A certain man of Bassorah once bought a slave girl and reared and educated her well. Moreover, he loved her very dearly and spent all his substance in pleasuring and merrymaking with her until he had nothing left and extreme poverty fell upon him. So she said to him, "O my master, sell me, for you need my price and it makes my heart ache to see your sorrow and want. If you sell me and make use of my value, it will be better for you than keeping me by you, and perhaps Almighty Allah will provide for you and amend your fortune." He agreed to this because of his strait condition and carried her to the bazaar, where the broker offered her for sale to the Governor of Bassorah, by name Abdallah bin Ma'amar al-Taymi, and she pleased him. So he bought her for five hundred dinars and paid the sum to her master. But when he took the money and was about to go away, the girl burst into tears and recited these two couplets:

"May coins you gainest joy in heart instil; For me remains nothing save saddest ill: I say unto my soul which sorely grieves, 'Your friend departs If you will or will not"

And when her master heard this, he groaned and replied in these couplets:

Albeit this your case lack all resource, Nor finds anything but death's doom, pardon still: Evening and morning, thoughts of you will dole Comfort to heart all woes and griefs full fill: Peace be upon you! meet we now no more Nor pair except at Ibn Ma amar's will."

Now when Abdullah bin Ma'amar heard these verses and saw their affection, he exclaimed, "By God, I will not assist fate in separating you, for it is evident to me that you two indeed love each other. So take the money and the damsel, O man, and Allah bless you in both, for truly parting is grievous to lovers." So they kissed his hand and, going away, did not stop dwelling together until death parted them. And glory be to Him whom death does not overtake! And amongst stories there is that of