requested the Sultan to build him a cabinet constructed entirely of the
bones of fishes. The Sultan ordered it to be built, at great expense.
Prince Gaiath Eddin had no more patience to wait till it was quite
finished than his brother Rostam. He lay down in the cabinet,
notwithstanding the Sultan’s warnings, but took care to keep his sword
by his side. The genius Morhagian appeared to him also at midnight, paid
him the same compliment, and told him that the cabinet was built over
the palace of his second daughter. He reduced it to dust, and Prince
Gaiath Eddin pursued him, sword in hand, to the well, where he escaped;
and next day the prince appeared before his father, the Sultan [as
crestfallen as his brother].
The third prince, who was named Badialzaman (Badíu ’l-Zamán = Rarity of
the Age), obtained leave from the Sultan to build a cabinet entirely of
rock crystal. He went to sleep there before it was entirely finished,
but without saying anything to the Sultan, as he was resolved to see
whether Morhagian would treat him in the same way. Morhagian arrived at
midnight, and declared that the cabinet was built over the palace of his
third daughter. He destroyed the cabinet, and when the prince seized his
sword, Morhagian took to flight. The prince wounded him three times
before he reached the well, but he nevertheless succeeded in escaping.
Prince Badialzaman did not present himself to the Sultan, but went to
the two princes, his brothers, and urged them to pursue the genius in
the well itself. The three went together, and the eldest was let down
into the well by a rope, but after descending a certain distance, he
cried out, and asked to be drawn up again. He excused his failure by
saying that he felt a burning heat [and was almost suffocated]. The same
thing happened to Prince Gaiath Eddin, who likewise cried out till he
was drawn up. Prince Badialzaman then had himself let down but commanded
his brothers not to draw him up again, even if he should cry out. They
let him down, and he cried out, but he continued to descend till he
reached the bottom of the well, when he untied himself from the rope,
and called out to his brothers that the air was very foul. At the bottom
of the well he found an open door, and he advanced for some distance
between two walls, at the end of which he found a golden door, which he
opened, and beheld a magnificent palace. He entered and passed through
the kitchen and the storerooms, which were filled with all kinds of
provisions, and then inspected the rooms, when he entered one
magnificently furnished with sofas and divans. He was curious to find
out who lived there, so he hid himself. Soon afterwards he beheld a
flight of doves alight at the edge of a basin of water in the middle of
the court. The doves plunged into the water, and emerged from it as
women, each of whom immediately set about her appointed work. One went
to the store room, another to the kitchen, a third began to sweep [and
so on]. They prepared a feast [as if for expected guests]. Some time
afterwards, Badialzaman beheld another flight of ten doves of different
colours, who surrounded an eleventh, which was quite white, and these
also perched on the edge of the basin. The ten doves plunged into the
basin and came forth as women, more beautiful than the first and more
magnificently robed. They took the white dove and plunged her into a
smaller basin, which was [filled with] rose [water] and she became a
woman of extraordinary beauty. She was the eldest daughter of the
genius, and her name was Fattane. (Fattánah = The Temptress.)
Two of her attendants then took Fattane under the armpits, and led her
to her apartment, followed by the others. She took her seat on a small
raised sofa, and her women separated, some to the right and some to the
left, and set about their work. Prince Badialzaman had dropped his
handkerchief. One of the waiting women saw it and picked it up, and when
she looked round, she saw the prince. She was alarmed, and warned
Fattane, who sent some of her women to see who the stranger was. The
prince came forward, and presented himself before Fattane, who beheld a
young prince, and gave him a most gracious reception. She made him sit
next to her, and inquired what brought him there? He told his story from
the beginning to the end, and asked where he could find the genius, on
whom he wished to take vengeance. Fattane smiled, and told him to think
no more about it, but only to enjoy himself in the good company in which
he found himself. They spread the table, and she made him sit next to
her, and her women played on all kinds of musical instruments before
they retired to rest.
Fattane persuaded the prince to stay with her from day to day: but on
the fortieth day he declared that he could wait no longer, and that it
was absolutely necessary for him to find out where Morhagian dwelt. The
princess acknowledged that he was her father, and told him that his
strength was so great [that nobody could overcome him]. She added that
she could not inform him where to find him, but that her second sister
would tell him. She sent one of her women to guide him to her sister’s
palace through a door of communication, and to introduce him. He was
well received by the fairy, for whom he had a letter, and he found her
younger and more beautiful than Fattane. He begged her to inform him
where he could find the genius, but she changed the subject of
conversation, entertained him magnificently, and kept him with her for
forty days. On the fortieth day she permitted him to depart, gave him a
letter, and sent him to her youngest sister, who was a still more
beautiful fairy. He was received and welcomed with joy. She promised to
show him Morhagian’s dwelling, and she also entertained him for forty
days. On the fortieth day she tried to dissuade him from his enterprise,
but he insisted. She told him that Morhagian would grasp his head in one
hand, and his feet in the other, and would tear him asunder in the
middle. But this did not move him, and she then told him that he would
find Morhagian in a dwelling, long, high and wide in proportion to his
bulk. The prince sought him out, and the moment he caught sight of him,
he rushed at him, sword in hand. Morhagian stretched out his hand,
seized his head in one hand and his feet in the other, rent him in two
with very little effort, and threw him out of a window which overlooked
a garden.
Two women sent by the youngest princess each took a piece of the body of
the prince, and brought it to their mistress, who put them together,
reunited them, and restored life to the prince by applying water [of
life?] to the wounds. She then asked the prince where he came from, and
it seemed to him that he had just awakened from sleep; and she then
recalled everything to his recollection. But this did not weaken his
firm resolve to kill the genius. The fairy begged him to eat, but he
refused; and she then urged that Morhagian was her father, and that he
could only be killed by his own sword, which the prince could not
obtain.[435] “You may say what you please,” answered the prince; “but
there is no help for it, and he must die by my hand [to atone for the
wrongs which my brothers and I have suffered from him].”
Then the princess made him swear solemnly to take her as his bride, and
taught him how he might succeed in killing the genius. “You cannot hope
to kill him while he wakes,” said she, “but when he sleeps it is not
quite impossible. If he sleeps, you will hear him snore, but he will
sleep with his eyes open, which is a sign that he has fallen into a very
profound slumber. As he fills the whole room, step upon him and seize
his sword which hangs above his head, and then strike him on the neck.
The blow will not kill him, but as he wakes, he will tell you to strike
him a second time. But beware of doing this, [for if you strike him
again, the wound will heal of itself, and he will spring up and kill
you, and me after you].”
Then Badialzaman returned to Morhagian’s room, and found him snoring so
loud that everything around him shook. The prince entered, though not
without trembling, and walked over him till he was able to seize the
sword when he struck him a violent blow on the neck. Morhagian awoke,
cursing his daughter, and cried out to the prince, whom he recognised,
“Make an end of me.” The prince answered that what he had done was
enough, and he left him, and Morhagian died.
The prince carried off Morhagian’s sword, which he thought would be
useful to him in other encounters; and as he went, he passed a
magnificent stable in which he saw a splendid horse. He returned to the
fairy and related to her what he had done, and added that he would like
to carry off the horse, but he feared it would be very difficult. “Not
so difficult as you think,” said she. “Go and cut off some hair from his
tail, and take care of it, and whenever you are in need, burn one or two
of the hairs, and he will be with you immediately [and will bring you
whatever you require].”
After this the three fairies assembled together, and the prince promised
that the two princes, his brothers, should marry the other two sisters.
Each fairy reduced her palace to the size of a small ball, which she
gave to the prince.
The prince then took the three fairies to the bottom of the well. His
father, the Sultan, had long believed that he was dead, and had put on
mourning for him. His two brothers often came to the well, and they
happened to be there just at the time. Badialzaman attracted their
attention by his shouts, told them what had happened, and added that he
had brought the three fairies with him. He asked for a rope and fastened
the eldest fairy to it, calling out, “Pull away, Prince Rostam, I send
you your good fortune.” The rope was let down again, and he fastened the
second fairy to it, calling out “Brother Gaiath Eddin, pull up your good
fortune too.”
The third fairy, who was to marry Badialzaman, begged him to allow
himself to be drawn up before her [as she was distrustful of his
brothers], but he would not listen to her. As soon as the two princes
had drawn her up so high that they could see her, they began to dispute
who should have her. Then the fairy cried out to Badialzaman, “Prince,
did I not warn you of this?”
The princes were obliged to agree that the Sultan should settle their
dispute. When the third fairy had been drawn out of the well, the three
fairies endeavoured to persuade the two princes to draw up their
youngest brother, but they refused, and compelled them to follow them.
While they carried off the youngest princess, the other two asked leave
to say adieu to prince Badialzaman. They cried out from the top of the
well, “Prince, have patience till Friday, when you will see six bulls
pass by—three red ones and three black ones. Mount upon one of the red
ones and he will bring you up to the earth, but take good care not to
mount upon a black one, for he would carry you down to the Seventh
Earth.”[436]
The princes carried off the three fairies, and on Friday, three days
afterwards, the six bulls appeared. Badialzaman was about to mount upon
a red one, when a black one prevented him, and compelled him to mount
his back, when he plunged through the earth till he stopped at a large
town in another world. He entered the town, and took up his abode with
an old woman, to whom he gave a piece of gold to provide him with
something to eat, for he was almost famished. When he had eaten enough,
he asked for something to drink. “You cannot be a native of this
country,” said the old woman [“or you would not ask for drink”]. She
then brought him a sponge, saying that she had no other water. She then
informed him that the town was supplied with water from a very copious
spring, the flow of which was interrupted by a monster. They were
obliged to offer up a girl to be devoured by it on every Friday. To-day
the princess, the Sultan’s daughter, was to be given up to him, and
while the monster emerged from his lair to devour her, enough water
would flow for everyone to supply himself until the following Friday.
Badialzaman then requested the old woman to show him the way to the
place where the princess was already exposed; but she was so much afraid
that he had much trouble in persuading her to come out of her house to
show him what direction to take. He went out of the town, and went on
till he saw the princess who made a sign to him from a distance to
approach no nearer; and the nearer he came, the more anxiety she
displayed. As soon as he was within hearing, he shouted to her not to be
afraid; and he sat down beside her, and fell asleep, after having begged
her to wake him as soon as the monster appeared. Presently a tear from
the princess fell upon his face, and he woke up, and saw the monster,
which he slew with the sword of Morhagian, and the water flowed in
abundance. The princess thanked her deliverer, and begged him to take
her back to the Sultan her father, who would give proofs of his
gratitude; but he excused himself. She then marked his shoulder with the
blood of the monster without his noticing it. The princess then returned
to the town, and was led back to the palace, where she related to the
Sultan [all that had happened]. Then the Sultan commanded that all the
men in the town should pass before himself and the princess under pain
of death. Badialzaman tried to conceal himself in a khan, but he was
compelled to come with the others. The princess recognised him, and
threw an apple at him to point him out. He was seized, and brought
before the Sultan, who demanded what he could do to serve him. The
prince hesitated, but at length he requested the Sultan to show him the
way to return to the world from whence he came. The Sultan was furious,
and would have ordered him to be burned as a heretic [but the princess
interceded for his life]. The Sultan then treated him as a madman, and
drove him ignominiously from the town, and he wandered away without
knowing where he was going. At length he arrived at a mountain of rock,
where he saw a great serpent rising from his lair to prey on young
Rokhs. He slew the serpent with the sword of Morhagian, and the father
and mother of the Rokhs arrived at the moment, and asked him to demand
whatever he desired in return. He hesitated awhile, but at length he
asked them to show him the way to the upper world. The male Rokh then
told him to prepare ten quarters of mutton, to mount on his back, and to
give him some of the meat whenever he should turn his head either to one
side or to the other on the journey.
The prince mounted on the back of the Rokh, the Rokh stamped with his
foot, and the earth opened before them wherever he turned. They reached
the bottom of the well when the Rokh turned his head, but there was no
more meat left, so the prince cut off the calf of his leg, and give it
to him. When the Rokh arrived at the top of the well, the prince leaped
to the ground, when the Rokh perceived [that he was lame, when he
inquired the reason, and the prince explained what had happened]. The
Rokh then disgorged the calf of the leg, and returned it to its place,
when it grew fast, and the prince was cured immediately.
As the prince left the well, he met a peasant, and changed clothes with
him, but he kept the sword, the three balls, and the horse-hair. He went
into the town, where he took lodgings with a tailor, and kept himself in
retirement. The prince gradually rose in the tailor’s esteem by letting
him perceive that he knew how to sew, [and all the arts of an
accomplished tailor]. Presently, preparations were made for the wedding
of Prince Rostam, and the tailor with whom Badialzaman lodged was
ordered to prepare the fairy’s robes. Badialzaman, who slept in the
shop, took clothes from one of the balls similar to those which were
already far advanced, and put them in the place of the others. The
tailor was astonished [at their fine workmanship] and wished to take the
prince with him to receive a present, but he refused, alleging as an
excuse that he had so lately come to the town. When the fairies saw the
clothes, they thought it a good omen.
The wedding day arrived, and they threw the jaríd,[437] [and practised
other martial exercises]. It was a grand festival, and all the shops
were closed. The tailor wished to take the prince to see the spectacle,
but he put him off with an excuse. However, he went to a retired part of
the town, where he struck fire with a gun,[438] and burned a little of
the horse-hair. The horse appeared, and he told him to bring him a
complete outfit all in red, and that he should likewise appear with
trappings, jewels &c., and a reed (jaríd) of the same colour. The prince
then mounted the horse, and proceeded to the race-course, where his
appearance excited general admiration. At the close of the sports, he
cut off the head of Prince Rostam, and the horsemen pursued him, but
were unable to overtake him, and soon lost sight of him. He returned to
the shop dressed as usual before the arrival of the tailor, who related
to him what had happened, of which he pretended to be entirely ignorant.
There was a great mourning at the court; but three months afterwards,
fresh robes were ordered for the wedding of the second prince. The
fairies were confirmed in their suspicions when they saw the fresh
clothes [which Badialzaman sent them].
On the wedding day they again assembled to throw the jaríd. Prince
Badialzaman now presented himself on the white horse, robed in white,
and with pearls and jewels to match, and again he attracted general
admiration. He pushed himself into the midst of a guard of eight hundred
horsemen, and slew Gaiath Eddin. They rushed upon him, and he allowed
himself to be carried before the Sultan, who recognised him, [and
pronounced his decision], “A brother who has been abandoned to die by
his brothers, has a right to kill them.”
After this, Prince Badialzaman espoused the youngest princess, and the
two others were given in marriage to two princes who were related to the
Sultan.
_CAZOTTE’S CONTINUATION, AND THE COMPOSITE EDITIONS OF THE ARABIAN
NIGHTS (pp. 470–475)._
P. 475.—There is a small Dutch work, the title of which is as follows:
_Oostersche Vertellingen, uit de Duizend-en-een-Nacht_: Naar de
Hoogduitsche Bewerking van M. Claudius,[439] voor de Nederlandsche
Jeugduiitgegeven door J. J. A. Gouverneur. Te Groningen, bij B. Wolters
(n.d. 8vo.), pp. 281, col. front. (illustrating No. 170).
A composite juvenile edition, including Introduction (very short), and
Nos. 251g, 36a, 163 (complete form), 6ef, 4, 5, 1, 52, 170, 6ee, 223,
207c, 6, 194c, 206a, 204h, 2a, 174a and Introduction, (a.)
Derived from at least four different sources.
_TRANSLATIONS OF THE PRINTED TEXTS (pp. 495–496)._
Under this heading I have to record Sir Richard and Lady Burton’s own
works.
_Lady Burton’s Edition of her husband’s Arabian Nights_, translated
literally from the Arabic, prepared for household reading by Justin
Huntly Mc.Carthy, M.P., London, Waterlow and Sons, Roy. 8vo. 6 vols.
In preparing this edition for the press, as much as possible has been
retained, both of the translation and notes; and it has not been found
necessary to omit altogether more than a very few of the least important
tales. The contents of the 6 volumes are as follows:—
Vol I. (1886), Frontispiece (Portrait of Lady Burton), Preface,
Translator’s Foreword, Introduction, 1–9 (pp. xxiii. 476).
Vol. II. (1886), Frontispiece (Portrait of Sir Richard F. Burton), 9
(continued), 9a–29 (pp. ii. 526).
Vol. III. (1887), 29 (continued)–133e (pp. viii. 511).
Vol. IV. (1887), 133e (continued)–154a (pp. iv. 514).
Vol. V. (1887), 154a (continued)–163 (pp. iv. 516).
Vol. VI. (1886) [? 1888], 163 (continued)–169 (pp. ii. 486).
Also includes Terminal Essay, Index to Tales and Proper Names;
Contributions to Bibliography, as far as it relates to Galland’s MS. and
Translations!; Comparative Table of Tales; Opinions of the Press; and
Letters from Scholars.
_Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night_,
with notes anthropological and explanatory, by Richard F. Burton.
Benares, printed by the Kamashastra Society for private subscribers
only. Roy. 8vo.
The contents of the 6 volumes are as follows:
Vol. I. (1886) Translator’s Foreword, 170–181bb (pp. xi. 370).
Vol. II. (1886) 182–189. Appendix: Variants and analogues of some of the
tales in vols. i. and ii., by Mr. W. A. Clouston (pp. ix. 392).
These two volumes contain the tales peculiar to the Breslau Text, and
cover the same ground as Mr. Payne’s 3 vols. of “Tales from the Arabic.”
Vol. III. (1887) Foreword, 191–198. Appendix: Variants and Analogues of
the Tales in the Supplemental Nights, vol. iii., by Mr. W. A. Clouston
(pp. xvi. 661).
This volume, the bulkiest of the whole series, contains such of
Galland’s tales as are not to be found in the ordinary texts of the
Nights.
Vol. IV. (1887) The Translator’s Foreword, 203–209; App. A. Ineptiæ
Bodleianæ; App. B. The three untranslated tales in Mr. E. J. W. Gibb’s
“Forty Vezirs” (pp. xv., 381).
Vol. V. (1888) 210–241a, Translator’s Foreword; App. i. Catalogue of
Wortley Montague Manuscript; Contents; App. ii. Notes on the Stories
contained in vols. iv. and v. of Supplemental Nights, by Mr. W. F. Kirby
(pp. viii. 515).
These two volumes contain tales translated from the Wortley Montague
MS., used by Jonathan Scott, and now in the Bodleian Library at Oxford.
The following tales, not in our table, are added:—
Vol. IV. Story of the Limping Schoolmaster (between 204i and 204j).
How Drummer Abu Kasim became a Kazi, and Story of the Kazi and his
Slipper. (These two tales come between 206a and 206b.)
Adventure of the Fruit-seller and the Concubine (between 207c and 207d).
Tale of the third Larrikin concerning himself (between 208 and 209).
On the other hand, a few tales in the MS. are omitted as repetitions, or
as too unimportant to be worth translating:—
Vol. VI. (1888). Translators Foreword: 248; 246; The Linguist-Dame, the
Duenna, and the King’s Son; 247; The Pleasant History of the Cock and
the Fox; History of what befel the Fowl-let with the Fowler; 249; 250.
App. i. Index to the Tales and Proper Names; ii. Alphabetical Table of
the Notes (Anthropological, &c.); iii. Notes on the Stories contained in
vol. vi. of Supplementary Nights, by W. F. Kirby; iv. Additional Notes
on the Bibliography of the Thousand and One Nights, by W. F. Kirby (pp.
201, 384.); v. The Biography of the Book and the Reviewers Reviewed,
Opinions of the Press.
This volume contains the originals of Chavis and Cazotte’s Tales,
omitting the four doubtful ones (cf. Nights, x. App., pp. 470, 471).
_COLLECTIONS OF SELECTED TALES (pp. 496–497.)_
“We have also ‘Aladdin or the Wonderful Lamp,’ ‘Sindbad the Sailor, or
the Old Man of the Sea’ and ‘Ali Baba, or the Forty Thieves,’ revised by
M. E. Braddon, author of ‘Lady Audley’s Secret,’ etc. Illustrated by
Gustav Doré and other artists. London: J. & R. Maxwell.
“Miss Braddon has contented herself with ‘Englishing’ the vulgar
version, whose Gallicisms are so offensive to the national ear.” (Sir R.
F. Burton, _in litt._)
_IMITATIONS AND MISCELLANEOUS WORKS HAVING MORE OR LESS CONNECTION WITH
THE NIGHTS._ (Pp. 507–513.) B. _ENGLISH_ (pp. 512, 513.)
13. _History of Rhedi, the Hermit of Mount Ararat, an Oriental Tale._
_By—Mackenzie_, 16mo., Dublin, 1781.
I have not seen this little book.
14. _Miscellanies, consisting of poems, classical extracts, Oriental
Apologues. By William Beloe, F.S.A, Translator of Herodotus, &c._
London, 1795.
Includes some genuine Oriental tales, such as a version of that of Básim
the Smith.
15. _The Orientalist, Letters of a Rabbi, with Notes by James Noble,
Oriental Master in the Scottish Naval and Military Academy._ Edinburgh,
1831.
Noticed by Mr. W. A. Clouston, Suppl. Nights, iii., p. 573.
16. _The Adventures of the Caliph Haroun Al-raschid. Recounted by the
Author of “Mary Powell” [Miss Manning]._ 8vo., London, 1855; Arthur
Hall, Virtue & Co.
17. _The 1001 Days, a Companion to the Arabian Nights_, with
introduction by Miss [J.] Pardoe. 8vo, London, 1857, woodcuts.