When the fisherman heard her words, he wept and made moan and lamented; then, recalling what had betided himself in the days of his youth, when love had the mastery over him and longing and desire and distraction were sore upon him and the fires of passion consumed him, replied with these couplets:—
What fair excuse is this my pining plight, ✿ With wasted limbs and tears’ unceasing blight;
And eyelids open in the nightly murk, ✿ And heart like fire-stick[[70]] ready fire to smite;
Indeed love burdened us in early youth, ✿ And true from false coin soon we learned aright:
Then did we sell our soul on way of love, ✿ And drunk of many a well[[71]] to win her sight;
Venturing very life to gain her grace, ✿ And make high profit perilling a mite.
‘Tis Love’s religion whoso buys with life ✿ His lover’s grace, with highest gain is dight.
And when he ended his verse, he moored his boat to the beach and said to her, “Embark, so may I carry thee whither thou wilt.” Thereupon she embarked and he put off with her; but they had not gone far from land, before there came out a stern-wind upon the boat and drove it swiftly out of sight of shore. Now the fisherman knew not whither he went, and the strong wind blew without ceasing three days, when it fell by leave of Allah Almighty, and they sailed on and ceased not sailing till they came in sight of a city sitting upon the sea-shore,——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Three Hundred and Seventy-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the fisherman’s craft, carrying Rose-in-Hood, made the city sitting upon the sea shore, the man set about making fast to the land. Now the King of the city was a Prince of pith and puissance named Dirbás, the Lion; and he chanced at that moment to be seated, with his son, at a window in the royal palace giving upon the sea; and happening to look out seawards, they saw the fishing-boat make the land. They observed it narrowly and espied therein a young lady, as she were the full moon overhanging the horizon-edge, with pendants in her ears of costly balass-rubies and a collar of precious stones about her throat. Hereby the King knew that this must indeed be the daughter of some King or great noble and, going forth of the sea-gate of the palace, went down to the boat, where he found the lady asleep and the fisherman busied in making fast to shore. So he went up to her and aroused her, whereupon she awoke, weeping; and he asked her, “Whence comest thou and whose daughter art thou and what be the cause of thy coming hither?”; and she answered, “I am the daughter of Ibrahim, Wazir to King Shámikh; and the manner of my coming hither is wondrous and the cause thereof marvellous.” And she told him her whole story first and last, hiding naught from him; then she groaned aloud and recited these couplets:—