Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 9.djvu/133

113 shall abide imprisoned in this chamber, thou and thy maid, till I find one who will buy you, when I will sell you to him. And if ye resist, I will kill you both, for thou art a traitress, and there is no good in thee.’ ‘Do thy will,’ answered she. ‘I deserve all thou canst do with me.’ Then he locked the door on them and gave his women a charge respecting them, saying, ‘Let none go up to them nor speak with them, save the black slave-girl, who shall give them their meat and drink through the chamber-window.’ So she abode with her maid, weeping and repenting her of that which she had done with her husband.

Meanwhile Abdurrehman sent out the marriage-brokers, to look out a wife of rank and worth for his son, and they ceased not to make search, and as often as they saw one girl, they heard of a fairer than she, till they came to the house of the Sheikh el Islam and saw his daughter. Now she had no equal in Cairo for beauty and grace and symmetry, and she was a thousand times handsomer than the jeweller’s wife. So they told Abdurrehman and he and the notables repaired to her father and sought her in marriage of him. Then they drew up the contract and made her a splendid wedding. Moreover, Abdurrehman gave bride-feasts and held open house forty days.

On the first day, he invited the doctors of the law and they held a splendid nativity. On the morrow, he invited all the merchants, and so on during the rest of the forty days, making a banquet every day to one or other class of folk, till he had bidden all the men of learning and amirs and beys and magistrates, whilst the drums beat and the flutes sounded and the merchant sat to receive the guests,

VOL. IX.