Tales from the Arabic — Volume 02

John Payne

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• Publié par: chouz
• Publié le: 08 décembre 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 36
• Langue: English

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The Project Gutenberg EBook of Tales from the
Arabic Volume 2, by John Payne (#3 in our series
by John Payne)
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Title: Tales from the Arabic Volume 2Author: John Payne
Release Date: March, 2004 [EBook #5243] [Yes,
we are more than one year ahead of schedule]
[This file was first posted on June 10, 2002]
Edition: 10
Language: English
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG
EBOOK, TALES FROM THE ARABIC VOLUME 2
***
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TALES FROM THE ARABIC
Of the Breslau and Calcutta (1814-18) editions of
The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night
not occurring in the other printed texts of the work,
Now first done into English
By John PayneIn Three Volumes:
VOLUME THE SECOND.
1901
Delhi Edition
Contents of The Second Volume.
Breslau Text.
1. King Shah Bekht and His Vizier Er Rehwan
(Continued)
a. Story of the Pious Woman Accused of
Lewdness
b. Story of the Journeyman and the Girl
c. Story of the Weaver Who Became a
Physician by His
Wife's Commandment
d. Story of the Two Sharpers Who Cheated
Each His Fellow
e. Story of the Sharpers with the Money-
Changer and the
Ass
f. Story of the Sharper and the Merchants
i. Story of the Hawk and the Locust
g. Story Op the King and His Chamberlain Wife h. Story of the Old Woman and the Draper's
Wife
i. Story of the Foul-favoured Man and His Fair
Wife
j. Story of the King Who Lost Kingdom and Wife
and Wealth
and God Restored Them To Him
k. Story of Selim and Selma
l. Story of the King of Hind and His Vizier
2. El Melik Ez Zahir Rukneddin Bibers El
Bunducdari and the
Sixteen Officers Of Police
a. The First Officer's Story
b. The Second Officer's Story
c. The Third Officer's Story
d. The Fourth Officer's Story
e. The Fifth Officer's Story
f. The Sixth Officer's Story
g. The Seventh Officer's Story
h. The Eighth Officer's Story
i. The Thief's Story
i. The Ninth Officer's Story
j. The Tenth Officer's Story
k. The Eleventh Officer's Story
l. The Twelfth Officer's Story
m. The Thirteenth Officer's Story
n. The Fourteenth Officer's Story
i. A Merry Jest of a Thief
ii. Story of the Old Sharper
o. The Fifteenth Officer's Story
p. The Sixteenth Officer's Story
3. Abdallah Ben Nafi and the King's Son of
Cashghar
a. Story of the Damsel Tuhfet El Culoub andthe Khalif
Haroun Er Reshid
Calcutta (1814-8) Text
4. Women's Craft
Breslau Text.
King Shah Bekht and His Vizier Er
Rehwan (continued).
The Eighteenth Night of the Month.
When the evening evened, the king summoned the
vizier and required of him the [promised] story; so
he said, "It is well. Know, O king, that
STORY OF THE PIOUSWOMAN ACCUSED OF
LEWDNESS.
There was once a man of Nishapour,[FN#1] who
had a wife of the utmost loveliness and piety, and
he was minded to set out on the pilgrimage. So he
commended his wife to the care of his brother and
besought him to aid her in her affairs and further
her to her desires till he should return, so they both
abode alive and well. Then he took ship and
departed and his absence was prolonged.
Meanwhile, the brother went in to his brother's
wife, at all times and seasons, and questioned her
of her circumstances and went about her
occasions; and when his visits to her were
prolonged and he heard her speech and looked
upon her face, the love of her gat hold upon his
heart and he became distraught with passion for
her and his soul prompted him [to evil]. So he
besought her to lie with him, but she refused and
chid him for his foul deed, and he found him no
way unto presumption;[FN#2] wherefore he
importuned her with soft speech and gentleness.
Now she was righteous in all her dealings and
swerved not from one word;[FN#3] so, when he
saw that she consented not unto him, he
misdoubted that she would tell his brother, when
he returned from his journey, and said to her, 'An
thou consent not to this whereof I require thee, Iwill cause thee fall into suspicion and thou wilt
perish.' Quoth she, 'Be God (extolled be His
perfection and exalted be He!) [judge] betwixt me
and thee, and know that, shouldst thou tear me
limb from limb, I would not consent to that whereto
thou biddest me.' His folly[FN#4] persuaded him
that she would tell her husband; so, of his
exceeding despite, he betook himself to a company
of people in the mosque and told them that he had
witnessed a man commit adultery with his brother's
wife. They believed his saying and took act of his
accusation and assembled to stone her. Then they
dug her a pit without the city and seating her
therein, stoned her, till they deemed her dead,
when they left her.
Presently a villager passed by [the pit and finding]
her [alive,] carried her to his house and tended her,
[till she recovered]. Now, he had a son, and when
the young man saw her, he loved her and
besought her of herself; but she refused and
consented not to him, whereupon he redoubled in
love and longing and despite prompted him to
suborn a youth of the people of his village and
agree with him that he should come by night and
take somewhat from his father's house and that,
when he was discovered, he should say that she
was of accord with him in this and avouch that she
was his mistress and had been stoned on his
account in the city. So he did this and coming by
night to the villager's house, stole therefrom goods
and clothes; whereupon the old man awoke and
seizing the thief, bound him fast and beat him, to
make him confess. So he confessed against thewoman that she had prompted him to this and that
he was her lover from the city. The news was
bruited abroad and the people of the city
assembled to put her to death; but the old man,
with whom she was, forbade them and said, 'I
brought this woman hither, coveting the
recompense [of God,] and I know not [the truth of]
that which is said of her and will not suffer any to
hurt her.' Then he gave her a thousand dirhems,
by way of alms, and put her forth of the village. As
for the thief, he was imprisoned for some days;
after which the folk interceded for him with the old
man, saying, 'This is a youth and indeed he erred;'
and he released him.
Meanwhile, the woman went out at hazard and
donning devotee's apparel, fared on without
ceasing, till she came to a city and found the king's
deputies dunning the towns-folk for the tribute, out
of season. Presently, she saw a man, whom they
were pressing for the tribute; so she enquired of
his case and being acquainted therewith, paid
down the thousand dirhems for him and delivered
him from beating; whereupon he thanked her and
those who were present. When he was set free, he
accosted her and besought her to go with him to
his dwelling. So she accompanied him thither and
supped with him and passed the night. When the
night darkened on him, his soul prompted him to
evil, for that which he saw of her beauty and
loveliness, and he lusted after her and required her
[of love]; but she repelled him and bade him fear
God the Most High and reminded him of that which
she had done with him of kindness and how shehad delivered him from beating and humiliation.
However, he would not be denied, and when he
saw her [constant] refusal of herself to him, he
feared lest she should tell the folk of him. So, when
he arose in the morning, he took a scroll and wrote
in it what he would of forgery and falsehood and
going up to the Sultan's palace, said, '[I have] an
advisement [for the king].' So he bade admit him
and he delivered him the writ that he had forged,
saying, 'I found this letter with the woman, the
devotee, the ascetic, and indeed she is a spy, a
secret informer against the king to his enemy; and
I deem the king's due more incumbent on me than
any other and his advisement the first [duty], for
that he uniteth in himself all the people, and but for
the king's presence, the