Whilome there was a merchant named Abu Tammám, and he was a clever man and a well bred, quick witted and truthful in all his affairs, and he was monied to boot. Now there was in his land a king as unjust as he was jealous, and Abu Tammam feared for his wealth from this king and said, "I will remove hence to another place where I shall not be in dread." So he made for the city of Aylán Sháh and built himself a palace within it and transporting his wealth there, took up his abode there. Presently, the news of him reached King Aylan Shah; so he sent to invite him to his presence

The Story Of Aylan Shah And Abu Tammam. 83 and said to him, "We know of your coming to us and yours entering under our allegiance, and indeed we have heard of yours excellence and wit and generosity; so welcome to you and fair welcome! The land is your land and at your command, and whatever need you need of us, 'tis already accomplished to you; and it behoves that you be near our person and of our assembly." Abu Tammam prostrated himself before the king, and said to him, "O king, I will serve you with my monies and with my life, but do you excuse me from nearness to you, for that If I took office about you, I should not be safe from enemies and enviers." Then he applied himself to the royal service with presents and largesses, and the king saw him to be intelligent, well bred and of good counsel; so his heart inclined to him and he committed to him the ordinance of his affairs and the power to bind and to loose was in his hand. Now Aylan Shah had three Wazirs, in whose hands public affairs were wont to be and they had been accustomed not to quit the king night or day; but they became shut out from him by reason of Abu Tammam and the king was occupied with him to their exclusion. Herewith the Ministers took counsel together upon the matter and said, "What is your counsel we should do, seeing that the king is occupied from us with that man, and indeed he honours him with more honour than us? But now come, let us devise some device by which we may alienate him from the king."

So each of them spoke forth that which was in his mind, and one of them said, "The king of the Turks has a daughter, whose like there is not in the world, and whatever messenger goes to demand her in marriage, him her father slaughters. Now our king has no knowledge of this; so, come, let us foregather with him and bring up the mention of her: when his heart is taken with her, we will advise him to dispatch Abu Tammam to seek her hand in marriage; whereupon her father will slay him and we shall be quit of him and settle his affair once for all." Accordingly, they went in to the king one day (Abu Tammam being present among them), and mentioned the affair of the damsel, the daughter of the Turks' king, and enlarged upon her charms, till the king's heart was taken with her and he said to them, "We will send one to demand her to wife for us; but who shall be our messenger?" the Wazirs, said, "There is none fit for this business but Abu Tammam, by reason of his wit and good breeding;" and the king said, "Indeed, even as you say, none is fitting for this affair save he."

Then he turned to Abu Tammam and said to him, "Will you not go with my message and seek me in marriage the daughter of the Turks' king?" and he answered, "I hear and I obey, O my Sovran!" So they made ready his affair and the king conferred on him a robe of honour, and he took with him a present and a letter under the king's hand and setting out, fared on till he came to the capital city of Turkistan. When the king of the Turks knew of his coming, he despatched his officers to receive him and entreated him with honour and lodged him as befitted his rank. Then he guested him three days, after which time he summoned him to his presence and Abu Tammam went in to him; and, prostrating himself as beseems before kings, laid that present before him and gave him the letter. The king read the writ and said to Abu Tammam, "We will do what behoves in the matter; but, O Abu Tammam, needs must you view my daughter and she view you, and needs must you hear her speech and she hear yours." So saying, he sent him to the lodging of the Princess, who had notice of this; so that they had adorned her sitting room with the costliest that might be of vessels of gold and silver and the like, and she seated herself on a chair of gold, clad in the richest of royal robes and ornaments.

When Abu Tammam entered, he took thought and said, "The wise declare that whoever governs his sight shall suffer nothing unright and he who guards his tongue shall hear nothing of foul taunt, and he who keeps watch over his hand, it shall be lengthened and not shortened." So he entered and seating himself on the floor, cast down his eyes and covered his hands and feet with his dress. the said,king's daughter to him, "Raise your head, O Abu Tammam, and look on me and speak with me." But he spoke not neither raised his head, and she continued, "They sent you only to view me and talk with me, and yet behold you say not a word; " presently adding, "Take of these union pearls that be round you and of these jewels and gold and silver." But he put not forth his hand to anything, and when she saw that he paid no heed to anything, she was angry and cried,

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"They have messaged me with a messenger, blind, dumb, deaf." Then she sent to acquaint her father with this; whereupon the king called Abu Tammam to him and said to him, "You came not save to view my daughter: why, then, have you not looked upon her?" Abu Tammam, said, "I saw everything;" and the king said, "Why did you not take something of that which you saw of jewels and the like? Indeed they were set out for you." But he answered, "It behoves me not to put out my hand to anything that is not mine." When the king heard his speech, he gave him a sumptuous robe of honour and loved him muchly and said to him, "Come, look at this well." So Abu Tammam went up to the pit mouth and looked, and behold, it was full of heads of the sons of Adam, and the king said to him, "These are the heads of envoys whom I slew, because I saw them without loyalty to their lords, and I was used, whenas I beheld an envoy without good manners, to say, 'He who sent him is worse mannered than he, because the messenger is the tongue of him who sends him and his breeding is of his master's breeding; and whoever is in this way, it befits not that he be akin to me.'

For this reason I used to put the envoys to death; but, as for you, you have overcome us and won my daughter, of the excellence of your manners; so hearten your heart, for she is your lord's." Then he sent him back to King Aylan Shah with presents and rarities and a letter, saying, "This that I have done is in honour of you and of yours envoy." When Abu Tammam returned after accomplishing his mission and brought the presents and the letter, King Aylan Shah rejoiced in this and redoubled all his favours and showed him honour the highest. Some days after, the King of Turkistan sent his daughter and she went in to King Aylan Shah, who rejoiced in her with exceeding joy and Abu Tammam's worth was exalted in the royal sight. When the Wazirs saw this, they redoubled in envy and despite and said, If we contrive us not a contrivance to rid us of this man, we shall die of rage." So they bethought them and agreed upon a device they should practise. Then they betook themselves to two boys, pages affected to the service of the king, who slept not but on their knees, and they lay at his head, for that they were his bed chamber pages.

So the Ministers gave them each a thousand dinars of gold, saying, "We desire of you that you do somewhat we require and take this gold as a provision against your time of need." the lads, said, "What is it you would have us do?" and the Wazirs, said, "This Abu Tammam has marred matters for us, and if his case abide in this way, he will remove us all from the king's favour; and what we want of you twain is that, when you are alone with the king and he leans back, as he were asleep, one of you say to his fellow, 'truly, the king has taken Abu Tammam into high favour and has advanced him to exalted rank, yet he is a transgressor against the king's honour and an accursed people.' Then let the other of you ask, 'And what is his transgression?' and let the first answer, 'He outrags the king's honour and says, the King of Turkistan was used, when a messenger went to him to seek his daughter in marriage, to slay him; but me he spared, because she liked me, and by reason of this her sire sent her here, for that she loved me.'

Then let the other say, 'Know you this for truth?' and let the first reply, 'By God, this is familiar to all the folk, but, of their fear of the king, they dare not divulge it to him; and as often as the king is absent a hunting or a wayfaring, Abu Tammam comes to her and is private with her.' " Whereupon the boys answered, "We will say this." Accordingly, one night, when they were alone with the king and he leant back, as he were asleep, they said these words and the king heard all and was like to die of fury and despite and said to himself, "These are young boys, not come to years of discretion, and have no business with any; and unless they had heard these words from some one, they had not spoken of it each with other." When it was morning wrath over mastered him, so that he stayed not neither deliberated, but summoned Abu Tammam and taking him apart, said to him, "whoever guards not the honour of his liege lord, what de serves he?" Said Abu Tammam, "He deserves that his lord guard not his honour." Aylan Shah continued, "And whoever enters the king's house and plays traitor with him, what behoves unto him?" and Abu Tammam replied,

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"He shall not be left alive." Whereupon the king spat in his face and said to him, "Both these deeds have you done." Then he drew his poinard on him in haste and smiting him in the belly, slit it and Abu Tammam died directly; whereupon the king dragged him along and cast him into a well that was in his palace. After he had slain him, he fell into repentance and mourning increased and chagrin grew sore upon him, and he would acquaint none who questioned him with the cause, nor, of his love for his wife, did he tell her of this, and whenever she asked him Why he grieved, he answered her not. When the Wazirs knew of Abu Tammam's death, they rejoiced with exceeding joy and knew that the king's sorrow arose from regret for him. As for Aylan Shah, after this he used to betake himself by night to the sleeping chamber of the two boys and spy upon them, that he might hear what they said concerning his wife. As he stood one night privily at the door of their chamber, he saw them spread out the gold between their hands and play with it and heard one of them say, "Woe to us! What does this gold profit us? Indeed we cannot buy therewith any thing nor spend it upon ourselves. Nay, but we have sinned against Abu Tammam and done him dead unjustly."

And said the other, "Had we known that the king would slay him on the spot, we had not done what we did." When the king heard that, he could not contain himself, but rushed in upon them and said to them, "Woe to you! What did you? Tell me." And they cried, "Amán, O king!" He cried, "An you would have pardon from Allah and me, you are bound to tell me the truth, for nothing shall save you from me but soothfastness." at this they prostrated themselves before him and said, "By God, O king, the Wazirs gave us this gold and taught us to lie against Abu Tammam, so you might kill him, and what we said was their speech." When the king heard this, he plucked at his beard, till he was like to tear it up by the roots and bit upon his fingers, till he well near cut them in twain, for repentance and sorrow that he had wrought hastily and had not delayed with Abu Tammam, so he might consider his case. Then he sent for the Ministers and said to them,

"O villainous Wazirs, you deemed that Allah was heedless of your deed, but right soon shall your wickedness revert upon you. Know you not that whoever diggs for his brother a pit shall himself fall into it? Take from me the punishment of this world and tomorrow you shall receive the punishment of the next world and requital from Allah." Then he bade put them to death; so the headsman smote off their heads before the king, and he went in to his wife and acquainted her with whatever he had misdone to Abu Tammam; whereupon she grieved for him with mighty great grief and the king and his household did not stop weeping and repenting all their lives. Moreover, they brought Abu Tammam forth of the well and the king built him a dome in his palace and buried him within it. "See, then, " (continued the youth), "what jealousy does and injustice and how Allah caused the Wazirs' malice to revert upon their own necks; and I trust in the Almighty that He will empower me over all who envy me my favour with the king and show forth the truth unto him. Indeed, I dread nothing for my life from death; only I fear lest the king repent of my slaughter, for that I am guiltless of offence, and if I knew that I were guilty on any wise, my tongue would be dumb struck." When the king heard this, he bowed his head groundwards in perplexity and con fusion and said, "Restore him to the prison till the morrow, so we may look into his case."

The Ninth Day