and they abode on this wise a month’s space, Judar catching fish and selling it and spending their price on his mother and his brothers, and these eating and frolicking till, one day, it chanced he went down to the river bank and throwing his net, brought it up empty.  He cast it a second time, but again it came up empty and he said in himself, “No fish in this place!” So he removed to another and threw the net there, but without avail.  And he ceased not to remove from place to place till night fall, but caught not a single sprat[FN#263] and said to himself, “Wonderful!  Hath the fish fled the river or what?” Then he shouldered the net and made for home, chagrined, concerned, feeling for his mother and brothers and knowing not how he should feed them that night.  Presently, he came to a baker’s oven and saw the folk crowding for bread, with silver in their hands, whilst the baker took no note of them.  So he stood there sighing, and the baker said to him, “Welcome to thee, O Judar!  Dost thou want bread?” But he was silent and the baker continued, “An thou have no dirhams, take thy sufficiency and thou shalt get credit.”  So Judar said, “Give me ten coppers’ worth of bread and take this net in pledge.”  Rejoined the baker, “Nay, my poor fellow, the net is thy gate of earning thy livelihood, and if I take it from thee, I shall close up against thee the door of thy subsistence.  Take thee ten Nusfs’ worth of bread and take these other ten, and to morrow bring me fish for the twenty.”  “On my head and eyes be it!” quoth Judar and took the bread and money saying, “To morrow the Lord will dispel the trouble of my case and will provide me the means of acquittance.”  Then he bought meat and vegetables and carried them home to his mother, who cooked them and they supped and went to bed.  Next morning he arose at daybreak and took the net, and his mother said to him, “Sit down and break thy fast.”  But he said, “Do thou and my brothers break fast,” and went down to the river about Bulak where he ceased not to cast once, twice, thrice; and to shift about all day, without aught falling to him, till the hour of mid afternoon prayer, when he shouldered his net and went away sore dejected.  His way led him perforce by the booth of the baker who, when he saw him counted out to him the loaves and the money, saying, “Come, take it and go; an it be not today, ’twill be tomorrow.”  Judar would have excused himself, but the baker said to him, “Go!  There needeth no excuse; an thou had netted aught, it would be with thee; so seeing thee empty handed, I knew thou hadst gotten naught; and if tomorrow thou have no better luck, come and take bread and be not abashed, for I will give thee credit.”  So Judar took the bread and money and went home.  On the third day also he sallied forth and fished from tank to tank until the time of afternoon prayer, but caught nothing; so he went to the baker and took the bread and silver as usual.  On this wise he did seven days running, till he became