Vol. Ill, No. 10.] - Some Folk- Tales from Ha^ramaut. 657 



- [n:s.2 



-walking pursued his way after his friends, but when he reached 

 the sea, he felt the water and so turned back. He sat under a 

 tree till morning. When it was dajligbt he looked out and saw 

 the sea l>efore him. He searched for his friends, but they were 

 nowhere to be seen. Then he walked along the shore of the sea 

 for three days. In the afternoon of the third day, he came upon 

 an encampment of Bedouins whose tents were of camel hair. He 

 entered one of the tents, and there fouud a man and a woman. 

 The man wished to kill him ; but the womau stopped him, saying, 



*' There is uo need to kill him; he is but a stranger." At niglit 

 they brought him some food. After he had supped, he said to 

 them, **I wish to sleep." So they pointed out to him a place to 

 sleep in, which happened to be on the patfi to the tent. Towards 

 midnight the woman's real husband arrived, and seeing a strange 

 man sleeping, roused him and said, '' Who are you ? Whence do 

 you come ? " He answered, " I am a poor man, coming from the 

 East." The woman's Imsband then went in to his wife and saw 

 the man with her. He drew out his sword and ^ave him a blow, 

 which killed him. When he was dead, he dragged him to 

 the door of the tent and left him there. He then went 

 and brought a camel, put the dead man on the camel, 

 and, making the stranger mount, too, bound him tightly, 

 intending to cast both of them into the sea together. He started 

 off, leading the camel by the nose, and they arrived at the sea- 

 shore. Now, there was by the shore a naws tree,* ^nd the man 

 passed nnder it with the camel. Tlie stranger saw the tree, and, 

 while passing under it, he laid hold of a branch and let go the 

 camel. The owner of the camel went along leading it till he 

 reached the sea. He cut off the c^imeFs gear with a knife and 

 cast it into the sea, and returned, leading his camel, all the time 

 thinking that the stranger was with the slain man. After some 

 time, the stranger came down from the tree and said to himself, 

 " Where shall I go now ? By God, I will not go anywhere but 

 to these Bedouins! It's either life or death." So he went to 

 another tent and saw there an old man and an old woman. He 

 greeted them and they returned the greeting. They said to him, 

 " Of what country are you, and where are you going? " He said, 

 ** Faith, I am from the East, and I was going South ; but I now 

 want to return East." When it w;is morning, the old mnn said, 

 *'Do you happen to have any news of my son ? " The stranger 

 asked for a description of the son. They said, *' He is a fair-com- 

 plexioned man, tall of stature, and bearded." The man answered, 

 ** What will you give me if I give you news of your son ? " The 

 old man said, "I'll give you whatever you wish." He said, '* I 

 desire nothing but that you take me to my own country." "I 

 pledge you my faith," said the old man. " This bt^ing so," said 

 the stranger, '* listen ; the owner of that tent killed your son and 

 threw him into the sea." The old man said, *' Ha, is it so ? " 

 He said, "Yes." Thereupon the old man sent a summons 



i Said to be a kind of low palm. 



