Part 10 (1/2)

He then was called upon to make the bearer a present He sent first five piastres,[38] which the servant returned with great indignation He then sent one toth in despair he sent five toiven This disagreeable circumstance dissipated all the pleasure which such a present had produced, and the Hakie, permitted hi, would have brought him into considerable trouble ?A present, indeed!? said he; ?I wish such presents were in the other world! ?Tis thus we pay the wages of the king?s servants--a set of rapacious rascals, without either shame or conscience! And the worst of it is, we et the bastinado on the soles of my feet--which come it will--they, who perforet what Saadi says, that you can nothan you can upon the voice of a child; the forhtest suspicion, the latter in the course of a night?

Upon this reflection the doctor began to be alarmed at what he had said at the outset of his speech; and, with all the terrors of the felek before him, he seemed quite reconciled to the loss of his five tomauns

I found that this would not be the best moment to resume the subject of my expectations, and therefore reserved it for soh to settle in e?, whenever an opportunity should offer, and for the present to contentnor wolf

[Illustration: Hajji and Zeenab 14jpg]

CHAPTER XXIII

He becomes dissatisfied with his situation, is idle, and falls in love

Discontented with my present lot, and uncertain as to my future prospects, my days passed on in total idleness; and, as I had no inclination to pursue the profession of physic, which many before me had done on quite as slender a foundation as the one I had acquired, I cared little for those pursuits which engaged Mirza Ahmak I should very probably have left hi from the very state of unprofitableness in which I lived, which detained ave rise so entirely absorbed every other consideration, that I became their slave; and so violent were the emotions which they created, that I verily believe that Majnoun, in the height of his frenzy, could not have been madder than I

After this, it is needless tohad passed over, and the first heats of suan to make themselves felt, had driven most of the inhabitants of the city to spread their beds and sleep on the house-tops As I did not like to pass ht in company of the servants, the carpet-spreaders and the cook, who generally herded together in a room below, I extended my bed in a corner of the terrace, which overlooked the inner court of the doctor?s house, in which were situated the apartments of the women This court was a square, into which the s of the different chambers looked, and was planted in the centre with rose-bushes, jessamines, and poplar-trees A square wooden platform was erected in the middle, upon whichthe great heats I had seen several women seated in different parts of the court, but had never been particularly struck by the appearance of any one of theht of looking at theain; for as soon as I was discovered, shouts of abuse were levelled at me, and I was called by every odious naht, however, soon after the sun had set, as I was preparing my bed, I perchance looked over a part of the wall that was a little broken down, and on a slip of terrace that was close under it I discovered a fe out tobacco-leaves

Her blue veil was negligently thrown over her head, and as she stooped, the two long tresses which flowed fro a manner as nearly to screen all her face, but still left so much of it visible, that it created an intense desire inthat I saw in her announced beauty Her hands were small, and dyed with _khena_;[39] her feet were equally srace I gazed upon her until I could no longer contain ht noise, which immediately caused her to look up, and before she could cover herself with her veil, I had had tiination can conceive, and to receive a look fro, that I immediately felt my heart in a blaze With apparent displeasure she covered herself; but still I could perceive that she had ed her veil with soeye to look at aze upon her, she at length said, though still going on with her work, ?Why do you look at me? It is criminal?

?For the sake of the sainted Hosein,? I exclaimed, ?do not turn from me; it is no crime to love: your eyes have made roast meat of my heart: by the ain?

In a more subdued voice she answered me, ?Why do you ask me? You know it is a crime for a woman to let her face be seen; and you are neither my father, my brother, nor my husband; I do not even knoho you are Have you no shame, to talk thus to a maid??

At this moment she let her veil fall, as if by chance, and I had tiain upon her face, which was even e and peculiarly black, and fringed by long lashes, which, aided by the collyriued, formed a sort of ambuscade, from which she levelled her shafts Her eyebroere finely arched, and nature had brought the a line, that there was no need of art to join theether Her nose was aquiline, her mouth small, and full of sweet expression; and in the centre of her chin was a dimple which she kept carefullycould equal the beauty of her hair; it was black as jet, and fell in long tresses down her back In short, I rapped in aht of her explained to s which I had read in our poets, of cypress for parrots It seeaze at her for ever, and not be tired; but still I felt a great desire to leap over the wall and touch her My passion was increasing, and I was on the point of approaching her, when I heard the nareat impatience, by a loud shrill voice; upon which my fair one left the terrace in haste, and I remained riveted to the place where I had first seen her I continued there for a long tiht return, but to no purpose I lentwas to be heard below but the sa, and everybody, and which could belong to no one but the doctor?s wife; a lady, who, as report would have it, was none of the reat subjection

The day had now entirely closed in, and I was about retiring to , ?Zeenab, where are you going to? Why do you not retire to bed??

I indistinctly heard the answer of uessed what it had been, when saw her appear on the terrace again My heart beat violently, and I was about to leap over the wall, which separated us, when I was stopped by seeing her taking up a basket, in which she had gathered her tobacco, and , she said to ht? These words thrilled through my whole frame, in a manner that I had never before felt, and I did not cease to repeat theh exhaustion, I fell into a feverish doze, and I did not awaken on the following ht in my face

CHAPTER XXIV

He has an intervieith the fair Zeenab, who relates how she passes her time in the doctor?s harem

?So,? said I, when I had well rubbed my eyes: ?so, now I am in love?

Well! we shall see ill coht, so please it; and if she is anything which belongs to the doctor, may his house be ruined if I do not teach hie, that is out of the question Who would give a wife to h to buy myself a pair of trousers, ? _Inshallah,_ please God, that will take place one of these days, whenever I shall have got together some money; but noill make play with love, and let the doctor pay for it?

With that intention I forthwith got up and dressed myself; but it ith reat deal irdle, and putrolled up my bed, and carried it into the servants? hall, I issued fro nation I went to the bath, where I passed a great part of , and spent the re about the toithout any precise object in view

At length the day dreards its close, ht, and I only waited for the tern a headache, and to retire to rest My ill luck would have it, that the doctor was detained longer than usual in his attendance upon the Shah, and as the servants dined after his, it was late before I was at liberty When that liht shade of red, and the , when I appeared on the terrace with my bed under my arm I threw it down and unfolded it in haste, and then, with a beating heart, flew to the broken wall I looked over it with great precaution; but, tobut the tobacco spread about in confused heaps, with baskets here and there, as if some work had been left unfinished I looked all around, but saw no Zeenab I coughed once or twice; no answer The only sound which reacheditself upon soh its shrillness pierced even the walls, yet I could notso excited, until of a sudden it burst into the open air with increasing violence

?You talk of work to o to the bath? What business had you at the tombs? I suppose I am to be your slave, and you are to take your pleasure Why is not your work done? You shall neither eat, drink, nor sleep, until it is done, so go to it immediately; and if you come away until it be finished, wallah!

billah! by the prophet, I will beat you till your nails drop off? Upon this I heard so, and i with apparent reluctance to the spot, which not ablessed with her presence Oh what a wonderful thing is love! thought I to myself: how it sharpens the wits, and how fertile it is in expedients! I perceived at a glance how ingeniouslyfor our interview, and for a continuance of it without the fear of interruption She saw, but took no notice ofhad relapsed into silence, she came towards me, and, as the reader may well suppose, I was at her side in an instant Ye, who knohat love is, may, perhaps, conceive our raptures, for they are not to be expressed