" Replied Khalifah: "Nay, as thy head liveth, O chief
of the Jews, none hath missaid me. But I went forth this morning to
the river and, casting my net into the Tigris on thy luck, brought
up this fish."
Therewith he opened the basket and threw the fish before the Jew,
who admired it and said, the Pentateuch and the Ten Commandments, I
dreamt last night that the Virgin came to me and said, 'Know, O Abu
al-Sa'adat, that I have sent thee a pretty present!' And doubtless
'tis this fish." Then he turned to Khalifah and said to him, "By thy
faith, hath any seen it but I?" Khalifah replied, "No, by Allah, and
by Abu Bakr the Veridical, none hath seen it save thou, O chief of the
Jews!" Whereupon the Jew turned to one of his lads and said to him:
"Come, carry this fish to my house and bid Sa'adah dress it and fry
and broil it, against I make an end of my business and hie me home."
And Khalifah said, "Go, O my lad, let the master's wife fry some of it
and broil the rest." Answered the boy, "I hear and I obey, O my lord,"
and, taking the fish, went away with it to the house.
Then the Jew put out his hand and gave Khalifah the fisherman a
dinar, saying, "Take this for thyself, O Khalifah, and spend it on thy
family.
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