Latest / Arabian Nights Tales from Volume 09 / 049 - Night 983 - 984

Transcript

049 - Night 983 - 984 · Arabian Nights Tales from Volume 09

0:00
Speaker 1: Section forty nine of the Book of the Thousand Knights
0:03
Speaker 1: and the Knight, Volume nine. This is a LibriVox according
0:07
Speaker 1: all LibriVox accordings are in the public domain. For more
0:11
Speaker 1: information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording
0:16
Speaker 1: by phone the Book of the Thousand Knights and the Knight,
0:19
Speaker 1: Volume nine by Anonymous, translated by Richard Francis Burton, Night
0:25
Speaker 1: nine hundred and eighty three. When it was the nine
0:30
Speaker 1: hundred and eighty third night, she said it hath reached
0:33
Speaker 1: me o auspicious King, that the princess daughter to the
0:37
Speaker 1: King of the Stone City. Thus continued verily, O Abdullah,
0:42
Speaker 1: my father had moneys and hoards such as I never saw,
0:46
Speaker 1: and of which eyre never heard. He used to bebel
0:49
Speaker 1: kings and due to death, champions and braves in battle
0:53
Speaker 1: and in the field of fight, so that the conquerors
0:56
Speaker 1: feared him, and the cus runs humbled themselves to him.
1:00
Speaker 1: For all this, he was a miscreant in creed, ascribing
1:03
Speaker 1: to Allah partnership and adoring idols instead of the Lord
1:07
Speaker 1: of worship. And all his troops were of images fain
1:10
Speaker 1: in lieu of the all knowing sovereign one day of
1:14
Speaker 1: the days, as he sat on the throne of his kingship,
1:17
Speaker 1: compassed about with the grandees of his realm, suddenly there
1:20
Speaker 1: came in to him a personage whose face illumined the
1:24
Speaker 1: whole divon with its light. My father looked at him
1:28
Speaker 1: and saw him clad in a garb of grain, tall
1:31
Speaker 1: of stature, and with hands that reached beneath his knees.
1:34
Speaker 1: He was of reverent aspect and awesome, and the light
1:38
Speaker 1: shone from his face. Said he to my sire, o
1:42
Speaker 1: rebel o idolutter, how long wilt thou take pride in
1:46
Speaker 1: worshiping idols and abandoning the service of the all knowing King,
1:51
Speaker 1: Say I testify that there is no God but the God,
1:55
Speaker 1: and that Mohammed is his servant and his messenger. And
1:59
Speaker 1: embrace all Islam, thou and thy tribe, and put away
2:03
Speaker 1: from you the worship of idols, for they neither suffice
2:06
Speaker 1: man's need nor intercede. None is worshipful save Allah alone,
2:12
Speaker 1: who raised up the heavens without columns, and spread out
2:15
Speaker 1: the earths like carpets in mercy to his creatures. Quoth
2:20
Speaker 1: my father, who art thou, o man who rejectest the
2:24
Speaker 1: worship of idols that thou sayest, Thus fearest thou not
2:28
Speaker 1: that the idols will be wroth with thee He replied.
2:33
Speaker 1: The idols are stones. Their anger cannot prejudice me, nor
2:37
Speaker 1: their favor profit me. So do thou set in my
2:40
Speaker 1: presence thine idol, which thou adorest, and bid all thy
2:44
Speaker 1: folk bring each his image. And when they are all present,
2:48
Speaker 1: do ye pray them to be wroth with me? And
2:50
Speaker 1: I will pray my Lord to be wroth with them.
2:53
Speaker 1: And ye shall descry the difference between the anger of
2:56
Speaker 1: the creature and that of the creator. For your idols,
3:01
Speaker 1: ye fashion them yourselves, and the Satans clad themselves therewith
3:05
Speaker 1: as with clothing, and they it is who speak to
3:08
Speaker 1: you from within the bellies of the images. For your
3:11
Speaker 1: idols are made, and the maker is my God, to
3:14
Speaker 1: whom naught is impossible. And the true appear to you,
3:18
Speaker 1: do ye follow it? And if the false appear to you,
3:21
Speaker 1: do ye leave it? Cried? They give us proof of
3:25
Speaker 1: thy God that we may see it. And quoth he
3:29
Speaker 1: give me proof of your gods. So the King bad
3:32
Speaker 1: everyone who worshiped his Lord in image form to bring it,
3:36
Speaker 1: and all the armies brought their idols to the divan
3:39
Speaker 1: thus fared it with them. But as for me, I
3:43
Speaker 1: was sitting behind the curtain whence I could look upon
3:45
Speaker 1: my father's divan, and I had an idol of emerald,
3:49
Speaker 1: whose bigness was as the bigness of a son of Adam.
3:52
Speaker 1: My father demanded it, so I sent it to the divan,
3:55
Speaker 1: where they set it down beside that of my sire,
3:58
Speaker 1: which was of Jacinth. Whilst the Wazir's idol was of diamond,
4:03
Speaker 1: as for those of the grandees and notables, somewhere of
4:06
Speaker 1: Bala's ruby, and some of Cornelian, others of coral or
4:11
Speaker 1: comorin aloes, wood, and yet others of ebony, or silver
4:15
Speaker 1: or gold. And each had his own idol after the
4:18
Speaker 1: measure of his competence. Whilst the idols of the common
4:21
Speaker 1: soldiers and of the people were some of granite, some
4:24
Speaker 1: of wood, some of pottery, and some of mud, and
4:28
Speaker 1: all were various hues yellows and red, green, black and white.
4:33
Speaker 1: Then set the personage to my sire, pray your idol
4:37
Speaker 1: and these idols to be wroth with me. So they
4:40
Speaker 1: aligned the idols in a divan setting my father's idol
4:44
Speaker 1: on a chair of gold at the upper end, with
4:46
Speaker 1: mine by its side, and ranking the others each according
4:50
Speaker 1: to the condition of him who owned it and worshiped it.
4:54
Speaker 1: Then my father arose, and, prostrating himself to his own idol,
4:58
Speaker 1: said to it, O, my God, thou art the bountful Lord.
5:03
Speaker 1: Nor is there any among the idols a greater than thyself.
5:07
Speaker 1: Thou knowest that this person cometh to me attacking thy
5:11
Speaker 1: divinity and making mock of thee. Yea he avoucheth that
5:15
Speaker 1: he hath a god stronger than thou, and orderet us leave,
5:19
Speaker 1: adorning thee and adore his God. So be thou wrath
5:23
Speaker 1: with him, O, my God. And he went on to
5:26
Speaker 1: supplicate the idol, but the idol returned him no reply,
5:30
Speaker 1: neither bespoke him with aught of speech. Whereupon quoth he, O,
5:34
Speaker 1: my God, this is not of thy wont for thou
5:38
Speaker 1: used to answer me when I address THEE. How cometh
5:41
Speaker 1: it that I see THEE silent and speaking. Not art
5:45
Speaker 1: thou unheeding or asleep? Awake succor me and speak to me.
5:51
Speaker 1: And he shook it with his hand, but it spake
5:53
Speaker 1: not neither stirred from its stead. Thereupon quoth the personage,
5:59
Speaker 1: what aileth thou idol that it speaketh not? And quoth
6:03
Speaker 1: the king methinks he is absent, minded or asleep, exclaimed
6:08
Speaker 1: the other O enemy of Allah. How canst thou worship
6:12
Speaker 1: a God that speaketh not nor avail it unto aught,
6:15
Speaker 1: and not worship my God, who to prayers gains assent,
6:20
Speaker 1: and who is ever present and never absent, neither unheeding
6:24
Speaker 1: nor sleeping, whom conjecture may not ween, who seeth and
6:28
Speaker 1: is not seen, and who over all things to rehen
6:31
Speaker 1: is omnipotent. Thy God is powerless and cannot guard itself
6:36
Speaker 1: from harm. And indeed a stone Satan had clothed himself
6:40
Speaker 1: therewith as with a coach, that he might debauch thee
6:43
Speaker 1: and delude thee. But now hath its devil departed. So
6:48
Speaker 1: do thou worship Allah and testify that there is no
6:51
Speaker 1: god but He, and that none is worshipful nor worship
6:55
Speaker 1: worth but himself. Neither is there any good but His good.
7:00
Speaker 1: As for this thy God, it cannot ward off hurt
7:03
Speaker 1: from it. So how shall it ward off harm from thee?
7:07
Speaker 1: See with thine own eyes its impotence, so saying, he
7:11
Speaker 1: went up to the idol and dealt with a cuff
7:14
Speaker 1: on the neck that it fell to the ground. Whereupon
7:17
Speaker 1: the king vexed wrath and cried to the bystanders this
7:21
Speaker 1: forid atheist hath smitten my God. Slay him. So they
7:26
Speaker 1: would have arisen to smite him, but none of them
7:28
Speaker 1: could stir from his place. Then he propounded to them
7:32
Speaker 1: all Islam, but they refused to become Moslems, and he said,
7:37
Speaker 1: I will show you the wrath of my lord. Quoth
7:40
Speaker 1: they let us see it. So he spread out his
7:44
Speaker 1: hands and said, O, my God and my Lord, Thou
7:48
Speaker 1: art my stay and my hope. Answer thou my prayer
7:51
Speaker 1: against these lewd folk who eat of thy good and
7:54
Speaker 1: worship other gods. O thou the truth, O Thou of
7:59
Speaker 1: all might, O, creator of day and night. I beseech
8:03
Speaker 1: THEE to turn these people into stones. For thou art
8:06
Speaker 1: to puissant, Nor is aught impossible to THEE. And Thou
8:11
Speaker 1: over all things are omnipotent. And Allah transformed to people
8:16
Speaker 1: of this city into stones. But as for me, when
8:19
Speaker 1: I saw the manifest proof of his deity, I submitted
8:23
Speaker 1: myself to him and was saved from that which befell
8:26
Speaker 1: the rest. Then the personage drew near me and said,
8:30
Speaker 1: felicity was foreordained of Allah to THEE, and in this
8:34
Speaker 1: a purpose had he. And he went on to instruct me,
8:38
Speaker 1: and I took unto him the oath and covenant. I
8:41
Speaker 1: was then seven years of age, and am now thirty
8:44
Speaker 1: years old. Then I said to him, O, my Lord,
8:48
Speaker 1: all that is in the city and all its citizens
8:51
Speaker 1: are become stones by thine effectual prayer, And I am
8:55
Speaker 1: saved for that. I embraced all Islam at thy hands.
8:59
Speaker 1: Where thou art become my saikh. So do thou tell
9:03
Speaker 1: me thy name and succor me without security, and provide
9:07
Speaker 1: me with provision whereon I may subsist. Quoth he My
9:12
Speaker 1: name is Abu al Abus al Qiser. And he planted
9:16
Speaker 1: me a pomegranate tree, which forthright grew up and foliage
9:20
Speaker 1: flowered and fruited, and bear one pomegranate. Whereupon quoth he
9:26
Speaker 1: eat of that? Wherewith Alladi Almighty provideth THEE and worship
9:30
Speaker 1: him with the worship which is his due. Then he
9:34
Speaker 1: taught me the tenets of all Islam and the canons
9:36
Speaker 1: of prayer and the way of worship, together with the
9:40
Speaker 1: recital of the Qur'an. And I have now worshiped Allah
9:43
Speaker 1: in this place three and twenty years. Each day the
9:47
Speaker 1: tree yield with me a pomegranate, which I eat, and
9:50
Speaker 1: it sustaineth me from tide to tide, And every Friday
9:55
Speaker 1: Al Qazir, on whom be peace cometh to me. And
9:58
Speaker 1: tis he who acquaint me with thy name and gave
10:01
Speaker 1: me the glad tidings of thy soon coming hither, saying
10:05
Speaker 1: to me, when he shall come to THEE, and treat
10:08
Speaker 1: him with honor, and obey his bidding, and gainsay him not,
10:13
Speaker 1: but be thou to him wife, and he shall be
10:15
Speaker 1: to THEE man and went with him whitherso he will.
10:20
Speaker 1: So when I saw THEE, I knew THEE. And such
10:23
Speaker 1: is the story of this city and of all its
10:25
Speaker 1: people and the peace. Then she showed me the pomegranate tree,
10:30
Speaker 1: whereon was one granado, which she took, and, eating one
10:34
Speaker 1: half their of herself, gave me the other to eat.
10:37
Speaker 1: And never did I taste aught sweeter or more savory,
10:41
Speaker 1: or more satisfying than that pomegranate. After this I said
10:45
Speaker 1: to her, art thou content. Even as the Shaykh al
10:49
Speaker 1: Kazia charged THEE to be my wife and take me
10:52
Speaker 1: to mate, And art thou ready to go with me
10:55
Speaker 1: to my own country and abide with me in the
10:58
Speaker 1: city of Massarah, She replied, yes, inshallah an it please
11:03
Speaker 1: Almighty Allah. I hearken to thy word and obey thy
11:07
Speaker 1: hest without gainsaying. Then I made a binding covenant with her,
11:12
Speaker 1: and she carried me into her father's treasury. Whence we
11:16
Speaker 1: took what we could carry, and going forth that city
11:19
Speaker 1: walked on till we came to my brothers, whom I
11:22
Speaker 1: found searching for me. They asked where hast thou been. Indeed,
11:27
Speaker 1: thou hast tarried long from us, and our hearts were
11:30
Speaker 1: troubled for thee, and the captain of the ship said
11:33
Speaker 1: to me, O, Merchant Abdullah, the wind hath been fair
11:37
Speaker 1: for us this great while, and thou hast hindered us
11:40
Speaker 1: from setting sail. And I answered, there is no harm
11:45
Speaker 1: in that oft times slow is sure, and my absence
11:49
Speaker 1: hath wrought us naught but advantage. For indeed there hath
11:53
Speaker 1: betided me therein the attainment of our hopes. And God
11:56
Speaker 1: gifted is he who said I weep not when as
12:00
Speaker 1: to a land, I fair in quest of good, what
12:04
Speaker 1: I shall dare obtain or gain, I fair with sole
12:07
Speaker 1: desire to seek, or lost that seeketh me when I
12:11
Speaker 1: seek gain. Then said I to them, see what had
12:15
Speaker 1: fallen to me in this mine absence, and displayed to
12:19
Speaker 1: them all that was with me of treasures, and told
12:22
Speaker 1: them what I had beheld in the city of Stone, adding,
12:26
Speaker 1: had ye hearkened to me and gone with me, Ye
12:29
Speaker 1: had gotten of these things great gain? And Shahrazad perceived
12:33
Speaker 1: the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted
12:36
Speaker 1: say end of night nine hundred and eighty three knight
12:43
Speaker 1: nine hundred and eighty four. When it was the nine
12:47
Speaker 1: hundred and eighty fourth night, she continued it hath reached
12:52
Speaker 1: me o auspicious king, that Abdullah bin Fasil said to
12:55
Speaker 1: his shipmates and to his two brothers, had ye gone
12:59
Speaker 1: with me? Ye had gotten of these things great gain?
13:02
Speaker 1: But they said, by Allah, had we gone, we had
13:06
Speaker 1: not dared to go into the king of the city.
13:09
Speaker 1: Then I said to my brothers, no harm shall befall you,
13:13
Speaker 1: for that which I have will suffice us all. And
13:16
Speaker 1: this is our lot So I divided my booty into
13:19
Speaker 1: four parts, according to our number, and gave one to
13:23
Speaker 1: each of my brothers and to the captain, taking the
13:26
Speaker 1: fourth for myself, setting aside somewhat for the servants and sailors,
13:30
Speaker 1: who rejoiced and blessed me. And all were content with
13:34
Speaker 1: what I gave them, save my brothers, who changed countenance
13:37
Speaker 1: and rolled their eyes. I perceived that lust of lucre
13:41
Speaker 1: had gotten hold of them both. So I said to them, O,
13:45
Speaker 1: my brothers may think it what I have given you
13:47
Speaker 1: doth not satisfy you. But we are brothers, and there
13:51
Speaker 1: is no difference between us. My good and yours are
13:54
Speaker 1: one and the same thing. And if I die, none
13:57
Speaker 1: will inherit of me but you. And I went on
14:00
Speaker 1: to soothe them. Then I bore the princess on board
14:04
Speaker 1: the Galion and lodged her in the cabin, where I
14:07
Speaker 1: sent her somewhat to eat, and we sat talking. I
14:10
Speaker 1: and my brothers said, they, O, our brother, what wilt
14:14
Speaker 1: thou do with that damsel of surpassing beauty? And I replied,
14:19
Speaker 1: I mean to contract marriage with her as soon as
14:22
Speaker 1: I reach Bassorah, and make a splendid wedding, and go
14:25
Speaker 1: into her there, exclaimed one of them, Oh, my brother, verily,
14:30
Speaker 1: this young lady excelleth in beauty and loveliness, and the
14:34
Speaker 1: love of her is fallen on my heart. Wherefore I
14:37
Speaker 1: desire that thou give her to me, and I will
14:39
Speaker 1: espouse her. And the other cried, I too desire this
14:44
Speaker 1: give her to me, that I may espouse her. Oh,
14:48
Speaker 1: my brothers, answered I. Indeed she took of me an
14:52
Speaker 1: oath and a covenant that I would marry her myself.
14:55
Speaker 1: So if I give her to one of you, I
14:57
Speaker 1: shall be false to my oath and to the between
15:00
Speaker 1: me and her, And haply she will be broken hearted.
15:04
Speaker 1: For she came not with me, but on condition that
15:07
Speaker 1: I marry her. So how can I wed her to
15:10
Speaker 1: other than myself. As for your both loving her, I
15:13
Speaker 1: love her more than you twain, for she is my
15:16
Speaker 1: treasure trove. And as for my giving her to one
15:19
Speaker 1: of you, that is a thing which may not be.
15:22
Speaker 1: But if we reach Masorah in safety, I will look
15:25
Speaker 1: you out two girls of the best of the damsels
15:28
Speaker 1: of Bussorah and demand them for you in marriage, and
15:31
Speaker 1: pay the dour of my own monies, and make one wedding,
15:34
Speaker 1: and we will all three go into our brides on
15:37
Speaker 1: the same night, But leave ye this damsel, for she
15:40
Speaker 1: is of my portion. They held their peace, and I
15:44
Speaker 1: thought they were content with that which I had said.
15:47
Speaker 1: Then we fared onwards for Bussorah, and every day I
15:51
Speaker 1: sent her meat and drink, but she came not forth
15:53
Speaker 1: of the cabin, whilst they slept between my brothers on deck.
15:57
Speaker 1: We sailed thus forty days to we sighted Bassora city,
16:01
Speaker 1: and rejoiced that we were come near it. Now I
16:04
Speaker 1: trusted in my brothers and was at my ease with them,
16:07
Speaker 1: for none knoweth the hidden future, save Allah the most High.
16:11
Speaker 1: So I lay down to sleep that night. But as
16:14
Speaker 1: I abode drowned in slumber, I suddenly found myself caught
16:18
Speaker 1: up by these my brothers, one seizing me by the
16:21
Speaker 1: legs and the other by the arms. For they had
16:24
Speaker 1: taken the counsel together to drown me in the sea
16:26
Speaker 1: for the sake of the damsel. When I saw myself
16:30
Speaker 1: in their hands, I said to them, O, my brothers,
16:33
Speaker 1: why do ye this with me? And they replied, ill
16:37
Speaker 1: bred that thou art wilt thou barter our affection for
16:40
Speaker 1: a girl. We will cast thee into the sea because
16:44
Speaker 1: of this, so saying, they threw me overboard. Here, Abdullah
16:49
Speaker 1: turned to the dogs and said to them, is this
16:52
Speaker 1: that I have said, true, o my brothers, or not?
16:55
Speaker 1: And they bowed their heads and fell a whining, as
16:58
Speaker 1: if confirming his speech. Whereat the Caliph wondered. Then Abdullah
17:03
Speaker 1: resumed a commander of the faithful. When they threw me
17:07
Speaker 1: into the sea, I sank to the bottom, but the
17:10
Speaker 1: water bore me up again to the surface, and before
17:13
Speaker 1: I could think, behold a great bird, the bigness of
17:16
Speaker 1: a man, swooped down upon me, and, snatching me up,
17:20
Speaker 1: flew up with me into upper air. I fainted, and
17:24
Speaker 1: when I opened my eyes, I found myself in a strong,
17:27
Speaker 1: pillared place, a high builded palace, adorned with magnificent paintings
17:32
Speaker 1: and pendants of gems of all shapes and hues. Therein
17:36
Speaker 1: were damsels standing with their hands crossed over their breasts,
17:40
Speaker 1: and behold in their midst was a lady seated on
17:43
Speaker 1: a throne of red gold, set with pearls and gems,
17:46
Speaker 1: and clad in a peril, whereon no mortal might open
17:49
Speaker 1: his eyes for the luster of the jewels, wherewith they
17:52
Speaker 1: were decked about her waist, she wore a girdle of
17:56
Speaker 1: jewels no money could pay their worth, and on her
17:59
Speaker 1: head a tiara dazing thought and wit and dazzling heart
18:03
Speaker 1: in sight. Then the bird which had carried me thither
18:07
Speaker 1: shook and became a young lady, bright as sun raying light.
18:12
Speaker 1: I fixed my eyes on her, and behold it was
18:15
Speaker 1: she whom I had seen in snake form on the mountain,
18:18
Speaker 1: and had rescued from the dragon which had bound his
18:21
Speaker 1: tail around her. Then said to her, the lady who
18:24
Speaker 1: sat upon the throne, why hast thou brought hither this
18:28
Speaker 1: mortal And she replied, O, my mother, this is he
18:32
Speaker 1: who was the means of failing my honor among the
18:35
Speaker 1: maidens of the gin. Then quoth she to me, knowest
18:39
Speaker 1: thou who I am? And quoth I no, said she,
18:45
Speaker 1: I am she who was on such a mountain where
18:47
Speaker 1: the black dragon stray with me and would have forced
18:50
Speaker 1: my honor. But thou slewest him, And I said, I
18:55
Speaker 1: saw but a white snake with the dragon. She rejoined
18:59
Speaker 1: this ho who was the white snake? But I am
19:02
Speaker 1: the daughter of the Red King, sovereign of the jan,
19:05
Speaker 1: and my name Isa'idah she who sided there is my mother,
19:10
Speaker 1: and her name is Mubakah, wife of the Red King.
19:14
Speaker 1: The black dragon who attacked me and would have done
19:16
Speaker 1: away my honor was Wazir to the Black King, thouleful
19:20
Speaker 1: by name, and he was foul of favor. It chanced
19:24
Speaker 1: that he saw me and fell in love with me,
19:27
Speaker 1: So he sought me in marriage of my sire, who
19:29
Speaker 1: sent to him to say, who art thou, o scum
19:33
Speaker 1: of Wazirs, that thou shouldst wed with King's daughters. Whereupon
19:38
Speaker 1: he was wroth and swear an oath that he would
19:40
Speaker 1: assuredly do away my honor despite my father. Then he
19:45
Speaker 1: fell to tracking my steps and following me whithersoever I went,
19:49
Speaker 1: designing to ravish me. Wherefore there we fell between him
19:53
Speaker 1: and my parent. Mighty fierce wars and bloody jars. But
19:57
Speaker 1: my sire could not prevail against him, or that he
20:00
Speaker 1: was fierce as fraudful, And as often as my father
20:03
Speaker 1: pressed hard upon him and seemed like to conquer, he
20:06
Speaker 1: would not escape from him till my sire was at
20:09
Speaker 1: his wits end. Every day I was forced to take
20:13
Speaker 1: new form and cue, for as often as I assumed
20:16
Speaker 1: the shape, he would assume its contrary, and to whatsoever
20:20
Speaker 1: land I fled, he would snuff my fragrance and follow
20:23
Speaker 1: me thither, so that I suffered sore affliction of him.
20:27
Speaker 1: At last I took the form of a snake and
20:29
Speaker 1: betook myself to the mountain where thou sawest me, whereupon
20:33
Speaker 1: he changed himself to a dragon and pursued me till
20:37
Speaker 1: I fell into his hands. When he strove with me,
20:40
Speaker 1: and I struggled with him till he wearied me and
20:43
Speaker 1: mounted me, meaning to have his lustful will of me.
20:47
Speaker 1: But thou camest and smotest him with the stone, and
20:50
Speaker 1: slewest him. Then I returned to my own shape and
20:54
Speaker 1: showed myself to THEE, saying I am indebted to THEE
20:58
Speaker 1: for his service such as is not long save with
21:01
Speaker 1: the son of a doughtery. So when I saw thy
21:04
Speaker 1: brothers do with THEE this treachery and throw THEE into
21:07
Speaker 1: the sea, I hastened to THEE and save THEE from destruction.
21:12
Speaker 1: And now honor is due to THEE from my mother
21:14
Speaker 1: and father. Then she said to the Queen, O, my mother,
21:19
Speaker 1: do thou honor him as deserveth he who saved my virtue.
21:24
Speaker 1: So the queen said to me, welcome, O mortal. Indeed,
21:28
Speaker 1: thou hast doneest a kindly deed which merit it honor.
21:32
Speaker 1: Presently she ordered me a treasure suit worth a mint
21:36
Speaker 1: of money, and store of gems and precious stones, and said,
21:40
Speaker 1: take him and carry him in to the king. Accordingly
21:44
Speaker 1: they carried me into the King in his divan, where
21:47
Speaker 1: I found him seated on his throne, with his merits
21:50
Speaker 1: and guards before him. And when I saw him, my
21:53
Speaker 1: sight was blunt, for that which was upon him of jewels.
21:57
Speaker 1: But when he saw me, he rose to his feet,
22:00
Speaker 1: and all his officers rose also to do him worship.
22:04
Speaker 1: Then he saluted me and welcomed me, and entreated me
22:07
Speaker 1: with the utmost honor, and gave me of that which
22:10
Speaker 1: was with him of good things. After which he said
22:13
Speaker 1: to some of his followers, take him and carry him
22:17
Speaker 1: back to my daughter, that she may restore him to
22:20
Speaker 1: the place. Whence she brought him. So they carried me
22:23
Speaker 1: back to the lady, SAIDA who took me up and
22:26
Speaker 1: flew away with me and my treasures. On this wise
22:29
Speaker 1: fared it with me and the princes. But as regards
22:33
Speaker 1: the captain of the galleon, he was aroused by the
22:35
Speaker 1: splash of my fall, when my brothers cast me into
22:38
Speaker 1: the sea, and said, what is that which hath fallen overboard?
22:43
Speaker 1: Whereupon my brothers fell to weeping and beating of breasts,
22:46
Speaker 1: and replied, alas for our brother's loss, he thought to
22:51
Speaker 1: do his need over the ship's side, and fell into
22:54
Speaker 1: the water. Then they laid their hands on my good.
22:57
Speaker 1: But there befell dispute between them because of the damsel,
23:01
Speaker 1: each saying none shall have her but I. And they
23:05
Speaker 1: abode jangling and wrangling, each with other, and remembered not
23:09
Speaker 1: their brother nor his drowning, and their mourning for him
23:12
Speaker 1: ceased as they were thus behold. Sa'idah alighted with me
23:17
Speaker 1: in the midst of the galleon, and Shahrazad perceived the
23:20
Speaker 1: dawn of day and ceased, saying her permitted say end
23:25
Speaker 1: of night. Nine hundred and eighty four