The Arabian Nights Entertainments
his wife, and there was no occasion for anyone else to interfere
between them.
The princess, who, of course, was ignorant of the rank of her
deliverer, denied altogether the Indian's story. "My lord," she cried,
"whoever you may be, put no faith in this impostor. He is an
abominable magician, who has this day torn me from the Prince of
Persia, my destined husband, and has brought me here on this enchanted
horse." She would have continued, but her tears choked her, and the
Sultan of Cashmere, convinced by her beauty and her distinguished air
of the truth of her tale, ordered his followers to cut off the Indian's
head, which was done immediately.
But rescued though she was from one peril, it seemed as if she had only
fallen into another. The Sultan commanded a horse to be given her, and
conducted her to his own palace, where he led her to a beautiful
apartment, and selected female slaves to wait on her, and eunuchs to be
her guard. Then, without allowing her time to thank him for all he had
done, he bade her repose, saying she should tell him her adventures on
the following day.
The princess fell asleep, flattering herself that she had only to
relate her story for the Sultan to be touched by compassion, and to
restore her to the prince without delay. But a few hours were to
undeceive her.
When the King of Cashmere had quitted her presence the evening before,
he had resolved that the sun should not set again without the princess
becoming his wife, and at daybreak proclamation of his intention was
made throughout the town, by the sound of drums, trumpets, cymbals, and
other instruments calculated to fill the heart with joy. The Princess
of Bengal was early awakened by the noise, but she did not for one
moment imagine that it had anything to do with her, till the Sultan,
arriving as soon as she was dressed to inquire after her health,
informed her that the trumpet blasts she heard were part of the solemn
marriage ceremonies, for which he begged her to prepare. This
unexpected announcement caused the princess such terror that she sank
down in a dead faint.
The slaves that were in waiting ran to her aid, and the Sultan himself
did his best to bring her back to consciousness, but for a long while
it was all to no purpose. At length her senses began slowly to come
back to her, and then, rather than break faith with the Prince of
Persia by consenting to such a marriage, she determined to feign
madness. So she began by saying all sorts of absurdities, and using
all kinds of strange gestures, while the Sultan stood watching her with
sorrow and surprise. But as this sudden seizure showed no sign of
abating, he left her to her women, ordering them to take the greatest
care of her. Still, as the day went on, the malady seemed to become
worse, and by night it was almost violent.
Days passed in this manner, till at last the Sultan of Cashmere decided
to summon all the doctors of his court to consult together over her sad
state. Their answer was that madness is of so many different kinds
that it was impossible to give an opinion on the case without seeing
the princess, so the Sultan gave orders that they were to be introduced
into her chamber, one by one, every man according to his rank.
This decision had been foreseen by the princess, who knew quite well
that if once she allowed the physicians to feel her pulse, the most
ignorant of them would discover that she was in perfectly good health,
and that her madness was feigned, so as each man approached, she broke
out into such violent paroxysms, that not one dared to lay a finger on
her. A few, who pretended to be cleverer than the rest, declared that
they could diagnose sick people only from sight, ordered her certain
potions, which she made no difficulty about taking, as she was
persuaded they were all harmless.
When the Sultan of Cashmere saw that the court doctors could do nothing
towards curing the princess, he called in those of the city, who fared
no better. Then he had recourse to the most celebrated physicians in
the other large towns, but finding that the task was beyond their
science, he finally sent messengers into the other neighbouring states,
with a memorandum containing full particulars of the princess's
madness, offering at the same time to pay the expenses of any physician
who would come and see for himself, and a handsome reward to the one
who should cure her. In answer to this proclamation many foreign
professors flocked into Cashmere, but they naturally were not more
successful than the rest had been, as the cure depended neither on them
nor their skill, but only on the princess herself.
It was during this time that Prince Firouz Schah, wandering sadly and
hopelessly from place to place, arrived in a large city of India, where
he heard a great deal of talk about the Princess of Bengal who had gone
out of her senses, on the very day that she was to have been married to
the Sultan of Cashmere. This was quite enough to induce him to take
the road to Cashmere, and to inquire at the first inn at which he
lodged in the capital the full particulars of the story. When he knew
that he had at last found the princess whom he had so long lost, he set
about devising a plan for her rescue.
The first thing he did was to procure a doctor's robe, so that his
dress, added to the long beard he had allowed to grow on his travels,
might unmistakably proclaim his profession. He then lost no time in
going to the palace, where he obtained an audience of the chief usher,
and while apologising for his boldness in presuming to think that he
could cure the princess, where so many others had failed, declared that
he had the secret of certain remedies, which had hitherto never failed
of their effect.
The chief usher assured him that he was heartily welcome, and that the
Sultan would receive him with pleasure; and in case of success, he
would gain a magnificent reward.
When the Prince of Persia, in the disguise of a physician, was brought
before him, the Sultan wasted no time in talking, beyond remarking that
the mere sight of a doctor threw the princess into transports of rage.
He then led the prince up to a room under the roof, which had an
opening through which he might observe the princess, without himself
being seen.
The prince looked, and beheld the princess reclining on a sofa with
tears in her eyes, singing softly to herself a song bewailing her sad
destiny, which had deprived her, perhaps for ever, of a being she so
tenderly loved. The young man's heart beat fast as he listened, for he
needed no further proof that her madness was feigned, and that it was
love of him which had caused her to resort to this species of trick.
He softly left his hiding-place, and returned to the Sultan, to whom he
reported that he was sure from certain signs that the princess's malady
was not incurable, but that he must see her and speak with her alone.
The Sultan made no difficulty in consenting to this, and commanded that
he should be ushered in to the princess's apartment. The moment she
caught sight of his physician's robe, she sprang from her seat in a
fury, and heaped insults upon him. The prince took no notice of her
behaviour, and approaching quite close, so that his words might be
heard by her alone, he said in a low whisper, "Look at me, princess,
and you will see that I am no doctor, but the Prince of Persia, who has
come to set you free."
At the sound of his voice, the Princess of Bengal suddenly grew calm,
and an expression of joy overspread her face, such as only comes when
what we wish for most and expect the least suddenly happens to us. For
some time she was too enchanted to speak, and Prince Firouz Schah took
advantage of her silence to explain to her all that had occurred, his
despair at watching her disappear before his very eyes, the oath he had
sworn to follow her over the world, and his rapture at finally
discovering her in the palace at Cashmere. When he had finished, he
begged in his turn that the princess would tell him how she had come
there, so that he might the better devise some means of rescuing her
from the tyranny of the Sultan.
It needed but a few words from the princess to make him acquainted with
the whole situation, and how she had been forced to play the part of a
mad woman in order to escape from a marriage with the Sultan, who had
not had sufficient politeness even to ask her consent. If necessary,
she added, she had resolved to die sooner than permit herself to be
forced into such a union, and break faith with a prince whom she loved.
The prince then inquired if she knew what had become of the enchanted
horse since the Indian's death, but the princess could only reply that
she had heard nothing about it. Still she did not suppose that the
horse could have been forgotten by the Sultan, after all she had told
him of its value.
To this the prince agreed, and they consulted together over a plan by
which she might be able to make her escape and return with him into
Persia. And as the first step, she was to dress herself with care, and
receive the Sultan with civility when he visited her next morning.
The Sultan was transported with delight on learning the result of the
interview, and his opinion of the doctor's skill was raised still
higher when, on the following day, the princess behaved towards him in
such a way as to persuade him that her complete cure would not be long
delayed. However he contented himself with assuring her how happy he
was to see her health so much improved, and exhorted her to make every
use of so clever a physician, and to repose entire confidence in him.
Then he retired, without awaiting any reply from the princess.
The Prince of Persia left the room at the same time, and asked if he
might be allowed humbly to inquire by what means the Princess of Bengal
had reached Cashmere, which was so far distant from her father's
kingdom, and how she came to be there alone. The Sultan thought the
question very natural, and told him the same story that the Princess of
Bengal had done, adding that he had ordered the enchanted horse to be
taken to his treasury as a curiosity, though he was quite ignorant how
it could be used.
"Sire," replied the physician, "your Highness's tale has supplied me
with the clue I needed to complete the recovery of the princess.
During her voyage hither on an enchanted horse, a portion of its
enchantment has by some means been communicated to her person, and it
can only be dissipated by certain perfumes of which I possess the
secret. If your Highness will deign to consent, and to give the court
and the people one of the most astonishing spectacles they have ever
witnessed, command the horse to be brought into the big square outside
the palace, and leave the rest to me. I promise that in a very few
moments, in presence of all the assembled multitude, you shall see the
princess as healthy both in mind and body as ever she was in her life.
And in order to make the spectacle as impressive as possible, I would
suggest that she should be richly dressed and covered with the noblest
jewels of the crown."
The Sultan readily agreed to all that the prince proposed, and the
following morning he desired that the enchanted horse should be taken
from the treasury, and brought into the great square of the palace.
Soon the rumour began to spread through the town, that something
extraordinary was about to happen, and such a crowd began to collect
that the guards had to be called out to keep order, and to make a way
for the enchanted horse.
When all was ready, the Sultan appeared, and took his place on a
platform, surrounded by the chief nobles and officers of his court.
When they were seated, the Princess of Bengal was seen leaving the