There once lived an exceeding rich merchant, who was a great
traveller and who visited all manner of places. One day, being
minded to journey to a certain city, he asked those who came
thence, saying, "What kind of goods brought most profit there?"
and they answered, "Chanders-wood; for it selleth at a high
price." So he laid out all his money in sandal and set out for
that city; and arriving there at close of day, behold, he met and
old woman driving her sheep. Quoth she to him, "Who art thou, O
man? and quoth he, "I am a stranger, a merchant." "Beware of the
townsfolk," said she, "for they are cheats, rascals, robbers who
love nothing more than imposing on the foreigner that they may
get the better of him and devour his substance. Indeed I give
thee good counsel." Then she left him and on the morrow there met
him one of the citizens who saluted him and asked him, "O my
lord, whence comest thou?" Answered the merchant, "From such a
place." "And what merchandise hast thou brought with thee?"
enquired the other; and replied he, "Chanders-wood, for it is
high of price with you." Quoth the townsman, "He blundered who
told thee that; for we burn nothing under our cooking-pots save
sandal-wood, whose worth with us is but that of fuel." When the
merchant heard this he sighed and repented and stood balanced
between belief and unbelief. Then he alighted at one of the khans
of the city, and, when it was night, he saw a merchant make fire
of chanders-wood under his cooking pot. Now this was the man who
had spoken with him and this proceeding was a trick of his. When
the townsman saw the merchant looking at him, he asked, "Wilt
thou sell me thy sandal-wood for a measure
[FN#245] of whatever
thy soul shall desire?" "I sell it to thee," answered the
merchant; and the buyer transported all the wood to his own house
and stored it up there; whilst the seller purposed to take an
equal quantity of gold for it. Next morning the merchant, who was
a blue-eyed man, went out to walk in the city but, as he went
along, one of the townsfolk, who was blue-eyed and one-eyed to
boot, caught hold of him, saying, "Thou are he who stole my eye
and I will never let thee go."
[FN#246] The merchant denied this,
saying, "I never stole it: the thing is impossible." Whereupon
the folk collected round them and besought the one-eyed man to
grant him till the morrow, that he might give him the price of
his eye. So the merchant procured one to be surety for him, and
they let him go. Now his sandal had been rent in the struggle
with the one-eyed man; so he stopped at a cobbler's stall and
gave it to him, saying, "Mend it and thou shalt have of me what
shall content thee." Then he went on, till he came to some people
sitting at play of forfeits and sat down with them, to divert his
cark and care. They invited him to play with them and he did so;
but they practised on him and overcoming him, offered him his
choice,
[FN#247] either to drink up the sea or disburse all the
money he had. "Have patience with me till to-morrow," said he,
and they granted him the delay he sought; whereupon he went away,
sore concerned for what had betided him and knowing not how he
should do, and sat down in a solitary place heart-heavy, care-
full, thought-opprest. And behold, the old woman passed by and
seeing him thus, said to him, "Peradventure the townsfolk have
gotten the better of thee, for I see the troubled at that which
hath befallen thee: recount to me what aileth thee." So he told
her all that had passed from first to last, and she said, "As for
him who diddled thee in the matter of the chanders-wood, thou
must know that with us it is worth ten gold pieces a pound. But I
will give thee a rede, whereby I trust thou shalt deliver
thyself; and it is this. Go to such and such a gate whereby lives
a blind Shaykh, a cripple, who is knowing, wise as a wizard and
experienced; and all resort to him and ask him what they require,
when he counsels them what will be their advantage; for he is
versed in craft
[FN#248] and magic and trickery. Now he is a
sharper and the sharpers resort to him by night; therefore, I
repeat, go thou to his lodging and hide thyself from thine
adversaries, so thou mayst hear what they say, unseen of them;
for he telleth them which party got the better and which got the
worse; and haply thou shalt learn from them some plan which may
avail to deliver thee from them." --And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fourth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the old
woman said to the merchant, "Go this night to that expert who is
frequented by the townsfolk and hide thine identity: haply shalt
thou hear from him some plea which shall deliver thee from thine
adversaries." So he went to the place she mentioned and hid
himself albeit he took seat near the blind man. Before long, up
came the Shaykh's company who were wont to choose him for their
judge: they saluted the oldster and one another and sat down
round him, whereupon the merchant recognised his four
adversaries. The Chief set somewhat of food before them and they
ate; then each began to tell what had befallen him during his
day, and amongst the rest came forward he of the chanders-wood
and told the Shaykh how he had bought of one man sandal below its
price, and had agreed to pay for it a Sá'a or measure of whatever
the seller should desire.
[FN#249] Quoth the old man, "Thine
opponent hath the better of thee." Asked the other, "How can that
be?"; and the Shaykh answered, "What if he say, I will take the
measure full of gold or silver, wilt thou give it to him?" "Yes,"
replied the other, "I will give it to him and still be the
gainer." And the Shaykh answered, "And if he say, I will take the
measure full of fleas,
[FN#250] half male and half female, what
wilt thou do?" So the sharper knew that he was worsted. Then came
forward the one-eyed man and said, "O Shaykh, I met to-day a
blue-eyed man, a stranger to the town; so I picked a quarrel with
him and caught hold of him, saying, ''Twas thou robbedst me of my
eye'; nor did I let him go, till some became surety for him that
he should return to me to-morrow and satisfy me for my eye."
Quoth the oldster, "If he will he may have the better of thee and
thou the worse." "How so?" asked the sharper; and the Chief said,
"he may say to thee, 'Pluck out thine eye, and I will pluck out
one of mine; then we will weigh them both, and if thine eye be of
the same weight as mine, thou sayest sooth in what thou
avouchest.' So wilt thou owe him the legal price of his eye and
be stone blind, whilst he will still see with his other eye." So
the sharper knew that the merchant might baffle him with such
plea. Then came the cobbler; and said, "O Shaykh, a man brought
me his sandal-shoe to-day, saying, 'Mend this;' and I asked him,
'What wage wilt thou give me?'; when he answered, 'Thou shalt
have of me what will content thee.' Now nothing will content me
but all the wealth he hath." Quoth the oldster, "And he will, he
may take his sandal from thee and give thee nothing." "How so?"
quoth the cobbler, and quoth the Shaykh, "He has but to say to
thee, 'The Sultan's enemies are put to the rout; his foes are
waxed weak and his children and helpers are multiplied. Art thou
content or no?' If thou say, 'I am content,'
[FN#251] he will take
his sandal and go away; and if thou say, 'I am not content,' he
will take his sandal and beat thee therewith over the face and
neck." So the cobbler owned himself worsted. Then came forward
the gamester and said, "O Shaykh, I played at forfeits with a man
to-day and beat him and quoth I to hime, 'If thou drink the sea I
will give thee all my wealth; and if not I will take all that is
thine.'" Replied the Chief, "An he will he may worst thee." "How
so?" asked the sharper, and the Shaykh answered, "He hath but to
say, 'Hold for me the mouth of the sea in thine hand and give it
me and I will drink it.' But thou wilt not be able to do this; so
he will baffle thee with this plea." When the merchant heard
this, he knew how it behoved him to deal with his adversaries.
Then the sharpers left the Shaykh and the merchant returned to
his lodging. Now when morning morrowed, the gamester came to him
and summoned him to drink the sea; so he said to him, "Hold for
me its mouth and I will drink it up." Whereupon he confessed
himself beaten and redeemed his foreit by paying an hundred gold
pieces. Then came the cobbler and sought of him what should
content him. Quoth the merchant, "Our lord the Sultan hath
overcome his foes and hath destroyed his enemies and his children
are multiplied. Art thou content or no?" "I am content," replied
the cobbler and, giving up the shoe
[FN#252] without wage, went
away. Next came the one-eyed man and demanded the legal price of
his eye. Said the merchant, "Pluck out thine eye, and I will
pluck out mine: then we will weigh them, and if they are equal in
weight, I will acknowledge thy truth, and pay thee the price of
thine eye; but, if they differ, thou liest and I will sue thee
for the price of mine eye." Quoth the one-eyed man, "Grant me
time;" but the merchant answered, saying, "I am a stranger and
grant time to none, nor will I part from thee till thou pay." So
the sharper ransomed his eye by paying him an hundred ducats and
went away. Last of all came the buyer of the chanders-wood and
said, "Take the price of thy ware." Asked the merchant, "What
wilt thou give me?"; and the other answered, "We agreed for a
Sá'a-measure of whatever thou shouldst desire; so, if thou wilt,
take it full of gold and silver." "Not I," rejoined the merchant,
"Not I! nothing shall serve me but I must have it full of fleas,
half male and half female." Said the sharper, "I can do nothing
of the kind;" and, confessing himself beaten, returned him his
sandal-wood and redeemed himself from him with an hundred
sequins, to be off his bargain. Then the merchant sold the
chanders-wood at his own price and, quitting the city of
sharpers, returned to his own land, ---And Shahrazad perceived
the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifth Night
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the
merchant had sold his chanders-wood and had taken the money he
quitted that city and returned to his own land. Then the Prince
continued, "But this is not more wondrous than the tale of the
three-year-old child." "What may that be?" asked the King, and
the Prince answered, "I have heard tell this tale of
The Debauchee and the Three-Year-Old Child."
