صفحة 309 من 1116

Hardly believing in my escape, I kissed his hand and thought the

loss of my eye a light matter in consideration of my escaping

from being slain. I arrived at my uncle's capital; and, going in

to him, told him of what had befallen my father and myself;

whereat he wept with sore weeping and said, "Verily thou addest

grief to my grief, and woe to my woe; for thy cousin hath been

missing these many days; I wot not what hath happened to him, and

none can give me news of him." And he wept till he fainted. I

sorrowed and condoled with him; and he would have applied certain

medicaments to my eye, but he saw that it was become as a walnut

with the shell empty. Then said he, "O my son, better to lose eye

and keep life!" After that I could no longer remain silent about

my cousin, who was his only son and one dearly loved, so I told

him all that had happened.