" So saying, she
seized a sword and made at him; but he cried out and said, "O
Kings of the age, let her not kill me, till I have told you the
rare adventures that have betided me." And Kanmakan said to her,
"O my aunt, let him tell his story, and after do with him as thou
wilt." So she held her hand and the Kings said to him, "Now let
us hear thy story." "O Kings of the age," said he, "if I tell you
a rare story, will you pardon me?" "Yes," answered they. Then
said the Bedouin, "know that
Hemmad the Bedouin's Story.
Awhile ago, I was sore wakeful one night and thought the dawn
would never break: so, as soon as it was day, I rose and girding
on my sword, mounted my steed and set my lance in rest. Then I
rode out to hunt, and as I went along, a company of men accosted
me and asked me whither I went. I told them, and they said, 'We
will bear thee company.' So we all fared on together, and
presently we saw an ostrich and gave chase; but it evaded us and
spreading its wings, fled before us and drew us on after it, till
it brought us to a desert, wherein there was neither grass nor
water, nor was aught to be heard there save the hissing of
serpents, the wailing of Jinn and the howling of ghouls. Here we
lost sight of the ostrich, nor could we tell whether it had flown
up into the sky or sunk into the ground. Then we turned our
horses' heads and thought to go back; but found that our return
would be toilsome and dangerous at that time of exceeding heat;
for the heat was grievous to us, so that we were sore athirst and
our horses stood still.
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