The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 08 (of 10)
General
The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 08 (of 10)
Fairy tales; Tales -- Arab countries
in marriage of my mother, who said, 'How shall I drive her from her
Faith and cause to become a Jewess? By Allah, I will denounce thee to
the rulers!' He was affrighted at her words and taking the money, fled
to the town of Adan.[FN#361] When we heard where he was, we came to
Adan in search of him, and when we foregathered with him there, he told
us that he was trading in stuffs with the monies and buying goods upon
goods. So we believed him and he ceased not to cozen us till he cast us
into jail and fettered us and tortured us with exceeding sore torments;
and we are strangers in the land and have no helper save Almighty Allah
and our lord the Kazi." When the judge heard this tale he asked Hubub
the nurse, "Is this indeed thy lady and are ye strangers and is she
unmarried?", and she answered, "Yes." Quoth he, "Marry her to me and on
me be incumbent manumission of my slaves and fasting and pilgrimage and
almsgiving of all my good an I do you not justice on this dog and
punish him for that he hath done!" And quoth she, "I hear and obey."
Then said the Kazi, "Go, hearten thy heart and that of thy lady; and
to-morrow, Inshallah, I will send for this Miscreant and do you justice
on him and ye shall see prodigies of his punishment." So Hubub called
down blessings upon him and went forth from him with her mistress,
leaving him with passion and love-longing fraught and with distress and
desire distraught. Then they enquired for the house of the second Kazi
and presenting themselves before him, told him the same tale. On like
wise did the twain, mistress and maid with the third and the fourth,
till Zayn al-Mawasif had made her complaint to all the four Kazis, each
of whom fell in love with her and besought her to wed him, to which she
consented with a "Yes"; nor wist any one of the four that which had
happened to the others. All this passed without the knowledge of the
Jew, who spent the night in the house of the bridefeast. And when
morning morrowed, Hubub arose and gat ready her lady's richest raiment;
then she clad her therewith and presented herself with her before the
four Kazis in the court of justice. As soon as she entered, she veiled
her face and saluted the judges, who returned her salam and each and
every of them recognised her. One was writing, and the reed-pen dropped
from his hand, another was talking, and his tongue became tied, and a
third was reckoning and blundered in his reckoning; and they said to
her, "O admirable of attributes and singular among beauties! be not thy
heart other than hearty, for we will assuredly do thee justice and
bring thee to thy desire." So she called down blessings on them and
farewelled them and went her ways.—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of
day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Eight Hundred and Fifty-ninth Night,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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