Pagina 892 de 1116

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the King of

China bade, "Bring me the Barber who shall be the cause of your

deliverance; then we will bury this Hunchback, for that he is

dead since yesterday and set up a tomb over him." So the

Chamberlain and the Tailor went to the jail and, releasing the

Barber, presently returned with him to the King. The Sultan of

China looked at him and considered him carefully and lo and

behold! he was an ancient man, past his ninetieth year; swart of

face, white of beard, and hoar of eyebrows; lop eared and

proboscis-nosed,[FN#696] with a vacant, silly and conceited

expression of countenance. The King laughed at this figure o' fun

and said to him, "O Silent Man, I desire thee to tell me somewhat

of thy history." Quoth the Barber, "O King of the age, allow me

first to ask thee what is the tale of this Nazarene and this Jew

and this Moslem and this Hunchback (the corpse) I see among you?