The Four Hundred and Seventy-ninth Night,
Dunyazad said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied, "With love
and good will!" It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Wazir
said to the King, "Give him the girl." Hereupon the marriage-tie
was tied and the bridegroom was led in to the bride, and either
rejoiced mightily in his mate,[410] and was increased their
joy and destroyed was all annoy. Now Abu Niyyah was a favourite
of Fortune, so the Sultan appointed him the government during
three days of every week, and he continued ruling after that
fashion for a while of time. But one day of the days, as he was
sitting in his pleasaunce, suddenly the man Abu Niyyatayn passed
before him leaning on a palm-stick, and crying, "O ye beneficent,
O ye folk of good!" When Abu Niyyah beheld him he said to his
Chamberlain, "Hither with yonder man;" and as soon as he was
brought he bade them lead him to the Hammam and dress him in a
new habit. They did his bidding and set the beggar before his
whilome comrade who said to him, "Dost thou know me?" "No, O my
lord," said the other; and he, "I am thy companion of old whom
thou wouldst have left to die in the well; but I, by Allah, never
changed my intent, and all that I own in this world I will give
unto thee half thereof." And they sat in converse for a while of
time, until at last quoth the Double-minded one, "Whence camest thou by all this?" and quoth he, "From the well wherein thou threwest me." Hereupon from the excess of his envy and malice Abu Niyyatayn said to Abu Niyyah, "I also will go down that well and what to thee was given the same shall be given to me." Then he left him and went forth from him, and he ceased not faring until he made the place. Presently he descended, and having reached the bottom, there sat until the hour of nightfall, when behold! the two 'Ifrits came and, taking seat by the well-mouth, salam'd each to other. But they had no force nor contrivance and both were as weaklings; so said one of them, "What is thy case, O my brother, and how is thy health?" and said the other, "Ah me, O my brother, since the hour that I was with thee in this place on such a night, I have been cast out of the Sultan's daughter, and until this tide I have been unable to approach her or indeed at any other time." Said his comrade, "I also am like thee, for the Hoard hath gone forth from me, and I have waxed feeble."[411] Then cried the twain, "By Allah, the origin of our losses is from this well, so let us block it up with stones." Hereupon the twain arose and brought with them crumbling earth and pebbles,[412] and threw it down the well when it fell upon Abu Niyyatayn, and his bones were crushed upon his flesh.[413] Now
his comrade, Abu Niyyah, sat expecting him to return, but he came
not, so he cried, "Walláhi! needs must I go and look for him in
yonder well and see what he is doing." So he took horse and
fared thither and found the pit filled up; so he knew and was
certified that his comrade's intent had been evil, and had cast
him into the hands of death.?And Shahrazad was surprised by the
dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say.
Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, "How sweet is thy story, O sister
mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!" Quoth she, "And where
is this compared with that I should relate to you on the coming
night, an the Sovran suffer me to survive?" Now when it was the
next night and that was