Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 9.djvu/48

30 and five fat fowls and bring me a lute.’ The porter went out and buying what he had ordered, said to his wife, ‘Strain this wine and cook us this food and look thou dress it daintily, for this young man overwhelms us with his bounties.’ So she did as he bade her, to the utmost of desire; and he took the victuals and carried them to Ibrahim. Then they ate and drank and made merry; and Ibrahim wept and repeated the following verses:

Then he gave a great sob and fell down in a swoon. The porter sighed, and when he came to himself, he said to him, ‘O my lord, what is it makes thee weep and who is she to whom thou alludest in these verses? Indeed, she cannot be but as dust to thy feet.’ Ibrahim made him no answer, but, rising, brought out a parcel of the richest women’s clothes and said to him, ‘Take this to thy harem.’ So he carried it to his wife and she returned with him to the young man’s lodging and found him weeping, whereupon quoth the porter to him, ‘Verily, thou breakest our hearts! Tell us what fair one thou desirest, and she shall be thy handmaid.’ ‘O uncle,’ answered he, ‘know that I am the son of El Khesib, lord of Egpyt,Egypt, [sic] and I am enamoured of Jemileh, daughter of the lord Aboulleith.’ ‘Allah! Allah!’ exclaimed the porter’s wife. ‘O my brother, leave this talk, lest any hear of us and we perish. For there is not on the face of the earth a more masterful than she nor may any name to her the name of a man, for she is averse from men. Wherefore, O my son, turn from her to other than her.’

When Ibrahim heard this, he wept sore, and the porter