the hangings were let down over the doorways. In the midst was a

spacious court off which sat four open saloons, each with its raised
dais, saloon facing saloon. A canopy shaded the court, and in the

center was a jetting fount with four figures of lions made of red
gold, spouting from their mouths water clear as pearls and

diaphanous gems. Round about the palace birds were let loose, and over
it stretched a net of golden wire, hindering them from flying off.

In brief, there was everything but human beings. The King marveled
mightily thereat, yet felt he sad at heart for that he saw no one to

give him an account of the waste and its tarn, the fishes, the
mountains, and the palace itself. Presently as he sat between the

doors in deep thought behold, there came a voice of lament, as from
a heart griefspent, and he heard the voice chanting these verses:

"I hid what I endured of him and yet it came to light,
And nightly sleep mine eyelids fled and changed to sleepless night.

O world! O Fate! Withhold thy hand and cease thy hurt and harm
Look and behold my haplesssprite in dolor and affright.

Wilt ne'er show ruth to highborn youth who lost him on the way
Of Love, and fell from wealth and fame to lowest basest wight?

Jealous of Zephyr's breath was I as on your form he breathed,
But whenas Destiny descends she blindeth human sight.

What shall the haplessarcher do who when he fronts his foe
And bends his bow to shoot the shaft shall find his string undight?

When cark and care so heavy bear on youth of generous soul,
How shall he 'scape his lot and where from Fate his place of

flight?"
Now when the Sultan heard the mournful voice he sprang to his feet

and following the sound, found a curtain let down over a chamber door.
He raised it and saw behind it a young man sitting upon a couch

about a cubit above the ground, and he fair to the sight, a
well-shaped wight, with eloquence dight. His forehead was

flower-white, his cheek rosy bright, and a mole on his cheek breadth
like an ambergris mite, even as the poet doth indite:

A youth slim-waisted from whose locks and brow
The world in blackness and in light is set.

Throughout Creation's round no fairer show
No rarer sight thine eye hath ever met.

A nut-brown mole sits throned upon a cheek
Of rosiest red beneath an eye of jet.

The King rejoiced and saluted him, but he remained sitting in his
caftan of silken stuff purfled with Egyptian gold and his crown

studded with gems of sorts. But his face was sad with the traces of
sorrow. He returned the royal salute in most courteous wise adding, "O

my lord, thy dignity demandeth my rising to thee, and my sole excuse
is to crave thy pardon." Quoth the King: "Thou art excused, O youth,

so look upon me as thy guest come hither on an especial object. I
would thou acquaint me with the secrets of this tarn and its fishes

and of this palace and thy lonelinesstherein and the cause of thy
groaning and wailing." When the young man heard these words he wept

with sore weeping till his bosom was drenched with tears. The King
marveled and asked him, "What maketh thee weep, O young man?" and he

answered, "How should I not weep, when this is my case!" Thereupon
he put out his hand and raised the skirt of his garment, when lo!

the lower half of him appeared stone down to his feet while from his
navel to the hair of his head he was man. The King, seeing this his

plight, grieved with sore grief and of his compassion cried: "Alack
and wellaway! In very sooth, O youth, thou heapest sorrow upon my

sorrow. I was minded to ask thee the mystery of the fishes only,
whereas now I am concerned to learn thy story as well as theirs. But

there is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious,
the Great! Lose no time, O youth, but tell me forthright thy whole

tale." Quoth he, "Lend me thine ears, thy sight, and thine insight."
And quoth the King, "All are at thy service!"

Thereupon the youth began, "Right wondrous and marvelous is my
case and that of these fishes, and were it graven with gravers upon

the eye corners it were a warner to whoso would be warned." "How is
that?" asked the King, and the young man began to tell

• account [ə´kaunt] vi.说明 vt.认为 n.帐目 (初中英语单词)
• presently [´prezəntli] ad.不久；目前 (初中英语单词)
• wealth [welθ] n.财富，财产 (初中英语单词)
• breath [breθ] n.呼吸；气息 (初中英语单词)
• generous [´dʒenərəs] a.慷慨的；丰盛的 (初中英语单词)
• sprang [spræŋ] spring 的过去式 (初中英语单词)
• forehead [´fɔrid] n.额，前部 (初中英语单词)
• egyptian [i´dʒipʃən] n.埃及人a.埃及的 (初中英语单词)
• salute [sə´lu:t] n.&v.招呼；行礼；敬礼 (初中英语单词)
• dignity [´digniti] n.尊严，尊贵；高官显贵 (初中英语单词)
• hither [´hiðə] ad.到此处 (初中英语单词)
• acquaint [ə´kweint] vt.使....认识；告知 (初中英语单词)
• garment [´gɑ:mənt] n.衣服，外衣 (初中英语单词)
• mystery [´mistəri] n.神秘；秘密；故弄玄虚 (初中英语单词)
• majesty [´mædʒisti] n.壮丽；崇高；尊严 (初中英语单词)
• marvelous [´mɑ:viləs] (=marvellous) a.奇异的 (初中英语单词)
• saloon [sə´lu:n] n.大厅；餐车 (高中英语单词)
• lament [lə´ment] v.哀悼 n.哀悼；恸哭 (高中英语单词)
• destiny [´destini] n.命运 (高中英语单词)
• archer [´ɑ:tʃə] n.射手，弓箭手 (高中英语单词)
• sultan [´sʌltən] n.苏丹 (高中英语单词)
• chamber [´tʃeimbə] n.房间；议院；会议室 (高中英语单词)
• silken [´silkən] a.丝制的；柔软光滑的 (高中英语单词)
• courteous [´kə:tiəs] a.有礼貌的；殷勤的 (高中英语单词)
• loneliness [´ləunliniz] n.孤独，寂寞 (高中英语单词)
• therein [ðeə´rin] ad.在那里，在其中 (高中英语单词)
• seeing [si:iŋ] see的现在分词 n.视觉 (高中英语单词)
• concerned [kən´sə:nd] a.有关的；担心的 (高中英语单词)
• theirs [ðeəz] pron.他们的 (高中英语单词)
• canopy [´kænəpi] n.(床上的)罩篷；天篷 (英语四级单词)
• nightly [´naitli] a.&ad.每夜(的) (英语四级单词)
• mournful [´mɔ:nful] a.令人沮丧的 (英语四级单词)
• eloquence [´eləkwəns] n.雄辩；口才 (英语四级单词)
• blackness [´blæknis] n.黑色；阴险 (英语四级单词)
• compassion [kəm´pæʃən] n.同情；怜悯 (英语四级单词)
• wondrous [´wʌndrəs] a.极好的 ad.惊人地 (英语四级单词)
• sleepless [´sli:pləs] a.失眠的；寂静的 (英语六级单词)
• withhold [wið´həuld] v.不给；扣留；抑制 (英语六级单词)
• hapless [´hæpləs] a.不幸的；倒楣的 (英语六级单词)
• sprite [sprait] n.小妖精；捣蛋鬼 (英语六级单词)
• especial [i´speʃəl] a.特别的，特殊的 (英语六级单词)
• weeping [´wi:piŋ] a.&n.哭泣(的) (英语六级单词)
• minded [´maindid] a.有...心的 (英语六级单词)