by abc
his head very low, but did not rise.
"Sire," he said to the Sultan, "I cannot rise and do you
the reverence that I am sure should be paid to your rank."
"Sir," answered the Sultan, "I am sure you have a good reason
for not doing so, and having heard your cry of distress, I am come
to offer you my help. Whose is this palace, and why is it thus empty?"
Instead of answering the young man lifted up his robe, and showed
the Sultan that, from the waist downwards, he was a block of black marble.
The Sultan was horrified, and begged the young man to tell him
his story.
"Willingly I will tell you my sad history," said the young man.
The Story of the Young King of the Black Isles
You must know, sire, that my father was Mahmoud, the king of this
country, the Black Isles, so called from the four little mountains
which were once islands, while the capital was the place where now
the great lake lies. My story will tell you how these changes came about.
My father died when he was sixty-six, and I succeeded him.
I married my cousin, whom I loved tenderly, and I thought she loved
me too.
But one afternoon, when I was half asleep, and was being fanned
by two of her maids, I heard one say to the other, "What a pity it
is that our mistress no longer loves our master! I believe she
would like to kill him if she could, for she is an enchantress."
I soon found by watching that they were right, and when I
mortally wounded a favourite slave of hers for a great crime,
she begged that she might build a palace in the garden, where she
wept and bewailed him for two years.
At last I begged her to cease grieving for him, for although he could
not speak or move, by her enchantments she just kept him alive.
She turned upon me in a rage, and said over me some magic words,
and I instantly became as you see me now, half man and half marble.
Then this wicked enchantress changed the capital, which was
a very populous and flourishing city, into the lake and desert
plain you saw. The fish of four colours which are in it are
the different races who lived in the town; the four hills are
the four islands which give the name to my kingdom. All this the
enchantress told me to add to my troubles. And this is not all.
Every day she comes and beats me with a whip of buffalo hide.
When the young king had finished his sad story he burst once more
into tears, and the Sultan was much moved.
"Tell me," he cried, "where is this wicked woman, and where is
the miserable object of her affection, whom she just manages
to keep alive?"
"Where she lives I do not know," answered the unhappy prince,
"but she goes every day at sunrise to see if the slave can yet speak
to her, after she has beaten me."
"Unfortunate king," said the Sultan, "I will do what I can
to avenge you."
So he consulted with the young king over the best way to bring
this about, and they agreed their plan should be put in effect
the next day. The Sultan then rested, and the young king gave
himself up to happy hopes of release. The next day the Sultan arose,
and then went to the palace in the garden where the black slave was.
He drew his sword and destroyed the little life that remained in him,
and then threw the body down a well. He then lay down on the couch
where the slave had been, and waited for the enchantress.
She went first to the young king, whom she beat with a hundred blows.
Then she came to the room where she thought her wounded slave was,
but where the Sultan really lay.
She came near his couch and said, "Are you better to-day,
my dear slave? Speak but one word to me."
"How can I be better," answered the Sultan, imitating the language
of the Ethiopians, "when I can never sleep for the cries and groans
of your husband?"
"What joy to hear you speak!" answered the queen. "Do you wish
him to regain his proper shape?"
"Yes," said the Sultan; "hasten to set him at liberty, so that I
may no longer hear his cries."
The queen at once went out and took a cup of water, and said
over it some words that made it boil as if it were on the fire.
Then she threw it over the prince, who at once regained his own form.
He was filled with joy, but the enchantress said, "Hasten away from
this place and never come back, lest I kill you."
So he hid himself to see the end of the Sultan's plan.
The enchantress went back to the Palace of Tears and said,
"Now I have done what you wished."
"What you have done," said the Sultan, "is not enough to cure me.
Every day at midnight all the people whom you have changed into fish
lift their heads out of the lake and cry for vengeance. Go quickly,
and give them their proper shape."
The enchantress hurried away and said some words over the lake.
The fish then became men, women, and children, and the houses
and shops were once more filled. The Sultan's suite, who had
encamped by the lake, were not a little astonished to see themselves
in the middle of a large and beautiful town.
As soon as she had disenchanted it the queen went back to the palace.
"Are you quite well now?" she said.
"Come near," said the Sultan. "Nearer still."
She obeyed. Then he sprang up, and with one blow of his sword he
cut her in two.
Then he went and found the prince.
"Rejoice," he said, "your cruel enemy is dead."
The prince thanked him again and again.
"And now," said the Sultan. "I will go back to my capital,
which I am glad to find is so near yours."
"So near mine!" said the King of the Black Isles.
"Do you know it is a whole year's journey from here? You came
here in a few hours because it was enchanted. But I will accompany
you on your journey."
"It will give me much pleasure if you will escort me," said the Sultan,
"and as I have no children, I will make you my heir."
The Sultan and the prince set out together, the Sultan laden
with rich presents from the King of the Black Isles.
The day after he reached his capital the Sultan assembled his court
and told them all that had befallen him, and told them how he
intended to adopt the young king as his heir.
Then he gave each man presents in proportion to his rank.
As for the fisherman, as he was the first cause of the deliverance
of the young prince, the Sultan gave him much money, and made him
and his family happy for the rest of their days.
Story of the Three Calenders, Sons of Kings, and of Five Ladies
of Bagdad
In the reign of the Caliph Haroun-al-Raschid, there lived at Bagdad
a porter who, in spite of his humble calling, was an intelligent
and sensible man. One morning he was sitting in his usual place with
his basket before him, waiting to be hired, when a tall young lady,
covered with a long muslin veil, came up to him and said, "Pick up
your basket and follow me." The porter, who was greatly pleased
by her appearance and voice, jumped up at once, p
oised his basket
on his head, and accompanied the lady, saying to himself as he went,
"Oh, happy day! Oh, lucky meeting!"
The lady soon stopped before a closed door, at which she knocked.
It was opened by an old man with a long white beard, to whom
the lady held out money without speaking. The old man, who seemed
to understand what she wanted, vanished into the house, and returned
bringing a large jar of wine, which the porter placed in his basket.
Then the lady signed to him to follow, and they went their way.
The next place she stopped at was a fruit and flower shop, and here she
bought a large quantity of apples, apricots, peaches, and other things,
with lilies, jasmine, and all sorts of sweet-smelling plants.
From this shop she went to a butcher's, a grocer's, and a poulterer's,
till at last the porter exclaimed in despair, "My good lady,
if you had only told me you were going to buy enough provisions
to stock a town, I would have brought a horse, or rather a camel."
The lady laughed, and told him she had not finished yet, but after
choosing various kinds of scents and spices from a druggist's store,
she halted before a magnificent palace, at the door of which
she knocked gently. The porteress who opened it was of such
beauty that the eyes of the man were quite dazzled, and he was
the more astonished as he saw clearly that she was no slave.
The lady who had led him hither stood watching him with amusement,
till the porteress exclaimed, "Why don't you come in, my sister?
This poor man is so heavily weighed down that he is ready to drop."
When they were both inside the door was fastened, and they all
three entered a large court, surrounded by an open-work gallery.
At one end of the court was a platform, and on the platform stood
an amber throne supported by four ebony columns, garnished with
pearls and diamonds. In the middle of the court stood a marble
basin filled with water from the mouth of a golden lion.
The porter looked about him, noticing and admiring everything;
but his attention was specially attracted by a third lady sitting
on the throne, who was even more beautiful than the other two.
By the respect shown to her by the others, he judged that she must be
the eldest, and in this he was right. This lady's name was Zobeida,
the porteress was Sadie, and the housekeeper was Amina. At a word
from Zobeida, Sadie and Amina took the basket from the porter,
who was glad enough to be relieved from its weight; and when it
was emptied, paid him handsomely for its use. But instead of taking
up his basket and going away, the man still lingered, till Zobeida
inquired what he was waiting for, and if he expected more money.
"Oh, madam," returned he, "you have already given me too much,
and I fear I may have been guilty of rudeness in not taking my
departure at once. But, if you will pardon my saying so, I was lost
in astonishment at seeing such beautiful ladies by themselves. A
company of women without men is, however, as dull as a company of men
without women." And after telling some stories to prove his point,
he ended by entreating them to let him stay and make a fourth at
their dinner.
The ladies were rather amused at the man's assurances and after
some discussion it was agreed that he should be allowed to stay,
as his society might prove entertaining. "But listen, friend,"
said Zobeida, "if we grant your request, it is only on condition
that you behave with the utmost politeness, and that you keep the
secret of our way of living, which chance has revealed to you."
Then they all sat down to table, which had been covered by Amina
with the dishes she had bought.
After the first few mouthfuls Amina poured some wine into a golden cup.
She first drank herself, according to the Arab custom, and then
filled it for her sisters. When it came to the porter's turn he
kissed Amina's hand, and sang a song, which he composed at the moment
in praise of the wine. The three ladies were pleased with the song,
and then sang themselves, so that the repast was a merry one,
and lasted much longer than usual.
At length, seeing that the sun was about to set, Sadia said
to the porter, "Rise and go; it is now time for us to separate."
"Oh, madam," replied he, "how can you desire me to quit you in
the state in which I am? Between the wine I have drunk, and the
pleasure of seeing you, I should never find the way to my house.
Let me remain here till morning, and when I have recovered my senses
I will go when you like."
"Let him stay," said Amina, who had before proved herself his friend.
"It is only just, as he has given us so much amusement."
"If you wish it, my sister," replied Zobeida; "but if he does,
I must make a new condition. Porter," she continued, turning to him,
"if you remain, you must promise to ask no questions about anything
you may see. If you do, you may perhaps hear what you don't like."
This being settled, Amina brought in supper, and lit up the hall with a
number of sweet smelling tapers. They then sat down again at the table,
and began with fresh appetites to eat, drink, sing, and recite verses.
In fact, they were all enjoying themselves mightily when they heard
a knock at the outer door, which Sadie rose to open. She soon
returned saying that three Calenders, all blind in the right eye,
and all with their heads, faces, and eyebrows clean shaved,
begged for admittance, as they were newly arrived in Bagdad,
and night had already fallen. "They seem to have pleasant manners,"
she added, "but you have no idea how funny they look. I am sure
we should find their company diverting."
Zobeida and Amina made some difficulty about admitting the new comers,
and Sadie knew the reason of their hesitation. But she urged
the matter so strongly that Zobeida was at last forced to consent.
"Bring them in, then," said she, "but make them understand that
they are not to make remarks about what does not concern them,
and be sure to make them read the inscription over the door."
For on the door was written in letters of gold, "Whoso meddles in
affairs that are no business of his, will hear truths that will not
please him."
The three Calenders bowed low on entering, and thanked the ladies
for their kindness and hospitality. The ladies replied with words
of welcome, and they were all about to seat themselves when the eyes
of the Calenders fell on the porter, whose dress was not so very unlike
their own, though he still wore all the hair that nature had given him.
"This," said one of them, "is apparently one of our Arab brothers,
who has rebelled against our ruler."
The porter, although half asleep from the wine he had drunk,
heard the words, and without moving cried angrily to the Calender,
"Sit down and mind your own business. Did you not read the inscription
over the door? Everybody is not obliged to live in the same way."
"Do not be so angry, my good man," replied the Calender; "we should
be very sorry to dis
please you;" so the quarrel was smoothed over,
and supper began in good earnest. When the Calenders had satisfied
their hunger, they offered to play to their hostesses, if there were
any instruments in the house. The ladies were delighted at the idea,
and Sadie went to see what she could find, returning in a few
moments laden with two different kinds of flutes and a tambourine.
Each Calender took the one he preferred, and began to play
a well-known air, while the ladies sang the words of the song.
These words were the gayest and liveliest possible, and every now
and then the singers had to stop to indulge the laughter which almost
choked them. In the midst of all their noise, a knock was heard
at the door.
Now early that evening the Caliph secretly left the palace,
accompanied by his grand-vizir, Giafar, and Mesrour, chief of the eunuchs,
all three wearing the dresses of merchants. Passing down the street,
the Caliph had been attracted by the music of instruments and the sound
of laughter, and had ordered his vizir to go and knock at the door
of the house, as he wished to enter. The vizir replied that the ladies
who lived there seemed to be entertaining their friends, and he thought
his master would do well not to intrude on them; but the Caliph had
taken it into his head to see for himself, and insisted on being obeyed.
The knock was answered by Sadie, with a taper in her hand,
and the vizir, who was surprised at her beauty, bowed low before her,
and said respectfully, "Madam, we are three merchants who have