[Illustration]
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[Illustration: لا لابرار كلّ شي تبر]
“TO THE PURE ALL THINGS ARE PURE.”
(Puris omnia pura)
—_Arab Proverb._
“Niuna corrotta mente intese mai sanamente parole.”
—“_Decameron_”—_conclusion_.
“Erubuit, posuitque meum Lucretia librum
Sed coram Bruto. Brute! recede, leget.”
—_Martial._
“Mieulx est de ris que de larmes escripre,
Pour ce que rire est le propre des hommes.”
—RABELAIS.
“The pleasure we derive from perusing the Thousand-and-One Stories makes
us regret that we possess only a comparatively small part of these truly
enchanting fictions.”
—CRICHTON’S “_History of Arabia_.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration]
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_A PLAIN AND LITERAL TRANSLATION OF THE ARABIAN NIGHTS ENTERTAINMENTS.
NOW ENTITULED_
_THE BOOK OF THE_
Thousand Nights and a Night
_WITH INTRODUCTION EXPLANATORY NOTES ON THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF
MOSLEM MEN AND A TERMINAL ESSAY UPON THE HISTORY OF THE NIGHTS_
VOLUME X.
BY
RICHARD F. BURTON
[Illustration]
PRINTED BY THE BURTON CLUB FOR PRIVATE SUBSCRIBERS ONLY
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shammar Edition
Limited to one thousand numbered sets, of which this is
Number _547_
PRINTED IN U. S. A.
TO
HIS EXCELLENCY YACOUB ARTIN PASHA,
MINISTER OF INSTRUCTION, ETC. ETC. ETC. CAIRO.
MY DEAR PASHA,
During the last dozen years, since we first met at Cairo, you have
done much for Egyptian folk-lore and you can do much more. This
volume is inscribed to you with a double purpose; first it is
intended as a public expression of gratitude for your friendly
assistance; and, secondly, as a memento that the samples which you
have given us imply a promise of further gift. With this lively
sense of favours to come I subscribe myself
Ever your friend and fellow worker,
RICHARD F. BURTON.
LONDON, _July 12, 1886_.
CONTENTS OF THE TENTH VOLUME.
PAGE
MA’ARUF THE COBBLER AND HIS WIFE FATIMAH 1
(_Lane, The Story of Ma’aruf, III._ 671–732.)
CONCLUSION 54
TERMINAL ESSAY 63
INDEX OF THE TENTH VOLUME 303
APPENDIX I.—
I. INDEX TO THE TALES AND PROPER NAMES 309
II. ALPHABETICAL TABLE OF THE NOTES (ANTHROPOLOGICAL, &C.) 322
III. ALPHABETICAL TABLE OF FIRST LINES—
A. English 393
B. Arabic 421
IV. TABLE OF CONTENTS OF THE VARIOUS ARABIC TEXTS—
A. The Unfinished Calcutta Edition (1814–1818) 448
B. The Breslau Text 450
C. The Macnaghten Text and the Bulak Edition 457
D. The same with Mr. Lane’s and my Version 464
APPENDIX II.—
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THE THOUSAND AND ONE
NIGHTS AND THEIR IMITATIONS, BY W. F. KIRBY 465
MA’ARUF THE COBBLER AND HIS WIFE FATIMAH.
There dwelt once upon a time in the God-guarded city of Cairo a cobbler
who lived by patching old shoes.[1] His name was Ma’aruf[2] and he had a
wife called Fatimah, whom the folk had nicknamed “The Dung;”[3] for that
she was a whorish, worthless wretch, scanty of shame and mickle of
mischief. She ruled her spouse and used to abuse him and curse him a
thousand times a day; and he feared her malice and dreaded her
misdoings; for that he was a sensible man and careful of his repute, but
poor-conditioned. When he earned much, he spent it on her, and when he
gained little, she revenged herself on his body that night, leaving him
no peace and making his night black as her book;[4] for she was even as
of one like her saith the poet:—
How manifold nights have I passed with my wife ✿ In the saddest plight
with all misery rife:
Would Heaven when first I went in to her ✿ With a cup of cold poison I’d
ta’en her life.
Amongst other afflictions which befel him from her one day she said to
him, “O Ma’aruf, I wish thee to bring me this night a vermicelli-cake
dressed with bees’ honey.”[5] He replied, “So Allah Almighty aid me to
its price, I will bring it thee. By Allah, I have no dirhams to-day, but
our Lord will make things easy.”[6] Rejoined she,——And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Ninetieth Night,
She resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Ma’aruf the
Cobbler said to his spouse, “If Allah aid me to its price, I will bring
it to thee this night. By Allah, I have no dirhams to-day, but our Lord
will make things easy to me!” She rejoined, “I wot naught of these
words; whether He aid thee or aid thee not, look thou come not to me
save with the vermicelli and bees’ honey; and if thou come without it I
will make thy night black as thy fortune whenas thou marriedst me and
fellest into my hand.” Quoth he, “Allah is bountiful!” and going out
with grief scattering itself from his body, prayed the dawn-prayer and
opened his shop, saying, “I beseech thee, O Lord, to vouchsafe me the
price of the Kunafah and ward off from me the mischief of yonder wicked
woman this night!” After which he sat in the shop till noon, but no work
came to him and his fear of his wife redoubled. Then he arose and
locking his shop, went out perplexed as to how he should do in the
matter of the vermicelli-cake, seeing he had not even the wherewithal to
buy bread. Presently he came up to the shop of the Kunafah-seller and
stood before it distraught, whilst his eyes brimmed with tears. The
pastry-cook glanced at him and said, “O Master Ma’aruf, why dost thou
weep? Tell me what hath befallen thee.” So he acquainted him with his
case, saying, “My wife is a shrew, a virago who would have me bring her
a Kunafah; but I have sat in my shop till past mid-day and have not
gained even the price of bread; wherefore I am in fear of her.” The cook
laughed and said, “No harm shall come to thee. How many pounds wilt thou
have?” “Five pounds,” answered Ma’aruf. So the man weighed him out five
pounds of vermicelli-cake and said to him, “I have clarified butter, but
no bees’ honey. Here is drip-honey,[7] however, which is better than
bees’ honey; and what harm will there be, if it be with drip-honey?”
Ma’aruf was ashamed to object, because the pastry-cook was to have
patience with him for the price, and said, “Give it me with drip-honey.”
So he fried a vermicelli-cake for him with butter and drenched it with
drip-honey, till it was fit to present to Kings. Then he asked him,
“Dost thou want bread[8] and cheese?”; and Ma’aruf answered, “Yes.” So
he gave him four half dirhams worth of bread and one of cheese, and the
vermicelli was ten nusfs. Then said he, “Know, O Ma’aruf, that thou
owest me fifteen nusfs; so go to thy wife and make merry and take this
nusf for the Hammam;[9] and thou shalt have credit for a day or two or
three till Allah provide thee with thy daily bread. And straiten not thy
wife, for I will have patience with thee till such time as thou shalt
have dirhams to spare.” So Ma’aruf took the vermicelli-cake and bread
and cheese and went away, with a heart at ease, blessing the pastry-cook
and saying, “Extolled be Thy perfection, O my Lord! How bountiful art
Thou!” When he came home, his wife enquired of him, “Hast thou brought
the vermicelli-cake?”; and, replying “Yes,” he set it before her. She
looked at it and seeing that it was dressed with cane-honey,[10] said to
him, “Did I not bid thee bring it with bees’ honey? Wilt thou contrary
my wish and have it dressed with cane-honey?” He excused himself to her,
saying, “I bought it not save on credit;” but said she, “This talk is
idle; I will not eat Kunafah save with bees’ honey.” And she was wroth
with it and threw it in his face, saying, “Begone, thou pimp, and bring
me other than this!” Then she dealt him a buffet on the cheek and
knocked out one of his teeth. The blood ran down upon his breast and for
stress of anger he smote her on the head a single blow and a slight;
whereupon she clutched his beard and fell to shouting out and saying,
“Help, O Moslems!” So the neighbours came in and freed his beard from
her grip; then they reproved and reproached her, saying, “We are all
content to eat Kunafah with cane-honey. Why, then, wilt thou oppress
this poor man thus? Verily, this is disgraceful in thee!” And they went
on to soothe her till they made peace between her and him. But, when the
folk were gone, she sware that she would not eat of the vermicelli, and
Ma’aruf, burning with hunger, said in himself, “She sweareth that she
will not eat; so I will e’en eat.” Then he ate, and when she saw him
eating, she said, “Inshallah, may the eating of it be poison to destroy
the far one’s body.”[11] Quoth he, “It shall not be at thy bidding,” and
went on eating, laughing and saying, “Thou swarest that thou wouldst not
eat of this; but Allah is bountiful, and to-morrow night, an the Lord
decree, I will bring thee Kunafah dressed with bees’ honey, and thou
shalt eat it alone.” And he applied himself to appeasing her, whilst she
called down curses upon him; and she ceased not to rail at him and
revile him with gross abuse till the morning, when she bared her forearm
to beat him. Quoth he, “Give me time and I will bring thee other
vermicelli-cake.” Then he went out to the mosque and prayed, after which
he betook himself to his shop and opening it, sat down; but hardly had
he done this when up came two runners from the Kazi’s court and said to
him, “Up with thee, speak with the Kazi, for thy wife hath complained of
thee to him and her favour is thus and thus.” He recognised her by their
description; and saying, “May Allah Almighty torment her!” walked with
them till he came to the Kazi’s presence, where he found Fatimah
standing with her arm bound up and her face-veil besmeared with blood;
and she was weeping and wiping away her tears. Quoth the Kazi, “Ho man,
hast thou no fear of Allah the Most High? Why hast thou beaten this good
woman and broken her forearm and knocked out her tooth and entreated her
thus?” And quoth Ma’aruf, “If I beat her or put out her tooth, sentence
me to what thou wilt; but in truth the case was thus and thus and the
neighbours made peace between me and her.” And he told him the story
from first to last. Now this Kazi was a benevolent man; so he brought
out to him a quarter dinar, saying, “O man, take this and get her
Kunafah with bees’ honey and do ye make peace, thou and she.” Quoth
Ma’aruf, “Give it to her.” So she took it and the Kazi made peace
between them, saying, “O wife, obey thy husband; and thou, O man, deal
kindly with her.[12]” Then they left the court, reconciled at the Kazi’s
hands, and the woman went one way, whilst her husband returned by
another way to his shop and sat there, when, behold, the runners came up
to him and said, “Give us our fee.” Quoth he, “The Kazi took not of me
aught; on the contrary, he gave me a quarter dinar.” But quoth they,
“’Tis no concern of ours whether the Kazi took of thee or gave to thee,
and if thou give us not our fee, we will exact it in despite of thee.”
And they fell to dragging him about the market; so he sold his tools and
gave them half a dinar, whereupon they let him go and went away, whilst
he put his hand to his cheek and sat sorrowful, for that he had no tools
wherewith to work. Presently, up came two ill-favoured fellows and said
to him, “Come, O man, and speak with the Kazi; for thy wife hath
complained of thee to him.” Said he, “He made peace between us just
now.” But said they, “We come from another Kazi, and thy wife hath
complained of thee to our Kazi.” So he arose and went with them to their
Kazi, calling on Allah for aid against her; and when he saw her, he said
to her, “Did we not make peace, good woman?” Whereupon she cried, “There
abideth no peace between me and thee.” Accordingly he came forward and
told the Kazi his story, adding, “And indeed the Kazi Such-an-one made
peace between us this very hour.” Whereupon the Kazi said to her, “O
strumpet, since ye two have made peace with each other, why comest thou
to me complaining?” Quoth she, “He beat me after that;” but quoth the
Kazi, “Make peace each with other, and beat her not again, and she will
cross thee no more.” So they made peace and the Kazi said to Ma’aruf,
“Give the runners their fee.” So he gave them their fee and going back
to his shop, opened it and sat down, as he were a drunken man for excess
of the chagrin which befel him. Presently, while he was still sitting,
behold, a man came up to him and said, “O Ma’aruf, rise and hide
thyself, for thy wife hath complained of thee to the High Court[13] and
Abú Tabak[14] is after thee.” So he shut his shop and fled towards the
Gate of Victory.[15] He had five Nusfs of silver left of the price of
the lasts and gear; and therewith he bought four worth of bread and one
of cheese, as he fled from her. Now it was the winter season and the
hour of mid-afternoon prayer; so, when he came out among the
rubbish-mounds the rain descended upon him, like water from the mouths
of water-skins, and his clothes were drenched. He therefore entered the
‘Ádiliyah,[16] where he saw a ruined place and therein a deserted cell
without a door; and in it he took refuge and found shelter from the
rain. The tears streamed from his eyelids, and he fell to complaining of
what had betided him and saying, “Whither shall I flee from this whore?
I beseech Thee, O Lord, to vouchsafe me one who shall conduct me to a
far country, where she shall not know the way to me!” Now while he sat
weeping, behold, the wall clave and there came forth to him therefrom
one of tall stature, whose aspect caused his body-pile to bristle and
his flesh to creep, and said to him, “O man, what aileth thee that thou
disturbest me this night? These two hundred years have I dwelt here and
have never seen any enter this place and do as thou dost. Tell me what
thou wishest and I will accomplish thy need, as ruth for thee hath got
hold upon my heart”. Quoth Ma’aruf, “Who and what art thou?”; and quoth
he, “I am the Haunter[17] of this place.” So Ma’aruf told him all that
had befallen him with his wife and he said, “Wilt thou have me convey
thee to a country, where thy wife shall know no way to thee?” “Yes,”
said Ma’aruf; and the other, “Then mount my back.” So he mounted on his
back and he flew with him from after supper-tide till daybreak, when he
set him down on the top of a high mountain——And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Ninety-first Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Marid having
taken up Ma’aruf the Cobbler, flew off with him and set him down upon a
high mountain and said to him, “O mortal, descend this mountain and thou
wilt see the gate of a city. Enter it, for therein thy wife cannot come
at thee.” He then left him and went his way, whilst Ma’aruf abode in
amazement and perplexity till the sun rose, when he said to himself, “I
will up with me and go down into the city: indeed there is no profit in
my abiding upon this highland.” So he descended to the mountain-foot and
saw a city girt by towering walls, full of lofty palaces and
gold-adorned buildings which was a delight to beholders. He entered in
at the gate and found it a place such as lightened the grieving heart;
but, as he walked through the streets the townsfolk stared at him as a
curiosity and gathered about him, marvelling at his dress, for it was
unlike theirs. Presently, one of them said to him, “O man, art thou a
stranger?” “Yes.” “What countryman art thou?” “I am from the city of
Cairo the Auspicious.” “And when didst thou leave Cairo?” “I left it
yesterday, at the hour of afternoon-prayer.” Whereupon the man laughed
at him and cried out, saying, “Come look, O folk, at this man and hear
what he saith!” Quoth they, “What doeth he say?” and quoth the townsman,
“He pretendeth that he cometh from Cairo and left it yesterday at the
hour of afternoon-prayer!” At this they all laughed and gathering round
Ma’aruf, said to him, “O man, art thou mad to talk thus? How canst thou
pretend that thou leftest Cairo at mid-afternoon yesterday and foundedst
thyself this morning here, when the truth is that between our city and
Cairo lieth a full year’s journey?” Quoth he, “None is mad but you. As
for me, I speak sooth, for here is bread which I brought with me from
Cairo, and see, ’tis yet new.” Then he showed them the bread and they
stared at it, for it was unlike their country bread. So the crowd
increased about him and they said to one another, “This is Cairo bread:
look at it;” and he became a gazing-stock in the city and some believed
him; whilst others gave him the lie and made mock of him. Whilst this
was going on, behold, up came a merchant riding on a she-mule and
followed by two black slaves, and brake a way through the people,
saying, “O folk, are ye not ashamed to mob this stranger and make mock
of him and scoff at him?” And he went on to rate them, till he drave
them away from Ma’aruf, and none could make him any answer. Then he said
to the stranger, “Come, O my brother, no harm shall betide thee from
these folk. Verily they have no shame.”[18] So he took him and carrying
him to a spacious and richly-adorned house, seated him in a speak-room
fit for a King, whilst he gave an order to his slaves, who opened a
chest and brought out to him a dress such as might be worn by a merchant
worth a thousand.[19] He clad him therewith and Ma’aruf, being a seemly
man, became as he were consul of the merchants. Then his host called for
food and they set before them a tray of all manner exquisite viands. The
twain ate and drank and the merchant said to Ma’aruf, “O my brother,
what is thy name?” “My name is Ma’aruf and I am a cobbler by trade and
patch old shoes.” “What countryman art thou?” “I am from Cairo.” “What
quarter?” “Dost thou know Cairo?” “I am of its children.[20]” “I come
from the Red Street.[21]” “And whom dost thou know in the Red Street?”
“I know such an one and such an one,” answered Ma’aruf and named several
people to him. Quoth the other, “Knowest thou Shaykh Ahmad the
druggist?[22]” “He was my next neighbour, wall to wall.” “Is he well?”
“Yes.” “How many sons hath he?” “Three, Mustafà, Mohammed and Ali.” “And
what hath Allah done with them?” “As for Mustafà, he is well and he is a
learned man, a professor[23]: Mohammed is a druggist and opened him a
shop beside that of his father, after he had married, and his wife hath
borne him a son named Hasan.” “Allah gladden thee with good news!” said
the merchant; and Ma’aruf continued, “As for Ali, he was my friend, when
we were boys, and we always played together, I and he. We used to go in
the guise of the children of the Nazarenes and enter the church and
steal the books of the Christians and sell them and buy food with the
price. It chanced once that the Nazarenes caught us with a book;
whereupon they complained of us to our folk and said to Ali’s father:—An
thou hinder not thy son from troubling us, we will complain of thee to
the King. So he appeased them and gave Ali a thrashing; wherefore he ran
away none knew whither and he hath now been absent twenty years and no
man hath brought news of him.” Quoth the host, “I am that very Ali, son
of Shaykh Ahmad the druggist, and thou art my playmate Ma’aruf.”[24] So
they saluted each other and after the salam Ali said, “Tell me why, O
Ma’aruf, thou camest from Cairo to this city.” Then he told him all that
had befallen him of ill-doing with his wife Fatimah the Dung and said,
“So, when her annoy waxed on me, I fled from her towards the Gate of
Victory and went forth the city. Presently, the rain fell heavy on me;
so I entered a ruined cell in the Adiliyah and sat there, weeping;
whereupon there came forth to me the Haunter of the place, which was an
Ifrit of the Jinn, and questioned me. I acquainted him with my case and
he took me on his back and flew with me all night between heaven and
earth, till he set me down on yonder mountain and gave me to know of
this city. So I came down from the mountain and entered the city, when
the people crowded about me and questioned me. I told them that I had
left Cairo yesterday, but they believed me not, and presently thou
camest up and driving the folk away from me, carriedst me to this house.
Such, then, is the cause of my quitting Cairo; and thou, what object
brought thee hither?” Quoth Ali, “The giddiness[25] of folly turned my
head when I was seven years old, from which time I wandered from land to
land and city to city, till I came to this city, the name whereof is
Ikhtiyán al-Khatan.[26] I found its people an hospitable folk and a
kindly, compassionate for the poor man and selling to him on credit and
believing all he said. So quoth I to them:—I am a merchant and have
preceded my packs and I need a place wherein to bestow my baggage. And
they believed me and assigned me a lodging. Then quoth I to them:—Is
there any of you will lend me a thousand dinars, till my loads arrive,
when I will repay it to him; for I am in want of certain things before
my goods come? They gave me what I asked and I went to the merchants’
bazar, where, seeing goods, I bought them and sold them next day at a
profit of fifty gold pieces and bought others.[27] And I consorted with
the folk and entreated them liberally, so that they loved me, and I
continued to sell and buy, till I grew rich. Know, O my brother, that
the proverb saith, The world is show and trickery: and the land where
none wotteth thee, there do whatso liketh thee. Thou too, an thou say to
all who ask thee, I’m a cobbler by trade and poor withal, and I fled
from my wife and left Cairo yesterday, they will not believe thee and
thou wilt be a laughing-stock among them as long as thou abidest in the
city; whilst, an thou tell them, An Ifrit brought me hither, they will
take fright at thee and none will come near thee; for they will say,
This man is possessed of an Ifrit and harm will betide whoso approacheth
him. And such public report will be dishonouring both to thee and to me,
because they ken I come from Cairo.” Ma’aruf asked:—“How then shall I
do?”; and Ali answered, “I will tell thee how thou shalt do, Inshallah!
To-morrow I will give thee a thousand dinars and a she-mule to ride and
a black slave, who shall walk before thee and guide thee to the gate of
the merchants’ bazar; and do thou go into them. I will be there sitting
amongst them, and when I see thee, I will rise to thee and salute thee
with the salam and kiss thy hand and make a great man of thee. Whenever
I ask thee of any kind of stuff, saying, Hast thou brought with thee
aught of such a kind? do thou answer, “Plenty.[28]” And if they question
me of thee, I will praise thee and magnify thee in their eyes and say to
them, Get him a store-house and a shop. I also will give thee out for a
man of great wealth and generosity; and if a beggar come to thee, bestow
upon him what thou mayst; so will they put faith in what I say and
believe in thy greatness and generosity and love thee. Then will I
invite thee to my house and invite all the merchants on thy account and
bring together thee and them, so that all may know thee and thou know
them,”——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her
permitted say.
[Illustration]
Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Ninety-second Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the merchant
Ali said to Ma’aruf, “I will invite thee to my house and invite all the
merchants on thy account and bring together thee and them, so that all
may know thee and thou know them, whereby thou shalt sell and buy and
take and give with them; nor will it be long ere thou become a man of
money.” Accordingly, on the morrow he gave him a thousand dinars and a
suit of clothes and a black slave and mounting him on a she-mule, said
to him, “Allah give thee quittance of responsibility for all this,[29]
inasmuch as thou art my friend and it behoveth me to deal generously
with thee. Have no care; but put away from thee the thought of thy
wife’s misways and name her not to any.” “Allah requite thee with good!”
replied Ma’aruf and rode on, preceded by his blackamoor till the slave
brought him to the gate of the merchants’ bazar, where they were all
seated, and amongst them Ali, who when he saw him, rose and threw
himself upon him, crying, “A blessed day, O Merchant Ma’aruf, O man of
good works and kindness[30]!” And he kissed his hand before the
merchants and said to them, “Our brothers, ye are honoured by
knowing[31] the merchant Ma’aruf.” So they saluted him, and Ali signed
to them to make much of him, wherefore he was magnified in their eyes.
Then Ali helped him to dismount from his she-mule and saluted him with
the salam; after which he took the merchants apart, one after other, and
vaunted Ma’aruf to them. They asked, “Is this man a merchant?;” and he
answered, “Yes; and indeed he is the chiefest of merchants, there liveth
not a wealthier than he; for his wealth and the riches of his father and
forefathers are famous among the merchants of Cairo. He hath partners in
Hind and Sind and Al-Yaman and is high in repute for generosity. So know
ye his rank and exalt ye his degree and do him service, and wot also
that his coming to your city is not for the sake of traffic, and none
other save to divert himself with the sight of folk’s countries: indeed,
he hath no need of strangerhood for the sake of gain and profit, having
wealth that fires cannot consume, and I am one of his servants.” And he
ceased not to extol him, till they set him above their heads and began
to tell one another of his qualities. Then they gathered round him and
offered him junkets[32] and sherbets, and even the Consul of the
Merchants came to him and saluted him; whilst Ali proceeded to ask him,
in the presence of the traders, “O my lord, haply thou hast brought with
thee somewhat of such and such a stuff?”; and Ma’aruf answered,
“Plenty.” Now Ali had that day shown him various kinds of costly clothes
and had taught him the names of the different stuffs, dear and cheap.
Then said one of the merchants, “O my lord, hast thou brought with thee
yellow broad cloth?”: and Ma’aruf said, “Plenty”! Quoth another, “And
gazelles’ blood red[33]?”; and quoth the Cobbler, “Plenty”; and as often
as he asked him of aught, he made him the same answer. So the other
said, “O Merchant Ali had thy countryman a mind to transport a thousand
loads of costly stuffs, he could do so”; and Ali said, “He would take
them from a single one of his store-houses, and miss naught thereof.”
Now whilst they were sitting, behold, up came a beggar and went the
round of the merchants. One gave him a half dirham and another a
copper,[34] but most of them gave him nothing, till he came to Ma’aruf
who pulled out a handful of gold and gave it to him, whereupon he
blessed him and went his ways. The merchants marvelled at this and said,
“Verily, this is a King’s bestowal for he gave the beggar gold without
count, and were he not a man of vast wealth and money without end, he
had not given a beggar a handful of gold.” After a while, there came to
him a poor woman and he gave her a handful of gold; whereupon she went
away, blessing him, and told the other beggars, who came to him, one
after other, and he gave them each a handful of gold, till he disbursed
the thousand dinars. Then he struck hand upon hand and said, “Allah is
our sufficient aid and excellent is the Agent!” Quoth the Consul, “What
aileth thee, O Merchant Ma’aruf?”; and quoth he, “It seemeth that the
most part of the people of this city are poor and needy; had I known
their misery I would have brought with me a large sum of money in my
saddle-bags and given largesse thereof to the poor. I fear me I may be
long abroad[35] and ’tis not in my nature to baulk a beggar; and I have
no gold left: so, if a pauper come to me, what shall I say to him?”
Quoth the Consul, “Say, Allah will send thee thy daily bread[36]!”; but
Ma’aruf replied, “That is not my practice and I am care-ridden because
of this. Would I had other thousand dinars, wherewith to give alms till
my baggage come!” “Have no care for that,” quoth the Consul and sending
one of his dependents for a thousand dinars, handed them to Ma’aruf, who
went on giving them to every beggar who passed till the call to
noon-prayer. Then they entered the Cathedral-mosque and prayed the
noon-prayers, and what was left him of the thousand gold pieces he
scattered on the heads of the worshippers. This drew the people’s
attention to him and they blessed him, whilst the merchants marvelled at
the abundance of his generosity and openhandedness. Then he turned to
another trader and borrowing of him other thousand ducats, gave these
also away, whilst Merchant Ali looked on at what he did, but could not
speak. He ceased not to do thus till the call to mid-afternoon prayer,
when he entered the mosque and prayed and distributed the rest of the
money. On this wise, by the time they locked the doors of the bazar,[37]
he had borrowed five thousand sequins and given them away, saying to
every one of whom he took aught, “Wait till my baggage come when, if
thou desire gold I will give thee gold, and if thou desire stuffs, thou
shalt have stuffs; for I have no end of them.” At eventide Merchant Ali
invited Ma’aruf and the rest of the traders to an entertainment and
seated him in the upper end, the place of honour, where he talked of
nothing but cloths and jewels, and whenever they made mention to him of
aught, he said, “I have plenty of it.” Next day, he again repaired to
the market-street where he showed a friendly bias towards the merchants
and borrowed of them more money, which he distributed to the poor: nor
did he leave doing thus twenty days, till he had borrowed threescore
thousand dinars, and still there came no baggage, no, nor a burning
plague.[38] At last folk began to clamour for their money and say, “The
merchant Ma’aruf’s baggage cometh not. How long will he take people’s
monies and give them to the poor?” And quoth one of them, “My rede is
that we speak to Merchant Ali.” So they went to him and said, “O
Merchant Ali, Merchant Ma’aruf’s baggage cometh not.” Said he, “Have
patience, it cannot fail to come soon.” Then he took Ma’aruf aside and
said to him, “O Ma’aruf, what fashion is this? Did I bid thee brown[39]
the bread or burn it? The merchants clamour for their coin and tell me
that thou owest them sixty thousand dinars, which thou hast borrowed and
given away to the poor. How wilt thou satisfy the folk, seeing that thou
neither sellest nor buyest?” Said Ma’aruf, “What matters it[40]; and
what are threescore thousand dinars? When my baggage shall come, I will
pay them in stuffs or in gold and silver, as they will.” Quoth Merchant
Ali, “Allah is Most Great! Hast thou then any baggage?” and he said,
“Plenty.” Cried the other, “Allah and the Hallows[41] requite thee thine
impudence! Did I teach thee this saying, that thou shouldst repeat it to
me? But I will acquaint the folk with thee.” Ma’aruf rejoined, “Begone
and prate no more! Am I a poor man? I have endless wealth in my baggage
and as soon as it cometh, they shall have their money’s worth, two for
one. I have no need of them.” At this Merchant Ali waxed wroth and said,
“Unmannerly wight that thou art, I will teach thee to lie to me and be
not ashamed!” Said Ma’aruf, “E’en work the worst thy hand can do! They
must wait till my baggage come, when they shall have their due and
more.” So Ali left him and went away, saying in himself, “I praised him
whilome and if I blame him now, I make myself out a liar and become of
those of whom it is said:—Whoso praiseth and then blameth lieth
twice.”[42] And he knew not what to do. Presently, the traders came to
him and said, “O Merchant Ali, hast thou spoken to him?” Said he, “O
folk, I am ashamed and, though he owe me a thousand dinars, I cannot
speak to him. When ye lent him your money ye consulted me not; so ye
have no claim on me. Dun him yourselves, and if he pay you not, complain
of him to the King of the city, saying:—He is an impostor who hath
imposed upon us. And he will deliver you from the plague of him.”
Accordingly, they repaired to the King and told him what had passed,
saying, “O King of the age, we are perplexed anent this merchant, whose
generosity is excessive; for he doeth thus and thus, and all he
borroweth, he giveth away to the poor by handsful. Were he a man of
naught, his sense would not suffer him to lavish gold on this wise; and
were he a man of wealth, his good faith had been made manifest to us by
the coming of his baggage; but we see none of his luggage, although he
avoucheth that he hath a baggage-train and hath preceded it. Now some
time hath past, but there appeareth no sign of his baggage-train, and he
oweth us sixty thousand gold pieces, all of which he hath given away in
alms.” And they went on to praise him and extol his generosity. Now this
King was a very covetous man, a more covetous than Ash’ab[43]; and when
he heard tell of Ma’aruf’s generosity and openhandedness, greed of gain
got the better of him and he said to his Wazir, “Were not this merchant
a man of immense wealth, he had not shown all this munificence. His
baggage-train will assuredly come, whereupon these merchants will flock
to him and he will scatter amongst them riches galore. Now I have more
right to this money than they; wherefore I have a mind to make friends
with him and profess affection for him, so that, when his baggage cometh
whatso the merchants would have had I shall get of him; and I will give
him my daughter to wife and join his wealth to my wealth.” Replied the
Wazir, “O King of the age, methinks he is naught but an impostor, and
’tis the impostor who ruineth the house of the covetous;”——And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
[Illustration]
Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Ninety-third Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Wazir
said to the King, “Methinks he is naught but an impostor, and ’tis the
impostor who ruineth the house of the covetous;” the King said, “O
Wazir, I will prove him and soon know if he be an impostor or a true man
and whether he be a rearling of Fortune or not.” The Wazir asked, “And
how wilt thou prove him?”; and the King answered, “I will send for him
to the presence and entreat him with honour and give him a jewel which I
have. An he know it and wot its price, he is a man of worth and wealth;
but an he know it not, he is an impostor and an upstart and I will do
him die by the foulest fashion of deaths.” So he sent for Ma’aruf, who
came and saluted him. The King returned his salam and seating him beside
himself, said to him, “Art thou the merchant Ma’aruf?” and said he,
“Yes.” Quoth the King, “The merchants declare that thou owest them sixty
thousand ducats. Is this true?” “Yes,” quoth he. Asked the King, “Then
why dost thou not give them their money?”; and he answered, “Let them
wait till my baggage come and I will repay them twofold. An they wish
for gold, they shall have gold; and should they wish for silver, they
shall have silver; or an they prefer for merchandise, I will give them
merchandise; and to whom I owe a thousand I will give two thousand in
requital of that wherewith he hath veiled my face before the poor; for I
have plenty.” Then said the King, “O merchant, take this and look what
is its kind and value.” And he gave him a jewel the bigness of a
hazel-nut, which he had bought for a thousand sequins and not having its
fellow, prized it highly. Ma’aruf took it and pressing it between his
thumb and forefinger brake it, for it was brittle and would not brook
the squeeze. Quoth the King, “Why hast thou broken the jewel?”; and
Ma’aruf laughed and said, “O King of the age, this is no jewel. This is
but a bittock of mineral worth a thousand dinars; why dost thou style it
a jewel? A jewel I call such as is worth threescore and ten thousand
gold pieces and this is called but a piece of stone. A jewel that is not
of the bigness of a walnut hath no worth in my eyes and I take no
account thereof. How cometh it, then, that thou, who art King, stylest
this thing a jewel, when ’tis but a bit of mineral worth a thousand
dinars? But ye are excusable, for that ye are poor folk and have not in
your possession things of price.” The King asked, “O merchant, hast thou
jewels such as those whereof thou speakest?”; and he answered, “Plenty.”
Whereupon avarice overcame the King and he said, “Wilt thou give me real
jewels?” Said Ma’aruf, “When my baggage-train shall come, I will give
thee no end of jewels; and all that thou canst desire I have in plenty
and will give thee, without price.” At this the King rejoiced and said
to the traders, “Wend your ways and have patience with him, till his
baggage arrive, when do ye come to me and receive your monies from me.”
So they fared forth and the King turned to his Wazir and said to him,
“Pay court to Merchant Ma’aruf and take and give with him in talk and
bespeak him of my daughter, Princess Dunyá, that he may wed her and so
we gain these riches he hath.” Said the Wazir, “O King of the age, this
man’s fashion misliketh me and methinks he is an impostor and a liar: so
leave this whereof thou speakest lest thou lose thy daughter for
naught.” Now this Minister had sued the King aforetime to give him his
daughter to wife and he was willing to do so, but when she heard of it
she consented not to marry him. Accordingly, the King said to him, “O
traitor, thou desirest no good for me, because in past time thou
soughtest my daughter in wedlock, but she would none of thee; so now
thou wouldst cut off the way of her marriage and wouldst have the
Princess lie fallow, that thou mayst take her; but hear from me one
word. Thou hast no concern in this matter. How can he be an impostor and
a liar, seeing that he knew the price of the jewel, even that for which
I bought it, and brake it because it pleased him not? He hath jewels in
plenty, and when he goeth in to my daughter and seeth her to be
beautiful, she will captivate his reason and he will love her and give
her jewels and things of price: but, as for thee, thou wouldst forbid my
daughter and myself these good things.” So the Minister was silent, for
fear of the King’s anger, and said to himself, “Set the curs on the
cattle[44]!” Then with show of friendly bias he betook himself to
Ma’aruf and said to him, “His highness the King loveth thee and hath a
daughter, a winsome lady and a lovesome, to whom he is minded to marry
thee. What sayst thou?” Said he, “No harm in that; but let him wait till
my baggage come, for marriage-settlements on Kings’ daughters are large
and their rank demandeth that they be not endowed save with a dowry
befitting their degree. At this present I have no money with me till the
coming of my baggage, for I have wealth in plenty and needs must I make
her marriage-portion five thousand purses. Then I shall need a thousand
purses to distribute amongst the poor and needy on my wedding-night, and
other thousand to give to those who walk in the bridal procession and
yet other thousand wherewith to provide provaunt for the troops and
others[45]; and I shall want an hundred jewels to give to the Princess
on the wedding-morning[46] and other hundred gems to distribute among
the slave-girls and eunuchs, for I must give each of them a jewel in
honour of the bride; and I need wherewithal to clothe a thousand naked
paupers, and alms too needs must be given. All this cannot be done till
my baggage come; but I have plenty and, once it is here, I shall make no
account of all this outlay.” The Wazir returned to the King and told him
what Ma’aruf said, whereupon quoth he, “Since this is his wish, how
canst thou style him impostor and liar?” Replied the Minister, “And I
cease not to say this.” But the King chid him angrily and threatened
him, saying, “By the life of my head, an thou cease not this talk, I
will slay thee! Go back to him and fetch him to me and I will manage
matters with him myself.” So the Wazir returned to Ma’aruf and said to
him, “Come and speak with the King.” “I hear and I obey,” said Ma’aruf
and went in to the King, who said to him, “Thou shalt not put me off
with these excuses, for my treasury is full; so take the keys and spend
all thou needest and give what thou wilt and clothe the poor and do thy
desire and have no care for the girl and the handmaids. When the baggage
shall come, do what thou wilt with thy wife, by way of generosity, and
we will have patience with thee anent the marriage-portion till then,
for there is no manner of difference betwixt me and thee; none at all.”
Then he sent for the Shaykh Al-Islam[47] and bade him write out the
marriage-contract between his daughter and Merchant Ma’aruf, and he did
so; after which the King gave the signal for beginning the wedding
festivities and bade decorate the city. The kettle drums beat and the
tables were spread with meats of all kinds and there came performers who
paraded their tricks. Merchant Ma’aruf sat upon a throne in a parlour
and the players and gymnasts and effeminates[48] and dancing-men of
wondrous movements and posture-makers of marvellous cunning came before
him, whilst he called out to the treasurer and said to him, “Bring gold
and silver.” So he brought gold and silver and Ma’aruf went round among
the spectators and largessed each performer by the handful; and he gave
alms to the poor and needy and clothes to the naked and it was a
clamorous festival and a right merry. The treasurer could not bring
money fast enough from the treasury, and the Wazir’s heart was like to
burst for rage; but he dared not say a word, whilst Merchant Ali
marvelled at this waste of wealth and said to Merchant Ma’aruf, “Allah
and the Hallows visit this upon thy head-sides[49]! Doth it not suffice
thee to squander the traders’ money, but thou must squander that of the
King to boot?” Replied Ma’aruf, “’Tis none of thy concern: whenas my
baggage shall come, I will requite the King manifold.” And he went on
lavishing money and saying in himself, “A burning plague! What will
happen will happen and there is no flying from that which is
fore-ordained.” The festivities ceased not for the space of forty days,
and on the one-and-fortieth day, they made the bride’s cortège and all
the Emirs and troops walked before her. When they brought her in before
Ma’aruf, he began scattering gold on the people’s heads, and they made
her a mighty fine procession, whilst Ma’aruf expended in her honour vast
sums of money. Then they brought him in to Princess Dunya and he sat
down on the high divan; after which they let fall the curtains and shut
the doors and withdrew, leaving him alone with his bride; whereupon he
smote hand upon hand and sat awhile sorrowful and saying, “There is no
Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!”
Quoth the Princess, “O my lord, Allah preserve thee! What aileth thee
that thou art troubled?” Quoth he, “And how should I be other than
troubled, seeing that thy father hath embarrassed me and done with me a
deed which is like the burning of green corn?” She asked, “And what hath
my father done with thee? Tell me!”; and he answered, “He hath brought
me in to thee before the coming of my baggage, and I want at very least
an hundred jewels to distribute among thy handmaids, to each a jewel, so
she might rejoice therein and say, My lord gave me a jewel on the night
of his going in to my lady. This good deed would I have done in honour
of thy station and for the increase of thy dignity; and I have no need
to stint myself in lavishing jewels, for I have of them great plenty.”
Rejoined she, “Be not concerned for that. As for me, trouble not thyself
about me, for I will have patience with thee till thy baggage shall
come, and as for my women have no care for them. Rise, doff thy clothes
and take thy pleasure; and when the baggage cometh we shall get the
jewels and the rest.” So he arose and putting off his clothes sat down
on the bed and sought love-liesse and they fell to toying with each
other. He laid his hand on her knee and she sat down in his lap and
thrust her lip like a tit-bit of meat into his mouth, and that hour was
such as maketh a man to forget his father and his mother. So he clasped
her in his arms and strained her fast to his breast and sucked her lip,
till the honey-dew ran out into his mouth; and he laid his hand under
her left-armpit, whereupon his vitals and her vitals yearned for
coition. Then he clapped her between the breasts and his hand slipped
down between her thighs and she girded him with her legs, whereupon he
made of the two parts proof amain and crying out, “O sire of the
chin-veils twain[50]!” applied the priming and kindled the match and set
it to the touch-hole and gave fire and breached the citadel in its four
corners; so there befel the mystery[51] concerning which there is no
enquiry; and she cried the cry that needs must be cried.[52]——And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Nine Hundred and Ninety-fourth Night,