eating salt, even in the mind of a robber and a murderer. When 

 Morgiana, the faithful slave of Ali Baba, had in the character of 

 a dancer struck a dagger in the heart of a merchant, his guest, 

 and excited the horror of her master for such an act, she threw oft' 

 her disguise, and told Ali Baba, that in the pretended merchant 

 Coja Hussain, she had destroyed his cruel enemy, the captain of 

 the robbers : to convince him of the truth of her assertion she dis- 

 covered under his robe the murdering poignard, and asked her 

 master this simple question, which caused her suspicion of his pre- 

 tended friend : " Do you not recollect that he refused to eat salt 

 with you? Can you require a stronger proof of his malicious in- 

 tentions?" 



This Arabian story is confirmed by a real anecdote in d'Herbelot, 

 of Jacoub ben Laith, then a celebrated robber, but afterwards the 

 founder of a dynasty of Persian monarchs, called Soffarides; who in 

 one of his exploits having broken into the royal palace, and collected 

 a large booty, was on the point of carrying it off, when he found 

 his foot kick against something which made him stumble. Imagia- 

 ing it might be an article of value, he put it to his mouth, the bet- 

 ter to distinguish it. On tasting he found it was a lump of salt, 

 the symbol and pledge of hospitality ; on which, he was so touched, 

 that he retired immediately without carrying away any part of the 

 spoil. The next morning occasioned the greatest surprise in the 

 palace; Jacoub was taken up and brought before the prince, to 

 whom he gave a faithful account of the whole transaction, and 

 by this means so ingratiated himself with his sovereign, that he em- 

 ployed him, as a man of courage and genius, in many arduous 

 entei prizes ; in which he was so successful as to be raised to the 



