"More Fairy Tales from the Arabian Nights" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dixons Version)

Ali Baba's wife went home, set the measure upon the heap of gold, and filled it and emptied it, at a small distance upon the sofa, till she had done: and she was very well satisfied to find that the number of measures amounted to so many as they did, and went to tell her husband, who had almost finished digging the hole. While Ali Baba was burying the gold, his wife, to show her punctuality to her sister-in-law, carried the measure back again, but without noticing that a piece of gold stuck at the bottom. 'Sister,' said she, giving it back to her again, 'you see that I have not kept your measure long: I am much obliged to you, and return it with thanks.'
As soon as Ali Baba's wife's back was turned, Cassim's wife looked at the bottom of the measure, and was inexpressibly surprised to find a piece of gold sticking to it. Envy immediately possessed her heart. 'What!' said she, 'has Ali Baba gold so plentifully as to measure it? Where has that poor wretch got all this gold?' Cassim, her husband, was at his shop, which he left always in the evening. His wife waited for him, and thought the time an age; so great was her impatience to tell him the news, at which he would be so much surprised.
When Cassim came home, his wife said to him, 'Cassim, you think yourself rich, but you are much mistaken; Ali Baba is infinitely richer than you; he does not count his money, but measures it.' Cassim desired her to explain the riddle, which she did, telling him the stratagem by which she had made the discovery, and showing him the piece of money, which was so old a coin that they could not tell in what prince's reign it was coined.
Cassim, instead of being pleased at his brother's prosperity, could not sleep all that night for jealousy, but went to him in the morning before sunrise. Now Cassim, after he had married the rich widow, never treated Ali Baba as a brother, but forgot him. 'Ali Baba,' said he, 'you are very reserved in your affairs; you pretend to be miserably poor, and yet you measure gold!'
'What, brother?' replied Ali Baba; 'I do not know what you mean: explain yourself.'
'Do not pretend ignorance,' replied Cassim, showing him the piece of gold his wife had given him. 'How many of these pieces have you? My wife found this at the bottom of the measure you borrowed yesterday.'
By this Ali Baba perceived that Cassim and his wife, through his own wife's folly, knew what they had such good reason to keep secret; but what was done could not be recalled; therefore without showing the least surprise or vexation, he confessed all, and told his brother by what chance he had discovered this retreat of the thieves, and where it was; and offered him part of his treasure to keep the secret. 'I expected as much,' replied Cassim haughtily; 'but I will know exactly where this treasure is, and the signs and tokens by which I may go to it myself when I have a mind; otherwise I will go and inform against you, and then you will not only get no more, but will lose all you have got, and I shall have my share for my information.'
Ali Baba, more out of his natural good temper than frightened by the insulting threats of a barbarous brother, told him all he desired, and even the very words he was to make use of to go into the cave and to come out again.
Cassim, who wanted no more of Ali Baba, left him, resolving to be beforehand with him, and hoping to get all the treasure to himself. He rose early the next morning, a long time before sunrise, and set out with ten mules laden with great chests, which he designed to fill: intending to carry many more the next time, according to the riches he found; and followed the road which Ali Baba had told him. It was not long before he came to the rock, and found out the place by the tree. When he came to the door, he pronounced the words, 'Open, Sesame,' and it opened; and when he was in, shut again. In examining the cave, he was astonished to find much more riches than he had supposed from Ali Baba's story. He was so covetous and fond of riches that he could have spent the whole day in feasting his eyes with so much treasure, if the thought that he came to carry some away with him had not hindered him. He laid as many bags of gold as he could carry away by the entrance, and, coming at last to open the door, his thoughts were so full of the great riches he should possess that he could not think of the necessary word; but instead of 'Open, Sesame,' said, 'Open, Barley,' and was very much amazed to find that the door did not open, but remained fast shut. He named several sorts of grain,--all but the right one,--and the door would not open.
Cassim had never expected such an accident, and was so frightened at the danger he was in that the more he endeavoured to remember the word 'Sesame,' the more his memory failed, and he had as much forgotten it as if he had never heard it in his life. He threw down the bags with which he had laden himself, and walked hastily up and down the cave, without the least attention to all the riches that were around him. In this miserable condition we will leave him, bewailing his fate, and undeserving of pity.
About noon the robbers returned to their cave, and from some distance saw Cassim's mules straggling about the rock with great chests on their backs. Alarmed at this unexpected sight, they galloped full speed to the cave. They drove away the mules, which Cassim had neglected to fasten, and which strayed away through the forest so far that they were soon out of sight. The robbers never gave themselves the trouble of pursuing the mules: they were more concerned to know to whom they belonged. And while some of them searched about the rock, the captain and the rest went straight to the door, with naked sabres in their hands, and on their pronouncing the words, it opened.
Cassim, who heard the noise of the horses' feet from the middle of the cave, never doubted the coming of the robbers, and his approaching death; but he was resolved to make one effort to escape. To this end he stood ready at the door, and no sooner heard the word 'Sesame,' which he had forgotten, and saw the door open, than he jumped briskly out, and threw the captain down but could not escape the other robbers, who with their sabres soon deprived him of life.
The first care of the robbers after this was to go into the cave. They found all the bags which Cassim had brought to the door, and carried them all back again to their places, without perceiving what Ali Baba had taken away before. Then holding a council, and deliberating upon the matter, they guessed that Cassim, when he was in, could not get out again; but they could not imagine how he had got in. It came into their heads that he might have got down by the top of the cave; but the opening by which it received light was so high, and the top of the rock so inaccessible without--besides that, nothing showed that he had done so--that they believed it hopeless for them to find out. That he came in at the door they could not feel sure, unless he had the secret of making it open. In short, none of them could imagine which way he entered; for they were all persuaded that nobody knew their secret, little imagining that Ali Baba had watched them. But, however it had happened, it was a matter of the greatest importance to them to secure their riches. They agreed, therefore, to cut Cassim's body into four quarters, and to hang two on one side, and two on the other, inside the door of the cave, to terrify any person who might attempt the same thing. They had no sooner taken this resolution than they executed it; and when they had nothing more to detain them, they left the place of their retreat well closed. They mounted their horses, and went to range the roads again, and to attack the caravans they might meet.
In the meantime Cassim's wife was very uneasy when night came, and her husband had not returned. She ran to Ali Baba in a terrible fright, and said, 'I believe, brother-in-law, you know that Cassim, your brother, is gone to the forest, and why; it is now night, and he has not returned; I am afraid some misfortune has befallen him.' Ali Baba, who never doubted that his brother, after what he had said, would go to the forest, told her, without any reflection upon her husband's unhandsome behaviour, that she need not alarm herself, for that certainly Cassim would not think it proper to come into the town till the night was pretty far advanced.
Cassim's wife, considering how much it behoved her husband to keep this thing secret, was the more easily persuaded to believe him. She went home again, and waited patiently till midnight. Then her fear redoubled, and she repented of her foolish curiosity, and cursed her desire to penetrate into the affairs of her brother and sister-in-law. She spent all that night in weeping; and as soon as it was light, went to them, showing by her tears the reason of her coming.
Ali Baba did not wait for his sister-in-law to ask him to go and see what had become of Cassim, but went immediately with his three asses, begging her first to moderate her grief. He went to the forest, and when he came near the rock, having seen neither his brother nor his mules on the way, he was very much surprised to see some blood spilt by the door. This he took for an ill omen, but when he had pronounced the words, and the door opened, he was much more startled at the dismal sight of his brother in quarters. He was not long in determining how he should pay the last dues to his brother, and without remembering how little brotherly friendship he had shown to him, went into the cave to find something to wrap the remains in, put them on one of his asses and covered them over with wood. The other two asses he loaded with bags of gold, covering them with wood also as before. Then bidding the door shut, he came away; but was cautious enough to stop some time at the end of the forest, that he might not go into the town before nightfall. When he came home, he drove the two asses laden with gold into his little yard, and left the care of unloading them to his wife, while he led the other to his sister-in-law's.
Ali Baba knocked at the door, which was opened by Morgiana, an intelligent slave, clever in inventing plans for the most difficult undertakings: and Ali Baba knew she was. When he came into the court, he unloaded the ass, and taking Morgiana aside, said to her, 'The first thing I ask of you is inviolable secrecy, which you will find is necessary both for your mistress' sake and mine. Your master's body is contained in these two bundles, and our business is to bury him as if he had died a natural death. Go and tell your mistress I want to speak to her, and mind what I say.'
Morgiana went to her mistress, and Ali Baba followed. 'Well, brother,' said she, with great impatience, 'what news do you bring me of my husband ? I perceive no comfort in your face.'
'Sister,' answered Ali Baba, 'I cannot tell you anything before you hear my story from the beginning to the end, without speaking a word; for it is of as great importance to you as to me to keep what has happened secret.'
'Alas!' said she, 'this tells me that my husband is dead; but as I know the necessity of the secrecy you require of me, I must constrain myself: say on, I will hear you.'
Then Ali Baba told his sister all about his journey, till he came to the finding of Cassim's body. 'Now,' said he, 'sister, I have something to tell you which will distress you much more, because it is what you so little expect; but it cannot now be remedied. We must now think of acting so that my brother may appear to have died a natural death. I think you may leave the management of it to Morgiana, and I will contribute all that lies in my power.'
What could Cassim's widow do better than accept this proposal? Ali Baba left the widow, and, recommending Morgiana to act her part well, then returned home with his ass.
Morgiana went out to an apothecary, and asked him for some lozenges which he prepared, and which were very efficacious in the most dangerous illnesses. The apothecary asked her who was ill at her master's. She replied, with a sigh, her good master Cassim himself: they knew not what his illness was, but he could neither eat nor speak. After these words, Morgiana carried the lozenges home with her, and the next morning went to the same apothecary's again, and, with tears in her eyes, asked for an essence which they used to give to sick people only when at the last extremity. 'Alas!' said she, taking it from the apothecary, 'I am afraid that this remedy will have no better effect than the lozenges, and that I shall lose my good master.'
On the other hand, as Ali Baba and his wife were often seen to go between Cassim's and their own house all that day, and to seem melancholy, nobody was surprised in the evening to hear the lamentable shrieks and cries of Cassim's wife and Morgiana, who told everyone that her master was dead.
Next morning, soon after daylight appeared, Morgiana, who knew a certain old cobbler who opened his stall early, before other people, went to him, and bidding him good-morning, put a piece of gold into his hand. 'Well,' said Baba Mustapha, which was his name, and who was a merry old fellow, looking at the gold, though it was hardly daylight, and seeing what it was, 'this is good handling; what must I do for it? I am ready.'
'Babe Mustapha,' said Morgiana, ' you must take with you your sewing tackle, and go with me; but I shall blindfold you when you come to a certain place.'
Baba Mustapha seemed to hesitate a little at these words. 'Oh, ho!' replied he, 'you would have me do something against my conscience, or against my honour.'
'Nay,' said Morgiana, putting another piece of gold into his hand, 'only come along with me, and fear nothing.'
Baba Mustapha went with Morgiana, who, after she had bound his eyes with a handkerchief, at the place she told him of, took him to her deceased master's house, and never unbandaged his eyes till he came in. 'Babe Mustapha,' said she, 'you must make haste and sew these pieces of my master together; and when you have done, I will give you another piece of gold.'
After Baba Mustapha had done, she blindfolded him again, gave him the third piece of gold as she had promised, imposed secrecy on him, and led him back to the place where she first bound his eyes. Then she pulled off the bandage, and let him go home, but watched till he was quite out of sight, for fear he should have the curiosity to return and dodge her; and then went home.
Morgiana had scarcely got home before the iman and the other ministers of the mosque came. Four neighbours carried the coffin on their shoulders to the burying-ground, following the iman, who recited some prayers. Morgiana, as a slave of the deceased, followed, weeping, beating her breast, and tearing her hair; and Ali Baba came after with some neighbours.
Cassim's wife stayed at home mourning, uttering lamentable cries with the women of the neighbourhood, who came according to custom during the funeral, and, joining their lamentations with hers, filled the quarter far and near with sorrow.
In this manner Cassim's melancholy death was concealed and hushed up between Ali Baba, his wife, Cassim's widow, and Morgiana, so that nobody in the city had the least knowledge or suspicion of the reason of it.
Three or four days after the funeral, Ali Baba removed his few goods to his brother's widow's house; the money he had taken from the robbers he conveyed thither by night; and soon afterwards the marriage with his sister-in-law was published, and as these marriages are common in the Mussulman religion, nobody was surprised.
As for Cassim's shop, Ali Baba gave it to his own eldest son, who had been some time out of his apprenticeship to a great merchant, promising him withal that, if he managed well, he would soon give him a fortune to marry upon.
Let us now return to the forty robbers.
They came again at the appointed time to visit their retreat in the forest; but how great was their surprise to find Cassim's body taken away, and some of their bags of gold! 'We are certainly discovered,' said the captain, 'and shall be undone, if we do not take care; otherwise we shall gradually lose all the riches which our ancestors have been so many years amassing together with so much pains and danger. All that we can think of is that the thief whom we surprised had the secret of opening the door, and we came luckily as he was coming out; but his body being removed, and with it some of our money, plainly shows that he had an accomplice. As it is likely that there were but two who had got the secret, and one has been caught, we must look narrowly after the other. What say you to it, my lads?'
All the robbers thought the captain's proposal so reasonable that they unanimously approved of it, and agreed that they must lay all other enterprises aside, to follow this closely, and not give it up till they had succeeded.
'I expected no less,' said the captain, ' from your courage and bravery: but, first of all, one of you who is bold, artful, and enterprising, must go into the town dressed like a traveller and stranger, and do all he can to see if he can hear any talk of the strange death of the man whom we killed, as he deserved, and to find out who he was, and where he lived. This is a matter of the first importance for us to know, that we may do nothing which we may have reason to repent of, by revealing ourselves in a country where we have lived so long unknown, and where we have so much reason to remain: but to warn the man who shall take upon himself this commission, and to prevent our being deceived by his giving us a false report, which might be the cause of our ruin, I ask you all, whether you do not think it fit that if he does he shall suffer death?'
Without waiting for his companions, one of the robbers started up and said, 'I submit to this law, and think it an honour to expose my life by taking such a commission upon me; but remember, at least, if I do not succeed, that I wanted neither courage nor good-will to serve the troop.'
After this robber had received great commendation from the captain and his comrades, he disguised himself so that nobody would take him for what he was; and taking leave of the troop that night, went into the town just at daybreak; and walked up and down till he came to Baba Mustapha's stall, which was always open before any of the shops of the town.
Baba Mustapha was sitting on his seat with an awl in his hand, just going to work. The robber saluted him, and perceiving that he was very old, he said, 'Honest man, you begin to work very early: is it possible that any one of your age can see so well? I question whether you can see to stitch.'
'Certainly,' replied Baba Mustapha, 'you must be a stranger, and not know me; for, old as I am, I have extraordinarily good eyes; and you will not doubt it when I tell you that I sewed the pieces of a dead man together in a place where I had not so much light as I have now.'
The robber was overjoyed to think that he had addressed himself, at his first coming into the town, to a man who gave him the information he wanted, without being asked. 'A dead man!' replied he with amazement. 'What could you sew up a dead man for? You mean you sewed up his winding sheet.'
'No, no,' answered Baba Mustapha, 'I know what I say; you want to have me speak out, but you shall know no more.'
The robber needed no great insight to be persuaded that he had discovered what he came about. He pulled out a piece of gold, and putting it into Baba Mustapha's hand, said, 'I do not want to know your secret, though I can assure you I would not divulge it, if you trusted me. The only thing which I request of you is to do me the favour to point out the house where you stitched up the dead man.'
'If I wanted to do you that favour,' replied Baba Mustapha holding the money in his hand, ready to return it, 'I assure you I cannot; on my word, I was taken to a certain place, where they first blindfolded me, and then led me to the house, and brought me back again after the same manner; therefore you see the impossibility of doing what you desire.'
'Well,' replied the robber, 'you may remember a little of the way that you were led blindfold. Come, let me bind your eyes at the same place. We will walk together by the same way and turnings; perhaps you may remember some part; and as everybody ought to be paid for their trouble, there is another piece of gold for you: gratify me in what I ask you.' So saying, he put another piece of gold into his hand.
The two pieces of gold were a great temptation to Baba Mustapha. He looked at them a long time in his hand, without saying a word, thinking what he should do; but at last he pulled out his purse, and put them in. 'I cannot assure you,' said he to the robber, 'that I remember the way exactly; but, since you desire it, I will try what I can do.' At these words Baba Mustapha rose up, to the great satisfaction of the robber, and without shutting up his shop, where he had nothing valuable to lose, he led the robber to the place where Morgiana had bound his eyes. 'It was here,' said Baba Mustapha, 'that I was blindfolded; and I turned as you see me.' The robber, who had his handkerchief ready, tied it over his eyes, and walked by him till he stopped, partly leading him, and partly guided by him. 'I think,' said Baba Mustapha, 'I went no farther,' and he had now stopped directly opposite Cassim's house, where Ali Baba lived then; upon which the thief, before he pulled off the handkerchief, marked the door with a piece of chalk, which he had ready in his hand; and when he had pulled it off, he asked him if he knew whose house that was: to which Baba Mustapha replied, that as he did not live in the neighbourhood, he could not tell.
The robber, finding he could discover no more from Baba Mustapha, thanked him for the trouble he had taken, and left him to go back to his stall, while he returned to the forest, persuaded that he would be very well received.