again give thee possession of me after having once delivered me from thy hand." Quoth the wolf, "It behoveth thee to compass my release, by reason of our brotherhood and good fellowship; and, if thou release me, I will assuredly make fair thy recompense." Quoth the fox, "Wise men say:—Take not to brother the wicked fool, for he will disgrace thee in lieu of gracing thee; nor take to brother the liar for, if thou do good, he will conceal it; and if thou do ill he will reveal it. And again, the sages have said:—There is help for everything but death: all may be warded off, except Fate. As for the reward thou declarest to be my due from thee, I compare thee herein with the serpent which fled from the charmer.[1] A man saw her affrighted and said to her:—What aileth thee, O thou serpent? Replied she:—I am fleeing from the snake-charmer, for he seeketh to trap me and, if thou wilt save me and hide me with thee, I will make fair thy reward and do thee all manner of kindness. So he took her, incited thereto by lust for the recompense and eager to find favour with Heaven, and set her in his breastpocket. Now when the charmer had passed and had wended his way and the serpent had no longer any cause to fear, he said to her:—Where is the reward thou didst promise me? Behold, I have saved thee from that thou fearedest and soughtest to fly. Replied she:—Tell me in what limb or in what place shall I strike thee with my fangs, for thou knowest we exceed not that recompense. So saying, she gave him a bite whereof he died. And I liken thee, O dullard, to the serpent in her dealings with that man. Hast thou not heard what the poet saith?—
Trust not to man when thou hast raised his spleen ○ And wrath, nor that 'twill cool do thou misween:
Smooth feels the viper to the touch and glides ○ With grace, yet hides she deadliest venene."
Quoth the wolf, "O thou glib of gab and fair of face, ignore not my case and men's fear of me; and well thou weetest how I assault the strongly walled place and uproot the vines from base. Wherefore, do as I bid thee, and stand before me even as the thrall standeth before his lord." Quoth the fox, "O stupid dullard who
- ↑ Arab. "Háwí"=a juggler who plays tricks with snakes: he is mostly a Gypsy. The "recompense" the man expects is the golden treasure which the ensorcelled snake is supposed to guard. This idea is as old as the Dragon in the Garden of the Hesperides—and older.
