' 'I hear and obey, O Commander of the Faithful,'
answered he, 'so it please God and thou be well and in good
case.' So on the morrow he took ten trays and putting a costly
present on each, went up with them to the palace. As the Khalif
was sitting on the throne, Alaeddin appeared at the door of the
Divan, repeating the following verses:
Good fortune and glory still wait on thy days And rubbed in the
dust be thine envier's nose!
May the days never stint to be white unto thee And black with
despite be the days of thy foes!
'Welcome, O Alaeddin!' sad the Khalif, and he replied, 'O
Commander of the Faithful, the Prophet (whom God bless and
preserve) accepted presents; and these ten trays, with what is on
them, are my present to thee.' The Khalif accepted his gift and
ordering him a robe of honour, made him Provost of the merchants
and gave him a seat in the Divan. Presently, his father-in-law
came in, and seeing Alaeddin seated in his place and clad in a
robe of honour, said to the Khalif, 'O King of the age, why is
this man sitting in my place and wearing this robe of honour?'
Quoth the Khalif, 'I have made him Provost of the merchants, and
thou art deposed; for offices are by investiture and not in
perpetuity.
Pages:
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411