Hannibal journal and western union. (Hannibal, Mo.) 1851-1852, 1851-11-06
ARABIAN NIGHTS

One of the most stupendous, as well as sue
cessfu Yankee tricks on record, is that, by whicl
the beautiful Sultaness, Scheherazade humbug.
ged the savage Sultan, Schahriar. Somehow
the crochet had got into Sohahriar's skull, that
all women were faithless, and not to be trusted
and from the same skull sprung the original and
brilliant idea, Of marrying one Of his subjects
every day, and cutting off her head the next.
This noble resolution he carried out to the great
terror Of all the fathers and brothers in his
kingdom. Atlast, Ed4ugAsor os his grand viEer
thought Of the lucky expedent Of amusing the
monster by series of stories. Those stories are
renowned the world ever; they have amused rhe
great and small, the learned and unlearned; the
old man and the young child. The invention
of the writer was wonderful, though his stories
were extravagant. Perhaps no series of stories
was ever written, capablS of pleasing such an
infinite variety of tastes. OF the Genii, which
form so conspicuous part of the machinery, we
find the following account:
The Gem or CHM of the Arabians, is the
same with the Din or Gonman of the Pcrsians
and signifies genie demon, who has BODY
formed of more subtle matter than those Of
men and like elementary fire. They are SUD-
posed to have been created and to have gov
erned the world before Adam, and are divided
into good and evil angels, and even giants, who,
in early times, made war against men, but have
since been confined to one region, denominated
from them GimrtStda, the fairy land of our old
romances. Clan ben Clan was the sovereign
of these creatures or Of the Peris or fairies who
governed the world two thousand years; after
which Ebls was sent by God to drive them
into distant part OF the world, and there con-
fine them, because Of their rebellion The shield of
this prince is as famous that of Achilles among
the Greeks, and, like it, seven-fod and destruc-
tive OF all enchantments, and was possessed by
three successive Solomons, who performed with
ii marvellous but fabulous exploits, and fell at
last into the hands of hero named Tahmurath.
surnamed DiUbend, or the Conqueror of Giants.
Solomon, the son of David, is said by the cast
ern historians TO have had not only men, but
good and evil spirits, and birds and the winds,
subjected to him by God; and been possessed
of ring of wonderful virtues, which seems to
be nothing more than the extraordinary wisdom
with which he was dviney endowed. All
that we find in these writers about the marvellous
actions and unrivaled empire of Solomon over
mel, and devils, is drawn from the Scripture ac-
count Of the extraordinary wisdom, and virtues,
and throne of this monarch.
Peri are those beautiful creatures which are
neither men, angles, nor devils. Some have
supposed them the female genies, but the Peris
are Of both sexes and are good beings; on whom
the Din or genies frequently make war, and shut
up their prisoners in cages suspended on the
highest trees, where their companions come
and feed them with the finest odours, which are
their common food, and defend them from the
DID, who feel sudden change to melancholy
as soon as they approach them.