Arabian Nights: 275th Night: Sindbad's Voyages - 4

The following night Shahrazad said: I am giving an account by Sindbad in his own words:

For the third time I was in Balsora with my choice merchandise which were rare also.  The easy, pleasant life I led after my second voyage erased my unpleasant memories connected with it. I was in the prime of my life, it pleased me better to be up and doing. We the merchants set sail for distant lands. We had touched many ports and made much profits, when one day, we were caught by a terrible wind which blew us terribly to a harbour of a strange island. 

"I would rather have come to anchor anywhere than here," said our captain. "This island and all adjoining it are inhabited by hairy saveges, who are certain to attack us, and whatever these dwarfs may do, we dare not resist, since they swarm like locusts.  And if one of them is killed, the rest will fall upon us, and speedily finish us."

These words caused great consternation among all the ship's company, and only too soon we were to find out that the captain spoke the truth.  There appeared a vast multitude of hideous saveges, not more than two feet high and covered with reddish fur.  Throwing themselves into the waves, they surrounded our vessel.  Chattering meanwhile in a language we could not understand, and clutching the ropes and gangways, they swarmed up the ship's side with such speed and agility that they almost seemed to fly.

You may imagine the rage and terror that griped us as we watched them, neither daring to hinder them nor able to speak a word to deter them

from their purpose, whatever it might be.  Of this we were not left long in doubt.  Hoisting The sails, and cutting the cable of the anchor, they sailed  our vessel to an island, which lay a little further off, where they drove us ashore; then taking possession of her, they made off to the place, from which they had come, leaving us helpless upon a shore, which all mariners avoided because of horror.  You will soon learn the reason for this.

Turning away from the sea we wandered miserably inland.  We had to eat various herbs and fruits that came our way.  There was great uncertainty, as to our future course. Soon we saw far away what seemed to us a splendid palace, towards which we turned our weary steps, but when we reached it we saw that it was a castle, lofty and strongly built.

Pushing back the heavy ebony doors we entered the courtyard, but upon the threshold of the great hall beyond it we paused, frozen with horror.  On one side lay a huge pile of bones -- human bones; on the other number less pits of roasting!  Overcome with despair, we sank trembling to the ground, and lay there without speech or motion.  The sun was setting when a loud noise aroused us, the door of the hall was violently burst open and a horrible giant entered.  He was tall as a palm tree, and perfectly black, and had one eye, which flamed like a burning coal in the middle of his forehead.  His teeth were long and sharp and grinned horribly, while his lower lip hung down upon his chest, and he had ears like elephant's ears, which covered his shoulders, and the nails like claws of some fierce  bird.

At this terrible sight our senses left us and we lay like dead men.  When at last we came to ourselves, he sat examining us attentively with fearful eyes.  Soon when he had looked at us enough he came towards us, and stretching out his hand took me by the back of neck, turning me this way and that, but feeling that I was mere skin and bone, he set me down and went on to the next, whom he treated in the same fashion; at last he came to the captain, and finding him The fattest of us all he took him up.in one hand and stuck him upon a spit and proceeded to kindle a huge fire at which he presently roasted him.  After the giant had supped he lay down to sleep snoring like The loudest thunder, while we lay shivering with horror the whole night 

through; and when the day broke he awoke and went out leaving us in.the castle.

When he went out we started up bemoaning our horrible fate, until the hall echoed with our despairing cries.  Though we were many and our enemy was alone it did not occur to us to kill him, and indeed we should have thought that a hard task, even if we had thought of it, and no plan we devised to deliver ourselves.  So at last submitting to our sad fate, we spent day in wandering up and down the island eating such fruits as we could find, and when night came we returned to the castle, having sought in vain for any other place of shelter.  At sunset the giant came, supped upon one of our unhappy comrades, slept and snored till dawn and then left us as before.  Our condition seemed to us so frightful that several of my companions thought it would be better to leap from the cliffs and perish in the waves at once, rather than await so miserable an end; but I had a plan of escape which I had unfolded to them, and which they at once agreed to attempt.

"Listen my brothers," said I to my companions.  "You know that plenty of driftwood lies along the shore.  Let us make several rafts out of it. Carry them to a suitable place.  If we succeed in it, we can wait patiently for ships coming by. Those ships will rescue us.  Suppose no ships are coming by, take to our rafts; we have more chance of saving our lives."

All agreed with me, and we started building rafts, each one having a capacity to carry three persons.  At nightfall, the giant came as usual, and one more of our members was sacrificed. But the time of our vengeance was at hand.  As soon as he had fun his horrible repast, he lay down to sleep, and when we heard his snore, we rose swiftly and took each spit, which we made red-hot in the fire, and then at a given signal we plunged it with one accord into the giant's eye, completely blinding him.

Uttering a terrible cry, he sprang to his feet clutching in all directions to try to seize one of us, but we had all fled in different directions, thrown ourselves flat upon the ground in corners where he was not likely to touch us with his feet.

After a vain search he fumbled about till he found the door and fled out of it howling frightfully. We hurried out of the castle and stationed ourselves beside our rafts.  We waited for the sun to rise.  We could hear faintly the howling of the giant piercing through the darkness.  Our idea was to remain in the island if the giant was dead, and avoid the risk of conveying in frail rafts. But alas!  Morning light showed us our enemy approaching us supported by either side two giants as large and fearful as himself, while a crowd of others followed close upon their heels.  Hesitating no longer we clambered upon our rafts and rowed with all our might out to sea.  The giants, seeing their prey escape seized a huge piece of rock, and wading into water  hurled them after us with such good aim that all the rafts except the one I was upon were swamped, and their unlucky crew drowned, without our being able to do anything to save them.  Indeed, I and my two companions had all we could do to keep our own raft beyond the reach of the giants.  By hard dint of rowing we at last gained the open sea.  Here the wind and waves tossed us to and fro all that day and night, but the next morning we found ourselves near an island, upon which we gladly landed.

There were delicious fruits, and having satisfied our hunger, we soon lay down to rest upon the shore.  Suddenly we were aroused by a rustling of dead leaves, and starting up, saw that it was caused by an immense snake, which was gliding towards us over the sand.  So swiftly it came that it had seized one of my comrades before he had time to fly, in spite of his cries speedily crushed the life out of him in its mighty coils and proceeded to swallow him.  By this time my other companion and I were running for our lives to some place where we might hope to be safe from this new horror, and seeing a tall tree we climbed up into it, having first provided ourselves with a store of fruits of surrounding bushes. When night came I fell asleep, but only to be awakened once more by the terrible snake, which after hissing horribly round the tree reared itself up against it, and finding my sleeping comrade who was perched just below me, it swallowed him also, and crawled away leaving me half dead with terror.

When the sun rose I crept down from the tree with hardly any hope of escaping the dreadful fate which had overtaken my comrades; but life is sweet, and I determined to do all I could to save myself.  All day long I toiled with frantic haste and collected quantities of brushwood, reed and thorns, which I bound with fagots and making a circle of them under my tree.  I piled them firmly one upon another until I had a kind of tent in which I had crouched like mouse in a hole when she sees the cat coming.  You may imagine what a fearful night I passed, for the snake returned eager to devour me, and glided round and round my frail shelter, seeking an entrance.  Every moment I feared that it would succeed in pushing aside some of the fagots, but happily for me they held together, and when it grew light, my enemy retired, baffled and hungry, to his den.  As for me, I was more dead than alive!  Fear and suffocation of the stench of the monster, I came out of my tent and crawled down to the sea, feeling that it would be better to plunge from the cliffs and end my life.  But to my joy and relief I saw a ship sailing by, and by shouting wildly and waving my turban, I managed to attract the attention of her crew.

A boat was sent to rescue me.  Very soon I found myself on board of the ship surrounded by a wondering crowd of sailors and merchants to know how I was trapped in the island.  I told my story of horror and my encounter with the agents of death.  I was in rags. The captain dressed me with his own coat. I was happy with the delicious food of the ship.  After sailing, and touching many ports, we came at last to the island of Salahat.  Here sandalwood grows in plenty.  Here we anchored and, I watched the merchants disembarking their goods and preparing for sale.

The captain came to me and said, "Brother, I have here some merchandise, belonging to a passenger who is dead.  Will you do me a favour to trade with it?  When I meet with their heirs I shall be able to give them money, but you shall have a portion for your trouble."

I consented gladly.  The person in charge of the goods wanted to know in whose name it should be registered.

The captain said, "Sindbad the sailor." 

At this I was greatly surprised. Looking carefully at him, I recognised him.  He was the captain of my second voyage.

"So, captain," I said, "the merchant who owned those bales was called Sindbad?"

"Yes," he replied.  "He was so named. He belonged to Baghdad. Joined my ship at Balsora.  But by mischance he was left behind upon a desert island, where we had landed to fill up our water casks."

"You suppose him to have perished then?"

"Alas! Yes."

"Why, captain!" I cried, "Look at me, I am that Sindbad who fell asleep upon the island and awoke to find himself abandoned."

The captain stared at me in amazement.  But he was convinced that I was indeed speaking the truth.

He rejoiced greatly at my escape.

"I'm glad to have that piece of carelessness off my conscience," said he.  "Now take your goods, and the profit I have made for you upon them, and may you prosper in future."

I took them gratefully, and we continued our journey. Cloves, cinnamon and other spices I acquired on the way. A twenty cubit tortoise was a special sight in this voyage.  A fish resembling the cow was another sight.  Its skin was so thick that it was used to make shield. Another fish resembling camel in shape and colour. Thus we came back to Balsora, and from there I returned to Baghdad.  I had made enough money and treasures in the voyage, though I had encountered my death also.

When Sindbad had finished his story, he gave another hundred sequins to Hindbad, who then departed with other guests.

Morning overtook and Shahrazad lapsed into silence