Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 5.djvu/38

20 out to him and said, ‘Come in; my lady hath a mind to buy some of thy wares, after she hath tried them and looked at them.’ The man thought she spoke truly and seeing no harm in this, entered and sat down, as she bade him. The maid shut the door upon him, whereupon her mistress, came out and taking him by the gown, drew him into her chamber and said to him, ‘How long shall I seek of thee [a lover’s] privacy? Verily, my patience is at an end on thine account. See now, the place is perfumed and food ready and the master of the house is absent this night, and I give myself to thee, I whose favours kings and captains and men of fortune have sought this long while, but I have hearkened to none of them.’ And she went on talking thus to him, whilst he raised not his eyes from the ground, for shame before God and fear of the pains of His punishment, even as saith the poet:

He strove to free himself from her, but could not; so he said to her, ‘I want one thing of thee.’ ‘What is that?’ asked she, and he answered, ‘I wish for pure water and that I may carry it to the highest place of thy house and do an occasion therewith and cleanse myself of a defilement, which I may not discover to thee.’ Quoth she, ‘The house is spacious and hath closets and privy places and lavatories at command.’ But he replied, ‘I want nothing but to be at a height.’ So she said to her handmaid, ‘Carry him up upup [sic] to the belvedere at the top of the house.’ Accordingly the maid took him up thither and giving him a vessel of water, went away and left him.

He made the ablution and prayed a two-bow prayer; after which he looked at the ground, thinking to throw himself down, but, seeing it afar off, feared to be torn to