Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night - Volume 2.djvu/98

 Alf Laylah wa Laylah. Now when it was the forty-fifth Night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Caliph, after marvelling at his eloquence of tongue and sweetness of speech, said to him, " Draw near to me." So he drew near and quoth the King, " Tell me thy tale and declare to me thy case." So Ghanim sat down and related to him what had befallen him in Baghdad, of his sleeping in the tomb and of his opening the chest after the three slaves had departed, and informed him, in short, of everything that had happened to him from commencement to conclusion—— none of which we will repeat for interest fails in twice told tales. The Caliph was convinced that he was a true man; so he invested him with a dress of honour, and placed him near himself in token of favour, and said to him, " Acquit me of the responsibility I have incurred." * And Ghanim so did, saying, " O our lord the Sultan, of a truth thy slave and all things his two hands own are his master's." The Caliph was pleased at this and gave orders to set apart a palace for him and assigned to him pay and allowances, rations and donations, which amounted to something immense. So he removed thither with sister and mother ; after which the Caliph, hearing that his sister Fitnah was in beauty a very "fitnah," 2 a mere seduc- tion, demanded her in marriage of Ghanim who replied, " She is thy handmaid as I am thy slave." The Caliph thanked him and gave him an hundred thousand dinars, then summoned the witnesses and the Kazi, and on one and the same day they wrote out the two contracts of marriage between the Caliph and Fitnah and be- tween Ghanim bin Ayyub and Kut al-Kulub ; and the two marriages were consummated on one and the same night. When it was morning, the Caliph gave orders to record the history of what had befallen Ghanim from first to last and to deposit it in the royal muniment-rooms, that those who came after him might read it and marvel at the dealings of Destiny and put their trust in Him who created the night and the day. Yet, O auspicious King, this story to which thou hast deigned give ear is on no wise more wondrous than the i.e. " Pardon me if I injured thee"——a popular phrase. A "seduction," a charmer. The double-entendre has before been noticed.