Page:Tales from the Arabic, Vol 3.djvu/103

85 Would God thou knewst what I endure for love of thee and how My vitals for thy cruelty are all forspent and dead! Fain, fain would I forget thy love. Alack, my heart denies To be consoled, and ’gainst thy wrath nought standeth me in stead. An thou’dst vouchsafe to favour me, ’twould lighten my despair, Though but in dreams thine image ’twere that visited my bed. Persist not on my weakliness with thy disdain nor be Treason and breach of love its troth to thee attributed; For know that hither have I fared and come to this thy land, By hopes of union with thee and near fruition led. How oft I’ve waked, whilst over me my comrades kept the watch! How many a stony waste I’ve crossed, how many a desert dread! From mine own land, to visit thee, I came at love’s command, For all the distance did forbid, ’twixt me and thee that spread. Wherefore, by Him who letteth waste my frame, have ruth on me And quench my yearning and the fires by passion in me fed. In glory’s raiment clad, by thee the stars of heaven are shamed And in amaze the full moon stares to see thy goodlihead. All charms, indeed, thou dost comprise; so who shall vie with thee And who shall blame me if for love of such a fair I’m sped?

When he had made an end of his verses, he folded the letter and delivering it to the nurse, charged her keep the secret. So she took it and carrying it to Mariyeh, gave it to her. The princess broke it open and read it and apprehended its purport. Then said she, “By Allah, O nurse, my heart is burdened with an exceeding chagrin, never knew I a dourer, because of this correspondence and of these verses.” And the nurse made answer to her, saying, “O my lady, thou art in thy dwelling and thy place and thy heart is void