One Thousand and One Nights

by Richard Burton

  Tale of Mohsin and Musa, Night dcclxv.-dcclxxii. . . . . . . . 57

  SCOTT: “Mhassun the liberal and Mousseh the treacherous

  Friend.”

  Mohammed Shalabí639 and his Wife and the Kazi’s Daughter,

  Night dcclxxii.-dcclxxvii. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

  SCOTT: “Mahummud Julbee,” etc.

  The Fellah and his wicked Wife, Night dcclxxvii.-dcclxxx . . . 92 The Woman who humoured her Lover at her Husband’s expense, Night dcclxxx.-dcclxxxi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102

  SCOTT: “The Adulteress.”

  The Kazi Schooled by his Wife, Night dcclxxxi.-dcclxxxv. . . .106 The Merchant’s Daughter and the Prince of Al-Irák, Night dccclxv.-dcccxxiv. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118

  SCOTT: “Story of the Merchant, his Daughter, and the Prince

  of Eerauk,” . In the text we find ‘Irák for Al-Irák.

  The Story of Ahmad and Ali who cuckolded their Masters, Night dcccxxiv.-dcccxxix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .225

  SCOTT: “The Two Orphans.”

  The Fellah and his fair Wife, Night dcccxxix.-dcccxxx. . . . .241 The Youth who would futter his Father’s Wives, Night dcccxxx.-dcccxxxviii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .247

  SCOTT: “The Vicious Son, translating the Arab. Al-Ibn

  al-Fidawi.”

  The two Lack-tacts of Cairo and Damascus, including the short

  ‘Tale of the Egyptian, the

  Syrian and the Ass,” Night dcccxxxviii.-dcccxl. . . . . .261

  SCOTT: “The two wits of Cairo and Sind.”

  The Tale of Musa and Ibrahim, including Anecdotes of the

  Berberines, Night dcccxl.-dcccxliii. . . . . . . . . . . . . .271

  The Brother Wazirs, Ahmad and Mohammed, Night dcccxiv.-dccclxxiii

  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

  And to end of vol. vi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .365

  VOL. VII.

  Contains 447 pages, from Night dccclxxiii.-mi.

  The following is a list of the contents: —

  PAGE Conclusion of the Brother Wazirs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-69 Story of the thieving Youth and his Step-mother, Night dcccxcvii.-cm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 The Kazi of Baghdad and his virtuous Wife, Night cm.-cmxi. . . 77 History of the Sultan who protected the Kazi’s Wife, Night cmxi.-cmxvii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109 The Sultan of Al-’Irák, Zunnár ibn Zunnár, Night cmxvii.-cmxxi126 Ardashir, Prince of Persia, and the Princess Hayát al-Nufús, daughter of Sultan Kádir, Night cmxxi.-cmlxviii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .139 Story of Shaykh Nakkit the Fisherman, Night cmlxviii.-cmlxxviii297 The Sultan of Andalusia, and the Prince of Al-’Irák who deflowered the Wazir’s daughter; a prose replica of Al-Hayfá and Yusuf. MS. vol. v. 210. Night cmlxxviii.-cmlxxxviii. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .329 Tale of Sultan Taylún and the generous Fellah, Night cmlxxxviii.-cmxciv. . . . 365 The retired Sage and his Servant-lad, Night cmxcviii . . . . .414 The Merchant’s Daughter who married an Emperor of China, Night cmxcviii.-mi., ending the work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .430-447

  This MS. terminates The Nights with the last tale and has no especial conclusion relating the marriage of the two brother Kings with the two sisters.

  Appendix II.

  I. — NOTES ON THE STORIES CONTAINED IN VOLUME XIV.640

  By W. F. Kirby.

  Story of the Sultan of Al-yaman and His Three Sons.

  P. 9. — The hippopotamus has also been observed, at the Zoological Gardens, to scatter his dung in the manner described.

  P. 13. — It is evident from the importance which the author attaches to good birth and heredity, that he would hardly approve of the Socialistic custom, so prevalent in the East, of raising men of low birth to important offices of State.

  The Story of the Three Sharpers (p-35).

  P. 19. — In quoting the titles of this and other tales of the Wortley Montague MS., in which the word Ja’ídí frequently occurs, Scott often wrote “labourer” or “artisan” instead of “sharper.” The term “sharper” is hardly applicable here, for the fellows appear really to have possessed the knowledge to which they laid claim. The “sharpers” in this story differ much from such impostors as the Illiterate Schoolmaster (No. 93, vol. v. p-121), who escapes from his dilemma by his ready wit, or from European pretenders of the type of Grimm’s Dr. Knowall, who escapes from his difficulties by mere accident; or again from our old friend Ma’aruf (No. 169), whose impudent pretensions and impostures are aided by astounding good luck.

  P. 23. — This test was similar to that given to Ma’aruf (vol. x. p,17), but there is nothing in the latter passage to show whether Ma’aruf had any real knowledge of gems, or not. In the present story, the incident of the worm recalls the well-known incident of Solomon ordering worms to pierce gems for Bilkees, the Queen of Sheba.

  P. 23. — English schoolboys sometimes play the “trussing game.” Two boys have their wrists and ankles tied together, and their arms are passed over their knees, and a stick thrust over the arms and under the knees, and they are then placed opposite each other on the ground, and endeavour to turn each other over with their toes.

  P. 25 note. — Can the word Kashmar be a corruption of Kashmiri?

  History of Mohammed, Sultan of Cairo (p-49).

  P. 37. — A few years ago, a travelling menagerie exhibited a pair of dog-faced baboons in Dublin as “two monstrous gorillas!”

  P. 40. — Ma’aruf’s jewel has been already referred to. The present incident more resembles the demand made by the king and the wazir from Aladdin and his mother, though that was far more extravagant.

  P, 43. — A more terrible form of these wedding disillusions, is when the bridegroom is entrapped into marriage by an evil magician, and wakes in the morning to find the phantom of a murdered body in the place of his phantom bride, and to be immediately charged with the crime. Compare the story of Naerdan and Guzulbec (Caylus’ Oriental Tales; Weber, ii. p-637) and that of Monia Emin (Gibb’s Story of Jewad, p, 75). Compare my Appendix, Nights, x. p, 508, 509.

  P, 45. — There is a Western story (one of the latest versions of which may be found in Moore’s Juvenile Poems under the title of “The Ring”) in which a bridegroom on his wedding-day places the ring by accident on the finger of a statue of Venus; the finger closes on it, and Venus afterwards interposes continually between him and his bride, claiming him as her husband on the strength of the ring. The unfortunate husband applies to a magician, who sends him by night to a meeting of cross-roads, where a procession similar to that described in the text passes by. He presents the magician’s letters to the King (the devil in the medićval versions of the story) who requires Venus to surrender the ring, and with it her claim to the husband.

  One of the most curious stories of these royal processions is perhaps the

  Lithuanian (or rather Samoghitian) story of

  The King of the Rats.641

  Once upon a time a rich farmer lived in a village near Korzian, who was in the habit of going into the wood late in the evening. One evening he went back again into the wood very late, when he distinctly heard the name Zurkielis shouted. He followed the voice, but could not discover from whence the sound proceeded.

  On the next evening the farmer went into the wood, and did not wait long before he heard the cry repeated, but this time much louder and more distinctly. On the third evening the farmer went again to the wood; but this time on Valpurgis-night — the Witch’s Sabbath. Suddenly he saw a light appear in the distance; then more lights shone out, and the light grew stronger and stronger; and presently the farmer saw a strange procession advancing, and passing by him. In front of the procession ran a great number of mice of all sorts, each of whom carried a jewel in his mouth which shone brighter than the sun. After these came a golden chariot, drawn by a lion, a bear, and two wolves. The chariot shone
like fire, and, instead of nails, it was studded with dazzling jewels. In the chariot sat the King of the Rats and his consort, both clad in golden raiment. The King of the Rats wore a golden crown on his head, and his consort marshalled the procession. After the chariot followed a vast procession of rats, each of whom carried a torch, and the sparks which flew from the torches fell to the earth as jewels. Some of the rats were shouting “Zurkielis” incessantly; and whenever a rat uttered this cry, a piece of gold fell from his mouth. The procession was followed by a great number of fantastic forms, which collected the gold from the ground, and put it into large sacks. When the farmer saw this he also gathered together as much of the gold and jewels as he could reach. Presently a cock crew, and everything vanished. The farmer returned to his house, but the gold and jewels gave him a very tangible proof that the adventure had not been a dream.

  A year passed by, and on the next Valpurgis-night the farmer went back to the wood, and everything happened as on the year before. The farmer became immensely rich from the gold and jewels which he collected; and on the third anniversary of the Valpurgis-night he did not go to the wood, but remained quietly at home. He was quite rich enough, and he was afraid that some harm might happen to him in the wood. But on the following morning a rat appeared, and addressed him as follows: “You took the gold and jewels, but this year you did not think it needful to pay our king and his consort the honour due to them by appearing before them during the procession in the wood; and henceforward it will go ill with you.”

  Having thus spoken, the rat disappeared; but shortly afterwards such a host of rats took up their abode in the farmer’s house that it was impossible for him to defend himself against them. The rats gnawed everything in the house, and whatever was brought into it. In time the farmer was reduced to beggary, and died in wretchedness.

  Story of the Second Lunatic (p-74).

  This is a variant of “Woman’s Craft” (No. 184 of our Table), or “Woman’s

  Wiles,” (Supp. Nights, ii. p-148). Mr. L. C. Smithers tells me that an

  English version of this story, based upon Langlčs’ translation (Cf. Nights, x.

  App., , sub “Sindbad the Sailor”), appeared in the Literary Souvenir for

  1831, under the title of “Woman’s Wit.”

  P-76. — Concerning the Shikk and the Nesnás, Lane writes (1001 Nights, i., Introd. note 21): “The Shikk is another demoniacal creature, having the form of half a human being (like a man divided longitudinally); and it is believed that the Nesnás is the offspring of a Shikk and of a human being. The Shikk appears to travellers; and it was a demon of this kind who killed, and was killed by, ‘Alkamah, the son of Safwán, the son of Umeiyeh, of whom it is well known that he was killed by a Jinnee. So says El-Kazweenee.

  “The Nesnás (above-mentioned) is described as resembling half a human being, having half a head, half a body, one arm, and one leg, with which it hops with much agility; as being found in the woods of El-Yemen, and being endowed with speech; ‘but God,’ it is added, ‘is all-knowing.’ (El-Kazweenee in the khatimeh of his work.) It is said that it is found in Hadramót as well as El-Yemen; and that one was brought alive to El-Mutawekkil; it resembled a man in form, excepting that it had but half a face, which was in its breast, and a tail like that of a sheep. The people of Hadramót, it is added, eat it; and its flesh is sweet. It is only generated in their country. A man who went there asserted that he saw a captured Nesnás, which cried out for mercy, conjuring him by God and by himself. (Mi-rát ez-Zemán.) A race of people whose head is in the breast is described as inhabiting an island called Jábeh (supposed to be Java) in the Sea of El-Hind or India; and a kind of Nesnás is also described as inhabiting the Island of Ráďj, in the Sea of Es-Seen, or China, and having wings like those of the bat. (Ibn El-Wardee.)” Compare also an incident in the story of Janshah (Nights v. , and note) and the description of the giant Haluka in Forbes’ translation of the Persian Romance of Hatim Tai (): “In the course of an hour the giant was so near as to be distinctly seen in shape like an immense dome. He had neither hands nor feet, but a tremendous mouth, situated in the midst of his body. He advanced with an evolving motion, and from his jaws issued volumes of flame and clouds of smoke.” When his reflection was shown him in a mirror, he burst with rage.

  I may add that a long-tailed species of African monkey (Cercopithecus

  Pyrrhonotus) is now known to naturalists as the Nisnas.

  Story of the Broken-backed Schoolmaster (p-97).

  I once heard a tale of two Irishmen, one of whom lowered the other over a cliff, probably in search of the nests of sea-fowl. Presently the man at the top called out, “Hold hard while I spit on my hands,” so he loosed the rope for that purpose, and his companion incontinently disappeared with it.

  Story of the Split-mouthed Schoolmaster (p-101).

  In Scott’s “Story of the Wry-mouthed Schoolmaster” (Arabian Nights, vi. p-75) the schoolmaster crams a boiling egg into his mouth, which the boy smashes.

  Night Adventure of Sultan Mohammed of Cairo (p-109).

  P. 103. — Scott (vi. ) makes the proclamation read, “Whoever presumes after the first watch of the night to have a lamp lighted in his house, shall have his head struck off, his goods confiscated, his house razed to the ground, and his women dishonoured.” A proclamation in such terms under the circumstances (though not meant seriously) would be incredible, even in the East.

  Story of the Kazi Who Bare a Babe (p-185).

  In the Esthonian Kalevipoeg we read of two giants who lay down to sleep on opposite sides of the table after eating a big supper of thick peas-soup. An unfortunate man was hidden under the table, and the consequence was that he was blown backwards and forwards between them all night.

  History of the Bhang-Eater and His Wife (p-209).

  Selling a bull or a cow in the manner described is a familiar incident in folk-lore; and in Rivičre’s “Contes Populaires Kabyles” we find a variant of the present story under the title of “L’Idiot et le Coucou.” In another form, the cow or other article is exchanged for some worthless, or apparently worthless, commodity, as in Jack and the Bean-stalk; Hans im Glück; or as in the case of Moses in the Vicar of Wakefield. The incident of the fool finding a treasure occurs in Cazotte’s story of Xailoun.642

  How Drummer Abu Kasim Became a Kazi (p-212).

  I have heard an anecdote of a man who was sued for the value of a bond which he had given payable one day after the day of judgment. The judge ruled, “This is the day of judgment, and I order that the bill must be paid to-morrow!”

  Story of the Kazi and His Slipper (p-215).

  This story is well known in Europe, though not as forming part of The Nights. Mr. W. A. Clouston informs me that it first appeared in Cardonne’s “Mélanges de littérature orientale” (Paris, 1770). Cf. Nights x. App. p and 512.

  History of the Third Larrikin (p-297).

  Such mistakes must be very frequent. I remember once seeing a maid stoop down with a jug in her hand, when she knocked her head against the table. Some one sitting by, thinking it was the jug, observed, “Never mind, there’s nothing in it.”

  Another time I was driving out in the country with a large party, and our host got out to walk across to another point. Presently he was missed, and they inquired, “Where is he?” There was a dog lying in the carriage, and one of the party looked round, and not seeing the dog, responded, “Why, where is the dog?”

  Tale of the Fisherman and His Son (p-329).

  The present story, though not very important in itself, is interesting as combining some of the features of three distinct classes of folk-tales. One of these is the anti-Jewish series, of which Grimm’s story of the Jew in the Bramble-Bush is one of the most typical examples. According to these tales, any villany is justifiable, if perpetrated on a Jew. We find traces of this feeling even in Shakspeare, and to this day Shylock (notwithstanding the grievous wrongs which he had suffered at the hands of Christians) rarely gets much sympathy f
rom modern readers, who quite overlook all the extenuating circumstances in his case.643 Nor do we always find the Jew famous for ‘cuteness in folk-tales. This phase of his reputation is comparatively modern, and in the time of Horace, “Credat Judćus” was a Roman proverb, which means, freely translated, “Nobody would be fool enough to believe it except a Jew.”

  The present story combines the features of the anti-Jewish tales, the Alaeddin series, and the Grateful Beasts series. (Compare Mr. W. A. Clouston’s remarks on Aladdin, Supp. Nights, App. iii., p-581; and also his “Tales and Popular Fictions.”)

  In vol. 53 of the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (1884, p-39) I find a Nicobar story which relates how Tiomberombi received a magic mirror from a snake whose enemy he had killed. Its slaves obeyed all his orders if he only put the key into the keyhole, but he was not allowed to open the mirror, as he was too weak to face the spirits openly. He dwelt on an island, but when a hostile fleet came against him, the gunners could not hit it, as the island became invisible. The hostile chief sent an old woman to worm the secret out of Tiomberombi’s wife; the mirror was stolen, and Tiomberombi and his wife were carried off. On reaching land, Tiomberombi was thrown into prison, but he persuaded the rats to fetch him the mirror.644 He destroyed his enemies, went home, and re-established himself on his island, warning his wife and mother not to repeat what had happened, lest the island should sink. They told the story while he was eating; the island sank into the sea, and they were all drowned.

  The History of Abu Niyyah and Abu Niyyatayn (p-352).

  This story combines features which we find separately in Nos. 3b (ba); 162 and 198. The first story, the Envier and the Envied, is very common in folk-lore, and has been sometimes used in modern fairy-tales. The reader will remember the Tailor and the Shoemaker in Hans Christian Andersen’s “Eventyr.” Frequently, as in the latter story, the good man, instead of being thrown into a well, is blinded by the villain, and abandoned in a forest, where he afterwards recovers his sight. One of the most curious forms of this story is the Samoghitian

  Truth and Injustice.645