A certain singing-woman was fair of favour and high in repute,
and it befell one day that she went out apleasuring. As she
sat,[FN#133] behold, a man lopped of the hand stopped to beg of
her, and he entered in at the door. Then he touched her with his
stump, saying, "Charity, for the love of God!" but she answered,
"God open [on thee the gate of subsistence]!" and reviled him.
Some days after this, there came to her a messenger and gave her
the hire of her going forth.[FN#134] So she took with her a
handmaid and an accompanyist;[FN#135] and when she came to the
appointed place, the messenger brought her into a long passage,
at the end whereof was a saloon. So (quoth she) we entered and
found none therein, but saw the [place made ready for an]
entertainment with candles and wine and dessert, and in another
place we saw food and in a third beds.
We sat down and I looked at him who had opened the door to us,
and behold he was lopped of the hand. I misliked this of him, and
when I had sat a little longer, there entered a man, who filled
the lamps in the saloon and lit the candles; and behold, he also
was handlopped. Then came the folk and there entered none except
he were lopped of the hand, and indeed the house was full of
these. When the assembly was complete, the host entered and the
company rose to him and seated him in the place of honour. Now he
was none other than the man who had fetched me, and he was clad
in sumptuous apparel, but his hands were in his sleeves, so that
I knew not how it was with them. They brought him food and he
ate, he and the company; after which they washed their hands and
the host fell to casting furtive glances at me.
Then they drank till they were drunken, and when they had taken
leave [of their wits], the host turned to me and said, "Thou
dealtest not friendly with him who sought an alms of thee and
thou saidst to him, 'How loathly thou art!'" I considered him and
behold, he was the lophand who had accosted me in my pleasaunce.
So I said, "O my lord, what is this thou sayest?" And he
answered, saying, "Wait; thou shall remember it." So saying, he
shook his head and stroked his beard, whilst I sat down for fear.
Then he put out his hand to my veil and shoes and laying them by
his side, said to me, "Sing, O accursed one!" So I sang till I
was weary, whilst they occupied themselves with their case and
intoxicated themselves and their heat redoubled.[FN#136]
Presently, the doorkeeper came to me and said, "Fear not, O my
lady; but, when thou hast a mind to go, let me know." Quoth I,
"Thinkest thou to delude me?" And he said, "Nay, by Allah! But I
have compassion on thee for that our captain and our chief
purposeth thee no good and methinketh he will slay thee this
night." Quoth I to him, "An thou be minded to do good, now is the
time." And he answered, saying, "When our chief riseth to do his
occasion and goeth to the draught-house, I will enter before him
with the light and leave the door open; and do thou go
whithersoever thou wilt."
Then I sang and the captain said, "It is good," Quoth I, "Nay,
but thou art loathly." He looked at me and said, "By Allah, thou
shalt never more scent the odour of the world!" But his comrades
said to him, "Do it not," and appeased him, till he said, "If it
must be so, she shall abide here a whole year, not going forth."
And I said, "I am content to submit to whatsoever pleaseth thee.
If I have erred, thou art of those to whom pertaineth clemency."
He shook his head and drank, then arose and went out to do his
occasion, what while his comrades were occupied with what they
were about of merry-making and drunkenness and sport. So I winked
to my fellows and we slipped out into the corridor. We found the
door open and fled forth, unveiled and knowing not whither we
went; nor did we halt till we had left the house far behind and
happened on a cook cooking, to whom said I, "Hast thou a mind to
quicken dead folk?" And he said, "Come up." So we went up into
the shop, and he said, 'Lie down." Accordingly, we lay down and
he covered us with the grass,[FN#137] wherewith he was used to
kindle [the fire] under the food.
Hardly had we settled ourselves in the place when we heard a
noise of kicking [at the door] and people running right and left
and questioning the cook and saying, "Hath any one passed by
thee?" "Nay," answered he; "none hath passed by me." But they
ceased not to go round about the shop till the day broke, when
they turned back, disappointed. Then the cook removed the grass
and said to us, "Arise, for ye are delivered from death." So we
arose, and we were uncovered, without mantle or veil; but the
cook carried us up into his house and we sent to our lodgings and
fetched us veils; and we repented unto God the Most High and
renounced singing,[FN#138] for indeed this was a great
deliverance after stress.'
The company marvelled at this story and the tenth officer came
forward and said, 'As for me, there befell me that which was yet
more extraordinary than all this.' Quoth El Melik ez Zahir, 'What
was that?' And he said,