217
His might!) and how He had vouchsafed[1] him the ring and how his hope had been cut off, except God had provided him with the slave of the Ring. So he rejoiced and all chagrin ceased from him; then, for that he had been four days without sleeping, of the stress of his chagrin and his trouble and his grief and the excess of his melancholy, he went to the side of the palace and lay down under a tree; for that, as I have said, the palace was among the gardens of Africa without the city.[2] He[3] lay that night under the tree in all ease; but he whose head is in the headsman’s hand sleepeth not anights.[4] However, fatigue and lack
- ↑ Lit. made easy to (yessera li).
- ↑ The name of the province is here applied to an imaginary city.
- ↑ Night DLXXX.
- ↑ Lit. “who hath a head with the head-seller or dealer in heads, etc.” The word here employed (rewwas) commonly signifies “a man who cooks and sells sheepsheads, oxheads, etc.” M. Zotenberg makes the following note on this passage in his edition of Alaeddin; “Rewwas (for raaäs) signifies not only ‘he who sells cooked heads,’ but also ‘he who makes a business of cooking heads.’ Consequently whoso entrusteth a head to the rewwas is preoccupied and sleeps not.” M. Zotenberg’s note is unintelligible, in consequence of his having neglected to explain that the passage in question is a common Egyptian proverb, meaning (says Burckhardt), “the person whose fortune is entrusted to the hands of strangers cannot enjoy repose.” “The poor,” adds he, “at Cairo buy sheepsheads and for a trifle have them boiled in the bazaar by persons who are not only cooks, but sellers of sheeps-
