The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 16 - Unknown

The History of the Sleeper and the Waker (Nights
cccxxx.-ccclxxix.).
The History of Warlock and the Cook (ccclxxx.-cd.).
The History of the Prisoner in the Bímáristán or Madhouse
(cd.-cdxxvii.).
The History of Ghánim the Thrall o' Love (cdxxviii.-cdlxxiv.).
The History of Zayn al-Asnám and the King of the Jánn
(cdlxxv.-cdxci.).
The History of Alaeddin (cdxcii.-dlxix.), and
The History of Ten Wazirs (dlxx.).

The copy breaks off at folio 320, r in the middle of Night dcxxxi., and the date (given at the end of Night cdxxvii., folio 139) is Shubát (February), A.D. 1787. This is the MS. numbered Supplément Arabe, No. 1716.

In Paris, Dom Chavis forgathered with M. Cazotte, a littérateur of the category "light," an ingénieux écrivain, distinguished for "gaiety, delicacy, wit and Attic elegance," and favorably known for (inter alia) his poem "Olivier," his "Diable Amoureux," "The Lord Impromptu," and a travesty of The Nights called "The Thousand and One Fopperies." The two agreed to collaborate, the Syrian translating the Arabic into French, and the Parisian metamorphosing the manner and matter to "the style and taste of the day"; that is to say, working up an exaggerated imitation, a caricature, of Galland. The work appeared, according to Mr. A. G. Ellis, of the British Museum, who kindly sent me these notes, in Le Cabinet | des Fées, | ou | Collection choisie | des Contes des Fées, | et autres contes merveilleux, | ornés de figures. | Tome trente-huitiéme—(quarante-unième). | A Genève, | chez Bárde, Manget et Compagnie, | Imprimeurs-Libraires. | Et se trouve à Paris | Rue et Hôtel Serpente. | 1788-89, 8 [1] . The half-title is Les Veilliées Persanes, and on the second title- page is Les Veilliées | du | Sultan Schahriar, avec | la Sultane Scheherazade; | Histoires incroyables, amusantes, et morales, | traduites de l'Arabe par M. Cazotte et | D. Chavis. Faisant suite aux mille et une Nuits. | Ornées de I2 belles gravures. | Tome premier (—quatrième) | à Genève, | chez Barde, Manget et Comp' | 1793. This 8vo[2] bears the abridged title, La Suite des mille et une Nuits, Contes Arabes, traduits par Dom Chavis et M. Cazotte. The work was printed with illustrations at Geneva and in Paris, MDCCLXXXVIII., and formed the last four volumes (xxxviii.- xli.) of the great Recueil, the Cabinet des Fées, published at Geneva from A.D. 1788 to 1793.

1. The Robber-Caliph; or, adventures of Haroun-Alraschid, with
the Princess of Persia and the fair Zutulbe.[3] 2. The Power of Destiny, or, Story of the Journey of Giafar to
Damascus comprehending the Adventures of Chebib (Habíb) and
his family.
3. The Story of Halechalbé (Ali Chelebí) and the Unknown Lady;
or, the Bimaristan.
4. The Idiot; or, Story of Xailoun.[4] 5. The Adventures of Simustafa (="Sí" for Sídí "Mustafa") and
the Princess Ilsatilsone (Lizzat al-Lusún = Delight of
Tongues?).
6. Adventures of Alibengiad, Sultan of Herat, and of the False
Birds of Paradise.
7. History of Sankarib and his two Viziers.
8. History of the Family of the Schebandad (Shah-bander =
Consul) of Surat.
9. The Lover of the Stars: or, Abil Hasan's Story.
10. History of Captain Tranchemont and his Brave Companions:
Debil Hasen's Story.
11. The Dream of Valid Hasan.
12-23. Story of Bohetzad and his Ten Viziers (with eleven
subsidiary tales).[5] 24. Story of Habib and Dorathal-Goase (=Durrat al-Ghawwás the
Pearl of the Diver); or, the Arabian Knight.
25. Story of Illabousatrous (?) of Schal-Goase, and of
Camarilzaman.
26. Story of the Lady of the Beautiful Tresses.
27. The History of Habib and Dorathal-Goase; or, the Arabian
Knight continued.
28. History of Maugraby (Al Magnrabi=the Moor); or, the
Magician.
29. History of Halaiaddin ('Alá al-Din, Alaeddin, Aladdin),
Prince of Persia.
30. History of Yemaladdin (Jamál al-Dín), Prince of Great Katay.
31. History of Baha-Ildur, Prince of Cinigae.
32. History of Badrildinn (Badr al-Dín), Prince of Tartary.
33. History of the Amours of Maugraby with Auhata al-Kawakik ( =
Ukht al-Kawákib, Sister of the Planets), daughter of the
King of Egypt.
34. History of the Birth of Maugraby.

Of these thirty four only five (MS. iv., vi., vii., xxvii. and xxxii.) have not been found in the original Arabic.

Public opinion was highly favourable to the "Suite" when first issued. Orientalism was at that time new to Europe, and the general was startled by its novelties, e.g. by "Women wearing drawers and trousers like their husbands, and men arrayed in loose robes like their wives, yet at the same time cherishing, as so many goats, each a venerable length of beard." (Heron's Preface.) They found its "phænomena so remote from the customs and manners of Europe, that, when exhibited as entering into the ordinary system of human affairs, they could not fail to confer a considerable share of amusive novelty on the characters and events with which they were connected." (Ditto, Preface.) Jonathan Scott roundly pronounced the continuation a forgery. Dr. Patrick Russell (History of Aleppo, vol. i. 385) had no good opinion of it, and Caussin de Perceval (père, vol. viii., p. 40-46) declared the version éloignée du goût Orientale; yet he re-translated the tales from the original Arabic (Continués, Paris, 1806), and in this he was followed by Gauttier, while Southey borrowed the idea of his beautiful romance, "Thalaba the Destroyer," now in Lethe from the "History of Maughraby." Mr. A. G. Ellis considers these tales as good as the old "Arabian Nights," and my friend Mr. W. F. Kirby (Appendix to The Nights, vol. x. p. 418), quite agrees with him that Chavis and Cazotte's Continuation is well worthy of republication in its entirety. It remained for the Edinburgh Review, in one of those ignorant and scurrilous articles with which it periodically outrages truth and good taste (No. 535, July, 1886), to state, "Cazotte published his Suite des Mille et une Nuits, a barefaced forgery, in 1785." A barefaced forgery! when the original of twenty eight tales out of thirty four are perfectly well known, and when sundry of these appear in MSS. of "The Thousand Nights and a Night."

The following is a list of the Tales (widely differing from those of Chavis and Cazotte) which appeared in the version of Caussin de Perceval.

VOLUME VIII.