The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, vol 16, Sir Richard Francis Burton [novels to read for beginners TXT] 📗

true, O my brother, and thou speakest as due, yet would I ask thee of a matter nor refuse me information thereanent: tell me why and wherefore this plenty of grain scattered all about thee?” The Trap answered, “Indeed the merchants and men of wealth bring to me this victual that I may bestow it in charity upon the Fakir and the famisht;” and the Birdie rejoined, “O my brother, I also am an hungered; so dost thou enjoin me to eat thereof?” “Thou art my companion,” cried the Trap, “so upon me such injunction is a bounden duty,”

presently adding, “Be so kind, O my brother, and haste thee hither and eat.” Hereat the Fowl-let flew down from off his tree and approaching little by little (with a heart beating for fear of the Trap) picked up a few grains which lay beside it until he came to the corn set in the loop of the springe. Hereupon he pecked at it with one peck nor had he gained aught of good therefrom ere the Trap came down heavily upon him and entangled his neck and held him fast. Hereupon he was seized with a fit of sore affright and he cried out, “Z�k! z�k!” and “M�k!

m�k![FN#291] Verily I have fallen into wreak and am betrayed by friendly freke and oh, the excess of my trouble and tweak, Z�k, Z�k! O Thou who keenest my case, do Thou enable me escape to seek, and save me from these straits unique and be Thou ruthful to me the meek!” Thereupon quoth to him the Trap, “Thou criest out Zik! Zik! and hast fallen into straits unique and hast strayed from the way didst seek, O Miscreant and Zind�k,[FN#292]

and naught shall avail thee at this present or brother or friend veridigue or familiar freke. Now understand and thy pleasure seek! I have deceived thee with a deceit and thou lentest ear and lustedst.” Replied the Bird, “I am one whom desire hath cast down and ignorance hath seduced and inordinate greed, one for whose neck the collar of destruction is fitted and I have fallen along with those who lowest fall!” Hereupon the Fowler came up with his knife to slaughter the Fowl-let and began saying, “How many a birdie have we taken in all ease for desire of its meat that we may dress their heads with rice or in Har�sah [FN#293] or fried in pan and eat thereof pleasurably myself or feed therewith great men and grandees. Also ‘tis on us incumbent to feed privily upon half the bodies and the other half shall be for our guests whilst I will take the wings to set before my family and kinsmen as the most excellent of gifts.”[FN#294] Hearing these words the Bird fell to speaking and saying,

 

“O Birder, my mother’s in misery * And blind with weeping my loss is she.

I suffice not thy guest nor can serve for gift: * Have ruth and compassion and set me free!

With my parents I’ll bless thee and then will I * Fly a-morn and at e’en-tide return to thee.”

 

Presently resumed he, “Seest thou not how my meat be mean and my maw be lean; nor verily can I stand thee in stead of cate nor thy hunger satiate: so fear Allah and set me at liberty then shall the Almighty requite thee with an abundant requital.” But the Fowler, far from heeding his words, made him over to his son saying, “O my child, take this bird and faring homewards slaughter him and of him cook for us a cumin ragout and a lemonstew, a mess flavoured with verjuice and a second of mushrooms and a third with pomegranate seeds and a fourth of clotted curd[FN#295] cooked with Summ�k,[FN#296] and a fine fry and eke conserves of pears[FN#297] and quinces and apples and apricots hight the rosewater and vermicelli[FN#298] and Sikb�j;[FN#299] and meat dressed with the six leaves and a porridge[FN#300] and a rice-milk, and an ‘Aj�j�yah[FN#301] and fried flesh in strips and Kab�bs and meat-olives and dishes the like of these. Also do thou make of his guts strings for bows and of his gullet a conduit for the terrace-roof and of his skin a tray-cloth and of his plumage cushions and pillows.” Now when the Fowl-let heard these words (and he was still in the Fowler’s hand), he laughed a laugh of sorrow and cried, “Woe to thee, O

Birder, whither be wended thy wits and thine understanding? Art Jinn-mad or wine-drunken? Art age-foolish or asleep? Art heavy-minded or remiss in thought? Indeed had I been that long-necked bird the ‘Ank�, daughter of Life, or were I the she-camel of S�lih to be, or the ram of Isaac the sacrificed, or the loquent calf of Al-S�miri [FN#302] or even a buffalo fattened daintily all this by thee mentioned had never come from me.”

Hereat he fell to improvising and saying,

 

“The Ruthful forbiddeth the eating of me * And His Grace doth grace me with clemency:

A Camel am I whom they overload * And the Birder is daft when my flesh seeth he:

Prom Solomon’s breed, O my God, I have hope: * If he kill me the Ruthful his drowning[FN#303] decree.’?

 

Then quoth the Fowl to the Fowler, “An thou design to slaughter me in thy greed even as thou hast described, verily I shall avail thee naught, but an thou work my weal and set me free I will show thee somewhat shall profit thee and further the fortunes of thy sons’ sons and thy latest descendants.” “What is that direction thou wouldst deal to me?” asked the Fowler, and answered the Fowl-let, “I will teach a trio of words all wise and will discover to thee in this earth a Hoard wherewith thou and thy seed and posterity shall ever be satisfied and shall ever pray for the lengthening of my years. Moreover I will point out to thee a pair of Falcons ashen-grey, big of body and burly of bulk who are to me true friends and whom thou didst leave in the gardens untrapped.” Asked the Birder, “And what be the three words which so savour of wisdom?” and answered the other “O

Fowler, the three words of wisdom are:—Bemourn not what is the past nor at the future rejoice too fast nor believe aught save that whereon thy glance is cast. But as regards the Hoard and the two Falcons, when thou shalt have released me I will point them out to thee and right soon to thee shall be shown the sooth of whatso I have said to thee.” Hereat the Birder’s heart became well affected toward the Birdie for his joy anent the Treasure and the Falcons; and the device of the captive deceived the Capturer and cut short his wits so that he at once released the prey. Forthright the Fowl-let flew forth the Fowler’s palm in huge delight at having saved his life from death; then, after preening his plume and spreading his pinions and his wings, he laughed until he was like to fall earthwards in a fainting fit Anon he began to gaze right and left, long breaths a drawing and increase of gladness ever a showing; whereupon quoth the Birder, “O Father of Flight, O thou The Wind hight! what saidst thou to me anent pointing out the two Falcons ashen-grey and who were the comrades thou leftest in the gardens?” Quoth the Birdie in reply, “slack and alas! never saw I thy like for an ass nor aught than thyself meaner of capacity nor mightier of imbecility; for indeed thou carries” in thy head lightness and in thy wits slackness. O

Scant of Sense, when sawest thou ever a sparrow company with a Falcon, much less with two Falcons? So short is thine understanding that I have escaped thy hand by devising the simplest device which my nous and knowledge suggested.” Hereat he began to improvis and repeat:

 

“When Fortune easy was, from duty[FN#304] didst forbear Nor from that malady[FN#305] hast safety or repair: Then blame thyself nor cast on other wight[FN#306] the fault

And lacking all excuse to death of misery fare!”

 

Then resumed the Fowl-let, “Woe to thee, O mean and mesquin thou wottedst not that which thou hast lost in me, for indeed baulked is thy bent and foiled is thy fortune and near to thee is poverty and nigh to thee is obscurity. Hadst thou when taking me cut my throat and cloven my crop thou hadst found therein a jewel the weight of an ounce which I picked up and swallowed from the treasury of Kisr� An�sh�rw�n the King.” But when the Birder heard the Birdie’s words he scattered dust upon his head and buffeted his face and plucked out his beard and rent his raiment, and at last slipped down a swooning to the ground. And presently recovering his senses he looked towards his late captive and cried, “O Father of Flight, O thou The Wind hight say me is there any return for thee mewards, where thou shalt with me abide, and thee within the apple of mine eye will I hide, and after all this toil and turmoil I will perfume and fumigate thee with ambergris and with Comorin lign-aloes, and I will bring thee sugar for food and nuts of the pine[FN#307] and with me thou shalt tarry in highmost degree?” Replied the Birdie, “O miserable, past is that which passed; I mean, suffice me not thy fraud and thy flattering falsehood. And laud to the Lord, O thou meanest of men, how soon hast thou forgotten the three charges wherewith I charged thee!

And how short are thy wits seeing that the whole of me weighteth not ten drachms[FN#308] and how then can I bear in crop a jewel weighing an ounce? How far from thee is subtilty and how speedily hast thou forgotten mine injunctions wherewith I enjoined thee saying, ‘Believe not aught save that whereon thine eye is cast nor regret and bemourn the past nor at what cometh rejoice too fast.’ These words of wisdom are clean gone from thy memory, and hadst thou been nimble of wits thou hadst slaughtered me forthright: however, Alhamdolillah—Glory to God, who caused me not to savour the whittle’s sharp edge, and I thank my Lord for my escape and for the loosing of my prosperity from the trap of trouble.” Now when the Birder heard these words of the Birdie he repented and regretted his folly, and he cried, “O my sorrow for what failed me of the slaughter of this volatile,” and as he sank on the ground he sang,[FN#309]

 

“O brave was the boon which I held in my right * Yet O Maker of man, ‘twas in self despight.

Had my lot and my luck been of opulence, * This emptiness never had proved my plight.”

 

Hereupon the Fowl let farewelled the Fowler and took flight until he reached his home and household, where he seated him and recited all that had befallen him with the Birder, to wit, how the man had captured him, and how he had escaped by sleight, and he fell to improvising,

 

“I charged you, O brood of my nestlings, and said, * Ware yon Wady, nor seek to draw near a stead

Where sitteth a man who with trap and with stakes * Entrapped me, drew knife and would do me dead.

And he longed to destroy me, O children, but I * Was saved by the Lord and to you was sped.”

 

And here endeth the History of the Fowl let and the Fowler entire and complete.

 

M.

 

The Tale of Attaf.

 

Here we begin to write and invite the Tale of a man of Syria, Attaf hight.[FN#310]

 

They relate (but