Chapter XVIII: Part 18

[FN#63] In Arab. "Jady" = the Zodiacal sign Capricorn.

[FN#64] We find a similar facetia in Mullah J�m� (Garden viii.). When a sheep leapt out of the stream, her tail happened to be raised, and a woolcarder said laughing:--"I have seen thy parts genital." She turned her head and replied, "O miserable, for many a year I have seen thee mother-naked yet never laughed I." This alludes to the practice of such artisans who on account of the heat in their workshops and the fibre adhering to their clothes work in naturalibus. See p. 178, the Beharist�n (Abode of Spring). Printed by the Kamashastra Society for Private Subscribers only. Benares, 1887.

[FN#65] This passage is not Koranic, and, according to Prof. Houdas, the word "Muhkaman" is never found in the Holy Volume. [The passage is not a literal quotation, but it evidently alludes to Koran iii. 5: "Huwa'llaz� anzal� 'alayka 'l-kit�ba minhu �y�tun muhkam�tun" = He it is who sent down to thee the book, some of whose signs (or versets) are confirmed. The singular "muhkamatun" is applied (xlvii.) to "S�ratun," a chapter, and in both places the meaning of "confirmed" is "not abrogated by later revelations." Hence the sequel of my first quotation these portions are called "the mother (i.e. groundwork) of the book," and the learned Sayyid is not far from the mark after all.--ST]

[FN#66] Surah ii. (The Cow) v. 56, the verse beginning, "Allah! there be no God but He; ... His Throne overreacheth the Heavens and the Hearth," etc.

[FN#67] Surah lxxiii. (The Bee) v. 92, ending with, "And he forbiddeth frowardness and wrong-doing and oppression; and He warneth you that haply may ye be warned."

[FN#68] Surah (Meccah) xcix. vv. 7 and 8: in text "Mithk�la Zarratin," which Mr. Rodwell (p. 28) englishes "an atom's weight of good," and adds in a foot-note, "Lit. a single ant." Prof. Houdas would render it, Quiconque aura fait la valeur d'un mitskal de millet en fait de bien; but I hardly think that "Zarrah" can mean "Durrah" = millet. ["Mithk�l" in this context is explained by the commentators by "Wazn" = weight, this being the original meaning of the word which is a nomen instrumenti of the form "Mif'�l," denoting "that by which the gravity of bodies is ascertained." Later on it became the well-known technical term for a particular weight. "Zarrah," according to some glossarists, is the noun of unity of "Zarr," the young ones of the ant, an antlet, which is said to weigh the twelfth part of a "Kitm�r" = pedicle of the date-fruit, or the hundredth part of a grain of barley, or to have no weight at all. Hence "Mukhkh al-Zarr," the brains of the antlet, means a thing that does not exist or is impossible to be found. According to others, "Zarrah" is a particle of al-Hab�, i.e. of the motes that are seen dancing in the sunlight, called "Sonnenst�ubchen" in German, and "atomo solare" in Italian. Koran xxi. 48 and xxxi. 15 we find the expression "Mithk�la Habbatin min Khardalin" = of the weight of a mustard-seed, used in a similar sense with the present quotation.--ST]

[FN#69] Surah lxx. 38, Mr. Rodwell (p. 60) translates, "Is it that every man of them would fain enter the Garden of Delights?"

[FN#70] Surah xxxix. 54: they sinned by becoming apostates from Al-Islam. The verset ends, "Verily all sins doth Allah forgive: aye, Gracious, and Merciful is He."

[FN#71] Surah ii. 159; the quotation in the MS. is cut short.

[FN#72] Surah ii. 107; the end of the verse is, "Yet both are readers of the Book. So with like words say they (the pagan Arabs) who have no knowledge."

[FN#73] Surah li. (The Scattering), v. 56.

[FN#74] Surah ii. v. 30.

[FN#75] Surah xl. (The Believer), v. 78. In the text it is fragmentary. I do not see why Mr. Rodwell founds upon this verset a charge against the Prophet of ignorance concerning Jewish history: Mohammed seems to have followed the Talmud and tradition rather than the Holy Writ of the Hebrews.

[FN#76] Surah (The Believers) lxiv. 108.

[FN#77] Surah xxxv. (The Creator or the Angels), v. 31: The sentence concludes in v. 32, "Who of His bounty hath placed us in a Mansion that shall abide for ever, therein no evil shall reach us, and therein no weariness shall touch us."

[FN#78] Surah ("Sad") lix. 54; Iblis, like Satan in the Book of Job, is engaged in dialogue with the Almighty. I may here note that Scott (p. 265) has partially translated these Koranic quotations, but he has given only one reference.

[FN#79] In text "An� min ahli z�lika," of which the vulgar equivalent would be "Kiz�" (for "Kaz�lika," "Kaz�") = so (it is)!

[FN#80] i.e. On an empty stomach, to "open the spittle" is = to break the fast. Sir Wm. Gull in his evidence before a committee of the House of Commons deposed that after severe labor he found a bunch of dried raisins as efficacious a "pick-me-up" as a glass of stimulants. The value of dried grapes to the Alpinist is well known.

[FN#81] Arab. "Al-Kad�d" = jerked (charqui = chaire cuite) meat-flesh smoked, or (mostly) sun-dried.

[FN#82] I have noticed (i. 345) one of the blunders in our last unfortunate occupation of Egypt where our soldiers died uselessly of dysenteric disease because they were rationed with heating beef instead of digestible mutton.

[FN#83] Arab. "Al-Marham al-akbar."

[FN#84] [In the text: "Al-Kisrat al-y�bisah 'al� 'l-R�k fa-innah� tukhlik jam�'a m� 'al� fum al-m�dah min al-balgham," of which I cannot make anything but: a slice of dry bread (kisrah = piece of bread) on the spittle (i.e. to break the fast), for it absorbs (lit. uses up, fourth form of "khalik" = to be worn out) all that there may be of phlegm on the mouth of the stomach. Can it be that the dish "Khushk-n�n" (Pers. = dry-bread) is meant, of which the village clown in one of Spitta Bey's tales, when he was treated to it by Harun al-Rashid thought it must be the "Hamm�m," because he had heard his grandmother say, that the Hamm�m (bath) is the most delightful thing in the world?�ST]

[FN#85] The stomach has two mouths, �sophagic above (which is here alluded to) and pyloric below.

[FN#86] Arab. "'Irk al-Uns�" = chord� testiculorum, in Engl. simply the cord.

[FN#87] The "'Aj�z" is a woman who ceases to have her monthly period: the idea is engrained in the Eastern mind and I cannot but believe in it seeing the old-young faces of men who have "married their grandmothers" for money or folly, and what not.

[FN#88] Arab. "Al-'Ak�k," vol. iii. 179: it is a tradition of the Prophet that the best of bezels for a signet-ring is the carnelian, and such are still the theory and practice of the Moslem East.

[FN#89] Arab. "Tuh�l;" in text "Tayhal." Mr. Doughty (Arabia Deserta, i. 547) writes the word "Tahal" and translates it "ague-cake," i.e. the throbbing enlarged spleen, left after fevers, especially those of Al-Hij�z and Khaybar. [The form "Tayh�l" with a plural "Taw�hil" for the usual "Tih�l" = spleen is quoted by Dozy from the valuable Vocabulary published by Schiaparelli, 1871, after an old MS. of the end of the xiii. century. It has the same relation to the verb "tayhal" = he suffered from the spleen, which "Tih�l" bears to the verb "tuhil," used passively in the same sense. The name of the disease is "Tuh�l."--ST]

[FN#90] In text "Kasalah" = a shock of corn, assemblage of sheaves. It may be a clerical error for "Kasabah" = stalk, haulm, straw.

[FN#91] Of course the conversation drifts into matters sexual and inter-sexual: in a similar story, "Tawaddud," the learned slave girl, "hangs down her head for shame and confusion" (vol. v. 225); but the young Sayyid speaks out bravely as becomes a male masculant.

[FN#92] [In the text: "Allat� lau nazarat il� 'l-sam� la-a'shab (fourth form of 'ashab with the affirmative "la") al-Saf� (pl. of Saf�t), wa lau nazarat il� 'l-arz la amtar taghru-h� (read thaghru-h�) L�luan lam yuskab wa r�ku-h� min al-Zul�l a'zab (for a'zab min al-Zul�l)," which I would translate: Who if she look upon the heavens, the very rocks cover themselves with verdure, and an she look upon the earth, her lips rain unpierced pearls (words of virgin eloquence) and the dews of whose mouth are sweeter than the purest water.--ST.]

[FN#93] These lines have often occurred before: see index (vol. x. 443) "Wa lau anunah� li 'l-Mushrik�n," etc. I have therefore borrowed from Mr. Payne, vol. viii. 78, whose version is admirable.

[FN#94] For the Jah�m-hell, see vol. viii. 111.

[FN#95] For the Seven Ages of womankind (on the Irish model) see vol. ix. 175. Some form of these verses is known throughout the Moslem East to prince and peasant. They usually begin:--

From the tenth to the twentieth year * To the gaze a charm doth
appear;

and end with:--

From sixty to three score ten * On all befal Allah's malison.

[FN#96] [Here I suppose the word "k�l" has been dropped after "bi 'l-shi'r," and it should be: He (the youth) replied, that was our common sire, Adam, etc.--ST.]

[FN#97] "H�b�l" and "K�b�l" are the Arab. equivalent of Abel and Cain. Neither are named in the Koran (Surah v. "The Table," vv. 30-35), which borrows dialogue between the brothers derived from the Targum (Jeirus. on Gen. iv. 8) and makes the raven show the mode of burial to Cain, not to Adam, as related by the Jews. Rodwell's Koran, p. 543.

[FN#98] Sit venia verbo: I have the less hesitation in making Adam anticipate the widow Malone from a profound conviction that some Hibernian antiquary, like Vallancey who found the Irish tongue in the Punic language of Plautus, shall distinctly prove that our first forefather spoke Keltic.

[FN#99] In text "R�h," wind, gust (of temper), pride, rage. Amongst the Badaw�n it is the name given to rheumatism (gout being unknown), and all obscure aching diseases by no means confined to flatulence or distension. [The MS. has: "il� an k�ta-ka 'l-'amal al-rab�h," which gives no sense whatever. Sir Richard reads: "k�tala-ka 'l-'amal al-r�h," and thus arrives at the above translation. I would simply drop a dot on the first letter of "k�ta-ka," reading "f�ta-ka," when the meaning of the line as it stands, would be: until the work that is profitable passed away from thee, i.e., until thou ceasedst to do good. The word "rab�h" is not found in Dictionaries, but it is evidently an intensive of "r�bih" (tij�rah r�bihah = a profitable traffic) and its root occurs in the Koran, ii. 15: "Fa-m� rabihat Tij�ratuhum" = but their traffic has not been gainful.--ST.]

[FN#100] Arab. "Badrah": see vol. iv. 281. [According to K�m�s, "Badrah" is a purse of one thousand or ten thousand dirhams, or of seven thousand d�n�rs. As lower down it is called "Badrat Zahab," a purse of gold, I would take it here in the third sense.--ST.]

[FN#101] In text "Zardiy�," for "Zaradiyyah" = a small mail-coat, a light helmet.

[FN#102] Arab. "'Ind 'uzz�ti 's-sin�ni" = lit. the thorny shrubs of ground bare of pasture.

[FN#103] This is another form of "inverted speech," meaning the clean contrary; see vols. ii. 265; vi. 262; and viii. 179.

[FN#104] In text "Lam yakthir Khayrak"; this phrase (pronounced "Kattir Khayrak") is the Egyptian (and Moslem) equivalent for our "thank you." Vols. iv. 6; v. 171. Scott (p. 267) makes Al-Hajjaj end with, "Cursed is he who doth not requite a sincere adviser, declareth our sacred Koran."

[FN#105] In the W.M. MS. this tale is followed by the "History of Uns al-Wuj�d and the Wazir's daughter Rose-in-hood," for which see vol. v. 32 et seq. Then comes the long romance "M�zin of Khor�s�n," which is a replica of "Hasan of Bassorah and the King's daughter of the Jinn" (vol. viii. 7). I have noted (vol. x. 78) that this story shows us the process of transition from the Persian original to the Arabic copy. "M�zin" is also the P.N. of an Arab tribe: De Sacy, Chrest. i. 406.

[FN#106] MS. vol. v. pp. 92-94: Scott, vol. vi. 343: Gauttier, vi. 376. The story is a replica of the Mock Caliph (vol. iv. 130) and the Tale of the First Lunatic (Suppl. vol. iv.); but I have retained it on account of the peculiar freshness and na�vet� of treatment which distinguishes it, also as a specimen of how extensively editors and scriveners can vary the same subject.

[FN#107] In text "Natar" (watching) for "Nataf" (indigestion, disgust).

[FN#108] Here again we have the formula "K�la 'l-R�w�" = the reciter saith, showing the purpose of the MS. See Terminal Essay, p. 163.

[FN#109] It were well to remind the reader that "Khal�fah" (never written "Khal�f") is = a viceregent or vicar, i.e. of the Prophet of Allah, not of Allah himself, a sense which was especially deprecated by the Caliph Abubakr as "vicar" supposes l'absence du chef; or Dieu est pr�sent partout et � tout instant. Ibn Khal. ii. 496.

[FN#110] This tale, founded on popular belief in tribadism, has already been told in vol. vii. 130: in the W.M. MS. it occupies 23 pages (pp. 95- 118). Scott (vi. 343) has "Mesroor retired and brought in Ali Ibn Munsoor Damuskkee, who related to the Caliph a foolish narrative (!) of two lovers of Bussorah, each of whom was coy when the other wished to be kind." The respectable Britisher evidently cared not to "read between the lines."

[FN#111] In pop. parlance "Let us be off."

[FN#112] Arab. "Al-�f�k" plur. of Ufk, "elegant" (as the grammarians say) for the world, the universe.

[FN#113] [In MS. "Rankah" or "Ranakah," probably for "Raunakah," which usually means "troubled,"; speaking of water, but which, according to Schiaparelli's Vocabulista, has also the meaning of "Raunak" = amenitas. As however "Ranakah" taken as fem. of "Ranak" shares with Raunakah the signification of "troubled," it may perhaps also be a parallel form to the latter in the second sense.--ST.]

[FN#114] The text has "Martabat Saltanah" (for Sult�niyah) which may mean a royal Divan. The "Martabah" is a mattress varying in size and thickness, stuffed with cotton and covered with cloths of various colours and the latter mostly original and admirable of figuration but now supplanted by the wretched printed calicoes of civilisation. It is placed upon the ground and garnished with cushions which are usually of length equally the width of the mattress and of a height measuring about half of that breadth. When the "Martabah" is placed upon its "Mastabah" (bench of masonry or timber) or upon its "Sar�r" (a framework of "jar�d" or midribs of the palm), it becomes the D�wan = divan.

[FN#115] In text "Bi-iz�-hum�;" lit. vis-�-vis to the twain.

[FN#116] These have occurred vol. i. 176: I quote Mr. Payne (i. 156).

[FN#117] In text "Hann�-kum� 'llah:" see "Hanian," vol. ii. 5.

[FN#118] This is usually a sign of grief, a symbolic act which dates from the days of the Heb. patriarchs (Gen. xxxvii. 29-34); but here it is the mark of strong excitement. The hand is placed within the collar and a strong pull tears the light stuff all down the breast. Economical men do this in a way which makes darning easy.

[FN#119] [The MS. is very indistinct in this place, but by supplying "'an" after "ghibta" and reading "'ayn�" for "'ann�," I have no doubt the words are: Wa in ghibta 'an 'ayni fa-m� ghibta 'an kalbi = and if thou art absent from my eyes, yet thou are not absent from my heart. The metre is Taw�l and the line has occurred elsewhere in The Nights.--ST.]

[FN#120] I have already noted that "Hil�l" is the crescent (waxing or waning) for the first and last two or three nights: during the rest of the lunar month the lesser light is called "Kamar."

[FN#121] The sense is that of Coleridge.--

To be beloved is all I need;
And whom I love I love indeed.

[FN#122] There is something wrong in the text. I cannot help again drawing the reader's attention to the skilful portraiture of the model Moslem Minister, the unfortunate Ja'afar. He is never described in the third person; but the simple dialogue always sets him off as a wise, conciliatory, benevolent, loveable and man-loving character, whose constant object is to temper the harshness and headstrong errors of a despotic master as the Caliph is represented to be by way of showing his kingliness. See vol. i., 102. [The MS. is certainly wrong here, but perhaps it can be righted a little. It has: "Kad yak�n Z R H ahad f� M�l jaz�l wa harab al-Maz'�n," etc., where Sir Richard reads "zarra-hu" = he harmed, and Mazgh�n = the hated one, i.e. enemy. I have a strong suspicion that in the original from which our scribe copied, the two words were "zamin" and "al-Mazm�n." Zamin in the Arabic character would be {Arabic characters} The loop for the "m," if made small, is easily overlooked; the curve of the "n," if badly traced, can as easily be mistaken for "r" and a big dot inside the "n" might appear like a blotted "h". Mazm�n would become "Maz'�n" by simply turning the "m" loop upwards instead of downwards, an error the converse of which is so frequently committed in printed texts. Curiously enough the same error occurs p. 192 of the MS., where we shall find "na' 'al" with two 'Ayns instead of "na'mal" with 'Ayn and Mim. If this conjecture is correct the sense would be: Haply he may have stood security for someone for much money, and the person for whom security was given, took to flight, etc. For "zamin" with the acc. see Ibn Jubair ed. by Wright, 77, 2. I may say on this occasion, that my impression of the Montague MS. is, that it is a blundering copy of a valuable though perhaps indistinctly written original.--ST.]

[FN#123] In text "'Aurat" = nakedness: see vol. vi. 30.

[FN#124] In Arab. "'Urrah": see Fatimah the Dung in vol. x. 1.

[FN#125] [In the MS. "bi-Wuj�h al F�nij�t al-Mil�h." The translator conjectures "al-f�tih�t," which he refers to "Wuj�h." I read it "al-Gh�nij�t," in apposition with al-Mil�h, and render: the faces of the coquettish, the fair. See index under "Ghunj."--ST.]

[FN#126] In text "Ball�t," the name still given to the limestone slabs cut in the Torah quarries South of Cairo. The word is classical, we find in Ibn Khald�n (vol. i. p. 21, Fr. Trans.) a chief surnomm� el-Balt (le pav�), � cause de sa fermet� et de sa force de caract�re.

[FN#127] In text "Usbur�" = be ye patient, the cry addressed to passengers by the Grandee's body-guard.

[FN#128] The "young person" here begins a tissue of impertinences which are supposed to show her high degree and her condescension in mating with the jeweller. This is still "pretty Fanny's way" amongst Moslems.

[FN#129] A "swear" peculiarly feminine, and never to be used by men.

[FN#130] In text "'Al�-Akl�:" the whole passage is doubtful. [I would read, and translate the passage as follows: "M� tastahl� 'al� haz� ill� shay l� tazann-hu allaz� (for "allat�," see Suppl. iv. 253) kayyamt�n� (2nd fem. sing.) min 'al� akl� wa an� zanantu innahu man y�jab la-hu al-kiy�m; thumma iltifatat illayya wa k�lat hakaz� sirtu an� la-ghaz�rat al-thiy�b al-wasikhat min al-fakr fa-hal m� ghasalta wajhak?" = Thou deservest not for this but a thing thou doest not fancy, thou who madest me rise from before my food, while I thought he was one to whom rising up is due. Then she turned towards me, saying, "Am I then in this manner (i.e. like thyself) a bundle of clothes all dirty from poverty, and hast thou therefore ("fa" indicating the effect of a cause) not washed thy face?" Or to put it in more intelligible English: "Am I then like thyself a heap of rags that thou shouldst come to me with unwashed face?"--ST.]

[FN#131] Of the respect due to food Lane (M. E. chapt. xiii.) tells the following tale: "Two servants were sitting at the door of their master's house, eating their dinner, when they observed a Mameluke Bey with several of his officers, riding along the streets towards them. One of these servants rose, from respect to the Grandee, who regarding him with indignation, exclaimed, Which is the more worthy of respect, the bread which is before thee or myself? Without awaiting a reply, he made, it is said, a well-understood signal with his hand; and the unintending offender was beheaded on the spot." I may add that the hero of the story is said to have been the celebrated "Daftardar" whose facetious cruelties have still a wide fame in the Nile Valley.

[FN#132] I would read (for "Sirtu ana" = I have become) "Sirt' anta" = thou hast become.

[FN#133] In text "Mukh;" lit. = brain, marrow.

[FN#134] [In Ar. "Wa zand mujauhar f�-hi As�wir min al-Zahab al-ahmar," which may mean: and a fore-arm (became manifest), ornamented with jewels, on which were bracelets of red gold.--ST.]

[FN#135] For this famous type of madman see Suppl. Vol. vi. 155.

[FN#136] [Ar. "Ghurr�t," which may be bright looks, charms, in general, or according to Bocthor, fore-locks. The more usual plural of "Ghurrah" is "Ghurar."--ST.]

[FN#137] In the text "Darajah" = an instant; also a degree (of the Zodiac). We still find this division of time in China and Japan, where they divide the twenty-four hours into twelve periods, each of which is marked by a quasi-Zodiacal sign: e.g.--

Midnight until 2 a.m. is represented by the Rat. 2 a.m. until 4 a.m. is represented by the Ox. 4 a.m. until 6 a.m. is represented by the Tiger. 6 a.m. until 8 a.m. is represented by the Hare. 8 a.m. until 10 a.m. is represented by the Dragon. 10 a.m. until noon is represented by the Serpent. Noon until 2 p.m. is represented by the Horse. 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. is represented by the Ram. 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. is represented by the Ape. 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. is represented by the Cock. 8 p.m. until 10 p.m. is represented by the Hog. 10 p.m. until midnight is represented by the Fox.

See p. 27 Edit. ii. of C. B. Mitford's Tales of Old Japan, a most important contribution to Eastern folklore.

["Darajah" is, however, also used for any short space of time; according to Lane it is = 4 minutes (i.e. the 24 hours or 1,440 minutes of the astronomical day divided into 360 degrees of 4 minutes each), and Bocthor gives it as an equivalent for our instant or moment.--ST.]

[FN#138] The young fool vaunts his intersexual powers, apparently unknowing that nothing can be more fatal to love than fulfilling the desires of a woman who, once accustomed to this high diet, revolts against any reduction of it. He appears to have been a polisson by his own tale told to the Caliph and this alone would secure the contempt of a high-bred and high-spirited girl.

[FN#139] The "nosebag"; vol. ii. 52, etc. The Badaw�yah (Badaw� woman) generally prefers a red colour, in opposition to the white and black of civilisation; and she of the Arabian Desert generally disdains to use anything of the kind.

[FN#140] This ablution of the whole body he was bound to perform after having had carnal knowledge of a woman, and before washing he was in a state of ceremonial impurity. For "Ghusl," or complete ablution, see vol. v. 80.

[FN#141] "The Heart of the Koran," chap. xxxvi. see vol. iv. 50.

[FN#142] The Mand�l apparently had been left in the shop by the black slave-girl. Women usually carry such articles with them when "on the loose," and in default of water and washing they are used to wipe away the results of car. cop.

[FN#143] In Arab. "Shakk." The criminal was hung up by the heels, and the executioner, armed with a huge chopper, began to hew him down from the fork till he reached the neck, when, by a dextrous turn of the blade, he left the head attached to one half of the body. This punishment was long used in Persia and abolished, they say, by Fath Ali Shah, on the occasion when an offender so treated abused the royal mother and women relatives until the knife had reached his vitals. "Kata' al-'Arba'," or cutting off the four members, equivalent to our "quartering," was also a popular penalty.

[FN#144] In text "Ghibtu 'an al-Duny�," a popular phrase, meaning simply I fainted.

[FN#145] This was done to staunch the blood: see the salt-wench in vol. i. 341.

[FN#146] This couplet has repeatedly occurred: in the preceding volume, Night cdv. (Suppl. iv. 222); and in The Nights (proper), vol. vi. 246. Here I have quoted Lane (A.N. iii. 220), who has not offered a word of comment or of explanation concerning a somewhat difficult couplet.

[FN#147] The plur. masc. for the sing. fem.: see vol. vii. 140.

[FN#148] He speaks after the recognised conventional fashion, as if reporting the camp-shift of a Badaw� tribe.

[FN#149] See vol. i. 25 for the parallel of these lines.

[FN#150] The text inserts here, "Saith the Reciter of this adventure and right joyous history strange as rare," etc.

[FN#151] Scott, in the "Story of the Sultan, the Dirveshe, and the Barber's son" (vi. 348), calls the King "Rammaud." The tale is magical and Rosicrucian, laid somewhat upon the lines of "The Physician D�b�n"; i.45.

[FN#152] This is the custom among Eastern Moslems: the barber, after his operations are over, presents his hand-mirror for the patient to see whether all be satisfactory, saying at the same time "Na'�man" = may it be pleasurable to thee! The customer answers "Allah bring thee pleasure," places the fee upon the looking-glass and returns it to the shaver. For "Na'�man" see vol. ii. 5.

[FN#153] The least that honest Figaro expected to witness was an attempt upon the boy's chastity.

[FN#154] In text "Tazaghzagha," gen. = he spoke hesitatingly, he scoffed. [I read the words in the text: "Tazaghghara f�hi." The K�m�s gives "Zaghara-hu" = he seized it by force, he took hold of him with violence, and this present fifth form, although not given in the Dictionaries, has doubtlessly the same meaning. Popularly we may render it: he pitched into him.--ST]

[FN#155] In the text "Kaz�n�t" (plur. of "K�z�n"), afterwards written "K�z�t" (a clerical error?). They are opposed to the "Kaw�lib" = moulds. [See note to p. 24.--ST.]

[FN#156] "Akhraja min Kul�hi-hi (Kulah?) b�sah."

[FN#157] "Akhaza min-h� 'ala ma' lakati 'l-Hil�l shay misl al-Jinnah." [I have no doubt that "Kul�h" is meant for "Kul�h," a Dervish's cap. "B�sah" puzzles me. I am inclined to take it for a reed used as a case or sheath, as we shall see p. 263 of the MS. Prince Y�suf uses a "Kasabah" or reed to enclose a letter in it. "Mi'lakat (popular corruption for 'Mil'akat') al-Hil�l" may be the spoon or hollow part of an ear-picker, Hil�l being given by Bocthor as equivalent for "cure-oreille." Lastly for "al-Jinnah" I would read "al-Habbah" = grain. The article before the word may indicate that a particular grain is meant perhaps "al-Habbat al-halwah" = anise seed, or that it stands for "al-Hubbah," according to Lempri�re (A Tour to Marocco, London 1791, p. 383) a powder employed by the ladies of Marocco to produce embonpoint.--ST.]

[FN#158] So even in our day Mustaf� bin Ism'a�l who succeeded "General Khayru 'l-D�n" as Prime Minister to "His Highness Mohammed al-S�dik, Bey of Tunis," began life as apprentice to a barber, became the varlet of an officer, rose to high dignity and received decorations from most of the European powers.

[FN#159] In text "Wij�k," a stove, a portable hearth.

[FN#160] In the text: ["Wa s�ra kulla-m� tastar� nafsuhu yak'ad kudd�ma 'l-Darw�sh," which I would translate: and each time his heart chose (8th form of "Sarw") he used to sit before the Darwaysh, etc.--ST.]

[FN#161] In text "Dar�n" for "Zar�n" = what is powdered, collyrium.

[FN#162] The King failed because his "Niyat" or intention was not pure; that is, he worked for wealth, and not, as the Darwaysh had done, for the good of his brother man.

[FN#163] For the importance attached to this sign of sovereignty see in my Pilgrimage (ii. 218-19) the trouble caused by the loss of the Prophet's seal-ring (Kh�tim) at Al-Madinah.

[FN#164] The text is somewhat doubtful--"Min kudd�m-ak." [Perhaps it means only "from before thee," i.e. in thy presence, without letting him out of sight and thereby giving him a chance of escape.--ST.]

[FN#165] This especially is on the lines of "The Physician D�b�n"; vol. i. 45.

[FN#166] In text "Wa min-hum man f�ha," evidently an error of the scribe for "Man naf�hu." Scott (vi. 351), after the fashion of the "Improver-school," ends the tale, which is somewhat tail-less, after this fashion, "At the same instant, the Sultan and his courtiers found themselves assaulted by invisible agents, who, tearing off their robes, whipped them with scourges till the blood flowed in streams from their lacerated backs. At length the punishment ceased, but the mortification of the Sultan did not end here, for all the gold which the Dirveshe had transmuted returned to its original metals. Thus, by his unjust credulity, was a weak Prince punished for his ungrateful folly. The barber and his son also were not to be found, so that the sultan could gain no intelligence of the Dirveshe, and he and his courtiers became the laughing-stock of the populace for years after their merited chastisement." Is nothing to be left for the reader's imagination?

[FN#167] See under the same name the story in my Suppl. vol. i. 162; where the genealogy and biography of the story is given. I have translated the W.M. version because it adds a few items of interest. A marginal note of Scott's (in the W.M. MS. v. 196) says that the "Tale is similar to Lesson iv. in the Tirrea Bede." See note at the end of this History.

[FN#168] For the Badaw� tent, see vol. vii. 109.

[FN#169] In text "Birkah" = a fountain-basin, lake, pond, reservoir. The Bresl. Edit. has "Sard�b" = a souterrain.

[FN#170] Arab. "Jummayz": see vol. iii. 302. In the Bresl. Edit. it is a "tall tree," and in the European versions always a "pear-tree," which is not found in Badawi-land.

[FN#171] "Ad�" in Egyptian (not Arabic) is = that man, the (man) here; "Ad�n�" (in the text) is = Here am I, me voici. Spitta Bey (loc. cit. iv. 20, etc.)

[FN#172] Arab. "Ma'm�rah." In the Bresl. Edit. "the place is full of Jinns and Marids." I have said that this supernatural agency, ever at hand and ever credible to Easterns, makes this the most satisfactory version of the world-wide tale.

[FN#173] The planet Mars.

[FN#174] The Asiatics have a very contemptible opinion of the Russians, especially of the females, whom they believe to be void of common modesty. Our early European voyagers have expressed the same idea.--Scott.

[FN#175] i.e. having enjoyed the woman.--R.F.B.

[FN#176] The reader will doubtless recollect the resemblance which the plot of this lesson bears to Pope's January and May, and to one of Fontaine's Tales. Eenaiut Olla acknowledges his having borrowed it from the Brahmins, from whom it may have travelled through some voyage to Europe many centuries past, or probably having been translated in Arabic or Persian, been brought by some crusader, as were many Asiatic romances, which have served as the groundwork of many of our old stories and poems.--Scott.

[FN#177] In Scott (vi. 352) "Adventures of Aleefa and Eusuff." This long and somewhat longsome history is by another pen, which is distinguished from the ordinary text by constant attempts at fine writing, patches of Saj'a or prose-rhyme and profuse poetry, mostly doggerel. I recommend it to the student as typically Arabian with its preponderance of verse over prose, its threadbare patches made to look meaner by the purpureus pannus; its immoderate repetition and its utter disregard of order and sequence. For the rest it is unedited and it strikes me as a sketch of adventure calculated to charm the Fellah-audience of a coffee-house, whose delight would be brightened by the normal accompaniment of a tambourine or a Rab�bah, the one-stringed viol.

[FN#178] This P. N. has occurred in vol. vi. 8, where I have warned readers that it must not be confounded with the title "Mah�r�j" = Great Rajah. Scott (vi. 352) writes "Mherejaun," and Gauttier (vi. 380) "Myr-djyhan" (M�r Jah�n = Lord Life).

[FN#179] I need not inform the civilised reader that this "feeling conception" is unknown except in tales.

[FN#180] i.e. "The Slim-waisted." Scott (vi. 352) persistently corrupts the name to "Aleefa," and Gauttier (vi. 380) follows suit with "Alifa."

[FN#181] In text "Al-Istikhr�j," i.e. making "elegant extracts."

[FN#182] These lines are the merest doggerel of a strolling R�w�, like all the pi�ces d'occasion in this MS.

[FN#183] Which are still worse: two couplets rhyme in ��n�, and one in ��l�, which is not lawful.

[FN#184] In text "Dayr Nashsh�bah," a fancy name.

[FN#185] So in text: the name is unknown to me; its lit. meaning would be, "of high-breasted Virgins."

[FN#186] In text "Al-Jay'a" which is a well-omened stone like the 'Ak�k = carnelian. The Arabs still retain our medi�val superstitions concerning precious stones, and of these fancies I will quote a few. The ruby appeases thirst, strengthens cardiac action and averts plague and "thunderbolts." The diamond heals diseases, and is a specific against epilepsy or the "possession" by evil spirits: this is also the specialty of the emerald, which, moreover, cures ophthalmia and the stings of scorpions and bites of venomous reptiles, blinding them if placed before their eyes. The turquoise is peculiarly auspicious, abating fascination, strengthening the sight, and, if worn in a ring, increasing the milk of nursing mothers: hence the blue beads hung as necklaces to cattle. The topaz (being yellow) is a prophylactic against jaundice and bilious diseases. The bloodstone when shown to men in rage causes their wrath to depart: it arrests hemorrhage, heals toothache, preserves from bad luck, and is a pledge of long life and happiness. The "cat's-eye" nullifies Al-Ayn = malign influence by the look, and worn in battle makes the wearer invisible to his foe. This is but a "fist-full out of a donkey-load," as the Persians say: the subject is a favourite with Eastern writers.

[FN#187] Or white lead: in the text it is "Sap�daj," corresponding with the "Isfidaj" of vol. vi. 126.

[FN#188] In the text "Bashkh�nah"; corr. of the Pers. "Peshkh�nah" = state-tents sent forward on the march.

[FN#189] This phrase, twice repeated, is the regular formula of the R�w� or professional reciter; he most unjustifiably, however, neglects the "Inshallah."

[FN#190] The revetment of the old wells in Arabia is mostly of dry masonry.

[FN#191] [Ar. "Taw�n�s," with a long final to rhyme with "Kaw�d�s," instead of the usual "Taw�nis," pl. of "Taunas," which Dozy (Suppl. s.v.) identifies with the Greek t???? in the sense of cable.--ST.]

[FN#192] In Arab. "Haj�rata 'l-Bahram�n."

[FN#193] In text "Zamak�-h�."

[FN#194] I can see little pertinence in this couplet: but that is not a sine qu� non amongst Arabs. Perhaps, however, the Princess understands that she is in a gorgeous prison and relieves her heart by a cunning hint.

[FN#195] I again omit "Saith the Reciter of this marvellous relation," a formula which occurs with unpleasant reiteration.

[FN#196] i.e. she cried "Astaghfiru 'llah" (which strangers usually pronounce "Astaffira 'llah"); a pious exclamation, humbling oneself before the Creator, and used in a score of different senses, which are not to be found in the dictionaries.

[FN#197] In vol. viii. 183, there are two couplets of which the first is here repeated.

[FN#198] [Here the translator seems to read "Khams Ghaff�r," = five pardoners,where however, grammar requires a plural after "khams." I take "khams" to be a clerical error for "Khamr" = wine, and read the next word "'uk�r," which is another name for wine, but is also used adjectively together with the former, as in the Breslau Edition iv. 6 "al-Khamr al-'uk�r" = choice wine.--ST.]

[FN#199] I understand this as the cupbearer who delights the five senses.

[FN#200] In the original we have, "Saith the Sayer of this delectable narrative, the strange and seld-seen (and presently we will return to the relation full and complete with its sense suitable and its style admirable), anent what befel and betided of Destinies predestinate and the will of the Lord preordinate which He decreed and determined to His creatures." I have omitted it for uniformity's sake.

[FN#201] Meaning "The easy-tempered." Scott (vi. 354) writes "Sohul."

[FN#202] In text "Lit�m" = the mouth-band for man: ii. 31, etc. The "Mutalathsim�n" in North Africa are the races, like the Taw�rik, whose males wear this face-swathe of cloth.

[FN#203] "Drowned in her blood," says the text which to us appears hyperbole run mad. So when King Omar (vol. ii. 123) violently rapes the unfortunate Princess Abr�zah "the blood runs down the calves of her legs." This is not ignorance, but that systematic exaggeration which is held necessary to impressionise an Oriental audience.

[FN#204] For this allusion see vol. v. 191.

[FN#205] This physical sign of delight in beauty is not recognised in the literature of Europe, and The Nights usually attributes it to old women.

[FN#206] In text "Him�" = the private and guarded lands of a Badawi tribe; viii. 102.

[FN#207] In text "Daylak�."

[FN#208] A small compact white turband and distinctive sign of the True Believers: see vol. viii. 8.

[FN#209] [The words in the text seem to be: "wa Talattuf Alf�zak wa Ma'�n�k al-his�n" = and for the pleasingness of thy sayings and meanings so fine and fair.--ST.]

[FN#210] [The Arabic seems here to contain a pun, the consonantic outline of "Tasht" = "basin" being the same as of "tashshat" = she was raining, sprinkling.--ST.]

[FN#211] In Arab. "Y� W�rid": see vol. iii. 56.

[FN#212] The growing beard and whisker being compared with black letters on a white ground.

[FN#213] In the text these seven couplets form one quotation, although the first three rhyme in --�ru and the second four in --�ru.

[FN#214] This "diapedesis" of bloodstained tears is frequently mentioned in The Nights; and the "Bloody Sweat" is well-known by name. The disease is rare and few have seen it whilst it has a certain quasi-supernatural sound from the "Agony and bloody sweat" in the Garden of Gethsemane. But the exudation of blood from the skin was described by Theophrastus and Aristotle and lastly by Lucan in these lines:--

--Sic omnia membra
Emisere simul rutilum pro sanguine virus.
Sanguis erant lachrym�, etc.

Of Charles IX. of France Mezaray declares "Le sang lui rejaillait par les pores et tous les conduits de son corps," but the superstitious Protestant holds this to be a "judgment." The same historian also mentions the phenomenon in a governor condemned to die; and Lombard in the case of a general after losing a battle and a nun seized by banditti--blood oozed from every pore. See Dr. Millingen's "Curiosities of Medical Experience," p. 485, London, Bentley, 1839.

[FN#215] [I read this line: "F� Hayyi-kum Taflatun|h�ma 'l-Faw�du bi-h� (Bas�t)" and translate: In your clan there is a maiden of whom my heart is enamoured. In the beginning of the next line the metre requires "tazakkarat," which therefore refers to "Aghsun," not to the speaker: "the branches remember (and by imitating her movements show that they remember) the time when she bent aside, and her bending, graceful beyond compare, taught me that her eyes kept watch over the rose of her cheek and knew how to protect it from him who might wish to cull it." This little gem of a Maww�l makes me regret that so many of the snatches of poetry in this MS. are almost hopelessly corrupted.--ST.]

[FN#216] In the text "Sim�'a," lit. hearing, applied idiomatically to the ecstasy of Darwayshes when listening to esoteric poetry.

[FN#217] The birds mentioned in the text are the "Kumr�" (turtle-dove), the "Shabaytar" [also called "Samaytar" and "Abu al-'Ayzar" = the father of the brisk one, a long-necked water bird of the heron kind.--ST.], the Shuhr�r (in MS. Suhr�r) = a blackbird [the Christians in Syria call St. Paul "Shuhr�r al-Kan�sah," the blackbird of the Church, on account of his eloquence.--ST.], the "Karaw�n," crane or curlew (Charadrius �dicnemus) vol. vi. 1; the "Haz�r;" nightingale or bird of a thousand songs, vol. v. 48; the "Ham�m," ruffed pigeon, culver, vol. v. 49; the "Kat�," or sandgrouse, vols. i. 131, iv. 111, etc.; and the "Samm�n" or quail, Suppl. vol. vi. 66.

[FN#218] The "S�'ah," I may here remark, is the German Stunde, our old "Stound," somewhat indefinite but meaning to the good Moslem the spaces between prayer times. The classical terms, Al-Zuh� (undurn-hour, or before noon) and Maghrib = set of sun, become in Badawi speech Al-Ghaylah = siesta-time and Ghaybat al-Shams. (Doughty, index.)

[FN#219] For the beautiful song of the lute, referred to here, see vol. viii. 281.

[FN#220] Alluding to the "Takht Raml," table of sand, geomantic table?

[FN#221] As before noted, her love enables her to deal in a somewhat of prophetic strain.

[FN#222] This scene may sound absurd; but it is admirable for its materialism. How often do youthful lovers find an all-sufficient pastime in dressing themselves up and playing the game of mutual admiration. It is well nigh worthy of that "silliest and best of love-stories"--Henrietta Temple.

[FN#223] The text bluntly says "Wa Nik�h," which can mean nothing else.

[FN#224] Scott calls him "Yiah": vi. 354.

[FN#225] Arab. "Akhbar�-hu," alluding to the lord Yahy�.

[FN#226] Here I presume a "K�la" (quoth he) is omitted; for the next sentence seems appropriate to Yusuf.

[FN#227] In Arab. "Tastagh�s" = lit. crying out "Wa Ghaus�h"--Ho, to my aid!

[FN#228] The "Zug" or draught which gave him rheumatism--not a romantic complaint for a young lover. See vol. ii. 9. But his power of sudden invention is somewhat enviable, and lying is to him, in Hindustani phrase, "easy as drinking water."

[FN#229] Who evidently ignored or had forgotten the little matter of the concubine, so that incident was introduced by the story-teller for mere wantonness.

[FN#230] In text "Mazb�h" = slaughtered for food.

[FN#231] i.e. "I suffer from an acute attack of rheumatism"--a complaint common in even the hottest climates.

[FN#232] Needless to say that amongst Moslems, as amongst Christians, the Israelite medicine-man has always been a favourite, despite an injunction in the "D�n�m" (Religious Considerations) of the famous Andalusian Y�suf Caro. This most fanatical work, much studied at Tiberias and Safet (where a printing-press was established in the xvith century) decides that a Jewish doctor called to attend a Goi (Gentile) too poor to pay him is bound to poison his patient--if he safely can.

[FN#233] Lit. "The-Bull-(Taur for Thaur or Saur)numbered-and-for-battle-day-lengthened." In p.30 this charger is called, "The-bull-that-spurneth-danger-on-battle-day." See vol. vi. 270 for a similar compound name, The-Ghul-who-eateth-man-we-pray-Allah-for-safety.

[FN#234] In text "Al-J�riyah r�dih," the latter word being repeated in p.282, where it is R�dih a P.N. [Here also I would take it for a P.N., for if it were adjective to "al-J�riyah" it should have the article.--ST.]

[FN#235] The "Rad�f," or back-rider, is common in Arabia, esp. on dromedaries when going to the Razzia: usually the crupper-man loads the matchlock and his comrade fires it.

[FN#236] The text has "thirty," evidently a clerical error.

[FN#237] Arab. "Sakht�r" for "Shakht�r," vol. vii. 362.

[FN#238] Doggerel fit only for the coffee-house.

[FN#239] In text "Ta'ayyun" = influence, especially by the "'Ayn," or (Evil) Eye.

[FN#240] I have somewhat abridged the confession of the Princess, who carefully repeats every word known to the reader. This iteration is no objection in the case of a coffee-house audience to whom the tale is told bit by bit, but it is evidently unsuited for reading.

[FN#241] In text "Irham turham:" this is one of the few passive verbs still used in popular parlance.

[FN#242] This formula will be in future suppressed.

[FN#243] I spare my readers the full formula:--"Y�suf took it and brake the seal (fazza-hu) and read it and comprehended its contents and purport and significance: and, after perusing it," etc. These forms, decies repetit�, may go down with an Eastern audience, but would be intolerable in a Western volume. The absence of padding, however, reduces the story almost to a patchwork of doggerel rhymes, for neither I nor any man can "make a silk purse from a suille ear."

[FN#244] Here again in full we have:--"He mounted the she-camel and fared and ceased not faring until he drew near to the Palace of Al-Hayf�, where he dismounted and concealed his dromedary within the same cave. Then he swam the stream until he had reached the Castle and here he landed and appeared before Al-Hayf�," etc.

[FN#245] "'Tis dogged as does it" was the equivalent expression of our British Aristotle; the late Charles Darwin.

[FN#246] Arab. "Jannat al-Khuld" = the Eternal Garden: vol. ix. 214.

[FN#247] [I read: Wa inn� la-ar'�kum wa ar'� wid�da-kum, wa-hakki-kum� antum a'azzu 'l-War� 'and� = And I make much of you and of your love; by your rights (upon me, formula of swearing), you are to me the dearest of mankind.--ST.]

[FN#248] In text: "He swam the stream and bestrode his she-camel."

[FN#249] In text "Then she folded the letter and after sealing it," etc.

[FN#250] Not "her hands" after Christian fashion.

[FN#251] In text, "Ahyaf," alluding to Al-Hayf�.

[FN#252] Arab. "Al-Kaw�'ib," also P. N. of the river.

[FN#253] This is moralising with a witness, and all it means is "handsome is that handsome does."

[FN#254] In text "'Arsh" = the Ninth Heaven; vol. v.167.

[FN#255] The Shi'ah doctrine is here somewhat exaggerated.

[FN#256] "Them" for "her," as has often occurred.

[FN#257] In the original "entrusted to her the missive:" whereas the letter is delivered afterwards.

[FN#258] The cloud (which contains rain) is always typical of liberality and generous dealing.

[FN#259] The Koranic chapt. No. xx., revealed at Meccah and recounting the (apocryphal) history of Moses.

[FN#260] The "broken" (wall) to the North of the Ka'abah: Pilgrimage iii. 165.

[FN#261] i.e. "Delight of the Age:" see vol. ii. 81.

[FN#262] In the text written "Imriyyu 'l-Kays": for this pre-Islamitic poet see Term. Essay, p. 258. "The Man of Al-Kays" or worshipper of the Priapus-idol was a marking figure in Arabian History. The word occurs, with those of Aera, Dusares (Theos Ares), Martabu, Allat and Man�t in the Nabath�an (Arabian) epigraphs brought by Mr. Doughty from Arabia Deserta (vol. i. pp. 180-184).

[FN#263] In text "Zakka," which means primarily a bird feeding her young.

[FN#264] In the text "months and years," the latter seeming de trop.

[FN#265] Or "Yathrib" = Al-Madinah; vol. iv. 114.

[FN#266] Scott (vi. 358 et seqq.) who makes Ali bin Ibrahim, "a faithful eunuch," renders the passage, "by some accident the eunuch's turban unfortunately falling off, the precious stones (N.B. the lovers' gift) which, with a summary of the adventures (!) of Eusuff and Aleefa, and his own embassy to Sind, were wrapped in the folds, tumbled upon the floor."

[FN#267] i.e. "Drawer-out of Descriptions."

[FN#268] i.e. a Refuser, a Forbidder.

[FN#269] i.e. both could not be seen at the same time.

[FN#270] [The MS. has T Kh D H, which the translator reads "takhuz-hu." I suspect that either the second or eighth form of "ahad" is meant, in the sense that thou comest to an agreement (Ittih�d) with him.--ST.]

[FN#271] In the MS. v. 327, we find four hemistichs which evidently belong to Al-Mihrj�n; these are:--

Hadst come to court her in fairer guise * I had given Al-Hayf� in
bestest style;
But in mode like this hast thou wrought me wrong * And made Envy
gibe me with jeering smile."

Also I have been compelled to change the next sentence, which in the original is, "And hardly had King Al-Mihrj�n ended his words," etc.

[FN#272] In this doggerel, "Kur�d" (apes) occurs as a rhyme twice in three couplets.

[FN#273] "Upon the poll of his head" ('al� h�mati-hi) says the Arabian author, and instantly stultifies the words.

[FN#274] Arab. "Haudaj" = a camel-litter: the word, often corrupted to Had�j, is now applied to a rude pack-saddle, a wooden frame of mimosa-timber set upon a "witr" or pad of old tent-cloth, stuffed with grass and girt with a single cord. Vol. viii. 235, Burckhardt gives "Maksar," and Doughty (i. 437) "Muksir" as the modern Badawi term for the crates or litters in which are carried the Shaykhly housewives.

[FN#275] In text "Sunnah" = the practice, etc., of the Prophet: vol. v. 36, 167.

[FN#276] This, as the sequel shows, is the far-famed Musician, Ibrahim of Mosul: vol. vii. 113.

[FN#277] In the text King of Al-S�n = China, and in p. 360 of MS. Yusuf is made "King of China and Sind," which would be much like "King of Germany and Brentford."

[FN#278] This is the full formula repeated in the case of all the ten blessed damsels. I have spared the patience of my readers.

[FN#279] This formula of the cup and lute is decies repetita, justifying abbreviation.

[FN#280] i.e. The Beginner, the Originator.

[FN#281] The Zephyr, or rather the cool north breeze of upper Arabia, vol. viii. 62.

[FN#282] The "Full Moon"; plur. Bud�r: vols. iii., 228, iv., 249.

[FN#283] "Dann" = amphora, Gr. ?�f??e?? short for ?�f?f??e?? = having two handles.

[FN#284] "The large-hipped," a form of R�dih.

[FN#285] In text "Minba'ada-hu" making Jesus of later date than Imr al-Kays.

[FN#286] i.e. "The Delight": also a P.N. of one of the Heavens: vols. iii. 19; iv. 143.

[FN#287] i.e. Joy, Contentment.

[FN#288] In text "L� khuzibat Ayday al-Fir�k," meaning, "may separation never ornament herself in sign of gladness at the prospect of our parting." For the Khaz�b-dye see vol. iii. 105.

[FN#289] i.e. "Bloom of the Tribe." "Zahrat" = a blossom especially yellow and commonly applied to orange-flower. In line 10 of the same page the careless scribe calls the girl "Jauharat (Gem) of the Tribe."

[FN#290] For this Hell, see vol. viii. 111.

[FN#291] "Core" or "Life-blood of Hearts."

[FN#292] Presently explained.

[FN#293] In text "Afr�kh al-Jinn," lit. = Chicks of the Jinns, a mere vulgarism: see "Farkh 'Akrab," vol. iv. 46.

[FN#294] "Ibr�a" = deliverance from captivity, etc. Y� = �, and M�m = m, composing the word "Ibrah�m." The guttural is concealed in the Hamzah of Ibr�a, a good illustration of Dr. Steingass's valuable remarks in Terminal Essay, pp. 235, 236.

[FN#295] "Kal�m" = one who speaks with another, a familiar. Moses' title is Kal�mu'llah on account of the Oral Law and certain conversations at Mount Sinai.

[FN#296] In text "Ist�f�" = choice, selection: hence Mustaf� = the Chosen Prophet, Mohammed; vols i. 7; ii. 40.

[FN#297] In text "Jazr" = cutting, strengthening, flow (of tide).

[FN#298] In the text "N�fishah" = Pers. "N�fah," derived, I presume, from the {root} "N�f" = belly or testicle, the part which in the musk-deer was supposed to store up the perfume.

[FN#299] For 'Nah�vand," the celebrated site in Al-Irak where the Persians sustained their final defeat at the hands of the Arabs A.H. 21. It is also one of the many musical measures, like the Ispah�ni, the R�sti, the Rayh�ni, the B�salik, the Nav�, etc., borrowed from the conquered 'Ajam�.

[FN#300] This second half of the story is laid upon the lines of "The Man of Al-Yaman and his six Slave-girls": vol. iv. 245.

[FN#301] This history again belongs to the class termed "Abtar = tailless. In the text we find for all termination, "After this he (Y�suf) invited Mohammed ibn Ibrahim to lie that night in the palace." Scott (vi. 364) ends after his own fashion:--"They (the ten girls) recited extempore verses before the caliph, but the subject of each was so expressive of their wish to return to their beloved sovereign, and delivered in so affecting a manner, that Mamoon, though delighted with their wit and beauty, sacrificed his own pleasure to their feelings, and sent them back to Eusuff by the officer who carried the edict, confirming him in his dominions, where the prince of Sind and the fair Aleefa continued long, amid a numerous progeny, to live the protectors of their happy subjects."

[FN#302] This tale is headless as the last is tailless. We must suppose that soon after Mohammed ibn Ibrahim had quitted the Caliph, taking away the ten charmers, Al-Maamun felt his "breast straitened" and called for a story upon one of his R�w�s named Ibn Ahyam. This name is repeated in the text and cannot be a clerical error for Ibn Ibrahim.

[FN#303] Scott (vi. 366) "Adventures of the Three Princes, sons of the Sultan of China."

[FN#304] In the text "'Ajam," for which see vol. i. 2, 120. Al-Irak, I may observe, was the head-quarters of the extensive and dangerous Kh�rijite heresy; and like Syria has ever a bad name amongst orthodox Moslems.

[FN#305] In the Arab. "Salkh," meaning also a peculiar form of circumcision, for which see Pilgrimage iii. 80-81. The Jew's condition was of course a trick, presenting an impossibility and intended as a mere pretext for murdering an enemy to his faith. Throughout the Eastern world this idea prevails, and both Sir Moses Montefiore and M. Cremieux were utterly at fault and certainly knew it when they declared that Europe was teaching it to Asia. Every Israelite community is bound in self-defence, when the murder of a Christian child or adult is charged upon any of its members, to court the most searching enquiry and to abate the scandal with all its might.