The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, vol 14 by Sir Richard Francis Burton (the best books to read TXT) 📕

and cried, “Be ye returned unto your olden shapes;” and, as he did so, each and every of the stones became men as they had been. Now amongst them were sundry sons of the Sultans, also the children of Kings and Wazirs and Bashas and Lords of the land, and of the number two were the elder brothers of the young Prince: so they salamed to him and all congratulated one another to their safety. After this one came forward to the youth and said to him, “Verily this place is a city, all and some of whose folk are ensorcelled.” So he took a somewhat of clay from the white and entered the streets, where, finding the case as described to him, he fell to sifting the clay upon them and they were transmewed from statutes of stone into the shapes of Adam’s sons. Then, at last, the sons of that city rose one and all and began offering to the Prince gifts and rarities until he had of them a mighty matter. But when his brothers saw that he had become master of the bird Philomelet and his cage, and all these presents and choice treasures, they were filled with envy of him[FN#296] and said each to other, “How shall our brother win him all this and we abide with him in servile condition, especially when we hie us homewards and return to our own land? And will not folk say that the salvation of the two elder brothers was by the hand of the youngest? But we cannot endure such disgrace as this!” So envy entered them and in their jealousy they planned and plotted the death of their cadet, who knew not that was in their minds or whatso was hidden from him in the Limbo of Secrets. And when they had wrought their work the youngest Prince arose and bade his pages and eunuchs lade the loads upon the camels and mules and, when they had done his bidding, they all set forth on the homewards march. They travelled for whole days and nights till they drew near their destination and the youngest Prince bade his attendants seeks an open place where in they might take repose, and they said, “Hearkening and obedience.” But when they came upon it they found a well builded of stone, and the brothers said to the cadet, “This be a place befitting the rest by reason of this well benign here; for the water thereof is sweet and good for our drink and therefifth we can supply our folk and our beasts.” Replied the youth, “This is what we desire.” So they set up their tents hard by that well, and when the camp was pitched they let prepare the evening meal, and as soon as it was sunset-tide they spread the trays and supped their sufficiency until presently night came down upon them. Now the youngest Prince had a bezel’d signet-ring which he had taken from the bird Philomelet, and he was so careful thereof that he never slept without it. But his brothers awaited until he was drowned in sleep, when coming softly upon him they pinioned him and carried him off and cast him into the well without anyone knowing aught thereof. Then as soon as morning morrowed the two eldest Princes arose and commanded the attendants to load, but these said to them, “Where be our lord?”

and said the others, “He is sleeping in the Takhtraw�n.” So the camel men arose and loaded the loads and the litter and the two Princes sent forwards to the King their sire a messenger of glad tidings who when he found him informed him of the fair news.

Accordingly he and all his Lords took horse and rode forth to meet his sons upon the road that he might salam to them and give them joy of their safe return. Now he chanced in their train to catch sight of the caged bird which is called “the shrilling Philomelet,” and he rejoiced thereat and asked them, “How did ye become masters of him?” Then he enquired anent their brother.—And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, “How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and enjoyable and delectable!” Quoth she, “And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive?” Now when it was the next night and that was

 

The Four Hundred and Twenty-second Night, Dunyazad said to her, “Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the watching of this our latter night.” She replied, “With love and good will!” It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Sultan enquired of the two elder sons concerning their younger brother and they said, “We made ourselves masters of the Bird and we have brought him hither and we know nothing about our cadet.” However, the King who loved his youngest with exceeding love put the question, “Have ye not looked after him and have ye not been in his company?” whereto they answered saying, “A certain wayfarer declared to have seen him on some path or other.” When the father heard this from them he cried, “There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great;” and he fell to striking palm upon palm.[FN#297] On this wise it befel these, but as regards the case of their brother, when they cast him into the well he awoke from his sleep and he felt himself falling into the depths, so he cried, “I take refuge with the Allsufficient Words of Allah[FN#298] from the mischief He hath created.” And by the blessing of these Holy Names he reached the sole of the well without aught of harm or hurt. Here finding himself pinioned, he strained upon his bonds and loosed them; but the well was deep of bottom and he came upon an arched recess, so he sat in it and exclaimed, “Verily we are Allah’s and to Him we are returning and I who wrought for them such work[FN#299] am rewarded with the contrary thereof; withal the power is unto Allah.” And suddenly he heard the sound of speaking at some little distance beside him, and the voice was saying, “O Black of Head, who hath come amongst us?” and his comrade responded, “By Allah, this youth is the son of the Sultan and his best beloved, and the same hath released his brothers from sorcery and was carrying them to their homes when they played him false and cast him into this well.

However, he hath a signet-ring with a bezel which if he rub ‘twill bespeak him with whatso he desireth, and will do what he may wish.” So the Prince said in his mind, “I bid the Servant of this Ring to take me out;” after which he rubbed it and the Jinni appeared and cried, “Yea verily, O son of the Sultan, what is it thou requirest of me?”—And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, “How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!” Quoth she, “And where is this compared with that I should relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive?” Now when it was the next night and that was

 

The Four Hundred and Twenty-third Night, Dunyazad said to her, “Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the watching of this our latter night!” She replied, “With love and good will!” It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Ring-bezel said to him, “What dost thou require of me?” and said the Prince, “I demand that thou hoist me out of the well: and this done that thou summon for me an host with Pages and Eunuchs and tents and pavilions and ensigns and banners.” Whereto the other replied, “Present.”[FN#300] Then he brought him forth the well and the youth found hard by it all he needed, so he bade them load their belongings upon the beasts and when this was done he set out seeking the city of his sire. And as he drew so near it that it was within shot of eye, he alighted there upon a broad plain and ordered them to pitch the camp. Accordingly they set up the tents and the sitting pavilions while the Farrashes fell to sprinkling water upon the ground afront the abodes and to setting up the ensigns and colours whilst the band of kettledrums went dub-a-dub and the trumpets blared tantaras. The cooks also began at once to prepare the evening meal. Now when the cityfolk saw this pomp and circumstance, they held in their minds that the new comer was some Sultan approaching to take their town; so they gathered together and went in to their own King and informed him thereof. But he, having heard their words, felt his heart melt and his vitals throb and a certain joy penetrate into his heart, so he said, “Praise to the Lord, there hath entered into my heart a certain manner of pleasure, albeit I know not what may be the case and Allah hath said in his Holy Book, ‘We have heard good news.’”[FN#301] Hereupon he and the Lords of his land took horse and rode till they reached the front of the pavilions where the King dismounted from his steed. Now the Prince his younger son was dressed in a habit that might have belonged to a hidden Hoard, and when he saw his father he recognised him, so he rose and met him and kissed his hands, but his sire knew him not by reason of the case the youth was in, so he supposed him to be a strange Sultan. Presently, the Prince asked him, “Where be thy youngest son?” and the King hearing this fell down a-fainting, but, soon recovering from his swoon, he said, “Verily my son hath wasted the blood of his life and hath become food for wild beasts.” Hereupon the youth laughed aloud and cried, “By Allah, thy son hath not suffered aught from the shifts and changes of the World, and he is still in the bonds of life, safe and sound; nor hath there befallen him anything of harm whatever.” “Where is he?” quoth the father: “He standeth between thy hands,” quoth the son. So the Sultan looked at him and straightly considering him found that it was his very son who was bespeaking him, and of his delight he threw his arms around his neck and fell with him aswoon to the ground. This lasted for a full-told hour; but when he recovered from his fainting he asked his son what had betided him, so he told all that had befallen, to wit how he had become master of the Enchanting Bird Philomelet, and also of the magical clay wherewith he had besprinkled his brethren and others of the cityfolk who had been turned to stone, all and some, and how they had returned to the shapes whilome they wore. Moreover he recounted to him the presents and offerings which had been made to him and also how, when they arrived at a certain place, his brothers had pinioned him and cast him into the well. And ere he finished speaking, lo and behold!