So when he came to himself and saw the prince standing by
him, he sprang to his feet and kissed the earth before him; and
Taj el Mulouk said to him, 'Why didst thou not show us thy
merchandise?' 'O my lord,' answered the young merchant, 'there is
nought among my stock worthy of thine august highness.' 'It
matters not,' said the prince, 'thou must show me what thou hast
and acquaint me with thy case; for I see thee weeping-eyed and
mournful-hearted. If thou hast been wronged, we will do away
thine oppression, and if thou be in debt, we will discharge thy
debt; for my heart aches for thee, since I first set eyes on
thee.' Then he called for seats and they set him a chair of ebony
and ivory, netted with gold and silk, and spread him a silken
carpet. So he sat down on the chair and bidding the young
merchant seat himself on the carpet, again commanded him to show
him his merchandise. 'O my lord,' said he, 'do not name this to
me; for I have nought worthy of thee.' 'I will have it so,'
rejoined Taj el Mulouk and bade some of the servants fetch the
goods. So they brought them in spite of the merchant; and when he
saw this, the tears streamed from his eyes and he wept and sighed
and lamented; sobs rose from his bosom and he repeated the
following verses:
By the witching amorous sweetness and the blackness of thine
eyes, By the tender flexile softness in thy slender waist
that lies,
By the graces and the languor of thy body and thy shape, By the
fount of wine and honey from thy coral lips that rise,
O my hope, to see thine image in my dreams were sweeter far Than
were safety to the fearful, languishing in woful wise!
Then he opened his bales and displayed their contents to Taj el
Mulouk, piece by piece, till he came to a mantle of satin
brocaded with gold, worth two thousand dinars from which, when he
opened it, there fell a piece of linen.
Pages:
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291