Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 2 (of 6)

Fairy tales; Tales -- Arab countries

Then he folded the letter and committed it to the nurse and gave her
five hundred dinars, saying, “Accept this from me, for by Allah thou
hast indeed wearied thyself between us.” She replied, “By Allah, O my
lord, my aim is to bring about forgathering between you, though I lose
that which my right hand possesseth.” And he said, “May the Lord of
All-might requite thee with good!” Then she carried the letter to
Mariyah and said to her, “Take this letter; haply it may be the end of
the correspondence.” So she took it and breaking it open, read it, and
when she had made an end of it, she turned to the nurse and said to her,
“This one foisteth lies upon me and asserteth unto me that he hath
cities and horsemen and footmen at his command and submitting to his
allegiance; and he wisheth of me that which he shall not win; for thou
knowest, O nurse, that kings’ sons have sought me in marriage, with
presents and rarities; but I have paid no heed unto aught of this; how,
then, shall I accept of this fellow, who is the ignoramus of his time
and possesseth naught save two caskets of rubies, which he gave to my
sire, and indeed he hath taken up his abode in the house of Al-Ghitrif
and abideth without silver or gold? Wherefore, Allah upon thee, O nurse,
return to him and cut off his hope of me.” Accordingly the nurse
rejoined Al-Abbas, without letter or answer; and when she came in to
him, he looked at her and saw that she was troubled, and he noted the
marks of anger on her face; so he said to her, “What is this plight?”
Quoth she, “I cannot set forth to thee that which Mariyah said; for
indeed she charged me return to thee without writ or reply.” Quoth he,
“O nurse of kings, I would have thee carry her this letter and return
not to her without it.” Then he took ink-case and paper and wrote these
couplets:—

 My secret now to men is known though hidden well and true ✿ By me:
    enough is that I have of love and love of you:
 I left familiars, friends, and kin to weep the loss of me ✿ With floods
    of tears which like the tide aye flowed and flowed anew:
 Then, left my home myself I bore to Baghdad-town one day, ✿ When parting
    drave me there his pride and cruelty to rue:

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

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Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 2 (of 6)

Fairy tales; Tales -- Arab countries

Then he folded the letter and committed it to the nurse and gave her
five hundred dinars, saying, “Accept this from me, for by Allah thou
hast indeed wearied thyself between us.” She replied, “By Allah, O my
lord, my aim is to bring about forgathering between you, though I lose
that which my right hand possesseth.” And he said, “May the Lord of
All-might requite thee with good!” Then she carried the letter to
Mariyah and said to her, “Take this letter; haply it may be the end of
the correspondence.” So she took it and breaking it open, read it, and
when she had made an end of it, she turned to the nurse and said to her,
“This one foisteth lies upon me and asserteth unto me that he hath
cities and horsemen and footmen at his command and submitting to his
allegiance; and he wisheth of me that which he shall not win; for thou
knowest, O nurse, that kings’ sons have sought me in marriage, with
presents and rarities; but I have paid no heed unto aught of this; how,
then, shall I accept of this fellow, who is the ignoramus of his time
and possesseth naught save two caskets of rubies, which he gave to my
sire, and indeed he hath taken up his abode in the house of Al-Ghitrif
and abideth without silver or gold? Wherefore, Allah upon thee, O nurse,
return to him and cut off his hope of me.” Accordingly the nurse
rejoined Al-Abbas, without letter or answer; and when she came in to
him, he looked at her and saw that she was troubled, and he noted the
marks of anger on her face; so he said to her, “What is this plight?”
Quoth she, “I cannot set forth to thee that which Mariyah said; for
indeed she charged me return to thee without writ or reply.” Quoth he,
“O nurse of kings, I would have thee carry her this letter and return
not to her without it.” Then he took ink-case and paper and wrote these
couplets:—

 My secret now to men is known though hidden well and true ✿ By me:
    enough is that I have of love and love of you:
 I left familiars, friends, and kin to weep the loss of me ✿ With floods
    of tears which like the tide aye flowed and flowed anew:
 Then, left my home myself I bore to Baghdad-town one day, ✿ When parting
    drave me there his pride and cruelty to rue:

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 2 (of 6)

Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 2 (of 6)

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