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1^1
THE THOUSAND AND ONE
QUARTERS OF AN HOUR,
THE THOUSAND AND ONE
QUARTERS OF AN HOUR
{TARTARIAN TALES).
EDITED BY
LEONARD C. SMITHERS
LONDON
JPRINTED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY
1914
Copyright, 1897,
By thb Athbn;eum Publishing CO.
/ :
PREFACE.
These very lively, ingenious, and entertaining imita-
tions of the "Arabian Nights" are confessed^' the
work of Thomas Simon Gueulette. He was born at
Paris in 1683, and held the office of substitute of the
royal procurator at the Chitelet Possessed of a very
fertile imagination, he produced a great number of
works of amusement. In the style of the fairy tales,
he made his Jibut with Les Soiries Bretonnes, or the
Evenings of Brittany, which appeared in 1712, and
on which Voltaire founded his celebrated Zadig. In
the year 1723 he produced the Thousand and One
Quarcers of an Hour, or the Tartarian Tales; which
were followed in the same year by the Chinese Tales,
or the Marvellous Adventures of the Mandarin Fum-
Hoam, and by the Sultanas of Guzarat, or the
Dreams of Men Awake, generally known under the
name of the Mogul Tales. He imitated the tales of
Count Hamilton, and, though his style is less bril-
liant, and his incidents have less of what the French
112S74i
VI
call bizarrerie, the numerous stories which he has
produced abound in interesting situations, and are,
in general, true pictures of what they are intended
to represent.
The collection of Tales here given is generally the
work of Gueulette's own imagination; but he has
often introduced allusions to, and incidents from,
real Oriental fictions, and, in some instances from
the works of European novelists.
The tale of the Three Crump-Brothers he acknowl-
edges to have borrowed from the novels of Stra-
parola ; but asserts that it cost him great trouble to
vary and adapt it to his own purposes. Several
other novels, however, furnished subjects for these
tales, amongst which Le Grand notices several fab-
Haux, viz., the Judgment of Solomon, the Lay of
Hippocrates, and Le Chevalier de la Trappe.
Besides these works, he was author of a novel,
entitled Les Mhnoires de Mademoiselle Bontems, and
of several short pieces for the ThMtre Italien, the
profits of which he always resigned to the actors.
He edited Rabelais, and the ancient French romances
of Petit-Jean de Saintre, and Gerard comte de Nevers.
His character is described as gentle and lively, and
his company was generally sought after. He was of
a beneficent disposition; and on the death of his
Vll
wife resigned the whole of his right to her fortune in
favour of her relations. Hospitality he practised to
a great extent ; and in his country house at Choisy-
le-Roi, he instituted a private theatre, where some of
the most distinguished of his friends performed. He
is said to have had a wonderful talent for puppet-
shows, and to have acted the part of Punch to per-
fection. His vivacity is reported to have often em-
broiled him with the clergy. He died at Doyen de
la Compagniet in the year 1768.
INTRODUCTION
TALE OF KING SHAMS AL-DIN
Near Astrakhan lived a solitary darwaysh, who, return-
ing one evening from angling upon the banks of the river
Volga, was surprised to find on the threshold of his cell a
new-born child, and stark naked. He took it in his arms,
and ran to tell this accident to a tailor of Astrakhan, called
Kurban, from whom he was often used to receive alms.
The tailor's wife happily was brought to bed the very
night before of a daughter, which died the moment it came
into the world. She offered the breast to the child the
darwaysh had brought her, and forgetting as it were her
own daughter, turned her affection entirely to the little boy,
whom she named Shams al-Din. The tailor and his wife,
having had no children for near fifteen years, loved little
Shams al-Din with extreme tenderness ; and the boy, beUev-
ing himself their son, returned it with a respect and sub-
mission which augmented the affection they had for him.
When he was grown up, notwithstanding the inclination he
found in himself for arms, the sole will of Kurban engaged
him to learn the trade of a tailor ; and in less than two years
he made such extraordinary progress in that profession,
that only by looking at a person, without taking any meas-
ure, he could make a suit of clothes as exactly fit as the best
tailor in Astrakhan could make with ever so much measuring.
Shams al-Din's skill quickly made a noise all over the town :
I
nobody was thought to have a tolerable good taste, if he was
not dressed in a suit of his making ; and most of the ladies
employed him without giving umbrage to their husbands,
because by seeing them only at a distance, he could in four
days' time bring them such a habit as they desired.
One day, as this young tailor was in his shop, an old
slave, accosting him, desired to speak with him in private.
Sir, said she, be so kind as to come along with me im-
mediately ; two of the handsomest ladies in all Astrakhan
have occasion for your service. Shams al-Din readily
promised to go with her. But this is not all, replied the
woman ; you must consent to have your eyes muffled,
otherwise I must not carry you along with me. Shams
al-Din was surprised at such a proposal; but resolving to
venture anything rather than miss seeing a couple of
beautiful ladies, he immediately went with the old woman.
She conducted him to a little house in the suburbs of
Astrakhan ; carried him into a parlor, and pulling out a
silk handkerchief embroidered with gold, presented him to
two black slaves, who had their sabres in their hands ;
ordered them to bind his eyes with that handkerchief, and
to conduct him to the place where he was expected : but
that if he showed the least curiosity to discover the way
they led him, they should that moment cut off his head.
This order frightened the young tailor. Fear nothing, said
the old woman to him ; provided you are wise and discreet,
your life is safe. He resumed his courage on these prom-
ises, suffered them to bind his eyes, and walked thus blind-
fold for the space of an hour ; when the slaves taking off his
muffler, he found himself in a hall magnificently lighted by
above a hundred wax tapers.
At the upper end of the hall was a throne of massy silver,
upon which sat three ladies, each covered with a veil,
through which it was nevertheless easy to perceive, that one
of them, though perfectly handsome, was about forty years
old, and that nature had formed nothing so charm hig and
so complete as the other two, who seemed to be hardly
eighteen. A great number of female slaves, veiled in the
same manner, and ranged on each side of the throne, kept
a profound silence, and seemed respectfully to await the
command of the three ladies. After they had given the
tailor time to look about him and admire so much magnifi-
cence, the lady that appeared the eldest of the three rose
from the throne. Shams al-Din, says she, your reputation
has excited our curiosity. We have heard wonders con-
cerning your skill, and are willing to be judges of it our-
selves ; look well upon these two young ladies ; view their
shapes with attention : Dare you engage, without taking
any other measure, to make each of them a genteel suit of
clothes ? — Madam, replied the young tailor, I shall do my
endeavors to keep up the reputation I have with some
justice acquired : I have viewed these ladies enough ; order
me the silks, and in eight days' time you shall be satisfied.
The black slaves upon this led Shams al-Din into another
room, and opened twenty coffers, which v/ere all full of the
finest silks of the East : he chose what was necessary to
make the two habits complete. His eyes were again muf-
fled, and he was led to the house of the old woman, who
re-conducted him home. If you would have your good
fortune continue, said she to him at parting, do not seek to
know from whence you come, or for whom you are to
work : the least step you take towards such a discovery
will cost you your life. Think of nothing but how to execute
as soon as possible the orders you have received. I shall
fetch you again eight days hence, and carry you to the
same ladies, upon the former conditions.
The old woman having taken leave of Shams al-Din, he
went to bed, after he had neatly laid up the silks, resolving
to begin the suits at break of day : but he could not close his
eyes all the night ; the charms of one of the young ladies
4
returned to his mind a thousand times. Two large blue
eyes, whose brightness shot through the obscurity of her veil,
had made such an impression upon his mind, that he was
no longer master of himself He got up, lighted his lamp,
and after having studied some time in what manner he
should cut out his silks, he hit upon a method so uncommon,
and withal so advantageous to the beauty of the two young
ladies, especially of her he admired, that he had very good
reason to believe they would be pleased with his perform-
ance. He then set to work with abundance of care and
diligence ; and the clothes being finished at the day ap-
pointed, the old woman who came to fetch him, committed
him with his eyes muffled into the hands of the two blacks,
who, after having led him through the same passages as
before, presented him to the three ladies, whom he found
seated upon the throne of silver.
Shams al-Din had no sooner opened his bundle and
spread out the habits, than they began to extol his wonder-
ful fancy. The two ladies, for whom they were made,
retired into a sort of wardrobe with four slaves. They re-
turned into the hall a few minutes afterwards without veils,
and in their new habits, but a thousand times more brilliant
than the full moon. As soon as they appeared, the hall
resounded with the applauses of the slaves, and the young
tailor was so struck with the charms of her to whom he had
consecrated his heart, that he fell backwards upon a sofa,
and was ready to die with the extreme pleasure he felt in
that moment. Indeed, the beauty of those ladies was so
great, that it could be compared to nothing but to that of
the houris.
They extolled Shams al-Din to the skies, praised the
invention and neatness of his work, gave him each of them
a purse of a hundred pieces of gold, and begged him to
make them two more suits, different from those whicli he
had now brought them. The young man went into the silk-
5
room, chose five pieces of a very pretty fancy, made two
other suits more singular than had yet been seen, returned
at the eight days' end with the same ceremonies, received
greater applauses than before, two hundred pieces of gold,
and orders for choosing silks to make up more. In short,
this trade continued for seven weeks together, in which time
Shams al-Din had made up fourteen suits of clothes, and
received as many purses of gold ; when the passion he had
conceived for one of the two ladies grew so violent, that
notwithstanding the distance there appeared to be between
him and her, he resolved to declare his love. After having
considered a great while how he should go about it, he could
think of no other expedient but to put a letter for her in the
pocket of the next suit of clothes he should carry her. He
executed this design, and expressed what he felt for her in
terms so moving and so submissive, that he hoped, if she did
not accept of his heart, at least she would forgive his rash-
ness in offering it.
The letter had all the effect Shams al-Din could wish for.
The next time he appeared before his lady, instead of anger,
he read in her eyes something so sweet, that he had much
ado to refrain from throwing himself at her feet. He pre-
sented her with her clothes, she went out to try them, and
sent them back to him a moment afterwards, with word that
they were something too little. The young tailor, who well
knew that the clothes were as they should be, soon imagined
that this was only a feint to convey him an answer. He
pulled out his scissors and his needle, and pretending to
alter what was amiss, searched the pockets, and in one of
them found a letter, which he dexterously put up; and then
returned the habit, without having made the least alteration
in it : the lady was very well satisfied with it, and came again
into the hall. New orders were given to the young tailor, he
was re-conducted as usual, and the moment he was got home
he broke open the letter, in which he read what follows : " I
6
could not, amiable Shams al-Din, be insensible to your
passion : you describe it in colors so lively and so natural,
that I should be afraid of offending our great Prophet if I
repaid it with ingratitude. I love you, and do not blush to
confess it. Everything in you pleases me ; and you should
quickly be happy if it depended upon me alone to crown
your love, which I believe is sincere and honorable ; but,
dear hght of my life, what tears must this confession cost you,
when you know that I am forever shut up in a place where
all things are designed for the pleasure of the king of Astra-
khan, and the unfortunate Zabd al-Katon must never hope
to be united with the tender Shams al-Din."
If the young tailor felt an infinite deal of joy at reading of
this letter, that joy was not unmixed with grief. Zabd al-
Katon was the finest woman in all Tartary, but it was impos-
sible not to know that she was the favorite of Al-Salah, king
of Astrakhan. Shams al-Din was too conversant among the
principal persons in the city, not to have heard talk of the
charms of that young lady, and her cruelty towards the king.
As that prince was above sixty years old, and Zabd al-Katon
hardly seventeen, she did not know how to reconcile herself
to sexagenary sighs ; and the king of Astrakhan, who loved
her with unparalleled ardor and delicacy, being unwilling to
make use of the authority he had over his slave, waited with
patience, till his unbounded complaisance should gain him
the fair one's heart.
Shams al-Din too plainly saw how impossible it was to
carry off Zabd al-Katon from his king ; this reflection threw
him into such a violent despair, that when the old slave came
to fetch him to the seraglio, she found him sick a-bed of a
violent fever. She ran and told this news to the three ladies.
They were very much alarmed at it ; and without consider-
ing the danger to which they exposed themselves, they
gained over the eunuchs, Avho had suffered the young tailor
to visit them so often, and by this means had Hberty to go
out of the palace. Shams al-Din, who was resolved to use no
remedies whereby he might be cured, was in the greatest sur-
prise to see those ladies at his bed's head. He did his utmost
to show his acknowledgment of this favor ; when the eldest
of the three, having lifted up her veil for the first time,
spoke to him in these words : Your health, charming Shams
al-Din, is so dear to us, that we venture our own lives for
an opportunity of trying if there is no way to save yours ; we
beg you to tell us the cause of your illness, and perhaps we
may find out some remedy for it. The young tailor, seized
with respect, and touched with the beauty of that lady, who
felt a certain emotion she could not account for, raised him-
self up : Ah ! madam, replied he in a languishing voice,
however incurable I thought my distemper, your presence,
and that of these ladies, has poured a salutary balm into my
wounds. Grief alone was the illness which would have given
me my death ; but since you have the goodness to interest
yourself in the preservation of a miserable wretch, I abandon
the cruel resolution I had taken, and hope in less than six
days' time I shall be able to deliver these two ladies the
clothes they have commanded me to make for them.
Zabd al-Katon, affected with the young tailor's extraordinary
passion, pressed his hand. If that is possible, says she, with-
out endangering your health, pray endeavor, my dear Shams
al-Din, to keep your word with us ; you cannot imagine the
joy it will be to me in particular. The ladies, after this, got
up, and attended by the eunuchs, who had conducted them
quite to the tailor's house, returned to the palace.
Shams al-Din passed a night in so great an excess of
pleasure, that by the next morning he was in a condition to
begin the clothes. They were finished at the six days' end
as he promised, and the old woman, who often came to
inquire after his licalth, having put him into the hands of the
two blacks, they carried him to the hall, which at sight of
him resounded with a thousand shouts of joy. Shams al
. 8
Din presented the habits to the ladies. They viewed them
over and over, and found them of a fancy so superior to
those which he had made before, that they were perfectly
charmed with them. To add to their magnificence, they
sent for a casket full of jewels, and ordered him to choose
some out to fix upon those clothes. The young tailor
obeyed their commands, and was fastening the sleeve of the
charming Zabd al-Katon with a clasp of diamonds, when on
a sudden the door of the hall burst open, and a man in
whose face was painted the height of fury, came directly
towards him with his sabre in his hand. Shams al-Din soon
perceived him to be the king of Astrakhan, and now looked
upon his death to be inevitable ; but not thinking it proper
to wait for the effect of that prince's revenge, nor to abandon
to his fury the three ladies to whom he was so much obliged,
he immediately seized a poniard set with diamonds, which
was in the casket, and without giving the king time to come
up, darted at him with so good an aim, that he gave him a
deep wound, which felled him to the earth.
Al-Salah in this condition had not strength enough to get
up. He called for help, and twelve black eunuchs running
in at his voice, he commanded them to seize Shams al-Din,
as likewise the three ladies and the two black slaves ; to
strip them to the waist, and to cut them to pieces with their
sabres. While the king was laid upon a sofa, and his sur-
geon sent for, the cruel orders he had given were in part
executed. They had now stripped all the criminals, who
were just ready to undergo that cruel sentence, when the
eldest of the three ladies, having by chance cast her eyes
upon the young Shams al-Din, and spied the mark of a
pomegranate which he had beneath the right pap : Ah, my
lord, says she, throwing herself at Al-Salah's feet, suspend, I
beseech you, for a moment, your just anger ! I alone am
guilty. The unfortunate Sntchumi your daughter, Zabd al-
Katon, and the young man, are innocent ; but destiny is not
to be avoided ; and notwithstanding all the precaution you
have taken to escape the prediction of the astrologer, behold
that prediction at length accomplished by the unavoidable
dispensation of Providence.
The king, surprised at this discourse, caused his eunuchs
to retire j and after having ordered the ladies and tailor to
cover themselves, he commanded her who had just now
spoken to explain that enigma, which he was at a loss to
understand. This lady obeyed the king's commands, and
delivered herself in these terms :
HISTORY OF THE SULTANA DUGMI
You may, my lord, remember that at the time when I had
the happiness to please you, upon your consulting the famous
Abd al-Malik upon my pregnancy, that astrologer told you
I should bring forth a son who should give you your death,
and be the cause of his too, if the child were not killed as
soon as born. As Abd al-Malik's predictions always came
true, this gave you abundance of uneasiness ; and to prevent
the misfortune you were threatened with, you had me
watched with the utmost strictness. In vain I represented
to you the little credit that is to be given to a science so
uncertain as astrology ; you resolved to be present at my
labor, to hinder any deceit on my side. My tears had no
effect upon you ; you were inexorable : I could not dissuade
you from the cruel resolution you had taken to shed your
own blood, and I almost died away with grief and terror, at
seeing you enter my chamber with Abd al-Malik, at the
moment when you were assured I was just ready to be
brought to bed. But, my lord, you cannot have forgot that
I passed from the most violent uneasiness to the most exces-
sive joy, when, instead of a boy, I brought into the world the
unfortunate Sutchumi. Then you looked upon Abd al-Malik
with indignation : Ignorant or wicked astrologer, said you to
10
him, your eyes inflamed with anger, I shall teach thee to
mock thy king in this manner. Thy malice had like to have
cost my dear Dugmi her life : but I will soon punish an in-
solent subject for his temerity. Upon this, Abd al-Malik,
continued the sultana, threw himself at your feet. My lord,
said he, do not begin with me to fulfil a prediction which
will prove but too true. Have but a moment's patience, and
you shall find that my science is not ill grounded. You did
not give the astrologer time to finish what he had to say ;
you severed his head from his body at one blow of your
sabre, and went out of the room, after having sent away the
daughter I had brought forth.
You could scarce, my lord, be got into your own apart-
ment, when I felt new pains. The woman who had assisted
me in my first came to me. She found I was going to bring
forth another child : she sent everybody out of my chamber
upon different pretences, and a moment afterwards I brouglit
forth a son, beauteous as the light. Nature, which had
formed nothing so complete, would not give me leave to
sacrifice him to you. My bowels rebelled against the cruelty
which I accused you of in my soul; I put my son, with
jewels to a considerable value, into the hands of the mid-
wife, and begged her to go immediately to seek a nurse for it
somewhere out of Astrakhan. Being now no longer watched,
it was easy for that woman to carry out my son, and I im-
patiently expected her return, that I might hear what was
become of him ; when, four days being past without seeing
anything of her, I was at last told, to my unspeakable grief,
that she was murdered a few leagues from Astrakhan. There
was no mention made of any child being found with her, and
that gave me some comfort ; but notwithstanding all the
secret search I have made ever since that time to find out
what was become of my son, I have never been able to learn
any news of him ; and I looked upon him as irrecoverably
lost, when at this moment, my lord; I know him in that
II
young man, by the pomegranate upon his breast, as upon
that of Sutchumi, his twin sister. It was undoubtedly natural
sympathy, continued Dugmi, that acted in me, when passing
with your Majesty by Kurban's shop, about two months ago,
I of a sudden felt for that young tailor an extreme tender-
ness, which had nothing in it that was criminal, and of which
I knew not the secret cause. It is I alone, my lord, that
under the pretence of employing him to make clothes for
my daughter and the beautiful Zabd al-Katon, corrupted
your eunuchs to convey him into the palace : punish, there-
fore, in me the only instrument of all your misfortunes.
TALE OF KING SHAMS AL-DTN {Continued')
The king of Astrakhan was strangely surprised at this
story; and though the melancholy state he was in should
have made him think of nothing but revenge, he gave orders
to send immediately for the tailor and his wife, who passed
for the father and mother of Shams al-Din. While they were
gone for, the surgeon dressed the king's wound ; and it was
not without inconceivable anguish, that Shams al-Din read
in the surgeon's eyes that his life was in danger. The tailor
and his wife came at last. They confessed that the young
man was none of their son ; that he was brought to them
about eighteen years before by a solitary darwaysh, who told
them he found him stark naked in his little hut at his return
from angling in the river Volga, and that the good old man
died suddenly three months afterwards, without having been
able to give them any further information.
The day on which Shams al-Din had been carried to
Kurban agreeing exactly with that of Sutchumi's birth, and
the pomegranate upon his breast which was in the same
place as upon his twin sister, entirely convincing the king he
was his son, he caused him to come near, embraced him
affectionately, and ordered him to be covered with a sumptu-
12
ous robe. If on one side Shams al-Din rejoiced at the
nobleness oi" his birth, on the other his soul was full of the
sharpest affliction. He threw himself at Al-Salah's feet :
My lord, he said, melting into tears, I wait impatiently for
death ; I cannot look upon myself without horror, after what
my hand has done : Purge the world of such a monster as I
am. This is the greatest and only favor you can show to a
son so guilty as I am. — No, no, my dear Shams al-Din,
replied the king, embracing him afresh, my death is not ow-
ing to any guilt of yours ; what is written upon the table of
light can never be avoided. Live, I command you, and
assemble this moment my wazirs and all the emirs of As-
trakhan : I will in their presence acknowledge you for my
son and for my successor. Shams al-Din having a thorough
sense of the goodness of the king his father, embraced his
knees with respect, and made but very little haste to execute
his orders ; but the Sultana Dugmi having immediately sent
out his commands by the twelve black slaves, the king's
chamber was soon filled with the principal persons of the
court.
That prince was laid upon his sofa. The angel of death is
not far from me, says he to them, and I find I shall quickly
sleep under the wing of the mercy of the Almighty. Behold,
wazirs, continued he with a feeble voice ; behold your mas-
ter, showing them the young Shams al-Din ; this is my son by
the Sultana Dugmi ; I command you to look upon him as
your king.
The wazirs and emirs were mightily astonished at the
approaching death of Al-Salah ; they were likewise ignorant
that the king had ever had a son ; but the sultana having
in a few words related to them the history of the young
tailor, they all prostrated themselves with their faces to the
ground, and swore by their heads to obey him till death.
This ceremony was hardly over, when the king made the
sultana, Sutchumi, and Zabd al-Katon draw near to his sofa :
13
My dear Dugmi, said he to the first, I arn too sensible of the
injustice I did your charms in loving the beauteous Zabd al-
Katon, who never rewarded my passion with anything but
ingratitude ; you did not deserve this infidelity ft-om me : I
die with extreme regret for having broken the oaths I so
often made to be always yours. — Ah, my lord, replied
Dugmi, shedding plenteous tears, whatever tenderness I felt
for your Majesty I never wished to control you in your
pleasures. I loved you, my lord, for yourself; and you never
knew me behold with an eye of envy your new affection for
Zabd al-Katon. Whatever grief the loss of your heart was
to me, your being contented was enough to keep me from
murmuring at your sovereign will. The king's love for the
sultana redoubled at this moment. He embraced her ten-
derly. I will give you a proof, my dear Dugmi, said he, of
the truth of what I say ; the charming Zabd al-Katon no
longer touches me : and to give an undoubted mark of it, I
conjure her in your presence to give her hand to the prince,
my son. As for Sutchumi, the wazir Ibn-Bukr — The
king of Astrakhan could not any further explain his pleasure
with regard to his daughter. He died in the arms of the
sultana with these last words in his mouth.
It is impossible to paint the despair of Shams al-Din.
They had much ado to keep him from attempting his own
life. His mother, his sister, and Zabd al-Katon did not
leave him a moment ; the last particularly, being delivered
from a king whose troublesome though respectful love had
more than once made her tremble, used all her endeavors
to dispel Shams al-Din's sorrow. But insensible to all the
honors that were done to him, he fell into so profound a
melancholy, that his life was feared. Public prayers were
ordered in the Mosques of Astrakhan. They in some meas-
ure appeased the wrath of the great Prophet against the new
king. He found his mind more at peace in a few months ;
and after having nobly rewarded the tailor and his wife for
14
the kindness they had ahvays shown him, he married Sut-
chumi to the wazir Ibn-Bukr, which was what he thought
the king his father meant by his last words, and pubhcly
espoused Zabd al-Katon himself. The prince spent nearly
five months with his wife in the most perfect felicity. The
days in her company seemed no more than moments ; but
this happiness was all of a sudden interrupted by frightful
dreams, which continually represented to his thoughts his
bleeding father. Zabd al-Katon to no purpose endeavored
by the most endearing behavior to efface from her hus-
band's mind the dark ideas with which it was filled. He
was incessantly torn with remorse for the murder he had
committed, and could think of no other way to put an end to
it than by taking a journey to Meccah. Zabd al-Katon, un-
willing to part with the king, begged that he would permit
her to go with him ; Shams al-Din, being unable to refuse
her that satisfaction, left his brother-in-law, the wazir Ibn-
Bukr, regent in his absence, recommended his mother and
sister to his care in the strongest terms, and set out from
Astrakhan.
After a tedious journey, in which the king and his wife
underwent a thousand fatigues, they at length arrived at
Meccah. There Shams al-Din walked seven times round
the temple ; and after having purified himself with the water
of the well called Zemzem, he went in the evening to Mount
Arafat, where he caused two hundred sheep to be slain, which
he distributed among the poor. From thence he took the
road to Al-Madinah, and performed his devotion in the most
holy Mosque : and afterwards, having offered a present ot
forty thousand pieces of gold, as he had done at Meccah, he
joined the Caravan and travelled towards Grand Cairo, where
they arrived without meeting with any accident. Shams al-
Din no longer felt the cruel agitations which so often inter-
rupted his slumbers. He began to enjoy an undisturbed
h:ippiness, and prepared to begin his journey towards his
15
own kingdom, when the beauteous Zabd al-Katon was at-
tacked with a violent fever. This unlucky accident hindered
him from setting out with the Caravan, which could not defer
its journey ; but he soon had just reason to be alarmed, when
the distemper of his beloved wife increased to such a degree,
that her life was despaired of. The princess was almost two
days insensible, and recovered for some moments the use of
her speech only to pierce Shams al-Din's heart with the most
cruel affliction. I must leave you, my dear husband, said
she to him, embracing him with extreme tenderness, and I
conceive beforehand all the hon-or of such a separation ; but
you must be patient under the loss of me. You are decreed
for still greater misfortunes. This warning I give you from
the great Prophet, who appeared to me some hours ago. It
is good, said he to me, that princes should suffer some trials.
Adversity purifies their virtue, and they govern the better for
it. Shams al-Din shall quickly be convinced of this truth :
Bid him from me begin to prepare for it. This, continued
Zabd al-Katon, pouring forth tears in abundance, this is the
message I have to deliver to you : Summon up all your rea-
son, that you may not murmur at the orders of Providence
— Adieu, my dear Shams — The princess had not time to
conclude ; the angel v^^hich waited for her soul cut short her
speech.
Never was despair equal to that of the king of Astrakhan.
He could not be removed from the body of his spouse. He
was inconsolable for the loss of her, and knew no other
remedy than immediately to have a large box made, of cin-
namon wood, open only at the top towards the head ; in
this he put the body of Zabd al-Katon, and adorned it with
a great number of jewels ; then with his guard, which was
about five hundred men, he endeavored to overtake the
Caravan, which was gone but some days' joumey before him,
intending, as soon as he should come up with it, to have the
corpse of his dear wife embalmed. The prince had not been
i6
two days upon his march, when he was surrounded by ahnost
two thousand Badawin. He made an incredible resistance ;
but all his followers being cut in pieces, without excepting
one, he himself fell among the number of the dead. The
Badawin, after their victory, fell to stripping their enemies.
They took everything they could find, and did not forget
the bier adorned with jewels, in which was the body of Zabd
al-Katon. Shams al-Din, who defended himself Hke a lion,
had, however, received never a wound that was mortal ; and
it was not so much the quantity of blood he had lost, as his
being quite tired out, that was the occasion of his falling
among the dead. When he had recovered his senses, he
was surprised to find himself alone, and in the midst of his
men, among whom there was not one that had the least sign
of life. What a sad spectacle was this for the king ! He
got up as well as he was able, and not forgetting his dear
spouse, he ran all over the field of battle, to see if the rob-
bers, after having taken away the jewels, might not have left
the box in which was the corpse of Zabd al-Katon. His
search was all in vain ; he almost died with grief at this new
loss. But at length, leaving a place which had been so fatal
to him, after having travelled an hour without knowing
whither he went, he came near to a little village, entering into
which he met an Imam, who at first was frightened to see a
man quite naked, and all covered with blood ; but Shams al-
Din having, without making himself known to him, informed
him that he was the only one of his company that had
escaped the cruelty of the Badawin, the Imam took pity on
him, carried him home to his house, and cured his wounds ;
and having afterwards given him some pieces of money, the
prince with them betook the way to his own kingdom.
After a long and painful journey, in which Shams al-Din
travelled sometimes alone, and sometimes with little cara-
vans, which assisted him in his necessities, he at length
reached a vast champaign country which was about half a
17
league from Astrakhan. There he spied a nephew of the
wazir his brother-in-law, with a pretty numerous train ; and
running to him with open arms, Receive, said he, my dear
Zamin, receive the unhappy Shams al-Din, oppressed with
the most cruel misfortunes, and who for almost three years
has been exposed to such miseries as would strike you with
horror but to hear them. Zamin was surprised at the sight
of his king ; though the fatigues of the journey, the hardships
he had undergone, and the meanness of his habit had
altered him extremely, yet he could not help knowing him
again. He prostrated himself before him with all the
appearances of the sincerest respect ; and taking off his
own robe, he covered the prince with it, and conducted him
to the palace through the most private streets ; but what
was the amazement of Shams al-Din at his entrance there,
to see himself loaded with chains by the same Zamin, who
had but now been loading him with compliments ! Then
he learnt, to his inexpressible grief, that his cruel brother-
in-law Ibn Bukr, after having himself strangled his wife and
the sultana Dugmi, had seized the kingdom, massacred all
his faithful subjects, and those who opposed his usurpation ;
and that he himself must shortly expect the same fate.
Shams al-Din grew motionless at this news. At first he
gave himself up to fury and rage ; but presently calling to
mind the last words of Zabd al-Katon, he resigned himself
that moment to the Will of the Almighty. God, said he, is
great, He is just : I am not yet sufficiently punished for my
crimes ; but what had my mother and sister done to come
to so tragical an end? Their death, I hope, will not be
long unpunished. The prince had not ended these words,
when the usurper, followed by four ruffians, entered the
room. His presence startled Shams al-Din. Ah, barbar-
ous wazir, cried he, the moment he saw him, art thou come
to fill up the measure of thy guilt ? Cannot the blood of thy
wife and of my mother, which already rises up against thee,
2
assuage thy fury ? Behold my liead ; strike I But remember
the day will come when I shall accuse thee of these enor-
mous crimes before the tribunal of the Great God ; and that
when the angels shall give testimony of the truth, all this
mighty power of thine, beneatli which my subjects groan and
tremble, shall not then preserve thee from being condemned,
and severely punished for thy execrable parricide.
These sharp reproaches quite confounded the usurper;
he had not strength enough now to command the death of
his lawful king ; his menaces terrified him ; he thought he
already saw the hand of God lifted over his head. He con-
tented himself with putting Shams al-Din out of a condition
ever to re-ascend the throne ; he caused a red-hot iron to
be rubbed over his eyes, which deprived him of sight, and
he afterwards sent him into a deep dungeon. There was
not a day passed wherein the king of Astrakhan, though
oppressed with miseries, and delivered up to the most
bitter affliction, did not pay respect to the decrees of Provi-
dence, and return thanks to God for having punished him
so gently for his crimes : but one night, when grief had for
some moments given way to sleep, he thought he saw in a
dream the great Prophet, with Zabd al-Katon in his hand,
assuring him of the change in his condition, and promising
he should one day enjoy a perfect happiness with his spouse.
Shams al-Din started up and waked ; but this dream seemed
to him so extraordinary, and to have so little foundation,
that he gave very little heed to it. It even added to his
sorrow ; but yet it was not long before he felt the effects of
one part of this prediction.
One morning, as the prince was performing his devotions
prostrate upon the earth, he heard the doors of his prison
open with a great noise. Imagining that somebody was
going to dispatch him, he did not alter his posture but
waited the blow with intrepidity, when two of his former
wazirs, whose zeal and virtue were sufficiently known to
19
him, threw themselves at his feet. My lord, said one oi
them, embracing his knees, do you not remember the voices
of Mutamhid and Kubirgh, your faithful slaves? The un-
grateful wazir, on whom you heaped so many favors,
together with the traitor Zamin, have just now met with their
deaths by our hands. The people, tired out with his cruel-
ties, rejoice exceedingly at his death. They knew nothing
of your return, which we took care to inform them of; hav-
ing pretended to be of Ibn Bukr's party only that we might
in time be able to push him from the throne he had so
basely and cruelly usurped. Come then, my lord, and
once more fill it ; since all your subjects call for their law-
ful sovereign with the utmost impatience. Shams al-Din
praised God, and thanked the wazirs for their zeal. But
how, my v.'ise friends, said he, would you have me remount
my throne ? Is such an unhappy prince as I in a condition
to govern you? No, no, wazirs, choose from among you a
man that may be more capable of such a charge, and leave
me to mourn in secret for all my misfortunes. — Ah! my
lord, replied Mutam.hid, your contempt of greatness is a
sure sign that none is more worthy to govern than your-
self. We conjure you not to reject our entreaties ; we
are ready to sacrifice our lives and fortunes to defend you
upon a throne which you have already so worthily filled.
The king of Astrakhan, moved by these words, which
showed so much affection and loyalt}% put himself into the
hands of his two wazirs : they conducted him to the baths
of the palace ; and after having clothed him in a robe of
state, presented him to the people, who testified by a
thousand shouts of joy how impatient they had been to see
him again upon the throne of his ancestors.
Whatever satisfaction Shams al-Din took in hearing the
love his subjects had for him, he continually wept in secret
for the loss of his dear Zabd al-Katon, and for the priva-
tion of his sight. In vain the most skilful physicians and
20
surgeons in Astrakhan tried all their art upon him. They
agreed, at last, that there were not the least hopes that he
would ever see again the light of the sun. There was one
of them only who told the king he remembered he had
formerly read in an old Arabian manuscript that there was
in the island of Sarandib a bird which might restore him to
sight ; but that besides the difficulties there were in finding
and coming near it, he would not warrant the manuscript
to be infallible. The bird, continued the physician, is
upon the top of a very high tree, all the leaves of which are
as hard as iron, and as sharp as razors. Some woman must,
in order to restore to sight her blind husband, undertake to
climb up this tree from branch to branch ; if her affection
for her husband has never suffered any alteration, the
leaves will soften to her touch, and she will easily climb to
the top, and draw in a golden vessel which hangs at the
bird's neck a liquor as white as milk, which distils per-
petually from its bill. This liquor the Arabian manuscript
affirms to be sovereign for restoring sight to those who
have been deprived of it by any accident whatsoever,
nay, even to those who have been born blind. After hav-
ing received this divine liquor, she shall come down from
the tree as easily as she climbed up ; but if the woman
who ventures to fetch this marvellous juice, has ever had
the least thought contrary to the purity of marriage, or has
ceased one moment to have an entire love for her husband,
she must expect nothing from her rash enterprise but certain
death. The leaves indeed will grow soft to let her climb
to the top of the tree ; but when she is to come down they
will resume their edge, and the woman, falling from bough to
bough, shall be hacked into a thousand pieces. I believe, my
lord, continued Abu Bakr, that this tree, if it is certainly ia
being, is still a virgin and untouched ; and that no woman
hitherto has offered herself to fetch a liquor, which is to oe
acquired with so much trouble and danger.
21
Shams al-Din listened to this story with admiration. It is
not impossible, said he, that such a woman may be found in
this city, though such women are but very rare ; we must
try if we cannot find out so great a treasure. The wives of
all the blind men in Astrakhan were brought before the king ;
Abu Bakr in his presence declared to them what was to be
done, and Shams al-Din promised an unbounded reward to
her who could by this means restore him to sight : but there
was not one of them durst venture to climb the tree ; the
conditions were a little too delicate, and death too certain ;
they all in general refused to undergo so dreadful a proba-
tion. The other physicians of Astrakhan made a wonderful
jest of the king's credulity. This new kind of remedy, said
they, is an invention of Abu Bakr's, who would fain set up
for a man of prodigious learning ; he is mightily set upon
miracles, and always distinguishes himself by some new and
particular opinion. These words came to Abu Bakr's ears ;
they touched him to the quick. Shall my zeal for the king,
said he, to his wife and son, be turned into ridicule ? Well,
I myself will undertake a journey to Sarandib, to see if what
the manuscript report be true ; if, notwithstanding all my
wishes, I do not succeed in my enterprise, at least I shall
have the consolation of having done more for my prince
than all the other physicians of Astrakhan put together.
Nothing could divert Abu Bakr from his resolution ; the
length and difficulties of the voyage did not at all dishearten
him. He presented himself the next day before the king,
and informed him of his design. That prince highly com-
mended so noble an undertaking. He gave him everything
that was necessary for so tedious a voyage ; and promised
him, in case he died by the way, to take particular care of
his wife, and of his only son, whom he loved entirely. My
lord, said the physician, taking leave of Shams al-Din, if I
do not return in three years, you may believe that death, or
some strange accident wliich I cannot foresee, has obstructed
22
the ardent desire I have to restore you to sight ; but a cer-
tain confidence which I have in the Arabian manuscript,
makes me hope my voyage will not be fruitless. At length
Abu Bakr set out for Sarandib ; and it was not without very
great envy that the other physicians saw the king so biassed
in his favor.
Shams al-Din, in the flower of his age, and blind as he
was, governed his subjects with admirable prudence. Shut
up in the recesses of his palace, he was incessantly thinking ^
of the means to make them happy ; and laid it down to
himself as an unalterable law till the return of the physician
Abu Bakr, to appear in public but one hour every day, which
hour he divided into four parts. During the first he went to
the great Mosque of Astrakhan to pray ; the second, third,
and sometimes part of tlie fourth, were destined for doing
acts of charity, and receivin^the complaints of private per-
sons against the public officers, either by word of mouth
or in writing. Afterwards he commanded Mutamhid and
Kubirgh, the two wazirs upon whom he relied in most of
his affairs, to punish or to turn out those officers if they
deserved it; and he distributed justice with so much equity
and discretion, that his sentences were looked upon as so
many oracles. As for what remained of the last quarter of
an hour, he spent it in the conversation of learned men.
This was the only diversion that prince enjoyed all the day,
and as he liked their company, he gave them marks of his
liberality. The honor of diverting the king, who generally
seemed sunk in melancholy, more than the view of interest,
animated his subjects to find out persons who might dissipate
his sorrows by telling him some extraordinary story. If a
famous traveller arrived at Astrakhan, he was immediately
carried to Shams al-Din; and when the inhabitants them-
selves knew any singular adventure, they presented themselves
before their prince, that they might have the pleasure of
contributing to his entertainment.
23
It was now two years since Abu Bakr had been gone to
the island of Sarandib, and since the king, exactly observing
the rule he had prescribed to himself, had never failed
to allot some moments every day to those amusements,
when the two favorite wazirs discussing together about the
motive of Abu Bakr's voyage — If that physician prove a
cheat, said one of them, or should not return to Astrakhan,
we shall be very much at a loss to procure the king fit
persons to talk to him. He has committed that charge to
our care ; and though a quarter of an hour is quickly past,
yet as it is to be renewed daily, I am afraid that at last we
shall not be able to find anything new. — That would be a
pity indeed, replied the other wazir ; the king has now con-
tracted a pleasing habit of hearing some story or other every
day ; it is almost the only satisfaction of his life, for in the
manner this wise prince conducts himself, he enjoys no
delight of royalty but that of laboring incessantly for the
good of his subjects. One of the physicians of Astrakhan
was present at the conversation ; he thought this a fair
opportunity of gratifying the envy which he and all his
brethren had conceived against Abu Bakr. My lords, said
he to the wazirs, all men of sense are of your opinion ; and
j'ou will infallibly fall into the inconv^enience you already
apprehend. I know but one remedy against it ; Abu Bakr's
son, deriding the perplexity he foresees you will soon be in,
boasted yesterday in my hearing that he himself was able,
if he had a mind to it, to find diversion for the king till his
father's return. It is true this young man has a good deal of
learning, and ever since he was ten years old has applied
himself with great eagerness to read all manner of books;
but notwithstanding the prodigious memory he is said to be
endowed with, I very much doubt whether he could succeed
in so difficult an undertaking.
Kubirgh only lauglied at the presumption of Abu Bakr's
son ; but Mutamhid falling into a violent passion — Indeed,
24
said he, it well becomes this insolent young man to jest so
unseasonably ! Well, since he talks at this rate, he shall
keep his word; and his head shall be answerable for the
success of an enterprise he is so vain as to pretend to. He
that moment ordered somebody to fetch Ibn Aridun, which
was the name of Abu Bakrs son. This physician, said he
to him when he had come, assures me that you have the
boldness to make a jest of the perplexity Kubirgh and I may
one day be in to provide his Majesty new subjects for recre-
ation, and that you boast that you yourself could find him
diversion till your father's return. Since you are so rash as
to talk thus, I command you to look that you do so, con-
tinued Mutamhid, with a voice that might make Ibn Aridun
tremble ; I will be present at all your conversations ; and I
forewarn you that if the prince grow weary of your discourse,
and bid me bring him another, thou shalt that moment lose
thy head. Ibn Aridun was strangely surprised at this order.
He perceived so much anger in the wazir's eyes that he
durst not deny his having been guilty of that vanity ; he
confided in his reading, and in the happy memory nature
had given him, and throwing himself at Mutamhid's feet — My
lord, said he, waiving whatever I might urge for my justifica-
tion, the honor of diverting the king is so coveted by me,
that I will not refuse to obey your sovereign commands ;
though it cost me my life, I am ready to appear before the
throne of Shams al-Din. The perfidious physician, who had
stayed by the wazir to be witness of what passed, was a little
astonished at Ibn Aridun's answer, yet he made not the
least doubt of his destruction. A young man, at most but
five-and-twenty years old, said he to himself, can never have
gathered stock enough to succeed in such an undertaking.
He presently ran to inform his companions, who all felt a
malicious joy at it, and tasted beforehand the pleasure of
seeing themselves revenged upon Abu Bakr in the person of
his son.
25
The wazir Mutamhid, pleased with the submission and
modesty of Ibn Aridun, dropped all his anger : As your
death is unavoidable, says he, if you do not fulfil your prom-
ise, so your reward, on the other hand, is no less certain, if
you succeed in your design. Every time you leave the king,
I will give you an hundred pieces of gold ; I will have you
eat at my table; you shall be served like me, and there
shall be no other difference beween us, but that you shall be
narrowly watched. — My lord, rephed Ibn Aridun, it is not
the hopes of recompense, or your noble promises, that will
prompt me to do my duty : the philosophy I make profes-
sion of has taught me to despise riches. Honor and glory
are the only motives by which I am actuated ; and if what
you now require of me were contrary to their dictates, you
should see me embrace the most cruel death rather than
obey you ; but as there is nothing that is not extremely
honorable in the command you impose upon me, you may
put me to the trial when you please ; I shall endeavor
to confound the artifices of my enemies, and I hope my
prince will be satisfied with me. Mutamhid was charmed
with the prudent behavior of Ibn Aridun ; he then per-
ceived the malice of the old physician, and that the young
man was innocent of what was laid to his charge ; but since
he offered himself as it were voluntarily to try to divert his
prince, he presented him to him the next day.
As soon as Ibn Aridun came within sight of the throne of
Shams al-Din, he prostrated himself with his face to the
earth. He afterwards arose, and addressing his speech to
the king : May the Mercy of the Almighty be displayed
upon your Majesty, said he ; may the Angel that is one day
to present you before his throne, forget no one good action
of your life ; and may you forever enjoy the perfect felicity
which our great Prophet has promised to those who exactly
follow his laws ! My name is Ibn Aridun, the son of Abu
Bakr, who has been gone two years or thereabouts to the
26
island of Sarandib : may heaven quickly send him back with
the divine remedy which he travels in quest of to restore you
to sight ! Till that time comes, I have undertaken, my
lord, to entertain your Majesty every day for that litde while
which you set apart to unbend your mind. — Do you con-
sider what you have engaged to do? answered the king,
somewhat surprised at these promises. Do you not know
that such an enterprise is beyond your ability, and that your
father may not return perhaps this twelvemonth? — My lord,
replied the young Ibn Aridun, though great is the difficulty of
entertaining my king as I ought to do, yet I know such a
number of stories, each more curious than the other, that
even though my father should lengthen out his voyage as
long again as he intended, I do not despair of being able to
fulfil the promise I have made to the wazir Mutamhid ; and
if your Majesty will do me the honor to hear me, I will
begin with a very singular story.
Shams al-Din was yet more surprised than before. Thou
must be a wonder in thy kind, said he, if thou keepest thy
word. Difficulties do not at all discourage thee. — On the
contrary, my lord, replied Ibn Aridun, they animate me with
more vigor. I have so happy a memory, that I never for-
get anything I have read or heard ; and as I always delighted
in keeping company with the oldest and wisest men in
Astrakhan, great part of whom are dead, I am possessed of
such a number of different histories of every kind, that, with-
out boasting, I may assure your Majesty there are few men
like me in this city. — I shall quickly be a judge of that, re-
plied the king. Sit down by Mutamhid on this sofa, and lei
me hear the story you offered to tell me.
Ibn Aridun obeyed the orders of Shams al-Din. He sat
down upon the sofa, and began in this manner:
27
HISTORY OF SHARIF AL-DIN, SON OF
THE KING OF ORMUZ, AND OF
GUL-HINDI, PRINCESS OF TULUPHAN
There were formerly, my lord, in the Greater Tartary,
two different sorts of jinnis ; the one, disposed to do good
to mankind, acknowledged the great Geoncha for their king ;
and the other, never pleased but when they were exercising
their malicious inclinations, had no other master than the
revengeful Zalulu. These two captains of the jinnis had for
almost three hundred years been at continual war with each
other. Geoncha protected nobody that Zalulu did not im-
mediately endeavor to persecute ; and Zalulu could do no
ill action upon the earth, but Geoncha presently set about to
redress it.
One day as these two jinnis were upon the banks of the
river Salgora, endeavoring to decide their differences by
conference, Mochzadin, king of Tuluphan, and the beauteous
Riza, his wife, who were returning together from hunting the
kid, passed by the place where the two jinnis were contend-
ing. Zalulu, always watchful to do ill, would not let slip so
fair an opportunity of indulging his propensity that way;
notwithstanding Geoncha's entreaties, that malicious jinni,
going up to Riza, who rode side by side with Mochzadin,
made so great a noise in her horse's ear, that the frightened
beast ran away with the princess, notwithstanding all her
efforts to restrain him, and was just going to precipitate her
in the river, which was very deep in that part, if with one
blow of a sabre, struck by a powerful hand, Geoncha, run-
ning to her assistance, had not cut off the horse's head, and
caught the princess in his arms, who had swooned away with
fear. The kind jinni, having afterwards made her smell at
a nosegay of musk-roses which he had in his hand, she not
only returned to her senses, but her clothes, which were green
28
before, were now changed into a rose-color ; and though
her features were not in the least altered, her beauty was
increased to such a degree, that the king himself, who, justly
alarmed at the danger of his spouse, had followed her with
extreme swiftness, could scarcely know her again. He and
all his train were in a surprise not to be imagined. The
extraordinary death of Riza's horse, her rose-colored habit,
and her additional beauty, all these brought about in a
moment, the author of so many wonders not appearing, for
the jinnis had not made themselves visible, — all these, I say,
happened so unaccountably, that the king and queen were
almost ready to doubt of a truth, which their eyes could not
but testify. After having returned to Tuluphan, and retired
into their chamber by themselves, they were still, with admir-
ation, discoursing of the prodigy they had seen, when they
were seized with fear and respect at the sight of a venerable
old man who of a sudden appeared before them, without
their perceiving how he got in. Be not afraid, my children,
said he to them kindly ; I am Geoncha, king of the jinnis.
It is I, that after having preserved the charming Riza from
the danger into which Zalulu, who has made himself famous
upon earth by a thousand malicious actions, had thrown her
by frightening her horse ; it is T, continued he, who had
resolved that none of her sex should surpass her in beauty.
But I do not stint my favors in so narrow a compass : I
intend likewise to put an end to her barrenness; in nine
months from this day she shall bring forth a daughter as
beautiful as herself.
The king of the jinnis, continued Ibn Aridun, had no
sooner spoken these words, than he disappeared, leaving
the king and queen of Tuluphan in an ecstasy of joy at so
pleasing an expectation. However incredulous they had
been till then, they soon ceased to be so ; Riza, who during
seven years' marriage had never had the pleasing satisfaction
of being a mother, quickly felt tlie effects of G concha's
29
promises. At the end of nine months exactly, she was
brought to bed of a daughter, completely beautiful, whom
she named Gul-hindi. This little princess no sooner enjoyed
the light, than the same jinni appeared again in the chamber
where Riza and Mochzadin were together. I come with
inexpressible pleasure, said he, to put the last hand to so
charming a work, and to inform you of the destiny that is
prepared for her. I assisted yesterday at the birth of a son
of the king of Ormuz, whom I named Sharif al-Din : I find
so much resemblance and sympathy between him and this
lovely princess, that I have resolved to unite them one day
by the most holy ties ; but I foresee that the happiness they
are to enjoy will be crossed by such misfortunes as will
drive Gul-hindi to the very brink of death, if they know one
another before they have attained the age of seventeen
years. It must be your care, my lord, continued the jinni,
addressing his speech to Mochzadin, to keep the princess
from seeing any stranger, till she is past the fatal moment
which the stars have discovered will be so dangerous to her.
This is the only remedy I can think of, unless you will put
her into my hands ; for then I will warrant her free from
all the caprices of fortune. Mochzadin and Riza were
surprised at Geoncha's words : but though they gave entire
credit to his prediction, they were not able to consent to
part with a child they had so many years longed for. They
begged the jinni very earnestly not to be offended if they
kept the little Gul-hindi with themselves ; and assured him
they would take so much care of her that she would be in
no manner of danger from the prince Sharif al-Din. — So
be it then, replied the jinni ; only remember, when the
princess is ten years old to keep her from the sight of all
the world. The nearer she approaches her sixteenth year,
the greater danger she will be in. Then having taken her
in his arms, he enriched her with all the fine qualities that
could make a person of her sex accomplished ; and aftei
30
having received a thousand thanks from the king and queen,
he departed like a flash of lightning.
Scarce, my lord, continued Ibn Aridun, did the malignant
Zalulu, who could not come to an agreement with Gecncha
in their last conference, know what he had done for Gul-
hindi and Sharif al-Din, than he resolved to gratify his
malicious temper by crossing the felicity of these two lovely
infants. He repaired in the night to the palace of the king
of Ormuz, stole away the little prince, carried him to
Tuluphan, dressed him in Gul-hindi's clothes, and covering
that little princess with those of Sharif al-Din, placed her a
moment after in the cradle from which he had taken the
prince of Ormuz. We may easily conceive the surprise the
two nurses were in.
■ • • • • •
Ibn Aridun was interrupted here by a black slavT, who
came every day to tell the king of Astrakhan that his hour
was out. As soon as this slave appeared, Shams al-Din
arose to return to his palace. He who had the honor to
entertain him, gave over speaking, and resumed his discourse
the next day, if he had not finished his story ; if he had,
there was brought to the king another, who told him some
adventure he had not yet heard. Thus STfje STijousanti anlJ
©ne Quarters of an f^our are divided in the original Arabic ;
but it is thought best to leave out all that follows and pre-
cedes Ibn Aridun's narration, being persuaded that the
reader will read these stories with more pleasure than if
they were interrupted by continual repetitions, which it
would be almost impossible not to be guilty of
The two nurses were strangely surprised in the morning to
find each her child so different from what it was the night
before. They looked upon them with unparalleled amaze-
ment, when Zalulu appearing to each of them in the shape
of a frightful dwarf, threatened to wring their necks it ever
31
they divulged the metamorphosis that had happened; and
departed, after having assured them, that if before tiiose
children had attained the age of seventeen years the secret
was found out in any manner whatsoever, they would
fall into his power, without any possibility of ever getting
out of it. The poor women were so terrified, that they re-
solved to keep the strictest silence. Their lives depended
upon it ; and the jinni had so intimidated them, that they
would have suffered any torment rather than have revealed
the secret. Sharif al-Din then was brought up at the court
of king Mochzadin by the name of Gul-hindi ; and that
princess, under the habit of the prince of Persia, rendered
herself in a little time so perfect at the exercises of the
body, that when she was fifteen years old she surpassed all
the subjects of the king of Ormuz in those accomplishments.
The education of the young prince was not very agreeable
to his sex ; that which he seemed to be of, engaged him in
quite different occupations. He generally aaiused himself
by embroidery; and being, according to Geoncha's order,
shut up from the age of ten years in Mochzadin's palace,
which was grown inaccessible to everybody but the king of
Tuluplian, he never left off work but to hunt in the park,
accompanied by his women and some of his eunuchs. His
nurse, Marou, who never quitted him, seeing him approach
to his sixteenth year, often recommended it to him to con-
ceal his sex with the greatest care, since the repose of his
whole life depended upon his so doing. But, said Sharif-
al-Din to her with tears, why am I educated like a girl, and
deprived of the learning and sciences which ought to be
communicated to a prince of my rank ? And what unjust
motive can oblige the king and queen to let me languish
thus in an idle inactive state of life? — These are things I
am ignorant of, replied Marou ; but, my dear prince, or
rather my dear princess, for it is dangerous to call you by
the first name, all I can assure you of is, that Mochzadin
32
and Riza are more deceived in you than anybody. They
believe you are a girl ; they have been co^ivinced of it by
their own eyes ; but things have had a strange alteration
since that time. This is all I can tell you at present ; you
will know more hereafter: but I beg you not to expose
yourself to the cruel miseries I have so often threatened you
with, if you discover your sex till you are full seventeen
years old.
The prince was surprised at this advice : the more he
reflected with himself, the more he was confounded ; he
resolved therefore to follow the prudent counsels of his
nurse; but in order to dissipate the uneasiness which preyed
upon him, he went a-hunting as often as possible.
One evening as Mochzadin and Riza were conversing
with their supposed daughter, the queen related to her, as
she had often done before, the story of her birth, and the
promises the king of the jinnis had made to unite her des-
tiny with that of the son of the king of Ormuz. This story
so often repeated perplexed the 'prince to the highest degree;
he knew not what to fix upon, but at last resolved, let what
would happen, to fly forever from a place where he spent a
life so unworthy of himself. It was no easy thing to com-
pass this design ; all the gates of the palace were guarded by
eunuchs not to be corrupted ; but to execute the project he
had formed, he chose the time of his hunting ; and after
having taken with him two purses full of gold and a good
many jewels, being very well mounted he easily rode away
from his company, and spurring directly to a door of the
park which led into the wide country, he commanded the
eunuch that guarded it to open it to him. The slave refused
to obey him ; but the prince having despatched him into the
other world with one blow of his sabre, which he always wore
when he went a-hunting, took the keys, and flying with
incredible swiftness, chose the road which was least beaten,
and travelled all that day and the following night without
33
taking the least repose. The ladies and eunuchs belonging
to the false princess made the strictest search for her all
over the park. After having in vain traversed every corner
of it, they came at last to the door, which they found open ;
the dead body of the eunuch increased their surprise. They
concluded that some unfortunate accident had happened to
Gul-hindi. Nobody cared to inform the king and queen of
this mournful news ; yet it was not to be avoided but they
should know it. They almost died with grief when they
heard it. O Heaven ! cried the queen, tearing her hair
and face, why did not we take the advice of the wise
Geoncha? We should not now have been thus oppressed
with the bitterest affliction : Gul-hindi is undoubtedly stolen
away ; the jinni too rightly predicted this mischance. Pray
Heaven my dear daughter do not feel the consequences
of it!
While the king and queen wasted their time in vain com-
plaints and fruitless reflections, the prince continued his
flight. All the pursuit that was made after him was to no
purpose ; he rode as hard as his horse could carry him and
did not stop till he fell dead under him. He was now forced
to travel a-foot in very great perplexity, when there passed
by him a' young Tartarian. The prince accosted him. Do
you know anybody, said he, that could sell me a horse ? —
You could not have addressed yourself more luckily, madam,
replied the young man, deceived by Sharif al-Din's female
habit ; my father, who lives but a little way off", has no incon-
siderable dealings that way. The prince followed him, fur-
nished himself with a good horse, and after having taken a
few hours' rest, renewed his journey, travelled several days
almost without stopping a moment, and at last arrived at a
seaport, where he found a vessel just ready to set sail for
Surat. The master of the ship was a man of a good aspect,
about forty years old. He received the prince with abun-
dance of respect, as a young lady of quality g'^ing to the
3
34
Indies to take possession of a very considerable estate left
her by her father, and whose mother died suddenly at hear-
ing the news of her husband's death : he made her an offer
of his own table, which Sharif al-Din accepted the more
willingly, because having embarked very hastily he had not
had time to make any provision. The repast was served up
with great delicacy ; but at the conclusion of it, he was very
much surprised to see a lady of extreme beauty enter the
cabin, and address these words to the master of the ship :
Remember, Sinadab, that God has given us a father and a
mother, that we should obey them ; it is God that speaks to
us through their mouth : Woe to him that despises them and
does not submit to their commands with respect and duty.
Sinadab at these words rose from table ; the tears ran down
his eyes; he afterwards prostrated himself on the ground,
remained some time in that posture, and then rising with the
marks of the deepest sorrow engraved upon his face : Beau-
teous Rukia, said he to the lady, I shall never forget these
wholesome counsels. My past misfortunes have sufficiently
imprinted them in my memory ; but do you continue never-
theless to put me in mind of them daily, as you have been
used to do.
The prince Sharif al-Din looked upon Sinadab with won-
der : he perceived it. You will no longer be surprised,
madam, said he, when I have told you the occasion of this
ceremony, and why this lady at all my meals repeats to me
the words you have just now heard. Sharif al-Din having
testified a great desire to know the story, thus, my lord,
continued Ibn Aridun, Sinadab related it to him :
35
STORY OF SINADAB, THE SON OF SAZAN
THE PHYSICIAN
My father, whose name was Sazan, was a physician at Suez.
He exercised tliat profession with a good deal of honor for
a considerable time. He had no child but me, and there-
fore spared no cost in my education. I was almost twenty
years old, when he would fain have persuaded me to
embrace his profession ; but besides that I found myself
extremely averse to it, as he was esteemed a very rich man I
thought I had no occasion to qualify myself to get a liveli-
hood. 1 imagined that the estate he was to leave me would
be more than enough to maintain me in luxury and pleasure,
without my giving myself the least pain or trouble. My
father's remonstrances could not dissuade me from my
resolution. This disturbed him so much that he fell sick ;
and after having kept his bed five or six months, died.
Before his last groan, he called me to him : My son, said he,
since in my lifetime I never received any comfort from you,
give me at least so much satisfaction at my death as to
promise me that you will punctually follow three articles of
advice, which I foresee will be extremely useful to you.
Swear to me upon the Koran that they shall never be out of
your memory. I melted into tears, continued Sinadab ; I
took an oath to my father to execute his will ; and this,
madam, is what the good old man said to me, embracing
me : I leave you wealth enough, and perhaps too much, to
live like a man of honesty and honor : endeavor, my dear
Sinadab, to keep it ; but if by any accident, which I cannot
foresee, you should happen to lose it, never attach yourself to
a prince whose good character you are not thoroughly as-
sured of. Be sure, whatever love you bear your wife, never
to trust her with a secret wherein your life may be con-
cerned ; and, lastly, never adopt for your son a child that is
none of your own.
36
Scarce had my father made me swear a second time upon
the Koran to obey him religiously in these three points, than
he closed his eyes, and resigned his soul into the hands of
the angel of death. I redoubled my tears at this mournful
sight, and rendered him the last duties with all imaginable
tenderness. Under his bed's-head I found the copy of a
will which he had deposited with the Kadi. He gave me
leave to dispose how I would of all his estate, excepting only
a little garden which was without the gates of Suez, at the
end whereof was a pretty neat summer-house, which he
ordered me not to sell upon any account whatsoever. I paid
little regard to this article, which seemed to me of no great
consequence. I minded nothing but examining carefully
what wealth he had left me. I found almost an hundred
thousand dinars of gold, several diamonds perfectly rich,
considerable inheritances, and very magnificent furniture.
So soon as I could appear in public with decency, I
called together my companions in my own house, to the
number of eight. I presented each of them with a slave
completely beautiful, and entertained them sumptuously for
ten days together. In short, madam, continued Sinadab,
not to weary you with a particular relation of all my follies
and debaucheries, in which I plunged deeper and deeper
every day, I shall only tell you that after having led this sort
of life for almost two years, I found myself of a sudden with-
out money. My comrades, who had never quitted me dur-
ing my pleasures, advised me to dispose of my jewels and
furniture ; I sold them piece by piece, for half their value.
I afterwards did the same by the houses my father had left
me, reserving only the garden which it was not in my power
to sell ; and at length 1 was so reduced that I had nothing
left but the clothes I had on, and one single hawk which I
had trained up to flying.
When my friends saw me in these straits, they immediately
deserted me. It was to no purpose my reproaching them
37
for their ingratitude ; they did but laugh at me ; there was
only one of them, who, taking pity of the condition I was in,
gave me ten dinars. I had not eaten anything for two days
together ; so that I received this mon-^y as a present from
heaven. Being now perfectly ashamed of myself, I went to
the port of Suez, designing to embark in the first ship I
could meet with. I found one that was just ready to depart
for Adal; I had scarce time enough to make some slight
provision for my voyage with the little money I was master
of. I set forwards with nothing but my hawk ; and we
arrived at Adal without meeting with any accident. I had
now remaining in my purse but three dinars of the ten which
had been given me ; I resolved to be a good husband of
them, and to live upon the industry of my hawk. I had a
very particular talent Jbr training up those sorts of birds.
Mine was very excellent at the sport : I had accustomed
him not to kill his quarry ; he only pecked out their eyes with
two strokes of his bill, and I took them alive ; so that I did
not want for game to maintain myself and a poor old widow-
woman that had taken me into her house. I had so much
that I carried some every day to the king's purveyor, who
paid me for it nobly ; and who was so surprised at what I
told him of my bird, that he informed the king of it. The
prince, who was a great lover of sporting, sent for me ; he
told me he would see my hawk take a flight, and bade me
be ready next day very early. I gladly obeyed, and the
king was so charmed at the swiftness, dexterity, and obedi-
ence of my bird, that he asked me what I would take for it.
— Sir. replied I, it is all that I have left of above two hun-
dred thousand dinars which my father bequeathed me when
he died; this poor hawk has maintained me ever since I
have been in want ; but since he has been so happy as to
please your Majesty, I shall be overpaid for him by the
honor I hope you will do me in accepting him.
The king of Adal, continued Sinadab, immediately ordered
38
me twenty thousand dinars, lodged me in his palace, and
conferred on me the place of his chief huntsman. In a
word, madam, that prince had so much kindness for me,
that in a little time I became his prime wazir and sole con-
fidant. I went with him every day a-hunting, in which
diversion he delighted exceedingly ; and I seldom was from
him but when he retired among his women. How unhappy
should I be, my dear Sinadab, said he to me one day, if I
should lose you ! You share the sweetest moments of my
life. — My lord, replied I, the favor of the great is too uncer-
tain a bottom for a wise man to build upon. I am loaded
to-day with your goodness ; perhaps to-morrow I shall be
loaded with chains by your command. — No, no, wazir, said
he, fear nothing ; I shall always love you. And to bind you
more strictly to me, and that you may entirely forget your
own country, you shall marry one of my sisters. I have
three that are tolerably handsome ; you shall see them this
moment, but without their knowledge, and if your heart is
not already engaged, she you like the best shall to-morrow
be your wife. I threw myself at the king's feet, confounded
with the honor he did me ; he raised me up, and embracing
me tenderly, made me go into his closet, placed me behind
a great curtain of black gauze, and commanded the captain of
his eunuchs to fetch the three princesses. The king's orders
were executed in an instant ; immediately afterwards there
entered the closet three ladies of unparalleled beauty, brilliant
as full moons. The king talked with them some time upon
different matters ; then having sent them back to their own
apartments, he called me from behind the curtain where I
stood. Well, my dear wazir, said he, which of my three
sisters gave your heart the most emotion? — Ah! my lord,
replied I, transported, those ladies are of such ravishing
beauty that I could not decide in so little time. — Come,
come, interrupted the king, one of the three did certainly
please you more than the other two ; own which it was ; I
39
give her to you freely, and I command you to discover youi
sentiments to me frankly. — My lord, replied I, since you
absolutely lay your commands upon me, the youngest of the
three princesses pierced my heart with the most irresistible
charms ; but notwithstanding your Majesty's unbounded
goodness to your slave, my happiness would be incomplete
if I did not obtain the princess by her own consent. — These
sentiments are extremely delicate, replied the king, but I will
give you this satisfaction too. Then he ordered the captain
of the eunuchs to fetch Buzamghar; this, madam, was the
princess's name ; she immediately came. My dear Buzam-
ghar, said the king, embracing her, I intend to marry you,
but will not force your inclinations ; the wazir Sinadab, to
whom I just now purposed you for a wife, will owe your
hand to nothing but your love. I leave you with him ;
examine your heart before you give me a positive answer,
and assure yourself that, let your resolution be what it will, I
shall not be in the least displeased at it.
The king of Adal upon this retired, and left the captain of
the eunuchs at the door without. It would be to no pur-
pose, madam, continued Sinadab, to repeat to you the con-
versation Buzamghar and I had together ; she gave me to
understand, by the tenderest expressions, that she would
esteem it her greatest felicity to have me for her husband ;
and assured me more than once, that the obedience she
owed to the king her brother had no share in the sentiments
she so ingenuously discovered to me. Upon this I espoused
her with all imaginable magnificence ; and the city of Adal
took part in my joy, for the king upon that occasion dis-
charged the inhabitants from one-fourth of all their taxes.
At the end of some months Buzamghar found herself with
child. As I loved her tenderly, I was inexpressibly rejoiced
at it ; but my joy was of very short duration. She hap-
pened to fall, hurt herself very dangerously, and had like to
die of a miscarriage. By the extraordinary care that was
40
taken of her, she soon recovered a perfect state of health ;
but five years being passed without having any children, we
consulted the skilfullest physicians in all Adal, who unani-
mously assured us the princess could never be a mother.
This gave great uneasiness to Buzamghar, whom I adored,
and who loved me with inconceivable tenderness. My lord,
said she to me, one night, when we were alone together, since
I am forever deprived of the sweet pleasure of giving you an
heir, let us at least try to soften the rigor of our fortune by
adopting little Rural. This, madam, continued Sinadab,
was the son of one of my slaves, and at four years old gave
a prospect of all that could be hoped for in a child of that
age. As I never knew how to contradict Buzamghar in any-
thing, I willingly consented to this proposal, with the good
liking of the king of Adal. I brought up Rumi like my
own son, and neglected nothing that might make him
accomplished. Rumi had now for ten years looked upon
me as his father, and I had received all possible satisfaction
from him, when one night as I was in bed with Buzamghar,
and not able to sleep, my father's last words, and the oath
he had made me take upon the Koran, came into my mind ;
but T only laughed at it. How these old folks dote ! said I
to myself. I have wasted all my substance ; I have given
myself to a prince whom I know nothing of; and am I any
the worse for it? On the contrary, could I ever wish for a
fortune more considerable, more solid, and more conspicu-
ous, than that of being wazir and brother-in-law to a potent
king, who places his whole delight in having me near him !
I have adopted Rumi in spite of my father's command.
What satisfaction do I receive from that child, who, at fifteen
years of age, gives marks of so excellent a temper, and from
whom I may one day expect all the acknowledgment and
gratitude in the world ! No, no, we should not be too ser-
vilely strict in obeying tlie wills of our fathers ; when they
have attained a certain age, they are so far from being al)le
41
to direct others, that they are hardly in a condition to con-
duct themselves.
I went to sleep, madam, after having made these wise
reflections : they came into my head again next morning.
Here are two articles of my father's advice already neglected,
said I to myself, and not the least misfortune has ensued :
let us see if it will be the same with the third. After having
studied some time, I hit upon the stratagem which I am
going to tell you. Buzamghar had often murmured at the
king of Adal, when he tore me from her arms to carry me a-
hunting, from which I generally returned very much fatigued.
Her complaints put me upon trying if my wife were capable
of keeping a secret. 1 went to the perch where the king's
hawks stood, I took down that which he most loved, unseen
by anybody ; I carried it to a pleasure-house at the end of a
garden which I had out of the city, and gave it to a mute
who was the keeper of it, with orders not to stir from thence
till somebody came to him from me and showed him my
ring. I then took the key of the garden, and double-locked
the door, and carried the key to a friend, whose probity I
was perfectly well assured of. If you hear that my life is in
danger, said I to him, which I foresee may quickly happen,
oblige me so far as to go to my garden, of which here is tlie
key, show this ring to the mute that is keeper of it, and bring
him to me with the depositum I just now entrusted him with;
he will be serviceable in my justification. Then I returned
home ; and as I had always a pretty many hawks to teach, I
took one that exactly resembled the king's, wrung off its
neck, and carried it to my wife. Charming Buzamghar, said
I, embracing her, behold a token of my tenderness ; you
have so often complained of the king of Adal, that I was
resolved to cut away the root of the uneasiness he gives you.
This hawk is the only cause, he it is that by being the sole
delight of the king, deprives you of yours ; I have killed
hun ; but be sure you take heed not to reveal this secret. I
42
am a dead man if the king should know of this my ingrati-
tude to him ; he would have but Httle regard to the motive
that prevailed upon me to do it. Buzamghar at first seemed
frightened at the danger I had brought upon myself; but
presently afterwards, tenderly pressing my hand, My dear
lord, said she, light of my life, if only you and I are
acquainted with this secret, you may be sure you are safe,
and that the most cruel torments shall never extort it from
me. — So far then we are well, replied I ; do you take and
conceal the hawk with the utmost caution, while I go and
make my court to the king. I left Buzamghar, to wait upon
the king of Adal. He had already been informed that his
hawk was not to be found. He appeared extremely uneasy
at it. My lord, said I, I know but one way to recover your
bird : have it published all over Adal how much you are dis-
turbed at the loss, and promise a reward for finding it worthy
the generosity of so great a monarch as you are.
The king took my advice ; he had it cried at every street's
end, that whoever should bring him tidings of his hawk,
dead or alive, if it was a man, besides the confiscation of
half the estate of him who committed the theft, he should
make the informant one of the greatest men in the king-
dom ; and that if it was a woman, he would marry her to the
wazir Giami, who was the handsomest man in all Adal, and
who shared his favor with me. This proclamation was soon
spread over the city. I thought it all in vain, relying upon
the extraordinary love of Buzamghar, who for fifteen years
had not let a day pass without giving me some fresh marks
of it : but before sunset I was in the utmost surprise to see
myself arrested on the part of the king, and thrown into a.
dark dungeon, where I spent the night.
Daylight had scarce begun to appear when I was carried
before the king of Adal, whose fury was visible in his coun-
tenance. Perfidious wazir ! said he to me, hast thou so
soon forgotten the favors I have showered upon thee?
\
43
What ! without the least gratitude for the station which I
have raised thee to, hast thou the cruelty to stab me in the
tenderest part? — My lord, replied I, from the dust in which
I grovelled, you took me, and placed me upon the throne of
greatness ; it is in your power to tumble me from it with a
single blast of your breath : but give me leave to represent
to you that I am entirely ignorant of the cause of your anger,
and that the persons who accuse me to you are much less
innocent than I am. — Ungrateful traitor ! said the king, hast
thou not killed my hawk ? — I ! my lord, replied I, in a
seeming amazement; is it possible that I should rob my
master of that only instrument of his delight, by which I had
the happiness to please him ? No, no, my lord, if this is all
the reason of your anger, I am certain it will quickly fall
upon another head. — Ah, villain ! cried the king with fury,
pulling out the dead hawk from under his robe, dost thou
add this audaciousness to thy former crime ? There, behold
thy handiwork. — I was very much confounded at this sight.
My lord, said I upon this, appearances are often false ; but
though I have nothing to upbraid myself with as to the death
of your hawk, I beg you would tell me the name of my
accuser. — Well, answered the king of Adal, I will grant thee
this satisfaction too ; it is Buzamghar, thy wife ; darest thou
object to such a witness ? — A thunderbolt could not have
fallen rri'^re heavy than this news did upon me; at that
moment I called to mind my father's last words, and the
remembrance almost sunk me to the earth. Just Heaven I
cried I, Buzamghar my accuser ! does she betray me ? Was
ever anything so black, so odious? Ah! my lord, continued
I, I could, if I pleased, retort the whole guilt upon her; but
though I am innocent towards you, I will not defend myself;
I respect your blood ; I deserve death, if you have not the
goodness to bethink you of the promises your Majesty has
made me in the warmest moments of your friendship. — No,
no, replied the king of Adal, the more I have loved you, the
44
more unpardonable is your crime. Do not hope for any mercy,
but prepare yourself to lose your head. — In short, madam,
continued Sinadab, notwithstanding all I could say to move
that prince's heart, he turned his back upon me, and left me
in the hands of his guards to be delivered to the executioner.
For fifteen years that I had been wazir, having never done
anybody the least wrong or injustice, all men of probity were
grieved to see me condemned to die for so small a matter ;
they endeavored in vain to obtain my pardon; the king
was inexorable. My guards, who could not without tears
behold my approaching death, offered to let me escape. No,
said I to them, I thank you for your good will, but will not
expose you to the king's displeasure for my safety. I am
not guilty ; I am able to justify myself when I see a fit time
to do it. — The king commanded me to be beheaded, but
to no purpose ; the executioner absented himself from Adal
that he might not do his office, and all those whom the king
commissioned to do it refused ; so that he was obliged to
publish throughout the city, that whoever would accept the
employment should have the other half of my estate, which
he had not yet disposed of Though this offer was very
advantageous, nobody yet appeared to give me my death,
when Rumi, my adopted son, went to Buzamghar. Madam,
said he, without concerning myself whether Sinadab is guilty
or no, his head is devoted to death, and I am in pain for
him while he languishes in this manner by everybody's re-
fusing to despatch him. Of his immense riches the one
half is yours, as revealer of his crime ; so that I am the only
sufferer, since the king promises the other half to the man
that shall execute Sinadab. I will offer myself to the king to
do this service. I believe he, and Sinadab himself, will take
it kindly at my hands ; and I shall put an end to the course
of a life which is certainly hateful to him, and get for myself
the wealth which ought not by right to fall in the possession
of strangers.
45
Buzamghar, who it is likely had conceived a violent pas-
sion for the vvazir Giami, from the description which I my-
self perhaps had given her of him, namely, that he was the
handsomest man in all Adal, knew she could not marry him
while I was alive ; this was what made her so basely betray
me. She approved the infamous resolution that Rumi had
taken, carried him to the king, and colored over the action
so artfully, that the prince, who thirsted for my blood,
brought himself into my prison, and took a barbarous de-
light in showing me my executioner. I remained motionless
at the sight of Rumi. In vain, with tears in my eyes, I
upbraided him with his ingratitude ; he had the hardness of
heart to tie my hands, and would fain have persuaded me
that I was obliged to him for his offering himself to despatch
me. The king was present all the while at so mournful a
sight, without being in the least concerned at it ; my tears
were not able to move him, and finding him inflexible : O
Sazan, Sazan ! cried I, why did not I follow your advice ?
These words, which he imagined had no sense in them,
made him believe that the fear of death had put me beside
my wits. What do you mean by these words, O Sazan,
Sazan ? said he ; unfold this riddle to me. — My lord, re-
pHed I, they reproach me for disobeying my father, whose
name was Sazan, in the only three things he recommended
to me upon his death-bed ; I must endure the punishment
without murmuring. I have devoted myself to your Maj-
esty's service without thoroughly knowing you; I have
revealed a secret to my wife; and I have fostered in my
breast a viper, which is now about to sting me to death.
Notwithstanding all your promises, you deliver me up to
punishment for the death of an hawk, which I am innocent
of; Buzamghar, forgetting the inexpressible tenderness I
have had for her these fifteen years, betrays me in the most
perfidious manner ; and Rumi, this boy, whom I have looked
upon as my own son, seduced by sordid interest, offers him*
46
self to be my executioner. O Sazan, Sazan! once more why
did I not take your advice ? The king and all his spectators
grew stiff with horror at this relation, when I turned myself
to Rumi. Strike, unworthy Rumi, strike, cried I; do not
lengthen out the pain of the unhappy but innocent Sinadab,
every moment of whose life ought to cover thee with shame
and confusion.
Rumi, without being at all concerned at anything I could
say to him, drew his sword, and prepared to cut off my
head. Rumi, like an unnatural child, was just going to give
the fatal blow, continued Sinadab, when the friend whom I
had entrusted with the key of ray garden, entered the prison
with the king's hawk on his fist. My lord, said he, catching
hold of Rumi's arm, which was not above two fingers'-
breadth from my neck, behold the falsity of the accusation
formed against Sinadab, and be convinced that this is your
own hawk, by the mark you yourself placed upon one of its
feet. The king of Adal was strangely surprised at the sight
of the bird. The greatest confusion imaginable presently
covered his face ; he bent his eyes upon the earth, and fell
into the profoundest thoughtfulness at what had happened.
For my part, added Sinadab, however lucky my friend's
arrival was for me, I was almost sorry for it. Life was be-
come odious to me by reason of my wife's treachery, and
the ingratitude of my adopted son. However, I threw my-
self at the king's feet: My lord, said I, lo ! this miserable
favorite, whom you had so often assured of eternal protec-
tion, was upon the point of losing his hfe unjustly. Upon
this he raised me from the ground, and ordered me to ex-
plain the whole mystery to him ; I did it in few words : he
examined all the circumstances of what I told him, and per-
ceiving his own fault and Buzamghar's baseness of soul, he
immediately sent to seize her, had her brought before him,
and having caused her to be tied back to back with Rumi,
he commanded me to cut off their heads with the same
47
sabre that had been designed to cut off mine. I refused to
dip my hand in the blood that had been so dear to me : I
even begged mercy for those two vile wretches ; but I could
not obtain it ; one of the king's guards severed their heads
from their shoulders.
The king, contented with this execution, which I could
not see without shedding tears in abundance, embraced me
tenderly, and carried me back with him to the palace. My
lord, said I to him again, was I deceived when formerly I
represented to you, that they who rely upon the favor of the
great, build upon the sand ; since the death of a vile crea-
ture, which you thought me the author of, could make you
forget in a moment a friendship of fifteen years? — Forget
this fault, wazir, said the king of Adal ; I am ashamed of
myself, and will make you ample amends ; I will raise you to
such a pitch of glory, that there shall for the future be no
danger of your falling. — No, my lord, answered I, respect-
fully, give me leave to return to Suez, there to enjoy a quiet
and peaceful life : this is the only favor that Sinadab now
desires from you. The king strongly opposed this resolu-
tion, but I remained unshaken : nothing could persuade me
to stay with him, and I set sail eight days afterwards in a
ship which he gave me, and which I loaded with all my
riches and furniture, and a great many jewels with which he
presented me at my departure. This separation occasioned
me seme regret ; but at length I steered towards Egypt, and
we were almost in sight of port, when a dreadful tempest,
after having tossed us about for three days and three nights
together, swallowed up my ship at some leagues' distance
from Suez. All the mariners perished : I was the only man
that by help of a plank was saved from the shipwreck, and
got safe to shore ; but I had lost all my effects, and saw my-
self in a moment reduced to the lowest degree of misery and
want.
Not knowing where to lay my head, I called to mind my
48
father's will : I remembered that I was still master of a little
garden and summer-house without the gates of Suez. I was
curious to know if anybody had taken possession of it in my
absence: I had been gone away above sixteen years. I
found it in the same condition wherein I had left it, only
that it seemed very much out of repair ; I opened the door
by means of a secret which my father had often shown me,
and which nobody else was acquainted with : I found the
walls all overgrown with moss, and the room very much in
disorder ; and as it was pretty late, and I extremely fatigued,
I lay down upon an old rotten mat, where I slept till hunger
waked me. I was master of no trade to get a livelihood by.
Being unwilling to make myself known, I resolved to ask
alms from door to door ; for this purpose I went out of the
garden ; but I implored in vain the charity of the inhabitants
of Suez ; nobody assisted me in the present want I was re-
duced to ; so that at night I returned to my little house,
very hungry and weary with walking about all day. I sat
down upon an old joint-stool that stood in a corner of the
summer-house, and revolved in my mind all that my father
had commanded me at his death, and which I had given so
little heed to, when I cast my eyes upon a small coffer,
almost rotten, which I had not yet seen : it was fast locked ;
I very hastily broke it open, thinking to find in it some
money that my father might have put there ; but I was very
much surprised when I saw nothing in it but a rope about
the bigness of one's httle finger, and a note in my father's
own handwriting, in these words : " You have not kept your
word with me, Sinadab, though you swore upon the Koran
to do so. Your ill management and disobedience have
brought you to this condition ; but if you have resolution to
follow this last counsel, you will find an end of your misfor-
tunes in this coffer." Yes, cried I with fury, yes, father, I
will for this one time obey you ; neither indeed have I now
anything further to hope for, but to finish my unhappy days
49
by this rope. Then, taking a desperate resolution, I got
upon a joint-stool, and after having tied the rope into a slip
knot, I fastened it to a sort of hook, which stuck in the ceil-
ing of the summer-house, and which seemed to have been
placed there for that very purpose ; I put the noose about
my neck, and kicking away the stool, abandoned myself
without reluctance to the rigor of my destiny.
By this means, madam, I expected to have found a certain
death, when the weight of my body pulling down the hook,
brought along with it a sort of trap-door, through which fell
so great a number of pieces of gold that I was covered with
them. This happy discovery soon made me forget what
little hurt I had received from my fall : I presently raised
myself, climbed up through the trap-door, and was in an in-
expressible amazement at finding there an immense quantity
of riches, as well in gold as in diamonds. I thought I should
have died with joy at this sight, which at once put an end to
all my misfortunes. I took one of the pieces of gold, and
having fast locked the garden door, went and provided my-
self with a good meal. Next day I distributed among the
poor darwayshes a thousand pieces of gold, and having put
myself in a condition to appear with honor in the city, I re-
purchased almost all my father's possessions ; and that I may
never forget the misfortunes into which I fell by my disobe-
dience, I caused to be repeated to me at all meals the words
you have just now heard, concerning the submission and
respect due from children to their parents. It is almost five
years, madam, continued Sinadab, since I returned to Suez ;
during all that time I have done my utmost endeavors to live
like a man of virtue and of honor ; my misfortunes have
made me wise and frugal, and I spend my life agreeably with
the beautiful Rukia, whom you saw immediately after dinner:
of all my women she is the one in whom I have found most
merit. She is of Surat ; and having two sisters there whom
she loves tenderly, and who are in narrow circumstances, I
4
50
am going at her request to look them out, that I may carry
them with me to Suez, where I mean to settle them.
When Sinadab, my lord, continued Ibn Aridun, had done
speaking, prince Sharif al-Din let him know how glad he was
to see him thus happy after the multitude of crosses he had
gone through ; and as the winds were very favorable, the
ship was not long before it arrived at Surat. The prince,
still in his woman's dress, there took his leave of Sinadab
and of the charming Rukia, returning them a million of
thanks for the civilities he had received from them, and after
having rested himself for some time he took the way to
China.
This story has afforded me extraordinary delight, inter-
rupted the king of Astrakhan, addressing himself to Ibn
Aridun ; I am wonderfully pleased with you, and I order
Mutamhid to give you an hundred pieces of gold for every
day that you contribute to relax my mind ; but I am no less
impatient now to know the fate of Gul-hindi and Sharif al-
Din, than I have been these few days past to hear the sequel
of Sinadab's adventures ; since we have still some little time
remaining, continue your history. Ibn Aridun, charmed
with being so happy as to please his prince, went on thus :
CONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY OF
SHARIF AL-DIN AND OF GUL-HINDI
Sharif al-Din, my lord, still in a woman's habit, had trav-
elled but a few days before he came to a delightful meadow.
Arabia the Blest does not produce such variety of riches and
grateful odors as nature displayed in this place. The earth
was covered with a soft grass which seemed as if it never
withered: neither the heats of summer nor the nipping
blasts of winter ever faded the roses, jasmines, and violets,
51
with which the country was adorned; and those flowers
which charmed the eye by the diversity of their colors, did
at the same time gratify the senses by the exquisite odor with
which they embalmed the air. At the bottom of this
meadow rose a kind of rock, in the form of a grotto, from
the middle of which there ran a spring into a great basin of
rustic marble. This water was so clear and beautiful that by
its enticing murmur it invited the beholders to rest them-
selves on its sides, which were decked with a green turf;
and a large tree, which grew close by it, stretched out its
boughs, so thick of leaves that its shade was impenetrable to
the rays of the hottest sun. Here the prince endeavored to
enjoy for some moments the sweets of sleep, which the soli-
tude and freshness of the place seemed to offer him. He
tied his horse to a shrub, and extended himself upon the
grass ; but he was scarce fallen into a gentle slumber, when
a frightful giant who had but one eye, and who lived near
that charming place, whither he was sometimes used to re-
sort to refresh himself, came thither. He was deceived by
the dress of the young prince, whom he mistook for a
woman of the most ravishing beauty; he became passion-
ately enamoured of him, and prepared to carry him off"; he
had already untied his sabre and thrown it at some distance
from him, and was just about to execute his design, when an
arrow, which seemed to be shot by an invisible hand, flew
directly into his eye, and put it out, by this means disabling
him from satisfying his brutish passion. The prince was
soon wakened by the bellowing the giant made at his wound ;
and looking about for his deliverer, he spied a young man so
like himself, that he was at first in doubt if it were not his
own shadow.
The stranger and the fictitious princess of Tuluphan ad-
mired one another for some time without speaking ; but at
length the last, breaking silence : I am indebted to you, sir,
for the preservation of my honor and of my life, said he to
52
him ; I beg you would tell me to whom it is I owe an obliga-
tion which will be eternally present to my memory. The
stranger for some time hesitated answering the prince, whom
he thought a woman : but prevailed upon by a secret motive
which he could not resist : To any other but you, madam,
said he, I call myself Mobarak, son of a merchant at Ispa-
han, and I have left Persia out of a curiosity to travel ; but a
certain impulse, the cause of which I am ignorant, forces me
not to dissemble with you, and to confess that I am the
prince of Ormuz. I was flying from my father's court to
avoid a match I am extremely averse to, when, passing by
this place, I saw you come to the side of this spring. The
parity of features there is between us, made me desirous to
learn who you are ; and I was just going to accost you
with that design, when I saw you, very much fatigued, en-
deavor to take some little repose, which I was unwilling to
disturb, and which you might still have enjoyed, had it not
been for the insolence of that monster whom I have deprived
of light. But, madam, continued he, permit me to tell you,
that though the duty of a prince obliges me to give assistance
to persons of your sex, yet there was something more which
animated me when I undertook your defence. Forgive this
rash confession, madam, nor let this declaration offend your
modesty. An invisible obstacle opposes the felicity I might
hope for in obtaining your love. I therefore only beg your
friendship ; but, madam, I beg it with all the earnestness
imaginable, and shall love you with so much purity, that your
virtue shall not have the least cause to be uneasy at it.
The feigned princess of Tuluphan was so surprised when
the stranger informed him that he was the son of the king of
Ormuz that a flush diffused itself all over his face. In this
moment he made a thousand dreadful reflections upon what
Riza had told him of that prince, and upon the impossibility
there was in the execution of the will of the king of the jin-
nis ; but these reflections being all destroyed at the sight of
53
so charming a prince, for whom, in spite of himself, he
already felt the most perfect esteem, he was just upon the
point of discovering himself to him, when calling to mind the
misfortunes which Marou had threatened him with, he re-
solved to be silent only upon the subject of his sex, but to
have in everything else the same confidence for the prince
of Persia, as he had had for him. My lord, said he to him,
your actions are so respectful, and I am so much obhged to
you, that I cannot be offended at the declaration you have
made to me. You desire only my friendship, which is due
to you without the least reserve. As for me, hunting was
my only diversion, till some particular reasons, which I can-
not reveal without exposing myself to the greatest miseries,
made me leave my father's court. But though I had resolved
to conceal my name from the whole world, by disguising
myself under that of an Amir of Saraarcand, I cannot help
thinking it almost my duty to let you know, my lord, that I
am the only daughter of the king of Tuluphan, and that my
name is Gul-hindi. — Just heaven ! cried the feigned prince,
interrupting her, are you then that lovely Gul-hindi, whose
beauty fame has published throughout the whole East? It
is upon your account, madam, that I quit my father's court
and betake myself to flight, for reasons which incessantly
torment me ; and it is you whom I now have met with !
Ah ! my princess, continued he, his eyes drowned in tears,
and despair painted upon his face, why are we not born for
one another? O ye sovereign arbiters of all things ! You
who see the bottom of my heart, what have I done to be
thus tortured? And thou, perfidious love, why dost thou
kindle in me so sharp a flame, when thou knowest how
impossible it is that it should ever be quenched? Yes, my
princess, I adore you, but I shall be obliged to fly from you.
My father has lately sent ambassadors to king Mochzadin to
demand you in marriage for me. The ancient friendship
there is between these two monarchs inclines me to believe
54
that the king of Tuluphan will not give a denial to the king
of Ormuz. But, adorable Gul-hindi, I repeat it once more,
let what will happen, and though the whole universe and our
great Prophet himself should favor us, I can never be united
to you, though I would spend the last drop of my blood to
be in a condition to enjoy that happiness.
Prince, replied the pretended Gul-hindi, whom these words
threw into an extreme amazement, I cannot penetrate the
reasons that make you talk thus ; but what perhaps would
offend any other than myself, is the very thing that gives me
a greater esteem for you. Be informed that I have no less
cause than you to avoid the marriage that is preparing for
me ; and that what I have just now heard will detain me for-
ever from my father's court, — Well then, fair princess, cried
the disguised prince, let us fly together, and conceal under
borrowed names from all the earth a prince and princess,
whose loss I am sure will cost the kings of Tuluphan and of
Ormuz abundance of tears. But, madam, continued he,
since fate has been so cruel as to order it so that I can
never be yours, I attest our great Prophet that I will never
be another's. I will love you with all the purity imaginable,
without the least hope, and I will never have any other object
of my desires and of my glory than the charming Gul-hindi.
How happy should I be if your sentiments were so conform-
able with mine, as that nothing but death should ever dis-
solve so complete an union ! But I know not what I say :
Pardon, madam, these indiscreet transports. What ! because
I cannot possess you, must I rob a prince, more happy than
myself, of the masterpiece of nature? — Yes, my lord, replied
the pretended Gul-hindi, blushing, I permit you to believe
that what you propose is agreeable to me. Since the stars
oppose our union, I will never engage my heart to any but
the prince of Ormuz. Let us at least be joined by an invi-
olable friendship, though love has undertaken, through a
barbarous caprice, to keep us asunder.
55
In short, my lord, proceeded Ibn Aridun, these two lovers,
miserable at not being acquainted with each other's condition,
but happy in the sympathy there was between them and in
the reciprocal tenderness with which Geoncha had inspired
them, — these two lovers, I say, after a conversation extremely
passionate, vowed to each other a friendship which should
be proof against anything that could happen; and after
having remounted their steeds, they left that charming
meadow in company together. They had travelled several
days without meeting with anything particular, when they
perceived at the entrance of a forest of palm-trees a palace
of an antique structure, but which seemed nevertheless
magnificent in its simplicity. At the gate of the palace stood
a venerable old man, who accosted them. My children, said
he to them, with the greatest kindness, night draws on, there
is neither town nor village in above six leagues hereabouts,
nor any house where you can pass the night ; if you will
come into this palace you may repose yourselves in tran-
quillity, and pursue your journey to-morrow. The prince
and princess, charmed with the humanity of their host, ac-
cepted his offer. They entered into the palace, where they
found a woman about threescore years old, and of a simpli-
city equal to that of her husband. She strove to receive them
in the best manner she was able, and soon afterwards there
was brought in a very handsome repast, but without prodigal-
ity, though there was far from being a want of anything.
Towards the conclusion of the supper, the old man sent the
slaves that waited at table out of the room, and having de-
sired his guests to tell him the motive of their journey, and
for what reason they travelled in a track that was so far from
the common road, Sharif al-Din took upon him to answer.
Alas ! sir, said he to the old man, I can give you that satis-
faction in a few words. We are brother and sister, and are
flying from Samarcand to avoid the persecution of a wazir,
who, not satisfied with having cruelly put our father to death,
5^
and possessed himself of all his substance, pursues our lives
with the same barbarity. — 111 men are very much to be
dreaded, replied the old man, for sooner or later they perish
miserably. I have had a melancholy experience of this
truth in my own family ; and it is but a few years since I
have recovered the quiet of which two of my sons had robbed
me by their crimes. — Gul-hindi was very much moved at
the sight of the tears which a tender remembrance drew from
the eyes of the good old man. Our grief is sometimes alle-
viated by telling the cause of it, said she to him ; and if it
is not too great a favor, we should be willing, sir, to hear the
relation of your misfortunes. — With all my heart, my dear
children, replied the old man. The tears you saw me shed
were not altogether tears of sorrow ; they rather express the
joy I now feel in seeing all those misfortunes at an end.
Listen to me therefore with attention : —
TALE OF BADUR THE PEACEFUL, KING
OF CAOR
I WAS born the sovereign of Caor, a kingdom not very
extensive, and my ambition never prompted me to enlarge it,
being more desirous to live in unity with my neighbors, than
to run the hazard of destruction, by undertaking unjust wars ;
for which reason I was called Badur the Peaceful. In my
youth, I wedded the princess of Zarad, whom you here be-
hold. She brought me several children, and among the rest
a son and daughter, both born the same day. I named rny
son Abu Zaid, and my daughter Dijara : I mention these
two first, though they were not my eldest, nay, were born to
me even at the time when Zarad had no further hopes of
being any more a mother ; but because these have happily
made amends for all the bitterness with which their brothers
had dashed the tranquillity of my life. Of my other two
57
sons, one was called Salak the Violent, because of the ex-
cesses he daily ran into. I cannot imagine from whom he
derived that humor. In all probability Allah sent him to us,
together with his brother, to make a trial of our virtue. The
other was named Azim ; his manners were not very different
from those of Salak ; and their joint inclination for evil
united them so to each other, that they were never asunder.
I every day received some fresh complaint of their ill beha-
vior ; and if they had been private persons, I should a thou-
sand times have made them an example to my people, to
whom they were become odious by their crimes. But the
tenderness of a father stayed my hand. At length they grew
so weary of my continual remonstrances, that they both re-
solved to be gone from my court ; and I blessed the hour
wherein they executed that design.
They had been gone above four months, and I began to
think myself happy in being freed from their presence, when
I was struck by the most cruel blow that it is possible for a
father to feel. Guhullaru, the princess of Nangan, was lately
married to Rusang-jahun. That prince was not young ; but
his agreeable complaisant temper made amends for the merit
which age had deprived him of ; and he lived with his wife
in so perfect an union, that he was an example to all his sub-
jects. Salak and his brother passed through the dqminions
of this monarch ; they were received with a great deal of
distinction. Rusang-jahun even lodged them in his own
palace for several days; but his imprudence, in suffering
them too often to see the beautiful Guhullaru, cost him his
life. Salak became excessively enamoured of that princess.
He was too well acquainted with her virtue to hope that she
would ever reward his unlawful ardor : but being very little
accustomed to overcome his passions, he resolved to gratify
them at any cost ; and to effect this, he hatched the blackest
design that can be imagined, and prevailed upon his brother
Azim to lend him a helping hand in the execution of it.
58
One evening as they were walking with the king of Nangan
and his spouse in a wood whicla was at the end of the gardens
of the palace, they suddenly fell upon that prince, who had
only a little sabre by his side : and their fury not giving him
time to put himself in a posture of defence, they stabbed
him twenty times with their daggers ; and either out of con-
tempt or cruelty, left the odious instruments of their guilt
sticking in the bloody corpse of that unfortunate king.
Guhullaru uttered such cries as reached even to heaven ;
but those barbarians seized her, and having got out into the
open fields by a door which they had secured, by means of
the eunuch who guarded it, and whom they had corrupted,
they used all their endeavors to set her upon one of their
horses, which they had before prepared, when about twenty
soldiers of the king's guard, alarmed by Guhullaru's outcries,
came to the place. This unexpected assistance struck terror
into Salak and Azim ; they were forced to abandon the
queen, and to betake themselves to flight. They were pur-
sued, but in vain ; they were well mounted, and made their
escape, carrying with them the eunuch who had favored them
in the execution of their infamous design.
It is impossible to express the affliction of Guhullaru ; her
complaints pierced the very skies. She caused the bloody
corpse of her husband to be carried away, and instead of
observing all the funeral ceremonies, she only embalmed it
with her own hands, and had it put into a coffin of gold,
which she adorned with the most precious of her jewels.
She likewise deposited in the coffin his bloody shirt, and
the daggers with which he was assassinated ; and afterwards
took a solemn oath to revenge her husband's death, not only
upon the murderers, but upon all their families. She after-
wards set out incognita, with prince Kiahia, her brother, and
twelve slaves, all resolved to sacrifice themselves for her
service.
My sons did not expect a fury like this ; without the Last
59
remorse for what they had done, they minded nothing but
fl)'ing away from a country which they knew was filled with
aversion against them ; but they did not carry their crime
very far. At some days' journey from the place where they
had committed it, Salak's horse fell and broke his rider's
leg ; and his brother Azim being gone to the next town to
get some speedy succor for him, that wretch was carried into
a neighboring house. Guhullaru, who, without losing a
moment's time, pursued the murderers as it were by the
scent, came by chance to that very house. She knew nothing
of Salak being so near her : but after having made a slight
repast, looking into the coffin of gold according to her cus-
tom, to renew her cruel vow, she was in the utmost surprise
to see several drops of blood issue from her husband's body.
Just heaven ! cried the princess, the murderers must be
somewhere in this place. Then rising from the table like a
mad woman, she took in each hand one of the daggers, with
which Rusang-jahun had been stabbed ; and having searched
most part of the house with her brother and the twelve slaves,
she came at last into the chamber where Salak was reposing
himself. The sight of him transported her with rage. Trai-
tor ! cried she, it is full time thou wert punished for the ex-
ecrable crime thou hast committed upon my husband : the
slowest and most violent torments were too little for such a
villain as thou art ; but my revenge could not be entirely
satisfied if I deferred it a moment, or committed the care of
it to any other but myself. Then, without giving him time
to make any answer to these reproaches, which were but too
just, she plunged her dagger into his heart a thousand times ;
and after having caused his head to be cut off, and exposed
his body to the vultures, she went out of the house, leaving
the mpster of it terrified at her cruelty. As she was informed
by him that my other son had gone to the next town, and
that upon his not coming so soon as was expected, the im-
patient Salak had sent a slave whom he had to fetch him ;
6o
she took the road by which they were to come, and having
met with them in a Uttle wood, where they must necessarily
be obliged to pass, she gave the unfortunate Azim the same
treatment as she had given his brother, and put to death
the traitorous eunuch, accomplice of their crime, by the most
exquisite torments. I was as much surprised as disturbed
at hearing these sorrowful news ; whatever tenderness I had
for my children, I could not blame Guhullaru's revenge ; but
I almost died with grief at the sight of their bloody heads,
which she sent me in a box, with a letter full of threats
to destroy me in the same manner, with the rest of my
family.
Abu Zaid, the only son that was left me, was as much con-
cerned as myself at the death of his brothers. My lord, said
he to me, the enemy we have to deal with is an irritated
woman, who will attack us by craft and subtlety ; give me
leave to take care of your life and that of the queen, and let
me endeavor to defend you from a danger which makes me
tremble both for you and for her. My grief was so exces-
sive, continued Badur, that it deprived me of the use of my
senses. Do whatever you think proper, said I, my dear Abu
Zaid ; for my part I will retire into the recesses of my palace,
there to bemoan incessantly the ill actions of your brothers,
and to pray Allah to forget them. I afterwards doubled my
guard, and shut myself up in the innermost parts of my palace
with the queen my spouse, accompanied only by three or
four of the principal men of my court, who would not leave
me in my affliction.
My son, after having prepared everything that was nec-
essary for the journey he meditated, accosted the princess
Dijara : My dear sister, said he to her, you are not ignorant
to what a pitch the fury of Guhullaru is raised. Our hfe is
not in safety here ; let us go together to seek for the means
of preserving the king and queen from her cruel menaces.
The famous jinni Geoncha, protector of the unfortunate,
6i
dwells in a magnificent palace which is at the foot of the
famous mountain, Jabal-Assumum ^ : I have taken a resolu-
tion, while my father is shut up in his palace, to go and
implore the succor of that king of the jinnis. Let us set for-
ward, therefore, my dear Dijara, and under habits that may
disguise our quality, let us try to obtain a remedy for the
evils which our unhappy brothers have brought upon our
heads.
Abu Zaid and Dijara, before they departed, embraced us
tenderly. After above a month's travelling, they arrived in a
vast champaign country, interspersed with a great number of
little streams : as the heat was very excessive, and as they
perceived, at some distance, a wood of a pretty large extent,
they made to it, and reposed themselves there in the cool
shade, with two slaves, who were all the train they had with
them ; when they heard a frightful noise, as of a great rock
tumbling from the top of a high hill. They looked all round
them to see what it was which occasioned this noise ; but
when they had advanced further into the wood, they found
that it proceeded from a sort of cistern, covered with a small
stone, and sealed at each corner with a seal, whereon was
stamped the name of the great Sulayman. Immediately the
horrible noise, which at first amazed them, began to dimin-
ish ; and was succeeded by the following complaints : Per-
fidious Zalulu ! Traitorous jinni ! Dost thou thus abuse the
seal of Sulayman to detain me a prisoner in this place ? and
must the unfortunate Geoncha be forever enclosed in the
bowels of the earth, without having deserved so hard a
fate?
At the name of Geoncha my children leapt for joy. King
of the jinnis, cried out Abu Zaid, here is a prince who would
succor you at the expense of his life, let me but know how it
is to be done. — All thou hast to do, said the imprisoned
1 That is, the poisonous mountain, because the earth of it inspires
melancholy into those who smell it.
62
jinni, is to get up this stone, by taking away, with as much
care as possible, the print of the seal of the great Sulayman.
Abu Zaid, transported with joy, took off the seal without
breaking it, as the jinni had expressly ordered him. A thick
smoke in a moment rose up to the clouds, and extending
itself over the cistern, made so dark a fog, that the prince
and princess could not see one another. Ihe darkness,
which all of a sudden covered the wood, very much fright-
ened the prince and princess ; but the fog soon afterwards
re-united into a solid body, out of which was formed the
jinni.
Abu Zaid and Dijara immediately threw themselves at
Geoncha's feet. We were going even to seek you in your
palace, said the prince my son ; I hoped, O powerful king
of the jinnis ! that without being subject to the fatal effects
of the mountain Jabal-Assumum, the gate would have been
open to me by virtue of the secret words, which I formerly
learnt of the Yogi Kachokao/ and without which all who
have the boldness to come near it are sure to fall into a dis-
temper more terrible than death itself — I praise God, inter-
rupted the jinni, for having brought you to this place, to
restore me the liberty which the perfidious Zalulu had for
these twelve years past deprived me of, by the blackest piece
of malice that ever was known : but I will not be ungrateful
for the inestimable service you have done me.
That wicked jinni, continued Geoncha, to be revenged
upon me for destroying, as I have so often done, the unjust
projects he forms against young princes and princesses,
whom he persecutes for nothing but his cruel diversion,-
carried on his design in this manner. As he knows that his
1 The Yogis, or Jogis, among the Hindus, are like pilgrims or va-
grant monks, who generally frequent the desert and solitude. They
live upon alms, and are in great reputation for sanctity, because they
spend several days together in very austere abstinence, sometimes
without eating and drinking.
63
power is very much inferior to mine, he, by some subtle trick
or other, stole from the good king Zif the ring of the mighty
Sulayman, which that prince used for the benefit of man-
kind ; and, being master of this treasure, he came to me,
asked my pardon for all the uneasiness he had given to the
persons I protected, and begged me to grant him my friend-
ship, with protestations so sincere in appearance, that I
could not tell how to refuse it him.
After our reconciliation, we took a walk together in this
wood ; when, having insensibly drawn me towards this place,
he sat him down upon the side of this cistern ; then the
traitor, who designed nothing but to circumvent me, having
desired to see a carcanet of diamonds which I wore round
my neck, let it fall into the cistern, as he was pretending to
return it to me. I immediately threw myself into the cistern
to fetch out my carcanet : this was what the wretch wanted.
He took advantage of this moment, covered the cistern with
that stone, and fastened it with the seal of the great Sulay-
man. I leave you to judge how much I was astonished at
this stratagem, continued Geoncha. The useless efforts I
made to get out of my prison convinced me that there was
but one power so superior as to be strong enough to detain
me ; and this place is so much out of the way, that I sup-
posed I should have stayed here for several ages. But
since I am obliged to you for so unlooked-for a freedom,
you may assure yourself, prince, that my gratitude shall have
no bounds.
The jinni, continued Badur, having given my son to under-
stand that he was not ignorant of the cause of his journey,
offered him the assistance he wished for. The death of your
brothers was just, said he, and Guhullaru ought indeed to
have sacrificed no less than those murderers to the manes of
her husband ; but I will moderate the sharp resentment she
is actuated by, and from this moment you need no longer be
apprehensive of that princess's fury. Then, having replaced
64
the stone upon the mouth of the cistern, he again fixed upon
it the print of Sulayman's seal, that Zalulu might not be sen-
sible of his being at liberty : and having by his power formed
in it a noise like that which he made there in the time of his
restraint, he embraced the prince and princess, and convey-
ing them through the air with extreme rapidity, set them
down in a charming meadow which was on the frontiers of
my dominions. I will not leave you, said he to them, until
I have made you happy ; but as I must hide myself from the
traitor Zalulu, in order to get from him the ring of Sulay-
man, I will not appear to you in my proper shape. I will
contract myself into so small a bulk that the beautiful Dijara
shall be able to carry me easily by her side, and you need
only wish that I should resume my former shape, and obey
your orders, and it will be done that moment. Then the
jinni having dissipated himself into smoke, the princess, my
daughter, found at her feet a golden box, which hung from a
chain of the same metal. She immediately opened it, and
was in the utmost surprise to see in it, through a crystal,
several springs, which performed all the internal functions of
the human body : she tied it to her side.
The jinni, continued Badur, had given my children
magnificent clothes, and had ordered them to conceal their
quahty no longer. They had already passed through some
towns in my kingdom, when one evening, being come to a
sort of village, where the approaching night obliged them to
stop, they knocked at the door of the house which had the
best appearance there. They were very well received by the
master of it : but just as they were entering into the chamber
that was prepared for them, three Chinese travellers would
have taken possession of it for a lady, who was at the gate in
a palanquin. My son had no sooner discovered himself to
be the prince of Caor, than the three men yielded him the
place, went out of the house, and carried the lady to another
lodging. My children, after a slight supper, went to bed ;
65
and sleep reigned profoundly in their chamber, when the
very same Chinese travellers, the princess Guhullaru, who
was the lady in the palanquin, her brother, and all her ser-
vants, came to the door of the house where Abu Zaid and
Dijara were buried in repose. She had been transported
with joy when she heard they were so near her ; but being
willing to stay till they were asleep, it was not till she judged
they were so that she knocked at the door of the house
where they were. The master of the house had no sooner
opened the door to them than he found a dagger at his
throat, with menaces of stabbing him that moment if he
made the least noise. We have no design, said Guhullaru
to him, upon any but two perfidious wretches who are lodged
in your house, and who give themselves out to be the chil-
dren of the king of Caor ; deliver them up to our revenge,
or thou diest this instant. The host, terribly frightened, was
forced to show them the chamber of Abu Zaid and Dijara,
deploring in his heart the miserable fate he saw they were
going to endure.
The queen of Nangan, pursued Badur, as she has since
confessed to me, made terrible reflections at that moment.
She was filled with remorse against the injustice of the action
she was committing. But forget that thou art a woman, said
she to herself: or at least remember thou art an offended
woman. Then, having given one of her daggers to Kiahia,
and armed herself with the other, they entered into my chil-
dren's apartment ; and, though with a trembling hand, they
were just going to execute their cruel resolution, yet, when
each of them cast their eyes upon the persons they were to
destroy, they found their arms held back by a superior
power. Never was Guhullaru so struck, as when she con-
sidered the regularity of Abu Zaid's features ; and the charms
of the princess of Caor so dazzled the eyes of Kiahia, who
was going to pierce her heart, that the dagger fell out of his
hand. Guhullaru was somewhat longer before she yielded,
S
66
but the jinni Geoncha, who was watchful for the preservation
of my children, having entirely touched the heart of the
queen of Nangan, she waked the prince my son. Return
thanks, said she, to the secret power that disarms me ; the
desire of revenge has quite vanished away from me ; and I
find my heart relent in the very moment when I least looked
for such a change. Then turning to her brother : As for
you, said she, my dear Kiahia, I am sensible that the extreme
beauty of the princess has made a strong impression upon
your soul. How glad I am to find this happy sympathy
between us ! I should have died with grief if you had ex-
ecuted one part of our unjust resolve; and I begin to feel
that I was pushing my cruelty too far. The real criminals
are punished ; the death of my husband is sufficiently
revenged.
Dijara awaked at this moment ; she was frightened at
seeing so many people in her chamber. Powerful king of
the jinnis, cried she, come speedily to our assistance ! She
had no sooner pronounced these words than the gold box
opened of itself; the chamber was filled with obscurity,
which, dissipating by degrees, exposed to sight the formida-
ble Geoncha. This sudden aid struck terror into Guhullaru
and Kiahia; they began to be afraid for their own lives,
when the jinni encouraged them with extraordinary kindness.
Forget, madam, said Geoncha to Guhullaru, forget the death
of a husband whom you have sufficiently revenged. Let
Abu Zaid and Dijara be the bonds of an eternal peace be-
tween your families, and let the field of battle be turned into
the nuptial bed. Guhullaru was at first so surprised at the
sight of the redoubtable jinni that she scarce heard what he
said to her ; but Abu Zaid, who was that instant struck with
the splendor of her charms, throwing himself at her feet :
Suffer your heart to be touched, madam, said he to her,
with a submissive air: I shall esteem myself the happiest
of mortals if my cares, my respect, and the most tender
67
love, can one day prevail upon you to give me the place of
a prince whom you have indeed the greatest reason to
bewail.
Guhullaru now began to be moved, continued Badur ; she
lifted up Abu Zaid ; and Dijara, persuaded by the passionate
expressions of Kiahia, gave him to understand that she would
not oppose me, if I consented to this marriage. The jinni
having then commanded the four new lovers and all their
attendants to take hold of his mantle, he transported them
in a moment into my palace, where, at length, after the
Queen of Nangan had set apart some time for the decency
of her widowhood, she married Abu Zaid, and the same day
Kiahia became the husband of the princess my daughter.
This double marriage restored my heart to its former
tranquillity ; and it gave me so much joy to see my family
again settled in peace, that for fear my repose should again
be disturbed by some new accident, I resolved with the
queen my spouse to retire into this rural palace, built by the
potent Geoncha. And here, free from the troubles of grand-
eur, and under the protection of that king of the jinnis, who
has gone to an invisible island to wait for a fair opportunity
of revenging himself upon the traitor Zalulu, the queen and
I enjoy a quiet and peaceable state of life.
SEQUEL OF THE HISTORY OF SHARIF
AL-DIN AND OF GUL-HINDI
The night was pretty far advanced, continued Ibn Aridun ;
therefore Badur, after having concluded his history, per-
ceiving that his guests stood in need of repose, conducted
each of them to a separate apartment. That which he as-
signed to the real Gul-hindi was furnished with the utmost
politeness, and adorned with pictures drawn by a Hindu,
equal in skill to the famous Mani. That Hindu was so
68
excellent in his art, and in the disposing of his colors and
shades, that he could have expressed with his pencil the
breath itself, and the respiration of animated creatures.
There was described, in one of these pictures, a triumphal
car all in flames, upon which stood a child supporting a
sphere on his head, and his face surrounded with rays, which
reflected a great deal of majesty upon him ; his hands were
filled with fiery darts ; he had a quiver on his shoulder, a
sabre by his side ; and he dragged along in a chain behind
his car an infinite number of persons of all ages, sexes, and
conditions ; one might read in their faces and attitudes the
expressions of the most lively passions. This celebrated
painter had outdone himself in this work ; and by some nice
touches peculiar to himself, the winds that he had painted at
the corners of the picture seemed to keep in their breath,
for fear of increasing the flames which glowed throughout
this masterpiece.
Gul-hindi looked attentively upon this picture : she sighed
and blushed at the same time. She cast her eyes upon
another, at the bottom whereof she read these verses :
A lawless passion Koka's bosom warms,
And her incestuous heart her brother charms:
Her flame with virtuous horror Kyni views;
The more he flies, the swifter she pursues.
No ray of hope to cheer her suit appears,
And sorrow melts her into floods of tears;
Vishnu with pity saw her ceaseless grief,
And, kind to the unhappy, brought relief ;
Into a fountain he transformed the dame.
Where guilty love extinguishes his flame.
Never was anything more beautiful or more striking than
this painting ; but notwithstanding all the master-strokes with
which it abounded, the princess turned away her eyes from
it. She met with another which seemed more apposite to
the condition she herself was in. It represented the history
69
of Fork and Onam: she read their adventures with great
attention, and oppressed with a thousand cruel reflections :
Just heaven ! cried she, must everything that offers itself to
my view conduce to nourish a passion whose consequences
must inevitably prove fatal to me ? I love, but whom do
I love? A woman like myself; and this very obstacle, as
invincible as it is, redoubles my affections. Ah ! miserable
princess, do not form such unlawful wishes ; love nothing
but what a woman may love without a crime, since nature
opposes thy unreasonable ardor. But, said she again im-
mediately, may not the example of Fork, which is now
before my eyes, alleviate the uneasiness I am in? Why
should I be inspired with so extravagant a passion, if it is
not designed that a miracle shall be wrought in my favor?
Fork was a beautiful woman : the god Vishnu, whose assist-
ance she implored, in a moment changed her to the most
amiable of all mankind. Ah ! I rave, continued Gul-hindi ;
let me fly from this adorable object : that is the only remedy
for my misfortunes. But wherefore fly ? interrupted she
presently afterwards ; what harm is there in loving the prin-
cess of Tuluphan ? No, no, let me not find out a crime
where there can be none ; but let me maintain with honor
the character I am at present forced to act. Gul-hindi spent
almost the whole night in these reflections ; and rising at
daybreak, she descended into the garden to walk ofl" her
inquietude. She found a little door that opened into the
forest: she went into it, and her thoughtfulness insensibly
drew her into a place where the wood was very thick : she
sat herself down there, and, fatigued with having spent the
night in so restless a manner, fell into a gentle and refreshing
slumber.
Sharif al-Din was agitated with the like thoughts ; the
night seemed very tedious to him. Aurora had hardly be-
gun to appear, when jumping from off the bed, upon which
he had only lain him down, he took his bow and his arrows,
70
and passing out of the garden into the wood, he followed,
without knowing it, the same track which Gul-hindi had
taken before him ; he was walking pretty fast, when he heard
a little noise in a private place. He went nearer to it, and
seeing the leaves stir, he imagined it was some beast moving
out of its hold, and thereupon shot one of his arrows at ran-
dom. What was the surprise of Sharif al-Din, continued
Ibn Aridun, when he heard a doleful cry, which proceeded
from somebody whose voice he was acquainted with ! His
heart was seized with the sharpest grief; he ran with all his
speed to the place, and found that he had wounded the very
man who had rescued him from the giant. What horror
and despair was the prince seized with at the sight of his
deliverer all in blood ! His eyes were covered with an
obscurity which hindered him from seeing what he had
done. Unhappy bow ! cried he, unhappy dart ! but rather,
unhappy Prince ! die, and bear the punishment of thy indis-
cretion ! In pronouncing these last words, my lord, Sharif
al-Din was just going to stab himself with one of his arrows,
when he heard his friend groan. He immediately quitted
his design of dying, to try to save a life which was so dear
to him : he ran to embrace him, melting into tears ; and
going to staunch the blood which trickled from the wound
he had given him in the breast, he remained without motion,
when he perceived that he had wounded a woman. He was
ready to expire with sorrow at this discovery. O heavens !
said he, his eyes overflowing with tears, must I obtain the
knowledge of the most charming person in the world by so
tragical an accident? But let me, if possible, repair my
error. Then tearing the mushn of Gul-hindi's turband, he
stopped the blood as well as he was able. He afterwards in
vain endeavored to find the soul of that princess upon those
lips where the paleness of death was painted. She gave no
sign of life ; but as there was a stream which glided along at
some distance from thence, he ran to it, and brought some
71
water in the princess's turband, when he beheld her in the
arms of a frightful man.
Sharif al-Din, at this sight, immediately drew his sabre and
prepared to fight the monster, who grew larger and larger
every moment ; when he cried out to him in a terrible voice :
Stop, young madman, unless thou thyself wouldst be the
murderer of this princess, whose neck I will wring at the
least motion thou makest. — Ah, barbarian ! cried the prince,
you know too well how to take advantage of iny tender con-
cern. Were it not for that, I would let out thy life, or perish
gloriously in attempting to succor the divine person whom
thou deprivest me of with so much baseness. — I am above
your threats, replied the ravisher; know that I am called
Zalulu, and that I am one of the most powerful jinnis upon
earth : I took delight at the moment of thy birth, and of that
of this princess, to traverse your lives. I made an exchange
of you two ; 1 laid thee in the cradle of the princess of
Tuluphan, and her in thine : you were to have been happy
in each other's love, if you had attained the age of seventeen
years without knowing one another for such as you really
arei You have, unhappily for yourself, discovered this prin-
cess's sex before the time prescribed ; this is what puts her
into my power ; and you must never hope to see her more,
while I am what I am. — Zalulu then carried away Gul-hindi,
leaving the prince in a despair so violent, that he resolved
not to survive his misfortune. He fiercely set the point of
his sabre against his breast, and was just going to pierce his
heart when he found his arm suddenly stayed by an invisible
hand.
Geoncha, who incessantly watched over the malignant
actions of Zalulu, and hindered the consequences of them as
much as lay in his power, thought it high time to assist tlie
prince of Ormuz. He disarmed him, therefore, in the very
moment that he was making an attempt upon his life, and
offering himself to his sight in the shape of a majestic old
72
man : Sharif al-Din, said he, moderate a little the violence
of your passions, and follow the wholesome advice of a jinni
who loves you. It was I who presided at yours and Gul-
hindi's birth : it was I who in the resolution to unite you
together, formed between you such charming ties, and in-
spired you with that sudden reciprocal tenderness. But as
neither of you was able to avoid what is written upon the
table of light, you must wait with patience for the moment
that may restore you to your princess, and by a perfect sub-
mission to the Will of Heaven deserve the happy destiny
which is perhaps prepared for you. The prince was very
much consoled by these words. Powerful jinni, said he,
throwing himself at Geoncha's feet, since I am obliged to
submit without murmuring, at least inform me what will be
done with me till the arrival of that happy moment. — Do
you find in yourself, prince, replied the jinni, so much cour-
age as to face death in rescue of your princess? That is the
only way to abridge your misfortunes, or to perish gloriously
for her sake. — Can it be doubted ? answered Sharif al-Din ;
I am ready to sacrifice a thousand lives to obtain the ador-
able Gul-hindi, and the most cruel death is not sufificient to
turn me from so noble a design. — I admire your intrepidity,
replied Geoncha : give me your hand ; you shall quickly be
satisfied. The prince gave his hand to Geoncha ; lie struck
the ground, and the earth opened. They both of them
plunged into its most dreadful abysses ; and at last found
themselves in a cavern, the mouth of which looked into a
champaign country, adorned with a thousand various flowers,
which led, by a walk of palms, to a magnificent palace, into
which they entered.
To effect the deliverance of your princess, said the jinni
then to the prince Sharif al-Din, I must begin by recovering
the superiority which naturally I have over the malicious
Zalulu. I can never bring that about but by artfully getting
from him the seal of Sulayman, which that traitor has un-
73
doubtedly stolen from the good king Zif ; and to do this, 1
have occasion for a prince like yourself, who will fearlessly
expose himself to almost unavoidable death. What you are
to do is this. There is in the island of Jilolo a spring, called
the Fountain of Oblivion, unknown to all mortals. There
are very few even of the sages and jinnis who can tell
precisely where this Fountain is : and though some do know
it, they are ignorant of the proper dose, which is the chief
point, because the remedy is to be found in the very dis-
temper, and according to the quantity that is drunk of it, it
takes away and restores memory. This water is guarded
\by a jinni named Nihorah, who without mercy strangles all
those who come near it : but as he holds all his authority
from me, he has not refused me some water from this Foun-
tain. Here is a bottle of it, enough to answer my necessity
for it. The difificulty lies in presenting it to the perfidious
Zalulu ; and not one of all the jinnis who depend upon me
would accept the commission, so much do they dread the
power of Sulayman's ring. Have you, prince, firmness
enough to undertake so perilous an action? It may en-
danger your hfe and even that of your princess, if Zalulu
should mistrust the deceit you intend to put upon him ; but
if you can by your cunning bring him to drink of the water
of the Fountain of Oblivion, you will that very moment
become possessor of the princess of Tuluphan.
Sharif al-Din, continued Ibn Aridun, accepted Geoncha's
proposal without the least hesitation ; and that jinni, having
conducted him into a spacious hall, made him enter into a
bath. The prince had not been half an hour in the water,
before he perceived a change in his person which frightened
him. He jumped immediately out of it, and covering him-
self precipitately with a very fine cloth : Ah ! jinni, cried he,
what is the meaning of this new metamorphosis? Geoncha
fell a-laughing. What, said he to the prince, who was then
changed into the most beautiful woman that was ever seen,
74
and whose features were quite different from those he ap-
peared in when he was a man, are you already sorry for the
promises you have made ; and does the sex I have given
you, for some time only, incline you to renounce the charm-
ing Gul-hindi ? Go, prince, execute punctually what I am
about to prescribe to you, and I can soon restore you to
your former condition. The jinni, my lord, having then
instructed the prince what he was to do when he should be
with Zalulu, gave him the water of oblivion, and transported
him, in less than four minutes, to the ordinary habitation of
that perfidious jinni.
Zalulu, whose power was limited with regard to Gul-hindi,
after having cured her wound with one single blast of his
breath, had confined her to a dark tower, and had gone out
in quest of some new subject for his malignant recreation,
when he met with Sharif al-Din, who was stretched out upon
the grass and who feigned a profound sleep. The jinni,
after having \dewcd him with abundance of attention, owned
to himself that he had never beheld so charming a creature.
He fell passionately in love with him ; and forming to him-
self a flattering idea of the happiness he should enjoy in
being beloved by him, he assumed the form of a young man
of about twenty, and beautiful even to a degree almost equal
to his ; he carried him away,, conveyed him to his palace,
and waited till he should waken to declare to him the ex-
treme passion he felt for him.
Sharif al-Din, who was prepared for what might happen,
acted his part to perfection. At first he pretended to be
hugely afflicted, and shed abundance of tears ; and after-
wards, by a seeming resistance, so inflamed Zalulu, that the
jinni, whose passion increased every moment for the prince,
whom he mistook for a woman, declared to him who he was,
and offered to make him a partner in his power, if he would
make a kind return to his tenderness. The disguised prince
feigned to be shaken by the greatness of his promises and
75
by the persona! merit of the jinni j he asked some days to
consider it, promising to spend all the time in his company ;
and Zalulu, blinded by his passion, and without in the least
suspecting that he designed to put a trick upon him, resolved
to wait with patience for that happy moment, and in the
mean while to procure him a thousand diversions that might
prevail upon him to be grateful. To begin, he caused to
be served a magnificent collation, and presented him with a
very excellent wine ; he excused himself from touching it, and
told the jinni he drank only of a certain water he always car-
ried about with him ; but that this water was of so excellent
a taste that it far excelled the finest wines. The jinni seemed
surprised at it. Give me leave, madam, answered he, to
doubt of so improbable a story, till I have myself experienced
the truth of it. — You yourself shall be the judge, replied the
prince of Ormuz. Then having poured into the cup just so
much water as was requisite to take away the memory,
Zalulu had no sooner drunk it off than he was perfectly
besotted.
Sharif al-Din, seeing the operation of his liquor, was in a
joy hardly to be expressed ; he gave the jinni such tender
caresses, that, moved with the charms of so beautiful a
woman, he had much ado to contain himself, and wished to
absolutely embrace him, when, pushing him fondly back, he
told him he would not consent to his desires, unless, as a
pledge of his eternal tenderness, he made him a present of
the ring he wore on his finger. Zalulu, at this moment, by
means of the water he had drunk, forgetting of what con-
sequence it was to him to preserve Sulayman's ring, which
all the powers of the earth could never have forced from
him, took the ring from his finger and presented it to his
new mistress. He had no sooner got it into his possession
than pouring him out a second glass of the same water, but
which dose was so much as would restore him his memory,
he earnestly begged him for his sake to drink that too, and
1^
assured him that he should no sooner have given him that
last mark of his complaisance, than he would consent to
gratify his desires. However insipid the jinni thought the
liquor he had already drunk, as he was so transported at the
sight of this charming lady that he was no longer the master
of his will, he presently swallowed the water offered him ; but
what a fury he was in the moment afterwards, when Sharif
al-Din vanished from his sight, to perceive that he was no
longer the possessor of Sulayman's ring, and to remember
that he himself had foolishly given it away to the woman
whose false charms had so grossly deceived him ! He then
abandoned himself to the most violent despair, and blas-
phemed against all the Supreme Beings.
When Sharif al-Din had given to Geoncha the ring he had
so subtlely acquired, that king of the jinnis transported him-
self in the very moment to the place where the perfidious
Zalulu was still making most dismal reflections upon the loss
he had sustained. But though the seal of Sulayman, which
with the utmost surprise he saw in Geoncha's hand, ought to
have humbled him, and induced him to have recourse to his
clemency, yet he had still the temerity to rebel against him ;
and forgetting that he was his king, he was so rash as to defy
him to mortal combat. But Geoncha making use of all his
superiority and immense power which that divine ring gave
him, soon put an end to the fight. He annihilated the trai-
torous Zalulu ; and after having carried to his palace the
prince of Ormuz, while he washed in another bath which re-
stored him to his primitive form, the jinni went and fetched
the beauteous Gul-hindi out of her prison, and embracing^
them both, he conveyed them in an instant to the palace of
the king of Tuluphan.
Mochzadin and Riza, who bemoaned the loss of their
dear daughter, and according to Geoncha's prediction never
expected to behold her again, almost died with joy at so
unexpected a sight. The jinni told them, to their great
77
amazement, of the error they had always been in by the
malice of Zalulu ; the dangers to which their real daughter
had been exposed, as he had foretold them the moment she
was born, and the annihilation of the malignant jinni ; and
commanded them to immediately unite in the most holy ties
Sharif al-Din and Gul-hindi, since the king of Ormuz, too,
had already formed the same design. The king and queen
of Tuluphan, continued Ibn Aridun, would not defer a
moment the happiness of the prince and princess ; and that
illustrious couple under the protection of the great Geoncha
spent the rest of their days in the most perfect union, and
enjoyed a felicity which to their lives' end was never inter-
rupted by the least unlucky accident.
Ibn Aridun having thus concluded the adventures of
Sharif al-Din and of Gul-hindi, the king of Astrakhan let him
know the great pleasure he had taken in hearing them. I
could yet have wished, added that monarch, that there had
been something in the catastrophe of your story a little more
wonderful : I cannot help thinking that Zalulu runs too
blindfold into the trap that is laid for him, and that Sharif
al-Din too easily gets the ring of Sulayman. — My Lord,
replied Ibn Aridun, I did not invent this history myself, but
had the honor to tell it your Majesty, just as I had read it in
one of our Arabian authors. And after all, love is so violent
a passion, and deprives the wisest men of the use of their
reason to such a degree, as to set them upon an equal foot-
ing with the weakest of mankind. — I confess it, replied the
king ; and now that I reflect upon it more seriously, I per-
ceive that it would have been very hard to rescue Gul-hindi
out of Zalulu's power, by any other means than the blind
passion he felt for Sharif al-Din, who seemed so beautiful a
woman. That jinni, with the assistance of Sulayman's ring,
might have defended himself against all surprises ; nothing
but so passionate a love could have torn it from him ; and
78
this thought convinces me that it is very easy to criticise any-
thing, but hard to mend it. — It is true, my Lord, replied
Ibn Aridun ; but since your Majesty was not at first entirely
satisfied with the conclusion of that history, I will relate one
which I am sure will please you, both for the wonderful and
comical strokes that there are in it. — Nobody hitherto has
succeeded so well as thou in diverting me, replied the king
of Astrakhan ; begin this history, therefore, since I have still
some moments left. Ibn Aridun, in obedience to his prince,
spake in these terms :
TALE OF THE THREE CRUMP TWIN-
BROTHERS OF DAMASCUS
Under the Cahphate of Al-Mutawakhil 'al^ 'Hah, grandson
of Harun al-Rashid, there dwelt at Damascus an old man
called Bahamrillah, who did but just get a poor livehhood
by making steel-bows, swords, sabres, and knife-blades. Of
thirteen children which he had by one wife, ten died all in
one year ; but the three that remained were such odd fig-
ures, that it was impossible to look at them without laughing.
They were crooked both behind and before, blind of the left
eye, lame of the right foot, and so perfectly like one another
in face, shape, and clothes, which they always wore the same
with one another, that even their father and mother some-
times mistook one for the other.
Of the three sons of Bahamrillah, said Ibn Aridun, the
next day, the eldest was named Ibad, the second, Syahuk, '
and the third Babakan ; and these three little hump-backed
brothers never worked in their shop, but they served for
laughing-stocks to all the boys and girls in the town. One
day, as the only son of a rich merchant, named Murad,
returned from walking with some of his playfellows, finding
himself more merry than usual, he leaned upon the bulk of
79
the three crumps, and insulted them with so much keenness,
that Babakan, who was then at work upon a knife-blade, lost
all patience ; he ran after those children, and, singling out
his principal enemy, gave him a cut in the belly ; but finding
that he was pursued by the mob, he ran into his shop and
pulled the door after him. As Murad was dangerously
wounded, all the avenues of Bahamrillah's house were im-
mediately secured, till the Kadi, who was sent for, should
come. He repaired thither immediately with his attendants,
and having broken down the doors upon their refusal to
open them, he entered into the shop, and demanded of those
who had been witnesses of the action that was committed,
which of the three crumps was the murderer. Nobody
could affirm that it was one of them rather than another ;
they were so exactly alike that they were all at a loss. The
Kadi examined Ibad, who assured him that it was not he that
had wounded the boy, and that he could not tell whether it
was Syahuk or Babakan ; Syahuk averred the same thing ;
and Babakan, seeing himself out of danger, had the impu-
dence to deny likewise that he had any hand in the crime.
The Kadi was, therefore, much perplexed what to do.
There could be but one criminal, and here seemed to be
three ; and never a one of them would own himself to
be the man. He thought he could not do better than inform
the king of Damascus of so singular an affair. He carried
the three crumps before his throne ; and that prince having
examined them himself without being able to find out the
truth, gave command, in order to discover it, that each of
them sliould have an hundred bastinadoes upon the soles of
his feet. They began with Syahuk, and afterwards pro-
ceeded to Ibad ; but both of them being ignorant whether
Babakan was the criminal or not, so much resemblance there
was between them, they endured the bastinado without giv-
ing the king any clearer information than he had before.
Babakan afterwards received his quota of stripes ; but being
8o
judge in his own cause, he did not think fit to betray him*
self; he made the most earnest protestations of his in-
nocence, and the king, not knowing which was the murderer,
and unwilling to put to death two innocents with one criminal,
was contented with banishing them all three from Damascus
for ever.
Ibad, Syahuk, and Babakan were obliged to comply with
this sentence immediately. They departed from the city,
and having considered what they should do, Ibad and
Syahuk were entirely for keeping together; but Babakan
having represented to them that, let them go where they
would, so long as they were together they would always be
the jest of the public, but that if they were single they would
each be infinitely less observed, this reason prevailed over
the opinion of the other two. They parted from each other,
and taking every one of them a different road, Babakan,
having travelled through several towns of Syria, came at
length to Baghdad, where I have already told your Majesty
Al-Mutawakhil 'ala 'llah, the grandson of Hariin al-Rashid,
held the supreme power. This Httle crooked wretch, under-
standing that there was in that city a cutler of tolerably
good repute, went to him for employment ; he told him he
was from Damascus, and that he had a particular art in
tempering steel. The cutler was willing to try if Babakan
was as great a master of his trade as he boasted himself to
be ; he took him into his shop, and finding, indeed, that not
only was the steel he tempered as hard and as sharp again
as what was commonly used at Baghdad, but also that his
work was much more neat and perfect, he retained him in
his service, and entertained him with great kindness, that he
might keep him to himself. From that time his shop was
always crowded with customers. The httle crump could not
work fast enough ; the cutler sold his bows and sabres at his
own price, and if he had not been a drunken extravagant
sot, he might have made a very considerable fortune.
8i
Babakan had scarce been two years at Baghdad, when his
master fell very ill of a great debauch he had made ; his
body was so worn and wasted by wine, brandy, and women,
that all the care of his wife and of Babakan could not save
his hfe ; he died in their arms. Though Nohud, which was
the name of the cutler's wife, was very far from being hand-
some, Babakan had, nevertheless, been in love with her for
some time ; and his master's death proving a fair opportunity
to declare his passion, he, without any hesitation, made the
widow acquainted with his sentiments. She was not much
alarmed at them ; for, besides that his out-of-the-way figure
began to grow familiar to her, she further considered that if
Babakan left her, the shop would presently lose its reputa-
tion, and that the little money she had saved during her hus-
band's Hfe would soon be spent. These reasons induced
her, like a sensible woman as she was, to make Babakan a
promise of marriage so soon as she could do it with decency.
She kept her word with him some months afterwards ; and
Babakan, not satisfied with his cutling trade alone, whereby
in a httle time he got a great deal of money, fell likewise in
the way of selling brandy of dates, which he had a very con-
siderable demand for.
The correspondence that Babakan had in several towns in
the East, came to the ears of his two brothers, who after
having lived for almost five years in abject poverty, were at
last met together at Darbant. Here they learnt to their
great joy the prosperity of Babakan, and not doubting but
that he would assist them in their want, they resolved to go
together to Baghdad ; they had no sooner arrived there, than
they sent for him by a poor woman, who had taken them
into her house out of charity. Babakan was prodigiously
surprised at the sight of his brothers : Have you forgotten,
said he to them, in a violent passion, what happened to us
at Damascus? Have you a mind to make me the jest ol
this city too ? I swear by my head that you shall die beneath
6
82
the cudgel, if you dare to come near my house, or to stay in
Baghdad another hour. Ibad and his brother were amazed
at a reception so httle expected ; it was in vain they repre-
sented their misery to Babakan, and showed him the most
abject submission ; he continued unmoved ; and all they
could obtain from him were ten or twelve pieces of gold to
help them to settle in some other town.
Babakan being returned home, his wife perceived an
alteration in his countenance. She asked him the cause of
it, and was answered that it proceeded from the arrival of his
two brothers ; but that apprehending at Baghdad the same rail-
leries he had borne at Damascus, he had forbidden them his
house, and had obliged them to leave the town. Nohud to
no purpose remonstrated with him on the cruelty of what he
had done ; her husband's fury was but increased by her per-
suasions. I find, said he, you will be tempted to entertain
them here, during the journey I am about to make to Bas-
sorah ; but take notice, I advise you, that if you do, it shall
cost you your life. I say no more : look to it that you do
not disobey me. Babakan's wife was too well acquainted
with her husband's violent humor to contradict him ; she
had often enough felt the weight of his arm. She promised
most punctually to execute his orders ; but those promises
did not make Babakan easy ; he passed the whole night
without taking a wink of sleep, and returning next morning
at break of day to the woman's house where his brothers
had lodged, he heard to his great satisfaction that they
had gone from Baghdad, with the intention never to seek it
again.
Ibad and Syahuk had indeed departed, with a resolution
to go and seek their fortunes elsewhere; but the latter falling
sick about two days' journey from Baghdad, and they find-
ing themselves obliged to stay there almost three weeks, their
money was soon gone, and they were reduced to their
former want. Not knowing how to live, in spite of the
83
severe prohibition they had received from Babakan, they
resolved to go back to Baghdad. They went to their former
landlady, and begged her to go once more to their brother,
in order to persuade him, if she could, to take them into his
house, or at least to give them a little money to defray the
charge of their journey. The poor woman could not refuse
to do them that service ; she went to Babakan's house, and
being informed at his shop that he had been gone twelve
days to Bassorah, to fetch several bales of merchandise, she
returned immediately to tell this news to her guests, who
were so hard pressed by their necessity, that they went
themselves to implore the assistance of their brother's wife.
Nohud could not help knowing them ; they resembled Baba-
kan so exactly, that there was nobody but would have mis-
taken each of them apart for him. But though he had so
strictly commanded her not to let them into her house, she
was touched with their poverty and tears ; she entertained
them and set some victuals before them. It was now dark
night ; and Ibad and Syahuk had scarce satisfied their first
hunger, when somebody ratded at the door ; the voice of
Babakan, who was not to have returned for three days longer,
was a thunderbolt to his wife and brothers ; they turned as
pale as death ; and Nohud, who did not know where to put
them, to conceal them from her husband's fury, thought at
last of hiding them in a little cellar, behind five or six tubs
of brandy.
Babakan grew impatient at the door ; he knocked louder
and louder every moment ; at last it was opened, and sus-
pecting his wife of having some gallant hid in a corner, he
took a stick and beat her soundly ; afterwards his jealousy
induced him to search all the house ; he visited every hole
with the greatest care, but never thought of looking behind
the brandy tubs, though he went into the cellar. At last,
my lord, continued Ibn Aridun, the hump-backed churl,
having made no discovery, grew a little calmer ; he locked
84
all the doors, taking the keys, according to his custom, went
to bed with Nohud, and did not go out all next day till
towards the evening, telling his wife he would sup with a
friend. His back was hardly turned, when Nohud ran im-
mediately to the cellar ; but she was in the utmost surprise
at finding Ibad and Syahuk without the least sign of life.
Her perplexity increased when slie considered she had no
way of getting rid of the two bodies ; but taking her resolu-
tion at once, she shut up the shop, ran to look towards the
bridge of Baghdad for a foolish porter of Siwrihissar, and
having told him that a little hump-backed man, who came to
her house to buy some knives, having died there suddenly,
she feared she should be brought to trouble about it, she
proffered him four golden dinars, if he would put him into a
sack, and throw him into the Tigris. The porter accepted
her offer ; and Nohud having taken him home with her,
gave him two dinars by way of earnest, treated him with
drink till it was night, put only one of the crumps into his
sack, helped him up with it, and promised to give him the
other two dinars, when she was sure he had performed his
commission.
The porter, with the crump upon his shoulders, being
come to the bridge of Baghdad, opened his sack, shot his
load into the river, and running back to Nohud : It is done,
said he, laughing ; your man is fish-meat by this time ; give
me the two dinars you promised me. Nohud then went be-
hind her counter, under pretence of fetching him the money ;
but starting back with a loud cry, she pretended to fall into
a swoon. The porter, strangely surprised, took her into his,
arms ; and after having fetched her to herself, he inquired
the cause of her fright. Ah ! said the cunning hussy, acting
her part to a miracle, go in there, and you will soon know
the cause. The porter went in, and was struck as mute as a
fish, when, by the glimmering of a lamp, he perceived the
same body which he thought he had thrown into the Tigris.
85
The more narrowly he viewed it, the greater was his surprise.
I am sure, said he to Nohud, I did throw that plaguey
crooked rascal over the bridge : how, then, could he come
hither? There must be witchcraft in it. However, con-
tinued he, let us try if he will get out again ; then having put
the second crump into the same sack, he carried him to the
bridge, and choosing out the deepest part of the Tigris,
opened his sack, and threw in poor Syahuk. He was again
returning merrily to Nohud, not doubting that his burden
was gone to the bottom, when turning the corner of a street,
he saw coming towards him a man with a lanthorn in his
hand. He was ready to drop down dead with fear at the
sight of Babakan, who was going home a littie overtaken
with wine. He dogged him, however, a little while, and
finding that he took the ready way to the house from which
he had fetched the two crumps, he seized him furiously by
the collar. Ah, rogue ! cried he, you think to make a fool
of me all night, do you ? You have served me this trick
twice already ; but if you escape the third time, I will be
hanged. Then, being a lusty fellow, he threw his sack over
his shoulders, and forcing him into it in spite of his teeth,
tied the mouth of it with a strong rope, and running di-
rectly to the bridge, flung in poor Babakan, sack and all.
He walked a pretty while thereabouts, for fear the crump
should get out again to cheat him of his reward ; but hearing
no noise, returned to the cutleress to demand the other two
dinars, which she had promised him. Do not fear his com-
ing any more, said he, the moment he set his foot into tlie
house. The wag had a mind to make me his sport forever,
I think ; he only pretended to be dead, that he might make
me trot my legs off; but I have done his business for him
now so thoroughly, that he will never come to your house
any more ; I will engage for him,
Nohud, surprised at this discourse, desired him to tell her
what he meant by it. Why, replied he, I had again thrown
86
this damned crump into the Tigris, when as I was returning
to you for my money, I met him about five or six streets off
with a lanthorn in his hand, singing and roaring under pre-
tence of being drunk. I was so horribly enraged with him,
that laying hold of him I forced him into my sack, in spite
of all his resistance, tied it with a cord, and so threw him
into the Tigris, from whence I believe he can never return,
unless he be Iblis himself. Babakan's wife was in an un-
paralleled surprise at this news. Ah ! sirrah, said she, what
have you done ? You have now drowned my husband ; and
have you the impudence to think I will reward you for his
murder? No, no; I will revenge his death, and go this
moment to make my complaint to the Kadi. The porter
gave very little heed to all her threats ; he thought she did
this only to avoid paying him the money she had promised
him. Without jesting, said he, give me the two dinars I
have so lawfully earned ; you have made a fool of me long
enough ; I must begone home. Nohud refused to pay him.
1 swear by my head, replied he, in a violent rage, if you do
not give me the two dinars this moment, I will send you to
keep company with that crooked monster I have thrown into
the river. Now, added he, dispute my payment if you dare :
I am not such a fool as you take me for ; I will have my
money at once, or I will make the house too hot to hold
you. The more the porter insisted upon his money, the
more noise Nohud made. He grew weary of so much re-
sistance, and taking her by the hair, he pulled her into the
street, and was really going to throw her into the Tigris,
when the neighbors ran to her assistance. The porter upon
this took to his heels, very much in dudgeon at having, as
he thought, been so grossly put upon, and was going towards
the bridge on his way home, when he met three men, each
with a load upon his shoulder, as far as he could discern in
the dark. He that went first took him by the arm. Where
are you going at this time of night? said he. — What is that
87
to you ? said the porter, very snappishly ; I am going where
I please. — You are greatly deceived, answered the stranger,
for you shall go where I please : take this bundle off my
head and walk before me. The porter, surprised at this
command, would have resisted ; but the man having shaken
at him a sabre four fingers broad, and threatened to cut off
his head if he did not obey that moment, he was forced to
take up the load and go in company with the other two,
whereof one seemed a slave and the other a fisherman.
They had not walked ten streets when they came to a little
door, which was presently opened by an old woman. They
passed through a long passage very dark, and arrived at last
in a magnificent hall. But what was the porter's amazement,
when, by the light of about forty tapers with which it was
illuminated, he saw the crooked brothers he had thrown
into the Tigris, two of whom were upon the shoulders of the
slave and the fisherman, and the third upon his own head !
He was seized with such terror that he began to shake all
over his body. He was more thoroughly convinced than
ever that so extraordinary a thing could be imputed to
nothing but conjuration. But recovering a little from his
fright : The devil take this cursed crump-backed, one-eyed
son of a whore, cried he, in a very comical tone ; I believe I
shall do nothing all night but throw him into the river, and
not get rid of him at last. The rascal was so malicious as to
come back again twice, to hinder me from having the dinars
the cutler-woman promised me; and here I find him again,
with two others besides, not a farthing better than himself.
But, sir, continued he, addressing himself to him who seemed
the master of the house, lend me, I beseech you, that sabre
of yours but for a moment. I will only cut off their heads,
and then go and throw them all three into the Tigris, to see
if they will follow me again. I am so horribly unlucky to-
day, that I am sure the devil will carry them back, either to
the cutler's house or to mine, do what I will.
The porter having finished this speech of his, the Caliph
Al-Mutawakhil 'alk 'llah, for it was he himself, my lord, who,
following the example of Harun al-Rashid, his grandfather,
walked out very often in the night-time in the streets of
Baghdad, to see what passed, and to be capable of making
a judgment himself of how the people hked his government :
this Caliph, I say, who was disguised like a merchant, was in
the utmost surprise at these words of the porter. He had
been out that night with his wazir, and having met a fisher-
man, he asked him whither he went. — I am going, an-
swered he, to draw up my net, which I have left ever since
yesterday morning in the Tigris. — And what will you do
with the fish you catch? replied the Caliph. — To-morrow,
said he, I will go and sell them in the market of Baghdad,
to help to maintain my wife and three children. — Will you
bargain with me for your whole draught? replied Al-Muta-
wakhil 'al^ 'llah. — With all my heart, answered the fisher-
man. — Well, said the Caliph, there are ten dinars of gold
for it j will that satisfy you ? The fisherman was so amazed
at such a piece of generosity that he almost imagined he was
in a dream. But, putting the dinars in his pocket : My
lord, replied he, transported, if I were to have as much for
every draught, I should soon be richer and more powerful
than the sovereign Commander of the Faithful. The Caliph
smiled at this comparison : he went to the shore of the
Tigris, entered the fisherman's boat, and, with his wazir,
having helped him to draw up his nets, he was very much
amazed at finding in them the two little crumps of Damas-
cus, and a sack in which was the third.
An adventure so surprising struck him with admiration.
Since this draught belongs to me, said he to the fisherman,
who was as much surprised as himself, I am resolved to
carry it home with me ; but you must lend us a hand. The
man had received too great marks of the Caliph's liberality
to make the least scruple at obeying him j the wazir and he
89
took, the one Ibad, and the other Syahuk, by the feet, and
threw them on their shoulders ; and the Caliph himself hav-
ing shouldered the sack in which was Babakan, they turned
back to go to the palace, when they met the porter, who had
a few moments before thrown the three brothers into the
Tigris. As Al-Mutawakhil 'al^ 'Udh was dripping wet with
the water that ran out of the sack, he stopped the porter, and
having forced him to ease him of his burden, he conducted
him to a house which adjoined his palace. There it was, my
lord, that the porter of Baghdad, having by the words he
spoke, relating to the three crumps, excited the Caliph's
curiosity, he desired him to explain himself more clearly
upon so whimsical an adventure. Sir, replied the porter,
this explanation you require is not so easily made as you
imagine. The more I think of it, the less I understand
it ; however, you shall have it just as I think it happened
to me.
Do you know, sir, said the porter, the cutler's wife who
lives at the end of the street of the jewellers? — No, replied
the Caliph. — You are no great loser by the bargain, replied
the porter ; she is the mischievousest jade in all Baghdad :
I would willingly give the two dinars I am master of to have
but five or six slaps at her foul chops, for the trick the witch
put upon me this night : though I am but poor I should
sleep the better for it. This cutler woman then — But
stay, since you do not know her, I will draw you her picture.
Imagine, sir, you have before your eyes a great withered old
woman, with a skin as black as a dried neat's tongue, with a
little forehead, and eyes so far sunk into her head that it is
impossible without a telescope to see she has any. Her
nose has so great a kindness for her chin, that they are
always kissing one another ; and her mouth, which exhales a
charming odor like that of brimstone, is so wide that it is
not unlike a crocodile's. Must not all this form a complete
beauty? — Without doubt, said the Caliph, who, though
90
impatient to hear the story of the three crumps, almost died
with laughing at the porter's comical description. You are
so excellent a painter that I fancy I see this cutler-woman,
and would lay a wager I could find her out amongst a thou-
sand. — Well, then, said the porter, since you know her now
as well as if you had seen her, imagine that you see this
lovely creature, covered with a great veil that hides all her
perfections, come to choose me towards night, at the foot of
the bridge, from amongst five or six of my comrades, and to
promise me in my ear four dinars if I would follow her. The
desire of gain entices me ; I fly towards her house, and go
in with her. She throws off the veil ; I am frightened at
the sight almost out of my wits ; she certainly perceives it,
and to encourage me, pops into my hand a great flagon of
wine. I -own, sir, it was so excellent that without inquiring
what country it caiue from, I emptied the flagon. Yet I
could not help trembling all Uie while I drank it ; I was
afraid she had a mind to make me drunk, that she might
afterwards debauch me, and get me to spend the night with
her. And it was not without good grounds that I feared
this ; for she caressed me enough to make me believe it.
After the wine, she brought me a great bottle of date brandy;
she amorously pours me out a large glass full, which I tipped
off without any more a-do ; then she proposed to me —
But stay, stay, I think I drank two glasses of brandy, upon
further consideration. — Drink six if you will, answered the
Caliph, so you do but make an end of your story. — Hold
you me there, sir, cried the porter, one cannot swallow down
brandy at that rate neither ; it will fly into the head : I am
half drunk with those two only, and you would have me here,
after all that wine, tope down a bottle of brandy to boot.
No, no, sir, I will do no such thing, though the sovereign
Commander of the Faithful himself should beg me upon his
knees to do it. So then it was that the cutler-woman, seeing
me grow a little merry, as one may say, gave me to understand
91
that a little crooked man, who came to her house to buy
some cutler's ware, had died suddenly in her shop, and that
fearing she should be accused of having killed him, she
would give the four dinars she had promised me if I would
throw him into the Tigris. I had not drunk so much nei-
ther, but that I was resolved to make sure of the cash. I
demanded two of the dinars as earnest ; she gave them me :
I puts little crump into my sack, does as I was bid, and
comes back to take the rest of my money, when she shows
me again the very same man. I leave you to imagine, sir,
how much I was surprised. I put him once more into my
sack, carried him again to the bridge, and choosing the most
rapid part of the stream, tossed him in ; and I was returning
to the cutler's when I again met the crooked toad with a
lanthorn in his hand, and making as if he was drunk. I
grew weary of so much jesting, took hold of him roughly,
and pushing him into my sack in spite of his teeth, tied up
the mouth of it, and flung him a third time into the Tigris
with my sack and all, imagining that it would keep him from
getting out again. I went back to the cutler-woman, and
told her how I met the crump alive, and in what manner I
got rid of him. But instead of paying me the two dinars I
expected, she pretended to tear her hair in grief, and threat-
ened to carry me before the Kadi for having drowned her
husband. I never minded her tears, but swore I would have
my money. I made a bloody noise about it ; the neighbors
ran in at her cries ; I took to my heels. I was going home,
grumbling in the gizzard very much, when you, sir, forced
me to take up this sack upon my head, and bring it hither.
Now, sir, continued the porter, you may easily guess the
cause of my fright, when at my arrival here I found myself
laden with the same man that I had three times flung into
the Tigris, and beheld also two others so like him that
it is impossible to distinguish between them but by theit
clothes.
92
Though the Caliph could not see into the bottom of this
adventure, he took abundance of pleasure in hearing the
porter's story. Then having viewed the three brothers
a little more narrowly, he thought he perceived in them
some signs of life, and sent immediately for a physician.
He came soon afterwards, and finding that Ibad and Sya-
huk threw up, with the water they had swallowed, a great
deal of brandy, he did not doubt, as indeed was the fact,
that their drunkenness was the occasion of their being
thought dead. As for Babakan, nothing but want of air
had almost suffocated him ; but as soon as his head was
out of the sack he recovered by degrees ; so that in half
an hour's time his brothers and he were entirely out of
danger. Never was anybody so amazed as Babakan was
at the sight of his brothers, who were laid upon sofas. He
almost cracked his eye-strings with staring at them, and
could not possibly conceive how he came into that strange
place with them. He suffered himself to be undressed
without uttering a single word, while the same was done
to Ibad and Syahuk.
The Caliph having caused the three crumps to be carried
into different chambers, had them put to bed and locked
up. Then he sent away the fisherman, and having ordered
the wazir to keep the porter, and to use him with great
kindness, he prepared to divert himself at the expense of
the crooked brothers and the cutler-woman, whom he ar-
rested next morning at break of day. To heighten his
diversion the Caliph caused to be made that night two
suits of clothes exactly like that which Babakan wore, when
he was thrown into the Tigris. He ordered them to be
put upon Ibad and Syahuk, whose drunken fit was quite
over, and being all dressed exactly alike, he placed them
behind three different pieces of hanging, in a magnificent
hall of the palace, and gave orders that they should be
discovered upon his making a certain sign.
93
The wazir, who, with the porter and several guards, had
been early in the morning to arrest the cutler's wife, brought
her into the hall, where the Caliph was already placed upon
his throne. He examined her with relation to what passed
between her and the porter. She told him all that had
happened, without concealing a tittle of the truth, and
seemed very much concerned at the loss of her husband.
But, said the Caliph, is this not a made-up story that you
tell me ? How is it possible these three crooked brothers
should be so exactly alike that the porter should be deceived
by them ? Ah ! my lord, replied Nohud, he was half drunk
when I employed him ; and besides, my husband and his
brothers resemble one another so perfectly, that if they were
dressed in the same clothes, I hardly think I myself could
be able to distinguish one from the other. — That would
be pleasant indeed, said the Caliph, clapping his hands ;
I should like to be a spectator of such an interview. —
This was the signal Al-Mutawakhil 'alk '11 ah was to give
for the crumps to appear. The pieces of hanging were
immediately pulled up, and the cutleress was ready to die
with fear at the sight. O heaven ! cried she, what a prodigy
is this ! Do the dead come again to life? Is this an illusion,
my lord, and are my eyes faithful testimonies of what I see ?
— You see right, replied Al-Mutawakhil 'ala 'llah; one of
these three is your husband, and the other two are his
brothers ; you must choose out your own from among them.
View them well ; but I foi-bid them upon pain of death to
speak or to make the least sign.
Nohud, in the utmost perplexity, examined them one
after another ; she could not distinguish her husband. And
the Caliph, who was as much at a loss to know them as she
was, ordering him of the three that was Babakan, to come
and embrace his wife, was very much surprised to see the
three crumps all at once throw their arms round her neck,
and each of them affirm himself to be her husband. Ibad
94
and Syahuk were not ignorant that they were in the pres-
ence of the Commander of the Faithful; but whatever
respect they owed him, they thought they could not be
revenged on Babakan better than by trying to pass for him ;
and this latter got nothing by his rage and passion, for his
two brothers obstinately persisted in robbing him of his
name. The Caliph could not help laughing at this comical
contest of the three crumps ; but having at length resumed
his gravity : There would be no such dispute among you,
said he, which should be Babakan, if you knew that I want
to distinguish him, only to give him a thousand bastinadoes
for his cruelty to his brothers, and for his forbidding his wife
to entertain them in his absence.
Al-Mutawakhil 'al^ 'Hah, my lord, continued the son of
Abu Bakr, pronounced these words in so severe a tone
that Ibad and Syahuk thought it high time to give over
the jest. If it be so, my lord, said each of them separately,
we are no longer what we pretended to be, with a design
to punish our brother for his ill usage of us ; if there are
any blows to be received, let him receive them, for they
are no more than he deserves. As for us, my lord, we im-
plore your generosity, and we are in hopes that your august
Majesty, who never suffers any one to depart unsatisfied,
will have the goodness to alleviate our misery and want.
The Cahph then threw his eyes on Babakan, whom he saw
in the greatest confusion. Well, said he to him, what hast
thou to say for thyself ? — Potent king, replied Babakan,
with his face prostrated to the earth, whatever punishment
I am to look for from your justice, I am nevertheless the
husband of this woman. My crime is still the greater in
that, being the only cause of the banishment of ray brothers
from the city of Damascus, for a murder of which our re-
semblance hindered me from being known the author, I
ought to have let them participate in my good fortune, as
they had shared in my bad. But if a sincere repentance
95
can obtain my pardon, I offer from the bottom of my heart
to give them equal parts of all the money I have by my
labor gained since my arrival here at Baghdad ; and I
hope your Majesty will pardon my ingratitude, upon ac-
count of the sorrow it gives me to have committed it.
The Caliph, who never intended to inflict any punishment
upon Babakan, was very well pleased to see him in this
disposition ; he therefore pardoned him. And being willing
that Ibad and Syahuk, for the pleasure they had given him,
should feel the effects of his liberality, he caused it to be
published all over Baghdad, that if there were any women
who would marry the two crump-brothers he would give
them each two thousand pieces of gold. There were above
twenty who were ready to embrace so considerable a for-
tune ; but Ibad and Syahuk, having chosen out of that
number those that they thought would fit them best, received
of the Caliph twenty thousand dinars more, with which
they traded in friendship with Babakan. And these three
brothers spent the rest of their days in abundance of tran-
quillity, under the protection of the sovereign Commander
of the Faithful, who was moreover so liberal to the porter
that he lived at his ease ever after without having any oc-
casion for continuing his trade.
When Ibn Aridun had finished the adventures of the
three crumps of Damascus : I swear by Ali, quoth Shams
al-Din to him, that if I have been sensible of any pleasure
since the loss of my dear Zabd al-Katon, it has been that
of hearing thee. Nothing, I think, can be more comical
than the unravelling of this story. You had good reason to
promise me something wonderful ; it is full of it throughout ;
and as I cannot reward too munificently — Ah! my lord,
replied Ibn Aridun, without giving the king time to make
an end of what he was going to say, it is not interest which
1 am actuated by. Rewards too great would only stir up
96
more and more the hatred of the physicians of this city
against my father, and against me your faithful slave. I
have felt the effects of it too much already since his de-
parture, and my being still alive is owing to nothing but the
happiness I have had in pleasing your Majesty. — What
dost thou mean? replied Shams al-Din, surprised at this
discourse. Is there anybody in Astrakhan so bold as to try
to do thee mischief? — My lord, replied the wazir Mutamhid,
Ibn Aridun ought, I think, to have been entirely satisfied
with the conduct I have used towards him. One of your
physicians informed me that he made a mockery of the
perplexity Kubirgh and I were in to find you new entertain-
ment every day, and assured me he boasted that he himself
could do it, if he pleased, till his father's return. This at
first put me in a terrible passion against Ibn Aridun : I
tried to frighten him with the punishment his rashness de-
served ; but I found him so unmoved at all my menaces,
and so docile to execute what afterwards I perceived the
physician accused him of falsely, that I have done him all
the justice which is due to his merit, and ever since have
looked upon him as my own son. — It is true, my lord,
answered the son of Abu Baler, addressing the king of Astrak-
han ; I am far from having any cause to complain of Mutam-
hid ; I have received all the kindness imaginable from him ;
but in the meanwhile I am narrowly guarded, and the per-
fidious physician who sought my destruction walks at liberty.
— That is by no means just, interrupted Shams al-Din ; he
shall be shut up in a dark prison till Abu Bakr's return :
and to put thee out of all danger from the malice of the
other physicians, I make you wazir, and set you upon an
equality with Mutamhid and Kubirgh, upon condition that
you have no resentment against the former ; his intentions
were good, and I know him to be too merciful to have ever
punished thee with death, even though I had not been
satisfied with thee.
97
Ibn Aridun, confounded at the goodness of his king,
threw hinriself at his feet. He at first refused the honor
which was bestowed upon him, but was obhged to obey.
My lord, said Ke, since your Majesty forces me to accept
a dignity I find myself incapable of, I submit to your supreme
will, and do for a beginning assure Mutamhid of an eternal
and inviolable friendship ; but as the oblivion of injuries is
the surest token of a noble soul, I beseech you to pardon,
at my request, the physician that contrived against me. Let
him only know that I had it in my power to punish his
treachery, and would not make use of the opportunity. —
No, no, replied Shams al-Din, in this I will be obeyed. He
shall never see the light again till Abu Bakr returns from
Sarandib, and he shall now wish for that return as much as
before he feared it. But till then, my dear Ibn Aridun,
continued that prince, do not abandon me to the cruel afflic-
tions wherein I am involved, but contribute by the charms
of thy conversation to dispel the gloomy melancholy into
which the sad remembrance of my losses incessantly plunges
me. — My lord, replied Ibn Aridun, prostrating himself on
the ground, since your Majesty has been pleased to conde-
scend so far as to hear with some complacency the humblest
of your slaves, I swear I will never leave you so long as I
have the happiness to please you. All the moments of my
life shall be devoted to your service. — Continue, then, said
Shams al-Din, to give me marks of your affection by telling
me some new story that may afford me as much diversion
as these I have already heard. — I know one, my lord, an-
swered Ibn Aridun, that is very particular; but I have
already hesitated more than once to tell it you. I was
afraid of reviving in your mind the image of your misfor-
tunes, by the conformity it bears, in the beginning, to the
fatal accidents which you have felt. It is true the sequel
is very different, and will soon make you forget the melan-
choly part of it : but I dare not tell it without your Majesty's
1
98
express command. Shams al-Din studied some moments,
and then : My misfortunes, said he, are always so present
to my mind that your relation cannot possiblv make thera
more so ; therefore, my dear Ibn Aridun, you may safely
begin your story. Let the nature of it be what it will, I
will hear you with attention. Ibn Aridun obeyed so positive
a command, and spake as follows to the king of Astrakhan :
TALE OF UTZIM-OCHANTI,
PRINCE OF CHINA
Fanfur, Emperor of China, had espoused Katif, one of
the most charming princesses upon earth ; nothing in nature
was ever more complete ; and the moment one cast his eyes
upon the globe of her face, he lost the idea of all the beau-
ties he had ever seen before, to think of nothing but the
perfections of that princess, whose qualities of the mind
were superior even to those of the body. Such women
ought to be immortal : but, my lord, the incomparable
Katif seemed to appear in China only to leave in that
kingdom an eternal regret for the loss of her. She died
in the first year of her marriage, bringing into the world a
prince, who was called Utzim-Ochanti. Fanfur was so
afflicted at the death of his spouse, that he quitted the care
of his dominions to give himself up wholly to despair. He
built in his palace a magnificent tomb, upon which was in
white marble the statue of Katif, and never failed to go to
it twice a day to visit it with his tears.
That prince had now lived almost five years in this man-
ner, when his chief wazir, who was a man of the greatest
probity, presented himself before him ; he prostrated his
face to the earth, and getting up : My lord, said he, may
your humble slave presume to remonstrate to you that
your grief is of too long duration, and prejudices you in
99
the minds of your people. Though the worth of Katif was
inexpressibly great, yet they are ashamed to see you for so
tedious a space of time shed tears, which would better be-
come a woman than a king so potent as your Majesty.
Katifs beauty was really excellent ; but are there no other
women in the world who may be equalled to her? If you
are insensible to any beauty but hers, at least consider that
you are answerable to your son for a throne, which I see
your subjects almost ready to deprive you of, if you con-
tinue to live in this retirement. Fanfur, surprised at the
wazir's discourse, awaked as it were from a deep sleep ;
no hss a reproof was necessary to rouse him from the
lethargy he was in. I am inconceivably obliged to you,
wazir, said he, for the sincerity with which you talk to me.
The interests of my son recall me to life : I should be
greatly to blame, if my despair should bring him to misery.
Inform my subjects, therefore, that I will now appear to
them, and will live for the future in a different manner from
what I have done since the death of my dear Katif The
wazir had no sooner told this news than the air resounded
with nothing but shouts of joy. Fanfur was very much
beloved, and his subjects, although they were very well
satisfied with the wazir's administration, testified by a thous-
and feasts and rejoicings the pleasure it gave them to see
their prince himself rule over them.
As in all Fanfur's actions there still remained an air of sor-
row, the wazir, to dissipate it, brought him the most beautiful
women in the world : their charms could not efface from his
heart the image of the lovely Katif, whose memory was so
dear to him. He looked upon them all with an insensibility
which surprised the mandarins ; and turning all his affections
upon Utzim-Ochanti, he declared that so long as he was
alive, he would never have commerce with any womaia.
This only heir to the kingdom of China, my lord, had scarce
attained his sixteenth year, when he found in himself a
lOO
violent inclination for travelling. He one day asKed leave of
Fanfur for that purpose ; but that monarch, very much sur-
prised at such a request, after having represented to him
with wonderful tenderness all the danger he would expose
himself to, and the uneasiness it would be to him, conjured
him to have no further thoughts of that design. These
remonstrances were so far from persuading Utzim-Ochanti
to desist from that purpose, that they did but inflame his de-
sires ; and he resolved with the first opportunity to depart
without Fanfur's consent or knowledge. He provided him-
self with a great number of jewels, as much gold as he
thought he should have occasion for, and having engaged in
his interests six of his friends, they were the only persons
with whom he embarked in a little ship which one of them
had secretly bought.
Of these persons, one who had been his governor in vain
dissuaded him from his design; the prince threatened him
with all his indignation if he ever opened his mouth about it
to the king his father ; and as Bakmas, which was his name,
loved his pupil tenderly, rather than abandon him to the
violence of the passions which the heat of his youth was sub-
ject to, he resolved to expose himself to the same dangers
with him. The second companion of the prince's travels
was called Ahmadi ; he was a mandarin of sciences ; he
possessed almost all the living languages, and no man in
the world ever equalled him in eloquence. The third was
the son of the prince's nurse, and of a rich merchant. The
fourth excelled in music, and touched an instrument with so
masterly a hand, that he ravished all the senses. The fifth
was a painter, equal to the celebrated Mani, and the last was
so swift of foot, that he could overtake the nimblest beast in
the course.
The winds being favorable, and the vessel an admirable
sailer, the prince went almost eight hundred leagues in fewer
than ten days. He arrived at a seaport, where, after having
lOI
landed, he made a present of the ship and of all the equipage
to the pilot, with express commands not to return to China
for six years.
Bakmas and Ahmadi, finding that Utzim-Ochanti was very
lavish of his wealth in all the towns through which they
passed, soon represented to him that since he intended to
travel as a private man he should not live at so expensive a
rate ; and that, if he managed with as little economy as he
had begun to do, his riches, be they never so great, would
soon be exhausted. The prince gave very little heed to
this advice : he was so profuse that he was forced to have
recourse to his jewels, the value of which amounted to so
vast a sum that he thought it was impossible he should ever
want money. Yet, after having travelled about twelve thou-
sand leagues in different countries, he began too late to per-
ceive that he had better have followed the prudent counsel
of the mandarin and of his governor. He then grew sensible
of his fault with great affliction, and found himself in the
most melancholy condition in which a prince could be. To
add to his uneasiness, he had made his six companions as
miserable as himself; but he had the consolation to see that
none of them upbraided him with his want of conduct ; on
the contrary, all offered to assist him in his necessities, by
practising every one the art he was master of. And, indeed,
they had no sooner come to the next great town, than the
runner, having heard there was pressing occasion for a man
that could despatch some very important affairs with expedi-
tion, offered his services. He undertook to perform, in
fewer than four-and-twenty hours, a journey of above three-
score leagues. His offer was accepted, and the prince and
his companions were his sureties. He was paid the money,
the greatest part of which he left with them ; and having
executed what he had promised, to the great content of
those who had employed him, the prince had the advantage
of his diligence ; and, living with great economy, they came
I02
to another town, having now but four pieces of silver left
them.
The moment they had arrived there, the merchant's son,
who was a perfect master of arithmetic, went to a famous
trader and offered to balance all the accounts he had with
his correspondents in fewer than three day?. Though this
seemed almost impossible, the trader set him about it, was
wonderfully well satisfied with him, and paid him liberally.
This sum maintained the prince and his train a fortnight ; at
the end of which time they again found themselves reduced
to the same necessity. The musician then took his lute, and
sang with so much melody, that the chief men of the city
had him to their houses. They rewarded him nobly for the
pleasure he gave them ; and with this money they lived for
some weeks. The painter then perceiving that they were
again falling into the same straits, went to the king of the
country where they then were ; he offered to draw his pict-
ure, which he did with so much art, and so exactly like, that
the king, amazed at such a novelty, looked upon him as
something divine. He could not conceive it was possible
to draw lines so just and so natural that nobody could miss
knowing him by the picture. He gave the painter a diamond
of great value and three thousand dinars besides. All the
great men of that court, after the example of their prince,
were drawn by him likewise. He succeeded perfectly well,
and received such considerable presents, that he carried out
of that city above ten thousand pieces of gold. This was a
great sum, considering the condition the prince was in ; but
very little compared to the immense riches he had indis*
erectly squandered away.
They all put themselves with this into better habits, were
very saving of their money, and resolved to return directly
to China. They had travelled about five hundred leagues
on their way thither, and had almost come to Zofiiila, when
they were surrounded by more th^n two hundred robbers.
I03
Though Utzim-Ochanti was accompanied only by his six
comrades, the number did not frighten him. He resolved
to put himself into a posture of defence : but Ahmadi hav-
ing represented to him the rashness of such an enterprise,
the prince laid down his arms. A man of a tolerably good
mien, who seemed the captain of those rogues, accosted him
with civility enough for a person of his trade. We have no
design upon your lives, said he ; since you do not resist, we
content ourselves with what you have. But if a man of you
had been so bold as to defend himself, you had all been dead
before this. — Utzim-Ochanti looked upon him with indigna-
tion : If you were but fifty to our seven, said he, I should
not fear you ; but there is no contending against numbers ;
you are the master of our fortune. This bold answer pleased
the captain of the thieves. I see thou hast courage, said he,
and I like thee for it ; upon that consideration I will use
thee well. Then having examined what the booty amounted
to, he returned the prince an hundred dinars of gold, and
fifty a-piece to each of his companions, gave them their
horses, and suffered them to continue their journey.
At length they arrived at Zoffala, where the prince of
China falling dangerously sick, they spent most of their
money, and found themselves reduced to their former want.
It was now Bakmas's turn to employ his talent to enable
them to pursue their journey; but the city was inhabited
only by merchants, whose heads ran upon nothing but their
commerce, and who had very little notion of the politeness
he had studied at the court of China, and pretended to
teach ; it was to no purpose that he boasted his nobility all
over the city ; he lost his labor, and met with nobody that so
much as offered him a glass of water. He bit his lips with
indignation.
Bakmas, my lord, continued Ibn Aridun, was returning
home, in the deepest affliction, at not having been able to do
,his prince the same service as his companions had done,
104
when he was met by a venerable old man, whose foreign air
sufficiently showed he was not of Zoflfala. He judged by
Bakmas's looks that he was stung with vexation, and being
informed of the cause of it, he desired him, with his com-
pany, to come and refresh themselves at his house. The
prince went thither with his train, and during the repast, the
good old man saw that Bakmas boasted mightily of the pre-
rogatives which an illustrious birth gives a man. My friends,
said he to his guests, the poor man is always despised, let his
quality be what it will. If your circumstances are narrow, it
will be much the best way not to talk too much of your
nobihty ; if on the contrary, you are rich, were you descended
from the dregs of the people, you would be universally re-
vered as the greatest man upon earth. Having said this, he
put twenty pieces of gold into Bakmas's hand, and rising
from table to go about his affairs, the prince and his com-
panions took their leave of him.
What melancholy reflections did this advice bring into the
prince's thoughts ! He wept for very shame. What ! said
he to himself, am I reduced by my own fault alone to subsist
upon the talents of my followers? Without their help I
should be brought to the utmost poverty. Ahmadi, seeing
the prince overwhelmed with sorrow, made use of all his
eloquence to comfort him ; he even upbraided him with
want of courage in adversity ; and having departed from
Zoffala, they came in a few days to a small but very pretty
town. Ahmadi had no sooner entered into it, than he made
proclamation that he would dispute for eight days succes-
sively upon any subject whatsoever against the most learned
men there. At first people only laughed at his presumption ;
but when they came to the trial, he so ravished the hearers,
and showed so universal a knowledge, that he confounded aU
who disputed against him. But in the end, his learning only
provoked the envy of the men of letters ; he gained by this
dispute nothing but a vain and fruitless glory, and his ad-
I05
versaries formed such cabals against him, under pretence
that his doctrine was contrary to the interests of the state,
that he was forced to betake himself to flight to save his hfe ;
and if our seven travellers had not still been masters of a litde
cash, they would have been very much at a loss. The learned
Ahmadi was in a strange confusion. He declaimed a long
time against the ingratitude and ignorance of the age ; but
at last, after eleven days' journey, they came to the gates of
Zab.
The prince of China was oppressed with the cruel thoughts
his misfortunes gave him. O Heaven ! cried he, every one
of you but Ahmadi has earned wherewithal to maintain us,
and I alone have left my fortune untried. No, no, it shall
never be writ in heaven, that I was always a burden to you.
Then, having told them he would leave them for an hour
only, he ordered them to come to him in the principal place
of Zab ; and resolving to be obeyed, notwithstanding all their
opposition he parted from them. After having traversed
great part of the city, he sat himself down upon a stone seat
which he found in his way, and was ruminating upon his mis-
fortune, when a funeral, with the greatest magnificence, passed
along the street where he was. He was so buried in thought
that not minding what he was doing, he had not the least
curiosity to inquire who it was for whom the inhabitants of
Zab shed so many tears ; and when the hearse came by, he
did not rise up like the rest of the spectators. Everybody
was so offended at this neglect, which they imputed to con-
tempt, that they loaded the prince with a thousand abuses.
He did not think fit to make any answer, considering with
himself what injuries we are exposed to by poverty. But his
silence being likewise interpreted ill, one of the officers of the
funeral struck him rudely on the face with a wand which he
carried in his hand.
Utzim-Ochanti was so transported with rage at this blow
that drawing his sword he parted the head of that insolent
io6
officer from his shoulders. This bold action amazed all the
spectators ; they ran upon the prince, but he, defending him-
self like a furious lion, despatched thirty of them before they
could seize him. But, opprest with numbers, he was at last
taken ; they tied his hands, and were just carrying him to a
shameful prison, when his six companions came luckily to
the place where this bloody scene had been enacted. They
all in a moment drew their sabres, and falling suddenly upon
those who had made themselves masters of Utzim-Ochanti,
soon delivered him out of their hands. The prince then
again took up his sabre, and joining his defenders, they
spread such terror throughout the city that the attendants
quitted the funeral, and all fled away with the utmost
speed.
Ahmadi, upon inquiring of Utzim-Ochanti what was the
occasion of all this disturbance, was very much surprised to
find that he did not know himself; but having learnt of him
that drove the hearse that it arose from his not having paid
the respect due to the corpse of the king of Zab, named
Mazuan, who died without any heir, he resolved to take
advantage of the general fear, and advising the prince and
his comrades to sheathe their sabres, he led them towards
the place whither the people had betaken themselves in their
flight. They arrived at an open part of the town, where the
inhabitants were assembled, and walking with a grave pace,
he accosted some of the prime men, who beheld them with
a sort of respect mixed with terror. Ahmadi then made a
sign that he had something of importance to communicate
to them. There was presently an universal silence, and that
wise Chinese spoke to them in their own language with sO
much eloquence that all the people who were about him did
not at all grow weary of hearing him, and seemed to look
upon him as a man inspired. He soon improved this credu-
lity, and pretended to have been forewarned by our great
Prophet of all that was to happen after Mazuan's death, and
10/
that to put an end to the differences that might arise among
the chief men of the province about the election of a new
king, he had received orders to bring them from the further-
most parts of the earth a young prince of unheard-of bravery :
he then commanded them in so absolute a manner to receive
Utzim-Ochanti for their king that nobody durst contradict
him. He afterwards gave them a ravishing description of
his wisdom, and particularly of the valor he had shown such
prodigious tokens of, and concluded by promising them all
manner of prosperity under his government.
This discourse, pronounced with the air of a prophet,
and heightened with all the charms of eloquence and of
graceful action, surprised even the least credulous minds.
The people gave a thousand shouts of joy. Let this young
hero, sent us by Mohammed, reign over us and over our
posterity, cried they ; and let the man who opposes his
elevation be looked upon as an enemy to the great Prophet.
— Though the pretenders to the kingdom themselves had
undertaken to cabal against the prince of China, they could
not have convinced the people, nor removed the prejudice
they were in ; but, on the contrary, they themselves giving
credit to the mandarin's words, with one voice proclaimed
Utzim-Ochanti king of Zab ; and he was immediately carried
about the city, which owned him for its sovereign. That
prince was in a surprise not to be expressed. He took
this adventure for one of those agreeable dreams which a
man is unwilling to come out of; but finding it real, he
received with gravity the honours that were done him, ordered
Mazuan's funeral to be continued, assisted at it himself with
his companions, and having taken out of the public treasury
a hundred thousand dinars of gold, he distributed them
among the people. That there might be nobody discon-
tented in the whole city of Zab, the new king, after having
caused the bodies of those whom he and his followers had
deprived of life to be buried, commanded a magnificent
io8
tomb to be raised to their honor, and made Ahmadi affirm
that they all should enjoy the reward set apart for good
Mohammedans ; and, to comfort their families by something
more substantial than words, he gave their widows and each
of their children ten thousand dinars of gold.
Ahmadi and Bakmas hardly ever quitted the prince, who
regulated his conduct entirely by their prudent counsels ;
he liberally rewarded the other companions of his travels ;
and was nearly five years upon the throne, adored by all
his subjects. But the love of his own country working
upon him, and incessantly calling to mind the grief his
absence must cause to the king his father, he resolved to
return to China. For this purpose he assembled the prime
men of the kingdom, and having made them acquainted
with his intentions he begged them to choose two from
among themselves to govern the state with Ahmadi and
Bakmas, until they heard from him ; and desired them, in
case they should receive no news from him for three years,
to proceed immediately to elect a new king.
I shall pass over in silence, my lord, continued Ibn
Aridun, the arguments that were used to dissuade the prince
from going, and the regret his subjects showed at parting
from him. Whatever sorrow he perceived in their counte-
nances, and whatever uneasiness he himself felt at leaving
them, he remained firm in the same sentiments, embraced
his six companions, who would fain have gone with him,
took a large quantity of gold and jewels, and departed alone
and incognito from his capital. Ahmadi, who had raised him to
the throne, was the most concerned at the absence of the
prince. My dear lord, said he to him, receiving his fare-
well, since you are inflexible, and I must lose you, perhaps
forever, accept I beseech you this carbuncle, — presenting
Utzim-Ochanti with a precious stone of the bigness of a
nut and full of talismanic characters. The light of the sun,
said he to him, is not more ratliant than that which this
109
carbuncle emits in the dark. It was given me by a sage
cabalist ; and I put it into your liands, my lord, as the most
precious thing that I have. You will perhaps have occasion
for it in the tedious journey you have undertaken. The
prince accepted Ahmadi's present, and, after having tenderly
embraced him, he set forward for the dominions of the king
his father.
There happened nothing extraordinary to the prince of
China in the several courts through which he passed. He
generally remained some time at each, where he made a
very noble figure. But he was quite cured of the extrava-
gance which had before made him so miserable. At length
after a year's travelling by sea and land, he came to the
dominions of a prince named Kusah. At the entrance into
his capital was a great open square, made spacious by the
destruction of an old temple, which idolaters had formerly
dedicated to a deity called Pudorina. It was upon the
foundations of that temple Kusah had built a magnificent
palace, in front of which stood a great obelisk of black
marble, upon which on one side were carved in letters of
gold the fundamental laws of the kingdom, and on the other
several maxims of gallantry.
The young prince of China was amusing himself with
examining this whimsical pyramid, when he perceived at
the windows of the palace two women of uncommon beauty.
He was at once struck with their charms, and inquiring who
they were, he learnt that they were the king's two daughters,
the eldest of whom was named Modir, and the younger
Gulpanhi. He admired the former extremely, but some
strangers gave him so horrid a character of her, that it
speedily effaced from his heart the impression she had made
there. That princess, said they, is never the same ; one
day she is fair, and the next day black ; she abhors one
week what she loved to distraction the last. Her caprice
is an indispensable law, it extends its power even to the
no
language ; and she keeps the subjects of the king her father
in so servile a dependence, that nobody, without running
the risk of being thought ridiculous, can do or say anything
that is not approved by this fantastical princess.
As for Gulpanhi, said a sensible old man to him, though
less handsome, she is much more to be feared than her
sister; it is almost impossible to resist her charms. She
keeps an old black woman-slave named Kurum, who changes
her figure and clothes every moment, to surprise young
strangers who arrive in this city. This dangerous princess
has built a.sumj^tuous palace adjoining to the king's. The
gardens are delightful ; there are in them several labyrinths
ingeniously contrived, where she generally wanders with her
lovers ; but they have no sooner entered into a little walk
embroidered with roses, than they come immediately into
a vast open country called the Meadow of Satiety. In
this place no roses are to be seen ; they are all stript from
their leaves, and in their room there grows an ugly fruit,
long and reddish ; and all taste of pleasure is so lost there,
that everybody wishes for nothing but to escape from thence
forever. In vain Gulpanhi has placed a large dyke at the
end of the rose walk ; there is hardly anybody, especially
the men, but who easily leap it.
After having left this wise old man, the prince was reflect-
ing upon what he had heard, when he was accosted by a
woman, covered with a very thick veil. My son, said that
woman to the prince, taking him by the hand, and drawing
him aside, you are but newly arrived in this country. I
perceive it by your indifference, and by your carelessness
in not going in quest of some lucky adventure, which is not
uncommon here for such men as you. I bring you tidings
which you ought to esteem the chief happiness of your life ;
only follow me and be discreet. Curiosity hurried away
Utzim-Ochanti ; he followed the woman without asking any
questions, and after a pretty long walk he came to a very
Ill
narrow street at the end of which his guide, having opened
a little door, led him up a staircase, and through a dark
entry into a hall, illuminated by more than a thousand
tapers, and enriched with the most brilliant ornaments that
art and nature could afford. It was perfumed with such
delightful odors as enchanted the senses ; and the woman
having left him to give her mistress notice of his arrival, the
prince contemplated all the beauties of the place he was in.
He was soon diverted from that employment, by the entrance
of a young lady into the hall. He was struck with her
charms the moment he saw her, and casting himself hastily
at her feet : How much to be envied is my fortune, madam,
said he, which brought me hither to swear to you an eternal
love ! No, madam, all that is most beautiful upon the face
of all the earth does not come up to — The prince was
going on, when she suddenly raised him up : Sir, said she,
with some emotion, and her face all overspread with that
lovely blush which modesty alone produces, have a care
what you do, I am not she that ought to cause these violent
transports. I am but an unfortunate slave ; but let my
present condition be never so mean, I would not change
it for that of the lady you are going to see. If her rank is
noble, her conduct is so far from it that I am ashamed of
her every moment. You are now to think of nothing but
how to make a proper return for the tenderness she is so
indiscreetly lavish of to all mankind.
The prince of China was listening with surprise to this
beautiful person, when the old slave, who had conducted
him thither, entered with the princess Gulpanhi, who rested
upon her arm. Imagine, my lord, continued Ibn Aridun,
what was the surprise and uneasiness of the prince ; he had
been so prejudiced against her by the old man he had met
in the square before the palace, and by that lovely person,
that he remained speechless ; and the princess might easily
have perceived his indifference, if she had not been so
112
accustomed to flatter herself that she interpreted his silence
in her own favor. Though she was dressed in the most
gallant manner in the world, and the prince beheld in her
a thousand charms capable of moving the most insensible
of mankind, he received her caresses with an insensibility
that exceeded all imagination. His mind was wholly taken
up with the young beauty to whom he had at first addressed
his vows ; and he thought her behavior so noble and so
different from that of Gulpanhi, that he had much ado to
refrain, even in her presence, from giving that charming
creature new marks of his love ; but reflecting that such an
imprudence might perhaps deprive him of her forever, he
put a constraint upon himself, and pretended, for some
moments, to answer the favors Gulpanhi showed him. The
prince was ashamed of her advances ; but, in spite of his
repugnance, they were so engaging, that he might perhaps
have been overcome by them if one of the princess's slaves
had not come in to tell her that the king her father would
speak with her that moment. Gulpanhi seemed vexed at
this interruption. I will soon return, said she to the prince,
and I dare say you will not be impatient in the company
wherein I leave you. She then ordered the young person
whom Utzim-Ochanti already adored, to converse with him
until her return ; and went out immediately with Kurum,
the old woman who had accosted the prince.
He was not at all sorry for Gulpanhi's departure, and
making the best of her absence, he threw himself a second
time at the feet of that incomparable woman. How much
have I suffered, madam, said he, in the little time I was with
the princess ! In vain she is so liberal to me of her charms ;
she shall never be mistress of a heart over which you alone have
a sovereign empire. — Sir, replied the young lady, proudly,
I am not so easy as Gulpanhi. Though I am reduced to
an ignominious slavery, my soul is more free than is hers ;
and the idleness and luxury which reign in this court have
113
not yet been able to corrupt my heart. It is decreed my
hand shall be his who shall have the courage to put me in
possession of my dominions, after having revenged the death
of the king my father. The tears that upon these words
streamed in abundance from the princess's eyes pierced the
very soul of the young prince. Nothing, charming princess,
will seem impossible to me, said he, to re-establish you in
all your rights. Name but to me your enemies, and I will
convince you that the sole heir of the king of China is not
utterly unworthy of your affection. — The princess earnestly
viewed the prince : Ah ! my lord, said she, my pride in
vain opposed the inclination I found in myself towards you :
I am now fully assured that you are destined to be my
husband. Yes, prince, I accept you for my defender, and
I do it so much the more joyfully because I may now de-
pend upon being shortly revenged on a traitor who has
occasioned all the misfortunes of my life. Gulpanhi's ab-
sence, continued she, will give me time to inform you of
the particulars of my adventures. I know the reason of
the king her father's sending for her. A young prince,
named Atabak, arrived yesterday in this court to treat of
some affairs with king Kusah ; this monarch, very uneasy
at having his pleasures interrupted, and unfit to carry on a
war which Atabak comes to declare against him from a very
potent king if he does not obtain the satisfaction he demands :
this unworthy monarch, I say, has agreed with his daughter
that she shall use all her arts to seduce the heart of that
young prince. She will certainly succeed in this design,
and while she employs herself to her satisfaction in this new
conquest, I shall, perhaps, have leisure enough to tell you
my misfortunes. Utzim-Ochanti a thousand times embraced
the princess's knees, who was not displeased with these
transports, and having made him sit down by her upon a
sofa, she began her story thus :
8
114
HISTORY OF GULGULI-CHAMAMI,
PRINCESS OF TIFLIS
I OWE my birth, my lord, to the wise Gomar-Yusuf, king
of Tiflis, and to the princess Aynah, the daughter of the
Enchanter Zal-raka, king of Palabad ; but though my birth
was illustrious, I have never been the more happy for it ;
on the contrary, scarce did I begin to see the light when
heaven, resolved to persecute me, shed upon me its blackest
influences. The enchanter Zal-raka, my grandfather, after
having endowed me at my birth with all the qualities neces-
sary in a princess, gave me also an extraordinary patience,
foreseeing, without doubt, that it would be one of the most
necessary virtues he could bestow upon me, and named me
Gulguli-Chamami.
The wise Gomar-Yusuf, my father, made it his whole
business to instruct me in all the most sublime parts of
nature and religion. At fifteen years old, I possessed almost
all the sciences besides the talents I had cultivated in the
other occupations of my sex. One day as I was walking
with the king my father, in the gardens of the palace, he
stopped of a sudden to listen to the chirping of several
birds. I observed that he hearkened to them with great at-
tention, and I was amazed to see him laugh without any
cause. This surprised me in a man of his wisdom ; I was
so importunate with him to know the reason of his doing
so, that he told me he understood the language of all ani-
mals, and that two wrens had just brought a piece of good
news to the other little birds. — And what is this news ?~
cried I, laughing, imagining my father did but jest. — It is,
said he, that a miller's mule having fallen down near the
fountain of Jasmins, the sack she has upon her back is
broken, and there is a great deal of corn spilt upon the
ground. — I begged Gomar-Yusuf, continued the lovely
"5
Georgian, to carry me to the fountain. He did so, and
indeed I beheld so great a number of birds busied in pick-
ing up the corn which the miller had left upon the ground,
that I was in the utmost amazement. I persecuted my
father to teach me that language ; and almost neglecting all
the other sciences to apply myself wholly to that, I became
in less than a year's time as skilful in it as was Gomar-Yusuf
himself. It is impossible, my lord, continued Gulguli-Cha-
mami, to conceive the pleasure it affords one to understand
the different jargons of animals ; it is much more full of
wisdom and nature than that of men ; and I may perhaps
relate to you hereafter things of it, which will give you no
small delight ; but at present let us return to my story.
I had now attained my sixteenth year, and we were very
far from expecting the misfortune that hung over us, when a
traitorous Enchanter, named Bisah al-Kasak, acting from an
old aversion he had to our family, surprised us one night with
a numerous army. He strangled the wise Gomar-Yusuf and
the queen my mother, and was going to deprive me too of
life, when touched by my cries, or perhaps by some little
beauty he perceived in me, he contented himself with carry-
ing me with him to an island in the middle of the Caspian
Sea, where he shut me up in a strong tower. This island
was guarded by phantoms, that were incessantly upon the
watch ; horrible tempests continually dashed its coasts, and
no mortal could approach it with impunity, except only on
one day in the year, on which all the enchanters, fairies, jin-
nis, and other spirits of that nature were indispensably obliged
to assemble in a grotto of Cochin China, in order to give an
account of their actions to him who had been chosen their
king the year before, and to proceed to a new election of
one from among themselves.
The perfidious Kasak had no sooner brouglit me to this
melancholy prison, than he tried to assuage my grief by the
most respectful manners. My despair was so violent that I
ii6
loaded him with the bitterest reproaches, and I testified so
much horror for his person that he was twenty times upon
the point of destroying me ; but hoping perhaps that time
would bend the stubbornness of my temper, he only-^ laughed
at all I could say ; and leaving me a prey to the sharpest
affliction, he did not come to me again until eight days after-
wards. I tremble yet, my lord, when I call to mind that
dreadful moment. The traitor endeavored in vain to per-
suade me ; but finding that my sorrow, instead of diminish-
ing, increased every day, he flew into the most violent fury,
and told me in plain terms that I must consent immediately
to his infamous designs, or he would cause me to be burnt
alive. This choice did not at all frighten me ; I beheld with
great tranquillity the preparations for my death, and ran to it
with joy ; when the Enchanter, who had no designs upon
my life, carried me back to the tower. I am now going to
Cochin China, said he, whence I shall return in four-and-
tvventy hours. I allow you that further time to come to a
resolution ; and if I do not find you obedient to my absolute
will, I shall use the utmost violence towards you. I did not
condescend to answer these insolent menaces, and being re-
soh-ed to destroy myself, rather than endure that barbarian's
brutalities, I saw him depart without the least fear of his return.
Zal-raka, my grandfather, was not ignorant of the place
of my confinement, nor of the author of my misery. That
Enchanter impatiently waited for Kasak's absence. He no
sooner saw him depart for Cochin China, than by the power
of his art he dispersed the black clouds which concealed me
from the eyes of all the world ; he freed me from the dismal
tower I was in ; and after having set me upon terra Jirnia, he
caused the island which was the habitation of the perfidious
Enchanter to be swallowed up in a moment in my presence ;
and conveying me through the air with incredible rapidity,
he placed me in a vast open country, whence one might
behold the city of Palimban.
117
It is impossible to give you an idea of the excess o(
my joy ; I eaibraced my grandfatlier with all the tenderness
imaginable. My daughter, said he to me, I must go without
delay to Cochin-China, where we are obliged to be before
sunrise. I will there put up all my complaints against your
persecutor. You are no longer in his power ; do you now
go in quest of the prince. At these words, my lord, con-
tinued Gulguli-Chamami, shedding a flood of tears, Zal-raka
stopped short. A cold sweat rose upon his face : he lost
the use of his speech for some moments, and then returning
to himself: Ah ! my dear daughter, said he to me in a weak
voice, my hour is come. I see the sword of the angel of
death ready to cut the thread of life ; all my art cannot save
me from going to give an account of my actions before the
tribunal of our Almighty Allah ; but I have the consolation
at my death to know that a young prince, after having slain
your tyrant, shall marry you and restore you to the possession
of the dominions the traitor has usurped from you. Then
my grandfather having struck the earth with his foot, there
arose out of it a dun mule, richly caparisoned. There is
something, said he in a dying voice and embracing me for
the last time, to carry you where your destiny calls you ;
only remember, my dear Gulguli-Chamami, added he, that
you were born a princess ; that memorandum includes all
your duty.
Zal-raka had scarce said these words when he expired in
my arms. Judge, my lord, of the excess of my grief and
fear ; I had lost the only support I had in the world, at the
time when he was most necessary to me. My despair was
somewhat heightened by the impossibility of my paying him
the last duties, and I could not resolve to leave his body to
the wild beasts. Suddenly there arose out of the earth a
magnificent tomb of porphyry and jasper; I put Zal-raka
into it, in a coffin of cedar, and shutting the door of the
tomb, which I washed with my tears, I saw rise up ovei
ii8
against me a group of brass, representing the cruel Kasak,
whose head was severed from his body, and a young man
with a sabre in his hand. As the statues were very high, I
could not distinguish the features of my tyrant's conqueror ;
I only observed that he wanted a finger of the left hand :
and as, before I began to make you this relation of my mis-
fonunes, I took notice that you want the little finger of the
left hand, I at once judged it was you, my lord, whom the
great Prophet has chosen to avenge me. I then gave mysell
up, without reserve, to all the tenderness that is due to him
who is one day to be my husband.
The prince of China, my lord, continued Ibn Aridun,
threw himself that moment at the feet of the princess of
Tifiis. He could not find words strong enough to let her
know the excess of his joy, when she raised him up with ex-
treme goodness. Let me make use of Gulpanhi's absence,
said she to him tenderly, to finish my story ; I shall after-
wards find time enough to make a return to these protesta-
tions of love, which are the only happiness of my life. The
princess then, resuming the thread of her discourse, went
on thus : —
I mounted upon my mule, and had travelled almost three
hundred leagues without meeting with any accident, when
one morning, stopping to make her drink at a spring, the
water of which was extremely clear, she would not come near
it ; for my part, being very thirsty, and ignorant of the con-
sequences that attended the drinking of the water, I got off
my mule and took some in the hollow of my hand. I had no
sooner brought it to my lips than I fell backwards : I know
not, my lord, what became of me in that moment, I only
remember that when I recovered from the trance I had been
in I found myself in the arms of a huge black man, whose
under lip was so thick that it hid nearly all his chin. I gave
a terrible shriek at the sight of this monster ; he only laughed
at it, and throwing me into a great leathern sack, which he
119
afterwards closed up, he put the strings of it under his left
arm : and I cannot tell, my lord, whither he was going to
carry me, when a man, so litde that he might easily have
walked between the black monsters legs, rode up at full
speed upon a horse, whose height was proportioned to his
own. Stop, cruel Kusayb I cried he to him at a distance ;
it is time to put an end to your tyranny.
Kusayb, which was the name of the frightful black, gave
but little heed at first to the little man's threats ; yet when
he was at a certain distance from him I thought I could
perceive, by the motion of his arm, that he trembled all
over his body. He presently hung the sack in which I was
upon the branch of a tree, and put himself into a posture
of defence, with an iron club all full of spikes. For my
part, my lord, I had my thoughts about me ; with a dagger
that I had at my girdle I made a hole in the sack large
enough to see through it the combat, which I imagined must
conclude entirely to the black's advantage ; but judge of
my surprise when, after an obstinate resistance on both
sides, I saw that little hero, with one back stroke of his
sabre, cut off both his enemy's legs, and afterwards sever his
head from his body. I cannot express to you the joy I
felt at so incredible a victory. I ripped the sack enough
to put my head out, and, addressing myself to my deliverer,
I let him know in a few words the infinite obligation I had
to him. The little man was surprised to see me in that
posture ; he seemed extremely troubled that he could not
reach to help me down ; but I, being more fruitful of inven-
tion than he, cut the sack in such a manner, that having
made two large strong straps of it, I slid down to the ground
without hurting myself in the least. Madame, said the little
dwarf to me, whatever pleasure it gives me to have come
in time enough to hinder you from being the last object of
Kusayb's cruelty, I should not perhaps have had that happi-
ness unless I had been spurred on by a desire to revenge a
120
sister, who has too long felt the tyranny of the villain I have
just now slain. — I am very much beholden to chance then,
replied I. But, sir, forgive my curiosity ; how is it possible
that, with the disproportion there is between Kusayb and
you, you could yet overcome him ? — It is no hard matter,
replied the little man, to satisfy you. If you will come
with me to Akim, where the king my father reigns, I will
on the way inform you of the motives of my revenge, and
by what supernatural assistance I was able to conquer the
traitorous Kusayb. I mounted again upon my mule, con-
tinued Gulguli-Chamami, and this is what my deliverer re-
lated to me :
HISTORY OF BULAMAN-SANG-HIR,
PRINCE OF AKIM
Who would think, madam, to look upon my stature, thai
I am the son of a giantess ? Yet nothing is more true than
that I owe my birth to Fag-Huri, princess of Sarandib, who
is almost eight feet high ; but then you should know that
to make amends for that, my father, named Kutar-Aasmai,
king of Akim, is yet smaller than myself. Love makes
everything equal : my father, who in his travels became
passionately enamored of Fag-Huri, did not think she was
too big for him ; and the princess, my mother, touched
with his solemn protestations that he would love her all his
life, never minded the great inequality there was in their
stature ; as she was mistress of herself, because the king
her brother who reigned in Sarandib was but seven years
old, she consented that my father should carry her to Akim,
where he espoused her.
My mother was brought to bed of me four months and
a half after their marriage, according to the manner of the
pygmies, from whom my father was in a great way off de-
scended, and I was named Bulaman-Sang-Hir ; but as she
121
had conceived two children at the same time, after foui
months and a half more, she likewise brought forth a
daughter, who, taking after her, and being born according
to the common order of nature, was called Agazir the Tall ;
thus though my sister and I were born at different times,
and were of different statures, that did not hinder us from
being twins. When Agazir was grown marriageable, her
beauty made so much noise that she was sought in marriage
by all our neighboring princes ; but one of our relations,
who was called Badim, and who reigned at Padir, prevailing
above all the rest, was just upon the point of seeing his
passion crowned with success, when unhappily the cruel
Kusayb fell in love with Agazir. The refusal he met with
from the king my father enraged him. He warned any-
body from pretending to marry the princess upon pain of
his wrath ; but his threats were despised, and my father was
resolved upon Badim's marriage with my sister. Part of the
ceremony was over, when all the spectators were strangely
amazed to find the prince without motion, and to see that
he was nothing but a statue of marble. This dreadful meta-
morphosis struck my father and all the court with horror.
My sister, who tenderly loved Badim, almost died with
grief; and the most vahant men of Akim, seeing how much
my father laid this accident to heart, resolved to seek out
Kusayb, to deprive him of life ; but of all those who have
been upon this design, I am the only one who has ever
come back. You are to understand, madam, continued
Bukman-Sang-Hir, that it is impossible to come by land
into our dominions, but through that place where my com-
bat with Kusayb was fought. That perfidious wretch, as
I was afterwards informed, very well knew he must expect
to be punished for his crime. He formed the enchant-
ment which you certainly felt the effects of. You have
no sooner come hither, than a burning thirst obliges you
to refresh yourself at that pernicious spring, whose water
122
immediately takes away the senses ; and several brave men
of Akim have in all likelihood perished by that surprise,
which has put them into the power of the cruel Kusayb.
At length my sister was almost reduced to be his victim^
when walking the day before yesterday, very uneasy, upon
the banks of the canal, which is at the bottom of the gardens
of the palace, I saw a boy, about nine or ten years old, trying
all manner of ways to get a tortoise out of its shell ; and
not being able to do it, he threw it several times with all his
force against a great stone. The shell of this tortoise was
so brilliant, that it seemed studded with diamonds. I took
it out of the boy's hands and was viewing it narrowly, when
I thought I heard some complaints proceed from it ; I put
it to my ear, and indeed heard it begging me to throw it
again into the canal. I was at first somewhat frightened
at so extraordinary a thing ; but though I was very desirous
to have kept it, I immediately obeyed, being very little
accustomed to such requests. I had scarce put the tortoise
into the water, when it appeared again, and thanked me for
the service I had done her. Ask whatever you will, said
that little creature to me, and you shall see how grateful
the fairy Mulladin will be for so essential a piece of service
as you have done her. I remained for some time motion-
less with terror, continued Bulaman-Sang-Hir, but animated
by revenge : Succorable Fairy, replied I, since you put so
great a value upon so small a kindness, furnish me, I beseech
you, with the means to deliver my sister and prince Badim
from Kusayb's persecutions. — Stay for me here a moment,
answered the tortoise ; I will fetch you the assistance you
want. Then replunging for some time into the water, she
came again to the top, holding in her little claws the sabre
I made use of; and having informed me of the enchanted
spring, she ordered me to go and fight Kusayb, and without
waiting for my answer, dived into the canal. I did not a
moment delay the execution of IMulladin's command, added
123
the little prince of Akim ; I flew to my revenge, notwith-
standing all the arguments of the king and queen, who
looked upon my death as certain ; and I arrived very
luckily to deliver you, madam, from that monster's brutality.
CONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY OF
GULGULI-CHAMAMI, PRINCESS OF
TIFLIS
Just as the prince had ended his story, continued the fair
Georgian, we arrived at the palace of Kutar-Aasmai, king of
Akim. They had looked upon the apparition of the fairy
Mulladin to the prince as a vision, and were so doubtful of
the success of the combat that they were bewailing his death,
when they perceived that the king of Padir had resumed his
former shape. That monarch, who ceased to be a statue at
the very moment when the monster expired, came to meet
us with the king, the queen, and the princess Agazir. As
soon as the prince of Akim had told the particulars of his
victory, which I confirmed, nothing was to be heard or seen
but rejoicings ; every one ran to see the black giant, who,
dead as he was, had still in his countenance something so
menacing, that he frightened the most intrepid. The king
commanded a great fire to be kindled, into which the trai-
tor's body was thrown ; and having given orders for building
in that place an eternal monument of the prince of Akim's
victory, he caused that happy day to be celebrated by a thou-
sand joyful diversions. Badim and his illustrious spouse
overwhelmed me with marks of friendship ; and I could
willingly have passed a considerable time with them, if a
desire of revenge had not carried me away to find out my
deliverer.
It was not without great violence to himself that Bulaman-
Sang-Hir could resolve to let me go. He had become pas-
124
Bionately enamored of me. But though his little person was
very agreeable, and he had an infinite deal of wit, and I was
indebted to him for my life, yet as I very well knew that he
was not decreed to revenge me of my tyrant, I begged him
earnestly not to think of loving me any longer. The little
prince was ready to die with sorrow at my feet. However,
he did all he could to obey me ; and contenting himself with
my esteem, he saw me embark with a great deal of tranquillity
in appearance.
I was born, my lord, to fall out of one misfortune into
another. We had scarce sailed a hundred and fifty leagues,
when our vessel was attacked by a famous corsair ; as we
were much weaker than he, we were forced to submit. It
was not without tears that I saw myself again deprived of my
liberty ; but a moment afterwards I had not so much reason
to complain, when Faruk, which was the name of the corsair,
accosted me with a certain timorousness very unusual in men
of his profession. It is not just, madam, said he to me very
civilly, that such beauteous hands as yours should be loaded
with chains; you are from this minute free. How happy
should I be if your heart were as much so as your person,
and if my respect and complaisance could one day deserve
it ! Whatever my surprise was at so speedy and passionate
a declaration, I thought it would be my best way to dissem-
ble with Faruk. I gave him some ghmpses of hope that I
might in time be sensible of his love, and upon this I enjoyed
a perfect freedom. I began to exercise the power I had
over his mind by delivering from chains not only all those
that he took in our ship, but even some slaves whom he had
taken upon other occasions. He did more; he restored
them one half of what they had lost, put them on board a
little brigantine, gave them arms and provisions, suffered
them to take what course they pleased, and reserved out of
all his prizes but one young Hindu woman, whom he de-
signed to keep me company.
125
This woman, continued the princess of Tiflis, was of a
ravishing beauty. A majestic port, a noble air, sparkling
eyes, a mouth and teeth extremely lovely, black hair that set
off a skin as white as snow and a charming neck, formed
one of the most bewitching women that my eyes ever be-
held : and all these perfections were heightened by a grace-
ful way of speaking, which stole away the hearts of her hear-
ers. However violently I was afflicted, the young Hindu
was still more so ; her bright eyes were continually drowned
in tears, and though I gave her a thousand caresses to stop
their course, it was all in vain at first. I represented to her
that I was perhaps yet more unhappy than herself; but that,
humoring the times, I put a constraint upon myself to con-
ceal my grief from Faruk. — Ah ! madam, said she, I have
not as much strength of reason as you, and cannot so easily
assuage my sorrow : the condition I am in reduces me to
despair. I pressed that amiable creature to tell me the oc-
casion of this sharp affliction. Spare me such a relation,
madam, answered she ; my ill fortune is not worthy to give
you a moment's concern. But in short, continued Gulguli-
Chamami, I so often embraced the young Hindu, mixing
my tears with hers, that at length I engaged her to speak to
me thus.
STORY OF SATCHI-CARA, PRINCESS
OF BORNEO
Bruninghar, king of Borneo, having wedded Gulbias,
princess of Sumatra, had by her two daughters, of whom I
am the younger. The king and queen, who loved one
another tenderly, died after twelve years' marriage, and con-
sequently left us very young. Though my sister was then
but nine years old, and I a year less than she, we felt all the
grief imaginable at this loss ; but if anything could diminish
it, it was that my sister and I were not parted from one
126
another's company. Ghionluk, king of Java, who had es-
poused my mother's sister, and whom at her death she begged
to take care of us, came himself to Borneo. He left a vice-
roy there, and taking us with him to Java, committed us to the
management of the queen his wife. That prince had but
one son, who was a little older than my eldest sister. He
was continually with her, and saw with pleasure that Sirma,
which was my sister's name, made a suitable return to his
affection. It was indeed almost impossible she should re-
fuse her heart to a prince who had so many good quahties.
He was of a charming person, and his countenance had
something in it so engaging that it was impossible to see him
without loving him. But what made him most agreeable to
my sister was the sweetness of his temper and the sharpness
of his wit.
The king of Java cherished the memory of our mother
in her children : he had formerly paid his addresses to her
himself; but falling into a long and dangerous sickness,
during which his life was often despaired of, he was very
much surprised at his recovery to hear that he was fore-
stalled by the king of Borneo our father, the king of Su-
matra having disposed of Gulbias in his favor. This gave
him a great deal of uneasiness; but the princess Gulnad-
hari, my mother's youngest sister, being a lively image of
the elder, Ghionluk could think of no way to mitigate his
sorrow for the loss of the other, than by demanding Ijer in
marriage. He easily obtained her, and had by her at the
end of ten months Samir-Agib, the model of all perfection.
That prince was now above twenty years old, and the
king his father, beginning to think of a wife for him, threw
his eyes upon the princess Bisnagar, the only heiress of the
kingdom of that name. This was indeed so advantageous
a match for the prince of Java that Ghionluk imagined his
son's ambition would be very well satisfied with the alliance.
He informed him of the resolution he had taken to send
127
ambassadors to the king of Bisnagar, in order to obtain the
princess ; but he observed the prince to be so uneasy at
the proposal that he was persuaded it was not agreeable to
him. Perhaps the weight of the engagement frightens you,
my lord, said he to him mildly ; but if you knew the prin-
cess of Bisnagar, who is called Donai-Karin, because there
is nothing in nature more charming, you would quickly
change your mind. I give you a month's time to come to
a resolution ; let me have an answer by that time, such as
may suit with the obedience I am to expect from you.
The prince made a profound obeisance, without returning
any answer ; then he retired into his own apartment, and
being a little recovered from the trouble he was in, he came
into that in which my sister and I were together. He looked
upon us in sadness for some time without speaking a word,
and his tears beginning to fall notwithstanding all he could
do to restrain them, Sirma in abundance of emotion asked
him kindly the cause of his affliction. Ah, madam, said
Samir-Agib to her, redoubling his tears, what a barbarous
command I have just now received ! The king my father
designs me for the princess of Bisnagar, and I have but one
month to resolve on a union, which would be the most in-
sufferable misfortune of my life, if I had not courage enough
to resist my father's will. My sister, continued Satchi Cara,
seemed thunderstruck at this news ; she looked steadfastly
upon the prince, and seeing him extremely dejected : Ah !
Samir-Agib, said she, how miserable shall I be made ! You
will obey your father's command ; and I love you too well
not to advise you to do so. What is Borneo, in compari-
son to Bisnagar, or a ro;:gh pearl to a perfect one? — Hold,
madam, cried the prince of Java, comparisons are odious.
Donai-Karin, let her be ever so deserving, shall never pos-
sess either my hand or my heart ; they are both reserved
for Sirma alone : and I will sooner die than break the oaths
I have so often made to be none but yours.
128
How tender and generous was this conversation, and how
pleased was my sister with these fresh protestations of the
prince her cousin ! He came every moment to assure her
of his love ; and above three weeks had passed of the time
Ghionluk had given him to consider, when that monarch,
walking one evening in the gardens of his palace, perceived
the prince his son entering by himself into a little grove.
He had observed that he had grown of late melancholy and
thoughtful, and that he had always loved solitude ever since
he had spoken to him of the fair Donai-Karin. He was
desirous to know the cause of this alteration ; and therefore,
commanding his followers to wait there for him, he slipped
behind a close row of trees, whence he could easily see and
hear Samir-Agib. That prince, who thought himself alone
and at liberty to complain, at first gave himself up to a pro-
found thoughtfulness ; afterwards he seemed to Hsten with
attention to some little birds which filled the air with their
accents. Happy birds! cried he, who are not constrained
in your loves, and who submit to no other laws than those
which your inclination prompt you to, continue your agi-ee-
able songs. My soul, which is plunged in the sharpest grief,
cannot behold your felicity without envy ; it renews my own
torments. The time approaches, he went on sadly, when
I must return an answer to the king my father. O heaven,
how shall I acquaint him with a passion so contrary to the
interests of his greatness ! The princess of Bisnagar will
undoubtedly weigh down in his heart that goodness which
he would show me on other occasions ; but what woman,
besides the princess of Borneo, can touch a soul so insensi-
ble as mine ? What rose can boast a color so beauteous as
that which shines on the cheeks of the lovely Sirma ? Or
who can show such divine charms as appear in her face,
from which the heavens themselves seem to borrow their
serenity ? Hope not, feeble mortals, to come into compe-
tition with my adorable princess ; she deserves to give laws
129
to the whole universe. — But whither does my passion hurry
me? said Samir-Agib, mournfully interrupting his own ex-
travagances. Alas ! the more charms that princess is mis-
tress of, the more tears the privation of her must cost me.
But why should I shed tears? Can I burn with a more
glorious flame ? Ah ! charming princess of Borneo, you
have not yet power enough over my heart ; a love so violent
as mine ought to serve as an example to all the world. Let
us break a timorous silence, and endeavor to obtain you of
the king my father ; and if neither my prayers, submissive-
ness, nor tears can move him, let us teach mankind that it
is dangerous to irritate a heart that looks upon death as the
end of misery.
Samir-Agib went out of the grove in this resolution, and
left Ghionluk as much surprised as aflflicted at what he had
learnt. The prince his son was very dear to him ; he had
a great kindness for my sister and for me, continued Satchi-
Cara, but the kingdom of Bisnagar inclined him in favor of
Donai-Karin. He retired, nevertheless, very uncertain what
to fix upon ; and after having rejoined his train he locked
himself up in his apartments, and would be seen by nobody.
His mind was in great agitation all the rest of that day and
the following night ; but his son's satisfaction being dearer
to him than that which he expected from seeing him united
with Donai-Karin, he no longer hesitated what to do, but
sent for Samir-Agib. My son, said he to him, I know what
passes in the bottom of your heart ; you are in love with
Sirma, and whatever reasons I may have to oppose this pas-
sion, I yet approve it, because it is, I find, the chief happi-
ness of your life. But as the authority I have over the prin-
cesses of Borneo might induce the world to believe that I
made use of that power to unite you together, we must think
of some means to bring it about without endangering my honor.
Samir-Agib at these words was as much amazed as it is pos-
sible to imagine. He blushed, bent his eyes to the ground,
9
130
and was some time without answering the king his father,
fearing that monarch might make use of this artifice only to
discover his passion for Sirma ; but having come a little
to himself, he thought he saw so much ingenuousness in
Ghionluk's actions that, throwing himself at his feet : Ah !
my lord, said he, embracing them, how can I express the
sense I have of your goodness ? You restore me to life in
the very moment when perhaps I was going to give myself
up to the most fatal despair. Yes, my lord, I adore the
lovely Sirma. The blood that joins our families has so
bound our hearts to each other that nothing but death can
dissolve so lovely an union ; and since your Majesty is will-
ing to consent to it, there is a sure way to avoid wounding
your delicacy in this point. The princess is of age to fill
a throne. Give me leave, my lord, to place her upon that
of her ancestors. Borneo is the fittest place for me to win
her in ; and there I am in hopes love alone will prevail with
her in my favor. — How ingenious is your passion, replied
Ghionluk, embracing the prince his son. Go then, said
he, inform your princess yourself of this news, and make all
the necessary preparations for conducting her to Borneo.
I was with my sister, continued the young Hindu princess,
when Samir-Agib entered her apartment. Joy sparkled in
his eyes, and he was so transported with the conversation he
had had with the king his father that it was some time before
he could speak. He embraced Sirma's knees in a rapture.
Charming princess, said he, at length everything conspires to
my good fortune ; Donai-Karin is now no longer mentioned ;
you are from this day queen of Borneo : I have just received
orders to prepare everything for placing you on the throne
of that kingdom ; there you will be absolutely mistress of
your own will ; and there I will live and die your slave. My
sister felt an infinite deal of joy at this news ; she raised up
Samir-Agib. My dear cousin, said she to him, my will shall
always be submissive to yours, since from this day I accept
131
you for my lord and husband, and I shall never think myself
happy any longer than while I enjoy your tenderness. I was
present at this conversation, which gave me inconceivable
satisfaction, continued Satchi-Cara; it ended in new as-
surances of love, and the prince then retired to give orders
for our departure, which was fixed for the fifteenth day fol-
lowing. During that time, my sister received the compli-
ments of the principal lords of Java : every one of them, in
order to ingratiate himself with the young prince, whose pas-
sion nobody was unacquainted with, made magnificent pres-
ents to the new queen of Borneo, and our apartment, which
was generally accessible to none but Samir-Agib, was open to
everybody during the time we were to stay at Java.
This, madam, continued the young Hindu princess, was
the beginning of my misfortunes. A Jew named Isaac
Miyah, as I learnt afterwards, made a wrong use of this lib-
erty. He saw me ; I had the misfortune to please him, and
he had the insolence to raise his wishes even to possessing
me. As he knew not what way to bring about his desires,
he had recourse to a famous Enchantress, named Dubana,
and promised her a considerable sum if by her art she should
make me inclinable to return his passion. Dubana, under
the most modest appearance in the world, insinuated herself
into the palace, got acquainted with some of my women-
slaves, and engaged them, with my permission, to go and
make merry at a little house which she had in a delicious
place called the Fountain of Roses ; because indeed there is
a spring there that takes its source from the foot of a rose
bush, which bears flowers all the year round ; it was not tv^^o
leagues from Java to that house. My women on their return
gave me so delightful an account of it, that I was curious to
be a judge of it myself. I would have persuaded my sister
to have gone with me ; but she was too much taken up with
preparing for her voyage ; so I let Dubana know that I
would come the next day to see her country house, accom-
132
panied only by eight of my women, and by twelve black
eunuchs.
I was received by the perfidious woman with all the ap-
pearances of the sincerest respect. After having seen the
house, which was very neat, I went down into the gardens.
As it was yet pretty hot, Dubana presented me with a veil of
a rose-color, which I put upon my head ; but I was hardly
covered with it, when I found an unknown fire running from
vein to vein. I was ignorant what it was that I felt ; a lan-
guishing tenderness had seized all my senses, and I was
ashamed to think of the reflections on which my mind was
then employed. In short, madam, I walked off alone from
my train, musing upon the extraordinary circumstances I was
in. Modesty induced me to be desirous of solitude. I
turned into a little wood, and had several times walked over
all the alleys, when Isaac Miyah, whom I did not yet know
for what he was, accosted me with an air very full of per-
plexity. I then grew sensible of my imprudence, and would
have avoided the sight of that man by hiding myself in my
veil, when I saw him at my knees, declaring his love in
terms I was hitherto unacquainted with. I at first repulsed
him without making myself known ; but as he followed me
wheresoever I went, I was resolved to inform him of my
quality ; by this means I thought to have put an end to his
importunity ; but what was my wonder when the insolent
spoke to me thus : I am not ignorant, madam, that I address
myself to the princess Satchi-Cara, nor how much distance
there is between her and me ; but my love is stronger than
all the reflections I can make to extinguish it. Consent -
with a good grace, madam, continued he, impudently, to
unite your destiny with mine ; as all the powers upon earth
cannot save you from being forced to do so. I trembled
with indignation at these insolent threats ; but whatever
venom lay hid in Dubana's veil, it had not all the effect that
was probably expected from it. I could no longer endure
133
the boldness of the Jew. Wretch ! said I, in a tone full of
anger, whoever thou art, fly from my presence this moment,
if thou wouldst avoid the punishment thou deservest !
Isaac Miyah was surprised at the firmness with which I
spoke to him ; he flew away trembhng, and went to give the
Enchantress an account of the little success he had met with.
I remained quite lost in my reflections, and could not recover
from my surprise, when Sidhim, one of my maids, came run-
ning to me : Ah ! madam, cried she, in a terrible fright, what
place have we come to ? The famous Enchantress who is
mistress of it has grossly deceived us by her virtuous appear-
ance, which would have blinded anybody. That base woman
conspires against your honor. I was behind a thick row of
rose bushes, when I saw a man in great disorder accost her,
and whisper something which I could not hear. Dubana
studied for some moments, and then directing her speech to
him : Let not the princess's resistance disturb you, said she
to him ; I will soon deliver her to your desires. Only take
care of one thing : it is but a short half-quarter of a league
from hence to the habitation of Firnaz, who is called the
jinni of wisdom ; hinder the princess from turning her steps
towards her palace. All my powers are useless if once she
sets her foot there ; and we may both repent the undertaking
we have embarked in as long as we live. Go back, there-
fore, immediately to Satchi-Cara, and do not leave her until
I come to you ; I will in the mean time give such orders as
are necessary for breaking this stubborn virtue of hers. —
Ah ! let us fly this moment, my dear Sidhim, cried I ; I
tremble all over. Let us save ourselves, if possible, from
this pernicious abode, and fly to seek the protection of
Firnaz.
Two young hinds frightened by the noise of the huntsman
could not have run more swiftly than we then did. We
fortunately met with a little door that opened out of the gar-
den into an avenue full of thorns and brambles, and which
134
in some places was so narrow that we tore our faces and
hands. Slighting this obstruction, we made our way through
a thousand bushes that dyed us all in blood, and we soon
perceived a little palace of an antique structure, which I
judged to be Firnaz's by the difficulty there was in getting to
it. We were now but a few steps from it when the perfid-
ious Enchantress of a sudden rendered it invisible, and
stopped our passage by a wide river which appeared before
our eyes. This at first frightened me ; but choosing rather
to die than to fall into Dubana's power, I took Sidhim by
the hand and precipitated myself with her into the stream,
when I found myself pulled back by my clothes. You fly in
vain, said the deceitful Enchantress to me ; I shall now make
you obey my pleasure. I tried to no purpose, madam, to
move her by my tears and entreaties ; the villainous Jew that
accompanied her gave me to understand that nothing could
dissuade him from his resolution. And they were carrying
back Sidhim and me towards the Fountain of Roses, when a
nightingale flying to me with all its speed, perched upon my
shoulder, and dropped in my bosom a ring of gold. I
looked upon this ring as a present from heaven : I at once
put it upon my finger, and had no sooner implored Firnaz's
assistance, than Dubana and the Jew fell backwards, the
river that had stopped me from entering the jinni's palace
disappeared from before my eyes, and I no longer saw upon
my head the Enchantress's pernicious veil.
In that situation, madam, continued the princess of
Borneo, I left this vile sorceress and the execrable Jew, and
entering into the palace of Firnaz, I found my dispositions
entirely changed from what they were before. The jinni
received Sidhim and myself with extreme tenderness. My
dear children, said she, addressing herself to me, few persons
of your age and sex are disposed to visit me. My name
alone has become so detested that mankind seldom approach
my palace till they are worn out with age, or debauched with
135
sensuality. But since you have sought my protection, it wa3
but just that I should counteract the infamous Dubana, by
sending you the ring of reflection. This ring is of mighty
efficacy, it rectifies in youth the violence of our passions,
and teaches us to follow with pleasure the strict rules of
untainted purity. And though you have less need of such a
ring than another, preserve it, I conjure you, as an eternal
pledge of my friendship, for it will shortly direct you in the
choice of a spouse worthy of yourself. — Mighty Firnaz, pro-
pitious jinni, answered I, prostrating myself at her feet, how
obliged I am to you for this seasonable assistance ! The
remembrance of it will be gratefully impressed upon my
mind even to my dying hour ; but to this unmerited good-
ness, add one instance more. Tell me, I beseech you, who
is this odious creature with whom the sorceress would have
united me?
The jinni, madam, as I have the honor to inform you, soon
acquainted me that the audacious villain was the son of a
Jew, and called himself Isaac Miyah. She then drew his
character in such hideous colors that I trembled to recall
the danger I had undergone. But, madam, said I to the
jinni, must this perfidious magician still continue to seduce
with impunity the young and inexperienced, and must the
infamous Isaac receive no punishment for his crime? — My
dear daughter, replied the jinni, this truly laudable resent-
ment highly dehghts me. I have already anticipated your
severest wishes. Dubana shall be punished in that way
which most sensibly affects a woman. She is driven with
shame and confusion from the Fountain of Roses ; her figure
has become so frightful as to inspire mankind with horror.
As for the Jew, he is from this hour confined in a large iron
cage, where four monsters shall continually drain off his purest
blood, if anything pure can flow from a body so contaminated
as his ; and in this condition he is doomed to end his days,
overwhelmed with the stings of a guilty conscience. — This
136
method of executing justice pleased me wonderfully, and
having again thanked the jinni, I desired her to permit me
to return to the palace of Ghionluk. She transported me
thither in an instant ; where, after re-assembling my women
and eunuchs, who had attended me to the Fountain of Roses,
all Java was informed of this surprising adventure.
As Firnaz had charged herself with the punishment of those
wretches, we thought no more of them, but parting from Java
we happily arrived some days after at Borneo. My sister was
then proclaimed queen, and immediately published her nup-
tials with the prince her cousin.
The uncommon good qualities of Samir-Agib were so well
known at Borneo that the folk were delighted with his acces-
sion to the throne. Nothing was to be seen but joy and
festivity for upwards of a month, and the principal lords of
Borneo every day invented diversions to entertain the new
king.
I confess, madam, I could not behold my sister's good for-
tune without some degree of regret ; and I conceived such a
high opinion of her happiness that I incessantly wished to be
as grand as the queen of Borneo.
One evening, as I was walking in the gardens of the palace
with Sidhim, I saw something glitter at my feet on the gravel;
I picked it up hastily, and found it to be a picture in min-
iature, enriched with diamonds of an extraordinary size. I
gazed, not without some emotion, on this lovely picture,
which represented a young man of exquisite beauty. Upon
consulting the ring of reflection, I perceived my heart vi-
olently attached to the original ; but distrusting the surprise
I was in : Where are you, powerful Firnaz ? cried I. Surely
you will never approve that I should so suddenly abandon
myself to so flattering an inclination which draws me to such
a charming object. — You may resign yourself without re-
serve to the secret emotion with which love has inspired
you, replied a voice, which I knew to be that of the jinni
^Z7
without seeing her. The prince whom that picture re-
presents shall be thy spouse. I was transported with joy
to hear the jinni of reason authorize me to love a prince so
completely perfect : I flattered myself that I should one
day be advanced with him to enjoy supreme felicity.
Judge, madam, if I flattered myself without a cause. Say-
ing this, she put into my hand a little gold box which con-
tained the picture of her lover. I had no sooner opened it
than I cried : O heaven, what do I see ! What ! Is this the
picture of your intended spouse ? — Satchi-Cara was aston-
ished at the exclamations I made. Do you know then, said
she, very earnestly, this prince? Ah, madam, if you do,
answer me directly, I conjure you. — I hesitated a few mo-
ments, but the princess gi'owing impatient, I was obliged to
tell her that I owed my life to the little Bulaman-Sang-Hir,
who, it seems, was all this time her lover. This prince, said
I, is very accomplished, and extremely well made ; I say
nothing of his other charms, as that picture resembles him to
the life. It is true, his great soul is enclosed in a little body,
which is the only defect, if it may be called one, that belongs
to him. I then recited the particulars of the combat between
the prince of Akim and Kusayb, and acknowledged in a few
words the obligation I was under to the prince. The young
Hindu being put to a nonplus, consulted her ring with great
attention, and after a considerable pause, replied thus : What!
though the size of this prince is but little, as you assure me,
that defect is of no consequence, provided the goodness of
his heart compensates for the shortness of his stature.. The
jinni who is my protectress is too wise to suffer me to be
matched with an unsuitable person. However, let us submit
without complaining of our destiny, and patiently resign our-
selves to the disposal of the god Vishnu.
She then resumed the thread of her history in the following
terms : The lively impression this picture made on my mind
kept it always before my eyes, and whenever I attended the
138
king and queen to the chase, I withdrew purely to indulge
the dear delight of gazing on it alone, and without interrup-
tion. One day as I was thus occupied, a violent storm of
rain overtook me, darkness succeeded the storm, and when
I would fain have gained the middle of the chase, my horse,
being startled at the thunder and lightning, ran with me
through unknown paths. Night was at hand, and being
greatly perplexed I alighted, and, leading my horse by the
bridle, perceived a light at a great distance, glimmering
through some trees. Turning my steps that way, the further
I walked the further it appeared. I followed it nearly an
hour, without being aware of the danger to which I was ex-
posed. At last, being heartily tired, I tied my horse to a
tree, and lay down and slept very comfortably. But when I
awoke, judge, madam, if you can, the terror I was in, to see
myself on the verge of a tremendous precipice ; for if I had
proceeded a few steps further, I should infallibly have been
dashed to pieces. I recollected, as soon as my fright would
permit, that I was conducted to this place by one of those
elementary spirits who sport themselves with the lives of per-
sons travelling in the dark. Altering my course, I proceeded
very slowly for about an hour, when I found myself on the
seashore. I was now dreadfully alarmed, for not a soul
appeared to put me in the right road. In the midst of this
cruel perplexity, out started four negroes from behind some
rocks, and seizing the bridle of my horse, they took me in
their arms, and in spite of my cries, bore me to a shallop
close by. Two of these wretches rowed with all their might,
while the other two prevented me from plunging into the sea,
till they reached a ship which rode about half a league from
the place where I was so unhappy as to lose my liberty.
They presented me to the master of the vessel, who was
a very tall lusty man, and whose thick hanging eyebrows,
lowering aspect, and short wry neck, were frightful enough.
He carried me into his cabin, and accosted me with an in-
139
Solent air. Dr}' up your tears, said the brute, and thank the
great Prophet that he has destined you to the honors of my
bed. Far from complying with his orders I redoubled my
tears. The hardened villain, without regarding my anguish,
approached to embrace me, which so provoked me that I
snatched a dagger from his side and plunged it directly into
his heart.
The noise of his fall alarmed and brought several of the
crew into the cabin, which rang with their cries. I still held
the dagger in my hand, and was just going to turn the point
of it to my own breast, when one of them held my arms.
It was the cruel Nakur, the unworthy son of him whom I
had just killed. Perfidious ! said he, foaming with rage,
the death you are about to inflict upon yourself is too mild
and too glorious. No, you shall expire under the most
excruciating torments ingenuity itself can invent. My hands
and feet were presently chained, and when I was turned
down into the hold, the principal officers were summoned
to determine the manner of my execution. But while they
were thus consulting about my death, a sail appeared, steer-
ing directly towards them. A thirst for prey suspended all
thoughts of vengeance. Nakur addressed himself to the
attack ; but when he saw the enemy hoist his flag, he trem-
bled for the event, as he well knew it to belong to the cele-
brated Faruk. This latter had never been vanquished.
Fortune and the sea, which are so inconstant to others, had
hitherto been subject to him. Our ship being boarded, an
obstinate engagement ensued ; at last Nakur and the stoutest
part of his crew being killed, the rest were obliged to sur-
render their arms. The conqueror entered and visited every
part of the ship, and being informed of the cause of my
chains, he highly applauded the resolution I had taken;
and having ordered me to be unbound, I was, with the rest
of the prisoners, conducted to his ship, and that of Nakur
was immediately sunk.
140
Behold, madam, continued Satchi-Cara, behold the source
of all my woes ! You see how the stars persecute me, they
set me foe a mark for the wicked Jew, and if I had not
owed my escape to a miracle, I should infallibly have fallen
a victim to his horrid designs. Afterwards I fell into the
hands of a brutal corsair, and now I have become the cap-
tive of another. And though I have nothing to apprehend
from Faruk, yet it must be allowed that a chain of misfor-
tunes has always attended me ; and notwithstanding the
predictions of Fiinaz, I see no likelihood of a period being
put to my affliction.
CONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY OF
GULGULI-CHAMAMI, PRINCESS OF
TIFLIS
I USED, my lord, continued the lovely Georgian, every
effort I was mistress of to dispel the melancholy of this
captive princess. And indeed her grief began visibly to
abate, when we were encountered by a ship, whose poop
and masts v/ere gilt, and whose sails were of a flame-colored
satin. This singularity inspired Faruk to attack this vessel,
though by her appearance she could not be a corsair ; how-
ever, upon giving the signal, they engaged with prodigious
ardor and intrepidity.
The commander of this ship was a black about six feet
high; he exposed his person to every danger, and by his
presence and example so animated his soldiers that they all
fought like a company of heroes. This warrior, who seemed
to recover new strength, leaped into our ship, and as soon
as he belield Satchi-Cara and myself he hewed down all
that stood in his way.
Faritk began now to be greatly alarmed at the unex-
ampled courage of this mighty hero, and believing that
141
himself alone was able to oppose him, closed with hira
Never, my lord, were champions seen to exert more skill
and courage : the soldiers on each side suspended their
blows, that they might behold those of their respective com-
manders. At last fortune decided the victory, or to speak
more properly, the arms of the black captain were better
tempered tnan those of Faruk, who received two large
wounds, v/hich he sunk under. In this condition the corsair
thought it no disgrace to surrender. I am vanquished for
the first time, said Faruk ; but, sir, if you will spare my life
I shall be eternally indebted to your generosity. Rise, then,
said the conqueror, reachmg him his hand ; others, perhaps,
might have loaded you with chains, instead of which I ad-
mit you amongst the number of my friends ; and as a proof
of my esteem. I restore you your ship, with all her company,
except these two princesses, whom I demand as the reward
of my victory.
How great soever the passion might be with which I had
inspired Faruk, continued Gulguli-Chamami, he strove to
suppress ms affliction when tlie conqueror claimed Satchi-
Cara and myself. The life, sir, said he to the black captain,
which you offer me is less dear to me than is one of these
princesses; however, I yield her up, and though penetrated
with a lively sense of her loss, I do not repine at your good
fortune. The young princess and myself were more dead
than alive; and having tenderly embraced each other, we
were on ihe point of jumping into the sea rather than be-
come a prey to the black captain, when this illustrious war-
rior, taking off his turband, discovered a face which before
was concealed under a very fine black crape. We were all
struck with amazement, but nothing could equal the aston-
ishment of Satchi-Cara and myself ; she perceived in the
conqueror the original of her picture, and I beheld all the
features of the little prince of Akim. We stood fixed like
a couple of statues, when the hero, smiling at our surprise;
142
directed his speech to me. You are not deceived, most
amiable Gulguli-Chamami. The prince who is now in your
presence is not unknown to you, though he must never ap-
pear again under his former character. The fairy Mulladin,
who protected me from the tyranny of Kusayb, extends her
favors even beyond my most sanguine expectations ; the
history of which I am going to relate to you. Saying this,
he conducted Satchi-Cara, Faruk, and myself to his own
ship, where we reposed on cushions of embroidered gold,
and after Faruk's wounds, which were not dangerous, were
dressed, he thus began :
CONCLUSION OF THE HISTORY OF BULA-
MAN-SANG-HIR, PRINCE OF AKIM
It is impossible, madam, for me to express the ex-
treme anguish I endured when I saw you ascend your
ship, and after you were embarked. As I had not the
happiness to obtain a place in your affections, despair
seized my mind, and my next resolution centred in death.
Full of this design, I went back to the palace and directed
my steps to the edge of that canal where I was once so
happy as to oblige the fairy Mulladin. Here, being agitated
by some unknown impulse, I took a resolution to put a
period to my days : this thought was no sooner conceived
than executed. I threw myself headlong into the water,
and after some struggling, sank to the bottom. But how
amazingly was the scene changed when I found myself in
a palace of crystal, reposing on a sofa of yellow amber !
Astonished at this miracle, I thought it was but a dream,
when the fairy appeared to me again. My lord, said she,
your distress grieves me much, and I am sorry, as you love
Gulguli-Chamami, that I cannot with all my art assist your
passion ; a stranger, it seems, is destined to possess her hand
143
and her heart. However, be comforted, I will assist you to
choose another mistress from among a number of the most
charming princesses in the universe. Saying this, she uttered
to herself certain mysterious words, and from that moment,
madam, I confess I perceived in my heart that the extreme
passion which I had entertained for you gave place to es-
teem only for you. And now the fairy, having entirely
changed my sentiments, led me into a private cabinet, where
upon looking into an enchanted glass, I saw some of the
most beautiful princesses in the universe. A great number
of them escaped me without the least attention ; but not
so when I beheld the lovely Satchi-Cara ; her appearance
renewed those delightful transports in a more lively manner
than I had ever felt before.
At these last words, continued Gulguli-Chamami, the
princess of Borneo blushed extremely, and was about to
interrupt the prince, who, perceiving her confusion, pre
vented her reply. Permit me, said he, madam, first to
finish a history so particularly rare and uncommon as mine.
Then resuming his discourse, he thus proceeded : As soon
as the fairy observed the risings of a fresh passion for this
amiable personage, she rallied me very agreeably. You see,
my lord, said she, how effectually the charms of the brown
lady can obliterate those of Gulguh-Chamami! But that
nothing may be wanting to complete your good fortune, I
will repair in an instant the injustice you have received from
nature. Drink this liquor without fear, and you shall soon
perceive its happy effects. No sooner had I obeyed the
fairy, than I felt a strange kind of tremor run all over my
body, and my limbs seemed as if they were disjointed, till
my whole frame, without altering my features, became pro-
portioned just as you now behold me. But this is not all,
added Mulladin, which I intend to do for you. I will send
your picture to the princess, who will crown your utmost
wishes, and you shall receive hers in return. She then pre-
144
sented me with a box enriched with diamonds, in the bottom
of which was portrayed the adorable Satchi-Cara, adorned
with all those graces with which she is now possessed, and
having enclosed my resemblance in another such box, she
further informed me that in a short time it should have the
like effect on her heart as her picture had already had on
mine. I was so transported with a sense of the fairy's good-
ness that I prostrated myself at her feet without being able
to utter one word. She raised and tenderly embraced me.
Go, my lord, said she, go and deliver the dear object of
your affections from a miserable captivity, and at the same
time set Gulguli-Chamami at liberty. The fairy, having dis-
guised me with her veil, in order to surprise you the more
agreeably, transported me in this gilded vessel, and the
winds have wafted me where my presence was most neces-
sary. I have obeyed the commands of Mulladin, and am
so happy as to have executed in a short time all that can
contribute to my future happiness, if the charming Satchi-
Cara is disposed to follow, without reluctance, the wise
counsels of the fairy my protectress.
The prince of Akim, having finished his nar!ration, con-
tinued Gulguli-Chamami, the princess of Borneo refused
her consent, while her heart was struggling between a ten-
derness for the prince and the great modesty with which
she was inspired by the fairy Mulladin and her ring of re-
flection. But after I had strongly pressed her, she no longer
sci-upled to confess that she loved this charming prince from
the moment she found his picture. Bulaman-Sang-Hir was
overwhelmed with joy when the princess apprised him with
her own mouth of his good fortune. He expressed a tender
and lively sense of the many and great obligations he was
under to Mulladin, when that fairy suddenly appeared in a
ship, far more splendid and magnificent than that of the
prince of Akim. She had all this time been concealed in
a cloud which had rendered her invisible. The fairy was
145
accompanied by the king and queen of Java, and by prince
Samir-Agib and the princess his spouse. I come, said
Mulladin, to crown my work. Behold, my lord, said she
to Bulaman-Sang-Hir, these are the only persons who could
oppose your good fortune, and they are now so favorably
disposed that they consent heartily to your union with the
beautiful Satchi-Cara. They all embraced each other with
great tenderness; and the fairy, who was unwilling to defer
their bliss any longer, transported them in an instant to
Borneo, where, after Faruk was cured of his wounds, the
nuptials of this illustrious pair were celebrated with feastings,
triumphs, and a thousand other demonstrations of joy.
CONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY OF GUL-
GULI-CHAMAMI, PRINCESS OF TIFLIS
For my own part, continued the beautiful Georgian,
however solicitous I might be to iind the prince whom my
destiny had allotted for me, I was far from being tired with
this illustrious company. Faruk was resolved not to forsake
me, and following the example of the prince of Akim he
converted the violence of his passion into a high esteem for
my person. Madam, said he one day, since I have not the
happiness to be chosen by the great Prophet to reinstate
you in your kingdom, I cannot contribute less to your good
fortune than to assist you in your search after the prince
whom the stars have ordained for that purpose. As I was
fully satisfied of this good man's sincerity, a virtue seldom
found in persons of his profession, I made no difficulty in
closing with his offers, and without the least hesitation put
myself again under his protection.
At length, my lord, after a considerable stay in Borneo,
I embarked with Faruk. The winds were very favorable
for the first three or four days, but on the fifth there was
146
such a surprising calm that we could neither advance nor
put back. Though Faruk's uneasiness at this delay was
different from mine, he neglected nothing which might serve
to divert my chagrin during a calm of nine days. To dispel
which he strove to amuse me with several entertaining his-
tories ; and as he was very polite, and possessed a large
share of good sense, he acquitted himself so well that I
heard him with prodigious delight. But, sir, said I to him,
amongst all these singular adventures am I to be left igno-
rant of your own? Your conduct to me hitherto makes
nie suspect that you are different from what you appear to
be ; and, therefore, I am more curious to know your history
than any I have hitherto heard. My suspicions were pres-
ently confirmed, for Faruk, by an involuntary sigh, dis-
covered that my curiosity had brought something painful
to his remembrance. You have, madam, too much power
over my mind, replied Faruk, for me to conceal any longer
from you who I am. Prepare, then, to hear the history of
an unfortunate prince, whose life has almost always been
marked with some sorrowful catastrophe :
CONTINUATION OF THE TAIE OF UTZIM-
OCHANTI, PRINCE OF CHINA
Just as the princess of Tiflis, continued Ibn Aridun, was
about to relate to Utzim-Ochanti the history of Faruk, Gul-
panhi entered the hall. She presented her hand to the
young prince of China, and led him to a cabinet, in which
was a carpet of gold and silk, strewed over with flowers of
an odoriferous smell. He was then presented with rose-
water to wash his hands, and his beard was perfumed with
a fragrant composition enclosed in a vessel of gold ; after
this a magnificent collation was served up, which being
ended, Gulpanhi ordered all her women to withdraw. The
147
prince trembled at this order, and GuIguH-Chamami, who
was not excepted, gave him such a sorrowful look at parting
that he was once inclined to rise from the sofa and leave
Gulpanhi to herself; but considering such a step would be
highly imprudent, he was constrained to stay, and though
the princess used every artifice to engage his affections, he
received all her caresses with coldness and indifference.
A behavior like this would have highly disgusted any
other but Gulpanhi ; but that princess either feigned herself
ignorant of this indifference, or else attributed it to some
other cause than that of contempt. She appeared, however,
highly delighted with his conversation till the hour of parting
arrived, when she consigned him to the care of Kurum, who
was an old and faithful confidante of her pleasures. The
prince followed her, but in passing through a kind of dark
gallery, somebody ingeniously slipt into his hand a billet,
the substance of which was couched in the following terms :
It is difficult enough to resist the dangerous blandish-
ments of the person whom you have just now quitted. But,
my lord, I am of opinion that you may elude her artifices.
Dissemble awhile, till you can deliver me from this miserable
captivity. I hope to see you to-morrow at the combat of
tigers, with which king Kusah intends to entertain prince
Atabak. If there is no speaking to you then, I will contrive
towards evening to convey you into my apartment, where I
have a thousand things to say.
The Princess of Tiflis.
Utzim-Ochanti kissed this letter a thousand times, and
now his fidelity being strongly confirmed, he lay down with
a heart full of excessive joy. The next morning Gulpanhi,
pursuing her design, sent to the prince before he was well
awake a basket embroidered with gold, in which was a mag-
nificent rich scarf ; intimating at the same time that it would
148
be very agreeable to the princess if he was disposed to rise.
As the apartments of the princess were exposed to all comers,
he flattered himself ttiat Gulguli-Chamami would be there.
He was not mistaken, for this latter was appointed to receive
the prince, if he arrived before the princess was awake ;/biit,
as Gulpanhi had this meeting too much at heart to sleep
long, the young prince could do no more than just assure his
mistress that he would love her forever.
The indifference with which the prince had received Gul-
panhi's passion had affected her so much that this princess
had enjoyed but little sleep. She was not willing that this
conquest should escape her, and she no sooner knew of his
being with the princess of Tiflis than she sent for him.
When she left her bed, clad in a seductive dishabille, she
appeared so charming that the prince would have certainly
been ensnared if he had been less fortified. The princess,
without taking the least notice of his indifference, received
him with a great deal of joy. She caused him to be seated
on a sofa, and bending her ear towards him, asked him very
obligingly, why he had neglected to put on the scarf she had
sent him, telling him at the same time that he was surely
ignorant of its great value. — Madam, replied the prince, I
dared not appear in this court with such a glorious, unmerited
mark of your kindness ; but since you are pleased to permit
me, I will do myself the honor to wear this illustrious proof
of your goodness.
Their conversation had held near an hour, when prince
Atabak, who knew that the princess was always easy of ac-
cess, entered suddenly. She had but just time to tell the
prince of China that after dinner he would find her at the
combat of tigers, and that he should place himself at as little
distance from her as possible, because she desired to have
some further discourse when the diversion was ended. The
prince obeyed her orders, and fixed upon a place beneath
her balcony ; and as Gulguli-Chamami was on the same side
149
with Gulpanhi, his eyes were ahvays turned towards the
former without giving the least umbrage to the latter.
During the combats of some lesser animals, Atabak enter-
tained the princess Gulpanhi with great politeness and vivac-
ity. These being ended, a monstrous tiger and a prodig-
iously large lion were let into the arena, and after they had
fought nearly an hour and a half with equal success, and with
inconceivable rage and fierceness, they rolled over each other
directly under the balcony where Gulpanhi was placed. The
ladies, that they might take a better view of the engagement,
all bent forwards ; but while they were in this attitude, the
princess of Tiflis dropt from her finger a ring, on which was
an eagle engraved in a jewel. O heavens ! she cried, per-
ceiving it near those outrageous animals, must I to-day be so
carelessly unhappy as to lose the only real good I possess !
Gulpanhi was so touched with the extreme anguish of her
favorite, that she called out, but in vain, to the keepers to
pick up the ring ; no one was hardy enough to execute her
orders, though she offered a considerable reward. When
behold ! the prince of China "leaped into the arena, and
picked up the ring the princess had dropped from her fin-
ger. Luckily for him, the lion and tiger had spent the great-
est part of their strength in the long fight they had sustained ;
but as soon as they saw the prince, they quitted each other,
as it were by consent, and turned all their rage against him.
The prince was only armed with a sabre, which was, however,
well tempered, and he wielded it with such success that leav-
ing them both dead, he returned unhurt with the ring to the
princess of Tiflis.
If the intrepidity of the prince astonished the king and all
the spectators, Gulpanhi was surprised to the last degree :
she began now to open her eyes, and rightly judged that
the coldness with which she was treated proceeded from the
charms he had discovered in her favorite. She could not
indeed publicly disapprove an action so truly heroic ; on the
1^0
contrary, she bestowed high encomiums on the prince, but
conceived at the same time a lively resentment against the
preference he had given to the princess of Tiflis. With
respect to king Kusah, he was so little accustomed to
achievements of this sort, and was so charmed with the
behavior of the young prince, that he perfectly loaded him
with caresses. An action so superlatively great as this de-
serves, said the monarch, the highest praises and the largest
rewards; and I would, young stranger, find how to rec-
ompense so much valor, if there be anything in my kingdom
that is worthy of your acceptance. If there be, demand it
boldly ; if it be even one of my daughters, I can refuse you
nothing. Utzim-Ochanti replied with great modesty to these
encomiums of the king. My lord, said the prince, a private
gentleman, as I am, ought not to aspire to the honor of your
alliance. I am not so ambitious ; but since your Majesty
has assured me of your esteem and goodness, permit me to
make one small request in favor of Gulguli-Chamami, which
is, that she may be set at liberty.
The king, my lord, was still more astonished to see this
young man set such a narrow bound to his wishes, which he
esteemed as nothing in comparison to those immense treas-
ures with which he was ready to honor him. Gulguli-Cha-
mami is from this moment her own mistress, replied the
monarch, embracing the prince, and I heartily wish she may
make you a suitable acknowledgment ; and I believe the
princess my daughter will not oppose my will. Gulpanhi
was almost choked with rage : the visible contempt the
prince entertained for her charms threw her into despair.
But being a perfect dissembler, she embraced the princess of
Tiflis with all the marks of tenderness and of sincerity, and
taking from her hair a cluster of jewels of a prodigious worth,
she joined this as a present to the liberty she had just ob-
tained. The beautiful Georgian was in the utmost confu-
sion ; joy and terror had successively made such impressions
151
on her mind that she had fallen into a swoon. She could
scarcely believe, when she recovered, that her dear prince
was alive, even when he informed her that he had obtained
her liberty.
They returned to the palace, and the king ordered an
apartment for the prince ; and being invited by prince Ata-
bak to a repast, that he might give Utzim-Ochanti the greater
pleasure he caused Gulguli-Chamami to grace the table with
her presence. But this princess was more attentive to the
behavior of Gulpanhi than to the honors which were paid to
the prince her lover. She remarked, in spite of all her ar-
tifice, something stiff and reserved in her looks and behavior;
and even her very jests had a tincture of that rancor which
predominated in her heart. In short, she was very uneasy,
as she was too well acquainted with the genius of this
malevolent princess. Supper being ended, and having
passed into a magnificent hall, they were entertained with
a fine concert of vocal and instrumental music. Gulguli-
Chamami took an opportunity to tell the prince not to come
to the place appointed in her letter, but gave him the key of
a wardrobe, which communicated with her apartment.
The concert being finished, the prince retired to the
chamber which they had prepared for him, and dismissing
all his attendants, he hastened to the wardrobe of the prin-
cess of Tiflis. As he was greatly fatigued, and not choosing
to be seen, he concealed himself under a table which was
covered with a large carpet, and fell into such a profound
sleep tnat the princess, after she had put Gulpanhi to bed,
entered the wardrobe without giving him the least disturb-
ance. As she did not perceive her lover had come, she
fancied he could not execute his promise ; but not despair-
ing of his appearance, she lighted two wax candles, and
placing them on the table, she lay down on a sofa, and fell
into a calm sleep ; but, my lord, how great was the surprise
of these two lovers when they were awakened by the violent
152
noise of a person falling with all her weight on the floor, and
whom they soon perceived to be the princess Gulpanhi, in
the very agonies of death. O heavens ! cried the prince,
dreadfully frightened, and creeping from under the table,
what fatal object is this ! Am I asleep or not? — Alas ! re-
phed Gulguli-Chamami, would to God it were a dream, it
would quickly be dispelled ! but, unfortunately for us, this is
a sorrowful truth. The princess, animated by revenge, has
entered my apartment with a design to deprive me of my
life ; but Heaven, who always preserves the innocent, has
given this event another turn. Judge you by these fragments
of this glass tube, and by the convulsions of the unfortunate
Gulpanhi. Watching for you, my lord, I grew sleepy, with-
out knowing you were so near ; and I slept quietly, whilst
the princess, with the help of another key, stole hither, with-
out doubt to put an end to my hfe. She had filled this tube
with a powder which was poisoned, and had then appHed it
to my nose, when suddenly awaking, I sneezed with such
violence that instead of receiving it in my nose, it went into
her mouth. According to all appearance, this poison is of
so subtle a nature that she fell backwards on the spot, and
as you see is just ready to expire.
The prince, being shocked with the blackness of this
deed, resolved to abandon the wretch Gulpanhi to her fate.
Let us fly from an object so full of horror, said he to the
princess, that we may elude the wrath of tlie king ; for
though we are entirely innocent, these appearances will
certainly condemn us. — Ah ! my lord, replied the princess,
how shall we fly? The gates of the palace are all guarded ;
but, continued she, casting her eyes on the prince's scarf;
yes, my lord, I perceive our remedy must spring from the
source of this evil. This scarf is enchanted, and will de-
liver us from perils wherever we are ; for it renders those
who wear it invisible till it is turned, and it was to secure
you from being slandered as you passed to and fro in the
153
palace, that the princess made you this extraordinary pres-
ent ; which virtue she had undoubtedly not yet explained
to you. The princess then put on the scarf, and became
invisible immediately, nor did she become visible to the
prince till she had turned it again.
While the two lovers were waiting for day, that they
might escape the king's resentment, the convulsions of
Gulpanhi redoubled. Her eyes emitted only a feeble kind
of lustre, which, upon fetching her last sigh, was forever
extinguished; she died in their arms, and a moment after
looked so horrible, that notwithstanding her former ill in-
tention, these two lovers could not refrain from tears. The
gates of the palace being at length opened, these lovers
made their escape by means of their scarf, and without
being perceived, walked to the next village, where they
refreshed themselves ; and then pursuing their journey, they
made no stop till they were clear of the dominions of king
Kusah. They had now time to rest, and the prince recol-
lecting the adventure of the ring, desired the princess to
explain the reasons which rendered it so precious to her.
It is a present, said she, which my grandfather Zal-raka
made me, and put it on my finger when he was dying, which
was a circumstance in the history of my life I had forgotten
to inform you of; he assured me that when my misfortunes
were drawing to an end, I should perceive in this ring as in
a glass in what manner I should regulate my conduct ; but
I was to take care that it did not touch a drop of blood, for
from that moment it would lose all its virtue. I know not
what possessed me to wear it at the combat of tigers, but
you now may judge of my distress when I dropped it from
my finger. I shall be forever obliged to you for the un-
paralleled proofs you then gave me of your love and in~
trepidity. — Permit me, madam, replied Utzim-Ochanti, to
examine this invaluable ring; besides, it is high time that
we should even consult it.
154
The princess then pulled out a little perfumed purse, in
which the ring was preserved ; she presented it to the prince,
pronouncing at the same time some mysterious words taught
her by her grandfather, when on a sudden it darted such
rays of hght that they were both of them dazzled with it for
some time. After the light had abated, the prince examined
the ring with great attention ; he beheld in miniature, and
in order, all the adventures of this princess. Here, king
Kusah was seen in all the agonies of despair for the death
of Gulpanhi ; a stately monument was erected to her mem-
ory ; and as these two lovers seemed to be the sole authors
of her death, a considerable reward was set upon their heads.
This new discovery which they had made of the virtue of
the ring rejoiced them exceedingly. They read in it every
day, if I may so speak, how they should conduct themselves ;
and regulating themselves by its instructions, they pursued
the road to Georgia.
They had now travelled more than two months, when for-
getting one morning to consult their ring, they had scarcely
proceeded a league, before there arose a great fog, which
quite obscured die day, and involved them in thick dark-
ness. This prodigy astonished our adventurers ; but the
prince having taken out the carbuncle which he had received
as a present from Ahmadi, it emitted such a bright light for
twenty paces round them, that they could easily consult
their oracle. If the carbuncle was useful to them on the
present occasion, how great was their grief to find by their
ring that they must shortly be separated, and would meet
no more till they had each of them surmounted several
dangerous adventures ! The idea of their separation drew
tears from their eyes, when in the midst of their grief, the
horse on which the prince was mounted suddenly took
fright, and in spite of all his efforts carried him out of sight.
The princess followed hirn for some time by the light of
the carbuncle, but that light ceasing, and it being very dark.
IS5
she was obliged to stay till it grew light, when in about an
hour after, the day began to appear again. The princess
was almost in despair for the loss of her lover ; to complete
her misfortunes the prince had carried away her ring, so
that she was at a loss what course to steer ; and after having
searched in vain for him, she resolved to direct her way to
the kingdom of China, where after a tedious journey she
arrived, not doubting his appearance there sooner or later.
CONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY OF GUL-
GULI-CHAMAMI, PRINCESS OF TIFLIS
Utzim-Ochanti, my lord, continued Ibn Aridun, had been
absent from his father above six years. The good king
Fanfur, believing him to be dead, was at length resolved
to give his kingdom a new heir. It was not more than
three months after the king had raised to his throne a very
beautiful slave, when Gulguh-Chamami entered Nankin, the
residence of the king, and the capital of China. As she
did not desire to be known, she concealed her sex under
the habit of a man ; but in spite of this disguise, that grace-
ful ease and charming air diffused all over her person ren-
dered her none the less observed by the inhabitants of
Nankin. Fanfur, with his new spouse, was standing at a
window in the palace the very instant the princess passed
by, and being desirous to know who this stranger was, sent
word that he should be glad to speak with him. Gulguli-
Chamami appeared before the monarch, and with a truly
charming air informed him that she was a son of a prince of
Georgia, and that she only travelled for pleasure, and that
she was called SufiFal, and should make no long stay at
Nankin.
The queen Kamsim (for that was the name of the slave
the king had exalted to his throne), was present when the
156
princess paid her court to Fanfur: she represented how
much beneath his grandeur it would be to suffer a stranger
of Suffal's rank to have apartments out of his palace. The
good king, following the example of persons at a certain
age who marry young women, was entirely governed by his
wife, and highly approved of this advice, which was given
rather from a principle of love, than of generosity, to Suffal
She could not but perceive a visible disparity between the
latter and her husband, and as she had never had any incli-
nation for the king, he appeared odious to her from this
moment, and her heart conceived a violent passion for the
young Suffal.
The favorable reception which the queen gave Suffal did
not give the least alarm to Fanfur, who, thoroughly satisfied
with the prudence of the queen, soon prepared apartments
for Suffal ; and the queen was not long before she disclosed
what passed in her own heart. Gulguli-Chamami, who had
attributed the kindness of this princess to quite a different
motive, was astonished at such a si^dden and pressing decla-
ration. She stood fixed like a statue; but the queen,
putting a too favorable construction on this silence, pursued
thus : I love you, my lord, said she, and I hate the king ;
and I am so powerful in Nankin, that if you are a man of
spirit and of resolution, it is easy for me to give you the
throne of China. I will myself poison the king; and I
only wait your approbation of the project. The princess,
trembling at this discourse, started back with horror. O
heavens ! madam, cried she, that such a base design should
ever enter your heart ! And can you believe me capable
of such an execrable attempt? Judge better of Prince
Suffal, madam, and know that I would not accept of a,
throne on a less condition than to punish you for a crime,
the bare mention of which has filled me with horror.
The queen of Nankin being convinced of her imprudence,
from that moment her love was extinguished, and rage and
157
vengeance took possession of her heart. Dissembling her
resentment, My lord, replied she, we easily forget our duty
when we are captivated by love, and you cannot but own
that the excess of my passion has put me upon forming this
strange project ; I thought the enjoyment of my person
alone was too little to offer you, and that a throne would
tempt you. It is a glorious thing to reign, and I cannot
put the crown on your head without the death of my spouse ;
but since you disapprove of my proposal, you may at least
be grateful for the goodness which a woman of my rank
has for you, and consider that a refusal can only be paid for
by death. The princess of Tiflis, besides the impudence of
Kamsim, remarked a great indignation in her countenance,
when the king entered the apartment of the queen. His
unexpected arrival greatly disconcerted Kamsim. She was
so confounded, and the princess in such a disorder, that
the king was not able to comprehend the cause of their con-
fusion. What is this, madam, said he to the queen, which
I perceive in your countenance, and in that of prince Suffal ?
Does my presence disturb you ? — No, my lord, internipted
the queen very briskly, taking her resolution on the spot.
If you see me in a surprise, it proceeds from this young
hero's proposal. He has come, continued she, to throw
himself at my feet in order to obtain your permission to
fight with the blue centaur, which will appear to-morrow
before the city gates ; and he declares he will lose his head
if he does not conduct him alive to one of your prisons.
Though the princess of Tiflis trembled at the beginning of
this discourse, she immediately took the hint, though she
was an utter stranger to the blue centaur. My lord, said
she to Fanfur, I do not retract my word to the queen, and
I earnestly beg that you will not oppose the design I have
conceived to rid you of this monster. The king was aston-
ished at this resolution of Suffal, and at first opposed his
design. I admure your intrepidity, said he, but I greatly
158
doubt the success of your undertaking. But since the queen
has desired niy consent, go, my lord, and be well assured
that an ample reward attends the execution of so dangerous
an enterprise.
STORY OF THE BLUE CENTAUR
You are to understand, my lord, pursued Ibn Aridun,
that not far from the city of Nankin there stood a little
mountain, at the foot whereof was a cavern, from which, for
five years past, on a certain day, issued forth a blue centaur,
who, approaching the gates of the city, carried away with
him both cows and oxen: several arrows had been dis-
charged against him, but to no purpose, for his skin was
harder than iron. The king had several snares set, all of
which he eluded with great address, and though that monarch
offered considerable rewards for him either dead or ahve,
nobody was able to seize him ; and all who had endeavored,
perished in the attempt. But to return to Gulguli-Chamami.
This princess, after she had saluted king Fanfur very respect-
fully, retired to her chamber, and having informed herself
of the history of the blue centaur, rightly conceived that it
would be much easier to circumvent him by some artifice
than to seize him by force. With this view she resolved to
avail herself of Gulpanhi's enchanted scarf, which luckily re-
mained with her in the moment of her separation from the
prince of China ; and at length hit upon the following expe-
dient which I am going to rehearse to your Majesty. She
demanded of the king of China a chariot to be drawn by two
strong horses, some large iron chains, four great copper ves-
sels, a tun of the best wine, and some cakes made of the
finest meal. Fanfur having complied with these demands,
the princess ordered them to be laid in the chariot, and
being directed to the place where the centaur made his re-
159
treat, on the eve of the preceding day she went thither in
her chariot ; and having placed the vessels on the ground,
filled them with the wine she had brought, and having scat-
tered the cakes ibout piece-meal, she retired to a little
neighboring wood, where having turned her scarf, she passed
the night in great tranquillity.
As soon as the morning began to dawn, the princess
awoke, and from the place where she was concealed, dis-
tinctly saw the blue centaur coming out of his cavern. He
was amazed to see the four copper vessels, and the odor of
the wine drew him near; but first he tasted some of the
pieces of the cake, and finding them to be exquisitely good,
he greedily devoured the rest, and after that, swallowed all
the wine. He had taken in such a large quantity of the
wine, that being thoroughly intoxicated, he could stand no
longer, but was soon obliged to lay himself down on the
earth, and fell into a profound sleep. The princess of
Georgia perceiving this, ran quickly to secure the blue cen-
taur ; with the chains she bound him so fast, as to render it
impossible for him to break them, should he exert all his
might; and having with some difficulty fastened him to her
chariot, she mounted it herself, and then moved towards the
city, whose gates were opened to receive her. The rum-
bling of the chariot dissipating by degrees the fumes of the
wine the centaur had swallowed, he appeared in the utmost
astonishment on perceiving himself bound ; and when he
found that all his efforts to obtain his liberty availed him
nothing, he lay down to be conducted like another beast.
All the inhabitants of Nankin were struck with terror and
admiration : Gulguli-Chamami alone appeared upon the char-
iot with the blue centaur, modest and serene. They had
advanced a good way into the city, when their march was
interrupted by the funeral of a young Chinese, whose father
wept bitterly for his death, while one of the bonzes, who
conducted the funeral pomp, chanted merrily a kind of hymn
i6o
in praise of Rama and of Vishnu. The bhie centaur raised
his head at that instant, and having for some time attentively
surveyed the ceremony, he burst into such a violent fit of
laughter as almost deprived him of his breath, and at the
same time threw the princess into the utmost consternation.
The princess, as we observed, beheld with surprise this
sudden sally of mirth. But she had not proceeded far be-
fore it was considerably increased, for in passing through a
great place, the centaur broke out again into louder fits of
laughter at the people, who looked with pleasure on a young
thief fastened to a gibbet, and who was just going to be
turned off. The more the centaur laughed, the more the
princess was astonished. They continued their course amidst
a prodigious throng of people ; but when they arrived before
the palace of the king, nothing was to be heard for some
time but the shouts of the people, crying : Long live ! long
live the brave courageous Suffal ! at all which the centaur
laughed more loudly than he had done before. The king
upon these acclamations descended into the court of his
palace, leading the queen by the hand. The centaur fixed
his eye steadily upon the queen, and then upon the ladies of
her train, and having successively surveyed them all, he set
up such peals of laughter afresh, that the king, with his whole
court, were beyond measure astonished.
Fanfur asked the princess why the centaur laughed so
neartily; she replied, she could not tell, and then related
to him all that had passed since he was taken. Upon this,
the king asked the centaur himself, but received no answer.
The centaur was then put into a double iron cage, secured
with two keys, one of which the king kept himself, and gave
the other to Gulguli-Chamami ; both of them failed not to
visit the centaur twice a day, and treated him with all the
kindness he could possibly receive.
Kamsim, who reckoned herself sure of Suffal's overthrow,
was strangely surprised to see her designs defeated. The
i6i
sight of this accomplished princess rekindled her passion,
and being resolved to attempt the conquest of her heart
once more, she sent for her, under pretence of congratulat-
ing her upon her late victory. Gulguli-Chamami was forced
to obey ; she attended the queen, who was alone, and in her
cabinet. You see, my lord, said this vile woman, that in
seeking your life, I have covered it with glory : but let this
experiment sufifice. I love you in spite of your rigor, and
must freely own that, if you had fallen a prey to that mon-
ster, I should have died with grief. But if your heart is not
softened, I have other means to effect your ruin. Leave
then your stubbornness, my lord — No, madam, interrupted
Suffal, the ascendency you have over the king, joined to all
your threatenings and entreaties, shall never force me to for-
feit my honor. Abandon all hopes of ever seducing me, and
tremble and fear lest in the end I should advertise the king
of your ungovernable passion. These remonstrances ren-
dered the queen quite outrageous. Perfidious ! said she,
thou shalt insult my beauty no longer ; at the same time she
scratched her face, and cried out with all her might ; then
commanded tlie eunuchs whom her cries had brought thither
to seize Suffal, while she ran all in tears to the king, to de-
mand justice upon the prince of Georgia, for endeavoring to
violate her honor.
Fanfur, being prepossessed with the seeming modesty of
his wife, never doubted the truth of her complaints. He
was in a violent passion with Suffal, and without further
inquiry, loaded her with chains, and conducted her to the
prison where the blue centaur was confined. He reproached
her with her attempt upon the honor of his queen, assuring
her that she should shortly be put to a most shameful death.
As soon as tlie centaur heard these threatenings, he laughed
so violently, that the vaults of his prison perfectly echoed.
The king was now more surprised than ever. This extraor-
dinary laughter redoubled his curiosity, and he desired hiro
II
1 62
to explain the reason upon the spot, and declared that if he
did not deceive him, he should be set at liberty ; otherwise,
he should be put to death before the day expired. The blue
centaur, flattered with the hopes of liberty, and frightened
with the thoughts of death, approached to the bars of his
cage. King of Nankin, said he, will you keep your word ? —
I swear by my head that I will, replied the king, astonished to
hear the centaur speak for the first time. — Assemble then
in this place, rejoined the centaur, the grandees of your
court, the queen and all her slaves without exception, and I
promise in their presence to give you all the satisfaction you
can desire.
The king, who had a great desire to know the cause of his
laughter, instantly summoned his whole court before the
blue centaur. The assembly being completed, the king
called upon the centaur to keep his word, but he refused to
open his lips until Suffal was unbound. This desire being
executed, he thus addressed himself to Fanfur. King of
Nankin, if I laughed heartily at the funeral of the little child,
it was to see his reputed father weep so bitterly, while one of
the priests, who, it seems, was the real father, maintains a
criminal correspondence with the good man's wife. He
sang with all his might at the solemnity, nor could he forbear
laughing to himself at his mistress's husband's sorrow for the
loss of a son he himself had begot. Again, who could for-
bear laughing on seeing a thousand thieves, who every day
rob, over and over again, the public of immense sums, — who,
I say, could help laughing at hearing them extol your justice
in executing a young man whom necessity had forced to
steal ten dinars, for the support of himself, his wife, and chil-
dren, whilst they for their extortions ought to have been in
his place ? \
Here the centaur stopped, and seemed as if he would pro-
ceed no further ; but on the king's urging him afresh, he
repUed : King of Nankin, do not compel me to come to a
163
further explanation ; I had rather be silent than discovei
things which will infallibly torment you. The king, who was
now more curious than ever, replied, However disagreeable
what you have to say to me may be, I conjure you to dis-
cover all you know. — Well then, replied the centaur, how
could I keep from laughing with all my heart, to hear the
people shout : Long live the brave Suffal, the heroic con-
queror of the blue centaur ! when, at the same time, I knew
that habit concealed a beautiful young virgin, for whom your
son, who is not dead, entertains a strong passion?
If Gulguli-Chamami, my lord, blushed at this discovery,
a livid paleness covered no less the face of the queen, whom
the king beheld with indignation. As she stood near the
iron cage, the centaur seized her arm. Cruel and lascivious
woman, cried he, your deceit is but in part discovered to
that monarch. When I renewed my laughter, it was to see
you attended by a train, who are all privy to your debauch-
eries ; and when the innocent Sufifal was unjustly accused
and imprisoned, had I not sufficient cause? Since it is
impossible a woman could have her honor attempted, who
takes so little care of it ; for there are two men concealed
among your slaves, who daily disburden you of the litde
tenderness you have for the king. As these were truths easy
to be discovered, Kamsim was ready to die with fear. The
king caused her to be taken from his presence, and in spite
of Gulguli-Chamami's intercession, condemned her, with her
two gallants, to be burnt alive, and then ordered all her
slaves to be strangled. But, madam, said tlie king to the
princess, how shall I repair the injustice which a blind pas-
sion for Kamsim hurried me to commit against you? Happy
should I be if my son, my dear son, whom I have so long
lost, to whom I understand you are so dear, would by his
unhoped for return acquit me to you, by sharing with so
charming a princess that crown whose weight, since his
absence, has weighed me down ! The remembrance of
1 64
the prince of China drew tears from Gulguli-Chamami's
eyes, when the centaur, who was now set at liberty, thus
spoke. King of Nankin, said he, cease to afflict yourself;
and do you, fair princess, dry up your tears ; your sorrows
shall soon terminate in the return of a dutiful son and a
faithful lover. Go, meet the prince, who, while I am now
speaking, is entering Nankin. Saying this, the centaur
arose like a cloud, and vanished from all their eyes.
The king and the princess could scarcely contain them-
selves with joy. The centaur had performed such wonders
as left no room to doubt the truth of this agreeable news ;
they went directly to meet the prince, and found him sur-
rounded with the people, who testified by a thousand cheer-
ful shouts the joy they conceived for his return. Utzim-
Ochanti would have thrown himself at his father's feet, but
that monarch prevented him, and tenderly embracing the
prince : O my son, said he, what showers of tears has your
absence caused me to shed ! But I forget all that is past,
and think only of what has befallen me to-day. — I am not
ignorant, my lord, of all your sorrows, replied the prince,
and in what manner they are terminated by the princess of
Tiflis. A celebrated enchanter, who assisted me to punish
the persecutor of this adorable princess, has informed me
of all that has passed in your court. He was so firmly at-
tached to my interest that he concealed nothing from me
within the compass of his art, and then he transported me
hither with inconceivable rapidity, after he had apprised
me of the just revenge you had taken on the perfidious
Kamsim's infidelity.
It is impossible to express the pleasure the princess felt
from the return of her lover. She was no longer afraid
of losing him again, since she received him now as the
vanquisher of the perfidious Bizag al-Kasak. She then
expressed an ardent desire to be acquainted with the par-
ticulars of this glorious victory ; when, after he had entered
165
the palace, and had recited to his father all his adventures
from the moment of their separation, he continued his his-
tory in the following manner :
CONTINUATION OF THE TAIE OF UTZIM-
OCHANTI, PRINCE OF CHINA
You very well remember, madam, I could not govern
my horse ; for in spite of all my endeavors, he carried me
out of your reach. It is true, the light of my carbuncle
dispelled the darkness which covered the earth, but my
horse ran at such a rate, that I could scarcely distinguish
the objects that surrounded me ; yet, as far as I can remem-
ber, the road on each side was full of dangerous precipices,
so that I could not proceed without running the hazard of
falling with my horse to the bottom. After all, I am not
sure whether the ground failed under his feet or not ; but
falling from his back, I rolled nearly a quarter of an hour
without stopping, and after remaining senseless for some
time, I found myself on a green turf, near the mouth of a
frightful cave. It was doubtless a good while before I re-
covered from the swoon my fall had occasioned, and when
I came to myself, I saw nothing near me but these pits. I
entered the cave by the light of my carbuncle ; I walked
nearly an hour, and met with nothing but reptiles of all
kinds, which fled before me ; at last I came to a rock, which
shone so bright that it looked as if it was set with diamonds ;
on the top thereof sat an ape of a fiery color. As soon
as this animal saw me, he descended from the rock, and
prostrating himself at my feet, bestowed on me a thousand
caresses.
As I was afraid of being surprised, I had drawn my sabre
at the entrance of the cave. The ape made signs to me to
Strike the rock in that part which shone brightest : I did
i66
so, and it immediately split in two, and discovered a black
marble staircase, with steps of solid gold. I did not hesi-
tate, continued the prince, to follow the ape, who had now
become my guide ; and having descended nearly five hun-
dred steps, we arrived at a large hall, illuminated with
twelve crystal lamps, in the midst of which was raised a
tomb of white marble, whereon were represented several apes
in different attitudes. This sight surprised me not a little,
when I beheld the living ape sprinkle some water on them,
which he drew from a fountain in one corner of the hall ;
they started up and bore him in triumph to the basin, and
all plunged together into the fountain. This fantastic cere-
mony surprised me greatly ; but while I was impatiently
waiting for the event, there arose out of the tomb a man of
gigantic size in a coat of mail. He advanced towards me
with his sabre drawn ; I prepared to defend myself, and
after a very obstinate fight, I threw him to the ground, and
on going to unlace the straps of his armor, how great was
my astonishment to find I had all this time been only en-
gaged with an empty piece of armor, artfully disposed, with-
out a body to occupy it !
An enchantment of this kind very much surprised me.
I then collected all the straps which laced this armor to-
gether, and throwing them into the fountain, my ears were
immediately saluted with soft symphonies of music, after
which I beheld several men and women, who had been
changed from those apes and monkeys who had before
plunged into the fountain. At the head of this company
there appeared a man of a very majestic stature, clothed in
a long robe of the color of fire, embroidered with gold, and
adorned with pearls and diamonds. He accosted me with
a noble air. My lord, said he, I have waited impatiently
a long time for you, to put an end to an adventure on which
the future happiness of both our lives must depend ; since
in delivering my spouse from the cruel Kazak, and by
16/
destroying that monster, you will effectually re-establish the
princess of Tiflis in her dominions, and become possessed
of that charming person. You stand amazed, my lord, to
hear that I am acquainted with your passion, but this wonder
will cease when you know who I am ; and seating me on
a sofa near himself, he thus began :
STORY OF BIZ AG AL-ASNAH
My name is well known among the enchanters, they call
me Bizag al-Asnah ; not that I am more beautiful than
another, but to distinguish me from my brother, Bizag al-
Kasak, whose surname was given him to denote the depravity
of his manners. His power has been always superior to
mine, by means of evil jinnis with whom he holds a close
correspondence, and who have inspired him with an extreme
malice, that I was always unwilling to attain.
There dwelt near us a beautiful virgin, called Sahik. I
had often visited this damsel, and finding a mutual sympathy
of inclinations, we soon discovered it by a mutual esteem for
each other. As you know, my lord, the close connection
between love and esteem, the latter was soon swallowed up
in the former. I proposed to bind our hearts with the most
sacred ties, she consented, and a day was set for the conclu-
sion of that ceremony. Though there was but little cor-
respondence between my brother and me, I thought it would
be civil to acquaint him with our intentions. He not only
approved of the match, but must needs settle our nuptials
himself. Though I well knew he was capable of the blackest
designs, I imagined that he would at least regard the ties of
blood, little dreaming of the bloody treasons he has of late
executed against me.
We enchanters are in general partly on a footing in point
of science ; we can neither destroy nor hurt the designs of
i68
each other, except it be on our wedding day, and then, dur«
ing that time only, we are deprived of our power, unless we
espouse a fairy or an elementary spirit, which does not make
us degenerate ; for this cause we seldom match with simple
mortals, and when we do, it is with as httle noise as possible.
My perfidious brother took this advantage ; either he was
enamoured of my wife, or his own evil inclination disposed
him to act so by me ; he had the assurance to accost Sahik
in a very unbecoming manner. This I at first attributed to
his folly ; but perceiving my presence set no restraint to his
insolence, I resented it. He then rallied me for a jealous
fool, and in short extended his impudence so far that losing
all patience I was going to fell him to the ground with my
sabre, to prevent which he touched me with his wand. Be
not so rash, he cried ; though I am not disposed to stain my
hands with your blood, I will punish you in a way which
shall more sensibly affect you. Be transformed into an ape
of the color of fire, and become a witness to the happiness I
intend to enjoy with your spouse. No sooner had this per-
fidious brother uttered these words than I took the figure of
the ape which conducted you hither. The traitor received
no other treatment from the amiable Sahik but what testified
her horror and aversion. He then caused this marble tomb
to rise out of the earth, in which he enclosed that armed
enchanted figure you defeated, and after he had changed all
my retinue into apes and monkeys, he caused the palace in
which our nuptials were celebrated to sink deep into the
earth, and conducted me to the top of this shining rock,
where I have been confined upwards of a year. Judge, my
lord, what anguish I have sustained in that cruel situation.
Your valor has already indeed terminated my misfortunes in
part, and there remains no more than to break the enchant-
ment of the tomb, to effect which you must seize on the
golden chain ; but before you proceed, you must refresh
yourself after the combat you have been engaged in.
i69
CONCLUSION OF THE ADVENTURES OF
UTZIM-OCHANTJ, PRINCE OF CHINA
I FOLLOWED the enchanter, continued the prince, into a
cabinet, where I soon recruited the strength and spirits I
had lost, with a magnificent collation ; afterwards we returned
into the hall, and as soon as I had seized on the golden
chain, there fell from the ceiling two fiery globes ; each of
these opening in the middle, discovered a monster in human
form from the waist upwards. These two monsters ranging
themselves on each side of the tomb of white marble, en-
deavored to hinder my approach ; when, behold ! there
arose out of the middle of the tomb a pillar, on which was
engraved in letters of gold, " Strike, iDefcat, 2)c6ccu»j."
This incident greatly encouraged me, though I had resolved
to engage with the two monsters ; and, being aided by the
enchanter, whose blows were all well timed, we vanquished
every obstacle ; for the fiery globes and the two monsters
were swallowed up ; and on my approaching the pillar, both
that and the tomb, from the bare touch of my sabre, were
reduced to a powder.
We went down a kind of trap-door, and descending a
staircase hewn out of the rock, were conducted to the banks
of a river, whose waters were very black. Here we found a
little boat, furnished for a long voyage with all sorts of pro-
visions. The enchanter and myself entering the boat, put
off, and falling down the stream, arrived about a month after
at the mouth of a cave into which these waters were dis-
charged. Though the current which brought us thither was
very rapid, we were five days in crossing it by the light of
my carbuncle ; and we did not recover the light till about
that time. We then moved but slowly, and coasting along
the banks, beheld at a distance two women bathed in tears
running towards us ; we beckoned to them, and making
I/O
directly for the shore leaped out upon dry land and joined
them immediately. Ah! my lord, cried one of them, if you
have any pity for the beautiful Sahik make haste and rescue
her from the perfidious Kazak. He has persecuted her a
whole year, and she is resolved to suffer immediately the
most cruel death rather than espouse the barbarian. — As the
charming Sahik has defended herself so well, it is time, my
lord, cried I, addressing myself to Bizag al-Asnah, to revenge
the treason of your perfidious brother ; let us fly to the res-
cue of your beautiful spouse, and not spare a monster. — I
am infinitely obliged to you, interrupted the enchanter; but
there is another method, more sure and less dangerous, for
my revenge. Kazak is so blinded with his brutal passion
that he thinks no more of me. I intend he shall proceed so
far as even to marry my dear princess ; then, as soon as he
has divested himself of his power, I shall punish him for his
wickedness to me. This resolution the enchanter committed
to writing, and instructed Sahik at the same time so to be-
have that Kazak might be effectually ensnared ; and gave
what he had written into the slave's hands who had come to
implore his succor. Carry this, said he, to your beautiful
mistress, and tell her here is a remedy enclosed for all her
misfortunes. The slave was out of sight in an instant, and
acquitted herself forthwith of her commission ; and upon
Sahik's opening the letter she was ready to die with joy to
find her dear spouse had recovered his primitive shape.
Kazak entering her apartments, she dissembled her senti-
ments admirably. Well, my lord, said she, with an air that
appeared serene, since I must resolve, I consent to marry
you this day, provided you abstain for three days from con-
summating the marriage rites ; my hand is yours on that
condition only. — Ah ! madam, replied Kazak, transported
with joy, I swear by all the tenderness I feel for you, your
will shall be obeyed, and may I be forever deprived of my
power if I once violate my oath ! Upon this assurance
171
Sahik espoused him, and he adorned his nuptials with every
pleasure his art could furnish or his fancy devise.
During this interval Kazak omitted nothing which might
divert the princess, who grew very uneasy till the return of her
real spouse. At last, to the dreadful astonishment of Kazak,
we entered her apartment. He would fain have fled, but
his brother prevented that, and touching him with his wand :
Stay, traitor, cried he, and make a suitable acknowledg-
ment of thy crime. As soon as Kazak found his feet fixed
to the floor so that he could neither advance nor retreat,
he grew so outrageous that without discovering the least
remorse, he uttered against his brother everything rage and
despair could possibly suggest. Transported beyond all
bounds, I cried : This is too much, my lord, to be any
longer endured, this wretch has lived too long ; and so,
without regarding the interposition of his brother, I struck
off his head. The enchanter had no sooner expired than
all the people of his retinue, who groaned under his ty-
ranny, threw themselves at his brother's feet to implore
his clemency. He received them very graciously, and
having transported us in an instant to his palace, he ban-
ished by his presence sorrow, which had long reigned
there. After he had indulged in a few moments' tender-
ness with his spouse, he conducted me in an instant to
Tiflis, where having assembled the states of your kingdom,
I declared to them the death of the usurper, and at the
same time renewed in your behalf those oaths of allegiance
they owed to you. He then informed me of the cruel trial
that the infidelity of Kamsim had put you to for having
slighted her love. He instructed me in the victory you
obtained over the centaur, who, it seems, is an enchanter,
and was condemned for some fault to waste nine years under
that form, unless he should happen to be overcome by the
address of a virgin, by whose means he might obtain his
liberty. After this, Bizag al-Asnah bore mc with inconceiva-
172
ble swiftness through the air, and landed me at the gates of
Nankin just in the instant when the flames were putting a
period to the hfe of the perfidious Kamsim.
This narration wonderfully delighted the king and the
young princess. My dear son, said the good father, I can
defer your happiness no longer ; I am too much obliged to
this amiable princess not to admit her with joy for my
daughter. But this is not all ; I will forthwith surrender into
your hands the kingdom of China, and I will — No, no,
ray lord, replied the prince, embracing his knees, you shall
by no means quit your throne. If ambition had been my
ruling passion I need not have wanted for a kingdom, where,
I can truly say, I might have enjoyed the affections of the
people ; but I parted from thence without regret, purely
for the sake of re-visiting you. The kingdom of Tiflis is
sufficient to bound my utmost views ; but if my advice has
sufficient weight with the princess, I had much rather, my
lord, be the first subject in your court than reign in Georgia.
Gulguli-Chamami was so charmed with this truly noble be-
havior, that her will seemed to be entirely resolved into
that of the prince ; and Fanfur was forced to give way to
their united instances, but on this condition, however, that
the prince should share the diadem with his father ; and as
this latter would be obeyed, Utzim-Ochanti was proclaimed
king. He then espoused the princess of Tiflis, and enjoyed
complete felicity with that charming lady, uninterrupted by
those accidents to which the lives of princes are so subject.
Here the new wazir stopped, and Shams al-Din declared
himself highly satisfied with his discourse. Thy conversation
enchants me, said the monarch, embracing him; but, my
dear Ibn Aridun, how is it possible that all these adventures
occur to your memory ? I am surprised to hear with what
ease you have related the history of the prince of China,
tof^ether with all those which are comprised in this narration.
173
— Ah ! my lord, replied the son of Abu Bakr very modestly,
I rather apprehend from your Majesty's observation, that
I ought to have been less prolix in my narrations, and that
I should have passed on to the histories of the prince of
Alcim and of the young princess of Borneo ; this I perceive
myself. But to this is owing the suspension of those ad-
ventures which could not be so well related till those of
Utzim-Ochanti were all unravelled. — Never mind that,
replied the king of Astrakhan, I shall not lose the thread of
your narrations. I well remember how ingeniously you
brought Gulpanhi back to the hall just as the princess of
Tiflis was going to rehearse the history of Faruk the corsair,
and I observed at the same time you did not explain by
what means this princess lost the protection of that brave
man, so as to become Gulpanhi's slave. — This, my lord,
replied Ibn Aridun; was a circumstance I purposely omitted,
in order to shorten the history of that corsair. But as your
Majesty desires to be instructed, I will tell you how the
beautiful Georgian became the slave of Gulpanhi.
The calm which had lasted so long ceased at length, and
one night when the ship was under full sail the princess was
attacked with a great sickness at her stomach ; she walked
out upon the deck to take the air, and bending over to dis-
charge what offended her stomach, a sudden squall of wind
throwing the ship on that side, she fell into the sea. It was
very dark and they did not perceive the loss of the princess,
but hearing something fall into the water the pilot imagined
it v/as one of the seamen ; several planks were directly
thrown overboard, one of which the princess happily gained,
and she floated about between life and death till break of
day, when a little vessel, hastening to her succor, took her
up. The master of this vessel was a dealer in slaves, and
though the lady was half dead he perceived, as she was very
beautiful, she would bear a considerable price ; with this
174
view he took great care of her, and the capital of the king-
dom of Kusah being the first port he landed at, he sold her
to the princess Gulpanhi for eight hundred dinars of gold.
Thus, my lord, you have heard all the adventures of this
beautiful princess, continued the son of Abu Bakr ; and as
for those of Faruk, if you please, they shall be postponed
a few days longer. Meanwhile, I shall begin such an enter-
taining story as I dare say will highly amuse and divert
your Majesty. — Proceed, then, my dear Ibn Aridun, re-
plied the king, and you will oblige me infinitely. The new
wazir being permitted, resumed his discourse in the following
terms :
STORY OF AL-KUZ, TAHAR, AND THE
MILLER
There lived at Baghdad two young merchants, who had
contracted from their infancy such an esteem and friendship
for each other that they were never asunder. Everybody
talked of the friendship of Al-Kuz and Tahar, and as they
had neither of them a father, and were their own masters,
being resolved to be more closely connected, they entered
into partnership, and in less than three years they made a
very great gain. Tahar, as he was talking one evening with
Al-Kuz, observed that he was thoughtful. What, said he, is
wanting to your happiness ? Our stock is increased fourfold,
and our warehouses are stored with the best commodities ;
yet I have observed for some days past that you are very
melancholy, and that you seem to delight in nothing but
solitude. Am I not worthy, then, to be intrusted with your ,
secrets ? — Ah, my dear Tahar, replied Al-Kuz, I am
ashamed to confess my weakness to you, which, if it were
possible, I would even conceal from myself; but I feel it has
an absolute power over my heart. Do you know Bahul the
175
Barber, who lives not far from Baghdad bridge ? — Yes, re-
plied Tahar; he is better known by his daughter's being
reputed the handsomest girl in all Baghdad than by the
lively repartees which have gained him the name he is called
by ; and I begin to think by your sighing that you are not
insensible to the charms of that adorable girl. — You have
guessed right, returned Al-Kuz, blushing, I love the beautiful
Lira, and I shall go distracted if I do not enjoy her ; and I
believe from the conversation which has passed between us,
i am not wholly indifferent to her. I wavered, you see,
whether I should acquaint you with my passion, fearing it
might make some alteration in our friendship. — I know,
replied Tahar, that matrimony will deprive me at least of
one half of your friendship. But, my dear Al-Kuz, I prefer
your satisfaction to my own, and I will go and endeavor to
promote your happiness. As you know, my mother had the
honor to give suck to Ja'afar, first wazir to the illustrious
Hanan al-RashId, the sovereign Commander of the Faithful,
during the sickness of that Barmaki's mother, which hindered
her from suckling him. I intend to use his authority with
Bahul, and then I am sure to obtain the consent of the
beautiful Lira. Al-Kuz, tenderly embracing his friend, con-
jured him to lose no time, and the wazir engaging in the affair.
Bahul soon consented to the marriage of Lira to Al-Kuz.
This couple loved each other beyond example ; fruition
rather renewed than extinguished the ardor of their passion ;
and they showed such frequent and strong marks of perfect
love ill the presence of Tahar, that he could not forbear
envying the good fortune of his friend. The innocent ca-
resses the wife of his friend bestowed on him, inflamed him
to such a degree, that to avoid being unfaithful to Al-Kuz, he
resolved to take his leave of this tender pair. Accordingly he
departed, under some pretence, for a few days, but in spite of
the resolution he had taken, he was unable to preserve it long :
he sank under the restraint he laid upon his passion and in
176
trying to extinguish it, he fell a prey to a dangerous distemper.
Al-Kuz and Lira never quitted the bolster of Tahar's bed ;
but they were so far from contributing to his recovery, that
their presence increased rather than abated his disorder, which
grew so violent, that the most eminent physicians in Bagh-
dad despaired of his life. Tahar being on the point of death,
both Al-Kuz and Lira wept bitterly at the imminent danger of
their friend. His youth, however, and the strength of a good
constitution overcame the distemper, but left him in a very
weak condition.
The partnership which subsisted between these dear
friends obliged one of them to go and setde some affairs in
Cairo. As Tahar was too weak to undertake this vo)'age,
Al-Kuz was obliged to go himself ; and after he had made
the necessary preparations, he took leave of Tahar, and
recommended his dear Lira to his care, whom he tenderly
embraced, with his eyes all bathed in tears ; then parting for
Bassorah, he embarked in a vessel which was going to Cairo.
Tahar, far from complying with the intentions of his friend,
no sooner saw him depart from Baghdad than he took as
much care as possible never to be alone with his wife ; but
at last this beautiful creature, observing his behavior, which
appeared rude to her, said to him one evening : You always
avoid me, and she took him at the same time tenderly by
the hand. Since Al-Kuz's absence I have been considering
if I have done anything to displease you ; but I cannot com-
prehend the meaning of the coldness which appears in your
behavior. Such a conduct is really injurious as well as un-
kind ; and I desire you will either treat me with less reserve,
or else tell me wherein I have offended. Tahar was in the
utmost confusion at this remonstrance ; the tears which he.
shed without daring to look upon Lira, touched her in a
most lively manner. She pressed him to come to an ex-
planation ; but Tahar, throwing himself at her feet, conjured
her not to put this violence on his inclinations. Urge me no
177
more, madam, said he, to open my heart ; you will regard
me as the vilest of men, if I discover all that passes in it,
since neither the sacred ties of friendship, nor the near ap-
proaches of death, can triumph over a criminal passion ; and I
feel that — Stop, Tahar, cried Lira, in the utmost confusion,
I begin to understand you now. How is it possible that you
could forget your obligations to my spouse, so as to conceive
a passion so prejudicial to my honor? Ah ! if this be true,
let me be forever ignorant of it. — No, madam, replied
Tahar, it is no longer time to dissemble ; I confess I am a
traitor, a villain ; but I am so in spite of myself, for I have
used every effort I was master of, to extinguish these lawless
flames. I would have died the most cruel death, and I con-
demned myself to an eternal silence, but you forced me to
speak ; however, I shall soon punish myself for having in-
vaded the rites of the strictest union. Here, glancing his
eyes by accident on Lira, and perceiving she was thoroughly
incensed, such was the violence of his grief, that he sank at
her feet in a swoon. To this at first she seemed insensible;
but pity at length getting the better of her just resentment,
she did all she was able to restore him to his senses, and the
unhappy lover, feebly opening his eyes, saw how anxious she
was for his recovery. Let me die, madam, said he, tenderly,
your assistance is cruelty ; and my life after having offended
you has become odious to me, and I quit it without regret.
He then fell into another sv/oon, and Lira verily thought
he had but a few moments to live.
Hitiierto, my lord, pursued Ibn Aridun, I have drawn you
a beautiful picture of this lady's conduct ; but as there some-
times occur moments when the virtue of certain women is
reduced to a dangerous crisis. Lira notably proved this truth.
Terrified at the resolution of her lover, and softened by the
excess of his passion, she made a sudden transition from the
violence of her resentment to the most lively transports of
tenderness. What has Al-Kuz done for me equal to this?
178
she cried that moment to herself. He never loved me half
so much as Tahar does, or he would not for the sake of a
little paltry gain, which he could easily have slighted, have
undertaken a voyage from which he is not likely to return
for a twelvemonth. It is done then, my dear Tahar ; I will
both hve and die for you ; and since you died for me, I
sacrifice to you without further scruple all the tenderness I
entertained for Al-Kuz, and which he so little merited. Live
then, my dear lover, and live for Lira. These protestations
of this beautiful person, my lord, were accompanied with
caresses so touching that Tahar soon recovered from his fit ;
and the extreme surprise he was in, to find himself enclosed
in the arms of his mistress, who perfecdy overwhelmed him
with the most lively marks of her passion, quickly restored
him to his senses. He thought he ought not to neglect an
opportunity so favorable to his love, and forgetting his obliga-
tions to his friend, and taking advantage of the weakness of
his beautiful spouse, he became at length the complete con-
queror of her affections. The sacrifice which Lira made of
her virtue was attended, however, with some degree of shame
and remorse ; but as this was not a time to refuse anything
to her lover, those impressions were easily effaced ; his ten-
der and respectful behavior was such, that she thought no
more of Al-Kuz than if he had never been her husband.
Entirely given up to their passion, they dallied away
nearly a year in the enjoyment of those pleasures, which
appeared to them to be always new ; and not content with
seeing each other every moment, they must needs express
their love by the most passionate letters they could devise.
Thus losing their memory, the one of his friend, the other
of her spouse, neither of them ever dreamed of his return
from Cairo. Al-Kuz, however, little as they expected him,
returned to Baghdad, after he had terminated his affairs at
Cairo. Though his presence was not very desirable, they
received him with open arms and deceived him with their
179
caresses. His long absence made him fancy that his wife
looked more charming than when he parted from her ; not
a moment escaped without his bestowing on her some marks
of his tender affection, and so far was he from suspecting
her fidehty, that he furnished her with frequent opportuni-
ties of being alone with Tahar.
One evening as Lira lay reclining on her sofa, she was
seized with a violent headache. To assuage this she wanted
to apply a kind of distilled water, which was reckoned an
excellent remedy for such disorders ; but being distracted
with pain, she gave her husband without a thought the key
of a little cabinet, where the bottle was which held this water.
Al-Kuz, who tenderly loved his wife, ran to the cabinet, but
he had no sooner gone than Tahar was surprised to see his
mistress tearing her hair. Ah ! said she, my life, my dear
love, we are utterly ruined ! My imprudence will be the
future source of our misfortunes. I have been so thought-
less as to give my husband the key of my cabinet wherein
all the letters lie in which you have expressed the liveliness
of your passion. Al-Kuz in his rage will doubtless spare
neither his wife nor his friend. Tahar was vexed to the
last degree, but being a man of great presence of mind, he
ran after Al-Kuz, and the closet door being open he saw
him reading one of these letters ; then shutting it softly upon
him, he double-locked it and stole away with the key, while
Al-Kuz's surprise at the infidelity of his wife and friend was
too great to suffer him to attend to the motions of the
latter. Tahar went direcdy where the cash was kept, and
taking all the gold he could find, fled away with Lira to the
first village which offered, where being mounted on two
horses, they pursued their journey all night, till they were
gotten more than twenty leagues from Baghdad.
In the mean time Al-Kuz, having read all Tahar's letters,
which left him no room to doubt of his misfortune, took a
dagger, and would have descended directly to pierce the
i8o
heart of his wife, but to his great surprise found the door
locked upon him. He called to his slaves to come and
open the door ; the key was not to be found. Al-Kuz, en-
raged at this, ordered it to be broken open, which being
done, he ran directly to the hall where he had left his wife,
but neither she nor her lover was to be found ; he was in-
formed that they had both gone together in great disorder.
He went to the place where the cash was kept, and finding
his coffers empty he threw himself on the ground, and his
cries terrified the boldest of his attendants. None of his
slaves durst demand the cause of this fury, but being recov-
ered from his first emotions, he sent them about their busi-
ness. Whatever may be my unhappiness, said he, let me
act with prudence on this delicate occasion, and not expose
myself to ridicule. I am, it is true, said he, betrayed by my
friend, and my wife is unfaithful ; and this is a sore afflic-
tion, I must own. But ought I to bear myself the punish-
ment of their guilt? No. Let them groan and die under
a sense of their perfidy ; the loss I have felt to-day is not
so considerable as wholly to obstruct my future happiness.
Then banishing Tahar and Lira suddenly from his mind, he
despised them so much that he never once thought it worth
while to pursue them ; but leaving them to their destiny,
he apphed his mind as usual to his business ; and sought
to repair in the embraces of other women the loss he had
sustained.
Six months had now elapsed since the departure of Tahar
and Lira, when Al-Kuz was advised of the death of one of
his correspondents in the East Indies. As that man was
considerably in his debt, and had never settled with him,
he was resolved to go thither and settle his accounts with
the heirs of the deceased. With a view to this he left his
effects in the hands of his nephew, in whom he entirely
confided, and embarked at Bassorah, in a vessel which he
had loaded with sundry kinds of merchandise. They touched
i8i
at several isles, where Al-Kuz bartered his goods at an ad«
vantageous rate, but especially for diamonds, which he
always preserved in a leather purse in his girdle. A sudden
storm overtook them at length, and after the ship had for
some time borne up against the winds and waves, she un-
fortunately foundered. During the tempest Al-Kuz happily
laid hold of a plank, and in spite of the winds floated two
days and two nights ; at last he was tlirown on an island,
which appeared to him to be wholly uninhabited. Being
almost dead with hunger, he ate some fruits that grew wild
and which were of a delicious taste ; and marching after-
wards nine days without meeting with any habitation, he
arrived towards the close of the tenth on the banks of a
little river, which he crossed by swimming, and descended
a charming fine meadow, which led to a noble city called
Brava.
As Al-Kuz made but an indifferent figure in point of
dress, and fearing to be insulted, he declined entering
the city till night. After he had refreshed himself with the
remainder of those fruits he had brought with him, the
coolness of his situation invited him to rest ; and as it was
a good while since he had enjoyed a comfortable repose,
he fell into a profound sleep, out of which he did not wake
before the night was far advanced, when he was suddenly
awakened. A dreadful fire, which reflected its blaze from
a fine house that stood detached from the city, quickly
opened the eyes of Al-Kuz. He immediately ran to afford
his assistance, and hearing several frightful shrieks from
within, took up a great piece of timber which lay before the
street door, and having broken it open, and also two others
which communicated with the apartments of the women,
they were happily rescued from the flames, and saved them-
selves without staying to thank their deliverer. After this
he penetrated into a Httle closet, whose door he drove in-
ward ; here he perceived an old woman half burnt, and a
1 82
young lady of exquisite beauty, almost naked, but more
beautiful than any he had ever seen, fainting away by her-
self ; and taking her in his arms he carried her in the con-
dition in which she was to the place where he had slept.
This young woman, whom he imagined the smoke had
suffocated, was no sooner restored to the fresh air than she
opened her eyes. The day appeared, and she was surprised
to find herself in the country ; but being informed by her
deliverer how she came there, she beheld him with less re-
luctance, and began to consider him as the only person to
whom she owed her life. She told him her name was Salle ;
that her father, who had been dead three years before, was
a rich jeweller, and that she lived with her mother and some
slaves in that house which was now burnt. She then ex-
pressed great uneasiness about the fate of her mother, and
having learned from Al-Kuz that he had seen the body of
an elderly woman half consumed in the closet from which
he had saved her, she no longer doubted her loss, and
abandoned herself to the most lively sorrow. Al-Kuz did
everything he was able to console this beautiful person ;
he returned with her to her mother's house, which was now
entirely reduced to ashes. This mournful spectacle drew
a fresh torrent from her eyes, and reduced her to the ut-
most misery. Al-Kuz, who began to conceive a violent
passion for her, conveyed her from this fatal place, and
conducting her into the city of Brava, at once provided
new habits both for her and for himself, by the sale of one
of his diamonds, and having hired a house ready furnished,
he carried her thither ; and in a few days after repaired her
losses by buying in her name the house in which she lodged,
and presenting her with a young slave.
The person of Al-Kuz, my lord, was very well made : he
had saved the life of Salle, and his conduct to her was such
as excited her gratitude. He passed several months with
this beautiful creature in the softest and most endearing
delights, and learned with excessive joy from her own lips
how deeply her heart was impressed with his tenderness.
Never was Al-Kuz in such a happy situation before. The
caresses of a mistress are of quite a different nature from
those of a wife, and Salle continually bestowed on him such
lively marks of her love that he had reason to think he was
the most beloved of all men. But though the passion he
entertained for this lady was very great, yet as the conduct
of Lira had inspired him with a general distrust of the whole
sex, he watched the actions of his mistress so narrowly that
he thought he beheld her not altogether indifferent to a
young man of Brava who passed frequently through her
street, and whom she often seemed to regard with more
than ordinary attention. Whatever regret he felt, he dis-
covered nothing of his suspicions to his mistress ; but one
evening this youth, more indiscreet than usual, had placed
himself opposite to the door of Salle's house, who, as she
was at her window, appeared highly delighted with his ges-
tures and manner of expressing his passion. Al-Kuz could
not govern his passion ; he descended hastily into the street,
and running abruptly to this giddy-headed youth, gave him
such a violent blow that he fell to the ground. The youth,
astonished at this treatment, got up directly, drew his sabre,
and made furiously at Al-Kuz. But he having more strength
and address than his antagonist, with two strokes of his sabre
put an end to the combat, and left his rival all bathed in
his blood.
The cries which Salle made when she saw the bloody
condition of her new lover alarmed all the neighborhood.
As there was now no safety for Al-Kuz in Brava he fled
directly, and having gained several by-streets, which con-
ducted him to one of the city gates, he stopped a little, not
knowing what course he should take ; but being informed
that the young man whom he had wounded, and perhaps
killed, was a person of consequence, he judged it would be
1 84
very improper to return to the city. He had about him,
besides the greater part of his jewels, a purse full of gold.
Travelling with these all night and several days afterwards,
he arrived at length at Barboa. Here he embarked on the
river Quilmanca, which empties itself into the Oriental
ocean, and pursued his voyage to the Indies. There he
arrived without any accident, and having settled his accounts
with the heirs of his correspondent, he made a purchase of
pepper, cinnamon, and amber, by which he gained cent, per
cent. Afterwards being re-embarked, he returned without
any accident to Bassorah, whence he sent by land his mer-
chandise to Baghdad ; but stayed at Bassorah for some time
to recover from the fatigues of his voyage.
One evening as he was walking out of the gates of the
city he drew near to a mill, and observing the miller's wife
to be very pretty he became passionately in love with her.
He accosted her without ceremony, and then made her a
declaration of his love, accompanied with a very handsome
ring, which he put on her finger. He found she was not
averse to his wishes. Come here, said she to him, in the
evening ; my husband will be absent three or four days, so
that we shall pass away the time together very agreeably.
In the mean time I will go and prepare something for supper.
Al-Kuz returned to his lodgings; he bathed himself and
changed his habit, and returned towards sunset to find the
miller's handsome wife ; the neatness of her dress was suffi-
cient to inspire him with delight, and she received him with
the most passionate caresses. In short, my lord, they had
dallied away a part of the night, when on a sudden the door
of the mill was opened, and they saw a man habited like a
merchant enter the chamber. The miller's wife looked at
Al-Kuz with great surprise, and turned pale at this sight.
She arose to excuse herself to this nevy'-comer, but he an-
swered her with a blow, and followed it with several other
insults. Al-Kuz, highly provoked with this brutal behavior,
I8S
seized the man by the collar. As neither of them was armed,
they could only scuffle with their fists. But the miller's wife
interposing between them, how great was their surprise when
they, on surveying each other with a little more attention,
found that one was Tahar and the other Al-Kuz ! This
latter was in a rage at seeing the former, and calling his
treason to mind in that instant, was just going to throw a
joint-stool at his head, when Tahar, perceiving it, prostrated
himself at the feet of Al-Kuz. My brother, said he to him
with great submission, I confess myself guilty of the blackest
perfidy. I have merited death for robbing you of the affec-
tions of Lira ; but, if you were to know what I have suffered
during my absence, and with what remorse 1 have been
agitated, you would undoubtedly pardon me a crime which
I committed in spite of myself.
This submission of Tahar, being attended with a flood of
tears, wrought greatly with Al-Kuz. As he believed he had
entirely forsaken Lira, he threw himself on the neck of his
friend. I pardon thee, Tahar, said he, and whatever reason
I had to hate thee, it shall never more be said that a woman
dissolved so amiable and so long a friendship as ours. But,
prithee, now tell me, what has become of Lira ? — Ah ! re-
plied Tahar, embracing his friend, I conjure you to inquire
no more about a person whose memory perhaps is still dear
to you. — No, no, returned Al-Kuz, Lira does not in the
least trouble me ; her infidehty has entirely effaced her from
my heart, and to convince you of the little regard I have
for her memory, let us return with this miller's wife to the
table, and, since she is disposed to divide her favors between
us, let us both love her without jealousy, and drink to the
good health of her husband. The miller's wife soon poured
out some drink, and peace being restored, all three returned
to the table, and Al-Kuz and Tahar, with glass in hand,
swore to maintain an eternal friendship with each other.
After the wine had a little enlivened their spirits, the
1 86
miller's wife renewed the conversation. Though Al-Kuz,
said she to Tahar, is incurious to know what has become of
his wife, or to be informed of what passed between you two,
I conjure you to tell me without further delay. As for him,
I am persuaded he will hear you without pain ; and I shall
consider this recital as an ample satisfaction for the violence
you have committed. Tahar, however, hesitated to gratify
her request ; but when his friend assured hira that Lira had
become so indifferent to him that his passion for her was not
only absolutely extinguished, but that he would see that the
history of her infidelity would not so much as make a change
in his countenance, he proceeded to inform him in the follow-
ing terms : —
I shall, my dear friend, pass lightly over the passion I felt
for Lira. The beginning of it had wellnigh been fatal, since
it brought me to death's door. I was not master of my des-
tiny ; the beautiful Lira triumphed over my resolutions. I
would rather have died than have betrayed my friend ; and
her imprudence in trusting you with the key of the coffer
where all my letters were, obliged me to fly with her, to
avoid your just vengeance. Although my mind was often
tormented for my perfidious treatment of you, I expected to
be very happy with Lira. But, alas ! I had never sufficiently
studied the character of this woman. How great soever that
passion was which she testified for me, I soon perceived a
coquettish air to run through all her actions, and wlierever
we went, this foible seemed entirely to possess her whole
behavior. I spoke to her about it several times, whenever
she vouchsafed to hear me on the subject. At last : Tahar,
said she to me, smihng, it is extremely unkind to become
jealous. Canst thou doubt of my tenderness, after I have
done so much for thee? Go, my dear, set your heart at
ease, for I love you only, and do not tease me with your un-
just suspicions. These words were so far from being satisfac-
tory, that they stung me to the quick ; and yet I bore them
i87
with patience. After we had passed through several cities,
we arrived at length at Visapur. I took a resolution to setde
there, and hired a house, handsomely furnished, from a Jew,
which stood in a very agreeable quarter, but I did not ob-
serve what a dangerous neighbor I had. An amorous hand-
some young Hindu lived, it seems, in the next house to mine.
I watched both Lira and him for some time without seeing
anything suspicious in their behavior ; but unexpectedly, one
evening, entering the hall where Lira used to pass the whole
day, I was in the utmost surprise to see a man slip behind
the hangings of the wall, and endeavor to pass through an
opening that communicated with the next house. I ran after
the man, and seizing him by the foot, brought him back into
the hall, and soon discovered him to be the young Hindu
who had given me so much uneasiness. I then seized Lira
with my other hand, and after having reproached her for her
infidelity in the sharpest terms rage and fury could dictate, I
was preparing to punish the affront the young man had
offered me, when Lira threw herself betwixt us. Hold,
Tahar, said she, in a very haughty tone, restrain yourself a
while, and remember that you deserve at least the same chas-
tisement. Learn to respect the man I love. What right
have you to control my actions? Am I your wife? Am I
your slave ? And ought you to hope, in our situation, that
I must be more faithful to you than I have been to my hus-
band? If you think I love you better than another, you are
under a mistake ; my inclinations are not to be forced, and
my heart is just now fixed upon this new lover, till I shall
think proper to dispose of it in favor of another.
This assurance of Lira struck me with such astonishment,
that I remained some time motionless • and the young Hindu,
taking advantage of this, escaped through the hole in the
wall, and before I could speak a word, closed the breach
with some planks. Recovering my speech at last : Lira,
said I to her, very calmly, I did not suspect your bosom en*
188
closed a heart so black ; but since you have thought propel
to take off the mask, let us break off all further correspond-
ence. Let us divide the rest of the money, and separate for-
ever. Lira received this proposal with joy. I had still nearly
seven thousand dinars left. I gave her one half, and quitted
her without regret. I departed from Visapur fully con-
vinced of the infidelity of all women, and with a resolution to
despise them. I then embarked at the first seaport, pursued
a voyage to Arabia, and arrived at Brava, where, as soon as
I landed I went to a tailor's shop to be provided with some
new clothes. I bargained with him for a complete suit, and
after I had paid him, I was going from thence, but on my
way I observed, on the other side of the street, two women
in veils, sitting on a stone bench ; one of them appeared to
be in a swoon, and the other endeavoring to recover her. I
at once offered my services, which were accepted. Taking
the sick lady under my arm, I conducted her, with the help
of her slave, to her own home. We entered a little house
very well furnished, which by its appearance seemed to be-
long to some private person. We laid the lady on a sofa,
and her slave lifting up her veil for the sake of air, how was
I ravished, my dear Al-Kuz, at seeing one of the most beau-
tiful persons in the universe ! Dazzled by this charming
object, all my resolutions vanished in a moment. I fell
deeply in love with this young beauty, and heartily sympa-
thizing with her offered her everything in my power. Sir,
replied the charming creature, with her eyes bathed in tears,
I have just lost the man who was going to complete my hap-
piness by a union with me, if a brute in my presence had
not put an end to his life. We were to have been married
to-morrow ; and my lover, according to custom, was coming
to visit me about the time of evening prayer, when a per-'
fidious Mohammedan, who waited for him at the corner of a
neighboring street, gave him two blows with his sabre, which
laid him dead at his feet. At my cries tiie villain fled. I
1 89
descended hastily into the street, and saw as they were carry-
ing him home bathed in his blood, that the angel of death
had seized his soul. Behold, sir, the real cause of my grief 1
The young lady, then renewing her tears, discovered a despair
so violent, that I began to apprehend her life was in danger.
I never left her ; and when she was put to bed, stayed by
her with her slave all night to comfort her. The next day
she appeared more composed ; and having thanked me for
the care I had taken, she fixed her eyes steadfastly on me,
and burst forth into a fresh torrent of tears. I was surprised
at this new affliction, and upon demanding the cause very
respectfully : Ah ! sir, said she, sobbing as she spoke, the
more I look upon you, the more I see my sorrows aug-
mented. The features of your face bear such a lively resem-
blance to those of my lover that I cannot behold you without
being softened for the irreparable loss I have sustained.
From this similitude of features, continued Tahar, I took
care to insinuate myself so far into her affections that she
began to forget the death of her former lover.
Whatever prudence the example of Lira had inspired me
with, I believed I should now be the happiest of men if I
could espouse a lady whose heart appeared so well formed.
This resemblance of features, which I mentioned, did my
business effectually ; and in fine, I was so favorably attended
to, that I became the spouse of this beautiful creature, with-
out having sighed for her more than eight days. Never did
I taste such perfect pleasure as I enjoyed with my new
spouse ; and to add, if possible, to my happiness, she told
me some days after our marriage that she was with child.
This news redoubled the ardor of my passion, and she
appeared so superior in wit and beauty to all other women,
that I was forever bestowing on her fresh marks of tender-
ness. But though my wife made very affectionate returns, I
found that all my caresses could not entirely dissipate a mel-
ancholy which hung on her spirits. As I imputed this to the
190
loss of her former lover, I took no notice of it ; but it was
not long before I discovered the true cause.
Returning ^home one evening, about three months and a
half after we were married, my wife, who had some days
before been slightly indisposed on account of her pregnancy,
complained of a violent colic. I did not perceive that my
presence embarrassed her ; on the contrary, such was my
tenderness, that when she desired me to retire into another
chamber, I would not quit her for a moment. But, my-
dear brother, how was I surprised, when in the midst of
her pains, I perceived she was delivered of a girl ! I became
more cold than marble. O heavens ! I cried, after I had
recovered a little from my astonishment, am I then to be be-
trayed by every woman I love ! Perfidious Salle, continued
I, addressing myself to her — How! interrupted Al-Kuz,
was your wife named Salle? — Yes, my dear friend, returned
Tahar. — And did she not live in the Banker's street, oppo-
site a lemon-merchant, in a little low house ? — Right, re-
plied Tahar, and this house her lover, she said, who was
killed the very evening I arrived at Brava, had given her
ready furnished. At this, my lord, continued Ibn Aridun,
Al-Kuz laughed so heartily that he fell backwards, and re-
mained so long in that posture that Tahar and the miller's
wife were surprised to the last degree. What is there in
all this to be laughed at? replied Tahar; I do not say,
indeed, you ought to be afflicted — What, my dear brother,
interrupted Al-Kuz, laughing more heartily than before, was
this woman, who mourned the loss of her lover so tenderly,
and whom you afterwards married, and who in three months
and a half was so happily delivered in your arms, the very
Salle that lived in the Banker's street? Oh ! my dear friend,
a history so singular as this deserves to be transmitted down
to posterity. You must understand, my poor Tahar, that
this little girl, which thy wife would have fathered upon
thee, was of my begetting. Salle, without being my wife,
T9I
gratified my warmest wishes, after I had rescued her from
a fire which had consumed her own house ; and it was I
who furnished her witli thai she occupied at Bra\'a. A new
lover having engaged her, I was so transported with jealousy,
that with two blows of my sabre I mortally wounded him.
This obliged me to provide for my own safety, and to leave
Salle, who had been pregnant above four months and a
half.
An adventure so singularly rare surprised Tahar, He
then recalled to his mind that of Lira. Now we are even
with each other, cried he, laughing with all his might. —
Yes, my dear friend, replied Al-Kuz, embracing him, there
is no room left for reproach, since our revenge has become
mutual. — It is beyond comparison, said the miller's wife,
and you see, instead of being offended, this accident alone
has amply revenged you of your rival. — I assure you, re-
turned Al-Kuz, the characters of these women are so extra-
ordinary, that they have almost destroyed our tenderness
for them ; and this double trial of them may make us wise
for the future. Let us henceforth fly all such engagements
with the sex. Let us put upon a footing with ourselves
those sots, who securely repose on the deceitful caresses of
their wives ; and, among that number, let us begin to place
the husband of this charming creature. The two friends,
after they had embraced this new proposal, swore never to
quit each other. Tahar then continued his history, and
informed them that such was his vexation at having been
so cruelly deceived by his wife, that he left her immediately,
without taking his leave ; and being resolved to forsake
Brava, he embarked for Bassorah, and arrived there about
a month ago, during which time he had carried on a tender
engagement with the miller's wife, without being aware that
it would end in his being reconciled to Al-Kuz.
Al-Kuz and Tahar, after making themselves very merry
with their adventures, upon all which the miller's wife
192
heartily rallied them, had disposed themselves to pass the
rest of the night very agreeably, when the miller, who had
finished his affairs sooner than he expected, arrived very
abruptly at the mill. Great was the astonishment of all
parties ; and the miller, who saw how well the table was
spread, little expected to find his wife in such good com-
pany. But she informed him that these two gentlemen,
being overtaken with a shower of rain, had desired shelter
in the mill, which she thought it would be uncivil to refuse ;
and that, the rain continuing ever since, she had given them
a collation. He seemed satisfied with this excuse, though
he was inconceivably enraged. He had before now sus-
pected the fidelity of his wife, but as the proofs were not
very strong, he had dissembled his resentment. Having
sent for fresh wine, he sat down at the table with his guests,
who made him drink as long as he was able to.
It being now too late for Tahar and Al-Kuz to return to
Bassorah, when they got up from table the miller conducted
them to a chamber, in which was a pretty good bed, where
they reposed themselves, waiting for the return of day. The
miller then went to his own bed, and was just going to he
down by the side of his wife, when he observed she was
buried in a profound sleep. As a thirst for vengeance en-
tirely occupied his mind, he went down into the stable, took
the halter off his mule, and slipping it round his wife's neck,
was on the point of strangling her, when happily for her she
awakened in the very moment he was beginning to execute
his cruel design, and artfully slipping her hand between the
halter and her neck, without making the least noise, she
affected to be as stiff as a person deprived of breath, and
made the miller, who was all this while in the dark, believe
she was quite dead ; he being afraid of being punished,
stayed no longer in the mill, but mounting his mule forth- "
with, fled as fast as possible from Bassorah- The miller's
wife no sooner perceived her husband had left the mill, than
193
she arose in a very trembling condition, and locked the
doors after him ; she lighted her lamp, and went to awaken
her two guests, who had fallen into a sweet sleep. She
acquainted them with the danger she had undergone, and
then showed them her neck, on which were impressed the
marks of her husband's cruelty.
Tahar and Al-Kuz were surprised at this resolution of the
miller's. If every loose woman were to be punished thus,
said Al-Kuz, whispering to his friend, we should never find
halters enough. But, my dear friend, continued he, raising
his voice, let us leave the mill directly ; the miller will un-
doubtedly accuse us of the murder of his wife, and though
she can readily confute him, it is best for us not to be in-
volved in such an affair. — That is right, replied Tahar;
but must we leave behind the miller's beautiful wife ? — ■
No, no, said she, I will follow you wherever you go, pro-
vided you can accommodate me with the habit of a man. —
This may easily be done, continued Tahar, and as we are
pretty near of a size, if you will come to my lodgings in
Bassorah, we shall find a complete suit. This resolution
being taken, the miller's wife stript the mill of everything
they could conveniently carry away, and set out with her
lovers as soon as it was light to Tahar's lodgings, where the
lady being disguised, they passed several days with great
pleasure.
Al-Kuz and Tahar shared together, without jealousy, their
good fortune. But Al-Kuz, who had sent his merchandise
to Baghdad, fearing a further delay would retard the sale,
and diminish the price of his wares, proposed to Tahar to
take their route to that city. The miller's wife followed them
thither, and as they travelled but slowly, it was nearly ten
days before they arrived at the end of their journey, which
happened to be in the evening, just as the gates of the city
were going to be locked. This obhged them to take up
their lodging in the suburbs ; but as they were going to the
13
194
first caravanserai that offered, they were overtaken by a
violent shower of rain, and leaving their horses to the care
of a slave they had bought at Bassorah, they ran to seek a
retreat, and leaned back against a little door, over which
there was a kind of pent-house. The rain, being no more
than a sudden shower, was soon over ; but as our three
adventurers, who waited till it was fair, that they might go
and seek a lodging, were thus supporting themselves against
the door, which probably was not well hung, the weight of
their bodies forced it off the hinges, and all three tumbled
backwards on the ground. The noise occasioned by the
falling in of the door with our three travellers, together with
their loud laughing at this accident, alarmed three persons
who lay on one bed in a lower apartment, and who de-
manded in very high tones why they disturbed their repose.
The two friends and the miller's wife approached the bed to
see who spoke to them. They perceived by the light of the
moon, which now shone full upon the bed, a porter lying
between two handsome women, who, as well as the porter,
immediately hid their faces under the covering. Al-Kuz
and Tahar renewed their laughter at an adventure so uncom-
mon as this. Their curiosity being excited, they forced off
the covering ; but how unutterable was their astonishment,
when these two women were known to be Salle and Lira!
Perfidious, infamous wretches ! cried the two friends at once,
do you carry your debaucheries to such a length, as to take
up with a rascally porter? Then, drawing their sabres, they
were going to sacrifice their wives and the porter to their
just revenge, when the miller's wife, hastily rushing between
them, cried out : Ah ! gentlemen, suspend your rage a little,
and look well at the features of that man, whom a double
amazement has thrown into a swoon. I will then give you~
no further interruption, if you think well to follow the first
amotions of your blind resentment.
Al-Kuz and Tahar had so much complaisance for their
195
mistress as to govern their rage, till they had examined the
porter ; and having discovered who he was, in spite of the
paleness of his face, they were now both ready to die with
laughter. They threw down their sabres, and redoubled
their laughter to such a degree, that their wives were con-
vinced their lives were out of present danger. And taking
advantage of this sudden change of humor in their husbands,
of which they knew not the cause, they threw themselves
from off the bottom of the bed, and prostrating themselves
at their feet, implored, in a trembling manner, a pardon for
all their crimes. But the porter had no sooner opened his
eyes, and turned them towards his disguised wife, than he
closed them again, believing without all doubt that the devil
had come to carry him away. Sirs, said she, laughing with
all her might at the porter's imagination, I no longer hinder
you from following your first resolutions : I leave you to
consider whether in justice you ought not be revenged on
this man. — No, no, replied AI-Kuz, talk no more of re-
venge ; on the contrary, this is a pleasant adventure. Be-
hold ! we are all three upon a level, and since the miller
(for it was no other than himself) has lain between our wives,
we have no more grounds of complaint against him than he
can have against us ; it is but just to admit him into our
friendship, and we will share our fortunes together, as we
have done our wives. The presence of Lira, unfaithful as
she has been, has revived the remainder of a love, not wholly
extinguished in the heart of her husband. I go, said he to
Tahar and to the miller, who by this time had come to him-
self, I go to set the first example of perfect reconciliation.
Then raising his wife, whose confusion had made her speech-
less, he embraced her tenderly. Lira, said he, I forget all
that is past, and will not even be informed of your conduct
since your infidelity, lest it should renew that wound, of
which I would not have the least mark remain. I desire my
two companions to do the same ; and I do not doubt but
)
196
that they, from my example, will sincerely pardon their wives.
Tahar and the miller, without opposing Al-Kuz, tenderly
embraced their wives, and were perfectly reconciled to them.
After several mutual and lively caresses, these three extraor-
dinary couples could not look upon themselves without
recalling everything that had passed between them ; a thous-
and circumstances of their adventures, each more pleasant
than the other, which passed through their minds, afforded
them excessive matter of mirth.
The Caliph Harun al-Rashid, pursued Ibn Aridun, whom
I had the honor to mention to your Majesty, frequently used
to walk out in the night disguised, with his first wazir Ja'afar,
and Masrur the chief of the eunuchs. He passed by just at
the time that this singular adventure was transacted ; and
the loud laughing exciting his curiosity, he entered the house
(which was wide open) without ceremony, and civilly saluted
the four men, for the miller's wife by her dress still appeared
to be one. Gentlemen, said he, as your mirth seems to be
grounded on something extraordinary, pardon my rudeness
if in entering without your permission, I desire to share a
part of your pleasure. I love dearly to laugh, and you can-
not oblige me more than by acquainting me with the object
of your mirth. Al-Kuz and Tahar turned their eyes directly
to their wives, and perceiving that both blushed, and that
the request was not agreeable to them, they desired the
Caliph, in handsome terms, to excuse them the recital of an
adventure which it was their interest to conceal. The Ca-
liph, my lord, pressed them no further ; but as this place was
very incommodious to pass the night in, he offered them one
more agi-eeable, which stood at a little distance. They ac-
cepted his kind invitation, and following him to the walls of
the city, he led them through a subterranean passage into it,
and conducted them to a little house, very decently fur-
nished. A handsome collation was instantly served up, with
some excellent Greek wine, of which he made them drink
197
heartily ; and when the Caliph perceived it began to operate,
he again desired them to acquaint him with the cause of
their extraordinary laughter. Al-Kuz and Tahar would fain
have concealed their adventures from this generous man ;
but as the miller threatened to publish his in spite of their
opposition, AI-Kuz informed the Caliph of everything I had
the honor to relate of these six married persons. Hariin al-
Rashi'd, who had never heard a history so singularly interest-
ing as this, thanked his guests for their complaisance ; and
in order to further his pleasure at their expense, he caused
them to replenish their glasses, into each of which he com-
manded Ja'afar to infuse a certain kind of powder, which
had the virtue of laying them asleep for twelve hours, not
sparing even the wazir himself, nor Masrur ; and, having
ingeniously given each his dose, they presently fell asleep.
The Caliph then called up two mutes, and ordered them to
lay these eight persons on a chariot which had been brought
there by his orders, and then conducted them two leagues
from Baghdad, to a very fine house on the banks of the
Tigris, which belonged to the surveyor-general of his build-
ings. Here he caused the three men and their wives to be
stript naked in his presence, and, having put on them fresh
linen and fine drawers, he commanded them to be put, two
and two, into three beds, which were fitted up under one
alcove. After this, he painted the grand wazir all black with
his own hands, and causing him to be clothed like a slave,
and Masrur like a woman, he placed them on a Persian car-
pet, near the men and their wives ; the Caliph then hid him-
self behind a curtain, and waited impatiently for the time
when they should all awake. These eight persons recovered
from their stupefaction almost at the same time, but espe-
cially Al-Kuz, Tahar, the miller, and their three wives.
They were amazed to find themselves in bed, in a place to
which they were utter strangers, and to see likewi-,^ the rich
embroidered robes which seemed to be designed for their
198
use. They considered all this as a dream, with silence and
astonishment, when the wazir, seeing the chief of the eu-
nuchs in a woman's dress, burst out laughing. Good-mor-
row, my pretty brunette, cried he, how have you slept
to-night? The eunuch, having observed his garb, was for
some moments perfectly confounded, but as soon as he had
taken a strict survey of the wazir he laughed as loudly on
seeing how black he was painted. Good-morrow, handsome
black, replied he, merrily, one may see by the freshness of
your countenance that you have had a sound sleep.
This answer surprised the wazir, who examining his hands
and his slave's dress, mused some time upon this pleasant
adventure, and not being able to recollect anything of the
room he was in, was at a loss to comprehend the meaning
of his own and of the eunuch's disguise ; but, remembering
the three men and their wives to be present, he immediately
determined how to act. This is doubtless, said he to him-
self, some new frolic which the Commander of the Faithful
has contrived to please his fancy ; we will humor the jest,
and endeavor to make him merry with the scene we are to
act. Then embracing Masrur in a jocose manner: My
lovely companion and light of my eyes, said he, let us fol-
low the example of these happy married folk ; I promise to
restore you my affection, if you will be more faithful here-
after ; but if ever I surprise you with the handsome Zamtud^
who was with you yesterday, I swear I will either stab or
poison you in revenge of your perfidy. The chief of the
eunuchs, amazed at this behavior of the wazir, and looking
steadily at him: Are you mad, Ja'afar? said he. Have
you forgotten who you are ? — No, my dear Zulicah, replied
Ja'afar, I remember perfectly that I am Chapur, your faith-
ful spouse ; why do you pretend not to know me ? Have
you forgotten since yesterday the goodness of our master
Sa'ad, who reconciled us together? And did you not prom-
ise him never to see your spark Zaratud again? And do
199
not you remember to have heard the history of these gentle
husbands, whom he engaged to come and live with him, and
from whose example I am induced sincerely to pardon your
past behavior, on condition that you are more faithful for
the time to come ?
The more seriously the wazir talked, the more Masrur
believed him to be out of his wits, and yet neither could
account for this strange metamorphosis. What senseless dis-
course is this, my dear friend? replied the eunuch. Compose
yourself, and remember that I am Masrur, the chief of the
eunuchs of the sovereign Commander of the Faithful, to
whom you are the grand wazir ; cease then this pleasantry,
and suppress — You mistake, interrupted Ja'afar ; you are
mad to think so ridiculously ; I wish you would come to
yourself; but the wine you drank yesterday has confounded
your ideas. Remember that we are no more than the poor
slaves of Sa'ad, who is certainly the best master in all Bagh-
dad. Ja'afar, on pronouncing these last words, was going
to embrace Masrur a second time ; but this last, rudely re-
pulsing him, cried out : You are mad yourself; and I appeal
to these good people whether we had not yesterday tlie
honor to accompany the Caliph in his nocturnal ramble ?
Did not we go with him into a house in the suburbs of this
city, being led by the extraordinary laughter of this com-
pany? Did not we engage them to pass the niglit in a
house close to the palace, where we had an excellent col-
lation, and where they entertained us with their adventures,
which were very extraordinary ? Did not we infuse into
their wine a powder, which laid them instantly asleep?
What! am I now dreaming? And are you not distracted.
or is not your mind at least disturbed with the fumes of
the wine, of which you yesterday drank too plentifully?
Al-Kuz, Tahar, the miller, and their wives, my lord, who
listened in profound silence, were in the utmost astonish-
ment to hear this dispute between the wazir and the eunuch.
200
They were not unacquainted with the frequent and comical
adventures of the Caliph : but Ja'afar and Masrur were so
perfectly disguised that they imagined them to be the two
slaves who had attended him whom Masrur said was the
Caliph.
In the mean time, Hariin al-Rashid, who was concealed
behind the curtain, beheld with infinite pleasure all that
passed between these eight persons. He could scarcely
forbear laughing to see the chief of the eunuchs torment
himself on account of the obstinacy with which Ja'afar in-
sisted that he was his wife. I am not, said the eunuch
again, your dear Zulicah, neither is Zamtud my spark, nor
do I believe there are in all Baghdad any such persons.
You are certainly still drunk. If you are not, I cannot tell
what pleasure you can take in wearying my patience ; and
though I cannot devise how we came by these clothes, yet
I am sure my name is Masrur, and that I am the chief
eunuch to the Commander of the Faithful ; and in spite
of that sooty complexion, the features of your face declare
you to be no other than Ja'afar, the grand wazir. It is
true, I am not able to comprehend how we and these three
couples were transported to this strange place, yet in spite
of these delusions, which can never alter our state, I shall
always be Masrur, and you will never cease to be Ja'afar.
Though Al-Kuz, Tahar, and the rest, bore no part in this
conversation, yet they were thoroughly provoked at the
obstinacy of the eunuch, who could not be brought to ac-
knowledge Ja'afar for his husband. This last, who played
his part to perfection, at length pretended to fall into a
furious passion with Masrur, He had already cuffed him
with his fists, which the other bore very gravely, when the
Caliph, who was clothed like a merchant, and had hitherto
restrained his laughter, entered the chamber where this
merry scene was exhibited. Zulicah, said he to the chief
^eunuch very gravely, v/hy does your husband still retain
20I
these marks of resentment? Did not you both promise
me yesterday to live in perfect union? Are all your prom-
ises come to this ? Some fresh subject of jealousy, occa-
sioned, I suppose, by the handsome Zamtud, has authorized
Chapur to treat you in this sharp manner.
The sudden appearance of the Caliph, the discourse he
held with Masrur, and the name Zulicah which he had given
him, so disconcerted the eunuch, that he was at first struck
dumb ; but on recovering from his surprise, he quickly per-
ceived the Caliph had diverted himself at his expense, and
that Ja'afar had acted the wisest part. He then burst out
laughing : My lord, said he to the Commander of the Faith-
ful, prostrating himself at his feet, I am clearly convinced
Ja'afar has a hundred times more wit than I have ; but I
esteem myself happy, if through my foolishness your Majesty
has for a few moments been agreeably entertained. — I
should have been very sorry, my dear Masrur, replied the
Caliph, if you had discovered the same presence of mind
as Ja'afar has done, as it would have deprived me of an
infinite pleasure. But now as we have taken off the mask,
I should be glad to know how Al-Kuz, Tahar, the miller,
and their wives, relished your dispute. — Sovereign Com-
mander of the Faithful, replied Al-Kuz, for decency would
not permit him to prostrate himself with the rest before the
Caliph, as he was in bed : the magnificence of this apart-
ment, and the splendor of the robes lying on these sofas,
induced us to regard the dispute between Ja'afar and Mas-
rur only as a dream arising from the intoxicating fumes of
the wine. Nay, I am not yet sure, while I have the honor
of speaking to your Majesty, whether we are awake, so won-
derful and so supernatural does the whole transaction appear.
The Caliph laughed at this thought of Al-Kuz. No, no,
said he, you are all wide awake ; but rise and let each of
you put on those robes which I designed you as a reward
for reciting your pleasant adventures, and when you are
202
disposed to depart, you will find a chariot ready to carry
you home.
Hariin al-Rashid, my lord, then retired with Ja'afar and
Masrur into another chamber, where the wazir cleaned him-
self, and all three changed their habits. In the mean while
the six married people dressed themselves with those mag-
nificent robes the Caliph had appointed for them, and after
having demanded and easily obtained leave, they thanked
the Caliph for his generosity, and were conveyed to their
habitations. But I am ignorant, my lord, whether Lira,
Salle, and the miller's wife, were afterwards as faithful to
their husbands as they had promised.
A history so singular as this, which Ibn-Aridun had re-
hearsed to Shams al-Din, wonderfully delighted him ; and
afflicted as this unhappy prince was, he could not forbear
laughing several times at the comical adventures it con-
tained. My dear wazir, said he to the son of Abu Bakr,
if the loss I have sustained in my dear Zabd al-Katon could be
erased from my mind, you doubtless would be able to banish
it from my memory ; but as I well know this cannot be
effected by human art, I submit myself to the supreme
disposal of the Almighty. The only request I daily make is,
that you at least may survive to entertain me till the great
Prophet shall be pleased to present me before the throne
of his divine Majesty. — Ah ! my lord, replied Ibn Aridun,
tenderly embracing his feet, why is this goodness extended
to such a slave as I am? And why am I not permitted
to lay down my life, that I may render my sovereign per-
fectly happy? Yes, I swear, by the six drops of sweat of
Mohammed, which produced the rose and rice, that I am
ready to sacrifice my heart for your Majesty. But, my lord,
we should not despair, for if we ought to give any credit to
a dream, that which I had last night would incline me to
think your misfortunes may be relieved. — And what hast
203
thou dreamt last night? returned the king, very eagerly. —
I dreamed, my lord, replied he, that I was in a deep sleep,
when a great wind opened my chamber window, at the noise
of which I was suddenly awakened, and to my astonishment,
beheld at my bolster the Al-Borak^ of our great Prophet,
who bestowed on me a thousand caresses. Inspired with-
out doubt in that moment, I arose and purified myself, and
having offered my devotions, I mounted this divine animal,
who transported me through the air with incredible swift-
ness, till at length I arrived at Sarandib, where the first
person I saw was my father. I hastily got off the beast,
which I fastened to a tree. Abu Bakr took me by the arm
and conducted me to a Mosque, whose door spontaneously
closed upon us. Adore, said he, the messenger of Allah,
and he prostrated himself. I immediately threw myself with
my face to the earth. There is no God but God, I cried,
and Mohammed is his Prophet. Scarcely, my lord, had
I finished a prayer so usual with us, when Mohammed ap-
peared from a shining cloud ; he led a lady in his hand,
who appeared to me far superior in beauty to all the women
I had ever seen. Happy Shams al-Din ! said he, for thy
destiny is worthy of envy ; thou shalt recover a wife whose
merits are equal to one of my houris. Were I to return to
the earth, my utmost desires would be bounded by the
possession of a beauty like hers ; then putting her into
the hands of Abu Bakr, darkness instantly concealed the
Prophet from mine eyes ; and finding myself insensibly
remounted on the Al-Borak I flew with the same velocity
as before, and re-entered my chamber. I went to bed
again, and slept till morning, when the hour of prayer
awakened me ; but I was so fatigued that if I had really
1 The .\l-Borak is an animal less than a mule, and bigger than an ass ;
it partakes of the nature of both those animals, and the Mohamme-
dans believe it was sent by Allah to carry their great Prophet into
heaven.
204
undergone the journey to Sarandib in so short a time, I
believe I should not have been more weary. This, my lord,
was my dream, and I wish it may portend a happy issue to
your misfortunes. — Ah ! my dear Ibn Aridun, replied the
king in a sorrowful tone, even should the return of thy
father restore me to my sight, I must yet be miserable, since
my dear Zabd al-Katon is irrevocably lost ; but as I prom-
ised Abu Bakr, in the moment of our separation, to sub-
scribe without reluctance to the decrees of my destiny, I
will banish from my breast an idea so frightfully afflicting
as this ; though I cannot but observe, that if Mohammed
had pleased, he might long ago have ended my distress by
depriving me of a miserable life ; but then my sorrows would
not have been so agreeably beguiled with thy entertaining
histories. Pursue, my dear friend, pursue thy career, and
remove the melancholy remembrance that overwhelms me,
with some fresh narration. — Yes, my lord, repHed Ibn
Aridun, who had much ado to restrain shedding tears for
the misfortune of his sovereign ; is your Majesty then dis-
posed to hear the adventures of Faruk, the corsair? — Very
willingly, returned the monarch ; I am interested in the
destiny of that unfortunate prince, and if I rightly remem-
ber, he assumed that title himself. — It is true, my lord,
replied the young wazir, and you will perceive his life to be
a complication of evils ; and I shall not only rehearse his
history from the time when he was separated from the prin-
cess Gulguli-Chamami, but also everything recorded of him
by an ancient Arabian author, who wrote a history of the
princes who reigned in the Isles of Divanduru.
STORY OF FARUK
On Mount Caucasus there formerly stood a little city
called Gur, from the multitude of wild asses which inhabited
205
a neighboring forest. The king of this country had four
sons, by as many different sultanas, all born in one day.
The first was called Suffrak, the second Kobad, the third
Bzarmahar, and the fourth Faruk. As this monarch treated
his four sons with equal indulgence, it was impossilile for
them to judge who should be his successor ; but if any one
deserved to fill the throne preferably to the rest, it was un-
doubtedly Faruk ; in him were united all the eminent quali-
ties necessary to form the character of a great prince. He
had scarcely attained his twelfth year, when by rivalling his
brothers in every manly and military exercise, he attracted
the daily applauses of the people of Gur, and your Majesty
may well suppose these encomiums penetrated like poisoned
arrows into the hearts of Faruk's three brothers.
Faruk frequently talked v/ith his brothers of the difficulty
that would arise about the succession to the kingdom. As
there can but one of us ascend the throne, said Faruk, what
will become of the other three? I perceive, if either of
them cherish the least spark of ambition, his situation will be
pitiable indeed. Let us then, replied Suffrak, prevent this
disappointment in good lime ; there is the illustrious Zayfa-
din ; by his sage counsels it seems as if the sun and stars
were taught to regulate their course ; his admirable skill in
astrology is so extensive that his mouth is the treasury of the
sublime sciences. Let us go and consult him on our duty,
but under such a disguise as his art only can detect ; and
since we firmly believe his predictions to be ratified by
Heaven, we will each of us take a solemn oath to abide by
his decision ; then without murmuring, let those who are
excluded the throne depart hence, and by their valor pro-
cure other kingdoms. This resolution being unanimously
adopted, the four brothers disguised themselves, and set out
on their journey without any retinue, and in a few days
arrived on the summit of Mount Caucasus, where Zayfadin
made his abode.
206
This admirable person was at his devotions when they
knocked at his door ; as he did not interrupt himself to let
them in, they knocked again. Princes, cried he, without
stirring, wait a little ; he whose hand turns the celestial
spheres ought to be preferred to all mortals : I will attend to
you in an instant. The princes of Gur were struck with
admiration to hear that Zayfadin, before he had seen their
faces, was apprised of their dignity. They waited very
respectfully till he had finished his devotions, and then the
door was opened ; but how was their astonishment increased,
when he called each of them by his name, and recounted
the object of their journey ! It is easy, my lords, said he, to
gratify your curiosity, but it is almost always dangerous to
pry too narrowly into future events, and you will not be
contented with my answer ; forasmuch as I foresee that he
who is to succeed the king, his father, shall not only risk his
life in returning home to Gur, but his own brothers will one
day become his most inveterate enemies. This reply, one
would have thought, was sufficient to terrify the young
princes, and indeed Faruk advised them not to carry their
curiosity further ; but his brothers, who contemned his wise
counsel, pressed the astrologer to gratify them about what
they so passionately wished to know.
Since you are not to be deterred from your designs, said
the sublime Zayfadin, descend the mountain by that narrow
path, and towards the close of the day you will find a woman,
who shall inform you which of you four is destined to wear
the diadem of Gur. The princes obeyed, and following the
astrologer's directions, arrived in the evening at a little plain,
surrounded with mountains from the midst of which arose a
thick smoke out of a pit, not much broader than the mouth.
of a well. The woman was sitting on a great stone on one
side of the pit. This is she, said the brothers, from whom
we are to learn our destiny. They approached the sorceress,
and having acquainted iier with the object of their visit, she
207
ordered them to take off their sandals, and throw them, Oiie
after another, into ihe pit. Suffrak had no sooner obeyed,
than their ears were assaulted with a dreadful noise, and his
sandals being thrown up with impetuosity, they fell at his
feet all blackened with smoke, and half burnt. Kobad and
Bzarmahar were repulsed in like manner ; but Faruk's treat-
ment was quite different ; the noise ceased, the smoke van-
ished for a little, and his sandals were cast up without being
in the least injured. It is you then, my lord, said the old
woman, who are destined to be one day king of Gur ; since
here are the certain marks by which Zayfadin, who foresaw
your arrival, assured me I should know you. Take, then,
your sandals, my lord, and continue your way. — If the heart
of Faruk was secretly elated with this prediction, his brothers'
were no less swelled with rage and jealousy. However, they
discovered nothing of their minds, but resolving to deprive
Faruk of his throne, they secretly contrived amongst them-
selves to make away with him.
As they were obliged to return home by the same road
they arrived, their way necessarily led them between two
mountains. This place was dangerous to stay all night in,
on account of its being infested with monstrous serpents,
who then came out to take food and air. Here it was that
the three envious brothers intended to destroy Faruk, who
was ignorant of this dangerous circumstance. They pro-
posed to him to pass the night in this place; Faruk agreed,
and, after a slight repast, they lay down on the grass ; but as
soon a3 Faruk had fallen into a profound sleep, his three
perfidious brothers suddenly started up, and left him in this
dangerous place. The serpents, according to custom, assem-
bled in the middle of the night ; their frightful hissings
might be heard more than half a league, and approaching
the place where Faruk lay, they surrounded him, and were
just on the point of throwing themselves on him, when, by
the greatest good fortune, a friendly jinni, who traversed the
208
air, took pity on this unfortunate prince ; some words he
pronounced fixed the serpents to the eartJi, and rendered
them so stiff, that they seemed as if they were all petrified.
At length Faruk awoke, but how great was his fright to
see himself, as it were, surrounded with death ! He imagined
his brothers were destroyed by the serpents; but observing
that they were all immovable he had the boldness to ven-
ture througli them, and, without their being able to offer him
the least injury, he continued the road to Gur. He wept
bitterly for the supposed death of his brothers, but he was
informed, about six hours after his arrival, that they had
safely returned. They were astonished to see him, and pre-
tended that they were so dreadfully affrighted with the hiss-
ings of the serpents that each fled for his life, without being
able to reflect on the almost certain death to which he was
exposed. Faruk, rather than suspect his brothers to be
guilty of so black a treason, admitted their excuse ; he dis-
covered not the least discontent, but lived with them as usual,
without even pressing them to observe the oath they had
taken to depart from Gur as soon as the astrologer should
have decided in favor of one of them.
It was not more than eight months after the princes had
consulted Zayfadin, when the king, their father, whilst hunt-
ing, fell backwards from his horse and was unfortunately
killed on the spot. As he had nominated no successor, the
three brothers refused to abide by their former agreement ;
but endeavoring to exclude Faruk, each gained over a party
to elect himself in his place. This last proceeding discovered
to Faruk all the ill faith of his brothers; he directly convened
an assembly of the states of Gur, and acquainted them with
their journey to the astrologer ; and, whether they thought,
or loved, him better than his brothers, they did not hesitate '
about declaring for him.
There were in Gur at this time four parties who were
ready to tear one another to pieces with a civil war, when
209
behold ! all the people, as if inspired, laid down their arms,
and unanimously proposed to the princes to abide by the
decision of the first person who should enter the city the
following day ; and at the same time declared that if they
refused to accept this condition all four should be excluded
from the throne. The three brothers consented with great
reluctance, but Faruk showed not the least opposition. The
grandees, having confined them in separate apartments, posted
sentinels to prevent their designs being eluded, and then
locked the gates of the city, which were also very strictly
guarded. All the people passed the night on the walls, im-
patiently waiting the appearance of one who was to give
peace to Gur, The day broke without discovering anybody,
when at last there was seen coming at a great distance an old
kalandar almost naked. The air was rent with the joyful
shouts of the people ; they directly opened the gates on that
side on which the kalandar was seen ; they ran to meet him,
and bore him in triumph to the palace, where the corpse of
the deceased king was deposited. The kalandar was greatly
surprised, and knew not what to make of these proceedings ;
but he was soon informed that he was appointed to give
them a king, and that he was to choose one from among
these four princes, who were to acquiesce in his judgment.
As the kalandar was a man of age and experience, he was
not ignorant that in nominating one of these princes he
should create to himself enemies of the rest ; and therefore
to avoid determining himself, he proposed the expedient I
am about to relate to your Majesty. He caused the corpse
of the deceased king to be bound to a tree, and having
measured from it a considerable distance, he declared which-
ever of the four brothers had skill to discharge an arrow into
the heart of his father should be his successor.
That there might be no grounds for complaint among
them, the princes drew lots who should begin, and Kobad
being the first, he discharged his arrow, and pierced the
14
2IO
throat of his father. Bzarmahar, a little more ingenious,
struck him in the breast, without touching his heart ; and
Suffrak wounded him in the lower part of his belly. There
was now only Faruk left to try his skill, and the people,
knowing his ability, were in no doubt as to his gaining the
prize ; when this prince broke his bow and arrow to pieces.
What barbarity is this ? cried Faruk. My lords, said he,
addressing himself to the grandees of the realm, I renounce
the throne, if it must be acquired by an action so unworthy
and so inhuman. Let my brothers reign if they please, I
shall behold their good fortune without envy ; as for me,
I will never pollute my hands with an action so impious as
that which they have been induced to commit. The prin-
cipal lords and all the people were to the last degree as-
tonished, and were so touched with this greatness of soul
in Faruk, that they pressed the kalandar with one voice
to determine in his favor. That was my own intention,
replied this wise old man ; I proposed this expedient with
no other view, than to leave yourselves to discern perfectly
which of these princes is worthy to fill the throne. Human-
ity and piety ought to be the prime virtues of a monarch,
and as Faruk has given you natural proofs of them, I be-
lieve the great Prophet would be offended if I did not agree
with you that he alone is worthy to reign. This decision
of the kalandar was immediately received with a thousand
joyful acclamations, and the three princes retired from the
city, overwhelmed with shame and confusion ; they con-
ceived a violent despair, not only at being excluded from
the throne by the voice of the people, but also at seeing
that their ambitious thirst after power had betrayed them
into the commission of an impiety which they themselves
regarded with horror ; and, resolving to work their brother's
destruction, they departed from Gur with a full purpose to
put their design into execution.
Meanwhile the oath of fidelity was taken to the new king.
211
He celebrated the obsequies of his father with great mag-
nificence, and would fain have retained the kalandar near
his person. But this good old man desired to be excused.
It will be thought, my lord, said he, that your goodness is
only the effect of a base complaisance which caused me to
decide in your favor. But I would have it known that I
followed the dictates of conscience, without the least view
to my own interest. May heaven grant you a happy reign !
and when you approach the end of your life may the angels
v.'ho are to register all your words present those only which
are most agreeable to the Divine Being! Saying this, he
departed from Gur, without receiving the least mark of
generosity from this prince.
Three months had now passed, my lord, continued Ibn
Aridun, during which Faruk possessed his throne in peace,
and his subjects were rendered happy under his mild and
gentle administration, when his brothers surprised the city
one dark night at the head of six thousand men, of whom
the greatest part were Arabian robbers. These villains,
taking advantage of the general fright which prevailed, mas-
sacred all that opposed their fury ; but while they were
busied in plundering the inhabitants, Faruk, having rallied
all the officers and soldiers he could collect, fell like a lion
upon his enemies. He performed everything that could
be expected from the bravest of men ; but perceiving his
attendants were almost all slain, and that it would be rash-
ness to expose his person to further hazard, he changed
clothes \v'ith an Arabian, whom he had killed with his own
hand, and having disguised his face, he retired alone from
Gur, and sought his safety by flight. The horrors of the
day succeeded those of the night ; nothing was to be seen
in all parts of the city but torrents of blood ; and the Arab-
ians not only found amongst the slain him whom they mis-
took for Faruk by the richness of his dress, but also Suffrak,
Kobad, and Bzarmahar, who all perished by the divine jus-
212
tice. The Arabians, having finished the plunder, and having
massacred all the inhabitants, without sparing either age or
sex, set fire to the four corners of the city, and to the middle
of it, which in three days' time reduced it to ashes.
The unfortunate Faruk, not only deprived of his throne,
but also reduced to extreme misery, could not depart from
Gur without shedding a flood of tears. The flames, which
now appeared at a great distance, took from him all hopes
of ever re-ascending the throne of his ancestors. He has-
tened, therefore, as fast as he was able from this frightful
place, but with a resolution to conceal his misfortunes from
all the world. The prince had travelled throe days through
several by-roads, when he encountered two kalandars r;itting
by a fountain at a slight repast. He approached them, raid
as they conjectured from his looks he wanted something to
eat, they invited him to sit down with them. Faruk, who
was almost famished with hunger, and needed no entreaties,
devoured in a short time all the provisions they had. As
soon as the prince had appeased the rage of hunger, he
crossed his hands on his stomach, and fixing his eyes on
the earth, became so deeply absorbed in his sorrowful re-
flections, that he continued nearly an hour in that melan-
choly posture.
The kalandars, who beheld him with astonishment, were
touched with a lively sense of his affliction ; and the eldest
having broken silence : My brother, said he to the prince,
we are so deeply concerned for the profound anguish under
which your mind seems to labor, that though we have known
you but a few moments, both this young kalandar and my-
self will omit nothing in our power to assuage your grief,
and to dispel that gloom which overcasts your mind. Speak,
sir, and do not relinquish the assistance we offer ; weak as
it is, it may do you more service than you are aware of at
present. The prince of Gur, who had hitherto kept silence,
was roused from his meditation by the obliging offers of this
213
good old man. Generous kalandar, said he, excuse my
rudeness ; the cruel situation I am in is ready to overwhelm
me ; seek not to be acquainted with my distress, I conjure
you. If I have appeared insensible to your kindness, 1
heartily thank you for your generous sentiments : and all
the favor I require is to be received into your company,
and to be permitted to conform to your rules, and to wear
the habit of your order. How, sir ! returned the old man,
a little astonished ; are you really desirous to become a
kalandar? — Yes, replied Faruk, with a sigh, I was deter-
mined from the moment I came hither, since at present
I know of no better course ; here is a ring, it is all 1 have
left out of a considerable fortune I once possessed ; I will
sell it the first opportunity, and while the money lasts we
will live as brothers. — You know us badly, replied the
younger of the two kalandars ; the sale of your ring is useless ;
it should be kept for the last extremity. We are of a pro-
fession that suffers us to want nothing, provided we do not
want assurance ; therefore keep that precious toy till another
season, and in the mean time never be perplexed how
to live. — This young kalandar, replied the old man, has
spoken righdy ; our first institution teaches us to forsake
a little, that we may gain much ; this doctrine may perhaps
be difficult to comprehend. Here it is explained ; we pos-
sess nothing in this life but the bare enjoyment thereof,
because death obliges us to quit all the riches upon earth ;
why then do we suffer our minds to be distracted and cruelly
harassed, to preserve those riches which oppose such en-
emies to us ? Let us only practise those maxims of philoso-
phy which are peculiar to our profession. We commonly
begin by spending all we possess, — at least this is the
practice of the wisest amongst us ; and when we once get
this habit on our back, we look upon the patrimony of others
as an inexhaustible resource on every occasion. In short,
who of any spirit will refuse to entertain a kalandar, let him
214
be in what part of the earth soever? Who is there, from
the king to the meanest artisan, that does not think it an
honor to admit us to their tables, and to help us to the most
delicious morsels? It is true, we are obliged to wear a mask,
and to appear different from what we really are ; it is that
which lays jealous husbands asleep, and renders us agreeable
to the generality of their wives, who are scarcely visible to
any but ourselves, through the blind confidence they place
in our habit. In fine, my dear brother, there is not a life
more delicious, nor more sensual, than that of an able kal-
andar ; and when once you possess the true relish thereof,
you will never desire to change.
Faruk hstened very attentively to the old man's discourse,
notwithstanding his grief, and observed that it abounded
with good sense. Your way of life appears, said he, so
agreeable that from this picture alone which you have drawn
of it, I long to become a kalandar, and to take the habit. —
Four snips of a pair of scissors will initiate you into our Soci-
ety, answered the younger kalandar, and you have nothing
to do but to strip off your habit for a moment. Faruk
obeyed in an instant, and taking his garment, he cut it to
pieces, and sewing it neatly together again was forthwith
recognized by the other two kalandars. — They had now sat
long enough by the fountain, and all three starting up, steered
their course to the first city which presented itself to their
view. The prince, v.'ho could not so soon forget his misfor-
tunes, sighed now and then, which the old kalandar observ-
ing, reproached him with it, as unworthy of the profession
he had embraced. Come, my dear brotlier, said he, remem-
ber that in putting off your garment, you have divested
yourself of all human weakness ; drive therefore from your
mind those gloomy reflections which continue to disturb
you. Any person of less experience than ourselves would
desire to be acquainted with the history of your adventures,
and would probably say that the recital of them would
2IS
assuage your grief, but nothing is more false than such rea-
soning; for it would renew the remembrance of those mis-
fortunes which you ought to forget. We shall not press you
upon this head, till we may judge by your behavior that
you have become altogether insensible of your past misfor-
tunes. No more grief, my dear brother ; let us banish it
from our company ; it is a mortal poison to the human mind.
Let us for the future breathe nothing but joy ! And to
inspire you with it, I will acquaint you with the history of
my life, from which you will learn my reason for wearing
this habit ; listen to me, and the journey we have to go will
appear the shorter :
ADVENTURES OF THE OLD K ALAND AR
I WAS born at Baku, and my father was a rice-merchant,
who hved near a convent of darwayshes. He lived an
irregular life, and was scarcely ever to be found in his shop ;
and as besides he had but little business, he was soon re-
duced to extreme poverty. A darwaysh, who used frequently
to come to our house, conceived a friendship for me, and
taking compassion on me took me into his convent, when I
was about five years old ; so that I was no further expense
to my father, who, having passed through a wearisome life,
died when I was twelve years old. I went to see my dis-
consolate mother, and wept tenderly for the loss of my father,
when my mother spoke to me in this manner : Do not afflict
yourself for my husband, forbear shedding tears for one who
deserves them so little, weep no more as for a father, for one
who had no share in your birth. This discourse surprised
me, and I looked steadfastly at my mother. You are as-
tonished, said she. — I have reason to be so, I replied ; for
if the deceased was not my father, which he was always
taken for, whom am I indebted to for my being? — To the
old darwaysh who has brought you up, answered my mother ;
2l6
you are his son and mine ; without his assistance we should
have hved this long time past in the most shocking indi-
gence, for my husband's idleness and excesses had reduced
me to a state of beggary, even a long time before you came
into the world. This darwaysh has been our entire support,
by supplying us abundantly with the necessaries of life. On
my side I was not ungrateful ; the darwayshes do nothing
for nothing, and I do not repent the return I have made
this one. My mother was still in tears, when the darwaysh
entered ; she told him that she had just informed me of his
being my father, and this man, embracing me in the most
tender manner : Child, said he, behave yourself well, and
honor your mother, and you shall want for nothing. I made
a suitable return to these expressions of parental affection
from my new father, and growing tired of the life I had
hitherto led among the darwayshes, I begged of him to leave
me with my mother. He granted my request, and gave us
money to buy rice ; and as my mother lived in a very frugal
manner, and almost entirely at the convent's expense, she
saved in seven or eight years about four thousand dinars.
I often heard my mother speak of a very handsome girl
in our neighborhood, and I became so enamoured of her
from the bare report of her beauty, without ever seeing her,
that I sought every opportunity of making myself known to
her. At last one offered ; the girl's father came to our
house to buy a quantity of rice-meal, and agreed with my
mother for a large sack of it that contained about twelve
bushels. My want of experience made me look upon this
as a favorable opportunity for seeing my mistress ; and
listening only to my foolish passion, with the assistance of
a young man of my own age I put myself into the sack,
which was then filled with meal as high as my chin, and was
in this situation carried in the dusk of the evening to Kalim's
house (this was the name of the girl's father), where they set
me down in the corner of a room in which the family gen-
217
erally ate. I had made a hole in the top of the sack, through
which I could easily see everything that passed. I was
scarce set down when a darwaysh appeared, but I could not
see his face, as he sat in a dark part of the room ; there
came in with him Kalim, his wife, and the beautiful Djanj-
hari-Nar, my mistress, with a little dog under her arm. A
slave having laid the cloth, they immediately sat down to
supper. Djanjhari-Nar happened to sit just facing me, and
I was so transported at the first sight of her, that forgetting
the company I was in, I foolishly cried out : Ah ! what a
fine creature ! This indiscreet exclamation, which the com-
pany heard without knowing whence it came, terrified them
greatly ; they got up in a great hurry and confusion, looked
everywhere except at the sack in which I lay hid, and find-
ing nothing, sat down again to supper, where the voice they
had heard formed the chief subject of their conversation.
Djanjhari-Nar happened not to take the same seat, and
not being able to see her face, I was still indiscreet enough
to attempt turning myself about in the sack, to have the
pleasure of enjoying a full prospect of her charms ; but I
went about it so unskilfully, that the sack unfortunately over-
turned. Kahm with all his family and the darwaysh were
greatly surprised at the sack's fall ; but the darwaysh, seeing
that my mistress's little dog barked furiously at it, began
immediately to suspect what might really be the matter ; he
therefore raised up the sack, and untied the top of it, when
I appeared ; but my face was so covered with meal, that it
was impossible to know me. Upon this, Kalim flew into a
great fury, ran to a dagger that hung up against the wall, and
was upon the point of running me through the body, when I
threw a handfiil of meal into his eyes, which, by blinding him
for a moment or two, gave me an opportunity of leaping out
of the sack in my slippers : and laying hold of a sa1)re that
happened to lie in my way, I might easily have killed Kalim
and the darwaysh and have then made my escape ; and as it
2l8
was the only way left of saving myself, I had my sabre ready
to strike the blow, when upon looking on the darwaysh, whose
face I had not seen before, I found it was the person to
whom I was indebted for my being. Ah, darwaysh, said I,
dropping the point of my sabre, see, I am Hanif, whom your
constant friendship has always made you consider as your
own child ! I am upon this occasion more indiscreet than
criminal. I loved the charming Djanjhari-Nar on the bare
report of her beauty, and not meeting with any other means
than the present of satisfying my earnest desire to see her, I
buried myself in this sack, inconsiderately indeed, since I
did not know how I should be able to get out of it.
The darwaysh was greatly surprised to see me in this con>
dition, and Kalim having at the same time recovered his
sight by rubbing his eyes, perceived that I was son to the
woman from whom he had bought his rice- meal ; and seeing
by the posture in which I had put myself, that I was resolved
to sell my life at a dear rate, he was the more easily appeased
by the darwaysh, so they soon found it impossible not to
laugh at the comical figure I made. Since this young man
loves Djanjhari-Nar, said the darwaysh, let him have her, I
beseech you, my dear Kalim. He is an only son, and I will
take upon me to make his mother give up her shop, with at
least four thousand dinars. I do not believe you can find
in all Baku a son-in-law, who has been better educated,
is an honester man, and who will behave towards you, as a
father-in-law, with more respect. — Ah ! said I, it is not
enough that Kalim consents to make me happy ; I renounce
his good will, if the charming Djanjhari-Nar does not
approve of me. This delicate way of thinking made so great
an impression on Kalim, that he took me in his arms, telling
me that his daughter was her own mistress, and that she
might that very moment decide my fate. She must first then,
said the darwaysh, see her new lover such as he is. And
upon this, he immediately conducted me to another room,
219
where I cleaned myself; and Kalim, who was pretty much
of my own size, having put one of his own gowns on me, I
made my appearance before the beautiful Djanjhari-Nar, who
liked me so well that she immediately accepted me as her
husband. The darwaysh, impatient to see my happiness
completed, immediately sent for my mother, who was greatly
surprised at my adventure, and who consented to all I wished
for. The marriage-contract was drawn up and signed, and
that very evening the Imam joined our hands. I slept at
my father-in-law's, and my wife was so well satisfied with her
choice, that the next morning she ordered for my breakfast a
large dish of sheep's-feet with vinegar-sauce.
I was now, my dear brother, married to the charming
Djanjhari-Nar, and was the happiest man living, if my want
of sense had not made me the most miserable. Everything
seemed to conspire to make me happy, my bride in a manner
adoring mc ; yet, without any just cause, I took it into my
head to be jealous of her, to a degree that is scarcely credi-
ble. Everything alarmed me ; did she speak to my mother
I fancied that my mother had conspired with her to betray
me ; even her innocent marks of affection for the darwaysh,
to whom we were so much obliged, alarmed me so much
that I used to forget his being my father, and my evil genius
made me consider their behavior as criminal. In fine, con-
tinued the old kalandar, I did nothing but exclaim against
Djanjhari-Nar, and scarcely ever permitted her to see the
light of day ; yet, though I gave her no rest, she never made
the least complaint of my ill usage. My mother and the dar-
waysh made me many representations on my foolish jealousy.
It is neither bolts nor locks, said they, that can secure your
honor ; an honest woman is her own guardian, and your
groundless suspicions tend more to make her forget her duty
than to persevere in it. But I was deaf to their advice, and
at last my madness increased to such a degree, that they
resolved to try every method of getting the liettcr of it.
220
One day, the darwaysh was conversing with ray mother,
whilst I was employed in making some entries in my books.
There has arrived here, said he, within these three days, a
young darwaysh from Circassia, whose beauty surpasses any-
thing that has yet appeared at Baku. I imagine that the
pages, who are to serve us with fruit in the paradise of our
great Prophet, can scarcely compare with him, since so much
modesty has never been seen united with so many other
perfections. His chamber is next to mine, and in conse-
quence of this neighborhood, we have contracted a great
friendship for one r.nother. I am to give him a breakfast
to-morrow, and therefore beg of you to send me a pullet and
rice of your own dressing, and a dish of pillaw.-' My mother
promised to comply, and accordingly got ever}'thing in read-
iness for these excellent ragouts, which she sent my father
next morning at the appointed hour. I had heard all their
discourse, without seeming to take notice of it, but my
curiosity prompting me to see so handsome a man, I resolved
to make one at breakfast with my father. I kept my mind
to myself; when the dishes were sent off, I went into my
wife's apartment. She was still a-bed, on account of some
slight indisposition, and was in a profound sleep. I did not
think proper to awaken her, but only looked at her atten-
tively for some time, when I shut the door, and having given
the key a double turn, according to custom, I ran and
knocked at the door of the convent of the darwayshes. I
asked for the darwaysh, who was my father, and on being
told he was in his chamber, I immediately ran to it ; but I
had scarcely entered it when I grew pale and cold at the
sight of his friend.
I had no sooner perceived in him all the features of my
wife, than falling down with mere weakness on a sofa of
1 This dish consists of rice stewed with butter, or suet^ and is a
very common favorite food all over the East
221
rushes, and wiping my face, I cried out : Where am I, and
what prodigy is this ? My father interrupted me here, get-
ting up in great confusion, and taking me into his arms in
the tenderest manner, asked me what was the matter, and
what dark cloud had overspread my imagination? I an-
swered that I found myself disordered the moment I entered
his chambers, and that I chose to return home immediately.
Upon which he led me back to the door of the convent ;
and as I had only the street to cross to get home, the mo-
ment I left him I flew to my wife's apartment. I began to
respire, my dear brother, when I found her in the same con-
dition in which I had left her the minute before, and my joy
on the occasion was so great that I caught her in my arms,
and embraced her with the warmest expressions of affection,
which she returned in the most endearing manner. How-
ever, I made no great stay with her, but hastened back to
the convent, and ran directly to my father's cell, telling him
I had got the better of my indisposition, and had come to
breakfast with him. You are welcome, said he ; this hand-
some Circassian and I have already made a beginning. Sit
down to table, and first satisfy yourself with a glass of wine.
I rinsed a glass, and my father was going to pour me out
some wine, when the Circassian prevented him. Brother,
said he, let me have the pleasure of helping him ; I intend
this day to do the honors of your table. The sound of these
words make me tremble ; my hands in an instant became so
weak, and my eyes so fastened on this young man, whose
voice perfectly resembled my wife's, that I spilled all the
wine upon my clothes and on the table-cloth. I made in a
single instant a thousand afflicting reflections ; and quitting
the darwayshes in an abrupt manner, I made but one leap
from the convent to my house, where my wife was still a-bed.
I was so thunderstruck that I could not speak to her. What
is the matter with you, dear light of my hfe ? said she, start-
ing up in her bed in the greatest confusion ; has any acci-
222
dent happened? Do not permit me, I beseech you, to
remain any longer in so cruel an uncertainty.
I relumed a little to myself. Ah 1 Djanjhari-Nar, said I,
may I believe what I hear? — Why, replied she, what do
you see and what do you hear? Satisfy my curiosity in-
stantly. — No, said I, I am certainly deceived ; I must again
try if my eyes are faithful witnesses of what has happened
in the convent of the darwayshes. I then left her, and shut-
ting the door as I had already done, I returned to my
father's cell much easier in my mind than when I had left it.
I beg your pardon, said I at my first appearance, for the
ill manners I have been guilty of. My reason for leaving you
in so great a hurry was that I had forgotten to leave money
with my mother to answer a demand she expects in about
a quarter of an hour. I have now no more business to take
me away, and nothing can be more agreeable to me than to
remain with you and to enjoy the pleasure of your company.
Let it be so, said my father ; we may spend all the morning
here very agreeably. Taste this dish of pillaw, which has
not as yet been touched ; as to the fowl and rice we de-
spatched them during your absence. I now began to think
of eating some pillaw, but happening to give a look at the
young Circassian, just as I had taken some into my mouth,
I found it impossible to get it down, my astonishment in-
creased to such a degree. The young darwaysh was the
very counterpart of Djanjhari-Nar, both in voice and in
gesture ; everything, in fine, conspired to make me believe
that no two persons had ever been so like each other. Wliat
is the matter with you, son? said the old darwaysh. You
betray in all your actions so much uneasiness and distraction
that I am at a loss what to think of you to-day. — Have I
not, said I, the justest reason in the world to do so? ^^'ho
the devil would not take this young Circassian for my wife ?
I must own to you that I ran home to be sure I had her.
I found her both times in bed, and this circumstance should
223
have dissipated my apprehensions, notwithstanding which I
find myself unable to master those jealous suspicions which
tear my mind to pieces.
The two darwayshes laughed heartily at this my candid
confession. As for my part, I was at a loss how to behave
on the occasion, when the young darwaysh took me up.
What, sir, said he, can a slight resemblance then between
your wife and me disorder your brain in this manner? And
shall jealousy tyrannize over you so far as to make you
commit the extravagances with which we have for this hour
past been entertained ? How much I pity your spouse !
Certainly she must have a great fund of virtue not to take
vengeance for your unjust suspicions. I can easily forgive
a delicate jealousy ; but by carrying it the length you do,
according to the report of this honest darwaysh, believe me,
sir, you take the readiest way of making your wife punish
you as you deserve. I listened with great confusion to this
lecture by the young darwaysh, and began to be ashamed of
my past conduct, at the same time resolving, in a manner,
to trust Djanjhari-Nar entirely to her own virtue ; when the
young preacher, in moving himself a little, discovered to me
near one of his ears a mark in every respect like one that
my wife had in the same place. This strange sight wound
up my madness again to the highest pitch. I gave a great
shout, which surprised the darwayshes. Ah ! said I, I am
certainly betrayed, and all my suspicions were too well
founded. What sudden fury has seized you ? said my father.
Have you lost your wits, or — I did not give him time to
make an end of his discourse ; I slipped out of his hands,
and ran home in the greatest hurry and confusion, where I
found my wife employed in making the abdest. I drew near
her in the greatest perturbation, and having examined the
mark near her ear, I clapped my hands together, with my
eyes lifted up to heaven, and was ready to faint away with
surprise. My mother, who was in the shop, which was con-
224
tiguous to my wife's apartment, came in on hearing my
cries. She and my wife inquired earnestly what might be
the cause of my disorder, and of my so often going out
and in : but I did not as yet think proper to give them any
satisfaction. I only begged of my mother to prepare a
dinner for ourselves and for the handsome darwaysh of
Circassia and his companion, whom I told her I intended
to invite ; telling her, withal, that I should give before them
a full account of everything that had happened to me that
morning, which she must agree was very strange and
uncommon.
I then left them, and at my return to the convent, found
my father and the young darwaysh still at table. I must,
said I, acquaint you with the full extent of my weakness.
The mark which this handsome darwaysh has near his ear
gave my jealousy a new alarm ; for my wife has one in the
same spot so very like it that I again took it into my head
that it was her very self that I saw in this disguise. I ran
back to the house to clear up the matter to myself, but,
thanks to Heaven ! I found her at her usual purification ;
so that all my suspicions are at an end, and I have returned,
easy and satisfied in my mind, to spend with you the inter-
val between this and dinner, to which I invite you. I have
a mind to convince this young darwaysh that, as he cannot
be a twin of my dear Djanjhari-Nar, since she is an only
child, nature has formed so great a resemblance between
them that it is impossible not to be deceived by it. — I accept
your invitation, replied the young Circassian, with great
pleasure ; nothing can be more agreeable to me. I am
curious to see this extraordinary likeness you speak of,
about which, however, the darwaysh, my companion, is not
altogether agreed ; but then it is only on this express con-
dition, that no fit of jealousy shall be permitted to interrupt
our joy, for I am disposed to be merry, and perhaps at your
expense. — Ah, said I, interrupting him, I promise that you
225
shall do at my house as you like. I have suffered so much
this morning in the many struggles I have had to sustain
that I am resolved for the future to make myself easy.
It is the best thing you can do, replied the young man ;
were I a woman, and disposed to play my husband a trick,
he would find it to no purpose to watch me : I could easily
triumph over all his precautions, and I shall convince you
of it presently at your own house. — You will oblige me
greatly, said I, in so doing. I will endeavor to entertain
you well ; and you cannot do me a greater favor than that
of curing me radically of my troublesome passion.
I spent a couple of hours very agreeably with the two dar-
wayshes till, dinner-time drawing nigh, I left them to prepare
for their reception. I thought proper before my guests ar-
rived, to see my wife, to make a merit to her of my conver-
sion, and to assure her that for the future she should enjoy
all the liberty decency might allow. But, my dear brother,
how great was my surprise on opening the door of my room,
the key of which I had never let go out of my possession,
when I found her missing! Great, however, as my surprise
was at not finding my wife, it was much increased by finding
instead of her the two darwayshes whom I had but just now
left at the convent. So unexpected a sight struck me motion-
less, and I should no doubt have fallen to the ground if my
mother, who had followed close after me, had not supported
me in her arms. I remained a long time without being able
to utter a single syllable ; but having at length come to my-
self : O Heaven ! said I, do I dream, or is it the devil who
has persecuted me all the morning, that still takes pleasure
in imposing upon me? — No, no, my de.ir Hanif, replied the
old darwaysh who I told you was my father, you are not
asleep ; there is no more than a little contrivance in all this
illusion. Your jealousy had become so ridiculous that we
undertook to rid you of it. I contrived, with your mother
and your wife, everything that passed in my apartment this
15
226
morning; your behavior fully answered our intentions, and
the beautiful darwaysh is no other than the incomparable
Djanjhari-Nar. No doubt you will find it a difficult matter
to comprehend what I tell you, and I know you will scarcely
even credit it, but it is easy to convince you. — Ah then !
said I, with the greatest eagerness, lose no time in doing it ;
let me know how it was possible that my wife should at one
and the same time be in her bed and in your cell, in her
night-clothes and in the dress of a darwaysh. — I shall im-
mediately, replied my father, satisfy your curiosity in this
respect.
Djanjhari-Nar is no longer ignorant how I am related to
you. I found myself under the necessity of revealing to her
the secret of your birth, in order to obtain her concurrence
to the measures we wanted to take. You must know that
your mother's deceased husband used to be sometimes jeal-
ous of her, and his sudden starts often disconcerted the
schemes we had laid to see each other, which gave us no
small concern. But as, in quaUty of treasurer to the convent,
I had money at will, I seized on the opportunity of the
brute's going to the country for a fortnight, and employed
workmen whom I could confide in to make a passage be-
tween my room and this apartment under the street, which is
very narrow ; two trap-doors, with proper counterpoises, do
the rest. It is an easy matter to go from this to my cell in
less than two minutes by the trap-door you now look at,
whereas, in the common way, a person must traverse our
court, which is pretty long, and open and shut doors ; so
that you may easily judge if it was impossible for your wife
to put on the habit of a darwaysh, to throw it off, and to get
into bed again, in the interval of time requisite for you to
make so great a circuit to get into our convent, or out of it,
and to arrive at this apartment. Here is then, ray dear child,
a plain discovery of the whole mystery. But I must add
that it was with the greatest difficulty imaginable I prevailed
227
on Djanjhari-Nar to act her part in it. She was willing to
put up with all your extravagances rather than expose herself
to your displeasure, till I obtained her concurrence by assur-
ing her that if so rude a trial did not bring you to a better
way of thinking, you should never know anything of the trick
that had been played on you, and that I should soon make
the handsome Circassian set out for his ovvn country.
We have, I believe, succeeded, my son, continued the old
man, since you have given me your word that you will be no
more guilty of the same folly ; and, indeed, no man ever had
less reason to be jealous. Your wife is a most virtuous
woman, she has stretched her complaisance for your weak-
ness more than could be expected ; but, though she were
ever so much the reverse, judge, my dear Hanif, by your own
experience, what love is capable of. There is nothing that
it does not invent and compass to get the better of a
jealous person's vigilance, and the surest course a man can
take is to trust entirely to the virtue and fidelity of his wife.
I know very well that this is looked upon as a very foolish
maxim in these eastern countries ; but there is a difference
to be made between living in the common way, which re-
quires that v/omen should appear but seldom in public, and
treating them with that injurious diffidence which you have
done with the charming Djanjhari-Nar. You have carried
your jealousy to such an excess as to take umbrage at me,
who am your father. Even your mother's affection for her
daughter-in-law has given you uneasiness. Who can you
think, my son, should have your honor more at heart than
your mother and myself? And yet you have been weak
enough to suspect us of a design upon it.
My surprise and confusion were so great, continued the
old kalandar, that I was at a loss what answer to make to the
darwaysh's wise discourse. My dear father, said I, how much
am I obliged to you for having undertaken my cure, and
having succeeded so well in it ! I now see all the force of
228
your arguments, and I am ready to sink with shame for my
past conduct ; but I am resolved to make amends for
my folly by so contrary a behavior that the beautiful Djanj-
hari-Nar shall have no less reason to commend me for the
future than she has had just cause to complain of me for
the time past. Upon this I threw myself at my wife's feet,
who still continued in the darwaysh's dress, and asked her
pardon for my ridiculous jealousies with such expressions of
love and of tenderness as drew tears from my father and
mother. Djanhari-Nar, unable likewise to contain hers, im-
mediately raised me up. My dear lord, said she, if I have
always loved you in spite of the hard manner in which you
have sometimes treated me, guess to what a pitch my love
must be increased now, when you assure me of an alteration
which makes me completely happy ! She seasoned her dis-
course with so many endearments that I kissed her a thou-
sand times, and cried out in the transport of my pleasure :
No, my dear Djanjhari-Nar, there is no difference between
the zephyr of spring and the mild breath of your mouth,
which refreshes my heart and my soul. I am a new man,
and the most agreeable moments of ray life will be those
which I shall spend in seeking the means of pleasing you.
This sudden change in me gave my father and mother the
most sensible satisfaction. Nothing could equal the pleas-
ure they enjoyed in having been instrumental in reclaiming
me ; as for Djanjhari-Nar's joy, it was great beyond expres-
sion. We now sat down to dinner, at which everything
passed in the most agreeable manner, and I ever afterwards
punctually fulfilled the promise I had given.
I lived thus with my wife about thirteen years, during which
time I buried the darwaysh and my mother. The children 1
had by my wife lived but a short time. In fine, I lost her,
my dear brother, after a sickness of four months, and you
may judge how sensibly afflicted I was at the loss of a woman
of so great merit. All my friends came to condole with me
229
on the occasion, and endeavored to dissipate my grief ; but
what they could not do time effected. As time brings about
everything, so it insensibly wore out the memory of my de-
ceased wife. I at last began to think of nothing but how to
divert myself, and giving myself up entirely to my pleasures
I fell little by little into a state of the greatest debauchery
and excess. By neglecting my business, my affairs soon fell
into disorder, and at the end of two years I was so loaded
with debt that, unable to satisfy my creditors, I had no other
choice left than flight to avoid a prison. I therefore sold my
effects privately for half their value, and escaped out of
Baku in the disguise of a kalandar. From the very first day
of my taking the habit I liked it so well that I resolved never
to leave it off; and I have now persisted in this resolution
upwards of thirty years. I have made in it the tour of
Persia and of Tartary, during which I have met with a great
number of adventures too long to relate. I intend, besides,
to take a journey to the Indies and to China, and for this
purpose I joined company two months ago with this young
man, who has turned kalandar after my example, and whose
adventures are at least as uncommon as my own.
When the old kalandar had made an end of his discourse,
Faruk, my lord, who had listened to him with infinite pleas-
ure, thanked him for his kindness. Nothing, said he, can be
more original than your history ; and whatever assurance
you have given me, I can scarcely believe that of your com-
panion can compare with it. — You shall soon have an op-
portunity of judging for yourself, replied the young kalandar.
ADVENTURES OF THE YOUNG
KALANDAR
My mother, for I must tell you I never had the pleasure
of knowing my father, being so young when he died;
230
my mother, I say, lived at Shiraz, and carried on a pretty
considerable trade in milk, butter, and cheese, the produce
of flocks that belonged to her, and which she used to send
me to town to dispose of; but I soon grew tired of this way
of life. There happened to arrive from the Indies, about two
years before, a company of comedians, who commonly ex-
hibited their performances in the market-place, where they
afterwards used to sell remedies to which they attributed a
surprising efficacy in all manner of disorders. As they knew
but little of the Persian tongue they at first played nothing
but pantomimes, and employed an interpreter to dispose of
their drugs ; but as they began by degrees to make them-
selves understood, they acquired so much reputation that
everybody saw them act with pleasure. I never went to
Shiraz without going to see their entertainments, and I took
so great a hking to them that I offered to make one of their
company. I had naturally a genius that way ; I begged they
might give me some under part ; they pitched upon a very
diverting one in the first play they acted, and I behaved so
much to the liking of all the spectators, that I soon looked
upon myself as qualified to appear to advantage in the most
difficult characters. Particularly, I excelled in acting the
drunkard, and played so well the parts of the fool and of the
blockhead, that I might have been mistaken for a real inhabi-
tant of Siwrihissar. At length, my dear brothers, the
drollest scenes had no merit but what I gave them. But
not satisfied with the character of an excellent actor, I had
likewise a mind to shine as an author. Till then we had
played nothing but scraps of comedies, and almost always
without any preparation. On my part, I resolved to connect
scenes, and thus form a contrived piece ; and I succeeded
so well that my first essay proved a masterpiece. I gave a
little farce, called " The Kadi Outwitted." I shall inform
you of the subject in a few words.
A kadi of Kandahar, who is a great miser, has a very
231
pretty daughter, with whom a young Persian falls passion-
ately in love. This kadi has promised the girl to a very rich
old Mohammedan ; the Persian is ready to go distracted for
fear of losing his mistress, and after having thought of many
different ways of preventing a marriage which must make him
unhappy for the remainder of his Hfe, finds none so likely to
succeed as the following. He waits on the kadi, who does
not know him, to consult him about carrying away a young
woman. The judge at first looks upon it as a very criminal
undertaking, and falls into a great passion, but is soon soft-
ened by a purse of gold ; and thereupon gives his advice in
writing that the girl may be carried off on account of the dis-
proportion in point of age between her and the man her
parents would marry her to, and especially as the person
who intends to carry her off does it with a view of making
her his wife ; and in consequence of another purse of gold
he forbids the girl's father to give her lover any uneasi-
ness, on pain of receiving one hundred blows on the soles
of his feet. The young Persian literally follows the ad-
vice, or rather the commands, of the kadi, and carries off
the daughter ; and the outwitted father finds himself under
the necessity of bestowing her as a wife upon her ingenious
lover.
Such was the plan of my piece ; but I painted in it the
kadi's avarice in such lively colors, at least as far as I may
judge of the matter, especially in a scene where I played the
blockhead to admiration, that I could heartily wish you had
seen my comedy acted. What ! said Faruk, should not a
comic writer have his performances by heart from one end
to another? What can hinder you from giving us this divert-
ing scene ? — Ah ! brother, answered the young man, it is
impossible it should appear in this place to the same advan-
tage as it did on the stage. — That is no matter, replied the
other two kalandars, we shall make allowance for the want of
actors. We know that it is no easy matter for one man to
232
play different parts. — Since you are so earnest then, said
the comedian, I shall endeavor to satisfy you.
You must first represent to yourself the kadi alone at his
house, complaining of the too good behavior of the inhabi-
tants of Kandahar, and that business was very slack this year,
especially in a criminal way. I enter his room with one of
my companions, dressed like countrymen ; we appear to be
both of us quite out of breath, and make him almost mad by
a very comical dumb scene. In fine, impatient at seeing us
speak only by signs, and curious to know the matter, he be-
gins as follows :
Kadi. These two scoundrels must certainly be drunk or
dumb with all their signs, of which I can make nothing.
First Clown. [This was my part, my dear brother.] Oh !
— with your worship's leave, we have hastened with so much
diligence — to — Ah ! — how I am out of breath ! — gossip,
tell his worship yourself what we have seen, you can best
clear up the matter to him.
Kadi. Plague on the brutes !
Seco7id Clown. [Crying.l Tell it yourself if you can ; I
am so beside myself, and so troubled.
Kadi. I believe these animals are come to make me
mad. Will you speak or not, scape-gallows? Let me know
what you have seen.
First Clown. Softly, softly, please your worship; you
are going into a passion ; for as Lokman ^ says very justly, in
his book of animals —
Kadi. Ah ! you scoundrel, you, let Lokman and his
animals alone; what have his fables to do with what you
have to say?
First Clown. Your worship is in the right. But your
worship knows that people who have wit, are fond of showing
^ There is a collection of fables under the name of the wise Lokman ;
and the accounts given of this Lokman by the people of the East
resemble very much those the Greeks have left us of ^Esop.
233
it; and if your worship had not interrupted me, I should
have compared your worship to an ass.
Kadi. Would you, rascal? But there is no taking notice
of what the stupid dog says. Friend, I beg you will make
an end, and let me know what has brought you here.
First Clown. By all means, sir, with a great deal of
pleasure. — Ah ! why do not )ou satisfy his worship? Now,
sir, we came to tell you, that as my gossip and myself were
jogging along, without thinking anything of what was to
happen, we saw \^cries'\ — Ah ! my heart is ready to break
when I think of it ; it makes such an impression on me, that
I cannot go on.
Kadi. Go on, villain, or I sliall punish your insolence.
Is there no one there ?
First Clow7i. Well, well, please your worship, since you
ivill not give me leave to recover myself, to cut short, I shall
tell you without any perambulation, that — But hold, I '11
lay you a wager, that with all your penetration you cannot
guess what we have seen.
Kadi. \_Seizing him by the throat.'] Hangman that you
are, have you a mind then to make one go mad in good
earnest?
First Clown. He ! he ! Well, please your worship, let
me go, and I shall immediately tell you how we are come to
let you know that we have seen a man murdered.
Kadi. Now I am myself again. So much the better, it
is good news ; here is a job to buy me a good supper.
Second Clown. Ah ! please your worship, the worst of it
is, that the man that is killed was my son-in-law, as he has
married my daughter, and nothing worse could happen to me.
Kadi. So much the better, 1 tell you ; it is a very good
affair.
Enter one of the Deputy Justice's Thief-takers.
Thief-taker. Please your worship, we have just this mo-
ment apprehended a murderer a little way from Kandahar.
234
Kadi. Haste, haste, my gown and my turband. Have
you any witnesses? \To the country-fellow.']
First Clown. Ay, that we have — let us alone — there
will be some to spare.
Kadi. As that is the case, I shall set out this instant for
the spot where the crime has been committed. But I must
first know the circumstances of the criminal.
Thief-taker. He is —
Kadi. What is he ?
Thief-taker. He is a clown belonging to the next village.
Kadi. A clown belonging to the next village ! I am in
a fine hole truly. What right have such scoundrels to com-
mit murder? Ah ! I am ready to go mad. This job would
not buy me a cup of water if I wanted it. \To his servants.']
Hold, here is my gown and turband.
First Clown. Let us be gone, for the criminal may
escape, while we are here chattering in this manner.
Kadi. So much the better. Nothing is more natural;
and, 'faith, it is an affair that won't pay for shoe leather.
Second Clown. But then —
Kadi. Turn these fellows out, who split my head with
their importunate discourse.
Enter the Kadi's Deputy.
Deputy. I wish your worship joy — A murder has been
committed.
Kadi. I know it.
Deputy. And if you do, why do not you run to the
spot?
Kadi. There is no time lost. — We shall have daylight
enough to-morrow.
Deputy. But then —
Kadi. Say no more of it.
Deputy. Your worship's indifference surprises me 1 The
beast is well shod.
Kadi. What do you mean?
235
Deputy. You do not know then, that the murderer was
driving sheep to market?
Kadi. Sheep, say you ?
Deputy. I say sheep.
Kadi. And well, wliat have you done with the sheep ?
Deputy. A fine question, truly. I immediately sent them
to prison. [7>/ a low voice.'\ A novice in the trade would
have taken care of the criminal, but I have studied your
example too well. I gave the murderer an opportunity of
making his escape, and have kept the sheep.
Kadi. Quick, quick, my gown and my turband. Let my
mule be bridled. \_To the deputy^ You will one day make
a figure in my station. — \^To the clowns^ You asses you, why
did you not inform me at first that the murderer had sheep?
First Clown. Truly, please your worship, we did not
think he was the more guilty for having sheep.
Kadi. You are mistaken. A man murdered, and sheep !
It is enough. Nothing shall pacify me, I will make an
example this moment — of the sheep.
First Clown. Your worship is in the right. He deserves
to be hanged ; but the poor sheep, sir, have done nothing,
and \_crying\ we ask your worship's pardon for them.
Kadi. No, no ! no quarter ; justice must be done. I
shall just step into this closet with my deputy, and be with
you in a minute or two.
Second Clown. 'Faith, this is comical work. So then,
when a man has got sheep, the trial is over — he may think
of the gallows in good earnest.
First Clown. Ah ! Gossip, while fortune smiles on us,
and the kadi is in the murdering humor, let us take ven-
geance on our neighbor Khalib, who is constantly playing us
some trick or another.
Second Clown. The fellow has better than a hundred and
fifty sheep. This is a fine opportunity of getting rid of him,
or at least of procuring him a bastinado.
236
First Clown. You are in the right, and 'faith, we will do
for liim. He will have good luck if he escapes with blows,
and we may afterwards divert ourselves well at his expense.
This is, my dear brothers, continued the young kalandar,
a sample of my performance. I afterwards introduced the
young Persian drawing, by force of money from the covetous
kadi, an advice so contrary to his design of marrying his
daughter to the old Mohammedan ; but I shall not entertain
you with that scene, though pretty original, I think, in its
kind. It is enough that I have lately made you sensible of
my genius. I now return to my history. — Permit me first
to assure you, said Faruk, that the scenes with which you
have entertained us, are the prettiest that I ever saw. — Your
commendation, replied the young kalandar, is very moder-
ate ; my play, from beginning to end, is a most excellent
and charming performance, and none of our comic writers
has produced anything more perfect and natural ; all Shiraz
did me justice ; but tlie kadi of the town, of whom I never
thought in composing my comedy, judged otherwise of it.
He took it into his head that he saw himself represented
in it in the most natural colors, and entering into a furious
passion against both the author and the players, he drove us
all out of Shiraz, and forbade us, on pain of death, ever to
appear there again in that quality. I shall not enlarge upon
a little bastinado that I received by the kadi's order, in the
name of our company ; it was by the way of acknowledgment
for my being a satirical author ; all the other profits were
equally divided amongst us. After this I proposed to them
that we should go and settle in some other town, where the
kadis might be of a better way of thinking ; but they treated
me with great harshness, in spite of all the apologies I could
make for what had happened ; so that I resolved to renounce
the profession and to return to the business I carried on
before I took to the stage.
Upon this then I went back to my mother, who received
237
me with open arms. I had saved some money during the
two years I had spent among the players. Part of this
money I laid out in the purchase of a stock of cattle, and
being resolved to indulge myself, could not think of travel-
ling on foot to sell my butter and cheese ; I therefore bought
a little mule, which cost me thirty dinars. As I was going
home very quietly on my new purchase, (hiving before me a
purblind horse which I generally made use of to carry our
butter to market, I met at about a quarter of a league from the
town a man who asked me if I had come from Shiraz. —
You may see, said I, that I have but just left it. — No doubt,
replied he; have you been making some purchase at the fair
there? I have bought this mule there, answered I. — What
mule? — Why, the mule I ride on. — Are you in earnest? —
Certainly, it cost me thirty dinars. — Upon this the man
began to laugh ready to split his sides. The plot was well
laid, continued he ; whoever sold you the beast was no fool,
to palm an ass on you for a mule. He then continued his
journey towards Shiraz, laughing all the way as long as he
continued within hearing.
I really pitied the fellow, as I took him for a fool ; when
behold ! about half a league further, another asked me pretty
nearly the same question. I answered him as I had done
the first ; but when I came to tell him that I had bought a
mule : What ! said he, do you take me for a fool to think
of making me believe an ass is a mule ? I had a mind to
prove that he was mistaken ; but he fell into a passion,
abused me severely, and went on, leaving me in the greatest
astonishment imaginable. I now began to think in good
earnest that I might really have been imposed upon; so I
got off my purchase and examined it from head to foot,
without finding anything to make me alter my opinion of its
being a mule. However, unwilling to rely entirely on my
own judgment, or to trust entirely to my eyes on the occa-
sion, L made myself a promise to lay the affair before the
238
next man I met ; and swore that, if he judged in favor of
the ass, I would at once make him a present of it.
I had scarcely gone three hundred paces when I met with
a kind of country fellow. Brother, said I, let me know, I
beg you, what kind of a beast I have got under me? — A
comical question, this, replied he ; don't you yourself know
better than I can tell you ? — Let me know it or not, said I,
you will oblige me in telling. — Well, then, said the country-
man, it is no hard matter to know that it is an ass. This
answer thunderstruck me. I got off the beast which I had
taken for a mule, and begged the man to accept it as a free
gift. I had no occasion to press it upon him ; he thanked
me for my present, and leaping on the beast, gave her a kick
or two with his heels, and flew off like lightning. I got home
on foot, not a little vexed at the trick that had been played
me ; my mother, who soon perceived the trouble I was in,
asked me the cause of it. I gave her an account of what had
happened; she could not forbear laughing at it. Poor
unthinking creature, said she, have you not sense enough to
see that they were three sharpers, who spread themselves on
the road to Shiraz, and who laid a scheme to get your mule
from you ? You must be very simple indeed, to be caught
by so glaring a piece of knavery. My mother's raillery stung
me to the quick ; I saw now that I had suffered myself to be
imposed on, and forming a resolution to be revenged on my
sharpers the very first opportunity, I returned to the market
the next day but one. I knew them again, though they had
changed their dress ; and as I saw, by two or three of their
tricks, of which I happened to be a witness, that they were
not the cunningest of their trade, I thought I might safely
defer my vengeance to another opportunity.
After having taken my measures very well, and informed
my mother of what I was about, I put a pair of empty baskets
on a mottled goat that I had bought from one of my neiglv
bors, and went with her to the market of Shiraz. I had
239
scarcely arrived, when my three sharpers perceived me, and
surrounded me, thinking they would soon be able to make a
prey of me as they had done before. I pretended not to
know them; bought a leg of mutton, a turkey-cock, and
three chickens ; and putting them into my goat's basket :
Pretty creature, said I, loud enough for them to overhear
me, make haste home ; tell my cook to dress this leg of
mutton with rice, to make a stew of the turkey-cock, and a
fricassee of the chickens ; but above all things let her not
forget to make an excellent tart for the dessert ; let her like-
wise set eight bottles of wine to cool. I then gave the goat
a little lash, and off she capered. The three sharpers were
greatly surprised at this odd scene. What then, brother,
said one of them, do you imagine that this creature will obey
your orders? — No doubt, answered I, she will; this is not a
common goat, she knows my intentions, and I am certain she
will to a titde fulfil them. Upon this they fell a-laughing.
It is no joke, said I, very seriously ; if you doubt of it, come
home and dine with me, and judge for yourselves. The
sharpers took me at my word, and curious to know the truth
of what I had told them, stuck close to me, while I took
some turns in the market to make a few purchases ; which
done, we all set out together on foot. I had no sooner got
home, but, in order to deceive them the better, I began to
question my mother, as if she had been the cook. Well, said
I, has the goat come home ? — She arrived, answered she, a
long time ago ; you will find her browsing on the cabbages in
the garden, and your dinner would have been ready by this,
but that the guests you invited sent word that some unex-
pected business deprived them of the pleasure of waiting on
you this day ; however, the leg of mutton is almost done ;
another half hour will complete the turkey ; the fricassee is
quite ready ; the tart is in the oven, and the bottles are in
snow, as you directed. — It is all very well, said I : here are
three gentlemen, whose company will make me amends fol
240
the absence of those I invited. You may send up dinner as
soon as you please. — Nothing could come up to the aston-
ishment of my guests at the answers given me by my mother.
They went into the garden, and knowing the goat again by
the marks she had, which they had narrowly examined, they
resolved to have her at any price.
Dinner was soon ser\'ed up, and I made my sharpers, who
suspected nothing, drink very copiously. At length, wheii
we had almost done, one of them asked me if 1 would not
part with my goat. I pretended to be willing enough, pro-
vided I got the worth of her. They first offered twenty
dinars of gold, but I refused them with contempt ; in fine,
my dear brothers, I played my part so well that I got out of
them all the money they had, which in the whole made sixty
and some odd dinars. We fell to our liquor again to con-
firm the bargain, and my guests left me towards evening,
half drunk, and thoroughly satisfied with their purchase.
The day following, they thought proper to make a trial of
their goat in order to know if she would obey their com-
mands with the same obedience they imagined she had done
mine the day before. For this purpose they loaded her as
I had done, gave her her directions, and then sent her off;
but they waited in vain for her return, she never came back.
I must here, my dear brothers, explain this mystery to you.
One of my neighbors had two white goats spotted with
black, but so like one another, that it was impossible to find
any difference between them. These goats I bought, in
order to be revenged on my sharpers. I made my mother
acquainted with my design, gave her, if I may say so, orders
for dinner ; and after having tied up one of my goats in the
garden, led the other to market, where I bought the same
provisions which I had desired my mother to get ready. I
then put them on my goat, and after having given her directions
to carry them home, turned her adrift, for any one that pleased
to lay hands upon her, nor did I ever learn to whose lot she
241
fell. My orders were so punctually complied with, my
mother acted her part so naturally, and the other goat, which
my sharpers found in the garden, was so very like that
which they had seen with me at Shiraz, that they really
imagined that there was something above nature in the
creature, and so bought her at the dear price I have
been telling you. But she met, no doubt, with the same fate
that her sister had done before her; some stranger <iaid hold
of her, and made a property of her, and of the provisions
with which she had been loaded.
I made no doubt but that, when they found themselves
deceived, they would call upon me for their money, but I
waited for thera undauntedly. They knocked at my door,
threatening what an example they would make of me. I let
them in myself, asking them quietly what could be the cause
of their being in so great a passion ; they then told me it was
owing to the loss of their goat. Have you not curried it this
morning, said I, with the left hand, as I desired my cook to
tell you yesterday you ought to do ? She ran after you to ac-
quaint you with that important circumstance, which the wine
I had drunk made me forget, when we had concluded the
bargain. — What cook? replied the sharpers. Since we left
your house, it never came into our heads to curry the goat
with the left hand, as you never acquainted us with that cere-
mony. Upon this, I immediately called to my mother, who
came in trembling, on account of the great passion I pre-
tended to be in. How comes it, wretch, said I, in a great
fury, thr.t you did not tell these gentlemen, as I had so ex-
pressly commanded you, not to omit currying the goat with
the left hand, as I used to do myself every morning ? — My
dear master, said she, throwing herself at my feet, it was my
intention so to do, but I could not ; I ran after them a great
way, without being able to overtake them. — Ah ! you care-
less slut, said I, this is one of your common tricks ; no doubt
you stopped to chatter away with some gossip, and it is thus
i6
242
you undo me by your neglect ; but, I swear by Mohammed,
it shall not go far with you. With these words I took her by
the hair, and drawing a dagger from my girdle-belt, gave her
so home a stroke with it in the belly, as immediately laid
her flat on the floor. In a minute she was all covered with
blood, and my three sharpers were so stunned at it, that they
immediately began to think of making their escape. Gentle-
men, said I, she had only what she deserved ; nor need you
be in any pain about her. I can in an instant, if I please,
restore her to life, but she is not worth taking any trouble
with ; only help me, I beg of you, to bury her in my garden.
The three sharpers did nothing but stare at each other for
some time, till one of them breaking the profound silence
that this murder had cast them in : What ! said he, and is it
really in your power to bring the poor creature back to life
again ? — No doubt it is, I replied. — Ah ! then work, we be-
seech you, this miracle in our presence, and we will renounce
all claims we may have on you on the score of the goat. I
made some difficulty about giving them the satisfaction they
required ; they pressed me the more eagerly. At last : It is
impossible, said I, to refuse such worthy gentlemen ; upon
which, I opened a box, and taking out of it a hunting-horn,
played two or three very brisk tunes in the ears of the de-
ceased. As I played, my mother seemed to recover life by
degrees ; in fine, she was well enough in a quarter of an hour
to sit up, without expressing the least inconvenience from
the wound I had given her. This strange sight threw my
sharpers into the greatest amazement, and gave them so
great a longing for the horn, that they already began to think
how they might strip me of it. They asked me from whom
I had this so miraculous an instrument. I answered them,
that I had bought it from a stranger for one hundred and
four dinars, and that he told me it would lose its virtue
should any one take it forcibly from me ; but that it would
retain all its power in the hands of any one I made it over to,
243
provided I got for it eight dinars more than it cost me ; be.
cause it was absolutely necessary that in thus passing from
hand to hand the price should rise eight dinars, which was
all it cost at first, so that I was the thirteenth person who
had enjoyed it.
My guests speedily swallowed the bait, and nothing could
equal their longing for the horn, but they did not choose to
pay so dear for it ; however, they at last came to the resolu-
tion of letting me have for it the price under which I told
them it could not be sold, and pressed me so hard, that I at
length, after making a great many difficulties, suffered myself
to be persuaded, and took their one hundred and twelve
dinars. They immediately went home, and as they all lived
under the same roof, they sent for their wives, sat down to
table, and there spent the rest of the day. Night coming on,
when they had almost finished their meal, and had sufficiently
heated themselves with wine, they thought proper to try their
horn, and for this purpose endeavored to pick a quarrel with
their wives, who being provoked by some smart blows, re-
proached their husbands with every crime of theirs they
could think of, and even threatened to inform the kadi of
the life they led. This was exactly what the rogues wished
for. At these menaces they pretended to fall into the great-
est fury, and with their knives at once cut the throats of
the three women, who at bottom were as bad as their hus-
bands. The unhappy creatures were no sooner stretched
out upon the floor, than the murderers fell to tlieir horn, but
the wretches were deaf to their music, and no sign of life
appeared. Upon this they fell to it again, but finding that
all their skill was to no purpose, they too late perceived that
they had met with one cunninger than themselves; and
that I had, instead of stabbing my cook, only ran, as was
really the case, my dagger into a bladder of blood. You
may now imagine them not only in the greatest agonies at
my having outwitted them, but in the greatest despair for
244
having killed their wives, without knowing how to dispose of
their dead bodies. Whilst they were deliberating on the
means of being revenged on me, and of getting rid of the
unhappy victims of their stupidity, who should pass by but
the kadi's deputy with some asses ! Hearing the sound of
the horn, he knocked at the door to know the reason of
so unseasonable a noise, that broke the rest of all the
neighborhood.
The three sharpers began now to consider themselves as
lost men, and were so terrified that instead of opening the
door they thought of making their escape. But the kadi
ordered the door to be burst open, and on seeing the
three bodies weltering in their blood, he commanded his
attendants to seize the murderers, and to conduct them to
prison. His attendants, no doubt, were earnest enough in
obeying his orders, notwithstanding which, one of the mur-
derers somehow or other made his escape. The two others
represented in vain to the kadi that they had been imposed
upon, and that they never imagined their wives would be
killed outright. He listened to the story of the hunting-
horn as to a fable, and the next day I had the pleasure of
seeing my two sharpers hung up in front of their own door.
Much as I was pleased at my vengeance, the escape of one
of the criminals gave me no small uneasiness. I began to
be greatly afraid that he would one day or other play me
some unlucky trick. I therefore kept myself on my guard
for a considerable time, but at length, in spite of all my
vigilance, I fell into his power.
One evening as I was returning home pretty late from
Shiraz, I unfortunately met this arch-villain. He was so
much disguised that I did not know him ; but he knew me,
very well, for he had no sooner perceived me than he seized
me by the throat, and with the assistance of three other
wretches hke himself, crammed me into a sack that one of
them had under his arm, and after tying the mouth of it
245
with a strong rope, loaded me on their shoulders, with the
intention, as I could plainly discover, of throwing me into
the river of Badamir. I now, my dear brother, gave myself
up for lost, and began to be heartily sorry for having sought
any vengeance for the loss of my mule, when my assassins,
alarmed by the approach of some horsemen, threw me into
a hole that lay at a small distance from the road, threaten-
ing to be revenged on me if I made the least complaint ;
which done, they ran off, with the intention of soon returning
to take me away with them. In this terrible situation I
recommended myself earnestly to our great Prophet ; but
I did not place so much confidence in him alone, as not to
invoke, in spite of the orders I had received from my assas-
sins, the assistance of those who might at that time happen
to pass that way.
Accordingly, a butcher, who was driving before him a
flock of thirty sheep, hearing my cries, came up to the place
where I was, and asked me what I was doing in the sack,
and what was the cause of my lamentation. Alas ! said I,
in a very sorrowful tone, I believe they are going to drown
me, because I will not consent to marry the kadi's daughter.
Not marry the kadi's daughter ! and why so, you blockhead ?
said he. What reason can 5'ou have for not accepting her for
a wife ? She passes for one of the handsomest girls in Shiraz.
A little piece of nicety hinders me, answered I j she is with
child ; it is none of my doing ; and the kadi, who has a
mind to screen his daughter's honor, wants me to repair a
fault committed by another ; but I would rather die a thou-
sand times than submit to such an affront. — Plague on your
stupidity ! replied the butcher. I wish I was in your place :
they should not have occasion so much as to pull me by the
ear to make me comply. I would marry her directly. — There
is no difficulty in the thing, said I ; you only need put your-
self into this sack. — With all my heart, my good master
blockhead, replied the butcher, and you shall have my
246
sheep into the bargain. But now I think of it, how will the
kadi like the exchange? He wants nothing but a son-in-
law, answered I. He had given full directions to his slaves
to stop the first passenger they should meet, and inquire
of him if he was married, because his daughter's lover having
died a few days ago, he was at a loss how to repair her
honor. The lot fell upon me, but his daughter's big belly
disgusted me at first sight. Upon this he fell into such a
passion that he scarcely condescended to look at me, but
ordered 1 should be thrown into the river if I did not alter
my mind. — Since it is so, brother, I will readily change my
situation for yours, said the butcher. And accordingly he
untied the sack, and fixed himself in it in my place. I tied
it in my turn, and driving his sheep before me, made the
best of my way towards the village I belonged to.
In about half an hour, my sharper returned with his com-
panions to take up the sack. It was in vain that the butcher
within it cried out : Gentlemen, gentlemen, take me back
to the kadi ; I have altered my mind, and will marry his
daughter, let her be ever so big-bellied. The rogues im-
agined that despair had turned my brain, and so without
answering his remonstrances they went and threw him into
the river of Badamir, where the poor fellow ended his days.
It grieves me when I think of it ; but in fine, I am better
pleased he should be there than myself. The robbers, after
this exploit, turned towards the village I lived in, to com-
plete their revenge by burning my house. They happened
to arrive at the very moment I began to knock at my door ;
and the unexpected sight of me caused them so much terror,
that they were ready to die with fear. Oh, heavens ! said they,
what a prodigy is here ! how have you escaped drowning?
Whence come you? Where have you got all these sheep?
To be plain with you, I little expected to see these assas-
sins so soon again. At first I was struck dumb by their pres-
ence and their questions, but my usual readiness of thought
247
coming to my assistance : Go to, said I, you are a pack of
asses ; if you had thrown me but four fathoms farther into the
river, instead of tliirty sheep I should have brought home three
hundred. — What is the meaning of all this ? asked they. Why,
answered I, no other than this : there is in that part of the
river a good jinni, who received me very graciously, made
me a present of these sheep, brought me back with them to
my house, and assured me that had I dropped into the water
a litde further, I should have carried away with me eight
times as many. This piece of news greatly surprised the
robbers ; and after they had conferred together for some
time in a low voice, one of them, raising his voice : No
doubt, said he to his companions, there is something very
mysterious in this affair; for nothing is more certain than
that we threw this young man into the river ; he had no
sheep, we have had but time to come here, yet he is here
before us with thirty sheep, and there is not on his clothes
the least sign of their having been even wetted ; as for my
part, I think it very well worth our whiles to make a trial,
and to judge of the matter for ourselves. Upon this, he
turned aboui: to me, and asked me if I had any sacks. I
have, I believe, said I, half a dozen. It is two too many,
repHed he ; put up your sheep, take four sacks, and come
with us. I cheerfully obeyed them ; they brought me to
that part of the river where they thought they had just now
thrown me in. They even went to get a little boat that I
might tlirovv them further into the water, and then went each
of them into a sack, whose mouth I bound up very fast;
which done, they suffered themselves to be tumbled head-
long into the Badamir to fish for sheep. But I have not
since, my dear brothers, heard a word of news from them.
I now returned quietly home, well satisfied with the ven-
geance I had taken on my enemies. I lived well on their
money, and on the sheep I had from the poor butcher ; but
my good fortune was very short lived. One night my mother
248
unluckily set fire to our stable ; the blaze soon spread itself,
and not only mine but seven houses more were burnt down
to the ground. My poor mother, who saw herself reduced
by this accident to the greatest poverty, soon died of grief.
As for my part, as I had a profession and a genius for it,
I resolved to make the most of them. I left Shiraz, with an
intention of joining some of the company of comedians that
stroll from one town of Persia to another. 1 met with this
old kalandar ; we travelled some days together, his conver-
sation and way of life pleased me greatly. I have now be-
come a kalandar likewise, and we have undertaken a journey
to the Indies, where I do not despair of being again able to
shine as a comedian, in case I should chance to grow tired
of this habit.
Faruk, my lord, continued Ibn Aridun, had listened with
infinite pleasure to the young kalandar's story — I can
well believe he did, said the king of Astrakhan, interrupting
him ; nothing can be more agreeable than the adventures of
the two kalandars, and I make no doubt of their having been
able to suspend that prince's grief for the loss of his kingdom,
since I, who have more reason to be afflicted than he, have
not so much as thought of my misfortunes during the enter-
taining recital of them. But return, I beg of you, to Faruk's
history ; this unfortunate prince has so much interested me
in his favor that I burn with impatience to know the rest of
his adventures. — I shall go on with them with pleasure, my
lord, replied the son of Abu Bakr ; it is an easy matter for me
to satisfy your curiosity.
CONTINUATION OF THE STORY OF FARUK
Faruk and the two kalandars had now traversed almost
all Persia, without meeting with anything worth your Maj-
249
esty's attention ; when one day, to avoid the insupportable
heat of tlie sun, they quitted the high road, and retired into a
little wood to take their usual refreshment. They had not
been there long, when hearing the cries of somebody thaf had
fallen into bad hands, they immediately ran to the place
whence the noise came ; but they came too late to assist an
unhappy traveller, whom four assassins had just killed with
their daggers. As these wretches were well armed, far from
flying at the sight of the kalandars, they stripped the unhappy
victim of their fury, and one of them proposed that they
should cut him into small pieces. Faruk shuddered at this
piece of barbarity: Ah! gentlemen, said he, with great hu-
mility, surely you may be satisfied with having robbed this
poor man of his life, without treating his dead body with a
cruelty beyond example ; for Heaven's sake do not carry your
fury to greater lengths. One of the murderers looked at
Faruk with a stern countenance. Wretch, said he, why do
you trouble yourself about what in no way concerns youj*
Keep your remonstrances for others. As you regard your
life, take yourself away, you and your companions. Stop
but another moment, and I shall send you to bear him com-
pany, for whom you interest yourself so unseasonably. The
prince of Gur did not suffer himself to be disheartened by
this speech. But, sir, continued he, how great soever your
fury may be against this dead body, if I were to offer you
two thousand dinars for its ransom, would you not be better
pleased to take them than to treat it in so outrageous a
manner ? — No doubt, replied the robber. — Swear then that
you will let me have the dead body, said Faruk, and you
shall have the money this instant. — I swear then, said the
wretch ; may the scorpion of Kachan sting us all four in the
hand, if we do not keep to our word ! deliver us the two
thousand dinars, and the body is yours, to dispose of it as
you please. Upon this, my lord, Faruk, taking out of his
bosom the only ring he had left, and which was worth a great
250
deal more than he had promised them, gave it up without
showing the least concern, and the wretches left him in pos-
session of the body of the poor man they had murdered.
The two kalandars were extremely surprised at Faruk's
behavior, and could not but admire his generosity or his
folly ; and indeed they considered it as folly more than any-
thing else. What then, said they, can be your intention in
doing what you have done ? This ring was all that remained
of your riches ; it was a sure resource for you in any ex-
tremity, and you parted with it to redeem a dead body ; can
anytliing in tiae world equal your extravagance ? For, in fine,
what can you pretend to do with this body ? — I intend,
answered Faruk, to bury it in this spot ; good works are
never lost ; and you have told me yourselves, that in that
kind of life I have embraced, this ring was altogether useless
to me ; why then would you have me, for the sake of a stone
which men are pleased to call precious, and which only
serves for a superfluous ornament, lose the opportunity of
performing so holy a duty as that of laying in the ground a
Mohammedan who may one day or other perhaps intercede for
me in heaven ? — Your thought is very good, replied the kalan-
dars, but do not take it amiss that we leave you alone to go
through the pious ceremony ; it is somewhat dangerous to
bury a person who has been murdered in this place ; and so
good an action is capable of receiving a very bad interpre-
tation ; we shall, therefore, go and wait for you outside the
wood, and if you make any delay, we will meet you before
nightfall at the gates of Ormuz, which is not above a league off.
The kalandars upon this came out of the wood, in which
Faruk went to work with a stake, laboring with all his strength
to make a grave for the dead body ; but while he was thus
employed, the kadi of Ormuz happened to be going by. As
in this life people generally judge according to appearances,
the magistrate seized upon Faruk, on the presumption that
it was he who had killed the man he was going to bury- It
251
was to no purpose that he appealed to Heaven for his inno-
cence ; they tied him to a horse's tail, and dragged him to
Ormuz, where they threw him into a dungeon. The two
kalandars saw him go by in tliis deplorable condition. We
foretold what would happen to him, said they to themselves,
and he may thank his obstinacy for his misfortune. How-
ever, they followed him at a distance, though for fear of
being made parties in so delicate an affair, they thought pro-
per not to appear on his behalf.
The prince of Gur remained all night in the dungeon, and
next morning they brought him before the kadi ; the magis-
trate examined him, but nothing he could say to justify him-
self met with any regard, so that he was condemned to death,
and conducted directly to the market-place, to be hung ac-
cording to his sentence. This monarch behaved at the foot
of the gallows with surprising intrepidity. Heavens, cried
he, you are just ! Must I then be punished for an action
whicli in the sight of God deserves to be rewarded ? I now
perceive, O wise kalandars ! that you were in the right in
striving to dissuade me from giving burial to this dead body.
Just as the prince was finishing this exclamation, he happened
to throw his eyes upon the kadi's hand, who thought proper
to assist at the execution, and seeing on his finger the ring
which he had given the murderers : Ah ! said he, my lord,
our great Prophet, who no doubt interests himself in my
favor, thinks it improper that an innocent person should suf-
fer ; you have actually got on your finger the ring which I
gave to those who, after having killed the Mohammedan,
wanted to exercise on his body an unheard-of piece of cruelty ;
it will now be an easy matter to find out the criminals ; and
the two kalandars, my fellow-travellers, who must now be in
Ormuz, cannot but know the murderers again as well as my-
self The kadi turned paler than death at this news, put off
the execution, and ordered the prince of Gur back to his
house.
252
No wonder the kadi should be greatly surprised, when
Faruk assured him he had his ring, whereas he had bought
it from his only son for two thousand three hundred dinars ;
and his son was looked upon as a person of a very loose way
of life, and was suspected of keeping company with robbers,
assassins, and other wretches. The first thing the judge did
when he reached home, was to send for his son. A slave
told him that he was at a party of pleasure, with ten or a
dozen friends, at a garden a little way out of the town. The
kadi followed liim there instantly, and having seized the
whole company, had them brought before Faruk, to see if he
could discover the murderers amongst them. The prince
narrowly examined every face, and fixing upon two, in spite
of their disguise : It is to one of these men, said he to the
kadi, at the same time pointing out his son, that I gave my
ring, to hinder him from cutting the dead body into pieces.
It is he, and one of these disorderly young fellows, that com-
mitted the murder, of which two kalandars and myself were
witnesses. As to the two other murderers, I do not see
them here ; and if you doubt what I say, cause inquiry to be
made after the two kalandars, my fellow-travellers, who must
now be in Ormuz, and if they do not confirm my testimony,
I am satisfied to lose my life by the most cruel torments.
It was no hard matter to find the kalandars, who were
brought to the garden before the kadi. Here they examined
the twelve prisoners, and having confirmed Faruk's testi-
mony, they were surprised to see the kadi tear his gown and
his turband, and throw himself flat upon the ground. Un-
happy father ! cried out the magistrate, must you then
deliver up your only son to an infamous death !^o, wretch,
said he, I will save myself that dishonor ; but you shall die
notwithstanding, and I will be your executioner. Upon this,
he seized upon the sabre of one of his attendants, and struck
his son's head off at once with it ; and having put the other
eleven prisoners to the most cruel torments, and made them
253
confess a thousand horrid crimes, he directed they should be
cast from a higli tower upon iron hooks, giving all Ormuz in
this manner a most dreadful example of his justice.
This upright and honest magistrate shuddered at the
thoughts of the sentence he had pronounced against Faruk.
Heavens ! said he, had it not been for this ring I should
have robbed an innocent person of his life ! How confined
is our knowledge ! How easy is it for those in my station to
be led astray by prejudice J I need no more proof of it. I
renounce my profession, and will spend the remainder of my
life in seeking God's pardon for the faults I have committed
as a judge, through ignorance, prejudice, or want of applica-
tion. Upon this, turning to Faruk, who when he pointed
out to the kadi the person to whom he had given the ring,
knew nothing of the criminal being so dear to him : Pious
kalandar, said he, throw off this habit, and be to me what the
wretch was whom I have just now punished for his many
crimes. I give you up all that I am worth, seeing you know
how to make so good a use of riches. I beg you may accept
them, and let me not go to the grave, into which I find my-
self ready to sink, with the disagreeable thoughts of your
having refused me. Faruk, my lord, touched to the heart
with the words of this unfortunate father, cast himself at his
feet. My presence, said he, generous kadi, would only serve
to fix your thoughts on the unhappy death of your son.
Permit me, therefore, to remove far from your sight an
object — On the contrary, replied the judge, it will wear out
of my mind a remembrance, which that retirement to which
I have devoted the rest of my life would otherwise render
perpetual. Do not abandon me, I again beseech you, if you
have any compassion for an unfortunate father. In the
mean time, the kadi embraced Faruk in the tenderest man-
ner, who, unable to resist his tears, granted him his re(iuest.
The king of Gur was now adopted by the kadi of Ormuz,
and was under the necessity of remaining at Ormuz. As for
254
the two other kalandars, they continued their journey, in
spite of the handsomest proposals which the prince made
them. They continued fixed in their design of visiting the
Indies and China, and all the favor Faruk could obtain of
them was for each of them to accept a present of two thou-
sand dinars of gold. The prince of Gur, my lord, lived very
quietly and happily with the kadi, who had resigned his com-
mission, much against the will of the king of Ormuz. Faruk
behaved towards this venerable magistrate with all the ten-
derness of a son, and the good old man had every day reason
to bless the Almighty for having permitted him to make so
worthy a choice ; but he enjoyed but a short time the fruits
of his prudent adoption. At the end of eight months he fell
dangerously ill, and, in fine, resigned his just soul into the
hands of the Angel of Death. Faruk was deeply afflicted at
so great a loss ; and finding that the effects left him were
considerable, he made two shares of them. One share he
took to himself, and laid out the other in building a Mosque
and a caravanserai at the gates of Ormuz ; near which he
caused his benefactor to be buried, with a marble column at
the foot of the grave, on which was engraved an epitaph of
his own composition, worthy of the deceased.
The prince of Gur, having fulfilled all the pious duties of a
good son, began to grow tired of Ormuz, for want of employ-
ment. The remembrance of what he had been was con-
stantly animating him to the performance of some actions
that might restore him to his primitive grandeur. To ac-
complish this, he came to the resolution of equipping a ship,
with which he might acquire an illustrious name ; and he
soon put this design into execution. For this purpose he
engaged the bravest men in Ormuz, and in a short time the
fame of his conduct and valor was so well spread over the Ara-
bian Sea and the Indian Ocean, that his successes and victo-
ries made the subject of every conversation. It was at this
time, my lord, that the princesses of Tiflis and of Borneo fell
255
into his hands. You know the remainder of his history to
the time when Gulguli-Chamami fell into the sea. I shall
now give you the continuation of it, extracted from the
annals of the Islands of Divanduru.
Faruk, when he awakened, was in the utmost surprise not.
to find the princess on board his ship, and when he learned
the accident that had befallen her, he was so much afflicted
at it, that he several times made an attempt on his own life ;
the attendants hindered him from committing so desperate
an action, and by dint of reason, brought him at length to a
soberer way of thinking. The prince was now beginning to
enjoy some peace of mind, when he discovered at a distance
two ships which had the wind of him. He did not hesitate
a moment to wait for them, and having attacked them he in
his despair achieved such prodigies of valor that he soon
obliged them to strike. He then went on board these vessels,
and having sent on board his own ship such of the prisoners
as appeared of any consequence, he ordered the rest to be
ironed, but only for his own safety and till he arrived at some
port, where he intended to set them at liberty again.
Among the prisoners that Faruk ordered on board his
own ship, were two well-looking young men, very well
dressed, whose features the prince thought he had some
knowledge of. He examined his memory for a long time,
in order to recollect where he might have seen them, but
all to no purpose. Upon this, he asked the prisoners if
they had not met him somewhere or another ; but one of
them answered that he did not believe he had ever had
that honor, and that they had been three years travelling
through China and the Indies. Faruk, thinking himself
mistaken, put up with this answer, and after having spent
the rest of the day in quietness (all the quietness he could
enjoy after the loss of the princess of Tiflis) he withdrew
to his cabin, where, oppressed with fatigue, he fell into a
sound sleep.
25^
He had scarcely slept two hours, when he started up,
awakened by a dream, to which he thought himself obliged
to give some attention. The traveller whom he had buried
some years before at Ormuz, appeared to him : You were
in the right, my lord, said the ghost to him, in representing
to the two kalandars who wanted to hinder you from be-
stowing the last rites upon me, that a good action never
goes unrewarded. The time is now come, that I may ac-
knowledge your pious earnestness on that occasion. The
two men that you could not yesterday recollect, are my
murderers ; I mean those who fled to avoid punishment.
On their part they know you very well again, in spite of the
alterations in your condition, and fearing your just ven-
geance, have already dispatched the sentinel that was placed
at your door, and are now ready to come into your cabin
to stab you. — The prince, who, as I have already told you,
my lord, awoke at the close of this dream, thought he
could not in prudence neglect so salutary an admonition ;
he got up, and hearing a noise at the door of his cabin,
which was dimly illuminated by a lamp, he took up his
sabre, placed himself in a posture not to be surprised, and
thus waited the event of so uncommon a dream. He had
not been long in this situation, when his door opening very
softly, two wretches came in, each with a dagger in his
hand. He did not hesitate a moment to put it out of their
power to hurt him, and having struck off the arm of one
of them with his sabre, and stunned the other by a back
blow of the pommel in his face, he called his attendants,
ordered them to seize on the assassins, and after reproaching
them with the murder they had committed near Ormuz, he
caused them to be hung up at once to one of the masts.
Faruk, having given his ship's company an account of
his dream, retired to his cabin. He there threw himself
on his face, to thank the great Prophet for the salutary in-
formation he had received, and being again laid down to
257
rest, he had scarcely fallen asleep, when the same ghost
appeared again to hiin. It is not enough, said the phantom,
that I have preserved you from the hands of lliose who had
a design upon your life ; it was the least I could do for you ;
but then I must let you know to whom you are indebted
for so seasonable an admonition. My name was Almaz ;
I was the only heir of Zalabdin, king of the islands of Divan-
duru. About six years ago, I obtained leave of my father
to travel, and I set out, with three attendants only, to visit
Persia and Tartary. My three attendants died during the
journey, and I was returning alone and incognito to Ormuz,
to take ship to Divancluru, when I was cruelly murdered by
the son of the kadi of Ormuz. My father, who has had
no news of me since I left him, and who impatiently expects
my return, has been this month past confined to his bed
by a disorder, of which it is written on the table of life that
he will not recover ; and our great Prophet has obtained of
God in jny favor, that the sword of the angel of death
should be withheld by rust in the scabbard till you have
reached the islands of Divanduru, where you are to marry
the princess Garun, my sister. Proceed there then with-
out fear ; I will give them notice of your coming, and that
they may not commit any mistake on this occasion, I will
seal you with the seal of the elect. The ghost upon this
having pressed, pretty violently, a fiery seal on the prince
of Gur's arm, he at that instant felt so great a pain from it,
that he gave a roar which awakened all the people on board
the ship. They immediately gathered about him, and he
gave them an account of his second dream ; and as the
impression made on his arm in which were distinctly to be
seen the name of God and that of his great Prophet, left
him no room to doubt of the reality of the vision, he with-
out the least hesitation directed his course for the isles of
Divanduru, where he arrived in about five weeks.
The favorable winds he had during his passage had
17
258
brought him into port exactly at the time mentioned by
the ghost. The king of these islands was now very far
spent, and the princess, his daughter, who never stirred
from him, was in the greatest affliction for his melancholy
situation ; the approach of her father's death rendered her
condition very deplorable in every respect. The king of
Cananor, whose ancestors had formerly some pretensions
to the islands of Divanduru, only waited the death of Zalab-
din to invade his territories, and to take advantage of his
son's absence. But Faruk, my lord, soon gave another face
to Zalabdin's affairs.
Almaz, having appeared to the king his father the night
before the arrival of the prince of Gur, gave him an account
of his violent death, of Faruk's compassion, and of the
orders he had received from Heaven to mark him with
its seal, and to send him to Divanduru, there to marry the
princess, his sister. He, moreover, directed his father, in
the name of the great Prophet, to prepare himself for a
holy death. Zalabdin, surprised at this dream, considered
it, however, as the effect of a burning fever ; but how great
was his surprise when Garun, who slept at but a little dis-
tance from his bed, got up in a hurry, and just throwing
a gown over her shoulders, came running to his bed-side.
Ah ! said she, my lord, the tears gushing from her eyes,
my brother no doubt is no longer among the living. He
has just appeared to me covered all over with blood, and
has informed me that he had been murdered by a son of
the kadi of Ormuz ; that a young prince, disguised in the
habit of a kalandar, had bestowed the last rites upon him ;
that this very prince, whom we should know by the name
of God, which my brother had imprinted on his arm, is just
on the point of arriving here to oppose the unjust under-
taking of the king of Cananor ; and that it was written in
heaven that I should marry our deliverer. — Alas ! my dear
Garun, replied the afflicted Zalabdin, your dream is but too
259
true. Almaz, who has but this instant appeared to myselfi
has told me the very same things, with one more, which
perhaps your tenderness conceals for fear of terrifying me.
Azrail is now at the side of my bed ; he there waits for my
soul, whose union with my body is to last so short a time
that I shall scarcely enjoy the pleasure of seeing you united
with the prince of Gun — Ah ! my lord, it is true enough
that I intended to hide this circumstance from you, replied
the princess of Divanduru ; must I then lose you, my lord ?
— Yes, my dear, answered Zalabdin, undauntedly ; let us
prepare ourselves for this bitter separation by an edifying
submission, which the agreement between our dreams re-
quires of us ; and read for me, I beseech you, those verses
of the Koran which serve to take off the terror that naturally
attends this unavoidable transition.
Garun, all in tears, took the Koran out of its case of green
cloth, and read to her father till it was daylight a great
many chapters of this divine book. She was thus piously
employed when a messenger entered with the account of
a ship having just come into port, that brought some news
from his son, Prince Almaz. Upon this, the good king's
grief broke out with new vigor. He gave a great shout :
Ah ! my dear Garun, said he to the princess, our dreams
then, you see, are now accomplished. Go, prepare yourself
to appear before the prince of Gur, and give orders that
he should be immediately introduced into my apartment.
Garun obeyed ; she went to dress herself, while messengers
were carrying to Faruk the orders of Zalabdin. The young
prince being conducted into the chambers of the dying
monarch, saw so much grief painted on his countenance,
that he had not resolution enough to inform him of his son's
death. Zalabdin discovered the perplexity Faruk was in.
Sir, said he, with a weak voice, as I am not unacquainted
with your name or your errand, do not be afraid of increas-
ing my grief, by giving me an account of the death of my
260
beloved son Almaz ; he has himself taken care to give me
notice of so afflicting a catastrophe. Faruk, my lord,
hesitated answering the questions of Zalabdin, when the
beautiful Garun made her appearance. At the first sight
of her, the prince of Gur almost fainted away, and even
fell on the bed of the sick monarch ; this accident threw
the king and his daughter into a great amazement.
Nature, my lord, had taken pleasure in preparing the ways
of love between Faruk and Garun. This princess so per-
fectly resembled GulguH-Chamami, that the prince of Gur
could not look at her without an extraordinary emotion.
He got the better of his weakness by degrees, and finding
by the difference of their heights that he was mistaken, he
however judged it would be improper to let Garun know the
cause of his sudden fit. Turning to Zalabdin : Ah ! my
lord, said he, pardon this involuntary breach of respect ;
the fine eyes of the charming Garun sent such irresistible
arrows to my heart that I had not strength enough to bear
up against them : but in endeavoring to excuse one fault I
see that I commit another. It ill becomes me to speak of
love in places full of grief and horror, and though I may
think myself authorized to behave in this manner by the
words of the prince your son, and by the divine characters
he imprinted on my arm, I am thoroughly sensible of my
indiscretion. — You cannot, sir, give any offence, replied the
afflicted Zalabdin, since Heaven has chosen you for the hus-
band of the beautiful Garun ; it would look very ill of me
to find fault with a passion that is to constitute all the hap-
piness of her life ; on the contrary, I am extremely glad that
her charms have made so quick and so lively an impression
on the senses of so accomplished a prince. But be so kind,
sir, as to acquaint me with the fate of my son, since you are
the only person who can give me any certain account of
him. Faruk could no longer defer satisfying Zalabdin's
reasonable curiosity ; he related tc him all the circumstances
26l
of Almaz's death, but as briefly as possible; likewise the
punishment of the murderers, the unhappy prince's appear-
ance to him, and his positive orders to come to Divanduru,
where he assured him he should have the good fortune o{
winning the heart of the accomplished Garun.
The prince of Gur, my lord, had scarcely finished his
relation when word was brought to the king in a great hurry
that the king of Cananor in person had just landed in the
island and was laying waste every place with fire and sword.
Ah ! my lord, said Faruk, it is my business to revenge you
of the oppression of this unjust monarch : I will perish with
all my people, or bring you back his head in a very short
time. The prince, after this, making a low reverence to his
Majesty, turned to the princess. And you, charming Garun,
said he, may I flatter myself with the hopes of being dear
enough to you to deserve your vows to Heaven for a prince
who will spill the last drop of his blood rather than suffer the
king of Cananor to succeed in his wicked and cowardly
pretensions? These words deprived Garun of the power
of answering him ; she was at a loss how to return the
compliment ; but as her love seemed to be authorized by
the great Prophet, and by her father : Go, my lord, she re-
plied, where honor calls you ; our cause is too just for
Heaven to give the day to the king who would oppress us ;
but do not yield to your courage enough to give me fresh
affliction. The princess could not finish these words with-
out a blush ; and Faruk, transported at seeing he had an
interest in the princess's heart, ran to put himself in a con-
dition to execute what he had promised. He immediately
assembled his followers, and being reinforced by Zalabdin's
troops, went in search of the enemy with so much resolu-
tion, that the marks of victory were already visible in his
countenance.
The king of Cananor had at first s[)rcad so universal a
terror, that all the inhabitants fled before him ; but Faruk 's
262
presence inspired them with new courage, and he attacked
the invader with so much resolution and vigor, that he
obliged him to retreat in his turn. The king of Cananor,
enraged at seeing himself defeated by a single man (for it
was Faruk alone, in a manner, that brought victory to the
party he sided with), made his way through a thousand
swords to attack personally the young hero ; who, no less
desirous of measuring his courage with the king's, flew more
than half way to meet him, bearing down everything that
opposed his progress ; so that a terrible batde soon ensued
between the two chiefs, in which, however, Faruk at length
proved victorious. The king of Cananor lost his life in it,
and his death having disheartened his troops, they imme-
diately endeavored to get back to their ships ; but the
prince of Gur pursued them so closely that they were all
cut to pieces, and their ships given up to be plundered by
the victorious soldiers. After so complete a victory the
prince returned to the palace amidst the acclamations of
all the people. The king and the matchless Garun espe-
cially received him with unspeakable joy. Sympathy, which
generally penetrates a great way in a very short time, had so
perfectly gained him the heart of this princess that she could
scarcely keep within bounds the transports she felt at the
thoughts of being matched with so accomplished a prince.
Faruk, my lord, was perfectly well made ; his features full
of life, his air noble, his soul answerable to his make, very
skilful, and courageous beyond imagination. So many shin-
ing qualities were more than sufficient to inflame a young
princess, whose happy resemblance to Gulguli-Chamami
rendered her extremely precious in the eyes of the young
hero. In a word, Zalabdin thought it improper to keep
these happy lovers to sigh for a union any longer. He
joined them together that very day ; and after declaring
Faruk his successor, went in a few days more to give an
account of his actions before the throne of Almighty Allah.
263
You have now heard, my lord, the adventures of Faruk.
This prince, clierished by the beautiful Garun, after having
sincerely lamented the death of Zalabdin, spent his days
with his illustrious consort in a manner worthy of envy, and
left children whose descendants reign to this day in the
islands of Divanduru.
RETURN OF THE PHYSICIAN
ABU BAKR
Just as Ibn Aridun was finishing the history of Faruk,
Astrakhan rang with a thousand acclamations of joy, which
reached the palace of Shams al-Din. The monarch, sur-
prised at so uncommon a noise, immediately ordered the
wazir Mutamhid to inquire what was the cause of it. Mu-
tamhid accordingly went out of the palace to get intelligence,
but immediately came back. Ah ! my lord, said he, in a
transport of joy, I have just had a sight of Abu Bakr, con-
ducting towards the palace a lady covered with a veil. No
doubt your misfortunes will soon have an end, and it is the
presence of those two persons which gives your subjects a
pleasure they cannot contain, Mutamhid had not finished
this agreeable account, when the father of Ibn Aridun en-
tered the hall where Shams al-Din was seated, followed by a
crowd of people who had forced their way after him. The
old man threw himself prostrate at the king's feet, and said :
Here is, my lord, your faithful slave returned sooner than 1
promised your Majesty, and I bring back with me a treasure,
which I could not find anywhere but at Sarandib. It is the
woman who is to restore you your sight. — Come near me
that I may embrace you, my dear Abu Bakr, answered the
king of Astrakhan ; such subjects as you and your son de-
serve all the love and confidence of their prince. Let this so
rare a woman make a trial of her skill ; but I assure you
264
beforehand, that though she should not succeed, I shall not
think my obh'gation to you the less.
On the king's giving this order, the veiled lady drew near
his Majesty's throne, all the spectators waiting impatiently
for the event ; but few of them, the physicians especially,
thought any good of this remedy, when tlie woman, taking
out a golden bottle which she opened, washed the king's
eyes with the water she had gathered on the wonderful tree
of Sarandib. This divine liquor had scarcely touched the
king's eyes than he perceived in them a salutary coolness,
which he felt even at his heart ; two kinds of films, which
obstructed the passage of the rays of light, fell from his eyes;
and the prince recovering his sight as perfectly as he had
ever enjoyed it, before Ibn-Bukr had so barbarously deprived
him of it, cried out in a transport of joy : Heavens ! is it
possible that the darkness, in which I have lived so long a
time, should be so soon dispersed ? Yes, I again know you,
my dear Mutamhid, and you my other faithful subjects, whose
features have not been worn out of my memory by so long a
blindness. At last then I can enjoy the light.
The surprise of all the spectators was so extraordinary, and
the joy was so great, that nothing was to be heard in the hall
but clapping of hands. But the king, having ordered silence,
turned himself to the lady, who had remained standing with
modest silence. Whoever you are, said he, illustrious heroine
of your sex, you may expect everything for a service too
great to have a price set upon it. The loss of my dear Zabd
al-Katon does not leave me at liberty to divide my throne
with you. No woman, let her be ever so handsome, shall here-
after have dominion over my heart ; but you may depend on
a gratitude without bounds, and which will be every day^s
new and as lively as the first. Do not then, madam, hide
any longer from me and from my subjects a person to whom
I am so much obhged ; throw off this veil, I beseech you,
and let us see those eyes whose vivacity dazzles me, though
26s
their fires are blunted by the gauze that covers them. The
lady in the veil thought herself obliged to comply with this
request and accordingly unveiled herself. But what became
of Shams al-Din at this sight, which he was not able to bear !
He fell back on his throne speechless, and it was some time
before he came to himself enough to express his surprise.
Ah ! Zabd al-Katon, my dear Zabd al-Katon, cried he, is it
yourself, then, that I have now the pleasure of beholding ;
or may not my heart, upon which your image is so deeply
engraved, mistake for you everything that my eyes now dis-
cover? — No, my lord, answered the lady, with tears of joy,
I am that Zabd al-Katon whom you had given up for dead.
I am still alive, and happy to be instrumental in putting an
end to your misfortunes. — Ah ! no doubt, replied the king,
at the same time tenderly embracing his beloved spouse, all
my misfortunes are at an end indeed, since I behold you. I
appeal to Heaven, if I have been a single day since our cruel
separation without shedding a flood of tears for your loss;
but the source from whence they sprung is now dried up.
This discourse, and the mutual and tender caresses of this
illustrious pair, sensibly affected all the spectators. So
strange and miraculous an adventure filled them all with
astonishment, even Abu Bakr himself, who had conducted
the lady from Sarandib to Astrakhan without knowing that
she was Zabd al-Katon. Soon after this happy discovery
joy and pleasure took the place of silence and affliction.
The king loaded with favors Abu Bakr and his son, whom
he ever afterwards retained about his person. He distributed
immense sums among the convents of darwayshes and the
Mosques, to thank the Sovereign Prophet for his protection :
but as he was impatient to know by what supernatural power
his consort had been restored to life, and by what accident
Abu Bakr had met with her, he had no sooner returned to
his palace with his wazirs and his physician, than he requested
Zabd al-Katon to satisfy his curiosity in their presence. The
266
queen loved the tender Shams al-Din too well to defer his
satisfaction a single moment, and began as follows : —
STORY OF ZABD AL-KATON
It would be to no purpose, my lord, to put you in mind
of the last words I said to you at our separation. They were
dictated to me by our great Prophet ; and as Azrail was at
that time so near my pillow, I did not imagine we should
ever meet again. However, life did not totally forsake me ;
a lethargic vapor deprived me of my senses, enough, no
doubt, to make every one believe that I was really dead.
Even you yourself were deceived on the occasion, and
ordered, as I have since been told by Abu Bakr, who, with-
out knowing who I was, related all your misfortunes to the
king of Sarandib in my presence, — you ordered, I say, that
I should be shut up in a cofifin adorned with precious stones,
but forbade at the same time that my face should be covered j
a precaution which proved the happy means of saving my
life. The jewels and gold with which my collfin was covered
made the Arabian robbers decide to remove me to a place
of safety ; and accordingly they did not divide their plunder
till they had got about ten leagues from the place where they
attacked you. After they had broken my coffin to pieces
they began to strip me, in order to throw me into a pretty
deep river that ran hard by ; when one of them, in endeavor-
ing to rip the sleeve of my gown, to which an emerald was
fastened, was unskilful enough to prick me in the arm, and
this accident, my lord, secured me from a real death. My
blood flowed so freely that the robber was surprised at it ;
and this circumstance, with some remains of heat and a
feeble palpitation, made him conclude that I was not dead
but in a deep lethargy. However, he thought proper not
to acquaint the other robbers with what he had observed,
26/
but throwing me on his shoulders he carried me towards the
river, in order to make them believe that he really intended
to throw me into it. In the mean time the robbers moved to
a greater distance, without suspecting that he understood
something of surgery. He let my blood run as much as he
thought my condition required, bound up my arm with the
muslin of his turband, and throwing water on my face brought
me back to myself by degrees.
At length, my lord, I opened my eyes, and when I grew
strong enough to look attentively at the objects about me I
was not a little surprised to find myself alone in the company
of a man I had never seen before. As he soon perceived
my grief and surprise by my eyes and actions : Take cour-
age, madam, said he, your life is in safety in my hands, and
your honor runs no risk since it is out of my power to attack
it, though I were ever so ill-disposed. These words quieted
me a little, and having inquired of him in what manner I
had fallen into his hands, I was told, my lord, that your little
caravan had been attacked by the wild Arabs at some days'
distance from Cairo ; that you had made the boldest resist-
ance ; but that at last, overpowered by numbers, you had
fallen, with all your attendants, surrounded by more than
thirty of your enemies, whom you had killed with your own
hands. You may guess, my dear prince, the greatness of
my despair at hearing this cruel news. I no longer reckoned
you among the living, and being desirous of paying your
remains the same honors you had bestowed on me, I
requested the Arab to conduct me to the spot where the
engagement had happened. He was so good as to comply,
but I was so weak that I could not reach the place in fewer
than four days. We examined together all the dead bodies ;
but as they were no longer distinguishable on account of the
wounds which they had received on the face, and the blood
that covered them, and by lying so long exposed to the
air, it was impossible for me to tell exactly which was you.
268
However, finding one that appeared to me of your size, 1
concluded it was you, and washed its face with my tears. I
even thought I could discern some of your august features,
which so increased my grief that I fainted on the body, which
I held clasped in my arms. Tlie Arab separated me ; I
remained above an hour in this condition, but at last I came
to myself. With some broken sabres that we found on the
spot we then dug a hole large enough to contain this body,
which we accordingly put into it; and having covered it
with earth, we left the place, full of horror and affliction.
I was so amazed, notwithstanding my affliction, at the
civilities aiid politeness of the Arab, that I could scarcely
refrain a moment from expressing my gratitude. My lord,
said I, how is it possible that having embraced the life of a
robber, you should preserve so noble a way of thinking and
of acting? Certainly, you were not born to so base and
cruel a condition ; your living amongst them must be owing
to some very pressing necessity. — Ah ! madam, replied the
Arab, though I am but of a middling condition, I never
imagined I should be obliged to take up with the company
of such wicked wretches. It was the desire of being re-
venged for the greatest injury which can be done a man that
alone induced me to unite with the Arabian robbers ; but
the death of my enemy has not restored me what his unjust
fury had deprived me of. These last words drew from him
a flood of tears, which having awakened my compassion and
strengthened my curiosity, I requested him to give me some
account of his misfortunes. His relation was to the following
purpose : —
ADVENTURES OF THE ARAB ABAN-AZAR
I AM the son, madam, of a pretty considerable jeweller ot
Aden. My father had an intimate friend in the same bus!-
269
ness, whose name was Saman ; and Saman had a daughter
four years younger than I was, whose rare beauty eclipsed
that of every other girl in Aden. My father and his friend,
to strengthen their friendship, had agreed that their children
when grown up should become man and wife ; so that I had
scarcely attained the use of reason when Abdarmon was
taught to consider me as her spouse, and my father gave me
to understand that I should only please him in proportion to
the progress I made in the esteem and affection of my litde
mistress. It seldom happens that the hearts of children
given away at so tender an age follow exactly the wills of
their parents ; one would even imagine that this kind of
tyranny inspires them with quite contrary sentiments. How-
ever, madam, it was quite the reverse in our case ; the more
we grew up the more we answered the intentions of our
fathers ; I used to spend whole days with my little mistress,
without desiring any other enjoyment ; and on her side, she
did not appear to have any satisfaction greater than that of
seeing me in her company ; so that if I stayed away but a
single moment beyond the time at which I generally used to
wait on her in her apartment, she reproached me in the
tenderest manner, and thereby added new strength to my
passion. You do not love me so much as you ought, my
dear Aban-azar, said she to me one day, and I find that I
am not handsome enough to make you entirely mine ; you
often appear distracted in my company, at the same time
that you take up all my attention. What is there, then,
wanting to complete your happiness? Alas! did I know
what it was, I would with joy sacrifice my life to the satisfac-
tion of my lover. — You are very unjust, answered I, and at
the same time very ingenious in making yourself uneasy.
Why load me with reproaches that I so little deserve? I
languish in every place in which I do not find you. I love
nothing but you ; on your love alone depends all my hap-
piness; and if anything can give me pain, it is only the
270
thoughts of being obh'ged to wait four years before becoming
the spouse of my dear Abdarmon.
My young mistress, continued Aban-azar, was scarcely ten
years old, and I scarcely fourteen, when we entertained each
other in this tender manner. Judge then, madam, how pas-
sionate our conversation must have been, the nearer we drew
to the term of our happiness. In fine, madam, I do not
think it was possible for two young persons to love each
other with greater delicacy ; and we were now on the point
of seeing so pure and so faithful love crowned by the happy
union with which our parents had flattered our hopes, when
suddenly we were made the most unfortunate lovers that
ever existed. Our fathers fell out through a jealousy, created
by their being of the same profession. A mortal enemy of
mine made it his business to foment the quarrel by a thou-
sand false reports, and the wretch succeeded so well that
their enmity grew to an inveterate hatred. The first thing
they did was to break the engagement which Abdarmon and
I had entered into by their orders. We were forbidden to
see each other, or to entertain the least hopes of ever being
united. What a sensible stroke was this ! I thought I should
have died of grief; and I must do Abdarmon the justice of
saying that her grief was so great that it brought upon her a
violent fit of sickness, which at length reduced her to the last
extremity. The news of the danger she was in threw me
into perfect despair. I ran to Saman's house, fell prostrate
at his feet, and made use of the most submissive expressions
to engage his pity : but I found him inflexible to my entreat-
ies. I then made use of the danger my dear Abdarmon was
in to endeavor to soften him, but all to no purpose. Though
I love my daughter, said he, as much as any father can love
a child, I should be better pleased to see her in the grave
than in the arms of tlie son of my most cruel enemy. You
must therefore think no longer of prevailing over me, but
withdraw yourself quickly, lest I forget the kindness I still
271
have for you. I had a mind to reply, but his cruelty afflicted
me so much that I fainted away at his feet. My grief made
no impression on him ; so far from it, that he ordered two
slaves to take me in the condition I was in and throw me
out of doors. My father, on his way home from some busi-
ness that he had been transacting, uiifortunately for me
happened to pass at that very moment through the street
where Saman lived, and having heard of this cruel behavior
he was exasperated at it to the last degree ; he ordered me
to be carried home, where in some time I came round to
myself.
The affront I had received was so public that my father
ordered me, on pain of his indignation, never to commit the
same fault again. But I had little inclination to obey him.
The beautiful Abdarmon had made too deep an impression
on my heart to be so readily forgotten ; on the contrary, I
carefully sought every opportunity of assuring her personally
of an eternal tenderness, though all to no purpose ; she was
too narrowly watched, and it was impossible for me to
approach her. Upon this I fell sick with grief, and had
scarcely recovered when to complete my misery I heard she
had just been married to Ilikhan, the son of our enemy.
What an impression the fatal news made on me ! I uttered
against Saman everything that rage and despair could inspire.
Ah ! I cried, is it possible then, charming Abdarmon, that
you should become the prey of the vilest and most brutal of
all mankind? And indeed, madam, Ihkhan had so mean a
look, so savage a countenance, and so much rusticity in his
behavior, that he was universally hated. But his father had
prevailed on Saman, by the most artful flattery, especially by
representing to him that he could not revenge himself on my
father better than by giving Abdarmon to his son ; so that
Saman did not hesitate a moment to sacrifice his daughter
to his vengeance ; and thus the beautiful Abdarmon fell a
sacrifice to the animosity of our families.
272
It was not without the greatest reluctance imaginable thai
Abdarmon delivered herself up into the hands of Ilikhan,
nor till she had tried every method she could think of to
avoid it ; but her father was inexorable. It was not, how-
ever, possible to extort from her a formal consent to an
union, to which she would have preferred death itself had
she been left to her choice ; but Saman forgot on this occa-
sion his quality of father, to become her executioner. He
put her into Ilikhan's hands, who brought her home with-
out troubling his head about the aversion she expressed
against him ; and thinking that Saman's consent was suffi-
cient to entitle him to exact from Abdarmon what no wife
ought to refuse a husband, he met with such opposition from
tliis virtuous girl that neither prayers nor threats made any
impression upon her. His impatient temper made him
hasten away to Saman with a complaint of his daughter's
behavior, and Saman reproached her most severely on the
occasion ; but the generous Abdarmon, without failing in the
respect she owed her father, courageously protested that she
never would be IHkhan's wife. No, my lord, said she, it is
in vain that you try every method of making me unfaithful ;
my heart has contracted a long and pleasing habit of loving
Aban-azar ; in this I have only obeyed your orders, and the
most cruel death cannot make me alter my sentiments.
Saman was amazed at such a resolution, but flattered himself
that time might get the better of it. He therefore advised
Ilikhan to treat Abdarmon with great mildness, giving him
hopes that he might in that manner overcome the courage
of the young heroine. It was with great difficulty that
Ilikhan could moderate himself so far as to follow his father-
in-law's advice. He determined, however, to wait for some
days to see if a respectful behavior would not make some
favorable impression on Abdarmon, resolved to make use of
his authority if he did not succeed by fair means.
It was with unspeakable joy that I heard of Abdarmon 's
273
noble resistance and of the resolution which Ilikhan had
formed ; I thence conceived some favorable expectations,
and making use of every stratagem to defeat the designs of
my base rival, I found means of gaining over one of his
slaves, whom I prevailed upon to introduce me by night into
his mistress's apartments. For this purpose I had put on a
woman's dress, to give the less cause of suspicion to those
who might see me go into the house ; and in this condition
I was introduced into Abdarmon's apartment. I found her
negligently stretched on her bed, with her arm under her
head, in the posture of a person that labored under some
great uneasiness of mind. I threw myself at her feet, and
kissed one of her beautiful hands with so much transport that
she could not fail to know that no one but a lover, sensible
of his mistress's love, could take so great a liberty. If the
sight of me gave her exceeding joy, my being in a house of
which Ilikhan was master gave her no less uneasiness. Ah !
my lord, said she, embracing me in the tenderest manner,
fly, I conjure you, from a place where I have much reason
to fear your life is in danger. Put yourself, if you can, in a
condition that may enable. you to snatch me out of the hands
of my tyrant, and be persuaded that I am ready to suffer the
most cruel torments, nay, death itself, rather than break the
vows I have so often made of being yours only. — If it is so,
madam, answered I, come away with me this very instant,
and I will deliver you out of the hands of a man whose
behavior ought to be held in aversion by all the world. The
slave, whom I had at first bought over, opposed himself to
my resolution, but a diamond staggered him. I promised to
take him away with us, and to requite his services so well
that I at last made him consent to everything. I then
embraced my Abdarmon with an extraordinary transport ;
and we were on the point of quitting her apartment and of
making our retreat, when Ilikhan appeared with a sabre in
his hand, and followed by eight slaves armed in the same
i8
274
manner. This unexpected sight stunne<l me to such a
degree that I gave the wretches time to secure me.
Abdarmon knew by the rage that appeared in the eyes of
our enemy that we had no mercy to expect. She did not
condescend to ask for any, but looking at him with indigna-
tion ; I never concealed from you, tyrant, said she, the
violent passion I have always had for Aban-azar. He is
lovely ; he pleased me ; I have appeared in his eyes prefer-
able to all the girls of Aden. He has loved me with all
possible delicacy ; and I belonged to him before an unjust
animosity, which has divided our families, made my father
take the resolution of giving me into your possession. This,
savage, is all the crime you have to punish; but it is too
glorious a fault to be sorry for having committed it. She
then reached me her hand, saying : I see, my dear lover,
that we must die. The unworthy Ilikhan is not generous
enough to restore us to ourselves. Let us therefore cour-
ageously prepare to pass over to a more easy and delightful
life, where our enjoyments shall not be interrupted by the
hatred of our parents. We shall have no jealousy or tyranny
to fear there ; and as we shall bring there hearts inflamed
with love, we may promise ourselves a reception amongst
those happy lovers whose sole occupation will be to give
themselves up entirely to the pleasure of loving and of being
beloved. This discourse, which had so much sweetness in
it for me, and so much bitterness for my rival, served only to
increase his anger. Yes, false woman, said he to Abdarmon,
who had thrown herself into my arms ; yes, you shall die,
and you shall die by my own hands. I should not fully
satisfy my vengeance were I to trust any one else with the
execution of it. Upon this he plunged his sabre into the
breast of my dear mistress, who had just time to turn her
eyes towards me and to give me the last farewell.
Ah ! madam, continued the Arab, drowned in a flood of
tears, which the remembrance of so moving a scene had
275
drawn from him, you cannot conceive the condition I was in
at the sight of so bloody an action. I had till now, in a
manner, continued motionless with surprise, but the death of
Abdarmon soon brought me to myself again. I gave a shout
that terrified those who held me, and my fury was so great
that I forced myself from them and fell upon the barbarous
Ilikhan. I soon got him under my feet, and snatching a
dagger from his belt, I made such use of it that in spite of all
his slaves could do I gave him a great many wounds with it ;
but I was so beside myself that they were all very slight ones.
I was at length beaten to the ground in my turn, and the fury
of my rival being wound up to the greatest pitch by seeing
his blood : Traitor, said he, do not imagine that my ven-
geance has nothing worse than death in store for you. No,
no, you must not think of going to meet your Abdarmon. I
intend to punish you in a manner more terrible than any
punishment in itself can be. Having upon this ordered his
slaves to bind me hand and f^et — Ah ! madam, continued
Aban-azar, with an unusual flood of tears, shame and despair
will not let me speak ; what shall I say to you ? The bar-
barous Ilikhan made me cease to be a man, without depriving
me of life, and afterwards ordered me to be carried, weltenng
in my blood and in a state of insensibility, to my father's
house, where through compassion, or to give him sooner tlie
mortification of seeing me in so cruel a condition, the slaves
knocked with all their strength.
My father at this noise immediately got out of bed, lighted
his lamp, and came down into the street. What a sad spec-
tacle had he then before him ! His cries raised all our
neighbors. I was immediately carried to my bed, and an
able surgeon sent for, who with some specific herbs soon
staunched my blood, and having then applied an excellent
balm, I began to open my eyes, and gave some signs of life.
But 1 had no sooner entirely recovered the use of my senses,
than on considering the sad condition I was in, and the loss oi
2/6
Abdarmon, I resolved to follow her. I therefore tore the dress-
ing from my wound, and gave such signs of despair that the
assistants were obh'ged to tie me, and to cure me in spite of
myself. My father was perfectly mad when he heard that it
was Ilikhan who had treated me so barbarously. He would
have gone directly to his house to revenge the indignity done
me by his death, but I hindered him. Leave to myself, my
lord, said I, that care ; and if you have any regard still left
for me, do not make my shame public in Aden. I shall soon
find out the means of punishing my enemy for his cruelty.
My father yielded to my request. In fine, madam, in about
four years' time, I found myself in a condition to execute
what I had proposed. But I must acquaint you with what
happened at Ilikhan's house after the barbarous usage I had
received from him, and after the punishment of the slave
who had given me admittance to Abdarmon.
The wretch immediately sent for Saman, though the night
was pretty far advanced. As the messenger assured him it
was on business of importance, he made no stay but came
immediately with him. My lord, said Ilikhan to him, if you
were in my place, and after the strictest charges given to
your daughter to have no correspondence with Aban-azar,
you should find them together conspiriiig your ruin, and in
such a manner as to leave no room to doubt of their having
already destroyed your honor, what measures would you
take on finding your love so cruelly despised ? — The quick-
est and most violent, answered Saman ; in my just anger, I
should bury my dagger in their hearts. — I am very glad,
replied Ilikhan, that we think alike ; come and see if I know
how to revenge an insult. Upon this he conducted him to
Abdarmon's apartment, and after showing her to hmi welter-
ing in her blood, he acquainted him in a few words in what
manner he had punished my love for her. Saman could not
but shudder at the sight of his murdered daughter ; for what
he had said had proceeded rather from the hatred that pre-
277
vailed between our families, than from his real opinion.
However, as he had himself condemned us, he could not re-
call his sentence, so that this tragical event served only to
confirm him in his aversion ; and with a view of doing us all
the mischief in his power, when any opportunity should offer,
he united himself more firmly than ever with Ihkhan and his
father, in order to accomplish his wicked designs.
As the cowardly Saman made no noise about Abdarmon's
death, I began to imagine that he had formed some evil
designs. I therefore left Aden, and meeting with a company
of wild Arabs that infested the neighborhood, I begged of
them to admit me among them. I was well acquainted by
means of a faithful slave with all the proceedings of my
enemies, and being one day informed that they were all three
out of town, in order to spend some days at a country house
of Saman's, as I knew the place perfectly well, and in what
manner it could be surprised, I proposed to the chief of the
Badavvin to make him master in one night of more than one
hundred thousand dinars, provided he gave me a sufficient
detachment, and also leave to be fully revenged on three of
the cruellest enemies I had in the world. The Arab received
my proposal with joy. I picked out twenty resolute fellows ;
I informed them of my intentions, and conducted them all
that night to Saman's country house, and even led them to
the hall, where he was at table with Ilikhan and his father ;
after having secured some slaves, whose cries might have
made our project miscarry. I was so well disguised that it
was impossible to know me. We immediately secured my
enemies, and with our daggers to their throats, threatened
instantly to take away their lives if they did not give, each of
them, a note by which we might receive the cases in which
they kept their diamonds. This they consented to, thinking
thereby to save their lives ; but they had no sooner complied
than I immediately laid hold of them, and ordered their
hands and feet to be tied, their mouths gagged, and they
278
and their slaves to be driven by blows into a little wood,
which the company I belonged to had that night chosen for
a retreat. I then delivered their notes to our chief, who
thought proper to be himself the bearer of them, and having
disguised himself for that purpose, with three other Arabs,
he went at day-break to Aden, where the clerks of Saman,
Ilikhan and his father (for the two last dealt likewise in
jewels), seeing their masters' orders so precise, made no diffi-
culty in giving up their diamonds. I afterwards related all
my adventures to our chief, the cruelty of Saman, and the
barbarous usage of Ilikhan. Take vengeance, said he, on
the traitors ; I give them up to your discretion, but it must
not be to pardon them ; if you did so, I should myself be
their executioner and yours. Upon this I set the slaves at
liberty, so they should not know me again, and having thrown
off the clothes that hindered my enemies from knowing me,
I soon appeared to them for what I was. They shuddered
at the sight of me, and the tears with which they implored
forgiveness, began to move me to compassion, when calling
to mind their barbarity I reproached them with it in the
most furious terms. I immediately dispatciied Saman and
the father of Ilikhan with my dagger. As for Ilikhan him-
self, there was no torment I could think of that I did not in-
flict on my base and cruel rival before I put him to death ; I
myself cannot think, without horror, upon what I made him
suffer. But what will a man not do, when injured in so cruel
a manner? After having thus completed ray vengeance, I
wished immediately to leave the Badawin ; but it is dangerous
to associate one's self with such kind of people, as one can-
not withdraw from them when one pleases. The affair of
the diamonds had acquired great reputation for me among
them ; it was conducted so prudently that our chief confided
entirely in me. He was therefore so far from letting me go,
that he would undertake nothing for the future without tak-
ing my advice ; and thus I have been obliged to remain with
279
him these two months past till yesterday your spouse killed
him with his own hands. As we bought this victory very dearly,
by the loss of eight hundred Arabs, and as our strength was
thereby greatly weakened, it was not thought proper, for
fear of a surprise, to divide the plunder on the field of battle ;
we therefore removed it all, and as your coffin was adorned
with jewels, I had the charge of it. We did not begin to
divide it till we reached the place at which, on the pretence
of throwing you into a little river which is pretty deep in
some places, I parted company with the Badawin. The
confusion and disorder that then reigned amongst them did
not permit them to take notice of my absence, which I am
now resolved to take advantage of, and by endeavoring to
do all the good I can, to obtain pardon for my crimes.
And indeed, madam, I shall never have done reproaching
myself with my unheard-of cruelty towards my enemies.
You have now, madam, had a short but sad relation of all
my misfortunes. Judge therefore if you need scruple to
repose an entire confidence in me, when I offer to conduct
you wherever you may think proper to go.
CONTINUATION OF THE STORY OF ZABD-
AL-KATON
I LISTENED, continued the beautiful queen of As*^^rakhan,
with great attention to Aban-azar's relation, and as I thought
I could not fall into safer hands, I agreed to his proposal,
and we both set out by by-roads for Aden. He was under
some apprehension of being suspected of having had a hand
in the murder of his enemies, for which reason we did not
enter the town till after nightfall, and went directly to his
father's house, to whom he gave an account of the horrible
vengeance he had taken of them, and in what manner he
had met me. The old man was ready to die with joy at the
280
return of his son, of whom he had heard nothing for a long
time, and he received me likewise with great kindness ; and
as it was to his interest to assign some good cause for his son's
absence, he gave out that he had been at Saaquam, where he
had married me. Few persons were thoroughly acquainted
with Aban-azar's disgrace, except the surgeon who took care
of him during his illness ; and he was now dead, and Ilikhan
had never made a boast of his vengeance. As I ran no risk
in countenancing so well invented a story, I passed at Aden
for this young man's wife, and remained there as such for
about three years. I desired he should not inform his father
who I really was, but give the old man to understand that I
was the widow of a Tartar, who had been killed by the
Badawin on his return from Meccah. He complied with
my request, but his doing so had like to have been very
prejudicial to me.
Aban-azar's father, though advanced in years, was still
a well-looking man. I behaved towards him with the great-
est complaisance and respect, which he probably imagined
he could not better acknowledge than by making love to
me. I believe he struggled with his passion for a long time
before he made any declaration of it ; but at length he con-
firmed himself so well in his resolution, that he thought
proper to open his heart to me. Though of an imperious
temper, he made use of some precautions in acquainting me
with his intentions, which he informed me of in a pretty odd
manner. You pass in Aden, said he, for my son's wife, but
at the same time that people extol his choice of your person,
they pity him, madam, on account of your barrenness.
These discourses give me great uneasiness, and I am afraid that
a discovery of our imposition would furnish sufficient proofs
of his having murdered Ilikhan, and our other two enemies ;
the memory of our quarrel begins to revive, and people
speak of the cruel vengeance taken by my son ; I have even
heard some reports sufficient to make some ill-natured peo-
28l
pie believe that my son is guilty. I cannot be easy in sa
critical a conjuncture, and there is no one but yourself,
madam, who can put an end to such disagreeable and dan-
gerous reports. — I, sir ! said I, in the greatest surprise ; I
am too sensible of everything that concerns you, to refuse you
anything. Only speak, my lord ; let me know how I can
make you easy, and you shall immediately see me do every-
thing in my power, and with the greatest joy, to give you
satisfaction. — Well, then, madam, repUed the amorous old
man, you can only do it in this manner. As my son is not
capable of stopping the tongues of ill-natured people, I
thought it my duty to make up his insufficiency, as I do not
as yet think myself too old to put an end to a barrenness
that is the common subject of discourse in Aden ; consent
to become a mother, madam, and let it be by my means.
By so doing, you will disconcert my enemies, who will take
my own children for my grandchildren, and by ceasing to
reason on a subject which causes me the greatest uneasiness,
the life of my son will be secured.
I was surprised to the last degree, continued Zabd-al-
Katon, at the old man's proposal. I was often on the point
of letting him know who I was ; but as I apprehended he
would look upon my declaration as a mere pretence for
refusing his request, I thought proper to turn his love into
a joke. This gave him offence, and we at last quarrelled.
Some time after, he came and asked, pardon for his rudeness,
but, notwithstanding, renewed his arguments so often and so
eagerly, as to give me the greatest reason to be in pain for
the consequences of his extravagant passion. I therefore
thought proper to inform the son of it. He asked me a
thousand pardons, and taking a resolution worthy of an
honest man, made me a proposal to embark on board a ship
that was to sail next day for Ormuz, and I complied with the
greatest pleasure. Upon this he supplied himself with jew-
els j we both went on boaril, and were at a good distance from
282
Aden before the ridiculous lover had any suspicion of our
flight.
You must now, my lord, represent me to yourself at sea
with Aban-azar, with the intention of setting out for Astra-
khan as soon as we should arrive at Ormuz. The winds
proved very favorable, and we were in hourly expectation of
reaching our port, when a terrible storm surprised us, which
after beating our vessel for sixteen days successively, at last
dashed it to pieces against a rock that seemed to lie at no
great distance from the mainland. Few of us perished by
this shipwreck, as we floated ashore on the remains of the
vessel. But judge what was our surprise, when our pilot in-
formed us that we were on a desert island, to which the
king of Sarandib generally banished such of his subjects as
deserved death ; that there came no ship to it but once
a year, and that sometimes even, for want of criminals, there
did not come any ship for many years. This was very dis-
agreeable news. We surveyed the island, however, but
found only a few slight houses in ruins, and no inhabitants.
For a whole month together we subsisted, by dint of econ-
omy, on some provisions which the waves brought us from
the wreck, and we were afterwards obliged to have recourse
to some fruits of a very disagreeable taste. In fine, my lord,
the greatest part of the ship's company were dead, through
want and hardship, when we perceived, at some distance,
a ship, that seemed to be bound for the island ; nor were we
deceived in our conjectures. It proved to be a ship with
criminals from Sarandib, by whom we learned that no sb.ip
had been there for three years before ; and had this ship ar-
rived but a few days later, we should all have infallibly
perished. The criminals, who amounted to five only, were
put ashore with some few eatables, and then, the captain
having taken us on board, we set sail for Ormuz.
There now remained but nine of us alive. Aban-azar was
of this number, and I arrived safe with him at Sarandib.
283
I shall not enlarge, ray lord, on the riches and magnificence
of its young monarch, but must just tell you, that he is one
of the wisest and most powerful kings in the whole world,
and that he received us with the greatest distinction. My
sufferings on the desert island, and the fatigues of the
voyage, had made such an impression on me, that I was no
longer the same person. His Majesty, however, thought he
could distinguish some remains of beauty in my features,
and having ordered that I should be treated with the great-
est tenderness and respect, rest and good fare soon made
such an alteration in me for the better, that it engaged his
Majesty's particular attention. I lodged with Aban-azar,
who always passed for my husband, in a house near the
palace, and received every moment fresh marks of the desire
his Majesty had of contributing to my satisfaction ; but his
assiduities were too respectful to alarm my modesty. His
passion, however, increased daily, and in a short time be-
came so violent that he resolved to do everything that in
justice could be done, to break a union, whose closeness
created in him so much jealousy. He sent for Aban-azar,
and after having made use of the greatest precautions to dis-
cover his love to him, he offered him immense riches, and
his choice besides of twenty of the finest women in his
seraglio, if he would but surrender me to him, and would
engage me to make his passion a suitable return.
Aban-azar, my lord, who was well acquainted with the
secrets of my heart, and knew that I would pay but little
regard to the king's interested sentiments, was thunderstruck
at this proposal. My lord, said he to the king, if it de-
pended on me alone to satisfy your Majesty's desires, I
assure you I would readily sacrifice my own interests and
inclination ; but when I married tlic beautiful Fatmi (this
was the name I gave myself at Aden and at Sarandib), I
bound myself, by the most dreadful imprecations, never to
divorce her against her consent. If therefore you can pre*
284
vail on her to consent to my parting with her, I swear not
to oppose her inclinations, notwithstanding the grief I must
feel at the loss of a wife of so much merit, but shall sur-
render her to you directly. But you must prepare her for
the proposal by every kind and engaging means your in-
genious love can devise ; otherwise, she would certainly take
fright at the bare thoughts of a separation, which she has a
thousand times assured me would make her the unhappiest
woman in the whole world. It was impossible to answer the
king of Sarandib in a more prudent and discreet manner.
The amorous monarch embraced Aban-azar a thousand
times, and loaded him with favors.
I was soon made acquainted with the king's pretensions.
Whatever reluctance I felt in flattering a passion to which
I was resolved to make no concessions contrary to those
tender sentiments which my heart ever cherished for your
august Majesty, Aban-azar recommended the imposition
with such solid arguments, that I was obliged to feign, and
to express some regard for this prince. He no sooner be-
gan to perceive, as he imagined, the progress he had made
in my affections, than he gave me the most open marks of
his satisfaction, by a thousand public rejoicings, where pro-
fusion and magnificence vied with each other. Aban-azar
even, my lord, who, as well as myself, imagined you were
dead, advised me with great earnestness to make the king's
tenderness a suitable return, and to accept of the crown of
Sarandib. But I can easily assure you, my lord, and the
rest of my adventures prove it, that I never seriously listened
to the proposal, however glorious it might have been. In
fine, the monarch, who had abstained for three months from .
any precise declaration, began to flatter himself so much
with the hopes of being loved, and of obtaining my consent
for a separation from Aban-azar, that he was on the point of
offering me his hand and his throne, when Abu Bakr's arrival
at Sarandib put an end to all his designs.
285
I shall now leave, my lord, to this faithful subject the care
of acquainting your Majesty with the rest of my adventures,
and shall only tell you, that I was transported with joy when
I learned from him that you were still alive ; the knowledge
of which made me think it proper to inform the king of
Sarandib of my rank, and of the imposition of Aban-azar.
However amorous this monarch was, as soon as he got the
better of the amazement caused in him by the relation of
my own and of your Majesty's adventures, he generously
renounced his pretensions to a heart which could not con-
sent to be his, and offered me every assistance within the
reach of his greatness for my return to Astrakhan. I only
accepted of a ship to carry me to Ormuz. Our voyage has
been happy. After this I crossed Persia, with no other
company than that of the faithful Aban-azar, whom I now-
present to your Majesty, and Abu Bakr, who did not know
who I was ; and I have had the comfort, my lord, of restor-
ing you your sight, and along witii it a spouse, who has
always accounted it hitherto, and will ever account it, her
chief happiness to please your Majesty, and to be tenderly
loved by you.
The king of Astrakhan could not restrain his tears at these
new assurances of tenderness given him by his beloved
Zabd al-Katon. On his side, he vowed her a thousand
times an eternal love; and afterwards turning to Abu
Bakr, desired him to speak in his turn. Whatever impa-
tience I may have, my dear friend, to hear the conclusion
of the adventures of my beautiful queen, I must desire that
you will not omit any circumstances of those you must your-
self have met with in so long a voyage. I make no doubt
but that some of them have been singular enough ; but, be
that as it may, I am ready to hear you with the greatest
pleasure. Abu Bakr replied only by a profound inclination
to signify his obedience, and then returning to his seat, gave
his Majesty an account of what had happened to him since
his departure from Astrakhan, in the following manner.
286
ADVENTURES OF THE PHYSICIAN
ABU BAKR
You know, my lord, that the jokes of the physicians of
Astrakhan proved a powerful motive to spur me on to un-
dertake this voyage ; but I must candidly own that I soon
began to repent having given credit to the Arabian manu-
script. I was very young when I had read it, so that I
retained but a very imperfect and confused notion of its
contents, and was in no ways certain that the bird in ques*
tion was to be found in Sarandib. I resolved therefore,
before I took the road for that island, to go and consult
some of those famous philosophers who live on a small
mountain in the heart of India. I therefore left Astrakhan
with this intention, and, after crossing the Caspian Sea,
arrived at Darbant, where I sought in vain for the woman
I wanted, to restore your Majesty's sight ; she was not to
be found there, nor in any other part of Persia. I then
went to Tauris, from Tauris to Ispahan, and from Ispahan
to Shiraz, where I made some stay. But may I take the
liberty of acquainting you, sir, with my adventures in that
city? I think I may, as your Majesty has so peremptorily
commanded me not to hide any part of them, and this
part may afford you some diversion.
I had heard some people speak of the kadi of Shiraz's
daughter, as of a complete beauty. I had often seen her
pass by the door of the house where I lodged, and though
her face and her shape were hid by a large and very thick
veil, I had formed to myself so ravishing an idea of her
perfections that I entirely lost my appetite. But a sudden
blast of wind having one day raised the veil that hid so
many perfections, the sight of them dazzled me so much
that I resolved to try every means of gaining the heart of
so accomplished a lady. I did not recollect that I was
28/
almost fifty, and consequently no longer at an age propel
to excite tender desires in the heart of a young person ;
my foolish passion made me forget everything. I acquainted
an old woman, who lived in the kadi's neighborhood, and
who had access to his house, with my love for Shahryar
(this was my charmer's name), and promised her a con-
siderable sum if she could make any impression on the
young lady's heart in my favor. The old woman pretended
to go about the affair with great earnestness, and after
representing my mistress to me as sometimes cruel, and
sometimes compassionate, at last assured me that she was
ready to make me happy. I paid dearly for this informa-
tion, and prepared myself for the rendezvous I had received.
I dressed myself in the most elegant manner I could, and
failed not to attend at the hour appointed. The old woman
introduced me into the kadi's house, and a young female
slave having conducted me by the back stairs to the top of
the house, shut me up in a closet, where the object of my
wishes soon after made her appearance. I was so ravished
with the sight of her that I immediately threw myself at her
feet, which I was embracing in spite of all the resistance
she could make, without being able to speak a single word,
when the kadi, her father, entered the room. I was thunder-
struck at the sight of him ; Shahryar fainted away on seeing
the fury that appeared in his eyes. He ordered her to be
removed to her apartment, and I remained the sole object
of his vengeance. At first he appeared determined to have
me immediately put to death, but changing his resolution,
he ordered me to be bound hand and foot, and left me in
the charge of two slaves till the day following, when he in-
tended to punish my insolence in a public and exemplary
manner.
It is impossible for me, my lord, continued Abu Bakr,
to make you sensible of my grief and confusion in this sad
situation. I saw I was to die, but I was only sorry for it
288
on your Majesty's account. I did nothing but reproach
myself with being the cause of rendernog your sufferings
perpetual. I thought I could discover in the slaves that
watched me, some signs of compassion for my concern. I
offered them everything in my power if they could let me
escape. At first they rejected my proposal; but one of
them, feigning himself more affected at my distress than the
other, at length argued his companion into compliance.
Nothing therefore remained but to determine in what man-
ner I should make my escape. The closet where I was had
a little window looking on to the street, and they proposed
letting me down through it with the ropes that served to
bind me. I accepted the proposal with joy ; and after
being untied, prepared myself to put it into execution, but
unluckily the window was so small that it was with much
ado I could get through it, even naked. I made no diffi-
culty of stripping myself for that purpose all to my shirt, my
keepers promising to throw me my clothes as soon as I had
got down. I then, with some difficulty, worked my way
through the window, and slipped down the rope, which
unfortunately proved too short for my purpose, and the
darkness of the night hindered me from seeing how much
it wanted of reaching the ground. However, as there was
no other way left of escaping the kadi's anger, I resolved
to let myself fall to the ground at all events. Accordingly
I let go my hold ; but I leave your Majesty to judge of my
surprise, when I found myself surrounded with a net, that
had been placed on purpose to receive me, and heard my
guards ready to burst with laughing at the condition I was
in. Ah ! my lord, you cannot conceive the greatness ot .
my grief and rage, in finding that I had been thus tricked
by Shahryar, and that she took so cruel a vengeance on
my passion for her. I made a thousand sad reflections on
my misfortunes, and as many attempts to force the meshes
of my net, but all in vain, the scheme was too well concerted.
289
I passed the night, which was very cold, in this cruel situa-
tion, and the next day had the mortification of seeing all
Shiraz flock about me to see so diverting a spectacle. In
fine, the kadi put an end to the entertainment in the even-
ing ; the net was let down, I was taken out of it, and then
received by his directions fifty strokes of a stick, well laid
on, on the soles of my feet ; they then gave me back my
clothes, and set me loose, to return to my lodging by favor
of the night. I got home with some difficulty, without let-
ting my landlord know the real cause of my absence. He
had been one of the first spectators of my disgrace, but
happily without knowing who I was. However, I had the
mortification of hearing my adventure related from beginning
to end, and even of being obliged to laugh heartily at the
scene, for fear of leaving him any room to suspect me of
having acted the principal part in it.
You may well imagine, my lord, that I soon got the better
of my passion, and that I made no great slay at Shiraz,
where I had been played such a trick. The day following,
I set out for Ormuz, where, going on board the first ship
bound for India, we landed at Diu j but I had no better
success here than elsewhere ; what I wanted was not to be
found. I then traversed part of India, and at length ar-
rived at the habitation of the sages, or gymnosophists, of
India. These philosophers live on a very high mountain,
almost in the midst of a plain, surrounded with a rock, as
likewise with a strong wall. This place is generally covered
with a very thick fog, which serves to render its inhabitants
visible or invisible, as they think proper ; but it is probable
they were not averse to my undertaking, since I easily
reached their mountain, where I saw these uncommon
rarities, the well of sin, the basin of pardon, the tuns so
serviceable to India, and the sacred fire, which they boast
to have kindled directly by the rays of the sun. Ah ! my
lord, you may conceive better than 1 can express what
19
290
reason I had to be satisfied with my journey to this place,
when the sages informed me that I should not only find at
Sarandib the bird mentioned in the Arabian manuscript, but
likewise the only person destined to restore you your sight.
I set out then for Sarandib, full of confidence in the
promises of the Indian sages. I passed through a great
many towns without meeting with any accident ; but as I
was making my way through a pretty thick wood I was
stopped by eight robbers, who after having taken from me
my horse and everything I carried with me, held a con-
sultation about cutting my throat. Some of them were for
doing so, but the rest being of a more cruel disposition, were
of another opinion. One of these last, who had a very bad
horse, took mine instead of it, and ripping open the belly of
his own with a sabre, emptied it ; and having stripped me
quite naked, and bound me hand and foot, crammed me into
it, fastening it together in such a manner that it looked as if
it had never been opened. They then left me to perish by a
kind of death never before thought of. I was in a very short
time almost suffocated, and no doubt on the point of breath-
ing my last, when my lamentations reached the ears of some
travellers who happened to be going the same road. They
looked out for me a long time, without being able to find
me ; but one of them at last drawing near the horse, imagined
that the noise they heard proceeded from its belly, but then
he immediately withdrew in a great fright. His fellow-
travellers, however, had courage enough to turn the horse,
and having ripped it open, drew me out of its belly with the
greatest surprise imaginable. On my part, I was half dead,
but I had scarcely breathed the fresh air, when I began to
show signs of life, and in a little time I was able to give my
deliverers an account of my misfortune. They shuddered at
the thoughts of it. I then washed myself in a rivulet, and
put on a ragged old coat that one of them gave me. As
they were going to the same place I was bound to, they per-
291
mitted me to travel in their company. We arrived at Jingi,
and putting up at a caravanserai, I was there extremely sur-
prised to meet my horse and my robbers. I let my friends
know the fortunate dis'^overy I had made, upon which some
of them went to the governor of the town, who immediately
came back with them and seized the wretches. They not
only confessed this last crime, but also several others, and
were the next day, after the governor had returned me every-
thing I had lost, punished in the manner their cruelty deserved.
As, in giving my deliverers an account of my adventures, I
had informed them of my being a physician, and that I was
bound for Sarandib to procure a remedy for your Majesty's
blindness, they cried up my capacity to the governor of Jingi,
and I found an opportunity of practising it in a very odd
but diverting manner, upon one of his sons. But I do not
know, my lord, if I can relate this passage with a delicacy
becoming your Majesty's presence.
Saramah (this was the governor's name) expressed great
pleasure at seeing me : I am told, said he, that you are an
able and experienced physician, and I cannot doubt it since
the king of Astrakhan has sent you to look for the remedy
he wants at so great a distance. A son of mine has been
afflicted with a severe hypochondria these eight days past,
and not one of our physicians has been able to cure him of
his folly. I must own indeed that it is quite new and singu-
lar. He has taken it into his head that he shall one day lay
under water the kingdom of Bisnagar ; nothing can free him
from this odd conceit. And accordingly, he retains his
urine so obstinately that he must speedily fall a victim to his
madness, unless means can be found of restoring him to his
right senses. — That, said I, my lord, is a very difficult task ;
the disorders of the mind are harder to be cured than those
of the body ; nevertheless I can assure you that in fewer than
four hours I shall give him relief. Saramah upon this looked
upon me with admiration ; he ordered me to be conducted
292
immediately to his palace, where I had the patient put into
a warm bath. When I found the young man of the temper-
ament I desired, so that nothing was wanting for his cure
but a real desire of it in himself, I went into another room,
and ordered Saramah's slaves to cry out : Fire ! Fire ! with
all their might, and with resin and brimstone to form the
appearance of a conflagration at the door and windows
of the patient. I then returned to him in a great fright :
Ah ! my lord, said I, all our hopes now centre in you alone.
Behold the ravages which an irresistible fire makes at Jingi !
Half the town is already in ashes ; the flames begin to reach
the palace, and everything is lost if you do not speedily inter-
pose your assistance. The patient upon this got out of the
bath in great confusion. And what then, said he, must I do
to extinguish it? — Ah! my lord, said I, give your water a
free passage ; this alone, powerful as the cataracts of the
Nile, can stop the furious conflagration. — You are in the
right, replied the young man, with all the seriousness imag-
inable ; I did not in the least think of it. It never entered
my thoughts that an inundation which I feared might prove
so fatal to my country, for whose sake I was ready to sacri-
fice my life, should turn out so much to its advantage.
Upon this he yielded to my advice, and delivered his water,
that had been so long pent up, with the greatest freedom, I
ordered that the flames should be removed, in the proportion
the young man might have reason to think he extinguished
them, and my orders were punctually obeyed. I had like-
wise posted people to come and thank the patient for
his seasonable interposition, and thus ended this diverting
comedy, which was re-acted as often as the governor's son
relapsed.
Saramah, my lord, thanked me in the most grateful man-
ner, and very generously rewarded my success in relieving
his son, who is now, as I have heard since my return, radi-
cally cured. I then set out for Nagapatan, where I thought
293
to take ship for Sarandib ; but the nearer I approached the
port, the nearer, too, I in appearance drew to destruction.
I had but a few leagues to make to reach Nagapatan, when
I met with two Hindus a-foot, whom I took to be very hon-
est men. We travelled the same road together for some time,
discoursing on different matters ; but as I was on horseback,
and the town was at no great distance, I thought it would
be unmannerly not to make the rest of the journey a-foot.
I therefore alighted, and was walking in the greatest security
with these two men when one of them throwing a rope about
my neck drew me, with the help of the other, out of the high
road to the skirts of a wood. Here they robbed me, and,
stripping me naked, threw me into a ditch that was twelve
feet deep. After this, the two wretches, of whom I had not
entertained the least suspicion, tied my horse to a tree, and,
sitting on the brink of the ditch, began to joke about my
simplicity and to divide their plunder. Oh ! gentlemen, said
I, have some compassion on me, and as you did not think
proper to take away my life, do not leave me a defenceless
prey to wild beasts ! I only beseech you to return me my
bow and arrows, to keep them at a distance as long as life
remains. The robbers did not think they ought to refuse
me so small a request ; they threw me my bow and arrows ;
but I soon paid them for their folly, for before they could
get out of their place, I pierced each of them with an arrow
so fortunately, that they immediately tumbled down dead,
with all their spoil, into the ditch. Having taken from them
everything that belonged to me, I placed one a-top of the
other, and raised myself by this means enough to get out of
the place in which I was. I then got on horseback again
and reached Nagapatan, whence, after a few days' stay, I
took ship for Sarandib, and at last fortunately arrived there.
My first care, my lord, as soon as I landed on the island,
was to inquire where I could find the bird I was in search
of I heard with great pleasure that it was in the king's
294
gardens. I then thought of nothing else but discovering the
woman that was Ukewise requisite for the occasion, and for
this purpose, I assembled by proclamation the wives of all
the blind men in the island. There appeared an infinite
number of them. I let them know my business, and pro-
mised them great rewards, but not one of them would ven-
ture to climb the dangerous tree, or flatter herself with the
hopes of being able to restore your Majesty's sight. I was
prodigiously cast down at this disappointment, and began to
doubt of the truth of the Indian sages, when the king of the
island sent one of his wazirs to me. My adventures had
made too much noise in the island not to have reached his
Majesty's ears. He was curious enough to desire to hear
them from my own mouth, and I had the honor of relating,
my lord, all your history from its beginning to my departure
from Astrakhan, in the presence of a well-looking young man
and a lady in a veil, who seemed to be mightily affected with
everything I said.
This monarch expressed great concern at your misfor-
tunes, but he could not refrain from laughing at my uneasi-
ness at not finding a woman who thought her virtue and
conjugal affection pure enough to climb the tree of Sarandib.
There is a tradition, said he, that the wonderful bird in one
of my gardens is a jinni, who has lived in that form these
two hundred years past on account of some offence given by
him to one of the sages who hve on the mountain of the
sacred fii-e. I know likewise that he is to continue in bond-
age till a woman shall have climbed up to the top of the tree
where he resides, and after gathering some of the divine
liquor that distils from his bill, shall get down again, without
experiencing the fatal effects of the tree ; but then she must
have so many and such rare qualifications, that I really be-
lieve the enchanter must always remain a bird, and that the
king of Astrakhan will never recover his sight by this means.
The lady in the veil expressed some resentment at the
295
king's raillery. But what, my lord, said she, because such
a woman is scarce, do you think it impossible to find her? —
If you will permit me, madam, to speak ingenuously, replied
the king, I believe Abu Bakr looks for what he will never
meet, and that a woman of so singular a character can only
be considered as an imagin^^ry being. — Well, then, my lord,
said the lady, raising her veil, I am resolved to convince you
of your mistake, and to vindicate the honor of my sex, which
you so much despise. I myself will make a trial of the
dangerous tree, and will show more resolution than a great
number of women, who have, as well as myself, the condi-
tions requisite to climb it, and only want the courage to
attempt it. — You, madam ! cried out the king of Sarandib,
in great consternation ; you try the dangerous tree ! Do you
consider well what you say? And though I should permit
you to undertake it, you ought to reflect a little that you
have not all the necessary qualifications ; that to succeed
you must be the wife of a blind man and that your husband
has a good pair of eyes. — Let that not make your Majesty
uneasy, replied the lady, with great coolness ; I shall in due
time clear up that mystery to you ; but I cannot consistently
with my duty defer any longer the steps necessary for the
king of Astrakhan's recovery.
The frightened monarch, my lord, in vain opposed the
lady's resolution ; she was not to be diverted from it, and all
the satisfaction he could obtain was to make her defer the
execution of her design to the next day. I lodged this night
at the palace by the king's orders ; and the report being
spread all over the island that a woman was found bold
enough to venture up the dangerous tree, the palace was by
daybreak surrounded by an infinite number of people who
petitioned that they might be permitted to behold so strange
a sight. The king granted their request, ordered the gates
of the garden to be thrown open to them, and then con-
ducted by his hand the lady, who had no doubt informed hi3
296
Majesty of her name, to the foot of the tree, as he had no
longer any reason to be in pain about her safety. She then
threw oft' a long gown that might encumber her, and climb-
ing with great ease from branch to branch, at length reached
the top of the tree, gathered the precious liquor that dis-
tilled from the bird's bill in a flagon of gold tied to her
girdle, and came down with the same ease that she went up.
Upon this the air resounded with a thousand acclamations of
admiration and of joy ; and the surprise of the spectators was
still further increased on seeing the bird, who had been so
long confined, soar freely into the skies, and the tree wither
away to such a degree that there did not remain a single
leaf on it.
The king of Sarandib thought he could never sufficiently
commend and admire a lady who had given so shining an
example of virtue and of conjugal affection. How happy is
Shams al-Din, said he, to possess such a woman ! Ah ! my
dear Abu Bakr, let him know, I beg of you, how rejoiced I
am at his good fortune. It is so extraordinary, that T can-
not see anything to equal it. The lady in the veil listened
to these praises with a modesty which added new charms to
her beauty. What more shall I say to you, my lord? con-
tinued the physician. After having stayed at Sarandib as
long as it was necessary to prepare for our return, we left it,
loaded with favors by the wise and powerful monarch who
reigns there with so much justice and moderation, and we
arrived at Ormuz without experiencing any of those disasters
which voyages by sea of such a length are generally attended
with. We then crossed Persia, and are now at last happily
arrived at Astrakhan, where I have now learned for the first
time, from the mouth of the incomparable Zabd al-Katon,
that Aban-azar, whom I always considered as her husband,
is not so ; and I have the happiness of finding, that at the
same time I have contributed to restore you your sight, I
have likewise the pleasure of bringing you back an illustrious
297
consort, whom you had so long bewailed as lost forever,
and without whom your joy would have been imperfect.
May Heaven, my lord, propitious to my vows, grant your
Majesty, and this incomparable princess, a long series of
happiness, uninterrupted by sickness or by old age, and may
the houris of paradise, on Allah's assigning one day their
portions to your love, place all their happiness in being
beloved by you as much as the divine Zabd al-Katon has
now the happiness of being loved !
The wishes of Abu Bakr, which put an end to his story,
were fully accomplished. Shams al-Din, the happy Shams
al-Din, loaded him, Aban-azar, and Ibn Aridun, with favors,
and lived in a most exemplary union with his wife, who bore
him many children, worthy heirs of their royal parents' vir-
tues. And this illustrious pair felt for each other in their
old days those tender sentiments which one would imagine
youth alone could experience.
THE END.
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