Ruth Edna Kelley - "The Book of Hallowe'en"

Burton Egbert Stevenson - "The Home Book of Verse, Volume 2"

by Alfred Russell Wallace - "The Malay Archipelago"

Mr. Roscoe - "The Butterfly's Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast"

Annual Bibliography of Commonwealth Literature 2007
This paper argues that discourses of love in Ghanaian market literature for youth offer a view into complex negotiations of agency and empowerment. Drawing on Deborah Durham's notion of youth as "social `shifters'" and Francis Nyamnjoh's conception of the "interconnectedness" of agency, I take Ghanaian market literature as one specific case of how African literature for youth foregrounds questions of continuity and change as African societies enter into increasingly complex global relations. In this literature for youth, received notions of love, often constructed out of impressions from American pop and hip hop music, carry new notions of agency that compete with existing "domesticated" forms. Authors like Ike Tandoh and Evelyn Tay employ discourses of love to offer youth alternative avenues for empowerment in a context of socio-economic disenfranchizement. In a creative process of "straddling", this writing both reveals and reproduces the contradictions that obtain in youth configurations of agency.

The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 3

R >> Richard F. Burton >> The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 3







The Saker[FN#169] and the Birds.



There was once a saker who was a cruel tyrant"--And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.


When it was the One Hundred and Fifty-second Night

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the crow
pursued, "They relate that there was once a saker who was a cruel
tyrant in the days of his youth, so that the raveners of the air
and the scavengers of the earth feared him, none being safe from
his mischief; and many were the haps and mishaps of his tyranny
and his violence, for this saker was ever in the habit of
oppressing and injuring all the other birds. As the years passed
over him, he grew feeble and his force failed him, so that he was
often famished; but his cunning waxed stronger with the waning of
his strength and redoubled in his endeavour and determined to be
present at the general assembly of the birds, that he might eat
of their orts and leavings; so in this manner he fed by fraud
instead of feeding by fierceness and force. And out, O fox, art
like this: if thy might fail thee, thy sleight faileth thee not;
and I doubt not that thy seeking my society is a fraud to get thy
food; but I am none of those who fall to thee and put fist into
thy fist;[FN#170] for that Allah hath vouchsafed force to my
wings and caution to my mind and sharp sight to my eyes; and I
know that whoso apeth a stronger than he, wearieth himself and
haply cometh to ruin. Wherefore I fear for thee lest, if thou
ape a stronger than thyself, there befal thee what befel the
sparrow." Asked the fox, "What befel the sparrow?" Allah upon
thee, tell me his tale." And the crow began to relate the story
of




The Sparrow and the Eagle



I have heard that a sparrow was once flitting over a sheep-fold,
when he looked at it carefully and behold, he saw a great eagle
swoop down upon a newly weaned lamb and carry it off in his claws
and fly away. Thereupon the sparrow clapped his wings and said,
"I will do even as this one did;" and he waxed proud in his own
conceit and mimicked a greater than he. So he flew down
forthright and lighted on the back of a fat ram with a thick
fleece that was become matted by his lying in his dung and stale
till it was like woollen felt. As soon as the sparrow pounced
upon the sheep's back he flapped his wings to fly away, but his
feet became tangled in the wool and, however hard he tried, he
could not set himself free. While all this was doing the
shepherd was looking on, having seen what happened first with the
eagle and afterwards with the sparrow; so he came up to the wee
birdie in a rage and seized him. Then he plucked out his wing-
feathers and, tying his feet with a twine, carried him to his
children and threw him to them. "What is this?" asked one of
them; and he answered, "This is he that aped a greater than
himself and came to grief." "Now thou, O fox, art like this and
I would have thee beware of aping a greater than thou, lest thou
perish. This is all I have to say to thee; so fare from me in
peace!" When the fox despaired of the crow's friendship, he
turned away, groaning for sorrow and gnashing teeth upon teeth in
his disappointment; and the crow, hearing the sound of weeping
and seeing his grief and profound melancholy, said to him, "O
fox, what dole and dolour make thee gnash thy canines?" Answered
the fox, "I gnash my canines because I find thee a greater rascal
than myself;" and so saying he made off to his house and ceased
not to fare until he reached his home. Quoth the Sultan, "O
Shahrazad, how excellent are these thy stories, and how
delightsome! Hast thou more of such edifying tales?" Answered
she:--They tell this legend concerning




THE HEDGEHOG AND THE WOOD-PIGEONS



A hedgehog once too up his abode by the side of a date-palm,
whereon roosted a wood-pigeon and his wife that had built their
next there and lived a life of ease and enjoyment. So he said to
himself, "This pigeon-pair eateth of the fruit of the date tree
and I have no means of getting at it; but needs must I find some
fashion of tricking them. Upon this he dug a hole at the foot of
the palm tree and took up his lodgings there, he and his wife;
moreover, he built an oratory beside the hole and went into
retreat there and made a show of devotion and edification and
renunciation of the world. The male pigeon saw him praying and
worshipping, and his heart was softened towards him for his
excess of devoutness; so he said to him, "How many years hast
thou been thus?" Replied the hedgehog, "During the last thirty
years." "What is thy food?" "That which falleth from the palm-
tree." "And what is thy clothing?" "Prickles! and I profit by
their roughness." "And why hast thou chosen this for place
rather than another?" "I chose it and preferred it to all others
that I might guide the erring into the right way and teach the
ignorant!" "I had fancied thy case," quoth the wood-pigeon,
"other than this, but now I yearn for that which is with thee."
Quoth the hedgehog, "I fear lest thy deed contradict thy word and
thou be even as the husbandman who, when the seed-season came,
neglected to sow, saying, 'Verily I dread lest the days bring me
not to my desire and by making hast to sow I shall only waste my
substance!' When harvest-time came and he saw the folk earing
their crops, he repented him of what he had lost by his tardiness
and he died of chagrin and vexation." Asked the wood-pigeon,
"What then shall I do that I may be freed from the bonds of the
world and cut myself loose from all things save the service of my
Lord?" Answered the hedgehog, "Betake thee to preparing for the
next world and content thyself with a pittance of provision."
Quoth the pigeon, "How can I do this, I that am a bird and unable
to go beyond the date-tree whereon is my daily bread? And even
could I do so, I know of no other place wherein I may wone."
Quoth the hedgehog, "Thou canst shake down of the fruit of the
date-tree what shall suffice thee and thy wife for a year's
provaunt; then do ye take up your abode in a nest under the
trunk, that ye may prayerfully seek to be guided in the right
way, and then turn thou to what thou hast shaken down and
transport it all to thy home and store it up against what time
the dates fail; and when the fruits are spent and the delay is
longsome upon you, address thyself to total abstinence."
Exclaimed the pigeon, "Allah requite thee with good for the
righteous intention wherewith thou hast reminded me of the world
to come and hast directed me into the right way!" Then he and
his wife worked hard at knocking down the dates, till nothing was
left on the palm-tree, whilst the hedgehog, finding whereof to
eat, rejoiced and filled his den with the fruit, storing it up
for his subsistence and saying in his mind, "When the pigeon and
his wife have need of their provision, they will seek it of me
and covet what I have, relying upon thy devoutness and
abstinence; and, from what they have heard of my counsels and
admonitions, they will draw near unto me. Then will I make them
my prey and eat them, after which I shall have the place and all
that drops from the date-tree to suffice me." presently, having
shaken down the fruits, the pigeon and his wife descended from
the tree-top and finding that the hedgehog had removed all the
dates to his own place, said to him, "O hedgehog! thou pious
preacher and of good counsel, we can find no sign of the dates
and know not on what else we shall feed." Replied the hedgehog,
"Probably the winds have carried them away; but the turning from
the provisions to the Provider is of the essence of salvation,
and He who the mouth-corners cleft, the mouth without victual
hath never left." And he gave not over improving the occasion to
them on this wise, and making a show of piety and cozening them
with fine words and false until they put faith in him and
accepted him and entered his den and had no suspicion of his
deceit. Thereupon he sprang to the door and gnashed his teeth,
and the wood-pigeon, seeing his perfidy manifested, said to him,
"What hath to-night to do with yester-night? Knowest thou not
that there is a Helper for the oppressed? Beware of craft and
treachery, lest that mishap befal thee which befel the sharpers
who plotted against the merchant." "What was that?" asked the
hedgehog. Answered the pigeon:--I have heard tell this tale of




The Merchant and the Two Shapers



In a city called Sindah there was once a very wealthy merchant,
who made ready his camel-loads and equipped himself with goods
and set out with his outfit for such a city, purposing to sell it
there. Now he was followed by two sharpers, who had made up into
bales what merchandise they could get; and, giving out to the
merchant that they also were merchants, wended with him by the
way. So halting at the first halting-place they agreed to play
him false and take all he had; but at the same time, each
inwardly plotted foul play to the other, saying in his mind, "If
I can cheat my comrade, times will go well with me and I shall
have all these goods for myself." So after planning this
perfidy, one of them took food and putting therein poison,
brought it to his fellow; the other did the same and they both
ate of the poisoned mess and they both died. Now they had been
sitting with the merchant; so when they left him and were long
absent from him, he sought for tidings of them and found the
twain lying dead; whereby he knew that they were sharpers who had
plotted to play him foul, but their foul play had recoiled upon
themselves. So the merchant was preserved and took what they
had. Then quoth the Sultan, "O Shahrazad, verily thou hast
aroused me to all whereof I was negligent! So continue to edify
me with these fables." Quoth she:--It hath reached me, O King,
that men tell this tale of




THE THIEF AND HIS MONKEY[FN#171]



A certain man had a monkey and that man was a thief, who never
entered any of the street-markets of the city wherein he dwelt,
but he made off with great profit. Now it came to pass one day
that he saw a man offering for sale worn clothes, and he went
calling them in the market, but none bid for them and all to whom
he showed them refused to buy of him. Presently the thief who
had the monkey saw the man with the ragged clothes set them in a
wrapper and sit down to rest for weariness; so he made the ape
sport before him to catch his eye and, whilst he was busy gazing
at it, stole the parcel from him. Then he took the ape and made
off to a lonely place, where he opened the wrapper and, taking
out the old clothes, folded them in a piece of costly stuff.
This he carried to another bazar and exposed for sale together
with what was therein, making it a condition that it should not
be opened, and tempting the folk with the lowness of the price he
set on it. A certain man saw the wrapper and its beauty pleased
him; so he bought the parcel on these terms and carried it home,
doubting not that he had done well. When his wife saw it she
asked, "What is this?" and he answered, "It is costly stuff,
which I have bought at lowest price, meaning to sell it again and
take the profit." Rejoined she, "O dupe, would this stuff be
sold under its value, unless it had been stolen? Dost thou not
know that whoso buyeth aught without examining it, falleth into
error and becometh like unto the weaver?" Quoth he, "And what is
the story of the weaver?"; and quoth she:--I have heard this take
of




The Foolish Weaver



There was once in a certain village a weaver who worked hard but
could not earn his living save by overwork. Now it chanced that
one of the richards of the neighbourhood made a marriage feast
and invited the folk thereto: the weaver also was present and
found the guests, who wore rich gear, served with delicate viands
and made much of by the house-master for what he saw of their
fine clothes. So he said in his mind, "If I change this my craft
for another craft easier to compass and better considered and
more highly paid, I shall amass great store of money and I shall
buy splendid attire, so I may rise in rank and be exalted in
men's eyes and become even with these." Presently, he beheld one
of the mountebanks, who was present at the feast, climbing up to
the top of a high and towering wall and throwing himself down to
the ground and alighting on his feet. Whereupon the waver said
to himself, "Needs must I do as this one hath done, for surely I
shall not fail of it." So he arose and swarmed upon the wall and
casting himself down, broke his neck against the ground and died
forthright. "Now I tell thee this that thou sayst get thy living
by what way thou knowest and thoroughly understandest, lest
peradventure greed enter into thee and thou lust after what is
not of thy condition." Quoth the woman's husband, "Not every
wise man is saved by his wisdom, nor is every fool lost by his
folly. I have seen it happen to a skilful charmer, well versed
in the ways of serpents, to be struck by the fangs of a
snake[FN#172] and killed, and others prevail over serpents who
had no skill in them and no knowledge of their ways." And he
went contrary to his wife and persisted in buying stolen goods
below their value till he fell under suspicion and perished
therefor: even as perished the sparrow in the tale of




THE SPARROW AND THE PEACOCK



There was once upon a time a sparrow, that used every day to
visit a certain king of the birds and ceased not to wait upon him
in the mornings and not to leave him till the evenings, being the
first to go in and the last to go out. One day, a company of
birds chanced to assemble on a high mountain and one of them said
to another, "Verily, we are waxed many, and many are the
differences between us, and there is no help for it but we have a
king to look into our affairs; so shall we all be at one and our
differences will disappear." Thereupon up came that sparrow and
counselled them to choose for King the peacock (that is, the
prince he used to visit). So they chose the peacock to their
King and he, become their sovereign, bestowed largesse upon them
and made the sparrow his secretary and Prime Minister. Now the
sparrow was wont by times to quit his assiduous serve in the
presence and look into matters in general. So one day he
absented himself at the usual time, whereat the peacock was sore
troubled; and, while things stood thus, he returned and the
peacock said to him, "What hath delayed thee, and thou the
nearest to me of all my servants and the dearest of all my
dependents?" replied the sparrow, "I have seen a thing which is
doubtful to me and whereat I am affrighted." Asked the peacock,
"What was it thou sawest?"; and the sparrow answered, "I saw a
man set up a net, hard by my nest, peg down its pegs, strew grain
in its midst and withdraw afar off. And I sat watching what he
would do when behold, fate and fortune drave thither a crane and
his wife, which fell into the midst of the net and began to cry
out; whereupon the fowler rose up and took them. This troubled
me, and such is the reason for my absence from thee, O King of
the Age, but never again will I abide in that nest for fear of
the net." Rejoined the peacock, "Depart not thy dwelling, for
against fate and lot forethought will avail the naught." And the
sparrow obeyed his bidding and said, "I will forthwith arm myself
with patience and forbear to depart in obedience to the King."
So he ceased not taking care of himself, and carrying food to his
sovereign, who would eat what sufficed him and after feeding
drink his water and dismiss the sparrow. Now one day as he was
looking into matters, lo and behold! he saw two sparrows fighting
on the ground and said in his mind, "How can I, who am the King's
Wazir, look on and see sparrows fighting in my neighbourhood? By
Allah, I must make peace between them!" So he flew down to
reconcile them; but the fowler cast the net over the whole number
and the sparrow happened to be in their very midst. Then the
fowler arose and took him and gave him to his comrade, saying,
"Take care of him, " I never saw fatter or finer." But the
sparrow said to himself, "I have fallen into that which I feared
and none but the peacock inspired me with false confidence. It
availed me naught to beware of the stroke of fate and fortune,
since even he who taketh precaution may never flee from destiny.
And how well said the poet in this poetry,

"Whatso is not to be shall ne'er become; *
No wise! and that to be must come to pass;
Yea it shall come to pass at time ordained, *
And th' Ignoramus[FN#173] aye shall cry 'Alas!'"

Whereupon quoth the King, "O Shahrazad, recount me other of these
tales!"; and quoth she, "I will do so during the coming night, if
life be granted to by the King whom Allah bring to honour!"--And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her
permitted say.

When it was the One Hundred and Fifty-third Night,

She said:--I will relate the




TALE OF ALI BIN BAKKAR AND OF SHAMS
AL-NAHAR.



It hath reached me, O august King, that in days of yore and in
times and ages long gone before, during the Caliphate of Harun
al-Rashid, there was a merchant who named his son Abu
al-Hasan[FN#174] Ali bin Tahir; and the same was great of goods
and grace, while his son was fair of form and face and held in
favour by all folk. He used to enter the royal palace without
asking leave, for all the Caliph's concubines and slave-girls
loved him, and he was wont to be companion with Al-Rashid in his
cups and recite verses to him and tell him curious tales and
witty. Withal he sold and bought in the merchants' bazar, and
there used to sit in his shop a youth named Ali bin Bakkar, of
the sons of the Persian Kings[FN#175] who was formous of form and
symmetrical of shape and perfect of figure, with cheeks red as
roses and joined eyebrows; sweet of speech, laughing-lipped and
delighting in mirth and gaiety. Now it chanced one day, as the
two sat talking and laughing behold, there came up ten damsels
like moons, every one of them complete in beauty and loveliness,
and elegance and grace; and amongst them was a young lady riding
on a she-mule with a saddle of brocade and stirrups of gold. She
wore an outer veil of fine stuff, and her waist was girt with a
girdle of gold-embroidered silk; and she was even as saith the
poet,

"Silky her skin and silk that zoned waist; *
Sweet voice; words not o'er many nor too few:
Two eyes quoth Allah 'Be,' and they became; *
And work like wine on hearts they make to rue:
O love I feel! grow greater every night: *
O solace! Doom-day bring our interview."

And when the cortege reached Abu al-Hasan's shop, she alighted
from her mule, and sitting down on the front board,[FN#176]
saluted him, and he returned her salam. When Ali bin Bakkar saw
her, she ravished his understanding and he rose to go away; but
she said to him, "Sit in thy place. We came to thee and thou
goest away: this is not fair!" Replied he, "O my lady, by Allah,
I flee from what I see; for the tongue of the case saith,

'She is a sun which towereth high a-sky; *
So ease thy heart with cure by Patience lent:
Thou to her skyey height shalt fail to fly; *
Nor she from skyey height can make descent.'"

When she heard this, she smiled and asked Abu al-Hasan, "What is
the name of this young man?"; who answered, "He is a stranger;"
and she enquired, "What countryman is he?"; whereto the merchant
replied, "He is a descendant of the Persian Kings; his name is
Ali son of Bakkar and the stranger deserveth honour." Rejoined
she, "When my damsel comes to thee, come thou at once to us and
bring him with thee, that we may entertain him in our abode, lest
he blame us and say, 'There is no hospitality in the people of
Baghdad'; for niggardliness is the worst fault a man can have.
Thou hearest what I say to thee and, if thou disobey me, thou
wilt incur my displeasure and I will never again visit thee or
salute thee." Quoth Abu al-Hasan, "On my head and my eyes: Allah
preserve me from thy displeasure, fair lady!" Then she rose and
went her way. Such was her case; but as regards Ali bin Bakkar he
remained in a state of bewilderment. Now after an hour the damsel
came to Abu al-Hasan and said to him, "Of a truth my lady Shams
al-Nahar, the favourite of the Commander of the Faithful, Harun
al-Rashid, biddeth thee to her, thee and thy friend, my lord Ali
bin Bakkar." So he rose and, taking Ali with him, followed the
girl to the Caliph's palace, where she carried them into a
chamber and made them sit down. They talked together awhile, when
behold, trays of food were set before them, and they ate and
washed their hands. Then she brought them wine, and they drank
deep and made merry; after which she bade them rise and carried
them into another chamber, vaulted upon four columns, furnished
after the goodliest fashion with various kinds of furniture, and
adorned with decorations as it were one of the pavilions of
Paradise. They were amazed at the rarities they saw; and, as they
were enjoying a review of these marvels, suddenly up came ten
slave-girls, like moons, swaying and swimming in beauty's pride,
dazzling the sight and confounding the sprite; and they ranged
themselves in two ranks as if they were of the black-eyed Brides
of Paradise. And after a while in came other ten damsels, bearing
in their hands lutes and divers instruments of mirth and music;
and these, having saluted the two guests, sat down and fell to
tuning their lute-strings. Then they rose and standing before
them, played and sang and recited verses: and indeed each one of
them was a seduction to the servants of the Lord. Whilst they
were thus busied there entered other ten damsels like unto them,
high-bosomed maids and of an equal age, with black-eyes and
cheeks like the rose, joined eyebrows and looks languorous; a
very fascination to every faithful wight and to all who looked
upon them a delight; clad in various kinds of coloured silks,
with ornaments that amazed man's intelligence. They took up their
station at the door, and there succeeded them yet other ten
damsels even fairer than they, clad in gorgeous array, such as no
tongue can say; and they also stationed themselves by the
doorway. Then in came a band of twenty damsels and amongst them
the lady, Shams al-Nahar hight, as she were the moon among the
stars swaying from side to side, with luring gait and in beauty's
pride. And she was veiled to the middle with the luxuriance of
her locks, and clad in a robe of azure blue and a mantilla of
silk embroidered with gold and gems of price; and her waist was
girt with a zone set with various kinds of precious stones. She
ceased not to advance with her graceful and coquettish swaying,
till she came to the couch that stood at the upper end of the
chamber and seated herself thereon. But when Ali bin Bakkar saw
her, he versified with these verses,

"Source of mine evils, truly, she alone 's, *
Of long love-longing and my groans and moans;
Near her I find my soul in melting mood, *
For love of her and wasting of my bones."

And finishing his poetry he said to Abu al-Hasan, "Hadst thou
Dealt more kindly with me thou haddest forewarned me of these
things ere I came hither, that I might have made up my mind and
taken patience to support what hath befallen me." And he wept and
groaned and complained. Replied Abu al-Hasan, "O my brother, I
meant thee naught but good; but I feared to tell thee this, lest
such transport should betide thee as might hinder thee from
foregathering with her, and be a stumbling-block between thee and
her. But be of good cheer and keep thine eyes cool and
clear;[FN#177] for she to thee inclineth and to favour thee
designeth." Asked Ali bin Bakkar, "What is this young lady's
name?" Answered Abu al-Hasan, "She is hight Shams al-Nahar, one
of the favourites of the Commander of the Faithful, Harun
al-Rashid, and this is the palace of the Caliphate." Then Shams
al-Nahar sat gazing upon the charms of Ali bin Bakkar and he upon
hers, till both were engrossed with love for each other.
Presently she commanded the damsels, one and all, to be seated,
each in her rank and place, and all sat on a couch before one of
the windows, and she bade them sing; whereupon one of them took
up the lute and began caroling,

"Give thou my message twice * Bring clear reply in trice!
To thee, O Prince of Beau * -ty[FN#178] with complaint I rise:
My lord, as heart-blood dear * And Life's most precious prize!
Give me one kiss in gift * Or loan, if thou devise:
And if thou crave for more * Take all that satisfies.[FN#179]
Thou donn'st me sickness-dress * Thee with health's weed I
bless."

Her singing charmed Ali bin Bakkar, and he said to her, "Sing me
more of the like of these verses." So she struck the strings and
began to chaunt these lines,

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