the excess of blows. Quoth they, "What is the matter with thee?"
and quoth he, "That man with a malady who came into the Hammam is
none other but the owner of the calf and he hath killed me." So
they took him up and carried him from the place and he said to
them, "Do ye bear me outside the city and set up for me a tent
and lay me therein, after which do ye gather round about me and
never leave me at all." Hereat they mounted him upon an ass and
bore him to the place he described and, pitching a tent, set him
therein and all sat around him. Presently the tidings reached me,
whereupon I changed my clothes for a disguise and drew near the
tent whereabouts I found a Badawi-man feeding his sheep. So I
said to him, "O Badawi, take this ducat and draw near yonder tent
and call aloud, saying, 'I am the owner of the calf;' after which
make off with thy life for an they catch thee they will slay
thee." "By Allah," quoth the Arab, "even if they rode their best
mares none of them could come up with me!" So I took charge of
the sheep while the Badawi approaching the tent cried in his
loudest voice, "By Allah, I am the owner of the calf." Hearing
this the vagabonds sprang to their feet as one body and drew
their weapons and rushed after the Badawi; but, when he had run
some distance from the tent with all the men behind him, I went
in and drawing from below my clothes the tail of the calf said,
"O Shaykh, is this the tail of a calf or a kid?" The Elder asked,
"Art thou not he who cried out, I am the owner of the calf?" and
I answered, "No, I am not," and came down upon him with the tail
and beat him until he could no longer breathe. Then I took the
properties belonging to his party and wrapping them in a sheet
carried them off and quitting the place I went in to my mother
and said to her, "Take them to the worth of the calf." Now those
who had run after the Badawi ceased not pursuing him, yet could