pluck out thine eye.” “How so, O my
brother?” rejoined Mohsin, “Wilt thou
blind me of one eye for the sake of half a scone?
better leave me to die with my sight as it is.”
Said Musa, “At thy pleasure!"[FN#439] But on
the third day Mohsin was like to sink for extreme
hunger, and he cried, “There is no Majesty and
there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the
Great. Do thou, O Musa, give the half-scone and
pluck out one of mine eyes.” Musa did as
he was bidden, and thrusting forth his finger gouged[FN#440]
out the right eye, whereby Mohsin remained purblind,
withal was he not filled by the half-scone. Now
on the fourth day Mohsin waxed yet more ravenous and
famine was right sore upon him, and he cried, “There
is no Majesty! by Allah, O Musa, my brother, I am
afamished, so pity me and the Lord shall pity thee.”
Replied the other, “I will give thee nothing
until I shall have gouged out thine other eye.”
Quoth Mohsin, “Verily we are Allah’s and
unto him we shall return! but, by the Almighty, famishing
is bitter; so do thou with me, O Musa, what the Omniscient
hath predestined as to the plucking out of my two
eyes.” Accordingly the man gave him the
half scone and plucked out his other eye; and on such
wise made him stone blind. Hereupon Musa left
his companion darkly tramping[FN#441] about the roads.
Now in the neighbourhood of that place was a well full
of water;[FN#442] so when Mohsin drew near knowing
nothing thereof, Musa came up and pushed him thereinto;
and while falling into the pit Mohsin said to himself,
“O Lord, thou hast doomed me to blinding and
at last Thou hast condemned me to drowning.”—And
Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell
silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then
quoth her sister Dunyazad, “How sweet is thy
story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!”
Quoth she, “And where is this compared with that
I would relate to you on the coming night an the King
suffer me to survive?” Now when it was the next
night and that was
The Seven Hundred and Sixty-seventh
Night,
Dunyazad said to her, “Allah upon thee, O my
sister, an thou be other than sleepy, finish for us
thy tale that we may cut short the watching of this
our latter night!” She replied, “With love
and good will!” It hath reached me, O auspicious
King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the
rede which is benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming
and worthy celebrating, that when Musa had thrust
Mohsin into the well with intent to drown him, the
blinded man cried, “O Lord thou hast doomed me
to blinding, and at last Thou hast condemned me to
drowning.” Then he struck out with hands
and feet till he felt the walls of the well wherein
he found two niches; so he set toes into one of them
and there stood awaiting the salvation of Allah which
was nearhand; and his heart was satisfied and he drank
of the water. When the first night fell behold,
two of the Jinns came to the pit and sat down in converse
each with other, when quoth the first to the second,