arm—­how strong thy wrist!” And he rushed down upon Antar.  And Antar presented himself before him, for he was all anxiety to meet him.  “O thou base-born!” cried Nakid.  But Antar permitted him not to finish his speech, before he assaulted him with the assault of a lion, and roared at him; he was horrified and paralyzed at the sight of Antar.  Antar attacked him, thus scared and petrified, and struck him with his sword on the head, and cleft him down the back; and he fell, cut in twain, from the horse, and he was split in two as if by a balance; and as Antar dealt the blow he cried out, “Oh, by Abs! oh, by Adnan!  I am ever the lover of Ibla.”  No sooner did the tribe of Maan behold Antar’s blow, than every one was seized with fear and dismay.  The whole five thousand made an attack like the attack of a single man; but Antar received them as the parched ground receives the first of the rain.  His eyeballs were fiery red, and foam issued from his lips; whenever he smote he cleft the head; every warrior he assailed, he annihilated; he tore a rider from the back of his horse, he heaved him on high, and whirling him in the air he struck down another with him, and the two instantly expired.  “By thine eyes, Ibla,” he cried, “to-day will I destroy all this race.”  Thus he proceeded until he terrified the warriors, and hurled them into woe and disgrace, hewing off their arms and their joints.

     [At the moment of Antar’s victory his friends arrive to see
     his triumph.  On his way back with them he celebrates his love
     for Ibla in verses.]

When the breezes blow from Mount Saadi, their freshness calms the fire of my love and transports....  Her throat complains of the darkness of her necklaces.  Alas! the effects of that throat and that necklace!  Will fortune ever, O daughter of Malik, ever bless me with thy embrace, that would cure my heart of the sorrows of love?  If my eye could see her baggage camels, and her family, I would rub my cheeks on the hoofs of her camels.  I will kiss the earth where thou art; mayhap the fire of my love and ecstasy may be quenched....  I am the well-known Antar, the chief of his tribe, and I shall die; but when I am gone, histories shall tell of me.

[From that day forth Antar was named Abool-fawaris, that is to say, the father of horsemen.  His sword, Dhami—­the trenchant—­was forged from a meteor that fell from the sky; it was two cubits long and two spans wide.  If it were presented to Nushirvan, King of Persia, he would exalt the giver with favors; or if it were presented to the Emperor of Europe, one would be enriched with treasures of gold and silver.]

As soon as Gheidac saw the tribe of Abs, and Antar the destroyer of horsemen, his heart was overjoyed and he cried out, “This is a glorious morning; to-day will I take my revenge.”  So he assailed the tribe of Abs and Adnan, and his people attacked behind him like a cloud when it pours forth water