"All drinks wherein is blood the Law unclean
Doth hold save one, the bloodshed of the vine.

Fill! Fill! Take all my wealth bequeathed or won,
Thou fawn! a willing ransome for those eyne."

Then the cateress crowned a cup and gave it to the portress, who
took it from her hand and thanked her and drank. Thereupon she

poured again and passed to the eldest lady, who sat on the couch,
and filled yet another and handed it to the porter. He kissed the

ground before them, and after drinking and thanking them, he again
began to recite:

"Here! Here! By Allah, here!
Cups of the sweet, the dear!

Fill me a brimming bowl,
The Fount o' Life I speer."

Then the porter stood up before the mistress of the house and said, "O
lady, I am thy slave, thy Mameluke, thy white thrall, thy very

bondsman," and he began reciting:
"A slave of slaves there standeth at thy door,

Lauding thy generous boons and gifts galore.
Beauty! May he come in awhile to 'joy

Thy charms? For Love and I part nevermore!"
Then the lady took the cup and drank it off to her sisters'

health, and they ceased not drinking (the porter being in the midst of
them) and dancing and laughing and reciting verses and singing ballads

and ritornellos. All this time the porter was carrying on with them,
kissing, toying, biting, handling, groping, fingering whilst one

thrust a daintymorsel in his mouth and another slapped him, and
this cuffed his cheeks, and that threw sweet flowers at him. And he

was in the very paradise of pleasure, as though he were sitting in the
seventh sphere among the houris of Heaven. And they ceased not to be

after this fashion till night began to fall. Thereupon said they to
the porter, "Bismillah, O our master, up and on with those sorry old

shoes of thine and turn thy face and show us the breadth of thy
shoulders!" Said he: "By Allah, to part with my soul would be easier

for me than departing from you. Come, let us join night to day, and
tomorrow morning we will each wend our own way." "My life on you,"

said the procuratrix, "suffer him to tarry with us, that we may
laugh at him. We may live out our lives and never meet with his

like, for surely he is a right merry rogue and a witty." So they said:
"Thou must not remain with us this night save on condition that thou

submit to our commands, and that whatso thou seest, thou ask no
questions thereanent, nor inquire of its cause." "All right," rejoined

he, and they said, "Go read the writing over the door."
So he rose and went to the entrance and there found written in

letters of gold wash: WHOSO SPEAKETH OF WHAT CONCERNETH HIM NOT
SHALL HEAR WHAT PLEASETH HIM NOT! The porter said, "Be ye witnesses

against me that I will not speak on whatso concerneth me not." Then
the cateress arose and set food before them and they ate. After

which they changed their drinking place for another, and she lighted
the lamps and candles and burned ambergris and aloe wood, and set on

fresh fruit and the wine service, when they fell to carousing and
talking of their lovers. And they ceased not to eat and drink and

chat, nibbling dry fruits and laughing and playing tricks for the
space of a full hour, when lo! a knock was heard at the gate.

The knocking in no wise disturbed the seance, but one of them rose
and went to see what it was and presently returned, saying, "Truly our

pleasure for this night is to be perfect." "How is that?" asked
they, and she answered: "At the gate be three Persian Kalandars with

their beards and heads and eyebrows shaven, and all three blind of the
left eye- which is surely a strange chance. They are foreigners from

Roumland with the mark of travel plain upon them. They have just
entered Baghdad, this being their first visit to our city, and the

cause of their knocking at our door is simply because they cannot find
a lodging. Indeed one of them said to me: 'Haply the owner of this

mansion will let us have the key of his stable or some old outhouse
wherein we may pass this night.' For evening had surprised them and,

being strangers in the land, they knew none who would give them
shelter. And, O my sisters, each of them is a figure o' fun after

his own fashion, and if we let them in we shall have matter to make
sport of." She gave not over persuading them till they said to her:

"Let them in, and make thou the usual condition with them that they
speak not of what concerneth them not, lest they hear what pleased

them not."
So she rejoiced and, going to the door, presently returned with

the three monoculars whose beards and mustachios were clean-shaven.
They salaamed and stood afar off by way of respect, but the three

ladies rose up to them and welcomed them and wished them joy of
their safe arrival and made them sit down. The Kalandars looked at the

room and saw that it was a pleasant place, clean-swept and garnished
with flowers, and the lamps were burning and the smoke of perfumes was

spiring in air, and beside the dessert and fruits and wine, there were
three fair girls who might be maidens. So they exclaimed with one

voice, "By Allah, 'tis good!" Then they turned to the porter and saw
that he was a merry-faced wight, albeit he was by no means sober and

was sore after his slappings. So they thought that he was one of
themselves and said, "A mendicant like us, whether Arab or foreigner!"

But when the porter heard these words, he rose up and, fixing his
eyes fiercely upon them, said: "Sit ye here without exceeding in talk!

Have you not read what is writ over the door? Surely it befitteth
not fellows who come to us like paupers to wag your tongues at us."

"We crave thy pardon, O Fakir," rejoined they, "and our heads are
between thy hands." The ladies laughed consumedly at the squabble and,

making peace between the Kalandars and the porter, seated the new
guests before meat, and they ate. Then they sat together, and the

portress served them with drink, and as the cup went round merrily,
quoth the porter to the askers, "And you, O brothers mine, have ye

no story or rare adventure to amuse us withal?"
Now the warmth of wine having mounted to their heads, they called

for musical instruments, and the portress brought them a tambourine of
Mosul, and a lute of Irak, and a Persian harp. And each mendicant took

one and tuned it, this the tambourine and those the lute and the harp,
and struck up a merry tune while the ladies sang so lustily that there

was a great noise. And whilst they were carrying on, behold, someone
knocked at the gate, and the portress went to see what was the

matter there.
Now the cause of that knocking, O King (quoth Scheherazade) was

this, the Caliph Harun al-Rashid had gone forth from the palace, as
was his wont now and then, to solace himself in the city that night,

and to see and hear what new thing was stirring. He was in
merchant's gear, and he was attended by Ja'afar, his Wazir, and by

Masrur, his Sworder of Vengeance. As they walked about the city, their
way led them toward the house of the three ladies, where they heard

the loud noise of musical instruments and singing and merriment. So
quoth the Caliph to Ja'afar, "I long to enter this house and hear

those songs and see who sing them." Quoth Ja'afar, "O Prince of the
Faithful, these folk are surely drunken with wine, and I fear some

mischief betide us if we get amongst them." "There is no help but that
I go in there," replied the Caliph, "and I desire thee to contrive

some pretext for our appearing among them." Ja'afar replied, "I hear
and I obey," and knocked at the door, whereupon the portress came

out and opened. Then Ja'afar came forward and, kissing the ground
before her, said, "O my lady, we be merchants from Tiberias town. We

arrived at Baghdad ten days ago and, alighting at the merchants'
caravanserai, we sold all our merchandise. Now a certain trader

invited us to an entertainment this night, so we went to his house and
he set food before us and we ate. Then we sat at wine and wassail with

him for an hour or so when he gave us leave to depart. And we went out
from him in the shadow of the night and, being strangers, we could not

find our way back to our khan. So haply of your kindness and
courtesy you will suffer us to tarry with you this night, and Heaven

will reward you!"
The portress looked upon them and, seeing them dressed like

merchants and men of gave looks and solid, she returned to her sisters
and repeated to them Ja'afar's story, and they took compassion upon

the strangers and said to her, "Let them enter." She opened the door
to them, when said they to her, "Have we thy leave to come in?"

"Come in," quoth she, and the Caliph entered, followed by Ja'afar
and Masrur. And when the girls saw them they stood up to them in

respect and made them sit down and looked to their wants, saying,
"Welcome, and well come and good cheer to the guests, but with one

condition!" "What is that?" asked they, and one of the ladies
answered, "Speak not of what concerneth you not, lest ye hear what

pleaseth you not." "Even so," said they, and sat down to their wine
and drank deep.

Presently the Caliph looked on the three Kalandars and, seeing them,
each and every blind of the left eye, wondered at the sight. Then he

gazed upon the girls, and he was startled and he marveled with
exceedingmarvel at their beauty and loveliness. They continued to

carouse and to converse, and said to the Caliph, "Drink!" But he
replied, "I am vowed to pilgrimage," and drew back from the wine.

Thereupon the portress rose and, spreading before him a tablecloth
worked with gold, set thereon a porcelain bowl into which she poured

willow-flower water with a lump of snow and a spoonful of sugar candy.
The Caliph thanked her and said in himself, "By Allah, I will

recompense her tomorrow for the kind deed she hath done." The others
again addressed themselves to conversing and carousing, and when the

wine gat the better of them, the eldest lady, who ruled the house,
rose and, making obeisance to them, took the cateress by the hand

and said, "Rise, O my sister, and let us do what is our devoir."
Both answered "Even so!"

Then the portress stood up and proceeded to remove the table service
and the remnants of the banquet, and renewed the pastilies and cleared

the middle of the saloon. Then she made the Kalandars sit upon a
sofa at the side of the estrade, and seated the Caliph and Ja'afar and

Masrur on the other side of the saloon, after which she called the
porter, and said: "How scant is thy courtesy! Now thou art no

stranger- nay, thou art one of the household." So he stood up and,
tightening his waistcloth, asked, "What would ye I do?" And she

answered, "Stand in thy place." Then the procuratrix rose and set in
the midst of the saloon a low chair and, opening a closet, cried to

the porter, "Come help me."
So he went to help her and saw two black bitches with chains round

their necks, and she said to him, "Take hold of them," and he took
them and led them into the middle of the saloon. Then the lady of

the house arose and tucked up her sleeves above her wrists and,
seizing a scourge, said to the porter, "Bring forward one of the

bitches." He brought her forward, dragging her by the chain, while the
bitch wept and shook her head at the lady, who, however, came down

upon her with blows on the sconce. And the bitch howled and the lady
ceased not beating her till her forearm failed her. Then, casting

the scourge from her hand, she pressed the bitch to her bosom and,
wiping away her tears with her hands, kissed her head. Then said she

to the porter, "Take her away and bring the second." And when he
brought her, she did with her as she had done with the first.

Now the heart of the Caliph was touched at these cruel doings. His
chest straitened and he lost all patience in his desire to know why

the two bitches were so beaten. He threw a wink at Ja'afar, wishing
him to ask, but the Minister, turning toward him, said by signs, "Be

silent!" Then quoth the portress to the mistress of the house, "O my
lady, arise and go to thy place, that I in turn may do my devoir." She

answered, "Even so," and, taking her seat upon the couch of juniper
wood, pargetted with gold and silver, said to the portress and

cateress, "Now do ye what ye have to do." Thereupon the portress sat
upon a low seat by the couch side, but the procuratrix, entering a

closet, brought out of it a bag of satin with green fringes and two
tassels of gold. She stood up before the lady of the house and,

shaking the bag, drew out from it a lute which she tuned by tightening
its pegs; and when it was in perfect order, she began to sing these

quatrains:
"Ye are the wish, the aim of me,

And when, O love, thy sight I see,

• wealth [welθ] n.财富，财产 (初中英语单词)
• willing [´wiliŋ] a.情愿的，乐意的 (初中英语单词)
• thereupon [,ðeərə´pɔn] ad.因此；于是 (初中英语单词)
• mistress [´mistris] n.女主人；情妇；女能手 (初中英语单词)
• generous [´dʒenərəs] a.慷慨的；丰盛的 (初中英语单词)
• awhile [ə´wail] ad.少顷；片刻 (初中英语单词)
• paradise [´pærədais] n.天堂；乐园 (初中英语单词)
• writing [´raitiŋ] n.书写；写作；书法 (初中英语单词)
• presently [´prezəntli] ad.不久；目前 (初中英语单词)
• persian [´pə:ʃən] a.波斯的 n.波斯人 (初中英语单词)
• stable [´steibəl] n.马棚 a.稳固的 (初中英语单词)
• arrival [ə´raivəl] n.到达；到达的人(物) (初中英语单词)
• fiercely [´fiəsli] ad.凶猛地，残忍地 (初中英语单词)
• pardon [´pɑ:dən] n.&vt.原谅；饶恕；赦免 (初中英语单词)
• warmth [wɔ:mθ] n.温暖；热情；激动 (初中英语单词)
• musical [´mju:zikəl] a.音乐的；悦耳的 (初中英语单词)
• prince [´prins] n.王子；亲王；君主 (初中英语单词)
• drunken [´drʌŋkən] a.喝醉的；常醉的 (初中英语单词)
• entertainment [,entə´teinmənt] n.招(款)待；联欢会 (初中英语单词)
• reward [ri´wɔ:d] n.&v.报答；报酬；奖赏 (初中英语单词)
• marvel [´mɑ:vəl] n.令人惊异的事；奇迹 (初中英语单词)
• opening [´əupəniŋ] n.开放；开端 a.开始的 (初中英语单词)
• closet [´klɔzit] n.橱；私室；盥洗室 (初中英语单词)
• doings [´du:iŋz] n.行动；所作的事 (初中英语单词)
• patience [´peiʃəns] n.忍耐(力)；耐心；坚韧 (初中英语单词)
• beaten [´bi:tn] beat 的过去分词 (初中英语单词)
• minister [´ministə] n.部长；大臣 v.伺候 (初中英语单词)
• wherein [weər´in] ad.那里面 (高中英语单词)
• eldest [´eldist] a.最年长的 (高中英语单词)
• porter [´pɔ:tə] n.守门人；勤杂工人 (高中英语单词)
• whilst [wailst] conj.当...时候；虽然 (高中英语单词)
• dainty [´deinti] a.秀丽的 n.美味 (高中英语单词)
• sphere [sfiə] n.圆体；天体；范围 (高中英语单词)
• breadth [bredθ] n.宽度，幅面，广度 (高中英语单词)
• saying [´seiŋ, ´sei-iŋ] n.言语；言论；格言 (高中英语单词)
• lodging [´lɔdʒiŋ] n.寄宿，住宿 (高中英语单词)
• dessert [di´zə:t] n.(餐后)甜食 (高中英语单词)
• vengeance [´vendʒəns] n.报复，复仇 (高中英语单词)
• amongst [ə´mʌŋst] prep.其中之一 =among (高中英语单词)
• merchandise [´mə:tʃəndaiz] n.商品 v.经商 (高中英语单词)
• seeing [si:iŋ] see的现在分词 n.视觉 (高中英语单词)
• repeated [ri´pi:tid] a.反复的；重复的 (高中英语单词)
• converse [´kɔnvə:s] n.交谈 a.相反的 (高中英语单词)
• banquet [´bæŋkwit] n.宴会，盛宴 (高中英语单词)
• saloon [sə´lu:n] n.大厅；餐车 (高中英语单词)
• scourge [skə:dʒ] v.&n.鞭(打)；严惩 (高中英语单词)
• morsel [´mɔ:səl] n.佳肴 vt.少量地分配 (英语四级单词)
• exceeding [ik´si:diŋ] a.超越的，非常的 (英语四级单词)
• stirring [´stə:riŋ] a.活跃的；热闹的 (英语四级单词)
• merriment [´merimənt] n.欢乐 (英语四级单词)
• whereupon [,weərə´pɔn] ad.在什么上面；因此 (英语四级单词)
• compassion [kəm´pæʃən] n.同情；怜悯 (英语四级单词)
• loveliness [´lʌvlinis] n.美丽，可爱 (英语四级单词)
• porcelain [´pɔ:slin] n.瓷 a.瓷的；精美的 (英语四级单词)
• bloodshed [´blʌdʃed] n.流血；杀人 (英语六级单词)
• thrall [θrɔ:l] n.奴隶，奴役 (英语六级单词)
• biting [´baitiŋ] a.刺痛的；尖利的 (英语六级单词)
• albeit [ɔ:l´bi:it] conj.即使；纵使；虽然 (英语六级单词)
• solace [´sɔləs] n.&vt.安慰(物)；缓和 (英语六级单词)
• beating [´bi:tiŋ] n.敲；搅打；失败 (英语六级单词)
• taking [´teikiŋ] a.迷人的 n.捕获物 (英语六级单词)