Arabian Nights

by abc

  "What is the matter, that you have sent for me like this?"

  "A pain in my heart," she replied hastily, "obliged me to seek

  the aid of this little bottle. Feeling faint, I slipped and fell

  against the talisman, which broke. That is really all."

  "You are an impudent liar!" cried the genius. "How did this hatchet

  and those shoes get here?"

  "I never saw them before," she answered, "and you came in such

  a hurry that you may have picked them up on the road without

  knowing it." To this the genius only replied by insults and blows.

  I could hear the shrieks and groans of the princess, and having

  by this time taken off my rich garments and put on those in which I

  had arrived the previous day, I lifted the trap, found myself

  once more in the forest, and returned to my friend the tailor,

  with a light load of wood and a heart full of shame and sorrow.

  The tailor, who had been uneasy at my long absence, was, delighted to

  see me; but I kept silence about my adventure, and as soon as

  possible retired to my room to lament in secret over my folly.

  While I was thus indulging my grief my host entered, and said,

  "There is an old man downstairs who has brought your hatchet

  and slippers, which he picked up on the road, and now restores

  to you, as he found out from one of your comrades where you lived.

  You had better come down and speak to him yourself." At this

  speech I changed colour, and my legs trembled under me. The tailor

  noticed my confusion, and was just going to inquire the reason

  when the door of the room opened, and the old man appeared,

  carrying with him my hatchet and shoes.

  "I am a genius," he said, "the son of the daughter of Eblis,

  prince of the genii. Is not this hatchet yours, and these shoes?"

  Without waiting for an answer--which, indeed, I could hardly

  have given him, so great was my fright--he seized hold of me,

  and darted up into the air with the quickness of lightning,

  and then, with equal swiftness, dropped down towards the earth.

  When he touched the ground, he rapped it with his foot; it opened,

  and we found ourselves in the enchanted palace, in the presence

  of the beautiful princess of the Ebony Isle. But how different she

  looked from what she was when I had last seen her, for she was lying

  stretched on the ground covered with blood, and weeping bitterly.

  "Traitress!" cried the genius, "is not this man your lover?"

  She lifted up her eyes slowly, and looked sadly at me. "I never

  saw him before," she answered slowly. "I do not know who he is."

  "What!" exclaimed the genius, "you owe all your sufferings to him,

  and yet you dare to say he is a stranger to you!"

  "But if he really is a stranger to me," she replied, "why should I

  tell a lie and cause his death?"

  "Very well," said the genius, drawing his sword, "take this,

  and cut off his head."

  "Alas," answered the princess, "I am too weak even to hold the sabre.

  And supposing that I had the strength, why should I put an innocent

  man to death?"

  "You condemn yourself by your refusal," said the genius; then turning

  to me, he added, "and you, do you not know her?"

  "How should I?" I replied, resolved to imitate the princess

  in her fidelity. "How should I, when I never saw her before?"

  "Cut her head off," then, "if she is a stranger to you, and I shall

  believe you are speaking the truth, and will set you at liberty."

  "Certainly," I answered, taking the sabre in my hands, and making

  a sign to the princess to fear nothing, as it was my own life that I

  was about to sacrifice, and not hers. But the look of gratitude

  she gave me shook my courage, and I flung the sabre to the earth.

  "I should not deserve to live," I said to the genius, "if I were

  such a coward as to slay a lady who is not only unknown to me,

  but who is at this moment half dead herself. Do with me as you will--

  I am in your power--but I refuse to obey your cruel command."

  "I see," said the genius, "that you have both made up your minds

  to brave me, but I will give you a sample of what you may expect."

  So saying, with one sweep of his sabre he cut off a hand of the princess,

  who was just able to lift the other to wave me an eternal farewell.

  Then I lost consciousness for several minutes.

  When I came to myself I implored the genius to keep me no longer

  in this state of suspense, but to lose no time in putting an end to

  my sufferings. The genius, however, paid no attention to my prayers,

  but said sternly, "That is the way in which a genius treats the woman

  who has betrayed him. If I chose, I could kill you also; but I

  will be merciful, and content myself with changing you into a dog,

  an ass, a lion, or a bird--whichever you prefer."

  I caught eagerly at these words, as giving me a faint hope

  of softening his wrath. "O genius!" I cried, "as you wish

  to spare my life, be generous, and spare it altogether.

  Grant my prayer, and pardon my crime, as the best man in the whole

  world forgave his neighbour who was eaten up with envy of him."

  Contrary to my hopes, the genius seemed interested in my words,

  and said he would like to hear the story of the two neighbours;

  and as I think, madam, it may please you, I will tell it to you also.

  The Story of the Envious Man and of Him Who Was Envied

  In a town of moderate size, two men lived in neighbouring houses;

  but they had not been there very long before one man took such a

  hatred of the other, and envied him so bitterly, that the poor man

  determined to find another home, hoping that when they no longer

  met every day his enemy would forget all about him. So he sold

  his house and the little furniture it contained, and moved into

  the capital of the country, which was luckily at no great distance.

  About half a mile from this city he bought a nice little place,

  with a large garden and a fair-sized court, in the centre of which

  stood an old well.

  In order to live a quieter life, the good man put on the robe

  of a dervish, and divided his house into a quantity of small cells,

  where he soon established a number of other dervishes.

  The fame of his virtue gradually spread abroad, and many people,

  including several of the highest quality, came to visit him and ask

  his prayers.

  Of course it was not long before his reputation reached the ears of

  the man who envied him, and this wicked wretch resolved never to rest

  till he had in some way worked ill to the dervish whom he hated.

  So he left his house and his business to look after themselves,

  and betook himself to the new dervish monastery, where he was

  welcomed by the founder with all the warmth imaginable. The excuse

  he gave for his appearance was that he had come to consult the

  chief of the dervishes on a private matter of great importance.

  "What I have to say must not be overheard," he whispered;

  "command, I beg of you, that your dervishes retire into their cells,

  as night is approaching, and meet me in the court."

  The dervish did as he was asked without delay, and directly
they

  were alone together the envious man began to tell a long story,

  edging, as they walked to and fro, always nearer to the well, and when

  they were quite close, he seized the dervish and dropped him in.

  He then ran off triumphantly, without having been seen by anyone,

  and congratulating himself that the object of his hatred was dead,

  and would trouble him no more.

  But in this he was mistaken! The old well had long been inhabited

  (unknown to mere human beings) by a set of fairies and genii,

  who caught the dervish as he fell, so that he received no hurt.

  The dervish himself could see nothing, but he took for granted that

  something strange had happened, or he must certainly have been dashed

  against the side of the well and been killed. He lay quite still,

  and in a moment he heard a voice saying, "Can you guess whom this man

  is that we have saved from death?"

  "No," replied several other voices.

  And the first speaker answered, "I will tell you. This man,

  from pure goodness of heart, forsook the town where he lived and

  came to dwell here, in the hope of curing one of his neighbours

  of the envy he felt towards him. But his character soon won him

  the esteem of all, and the envious man's hatred grew, till he

  came here with the deliberate intention of causing his death.

  And this he would have done, without our help, the very day before

  the Sultan has arranged to visit this holy dervish, and to entreat

  his prayers for the princess, his daughter."

  "But what is the matter with the princess that she needs

  the dervish's prayers?" asked another voice.

  "She has fallen into the power of the genius Maimoum, the son of Dimdim,"

  replied the first voice. "But it would be quite simple for this

  holy chief of the dervishes to cure her if he only knew! In his

  convent there is a black cat which has a tiny white tip to its tail.

  Now to cure the princess the dervish must pull out seven of these

  white hairs, burn three, and with their smoke perfume the head

  of the princess. This will deliver her so completely that Maimoum,

  the son of Dimdim, will never dare to approach her again."

  The fairies and genii ceased talking, but the dervish did not forget

  a word of all they had said; and when morning came he perceived

  a place in the side of the well which was broken, and where he

  could easily climb out.

  The dervishes, who could not imagine what had become of him,

  were enchanted at his reappearance. He told them of the attempt on

  his life made by his guest of the previous day, and then retired into

  his cell. He was soon joined here by the black cat of which the voice

  had spoken, who came as usual to say good-morning to his master.

  He took him on his knee and seized the opportunity to pull seven

  white hairs out of his tail, and put them on one side till they

  were needed.

  The sun had not long risen before the Sultan, who was anxious

  to leave nothing undone that might deliver the princess,

  arrived with a large suite at the gate of the monastery,

  and was received by the dervishes with profound respect.

  The Sultan lost no time in declaring the object of his visit,

  and leading the chief of the dervishes aside, he said to him,

  "Noble scheik, you have guessed perhaps what I have come to ask you?"

  "Yes, sire," answered the dervish; "if I am not mistaken, it is

  the illness of the princess which has procured me this honour."

  "You are right," returned the Sultan, "and you will give me fresh

  life if you can by your prayers deliver my daughter from the strange

  malady that has taken possession of her."

  "Let your highness command her to come here, and I will see what I

  can do."

  The Sultan, full of hope, sent orders at once that the princess

  was to set out as soon as possible, accompanied by her usual staff

  of attendants. When she arrived, she was so thickly veiled that

  the dervish could not see her face, but he desired a brazier to be

  held over her head, and laid the seven hairs on the burning coals.

  The instant they were consumed, terrific cries were heard,

  but no one could tell from whom they proceeded. Only the dervish

  guessed that they were uttered by Maimoum the son of Dimdim,

  who felt the princess escaping him.

  All this time she had seemed unconscious of what she was doing,

  but now she raised her hand to her veil and uncovered her face.

  "Where am I?" she said in a bewildered manner; "and how did I

  get here?"

  The Sultan was so delighted to hear these words that he not only

  embraced his daughter, but kissed the hand of the dervish.

  Then, turning to his attendants who stood round, he said to them,

  "What reward shall I give to the man who has restored me my daughter?"

  They all replied with one accord that he deserved the hand

  of the princess.

  "That is my own opinion," said he, "and from this moment I declare

  him to be my son-in-law."

  Shortly after these events, the grand-vizir died, and his post

  was given to the dervish. But he did not hold it for long, for the

  Sultan fell a victim to an attack of illness, and as he had no sons,

  the soldiers and priests declared the dervish heir to the throne,

  to the great joy of all the people.

  One day, when the dervish, who had now become Sultan, was making

  a royal progress with his court, he perceived the envious man standing

  in the crowd. He made a sign to one of his vizirs, and whispered in

  his ear, "Fetch me that man who is standing out there, but take great

  care not to frighten him." The vizir obeyed, and when the envious man

  was brought before the Sultan, the monarch said to him, "My friend,

  I am delighted to see you again." Then turning to an officer,

  he added, "Give him a thousand pieces of gold out of my treasury,

  and twenty waggon-loads of merchandise out of my private stores,

  and let an escort of soldiers accompany him home." He then took

  leave of the envious man, and went on his way.

  Now when I had ended my story, I proceeded to show the genius

  how to apply it to himself. "O genius," I said, "you see that this

  Sultan was not content with merely forgiving the envious man

  for the attempt on his life; he heaped rewards and riches upon him."

  But the genius had made up his mind, and could not be softened.

  "Do not imagine that you are going to escape so easily," he said.

  "All I can do is to give you bare life; you will have to learn what

  happens to people who interfere with me."

  As he spoke he seized me violently by the arm; the roof of the palace

  opened to make way for us, and we mounted up so high into the air

  that the earth looked like a little cloud. Then, as before,

  he came down with the swiftness of lightning, and we touched

  the ground on a mountain top.

  Then he stooped and gathered a handful of earth, and murmured some

  words over it, after which he threw the earth in my face, saying as

  he did so, "Quit the form of a man, and assume that of a monkey."

  This done, he vanished, and I was in the likeness of an
ape,

  and in a country I had never seen before.

  However there was no use in stopping where I was, so I came down

  the mountain and found myself in a flat plain which was bounded

  by the sea. I travelled towards it, and was pleased to see a

  vessel moored about half a mile from shore. There were no waves,

  so I broke off the branch of a tree, and dragging it down to the

  waters edge, sat across it, while, using two sticks for oars,

  I rowed myself towards the ship.

  The deck was full of people, who watched my progress with interest,

  but when I seized a rope and swung myself on board, I found that I

  had only escaped death at the hands of the genius to perish

  by those of the sailors, lest I should bring ill-luck to the

  vessel and the merchants. "Throw him into the sea!" cried one.

  "Knock him on the head with a hammer," exclaimed another. "Let me

  shoot him with an arrow," said a third; and certainly somebody

  would have had his way if I had not flung myself at the captain's

  feet and grasped tight hold of his dress. He appeared touched

  by my action and patted my head, and declared that he would take

  me under his protection, and that no one should do me any harm.

  At the end of about fifty days we cast anchor before a large town,

  and the ship was immediately surrounded by a multitude of small

  boats filled with people, who had come either to meet their friends

  or from simple curiosity. Among others, one boat contained several

  officials, who asked to see the merchants on board, and informed

  them that they had been sent by the Sultan in token of welcome,

  and to beg them each to write a few lines on a roll of paper.

  "In order to explain this strange request," continued the officers,