them after this fashion for the space of a month, during which time



they used to blacken their faces with ashes every night, and to wash



and change their raiment when the morn was young, and I but marveled



the more and my scruples and curiosity increased to such a point



that I had to forgo even food and drink.



At last I lost command of myself, for my heart was aflame with



fire unquenchable and lowe unconcealable, and I said, "O young men,



will ye not relieve my trouble and acquaint me with the reason of thus



blackening your faces and the meaning of your words, 'We were



sitting at our ease, but our frowardness brought us unease'?" Quoth



they, "'Twere better to keep these things secret." Still I was



bewildered by their doings to the point of abstaining from eating



and drinking and at last wholly losing patience, quoth I to them:



"There is no help for it. Ye must acquaint me with what is the



reason of these doings." They replied: "We kept our secret only for



thy good. To gratify thee will bring down evil upon thee and thou wilt



become a monocular even as we are." I repeated, "There is no help



for it, and if ye will not, let me leave you and return to mine own



people and be at rest from seeing these things, for the proverb saith:



"Better ye 'bide and I take my leave;



For what eye sees not heart shall never grieve."



Thereupon they said to me, "Remember, O youth, that should ill



befall thee, we will not again harbor thee nor suffer thee to abide



amongst us." And bringing a ram, they slaughtered it and skinned it.



Lastly they gave me a knife, saying: "Take this skin and stretch



thyself upon it and we will sew it around thee. Presently there



shall come to thee a certain bird, hight roe, that will catch thee



up in his pounces and tower high in air and then set thee down on a



mountain. When thou feelest he is no longer flying, rip open the



pelt with this blade and come out of it. The bird will be scared and



will fly away and leave thee free. After this fare for half a day, and



the march will place thee at a palace wondrous fair to behold,



towering high in air and builded of khalanj, lign aloes and



sandalwood, plated with red gold, and studded with all manner emeralds



and costly gems fit for seal rings. Enter it and thou shalt will to



thy wish, for we have all entered that palace, and such is the cause



of our losing our eyes and of our blackening our faces. Were we now to



tell thee our stories it would take too long a time, for each and



every of us lost his left eye by an adventure of his own."



I rejoiced at their words, and they did with me as they said, and



the bird roc bore me off and set me down on the mountain. Then I



came out of the skin and walked on till I reached the palace. The door



stood open as I entered and found myself in a spacious and goodly



hall, wide exceedingly, even as a horse course. And around it were a



hundred chambers with doors of sandal and aloe woods plated with red



gold and furnished with silver rings by way of knockers. At the head



or upper end of the hall I saw forty damsels, sumptuously dressed



and ornamented and one and all bright as moons. None could ever tire



of gazing upon them, and all so lovely that the most ascetic devotee



on seeing them would become their slave and obey their will. When they



saw me the whole bevy came up to me and said: "Welcome and well come



and good cheer to thee, O our lord! This whole month have we been



expecting thee. Praised be Allah Who hath sent us one who is worthy of



us, even as we are worthy of him!"



Then they made me sit down upon a high divan and said to me, "This



day thou art our lord and master, and we are thy servants and thy



handmaids, so order us as thou wilt." And I marveled at their case.



Presently one of them arose and set meat before me and I ate and



they ate with me whilst others warmed water and washed my hands and



feet and changed my clothes, and others made ready sherbets and gave



us to drink, and all gathered around me, being full of joy and



gladness at my coming. Then they sat down and conversed with me till



nightfall, when five of them arose and laid the trays and spread



them with flowers and fragrant herbs and fruits, fresh and dried,



and confections in profusion. At last they brought out a fine wine



service with rich old wine, and we sat down to drink and some sang



songs and others played the lute and psaltery and recorders and



other instruments, and the bowl went merrily round. Hereupon such



gladness possessed me that I forgot the sorrows of the world one and



all and said: "This is indeed life. O sad that 'tis fleeting!"



I enjoyed their company till the time came for rest, and our heads



were all warm with wine, when they said, "O our lord, choose from



amongst us her who shall be thy bedfellow this night and not lie



with thee again till forty days be past." So I chose a girl fair of



face and perfect in shape, with eyes kohl-edged by nature's hand, hair



long and jet-black, with slightly parted teeth and joining brows.



'Twas as if she were some limber graceful branchlet or the slender



stalk of sweet basil to amaze and to bewilder man's fancy. So I lay



with her that night. None fairer I ever knew. And when it was morning,



the damsels carried me to the hammam bath and bathed me and robed me



in fairest apparel. Then they served up food, and we ate and drank and



the cup went round till nightfall, when I chose from among them one



fair of form and face, soft-sided and a model of grace, such a one



as the poet described when he said:



On her fair bosom caskets twain I scanned,



Sealed fast with musk seals lovers to withstand.



With arrowy glances stand on guard her eyes,



Whose shafts would shoot who dares put forth a hand.



With her I spent a most goodly night, and, to be brief, O my



mistress, I remained with them in all solace and delight of life,



eating and drinking, conversing and carousing, and every night lying



with one or other of them. But at the head of the New Year they came



to me in tears and bade me farewell, weeping and crying out and



clinging about me, whereat I wondered and said: "What may be the



matter? Verily you break my heart!" They exclaimed, "Would Heaven we



had never known thee, for though we have companied with many, yet



never saw we a pleasanter than thou or a more courteous." And they



wept again. "But tell me more clearly," asked I, "what causeth this



weeping which maketh my gall bladder like to burst?" And they



answered: "O lord and master, it is severance which maketh us weep,



and thou, and thou only, art the cause of our tears. If thou hearken



to us we need never be parted, and if thou hearken not we part



forever, but our hearts tell us that thou wilt not listen to our words



and this is the cause of our tears and cries." "Tell me how the case



standeth."



"Know, O our lord, that we are the daughters of kings who have met



here and have lived together for years, and once in every year we



are perforce absent for forty days. And afterward we return and



abide here for the rest of the twelvemonth eating and drinking and



taking our pleasure and enjoying delights. We are about to depart



according to our custom, and we fear lest after we be gone thou



contraire our charge and disobey our injunctions. Here now we commit



to thee the keys of the palace, which containeth forty chambers, and



thou mayest open of these thirty and nine, but beware (and we



conjure thee by Allah and by the lives of us!) lest thou open the



fortieth door, for therein is that which shall separate us for



ever." Quoth I, "Assuredly I will not open it if it contain the



cause of severance from you." Then one among them came up to me and



falling on my neck wept and recited these verses:



"If Time unite us after absent-while,



The world harsh-frowning on our lot shall smile,



And if thy semblance deign adorn mine eyes,



I'll pardon Time past wrongs and bygone guile."



And I recited the following:



"When drew she near to bid adieu with her heart unstrung,



While care and longing on that day her bosom wrung,



Wet pearls she wept and mine like red camelians rolled



And, joined in sad riviere, around her neck they hung."



When I saw her weeping I said, "By Allah, I will never open that



fortieth door, never and nowise!" and I bade her farewell. Thereupon



all departed flying away like birds, signaling with their hands



farewells as they went and leaving me alone in the palace. When



evening drew near I opened the door of the first chamber and



entering it found myself in a place like one of the pleasaunces of



Paradise. It was a garden with trees of freshest green and ripe fruits



of yellow sheen, and its birds were singing clear and keen and rills



ran wimpling through the fair terrene. The sight and sounds brought



solace to my sprite, and I walked among the trees, and I smelt the



breath of the flowers on the breeze and heard the birdies sing their



melodies hymning the One, the Almighty, in sweetest litanies, and I



looked upon the apple whose hue is parcel red and parcel yellow, as



said the poet:



Apple whose hue combines in union mellow



My fair's red cheek, her hapless lover's yellow.



Then I looked upon the pear whose taste surpasseth sherbet and



sugar, and the apricot whose beauty striketh the eye with



admiration, as if she were a polished ruby.



Then I went out of the place and locked the door as it was before.



When it was the morrow I opened the second door, and entering found



myself in a spacious plain set with tall date palms and watered by a



running stream whose banks were shrubbed with bushes of rose and



jasmine, while privet and eglantine, oxeye, violet and lily,



narcissus, origane, and the winter gilliflower carpeted the borders.



And the breath of the breeze swept over these sweet-smelling growths



diffusing their delicious odors right and left, perfuming the world



and filling my soul with delight. After taking my pleasure there



awhile I went from it and, having closed the door as it was before,



opened the third door, wherein I saw a high open hall pargetted with



particolored marbles and pietra dura of price and other precious



stones, and hung with cages of sandalwood and eagle wood, full of



birds which made sweet music, such as the "thousand-voiced," and the



cushat, the merle, the turtledove, and the Nubian ringdove. My heart



was filled with pleasure thereby, my grief was dispelled, and I



slept in that aviary till dawn.



Then I unlocked the door of the fourth chamber, and therein found



a grand saloon with forty smaller chambers giving upon it. All their



doors stood open, so I entered and found them full of pearls and



jacinths and beryls and emeralds and corals and carbuncles, and all



manner precious gems and jewels, such as tongue of man may not



describe. My thought was stunned at the sight and I said to myself,



"These be things methinks united which could not be found save in



the treasuries of a King of Kings, nor could the monarchs of the



world have collected the like of these!" And my heart dilated and my



sorrows ceased. "For," quoth I, "now verily am I the Monarch of the



Age, since by Allah's grace this enormous wealth is mine, and I have



forty damsels under my hand, nor is there any to claim them save



myself." Then I gave not over opening place after place until nine and



thirty days were passed, and in that time I had entered every



chamber except that one whose door the Princesses had charged me not



to open.



But my thoughts, O my mistress, ever ran on that forbidden fortieth,



and Satan urged me to open it for my own undoing, nor had I patience



to forbear, albeit there wanted of the trusting time but a single day.



So I stood before the chamber aforesaid and, after a moment's



hesitation, opened the door, which was plated with red gold, and



entered. I was met by a perfume whose like I had never before smelt,



and so sharp and subtle was the odor that it made my senses drunken as



with strong wine, and I fell to the ground in a fainting fit which



lasted a full hour. When I came to myself I strengthened my heart, and



entering, found myself in a chamber whose floor was bespread with



saffron and blazing with light from branched candelabra of gold and



lamps fed with costly oils, which diffused the scent of musk and



ambergris. I saw there also two great censers each big as a mazer



bowl, flaming with lign aloes, nadd perfume, ambergris, and honeyed



scents, and the place was full of their fragrance.



Presently, O my lady, I espied a noble steed, black as the murks



of night when murkiest, standing ready saddled and bridled (and his



saddle was of red gold) before two mangers, one of clear crystal



wherein was husked sesame, and the other also of crystal containing



water of the rose scented with musk. When I saw this I marveled and



said to myself, "Doubtless in this animal must be some wondrous



mystery." And Satan cozened me so I led him without the palace and



mounted him, but he would not stir from his place. So I hammered his



sides with my heels, but he moved not, and then I took the rein whip



and struck him withal. When he felt the blow, he neighed a neigh



with a sound like deafening thunder and, opening a pair of wings, flew



up with me in the firmament of heaven far beyond the eyesight of



man. After a full hour of flight he descended and alighted on a



terrace roof and shaking me off his back, lashed me on the face with



his tad and gouged out my left eye, causing it roll along my cheek.



Then he flew away. I went down from the terrace and found myself



again amongst the ten one-eyed youths sitting upon their ten couches



with blue covers, and they cried out when they saw me: "No welcome



to thee, nor aught of good cheer! We all lived of lives the happiest



and we ate and drank of the best. Upon brocades and cloths of gold



we took our rest, and we slept with our heads on beauty's breast,



but we could not await one day to gain the delights of a year!"



Quoth I, "Behold, I have become one like unto you and now I would have



you bring me a tray full of blackness, wherewith to blacken my face,



and receive me into your society." "No, by Allah," quoth they, "thou



shalt not sojourn with us, and now get thee hence!" So they drove me



away.



Finding them reject me thus, I foresaw that matters would go hard



with me, and I remembered the many miseries which Destiny had



written upon my forehead, and I fared forth from among them



heavy-hearted and tearful-eyed, repeating to myself these words: "I



was sitting at mine ease, but my frowardness brought me to unease."



Then I shaved beard and mustachios and eyebrows, renouncing the world.



and wandered in Kalandar garb about Allah's earth, and the Almighty



decreed safety for me till I arrived at Baghdad, which was on the



evening of this very night. Here I met these two other Kalandars



standing bewildered, so I saluted them saying, "I am a stranger!"



and they answered, "And we likewise be strangers!" By the freak of



Fortune we were like to like, three Kalandars and three monoculars all



blind of the left eye.



Such, O my lady, is the cause of the shearing of my beard and the



manner of my losing an eye. Said the lady to him, "Rub thy head and



wend thy ways," but he answered, "By Allah, I will not go until I hear



the stories of these others." Then the lady, turning toward the Caliph



and Ja'afar and Masrur, said to them, "Do ye also give an account of



yourselves, you men!" Whereupon Ja'afar stood forth and told her



what he had told the portress as they were entering the house, and



when she heard his story of their being merchants and Mosul men who



had outrun the watch, she said, "I grant you your lives each for



each sake, and now away with you all." So they all went out, and



when they were in the street, quoth the Caliph to the Kalandars, "O



company, whither go ye now, seeing that the morning hath not yet



dawned?" Quoth they, "By Allah, O our lord, we know not where to



go." "Come and pass the rest of the night with us," said the Caliph



and, turning to Ja'afar, "Take them home with thee, and tomorrow bring



them to my presence that we may chronicle their adventures."



Ja'afar did as the Caliph bade him and the Commander of the Faithful



returned to his palace, but sleep gave no sign of visiting him that



night and he lay awake pondering the mishaps of the three Kalandar



Princes, and impatient to know the history of the ladies and the two



black bitches. No sooner had morning dawned than he went forth and sat



upon the throne of his sovereignty and, turning to Ja'afar, after



all his grandees and officers of state were gathered together, he



said, "Bring me the three ladies and the two bitches and the three



Kalandars."



So Ja'afar fared forth and brought them all before him (and the



ladies were veiled). Then the Minister turned to them and said in



the Caliph's name: "We pardon you your maltreatment of us and your



want of courtesy, in consideration of the kindness which forewent



it, and for that ye knew us not. Now however I would have you to



know that ye stand in presence of the fifth of the sons of Abbas,



Harun al-Rashid, brother of Caliph Musa al-Hadi, son of Al-Mansur, son



of Mohammed the brother of Al-Saffah bin Mohammed who was first of the



royal house. Speak ye therefore before him the truth and the whole



truth!" When the ladies heard Ja'afar's words touching the Commander



of the Faithful, the eldest came forward and said, "O Prince of True



Believers, my story is one which were it graven with needle gravers



upon the eye corners, were a warner for whoso would be warned and an



example for whoso can take profit from example." And she began to tell



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