Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 8.djvu/201

189 prayed for death, that I might be at rest from this misery! Behold, here am I at thy door, prostrate for cold and wet, and I beseech thee, by Allah, take my hand of thy charity and bring me in with thee and give me shelter in the vestibule of thy nest; for I am a stranger and wretched and it is said, ‘Whoso shelters a stranger and a wretched one in his dwelling, his shelter shall be Paradise on the Day of Reckoning.’ And thou, O my brother, it behoves thee to earn a recompense [from God] by succouring me and suffering me abide with thee this night till the morning, when I will go my way.” “How shall I suffer thee enter my nest,” answered the mouse, “seeing that thou art my natural enemy and thy food is of my flesh? Indeed I fear lest thou play me false, for that is of thy nature and there is no faith in thee, and the byword says, ‘It befits not to entrust a whoremonger with a fair woman nor a needy man with money nor fire with firewood.’ Neither doth it behove me to entrust myself to thee; and it is said, ‘Enmity of kind grows stronger, as the enemy himself grows weaker.’”

The cat made answer in a very faint voice, as she were in the most piteous case, saying, “What thou sayest of admonitory instances is the truth and I deny not my offences against thee; but I beseech thee to forgive that which is past of the enmity of kind between thee and me; for it is said, ‘Whoso forgiveth a creature like himself, his Creator will forgive him his sins.’ It is true that I was thy sometime enemy, but to-day I am a suitor for thy friendship, and it is said, ‘If thou wilt have thine enemy be thy friend, do with him good.’ O my brother, I swear to thee by Allah and make a binding covenant with thee that I will never do thee hurt, more by token that I have no power unto this; wherefore do thou trust in God and do good and accept my oath and covenant.” “How can