Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 8.djvu/268

256 thee, O woman!” cried he. “Hast thou not thy fill of me in the house? Here I fear scandal, more by token that thou divertest me from my affairs. Fearest thou not that some one will see us?” Quoth she, “We need have no care for that, seeing that we do neither sin nor lewdness; and as for the watering of the garden, that may wait, for that thou canst water it whenas thou wilt.” And she would take neither excuse nor reason from him, but was instant with him in seeking dalliance.

So he arose and lay with her, which when the young men aforesaid saw, they ran upon them and seized them, saying, “We will not let you go, for ye are adulterers, and except we lie with the woman, we will denounce you to the police.” “Out on you!” answered the man. “This is my wife and I am the master of the garden.” They paid no heed to him, but fell upon the woman, who cried out to him for succour, saying, “Suffer them not to defile me!” So he came up to them, calling out for help, but one of them turned on him and smote him with his dagger and slew him. Then they returned to the woman and ravished her. This I tell thee, O king,’ continued the vizier, ‘but that thou mayst know that it behoveth not men to give ear unto a woman’s talk neither obey her in aught nor accept her judgment in counsel. Beware, then, lest thou don the garment of ignorance, after that of knowledge and wisdom, and follow perverse counsel, after knowing that which is true and profitable. Wherefore ensue thou not a paltry pleasure, whose end is corruption and whose inclining is unto sore and uttermost perdition.’

When the king heard this, he said to Shimas, ‘To-morrow I will come forth to them, if it be the will of God the Most High.’ So Shimas returned to the grandees and notables who were present and told them what the king had said. But this came to the ears of the favourite; so she went in to the king and said to him, ‘A king’s subjects