Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 9.djvu/93

75 and hearkening with his ears, and he was certified that there was no lewdness in the dervish and said in himself, ‘An he were a lewd fellow, he had not stood out against all this importunity.’ The boy continued to beguile the dervish and every time he addressed himself to prayer, he interrupted him, till at last he waxed exceeding wroth with him and was rough with him and beat him. Kemerezzeman wept and his father came in and wiped away his tears and comforted him. Then said he to the dervish, ‘O my brother, since thou art on this wise, why didst thou weep and sigh, when thou sawest my son? Is there a reason for this?’ ‘Yes,’ answered the dervish; and Abdurrehman continued, ‘When I saw thee weep at sight of my son, I deemed evil of thee and bade the boy do with thee thus, that I might try thee, purposing in myself, if I saw thee require him of lewdness, to come in upon thee and slay thee. But, when I saw thy carriage towards him, I knew thee for one of those who are virtuous to the utmost. But, God on thee, tell me the cause of thy weeping!’

The dervish sighed and said, ‘O my lord, fret not a closed wound.’ But the merchant said, ‘Nothing will serve but thou must tell me.’ ‘Know, then,’ began the other, ‘that I am a dervish who wander in the lands and the countries, admonishing myself by the traces of the Creator of Night and Day. It chanced that one Friday I entered the city of Bassora in the forenoon of the day and saw the shops open and full of all manner wares and goods and meat and drink; but they were deserted and there was in them neither man nor woman nor girl nor boy: nor in the markets and the streets was there dog nor cat nor yet voice heard nor creature seen. I marvelled at this and said to myself, “I wonder whither the people of the city are gone with their dogs and cats and what