traveller, whom we lost, and we know not if he be alive or dead,
for we had no news of him; so I purpose to commit his bales of
goods to thy charge, that thou mayst sell them in this island. A
part of the proceeds we will give thee as an equivalent for thy
pains and service, and the rest we will keep till we return to
Baghdad, where we will enquire for his family and deliver it to
them, together with the unsold goods. Say me then, wilt thou
undertake the charge and land and sell them as other merchants
do?" I replied "Hearkening and obedience to thee, O my lord; and
great is thy kindness to me," and thanked him; whereupon he bade
the sailors and porters bear the bales in question ashore and
commit them to my charge. The ship's scribe asked him, "O master,
what bales are these and what merchant's name shall I write upon
them?"; and he answered, "Write on them the name of Sindbad the
Seaman, him who was with us in the ship and whom we lost at the
Rukh's island, and of whom we have no tidings; for we mean this
stranger to sell them; and we will give him a part of the price
for his pains and keep the rest till we return to Baghdad where,
if we find the owner we will make it over to him, and if not, to
his family." And the clerk said, "Thy words are apposite and thy
rede is right." Now when I heard the captain give orders for the
bales to be inscribed with my name, I said to myself, "By Allah,
I am Sindbad the Seaman!" So I armed myself with courage and
patience and waited till all the merchants had landed and were
gathered together, talking and chaffering about buying and
selling; then I went up to the captain and asked him, "O my lord,
knowest thou what manner of man was this Sindbad, whose goods
thou hast committed to me for sale?"; and he answered, "I know of
him naught save that he was a man from Baghdad-city, Sindbad
hight the Seaman, who was drowned with many others when we lay