The Arabian Nights (New Deluxe Edition) (62 page)

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The following night Shahrazad said:

I heard, O happy King, that the tailor told the king of China that the barber told the guests that he said to the caliph:

[The Tale of the Fifth Brother, the Cropped of Ears]

MY FIFTH BROTHER,
the cropped of ears, was a poor man who used to beg by night and live by day on what he got. When our father, who was an old man, far advanced in years, fell sick and died, he left us seven hundred dirhams, which we divided equally among ourselves, each receiving one hundred dirhams. When my fifth brother received his share, he did not know what to do with it until he thought of buying glass of all kinds and selling it at a profit. He bought a hundred dirhams' worth of glass and, putting it in a large basket, sat to sell it next to a tailor's shop, which had a balustrade at the entrance. My brother leaned against the balustrade and sat, thinking to himself, “I know that I have a capital of a hundred dirhams' worth of glass, which I will sell for two hundred dirhams, with which I will buy more glass which I will sell for four hundred dirhams. I will continue to buy and sell until I have four thousand dirhams, then ten thousand, with which I will buy all kinds of jewels and perfumes and make a great profit. Then I will buy a fine house, together with slaves and horses, and I will eat and drink and carouse and bring every singing man and woman in the city to sing to me, for the Almighty God willing, my capital will be a hundred thousand dirhams.”

All this went through his head, while the hundred dirhams' worth of glass sat in the basket before him. He continued, saying to himself, “As soon as I have amassed a hundred thousand dirhams, I will send out marriage brokers to demand for me in marriage the daughters of kings and viziers. In fact, I will ask for the hand of the vizier's daughter, for I have heard that she is singularly beautiful, that she is all perfection and grace. I will give her a dowry of a thousand dinars. If her father consents, well; if not, I will take her by force, in spite of him. When I return home, I will buy ten little slaves as well as clothes fit for kings, and I will get me a saddle of gold and have it set with expensive jewels. Then I will ride and parade in the city, with slaves before me and behind me, while the people salute me and invoke blessings on me. When I go to see the vizier, with slaves on my right and left, he will rise in greeting and, seating me in his place, will sit below me because I am his son-in-law. I will have with me two slaves carrying purses, each with a thouand dinars, one for the dowry, the other as a present, so that the vizier may know my generosity, my magnanimity, and my disdain for the world. Then I will return to my house, and if someone comes to me from the bride, I will give him money and bestow on him a robe of honor, but if he brings me a present, I will not accept it, but will return it, for I will maintain my dignity. Then I will prepare my house and ask them to make the bride ready, and when she is ready, I will bid them lead her to me in a procession. When it is time to unveil the bride, I will put on my best clothes and sit on a seat of silk brocade and lean on a cushion, turning neither right nor left, because of my sense of propriety, and my reticence, gravity, and wisdom. My bride will stand before me like the full moon, in her robes and ornaments, and I, out of a sense of self-respect, dignity, and pride, will not look at her until all those who are present will say to me, ‘O our lord and master, your wife and slave stands before you. Be kind to her and grant her a glance, for standing hurts her.' After they kiss the ground before me many times, I will raise my head, give her one look, and bend my head again. They they will take her away, and I will rise and change my clothes for a finer suit. When they bring the bride for the second time, in her second dress, I will not look at her until they stand before me and implore me many times. Then I will give her a quick look; then look down again. I will continue to do this until they finish displaying her.”

But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said to her sister, “What a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if the king spares me and lets me live!”

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The following night Shahrazad replied, “Very well,” and said:

I heard, O happy King, that the tailor told the king of China that the barber told the guests that he said to the caliph:

All this went through my brother's mind. Then he went on, “I will continue to enjoy looking at the bride until they finish presenting her to me. Then I will order one of my servants to fetch a purse of five hundred dinars and, giving it to the attendants of the bride, command them to lead me to the bride chamber. When they lead her in and leave her alone with me, I will look at her and lie by her side, but I will ignore her and will not speak to her, so that she may say that I am a proud man. Then her mother will come in and kiss my hand and say, ‘My lord, look at your servant and comfort her, for she craves your favor.' But I will not answer. When she sees this, she will kiss my feet many times and say, ‘My lord, my daughter is a young lady who has never seen a man before, and if you disdain her, you will break her heart. Turn to her, speak to her, and comfort her.' Then her mother will give her a cup of wine and say to her, ‘Entreat your lord to drink.' When the bride comes to me, I will let her stand, while I recline on a cushion embroidered with gold and silver, and will proudly disdain to look at her, so that she may say that I am an honorable and self-respecting man. I will let her stand until she feels humiliated and learns that I am her master. Then she will say to me, ‘My lord, for God's sake, don't refuse the cup from my hand, for I am your servant.' But I will not speak to her, and she will press me, saying, ‘You must drink,' and put the cup to my lips. Then I will shake my fist in her face and kick her with my foot like that.” So saying, he kicked with his foot and knocked over the basket of glass, which, resting high, fell to the ground, and everything in it was broken.

The tailor [who had overheard some of my brother's conversation with himself] cried out, “All this comes of your pride, you dirty pimp. By God, if it was within my power, I would have you beaten a hundred times and paraded throughout the city.” At that moment, O Commander of the Faithful, my brother began to beat on his face, tear his clothes, and weep. The people who were going to the Friday prayers saw him, and some of them pitied him, while others paid no attention to him, as he stood bereft both of capital and profit.

While he wept, a beautiful lady, riding on a she-mule with a saddle of gold and attended by servants, passed by, filling the air with the odor of musk. When she saw my brother weeping in his plight, she felt pity for him and, inquiring about him, was told that he had had a basket of glass, by which he was trying to make a living, but that it had got broken, and that this was the cause of his grief. The lady called one of her servants and said to him, “Give him whatever you have with you,” and the servant gave my brother a purse in which he found five hundred dinars. When he saw the money, he almost died of joy and, invoking blessings upon the lady, returned to his house a rich man.

As he sat thinking, he heard a knocking at the door, and when he asked, “Who is it?” a woman answered, “My brother, I would like to have a word with you.” He rushed and, opening the door, saw an old woman he did not know. She said to him, “Son, the time of prayer is near, and I have not yet performed my ablutions. I would like you to let me do so in your house.” My brother replied, “I hear and obey.” Then he asked her to come in, and when she was inside, he gave her a ewer for her ablutions and sat down, still beside himself with joy at the money, which he began to stuff inside his clothes. As he finished doing this, the old woman, finishing her prayers, came near where he sat and prayed a two-bow prayer. Then she invoked blessings on him.

But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she lapsed into silence. Then Dinarzad said to her sister, “What a strange and entertaining story!” Shahrazad replied, “What is this compared with what I shall tell you tomorrow night if I stay alive!”

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The following night Shahrazad said:

I heard, O happy King, that the tailor told the king of China that the barber told the guests that he said to the caliph:

When the old woman finished her prayer and invoked blessings on him, he thanked her and, pulling out two dinars, gave them to her, saying to himself, “This is an offering from me.” At this, she exclaimed, “How strange! Why do you look at me as if I was a beggar? Take your money and keep it for yourself, for I don't need it; however, I do have for you in this city a woman who has wealth, beauty, and charm.” My brother asked, “How could I get such a woman?” The old woman replied, “Take all your money and follow me, and when you are with her, spare neither fair words nor amiability, and you will enjoy her beauty and her wealth to your heart's content.” My brother took all his money and went with the old woman, so happy that he could hardly believe himself.

He followed her until she came to the door of a mansion, and when she knocked, the door was opened by a Greek slave-girl. The old woman entered and bade my brother follow her, and he entered a spacious hall, spread with carpets and hung with curtains. He sat down, placed the money before him, and, taking off his turban, put it on his knee. Soon in came a young lady, so beautiful and so richly dressed that none better was ever seen. He rose to his feet, and when she looked at him, she smiled in his face and was glad to see him. Then she bade the door be shut and, taking him by the hand, led him to a private room, where she seated him and, sitting beside him, dallied with him for a while. Then she rose and, saying, “Wait until I come back,” went away.

He sat by himself, when suddenly a great black slave came in, with a sword in his hand, and said to him, “Damn you, what are you doing here?” My brother was tongue-tied and could not answer. The black slave seized him and, stripping him of his clothes, struck him with the flat of the sword and left him half paralyzed. Then he kept striking him, so severely that my brother fell unconscious. The hideous slave concluded that he was dead, and my brother heard him say, “Where is the salt-woman?” and in came a maid with a large dish full of salt. Then the black slave began to stuff my brother's wounds with salt until he fainted again.

When he came to himself, he lay motionless, for fear that the black slave would discover that he was alive and finish him off. Then the maid went away, and the black slave cried out, “Where is the cellar-woman?” and in came the old woman, who took my brother by the feet and dragged him away and, opening a cellar door, threw him down on a heap of dead bodies. There he remained unconscious, without stirring, for two whole days, but the Almighty and Glorious God made the salt the cause of saving his life, for it stopped the flow of blood. As soon as he found himself able to move, he crept fearfully out of the cellar and made his way to the hallway, where he hid till early morning. When the old woman went out in quest of another prey, he went out behind her, without her knowledge, and headed home. There he treated himself for a month until he recovered. Meanwhile he kept a constant watch on the old woman, while she took one man after another and led them to that house. But my brother said nothing. When he regained his health and recovered his strength, he took a piece of cloth and made it into a bag, which he filled with glass.