Hatim cast a single look at the queen; his senses abandoned him, and he fell lifeless before her. Alarmed at his apparent illness, she hastily rose, and seizing a phial of rose-water, sprinkled part of it on his face. When his senses were restored, the queen ordered for him a splendid couch set with gold and jewels, and made him sit beside her. Then in the sweetest tones he ever heard she began to converse with him on the subject of his journey and the death of her father.
Hatim detailed all that he had seen, and suffered and acted, without the least reservation; and added, “For thee, fair queen, I have undergone all these perils and toils. May I hope that my afflictions will bring forth the fruit of joy, and that you will reward my pains with the pleasure of your society, for without you I would sooner die than live.” The damsels in attendance all supported Hatim’s suit, and said, “Our gracious sovereign, this is the renowned prince of Arabia; happy for you was the day when he came here. He loves you sincerely; leave him not to despair. Think not of your father’s death, for he was a magician who delighted in cruelty and oppression. Well has it been for mankind that this brave youth has rid the world of such a monster.”
At last the queen consented, and after the usual ceremonies, she was wedded to Hatim. He, however, when on the point of giving himself up to the pleasure of her society, all at once became dejected and thoughtful. He remembered his friend Munir, the Assyrian prince; and the thoughts of the pangs he must endure so affected Hatim, that a trembling seized his whole body. His bride observed his emotion, and stood in the utmost perplexity, thinking that she was herself the occasion of it. “Alas!” said she, “what have I done in his sight that he should view me with such aversion, or what can I do to arrive at the cause of his uneasiness?” The queen, resourceless as she was, remained silent, when at length Hatim observed that she was affected by his strange conduct; he therefore resolved to explain to her the whole affair, in order to clear himself of disrespect towards her: “My soul and life,” said he, “why are you cast down? why should the sun and moon be obscured? Know, my beloved, that I have left my home for the sake of the Assyrian prince Munir, who is deeply enamoured of Husn Banu. This lady has proposed seven questions, and her hand shall be the reward of him who may solve them. The Assyrian prince in vain made the attempt, and on his failure, was wandering he knew not whither. I found him in the deserts of Arabia; and having returned with him to Shahabad, I undertook to solve the questions, and at present my friend resides in one of the caravanseraïs of that city. I have already travelled and found out the solutions of three of these enigmas, and now I am in quest of the fourth. When I saw you, however, I forgot myself and the rest of the world, and now when it has pleased God the Supreme to unite us in the bonds of love, the thoughts of my despairing friend have disturbed my soul. Yea, I have made a vow that I should perform my utmost to serve the Assyrian prince; and to me all worldly pleasures are forbidden, till he has obtained the object of his desire. It would then be highly improper that I should give myself up to enjoyment while he lives in the pangs of expectation; I must, therefore, proceed instantly to the city of Karam.”—“And what is to become of me in the meantime?” asked the bride. “I intend,” replied Hatim, “to convey you to Yemen, my native country, where my father is king.”
And so Hatim sent his bride with her attendants to his father’s dominions in Arabia, while he himself proceeded to Karam, which he reached in the course of a few days. On meeting some of the people there, he asked, “Pray, friends, can you tell me if there is a man in this place who exclaims, ‘He who speaks the truth is always tranquil’?”—“Truly, stranger,” said they, “there is no man here such as you inquire for; but we know of a man of extreme old age who has written above his door these very words.”—“Can you tell me,” asked Hatim, “where he lives?”—“His residence,” replied they, “is about three farasangs from this city, in a village called Old Karam, for there the city Karam once stood.”
Hatim immediately set out, and in the course of that afternoon arrived at the village of Old Karam. There he beheld a splendid mansion, on the door of which were written the words of the enigma. He went up to the gate and knocked with his hand; whereupon a voice from within reached his ear, saying, “Stranger, whence art thou, and what is thy business here?”—“I am from Shahabad,” replied Hatim, “and my business is with the owner of this mansion.” The janitor hastened to his master with this intelligence, and was ordered to admit Hatim without delay.
The master of the house, an elderly man, received Hatim with due courtesy, and hospitably entertained him with food and drink. After he had refreshed himself, his host said, “Pray tell me, stranger, what is the cause of your journey hither, and from what country are you? It has never been known that more than two foreigners have visited this place, and of these two you are one.”—“Venerable sir,” replied Hatim, “I am a native of Yemen; and I came hither from the city of Shahabad, where dwells an Assyrian prince, named Munir. This noble youth is in love with Husn Banu, the queen of that city; and he cannot acquire the object of his wish, except he procure the solution of seven questions which she has proposed. Three of these I have already answered, and now I am in quest of the fourth, which is no other than the words written above your door.”
The aged man replied, “Brave Arab! thou art truly noble; and long will thy fame survive thee in the world. Assuredly there lives not another man who would, for the sake of a friend, encounter such toils and perils as thine. But to-day thou hast come from afar, and it is fit that thou shouldst repose for the night; to-morrow I shall explain to thee the circumstances connected with the words written on my door.”—“I am willing to comply with your hospitable injunctions,” rejoined Hatim, “but there is one thing which I wish to ask of you. The people of Karam told me that your age was far beyond the ordinary limits; yet you seem to me little past the prime of life, not a hair of your head yet gray. Is it true, then, as they say, that you have lived since the time when the city of Karam stood on this spot?”—“Brave Hatim!” replied the aged man, “retire to rest for this night, and to-morrow you shall be informed of all you ask.”
Hatim accordingly betook himself to repose, and passed the night in pleasant slumbers. When morning came he arose, and after enjoying the banquet of his host, he renewed the subject of the previous evening. The aged man replied, saying, “Listen, then, Hatim: it is now seven hundred years since Karam stood here; but my age is really eight hundred years, however I may appear to you. In my youth I was a gamester, and night and day my whole business was gambling. One day it happened that my fortune forsook me, and I lost everything I possessed. Thus destitute, I sallied out as soon as it was dark, in order to rob or steal, as might be most convenient. I considered at the same time, that in attacking the poor and humble I should likely have nothing for my trouble; I resolved, therefore, to attempt the palace of our king. I softly approached the walls of the royal residence, and fastened my scaling-ladder, made of ropes, to a window. When all was quiet, I entered one of the apartments, which happened to be that in which the king’s daughter slept. The attendants of the youthful princess lay senseless outside the apartment. I seized her gold and jewels, as likewise the golden lamp that burned beside her, and unobserved made my escape from the palace. In my flight I came to a desert, where I met a gang of thieves busily occupied in the division of their spoil. The moment these saw me, they shouted, ‘Stand, traveller, tell us who thou art, and whence thou comest.’ I told the thieves the occurrences of my life, and how I had broken in upon the king’s palace, and carried off his daughter’s jewels. I then displayed to their astonished sight a very large ruby, which they no sooner saw than their avarice was whetted, and they were about to wrest it from me by force, when a tremendous sound issued from the desert, so loud that the earth trembled under us. The thieves, terrified, betook themselves to flight, while I stood riveted to the spot.
“The person from whom this voice issued approached me, and sternly said, ‘Tell me truly who thou art, and whence thou camest here.’ I told him every circumstance of my wicked life, and showed him the treasure I had so unlawfully obtained, not concealing the high-prized ruby. ‘’Tis well for thee,’ said he, ‘that thou hast told me the truth. I forgive thee thy crimes, and leave thy treasure to thine enjoyment; but swear to me solemnly that thou wilt henceforth avoid gambling.’ I then made a vow in the presence of heaven and that formidable being, that I would never gamble. ‘Well,’ said my strange monitor, ‘keep thine oath sacred, and the years of thy life shall reach nine hundred.’
“Thus we parted, and I returned to this spot, which was then a populous city, and with part of my wealth built this mansion. Some of my old acquaintances envied my prosperity, and informed the superintendent of the city that I had lately been a poor man, and now that I was possessed of immense wealth, so as to build a mansion like that of a prince: ‘assuredly,’ added they, ‘he cannot have come by such treasures honestly.’ The magistrate summoned me to his presence: to him also I detailed all that I had done, without the least reserve. When he heard my statement, he conducted me, as in duty bound, before the king, whom I had so greatly offended.