Abu Obeyd

“ Why shouldst thou fear to speak .^ Tell of thy tribe and people,
And peace be with thee ever, even to the day of judgment.
Alia am I of Agheyl, and Fadel is my father :
First of the horsemen he, the mightiest, the most noble.
And my mother's name Kanua, one of illustrious lineage.
Tell me thou of thy Arabs, thy house and thy connection.
So shall my heart be at rest." But I, " Alas, O Alia,
What if the news should fly, and thy tribe slay the stranger ?
Stretch forth thy hand to me, in covenant between us. ”

“ Thee to thy foeman's lips as colocynth of the desert,
Thee the river Nile, in the full day of his flooding,
When he hath mounted high and covereth the islands.
Behold me thus for thee clothed in the robes of amber.
Beyond thee there is none save the sole Lord of pity.
Thou art my last appeal, O Helali Salame,
Glory of the Arabs, beauty of all beholders."
Thus then spoke Ghanimeh, and Abu Zeyd made answer,
"Nay, but a thousand welcomes, O thou mother of Amer,
Welcomes as many be as the leagues thy feet have wandered. ”

“ Nor shalt thou succour find nor any to show thee pity."
And Abu Zeyd was grieved for what he had said to the damsel,
Yet took he courage and cried, " Enough of this fool's talking.
Never may fate befriend me if it have sense or meaning.
Ha! the mare, what is she that I should wish for or win her?
Never in all my days have I bent my leg to a saddle,
Being of those unskilled, and little apt in the learning."
He spoke, and rose to go in anger, he the dark one;
And she too to the camp, to her own tribe and people,
Even to Alia's tent. ”

“ Lodge with me here to-night, and wouldst thou tarry longer
A dweller in our land, behold each night and morning
To thee shall be of the best the meat that thou desirest,
Garments of amber silk (and all good things in order) ,
And if that Death should thee o'ertake within our dwelling,
Lo, I will build for thee a monument of honour,
And yearly make for thee a feast and celebration,
And brave men at thy tomb shall keep thee in remembrance."
And the Emir Agheyli Jaber took by the hand Salame,
And brought him to his tent and set him with the great ones. ”

“ Fear thou nought at our hand, nay, only but fair dealing."
And the hero Abu Zeyd called to his servant loudly :
"Forth, O Abul Komsan, nor let thy footsteps linger."
And the slave said, "Yes and yes, O thou beloved of the Arabs."
And he, "Go with this lady and build her a pavilion,
With breadths of perfumed silk, and bid prepare all dainties
That she may eat of the best, and serve her in due honour.
For well it is in life to be of all things generous,
Ere we are called away to death's unjoyful dwellings,
Even of the shoulder meat, that the guests may rise up praising." ”

“ And how should Sahel hurt thee, or how should any other, seeing that thou art the daughter of the prince of our tribe, the greatest of the princes, whose fame is in all the valleys? And yet thou speakest thus, thou daughter of the generous? Nay, it is no far journey. Listen: between thy tents and ours are but ten furlongs, for the space hath been stepped by the trackers, and if thou wilt come but one-half the road thou canst then turn back and I will go forward, and the way will have been thus divided between us and each will have accompanied the other and fear shall have been outwitted. ”

“ Fear not, we are with thee, and of nothing of our souls will we be niggardly for thy sake, and all that thou hast done that too would we have done; and one such as is this knight were more worthy our possessing than all else in the world, for he is without guile and without blemish; —then Alia, hearing this, her heart was quieted, and she arose full of joy, and bent down and kissed the hands of Abu Zeyd. And all the damsels in like manner kissed his hands. And they undid their veils before him to the right and to the left. And Alia bade them bring meats in dishes, and the damsels brought them. ”

“ And O, Abu Zeyd Salame,
Know that we twain must love, for I am of noble lineage.
Even as thou thyself, the hero, the lion of Amer."
And I said, " Now listen, Alia, to that which I would tell thee :
Love is a building fair, broad based on sure foundations.
And the builders built it high as was no other dwelling."
And she said, " Thou speakest truth. And love is of three conditions.
And to men of understanding each hath a sign to know it.
The first compelleth thee to kiss the hand thou lovest. ”

“ Spying the land thou art come a traitor-guest to our pastures,
Spying and stealing away the mare of Agheyli Jaber.
Thus have I read thy riddle, the sense of thy dark saying.
One to thy ear hath been and told the fame of her
Covetous-sick of the mare, in longing night and morning,
Till thou didst rise and spread thy cunning nets for her taking,
Hoping to win renown and hie thee home to thy people.
These three things thou hast shewn, the quenching of thy heart- flames,
These three things, and the fourth to fire the wrath of her owner ”

“ Saith the hero Abu Zeyd Salame Helali:
My tears flowed as I struck the swift one with her bridle.
Turning her to the desert. And fifteen days I journeyed,
Making of fifteen eight, for she was in fleetest training.
And running I came to the herds of Agheyl and beheld the camels
Spread like locusts alit, and I knew my travel ended.
And lighting I stooped down, and tied her fast by the foreleg.
And looked to right and to left. And presently the herdsmen
Came with the slaves around. And "O thou Sheykh" they addressed me,
"Whence and what man art thou? our stranger guest or a prowler? ”

“ Now doth my song return to the Emir Agheyli Fadel,
The while he sat with his tribe at the forenoon hour, the Doha,
And around him stood his people, his mighty men of valour.
In pleasant talk sat they, and brave discourse of heroes.
Until one came to the camp Bedr ibn Saleh the cunning,
Skilled in the sand, a man of power and favoured of fortune,
Bred in youth at Bagdad, his father slain by the spear-points. ”

“ But he said to her, "O Alia, my desire was that I should remain secret, and behold thou wouldst make all things known." But she: "What matter? Fear nothing, for the souls of all of us are thine, and no harm shall befall thee, and we are a ransom for thee." So she brought him with her and set him on a throne of gold by her side. And, when the daughters of the Arabs saw that, they looked the one at the other and whispered among themselves. And the Emir Abu Zeyd wept aloud and lamented. And Alia perceived that he was weeping, and asked of him the cause. ”

“ And the Emir Fadel arose quickly and approached the fakir, and he kissed his hand and said to him, "'O my Lord, there hath befallen me a great and redoubtable ill-fortune. Make thou thy prayer for me to our Lord that He give me back my mare; for is He not the giver? And, if that thou shouldst desire to remain with us, surely there shall be to thee a fair welcome; and, shouldst thou die in this country, be assured we will make to thee a fair sepulchre whither at all hours will we come both of the night and of the day." ”

“ I guess thy worth, and I will do thee honour ;
My heart is with the fakirs, I seek them night and morning,
And I would pardon Alia were it to do thee pleasure.
Yet see, one grief is mine, one all consuming sorrow,
O Sheykh, 'tis she, my mare, the fair mare which I rode on ;
Glorious she was to see, the envy of beholders.
Light-footed she is gone you might say a bird's in its flying.
Yet are her footsteps known to thee, thou master of wisdom."
And Abu Zeyd made answer, " In the day of hasty judgment
The eyes of men are blind ”

“ Confess thy faith e'er thou diest."
And she entreated him, saying "O Sahel, wilt thou not spare me,
So may the Lord requite thee." But he, " There is no sparing."
And to Zohwa she cried " This is he I feared, the son of perdition,
And thou thyself art deceiver." But she answered her with tauntings,
" Be it so, I deceived thee. Go to. We shall see this Sahel
Prove himself of his skill when he loppeth thee, legs and shoulders."
But Alia prayed to Sahel, " Do thou recite the Fatha,
So shall the cup of death to my lips be found less bitter." ”

“ And have we not the grey mare of Diab with us, the Shohba, whom we may give to the lady, nor run this great risk for her sake?" But Alia insisting said, "Nay, that shall not be, nor care I what may come, not though I should taste of the cup of evil things. But if thou wilt not take the mare, then will I kill her and myself with her, and on thy head be it for her and for me." And Abu Zeyd consented, saying: "I will do what thee seemeth good. So may God prosper thy designing." ”

“ There be there pleasant winds, full scented with rich odours,
Sweeter than scent of flowers ; and if a garment touch it,
Ten days and more with musk shall it remain in fragrance.
Forth by the dales I rode and travelled in my yearning,
Till to my gladdened eyes behold, the fount Ridaa,
And at the waterside the damsels and the daughters,
Alia with all her band. And hence my earliest trouble. ”

“ And there came to him of the Jinns crowding around him. And the image began to speak to and salute the Arabs, and tell them the story which had been told by the sand. And he said, " Know that none other hath taken the mare, save Only he who is called Abu Zeyd Helali Salame, and he is with you in this place." And upon this the Emir sought through all the crowd, but found no man a stranger there save only Abu Zeyd and the man of contemplation. ”

“ And they said, " O Abul Komsan, lo thou art a man of honour,
For thou hast slain the wicked, and we are thine, the protected,
And thou hast befriended Amer. Do with us as thou desirest."
And he answered them, " O people, peace be with you, O people —
Salame is my lord — to-day and now and for ever."
And Amer brought him the mare and with it gifts and treasures,
And he said, " Thou didst bring this gift. A gift of me thou shalt take her."
So he took the mare at his hand, and the gifts, and he departed ;
And when he came to his tribe he told Abu Zeyd the story. ”

“ By an accident connected with his birth Salame was born black-faced and so was cast out of the tribe by his father. Later, however, by his deeds of valour, he proved his legitimacy and his right to his father's succession, and was recognized as their prince by the Helalat, whom he led to many victories. His darkness of face is in the romance a constant source of mystification, for, though a clear dark skin is not otherwise than a sign of pure blood with the Arabs, Abu Zeyd's colour would seem to have suggested negro affinities which the true Arabs resent and despise. ”

“ And when the tribesmen saw this they went to the Emir Fadel and told him all that had happened. And he said to them, "Not for my own pleasure did I this thing, but being over-persuaded by the diviner. Bring therefore the Sheykh to me that I may beg pardon of him, but take ye the diviner, and place him in his stead in irons. And burn him with fire, and be careful that ye leave him not alive." ”

“ But she said to the damsels, " This gentleman hath saved me from an evil death, and ye do not well to laugh. And an honourable man is he, nor would he do aught worthy of blame." And at that, the minds of the young girls were set at rest, and they said to her, "Were we in thy place so would we also do." And Abu Zeyd was comforted, knowing that they would keep all things secret. ”

“ Know that he who stole the mare hath set her ina desert place, and he then came back to thee, and is now with thee beholding all thou doest, and hearing all thou sayest." But Fadel el Agheyli said to him, "' There be no strangers here save only this Sheykh and thee, thou man of contemplation." Then the Emir Abu Zeyd went to the diviner and he said, " Know that the sand is at all times forbidden, as is spoken by the Prophet, even though the diviners should speak sooth, 'take them as liars.' If, therefore, thou hast other knowledge than by the sand make it known to all here." ”

“ And she said, " Speak truth and tell, Art thou an honest walker,
Or one that prowleth around ? " And I told her my condition,
As one a stringer of gems, a necklace-maker for damsels.
And she went and came again, and "Thus," she said, " saith Alia,
Wouldst thou rejoice her heart, then weave her a chain of value." ”

“ The hero, Salame Abu Zeyd, is the exact type of the North African Bedouin even of our own day, with his strange mixture of scepticism and superstition, of courage and cowardice, of truth and deceit, of romance and calculation. The particular episode of the "Stealing of the Mare" gives these last characteristics with peculiar vividness, and for that reason and for the liveliness of the plot and the individuality of the characters was chosen by the translators in preference to any other for a first attempt to introduce the poem to English notice. ”