The King of the Snakes lives in the ruins of a big tower between Nineveh
and Babylon, and rules all the snake tribe, both on land and sea. Once
the King's son, who was viceroy of the province of Diarbekir, wrote
a letter to his royal father, as follows:
"Long live the King! May Heaven bestow upon you life
everlasting. Amen. Be it known to you that your daughter-in-law and
grandchildren were sick last summer, and the doctors advised that
they must have a change of climate and must go to Mount Ararat and
bathe in its pure streams, and eat its fragrant flowers, and this
will immediately heal them. Consequently I sent her and the children,
with their attendants, to Mount Ararat. I also wrote letters to the
provincial viceroys and princes to assist the Princess and her train
during their sojourn in that district. But the Prince of Aderbadagan,
after receiving my letter, instead of giving help to the traveling
Princess, collected his troops and assaulted her and her train. The
attendants of the Princess met them bravely, and there, at the foot
of Mount Ararat, occurred a bloody battle, which would doubtless have
resulted in the total defeat of the Princess' train, on account of the
superior numbers of the enemy, if a human being, Simon the Shepherd,
who was tending his flock in a neighboring field, had not come to the
assistance of our fatigued combatants. He took his great club, and
entering the ranks of the warriors, beat and killed and pursued the
assaulting brigands of the Prince of Aderbadagan, and saved the life
of your daughter-in-law, who thus came safely through this perilous
journey. You see, my liege, that there is good even among men. I
will punish the vile Prince of Aderbadagan for his wicked conduct;
but it remains for you to reward the goodness of this noble human
being as you deem best, and oblige your affectionate son."
The King of the Snakes, receiving this letter, took with him a vast
quantity of gold and jewels, and went to his palace, in a ruined castle
between Aleppo and Diarbekir. He posted his attendants on the highways
to keep watch and inform him when Shepherd Simon should pass. The
Shepherd was employed by dealers in live-stock, who did business with
Damascus and Aleppo, and was now on his way to Aleppo. As soon as he
approached the palace of the Snake King the watchers informed their
sovereign, and in the twinkling of an eye the whole army of snakes
stood near the highway and began to conjure. Simon the Shepherd felt
a strange dizziness,--the heavens above and the earth below seemed
to change. He stood there bewitched, while his companions drove
away. Presently he opened his eyes, and lo! he was surrounded by
innumerable snakes of all sizes and colors. Upon a golden throne was
sitting a snake as thick as the body of an elephant, and upon his head
there was a crown of costly jewels and diamonds. One of the snakes read
a paper praising the goodness of the Shepherd, his natural fondness for
the snake tribe, and his gallant defense of the weak and the wronged.
"Now, noble human being," said the King, "here is gold for you,
precious jewels and diamonds; take as much as you like; and in addition
to these, if you have a desire in your heart tell it to me and I will
cause it to be satisfied."
Simon, after filling his shepherd's bag and his pockets with gold
and jewels, said:
"I wish to understand the language of all animals, reptiles and birds."
"Let it be so," said the King; "but the day on which you shall tell
anything of what you have seen or heard, you shall die."
The spell was removed, the snakes vanished, and Simon the Shepherd
returned to his home near the foot of Mount Ararat. On the way he
heard the animals talking, and lo! they knew all the secrets of men,
and foretold events that would happen. Sometimes he laughed at what
he heard, and sometimes he was terrified so that his hair stood erect
upon his head. He entered his native village, and lo! all the dogs,
cats, chickens, and even the long-legged storks were hallooing to
one another and saying:
"Simon the Shepherd has come; his bag and pockets are full of gold
and jewels."
Simon came to his house and put his treasure before his wife who,
being a very curious woman, instantly asked him where and how he
obtained so much wealth.
"Enjoy it, but never ask," answered Simon.
Simon heard his dog and chickens talking in regard to the secrets
of his house. Some times he laughed and sometimes he was angry. His
wife, noticing Simon's strange conduct towards the animals, asked the
reason. He refused to tell, but she begged and importuned him, weeping
all the time. Finally he could resist her entreaties no longer, and
he promised to tell her everything on the following day. That evening
he heard the dog talking to the cock, which was leading the chickens
to roost, chuckling and gurgling:
"Tell me, master rooster," said the dog, "what is the use of your
chuckling and gurgling, since our master has promised his wife
to-morrow to tell her everything? He will die; people will come and
kill you, shoot me, and plunder and ruin everything which belongs to
our master."
"Eh! the sooner it is ruined the better," answered the rooster,
contemptuously. "I have a family of forty wives, who are all obedient
to me; if our master was as wise as he is rich, he would not pay
attention to the vain inquisitiveness of his wife; he himself would
not die, and no harm would befall us or his house. But now he deserves
death."
Hearing this, Simon was advised; he seized his great club, and stood
before his wife, saying:
"Wife, you must stop trying to compel me to tell you the secret; be
content with what you have; else, by Heaven, I will beat you to death!"
The woman, seeing the club brandished over her head, put an end to
her inquiries, and thereafter they enjoyed a happy life.