Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 5.djvu/366

332 promising to get it darned and return it, and went away, nor have I seen her from that day to this.’” “With all my heart,” replied the young man and rising forthrtght, repaired to the shop of the silk merchant, with whom he sat till he saw the old woman pass, telling her beads on a rosary she held in her hand; whereupon he sprang up and laying hold of her clothes, began to revile and rail at her, whilst she answered him with fair words, saying, “Indeed, my son, thou art excusable.”

The people of the bazaar flocked round them, saying, “What is to do?” and he replied, “Know, O folk, that I bought a veil of this merchant for fifty dinars and gave it to my slave-girl, who wore it awhile, then sat down to fumigate it. Presently, a spark flew out of the chafing dish and lighting on the edge of the veil, burnt a hole in it. So we committed it to this pestilent old woman, that she might give it to who should darn it and return it to us, and we have never set eyes on her again till this day.” “This young man speaks the truth,” answered the old woman. “I did indeed have the veil of him, but I took it with me into one of the houses where I used to visit and forgot it there, nor do I know where I left it; and being a poor woman, I feared its owner and dared not face him.”

Now the girl’s husband was listening to all they said and when he heard the tale that the crafty old woman had contrived with the young man, he rose to his feet and said, “God is Most Great! I crave pardon of the Almighty for my offences and what my heart suspected!” And he praised God who had discovered to him the truth. Then he accosted the old woman and said to her, “Dost thou use to visit us?” “O my son,” replied she, “I visit you and other than you, for the sake of alms; but from that day to this, none hath given me any news of the veil.”