390 ([return])
[ i.e. My wife. In addition to notes in vols. i. 165, and iv. 9, 126, I would observe that "Harím" (women) is the broken plur. of "Hurmah;" from Haram, the honour of the house, forbidden to all save her spouse. But it is also an infinitive (whose plur. is Harîmát = the women of a family); and in places it is still used for the women's apartment, the gynæceum. The latter by way of distinction I have mostly denoted by the good old English corruption "Harem.">[
391 ([return])
[ In text "Misla 'l-khárúf" (for Kharúf) a common phrase for an "innocent," a half idiot; so our poets sing of "silly (harmless, Germ. Selig) sheep.">[
392 ([return])
[ In text this ends the tale.]
393 ([return])
[ In text "Wa lá huwa 'ashamná min-ka talkash 'alà Harimi-ná." "'Ashama," lit. = he greeded for; and "Lakasha" = he conversed with. (There is no need to change the "talkas" of the text into "talkash." "Lakasa" is one of the words called "Zidd," i.e. with opposite meanings: it can signify "to incline passionately towards," or "to loath with abhorrence." As the noun "Laks" means "itch" the sentence might perhaps be translated: "that thou hadst an itching after our Harím." What would lead me to prefer the reading of the MS. is that the verb is construed with the preposition "'alà" = upon, towards, for, while "lakash," to converse, is followed by "ma'" = with.—ST.)]
394 ([return])
[ Such was the bounden duty of a good neighbour.]