do the dogs, 2 enfolding his head between his
two legs." So the twain ceased not amusing themselves and taking
their joyance and enjoyment until they had ended the six days,
and on the seventh they wended their way home. They found the
Kaim-makam sitting beside a slave which was an old negress ;
and quoth he, " You have disappeared for a long while ! " and
quoth she, " Yes," until we had ended with the visits of condolence
for that my mother was known to foyson of the folk. But, O my
lord, my parent (Allah have ruth upon her!) hath left and
bequeathed to me a somewhat exceeding nice." " What may
that be ?" asked he, and answered she,. "I will not tell thee aught
thereof at this time, nor indeed until we remain, I and thou, in

privacy of night, when I will describe it unto thee." And

Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and

> In text " Rafaka" and infra (p. 11) "Zafaka."

2 [In text " Misla M-Kaldm," which I venture to suggest is another clerical blunder
for : " misla '1-Kildb " = as the dogs do. ST.]

The Lady with Two Coyntes. 283

ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me
to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

Sfce Scben ^untfreU an* ^ftp-first jai$t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the
woman said to her husband, " My mother hath left and be-
queathed to me somewhat, but I will not tell thee thereof till the
coming night when we twain shall be alone." " 'Tis well," said he ;
after which he continued to address himself, " Would Heaven I
knew what hath been left by the mother of our Harfm ! " l Now
when darkness came on and he and she had taken seats together,
he asked her, " What may be the legacy thy mother left ? " and she
answered, " O my lord, my mother hath bequeathed to me her
Coynte being loath that it be given to other save myself and there-
fore I have brought it along with me." Quoth he of his stupidity
(for he was like unto a cosset), 2 " Ho thou, solace me with the sight
of thy mother's Coynte." Hereupon she arose ; and, doffing all she
had on her of dress until she was mother-naked, said to him, " O my

1 i.t. My wife. In addition to notes in vols. i. 165, and iv. 9, 126, I would observe
that "Harim" (women) is the broken plur. of " Hurmah ;" from Haram, the honour
of the house, forbidden to all save her spouse. But it is also an infinitive (whose
plur. is Harfmat = the women of a family ; and in places it is still used for the women's
apartment, the gynaeceum. The latter by way of distinction I have mostly denoted by
the good old English corruption " Harem."

3 In text "Misla'l.kharuf" (for Kharuf)a common phrase for an "innocent," a
half idiot ; so our poets sing of " silly (harmless, Germ. Setig) sheep."

2 84 Supplemental Nights.

lord, I have stuck on my mother's Coynte hard by and in con-
tinuation of mine own cleft and so the twain of them have
remained each adjoining other between my hips." He continued,
11 Let me see it ; " so she stood up before him and pointing to her
parts, said, " This which faceth thee is my coynte whereof thou
art owner ;" after which she raised her backside and bowing her
head groundwards showed the nether end of her slit between the
two swelling cheeks of her sit-upon, her seat of honour, crying,
" Look thou ! this be the Coynte of my mother; but, O my lord,
'tis my wish that we wed it unto some good man and pleasant
who is faithful and true and not likely treason to do, for that the
coynte of my mother must abide by me and whoso shall inter-
marry therewith I also must bow down to him whilst he shall
have his will thereof." Quoth the Kaim-makam, " O sensible say !
but we must seek and find for ourselves a man who shall be agree-
able and trustworthy," presently adding, " O woman, we will not
give the Coynte of thy mother in marriage to some stranger lest
he trouble thee and trouble me also ; so let us bestow this boon
upon our own Syce." Replied the wife of her craft and cursed-
ness, " Haply, O my lord, the horsekeeper will befit us not ; " yet
the while she had set her heart upon him. Rejoined the Kaim-
makam her husband, "If so it be that he have shown thee want
of respect we will surely relieve him of his lot." But after so
speaking he said a second time, " Tis better that we give the Coynte
of thy mother to the Syce ; " and she retorted, " Well and good !
but do thou oblige him that he keep strait watch upon him-
self." Hereat the man summoned his servant before him and
said to him, " Hear me, O Syce ; verily the mother of my wife
to her hath bequeathed her Coynte, and 'tis our intent to bestow it
upon thee in lawful wedlock ; yet beware lest thou draw near that
which is our own property." The horsekeeper answered, " No, O
my lord, I never will." Now after they arrived at that agree*
ment concerning the matter in question, whenever the wife waxed

The Lady with two Coyntts. 285

hot with heat of lust she would send for the Syce and take him
and repair with him, he and she, to a place of privacy within the
Harem, whilst her mate remained sitting thoroughly satisBed ,
and they would enjoy themselves to the uttermost, after which the
twain would come forth together. And the Kaim-makam never
ceased saying on such occasions, " Beware, O Syce, lest thou
poach upon that which is my property ; " and *at such times the
wife would exclaim, " By Allah, O my lord, he is a true man and
a trusty." So they continued for a while l in the enjoyment of
their luxury and this was equally pleasurable to the husband and
wife and the lover. Now when the Emir heard this tale from the
Butcher, he began laughing until he fell upon his back and anon
he said to him, "Wend thy ways about thine own work ; " so the
Flesher went forth from him not knowing what he should do in
his garb of gaberdine and bonnet. Hereupon the woman arose
and going to the fourth closet threw it open and summoned and
led the Trader man by the hand and set him before her husband
who looked hard at him in his droll's dress and recognised him
and was certified of -him that he was his neighbour. So he said,
" Ho Such-an-one ! Thou art our neighbour and never did we
suspect that thou wouldst strive to seduce our Harfm ; 2 nay rather
did we expect thee to keep watch and ward over us and fend off
from us all evil. 8 Now by Allah, those whom we have dismissed
wrought us no foul wrong even as thou wroughtest us in this
affair ; for thou at all events art our neighbour. Thou deservest

1 In text this ends the tale.

9 In text " Wa U huwa 'ashamna min-ka talkash 'ala Harimi-na." "'Ashama," lit. =
he grecded for ; and " Lakasha "= he conversed with. [There is no need to change the
" talkas " of the text into " talkash." " Lakasa " is one of the words called " Zidd,"
I.*, with opposite meanings: it can signify to incline passionately towards," or "to
loath with abhorrence." As the noun " Laks " means " itch " the sentence might per-
haps be translated : "that thou hadst an itching after our Harim." What would lead
me to prefer the reading of the MS. is that the verb is construed with the preposition
*ala" upon, towards, for, while " lakash," to converse, is followed by ma"* =
with. ST.]

3 Such was the bounden duty of a good neighbour.

286 Supplemental Nights.

in this matter that I slay thee out of hand, but Default comethnot
save from the Defaulter ; therefore I will do thee no harm at all
as did I with thy fellows even save that needs must thou tell us a
tale whereby to rejoice us. " * Quoth he, " Hearing and obeying , "
and herewith fell to relating the story of

1 He does not insist upon his dancing because he looks upon the offence as serious,
but he makes him tell his tale for the sake of the reader.

THE WHORISH WIFE WHO VAUNTED HER

VIRTUE.

289

THE WHORISH WIFE WHO VAUNTED HER

VIRTUE.

IT is related that once upon a time there was a man which was an
astronomer l and he had a wife who was singular in beauty and
loveliness. Now she was ever and aye boasting and saying to
him, " O man, there is not amongst womankind my peer in
nobility s and chastity ; " and as often as she repeated this saying
to him he would give credit to her words and cry, " Wallahi, no
man hath a wife like unto the lady my wife for high caste and
continence ! " Now he was ever singing her praises in every
assembly ; but one day of the days as he was sitting in a stance of
the great, who all were saying their says anent womankind and
feminine deeds and misdeeds, the man rose up and exclaimed,
" Amongst women there is none like my wife, for that she is pure
of blood and behaviour ; " hereat one of those present said to

him, " Thou liest, O certain person ! " And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

vTfjc Sbebcn f^unfcreft an* Jf tftij.fourtf) Jltgln,

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou

1 " Sahib al Hayat : " this may also s a physiognomist, which, however, is probably
not meant here.
' In tet " Harirah "a heat, but her* derived from " Hurr "sfreebora, noble.

VOL. V. T

290 Supplemental Nights.

be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that while the man
was singing the praises of his spouse one of those present rose
and said to him, " Wallahi, thou liest, O certain person ! "
" Wherein do I lie ? " quoth he, and quoth the other, " I will teach
thee and show thee manifestly whether thy wife be a lady or a
whore. Do thou rise up from amongst us and hie thee home and
go thou in to her and say : O Woman,! am intent upon travelling
to a certain place and being absent for a matter of four days and
after will return ; so do thou arise, O Woman, and bring me some
bread and a mould of cheese by way of viaticum. Then go thou
forth from beside her and disappear for a while ; and presently
returning home hide thee in a private place without uttering a
word." Cried those present, " By Allah, indeed these words may
not be blamed." Accordingly, the man went forth from them
and fared till he entered his house where he said, " O Woman,
bring me something of provision for a journey : my design is to
travel and to be absent for a space of four days or haply six."
Cried the wife, " O my lord, Thou art about to desolate me nor
can I on any wise bear parting from thee ; and if thou needs must
journey do thou take me with thee." Now when the man heard
these the words of his wife he said to himself, " By Allah, there can-
not be the fellow of my spouse amongst the sum of womankind,"
presently adding to her, " I shall be away from four to six days
but do thou keep watch and ward upon thyself and open not my
door to anyone at all." Quoth she, " O Man, how canst thou quit
me ? * and indeed I cannot suffer such separation." Quoth he, " I
shall not long be separated from thee ; " and so saying he fared^

1 In text "AzaymUafi'it-nf?"

The Whorish Wife who Vaunted her Virtue. 291

forth from her and disappeared for the space of an hour, after
which he returned home softly walking and hid himself in a place
where none could see him. Now after the space of two hours
behold, a Costermonger ! came into the house and she met him
and salam'd to him and said, " What hast thou brought for me ? "
" Two lengths of sugar-cane," said he, and said she, " Set them
down in a corner of the room." Then he asked her, " Whither
is thy husband gone ? " and she answered, " On a journey : may
Allah never bring him back nor write his name among the
saved and our Lord deliver me from him as soon as possible ! "
After this she embraced him and he embraced her and she kissed
him and he kissed her and enjoyed her favours till such time as he
had his will of her ; after which he went his ways. When an hour
had passed a Poulterer 2 came to the house, whereupon she arose
and salam'd to him and said, " What hast thou brought me ? "
He answered, " A pair of pigeon-poults ; " so she cried, " Place
them under yon vessel. 3 " Then the man went up to the woman
and he embraced her and she embraced him and he tumbled 4 her
and she tumbled him; after which he had his will of her and
presently he went off about his own business. When two hours or
so had gone by there came to her another man which was a
Gardener ; 5 so she arose and met him with a meeting still fairer

1 In the Arab. "Rajul Khurari" = a green-meat man. [The leading " Khuzarl n
belongs to Lane, M.E. ii. 16. and to Bocthor. In Schiaparelli's Vocabulista and the
Muhit the form " Khuzri " is also given with the same meaning. ST.]

1 [In text " Fararijf," as if the pi. of " Farruj " = chicken were " Faririj " instead of
" Faririj." In modern Egyptian these nouns of relation from irregular plurals to desig-
nate tradespeople not only drop the vowel of the penultimate but furthermore, shorten
that of the preceding syllable, so that " Fararyi" becomes Fararjf." Thus " Sanidiki,"
a maker of boxes, becomes " Sanadki," and " Dakhdkhinl, a seller of tobacco brands,"
" Dakhakhnl." See Spitta Bey's Grammar, p. 1 1 8. ST.]

* In the Arab. ' Al-Majur," for " Maajur "=a vessel, an utensiL

4 In text, "shaklaba" here="shakal*" = he weighed out (money, whence the Heb.
Shekel), he had to do with a woman.

[The trade of the man is not mentioned here, p. 22 of the 5th vol. of the MS,
probably through negligence of the copyist, but it only occurs as far lower down as
p. 25. ST.]

292 Supplemental Nights.

than the first two and asked him, " What hast thou brought with
thee ? " " A somewhat of pomegranates," answered he ; so she
took them from him and led him to a secret place where she left
him and changed her dress and adorned herself and perfumed
herself and Kohl'd * her eyes. After that she returned to the
pomegranate-man and fell a-toying with him and he toyed with
her and she hugged him and he hugged her and at last he rogered
and had his wicked will of her and went his ways. . Hereupon the
woman doffed her sumptuous dress and garbed herself in her every-
day garment. . All this and the husband was looking on through
the chinks of the door behind which he was lurking and listening
to whatso befel, and when all was ended he went forth softly and
waited awhile and anon returned home. Hereupon the wife arose
and her glance falling upon her husband she noted him and accosted
him and salam' d to him and said," Hast thou not been absent atall ?"
Said he, " O Woman, there befel me a tale on the way which may
not be written on any wise, save with foul water upon disks of dung, 2
and indeed I have endured sore toil and travel, and had not Allah
(be He praised and exalted !) saved me therefrom, I had never

returned." Quoth his wife, "What hath befallen thee?"

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent,
and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dun-
yazad,, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable
and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with
that I would relate to you on the coming night an the King
suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and
that was

1 A certain reviewer proposes " stained her eyes with Kohl," showing that he had
never seen the Kohl-powder used by Asiatics.

2 [" Bi-Ma al-faslkh 'ala Akras al-Jullah." "Ma al-FasIkh " = water of salt-fish,
I would translate by " dirty brine " and " Akrs al-Jullah " by "dung-cakes," meaning
the tale should be written with a filthy fluid for ink upon a filthy solid for paper, more
expressive than elegant. ST.]

The Whorish Wife who Vaunted her Virtue. 293

tSP&e Sfceben IDuntircfc anto Jfifni.fiftf) jaigtt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale, that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ? " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the wife asked
the husband saying, '* What hath befallen thee on thy way ? "
And he answered, " O Woman, when I went forth the town and
took the road, behold, a basilisk issued from his den and coming
to the highway stretched himself therealong, so I was unable to
step a single footstep ; and indeed, O Woman, his length was that
of yon sugar cane, brought by the Costermonger and which thou
placedst in the corner. Also he had hair upon his head like
the feathers of the pigeon-poults presented to thee by the
Poulterer-man, and which thou hast set under the vessel ; and
lastly, O Woman, his head was like the pomegranates which thou
tookest from the Market Gardener l and carriedst within the house."
Whenas the wife heard these words, she lost command of herself
and her right senses went wrong and she became purblind and
deaf, neither seeing nor hearing, because she was certified that her
spouse had sighted and eye-witnessed what she had wrought of
waywardness and frowardness. Then the man continued to her,
" O Whore ! O Fornicatress, O Adulteress. How durst thou say to
me, 'There is not amongst womankind my better in nobility
and purity?' and this day I have beheld with my own eyes
what thy chastity may be. So do thou take thy belongings

1 " Al-Janinati ; or, as Egyptians would pronounce the word " Al-Ganiniti " [Other
Egyptian names for gardener are "Janiinf," pronounced "Ganaiol,*' "Buslinjf," pro-
nounced " Bustangi," with a Turkish termination to a Persian noun, and " Bakhsha-
wangi," for " Baghchawanji," where the same termination is pleonastically added to
a Persian word, which in Persian and Turkish already means "gardener." ST.]

294 Supplemental Nights.

and go forth from me and be off with thyself to thine own
folk." And so saying he divorced her with the triple divorce and
thrust her forth the house. Now when the Emir heard the afore-
told tale from his neighbour, he rejoiced therein ; this being was a
notable wile of the guiles of womankind which they are wont to
work with man for " Verily great is their craft." 1 And presently
he dismissed the fourth lover, his neighbour, even as he had freed
the other three, and never again did such trouble befal him and
his wife, or from Kazi or from any other. 2 And to the same pur-
port (quoth Shahrazad), to wit, the slights and snares of the sex,
they also tell the tale of

1 A Koranic quotation from "Joseph," chap. xii. 28: Sale has "for verily your
cunning is great," said by Potiphar to his wife,

2 I have inserted this sentence, the tale being absolutely without termination. So in
the Mediaeval Lat. translations the MSS. often omit " explicit capitulum (primum).
Sequitur capitulum secundum/' this explicit being a sine qua non.

CCELEBS THE DROLL AND HIS WIFE AND
HER FOUR LOVERS.

297

CCELEBS THE DROLL AND HIS WIFE AND
HER FOUR LOVERS.

THERE lived at the Court of a certain King a man wherewith he
was wont to jest and this droll was unmated. So one day of the
days the Sultan said to him, " O Man, thou art a bachelor, so
suffer us to marry thee," and said the buffoon, " No, O King of
the Age ; allow me to remain in single blessedness, for in woman-
kind there is no rest and they work many a wile, and indeed I fear
lest haply we fall upon one who shall be of the fornicatresses, the
adulteresses." Quoth the King, " There is no help but that thou
wed ; " and quoth the Droll, " Tis well, O King of the Age."
Hereupon the Sultan sent to summon the Wazir and bade him
betroth the man to a woman of righteous conduct and come of
decent folk. Now the Minister had with him an old nurse, and he
commanded her to find a match for the Sultan's Jester ; where-
upon she rose and went out from him and engaged for the man a
beautiful woman. And presently the marriage-tie was tied between
these twain and he went in unto the bride and she tarried with him
a while of time even half a year or may be seven months. Now
one day of the days the King's Jester went forth his house ere the
dawn-prayer had been called on some business for the Sultan,
intending to return before rise of sun. Such was the case with
him ; but as regards his wife, she had known when yet unmarried
four men who to her were the liefest of her companions and who,
during the earlier days of her wedding, had not been able to
possess her. However, on the morning when her husband fared
forth from her before the call to dawn -prayers, each and every of
these four favoured lovers made up their minds to visit their play-

298 Supplemental Nights.

mate. Now one of them was a Pieman l and the second was an
Herbalist, 2 the third was a Flesher and the fourth was the Shaykh
of the Pipers. 3 When the Droll went forth from his wife behold,
the Pieman came and rapped at the door t whereat she opened to
him and said, " Thou hast come betimes/' and said he, " I have
minced the meat and I desired to work it up when I found that
the hour was too early and that no one was in the market. So I
said to myself: Up with thee and go to Such-and-such a woman."
" 'Tis well," quoth she ; but when they desired to make merry
together, of a sudden the door was knocked ; so quoth he to her,
" Who is this ? " and quoth she to him, " I know not, but do thou
hie and hide thee in yonder closet." He did her bidding, where-
upon she went forth and threw open the door when behold, it was
the Herbalist and she said to him, " This is a time betimes." Said
he, " By Allah, I was nighting in the garden and I have brought
these sweet-scented herbs, and as the hour was over-early I said to
myself: Go thou to Such-and-such a woman and make merry,
thou and she, for a wee." So she let him in ; but hardly had he
settled himself in his seat when suddenly the door was again
rapped and he asked her, " Who is this ? " and she answered, " !
know not, but do thou hie and hide thee in yonder closet." So he
went in and found the Pieman there seated and said to him,
" What thing mayest thou be ? " 4 and said the other, " I and thou
are each like other." Meanwhile the woman had gone forth and
opened the door when behold, she was met by the Flesher whom

1 In text " Fatairi " = a maker of " Fatfrah " = pancake, or rather a kind of pastry
rolled very thin, folded over like a napkin, saturated with butter and eaten with sugar or
honey poured over it.

2 In Arab. " Nayizatf," afterwards " Nuwayzdtf," and lastly "Rayhanf" (p. 34)
= a man who vends sweet and savoury herbs. We have neither the craft nor the article,
so I have rendered him by " Herbalist."

3 In text a " Mihtar "= a prince, a sweeper, a scavenger ; the Pers. *' Mihtar," still
used in Hindostani. [In Quatremere's Histoire des Sultans Mamlouks " Mihtdr " occurs
also in the sense of superintendent, of head-equerry, and of chief of a military band.
See Dozy Supp. s. v. ST.]

4 " Ant'aysh " for " man," decidedly not complimentary, " What (thing) art thou ? "

Calebs the Droll and his Wife -and her Four Lovers. 299

she led within and then said to him, " This is a time betimes."
Quoth he, " By Allah, I arose from sleep and slaughtered a ram !
and prepared the flesh for selling when I found that the hour was
over-early and said I to myself : Take thee a piece of mutton-
flesh and go thou in to a certain person and enjoy yourselves, thou
and she, until the Bazar shall have opened." But hardly had he
taken seat when came a fourth knock at the door, and as he heard
this he was wonderstruck ; so she said to him, " Fear not, but hie
thee and hide thee within yonder closet." Accordingly he went
in and found the Pieman and the Herbalist there sitting and he
salam'd to the twain who returned his salute ; then he asked them,
" What hath brought you hither ? " and they answered, " That
which brought us brought also thee." He took seat with them
while the woman went and threw open the door and behold, she
was met by her friend the Shaykh of the Pipers belonging to the
Sultan, so she brought him in and said to him, " Indeed thy time
is betimes." Said he, " Wallahi, I went forth my home intending
to fare and prepare the band 2 in the Royal Palace when I found
the hour was over-early, so said I to myself: Hie thee to a certain
person and make ye merry, thou and she, until the sun shall rise
and thou art bound to wend palacewards." " 'Tis well," quoth
she and seated him and designed to take seat beside him when
behold, came a rap at the door and he cried, " Who is that ? " and
she replied, " Allah only is Omniscient, but haply 'tis my husband."
So he was startled and afeard, and when she whispered to him,
" Up and enter yon closet," he did her bidding and found
a-facing him therein the Pieman and the Herbalist and the Flesher
i* whom he said, " Peace be upon you," and when they returned
his greeting he asked them, " Ye, who brought you ? " They

1 Arab. " Kabsh." Amongst the wilder tribes of the East ram's mutton is preferred
uccausc it gives the teeth more to do : on the same principle an old cock is the choicest
guest-gift in the way of poultry.

1 " Naubah," lit.= a period, keeping guard ; and here a band of pipes and kettle-
drums playing before the doors of a great man at certain periods.

3OO Supplemental Nights.

answered him saying, " That which brought us also brought thee."
After this he sat beside them and the four remained seated in the
closet and huddled together, whilst each addressed himself saying,
" What now wilt thou do ? " Meanwhile the woman suddenly
went forth and opened the door when behold, it was her mate the
Droll who walked in and took seat ; whereupon she asked him
" And thou, why hast thou come at such hour ? 'tis not often thy
wont to return early from the King's presence. Haply thou art
unwell, for thy custom is not to appear until near supper-tide and
now thou hast forestalled our meeting-time and hast returned
a-morn. I suspect that he hath bespoken thee concerning some
matter of urgent matters that thou comest home at this hour ; but
haply thou wilt finish off such business and hie thee back to the
Sultan/' Quoth he, " By Allah, O Woman, when I fared forth
hence and went to the King I found that he had many and
important affairs to settle, so he said : Hie thee to thy home and

abide therein, nor return to me till after the third day." And

Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent, and
ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad
" How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this com-
pared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

t&ty S>tftfn f^untefc anfc Jffftg- eighty JJtfibt,

Calebs the Droll and His Wife and her Four Lovers 301

to his wife she said, " Thou, wherefore hast thou come so early ? "
and said he, " By Allah, the Sultan hath much and important
business and said to me : Hie thee home, and tarry there and
return not to me save after the third day." Now when the four
men who were closeted together heard these words they were per-
plext as to their affair, and said one to other, " What shall we
do ? Indeed we are unable to sit out three days in this stead."
Hereupon the Pieman said to them, " Nay, rather let us play a
prank whereby we may escape," and said they, " What may be
the device thou wouldest devise ? " Quoth he, " Whatso I do that do
ye look upon and then act in like guise,'* and so speaking he arose
and taking his minced meat fell to sticking it upon his skin until
he was like a leper covered with sores. 1 Then he went forth the
closet to the husband of his mistress, and cried, " The Peace be
upon you ! " The man returned his salute and asked him, " What
art thou ? " to which he made answer, " I am the Prophet Job the
Ulcered, where is the way out of this ? " " Here," cried the Jester,
upon which Job passed out of the door and went about his business
and on such wise made his escape. Next the Herbalist stood up and
opening his basket brought out fragrant herbs and fell to scattering
them over his sconce and about it and over his ears, 2 till such
time as all his face was hidden in greens, after which he also went
out and accosting the house-master said, " The Peace be upon you ! "
And when the man returned the salam he asked him, " Hath Job
the Ulcered passed by thee on this path ? " " Indeed he hath," said
the other; "but what mayst thou be?" " I am Al-Khizr, the
Green Prophet" (upon whom be The Peace), 8 and so saying he
brushed by the Droll and passed through the door. Now when the

1 In text " Al-Mubtali."

3 Arab. " Hawwilin " ; the passage is apparently corrupt. [" Hawalin " is clerical
error for either " hawala " = all around, or " Hawalf = surroundings, surrounding parts,
and "Audin" is pi. of the popular " Widn" or " Wudn" for the literary " Urn,"
ear. ST.]

3 The exclamation would be uttered by the scribe or by Shahraiad. I need hardly
remind the reader that " Khiir " is the Green Prophet and here the Prophet of greens.

302 Supplemental Nights.

second lover had gone forth and escaped, the Flesher arose and
donning the ram's skin set its horns upon his head and began
crawling out of the closet upon all fours, hands and knees, until he
stood before the husband of his beloved, and said to him, " The
Peace be upon you !" <! And upon you be The Peace," returned
the other, " What mayst thou be ? " " I am Iskandar, Lord of the
Two Horns," cried the other ; " say me, have there passed by thee
Job the Ulcered and Al-Khizr the Green Prophet (upon whom be
The Peace) ? " Quoth the house-master, " They went by this place
and forewent thee." So the third lover passed through the door-
way and escaped, and presently the Shaykh of the Pipers rose to
his feet and applying the mouthpiece of his pipe to his lips went
up to his mistress's mate and said, " The Peace be upon you ! " and
on the man. returning his salam, asked him, " Hath it so happened
that Job the Ulcered and Al-Khizr the Green Prophet and Iskandar
Lord of the Two Horns passed this way ? " " They have," answered
the other, " What art thou ? " Cried he, " I am Israfil, 1 and 'tis
my design forthright to blow the Last Trump." Hereupon the Droll
straightway arose and laid hands upon him ; crying, "Yallah,
Ydllah, 2 O my brother, blow not at all until we shall have gone, I and
thou, to the Sultan." So saying he took him by the hand and
fared forth with him and ceased not faring until he had carried him
into the presence, when the King asked, " Wherefore hast thou
arrested this man ? " Answered he, " O King of the Age, this is
our Lord Israfil and 'twas his intent to blow the Last Trump, so I
forbade him therefrom until such time as I had brought him for
thee to look upon, lest haply he might so have done without thy
knowledge, and said I to myself: By Allah, better set him before
the Sultan ere he sound his Trumpet. Furthermore I do pray for

1 For " IsraTil " = Raphael, the Archangel who will blow the last trump, see vol.
ii. 287.

2 Gen. meaning "Look sharp," here syn. with " Allah ! Allah ! "= I conjure thee by
God. Vol. 1.346.

Calebs the Droll and his Wife and her Four Lovers. 303

thy welfare, O King of the Age, inasmuch as thou hast married me
to this dame because I had fear of her lest she company with strange
men. But I found her a saintly woman who admitted none of man-
kind save that to-day when I went forth from thee at morning-
tide I turned me homewards and going into my house caught with
her three Prophets and one Archangel and this is he who intended
to blow the Last Trump." Hereupon quoth the Sultan to him, " O
Man, art thou Jinn-mad ? How canst thou have found with thy
spouse any of the Prophets as thou sayest ? " And quoth he, " By
Allah, O King of the Age, whatso hath befallen me that 1 have
reported to thee nor have I hidden from thee aught. 11 The King
asked, " Which was he of the Prophets thou foundest beside thy
wife ? " and he answered, " The Prophet Job (on whom be The
Peace) and after him came forth to me from a closet the Prophet
Al-Khizr (on whom be The Peace 1), and after him Iskandar Lord of
the Two Horns (on whom be The Peace !)and lastly this the fourth
is the Archangel Israfil." The Sultan marvelled at his words, and
exclaimed " Laud to the Lord ! Verily this man whom thou
entitlest Israfil is naught but the Shaykh of my Pipers." " I wist
naught, O King of the Age," said the other, " but I have related to
thee what hath occurred and what I beheld and eyewitnessed."
Hereupon the Sultan understood that the wife had friends who
forgathered with her, and who had served her husband with such
sleight, so he said to the musician, " O man, unless thou tell me
truly what happened I will cut off thy head." Thereupon the
Shaykh of the Pipers arose, and kissing ground before the
Sultan, said to him, " O King of the Age, give me promise of
immunity and I will relate to thee all that befel." Quoth the
King, " 'Tis upon condition that thou tell no lies ; " and quoth the
other, " O King of the Age, verily, I will shun leasing." ' So
the King gave him a pledge of safety, and the Shaykh described

1 A Persian would say, " I am a Irani but Wallahi indeed I am not lying."

304 Supplemental Nights.

everything that had been done and kept nothing back, and when
the King heard the story and the trick which had been wrought
by the woman's friends he marvelled thereat and cried, " Allah
kill all womankind, 1 the fornicatresses, the adulteresses, the
traitresses ! " After which he despatched a posse of the Cham-
berlains to bring into his presence the four persons.

And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent
and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

^|je &eben f^unfcreU ana >txt(etf) Jifgbt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the King
despatched a posse of his Chamberlains to bring into his presence
the four persons who were lovers to the Droll's wife, and he found
the first to be a Pieman who had claimed the rank of our lord Job
(on whom be The Peace !) and the second to be a Market-Gardener

1 [This sentence of wholesale extermination passed upon womankind, reminds me of
the Persian lines which I find quoted in 'Abdu '1-Jalfl's History of the Barmicides:

Agar nek budi Zan u Ray-i-Zan

Zan-ra Ma-zan Nam budi, na Zan

and which I would render Anglice :

If good there were in Woman and her way,
Her name would signify "Slay not" not " Slay.

"Zan" as noun = woman ; as imp. of "zadan" = strike, kill, whose negative is
"ma-zan."~ST.]

Calebs the Droll and Ins Wife and her Four Lovers. 30$

who sold savoury herbs and all manner fragrant growths, and he
had made himself out to be Al-Khizr (on whom be The Peace !),
and the third to be a Butcher who had passed himself off as
Iskandar, Lord of the Two Horns (on whom be The Peace !) ;
whilst the fourth, whom the Jester had brought, and who declared
that he was the Archangel Israfil, and was about to blow the Last
Trump, proved to be the Shaykh of the Pipers. Now when the
four were before the King he gave orders to castrate them all save
the Shaykh, 1 this being the award of him who lewdly frequenteth
the women of the royal household. Hereupon they gelded them,
and each one who was made a eunuch died without stay and
delay ; and the Droll divorced his wife and sent her about her
business. I have also by me (said Shahrazad) another tale con-
cerning the wiles of womankind, and it is that of

1 In the text the Shaykh, to whom " Aman " was promised, is also gelded, probably
by the neglect of the scribe.

THE GATE-KEEPER OF CAIRO AND THE
CUNNING SHE-THIEF.

309

THE GATE-KEEPER OF CAIRO AND THE CUNNING

SHE-THIEF. 1

IT is related that in Misr of Kdhir there was a man who had
reached the age of fourscore and ten years, and he was a chief-
Watchman of the ward in the service of the Wali ; a brave man
withal, and one not wont to be startled or afeard. Now one night
as he was going around about the city with the Chief of Police,
and he was returning to the guard-house 2 before break o f day that
he might perform the Wuzii-ablution, and at the call to dawn-
prayers he might rise and repeat them, it so fortuned that when he
was about to stand up to his orisons, according to the custom of
him, suddenly a purse fell before him upon the ground. As soon
as he had done with his devotions he arose and gazed around to
see who had thrown him that bag of money, but he could find
nobody ; so he took it up and opened it, when an hundred dinars
met his sight. Hereat he wondered ; but on the following day
when he had washed and was praying, behold, a second purse was
cast at his feet*; so he waited until he had finished his orisons and
then stood up and looked around to see who had thrown it.
Thereupon, as he failed to find any, he took it up and opened it
and again beheld an hundred dinars, a matter which filled him
with wonder. This continued till the third day at morning-tide,
when he had washed as was his wont and stood up to his prayers,
and lo and behold ! another purse was dropped at his feet. Here-

1 This tale is a variant of " The First Constable's History : " Suppl. Nights, vol. ii.
6-15.

* In text " Al-Bawwabah "= a place where door-keepers meet, a police-station ; in
modem tongue "Karakol," for " Karaghol-khinah " = guard-boose.

3 1 o Supplemental Nights.

with he cut short his devotions, and turning him round saw beside
him a girl whose years had reached fifteen ; so he seized her and
said, " Who art thou, and what is the reason of thy throwing at
my feet every day a purse of an hundred gold pieces, and this is
the third time ; argal the sum amounteth to three hundred. What
may be this case ? " Said she, " O my lord, my name is Fatimah,
and my wish and will is a matter which thou canst bring to an end
for me by means of thy tongue ! " Quoth he, " What is't thou
wantest of me ? " and quoth she, " Tis my intent that on the
morrow 1 sham drunkenness with wine and cast myself before the
mansion of the Kazi of the Army. 1 Thou shalt find me there
strown upon the ground and dressed in all the best of my clothes
and finest ornaments. So when thou shalt come to that quarter
and espy me lying there in drink do thou bid the Linkman move
the links to and fro ; then come forward, O Mukaddam, 2 and
investigate the case and examine me, and say the Wali : This
girl is in liquor. The Chief of Police shall reply to thee : Take
her and carry her to the watch-house and keep her there till day-
break." -- And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day,
and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth
her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O
sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now
when it was the next night, and that was

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With

1 In text " Kazi al-'Askar"= the great legal authority of a country : vol. vi. 131.

2 Angto-Indice " Mucuddum"= overseer, etc., vol. iv. 42.

The Gate-Keeper of Cairo and the Cunning She- Thief. 3 1 1

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that quoth
the girl to the Mukaddam, " And when thou shalt have found me
drunken with wine, the Wall shall bid thee : Take her to the
watch-house and there keep her till daybreak. Hereto do thou
object : No ! this were not suitable : I will cry upon Someone
of the quarter and will awake the Kazi of the Army, for that she
belongeth to his ward. Then assemble all thy folk and say to
them : Verily this girl is in liquor and not mistress of herself at
such time ; needs must she be of a great family and daughter to
grandees ; therefore 'twere not proper that we take her with us to
the watch-house ; nor let any hold her in his charge save the Kazi
of the Army till morning and until such time as she shall have
recovered her senses and can fare to her own folk." Hereupon
quoth the Mukaddam to her, " Easy enough ! " and quoth she,
" An thou act on this wise and my success be from thy hand, I
will give thee five hundred dinars besides the three hundred."
" This matter is not far to us," l said he ; so she left him and went
away. Now when it was the season after night-prayers, the Chief
of Police came forth his quarters and, repairing to the watch-
house and taking the Mukaddam and his men, would have
threaded the highways of Cairo as was his wont, but the head
Gate-Keeper forewent him and took the direction of the quarter
wherein dwelt the Kazi of the Army ; the Wali unknowing the
while what was in the man's thought. They ceased not faring
until they entered that part of the town wherein stood the Judge's
house, and when they approached it, lo and behold 1 the Mukaddam
found a something strown upon the ground. So said he to the
Linkman who carried the light, " O my son, do thou shake the
torch) 1 ' and when he moved the link to and fro it illumined the

1 i.e. is not beyond our reach.

312 Supplemental Nights.

whole quarter. Then the Gate-Keeper came forward ; and, looking
at what was lying there, found it to be a damsel in liquor dressed
out with sumptuous dress and adorned with all her ornaments : so
he said to the Wali, " O my Chief, 1 this girl is drunken with wine
and hath fallen on the ground ;" and said the Chief of Police,
" Take her up and carry her to the watch-house until morning."
Hereupon quoth the Mukaddam, " No ! this were not fitting ; nor
is it possible for the like of this girl. She is in the ward of the
Kazi al-'Askar, to whose household haply she belongeth or to
some great man in the quarter, and we fear lest befal her of evil
matters some matter and we shall come to be transgressors."
Hereupon, after applying some remedy to the damsel, they made
her sit up and presently they called aloud upon the people of the
quarter and awoke the Judge and when all the folk came out
in a body the Wali said to them, " Look ye upon this girl ; per-
adventure you may know whose daughter she is." They came
forward and examined her and found her garbed in sumptuous
garments and trickt out with the whole of her ornaments, where-
upon the Chief of Police and the Mukaddam of the Watchmen
said to them, " Indeed 'tis not possible for us to remove yon
maiden from this place ; so do you take her to your homes until
morning-tide when she shall recover and be able to care for herself
and then fare to her own folk. Hereat they made agreement that
none should lodge her in his house save the Kazi of the Army ;
so a party of the servants raised her and led her to his mansion
and set her in a chamber hard by the open saloon ; after which
each and every of them fared forth to sleep in his own place. On
this wise it befel the Wali and the Mukaddam and the Kazi and
the folk of the ward ; but as regards the affair of the damsel whom
they found stretched on the ground as one drunken, she on
entering the Kazi's abode pulled herself together and recovered

1 In text "Ya Sultan-am" with the Persian or Turkish suffixed possessional
pronoun.

The Gate-Keeper of Cairo and the Cunning She- Thief. 3 1 3

herself, for that she had wrought all this wily work for the special
purpose of being led into the house there to carry out her wish
and will. Presently the Judge lay down and was drowned in
slumber and knew not what Allah had destined to him from the
plans and projects of the girl who, rising up at midnight, opened
the door of her chamber leading into the saloon where the Kazi
al-'Askar kept all his hoards and coin l and dresses and belongings.
Now she had appointed her people to meet her at that house, so
they came and carried off the whole of what was in the saloon
nor did they leave aught therein, at all, at all, save only the
matting. And when dawned the morn, the Kazi of the Army
arose and repaired to the saloon, as was his wont, for the purpose of
dressing but he found therein nothing except the matting. So he
buffeted his face with his palms and wailed aloud whereat a party
of his servants came to him and asked, " What is the matter with
thee, O our lord the Kazi ? " then, on going into the saloon they
remarked that it had been gutted of everything. So they went
from him and threw open the door of the chamber wherein they
had placed the damsel but they found her nowhere. -- And
Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dun-
yazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable
and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with
that I would relate to you on the coming night an the King
suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and
that was

vTfjc gfceben ^imfcreft anto 5ri.xiiMl)ir& Xtgljt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

1 In text " mil," for which see vol. vi. 267. Amongst the Badawin it is also applied
to hidden treasure.

3 1 4 Supplemental Nights.

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Kazi's
folk went and threw open the door of the chamber wherein the
damsel had slept ; and, when they found nothing therein, they
were certified it was she who had carried away the good. After
such fashion it happened to these ; but as regards the action of the
Judge, he took horse and wended his way to the Sultan, and he
ceased not wending till he had entered the presence and salam'd
and blessed the Sovran who returned his salute. Then cried he,
" O King of the Age, there hath befallen me that which is so-and-
so, and I have a claim on the Chief of Police and the Mukaddam
of the watch, for that indeed they were the men who bade me
admit the girl into my home, and this guest of mine hath left me
nor muchel nor little." Hereupon the King bade summon the
men with their many, and when they came before him, he bade
strike off the heads of the two head men ; but they said to him,
" O King of the Age, grant us three days' respite and, if aught
discover itself to us and we rid ourselves of the responsibility, we
shall be saved ; but an we avail not thereto, the sword of the
Sultan is long." " Go forth," cried the King ; " I have granted
you a three days' delay ; if you bring the offender 'tis well, and if
not, your heads shall be in lieu thereof and eke so your families
and your properties." Hearing this they sued for dismissal, and
the Wali went forth to search in this way and wander in one
direction and the Mukaddam in another. They roamed about
Cairo for two full-told days, but naught happened to them until
the third about the call to noontide-prayers, when the Mukaddam
entered a narrow street on the side of the city to the west, and
behold, a door opened and a speaker spake saying, " O Mukaddam,
who is behind the door ? " So he turned towards the sound and
said, " 'Tis well," and the other cried, " Come thou and draw near

The Gate-Keeper of Cairo and the Cunning Ske- Thief. 3 1 5

to me." He did so and approached the entrance when suddenly he
saw the damsel who had shammed drunkenness l and whom they
had introduced into the Kazi al-'Askar's house. Now when he
accosted her and recognised her, he seized her and she asked him,
" Wherefore dost thou arrest me and what is thine intent to do
with me ? " " We will carry thee to the Sultan/' answered he, " and I
and the Wali shall be set free. During the last three days I have
done nothing but wander about in search of thee who hast wrought
for us such work and after hast fled from us." Quoth the girl, " O
clever one, had I designed the ruin of you I had never made
myself manifest to thee, nor couldst thou have met me or
forgathered with me : however, I will now work at freeing you
from the hands of the Sultan, that both thou and the Wali may
escape and that you twain may take from the Judge of the Army
whatever of good you want and will." Quoth he, " How shall we
do ? " and quoth she, " I have by me a white slave-girl the very
likeness of myself and at this time I have dressed her in my dresses
and decorations and have cut her throat, and by my cleverness and
force of heart I have caused her be carried to a ruin hard by the
Kazi's house and have had her buried therein and have set over
her a slab. So do thou fare hence and taking the Wali seek the
Sultan and say him : " We have wandered about Misr, the whole
thereof, but we have found naught of our want, and now nothing
remaineth to us save the house of the Kazi al-'Askar ; so we desire
to search therein and, if we find that damsel murthered, we will
gather together the folk of the quarter who saw us before that they
may look upon her; and be the Judge also standing by that we
may ask the people : What say ye concerning this maiden P'when
haply they may reply, This is the girl which was drunken with
wine. And as soon as they shall bear witness that it is the same,
you twain shall stay behind to converse with the Judge as ye desire

1 I carefully avoid the obnoxious term "intoxication" which properly means
' poisoning," and should be left to thoat amiable enthusiasts the " Teetotallers."

3 1 6 Supplemental Nights.

and take from him whatever you wish and will ; and he shall sue
you for grace and for aidance. Then will he go up to the King and
report to him saying : I have found my debtor and I have recovered
from him all my good ; whereupon you shall be set free and eke
I shall be freed. And finally do ye come hither to me and we
will divide all the plunder I have taken from the Kazi's house."
Now when the damsel had made the old Watchman understand
these words, he left her, and going to the Wali, informed him of
the whole affair and reported all that the girl had communicated
to him of treachery and plottings, whereupon the Chief of Police
took horse, and accompanied by the Mukaddam, rode to the

Palace, And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and

fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth
her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy story,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive?" Now
when it was the next night and that was

Sflbc &eten l^untoU atrtr Sbixtp-fiftf) jBt'fiH

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Wali
rode to the Palace, he and the chief Watchman, seeking the
Sultan, and they ceased not riding until they entered the presence
and saluted the Sovran, praying for the endurance of his glory
and the continuance of his life-tide. He returned their salute and
asked concerning the affair of his Judge and they answered him,
" O King of the Age, verily we have wandered about Misr and

The Gate-Keeper of Cairo and the Cunning Shi- Thief. 3 1 7

the entirety thereof, without finding any and now there remaineth
for our search naught save the quarters occupied by the Kazi al-
'Askar. So we design to examine it that if aught be found therein
we may be set free, and if not that thou work upon us thine own
intent." Hereupon the Sultan sent to summon the Judge ; and,
when he made act of presence, commanded him suffer the Wali
and the Mukaddam to search his quarters and he replied,
" Hearing and obeying." The whole forty then fared from the
Palace and reaching the Judge's mansion rummaged it until they
came upon the ruined stead described by the damsel ; so thither
they went and seeing a slab newly laid, pulled it up and found
beneath it a white girl full-dressed and ornamented. 1 The Watch-
man fared forth and summoned all the ward-folk who considered
narrowly the corpse of the murthered damsel, and they all cried
with a single voice, " Indeed this be the girl which was drunken
with wine and which was carried into the Kazi's quarters." And
they bore official testimony to such effect what while the Judge,
who was standing in that stead looking and listening, said to
himself, " How can such case have occurred to us without cause ? "
And when this business was finished, the Wali turned to the Kazi
and said " O Shaykh of Islam, 2 we left this damsel in thy charge
and to thine honour until morning-tide, deeming that haply she
might be the daughter of a grandee house and yet hast thou cut
her throat and hidden her within thy premises." But the Judge
could return to him no reply nor attempt any address, for he
feared lest the King should hear thereof; so he inclined to the
Master of Pplice and got ready for him an hundred purses and
twenty for the Mukaddam that they might keep silence and not
report such matter of scandal to the Sultan. Accordingly they
accepted that amount of money from him and the Kazi went forth

1 A sign of foul play ; the body not having been shrouded and formally buried.
1 For the title, the office and the date see vol. ix. 289.

3 1 8 Supplemental Nights.

from him and took horse and informed the Sultan that he had
found his debtor and had recovered his due ; but he spoke not
these words save for fear of the Chief of Police and the Head of
the Watchmen lest they inform the King that they had found the
murthered damsel within his demesne. Then the Mukaddam
repaired to the house where the She-thief had bespoken him and
standing at the door knocked thereat When those inside asked,
" Who mayest thou be ? " and he answered, " I am seeking
Fatimah ! " " Who is Fatimah ? " cried they, " we have here nor
Fatimah nor Halimah." 1 Thereupon quoth the Mukaddam,
" Indeed this Fornicatress, this Adulteress hath wrought upon us
and hath escaped us ; but, seeing that we also have won free by
virtue of the wile she pointed out to us, we will leave her to time
and doubtless during the length of days we twain shall forgather
again." On this wise endeth the story (quoth Shahrazad) ; but I
will now relate a very different adventure and 'tis the

1 The names are = Martha and Mary.

TALE OF MOHSIN AND MUSA.

321

TALE OF MOHSIN AND MUSA. 1

IT fortuned once upon a time that two men went forth from the
same place, one foregoing the other, and they forgathered by the
way. Now each had a bag full of flour and a flask 2 containing some-
.what of water ; and when they made acquaintance on the road the
first of them said to his companion, " O my brother, what may be thy
name ? " and said the Second, " I am hight Mohsin, the Beneficent, 8
and thou what art thou called ?" Quoth the other, " Musa the
Malignant." 4 So the two fared on in converse and whenever meal-
time came round, each would bring out a portion of meal and knead
it and make of it a scone, 5 and light a fire and bake it thereon :
after which they would satisfy their hunger. But Mohsin knew not
that had been doomed for him by his companion Musa the Mis-
doer, so the twain would fare together and feed together. On
the following day quoth Musa to Mohsin, " O my brother, I have
with me a bag of flour and a flask of water and thou hast the same,
and whenever eating-time cometh round each one bringeth out
somewhat of his vivers. Now this is not right ; 'twere the better

1 MS. vL 57-77, not translated by Scott, who entitles it (vi. 461) " Mhassun, the
Liberal, and Mousch, the treacherous Friend." It is a variant of " The Envier and the
Envied : " vol. L 123.

* The Arab, "Janrah" : vol. viii. 177.

3 i.e. One who does good, a benefactor.

4 In the text " Musa wa Mdzi," the latter word = vexatious, troublesome. [I notice
that in the MS. the name is distinctly and I believe purposely spelt with Hamiah above
the Wiw and Kasrah beneath the Sin, reading " Muust." It is, therefore a travesty of
the name Musa, and the exact counterpart of " Muhsin," being the active participle of
"asaa, 4th form of "saa," = he did evil, he injured, and nearly equivalent with the
following " Muuzi.'* The two names may perhaps be rendered : Muhsin, the Beneficent,
and Muusi, the Malignant, the Malefactor. ST.]

In text Fatir " for " Fattrah " = a pancake, before described.

VOL. V. X

322 Supplemental Nights.

way that we first eat that is with thee and when 'tis ended we use
my provaunt." " Tis well, O my brother," quoth Mohsin. They
agreed upon this condition and whenever moved by appetite they
ate of Mohsin's viaticum until his bag of flour and his flask of
water were clean emptied. But when the meal-hour came, Musa
arose and made for him a single scone and no more, and baked
it and ate it by himself, while Mohsin sat-by looking on. This
befel time after time for the first day and the second day until
Mohsin waxed anhungered and famine wrung his vitals, so quoth
he to Musa, " O my brother, give rne somewhat of thy food that
I may nourish myself therewith, for indeed I am empty exceed-
ingly." But Musa made reply, " By Allah, I will not give it to
thee ; no, not a single mouthful." Rejoined Mohsin, " O my
brother, we two made covenant that we should become brethren,
and first eat of my provaunt and then of thine ; now, however,
thou art not pleased to grant me or bite or sup. This is not
the act of an honest man." He answered, " Be brief! an thou be
hungry I will give thee half of my scone on condition that I
spluck out thine eye." " How so, O my brother ? " rejoined
Mohsin, " Wilt thou blind me of one eye for the sake of half
a scone ? better leave me to die with my sight as it is." Said
Musa, " At thy pleasure ! " * But on the third day Mohsin was
like to sink for extreme hunger, and he cried, " There is no
Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the
Great. Do thou, O Musa, give the half-scone and pluck out one
of mine eyes." Musa did as he was bidden, and thrusting forth
his finger gouged 2 out the right eye, whereby Mohsin remained

1 In text "Bi-khatiri-k" = Thy will be done; the whole dialogue is in pure Fellah
speech.

2 Supposed to be American, but, despite Bartlett, really old English from Lanca-
shire, the land which has supplied many of the so-called " American " neologisms. A
gouge is a hollow chisel, a scoop ; and to gouge is to poke out the eye : this is done by
thrusting the fingers into the side-hair thus acting as base and by prising out the ball
with the thumb-nail which is purposely grown long.

TaU of Moksin and Musa. 323

purblind, withal was he not filled by the half-scone. Now on the
fourth day Mohsin waxed yet more ravenous and famine was
right sore upon him, and he cried, " There is no Majesty ! by
Allah, O Musa, my brother, I am a-famished, so pity me and the
Lord shall pity thee." Replied the other, "I will give thee
nothing until I shall have gouged out thine other eye." Quoth
Mohsin, " Verily we are Allah's and unto him we shall return !
but, by the Almighty, famishing is bitter ; so do thou with me,
O Musa, what the Omniscient hath predestined as to the plucking
out of my two eyes." Accordingly the man gave him the half
scone and plucked out his other eye; and on such wise made
him stone blind. Hereupon Musa left his companion darkly
tramping l about the roads. Now in the neighbourhood of that
place was a well full of water;* so when Mohsin drew near
knowing nothing thereof, Musa came up and pushed him there-
into ; and while falling into the pit Mohsin said to himself, " O
Lord, thou hast doomed me to blinding and at last Thou hast

condemned me to drowning." And Shahrazad was surprised by

the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive " ? Now when
it was the next night and that was

1 [In the text : ' Fa tarak-hu Muusi am'a dair yaltash fi M-Tarilc." Latash has the
meaning of beating, tapping ; I therefore think the passage means : " hereupon Muusi
left him, blind as he was. tramping and groping his way " (feeling it with his bands or
stick). ST.]

J In text Biiru milyinah Moyah." Asa rule the Fellah of Egypt says ' Mayych,"
the Cairene Mayya," and the foreigner " Moyah" : the old Syrian is M Maya," the
mod. " Moy," and theclassical dim. of " M*" is " Muwayh," also written " Muwayy"
aod Muwayhah."

324 Supplemental Nights.

S>eben f^uirtrea and g>txtg*sebent!)

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when Musa
had thrust Mohsin into the well with intent to drown him, the
blinded man cried, " O Lord thou hast doomed me to blinding, and
at last Thou hast condemned me to drowning." Then he struck
out with hands and feet till he felt the walls of the well wherein
he found two niches ; so he set toes into one of them and there
stood awaiting the salvation of Allah which was nearhand ; and
his heart was satisfied and he drank of the water. When the first
night fell behold, two of the Jinns came to the pit and sat down in
converse each with other, when quoth the first to the second,
" Wallahi ! O certain person, there is now to be found nor sage
nor leach, and all of them are preposterous pretenders and balkers
of man's intent." Quoth the other, " What may be these words ?'"
and the former resumed, " By Allah, I have possessed the daughter
of the Sultan and she is the dearling of my heart whom I love
with dearest love ; yet can none avail to unsorcel her of me."
Quoth his companion, " And what would expel thee ? " And quoth
he, " Naught will oust me save a black cock or a sable chicken ;
and whenas one shall bring such and cut his throat under her feet
of a Saturday, 1 1 shall not have power to approach the city wherein
she dwelleth." " By Allah, O my brother/' said the other, " thou
hast spoken sooth : there is in this land nor wizard nor mediciner
who knoweth aught, and all of them are liars and contradictors
who lay claim to science without aught of intelligence ; indeed

" = Sabbath, Saturday: vol. ii. 305, and passim.

Tale of Mohsin and Musa. 325

there is not one of them who knoweth of this tree (which adjoineth

our well) that whoso shall take the leaves thereof and plaster them

upon his eyes, even though he be born blind he will be gifted with

sight and wax sound after two or three days by the kind permission

of Allah Almighty. Yet are the folk all heedless of such virtue in

the tree." Now Mohsin remained listening to these words and

pondering them as he stood supported by the side-wall of the well,

and when it was the last third of the night, the Jinns which were

conversing at the mouth took leave each of other. And as soon as

the day brake and the time waxed bright behold there came a Kafilah

which passed by the pit seeking drink for themselves and water for

their cattle. Presently they let down a bucket by a cord and when

Mohsin felt the rope he caught hold thereof, whereat the caravan

people cried, " We take refuge with Allah from Satan the Stoned,"

and said one to other, ' Verily 'in this well is a Satan ! " Mohsin

heard their words and answered them and said, " Yd'llah ' Ho

you, draw me out hence, for verily I am of mankind and not of

Jinn-kind and being blind I fell yesterday into this hole." Cried

they, " Catch tight hold of the cord," and when he did so they

drew him out and finding him weak from famine they gave him

a somewhat of food and he ate and drank. The caravan-folk on

like guise drank from the well and wate ed their beasts ; after

which they would have led Mohsin away with them but he said,

" O my brethren (whose weal Allah increase 2 and whose grace

may He reward !), I have a single want wherewith I fain ye would

favour me!" Asked they, "And what may that be? "and he

answered, " That ye direct me to the tree which adjoineth this well

and Jead me close thereto and God shall gar your good to grow ! "

Hereupon one hent him by the hand and after doing as he desired

and setting him beside the tree returned to his own folk and the

1 iW. " By Allah," meaning " Be quick ! "

* For this well-nigh the sole equivalent amongst the Modems of our thank you,"
see vol. iv. 6, and v. 171.

326 Supplemental Nights:

/caravan loaded and left the place. Presently Mohsin swarmed upj
-the trunk ; and, taking seat upon a branch of its branches, fell to
[Cropping the leaves and patching them upon either eye as he had
.heard the Jinni prescribe ; and hardly had two days gone by when
he felt healed of his hurt and opened his eyelids and saw what
was around him. Then, after taking somewhat of its foliage, he
came down from the tree and went on his wayfare until he entered
a city and found him a lodging. When this was done he fell to
threading the streets and ways crying aloud the while, " I am
the Leach, the Healer! 1 I am the Mediciner who can cure the
blind ! " whereat all the one-eyed and the sightless would summon
him with outcries and he would apply to them somewhat of his
leaves ; and after two or three days (he superintending the while)
they would open their eyes and see. On this wise went by a term,
of time until at last the King of that city heard rumour of a new
leach ; so he sent to him and summoned him and said to him,
" Art thou a clever Medicine-man even as they have informed me
concerning thee ? I have a daughter ridden 2 by a Jinni of the
Jann and we desire of thee that thou unsorcel her." "And if I;
avail not to free her ? " asked Mohsin, and the King answered,
41 Then will I kill thee even as I have slain a many before thee;
who have looked upon the face of the Princess." " And if I prove
able to deliver her and fend her from further offence ? " "I will
give thee what thou askest of coin and hoards." " No, O King of
the Age ; this condition I will not accept : if I free her I must
take her to wife, for an I fail therein thou wilt slay me ; and

1 In Arab. ' Ana M-Tabfb, al-Mudawi." In pop. parlance, the former is the scientific
practitioner and the latter represents the man of the people who deals in simples, etc.

2 In text " Rakiba-ha," the technical term for demonaic insiliation or possession: the
idea survives in our "succubi" and "incubi." I look upon these visions often
as the effects of pollutio noclurna. A modest woman for instance dreams of being
possessed by some man other than her husband j she loves the latter and is faithful to
him, and consequently she must explain the phenomena superstitiously and recur to
diabolical agency. Of course it is the same with men, only they are at less trouble to
excuse themselves.

Tale of Moksin and Musa. 327

unless thou agree with me after I shall have saved her that thou
e'en wed her to me" -- 1 '"Tis well, O Shaykh ; and for re-
leasing her I give thee a delay of three months for visiting and
healing her. -- And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of
day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night, an the Sovran suffer me to survive." Now when
it was the next night and that was

g>eben ^untafc an*

1 The construction here, MS. p. 67, is very confused. [The speech of Muhsin
seems to be elliptical. In Ar. it runs : " Li-annf iza, lam nukhullis-ha (or nukhlis-ha,
and or 4th form) taktulnf, wa and iz lam tattafik ma*( anni iza" khalUstu-M tu'ii-hd
alayya "which I believe to mean :" for if I do nol deliver her, thou wilt kill me ; so
I (say) unless thou stipulate with me that when I have delivered her thou wilt give her
to me in marriage -- " supply: well then I wash my hand of the whole business."
The Shaykh acts on the tit for tat principle in a style worthy of the " honest broker"
himself. ST.]

328 Supplemental Nights.

forth and bought him a black cock and when Sabbath 1 came round

the Sultan presented him to his daughter whom he found in sore

and sorrowful state, unknowing aught concerning herself or how

the mishap had occurred to her. Now when he went in and

looked upon her in such case, he drew near to her and fell to

reciting Koranic versets which avert evil (the Sultan sitting beside

them the while) ; and at the last he slaughtered the cock between

her feet. Hereat the Princess recovered her senses and rose up

and sat down 2 forthright and called for meat and drink which were

brought to her ; then she ate and drank and besought for herself

the guidance of God and said, " Alhamdolillah "-laud to the

Lord and presently she kissed the hand of her sire and of

Shaykh Mohsin. Quoth the King, " O my daughter, art thou

indeed well ?" and quoth she, " At this present I feel naught of

pain in my person nor do I sense anything of what hath been

with me ; and all this is by blessing of yonder Shaykh thou hast

brought to me. But say me, O my father, what hast thou made

over to him of money as a reward for unsorcelling me ?" " O my

daughter," replied he, " I have offered him all he shall ask." But

when the Princess recovered from her malady and returned to self,

she changed from mode to mode and she became as one cast in

the mould of beauty and loveliness and Shaykh Mohsin. looking

upon her was dazed and amazed in his wits by cause of her

exceeding comeliness and seemlihead. Presently the Princess

addressed him, " O Shaykh Mohsin, what thing dost thou ask of

1 In text " Yaum Saht " again.

2 As has been said (vol. ii, 112) this is a sign of agitation. The tale has extended to
remote Guernsey. A sorcier named Hilier Mouton discovers by his art that the King's
daughter who had long and beautiful tresses was dying because she had swallowed a hair
which had twined round her prsecordia. The cure was to cut a small square of bacon
from just over the heart, and tie it to a silken thread which the Princess must swallow,
when the hair would stick to it and come away with a jerk. See (p. 29.) " Folk-lore of
Guernsey and Sark," by Louise Lane-Clarke, printed by E. Le Lievre, Guernsey, 1880 ;
and I have to thank for it a kind correspondent, Mr. A. Buchanan Brown, of La
Cofiture, p. 53, who informs us why the Guernsey lily is scentless, emblem of the maiden
who sent it from fairy-land.

Tale of Mohsin and Musa. 329

the King's Majesty ?" for indeed her heart was fulfilled of the love
to him which had mastered her. Now the Wazir had a son and it
was his aim that his heir should marry the King's daughter, but
this his wish was in vain : for when she was certified that her salva-
tion was at the hand of Shaykh Mohsin, she said to her sire, " Do
thou, O my father, largesse what is dearest to thee upon my
healer." 1 Her design in these words was that the Sultan might
bestow her to wife upon her deliverer, and she added, " Indeed our
joyance hath been at his hands and he is deserving of munificence
full and abundant." But again the object of her speech was that
her parent might espouse her to the Shaykh for the love to Mohsin
which had mastered her heart. Quoth her father, " O my daughter
we will give him a sumptuous robe of honour and ten purses ;"
but quoth she, " No, O my sire, this be not gift sufficient for the
like of such service." Now she was the sole prop of her parents
who had no child save herself, so the King replied, "O my
daughter, I will give him whatso thou shalt say." Thereupon she
asked him, " How many of the folk came in to me and uncovered
my shame 2 and were slain therefor ? " and he answered, " Some
fifty " Then cried she, " Had not Shaykh Mohsin been able to
exorcise me what hadst thou done with him ?" " Indeed I had
slain him." " Then*Alhamdolillah Glory be to Godfor that my
deliverance was at his hand : so do thou bestow upon him thy
best," and so she spake for that she was ashamed to say her sire,
"Wed me to him." The King not understanding the hint she
had hinted said to her, " All thou wishest I will largesse to him ;*'
and she, " I have spoken to thee but thou hast not comprehended
my words ! All who have looked upon my shame and proved
unable to deliver me thou wast wont to slay and this man hath
been my salvation after seeing me unveiled : how then wilt thou
gift him with money and means or condition with him when thou

1 The text says only, " O my father, gift Shaykh Mohsin."

* Her especial " shame" would be her head and face : vol. vi. 30, 118.

3 3O Supplemental Nights.

art unable to carry out thy compact?" Hereupon the King
became ware of what was in his daughter's mind and forthwith
sending to summon the Kazi and witnesses he bade bind the
marriage-bond between her and Shaykh Mohsin and in due time
let them lead him to her in procession and suffer him go in unto
her. So he cohabited with the Princess a while of time, after
which the life-term of the Sultan drew near, and he fell sick of a
sickness whereof he died. And when they had committed his
remains to earth the Lords of the land and the Grandees of com-
mand forgathered and agreed in council that none should overrule
them save the Shaykh Mohsin. So they invested him with the
signet-ring of Sovranty and seated him upon the throne of
Kingship and he became Sovereign and Sultan. Moreover Allah
Almighty enlightened his heart in governance with justice and
equity ; and all the subjects with the Notables of the realm and
the Rulers of high rank blessed him and prayed for him. Now
one day of the days Sultan Mohsin felt desirous of solacing
himself in the gardens ; so he rode forth, he and his suite, when
he suddenly sighted his whilome comrade, the same who had
plucked out one eye for half a scone and had gouged out the other
eye for the other half. He bade them bring the man to the
presence and when they set him between his hands he asked him
saying, "O Shaykh, what may be thy name?" and he answered,
" I am hight Shaykh Mohammed." So he carried him with his
suite to the gardens where they abode until day ended, after which
the Sultan rode back and entering his palace, bade bring Shaykh
Mohammed whom he despatched to the House of Hospitality. 1
On the third day he bade summon his guest after supper-tide
and taking him by the hand led him into a cabinet and said, " O

Shaykh Mohammed, do thou tell us a tale." And Shahrazad

was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased

1 In northern Africa the "Dar al-ZiyaTah" was a kind of caravanserai in which
travellers were lodged at government expense. Ibn Khaldun (Fr. Transl. i. 407).

TaU of Mohsin and Afusa. 331

to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with
that I would relate to you on the coming night an the King
suffer me to survive?" Now when it was the next night and
that was

Sotben f^unfcreft an* S&ebentg.first

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the
King entered the closet leading Mohammed by the hand he said
to him, " Do thou, O Shaykh, tell us a tale." " By Allah, O our
lord," quoth the other, rt I know naught of stories." Whereupon
the Sultan rejoined, " If so it be, I will relate to thee, O Shaykh
Mohammed, *an adventure of my own and 'tis as follows : Once
upon a time a man went forth his town and he made companion-
ship with another upon the way, and each one of them bore with
him a bag of meal and a flask of water." On this wise the Sultan
continued recounting to him the real history of Mohsin and Musa
the Malignant, till at the end of the tale he said, " And Musa, after
gouging out both eyes of Mohsin for the sake of a single scone
thrust him into a well designing to drown him therein, but Allah
Almighty preserved his life and brought him forth the pit and our
Lord favoured him and restored to him his two eyes and em-
powered him over the kingdom and thus did he become Sovran
and Sultan. Now the prosperity of that Shaykh Mohsin was from
the well whereinto Musa had thrust him." Presently he added, "An
this tale be soothfast, then am I Mohsin and thou art Musa the

332 Supplemental Nights.

Malignant. I am able at this moment to slay thee but I will spare
thee and moreover counsel thee as follows : Do thou go to the
well and haply Almighty Allah shall thereby grant to thee some
good, for that the root of my fair fortune was from that same
pit." Now when the first third of the night had sped, Musa arose
and repaired to the pit and descended therein when behold, the
same two Jinnis had forgathered beside the well-mouth at that
same hour and were seated together conversing each with other.
Quoth the first, " What is thy case this day ? " and quoth the
second, " By Allah, O my brother, my condition is ill-conditioned
ever since a certain night when we met in this place and talked
together. And so it hath continued until the present time, for that
I have been unable to approach the city wherein dwelleth the
Sultan's daughter : and someone that was in the well must have
overheard us whilst we knew naught of him and he must have
acted according to our words and slaughtered the black cock ;
after which I have been unable to near her abode/' Quoth the
other, " By Allah, O my brother, thou has spoken sooth ; but our
ill-constraint is from this well." Hereupon the Jinni put forth his
hand about the pit * and finding Musa the Misdoer snatched him
up and seizing him between his palms tore his body into four
pieces and cast away the quarters in some desert stead. And
this (said Shahrazad) is the award of whoso betrayeth his fellow
man. And they also relate the adventure of

1 In most of these tales the well is filled in over the intruding " villain " of the piece.
Ibn Khaldun (ii. 575) relates a*' veritable history "of angels choking- up a well;
and in Mr. Doughty (ii. 190) a Pasha-governor of Jiddah does the same to a Jinni-
possessed pit.

MOHAMMED THE SHALABI AND HIS
MISTRESS AND HIS WIFE.

33S

MOHAMMED THE SHALABI AND HIS MISTRESS
AND HIS WIFE. 1

IT is told among the many things which happened in Cairo the
God-guarded that therein dwelt a man who was an Emir and who
had a son Mohammed Shalabi 2 hight, a youth in his day unique
for beauty and loveliness, nor in his time was there his peer for
comeliness and seemlihead amongst women or amongst men.
Now when he had attained the age of ten and was approaching
puberty, his sire betrothed him and wedded him to a fair wife who
loved him with fondest love even after marriage. There was also
in Misr a Kazi al-'Askar, a Judge of the Army, who had a
daughter singular for form and favour and bloom and brilliancy,
and stature and symmetric grace and she was known as Sitt
al-Husn the Lady of Loveliness. Now one chance day of the
days she went forth together with her mother and the hand-
maidens to the Baths and when they reached the half way behold,
they were confronted by the young Shalabi whose glance fell upon
the girl and her glance lit upon the youth, wherefrom love and
affection for him settled in her heart and it was with him after the
same fashion. Presently she began to send him messages and
letters and he to do on like guise, yet could neither win possession
of other nor indeed could the twain meet privately in one place.
This endured for the space of three years therefore were their
hearts melted in fire of mutual love-longing, until on a certain day
when desire in the girl surged high for her lover and likewise did
his yearning for his beloved ; withal neither availed to win union.

1 This tale is of a kind not unfrequent amongst Moslems, exalting the character of the
wife, whilst the mistress is a mere shadow.

3 Here written " Jalabl" (whence Scott's "Julbee," p. 461) and afterwards (p. 77,
etc.) " Shalabi " : it has already been noticed in vol. i. 22 and elsewhere.

33" 'Supplemental Nights.

Hereupon befel them sore travail and trouble and the young lady
sent an old woman to her dearling praying him to meet her in such
a site ; aud when the go-between had informed him thereof, he
arose to obey her without stay or delay, unknowing what was
hidden from him in the Secret Purpose. He fared till he came to
the place in question when it was the hour of sunset and here the
Shalabi forgathered with the Kazi's daughter who had kept tryst
with him accompanied by her handmaidens ; and anon the twain,
he and she, repaired to a retired spot. Now by the decree of the
Decreer which is written upon the foreheads and the brows of man-
kind, one of the folk belonging to the Chief of Police was loitering
about the place when the couple entered that secret stead ; and as
soon as they had settled themselves comfortably, each began com-
plaining to other of the pangs of separation. After this the
handmaidens brought to them food, meat and wine, and they ate
and drank and toyed and were cheered and made merry from set
of sun till the noon o* night and they conversed together as boon
companions until either was fulfilled of other and the pains of
parting had vanished from their hearts. Such was the case with
the lover and the beloved ; but as regards the Wall's man who was
looking upon them and listening, he well knew the place wherein
the couple had retired and having noted it and certified himself
thereof, he went to the Chief of Police and made his report saying,
" In such a site of such a ward are a man and a maid whereupon
show the signs of affluence, and doubtless an thou seize them thou
shalt easily get from each and either some fifteen purses." The
Wali hearing these words forthwith led out his party and marched
with them to the spot appointed ; and he ceased not wending for
half the night until they all came to the trysting place. Then he
pushed forward axe * in hand and smote the door and broke it

1 In text " Baltah " for Turk " Baltah "= an axe, a hatchet. Hence "Baltah-ji "
a pioneer one of the old divisions of the Osmanli troops which survives as a family name
amongst the Levantines and semi-European Perotes of Constantinople.

Mottammed the Shalabi and his Mistress and his Wife. 337

down ; and forthright he rushed into the room without being
expected by the youth or the young lady whom he found sitting
together in the very height of enjoyment But when they saw him
suddenly appear they were consterned and confounded and confused
as to their affair, so he arrested them and led them off and carried
them to his house, where he placed them in prison. 1 Forthwith
the bruit concerning the youth went abroad and reached his family ;
to wit, how Mohammed Shalabi had been seized by the Chief of
Police, together with the girl his beloved. Now after imprisoning
them the Wali said, * This pair shall remain with me for a day
or two days and until I catch them in their robbery ; " 2 but
quoth one of the party, " Indeed thou knowest not and thou hast
not learnt that this damsel is the daughter of the Kazi of the Army
who throughout the past year wrought for the slaying of thee by
the Sultan." And hardly had the Wali heard these words than
his heart was filled with joy and he exclaimed, " By Allah, needs
must I have his wench disgraced and proclaimed by bell 8 about
the thoroughfares of Cairo and him dishonoured in the presence
of the Sultan and degraded from his degree." Now when it was
morning-tide a rumour flew about town that the Judge's daughter
had been seized by the Wali and the watch together with the
young Shalabi in a certain place and presently the report reached
her father who cried, There is no Majesty and there is no Might
save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great 1 O Saving God, save me !
Oh vile disgrace and foul dishonour before Sultan and subjects
who shall say the Kazi's daughter hath been seduced and abused.

1 Here the public gaol is in the Head Policeman's house. So in modern times it is
part of the Wali or Governor's palace and is included in the Maroccan " Kasbah" or
fort al ice.

* In text " Naakhaz bi lissati-him ; " "Luu"is after a fashion Xj^mJ? ; but the
Greek word included piracy which was honourable, whcnas the Arab, term is mostly
applied to larcenisU and similar blackguard*. [I would read the word in the text
Balsata-huro," until I have received their " ransom." ST.]

3 In the text " Tajils" which I have rendered by a circumlocution. [For the exact
meaning of "Tajrls see Dory, Suppl.s.v. "jar," where an interesting passage from
Mas'udl is quoted.-ST.]

VOL. V. V

3 3 8 Supplemental Nights.

However may the Veiler enveil me ! " On his part the Wall went
up to the Palace and sought the Sovran to acquaint him therewith ;
but, finding that he had business, he sat him down to await its
ending when he purposed informing him concerning the daughter
of his enemy the Chief Kazi. On such wise it befel him ; but as
regards the wife of the youth who was lover to the girl, as soon as
the rumour reached her that the Shalabi had been arrested by the
Wali and the watch, she arose to her feet without stay and delay
and doffing whatso of woman's dress was upon her -- And
Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day, and fell silent and
ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

an&

1 In Moslem lands prisoners are still expected to feed themselves, as was the case in
England a century ago and is still to be seen not only in Al-Islam, Egypt and Syria, but
even in Madeira and at Goa.

Mohammed the Shalabi and his Mistress and his Wife. 339

She asked for the road as she went and a man of the people
directed her to the office until she reached the place carrying her
victuals ; then she enquired for the gaoler. So they made him
meet her and quoth she, " Open to me the prison wherein they have
gaoled the Shalabi and the maiden," and she promised him by signs
a gold piece ; hereupon he admitted her and she passed into the
room where lay her spouse and the girl and set meat before him.
But he knew her not and cried, " Indeed I will nor eat nor drink,
and do thou fare from me and leave me in this my plight" Quoth
she, " Nay, thou must eat and gladness shall befal thee." Accord-
ingly he came forward and ate a small matter and she after sitting
with him for an hour or so, arose and doffed her man's dress. Then
she stripped the Kazi's daughter of all the clothes she was wearing
and garbed her in the masculine garb wherewith she had entered
to the twain. The young lady did as she was bidden and showed
likest to the Shalabi's wife who lastly served her with what
remained of the meat and said to her, " Up with thee and hie thee
home." So the Kazi's daughter fared forth under the disguise of
a dainty youth such an one as he who anon had entered the gaol ;
and as soon as she had wended her way the wife took seat beside
her husband. When he saw her habited in the habit of the Kazfs
daughter he recognised her and knew her for his spouse ; so he
asked of her, 4< What hath brought thee hither ? " and she answered,
" 1 have come with this contrivance for the purpose of saving thee
and of saving the honour of the girl thou lovest." But as soon as
the Kazi's daughter had departed in her disguise the gaoler was
deaf to entreaty and closed the prison doors upon the pair and
the Shalabi and his spouse sat down together and his heart was
satisfied and his secret was safe-directed, 1 and fell from him all
the sorrow which had settled upon his heart. Such was the case

1 In text " Huda Sirru-hu," i.e. his secret sin was guided (by Allah) to the safety of
concealment. [A simpler explanation of this passage would perhaps be: "wa hi da
Sirru-hu, "3 and his mind was at rest.: ST.]

340 ' Supplemental Nights.

with these two ; but as regards the Chief of Police, when he went
up to the Sultan and saw that he was busied he took patience
until the work was ended, after which he came forward and kissed
ground before him and salam'd to him and blessed him. The
King returned his salute and then said, " What is to do ? " and
said he, " O King of the Age, I found during the past night the
Lady Sitt al-Husn, daughter to the Kazi al-'Askar, companying
with her lover a certain Mohammed Shalabi son of the Emir
Such-and-such ; so I seized the couple and confined them by me
and now I myself come to report the case in thy presence." When
the Sultan heard these words, he was wroth with exceeding wrath
and his eyes flashed red and his outer jugulars 1 swelled and he
foamed at the mouth and roaring cried, " How can it be that the
daughter of the Kazi al-Islam companieth with a lover and
alloweth herself to be debauched ? By Allah, needs must I slay
her and slay her father and slay the youth her lover." Thus befel
it with the Sultan and the Wali ; but as regards the matter of the
girl Sitt al-Husn. when she went forth the prison in the dress of a
Shalabi, a dainty youth, she ce sed not wending till she reached
her paternal home. Here she repaired to a place which was
private and having doffed her man's dress garbed her in maidenly
garments, then retiring secretly to her own room lay her down
and her heart was heartened and trouble and turmoil and travail
of mind fell from her. Now at that time her mother was lament-

1 Arab. " Audaj " (plur. of " Wadaj ") -a word which applies indiscriminately to the
carotid arteries and jugular veins. The latter, especially the external pair, carry blood
from the face and are subject abnormally to the will : the late lamented Mr. Charley Peace,
who murdered and " burgled " once too often, could darken his complexion and even
change it by arresting jugular circulation. The much-read Mr, F. Marion Crawford
(Saracinesca, chapt. xii.) makes his hero pass a foil through his adversary's throat, " with-
out touching the jugular artery (which does not exist) or the spine." But what about
larynx and pharynx? It is to be regretted that realistic writers do not cultivate a little
more personal experience. No Englishman says " in guard " for " on guard." " Colpo
del Tancredi " is not = " Tancred's lunge " but " the thrust of the (master) Tancredi : "
it is quite permissible and to say that it loses half its dangers against a left-handed man
is to state what cannot be the fact as long as the heart is more easily reached from the
left than from the right flank.

Mohammed the Shalabi and his Mistress and his Wife. 341

ing like a funeral mourner and buffeting her face and her breast
and kept crying out, "Oh the shame of us ! Oh the dishonour of
us ! When they shall have informed the Sultan of this, he
shall surely slay her sire." And the Kazi waxed distraught
and full of thought and he also said in his mind, " How shall I
remain Kazi al-Islam when the folk of Cairo say : Verily the
daughter of our Lord High Chancellor hath been debauched ? "
With these words he kept visiting his wife's apartment and sitting
with her for awhile, then faring forth and coming in from place to
place 1 and he wandered about like one bewildered of wits. When
behold, a handmaid of the handmaidens entered the room wherein
lay the Kazi's daughter and finding her strown upon her bed
looked upon her and recognised her. So she left her and running
in her haste hied her to the mistress and cried, O my lady, indeed
Sitt al-Husn of whom you are talking is lying down in such a
room of the Harem." Thereupon the mother arose and went
and came upon her 'daughter, so she rejoiced in her and returning
to the Kazi in his apartment acquainted him therewith. He also
repaired to his daughter's bower and finding her therein quoth he,
" Where hast thou been ? " Quoth she, " O my father, my head
began to ache after sunset-time, so I lay me down in this place."
Hereupon without stay or delay the Kazi took horse, he and his

Officials, and repaired to the Sultan And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister, Dunyazad, " How
sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delect-
able ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I
would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

1 Lit. "Then faring forth and sitting in bis own place." I have modified the too
succinct text which simply means that he was anxious and agitated.

342 Supplemental Nights.

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and goodwill ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Kazi of
the Army repaired to the Sultan, he and the whole of his officials,
and he ceased not wending until he entered the presence, where
he salam'd and said, " O King of the Age, is it lawful and allowed
of Allah Almighty that thy Wali charge us with calumnious charge
and false ? " As the Chief of Police was standing hard by, the
Sultan asked him, " How can the Wali have mispoken thee and
thy daughter when she is still imprisoned by him and in his
house ? " whereto the Chief of Police added, " 'Tis true! his daughter
is surely with us in durance vile, she along with her lover, for
indeed I found the pair in such a place." Said the Kazi, " O
King of the Age, I will abide here beside thee and do thou let
the Wali go down and bring before thee that which is with him in
gaol, and the case shall be made manifest, because hearing with
the ear is not like eyeing with the eye." The Sultan replied,
" This rede is right," whereupon the Chief of Police returned to
his house and ordered the gaoler to open the gaol and bring
thereout the maiden Sitt al-Husn and her lover the youth
Mohammed Shalabi. The man did his bidding and leading
forth of prison the couple committed them to the Chief of Police
who took them and fared with them to the Sovran, rejoicing the
while with all joy. The citizens of Cairo heard of all this, so they
flocked in crowds to solace them with the spectacle ; and when
the Wali reached the presence, the maiden and the young man
being with him, he set them before the Sultan. . Presently the

Mahommed the Shalabi and his Mistress and his Wife. 343

King asked the youth saying, " Who mayest thou be, O young
man, and who is thy father?" and answered he, " I am son of
such an Emir; when the King who believed that she was the
daughter of the Chief Kazi continued, " And this maiden that is
with thee, who may she be and whose daughter ? " The youth
replied, " This is my wife, O King of the Age," and the King
rejoined, " How can she be thy wife ? " So the youth retorted,
" Indeed she is ; and Such-an-one and So-and-so and Such-another
together with a host of thy favoured courtiers wot right well that
she is my spouse and that she is the daughter of So-and-so."
Hereupon they accosted her and bespoke her and she bespake
them, so they recognized her and were certified that she was
lawful wife to the Shalabi. Then asked the King, " How is it
that the Wali arrested thee and her ? " and the youth answered,
" O King of the Age, I went out with this my wife intending to
enjoy ourselves and, finding a place that was cheerful and pleasant
we tarried there until midnight when the Wali broke in upon us
and seized us, scandalously declaring that I was companying with
the Kazi's daughter. Then he carried us off and gaoled us in his
house and now (Alhamdolillah !) here we are between thy hands.
So do thou whatso thou will and command according to Holy
Law and whoever shall deserve chastisement deal it to him, for
thou art the lord of our necks and the master of our good." Now
when the youth spake these words the King bade put to death the
Chief of Police and harry his house and enslave his women and
he commanded the Crier before the execution to cry about the
thoroughfares of Cairo in front of the Wali that he was being led
to die and declare, "This is the award of him who dishonoured
the noble and chargeth the folk with lying charges and false ! "
After that they slew the Chief of Police and thus carried out the

King's commandment. And Shahrazad was surprised by the

dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy

344 Supplemental Nights.

tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable !" Quoth
she, "And where is this compared with that I would relate to
you on the coming night, an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied :< -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that after the
Wali had been put to death the Sultan bestowed his good upon
Mohammed Shalabi and having gifted him with munificent gifts
sent him home with his spouse in all honour. And when the
youth returned to his quarters he fell to kissing his wife's hands
and feet, for that he had been saved at her hands by the stratagem
she had wrought for him and she had preserved the honour of the
Kazi's daughter and had enabled her father to prevail over his
enemy the Wali. 1 "And now I will relate to thee" (quoth
Shahrazad) " another tale touching the wiles of women ; " and
thereupon she fell to recounting the story of

1 After this in the text we have only, " End of the Adventure of the Kazi's Daughter.
It is related among the many wiles of women that there was a Fellah-man," etc. I have
supplied the missing link.

1HE FELLAH AND HIS WICKED WIFE.

347

THE FELLAH AND HIS WICKED WIFE. 1

THERE was of olden time in the land of Egypt a Fellah, or tiller
of the ground, who had a fair woman to wife and she had another
man to friend. The husband used to sow every year some fifty
faddan* of seeding-wheat wherein there was not one barley-grain,
and grind it in the mill and pass this meal to his spouse who
would sift it and bolt it. Then would she take the softest and best
of the flour to make thereof either scones or cakes s or something
more toothsome which she would give to her friend and feed him
therewith, whereas the refuse of the flour 4 she would make into
loaves for her husband so this bread would be ruddy-brown of
hue. 5 Now every day about dawn-time the Fellah was wont fare
to his field either to ear or to delve and tarry there working till
noon at which time the wife would send him the bread of bran
and refuse flour, whilst to those beside him who wrought as he did,

1 On the margin of the W. M. MS. (vi. 92) J. Scott has written : " This story bears *
faint resemblance to one in the Bahardanush." He alludes to the tale I have already
quoted. I would draw attention to " The Fellah and his wicked Wife," as it is a
characteristic Fellah-story showing what takes place too often in the villages of Modern
Egypt which the superficial traveller looks upon as the homes of peace and quiet. The
text is somewhat difficult for technicalities and two of the pages are written with a badly
nibbed reed-pen which draws the lines double.

* The " Faddin " (here miswritten " Faddid ") = a plough, a yoke of oxen, a "caru-
cate " which two oxen can work in a single season. It is also the common land-measure
of Egypt and Syria reduced from acre ri to less than one acre. It is divided into
twenty-four Kirdts (carats) and consists or consisted of 333 Kasabah (rods), each of these
being 22-24 Kabzahs (fists with the thumb erect about = 6} inches). In old Algiers
the Faddan was called " Zuijah " ( = a pair, i.e. of oxen) according to Ibn Khaldun
i. 404.

1 Intext "Masbubah."

4 Arab. " Dashlsh," which the Diets, make = wheat-broth to be sipped. [" DashUh "
is a popular corruption of the classical " Jashfsh " ss coarsely ground wheat (sometimes
beans), also called " Sawik," and " Dash (shah " is the broth made of it. ST.]

In text " Ah mar " SB red, ruddy- brown, dark brown*

Supplemental Nights.

would be brought from their homes white bread and clean. So
they said, " Ho certain person ! thy wheat is from fine sowing-
seed, nor is there in it a barley-corn, how then be your bread like
unto barley ? " Quoth he, " I know not." He remained in such
case for a while of time whilst his wife fed her playmate with all
the good food an4 served to her husband the vilest of diet, until
one chance day of the days the Fellah took his plough and went
off at early dawn to work and wrought till midday when his wife
sent him his dinner of dirty bread. Hereupon he and his neigh-
bours, who were earing in the same field, took seat and each one
set before him white bread and seeing the Fellah's scones brown as
barley-meal they marvelled thereat. They had with them a scald-
head boy who was sitting with them at the noon-meal, so they said
to the peasant, " Take thee to servant this youngster and he shall
manifest thee the case wherein thou art from the doings of thy

dame." He obeyed their bidding And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night, and that was

^i)e S*bm f^untrrefc ant ^cbcntg.ctQStft JJifitlt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

The Fellah and his Wicked Wife. 349

at the mil! and carried the meal to his mistress ana sat beside
her and anon she rose and sifted and bolted the flour ; still he stayed
by her stealthily watching ner while she kneaded it and balled it and
breaded it Afttr this he carried off the early meal for his master
and faring to the field set it before him and when the Fellah
looked upon it he cried, " O Boy, by Allah this bread is white and
'tis clean unlike the foregone." Quoth he, " O my master, I have
ground it with my own hands and I sat beside my mistress the
while she got it ready, kneading it and baking it, wherefor she
availed not to do aught else with it." Now when the servant-lad
had left the hut her lover came in asking, " Hast thou made bread
for me ? " and she answered, " Indeed the boy with the scald-head
ceased not sitting beside me, nor was I able to bake aught for
thee." But when the lad had gone forth to the field with his
master's dinner he set it before him and returned in hot haste and
hurry to the house, where he found the friend of his mistress con-
versing with her ; so he hid himself behind the door and fell to
overhearing them and to noting whatso they said. Amongst other
things quoth she, " Take this quartern of good wheat and clean
grain and grind it in this mill and I will make thee a platter of

bread from handrubbed flour ! which I will send to thee on the

morrow." Asked he, " How shalt thou know the field ? " and she
answered, "Carry with thee a basket of bran and drop the contents
as thou walkest along the highway ; then leave it hard by the
land belonging to thee and I will follow the traces and find thee
a-field ; and so do thou remain at rest." All this and the scald-
head boy was standing behind the door hearkening to their words
until he had understood them all. On the next day the lad took
a basket of bran which he scattered on the way to his master's

1 In text " Kas'at (= a wooden platter bowl) afrukah." [The " Mafrukah," an
improvement upon the Fat f rah, is a favourite dish with the Badawf, of which Dozy
quotes lengthy descriptions from Vansleb and Thevenot. The latter is particularly
graphical, and after enumerating all the ingredients says finally : " Us en foot one grots*
pate dont ils prennent de gros morccaux. ST.

35O Supplemental Nights*

land and then sat with him whilst the wife, after baking the platter
full of scones, carried it upon her head and fared forth intending
for her lover in the field. She marked the traces of the bran
which the scald-head had dropped and she ceased not following
them untfl she came to her husband's field. Hereupon the lad
arose and taking the platter from her said, " By Allah, O my
master, verily my mistress loveth thee and favoureth thee, for that
she hath brought a bannock made from handrubbed grain ; and
so saying he set it before him. Presently she looked out of the
corner of her eye and saw her lover ploughing at a little distance
from them ; so she said to her husband, " Allah upon thee, O
certain person, call aloud to so-and-so our neighbour that he may
come and eat the noon-meal with thee." The man said, " 'Tis
well ; " and presently added, " O Boy, go forth and shout to such-
an-one." Now the lad had brought with him a parcel of green
dates, so he arose and scattered them at intervals upon the high-
way ; and when he came to his mistress's lover he cried aloud, " Do
thou come dine with my master." But the man refused so to do
wherefore the scald-head returned and said, u He will not ; " and
hereupon the wife bade her husband go himself and fetch him.
The Fellah trudged along the highway and finding thereon the
scattered dates bowed himself downwards to gather them when the
lover said to himself, " This one is picking up stones wherewith to
beat me ; " * and as he saw the man often stoop he fled and left the
place, and the more the other cried to him, " Come hither, O

certain person," the faster sped he in his running. And Shah-

razad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased
saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How
sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable
and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared
with that I would relate to you on the coming night an the

1 The Fellah will use in fighting anything in preference to his fists and a stone tied up
in a kerchief or a rag makes no mean weapon for head- breaking.

The Fellah and his Wicked Wife. 3 5 1

Sovran suffer me to survive? " Now when it was the next night
and that was

&e fteben f^un&retr anto ftcbentD^nmtf) iitfi&t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting, and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the more that
man cried to the lover " Come," the faster did he run away; so
the Fellah returned and said, " He misliketh to come and he hath
fled." Hereupon he took seat together with the scald-head and
the neighbours to dine off the scones of hand-rubbed grain, and
the wife served to them whatso she had made for her lover's eating
and she would not touch aught thereof but left it for her spouse
and for his servant and for the neighbours. On the following day
the Fellah went forth betimes to plough whilst the boy, delaying
purposely at home, hid himself behind the door when behold, the
lover entered to her, and she said, " 'Tis my desire that we forge a
story whereby to slay my husband and Master Scald-head the
servant." Quoth he, " How wilt thou slay them ? " and quoth
she, " I will buy for them poison and make it up in cooked food, so
they may devour it together and perish together ; after which we
will abide, I and thou, making merry, nor shall the dead disturb
us any more." He rejoined, " Do what thou wiliest," and all this
whilst the boy stood listening to them behind the door. But as
soon as the lover went forth the house, the lad arose and retired ;
then, donning Jews' garb he shouldered a pair of saddle-bags and
went about crying, " Ho ! Aloes good for use. Ho ! Pepper ! good

1 The cries of an itinerant pedlar hawking about woman's wares. See Lane (M. E.)
cbapt. xiv. " Flfl'a" (a scribal error ?) may be " Filfil " = pepper or palm-fibre. See

35 2 Supplemental Nights.

for use. Ho! Kohl good for use. Ho! Tutty good for use!"
Now when the woman saw him she came forth the house and
hailed him, " Ho thou the Jew ! " and said he to her, " Yes, O my
lady." Then said she, " Hast thou with thee aught of poison ? "
and said he, " How, O my lady ? Have I not with me poison of
the hour ? ! and whoever shall eat thereof in a mess of sweet milk 2
and rice and clarified butter shall die within that time." " Do
thou take this dinar," continued she, " and give me somewhat of
it ; " but he rejoined, " I do not trade for moneys, and I will sell it
only for ornaments of precious metal." Hereupon she pulled off
one of her anklets and handed it to him and he, who had provided
himself with half a loaf of Egyptian sugar, 3 gave her the moiety
thereof, saying, " Use it with sweet milk and rice and clarified
butter." She took it in high glee, and arising milked the she-
buffalo, after which she boiled the loaf-sugar in the milk and then
threw it into a sufficiency of the rice and the clarified butter,
fancying the while that she was cooking a mortal meal, 4 and lastly
she ladled out the mess into a large platter. Now when it was
sunset-time her husband returned from the field and was met about
half-way by the boy who told him all that he had overheard and
how he had sold her the sugar for one of her anklets, saying,
" This be poison." Then he charged him that, as soon as both of
them should have swallowed the mess of milk and rice and clarified
butter, they fall down and feign dead. So master and servant

Index, vol, v. p. 493, " Tutty," in low-Lat. " Tutia," probably from the Pers. "Tutiyah,"
is protoxide of zinc, found native in Iranian lands, and much used as an eye-wash.

1 In text "Samm Sa'ah."

2 Laban halib," a trivial form = " sweet milk ; '' " Laban " being the popular word
for milk artificially soured. See vols. vi. 201 ; vii. 360.

3 In text "Nisf ra'as Sukkar Misri." "Sukkar" (from Pers. "Shakkar," whence the
Lat. Saccharum) is the generic term, and Egypt preserved the fashion of making loaf-
sugar (Raas Sukkar) from ancient times. " Misri " here = local name, but in India it
is applied exclusively t sugar-candy, which with Gur (molasses) was the only form used
throughout the country some 40 years ago. Strict Moslems avoid Europe-made white
sugar because they are told that it is refined with bullock's blood, and is therefore
unlawful to Jews and the True Believers.

* Lit. *' that the sugar was poison."

The Fellah and his Wicked Wife. 353

agreed upon this plan. And when the Fellah entered the hut she
served to them the platter which contained their supper, and they
ate the whole thereof, she sifting by intent upon their action and
expecting their death. But they served her with a sleight; for
suddenly the Fellah changed countenance and made as though he
waxed ill and faint, and fell upon the ground like one in the last
agony, and shortly after the boy rolled upon the floor on similar
wise. Whenas she considered them she exclaimed, " May Allah
have no mercy upon you ; the wretches are dead 1 " Hereupon
she went out and called aloud to her lover, and as he was coming
cried, * 4 Hie thee hither and enjoy the sight of these dead ones ; "
so he hastened up to them, and seeing them stretched upon the
floor said, " They're dead." Presently quoth she, " We two, I and
thou, will now make merry ; " and so saying she withdrew with
him into another hut, intending at once to sleep together. Here-
upon the husband arose and went in to them and smote the lover
with a quarter-staff upon the neck and broke in his back bone, 1
after which he turned to the wicked woman his wife and struck
her and split open her head, and left the twain stone dead. And
as soon as it was midnight he wrapped them in a single sheet and
carried them forth outside the village, and after choosing a place, 2
dug a hole and thrust them therein. And ever after that same
Fellah had rest from his wife, and he bound himself by a strong

1 In text ' Kata'a Judur-ha" (for " hu "). [I refer the pronoun in " Judur-ha" to
"Rakabah," taking the ir roots of the neck," to mean the spine. ST.]

a In text Fahata " for " Fahasa" (?) or perhaps a. clerical error for Fataha" = he
opened (the ground). [" Fahata," probably a vulgarisation of " fahatha" (fabasa) = to
investigate, is given by Bocthor with the meaning of digging, excavating. Nevertheless
I almost incline to the reading " faiaha," which, however, I would pronounce with
Tashdid over the second radical, and translate : " he recited a Fatihah ' for them," the
usual prayer over the dead before interment. The dative " la-hum," generally employed
with verbs of prayer, seems to favour this interpretation. It is true I never met with
the word in this meaning, but it would be quite in keeping with the spirit of the language,
and in close analogy with such expressions as "kabbara," he said "Allahu akbar,"
Hallala," ae pronounced the formula of unity, and a host of others. Here it would,
in my opinion, wind up the tale with a neat touch of peasant's single- mindedness and
loyal- adherence to the injunctions of religion even under provoking circumstances. ST.]
VOL. V.

354 Supplemental Nights.

oath not to interwed with womankind never no more. 1 And
now (quoth Shahrazad) I will recount to you another tale touching
the wiles of women ; and thereupon she fell to relating the
adventure of

1 In the MS. we have only " Ending. And it is also told," etc. I again supply the
connection.

THE WOMAN WHO HUMOURED HER LOVER
AT HER HUSBAND'S EXPENSE.

357

THE WOMAN WHO HUMOURED HER LOVER AT
HER HUSBAND'S EXPENSE. 1

THERE was a man in Cairo and he had a wife who ever boasted of
her gentle blood and her obedience and her docility and her fear of
the Lord. Now she happened to have in the house a pair of fatted
ganders 2 and she also had a lover whom she kept in the back-
ground. Presently the man came to visit her and seeing beside
her the plump birds felt his appetite sharpened by them, so he said
to her, " O Such-an-one, needs must thou let cook these two geese
with the best of stuffing so that we may make merry over them,
for that my mind is bent upon eating goose-flesh." Quoth she,
" 'Tis right easy ; and by thy life, O So-and-so, I will slaughter
them and stuff them and thou shalt take them and carry them
home with thee and eat them, nor shall this pimp my husband
taste of them or even smell them." " How wilt thou do ? " asked
he, and she answered, " I will serve him a sleight shall enter into
his brains and then give them to thee, for none is dear to me as
thyself, O thou light of mine eyes ; whereas this pander my mate
shall not touch a bittock thereof." Upon this agreement the lover
went from her and when her husband returned at sunset-tide she
said to him, " Ho Man, how canst thou ever call thyself a man
when thou never invitest anybody to thy house and no day of the
days thou sayest me : I have a guest coming to us ; even as
another would do ; and folk surely will talk of thee and declare

1 Scott does not translate this tale, but he has written on the margin (MS. vi. 101),
" A story which bears a strong resemblance to that I have read (when a boy) of the
Parson's maid giving the roasted goose to -her Lover and frightening away the guests,
lest he should geld them."

3 In text "Zakaravn Win (ganders) simin" ; but afterwards " Wiszatayn" geese.

358 Supplemental Nights.

thou art a miser and unknowing the ways of generosity." " O
Woman," said he, "this were for me an easy business and
to-morrow morning (Inshallah !) I will buy for thee flesh and rice
and thou shalt let cook for us or dinner or supper, whereto I will
invite one of my intimates." Quoth she to him, " Nay, O Man ;
rather do thou buy for me a pound of mince-meat ; then slaughter
the two geese and I will stuff them and fry them, for that nothing
is more savoury to set before guests." Said he, " Upon my head
and mine eye be it ! " and as soon as it was dawn he slaughtered
the geese and went forth and bought a Rotolo of meat which he
minced and took all was required of rice and hot spices and what not
else. These he carried home to his wife and said, to her, " Do thou
finish off thy cooking before midday when I will bring my guests,"
and presently he fared forth from her. Then she arose and cleaned
out the geese and stuffed them with minced meat and a portion of
rice and almonds and raisins ; * and fried them until they were well
cooked ; after which she sent for her lover and as soon as he came
she and he made merry together, and she gave him the geese which
he took up and left her. -- And Shahrazad was surprised by the
dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And
where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the
coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it
was the next night and that was

fteben f^wrtreU an& lEig&tg-first

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night." She replied : -- With

1 These dried fruits to which pistachios are often added, form the favourite " filling"
of lamb and other meats prepared in " pulao " (pilaff).

Wotnan who Humoured her Lover at her Husband'* Expense. 359

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the woman
gave to her lover the geese which she had fried and he took the
twain and fared away with them. Now when it was noon suddenly
her husband came home accompanied by a friend and knocked at
the door ; so she arose and opened to him and admitted them.
Then she asked, " And hast thou brought only one man ? l hie thee
forth and fetch at least two or better still three." " 'Tis well," said
he and went off to do her bidding. Then the woman accosted
the guest who came first and cried, " Oh the pity of it ! By Allah
thou art lost and the Ld Haul of Allah 2 is upon thee and doubtless
thou hast no children." Now when the man heard these words he
exclaimed, "Why, O Woman ?" for indeed fear and affright had
sunk deep into his heart. She rejoined, " Verily my husband hath
not brought thee hither save with the intention of cutting off thy,
p/ecious stones the honours of thy yard J and of gelding thee to a
Castrate; and heigho and alas for thee whether thou die or
whether thou live, and Oh the pity of it for thee ! " Now when
the man heard this speech, he arose in haste and hurry and rushed
out by the door when behold, the husband came bringing with him
two of his familiars. So the wife met him at the entrance and
said to him, " O Man, O miserablest of men, O thou disappointed,
O thou dissatisfied, 4 thou hast brought to me a fellow which

1 4< Anta jdib(un) bas rajul (an) wdhid (an) "veritable and characteristic peasant's
iargon.

7 '.*. it is a time when men should cry for thy case. " UL Haula" = there is no
Majesty, etc. An ejaculation of displeasure, disappointment, despair.

3 In text "Mahashima-k'^ good works, merits; in a secondary sense beard and
mustachios. The word yard (ctymologically a rod) is medical English, and the young
itudent is often surprised to see, when a patient is told to show his yard, a mere inchlet
of shrunken *kin. ["Mahishim," according to Bocthor, is a plural without singular,
meaning: Ics parties de la generation. Pedro de Alcala gives "Hashkhiim," pi.
*' Hashashim," for the female parts, and both words are derived from the verb " hasham,
yahshfm," he put to shame. ST.]

4 Characteristic words of abuse, " O thou whose fate is always to fail, O thou whose
lot is ever subject to the accidents of Fortune I "

360 Supplemental Nights.

was a thief, a ne'er-do-well like unto thyself." " How so ? " asked
he, and she answered, " The man stole the two geese and stole
away." Thereupon the husband went out and catching sight of the
guest running off shouted to him, " Come back ! Come back ! even
although thou bring only one with thee and take the other." Cried
the man in reply, " An thou catch me do thou take thee the two."
But the house-master meant the two geese whilst the man who was
running away thought only of himself, saying in his mind, " This
one speaketh of my ballocks, meaning that he will take only one
of my stones 1 and leave me the other." So he ceased not running
and the other followed after him, but being unable to catch him
he returned to his guests and served them with somewhat of bread
and so forth, whilst the woman kept blaming him and knagging
about the matter of the geese which she said had been carried off,
but which had been given by her to her lover. The husband en-
joined her to silence ; however she would not hold her peace 2 and
on this wise he was balked of the meal to feed his wife's friend.
And now (quoth Shahrazad) I will relate to you somewhat of the
wiles of an honest woman, and thereupon she fell to recounting
the adventure of

1 Arab. "Bayzah "= an egg, a testicle. See " Bayza'ani," vol. ii. 55.

2 Here the text ends with the tag, " Concluded is the story^of the Woman with her
Husband and her Lover. It is related of a man which was aTCazi," etc. I have supplied
what the writer should have given.

THE KAZI SCHOOLED BY HIS WIFE.

IT is related of a man which was a Kazi that he had a wife of the
virtuous and the righteous and of the charitable and the pitiful to
the orphan and the pauper ; and the same was beautiful exceedingly.
Her husband held and was certified anent womankind that all and
every were like unto his spouse ; so that when any male masculant
came into his court 1 complaining about his rib he would deliver
his decision that the man was a wrongdoer and that the woman
was wronged. On such wise he did because he saw that his wife
was the pink of perfection and he opined that the whole of her sex
resembled her, and he knew naught of the wickedness and de-
bauchery of the genus and their sorcery and their contrariety and the
cunning contrivance wherewith they work upon men's wits. He
abode all careless of such matters, in consequence of the virtues of
his spouse, until one chance day of the days when suddenly a man
came to him with a grievance about his better half and showed
how he had been evil entreated by her and how her misconduct
was manifest and public. But when the man laid his case before
the Kazi and enlarged upon his charge, the Judge determined that
he was in tort and that his wife was in the right ; so the com-
plainant went forth the court as one deaf and blind who could
neither hear nor see. Moreover he was perplexed as to his affair,
unknowing what he should do in the matter of his helpmate and
wherefore the Kazi had determined contrary to justice that he had

* The "Mahkamah" (Place of Judgment), or Kazi's Court, at Cairo is mostly
occupied with matrimonial disputes, and is fatally famous for extreme laxness in ch
matter of bribery and corruption. During these days it is even worse than when Lane
described it, M.E. chapt. iv.

364 Supplemental Nights.

ill-used his spouse. Now as to the Kazi's wife none could for-
gather with her ; * so the plaintiff was distraught and confounded
when he was met unexpectedly on the way by one who asked him*
" What may be thy case, O certain person, and how hath it befallen
thee with the Kazi in the matter of thy rib ? " " He hath given
sentence," quoth the man, " that I am the wrong-doer and that
she is the wronged, and I know not how I shall act." Whereupon
quoth the other, " Return and take thy station hard by the entrance
to the Judge's Harem and place thyself under the protection of its
inmates." The man did as his friend advised him and knocked,
when a handmaiden came out and he said to her, " O Damsel, 'tis
my desire that thou send me hither thy lady, so I may bespeaVher
with a single word." She went in and informed her mistress 2 who
rose and humoured him, and standing veiled behind the door
asked, " What is to do with thee, O man ? " " O my lady," said
he, " I place myself under thy ward and thine honoqr, so thou
enable me to get justice of my wife and overcome her and prevail
over her, for in very deed she hath wronged me and disgraced me,
I came to complain of her ill-conduct before His Honour our lord
the Kazi, yet he hath determined that I am the wrong-doer and
have injured her while she is the wronged. I know not what I
shall do with him, and sundry of the folk have informed me that
thou art of the beneficent ; so I require that thou charge for me
the Judge to deliver according to Holy Law his decree between
me' and my mate." Quoth she, " Go thou and take thy rest, nor
do thou return to him until he shall have sent after thee, and fear
not aught from him at all." " Allah increase thy weal, O my
lady," quoth he, and he left her and went about his business pon-
dering his case and saying to himself in mind, " Oh would Heaven

* The first idea of an Eastern would be to appeal from the Kazi to the Kazi's wife,
bribing her if he failed to corrupt the husband ; and he would be wise in his generation
as the process is seldom known to fail.

8 In Arab. "Sitta-ha" : the Mauritanians prefer " Sidah," and the Arabian Arabs
" Kobirah '' = the first lady, Madame Mfre.

The Kazi Schooled by his Wife. 365

I wot whether the Kazi's wife will protect me and deliver me from
this fornicatress, this adulteress, who hath outraged me and carried
away my good and driven me forth from her.' 1 Now when it was
night-tide and the Judge was at leisure from his commandments,
he went into his Harem, and it was his wife's custom whenever he
returned home to meet him at the middle doorway. But as on
that occasion she failed so to do, he walked into the apartment
wherein she woned and found her at prayers ; then he recalled to
mind the contention of the man who had come to him with a

grievance against his spouse And Shahrazad was surprised by

the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy
tale, O sister mine and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth
she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate on the
coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night and that was

f)c Sbeben f^untoft anti <tQf)tg.tf)ir& ^ligfjt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the
Kazi went in to his wife whom he found praying, he recalled to
mind the matter of the man who had come to him with a con-
tention against his spouse and he said in his thought, " Verily nor
hurting nor harming ever cometh from womankind and indeed
this liar complaineth of his wife falsely; 11 for it was still in his
mind that all of the contrary sex are as virtuous as his lady. But
when she had done with her devotions, she rose up to him and
served him and set before him, she and her handmaidens, the tray

'Supplemental Nights.

of food and she sat down at meat with him as was her wont. Now
amongst the dishes was a charger containing two chickens, so said
she to her husband, " By Allah, O my lord, do thou buy for us
to-morrow a couple of geese that I may let stuff them, for my
heart is set upon eating of their^ meat.'\ Said he, " O my lady,
to-morrow (Inshallah! an it be the will of the Almighty) I will
send to the Bazar and let buy for thee two geese of the biggest
and the fattest and the Eunuchs shall slaughter them and thou
shalt use them as thou will." Accordingly, at dawn-tide th&
Judge sent to buy two plump birds and bade the Eunuchs cut
their throats and the handmaidens gutted them and stuffed theni
and cooked them with rice over and above the usual food. There*
upon the Kazi's wife arose and proceeded to work her contrivance,,
She had bought two sparrows which the hunter had trapped ; and
she bade kill and dress them and place them upon the rice instead
of the geese and awaited the even-tide when her husband would
return to supper. Then they spread the tables whereupon was
placed a covered platter under which he supposed stood the geese ;
so he took iti off and behold, he found the two sparrows. Hereat
he was perplext and said to his wife, "Allaho Akbar God is
most Great where be the geese ? " and said she to him, " Whatso
thou broughtest here it be x before thee upon the dish." " These
be two sparrows," quoth he, and quoth she, " I wot not." So the
Judge arose displeased 2 with his wife and going to her home
fetched her father and as she saw him coming, she stood up and
whipping off the two small birds placed the big ones in their
stead \ and he uncovered the plate and found the geese. So he
said to his son-in-law, " Thou declarest that these be sparrows
but indeed they are geese ; " for he also was deceived and went
forth in displeasure with the Judge, after which the Kazi followed

in his footstep and soothed him and invited him to meat but he

\ i . """ _J

1 In text " Ahu 'inda-k," pure Ifellah speech.
2 In text here and below " Maghbun " usually = deceived, cajoled^

The Kasi Schooled by his Wife. 367

would not return with him. Hereupon the husband padlocked
the door but, before he had entered, the wife had substituted the
birdies for the big birds and when her mate sat down to meat and
would fain have eaten he uncovered the platter and beheld the
two sparrows. Seeing this he was like to go out of his mind and he
cried aloud, " Wallahi ! indeed this be a portentous calamity," and
he went forth, trotting in his haste, until he met his father-in-law
upon the way. Then he cried upon him and said, " Come and
look at the two geese which were in the platter." " Wherefore ? "
asked the other and answered he, " Because I found them changed
to two sparrows." Hereupon the father returned with him to the
house and walked up to the table whence the lady, during her
husband's absence, had removed the birdies and replaced the birds
in lieu of them. So the father took off the cover and finding
before him the pair of geese said to his son-in-law, " Be these
two geese ? consider them well whether they be sparrows or not."
41 Two geese," said the other and said the sire, " Then why dost
thou come to me a second and a several time and bring me hither
and complain of my daughter ? " Hereupon he left him and went
forth an-angered and the Judge came up with him at the doorway
and soothed him and conjured him to return. Meanwhile the
lady arose and whipping off the geese set the two birdies in lieu
thereof and covered them up ; and as soon as the Kazi returned
and sat down to meat he removed the cover from the platter and
found the two sparrows. Hereat he shrieked aloud and arose and
went forth the door and cried, " Ho Moslems, come ye to my
help ! " * Now when the people of the quarter heard the outcry,
they gathered together about the house, when the lady seized the
occasion to carry off the two birdies and to set in lieu of them the

1 Hr began to fear sorcery, Satan, etc. " Muslimfna " is here the reg. Arab. plur. of
" Muslim " = a.True Believer. Musulmin " (our " Mussalman " too often made plur.
fcy " Mussalmen ") is corrupted Arab, used in Persia, Turkey and India by the best
writers as Sa'adi ; the plur. is Musulmdnin " and the Hind. fern, is Musalmdni. Francois
Pyrard, before alluded to, writes (i. 261) " Mouselliman, that is. the faithful "

368 Supplemental Nights.

two geese. Asked they, " What Is to do with thee, O our lord the
Kazi, and what hath befallen thee ? " and he answered, " I bought
two geese for our supper and now I find them turned into two
sparrows ; " and so saying he led the Notables of the quarter into
his house and showed them the dish. They uncovered it and
found therein two geese, so they exclaimed, " These be two geese
which thou callest sparrows ; " and so saying they left him and
went their ways. He followed them making excuses and was
absent for a while, when his wife took the birds and set the
birdies in place of them and when the Kazi returned and pro-
ceeded to sit down at meat he uncovered the platter and behold,
thereon stood the two sparrows. So he smote hand upon hand
crying, " These be two sparrows without doubt or hesitation ; "
whereat his wife arose and called out with a loud voice, " O ye
Moslems, help ye a Moslemah." J So the folk ran to her aidance
and asked her saying, " What is to do, O our lady ? " and she
answered, " Verily my calamity is grievous and there is no Majesty
and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great. My
husband the Kazi hath gone Jinn- mad and do you of your grace
and benevolence lay hold of him and carry him to the Maristdn.
-- And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell
silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, u And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

DUNYAZAD said to her, Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

1 In the text " help ye the Moslems."

The Kazi Schooled by his Wife. 369

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Judge's
wife cried upon the folk of the quarter, " Do ye of your grace and
benevolence to us seize the Kazi and carry him to the Maristan
that they may confine him therein until he return to his reason
and regain his right mind." Hereupon they laid hands upon him
and bore him to the Bedlam and imprisoned him therein amongst
the maniacs, and it was certified to all the folk that their Kazi had
been suddenly struck by insanity and that they had confined him
in the madhouse. Now all this was of the cunning contrivance of
his wife, that she might make manifest to him concerning woman-
kind how none of mankind can prevail over them. But after the
lapse of three days which the Judge passed in the Bedlam, his
wife went in to him bringing a somewhat of food and set meat
before him and asked him saying, " What was it thou foundest on
the platter ? " Answered he, " Two sparrows," and continued she,
" Recover thy senses and thy right mind and see here am I who
have made thee out mad for thy confusion between two geese and
two sparrows. Now whenever any man cometh to thee complaining
of his wife (and thou unknowing aught of the couple and of their
circumstances), thou determinest that the male is the evil-doer
and withal thou wottest not that women are often the worst of
wrongers and that men are sorely wronged by them. And in the
matter now in hand, the whole of the folk declare that the Kazi is
a wrong-doer to his wife, and no one knoweth that thou art really
the wronged and I the wronger. Indeed sooth did he say who
said, "Alas for those who be gaoled wrongfully!" So do thou
never decide aught thou knowest not. However, thou hast approved
to thyself that I am true and loyal to thee and thou makest all
the folk like one to other, but this is a sore injury to some. In the
present case do thou send for the man who is wronged and let
VOL. V. A A

37O Supplemental Nights.

bring him to thy presence and bid his wife be also present and do
him justice of her." After this she removed her husband from the
Maristan and went her ways, and the Kazi did with the man as
his lady had charged him do and whenever a plaintiff came before
him with a grievance against his wife he would decide that the
man was the wronged and the woman was the wronger, and he
ceased not doing after this fashion for a while of time. And now
(quoth Shahrazad) I will relate to you another history c
womankind and this is the tale of

THE MERCHANT'S DAUGHTER AND THE
PRINCE OF AL-IRAK.

373

THE MERCHANT'S DAUGHTER AND THE PRINCE

OF AL-IRAK l

WHILOME there was, men say, a Khwajah, a merchant man who
was lord of money and means and estates and endowments and
appanages, withal he had no seed, or son or daughter, and there-
fore he sued Almighty Allah that he might be blessed with even
a girl-child to inherit his good and keep it together. Suddenly
he heard a Voice bespeak him in dreamery saying, " Ho Such-
an-one, Predestination overcometh Prudence and resignation to
the trials sent by Allah is foremost and fairest" Hearing this
he arose without stay or delay and casually 2 slept with his wife
who, by decree of the Decreer and by allowance of Allah
Almighty, conceived that very night. When she became preg-
nant and the signs of gestation showed in her, the merchant
rejoiced and distributed and doled and did alms-deeds ; and, as
soon as her tale of days was fulfilled, there befel her what befalleth
womankind of labour-pangs, and parturition came with its madding
pains and the dolours of delivery, after which she brought forth
a girl-babe moulded in mould of beauty and loveliness and show-
ing promise of brilliance and stature and symmetric grace. Now
on the night after the birth and when it was the middle thereof,
the Merchant was sitting at converse beside his wife and suddenly
he again heard the Voice announcing to him that his daughter was

1 Again the old, old story of the " Acrisian maid," and a prose variant of Yusuf and
Al-Hayfa" for which see vol. v. p. 123. I must note the difference of treatment and
may observe that the style is rough and the incidents are unfinished, but it has the stuff
of an excellent tale.

1 In text " Min ghayr Wa'ad" = without appointment, sans primWitation, a phrase
before noticed.

374 Supplemental Nights.

fated to become a mother in illicit guise by the son of a King who
reigned in the region Al-Irak. He turned him towards the sound
but could see no man at such time, and presently he reflected that
between his city and the capital of the King's son in Al-Irak was
a distance of six months and a moiety. Now the night wherein the
Merchant's wife became a mother was the same when the King's wife
of Al-Irak bare a boy-heir, and the Merchant, albe he wist naught
thereof, was seized with trembling and terror at the words of the
Voice and said in himself, " How shall my daughter forgather with
the King's son in question when between us and him is a travel of
six months and a half ? What can be such case ? But haply this
Voice is of a Satan ! J> As soon as it was morning-tide the father
summoned astrologers and men who compute horoscopes and scribes
who cast lots/ and when they presented themselves he informed
them that a daughter had been added to his household and his aim
was to see what the prognostic 2 might be. Hereupon all and
every wrought at his art and mystery, and it was shown that the
Merchant's daughter would become a mother by the son of a King
and this would be in the way of unright : but so far from informing
him of this or suffering him to learn concerning of her circumstance
they said, " The future none wotteth it save Allah Almighty and
our craft at times proveth soothfast and at times falsifieth us,"
However the Khwajah's heart was on no wise satisfied and he
ceased not to suffer patiently nor did rest repose him nor were meat
and sleep to him sweet for the space of two years, during which his
daughter was suckled and in due time was weaned. The father
never ceased pondering how he should act towards his child and
at sundry times he would say, " Let us slay her and rest from
her," and at other times he would exclaim, " Let us remove her to a
stead where none shall approach her or of man -kind or of Jinn-

1 In text, Al-Mukawwamina wa Arbdbu '1-Aklam," the latter usually meaning
" Scribes skilled in the arts of caligraphy."

2 In text " Zarb al-Fal "= casting lots for presage, see vol. v. 136.

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Ai-Irak. 375

kind." Withal did none point out a path to pursue nor did any
guide him to any course of the courses he might adopt Now one
day of the days he fared forth his house unknowing whither he
should wend and he stinted not wending until he found himself
without the town, -- And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn
of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy story,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now
when it was the next night and that was

an*

Supplemental Nights.

from him and said in his thought, " There is no averting of
adversity foredoomed and Allah will do whatso he will ; " pre-
sently adding, " O Khwajah, in yonder direction riseth a mountain
Jabal al-Sahab * hight, which is impenetrable or to mankind or to
Jinn-kind ; but given thou avail to reach it thou wilt find therein
and about the middle combe thereof a vast cavern two miles in
breadth by an hundred long. Here, an thou have in thee force
and thou attain thereto and lodge thy daughter, haply shall Allah
Almighty conserve and preserve the maid from what evils thou
heardest the Voice declare to thee for her destiny : however, thou
shalt on no wise reach those highlands until thou shalt have
expended thereon a matter of much money. Moreover at the
head and front of that cave 2 is an inner crevice which, extending
to the mountain-top, admitteth daylight into its depths and dis-
playeth a small pavilion by whose side be five-fold pleasaunce-
gardens with flowers and fruits and rills and trees besprent and
birds hymning Allah, the One, the Omnipotent. Now an thou
avail to convey thy daughter to that place, she shall dwell there
secure, safe-guarded." As soon as the Khwajah heard those
words from the Fakir, there faded from his heart whatso there
was of thought and forethought and cark and care and he took
the hand of the Religious whom he led to his home and honoured
him and robed him, for that he had indicated such place of pro-
tection. When the maiden reached the age of five and had waxed
killing in beauty, her father brought her a learned Divine with
whom she began reading and who taught her the Koran and
writing and the art of caligraphy ; 3 and when she had seen the

1 "The Mount of Clouds."

2 In the margin is written "Kbb," possibly "Kubb" for Kubbah"= a vault, a
cupola. [I take " Kubba" for the passive of the verb " Kabba" = he cut, and read
" Fajwatun " for " Fajwatan "= and in that cave there is a spot in whose innermost part
from the inside a crevice is cut which," etc. Sx.l

3 " Zarb al-Aklam," before explained : in a few pages we shall come upon "San'at
al-Aklam."

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 377

first decade, she fell to studying astrology and astronomy and the
aspect of the Heavens. Such was her case ; but as regards that
of her sire the Merchant, from the hour he forgathered with the
Darwaysh he ceased not to hold him in his heart and presently he
proposed to take him and travel with him to the mountain afore-
mentioned. So they set out together and when they reached it
they found it a site right strong as though fortified, and entering
the antre they fell to considering it right and left till they
reached its head where they came upon the little pavilion. After
all this quoth the Fakir, " Indeed such stead shall safe-guard thy
daughter from the shifts of the Nights and the Days ; " withal
was he unknowing that the Decreed be determined and must per-
force be done, albeit Doom be depending from the skirts of the
clouds. 1 And the Religious ceased not showing the site until he
caused his companion enter the parterres, which he found as they
had been described to him with flowers and fruits and streams and
trees besprent and birds hymning the One, the Omnipotent. As
soon as they had finished solacing themselves with the sights, they
fared back to their town where, during their absence-term, the
damsel's mother had made ready for them viaticum and presents,
and by the time the twain returned they found ready to hand
everything of travel-gear and all the wants of wayfare. So they
equipped themselves and set forth, taking with them the maiden
together with five white slave-girls and ten negresses and as many
sturdy black chattels who loaded the packs upon the mules' and
the camels' backs. Then they fell to cutting across the wilds and
wolds, each and everyone intent upon ministering to the maiden,
and they ceased not faring until they drew near the mountain, and
they took station by the cavern-door. Here they unloaded the
bales and burthens and transported them to the pavilion within
the cave, after which the Merchant's daughter went in and as she

1 A pan upon the name of the Mountain.

378 Supplemental Nights,

walked forwards fell to gazing, rightwards and leftwards, until such
time as she had reached the pavilion. Presently she found it
poikilate of corners and columns, and she was assured that the
distance of that mountain from her father's town measured the
march of a full-told month. And whenas she had taken seat and
had settled in that pavilion, her father considered the unapproach-
able nature of the place and waxed contented of heart and his
mind became right of rede, because he was certified of his daughter
that she was safe from the tricks of Time and every trickster. 1 So
he tarried beside her for a decade of days, after which hefarewelled
her and wended him home, leaving the damsel in the mountain-
cave. Thus fared it with these ; but as regards the case of the
Prince of Al-Irak, his father who owned no issue, or man-child or
irl-child, lay sleeping one night of the nights when, lo and behold !
he heard the words, " All things befal by Fate and Fortune." Hereat
he arose from slumber being sore startled and cried, " Laud to the
Lord whom I have heard say 2 that all things depend upon Doom
and Destiny." On the next night he slept with his spouse who by
leave of Almighty Allah forthright conceived. When her pregnancy
became manifest the Sovran rejoiced and he scattered and largessed
and doled alms-deeds to the widows and paupers and the mean
and miserable ; and he sued the Creator on high saying, " O Lord
vouchsafe to me a man-boy which may succeed me in the reign,
and deign Thou make him a child of life, 3 But when the Queen's
time had sped she was seized by labour-pangs and delivery-pains,
after which she bare a babe Glory be to God who created him
and confirmed what He had wrought in the creation of that child
who was like unto a slice of the moon ! They committed him to
the wet-nurses who fell to suckling him and tending him and
fondling him till the milk-term was completed, and when his age

1 In text " Wa kulli Trik " = Night-traveller, magician, morning-star.

2 i.e. In Holy Writthe Koran and the Ahadfs.

* ' Waiad al-Hayah " for " Hayt ; " i.e. let him be long-lived.

The Merchan fs Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 379

had reached the sixth year, his father brought for him a Divine
perfect in knowledge of all the sciences, spiritual and temporal,
and the craft of penmanship and what not. Accordingly, the boy
began to read and study under his learner until he had excelled
him in every line of lore, and he became a writer deft, doughty in
all the arts and sciences : withal his sire knew not that was doomed

to him of dule and dolours. And Shahrazad was surprised by

the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night and that was

&e Sbeten ^unfcteb an& Jtfoettet!) tfig&t,

DUNVAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Prince
became a penman doughty in all knowledge, withal he wist not
that was written for him of dule and dolours. This lasted until
his tenth year, and the old King rejoiced in him and caused him
to back steeds until he had mastered all of horsemanship, and he
waxed accomplished in hunting and birding and he had attained
the bourne of omnis res scibilis. Every morning he would super-
intend the governance of his sire in the office of Commandments
and direct him to affairs wherein lay rede that was right until,
one day of the days, his parent said to him " O my son, do thou
rule for a day and I will govern on the next" " O my father,"
said he, " I am young of years nor is it meet that I meddle with

3 8o Supplemental Nights.

public matters or sit in thy Divan." Now when he reached the
age of fourteen and had entered upon man's estate and had waxed
perfect in the words of ordinance and had become complete and
sanspareil in beauty and loveliness, the King resolved upon
marrying him, but he consented not, nor did his heart incline to
womankind for the being in the All-Knowledge of Almighty
Allah all that was foredoomed to him from Time beginningless.
Presently on a chance day his nature longed for the hunt and
chase, and he asked leave of his sire who consented not, fearing
for his safety ; but he said in himself, " An I go not I will slay
myself ; " J and so he privily apprized of his intent a party of
his dependents who, all and every, prepared to ride forth with
him into the Desert. Now the King had in his stables a stallion,
known as Abu Hamdmah, 2 which was kept alone in a smaller
stall, and he was chained by four chains to a like number of
posts 3 and was served by two grooms who never could draw
nigh to him or let him loose ; nor could any, save only his lord,
approach him with bridle or saddle or aught of horse-gear. But
when the Prince had designed to fare forth a-hunting and
a-birding, he went in to his father's steed Abu Hamamah by hest
of Allah Almighty's might over him and for what was hidden to
him in the Future, and found him chained and tethered ; and, as the
horse pleased him and affected his fancy, he approached him and
gentled him with caressing hands. The stallion also at that time
under decree of Destiny was influenced by the Lord and directed
towards the Prince for the sake of that which was hidden from
him in the World of Secrets. So he continued to gentle the

1 This and other incidents appear only at the latter end of the tale, p. 221.

2 i.e. " Father of a Pigeon," i.e. surpassing in swiftness the carrier-pigeon.

3 "Bi-sab'a Sikak = lit. "with seven nails; " in the MS. vol. vi. p. 133, 1. 2, and
p. 160, 1. 4, we have " four Sikak," and the word seems to mean posts or uprights
whereto the chains were attached. [" Sakk," pi. " Sikak " and " Sukuk," is nail, and
" Silckah," pi. " Sikak," has amongst many other meanings that of "an iron post or
stake (Bocthor : piquet de fer). ST.]

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 381

animal and to caress him and to make much of him, and he was
ever the more pleased with him, and said to himself, " Verily my
riding forth to the hunt and chase shall not be save upon this
stallion ; " and he ceased not pacing and pressing around him,
soothing him the while, until the steed showed subjection and
neither started nor lashed-out nor indeed moved a limb, but stood
like a man obedient and dependent. And when the youth's
glance wandered around he saw beside the stallion a closet, and
as he neared it and opened it he found therein all manner harness
and equipments, such as a saddle complete with its girths and
shovel-stirrups and bit and bridle, 1 whilst on every side was gear
of warfare enfolded in the furniture, such as scymitar and dagger ; f
and a pair of pistols. So he wondered at this circumstance of
the horse how that none could draw near him or place upon him
that harness, and he likewise marvelled at the subjection of the
steed to himself. Hereupon he carried the furniture from the
closet and going forth with it walked up to the Father of a
Pigeon, which was somewhat fearful of him and affrighted, and he
uplifted the saddle and threw it upon his back, and girthed him
tight and bridled him with the bit, when the horse became
adorned as a bride who is displayed upon her throne. Now the
King's son at times enquired of himself saying, " An I loose this
horse from his chains he will start away from me ; " and at other
times quoth he, " At this hour the stallion will not think of bolting
from me," and on this wise he abode between belief and unbeliel
in his affair. And he stinted not asking of himself until his suite
was a-weary of waiting and of looking at him, so they sent to him
praying that he would hurry, and he said in his thought, " I place

1 In text " Al-Lijim w' al-Bilaro "= the Utter being a T<bi' " or dependent word
used only for jingle. [The Muhft explains " Bilim " by " Kimira at-Thaur " a muzzle
of a bull, and Bocthor gives as equivalent for it the French "cavecon" (English
"cavesson," nose-band for breaking horses in). Here, I suppose, it means the head-
stall of the bridle. ST.]

s In Arab. " Al-Sayfu w'-al Kalanj."

332 Supplemental Nights.

my trust in Allah, for the Forewritten hath no flight therefrom."
Anon he loosed the stallion's chains after harnessing and girthing
him straitly ; then, throwing his right leg over his back ! mounted
thereupon with a spring and settled himself in selle and came forth.
And all who looked at that steed were unable to stand upon
the road until the Prince had ridden forwards and had overtaken
the rest of his suite without the town, whence they sought the
hunting-grounds. But when they were amiddlemost the waste
lands and beyond sight of the city, the courser glanced right and
left and tossed his crest and neighed and snorted and ran away ;
then shaking his head and buck-jumping under the son of
the Sultan bolted 2 with him until he became like a bird
whereof is seen no trace nor will trick avail to track. 3 When his
folk beheld him they were impotent to govern their horses until
their lord had vanisht from their view, nor had anyone the muscle
or the manhood to keep up pursuit. So waxing perplext and
wildered in their wits they sought counsel one of other saying,
" Let each and every of us ride by a separate road until such a
day when haply we shall meet him." Hereupon the whole party
dispersed and all took their own directions seeking the Prince ; and
they stinted not search, anon putting out to speed and anon retra-
cing their steps 4 and then returning by the same road. This

1 In text " Itowwaha," which is repeated in p. 146, 1. 2. [" Ittawwah" seems to
be the modern Egyptian 5th form of " Tauh." In classical Arabic it would be
" tatawwah," but in the dialect of to-day the prefix becomes "it," whose final dental
here assimilates with the initial palatal of the root ; p. 146 the word is correctly spelt
with two Tashdids. The meaning is : he threw himself (with his right foot foremost)
upon the horse's back. Instances of this formation, which has now become all but
general in Egyptian, are not unfrequent in old Arabic, witness chapters Ixxiii. and Ixxiv.
of the Koran, which begin with "ayyuha '1-Muddassiru " and " ayyuhk 'l-Muzzam-
milu " respectively. ST.]

9 In text " Ramaha bi-h."

3 The vowel points in the MS. show this to be a quotation.

4 In text " Yarju," I presume an error for " yarja'u." [I believe "yarju " is an error
for " yajru," and the various paces to which they put their horses are meant : sometimes
they galloped (ramahu^ sometimes they trotted (Pedro de Alcala gives "trotar" for
"jar* yajri"), sometimes they ambled (yasfru). ST.]

The Mercliant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 383

endured for five days when not a soul came upon their liege lord,
60 they waxed distraught nor could they find right guidance to
aught they should do. However when the trysting-day came, all
gathered together and said, " Fare we to the Sultan and acquaint
we him with this and let him devise a device for the matter of his
son ; because this youth is his father's prop and stay, nor owneth
he any other than this one." Hereupon they set out citywards
and ceased not riding until they drew near the capital where they
found a marquee pitched without the walls, and having considered
it they knew it to be the King's own. So they drew near it and
there found the Chamberlains and Nabobs and officers of high com-
mandment standing round about it, and when they asked saying,
" What is the cause for setting up yonder tent in such place ? " they
were answered, " Verily, whenas his son fared from him designing
to hunt and bird, on the next day his heart was straitened for the
Youth and he wist not what had befallen him. On the first night
when the Prince fared forth from him and disappeared, all went
well, but on the second his breast was straitened and in his vitals
he sensed a change and 'twas at the hour when the stallion began
buck-jumping with his child and running away. Anon he lost all
patience and was unable to endure session within his Palace so he
commanded pitch his pavilion without the walls and here we have
been sitting for a space of six days, awaiting the escort to return."
As the party drew near the marquee the bruit of them went abroad

until it came to the King's ears. And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day, and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful
is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to sur-
vive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

384 Supplemental Nights,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the King
feeling his breast a-straitened bade pitch his pavilion without the
walls and tarried therein for a space of six days and on the seventh
appeared his son's suite which had been left behind when the horse
ran away with the Prince, nor did any know what direction the
beast had taken. As soon as the bruit went abroad and came to
the ears of the bereaved father, he cried out with a single outcry
and fell to the ground aswoon, and the fainting fit lasted for two
days. But when he came to himself and asked after his son, the
suite reported all that had befallen the youth from the stallion and
at that moment the King recalled to mind the Voice which had
spoken saying, " All things befal by Fate and Fortune ;" and had
declared, " Resignation to the trials sent by Allah is first and best
till such time as Destiny shall win to her end." " If" (he mused)
" my lot be forgathering with him anywheres then needs must it
be; and, if otherwise, we will be patient under the All-might of
Allah Most Highest." Such was the case with these ; but as
concerns the young Prince, 1 when the stallion started off with him
and bolted and became like a bird flying between the firmament
and terra firma, he suffered nor fatigue nor emotion , nay, he sat
contented upon the beast's back, for that had he hent in hand a
cup full of coffee naught thereof would have been spilt. And the
stallion ceased not galloping at speed with him through the live-

1 In text " Saith the Sayer of this say so wondrous and this delectable matter seld-
seen and marvellous," which I omit as usual.

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 38$

long day until night came on when, seeing a lake, he halted by the
side of it. The Prince thereupon dismounted and withdrawing
the bridle offered him water which he drank ; then he foddered
him with forage which he ate, for our Lord had subjected to him
that steed till it became between his hands like one familiar from
the first and, as the youth had somewhat of provaunt in his
budget he drew tbrth of it and took food. But the Prince knew
not whither the horse was minded to bear him and the Fiat of
Fate drove him to the matter foredoomed to him from Eternity.
So after that time as often as he mounted and let loose the bridle
thongs, 1 the horse paced unguided on those wilds and wastes
and hills and dales and stony leas, and whenever they drew near
a city or a town the son of the Sultan dismounted from his steed ;
and, leaving him where he was, went into the streets in order to
bring provaunt and forage, after which he could return to his beast
and feed him in the same place. And he ceased not wayfaring
until he drew near a city where he designed to dismount as was
his wont and lay in somewhat of vivers and fodder, so he alighted
and leaving his horse outside the houses he went in to satisfy his
need. Now by the decree of the Decreer the King of that Capital
had left it on an excursion to hunt and bird, and he chanced return
at that moment and as he drew near the walls behold, he found
the steed standing alone and harnessed with trappings fit for the
Kings. The Sultan was astounded when he looked upon this
and being on horseback himself he designed to draw near and
catch the animal, and when he came close he put forth his hand.
But the steed was scared with the scaring of a camel, and the King
bade his followers form ring around him and seize him ; so they
gat about him and designed to catch him and lead him away, when
suddenly the steed screamed a scream which resounded throughout
the city and when the horses heard the cry of that stallion they

1 In text *'S*r'a'l-Lij*m."
VOL. V,

386 Supplemental Nights.

turned with their riders in headlong flight and dispersed one from
other. And amongst them was the Sultan, who, when his courser,
ran away with him, strove hard to pull him up and control him,
but he lost all power and whilst the rest of the horses were
trembling under their riders he swooned and fell to the ground.
Presently the followers came to his aid and found him in fainting
condition, so they propped him up and sprinkled somewhat of
water upon him, when he recovered and asked them, " Where is
the horse ?" Answered they, " He is still standing in the same
place ;" and quoth he, " Wallahi, needs must this affair have a
cause, and do ye lie awaiting him and see whither he will wend,
for this beast God wots must be of the Jinns." On this wise it
befel them ; but as regards the horse's owner, the son of the
Sultan, when he entered the city seeking to buy somewhat of
victual and fodder, he heard the scream of the steed and recognised
it, but of the city-folk all who had hearkened to that outcry felt
their hearts fluttering with extreme affright; so each one rose and
padlocked his shop and hardly believed that he could reach his
house in safety and this continued until the capital (even within its
bazars) became empty like a waste, a ruin. Hereupon quoth the
youth, " By Allah, needs must some matter of the matters have
befallen the horse," and so saying he went forth the city and
walked on till he neared the site where he had left the steed when,
behold, he came suddenly upon a party of people in the middle-
most whereof appeared one sitting and trembling in all his limbs,
and he saw the attendants standing about him and each one
holding in hand a horse. So he drew near him and asked him
what was to do and they acquainted him with the affair of the
stallion and his scream and the cause of the man being seated ;
and this was none other than the Sultan who had been seized with
affright and had fainted at the outcry of the Father of a Pigeon.
Hereupon he fell to conversing with them and they knew not that
he was the owner of the steed until such time as he asked them,

The Merchant's Daughter and tlte Prince of A I- Irak. 387

" And doth not any of you avail to draw near him ?" Answered
they, " O Youth, indeed there is none who can approach him.' 1
Quoth he, " This is a matter which is easy to us and therein is no
hindrance ; " and so saying he left them and turned towards the
courser who no sooner saw him than he shook his head at him ;
and he approached the beast and fell to stroking his coat and
kissing him upon the brow. After this he strewed somewhat of
fodder before him and offered him water and the stallion ate and
drank until he was satisfied. All this and the suite of the Sultan
was looking on at the Prince and presently informed their lord,
saying, " O King of the Age, a Youth hath come to us and asked
as for information touching this steed and when we told him what
had happened he approached him and gentled him and bussed
him on the brow ; and after that he strewed before him somewhat
of forage which he ate and gave him water to drink and still he
standeth hard by him." When the Sultan heard these words he
marvelled and cried, " By Allah, indeed this is a wondrous matter,
but do ye fare to him and bring him to me, him and his horse ;
and, if he make aught delay with you, seize and pinion him and
drag him before me debased and degraded and in other than plight

pleasurable!" And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of

day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine,
and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is
this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

Sbeben ^unfcreft anto Nfaetp-ffftft

DUNYAZAJ) said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With

388 Supplemental Nights.

love and good will ? It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the King sent
to his suite bidding them bring the owner of that stallion adding,
If he make aught delay with you drag him before me debased
and degraded, and in other than pleasurable plight." Accordingly,
they went to him and accosting him said, " O Youth, thou owest
hearing and obeying to His Highness the King ; and, if thou come
not to him with good gree we will bear thee maugre thyself." But
the Prince, hearing these their words, set his left foot in stirrup and
throwing his right leg over the saddle mounted till he was firm of
seat upon his stallion's back and had power over his monture.
Then he asked saying, " Who amongst you shall come near me
or carry me to yonder Sultan of yours ? " Whenas they saw this
from him they kept away from his arm-reach, but inasmuch as
they could not return to their King and report saying, " We availed
not to bring him," they exclaimed, " Allah upon thee, O Youth,
that thou draw nigh with us to the Sovran and bespeak him from
the back of thy steed: so shall we be clear and bear nor rebuke
nor reproach." Hearing this much the Prince understood what
was in their thoughts and that their design was to win free of the
King and the avoidance of blame ; accordingly he said to them ;
" Fare ye before me and I will follow you." 1 But when they
returned with the youth behind them to within a short distance of
the King where either of the twain could hear the other's words,
the Prince asked, " O King of the Age, what dost thou require of
me and what is it thou wantest ? " " Do thou dismount," answered
the Sultan, " and draw near me when I will tell thee and question
thee of a certain matter : " but quoth the youth, " I will not alight

1 The invariable practice of an agent de police in England and France, according to the
detective tales of MM. Gaboriau and Du Boisgobey. In Africa the guide often attempts
to follow instead of leading the party, and this proceeding should always awake
suspicion.

The Merchants Daughter, and the Prince of Al-Jrak. 389

from the back of my steed and let whoso hath a claim upon me
demand satisfaction, 1 for here be the Mayddn the field of fight."
So saying he wheeled his steed and would have made for the open
country, when the Sultan cried aloud to his followers, " Seize him
and bring him hither." So they took horse all of them, a mattef
of one hundred and fifty riders, and followed him at full speed
(he still riding) and overtook him and formed a ring around him,
and he seeing this shortened the bridle-reins and gored flanks with
stirrup-irons when the beast sprang from under him like the wafting
of the wind. Then he cried out to them, " Another day, O ye
dogs ; " and no sooner had they heard his outcry than they turned
from him flying and to safety hieing. When the Sultan beheld
his followers, some hundred and fifty riders, returning to the
presence in headlong flight and taking station before him, he
enquired the cause of their running, and they replied that none
could approach that horseman, adding, " Verily he cried a warcry
which caused each and every of us to turn and flee, for that we
deemed him one of the Jinn." " Woe to you ! " exclaimed the
King : " an hundred and fifty riders and not avail to prevail over
a single horseman ! " presently adding, " By Allah, his say was
sooth who said :

And how many an one in the tribe they count o When to one a thousand shall
ne'er amount ?

Verily this youth could not be confronted by a thousand, nor
indeed could a whole tribe oppose him, and by Allah, I have been
deficient in knightly devoir for not doing him honour ; however, it
was not to be save on such wise." But the youth ceased not faring
through days and nights for the whole of four months, unknowing
the while when he should reach a place wherein to take repose.
And as soon as this long wayfare ended, suddenly a mountain
towering high to the heights of heaven arose before him ; so he

x In text another prothesis without apodoais: tee vol. vi. 203, etc.

Supplemental Nights.

set his face thither, ana alter a mrther term of three days 1 (and
he ever wayfaring) he reached ^t^d^bdeld... : upon its flanks fait
leasows with grasses and rills and trees and fruits besprent, and
birds hymning Allah the One, the Omnipotent. Anon he alighted
therein for that his heart had somewhat tosayanent that mountain
and he also marvelled thereat by cause that during his wayfare he
had never seen aught like it at all, nor anything resembling that
herbage and those streams. And after dismounting he unbridled
his steed and suffered him browse and pasture upon the greenery
and drink of the water, while he on like wise fell to eating of the
fruits which hung from the trees and taking his ease and repose.
But the more he shifted from place to place the fairer he found it
than the first, so he was delighted with the site, and as he looked
upon it he improvised these couplets :

-" O who fearest the world do thou feel right safe ; o Trust all to Him did

mankind create :
Fate aye, O my lord, shall come to pass o While safe thou art from

th' undoomed by Fate."

The Sultan's son ceased not straying from stead to stead for a
term of ten days, during which he wandered round about the
Mountain and solaced himself by gazing upon the trees and
waters, 2 and he was gladdened by the warbling of the birds till at
length the Doom of Destiny and the Fiat of Fate cast him over
against the door of the cave which contained the Khwajah's
daughter with her handmaids and her negro slaves. He looked

;-fc>

at the entrance and marvelled^ and was perplexed at And

1 In text, " Fa ghaba thalathat ayyamin " = and he (or it the mountain ?) disappeared
for three days. [" Ghaba " = departed, may have here the meaning- of ' * passed away " ,
and three days had gone, and he ever travelling, before (ilk an) he reached it. ST].

2 A feeling well-known to the traveller: I have often been laughed at for gazing
fondly upon the scanty brown-green growth about Suez after a few months' sojourn in
the wolds of Western Arabia. It is admirably expressed in that book of books Eothea
(chapt. xvii.): "The next day I entered upon Egypt, and floated along (for the delight
was as the delight of bathing) through green wavy fields of rice, and pastures fresh and
plentiful, and dive 1 into the cold verdure of grasses and gardens, and quenched my hot
eyes in shade, as though in deep, rushing waters."

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of A I- Irak. 391

Shah-azad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dun-
yazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

Sbeben l^un&tefc auto JBtmetg-sebcntf)

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King,
the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the
King's son took place before the Cavern-door he marvelled at its
strength intended to protect those within, but he knew not if it
had any inmate or an it were void of inhabitants, seeing that the
mountain was far distant and divided from towns and cities nor
could any avail to reach it. So he said in his mind, " Sit thee
down here over against the entrance amid these grasses and trees
and fruits, for an thou quit this site thou shalt find none like it in
charms and eke it shall console thee for parting from thy people.
Moreover, haply shall someone of this place pass by me and from
him i may ask tidings concerning this region and perad venture
Almighty Allah shall guide me back to my own country and I
shall forgather with my father and my folk and my friends.
Indeed possibly there may be someone within this place who
when he issueth forth shall become my familiar." So he ceased
not sitting at the door of the cave for a term of twenty days
eating of the fruits of the trees and drinking of the water of the
rain pools as likewise did his steed ; but when it was the twenty

392 Supplemental Nights.

and first day, behold, the door of the antre was thrown open and
there came forth it two black slave-girls and a negro chattel,
followed five white hand-maidens, all seeking diversion and
disport among those meadows which lay on the mountain-flank
and beyond. But as they paced along their eyes fell on the son of
the Sultan who was still sitting there with his steed before him
and they found him cast in the mould of beauty and loveliness,
for he had now rested in that place from his wayfare and the
perfection of charms was manifest upon him. When the slave-
girls looked at him they were overwhelmed by the marvels of
his comeliness and shapeliness and they returned in haste and
hurry to their mistress and said to her, " O our lady, verily at
the cavern-door is a Youth, never saw we a fairer than he or a
seemlier of semblance, and in very deed he resembleth thee in
grace and elegance of face and form, and before him standeth a
steed even as a bride." Now when the Merchant's daughter heard
these words from her handmaidens, she arose and in haste and
hurry made for the cave-door and her heart was filled with
gladness and she ceased not walking till she reached it. Then
she looked upon the Prince and came forward and embraced him 1
and gave him the salam and she continued to gaze upon and
consider his beauty and comeliness, until love to him settled in her
heart and likewise the Prince's love to her increased. Hereupon
she hent him by the hand and led him into the cavern where he
fell to looking rightwards and leftwards about the sides thereof
and v/ondering at what he saw therein of pleasaunces and trees
and streams and birds, until at last they reached the pavilion.
But before entering thither the Prince had led his horse and loosed
him in the leasows which lay in the cavern ; and, when at last the

1 The writer does not mean to charge the girl with immodesty (after the style " Come
to my arms, my slight acquaintance ! ") but to show how powerfully Fate and Fortune
wrought upon lier. Hence also she so readily allowed the King's son to possess her
person.

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 393

twain ended at the palace and went within, the attendants brought
meat for him ; so he ate his sufficiency and they washed his hands
and then the couple fell to conversing together whilst all were
delighted with the son of the King. And they continued in such
case until night drew nigh when each of the handmaidens went to
her chamber and lay her down and on like wise did the black
slaves until there remained none save the Prince and the
Merchant's daughter. Then began she to excite him and incite
him and disport with him until his heart inclined towards her by
reason of her toyings and her allurements, so he drew near to her
and clasped her to his breast and at last he threw her upon her
back and did away her maidenhead. Now by hest of Allah
Almighty's All- might she conceived of him that very night and
they ceased not to be in sport and laughter until the Creator
brought on the dawn which showed its sheen and shone and the
sun arose over lowland and lawn. Then did the twain, she and
he, sit communing together, when the girl began to improvise
these couplets :

" Loving maid in obedience doth come o Trailing skirt with her pride all

astir ;
And she's meet for no man save for him o And he's meet for no maid save

for her." 1

After this the Khwajah's daughter tarried with the King's son for
a term of six months ; but, from the night when he had abated her
pucelage, he never approached her at all, and she also on like wise
felt no lust of the flesh for him in any way nor did she solicit him
to love-liesse. 2 But when it was the seventh month, the youth
remembered his family and native land and he sought leave of her

1 [I read " al-Muhibbattu, " fern, of " Mnhibb," lover (in Tasawwuf particularly a
lover of Cod), and take the ' lam taku taslah" in the second verse for the 3rd person
fem., translating : The loving maiden has come in obedience to the lover's call, proudly
trailing her skirts (" lajarru min al-Tfhi Asyala-bi"), and she is meet, etc. ST.]

3 Again the work of Fate which intended to make the lovers man and wife and
probably remembered the homely old English proverb, "None misses a slice from a cut
iMfcV

394 Supplemental Nigkts.

to travel but she said to him, " Why dost thou not tarry beside
us ? M Said he, " If in our life there be due length needs must we
forgather." Then asked she, " O my lord, who mayest thou be ? "
so he declared to her his pedigree and degree and the name of his
native country and she also informed him of her rank and lineage
and her patrial stead. Presently he farewelled her and mounting
his horse fared forth from her in early morning, -- And Shahrazad
was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive/'^
Now when it was the next night and that was

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale, that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the King's son
farewelled the Merchant's daughter and fared forth from her in
early morning, seeking his folk and his natal land, and he drove
amiddlemost the wilds and the wolds. On this wise it was
with him ; but as regards the merchant, the father of the damsel,
he arid the Darwaysh after consigning her to the cavern returned
to his town and there spent six months in business as was his
wont ; but on the seventh he called to mind his child and was
desolated by her absence because he had none other. So quoth
he to her mother, " I have an intent to visit the girl and look upon
her and see what may be her condition, for my heart is in sore
doubt on her account and I cannot but fancy that some unforeseen

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-lrak. 30 $

casualty hath brought calamity or that some wayfarer may have
visited her ; and my thoughts are occupied with her, so 'tis my
will to fare forth and see her." " Such act were advisable," quoth
the wife ; and so saying she fell to making him somewhat of pro-
vaunt amounting to some ten camel-loads. 1 Presently he led forth
with him a few of his negro slaves and set out to see his daughter
on the Jabal al-Sahab. So he dove into the depths of the desert
and cut across the dales and the hills and conjoined the
journeyings of night with day for a space of three months, and
about sunset-tide on the first of th fourth behold, a rider appeared
to him coming from the breast of the waste, nor had he with him
anyone. When the stranger drew near, the Khwajah saluted him
and his salam was returned by the horseman who happened to be
the Prince returning from the Merchant's daughter. Quoth the
Khwajah, " O Youth, dismount with us in this place and let us
twain, I and thou, night together and solace ourselves with con-
verse ; * then, when it shall be morning, each of us shall depart seek-
ing his own stead." Quoth the Prince, " No harm in that," and so
saying he sprang from the back of his steed and unbridled him and

. -.

suffered him to browse upon the grasses and greenery together
with the Khwajah's cattle. Hereat the two sat down together in
talk while the slaves slaughtered a lamb and flayed it, then, having
lighted a fire, they set the meat thereupon in a chauldron and
when it was cooked they fished it out with a flesh-hook and scored
it 8 and placed it in a mighty platter which they served up to their
lord and the King's son. Both ate of it after the measure of their
sufficiency and the remnants were borne off by the slaves for their
suppers. And when the time for night-prayers came, the two

1 A little matter of about a ton at the smallest computation of 200 Ibs. to each beast.

* In text "Natawasu sawiyah " [Clerical error for " natawanasu (nataanatu, the
rarely used 6th form of anisa) shuwayyah" = let us divert ourselves a little. ST.]

3 In text "salaku-hu wa nashalu-hu." The |/ "salk "= scoring the skin and the y/
44 nasbl " = drawing meat from the cooking-pot with its fingers or a flesh-hook or any-,
thing but a ladle which would be " Gharf."

396 Supplemental Nights.

having made the Wuzti ablution performed the orisons obligatory
upon them, and anon sat down for evening converse, overtalking
the tidings of the world and its affairs, until quoth the Merchant
to the Prince, "O Youth, whence comest thou and whither art
thou wending ? " Quoth the other, " Wallahi, O Khwajah, I have
a wondrous tale, nay a marvel of marvels which, were it graved
with needle-gravers upon the eye-corners were a warning to whoso
would be warned. And this it is, I am the King's son of Al-Irak
and my sire's prop and stay in the House of the World, and he
reared me with the fairest of rearing ; but when I had grown to
man's estate and had learnt the mysteries of venerie I longed one
chance day of the days to ride forth hunting and birding. So I
went for a horse (as was my wont) to the stables, where I found
yon stallion which is with me chained to four posts ; whereupon of
my ignorance, unknowing that none could approach him save
myself nor any avail to mount him, I went up to him and girthed
him, and he neither started nor moved at my gentling of him, for
this was existing in the purpose of Almighty Allah. Then I
mounted him and sought my suite without informing my sire and
rode forth the city with all my many, when suddenly the horse
snorted with his nostrils and neighed through his throttle and
buckjumped in air and bolted for the wilderness swift as bird in
firmament-plain, nor wist I whither he was intending. 1 He ceased
not running away with me the whole day till eventide when we
reached a lake in a grassy mead." , (Now when the Khwajah
heard the words of the Prince his heart was heartened and
presently the other pursued), " So I took seat and ate some-
what of my vivers, my horse also feeding upon his fodder, and we
nighted in that spot and next morning I set out and stinted not
riding for a march of four months. But on the first of the fifth
I neared a towering mountain whose length and whose breadth

1 This account has been slightly abridged seeing that it is a twice-told tale.

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 397

had no bounds, and on its flanks I found leasows manifold with
trees and fruits and streams besprent and birds hymning the One,
the Omnipotent So I was gladdened by the sight and dismounted
and unbridled my steed whom I allowed to browse the while I ate
of the fruits, and presently I fell to roaming about from site to site.
And when some time had passed I came to the mouth of a cavern
whence after a short delay on my part fared forth slave-girls under
the escort of a negro chattel. When they beheld me they rejoiced
in me, then going in they disappeared for an hour and anon
returned bringing a young lady as she was the moon of the four-
teenth night, who salam'd to me, and invited me to become her

guest and led me into the cave And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful
is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night, an the Sovran suffer me to survive."
Now when it was the next night and that was

6e f$t |^un&re& anto Jpfrst Nfgftt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Prince
continued to the Merchant saying : The slave-girls invited me and
led me into the cave until I reached a Pavilion that was there. I
tarried beside them for a matter of some six months when I felt
desolate for my folk and my native land, so I craved leave to depart
from them and farewelled them and went forth, they sending me
away with highmost honour. But when bidding them good-bye.

Supplemental Nights.

I covenanted with them saying, an there be in life any length
needs must we forgather ; and with these words I left them, and
now 'tis some time since I journeyed thence when thou mettest me
in this place." Now the Merchant hearing his tale knew from the
beginning what had occurred there, and was certified of the saying
of the Voice, and judging from the tenor of the information said
in his mind, " There is no doubt or hesitation but that this be the
youth to whom was appointed my daughter, that of him she should
conceive in the way of unright and the Written * is now fulfilled."
So quoth the Merchant, " O Youth, where is thy town ? " and he
informed him thereof. Now the Prince knew not that he had come
upon the damsel's father by the road, whereas the Khwajah wotted
right well that this man had had to do with his daughter. As
soon as it was morning the twain farewelled each other and either
of them went his own way; but, the Khwajah fell into cark and
care such as cannot be conceived, and he fasted from food nor was
meat to him sweet nor was sleep. However, he ceased not travelling
till he arrived at the Jabal al-Sahab, when he approached the door
of the cave and rapped thereat. The handmaidens opened to him
and as soon as they saw his face they recognised him, and return-
ing to their lady informed her thereof: so she arose to seek him,
and presently met him and salam'd to him and kissed his hands
and walked by his side until she reached the Pavilion, where the
twain, he and she, went up, and she seated him and stood before
him in his suit and service. Hereat her father looked at her and
considered her and found her colour changed and her belly
grown big, and asked her, " What is to do with thee and what is't
hath altered thy complexion, for to-day I see thee heavy of body,
and no doubt some man has mixed 2 with thee ? " Now when she

1 Written" either on the Preserved Tablet (vol. ii. 68) or on the sutures of the skull
(Hi. 123).

3 In Arab. *' Khdlat-ki insdnun," meaning also to lie with : compare the Gr.
Lat. misceo. [The same word occurs presently in another tropical sense J

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of A I- Irak. 399

heard the words of her father she understood and was certified
that he had compassed full knowledge concerning what had befallen
her, so she returned him nor answer nor address, and she was over-
whelmed with shame and confusion, and waxed changed and was
well nigh falling upon the floor. Presently she sat down in abash-
ment before her sire by reason of the bigness of her belly, but he
bowed in obedience before the power of Almighty Allah ; and
they two ceased not conversing until fall of night, when each and
every of the handmaids had sought her own chamber that she
might sleep therein. As soon as the Khwajah remained alone
with his daughter and without other being present he said to her,
** O my child, verily this matter was foredoomed to thee from the
Lord of the Heavens, and there is no Averter of whatso is fated ;
but do thou relate to me what befel between thee and the youth
who owneth the steed, and who is the King's son of Al-Irak."
Hereupon the girl was consterned and she could return no reply,
and presently when she recovered she said to her sire, " How shall
I relate to one who is already informed of all, first and last, and
thou declarest that the foredoomed must come to pass, nor can I
say thereanent a single word ? " And presently she resumed, " O
my father, verily the Youth promised me that an his life have
length he would certainly forgather with me, and I desire of thee
that when thou shalt return to thy country thou take me and carry
me in thy company to him, and reunite me with him and let me
meet his sire and ask him to keep his word, for I require none else
nor shall anyone ever unveil me in privacy. And in fine do thou
marry me to him. Now whatso hath betided me thou hast heard
it from the Voice, and thou hast wearied thy soul in transporting
me to this place, fearing for me the shifts of the days, and thou
hast contraried the power of Allah, nor hath this profited thee
aught, because the Destinies which be writ upon mankind from

"Kbilata-hi al-Khajal wa 'l-Hayi"= shame and abashment mixed with her, i,t.
suffused or overwhelmed her. ST. J

400 Supplemental Nights.

infinity and eternity must needs be carried out. All this was
determined by Allah, for that prosperity and adversity and bene-
faction and interdiction all be from the Almighty. Do thou
whatso I have said and that which is inscribed upon my forehead
shall be the quickening of me (Inshallah an so please God !),
since patience and longjsuffering are better than restless thought."
When her father heard from her such words, he agreed with her in
all she had spoken to him, and as soon as it was morning he fell to
preparing for wayfare, he and his daughter and his handmaidens
and his negro-slaves ; and on the third day they loaded their loads
and set forth on return to their country and city. Then they con-
joined the travel of night and day and pushed forward on their
journey without stay or delay for a term of five months, until they
reached their home and settled them down therein. Such was
their case ; but as regards the King's son of Al-'Irak, after he had
met the girl's father on the road and had parted from him, without
recognising him withal, he strave for return to his own land and
behold, he wandered from the way and was confronted by a sea
dashing with clashing billows. So he was perplext as to his affair
and his judgment left him and his right wits, and he knew not
what he should do or whither he should wend, or what direction

he should take or what Allah had decreed for him And Shah-

razad was surprised by the dawn of day, and fell silent and ceased
to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How
sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you orkthe coming night an the King suffer me to survive ?"
Now when it was the next night and that was

^{)e i$t ?unUtt& an* ^hft Jifafn,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 401

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the
Prince came upon that sea he was perplext and wist not what to
do, so he leapt from the back of the Father of the Pigeon and set
his steed standing beside him that he might lean against his quar-
ter l when, of the excess of his night watching, he fell asleep and
was drowned in slumber. Then, by doom of Destiny the beast
shook his head and snorted and set off at full speed making for the
wild and the wold and was presently amiddlemost the waste. Now
when some two-told hours of time had passed, the Prince shook
off his drowsihead and opened his eyes, but of his steed he could
see nor sign nor aught of visible trace. So he smote hand upon
hand and cried, " There is no Majesty and there is no Might save
in Allah, the Glorious, the Great," after which he took seat by the
side of the sea and sued comfort of Almighty Allah. On the next
day a ship suddenly sailed in and made fast to the shore, after which
a posse of Jews landed from her and as soon as they saw him they
fell upon him and seized him and pinioned him ; then, carrying
him perforce aboard, loaded his legs with irons. So quoth he to
himself, " Whenas Fate is so minded our eyes are blinded ; how-
ever, patience is fairest and of Allah must we ask aidance." Here-
upon the Jews again disembarked and filled their kegs with the water
of an adjoining rain-pool, after which they trooped aboard and
making sail voyaged over the billows of the ocean before them.
This lasted for a month, after which time they cast anchor
beside a harbour-town, and presently swarmed out to sell and to
buy, and there they delayed for a term of two months until they

1 In text " Istanade 'ali Shakkati-h." [" Istanida 'ala "is in the Vocabulista in Arabico
rendered by recumbere " and " Shikkah" U a rug, while I can find no authority for
" Shakkah " as quarter." The passage may therefore mean he lay down on his nig. It
he had been leaning against the standing horse, it would on bolting have thrown him on
the ground and awaked him rudely. ST.]

VOL. V. C C

4Q2 Supplemental Nights.

had finished their business and they had purchased them what
sufficed of provaunt. All this while the Prince lay bound in the
black hole deep down in the ship's hold, nor did anyone go near
him save a Jew, a man of a certain age. 1 And whenever he
entered that dismal place he heard the youth reciting from the
Koran and he would stand to hearken until his heart was softened
to the speaker and he would favour him in the matter of meat and
drink. When they cast anchor beside the second place, the King's
son asked the man, " What may be this port-city and what is her
name and the name of her ruler ? Would Heaven I wot an her
ilord be a King or a Governor under a royal hand ? " " Wherefore
;askest thou ? " quoth the Jew, and quoth the other, " For nothing:
! my only want is the city's name 2 and I would learn whether it
belong to Moslems or Jews or Nazarenes." " This be peopled by
Moslem folk," replied the Jew, " natheless can none carry tidings
of thee to her inhabitants. However, O Moslem, I feel a fondness
for thee and 'tis my intent when we reach the city of Andalus 3 to
give tidings of thee, but it must be on condition that thou accept
of me to thy company whenas Allah Almighty shall have delivered
thee." Said the Prince, " And what hindereth thee from Al-Islam
at this hour ? " and said the other, " I am forbidden by fear of the
ship's Captain. 4 " Replied the Prince, " Become a Moslem in
secret and wash and pray in privacy beside me here." So he
became of the True Believers at the hand of the King's son,
who presently asked him, " Say me, be there in this vessel any
Moslems save myself ? " " There are some twenty here," answered

1 "Rajul ikhtiydr," a polite term for an old man: See i. 55. In the speech of the
Badawin it means a man of substance and hospitality.

2 In Arab. " Wa Idsh : Muradi bas Ism al-Madinah." I seem to hear some Fellah
speaking to me from the door of his clay hut.

3 Madfnat al- Andalus " = usually Seville.

* In text " Kabddn," the usual form being " Kaplan," from the Ital. Capitano (iv, 85) r
here, however, we have the Turk, form as in " Kapudan-pasha" "= Lord High Admiral
of ancient Osmanli-land.

Tlie Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al- Irak. 403

he, "and 'tis the design of the Captain to offer them up on
arrival at his own country and he shall devote them as victims
in the Greater Synagogue." Rejoined the other, " Thou art now a
Moslem even as I am a Moslem, and it bcsittcth thou apprise me
of all and whatsoever befalleth in the ship, but first art thou
able to gar me forgather with the other True Believers ? " And
the man answered in the affirmative. Now after the ship had
sailed with them for ten days, the whilome Jew contrived to
bring him and the Moslem prisoners together and they were found
to number twenty, each and every in irons. But when it was the
Sabbath about undurn hour, all the Jews including the Captain fell
to wine-bibbing and therein exceeded until the whole of them
waxed drunken ; whereat the Prince and his convert arose, and
going to the armoury * and opening it found therein all manner war-
gear, even habergeons. So the Youth returned to the captives and
unbinding their bonds, led them to the cabin of weapons and said
to them, "Do each and every of you who shall find aught befitting
take it and let such as avail to wear coat of mail seize one of them
and don it." On this wise he heartened their hearts and cried to
them, * Unless ye do the deeds of men you will be slaughtered with
the slaughtering of sheep, for at this moment 'tis their design on
reaching their own land to offer you up as corbans in their Greater
Synagogue. So be you on your guard and, if ye fall in this affair, 8
'tis fairer for you than to die with split weasands." So each of
them snatched up whatso of war gear suited him and one equipped
other and they heartened their hearts and all waxed eager for the
fray. Then sallied they forth, one and twenty in number, at a
single word, with the Takbfr and the Tahlfl, 3 whilst the Jews who

1 Arab "Khaznat al-Sflih." When Easterns, especially Maroccan Moslems and
Turkish Pilgrims, embark as passengers, their weapons are taken from them, ticketed and
placed in a safe cabin.

* Arab. Waka'h" =an aflair (of fight).

U. crying the war-cry, " Alliho Akbar f '= God is most Great (vol. ii. 89, etc.) and
" U iliha ill* f llah," the refrain of Unity : vol. ii 236.

Supplemental Nights.

formed the ship's crew were some one hundred and five. But
these were all drunken with wine and giddy of head, nor did
they recover until the weapons began to play upon their necks and
their backs, whereat they shook off their crapulence and learned
that the Moslems had gotten about them with their war-gear.
So they cried out to one another and became ware and the
liquor-fumes left their brains. Then they rushed for the armoury
but found that most of the weapons were with the Moslems, whom
the Prince was urging to derring-do of cut and thrust. Thus
were they departed into two portions and hardly had passed an
hour, an hour which would grey the hair of a little child, in fight

and fray and onset and retreat And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day, and fell silent and ceased saying her per-
mitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, <f How sweet and
tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delect-
able ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I
would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

an* jpt'ftf) Nfjj&t,

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al~Irak. 405

a swashing stroke and an all-sufficient which share through his
joints and tare through his limbs ; and when the ship's crew saw
their Chief fall dead they gave in their submission 1 and throwing
down their weapons would have saved their lives. The Prince,
however, went forward to them and fell to pinioning them, one
after other, until he had bound them all, after which he counted
them and found them to number about forty head while the slain
were three score and five. These he threw into the sea, 2 but the
captives he placed in prison after chaining them with iron chains
and they padlocked the doors upon them ; and the Moslems
worked the ship's sails while the man who had newly islamised
directed them upon their course until they moored at a holm hard
by the mainland. Here they landed and found the place abounding
in blooms and trees and streams, and the Prince left the ship to
reconnoitre the continent when suddenly a dust cloud drew nigh
and a sand-pillar soared awhile in air high ; then it uncovered
some fifty horsemen, and they were pursuing in the hottest of
haste, 3 a stallion which was saddled and bridled and which they
intended to secure. Now for ten days they had galloped after
him but none availed to catch him. When the King's son looked
upon that case he uttered a loud cry and the courser, hearing the
sound of his master's voice, made for him and fell to rubbing his
cheeks upon his back and shoulders* until they came up with him
as he was standing beside his lord. Hereat all the riders dis-

1 In text "A'atu Al-Wfrah." ["Wfrah" is gerund of the Turkish "wirmek"or
" wermek," to give, to give up, and the phrase in the text corresponds to the Turkish
"wlrah winnek" (tU^ /j) = to capitulate. ST.]

* The " buccaneers," quite as humane, made their useless prisoners " walk a plank."
The slave-ships, when chased and hard-driven, simply tossed the poor devil niggers
overboard ; and the latter must often have died, damning the tender mercies of the
philanthrope which had doomed them to untimely deaths instead of a comfortable
middle passage from Blackland to Whiteland.

a [In the text " Kanshin" = chasing, being in hot pursuit of; see Doiy, Suppl. s. v.
karash." ST.]

See in Mr. Dougbty's valuable " Arabia Deserta" (i. 309) how the Badawi's mare
puts down her soft nose to be kissed by the sitters about the coffee-hearth.

Supplemental Nights.

mounted with intent to seize him, but the Prince opposed them
saying, " This is my horse and he was lost from me in such a place
upon the margin of the main." Replied they, " Tis well, but this
is our booty nor will we ever leave him to thee, for that during the
last ten days we have galloped after him until we are melted, and
our horses are melted as well as ourselves. Moreover, our King
awaiteth us and if we return without the steed our heads will be
cut off." Quoth the Prince, " Nor ye nor that Sovran of yours can
have any command over him, albeit you may have pursued him at
speed for ten days or fifteen days or twenty days ; nor shall you
make him a quarry or for yourselves or for the King of you. By
Allah, one Sultan was unable to take even a hair from him and,
by the Almighty ! were you to pursue him for a full-told year not
one of you could come up with him or make him your own."
Hereupon talk increased between them and one drew weapon
upon other and there befel between them contest and enmity and
rage of bad blood and each clapt hand to sword and drew it from
sheath. When the King's son saw this from them, he sprang upon
the steed's back swiftlier than the blinding leven ; and, having
settled himself firmly in selle, he put forth his hand and seized a
sword which hung by the saddle bow. As soon as the folk saw
that he had mounted the horse, they charged upon him with their
scymitars and would have cut him down, but he made his steed
curvet and withdrew from them saying, " An you design battle I
am. not fain of fight, and do ye all go about your business and
covet not the horse lest your greed deceive you and you ask more
than enough and thereby fall into harm. This much we know
and if you require aught else let the strongest and doughtiest of
you do his best." Then they charged upon him a second time
and a third time and he warded them off and cried, " Allah draw
the line between me and you, 1 O folk, and do ye gang your gait

1 In text, Hadda 'llaho bayni wa baynakum."

TJie Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 407

for you be fifty riders and I be alone and singlehanded and how
shall one contend in fight with half an hundred ? " Cried they,
" Naught shall save thee from us except thou dismount from the
steed and suffer us to take him and return home with him ; " --
And Shahrazad was surprised by" the dawn of day and fell silent
and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dun-
yazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable
and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with
that I would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer
me to survive ? Now when it was the next night and that was

fc an* >et>ent{)

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that, the fifty
horsemen said to the King's son, " There is no help but that we
take from thee the horse," and said he, " I have given you good
advice, and well I wot and am certified that were you two hundred
riders ye could never prevail over me whilst I am mounted on my
courser's back and indeed I have no fear of fight ; but let any of
you who hath claim to knightlihood come forwards and take him
and mount him." So saying he alighted forthright and left his
horse and went to some distance from him, when one of the
fifty riders pushed forwards and designed to seize the steed by
the reins and bestride him, when suddenly the stallion raged like
fire at him and attacked him and smote him with his forehand and
drove the entrails out of his belly and the man at once fell to the
ground slain. As his party saw this they bared their brands and
assaulted the horse designing to cut him in pieces when behold, a

40 g Supplemental Nights.

dust-cloud high in lift upflew and walled the view ; and all extended
their glances in that direction for an hour of time until it opened
and showed some two hundred knights headed by a King mighty
of degree and majesty and over his head were flags a-flying. The
fifty horsemen, seeing him advance with his troops, drew off and
stood still to look and see whom he might be, and when the
horse sighted these banners he sniffed with nostrils opened wide to
the air, and made for them at full speed, as if gladdened by the
sight, and approached them and returned to them a second time
in like guise and at the third time he drew up hard beside them and
nearing the King fell to rubbing his cheeks upon the stirrups whilst
the ruler put forth his hand and gentled the steed by smoothing
his head and forehead. As soon as the fifty riders saw this, they
marvelled thereat, but the King's son who had kept his ground
was astounded and said to himself, " The horse fled me and when
this host drew nigh he sought me again." 1 Presently the Prince
fixed his glance upon the latest comers and behold, the King was
his father, so he sprang to him and when the sire saw him he
knew his son and footed it and the twain embraced and fell faint-
ing to the ground for awhile. When they recovered the suite of
the Sultan came forward and salam'd to the Prince who presently
asked his sire, " What may be the cause of thy coming to this
plain ? " and the ruler informed him by way of answer that after
his child's departure slumber to him brought no rest nor was
there in food aught of zest and with him longing overflowed for
the sake of his son, so that after a while of time he and the
grandees of his realm had marched forth, and he ended by saying,
" O my son, our leaving home was for the sake of thee, but do thou
tell me what befel thee after mounting the Father of a Pigeon, and
what was the cause of thy coming to this spot." Accordingly the
Prince told all that had betided him, first and last, of his durance

1 The last clause is omitted in the text which is evidently defective: MS vol. vi.
p. 180, line 7.

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 409

vile amongst the Jews and how he had devised the killing of the
Captain and the capture of the craft ; and how the steed, after being
lost in the waste, 1 had returned to him in this place ; also of the
fifty riders who encountered him on landing and would fain have
seized him but failed and of the death of the horseman who was
slain by the horse. Hereat they pitched the pavilions upon that
spot and set up a throne for the King who after taking seat thereon
placed his son by his side and bade summon the fifty riders who

were brought into the presence And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful
is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

&e (igf)t f^unfcrefc anD CBfgbtf) jiig&t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting, and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that when the
Sultan took seat upon the throne and set his son by his side he
summoned the fifty riders, who were brought into the presence
and placed between his hands. Then he questioned them of their
case and their country and the cause of their coming to that stead
and they notified to him their native land and their Sovran and
the reason of their wandering ; to wit, their headlong pursuit of
the stallion which had lasted for a term of ten days. Now when

1 In text "Tauhdn tl-Hus*n."

4io

Supplemental Nights.

the Sultan understood their words and knew and was certified
concerning their King and their country, he robed them with
honourable robes * and said to them, " Wallahi ! had I knov/n that
the stallion would have submitted to you and would have obeyed
you I should have delivered him up to you, but I feared for any
that durst approach him, barring his master. Now, however, do ye
depart and salam to your Sovran and say him : By Allah, if the
stallion thou sawest wandering the waste befitted the use of thee
I had sent him in free gift." With this fair message the men
farewelled him and fared from him and they ceased not faring until
they returned to their liege lord and reported to him all that had
betided them ; that is, how the owner of the stallion had appeared
and proved to be a King who (they added) " hath sent his salam
to thee saying it was his desire to despatch the horse but none
availed to manage him save himself and his son." And when the
Ruler heard these^ words, he returned thanks to the Sovran for the
grace of his goodness, and returned forthright to his own land.
Meanwhile the Sultan who was owner of the stallion presented the
captured ship to those who had captured her, and taking his son
turned towards his capital, and they marched without stay or
delay until they reached it. Hereupon the Chamberlains and the
Nabobs and the high Officers and the townsfolk came forth to

1 In Abyssinia the " Khil'at " = robe of honour (see vol. i. 195) is an extensive
affair composed of a dress of lion's pelt with silver-gilt buttons, a pair of silken
breeches, a cap and waist- shawl of the same material, a sword, a shield and
two spears ; a horse with furniture of silk and silver and a mule similarly equipped.
These gifts accompany the insignia of the "Order of Solomon," which are various
medals bearing an imperial crown, said to represent the Hierosolymitan Temple of the
Wise King, and the reverses show the Amharic legend " Yohanne Negus zei Etiopia"
John, Emperor of Etiopia. The orders are distinguished as (i) the Grand Cross, a star
of loo grammes in massive gold, hammer-wrought, and studded with gems, given only
to royalties ; (2) the Knighthood, similar, but of 50 grammes, and without jewels,
intended for distinguished foreigners ; (3) the Officer's Star, silver-gilt, of .50 grammes ;
and (4) the Companion's, of pure silver, and the same weight. All are worn round the
neck save the last, which hangs upon the chest. This practice of gilding the medals
prevails also in Europe, for instance in Austria, where those made of gun-metal are
often gilt by the recipients contrary to all official etiquette.

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-lrak. 41 1

meet and greet their Ruler and rejoiced in his safety and that of
his son, and they adorned the city for three days and all were in
high mirth and merriment until what time the Sultan had settled
down at home. Such was his case ; but as regards the Khwajah
and his daughter, when they had let load their loads they quitted
the cavern and set forth, making for their country and patrial
stead, and they ceased not forcing their marches for a term of ten
days. But on the eleventh they encountered fiery heat beginning
from mid-forenoon ; and, as the place was grassy ground and over-
grown with greenery, they alighted from their beasts and bade pitch
two pavilions, one for the daughter and the other for her father and
his folk, that it might shade them and shelter them from the exces-
sive sultriness. Now when it was mid-afternoon behold, the damsel
was seized with the birth-pains and the pangs of child-bearing, but
Allah Almighty made delivery right easy to her and presently she
became the mother of a man-child Glory be to God who
fashioned him and perfected what He had fashioned in the
creation of that babe ! l So his mother cut his navel-string and,
rolling it up in one of her shifts, kept careful guard over it. 2 And
presently her father entered to look upon her, and finding that she

1 Meaning only that the babe was perfectly beautiful.

3 In order that the cord might not be subject to the evil eye or fall into the hand of a
foe who would use it magically to injure the babe. The navel-string has few supersti-
tions in England. The lower classes mostly place over the wound a bit of cloth wherein
a hole has been burned, supposing that the carbon will heal the cut, and make it fast to
the babe by a " binder " or swathe round the body, as a preventative to " pot-belly."
But throughout the East there are more observances. In India, on the birth of the babe,
the midwife demands something shining, as a rupee or piece of silver, and having
touched the navel-string therewith she divides it and appropriates the glittering substance,
under the pretence that the absence of the illuminating power of some such sparkling
object would prevent her seeing to operate. The knife with which the umbilical cord
has been cut is not used for common purposes but js left beside the puerpera until
the Chilla" (fortieth day), when "Kajjal" (lamp-black), used by way of Kohl, is
collected on it and applied to the child's eyelids. Whenever the babe is bathed or
taken out of the house the knife must be carried along with it ; and when they are
brought in again the instrument is deposited in its former place near the mother.
Lastly, on the " Chilla "-day they must slaughter with the same blade a cock or a sheep
(Herklots, chapt. i. sec. 3). Equally quaint is the treatment of the navel-string in
Egypt ; but Lane (M.E.) is too modest to give details.

4 1 2 Supplemental Nights.

had been delivered was grieved with exceeding grief and the
world was straitened before his face, and unknowing what to do
he said to himself, " Had we reached our homes and that babe
appeared with the damsel, our honour had been smirched and men
had blamed us saying : The Khwajah's daughter hath brought
forth in sin. So we cannot confront the world, and if we bear
with us this infant they will ask where is its father ? " He
remained perplext and distraught, seeing no way of action, and
now he would say, " Let us slay the child," and anon, " Let us
hide it ; " and the while he was in that place his nature bespake
him with such promptings. But when morning came he had
determined upon abandoning the new-born and not carrying it
further, so quoth he to his daughter, " Hearken unto whatso I shall
say thee." Quoth she, " 'Tis well ! " and he continued, "If 'we
travel with this infant the tidings of us will spread through the
city and men will say, The Khwajah's daughter hath been
debauched and hath borne a babe in bastardy ; and our right way
(according to me) is that we leave it in this tent under charge of the
Lord and whoso shall come up to the little one shall take it with
the tent ; moreover I will place under its head two hundred dinars
and any whose lot it is shall carry off the whole." When the
damsel heard these words she found the matter grievous, but she
could return no reply. " What sayest thou ? " asked he, and she
answered, " Whatso is right that do thou." Hereupon he took a
purse ! of two hundred gold pieces which he set under the child's
head and left it in the tent. Then he loaded his loads and fared
forth, he and his daughter and his pages, and they ceased not
pushing their marches until they reached their own land and native
country and entered their home, where they were met by sundry
of their familiars coming forth to greet them. They settled down
in their quarters when the damsel forgathered with her mother

1 In text "Sarsarah," a clerical error for "Akhaza (?) surratan." See MS. vol. vi.
p. 197, line 9 [I read "sarra Surrah (Surratan)" = he tied up a purse. ST.]

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 413

who threw her arms round her neck for exceeding affection to her
and asked her of her news ; so she informed her concerning the
matter of the cavern and what was therein and how great was its
distance, but she told her naught of what had befallen her nor of
her pregnancy by the Prince nor of the babe she had abandoned.
The mother still supposed that she was a clean maid, yet she
noted the change in her state and complexion. Then the damsel
sought privacy in one of the chambers and wept until her gall-
bladder was like to burst and said to herself, " Would Heaven I
knew whether Allah will re-unite me with the child and its father
the Prince ! " and in this condition she remained for a while of
time. On such wise it befel the Merchant and his daughter ; but
as regards the son of the Sultan, when he had settled down in the
city of his sire he remembered the Khwajah's daughter, and quoth
he to his father, " O my papa, my desire is to hunting and birding
and diversion." Quoth the King, the better that Destiny might
be fulfilled, " 'Tis well, O my son, but take with thee a suite."
" I desire no more than five men in all," said the other, and gat
himself ready for travel and, having farewelled his father, set forth
from the city -- And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day
and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth
her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night
and that was

< igljt IDuntJufc anto vTcntf) /light,

414 Supplemental Nights.

the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds
fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Prince went forth
from his father with a train of five attendants and made for the
wilderness, and he conjoined the journeys of night and day ;
withal he knew not whither he was going, and he chanced travel
over the same wilds and wolds and dales and stony leas. But as
regards the Merchant and his daughter, he went in to her one day of
the days and found her weeping and wailing, so he said to her,
" What causeth thee to shed tears, O my child ? " and said she,
" How shall I not weep ? indeed I must wail over my lot, and over the
promise wherewith Allah promised me." Hereupon he exclaimed,
" O my daughter, be silent and Inshallah God willing I will
equip me for travel and will fare to the son of the King ; and look
to it, for haply Allah Almighty our Lord may direct me to a
somewhat shall conduct me to the Prince's city." So saying he bade
his handmaidens and eunuchs make ready forthright a viaticum
sufficing for a full-told year himself and his following of pages
and eunuchs, and they did his bidding. After a few days they
prepared all he had required and he purposed to set out ; then, he
loaded his loads and, farewelling his wife and daughter, went forth
seeking the city of the King's son. He ceased not travelling for
a space of three months, when he found a meadow wide of sides
on the margin of a sweet-water lake, so he said to his slaves,
" Alight we here in this very place that we may take our rest."
Accordingly, they dismounted and pitched a tent and furnisht
it for him, and he passed that night by the water-side, and all
enjoyed their repose. But as soon as morn 'gan show and shone
with sheeny glow, and the sun arose o'er the lands lying low, the
Khwajah designed to order a march for his slaves when suddenly
espying a dust-cloud towering in rear of them, they waited to see
what it might be, and after some two hours of the day it cleared
off and disclosed beneath it six riders and with them a bat-beast
carrying a load of provisions. These drew near the meadow where

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 4 1 5

the Khwajah sat looking at them, and fear hereat entered into his
heart, and trembling fell upon his limbs ! until he was assured that
they were but six men. So his mind was calmed. But when the
party drew near him he fixed his glance and made certain that the
men were headed by the King's son whom he had met on his first
journey, and he marvelled indeed at the youth making for the
same place, and he strove to guess the cause of his coming with
only five followers and no more. Then he arose and accosted him
and salam'd and sat down in converse with him, being assured the
while that it was the same who had had doings with his daughter,
and that the child which she had borne in the tent and which they
abandoned was the son of this Prince, while the youth knew not
that the Khwajah was father to the damsel with whom he had
tarried in the cavern. So they fell to communing together for a
while until the Prince asked the Trader, " What is the cause of thy
coming hither ? " and answered the other, " I have come seeking
thee and thy country, for I have a want which thou must fulfil
me ;" presently adding, " And thou, whither art thou intending ? "
Quoth the King's son, " I am making for the cavern wherein the
handmaidens showed me much honour, for indeed I gave my word
that 1 would return to them after I had revisited my country and
had met my folk and my friends ; and here I am coming back
to keep what plight and promise were between us." Hereupon
the Merchant arose, and taking the Prince, retired with him to a
place of privacy where none could wot of them twain save Allah
Almighty. " Would Heaven I knew what may be in the thoughts of
this Khwdjah ! " said the Prince in his mind ; but when both had
seated themselves at ease, the Merchant addressed the King's son
in these words, " O my son, jail things are foredoomed in the World

1 In the text " on account of the dust-cloud " which, we were just told, had cleared
away. [The translator seems to have overlooked the " kina" before '< kad dkhala-hu
al-Ra'b," which gives to the verb the force of a pluperfect : "and fear had entered into
him at the sight of the dust-cloud." ST.]

4 1 6 Supplemental Nights.

of Secrets, and from fated lot is no flight. Now the end and aim
whereto thou designest in the cavern, verily they J left it for their
own land." When the King's son heard these words informing
him that his beloved had quitted her abode, he cried out with a
loud outcry for stress of what had betided him, and fell a-swoon
by cause that love of the damsel had mastered his heart and his
vitals hung to her. After a while he recovered and asked the
Khwajah, " Say me, be these words of thine soothfast or false ? "
" Soothfast indeed, 7 ' answered the father, " but, O my child, be of

good cheer and eyes clear, for that thy wish is won And Shah-

razad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased
to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How
sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me
to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

^Je {g&t f^imfcrrti anlr ^foelftj) Jitgjt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love and

goodwill ? It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director, the
right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds
fair- seeming and worthy celebrating, that quoth the Khwajah to
to the King's son after he had revived, '* O my child, be of good
cheer and, eyes clear for that thy want is won and for thee the way
hath been short done and if thy heart be firm-fixed upon thy
beloved the heart of her is still firmer than thine and I am a
messenger from her who seek thee that I may unite you twain
Inshallah an Allah please." Asked the Prince, ?And who

1 i.e. his daughter, of whom he afterwards speaks in the plur.

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 417

mayest them be to her, O my lord ? " and answered the other
" I am her father and she is my daughter and hers is a marvel-tale,
I swear by the All-might of Him who made the Heavens and the
Earth." Then he fell to recounting anent the Voice which came
to him on the night of her being conceived in her mother's womb
and all that had since befallen her, keeping concealed l only the
matter of the babe which she had borne in the tent. But when
the Prince knew that the wayfarer was her sire who was travelling
to seek him, he rejoiced in the glad tidings of forgathering with the
damsel and on the morning of the second day all marched off
together and made for the Merchant's city. And they stinted not
wayfaring and forcing their marches until they drew near it, and as
soon as they entered it, the Merchant, before going to his home ;
led the Prince with him and sought the Kazi by whose aid the
marriage-tie, after due settlement of the dowry, might be tied
between him and the damsel. This done, he conducted him to a
place of concealment and presently went in to his daughter and her
mother who saluted him and asked him the news. Hereupon he
gave them to know that he had brought the King's son and had
made ready to knot the knot of wedlock between him and her.
As soon as the damsel heard these tidings she fainted for excess of
her happiness, and when she revived her mother arose and prepared
her person and adorned her and made her don her most sumptuous
of dresses. And when night fell they led the bridegroom in
procession to her and the couple embraced and each threw arms
round the neck of other for exceeding desire and their embraces
lasted till dawn-tide. 2 After that the times waxed clear to them
and the days were serene until one chance night of the nights when

1 These concealments are inevitable in ancient tale and modem novel, and it need
hardly be said that upon the nice conduct of them depends all the interest of the work.
How careful the second-rate author is to spoil his plot by giving a needless
" pregustation " of his purpose, I need hardly say.

* The mysteries of the marriage-night are touched with a light hand because the
bride had already lost her virginity.

VOL. v. n n

4I g Supplemental Nights.

the Prince was sitting beside his bride and conversing with her
concerning various matters when suddenly she fell to weeping and
wailing. He was consterned thereat and cried, "What causeth
thee cry, O dearling of my heart and light of mine eyes ?" and
she, " How shall I not cry when they have parted me from my
boy, the life-blood of my liver ! " " And thou, hast thou a babe ? "
asked he and she answered, " Yes indeed, my child and thy child,
whom I conceived by thee while we abode in the cavern. But
when my father ! took me therefrom and was leading me home
we encountered about midway a burning heat, so we halted and
pitched two tents for myself and my sire ; then, as I sat within
mine the labour-pangs came upon me and I bare a babe as the
moon. But my parent feared to carry it with us lest our honour be
smirched by tittle-tattle, so we left the little one in the tent with
two hundred gold pieces under its head, that whoso might come
upon it and take it and tend it might therewith be repaid." In
fine, she told her spouse the whole tale concerning her infant
and declared that she had no longer patience to be parted from
it. Her bridegroom consoled her and promised her with the
fairest promises that he would certainly set out and travel and
make search for the lost one amongst the lands, even though his
absence might endure through a whole year in the wilderness.
And lastly he said to her, " We will ask news and seek tidings of
him from all the wayfarers who wend by that same valley, and
certify ourselves of the information, nor will we return to thee save
with assured knowledge ; for this child is the fruit of my loins and
I will never neglect him ; no, never. Needs must I set forth and
fare to those parts and search for my son." Such was their case ;
but as regards the babe which had been abandoned (as we have
noticed), he lay alone for the first day and yet another when a
caravan appeared passing along that same road ; and, as soon as they

1 In text "Abuyah," a Fellah vulgarism for Abf which latter form occurs a few
lines lower down.

Tht Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 419

sighted the pavilion yet they saw none within, they drew near to
it and behold, they found a babe lying prostrate with his ringers
in his mouth and sucking thereat l and he was even as a slice of
the moon. So they approached him and took him up and found
under his head the purse, whereupon they carried him, not forget-
ting the gold, and showed him to the Shaykh of the Cafilah * who

1 In text " Wa-Sawabi 'hu (Asabi 'a-hu ?) fi hanaki-h:" this is explained in MS.
p. 216: "Bi-yarza'u fi Asabi hi." [Dozy, Suppl. i. 815, gives " Sawabi' " as an
irregular pi. of * Asba* " quoting from Bresl. ed. iii. 381, 9. I would rather say it is a
regularly formed broken plural of a singular "Sabi'"= the pointing one, i<c. index,
now commonly called " Sabbabah" the reviler, where the same idea of pointing at with
contempt seems to prevail, and Shah id " = the witnessing, because it is raised in giving
testimony. In the plural it would be naturally generalised to "finger," and in point of
fact, the sing. " Sabi' " is used nowadays in this sense in Egypt along with the other
popular form "Suba'. w

* I write '* Cafilah " and nof *' Cafila " with the unjustifiable suppression of the final
" h " which is always made sensible in the pure pronunciation of the Badawi. The
malpractice has found favour chiefly through the advocacy of Dr. Redhouse, an eminent
Turkish scholar whose judgments must be received with great caution ; and I would
quote on this subject the admirable remarks of my late lamented friend Dr. G. P. Badger
in " The Academy" of July 2, 1887. " Another noticeable default in the same category is
that, like Sale, Mr. Wherry frequently omits the terminal 'h' in his transliteration
of Arabic. Thus he writes Sura, Amina, Fdtima, Macllna, Tahama ; yet, inconsistently
enough, he gives the * h ' in Allah, Khadijah, Kaabah, Makkah, and many other words.
This point deserves special notice, owing to Dr. Redhouse' s letter, published in * The
Academy of November 22 last, in which he denounces as (' a very common European
error ') the addition of the * h * or * final aspirate/ in the English transliteration of
many Arabic words. Hence, as I read the eminent Orientalist's criticism, when that
aspirate is not sounded in pronunciation he omits it, writing " Fatima," not Fatimah,
lest, as I presume, the unwary reader may aspirate the * h/ But in our Bibles we find
such names as Sarah, Hannah, Judah, Beulah, Aforiah, Jehovah, in the enunciation of
which no one thinks of sounding the last letter as an aspirate. I quite agree with Dr.
Redhouse that in the construct case the final h assumes the sound of /, as in Fatimatu
bint-Muhammed ; yet that does not strike me as a valid reason for eliding the final h,
which among other uses, is indicative of the feminine gender, as in Fatimah, Khadijah,
Amtnah, etc. ; also of the nomina vicis, of many abstract nouns, nouns of multitude
and of quality, as well as of adjectives of intensiveness, all which important indications
would be lost by dropping the final h. And further unless the vowel a, left after the
elision of that letter, be furnished with some etymological mark of distinction, there would
be great risk of its being confounded with the d, formative of the singular of many verbal
nouns, such as bind, safd^jald ; with the masculine plurals ending in the same letters,
such as huMamd, dghniyd, ktifard ; and with the femmine plurals of many adjectives,
uch as ktttra, siighra, htisna, etc. Dr. Redhouse says that ' many eminent Arabists
avoid such errors ' a remark which rather surprises me, since Pocock, Lane and
Palmer, and Fresnel and Perron among French Orientalists, as also Burton, all retain
the final aspirate 4, the latter taking special care to distinguish, by some adequate,
diacritical sign, those substantive and adjective forms with which words ending in the
final aspirate h might otherwise be confounded."

42O Supplemental Nights.

cried, " Wallahi, our way is a blessed for that we have discovered
this child ; and, inasmuch as I have no offspring, I will take him
and tend him and adopt him to son." Now this caravan was from
the land' of Al-Yaman and they had halted on that spot for a
night's rest, so when it was morning they loaded and left it and
fared forwards and they ceased not wayfaring until they reached
their homes safe and sound. After returning all the Cafilah folk
dispersed, each to his own stead, but the Shaykh, who was em-
ployed by government under the King of Al-Yaman, repaired to
his own house accompanied by the child which he had carefully
tended and salam'd to his wife. As soon as she saw the babe she
marvelled at his fashion and, sending for a wet-nurse, committed
him for suckling to her and set apart for her a place ; and the
woman fell to tending him and cleaning him, and the house
prospered for the master and dame had charge of it * during the days
of suckling. And when the boy was weaned they fed him fairly 2
and took sedulous charge of him, so he became accustomed to
bespeak the man with, " O my papa," and the woman with, "O
my mamma," believing the twain to be truly his parents. This
endured for some seven years when they brought him a Divine
to teach him at home, fearing lest he should fare forth the house ;
nor would they at any time send him to school. So the tutor 3
took him in hand and taught him polite letters and he became a
reader and a writer and well versed in all knowledge before he
reached his tenth year. Then his adopted father appointed for
him a horse that he might learn cavalarice and the shooting of

1 In the text, "'Wasa~ba'l-dar waZaujatu-hu mutawassiyin bi-hd. [I cannot explain
to myself the plural " Mutawassln " unless by supposing that the preceding *' Sab al-Dar "
is another blunder of the scribe for " Sahibu '1-Dar " when the meaning would be : " and
the master of the house and his wife took charge of her (the nurse) during the days
of suckling." ST.]

* In text ' Sdru yardshu-hu wayatawassu."

8 [In the text "Fiki" the popular form of the present day for "Fikfh," properly
" learned in the law" (LL.D. as we would say), but now the usual term for " school-
master. "ST.!

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al- Irak. 421

shafts and firing of bullets at the butt, 1 and then brought for him a
complete rider that he might teach him all his art and when he
came to the age of fourteen he became a doughty knight and a
prow. Now one chance day of the days the youth purposed
going to the wild that he might hunt, - And Shahrazad was
surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
is thy story O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

CBt'gf)t 3Qun&rc& anfc jfourtccntl)

1 Both of which arc practised by Easterns from horseback, the animal going at fullest
speed. With the English saddle and its narrow stirrup-irons we can hardly prove our-
elves even moderately good shots after Parthian fashion.

1 In text " Ihtimam wa Ghullah" : I suspect that the former should be written with
the major A, meaning fever.

Supplemental Nights.

forth a-hunting in the wilderness." Quoth they, O our son, we
fear for thee," and quoth he, " Fear not, for that all things be fore-
doomed from Eternity and, if aught be written for me, 'twill come
to pass even although I were beside you ; and the bye-word saith :
Profiteth not Prudence against Predestination." Hereat they
gave him permission, and upon the second day he rode forth to
the chase, but the wold and the wilds swallowed him up, and
when he would have returned he knew not the road, so he said to
himself, " Folk declare that affects are affected and footsteps are
sped to a life that is vile and divided daily bread. 1 If aught be
written to me fain must I fulfil it." And whenever he hunted
down a gazelle, he cut its throat and broiled the meat over a fire
and nourished himself for a while of days and nights ; but he was
lost in those wastes until he drew in sight of a city. This he
entered, but he had no money for food or for foraging his horse,
so he sold it willy nilly and, hiring a room in a Wakalah, lived by
expending its price till the money was spent. Then he cried,
" There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the
Glorious, the Great! The wise man doth even as the fool, but
All-might is to Allah." So he went forth to solace himself in the
highways of the city, looking rightwards and leftwards, until he came
to the gateway of the King's Palace, and when he glanced around
he saw written over it, " Dive not into the depths unless thou greed
for thyself and thy wants." l So he said in his mind, " Wbat is
the meaning of these words I see here inscribed ? " Presently he
repaired for aid to a man in a shop and salam'd to him, and when
his salutation was returned enquired of him, " O my lord, what is
the meaning of this writ which is written over the Sultan's gate-
way ? " The other replied, " O my son, whereof dost thou ask ?
Verily the Sultan and all the Lords of his land are in sore cark

1 See vol. iv. p. 245.
ije. tempt not Providence unless compelled so to do by necessi ty.

T/ie Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-frak. 423

and care for the affair of his daughter the Princess." The youth
rejoined, "What is the matter with her and what hath befallen
her ? " and the man retorted, " my son, verily the Sultan hath a
daughter so fair that she seemeth cast in the very mould of beauty
and none in her day can excel her, but whoso is betrothed to her
and marrieth her and goeth in unto her the dawn never cometh
without his becoming a heap of poison, and no one wotteth
the business what it may be." Hearing these words the youth
said to himself, " By Allah, the death of me were better than
this the life of me, but I have no dower to offer her." Then he
asked the man, " O my uncle, whoso lacketh money and wisheth
to marry her, how shall he act ?" " O my son," answered the
other, "verily the Sultan demandeth nothing; nay, he expendeth
of his own wealth upon her." The youth arose from beside the
man at that moment and, going in to the King, found him seated
on his throne ; so he salam'd to him and prayed for him and
deprecated and kissed ground before him, and when the King
returned his salutation and welcomed him he cried, " O King of
the Age, 'tis my intent and design to be connected with thee
through the lady safe-guarded, thy daughter." "By Allah, O
Youth," said the Sultan, " I consent not for thine own sake that
thou wed her by cause that thou wilt be going wilfully to thy
death ; " and hereupon he related to him all that befel each and
every who had married her and had gone in unto her. Quoth the
youth, " O King of the Age, indeed I rely upon the Lord, and if
I die I shall fare to Allah and His ruth and, if I live, 'tis well,
for that all things are from the Almighty." Quoth the Sultan,
" O Youth, counsel appertained to Allah, for thou art her equal
in beauty ; " and the other rejoined, " All things are by Fate and
man's lot." Hereupon the King summoned the Kazi and bade
tie the marriage-tie between the youth and his daughter ; then he
went in to his Harem and apprised thereof her mother that she
might prepare the girl's person for the coming night. But the

424 Supplemental Nights.

youth departed from the Sultan's presence perplext of heart and
distraught, unknowing what to do; and, as he walked about,
suddenly he met a man in years, clean of raiment and with signs
of probity evident ; so he accosted him and said, " O my lord, ask
a blessing for me." Said the Shaykh, " O my son, may our Lord
suffice thee against all would work thee woe and may He ever
forefend thee from thy foe." ! And the youth was gladdened by
the good omen of the Shaykh's words. But when the Sultan had
sought his Harem he said, " By Allah, he who hath wedded the
damsel is a beautiful youth : oh the pity of it that he should die !
Indeed I dissuaded him, saying so-and-so shall befal thee, but
I could not deter him. Now by the rights of Him who raised the
firmament without basement, an our Lord deign preserve this
Youth and he see the morn in safety, I will assuredly gift him and
share with him all my good, for that I have no male issue to
succeed me in the sovranty ; and this one, if Allah Almighty
vouchsafe prolong his days, shall become my heir apparent and
inherit after me. Indeed I deem him to be a son of the Kings
who disguiseth himself, or some Youth of high degree who is
troubled about worldly goods and who sayeth in himself: I will
take this damsel to wife that I may not die of want, for verily
I am ruined. I diverted him from wedding her, but it could not
be, and the more I deterred him with words manifold only the
more grew his desire and he cried : I am content ; thus speaking
after the fashion of one who longeth to perish. However, let him
meet his lot either death-doom or deliverance from evil." Now
when it was eventide the Sultan sent to summon his son-in-law
and, seating him beside the throne, fell to talking with him and
asking after his case ; but he concealed his condition and said,
" Thy servant is such whereof 'tis spoken : I fell from Heaven
and was received by Earth. Ask me not, O King of the Age, or

1 The youth was taking a " Fal " or omen : see vol. v. 136.

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of A I- Irak. 425

of the root or of the branch, for one of the wise and ware hath
said :

To tell my root and my name refrain ; The root of the youth is what good he

gain : !
A wight without father full oft shall win o And melting shall purify drossy

strain.

And folk are equal but in different degrees. 2 Now when the Sultan
heard these words, he wondered at his eloquence and sweetness of
speech ; withal he marvelled that his son-in-law would not explain to
him from what land or from what folk he came. And the two ceased
not their converse until after the hour of night prayers, when the
Lords of the land had been dismissed ; whereupon the Sultan bade
an eunuch take the youth and introduce him to the Princess. So he
arose from him and went with the slave, the King exclaiming the
while, "There is no Majesty and there is no Might, save in Allah,
the Glorious, the Great : verily yonder young man wendeth wilfully
to his death.' ' Now when the bridegroom reached the apartment

of the Sultan's daughter and entered to her And Shahrazad

1 In text " Hasal," for which I would read Khasal."

* A wiser Spricftwort than those of France and America. It compares advantageously
with the second par. of the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) by the Repre-
sentatives of the U.S., which declares, " these truths to be self-evident : that all men
are created equal," etc. It is regretable that so trenchant a state-paper should begin
with so gross and palpable a fallacy. Men are not born equal, nor do they become equal
before their death-days even in condition, except by artificial levelling ; and in republics
and limited monarchies, where all are politically equal, the greatest social inequalities
ever prevail. Still falser is the shibboleth-crow of the French cock, " Lit>4rtf y Egaliti,
Fratemiti" which has borrowed its plumage from the American Bird o' Freedom. And
Douglas Jerrold neatly expressed the truth when he said," We all row in the same
boat but not with the same sculls."

426 Supplemental Nights.

anfc Sbebenteentf) J2,tg!)t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- "With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the youth, when
entering to the Sultan's daughter, exclaimed " Bismillah in the
name of Allah I place my trust upon Allah, and I have com-
mitted mine affair unto Allah ! " Then he went forwards and
found his bride seated upon her bedstead, and she was as a Hoard
newly loosed from its Talisman ; while she on her part rose and
met him, and looked upon him and considered him until she was
certified of his being cast in beauty's mould, nor had she ever seen
any like unto him. So she wept till the tears trickled adown her
cheeks and she said to herself, " Oh the pity of it ! Never shall
my joy be fulfilled with this beautiful youth, than whom mine eyes
never fell upon one fairer." Quoth he, " What causeth thee cry,
O my lady ? " and quoth she, " I cry for the loss of my joys with
thee seeing that thou art to perish this very night ; and I sue of
the Almighty and supplicate Him that my life may be thy ransom,
for by Allah 'tis a pity ! " When he heard these words he presently
looked around and suddenly he sighted a magical Sword l hanging by
the belt against the wall : so he arose and hent it and threw it across
his shoulders ; then, returning he took seat upon the couch beside
the Sultan's daughter, withal his heart and his tongue never
neglected to recite the Names of Allah or to sue aidance from
the Prince of the Hallows 2 who alone can reconcile with the

1 Sayf Kunuzi = a talismanic scymitar : see " Kanz," ix. 320.

2 In Arab. " Al-Kutb al-Ghauth"= lit. The pole-star of invocation for help; or
simply "Al-Ghauth" is the highest degree of sanctity in the mystic fraternity of
Tasawwuf. See v. 384; and Lane (A. N.) i. 232. Students who would understand

Thi Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of A I- Irak. 427

Almighty fiat the fates and affairs of God's servants. This lasted
for an hour until the first third of the night, when suddenly were
heard the bellowings as of wind and rumblings of thunder, and the
bride, perceiving all the portents which had occurred to others,
increased in weeping and wailing. Then lo and behold ! a wall
amiddlemost the chamber clave asunder, and there issued forth the
cleft a Basilisk * resembling a log of palm-tree, and he was blowing
like the storm-blast and his eyes were as cressets and he came on
wriggling and waving. But when the youth saw the monster he
sprang up forthright with stout heart that knew naught of startling
or affright, and cried out, " Protect me, O Chief and Lode-star of
the Hallows, for I have thrown myself upon thine honour and am
under thy safe-guard." So saying and setting hand on brand he
advanced and confronted the portent swiftlier than an eye-glance,
raising his elbow till the blackness of the armpit appeared ; and
he cried out with a loud outcry whereto the whole city re-echoed,
and which was audible even to the Sultan. Then he smote the
monster upon his neck a and caused head to fly from body for a
measure of some two spans. Hereupon the Basilisk fell dead, but
the youth was seized by a fainting-fit for the mighty stress of his
stroke, and the bride arose for the excess of her joy and threw
herself upon him and swooned away for a full-told hour. When
the couple recovered, the Princess fell to kissing his hands and feet
and wiping with her kerchief the sweat from his brow and saying
to him, " O my lord, and light of mine eyes, may none thy hand

these titles will consult vol. iii. chapt. 12 of The Dabistdn by Shaw and Trover, Parii
and London, 1843. By the learned studies of Dr. Pertsch the authorship of this work
of the religious eclecticism of Akbar's reign, has been taken from the wrongful
claimant and definitively assigned to the legitimate owner, Mobed Shah. (See Z. d.
M. G. xvi. 224). It is regretable that the index of the translation is worthless as its
contents are valuable.

1 Arab. Su'ubin "= cockatrice, etc., vols. i. 172 ; vii. 322. Ibn Khaldun (vol. iii.
350) tells us that it was the title of a famous and fatal necklace of rubies.

* In Ar. " Anakati-h." [This is a very plausible conjecture of the translator for the
word written in the text : " 'Anfakati-h " = the hair between the lower lips and the
chin, and thco used for the chin itself. ST.]

428 Supplemental Nights.

ever foreslow nor exult over thee any foe," till he had recovered
his right senses and had regained his strength. Anon he arose,
and taking the Basilisk set it upon a large tray; 1 then, letting
bring a skinful of water he cleaned away the blood. After this
the youth and the King's daughter sat down and gave each other
joy of their safety and straightway disappeared from them all traces
of distress^ Presently the Bridegroom looked at his Bride and found
her like a pearl, so he caused her to laugh and disported with her and
excited her and she did on like wise and at last he threw her upon her
back and did away her maidenhead, whenas their gladness grew
and their pleasures were perfected and their joyance was enhanced
by the monster's death, They ceased not, the twain of them
toying and enjoying themselves until it was well nigh dawn and
sleep overcame them and they slumbered. But the Sultan during
that night could relish nor lying down nor sitting up, and as soon
as he heard the shout he cried, " The Youth is indeed dead and
this world hath fled ! There is no Majesty and there is no Might
save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great." About morning-tide he
prepared for him a shroud and mortuary perfumes, and all things
required, and despatched a party to dig a tomb for him who had
been slain by the side of his daughter, and he let make an iron
bier, after which he sent for the washers of the dead and summoned
them to his presence and lastly he awaited for his wife to seek her
daughter and bring him the tidings And Shahrazad was sur-
prised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is
thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable !"
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

1 In the text "Tisht" (a basin for the ewer), which I have translated tray: these
articles are often six feet in diameter.

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of A I- Irak. 429

Gigfjt ??unUteti anU

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale, that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will I ^ It hath reached me, O auspicious King,
the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Sultan
sat until morning-tide expecting his wife to bring him tidings of
the youth that he might take him and bury him. But the Queen-
mother repaired to her daughter's apartment where she found the
door locked and bolted upon the couple ; so she knocked for them
whilst her eyes were tear-stained and she was Availing over the
loss of her daughter's love-Hesse. Hereat the Princess awoke
and she arose and opened the door when behold, she found her
mother weeping so she asked her, " What caused thee shed tears,
O Mother mine, whilst my enjoyment hath been the completes! ? "
Asked she, "And what hath joyed you P"^ So the daughter led
her to the middlemost of the apartment where she found the
Basilisk (which was like the section of a palm-trunk) lying dead
upon a huge tray and she saw her son-in-law sleeping upon the
bedstead l and he was like a fragment of the moon on the
fourteenth night. The mother bowed head towards him and
kissed him upon the brow saying, " Verily and indeed thou
deservest safety ! " Then she went forth from him lullilooing
aloud and bade all the handmaids raise the cry of joy 3 and the

1 A neat touch of realism : the youth is worn out by the genial labours of the night
which have made the bride only the merrier and the livelier. It is usually the reverse
with the first post-nuptial breakfast : the man eats heartily and the woman can hardly
touch solid food. Is this not a fact according to your experience, Mesdames ?

' In text "Tazarghft" a scribal error for "Zaghdtah." In Mr. Doughty (ii. 621)
"Zalaghtt" for "Zagharit" and the former is erroneously called a "Syrian word."
The traveller renders it by " LulluMullul-lulluMa." [Immediately before, however,

43O, Supplemental Nights.

Palace was turned topsy-turvy with gladness and delight. When
the Sultan heard this he arose and asked " What may be the
news ? Are we in grief or in gladness ; " and so saying he went
forth when suddenly he was met by his wife in the highest delight
who took him and led him to the apartment of her daughter.
There he also espied the Basilisk stretched dead upon the tray
and the youth his son-in-law lying asleep upon the bedstead,
whereat from the stress of his joyance he fell to the floor in a
fainting-fit whith lasted: an hour or so. But when he revived he
cried, " Is this wake or rather is't sleep ? " after which he arose
and bade the musicians of his band beat the kettledrums and
blow the shawms and the trumps and he commanded adorn the
city; and the citizens did all his bidding. The decorations
remained during seven days in honour of the safety of the
Sultan's son-in-law, and increased were their joys and fell from
them all annoys, and the Sultan took to distributing and giving
alms and largessing and making presents to the Fakirs and the
miserable and he robed his nobles with honourable robes and
fed the captives and the prisoners one and all 1 ; and the naked
he clothed, and those anhungered he feasted in honour of his
daughter. Then said the Sultan, " By Allah, this youth deserveth
naught save that I make him my partner and share with him my
good, for he hath banished from us our dule and our dolours and
eke on account of himself and his own sake." After this he made
over to him half of his realm and his riches and the Sultan would
rule one day and his son-in-law the other and their joys endured
for the space of a full-told year. Then the Sovran was seized

the correct form "hiya tazaghritu," she was lulli-looing, had been used The word
occurs in numerous forms, differentiated by the interchange of the dental and palatal " t "
and of the liquid letters "r" and "1." Dozy gives : "Zaghrata," " Zaghlata " and
"Zalghata " for the verb, and "Zaghritah," "Zaghnitah" (both with pi. "Zagharit")
" Zalghutah," " Zalghatah " (both with pi. "Zalaghit "), and even a plural " Zaghalit "
for the noun. ST.]

1 In these cases usually an exception is made of brigands, assassins and criminals
condemned for felony. See Ibn Khaldun, iv. 189.

Tk* Merchanfs Daughter and the Princt of A l-Irak. 43 1

of a sickness, so he bequeathed to his son-in-law all he had and
everything he owned ; and but a little time elapsed before his
malady increased day by day until he fared to the ruth of
Almighty Allah and the youth sat in his stead as Sovran and
Sultan. Such was his case ; but as regards the matter of his
sire, the King's son of Al-'Irak, when he promised his wife that
he would certainly go forth and travel and search for their son,
he ceased not wending through the regions for a length of nights
and days until Destiny threw him into such-and-such a city ; and
from the excess of what he had suffered of toil and travail he
tarried therein a time. Now the Shaykh of the Caravans (who had
found the babe in the tent and had taken him and had tended
and adopted him, and from whom the youth when grown to
man's estate had disappeared on the hunting excursion and
returned not to his parents) also set out a-seeking him and fell
diligently to searching for tidings of him and roaming from place
to place. Presently he was cast by doom of Destiny into the
same city ; and, as he found none to company with, he was
suddenly met on one of the highways by the youth's true father
and the twain made acquaintance and became intimate until they
nighted and morning'd in the same stead ; withal neither knew
what was his companion. But one night of the nights the two
sat down in talk and the true sire asked the adoptive father, * O
my brother, tell us the cause of thy going forth from thy country
and of thy coining hither ? " Answered his comrade, " By Allah,
O my brother, my tale is a wondrous and mine adventure is a
marvellous." Quoth he, " And how ? " and quoth the other, " I
was Shaykh of the Cafilahs on various trading journeys, and
during one of them I passed by a way of the ways where I found
a pavilion pitched at a forking of the roads. So I made for it and
dismounted my party in that place and I glanced at the tent but
we found none therein, whereupon I went forwards and entered it
and saw a babe new-born strown upon his back and sucking his

Supplemental Nights.

fingers. 1 So I raised him between my hands and came upon a
purse of two hundred dinars set under his head ; and I took the
gold and carried it off together with the child." But when his
comrade, the true father, heard this tale from him he said to
himself, " This matter must have been after such fashion," and
he was certified that the foundling was his son, for that he had
heard the history told by the mother of the babe with the same
details essential and accidental. So he firmly believed 2 in these
words and rejoiced thereat, when his comrade continued, " And
after that, O my brother, I bore off that babe and having no
offspring I gave him to my wife who rejoiced therein and brought
him a wet-nurse to suckle him for the usual term. When he had
reached his sixth year I hired a Divine to read with him and teach
him writing and the art of penmanship 3 ; and, as soon as he saw
ten years, I bought him a horse of the purest blood, whereon he
learnt cavalarice and the shooting of shafts and the firing of bullets
until he attained his fifteenth year. Presently one day of the days
he asked to go a-hunting in the wilderness, but we his parents (for
he still held me to be his father and my wife his mother) forbade
him in fear of accidents ; whereupon he waxed sore sorrowful

and we allowed him leave to fare forth." And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying

J [In text : " biyarza' ff Asabi-hi " (see supra p. 409). This is, as far as I remember,
the only instance where in the MS. the aorist is preceded by th* preposition "bi," a
construction now so common in the popular dialects. Strange as it may appear at first
sight, it has a deep foundation in the grammatical sentiment, if I may say so, of the
Arabic language, which always ascribed a more or less nominal character to the aorist.
Hence its inflection by Raf (u), Nasb (a) and Jazm (absence of final vowel), corre-
sponding to the nominative, accusative and oblique case of the noun. Moreover in the
old language itself already another preposition ("li") was joined to the aorist. The
less surprising, therefore, can it be to find that the use of a preposition in connection
with it has so largely increased in the modern idiom, where it serves to mark this semi-
nominal character of the aorist, which otherwise would be lost in consequence of the
loss of the vowel terminations. This interesting subject deserves a fuller development,
but I must reserve it for another opportunity inshd 'llh ! ST.]

2 [Again " yastanit "= he listened attentively ; comp. note p. 24. ST.]

3 In text Zarb al-Aklsim."

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-lrak. 433

her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
and tasteful is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer
me to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

fce (SigfH IDuntirttJ antf <Ttocntn^&rst jligfjt

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benenting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the adop-
tive father pursued to his comrade, " So we permitted him to
hie a-hunting, and he farewelled us and went forth from us and
left us, whereat we fell to beweeping him ; and inasmuch as until
this present he hath not returned to us, I have set out to seek
him and here am I in this place searching for traces of him.
Peradventure may Allah Almighty deign unite me with him and
gar me forgather with him ; for, Walldhi ! from the hour he
went from us sleep hath done us no good nor have we found
relish in food." And when the speech was ended, quoth his
comrade, " O my brother, whenas he is not the son of thy loins
and he could prove himself perverse to thee, what must be the
condition in his regard of the father who begat him and the
mother who enwombed him ?" He replied, "Theirs must be
cark and care and misery beyond even mine ; " and the other
rejoined, " By Allah, O my brother, verily the relation thou hast
related anent this child proveth that he is, by God, my child and
of mine own seed, for in sooth his mother gave birth to him in that
stead where she left him being unable to carry him with her ,

but now she beweepeth the loss of him through the nights and
VOL. V. E E

434 Supplemental Nights.

the days." "O my brother," quoth the adoptive father, "we
twain, I and thou, will indeed make public search and open
inquiry for him through the lands, and Allah Almighty shall
guide us himwards." When morning came the pair went forth
together intending to journey from that city, but by doom of the
Decreer the Sultan on that very day set out to visit the gardens ;
and, when the travellers heard tidings thereof, one said to the
other, " Let us stay and solace ourselves with a sight of the royal
suite and after we will wend our ways." Said his comrade, " Tis
well." So they took their station to await the issuing forth of the
Sultan, who suddenly rode out amid his suite as the two stood
leaning beside the road and looking at the Sultan, when behold,
his glance fell upon the two men. He at once recognised the
father who had reared him, and when he gazed at the other
standing beside him his heart was opened to the love of him
albeit he weeted naught of their tie of blood nor believed that
any was his sire save the Shaykh who had adopted him. Accord-
ingly, after considering them he bade carry them both to the House
of Hospitality, so they led them thither and did his bidding.
Hereupon the twain said to themselves, "Wherefore hath the
Sultan made us his guests ? Nor he knoweth us nor we know
him and needs must this have a cause." But after leaving them
the King rode to the gardens where he tarried the whole day,
and when it was sunset he returned to his Palace, and at supper-
tide commanded the men be brought before him. They salam'd
to him and blessed him and he returned their salutations, and
bade them take seat at the trays whereat none other was present.
They obeyed his order much wondering thereat the while and
musing in their minds, " What condition is this ? " They ate till
they were satisfied, after which the food-trays were removed and
they washed their hands and drank coffee and sherbets ; then,
by command of the King, they sat down to converse when the
Sultan addressed them instead of the others, whereat they mar-

The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of A I- Irak. 435

veiled self-communing and saying, " What can be the cause ? "
But as soon as all the attendants had been dismissed to their
quarters and no one remained save the Sultan and his guests
(three in all and no more), and it was the first third of the
night, the King asked them, " Which of you availeth to tell a tale
which shall be a joyance to our hearts ? " The first to answer
him was the true father, who said : Walldhi ; O King of the Age,
there befel me an adventure which is one of the wonders of the
world, and 'tis this. I am son to a King of the Kings of the
earth who was wealthy of money and means, and who had the
goods of life beyond measure. He feared for my safety because
he had none other save myself, and one day of the days, when
I craved leave to go a-hunting in the wilderness, he refused me
in his anxiety for my safety. (Hereat, quoth the Sultan in him-
self, " By Allah, the story of this man is like my history !) " So
quoth I : O King, unless I fare forth to sport, verily I will slay
myself, and quoth my sire : O my son, do thou go ride to the
chase, but leave us not long for the hearts of us two, I and thy
mother, will be engrossed by thee. Said I, " Hearing and obey-
ing," and I went down to the stable to take a steed ; and finding
a smaller stall wherein was a horse chained to four posts and, on
guard beside him two slaves who could never draw near him, I
approached him and fell to smoothing his coat. He remained
silent and still whilst I took his furniture and set it upon his
back, and girthed his saddle right tight and bridled him and
loosed him from the four posts, and during all this he never
started nor shied at me by reason of the Fate and Fortune writ
upon my forehead from the Secret World. Then I got him ready
and mounted him and went forth And Shahrazad was sur-
prised by the dawn of day, and fell silent and ceased to say her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet
is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would

436 Supplemental Nights.

relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to
survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

an&

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the man who
was bespeaking the Sultan pursued to him, " Then I mounted him
and rode him over the gravelly ground without the city when
behold, he snorted and snarked and shook his crest and started at
speed and galloped with m.e and bolted, swiftly as though he were
a bird in the firmament of heaven." On this wise he fell to
recounting all that had befallen in the cave between him and the
Merchant's daughter and what had betided him by decree of Allah ;
how he had left her for his own land and how had her sire come
and carried her away ; also in what manner she had been delivered
of a son by him on the road and had left her babe-child in the tent
hoping that someone might find him and take him and tend him ;
and, lastly, how he had married the child's mother and what was
the cause of his going forth and his coming to that place that he
might seek his son. Hereupon the Sultan turned to his adoptive
father whom hitherto he had believed to be his real parent saying,
"And thou, the other, dost thou know any tale like that told to us
by thy comrade ? " So the Shaykh recounted to him the whole
history as hath before been set forth from incept to conclusion, nor
hid from him aught thereof. Then the Sultan declared himself to
his true sire, saying, "Thou art my father and there befel such
things and such," after which said his adoptive parent, " Wallahi,
O my son, verily none is thy father save this one from whose loins

The Merchants Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irak. 437

thou art sprung, for I only found thce in the pavilion and took
thee and tended thee in my home. But this is thy very parent in
very deed." Hereat all the three fell upon one another's necks
and kissed one another and the Sultan cried, " Praise to Him who
hath united us after disunion ! " and the others related to him
anent his maternal grandfather how he was a Merchant, and
concerning his paternal grandsirc how he was a Monarch. Anon
each of the two was ordered to revisit his own country and convey
his consort and his children ; and the twain disappeared for the
space of a year and a month and at length returned to the young
King. Hereupon he set apart for them palaces and settled them
therein and they tarried with him until such time as there came to
them the Destroyer of delights and the Severer of societies.

STORY OF THE YOUTH WHO WOULD
PUTTER HIS FATHER'S WIVES

441

STORY OF THE YOUTH WHO WOULD PUTTER
HIS FATHER'S WIVES. 1

IT is related that there was a man who had a grown-up son, but
the youth was a ne'er-do-well, 2 and whatever wife his sire
wedded, the son would devise him a device to lie with her and
have his wicked will of her, and he so managed the matter that
his father was forced to divorce her. Now the man once married
a bride beautiful exceedingly and, charging her beware of his son,

jealously guarded her from him. And Shahrazad was surprised

by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O
sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night, and that was

&6e <$igf)t f^unUrefc ant) 2Tf)trtn$ccon& j&fgbt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be not sleeping, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night !" She replied : With love

and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the father
applied himself to safe-guarding his wife and gave her a charge
warning her with threats against his son and saying, " Whenas I
wed evQr a woman, yonder youth by his cunning manageth to have

1 Vol. iii. 247-261. This violation of the Harem is very common in Egypt.
1 Arab. " Fadawi," here again = a blackguard, see vol. iv. 281.

442 Supplemental Nights.

his wicked will of her." Quoth she, " O Man, what be these words
thou speakest ? This thy son is a dog, nor hath he power to do
with me aught, and I am a lady amongst women." Quoth he,
" Indeed I but charge thee to have a care of thyself. 1 Haply I
may hie me forth to wayfare and he will lay some deep plot for
thee and work with thee as he wrought with others." She
replied, " O Man, hold thyself secure therefrom for an he bespeak
me with a single word I will slipper him with my papoosh ; " 2 and
he rejoined, " May safety be thine ! " He cohabited with her for
a month till one day of the days when he was compelled to travel ;
so he went in to his wife and cautioned her and was earnest with
her saying, " Have a guard of thyself from my son the debauchee
for 'tis a froward fellow, a thief, a miserable, lest he come over thee
with some wile and have his will of thee." Said she, " What
words are these ? Thy sort is a dog nor hath he any power over
me in aught whereof thou talkest, and if he bespeak me with one
injurious word, I will slipper him soundly with my foot-gear." 3
He rejoined, " If thou happen to need aught 4 never even mention
it to him ; " and she, " Hearkening and obedience." So he fare-
welled her and fared forth wholly intent upon his wayfare. Now
when he was far enough from the town the youth came to the
grass-widow but would not address a single word to her, albeit
fire was lighted in his heart by reason of her being so beautiful.
Accordingly he contrived a wile. It happened to be summer-tide
so he went 5 to the house and repaired to the terrace-roof, and there
he raised his clothes from his sitting-place and exposed his back-

1 The Irishman says, Sieep with both feet in one stocking.

2 Arab, or rather Egypt. "Babuj," from "Bdbug," from the Pers. " Pay- push" = foot-
clothing, vulg. " Papush." To beat with shoe, slipper, or pipe-stick is most insulting ; the
idea, I believe, being that these articles are not made, like the rod and the whip, for corporal
chastisement, and are therefore used by way of slight. We find the phrase "he slippered
the merchant " in old diaries, e.g. Sir William Ridges, 1683, Hakluyts, m dccc Ixxvii.

3 Arab. ' Sarmujah " = sandals, slippers, shoes, esp. those worn by slaves.
* Suggesting carnal need.

6 The young man being grown up did not live in his father's house.

Story of the Youth who would Putter Ms Father's Wives. 443

side stark naked to the cooling breeze ; then he leant forwards
propped on either elbow and, spreading his hands upon the ground,
perked up ! his bottom. His stepmother looked at him and mar-
velling much said in her mind, " Would Heaven I knew of this
froward youth what may be his object ! " * However he never
looked at her nor ever turned towards her but he abode quiet in the
posture he had chosen. She stared hard at him and at last could
no longer refrain from asking him, " Wherefore dost thou on this
wise ? " He answered, " And why not ? I am doing that shall
benefit me in the future, but what that is I will never tell thee ; no
never." She repeated her question again and again, and at last he
replied, " I do thus when 'tis summer -tide and a something of
caloric entereth my belly through my backside and when 'tis winter
the same cometh forth and warmeth my body ; and in the cool
season I do the same and the frigoric cometh forth in the dog-days
and keepeth me in heats like these, fresh and comfortable. 8 " She
asked, " An I do what thou doest, shall it be the same to me."
and he answered, " Aye." Herewith she came forward beside him
and raised her raiment from her behind till the half of her below

the waist was stark naked ; And Shahrazad perceived the dawn

of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on
the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night and that was

1 Arab. "Tartara.'* The lexicons give only the sigs. "chattering** and so forth.
Prob. it is an emphatic reduplication of "Tarra** sprouting, pushing forward.

* The youth plays upon the bride's curiosity, a favourite topic in Arab, and all Eastern
folk-lore.

1 There is & confusion in the text easily rectified by the sequel. The facetia suggests
the tale of the Schildburgers, who on a fine summer's day carried the darkness out of the
house in their caps and emptied it into the sunshine which they bore to the dark room.

444 Supplemental Nights.

anlr

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the grass-
widow came forward beside her stepson and raised her raiment
from her behind until the half of her below the waist was stark
naked ; and she did even as her husband's son had done, and
perked up her buttocks, leaning heavily upon her knees and
elbows. Now when she acted on this wise the youth addressed
her saying, " Thou canst not do it aright." " How so ? "
" Because the wind passing in through the postern passeth out
through thy portal, thy solution of continuity." " Then how shall
I do ? " " Stopper thy slit wherethrough the air passeth." " How
shall I stopper it ? " " An thou stopper it not thy toil will be in
vain." " Dost thou know how to stopper it ? " " Indeed I do ! "
" Then rise up and stopper it." Hearing these words he arose,
because indeed he greeded for her, and came up behind her as she
rested upon her elbows and knees and hending in hand his prickle
nailed it into her coynte and did manly devoir. And after having
his will of her he said, "Thou hast now done thy best for me
and thy belly is filled full of the warm breeze." On this wise he
continued every day, enjoying the wife of his father for some time
during his wayfare, till the traveller returned home, and on his
entering the house the bride rose and greeted him and said,
"Thou hast been absent overlong!" 1 The man sat with her

1 A kindly phrase popularly addressed to the returning traveller whether long absent
or not.

Story of thi Youth who would Putter kis Fathers Wives. 445

awhile and presently asked of her case for that he was fearful of
his son ; so she answered, " I am hale and hearty ! " " Did my
son ask thee of aught ? Jt " Nay, he asked me not, nor did he
ever address me : withal, O Man, he hath admirable and excellent
expedients and indeed he is deeply versed in natural philosophy."
" What expedients and what natural philosophy ? " " He tucketh
up his dress and exposeth his backside to the breeze which now
passeth into his belly and benefiteth him throughout the cold
season, and in winter he doeth exactly what he did in summer with
effect as beneficial. And I also have done as he did." Now when
the husband heard these her words he knew that the youth had
practised upon her and had enjoyed his desire of her ; so he asked
her, " And what was it thou diddest ? " She answered, " I did
even as he did. However the breeze would not at first enter into
my belly for whatever passed through the back postern passed out
of the front portal, and the youth said to me : Stopper up thy
solution of continuity. I asked him> Dost thou know how to
stopper it ? and he answered, Indeed I do ! Then he arose and
blocked it with his prickle ; and every day I continued to do like-
wise and he to stopper up the peccant part with the wherewithal
he hath." All this was said to the husband who listened with his
head bowed groundwards ; but presently he raised it and cried,
" There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the
Glorious, the Great ; " and suddenly as they were speaking on

that subject the youth came in to them And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is
thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!"
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

Supplemental Nights.

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be not sleeping, finish for us thy tale, that we may cut short the
watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With love
and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting,
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the
youth came in to his father and found his stepmother relating to
him all they had done whilst he was away and the man said to
him, " Wherefore, O youth, hast thou acted on such wise ? " Said
the son, "What harm have I done ? I only dammed the waterway
that the warm air might abide in her belly and comfort her in the
cold season." So the father knew that his son had played this
trick in order to have his will of her. Hereat he flew into a fury 1
and forthright divorced her, giving her the contingent dowry ; and
she went her ways. Then the man said in his mind, " I shall never
get the better of this boy until I marry two wives and ever keep
them each with other, so that he may not cozen the twain.'* Now
after a couple of weeks he espoused a fair woman fairer than his
former and during the next month he wived with a second and
cohabited with the two brides. Then quoth the youth in his
mind, " My papa hath wedded two perfect beauties and here am I,
abiding in single blessedness. By Allah, there is no help but that
I play a prank upon both of them ! " Then he fell to seeking a
contrivance but he could not hit upon aught for that whenever
he entered the house he found his two step-mothers sitting
together and thus he could not avail to address either. But his
father never fared forth from home or returned to it without
warning his wives and saying, " Have a care of yourselves against
that son of mine. He is a whoremonger and he hath made my

1 In the text " Hamdkah."

Story of the Youth who would Putter his Fathers Wives. 447

life distraught, for whenever I take to myself a wife he serveth
some sleight upon her ; then he laugheth at her and so manageth
that I must divorce her." At such times the two wives would cry,
" Wallalii, an he come near us and ask us of amorous mercy we
will slap him with our slippers." Still the man would insist,
saying, " Be ye on your guard against him," and they would reply,
" We are ever on our guard." Now one day the women said to
him, " O man, our wheat is finished," and said he, " Be ye
watchful while I fare to the Bazar in our market-town which lieth
hard by and fetch you the corn." So he left them and made for

the town, And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and fell

silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister
Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine,
and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is
this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

an* {J&frtp.fiftf) J2tgf)t,

448 Supplemental Nights.

shoes." The women still stood looking, and the youth returned
in mighty haste and hurry till he stood under the terrace, when he
looked up and said, " My father hath just now charged me with a
charge saying : Do thou go sleep with my wives, the twain of
them, and have each of them once." They replied, "What, O
dog, O accursed, thy father bespake thee on this wise ? By Allah,
indeed thou liest, O hog, O ill-omened wight." " Wallahi," he
rejoined, " I lie not ! " So he walked back till he was near his
father when he shouted his loudest so as to be heard by both
parties, " O my papa, O my papa, one of them or the two of
them ? One of them or the two of them ? " The father shouted
in reply, " The two, the two ! Allah disappoint thee : did I say
one of them or the two of them ? " So the youth returned to
his father's wives and cried, " Ye have heard what my papa said.
I asked him within your hearing: One of them or the two of
them ? and ye heard him say : Both, both." Now the man was
speaking of his slippers, to wit, the pair; but the women under-
stood that his saying, " the two of them " referred to his wives.
So one turned to her sister spouse and said, " So it is, 1 our ears
heard it and the youth hath on no wise lied : let him lie with me
once and once with thee even as his father bade him." Both were
satisfied herewith ; but meanwhile the son stole quietly into the
house and found his father's papooshes : then he caught him up
on the road and gave them to him and the man went his ways.
Presently the youth returned to the house and taking one of his
father's wives lay with her and enjoyed her and she also had her
joy of him ; and when he had done all he wanted with her he
fared forth from her to the second wife in her chamber and
stretched himself beside her and toyed with her and futtered her.
She saw in the son a something she had not seen in the sire, so she
joyed in him and he joyed in her. Now when he had won his will

1 Arab. " Adi " which has occurred before.

Story of the Youth who would Futtcr his Fathers Wives. 449

of the twain and had left the house the women forgathered and
began talking and saying, " By Allah, this youth hath given us
both much amorous pleasure, far more than his father ever did ;
but when our husband shall return let us keep our secret even
though he spake the words we heard : haply he may not brook too
much of this thing." So as soon as the man came back with the
wheat he asked the women saying, " What befel you ? " and they
answered, " O Man, art thou not ashamed to say to thy son ; Go
sleep with both thy father's wives? Tis lucky that thou hast
escaped." Quoth he, " Never said I aught of this " ; and quoth
they, " But we heard thee cry ; The two of them." He rejoined,
" Allah disappoint you ! I forgot my papooshes and said to him,
Go fetch them. He cried out, One of them or the two of them ?
and I replied, The two of them, meaning my shoes, not you."
" And we," said they, " when he spake to us such words slippered
him and turned him out and now he never cometh near us."
" Right well have ye done," he rejoined, " 'tis a fulsome fellow."
This was their case ; but as regards the youth, he fell to watching
and dogging his father's path, and whenever the man left the
house and went afar from it he would go in to the women who
rejoiced in his coming. Then he would lie with one, and when he
had won his will of her he would go to the sister-wife and tumble
her. This lasted for some time, until the women said each to
other, " What need when he cometh to us for each to receive him
separately in her room ? Let us both be in one chamber and
when he visiteth us let us all three, we two and he, have mutual
joyance and let him pass from one to other." And they agreed to
this condition, unknowing the decree of Allah which was preparing

to punish the twain for their abandoned wantonness. And

Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
VOL. v F F

450 Supplemental Nights.

I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me
to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was

an*

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be not sleeping, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the
watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With love
and good will! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the two
women agreed to partnership in iniquity with the youth their step-
son. Now on the next day the man went forth and left his house
for some pressing occasion and his son followed him till he saw
him far distant : then the youth repaired to the two wives and
found them both in one chamber. So he asked them, " Why doth
not each of you go to her own apartment ? " and they answered,
" What use is there in that ? Let us all be together and take our
joy, we and thou." So he lay between them and began to toy with
them and tumble them ; and roll over them and mount upon the
bubbies of one and thence change seat to the other's breasts and
while so doing all were plunged in the sea of enjoyment. 1 But
they knew not what lurked for them in the hidden World of the
Future. Presently, lo and behold ! the father returned and entered
the house when none of them expected him or was ware of him ;
and he heard their play even before he went into the chamber.
Here he leant against a side-wall and privily viewed their pro-
ceedings and the lewd state they were in ; and he allowed time to
drag on and espied them at his ease, seeing his son mount the
breasts of one woman and then shift seat to the bubbies of his
other wife. After noting all this he fared quietly forth the house

1 This " little orgie," as moderns would call it, strongly suggests the Egyptian origin
of the tale.

Story of the Youth who would Putter his Father's Wives. 45

and sought the Wall complaining of the case; so the Chief of
Police took horse and repaired with him to his home where, when
the two went in, they found the three at the foulest play. The
Wali arrested them one and all and carried them with elbows
pinioned to his office. Here he made the youth over to the
Linkman who struck his neck, and a$ for the two women he bade
the executioner delay till nightfall and then take them and strangle
them and hide their corpses underground. And lastly he com-
manded the public Crier go about all the city and cry : " This
be the award of high treason." And men also relate (continued
Shahrazad) the

S TORY OF THE TWO LACK-TACTS
OF CAIRO AND DAMASCUS.

455

STORY OF THE TWO LACK-TACTS OF CAIRO
AND DAMASCUS. 1

WHILOME in Cairo-city there was a man famed as a Lack-tact
and another in Damascus was celebrated for the like quality. Each
had heard of his compeer and longed to forgather with him and
sundry folk said to the Syrian, " Verily the Lack-tact of Egypt is
sharper than thou and a cleverer physiognomist and more intelli-
gent, and more penetrating, and much better company ; also he
excelleth thee in debate proving the superiority of his lack of tact."
Whereto the Damascene would reply, " No, by Allah, I am more
tasteful in my lack of tact than yon Cairene ; " but his people
ceased not to bespeak him on this wise until his heart was filled
full of their words ; so one day of the days he cried, " By Allah,
there is no help for it but I fare for Cairo and forgather with her
Lack-tact." Hereupon he journeyed from Damascus and ceased
not wayfaring till he reached Cairo. The time was about set of
sun and the first who met him on the road was a woman ; so he
asked her concerning certain of the highways of the city and she
answered, " What a Lack-tact thou must be to put such a question
at such an hour I Whoso entereth a strange place in the morning
enquireth about its highways, but whoso entereth at eventide asketh
about its caravanserai 2 wherein he may night." " Sooth thou
sayest," rejoined he, " but my lack of tact hath weakened my wits."
He then sought news of the Khans and they showed him one

1 MS. vol.vi. 262-271. Arab. "'Adfm al-Zauk" which the old Latin dictionaries
translate "destitutes experientiae " and "expers desiderii," and it is = to our deficient
in taste, manners, etc. The term is explained in vol. ix. 266 (correct my General Index
" ix. 206"), Here it evidently denotes what we call "practical joking," a dangerous
form of fun, as much affected by Egyptians as by the Hibernians,.

1 In text " Wakdlah " = an inn : vol. i. 266.

4$6 Supplemental Nights.

whereto he repaired and passed the night ; and in the morning --
And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dun-
yazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this com-
pared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Lack-tact of
Damascus passed the night in the Wakalah and in the morning he
went forth and wandered about the highways of Cairo questing her
Lack-tact ; and, when they informed him of his rival's whereabouts,
he forgathered with him and was received with an honorable
reception and was welcomed and kindly entreated and comfortably
seated that the twain might talk over the news of the world.
Presently quoth the Lack-tact of Damascus to the Lack-tact of
Cairo, " I would that we two test each other's quality by playing
a prank in turn ; and whoso shall be preferred by the testimony of
the general, he shall lord it over his rival." The Cairene asked,
" Which of us shall begin ? " and the Damascene answered, " I,"
whereto the other rejoined, " Do whatso thou wiliest." So the
Syrian went forth and hired him an ass which he drove out of the
city to a neighbouring clump of Ausaj-bushes 1 and other thorns
whereof he cut down a donkey-load, and setting the net-full upon

u >

Ausaj," for which.the dictionaries give only a thorny plant, a bramble.

Story of the Two Lack-Tacts of Cairo and Damascus. 457

the beast's back returned to the city He then made for the Bab
al-Nasr, 1 but he could not enter lor the crowding of the folk
frequenting it and the Cairene was gladdened by his doings : so
the man stinted not standing there with his ass and load of thorns
till morn was near, when he lost his temper and urged his beast
close up to the gate. By so doing all the garments of the way-
farers which were caught by the Ausaj-thorns were torn to rags
and tatters, and some of the people beat him and others buffetted
him and others shoved him about saying, " What a superior Lack-
tact thou art I Allah ruin thy natal realm ! Thou hast torn folk's
dress to rags and tatters with that load of thorns." Still he drave
his donkey onwards albeit the people cried to him, " O man, with-
draw thee, the passengers are all jammed at the gate;" but he
would not retire and those present dealt him more blows and
abuse. Hereat he only cried, " Let me pass through 1 " and pushed
on whereby he obtained a severer beating. This lasted till mid-
afternoon, for he could on nowise enter by reason of the crush at
the Bab al-Nasr ; but about sundown the crowd thinned and so he
drove on his ass and passed the gate. Then quoth to him the
Cairene, " What is this thou hast done ? This is mere horseplay 8
and not lack of tact." Now on the morning of the next day the
Lack-tact of Cairo was required to play his prank even as the
Damascene had done ; so he rose up and girded his loins and

tucked up his sleeves and took up a tray And Shahrazad was

surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her
permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is
thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! "
Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? "
Now when it was the next night and that was

1 The grand old Eastern or Desert-gate of Cairo : see vol. vl 234.
* Arab. "Thakalah," lit. = heaviness, dulncss, stupidity.

458 Supplemental Nights.

!5ti$t f^untrrefc antr

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be not sleeping, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Egyptian
rose up and girded his loins and tucked up his sleeves, and taking
him a tray said to the Syrian, " Up and after me and see what I
shall do." Then he went out tray on head, and foregoing the
Damascene to a flower-garden he gathered a bundle of blooms and
sweet-scented herbs, pinks and roses and basil and pennyroyal l
and marjoram and other such, until the tray was filled, after which
he returned to town. About noontide he repaired to one of the
Cathedral-mosques and entered the lavatory, 2 around which were
some fifteen privies : 3 so he stood amiddlemost the floor consider-
ing the folk as they entered the jakes to do their jobs in private
lest the bazar-people come upon them during their easement. And
all were sore pressed wanting to pass urine or to skite ; so whenever
a man entered the place in a hurry he would draw the door to.
Then the Lack-tact of Cairo would pull the door open, and go in
to him carrying a posy of perfumed herbs, and would say, " Thy
favour ! 4 O my brother," and the man would shout out saying,
" Allah ruin thy natal realm, are we at skite or at feast ? " whereat
all standing there would laugh at him. Suddenly one rushed into

1 This is a mere shot " : the original has ' Baithardn."

2 Arab. "Mayzah"= the large hall with a central fountain for ablution attached to
every great Mosque.

3 In the text " Shashmah," from Pers. " Chashmah" a fountain ; applied in Egypt to
the small privies with slab and hole ; vol. i. 221.

4 [In Ar. " Unsak," an expression principally used when drinking to one's health, io
which sense it occurs, for instance, in the Bresl. ed. of The Nights i. 395, 7. ST.]

Story of the Two Lack- Tacts of Cairo and Damascus. 459

the lavatory sore pressed and hanging an arse l and crying aloud
in his grievous distress, " O Allah, O His Prophet, aid me ! " for
that he feared to let fly in his bag-trousers. Then the Lack-tact
would accost him holding in hand his posy of perfumed herbs, and
softly saying, " Bismillah take it, and give me thy favour ; " and
the man would roar at the top of his voice, "Allah disappoint
thee ! what a Lack-tact thou art : I am sore pressed ; get thee
out." And the further that man would fare away from him the
closer he would follow him saying, " Thy favour ! Take it ! Smell
it ! " Now at that time all the cabinets of easement were full of
people, nor did one remain vacant, and the distressed man stood
there expecting someone to issue that he might enter ; but in his

condition the delay Was overlong And Shahrazad perceived

the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted
say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful
is thy tale, O sister mine, and enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth
she, " And where is this compared with that I would relate to you
on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now
when it was the next night and that was

&{)e i$t IQuntJifU an* ^fjirtp-ntnt!) Xt'gljt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Cairene
Lack-tact kept bespeaking that sorely distressed man and follow-
ing him as he fled, crying out to him and saying, " Away from me,
am I not this moment about to skite or am I at a feast ? " till at

1 Arab. ' Mutdti bt zahri-h " : our ancestors' expression was not polite, but expressive
and picturesque.

460 Supplemental Nights.

last the excess of weight in his arse-gut caused him to let fly in
his bag-trousers and bewray all his behind. And during this time
none came out of the jakes, so the unhappy sat in his unease and
all the folk seeing him conskite himself fell to laughing at him as
he sat there, and the Lack-tact of Cairo continued offering him
the posy, saying, " Thy favour ! " and the other continued shouting
his loudest, " Am I at skite or at a feast ? " Thereupon the Lack-
tact of Damascus turned to his rival and cried, " The Fatihah ! is
in thy books, O Chief Joker of Cairo. By Allah (and the Almighty
grant thee length of life !) thou hast excelled me in everything, and
they truly say that none can surpass or overcome the Cairene and
men have agreed to declare that the Syrian winneth his wish
and gaineth only blame, while the Egyptian winneth not his wish
and gaineth thanks and praise." And amongst other things it
happened 2 that a Cairene went to borrow a donkey from another
man, a Damascene, wishing to ride it to a wedding, and when he
met his friend he saluted him and said, " Ho Such-an-one, lend me
thine ass for such a purpose." Now when the owner of the animal
heard these words he smote hand upon hand and cried, " O
worshipper of Allah, 8 a little while ere thou earnest to me, a man
urgently asked it of me and took it on loan: haddest thou been
somewhat earlier I would have lent it to thee. Verily I am put
to shame by thee as thou goest from me without thy need." The
Egyptian said in his mind, " By Allah, this one speaketh sooth, and
had the donkey been in his house assuredly he would have lent it
to me." But the owner of the animal said to himself, " Certainly
Such-an-one begged it of me, but the rest is a lie, for the beast is

1 The normal pun : " Fatihah," fern, of " fdtih "= an opener, a conqueror, is the first
Koranic chapter, for which see iv. 36.

* This appears to be a kind of padding introduced to fill up the Night. The loan of
an ass is usually granted gratis in Fellah villages and Badawi camps. See Matth. xxi.
2, 3 ; Mark xi. 2-6, and Luke xix. 30-34.

3 *'.. O Moslem, opposed to Enemy of Allah = a .non-Moslem. In text Ya 'Ibad,
plur. for sing.

Story of the Two Lack- Tacts of Cairo and Damascus. 461

shut up in the stable." However the Syrian who owned the beast
went to his gossip, the man who had begged a loan of it, and
entering the house salam'd to him and said, " Give me the donkey f

O Such-an-one ; " And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn

of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet is thy story, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And
where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the
coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when
it was the next night and that was

3H)e ffifgftt f^unfcttU anO Jfortictf) /2igi)t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night!" She replied: With

love and good will I It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Syrian
went to his gossip saying, " Give me the ass ;" and when the
other heard this he showed his teeth l and cried, " Allah disappoint
the donkey and the owner of the donkey and whoso rideth the
donkey," and flying into an exceeding fury at last said, "Go,
O my lord, and take it from the stable, and may Allah never bring
back nor thee nor the beast." So the Syrian went from him
saying in himself, " Allah disappoint this fellow, why did he not
give me the ass at first and then he had not had occasion to abuse
and curse himself and to revile me also." But they say and say
truly, " The Syrian winneth his wish, but gaineth only blame
while the Egyptian, winneth not his wish and gaineth thanks and
praise!"

1 Arab. " Kashshara " = grinned a ghastly smile ; it also means laughing so aa
show the teeth.

TALE OF HIMSELF TOLD BY THE KING.

465

TALE OF HIMSELF TOLD BY THE KING. 1

I HAVE a tale, O my lord the Kazi, which bewildereth the wits
and it is on this wise. By birth and origin I was the son of a
Khwajah, but my father owned much worldly wealth in money and
effects and vaiselle and rarities and so forth, besides of landed
estates and of fiefs and mortmains a store galore. And every
year when the ships of Al-Hind would arrive bringing Indian
goods and coffee from Al-Yaman the folk bought thereof one-
fourth of the whole and he three-fourths paying in ready cash
and hard money. 2 So his word was heard and his works were
preferred amongst the Traders and the Grandees and the Rulers.
Also he had controul s in counselling the Kings and he was held
in awe and obeyed by the merchants, one and all, who consulted
him in each and every of their affairs. This endured until one
year of the years when suddenly he fell sick and his sickness
grew upon him and gained mastery over his frame, so he sent for
me, saying, " Bring me my son." Accordingly I went and entered
to him and found him changed of condition and nearing his last
gasp. But he turned to me and said, " O my son, I charge thee
with a charge which do thou not transgress nor contrary me in
whatso I shall declare to thee." " What may that be ? " asked I,
and he answered, " O my son, do thou never make oath in Allah's
name, or falsely or truly, even although they fill the world for thee

1 This tale follows "The Kazi of Baghdad, his treacherous Brother and his Virtuous
Wife," which is nothing but a replica of "The Jewish Kazi and his Pious Wife"
(vol. v. 256). Scott has translated it, after his fashion, in vol. vi. p. 396-406, and
follows it up with " The Sultan's Story of Himself," which ends his volume as it shall be
the conclusion of mine.

3 In text, " Wa yoakhazu '1 thatttha arba' min mili-hi wa salbi hili-hi.

In text ' La-hu Dirdah (for " Dirdyah" = prudence) fl tadbiri 1-Muluk."
VOL. V.

4 66 Supplemental Nights.

with wealth ; but safeguard thy soul in this matter and gainsay it
not, nor give ear to aught other." But when it was midnight the
Divine Mystery 1 left him and he died to the mercy of Allah
Almighty; so I buried him, expending much money upon his
funeral and graved him in a handsome tomb. He had left to me
wealth in abundance such as the pens could not compute, but
when a month or so had sped after his decease suddenly came to
me a party of folk, each and every claiming by way of debt from
me and my sire the sum of some five thousand dinars." Where
be your written bond given by my father ? " asked I ; but they
answered, " There be no instrument and if thou believe us not make
oath by Allah." Replied I saying, " Never will I swear at all,"
and paid them whatso they demanded ; after which all who feared
not the Lord would come to me and say, " We have such-and-
such owing to us by thy parent ; " and I would pay them off until
there remained to me of ready moneys a matter neither great nor
small. Hereupon I fell to selling off my landed estates -- And
Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me
to survive ? " Now when it was the next night and that was.

1 In text " Al-Sirru 'Mlsttri," i. e . the soul, which is '-divinse particula aurse."

Tale of Himself told by the King. 467

of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the King thus
continued his relation to the Kazi : I began selling off my landed
estates and fiefs and letting out my settlements of bequeathal !
until naught of all that remained by me ; so I fell to vending the
house-gear and goods and carpets and pots and pans until I
owned nothing whatever, and my case waxed straitened and the
affair was grievous to me. Then quoth I to myself, "Allah's
earth for Allah's folk ! " and, albeit I had a wife and two male
children, I left them and went forth under cover of the night a
wanderer about the world and unknowing where I should bring
myself to anchor. But suddenly O my lord the Kazi, I was
confronted by a man whose aspect bred awe, showing signs of
saintliness and garbed wholly in spotless white ; so I accosted him
and kissed his hand, and he on seeing me said, " O my son, there
is no harm to thee ! " presently adding,

" Do thou be heedless of thy cark and care o And unto Fate commit thy whole

affair;
The Lord shall widen what to thee is strait ; o The Lord shall all for breadth

of space prepare :
The Lord shall gladly end thy grievous toils ; o The Lord shall work His will,

so jar forbear."

After these words he took my hand and walked with me athwart
those wilds and wolds till such time as we made a city and entered
its gates. Here, however, we found no signs of creature-kind
nor any mark of Son of Adam, and when I sighted this my con-
dition changed and fear and affright entered my heart. But
presently the man turned to me and said, " Dread not nor be
startled, for that this city shall (Inshallah i) be thy portion, and
herein thou shalt become Sovran and Sultan." Quoth I to
myself, " Wallahi, verily this man be Jinn-mad Lacking wit and

' In text " Nuwajiru '!-wuk6f*t." [I read " nuwajiro (for " nudjiru ") '1-wukufat,"
taking the first word to be a verb corresponding to the preceding, "nabi'u," and the
second a clerical error for " al-Maukufat." In this case the meaning would be : " and
letting for hire such parts of my property as were inalienable." ST.]

468 Supplemental Nights.

understanding ! How shall I become King and Kaysar in such
place which is all ruins ? " Then he turned to me yet another
time, saying, " Trust in Allah and gainsay Him not ; for verily
shall come to thee joy out of that wherein thou wast of strait-
ness and annoy." And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn

of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale,
O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she,
" And where is this compared with that I would relate an
the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

fic JJme pjunfcre& anfc ^fjfrteentf) Nfj&t,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the

watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that quoth the
man to the youth, 1 " Trust in Allah, for verily joy shall assuredly
come to thee from the Almighty. 1 ' "What joy?" quoth the
Khwajah's son, " and indeed this city is a ruinous heap nor is
there indweller or habitant or any to attest God's Unity." But
the man ceased not going about the highways of the deserted
town with his companion till such time as he reached the Palace
of the Sultanate, and the twain entering therein found it with its
vases and its tapestry like a bride tricked out. 2 But the Spider
had tented therein, so both the wights fell to shaking and sweep-
ing for a three days' space till they had cleaned away all the

1 Here the text has the normal enallage of persons, the third for the first, "the
youth" for "I," I leave it unaltered by way of specimen.

2 In text " 'Arus muhalliyah."

Tale of Himself told by the King. 469

webbing and the dust of years ; after which the elder man took the
younger and entered a closet. Herein he came upon a trap-door
which the two uplifted, when behold, they found a staircase
leading below ; so they descended and walked till they ended at
a place with four open halls, one and all fulfilled with gold, and
amiddlemost thereof rose a jetting fount twenty ells long by fifteen
broad, and the whole basin was heaped up with glittering gems
and precious ores. When the merchant's son saw this sight, he
was wildered in his wits and perplext in his thoughts, but the man
said to him, " O my son, all this hath become thine own good."
After this the two replaced the trap-door as it was and quitted
that place ; then the man took him and led him to another stead
concealed from the ken of man wherein he found arms and
armour and costly raiment ; and the two stinted not wandering
about that palace until they reached the royal Throne-room.
Now when the Khwajah's son looked upon it he waxed distraught
and fell a-fainting to the floor for awhile 1 and presently when
he revived he asked his companion, " O my lord, what be this ? "
Answered he, " This be the throne of the Sultanate wherewith
the Almighty hath gifted thee ;" and quoth the other, " By Allah,
O my lord, I believe that there is not in me or strength or long-
suffering to take seat upon yonder throne." All this the King
(who erst was a merchant's son) recounted to the Judge and
presently resumed 2 : Then the man, O my lord, said to me,
" O my son, to all who shall come hither and seek thee be sure
thou distribute gifts and do alms-deeds ; so the folk, hearing of
thy largesse, shall flock to thee and gather about thee, and as
often as one shall visit thee, exceed in honour and presents from
the treasure-store thou hast sighted and whose site thou weetest."
And so speaking, O our lord the Kazi, he vanished from my

1 He fainted thinking of the responsibilities of whoso should sit thereupon.

* Here is a third enallage, the King returning to the first person, the oratie dirttta.

4/O Supplemental Nights.

view and I wist not an he had upflown to the firmament or had
dived into the depths of the earth, but one thing I knew ; to wit,

that I was alone. And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn

5e jStne $^unlw& antr jpourteentj Nt'gijt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With love

and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the merchant's
son resumed to the Kazi : Then the man vanisht from my view
and I wist no more thereof. So I seated me (and I all alone) in
that city for the first day and the second, but on the third behold,
I saw a crowd making for me from the city-suburbs and they were
seeking a site wherefrom they had somewhat to require. So I met
them and welcomed them and seated them, and soon I arose and
cooking for them food ate in their company and we nighted
together ; and when it was morning I presented each and every
of them with an hundred dinars. These they accepted and fared
forth from me and on reaching their homes they recounted the
adventure to other folk who also flocked to me and received
presents like those who preceded them. Anon appeared to me a
multitude with their children and wives who said, " Billdhi, 1 O my

1 i*. ' by Allah ; " for Bi" (the particle proper of swearing) see viii. 310.

Tale of Himself told by the King. 47 1

lord, accept of us that we may settle beside thee and be under thy
protecting glance ; " whereupon I ordered houses be given to
them. Moreover there was amongst them a comely youth who
showed signs of prosperity and him I made my assessor; so we
two, I and he, would converse together. The crowd thickened,
little by little, until the whilome ruined city became fulfilled of
habitants, when I commanded sundry of them that they go forth
and lay out gardens and orchards and plant tree-growths ; and a
full-told year had not elapsed ere the city returned to its older estate
and waxed great as erst it was and I became therein Sovran
and Sultan. Such was the case of this King ; > but as regards
the matter of his wife and his two sons, whenas he fared forth from
them he left them naught to eat and presently their case was
straitened and the twain set out, each in his own direction, and
overwandered the world and endured the buffets of life until their
semblance was changed for stress of toil and travail and transit
from region to region for a while of time. At last, by decree of
the Decreer, the elder was thrown by Eternal Fate into the very
town wherein was his sire and said to himself, " I will fare to the
King of this city and take from him somewhat." -- And Shah-
razad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased
saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
" How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how
enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an
the King suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next.
night and that was

vTIjc /line |DuntiictJ anti jFiftccntf)

DUNYAZAD said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

' Here again is a fourth enallage ; the scribe continuing the narrative.

472 Supplemental. Nights.

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath- reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the young man
went in to the Sultan and kissed ground before him and the King re-
garding him felt his heart yearn himwards and said, " What wantest
thou, O youth ? " " My design is service with thee," said the other ;
and the King rejoined, " Then welcome to thee ! " So he abode in his
employ for a term of four months until he became like unto a
Mameluke * and his first case was changed : the Sultan also drew
him near and fell to consulting him in sundry matters the which
proved propitious, so quoth the King, " By Allah, this young man
meriteth naught less than to become my Wazir," and accordingly
made him his Minister of the Right. In his new degree he became
as another liege lord 2 and his word was heard, so the land was
opened up by his hand and year by year he derived from it corvees
and taxes, nor did he cease to be Chief Councillor under the right
hand of the King. Meanwhile his brother who was the younger
stinted not faring from land to land until he was met by a party of
wayfarers that said to him, " O youth, verily the Sultan who ruleth
in such a capital is a liberal lord, loving the poor and paupers ; so do
thou seek him and haply shall he show himself bounteous to thee."
Quoth he, " I know not the city," and quoth they, " We will lead
thee thereto for we purpose to go by his town." So they took him
and he accompanied them until they reached the city when he
farewelled them and entered the .gates. After solacing himself
with the sights he passed that night in the Wakalah and as soon
as it was morning he fared forth to serve for somewhat wherewith
he might nourish himself, 3 and it was his lot and the doom of the

1 i.e. well fed, sturdy and bonny.

2 "Sara la-hu Shanan." [The word in the text, which is exceedingly badly written,
looks to me as if it were meant for " Thdniyan " = and he (the youth) became second to
him (the Sultan), i.e. his alter ego. ST.]

3 In text " Yatama'ash min-hu." [A denominative of the $th form from " Ma'ash,"

Tale of Himself told by the King. 473

Decreer that the Sultan, who had ridden forth to seek his pleasure
in the gardens, met him upon the highway. The King's glance
fell upon the youth and he was certified of his being a stranger
and a wanderer for that his clothes were old and worn, so he thrust
hand into pouch and passed to him a few gold pieces which the
other accepted right thankfully and blessed the giver and enlarged
his benediction with eloquent tongue and the sweetest speech. The
Sultan hearing this bade them bring to him the stranger, and
whenas they did his bidding he questioned him of his case and was
informed that he was a foreigner who had no friends in that stead ;
whereupon the Sovran took him in and clothed him and entreated
him with kindness and liberality. 1 And after a time the Wazir of
the Right became kindly hearted unto him and took him into his
household where he fell to teaching him until the youth waxed
experienced in expression and right ready of reply and acquired
full knowledge of kingcraft. Presently quoth the Minister to the
Sultan, " O King of the Age, indeed this youth befitteth naught
save councillorship, so do thou make him Wazir of the Left." The
King said, " With love " and followed his advice ; nor was it long
before his heart inclined to the hearts of his two Ministers and the
time waxed clear to him and the coming of these two youths
brought him serenity for a length of days and they also were in the
most joyous of life. But as regards their mother ; when her sons

went forth from her, she abode alone And Shahrazad was

livelihood. It usually has the meaning of " earning one's living," but occurs in Makkari's
Life of Ibn al-Khatlb also in the sense of" feeding or glutting upon," although applied
there not to victuals but to books. ST.]

1 In text "Sarayurishl-h." ["Yurashl" and "yurashu," which had occurred
p. 420, are the 6th form of " rasha, yarshu" =he bestowed a gift (principally for the sake
of bribery, hence " Rashwah " or Rishwah " = a bribe), he treated kindly. ST.]

474 Supplemental Nights.

relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to
survive ?" Now when it Was the next night and that was

Jifne f^un&& and

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied; -- With
love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the woman
who abode alone having been abandoned by her husband and
her childen, cried, " I am here sitting sans my mate and sans
my sons ; whatso shall I ever do ? " and anon the case became
grievous to her and she set out to bewander the regions saying,
" Haply shall Allah reunite me with my children and my husband ! "
And she stinted not passing from place to place and shifting from
site to site until she reached a town upon the margin of the main
and found a vessel in cargo and about to sail. 1 Now by the
decree of the Decreer the ship-captain having heard tell of the
Sultan's generosity and open handedness had made ready for
him a present and was about to voyage therewith to his capital.
Learning this the woman said to him, "Allah upon thee, O
Captain, take me with thee ; " and he did accordingly, setting
sail with a fair wind. He sped over the billows of that sea for a
space of forty days and throughout this time he kept all the
precepts and commandments of religion, as regards the woman, 2
supplying her with meat and drink ; nay more, he was wont to
address her, " O my mother." And no sooner had they made the

1 "Markab Mausukah," from v/ " Wask "= conceiving, being pregnant, etc.

2 "Mutawassi" * * * al-Wisayat al-Tammah." [" Mutawassi" has been met
with before (see p. 420) and " Wisayah " is the corresponding noun = he charged himself
with (took upon himself) her complete charge, i.e. maintenance. ST.]

TaU of Himself told by tht King. 475

city than he landed and disembarked the present and loading it
upon porters' backs took his way therewith to the Sovran and
continued faring until he entered the presence. The Sultan
accepted the gift and largessed him in return, and at even-tide
the skipper craved leave of return to his ship fearing lest any
harm befal vessel or passengers. So he said, " O King of the
Age, on board with me is a woman, but she is of goodly folk and
godly and I am apprehensive concerning her." " Do thou night
here with us," quoth the Sovran," " and I will despatch my two
Wazirs to keep guard over her until dawn shall break." Quoth
the Captain, " Hearing and obeying," and he sat with the Sultan,
who at night-fall commissioned his two Ministers and placed the
vessel under their charge and said, " Look ye well to your lives,
for an aught be lost from the ship I will cut off your heads." So
they went down to her and took their seats the one on poop and
the other on prow until near midnight when both were seized by
drowsiness ; and said each to other, " Sleep is upon us, let us sit
together 1 and talk." Hereupon he who was afore returned to him
who was abaft the ship 2 and they sat side by side in converse,

while the woman in the cabin sat listening to them. And

Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dun-
yazad, " How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and
how enjoyable and delectable ! " Quoth she, " And where is this
compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night
an the Sovran suffer me to survive ? " Now when it was the next
night and that was

1 [In Ar. " khalll-na* nak'ud," a thoroughly modern expression. It reads like a
passage from Spitta Bey's Contes Arabes Modernes, where such phrases as : " khalll-nd
niktib al-Kitib," let us write the marriage contract, " ma-tkhallihsh (for "mi takhallf-
hu shay ") yishufak," let him not sec thee, and the like are very frequent. ST.]

* " Fi Kashshi '1-Markab : " According to custom in the East all the ship's crew
had run on shore about their own business as soon as she cast anchor. This has
happened to me on board an Egyptian man-of-war where, on arriving at Suez, I found
myself the sum total of the crew.

476 Supplemental Nights.

Jiine f^unfcretr anto gbebentwtti) jfltgftt,

DUNYAZAD said to her, " Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou
be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short

the watching of this our latter night ! " She replied : With

love and good will ! It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and
of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the two sons
forgathered in converse while the mother was listening and anon
quoth the elder to the younger, " Allah upon thee, O Wazir of the
Left, do thou relate to me whatso befel and betided thee in thy
time and what was the true cause of thy coming to this city ; nor'
conceal from me aught." " By Allah, O Wazir of the Right," quoth
the other, " my tale is wondrous and mine adventure marvellous
and were it paged upon paper the folk would talk thereanent race
after race." * " And what may that be ? " asked he, and the other
answered, " Tis this. My sire was son to a mighty merchant who
had of moneys and goods and estates and such like what pens
may not compute and which intelligence may not comprehend.
Now this my grandsire was a man whose word was law and every
day he held a Divan wherein the traders craved his counsel about
taking and giving and selling and buying ; and this endured until
what while a sickness attacked him and he sensed his end drawing
near. So he summoned his son and charged him and insisted
thereon as his last will and testament that he never and by no
means make oath in the name of Allah or truly or falsely." Now
the younger brother had not ended his adventure before the elder
Wazir threw himself upon him and flinging his arms around his
neck cried, " Wallahi, thou art my brother by father and mother ! "
and when the woman heard these words of the twain her wits

1 In text, ' Jilan ba'da Jil : " the latter word = revolutions, change of days, tribe,
people.

Tale of Himself told by the King. 477

wandered for joy, but she kept the matter hidden until morning.
The two Wazirs rejoiced in having found each of them a long-
lost brother and slumber fled their eyes till dawned the day when
the woman sent for the Captain and as soon as he appeared said
to him, " Thou broughtest two men to protect me but they caused
me only trouble and travail." The man hearing these words
repaired forthright and reported them to the Sovran who waxed
madly wroth and bade summon his two Ministers and when they
stood between his hands asked them, "What was't ye did in the
ship?" They answered, "By Allah, O King, there befel us
naught but every weal ; " and each said, " I recognised this my
brother for indeed he is the son of the same parents," whereat the
Sovran wondered and quoth he, " Laud to the Lord, indeed these
two Wazirs must have a strange story." So he made them repeat
whatso they had said in the ship and they related to him their
adventure from beginning to end. Hereupon the King cried,
" By Allah, ye be certainly my sons," when lo and behold ! the
woman came forwards and repeated to him all that the Wazirs had
related whereby it was certified that she was the King's lost wife
and their lost mother. 1 Hereupon they conducted her to the
Harem and all sat down to banquet and they led ever after the
most joyous of lives. All this the King related to the Judge and
finally said, " O our lord the Kazi, such-and-such and so-and-so
befel until Allah deigned reunite me with my children and my
wife.' 1

1 The denouement is a replica of " The Tale of the King who lost kingdom and wife
and wealth and Allah restored them to him " (Suppl. Nights, vol. i. 319). That a
Sultan should send his Ministers to keep watch over a ship's cargo sounds passably
ridiculous to a European reader, but a coffee-house audience in the East would find it
perfectly natural. Also that three men, the Sultan and his sons, should live together for
years without knowing anything of one another's lives seems to us an absurdity : in the
case of an Oriental such detai 1 would never strike him even as impossible or even
improbable.

END OF VOLUME V.

INDEX.

A' ATI) AL-WfRAH = gave in their sub-
mission, 405.

corresponds with Turk. " Wfrah

wirmek " = to capitulate (ST.), 405.

Ablution of whole body necessary after
car. cop., 93.

Absurdities to a European reader, are but
perfectly natural to an Eastern coffee-
house audience, 477.

Abtar = tailless (as applied to class of tales
such as " Loves of A MI ay fa and
Yusuf "), 210.

Abti Hamimah - " Father of a Pigeon "
(.*., surpassing in swiftness the carrier
pigeon), 380.

Abuyah (a Fellah, vulg. for "Abi"),
418.

Adi in Egypt (not Arabic) is = that man,
the (man) here, 118.

Adi (Arab.) = So it is, 448.

Adfnf = Here am I, 118.

'Adim al-Zauk (Arab.), tr. " Lack-tacts' 1
= to our deficiency in taste, manners,
etc. (Here denoting "practical

joking"), 455-
Afdk Al- (pi. of Ulk) "elegant" for the

universe (tr. " all the horizons "), 66.
Afrakh al-Jinn /iV.= Chicks of the Jinns

(tr. " Babes of the Jinns "), 202.
Ahmar = red, ruddy brown, dark brown,

347-
Abu 'inda-k, tr. " Whatso thou broughtest

here it be " (Pure Fellah speech), 366.
Ahu ma'f = " Here it is with me" (Pure

Fellah speech), 265.
Ahyaf (alluding to Al-Hayfa) = (with

waist full-) slight, 175.

" Air hath struck me and cut my joints,"
i.e., " I suffer from an attack of rheu-
matism" (common complaint in even
the hottest climates), 160.

'Ajam = Barbarian -land, 213.

'Ajuz, a woman who ceases to have her
monthly period (tr. " the old woman "),

Akhbaru-hu (Arab.) = have given him

(Yahya) tidings, 156. .
Akik=carnelian stone, 130.

Al- (/*ra.) = camel ian, 52.

"Akrfc al. Jullah," tr. "dung cakes"

(ST.), 292.
'Ala-Aklf, tr. "thou deservest naught

for this," 8$.
"'Ala ghayri tarfk " (A rob.) = " out of

the way " (like Pert. " bi R4h ") (ST.,)

224.
Ala hmati-hi = "upon the poll of his

head " (rendered here " upon the nape

of his neck "), 191.
Alibin Ibrahim, "a faithful Eunuch"

(Scott), 184.
" Allah I Allah ! = I conjure thee by God,

302.

Almighty bath done this = ^r^ lit.
" hath given it to him," 27.

(do thou be steadfast of purpose
and rely upon) = " Let us be off," pop.
parlance, 66.

kill all womankind," 304.

(O worshipper of) (i.e., " O

Moslem, opposed to enemy of Allah =

a non-Moslem", 460.
" tent down a book confirmed,"

a passage not Koranic, 47 (not a literal

480

Supplemental Nights.

quotation, but alludes to Koran Hi., 5) '

(ST.), 47-

Allah (sued for pardon of Almighty) a pions

exclamation (" Astaghfiru 'llah"), 136.

Allaho Akbar = God is most great (war

cry), 403-

Anakati-h (Arab.} tr. "neck," 427.
"Ana'l- Tabib, al-Mudawi " (Arab}-

I am the leach, the healer, 326.
" Ana min ahli Zalika," tr. " I am of the

folk of these things" (vulg. equiv.

would be "Kizi," (for " Kazalika,"

Kaza" = so (it is), 50.
'Anfakati-h = the hair between the lower

lips and the chin, also chin itself (ST.),

427.
"Anta jaib(un) bas rajul (an) wahid

(an) " = veritable and characteristic

peasant's jargon, 359.
Ant' amilta maskhara (for maskharah)

matah (for mata), idiomatical Fellah-
tongue, 269.
Ant' aysh (for "man") decidedly not

complimentary " What (thing) art

thou?" 298.

Aorist, preceded by preposition "bi," 43 2 -
' Arabia Deserta " (Mr. Doughty's)

quoted 10, 53, 405.
Arsh," = the Ninth Heaven, 178,
"Art thou (Al-Hajjaj) from Cairo," a neat

specimen of the figure anachronism.

(Al-Hajjaj died A.H. 95 ; Cairo built

A.H. 358), 41.
'Amis muhalliyah "a bride tricked out,"

468.

'Ashama lit. = he greeded for, 285.
Ashkhakh Al- (Arab}, pi. of Shakhkh =

lit. the "Stales" (tr. "skite and piss")

(Steingass reads "bi '1-Shakhakh" the

usual modern word for urine), 265.
Ass (loan of) usually granted gratis in

Fellah villages and Badawi camps,

460.
Assemblage of dramatis personae at end of

a scene highly artistic and equally im-
probable, 31.

Ass (the "cab" of modern Egypt), 281.
4 ' Astaghfiru 'llah," a pious exclamation,

humbling oneself before the Creator
(tr. " sued for pardon of Almighty
Allah"), 136.
Audaj (Arab.} pi. of " Wadaj," applying

indiscriminately to the carotid arteries

and jugular veins, 340.
Audan (//. of the pop. 4< Widn" of

"Wudn" for the literary "Uzn" =

ear) ST., 301.

'Aurat = nakedness, tr. "shame," 75.
* Ausaj = bushes, 456.
"Ayoh" (in text), tr. "here he is ; a

corr. of " I (or Ayy) hii" = yes indeed

he, 265.
Aywah (different spelling for "aywa" =

" yes indeed)" or contraction for Ay

(I) wa 'llahi = "yes, by Allah" (ST.),

265.
Azay matafut-ni? = how canst thou quit

me? 290.

BAB AL-NASR, the grand old Eastern or
Desert-gate of Cairo, 457.

Bdbuj (from "Babug" from the Pers.
" Pay- push = foot-clothing), tr. "pa-
poosh," 442.

Badawi tent, 116.

Badr Al (//. Budur)= the " Full Moon,"
198.

Badrah (Arab} a purse of ten thousand
dirhams, 58.

Badrat Zahab = a purse of gold (ST.), 58.

Bahlul, a famous type of madman, 88.

Bakiir = driving-sticks, 10.

Ballat, limestone slabs cut in the Torah
quarries south oi Cairo, 80.

Baltah-ji, a pioneer one of the old divi-
sions of the Osmanli troops, surviving
as a family name amongst Levantines,

336.
Baltah, for Turk. " Baltah " = an- axe, a

hatchet, 336.
Banj al-tayyar, i.e. y volatile = that which

flies fastest to the brain (tr. "flying

Bhang "), 26.
Banii Ghalib, 43.
Banu Thakif, a noble tribe sprung from

lyad, 46.
Barber, being a surgeon ready to bleed a

madman, 277.
custom of, among Eastern Moslems,

106.
Bashkhanah (corr. of Pers. " Peshkhdnah =

state-tents sent forward on march "),

tr. here *'a hanging," 131.

Index.

4 8l

Bawwabah, Al - a place where door-
keepers meet, a police-station (tr.
" guard house "), 309.

Bayzah (Arab.) - an egg, a testicle, 360.

Bed (on roof) made of carpet or thin
mattress strewn upon the stucco floor-
ing of the terrace roof, 219.

Beef causes dysenteric disease, 51.

" Bi," the particle proper of swearing, 470.

Biirn-milydnah Moyah (with various forms
of'Moyah"), 323.

"Bi.iza"-huma" lit. vis-a-vis to the
twain, 69.

Bi-Khdtiri-k = Thy will be done (tr.
"At thy pleasure "), 322.

"Bi-Ma al-fasfkh 'ala Akr<U al-Jullah"
(tr. "Save with foul water upon the
disks of dung "), 292.

Bi-sab'a Sikak = ///. "with seven nails"
(meaning here posts whereto chains
were attached), 380.

" Bi-Wujuh al Fanijdt al-Milah " (reading
41 al-Ghdnijdt " in app. with "al-
Milah"), rendei "the faces of the
coquettish, the fair" (ST.), 80.

41 Bilam " here = the head-stall of the
bridle (ST.), 381.

" Billahi," i.e., " by Allah," 470.

Birkah = a fountain basin, lajte, pond,
reservoir (tr. "hole"), 117.

Biyarza' fi Asdbi-hi (only instance in MS.
where the aorist is preceded by pre-
position " bi") (ST.), 432.

Blood-red tears, 149.

Bloody sweat, 149.

Brain-pans (good old classical English),
219.

Breslau Ed. quoted, 117, 118, 419.

Bribing the Kazi's wife, 364.

" Bull- (Taur for Tbaur or Saur) num-
bered-and-for-battle-day-lengthened"
(tr. The Bull- aye - ready- and-for-
Battle-aye-steady), 160.

Burd (pi. of Burdah) = mantle or woollen

plaid of striped stuff, 42.
Burka = Nosebag, 91.
Busah (doubtful meaning), possibly reed

used as a case or sheath (ST.), 108.
"By the life of my youih," a "swear"
peculiarly feminine, and never used by
men, 8$.

Byron in England, 274.
VOL. V.

"CAFILAH" (Shaykh of), for Cafila,

419.

Caliphs under the early Ommiades, 39.
" Can play with the egg and the stone,"

i.e., " can play off equally well

the soft-brained and the hard-brained,"

277.
Cap of the "Sutari" or jester of the

Arnaut (Albanian) regiments, 276.
Cap worn by professional buffoon, 276.
"Chafariz" (fountain) of Portugal (der.

from Sakdrij), 5.
Chavis and Cazotte quoted, 27.
Cheek, he set his right hand upon, mean-
ing he rested his cheek upon his right

hand, 9.
Circumcision (Jewish rite) must always be

performed by the Mohel, an official of

the Synagogue, 217.
three operations of, 217.
Circumstantial (affecting the), a favourite

manoeuvre with the Riwl, 233.
Cistern or tank in terrace-roof of Syrian

houses, 246.
Cloud (which contains tain) always typical

of liberality and generous dealing, 179.
Coffee and smoking, 236.
Concealments inevitable in ancient (ale or

novel, 417.
Couplets rhyming in " a"ni " and ' dli "

not lawful, 128.
Courser, rubbing his cheeks upon his

master's back and shoulders, 405.
Cuddy, der. from Pen. " Kadah " = a

room, 24.
Curiosity (playing upon the bride's) = a

favourite topic in Arab, and.all Eastern

folk-lore, 443.

DABBAH = wooden bolt, 265.

Dahmdr (King) called by Scott "Ram-
maud," 105.

Dann = Amphora (Cr. <jy^op<v? short for
<J/x<i<opev? = having two handle*), tr.
" two-handed jar," 198.

Darabukkah-drum (or " tom-tom "), 13.

Darajah = an instant ; also a degree (of
the Zodiac), /r." one watch," 90.

is also used for any short space of

time (ST.), 90.

HI!

482

Supplemental Nights.

Dar al-Ziyafah (in Northern Africa) = a
kind of caravanserai in which travellers
are lodged at Government expense,

330.
' ' Darin " for " Zarin " = wflat is powaered,

collyrium, III.
Dashlsh (Arab.), tr. " flour " (Diets, make

" wheat broth to be sipped "), 347.
this is a pop. cor. of the class.

Jashish = coarsely ground wheat (ST.)>

347-

Daylaki = Daylakian (garments), 143.
Dayr Nashshabah = the Monastery of the

Archers (a fancy name), 129.
Dedes repetitce, forms which go down with

an Eastern audience, but intolerable

in a Western volume, 170,
"Diapedesis" of blood-stained tears

frequently mentioned in the " Nights,"

149-

"Dinim" (religious considerations) of the
famous Andalusian Yusuf Caro (a
most fanatical work), 160.

" Dive not into the depths unless thou
greed for thyself and thy wants," i.e.,
"tempt not Providence unless com-
pelled so to do by necessity," 422.

Diwan (Arab.) = Council-chamber, 227.

Dlwan = Divan (the "Martabah" when
placed on "Mastabah," etc.), 68.

Doggerel, fit only for coffee-house, 164.

" Draw me aside its tail, so that I may
inform thee thereanent" (also similar
facetia in Mullah Jami), 46.

Dried fruits, to form the favourite "filling"
for lamb and other meats prepared in
"Pulao" (Pilaff), 358.

" Drowned in her blood " in the text, for
"all bleeding" (hyperbole run mad),

139-

Drunkenness (instead of "intoxication "),

3i5.

Duty of good neighbour, to keep watch
and guard from evil, 285.

EATETH on the spittle, *.*., on an empty
stomach, 51.

Embarah (pron. 'Mbdrah), pop. for Al-
barihah = the last part of the preced-
icg day or night, yesterday, 256.

Enallage of persons (" third " for " first"

"youth "for "I"), 468.
Exaggeration necessary to impress ad

Oriental audience, 139.

FADAwf (Arab.) = a blackguard (tr.

"ne'er-do-well"), 441.
Faddah, tr. "groats," 226.
Faddan (here miswritten " Faddad ")= a

plough, a yoke of oxen, 347.
also the common land measure of

Egypt and Syria, 347.
"Fa ghaba thalathat ayyamin = an he (or

it, the mountain ?) disappeared for three

days, 390.

(Dr. Steingass translates), 390.

Fahata (for " Fahasa ?" or, perhaps, c!.'

error for " Fataha " = he opened (the

ground), tr. " choosing a place," 353.
Fahata (prob. vulgarism for " Fahatha")

(fahasa) = to investigate (ST.), 353.
or may be read "Fataha" and tr.

"he recited a 'Fatihah' for them,"

(ST.), 353-

Fal or omen (taking a), 424.
Farariji, tr. " Poulterer" (in text, as if the

//. of "Farruj" = chicken were

"Fararij" instead of Fararij) (ST.),

291.
Fatairi = a maker of " Fatirah " pancake

(tr. "Pieman"), 298.
" Fa tarak-hu Muusi am' a ddir yaltash

fi 'l-Tarik"= "hereupon Musa left

his companion darkly tramping about,"

323.

(Dr. Steingass explains and trans-
lates), 323.

F&tihah (fern, of <: fatih" = an opener, a
conqueror), 460.

Fatimah and Halimah = Martha and
Mary, 318.

Fah'r (for "Fatirah") = pancake (tr.
"scone"), 321.

Feeding captives and prisoners (exception
being usually made in cases of brigands,
assassins and criminals condemned for
felony), 430.

"Feeling conception" unknown except
in tales, 124.

Fidawi (also "Fida'i" and " Fidawf-
yah") = pirate-men, 25,

Index.

483

Fighting (the Fellah will use anything in
preference to his fists in), 350.

Fi Hayyi-kum Taflatun hama, etc. ("A
maiden in your tribe avails my heart
with love to fire," etc.) (Steingass also
translates), 149.

11 Fi 'irzak" (vulg. "arzak"), formula
for "I place myself under thy pro-
tection " (ST.), 220.

Fiki (the pop. form of present day for
"Fakfh," prop, "learned in the
law"), tr. "tutor" (ST.), 420.

FiKib = "a mat" (Scott), 214.

Fingan (//. " Fanajil,"/. Fanagil"),
and "Filgal" used promiscuously
(ST.), 236.

Finjal (Arab.}, systematically repeated for
"Finjan" (pron. in Egypt " Fin-
gin"), 236.

First night (wedding night), 223.

Flfl'a (a scribal error ?), may be Filfil =
pepper or palm fibre, 351.

' ' Folk are equal, but in different degrees "
(compared with ' All men are created
equal"), 425.

Food, respect due to (Tale of "Daf-
tardar "), 86.

Formula of the cup and lute, 196.

" Full dressed and ornamented" (a girl,
lying beneath a slab), a sign of foul
play, 317.

GARDENER, Egyptian names for (ST.),

293-
Gauttier quoted, 3, 17, 21,63, I2 3 I2 S

231. 263.
Ghaba = departed (may here mean

"passed away"), 390.
Ghashfm (Arab.) = a "raw lad," a

favourite word in Egypt, 29.
Ghaylah, Al- = Siesta-time (Badawi

speech), 151.
Ghetto, the Jewish quarter (Harah) which

Israelites call "Hazer" = a court-
yard, an inclosure, 217.
"Gbibtu 'an al- Dunya"a pop. phrase,

tr. "I was estranged from the world "

meaning simply " I fainted," 97.
Ghirarah (Arab.) (pi. " Charter") = a

sack, 228.

" Ghul-who-eateth-man-we pray - Allah

for-safety " (compound name), 161
"Ghurrat" (Arab.) may be bright looks,

charms in general, or "foie-locks"

(ST.), 88.

Ghusl, or complete ablution, 93.
Giibahs = water-skins, 28.
Goodwife of Cairo and her four gallants

(analogous), 253.
Gouged out the right eye, 322.
Guernsey and Sark folk-lore, 328.
Guide (in Africa), following instead of

leading the party, 388.

11 H " (the final aspirate), use of, 419.
Habbah, Al-=grain (for al-Jinnah) (ST.),

108.
" Habfl" and " Kabfl " (Arab.) equiv. of

Abel and Cain, 56.
" Hadda 'llaho bayni wa baynakum," tr.

"Allah draw the line between me and

you," 406.
Hajarata '! Bahraman (Arab.) carbuncles,

133-

Hajjaj, Al- son of Yiisuf the Thakaft , 39.
Halbiin, The Boobies of (tale concerning

the), 273.

Hamakah = fury, 446.
Ham dm = ruffed pigeon, culver, 151.
Hand (She raised her) heavenwards (not

"her hands " after Christian fashion),

174.
" Handicraft an it enrich not, still it

veileth " i,e. t enables a man to

conceal the pressure of impecuniosity,

223.
Hanna-kumii'llah " = Almighty Allah

make it pleasant to you, 69.
" Haply there will befal thee somewhat

contrary to this " a euphuism mean-
ing some disaster, 237.
Hararah = heat (here der. from ' Hurr,"

freeborn), noble, and tr. " nobility,"

289.

Harem, 283.
Harira (women) = the broken pi. of

"Hunnah," from " Haram," the

honour of the house (also an infinitive

whose pi. is Harfmat = the women of

a family), 283.

484

Supplemental Nights.

Hasab wa nasab = degree and descent,

43-
Hasal (lor which read Khasal), tr. "gain,"

425-

Halim (wall) = The " broken " (wall) to
the north of Ka'abah, 180.

Haudaj (Arab.} = a camel-litter, tr.
"Howdahs," 193.

Hawalin, cler. error for either "hawala"
= all around, or "Hawaii" = sur-
roundings (ST.), 301.

Hawwulin {Arab.} tr. " over his ears,"
(a corrupt passage in text), 301.

Hayfa, A1-, i.e." The Slim- waisted," 125.

Hazar = the nightingale, or bird of a
thousand songs, 151.

Hazer = a courtyard, an inclosure, 217.

**He . . . who administereth between
a man and his heart," a Koranic
phrase (ST.), 42.

Heaven, the fifth = the planet Mars, 119.

4 ' He found her a treasure wherefrom the
talisman had been loosed," 14.

"Help ye a Moslemah" (in text "Help
ye the Moslems "), 368.

Herklots quoted, 28.

Heron quoted, 27.

Hifan (pi. of Hafnah ") = handful,
mouthful (ST.) u.

Hilal = the crescent (waxing or waning)
for the first and last two or three
nights, 72.

Hima = the private and guarded lands
of a Badawi tribe (tr. " demesne '),"
142.

" Ho ! Aloes good for use. Ho ! Pepper,"
etc., cries of an itinerant pedlar hawk-
ing about woman's wares, 351.

Holy House (youth being of, can deny
that he belongs to anyplace or race),
39-

Hospitality (House of), 330.

Houdas (Professor) quoted, 47, 48.

House of Hashim, great grandfather to
the prophet, 46.

Huda Sirru-hu, i.e., his secret sin was
guided (by Allah) to the safety of con-
cealment, tr. " his secret was safe
directed," 339.

Dr. Steingass reads " Wahada Sirru-
hu = "and his mind was at rest",
339-

" I AM an Irani but Wallahi indeed I am
not lying" (Persian saying for "I will
shun leasing"), 303.

" I will shun leasing," 303.

Ibraa = deliverance from captivity, 203.

Ibrahim of Mosul, the far-famed musician,

193-

Ihtimam wa Ghullah (former should be
written with major h, meaning
" fever "), tr. ' there befel him much
concern," 421.

"Ila an kata-ka 'l-'amal al-rabih" (In
MS. giving no sense. Translations
by Author and Dr. Steingass), 58.

Imr al-Kays (in text " Imryu '1-Kays") a
pre-Islamitic poet ("The man of al-
Kays"), 181.

" 'Ind 'uzzati 's-sinini " (Arab.} - lit. the
thorny shrubs of ground bare of
pasture, 59.

" Inna hazih Hurmah lam 'alay-ha
Shatarah " = " Truly this one is a
Woman ; I must not act vilely or rashly
towards her" (ST.), 220.

" Insistance overcometh hindrance "
(equiv. of " 'Tis dogged as does it" of
Charles Darwin), 171.

Intersexual powers, vaunting, 91.

" Intihaba '1 furas " lit.- the snatching of
opportunities (tr. " divest himself in a
pleasurable case"), 222.

Intoxication (properly meaning "poison-
ing") a term to be left for " teetotal-
lers" to use, 315.

Inverted speech, form of, 60.

Irak, A1-, the head-quarters of the Kharijite
heresy, 213.

Irham turham = Pity and shall be pitied
(one of the few passive verbs still used
in pop. par.), 169.

"'Irk al-Unsa" (Arab.) = chord* testi-
culorum (tr. "testicle-veins"), 52.

" 'Irz " (= protection), " Hurmah " and
"Shatdrah" (words explaining each
other mutually) (ST.), 220.

Ishtalaka = he surmised, discovered (a
secret), 33.

Islam (Shaykh of), 317.

Israfil = Raphael, 302.

Istanada 'ala Shakkati-h, tr. " (he might)

lean against his quarter," 401.
"he lay down on his rug" (ST.)> 401*

Index.

485

"Istanatu W-ha" (presupposing " istan
attu loth form of " natt " = he
jumped), /r. " they threw themselves on
her neck " (Dr. Steingass takes it for
8th form of "sanat" and translates
"listened attentively"), 34.

Istffa = choice, selection, 203.

Istikhraj, Al- = making " elegant extracts,"
126.

" Itawwaha," tr. " throwing his right leg
over his back," 382.

(Dr. Steingass also explains and
tran tes), 382.

JA'AFAR, the model Moslem minister, 72.
Jabal al-Sah*b = " The mount of clouds,"

376.
Jady(yfra.) = the zodiacal sign Capricorn

(tr. "kid"), 46.
Jahim-hell, 55.
Jahfm (Hell), 201.
"Jalabf" (in text), afterwards written

"Shalabi," 335.

Janindti, Al- = the market gardener, 293.
Jannat al-Khuld (Arab.} = the Eternal

Garden, 172.
Jdriyah rddih, A1-, tr. "the good graces

of her mistress," 161.
Jarrah (Arab.}- flask, 321.
Ja/a, Al- = the onyx (a well-omened

tone), 130.
Jazr= cutting, strengthening, flow (of tide),

203.
Jihaz (Arab. Egypt. " Gahaz ") = marriage

portion, 28.
"Jilan ba'da Jfl" the latter word=

revolutions, change of days, tribe,

people, 476.
Jinn-mad (or in Persian "Pari-stricken,"

Smitten by the Fairies), 249.
J ugular veins (esp. the external pair) carry

blood to the face, and are subject

abnormally to the will, 340.
Jummayz (Arab.} = & tall sycamore tree,

117.

KABABJ! (for "KaWbji"), seller of
KabJfo* (tr. " cook,"), 225.

Kabdan (usual form "Kaplan" from

Ital. "Capitano") = Captain (ship's)

(Turk, form, as in " Kapudan-pasha "

Lord High Admiral of ancient

Osmanli land), 402.
Kabsh (^ro^.) = ram, 299.
Kabul (pi. Kabdbit) = " Capotes," 274.
Kadid, Al- (Arab.) = jerked meat flesh

smoked, or sundried (tr. " boucan'd

meat"), 51.
Kaik " and " Kaik-ji " the well-known

Caique of the Bosphorus, 236.
Kiim-makam = a deputy (governor, etc.),

281.

K41a'l-Rawi = the reciter saith, 64.
Kalfm = one who speaks with another, a

familiar, 203.
Kalfmu'llah = Title of Moses, on account

of the Oral Law and conversations at

Mount Sinai, 203.
Kamrah = the chief cabin (from : Gr,

Kapdpa = vault), tr. " cuddy," 24.
Kapudan-pasha = Lord High Admiral of

ancient Osmanli land, 402.
Kara win = crane or curlew (Charadrius

G-'dicnemus), 151.
Karishiii a chasing, being in hot pursuit

of (St.), 405-
Karm (/) originally means cutting a slip

of skin from the camel's nose by way
of mark, 266.
Kasalah = a shock of corn, assemblage

of sheaves, 53.

may be cler. error for " Kasa-
bah" = stalk, haulm, straw, 53.

Kas'at (= a wooden platter or bowl)
Mafriikah, tr. hand- rubbed flour,"

349-

Kashshara = grinned a ghastly smile (also
laughing so as to shew the teeth), 461 .

Kata = sand-grouse, 151.

" Kata' al-arba'," or cutting ofif the four
members, equiv. to our " quartering,"
96.

Kata'a Judur-h4 (for " hu "), tr. "back-
bone," 353.

(Dr. Steingass refers pronoun in
" Judur-hA " tr. " Rabakah," taking
the " roots of the neck," tr. = spine),

353*

Kawa'ib, Al- = High-breasted (also
P. N. of the river), 176.

486

Supplemental Nights.

Kawa'ib, Al- (a name unknown to author);

lit. meaning " of high-breasted

virgins," 129,
Kazanat Al- (//. of Kazan) = chaul-

drons ( Turk. " Kazghdn "), (ST.), 25.
Kazanat, (//. of " Ka"zan ") = crucibles

(opp. to Kawalib = moulds), 108.
Kazi al-Askar = the great legal authority

of a country (tr. " Kazi of the Army"),

3io.
Kbb (possibly " Kubb " for " Kubbah ")

= a vault, a cupola, 376.
(Dr. Steingass also explains and

translates), 376.
Khalat-ki insanun (Arab.}, tr. "(some

man) has mixed with thee " ; meaning

also " to lie with," 398.
Khalata-ha al-Khajal wa '1-Haya* = shame

and abasement mixed with her, i.e.,

"suffused or overwhelmed her" (ST.),

399-
Khalifah (never written "Khalif") = a

vice-regent or vicar, 64.
Khalli-na" nak'ud (Arab.) = let us sit

together (a thoroughly modern expres-
sion) (ST.), 475-
Khams Ghaffar = "five pardoners"

(Steingass reads Khamr (= wine) 'ukar

another name for wine, as in "Al-

Khamral-'ukar" = choice wine), 137.
Kharrat (in text) = tripping and stumbling

(in her haste), 253.
(also may be meant for " Kharajat "

= "she went out)," (ST.), 253.
Khata = Cathay = China, 27.
Khazib-dye,- 200.
Khaznah (Khazfnah) or 10,000 Kis each =

S> 236.
Khaznat al-SiUh (Arab.) - the ship's

armoury, 403.

Khil'at = robe of honour, 410.
Khimar (Arab.} head-veil (a covering for

the back of the head), 255.
Khizr = the Green Prophet, 301.
Kib (pi. "Kiyab" and ' Akyab") = a

small thick mat used to produce shade

(ST.), 215.

Kirsh = piastre, 226.
"Kisrat al-ydbisah 'ala'1-Rik, etc." = a

slice of dry bread on the spittle, for it

absorbs. ..phlegm on the mouth of the

stomach (ST.), 51.

" Kohl'd her eyes," 292.

Kohl-powder, 292.

Koran quoted, 44, 47, 48, 49, 50, 56, 58,

1 80, 460.
Kulah meant for "Kulah" a Dervish's

cap (ST.), 108.
Kumri = turtle-dove, 151.
Kurud = apes (occurring as a rhyme twice

in three couplets), 190.
Kutb (A1-) al-Ghauth (Arab.) - lit. " The

pole star of invocation for help (tr.

" Prince of the Hallows") the highest

degree of sanctity in the mystic

fraternity of Tasawwuf, 426.

" LA HAUL of Allah is upon thee," i.e., it
is a time when men should cry for thy
case, 359.

La Haula = there is no Majesty, etc., 359.

"La khuzitat Ayday al-Firak," meaning,
" May Separation never ornament
herself in sign of gladness at the pro-
spect of our parting," 200.

Laban, pop. word for milk artificially
soured, 352.

Laban halib (a trivial form) = sweet milk,
352.

La'bat Shawaribu-hu = lit. "his mus-
tachios played " (tr. "curled"), 273.

La-hu Diraah (for Dirayah = prudence) ff
tadbfri '1-muluk = tr. "Also he had
controul," 465.

" Ld ilaha ilia 'llah," the refrain of Unity,

403-

Lakasha = be conversed with, 285.
one of the words called "Zidd,"

i.e., with opposite meanings, 285.
Laklaka-hd (Arab), an onomatopoeia, 265.
"Lam yakthir Khayrak"; this phrase

(pron. "Kattir Khayrak") is the

Egypt, and Moslem equiv. for our

" thank you," 60.
" Lam yanub al-Wdhidu min-hum nisf

haffdn," tr. " each took his turn therea'

and drank without drinking his full, ' '

II.
Dr. Steingass explains and translates.

"And none took his turn without

sipping a few laps," n.
Lane quoted, 28, 86, 90, 97, 226, 265,

291. 35 1 * 363. 426.

Index.

487

Learn from thyself what is thy Lord (Sufi
language) - in Gr. yvutfi o-cavroV,
and corresponding with our " looking
up through nature to nature's God,"
276.

Lijam (AI-) w'al-Biiam = the latter being
a Tabi* or dependent word used only
for a jingle, 381.

Litam = the mouth-band for man (tr.
" Litham "), 139.

" Look-at-me-and-thou-shalt-know-me "
(compound name), 276.

Lovers dressing themselves up and playing
the game of mutual admiration, 153.

Lovers of Al-Hayfa* and Yusuf (note con-
cerning), 123.

Lute, beautiful song of the, 152.

Lukmah (Arab.) = a balled mouthful (tr.
"morsels"), 264.

"Luss," is after a fashion Ayon}s (the
Greek word however Includes piracy
while the Arab term is mostly applied
to petty larcenists), 337.

MA AL-FASfKH = water of salt-fish (tr.

" dirty brine ") (ST.), 292.
Madfnat al-Andalus = City of Andalus,

(usually Seville), 402.
" Madfnat al-Nabi," City of the Prophet,

and vulg. Al-Madfnah the City, 43.
Mad'iir, here translated (even if thou

hadst been) an " invited guest," 41.
it may also be a synonym and be

rendered "as though thou wert a

boor or clown " (ST.), 41.
MaTrukah (an improvement upon the

Fatfrah), a favourite dish with the

Badawi (ST.), 349.

Maghbun usually = deceived, cajoled, 366.
Maghrib = set of sun, 151.
Mahashim (ace. to Bocthor, is a //. with-
out a singular, meaning ' les parties de

la gyration") (ST.), 359.
Mahashima-k = good works, merits (in a

secondary sense, beard, mustachios),

tr. here "yard," 359.
Mahkamah (Place of Judgment) or Kaii's

Court at Cairo, mostly occupied with

matrimonial disputes, 363.
Mahr = dowry, settled by Ihe husband

upon the wife, 28.

Majur, Al* (Arab.) for " Maajur " = a

vessel, an utensil, 291.
Mil (in text), tr. "cob " (also applied to

"Bidden treasure" amongst Badawin),

Mameluke (like unto a), i>., well-fed,

sturdy, bonny, 472.
Ma 'murah (Arab.)= haunted, 118.
Mandil (kerchief) used by women "on

the loose" in default of water to wipe:

away results of car. cop., 94.
Man of Al-kays, the (pre-Islamitic poet),

181.

Manna' = a refuser, a forbidder, 185.
Markab mausukah (from tf "Wask" =

conceiving, being pregnant), 474.
tr. " a vessel in cargo and about to

set sail," 474.
"Marham al-akbar, M-" (Arab.) = the

greater salve, 51.
Marriage portion, 28.
"Martabah" = a mattress, placed upon

"Mastabah" (bench) or upon its

"Sarfr" (framework of jarid or

midribs of the palm) becomes the

"Dfwan" = Divan, 68.
Martabat Saltanah (for " Sultiniyah ")

which may mean a royal Divan, 68.
Martha and Mary (Fatimah and Halimah),

318.
Masbubah, tr. "Cakes," 347.

Mayzah (Arab.) = \he large hall with a

central fountain for ablution attached

to every great mosque (tr. " lavatory"),

458.

Mazbuh= slaughtered for good, 159.
Medicine-man (Israelite) always a favorite

amongst Moslems and Christians,

160.
Mezz(zah = applying styptics to the wound

(third operation of circumcision),

217.
MifUh (prop. " Miftah ") = key used

throughout the Moslem East, 265.
Mihrjan, Al- (a P.N. not to be confoudned

with Maharaj = Great Rajah), 123.
Mihtar, also may mean superintendent,

head equerry, chief of military band

(ST.) (here tr. " Shaykh of the

Pipers"), 298.
Mihtar (in text) = a prince, a sweeper, a

scavenger, 298.

4 88

Supplemental Nights.

Milah=the cut (first operation of circum-
cision), 217.

"Mi'lakat (pop. cor. for Mil'akat) al-
Hilal" may be the spoon or hollow
part of an ear-picker (ST.), 108.

Min ba'ada-hu (making Jesus of later date
than Imr al Kays), 199.

Min ghayr Wa' ad = without appointment
(tr. " casually"), 373.

" Min Hakk la-hu Asl an 'and-na huna
Rajil," a thoroughly popular phrase =
" Of a truth hath any right or reason
to say that here in this house is a
man?" 247.

(Dr. Steingass explains and trans-
lates), 247.

"Min kuddam-ak" (meaning doubtful),

"3-

perhaps it means " from before thee,"

i.e., in thy presence (ST.), 113.

" Misla'l-Kalam " (? a cler. error for
" misla '1-Kilab ") = as the dogs do
(ST.), 282.

Misla M-Khdruf (for " Kharuf ") a common
phrase for an innocent,a half idiot, 283.

" Misri " here = local name (in India ap-
plied exclusively to sugar candy), 352.

"Mithkala Zarratin" (translations by
Author, Rodwell, Houdas and Stein-
gass), 48.

Mohsin = i.e., one who does good, a bene-
factor, 321.

Mother of our Harfm = my wife, 283.

Mouse, passing over food, makes it impure
for a religious Moslem to eat, 239.

Moyah (in text), or as Fellah of Egypt
says "Mayyeh," or the Cairenne
" Mayya" and other forms, 323.

Mubdi' = the beginner, the originator, 196.

Mubtalf, Al- = sores (leprous), 301.

Mudawi, Al- = the man of the people who
deals in simples, etc. (as opposed to
scientific practitioner), 326,

Muhibbattu (Al-),/m or " Muhibb" lover
(in Tasawwuf particularly = < lover of
God ") (ST.), 393-

Muhjat al-kulub = "Core" or "Life-
blood of hearts," 201.

" Muhkaman," a word never found in the
Koran, 47.

Mukaddam (Anglo- Indict" Mucuddum ")
= overseer, 310.

" Mukawwamina (A1-) wa Arbabu '1
Aklam," the latter usually meaning
"scribes skilled in the arts of call-
graphy," 374.

Mukh, lit. = brain, marrow (tr.
"dimple"), 86.

Munawwarah, Al- = the enlightened, 43.

Miisa wa Muzi = Miisa the Malignant
(Muzf = vexatious, troublesome), 321.

(Dr. Steingass reads Muusi, the

malignant, the malefactor), 321.

Muslimi'na, here the reg. //. of " Muslim"
= a True Believer, 367.

Musulman (our " Mussalman," too often
made //. by "Mussalmen") is cor-
rupted Arab, used in Persia, Turkey,
etc., 367.

Mustafa = the Chosen Prophet, Moham-
med, 203.

Mustafa bin fem'ail (began life as appren-
tice to a barber and rose to high
dignity), no.

" Mutalaththimin " = races in North
Africa whose males wear the face-
swathe (" Litham ") of cloth, 139.

Mutdti be zahri-h (Arab.} = "hanging
an arse," 459.

Mutawassi . . . al-Wisayat al-tammah
(Wisayat is corr. noun) = he charged
himself with her complete charge, i.e. t
maintenance (ST.) 474.

Mu'izz bi Dini'llah. Al- (first Fatimite
Caliph raised to throne of Egypt), tale
of, 43-

Mysteries of marriage- night but lightly
touched on, because the bride had lost
her virginity, 417.

NAAKHAZ bi-lissati-him (in text), tr.

"until I catch them in their robbery "

(see under " Luss"), 337.
(Dr. Steingass reads " Balsata-

hum " = until I have received their

"ransom"), 337.
Nabbut = a quarter-staff, opp. to the

"Dabbus" or club-stick of the

Badawin, etc., 250.
Ndfishah = Pers. " NaTah " der. from the

l/"naf" = belly or testicle (the

part in the musk-deer supposed to

store the perfume), 207

Index.

489

Nabawand, NahaVand " the site in A
Irak where ihe Persians sustained the
final defeat at the hands of the Arabs
(A. H. 21), 209.
1 also one of many musica

measures (like the Ispahani, the Rast
etc.), 209.
Na'im = " the Delight " (also a P. N. o

one of the Heavens), 199.
Na'iman = may it be pleasurable to the

(said by barber after operation), 106.
Ns malmumfn = assembled men, a

crowd of people (ST.), 253.
Nasim = the Zephyr, or the cool north

breeze of Upper Arabia, 197.
Nassafa=libavit, delibavit, etc. (ST.), n
Natar (watching) for " Nataf " (indi-
gestion, disgust), 63.
Natawasu sawfyah = Solace ourselves with
converse, 395.

(cler. error for " Natawanasu

Shu way yah " = " let us divert our-
selves a litlle") (ST.), 39$.
Naubah, lit. = a period, keeping guard
(here a band of pipes and drums play
ing at certain periods), 299.
Navel string, treatment of, 411.
Nayirdti (Arab, afterwards 4 *Nuwayza*tf'
and lastly " Rayhani ") = a man who
vends sweet and savoury herbs (tr.
" Herbalist "), 298.
Nisf ra'as sukkar Misri, tr. " half a loaf of

Egyptian sugar," 352.
" Niyat " (or intention) not pure, cause of

King's failure, III.
" None misses a slice from a cut loaf,"

393-

Nuwajira '1-wukufsit = Settlement of be-
queathal, 467.

(Steingass reads "nuwa*jiru (for

" nuajiru ") M-wakufdt " and translates
"letting for hire such parts of my pro-
perty as were inalienable"), 467.
Xuzhat al-Zaman = "Delight of the age,"
1 80.

41 OP which a description will follow in its
place," a regular formula of (be R*wf,
or professional reciter, 131.

"O man, O miserablest of men, O thou

disappointed," etc., characteristic

words of abuse, 359.
"Open the spittle" = to break the fart,

5'-
" O worshipper of Allah," i^., " O

Moslem, opposed to enemy of All&h "

= a non-Moslem, 460.

PADDING introduced to fill up the

"Night," 460.
Payne quoted, 55, 69.
Pear-tree, not found in Badawi land, 117.
Pennyroyal (here mere "shot" ; the orig.

has " Baithara*n "), 458.
Perspired in her petticoat trowsers (a
physical sigi of delight in beauty,
usually attributed to old women), 142.
Pertinence (in couplets) not a sine qu&

non amongst Arabs, 135.
Pigeon blood, used to resemble the results

of a bursten hymen, 29.
Pilgrimage quoted, 43, 1 80, 214.
Practical joking, a dangerous form of fun,
as much affected by Egyptians as
Hibernians, 455.

Precious stones, Arab, superstitions con-
cerning, 130.
Pretext for murdering an enemy to his
faith (Jewish), an idea prevalent in
Eastern world, utterly wrong, 214.
"Pretty Fanny's ways " amongst Moslems,

85.
Priah = tearing the foreskin (second

operation of circumcision), 217.
Prison had seven doors (to indicate its

formidable strength), 233.
Prisoners expected to feed themselves in

Moslem lands, 338.
Public gaol = here the Head Policeman's
house. In mod. times it is part of the
wall in Governor's palace, 337.

RAAS SUKKAR = Loaf sugar, 352.
Radah (a form of " Radih ") = " the

Urge hipped," 198.
Radff or back-rider, common in Arabia,

162.
Radih, a P.N. (ST.), 161.

490

Supplemental Nights.

Rafaka (and " Zafaka ") = took their
pleasure, 282.

Ra'fs (fern. Ra'isah) the captain, the
skipper (not the owner), 22.

Raisins, an efficacious "pick-me-up," 51.

Rajul ikhtiyar, tr. " a man of a certain
age" (polite term for old man), 402.

Rajul khuzan (Arab.} a green- meat
man (tr. " costermonger "), 291.

Rajul Khwaja = Gentleman, 254.

"Rakiba-ha" ; the technical term for
demoniac possession, 326.

Ramaha bi-h = bolted, 382.

Rankah or " Ranakah " prob. for
" Raunakah," which usually means
" troubled " (speaking of water) (ST.),
66.

Ram's mutton preferred in wilder tribes of
the East, because it gives the teeth
more to do, 299.

Rashakah, Al- (Arab.}, a word not found
in common lexicons, said to be a fork
with three prongs, here probably a hat
stand (tr. "peg") (ST.), 244.

Revetment of old wells in Arabia, mostly
of dry masonry, 132.

Rent his robes (usually a sign of quiet,
here a mark of strong excitement), 71.

Rheumatism, a common complaint in even
ths hottest climates, 160.

Rih = Wind, gust (of temper), pride, rage,
58.

Rodwell quoted, 42, 48.

" Rose up and sat down," a sign of agita-
tion, 328.

Russians (Asiatics have a very contempti-
ble opinion of the), 119,

SA'AH = the German Stunde y our old
"Stound" (meaning to Moslems the
spaces between prayer- times), 151.

" Sabbal ^alayhim (for 'alayhinna, the usual
masc. pro fern.} Al-Sattar" (Arab.) =
lit. " the Veiler let down a curtain
upon them," 276.

Sabt = Sabbath, Saturday, 228, 324.

Sadah (AI-) wa al-Khatayat tr. " various
colors both plain and striped," 223.

"Sahib al-Hayat" = astronomer (may
also = a physiognomist), 289.

Sahl, meaning " the easy tempered " (Scott

writes "Sohul"), 138.
Sahrij = Cistern, 5.
Sakf (flat roof), must have a parapet (a

Jewish precaution neglected by Al-

Islam), 219.
Sakhtur (Arab.} for " Shakhtur " tr.

"batel," 163.
Sakk (//. "Sikak" and "Sukuk") =

" nail " (ST.), 38-0.
Salaku-hu wa nashalu-hu " they scored

it," 395-

Salkh (Arab} = flay (meaning also a
peculiar form of circumcision), 214.

Salt rubbed on wounds to staunch the
blood, 97.

Samar (Arab.} from Pers. " Sumar " =a
reed, a rush, 226.

Samm Sa'ah (in text), tr. "poison of the
hour," 352.

Samman = quail, 151.

Sapidaj (corresponding with " Isfidaj"),
tr. "ceruse" or white lead, 130.

Sara la-hu Shanan, tr. " In his new degree
he was feared," 472.

(Steingass reads " Thaniyan = and he

became second to him (the Sultan), i.e.,
his alter ego), 472.

Sara yurashi-h, tr. " kindness and liberal-
ity," 473-

' Yurashi" and "Yura"shu" are the

6th form of " rashd, yarshu" = he be-
stowed a gift (principally for the sake
of bribery) he treated kindly (ST.), 473.

Sar'a'l-Lijam, it . " bridle thongs," 385.

"Sarayah" (for " Sarayah," Serai,
Government House), tr. "Palace," 6.

Sardab = a souterrain, 117.

Sarmiijah (Arab.} from Pers." Sar-miizah,"
a kind of hose or gaiter worn over a
boot (ST.), 217.

jSarmujah (Arab.} = sandals, slippers, etc.,
442.

Sarsarah (cler. error for " Akhaza (?) surra-
tan ")= he took a purse, 412.

Sarra Surrah (Surratan) = he tied up

a purse (ST.), 412.

Sawabi (a regularly formed broken plural
of a singular " Sabi ' " = the pointing
one) (ST.), 419.

Sayf kunvizi = a talismanic scymttar (tr.
"magical sword"), 426.

Index.

491

Sayfu (A1-) w'-al Kalanj = scyraitar and
dagger, 381.

Sayyid (descendant of Hasan) and the
Sharif (der. from Husayn) = difference
between, 39.

Scott quoted, 3, 17, 21, 22, ib. 24, 30, 36,
39,44, 50, 63, 65, 105, 114, 116, 119,
120, 123, 125, 138, 153, 184, 210,213,
214, 227, 231, 253, 263, 273, 321, 335,

347, 357, 465-
Sentiment, morbid and unmasculine French,

contrasted with the healthy and manly

tone of the Nights, 267.
Seven ages of woman-kind, 56.
Sha'abdn (his face gladdening as the

crescent moon of), 142.
Shabaytar = the Shuhrur (in MS. Suhrur)

= a blackbird, 151.
also called " Samaytar " and " Abu al-

Ayzar " = the father of the brisk one

(a long-necked bird like heron) (ST.),

IS'-

Shihbander = King of the port, a harbour-
master, 254.

Sbi'il, copyist's error for " Shdghil," act.
part of Shughl = business affairs, 245.

(Here probably for the fuller " Shughl
shaghil" = an urgent business, (ST.),

245-

Shakhat, or modern word, tr. here "re-
vile" (ST.), 3-

Shakhs = carven image, 30.

Shakk (Arab.) = splitting or quartering,
96.

Shaklaba, here = ' shakala ' ' = he weighed
out (money;, he had to do with a
woman (tr. " tumbled "), 291.

Shalabi = a dandy, a macaroni (from the
Turk. Chelebi), 243.

Shame (uncovered my), in this instance
"head and face," 329.

Sbdsh = a small compact white turband,
and distinctive sign of the true Be-
liever, 143.

Shashmah (from Pfrs. " Chashmah" = a
fountain) tr. "privies," 458.

Shatarah, signifying vileness and rashness
(ST.), 220.

Shawwara binta-hu = he gave a marriage
outfit to his daughte ( ST.), 28.

Shaykh of Islam, 317

Shi'ah doctrine, 178

Ship's crew run on shore on their own

business immediately the vessel cast

anchor, 475.
Shooting shafts and firing bullets at the

butt, practised by Easterns on horse-
back, 421.
" Shuhrur al-kanfsah " = the blackbird of

the Church (Christians in Syria call St.

Paul, on account of his eloquence),

(ST.), 151.

Shiiwar (Arab.) = trousseau (ST.), 28.
Signet-ring made of carnelian, 52.
Signet-ring of kingship (important sign of

sovereignty), 112.
Sikkah (//. Sikak) = (amongst other

meanings) "an iron post or stake"
^ (ST.), 380.
Sima'a //'/. hearing, applied idiomatically

to the ecstasy of Darwayshes when

listening to esoteric poetry, 151.
Sin, Al- (in text) = China (here Al-Sind "),

194.

" Sind revisited " quoted, 3.
Sind (so-called from Sindhu, the Indus,

Pfrs. "Sinddb"), 3.
"Sirru M-ilahi," i.e., the soul which

is "divinx particula aurae " (tr.

" Divine mystery "), 466.
Sirt'anta = thou hast become (for Sirtu

ana = I have become), 86.
" Sitt-ha (Arab.}, tr. " Mistress" (Mauri-

tanians prefers "Sfdah" and Arabian

Arabs " Kabfrah " = the first lady,

Madame Afire), 364.
Slaves, when useless, made to "walk a

plank" or tossed into the sea, 405.
" Sleep with both feet in one stocking "

(Irish saying for " Have a care of thy-
self"), 442.

Smoking and coffee, 236.
"Solaced himself by gating upor the

trees and waters," a feeling well known

to the traveller, 390.
Spreading (the mats, mattresses, rugs, etc. ,

of well-to-do Eastern lodging), 233.
11 Stick wherewith he tapped and drew

lines in absent fashion on the ground,"

10.
Stomach has two mouths, oesophagic above

and pyloric below, 52.
Stone tied in kerchief or rag, weapon for

fighting, 350.

492

Supplemental Nights.

Story-telling, servile work, 34.

St. Paul, called by the Christians in Syria
"Shuhrur al-Kanfsah," the blackbird
of the Church (on account of his elo-
quence), (ST.), 151.

" Subaudi " = " that hath not been
pierced" (a virgin), 223.

Sugar (Europe-made white) avoided by
Moslems as unlawful, 352.

Sugar (Sukkar), 352.

Sujjadah, tr. "prayer-rug," 225.

Sukkar (from Pers. " Shakkar," whence
Lat. Saccharum), the generic term, 352.

Sunnah = the practice, etc., of the Pro-
phet, 193.

Supernatural agency makes the most satis-
factory version of tale, 118.

Surur = Joy, contentment, 200.

Su'uban (Arab.} = cockatrice (tr. " Basi-

lisk"), 4 27.
Syria, city of ("the stubbornest of places

and the feeblest of races"), 41.
"Syrian and three women of Cairo"

(Variants), 273.

TA'AYYUN = influence (especially by the
"'Ayn" (evil) Eye), tr. "fascinate,"
1 66.

Taawil = the commentary or explanation
of Moslem Holy Writ, 43.

Tabib, Al- = the scientific practitioner (in
pop. parlance), 326.

Ta-Ha = the Koranic chapter No. XX.
revealed at Meccah, 180.

"Tahlil" = making word or deed
canonically lawful, 43.

Tahrim = rendering any action " haram"
or unlawful, 43.

Taf, Al- (relative adjective of irregular
formation), 46.

Ta'il al-Wasf = " Drawer out of Descrip-
tions," 185.

Tajris, rendered by a circumlocution

"Bell," 337-
Takbir and Tahlll, i.e., Crying the war cry,

"Allaho Akbar" = "God is most

Great," and " La ilaha ilia 'llah" the

refrain of Unity, 403.
Takhsa-u,*r. "baffled," a curious word of

venerable age (ST.), 44.
Takht Raml = table of sand, geomantic
table, 153.

Tale of Simpleton Husband (W. M

Version), 116.
Tanzil = coming down, revelation of the

Koran, 43.

Tarajjama = he deprecated, 12.
Tartara (Arab.}, tr. "perked up" (prob

an emphatic reduplication of Tarra =

"sprouting, pushing forward)," 443.
Tasawwuf (mystic fraternity of), 426.
Tasht = "basin" (the consonantic outline

being the same as of " tashshat " = she

was raining, sprinkling) a possible pun,

(ST.), 147.
Tastaghis (Arab.} = lit. crying out "Wa

Ghausah !""Ho to my aid" (tr.

"Help! Help!"), 157.
Tauhan al-Husan, tr. " lost in the waste,"

409.
Tawanis (instead of " Tawanis," //. of

Taunas), tr. " Cordage " (Sx)., 133.
Tayhal (i>l. "Tawahil") for the usual

" Tihal " = spleen (ST.), S3-
Tayyibah = the good, sweet or lawful, 43.
Tazaghzagha, gen. = he spoke hesitatingly,

he scoffed (tr. "waxed wroth,")

106.
" Tazaghghara fihi " (rendered pop.) "he

pitched into him " (ST.), 106.
Tazarghft (error for " Zaghritah ") = the

cry of joy, 429.

(numerous forms of) (ST.), 430.

"Ten camel loads " about a ton, at the

smallest computation of 200 Ibs. to each

beast, 395.

Ter-il-bas (Tayr Taiis?), a kind of pea-
cock, made to determine elections by

alighting on the head of a candidate,

26, 27. (Old Translation.)
Time, division of, in China and Japan, 90.
" Tirrea Bede " (Night 655) note concern-
ing, 119.
Tisht (a basin for the ewer), tr. " tray,"

428.
Thakalah (Arab.} heaviness, dulness,

stupidity (tr. ''horseplay"), 457.
"Them" for "her" (often occurrence

of), 178-
This matter is not far to us=is not beyond

our reach," 311.
"Thou hast been absent overlong," a

kindly phrase pop. addressed to the

returning traveller, 444.

Index.

493

41 Thy rose-hued cheek showeth writ new-
writ," i.f., the growing beard and
whisker is compared with black letters
on a white ground, 148.

T Kh DH (= takhut-hu, according to
author) ; may be either 2nd or 8th
form of " ahad," in the sense that
"thou comest to an agreement
(Ittihid) with him," 189.

Tuhal or Tihil (Arab.} : in text "Tay-
hal,"/r. ' spleen," 53.

Turtur = the Badawi's bonnet, 255.

Tutty, in low Lat. "Tutia" prob. from
Pers. " Tutiyah " = protoxide of tine,
352.

UNSA-K (Arab.), an expression used when
drinking one's health (tr. "Thy
favour ") (ST.), 4$8.

'Urrah (Arat.)=dung t 75.

Usburu = be ye patient, 83.

"VERILY great is their craft" (Koranic
quotation from "Joseph"), 294.

Violation of the Harem (son "having "
his father's wives), very common in
Egypt, 441-

Vows of Pious Moslems, 234.

"WA Ghausah!" = " Ho, to my aid,"

157-

" inn! la-ar'*kum wa ar*a widada-

kum," etc., tr. "And I make much
of you and your love," etc. (ST.), 172.

Kulli Trik = night- traveller, ma-
gician, morning star, 378.

44 Id huwa, ashamna min-ka talkas
(read "talkash") 'ala Harimi-naY'
tr. " that thou wouldst strive to seduce
our Harlm " (or " that thou hadst an
itching after our Harim ") (ST.), 285.

< l as h : Muradf bas ism al-Madinah "

(Arab.) = 01 nothing: my only want
is the city's name, 402.

ia u anunahd li '1-Mushrikfn," etc.,

lines which hare occurred before, 55.

41 min-hum man faha," evidently an
error of the scribe for " Man nafa-hu,"
114.

Nikah = conjugal intercourse, 153.

'Wa siba'1-dar wa Zaujatu-hu mutaw-
asftin bi-ha," tr. " the house prospered,
for the master and the dame had
charge of it," 420.

(Steingass explains the plural

" Mutawassin," by supposing "Sib
al-Dar" is blunder for Sahihu M-
Dar" and translates "the master of
the house and his wife took charge of
her (the nurse) during the days of
suckling," 420.

" Sawabi 'hu (Asabi 'a-hu?) li

hanaki-h" tr. " his fingers in his
mouth and sucking thereat," 419.

Talattuf Alfazak wa ma'anlk al-

hisan = and for the pleasingness of thy
sayings and meanings so fine and fair
(ST.), 146.

" rand mujauhar fi-hi Asiwir," etc.,
may mean "and a forearm (became
manifest) ornamented with jewels, on
which were bracelets of red gold "
(ST.), 86-7.

Waka'h (Arab?) = an affair (of fight), 403.

Wakilah = inn (tr. " Caravanserai"), 455.

" " or caravanserai, 273.

Walad al-Hayah (for "Hayat") tr.
" Thou make him a child of life," i^.,
let him be long-lived, 378.

Wasayah (prob. cler. error for " wa
Miah " spelt " mayah " and a
hundred pair of pigeons) (ST.), 217.

Weapons taken from Easterns when em-
barking as passengers, ticketed and
placed in safe cabin, 403.

Well, Angels choking up a, 332.

Well, filled in over the intruding " villain "
of the piece, 332.

"Whose van was not known from its
rear " = " both could not be seen at the
same time," 189.

" weal Allah increase," well nigh
sole equiv. amongst Moslems of our
" thank you," 325.

Wife (exalting the character of) whilst the
Mistress is a mere shadow (kind of tale
not unfrequent amongst Moslems), 335.

Wijak = a stove, a portable hearth (tr.
"a brazier"), no.

Without a vein swelling, '.*., so drank that
his circulation had apparently stopped,
276.

494

Supplemental Nights.

" With the tongue of the case " = words
suggested by the circumstance, 9.

Wizzatayn = geese, 357.

Woman, fulfilling the desires of, fatal to
love, when she revolts against any re-
duction of it, 91.

" Womankind, Allah kill all" (note by
Dr. Steingass), 304.

"Written," either on the Preserved
Tablet or on the Sutures of the Skull,

YA 'ARS, ya Mu'arras = O pimp, O
pander, 246.

Ya Gharati a-zay ma buna Rajil = O,
the shame of me! however, O my
Lord, can there be here a man ? 247.

Dr. Steingass explains and trans-
lates, 247.

Yahya (according to Scott " Yiab"), 1.53-
Ya = i and Mim = m, composing the

word "Ibrahim," 203.
Ya'llah, i.e., "By Allah," meaning "Be

quick ! " 325.
"Yallah, Yallah," gen. meaning " Look

sharp" (here syn. with "Allah!

Allah ! " = " I conjure thee by God "),

302.
Yaman, A1-, people of, are still deep in

the Sotadic Zone and practice, 42.
Yarju (presumably error for "Yarja'u"),

tr. " retracing their steps," 382.
(may be error for "Yajru") (ST.),

382.
"Ya Sin" = "The Heart of the

Koran," 94.
Yastanit (Arab.}, aor. to the pretext

"istanat" (ST.), 218.
Yastanit = he listened attentively (tr,

"he firmly believed") (ST.), 432.
"Yasta' amiluna al-Mrd " (tr. "their

noblest make womanly use of Murd")

may also have a number of mean-
ings, 42.

Ya Sultdn-am = "O my chief," 312.
Yatama'ash min-hu, tr: "wherewith he

might nourish himself," 472.

(a denominative of the 5th form of
"Ma' ash" = livelihood (ST.), 473.

Yathrib = Al-Madinah, 183.

Yathrib, the classical name 'larpanra
(one of the titles of '* Madinat al-
Nabi," City of the Prophet), 43.

YaWarid = "O farer to the fountain,"
148.

Yazghaz-ha fi Shikkati-ha = verb being
prob. a cler. error for " Yazaghzagh"
from t/ "Zaghzagha" = he opened
a skin bag (tr. "thrusting and foining
at her cleft"), 267.

Young man, being grown up, would not
live in his father's house, 442.

Youth worn out by genial labours of the
(marriage) night, but bride made the
merrier and livelier (a neat touch of
realism), 429.

Yuzbashi, in text "Uzbasba" or
"uzbdsha" = head of a hundred
(men) centurion, captain, 243.

"ZAB Yakim Z R H ahad ff Mdljazfl,
etc." (error in MS. explained.) (ST.),
72.

Zabrat = a blossom especially yellow,
commonly applied to orange-flower,
201.

Zahrat al-Hayy, i.e., "Bloom of the
Tribe," 201.

"Zakarayn Wizz (ganders) eima'n," tr.
" a pair of fatted ganders," 357.

Zamaku-ha, tr. " arabesque'd," 133.

Zakka (meaning primarily "a bird feed-
ing her young"), tr. " iargessed,"
182.

Zarb al-Aklam = caligraphy, 376.

, tr. " penmanship," 432.

al-Fdl = casting lots for presage (tr*

" prognostic,)" 374.

" Zardiya" (for Zaradiyyah = a small
mail coat, a light helmet), tr. "a
haubergeon," 58.

" Zug " or draught which gave him rheu-
matism (tr. "the air smote me," 157.

Zuha, Al- ( = undurn-hour, or before
noon) and Maghrib ( = set of sun)
become Al-Ghaylah ( = Siesta time)
and Ghaybat al-Shams, in Badawi
speech, 151.

Hppcnduc

CATALOGUE OF WORTLEY MONTAGUE
MANUSCRIPT CONTENTS.

I here proceed to offer a list of the tales in the Wort ley Montague MS.
(Nos. 550-556), beginning with

VOL. 1.,

which contains 472 pages = 92 Nights. It is rudely written, with great care*
lessness and frequent corrections, and there is a noted improvement in the
subsequent vols. which Scott would attribute to another transcriber. This,
however, I doubt : in vol. i. the scribe does not seem to have settled down to
his work. The MS. begins abruptly and without caligraphic decoration ; nor
is there any red ink in vol. i. except for the terminal three words. The
topothesia is in the land of Sdsn, in the Isles of Al-Hind and Al-Sind ; the
elder King being called " Bdz " and " Shar-baV'and the younger " Kahraman "
(p. i, 11. 5-6), and in the same page (1. 10) " Saharbdn, King of Samarkand " ;
while the Wazir's daughters are "Shahrzddah" and " Duny*zdah " (p. 8).
The Introduction is like that of the Mac. Edit, (my text) ; but the dialogue
between the Wazir and his Daughter is shortened, and the " Tale of the
Merchant and his Wife," including w The Bull and the Ass," is omitted. Of
novelties we find few. When speaking of the Queen and Mas'ud the Negro
(called Sa'id in my text, p. 6) the author remarks :

Take no black to lover ; pure musk tho' he be Carrion-taint shall pierce to the nose of
thee.

And in the " Tale of the Trader and the Jinni " (MS. i, 9 : see my transl. 1, 25)
the 'Ifrit complains that the Merchant had thrown the date-stones without
exclaiming " Dastur 1 "by thy leave.

The following is a list of the Tales in voL i. :

PAGI.

Introductory Chapter ' 1-9

TaJe of the Trader and the Jinni, Night i.-ii 9

VOL. V. I I

498 Supplemental Nights.

PAGE.
The First Shaykh's Story, Night ii.. ...... 14

The Second Shaykh's Story, Night ii 23

The Third Shaykh's Story, Night iv 34

Scott, following " Oriental Collections," ii. 34, supposes that the latter was
omitted by M. Galland " on account of its indecency, it being a very free detail
of the amours of an unfaithful wife." The true cause was that it did not exist
in Galland's Copy of The Nights (Zotenberg, Histoire d' 'Ala. al-Din, p. 37).
Scott adds, " In this copy the Genie restores the Antelope, the Dogs and the
Mule -to their pristine forms, which is not mentioned by Galland, on their
swearing to lead virtuous lives."

PAGE.

Conclusion of the Trader and the Jinni, Night v 43

The Fisherman and the Jinni, including the Tales of the Sage Dubdn
and the ensorcelled Prince and omitting the Stories (i) of King
Sindibad and his Falcon (2) the Husband and the Parrot and

(3) the Prince and the Ogress : , .... 44

The Porter and the Three Ladies of Baghdad, Night v. . . 100

The First Kalandar's TaLe, Night xxxix 144

The Second Kalandar's Tale, Night xlviii 152

(The beginning of this Tale is -wanting in the MS. "which
omits p. 151 : also The Envier and-the Envied, admitted into
the list of ffikdydt) is here absent.}

The Third Kalandar's Tale, Night Iv. . . . . . .173

The Eldest Lady's Tale, Night Ixvi 231

Tale of the Portress. Conclusion of the Story .of the Porter and
Three Ladies of Baghdad, Night Ixii, (a clerical mistake
for Ixx. ?) 260

(In Galland follow the Voyages of Sindbad the Seaman
which are not found in this copy}

The Tailor and the Hunchback, Night Ixviii. (for Ixxiv.). . . 295
The Nazarene Broker's Story, Night Ixviii. (for Ixxiv.?) . . . 308
The Youth whose hand was cut off, Night (?) * . . . .312

(In p. 314 is a hiatus not accounting for the loss of hand.}

The Barber's Tale of his First Brother 314

M Second 317

> Third ,, 323

,, ,, Fourth ,, 327

Fifth ....... 331

r, Sixth ,.... . 343

The end of the Tale of the Hunchback, the Barber and others,

Night Ixviii. (?) 350

(HERE ENDS MY VOL. i.)
1 Between Nights Ixviii. and xci. (p. 401) the Nights are not numbered.

Appendix. 499

PAGE.

Nur al- Din All and the Damsel Anis al-Jalis, Night Ixviii. . . 355
Sayfal-Muluk and Badl'aat-Jamal, Night xci. 1 .... 401
Tale of the Youth of Mosul whose hand was cut off. Night xcii. 466-472

(The Talt of the Jewish Doctor in my vol. i. 288-300.)
Vol. i. ends with a page of scrawls, the work of some by-gone owner.

VOL. II.

Contains 316 pages, and includes end of Night xcii. to Night clxvi. The MS.
is somewhat better written ; the headings are in red ink and the verses are
duly divided. The whole volume is taken up by the Tale of Kamar al-Zamdn
(ist), with the episodes of Al-Amjad and Al-As'ad, but lacking that of Ni'amah
and Naomi. In Galland Kamar al-Zaman begins with Night ccxi. : in my
translation with vol. iii. 212 and concludes in vol. iv. 29. This 2nd vol.
(called in colophon the 4th Juz) ends with the date 2oth Sha'abdn, A.H. 1177.

VOL. III.

Contains 456 pages, extending from Night cccvi. (instead of Night clxvii.) to
cdxxv. and thus leaving an initial hiatus of 140 Nights (cxvi.-cccvi. C. de
Perceval, vol. viii. p. 14). Thus the third of the original eight volumes is lost.
On this subject Dr. White wrote to Scott, " One or two bundles of Arabic
manuscript, of the same size and handwriting as the second volume of the
Arabian Tales, were purchased at the sale by an agent for Mr. Beckford of
Fonthill, and I have no doubt whatever but that the part deficient in your copy
is to be found in his possession." If such be the case, and everything seems to
prove it, this volume was not No. iii. but No. iv. The MS. begins abruptly
with the continuation of the tale. There is no list of contents, and at the end
are two unimportant " copies of verses " addressed to the reader, five couplets
rhyming in fmu (e.g. ta'dimu) and two in af (e.g. Salaf).

The following is a list of the contents :

PAGE:

Part of the Tale of Hasan of Bassorah, Nights cccvi.-cccxxix . . I -8l
Story of the Sultan of Al-Yaman ' and his Sons, told to Al-Rashid

by Hasan of Bassorah, Nights cccxxix.-cccxxxiv. . . 8l

Story of the Three Sharpers, 3 Nights cccxxxiv.-cccxlii. ... 96
The Sultan who fared forth in the habit of a Darwaysh, Night

cccxlii 121

History of Mohammed, Sultan of Cairo, Night cccxliii.-cccxlviii. . 124

Story of the First Lunatic/ Night cccxlviii.-ccclv. . . 141

1 Here the numeration begins again.
* In Ouseley he becomes a " King of Greece."

'The Arab, is "Ja'idi": Scott has "Artiians or Sharpen": Oiucley,
"labourers."
Ouseley ha* Story of the first foolish Man."

joo Supplemental Nights.

PAGE.

Story of the Second Lunatic, Night ccclv.-ccclvii 168

Story of the Sage and his Scholar, Night ccclvii.-ccclxii. . .179
Night- Adventure of Sultan Mohammed of Cairo with three foolish

Schoolmasters, Night ccclxii. 204

Tale of the Mother and her Three Daughters, Night ccclxii . . 206

Story of the broke-back Schoolmaster, Night ccclxiii. . . . 21 1

Story of the Split-mouthed Schoolmaster, Night ccclxiii . . . 214

Story of the limping Schoolmaster, Night ccclxiv.-ccclxv. . . 219
Story of the three Sisters and their Mother the Sultanah, Night

ccclxvi.-ccclxxxvi 231

History of the Kazi who bare a babe, Night ccclxxxvi.-cccxcii. . 322

Tale of the Kazf and the Bhang-eater, Night cccxciii.-cdiii. . . 344

History of the Bhang-eater and his wife, Night cccxciii.-cdiii. . 348

How Drummer Abu Kasim became a Ka"zf, Night cdiii.-cdxii. . 372
Story of the Kazi and his Slipper (including the Tale of the Bhang-
eater who became the Just Wazir and who decided two difficult

cases), Night cdxii.-cdxiii. 424

Tale of Mahmud the Persian and the Kurd Sharper, Night

cdiii.-cdxvi 428

Tale of the Sultan and the poor man who brought to him fruit,

including the Fruit-seller's * Tale, Night cdxvi.-cdxxv. . . 432
Story of the King of Al-Yaman and his Three Sons and the

Enchanting Bird, which ends this volume, Night cdxvii-cdxxvi, 437

VOL. IV.

Contains 456 pages, and ranget between Nights cdxxvi. and dxcvi.

Continuation of the Story of the King of Al-Yaman 8 and his Three

Sons and the Enchanting Bird, Night cdxxvi.-cdxxxix. . . 1-34

SCOTT prefers " the Sultan of the East," etc.
History of the First Larrikin, Night cdxxxix.-cdxliv. ... 34

SCOTT: " The first Sharper in the Cave," p. 185.

History of the Second Larrikin, Night cdxliii.-cdxlv. ... 46
History of the Third Larrikin, Night cdxlv.-cdxlvi. . . . 53
Story of a Sultan of Hind and his Son Mohammed, Night cdxlvi.-

cdlviii 58

SCOTT : "The Sultan of Hind:'

Tale of a Fisherman and his Son, Night cdlix.-cdlxix. ... 83
Tale of the Third Larrikin concerning himself, Night cdlxix.-cdlxxii. 107

SCOTT : " The Unfortunate Lovers:''
History of Abu Niyyah and Abu Niyyatayn, Night cdlxxii.-cdlxxxiii, 1 13

SCOTT: " Abou Neeut, the well-intentioned Sultan of
Moussul, and Abou Neeutteen, the double -minded"

1 In the Latin Catalogue he is called Agricola, and by Scott the Husbandman.
8 In Ouseley he novy becomes a King of Greece.

Appendix. SGI

PACE.
The Courtier's Story, or Tale of the Nadim to the Emir of Cairo,

Night cdlxxxiii.-cdxci. . 140

SCOTT : " Story related to an Ameer of Egypt by a -\

Courtier?' p. 229.

Another relation of the Courtier, Night cdcxi. . . .* . 157
(Here Iblis took the place of a musician.)

The Shaykh with Beard shorn by the Shaytan, Night cdxcii. . 162

History of the King's Son of Sind and the Lady Fatimah, Night

cdxci.-di 165

SCOTT: "The Sultan of Sind and Fatimah, daughter of
Ummir ('Amir) Ibn Naomann (Nu'umdn)."

History of the Lovers of Syria, Night di.-dx 189

SCOTT: " The Lovers of Syria."

History of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf and the Young Sayyid, Night

dx.-dxx 213

SCOTT : " The Young Sayd and ffijduje."

Uns al-Wujud and the Wazir's Daughter Rose-in-hood, Night

dxxi.-dxli 240

SCOTT : tf lns al- Wujood and Wird al-Ikmaum, daughter
of Ibrahim, Vizier of Sultan Shnmlkh."

Story of the Sultan's Son and Daughter of the Wazir, Night

dxli.-dxlv 293

Tale of Sultan Ka"yyish, Night dxlv.-dlvii 312

(A romance of chivalry and impossible contests often knights
against 15,000 men.)

The Young Lady transformed into a Gazelle by her Step-mother,

Night dlviii.-dlxiii 345

The History of Mazin, Night dlxviii-dxcv. (omitted, because it is
the same as ' Hasan of Bassorah and the King's Daughter of
the Jinn," vol. viii. 7) ; to the end of vol. iv. ... 456

VOU V.

Contains 465 pages from the beginning of Night dxcvi. to dccxlvi.

Continuation and end of the History of Maxin, Night dxcvi-dcxxiv. 1-94
Night-adventure of Harun al-Rashid, Night dcxxxx\ .-del. . . 95

SCOTT: " Adventure of Haroon al-Rusheed> vol. vi. 343
(including Story related to Haroon al-Rusheed) by Ibn
Munsoor of Damascus^ of his adventures at Bussorah ; the
Story related to Haroon al-Rttsheed by Munjaub (Afanjab)
and Haroon' s conduct on hearing the story of Munjaub."

1 In Ouseley, " Bin't-Ameen."

5O2 Supplemental Nights.

PACK.

Tale of the Barber and his Son (told by Manjab), Night dlxi.-dcli. . 180

SCOTT : " Story of the Sultan* the Dervishe and the Barber's
Son."

The Badawi Woman and her Lover, Night dclv.-dclvi. . . . 196
Story of the Wife and her two Gallants, Night dclyi.-dclx. . . 199
Tale of Princess Al-Hayfa and Prince Yusuf, Night dclx.-dccx. . 210

SCOTT : " Story of Aleefah, daughter of Mherejaun, Sultan
of Hind, and Eusuff, Prince of Sind, related to Haroun al-
Rusheed by the celebrated recitir of Tales, Ibn Malook Aleed
Jowaudee," p. 352.
Adventures of the Three Princes of China, Night dccx.-dccxvii. . 362

SCOTT : "Adventures of the Three Princes, sons of the
Sultan of China."

History of the first Brave, Night dccxviu-dccxxii 385

SCOTT: ' The- Military Braggadocio ; " OusELEY, " the
Gallant Officer" and the Lat. list " Miles Gloriosus."

History of another Brave, Night dccxxii.-dccxxiii. . , . 395

The Merry Adventures of a Simpleton, 1 Night dccxxiii.-dccxxvi . 400

SCOTT : " The Idiot and his Asses"
The Goodwife of Cairo and the three Rakehells, Night dccxxvi.-

dccxxviii 400,

Story of the righteous Wazir wrongfully gaoled, Night dccxxviii.-

dccxxxviii 416

Tale of the Barber, the Captain and the Cairene Youth, Night

dccxxxiii.-xxxviii 430

(hi the Lat. list we find " Tonsor et Juvenis Cahirensis")

Story of the Goodwife of Cairo and her Gallants, Night dccxxxviii.-

dccxliii. ' 444

SCOTT ; " The virtuous Woman of Cairo and her Suitors,"

A 380.

The Kazi's Tale of the Tailor, the Lady and the Captain, 2 Night

dccxlii.-dccxlvi 455

SCOTT : " The Cauzee's Story," p. 386.

Story of the Syrian and the Three Women of Cairo, Night dccxlvi.

and to end of vol. v 465

VOL. VI.

Contains 365 pages, from Night dccxlvi. to Night dccclxxiH.
The following is a list of the contents :

Continuation of the Story of the Syrian, Night dccxlvi.-dccxlix. . 1-9
Tale of the Kaim-makam's Lady and her two Coyntes, Night

dccxlix.-dcclii 9

1 In Arab. " Rujub al-Mutarmakh," in the Lat. list "insipicus."

2 In Ouseley " The Taylor, a story told by the Cauzee."

Appendix. 503

PAGE.

Tale of the whorish Wife who vaunted her virtues, Night dcclii.-dcclv. 18
Ccelebs the Droll 1 and his Wife and her four lovers, Night dcclv.-

dcclx. . . * . . 26

SCOTT : ' The Deformed Jester."
The Gate-keeper of Cairo and the wily She-Thief, Night dcclix.-

dcclxv 41

SCOTT: " The a&d WaUhman of Cairo and thi artful
female thief."

Tale of Mohsin and Musa, Night dcclxv.-dcclxxii . 57

SCOTT : " Mhassun the liberal and Mousseh the treacherous
Friend."

Mohammed Shalabf * and his Wife and the Kazi's Daughter, Night

dcclxxii.-dcclxxvii 76

SCOTT : " Mahummud Julbee" etc.

The Fellah and his wicked Wife, Night dcclxxvii.-dcclxxx. . . 92
The Woman who humoured her Lover at her Husband's expense,

Night dcclxxx.-dcclxxxi. 102

SCOTT : " The Adulteress."

The Kazi Schooled by his Wife, Night dcclxxxi.-dcclxxxv. . . 106
The Merchant's Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irdk, Night

dccclxv.-dcccxxiv 118

SCOTT: "Story of the Merchant ', his Daughter , and the
Prince of Eerauk," p. 391. In the text we find 'Irdk for
Al-lrak.

The Story of Ahmad and Ali who cuckolded their Masters, Night

dcccxxiv.-dcccxxix. 22$

SCOTT : " The 7\ao Orphans."

The Fellah and his fair Wife, Night dcccxxix.-dcccxxx. . . .241
The Youth who would futter his Father's Wives, Night dcccxxx.-

dcccxxxviii 247

SCOTT: " The Vicious Son t translating the Arab. Al-Ibn
al-Fidawl."

The two Lack-tacts of Cairo and Damascus, including the short
"Tale of the Egyptian, the Syrian and the Ass," Night
dcccxxxviii.-dcccxl 261

SCOTT : " The two wits of Cairo and Sind."

The Tale of Musa and Ibrahim, including Anecdotes of the

Berberines, Night dcccxl.-dcccxliii 271

The Brother Wazirs, Ahmad and Mohammed, Night dcccxini.-

dccclxxiii 280

And to end of vol. vi 365

1 In Scott "The Deformed Jester," reading " Al-Ahdab" for " Al-Maskharat al-

.ib."

* In text " Al-Jatabl," whence Ouseley and Scott't " Mahummud Julbee."

Supplemental Nights.

VOL. VII.

Contains 447 pages, from Night dccclxxiii.-mi.

The following is a list of the contents :

Conclusion of the; Brother Wazirs ...... . 1-69

Story of the thieving Youth and his Step-mother, NighUdcccxcvii.-

cm ............ 69

The Kazi of Baghdad and his virtuous Wife, Night cm.-cmxi. . 77
History of the Sultan who protected the Kazi's Wife, Night cmxi.-

cmxvii ............ I0 9

The Sultan of Al-'Irak, Zunnar ibn Zunnar, Night cnixvii.-cinxxi. 126
Ardashir, Prince of Persia, and .the Princess Hayat al-Nufus,

daughter of Sultan Kadir, Night cmxxi.-cmlxvm. . . . 139
Story of Shaykh Nakkit the Fisherman, Night cmlxvui.-cmlxxviii. 297
The Sultan of Andalusia, and the Prince of Al-'Irak who deflowered

the Wazir's daughter ; a prose replica of Al-Hayfa and Yusuf.

MS. vol. v. 210. Night cmlxxviii.-cmlxxxviii. . . . 329
Tale of Sultan Taylun and the generous Fellah, Night cmlxxxviii.-

cmxciv ............. 365

The retired Sage and his Servant-lad, Night cmxcviii. . . . 414

The Merchant's Daughter who married an Emperor of China, Night

cmxcviii.-mi., ending the work ..... 430-447

This MS. terminates The Nights with the last tale and has no especial
coB/dusion relating the marriage of the two brother Kings with the two sisters.'

Appendix. 505

L NOTES ON THE STORIES CONTAINED IN VOL. IV.
OF " SUPPLEMENTAL NIGHTS." l

BY W. F. KIRBY.

STORY OF THE SULTAN OF AL-YAMAN AND HIS
THREE SONS.

P. 9. The hippopotamus has also been observed, at the Zoological
Gardens, to scatter his dung in the manner described.

P. 13. It is evident from the importance which the author attaches to
good birth and heredity, that he would hardly approve of the Socialistic
custom, so prevalent in the East, of raising men of low birth to important
offices of State.

THE STORY OF THE THREE SHARPERS (pp. 17-35).

P. 19. In quoting the titles of this and other tales of the Wortley Montague
MS., in which the word Ja'idf frequently occurs, Scott often wrote " labourer "
or " artisan " instead of " sharper." The term " sharper " is hardly applicable
here, for the fellows appear really to have possessed the knowledge to which
they laid claim. The " sharpers " in this story differ much from such impostors
as the Illiterate Schoolmaster (No. 93, vol. v. pp. 119-121) who escapes from his
dilemma by his ready wit, or from European pretenders of the type of Grimm's
Dr. Knowall, who escapes from his difficulties by mere accident ; or again from
our old friend Ma'aruf (No. 169) whose impudent pretensions and impostures
are aided by astounding good luck.

P. 23. This test was similar to that given to Ma'aruf (vol. x. pp. 16, 17),
but there is nothing in the latter passage to show whether Ma'aruf had any

1 Further notes illustrative of this and the succeeding volumes will be found in the
Bibliography in Supp. Nights, vol vi. I frequently refer to tales by their numbers in the
Table (Nights, vol. x., pp. 514-53)-

506 Supplemental Nights.

real knowledge of gems, or not. In the present story, the incident of the worm
recals the well-known incident of Solomon ordering worms to pierce gems for
Bilkees, the Queen of Sheba.

P. 23. English schoolboys sometimes play the " trussing game." Two
boys have their wrists and ankles tied together, and their arms are passed over
their knees, and a stick thrust over the arms and under the knees, and they are
then placed opposite each other on the ground, and endeavour to turn each
other over with their toes.

P. 25 note. Can the word Kashmar be a corruption of Kashmiri ?

HISTORY OF MOHAMMED, SULTAN OF CAIRO (pp. 37-49)-

p. 37. A few years ago, a travelling menagerie exhibited a pair of dog-faced
baboons in Dublin as " two monstrous gorillas !''

P. 40. Ma 'arufs jewel has been already referred to. The present incident
more resembles the demand made by the king and the wazir from Aladdin
and his mother, though that was far more extravagant.

Pp. 42, 43. A more terrible form of these wedding disillusions, is when the
bridegroom is entrapped into marriage by an evil magician, and wakes in the
morning to find the phantom of a murdered body in the place of his phantom
bride, and to be immediately charged with the crime. (Compare the story of
Naerdan and Guzulbec (Caylus' Oriental Tales ; Weber, ii. pp. 632-637) and
that of Monia Emin (Gibb's Story of Jewad, pp. 36, 75.) Compare my Appendix,
Nights, x. pp. 502, 508, 509.

Pp. 44, 45. There is a Western story (one of the latest versions of which
may be found in Moore's Juvenile Poems under the title of " The Ring ") in
which a bridegroom on his wedding-day places the ring by accident on the
finger of a statue of Venus ; the finger closes on it, and Venus afterwards
interposes continually between him and his bride, claiming him as her husband
on the strength of the ring. The unfortunate husband applies to a magician,
who sends him by night to a meeting of cross-roads, where a procession similar
to that described in the text passes by. He presents the magician's letters to
the King (the devil in the mediaeval versions of the story) who requires Venus
to surrender the ring, and with it her claim to the husband.

One of the most curious stories of these royal processions is perhaps the
Lithuanian (or rather Samoghitian) story of

THE KING OF THE RATS}

Once upon a time a rich farmer lived in a village near Korzian, who was in
the habit of going into the wood late in the evening. One evening he went
back again into the wood very late, when he distinctly heard the name Zurkielis
shouted. He followed the voice, but could not discover from whence the sound
proceeded.

1 Veckenstedt, Mythen, Sagen und Legenden der Zamaiten, ii. pp. 160, 162.

Appendix. 507

On the next evening the farmer went again into the wood, and did not wait
long before he heard the cry repeated, but this time much louder and more dis-
tinctly. On the third evening the farmer went again to the wood ; but this
time on Valpurgis-night the Witch's Sabbath. Suddenly he saw a light
appear in the distance ; then more lights shone out, and the light grew stronger
and stronger ; and presently the farmer saw a strange procession advancing,
and passing by him In front of the procession ran a great number of mice of
all sorts, each of whom carried a jewel in his mouth which shone brighter than
the sun. After these came a golden chariot, drawn by a lion, a bear, and two
wolves. The chariot shone like fire, and, instead of nails, it was studded with
dazzling jewels. In the chariot sat the King of the Rats and his consort, both
clad in golden raiment. The King of the Rats wore a golden crown on his
head, and his consort marshalled the procession. After the chariot followed a
vast procession of rats, each of whom carried a torch, and the sparks which
flew from the torches fell to the earth as jewels. Some of the rats were
shouting "Zurkielis" incessantly ; and whenever a rat uttered this cry, a piece
of gold fell from his mouth. The procession was followed by a great number
of fantastic forms, which collected the gold from the ground, and put it into
large sacks. When the farmer saw this he also gathered together as much of
the gold and jewels as he could reach. Presently a cock crew, and everything
vanished. The farmer returned to his house, but the gold and jewels gave him
a very tangible proof that the adventure had not been a dream.

A year passed by, and on the next Valpurgis-night the farmer went back to
the wood, and everything happened as on the year before. The farmer became
immensely rich from the gold and jewels which he collected ; and on the third
anniversary of the Valpurgis-night he did not go to the wood, but remained
quietly at home. He was quite rich enough, and he was afraid that some harm
might happen to him in the wood. But on the following morning a rat
appeared, and addressed him as follows : " You took the gold and jewels, but
this year you did not think it needful to pay our king and his consort the
honour due to them by appearing before them during the procession in the
wood ; and henceforward it will go ill with you."

Having thus spoken, the rat disappeared ; but shortly afterwards such a
host of rats took up their abode in the farmer's house that it was impossible for
him to defend himself against them. The rats gnawed everything in the house,
and whatever was brought into it. In time the farmer was reduced to beggary,
and died in wretchedness.

STORY OF THE SECOND LUNATIC (pp. 67-74;.

This is a variant of "Woman's Craft" (No. 184 of our Table), or " Woman's
Wiles," (Supp. Nights, ii. pp, 135-148). Mr. L. C. Smithcrs tells me that an
English version of this story, based upon Langles' translation (Cf. Nights, x.
App., p. 498, sub '* Sindbad the Sailor,") appeared in the Literary Souvenir
for 1831, under the title of "Woman's Wit.' 1

Pp. 69-76. Concerning the Shikk and the Nesna*s, Lane writes (1001
Nights, i., Introd. note 21) : "The Shikk is another demoniacal creature,

508 Supplemental Nights.

having the form of half a human being (like a man divided longitudinally) j
and it is believed that the Nesna"s is the offspring of a Shikk and of a human
being. The Shikk appears to travellers ; and it was a demon of this kind who
killed, and was killed by, 'Alkamah, the son of Safvvdn, the son of Umeiyeh, of
whom it is well known that he was killed by a Jinnee. So says El-Kazweenee.
" The Nesnds (above-mentioned) is described as resembling half a human
being, having half a head, half a body, one arm, and one leg, with which it
hops with much agility; as being found in the woods of El- Yemen, and
being endowed with speech ; ' but God,' it is added, ' is all-knowing. 3 (El-
Kazweenee in the khatimeh of his work). It is said that it is found in Hadramdt
as well as El- Yemen ; and that one was brought alive to El-Mutawekkil ; it
resembled a man in form, excepting that it had but half a face, which was in
its breast, and a tail like that of a sheep. The people of Hadram6t, it is
added, eat it ; and its flesh is sweet. It is only generated in their country.
A man who went there asserted that he saw a captured Nesna"s, which cried
out for mercy, conjuring him by God and by himself. (Mi-rdt ez-Zema~n). A
race of people whose head is in the breast is described as inhabiting an island
called Ja"beh (supposed to be Java) in the Sea of El-Hind or India ; and a kind
of Nesna"s is also described as inhabiting the Island of Ra"ij, in the Sea of Es-
Seen, or China, and having wings like those of the bat. (Ibn El-Wardee)."
Compare also an incident in the story of Janshah (Nights v. p. 333, and note)
and the description of the giant Haluka in Forbes' translation of the Persian
Romance of Hatim Tai (p. 47) : " In the course of an hour the giant was so
near as to be distinctly seen in shape like an immense dome. He had neither
hands nor feet, but a tremendous mouth, situated in the midst of his body.
He advanced with an evolving motion, and from his jaws issued volumes of
flame and clouds of smoke." When his reflection was shown him in a mirror,
he burst with rage.

I may add that a long-tailed species of African monkey (Cercopithecus
Pyrrhonotus) is now known to naturalists as the Nisnas.

STORY OF THE BROKEN-BACKED SCHOOLMASTER

(PP- 95-97 J-

I once heard a tale of two Irishmen, one of whom lowered the other over a
cliff, probably in search of the nests of sea-fowl. Presently the man at the top
called out, " Hold hard while I spit on my hands," so he loosed the rope for that
purpose, and his companion incontinently disappeared with it.

STORY OF THE SPLIT-MOUTHED SCHOOLMASTER

(pp. 97-101}.

In Scott's " Story of the Wry-mouthed Schoolmaster " (Arabian Nights,
vi. pp. 7475) the schoolmaster crams a boiling egg into his mouth, which the
boy smashes.

Appendix. 509

NIGHT ADVENTURE OF SULTAN MOHAMMED OF CAIRO

(pp. 90-109;.

P. 103. Scott (vi. p. 403) makes the proclamation read, " Whoever
presumes after the first watch of the night to have a lamp lighted in his house,
shall have his head struck off, his goods confiscated, his house razed to the
ground, and his women dishonoured." A proclamation in such terms under the
circumstances (though not meant seriously) would be incredible, even in the
East.

STORY OF THE KAZI WHO BARE A BABE (pp. 167-185,).

In the Esthouian Kalevipoeg we read of two giants who lay down to sleep
on opposite sides of the table after eating a big supper of thick peas-soup. An
unfortunate man was hidden under the table, and the consequence was that he
was blown backwards and forwards between them all night.

HISTORY OF THE BHANG-EATER AND HIS WIFE
(pp. 202-209;.

Selling a bull or a cow in the manner described is a familiar incident in
folk-lore ; and in Riviere's (< Contes Populaires Kabyles " we find a variant of
the present story under the title of " L'Idiot et le Coucou.'' In another form,
the cow or other article is exchanged for some worthless, or apparently worth-
less, commodity, as in Jack and the Bean-stalk ; Hans im Cluck ; or as in the
case of Moses in the Vicar of Wakcfield. The incident of the fool finding a
treasure occurs in Cazottc's story of Xailoun. 1

HOW DRUMMER ABU KASIM BECAME A KAZI
(pp. 210-212).

1 have heard an anecdote of a man who was sued for the value of a bond
which he had given payable one day after the day of judgment. The judge
ruled, "This is the day of judgment, and I order that the bill must be paid
to-morrow ! ''

STORY OF THE KAZI AND HIS SLIPPER (pp. 212-215;.

This story is well known in Europe, though not as forming part of The
Nights. Mr. W. A. Clouston informs me that it first appeared in Cardonnc's
" Melanges de litteVature orientale" (Paris, 1770), Cf. Nights x. App. pp. 509
and 512.

1 Compere, too, Mr. Clouston's " Book of Noodles," chap, v., "The Silly Son."

$ IO Supplemental Nights.

HISTORY OF THE THIRD LARRIKIN (pp. 296-297;.

Such mistakes must be very frequent. I remember once seeing a maid
stoop down with a jug in her hand, when she knocked her head against the
table. Some one sitting by thinking it was the jug, observed, "Nevermind,
there's nothing in it."

Another time I was driving out in the country with a large party, and our
host got out to walk across to another point. Presently he was missed, and
they inquired, "Where is he ?" There was a dog lying in the carriage, and
one of the party looked round, and not seeing the dog, responded, " Why,
where is the dog?"

TALE OF THE FISHERMAN AND HIS SON (pp. 314-329,).

The present story, though not very important in itself, is interesting as
combining some of the features of three distinct classes of folk-tales. One of
these is the anti-Jewish series, of which Grimm's story of the Jew in the
Bramble-Bush is one of the most typical examples. According to these tales, any
villany is justifiable, if perpetrated on a Jew. We find traces of this feeling
even 'in Shakspeare, and to this day Shylock (notwithstanding the grievous
wrongs which he had suffered at the hands of Christians) rarely gets much
sympathy from modern readers, who quite overlook all the extenuating circum-
stances in his case. 1 Nor do we always find the Jew famous for 'cuteness in
folk-tales. This phase of his reputation is comparatively modern, and in the
time of Horace, " Credat Judaeus " was a Roman proverb, which means, freely
translated, " Nobody would be fool enough to believe it except a Jew. 3 '

The present story combines the features of the anti-Jewish tales, the Ala-
eddin series, and the Grateful Beasts series. (Compare Mr. W. A. Clouston's
remarks on Aladdin, Supp. Nights, App. iii., pp. 564-581 ; and also his "Tales
and Popular Fictions.")

In vol. 53 of the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (1884, pp. 24-39) I
find a Nicobar story which relates how Tiomberombi received a magic mirror
from a snake whose enemy he had killed. Its slaves obeyed all his orders if he
only put the key into the keyhole, but he was not allowed to open the mirror,
as he was too weak to face the spirits openly. He dwelt on an island, but when
a hostile fleet came against him, the gunners could not hit it, as the island
became invisible. The hostile chief sent an old woman to worm the secret out
of Tiomberombi's wife ; the mirror was stolen, and Tiomberombi and his wife
were carried off. On reaching land, Tiomberombi was thrown into prison, but
he persuaded the rats to fetch him the mirror. 2 He destroyed his enemies,
went home, and re-established himself on his island, warning his wife and
mother not to repeat what had happened, lest the island should sink. They
told the story while he was eating j the island sank into the sea, and they were
all drowned.

1 Cf. "An Apology for the Character and Conduct of Shylock," in a volume of
Essays published by a Society of Gentlemen in Exeter (1796), pp. 552-573.

2 This incident shews that the story belongs to the Grateful Beasts' class, though it is
not. said that Tiomberombi had conferred any benefit on the rats ; it is only implied
that he understood their language.

Appendix. 511

THE HISTORY OF ABU NIYYAff AND ABU
N1YYATA YN (pp. 334-35^

This story combines features which we find separately in Nos. 30 (ba) ;
162 and 198. The first story, the Envier and the Envied, is very common in
folk-lore, and has been sometimes used in modern fairy-tales. The reader
will remember the Tailor and the Shoemaker in Hans Christian Andersen's
"Eventyr." Frequently, as in the latter story, the good man, instead of
being thrown into a well, is blinded by the villain, and abandoned in a forest,
where he afterwards recovers his sight. One of the most curious forms of this
story is the Samoghitian

TRUTH AND INJUSTICE?

Truth and Injustice lived in the same country, and one day they happened
to meet, and agreed to be friends. But as Injustice brought many people into
trouble, Truth declared that she would have no more to do with her, upon
which Injustice grew angry, and put out the eyes of Truth. Truth wandered
about for a long time at random, and at last she came to a walnut-tree, and climbed
up it to rest awhile in safety from wild beasts. During the night a wolf and
a mouse came to the foot of the tree, and held the following conversation. The
wolf began, " I am very comfortable in the land where I am now living, for
there are so many blind people there that I can steal almost any animal I like
without anybody seeing me. If the blind men knew that they had only to rub
their eyes with the moss which grows on the stones here in order to recover
their sight, I should soon get on badly with them.''

The mouse responded, " I live in a district where the people have no water,
and are obliged to fetch it from a great distance. When they are away from
home I can enjoy as much of their provisions as I like ; indeed, I can heap
together as large a store as I please without being disturbed. If the people
knew that they had only to cut down a great oak tree, and a great lime tree which
grow near their houses, in order to find water, I should soon be badly off."

As soon as the wolf and the mouse were gone, Truth came down from her
tree, and groped about until she found a moss-covered stone, when she rubbed
her eyes with the moss. She recovered her sight immediately, and then went
her way till she came to the country where most of the people where blind.
Truth demanded that the blind people should pay her a fixed sum of money,
when she would tell them of a remedy by which they could recover their sight.
The blind men gave her the money, and Truth supplied them with the remedy
which had cured herself.

After this, Truth proceeded further till she came to the district where the
people had no water. She told them that if they would give her a carriage and
horses, she would tell them where to find water. The people were glad to
agree to her proposal.

1 Veckenitedt, Mythcn, Stgen v~* Lcgenden der Zaroaiten, i. pp. 163-166.

512 Supplemental Nights.

When Truth had received the carriage and horses, she showed the people
the oak and the lime tree, which they felled by her directions, when water
immediately flowed from under the roots. in great abundance.

As Truth drove away she met Injustice, who had fallen into poverty, and
was wandering from one country to another in rags. Truth knew her
immediately, and asked her to take a seat in her carriage. Injustice then
recognised her, and asked her how she had received the light of her eyes, and
how she had come by such a fine carriage. Truth told her everything, including
what she had heard from the wolf and the mouse. Injustice then persuaded
her to put out her eyes, for she wanted to be rich, and to have a fine carriage
too ; and then Truth told her to descend. Truth herself drove away, and
seldom shows herself to men.

Injustice wandered about the country till she found the walnut tree, up
which she climbed. When evening came, the wolf and the fox met under the
tree again to talk. Both were now in trouble, for the wolf could not steal an
animal without being seen and pursued by the people, and the mouse'could no
longer eat meat or collect stores without being disturbed, for the people were no
longer obliged to leave their home -for a long time to fetch water. Both the
wolf and the mouse suspected that some one had overheard their late conversa-
tion, so they looked up in. search of the listener, and discovered Injustice in the
tree. The animals supposed that it was she who had betraved them, and said
in anger, " May our curse be upon you that you may remain for ever blind, for
you have deprived us of our means of living.''

After thus speaking, the animals ran away, but Injustice has ever
since remained blind, and does harm to everybody who chances to come
in her way.

5'3

II. NOTES ON THE STORIES CONTAINED IN
VOL. V. OF SUPPLEMENTAL NIGHTS. 19

BY W. F. KIRBY.

HISTORY OF THE KING'S SON OF SIND AND THE
JLADY FATIMAH (pp. 1-18).

P. 5. This mixture of seeds, &c., is a very common incident in folk-tales.

P. io. Compare the well-known incident in John xviii. i-ii, which
passage, by the way, is considered to be an interpolation taken from the lost
Gospel of the Hebrews.

HISTORY OF THE LOVERS OF SYRIA (pp. 21-36).

P. 26. Divination by the flight or song of birds is so universal that it is
ridiculous of Kreutzwald (the compiler of the Kalevipoeg) to quote the fact of
the son of Kalev applying to birds and beasts for advice as being intended
by the composers as a hint that he was deficient in intelligence.

In Bulwer Lytton's story of the Fallen Star (Pilgrims of the Rhine,
ch. xix.) he makes the imposter Morven determine the succession to the
chieftainship by means of a trained hawk.

P. 36, nott 2 .Scott may possibly refer to the tradition that the souls of
the dead are stored up in the trumpet of Israfil, when he speaks of the
"receiving angel."

NIGHT ADVENTURE OF HARUN ALRASHID AND THE
YOUTH MANJAB (pp. 61-105).

P. 102. In the Danish ballads we frequently find heroes appealing to
their mothers or nurses in cases of difficulty. Compare " Habor and Signild,"
and " Knight Stig*s Wedding," in Prior's Danish Ballads, i.p. 216 and ii. p. 339
VOL. V K K

5 ?4 Supplemental Nighis.

HISTORY OF. AL-HAJJAJ BIN YUSUF AND THE YOUNG
SAYYJD (pp. 39-60).

P. 43, note i. I doubt if the story-teller intended to represent Al-Hajjaj as
ignorant. The story rather implies that he was merely catechising the youth,
in order to entangle him in his talk.

P. 46. Compare the story of the Sandal- wood Merchant and the Sharpers
(Nights, vi. p. 206) in which the Merchant is required to drink up the sea [or
rather, perhaps, river], and requires his adversary to hold the mouth of the sea
for him with his hand.

P. 52, note 3. It is well known that children should not be allowed to
sleep with aged persons, as the latter absorb their vitality.

STORY OF THE DARWAYSH AND THE BARBER'S BOY
AND THE GREEDY SULTAN (pp. 105-114).

This story belongs to the large category known to students of folk-lore
as the Sage and his Pupil ; and of this again there are three main groups :

1. Those in which (as in the present instance) the two remain on friendly
terms.

2. Those in which the sage is outwitted and destroyed by his pupil (e.g.,
Gazette's story of the Maugraby ; orSpitta Bey's tales, No. i).

3. Those in which the pupil attempts to outwit or to destroy the sage, and
is himself outwitted or destroyed (e.g., The Lady's Fifth Story, in Gibb's
Forty Vezirs, pp. 76-80 ; and his App. B. note v., p. 413).

THE LOVES OF AL-HAYFA AND YUSUF (pp. 121-210.)

P. 149, note i. I believe that a sudden attack of this kind is always
speedily fatal.

THE GOOD WIFE OF CAIRO AND HER FOUR GALLANTS

(pp. 251-294).

P. 255, note. It may be worth while to note that Swedenborg asserts that
it is unlawful in Heaven for any person to look at the back of the head of
another, as by so doing he interrupts the divine influx- The foundation of
this idea is perhaps the desire to avoid mesmeric action upon the cerebellum.

Appendix. 515

TALE OF MOHS1N AND MVSA (pp. 319-33*)-

The notes on the story of Abu Niyyat and Abu Niyyateen (anUa, pp. 511
will apply still better to the present story.

THE MERCHANT'S DAUGHTER, AND THE PRJNCE OF
AL-IRAK (pp. 371437).

Pp. 422-430. The case of Tobias and Sara (Tobit, chaps, iii.-viii.) was
very similar : but in this instance the demon Asmodeus was driven away by
fumigating with the liver and heart of a fish.

BURTON, tr.

Arabian nights, S-npp

.BB

v. 5