The King above mentioned had a son who was ardently
fond of the chase; and he had a Wezir whom he charged
to be always with his son wherever he went. One day the
son went forth to hunt, and his father's Wezir was with
him; and as they rode together, they saw a great wild beast;
upon which the Wezir exclaimed to the Prince, Away after
this wild beast! The King's son pursued it until he was
out of the sight of his attendants, and the beast also escaped
from before his eyes in the desert; and while the Prince
wandered in perplexity, not knowing whither to direct his
course, he met in his way a damsel, who was weeping. He
said to her. Who art thou? — and she answered, I am a
daughter of one of the kings of India; I was in the desert,
and slumber overtook me, and I fell from my horse in a
state of insensibility, and being thus separated from my
attendants, I lost my way. The Prince, on hearing this,
pitied her forlorn state, and placed her behind him on his
horse; and as they proceeded, they passed by a ruin, and
the damsel said to him, O my master, I would alight here
for a little while. The Prince therefore lifted her from his
horse at this ruin; but she delayed so long to return, that
he wondered wherefore she had loitered so, and entering
after her, without her knowledge, perceived that she was a
GhulLh; and heard her say, My children, I have brought you
to-day a fat young man: — on which they exclaimed, Bring
him in to us, O mother ! that we may fill our stomachs
with his flesh. When the Prince heard their words, he
felt assured of destruction ; the muscles of his sides quivered,
and fear overcame him, and he retreated. The Ghuleh then
came forth, and, seeing that he appeared alarmed and fear-
ful, and that he was trembling, said to him, Wherefore
dost thou fear? He answered, I have an enemy of whom
I am in fear. The Ghuleh said. Thou assertest thyself to
be the son of the King. He replied. Yes. — Then, said she,
wherefore dost thou not give some money to thine enemy,
and so conciliate him? He answered, He will not be ap-
peased with money, nor with anything but life; and there-
fore do I fear him: I am an injured man. She then said
to him, if thou be an injured man, as thou afiSrmest, beg
aid of God against thine oppressor, and He will avert from
thee his mischievous design, and that of every other person
whom thou fearest. Upon this, therefore, the Prince raised
his head towards heaven, and said, O Thou who answerest
the distressed when he prayeth to Thee, and dispellest evil,
assist me, and cause mine enemy to depart from me; for
Thou art able to do whatsoever Thou wilt ! — and the Ghuleh
no sooner heard his prayer, than she departed from him.
The Prince then returned to his father, and informed him of
the conduct of the Wezir; upon which the King gave orders
that the minister should be put to death.
And thou, O King, continued the Wezir of King Yunan,
if thou trust in this sage, he will kill thee in the foulest
manner. If thou continue to bestow favours upon him, and
to make him thine intimate companion, he will plot thy
destruction. Dost thou not see that he hath cured thee of
the disease by external means, by a thing that thou heldest
in thy hand? Therefore thou art not secure against his
killing thee by a thing that thou shalt hold in the same
manner. — King Yunan answered, Thou hast spoken truth :
the case is as thou hast said, O faithful Wezir : it is probable
that this sage came as a spy to accomplish my death; and if
he cured me by a thing I held in my hand, he may destroy
me by a thing that I may smell : what then, O Wezir, shall
be done respecting him? The Wezir answered. Send to him
immediately, and desire him to come hither ; and when he is
come, strike off his head, and so shalt thou avert from thee
his evil design, and be secure from him. Betray him before
he betray thee. — The King said. Thou hast spoken right.
Immediately, therefore, he sent for the sage, who came,
full of joy, not knowing what the Compassionate had decreed
against him, and addressed the King with these words of
the poet —
If I fail any day to render thee due thanks, tell me for whom I
have composed my verse and prose.
Thou hast loaded me with favours unsolicited, bestowed without
delay on thy part, or excuse.
How then should I abstain from praising thee as thou deservest,
and lauding thee both with my heart and voice?
Nay, I will thank thee for thy benefits conferred upon me : they are
light upon my tongue, though weighty to my back.
Knowest thou, said the King, wherefore I have summoned
thee? The sage answered, None knoweth what is secret
but God, whose name be exalted ! Then said the King, I
have summoned thee that I may take away thy life. The
sage, in the utmost astonishment at this announcement, said,
King, wherefore wouldst thou kill me, and what offence
hath been committed by me? The King answered, It hath
been told me that thou art a spy, and that thou hast come
hither to kill me: but I will prevent thee by killing thee
first : — and so saying, he called out to the executioner. Strike
off the head of this traitor, and relieve me from his wicked-
ness. — Spare me, said the sage, and so may God spare thee ;
and destroy me not, lest God destroy thee. — And he repeated
these words several times, like as I did, O 'Efrit ; but thou
wouldst not let me go, desiring to destroy me.
King Yunan then said to the sage Duban, I shall not be
secure unless I kill thee ; for thou curedst me by a thing
that I held in my hand, and I have no security against thy
killing me by a thing that I may smell, or by some other
means. — O King, said the sage, is this my recompense from
thee ? Dost thou return evil for good ? — The King answered.
Thou must be slain without delay. When the sage, there-
fore, was convinced that the King intended to put him to
death, and that his fate was inevitable, he lamented the
benefit that he had done to the undeserving. The execu-
tioner then advanced, and bandaged his eyes, and, having
drawn his sword, said. Give permission. Upon this the sage
wept, and said again. Spare me, and so may God spare
thee ; and destroy me not, lest God destroy thee ! Wouldst
thou return me the recompense of the crocodile? — What,
said the King, is the story of the crocodile ? The sage
answered, I cannot relate it while in this condition ; but
of the King arose, and said, O King, give up to me the
blood of this sage; for we have not seen him commit any
offence against thee; nor have we seen him do aught but
cure thee of thy disease, which wearied the other physicians
and sages. The King answered. Ye know not the reason
wherefore I would kill the sage: it is this, that if I suffered
him to live, I should myself inevitably perish ; for he who
cured me of the disease under which I suffered by a thing
that I held in my hand, may kill me by a thing that I may
smell; and I fear that he would do so, and would receive an
appointment on account of it; seeing that it is probable
he is a spy who hath come hither to kill me; I must therefore
kill him, and then shall I feel myself safe. — The sage then
said again. Spare me, and so may God spare thee; and de-
stroy me not, lest God destroy thee.
But he now felt certain, O 'Efrit, that the King would put
him to death, and that there was no escape for him; so he
said, O King, if my death is indispensable, grant me some
respite, that I may return to my house, and acquit myself of
my duties, and give directions to my family and neighbours
to bury me, and dispose of my medical books; and among
my books is one of the most especial value, which I offer as a
present to thee, that thou mayest treasure it in thy library. —
And what, said the King, is this book.'' He answered, It
contains things not to be enumerated; and the smallest of
the secret virtues that it possesses is this; that, when thou
hast cut off my head, if thou open this book, and count
three leaves, and then read three lines on the page to the
left, the head will speak to thee, and answer whatever thou
shalt ask. At this the King was excessively astonished,
and shook with delight, and said to him, O Sage, when I
have cut off thy head will it speak? He answered. Yes,
O King; and this is a wonderful thing.
The King then sent him in the custody of guards ; and
the sage descended to his house, and settled all his affairs on
that day; and on the following day he went up to the court:
and the Emirs and Wezirs, and Chamberlains and Deputies,
and all the great officers of the state, went thither also : and
the court resembled a flower-garden. And when the sage
had entered, he presented himself before the King, bearing
an old book, and a small pot containing a powder: and he
sat down, and said. Bring me a tray. So they brought him
one; and he poured out the powder into it, and spread it.
He then said, O King, take this book, and do nothing with
it until thou hast cut off my head ; and when thou hast done
«o, place it upon this tray, and order some one to press it
down upon the powder ; and when this is done, the blood
will be stanched : then open the book. As soon as the
sage had said this, the King gave orders to strike off his
head; and it was done. The King then opened the book,
and found that iis leaves were stuck together; so he put his
finger to his motth, and moistened it with his spittle, and
opened the first letf, and the second, and the third; but the
leaves were not opened without difficulty. He opened six
leaves, and looked at them ; but found upon them no
writing. So he said, O Sage, there is nothing written in it.
The head of the sage answered. Turn over more leaves.
The King did so ; and in a little while, the poison penetrated
into his system; for the book was poisoned; and the King
fell back, and cried out. The poison hath penetrated into
me ! — and upon this, the head of the sage Duban repeated
these verses: —
They made use of their power, and used it tyrannically; and soon it
became as though it never had existed.
Had they acted equitably, they had experienced equity; but they
oppressed ; wherefore fortune oppressed them with calamities
and trials.
Then did the case itself announce to them, This is the reward of
your conduct, and fortune is blameless.
And when the head of the sage Duban had uttered these
words, the King immediately fell down dead.
Now, O 'Efrit, continued the fisherman, know that if
King Yunan had spared the sage, Duban, God had spared
him; but he refused, and desired his destruction; therefore
God destroyed him ; and thou, O 'Efrit, if thou hadst spared
me, God had spared thee, and I had spared thee; but thou
desiredst my death; therefore will I put thee to death
imprisoned in this bottle, and will throw thee here into the
sea. The Marid, upon this, cried out, and said, I conjure
thee by Allah, O fisherman, that thou do it not: spare me in
generosity, and be not angry with me for what I did ; but if
I have done evil, do thou good, according to the proverb, —
O thou benefactor of him who hath done evil, the action that
he hath done is sufficient for him : — do not therefore as
Umameh did to 'Atikeh. — And what, said the fisherman, was
their case? The 'Efrit answered, This is not a time for
telling stories, when I am in this prison ; but when thou
liberatest me, I will relate to thee their case. The fisherman
said. Thou must be thrown into the sea, and there shall be
no way of escape for thee from it ; for I endeavoured to
propitiate thee, and humbled myself befce thee, yet thou
wouldest nothing but my destruction, though I had com-
mitted no offence to deserve it, and had clone no evil to thee
whatever, but only good, delivering thee from thy confine-
ment ; and when thou didst thus unto me, I perceived that
thou wast radically corrupt: and I would have thee know,
that my motive for throwing thee into this sea, is that I may
acquaint with thy story every one that shall take thee out,
and caution him against thee, that he may cast thee in
again : thus shalt thou remain in this sea to the end of time,
and experience varieties of torment. — The 'Efrit then said,
Liberate me, for this is an opportunity for thee to display
humanity; and I vow to thee that I will never do thee harm;
but, on the contrary, will do thee a service that shall enrich
thee for ever.
Upon this the fisherman accepted his covenant that he
would not hurt him, but that he would do him good ; and
when he had bound him by oaths and vows, and made him
swear by the Most Great Name of God, he opened to him;
and the smoke ascended until it had all come forth, and
then collected together, and became, as before, an 'Efrit of
hideous form. The 'Efrit then kicked the bottle into the
sea. When the fisherman saw him do this, he made sure
of destruction, and said. This is no sign of good : — but
afterwards he fortified his heart, and said, O 'Efrit, God,
whose name be exalted, hath said. Perform the covenant,
for the covenant shall be inquired into:' — and thou hast
covenanted with me. and sworn that thou wilt not act
treacherously towards me; therefore, if thou so act, God
will recompense thee; for He is jealous; He respiteth, but
suffereth not to escape ; and remember that I said to thee
as said the sage Duban to King Yunan, Spare me, and so
may God spare thee.
The 'Efrit laughed, and walking on before him, said, O
fisherman, follow me. The fisherman did so, not believing
in his escape, until they had quitted the neighbourhood of
the city, and ascended a mountain, and descended into a
wide desert tract, in the midst of which was a lake of water.
Here the 'Efrit stopped, and ordered the fisherman to cast
his net and take some fish ; and the fisherman, looking into
the lake, saw in it fish of different colours, white and red
and blue and yellow ; at which he was astonished ; and he
cast his net, and drew it in, and found in it four fish, each
fish" of a different colour from the others, at the sight of
which he rejoiced. The 'Efrit then said to him. Take them
to the Sultan, and present them to him, and he will give
thee what will enrich thee; and for the sake of God accept
my excuse, for, at present, I know no other way of reward-
ing thee, having been in the sea a thousand and eight
hundred years, and not seen the surface of the earth until
now ; but take not fish from the lake more than once each
day: and now I commend thee to the care of God. — Having
thus said, he struck the earth with his feet, and it clove
asunder, and swallowed him.
The fisherman then went back to the city, wondering at
all that had befallen him with the 'Efrit, and carried the fish
to his house; and he took an earthen bowl, and, having
filled it with water, put the fish into it; and they struggled
in the water: and when he had done this, he placed the
bowl upon his head, and repaired to the King's palace, as
the 'Efrit had commanded him, and, going up unto the
King, presented to him the fish; and the King was exces-
sively astonished at them, for he had never seen any like
them in the course of his life; and he said. Give these fish
to the slave cook-maid. This maid had been sent as a
present to him by the King of the Greeks, three days
before ; and he had not yet tried her skill. The Wezir,
therefore, ordered her to fry the fish, and said to her, O
maid, the King saith unto thee, I have not reserved my tear
but for the time of my difficulty: — to-day, then, gratify us by
a specimen of thy excellent cookery, for a person hath
brought these fish as a present to the Sultan. After having
thus charged her, the Wezir returned, and the King ordered
him to give the fisherman four hundred pieces of gold: so
the Wezir gave them to him; and he took them in his lap,
and returned to his home and his wife, joyful and happy, and
bought what was needful for his family.
Such were the events that befell the fisherman: now we
must relate what happened to the maid. — She took the fish,
and cleaned them, and arranged them in the frying-pan, and
left them until one side was cooked, when she turned them
upon the other side; and lo, the wall of the kitchen clove
asunder, and there came forth from it a damsel of tall
stature, smooth-cheeked, of perfect form, with eyes adorned
with kohl, beautiful in countenance, and with heavy, swelling
hips; wearing a kufiyeh interwoven with blue silk; with
rings in her ears, and bracelets on her wrists, and rings set
W'ith precious jewels on her fingers ; and in her hand was a
rod of Indian cane: and she dipped the end of the rod in
the frying-pan, and said, O fish, are ye remaining faithful to
your covenant? At the sight of this, the cook-maid fainted.
The damsel then repeated the same words a second and a
third time; after which the fish raised their heads from the
frying-pan, and answered, Yes, yes. They then repeated
the following verse : —
If thou return, we return; and if thou come, we come; and if thou
forsake, we verily do the same.
And upon this the damsel overturned the frying-pan, and
departed by the way she had entered, and the wall of the
kitchen closed up again. The cook-maid then arose, and
beheld the four fish burnt like charcoal ; and she exclaimed.
In his first encounter his staff broke ! — and as she sat re-
proaching herself, she beheld the Wezir standing at her
head; and he said to her, Bring the fish to the Sultan: —
and she wept, and informed him of what had happened.
The Wezir was astonished at her words, and exclaimed.
This is indeed a wonderful event; — and he sent for the
fisherman, and when he was brought, he said to him, O
fisherman, thou must bring to us four fish like those which
thou broughtest before. The fisherman accordingly went
forth to the lake, and threw his net, and when he had drawn
it in he found in it four fish as before; and he took them to
the Wezir, who went with them to the maid, and said to her,
Rise, and fry them in my presence, that I may witness this
occurrence. The maid, therefore, prepared the fish, and
put them in the frying-pan, and they had remained but a
little while, when the wall clove asunder, and the damsel
appeared, clad as before, and holding the rod; and she
dipped the end of the rod in the frying-pan, and said, O fish,
O fish, are ye remaining faithful to your old covenant ? Upon
which they raised their heads, and answered as before; and
the damsel overturned the frying-pan with the rod, and re-
turned by the way she had entered, and the wall closed up
again.
The Wezir then said, This is an event which cannot be
concealed from the King: — so he \vent to him, and informed
him of what had happened in his presence; and the King
said, I must see this with my own eyes. He sent, therefore,
to the fisherman, and commanded him to bring four fish like
the former, granting him a delay of three days. And the
fisherman repaired to the lake, and brought the fish thence
to the King, who ordered again that four hundred pieces of
gold should be given to him ; and then, turning to the
Wezir, said to him. Cook the fish thyself here before me.
The Wezir answered, I hear and obey. He brought the
frying-pan, and after he had cleaned the fish, threw them
into it; and as soon as he had turned them, the wall clove
asunder, and there came forth from it a negro, in size like a
bull, or like one of the tribe of 'Ad,'' having in his hand
a branch of a green tree; and he said, with a clear but
terrifying voice, O fish, O fish, are ye remaining faithful to
your old covenant? Upon which they raised their heads,
and answered as before, Yes, yes:
If thou return, we return ; and if thou come, we come ; and if thou
forsake, we verily do the same.
The smallest of the ancient Arab tribe of 'Ad is said to have been
sixty cubits high.
The black then approached the frying-pan, and overturned
it with the branch, and the fish became like charcoal, and
he went away as he had come.
When he had thus disappeared from before their eyes,
the King said, This is an event respecting which it is im-
possible to keep silence, and there must, undoubtedly, be
some strange circumstance connected with these fish. He
then ordered that the fisherman should be brought before
him, and when he had come, he said to him. Whence came
these fish? The fisherman answered, From a lake between
four mountains behind this mountain which is without thy
city. The King said to him. How many days' journey
distant? He answered, O our lord the Sultan, a journey
of half-an-hour. And the Sultan was astonished, and ordered
his troops to go out immediately with him and the fisherman,
who began to curse the 'Efrit. They proceeded until they
had ascended the mountain, and descended into a wide
desert tract which they had never before seen in their whole
lives; and the Sultan and all the troops wondered at the
sight of this desert, which was between four mountains,
and at the fish, which were of four colors, red and white and
yellow and blue. The King paused in astonishment, and
said to the troops, and to the other attendants who were
with him. Hath any one of you before seen this lake in this
place? They all answered. No. Then said the King, By
Allah, I will not enter my city, nor will I sit upon my throne,
until I know the true history of this lake, and of its fish.
And upon this he ordered his people to encamp around these
mountains; and they did so. He then called for the Wezir,
who was a well-informed, sensible, prudent, and learned
man; and when he had presented himself before him, he
said to him, I desire to do a thing with which I will acquaint
thee; and it is this: — I have resolved to depart alone this
night, to seek for information respecting this lake and
its fish : therefore, sit thou at the door of my pavilion,
and say to the Emirs and Wezirs and Chamberlains, The
Sultan is sick, and hath commanded me not to allow any
person to go in unto him : — and acquaint no one with my
intention.
The Wezir was unable to oppose his design; so the King
disguised himself, and slung on his sword, and withdrew
himself from the midst of his troops. He journeyed the
e.-hole of the night, until the morning, and proceeded until the
heat became oppressive to him: he then paused to rest; after
which he again proceeded the remainder of the day and the
second night until the morning, when there appeared before
him, in the distance, something black, at the sight of which
he rejoiced, and said. Perhaps I shall there find some person
who will inform me of the history of the lake and its fish.
And when he approached this black object, he found it to be
a palace built of black stones, and overlaid with iron; and
one of the leaves of its door was open, and the other shut.
The King was glad, and he stood at the door, and knocked
gently, but heard no answer; he knocked a second and a
third time, but again heard no answer: then he knocked a
fourth time, and with violence ; but no one answered. So
he said, It is doubtless empty : — and he took courage, and
entered from the door into the passage, and cried out,
saying, O inhabitants of the palace, I am a stranger and a
traveller ! have ye any provision ? And he repeated these
Avords a second and a third time; but heard no answer.
And upon this he fortified his heart, and emboldened him-
self, and proceeded from the passage into the midst of the
palace ; but he found no one there, and only saw that it was
furnished, and that there was, in the centre of it, a fountain
with four lions of red gold, which poured forth the water
from their mouths, like pearls and jewels: around this were
birds; and over the top of the palace was extended a net
which prevented their flying out. At the sight of these
objects he was astonished, and he was grieved that he saw
no person there whom he could ask for information respect-
ing the lake, and the fish, and the mountains, and the palace.
He then sat down between the doors, reflecting upon these
things; and as he thus sat, he heard a voice of lamentation
from a sorrowful heart, chanting these verses: —
O fortune, thou pitiest me not, nor releasest me ! See my heart is
straitened between affliction and peril !
Will not you [O my wife] have compassion on the mip;hty whom
love hath abased, and the wealthy who is reductxl to
indigence ?
We were jealous even of the zephyr which passed over you : but
when the divine decree is issued, the eye becometh blind !
What resource hath the archer when, in the hour of conflict, ' >
desireth to discharge the arrow, but findeth his bow-strit.^
broken ?
And when troubles are multiplied upon the noble-minded, where
shall he find refuge from fate and from destiny?
When the Sultan heard this lamentation, he sprang upon
his feet, and, seeking the direction whence it proceeded,
found a curtain suspended before the door of a chamber;
and he raised it, and beheld behind it a young man sitting
on a couch raised to the height of a cubit from the floor.
He was a handsome youth, well-shaped, and of eloquent
speech, with shining forehead, and rosy cheek, marked with
a mole resembling ambergris. The King was rejoiced at
seeing him, and saluted him; and the young man (who
remained sitting, and was clad with a vest of silk, embroid-
ered with gold, but who exhibited traces of grief) returned
his salutation, and said to him, O my master, excuse my not
rising. — youth ! said the King, inform me respecting the
lake, and its fish of various colours, and respecting this
palace, and the reason of thy being alone in it, and of thy
lamentation. When the young man heard these words,
tears trickled down his cheeks, and he wept bitterly. And
the King was astonished, and said to him. What causeth
thee to weep, O youth? He answered. How can I refrain
from weeping, when this is my state? — and so saying, he
stretched forth his hand, and lifted up the skirts of his
clothing; and lo, half of him, from his waist to the soles of
his feet, was stone; and from his waist to the hair of his
head, he was like other men. He then said, Know, O King,
that the story of the fish is extraordinary; if it were engraved
upon the intellect, it would be a lesson to him who would be
admonished : — and he related as follows : —
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