"Payne Volume VI" - читать интересную книгу автора (Paynes Versions)

He laughed and said, 'Welcome to thee, O my mother! Call for what thou wilt to eat, and I will set it before thee forthright; for I have no occasion to buy from the market, nor need I any to cook.' 'O my son,' replied she, 'I see nought with thee.' And he said, 'I have with me in these saddle-bags all manner of meats.' 'O my son,' rejoined she, 'whatever is ready will serve to stay hunger.' 'True,' answered he, 'when there is no choice, men are content with the least thing; but where there is plenty, they like to eat what is good: and I have plenty; so call for what thou hast a mind to.' 'O my son,' said she, 'give me some hot bread and a piece of cheese:' but he answered, saying, 'O my mother, this befits not thy condition.' 'Then give me to eat of that which befits my condition,' quoth she; 'for thou knowest it.' 'O my mother,' rejoined he, 'what befits thy condition is rissoled meat and fricasseed fowls and savoury rice and sausages and stuffed cucumbers and stuffed lamb and stuffed ribs [of mutton] and vermicelli with pounded almonds and nuts and honey and sugar and fritters and almond patties.' But she thought he was laughing at her and making mock of her; so she said to him, 'Alas! Alas! what is come to thee? Dost thou dream or art thou mad?' 'Why deemest thou that I am mad?' asked he, and she replied, 'Because thou namest to me all manner rich meats; who can avail unto their price, and who knows how to dress them?' Quoth he, 'As I live, thou shalt eat of all that I have named to thee, and that forthright.' And she said, 'I see nothing.' Then said he, 'Bring me the saddle-bags.'
So she fetched them and feeling them, found them empty. However, she laid them before him and he thrust in his hand and pulled out dish after dish, till he had set before her all he had named. Whereupon, 'O my son,' said she, 'the saddle-bags are small and moreover they were empty; yet hast thou taken thereout all these dishes. Where then were they all?' 'O my mother,' answered he, 'know that these are enchanted saddle-bags, which the Moor gave me, and they have a servant, whom, if one desire aught, he has but to adjure by the names [which have power over him,] saying, "O servant of the saddle-bags, bring me such a dish!" and he will bring it.' Quoth his mother, 'And may I put out my hand and ask of him?' 'Do so,' replied he. So she put out her hand and said, 'O servant of the saddle-bags, [I conjure thee,] by the virtue of the names that have power over thee, bring me stuffed ribs [of mutton].' Then she thrust in her hand and found a dish containing delicate stuffed ribs of lamb. So she took it out, and called for bread and what else she had a mind to; after which Jouder said to her, 'O my mother, when thou hast made an end of eating, empty what is left of the food into platters other than these and restore the empty dishes to the saddle-bags, for the charm is upon this condition, and keep the saddle-bags carefully.' So she arose and laid them up in a safe place. 'And look that thou keep this secret,' added he; 'and whenever thou hast a mind to aught, take it forth of the saddle-bags and give alms and feed my brothers, whether I be absent or present.'
Then he fell to eating with her, and while they were thus engaged, in came his two brothers, whom a man of the quarter had apprised of his return, saying, 'Your brother is come back, riding on a mule, with a slave before him, and wearing a dress that hath not its like.' So they said to each other, 'Would we had not ill-treated our mother! She will surely tell him how we did by her, and then how sore will be our disgrace with him!' But one of them said, 'Our mother is tender-hearted, and if she tell him, our brother is yet tenderer over us than she; and if we excuse ourselves to him, he will accept our excuse.' So they went in to him and he rose to them and saluting them after the friendliest manner, bade them sit and eat. So they ate till they were satisfied, for they were weak with hunger; after which Jouder said to them, 'O my brothers, take what is left and distribute it to the poor.' 'O brother,' replied they, 'let us keep it to sup withal.' But he said, 'When supper-time comes, ye shall have more than this.' So they took the rest of the victual and going out, gave of it to every poor man who passed by them, saying, 'Take and eat,' till there was nothing left. Then they brought back the dishes and Jouder said to his mother, 'Put them in the saddle-bags.'
When it was night, he entered the saloon and took forth of the saddle-bags a table of forty dishes; after which he went up [to the upper chamber] and sitting down between his brothers, said to his mother, 'Bring the supper.' So she went down to the saloon and finding there the dishes ready, laid the tray and brought up the forty dishes, one after another. Then they ate the evening meal, and when they had done, Jouder said to his brothers, 'Take and feed the poor and needy.' So they took what was left and gave alms thereof, and presently he brought forth to them sweetmeats, whereof they ate, and what was left he bade them give to the neighbours. On the morrow, they broke their fast after the same fashion, and thus they fared ten days, at the end of which time quoth Salim to Selim, 'How comes it that our brother sets before us a banquet in the morning and another at noon and a third at sundown, besides sweetmeats at night, and all that is left he gives to the poor? Verily, this is the fashion of Sultans. Yet we never see him buy aught, and he hath neither cook nor kitchen, nor doth he light a fire. Whence hath he this great plenty? Hast thou not a mind to enquire the cause of all this?' 'By Allah, I know not,' replied Selim. 'But knowest thou any who will tell us the truth of the case?' And Salim said, 'None will tell us but our mother.'
So they laid a plot and going in to their mother one day, in Jouder's absence, said to her, 'O our mother, we are hungry.' 'Rejoice,' answered she; '[for ye shall presently be satisfied;]' and going into the saloon, sought of the servant of the saddle-bags hot meats, which she took out and set before her sons. 'O our mother,' said they, 'this meat is hot; yet hast thou not cooked, neither kindled a fire.' Quoth she, 'It comes from the saddle-bags;' and they, 'What manner of thing are these saddle-bags?' 'They are enchanted,' replied she and told them their virtue, enjoining them to secrecy. Quoth they, 'O our mother, the secret shall be kept; but teach us the manner of this.' So she taught them the fashion thereof and they fell to putting their hands into the saddle-bags and taking forth whatever they had a mind to.
Then quoth Salim [privily] to Selim, 'O my brother, how long shall we abide with Jouder servant-wise and eat of his charity? Shall we not cast about to get the saddle-bags from him and make off with them?' 'And how shall we make shift to do this?' asked Selim. 'We will sell him to the galleys,' replied Salim; and Selim said, 'How shall we do that?' Quoth Salim, 'We will go to the Captain [of the galleys] of the Sea of Suez and bid him to an entertainment, with two of his company. What I say to Jouder do thou confirm, and at the end of the night I will show thee what I will do.'
So they agreed upon this and going to the captain's lodging, said to him, 'O captain, we have come to thee on an errand that will content thee.' 'Good,' answered he; and they, 'We two are brethren, and we have a third brother, a lewd, good-for-nothing fellow. When our father died, he left us some money, which we shared amongst us, and he took his part and wasted it in lewdness and debauchery, till he was reduced to beggary, when he came upon us and cited us before the magistrates, avouching that we had taken his good and that of his father, and we disputed the matter before the judges and lost the money. Then he waited awhile and attacked us a second time, till he brought us to poverty; nor will he desist from us, and we have no peace for him; wherefore we would have thee buy him of us.' Quoth the captain, 'Can ye go about with him and make shift to bring him to me here? If so, I will pack him off to sea forthright.' 'We cannot avail to bring him here,' answered they; 'but be thou our guest [this night] and bring with thee two of thy men, no more; and when he is asleep, we will fall upon him, we five, and gag him. Then shalt thou carry him forth the house, under cover of the night, and do with him as thou wilt.' 'So be it,' rejoined the captain. 'Will ye sell him for forty dinars?' 'Yes,' said they. 'Come to such a street, by such a mosque, after nightfall, and thou shalt find one of us awaiting thee.'
Then they repaired to Jouder and waited awhile, after which Salim went up to him and kissed his hand. Quoth Jouder, 'What ails thee, O my brother?' And he made answer, saying, 'Know that I have a friend, who hath many a time bidden me to his house in thine absence and hath ever hospitably entreated me, and I owe him a thousand kindnesses, as my brother here knoweth. I met him to-day and he invited me to his house, but I said to him, "I cannot leave my brother [Jouder]." Quoth he, "Bring him with thee;" and I answered, saying, "He will not consent to that; but if ye will be my guests, thou and thy brothers . . . . . . ;" for his brothers were sitting with him, and I invited them, thinking that they would refuse. But he accepted my invitation, saying, "Look for me at the gate of the Mosque, and I will come to thee, I and my brothers." And now I fear they will come and am ashamed before thee. So wilt thou set my heart at rest and entertain them this night, for thy good is abundant, O my brother? Or if thou consent not, give me leave to take them into the neighbours' house.' 'Why shouldst thou carry them into the neighbours' house?' replied Jouder. 'Is our house then so strait or have we not wherewithal to give them to sup? Shame on thee to consult me! Thou hast but to call for what thou needest and have rich meats and sweetmeats and to spare. Whenever thou bringest home folk in my absence, ask thy mother, and she will set before thee victual more than enough. Go and fetch them; blessings have descended upon us.' (7)
So Salim kissed his hand and going forth, sat at the gate of the mosque till after sundown, when the Captain and his men came up to him, and he carried them to the house. When Jouder saw them, he bade them welcome and made them sit and entreated them friendly, knowing not what he was to suffer at their hands. Then he called to his mother for supper, and she fell to taking dishes out of the saddle-bags, whilst he said, 'Bring such and such meats,' till she had set forty different dishes before them. So they ate till they were satisfied and the tray was taken away, the sailors thinking the while that this liberal entertainment came from Salim. When a third part of the night was past, Jouder set sweetmeats before them and Salim served them; whilst his two brothers sat with the guests, till they sought to sleep. So Jouder laid down and the others with him, who waited till he was asleep, when they fell upon him and gagging and binding him, before he was awake, carried him forth of the house, under cover of the night. Then they packed him off to Suez, where they shackled him and set him to work as a [galley] slave; and he ceased not to serve thus in silence a whole year.
As for his brothers, they went in next morning to his mother and said to her, 'O mother, our brother Jouder is not awake.' Quoth she, 'Do ye wake him.' 'Where lieth he?' asked they, and she replied, 'With the guests.' 'Peradventure,' rejoined they, 'he went away with them whilst we slept. It would seem that he had tasted of foreign travel and yearned to find hidden treasures; for we heard him talk with the Moors, and they said to him, "We will take thee with us and open the treasure to thee."' 'Hath he then been in company with Moors?' asked she, and they answered, saying, 'Were they not our guests yesternight?' 'Most like he hath gone with them,' said she; 'but God will direct him aright; for there is a blessing upon him and he will surely come back with great good.' And she wept, for it was grievous to her to be parted from her son.
Then said they to her, 'O accursed woman, dost thou love Jouder with all this love, whilst as for us, whether we be absent or present, thou neither joyest in us nor sorrowest for us? Are we not thy sons, even as Jouder is thy son?' 'Ye are indeed my sons,' answered she; 'but ye are reprobates who deserve no favour of me, for I have never had any satisfaction of you since your father's death; whilst, as for Jouder, I have had abundant good of him and he has comforted my heart and entreated me with honour; wherefore it behoves me to weep for him, because of his goodness to me and to you.'
When they heard this, they reviled her and beat her; after which they sought for the saddle-bags, till they found the two pairs and took the enchanted one and all the gold and jewels from the other, saying, 'This was our father's good.' 'Not so, by Allah!' said their mother. 'It belongs to your brother Jouder, who brought it from the land of the Moors.' 'Thou liest,' answered they; 'it was our father's property; and we will dispose of it.'
Then they divided the gold and jewels between them; but a dispute arose between them concerning the enchanted saddle-bags, each saying, 'I will have them;' and they came to high words over this. Then said she, 'O my sons, ye have divided the gold and the jewels, but this may not be divided, nor can its value be made up in money; and if it be cut in twain, its virtue will be annulled; so leave it with me and I will give you to eat from it at all times and be content to take a morsel with you. If ye give me aught to clothe me, it will be of your favour, and each of you shall traffic with the folk for himself. Ye are my sons and I am your mother; wherefore let us abide as we are, lest your brother come back and we be disgraced.' But they hearkened not to her words and passed the night, wrangling with one another.
Now it chanced that a sergeant of the King's guards was a guest in the adjoining house and heard them through the open window. So he looked out and listening, heard all that passed between them. Next morning, he presented himself before the King of Egypt, whose name was Shems ed Dauleh, and told him all he had heard, whereupon he sent for Jouder's brothers and put them to the torture, till they confessed; and he took the two pairs of saddle-bags from them and clapped them in prison, appointing a sufficient daily allowance to their mother.
Meanwhile, Jouder abode a whole year in service at Suez, till, one day, being in a ship bound on a voyage over the sea, a wind arose against them and cast the vessel upon a rock, where she broke up and all on board were drowned, save Jouder. He got ashore in safety and fared on inland, till he reached an encampment of Bedouins, who questioned him of his case, and he told them what had befallen him. Now there was amongst them a merchant, a native of Jiddah, (8) who took pity on him and said to him, 'O Egyptian, wilt thou take service with me and I will clothe thee and carry thee with me to Jiddah?' So Jouder took service with him and followed him to Jiddah, where he showed him much favour. After awhile, the merchant set out on a pilgrimage to Mecca, taking Jouder with him, and when they reached the city, the latter repaired to the temple, to make the round of the Kaabeh. As he was making the prescribed circuits, he saw his friend Abdussemed the Moor doing the like; and when the latter caught sight of him, he saluted him and asked him how he did; whereupon Jouder wept and told him all that had befallen him.
The Moor carried him to his lodging and entreated him with honour, clothing him in a dress of unmatched richness and saying to him, 'Thou hast seen the end of thine ills, O Jouder.' Then he levelled a tablet of sand and drew a geomantic figure, by which he discovered what had befallen Salim and Selim and said to Jouder, 'Such and such things have befallen thy brothers and they are now in the King of Egypt's prison; but do thou abide with me and accomplish thy religious duties at thine ease, and all shall be well.' 'O my lord,' replied Jouder, 'let me go and take leave of the merchant with whom I am and after I will come back to thee.' 'Dost thou owe money?' asked the Moor, and he answered, 'No.' 'Go,' said Abdussemed, 'and take leave of him and come back forthright, for men of honour owe a duty to those whose bread they have eaten.'
So Jouder returned to the merchant and took leave of him, saying, 'I have fallen in with my brother.' 'Bring him here,' said the merchant, 'and we will make him an entertainment.' But Jouder answered, saying, 'He has no need of that; for he is a man of wealth and hath many servants.' Then the merchant gave Jouder twenty dinars, saying, 'Acquit me of responsibility;' and he bade him farewell and went forth from him. As he went along, he saw a poor man, so he gave him the twenty dinars and returned to the Moor, with whom he abode till they had accomplished the rites of the pilgrimage, when Abdussemed gave him the ring, that he had taken from the treasure of Es Shemerdel, saying, 'This ring will bring thee to thy desire, for it is enchanted and hath a servant, by name Er Raad el Casif; so whatever thou hast a mind to of the things of this world, rub this ring and its servant will appear and do all thou biddest him.'
Then he rubbed the ring before him, whereupon the genie appeared, saying, 'Here I am, O my lord! Ask what thou wilt and it shall be given thee. Hast thou a mind to people a ruined city or lay waste a flourishing one or slay a king or put an army to the rout?' 'O Raad,' said Abdussemed, 'this is become thy lord; do thou serve him faithfully.' Then he dismissed him and said to Jouder, 'Rub the ring and the genie will appear; and do thou command him to do whatever thou desirest, for he will not gainsay thee. Now go to thine own country and take care of the ring, for it will enable thee to baffle thine enemies.' 'O my lord,' answered Jouder, 'with thy leave, I will set out homeward.' Quoth the Moor, 'Summon the genie and mount upon his back; and if thou say to him, "Bring me to my native city this very day," he will not gainsay thy commandment.'
So he took leave of the Moor and rubbed the ring, whereupon Er Raad presented himself, saying, 'Here am I; ask and it shall be given to thee.' 'Carry me to Cairo this day,' said Jouder. 'Thy commandment shall be done,' answered the genie and taking him on his back, flew with him from noon till midnight, when he set him down in the courtyard of his mother's house and disappeared. Jouder went in to his mother, who rose at sight of him and greeted him, weeping. Then she told him how the king had beaten his brothers and cast them into prison and taken the two pairs of saddle-bags; which when he heard, it was grievous to him and he said to her, 'Grieve not for this; I will show thee what I can do and bring my brothers hither forthright.' So he rubbed the ring, whereupon the genie appeared, saying, 'At thy service! Ask and thou shalt have.' Quoth Jouder, 'Bring me my two brothers from the prison.'
So the genie sank into the earth and came not up but in the midst of the gaol where Salim and Selim lay in piteous plight and sore affliction, for the misery of prison, so that they wished for death and one of them said to the other, 'By Allah, O my brother, affliction is long upon us! How long shall we abide in this prison? Death would be relief.' As he spoke, the earth clove in sunder and out came Er Raad, who took them up and plunged with them into the earth. They swooned away for excess of fear, and when they recovered, they found themselves in their mother's house and saw her seated, with Jouder by her side. Quoth he, 'I salute you, O my brothers! I rejoice to see you.' And they bowed their heads and fell a-weeping. Then said he, 'Weep not, for it was the devil and covetise that led you to do thus. How could you sell me? But I comfort myself with the thought of Joseph, whose brothers did with him worse than ye with me, when they cast him into the pit. Repent unto God and crave pardon of Him, and He will forgive you, for He is the Most Forgiving, the Merciful. As for me, I pardon you and bid you welcome: no harm shall befall you.' Then he comforted them and set their hearts at ease and related to them all he had suffered, till he fell in with Abdussemed, and told them also of the ring that the latter had given him. 'O our brother,' said they, 'forgive us this time; and if we return to our old ways, do with us as thou wilt.' Quoth he, 'No harm shall befall you; but tell me what the king did with you.' 'He beat us and threatened us,' answered they, 'and took the two pairs of saddle-bags from us.' 'He shall answer for this,' said Jouder and rubbed the ring, whereupon Er Raad appeared.
When his brothers saw the genie, they were affrighted and thought Jouder would bid him slay them; so they fled to their mother, saying, 'O our mother, we throw ourselves on thy mercy: do thou intercede for us!' And she said to them, 'Fear nothing, O my sons!' Then said Jouder to the genie, 'I command thee to bring me all that is in the king's treasury, together with the two pairs of saddle-bags he took from my brothers, and look thou leave nothing.' 'I hear and obey,' replied Er Raad and disappearing, straightway returned with the two pairs of saddle-bags and all else that was in the treasury and laid them before Jouder, saying, 'O my lord, I have left nothing in the treasury.' Jouder gave the treasure to his mother to keep and laying the enchanted saddle-bags before him, said to the genie, 'I command thee to build me this night a lofty palace and overlay it with liquid gold and furnish it magnificently: and let not the day dawn, ere thou be quit of the whole work.' 'Thy commands shall be obeyed,' replied the genie and sank into the earth. Then Jouder brought forth food and they ate and took their ease and lay down to sleep.
Meanwhile, Er Raad summoned his attendant Jinn and commanded them to build the palace. So some of them fell to hewing stones and some to building, whilst others plastered and painted and furnished; nor did the day dawn before the ordinance of the palace was complete; whereupon Er Raad came to Jouder and said to him, 'O my lord, the palace is ready, if it please thee to come and look on it.' So Jouder went forth with his mother and brothers and saw a palace, whose like there was not in the whole world. It stood upon the merge of the highway and confounded all minds with the goodliness of its ordinance; and withal it had cost him nothing. Then he said to his mother, 'Wilt thou take up thine abode in this palace?' 'I will well, O my son,' answered she and called down blessings upon him.
Then he rubbed the ring and bade the genie fetch him forty handsome white slave-girls and forty male white slaves, besides the like number of black slaves, male and female. 'Thy will shall be done,' answered Er Raad and betaking himself, with forty of his attendant Jinn, to Hind and Sind and Persia, carried off every handsome girl and boy they saw, till they had made up the required number. Moreover, he sent other fourscore, who fetched handsome black slaves, male and female, forty of either sex, and carried them all to Jouder's house, which they filled. Then he showed them to Jouder, who was pleased with them and bade him bring a suit of the richest raiment for each of them and dresses to boot for himself and his mother and brothers. So the genie brought all that was needed and clad the female slaves, saying to them, 'This is your mistress: kiss her hands and cross her not, but serve her, white and black.' The male slaves also clad themselves and kissed Jouder's hands; and he and his brothers arrayed themselves in the robes the genie had brought them and became, Jouder as he were a king and his brothers as viziers. Now his house was spacious; so he lodged Salim and his slave-girls in one part thereof and Selim and his slave-girls in another, whilst he and his mother took up their abode in the new palace; and each in his own place was like the Sultan.
Meanwhile, the king's treasurer, thinking to take something from the treasury, went in and found it altogether empty, even as saith the poet:
ааааа Once was it as a beehive stocked and full of bees galore; But when they left it, it became devoid of all its store. (9)
And he gave a great cry and fell down in a swoon. When he came to himself, he left the door open and going in to the king, said to him, 'O Commander of the Faithful, I have to tell thee that the treasury hath become empty during the night.' Quoth the king, 'What hast thou done with my treasures that were therein?' 'By Allah,' replied the treasurer, 'I have not done aught with them nor know I what is come of them! I visited the place yesterday and saw it full; but, when I went in to day, I found it altogether empty, albeit the doors were locked and [the walls] unpierced and the locks unbroken, nor hath a thief entered it.' 'Are the two pairs of saddle-bags gone?' asked the king. 'Yes,' replied the treasurer; whereupon the king's reason fled from his head and he rose to his feet, saying, 'Go thou before me.' So the treasurer forewent him to the treasury and he found nothing there, whereat he was sore enraged and said, 'Who hath dared to violate my treasury, fearing not my wrath?'
Then he went forth and held a Divan, to which he summoned all his chief officers, who came, thinking each that the king was wroth with him; and he said to them, 'Know that my treasury hath been plundered during the night, and I know not who has done this thing and dared thus to outrage me, without fear of my wrath.' 'How so?' asked they. Quoth he, 'Ask the treasurer.' So they asked him, and he replied, saying, 'I visited the treasury yesterday and it was full, but when I entered it this morning, I found it empty, though the doors were unpierced and the locks unbroken.' They all marvelled at this and could make the king no answer, when in came the sergeant, who had denounced Salim and Selim, and said to Shems ed Dauleh, 'O King of the age, all this night I have not slept for that which I saw.' And the king said, 'And what didst thou see?' 'Know, O King of the age,' answered the sergeant, 'that all night long I have been amusing myself with watching builders at work, and when it was day, I saw a palace ready built, whose like is not in the world. So I asked about it and was told that Jouder had come back with great wealth and slaves and servants and that he had freed his brothers from prison and built this palace, wherein he is as a Sultan. Quoth the king, 'Go, look in the prison.' So they went thither and finding Salim and Selim gone, returned and told the king, who said, 'It is plain now who is the robber; he who took Salim and Selim out of prison it is who hath stolen my treasures.' 'O my lord,' said the Vizier, 'and who is he?' 'Their brother Jouder,' replied the king, 'and he hath taken the two pairs of saddle-bags; but, O Vizier, do thou send him an Amir with fifty men to seal up his goods and lay hands on him and his brothers and bring them to me, that I may hang them.' And he was sore enraged and said, 'Quick, fetch them to me, that I may put them to death.'
But the Vizier said to him, 'Be thou clement, for God is clement and hasteth not to punish His servants, when they transgress against Him. Moreover, he who can build a palace in one night, as these say, none in the world can vie with him; and I fear lest the Amir catch a mischief of Jouder. Have patience, therefore, whilst I devise for thee some means of getting at the truth of the case, and so shalt thou come to thy desire, O King of the age.' Quoth the king, 'Counsel me how I shall do, O Vizier.' And the Vizier said, 'Send him an Amir, to bid him to an entertainment, and I will make much of him for thee and make a show of affection for him and ask him of his estate; after which we will see. If we find him stout of heart, we will use craft with him, and if weak, then do thou seize him and do with him thy will.' The King agreed to this and despatched one of his Amirs, by name Othman, to invite Jouder and say to him, 'The King bids thee to an entertainment;' and the King said to him, 'Return not but with him.'
Now this Othman was a proud conceited fool; so he went forth upon his errand, and when he came to Jouder's palace, he saw at the door an eunuch seated upon a chair of gold, who rose not at his approach, but sat as if none were near, though there were with the Amir fifty men. Now this eunuch was none other than Er Raad el Casif, the servant of the ring, whom Jouder had commanded to put on the guise of an eunuch and sit at the gate of the palace. So the Amir rode up to him and said to him, 'O slave, where is thy lord?' 'In the palace,' answered he, without stirring from his leaning posture; whereupon Othman waxed wroth and said to him, 'O pestilent slave, art thou not ashamed, when I speak to thee, to answer me, sprawling at thy length like a good-for-nought?' 'Begone,' answered the eunuch, 'and do not multiply words.' When Othman heard this, he was filled with rage and drawing his mace, would have smitten the eunuch, knowing not that he was a devil; but the latter leapt upon him and taking the mace from him, dealt him four blows with it. When the fifty men saw their lord beaten, it was grievous to them; so they drew their swords and ran at the slave, thinking to kill him; but he said, 'Do ye draw swords on us, O dogs?' And fell upon them with the mace, and every one whom he smote, he broke his bones and drowned him in his blood. So they gave back before him and fled in confusion, whilst he followed them, beating them, till he had driven them far from the palace; after which he returned and sat down on his chair at the gate, caring for no one.
Meanwhile the Amir and his company returned, beaten and discomfited, to Shems ed Dauleh, and Othman said, 'O King of the age, when I came to the palace gate, I saw an eunuch seated there in a chair of gold and he was passing arrogant; for, when he saw me coming, he lay back in his chair and entreated me contemptuously, neither offered to rise to me. So I began to speak to him and he answered me without stirring, at which passion got the better of me and I drew the mace upon him, thinking to smite him. But he snatched it from me and beat me and my men therewith and overthrew us. So we fled from him and could not prevail against him.' At this, the King was wroth and said, 'Let a hundred men go down to him.' So the hundred men went down to him, but he fell upon them with the mace and smote upon them till he put them to the rout; whereupon they returned to the King and told him what had passed, saying, 'O King of the age, he beat us and we fled for fear of him.' Then the King sent two hundred men against him, but these also he put to the rout, and Shems ed Dauleh said to his Vizier, 'O Vizier, I charge thee take five hundred men and bring this eunuch in haste, and with him his master Jouder and his brothers.' 'O King of the age,' replied the Vizier, 'I need no soldiers, but will go down to him alone and unarmed.' 'Go,' said the King, 'and do as thou seest fit.'
So the Vizier laid down his arms and donning a white habit, took a rosary in his hand and set out alone and afoot. When he came to the palace gate, he saw the eunuch sitting there; so he went up to him and seating himself courteously by his side, said to him, 'Peace be on thee!' 'And on thee be peace, O mortal!' answered the slave. 'What wilt thou?' When the Vizier heard him say 'O mortal,' he knew him to be of the Jinn and quaked for fear; then he said to him, 'O my lord, is thy master Jouder here?' 'Yes,' answered the eunuch, 'he is in the palace.' 'O my lord,' said the Vizier, 'go thou to him and say to him, "King Shems ed Dauleh salutes thee and bids thee honour his dwelling [with thy presence] and eat of a banquet he hath made for thee."' And the eunuch said, 'Abide here, whilst I consult him.'
So the Vizier stood in a respectful attitude, whilst the Marid went up into the palace and said to Jouder, 'Know, O my lord, that the King sent to thee an Amir and fifty men, and I beat them and drove them away. Then he sent a hundred men and I beat them also; then two hundred, and these also I put to the rout. And now he hath sent thee the Vizier, unarmed, bidding thee to visit him and eat of his banquet. What sayst thou?' 'Go,' answered Jouder; 'bring the Vizier hither.' So the Marid went down and said to him, 'O Vizier, come speak with my lord.' 'On my head be it,' replied he and going in to Jouder, found him seated, in greater state than the King, upon a carpet, the like of which the King could not spread, and was amazed at the goodliness of the palace and the magnificence of its furniture and decoration, which made him seem as he were but a beggar in comparison.
So he kissed the earth before Jouder and called down blessings on him; and Jouder said to him, 'What is thy business, O Vizier?' 'O my lord,' answered he, 'thy friend King Shems ed Dauleh salutes thee and longs to look upon thy face; wherefore he hath made thee an entertainment. So wilt thou heal his heart [and eat of his banquet]?' Quoth Jouder, 'If he be indeed my friend, salute him and bid him come to me.' 'On my head be it,' replied the Vizier. Then Jouder rubbed the ring and bade the genie bring him a dress of the best, which he gave to the Vizier, saying, 'Don this dress and go tell the King what I say,' So the Vizier donned the dress, the like of which he had never worn, and returning to the King, told him what had passed and praised the palace and that which was therein, saying, 'Jouder bids thee to him.' So the King called for his charger and mounting with all his guards, set out for Jouder's palace.
Meanwhile Jouder summoned the Marid and said to him, 'It is my will that thou bring me some of the Afrits at thy command in the guise of guards and station them before the palace, that the King may see them and be awed by them; so shall his heart tremble and he shall know that my power is greater than his.' So Er Raad brought him two hundred Afrits of great stature and strength, in the guise of guards, magnificently armed and equipped, and when the King came and saw these tall and stout troops, his heart feared them. Then he entered the palace, and found Jouder sitting in such state as neither King nor Sultan could match. So he saluted him and made his obeisance to him; yet Jouder rose not to him nor did him honour neither bade him be seated, but left him standing, so that fear entered into him and he could neither sit nor go away and said in himself, 'If he feared me, he would not leave me thus unheeded; belike he will do me a mischief, because of that which I did with his brothers.' Then said Jouder, 'O King of the age, it beseems not the like of thee to wrong the folk and take away their goods.' 'O my lord,' replied the King, 'be not wroth with me, for covetise impelled me to this and the fulfilment of fore-ordained fate; and were there no offence, there would be no forgiving.' And he went on to excuse himself and sue to him for pardon and indulgence, reciting amongst other things the following verses:
ааааа O thou of noble sires and nature frank and free, Reproach me not for what I've done to anger thee.
ааааа An thou have wrought upright, God pardon thee, quoth I; And if I've sinned, do thou on like wise pardon me!
And he ceased not to humble himself before him, till he said, 'God pardon thee!' and bade him sit. So he sat down and Jouder invested him with the garments of pardon and bade his brothers spread the table. When they had eaten, he clad the King's company in robes of honour and gave them largesse; after which he bade the King depart. So he went forth and thereafter came every day to visit Jouder and held not his Divan save in his house: wherefore friendship and usance waxed great between them, and they abode thus awhile, till one day the King, being alone with his Vizier, said to him, 'O Vizier, I fear lest Jouder kill me and take the kingdom from me.' 'O King of the age,' replied the Vizier, 'as for his taking the kingdom from thee, have no fear of that, for his present estate is greater than that of the King, and to take the kingdom would be a lowering of his rank; but, if thou fear that he kill thee, thou hast a daughter: give her to him to wife and thou and he will be of one condition.'
'O Vizier,' said the King, 'be thou intermediary between us and him.' And the Vizier said, 'Do thou bid him to an entertainment and pass the night with him in one of thy saloons. Then command thy daughter to don her richest clothes and ornaments and pass by the door of the saloon. When he sees her, he will fall in love with her, and when we know this, I will turn to him and tell him that she is thy daughter and engage him in converse and lead him on, so that thou shalt [seem to] know nothing of the matter, till he asks her of thee in marriage. When thou hast married him to the girl, thou and he will be as one thing and thou wilt be safe from him; and if he die, thou wilt inherit all he hath, both great and small.' 'Thou sayst sooth, O my Vizier,' replied the King and made a banquet and invited Jouder thereto. So he came to the King's palace and they sat in the saloon in great good cheer till the end of the day. Now the King had commanded his wife to array the girl in her richest clothes and ornaments and carry her by the door of the saloon. She did as he bade her, and when Jouder saw the princess, who had not her match for beauty and grace, he looked fixedly at her and said, 'Alas!' And his joints were loosened for love and passion and desire were sore upon him; transport and love-liking gat hold upon him and he turned pale. Quoth the Vizier, 'May no hurt betide thee, O my lord! Why do I see thee pale and undone?' 'O Vizier,' asked Jouder, 'whose daughter is yonder damsel? Verily, she hath captived me and ravished my reason.' 'She is the daughter of thy friend the King,' replied the Vizier; 'and since she pleases thee, I will speak to him that he marry thee to her.' 'Do so, O Vizier,' quoth Jouder, 'and as I live, I will bestow on thee what thou wilt and will give the King whatsoever he shall ask to her dowry; and we will become friends and kinsfolk.' And the Vizier said, 'It shall go hard but thy desire be accomplished.' Then he turned to the King and said to him, 'O King of the age, thy friend Jouder seeks alliance with thee and will have me ask of thee for him the hand of thy daughter, the princess Asiyeh; so disappoint me not, but accept my intercession, and what dowry soever thou askest he will give thee.' Quoth the King, 'The dowry I have already received, and as for the girl, she is his handmaid; I give her to him to wife and he doth me favour in accepting her.'
They spent the rest of the night together and on the morrow the King held a court, to which he summoned great and small, together with the Sheikh el Islam. Then Jouder demanded the princess in marriage and the King said, 'The dowry I have received.' So they drew up the contract of marriage and Jouder sent for the saddle-bags containing the jewels and gave them to the King as his daughter's dowry. Then the drums beat and the pipes sounded and they held high festival, whilst Jouder went in to the girl. Thenceforward he and the King were as one and they abode thus awhile, till Shems ed Dauleh died; whereupon the troops proclaimed Jouder Sultan, and he refused; but they importuned him, till he consented and became King in his father-in-law's stead. Then he bade build a congregational mosque over the latter's tomb in the Bundecaniyeh quarter and endowed it. Now the quarter in which he dwelt was called the Yemaniyeh quarter; but when he became Sultan, he built therein a congregational mosque and other buildings, wherefore the quarter was named after him and was called the Jouderiyeh quarter.
Moreover, he made his brother Salim his Vizier of the right and his brother Selim his Vizier of the left hand; and thus they abode a year and no more; for, at the end of that time, Salim said to Selim, 'O my brother, how long is this to last? Shall we pass our whole lives in service to our brother Jouder? We shall never enjoy lordship or fortune whilst he lives: so how shall we do to kill him and take the ring and the saddle-bags?' 'Thou art craftier than I,' answered Selim; 'do thou contrive us a device, whereby we may kill him.' 'If I do this,' said Salim, 'wilt thou agree that I be Sultan and have the ring and that thou be my right-hand Vizier and have the saddle-bags?' 'I consent to this,' replied Selim, and they agreed to kill their brother for love of the world and of dominion.
So they laid a snare for Jouder and said to him, 'O our brother, we have a mind to glory in thee and would fain have thee enter our houses and eat of our victual and solace our hearts.' 'So be it,' replied Jouder. 'In whose house shall the banquet be?' 'In mine,' said Salim, 'and after thou hast eaten of my victual, thou shalt be the guest of my brother.' 'It is well,' answered Jouder and went with him to his house, where he set before him poisoned food, of which when he had eaten, his flesh rotted from his bones [and he fell down dead]. Then Salim came up to him and would have drawn the ring from his finger, but it resisted him; so he cut off the finger with a knife. Then he rubbed the ring and the Marid presented himself, saying, 'At thy service. Ask what thou wilt.' Quoth Salim, 'Put my brother Selim to death and take the two bodies, the poisoned man and the slaughtered, and cast them down before the troops.' So the Marid took Selim and slew him; then, carrying the two bodies forth, he cast them down before the chief officers of the army, who were sitting at meat in the verandah of the house. When they saw Jouder and Selim slain, they held their hands from the food and fear gat hold of them and they said to the Marid, 'Who hath dealt thus with the Sultan and the Vizier?' 'Their brother Salim,' answered the Marid. And behold Salim came in to them and said, 'O soldiers, eat and make merry, for Jouder is dead and I have taken to me the seal-ring, of which the Marid before you is the servant; and I bade him kill my brother Selim, lest he dispute the kingdom with me, for he was a traitor and I feared lest he should deal traitorously with me. So now I am become Sultan over you; will ye accept of me? If not, I will rub the ring and bid the Marid slay you all, great and small.' Quoth they, 'We accept thee to King and Sultan.'
Then he summoned the Divan and bade bury his brothers; and some of the folk followed the funeral, whilst others went before him in state procession to the palace, where he sat down upon the throne and they proclaimed him king; after which he said, 'It is my will to marry my brother Jouder's wife.' Quoth they, 'Wait till the days of widowhood are accomplished.' But he answered, saying, 'I know not days of widowhood nor aught else. As my head liveth, I will go in to her this very night.' So they drew up the marriage contract and sent to tell the princess Asiyeh, who replied, 'Bid him enter.' Accordingly, he went in to her and she received him with a show of joy and welcome; but by and by she gave him poison in water and made an end of him. Then she took the ring and broke it, that none might possess it thenceforward, and rent the saddle-bags; after which she sent to the Sheikh el Islam and other the great officers of state, telling them what had passed and saying to them, 'Choose you out a king to rule over you.' And this is all that hath come down to us of the story of Jouder and his brothers.
THE HISTORY OF GHERIB AND HIS BROTHER AGIB.
There was once of old time a mighty king called Kundemir, who had been a brave and doughty man of war in his day, but was grown very old and decrepit. It pleased God to vouchsafe him, in his extreme old age, a son, whom he named Agib, (10) because of his beauty and grace, and committed to the midwives and nurses and handmaids and serving-women, and they reared him till he was seven years old, when his father gave him in charge to a priest of his own people and faith. The priest taught the boy the laws and tenets of their infidel faith and instructed him in philosophy and all manner of other knowledge, and it needed but three full-told years before he was proficient therein and his resolve waxed strong and his judgment sound; yea, and he became learned, eloquent and accomplished, consorting with the wise and disputing with the doctors of the law. When his father saw this of him, it pleased him and he taught him to ride and thrust with spears and smite with swords, till by the end of his twentieth year he was an accomplished cavalier, versed in all martial exercises and surpassing in all things all the folk of his day. But he grew up a stubborn tyrant and an arrogant devil, using to ride forth to the chase with a thousand horse and make raids upon the neighbouring lands, waylaying caravans and carrying off the daughters of kings and nobles; wherefore many were the complaints against him to his father, who cried out to five of his servants, saying, 'Seize me yonder dog and beat him!' So they seized the prince and binding his hands behind him, beat him till he lost his senses; after which the king imprisoned him in a chamber, where one might not know heaven from earth or length from breadth; (11) and there he abode two days and a night. Then the Amirs went in to the King and kissing the earth before him, interceded with him for the prince, and he released him.
Agib dissembled with his father for ten days, at the end of which time he went in to him by night and smote off his head, as he slept. When the day rose, he mounted the throne and bade his men arm themselves in complete steel and stand before him and on his either hand with drawn swords. By and by, the Amirs and captains entered and finding their king slain and his son Agib seated on the throne, were confounded and knew not what to do. But Agib said to them, 'O folk, ye see what hath befallen your king. Whoso obeyeth me, I will entreat him with munificence, and whoso gainsayeth me, I will do with him even as I did with my father.' When they heard this, they feared lest he should do them a mischief; so they replied, 'Thou art our king and the son of our king;' and kissed the earth before him; whereupon he thanked them and rejoiced in them. Then he let bring money and apparel and clad them in sumptuous dresses of honour and showered largesse upon them, wherefore they loved him and obeyed him. In like manner he dealt with the governors of the provinces and the Sheikhs of the Bedouins, both tributary and independent, so that all the kingdom submitted to him and the folk obeyed him and he reigned and commanded and forbade.
He abode thus five months, till, one night, he had a vision in sleep and awoke trembling, nor did sleep visit him again till the morning. As soon as it was day, he mounted his throne and his officers stood before him, right and left. Then he called the astrologers and expounders of dreams and said to them, 'As I slept last night, my father appeared to me, with his yard uncovered, and there came forth of it a thing the bigness of a bee, which grew till it became as a mighty lion, with claws like daggers. As I lay, wondering and alarmed at this, behold, it ran upon me and smiting me with its claws, rent my bells' in sunder; whereupon I awoke, affrighted and trembling. Expound to me the meaning of this dream.' The interpreters looked at one another and answered, after consideration, 'O mighty King, this dream points to a child born of thy father, between whom and thee shall be strife, and he shall get the better of thee: so be thou ware of him, by reason of this thy dream.' When Agib heard their words, he said, 'I have no brother whom I should fear; so this your speech is a lying one.' 'We tell thee but what we know,' answered they; but he was wroth with them and beat them.
Then he rose and going in to his father's palace, examined his concubines and found one of them seven months gone with child; whereupon he bade two of his slaves carry her to the sea-shore and drown her. So they took her forth to the sea-shore and were about to drown her, when they looked at her and seeing her to be of surpassing beauty and grace, said to each other, 'Why should we drown this damsel? Let us rather carry her to the forest and live with her there in rare dalliance.' So they took her and fared on with her nights and days, till they brought her to a distant forest, abounding in fruit trees and streams, where they thought to take their will of her; but each said, 'I will lie with her first' And they fell out one with the other concerning this. As they were thus engaged, a company of blacks fell upon them, and they drew their swords and defended themselves; but the blacks slew them both in less than the twinkling of an eye. So the damsel abode alone and wandered about the forest, eating of its fruits and drinking of its waters, till in due time she gave birth to a boy, brown but clean-limbed and comely, whom she named Gherib, (12) by reason of her strangerhood. Then she cut his navel and wrapping him in some of her own clothes, gave him suck, mournful at heart and sorrowing for the fair estate she had lost and full of fear for her loneliness.
One day, there came horsemen and footmen into the forest, with hounds and hawks and horses laden with storks and cranes and herons and young ostriches and divers and other waterfowl and hares and gazelles and wild oxen and lynxes and wolves and lions. Presently, they came upon the damsel, sitting suckling her child, and said to her, 'Art thou a mortal or a genie?' 'I am a mortal, O chief of the Arabs,' answered she. So they told their chief, whose name was Merdas, prince of the Benou Kehtan, and who had come forth to hunt that day with five hundred of his kinsmen and the nobles of his tribe. and he bade them bring her before him. They did so and she related to him her story, at which he marvelled. Then they took her and returned, hunting by the way, to their encampment, where the Amir appointed her a separate dwelling-place and five damsels to serve her; and he loved her with an exceeding love and went in to her and lay with her. She straightway conceived by him, and when her months were accomplished, she bore a male child and named him Sehim el Leil. He grew up with his brother Gherib among the nurses and throve and waxed upon the lap of the Amir Merdas; and the latter in due time committed the two boys to a doctor of the law, who instructed them in the things of their faith; after which he gave them in charge to a valiant cavalier of the Arabs, who taught them to smite with swords and thrust with spears and shoot with bows, till, by the time they reached the age of fifteen, they knew all that they needed and surpassed all the warriors of their tribe; for each of them would undertake a thousand horse.
Now Merdas had many enemies, and the men of big tribe were the bravest of all the Arabs, being all doughty cavaliers, none might warm himself at their fire. (13) Amongst his neighbours was an Amir, by name Hissan ben Thabit, who was his friend; and he took to wife a noble lady of his tribe and bade all his friends to the wedding, amongst them Merdas, prince of the Benou Kehtan, who accepted his invitation and came with three hundred horsemen of his tribe, leaving other four hundred to guard the women. Hissan received him with honour and seated him in the highest room. Then came all the cavaliers to the bridal and he made them bride feasts and held high festival by reason of the marriage, after which the guests departed to their dwelling-places. When Merdas came in sight of his camp, he saw dead men lying and birds hovering over them right and left and his heart sank within him at the sight. Then he entered the camp and was met by Gherib, clad in complete mail, who gave him joy of his safe return. Quoth Merdas, 'What meanest this, O Gherib?' And Gherib answered, 'El Hemel ben Majid attacked us with five hundred horse.'
Now the reason of this was that the Amir Merdas had a daughter called Mehdiyeh, never saw eyes a fairer than she, and El Hemel, prince of the Benou Nebhan, heard of her charms; whereupon he took horse with five hundred of his men and rode to Merdas to demand her hand; but he refused and sent him away disappointed. So he abode his time, till Merdas was absent on his visit to Hissan, when he fell upon the camp of the Benou Kehtan with his braves and slew a number of their warriors, and the rest fled to the mountains. Now Gherib and his brother had ridden forth a-hunting with a hundred horse and returned not till midday, when they found that El Hemel had sacked the camp and carried off the women and children captives, and Mehdiyeh among them. When Gherib saw this, he lost his wits for rage and cried out to Sehim, saying, 'They have plundered our camp and carried off our women and children! Up and at the enemy, that we may deliver the captives!' So Gherib and Sehim and their hundred horse rushed upon the foe, and Gherib's wrath redoubled, and he reaped a harvest of heads, giving the warriors to drink of the cup of death, till he won to El Hemel and saw Mehdiyeh among the captives. Then he drove at the prince of the Benou Nebhan and transfixing him with his lance, hurled him from the saddle; nor was the time of the afternoon-prayer come before he had slain the most part of the foe and put the rest to the rout and rescued the captives; whereupon he returned to the camp in triumph, bearing El Hemel's head on the point of his lance and reciting the following verses: