Page:Arabian Nights Entertainments (1728)-Vol. 4.djvu/44

Purpoſe. I continued, ſaid he, to viſit the Lady every Day, and to leave her every time a Purſe with Fifty Pieces of Gold, till the Merchants, whom I employed to ſell my Cloath, and whom I viſited regularly twice a Week: I continued theſe chargeable Viſits, I ſay, till the Merchants owed me nothing. And in ſhort, I came at laſt to be Monyleſs and hopeleſs of having any more.

In this deſperate Condition I walked out of my Lodging, not knowing what Courſe to take; and by chance ſteered towards the Caſtle, where there was a great Crowd of People to ſee the Sultan of Egypt. As ſoon as I came up to them, I wedged in among the Crowd; and by chance happened to ſtand by a Cavalier well mounted, and handſomely cloathed, who had upon the Bow of his Saddle a Bag half open, with a String of Green Silk hanging out of it. I clapp’d my Hand to the Bag, concluding the Silk Twiſt might be the String of a Purſe within the Bag: In the mean time a Porter with a Load of Wood upon his Back paſſed by the other ſide of the Horſe fo near, that the Gentleman on Horſeback was forced to turn his Head towards him, to avoid the being rubb’d by the Wood. In that very Minute did the Devil tempt me; I took the String in one Hand, and with the other laid open the Mouth of the Bag, and fo pull’d out the Purſe ſo dextrouſly that no Body perceived it. The Purſe was heavy, and fo I did not doubt but there was Gold or Silver in it.

As ſoon as the Porter had paſs’d the Cavalier, who probably had ſome ſuſpicion of what I had done while his Head was turned, preſently put his Hand to his Bag, and, finding his Purſe was gone, gave me ſuch a Blow, that he knocked me down. This Violence ſhocked all that ſaw it, ſome took hold of the Horſe’s Bridle to ſtop the Gentleman, and know of him what Reaſon he had to beat me, or how he came to treat a Muſſelman after that Rate. Do not trouble your ſelves, ſaid he with a brisk Tone, I had Reaſon enough for what I did; this Fellow is a Thief. In fine, every one took my Part, and cried he was a Liar, for that it was incredible, a young Man, ſuch as I, ſhould be guilty of ſo foul an Action; but while they were holding his Horſe by the Bridle to favour my Eſcape, unfortunately came by the Juſticiary Judge, who, ſeeing ſuch a