Part 32 (2/2)

OF8the d whic he bribgs aboup

Having ascomplished this part of ly business, I strolled(to one of the }ost freyented caravansGrais in the cit tn see whethec, perchajce, so-e circtht njt turn u to advance my,master?S views As I aproachee2it, I found all&the avDnues blocKEd up wi|h vily laden, intd a white band, thedistingurims who have vicited thb tomb of Iman za, at`Meshed, onformed me thav the casavan caLe froZadually Qnravel`from thE maze 'f the nq{row steets, aNd, afteR(a due allowance of wrangling ake abuse between the mu|d and camel drivrs, I saw it take up i4s abode )n the square oe the bu)lding

?Perhaps?, saood Suars may throw some of =y formep acquaintance du MesheD into re!x earneq5ness It was tsue that`, and th`t ties in the appearance{ of me; but suill, I,bwho kneW each fkce by heart, and had sxudied i4s expreScion ast inhatdd my smoke, hoxd that ey recKlectio~would Ot failme

h had despaired of makinz a discovery, and was ab?ut to wqlk ahen a certain`~ose, a eertainRound bqck, andA certa projesing paunch, me my eye, and abested m} attenTyon

?Those forof my uerly id u, came into my mind; but all ieua of him I immeiately banishe`, becaue it wassije fallan a victim to te horr/rs of hi captiv|`nce I slt convinced i| was eiter he, his broder, orhis gh/st I approached to where he wasseatedin the 0ope of `earing im speak; buthLe seemee to be!vorpid )fhichanothdr characteristik in fanur of m{ suspicion),(a,d I had aited snme time in vaim when, to my srprise I heard!him, iN a voicG0well kown to -q ears,”inquire0of a ,(?In God?S name, what may be the4price of lajce,? said0I, ?I cannot b mistaken! You c`n be no one bu|M Osman)?--and I`immedictely mal mysel!known o himJ He wasas slos to bel{eve thaU it was ajji Baba who !ccostedhia

Afterour expXessions(Mf anto survey each oher IqDiscussuD the greyness v his b!ard, and he coolimentu reAu seren)ty of txM lapse”f tiness of this world, nrom which I perceived Tiat his `elief An predestinatio| had r!vher increased `han dimnished jy his misfortun, and which alkne coudt accout for [email&160;protected] equan)mity hich1he had borne thm In hks usualconcis manner, he related what had befallen hi since0we lastMs of reqbly thAn he ha expectud; for e had Nnthing  do but to sit 7ith th ofthe sama calm and philosophic cas as hisown, suked his 3uiet anm sedentary ha”mts Hir food ws indiffmrent, ut then he had epcellent water+ and the only pRjvation which he`see prevhous habiT rendeed infioitely painful yars hae run onin thi3 =”” up=”” his(mind=”” to=”” pass=”” the=”” remainder=”” of=”” his=”” lifewith=”” th=””><1when his=”” destijx=”” took=”” another=”” turn,=”” and(he=”” one=”” =”” rrtored=”” to=”” liberty=”” one,4_ho=”” gavq=”” hi=”” the=”” turco=”” to=”” the=”” custoes,=”” e=”” esta”hished=”” (is=”” influence=”” bypretendkng=”” to=”” 7ork=”” two(r=”” three=”” miracls,=”” and=”” wich=”” ser=”” receivmd=”” as=”” tch=”” by=”” at=”” credulous=”” pe/ple=”” his=”” word=”” became=”” a=”” law=”” th=”” rs=”” freely=”” laidtheir=”” sroils=”” at=”” xis=”” feu|,=”” and=”” willingly8listed`under=”” his=”” banner/=”” in=”” wh`tever=”” eterprise(he=”” chose=”” to=”” propose=”” krapresentud=”” lies=”” of=”” a=”” suna,=”” and,!th=”” succeeded=”” in=”” =”” thd=”” impostmr=”” procue=”” his=”” lberty=”” without=”” ransom,=”” 7xich=”” he=”” did,=”” inporder=”” to=”” advancn=”” the=”” glory=”” of=”” the=”” true=”” faith=”” once=”” free,=”” he=”” lowt=”” no=”” ti=”” to=”” ood=”” foruune,=”” he=”” =”” narly=”” connected0to=”” hie,=”” advanced=”” hii=”” a=”” smal=”” sum=”” of=”” accounts=”” on=”” the=”” state=”” of=”” xhe=”” turkksh=”” mar{uts=”” for=”” the=”” produce=”” of=”” sokhara,land=”” thither=”” he=”” 2oceeded=”” to=”” =”” to=”” hiq=”” long=”” pesidence=”” a=”” whe=”” turcoe cojcerning their mnners and cust--and this enableD him toDrade, th aioed a suvficientrue He was`jow on p(e road o Constantinopl, with(several mules laden witH the mrchandise of Bojhara, Sa disposed of it there, it was then his intention to return to his native city, Bagdad He expressed, however, his intention to re caravan should assemble, in order to enjoy so lived so long aes, as he called the Turcoreeably pass his ties i of old that he was a great advocate for the e state, I proposed a wife to hi was ever ly pronounced than the doctrine of predestination has been in this instance Here, one ofof the sun, to espouse theof another of my masters, who dies just at the very nick of ti, which I, who come from the countries of the south, step in to promote

The hakim?s as the fattest of the three, and therefore Iher to Os down the little asperities of her teeneral description of her person, suited to the Otto a very favorable opinion to the bridegroom of his intended

I then proceeded to inform the ht to the adventures of this couple, which I related to him with scrupulous detail He directed me how to proceed, and infore lawful, that a vakeel, or trustee, must appear on the part of the woman, and another on that of the reed upon the ter question of the reed to give your soul to me upon such and such conditions??

to which the other answers, ?I have agreed?; and then the parties are held to be lawfully joined together Nadan himself proposed to officiate on the part of the hakim?s , and I on the part of Ose a fee as possible for ourselves, on this happy occasion

I forthwith cos to the khanum, as I still called her, who did not fail to excite the envy of her other companions, for she immediately laid her success to her superior beauty, and to that never-failing object of her care, her two eyebrows in one She was, as the reader reat anxiety at her appearance; for she dreaded not being corpulent enough for her Turk, and froe, rather doubted the brilliancy of her eye, froreat quantity of black paint which she had daubed on her eyelids

I left her to return to Os hi to his long residence aht have imbibed so much of their natures as to have becoris

Accordingly, he went to the bath, his grey beard was dyed a glossy black; his hands received a golden tinge; and his mustachios were invited to curl upwards towards the corners of his eyes, instead of doards into his mouth, as they usually had done

He then arrayed himself in his best, and followed e in his appearance, he very well passed off for a er than he was in reality

As soon as the parties caht of each other, an unconcerned bystander would have been aroo to discover what he was about to espouse--she, the bride,play with her veil in such an artful manner as to induce his belief that it concealed celestial charame to make it matter of amusement Besides, more than once, a certain fifty ducats that had fored to Osman, and which I had appropriated to my own use, caht have a place in his: ?and if,? said I, ?he gets displeased and angry, who knohat ashes may not fall upon my head!?

However, they were etting one glimpse of his intended until I had pronounced the aords, ?I agree?; when in his impatience he partly pulled her veil on one side, and I need not say that he was far froht

As soon as he ell satisfied that his charmer was not a Zuleikha, he called ht that youth, at least, she would have possessed; but she is ot out of the scrape as well as I was able, by assuring him that she had once been the flower of the royal hare had so e as destiny

?Ah! that destiny?, said he, ?is an answer for everything; but be its effects what itwoman, than it can make one and one three?

Sorely did I fear that he would return his bargain upon our hands; but when he found that it was i better in a enerally were the refuse of womankind,--old s, and deserted wives; and who, rather than live under the opprobriule life entails in our Maho that careed to take her to his hory haho, the instant he is unhooded, pounces upon his prey, that Osht of his charmer, would have carried her off with impatience; but I was disappointed He walked leisurely on to his rooht follow him whenever it suited her convenience

[Illustration: The degradation of Hajji and thehow the ambition of the mollah Nadan involves both him and his disciples in ruin

Upon a closer acquaintance withthe most covetous of reat and principal object was to becohts, and left nothing untried whichhim into notice, either as a zealous practiser of the ordinances of his religion, or a persecutor of those who ht be its enemies He was the leader in prayer at the principal e; and whenever he could, he encouraged litigants to appeal to him for the settlement of their disputes On every occasion, particularly at the festival of the No Rouz, when the whole corps of , to pray for his prosperity, he always ed to make himself conspicuous by the over-abundance of adulation which he exhibited, and byhis sonorous voice predominate over that of others