Chapter III: Front Matter (3)

AGA-MERDAN. I wish by this means to have the fortune of Hadji-Ghafour secured to you, and in order to arrive at this result, there is no other expedient possible but this one. You cannot inherit from your husband in your own name. Your child, on the other hand, is heir at law. When the existence of your child is proved all the fortune reverts to him. I will then have myself without difficulty appointed his guardian; then in five or six months, I will give it out that the child is dead, and in that case the inheritance will be legally transferred to you. You will take half of it and give me the other half. God is the best foster-father.

ZEINEB-KHANOUN. O you for whom I would give my life, can such a lie be uttered?

AGA-MERDAN. If the sister of Hadji-Ghafour had anyone to maintain her cause do you think that she would fail to defeat us? But to-day she has no one to oppose us, and plead her cause for her. If she had married Aga-Hassam, the merchant, the business would have been very difficult for us. But now, Aga-Hassam, himself, and all his influential kinsfolk have become enemies of this young lady; they desire that this fortune should not be hers. The girl is deserted and left with her lover, who is good for nothing.

ZEINEB-KHANOUN. Well, well! and this child of whom you speak, where is he?

AGA-MERDAN. You are going to see him this moment.--Aga-Kerim, go and take the child from the arms of his nurse there in the chamber. Bring him in for madame to see. [_Aga-Kerim goes out to fetch the child._]

=Scene IV=

ZEINEB-KHANOUN. Is she a wet-nurse?

AGA-MERDAN. No, it is his own mother who has him at the breast. But she becomes his nurse now. [_Aga-Kerim returns, carrying the child in his arms. Aga-Merdan takes it and gives it to Zeineb-Khanoun._]

=Scene V=

AGA-MERDAN. This is your child. You see his eyes and brows are exactly those of Hadji-Ghafour.

ZEINEB-KHANOUN. My God, one might take it for his portrait! But I fear that at the trial my tongue will refuse to tell this lie.

AGA-MERDAN. The cause of your fears, Zeineb-Khanoun, is that you are not persuaded that you yourself are not the mother of this child. You must, before everything else, bear well in mind that this is your child, or else you will lose countenance at the hearing, and will stand before the judge with closed mouth. Have no fear, and give me your word that you will make the declaration as I dictate.

ZEINEB-KHANOUN. Yes, I promise you, if I am able.

AGA-MERDAN. You will be able, please God. It would be fine, in truth, if your sister-in-law should carry off the whole inheritance, and squander it with a scamp, trimming his mustache with it.

ZEINEB-KHANOUN. Yes, by God, you are right. But one thing troubles me. Will not the advocate of Sekiné-Khanoun discover my falsehood?

AGA-MERDAN. Ha! ha! ha! See how frightened she is of him! Fear nothing. He won’t say a single word to expose you. Go now and get your application to the judge drawn up. All must be ready by to-morrow. As for me, I have another matter to attend to. Another person is looking for me; I have a thousand suits in hand. Take Aga-Kerim with you, and give him the 500 tomans; he will bring them to me.

AGA-ABBAS. The money is ready. We have brought it. Aga-Kerim had told us to do so beforehand.

AGA-MERDAN. Very good; leave it with me and retire. [_Aga-Abbas puts down the sum of money in a purse before Aga-Kerim. At the moment when Zeineb and Aga-Abbas rise to depart Nasser, the valet of the Prince Royal, approaches Aga-Merdan._]

=Scene VI=

NASSER. Good-day, gentlemen. Aga-Merdan, the Prince Royal begs that you will come to his house this evening and spend an hour with him. He requires your services in an important affair.

AGA-MERDAN. Tell your master in reply that I am at his service. [_The lackey retires. Soon afterward, Eced, the servant of the President of the Tribunal, arrives._]

=Scene VII=

ECED. Good-day, gentlemen. Aga-Merdan, my master invites you to dine with him this evening at the home of Hadji-Semi. He has pressing business on which he wishes to consult you.

AGA-MERDAN. You may tell your master that I will be there, and consent merely to please him. [_Aga-Abbas and his sister retire._]

=Scene VIII=

AGA-KERIM. I do not understand where this messenger of the Prince Royal and this servant of the judge came from.

AGA-MERDAN. I felt that the woman might be troubled with regard to the conditions which I imposed upon her. This is the reason why I bribed these individuals to deliver such messages in her presence. I did so in order that she might imagine me to be the friend of the Prince Royal and the boon companion of the President of the Tribunal, in order that she might recover her spirits. I was afraid that otherwise she would not dare to make her allegations at the hearing of the case, and so we should be nonsuited.

AGA-KERIM. By God, your idea was a happy one, but at the hearing of the case we must keep our eye on her. If possible we must manage that she gives her evidence after I have brought on the witnesses. You will promise her as her share 500 tomans; fifty in cash, and the balance later. The witnesses shall each have thirty tomans; fifteen in cash, and fifteen afterward. We will give up this sum after winning the lawsuit, in order that the inspector may not poke his nose into our business; but you know that the affair cannot be made to succeed without his aid, he is so crafty. You know he has already on one occasion detected our game. We cannot cheat him.

AGA-KERIM. Very good. I will go and see about it. [_He rises from his seat to retire._]

AGA-MERDAN. By the by, just stop one moment. I have an idea which I wish to communicate, and do not forget the hint. When you see the widow of Hadji-Ghafour, give her to understand, in one way or another, that she must not call me “father.” As sure as death you must attend to this. I don’t like the woman to address me by such a name as father, as if they thought it pleased me. What need can there be to call me by this title?

AGA-KERIM. Well! Well! Do not swear any more. I know what you are driving at. Let your mind be easy. I will tell her not to call you her father again, but to call you her lord. [_Aga-Kerim leaves, and on his departure, Aga-Selman enters._]

=Scene IX=

AGA-SELMAN. Good-day, Aga-Merdan.

AGA-MERDAN. Ah, good-day! Come now, how are things getting along?

AGA-SELMAN. I am intrusted with the defence; it is all arranged. But, tell me, what do you think is now to be done?

AGA-MERDAN. I think we would do well to prepare the witnesses, and to take them to the court-room. What honorarium have you been promised?

AGA-SELMAN. They have promised me only 500 tomans; their witnesses, they say, are all ready, the course of the trial plain, and there is nothing either obscure or mysterious in it. I have expressed my satisfaction.

AGA-MERDAN. You have done well; but you know that there is not much profit in defending a good cause. The widow of Hadji-Ghafour sacrifices 30,000 tomans, these 30,000 tomans will be for us two and for Aga-Kerim. Have you ascertained the names of the witnesses? Have you learned their addresses?

AGA-SELMAN. Yes, I have learned and noted all these things. These witnesses are four soldiers: Bedel, Quhreman, Ghaffer, and Nezer--all of Nerdji Street.

AGA-MERDAN. I must send and fetch them, and impress upon them to testify exactly opposite to what they saw. But, first of all, you must go and find them, and beg them, on your part, to bear faithful testimony. As soldiers are willing but poor, much the same as wretched beggars, these men will ask you what present you intend to make them after the trial. “My children,” you must answer them, “in an affair like this, it is not good to ask for a fee. You ought to give in your testimony solely for the sake of pleasing God, and he will fully reward you on the day of the resurrection.”

AGA-SELMAN. Very good.

AGA-MERDAN. You cannot guess even approximately what will be the testimony of these soldiers?

AGA-SELMAN. Oh, yes, I know that. They will declare that two hours before the death of Hadji-Ghafour they betook themselves to his home, and that he said to them: “I am dying; and have no one in the world surviving me but a sister. Bury me as soon as I am dead.”

AGA-MERDAN. Very good; but they will have to change that, and say that Hadji-Ghafour had a little son one month old. Exert yourself now, and go after these soldiers. [_Aga-Selman rises and leaves._]

=Scene X=

AGA-MERDAN [_alone_]. Thanks be to God, events are turning out excellently. This is the time when Aga-Kerim is to bring his witnesses. [_At this moment the door opens, and Aga-Kerim enters the room with the Inspector of the Market and four other individuals._]

=Scene XI=

THE INSPECTOR. Good-day, Aga-Merdan.

AGA-MERDAN [_to Aga-Kerim, without turning or recognizing the Inspector_]. Good-day, you have found the Inspector?

THE INSPECTOR. No need to find him, for he was never lost. That was an odd question of yours, Aga-Merdan. I see that you do not yet recognize me.

AGA-MERDAN [_first of all leading aside Aga-Kerim_]. Go and fetch Aga-Selman, and make him point out to you the soldiers he spoke of, then bring them to me. [_Turns toward the Inspector._] My lord, present these gentlemen to me and inform me what sort of men they are.

THE INSPECTOR. Here is Hepou, a professional gambler, who arrived here from Ardebil yesterday; the next is the famous Cheida, of Quzvin, who keeps a bank during the day, and dissipates during the night; then follows Qourban-Ali, of Hamaden, who is Jack-of-all-trades during the night, a hosier in the bazaar by daylight, and lodges with me at night.

AGA-MERDAN. God be praised, they are all honest people, of good standing. But the profession of Hepou is slightly open to suspicion. There will be some distrust roused by his presence.

THE INSPECTOR. Do not be alarmed. Hepou is an old fox who will fool anyone. Do you wish him to appear as a distinguished merchant he will present himself before you, and you yourself would not recognize him. You are doubtless unaware of the fact that he is of a race whose skill has been tested. He is the son of Heides-Qouli, whose foot was cut off. One day, Heides-Qouli was seen in the city of Eher. He traversed on foot two posts during the night, and reached Tebriz, stole from the house of the defunct governor a casket of pearls belonging to the latter, and returned to Eher the same night; at dawn, he was found asleep in the corridor of the caravansary. Everyone was astounded at this feat. It was only on account of the credit he got for it that he was not put to death immediately on detection. They merely cut off his foot and let him go.

AGA-MERDAN. This, then, is the son of Heides of the docked foot? Very good; but we will change his name. All these men are well acquainted with legal procedure, are they not?

THE INSPECTOR. Let your mind be easy on that point; they are all educated; by my life, they could make slippers for the devil. There is none like them; every day they meet together and offer the Lord’s Prayer in the mosque.

AGA-MERDAN. Very good. Do they know what sort of testimony they are expected to give?

THE INSPECTOR. No, you will have to teach them that yourself.

AGA-MERDAN. Good. They must depose as follows: One evening at sunset a week before the death of Hadji-Ghafour, we were going all four of us to pay a visit to the houses of the dead. In passing before the house of Hadji-Ghafour we saw him standing at his gate and holding in his arms a babe in long clothes. We saluted him, and asked him how his health was? “Whose child is that?” we said to him. “It is my own,” he answered, “he was born three weeks ago. He is my only son; I have no other child.”

THE INSPECTOR [_turning to the witnesses_]. Do you understand, boys?

HEPOU. Yes, we understand.

AGA-MERDAN. Can you repeat the story as I told it?

HANIFE. Undoubtedly so; there are no far-fetched expressions to puzzle us.

AGA-MERDAN. Very good, my friends. May God bless you!

CHEIDA. How in the name of everything, Aga-Merdan, would God bless such a transaction as this?

AGA-MERDAN. Why not? My dear friend, if you were acquainted with the whole affair you would certainly say yourself that God would bless it. The unhappy widow of Hadji-Ghafour has been for ten years mistress of his house and fortune. Would it be just that a sickly wench should carry off all this money, and proceed to enjoy it with a base loafer, a heretic, and for the sole reason that the latter is to have criminal relations with her? According to the words of your doctors, the Sunnites are excluded from the court of heaven.

CHEIDA. Now, by God, but you speak the truth!

THE INSPECTOR. Come now, Aga-Merdan, fix the fee to be paid the boys.

AGA-MERDAN. What? Has not Aga-Kerim done so? I said that I would give thirty tomans to each of those gentlemen. You know, yourself, what your share is to be.

THE INSPECTOR. Yes, but you must advance to the lads the half of their fee.

AGA-MERDAN. Most willingly, if you will now retire. Aga-Kerim will bring your fifty tomans for yourself, as well as half of the fee to be paid to each of these young men.

The Inspector. Very good. God protect you. [_The Inspector retires with his followers, then the door opens again, and four soldiers enter with Aga-Kerim._]

=Scene XII=

THE SOLDIERS. Good-day, sir.

AGA-MERDAN. Good-day, my lads. Be good enough to take a seat. You are extremely welcome. Excuse the trouble which I have given you.

ONE OF THE SOLDIERS. Don’t mention it, sir; it is ours to be grateful for the honor of entering the house of a man so honorable.

AGA-MERDAN. A well-educated man is well received anywhere. Have you lunched?

THE SOLDIERS. No, we arrived before luncheon time.

AGA-MERDAN. Aga-Kerim, send someone to the bazaar to purchase for the boys four portions of rice of kebah, likewise of ice and citron cup. See there be an extra supply of kebah, for they are very hungry. You’ll like a great deal, won’t you?

A SOLDIER. Why take all this trouble, my lord? We will repair ourselves to the bazaar, and eat a bit there.

AGA-MERDAN. What trouble is it, my dear friend? It is lunch time, why should you wish to leave my house fasting and famished? Please God, my plan is best.

THE SOLDIER. My lord, what do you desire of us?

AGA-MERDAN. Nothing much, my lad; I only wish to ask you a plain question.

THE SOLDIER. Speak, my lord--two if you like.

AGA-MERDAN. Did you bear to burial Hadji-Ghafour?

THE SOLDIER. Yes, my lord, it was we who buried him. Why do you ask?

AGA-MERDAN. Ah, I congratulate you on your generous conduct. Your company is always a great honor, not only because you are the defenders of Islam, but also because you do good service to all people in their days of distress. While the cholera prevailed there remained scarce a living soul in the town; you alone did not quit it, making in advance the sacrifice of your lives. May the Thrice Holy Majesty of God reward you worthily for this! But did you ever see Hadji-Ghafour when he was alive, my son?

THE SOLDIER. Yes, my lord, we saw him alive.

AGA-MERDAN. In that case, you must also at his side have seen his little son in long clothes, who was then a month old.

THE SOLDIER. No, my lord, we never saw him.

AGA-MERDAN. Perhaps he was at that moment in his mother’s arms?

THE SOLDIER. No, my lord. We asked Hadji-Ghafour how many children he had, sons or daughters, big or little, and he answered that only a sister would survive him.

AGA-MERDAN. That is possible; he did not count his son because the latter was only a baby, one month old. But this babe was then in the arms of his mother; other people have seen him there; and I believe that you have also seen him. There is no harm done; it is all right. But in this case what testimony will you give? For, as you know, there is a lawsuit between the heirs as to the rights of succession.

THE SOLDIER. We will testify of what we have been informed. The advocate of Hadji-Ghafour’s sister has already questioned us on this point, and we have corroborated his account.

AGA-MERDAN. Ah, I understand why you speak thus; it is because the discourse of this wretched renegade has produced an impression on your mind. Therefore you deny the existence of the child. He has doubtless promised you for this twenty tomans, and has advanced you ten.

THE SOLDIER. No, my lord, he did not promise us a penny, and even when we asked for a little present he told us that a witness ought to be disinterested, and that we ought to expect our recompense from God alone.

AGA-MERDAN. Oh, the accursed rogue! See how mean, grasping, and close he is! He won’t let anyone profit by a penny excepting himself, and while he tries unjustly to obtain evidence in his favor, in a suit for 60,000 tomans, he grudges to spend twenty or thirty tomans on such kind young fellows as you! By God, there is not in the whole world another wretch like him! May God punish him by utter ruin! His work is unjust, and his conduct ignoble, and he himself a skinflint and a robber.

THE SOLDIER. How is his work unjust, my lord?

AGA-MERDAN. Because he evidently wishes to deny the existence of the little seven months’ old child of Hadji-Ghafour. He wishes to cast out this child, and deprive him of his patrimony, in order that the sister of Hadji-Ghafour may get it. But God will not favor this action; he will prove that the child is still alive, and that his existence cannot be overlooked. Can such a thing be denied? I am the defender of this poor little orphan. I have sworn to give thirty tomans to whoever will testify in favor of this child, and as I know and believe that you have seen him I have this sum ready here, in cash. But what good is it after all, since you say that you have no recollection of the child? Yet perhaps if you were to see him now, your mind might recall him.--Aga-Kerim, go into the house, take the child from the arms of its mother, Zeineb-Khanoun, and bring him here. [_Aga-Kerim soon returns with the little boy, whom he has found in the next room._]

=Scene XIII=

AGA-MERDAN. Consider well, my lads, how is it possible that you have not seen this little boy? Would it be humane to let another person swallow up the heritage of this little orphan who cannot speak to defend himself, and that the unhappy creature be abandoned to sigh and mourn in the streets and behind doors. Perhaps in the excitement of all this trouble you have paid no attention to this child. There are times when people seem to lose their heads.--Aga-Kerim, take from the closet the offering of this young child, and bring it here. [_Aga-Kerim immediately takes from the closet four packets wrapped in paper and lays them within Aga-Merdan’s reach._]

AGA-MERDAN. My dear friends, beside the reward which God will most certainly give you, this little orphan has made to each one of you an offering of thirty tomans enclosed in these four sheets of paper. He is not like that cursed Aga-Selman, who would impose upon you a dishonest action, yet from avarice gives you nothing as a recompense.

A SOLDIER [_suddenly turning to his comrades_]. Tell me, Quhreman, am I mistaken, for it seems to me that I do recall hearing the voice of a little child, while we were at the house of Hadji-Ghafour.

QUHREMAN. Yes, I remember it; there was a woman seated in the corner of the house and she held in her arms a little child in long clothes.

GHAFFER. Why, of course! I remember that Hadji-Ghafour said to us: “This is my wife, and this little child is my son; his mother brought him into the world a month ago.”

NEZER. Well, now, to think how we have forgotten this incident! It is true, there are days when people lose their wits. Yes, indeed; did not Hadji-Ghafour ask us to watch over his house, his wife, and his little child, until the inhabitants returned, for fear that the villains of the town should do them some harm?

ALL THE SOLDIERS [_in chorus_]. Yes, he commended to our care his wife and his child.

AGA-MERDAN. May God bless you, my lads! I knew well that you would recall it to mind. Accept, then, the offering of this orphan, and spend it as you choose. After the trial is over, please God, ten tomans more will come to each one of you. A good and sincere action is never lost. My lads, bear witness before the Tribunal exactly as you have done here, and afterward pocket your money.

ONE OF THE SOLDIERS. But, my lord, we have promised to Aga-Selman to testify in his favor. Must we meanwhile inform him that we cannot be his witnesses?

AGA-MERDAN. No; you need not say anything to him. Let him think all the time that you are his witnesses, and that he himself brings you before the Tribunal; when there, deliver your testimony just as you have now done. Aga-Selman has no rights over you, and he can make no claim upon you. If he asks why you speak so, you must answer that it is because you know what the truth is, and are bearing witness to it. Then, you shall pocket your money. The rice has come; go into that room and do me the favor to rest yourselves. But I have one thing to ask of you; no one must know that you have been summoned, and have come here. It is solely for the sake of pleasing God that you will keep this secret, but I promise in return for your secrecy to give to each one of you a Bokhara hat.

THE SOLDIERS. Have no fear on this point, my lord.

AGA-MERDAN. Aga-Kerim, lead these good fellows into that room that they may take their repast; afterward you may dismiss them.

=Scene XIV=

AGA-MERDAN. [_alone_]. So far, so good. Let us start for the court. I am going to get the assessors on my side, and to prepare them to act, so that to-morrow, at the time of deliberation, they may give me the necessary assistance.

ACT THIRD

=Scene I=

_The scene is the Tribunal. The President is seated on a cushion, in the place of honor, having Aga-Rehim on his right, and Aga-Djebbar on his left. By their side are seated the ordinary assessors of the Tribunal, Aga-Bechin and Aga-Settar. On a lower bench is Aga-Merdan, advocate of Hadji-Ghafour’s widow, lolling easily upon his seat._

AGA-BECHIN [_addressing the President of the Tribunal_]. Have you detected, my lord, by your intelligence and wisdom, the wiles of that woman who came yesterday to lodge a complaint? She stole three tomans from her husband; she was herself bruised with blows, and had artfully smeared her face with blood, and torn her hair--then she lodged a complaint against her husband.

THE PRESIDENT. Did I not tell you that this woman inspired me with suspicion? We must clear the matter up.

AGA-BECHIN. Yes, my lord, I wish merely to remark how marvellous is your sagacity! None in the whole court doubted the sincerity of this woman, but you at the first glance made us suspicious, and you were quite right.

THE PRESIDENT. In such cases my opinion is often in accordance with the facts.

AGA-BECHIN. One is quite right in the opinion that governments are guided by Divine wisdom. What is this suspicion but a direct inspiration from God?

AGA-REHIM. You seem very much astonished at it, Aga-Bechin, but the most Holy Majesty of God chooses for their merit, and places at the head of their contemporaries, those of his servants whom he has distinguished by special favor. Now, the most Holy Majesty of God has distinguished the President of the Tribunal with quite extraordinary gifts in regard to the knowledge of affairs. Would you like to know what this really is? It is not inspiration; it is, to my mind, a special gift of grace from God.

AGA-DJEBBAR. Yes, you have the choice of the two opinions, either of which may be maintained. Is it not so, Aga-Merdan?

AGA-MERDAN. Undoubtedly. It is certainly so.

AGA-REHIM. Aga-Merdan, how is the little boy of Hadji-Ghafour getting on?

AGA-MERDAN. Very well, thank God. His mother understands it all, and he will come as soon as he is summoned to appear.

AGA-DJEBBAR. He must be fully seven months old, is he not?

AGA-MERDAN. Yes, exactly seven months.

THE PRESIDENT. How is this? Does a son survive Hadji-Ghafour? They told me that he had no child.

AGA-BECHIN. But he had one, my lord; you have been misinformed. He left a little boy who is as beautiful as a crescent moon. Yesterday, as we returned from prayer, we saw him on the doorstep in the arms of his nurse.

AGA-MERDAN. He and Hadji-Ghafour are as much alike as two halves of an apple.

AGA-SETTAR. Do you recall, my lord, the features of Hadji-Ghafour?

THE PRESIDENT. Yes, it is not so long since he died.

AGA-SETTAR. Well, when you see the face of this child you would think at first sight that you beheld that of Hadji-Ghafour.

THE PRESIDENT. I did not know that. It is very good. But tell me, Aga-Merdan, if there is a son of Hadji-Ghafour living, it is a waste of time to open the case. It is evident that the fortune of his father ought to revert to this child, and in such a case the other relatives and collateral heirs have no claim upon it.

AGA-MERDAN [_in a tone of perfect humility_]. My lord, if I recounted to you the reason on which their claims are based, you might doubt of my sincerity. But Aga-Bechin will tell you the whole story.

AGA-BECHIN. Permit me to relate the whole affair, my lord. Hadji-Ghafour left a sister, Sekiné-Khanoun. This woman is infatuated with a young man, whom she loves to madness, and wishes to wed. But the rogue does not so take it; he reminds her that he has nothing and expects no fortune to come to him. What would he do with her? Meanwhile the damsel works tooth and nail to get into her own hands the inheritance left by Hadji-Ghafour, and so to bring about a marriage with this youngster. Her aunt wishes to marry her to the merchant Aga-Hassam, who is a rich and distinguished man; she refuses. She has chosen an advocate, and set up witnesses in support of her plea that Hadji-Ghafour left no child, and that the 60,000 tomans that constitute his heritage ought to come to her. The woman is half-witted if she imagines that she can carry off the heritage of Hadji-Ghafour by means of such tricks and artifices. This is an absurd idea, and she is giving herself a great deal of useless trouble.

THE PRESIDENT. Very well. The affair is not so complicated or involved as to detain the court long; we shall probably be able to decide and pass sentence in two hours. The two parties must support their claims by testimony and proofs.

AGA-MERDAN. Yes, my lord, the witnesses are all ready.

AGA-SETTAR [_to the President of the Tribunal_]. There were brought here yesterday, my lord, two little abandoned orphans. “We will look out,” you said, “for a servant of God, pious and charitable, and confide the children to him,” I believe you would do wisely by placing them in the care of Aga-Merdan. He will care for them as if they were his own, for he is always on the search for an opportunity of doing good.

THE PRESIDENT. Very good. Do you consent to this, Aga-Merdan?

AGA-MERDAN. With all my heart, my lord. I will care for them as if they were my own children.

THE PRESIDENT. May the Master of the Universe recompense you as you deserve! [_The door opens during these preliminaries and Aga-Selman enters with Aziz-Bey, in company with four soldiers. Shortly afterward Aga-Abbas and Zeineb-Khanoun, the widow of Hadji-Ghafour, arrive also, accompanied by their four witnesses. Zeineb-Khanoun sits down at one side of the hall, enveloped in a long veil. Aga-Selman, Aziz-Bey, and Aga-Abbas stand up on the other side of the hall._]

=Scene II=

THE PRESIDENT. Aga-Selman, it is said that Hadji-Ghafour left a son. Can you prove to the contrary?

AGA-SELMAN. I have witnesses, my lord, who will depose that in the hour of his death, Hadji-Ghafour declared to them that he had no other heir but his sister, Sekiné-Khanoun.

THE PRESIDENT. Let the witnesses make their statement.

AGA-SELMAN [_turning to the soldiers_]. Make your statement.

THE FIRST SOLDIER. My lord, one day before the death of Hadji-Ghafour we went, my comrades and I, to pay him a visit. We asked him whether he had any children, sons or daughters, and he replied: “I have no one in the world but my sister, Sekiné-Khanoun.”

THE PRESIDENT. Swear by the name of God that this is just what you heard.

THE FIRST SOLDIER. I swear by the name of God that this is just what I heard. [_Aga-Merdan becomes quite pale, and seems thunderstruck, as does Aga-Selman._]

THE PRESIDENT [_turning to the other soldiers_]. And you, what did you hear? Speak in turn.

THE SECOND SOLDIER. I call God’s name to witness that this is just what I heard.

THE THIRD SOLDIER. I call God’s name to witness that I also heard the same.

AGA-MERDAN [_in a voice trembling with anxiety_]. But at that moment did you not perceive a little child in the arms of Hadji-Ghafour’s wife?

THE FIRST SOLDIER. It was elsewhere we saw the little child. Would you like us to state where?

AGA-MERDAN. It is well. Keep silence. [_Turning to the President of the Tribunal._] My lord, I have witnesses who saw an infant one month old in the arms of Hadji-Ghafour, on the very day of which the soldiers speak. “Whose child is this?” they asked Hadji-Ghafour, and he said to them in reply, “It is my son.” The witnesses are yonder, before you. [_Beckons witnesses to advance._] They are all educated, honorable, and pious people.

AGA-SETTAR [_in a tone full of kindness toward Aga-Merdan_]. Verily, Aga-Merdan, the father of this young man was a certain Hadji-Cherif.

AGA-MERDAN. Yes, may God have mercy upon him! He belonged to a saintly family.

AGA-SETTAR. The son of such a father cannot but be an honorable man, and Hadji-Cherif was certainly a most strict man.

THE PRESIDENT [_turning to the witnesses_]. Tell me what you know about it.

HEPOU. Shall I tell all I know?

THE PRESIDENT. Yes, all that you have learned about this affair.

HEPOU. Well, my lord, yesterday Aga-Merdan asked us to come to his house, my companions and me. He gave each of us fifteen tomans to present ourselves here before you, and to declare that at the time of the cholera we saw in Hadji-Ghafour’s arms his little child, then one month old. As I am a gambler by profession, I accepted the money and took it; but this money had been given to me for doing evil, and brought me no profit. That night I lost the fifteen tomans to the last penny, for I had fallen in with a sad rogue to whom Leibadj himself could not hold a candle. I know nothing more than that, my lord. I have never seen Hadji-Ghafour, and didn’t even know him. [_Aga-Merdan gasps with excitement._]

THE PRESIDENT [_to the other witnesses_]. And you, what have you to say?

THE OTHER WITNESSES [_in chorus_]. We can only repeat what our comrade has said.

THE PRESIDENT [_to his assessors_]. And you were affirming a moment ago that Aga-Merdan was a virtuous man! Your words prove your dishonesty and deceit. Praised be God in his greatness and sublimity. I do not understand what all this means.

AGA-BECHIN. No, my lord, what proves, on the contrary, that we are honest and loyal men is that we have given faith to the words of Aga-Merdan, and have believed him to be a man of honor.

AGA-REHIM [_sotto voce to Aga-Settar_]. Oh, the liar, may the devil take him! Do you hear this scoundrel Aga-Bechin, what a good excuse he has ready? The President believes him, and imagines that we are really honest and sincere. [_At this moment the head bailiff of the Prince Royal enters._]

=Scene III=

THE HEAD BAILIFF [_to the President of the Tribunal_]. My lord, the Prince Royal asks whether the rights of Hadji-Ghafour’s sister have been proved?

THE PRESIDENT. Yes, they have been established. But does the Prince Royal know how the proof has been effected?

THE HEAD BAILIFF. Yes, my lord. The Inspector of the Market saw through the designs of Aga-Merdan and Aga-Selman. He informed the Prince Royal, who took the necessary measures for defeating their machinations. Meanwhile the crime of these two individuals has been proved, and I have received orders to lead them into the presence of the Prince Royal.

THE PRESIDENT. Is Aga-Selman also implicated in this plot?

THE BAILIFF. Yes, he was the secret accomplice of Aga-Merdan. [_The bailiff seizes Aga-Merdan and Aga-Selman and carries them off_.]

=Scene IV=

THE PRESIDENT. Aziz-Bey, you are to-day the protector of Sekiné-Khanoun. Go and tell her that in two hours I will take with me the sum of money left by Hadji-Ghafour, and bring it to her, and place it in her hands before the most honorable witnesses.

AZIZ-BEY. It is well, my lord; I will go.

=Scene V=

AGA-BECHIN [_striking his hands together_]. By the death of the first-born, is it possible to utter fabrications such as those of this Aga-Merdan? O my God, what dishonest people have you created in your world! By his impostures, this wretch wished to set up a son to Hadji-Ghafour! Gentlemen, have you ever seen such audacity? Ah, you may now treat me as a fool, Aga-Djebbar, and may say that I am exceedingly simple and guileless to believe what the first-comer tells me.

AGA-DJEBBAR [_turning his face and speaking sotto voce_]. Ah, the liar! May the devil carry him off! Oh, yes, you are simple and guileless--that is well known. [_Then in a loud tone:_] Let us adjourn, gentlemen. Let us abridge the fatigue of the President; he has gone through much exertion to-day. Why prolong this talk? [_The President of the Tribunal leads the way out lost in thought. Then the others rise and leave._]

=OTTOMAN POEMS=

[_Metrical Translation by E. J. W. Gibb, M. R. A. S._]

FROM THE ‘ĀSHIQ PASHA DĪWĀNI

All the Universe, one mighty sign, is shown;
God hath myriads of creative acts unknown:
None hath seen them, of the races jinn and men,
None hath news brought from that realm far off from ken.
Never shall thy mind or reason reach that strand,
Nor can tongue the King’s name utter of that land.
Since ’tis his each nothingness with life to vest,
Trouble is there ne’er at all to his behest.
Eighteen thousand worlds, from end to end,
Do not with him one atom’s worth transcend.

_‘Āshiq Pasha_.

FROM THE ISKENDER-NĀMA

Up and sing! O ‘anqā-natured nightingale!
High in every business doth thy worth prevail:
Sing! for good the words are that from thee proceed;
Whatsoever thou dost say is prized indeed.
Then, since words to utter thee so well doth suit,
Pity were it surely if thy tongue were mute.
Blow a blast in utt’rance that the Trusted One,
When he hears, ten thousand times may cry: “Well done!”
Up and sing! O bird most holy! up and sing!
Unto us a story fair and beauteous bring.
Let not opportunity slip by, silent there;
Unto us the beauty of each word declare.
Seldom opportunities like this with thee lie;
Sing then, for th’ occasion now is thine, so hie!
Lose not opportunities that thy hand doth find,
For some day full suddenly Death thy tongue shall bind.
Of how many singers, eloquent of words,
Bound have Death and Doom the tongues fast in their cords!
Lose not, then, th’ occasion, but to joy look now,
For one day thy station ’neath earth seek must thou.
While the tongue yet floweth, now thy words collect;
Them as Meaning’s taper ’midst the feast erect,
That thy words, remaining long time after thee,
To the listeners’ hearing shall thy record be.
Thy mementoes lustrous biding here behind,
Through them they’ll recall thee, O my soul, to mind.
Those who’ve left mementoes ne’er have died in truth;
Those who’ve left no traces ne’er have lived in sooth.
Surely with this object didst thou come to earth,
That to mind should ever be recalled thy worth.
“May I die not!” say’st thou, one of noble race?
Strive, then, that thou leavest here a name of grace.

_Ahmedī_.

FROM THE ISKENDER-NĀMA

Once unto his Vezīr quoth the crownèd King:
“Thou, who in my world-realm knowest everything!
With my sword I’ve conquered many and many a shore;
Still I sigh right sorely: ‘Ah! to conquer more!’
Great desire is with me realms to overthrow;
Through this cause I comfort ne’er a moment know.
Is there yet a country whither we may wend,
Where as yet our mighty sway doth not extend,
That we may it conquer, conquer it outright?
Ours shall be the whole earth--ours it shall be quite.”
Then, when heard the Vezīr what the King did say,
Quoth he: “Realm-o’erthrowing Monarch, live for aye!
May the Mighty Ruler set thy crown on high,
That thy throne may ever all assaults defy!
May thy life’s rose-garden never fade away!
May thy glory’s orchard never see decay!
Thou’st the Peopled Quarter ta’en from end to end;
All of its inhabitants slaves before thee bend.
There’s on earth no city, neither any land,
That is not, O Monarch, under thy command.
In the Peopled Quarter Seven Climes are known,
And o’er all of these thy sway extends alone!”

_Ahmedī._

FROM KHUSREV AND SHĪRĪN

The spot at which did King Khusrev Pervīz light
Was e’en the ruined dwelling of that moon bright.
Whilst wand’ring on, he comes upon that parterre,
As on he strolls, it opes before his eyes fair.
Among the trees a night-hued courser stands bound
(On Heaven’s charger’s breast were envy’s scars found).
As softly moved he, sudden on his sight gleamed
A moon that in the water shining bright beamed.
O what a moon! a sun o’er earth that light rains--
Triumphant, happy, blest he who her shade gains.
She’d made the pool a casket for her frame fair,
And all about that casket spread her dark hair.
Her hand did yonder curling serpents back throw--
The dawn ’tis, and thereof we never tired grow.
He saw the water round about her ear play;
In rings upon her shoulders her dark locks lay.
When yon heart-winning moon before the King beamed,
The King became the sun--in him Love’s fire gleamed.
The tears e’en like to water from his eyes rolled;--
Was’t strange, when did a Watery Sign the Moon hold?
No power was left him, neither sport nor pleasure;
He bit his finger, wildered beyond measure.
Unconscious of his gaze, the jasmine-breasted--
The hyacinths o’er the narcissi rested.
When shone her day-face, from that musky cloud bare,
Her eyes oped Shīrīn and beheld the King there.
Within that fountain, through dismay and shamed fright,
She trembled as on water doth the moonlight.
Than this no other refuge could yon moon find
That she should round about her her own locks bind.
The moon yet beameth through the hair, the dark night,
With tresses how could be concealed the sun bright?
To hide her from him, round her she her hair flung,
And thus as veil her night before her day hung.

_Sheykhī_

FROM KHUSREV AND SHĪRĪN

When Ferhād bound to fair Shīrīn his heart’s core,
From out his breast Love many a bitter wail tore.
On tablet of his life graved, shown was Shīrīn;
Of all else emptied, filled alone with Shīrīn.
As loathed he the companionship of mankind,
In wild beasts ’midst the hills did he his friends find.
His guide was Pain; his boon companion, Grief’s throe;
His comrade, Sorrow; and his closest friend, Woe.
Thus wand’ring on, he knew not day from dark night;
For many days he onward strayed in sad plight.
Although before his face a wall of stone rise,
Until he strikes against it, blind his two eyes.
Through yearning for his love he from the world fled;
From out his soul into his body Death sped.
Because he knew that when the earthly frame goes,
Eternal, Everlasting Being love shows,
He fervent longed to be from fleshly bonds free,
That then his life in very truth might Life see.
In sooth, till dies the body, Life is ne’er found,
Nor with the love of life the Loved One e’er found.

_Sheykhī._

YAZIJI-OGLU

THE CREATION OF PARADISE

Hither come, O seeker after Truth! if joy thou wouldest share,
Enter on the Mystic Pathway, follow it, then joy thou’lt share.
Hearken now what God (exalted high his name!) from naught hath formed.
Eden’s bower he hath created; Light, its lamp, he did prepare;
Loftiest its sites, and best and fairest are its blest abodes;
Midst of each a hall of pearls--not ivory nor teak-wood rare.
Each pavilion he from seventy ruddy rubies raised aloft--
Dwellings these in which the dwellers sit secure from fear or care.
Round within each courtyard seventy splendid houses he hath ranged,
Formed of emeralds green--houses these no fault of form that bear.
There, within each house, are seventy pearl and gem-incrusted thrones;
He upon each throne hath stretched out seventy couches broidered fair;
Sits on every couch a maiden of the bourne of loveliness:
Moons their foreheads, days their faces, each a jewelled crown doth wear;
Wine their rubies, soft their eyes, their eyebrows troublous, causing woe:
All-enchanting, Paradise pays tribute to their witching air.
Sudden did they see the faces of those damsels dark of eye,
Blinded sun and moon were, and Life’s Stream grew bitter then and there.
Thou wouldst deem that each was formed of rubies, corals, and of pearls;
Question there is none, for God thus in the Qur’ān doth declare.
Tables seventy, fraught with bounties, he in every house hath placed,
And on every tray hath spread out seventy sorts of varied fare.

* * * * *

All these glories, all these honors, all these blessings of delight,
All these wondrous mercies surely for his sake he did prepare:
Through his love unto Muhammed, he the universe hath framed;
Happy, for his sake, the naked and the hungry enter there.
O Thou Perfectness of Potence! O Thou God of Awful Might!
O Thou Majesty of Glory! O Thou King of Perfect Right!

Since he Eden’s heaven created, all is there complete and whole,
So that naught is lacking; nothing he created needs repair.
Yonder, for his righteous servants, things so fair hath he devised,
That no eye hath e’er beheld them; ope thy soul’s eye, on them stare.
Never have his servants heard them, neither can their hearts conceive;
Reach unto their comprehension shall this understanding ne’er.
There that God a station lofty, of the loftiest, hath reared,
That unclouded station he the name Vesīla caused to bear,
That to his Belovèd yonder station a dear home may be,
Thence ordained is Heaven’s order free from every grief and care.
In its courtyard’s riven centre, planted he the Tūba-Tree;
That a tree which hangeth downward, high aloft its roots are there:
Thus its radiance all the Heavens lighteth up from end to end,
Flooding every tent and palace, every lane and every square.

Such a tree the Tūba, that the Gracious One hath in its sap
Hidden whatsoe’er there be of gifts and presents good and fair;
Forth therefrom crowns, thrones, and jewels, yea, and steeds
and coursers come,
Golden leaves and clearest crystals, wines most pure beyond compare.
For his sake there into being hath he called the Tūba-Tree,
That from Ebū-Qāsim’s hand might everyone receive his share.

* * * * *

_Yaziji-Oglu._

RUBĀ’Ī

Cup-Bearer, bring, bring here again my yester even’s wine;
My harp and rebec bring, them bid address this heart of mine:
While still I live, ’tis meet that I should mirth and glee enjoy;
The day shall come when none may e’en my resting-place divine.

_Sultan Murād II._

GAZEL

Souls are fluttered when the morning breezes through thy tresses stray;
Waving cypresses are wildered when thy motions they survey.
Since with witchcraft thou hast whetted keen the lancet of thy glance,
All my veins are bleeding inward through my longing and dismay.
“Why across thy cheek disordered float thy tresses?” asked I her.
“It is Rūm-Eylī; there high-starred heroes gallop,” did she say.
Thought I, though I spake not: “In thy quarter, through thy
tint and scent,
Wretched and head-giddy, wand’ring, those who hope hope not for stray.”
“Whence the anger in thy glances, O sweet love?” I said; then she:
“Silence! surely if I shed blood, I the ensigns should display.”
Even as thou sighest, ‘Avnī, shower thine eyes tears fast as rain,
Like as follow hard the thunder-roll the floods in dread array.

_‘Avnī._

FRAGMENT OF GAZEL

Torn and pierced my heart has been by thy scorn and tyranny’s blade;
Rent by the scissors of grief for thee is the robe that
my patience arrayed.
Like the mihrāb of the Ka’ba, as shrine where in worship to turn,
Thy ward would an angel take, if thy footprint there he surveyed.
They are pearls, O mine eye! thou sheddest her day-bright face before;
Not a tear is left--these all are dried by the beams by
her cheek displayed.

_‘Avnī._

GAZEL

To obey Fight hard for Allah is my aim and my desire;
’Tis but zeal for Faith, for Islām, that my ardor doth inspire.
Through the grace of Allah, and th’ assistance of the Band Unseen,
Is my earnest hope the Infidels to crush with ruin dire.
On the Saints and on the Prophets surely doth my trust repose;
Through the love of God, to triumph and to conquest I aspire.
What if I with soul and gold strive here to wage the Holy War?
Praise is God’s! ten thousand sighs for battle in my breast suspire.
O Muhammed! through the chosen Ahmed Mukhtār’s glorious aid,
Hope I that my might may triumph over Islām’s foes acquire!

_‘Avnī._

GAZEL

Who pleasure seeks must oftentimes experience sad pain, in sooth;
He must a beggar be who doth desire to win domain, in sooth.
Whene’er I sigh, up rise my tears, they, boiling, fast o’erflow my eyes;
Winds surely must full fiercely blow, with waves to fill
the main, in sooth.
My heart’s domain now thought of thee, now grief for thee, alternate rule;
This realm to wreck and waste to lay those two sublime Kings
strain, in sooth.
Spite zeal and prayers, Truth sure is found within the cup
that’s filled with wine;
So acts of rakes are free from all hypocrisy’s foul stain, in sooth.
O ‘Adenī, rub thou thy face low ’midst the dust that lines her path;
For eyes with blood filled stand in need of tūtyā, health
to gain, in sooth.

_‘Adenī._

FRAGMENT OF GAZEL

When I saw my love’s hair, ambergris-hued, o’er her visage shake,
“Strange,” I thought, “a moon, musk-shedding, ’midst the
flowers its bed should make!”
How thy locks, moon-face, are fallen o’er thy cheek in many a curl!
As in day he lies reposing, so in strength doth gain the snake.
From thy cheek the rose and tulip tint and scent have stol’n indeed;
Therefore through the bāzār round they bear them, bounden to the stake.

_‘Adenī._

GAZEL

Again, then, doth this apple, thy chin, tooth-marks wear!
Again they’ve eaten peaches in thine orchard fair!
If strange hands have not reached thee, O rosebud-lipped one,
Doth thy rose-garden’s pathway a foot-step print bear!
I cannot reach thee before rivals all throng thee round:
Less for true lover than vile dog dost thou care.
Witness that thou with my rivals the cup drain’dst last night,
Bears the sleepless and worn look thy languid eyes wear.
With whom didst thou last even carouse, that this day
Morn’s zephyr about thee did so much news declare?
Beholding thy lips hurt, Āfitābī hath said:
“Again, then, doth this apple, thy chin, tooth-marks wear!”

_Āfitābī._

GAZEL

Cast off thy veil, and heaven and earth in dazzling light array!
As radiant Paradise, this poor demented world display!
Move thou thy lips, make play the ripples light of Kevser’s pool!
Let loose thy scented locks, and odors sweet through earth convey!
A musky warrant by thy down was traced, and zephyr charged:
“Speed, with this scent subdue the realms of China and Cathay!”
O heart! should not thy portion be the Water bright of Life,
A thousand times mayst thou pursue Iskender’s darksome way.
O Zeyneb, woman’s love of earthly show leave thou behind;
Go manly forth, with single heart, forsake adornment gay!

_Zeyneb._

GAZEL

‘Ah! thine eyes lay waste the heart, they ’gainst the soul bare
daggers dread;
See how sanguinary gleam they--blood aye upon blood they shed.
Come, the picture of thy down bear unto this my scorchèd breast--
It is customary fresh greens over the broiled flesh to spread.
Said I: “O Life! since thy lip is life, to me vouchsafe a kiss.”
Smiling rose-like, “Surely, surely, by my life,” she answerèd.
As I weep sore, of my stainèd eyebrow and my tears of blood,
“’Tis the rainbow o’er the shower stretched,” were by all beholders said.
While within my heart thine eye’s shaft, send not to my breast despair;
Idol mine! guest after guest must not to one same house be led.
Through its grieving for thy hyacinth down, thus feeble grown
Is the basil, that the gardeners nightly o’er it water shed.
Quoth I: “O Life! do not shun Jem, he a pilgrim here hath come;”
“Though a pilgrim, yet his life doth on a child’s face hang,” she said.

_Prince Jem_

FRAGMENT

Lo! there the torrent, dashing ’gainst the rocks, doth wildly roll;
The whole wide realm of Space and Being ruth hath on my soul.
Through bitterness of grief and woe the morn hath rent its robe;
See! O in dawning’s place, the sky weeps blood, without control!
Tears shedding, o’er the mountain-tops the clouds of heaven pass;
Hear, deep the bursting thunder sobs and moans through stress of dole.

_Prince Jem._

GAZEL

He who longs for ruby lip’s kiss may not calm of soul remain;
He his head must yield who hopes the dusky locks’ sweet scent to gain.
Still in heart abides not longing’s flame when one her ward beholds;
Him who seeks her face contents not even Heaven’s flowery plain.
Yonder sugar-lip’s surrounded by her cheek’s down;--where art thou,
O thou seeker of the rose’s company without thorn’s pain?
Wouldest thou delight? Then plunge thou deep beneath Love’s ocean surge:
He who would for regal pearls dive, surely should know well the main.
Though the loved one mocks at Ahmed’s faults and failings, what of that?
He who seeks a friend that’s blameless must without a friend remain.

_Ahmed Pasha._

FROM THE WINTER QASĪDA

Locust-like down from the sky the snowflakes wing their way;
From the green-plumaged bird, Delight, O heart! hope not for lay.
Like drunken camels, spatter now the clouds earth’s winding sheet;
Laded the caravan of mirth and glee, and passed away.
With lighted lamps in daytime seek the people for the sun;
Yet scarce, with trouble, a dim, fitful spark discover they.

* * * * *

The Moon in Sign of Bounteousness! the Shade of Allah’s grace!
The King, star-armied! he in aspect fair as Hermes’ ray--
The Khān Muhammed! at the portal of whose sphere of might
To wait as servants would Darius and Key-Khusrev pray!
E’en should the sun till the Last Day it measure with gold beam,
Nor shore nor depth could e’er it find to th’ ocean of his sway!

_Nejātī._

FROM THE SPRING QASĪDA