he entertained us and entreated us hospitably. Now he was a very old man
swart with exceeding swarthiness, and he had little children, who were
white, of a white dashed with red. So we said to him, “Harkye, such an
one, how cometh it that these thy children are white, whilst thou
thyself art passing swart?” And he said, “Their mother was a Frankish
woman, whom I took prisoner in the days of Al-Malik al-Násir Saláh
al-Dín,[28] after the battle of Hattín,[29] when I was a young man.” We
asked, “And how gottest thou her?” and he answered, “I had a rare
adventure with her.” Quoth we, “Favour us with it;” and quoth he:—With
all my heart! You must know that I once sowed a crop of flax in these
parts and pulled it and scutched it and spent on it five hundred gold
pieces; after which I would have sold it, but could get no more than
this therefor, and the folk said to me, “Carry it to Acre: for there
thou wilt haply make good gain by it.” Now Acre was then in the hands of
the Franks[30]; so I carried my flax thither and sold part of it at six
months’ credit. One day, as I was selling, behold, there came up a
Frankish woman (now ’tis the custom of the women of the Franks to go
about the market streets with unveiled faces), to buy flax of me, and I
saw of her beauty what dazed my wits. So I sold her somewhat of flax and
was easy with her concerning the price; and she took it and went away.
Some days after, she returned and bought somewhat more flax of me and I
was yet easier with her about the price; and she repeated her visits to
me, seeing that I was in love with her. Now she was used to walk in
company of an old woman to whom I said, “I am sore enamoured of thy
mistress. Canst thou contrive for me to enjoy her?” Quoth she, “I will
contrive this for thee; but the secret must not go beyond us three, me,
thee and her; and there is no help but that thou be lavish with money,
to boot.” And I answered, saying, “Though my life were the price of her
favours ’twere no great matter.”——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of
day and ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-fifth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the old woman said
to the man, “However the secret must not go beyond us three, to wit me,
thee and her; and there is no help but thou be lavish of thy money to
boot.” He replied, “Though my life were the price of her favours ’twere
no great matter.” So it was agreed (continued the man of Upper Egypt),
that I should pay her fifty dinars and that she should come to me;
whereupon I procured the money and gave it to the old woman. She took it
and said, “Make ready a place for her in thy house, and she will come to
thee this night.” Accordingly I went home and made ready what I could of
meat and drink and wax candles and sweetmeats. Now my house overlooked
the sea and ’twas the season of summer; so I spread the bed on the
terrace roof. Presently, the Frank woman came and we ate and drank, and
the night fell dark. We lay down under the sky, with the moon shining on
us, and fell to watching the shimmering of the stars in the sea: and I
said to myself, “Art thou not ashamed before Allah (to whom belong Might
and Majesty!) and thou a stranger, under the heavens and in presence of
the deep waters, to disobey Him with a Nazarene woman and merit the
torment of Fire?” Then said I, “O my God, I call Thee to witness that I
abstain from this Christian woman this night, of shamefastness before
Thee and fear of Thy vengeance!” So I slept till the morning, and she
arose at peep of day full of anger and went away. I walked to my shop
and sat there; and behold, presently she passed, as she were the moon,
accompanied by the old woman who was also angry; whereat my heart sank
within me and I said to myself, “Who art thou that thou shouldst refrain
from yonder damsel? Art thou Sarí al-Sakatí or Bishr Barefoot or Junayd
of Baghdad or Fuzayl bin ’Iyáz[31]?” Then I ran after the old woman and
coming up with her said to her, “Bring her to me again;” and said she,
“By the virtue of the Messiah, she will not return to thee but for an
hundred ducats!” Quoth I, “I will give thee a hundred gold pieces.” So I
paid her the money and the damsel came to me a second time; but no
sooner was she with me than I returned to my whilome way of thinking and
abstained from her and forbore her for the sake of Allah Almighty.
Presently she went away and I walked to my shop, and shortly after the
old woman came up, in a rage. Quoth I to her, “Bring her to me again;”
and quoth she, “By the virtue of the Messiah, thou shalt never again
enjoy her presence with thee, except for five hundred ducats, and thou
shalt perish in thy pain!” At this I trembled and resolved to expend the
whole price of my flax and therewith ransom my life. But, before I could
think, I heard the crier proclaiming and saying, “Ho, all ye Moslems,
the truce which was between us and you is expired, and we give all of
you Mahometans who are here a week from this time to have done with your
business and depart to your own country.” Thus her visits were cut off
from me and I betook myself to getting in the price of my flax which men
had bought upon credit, and to bartering what remained in my hands for
other goods. Then I took with me fair merchandise and departed Acre with
a soul full of affection and love-longing for the Frankish woman, who
had taken my heart and my coin. So I journeyed till I made Damascus,
where I sold the stock in trade I had brought from Acre, at the highest
price, because of the cutting off of communication by reason of the term
of truce having expired; and Allah (extolled and exalted be He!)
vouchsafed me good gain. Then I fell to trading in captive slave-girls,
thinking thus to ease my heart of its pining for the Frankish woman, and
in this traffic engaged I abode three years, till there befel between
Al-Malik al-Násir and the Franks what befel of the action of Hattin and
other encounters and Allah gave him the victory over them, so that he
took all their Kings prisoners and he opened[32] the coast[33] cities by
His leave. Now it fortuned one day after this, that a man came to me and
sought of me a slave-girl for Al-Malik al-Nasir. Having a handsome
handmaid I showed her to him and he bought her of me for an hundred
dinars and gave me ninety thereof, leaving ten still due to me, for that
there was no more found in the royal treasury that day, because he had
expended all his monies in waging war against the Franks. Accordingly
they took counsel with him and he said, “Carry him to the treasury[34]
where are the captives’ lodging and give him his choice among the
damsels of the Franks, so he may take one of them for the ten
dinars.”——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her
permitted say.
Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-sixth Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that whenas
Al-Malik al-Nasir said, “Give him his choice to take one of the girls
for the ten dinars that are due to him;” they brought me to the
captives’ lodging and showed me all who were therein, and I saw amongst
them the Frankish damsel with whom I had fallen in love at Acre and knew
her right well. Now she was the wife of one of the cavaliers of the
Franks. So I said, “Give me this one,” and carrying her to my tent,
asked her, “Dost thou know me?” She answered, “No;” and I rejoined, “I
am thy friend, the sometime flax-merchant with whom thou hadst to do at
Acre and there befel between us what befel. Thou tookest money of me and
saidest, ‘Thou shalt never again see me but for five hundred dinars.’
And now thou art become my property for ten ducats.” Quoth she, “This is
a mystery. Thy faith is the True Faith and I testify that there is no
god but _the_ God and that Mohammed is the Messenger of God!” And she
made perfect profession of Al-Islam. Then said I to myself, “By Allah, I
will not go in unto her till I have set her free and acquainted the
Kazi.” So I betook myself to Ibn Shaddád[35] and told him what had
passed and he married me to her. Then I lay with her that night and she
conceived; after which the troops departed and we returned to Damascus.
But within a few days there came an envoy from the King of the Franks,
to seek the captives and the prisoners, according to the treaty between
the Kings. So Al-Malik al-Nasir restored all the men and women captive,
till there remained but the woman who was with me and the Franks said,
“The wife of such an one the Knight is not here.” Then they asked after
her and making strict search for her, found that she was with me;
whereupon they demanded her of me and I went in to her sore concerned
and with colour changed; and she said to me, “What aileth thee and what
evil assaileth thee?” Quoth I, “A messenger is come from the King to
take all the captives, and they demand thee of me.” Quoth she, “Have no
fear, bring me to the King and I know what to say before and to him.” I
carried her into the presence of the Sultan Al-Malik al-Nasir, who was
seated, with the envoy of the King of the Franks on his right hand, and
I said to him, “This is the woman that is with me.” Then quoth the King
and the envoy to her, “Wilt thou go to thy country or to[36] thy
husband? For Allah hath loosed thy bonds and those of thy fellow
captives.” Quoth she to the Sultan, “I am become a Moslemah and am great
with child, as by my middle ye may see, and the Franks shall have no
more profit of me.” The envoy asked, “Whether is dearer to thee, this
Moslem or thy first husband the knight such an one?;” and she answered
him even as she had answered the Sultan. Then said the envoy to the
Franks with him, “Heard ye her words?” They replied, “Yes.” And he said
to me, “Take thy wife and depart with her.” So I took her and went away;
but the envoy sent after me in haste and cried, “Her mother gave me a
charge for her, saying, My daughter is a captive and naked: and I would
have thee carry her this chest. Take it thou and deliver it to her.”
Accordingly I carried the chest home and gave it to her. She opened it
and found in it all her raiment as she had left it and therein I saw the
two purses of fifty and an hundred dinars which I had given her,
untouched and tied up with my own tying, wherefore I praised Almighty
Allah. These are my children by her and she is alive to this day and
’twas she dressed you this food. We marvelled at his story and at that
which had befallen him of good fortune, and Allah is All-knowing. But
men also tell a tale anent the
-----
Footnote 28:
_i.e._ Saladin. See vol. iv. p. 116.
Footnote 29:
Usually called the Horns of Hattin (classically Hittin) North of
Tiberias where Saladin by good strategy and the folly of the Franks
annihilated the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem. For details see the
guide-books. In this action (June 23, 1187), after three bishops were
slain in its defence, the last fragment of the True Cross (or rather
the cross verified by Helena) fell into Moslem hands. The Christians
begged hard for it, but Saladin, a conscientious believer, refused to
return to them even for ransom “the object of their iniquitous
superstition.” His son, however, being of another turn, would have
sold it to the Franks who then lacked money to purchase. It presently
disappeared and I should not be surprised if it were still lying, an
unknown and _inutile lignum_ in some Cairene mosque.
Footnote 30:
’Akká (Acre) was taken by Saladin on July 29, 1187. The Egyptian
states that he was at Acre in 1184 or three years before the affair of
Hattin (Night dcccxcv.).
Footnote 31:
Famous Sufis and ascetics of the second and third centuries A.H. For
Bishr Barefoot, see vol. ii. p. 127. Al-Sakati means “the old-clothes
man;” and the names of the others are all recorded in D’Herbelot.
Footnote 32:
_i.e._ captured, forced open their gates.
Footnote 33:
Arab. “Al-Sáhil” _i.e._ the seaboard of Syria; properly Phœnicia or
the coast-lands of Southern Palestine. So the maritime lowlands of
continental Zanzibar are called in the plur. Sawáhil = “the shores”
and the people Sawáhílí = Shore-men.
Footnote 34:
Arab. “Al-Khizánah” both in Mac. Edit. and Breslau x, 426. Mr. Payne
has translated “tents” and says, “Saladin seems to have been encamped
without Damascus and the slave-merchant had apparently come out and
pitched his tent near the camp for the purposes of his trade.” But I
can find no notice of tents till a few lines below.
Footnote 35:
Bahá al-Dín ibn Shaddád, then Kázi al-Askar (of the Army) or
Judge-Advocate-General under Saladin.
Footnote 36:
_i.e._ “abide with” thy second husband, the Egyptian.
RUINED MAN OF BAGHDAD AND HIS SLAVE-GIRL.
There was of old time in Baghdad a man of condition, who had inherited
from his father abounding affluence. He fell in love with a slave-girl;
so he bought her and she loved him as he loved her; and he ceased not to
spend upon her, till all his money was gone and naught remained thereof;
whereupon he sought a means of getting his livelihood, but availed not
to find any. Now this young man had been used, in the days of his
affluence, to frequent the assemblies of those who were versed in the
art of singing and had thus attained to the utmost excellence therein.
Presently he took counsel with one of his intimates, who said to him,
“Meseems thou canst find no better profession than to sing, thou and thy
slave-girl; for on this wise thou wilt get money in plenty and wilt eat
and drink.” But he misliked this, he and the damsel, and she said to
him, “I have bethought me of a means of relief for thee.” He asked,
“What is it?;” and she answered, “Do thou sell me; thus shall we be
delivered of this strait, thou and I, and I shall be in affluence; for
none will buy the like of me save a man of fortune, and with this I will
contrive for my return to thee.” He carried her to the market and the
first who saw her was a Háshimí[37] of Bassorah, a man of good breeding,
fine taste and generosity, who bought her for fifteen hundred dinars.
(Quoth the young man, the damsel’s owner), When I had received the
price, I repented me and wept, I and the damsel; and I sought to cancel
the sale; but the purchaser would not consent. So I took the gold in a
bag, knowing not whither I should wend, now my house was desolate of
her, and buffeted my face and wept and wailed as I had never done
before. Then I entered a mosque and sat shedding tears, till I was
stupefied and losing my senses fell asleep, with the bag of money under
my head by way of pillow. Presently, ere I could be ware, a man plucked
the bag from under my head and ran off with it at speed: whereupon I
started up in alarm and affright and would have arisen to run after him;
but lo! my feet were bound with a rope and I fell on my face. Then I
took to weeping and buffeting myself, saying, “Thou hast parted with thy
soul[38] and thy wealth is lost!”——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of
day and ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-seventh Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young man
continued:—So I said to myself, “Thou hast parted with thy soul and thy
wealth is lost.” Then, of the excess of my chagrin, I betook myself to
the Tigris and wrapping my face in my gown, cast myself into the stream.
The bystanders saw me and cried, “For sure, this is because of some
great trouble that hath betided him.” They cast themselves in after me
and bringing me ashore, questioned me of my case. I told them what
misadventure had befallen me and they condoled with me. Then an old man
of them came to me and said, “Thou hast lost thy money, but why goest
thou about to lose thy life and become of the people of The Fire?[39]
Arise, come with me, that I may see thy lodging.” I went with him to my
house and he sat with me awhile, till I waxed calmer, and becoming
tranquil I thanked him and he went away. When he was gone, I was like to
kill myself, but bethought me of the Future and the Fire; so I fared
forth my house and fled to one of my friends and told him what had
befallen me. He wept for pity of me and gave me fifty dinars, saying,
“Take my advice and hie thee from Baghdad forthright and let this
provide thee till thy heart be diverted from the love of her and thou
forget her. Thy forbears were Secretaries and Scribes and thy
handwriting is fine and thy breeding right good: seek out, then, whom
thou wilt of the Intendants[40] and throw thyself on his bounty; thus
haply Allah shall reunite thee with thy slave-girl.” I hearkened to his
words (and indeed my mind was strengthened and I was somewhat comforted)
and resolved to betake myself to Wásit,[41] where I had kinsfolk. So I
went down to the river-side, where I saw a ship moored and the sailors
embarking goods and goodly stuffs. I asked them to take me with them and
carry me to Wasit; but they replied, “We cannot take thee on such wise,
for the ship belongeth to a Hashimi.” However I tempted them with
promise of passage-money and they said, “We cannot embark thee on this
fashion;[42] but, if it must be, doff those fine clothes of thine and
don sailor’s gear and sit with us as thou wert one of us.” I went away
and buying somewhat of sailors’ clothes, put them on; after which I
bought me also somewhat of provisions for the voyage; and, returning to
the vessel, which was bound for Bassorah, embarked with the crew. But
ere long I saw my slave-girl herself come on board, attended by two
waiting-women; whereupon what was on me of chagrin subsided and I said
in myself, “Now shall I see her and hear her singing, till we come to
Bassorah.” Soon after, up rode the Hashimi, with a party of people, and
they embarked aboard the ship, which dropped down the river with them.
Presently the Hashimi brought out food and ate with the damsel, whilst
the rest ate amidships. Then said he to her, “How long this abstinence
from singing and permanence in this wailing and weeping? Thou art not
the first that hath been parted from a beloved!” Wherefore I knew what
she suffered for love of me. Then he hung a curtain before her along the
gunwale and calling those who ate apart, sat down with them without the
curtain; and I enquired concerning them and behold they were his
brethren.[43] He set before them what they needed of wine and dessert,
and they ceased not to press the damsel to sing, till she called for the
lute and tuning it, intoned these two couplets:—
The company left with my love by night, ✿ Nor forbore to fare with my
heart’s delight:
And raged, since their camels off paced, a fire ✿ As of Ghazá[44]-wood
in the lover’s sprite.
Then weeping overpowered her and she threw down the lute and ceased
singing; whereat the folk were troubled and I slipped down a-swoon. They
thought I was possessed[45] and one of them began reciting exorcisms in
my ear; nor did they cease to comfort her and beseech her to sing, till
she tuned the lute again and chaunted these couplets twain:—
I stood and bewailed who their loads had bound ✿ And far yode but still
in my heart are found:
I drew near the ruins and asked of them ✿ And the camp was void and lay
waste the ground.
Then she fell down in a fainting-fit and weeping arose amongst the folk;
and I also cried out and fainted away. The sailors were startled by me
and one of the Hashimi’s pages said to them, “How came ye to take this
madman on board?” So they said one to other, “As soon as we come to the
next village, we will set him ashore and rid us of him.” When I heard
this, I was sore troubled but I heartened and hardened myself, saying in
thought, “Nothing will serve me to deliver myself from their hands,
except I make shift to acquaint her with my presence in the ship, so she
may prevent my being set ashore.” Then we sailed when we came hard by a
hamlet[46] and the skipper said, “Come, let us go ashore.” Therewith
they all landed, save myself: and as evening fell I rose and going
behind the curtain took the lute and changed its accord, mode[47] by
mode, and tuning it after a fashion of my own,[48] that she had learnt
of me, returned to my place in the ship;——And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-eighth Night,
She resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young man
continued:—I returned to my place in the ship; and presently the whole
party came on board again and the moon shone bright upon river and
height. Then said the Hashimi to the damsel, “Allah upon thee, trouble
not our joyous lives!” So she took the lute, and touching it with her
hand, gave a sob, that they thought her soul had fled her frame, and
said, “By Allah, my master and teacher is with us in this ship!”
Answered the Hashimi, “By Allah, were this so, I would not forbid him
our conversation! Haply he would lighten thy burthen, so we might enjoy
thy singing: but his being on board is far from possible.” However she
said, “I cannot smite lute-string or sing sundry airs I was wont to sing
whilst my lord is with us.” Quoth the Hashimi, “Let us ask the sailors;”
and quoth she, “Do so.” He questioned them, saying, “Have ye carried
anyone with you?”; and they answered, “No.” Then I feared lest the
enquiry should end there; so I laughed and said, “Yes; I am her master
and taught her whenas I was her lord.” Cried she, “By Allah, that is my
lord’s voice!” Thereupon the pages carried me to the Hashimi, who knew
me at first sight and said to me, “Out on thee! What plight is this in
which I see thee and what hath brought thee to such condition?” I
related to him all that had befallen me of my affair, weeping the while,
and the damsel made loud wail from behind the curtain. The Hashimi wept
with sore weeping, he and his brethren, for pity of me, and he said, “By
Allah, I have not drawn near this damsel nor enjoyed her, nor have I
even heard her sing till this day! I am a man to whom Allah hath been
ample and I came to Baghdad but to hear singing and seek my allowances
of the Commander of the Faithful. I accomplished both my needments and
being about to return home, said to myself, ‘Let us hear some what of
the singing of Baghdad.’ Wherefore I bought this damsel, knowing not
that such was the case with you twain; and I take Allah to witness that,
when I reach Bassorah I will free her and marry her to thee and assign
you what shall suffice you, and more; but on condition that, whenever I
have a mind to hear music, a curtain shall be hung for her and she shall
sing to me from behind it, and thou shalt be of the number of my
brethren and boon-companions.” Hereat I rejoiced and the Hashimi put his
head within the curtain and said to her, “Will that content thee?”;
whereupon she fell to blessing and thanking him. Then he called a
servant and said to him, “Take this young man and do off his clothes and
robe him in costly raiment and incense him[49] and bring him back to
us.” So the servant did with me as his master bade him and brought me
back to him, and served me with wine, even as the rest of the company.
Then the damsel began singing after the goodliest fashion and chanted
these couplets:—
They blamed me for causing my tears to well ✿ When came my beloved to
bid farewell:
They ne’er tasted the bitters of parting nor felt ✿ Fire beneath my ribs
that flames fierce and fell!
None but baffled lover knows aught of Love, ✿ Whose heart is lost where
he wont to dwell.
The folk rejoiced in her song with exceeding joy and my gladness
redoubled, so that I took the lute from the damsel and preluding after
the most melodious fashion, sang these couplets:—
Ask (if needs thou ask) the Compassionate, ✿ And the generous donor of
high estate.
For asking the noble honours man ✿ And asking the churl entails bane and
bate:
When abasement is not to be ’scaped by wight ✿ Meet it asking boons of
the good and great.
Of Grandee to sue ne’er shall vilify man, ✿ But ’tis vile on the vile of
mankind to ’wait.
The company rejoiced in me with joy exceeding and they ceased not from
pleasure and delight, whilst anon I sang and anon the damsel, till we
came to one of the landing-places, where the vessel moored and all on
board disembarked and I with them. Now I was drunken with wine and
squatted on my hams to make water; but drowsiness overcame me and I
slept, and the passengers returned to the ship which ran down stream
without any missing me, for that they also were drunken, and continued
their voyage till they reached Bassorah. As for me I awoke not till the
heat of the sun aroused me, when I rose and looked about me, but saw no
one. Now I had given my spending-money to the damsel and had naught
left: I had also forgotten to ask the Hashimi his name and where his
house was at Bassorah and his titles; thus I was confounded and my joy
at meeting the damsel had been but a dream; and I abode in perplexity
till there came up a great vessel wherein I embarked and she carried me
to Bassorah. Now I knew none there much less the Hashimi’s house, so I
accosted a grocer and taking of him inkcase and paper,——And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Eight Hundred and Ninety-ninth Night,