"Payne Volume VI" - читать интересную книгу автора (Paynes Versions)
Now he was a man of great wealth, but would envy his neighbour, if he sold and he himself did not; so, when he saw Delileh, he said to her, 'What seekest thou, O my mistress?' 'Art thou Master Azariah the Jew?' asked she, having first enquired his name; and he answered, 'Yes.' Quoth she, 'This boy's sister, the Provost's daughter of the Merchants, is a promised bride, and to-day they celebrate her betrothal; and she hath need of jewellery. So give me two pairs of gold ankle-rings and a pair of gold bracelets and a girdle and pearl ear-drops and a poignard and seal-ring.' Accordingly, he brought out to her what she sought and she took of him a thousand dinars' worth of jewellery, saying, 'I will take these on approval; and what pleases them, they will keep and I will bring thee the price and leave the boy with thee till then.' 'Be it as thou wilt,' answered he. So she took the jewellery and made off to her own house, where her daughter asked her how she had sped. She told her all she had done and Zeyneb said, 'Thou wilt never be able to walk abroad again in the town.'
Meanwhile, the maid went in to her mistress and said to her, 'O my lady, Umm el Khair salutes thee and rejoices with thee, and will come, she and her daughters, on the day of the assembly and give the customary presents.' Quoth her mistress, 'Where is thy young master?' 'I left him with her,' answered the maid, 'lest he should cling to thee, and she gave me this, as largesse for the singing-women.' So the lady said to the chief of the singers, 'Take thy money ;' and she took it and found it a brass token; whereupon quoth the lady to the maid, 'O baggage, go down and look to thy young master.' Accordingly, she went down and finding neither boy nor old woman, shrieked aloud and fell on her face, and their joy was changed into mourning.
When the Provost came in, his wife told him what had befallen and he went out in quest of the child, whilst the other merchants also went forth and sought, each his own road. Presently, the Provost espied the boy seated, naked, in the Jew's shop and said to the latter, 'This is my son.' 'It is well,' answered the Jew. So he took him up, without asking for his clothes, of the excess of his joy at finding him; but the Jew laid hold of him, saying, 'God succour the Khalif against thee!' Quoth the Provost,'What ails thee, O Jew?' And he answered, saying, 'The old woman took of me a thousand dinars' worth of jewellery for thy daughter, and left the boy in pledge for the price; and I had not trusted her, but that I knew the child for thy son.' 'My daughter needs no jewellery,' said the Provost; 'give me the boy's clothes.'
The Jew cried out, saying, 'Come to my aid, O Muslims!' but at that moment up came the dyer and the ass-man and the young merchant, who were going about, seeking the old woman, and enquired the cause of their quarrel. So they told them the case and they said, 'This old woman is a cheat, who has cheated us before you.' Then they told them how she had dealt with them, and the Provost said, 'Since I have found my son, be his clothes his ransom! If I come upon the old woman, I will require them of her.' And he carried the child home to his mother, who rejoiced in his safety. Then said the Jew to the three others, 'Whither go ye?' And they answered, saying, 'We go to look for her.' Quoth the Jew, 'Take me with you. Is there any one of you knows her?' 'I know her,' answered the ass-driver; and the Jew said, 'If we go all together, we shall never catch her; for she will flee from us. Let us each take a different road, and be our rendezvous at the shop of Hajj Mesaoud, the Moorish barber.' They agreed to this and set off, each in a different direction.
Presently, Delileh sallied forth again in quest of prey, and the ass-driver met her and knew her. So he caught hold of her and said to her, 'Out on thee! Hast thou been long at this trade?' 'What ails thee?' asked she; and he answered, 'Give me back my ass.' 'O my son,' said she, 'cover what God covers! Dost thou seek thine ass and the people's things?' Quoth he, 'I want my ass; that's all.' And she said, 'I saw that thou wast poor; so I deposited thine ass for thee with the Moorish barber. Stand off, whilst I speak him fair, that he may give thee the beast.' So she went up to the barber and kissed his hand and wept. He asked her what ailed her and she said, 'O my son, look at my son who stands yonder. He was ill and exposed himself to the air, which corrupted his wit. He used to buy asses and now, whether he sit or stand or walk, he saith nothing but "My ass!" Now I have been told by a certain physician that his mind is disordered and that nothing will cure him but drawing two of his grinders and cauterizing him twice on the temples. So do thou take this dinar and call him to thee, saying," Thine ass is with me."' 'May I fast for a year,' said the barber, 'if I do not give him his ass in his fist! 'Now he had with him two journeymen; so he said to one of them, 'Heat the irons.'
Then the old woman went her way and the barber called to the ass-driver, saying, 'Harkye, good fellow! Thine ass is with me; come and take him, and as thou livest, I will give him into thy hand.' So he came to him and the barber carried him into a dark room, where he knocked him down and the journeymen bound him hand and foot. Then he pulled out two of his grinders and cauterized him on both temples; after which he let him go, and he rose and said, 'O Moor, why hast thou used me thus?' Quoth the barber, 'Thy mother told me that thou hadst taken cold, whilst ill, and lost thy reason, so that, whether sitting or standing or walking, thou wouldst say nothing but "My ass!" So here is thine ass in thy fist.' 'God requite thee,' said the other, 'for pulling out my teeth!' Then the barber told him all that the old woman had said and he exclaimed, 'May God torment her!' And the two went out, disputing, and left the shop. When the barber returned, he found his shop empty, for, whilst he was absent, the old woman had taken all that was therein and made off with it to her daughter, to whom she told all that had befallen. The barber, seeing this, caught hold of the ass-driver and said to him, 'Bring me thy mother.' But he answered, saying, 'She is not my mother, but a sharper, who has swindled much people and stolen my ass.'
At this moment up came the dyer and the Jew and the young merchant, who, seeing the barber holding on to the ass-driver and the latter cauterized on both temples, said to him, 'What hath befallen thee, O ass driver?' So he told them what had happened to him and the barber did the like; and the others in turn related to the Moor the tricks the old woman had served them. Then he shut up his shop and went with them to the Master of police, to whom they said, 'We look to thee for compensation.' Quoth he, 'How many old women are there not in Baghdad! Doth any of you know her?' 'I do,' answered the ass-man; 'give me ten of thine officers.' So he gave them half a score men and they all five went out, followed by the sergeants, and patrolled the city, till they met the old woman, when they laid hands on her and carrying her to the house of the Master of police, stood waiting without, till he should come forth.
Presently the officers fell asleep, for excess of watching with their chief, and Delileh feigned to follow their example, till the ass-man and his fellows slept also, when she stole away from them and going in to the harem of the Master of police, kissed the hand of the mistress of the house and said to her, 'Where is the Chief of the police?' 'He is asleep,' answered the lady; 'what wouldst thou with him?' Quoth Delileh, 'My husband is a slave-merchant and gave me five slaves to sell, whilst he went on a journey. The Master of police met me and bought them of me for a thousand dinars and two hundred for myself, saying, " Bring them to my house." So I have brought them.'
Now the Master of police had given his wife a thousand dinars, saying, 'Keep them by thee, that we may buy male slaves with them.' So she believed the old woman's story and said to her, 'Where are the slaves?' 'They are asleep under the window,' replied Delileh; whereupon the lady looked out and seeing the barber clad in a Levantine habit and the young merchant as he were a drunken white slave (80) and the Jew and the dyer and the ass-driver as they were shaven white slaves, said in herself, 'Each of these is worth more than a thousand dinars.' So she opened a chest and gave the old woman the thousand dinars, saying, 'Come back anon and when my husband wakes, I will get thee the other two hundred from him.' 'O my lady,' answered the old woman, 'a hundred of them are thine, under the sherbet-gugglet whereof thou drinkest, and the other hundred do thou keep for me till I come back. Now let me out by the private door.' So she let her out, and [God] the Protector protected her and she made her way home to her daughter, to whom she related all that had passed, saying, 'The one that troubles me most is the ass-driver, for he knows me.' 'O my mother,' said Zeyneb, 'abide quiet [awhile] and let what thou hast done suffice thee, for not always comes the pitcher off unbroken.'
When the Chief of the police awoke, his wife said to him, 'I give thee joy of the five slaves thou hast bought of the old woman.' 'What slaves?' asked he. 'Why dost thou mock me?' answered she. 'God willing, they shall become people of condition like unto thee.' 'As my head liveth,' rejoined he, 'I have bought no slaves! Who saith this?' 'The old woman, the brokeress,' replied she,'from whom thou boughtest them; and thou didst promise her a thousand dinars for them and two hundred for herself.' Quoth he, 'Didst thou give her the money?' 'Yes,' answered she; 'for I saw the slaves with my own eyes, and on each is a suit of clothes worth a thousand dinars; so I sent out to bid the sergeants have an eye to them.'
So he went out and said to the officers, 'Where are the five slaves we bought for a thousand dinars of the old woman?' 'There are no slaves here,' answered they; 'only these five men, who found the old woman and brought her hither. We fell asleep, whilst waiting for thee, and she stole away and entered the harem. Presently out came a maid and said to us, 'Are the five with you with whom the old woman came?' And we answered, 'Yes.' 'By Allah,' cried the Master of police, 'this is a rare great swindle!' And the five men said, 'We look to thee for our goods.' Quoth the Master of police, 'The old woman, your mistress, sold you to me for a thousand dinars.' 'That were not allowed of God,' answered they: 'we are free-born men and may not be sold, and we appeal from thee to the Khalif.' 'None showed her the way to the house save you,' rejoined the Master of police, 'and I will sell you to the galleys for two hundred dinars apiece.'
Just then, up came the Amir Hassan Sherr et Teric, who, on his return from his journey, had found his wife stripped of her clothes and jewellery and heard from her all that had passed; whereupon quoth he, 'The Master of police shall answer me this;' and repairing to him, said, 'Dost thou suffer old women to go round about the town and cozen folk of their goods? This is thy business and I look to thee for my wife's property.' Then said he to the five men, 'What is to do with you?' So they told him their stories and he said, 'Ye are oppressed,' and turning to the Master of police, said to him, 'Why dost thou detain them?' 'It was they who brought her to my house,' answered he, 'so that she took a thousand dinars of my money and sold them to my women.' 'O Amir Hassan,' cried the five men, 'be thou our advocate in this affair.'
Then said the Master of police to the Amir, 'Thy wife's goods are at my charge and I will be surety for the old woman. But which of you knows her?' 'We all know her,' answered they. 'Send ten men with us, and we will take her.' So he gave them ten men, and the ass-driver said to them, 'Follow me, for I should know her with blue eyes." (81) Then they went out and presently they met the old woman coming out of a by-street: so they laid hands on her and brought her to the master of the police, who said to her, 'Where are the people's goods?' And she answered, saying, 'I have neither taken them nor seen them.' Then said he to the gaoler, 'Take her and clap her into prison till the morning' But he said, 'I will not take her, lest she play a trick on me and I be answerable for her.' So the Master of police took horse and rode out with Delileh and the rest to the bank of the Tigris, where he bade the executioner crucify her by her hair. So he bound her on the cross and drew her up by the pulley; after which the Master of police set ten men to guard her and went home. Presently, the night fell down and sleep overcame the watchmen.
Now a certain Bedouin heard one man say to another, 'Praised be God for thy safe return! Where hast thou been?' 'In Baghdad,' answered the other, 'where I breakfasted on honey-fritters.' Quoth the Bedouin to himself, 'Needs must I go to Baghdad and eat honey-fritters;' for in all his life he had never entered Baghdad nor seen fritters of the sort. So he mounted his horse and rode on towards Baghdad, saying in himself, 'It is a fine thing to eat honey-fritters! On the honour of an Arab, I will not break my fast on nothing else!' till he came to the place where Delileh was crucified and she heard him saying this. So he went up to her and said to her, 'What art thou?' Quoth she, 'O Sheik of the Arabs, I throw myself on thy protection!' 'May God indeed protect thee!' answered he. 'But what is the cause of thy crucifixion?' Said she, 'I have an enemy, an oilman, who fries fritters, and I stopped to buy of him, when I chanced to spit and the spittle fell on the fritters. So he made his complaint to the judge, who commanded to crucify me, saying, "I adjudge that ye take ten pounds of honey-fritters and feed her therewith. If she eat them, let her go, but if not, leave her hanging." And my stomach will not brook sweet things.' 'By the honour of the Arabs,' cried the Bedouin, 'I departed not the camp but that I might eat honey-fritters! I will eat them for thee.' Quoth she, 'None may eat them, except he be hung up in my place.' He fell into the trap and unbound her; whereupon she bound him in her room, after she had stripped him of his clothes and turban and put them on; then, mounting his horse, she rode to her house, where Zeyneb said to her, 'What meaneth this plight?' And she answered, saying, 'They crucified me :' and told her all that had befallen her.
To return to the watchmen; the first who woke roused his companions and they saw that the day had risen. So one of them raised his eyes and said, 'Delileh!' 'By Allah!' answered the Bedouin, 'I have not eaten all night. Have ye brought the honey-fritters?' And they said, 'This is a man and a Bedouin.' Then said one of them to him, 'O Bedouin, where is Delileh and who loosed her?' 'It was I,' answered he; 'she shall not eat the honey-fritters against her will; for her soul abhorreth them.' So they knew that he was a man ignorant of her case, whom she had cozened, and said to one another, 'Shall we flee or abide the accomplishment of that which God hath decreed to us?'
As they were talking, up came the chief of the police, with all the folk whom the old woman had cheated, and said to the guards, 'Arise, loose Delileh.' Quoth the Bedouin, 'We have not eaten to-night. Hast thou brought the honey-fritters?' Whereupon the Master of police raised his eyes and seeing the Bedouin strung up in place of the old woman, said to the watchmen, 'What is this?' 'Pardon, O our lord!' cried they; and he said, 'Tell me what has happened' 'We were weary with watching with thee on guard,' answered they, 'and said, " Delileh is crucified." So we fell asleep, and when we awoke, we found the Bedouin strung up in her stead; and we are at thy mercy.' 'God's pardon be upon you!' answered the master of police. 'She is indeed a clever cheat!' Then they unbound the Bedouin, who laid hold of the master of police, saying, 'God succour the Khalif against thee! I look to none but thee for my horse and clothes! So the chief of the police questioned him and he told him what had passed between Delileh and himself. 'Why didst thou release her?' asked the magistrate, and the Bedouin said, 'I knew not that she was a swindler.' Then said the others, 'O chief of the police, we look to thee for our goods; for we delivered the old woman into thy hands and she was in thy guard; and we cite thee before the Divan of the Khalif.'
Now the Amir Hassan had gone up to the Divan, when in came the master of police with the Bedouin and the five others, saying, 'We are wronged men!' 'Who hath wronged you?' asked the Khalif. So each came forward in turn and told his story, after which said the master of police, 'O Commander of the Faithful, the old woman cheated me also and sold me these five men as slaves for a thousand dinars, albeit they are free-born.' Quoth Er Reshid, 'I take upon myself all that you have lost.' Then he said to the master of police, 'I charge thee with the old woman.' But he shook his collar, saying, 'O Commander of the Faithful, I will not answer for her; for, after I had strung her up on the cross, she tricked this Bedouin and tied him up in her room and made off with his clothes and horse.' Quoth the Khalif, 'Whom but thee shall I charge with her?' Charge Ahmed ed Denef,' answered the Master of police; 'for he has a thousand dinars a month and one-and-forty followers, at a monthly wage of a hundred dinars each.' So the Khalif said, 'Harkye, Captain Ahmed!' 'At thy service, O Commander of the Faithful,' answered he; and the Khalif said, 'I charge thee to bring the old woman before me.' 'I will answer for her,' replied Ahmed.
Then the Khalif kept the Bedouin and the five complainants with him, whilst Ahmed and his men went down to their hall, (82) saying to one another, 'How shall we lay hands on her, seeing that there are many old women in the town?' [And Ahrned said to Hassan Shouman, 'What counsellest thou?'] Whereupon quoth one of them, by name Ali Kitf el Jemel, to Ed Denef, 'Of what dost thou take counsel with Hassan Shouman? Is he any great matter?' 'O Ali,' said Hassan, 'why dost thou disparage me? By the Mighty Name, I will not company with thee at this time!' And he rose and went out in anger. Then said Ahmed, 'O lads, let each sergeant take ten men and search for Delileh, each in his own quarter.' And they agreed to rendezvous in such a place.
It was noised abroad in the city that Ahmed ed Denef had undertaken to lay hands on Delileh the Crafty, and Zeyneb said to her mother, 'O my mother, if thou be indeed a trickstress, do thou befool Ahmed ed Denef and his company.' 'I fear none but Hassan Shouman,' answered Delileh; and Zeyneb said, 'By my browlock, I will get thee the clothes of all the one-and-forty.' Then she dressed and veiled herself and going to a druggist, who had a saloon with two doors, gave him a dinar and said to him, 'Let me thy saloon till the end of the day and take this dinar to its hire.' So he gave her the keys and she fetched carpets and so forth on the stolen ass and furnishing the place, set in each estrade a table of meat and wine. Then she went out and stood at the door, with her face uncovered.
Presently, up came Ali Kitf and his men, and she kissed his hand. He fell in love with her, seeing her to be a handsome girl, and said to her, 'What dost thou want?' Quoth she, 'Art thou Captain Ahmed ed Denef?' 'No, answered he; 'but I am of his company and my name is Ali Kitf el Jemel.' 'Whither go you?' asked she, and he said, 'We go in quest of a sharkish old woman, who has stolen the people's goods, and we mean to lay hands on her. But who art thou and what is thy business?' Quoth she, 'My father was a vintner at Mosul and he died and left me much money. So I came hither, for fear of the judges, and asked the people who would protect me, to which they replied, " None but Ahmed et Denef"' 'From this day forth,' said the men, 'thou art under his protection;' and she said, 'Favour me by eating a morsel and drinking a draught.' They consented and entering, ate and drank till they were drunken, when she drugged them with henbane and stripped them of their clothes and arms; and on like wise she did with the three other companies.
Presently, Ahmed ed Denef went out to look for Delileh' but found her not, neither set eyes on any of his followers, and went on till he came to the door where Zeyneb was standing. She kissed his hand and he looked on her and fell in love with her. Quoth she, 'Art thou Captain Ahmed ed Denef?' 'Yes,' answered he. 'Who art thou?' And she said, 'I am a stranger. My father was a vintner at Mosul and he died and left me much wealth, with which I came to this city, for fear of the judges, and opened this wine-shop. The Master of police hath imposed a tax on me, but it is my desire to put myself under thy protection and pay thee what the police would take of me, for thou hast the better right to it.' Quoth he, 'Thou shalt have my protection and welcome: do not pay him aught.' Then said she, 'Heal my heart and eat of my victual.' So he entered and ate and drank, till he could not sit upright, when she drugged him and took his clothes and arms. Then she loaded her purchase on the ass and the Bedouin's horse and made off with it, after she had aroused Ali Kitf. The latter awoke and found himself naked and saw Ahmed and his men drugged and stripped. So he revived them with the counter-drug and they awoke and saw themselves naked. Quoth Ahmed, 'O lads, what is this? We were going about to catch her, and lo, this strumpet hath caught us! How Hassan Shouman will crow over us! But we will wait till it is dark and then go away.'
Meanwhile Hassan Shouman said to the hall-keeper, 'Where are the men?' As he spoke, up they came, naked; and he recited the following verses:
ааааа Men in their purpose are alike and what they hope and fear: 'Tis in the issues, 'twixt the folk, that difference doth appear.
ааааа Some men for ignorant are known and other some for wise, Even as in heaven some stars are dull and others bright and clear.
So they slept that night and on the morrow they repaired to the Khalif's Divan and kissed the earth before him. Quoth he, 'Where is the old woman, O Captain Ahmed?' But he shook his collar. The Khalif asked him why he did so, and he answered, 'I know her not; but charge Hassan Shouman to lay hands on her, for he knows her and her daughter also.' Then Hassan interceded for her with the Khalif, saying, 'Indeed, she hath played off these tricks, not because she coveted the folk's goods, but to show her address and that of her daughter, to the intent that thou shouldst continue to her her husband's stipend and that of her father to her daughter. So, if thou wilt spare her life, I will fetch her to thee.' 'By the life of my ancestors,' said Er Reshid, 'if she restore the people's goods, I will pardon her, on thine intercession!' And he gave him the handkerchief of pardon.
So Hassan repaired to Delileh's house and called to her. Her daughter Zeyneb answered him and he said to her, 'Where is thy mother?' 'Upstairs,' answered she; and he said, 'Bid her take the people's goods and come with me to the Khalif; for I have brought her the handkerchief of pardon, and if she will not come with a good grace, let her blame none but herself.' So Delileh tied the kerchief [of truce] about her neck and coming down, gave him the people's goods on the ass and the Bedouin's horse. Quoth he, 'There remain the clothes of my chief and his men.' 'By the Most Great Name,' replied she, 'it was not I who stripped them!' 'Thou sayst sooth,' rejoined Hassan; 'it was thy daughter Zeyneb's doing, and this was a good turn she did thee.' Then he carried her to the Divan and laid the people's goods before the Khalif, who, as soon as he saw the old woman, commanded to throw her down on the carpet of blood. Quoth she, 'I cast myself on thy protection, O Shouman!' So he rose and kissing the Khalif's hands, said, 'Pardon, O Commander of the Faithful! Indeed, thou gavest me the handkerchief of pardon.' 'I pardon her for thy sake,' said Er Reshid. 'Come hither, O old woman; what is thy name?' 'My name is Delileh,' answered she, and the Khalif said, 'Thou art indeed crafty and full of artifice. Whence she was dubbed Delileh the Crafty.
Then said he, 'Why hast thou played all these tricks on the folk and wearied our hearts?' Quoth she, 'I did it not of desire for their goods, but because I had heard of the tricks which Ahmed ed Denef and Hassan Shouman played in Baghdad and said in myself, " I will do the like." And behold, I have returned the folk their goods.' But the ass-driver rose and said, 'I invoke the law of God (83) between her and me; for it sufficed her not to take my ass, but she must needs egg on the barber to pull out my teeth and cauterize me on both temples.' The Khalif bade give him a hundred dinars and ordered the dyer the like, saying, 'Go; set up thy dyery again.' So they called down blessings on his head and went away. The Bedouin also took his clothes and horse and departed, saying, 'It is forbidden to me to enter Baghdad and eat honey-fritters.' And the others took their goods and went away.
Then said the Khalif, 'Ask a boon of me, O Delileh!' And she said, 'My father was governor of the carrier-pigeons to thee and I know how to rear them, and my husband was town-captain of Baghdad. Now I wish to have the reversion of my husband and my daughter wishes to have that of her father.' The Khalif granted their requests and she said, 'I ask of thee that I may be portress of thy khan.' Now he had built a khan of three stories, for the merchants to lodge in, and had assigned to its service forty slaves, which latter he had brought from the King of Suleimaniyeh, when he deposed him, and let make collars for them; and there was in the khan a cook-slave, who cooked for the slaves and fed the dogs. 'O Delileh,' said the Khalif, 'I will write thee a patent of guardianship of the khan, and if aught be lost therefrom, thou shalt be answerable for it.' 'It is well,' replied she; 'but do thou lodge my daughter in the pavilion at the door of the khan, for it hath terraced roofs, and carrier-pigeons may not be reared to advantage save in an open space.'
The Khalif granted her this also and she and her daughter removed to the pavilion in question, where Zeyneb hung up the one-and-forty dresses of Ahmed ed Denef and his company. Moreover, they delivered to Delileh the forty pigeons that carried the royal messages, and the Khalif appointed her mistress over the forty slaves and charged them to obey her. She made the place of her session behind the door of the khan, and every day she used to go up to the Khalif's Divan, lest he should need to send a message by pigeon-post, whilst the forty slaves abode on guard at the khan; nor did she return till ended day, when they loosed the forty dogs, that they might keep watch over the place by night.
THE ADVENTURES OF QUICKSILVER ALI OF CAIRO:
BEING A SEQUEL TO THE ROGUERIES OF DELILEH THE CRAFTY.
There lived once at Cairo, in the days of Selah the Egyptian, who was chief of the Cairo police and had forty men under him, a sharper named Ali, for whom the Master of Police used to set snares and think that he had fallen therein; but, when they sought for him, they found that he had fled like quicksilver, wherefore they dubbed him Quicksilver Ali. One day, as he sat with his men in his hall, his heart became heavy within him and his breast was straitened. The hall-keeper saw him sitting frowning-faced and said to him, 'What ails thee, O my thief? If thy breast be straitened, go out and take a turn in the streets of Cairo, for assuredly walking in its markets will do away thine oppression.' So he went out and walked the streets awhile, but only redoubled in dejection and heaviness of heart. Presently, he came to a wine-shop and said to himself, 'I will go in and drink wine.' So he went in and seeing seven rows of people in the shop, said to the tavern-keeper, 'Harkye, taverner! I will not sit but by myself.' Accordingly, the vintner seated him in a chamber by himself and set wine before him, of which he drank till he lost his senses. Then he sallied forth again and walked till he came to the street called Red, whilst the people left the road clear before him, out of fear of him.
Presently, he turned and saw a water-carrier going along, with his skin and mug, crying out and saying, 'O exchange! There is no drink but from raisins, there is no love-delight but of the beloved and none sitteth in the place of honour save the man of sense!" (84) So he said to him, 'Here, give me to drink!' The water-carrier looked at him and gave him the mug. He took it and looking into it, shook it up and poured it out on the ground. 'Why dost thou not drink?' asked the water-carrier; and he answered, saying, 'Give me to drink.' So the man filled the cup a second time and he took it and shook it and emptied it on the ground; and thus he did a third time. Quoth the water-carrier, 'If thou wilt not drink, begone.' And Ali said, 'Give me to drink.' So he filled the cup a fourth time and gave it him; and he drank and gave the man a dinar. The water-carrier looked at him with disdain and said, 'Good luck to thee! Good luck to thee! Little folk are one thing and great folk another!, When Ali heard this, he caught hold of the man's gown and drawing on him a poignard of price, such an one as that whereof the poet speaks when he says,
ааааа A whittle of watered steel, perfect of temper and bright, With vipers poison it plies the folk whom it meets in fight;
ааааа If it fall, it sundereth limbs and sheddeth the blood forthright And picks up a jewel, to boot, from marble hard and white.
said to him, 'O old man, speak reasonably to me! Thy water-skin is at the utmost worth three dirhems, and the cups I emptied on the ground held a pint or so of water.' 'It is well,' replied the water-carrier; and Ali said, 'I gave thee a dinar: why, then, dost thou belittle me? Hast thou ever seen any more valiant than I or more generous?' 'Ay,' answered the water-carrier; 'I have seen one more valiant than thou and eke more generous; for, never, since women have borne children, was there on the face of the earth a man of valour who was not generous.' 'And who is he whom thou deemest braver and more generous than I?' asked Ali.
'Know,' replied the other, 'that I had a strange adventure of late. My father was Sheikh of the water-carriers in Cairo, and when he died, he left me five camels and a mule and shop and house: but the poor man is never content; or, if he be content, he dieth. So I said to myself, "I will go to the Hejaz," and taking a file of camels, bought [goods] on credit, till I had run in debt for five hundred dinars, all of which I lost in the pilgrimage. Then I said in myself, "If I return to Cairo, the folk will put me in prison for their goods." So I returned with the Syrian pilgrims to Aleppo, and thence I went on to Baghdad, where I sought out the Sheikh of the water-carriers of the city and repeated the first chapter of the Koran to him. He questioned me of my case and I told him what had befallen me, whereupon he assigned me a shop and gave me a water-skin and gear. So I sallied forth, trusting in God to provide, and went round about the city. I offered the cup to one, that he might drink; but he said, "I have eaten nought whereon to drink; for a niggardly fellow invited me to-day and set two gugglets before me; so I said to him, 'O son of the sordid, hast thou given me aught to eat, that I should drink after it?' So go thy ways, O water-carrier, till I have eaten somewhat. Then come and give me to drink." Then I accosted another and he said, "God provide thee!" And so I went on till noon, without taking aught, and I said to myself, "Would I had never come to Baghdad I"
Presently, I saw the folk running; so I followed them and saw a long file of cavaliers, riding two and two and clad in steel, with double neck-rings and felt bonnets and burnouses and swords and bucklers. I asked one of the folk whose suite this was, and he answered, "That of Captain Ahmed ed Denef." Quoth I, "And what is he?" "He is town-captain of Baghdad," answered the other, "and to him is committed the care of the suburbs. He gets a thousand dinars a month from the Khalif and Hassan Shouman has the like. Moreover, each of his men gets a hundred dinars a month; and they are now returning to their barrack from the Divan." Ahmed saw me and cried out to me to give him to drink. So I filled the cup and gave it him, and he shook it and emptied it out, like unto thee; and thus he did a second time. Then I filled the cup a third time and he took a draught; after which he said to me, "O water-carrier, whence comest thou?" "From Cairo," answered I, and he, "May God keep Cairo and her people! What brings thee hither?" So I told him my story and gave him to know that I was a debtor fleeing from debt and distress. Quoth he, "Thou art welcome to Baghdad." Then he gave me five dinars and said to his men, "Be generous to him, for the love of God." So each of them gave me a dinar and Ahmed said to me, "What while thou abidest in Baghdad, thou shalt have of us the like every time thou givest us to drink."
Accordingly, I paid them frequent visits and good ceased not to come to me from the folk, till, one day, reckoning up the profit I had made of them, I found it a thousand dinars and said in myself, "The best thing I can do is to return to Egypt." So I went to Ahmed's house and kissed his hand, and he said, "What seekest thou?" Quoth I, "I have a mind to depart;" and I repeated the following verses:
ааааа The stranger's sojourning in any land of lands Even as the building is of mansions on the wind.
ааааа The waftings of the breeze cast down what he hath built, And now to fare away the stranger hath a mind.
"The caravan is about to start for Cairo," added I, "and I wish to return to my people." So he gave me a mule and a hundred dinars and said to me, "I desire to send somewhat by thee. Dost thou know the people of Cairo?" "Yes," answered I; and he said, "Take this letter and carry it to Quicksilver Ali of Cairo and say to him, 'Thy captain salutes thee and he is now with the Khalif."' So I took the letter and jouneyed back to Cairo, where I paid my debts and plied my trade of a water-carrier; but I have not delivered the letter, because I know not the abode of Quicksilver Ali.' Quoth Ali, 'o elder, be of good cheer: I am that Ali, the first of the lads of Captain Ahmed: give me the letter.' So he gave him the letter and he opened it and read as follows:
ааааа 'I've written unto thee, adornment of the fair, A letter that indeed the passing winds shall bear.
ааааа Could I but fly, I'd flown for longing after thee; But how shall he who's clipped of pinions wing the air?
From Captain Ahmed ed Denef to the eldest of his sons, Quicksilver Ali of Cairo, greeting. Thou knowest that I tormented Selaheddin the Cairene and befooled him till I buried him alive and reduced his lads to obey me, and amongst them Ali Kitf el Jemel; and I am now become town-captain of Baghdad and overseer of the suburbs. If thou be still mindful of our love, come to me; haply thou shalt play some trick in Baghdad that may advance thee to the Khalif's service, so he may appoint thee stipends and allowances and assign thee a lodging, which is what thou desirest, and so peace be on thee.'
When Ali read this letter, he kissed it and laying it on his head, gave the water-carrier ten dinars; after which he returned to his lodging and told his comrades and commended them to one another. Then he changed his clothes and donning a tarboosh and a travelling cloak, took a case, containing a bamboo spear, four-and-twenty cubits long, made in several pieces, to fit into each other. Quoth his lieutenant, 'Wilt thou go a journey, whenas the treasury is empty?' 'When I reach Damascus,' answered Ali, 'I will send you what shall suffice you.' Then he set out and fared on, till he overtook a caravan about to start, whereof were the Provost of the Merchants and forty other merchants. They had all loaded their beasts, except the Provost, whose loads lay upon the ground, and Ali heard his caravan-leader, who was a Syrian, say to the muleteers, 'Help me, one of you!' But they mocked him and reviled him. Quoth Ali in himself, 'None will suit me so well to travel withal as this leader.'
Now Ali was beardless and well-favoured; so he went up to the leader and saluted him. The latter welcomed him and said, 'What seekest thou?' 'O my uncle,' replied Ali, 'I see thee alone with forty mule-loads of goods; but why hast thou not brought men to help thee?' 'O my son,' rejoined the other, 'I hired two lads and clothed them and put in each one's pocket two hundred dinars; and they helped me till we came to the Dervishes' Convent, (85)' when they ran away.' Quoth All, 'Whither are you bound?' 'To Aleppo,' answered the Syrian, and Ali said, 'I will help thee.' So they loaded the beasts and the Provost mounted his mule and they set out. The leader rejoiced in Ali and loved him and made much of him and they fared on till nightfall, when they halted and ate and drank. Then came the time of sleep and Ali lay down and made as if he slept; whereupon the Syrian laid himself near him and Ali rose and sat down at the door of the merchant's pavilion. Presently, the Syrian turned over and would have taken Ali in his arms, but found him not and said in himself, 'It would seem as though he had promised another and he hath taken him; but I have the first right and another night I will keep him.'
Ali sat at the door of the tent till nigh upon daybreak, when he returned and lay down near the Syrian, who found him by his side, when he awoke, and said in himself, 'If I ask him where he has been, he will leave me and go away.' So he dissembled with him and they went on till they came to a forest, in which was a cave, where dwelt a ferocious lion. Now, whenever a caravan passed, they would draw lots among themselves and throw him on whom the lot fell to the lion. So they drew lots and the lot fell upon the Provost of the Merchants. Now the lion stopped the way, awaiting his prey, wherefore the Provost was sore distressed and said to the leader, 'God disappoint thy enterprise and bring thy journey to nought! I charge thee, after my death, give my loads to my children.' Quoth Ali, 'What meaneth all this?' So they told him the case and he said, 'Why do ye run from the cat of the desert? I warrant you I will kill him.'
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