‘Servants of my faithful servant! go down to the happy valley of
Fakreddin; tell him that an illustrious opportunity now offers to satiate
the thirst of his hospitable heart. The Commander of true believers is
this day bewildered amongst these mountains, and stands in need of thy
aid.’ We obeyed with joy the angelic mission, and our master, filled
with pious zeal, hath culled with his own hands these melons, oranges,
and pomegranates; he is following us with a hundred dromedaries laden
with the purest waters of his fountains, and is coming to kiss the fringe
of your consecrated robe, and implore you to enter his humble habitation,
which, placed amidst these barren wilds, resembles an emerald set in
lead.” The dwarfs, having ended their address, remained still standing,
and, with hands crossed upon their bosoms, preserved a respectful
silence.
Vathek in the midst of this curious harangue, seized the basket, and long
before it was finished the fruits had dissolved in his mouth; as he
continued to eat his piety increased, and in the same breath which
recited his prayers he called for the Koran and sugar.
Such was the state of his mind when the tablets, which were thrown by at
the approach of the dwarfs, again attracted his eye; he took them up, but
was ready to drop on the ground when he beheld, in large red characters,
these words inscribed by Carathis, which were indeed enough to make him
tremble:
“Beware of thy old doctors, and their puny messengers of but one cubit
high; distrust their pious frauds, and, instead of eating their melons,
impale on a spit the bearers of them. Shouldst thou be such a fool as to
visit them, the portal of the subterranean palace will be shut in thy
face, and with such force as shall shake thee asunder; thy body shall be
spit upon, and bats will engender in thy belly.”
“To what tends this ominous rhapsody?” cries the Caliph. “And must I
then perish in these deserts with thirst, whilst I may refresh myself in
the valley of melons and cucumbers! Accursed be the Giaour, with his
portal of ebony! he hath made me dance attendance too long already.
Besides, who shall prescribe laws to me? I forsooth must not enter any
one’s habitation! Be it so; but what one can I enter that is not my
own?”
Bababalouk, who lost not a syllable of this soliloquy, applauded it with
all his heart, and the ladies for the first time agreed with him in
opinion.
The dwarfs were entertained, caressed, and seated with great ceremony on
little cushions of satin. The symmetry of their persons was the subject
of criticism; not an inch of them was suffered to pass unexamined;
knick-knacks and dainties were offered in profusion, but all were
declined with respectful gravity. They clambered up the sides of the
Caliph’s seat, and, placing themselves each on one of his shoulders,
began to whisper prayers in his ears; their tongues quivered like the
leaves of a poplar, and the patience of Vathek was almost exhausted, when
the acclamations of the troops announced the approach of Fakreddin, who
was come with a hundred old grey-beards and as many Korans and
dromedaries; they instantly set about their ablutions, and began to
repeat the Bismillah; Vathek, to get rid of these officious monitors,
followed their example, for his hands were burning.
The good Emir, who was punctiliously religious, and likewise a great
dealer in compliments, made an harangue five times more prolix and
insipid than his harbingers had already delivered. The Caliph, unable
any longer to refrain, exclaimed—
“For the love of Mahomet, my dear Fakreddin, have done! let us proceed to
your valley, and enjoy the fruits that Heaven hath vouchsafed you.”
The hint of proceeding put all into motion; the venerable attendants of
the Emir set forward somewhat slowly, but Vathek, having ordered his
little pages in private to goad on the dromedaries, loud fits of laughter
broke forth from the cages, for the unwieldy curvetting of these poor
beasts, and the ridiculous distress of their superannuated riders,
afforded the ladies no small entertainment.
They descended, however, unhurt into the valley, by the large steps which
the Emir had cut in the rock; and already the murmuring of streams and
the rustling of leaves began to catch their attention. The cavalcade
soon entered a path which was skirted by flowering shrubs, and extended
to a vast wood of palm-trees, whose branches overspread a building of
hewn stone. This edifice was crowned with nine domes, and adorned with
as many portals of bronze, on which was engraven the following
inscription: “This is the asylum of pilgrims, the refuge of travellers,
and the depository of secrets for all parts of the world.”
Nine pages, beautiful as the day, and clothed in robes of Egyptian linen,
very long and very modest, were standing at each door. They received the
whole retinue with an easy and inviting air. Four of the most amiable
placed the Caliph on a magnificent taktrevan, four others, somewhat less
graceful, took charge of Bababalouk, who capered for joy at the snug
little cabin that fell to his share; the pages that remained waited on
the rest of the train.
When everything masculine was gone out of sight the gate of a large
enclosure on the right turned on its harmonious hinges and a young female
of a slender form came forth; her light brown hair floated in the hazy
breeze of the twilight; a troop of young maidens, like the Pleiades,
attended her on tip-toe. They hastened to the pavilions that contained
the sultanas, and the young lady, gracefully bending, said to them:
“Charming Princesses, everything is ready; we have prepared beds for your
repose, and strewed your apartments with jasmine; no insects will keep
off slumber from visiting your eyelids, we will dispel them with a
thousand plumes; come then, amiable ladies! refresh your delicate feet
and your ivory limbs in baths of rose water; and, by the light of
perfumed lamps your servants will amuse you with tales.”
The sultanas accepted with pleasure these obliging offers, and followed
the young lady to the Emir’s harem, where we must for a moment leave
them, and return to the Caliph.
Vathek found himself beneath a vast dome, illuminated by a thousand lamps
of rock crystal; as many vases of the same material, filled with
excellent sherbet, sparkled on a large table, where a profusion of viands
were spread; amongst others were sweetbreads stewed in milk of almonds,
saffron soups, and lamb _a la creme_, of all which the Caliph was
amazingly fond. He took of each as much as he was able, testified his
sense of the Emir’s friendship by the gaiety of his heart, and made the
dwarfs dance against their will, for these little devotees durst not
refuse the Commander of the Faithful; at last he spread himself on the
sofa, and slept sounder than he had ever before.
Beneath this dome a general silence prevailed, for there was nothing to
disturb it but the jaws of Bababalouk, who had untrussed himself to eat
with greater advantage, being anxious to make amends for his fast in the
mountains. As his spirits were too high to admit of his sleeping, and
not loving to be idle, he proposed with himself to visit the harem, and
repair to his charge of the ladies, to examine if they had been properly
lubricated with the balm of Mecca, if their eyebrows and tresses were in
order, and, in a word, to perform all the little offices they might need.
He sought for a long time together, but without being able to find out
the door; he durst not speak aloud, for fear of disturbing the Caliph,
and not a soul was stirring in the precincts of the palace; he almost
despaired of effecting his purpose, when a low whispering just reached
his ear; it came from the dwarfs who were returned to their old
occupation, and for the nine hundred and ninety-ninth time in their
lives, were reading over the Koran. They very politely invited
Bababalouk to be of their party, but his head was full of other concerns.
The dwarfs, though scandalised at his dissolute morals, directed him to
the apartments he wanted to find; his way thither lay through a hundred
dark corridors, along which he groped as he went, and at last began to
catch from the extremity of a passage the charming gossiping of the
women, which not a little delighted his heart. “Ah, ha! what, not yet
asleep!” cried he; and, taking long strides as he spoke. “Did you not
suspect me of abjuring my charge? I stayed but to finish what my master
had left.”
Two of the black eunuchs, on hearing a voice so loud, detached a party in
haste, sabre in hand, to discover the cause; but presently was repeated
on all sides: “’Tis only Bababalouk! no one but Bababalouk!” This
circumspect guardian, having gone up to a thin veil of carnation-coloured
silk that hung before the doorway, distinguished, by means of the
softened splendour that shone through it, an oval bath of dark porphyry,
surrounded by curtains festooned in large folds; through the apertures
between them, as they were not drawn close, groups of young slaves were
visible, amongst whom Bababalouk perceived his pupils, indulgingly
expanding their arms, as if to embrace the perfumed water and refresh
themselves after their fatigues. The looks of tender languor, their
confidential whispers, and the enchanting smiles with which they were
imparted, the exquisite fragrance of the roses, all combined to inspire a
voluptuousness, which even Bababalouk himself was scarce able to
withstand.
He summoned up, however, his usual solemnity, and, in the peremptory tone
of authority, commanded the ladies instantly to leave the bath. Whilst
he was issuing these mandates the young Nouronihar, daughter of the Emir,
who was sprightly as an antelope, and full of wanton gaiety, beckoned one
of her slaves to let down the great swing, which was suspended to the
ceiling by cords of silk, and whilst this was doing, winked to her
companions in the bath, who, chagrined to be forced from so soothing a
state of indolence, began to twist it round Bababalouk, and tease him
with a thousand vagaries.
When Nouronihar perceived that he was exhausted with fatigue, she
accosted him with an arch air of respectful concern, and said: “My lord,
it is not by any means decent that the chief eunuch of the Caliph, our
Sovereign, should thus continue standing; deign but to recline your
graceful person upon this sofa, which will burst with vexation if it have
not the honour to receive you.”
Caught by these flattering accents, Bababalouk gallantly replied:
“Delight of the apple of my eye! I accept the invitation of thy honeyed
lips; and, to say truth, my senses are dazzled with the radiance that
beams from thy charms.”
“Repose, then, at your ease,” replied the beauty, and placed him on the
pretended sofa, which, quicker than lightning, gave way all at once. The
rest of the women, having aptly conceived her design, sprang naked from
the bath, and plied the swing with such unmerciful jerks, that it swept
through the whole compass of a very lofty dome, and took from the poor
victim all power of respiration; sometimes his feet rased the surface of
the water, and at others the skylight almost flattened his nose; in vain
did he pierce the air with the cries of a voice that resembled the
ringing of a cracked basin, for their peals of laughter were still more
predominant.
Nouronihar, in the inebriety of youthful spirits, being used only to
eunuchs of ordinary harems, and having never seen anything so royal and
disgusting, was far more diverted than all of the rest; she began to
parody some Persian verses, and sang with an accent most demurely
piquant:
“O gentle white dove, as thou soar’st through the air,
Vouchsafe one kind glance on the mate of thy love;
Melodious Philomel, I am thy rose;
Warble some couplet to ravish my heart!”
The sultanas and their slaves, stimulated by these pleasantries,
persevered at the swing with such unremitted assiduity, that at length
the cord which had secured it snapped suddenly asunder, and Bababalouk
fell floundering like a turtle to the bottom of the bath. This accident
occasioned a universal shout; twelve little doors, till now unobserved,
flew open at once, and the ladies in an instant made their escape, after
throwing all the towels on his head, and putting out the lights that
remained.
The deplorable animal, in water to the chin, overwhelmed with darkness,
and unable to extricate himself from the wrap that embarrassed him, was
still doomed to hear for his further consolation the fresh bursts of
merriment his disaster occasioned. He bustled, but in vain, to get from
the bath, for the margin was become so slippery with the oil spilt in
breaking the lamps, that at every effort he slid back with a plunge,
which resounded aloud through the hollow of the dome. These cursed peals
of laughter at every relapse were redoubled; and he, who thought the
place infested rather by devils than women, resolved to cease groping,
and abide in the bath, where he amused himself with soliloquies,
interspersed with imprecations, of which his malicious neighbours
reclining on down suffered not an accent to escape. In this delectable
plight the morning surprised him. The Caliph, wondering at his absence,
had caused him to be everywhere sought for. At last he was drawn forth,
almost smothered from the wisp of linen, and wet even to the marrow.
Limping and chattering his teeth, he appeared before his master, who
inquired what was the matter, and how he came soused in so strange a
pickle.
“And why did you enter this cursed lodge?” answered Bababalouk, gruffly.
“Ought a monarch like you to visit with his harem the abode of a
grey-bearded Emir, who knows nothing of life? And with what gracious
damsels doth the place, too, abound! Fancy to yourself how they have
soaked me like a burnt crust, and made me dance like a jack-pudding the
live-long night through, on their damnable swing! What an excellent
lesson for your sultanas to follow, into whom I have instilled such
reserve and decorum!”
Vathek, comprehending not a syllable of all this invective, obliged him
to relate minutely the transaction; but instead of sympathising with the
miserable sufferer, he laughed immoderately at the device of the swing,
and the figure of Bababalouk mounting upon it. The stung eunuch could
scarcely preserve the semblance of respect.
“Ay, laugh, my lord! laugh,” said he; “but I wish this Nouronihar would
play some trick on you; she is too wicked to spare even majesty itself.”
Those words made for the present but a slight impression on the Caliph;
but they not long after recurred to his mind.
This conversation was cut short by Fakreddin, who came to request that
Vathek would join in the prayers and ablutions to be solemnised on a
spacious meadow, watered by innumerable streams. The Caliph found the
waters refreshing, but the prayers abominably irksome; he diverted
himself, however, with the multitude of Calenders, Santons, and Dervises,
who were continually coming and going, but especially with the Brahmins,
Fakirs, and other enthusiasts, who had travelled from the heart of India,
and halted on their way with the Emir. These latter had, each of them,
some mummery peculiar to himself. One dragged a huge chain wherever he
went, another an ouranoutang, whilst a third was furnished with scourges,
and all performed to a charm; some clambered up trees, holding one foot
in the air; others poised themselves over a fire, and without mercy
filliped their noses. There were some amongst them that cherished
vermin, which were not ungrateful in requiting their caresses. These
rambling fanatics revolted the hearts of the Dervises, the Calenders, and
Santons; however, the vehemence of their aversion soon subsided, under
the hope that the presence of the Caliph would cure their folly, and
convert them to the Mussulman faith; but, alas! how great was their
disappointment! for Vathek, instead of preaching to them, treated them as
buffoons, bade them present his compliments to Visnow and Ixhora, and
discovered a predilection for a squat old man from the isle of Serendib,
who was more ridiculous than any of the rest.
“Come!” said he, “for the love of your gods bestow a few slaps on your
chops to amuse me.”
The old fellow, offended at such an address, began loudly to weep; but,
as he betrayed a villainous drivelling in his tears, the Caliph turned
his back and listened to Bababalouk, who whispered, whilst he held the
umbrella over him: “Your Majesty should be cautious of this odd assembly
which hath been collected I know not for what. Is it necessary to
exhibit such spectacles to a mighty potentate, with interludes of
Talapoins more mangy than dogs? Were I you, I would command a fire to be
kindled, and at once purge the earth of the Emir, his harem, and all his
menagerie.”
“Tush, dolt!” answered Vathek; “and know that all this infinitely charms
me; nor shall I leave the meadow till I have visited every hive of these
pious mendicants.”
Wherever the Caliph directed his course objects of pity were sure to
swarm round him: the blind, the purblind, smarts without noses, damsels
without ears, each to extol the munificence of Fakreddin, who, as well as
his attendant grey-beards, dealt about gratis plasters and cataplasms to
all that applied. At noon a superb corps of cripples made its
appearance, and soon after advanced by platoons on the plain, the
completest association of invalids that had ever been embodied till then.
The blind went groping with the blind, the lame limped on together, and
the maimed made gestures to each other with the only arm that remained;
the sides of a considerable waterfall were crowded by the deaf, amongst
whom were some from Pegu with ears uncommonly handsome and large, but
were still less able to hear than the rest; nor were there wanting others
in abundance with humpbacks, wenny necks, and even horns of an exquisite
polish.
The Emir, to aggrandise the solemnity of the festival in honour of his
illustrious visitant, ordered the turf to be spread on all sides with
skins and table-cloths, upon which were served up for the good Mussulmans
pilaus of every line, with other orthodox dishes; and, by the express
order of Vathek, who was shamefully tolerant, small plates of
abominations for regaling the rest. This prince, on seeing so many
mouths put in motion, began to think it time for employing his own; in
spite, therefore, of every remonstrance from the chief of his eunuchs, he
resolved to have a dinner dressed on the spot. The complaisant Emir
immediately gave orders for a table to be placed in the shade of the
willows. The first service consisted of fish, which they drew from a
river flowing over sands of gold at the foot of a lofty hill; these were
broiled as fast as taken, and served up with a sauce of vinegar, and
small herbs that grow on Mount Sinai; for everything with the Emir was
excellent and pious.
The dessert was not quite set on when the sound of lutes from the hill
was repeated by the echoes of the neighbouring mountains. The Caliph,
with an emotion of pleasure and surprise, had no sooner raised up his
head than a handful of jasmine dropped on his face; an abundance of
tittering succeeded the frolic, and instantly appeared through the bushes
the elegant forms of several young females, skipping and bounding like
roes. The fragrance diffused from their hair struck the sense of Vathek,
who, in an ecstasy, suspending his repast, said to Bababalouk:
“Are the Peris come down from their spheres? Note her in particular
whose form is so perfect, venturously running on the brink of the
precipice, and turning back her head, as regardless of nothing but the
graceful flow of her robe; with what captivating impatience doth she
contend with the bushes for her veil! could it be she who threw the
jasmine at me?”
“Ay! she it was; and you too would she throw from the top of the rock,”
answered Bababalouk; “for that is my good friend Nouronihar, who so
kindly lent me her swing; my dear lord and master,” added he, twisting a
twig that hung by the rind from a willow, “let me correct her for want of
respect; the Emir will have no reason to complain, since (bating what I
owe to his piety) he is much to be censured for keeping a troop of girls
on the mountains, whose sharp air gives their blood too brisk a
circulation.”
“Peace, blasphemer!” said the Caliph; “speak not thus of her who over her
mountains leads my heart a willing captive; contrive rather that my eyes
may be fixed upon hers, that I may respire her sweet breath, as she
bounds panting along these delightful wilds!” On saying these words,
Vathek extended his arms towards the hill, and directing his eyes with an
anxiety unknown to him before, endeavoured to keep within view the object
that enthralled his soul; but her course was as difficult to follow as
the flight of one of those beautiful blue butterflies of Cashmere, which
are at once so volatile and rare.
The Caliph, not satisfied with seeing, wished also to hear Nouronihar,
and eagerly turned to catch the sound of her voice; at last he
distinguished her whispering to one of her companions behind the thicket
from whence she had thrown the jasmine: “A Caliph, it must be owned, is a
fine thing to see, but my little Gulchenrouz is much more amiable; one
lock of his hair is of more value to me than the richest embroidery of
the Indies; I had rather that his teeth should mischievously press my
finger than the richest ring of the imperial treasure. Where have you
left him, Sutlememe? and why is he now not here?”
The agitated Caliph still wished to hear more, but she immediately
retired, with all her attendants; the fond monarch pursued her with his
eyes till she was gone out of sight, and then continued like a bewildered
and benighted traveller, from whom the clouds had obscured the
constellation that guided his way; the curtain of night seemed dropped
before him; everything appeared discoloured; the falling waters filled
his soul with dejection, and his tears trickled down the jasmines he had
caught from Nouronihar, and placed in his inflamed bosom; he snatched up
a shining pebble, to remind him of the scene where he felt the first
tumults of love. Two hours were elapsed, and evening drew on before he
could resolve to depart from the place; he often, but in vain, attempted
to go; a soft languor enervated the powers of his mind; extending himself
on the brink of the stream, he turned his eyes towards the blue summits
of the mountain, and exclaimed: “What concealest thou behind thee? what
is passing in thy solitudes? Whither is she gone? O Heaven! perhaps she
is now wandering in thy grottos, with her happy Gulchenrouz!”
In the meantime the damps began to descend, and the Emir, solicitous for
the health of the Caliph, ordered the imperial litter to be brought.
Vathek, absorbed in his reveries, was imperceptibly removed, and conveyed
back to the saloon that received him the evening before.
But let us leave the Caliph, immersed in his new passion, and attend
Nouronihar beyond the rocks, where she had again joined her beloved
Gulchenrouz. This Gulchenrouz was the son of Ali Hassan, brother to the
Emir, and the most delicate and lovely creature in the world. Ali
Hassan, who had been absent ten years on a voyage to the unknown seas,
committed at his departure this child, the only survivor of many, to the
care and protection of his brother. Gulchenrouz could write in various
characters with precision, and paint upon vellum the most elegant
arabesques that fancy could devise; his sweet voice accompanied the lute
in the most enchanting manner, and when he sang the loves of Megnoun and
Leileh, or some unfortunate lovers of ancient days, tears insensibly
overflowed the cheeks of his auditors; the verses he composed (for, like
Megnoun, he too was a poet) inspired that unresisting languor so
frequently fatal to the female heart; the women all doted upon him; for
though he had passed his thirteenth year, they still detained him in the
harem; his dancing was light as the gossamer waved by the zephyrs of
spring, but his arms, which twined so gracefully with those of the young
girls in the dance, could neither dart the lance in the chase, nor curb
the steeds that pastured his uncle’s domains. The bow, however, he drew
with a certain aim, and would have excelled his competitors in the race,
could he have broken the ties that bound him to Nouronihar.
The two brothers had mutually engaged their children to each other, and
Nouronihar loved her cousin more than her eyes; both had the same tastes
and amusements, the same long, languishing looks, the same tresses, the
same fair complexions, and when Gulchenrouz appeared in the dress of his
cousin he seemed to be more feminine than even herself. If at any time
he left the harem to visit Fakreddin, it was with all the bashfulness of
a fawn, that consciously ventures from the lair of its dam; he was
however, wanton enough to mock the solemn old grey-beards to whom he was
subject, though sure to be rated without mercy in return; whenever this
happened he would plunge into the recesses of the harem, and sobbing,
take refuge in the arms of Nouronihar, who loved even his faults beyond
the virtues of others.
It fell out this evening that, after leaving the Caliph in the meadow,
she ran with Gulchenrouz over the green sward of the mountain that
sheltered the vale where Fakreddin had chosen to reside. The sun was
dilated on the edge of the horizon; and the young people, whose fancies
were lively and inventive, imagined they beheld in the gorgeous clouds of
the west the domes of Shadukiam and Amberabad, where the Peris have fixed
their abode. Nouronihar, sitting on the slope of the hill, supported on
her knees the perfumed head of Gulchenrouz; the air was calm, and no
sound stirred but the voices of other young girls, who were drawing cool
water from the streams below. The unexpected arrival of the Caliph, and
the splendour that marked his appearance, had already filled with emotion
the ardent soul of Nouronihar; her vanity irresistibly prompted her to
pique the prince’s attention, and this she before took good care to
effect whilst he picked up the jasmine she had thrown upon him. But when
Gulchenrouz asked after the flowers he had culled for her bosom,
Nouronihar was all in confusion; she hastily kissed his forehead, arose
in a flutter, and walked with unequal steps on the border of the
precipice. Night advanced, and the pure gold of the setting sun had
yielded to a sanguine red, the glow of which, like the reflection of a
burning furnace, flushed Nouronihar’s animated countenance. Gulchenrouz,
alarmed at the agitation of his cousin, said to her with a supplicating
accent:
“Let us be gone; the sky looks portentous, the tamarisks tremble more
than common, and the raw wind chills my very heart; come! let us be gone;
’tis a melancholy night!”
Then, taking hold of her hand, he drew it towards the path he besought
her to go. Nouronihar unconsciously followed the attraction, for a
thousand strange imaginations occupied her spirit; she passed the large
round of honeysuckles, her favourite resort, without ever vouchsafing it
a glance, yet Gulchenrouz could not help snatching off a few shoots in
his way, though he ran as if a wild beast were behind.
The young females seeing him approach in such haste, and according to
custom expecting a dance, instantly assembled in a circle, and took each
other by the hand; but Gulchenrouz, coming up out of breath, fell down at
once on the grass. This accident struck with consternation the whole of
this frolicsome party; whilst Nouronihar, half distracted, and overcome,
both by the violence of her exercise and the tumult of her thoughts, sunk
feebly down at his side, cherished his cold hands in her bosom, and
chafed his temples with a fragrant unguent. At length he came to
himself, and, wrapping up his head in the robe of his cousin, entreated
that she would not return to the harem; he was afraid of being snapped at
by Shaban, his tutor, a wrinkled old eunuch of a surly disposition; for
having interrupted the stated walk of Nouronihar, he dreaded lest the
churl should take it amiss. The whole of this sprightly group, sitting
round upon a mossy knoll, began to entertain themselves with various
pastimes, whilst their superintendents the eunuchs were gravely
conversing at a distance. The nurse of the Emir’s daughter, observing
her pupil sit ruminating with her eyes on the ground, endeavoured to
amuse her with diverting tales, to which Gulchenrouz, who had already
forgotten his inquietudes, listened with a breathless attention; he
laughed, he clapped his hands, and passed a hundred little tricks on the
whole of the company, without omitting the eunuchs, whom he provoked to
run after him, in spite of their age and decrepitude.
During these occurrences the moon arose, the wind subsided, and the
evening became so serene and inviting, that a resolution was taken to sup
on the spot. Sutlememe, who excelled in dressing a salad, having filled
large bowls of porcelain with eggs of small birds, curds turned with
citron juice, slices of cucumber, and the inmost leaves of delicate
herbs, handed it round from one to another, and gave each their shares in
a large spoon of Cocknos. Gulchenrouz, nestling as usual in the bosom of
Nouronihar, pouted out his vermilion little lips against the offer of
Sutlememe, and would take it only from the hand of his cousin, on whose
mouth he hung like a bee inebriated with the quintessence of flowers.
One of the eunuchs ran to fetch melons, whilst others were employed in
showering down almonds from the branches that overhung this amiable
party.
In the midst of this festive scene there appeared a light on the top of
the highest mountain, which attracted the notice of every eye; this light
was not less bright than the moon when at full, and might have been taken
for her, had it not been that the moon was already risen. The phenomenon
occasioned a general surprise, and no one could conjecture the cause; it
could not be a fire, for the light was clear and bluish, nor had meteors
ever been seen of that magnitude or splendour. This strange light faded
for a moment, and immediately renewed its brightness; it first appeared
motionless at the foot of the rock, whence it darted in an instant to
sparkle in a thicket of palm-trees; from thence it glided along the
torrent, and at last fixed in a glen that was narrow and dark. The
moment it had taken its direction, Gulchenrouz, whose heart always
trembled at anything sudden or rare, drew Nouronihar by the robe, and
anxiously requested her to return to the harem; the women were
importunate in seconding the entreaty, but the curiosity of the Emir’s
daughter prevailed; she not only refused to go back, but resolved at all
hazards to pursue the appearance. Whilst they were debating what was
best to be done, the light shot forth so dazzling a blaze, that they all
fled away shrieking; Nouronihar followed them a few steps, but, coming to
the turn of a little bye-path, stopped, and went back alone; as she ran
with an alertness peculiar to herself, it was not long before she came to
the place where they had just been supping. The globe of fire now
appeared stationary in the glen, and burned in majestic stillness.
Nouronihar, compressing her hands upon her bosom, hesitated for some
moments to advance; the solitude of her situation was new, the silence of
the night awful, and every object inspired sensations which till then she
never had felt: the affright of Gulchenrouz recurred to her mind, and she
a thousand times turned to go back, but this luminous appearance was
always before her; urged on by an irresistible impulse, she continued to
approach it, in defiance of every obstacle that opposed her progress.
At length she arrived at the opening of the glen; but, instead of coming
up to the light, she found herself surrounded by darkness, excepting that
at a considerable distance a faint spark glimmered by fits. She stopped
a second time; the sound of water-falls mingling their murmurs, the
hollow rustlings amongst the palm-branches, and the funereal screams of
the birds from their rifted trunks, all conspired to fill her with
terror; she imagined every moment that she trod on some venomous reptile;
all the stories of malignant Dives and dismal Gouls thronged into her
memory; but her curiosity was, notwithstanding, more predominant than her
fears; she therefore firmly entered a winding track that led towards the
spark, but, being a stranger to the path, she had not gone far till she
began to repent of her rashness.
“Alas!” said she, “that I were but in those secure and illuminated
apartments where my evenings glided on with Gulchenrouz! Dear child! how
would thy heart flutter with terror wert thou wandering in these wild
solitudes like me!” At the close of this apostrophe she regained her
road, and, coming to steps hewn out in the rock, ascended them
undismayed; the light, which was now gradually enlarging, appeared above
her on the summit of the mountain; at length she distinguished a
plaintive and melodious union of voices, proceeding from a sort of
cavern, that resembled the dirges which are sung over tombs; a sound,
likewise, like that which arises from the filling of baths, at the same
time struck her ear; she continued ascending, and discovered large wax
torches in full blaze planted here and there in the fissures of the rock;
this preparation filled her with fear, whilst the subtle and potent odour
which the torches exhaled caused her to sink almost lifeless at the
entrance of the grot.
Casting her eyes within in this kind of trance, she beheld a large
cistern of gold filled with a water, whose vapour distilled on her face a
dew of the essence of roses; a soft symphony resounded through the grot;
on the sides of the cistern she noticed appendages of royalty, diadems,
and feathers of the heron, all sparkling with carbuncles; whilst her
attention was fixed on this display of magnificence, the music ceased,
and a voice instantly demanded:
“For what monarch were these torches kindled, this bath prepared, and
these habiliments, which belong, not only to the sovereigns of the earth,
but even to the Talismanic Powers?”
To which a second voice answered: “They are for the charming daughter of
the Emir Fakreddin.”
“What,” replied the first, “for that trifler, who consumes her time with
a giddy child, immersed in softness, and who at best can make but an
enervated husband?”
“And can she,” rejoined the other voice, “be amused with such empty
trifles, whilst the Caliph, the sovereign of the world, he who is
destined to enjoy the treasures of the pre-adamite Sultans, a prince six
feet high, and whose eyes pervade the inmost soul of a female, is
inflamed with the love of her. No! she will be wise enough to answer
that passion alone that can aggrandise her glory; no doubt she will, and
despise the puppet of her fancy. Then all the riches this place
contains, as well as the carbuncle of Giamschid, shall be hers.”
“You judge right,” returned the first voice, “and I haste to Istakar to
prepare the palace of subterranean fire for the reception of the bridal
pair.”
The voices ceased, the torches were extinguished, the most entire
darkness succeeded, and Nouronihar, recovering with a start, found
herself reclined on a sofa in the harem of her father. She clapped her
hands, and immediately came together Gulchenrouz and her women, who, in
despair at having lost her, had despatched eunuchs to seek her in every
direction; Shaban appeared with the rest, and began to reprimand her with
an air of consequence:
“Little impertinent,” said he, “whence got you false keys? or are you
beloved of some Genius that hath given you a pick-lock? I will try the
extent of your power; come, to your chamber! through the two skylights;
and expect not the company of Gulchenrouz; be expeditious! I will shut
you up in the double tower.”
At these menaces Nouronihar indignantly raised her head, opened on Shaban
her black eyes, which, since the important dialogue of the enchanted
grot, were considerably enlarged, and said: “Go, speak thus to slaves,
but learn to reverence her who is born to give laws, and subject all to
her power.”
She was proceeding in the same style, but was interrupted by a sudden
exclamation of “The Caliph! The Caliph!” The curtains at once were
thrown open, and the slaves prostrate in double rows, whilst poor little
Gulchenrouz hid himself beneath the elevation of a sofa. At first
appeared a file of black eunuchs, trailing after them long trains of
muslin embroidered with gold, and holding in their hands censers, which
dispensed as they passed the grateful perfume of the wood of aloes; next
marched Bababalouk with a solemn strut, and tossing his head as not
over-pleased at the visit; Vathek came close after, superbly robed; his
gait was unembarrassed and noble, and his presence would have engaged
admiration, though he had not been the sovereign of the world; he
approached Nouronihar with a throbbing heart, and seemed enraptured at
the full effulgence of her radiant eyes, of which he had before caught
but a few glimpses; but she instantly depressed them, and her confusion
augmented her beauty.
Bababalouk, who was a thorough adept in coincidences of this nature, and
knew that the worst game should be played with the best face, immediately
made a signal for all to retire; and no sooner did he perceive beneath
the sofa the little one’s feet, than he drew him forth without ceremony,
set him upon his shoulders, and lavished on him as he went off a thousand
odious caresses; Gulchenrouz cried out, and resisted till his cheeks
became the colour of the blossom of the pomegranate, and the tears that
started into his eyes shot forth a gleam of indignation; he cast a
significant glance at Nouronihar, which the Caliph noticing, asked: “Is
that then your Gulchenrouz?”
“Sovereign of the world?” answered she, “spare my cousin, whose innocence
and gentleness deserve not your anger.”
“Take comfort,” said Vathek, with a smile; “he is in good hands.
Bababalouk is fond of children, and never goes without sweetmeats and
comfits.”
The daughter of Fakreddin was abashed, and suffered Gulchenrouz to be
borne away without adding a word. The tumult of her bosom betrayed her
confusion; and Vathek, becoming still more impassioned, gave a loose to
his frenzy, which had only not subdued the last faint strugglings of
reluctance, when the Emir, suddenly bursting in, threw his face upon the
ground at the feet of the Caliph, and said:
“Commander of the Faithful! abase not yourself to the meanness of your
slave.”
“No, Emir,” replied Vathek; “I raise her to an equality with myself; I
declare her my wife, and the glory of your race shall extend from one
generation to another.”
“Alas! my lord,” said Fakreddin, as he plucked off the honours of his
beard, “cut short the days of your faithful servant, rather than force
him to depart from his word. Nouronihar, as her hands evince, is
solemnly promised to Gulchenrouz, the son of my brother Ali Hassan; they
are united also in heart, their faith is mutually plighted, and affiances
so sacred cannot be broken.”
“What then!” replied the Caliph, bluntly, “would you surrender this
divine beauty to a husband more womanish than herself? and can you
imagine that I will suffer her charms to decay in hands so inefficient
and nerveless? No! she is destined to live out her life within my
embraces: such is my will; retire, and disturb not the time I devote to
the homage of her charms.”
The irritated Emir drew forth his sabre, presented it to Vathek, and
stretching out his neck, said in a firm tone of voice: “Strike your
unhappy host, my lord! he has lived long enough, since he hath seen the
Prophet’s Vicegerent violate the rites of hospitality.”
At his uttering these words Nouronihar, unable to support any longer the
conflict of her passions, sank down in a swoon. Vathek, both terrified
for her life and furious at an opposition to his will, bade Fakreddin
assist his daughter, and withdrew, darting his terrible look at the
unfortunate Emir, who suddenly fell backward, bathed in a sweat cold as
the damp of death.
Gulchenrouz, who had escaped from the hands of Bababalouk, and was that
instant returned, called out for help as loudly as he could, not having
strength to afford it himself. Pale and panting, the poor child
attempted to revive Nouronihar by caresses; and it happened that the
thrilling warmth of his lips restored her to life. Fakreddin beginning
also to recover from the look of the Caliph, with difficulty tottered to
a seat, and after warily casting round his eye to see if this dangerous
prince was gone, sent for Shaban and Sutlememe, and said to them apart:
“My friends! violent evils require as violent remedies; the Caliph has
brought desolation and horror into my family, and how shall we resist his
power? another of his looks will send me to my grave. Fetch then that
narcotic powder which the Dervish brought me from Aracan; a dose of it,
the effect of which will continue three days, must be administered to
each of these children; the Caliph will believe them to be dead, for they
will have all the appearance of death; we shall go as if to inter them in
the cave of Meimoune, at the entrance of the great desert of sand, and
near the cabin of my dwarfs. When all the spectators shall be withdrawn,
you, Shaban, and four select eunuchs, shall convey them to the lake,
where provisions shall be ready to support them a month; for one day
allotted to the surprise this event will occasion, five to the tears, a
fortnight to reflection, and the rest to prepare for renewing his
progress, will, according to my calculation, fill up the whole time that
Vathek will tarry, and I shall then be freed from his intrusion.”
“Your plan,” said Sutlememe, “is a good one, if it can but be effected.
I have remarked that Nouronihar is well able to support the glances of
the Caliph, and that he is far from being sparing of them to her; be
assured, therefore, notwithstanding her fondness for Gulchenrouz, she
will never remain quiet while she knows him to be here, unless we can
persuade her that both herself and Gulchenrouz are really dead, and that
they were conveyed to those rocks for a limited season to expiate the
little faults of which their love was the cause; we will add that we
killed ourselves in despair, and that your dwarfs, whom they never yet
saw, will preach to them delectable sermons. I will engage that
everything shall succeed to the bent of your wishes.”
“Be it so!” said Fakreddin. “I approve your proposal; let us lose not a
moment to give it effect.”
They forthwith hastened to seek for the powder, which, being mixed in a
sherbet, was immediately drank by Gulchenrouz and Nouronihar. Within the
space of an hour both were seized with violent palpitations, and a
general numbness gradually ensued; they arose from the floor, where they
had remained ever since the Caliph’s departure, and, ascending to the
sofa, reclined themselves at full length upon it, clasped in each other’s
embraces.
“Cherish me, my dear Nouronihar!” said Gulchenrouz; “put thy hand upon my
heart, for it feels as if it were frozen. Alas! thou art as cold as
myself! Hath the Caliph murdered us both with his terrible look?”
“I am dying!” cried she in a faltering voice; “press me closer; I am
ready to expire!”
“Let us die then together,” answered the little Gulchenrouz, whilst his
breast laboured with a convulsive sigh; “let me at least breathe forth my
soul on thy lips!” They spoke no more, and became as dead.
Immediately the most piercing cries were heard through the harem, whilst
Shaban and Sutlememe personated with great adroitness the parts of
persons in despair. The Emir, who was sufficiently mortified to be
forced into such untoward expedients, and had now for the first time made
a trial of his powder, was under no necessity of counterfeiting grief.
The slaves, who had flocked together from all quarters, stood motionless
at the spectacle before them; all lights were extinguished save two
lamps, which shed a wan glimmering over the faces of these lovely
flowers, that seemed to be faded in the spring-time of life; funeral
vestments were prepared, their bodies were washed with rose-water, their
beautiful tresses were braided and incensed, and they were wrapped in
simars whiter than alabaster. At the moment that their attendants were
placing two wreaths of their favourite jasmines on their brows, the
Caliph, who had just heard of the tragical catastrophe, arrived; he
looked not less pale and haggard than the Gouls, that wander at night
among graves; forgetful of himself and every one else, he broke through
the midst of the slaves, fell prostrate at the foot of the sofa, beat his
bosom, called himself “atrocious murderer!” and invoked upon his head a
thousand imprecations; with a trembling hand he raised the veil that
covered the countenance of Nouronihar, and, uttering a loud shriek, fell
lifeless on the floor. The chief of the eunuchs dragged him off with horrible grimaces, and repeated as he went: “Ay, I foresaw she would play you some ungracious turn!” |
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