XIII
Being another item in the same document, and a most interesting one, as it gives some incidents in the life of one of my ancestors who was at some time a Caliph of Bagdad.
MY grandfather, who was a Caliph of Bagdad, was an illustrious story-teller, and I should be doing him an injustice to omit from this narrative one or two of the most wonderful of the tales he told.
He was in the habit of indulging in practical jokes and whenever a new idea he could use for that purpose came to him he was prone to put it into operation without delay.
And so it happened a thought of this character came to him one day in midsummer and he invited all his retinue to a month of banqueting. Well knowing the lavish supply he always provided,his palace was filled to overflowing. To aid him in his joke he had employed a chemist of great learning to assist in compounding the viands, always taking care that while his portions resembled the others closely they did not contain certain ingredients present in the others.
He also arranged for games on the lawns of great expanse around about his palace, and it so occurred that while viewing these his guests were compelled to sit in the sunlight unprovided with shelter from its rays. And it also turned out all looking-glasses were secreted, which caused much dismay in the minds of the feminine guests. And each guest, owing to the brilliancy of the beams, was given colored glasses to wear.
The last half of the month contained a great novelty, so the guests thought, for during that time every window was sealed and every door closed so tightly not a ray of light penetrated anywhere, and all functions were observed in the darkness.
At the end of that time the light was one day admitted throughout the entire building and great was the consternation thereat. Husbands knew not their wives and wives disowned their husbands. Lovers were horror-stricken on thediscovery by each the other was as black as the ace of spades.
Oh, there was a tumult, for each was hastening to leave the place, but he prevailed upon them to remain another week and all would be well. Thereupon he explained to them he was but illustrating the way in which the Africans became black. That he had added to the portions each day a certain amount of silver which had at last mixed with their blood, and that when they came into the sunlight the silver in them had oxidized and made them black. He assured them the portions they would now receive would quickly remove the silver and they would again become white.
And it so happened.
At another time, when he was about to start on a long journey, he called his servants together and instructed them he would be gone some time and they must under no circumstances admit into the palace any stranger unless ordered to do so by his chief butler, whom he had told to put all strangers in certain rooms and to lock them in there.
It turned out he was going away in search of acertain robber who had been troublesome; indeed, so much so he had carried away such a quantity of wealth he was fast becoming as powerful as he.
And so it was he had been gone but a day or two when a handsome cavalier announced himself and was admitted by the butler, and placed in one of the rooms, he having arrived at night-fall, craving a lodging from an impending storm.
As it was afterward learned, this was the very robber my grandfather was in search of, and well knowing he would not make an attempt on his house while he was at home he had had it thus given out that he was away. So the man got himself into bed, as he thought it as well to do, inasmuch as he did not intend to commence his depredations until late at night, and having some distance to travel thereafter he might thus refresh himself.
About this time the room was suddenly filled with a deep yellow light, and grinning skeletons rattled their bones in every corner.
Now this robber was a brave man, and looked upon these things for a moment with anger at being disturbed of his sleep.
Then as suddenly the light was changed andthe skeletons became so red they had all the appearance of being covered with fresh blood. And now great red hands appeared flying about the room apparently in search of the man. This seemed slightly to disconcert the thief and he covered himself up with the exception of one eye.
Then the skeletons vanished and large balls of fire raced about the room, and when he saw one of them making for his eye he really became frightened and covered that eye up also.
Now came clanging chains and hideous groans and weeping and wailing most horrible to hear. This so filled him with terror he shivered and his teeth chattered.
In his frenzy, for he was becoming very much excited, he tore off the covering and upon each corner of the bed hung a devilish green monster licking his jaws and eyeing him hungrily with glittering eyes.
He now became desperate and would have fled, but when he made the slightest movement to rise those monsters started toward him, and he hurried beneath the covers.
Then came terrible sounds, the like of which he had never heard, which were caused by the grating together of the teeth of the four monsters and the snapping of their eyes and the smacking of their lips, and he thought the building was on fire.
At last he was so overcome he sank into a stupor and was so found in the morning by the butler, who discovered that what was a man young and vigorous the night before was now an old man with white hair and sunken cheeks and wrinkled forehead, who prayed to be removed from the room that he might die in peace.
My forefather thereupon returning told him he could be removed only on the condition that he return all the gold and goods he had stolen and be a good citizen ever after.
This the man readily promised, and did as he promised he would.
Thus my ancestor not only ridded his kingdom of a pest but recovered his people their lost wealth, and he was much reverenced therefor.