to me and said, 'Know, O Abu al-Sa'adat, that I have sent thee a
pretty present!' and doubtless 'tis this fish." Then he turned
to Khalifah and said to him, "By thy faith, hath any seen it but
I?" Khalifah replied, "No by Allah and by Abu Bakr the
Viridical, [FN#204] none hath seen it save thou, O chief of the
Jews!" Whereupon the Jew turned to one of his lads and said to
him, "Come, carry this fish to my house and bid Sa'adah [FN#205]
dress it and fry and broil it, against I make an end of my
business and hie me home." And Khalifah said, "Go, O my lad; let
the master's wife fry some of it and broil the rest." Answered
the boy, "I hear and I obey, O my lord" and, taking the fish,
went away with it to the house. Then the Jew put out his hand
and gave Khalifah the fisherman a dinar, saying, "Take this for
thyself, O Khalifah, and spend it on thy family." When Khalifah
saw the dinar on his palm, he took it, saying, "Laud to the Lord
of Dominion!" as if he had never seen aught of gold in his life;
and went somewhat away; but, before he had gone far, he was
minded of the ape's charge and turning back threw down the ducat,
saying, "Take thy gold and give folk back their fish! Dost thou
make a laughing stock of folk? The Jew hearing this thought he
was jesting and offered him two dinars upon the other, but
Khalifah said, "Give me the fish and no nonsense. How knewest
thou I would sell it at this price?" Whereupon the Jew gave him
two more dinars and said, "Take these five ducats for thy fish
and leave greed." So Khalifah hent the five dinars in hand and
went away, rejoicing, and gazing and marvelling at the gold and
saying, "Glory be to God! There is not with the Caliph of
Baghdad what is with me this day!" Then he ceased not faring on
till he came to the end of the market-street, when he remembered
the words of the ape and his charge, and returning to the Jew,