Supplemental Nights to The Book of the Thousand and One Nights, Sir Richard Francis Burton [best short books to read .TXT] 📗

lion devour me; and the like of my affair with her is that which befel between the Crone and the Draper’s Wife. The king asked, “What is their adventure?” and the Chamberlain answered, “Hear, O king,

 

The Story of the Crone and the Draper’s Wife.[FN#490]

 

There was once a man of the Drapers, who had a beautiful wife, and she was curtained[FN#491] and chaste. A certain young man saw her coming forth of the Hammam and loved her and his heart was engrossed with her. So he devised for access to her all manner of devices, but availed not to foregather with her; and when he was a-weary and his patience failed for travail and trouble and his fortitude betrayed and forsook him and he was at an end of his resources against her, he complained of this to an illomened crone,[FN#492] who promised him to bring about union between him and his beloved. He thanked her for this and promised her all manner of douceurs; and she said to him, “Hie thee to her husband and buy of him a turbandcloth of fine linen, and let it be of the very best of stuff.” So he repaired to the Draper and buying of him a turbandcloth of lawn, returned and gave it to the old woman, who took it and burned it in two places. Then she donned the dress of a devotee and taking the turbandcloth with her, went to the Draper’s house and knocked at the door. When the Draper’s wife saw her thus habited as a holy woman, she opened to her and admitted her with kindly reception, and made much of her and welcomed her: so the crone went in to her and conversed with her awhile. Then said she to her, “I want to make the Wuzu-ablution preparatory to prayer.”[FN#493] At these words the wife brought the water and she made the ablution and standing up to pray, prayed and satisfied herself; and when she had ended her orisons, she left the turbandcloth in the place of prayer and fared forth. Presently, in came the Draper, at the hour of night-devotions, and sitting down in the prayerplace where the old woman had prayed, looked about him and espied the turband. He knew it and suspected foul play; so wrath showed in his face and he was furious with his wife and reviled her and abode his day and his night without speaking to her, during all which while she knew not the cause of his rage. Then she looked and seeing the turbandcloth before him and noting the traces of burning thereon, understood that his anger was on account of this and concluded that he was in ill-temper because it was burnt. When the morning morrowed, the Draper went out, still wroth with his wife, and the crone returned to her and found her changed of colour, pale of complexion, dejected and heart-broken. So she questioned her of the cause, and the wife told her how her husband was angered against her on account of the burns in the turbandcloth.[FN#494] Rejoined the old woman, “O my daughter, be not chagrined; for I have a son, a fine-drawer, and he, by thy life, shall fine-draw the holes and restore the turbandcloth as it was.” The wife rejoiced in her saying and asked her, “And when shall this be?” The crone answered, “Tomorrow, Inshallah—an it please Allah the Most High—I will bring him to thee, at the time of thy husband’s going forth from thee, and he shall fine-draw it and depart forthwith.” Then she comforted her heart and going away from her, returned to the young man and acquainted him with what had passed. Now when the Draper saw the turbandcloth, he determined to divorce his wife and waited only till he could collect that which was obligatory on him of the contingent dowry and what not else,[FN#495] for fear of her people. When the crone arose in the morning, she took the young man and carried him into the Draper’s house. The wife opened the door to her and the illomened old woman entered with him and said to the lady, “Go, fetch that which thou wouldest have fine-drawn and give it to my son.” So saying, she bolted the door on her, whereupon the young man raped[FN#496] her against her will and did his want of her and went forth. Then cried the crone, “Know that this is my son and that he loved thee with exceeding love and was like to lose his life for longing after thee; so I devised for thee with this device and came to thee with this turbandcloth, which is not thy husband’s, but my son’s. Now have I won to my wish; so do thou trust in me and I will put a sleight on thy husband for setting thee right with him, and thou wilt be subject to me and to him and to my son.”[FN#497] And the wife replied, “‘Tis well. Do so.”

Presently the old woman returned to the lover and said, “Know thou that I have engineered the affair for thee with her; and now we must mend that we have marred. Hie thee and sit with the Draper and mention to him the turbandcloth, saying, �The turband I bought of thee I chanced to burn in two places; so I gave it to a certain old woman, to have fine-drawn, and she took it and went away, and I know not her dwelling-place.’[FN#498] When thou seest me pass by, rise and lay hold of me, and demand of me the cloth, to the intent that I may arrange her affair with her spouse and that matters go right with thee in her regard.” Accordingly he repaired to the Draper’s shop and sat down by him and asked him, “Thou knowest the turbandcloth I bought of thee?” “Yes.”

“Knowest thou what is come of it?” “No.” “After I bought it of thee, I fumigated myself[FN#499] and it fortuned that the turbandcloth was burnt in two places; so I gave it to a woman, whose son, they said, was a fine-drawer, and she took it and fared forth with it; and I know not her home.” When the Draper heard this, he was startled by the thought that he had suspected his wife wrongfully, and marvelled at the story of the turbandcloth, and his mind was made easy anent her. After a short while up came the old woman, whereupon the young man sprang to his feet and seizing her, demanded of her the turbandcloth.

Said she, “Know that I entered one of the houses and wuzu’d and prayed in the prayerplace;[FN#500] and I forgot the turbandcloth there and went out. Now I weet not the house in which I prayed, nor have I been divinely directed[FN#501] thereto, and I go round about every day till the night, so haply I may light on the dwelling, for I know not its owner.” When the Draper heard these words, he said to the old woman, “Verily, Allah restoreth to thee what thing thou hast lost. Be gladdened by good news, for the turbandcloth is with me and in my house.” And he arose forthright and handed to her the turbandcloth, as it was, and she handed it to the young man. Then the Draper made peace with his wife and gave her raiment and jewellery, till she was content and her heart was appeased.[FN#502] When the king heard his Chamberlain’s story, he was dazed and amazed and said to him, “Abide on thy service and ear thy field for that the lion entered it, but marred it not, and he will never more return thither.”

[FN#503] Then he bestowed on him an honourable robe and made him a costly present; and the man returned to his wife and people, rejoicing, his heart having been set at rest concerning his wife.

“Nor” (continued the Wazir), “O King of the age, is this rarer or stranger than the story of the beautiful wife, a woman gifted of amorous grace, with the ugly Man, her husband.” When King Shah Bakht heard the Minister’s speech, he deemed it delectable and it pleased him; so he bade him hie to his house, and there he tarried his day long.

 

The Twenty-fifth Night of the Month.

 

When the evening evened, the King summoned his Wazir and bade him tell the tale. So he said, “‘Tis well. Hear, O King,

The Tale of the Ugly Man and his Beautiful Wife.

 

There was once a man of the Arabs who had a number of children, and amongst them a boy, never was seen a fairer than he of favour nor a more complete in comeliness; no, nor a more perfect of prudence. When he came to man’s estate, his father married him to his first cousin, the daughter of one of his paternal uncles, and she excelled not in beauty, neither was she laudable for qualities; wherefore she pleased not the youth, but he bore with her for the sake of kinship. One day, he fared forth in quest of certain camels[FN#504] of his which had strayed and hied him on all his day and night till eventide, when he was fain to seek hospitality in an Arab camp. So he alighted at one of the tents of the tribesmen and there came forth to him a man short of stature and foul of favour, who saluted him with the salam; and, lodging him in a corner of the tent, sat entertaining him with chat, the cheeriest that might be. When his food was dressed, the Arab’s wife brought it to the guest, and he looked at the mistress of the tent and saw a semblance than which no seemlier might be. Indeed, her beauty and loveliness, her symmetry and perfect grace amazed him and he was struck with astonishment, gazing now at her and then at her mate. When his looking grew long, the man said to him, “Ho, thou son of the worthy! Busy thyself with thine own business, for by me and this woman hangeth a wondrous tale, which is even better than that thou seest of her beauty; and I will tell it to thee when we have made a finish of our food.” So, when they had ended eating and drinking, the young man asked his host for the story, and he said, “Know that in my youth I was the same as thou seest me in the matter of loathliness and foul favour; and I had brethren of the fairest of the folk; wherefore my father preferred them over me and used to show them kindness, to my exclusion, and made me serve in their stead, like as a master employeth slaves. One day, a dromedary of his strayed from the herd of camels, and he said to me, �Go thou forth in quest of her and return not but with her.’ I replied, �Send other than I of thy sons.’ But he would not consent to this and scolded me and insisted upon me, till the matter came to such a pass with him that he took a thongwhip and fell to beating me.

So I arose and saddling a riding-camel, mounted her and sallied forth at random, purposing to go out into the wolds and the wilds and return to him never more. I fared on all my night and the next day and coming at eventide[FN#505] to the encampment of this my wife’s people, alighted down with and became the guest of her father, who was a Shaykh well stricken in years. Now when it was the noon of night, I arose and went forth the tent at a call of nature, and none knew of my case save this woman. The dogs followed me as a suspected stranger and ceased not worrying me[FN#506] till I fell on