Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1880-03-12
q ruh!iln Rights.


The !s7Rcat b,at aud most popular collection
oil stories is that coatsirei il the Arabian
Nights liattr.aiLmcns." Tho plan Of this
work is very s;mpl'. Tho storits arc supposed
to havo been related, 10 short portions, night
after hight lor rather caiy cach morning,
duriog q thousand and QUO nights. by lady
with 40 czc,llln. memory, always breaking off
at striking iLc;tlant, SO as t. iDduto the list.
encr to wish, liko Diver Twist, for moro"
Shc-stated 10 have been queen by marriage
so much amused her husbaud By these sto-
rius as at last 10 induce him to break bis wick.
cd vow OF taking fresh wifa every day, on
condition that tho was to BE- sain next morning.
lo Turkey, Asia Miocr, Pe!sa aod Arabia
which Gre called Oriental c,uatrics, tho custom
loog has bcc1 ioT oass CT pcrs,rs skilled in
that ait to obtaia livelihood b3 rucitiag wild
and w0EG:Gua s;0tcS. Sometimes this is douo
10 tho houses whore t'avuIc;s obtain Lodging
and food; sometimes The listeners gather even
'n tho sto,t wle the ta!s is b! !ipg told, with
pause at the most startling i,ctdent, du.iuc
which, ns with our street crsan players; small
coins Gre contributed by tho moro hb.ral-it
being uadertto1d that the Story will remain
unfinished. Hl.hont sucl payment in advance,
Tho history OF tho Arabian Nights,' which
srcad all over tho world with equal taver, il
very curious. ScuC.ly anything was known Of
them IN tho ereater part of Europe until carly
10 tho lest century, when Antoioo Gsllanj, n
trcnchmao, who had acquired q thorough
knoWcjpc Of the Aeab:o language. who had
long resided 10 Cunsta2linoplc. wno had tre
qucutIy listened 70 tho story trllcrs in tho COL
leo hou7es, and who had iaaly obtained
manuscript copy, ia Arabic, devoted bim:cTto
tho production oI traGslation OF tho whole toto
tho French language, the Grst portion Of whi,h
was published 10 1704
From ihls, versions in most Of tho modern
languages OF Europe hive been made; in Eog.
land alone ticro ezc ten. The latest. and most
accurate. was that By tho lato Edward William
LaDo. who had ioog resided in Espyt, aud be.
llcVcd that Tho woik had boon composed 10 that
country, ltI language being, not pure Arabic,
but the familiar Syll'c OF crlinary conversa-
ton.
It is merely gusscd, not known, that tho
Arabian Nights" wes written, By various per.
sons. not earlier than tho flteonth c,ntury, al
ter tho Arabians had corqlred Constan.inople.
1t is koown, too, NJ. Qaaud did not translate.
aud probably had rot obtaiucd. even third
OF the stories that wsFc c1rront in tho East in
his time. Many of Tho incidents ave Of great
autqGiIy, evidently taken from very aucient
Tritera
The tiyiug t0!so OF hG0r2e vas know0 10 6c-
tiGn In Ckauccr's si@.y {: 'Cambuscsn Boldly
live hu0dsed ycaTs as. iha escapa of S3inbad
ftou tho burial Gave has ita original 10 p!utsrch's
account OF too escape of Ayis>omencs Tho
queen, whose magic arE changes tho king oe
tho Black lslsnas !a:o miserable otjcct-har
men half marbo--a.a q Qlcca Lab. who traps>
iCrD6 hCT lcVcS ia." vail0uS animals, orc clearly
ldcut'cal elth ;hn Ci7oo OF Tho "Olyssey," as
dra'Ta BY Hem u9cry 1900 gears aec. Tho
oltcH Glhl:, 20 GiG12a'a aIrd voyage, is ;Geuti-
c.l sSith pn'vphculus, VINO vas orc ,rutcrcd apd
| i!lckot o. Uyss,s, as iio@lcr hoa nl,o related.
Iho ElcUaIaln OF IGa;.StGno. which drew all tho
iron calls Ga. q i'rioco Ayib's sbi2, is men
toned hP p.lSy, ,ni lie iAbuloHq bird, tho re
appears 10 80 a'c;sa: hrs5isa t1lo. tn: tales
! sna9 to C;7laod lata two cl.Sacs. Tao FIRST
cil,ily C i4Gls;s ii fj=SHures-Iany of them
| hissosca!--ot the l&i.lh, .Larouo al Rzschid,
| who relsned !atr IL IL eighth ccGtlry Tie
| former 3Gnlairs wild and ;alopgsib'e adventures,
10 which iair."s. c"sil ani prr:j largely figure
| iie alia, CztraG!s!la2;y "T3a'a Gte toll SIS If
ih2y .:trG CfG!anrJ rlS::cc 6 f,c.. no that the
reader ia scaice:y HarHts1'i. nii.o 10 ooa story
Aladdin III s Inc slaves u lha lam , and Of lh,
| rihE to do hld hii;:ics, hoWJyor tx;rayaqaat,
and N another. Nj Bibs. mt oth.r5, rimp!y
| by ulierloS tao verdi, "Oeen sesame" arn
a5o 10 enter 7Gbocr7' o.vo, whica had bcon
key. G'Oscl by maaic |: ia w,rIh7 OF nctic =
hs characteristics at the hl0sem faith. that iu
thcA! A.aa!Sn tales tho mama OF God il never
spoken ~ any believer nlh2u' al cri!hct OF
4 honsac sai roE"rsno,,-Dr. IL. ,She!ton Nc.
i Ew=ie ~ Coh'cn Days.
IN frI ~ n rrrrr I.,,,