Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 7.djvu/297

269 And also these:

Then he went down to the river and casting his net, waited awhile; after which he drew it up and found therein a fine perch, with a big head, a taletail [sic] like a ladle and eyes like dinars. When Khelifeh saw this fish, he rejoiced, for he had never in his life caught its like, so he took it, marvelling, and carried it to the ape of Aboussaadat the Jew, as ’twere he had gotten possession of the whole world. Quoth the ape, ‘O Khelifeh, what wilt thou do with this and with thine ape?’ ‘I will tell thee, O prince of apes,’ answered the fisherman. ‘First, I will cast about to make away with yonder accursed one, my ape, and take thee in his stead and give thee every day to eat of what thou wilt.’ ‘Since thou hast made choice of me,’ rejoined the ape, ‘I will tell thee how thou shalt do, wherein, if it please God the Most High, shall be the mending of thy fortune. Take another cord and tie me also to a tree, where leave me and go to the midst of the dyke and cast thy net into the Tigris. Then draw it up, after waiting awhile, and thou shalt find therein a fish, than which thou never sawest a finer in thy life. Bring it to me and I will tell thee how thou shalt do after this.’

So he rose forthright and casting his net into the Tigris, drew up a great shad, the bigness of a lamb; never had he set eyes on its like, for it was larger than the first fish. He carried it to the ape, who said to him, ‘Gather some green grass and put half of it in a basket; lay the fish on it and cover it with the other half. Then shoulder the basket and leave us here tied and betake thee to Baghdad. If any bespeak thee or question thee