Arabian Nights Anonymous Vol3

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his chin fall on his breast and looked where his feet fell, till
they brought him to the Khalif,[FN127] when he stood before him,
with head bowed down, and saluted him not neither spoke. So one
of the attendants said to him, O dog of the Arabs, what ails
thee that thou salutest not the Commander of the Faithful? The
youth turned to him angrily and replied, O packsaddle of an ass,
the length of the way it was that hindered me from this and the
steepness of the steps and sweat. Then said Hisham (and indeed
he was exceeding wroth), O boy, thou art come to thy last hour;
thy hope is gone from thee and thy life is past. By Allah, O
Hisham, answered the Arab, if the time[FN128] be prolonged and
its cutting short be not ordained of destiny, thy words irk me
not, be they much or little. Then said the (chief) chamberlain
to him, O vilest of the Arabs, what art thou to bandy words with
the Commander of the Faithful? He answered promptly, Mayest
thou meet with adversity and may woe and mourning never depart
from thee! Hast thou not heard the saying of God the Most
High? One day, every soul shall come to give an account of
itself. [FN129] At this, Hisham rose, in great wrath, and
said, O headsman, bring me his head; for indeed he multiplies
talk, such as passes conception, and fears not reproach. So the
headsman took him and making him kneel on the carpet of blood,
drew his sword and said to the Khalif, O Commander of the
Faithful, shall I smite off the head of this thy misguided slave,
who is on the way to his grave, and be quit of his blood? Yes,
replied Hisham. He repeated his question and the Khalif again
replied in the affirmative. Then he asked leave a third time, and
the youth, knowing that, if the Khalif assented yet once more, it
would be the signal of his death, laughed till his wang-teeth
appeared; at which Hisham s wrath redoubled and he said to him,
O boy, meseems thou art mad; seest thou not that thou art about
to depart the world? Why then dost thou laugh in mockery of
thyself? O Commander of the Faithful, answered the young Arab,
if my life is to be prolonged, none can hurt me, great or small;
but I have bethought me of some verses, which do thou hear, for
my death cannot escape thee. Say on and be brief, replied
Hisham; so the Arab repeated the following verses: A hawk once
seized a sparrow, so have I heard men say, A sparrow of the
desert, that fate to him did throw; And as the hawk was flying to
nestward with his prize, The sparrow in his clutches did thus
bespeak his foe: There s nought in me the stomach of such as
thou to stay; Indeed, I m all too paltry to fill thy maw, I
trow. The hawk was pleased and flattered with pride and self
conceit; He smiled for self-contentment and let the sparrow go.
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At this Hisham smiled and said, By my kinship to the Prophet
(whom God bless and preserve), had he spoken thus at first, I had
given him all he asked, except the Khalifate! Then he bade his
servants stuff his mouth with jewels and entreat him courteously;
so they did as he bade them and the Arab went his way.
IBRAHIM BEN EL MEHDI AND THE
BARBER-SURGEON.
When the Khalifate fell to El Mamoun the son of Haroun er Reshid,
the latter s brother Ibrahim, son of El Mehdi, refused to
acknowledge his nephew and betook himself to Er Rei,[FN130]
where he proclaimed himself Khalif and abode thus a year and
eleven months and twelve days. Meanwhile Mamoun remained
awaiting his return to allegiance, till, at last, despairing of
this, he mounted with his horsemen and footmen and repaired to Er
Rei in quest of him. When the news came to Ibrahim, he found
nothing for it but to flee to Baghdad and hide there, fearing for
his life; and Mamoun set a price of a hundred thousand dinars
upon his head.
(Quoth Ibrahim) Now when I heard of this price being set upon my
head, I feared for myself and knew not what to do: so I disguised
myself and went forth of my house at midday, knowing not whither
I should go. Presently, I entered a street that had no issue and
said in myself, Verily, we are God s and to Him we return! I
have exposed myself to destruction. If I retrace my steps, I
shall arouse suspicion. Then I espied, at the upper end of the
street, a negro standing at his door; so I went up to him and
said to him, Hast thou a place where I may abide awhile of the
day? Yes, answered he, and opening the door, admitted me into
a decent house, furnished with carpets and mats and cushions of
leather. Then he shut the door on me and went away; and I
misdoubted me he had heard of the reward offered for me and said
in myself, He has gone to inform against me. But, as I sat
pondering my case and boiling like the pot over the fire, my host
came back, followed by a porter loaded with meat and bread and
new cooking-pots and goblets and a new jar and other needful
gear. He took them from the porter and dismissing him, said to
me, I make myself thy ransom! I am a barber-surgeon, and I know
it would mislike thee to eat with me, because of the way in which
I get my living; so do thou shift for thyself with these things
whereon no hand hath fallen. Now I was anhungred; so I cooked
me a pot of meat, whose like I mind me not ever to have eaten;
and when I had done my desire, he said to me, O my lord, God
make me thy ransom! Art thou for wine? Indeed, it gladdens the
soul and does away care. I have no objection, replied I,
being desirous of his company; so he brought me new flagons of
glass, that no hand had touched, and a jar of excellent wine,
and said to me, Mix for thyself, to thy liking. So I cleared
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the wine and mixed myself a most pleasant draught. Then he
brought me a new cup and fruits and flowers in new vessels of
earthenware; after which he said to me, Wilt thou give me leave [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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