第40章 KEMEREZZEMAN AND BUDOUR.(2)

Women，for all to chastity theyre bidden，everywhere Are carrion tossed about of all the vultures of the air.

To-night their converse，ay，and all their secret charms are thine，But on the morn their leg and wrist fall to anothers share；

Like to an inn in which thou lodgst，departing with the dawn，And one thou knowst not，after thee，lights down and lodges there.

When King Shehriman heard these his sons words，he made him no answer，of his great love for him，but redoubled in favour and kindness to him.As soon as the audience was over，he called his Vizier and taking him apart，said to him，O Vizier，tell me how I shall do with my son in this matter of his marriage.I took counsel with thee thereon and thou didst counsel me to marry him，before making him king.I have spoken with him once and again of marriage，and he still gainsaid me；so do thou now counsel me what to do.'O King，'answered the Vizier，wait another year，and if after that thou be minded to speak to him on the matter of marriage，do it not privily，but on a day of state，when all the Viziers and Amirs are present and all the troops standing before thee.Then send for thy son and broach to him the matter of marriage before the Viziers and grandees and officers of state and captains；for he will surely be daunted by their presence and will not dare to oppose thy will.'The King rejoiced exceedingly in his Viziers advice，deeming it excellent，and bestowed on him a splendid robe of honour.Then he took patience with his son another year，whilst，with every day that passed over him，Kemerezzeman increased in grace and beauty and elegance and perfection，till he was nigh twenty years old.Indeed，God had clad him in the habit of beauty and crowned him with the crown of perfection： his eyes were more ensorcelling than Harout and Marout[19] and the play of his glances more misleading than Taghout.[20] His cheeks shone with redness and his eyelashes outvied the keen-edged sword： the whiteness of his forehead resembled the shining moon and the blackness of his hair was as the murky night.His waist was more slender than the gossamer and his buttocks heavier than two hills of sand，troubling the heart with their softness；but his waist complained of their weight.In fine，his charms ravished all mankind，even as saith the poet：

By his cheeks unfading damask and his smiling teeth I swear，By the arrows that he feathers with the witchery of his air，By his sides so soft and tender and his glances bright and keen，By the whiteness of his forehead and the blackness of his hair，By his arched imperious eyebrows，chasing slumber from mine eyes，With their yeas and noes that hold me twixt rejoicing and despair，By the scorpious[21] that he launches from his ringlet-clustered brows，Seeking ever in their meshes hapless lovers to ensnare，By the myrtle of his whiskers and the roses of his cheeks，By his lips incarnate rubies and his teeths fine pearls and rare，By his breaths delicious fragrance and the waters of his mouth，That defy old wine and choicest with their sweetness to compare，By his heavy hips that tremble，both in motion and repose，And the slender waist above them，all too slight their weight to bear，By his hands perennial bounty and his true and trusty speech，By the stars that smile upon him，favouring and debonair，Lo，the scent of musk none other than his very perfume is，And the ambergriss fragrance breathes about him everywhere.

Yea，the sun in all his splendour cannot with his brightness vie，And the crescent moons a fragment that he from his nail doth pare.

The King，accordingly，waited till a day of state，when the audience hall was filled with his Amirs and Viziers and grandees and officers of state and captains.As soon as they were all assembled，he sent for his son Kemerezzeman，who came and kissing the earth three times，stood before him，with his hands clasped behind his back.Then said the King to him，Know，O my son，that I have sent for thee and summoned thee to appear before this assembly and all these officers of state that I may lay a commandment on thee，wherein do thou not gainsay me.It is that thou marry，for I am minded to wed thee to a kings daughter and rejoice in thee ere I die.'When the prince heard these his fathers words，he bowed his head awhile，then raising it，replied，being moved thereto by youthful folly and boyish ignorance，Never will I marry，no，not though I drink the cup of death！As for thee，thou art great in years and little of wit：

hast thou not，twice before this，questioned me of the matter of marriage，and I refused thee？Indeed，thou dotest and art not fit to govern a flock of sheep！'So saying，he unclasped his hands from behind his back and rolled up his sleeves，in his rage；moreover，he added many words to his father，knowing not what he said，in the trouble of his spirit.The King was confounded and ashamed，for that this befell in the presence of his grandees and officers assembled on an occasion of state；but presently the energy of kingship took him and he cried out upon his son and made him tremble.Then he called to his guards and bade them seize him and bind his hands behind his back.So they laid hands on Kemerezzeman and binding him，brought him before his father，full of shame and confusion，with his head bowed down for fear and inquietude and his brow and face beaded with sweat.