The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-08-25

ing liquid, Hermon resumed: | say, Fouree,
safy, honestly speaking, did you ever make tn
acquaintance OF a promising youth by the nam
of Alexander smith,
only know one Smith"
And that is John, of course. Never mind
though. Coon. / was only under the impress
sion that yoa and Aleck had been negotiating
a loan between you, though which is creditor
hav'n't the remotest idea
| " Wisest of all thescbildren of men wa.
the venerable Jemschid, the last of the followers
of Salomon ben Daoud, and the heir of the
magic cup The secrets Of creation were hid
den to him. bnt said unto him, Oh Jemschid
here we are, at thy bidding, and at thy use'
The stars sang to him all their thoughts as the,
rolled gloriously along, and he could make the
palm-tree blsssom, the pomegranate burst oper
In ripeness, and the water spring forth in the
thirsty desert And he dweit apart from men
alone in has cave by the well of the seven palm
trees, feeding upon dates and pulse, and ever
meditating t&oughts that would break down the
minds of cU1imen mortals, ms the lush peaches OF
| Cabul break down the limbs of the tender trees
He had but single mat, his wondross cup, a jar
of wine for divination, while without browsed a
she goat who gave him milk. Thus lived the
sage, with no wealth of mares or camels, for he
was rich in the fountains Of divine wisdom and
the mysteries of mans heart.
And Jemschid sat in the entrance of his cave,
writing with his fingers in the sand strange
symbols and mystic tokens of the knowledge
that had come down to him from the mighty
master, Solomon ben Daoud, upon whose head
be peaceO words and signs that all the wise
men of Samarcand would have failed to inter-
pref In the matchless book of the matchless
poet we are told of the sacred cypress tree
which Zerdusht brought from Paradise, and
planted before the gate of the Temple Of Fire
in holy Cashmere. And on its stalk he wrote
words Of awful knowledge, and in its branches
rustled the voices of the sages, speaking tones
of truth and wisdom. So the tree grew until
the hunters cord could no longer girdle its
stalk, and its branches overspread half the
world while the odor of its blossoms was
breathed by the angels of the Third Heaven
Then did Zerdusht build about it a palace of
gold, and challenged the universe to show him
such another tree as the cypress tree of Cash
mere. Like the cypress tree of Cashmere was
the wisdom of Jemschid the Sage, built around
by the golden palace of his thoughts. And like
the rustic of its leaves were the voices of the
dead sages, whispering in the ears of Jemschid
the secrets of the earth within whose dark bosom
rested their weary bonesl
And as Jemschd sat in the entrance of his
cave, tracing figures in the sand, lac heard the
whinny of a mare and the timid murmur of
soft voice near at hand Then he looked up.
and 10 there stood modestly before him dam
sci like full moon, and it was Lutf, the
daughter of Sheikh Yacoub, with her izar half
drawn aside, for he was very old man, and
her arm placed caressingly over the neck of
the mare Fatma, the pride of the Benz Malouk
And the heart of the sage was warmed towards
the maiden standing there so gracefully before
him, and he said:
Praise and glory to Allah, the compassion
ate, the All-powerful Lol even. now my heart
was contracted, and / said to myself, there is
no warmth in the sun nor mdness in the moon,
and looked up and thou vert before ME, a re-
proof and a shame Welcome, oh my daugh-
ter, for thy presence is like the morning sun to
a. bepigbied. yayfarer. ike the cheering rustic
come, my daughter, and rett myself.
Then Lutf took from the folds of her robe
present for the sage, haIs.lfull of fresh dates,
a crystal of rock salt, a cake OF barley bread,
and two hard cheeses Of camels milk and
goats milk, and timidly la7d them at his ieet
saying
ANY will was strong to have brought thee
many things, but thou knOwest ! am only
poor, weak maiden, oh wise Jemschid.'
I" If Jemschid be truly wise, he will regard
the will of the giver, and not the gilt itself, as
the measure of its value, Oh, my daughter,
many thanks May thy days be as numerous
as the sage's, and thy happiness as unelouded
as yon sky. What would the daughter OF the
chief of Benz Malouk seek of the old manT Is
all well? Hath a camef strayed, or mare
been stolen, or a trinket lost ?"
"Nay. oh sage" responded Lutf hesitating-
". all is WELL | come for myself. Yesterday
is gone and the circle of today is very narrow
hear that thou hast a cup, wondrous mystic
cup. wherein one can see all that Is, and has
been, and will be-"
"The circle of today, my daughter, is as
wide as thy destiny, couldst thou but behold II.
Ave, thou has heard rightly. l have a cup
wherein Allah, whose nase be exalted, permits
many and great things to picture themselves
beforehand"
"May look into the cup, oh sage, and see
the picture of my wish and my longing?
"Not so. maiden, it would but blind thee, Tor
thine eyes are not strong enough to encounter
the mysteries of the universe. Tell me thy
wish, oh daughter, and will behold If 1t is to
come to pass, or fall away"
The old sage rose to his feet, went into the
cave, and took from its shelf the famous cup
II was a beauteous beaker, large and goblet
shaped, made of highly wrought gold, fetched
from the innermost caves of the GEM. On the
outside were craven sentences from the Koran
set in diamonds, emeralds, and amethysts. Cir
| cling the inside, near thi. rim, was carved the
| Zodiac aud its signs while the remainder sur
| face was marked off into seven circular com
partments, answering to the seven spheres
1 the universe and the seven worlds ot space
while below shone the pentagram OF the mas
ter-all craven with mystic signs and symbols
Holding the goblet tenderly and with care
Jemschid poured in wine from the jar until
was filled to the brim. And while the nader
watched him in awe, he slowly returned to thu
mouth of the cave, holding the cup in one hand
and in the other a serpentlike wand, which III
thrice waved slowly in the air, murmurn!
words in an unknown tongue.
"Tell me thy wish, oh maiden sand he
solemnly. "All of knowledge permitted to MOI
tails is at thy command. The earth shall seen
transparent to thee, with her mysteries and he
treasures The starry spheres shall rhythm
, cally reveal their wonders TO thee, and teac
, thee the melody of their voices at my bidding
Tell me thy wish"
, And, as he spoke the wine began to bubbl
$ in the cup, like the bubbles Of water from tn
rock that the prophet Moussa smote in tn
e desert, while the goblet itself revolved in hi
e hand with a slow and stately motion, as tn
e Match girls of Cashmere begin to circle in thei
n dance. before the fire of the music burns i
their veins.
o And the damsel, drawing yet more tight
/ the liar over her face, spoke trembGngly:
"Oh my father, look into the dread cup fc
}, me, and read the maiden's heart, its trouble
and its grief"
!; The sage murmured, Easier by far, G
= daughter, IS it to read the wonders of the gre;
J heavens, than to pry into the secret crypts OF
maiden's heart / see thy heart, oh Lu'
j, daughter of Sheikh Yacoub, but it is as ple'
= of crystal, pure, and bright, and hawless. On
Z. olro,d Too pur.a--foo nnr