APPENDIX 275

will put thee in possession of all that I have, and what.
my hand possesseth ; for I have become an old man, and
thou wilt supply my place.” And I was silent and spoke
not. And he said to me, “Obey me, O my son, in that
which I say to thee; for my wish to thee is good, and if
thou comply with my desire I will marry thee to my
daughtet, and thou shalt be as my son; and all that my
hand hath, and what I possess, shall be thine; and if thou
desire to traffic, and to return to thy country, no one will
prevent thee. This is thy property, under thy disposal:
do therefore with it what thou wilt and what thou
choosest.” So I replied, “By Allah, O my uncle the
sheykh, thou hast become as my father. I have suffered
many horrors, and have neither judgment nor knowledge
remaining; it is thine, therefore, to determine in all that
thou desirest to do.” And upon this the sheykh ordered
his pages to bring the Kadee and the witnesses. Accord-
ingly they brought them, and he married me to his
daughter, made for us a grand entertainment and a
great feast, and introduced me to her; and I found her
to be endowed with the utmost beauty and loveliness,
with handsome figure and just stature, and upon her
was an abundance of various ornaments and articles of
apparel, minerals, and ornaments of gold, and necklaces,
and precious jewels, the value of which was not less than
thousands of thousands of pieces of gold, and no one
could pay their price. When I went into her presence .
she pleased me, affection for each other ensued, and I
remained with her for a length of time in a state of the
utmost delight and enjoyment. Her father was then
admitted to the mercy of God (whose name be exalted !),