ELDEST

THE ELDEST LADY'S TALE
VERILY a strange tale is mine and 'tis this: Yon two black bitches

are my eldest sisters by one mother and father, and these two others
she who beareth upon her the signs of stripes and the third our

procuratrix, are my sisters by another mother. When my father died,
each took her share of the heritage and after a while my mother also

deceased, leaving me and my sisters german three thousand dinars, so
each daughter received her portion of a thousand dinars and I the

same, albe' the youngest. In due course of time my sisters married
with the usual festivities and lived with their husbands, who bought

merchandise with their wives' moneys and set out on their travels
together. Thus they threw me off. My brothers-in-law were absent

with their wives five years, during which period they spent all the
money they had and, becoming bankrupt, deserted my sisters in

foreign parts amid stranger folk.
After five years my eldest sister returned to me in beggar's gear

with her clothes in rags and tatters and a dirty old mantilla, and
truly she was in the foulest and sorriest plight. At first sight I did

not know my own sister, but presently I recognized her and said, "What
state is this?" "O our sister," she replied, "words cannot undo the

done, and the reed of Destiny hath run through what Allah decreed."
Then I sent her to the bath and dressed her in a suit of mine own, and

boiled for her a bouillon and brought her some good wine, and said
to her: "O my sister, thou art the eldest, who still standest to us in

the stead of father and mother, and as for the inheritance which
came to me as to you twain, Allah hath blessed it and prospered it

to me with increase, and my circumstances are easy, for I have made
much money by spinning and cleaning silk. And I and you will share

my wealth alike."
I entreated her with all kindliness and she abode with me a whole

year, during which our thoughts and fancies were always full of our
other sister. Shortly after she too came home in yet fouler and

sorrier plight than that of my eldest sister, and I dealt by her still
more honorably than I had done by the first, and each of them had a

share of my substance. After a time they said to me, "O our sister, we
desire to marry again, for indeed we have not patience to drag on

our days without husbands and to lead the lives of widows
bewitched," and I replied: "O eyes of me! Ye have hitherto" target="_blank" title="ad.至今，迄今">hitherto seen scanty

weal in wedlock, for nowadays good men and true are become rareties
and curiosities, nor do I deem your projects advisable, as ye have

already made trial of matrimony and have failed." But they would not
accept my advice, and married without my consent. Nevertheless I

gave them outfit and dowries out of my money, and they fared forth
with their mates.

In a mighty little time their husbands played them false and, taking
whatever they could lay hands upon, levanted and left them in the

lurch. Thereupon they came to me ashamed and in abject case and made
their excuses to me, saying: "Pardon our fault and be not wroth with

us, for although thou art younger in years yet art thou older in
wit. Henceforth we will never make mention of marriage, so take us

back as thy handmaidens that we may eat our mouthful." Quoth I,
"Welcome to you, O my sisters, there is naught dearer to me than you."

And I took them in and redoubled my kindness to them. We ceased not to
live after this loving fashion for a full year, when I resolved to

sell my wares abroad and first to fit me a conveyance for Bassorah. So
I equipped a large ship, and loaded her with merchandise and

valuable goods for traffic and with provaunt and all needful for a
voyage, and said to my sisters, "Will ye abide at home whilst I

travel, or would ye prefer to accompany me on the voyage?" "We will
travel with thee," answered they, "for we cannot bear to be parted

from thee." So I divided my moneys into two parts, one to accompany me
and the other to be left in charge of a trusty person, for, as I

said to myself, "Haply some accident may happen to the ship and yet we
remain alive, in which case we shall find on our return what may stand

us in good stead."
I took my two sisters and we went a-voyaging some days and nights,

but the master was careless enough to miss his course, and the ship
went astray with us and entered a sea other than the sea we sought.

For a time we knew naught of this, and the wind blew fair for us ten
days, after which the lookout man went aloft to see about him and

cried, "Good news!" Then he came down rejoicing and said, "I have seen
what seemeth to be a city as 'twere a pigeon." Hereat we rejoiced, and

ere an hour of the day had passed, the buildings showed plain in the
offing, and we asked the Captain, "What is the name of yonder city?"

and he answered: "By Allah, I wot not, for I never saw it before and
never sailed these seas in my life. But since our troubles have ended

in safety, remains for you only to land where with your merchandise,
and if you find selling profitable, sell and make your market of

what is there, and if not, we will rest here two days and provision
ourselves and fare away."

So we entered the port and the Captain went up town and was absent
awhile, after which he returned to us and said, "Arise, go up into the

city and marvel at the works of Allah with His creatures, and pray
to be preserved from His righteous wrath!" So we landed, and going

up into the city, saw at the gate men hending staves in hand, but when
we drew near them, behold, they had been translated by the anger of

Allah and had become stones. Then we entered the city and found all
who therein woned into black stones enstoned. Not an inhabited house

appeared to the espier, nor was there a blower of fire. We were
awe-struck at the sight, and threaded the market streets, where we

found the goods and gold and silver left lying in their places, and we
were glad and said, "Doubtless there is some mystery in all this."

Then we dispersed about the thoroughfares and each busied himself
with collecting the wealth and money and rich stuffs, taking scanty

heed of friend or comrade.
As for myself, I went up to the castle, which was strongly

fortified, and, entering the King's palace by its gate of red gold,
found all the vaiselle of gold and silver, and the King himself seated

in the midst of his chamberlains and nabobs and emirs and wazirs, an
clad in raiment which confounded man's art. I drew nearer and saw

him sitting on a throne encrusted and inlaid with pearls and gems, and
his robes were of gold cloth adorned with jewels of every kind, each

one flashing like a star. Around him stood fifty Mamelukes, white
slaves, clothed in silks of divers sorts, holding their drawn swords

in their hands. But when I drew near to them, lo! all were black
stones. My understanding was confounded at the sight, but I walked

on and entered the great hall of the harem, whose walls I found hung
with tapestries of gold-striped silk, and spread with silkencarpets

embroidered with golden flowers. Here I saw the Queen lying at full
length arrayed in robes purfled with fresh young pearls. On her head

was a diadem set with many sorts of gems each fit for a ring, and
around her neck hung collars and necklaces. All her raiment and her

ornaments were in natural state, but she had been turned into a
black stone by Allah's wrath.

Presently I espied an open door, for which I made straight, and
found leading to it a flight of seven steps. So I walked up and came

upon a place pargeted with marble and spread and hung with gold-worked
carpets and tapestry, a-middlemost of which stood a throne of

juniper wood inlaid with pearls and precious stones and set with
bosses of emeralds. In the further wall was an alcove whose

curtains, bestrung with pearls, were let down and I saw a light
issuing therefrom, so I drew near and perceived that the light came

from a precious stone as big as an ostrich egg, set at the upper end
of the alcove upon a little chryselephantine couch of ivory and

gold. And this jewel, blazing like the sun, cast its rays wide and
side. The couch also was spread with all manner of silken stuffs

amazing the gazer with their richness and beauty. I marveled much at
all this, especially when seeing in that place candies ready

lighted, and I said in my mind, "Needs must someone have lighted these
candles." Then I went forth and came to the kitchen and thence to