THE HISTORY OF THE SLAVE-GIRL

ZHALFÂ.

ABU-SUWAID says: Abu-Zeid, el-Azdy, related

to me the following tale.*

I went into the presence of Sulaimân-ibn-'Abd-elMálik, who was seated in the hall paved with red marble, and carpeted with green damask, in the middle of the enclosed garden. Verily, the trees were in full bearing, and the fruit was ripe. And behind him stood female slaves each one of whom was more beautiful than her neighbour. And the sun was sinking, and winged creatures were humming around, and

*

I think that el-Wajîh Abu-'Abd-Allâh Muhammad-ibn 'Aly ibn-Abi-Tâlib, generally known by the name of Ibn (not Abu)Suwaid, must be meant here. He was a merchant of Takrît, a place on the Tigris, north of Baghdâd, in lat. 34° 33′ N., long. 43° 40′ E.

I have been unable to discover anything further concerning Abu-Zeid, and cannot therefore explain the allusion to some quarrel or disagreement with the Khalifah contained in his address.

the winds were whispering among the trees, and rustling the leaves, and bowing the branches. And I said, "Peace be upon thee, O Prince! and the mercy of God and His blessing!" And he was lost in thought; but he raised his head on hearing my voice, and remarked, "O Abu-Zeid! art thou come at such a time as this to make thy peace with us?"

So I exclaimed, "God save the Prince! Has the Day of Resurrection arrived that thou art so preoccupied ?"

He replied, "Yes, for those who love." Then he looked down, and was silent awhile.

Presently he raised his head, and asked, "O AbuZeid! what would improve such an existence as this?"

"May Allâh strengthen the Prince!" I cried. "Red wine in white cups, served by one slender as a reed, but with rounded limbs. I would drink it from the palm of her hand, and wipe my lips on her cheek."

At this, Sulaimân turned away his head, and uttered no sound nor gave any response, but silent tears stole from his eyes. And when the slave-girls saw this, they retired to a distance. Then he raised his head and said, "O Abu-Zeid! thou hast reached the day

Р

of thy death, and the conclusion of thy term, and the end of thy life! For, by Allâh! I will sever thy neck unless thou inform me how this picture has been impressed upon thy heart."

"Willingly, O Prince!" I replied. "I was sitting before the door of thy brother Sa'ad-ibn-'Abd-elMálik,* when lo! I beheld a damsel escaping from the palace gate like a gazelle fleeing from the snare of the hunter. She wore a flowing Alexandrian robe, through which appeared the whiteness of her bosom, and the roundness of her form, and the embroidery of her belt. Her feet were shod in silk, and verily the whiteness of her instep gleamed brilliantly against the redness of her shoes. Two long tresses reached down to her hips, and her temples resembled two nūns.† Her eyebrows were indeed arched above her eyes; and her eyes were full of enchantment. nose was like a crystal reed, and her mouth like a

*

Her

This is an instance of the carelessness and inaccuracy of Arab writers with regard to names, whereby the labour of searching out historical facts belonging to those remote times is much increased. It is very possible that one of 'Abd-el-Malik's sixteen sons may have been named Sa'ad; but it is evident from the sequel that Sulaimân's predecessor in the Khalîfate is here intended; and his name was el-Walîd, not Sa'ad.

The Arabic N, which is thus formed

.ن

wound with the blood welling therein. And she cried, 'Slaves of Allâh! who will bring me medicine for one that cannot be consoled, and a remedy for one that may not be named? Long has been the parting, and the traveller has tarried. But the heart takes wing, and the mind is absent, and the soul is troubled, and the spirit stolen, and sleep is imprisoned. Allâh's pity be upon those who live in suffering and die in sorrow! Had there been either strength to bear, or a road to consolation, it had been truly an excellent thing.'

"Then she was silent for a space with drooping head. When she raised it, I said, 'O thou maiden! art thou of men or of genii? a heavenly being or an earthly? For of a truth the ardour of thy mind has astonished me, and the beauty of thy language has turned my head.'

"Then she hid her face in her sleeve as though she had not perceived me, but presently said, 'Pardon its inadequacy, O Speaker! but what is more helpless than an arm deprived of its fellow, and who more injured than a forsaken lover?'

"Then she turned and departed. And by Allâh! God save the Prince! I have not since then eaten

heartily without being choked by the remembrance of her; nor have I looked upon beauty without its appearing hideous in my eyes because of her beauty."

Then said Sulaimân, "O Abu-Zeid! the sadness of what I have heard has wellnigh moved me to folly, and passion has taken possession of me, and judgment has fled from me. Know, O Abu-Zeid! that this girl whom thou sawest is Zhalfâ, of whom it has been said,

Zhalfâ resembles nought save a ruby
Produced from the purse of a merchant.

She cost my brother ten hundred thousand dirhems ; and she was in love with him who sold her. By Allâh! if he be dead, it can only be through love of her, and ne must have entered his grave solely by grief on her account, and from lacking consolation for her loss, and through fearfully anticipating death. Rise, O Abu-Zeid! Allâh have thee in His keeping. Ho, slave! lade him with a bádrah."

So I took the present and departed.

And when Sulaimân succeeded to the Khalîfate, Zhalfâ also became his. And he ordered tents, and

* A sum of from one thousand to ten thousand dirhems, according to different writers.