Camaralzaman adopted this advice, and employed himself the rest of the day in filling and arranging the fifty jars; and as he feared that he might lose the talisman of the princess Badoura by wearing it constantly on his arm, he had the precaution to put it in one of these jars, on which he set a mark to know it again. When he had completed his work, and the jars were ready for removal, as night was approaching, he went home with the gardener, and entering into conversation with him, related the battle of the two birds, and the circumstances attending this adventure, by which he had recovered the talisman of the princess Badoura; the gardener was not less surprised than rejoiced at this account, for his sake.
Whether it was on account of his great age, or that he had taken too much exercise on that day, the gardener passed a bad night; his illness increased on the following day, and on the third morning he found himself still worse. As soon as it was day, the captain of the vessel himself, together with some of his seamen, came and knocked at the garden gate. Camaralzaman opened it, and they inquired for the passenger who was to embark on board their vessel. “I am he,” replied the prince: “the gardener, who took my passage, is ill and cannot speak to you; however, pray come in and take away these jars of olives, together with my baggage, and I will follow you as soon as I have taken my leave of him.”
The seamen carried away his jars and baggage, and on leaving Camaralzaman desired him to follow them immediately; “The wind is fair,” added the captain, “and I only wait for you to set sail.”
As soon as the captain and seamen were gone, Camaralzaman returned to the gardener to bid him farewell, and thank him for all the good offices he had received from him; but he found him at the point of death, and he had scarcely obtained from him the profession of his faith, according to the custom of good mussulmen, on the article of death, than he saw him expire.
The prince being under the necessity of embarking immediately, used the utmost diligence in performing the last duties to the deceased. He washed the body, wrapped it in the sepulchral clothes, and having dug a grave in the garden, for as Mahometans were barely tolerated in the city of idolaters, they had no public cemetery, and buried it himself, which employed him till the close of the day. He then set out, without losing any more time, to embark; and to use great dispatch, he took the key of the garden with him, intending to deliver it to the proprietor; or, if he could not accomplish that, to give it to some trusty person, in the presence of witnesses, to remit it to him. But when he arrived at the harbour, he was informed that the ship had weighed anchor some time, and it was already out of sight. They added, that it had waited for him three full hours before it set sail.
As you may suppose, Sire, Camaralzaman was vexed and distressed to the utmost degree, at finding himself obliged to remain in a country, where he had no motive for wishing to form any acquaintance, and to wait another year before the opportunity he had just lost, would again present itself. What mortified him still more was, that he had parted with the talisman of the princess Badoura, which he now gave up for lost. He had no other method to pursue, but to return to the garden he had left, to rent it of the landlord to whom it belonged, and to continue the cultivation of it, while he deplored his misfortune. As he could not support the fatigue of all the labour it required, he hired a boy to assist him; and that he might not lose the other share of the treasure, which came to him by the death of the gardener, who had died without heirs, he put the gold dust into fifty other jars, and covered them with olives as he had done before, that he might take them with him, when the time came for him to embark.
While prince Camaralzaman was beginning another year of pain, sorrow, and impatience, the vessel continued its voyage with a favorable wind, and arrived without any misfortune al the capital of the Isle of Ebony.
As the palace was on the sea-shore, the new king, or rather the princess Badoura, who perceived the vessel, while sailing into port, with all its flags flying, inquired what ship it was, and was told, that it came every year from the city of idolaters at that season, and that it was in general laden with very rich merchandize.
The princess, who in the midst of all the state and splendor that surrounded her, had her mind constantly occupied with the idea of Camaralzaman, conceived, that he might have embarked on board that vessel, and the thought occurred to her of going to meet him when he landed, not intending to make herself known to him, for she was convinced he would not recognise her, but to observe him, and take the measures she thought most proper for their mutual discovery. Under pretence therefore of inspecting the merchandize, and even of being the first to see and to choose the most valuable for herself, she ordered a horse to be brought her. She went to the harbour, accompanied by several officers, who happened to be with her, and she arrived at the moment that the captain came on shore. She desired him to come to her, and inquired of him from whence he had sailed, how long he had been at sea, what good or unfortunate incidents he had met with during his voyage, if he had amongst his passengers any stranger of distinction, and above all with what his vessel was laden.
The captain gave satisfactory answers to all these questions; as for the passengers, he assured her there were none besides the merchants, who were accustomed to trade thither, and that they brought very rich stuffs from different countries, linens of the finest texture, painted as well as plain, precious stones, musk, ambergris, camphor, civet, spices, medicinal drugs, olives, and several other articles.