The Arabian Nights, Volume I of IV

by Unknown

I was scarcely more than an infant, when the king, my father, (for I too am a prince by birth,) observing that I possessed great quickness of intellects, spared no pains in its cultivation. He collected from every part of his dominions whoever was famous for science and a knowledge of the fine arts, for the purpose of instructing me. I no sooner knew how to read and write, than I learnt by art the whole of the Koran, that admirable book, in which we find the basis, precepts, and regulations of our religion. That my knowledge might not be shallow and superficial, I perused the works of the most approved authors who have written on the same subject, and both explained and illustrated that book by their commentaries. To this study I added an acquaintance with all the traditions received from the mouth of our prophet, by those illustrious men who were his contemporaries. Not satisfied with possessing a deep and extensive knowledge of our religion, I made also a particular study of our histories, and became master of polite literature, of poetry and versification. I then applied myself to geography and chronology, and became anxious to attain a knowledge of our own language in its greatest purity; and all this without neglecting those exercises which are so suited to a prince. There was, however, one thing in which I most delighted, and at length excelled, and that was in forming the characters of our Arabic language; and I surpassed all the writing-masters of our kingdom, who had acquired the greatest reputation.

Fame bestowed upon me even more honour than I deserved. She was not satisfied with spreading a report of my talents throughout the dominions of the king, my father, but even carried the account of them to the court of the Indies, whose powerful monarch became so curious to see me, that he sent an ambassador, accompanied with the richest presents to my father, to request me of him. This embassy, for many reasons, delighted him. He was persuaded that it was the best possible thing for a prince of my age to travel to foreign courts; and he was, also, very well satisfied at forming a friendship with the sultan of India. I set out with the ambassador, but with very few attendants and little baggage, on account of the length and difficulties of the way.

We had been about a month on our journey, when we saw in the distance an immense cloud of dust, and soon after we discovered fifty horsemen, well armed. They were robbers, who approached us at full speed. As we had ten horses laden with our baggage and the presents which I was to make to the sultan, in my father’s name, and as our party consisted but of very few, you may easily imagine that the robbers attacked us without hesitation. Not being able to repel force by force, we told them we were the ambassadors of the sultan of India, and we hoped they would do nothing contrary to the respect they owed to him. By this we thought we should preserve both our equipage and our lives; but the robbers insolently answered, “Why do you wish us to respect the sultan your master? We are not his subjects, nor even within his realm.” Having said this, they immediately surrounded and attacked us on all sides. I defended myself as long as I could, but finding that I was wounded, and seeing the ambassador and all our attendants overthrown, I took advantage of the remaining strength of my horse, who was also wounded, and escaped from them. I pushed him on as far as he would carry me; he then suddenly fell under my weight, quite dead from fatigue and the blood he had lost. I disentangled myself as fast as possible; and observing that no one pursued me, I supposed the robbers did not choose to neglect the plunder they had acquired.

Imagine me then, madam, alone, wounded, destitute of every help, and in a country where I was an entire stranger. I was afraid of regaining the great road from the dread of falling once more into the hands of the robbers. After having bound up my wound, which was not dangerous, I walked on the rest of the day, and in the evening I arrived at the foot of a mountain, on one side of which I discovered a sort of cave. I went in, and passed the night without any disturbance, after having eaten some fruits which I had gathered as I came along.

For some days following I continued my journey, without meeting with any place where I could rest; but at the end of about a month I arrived at a very large city, well inhabited, and most delightfully and advantageously situated; as several rivers flowed round it and caused a perpetual spring. The number of agreeable objects which presented themselves to my eyes, excited so great a joy that it suspended for a moment the poignant regret I felt at finding myself in such a miserable situation. My whole face as well as my hands and feet were of a brown tawny colour, for the sun had quite burnt me: and my slippers were so completely worn out by walking, that I was obliged to travel bare-foot; besides this, my clothes were all in rags.

I entered the town in order to learn the language spoken, and thence to find out where I was. I addressed myself to a tailor, who was at work in his shop. On account of my youth, and a certain manner about me, which intimated I was something better than I appeared, he made me sit down near him. He asked me who I was, where I came from, and what had brought me to that place. I concealed nothing from him, but informed him of every circumstance that had happened to me, and did not even hesitate at discovering even my name. The tailor listened to me very attentively, but when I had finished my narration, instead of giving me any consolation, he augmented my troubles. “Take care,” said he to me, “that you do not place the same confidence in any one else that you have in me, for the prince who reigns in this kingdom is the greatest enemy of the king, your father; and if he should be informed of your arrival in this city, I doubt not but he will inflict some evil upon you.” I readily believed the sincerity of the tailor, when he told me the name of the prince; but as the enmity between my father and him has no connection with my adventures, I shall not, madam, enter into any detail of it.

I thanked the tailor for the advice he had given me; and told him that I placed implicit faith in his good counsel, and should never forget the favour I received from him. As he supposed I was not deficient in appetite, he brought me something to eat, and offered me even an apartment at his house, which I accepted.

Some days after my arrival, the tailor remarking that I was tolerably recovered from the effects of my long and painful journey, and being aware that most of the princes of our religion had the precaution, in order to guard against any reverse of fortune, to make themselves acquainted with some art or trade to assist them in case of want, asked me if I knew any thing by which I could acquire a livelihood, without being chargeable to any body. I told him, that I was well versed in the science of laws, both human and divine, that I was a grammarian, a poet, and above all, that I wrote remarkably well. “With all this,” he replied, “you will not in this country procure a morsel of bread; nothing is more useless here than this kind of knowledge. If you wish to follow my advice,” he added, “you will procure a short jacket, and as you are strong and of a good constitution, you may go into the neighbouring forest and cut wood for fuel. You may then go and expose it for sale in the market; and I assure you, that you may acquire a sufficient small income so as to live independently of every one. By these means you will be enabled to wait till heaven shall become favourable to you, and till the cloud of bad fortune which hangs over you, and obliges you to conceal your birth, shall have blown over. I will furnish you with a cord and hatchet.”

The fear of being known, and the necessity of supporting myself, determined me to pursue this plan, in spite of the degradation and pain which were attached to it.

The next day the tailor bought me a hatchet and a cord, and also a short jacket; and recommending me to some poor people who obtained their livelihood in the same manner, he requested them to take me with them. They conducted me to the forest, and from this time I regularly brought back upon my head a large bundle of wood, which I sold for a small piece of gold money, current in that country: for although the forest was not far off, wood was nevertheless dear in that city, because there were few men who gave themselves the trouble of going to cut it. I soon acquired a considerable sum, and was enabled to repay the tailor what he had expended on my account.