by Muhsin Mahdi
It happened that the hunchback was the favorite clown of the king of China, who could not bear to be without him even for the batting of an eye, so that when the hunchback got drunk and failed to make his appearance that night …
But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said, “Sister, what a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”
THE ONE HUNDRED AND NINTH NIGHT
The following night Shahrazad said:
I heard, O happy King, that when the hunchback got drunk and failed to make his appearance before the king that night, and when the king waited for him in vain the next day until it was close to noon, he at last inquired about him from one of those present, who replied, “I heard, O King, that the chief of the police found a dead hunchback and caught his murderer. But when he was about to hang him, a second and a third man came forward, and each claimed to be the murderer. They are still there, each telling the chief how the hunchback died.” When the king of China heard these words, he called out to one of his chamberlains, saying, “Go down and bring me everyone, the chief, the murdered man, and the murderers.” The chamberlain went down at once and arrived just when the hangman had put the rope around the tailor’s neck and was about to hoist him up. He cried out to the hangman, “Stop!” and, turning to the chief, relayed to him the king’s order. The chief took the tailor, the Jew, the steward, and the Christian, together with the hunchback, carried on a litter, and brought them all before the king. He kissed the ground before him and related to him their adventures with the hunchback, from beginning to end. When the king of China heard the story, he was very much amazed and moved to mirth, and he ordered that the story be recorded, saying to those around him, “Have you ever heard anything more amazing than the adventure of the hunchback?” The Christian broker came forward and, kissing the ground before the king, said, “O King of the age, with your leave, I will tell you a more amazing story that happened to myself, a story that will make even the stone weep.” The king replied, “Tell us your story.” The Christian said:
5. Waxy substance secreted by the intestinal tract of the sperm whale, often found floating in the sea, and used in the manufacture of perfume.
6. Pre-Islamic hero, and author of one of the Arabic Golden Odes.
[The Christian Broker’s Tale: The Young Man with the Severed Hand and the Girl]
O KING, I came as a stranger to your country, bringing merchandise with me, and was fated to stay here these many years. I was born a Copt,7 a native of Cairo. My father was a prominent broker, and when he died, I became a broker in his place and worked there for many years. One day, as I was sitting in the market of the fodder merchants in Cairo, a handsome and finely dressed young man, riding a tall ass, came up to me. He saluted me, and I rose in salute. Then he took out a handkerchief containing sesame and asked me, “How much is the measure worth?”
But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said, “Sister, what a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”
THE ONE HUNDRED AND TENTH NIGHT
The following night Shahrazad said:
I heard, O happy King, that the Christian broker said to the king of China:
O King of the age, I replied to the young man, “It is worth a hundred dirhams.” He said, “Take a measurer and some porters and come to the al-Jawli Caravansary,8 by the Gate of Victory, where you will find me.” I rose and went to find a buyer, making the rounds of the sesame merchants, confectioners, and fodder dealers, and got one hundred dirhams per measure. Then I took with me four teams of porters and went with them to the al-Jawli Caravansary, where I found the young man waiting for me. As soon as he saw me, he rose and led me to the storeroom, saying, “Let the measurer enter to measure, while the porters load the donkeys.” The porters kept loading, one team coming and one team going, until they emptied the storeroom, carrying fifty measures in all, costing five thousand dirhams. Then the young man said to me, “Take ten dirhams per measure for your brokerage, and keep my share of four thousand and five hundred dirhams with you. When I finish selling the rest of my crop, I will come to you and take the money.” I replied, “Very well,” kissed his hand, and departed, surprised at his liberality.
For a month I sat waiting for him until he finally came and asked, “Where is the money?” I welcomed him and invited him to sit with me and have something to eat, but he refused and said, “Go and get the money, and in a little while I will come back to take it from you.” Then he departed on assback, while I went and brought the money and sat waiting for him. But again he did not show up for a month, and I said to myself, “This is indeed a liberal young man. He has left four thousand and five hundred dirhams of his money with me, for two full months, without coming to take it.” At last he came back, riding an ass, dressed in fine clothes, and looking as if he had just come from the bath.
But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said, “What a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”
THE ONE HUNDRED AND ELEVENTH NIGHT
The following night Shahrazad said:
I heard, O happy King, that the Christian broker said to the king of China:
The young man looked as if he had just come from the bath. When I saw him, I left the shop and went up to him, saying, “Sir, will you take your money back?” He replied, “What is the hurry? Wait until I sell the rest of my crop. Then I’ll take it from you, next week.” When he left, I said to myself, “When he comes back next time, I will invite him to eat with me.”
He was absent for the rest of the year, during which I used his money, trading with it and making a great deal of profit. At the end of the year, he came back again, dressed in fine clothes. When I saw him, I went up to him and swore by the New Testament that he must eat with me as my guest. He agreed, saying, “On condition that what you spend on me will be from my own money.” I replied, “Very well.” Then I went in, prepared the place for him and seated him. Then I went to the market and, getting enough of beverages, stuffed chickens, and sweets, set them before him, saying, “Please help yourself.” He came to the table and began to eat with his left hand.9 I said to myself, “Only God is perfect. Here is a young man who is handsome and respectable yet so conceited that he does not bother to use his right hand in eating with me.” But I ate with him.
But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said, “What a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”
THE ONE HUNDRED AND TWELFTH NIGHT
The following night Shahrazad said:
I heard, O happy King, that the Christian broker said to the king of China:
When we finished eating, I poured water on his hand and gave him something to wipe it with, and after I offered him some sweets, we sat to chat. I asked him, “Sir, relieve my mind by telling me why you ate with me with your left hand? Does something ail your right hand?” When the young man heard my question, he wept and recited the following verses:
If Leyla1 I have for Selma exchanged,
’Twas not at will but by necessity.
Then he drew his right arm from his bosom and showed it to me. It was a stump, with the hand cut off at the wrist. I was astonished at this, and he said to me, “Don’t wonder and say to yourself that I am conceited and have eaten with my left hand out of conceit. There is a strange story behind the cutting off of my hand.” I asked, “How came it to be cut off?” Sighing and weeping, he said:
I was a native of Baghdad and the son of one of its most prominent men. When I reached manhood, I
heard travelers and other people tell of the land of Egypt, and it stayed in my mind. When my father died and I inherited his business, I prepared a load of merchandise, taking with me all kinds of fabrics of Baghdad and Mosul, including a thousand silk cloaks. Then I left Baghdad and journeyed until I reached Egypt. When I entered Cairo, I unloaded at the Masrur Caravansary, where I unpacked the goods and stored them in the storerooms. Then I gave one of my servants money to prepare some food, and after I and my servants ate and I took a rest, I went out for a walk along Bain al-Qasrain Street and then came back and slept. When I arose, I opened the bales of fabric and said to myself, “I will go to some good market and find out the prices.” I took samples and, giving them to one of my servants to carry, put on my finest clothes and walked out until I came to the Jerjes Market. When I entered, I was met by the brokers, who had already heard of my arrival. They took my fabrics and auctioned them, but the pieces failed to fetch even their cost. I was vexed and said to the brokers, “My pieces did not fetch even their cost.” But they replied, “Sir, we can tell you how you can make a profit without risk.”
But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said, “Sister, what a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”
THE ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTEENTH NIGHT
The following night Shahrazad said:
I heard, O happy King, that the Christian broker told the king of China that the young man said:
The brokers said, “We can tell you how you can make a profit without risk. You should do what the other merchants do and sell your goods on credit for a fixed period, on a contract drawn by a scribe and duly witnessed, employ a money changer, and collect your money, every Monday and Thursday. In this way you will make a profit, while you spend your own time enjoying the sights of Cairo and the Nile.” I said, “This is a good idea,” and took the brokers and the porters with me to the caravansary, where I took out the bales of fabric, and they carried them and went with me to the market, where I sold them on credit, on a written and duly witnessed contract “which I left with the banker. Then I left the market and returned to the caravansary.
I lived there, breakfasting every morning on a cup of wine, mutton, pigeons, and sweets, until a month went by, and the time came when my receipts began to fall due. Then I began to go to the market every Monday and Thursday and sit in the shop of one or other of the merchants, while the scribe and money changer went around to collect the money till past the afternoon prayer, when they would bring it, and I would count it and give them a receipt for it and take it and return to the caravansary.
I did this for six days, until one day, which happened to be a Monday, I went early to the bath. When I came out, I put on nice clothes and returned to my place in the caravansary, where I breakfasted on a cup of wine and then went to sleep. Then I arose, ate a boiled chicken and, perfuming myself, went to the market and sat at the shop of a merchant called Badr al-Din al-Bustani. We sat chatting for a while, when a lady, wearing a cloak and a magnificent headcloth and exhaling perfume, came up to the shop, and her beauty at once captured my heart. She saluted Badr al-Din, raising her upper veil and revealing a pair of large black eyes. He welcomed her and stood talking with her, and when I heard her speech, the love of her got hold of my heart, and I felt a sense of foreboding. Then she asked him, “Do you have a piece of silk fabric with hunting scenes?” He showed her one of the pieces he had gotten from me, and she bought it for one thousand and two hundred dirhams. Then she said to him, “With your permission, I will take it with me and send you the money next market day.” He replied, “This is not possible, my lady, for this gentleman is the owner of the piece, and I have to pay him for it today.” She said, “Shame on you, haven’t I been buying much from you at whatever profit you wished, taking the fabric from you and sending you the money afterwards?” Badr al-Din replied, “Yes, indeed, but this time, I need the money today.” She threw the piece of fabric back into the shop and said angrily, “You merchants don’t respect anyone. May God blight you all.” Then she turned to go.
But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said, “O sister, what a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”
THE ONE HUNDRED AND FOURTEENTH NIGHT
The following night Shahrazad said:
I heard, O happy King, that the Christian broker told the king of China that the young man said:
When she threw the piece of fabric back into the shop and turned to go, I felt as if my soul was going with her and cried out to her, “For God’s sake, lady, do me a favor and come back.” She turned back, saying with a smile, “I am coming back for your sake,” and sat in the shop facing me. I asked Badr al-Din, “Sir, what was the price we set for this piece of fabric?” He replied, “One thousand and two hundred dirhams.” I said, “I will give you one hundred dirhams as a profit for it. Give me a piece of paper, and I will write you a discharge.” I wrote him a discharge, took the piece of fabric, and gave it to the lady, saying to her, “Take it, my lady, and if you wish, bring me the money next market day, or better yet, accept it as a present from me to you.” She replied, “May God reward you and grant you a larger share of riches and a longer life than mine.” (And the gates of Heaven opened and received Cairo’s prayers.) I said to her, “My lady, this piece of fabric is yours, and God willing, many like it, only let me see your face.” She turned her head and lifted her veil, and when I took one look, I sighed and lost my senses. Then she let down the veil and, taking the piece of fabric, said, “I will miss you,” and departed, while I remained in the shop till past the afternoon prayer, lost in another world. When I asked Badr al-Din about the girl, he said, “She is a lady of wealth, the daughter of a prince who died and left her a great fortune.” Then I took my leave of him and went to the caravansary, still thinking of her, and when they set supper before me, I could not eat, and when I lay down, I could not sleep but lay awake till dawn. Then I rose, changed my clothes and, swallowing something for breakfast, hurried to Badr al-Din’s shop.
But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said, “Sister, what a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, ‘What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”
THE ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTEENTH NIGHT
The following night Shahrazad said:
I heard, O happy King, that the Christian broker told the king of China that the young man said:
Hardly had I been in Badr al-Din’s shop, when the lady came up, followed by a maid, and more richly dressed than before. She greeted me, instead of Badr al-Din, and said to me, “Sir, let someone receive the money.” I said, “What is the hurry for the money?” She replied, “My dear, may I never lose you,” and handed me the money. Then we sat talking, and I dropped some hints, by which she understood that I desired to have an affair with her. She rose hastily and went away, taking my heart with her. I left the shop and walked in the market, when suddenly a black maid came up to me and said, “My lord, my lady wishes to speak with you.” I was surprised and said, “No one knows me here.” She said, “My lord, how soon you seem to have forgotten her! My lady is the one who was in the merchant’s shop today.”
I walked with her until we came to the lane of the moneychangers, and when the lady saw me, she drew me aside and said to me, “My dear, you have found a place in my heart, and from the day I first laid eyes on you, I have been unable to eat and drink.” I replied, “I feel the same, and my condition speaks for my plight.” She asked, “My dear, your place or mine?” I replied, “I am a stranger here and have no lodging but the caravansary.”
But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said, “Sister, what a strange and
entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”
THE ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTEENTH NIGHT
The following night Shahrazad said:
It is related, O happy King, that the Christian broker told the king of China that the young man said:
“I have no lodging but the caravansary. Do me a favor and let me come to your place.” She replied, “Very well, my lord. Tonight is Friday night, and nothing can be done, but tomorrow, after you perform the morning prayer, ride an ass and ask for the house of the syndic2 Barqut abu-Shamah, in the Habbaniya quarter, and do not delay, for I will be waiting for you.” I said, “Very well,” and I bade her good-bye.
I waited impatiently for morning, and as soon as it was daylight, I arose, put on my clothes, and perfumed myself. Then I took fifty dinars in a handkerchief and walked from the Masrur Caravansary to the Zuwayla Gate, where I hired an ass, bidding the driver take me to the Habbaniya quarter. He set off with me and in no time brought me to a side street called al-Taqwa Lane. I bade him go in and inquire about the house of the syndic Barqut, known as abu-Shamah, and he disappeared and soon returned and said, “Very well, dismount.” I dismounted and said to him, “Guide me to the house, so that you can find it when you return tomorrow to take me back to the Masrur Caravansary.” He took me to the house, and I gave him a quarter-dinar and bade him go.
I knocked at the gate, and there came out two little white maids who said, “Please come in, for our mistress, being overjoyed with you, was unable to sleep last night.” I walked through the hallway and came to a hall, raised seven steps above the ground and surrounded by windows, overlooking a garden that delighted the eye with running streams and all kinds of fruits and birds. In the middle of the hall there was a square fountain at whose corners stood four snakes made of red gold, spouting water, as if it were jewels and pearls.