Bozeman avant courier. [volume] (Bozeman, Mont.) 1872-1882, 1873-12-05
So0tlsayer in Spite Of Himself.

Translated from the F,cnch.l

Translated from the F,cnch.l
The Sultan Karam- -Bou- Lad reign
cd at Samarcand.
lie was q sovereign much loved
who had only one sole fault, that 81
being passionately fond Of apples, al
though he no longer possessed teeth
with which to crunch them. In the
garden of his seralgio he had mag
niiicent orchard, which excited the
envy of all his subjects. His exces-
sive love for this fruit had given him
the surname of Karanl- -Bo;aLadj
which Arab phrase signified aGood
Father Pippin.n
In spite of strict surveillance his
apples were stolen, not only by the
magnates Of the court, but even by
the young people of the town, many
OF whom ran the risk of losing their
heads in order to eat SO fine fruit
The Grand Vizier himself was unable
to resist the temptation, and one even
ing he scaled the wall of the orchard,
like a common thief, that he might
satisfy his gourmandise
A Grand Yizier goes nowhere with
out being observed, and especially
when he climbs over walls. His enc
mics, therefore, Matched a plot against
him; and one evening, while he was
tasting Sultan apple, the finest sort
in the orchard, the assassins threw
themselves on him, and killed him.
They then fed, leaving the corpse on
the spot.
Two other thieves, who also were in
the habit of eating the Sultan's APP
pies, saw the crime committed. One
was Ben-Douda, the Sultan's jester,
the other was a young man Of the
town, named Ali. AErighted at what
they had seen, they also fled, scaling
simultaneously the wall of the serag-
lilo; and such was their terror that
they fell, one OIL the other, ON the out
side Of the enclosure. There they
seized each other by the collar, each
one mistaking the other for an assas-
sin. Happily, being acquainted, mu-
tual recognition soon took place.
/" Did you see97 asked Ben-Douaa.
"AH,n replied Ali; :. ! also recog-
nized among the murderers the Lord
Omar, who has long intrigued to occu-
py the post of Grand Vizier."
awe cannot denounce him to the
Sultan,n said Ben-Douda, "without
denouncing ourselves; and yet so
great a crime cannot GO unpunished.'
"What is to be tone?o inquired
Ali.
Listen replied the jester to-
morrow you must meet the Sultan on
his return from the mosque, and | will
present you to him as the greatest
soothsayer in the Kingdom. He will
take you to the palace, and there you
will tell all you have seen."
This plan once arranged, the two ac-
completes separated.
At the appointed time Ali met ka-
and Ben-Douda pre-
sented him to the Sultan, who order
ed him to attend him to the palace.
The Sultan of Samarcand was not
slow in returning home, and in sum
moning before him the famous 1nagi-
clan, Ali, of whom Ben-Douda had
told him wonders.
"speak; | 1isten," said Karam
Bou. Ladj; "divine what thought oc-
cupies my mind at this moment"
"Mighty Lord,' said Ali, "your
Highness is uneasy on account of the
absence of your Grand Vizier, whom
YOU have not seen since last evening"
0By the beard of the Prophet, it is
so! And what has become of this
excellent Grand Viziers'
q Sultan, he was assassinated by ap-
ple-stealers, while, devoted to your
Highness, he kept watch over your
orchard"
eYou lier exclaimed the Sultan in
great excitement.
!" see him. added Ali, in tone OF
inspiration; "he lies covered with
blood at the foot of the tree which
bears the celebrated Sultan apple,
which you prefer"
Karam- -Bou-L Ladj Immediately sent
several eunuchs to assure him of the
fact, and these very soon returned in
tears to confirm the assertion OF the
soothsayer.
"The names Of the murderers Y
cried the Sultan in his sad indigna-
ton.
Ali feigded to consider. One might
have heard the movement OF fy's
wing, SO profound was the silence
rr,l ,nv;nr1S aynpctantS waitnd the