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the poet of him:
Time makes us tremble ah, how piteously! For full of violence and
might is he.
Once on a time I walked and was not tired: Now am I tired, yet
have not walked, ah me!
He held by the hand a youth cast in the mould of symmetry and
perfection, so fair that his beauty might well be the subject of
proverbs; for he was like a tender sapling, ravishing every heart
with his beauty and seducing every wit with his amorous grace. It
was of him the poet spoke, when he said:
Beauty they brought to liken it with him: But Beauty hung its
head for shame and fear.
 O Beauty, said they,  dost thou know his like? It answered,
 Never have I seen his peer.
They proceeded to the underground, where they descended all and
did not reappear for an hour or more, at the end of which time
the old man and the slaves came up, without the youth, and
replacing the trap-door, covered it again with earth; then
returned to the ship and set sail. As soon as they were out of
sight, I came down from the tree and going to the place I had
seen them fill up, made shift to clear away the earth, till I
came to the trap-door, which was of wood, the shape and bigness
of a mill-stone, and raised it, when there appeared underneath a
winding stair of stone. At this I wondered and descending, came
to a fair chamber, spread with various kinds of carpets and hung
with silken stuffs, where I saw the youth sitting alone upon a
raised couch and leant upon a cushion, with a fan in his hand and
sweet-scented flowers and herbs and fruits before him. When he
saw me, he turned pale; but I saluted him, saying,  Calm thyself
and put away fear; no harm shall come to thee: I am a man like
unto thee and a king s son, whom Providence hath sent to bear
thee company in thy solitude. But now tell me thy history and why
thou dwellest underground by thyself. When he was assured that I
was of his kind, he was glad and his colour returned; then he
made me draw near to him and said,  O my brother, my story is a
strange one, and it is as follows. My father is a merchant
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jeweller, possessed of great wealth and having black and white
slaves, who make trading voyages, on his account, in ships and on
camels, to the most distant countries; and he has dealings with
kings. Until my birth, he had never been blessed with a child,
but one night he dreamt that a son had been born to him, who
lived but a short time, and awoke weeping and crying out. The
following night my mother conceived and he took note of the date
of her conception. The days of her pregnancy were accomplished
and she gave birth to myself, whereupon my father rejoiced and
made banquets and fed the poor and the needy for that I had been
vouchsafed to him in his old age. Then he assembled the
astrologers and mathematicians of the day and those learned in
nativities and horoscopes; and they drew my horoscope and said to
my father,  Thy son will live till the age of fifteen, at which
date there is a break[FN40] in his line of life, which if he
tide over in safety, he shall live long. The danger with which he
is threatened is as follows. In the Sea of Peril stands a
mountain called the Loadstone Mountain, on whose summit is a
horseman of brass, seated on a horse of the same metal, with a
tablet of lead on his breast. Fifty days after this horseman
falls from his horse, thy son will die, and his slayer will be he
who overthrows the statue, a king called Agib, son of Khesib. My
father was sore concerned at this prediction; but he brought me
up and gave me a good education, till I attained my fifteenth
year. Ten days ago, news came to him that the horseman had fallen
into the sea and that he who overthrew him was Agib, son of King
Khesib; whereat he was as one distraught and feared for my life.
So he built me this place under the earth and stocking it with
all that I need during the forty days that yet remain of the
period of danger, transported me hither, that I might be safe
from King Agib s hands. When the forty days are past, he will
come back and fetch me; and this is my story and why thou findest
me here alone. When I heard his story, I marvelled and said to
myself,  I am that King Agib of whom he speaks; but, by Allah, I
will assuredly not kill him! And I said to him,  O my lord, God
willing, thou shalt be spared suffering and death, nor shalt thou
see trouble or sorrow or disquiet, for I will abide with thee and
serve thee; and when I have borne thee company during the
appointed days, I will go with thee to thy dwelling-place and
thou shalt bring me to some of thy father s servants, with whom I
may journey to my own country; and God shall requite thee for
me. He rejoiced in my words and we sat conversing till nightfall
when I rose and lighted a great wax candle and fed the lamps and
set on meat and drink and sweetmeats. We ate and drank and sat
talking till late into the night, when he lay down to sleep and I
covered him up and went to sleep myself. Next morning, I rose and
heated a little water, then woke him gently and brought him the
warm water, with which he washed his face and thanked me, saying,
 God requite thee with good, O youth! By Allah, if I escape from
this my danger and from him they call Agib ben Khesib, I will
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make my father reward thee!  May the day never come on which
evil shall befall thee, answered I,  and may God appoint my last
day before thine! Then I set on food and we ate, and I made
ready perfumes with which he scented himself. Moreover, I made
him a backgammon board[FN41], and we played and ate sweetmeats
and played again till nightfall when I rose and lighting the
lamps, set on food; and we ate and sat talking till the night was
far spent. Then he lay down to sleep and I covered him up and
went to sleep myself. Thus I did with him, day and night, and the
love of him got hold upon my heart and I forgot my troubles and
said to myself,  The astrologers lied; by Allah, I will not kill
him! I ceased not to serve him and bear him company and
entertain him thus, till nine-and-thirty days were passed and we
came to the morning of the fortieth day, when he rejoiced and
said to me,  O my brother, the forty days are up to-day, praised
be God who hath preserved me from death, and this by thy blessing
and the blessing of thy coming to me, and I pray Him to restore
thee to thy country! But now, O my brother, I prithee heat me
some water, that I may wash my body and change my clothes.
 With all my heart, answered I; and heated water in plenty
and carrying it in to him, washed his body well with lupin-
meal[FN42] and rubbed him down and changed his clothes and
spread him a high bed, on which he lay down to rest after the
bath. Then said he,  O my brother, cut me a melon and sweeten it
with sugar-candy. So I went to the closet and bringing a fine
melon I found there on a platter, said to him,  O my lord, hast
thou no knife?  Here it is, answered he,  on the high shelf at
my head. So I got up hurriedly and taking the knife, drew it
from its sheath; but in stepping down backward, my foot slipped
and I fell heavily on the youth, holding in my hand the knife,
which hastened to fulfil that which was ordained and entered his
heart, and he died forthright. When I saw that he was no more and
that I had indeed killed him, I cried out grievously and buffeted
my face and tore my clothes, saying,  We are God s and to Him we
return! There remained for this youth but one day of the period [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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