The prince said: "Let your three sons come here, in order that I may
give judgment quickly, according to the law instituted by the prophet
(may the peace and blessings of God be upon him!). Behold what his law
prescribes: The minister killed the children of the princess Djouher-
Manikam. It is not, therefore, the minister who should be punished with
death, but his children should be slain. The execution of this judgment
will be the just application of the law of retaliation between the
minister and the princess."
The minister summoned his three sons. As soon as they had come, he
pointed them to the King of Roum.
The latter said to his minister, "O minister, where is the Æthiopian
whom they brought here?" The Æthiopian robber was brought out, and
prostrated himself before the King of Roum.
The King of Roum said to him: "Æthiopian, return to your own country
and change your mode of life. You will never see again the woman for
whom you are seeking." And the prince gave him a _keti_ of gold.
Then the prince said: "O my minister, where is Biyapri? Let them bring
him here." So they brought Biyapri. When he arrived he bowed low before
the prince.
The prince said: "Biyapri, go back to your own country and change your
conduct. The woman whom you seek you will never see again." And the
prince made him a gift of two _keti_ of gold.
The King of Roum then said: "Let all assemble. I am about to pronounce
judgment between the King of Bagdad and the minister of Damas." The
minister and the officers assembled therefore in the presence of the
King, together with many of his subjects.
The King of Roum said: "O my executioner, let the three children of the
minister of Damas be all killed; such is the divine command." So the
children of the minister of Damas were all three killed.
After they were dead the prince said: "Minister, return to the country
of Damas, with a rag for your girdle, and during your last days change
your conduct. If you do not know it, I am the princess Djouher-Manikam,
daughter of the Sultan of Bagdad, wife of Chah Djouhou, my lord, and
the sister of Minbah-Chahaz. God has stricken your eyes with blindness
on account of your crimes toward me. It is the same with the cadi of
the city of Bagdad."
The minister of Damas, seized with fear, trembled in all his limbs. He
cast himself at the feet of the princess Manikam, and thus prostrated
he implored pardon a thousand and a thousand times. Then he returned to
Damas all in tears, and overwhelmed with grief at the death of his
three sons. The cadi, covered with shame on account of his treachery to
the Sultan of Bagdad, fled and expatriated himself.
The King of Roum commanded them to bring the King Chah Djouhou and give
him a garment all sparkling with gold, and he sent him to dwell in the
company of his father-in-law, the Sultan of Bagdad, and his brother-in-
law, the prince Minbah-Chahaz.
Then the princess Djouher-Manikam retired. She entered the palace and
returned clad in the garments of a woman. She then went out,
accompanied by ladies of the court, and went to present herself to her
father, the Sultan of Bagdad. She bowed before her father, her brother
the prince Minbah-Chahaz, and her husband, the King Chah Djouhou. The
princess said: "O all of you, lords and warriors of the country of
Roum, know that I am a woman, and not a man. Behold my father, the
Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid, King of Bagdad. Behold my brother, whose name
is Minbah-Chahaz; and behold my husband, the King Chah Djouhou, who
reigns over the country of Damas. From the time when you placed me upon
the throne of Roum, if I have committed any fault by error or by
ignorance, you must excuse me, for constantly the servants of God
commit faults by error or ignorance. It is only God alone who forgets
not, nor neglects, and is free from error or ignorance."
The grandees of the country of Roum said: "Never has your Majesty
committed the least fault, either by ignorance or by error, during the
time you have reigned over the country of Roum. Nevertheless, among the
judgments just now rendered there was a fault committed by your
glorious Majesty. The minister killed, the princess killed, both did it
voluntarily. It was a fault of judgment for the princess Djouher-
Manikam to have killed the children of the minister, just as the
minister committed a fault in killing the children of the princess.
There was a likeness there. Still, if it pleases her Majesty to remain
upon the throne of Roum, we should all be very glad of it."
The princess Djouher said: "I shall take leave of you, my lords. It is
good that we should make the young prince king, and that he should
replace me on the throne."
The ministers and the officers of Roum responded, "Whatever be the
commands of your Majesty, we place them above our heads."
Then the princess made the royal prince her successor, and the
ministers and officers and subjects all bowed low, placed their hands
above their heads, and proclaimed him King.
The princess Djouher-Manikam said: "O my child, here are the last
instructions your mother gives you: You must practise justice so that
God will make strong your realm. To you, my ministers and officers, I
confide my child. If he commits some faults by negligence or by
ignorance, I pray you take them not too much to heart, for my child is
young, and he has not yet attained all the maturity of his judgment."
The ministers and officers answered: "O your Majesty, may your
prosperity grow forever! How could it be possible for us to disobey
your commands?"
The princess replied: "O my child, above all must you observe justice
and be patient and liberal toward your ministers and officers and all
your subjects, so that the favors of God may increase upon your person
and that your kingdom may be protected by God the most high by the
grace of the intercession of the prophet Mahomet, the envoy of God (may
the, peace and blessings of God be with him!). O my child, you must
govern all your subjects with a spirit of justice, for in this world,
until death, we ought to seek the truth. O my child, above all forget
not my last instructions." Then, taking in her arms the royal child,
she kissed him.
The Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid having told the Sultan of Roum that he
wished to return to the country of Bagdad, the Sultan gave orders to
his ministers to assemble the grandees, the officers, and the soldiers,
with elephants, horses, and instruments of music. All came with
presents, for the Sultan of Roum wished to accompany the Sultan Haroun-
er-Raschid as far as Bagdad and carry him the presents. The favorable
moment having arrived, the Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid departed from Roum,
directing his way to the country of Bagdad, from plain to plain, and
from halting-place to halting-place. After journeying some time, they
rejoicing all the way, they arrived at the country of Bagdad.
The ministers, the chiefs, and the soldiers came out to meet the Sultan
Haroun-er-Raschid, and they entered the palace. Then the Queen hastened
to find the Sultan and her daughter, the princess Djouher-Manikam.
Meeting her daughter, she pressed her in her arms and covered her with
kisses. She said in tears: "Alas, my child! the fruit of my heart! I,
your mother thought that she would never see you again." And she
covered her body with tears and kisses, while she kept repeating,
"Alas, my child! I thought you lost forever." Then the Queen bowed
before the Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid. Her son, Minbah-Chahaz, then came
to bow before his mother, but the latter pressed him in her arms and
kissed him. Then her son-in-law, King Chah Djouhou, advanced and bowed
before the Queen in his turn. And she pressed him in her arms and
kissed him. All were in tears.
The Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid started for the hall of audience, and gave
orders to one of his heralds to assemble his ministers, his warriors,
and his subjects. When they were all gathered together the Sultan said:
"Now I wish to entertain the ministers, the chiefs, and the officers
who escorted us here." When the Sultan had finished entertaining them
they desired to take leave and return to the country of Roum. The
Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid made them gifts of vestments of honor, to each
according to his rank. They prostrated themselves at his feet, and then
returned in peace to the country of Roum.
Afterward, the Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid ordered one of his heralds to
assemble his ministers, his officers, and his subjects. Once gathered
together, the prince said: "O all of you, my ministers and my officers,
you must build me a house of baths seven stories high, on the public
square of Bagdad."
All responded, "O my lord, king of the world, whatever your commands
may be, your servants place them above their heads." And all,
ministers, officers, and subjects, gave themselves to the work, each of
them doing what was directed by the architect. After some time, the
palace of baths was finished. It was sumptuously adorned with curtains
of silk, canopies, tapestries woven with gold and fringed with pearls.
Rugs embroidered with gold were stretched on the different floors, and
there was a quantity of torches and lanterns.
Then the builders came before the King and said: "O my lord, king of
the world, your slaves have finished their work according to the
commands of your Majesty."
The King Haroun-er-Raschid gave thanks unto God the most high, worthy
of all praise, the true Lord who accords to his servants all their
needs.
Then the festivals began. For forty days and forty nights the bands
never stopped playing. There were sports, banquets, amusements of all
sorts. They gave themselves noisily to pleasure, because the Sultan was
going to proceed to the ceremony of the bath of the two spouses, his
children. When the watches were finished and the favorable moment had
come, the Sultan was arrayed in a magnificent garment embroidered with
gold, while the princess Djouher-Manikam was adorned by her mother with
superb veils and vestments trimmed with jewels, with pearls and
precious stones of an incomparable richness. The spouses thus adorned,
the Sultan made them mount a palanquin. His son, Minbah-Cha-haz, was
clad in a splendid costume.
The Sultan mounted his horse Sembaran, and his saddle was of carved
gold. Surrounded by young princes and lords, by officers of his court
and the standards, Haroun-er-Raschid marched at the head. He advanced,
followed by princes, ministers, and officers. The wives of the grandees
accompanied the Queen with her maids-of-honor, and all the musical
instruments gave forth their harmonious sounds. Seven times they made
the circuit of the city. When the two spouses had arrived at the foot
of the Palace of Baths the Sultan made them ascend. Then came the
spouses of the grandees with the Queen, who showered them with rice-
powder mixed with amber and musk, and poured on their heads spikenard
and _curcuma_ (turmeric). They were both plunged into a bath of rose-
water and extracts of all sorts of aromatic flowers, together with
water from the sacred fountain of Zemzem.
The ceremonies of the bath finished, the two spouses went out of the
Palace of Baths and went into the King's palace. On their arrival, they
served a repast to the princes, the _orilemas_, the doctors of the law,
the priests, the ministers, the officers, the common people, men and
women. All without exception took part in the feast. When it was ended
one of the doctors of the law recited the prayer asking God for perfect
happiness, sheltered from all danger in this life and the next. Then he
sprinkled showers of the most charming perfumes.
After that the Chah Djouhou went to find the Sultan, and said to him:
"O my lord, king of the world, I have to ask your Majesty a favor and
pardon. I wish to take leave of your Majesty and return to the country
of Damas, for the country of Damas is forsaken, O my lord."
The Sultan said, "It is well, my lord. Your country, truly, is
separated from its King. If it were not for your kingdom I would wish
never to be separated from you, now that I have my daughter back again.
But if I am inclined to commit a fault, do not comply with it."
Radja Chah Djouhou answered; "Your daughter is like a soul which has
entered my body. That is how I feel. But the countless favors of your
Majesty to me, I place them above my head."
The Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid then said to his prime minister: "O my
minister, get ready to start 3,000 soldiers and 300 horsemen. And have
elephants or horses well equipped to transport my two children, husband
and wife." When the escort was ready, then the Sultan commanded them to
open the place where his treasures were stored, and forty-four camels
were laden with riches, with vestments of woven gold and precious
objects such as are found only in the palaces of kings.
All these preparations being finished, Radja Chah Djouhou took leave of
his father-in-law, his mother-in-law, and his brother-in-law, Minbah-
Chahaz. The latter all held in their arms and covered with kisses the
princess Djouher-Manikam, as well as Radja Chah Djouhou. He and his
brother-in-law Minbah-Chahaz wept as they embraced, and the people of
the palace burst into sobs with a noise like that of the waves breaking
on the seashore. Finally the princess Djouher and the King Chah
Djouhou, after bowing before their father, mother, and brother, set out
for the country of Damas, to the imposing sound of all the instruments
of music. The Sultan Haroun-er-Raschid and his son, Minbah-Chahaz,
conducted them outside of the fortifications. When they were far off,
the Sultan went back to his palace, walking sadly with his son, Minbah-
Chahaz, and praying God to bless his children.
After some time on the journey, the King Chah Djouhou arrived at the
country of Damas. The officers and the soldiers sallied from the
fortifications of Damas and went to meet the prince. The ministers and
the officers bowed low at his feet, all rejoicing over the happy return
and perfect health of the King and Queen. The prince entered his
palace, and the two spouses lived full of tenderness for each other.
I will not prolong this story of the princess Djouher-Manikam, which
has become celebrated in all countries to windward and to leeward. I
close it here, giving my best wishes to those who shall read or hear
it, and particularly to those who shall copy it!