第49章 KEMEREZZEMAN AND BUDOUR.(11)

O my lord Kemerezzeman，'rejoined the Vizier，surely thou sawest this in thy sleep；it must have been a delusion of dreams or a hallucination caused by eating various kinds of food or a suggestion of the accursed devils.'O pestilent old man，'cried the prince，wilt thou too make a mock of me and tell me this was an illusion of dreams，when this eunuch confessed to the young lady，saying，'I will return to thee forthwith and tell thee all about her？'So saying，he sprang up and laying hold of the Viziers long beard，twisted his hand in it and tugging him off the couch，threw him on the floor.It seemed to the Vizier as though his soul departed his body for the violent plucking at his beard，and Kemerezzeman fell to kicking him and pummelling his breast and sides and cuffing him on the nape，till he had well-nigh made an end of him.Then said the Vizier in himself，I must save myself from this madman by telling him a lie，even as did the eunuch；else he will kill me，for he is mad beyond a doubt.'So he said to Kemerezzeman，O my lord，bear me not malice，for indeed thy father charged me to conceal from thee this affair of the young lady；but now I am weak and weary and sore with beating；for I am an old man and lack strength to endure blows.So have a little patience with me and I will tell thee all.'When the prince heard this，he left beating him and said，Why couldst thou not tell me without blows and humiliation？Rise now，unlucky old man that thou art，and tell me her story.'Quoth the Vizier，Dost thou ask of the young lady with the fair face and perfect shape？Yes，'answered Kemerezzeman.'Tell me who it was laid her by my side and took her away by night，and let me know whither she is gone，that I may go to her.If my father did this to try me，with a view to our marriage，I consent to marry her and be quit of this trouble；

for he only dealt thus with me，because I refused to marry.I say again，I consent to marry： so tell this to my father，Vizier，and advise him to marry me to her，for I will have none other and my heart loveth her alone.Go now to my father and counsel him to hasten our marriage and bring me his answer forthright.'It is well，'rejoined the Vizier，and went out from him，hardly crediting his escape.Then he set off running and stumbling as he went，for excess of affright and agitation，till he came in to the King，who said to him，O Vizier，what has befallen thee and who has maltreated thee and how comes it that I see thee thus confounded and terrified？O King，'answered the Vizier，I bring thee news.'What is it？asked Shehriman，and the Vizier said，Know that thy son Kemerezzemans wits are gone and that madness hath betided him.'When the King heard this，the light in his face became darkness and he said，Expound to me the nature of my sons madness.'O my lord，'answered the Vizier，I hear and obey.'Then he told him all that had passed and the King said to him，O most ill-omened of Viziers and filthiest of Amirs，know that the reward I will give thee in return for this thy news of my sons madness shall be the cutting off of thy bead and the forfeiture of thy goods；for thou hast caused my sons disorder by the wicked and sinister counsel thou hast given me first and last.By Allah，if aught of mischief or madness have befallen him，I will nail thee upon the dome [of the palace] and make thee taste the bitterness of death！'Then rising，he betook himself with the Vizier to the tower，and when Kemerezzeman saw him，he came down to him in haste from the couch on which he sat and kissing his hands，drew back and stood before him awhile，with his eyes cast down and his hands clasped behind him.Then he raised his head and repeated the following verses，whilst the tears streamed down his cheeks：

If I have borne myself blameworthily to you Or if Ive made default in that which is your due，I do repent my fault；so let your clemency Th offender comprehend，who doth for pardon sue.

When the King heard this，he embraced his son and kissing him between the eyes，made him sit by his side on the couch；then turned to the Vizier and looking on him with angry eyes，said to him，O dog of a Vizier，why didst thou tell me that my son was mad and make my heart quake for him？Then he turned to the prince and said to him，O my son，what is to-day called？O my father，'answered he，to-day is Saturday and to-morrow Sunday：

then come Monday，Tuesday，Wednesday，Thursday and Friday.'O my son，O Kemerezzeman，'exclaimed the King，praised be God for the preservation of thy reason！What is this present month called in Arabic？