Page 408 of 1116

At the sight they shrieked and wept and beat their faces, loudly

cursing the murderer; whilst a swoon came over the Shaykh so that

the slaves deemed him dead, unable to survive his son. At last

they wrapped the slain youth in his clothes and carried him up

and laid him on the ground covering him with a shroud of silk.

Whilst they were making for the ship the old man revived; and,

gazing on his son who was stretched out, fell on the ground and

strewed dust over his head and smote his face and plucked out his

beard; and his weeping redoubled as he thought of his murdered

son and he swooned away once more. After awhile a slave went and

fetched a strip of silk whereupon they lay the old man and sat

down at his head. All this took place and I was on the tree above

them watching everything that came to pass; and my heart became

hoary before my head waxed grey, for the hard lot which was mine,

and for the distress and anguish I had undergone, and I fell to

reciting:-