Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 9.djvu/158

138 So shall we agree to forego division and abide copartners in our property and eat together and drink together, or shall we divide the money and the stuffs and take each his part?” Said they, “We will divide them and take each his share.”’ Then Abdallah turned to the two dogs and said to them, ‘Did it happen thus, O my brothers?’ And they bowed their heads and lowered their eyes, as who should say, ‘Yes.’ ‘So,’ continued Abdallah, ‘I called in a departitor from the Cadi’s court and he divided amongst us the money and the stuffs and all our father’s effects, allotting the house and shop to me in exchange for a part of the money and stuffs to which I was entitled. We were content with this; so the house and shop fell to my share, whilst my brothers took theirs in money and stuffs. I opened the shop and stocking it with [my part of] the stuffs, bought others with the money allotted to me, over and above the house and the shop, till the latter was full, and I sat selling and buying. As for my brothers, they bought stuffs and chartering a ship, set out on a voyage to foreign parts. Quoth I, “God aid them! As for me, my livelihood is ready to my hand and peace is priceless.”

I abode thus a whole year, during which time God prospered me and I made great profits, till I became possessed of the like of that which our father had left us. One day, as I sat in my shop, with two fur pelisses on me, one of sable and the other of miniver, for it was the winter season and the time of the great cold, there came up to me my two brothers, each clad in nothing but a ragged shirt, and their lips were white with cold and they were shivering. When I saw them in this plight, it was grievous to me and I mourned for them and my reason fled from my head. So I rose and embraced them and wept over their condition. Then I put on one of them the pelisse of sable and on the other that of miniver and