Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1849-12-05
THE IMPRUDENT CALEPH.
. TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH.

discover, and without much difficulty, thre
eminent personages of the present age, the Ere
sident of France, the President of the Minis
terial Council, and the King of Bankers.-Cou
rier des Etats Unis.
In former times there reigned in Bagdad th
young Caliph Omar ell Arousch, nephew of til
illustrious Haroun al Raschild.
All the world knows that the Caliph' HareuI
al Raschild was dethroned by the family of TIL
Barmecides, surnamed the simpletons, and h
1 died an exile on an island in the Indian seas.
His nephew Omar ell Arousch met with som
singular adventures. A sage seer said to hin
in his childhood: "My son. always remembe
| this maxim, which all great men have acknow
| lodged: ITO will is to perform; which means
neither more nor less than that, with a hare
and determined head, a man may attainsany OBJ
ieet, even that of becoming Caliph Of Bagdad
although the high rank of Caliph is at present
held by the junior branch of the Barmecide
family. who dethroned the elder branch sur
named the simpletons, who had previously de-
throned your august uncle, Haround y Ras'
child"
"Well, then" said little Omar, sit is my will
to become Calipll of Bagdad."
gu S8ldI DCCVIIlC 81, Sdiu tES StSIt Jul
on the condition that your head be hard and de-
termined.o IL l4su nzs 49, &c. 81
"Fear me not replied the Prince, and from
that time forward he regularly, every morning,
knocked his head against a wall, to harden it
as much as possible, and he succeeded SO well
that he made his head SO hard that nothing
could penetrate it.
And for this reason the prediction Of the seer
was fulfilled. o." - =i =s
One fine morning the inhabitants Of Bagdad
drove from the walls of their city the junior
branch of the Bormecides, who had dethfoned
the elder branch surnamed the simpletons, who
had exiIed Haroun al Raschild; after which they
said e 14a - 9
sLet us choose for. our Caliph, Prince Omar,
the nephew Of the illustrious Haroun; he is OF
all the princes of the earth the one who has the
hardest head, and in truth, a chimney falling on
it would in no wise damage it; in this way we
shall have the glory of being ruled by the only
Caliph in the world who could venture to ride
through our streets without risk OF INJURY. even
huring a hurricane"
And the Prince Omar was thus proclaimed
Caliph. @ e..
One evening he had a vision in which ap-
peared to him his uncle Haroun, who seemed to
laugh so violently as to be obliged to hold both
his sides. :
sAh my good nephew" cried the apparition,
show art thou bedizened! Who the deuce could
have imagined that | should one day see my
upon thy head"
"This is the advantage ofhaying a hard head"
replied the nephew. "To will is to perform"
said the sage man to me.
"Zounds, my good nephew, what a philoso-
pher you have become!"c riedthe uncle, laughing
Still more heartily, but soon assuming a serious
air, he continued:
II will now give you a lesson on the art OF
governing. Do you know the error above ali
which caliphs in our days ought the
most carefully to avoid"
sCatching cold in the head" rejoined the
Prince with much assurance.
"That's not it"
SHE young Prince reflected for a moment,
pressed his hand to his forehead, and said
"Ah! | have it now; to avoid eating fricasseed
"You are worthy of belonging to the elder
branch Of the Bermecides," exclaimed the uncle
disdainfully, struggling up his shoulders. "Ihe
real danger which threatens the caliphs-of this
age is the influence of fnanciers. 1t once a
ealiph gets into their hands, he is lost forever.
They seize him by the throat and govern in
his stead. l spent the ten years Of my reign
in combating the influence of financiers, and
they osercaime me atiast. 1t was the inanciers
who for six weeks delayed the campaign un-
iertook when Invaded Hindostan, and it was
This delay which brought about the disaster
which caused my downfall. Thus, my nephew,
hold this rs certain, that the financiers will des-
Iroy YOU, ifyou, do not crush them st
Having uttered these words, the uncle vanish
ID, after having broken some porcelain vases
the apartment. $50 ~
Some gaping citizens. who Glanced to espy
hin as he was soaring into the clouds, cried out
oudly, aLong Y ethe great Harou,i al Ras-
hid" But Haroun being irritated, took off his
shoes, and threw them at their heads.
The Academy Of Sciences having been consult
ID on this astonishing event, they came to the
conclusion that the shoes had fallen from the
noon.
Notwithstanding this, a usuferMeH known
it Baedad, had presented himself to the new
,aliph on the very day of his accession.
"Meine brince," said he,- with a ,singularly
strong Chinese accent, 81, yos te parker Of your
inele, and lent him money from bure patriotism.
Ali! your uncle vos a prave man. / am gone
q offer ven fifteen hundred thousand leetle ze-
ruins. which I hat here in apag.a
.4Giyse them to me- said the prince; fifteen
,undred~ thousand sequins are always good to
AXE, and the more 50, that | have occasion for
hem at this moment fzsS4 81
The impprudent caliph took the sequins,
bought himself sixty horses, and a hundred
for his harem, and filed his celler with
indespite of the prohibition Of the
.rophet, and then he gave the place Of grand
to d stout, baId-headed man, who for
years had pretended tie be conversant with
political affairs, and had become the laughing
stock Of the whole city.
From that moment bis only occupation was
drink bis. champagne, see bis women dance,