ment of grasping and retaining, should a serpent inflict a wound upon it, is cut off; and men regard the pain of this operation as the very spring of comfort.

COUPLET.

Why should thy foeman's memory make thee sad? 1

For his death rather let thy heart be glad.'

The Lion was somewhat soothed by these words, but time exacted just retribution for the Ox, and in the end the career of Damnah closed ignominiously and with disgrace, and the plant of his evil deeds and the seed of his false words coming up, he was slain in vengeance for the Ox, and the results of perfidy and deceit have ever been uncommendable, and the consequences of fraud and malevolence to be deprecated and inauspicious.

VERSE,

In their plots ever perish wicked men,

As scorpions come not to their homes again.
If thou dost ill, look not for good; since ne'er
Will the sour colocynth grape-clusters bear.
Thou who didst barley in the autumn sow,
Expect not wheat in harvest-time to mow.
This maxim by the sage was uttered-'Do
No ill, lest thou from time ill-treatment rue.
He in both worlds a good reward will find,
Who lives-a benefactor to mankind.

:

Lit. What can the enemy do to any one? that thou shouldst remember him!' I read chih kird for chih kari, which is to me unintelligible.

CHAPTER II.

ON THE PUNISHMENT OF EVIL-DOERS AND THEIR DISASTROUS END.

INTRODUCTION.

The King said, 'I have heard the story of the calumniator and traducer, who, with consummate craft, clothed the beauty of truth with the guise of suspicion, and having caused his benefactor to swerve from the path of generous feeling, led him to incur the stigma of ingratitude and bad faith; and, after his words, mingled with guile, had made an impression, induced the Lion to exert himself to ruin the pillar of his state and crush the support of his own imperial sway. At the present time, should the eloquent sage see it to be advisable, let him recount the termination of Damnah's career, and set forth in what manner the Lion, when, after the occurrence of that event, he had returned to his senses and become suspicious with regard to Damnah, sought to remedy what had happened, and how he obtained information of the circumstances of his perfidy, and by what shifts Damnah contrived to hold on,' and what stratagem his friend devised, and what was the issue of his affairs at last. The sage said,

COUPLET.

'O king! be thou of fate and realm the stay!
And wisdom's lamp illuminate thy way!

In truth, prudence and foresight require that kings should not stir the instant they hear anything, nor despatch a mandate with reference thereto, until they have been informed of the certainty of the affair by clear proof and lucid demonstration.

COUPLET.

Not thou to interested folk give heed, Lest if thou act thou shouldst repent thy deed. But after that the words of designing persons have chanced to persuade, and an unpraiseworthy action or speech which cannot be commended has actually gone forth, the remedy and amends would be to punish the calumniating sycophant in such wise as might serve for a warning to others; and, from dread of that chastisement, no one would pursue the same conduct in future, and thus it would be a duty to warn all to abstain from the like behaviour.

VERSE.

The plant that yields but thorns uproot,

The lamp of an incendiary

And fiery torments undergo,

1 Tamassuk namúdan, a rare phrase.

Conserve the tree that gives the fruit.

Is better quenched. That one should die Is better than all mankind's woe.

And the story of the Lion and Damnah verifies this dictum, for when the former got intelligence of the perfidy of the latter, and was apprised of his deceit and wickedness, he inflicted on him such a punishment that the eye of heedfulness in the others was enlightened, so that they made the verse, Wherefore take example from them, O ye who have eyes!' the continual task of recitation of their tongue. And the manner of this event was in this wise: when the Lion had finished the business of the Ox, he repented of the precipitancy he had shown in that affair, and bit the finger of contrition with the tooth of reproach, and laid the head of regret on the knee of amazement.

COUPLET.

Cold sighs of sorrow and remorse he drew,

Deeds such as mine did ever mortal do?

He was ever musing, pensively saying, 'Why did I act precipitately in this matter,' and continually reflected, 'Wherefore did I not manage this affair with caution and deliberation?'

STANZA.

The reins of will to passion's grasp I threw,

Sinned against reason and discretion too.

What 'vails it now that 'I have known or know,'

What use repeating 'Wherefore did I so?'

The Lion passed a long time in this manner in grief and chagrin, and in consequence of his dejection of mind and distracted feelings, the enjoyment of the beasts was suspended and the state of his subjects became one of distress, and the deep saying, People follow the faith of their kings,' diffused its influence through the inhabitants of that forest, so that all of them became melancholy and sad.

COUPLET.

My heart is like a tulip scorched; and by my sighing's flame

In all thou seest their hearts too are scorched and scarred the same.

And he was incessantly recalling to mind the meritorious services, aid and former devotion of Shanzabah; and as his sorrow grew, confusion and distress overpowered him, and he was wont to find consolation in talking of his sayings or acts, or in hearing him spoken of.

COUPLET.

I'm not one moment negligent of thee, Thy name is ever said or heard by me. He continually gave private audiences to each one of the beasts, and required them to narrate. One day he was conversing with a leopard on this subject, and was describing his heart-burnings and the disquietude of his soul. The

1 Kur'an, ch. lix. 2, Sale p. 402, 1. 13: 'But the chastisement of God came upon them, from whence they did not expect; and he cast terror into their hearts. They pulled down their houses with their own hands, and the hands of the true believers. Wherefore take example from them, O ye who have eycs.!' This refers to the Jews, who were expelled by Muhammad from Madinah.

leopard said, 'O, King! to brood much over a business in which the hand of counsel falls short of the skirt of remedy, leads to madness, and to seek a cure for a matter which is inscribed in the circle of impossibilities, lies not in the centre of reason and understanding; and sages have said,

COUPLET.

Back to thy hand no power can bring The shaft that once has left the string. And whoever exerts himself in searching for a thing which it is impossible to gain, may possibly, without obtaining what he is in quest of, let slip that too which he already has; just as the fox desired to get possession of the fowl, and lost the piece of skin of which he had boasted.' The Lion inquired, 'How was that?'

STORY I.

The leopard said, 'They have related that a hungry Fox had come forth from his hole in quest of food, and was roaming about in every direction and was measuring the forest sides with the step of greediness and avidity in search of a morsel. Suddenly an odor which invigorated his soul reached his nostrils. Turning on the scent of it he saw a fresh piece of skin, the flesh of which had been eaten by some wild beast that had left the hide. When the eyes of the Fox lit upon that piece of skin they brightened up, and the greatest vigor was diffused through his limbs at viewing that quantity of food.

COUPLET.

The fragrance of my much-loved friend came to me e'en in death,
And to my body back returned life's then departed breath.

The Fox, having got that piece of skin into the claw of possession, turned his face towards his own abode.

HEMISTICH.

Hast gained a friend? then privacy is best.

In the midst of this state of things

In the midst of the way he happened to pass beside a village, where he beheld fat fowls busy feeding in the wide plain, while a slave named Zírak1 had girt the loins of guardianship in watching them. The Fox's appetite for the flesh of the fowls was excited, and the delightful idea of the brains of their heads made him forget the piece of skin. a Jackal chanced to pass by that hamlet. I observe that thou art very thoughtful. occurrence has taken place?' The Fox replied, 'O friend! Thou seest those fowls, the tongue of whose individual condition continues to repeat the meaning of [the verse], And the flesh of birds of the kind which they shall

That is, 'Subtle.'

He inquired, saying, 'O brother! What event has occurred and what

desire," and the mysterious meaning of [the verse], 'Therein shall ye have that which your souls shall desire,'' pervades them from head to foot.

COUPLET.

A soul so delicate and pure is rare."

From head to foot incarnate soul is there, And after a long interval during which I have suffered from the pains of want and the torments of hunger, the treasurer of the stores of God's bounties bestowed on me this piece of skin, and now the craving of appetite requires to get one of these fowls into its grasp, and cloy the palate of desire with the sweetness of its flesh, which possesses the deliciousness of life.

COUPLET.

My joy is soured, but if she from her honeyed lips bestow

Sharbat on me, my heart's palate will straightway sweeter grow.

The Jackal said, 'Alack! alack! a long time has passed over me, during which I have been in ambush for these fowls, and on the watch to make a prey of one of them, but that slave Zírak, who is their guide, keeps his eye on the path of protection after such a fashion, that the huntsman of imagination, from dread of his guardianship, cannot bring their forms under the net of his scheming; and the painter of the mind, from fear of his defensive care, is unable to draw their lineaments on the tablet of fancy; and I pass my life in this longing, and live from day to night and from night to day on a mere idea. Thou that hast found a fresh piece of skin, regard it as a piece of goodfortune, and relinquish this vain pretension.

COUPLET.

To thine own mistress be thy heart inclined,

And shut thine eyelids upon all mankind.'

The Fox said, 'O brother! till we can elevate ourselves according to our heart's wish upon the higher apsis of desire, to sit down disappointed in the lower apsis of mortification and abasement would be a great pity; and until we can gaze on the rose of enjoyment in the parterre of repose, to direct our steps into the thorny wake of adversity and suffering would be a glaring fault.

1 Kur'an, Fl. lvi. 21; Mar. lvi. 23; Sale p. 394, 1. 24: These are they who shall approach near unto God, they shall dwell in gardens of delight; (there shall be many of the former religions, and few of the last.) Reposing on couches adorned with gold and precious stones, sitting opposite to one another thereon, youths, which shall continue in their bloom for ever, shall go round about to attend them with goblets and beakers, and a cup of flowing wine: their heads shall not ache by drinking the same, neither shall their reason be disturbed and with fruits of the sort they shall choose, and the flesh of birds of the kind which they shall desire. And there shall accompany them fair damsels, having large black cyes, resembling pearls hidden in their shells, as a reward for that which they shall have wrought.'

2 Kur'an, ch. xli. 31; Sale, p. 356, 1. 18: As for those who say our Lord is God, and who behave uprightly, the angels shall descend unto them and shall say, 'Fear not, neither be ye grieved but rejoice in the hopes of Paradise which ye have been promised. We are your friends in this life, and in that which is to come: therein shall ye have that which your souls shall desire, and therein shall ye obtain whatever ye shall ask for; as a gift from a gracious and merciful God.'

3 The rub here I presume to mean 'esprit,' for which word we have no exact English equivalent. The lines are literally translated, but do not appear very apposite.