Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night - Volume 4.djvu/301

 been stolen.' Now when I heard this, I marvelled and asked them, 'What had he with him?'; and they answered, 'He had a pair of saddle-bags on the ass.' Quoth I, 'What was in them?'; quoth they, 'We know not.' So I said, 'Bring them hither;' and when they brought them to me I bade open them, behold, therein was the body of a murdered man, cut in pieces. Now as soon as I saw this, I marvelled at the case and said in myself, 'Glory to God! The cause of the hanging of this peasant was none other but his crime against this murdered man; and thy Lord is not unjust towards His servants.'" And men also tell the tale of

THE THIEF AND THE SHROFF.
A certain Shroff, bearing a bag of gold pieces, once passed by a company of thieves, and one of these sharpers said to the others, "I, and I only, have the power to steal yonder purse." So they asked, "How wilt thou do it?"; and he answered, "Look ye all!"; and followed the money-changer, till he entered his house, when he threw the bag on a shelf and, being affected with diabetes, went into the chapel of ease to do his want, calling to the slave-girl, "Bring me an ewer of water." She took the ewer and followed him to the privy, leaving the door open, whereupon the thief entered and, seizing the money-bag, made off with it to his companions, to whom he told what had passed.—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

When it was the Three Hundred and Forty-fifth Night,

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the thief took the money-bag and made off with it to his companions to whom