[19] The húrís (or, as the term is often written, houries) are the black-eyed nymphs of the Muslim Paradise, of whom Muhammed has promised seventy to each believer.
[20] One of the Egyptian magicians who “withstood Moses,” mentioned by Arabian writers: their chief was called Simeon, and among the eminent masters of the “art magic” were Sadhúr and Ghadúr, Jaath and Mossa, Waran and Lamán, each of whom came attended with his disciples, amounting in all to several thousands.—St. Paul, in his second epistle to Timothy, iii, 8, gives the names of two of the magicians as Jannes and Jambres.
[21] The notion of the life or heart of an ogre, witch, etc., being extraneous to the body and concealed in some object—usually very difficult to reach by the heroes who are in their power—is often the subject of the popular fictions of all countries. What is probably the oldest extant instance of this occurs in an Egyptian romance, preserved among the hieratic papyri in the British Museum, which bears to have been written more than 3000 years ago, or about the period when Moses was, in his youth, at the court of Pharaoh. The “curious” reader may find numerous other examples cited in my Popular Tales and Fictions, vol. i, pp. 347-351.
[22] Parrots often play important parts in Asiatic tales: here, however, the “intelligent” bird, as will be seen presently, works only mischief.
[23] It does not appear from the preceding part of the narrative that the hero received any ring from a “neighbour’s wife.” Perhaps something has been omitted by a copyist of the Persian text.
[24] Many an honest fellow, besides the generous-hearted Obayd, having been thus beggared by the rapacity of an Asiatic despot, has turned robber in self-defence.
[25] i.e., Persia.
[26] An ashrafí is worth about ten shillings.
[27] It is a favourite plan for extricating an impecunious hero out of his difficulties in Eastern fictions to represent him as finding a great treasure in a ruin. And no doubt such an incident has often occurred in Asiatic countries, where—in the absence of such institutions as banks—money and jewels are usually concealed in the earth, old wells, etc., lest the sovereign or one of his greedy ministers should come to know of any person possessing much wealth, and forthwith confiscate it.
[28] By “Rúm” (or Roum) Asiatics generally mean Europe, at least Eastern Europe, and “the land of the Franks” has the same meaning.