Part 83

This action of the African magician’s plainly showed him to be neither Aladdin’s uncle, nor Mustapha, the tailor’s brother, but a true African, a native of that part of the world. For as Africa is a country whose inhabitants delight most in magic of any other in the whole world, he had applied himself to it from his youth; and after about forty years’ experience in enchantments, works of geomancy, fumigations, and reading of magic books, he had found out that there was in the world a wonderful lamp, the possession of which would render him more powerful than any monarch in the world, if he could obtain it; and by a late operation of geomancy, he found out that this lamp lay concealed in a subterraneous place in the midst of China, in the situation, with all the circumstances, already described. Fully persuaded of the truth of this discovery, he set out from the farthest part of Africa, and, after a long and fatiguing journey, came to the town nearest to this treasure. But though he had a certain knowledge of the place where the lamp was, he was not permitted to take it himself, nor to enter the subterraneous place where it was, but must receive it from the hands of another person. For this reason he addressed himself to Aladdin, whom he looked upon as a young lad of no consequence, and fit to serve his purpose; resolving, as soon as he got the lamp into his hands, to sacrifice poor Aladdin to his avarice and wickedness, by making the fumigation mentioned before, and saying those two magical words, the effect of which was to remove the stone into its place again, that he might have no witness of the transaction.

The blow he gave Aladdin, and the authority he assumed over him, was only to use him to fear him, and to make him obey him the more readily, and give him the lamp as soon as he asked for it. But his too great precipitation in executing his wicked intention on poor Aladdin, and his fear lest somebody should come that way during their dispute, and discover what he wished to keep secret, produced an effect quite contrary to what he proposed to himself.

When the African magician saw that all his great hopes were frustrated forever, he returned that same day for Africa; but went quite round the town, and at some distance from it, for fear lest some persons who had seen him walk out with the boy, seeing him come back without him, should entertain any jealousy of him, and stop him.

According to all appearances, there was no prospect of Aladdin being any more heard of. But the magician, when he contrived his death, had forgotten the ring he put on his finger, which preserved him, though he knew not its virtue; and it is amazing that the loss of that, together with the lamp, did not drive the magician to despair; but magicians are so much used to misfortunes, and events contrary to their wishes, that they do not lay them to heart, but still feed themselves all their lives with unsubstantial notions and chimeras.

As for Aladdin, who never suspected this bad usage from his pretended uncle, after all his caresses, and what he had done for him, his surprise is more easily to be imagined than expressed by words. When he found himself buried alive, he cried, and called out to his uncle to tell him he was ready to give him the lamp; but all in vain, since his cries could not be heard by him, and he remained in this dark abode. At last, when he had quite tired himself with crying, he went to the bottom of the steps, with a design to get into the garden, where it was light; but the door, which was opened before by enchantment, was now shut by the same means. Then he redoubled his cries and tears, and sat down on the steps, without any hopes of ever seeing the light again, and in a melancholy certainty of passing from the present darkness into that of a speedy death.

Aladdin remained in this state two days, without eating or drinking, and on the third day looked upon death as inevitable. Clasping his hands with an entire resignation to the will of God, he said, There is no strength or power but in the great and high God. In this action of joining his hands, he rubbed the ring which the magician put on his finger, and of which he knew not yet the virtue, and immediately a genie of an enormous size and frightful look rose out of the earth, his head reaching the vault, and said to him, What wouldst thou have with me? I am ready to obey thee as thy slave, and the slave of all who have the ring on thy finger; I, and the other slaves of that ring.

At another time, Aladdin, who had not been used to such visions, would have been so frightened, that he would not have been able to speak at the sight of so extraordinary a figure; but the danger he was in made him answer without hesitation, Whoever thou art, deliver me from this place, if thou art able. He had no sooner made an end of these words, but the earth opened, and he found himself on the very spot the magician first brought him to.

It was some time before Aladdin’s eyes could bear the light, after having been so long in total darkness; but after he had endeavoured by degrees to support it, and began to look about him, he was very much surprised not to find the earth open, and could not comprehend how he had got so soon out of its bowels. There was nothing to be seen but the place where the fire had been, by which he could nearly judge whereabouts the cave was. Then turning himself about towards the town, he perceived it in the midst of the gardens that surrounded it, and knew the way back by which the magician had brought him to it; then, returning God thanks to see himself once more in the world, where he never more expected to be, he made the best of his way home. When he got within his mother’s door, the joy to see her, and his faintness for want of sustenance for three days, made him faint, and he remained for a long time as dead. His mother, who had given him over for lost or dead, seeing him in this condition, omitted nothing to bring him to himself again. As soon as he recovered, the first words he spake were, Pray, mother, give me something to eat, for I have not put a morsel of any thing into my mouth these three days. His mother brought what she had, and set it before him. My son, said she, be not too eager, for it is dangerous; eat but a little at a time, and take care of yourself. Besides, I would not have you talk; you will have time enough to tell me what has happened to you when you are recovered. It is a great comfort to me to see you again, after the affliction I have been in since Friday, and the pains I have taken to learn what had become of you, ever since I found it was night, and you were not returned.

Aladdin took his mother’s advice, and eat and drank moderately. When he had done, Mother, said he to her, I cannot help complaining of you, for abandoning me so easily to the discretion of a man who had a design to kill me, and who at this very moment thinks my death certain. You believed he was my uncle, as well as I; and what other thoughts could we entertain of a man who was so kind to me, and made such advantageous proffers? But I must tell you, mother, he is a rogue and a cheat, and only did what he did, and made me all those promises, to accomplish my death; but for what reason neither you nor I can guess. For my part, I can assure you I never gave him any cause to deserve the least ill treatment from him. You shall judge of it yourself, when you have heard all that passed from the time I left you, till he came to the execution of his wicked design.

Then Aladdin began to tell his mother all that happened to him on Friday, when the magician took him to see the palaces and gardens about that town, and what fell out in the way, till they came to the place between the two mountains, where the great prodigy was to be performed; how, with incense which the magician threw into the fire, and some magical words which he pronounced, the earth opened, and discovered a cave, which led to an inestimable treasure. He forgot not the blow the magician gave him, and in what manner he softened again, and engaged him by great promises, and putting a ring on his finger, to go down into the cave. He did not omit the least circumstance of what he saw in crossing the three halls and the garden, and his taking the wonderful lamp, which he pulled out of his bosom and showed to his mother, as well as the transparent fruit of different colours, which he had gathered in the garden as he returned, two purses full of which he gave to his mother. But, though these fruits were precious stones, brilliant as the sun, and the reflection of a lamp which then lighted the room might have led them to think they were of great value, she was as ignorant of their worth as her son, and cared nothing for them. She had been bred in a middling rank of life, and her husband’s poverty prevented her being possessed of such things, nor had she, or her relations, or neighbours, ever seen them, so that we must not wonder that she looked on them as things of no value, and only pleasing to the eye by the variety of their colours.

Aladdin put them behind one of the cushions of the sofa he sat upon, and continued his story, telling his mother, that when he returned and presented himself at the mouth of the cave, upon his refusal to give the magician the lamp till he had got out, the stone, by his throwing some incense into the fire, and using two or three magical words, stopped it up, and the earth closed again. He could not help bursting into tears at the representation of the miserable condition he was in, to find himself buried alive in a dismal cave, till by the touching of his ring, the virtue of which he was then an entire stranger to, he, properly speaking, came to life again. When he had made an end of his story, he said to his mother, I need say no more; you know the rest. This is my adventure, and the danger I have been exposed to since you saw me.

Aladdin’s mother heard with so much patience as not to interrupt him, this surprising and wonderful relation, notwithstanding it could be no small affliction to a mother, who loved her son tenderly; but yet in the most moving part, which discovered the perfidy of the African magician, she could not help showing, by marks of the greatest indignation, how much she detested him; and when Aladdin had finished his story, she broke out into a thousand reproaches against that vile impostor. She called him perfidious traitor, barbarian, assassin, deceiver, magician, and an enemy and destroyer of mankind. Without doubt, child, added she, he is a magician, and they are plagues to the world, and by their enchantments and sorceries have commerce with the devil. Bless God for preserving you from his wicked designs; for your death would have been inevitable, if you had not called upon him and implored his assistance.

She said a great deal more against the magician’s treachery; but finding while she talked, her son Aladdin, who had not slept for three days and nights, began to nod, she put him to bed, and soon after went to bed herself.

Aladdin, who had not had one wink of sleep while he was in the subterraneous abode, slept very heartily all that night, and never waked till the next morning; when the first thing that he said to his mother was, he wanted something to eat, and that she could not do him a greater pleasure than to give him his breakfast. Alas! child said she, I have not a bit of bread to give you, you ate up all the provisions I had in the house yesterday; but have a little patience, and it shall not be long before I will bring you some; I have a little cotton which I have spun; I will go and sell it, and buy bread, and something for our dinner. Mother, replied Aladdin, keep your cotton against another time, and give me the lamp I brought home yesterday; I will go and sell it, and the money I shall get for it will serve both for breakfast and dinner, and perhaps supper too.

Aladdin’s mother took the lamp, and said to her son, Here it is, but it is very dirty: if it was a little cleaner, I believe it would bring something more. She took a little fine sand and water to clean it; but had no sooner begun to rub it, but in an instant a hideous genie of gigantic size appeared before her, and said to her in a voice like thunder, What wouldst thou have? I am ready to obey thee as thy slave, and the slave of all those who have that lamp in their hands, I and the other slaves of the lamp.

Aladdin’s mother was not able to speak at the sight of this frightful genie, but fainted away; when Aladdin, who had once before seen such another genie in the cavern, without losing time or reflection, snatched the lamp out of his mother’s hands, and said to the genie boldly, I am hungry; bring me something to eat. The genii disappeared immediately, and in an instant returned with a large silver basin on his head, and twelve covered plates of the same metal, which contained some excellent meats; six large white loaves on two other plates, and two bottles of wine, and two silver cups in each hand. All these things he placed upon a table and disappeared; and all this was done before Aladdin’s mother came out of her swoon.

Aladdin went presently and fetched some water, and threw it in her face, to recover her: whether that or the smell of the meats the genie procured, brought her to life again, it was not long before she came to herself. Mother, said Aladdin, do not mind this; it is nothing at all; get up, and come and eat; here is what will put you in heart, and at the same time satisfy my extreme hunger: do not let such fine meat be cold, but fall to.

His mother was very much surprised to see the great basin, twelve plates, six loaves and the two bottles and cups, and to smell the delicious odour which exhaled from the plates. Child, said she to Aladdin, to whom are we obliged for this great plenty and liberality? Has the sultan been made acquainted with our poverty, and had compassion on us? It is no matter, mother, said Aladdin; let us sit down and eat; for you have almost as much need of a good breakfast as myself; when we have done, I will tell you. Accordingly both mother and son sat down, and ate with the better stomach, as the table was so well furnished. But at the time Aladdin’s mother could not forbear looking at and admiring the basin and plates, though she could not well tell whether they were silver or any other metal, so little accustomed was she and her son to see such, and the novelty more than the value attracted their attention.

In short, the mother and son sat at breakfast till it was dinner-time, and then they thought it would be best to put the two meals together; yet after this, they found they should have enough left for supper, and two meals for the next day.

When Aladdin’s mother had taken away, and set by what was left, she went and sat down by her son on the sofa. Aladdin, said she, I expect now that you should satisfy my impatience, and tell me exactly what passed between the genie and you while I was in a swoon, which he presently complied with.

She was in as great amazement at what her son told her, as at the appearance of the genie, and said to him, But son, what have we to do with genies? I never in my life heard that any of my acquaintance had ever seen one. How came that vile genie to address himself to me, and not to you, to whom he had appeared before in the cave? Mother, answered Aladdin, the genie you saw is not the same who appeared to me, though he resembles him in size; no, they had quite different persons and habits; they belong to different masters. If you remember, he that I first saw called himself the slave of the ring on my finger; and this you saw called himself the slave of the lamp you had in your hand; but I believe you did not hear him, for I think you fainted away as soon as he began to speak.

What! cried the mother, was your lamp then the occasion of that cursed genie’s addressing himself rather to me than to you? Ah! my son, take it out of my sight, and put it where you please. I will never touch it. I had rather you would sell it than run the hazard of being frightened to death again by touching it; and if you would take my advice, you would part also with the ring, and not have any thing to do with genies, who, as our prophet has told us, are only devils.

With your leave, mother, replied Aladdin, I shall now take care how I sell a lamp, as I was going to do, which may be so serviceable both to you and me. Have not you been an eye-witness of what it hath procured us, and it shall still continue to furnish us with subsistence and maintenance. You may suppose, as I do, that my false and wicked uncle would not have taken so much pains, and undertaken so long and tedious a journey, if it had not been to get into his possession this wonderful lamp, which he preferred before all the gold and silver which he knew was in the halls, and which I have seen with my own eyes. He knew too well the merit and worth of this lamp, not to prefer it to so great a treasure; and since chance hath discovered the virtue of it to us, let us make a profitable use of it, without making any great stir, and drawing the envy and jealousy of our neighbours upon us. However, since the genies fright you so much, I will take it out of your sight, and put it where I may find it when I want it. As for the ring, I cannot resolve to part with that neither; for, without that, you had never seen me again; and though I am alive now, perhaps, if it was gone, I might not be so some moments hence; therefore I hope you will give me leave to keep that, and to wear it always on my finger. Who knows what dangers you and I may be exposed to, which neither of us can foresee, and which it may deliver us from? As Aladdin’s arguments were just, and had a great deal of weight in them, his mother had nothing to say against them; but only replied, that he might do what he pleased, but for her part, she would have nothing to do with genies, but would wash her hands of them, and never say any thing mere about them.

By the next night they had eaten all the provisions the genie had brought; and the next day Aladdin, who could not bear the thoughts of hunger, took one of the silver plates under his coat, and went out early to sell it, and addressing himself to a Jew whom he met in the streets, took him aside, and pulling out the plate, asked him if he would buy it. The cunning Jew took the plate and examined it, and no sooner found that it was good silver, but he asked Aladdin how much he valued it at. Aladdin, who knew not the value of it, and never had been used to such traffic, told him he would trust to his judgment and honour. The Jew was somewhat confounded at this plain dealing; and doubting whether Aladdin understood the material, or the full value of what he offered to sell him, he took a piece of gold out of his purse and gave it him, though it was but the sixtieth part of the worth of the plate. Aladdin took the money very eagerly, and, as soon as he got it in his pocket, retired with so much haste, that the Jew, not content with the exorbitancy of his profit, was vexed he had not penetrated into Aladdin’s ignorance, and was going to run after him, to endeavour to get some change out of the piece of gold; but Aladdin ran so fast, and had got so far, that it would have been impossible for him to overtake him.

Before Aladdin went home to his mother, he called at a baker’s, bought a loaf, changed his money, and went home, and gave the rest to his mother, who went and bought provisions enough to last them some time. After this manner they lived, till Aladdin had sold the twelve plates, one at a time, to the Jew, for the same money; who, after the first time, durst not offer him less, for fear of losing so good a chap. When he had sold the last plate, he had recourse to the basin, which weighed ten times as much as the plate, and would have carried it to his old purchaser, but that it was too large and cumbersome; therefore he was obliged to bring him home with him to his mother’s, where, after the Jew had examined the weight of the basin, he laid down ten pieces of gold, with which Aladdin was very well satisfied.

They lived on these ten pieces in a frugal manner a pretty while; and Aladdin, who had been used to an idle life, left off playing with young lads of his own age ever since his adventure with the African magician. He spent his time in walking about, and talking with people with whom he had got acquainted. Sometimes he would stop at the most capital merchants’ shops, where people of distinction met, and listen to their discourse, by which he gained some little knowledge of the world.

When all the money was spent, Aladdin had recourse again to the lamp. He took it in his hand, looked for the same place where his mother had rubbed it with the sand, and rubbed it also, and the genie immediately appeared, and said, What wouldst thou have? I am ready to obey thee as thy slave, and the slave of all those who have that lamp in their hands; I, and the other slaves of the lamp. I am hungry, said Aladdin; bring me something to eat. The genie disappeared, and presently returned with a basin, and the same number of covered plates, &c. and set them down on a table, and vanished again.

Aladdin’s mother, knowing what her son was going to do, went out at that time about some business, on purpose to avoid being in the way when the genie came; and when she returned, which was in a short time, and found the table and sideboard so furnished a second time, was almost as much surprised as before, at the prodigious effect of the lamp. However, she sat down with her son, and when they had eaten as much as they had a mind to, she set enough by to last them two or three days.

As soon as Aladdin found that their provisions and money were spent, he took one of these plates, and went to look for his Jew chapman again; but passing by a goldsmith’s shop, who had the character of a very fair and honest man, the goldsmith perceiving him, called to him, and said, My lad, I have often observed you go by, loaded as you are at present, and talk with such a Jew, and then come back again empty-handed. I imagine that you carry something that you sell to him; but perhaps you do not know what a rogue he is, and that he is the greatest rogue among all the Jews, and is so well known, that nobody will have any thing to do with him. What I tell you is for your own good. If you will show me what you now carry, and it is to be sold, I will give you the full worth of it; or I will direct you to other merchants who will not cheat you.

The hopes of getting more money for his plate induced Aladdin to pull it from under his coat, and show it to the goldsmith. The old man, who at first sight saw that it was made of the finest silver, asked him if he had sold any such as that to the Jew, and Aladdin told him plainly that he had sold him twelve such, for a piece of gold each. What a villain! cried the goldsmith; but, added he, my son, what is past cannot be recalled. By showing you the value of this plate, which is of the finest silver we use in our shops, I will let you see how much the Jew has cheated you.

The goldsmith took a pair of scales, weighed the plate, and after he had told Aladdin how much an ounce of fine silver contained and was worth, he demonstrated to him that his plate was worth by weight sixty pieces of gold, which he paid him down immediately. If you dispute my honesty, said he, you may go to any other of our trade, and if he gives you any more, I will be bound to forfeit twice as much; for we gain only the fashion of the plate that we buy, and that the fairest dealing Jews do not.