Talesofthe Persian Genii

DA T E D U E
G A Y LO R D
Cornell Unive rs l ty Lib ra ry
P2 8 1 04 3T2 1 9 19
. .
Tal e s of t h e Pe rsi an g e ni i,
3 1 9 24 01 2 5 6 7 4 20
F O R E W OR D
N t h ese stor ies wonder-loving boys and gi rl s will

,
fi nd Good Genii, W i c ked M arids Fly ing A frit es , ,
Fa ir ies W it ch es and Enchanters They may wander

, , .
th roug h Oriental gardens fragrant wi t h sp ices an d

redolent with the perfume of roses and listen to the ,
sweet singing of many coloured birds and the music

-
of a thousand fountains or they may feast under ,
silken pavilions and dwell in crystal palaces They .
may gaz e on subterranean treasures of sparkl ing

j ewe l s and heaps of precious metals and pluck j ewel ,
fruits and gold and silver branches from fairy-trees ;

while throughout the stories runs a delightfu l ve i n of
allegory which lends a subtle charm and ethi cal
,
value t o the tales .
The first tw o series of stori es the foundation

of the book are retold from a quaint old volume
published i n England in 1 765 under the title Tal es of,
th e Gen ii ; or Th e Del i g h tf ul Lessons of Hom m the S on

,
of A sm a ra T h e b ok became widely popular and went

o ,
through many editions passing through the hands ,
of numerous editors on e of whom was Archbishop

,
Whate ly Its popularity cont i nued into the nine

.
t eent h century and then died out but not before

, ,
v i FOR E WOR D
’
the tales had become the delight of Gladstone s b oy
hood and had formed a part of the treasured library
,
of little David COp p erfiel d Dickens in his Un com

.
,
“ ”
w eret al Travel l er speaks of the story of Abudah as
'
, ,
having made a deep i mpression on his own child

hood .
T h e third series of stories — The History of Far

ruk ruz the Favourite of Fortune i s retold from
Th e Deli g h t of Hea rts b y B arkh urdzi r b in M ahmud
’
T u rkman F aréh i surnamed M umtaz which may b e

, ,
’
found in its English translation in W A Clouston s . .
E astern R om ances .
T h e fourth series T h e Histo ry of King Az ad and

the Two Royal S h ey kh s i s retold from the famous
romance Th e B ag h 0 B ahar of M i r Amman of Dil h i
, ,
from the English translation edited by Duncan

Fo rbes
A l l the sto ries have been recast with great freedom ,
and moulded i nto a continuous narrative ; the aim

b eing to keep them truly Oriental and at the same
time to preserve all the detail that will delight the
imaginative modern boy and girl .
Each story has its ethic al teaching which has been

,
emphasized without t oo much moralizi ng but this is ,
not the only educational value of the book M odern .
life in the West is too colourless lacking in richness

,
and warmth T o cou nteract this and to develop and

.
,
FOREWOR D vii
foster i n ch il dren their natural love of rich colour and
an appreciation of beautiful objects there is no more
,
eff ect ive method than to steep their imaginations in

the best of Oriental literature And in order that the
.
stories in this volume may aid in the education of the

sense of colour in child ren Oriental warmth and rich
,
ness of description have been infused when lacking

in the originals .
And here I wish t o acknowledge my indebtedness

to the followi ng books from which I have drawn
Oriental atmosphere ,
Th e A ra bi a n Ni g hts an d
Th e M odern E g y p ti a n s of Edward Will i am Lane and
, ,
’
Dr G Weil s B i bli ca l Leg ends
. . .
CO NTE NT S
T HE F OU N T A IN O F T HE G E NII
T H E HI S T OR Y OF A B UD AH A N D T HE S EA R CH F OR
T A LI S M A N OF OR O M A NE S
T h e E b o ny B ox
A dv en t u re F i rst T he V a lel y f B Ohi m
o cc
A d v en t ur e S ec o n d The G a rd e n o f D el ig h t
A d v en t u r e T h i r d T h e I ro n Ki ng d o m of T a sg i
A dv en t u re F ourt h The G rov e of W i sd om
A d v ent u re F ift h T h e T al i sm a n
CO NT I N U A T I O N OF T H E F O U NT A IN OF T HE G E NII
T H E HI S T O R Y O F T HE S U LT A N M I S NA R AND T HE F O UR
E N C HA N T E R S
T h e E n c h a nt e r s
T h e M ag i c C ast l e of Oll o m a n d
T h e F east of T ig e rs
S t ory O f the R e d T o ad — 1Vla h oud ,
t he J ew ell er of
Del hi
S t o ry O f t h e B l ue T oa d — Hem j u n eh , P ri n c ess of K a sh
m ir
S t ory of t h e G r ey T oa d T h e V i zier Hora m

T h e E n c h a nt ed P av ilio n
Conc l u sio n of t h e Hi st ory of t h e S ul t a n M i smar and
t h e F ou r E n c h ant ers
CO NT rNU A T rO N OF T H E F O U NT A IN OF T HE G E N II
x CONT ENT S
T H E HI S T O R Y OF FA R R U KR U Z T HE F A V O UR I T E or FO R
TUN E
T h e R ub y C oc k
Th e J ew el T h ron e Of t h e M ount ai n s O K af f
T h e R ose G ard n Of t h e F ai ie
- e r s
T h e F ou r G old en D a t T ree e- s
Th e A frit e Ka sh an k
Conc l usion of t h e Hi st ory of F arruk ruz t h e F av ou ri t e
of F or t u n e
CO NT IN UAT I O N OF T H E F O U NT A I N OF T HE G E NII
T HE HI S T O RY OF K IN G A Z AD A N D T HE Two R OY AL
S H E Y K HS
T h e W h it e Ha i r
Hat i m t h e Gi v er
T h e P ri n c ess of B asra
S t ory Of the Young M an and t h e R o a ri ng B ull
T h e T reasure C h a m b er
C on t i n u a t i on of t h e S t ory Of t h e Young M an and t h e
R o a ri ng B ul l
S t or y of t he L ost F a i ry
T h e R osy B ea ut y an d t h e Ki ng O
f th e Bl uGre e m
T h e S t ory o f the V izier

’
s D aug h t er an d the T w el v e
R ub i es
T h e Dog -W or sh ip p er
T h e F ai t h ful B ea st
T h e P r i nc e B a kt iy a r
CO N C LU S I O N OF T H E F O U N T A IN OF T HE G E NII
T A LE S O F
T HE P E R S I A N G E N I I
THE FOUNTAIN OF T HE GENII

r A T NA
$
and Coulor the young son and d aug h
,
ter of G ui al ar the Iman ofTerki were the pride

,
Of their parents and the wonder of the inhabitants O f
M az anderan The ir forms were slender as a wi llow

.
branch their hair dar k as night ; their eyes large

, ,
black and sparkl i ng ; their cheeks red like anemones

, ,
th eir lips like coral ; and their teeth Of pearl And.
every morning their parents presented them each

w ith a beautifu l robe of sil k embroidered with many
colours S O the two children de l ighted al l who beheld
.
them .
One day their father led them i nto a grove of

o ranges and citrons which surrounded a fountain
, ,
and s eating them upon a marble bench i n the cool

,
shade of the trees he said

,
“
O my bel ov ed children you have now reached an
,
age when you should learn true wisdom The world .
is vain and fl eet ing Power and riches are a snare

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to youth Th e worship of Allah whose name b e

’
.
2 T HE FOUNT A IN OF T HE GENII
exalted alone satisfies the soul of man Pure wor .
ship cannot be attained here in the habitat ion of cor

rupt men ; therefore O my children retire ye l ike the
, ,
pelican into the wilderness ; flee into the dese rt and ,
find peace and happin ess and there worship A llah

,
the Compassionate the M erciful, .
NO sooner had the Iman G uial ar uttered these

words than a delicious fragrance i ssued from a large
C itron tree Opposite and in a moment the trunk
,
of the tree changed into a bright and beautiful
Fairy .
“
G uial ar said the Fai ry advanc i ng toward h i m
, , ,
I am p leased to hear thee instruct thy ch ildren in the

wisdom of l i fe But why dost thou b i d them flee to the
.
dese rt ? Know that Patna and Coulor are dest i ned to

,
serve their fellow-men Therefore O G uial ar permit

.
, ,
me t o convey thy Children to the wonder-palace of the

Good Genii that from them they may learn the wi s
,
dom needed t o guide their steps aright through t h e

”
val ley of life .
The Iman of Terki was transported wi th j oy at this

propos al but before he could reply the Fairy caught
, ,
Patna and Coulor in her arms and leaping w ith them , ,
into the fo untai n vanished from his sight

, .
The children saw to their amazement that they

were descending rapidly through the water and yet ,
their hair and their garments remained dry In a few .

THE FOUNTAIN OF T HE GENII 3
m i nutes they found themselves standing upon the
marble floor of the basin T h e Fai ry the reupon has .
tened to Open a crystal door in the side wall and ,
through it she led Patna and Coulor As they turned .
to look at the door it closed and disappeared from

,
their sight .
T h e children then saw that they were on a wide

plain where grew varieties of bright flowers and trees ,
filled with birds of eve ry colour that sang with a ,
thousand sweet voices The gentle breeze that blew .
over the plain was laden with the Odour of sandal

wood and musk And in the distance appeared a
.
noble palace shining like the sun A path white like .

,
silver led to it and along this the Fairy conducted

, ,
Patna and Coulor .
“ ”
M y children said sh e this palace is the abode
, ,
of the Good Genn who obeyed the will Of Solomon

,
the son Of David on both Of whom be peace ! They

,
are the se rvan ts Of Solomon and the i n structors O f ,
mankind In thei r p resence let silence seal your lips

.
.
Presume not to exchange speech with the Genii Of

”
Wisdom .
Scarcely had sh e spoken thus when they arrived at

t h e palace which the children perceived to be built Of
,
rock c ry stal
- I t s portals were lofty and above its
. ,
entrance were inscribed mysterious characters Its .
W indows shone as though each were lighte d by a

4. THE FOUNTA IN OF THE GENII
separate sun The door Opened of itself and a st re am
. ,
of light flowed from within .
The Fairy led Patna and Coulor through a passag e ,
the walls of which were hung with rich curtains of

silk embroidered with beasts and birds At the other .
end of the passage they found themse lves in a l arge

saloon whose arched roof was of pure gold set wi th
sparkling diamonds On each side of t h e saloon were
.
ranged against the wal l eight and twenty thrones Of

!
massive silver whereon sat the race of the Good

,
’
Genii cl ad i n flowi ng robes At the end of the apart
,
.
'
ment on a throne of beaten gold sat the King of the

,
'
,
Genii in a wh it e robe and wearing a gol den crown

,
upon his head .
The Fairy took Patna and Coulor each by t h e

hand and approaching the royal throne prostrated
, ,
herself at its foot T hen rising she stood i n sil ence

.
with downcast eyes and hands folded upon her bosom .
Good Fairy Moang said the K i ng Of t h e Genii

“
, ,
we bid thee welcome to these Halls of Wisdom and ,
we rejoice to see that thou hast brought hither the

children of the Iman of T erki Seat them before our
.
throne and bid them listen in silence and wi th all due

,
”
reverence to the tales of the Good Genii .
The Fai ry did as she was commanded and placed ,
Patna and Coulor upon the carpet spread on the c rys

tal pavement before the throne .
T HE EBONY B O! 5
Thereupon the K i ng of the Genn called i n a loud
voice Do thou O B arh ad don Guardian Genie stand
, , ,
forth and relate to these children one of thy deeds

accomplished for the benefit of mankind .
At this com mand a Genie of terrible but noble

countenance C lad in a flam e coloured robe descended
,
-
,
from his silver throne and having prostrated himself

, ,
arose and began thus

“
0 Sage Being I have endeavoured to act at all
,
t i mes in accordance with the precepts of our lord

Solomon the son O f David on both of whom b e
, ,
peace as ye may now learn from
T HE H I S T OR Y OF A B U D A H A ND T HE S E A R CH
F OR T HE TA L I S MA N OF OR OMA NE S
Th e E bony B ox
N the days of the Caliph Harou n Er R aschid

'
there dwelt in the City of B agdad the Abode of ,
Peace a wealthy merchant named Ab udah He p os

,
.
sessed merchandise and riches wo rthy of a sultan and ,
palaces and slaves without number He was famed .
not only for his magnificence but also for his gen ,
erosity since he daily fed a thousand poor

,
.
But these many gifts of fortune did not render

Abudah happy He was filled with discontent which
. ,
grew greater hourly and he wished for more riches

,
B
6 T HE HIST ORY OF ABUDAH
and power wherefore he spent his nights i n affl iction
,
and tears .
One night as b e lay upon his d ivan and his mind

'
w as full of melancholy thoughts a small ebony box ,
suddenly appeared in a corner of the room and flew ,
as if on wings to the side of his couch The cover of .
the box sprang Open and out hobbled a l i ttle yellow

,
Witch leanin g on a c rutch .
“ ”
O Abudah ! said sh e poi nt i ng a bony finger at
,
“
him why dost thou delay to search for the Talisman
,
of Orom anes the T alisman of Perfect Happiness ?

,
Know if thou do possess this blessing then not only

, ,
all the riches of the world shall be thine but also joy ,
and happiness without measure Until thou hast .
procured this inestimable T alisman I will v isit thee ,
nightly and torment thee b ecause of thy idleness .
And this mine ebony b ox shall remain forever in thy

room .
Havi ng said thus sh e hobbled back into the box

, ,
and with a hideous cry shut herself in T h e box im

, ,
.
mediately returned to the corner from which it had

come .
T h e next night Abudah had scarcely retired to his

divan b efore the box again flew to h is side and the lid
, ,
sprang Open and the Witch descending upbraided

,
him fiercely as b efore T hen she reént ered the box

.
,
and , with a hideous cry shut herself in and the box

, ,
the merchant and had come to make known the p l ace
,
where the T alisman was preserved He was im m ed i .
ately led into the presence of the afflicted Abudah ,
who commanded that the apa rtment should be cleared

of all his attendants in order that no one but himself
might hear what the Sheykh had to reveal .
Left alone with the merchant the Sheykh beg an as ,
follows
“
O Abudah wealthy merchant of B agdad know
, ,
that Destiny hath singled thee out to discover t h e

Talisman of Orom anes ! Such bliss alas ! is with held ,
from the poor and needy outcasts like myself ! Alas !

the wondrous T alisman is forever shut away from our
search since 0 fortunate one it is necessary to ex
, , ,
pend great wealth and to prepare a magnificent pres

ent if one wish to procure the Talisman Thou O .
,
”
fortunate one hast riches sufficient for the search !
,
“ ” “
But my friend said Abudah thou neg l ect est
, , ,
to inform me where I may find this prec ious T alis

man .
“
I t is lodged replied the Sheykh
, I n the Valley ,
of B oc c h im T reasure Genii are its guardians And

.
.
it is kept by them among t h e riches of the earth .
T hou canst not gain admission to this valley unless

thou go laden with every variety of costly silks and ,
rich spices and i nnumerable treasures These thou

, .
must present to the King of the Treasure Genii whose ,

THE EBONY B O! 9
A frit es and M arids keep watch over the earth ly para
dise O f riches in the V alley of B oc ch im If thy treas .
ure be not suffi ciently large , all thy labour will be i n

”
vain .
Abudah hearing these words was transport ed with

, ,
j oy to l earn that the Talisman of Orom anes might be

purchased with wealth .
“ ”
I have cried he nine thousand acres of rich
, ,
l and on the banks Of the River T igris I have twelve .
thousand estates of fruit oil and com I have twenty , , .
t wo m ines of the finest diamonds and six hundred ,
ships that fish for the most costly pearls I have more .
,
over eight hundred warehouses and four hundred

, ,
storerooms filled with bales of precious b rocades and
fine linens and with C hests of ra re spices and per

,
fumes Besides these the fo rtunes Of nine Viziers are

.
,
mortgaged to me for a hundred years And my nu .
m erous palaces are filled with gold and sil ver and ,
mag nificent furniture and with m em looks and the

,
”
most beautiful of Circassian slave girls - .
“ ”
0 happy happy Abudah ! sighed the venerable
,
“
Sheykh .T hine then and thine only it is t o pur
, , ,
”
chase a passage into the Valley of B oc ch im !
“ ” “
If so continued Abudah with joy d i rect me
, ,
”
instantly to the entrance of this valley !
“ ” “
Alas ! answered the Sheykh it is far beyond the ,
deserts O f Arabia and many days Journey hence

,
.
10 T HE HIST ORY OF ABUDA H
Bes i des thy present is not yet prepared If thou wilt
,
.
permit thy servant to make the choice of gifts thou ,
mayest set forth shortly and find a speedy and happy

,
”
i ssue t o thy search .
Hearing this Abudah i mmediate ly gave orders

,
that the Sheykh should be permitted to use as much

of his wealth as he saw fit And then ret i ri ng to his
.
,
priv ate apartment the merchant gave h irnself up to

,
meditation on the i ntended j ourney .
The Sheykh thereupon disposed Of a l arge port ion

of the r i ches of Abudah and prepared a splendid
,
caravan to accomp any the merchant into the desert .
A dventure F i rst f B occhi m

The V al l ey o
HE appo i nted day being arrived Abudah ,
took leave of his wife Sel ima and of his chil

dren and friends And attended by the Sheykh h e
.
joined the caravan which was drawn up i n long order

in the streets of Bagdad .
T h e caravan began its march F i rst came five hun

.
dred archers mounted on the fleet est coursers ; b e

hind whom were twelve thousand oxen their horns ,
wreat hed w ith garlands of flowers th i rty thousand ,
sheep with gilded horns and two hundred m ag nifi

,
cently caparisoned horses .
After these were driven two hundred camels laden

with eve ry v ar iety of dried and preserved fruits and
THE VALLEY OF B OCCHI M II
rich confections ; a thousand more with fine wines ;

five hundred with pure oil ; five hundred more with
rare and costly S pices and perfumes .
These were followed by an enormous chariot of

beaten gold drawn by four elephants and filled with
, ,
a great quantity of precious metals Into this chariot

.
the venerable Sheykh mounted arrayed in purple and

,
gold and pointing a rod toward the Valley of B oc

,
C him .
T hen came fifty C hariots laden with the richest silks

an d brocades after which advanced fifty m em l ooks
,
bearing strings of large pearls T hey were followed at

.
a distan ce by a hundred mutes behind whom in two

, ,
hundred palanquins ornamented w ith j ewel s came ,
as many beautiful femal e sl aves each guarded by

,
four eunuchs and c l ad in garments fit for a sultana

, .
Next in the procession was the merchant Abudah

in a C hariot Of pearl of the most cu rious workman
ship drawn by ten milk white horses whose t r appings
,
-
’
were of gold A s for the merchant s garme nts noth
.
,
ing could have b een more magnificent T hey we re of .
the most gorgeous brocade embroidered with jewels .
On either side of the chariot were a hund red musi

c i an s pl aying on a s many musical instruments and ,
fifty black slaves burning the choicest perfumes .
T his magnificent cavalcade wound through the

streets Of B agdad amid the shouts of the p Op u
12 THE HIST ORY OF ABUDA H
lace and began its march toward the Valley
,
of
B occ him .
The party proceeded for many days over rivers and

mountains and desert wastes until at length it arrived
,
at a plain bounded on t wo sides b y lofty mountains of

black stone and ending in a forest of dark cedars and
,
palms Here the Sheykh descended from his chariot

.
,
and commanded Abudah to follow him .
Leaving the caravan th ey advanced toward the

,
dark forest and after having walked many hours

, ,
entered its gloomy depths .
They proceeded until evening when they arrived ,
at a massive rock in the side of which was a large

cavern The Sheykh entered the cavern and i m
. ,
’
mediately disappeared from A b ud ah s sight A s t h e .
merchant was about to follow him he stooped down ,
and looked in and what was his horror to perceive

,
that the cavern had no bottom He fell b ack t rem b .
ling and stood waiting for the Sheykh t o return

, .
As night drew near Abudah seeing that the Sheykh

,
did not return climbed into the branches of a tree

, ,
resolved t o await there the break of day T h e severe .
fatig ue of the journey had so exhausted him that ,
though he intended to watch sleep soon overpowered

,
him .
When he awoke the next morning what was his ,
surpri se to see that eve rything around him glistened

THE VALLEY OF B OCCHI M I 3
in a dazzling manner He examined the tree in which

.
he was and saw it to be of pure gold and it s leave s

, ,
to be of frost ed silver and emeralds while from its ,
branches hung C lusters of rubies like the most beau

tiful Cherries .
Looking down he perceived that he was no longer

in the forest but in a strange count ry On every side
,
.
glori ous palaces glittered with gold and silver and

precious stones so that the whole seemed like a fairy
,
rather than an earthly land .
Full of wonder Abudah hastened to descend the

tree and found the ground on which he stepped to be
,
of gold dust and the pebbles pearls At his feet grew , .
flowers formed of c rystals emeralds turquoise and , , ,
sapphires On every side there met his eyes trees and

.
shrubs of glistening silver and gold whose leaves were ,
of frosted silver and whose boughs were laden with

,
fruits of all kinds formed of precious stones T h e .
apples were of carbuncles the cherries of rubies the

, ,
plums of amethysts and the pears of diamonds with

,
seeds of pearl .
The merchant saw before h im a vista like a long

street paved with gold at the end of whic h a vast
,
dome rose to the clouds T his dome shone so brightly

.
that Abudah could scarcely look toward it I m .
p ell ed by the desire to know what kind of beings in

habited this strange land he advanced to the dome
,
.
Arriving before it he percei v ed t hat it was entire ly
,
of burnished gold and stood upon three hundred

,
pillars of the same precious metal encrusted with

jewels Festoons of pearls amethysts j acinths O pals
.
, , , ,
and the most sparkling diamonds hung suspended

from pillar to pillar .
Abudah though the wealthi est of manki nd was

, ,
struck with amazement at the profusion of riches and

beauty that he saw before him Entering one of the .
portal s he beheld beneath the dome a Genie of gigan

,
tic forth seated upon a throne of massive gold and ,
surrounded by a throng of huge A frit es and M arids .
On the floor of the dome were p l aced at regu ,
lar i nte rval s great heaps of weal th such as Abudah

,
had never seen before And the crystal pavement on

.
which he trod was covered w ith a curiously wrought

carpet representing the riches of the earth in all their
natural colours .
Abudah abashed at this magnificent spectacle and

, ,
by the appearance of so many strange beings was ,
about to retire when one of the A fri t es who stood

, ,
nearest the throne advanced and beckoned him

,
forward The merchant trembling obeyed and

.
, , ,
approaching the throne bowed himse lf to the ground

and kissed the carp et .
“
O Abudah merchant of B agdad said the K ing
, ,
of the Treasure Genii — for such w as he ,

“
wel ,
16 THE HIST ORY OF ABUDAH
‘
a palace that sparkled like a huge diamond Here the .
me rchant saw great wells filled to overflowing with

amethysts chrysolites carnelians ru b ies sapph i res
, , , , ,
turquoise j ac int h s and all kinds of precious stones

, ,
.
And they threw out such b rilliant lights that Abudah

was almost blinded .
“ ”
These wells said the Afrite extend far down
, ,
ward into the earth T h e silver and gold thou hast

.
seen are the b oughs and branches that fall from the
trees in this Valley of Riches ; and these jewels are
the fruits and flowers All are carefully gathered by the
.
A frit es and M arids and placed in these depositories

, ,
the bottoms of which are covered with gratings that

let their treasures out sparingly and in small pieces .
These inte rm ix with the earth thus forming mines in

,
all parts of the world Each deposit of riches re quires

.
the hard labour of human beings before it c an b e

”
brought to light .
Abudah w as so st up efied by the sight of so many

wonders that he was unable to speak Seeing this the .
,
Afrite conveyed him once more t o the dome and ,
placed him upon the carpet before the throne of the

King of the T reasure Genii .
“
O fortunate Abudah said that great Genie to ,
be permitted to gaze on the treasures of the Valley of

B occh im ! But more wonderful yet is the favour that
we are about t o bestow upon thee ! G O 0 ye A frit es , ,
THE V ALLEY OF B OCCHI M I 7
and br i ng forth the iron chest that i s sai d t o c ontain
t h e Talisman of Orom anes
”
.
A t t his c ommand ten gigant i c A frit es hastened and

'
brought i n a huge chest of black iron bound round ,
wi th strongest bands and fastened wi th fifty loc ks

, .
“ ” “
Here said the King of the Treasure Genii O
, ,
Abudah is thy reward Take the chest and return to

, .
Bagdad and live in joy and peace the remai nder of

,
”
thy days .
”
But said Abudah must I carry wi th me this
, ,
great C hest which is so heavy that ten A frit es can

scarcely lift it ? Surely O generous Ruler of th is
,
Valley of B occh im thou wilt permit me i nstead t o

,
Open the chest and take from i t the Talisman of Per

fe et Happ iness so that I may convey it hidden i n my
,
”
bosom to B agdad .
“
Wouldst thou then answered the King of the
, ,
“
Treasure Genii take the precious Tal i sman from
,
i ts place of security ? Know 0 presumptuous man , ,
that while the sacred symbol is locked in the chest no ,
human force can take it from thee It is written in .
t he Chronicles of Time that he who doth possess the
Talisman of Orom anes shall know pe rfect happiness ;

therefore seek not to remove the treasure from its
,
present place of concealment T ake however these .

, ,
fift y keys but beware lest curiosity tempt thee to

,
open the chest Wh o can tell whether the brilliancy

.
1 8 THE HISTO RY OF A B UDA H
of the Talisman may not be more than mortal c an
”
bear to behold !
Having thus sa id t h e King of the T reasure Genn
,
’
com manded Abudah to stretch himself upon the

C hest and t o close his eyes The merchant obeyed and
,
.
,
im mediately sank into a profound slumber Awak .
ing at last he found himself lying in his seraglio in

,
Bagdad and his wife Selima asleep near him upon the
d ivan .
Without saluting or indeed looking at his wife

, ,
Ab udah arose hastily and taking in his hand the

,
lighted lamp that was always burning in the centre

of his apartment he gazed about him
, .
He then perceived the iron chest standing in the

corner where formerly had stood the ebony b ox Feel .
ing the bunch of keys in his b osom he drew them ,
f o rth and advancing toward the chest tried the first

,
key To his amazement it would fit none of the locks ;

.
so taking the keys on e by one he tried them all but , , ,
10 ! not one would Open a single l ock !

Abudah at this discove ry was filled with despair
, , ,
and flinging himself upon the divan began to lament ,
h is miserable fo rtu n e At that moment he heard a

.
rushing noise and looking up he perceived the small

, ,
e bony box which had been the cause Of all his dis
appointment flying through the air I n a n in stant it
, .
was standing by h is couch Th e lid sprang Open and

.
,
THE VALLEY OF B OCCHI M 19
t h e Ol dWitch hobbling from her c onfi nement began

, ,
t o upbrai d h i m fi ercely as before .
“
0 senseless Abudah ! cried sh e po i nt ing her ,
bony fi nger at him 0 senseless one to think that

, ,
happiness could b e purchased with wealth ! Thou

hast i ndeed the iron che st and it will convey thee
, , ,
whithersoever thou may desire t o go but th ou hast no ,
key w i th wh i ch to open it nor canst thou discover by ,
f orce the eff ulgent beauty of the Talisman that lieth

hidden within .
“
G o then 0 Abudah search unt il thou find th e
, ,
Keys of Happiness which will fit the fifty locks Not

, .
in the Valley of B oc ch im w ilt thou d iscover them but ,
in a far distant land where pleasures reign eternal .
But know if thou hast not begun thy search ere this
,
moon be passed I will invent doub l e horrors where

,
”
with to plague thee .
Having said thus sh e hobbled into the box and

, , ,
with a hideous c ry shut herself in and the next mo

, ,
ment Abudah beheld the ebony b ox mounted upon

the iron chest .
And now his wife Selima awoke and with surprise ,
saw her husband Abudah lyi ng drowned in tears at

her side She instantly pressed him in her arms and
.
, ,
i n a transport of joy inquired by wh at happy fate he

,
was returned .
“
Wh y knowest thou not replied Abudah that
, , ,
20 THE HIST ORY OF ABUDA H
having mounted the c ar of pearl the venerable Sheykh
p repared for me I j ourneyed attended by my mag
, ,
nific ent caravan to the Val ley of B oc ch im and

, ,
“ ”
O my dear Abudah ! interrupted Selima with ,
what madness hath that wicked enchanter possessed

thee ! What venerable Sheykh ? W hat magnificent
caravan ? There indeed came a poor wretch hither
, , ,
who stole a great part of thy wealth and often times

talked with thee in private in spite of all thy friends
,
might say One morning thou didst fol low him from
.
the Pal ace mount with him into a sm al l wagon and

, ,
didst ride away into the desert From that day to this
.
th y distressed fam i ly and friends have m ourned thin e

”
absence .
At this rec ital Abudah turned h i s face t o the wall ,
and spoke no more for several hours At last rising .

,
“ ” “
from the divan F001 that I was ! he said to t rust
, ,
that miserable imposter ! Or to believe that the T alis

man of Perfect Happ in ess could be purchased with
”
riches !
“
Oh rather replied Selima may my lord find
, , ,
happi ness in th i s city surrounded by his family that

,
”
adore him !
T h e next morning the merchant returned to his bus
in ess and continued to conduct it each day as before
, ,
b ut his nights he spent in weeping and lamentation .
Nearly a month passed in this wise when one night

,
THE GARDEN OF DELIGHT 21
Abudah was roused from a light s l umber into which

he had fallen by the sound of most ravishing music
, .
A delicious odour of rare perfumes filled the apart

ment and as the merchant gazed about him he saw
, ,
a small C loud descend from the ceiling It expanded .
and O pened and revealed to his wondering eyes a

,
Fairy of exquisite beauty decked with Chaplets of ,
ever living flowers She h eld in one hand a goblet O f

-
.
crystal into which sh e pressed the sparkling juice

,
from a cluster of purple grapes .
“ ”
O fortunate Abudah ! said sh e Quaff the nectar .
from this c rystal goblet and reclin e once more upon

,
yonder iron chest T h e faithful treasu re will convey

.
thee to the magic realms where the Keys of Happiness

are preserved .
And as the Fairy ceased speaking sh e advanced to ,
ward the delighted merchant who snatching the , ,
goblet from her hand d rained from it a rich and

,
sparkling drau ght Instantly the Fai ry vanished an d

. ,
Ab udah hastening to the iron chest sank in slumber

, ,
upon it and resig n ed himself to another adventure

,
.
A dven ture S econd f Del i g h t

Th e Ga rden o
HEN morning was come the merchant Abu ,
dah was awakened by the songs of innumerable

birds and perceived himself to be lying upon a couch
,
in the centre of a silken pavilion The floor was strewn .

22 THE HISTO RY OF ABUDA H
with fresh lilies an d roses while the couch whereon he
,
reclined was covered with th e finest damask emb roi

dered with beasts and birds so like life that they
,
'
seemed to start out from b eneat h h im C ages of gold .
wire were suspended from the roof in which were ,
birds of brilliant p l umage whose songs had awakened

,
him He turned his eyes from side to side only to

.
,
Obse rve new wond ers Then ari sin g from the couch
.
, ,
he approached the door of the pavilion .
He saw himself to be in the m idst of a wi de gree n

p l ain in which were groves of orange and C itron
,
trees Perfumed breezes fanned his brow and flowers

.
,
'
of many kinds and vari ous col ours m i ng l ed with t h e
green grass He beheld at a distance a winding stream,

.
and thither he directed his steps And as he did so,.
flocks of bright birds flew singing from tree to tree .
Approaching the stre am he perceived a bark of

,
ivory awaiting him manned by ten beautiful youths

, .
Each was clad in a robe of azure silk and wore a white

turban ; while t wo Of them held lutes in their han ds .
They beckoned to the happy Abudah whereupon he ,
entered the bark Immediately eight of the youths

.
plied oars of sandalwood dipping them gently in the

,
water that sparkled at their touch T hus they caused .
the bark to glide along ; an d as they did so the t wo ,
youths holding the lutes touched the inst ruments and ,
sang so sweetly that they ravishe d the ear .

24 THE HIST ORY OF A DU B A H
mot ioned him to leave the bark and he stepped out ,
upon the white sand Immediately the l ittle boat

.
shot away and j oined t h e others saili ng to and fro

upon the water .
Abudah then perceived in the distance a l oft y

palace of transparent whiteness rising toward the ,
sky Thither he directed his steps Arri ving there

. .
,
he saw it to be built of alabaster with a great door of ,
pearl He knocked and the door w as instantly Opened

.
by ten d amsels more beautiful than the full moon .
“ ”
Welcome Abudah fortunate one ! said they
, , .
Welcome to this Garden of Delight ! Here only doth

the Talisman of Orom anes shine forth in perfect
S plendour Enter and prepare thyself for the happi
.
”
ness that hath long awaited thee .
On hearing these words Abudah almost swooned

from excessive joy ; but restrain ing himself followed ,
the damsels into the palace T hey led him t hrough

.
innumerable saloons hung with curtains of rich stuff s

embroidered with pictures of the banquet and t h e
dance On every side he saw skilfully wrought
.
statues of Genii and Fairies plucking flowers or

wreathing garlands .
At length they Conducted him into a spacious

apartment lighted by a dome and the fl oor of which
, ,
was paved with costly marbles In the centre O f the .
apartment was a pool into which pgayed a fountain

THE GARDEN OF DELIGHT 25
of perfumed water and a flight Of onyx steps led down

t o the water .
T h e damse l s signed to t h e wondern Abudah

to enter and bathe whereupon they withdrew I n
, .
st a nt l y i nvisible A f rit es prepared him for the bath ;
and descending the steps he plunged into the sweet

, ,
scented water .
On returning t o the floor of the apartment he saw ,
to h is amazement that h is garments had been re

moved and in their place lay a magnificent rob e and
,
turban T h e robe w as of rose coloured satin em b roi

.
-
dered with sprigs of myrtle and flowers of pearl while ,
the turban was adorned with a variety of pearls and

jewels T he invisible A frit es arrayed him in these
.
,
after which he advanced toward a door at the end of

the apart ment and opened it
, .
He found himself in a lofty saloon having four and

twenty windows of g ilded lattice work T h e ceili ng -
.
was of azure colour and on it were inscribed m y st eri

ous C haracters in gold and the floor was i nlaid with
,
ivory and ebony an d spread with saffron Large

, .
perfuming vessels filled with aloeswood and amber

,
gris made the air fr agrant Golden lamps and in

,
.
numerable candles diff using the perf ume of musk

, ,
illuminated all .
In the centre of the saloon was a fountain of bright

water playing i nto an alabaster basin over which was ,
26 T HE HI S T ORY OF ABUDA H
a pavilion of crimson brocade On all sides were hung .
from the ceiling golden cages Containing birds that ,
sang in melodious C horus .
And as Abudah gazed in rapture about him a door ,
at the other end of the saloon Opening the ten damsels ,
entered each richly clothed Five of them carried

, .
tambourines and these advanced toward Abudah

, ,
singing and dancing an d bade him welcome ,

.
T h e other five damsels spread a silken carpet and

soft cushions beneath the pavilion by the side of the ,
fountain and sprinkled the air with rose water in

,
-
fused with musk They next advanced and joining

.
,
the five dancing damsels led Abudah t o the fountain , ,
and seated him upon the cushions Then al l ten dam .
sels placed themselves near him and clapped their ,
hands Immediately inv isI b l e A frit es entered the

.
saloon and set forth a delicious repast ; and the d am

,
sels served Abudah on plates of gold and from cups of

c ry stal Delicate ragouts rich pastries confections
.
, , ,
nuts fruits and cooling sherbets followed one ah

, , ,
other in profusion .
T h e banquet being ended one of the damsels arose ,
and fetched a silver basin and ewer and bathed ,

’
A b ud ah s hands wiping them with a silken napkin
, .
T hen all the damsels arose and together conducted ,
the happy merchant into the garden that surrounded

the palace .
THE GA R DEN OF DELIG HT 27
The sun was disappearing when Abudah and his

ten guides reached the end of an extensive terrace ;
and he saw rising before him a great dome formed of
fresh lilies and roses and supported by four an d
,
twenty pillars of myrtle The floo r of this dome was

.
of green moss and in the centre were p l aced two

,
thrones made of ever living flowers Jasmines eg l an

-
.
,
tine narcissus anemones and many other blossoms

, , ,
filled the air with the i r fragrance while above the two
,
thrones w as spread a can opy of trailing rose vines -

.
A n d as Abud ah and the ten d amsels entered the ,
youths and mai dens whom he had seen sporting in the

barks upon the l ake c ame thronging toward the dome .
Then suddenly Abudah heard the most harmonious

mus i c and a pro cession of forty white-clad damsels
, ,
as beautifu l as Houri s approached scattering violets

, ,
and roses as they passed They took their places b e

.
hind the two thrones and were immediately fol

,
lowed by forty e qually beautiful youths likewise clad ,
in white and strew i ng the ground wi th myrtle After

,
.
them cam e ten b l ack slave boys dressed in yellow ,
garments and bearing aloft a c anopy of white b ro

,
cade beneath which walked a damsel of surpassing

gr ace and loveliness Her form was as slender as a
.
wi llow branch and sh e was clad in flowing robes of

,
green embroi dered with pomegranate blossoms while ,
from head to foot she was wrapped in a veil of gauze .

Immediately all presen t b owed themselves to the
ground whil e sh e took her place on on e of the thrones
,
.
’
She then lifted h er veil and disclosed to A b ud ah s ,
astonished g aze a face of perfect b eauty Her fore .
head was more lovely than the moon her b lack ,
eyes like stars her skin white as milk h er lips like

, ,
coral and her long dark hair like a cloud of night

,
.
At the sight of so much beauty Abudah stood ,
abashed .
“
Where said sh e in a voice of exquisite Sweet
, ,
“
ness are the keepers of my Garden of Delight ? Bid
,
them prese nt at once before my thron e Ab udah the

merchant of Bagdad who hath come hither t o visit
,
”
our flowery paradise .
T hereupon the ten damsels led the merchant for

ward who prostrating himself kissed the ground b e
, , ,
fore the thr one .
“
Know 0 Abudah said the beautiful one that
, , ,
I am a Daughter of the Genii an d these youths and ,
damsels that attend me are all A frit es and Fairies , .
Fortuna te indeed art thou that the Genii of Wi sdom

, ,
have seen fit to convey thee hithe r upon the iron chest

that containeth the T alisman Of Orom anes In this .
Garden reign eth eternal bliss and here only may per ,
f ec t happiness b e fou n d M usic an d feasting dancing.

,
and singing while away the hours Here alon e shalt

, .
thou find 0 Abudah the keys thou art seeking

, , .
S HE TH N L I T D H
E F E ER VEI L ,
A ND D I S CL O S E D ’
T O A B U DA H S
A S TON I S H D G A
E ZE A AC E
F O F P E R F EC T B AUT
E Y
30 THE HIST ORY OF A B UDA H
soug ht the Daughter of the Genn to present h im

with the keys .
“
0 my ever beloved Abudah
,
- rep l ied sh e b e
, ,
hold th e chest is before thee T ak e thou these keys

.
,
and enter into immediate possession of the Talisman

”
of Perfect Happin ess .
Abudah received the keys wi t h joy ; and observing

that the iron chest stood before his throne he h as ,
tened to descend and Open it As he touched the lock s

.
,
one by one they fl ew wide until at last not a s i ngle

,
lock remai ned unopened But no sooner did he stoop

.
to lift the lid than a sudden an d awfu l darkness fell

on all the Garden .
He heard a noise like the breaking and rending of

great rocks ; while the loud thunder roared a nd ,
streams of crooked lightning encircled him with h or

rid blaze He heard also the shrieks and cries of
.
, ,
‘
the once gay A f rit es and Fairies who vanished as ,
the dome fell with a loud crash to the ground .
The angry lightning cont inued and Abud ah look , ,
ing toward the Daughter of the Genii saw Oh , ,
most fearful sight her once soft form was parching

and contracting and growing bony and crooked Her .
eyes had lost their lustre and were become smal l and
,
fierce And 10 ! Abudah beheld her change i nto the

.
,
little yellow Witch leaning upon her c rutch with fury ,
darting from her eyes .

THE IR ON KINGDOM O F TA S G I 31
”
Wretch as well as fool ! she shri eked poi nt i ng ,
her b o ny fi nger at him How didst thou dare to seek

.
the Talisman of Orom anes in the Garden of Se lfish

Delight ! Wretch to forget thy wife and children and
, ,
p ledge thy sou l to remain forever here where evi l

l urketh as d o th the ser pent among roses ! But now
I l eave thee to t h e joy thou hast found Let this .
”
dungeon of horrors be forevermore thy prison .
Thus saying sh e struck Abudah with her crutch

, ,
and with a hideous c ry vanished from h i s sight The .
blow of the crutch fill ed the unhappy merchant with

fearful pains in eve ry limb Darkness and silence fell
.
on all and he began to wander about what seemed to

,
be an endless cavern .
A dventure Thi rd The I f Tasg i

ron Ki ng dom o
HUS it was with the merchant Abudah He .
cont i nued to wander for some t ime about the

c avern groaning with despai r At eve ry step he trod
,
.
on a venomous creature Serpents hissed at h im and

.
,
toads sp it malignant fire At length bewi ldered by

.
,
all these horrors he s an k down upon the slimy floor

, ,
and l ay there until sleep overpowered h im .
When he awoke and found hirnsel f still in the dark

,
ness of that fearful place tears ran down his cheeks

,
unt il they wet his garm ents Then suddenly a Vo ice.
sp oke from a distant recess of the cavern .

32 THE HI S T ORY OF A BUDA H
What wretch art thou asked the Voice , ,
”
remainest alive in this abode of desolation ?
Abudah arose trembling with fear and approached ,
that part Of the cavern from whence the Voice seemed

“
” “
to come Wretch indeed am I ! said he who in
.
, ,
his search for the Talisman of Orom anes hath b een ,

”
left t o pe r ish in this place of death !
”
What ! said the Voice 0 miserable human .
being didst thou think the road to that noble jewel

,
lay through the Garden of S elfish Delight ! NO ! Rough

i s the road and precipitous the climb that leadeth to
,
the M ount on which is preserved the Talisman of

Happiness .
“
Verily replied Abudah I care not where the
, ,
T alisman may be ; since I am doomed t o wander here

”
until I die .
“ ”
Nay said the Voice if thy heart be firm enough
, ,
t o face great dangers and thy body strong enou gh to

,
bear the fearful climb along the road that leadeth

”
from this place thou needest not die
, .
T h e despairing soul of Abudah was once more filled

“ ”
with h Op e O Genie or whatsoever thou art cried
.
, ,
he in the name of thy master Solomon the son of

, , ,
David — on both of whom be

, p ea c e l — I conjure
thee Show me that road Neither pain nor dangers
, .
shall hinder me from following whithersoever it may

lead !
THE IRON KINGDOM OF TA S G I 33
T ake , then the path before thee answered the
, ,
“
Voice At this point the cavern seemeth to descend
. .
Fe ar not to stoop in order to rise Fol low the de .
scent until thou comest to a winding way that g oeth

up through the bowels of the Mountain of T asg i in
”
which this cavern is situated .
T h e Voice ceased speakin g and Abudah urged on , ,
by eager hope began the dreadful descent Th e

,
.
farther he proceeded the deeper became the slime

,
and filth and a foul Odour arose th at grew more un

,
endurable at eve ry step T h e roof of the cavern b ent

.
downward until Abudah could no longer stand but

, ,
was forced to crawl through the slime under arches
He arrived at length at the distant end of the

cavern and feeling with h i s hands found a small
, ,
O pening in the wall from which issued noisome

,
vapours He threw himself upon his face and creep

. ,
ing through the opening ceased not to proceed until

,
he entered a precipitous passage leading up through

the interior of the mountain The floor of the pas .
sage was formed of broken rocks and the roof rose ,
t o a great height .
Abudah wa s consumed with terror by reason of the

thick dar kness that fil led the place But remember .
ing the words of the Voice he continued to advance,
along the wi nd ing ascent The j agged rocks tore h i s

.
34 THE HISTORY OF ABUDAH
limbs so that they bled and he was forced t o remove
, ,
masses of stone that ob st m ct ed his way .
At last he arr ived at a flight of stairs hewn in the

rock an d as he mounted these he perce ived in the
, ,
distance a gl immer of light And he heard as if from

.
,
afar a murmuri ng noise that increased as b e ap

, ,
ro a c h ed the l ight until it sounded like the roaring

p ,
sea .
When Abudah reached the upper step he c ame to ,
another Openi ng through which daylight entered the

mountain At the same moment the noi se wi thout
.
became so terrifying that he hesitated to pass thr ough .
T hen remembering the words of the Voice he en

, ,
c ourag ed his heart and stooping down began t o creep

,
through to the light .
No sooner d i d the merchant reach the other side

than he heard ten thousand voices c rying
Peace be to our Sultan Abudah who cometh fort h ,
from the Mountain Of T asg i l ”
And as he arose to his feet and gazed about him , ,
b e perceived that he stoo d at the base O f a high black

mountain He beheld before him a multitude of
.
armed men wh il e beyond them he saw a wide plain

,
filled with black rocks whereon were bui l t many

,
fortified c i t ies and towers .
At the sight Of Abudah the whole mul t i tude again

,
broke into a shout :

T HE IRON KINGDOM OF TA S G I 35
”
Peace and prosperity b e t o our Su ltan !
Immediately a Grand Vizier accomp anied by a
,
number of grandees and eunuchs stepped forward

,
and bowed h imself to the ground ; while a black slave

’
threw a royal robe over A b udah s shoulders and ,
placed a costly turban upon his head .
The Grand Vizier then commanded silence and ,
prostrating h i mself before Abudah said ,

“
O Sultan live forever ! 0 wonder of mankind ! O
,
son of the sacred M ountain of T asg i ! Thou most
glor ious of all Sultan s of earth ! Behold thy slaves ,
W hose on e desire is t o be trodden under thy feet as

i s the dust of the plain ! Thine only is perfect hap
i ness since thou alone dost possess the chest that
p ,
containeth the Tal i sman of Orom anes! Rule there ,
fore thine iron Kingdom of T asg i according to thy

, ,
”
pleasure !
And as the Grand Vizier ceased speaking th e whol e
,
multitude shouted
Peace be to our Sultan ! R ul e thy s l aves accord
i ng t o thy pleasure !
’
On hearing these words A b udah s heart was
,
swelled with conceit and pride In a haughty manner

.
he set his foot upon the neck of the Gran d Viz ier
comm anding that he should escort h im at once to the
royal palace Immediately ten black slaves brought
.
forward a thro ne of ebony over which was a canopy

,
36 THE HISTORY OF A BUDA H
of gold embroidery Into this Abudah ascended and
.
,
w a s b orne upon the shoulders of grandees of the King

dom of T asg i .
He soon saw that he was appro aching a vast en

c am p m ent composed of pavi lions of various colours
, .
One division: was of blue ; another of red ; another of , ,
green ; and still another of silver In the centre of this

, .
splendid armament stood the royal pavilion which ,
shone with the lustre of red gold and blue velvet so , , , .
that it looked more like a palace than a pavilion of

war .
Into this Abudah was c arried and placed upon an ,
other throne He commanded that all should go out

.
from before him except the Grand Viz ier The rest
, .
being gone the Grand Viz ier threw h imself before the
,
throne c ryi ng .
“
M ay my lord the Sultan Abudah rule forever
”
over his servant Harran !
“ ”
O Harran said Abudah arise and declare unto
, , ,
me what is the cause of this great arm ament ; a nd

”
why the armies of T asg i are assembled for battle .
At these words the Grand Vizier Harran arose and ,
stood humbly before the throne .
“
Know 0 Sultan said he that i t i s a custom
, , ,
with us yearly to assemble for war But a few hours .
si nce the Genii who preside over the Destiny Of this

, ,
v all ey h rem ov ed from us our S ul t an R amm a sin, and

M eanwhile the army assembled the drums beat ,
like stormy winds the horses were caparisoned and

, ,
all was made ready for the march Th e earth trembled .
b eneath the tread of the multitude Of men an d

beasts And Abudah bloated with pride rode fo rth
.
, ,
at the head of his army .
Now whe n the S h akarah s beheld t h e approach of

,
that vast array and heard the shouts of the soldiers

, ,
the beating of the drums the sounding of the trump ,
et s and the neig h i ng of the horses and saw the glit

'
, ,
ter ofthe spears and the waving of the banners they

, ,
trembled with terror T hen they sent forth ambas.
sadors to entreat the Sultan of T a sg i t o withdraw in
peace from their land and return to his ow n country

, .
T h e ambassadors prostrated themselves before

Ab udah saying ,
“
Wherefore is our lord the Sultan come out armed
against his friends and neighb ours the S h ak arah s ,
who far from doing any harm have not even thought
, ,
evil of the people of T asg i ! Verily if without know , ,
ing it we have off ended in aught we will make res

, ,
t it ut ion a hu n dredfold Let it please our lord the

.
Sultan t o renew his peace with us and return again ,
to his own land .
“
Base slaves answered the enraged Abudah it
, ,
b ecometh not the mi ghty Sultan of the i ron Kingdom

of T a sg i t o be tau ht by such as you ! Behold I am
g ,
T HE IR ON KINGDOM OF TA S G I 39
c ome against you t o punish you for i nsolence and to ,
”
g ive all that ye have as spoil to m y faithful servants .
H avi ng thus said Abudah commanded the ambas

,
sadors to be driven from his presence with blows He .
then gave orders that the army should attack at once

the S h ak arah s and take possession of their lands and
,
we alth .
T hereupon the soldiers i n a fierce rage fel l upon

, ,
t h e i nnocent people slaughtering some an d expelling

, ,
Others from the count ry After which Abudah laden

.
,
with spoil and drivi ng the grandees Of the S h akarah s

,
before him as slaves ret urned t o the en campment

,
upon the plain before the M ountain of T a sg i .
Scarcely was he again seated on his throne in the

royal pavilion before he summoned h is Viziers,
,
emirs and other officers of his Kingdom

,
.
“ ”
0 Har ran said he to the Grand Vizier
,
know ,
that the iron chest that doth contain the T alisman of

Ot omanes lieth buried ben eath the M ountain of
T asg i Do thou therefore b id the Shakarah slaves
.
, ,
dig in the mountain until they fi nd that wondrous

”
chest with fifty locks .
At this command the Grand Viz ier turned pale and

shook wi th in dignation He tore his garments and
.
cried out : Alas ! O presumptuous tyrant ! Wouldst

thou dare t o profane the sac red M ountain of T asg i ,
th at i s t h e abode of the powerfu l G enii who protect

40 T HE HI S T ORY OF ABUDA H
thi s valley ? Know that such an insult will not pass
unpunished
Abudah boiled w ith rage at these words Tak e .
,
“
shouted he that rebel Harr an and let his head b e
, ,
seve red from his body and hi s tongue devoured by

,
’
dogs ?
Whereupon the other Vizi ers emi rs and officers , ,
present dragged the Grand Vizier from the royal

’
pavilion and executed their Sultan s order
,
.
T his being done Abudah arose from his throne

, ,
and arm ing him self hastened to t h e mountain He

,
.
caused the fainting S h ak arah s t o dig night and day

until they unearthed the iron chest and conveyed it ,
into the royal pavilion .
T hen Abudah inquired throughout the K ingdom

of T asg i for the fifty keys b ut found them not He
, .
c ommanded that every engi ne of power should be
applied t o break the locks But in vai n ; the chest re

.
sisted all endeavours and would not yi eld to the ut

,
most force .
T hereupon Abudah sent forth a crier through the

“
cities of T asg i who proclaimed O ye i nhabitants
, ,
of T a sg i ! the Sultan your master will reward with
palaces and unt old wealth the man who maketh keys
, ,
that will Open the fifty locks of the iron chest that
”
containeth the T alisman of Orom anes .
On that day al l the locksmiths of the Ki ng dom set

T HE IRON KINGDOM OF TA S G I 41
t o work to contrive keys that would fit the locks but ,
they were unable to do so But when the shades of

.
night began to fall upon the encampment there came ,
to the pavilion of Abudah an aged man who pres ,
ent ed the Sultan with a bunch of fifty keys after

,
which he departed without speaking .
Then A budah called all his Viziers emirs and , ,
offi cers together and bade one of them open t h e

,
C hest He endeavoured to do so ; and lo ! the first

.
lock flew Open at a touch But while the second.
was being opened the first closed again fi rm er than

,
before .
Abudah puffed with pride and enraged by d isap

,
pointment ordered fifty of his soldiers to take each a

,
key and to Open all the locks at the sam e moment

, .
T hey did so and as they were about to lift the lid a

, ,
flash of lightning issued from the chest and reduced ,
them all to ashes .
Abudah raging with hotter anger commanded an

, ,
other fifty to take their places and t o Open the chest

,
.
T his they attempted to do but were immedia tely

,
reduced to ashes like the first .
Then the rest of the soldiers perceiving that ,
Abudah was about to command another fifty to open

the fearful Chest fled in terror from h is presence And
,
.
when the off icers Of his arm y saw that their Sultan
had no p ower over t h e Talisman of Ot omanes they ,
no longer feared him but advanced clashing their
,
S pears and shouting for his death .
T h e unhappy Abudah expecting every moment to

,
be slaughtered sprang upon the Chest which soared

, ,
with him through the air S t up efied and giddy he .
sank into a deep slumber and was wafted far away ,
from the iron Kingdom of T a sg i .
A dventure F ourth The Grove of Wi sdom

HE merchant Abudah awoke and found him ,
self lying upon the iron chest beneath an over
hanging rock shaded by palm trees As he g azed b e

,
.
fore him h e beheld a small rivulet that flowed th rough

,
a narrow vale on either side of which were verdant

,
hills He saw a venerable Sheykh approaching His

. .
white beard descended over his b reast and he leaned ,
U pon a staff while he slowly moved along the vale

, ,
directing his steps toward the rock beneath which

the merchant reclined .
Abudah arose and still wearing the royal turban

, ,
and magnificent vestments of the Sultan of T asg i ad ,

=
v a nc ed to meet the Sheykh And on seeing him the .
old man bowed himself to the ground .
”
0 Abudah of B agdad ! he said O Sultan of ,
Ta sg i ! T hou who d eig nest to visit this Grove of Wis

dom in quest of scie n ce permit A b rah arad the h um
, ,
blest of the sons of knowledge to conduct thee to the ,

T HE GR OVE OF WISDOM 43
Pal ace of Learni ng which our lord Solomon the son of ,
Davi d on both of whom be peace !

, ere cted for
the investigation of truth The vale thou perceivest
.
before the e doth lead t o the palace where the foun ,
tains of knowledge are un sealed and happiness at

”
t ai ned .
Having thus said the venerable Sh eykh led t h e

,
way an d Abudah somewhat recovered from h is con

, ,
fusion followed
, .
“ ”
Alas ! thought he verily I have wandered
,
blindly seeking happiness in greatness and power !

Surely in this Grove of Wisdom shall I discover t h e
true keys that will unlock forever the iron chest and ,
”
yield me the possession of the T al isman .
Scarcely had he thought thus than they arrived

at the end of the vale and entered a grove where
,
Abudah beheld before him the Pal ace of Learning .
I t s walls were O f ebony with an arched doorway of

,
steel over which were inscribed in letters of brass

, , ,
t hese words :
“
0 Th ou th a t seekest Wi sd om ,
Lea ve m a n ki n d a n d hide wi th i n th ese w a l ls;
I n K n owl edg e on ly m a y Hap p i ness be f ou n d
The Sheykh A b rah arad knocked upon the door ,
and immediate ly it was opened by a black slave boy .
T hey entered and the Sheykh taking Abudah by the

, ,
hand conducted him through a vaulted passage the

, ,
44 THE HIST ORY OF A B UDAH
walls and roof of which we re of ebony They ceased .
not to go on until they came into a great saloon of

,
black marble in which were four porticoes one on

, ,
each side .
1 In eve ry portico was a fountai n of black stone hav ,
ing at its four com ers lions of brass And there was .
placed by each foun tain a C hair of ebony curiously

wrought whereon was seated a n ol d man b efore
, ,
whom were many books ; a nd on the floor at his feet

sat students who read aloud from the books So i t was .
in each portico .
“
Behold O Sultan said A b r ah arad the Hall Of
, , ,
Learning where even the mightiest k i ngs of the earth

,
seek earnestly for the wisdom that made our lord

Sol omon —on whom be peace the wisest of human
be i ngs Here may man learn the properties of herb s
.
and roots and of all kinds of mineral s Here al so

, .
, ,
may he contemplate the sun moon and stars and , , ,
inquire into the laws that guide their courses But .
ab ove all by those processes that are the secrets of

,
the alchemist he may discover the universal solvent

,
that dissolves all Nature T herefore O Sultan choose

.
, ,
thou the sc ience thou desirest to i nvestigate and I ,
will deliver thee into the hand of the Sheykh who is

best skilled in that science for in knowledge only
,
”
mayest thou fi nd true happiness !
“ ”
Know 0 A b rah arad
, said Abudah , ,
secret I am now preparing g ave to the great M agician
S h arm ard al the power t o dissolve the ear th and re v eal ,
hidden treasures Other secrets I have ; one of whi c h

.
I am about t o S how thee O fortun ate on e ! Behold !

,
S O saying the Sheykh A b rah ar a d darkened the

,
labor atory and immediately Ab udah pe r ceived in

,
vivid writing of fire on the wall ; these words

Th e S ul ta n f
o Ta sg i sh a ll be fi
sa ti s ed !
At this sight Abudah w a s transported with joy

whereupon the Sheykh said : Let not this appear
anc e too rashly inspire thy hopes ! T his luminous
writing is but the natural result of m y scie n ce .
Enough ! I now see the colours arising in the furnace .
Behold t he mix ture in the crucib le ! What flashes of

red green purple yellow and white arise from the
, , , ,
solven t ! B righter O Sultan than the rubies and

, ,
eme r alds of thine empire !

And Abudah gazing into the furnace perceived
, ,
the most glorious colours moving in the crucible of

A b rah arad .
“
T hese
elements thou seest continued t h e ,
“
Sheykh are fused together by the fierce heat and
, ,
thus form my universal solvent And now all the .
”
sec rets of Nature wi ll b e laid bare before me !
“ ” “
T hen cried Abudah j oyfully
, the T alisman of ,
”
Orom anes is min e !
T HE GROV E OF WISDOM 47
That may be possible replied the Sheykh but , ,
it will t ake some t ime for us t o discover where Oro

manes the mighty Alchemist of Fire hath hidden t h e
, ,
”
treasure .
“
Verily said Abudah it is enclosed in the iron
, ,
C hest whereon thou didst see me seated b eneath the

,
rock With this solvent thou mayest open the fifty

.
locks !
“
Hast thou then 0 Sultan ! cried A b rah arad
, ,
“
with delight the C hest of adamant said to contain
, ,
the philosophic T alisman which giveth immortality , ,
riches honour and therefore happiness to the pos

, , ,
sessor ? Let us g o at once and with this solvent release

”
the treasure .
“ ”
Rather said Abudah will I go and bring it
, ,
hither for by its vi rtue I may be transported whither

,
”
soever I desire .
Having thus said Abudah hastening forth from , ,
the palace returned through the vale to the rock

, .
And having seated himself upon the chest at a wish ,
he was conveyed into the laboratory of A b rah arad .
T h e Sheykh after having v iew ed the Chest with

,
rapture took forth the crucible from the furnace

,
.
He poured the glowing liquid upon the fifty locks and ,
immediately red fl ashes issued from the chest And a .
bolt of lightning drove violently through t h e temples

of A b rah ara d and reduced him to ashe s .
48 T HE HIST ORY OF ABU DA H
At this dreadful sight Abudah ran forth from the
laboratory in madn ess and filled the great saloon
,
with sighs and groans And even as he wandered .
about he beheld another Sheykh of imposing mien

,
ad v ancing toward him from one of the portic oes .
“ ” “
O miserable Abudah said the S heykh why , ,
wilt thou neglect t o possess the T alisman of Happi

”
ness when it i s in thy power t o enjoy it ?
“ ”
And canst thou assu re me of this ? asked Abudah
once more transported by hope .
“
M ust not t rue happiness be seated i n the mind ? ”
“
said the Sheykh Cool and moderate thy grief and
.
,
follow me Ve r ily I G h erar the Philosopher will

.
, ,
heal thy m i nd which at present is agitated by worldly

unrest .
T h e Sheykh then led Abudah forth to a river that

flowed through the grove su rrounding t h e Pal ace of
Learning .
How delightful said G h erar are the sweet dews

'
, ,
that are again ar ising at the call of the morn ing sun !
The Grove of Wisdom stands refreshed by the cool of
night T h e day is glorious ! Yet all this is vanity ! T h e
.
t rue philosopher doth not contemplate the outward

charms of Nature but looketh within the mind and
, ,
there alone he findet h repose In short 0 Abudah .

, ,
the philosopher is serene of spirit Nothing c an move .
or disquiet his calm He neither feareth nor hopeth

. .
THE GROVE OF W ISDOM 49
He ne i ther l oveth nor hateth A nd always he doth .
bear w ithin h i s bosom a contentment that i s un

shaken because he desireth but to contemp l at e the
,
wonders of his own mind .
And as the Sheykh G h erar was thus speaking a ,
fi erce tiger burst from a thicket with eyes sending ,
forth dreadfu l fires and mouth red with gore At this

, .
sight Abudah , crying out wi th fear leaped int o the

, ,
river an d swam to the other side Having moun ted

, .
the bank he looked toward the philosopher G h erar

, ,
and beheld him running with speed before t h e tiger ,
and uttering lamentable cries .
Abudah terrified lest the tiger should cross t h e

,
river hastened to follow a path that led between two

,
h ills And he ceased not to proceed until he reached a

.
wide green plain whereon he beheld many flocks of

,
sheep feeding And near the S heep at the entrance of

.
,
a cave he perceived a handsome shepherd reposing

,
on the grass Seeing Abudah the shepherd arose

.
, ,
and bowed himself to the gr ound .
“ ”
Welcome 0 Abud ah said he I b ow not t o the
, ,
.
tyrant of T asg i but t o the man who hath been taught

,
to S earch no m ote for happiness in wealth o r selfish ,
delight or power or vain knowledge R ather I bow

, ,
.
to h i m who searcheth for the wisdom that cometh

from Allah whose name be exalted ! Haste then to
, , ,
return to the che st and seat thyself up on it , and i t wil l

convey thee at last to that place where the Talisman
of Orom a nes may be found .
“
0 good and pious shepherd replied Ab udah , ,
verily I have abused the gifts of Allah whose name ,
be exalted ! Direct me then how to reach the C hest

, ,
in safety so that I may at last find true wisdom I .
fear to return t o the grove lest the tiger devour me

,
.
“ ” “
T hou art safe ,
replied the shepherd for the ,
'
t ig er st il l pursu eth Ghe t ar the Philosophe r Yonder .
i s however a path that leadeth from hence t o a

, ,
b ridge that will carry thee over the river G o and

,
.
,
”
peace be with thee .
Abudah having thanked the shepherd departed

, ,
and soon found himself beneath the rock where stood

the iron chest He cast himself upon it and i m
.
,
mediately the earth r umbled and Opened and the ,
chest sank downward i nto darkness and the earth ,

’
Closed again above A b ud ah s head .
A dven ture F if th Th e Tali sm a n

HE merchant remained silent for some time ,
unable to cry out through fear T hen he per .
c eiv ed that a light brighter and whiter than day b e

, ,
g an to S hine about him He saw that he was still S it

.
ti ng upon the C hest in the ce n tre of a lofty saloon

, ,
the walls a nd floor Of whi c h we re of crystal and the ,
roof of pure g old set with sparkli ng diamonds On .

THE TA LISMA N 5I
either side were eight and twenty thrones of massive
silver arranged against the wall while at the end of ,
the saloon was a throne of beaten gold .
And as Abudah looked about him in amazement ,
he saw lying near him the same small ebony box that
h ad been the cause of all his misfortunes .
T hen he heard a sound like thunder and in stantly ,
there stood before him a Genie of terrib le but noble

c ountenan ce clad i n a flame colou red ga rment
,
-
.
“
O Abudah merchant of Bagdad said the Genie
, , ,
behold me B arh ad don one of the Guardian Genii

, , ,
and a servant of Solomon on whom be peace ! R e

,
c eiv e at last the fifty keys and arise and O pen the
,
”
iron chest .
At this Abudah hastened and descending from the,
C hest took the keys from the han d of the Genie At

, .
his tou c h the fifty locks Opened wide He lifted the .
lid a nd the re flew forth a thousand b right feathers

, ,
which covered the c ry stal floor of the saloon .
“
O Ab udah said the Genie B arh addon dost
, ,
thou understand these things ? T h e feathers are the

thousand bright hopes that lie on the top of every
’
man s heart b eneath which are the ev il and g raspi ng
,
desires for power riches and fame Not in this black

, ,
.
Chest wilt thou find the T alisman of Happiness DO .
thou now att end in silence on what I am about t o

do
Havi ng said thus the Genie B arh addon struck wi th
,
“
his staff upon the little ebony box saying Thou , ,
evil Afrite of Ambition who loveth to torment m an

,
”
kind come forth to thy doom
,
.
And at these words the box fell to pieces and from ,
its fragments came forth the little yellow Witch ,
leaning upon her crutch and trembling in eve ry j oint

, .
“
Know 0 Afrite of Ambition s aid B arh addon
, , ,
thou false and evil creature that thy punishment is ,
terrible ! Enter yonder iron chest and be cast into t h e ,
roaring sea and remain under t h e foaming waves

,
”
until the Judgment Day .
The witch obeyed and uttering hideous cries sh e

, ,
entered the chest Whereupon the lid Closed violently

.
of itself and the fif ty locks fastened themse lves on

, .
And scarcely had they done so when a fierce whi rl ,
wind arose and the chest was taken up with a rush

,
ing noise and disappeared

, .
Abudah then turned to address the Geni e but he ,
had vanished ; and the merchant saw to his amaze

ment that he was no longer in the cryst al saloon but ,
was lyi ng on the divan in his own seraglio in B agdad .
T hereupon he sat up a nd his wife Selima and his

,
children behol ding him rushed to h is side wi th cries

, ,
of delight and embraced him

, .
“ ”
0 my beloved husband exclaimed Selima shed , ,
ding tears of j oy whence hast thou come so sudden ly

,
CONTINUATI ON O F THE FOUNTAIN O F
THE GENII
O ceased the story of the Genie B arh addon .
Having prostrated himsel f before the King

Genii he arose and once more mounted his
,
silver throne.
“
Good Fairy M oang said the King of the Geni i
, ,
the C hildren of G ui al ar the Iman of T erki have

, ,
heard the words of instruction that have fallen from

the lips of the serv ant of Solomon on whom be peace !
,
Take now Patna and Coulor and conduct them to

,
the apartment of entertainment ; and let them come

hither again at this same hour t o-morrow in order to
l isten to the deeds of the Ge n ie M amlouk ”
.
T h e Fairy Moang bowed before the throne and led ,
the Children through a golden door into a magnificent

apartment hung with curtains of azure s ilk Here she .
placed them upon cushions by the side of a leaping

fountain and set before the m a delicious repast
, .
After they had eaten sh e conducted them into a gar

,
den full of flowers and t rees i n which were many birds

,
singing the praises of Allah the High the Great

, ,
.
T h e children then saw at the en d of the garden a

g rove of b e aut iful tr ees l aden with fruits of every
T HE FOUNT AIN OF T HE GENII 55
colour and beneath which played many boys and
,
girls dressed in blue violet pink and white robes , , , .
These beckoned to Patna and Coulor who hastening , ,
toward t h e grove found themselves against a trans

,
parent wall through which they could not pass T ears .
of disappointme nt rose t o the n eyes but the Fairy ,
M oang approached them and said :

“
Patna and Coulor must possess their souls in
patience After they hav e b een suflfic ient ly in structed
.
by the Good Genii then may they enter the Garden ,
of Fruits and play with the Sons and Daughters of

,
“
the Fairies But come now added sh e kindly let
.
, ,
u s spend th e night i n refreshing slumbe r while we ,
await the delightful hour when the Genie M amlouk

”
will relate his adventu res .
S O saying the Fairy led the children to their

,
couches whe re they laid themselves down and slept

,
ge ntly until morn ing dawn ed After another deli .
c l ous repast sh e led them once more t o the crystal

,
saloon whe re the r ace of the Good Genii were seated

,
upon their silv e r thron es And there she placed Patna .
and Coulor upon the carpet before the golde n thron e ,
on whi c h w a s the Ki ng of the Genii clad in his white ,
robe and wear i ng h is golden crown

,
.
“
Welcome 0 good Fairy M oang said that great
, ,
“
Genii and peace b e upon the child re n of the Iman
,
“
of T erki ! Then h e cried aloud Do thou O M am
”
, ,
56 T HE SULTA N M I S NA R
louk Guardian Genie stan d forth and relate to these
, ,
human beings one of thy good deeds .
’
Hearing this the children s eyes sparkled and there
, ,
arose from his silver throne a Genie of majestic form

wearing a crimson garment Having made his Ob c i .
sance before the throne of the King of the Genii he ,
began thus .
Attend to my words 0 ye race of the Good Genn

, ,
and ye human beings Listen to one of my deeds that

.
hath been in accordance with the precepts of our lor d

Solomon the son of David
,
on both of whom b e ,
peace ! I will now relate
T HE HI S T OR Y OF T HE S U LTA N M I S NA R A ND
T HE F OU R E NCHA NT E R S
The E nch a nters

HERE was i n ancien t times in the country of ,
the Persians a mighty Sultan named Dab ul

,
comb ar the lord of all the East He was possessed of

, .
g reat wealth and numerous troops and guards He

, .
had no son to succeed him and the heir to his throne

,
w as Prince A h ub al the son of his brother

, Th e .
Pr ince was misshape n of body and malicious a nd ,
intriguing in heart T his caused the Sultan much

.
grief and he often mourn ed apart

, .
At length when Dab ul c om b ar was well advanced

,
THE ENCHA NTE RS 57
i n years there w as born to him a son whom b e named
, ,
‘
M is mar The Sultan was filled with happiness at this

.
event and commanded the cit

,
y to be decorated the ,
drums to be beaten and the people t o rej o i ce for forty

,
days He prepared a magnificent feast to which he

.
invited all the grandees of his Empire Every one .
came except Prince A h ub al who retired to his palace

, ,
in disappointment and rage .
Prince M isnar grew to b e a youth of surpassing

beauty He was tall and finely formed ; his eyes were
.
Of b r illiant blackness ; his eyebrows were arched ; h is

’
hair w as glossy l ike the raven s wing ; and his c h ec ks
were as red as roses He was le arned in all the arts and
.
sciences and was also skilled in the use of weapons of

,
war But what was of more importance t o the people

.
,
of Persia he was j ust and generous of mind and wise

, ,
beyon d h is years .
W hen the Prince reached the age of eighteen the ,
Sultan Dab ul c om b ar died and M isn ar succeeded h im ,
U po n the throne After the days of mourning were

.
p assed the new Sultan sent forth a decree that all the
,
emirs Offi cers and wise men of the Empire should as

, ,
semble themselves together on a certain day in the

Royal Judgment Hall .
T h e day arrived an d in the hall were presen t

,
grandees and wise men from all parts of Pe rsia T hey .
were arrayed in state garments of magnificent s ilks

58 T HE SULT AN M I S NA R
and brocades ri c hly embroidered in many colours so ,
that the hall resembled a flower garden T h e Sultan .
M isnar was seated upon a thro n e of iv ory ov erlaid

with plates of red gold and he was clad in splendid
rob es of cloth of—
,
gold ; while his turb an was decorated

-
with large pearls an d j ewels Near him stood h is .
Vizie r Hor am likewise weari ng a rich turban and

,
costly garments .
T h e g randees and all present prostrated themselv es

before the throne and M isnar bade them arise say
, ,
,
ing '
0 ye emirs offi cers and wise men of my Empire

, ,
know that I have called you together because more

precious to me are your cou nsels than the mines of
R aal cond a or the great emerald of Gan i ! T h e sages
‘
say that the reign of the Sultan is estab lished by
the experie nce and knowledge of his faithful sub
’
jects T herefore O ye sources of light an d ye foun
.
, ,
tains of wis dom advise this day your Sultan h ow

,
he may best secure himself upon the throne of his

father .
T h e emirs officers and all prese n t hear ing these

, , ,
words we re struck dumb with astonishment at the

,
con descension of their lord and fell prostrate once ,
mo re before the thron e .
“
Arise my counsellors
, said M isnar listen
, ,
further to my words Know that Prince A h ub al the

.
,
T HE ENCHANT ERS 59
son of my uncle i s about to rebel against the sovereign
,
power of Persia ; for he seeketh t o mount the throne

through treachery Guide then the steps of your
.
, ,
Sultan so that he may establish his just rule in this

”
land.
T hereupon the Emir Garab a silver haired sage

, ,
-
whom all men honoured arose He bowed himself , .

,
and said : ,
I percei v e O mighty Sultan the dark C louds Of

, ,
evi l gathering about the throne of Persia ! The

wicked Genii are leaguing together to attack our true
lord the Sultan M isnar !
,
All present were dismayed at these words but ,
M isnar al one w as unmoved .
“
Be not afraid O my friends said he
, Know , .
that no rose is without its thorn nor is life made per ,
fe et without trials Grieve not then since prudence

.
, ,
and virtue flou rish best amid dangers T h e security .
Of our Empire will be greater and more lasting after ,

”
all lurking ev ils are driven from it .
At this the grandees an d wise men gazed in wonder

upon the youthful face of their Sultan whic h glowed ,
as if with an inward light Sile nce and amaz ement .
for a time prevailed T hen arose a venerable Sheykh

.
,
whom no man knew and advancing to the foot of the

, ,
throne he said :
,
“
Hear O M is mar the words of one who knoweth
, ,
the foul heart of man A h ub al the son of thy uncle
.
, ,
hath royal b lood in his veins and his heart is filled

,
with envy of thy power Never while he liveth shall

.
the throne of Persia be truly thine T herefore c ut .

,
him off in the flower of his youth Destroy him as one .
”
doth crush the deadly adder .
“
What ! exclaimed the Sultan M isn ar Old man
”
, ,
dost thou counsel me to shed the blood of my cousin !

Verily Allah
,
whose name be exalted ! hath not
,
placed me here to establish my rule with cruelty and

Oppression ! Rather doth He require justice and judg
ment at the hand Of h is Sultan As for thee O thou .
,
wicked man thy bad counsel Shall fall upon thine ow n

,
head !
As the Sultan M is mar uttered these words he made ,
a S ign with his hand a nd the guards adv anced with

,
sab res drawn T hey seized the Sheykh a nd we re

.
,
about to lead h im forth to the place Of execution ,
when a sound like thunder shook the hall .
Immediately fire issued from the mouth of the

Sheykh and his whole form Changed and in h is place
, ,
stood a dragon enveloped in flames All fled in terror .
b efore it b ut the Sultan M isnar sat unmoved by fear

,
.
He aimed a blow with his sabre at the dragon and ,
as he did so he perceived through the flames a hoary

,
M agic ian seated upon the back O f the monster .
“ ”
Know 0 vain child said the M agician
, , ,
62 T HE SULT A N M I SNA R
her eyes darting deadly sparks and her lean bones ,
wrapped in yellow skin .
Clouds of thick smoke ascended from the floor and ,
the Enchanters with one shriek rose to the roof of the

hall and passing through the dome disappeared
, , ,
.
A S soon a s they were departed and o rder restored , ,
the Sultan M isnar once more addressed the assembly .
“ ”
Know O my coun sel lors said he that happy
, , ,
is your Sultan for your number is now tried a n d

,
cleansed T herefore let your lord part ake Of the sweet

.
ness of your advice Say then h ow shall peace and

.
, ,
security establish the throne of Persia and in what ,
manne r shall t h e evil des igns of Prince A h ub al b e

ove rturned ?
“
Far be it from me said the Vizier Horam to ,
utter presumptuous words b efore the lord of al l the

East ! But the security of the Empire doth require
that A h ub al the traitor be not left at large Let .
him b e removed to a plac e from whence he may no

longer give pai n or u neasin ess to our Sultan .
“
A t the sp r i ngs of the Rive r Ava on a cragg y rock , ,
standeth the st rong fortress of A b oul T hither let the .
Princ e be conveyed by a guard A n d there he may .
lead a most comfortable life but without power to

,
distu rb the glorious and just reign of the Sultan

M i sn ar .
Th e c ounsel of the Vizier Horam seemed wise to

T HE CAST LE OF OLLOMA ND 63
the Sult an and all present Thereupon M i snar gave

.
C om mand that Prince A h ub al should be im mediately

seized and conducted to t h e Castle of A b oul .
The M a g i c Castl e of Oll om and
HE Sultan M isnar dismissed the assembly ,
and the guard hastened t o carry out h is com

m ands They seized the misshapen A h ub al and plac
.
, ,
ing him upon a horse l ed him forth from the c ity

, ,
toward the springs of the R iver Ava .
T hey journeyed over mountain and valley and

desert waste until at length they arrived at a pass
,
between tw o hi gh mountai ns As they were about to .
enter it a party of five thousand horsemen sudde nly

,
a ppeared brandishing their spears

, T hey attacked .
the guard and after much slaughter took A h ub a l

, , ,
from them and disappeared through the pass T h e

, .
guard t hat remained fell trembling to the ground ,
and at the same moment the earth clove asunde r

with an awf ul noise and the Enchanter Ollom and
, ,
ridin g upon his fie ry dragon appeared b efore them

, .
“
G O 0 ye cowards
,
”
said he return to M is mar
“
, ,
who calleth himself Sultan and inf orm him that ruin
,
and deat h await him T ell him also that Prince

.
, ,
A h ub al hath friends who will shortly place him upon

”
the throne of Persia ! So saying the Enchanter ,
waved his wand and d i sappeared Th e guard arisi ng

,
.
, ,
made haste to return to the c ity So fared it with .
them .
As for P rince A h ub al the t r aitor he found himself ,
b eing conveyed like light n ing through the pass S oon .
he saw b efore him a precipitous rock reachi ng to the

clouds a nd on the top of which was built a m ag nifi
,
cent castle Its spires and domes shone like b urnished

.
gold reflecting the rays of the sun Th e horsemen

,
.
placed the Prince at the foot of this rock and turn ing , ,
about rode swiftly back by the way they had come

, .
Prince A h ub al then perceived a small door t o open

in the castle wall Immediately a dwarf came forth
.
,
and descended the rock by means of an invisib le

stairway He soon reached the side of A h ub al and
.
,
placed in his hand a b all of b lue silk .
“
0 Prince b eloved of the Enchanters , said he , ,
th row this before thee and follow wheresoever it ,
may lead S O shalt thou discover the secret way that

.
goeth up to the M agic Castle of Ol lom and ”

.
A h ub al filled with eagerness took the ball and

, , ,
cast it down before him It be g an to roll swiftly up .
the side Of the rock and the Prince saw before him a ,
windi ng ascent that appeared as the ball passed along .
He followed after and soon foun d himself upon the

,
summit O f the rock b efore the great entrance of the,
c astle T hereupon the massive door O pe ned groaning

.
on its hinges and the Enchanter Ol lom and came forth

, .
T HE CA ST LE OF OLLOM A ND 65
O favourite of our powerful Race said he true , ,
S ultan of all t h e East in whose heart Sweet intrigue

,
and craft have ever an abiding place enter and behold

-
,
”
all my enchantments which are at thy disposal !
So saying the Enchanter led Prince A h ub al into the
castle T hey proceeded through a passage guarded
.
on either side by four dragons and they ceased not to

,
go on until they arr ived at a vast court the dome of ,
which w as b l ack and lofty T h e floor of the court

.
w as of iron and the great walls of black marble And

, .
there were set roundabout in the walls four hundred

gates of brass a hundred on each side of the court
, .
T hey were supported by hug e b razen hinges In the .
centre of the court was a deep and dark pit .
T h e Enchanter then lifted up his voice and shouted

like thunder .
“
Appear O my slaves cried he and expose to
, , ,
the eyes of this human being a part of the riches and

”
wonders of the Castle of Ol l om and .
Immediately a g igantic Afrite as black as jet rose

, ,
from the pit i n the centre of the c ourt His head was .
like a dome ; h is eyes were like wheels ; h is teeth like

hooks ; his ears like shields ; and his red lips thick and
hang ing down He carried in h is hand an enormous
.
clu b of e b ony which he shook in the air

,
.
T h e Prince then perceived a lo ng line of A f rit es as ,
horrible as the first and carry ing clubs of ebony

, ,
66 THE SULT A N M I S NA R
ascending out of the pit When four hundred A frit es .
had come forth each took his place before one of the
,
b r azen gates The Enchanter bade them all strike

.
with their C lubs They instantly did so and as the

.
,
heavy Clubs fell fearf ul sounds arose as though

,
worlds were being rent in pieces Hearing this .

,
A h ub al stunned and terrified fell to the ground

, , .
“ ”
Arise ! said Ol lom and and encour age thy faint ,
ing heart by gaz ing upon the riches and power of thy
”
friend .
Th e Pri nce still st up efied by the fearful sounds

, ,
lifted his head and looked about h im He saw that .
the four hundred brazen gates stood open and the ,
A f rit es were resting on their clubs beside them .
T hrough the hundred gates at the right of the

court he perceived vaulted chambers filled with bars
of red gold and white silver Through the gates on
‘
the left he beheld bags of money and j ewel s piled

, ,
high beneath m g g ed arches of unhewn stone While .
the open gates before and behind him disclosed

rooms filled with instruments of war suffi cient t o
equip a thousand armies Eve ry weapon of death .
was there ; lances daggers knotted Clubs swords and

, , , ,
bows and arrows lay heaped together in profusion

, .
At this sight A h ub al shouted with fierce delight ,
and a r ising from the floor f orgot his fears

, , .
“
Know said Ollom an d that with this gold and
, ,
T HE or OLLOMA ND
'
CAST LE .
67
silver thou mayest corrupt the oflic ers and soldiers of ‘
’
M i snar s army ; while with the weapons thou mayest
arm them for battle All that thou seest i s due to
.
enchantment ; therefore no human force c an prevail ,
against these weapons .
“ ’
I behold by means of my magic art M isn ar s
, ,
troops flying before the e! I see thee mounted on the

throne of Persia ! I foresee the triumph of the Race of
the Enchanters who through thee will be enabled to
,
rule the emp ire of all the East !

“ ” “
But said A h ub al what need is t here of these
, ,
treasures and weapons when thou hast an army of ,
such g ig antic slaves ten of whom would suffi ce t o

,
”
destroy a m illion enemies ?
“ ”
Alas ! said Ollom and know that these A f rit es ,
are of the Disobedient Genii who rebelled against

their lord Solomon T hey serve the R ace of the En
.
chan ters b ut they have no power t o harm or de

,
stroy human beings who follow the precepts of Solo

m on the son of David an d who are protected by
, ,
the Genii of Wisdom .
“
However with this gold and silver we may cor
,
rupt mankind and whenever human being s leave

,
following the precepts of virtue they become our ,
se rvants So hence ! Let us in disguise seek the of

.
, ,
ficers and soldiers of M i sn ar and persuade them t o ,

”
abandon their tame Sultan !
68 T HE SULT A N M I S NA R
And even as he spoke the Enchanter Ol lom and ,
stamped with his foot and a chariot drawn by four

, ,
d r agons ascended out Of the pit Into this A h ub al

, .
and the Enchanter entered and a d ark cloud covered ,

.
them In a minute they we re t r ansported to the edge

.
Of the royal encampme n t of M isnar .
Ol l om an d then touched the dragons with h is wand ,
and they became four cam els laden with merchandise ,
an d gold while the chariot w a s converted into an

,
elephan t A h ub al became a merchant seated upon

.
the back of the elephan t ; and Ollom an d changed his

own fo r m to that of a black slave Thus they ente red .
the royal encampment and showed their goods for

,
sale .
Soon the offi cers and soldiers surrounded them and ,
sought t o buy the i r wares T hen Ol l om and and Ahu

.
b al with honeyed words and secret gifts of gold and

,
jewels won many t o their evil cause Thus fared it

, .
with A h ub al the traitor .
Th e F ea st of Ti g ers
$8 for the g uard the Sultan M isnar after

of ,
Prince A h ub al had b een taken from them ,
they made haste to r eturn to the city They cast .
themselves down before the royal throne and related ,
to the S ultan all that had happened from first to last .
He then summoned his Vizier emirs and other , ,

70 THE SULT A N M I S NA R
At these words all save M isnar turned pale with
apprehension He however gave orders that every
.
, ,
on e except the Viz ier Horam should go out from
before h im and they did so ,

.
“ “
0 Horam said he I know t h y faithful heart
, , .
Never may I triumph over the Enchanters unless I

possess the Girdle of Op akk a and the Signet Ring of ,
Solomon on whom be peace ! T herefore it is expedie n t

,
for me to go at once to the M ountains of Kaf a nd ,
procure these treasures In the meant ime do thou .

, ,
O Horam place thyself at the head of my troops and

, ,
go forth with them into the field unt il I return to thee ,

”
again.
“
M ay all the desires of the Sultan be fulfilled !
“
answered Horam but will not my lord take with ,
him a guard for the journey is great over mountains

, ,
”
and deserts and across roaring seas ?
,
“
Nay replied M isnar those who are my slaves
,
“
,
here may when at a distance become my masters

, , .
Th e diamond in the security of the treasure-house

may be safe from thieves but when it shineth ab road , ,
it draweth envious eyes Unaccompanied will I go .
forth None shall know that I am Sultan

. .
T h e Vizier Horam was struck with these prudent

words a nd bowi ng in assent he drew from h is bosom
, ,
an iv ory tab let .
Let then my lord receive S aid he this t ab

, , , ,
T HE FEAST OF T IGERS 71
l et If he glance at it daily he will see wr itten on its
.
,
”
surface al l that Horam doeth .
“ ”
What ! exclaimed M isnar taking the tablet from ,
’ “
Horam s h and is this indeed endowed with such
,
”
rare virtue !
”
Know answered Horam that my father when
, , ,
he through the malice of h is enemies was banished

, ,
from the presence of the Sultan Dab ul com b ar g ave ,
unto me this tablet saying 0 my son take this and

, ,
‘
, ,
whatsoever befalleth thine un happy parent shall at

all times be made known unto thee on this ivory page .
And to whomsoever thou g iv est it after my death , ,
that friend shall read thereon what Horam my son

’
shall wish to make know n .
”
“
Good Horam ! said M ismar much moved this , ,
gift is of such rare value that thy lord upon his re

turn shall reward thee fi t t ing ly M eanwhile prepare .
,
for me a disguise as t o night I would depart for the

,
-
”
M ountains of Kaf .
T h e Vizier Horam then made haste to get ready

the disguise and when midnight was come he led the
, ,
Sultan forth to the borders of the great Forest of

T arap aj an M ismar immediately plunged into its
.
g loomy depths and went on his way

,
.
Darkness was all ab out hi m and as he proceeded , ,
he heard in the distanc e the roaring of beasts and the ,
cries of nig ht birds Thus he wal ked on for some time

.
,
un til at lengt h he saw through the darkness the shin
ing of a red light ; while the sky glowed as if with re
fl ec t ed fir e .
He hastened his steps and s oon arrived at a glade , ,
in the centre of which burned a great fire its flames ,
mounting to the sky Numerous creatures formed .
’
like men but having feet of goats and clad in tigers
, ,
skins leaped and danced about

, .
1
As soon as these beheld the Sul tan M isnar they ,
advanced and encircling him drew him toward the

, ,
fire T here he beheld a large and stately damsel like

.
,
’
wise clothed in a tiger s skin and holding in her hand ,
a pro nged fork .
“
Approach 0 stranger said she and join the
, , ,
Feast of Tigers in celebration of which this nightly

,
fi re is kindled For eleven days more must it bu rn

.
,
and the Feast be held On the eleventh night there .
will come forth from the flames a magic spear whi ch ,
will give all power to him who doth possess it Stay .
thou here and rule the Feast with me and the spear
, ,
shall be thine With it thou mayest conquer all thy

.
foes .
“
T hen exclai med the Sultan with delight
, here ,
”
will I abide until the magic spear is mine !
”
Happy man ! said the damsel smiling t o end , ,
thy search with so little labour ! But O my followe r s , ,

“
added sh e bring hither the skin of the tiger the paw
, ,
THE FEAST OF T IGER S 73
of the lion and the iron lance together with the bow
, ,
that t w ang et h nightly in the mighty Forest of T ara

”
p aj an .
’
Immediately one of the creatures brought a tiger s
’
skin and threw it over the Sultan s shoulders ; a sec
’
ond hung the lion s paw upon h i s breast ; while a third
put an iron lance in his right hand and slung the bow ,
and quiver at his side T he n all the creatures joined.
hands and leaped in a circle around M i snar and the

,
damsel .
“
Now said sh e when the dance was over sound
, , , ,
0 my followers the instruments of brass and an

, ,
nounce to the M oon an d the Stars and the Sacred , ,
Fire that this stranger is about to swear by the Oath

,
of T igers that he will never reveal our rites to mortal

,
”
man .
“
But said M ismar I know not what those rites
, ,
”
may be !
“
It needeth not that thou shouldst know replied ,
“
the damsel Lay thy hand upon thy head and thy
.
,
finger on thy lips and say A s the starless night is

, ,
‘
dark and as the cav e of death is dark so shall my

, ,
words continue in darkness concerning the rites of the

Feast of
“
And wherefore asked M is mar is this silence
, ,
i mposed ? What S hall be done to him who sweareth

”
not ?
74 T HE SULT AN M I S NA R
To him who sweareth said the damsel the , ,
magic spear is given But him who sweareth not t h e

.
,
”
Fire and the T iger devour .
“
T he n answered M isnar if t h e punishment of
, ,
him who sweareth not is so great surely fearful and ,
e v il must b e thy rites ! T herefore O ye wicked c rea ,
tures i n the name of Solomon the son of David —on

, ,
both of whom be peace — I comman d ye to b e gone !

”
Scarcely had M i snar pronounced these words than

all the creatures vanished and in the place of the
,
damsel appeared the fell Enchanter T asn ar riding on

a tige r a nd his snaky locks writhing about h is head
, .
” “
Base and senseless wretch ! cried he thy frozen ,
virtue may have kept thee now but all thy prudence ,
shall not suffi ce to save thy tottering throne ! Know

that thou shalt yet feel my scourge ! Proceed then , ,
miserab le human b ei ng on thy vain pilgrimage to

,
the M ountain s of Kaf S O saying the Enchanter

van ished a nd the great fi re went out
, .
T h e Sultan M isnar filled with joy at his escape

, ,
continued his course in darkness through the widely

extended Forest of T arap aj an When t h e morning .
dawn ed he examined the ivory tablet of Horam but

, ,
nothing appeared written thereon .
“ ” “
Alas ! thought he I have placed too much c on
,
fid enc e in this man ! Perhaps even now in my ab ,
sence he is making himself Sultan of Persia ! There

,
T HE FEA ST OF T IGERS 75
needed not the powers of the evil Geni i to overthrow
my throne !
And as M isnar thought thus he perceived an in ,
scription to grow upon the tablet In lines of red the .
words appeared :
“
Hora m , th e f a i thf u l sl a ve of th e S ul ta n of a ll th e E ast,
to M i sn a r th e l or d of m y h ea r t :
K n ow, th a t af ter I l ef t m y S ul ta n , whi l e m y h ear t wa s
y et h ea vy a n d m y ey eli ds f ul l of tea rs , I wen t a t on ce to th e
r oy a l en c a m p m en t, a n d ca ll ed tog eth er th e r em a i n der o th e
f
a r m y , p ur p osi n g to l ea d th em a g a i n st th e oe
f .
B u t, al as ! th e p r esen ce of m y l or d th e S u l ta n wa s n ot
wi th hi s troop s Th ey r ef used to g o f or th to b a ttl e E ven .
n ow the ofi c er s a cc u se m e, th e V i zi er Hor a m , of evil d e
vi ces a g a i n st th e S ul ta n . A l l i s c onf usi on Th er ef or e,

.
m ay m y l ord see fi t to r etur n a t on ce, a n d en c our a g e th e

f a i n ti n g h ea r ts of hi s tr oop s , a n d l ea d th em a g a i nst A h u b a l
”
a nd th e E n ch a n ter s .
When the Sultan M i sna r had read the tablet his ,
heart failed him He fell upon the ground in despair

. .
O M isn ar ! M is mar ! cried he the wicked Gen i i

” “
,
prev ail ! T h e Good Genii no longc i exist ! Wh e refore '
didst thou not swear by the Oath of T igers and g ain ,

”
possession of the mag ic spear !
And even as he spoke these words he heard a strange ,
hissing and the malicious Ullin riding on the horny

, ,
“
toad appeared before him
,
Verily the powers of
.
” “
enchantment do prevail said she sin ce the Sultan
, ,
M ish ar hath abandoned the precepts of Solomon !

76 T HE SULTAN M I SNA R
Henceforth must thou serve me Quit this form and .
,
”
assume that of a yellow toad .
Immediately M isnar became a reptile of a hundred

years of age He foun d himself in a thicket of deadly
.
nightshade while near him on a stone reposed a large

,
red toad .
Art thou what thy form b esp eaket h said the ,

“
Red Toad in a melancholy voice or like me the , , ,
”
victim of enchantment ?
“
I am M i snar the Sultan of all the East replied
, ,
he and this form was inflicted upon me by the

,
”
wicked Ullin .
“ ”
On e event hath happened t o us both ! returned
“
the Red T oad Nevertheless to prese rve our lives
.
, ,
let us leave this noxious thicket and seek the pleas ,

”
ant shade of the fragrant cinnamon So saying he .
led the way and M ismar followed

, .
Soon the Sultan perceived a cinnamon tree under ,
which sat a bright b lue toad with gold marks upon,
i t s head T h e Red T oad approaching bowed low

.
, , ,
and said :
“ ’
Where 0 Princess is the latest victim of Ullin s
, ,
”
rage ?
“
He was but now basking in the sun replied the ,
”
Blue T oad and I aroused him He cometh hither
, . .
M isnar then perceived a fourth toad grey and aged , ,
crawling slowly toward the tree .

78 T HE S ULT A N M I S NA R
days of mourning were past I ente red my sh O p with ,
impatience to examine my goods I opened coff er .
after coff er and saw such quantities of b rilliant dia

,
monds and pure pearls as well as glowing rub ies and ,
other jewels that my heart was transported with joy

,
.
I saw also chests containing great numbers of neck

laces an d earrings and other orname nts of gold and
, ,
silver all set with large gems suitable for Sultanas

, .
T he re appeared to b e no end to my riches

, .
I then return ed to my house an d arrayed myself in ,
magn ificent g arments after which I made a feast for ,
the sons of the merchants T hey b ecame my c om .
panions a nd daily I placed b efore them delicious foods

,
and drinks and we made merry togethe r T his con

, .
t inued for two years du r ing which time I neither ,

‘
b oug h t nor sold nor even opened my shop , .
At last all my gold jewels and other wealth were , ,
gon e and I was forced to sell my houses an d slaves t o

,
pay my de b ts ; after which I repaired to my compau

ions for help But they only laughed at me and drove
.
,
me from their doors with b lows .
Stung with despai r and reflecting on my folly I , ,
clothed myself in rags and wandered forth a b eggar ,

i
on t h e st reet s At last I sat down before the door of

.
a rich young man named B enasker of Fez who like , , ,
myself seemed to be squandering all his fortune upon

,
the false ones of earth .

MA HOUD THE JEWELLER O F DELHI
, 79
I had not sat there l ong before B enasker came forth ,
surrounded by his boon companions who were the ,
same sons of the merchants wh o had reduced me to

poverty I cast myself down at his feet and related to
.
,
him h ow I had made merry with these false friends ,
who had proved my ruin I begged him to save him .
self while there was yet time .
Th e sons of the merchants when they heard me ,
speak thus would have struck me with their sabres

, ,
but B enasker raised me tenderly from the ground and ,
said :
“
Verily what thou sayest I k now to b e true ! I am
,
seeking for a friend T herefore arise and I will test

.
,
thee En ter and my servants shall clothe thee and

.
, ,
thou shalt live at ease Only thou must first pledge

.
thyself never to reveal what thou mayest see or hear

”
transacted in my house .
Without reflecting I took the oath and B enasker

, , ,
“
seizing me by the han d said to his companions Go
, ,
hence ye se rvile race of fl at t erers ! I have tested you

,
all and found you wanting ! T his man alone is worthy

”
of my regards !
The sons of the merchants were thunderstruck at

hearing him speak thus and renewed their protesta
,
tions of regard But B en a sker ordered his slaves to

.
drive them from his door T hey did so after which he

.
,
led me into his house We passed through many pas

.
sages hung with rich curtains and at last arrived at ,
a sumptuous S aloon ; seeing which I cast myself again

a t his feet and thanked him for all his favour
,
.
T hereat he smiled and raising me gently clapped his

, ,
hands and summoned two black slaves At his com

,
.
mand they led me to the bath and put silken g ar ,
ments upon me T hey then conducted me into a gar

.
den full of sweet scented flowe rs and fragrant fruits

-
, ,
and trees wherei n were many singing birds .
B en asker advanced to meet me and taking me by ,
the hand drew me to the S ide of a fountain T here we

, .
reclined on soft cushions and feasted and made merry ,
till midnight T hen we retired to our couches and

.
,
slept till morning .
T hus matte rs continued for some time Each day .
we entered the b ath dressed ourselves in fine raiment, ,
and feasted and drank But on the ni neteenth day as .

,
the sun was setting B enasker met me with a clouded ,
b row.
“
What 0 my friend asked I i s the cause of thy
, , ,
grief ? Shall not M ahoud S hare alike with thee the

smiles a n d frowns of Destiny ? Therefore confide to
,
”
me the cause of thy sorrow .
O M ahoud said he i s it not the full of the

“
, ,
”
moon ?
“
It is said I smiling
, , .
T hen the fate of thy friend answered he , ,

I attempte d to do so but my limbs trembled with ,
such violence that I was unable to lift it Seeing this .

,
B en asker burst into a rage and drawing a whip from ,

“
his bosom struck me with it saying Wretch who
, , , ,
hath pledged thy soul to me Obey or b ecome my , ,
slave forever !
T errified and thunderstruck at the fierceness of his
man ner I redoub led my e ff orts and lifted the door
, , .
What w a s my amazement to pe rceive beneath the

trap a b eautiful damsel lying asleep upon an ivory
couch .
B ena sker muttered some strange words and in ,
st ant l y a huge M arid a s b lack as coal rose through

, ,
the floor carrying in his hand a naked sword

, .
“ ”
o A h ab ac k said B ena sker
“
do thy duty ”
, , .
T h e M arid thereupon descended beneath the trap

, ,
door and lifting the couch on which was the damsel

, ,
placed it b efore B enasker T hen the M arid vanished .
th rough the floor .
0 M ahoud
“ ”
said B enasker I will retire into
, ,
yonder closet Do thou Ope n this vial and pour its

.
conte nts into the mouth of the sleeping damsel But .
take ca re that thou do not touch so much as the hem

of her rob e or thou diest
, .
He handed me as he spoke a small vial filled with

, ,
a b lue liquid and enteri ng a closet closed the door I

, , .
drew the stopper from the vial and poured the con ,
M A HOUD THE JEWELLER OF DELHI
, 83
’
tents into the damsel s mouth She immediately sat .
up and seeing me beg an to wring her hands and weep

, , .
I was dumfounded by her beauty Her hair was .
long and black and enveloped her form like a veil

, .
Her eyes were large and d ark Her skin was white like .
alabaster and her mouth red like a pomegranate

,
flower She wore upon her head a crown of gold set

.
with pearls and jewels while her rob e w as of yellow

,
brocade embroidered with threads of silver .
And as I gazed upon her B enasker S poke from the ,
C loset .
“
O beauteous Hem j un eh Princess of Kash ,
” “
mir said he art thou now ready to become my
, ,
bride ? If so this enchantment shall b e at a n end and ,

”
thou shalt rule over my heart and wealth .
“ ” “
Wretch ! replied the Princess wh o stole m e ,
from my palace on my wedding night ! Never S hall I

become thy bride nor do I fear thy power since the
, ,
good Genie M amlouk will in due time release me from

”
this c ruel fate .
“
Haughty Princess ! Ungrateful creature ! ex
“
claimed B ena sker know that though the Genie
,
M amlouk will not pe rmit me to g aze upon thee with

out causing thee to fall into deep slumb er yet will ,
Ullin help me her faithful servant Never shalt thou

,
.
”
be released until thou do con se nt t o wed me .
”
“
I n famous man ! cried the Princ ess r ather ,
would Hem juneh die t h e most dreadful of deaths than

become the bride of one who se rveth t h e m alicious
”
Ullin .
At these words B enasker rushed from the closet

, ,
h is eyes rolling with rage but no sooner did his ,
glance fall upon the Princess than she fell back in deep
slumb er upon the couch I mm ediately the M arid ap
.
p eared and taki ng up the cou c h descended with it

, ,
beneath the trapdoor which closed ab ove his head

,
with a roaring soun d .
B enasker then b eckoned me t o follow and led me ,
forth through the many apartments to the garden .
“ “
Go said he in a hollow tone withdraw to the
, ,
bath and remove from thy face the black stain But
, .
beware lest thou reveal t o any man what thou hast

”
witnessed If so a fearful death aw ait et h thee
.
, .
I hastened to the bath and removing the stain , ,
put on my own garm ents .
“ ”
What ! thought I to myself shall this wicked ,
man keep forever the beautiful Hem j uneh in c on

finem ent beneath the trapdoor ? And shall sh e re
main in the custody of that hideous M arid ?
And even while I thought thus a scroll fell from the ,
dome t o the marb le pavement of the bath I lifted it .
up and read therein :

,
M a h oud M a h oud Kn ow th a t b ec a use of m en s ’
f a ul ts, th e evi l Geni i a n d th e E n ch a n ters h ave swa y Over

th e ser va n ts of S ol om on , on wh om b e
p ea c e th ey h ave
M A HOUD T HE JEWELLER OF DELHI
, 85
no p ower . E ven n ow, M a h oud

i n th e h ouse of a
, th ou a r t
vi l e m a g i c i a n , to wh om th ou a r t b oun d b a th ou h tl ess vow
y g
A n d unl ess th e Gen i i M a m l ouk a i d th ee, th ou wil t p er i sh .
Li kewi se, Hem j uneh , P r i n cess of K ash m i r , h a th d ep a rted

f r om th e p r ecep ts of the wi se, a nd she m a y be r el eased f r om
en ch a n tm en t on l Y et, M a h oud,
y af ter m uch sufi er i n g .
th ou m a y est h el p h er Ta ke th i s scr oll a nd retur n to th e

.
v a u l t ,
a n d str i ke wi th the scr oll u on th e tr a d oor
p p
”
.
I hastened to do what the writing commanded and , ,
after passing through the many apartments arrived ,
at the vault I ente red and struck the trapdoor with

.
,
the scroll Immediately it Opened of itself and the

.
,
floor of the vault clove asunder and the M arid ,
A h ab ac k rose up .
“
0 A h ab ac k said I do t h y d ut y
, , .
He descended beneath the trapdoor and returned ,
bea ring the couch with the Princess upon it ; after

which he vanished as before At th e touc h of the .
scroll she awoke and sat up and b egan to wring her

, ,
h ands and weep while I p rostrated myself b efore her

, .
“ ” “
0 Princess said I no longer have fear for I
, , ,
am sent by the Genie M amlouk to save thee ”

.
“ ” “
Alas ! said sh e art thou what thou seem est or , ,
art thou that wicked B ena sker in another form ? Rest

assured c ruel man if thou art he that never will I
, , ,
become thy b ride ! Alas would that I had wedded the ,
Prince of Georg ia then I should not have suff ered

,
”
such evil enchantment !
G
T HE SULTA N M I SNA R
0most adorable Princess said I know that , ,
thy slave M ah oud will gladly g ive h is life t o save thee !

Arise and let us flee from this evil mansion while
,
”
there is yet time .
“ ”
Nay replied the Princess thou canst not re
, ,
lease me unless thou art indeed the M agician Be nas

ker But if thou art M ahoud the serv ant of the Genie
.
,
M amlouk leave this house immediately and inform

, ,
”
the Chief Cadi of this city of my distress .
Forgetting my oath to B enasker never to reveal ,

“
his secrets I rose to my feet saying T his mo
, , ,
ment will I fly t o the Cadi and acquaint him w ith ,
all that this evil man hath done unto thee ; and
he will come hither with his guard and save ,
”
thee !
Scarcely had I uttered these words whe n I saw ,
B enasker enter the vault Th e Princess shrieked and

.
,
I was so terrified by his appearan ce that I n early sank

to the floor What was my amazement when he ad
.
,
v a nced and fell at my feet .
0 M ahoud
“ ”
said he friend of my bosom and
, , ,
partner of my secret h Op es ! Pity B ena sker over ,
whose heart love hath sway ! Know if thou wilt give ,
me the lovely Hem j uneh that wealth and fame Shall

,
be thine in ab undance ! A n d thou shalt dwell in a

”
palace for the remainder of thy life !
0 Mahoud , c ried t h e Princess , hee d not hi s
“ ”
88 T HE S ULTA N M I SNA R
Thus M ahoud the j eweller of Delhi ceased speak
, ,
mg .
Th y adventure said M isnar is fearful and

, ,
wonderful ! A n d I perceive that thy misfortune and

mine were caused by our disobedience to the Good
Genii .
But M ahoud permit me to ask what hath b e

, , ,
come of the lov ely Hem j uneh Princess of Kashmir , .
Do not wonder at my solicitude for the mention of ,
her name maketh my heart to throb with undue em o

tion How is it possible that such a perfect being could
.
”
come under the power of the wicked Enchanters ?
“
O Sultan of Persia replied M ahoud the Prin
” “
, ,
cess of Kashmir is a fellow-suff erer with us Behold .
”
her near thee sh e is the Blue Toad !
,
’
At these words tears ran down the B lue Toad s
cheeks and M ismar bowed his head before her
, .
“ ” “
0 Princess said he whom a severe enchant
, ,
ment hath deprived of the most exquisite of forms ,

permit me to re quest thee to relate the cause of all
”
thy sorrows .
0 most illustrious of Sultans replied the Prin ,

“
cess I will obey thy command though the knowl
, ,
edge of my fault is griev ous and the confession ,

”
thereof fil l et h me with shame .
“ ”
I doubt not replied M i snar that the delicacy
, ,
of the Princes s of Kashmir causeth her to hold as a

HE MJUNE H PRINCESS OF KA SHM IR, 89
fault that which the wo rld esteemeth her perfection !

S ince however Destiny hath placed us here to suff er
, ,
the same wretched state if the Princess will confide

,
her story to the heart of M isn ar sh e shall fi nd solace,

”
i n a friend .
At this the Blue Toad bowed her head and sighing ,
deeply began
,
S tory f
o the B l ue Toad Hemj uneh , P ri ncess of
K ash m i r
NOW 0 men I l i kewise was not born a to ad

, , .
I am indeed the Princess Hem j uneh t h e

, , ,
daughter of the mighty King of Kashmir .
My father loved me with great tenderness and I ,
spent my childhood in h is seraglio surrounded by ,
every token of aff ection Wh en I reached the age of

.
twe lve years he built for me a magn ificent palace of

,
blue stone and in it put fine furniture beautiful

, ,
orn ament s and man y black and white slaves And

, .
in this palace I passed a most agreeable life .
M any Kings and Princes sought me in marriage ,

“
but I said : O my father I have no wish to marry , .
”
Let m e live in happiness in my blue palace .
But the more reluctan t I became to marry the ,
more d i d the King s and Princes press their demands

f or my hand .
O ne day as I sat alone in my apartment an old

, ,
woman l ean i ng on a staff suddenly appeared at my
, ,
S ide She placed in my hand a package wrapped in

.
blue silk and when I turned to speak to her sh e was

,
gone .
Filled with curiosity I Opened the package and 10 , , ,
it contained a handkerchief of fine linen on which w a s

painted the portrait of a handsome young man His .
eyes were of brilliant blackness ; his eyebrows we re

’
arched ; his hair was glossy l ike the raven s wing ; and
his ch ecks were as red as roses As I looked on him .
,
my heart w as so overcome that I almost swooned I .
then folded the handkerchief and placing it in my ,
bosom resolved never to wed any Prince except him

,
whose portrait I n ow possessed .
I kept my resolve and refused with anger eve ry

,
off er made me Imag ine the refo r e my despair when

.
, , ,
one day the King my father entered my apartment ,
and said
“
O my daughter it is my duty to listen no longer
,
t o thy refusals I am about to marry thee to a hus

.
b and both noble and ri c h So prepare at once to re

.
”
c eiv e the Prince of Geo rgia .
’
I fell at my father s feet weeping and entreating , ,
but he would not hear me and departed Soon my , .
mother arrived an d Sought to comfort me saying ,

.
“
T h e Prin ce of Georgia is a handsome man tall ,
and fine of form and of a joyful and wise heart He

, .
92 THE SULTA N M I S NA R
drawn and would have seized the ol d woman but
, ,
sh e waved her staff and E l oub rou and the slaves
were rendered motionless .
0 mos t adorable Princess said the ol d woman

“
, ,
give me but thy hand and I will deliver thee from

,
the tyranny of the King thy father .
“ ” “
What ! cried I shall I trust to a stranger who
, ,
”
cometh by stealth into my apartment !
At this the Old woman smiled maliciously I .
”
hear said S he the cym bal s playing and the drums
, , ,
beating that summon the people to the marriage

,
feast Farewell O bride of the Prince of Georgia I

.
, ,
leave thee to thy fate ! But if thou hadst a brave soul

and loving heart soon shouldst thou see the youth
,
whose portrait is painted on the handkerchief .
'
And even as sh e spoke I heard from wit h out t h e

,
loud sound of the cymbals trumpets drums and other , , ,
m usical instruments and the shouts of the people

,
as they decorated the city for the feast I was seized .
with despair and without reflection gave the ol d

,
woman my hand .
She b lew a vapour from her mouth and we rose in ,
a cloud and I swooned When I recovered my senses

,
.
,
I found myself in a well furnished apartm ent whil e -

,
a youth of evil countenance was standing before me .
“ ”
O charming Hem juneh said the youth may I “
, ,
hope that my service will soon be required

HE MJUNE H, PRINCES S OF KA SHM IR 93
“ ”
Alas ! said I what service hast thou rendered
,
me ? Who art thou bold man that p resum et h to

, ,
”
stand in the presence of the Pr incess of Kashmir ?
“
T hen I clapped my hands and cried : E loub rou !
Faithful E loub rou ! Where art thou ? Where i s Pik
sag the chief of my eunuchs ? Where are my slaves ?
,
”
Where i s the guard of my seraglio ?
“ ”
O my Princess answered the youth tire not
, ,
thyself by calling for them T hey are in the distant

.
Kingdom of Kashmir and thou art in the mansion of

,
B enasker of Fez .
“ ”
O miserable man ! said I Speak ! Tell how I
came t o be in thy mansion .
” “
Know replied he that the fame of thy beauty
, ,
reached this city and I set forth and journeyed to the

,
Kingdom of Kashmir resolved t o see thee or die I

, .
sought the Enchantress Ul lin and through her mag ic ,
was enabled to enter thy seraglio in the disguise of an

old woman By means of the portrait on the hand
.
ke rchief I fired thy heart to rebel against th e c om

mands of the King thy father When thou didst yield .
to my persuasion thou didst come under the power

,
of Ullin who transported us hither And this day

,
.
hath the Enchantress fulfilled her promise and g iven ,

”
the lovely Hem j uneh to be the bride of B enasker .
“ ” “
Wretched merchant ! I exclaimed Talk not so .
boldly G 0 at once and inform the Sul tan of this city

.
that the daughter of the King of Kashmir command
”
eth that he return her to her father .
”
Nay haughty Princess replied B enasker with
, , ,
“
a sneer never mayest thou depart from my man
,
sion without my conse nt I g d soon to call the .
Cadi and wit nesses t o our marriage but before I ,
do so I must fulfill my promise t o the Enchantress

Ullin .
With that in Spite of my cries he carried me through

, ,
many apartments to a distant vault where he seated ,
me on an ivory couch He next trimmed and lighted

.
a lamp that hung from the roof and sprinkled in cense ,
on the flames T hereat the walls shook and the mali

.
,
c ious Ullin appeared riding on her horny toad At the .
same moment a bright light filled the vault and a ,
Genie of maj estic form clad in crimson garments , ,
stood before us .
“ ”
Unhappy Pr in cess ! said the Ge n ie addressing ,
me ; I am M amlouk thy guardian but alas thy im

, , , ,
p rudence hath weakened my power to prote c t thee .
If thou hadst not yielded to the persuasions of the

false old woman Ullin could not have brought thee
,
here S ince thou hast come of thine own will I can

.
,
not remove thee .
”
T hen said B en a sker with fierce joy Hem
, , ,
juneh is mine and Ullin hath not deceived me !

,
“ ”
Nay wretch ! replied the Ge n ie M amlouk the
, ,
96 T HE S ULTA N M I S NA R
discover this v ault and that he may not li ft the trap
,
door except by the aid of a frien d

,
.
S O saying the Ge n ie M amlouk touched me with his

staff and I immediately fell back upon the couch and
, ,
d eep slumber seized on my senses What happened .
afterward I know not .
When at last I resumed consciousness I found m y ,
self awakened by a liquid of peculiar flavou r which

was b eing pou red into my mouth I Opened my eyes .
and b eheld a black slave standing by me and at the ,
same mome n t the voice of the detested B enasker

issued from the closet I w as filled with terror and
.
began to wr ing my hands and weep .
What occurred thereafter 0 illustrious M is mar , ,
thou hast al ready heard from the lips of M ahoud the ,
jeweller of Delhi .
At the moment that M ahoud became the Red T oad ,
the Enchantress Ullin transformed me i nto the Blue

One I n a second I found myself seated b e neath the
.
,
deadly n ightshade with the Red T oad by my side

,
.
Suc h O Sultan was my fault and its terrible pun

, , ,
i sh m ent A n d know that if I had obeyed my father

.
, ,
and married the Prince of Georgia all this would not ,
have happe ned T herefore I have vowed that if the

.
Good Genii will rescue me from enchantment I will , ,
on my retu rn to the Kingdom of Kash mir give my ,

”
hand to the Prince of Georgia .
THE VIZIER HOR AM 97
And as she ceased spe aking the Princess s ighed and,
wept .
At this a breeze S hook the leaves of the C innamon

tree and music like the singing of a thousand sweet
,
birds filled the air a nd the Genie M amlouk appeared

, .
“ ” “
O repentant Princess ! he said return to thy ,
”
original shape !
A nd at these words the Blue T oad vanished
, ,
leaving the other toads filled with amazement .
“
As for thee M is h ar and thy companions con
, , ,
“
t i nu ed the Good Genie be restored once more to
,
thine own forms and he nceforth depart not from the

,
precepts of our lord Solomon the son of David on , ,

”
both of whom b e peace !
Instantly M ismar found himself in human form ,
w alkin g through the mighty Forest of T a r ap aj an .
T h e sun was shi n i ng an d by his side was Horam his

, ,
Viz ier a n d a young man of han dsome cou ntenance

, .
S tory f the Grey Toa d

o Th e V i zi er Horam
Sultan M isnar in a transport of joy em

, ,
braced h is Vizier .
O Horam cried he how camest t hou hither ?

, ,
”
And h ow doth the army of my empire prosper ?
Know 0 lord of my heart replied Horam that
, , ,
but a moment since I w a s the Grey T oad And the .
story of my enchantment is this and it is wonderful ! ,

98 T HE S ULT A N M I S NA R
The Sultan had scarcely plunged into the Forest

of T a r ap aj a n and the sun of Persia was thus with
,
drawn whe n I hastened t o the royal encampment

, .
I put what remained of the host in battle array and ,
led it forth to meet A h ub al the traitor b ut the sol ,
die rs refused to fight without com mand from their

Sultan T h e officers rushed toward me in a b ody de
.
manding to see their lord and threatening me with ,
death T here was a great tumult and my heart failed

.
,
me through fear Without waiting for aid from the

.
Good Genii I escaped into the royal tent an d put on

, ,
the hab it of a slave In this disguise I passed through

.
the encampment and entered the Forest of T arapa

,
j an .
“
NO sooner had I done so than I repented of my
’
folly What have I done thought I to myself ; I
.
‘
,
‘
hav e fled from my post and proved disloyal to my ,
lord ! F ar b ette r had I died a thousand deaths than ,

’
thus to hav e deserted ingloriously !
I the n e ndeavoured to return to the encampment ,
b ut the farther I went the more impe n etrable became

,
the forest u n til at last I could p roceed no longer

, .
Sudde nly the earth shook and my feet grew fixed to ,
the ground and the malicious Ullin rose before me

, ,
sitting upon the back of her horny toad .
“ ‘ ’
What p rudence ! said she What discretion is .
‘
’ ’
Horam s ! How brav ely doth he lead his master s
1 00 T HE S ULT A N M I S NA R
mies is a brav e honourable and believing soul ; while
, ,
st ronger than the Signet Ring that preserveth from

enchantment are the precepts of Solomon on whom ,
be peace ! Let us therefore return to the encamp

, ,
ment and strengthen the failing hearts of our soldiers

, ,
a n d with the aid of the Good Ge n ii the servants of

, ,
Solomon lead forth the army and crush the Race of

,
”
the Enchanters .
Th e E nch an ted P a vi l i on
O saying the S ultan M isnar hastened forward

,
and led the way Soon he and h is companions

.
reached the border of the forest and beheld the whole ,
e n campment sp read out before them As they ad .
v anc ed toward it they saw upo n i t s edge a splendid

,
pavilion risi ng toward the sky It shot forth a thou .
sand rays of coloured light dazzling the eyes , .
T hey soon arriv ed at the pavilio n an d saw that it ,
stood upon a carpet of cloth of gold an d its canopy - -

,
was of purple v elvet embroidered with wreaths of sil

ver flowers I t s pillars we re of b urnished gold that
.
reflected the light of the sun while the entire pavilion

,
was studded with sparkling jewels that sent forth

dazzling rays Above the entrance were inscribed
.
these words :
0 th ou w i th a fir m h ea r t !
M am l ouk b i ddeth thee enter
T HE ENCHA NT ED PAVILION 1 01
Havi ng read this M isnar and his compan ions nu

, ,
perceived by the soldiers entered the pavilion T hey , .
saw at the upper end a throne of ivory decorated with

gold and pearls and j ewels ; and on either side of the
door stood an ebony couch On the couch to the right .
were displayed a magn ifice n t royal turb an and rob e ;

while on that to the left we re garments suitable for a
Vizier and his attendant T h e Sultan and his c om .
panions C lad themselves in these after which M isnar ,
mounted the throne .
“ ”
G o said he t o Horam
, and proclaim through ,
out the C amp that the Sultan of Persia is once mo r e
restored to his people B id all the ofli c ers assemble

.
themselves before me .
“
Horam replied I hear and obey and went forth
, ,
from the pavilion .
Immediately the soldiers all rejoiced and the drums ,
of gladness were beaten while the offi cers assembled, ,

’
p rostrating themselves b efore M isnar s throne .
“ ” “
O my offi cers said he whence came this splen
, ,
”
did pavilion in which I am ?
”
0 Sultan of the age replied they we know not
, ,
whence it came ; But an hour since sweet music ,
sounded and the pavilion rose from the ground Over

,
.
i t s entrance were inscrib ed these words

Th i s i s th e r oy a l ten t of th e S ul ta n M i snar .
Let n one en ter ti l l he c al

1 02 T HE S ULT A N M I S NA R
Verily exclaimed M isnar it is the gift of the
, ,
good Genie M amlouk ! And with his aid we Shall de

stroy the R ac e of the Enchanters T herefore go ye
'
.
,
forth O my offi cers and put the host in battle array

, , .
Arm the men caparison the horses put on the backs

, ,
of the elephants t h e turrets for the archers and let the ,

”
loud trumpets sound .
T h e offi cers did so and the vast army gathere d ,
upon the plain Th e drums beat the trumpets.

,
sounded the horses nei ghed and the earth shook

, , .
T h e Sultan M isn ar completely armed rode forth at

, ,
the head of h is troops .
The soldiers of Prince A h ub al rushed forward to

meet them and at the s ame moment the Enchant
,
ers Ol l om and T as mar A h ab ac k and Ullin on their

, , , ,
monsters were seen hovering in the air

,
.
The battle raged the soldiers shouted the archers

, ,
shot from the turrets T h e cymbals played the spears

.
,
glittered the sharp scimitars flashed and the cries of

, ,
the wounded filled the air .
T h e battle waxed fierc er and the four Enchanters ,
threw fiery darts upon M isn ar s host Dread e ntered

’
.
the hearts of h is soldiers and they ran to the r ight and ,
the left T he n filled with fear of the Enchanters they

.
, ,
fled to the moun tains .
T he reupon t h e Vizier Horam and M ahoud the ,
j eweller of Delhi led the Sultan M ismar in safety to

,
1 04 T HE SULT A N M I S NA R
So fared it with A h ub al the traitor and the Race of
the En chante rs .
’
A s for the off icers and soldiers of A h ub al s army ,
seeing this they tremb led and fell to the ground At

, .
the same mome nt the Sultan M isnar with his com ,
panions issued from the forest and entered the en

, ,
c am p m ent He called upon the soldie rs t o submit

.
themselves which they did ; whil e the offi cers begged

,
for mercy .
A h ub al the traitor is no more said M i sn ar and

“
, ,
the Enchan te rs are destroyed Ye are all released from .
their evil power and you r unfaithfulness is forgotten

, .
'
Get ye quickly t o the mountains and bid the rest of ,

”
‘
my troops return in safet y t o the encampment .
T h e offi cers and soldiers did so and soon all t h e ,
troops came back Straightway the fires of joy were

.
kin dled the instruments of music sounded and a

, ,
great feast was held After which the Sultan M isn ar

.
returned i n t riumph to h i s city T h e people met him .
with loud acclaims T hey closed their shops and dec

.
,
orated the streets and the rejoicing lasted forty days

, .
Concl usi on of th e Hi story of th e S ul tan M i snar

a nd th e F ou r E n c h a n ters
HEN the days of rejoicing we re past the Sultan ,
M isnar caused a la rge a nd rich cavalcade to b e

prepared and together with the Vizier Horam and
,
CONCLUSION OF T HE HISTORY 1 05
M ahoud the j eweller of Delhi he

, , set out for the
Ki ngdom of Kashmir .
T hey journ eyed for many weeks travelling with all

'
diligence both day and night until they app roached ,
the royal C ity of the King T hen the Sultan M isn ar

.
se n t forward a messenger to the Princess Hem j uneh

with a letter saying .
“
P ea ce f r om th e Tr ea sur i es of A ll a h be up on h er wh o
d oth p ossess m y h ea r t . K n ow, 0 b ea utifu l P ri n c ess, th a t
th e P r i n ce of Geor g i a a n d thy sl a ve, M i sn a r , th e S u l ta n o
f
a l l th e E ast, a r e on e a n d th e sa m e A s f or th e h a n dker c h i ef ,
.
th e p or tr a i t th er eon i s m i n e Th us h a th th e g ood Gen i e

.
M a m l ouk wa tch ed over our step s, a nd l ed us on e to th e

”
oth er .
The messenger delivered the letter and when the ,
Princess Hem j uneh read it sh e swooned for joy On

, .
recovering her senses sh e se n t for the King her father

, ,
and told him all that had come to pass T he reupon .

,
accompanied by a magnificent retinue he hastened ,
to meet the Sultan M ismar He con ducted him t o the

.
royal palac e where the wedding festivities of the Sul

tan an d the Pr inc ess we re held amid great splendour .
As for M ahoud t h e j ewel l er of Delhi they married

, .
,
him t o the damsel E loub rou after which they all set,
out for the Empire of Persia .
T h e people of Persia rejoiced and the drums were ,
beaten for a whole month in celebration of the event .

1 06 T HE SULT A N M I S NA R
And the Sultan M isnar sat governing on the throne of
his father with the faithful Horam as his Vizier And
.
he and his w ife continued to live together in peace

and delight until they we re visited by the terminator
of joys and the separator of compani ons .
1 08 T HE FOUNT A I N OF T HE GENII
down the coloured fruits Others b e neath the trees .
, ,
we re gatheri ng the fruits into gold and silver baskets .
All these children b eckoned to Patna and Coulor ,
who at the same moment beheld a gate to appear in

the crystal wall T hey ran to it and endeavoured to
.
,
Open it b ut alas ! it was locked So they stood in

, , .
silence and tears filled their eyes

, .
Patna and Coulor must still possess their souls in

patie n ce said the Fairy Moang drawing near Not
”
,
“
,
.
yet have they sufficiently understood the precepts of

the wise When they have been perfected in knowl
.
edge then may they enter the Garden of Fruits and

, ,
rejoice with the Sons and Daughters of the Fairies .
But now let us go to our couches and sleep until day ,
d aw net h when the happy Genie Abdallah will relate

,
”
his delightful adventure .
So saying the Fairy led the children to their

,
couches where they slept in peace until morn ing

,
.
After another repast she conducted them to the c rys

,
tal hall whe re all the Good Genii were seated upon
,
their thrones T h e childre n took their places upon

.
the ca rpet and waited with impatience for the story

,
to beg in .
At last the King of the Genn spoke Stand forth .

,
”
O Ab dallah happy Ge n ie ! said he and relate t o
, ,
”
these human beings one of thy adven tures .
At this a Gen ie of smiling countenance and brigh t

,
T HE RUBY COCK 1 09
b row, and c l ad in blue vestments , arose from his

silver throne and kissed the ground before the King
,
of the Genn .
Listen all ye G em and ye human beings said

, , ,
“
he Verily the ills of life and the sorrows thereof , ,
have not touched Abdallah ! Only the joyous aff airs

of men hath he guided according to the precepts of
our lord Solomon the son of David on both of whom

, ,
be peace ! T herefore O my friends listen to, ,
T HE H I S T OR Y OF FA R R U KR UZ THE
FA V OUR I T E OF F OR T UNE
Th e R uby Cock
N ancient days in the Kingdom of Kashmir there

, ,
lived a jeweller nam ed Khoj a M arj an He was .
fortunate in all his dealings and in time amassed ,
great wealth He had three sons the two eldest of

.
,
whom we re idle and wasteful of money But the .
youngest son named F arrukruz w as b rilliant of

, ,
mind with the heart of a b ird and as handsome as

, ,
the shining sun He loved his father more than did

.
h i s brothers and sought to aid him in eve ry way

, .
One day Khoj a M arj an called his three sons t o

him and said
,
“
Know 0 my sons that every man should earn
, ,
his b read and salt Ye have heard h ow at first I was

.
I 10 HIST ORY OF FA R R UKR UZ
only the se rvant of a jeweller ; yet have I by dint of ,
hard t oil overcome all obstacles so that at present

, ,
there i s none richer than I in the whole Kingdom of

Kashmir .
T herefore, Ofm y sons I would have you go forth

“
,
into the world and trade in other lands I will give

,
.
y ou each a mule laden with j ewels and gold and silver ,
ornaments so that ye may carry on a profitable busi

,
”
ness .
Havi ng thus spoken Khoj a M arj an presented each

,
of his so n s with a mule laden with wealth and bade ,
them set forth at once .
T o F arrukruz however he delivered in secret a

, ,
small package wrapped in green silk .
“ ”
O my most beloved son said he thou wilt find , ,
in this package a golden casket in which is a cock ,
skilfully formed of a single rare ruby At the hour of .
dawn each day the cock c rowet h and flap p et h its

,
wings Keep this secret from thy brothers and if thou

.
,
fall at any time into danger present t h e cock to a ,

”
King and it will bring thee aid
, .
F arrukruz thereupon thanked his father and tak , ,
ing the package hid it in his bosom

, .
Th e th ree brothers having thus received each his

,
portion of goods set out on the road for Iran T h e

, .
two eldest however were w h e n and discontented

, , ,
but F arrukruz w as filled with delight T hey proceeded .

!
I 12 HIST ORY OF FA R R U KR UZ
they had eate n and drunk and conversed with joy , ,
t h e youth arose to depart .
“ ”
O my frie nd said he thou art indeed a F a
, , , ,
vourit e of Fortune ! It is however thy destiny to pass

, ,
through many trials all of which thou wilt e n dure

,
with a brave and joyous heart T ake thou this ring .

,
and never let it le ave thy finger If at any time thou .
should fall into distress seek out the Sheykh Habib

, ,
who dwelleth in the great Cave of M osul Show him .
”
this ring and he will aid thee
, .
’
So saying the youth placed a ring in F arrukruz
hand and smiling departed
, , , .
Farrukruz examined the gift with attention and ,
found it to be of pure gold set with a large and rare ,
ruby He then placed it upon h is finge r and sat down

.
,
once more at h is door Immediately he became filled

.
with a b urning desire to set forth and visit other coun

tries and islands of the world So he arose and lad .
,
ing tw enty camels with various kinds of costly mer

c h a nd i se closed his shop and accompa n ied by four
, ,
hundred b lack slaves departed for the city of Bagdad

, ,
the Ab ode of Peace And having arrived there he put

.
,
up at a Khan for the night .
When the morning was come F arrukruz arose and , ,
having eaten and dressed himself in an embroidered

,
robe and rich tu rban he went forth from the Khan

, ,
surrounded by his slaves He passed through the .

THE RUBY COCK 1I 3
streets and all wh o saw him gazed upon him with de
,
light As he approached the market he beheld there

.
,
two porters standing idle on the street T hey were .
ragged and dirty and their b eards and hair were wild
,
and unkempt Pity filled h is heart and 10 as he drew

.
, , ,
near to relieve their necessity he saw that they were ,
his brothers .
He ordered one of his slaves to call them t o his side ,
and when they were come and he kn ew their wretched ,

“ ”
condition he b u rst in to tears O my brothers said
, .
,
“
he sorrow breaketh my heart to see you in such
,
need ! Return with me to the Khan and ye shall be ,

”
clothed and never suff er hunger more
, .
T hereupon F arrukruz conducted them with all t e

spect to the Khan and bade his se rvants array them
,
i n fine clothes and feed them with the most delicious

,
of foods After which he presented them each with a

.
purse full of gold saying ,

“
Go ye forth to the market and henceforth may ,
Allah the Abundant Provider prosper you in all your

ways .
But h is brothers answered :

“
Wh y should we leave such a loving and kind
brother ? Nay we will not leave thee ! We wish to
,
obey thee and will follow wheresoever thou goest

,
.
A n d they con tinued to urge him thus with tears ,
until at l ast he consented S o the three brothers abode

.
r14 HIST ORY OF F A R R UKR UZ
together in the city of Bagdad buying and selling , ,
until they had amassed much gold .
Af ter some time spent thus F arrukruz was again

,
seiz ed with the desire to see other countrie s and is

lands so he determined t o journey t o the land of the
,
Franks He bought precious goods suitable for a sea

.
,
voyage and with his four hundred slaves and his two
, ,
brothers departed for the city of Balsora T here he

, .
embarked with his goods on a great an d lofty vessel

, ,
an d they all set sail .
Now when the two brothers beheld the vast

,
we al th and the numerous slaves of Farrukruz t heir ,
hearts swelled with secret envy .
“ ”
What is this ? said they one to the other Shall .
our youngest brother be arrayed like a Sultan and be ,
waited upon by a retin ue of slaves while we either suf ,
fer starvation or are forced like beggars to accept of

h is bounty ? Come let us get rid of this proud youth
, .
,
”
who standeth between us and we alth .
So saying they waited un til the darkness of night

,
had descended upon the sea and then taking up the

, ,
mattress on which Farrukm z was asleep they cast it ,
into the foaming waves T hus did these ungr ateful

.
men with treache ry wipe from the tablets of their

m ind the benefits they had received .
T hey then proceeded on their way in the ship u ntil ,
they neared a rocky coast against which the sea

,
I16 HI ST ORY OF FA R R U KR UZ
package and opening the golden casket he perceived
, , ,
within it the Ruby Co ck of wonderful workmanship .
As soon as he gazed upon it h is heart was filled with ,
love for F arrukruz He bade h im arise and seating

.
, ,
him bes i de the throne commanded him to relate all ,

“
that had happened to him from first to last .
F arrukruz did so after which the King bestowed

,
a robe of honour upon him and presenting him with ,
a palace and wealth made him his Viz ier ,

.
And in this manner F arrukruz continued to live in

peace and happiness for some time .
f the M ountai ns of Kaf

The j ewel Th rone o
HE King of Yaman seeing the wisdom and the ,
joyous heart of F arrukruz b ecame d aily more ,
attached to him so that he rarely permitted him to

,
leave his side He presented him with greater riches

.
,
and showed him all honour T h e grandees of the king .
dom perceiving thi s were consumed with envy and

, , ,
conspired together to destroy Farrukruz .
Now on a certai n day the King summoned his

,
emirs officers an d other nob les and caused a mag

, , ,
n ifi c ent feast to be prepared and set forth in the ban
quet hall of the palac e T h e furn iture of the hall was .
of ivo ry overlaid with plates of red gold set with ,
jewels T h e walls we re hu ng with embroidered hang

.
ing s of b lue and silver ; while the richest carp ets were
T HE JEWEL T HRONE 1 17
spread upon the floor A thousand golden d i shes were

.
filled with the choicest ragouts pastri es confections

, , ,
and creams Gold and silver ewers contained sherbets

.
and other cooling dr inks ; while great platters of deli

cate chinaware were heaped with rare and strange
fruits from all the islands of the worl d .
T h e King sat upon a throne of purple porphyry b e

neath a canopy of white brocade and when the b an
,
q uet was over he comman ded the R uby Cock to be

,
brought forth and shown t o all those present

, .
“ ” “
0 ye people said he , have ye ever seen any
,
thing more wonderful than this curiosity which Fa r

”
ruk ruz hath presented to me ?
At this one of the grandees stepped forward and ,
kissed the ground before the throne .
“ ”
Wonderful is this cock said he but if our lord
, ,
doth desire t o surpass all other Kings of earth he ,
should possess the Jewel T hrone which i s composed of

,
red diamonds ye l low emeralds pink turquoise and

, , ,
”
gree n pearls .
“ ”
Surely exclai med the K i ng such a th rone
, ,
cannot ex i st ! For never hath man seen red diamonds ,
yellow emeralds pink turquoise and green pearls !

, ,
Not even o ne such j ewel might be obtained for a ring .
How then is i t possible that a thro ne entirely c om

, ,
posed of them sh oul d exist ? And wh o would be great

”
enough t o pro cure such a wonder ?
r r8 HISTORY OF F A R R U KR UZ
T hen nother grandee stepped forward and made

a ,
his obeisance .
“
Let the Ki ng know said he that no man is fit , ,
to accomp l ish this matter except the Viz ier Far ,
rukruz . For hath he not already presented the King

with a curiosity the like of which doth not exist out
”
side of Paradise ?
Hearing this the King was much troubled Know
,
.
,
”
0 ye people said he that the presence of the Viz ier
, ,
cannot be dispensed with ! Another man must be

”
found to go and search for this wonder .
T hereupon Farrukruz arose from his place and ,
cast himself down be fore the throne .
“ “
Behold c ried he thy willing servant P arruk
, ,
ruz ! Verily my heart would rejoice to see thee sur

pass all other Kings of earth ! T herefore gran t m e ,
forty days and I will seek the Jewel T hrone and t e

, ,
”
turn hither when the forty days are accomplished .
“ ”
Go then 0 Farrukruz said the King and in
, , , ,
forty days return and b ring once more the sunshine

,
of thy presence to the Kingdom of Y aman which will ,

”
abide in darkness until thou come again .
Thereat Farrukruz rejoiced and hastened to leave ,
the ban que t hall He clad himself in the habit of a

.
wandering Sheykh and set forth al one for the great

,
Cave of Mosul to seek the Sheykh Habib

, .
He journeyed on for a num b er of days, unt il at last

r zo HI S T ORY OF FA R R U K R U Z
equal t o a journey of three hundred years T h e way .
thither lieth through the land of Gog and M agog and ,
across the circumambient Ocean which ring et h the

whole earth and beateth against the foot of the
,
M ountains of Kaf .
“
In that ocean are innumerable islands inhabited ,
by t r00ps of the Genii Hosts of Flying A frit es and

.
M arids fill the air while others dive to the b ottom of

,
the sea All these guard the way to the M ountains of

.
Kaf and no human being may app roach thither nu

,
less he be aided by frie n dly Genii But be not dis .
courag ed O F arrukruz for the Good Genii will help

, ,
thee .
“
Know that on the border of the Ocean lieth the
Rose Garden of the Fairies T h e Queen thereof is
- .
B anu the daughter of the King of the Fairies She

, .
hath a tender and gentle heart and will aid thee , .
Only never must thou remove from thy finger the

ruby ring ; nor must thou eat or drink until thou hast
gained possession of the Jewel T hrone T ake now this .
staff made of the mystic cocoa-tree and it will con

, , .
vey thee to the Rose Garde n of the Fairies But know

- .
that the var ious evil A frit es that guard the way will
lay snares to take from thee this staff Yield it not .
,
a n d obey me in all things and soon the Jewel T h ro n e

,
”
shall be thin e .
So saying the Sheykh placed a staff made of the

ROSE—
GARDEN OF T HE FA IRIE S
'
1 21
’
cocoa tree in F a rrukruz s hand and b ade him close
-
,
his eyes He did so and immediately he felt himself

.
,
being transported swiftly through the air .
Th e R ose-Ga r den f
o the F a i ri es
N a few minutes F arrukruz found himself set

ge ntly down upon the earth He the reupon .
Opened his eyes and saw that he was in the midst of a

,
fine and spacious park the like of whic h he had n ever

seen befo re T hrough the park walked a Fairy Queen
.
of dazzli n g beauty robed in sca rlet a n d wea r i ng on

,
her head a crown of silv e r and pearls while round ,
about her were many lovely Fairies clad in glittering

raiment .
T h e Queen turned h er sparkling eyes upon Far

ruk ruz and smiled and as sh e did so sh e made a mo
,
tion with h er wand Instantly on e of the Fai ries ad

.
v a n ced and taking F a rrukruz b y the hand led him

, , ,
toward a white palace which appeared in the d is

tance At the same moment the Queen attended
.
,
by her Fairies moved toward the palace and disap

, ,
p ea red through its g reat door .
T hereupon F arrukruz sought eagerly to follow but ,
the Fai ry w h o held him by the hand drew him back ,
saying .
“
T h e Law of this park forb iddeth any man who
c arrieth a staff from entering Yield thy staff to me
.
,
1 22 HI S T ORY OF FA R R U KR UZ
and then go in and feast with the Queen of the
,
park .
F arrukruz without reflecting thrust the staff into

, ,
h er hand and made haste to enter He fou n d him

,
.
self in a paradise of a g arden in which were set tw o ,
chairs of curiously carved wood in one of which re ,
c l ined the smiling Queen All her Fairies were seated

.
around her feasting and singing and making merry

, , .
As soon as they perceived F arrukruz the Fairies ,
arose and surrounding him led him to the Queen

, , ,
She made a sign towa rd the empty chair at her side .
and F arrurkuz seated himself upon it She then .
placed a transparent goblet filled with perfumed wi ne

in his hand But no sooner had F arrukruz touched it
.
to his lips than he found himself alone in the midst of

a shoreless Ocean floating on the branch of a tree He
, .
pe rceived al so that he was transformed into 3 mon

key holding four little monkeys in his a rms
, .
He looked in all direction s and could behold no

land and was filled with despair
, .
“ ” “
Alas ! c ried he why did I fail to obey the in
,
st ruc t ion s of the Sheykh Hab ib Why did I yield the

”
mag ic staff to the Fairy ! And he wept with the b it
te rmess of grief .
T hus for seven days did F arrukruz float upon the

foaming waves holding the fou r little monkeys i n his
,
arms He w as without food and dr ink ; and was now

.
,
1 24 HI S T OR Y OF F A R R U KR UZ
sister Nafisa We are both daughters of the King of

.
the Fairies but as I am the elder I have more power

, ,
.
A s for Nafi sa sh e hath married an evil M arid who ,
hath got her into his bad ways T herefore sh e doeth . ,
all the harm sh e can to human beings .
“ ”
Know too continued Queen B anu that my
, , ,
father hath an eldest son wh o is subject to fit s of

lunacy He may be cured only by the touch of t h e
.
ruby ring of the Genie Abdallah which thou wearest ,
upon thy finger I will have thee im mediately trans

.
’
ported to my father s court that thou mayest cure ,
my b rother T hen will my father in h is happiness get

.
”
for thee the Jewel T hrone .
T hereupon Queen B anu bade F arrukruz close his

eyes and he did so He Opened them again and found
,
.
,
himself standing in a royal pavilion the like of which ,
for b eauty and mag nificence no human eye had eve r

beheld T here he saw the King of the Fairies seate d
.
upon an ivory throne and attended by a thousand ,
Fairies .
F arrukruz drew near to the throne and made his ,
obeisance then held his peace wondering at all h e

'
, ,
saw .
“
0 young man said the King since human b e
, ,
ings excel all other creatures in the science of the phy

si c i an I welcome thee
, I am informed by my d aug h
.
ter Queen B anu that thou dost possess the ring

, ,
ROSE GARDEN OF -
T HE FA I R I E S 1 25
whose virtue may restore my son to health If thou .
do this thing for him thy reward shall be great, .
” “
Bring forth added the King to his Fairies the
, ,
”
Prin ce and show him to this human b eing
, .
Immediately the Fairies brought forward the Prince

laden with golde n chain s and he wept like a cloud ,
o r smiled like a fresh rose A s soon as F arrukruz cast

.
h is eyes upon him he hastened to h is side and touched

, ,
his lips with the ri ng .
St r aightw ay the golden chains fell off and the ,
Prince s neezed twice an d was restored to perfect

,
health T he reupon the King in h is joy descended from

.
h i s throne and embraced h is son and all the Fairies ,
rejoiced .
T he n said the King to F arrukruz Ask what thou ,

”
w ish est and it shall b e given thee
, .
“ ” “
Give me replied F arrukruz the Jewel T hron e
, ,
composed of red diamonds yellow eme r alds pin k , ,
turquoise and green pearls which is preserved by t h e

, ,
Genii in the M ountains of Kaf ”

.
No sooner had F arrukruz spoken thus than the

King commanded a hund red Fairies to fly to the
M ountain s of Kaf and fetch from thence the throne .
Instantly they did so and returni ng placed the , ,
throne on the ground b efore F arrukruz .
“ ”
Behold O fortunate young man said the Ki ng
, , ,
the Jewel T hrone ! T ake it and carry it to the King ,

1 26 HIST ORY OF FA R R U KR UZ
of Yam an ; and afterward return hithe r and dwel l for

ever with the Fairies Ru b now the ru by ring which is
.
upon thy finger and an Afrite of the Flying Gen ii will

,
at once present himself and lifting thee up will trans , ,

”
port thee to the Kingdom of Yaman .
Hearing this F arrukruz almost overcome with joy

, , ,
rub b ed the ring and immediately there appeared an

,
Afrite of horr ib le aspect as large as an elephant and ,

‘
as fierce as a dragon .
“
What wouldst thou asked he in an awf ul voice , ,
”
with Kash ank the Flyer ?
“
O Kash ank said the King of the Fairies take
, ,
up this human b eing together with the Jewel T hrone

, ,
and carry them safely to the Kingdom of Yaman As .
”
for thee O F arrukruz added the King mount on
, , ,
the shoulders of this Flyer but when he soaret h ,
aloft into the sky and thou hearest the praises of

,
the angels utter no word for if thou do thou wilt

, ,
”
pe rish.
T he reupon F arrukruz mounted upon the shoulders

of the Afrite and the terrible creature lifting the
, ,
Jewel T hrone in his hand soared in to the air T hey , .
ascended above the clouds and p roceeded for a day ,
and a n ight until they heard the p r aises of the angels

, .
And when the morning c am e again the Afr ite de , ,
scending to the earth cleaved the dome of the Royal

,
Judgment Hall in which was the King of Yaman .

1 28 HI S T ORY OF FA R R U KR UZ
w i sh et hto surpass all other Kings of earth he must ,
possess the four Golden Date T rees T h e trunk of - .
each tree i s of gold the branches of silver and its

, ,
leav es of emeralds From eve ry b ranch springeth

.
twenty t wigs of ruby and at the end of each t wig is

,
suspended a golden date as sweet as honey fragrant , ,
a s musk and large a s an ostrich egg

, .
“
If these four Golden Date T rees were placed at -
the four corn ers of the Jewel T hrone no King on ,
earth could c ompare with the magnificence and ;
”
wealth of our lord the King of Yaman .
T hereat the King smiled disdain fully Verily .

,
“
said he such a tree cannot be found for it doth not
, ,
”
exist in this world !
“
T here is nothing replied the grandee that may
, ,
not be accomplished by a m an like the Viz ier F arruk

ruz who hath already p rese n ted the King with t wo
,
t reasures the equal of which doth not exist outside of

,
”
Paradise .
T hereupon F arrukruz stood up in his place and , ,
hav ing kissed the ground said : ,
“
O mighty King pe rmit me to undertake this busi
,
ness Gr an t me six months at the expi r ation of which

.
,
”
I will return t o thee again A n d he urged the King .
thus until he consen ted After which F arrukruz has

, .
tened and clad himself once more in the hab it of a

wandering Sheykh and departed from the cit y
, .
T HE FOUR GOLDEN DA T E—T REES 1 29
Sc arcely had he done so when he rubbed the ruby

ring and the Afrite Kash ank stood before him
, .
“ ”
What wouldst thou have ? sai d h e in a voice like
“
thunder I am Kash ank the Flyer sent to se rv e thee
.
,
”
by the King of the Fairies .
“ ”
I wish replied F arrukruz to be instantly trans
, ,
”
ported to the Rose Garden of the Fairies-
.
T h e Afr ite Kash a nk took him upon h i s shoulders ,
and ascended with him into the sky T hey rose above .
the clouds and heard the praises of the angels ; and

,
thus they continued to fly for a day and a night S O .
fared it with F arrukruz .
A s for Queen B an u after F arrukruz had been trans

,
ported to the Court of the Ki ng of the Fairies to seek

the Jewel T hrone sh e sent forth t en powerful M arids
,
.
”
“
Go said she to the park of my sister Nafisa
, , ,
”
an d b ring her hither .
T h e M arids did so an d seizing her bound her with

, , ,
silken cords and b rought her to Queen B anu

,
.
” “
“
M alicious Na fisa said that good Queen where
, ,
fore dost thou always affi i c t mankind ? And in what

mann er hath F arrukruz injured thee th at thou ,
shouldst transform him into a mon key ? From now on

thou art ban ished from this Rose Garden Return to - .
thy park and me nd thine evil ways or a worse pun

, ,
”
i sh m ent shall befall thee .
T hereupon Nafisa foamed with rage a nd the ,

1 30 HIST ORY OF F A R R U KR UZ
M arids lifting h er up carried her back to her park

, ,
.
But scarcely was sh e returned before sh e began to

conspire against Queen Banu .
“ ”
T his Farrukruz said she to her Fairies will
, ,
endeavour to see Queen Banu again Let us watch .
for him and by guile take away the ruby ring which
, ,
he weareth upon his hand T hen will he pass from the

.
”
power of Banu and again be under my enchantment .
So saying sh e transformed her park into a sem

blance of the Rose Garden and putting white gar
-
,
ments and a rose garland upon on e of her Fairies ,
sh e caused her to look like Queen Banu .
It happened also that Kash ank t h e Afrite was a

hater of good Queen Banu ; therefore Nafisa told him
all
’
Be not dismayed said he at Banu s punishment
, ,
O f thee I am now summoned to carry F arrukruz

.
onc e more to the Rose Garden of the Fairies where

-
,
he seeketh the four Golden Date T rees M ake all - .
ready and in the spot where thou didst first see him
, ,
”
there will I set him down again .
With that he flew away t o the Kingdom of Yaman ,
to fetch Farrukruz So fared it with Queen Banu and

.
Nafisa .
1 32 HI ST ORY OF FA R R U KR UZ
into the form of an ol d barber He stood in his .
shop in Damascus surrounded by his utensils and

, ,
he was shaving the head of a man .
He w as struck with amazement and said to him ,

“
self
,
Surely this man must be Kash ank the Afrite
So he threw away his razor and tore his clothes , ,
and cast dust upon h is head and st ruck the man ex

, ,
claiming !
“
Wicked Afrite ! T h e King of the Fairies com
m and ed thee t o serve me and I t rusted thee ! By
,
thy p erfidy I have lost my talisman the ruby ring , ,
which i s more valuable than the Diadem Of Iskandar ,
or the Goblet of Jamshid which doth mirror the whole
world ! I have been torn from the presence of my b e

loved and have been transformed a nd hav e lost my
, ,
happiness ! T hou art not satisfied with all this but ,

”
thou sittest here railing at me !
Hearing these words the man sp rang up b are
, ,
headed as he was and ran into the street And Far

, .
“
ruk ruz pu r sued him shouting 0 all ye people !
, ,
Seize Kash ank the A frite who hath deeply wronged

,
”
me and dest royed my peace of mind
,
.
As Fa rrukruz was b awling thus and runn ing his , ,
girdle became loose and he stumbled and fell to the

,
ground A nd in so doing he hit his head and the blood

.
,
flowed forth .
Now the man was the se rvant of the Chief Cadi of

T HE AFRIT E KA S HA NK 1 33
Damascus and a wicked person ; so when the people
,
saw an old barber pursuing him and falling down ,
wounded with the blood flowing from his head they

, ,
questioned Farrukruz saying What hath this evil, ,

”
on e done unto thee ?
T o all of which he answered Seize Kash ank th e ,

”
Afrite who hath done me fearful damage !
,
“
And the people said We know him to be the serv
,
ant Of the Chief Cadi and a very great scoundrel but

, ,
his name is not Kash ank the Afrite He hath now .
escaped ; but come thou with us to the Chief Cadi and ,

”
he will do thee justice .
’
So they bound up F arrukruz s head and led him ,
before the Chief Cadi A nd he tumbled headlong into

.
’ “
the Cadi s house crying 0 all ye people ! By t h e
, ,
treachery of Ka sh ank the Afrite my happiness hath

”
been destroyed !
T hen b efore the Cadi could address him Far
, ,
ruk ruz rushed forth again into the street shouting , ,

“
Seize Kash ank the Afr ite who hath changed t h e ,
”
Spring Of my peace into the Autumn Of mise ry !
The people wh o heard him thought that a great ,
thief had escaped and many of them ran after Far

,
“
rukruz crying out
,
Catch Ka sh ank the Afrite who
, ,
’ ”
hath escaped from the Chief Cadi s house ! But no
one knew who Ka sh ank was .
Now it happened th at a man of t h e desert , tall and

,
K
1 34 HIST ORY OF F A R R U KR UZ
dark with long hair and dishevelled beard at that

, ,
moment entered the gate He was a stranger and .

,
had crossed the desert to see the city of Damascus

, ,
whe re he had never been before .
He perceived Farrukruz running toward him and ,
heard the shouts of the people wh o followed after ,
and was seized with fear He b egan to run away like

.
a g oblin of the wilderness ; and the people thinking ,
him t o be Ka sh ank the Afrite pursued after and , ,
seized and bou n d him .
T hereupon F arrukruz thinking the man of the

,
desert w as Ka sh ank the Afrite struck him exclaim , ,

“
ing 0 p erfid ious wretch ! Why hast thou deprived
,
me of my love and of my ruby ring and plunged me

, ,
”
thus into the abyss of mise ry ?
T h e man of the desert hearing this was astonished
, , ,
“
and thought t o himself Verily it must be the cus
,
”
t om of this city to so treat strangers !
,
T h e many people seeing F arrukruz with his head

,
bound up and lamenting in a pitiful manner re

, ,
”
p roac h ed the man of the desert O Ka sh ank said .
,
“
they art thou not ashamed of having wronged this
,
poor old barb er who is too aged to protect himself

,
”
against thee ? B ut the man of the desert made no
reply and shook his head like a goat
,
.
It happened that the Emir of the city was riding

forth accomp anied by his se rvants , and perceiving
1 36 HIST ORY OF FA R R U KR UZ
fallen Farrukruz ! When I soared above the clouds ,
and he heard the praises of the angels he uttered a ,
prayer and fell from my shoulders into the sea There .
seve n evil M arids of fearful strength drew him b e

neath the water and slaughtered him And I have
,
.
”
been compelled to return t o t h ee in great distress !
“ ” “
O my father, said Queen Banu listen not to ,
Kash ank the Flyer Verily he is evil minded and hath

.
-
been led astray by my sister Nafisa who b eareth great

,
enmity toward me Let this Afrite therefore b e im

.
, ,
”
prisoned u ntil the matter be closely examined .
Th e King of the Fairies then su m moned a thousand

of his A f rit es and bade them impr i son Ka sh ank And
, .
they did so .
When the next day dawned there came into the,
presence of the King of the Fairies an Afrite holding

“ ”
the ruby ring in h is hand Know 0 King said
.
, ,
“
he that the ruby ring of the Genie A b dallah hath
,
suddenly appeared in thy treasu ry ; and that a Fai ry

hath returned from the city of Damascus where he saw ,
in t h e streets a lunatic who ran ab out and shouted

,
for Kash ank the Afrite ; and who is none other than
F arruk ruz T h e Emir of that city hath thrown him
.
into iron chains ; and he i s now in the madhouse .
T h e King of the Fairies hearing this at once c om

, ,
m and ed the Afrite to fetch F arruk ruz and he did so , ,
descending i nto the earth and rising up through the

,
T HE AFRIT E KA S HA NK 1 37
floor Of the madhouse He struck the i ron chains .
’
from F arrukruz s limbs who immediately returned to
,
his own form and lifting him transported him in

, , ,
the twinkling of an eye to the Court of the Fairy

King .
T h e King embraced and comforted him and or ,
dered his A frit es to summon Nafisa and bring Kas ,
hank be fore him And they did so. .
“ ” “
0 wicked Kash ank said he thou shalt hence
, ,
forth be confined in a bottle Of b rass and its mouth ,
shall he sealed with the Great S eal of our lord

Solomon on whom be peace ! And thou shalt b e
,
thrown into t h e sea there to abide until the Judg

,
ment Day And as for thee Nafisa thou shalt be im

.
, ,
prisoned forever in the Castle of Black M arble in the

”
midst of the M ountains of Kaf .
So saying the King of the Fairies commanded

his A frit es to remove Kash ank and Nafisa And .
they did so .
As for F arruk ruz the King gave him back the ruby
,
ring and presented him with the four Golden Date

,
Trees on the backs of four huge elephants He then .
ordered seventy of h is faithful A frit es t o convey the

elephants together with Farrukruz to the Kingdom
, ,
of Y aman in safety .
1 3s HI S T ORY OF FA R R U KR UZ
Concl usi on of th e Hi story of F a rru/eruz the ,
F avouri te f
o F ortun e
OW the grandees of Yam an thought F arrukruz

,
destroyed and they rejoiced greatly thereat

,
.
But on a certain day when the King sat in his palace

,
upon the Jewel Th rone there came a messenger who

,
said :
“
Behold F arrukruz cometh with the four Golden
Date T rees upon the backs of four huge elephants
-
,
”
and he himself riding upon a fifth .
And even as the messenger spoke F arrukruz rode ,
through the streets of the city amid the shouts of ,
the people .
Th e King caused a throne to be placed by his and ,
welcoming Farrukruz with joy seated him thereon , .
He then commanded that the four Golden Date T rees -
should be set up at the four corners of the Jewel
T hrone and the Ruby Cock brought forth And

,
.
when all the emirs offi cers and other grandees were
, ,
assembled before him the King spake : ,

“
O ye people behold these marvellous Objects the
, ,
gifts of Farrukruz ! What King of earth doth possess

”
their equal ?
At this all the envious grandees stepped forward ,
and said :
“
Wonderful are these objects but if our lord the ,
1 40 HIST ORY OF FA R R UKR UZ
Banu and all the Fairies rejoiced A magnificent
,
.
feast was spre ad to wh ich came the faithful A frit es

,
and M arids from the Mountains of Kaf and to it

,
came also the happy Genie Abdallah .

CONT I NUATION O F T HE FOUNTAIN O F
T HE GENII
ND th e Genie Abdallah smiled at Patna and

Co ulor,
and ceased speaking He then made
.
his obeisan ce before the th rone of the King of the

Genii and once more mounted h is own s ilver throne
, .
“
Good Fairy Moang said the King of the Genii
”
, ,
likewise smiling the children of G uial ar the Iman

, ,
of Terki have now heard the joyous tale of Farruk

,
ruz which the happy Genie Abdallah hath related

, .
Take them to the apartment of entertainment and ,
bri ng them hither again to morrow to listen to the

-
”
remarkable deeds of Ali the Genie of the Green Veil
, .
At this the Genie Abdallah once more smiled at the

children and the Fairy led their reluctant feet from
,
the crystal hall She conducted them as before to th e

.
, ,
apartment hung with azure curt ains and fed them on

,
delicate food But when they arose to go into the gar

.
den she drew them towar d their couches saying

, ,
“
Beautiful things are b eing prepared for you by
the Sons and Daughters of the Fairies therefore ye ,
must not g o into the garden to-night When t o m or .

-
row cometh and ye have heard the remarkable deeds

,
O f Ali of the Green Veil then may Patna and Coulor

,
”
visit the Garden of Fruits .
1 42 HIST ORY OF KING AZAD
So the children eager for the rnorrow laid them
, ,
selves down and slept until day dawned And after .
they had eaten again the Fairy led them to the crys
,
tal saloon where the Good Genii were seated upon

,
their thrones .
Th e ch ildren took their places upon the carpet and ,
as they did so they saw with sorrow that the Genie

Abdallah was not present And as they looked to .
ward his empty throne the King of the Genii spoke

,
a s follows .
“
Arise 0 Ali of the Green Veil and relate t o these
, ,
human beings some of thy deeds for mankin

At once a Genie with b right eyes and red cheeks
‘
and wrapped in a green veil descended from his ,
throne and said

,
“
Hear O ye human beings verily Al i seeketh al
, ,
ways to help those in distress T herefore listen to .
some of my deeds which have been in accordan ce

,
”
with the precepts of Solomon on whom be peace ! ,
THE HI S T OR Y OF K I NG A ZA D A ND THE T WO
R OY A L S HE Y KHS
The Wh i te Ha i r
HER E formerly reigned i n I st am b ol a great

Ki ng n amed Az ad In his Kingdom al l people
.
were happy the treasuries were full the arm y c on

, ,
1 44 HI ST ORY OF KING A ZA D
T hus King Az ad passed many days and he no ,
longer j udged his people nor attended to the aff ai rs of

,
state T hieves and murderers thriv ed in the King

.
dom and rebels and enemies raised up their heads

, ,
and all the people mourned .
T hen the emirs offi cers and other grandees as

, ,
sembled an d spake thus : Th e Vizier Kiradm and

i s exceeding wi se and the Ki ng loveth him well Let
, .
”
us go to him and he will tell us what t o do
,
.
T hereupon they presented themselv es before the

“
Vizier saying : Know that the Kingdom i s in con
,
fusion And unless the King attend to the aff airs of

.
”
state all will soon be lost
,
.
T h e Vizier Kiradm and hearing this remained si

, ,
lent for some time in perplexity After which he .
“
S poke thus : Th e King our lord hath strictly for
bidden any one to enter his royal presence Nev er .
’
t h el ess will I go to him ; and may the King s heart
”
be turned so that he will hearken to my words .
So saying the Vizier went forth and stood at the ,
entrance of the lower garden He then sent a m es .
“
senge r to the King saying : Behold thine old slave
,
Kiradm and is waiting For many days he hath not seen

.
the light of the royal countenan ce and hath been in ,
darkn ess and desolation M ay he now be permitted

.
”
to kiss the royal feet ?
T h e messeng er soon returned an d com manded the ,

T HE W HIT E HA IR 1 45
Vizier to enter the garden He did so and mak .

, ,
ing his obeisance stood before the King with arms

,
crossed upon his bosom He then saw with sorrow .
’
t h e King s altered appearance and that from weep ,
ing and fasting his eyes were sunk in their sockets ,
and his face was grown pale .
”
O Kiradm and said the King thou hast seen
, ,
me ! Be satisfied ! Go now and rule over the King ,
dom i n my stead .
At this the Vizier could not restrain his grief ,

“
and wept aloud . Wh at strange fancy said he , ,
“
doth possess the min d of my lord ? T his thy slave ,
through thy favour may rule many kingdoms ! But

,
ruin and death are spread abroad b ecause our lord

doth ab sent himself and no longer conduct et h the
,
”
aff airs of state !
“
Hear O Kiradm and replied the King I have
, , ,
now arrived at an age when my hair is turning white .
I have no son to succeed me for which reason my ,
heart is sorrowful and I have ab andon ed everyt hing

,
in life Let who will take my th rone and wealth I

.
,
have no need of them I will retire to the mountain s

.
,
”
and there worship Allah whose name be exalted ! ,
And the King heaved a sigh and c eased speaking

’
, .
“ ” “
0 King of the age replied the Vizier banish
, ,
from thy mind these fancies or all thy subjects will ,
be thrown into confusion and despair and this t h y ,

1 46 HIST ORY OF K ING AZA D
Kingdom which thy fathers established with so much
,
labour will be lost in a moment !

,
“
M oreover thou wilt have to answer to Allah t h e
,
High the Great on the Day of Judgment when he

, , ,
wi ll say I made thee King and placed my creatures

,
‘
,
u nder thy care But thou wast unfaithful and didst

. ,
’
aff lict and abandon them What answer will the .
King make ?
’
P ardon t h y slave s words but it is not the part of
r
a mighty King to wander like a beggar in the moun

tains T hou hast heard the saying
.
.
A l l a h i s n ea r th ee, y et th ou seekest f or Hi m i n th e wi l
‘
der n ess ’ .
Th y c h i l d i s i n th i ne ar m s, y et th ou searc hest f or hi m i n
I a,
th e c i ty .
Hearing these wise words King Azad cast down his ,
eyes and sat in silen ce for a little s pace of time after

, ,
“
whic h he said Go forth O Kiradm and and an
, , ,
nounce t o my people that to morrow I will sit i n the -
”
Royal Judgment Hall .
“
I hear and obey said the Vizier with joy , .
A s long as the earth doth exist may the throne ,
of my lord the King continue t o stand ! And may an

”
heir to his thron e and canopy soon appear ! So
sayi ng he made haste and went forth
, .
When the mo rning dawn ed King Azad entered the ,
hall and seat ed himself upon his throne and judged

, ,
Hearing this King A z ad filled with curios ity sat

, , ,
down beneath a tree and prepared to listen And the , .
first Sheykh began thus .
Ha ti m th e Gi ver
NOW 0 my friend that my story is wonder
, ,
ful extraordinary ! I wa s not always clothed

-
in rags T his wretch is the Prin ce of Persia ! In the

.
seven climes there is no Kingdom equal to that King

dom T h e atmosphere of Pe rsia is delightful and the
.
,
inhab itants handsome and refined in their manners .
M y father was Ki ng of that country and he caused ,
me to be taught by wise men so that with the favour ,
of Allah — whose name b e exalted ! — when I at

,
t ai ned my fourteenth yea r I w a s learned in every ,
science and art a nd had acquired all knowledge re q

,
ui si t e for Ki ngs to know

'
One day a learn ed companion who had journeyed ,
to all the great cities and regions of the earth said to ,
me : Know 0 Prince that Kings rise an d rule their

, ,
Kingdoms and then die and are forgotten ; but the

,
deeds of the generous cause their doers to b e remem

”
bered for all times S O was it with Hatim T a i
. .
“ ” “
Relate to me said I the story of this Hatim
, ,
T ai .
T hereupon my compan ion said

In anc ient days in the reig n of Naufal King of
, ,
HAT IM T HE GIVE R 1 49
Ara bia there l ived an Arab Chief named Hat im Tai

, .
Allah ,
whose name be exalted had endowed him
with great wealth and he was celebrated for his
,
boundless generosity He dispensed his wealt h daily .
in a hall havi ng seventy doors each of which was ,
open to the poor And none entered the hall but went
.
away satisfied .
“
Now it happened that King Naufal heard of the
,
fame of Hatim and his soul wa s fille d with envy and

,
’ ‘
hate If this man thought he continueth to give
.
‘
, ,
thus freely t o all soon the hearts of my subjects will

,
leave me and cleave to him Veri ly I wi ll g o forth and

,
.
’
destroy him .
“
S o King Naufa l assemb l ed h i s troop s and armed ,
them wi th weapons and rode forth at their head , .
“
T here c ame a messenger running to Hat im T ai ,
and said : Know 0 my Chief that King Naufal is

‘
, ,
advancing with numerous troops to slay thee ! T here

fore call together the warriors of th e Tribe of Tai and ,
g ive the Kin g battle T hough he hath a large a

. rm y ,
still the right is on thy side and thy people love thee ,
’
and thou shalt prosper .
‘
But Hatim Tai answered : T his King hateth me ,
not my people Know that if I prepare for battle the

.
,
creatures of Allah wh ose n ame be exalted ! will

be slaughtered and much blood will be spilt And
,
.
’
the punishment of Heaven will fall up on me !
1 50 HIST ORY OF KING A ZA D
So saying Hatim threw off h is rich garments and
, ,
clad himself in rags then alone he fled from the hall , ,
a n d hid in a cave in the mountains So fared it with .
Hatim T ai .
“
As for King Naufal when he heard that Hatim ,
had fled he took all h is wealth and lands and ap

, ,
pointed another man Chief of the T ribe of T ai Then .
he sent forth a crier wh o proclaim ed :

0 all ye people of Arabia ! Whosoever shall seize
‘
Hatim T ai a nd bring him before the King shall

, ,
’
receive five thousand pieces of gold And on hear .
i ng this many people began to search eagerly for

,
him .
Now there lived near the mountain in which

,
Hatim was hidden an old man and his wife T hey , .
were poor and hungry and were so fee b le that they ,
could scarcely work One day as they were gathering .
firewood for sale they wandered before the cave and

, ,
Hatim heard them talking .
“‘
Alas said the old woman if this day were for ,
‘
t unat e we should meet Hatim somewhere T hen we

, .
could seize him and carry him before the King who
, ,
would give us five thousand pieces of gold So might .
’
we stop toiling and never suffer hunger again
, .
“‘ ’
Wh at a rt thou talking about ? replied the ol d
‘
man It is our fate to pick up firewood all our lives
.
.
Stop talking and mind thy work Wh y should H atim

, .
I 52 HIST ORY OF KI NG AZAD
Then they led him away to King Naufal And the old .
man and h is wi fe followed them in silent grief .
“
And when they brought Hatim before the royal
throne t h e King asked Who hath found and brought
, ,
‘
’
him hither ?
“
A nd all the men one after the other answered , ,
that they had searched the woods and found him .
After each had recounted his act of bravery Hatim ,
stepped forward and said :

0 King if thou dost wish to know the truth that
‘
, ,
old man who standeth there aloof from all he it is that ,
foun d me T herefore give to him and his wife and

.
,
’
not to t hese liars the five thousand pieces of gold
, .
“
Hearing this the old man could not contain him
,
self and drawing near cast himself down before

, , ,
’
the throne Listen 0 might y King said he Lo
.
‘
, , .
‘
,
Hatim hath come hither of his own accord so t hat I

’
and my poor wife need suff er hun ger no more A n d he .
told t h e King all that had happened from first to last .
“
T hereat King Naufal marv elled He made a sign .
with his hand toward the men who had brought

’
Hatim in Take said he to his guard t hese liars
.
‘
, ,
‘
and tie their arms and in stead of five thousand , ,
pieces of gold let them receive five hundred strokes

,
’
of the whip .
“
Th e guard immediately seiz ed the men and lead ,
’
ing them forth carri ed out their lord s comm and s
, .
T HE PRINCESS OF BAS R A 1 53
As for Hatim T ai the King took him by the hand

, ,
an d caused a magnificent robe to be put upon him ,
and seated him by the throne After which he re .
turned t o him all his wealth and lands and restored ,
him as Chief of the T ribe of T ai .
“
While to the old man and h is wife the King gave ,
ten thousand pieces of gold and sent them away re

,
”
joic ing .
So ended the story of my learned companion .
Th e P ri n cess
f B asra o
HEN I had heard the whole of this adventure

’
of Hatim T ai s g reatness my heart was filled ,
“ ” “
with shame What ! said I to myself shall this
.
,
Hatim an Arab Chief acquire everlasting fame ;

, ,
while I the son of the King of Persia am not known

, ,
outside this Kingdom ! Verily I will go and do deeds,

”
of generosity like Hatim .
So I called the chief carpenter and bade him con ,
struct for me at once a palace having fort y high and

wide gates In a short time the palace w as completed
. ,
and I used to go there daily and bestow gold pieces

,
o n the poor a n d helpless who came through the forty
gates So did I for some time

.
.
It happened one day that an aged Sheykh came i n

at the first gate and demanded alms I presented him
,
.
wi th a piece of gold and he went out Immediately

,
.
he reentered by the second g ate and asked for two ,
pieces of gold I g ave them to him an d he went out

.
,
again only to return by the third g ate and demand

, ,
th ree more pieces of gold So he continued to do en .

,
tering gate by g ate and increasing h is demands until

, ,
at length he entered the fortieth gate and asked for ,
forty pieces of gold At his impudent conduct my .
anger rose but I g ave him what he asked He went

, .
out and returned immediately by the fi rst gate

, .
“ ”
Wh at kind of a Sheykh art thou ? I exclaimed .
O avaricious m an ! at the fo rty gates thou hast re

c eiv ed from one to fo rty pieces of gold and even after ,
this thy greed hath brought thee b ack again ! Go

,
hence in shame and let me not see thy face again to

,
”
d ay .
Immediately on hearing me speak thus the Sheykh , ,
in anger threw down all the gold he had received

, .
“ ” “
0 unmannerly one said he take back thy gift
, , ,
and keep it ! It i s diffi cult to be generous a nd thou ,
dost not ev en know the meaning of the word ! I hav e

not seen a pe rson who is truly generous except the ,
Princess of B asra She weareth with ease the Robe of

.
”
Generosity which thou canst not even put on !
,
Hearing this speech I was rebuked and besought ,
the Sheykh to forgive my words and take the gold ,
again But he would not accept my entreaties and

.
,
went away saying If thou didst off er me all thy

, ,
1 56 HIST OR Y OF KI NG A ZA D
perfumed water and on either side Of the door stood
,
ten black eunuchs each h olding a silver mace We

, .
passed between these an d ent ering th e mansion

'
, , ,
found ourselves in a large and elegant saloon Costly .
carpets were spread by the side of the fountain and ,
silken cushions were laid thereon Gold and silver .
boxes containing rare spices and j ars of beautiful,
Chinaware were arranged with taste in their places

, .
In the recesses of the wall were gilded baskets filled

with oranges rich confections and nuts The saloon
, , .
was lighted by many lamps in the shapes of cyp ress

t rees and lotus flowers ; whil e camphorated candles
-
burned in s ilver candlesticks over which were placed

,
rich glass shades Th e perfume oi musk and ambergris

.
filled the whole saloon .
T h e young man led me forward with all respect , ,
and seated me on the cushion s by the side of the foun

tain He then summon ed h is slaves and bade them
.
,
attend me T hey immediately did so washing my

.
,
feet and hands in scented water and spreading a cloth ,
b efore me T hey then served me with a profusion of

.
dishes containing various viands sufli c ient to satisfy ,
a large multitude .
Seeing such a quantity of roast meats past ries , ,
confections and fruits I took but a mouthful from

, ,
each dish and my appetite was satisfied ; But the

,
“
young m an pressed me to eat more say ing : 0 p il ,
T HE P RINCESS OF B AS R A I S7
eat ! The dinner is still untouched Eat without .
”
Allah the Bountiful bless thy mansion !
I cannot suffi ciently praise the delicacy
ur of thy food but I hav e eaten enough so
, , ,
”
e let the dishes be removed
, .
cloth and dishes we re removed and ,
ewer and basin of gold and b athing , ,
them with a silken napkin Then the .
n and I conversed for some time with joy ;

h he led me to a magnificent couch beneath
O f white satin .
ow n upon the couch which was softer than

,
of roses ; whil e slave boys placed pots of fra

grant flowe rs by my side and burned aromatic gums .
Wherever I turned my senses we re intoxicated with

,
perfumes In this state I fell asleep

. .
Whe n morning dawn ed I was waited upon by

,
numerous black slaves and a repast on golden dishes

,
was served ; after which I spent the day in delight and

amusement I n this manner I passed th ree days and
.
three nights and on the morning of the fourt h day I

,
requested the young man t o permit me to depart .
“
But he joined h is hands together and said : O pil
,
grim why dost thou desire to leave my mansion so soon

,
Perhaps I have b een deficient in my atte ntion s to thee ,

”
for which reason thou art displeased and wish to go , .
1 58 HI S T ORY OF KI NG A ZAD
I replied with astonishment 0 young man know , ,
that the rules of hospitality in my Kingdom permit

a guest to remain three days T hese I hav e fulfilled . .
T o stay longer is to trespass on g ood manners T here .
”
fore I beg to depart .
“ ”
O pilgrim said he do as thou desirest But
, ,
.
first know that the Prin cess of B asra ent ert ainet h in
this wise every stranger who cometh to this city She .
now request et h thee t o accept all the dishes carpets , ,
and furniture which have b een provided for thine

,
ente rtainment T hey are now thy property and

.
,
thou mayest place them in a room and put thy ,
seal on the door And when thou so desirest thou

.
,
mayest remove or dispose of them as thou seest

”
fit.
Hearing these words I was the more astonished

, ,
and refused h i s off e r But he would take no refusal

.
,
so at last I was o b liged to place the articles in a
room and c lose the door with my seal

, .
As I was about to b id the young m an farewell and ,
depart a eunuch approached me magnificently clad

, , ,
and carrying a gold en mace He addressed me with .
humility and said ,

“
O pilgrim do me the favour to dignify my man
,
sion with thy presence For if thou doest not so the

.
,
Pri n cess will hear that a stranger hath visited this

city and hath not received the entertainme n t due
,
Having written this letter I sealed it and gave it , ,
to the eunuch who carried it to the Princess

,
.
After a short time he returned and beckoning me , ,
to follow conducted me to the door of the royal se

,
raglio I saw there an old woman dressed in j ewelled

.
,
garments and seated upon a golden bench Be fore

,
.
her stood numerous white slave girls with eyes down -
cast and arms folded across their bosoms

,
.
T hereupon I imagined her to be the head woman of

’
the Princess s household and made my obeis ance b e ,
fore her She signed me to be seated by her side an d

.
,
said as follows
“
Know 0 young man that the Princess sendeth
, ,
thee her S alutations and saith : Thou callest thy ,

‘
self the son of a King ; why then dost thou wander , ,
about in the habit of a poor pilgrim ? Prove thyself

by b r ave ry to be a Prin ce an d I wi ll marry thee But , .
’
thou must first accomplish a task which I will set .
“ “
T herefore continued the old woman thou must
, ,
perform a certain diffi cult and dangerous task from ,
whi c h none who hat h hitherto undertak en the mat

,
ter hath returned If thou succeed the Princess will

, .
,
”
b e thine .
Heari ng this I almost swooned with delight T ell

, .
”
me said I what this task may be and I will neither
, , ,
spare life nor fortune to accomplish it .
“
Remain to night in the mansion of entertainment
-
ST ORY OF T HE YOUNG MA N 1 6!
wi th the eunuch replied she and to morrow thou

, ,
”
shalt know .
So t aking my l eave of her I returned to the man ,
sion.
I waited with great impatience and when the next ,
evening was come the eunuch again beckoned me to

,
follow him and I did so He led me once more to th e

, .
door of the royal seraglio and a venerab le man came ,
forth and saluted us

,
.
”
0 Ba t awar said the eunuch
, relate to this pil ,
grim all that thou hast seen in the Kingdom of

Nim roz And after saying this t h e eunuch departed
. .
T hereupon B araw a r regarded me in silence for a

little time then he seated me beside him upon the
,
golden bench before the door and said : ,
S tory f the Y oung M a n a nd th e R oari ng B ull

o
’
KING S son our Princess doth possess thou
,
sands of slaves the least of whom am I Never

, .
t h el ess it so happened one time that the Princess de

,
livered to me merchandise of a great amount and ,
comm anded me to go to other cities and sell and buy .
I prepared for the journey and set out and after a ,

’
year s time arrived at the country of Nim roz
, .
“
I entered the chief city an d observed that th e ,
inhabitants were all clad in black I asked the reason .
of this strang e thing but no one wo uld answer me ;,

1 62 HIST ORY OF K ING AZAD
and many days passed leaving me in this state of
astonishment .
“
One day at the time of t h e new moon al l the in
, ,
habitants of the cit y both great and small old and

, ,
young rich and poor went out at the g ate and as

, , ,
sembled upon a plain Th e King of Nim roz went .
there also mounted on his horse and surrounded by

, ,
h is g randees A ll the people formed themselves i nto a

.
long line with the King at their head

, .
“
I also joined the throng to see what strange thing ,
was about to take place Scarcely had I done so when.
a beautiful young man appeared riding over the plain

on the back of a roaring bull He held before him .
an attendant and carried in his right hand a naked

,
sword .
“
As he drew nearer I perceived that the young man
,
was raging and foami ng at t h e mouth He descended

,
.
from the back of the bull and sat upon th e ground , .
After which he gave to the attendant an emerald vase .
The attendant then passed along the line of people ,
and showed the vase to each person an d as he did so , ,
all wept loudly and bitterly In this way he continued .
to show the thing until he c ame to me when he t e

, ,
turned t o his master .
“
The young man imm ediately rose up from the
ground and with on e blow of his naked sword struck
,
the head of the attendant from his shoulders He .

request I presented in the letter T his will inspire my .
heart with confidence and joy ; and I will afterward

undertake all that sh e doth requi re .
Hearing this B arawa r laid h is finger on h is lips

, ,
and bowing assent returned to the apartment of the

, ,
Prin cess And after a short time the same old woman
.
,
whom the day before I had seen seated upon the

golden be n ch issued from the apartment
,
.
She took me by the hand and conducted me ,
through a passage on either side of which stood a row

,
of female slaves a s lovely as the full moon with arms

, ,
crossed upon their bosoms .
We next entered a saloon the beauty of which was

like the shin ing sun for splendour T h e floor was of .
al ab aster the ceiling was of blue colour As for the

, .
walls they were so covered with large mirrors the

, ,
frames of which we re studded with jewels reflecting

the light that the room seemed i nlaid with diamonds
, .
A t the upper end of the saloon was a platform

spread with a silken carpet and embowered with ,
shrubs of silver set in beds of gold And on the shrubs .
were flowe rs formed of jewels of eve ry colour In the .
centre of the platform was placed a throne of alabaster

whereon was seated the Princess She howeve r was .
, ,
hidden from my sight by a canopy of white brocade

fringed with pearls and supported by silver poles
,
enc rusted with j ewels .

T HE T REA SURE CHA M BER 1 65
O n seeing all this beauty and wonder my eyes were ,
daz zled and my mind confused T hereupon the ol d .
woman led me forward and seated me on a chair of

’
sandalwood placed b efore the Princess s th rone .
T h e old woman then took her seat upon the step

of the throne and at the same moment a voice as
,
’
sweet as honey and clear as a bird s issued from b e
neath the canopy .
“
O my nurse said the Princess for it was sh e
, , ,
’
relate t o this King s son the story of my life for it
, ,
”
i s wonderful !
Thereupon the ol d woman began thus
Th e Trea sure Cham ber

’
NOW 0 King s son that the Sultan of this
, ,
count ry was very powerful and had seven ,
daughters One day he held a feast and the seven

.
daughters stood before him in sumptuous attire .
“
He looked toward h is daughters and said If , ,
‘
your father had not been a Sultan and ye had been ,
born in the house of a poor m an who then would have ,
called y ou Princesses ? T herefore all you r good fo rtune

cometh from me and ye should be filled with humil
,
’
ity and gratitude toward me .
Six of his daughters being of one min d made an

, ,
swer thus 0 our father what thou sayest is t rue all

,
‘
, ,
’
the happiness in our lives is due to thee alone !
M
1 66 HIST ORY OF K I NG AZAD
But the youngest stood with downcast eyes and ,
did not speak .
Th e Sultan then looked toward her and said , ,

‘
What 0 my daughter hast thou nothing t o say
, , ,
’
after all the benefits I have conferred upon thee ?
“
I f m y lord will permit his child to speak the
‘
’
truth replied the Princess I will unfold the thoughts
, ,
’
of my heart .
said the Sultan whatever thou hast to ,

‘
’
O my father said the Princess th e voice Of , ,
‘
truth is bitter ! T h e Kin g of Kings who hath made ,
thee Sultan hath also made me a Princess T hou art

,
.
my sovereign and my b enefactor but all the good

, ,
that cometh into the li fe of every man is from Allah

’
the High the Great ! ,
“ ’
At this the Sultan was filled wit h rage What ! .
‘
‘
exclaimed he shall such big words come from a small
,
mouth ! Let this be the punishment for thy p resum p

tion and ingratitude ! All thy gold and jewels shall
be taken from thee an d mean garments shall be put ,
upon thee and thou shalt be thrust out i nto the wil
,
derness where no human trace is to be found ! And

,
soon thou shalt see what will befall thee when thou ,
art removed from the b eneficent protection of the

’
Sultan thy father !
“
Th e Sultan having thus spoken motioned to his, ,
1 68 H I ST ORY OF KING AZAD
th e heat of the day ? Come with me and I will refresh ,
’
thee .
“
So saying the Sheykh led her to a cave near
, ,
which was a well of springing water He plucked some .
leaves from a tree and making a cup gave her to, , ,
drink He then fed her with bread and dates and sh e

.
,
was refreshed .
’ ‘
good man said the Princess permit me t o
, ,
bu ild on this spot a small habitation in which I may

’
live .
’
“
My sister he replied first rest thyself and
‘
, ,
‘
,
after that dig the foundations for the walls ; and I will
go forth and collect reeds and clay with which to
’
erect a hut .
“
T hereupon the Sheykh departed and the Princess ,
arose She took a stick and b egan to dig in the earth

.
,
near the well And lo when sh e had dug a yard in

.
, ,
depth sh e perceived a trapdoor

,
.
It opened with ease and what was her amaze ,
ment to behold a large treasure chamber stored with

j ars of yellow gold bars of white silver cups brim, ,
ming with rubies and j acinths and heaps of large ,
white pearls She w as struck with wonder and de

.
light: She then took four handfuls of the gold and , ,
closing the trapdoor filled up the place with earth ,

.
“
Soon the Sheykh returned bearing an armful of
re eds and a basket of clay ; and the Princess weeping ,
THE TR EASURE CHAM BER 1 69
with delight related to him all that had occurred

,
from first to last At this the Sheykh rejoiced ex

.
ceeding ly and said

,
“‘
O my sister permit me to fetch workmen and
, ,
command them to erect on this spot a magnificent

palace the like of which hath never been seen in this
,
’
land !
‘
said she and do all that thou desirest and
, ,
’
make this dese rt like a garden .
“
So he went forth and returned immediately with
,
numerous carpenters masons and other workmen, , .
They proceeded to work with such wonderful rapidity

that in a few hours a magni ficent palace arose with ,
agarden like a paradise .
“
I t s walls were marble of dazzling whiteness ; its
doors of massive gold ; it s floors of alabaster ; while
rich carpets silken curtains gold and silver dishes
, , ,
and magnificent furnitu re of all sorts filled the saloons .
On every hand moved black and white slaves and ,

’
officers of the household T h e Princess s apartment .
was provided with elegant garments of every kind ,
and with ornaments of gold set with precious stones

and p earls Th e spacious garden roundabout the pal
.
a c e w as filled with playing fountains shady walks

'
, ,
shrubs and flowers and trees bearing delicious fruits

,
.
“
Th e Princess rejoicing took up her abode in the
, ,
palace but the Sheykh continued to dwell in h is cave

, ,
which was now in the midst of the garden Each day .
the Princess dispensed handfuls of jewel s t o the poor ,
so that her fame soon spread abroad throughout the
Kingdom of Basra So fared it with the Princess who

.
had been cast forth into the desert !

“
As for the Sultan her father when he heard of the
,
magnificent palace that had sp rung up in a day he

marvelled much thereat and sent messengers to in
,
quire the nam e of the owner T hey soon returned and

.
said
“
Behold in the desert dwelleth a Princess whose
‘
be auty is greater than that of all the Princesses of

earth She doth possess magnificent furn i ture gold
.
,
ornaments and j ewels without number And sh e .
daily giveth handfuls of precious stones to the p oor

’
and needy .
“
The Sultan marvelled all the more and imme ,
diat ely sent ambassadors to the Princess to ascertain

of what country and ran k sh e w as and to announce
,
that on the following day he and all his Court would

visit her palace .
“ ’
At this the Princess s heart leaped with j oy and ,
sh e took a pen and wrote as follows
To the S erva nt of A l l a h th e P r otec tor of the Worl d, P r os

p er i ty a nd P ea ce !
Kn ow, th a t thy vi si t to thi s h u m b l e a bode wi l l c a use

thy servant i nfini te rej oi c i ng How h ap p y i s the p l ace
1 72 HIST ORY OF KING AZA D
before him again and stood with arms folded hum
,
bly across her bosom .
’ ‘
Princess said the Sultan of what country
, ,
art thou and why hast thou taken up thine abode

,
in this desert instead of seeking an habitation in

,
’
th e city of B asra ?
“ ’
T his sl ave replied she is that off ender whom
‘ ‘
, ,
thou didst cast forth from thy presence with the

command to live in the desert Behold how Allah .
,
whose nam e be exalted ! — hath befriended me ’

.
“
And even as the Princess spoke sh e drew from ,
her face her veil an d when the Sultan saw h is young

,
e st daughter before him he made haste to descend ,
from the throne and clasp her in h is arms Then h e .
wept aloud and placing her upon the throne beside

, ,
him sum moned her mother and S isters T hey c ame

, .
from the royal palace in their litters with all their

attendants ; and when they saw the Princess they ,
embraced her with love The Sultan then seated .
them all around h im and they partook of the feast

,
that had been prepared .
“
T h e people of Basra rejoiced the shops were ,
closed and the drums of joy were beaten After this

, .
the Sultan passed a part of each ye ar with the Prin

cess in her palace and the rest of the year he spent
,
in aff airs of state .
“
T hus matters remain ed for some time until at ,
1 74 HI S T ORY OF KING AZA D
some days the new moon appeared and all the in ,
habitants of the city assembled upon the plain and

the King and his grandees went with them .
Soon I perceived the young man on the back of the

roaring b ull advan cin g across the plain He was
, .
rag ing an d foaming at the mouth in a most dreadful

,
manner and he carried a naked sword in hi s hand

, ,
and held before him an atten dant .
Although I had undergone great dangers and hard

ships in the journ ey to the count ry of Nim roz in ,
o rder to ascertain the cause of this mystery yet at ,
the sight of the young man I b ecame motionless

with astonishment He did according to his custom
. ,
,
and having severed the head of the atten dant from his
Shoulders and b roken the emerald vas e he mounted
, ,
on the back of the roaring bull and ro de to the place

from whence he had come .
I followed the weeping inhabitants :o the city and ,
whe n I was recovered from my a st m ish m ent I re ,
p ent ed of what I had done and resolved to await the

,
next new moon .
I counted th e days with great impatience and when ,
at last the new moon appeared t l e King and the in

,
habitants assemb led once more 1p on the plain and ,
I went with them Sudden ly the oung man appeared

.
f
on the back of the roaring bull and all happened as ,
before When he departed h ovev er I ran after him ;

.
, ,
ST ORY OF T HE YOUNG MA N 1 75
but the inhabitants laid hold of me exclaiming ,
What art thou doing ? If thou art tired of life ,

”
choose a less fearful way of dying !
I struggled to escape from their hands but three ,
or four men seized me and led me b ack to the city , .
And there I remained full of regret until the next , ,
new moon And when the inhabitants assembled a c

.
cording to their manner I separated from them and , , ,
going to a distance out upon the plain hid myself b e ,
hind a large tree .
T h e young man soon came in the usual way and ,
after he had done according to h is custom and w as ,
returning on the back of the bull I left the tree and ,
ran after him At the sound of my footsteps he turned

.
and perceiving me gave an awf ul cry T hen frown

, , .
,
ing horribly and drawing h is sword he urged the bull

, ,
toward me .
I however was fearless and bent down my head

, , ,
to receive h is blow T hereupon in su rp rise he put

.
, ,
“
back h is sword and said O rash youth if thou
, , ,
hadst tried to escape I would have severed thy head,

”
from thy neck !
He then drew a jewelled dagger from his sash and ,
threw it to me saying I have no money with me so

, , ,
”
take this and return to thy home
,
.
T hen the young man gave another loud cry the bull ,
roaring beneath him and rode away across the plain , .

1 76 HIST ORY OF KING A Z AD
But I followed after and he turning again per , , ,
c eiv ed me and frowned most horribly

,
But I did not .
heed him and continued to pursue him for five miles

,
.
I then perceived a castle built entirely of rocks and ,
the young man rode up to its door T h e door opened .
o f itself and the young man rode in and it closed

, ,
again as before .
I remained outside in great perplexity and pres ,
ently a black slave came forth and said ,
O unhappy one come in for thou art called But

, , .
take care for a sharp sword h ov eret h above thy head !

,
”
What evil Destiny hath brought thee to this place ?
” “
A good Destiny I replied hath urged me , ,
hither And having so said I went into the castle

.
,
without fear The slave led me to a garden where I

.
,
saw the young man sitting alone upon a bench wi th ,
tools of a goldsmith before him He motioned t o me .

,
and I sat down with respect .
Soon he rose up his eyes rolling with fury and as

, ,
he did so all the slaves ran and hid in diff erent rooms
, .
I hid likewise and the young man came an d fastened

,
t h e locks of the doors .
He then returned to the garden and taking a , ,
whip began to b eat the bull so that it roared most

,
’
horribly Th e animal s roarings reached the room
.
in which I was locked and made my heart q u ake , .
Nevertheless I burst open the lock and rushing into

, , ,
1 78 HIST ORY OF K I NG A ZAD
bravery and renown will be as great as that of R ust em

and Hatim T ai But if he see the light of the sun or
.
moon before he is sixteen years of age he will be af ,
flic t ed with madness and retire to the wilderness to

,
!
’
liv e among animals and b irds .
“
On hearing this prediction the King my father ,
caused a tower to be erected Its walls were lined with.
felt and were without windows so that no ray of light

, ,
might penetrate into the tower There I was brought .
up with extreme care and tenderness I was taught

,
.
all branches of science and art and amused myself ,
with toys and flowers and was fed on every dainty

,
that could be procured from the countries and is

lands of the world .
“
On the eve of my sixteenth bi rthday I was t e ,
c l in i ng upon my couch when I perceived an aston

,
’
i sh ing flower to descen d from the dome of my room .
A S I gazed it increased in size and I stretched out

, ,
my hands to seize it Immediately it eluded my grasp

.
,
and mounted again to the dome I gazed upward and .

,
b eheld a face shining like the moon smiling down ,
upon me At the same moment the dome opened and

.
,
the moonlight streamed in and there descended into,
my room a j ewell ed throne raised on the shoulders of

Fai ries .
“
Upon the thro ne was seated a Fai ry of exquisite
beauty clad in white satin and her form wrapped in
, ,
ST ORY OF T HE LOST FAIRY 1 79
a ve il of s i lver gauze She held in her hand an emerald

.
c up wh i ch sh e placed at my lips
, Before however I .
, ,
could drink from it a number of Fairies flew down

,
from the dome an d whispered in her ear

, .
“
At their wo rds sh e turned pale and trembling ,
‘
said : O my beloved I am the daughter of the King
,
of the Fairies who dwelleth in the M ountains of Kaf

, .
Take thou this mag ic roll an d by its aid seek me out ,
i n the Ki ngdom of my father But I must now de .
’
part for the evil M arid Jadu pursueth me
, .
“
She handed me a roll and all the Fairies ascended
,
with the throne to the dome where they disappeared , .
At the same moment a gigantic Afrite rose through

the floor and attempted to snatch the roll from me I
, .
struck him with it and he was immediately trans

,
formed into the ro aring bull on which thou hast seen

me ride .
“
Since which time I have been afflicted with mad
ness an d on eve ry new moon I mount on the back of
,
the bull and ride across the plain and do as thou hast
, ,
seen The i nhabitants come forth and weep because

.
,
I am the heir to the t hrone and they wish to do me ,
honour I cannot be released from this madness unti l

.
a friend find for m e my lost Fairy .
S o saying the young man groaned an d was silent ,

.
“
At hearing this I wept an d said 0 Prince thou
, , ,
hast suff ered much ! Behold I m ake a vow to wander

forth and not to return to the Princess of Basra unt i l
,
”
I have found thy lost Fairy .
T herefore,O my companion continued the first ,

“
Sheykh I have wandered seven years from clime to
,
clime and have found no trace of the Fairy And

, .
last night I ascended a mountain and when I reached ,
the summit a horseman appeared at my side He

. , .
had bright eyes and red cheeks and was wrapped in

, ,
a green veil .
’
Prince of Persia said he depart at once for
, ,
‘
I st am b ol and meet the Prince of China Th e King of

, .
that country is called Azad and when ye three meet , ,

’
ye shall all receive the desires of your hearts
S O I came hither and to—
.
“
morrow I will seek the
,
presence of King Azad Do thou O my companion.

, ,
”
relate to me now thy Story .
Th ereupon the second Sheykh began as follows
Th e R osy B eauty a nd th e K i ng of the B l ue Gen i i
NOW 0 my friend that th i s poor wretch is the

, ,
son of the King of China I was brought up .
with delicacy and care and was unacquainted with

,
the grief and evil of life .
When I reached my tenth year the King my father ,
became ill and knew that he must die He then sum

, .
m oned my uncle his younger b rother and said

, ,
mount the throne b ut next year will be prop it ious
, .
T herefore return now to the seraglio and wait in ,

”
patience for twelve months Whereupon M ubarak .
made his obeisance and led me away .
After three days had passed he came to me weep , ,

“
ing and said : Know 0 Prince that all the offi cers
, , ,
and grandees of the Kingdom were rejoiced at see

i ng thee for they said Now the son of our King is
‘
, ,
’
a man and he will rule over us ! These words have
,
come to the ears of that wicked wretch thy uncle , ,

”
an d he hath determ i ned to slay thee .
A t hearing M ubarak speak thus I was dumb ,
founded with terror and fell to the ground in a swoon

, .
But the faithful slave revived me an d lifting my , ,
head said Have no fear ! M ubarak will aid t hee !

,
“
,
”
Wh ile we have life we should not despair ! ,
He took me tenderly by the hand and conducted ,
me into a closet where the King my father often used

,
to sit M ub arak then moved a bench and lifted the

.
,
carpet and began to remove the marble tiling from

,
the floor and lo soon a large window appeared

, , , .
He motioned me to look through it and I ap ,
p roach ed in fear and trembli ng and did so A nd .
behold I saw a great apartment divided into four

,
rooms In every room were ten transparent vases

.
,
filled with gold pieces and suspended by chain s of

t h e sam e m et al 011 the m outh of each vase was l ai d
.
T HE ROSY BEA UT Y 1 83
a bri ck of gold whereon was a monkey of ebony with

j ewel eyes I counted forty of these vases in the four
.
rooms ; but I perceived that on the mouth of the

fortieth vase was neither brick nor monkey .
“
M ubarak said I
”
,
“
what is this place and of
, ,
”
what use are the figures of the monkeys ?
“ ” “
O my Prince replied he thy father had a
, ,
friendship with Sadi k the King of the Blue Genii

,
.
Every year thy father used to visit him taking as ,
a gift twenty camels laden wi th rari ties of China .
He stayed a month and then returned bringing

,
one of these monkeys Thus he did for thirty nine .

-
years .
“
One day I said to him 0 King of the age each ,
‘
,
year thou dost carry to the King of the Blue Genii

rarities worth a thousand pieces of gold and thou ,
b ringest back with thee only the figure of a monkey !

’
What is the advantage of such an exchange ?
’
‘“
Hear O M ubarak replied thy father and do
, , ,
‘
not div ulge the secret to any one Each monkey is a .
T alisman and is ob eyed by a thousand M arids But

,
.
until I gain the full fo rty monkeys I cannot com mand ,
’
the M arids Soon after this thy father died without
.
completing the number .
“
So 0 Prince continued M ubarak to me one
,
”
, ,
monkey remaineth to be obtained T hen by the .

,
help of the M arids thou mayest overcome thy uncle

, ,
1 84 HIST ORY OF KING AZA D -
and regain thy Kingdom and thy throne L et us .
depart this night and seek Sadik the King of the

, ,
’
Blue Genii and h e will aid thee for thy father s
,
sake .
T o this I was well agreed and when midnight was ,
come we disguised ourselves and stole out of the

, ,
royal palace unobse rved We proceeded northward .

,
and travelled night and day for the period of a month .
At last we reached a broad plain in which was no sign

of habitation .
“
0 Prince said M ubarak we have now ar
, ,
rained the end of our journey Behold the encamp .
”
ment of the Blue Genii !
“ ”
But said I with great surpri se I see no person
, ,
but thee .
T hereat M ubarak smiled and took fo rth from his ,
bosom a pot of ointment and rubbed some of it upon ,
my eyes I immediately saw that we were in the

.
midst of a vast encampment composed of rich p a ,
v il ions of eve ry colour At the same moment innu .
m erab l e Genii in the forms of men came forward and

embraced M ubarak They then led us to the royal.
pavilion and presented us before Sadik their King

, .
“
He welcomed me with kindness and said : 0 ,
Prince thy father was my friend and I would se rve

, ,
h i s son as well Know that I have an aff air for thee to

.
trans act and if thou executest it properly I will then

, ,
seven years hath vainly sought for a much desired -
”
object !
“
M y house is poor said he and I have little to
, ,
eat but such as it is is thine if thou dost desire to

, ,
”
partake of it .
On this I thanked the old man and followed him ,
through the streets At length we arrived before a

.
mansion that from neglect was falling down and ,
which stood in the midst of a ruined garden .
“ ” “
T his man sion ,thought I to myself was once ,
fit for a grandee ! How cometh it then that it is the , ,

”
abode of this poor Ol d man ?
We entered a dark passage and the old man felt ,
his way with his stick and I heard a sweet voice say
,
“
ing : 0 my father is all well to day ? Why art thou
,
-
”
returned so early ?
“
0 my daughter answered he ,
a compassionate ,
traveller hath presented me with a piece of gold and ,
I have brought him here to partake of our food such ,

”
as it is !
A s he spoke he led me into a room lighted by a
,
single candle and lo standing the re I perceived b e

, , ,
fore me the Rosy Beauty whose portrait was painted

,
upon the paper given m e by the King of the Blue

Genii I was overwhelmed at the sight b ut collect
.
, ,
ing myself sat down upon some cushions and per

, ,
m i t t ed the damsel to wait upon me T his S h e did with .

T HE ROSY BEAUT Y 1 87
such grace and sweetness that she drew sighs from

my bosom T h e ol d man hearing me Sighing thus
.
, ,
said :
“
O stranger relate to us the caus e of all thy sorrow
,
”
and wandering during seven years .
T hereupon I told them all that had happened to me

from first to last .
T h e old man then said : Know 0 my friend that , ,
what thou dost relate is extraordinary wonderful ! ,
And it hath all befallen thee because of my daughter !

For this Rosy Beauty is my child and on her account ,
I too have suff ered much So hear my wretched

, ,
.
tale :
“
I am a grandee of this Kingdom but ruin hath ,
befallen me T h e beauty and elegance of my daughter

.
was celebrated throughout the country of India Th e .
son of the King of this city heard her praise and loved ,
her without seeing her He no longer ate or drank

.
, ,
and became melancholy .
T h e King h is father learning the cause of his de

,
spair commanded me to marry my daughter to his

,
son . My daughter wept and tore her hair but the ,
preparations for the marriage were complete d When .
the servants of the King came t o take away the b ride ,
t o escort her to the royal palace invisible hands show

,
ered them with stones and rocks so th at they fled ,
for their lives .

in anger ordered fifty of h is sold iers to
Th e King, ,
proceed to my house and put me to death seize the

, ,
b ride and confiscate my property T hey endeavoured

,
.
to do so b ut when they approached the house the

, ,
same invisible hands attacked them so fiercely that

they also were forced to flee .
“
Since that day no inhabitant of this city may
come near my house without being assaulted S o we .
have lived here and all our friends have forsaken

,
us and our gold i s gone and our house fallen into

, ,
ruins .
“
T his then is my wretched story and as for my
, , ,
daughter if she will g o with thee perhaps the King of

, ,
the Blue Genii may take pity upon us and remove ,
from us the cause of our woe .
When the Rosy Beauty heard the story of her

“ ’
father sh e bowed before me and said : O King s
, ,
son I will go with thee and entreat the King of the

, ,
Blue Genii to release us from this enchantment .
She then left us for the night and we lay down ,
U po n our couches and S lept until day dawned

, But .
,
alas ! when we woke we found that the old man had

,
died in the night His daughter and I mourned for

.
him and M ubarak buried him in the garden

, .
So we took the damsel wi th us and departed We ,

.
pursued our journey for many weeks over mountain ,
and valley and desert waste until we were within a ,

ground in the form of a huge ball He then fl ew up .
into the sky and ascended to such a height that he

,
disappeared T h e moment after flashing like light

.
,
ning he descended and gave me such a blow that I

,
became dizzy and swooned away .
When I recovered my senses I opened my eyes and ,
saw that I was lying in a vast wilderness among ,
thorns and briars I arose and wandered ab out and

.
,
“
of every one whom I met I inquired Wh ere is , ,
Sadik the King of t h e Blue Genii ? He hat h stolen

,
”
my Rosy Beauty ! But no one answered me for all ,
thought I was mad .
T hus I have wandered for five years Last night .
I climbed to the t op of a high mountain intending to ,
cast myself down from it A t the same moment a .
horseman appeared at my S ide wrapped in a green ,
veil and having b right eyes and red cheeks

, , .
“
0 Prince of China said he the days of thy um
, ,
happiness are nearly over G 0 at once to the city of

.
I st am b ol and meet there the Prince of Persia and

Azad King of that country And the w ishes of all
, .
”
th ree will be fulfilled in the same place .
So I hastened an d came hither where I have met ,
thee 0 Prince of Persia according to the saying of

, ,
the horseman in the gre en veil This then is my un .

, ,
happy story .
T HE ROSY BEAU TY 1 91
When t h e second Sheykh had fini shed the re l at ion

of his adventures the morning began to appear
, .
T hereupon King Az ad arose from beneath the tree ,
and without discovering himself to the S h ey kh s re

, ,
turned to the city He entered his palace and re

.
, ,
moving his mean garments clad himself once more ,
in royal robes He then went t o the Judgment Hall

.
,
and sat down upon the throne He summoned his .
Viz ier Offi cers and grandees and made h is chamber

, , ,
lains go forth and fetch the t wo S h ey kh s .
Th e Chamberlains did so and presented them b e ,
fore the King And when the S h ey kh s saw the royal

.
state of King A z ad and the executioner standing b e

,
hind his throne they knew not what to think and

, ,
were filled with fear .
Seeing this the King commanded them both to sit

,
“
down and said Know 0 Princes that last night
, , , ,
”
when ye were relating your histories I w as present , .
At hearing this the two S h ey kh s turned pale and

, ,
trembled and hung down their heads in silence But

,
.
“
King A z ad said : O ye sons of Kings fear not nor , ,
tremble ! Know that there is no person in this world

to whom a wonderful incident hath not happened .
Though I am a King yet have I seen strange sights

,
.
”
Hear now my surprising tale .
’
The S tory f
o the Vi zi er s Daug hter a nd the Twelve
R ubi es
HEN the King my father died and I ascended ,
the throne I was a mere youth It happened , .
o ne year that a merchant of Khurasan came to this
city and brought with him rare merchandise of his

,
land I sent for h im and he bowed before me and

.
, ,
presented me with many rarities and among them a ,
ruby in a golden box Th e jewel was wonde rful to .
’
behold for it was as large as a pigeon s egg and of a
, ,
fine shape and ve ry brilliant T hough I was a King I .

,
had never seen such a large preci ous stone .
I accepted it and made the merchan t many rich

,
presents and g ave him a letter sealed with my ring

, ,
in which I commanded all my subjects t hroughout

the Kingdom to treat him with kindness After which .
he departed .
I used to send daily for this ruby and amuse m y ,
self by looking at it while I sat upon my throne One .
day when I was surrounded by the offi cers of my

,
Kingdom and the ambassadors from other lands

,
stood be fore me I sent for the ruby according to my

,
custom The treasurer brought it and I took it in my

.
,
hand and praising it g ave it into the hand of the am

, , ,
b a ssador of the Frank s He seeing it smiled and .

, ,
sa id ,O King of the age thy good Destiny hath pro ,

hands in humble supplication and s tood before my ,
throne .
“
0 King of the age said h e may I know t h e
, ,
’ ”
Vizier s fault ?
I answered What can be a greater fault than to
,
lie in the presence of the King ?

“ ” “
But replied he thou hast not yet ascertained
, ,
whether he hath told a falsehood ! Perhaps what he

hath said is true T o put an innocent person to death
.
”
i s not right !
“
Verily said I I can never be lieve that a mer
, ,
chant who wandereth from country to country and

,
from city to city hath sewn twelve rubies each as

, ,
’ ”
large as a hen s egg into the collar of his dog
,
.
T h e ambassador answered : Nothing i s surpris

ing ! Perhaps it is the case for merchants going from ,
country to count ry often secure great rarities Let .
the Vizier be imprisoned and do thou sen d and find ,
whether his words be falsehood or t ruth ! Th e services

”
and fidelity of a whole life should not be forgotten !
T hough I desired to punish the Vizier with death ,
yet the ambassador of the Franks gave such wise re

“
plies that I could not answer him So I said Verily .
, ,
he shall be imprisoned for the space of a year and if ,
at the end of that period his words be proven true he ,
shall b e released but if his words are false he S hall b e

, ,
”
put t o death with torments .
THE DOG —
WORSHIPPER 1 95
A c cordingly I commanded that the Vizier should

be bound with chai ns an d placed i n the p ri son ; and ,
i t was done .
The Dog -Worshi p p er

HEN th i s news reached the wife of the Vizier ,
weeping and lamentation took place and all was ,
mourning .
Now the Vizier had a daughter fifteen years of

, ,
age wh o was beautiful and intell igent He loved her

, .
wi th all t enderness and had erected for her a m ag nif

'
i c ent apartment where she lived with her companions

, ,
the daughters of grandees It happened on the day .
when the Vizi er was sent to prison that she was sit
t i ng with them and they were making a feast for
,
their dolls M usic was sounding and sweetmeats

.
,
were prepared and the feast was spread by the side

,
of the fountain .
’
T hereupon the Viz ier s wife rushed suddenly in ,
weeping and lamenting and tearing her hair , .
“ ”
Al as ! cried she better were it for me if thou ,
wert a blind son instead of only a daughter ! He at

,
least would be a comfort to thy father !

“ ” ’
O my mother replied the Viz ier s daughter of
, ,
what use would a blind son be to thee ? Wh at he could

”
do that I might do also
,
.
“
0 unfort unate wretch s ai d her mother know , ,
1 96 HI S T ORY OF KING AZAD
that a great calamity hath befallen thy father for he ,
”
hath been confined in prison .
“ ” ’
And why asked the Vizier s daughter hath he
, ,
been imprisoned ?
“ ”
Because said her mother he hath told the
, ,
King that a merchant in Khurasan hath sewn twelve

’
rare rubies into a dog s collar T h e King believeth .
him not and hath imprisoned him for one year At

,
.
the end of which period if his words b e not proven ,
true the King will put him t o death with torments !

,
“
Now if thy father had a son even a blind son
,
’
he would assist him and beseech t h e King s pardon !
,
’
At these words the Vizier s daughter comforted her
mother and bade her be hopeful so that the woman
, ,
became patient and returned in silence to her apart

,
me nt .
’
As for the Vizier s daughter wh en night was come , ,
sh e sent for the stewa rd of the house and falling at ,

“
his feet weepi ng S h e said : I have formed a plan to
,
release my father and only thou canst afford me as

,
sist anc e I will set out in disguise for Khurasan and

.
,
see the merchant who hath such large rubies sewn in

’
his dog s collar M ake therefore preparations secretly
.
,
for my jou rney for I would go as a young merchant

, .
Load me some camels with merchandise and procure ,

”
for me a disguise .
T h e steward made h aste and loaded some camels , ,

‘
ugly negroes completely armed were stand ing one

, ,
by each cage .
’
S truck with am azement the Viz ier s daughter ,
turned her eyes away and saw on the other side of

, ,
’
the jeweller s shop another room in which a silken
, ,
carpet was spread An ivory stool was placed thereon

.
,
with a velvet cushion and on it a dog was lyi ng

,
chained by a golden chain And 10 around his neck

.
, ,
was a collar set with twelve large and b rilliant rubies !

Two handsome slaves waited upon the dog One was .
shaking above his head a peacock fan with a golden

handle set with precious ston es while the other slave ,
held an embroidered han dkerchief wi th which he

’
wiped the dog s mouth and feet .
’
At this sight the Vizie r s daughter could scarcely
“ “
restrain her joy . I must thought sh e devise , ,
some means whereby I may Show the twelve rubies

”
to my lord the King !
She was plunged in these thoughts an d the pass ,
ers by seein g her youth and beauty stopped and

, ,
gazed upon her with admiration And t hey said to .
each other Never have we seen before t o-day a

,
”
youth so lovely and charmin g !
The jewel merchant beheld her al so and sent a ,
S lave to address her .
“ ”
0 young man said the slave my master the
, ,
Khoja of the jewel market w ish eth to see and wel

-
,
T HE DOG - W ORSHIPPER 1 99
come thee Be so kind t herefore as to enter his shop

.
,
and partake of h is refreshments .
’
Immediately the Vizier s daughter advanced to
w ard the shop and the Khoj a rose up to meet her
, .
He kissed her upon the forehead and made her sit ,

“
down b eside him and asked whence sh e came and

, ,
whither she was going .
“ ”
I come said she from I st am b ol and have an
, , ,
aff air to conduct in this city I hope to complete it .
”
shortly and then I shall at once return to my home
, .
“ ” “
0 my son said the Khoj a give me not such
, ,
bad news ! Stay with me for some days ! T ell me

whe re thou hast left thy S laves and thy merchandise ,
and permit me to have them conveyed to my home .
I will give thee a house and provide thee with a shop , ,
so that thou mayest live in this city and buy and ,
sell
.
T h e Kh oj a then without waiting for the consent of

,
’
the Vizie r s daughte r ordered his slaves to go to the
,
khan an d fetch h er goods T hey did so and con

,
.
,
’
v ey ed them together with the steward to the Kh oj a s ,
mansion .
As night was approaching the Khoj a closed his ,

’
shop and conducted the Vizie r s daughter to his
,
house At the same time one of the two handsome

.
,
slaves took the dog under his arm while the other
slave lifted up the ivory stool and carpet The armed .
200 HI S T ORY OF KING AZA D
negroes placed the two cages up On their heads And .
all followed the Khoj a home .
’
T hey entered the man sion and the Vizier S d aug h
,
ter perceived it to b e spacious and magnificently

fu rnished A carpet was spread by the S ide of the
.
fountain in the court and a delicious repast was laid

,
out Th e two slaves placed the stool on the carpet

.
,
and the dog thereon while the negroes hung the

,
cages contain ing the m en upon the wall

,
.
’
T h e Kh oj a then seated the Vizier s daughter beside
him ; but before they ate he filled a golden platter
,
with roast meats and the most delicate viands T his .
the slaves carried to the dog and spreading an em

, ,
broidered napkin laid the platter before him T h e

,
.
dog descended from his stool and ate as much as he

,
liked and drank water from a golden bowl After

, .
which he returned to his stool and one of the sl aves

,
wiped his mouth an d h i s feet with the n apkin .
T hereupon the two n eg roes took the men from the

cages an d giv ing them many blows with whips made
, , ,
them eat what the dog had left in the p latter A t this .
’
sight the Vizier s daughter was filled with indignation
and said
O ev il man ! Why dost thou so c ruelly treat
these men and make them eat from the platter of an
,
impu re dog ? I s it not enough that these mise rab le

creatures are thy p rison ers but that thou must beat
,
202 HIST ORY OF KING AZ A D
exclaimed : 0 light of my eyes ! Art thou so soon
ti red of thy friend that thou desirest to leave him ?
,
Banish from thy heart the wish to go and as long as ,
I live remain here I Shall not exist a day in thine

,
.
absence !
“
T h e climate of Khurasan is very fine and this city ,
wealt hy Let me se n d a messenge r to thy parents

.
,
t o bring t hem an d their prope rty hither I have no .
son and I love thee more than son an d will make

, ,
”
thee heir of all I possess .
“ ” ’
Verily replied the Vizier s daughter thou hast
, ,
been more than a father to me ! But know t hat this

’
unhappy one s father is in extreme old age and will ,
die a fearful death if I return not to h im T herefore I .
”
must depart .
“ ”
T hen said the Khoj a if thou wilt not abide
, ,
here with me I will go with thee ; for I love thee

,
dearer than my life .
S o saying he arose and prepared for the journey , .
He took all his gold and j ewels to a great amount ,
together with rich rarities and many se rvants and

slaves He loaded h is camels and going forth from
.
, ,
the city pitched h i s tents outside the gate

, .
And when the merchants of the city heard of his

departure they likewise took their goods and serv
,
ants and joined the Khoj a so that the caravan re

, ,
sembl ed an army And the march began ; first c ame

.
T HE DOG—
WORSHIPPER 203
five hundred brave T artar and African slaves armed ,
and well mounted to accompany the caravan After

,
.
them followed a thousand camels laden with jewels

and every sort of rare merchandise and these were ,
accompan ied by the merchants of the city In the .
’
rear of the caravan rode the Khoj a and the Vizier s
daughter each carried in a magnificent litter Near
, .
them in another litter lashed to the b ack of a camel ,
reposed the dog upon a velvet cushion and attended ,
by his slaves ; while the two cages containing the

men were slung across the back of a mule
, .
T hey travelled night and day over desert and ,
plain until they approached I st am b ol and thereupon

, ,
the caravan encamped outside the city T h e Khoj a .
’
also p i tched his tents and he and the Viz ier s daug h
,
ter sat down to eat .
It happened O S h ey kh s continued King Az ad

, , ,
that one of my chamberlain s passed that way an d , ,
seeing the enc ampment w as astonished He saw also

, .
’
the Kh oj a and the Vizie r s daughter dressed like the
,
son of a merchant sitting in state and waited on by

, ,
a hundred black slaves And near them b e perceived

.
the dog upon his stool and the t wo men in their ,
cages He hastened to return to the royal palace

.
,
and he related to me the strange sight .
’
Hearing of the dog s state and of the two poor ,
“
wretches I exclaimed : T his wicked merchant doth
,
204 HIST ORY OF KING A ZA D
not deserve to live ! G 0 immediately and bring me his
”
head !
At this the ambassador of the Franks who stood ,
before my throne smiled and I became angry and

, , ,
“
said O dis respectful m an wherefore dost t hou grin
, ,
”
and show thy teeth in the presence of the King ?
“ ”
0 King of the age the ambassador replied
, ,
know that certain thoughts crossed m y mind ,
whereat I smiled ! The first was the Vizie r spoke the ,
truth and wi ll now be released and thy soul 0 King

, , ,
will not be stained with his blood ! Th e second w as ,
that thou hast commanded this merchant to be put

to death wi thout cause or crime an d with out m aking
, ,
inquiry Call therefore this merchant before thee

.
, , ,
”
and ask him his story .
When the ambassador thus spoke I also remem ,
bered what the Vizier h ad said and comman ded that ,
the merchant his son h i s dog and the cages should

, , ,
be immediately brought before me .
The guard went forth and soon returned and , ,
brought them all into the Judgment Hall T hey set .
the cages and the dog be fore me and the Khoj a and ,
the young merchant drew near t o the throne A ll .
present were astonished at t h e beaut y and delicacy

of the you ng man and his elegant attire He brought .
in his hand a golden tray whereon were heaps of pre

cions stones which illuminated the hall He laid it
, .
206 HIST ORY OF KING AZA D
O mighty King if thou hadst not ordered me to ,
be put to death I would have borne eve ry torture , ,
and would not have disclosed my story But life is .
sweet and if thou art determined to hear the events

,
of my past first command these two men to be taken

,
”
from the cages and placed before me ,
.
And after the two men were taken from their

,
cages and made to stand before the Khoj a he b e

, ,
gan thus
Th e F a i thf ul B east
NOW 0 King that the man who st an deth on

, ,
the right is m y eldest brother and he who ,
standeth on the l eft is my second brother I am .
younger than they .
“
M y father was a merchant in Persia ; and when I
had attained the age of fourteen he died After the ,
.
days of mourning were over my brothers said t o me ,

’
one day Come let us divide our father s wealth and
,
‘
, ,
separate and each do with h is share what best

,
’
pleaseth him .
“
I said : O my brothers I am young and our father
‘
, ,
is dead and ye stand in the place to me of a father

, .
I am a boy and have not yet learned enough Wh at

, .
am I able to do ? Educate me that is all I wish Let , .
me remain with you and wait upon you A dry loaf is .
’
all I shall need !
T HE FAIT HFUL BEAST 29 7
On heari ng this they replied Thou wish est to

, ,
‘
’
ruin us and make beggars of us like thyself !
,
“
Thereupon I retired t o a corner and wept with
gri ef In the morning my brothers conducted me to
.
the Cadi and I repeated to him what I had said to

,
them They then s aid to the Cadi If h e is sincere in

.
,
‘
what he saith let him sign a paper giving us his share

,
’ ’
of our father s wealth .
“
I said t o myself : Verily they are my elders and
‘
, ,
wi ll do me good ! If I get my share of the property I

may spend it but if I have an education I c an become
,
’
a successful merchan t S O I signed the paper and we
.
,
returned to our house .
“
The second day after this my brothers said to ,
‘
me : We wish the room in which thou sleepest Hire .
’
another place of residence and go and st ay there
, .
“
It was then I perceived that they did not wish
’
me even to remain in my father s house !
“
I had no remedy and dete rmined to leave I
, .
placed my garments in a bundle together wi th a num ,
ber of rarities which my father had given me I went .
forth from t h e house and selling my rarities re

, , ,
c eiv ed for them a considerable sum of money .
“
I bought a small house and resided there and
, ,
this dog fol lowed me thither I purchased household .
furn i ture an d bought two slaves to attend me I then

,
.
o pened a shop for the sale of garments and sat down ,

208 HISTORY OF KING AZA D
quietly in it with a thankful heart I was content
, .
with my Destiny though my brothers had behaved

,
unkindly to me .
“ ’
In three years time my shop became famous and ,
whatever handsome garments were ordered by the

families of grandees came from me I amassed much .
money and lived at c a se

,
.
“
It happened one Friday as I was sitting at home , ,
that a slave of mine returned from the market-place

’
in tears Why asked I a rt t h ou grieving ? Tell me
.
‘
, ,
‘
v
’
the cause that I may relieve thy sorrow ?
,
“ ‘
Whereat he said : What is it to thee ! Thou dost
en joy thyself but thy poor brothers are being beaten
,
’
for debt in the market place ! -
“
On hearing this my b lood boiled with rage and, , ,
ordering my slaves to hasten with some gold I ran to ,
the market-place I beheld there my brothers, with

.
their arms tied behind their backs being whipped ,

'
wi th rods ; while their creditor stood by saying Pay , ,

‘
’
m e my gold or ye shall be beaten to death !
,
I paid the creditor in full and b rought my brothers ,
to my house where I had them bathed and dressed

, , ,
and fed A nd I never asked them what they had

. .
’
done with m y father s wealth lest they should be ,
ashamed .
What I say is t ruth ;0 King Azad ! Ask them if I

”
have lied in aught .
210 HIST ORY OF KING AZA D
ments ; and lest thy should be ash amed I did not
, ,
me n tion to them the past .
“
I again purchased merchandise suitable for a sea ,
voyage and taking my brothers embarked in a large

, , ,
ship We weighed the anchor and the ship set sail

.
, .
T his dog was sleeping upon the bank of the ri ver an d ,
when he awoke and saw the ship f ar from land he ,
barked and jumping i n to the water swam to the

, , ,
ship And the sailors brought the faithful an imal

.
safely on board .
“
After we had been voyaging for one month my ,
brothers consulted together and determin ed to de

st roy me and seize all my property and goods
, .
One night I was sleeping in my cabin and my sec ,

’
ond b rother ente red hastily an d awoke me Come ‘
.
, ,
’
said he we desire to Show thee an amazing sight !
,
‘
“
I rose in haste and ran out upon t h e deck and
, ,
this dog followed me M y eldest b rother was leaning

.
again st the side of the ship and gazing in to the water , .
He made a sign to me and I also looked into the ,
waves .
said he mermen are dancing in the ,

‘
water bearing branches of coral to which are at

,
t a ch ed pearl oysters and scarlet shells Hearing this ,

’
I was filled with curiosity and leaned ove r the ship s ,
side He then gave me such a b low that I fell in to the

.
foaming waves Whereupon both of my brothers b e

.
T HE F A I T HF UL BEAST 21 I
gan to run about the deck shouting Alas ! our , ,

‘
’
brother ! He is drowned !
“
In the meantime the ship went on and the waves ,
carried me far away I was sinking fast when my .

,
hand touched something and I grasped it with all my ,
might I then perceived that it was the tail of this

.
dog who was swimming by my side He kept on

, .
swi mm ing and pulled me along and in this manner

, ,
we passed seven days and nights .
“
On the eighth day we reached the shore I had .
no sense left and throwing myself upon the sand I

, , ,
remained un conscious that day When the next morn .
ing was come I came to myself and heard the barking

,
of this dog I rose up and walked until evening when

.
,
I approached a city large and inhabited .
“
I entered and passed through the streets and ,
c ame to the market place where I saw the shops of

-
,
the bakers and confectioners I was extremely hun .
gry and my soul was fainting within me and at that

, ,
momen t I perceived two young men walking arm in

arm an d richly clad I was about to ask them for
,
.
alms when 10 I saw that they were my two brothers !

, , ,
“
At the same moment they knew me and my sec ,
ond brother struck me such a blow that I staggered

and fell while the other kicked and cursed me At
,
.
that all p rese nt in the market place ran toward us -

,
and my brothers said T his rascal was our young er ,

‘
21 2 HIST ORY OF KING A ZAD
’
brother s servant and he pushed our poor brother
,
’
ove rboard and stole his goods T hey then tore
,
.
their clothes and wept loudly and beat and kicked

, ,
me cruelly .
“
In the meantime the soldie rs of the Governor ar
rived and seizi ng me led me to the Judge A n d my
, , , .
brothers told h im thei r lying tale He then condemned .
me to be cast alive into a pit and to be left th ere to ,
die .
“
Now this pit was an an cient well dark and nar
, ,
row dug by A frit es in the time of Solomon the son

, ,
of David on both of whom be peace ! T h e soldiers

,
carried me thither and lowered me into the well , .
Except this dog I had no one to weep for me and his ,
state of despair was such that he rolled on the feet of

the soldiers and barked and howled T hey tried to
, .
beat him off with sticks but he would not leave the ,
place So they left him there and returned to the city

.
, .
I lay for some time senseless and after a while

“
,
’
I heard some one moving about Who art thou ? .
‘
I exclaimed If thou art a human being speak !

.
‘ ’
,
“
A t that I heard two men laugh and one sai d
, ,
T his is the prison of Solomon and we are prisoners !

‘
A n d even as they spoke some pe rson came to the ,
mouth of the well a nd let down a j ar of water and a

,
loaf an d the two men near me seized them and ate

,
,
an d drank .
214 HISTORY OF K ING AZAD
bread to eat and th e woman gave me water to drink .
And when the baker perceived that the dog came

every day he had compassion on h im and threw
, ,
him each time a large cake of bread .
“
One night while the two prisoners were asleep
, ,
and my heart was heavy I b eg an to weep When 10 , .

, ,
what did I see but a rope hanging down from the

mouth of the well ! I heard a low voice say 0 unfor ,
‘
t unat e m an ti e the rope t o thy hands and I will draw

, ,
’
thee forth !
“
T hereat I tremb l ed so much that I could hardly
obey I tied the rOp e around my wai st and some
.
,
on e pulled me forth I then saw my deliverer by the

.
!
light of the moon He had bright eyes and was .

,
wrapped in a green veil ; and I beheld near h im a

horse .
’
young m an said he mount th i s ho rse and
, ,
‘
,
’
flee for thy life .
“
With my heart full of thanks I mounted the ,
horse and it ran like the wind And this dog followed
, .
me Soon we had left that land far beh ind and when
.
,
morning dawned I found myself near a large and

,
fine city .
“
I descended from the horse and it imm ediately ,
turned and ran back by the way it had come I then .
entered the gate and the guards met me and took me

, ,
to th ei r King He wa s well p leased with me and

.
,
T HE FA I THF UL BEAST 21 5
showered favours upon me and made me an Offi cer ,
of his Court .
1 I accumulated wealth and passed my life in ex ,
treme delight At the end of t wo years a caravan ar

.
rived and I saw among the slaves of the merchants

,
two poo r men They were thin and ragged and

.
,
i n a miserable condition I looked at them with .
great attention and perceived that they were my

,
brothers .
“
T hereupon my heart was filled with pity and
shame for their condition and I caused them to b e ,
brought to my house and clothed and f ed After , .
which I gave t hem each a purse of gold But the .
wi cked wretches again conspired to slay me .
“
One night when I w as asleep t hey entered my
, ,
apartment and drew their swords to kill m e; when

,
this dog who lay sleeping near me awoke an d began

, ,
to b ark He then flew at them and held them by

.
,
their clothes and the guard rushed in and seized

,
them At the same moment the young man with

.
brigh t eyes who had delivered me from the well ap

, ,
p eared before me .
said he I am thy guardian Genie Ali ,

‘
,
of the Green Veil Do thou reward this f aithful ani

.
mal by the most tender care and place around his ,
neck thi s collar containing twelve rare rubies As for .
thy t wo brothers they shall henceforth be confined in

,
21 6 HIST ORY OF K ING A ZA D
two cages and fed from t h e platter of th i s dog ; and
,
nightly they shall receive a beating Such shall be .
their punishment unt il t hey have learned that an un

’
grateful man is worse than a faithful beast !
“
And as the Genie spoke t hus t hese two negroes ,
entered the room bearing the cages upon t heir heads .
T hey placed my brothers in them and ever since have ,
been their attendants .
“
I t hen took this faithful dog and all m y j ewels ,
and wealth and journeyed to the chief city of Khur

,
asan There I opened a shop in the j ewel-market and

.
,
amassed great wealth .
Hence I am called the dog worshipper and am -

,
forced to pay double taxes .
“ ”
Such 0 King Az ad added the Khoj a 1s my
, , ,
extraord i nary story ! Now thou mayest either put ,
me to death , or spare my life according to thy royal ,

”
p leasure .
Hearing th i s 0 S h ey kh s c ontinued K i ng Az ad
, , ,
I was enraged at the two b rothers and de li ghted with ,
the faithful dog I caused a robe of honour to be

.
b rought for the Khoj a and a gift for the young mer
,
chant and I comman ded the wi cked brot hers to be

,
put back into th e cages and to be kept there

, .
“ ”
I then asked the Khoj a Is this thy son ? ,
“
A nd he replied : O mighty King he is not my son, ,
‘
21 8 HISTORY OF KING AZA D

On t h e following day a feast was prepared and I ,
’
marri ed the Vizier s daughter to the Khoj a and con ,
ferred upon h im titles and honours .
Such O S h eykh s was the stran ge thing th at hap

, ,
pened to me in my younger days .
Th e P ri nce B ah tiy ar
And King Az ad ceased speaki ng and im medi ate ly ,
a commotion sounded in the palace and a eunuch ,
came running from the royal seraglio He cast hi mself .
“
down before the th rone crying 0 King of the age
, , ,
may thy glory increase ! T his moment a Prince is

born to be thine heir before whose beaut y the sun
,
”
and th e moon are abashed !
At this the King nearly exp i red with joy ; and he
summoned his Vizier Ki radm and He comm anded .
that a great feast should b e held the d rums beaten , ,
the city decorated and the purses of the poor filled

,
with gold and that the prisoners shoul d be released

,
and those condemned to execution sho ul d be par
doned T h e whole cit y rej oiced and the King wi th

‘
.
,
them A n d they named the Pri nce B akt iy ar

.
, .
In the m i dst of th i s happin ess the sounds of weep

ing and lamentation issued from the serag lio and the ,
“
eunuchs cam e forth cryi ng : Alas ! A l as ! When t h e
nurses were bathing the Prince B akt iy ar a cloud de ,
scended from the cei ling The nurses became sense.

THE PRINCE B A KT I Y A R 219
less and when they recovered they found tha t the

, ,
”
Prince w as gone !
T h e King was thunderstruck at this dreadful ca
l am it y and the whole country mourned For t wo
, .
days no one ate or slept but gri eved for the Prince , .
But 10 on the third day the same cloud appeared

, , , ,
and a cradle set with j ewels with a covering of pearls , ,
descended from the ceiling And the nurses saw .
therein the Prince playing with golden toys .
T hey told King Az ad and he made haste to enter

,
the seraglio He perceived the Prince laughing and

.
kicking in his cradle He was clad in a robe of fine

.
muslin and pearls an d wore around his neck a neck

,
lace of gold inlaid w ith precious S tones T hereupon .
the K in g and all h is people were transported with joy .
And so it happened on the first day of each new

moon the cloud came and carried away the Prin ce
, , .
And on the third day after the cradle filled with rari
ties descended from the ceiling So matters continued .
for three months .
At the end of that time the King made a feast and ,
sum moned the two royal S h ey kh s They passed the .
nigh t in merriment and song until the hour of mid ,
night approached Then suddenly they perceived a tur

.
q uo i se throne descending from the dome ; a n d thereon
were inscribed in letters of gold these words ,
0 K i ng A za d , f ear n ot, b ut m ount this thr on e

220 HIST OR Y OF KING AZA D
Th e King wondered much thereat but taki ng th e , ,
S h ey kh s he moun ted the throne Immediately it b e

,
.
gan to ascend and passing through the dome soared,

, , ,
as if on wings t hrough the air And it continued to

,
.
fly until at last it descended on to a plai n

,
.
T hereupon an inv i sible hand put ointment upon

the eyes of the King and the S h ey kh s and 10 they , , ,
saw that they were in a vast assembly of Genii stand ,
ing in doub le rows Th e King then advanced b e

.
tween the rows and approached a throne whereon

,
sat Sadik the King of the Blue Genii A nd near

,
.
the throne he beheld the Prince B akt iy ar playing

,
wi th a little Princess .
T h e King of the Blue Genu descending from his ,
throne embraced King A z ad and the S h ey kh s He

,
.
then seated them beside him and re quested them to ,
relate the stories of their lives : and they did After .
which King Sadik said

Know 0 m y fri ends that three months ago there
, ,
was born to me a lovely d aughter whom I resolved to ,
marry to one of the Princes of earth I therefore .
ordered my A frit es to search the four corners of the

earth and bring to me a b oy wh o was bo rn at the same
,
moment as was my daugh ter Th e A frit es flew im .
mediately to the four com e rs of the earth an d fetched ,
hither the young Prin ce B akt iy ar .
I took the boy on my lap an d loved him as ten ,

222 HISTORY OF K ING AZAD
and shortly placed her s af ely at the foot of Ki ng
’
S adik s throne .
Whereupon al l present rejoiced and the King of

,
the Blue Genii presented the son of the Ki ng of China

with the figure of the fortieth monkey He then .
married him to the Rosy Beauty ; and gave the Lost

Fairy to the Prince of Nim roz the Princess of B asra
,
to the Prince of Persia ; and betrothed the li ttle

Prince B akt iy ar to his daughter .
After which he caused a magnificent banquet to be

served and all partook thereof He then commanded
, .
his A f rit es t o convey the Princes and their brides to

their Kingdoms ; wh ile King A z ad taking the little
,
Prince B akt iy ar in his arms mounted the flying

,
throne and was wafted gently back to h is palace in

,
I st am b ol .
CONCLUSION OF THE FOUNTAIN OF
T HE GENII
HUS ceased the T ales of the Good Geni i And .
Ali of the Green Veil bowed before the golden

throne and ascended his own silver one
,
.
0 good Fairy Moang said the King of t h e Genu

“ ”
,
the children of G ui al ar the Iman of T erki have

, ,
listened in all due silence to the tales of the se rv

ants of our lord Solomon the son of David on both
, ,
of whom be peace ! Conduct them therefore to the , ,
Garden of Fruits and permit them to rejoice with

,
the Sons and Daughters of the Fairies Only bring .
them hi t her again when the period of a year hath

‘
”
passed.
The Fairy smiling led the excited children through

, ,
a golden door and they found themselves in the Gar

,
den of Fruits .
T hey beheld a spacious place in which were palms

, ,
and many trees laden with t h e coloured fruits Th e .
odour of rare spices filled the air and bright feath ,

-
ered birds flew sweetly singing from tree to tree .
A river watered the garden flowing through ,
arbours of roses and j asmines and myrtle Upon it s

, ,
.
green bank played the Sons and Daughters of the

224 T HE FOUNTAIN OF T HE GENII
F ai ries clad in their robes of blue pink violet and
, , , ,
white Some were sailing Fairy boats and Others

.
,
were flying coloured kites shaped like birds and

beasts And with them was the happy Genie Abdallah
. .
He smiled at Patna and Coulor and when they per ,
c eiv ed him their hearts b eat with joy and they has ,
tened toward t h e river T hen all the boys and girls

.
,
a dvancing and laug hing drew them into t heir midst

, .
T hey tossed golden balls and rejoiced together and

, ,
sang with the b irds T hey danced in the grass and

.
,
plucked bouquets of flowers and feasted on fruit s,
and creams and walked beneath th e trees with t h e

,
happy Genie Abdallah .

‘
But when the sun was beginning to set the Fairy

Moang drew near “
Patna and Coulor said She
.
, ,
“
must now say farewell to the Sons and Daughters of
the Fairies and return to their father who doth await
‘
, ,
them by the side of the Fountain of the Genii ”

At this the children were overcome with grief but ,
before they could utter a word they found themselves ,
once more in the basin of the fountain and they per ,
c eiv ed that they were holding golden baskets full of
the coloured fruits .
Th e Fairy Moang took them each by the hand and ,
t hey rose through the water wi t hout wetting their
clothes On reaching the pool of the fountain the

.
,
Fairy placed them upon the ground ; and 10 they saw , ,

T h e R om a n c e S e r i e s
6s . n et
A F I N E i i mi ng t th p
ser es a t ti o i wo th y fo m o f t h
a e resen a n n r r e p io u
rec s
m t l o t d i th
a eri a c i t t l
,
n ai ne o f th diff nt
n E e an c en a es e ere rac es ac h olum
v e
co t t l
n a i ns a t 56 p g d i i ll u t t d w i th bo ut
eas 2 at es, an s s ra e a si x een pl t i
a es n
colou ollotyp by fi t l
r or c ti t S i 8§ x 5} i h
e H rs -c ass a r s s. ze nc es. an d om ly
s e
bou d i loth G t
n n c , s. ne .
1
1 THE S T O RY OF HEREWA R D
.
Retold by DOU G LAS C STE DMAN , B . . A.
2 S T OR IES FR OM THE FA ER IE
.
Q UEENE
Retol d by LAW R E NCE H DAW S ON .
3 THE HIGH
. DEEDS OF FI NN
R tol d by T W R LL T N W i th I t o du ti o by
e . . O ES O . n r c n th e R ev .
S A B M A
T OP F O R D . R OO K E , . .
4 . ST ORI ES FR OM D A NTE
B y S AN C NN I N T N
US U G O
5 S T ORIES FR OM S HA KES PEA RE

.
R tol d by D
e r T HO M A CA T S R ER
6 . HA R A LD FIRS T OF THE V IKINGS

,
By C pt i C HA L Y UN
a a n R ES O G
7 . S T OR IES OF IND I A N GODS A ND HEROES

R tol d by W D M N O
e . . O R
S HA KES PEA RE S S T ORI ES OF THE ENGLIS H KINGS

'
8 .
R tol d by D T CA T
e uth o o f S t i / Wm S h k p
r . R ER , a r or es a es eare
9 THE BOYS FR OIS S A R T

'
.
R tol d by M
e . G . E D A MA
G R , . .
10 THE S T OR Y OF
. KING R OBERT THE BRUCE
By R . L . MA CK I E , MA . .
11 THE A RA BIA N NI GHTS

.
S l
d by F AN O L TT
e ec te R CE S CO
12 . S T OR IES OF EGYPT IA N G O DS A ND HEROES

By F H B .ANK B A . R OOK S B ,
. .
13 S T O R IES FR O M R OB ERT B ROW NING

.
B y V CAM . ER O N TU R NB ULI .
T h e F am ou s M y th s S e r i e s
A S p ecia l P rosp ectus qf tkzr I mp or ta n t S er i es wil l be sent to a ny a dd r ess
'
E ach ol um D my 8
v e, e v o, a bout 400 p ag es, wi t h f om 3r to 64 P 2 l a tes an d Fu ll
I d C loth t
n ex . ex ra , I zs . 6d . net ; Fu ll Ve l vet P er si an, Y a pp , 2 1 5 . net.
THE MYTHS OF GREECE A ND R OME

h
T ei r S to i S i g i fi t i r es, n ca on, a nd O i gi r n. By H A G UE R B ER Wit h
Full p g I ll u t tio 4 6p g
. . .
64 - a e s ra ns. 1 a es.
MYTHS OF THE NORS EMEN

F om th E dd d S g By H A G
r e Wi th 64 Fu ll p g
a s an a a s. UER BER - a e
I llu t ti o by mi t C o ti t l d E gl i h A ti t 4 6 p g
. . .
s ra ns e n en n nen a an n s r s s. 1 a es.
MYT HS A ND LEGENDS OF T HE MIDDLE A GES

By H A G Wi th 64 E qui it F I l p g I ll u t ti o
UER B E R x s e u - a e s ra ns
4 6 p g
. . . .
1 a es.
HER O MYTHS A ND LEGENDS OF T HE BR ITIS H R A CE

y“ I E M A Wi th 64 O igi l Full p g I llu t ti o by
B E UTT , r na -
a e s ra ns
N o t bl A ti t
.
pg
. . .
a 4 e r s s. 00 a es.
MYTHS A ND LEGENDS O F T HE C ELTI C R A CE

By T W R LL T N Wi h 64 O i gi l F u ll p g I ll u t ti o by
O ES O t r na - a e s ra ns
ST H N R I D S o d E diti o R i d 464 p g
. . .
EP E E . ec n n, ev se . a es.
THE MYTHS A ND LEGEND S OF JA PA N

By F HADLAN D DA I Wi th 3 P l t m C olou by E L N P A L V S. 2 a es r VE Y U
448 p g
. .
a es.
T HE MYTHS OF ME! ICO A ND PER U

By L W I S N E S PE CE , With 56 P l ates i n H l f to
a - ne a nd 4 P l a tes
i C olo u
n 384 p g r. a es.
T HE MYTHS OF THE NOR TH A MERIC A N INDIA NS

By L E W I S S PE N CE , Wi th 32 P lates in Colo ur by JAME S JACK .
400 pg a es .
T HE MYT HS OP A NCIENT EGYPT

By L W I S N F R A I Wi th 6 C olou P l t d m y o th
E S PE CE , 1 r a es a n an er
F u ll p g I ll u t ti o 384 p g
. . . .
- a e s ra ns. a es.
MY THS OF THE HINDUS A ND BUDDHIS TS

By S I T N S d D ER A NANDA C M W M Wi th
I V E DI T A an r OO A RA S A Y
3 I ll u t ti o C olou by A N T A d o th I d A ti t
.
2 i s ra ns n r G OR E a n er n i an r s s
4 6 p g
. . .
1 a es.
T HE MYTHS OP B A B YLONI A A ND A S S YR IA
By L W I S N F R A I Wi th m y P l t i Colou d H l f
E S PE CE , an a es n r an a
to pg
. . . .
ne.4 00 a es.
HERO T A LES A ND LEGENDS OF THE S ERB I A NS

/
By W M P O I S LA V W ith 3 P l t i Colo u 4 p g
. E T R OV I T CI I . 2 a es n r. 20 a es .

Talesofthe Persian Genii

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DA T E D U E

Cornell Unive rs l ty Lib ra ry

N t h ese stor ies wonder-loving boys and gi rl s will

ﬁ nd Good Genii, W i c ked M arids Fly ing A frit es , ,

Fa ir ies W it ch es and Enchanters They may wander

th roug h Oriental gardens fragrant wi t h sp ices an d

sweet singing of many coloured birds and the music

of a thousand fountains or they may feast under ,

silken pavilions and dwell in crystal palaces They .

may gaz e on subterranean treasures of sparkl ing

fruits and gold and silver branches from fairy-trees ;

value t o the tales .

The ﬁrst tw o series of stori es the foundation

th e Gen ii ; or Th e Del i g h tf ul Lessons of Hom m the S on

of A sm a ra T h e b ok became widely popular and went

through many editions passing through the hands ,

of numerous editors on e of whom was Archbishop

Whate ly Its popularity cont i nued into the nine

t eent h century and then died out but not before

of little David COp p erﬁel d Dickens in his Un com

having made a deep i mpression on his own child

T h e third series of stories — The History of Far

T u rkman F aréh i surnamed M umtaz which may b e

T h e fourth series T h e Histo ry of King Az ad and

from the English translation edited by Duncan

and moulded i nto a continuous narrative ; the aim

Each story has its ethic al teaching which has been

emphasized without t oo much moralizi ng but this is ,

not the only educational value of the book M odern .

life in the West is too colourless lacking in richness

and warmth T o cou nteract this and to develop and

eff ect ive method than to steep their imaginations in

stories in this volume may aid in the education of the

ness of description have been infused when lacking

And here I wish t o acknowledge my indebtedness

S t ory of t h e G r ey T oa d T h e V i zier Hora m

T h e S t ory o f the V izier

THE FOUNTAIN OF T HE GENII

ter of G ui al ar the Iman ofTerki were the pride

Of their parents and the wonder of the inhabitants O f

M az anderan The ir forms were slender as a wi llow

branch their hair dar k as night ; their eyes large

black and sparkl i ng ; their cheeks red like anemones

th eir lips like coral ; and their teeth Of pearl And.

every morning their parents presented them each

One day their father led them i nto a grove of

and s eating them upon a marble bench i n the cool

shade of the trees he said

age when you should learn true wisdom The world .

is vain and ﬂ eet ing Power and riches are a snare

to youth Th e worship of Allah whose name b e

ship cannot be attained here in the habitat ion of cor

pelican into the wilderness ; ﬂee into the dese rt and ,

ﬁnd peace and happin ess and there worship A llah

the Compassionate the M erciful, .

NO sooner had the Iman G uial ar uttered these

of the tree changed into a bright and beautiful

I am p leased to hear thee instruct thy ch ildren in the

dese rt ? Know that Patna and Coulor are dest i ned to