Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 3.djvu/151

131 ‘Dhoulcaadeh,’ answered Kemerezzeman, ‘and it is followed by Dhoulhejjeh; then comes Muherrem, then Sefer, then Rebia the First and Rebia the Second, the two Jumadas, Rejeb, Shaaban, Ramazan and Shewwal.’ At this the King rejoiced exceedingly and spat in the Vizier’s face, saying, ‘O wicked old man, how canst thou pretend that my son is mad? None is mad but thou.’ The Vizier shook his head and would have spoken, but bethought himself to wait awhile and see what befell. Then the King said to Kemerezzeman, ‘O my son, what is this thou sayest to the eunuch and the Vizier of a fair damsel that lay with thee last night? What damsel is this of whom thou speakest?’ Kemerezzeman laughed at his father’s words and replied, ‘O my father, I can bear no more jesting; so mock me not with another word, for my humour is soured by that you have done with me. Let it suffice thee to know that I consent to marry, but on condition that thou give me to wife her with whom I lay yesternight; for I am assured that it was thou sentest her to me and madest me in love with her, then tookest her away from beside me before the dawn.’ ‘O my son,’ rejoined the King, ‘the name of God encompass thee and preserve thy wit from madness! What young lady is this of whom thou talkest? By Allah, O my son, I know nothing of the affair, and I conjure thee, tell me if it be a delusion of sleep or a hallucination caused by food? Doubtless, thou layest down to sleep last night, with thy mind occupied with marriage and troubled with the thought of it (may God curse marriage and the hour in which it occurred to me and him who counselled it!) and dreamtest that a handsome young lady embraced thee and didst fancy thou sawst her on wake; but all this, O my son, is but an illusion of dreams.’ ‘Leave this talk,’ replied Kemerezzeman, ‘and swear to me by God, the All-wise Creator, the Humbler of the mighty and the