CHAPTER III.
SULTAN ACHMED.
The sun is shining through the windows of the Seraglio, the two Ulemaswho are wont to come and pray with the Sultan have withdrawn, and theKapu-Agasi, or chief doorkeeper, and the Anakhtar Oglan, or chiefkey-keeper, hasten to open the doors through which the Padishahgenerally goes to his dressing-room, where already await him the mosteminent personages of the Court, to wit, the Khas-Oda-Bashi, or Masterof the Robes, the Chobodar who hands the Sultan his first garment, theDuelbendar who ties the shawl round his body, the Berber-Bashi who shaveshis head, the Ibrikdar Aga who washes his hands, the Peshkiriji Bashiwho dries them again, the Serbedji-Bashi who has a pleasant potion readyfor him, and the Ternakdji who carefully pares his nails. All thesegrandees do obeisance to the very earth as they catch sight of the faceof the Padishah making his way through innumerable richly carved doorson his way to his dressing-chamber.
This robing-room is a simple, hexagonal room, with lofty,gold-entrellised window; its whole beauty consists in this, that thewalls are inlaid with amethysts, from whose jacinth-hued backgroundshine forth the more lustrous raised arabesques formed by topazes anddalmatines. Precious stones are the delight of the Padishah. Every inchof his garments is resplendent with diamonds, rubies, and pearls, hisvery fingers are hidden by the rings which sparkle upon them. Pomp isthe very breath of his life. And his countenance well becomes thissplendour. It is a mild, gentle, radiant face, like the face of a fatherwhen he moves softly among his loving children. His large, melancholyeyes rest kindly on the face of everyone he beholds; his smooth,delicate forehead is quite free from wrinkles. It would seem as if itcould never form into folds, as if its possessor could never be angry;there is not a single grey hair in his well-kept, long black beard; itwould seem as if he knew not the name of grief, as if he were the verySon of Happiness.
And so indeed he was. For seven-and-twenty years he had sat upon thethrone. It is possible that during these seven-and-twenty years manychanges may have taken place in the realm which could by no means callfor rejoicing, but Allah had blessed him with such a happy dispositionas to make him quite indifferent to these unfortunate events, in fact,he did not trouble his head about them at all. Like the truephilosopher he was, he continued to rejoice in whatsoever was joyous. Heloved beautiful flowers and beautiful women--and he had enough of bothand to spare. His gardens were more splendid than the gardens of Solimanthe Magnificent, and that his Seraglio was no joyless abode wasdemonstrated by the fact that so far he was the happy father ofone-and-thirty children.
He must have had exceptionally pleasant dreams last night, or hisfavourite Sultana, the incomparably lovely Adsalis, must haveentertained him with unusually pleasant stories, or perchance a newtulip must have blossomed during the night, for he extended his hand toeveryone to kiss, and when the Berber-Bashi proceeded comfortably toadjust the cushions beneath him, the Sultan jocosely tapped the redswelling cheeks of his faithful servant--cheeks which the worthy Bashihad taken good care of even in the days when he was only a barber'sapprentice in the town of Zara, but which had swelled to a size worthyeven of the rank of a Berber-Bashi, since his lot had fallen in pleasantplaces.
"Allah watch over thee, and grant that thy mouth may never complainagainst thy hand, worthy Berber-Bashi. What is the latest news from thetown?"
It would appear from this that the barbers in Stambul also, even whenthey rise to the dignity of Berber-Bashis, are expected to follow thecourse of public events with the utmost attention, in order tocommunicate the most interesting details thereof to others, and thusrelieve the tedium invariably attendant upon shaving.
"Most mighty and most gracious One, if thou deignest to listen to theworthless words which drop from the mouth of thine unprofitable servantwith those ears of thine created but to receive messages from Heaven, Iwill relate to thee what has happened most recently in Stambul."
The Sultan continued to play with his ring, which he had taken off onefinger to slip on to another.
"Thou hast laid the command upon me, most puissant and most graciousPadishah," continued the Berber-Bashi, unwinding the pearl-embroidered_kauk_ from the head of the Sultan--"thou hast laid the command upon meto discover and acquaint thee with what further befell Guel-Bejaze aftershe had been cast forth from thy harem. From morn to eve, and again fromeve to morning, I have been searching from house to house, makinginquiries, listening with all my ears, mingling among the chapmen of thebazaars disguised as one of themselves, inducing them to speak, andferreting about generally, till, at last, I have got to the bottom ofthe matter. For a long time nobody dared to buy the girl; it is indeedbut meet that none should dare to pick up what the mightiest monarch ofthe earth has thrown away; it is but meet that the spot where he hascast out the ashes from his pipe should be avoided by all men, and thatnobody should venture to put the sole of his foot there. Yet,nevertheless, in the bazaar, one madly presumptuous man was found whowas lured to his destruction at the sight of the girl's beauty, andreceived her for five thousand piastres from the hand of the publiccrier. These five thousand piastres were all the money he had, and hegot them, in most wondrous wise, from a foreign butcher whom he hadwelcomed to his house as a guest."
"What is the name of this man?"?
"Halil Patrona."
"And what happened after that?"
"The man took the girl home, whose beauty, of a truth, was likely toturn the head of anybody. He knew not what had happened to her at theSeraglio, in the kiosks of the Kiaja Beg and the Grand Vizier, IbrahimDamad and in the harem of the White Prince. For, verily, it is a joy toeven behold the maiden, and it would be an easy matter to lose one'swits because of her, especially if one did not know that this fairblossom may be gazed at but not plucked, that this beautiful form whichputs even the houris of Paradise to shame, suddenly becomes stiff anddead at the contact of a man's hand, and that neither the warmth of thesun-like face of the Padishah, nor the fury of the Grand Vizier, nor thethongs of the scourge of the Sultana Asseki, nor the supplications ofthe White Prince, can awaken her from her death-like swoon."
"And didst thou discover what happened to the girl after that?"
"Blessed be every word concerning me which issues from thy lips oh,mighty Padishah! Yes, I went after the girl. The worthy shopkeeper tookthe maiden home with him. It rejoiced him that he could give to hereverything that was there. He made her sit down beside him. He supped inher company. Then he would have embraced her. So he drew her to hisbosom, and immediately the girl collapsed in his arms like a dead thing,as she is always wont to do whenever a man touches her, at the same timeuttering certain magical talismanic words of evil portent, from whichmay the Prophet guard every true believer! For she spoke the name ofthat holy woman whose counterfeit presentment the Giaours carry upontheir banners, and whose name they pronounce when they go forth to waragainst the true believers."
"Was he who took her away wrath thereat?"
"Nay, on the contrary, he seemed well satisfied that it should be so,and ever since then he has left the girl in peace. He regards her as aperi, as one who is not in her right mind, and therefore should be dealtgently with. She is free to go about the house as she likes. Halil willnever permit her to do any rough work, nay, rather, will he doeverything himself, with his own hands, so that all his acquaintancesalready begin to speak of him as a portent, and his patience has becomea proverb in their mouths. Halil they say took unto himself aslave-woman, and lo! he has himself become that slave-woman's slave."
"Of a truth it is a remarkable case," observed the Padishah; "try andfind out what turn the affair takes next. And the Teskeredji Bashi shallrecord everything that thou sayest for an eternal remembrance."
During this speech the Berber-Bashi had artistically completed theofficial dressing of the Padishah's head, whereupon the Ibrikdar Agacame forward to wash his hands, the Peshkiriji Bashi carefully driedthem with a towel, the Ternakdji Bashi pared his nails, the Duelbendarplaced the pearl-embroidered _kauk_ on the top of his head, an
d adjustedthe long eastern shawl round his waist, the Chobodar handed him hisupper jacket, the _binis_ heavy with turquoise, the Silihdar buckled onhis tasselled sword, and then everyone, after performing the usualsalaams withdrew, except the Khas-Oda-Bashi and the Kapu-Agasi, whoremained alone with their master.
The Khas-Oda-Bashi announced that the two humblest of the Sultan'sservants, Abdullah, the Chief Mufti, and Damad Ibrahim, the GrandVizier, were waiting on their knees for an audience in the vestibule ofthe Seraglio. They desired, he said, to communicate important newstouching the safety and honour of the Empire.
The Sultan had not yet given an answer when, through the door leadingfrom the harem, popped the Kizlar-Aga, the chief eunuch, a respectable,black-visaged gentleman with split lips, who had the melancholyprivilege of passing in and out of the Sultan's harem at all hours ofthe day and night, and finding no pleasure therein.
"Kizlar-Aga, my faithful servant! what dost thou want?" inquired Achmedgoing to meet him, and raising him from the ground whereon he had thrownhimself.
"Most gracious Padishah!" cried the Kizlar-Aga, "the flower cannot go onliving without the sun, and the most lovely of flowers, that mostfragrant blossom, the Sultana Asseki, longs to bask in the light of thycountenance."
At these words the features of Achmed grew still more gentle, still moreradiant with smiles. He signified to the Khas-Oda-Bashi and theKapu-Agasi that they should withdraw into another room, while hedispatched the Kizlar-Aga to bring in the Sultana Asseki.
Adsalis, for so they called her, was a splendid damsel of Damascus. Shehad been lavishly endowed with every natural charm. Her skin was whiterthan ivory and smoother than velvet. Compared with her dark locks theblackest night was but a pale shadow, and the hue of her full smilingface put to shame the breaking dawn and the budding rose. When she gazedupon Achmed with those eyes of hers in which a whole rapturous world ofparadisaical joys glowed and burned, the Padishah felt his whole heartsmitten with sweet lightnings, and when her voluptuously enchanting lipsexpressed a wish, who was there in the wide world who would have thecourage to gainsay them? Certainly not Achmed! Ah, no! "Ask of me thehalf of my realm!"--that was the tiniest of the flattering assuranceswhich he was wont to heap upon her. If he were but able to embrace her,if he were but able to look into her burning eyes, if he were but ableto see her smile again and again, then he utterly forgot Stambul, hiscapital, the host, the war, and the foreign ambassadors--and praisedthe Prophet for such blessedness.
The favourite Sultana approached Achmed with that enchanting smile whichwas eternally irresistible so far as he was concerned, and neverpermitted an answer approaching a refusal to even appear on the lips ofthe Sultan.
What pressing request could it be? Why it was only at dawn of this veryday that the Padishah had quitted her! What vision of rapture could shehave seen since then whose realisation she had set her heart uponobtaining?
The Sultan, taking her by the hand, conducted her to his purple ottoman,and permitted her to sit down at his feet; the Sultana folded her handson the knees of the Padishah, and raising her eyes to his face thusaddressed him:
"I come from thy daughter, little Eminah, she has sent me to thee that Imay kiss thy feet instead of her. As often as I see thee, majestic Khan,it is as though I see her face, and as often as I behold her it is thyface that stands before me. She resembles thee as a twinkling starresembles a radiant sun. Three years of her life has she accomplished,she has now entered upon her fourth summer, and still no husband hasbeen destined for her. This very morning when thou hadst turned thy faceaway from me I saw a vision. And this was the vision I saw. Thy threechildren, Aisha, Hadishra, and Eminah, were sitting in the open piazza,beneath splendid, sparkling pavilions. There were three pavilionsstanding side by side: the first was white, the second violet, and thethird of a vivid green. In these three pavilions, I say, the princesses,thy daughters, were sitting, clothed in _kapanijaks_ of cloth of silver,with round _selmiks_ on their heads, and embellished with the sevenlucky circles which bring the blessings of prosperity to womenkind. Thouknowest what these circles are, oh Padishah! They are the ishtifan ordiadem, the necklace, the ear-ring, the finger-ring, the girdle, thebracelet, and the mantle-ring-clasp--the seven gifts of felicity, ohPadishah, that the bridegroom giveth to the bride. Beside thesepavilions, moreover, were a countless multitude of other tents--of threedifferent hues of blue and three different hues of green--and in thesetents abode a great multitude of Emir Defterdars, Reis-Effendis,Muderises, and Sheiks. And in front of the Seraglio were set up threelofty palm-trees, which elephants drew about on great wheeled cars, andthere were three gardens there, the flowers whereof were made of sugar,and then the chiefs of the viziers arose and the celebration of thefestival began. After the usual kissing of hands, the nuptials wereproceeded with, the Kiaja representing the bridegroom and theKizlar-Aga the bride, and everyone received a present. Then came thebridal retinue with the bridal gifts, a hundred camels laden withflowers and fruits, and an elephant bearing gold and precious stones andveils meet for the land of the peris. Two eunuchs brought mirrors inlaidwith emeralds, and the _miri achorok_ held the reins of splendidlycaparisoned chargers. After them came the attendants of the GrandVizier, and delighted the astonished eyes of the spectators with adisplay of slinging. Then came the wine-carriers with their wine-skins,and in a pavilion set up for the purpose wooden men sported with aliving centaur. There also were the Egyptian sword and hoop dancers, theIndian jugglers and serpent charmers, after whom came the Chief Mufti,who read aloud a verse from the Koran in the light of thy countenance,and gave also the interpretation thereof in words fair to listen to.Then followed fit and capable men from the arsenal, dragging along onrollers huge galleys in full sail, and after them the topijis, draggingafter them, likewise on rollers, a fortress crammed full of cannons,which also they fired again and again to the astonishment of themultitude. Thereupon began the dancing of the Egyptian opium-eaters,which was indeed most marvellous, and after them there was a show ofbears and apes, which sported right merrily together. Close upon thesecame the procession of the Guilds and the junketing of the Janissaries,and last of all the Feast of Palms, which palms were carried to the verygates of the Seraglio, along with the sugar gardens I have alreadyspoken of. Then there was the Feast of Lamps, in which ten thousandshining lamps gleamed among twenty thousand blossoming tulips, so thatone might well have believed that the lamps were blossoming and thetulips were shining. And all the while the cannons of the Anatoli Hisarand the Rumili Hisar were thundering, and the Bosphorus seemed to beturned into a sea of fire by reason of the illuminated ships and thesparkling fireworks. Such then was the dream of the humblest of thyslaves at dawn of the 12th day of the month Dzhemakir, which day is aday of good omen to the sons of Osman."
It might have been thought a tiresome matter to listen to such long,drawn-out visions as this to the very end, but Achmed was a goodlistener, and, besides, he delighted in such things. Nothing made him sohappy as great festivals, and the surest way of gaining his good graceswas by devising some new pageant of splendour, excellence, andoriginality unknown to his predecessors. Adsalis had won his favour byinventing the Feast of Lamps and Tulips, which was renewed every year.This Feast of Palms, moreover, was another new idea, and so also was theidea of the sugar garden. So Achmed, in a transport of enthusiasm,pressed the favourite Sultana to his bosom, and swore solemnly that herdream should be fulfilled, and then sent her back into the harem.
And now the Kizlar-Aga admitted the two dignitaries who had been waitingoutside. The Chief Mufti entered first, and after him came the GrandVizier, Damad Ibrahim. Both of them had long, flowing, snow-white beardsand grave venerable faces.
They bowed low before the Sultan, kissed the hem of his garment, and layprostrate before him till he raised them up again.
"What brings you to the Seraglio, my worthy counsellors?" inquired theSultan.
As was meet and right, the Chief Mufti was the first to speak.
"Most gracious, mos
t puissant master! Be merciful towards us if with ourwords we disturb the tranquil joys of thy existence! For though slumberis a blessing, wary wakefulness is better than slumber, and he who willnot recognise the coming of danger is like unto him who would rob hisown house. It will be known unto thee, most glorious Padishah, that afew years ago it pleased Allah, in his inscrutable wisdom, to permit thePersian rebel, Esref, to drive his lawful sovereign, Tamasip, from hiscapital. The prince became a fugitive, and the mother of the prince,dressed in rags, was reduced to the wretched expedient of doing menialservice in the streets of Ispahan for a livelihood. The glory of theOttoman arms could not permit that a usurper should sit at his ease onthe stolen throne, and thy triumphant host, led by the Vizier Ibrahimand the virtuous Kueprili, the descendant of the illustrious NuumanKueprili, wrested Kermandzasahan from Persia and incorporated it with thydominions. And then it pleased the Prophet to permit marvellous thingsto happen. Suddenly Shah Tamasip, whom all men believed to beruined--suddenly, I say, Shah Tamasip reappeared at the head of ahandful of heroes and utterly routed the bloody Esref Khan in threepitched battles at Damaghan, Derechar, and Ispahan, put him to flight,and the hoofs of the horses of the victor trod the rebel underfoot. Andnow the restored sovereign demands back from the Ottoman Empire thedomains which had been occupied. His Grand Vizier, Safikuli Khan, isadvancing with a large army against the son of Kueprili, and the darknessof defeat threatens to obscure the sun-like radiance of the Ottomanarms. Most puissant Padishah! suffer not the tooth of disaster to gnawaway at thy glory! The Grand Vizier and I have already gatheredtogether thy host on the shores of the Bosphorus. They are ready, at amoment's notice, to embark in the ships prepared for them. Money andprovisions in abundance have been sent to the frontier for the gallantNuuman Kueprili on the backs of fifteen hundred camels. It needs but aword from thee and thine empire will become an armed hand, one buffetwhereof will overthrow another empire. It needs but a wink of thine eyeand a host of warriors will spring from the earth, just as if all theOttoman heroes, who died for their country four centuries ago, were torise from their graves to defend the banner of the Prophet. But thatsame banner thou shouldst seize and bear in thine own hand, mostglorious Padishah! for only thy presence can give victory to our arms.Arise, then, and gird upon thy thigh the sword of thy illustriousancestor Muhammad! Descend in the midst of thy host which yearns for thelight of thy countenance, as the eyes of the sleepless yearn for the sunto rise, and put an end to the long night of waiting."
Achmed's gentle gaze rested upon the speaker abstractedly. It seemed asif, while the Chief Mufti was speaking, he had not heard a single wordof the passionate discourse that had been addressed to him.
"My faithful servants!" said he, smiling pleasantly, "this day is to mea day of felicity. The Sultana Asseki at dawn to-day saw a visionworthy of being realised. A dazzling festival was being celebrated inthe streets of Stambul, and the whole city shone in the illuminationthereof. The gardens of the puspang-trees and the courtyards of thekiosks around the Sweet Waters were bright with the radiance of lampsand tulips. Waving palm-trees and gardens full of sugar-flowerstraversed the streets, and galleys and fortresses perambulated thepiazzas on wheels. That dream was too lovely to remain a dream. It mustbe made a reality."
The Chief Mufti folded his hands across his breast and bent low beforethe Padishah.
"Allah Akbar! Allah Kerim! God is mighty. Be it even as thou dostcommand! May the sun rise in the west if it be thy will, oh Padishah!"And the Chief Mufti drew aside and was silent.
But the aged Grand Vizier, Damad Ibrahim, came forward, and drying histearful eyes with the corner of his kaftan, stood sorrowfully in frontof the Padishah. And these were his words:
"Oh! my master! Allah hath appointed certain days for rejoicing, andcertain other days for mourning, and 'tis not well to confuse the onewith the other. Just now there is no occasion for rejoicing, but all themore occasion for mourning. Woeful tidings, like dark clouds presaging astorm, are coming in from every corner of the Empire--conflagrations,pestilences, earthquakes, inundations, hurricanes--alarm and agitate thepeople. Only this very week the fairest part of Stambul, close to theChojabasha, was burnt to the ground; and only a few weeks ago the samefate befell the suburb of Ejub along the whole length of the sea-front,and that, too, at the very time when the other part of the city wasilluminated in honour of the birthday of Prince Murad. In Gallipoli athunder-bolt struck the powder-magazine, and five hundred workmen wereblown into the air. The Kiagadehane brook, in a single night, swelled tosuch an extent as to inundate the whole valley of Sweet Waters, and awhole park of artillery was swept away by the flood. And know also, ohPadishah, that, but the other day, a new island rose up from the seabeside the island of Santorin, and this new island has grown larger andlarger during three successive months, and all the time it was growing,the ground beneath Stambul quaked and trembled. These are no good omens,oh, my master! and if thou wilt lend thine ears to the counsel of thyfaithful servant, thou wilt proclaim a day of penance and fastinginstead of a feast-day, for evil days are coming upon Stambul. The voiceof the enemy can be heard on all our borders, from the banks of theDanube as well as from beside the waters of the Pruth, from among themountains of Erivan as well as from beyond the islands of theArchipelago; and if every Mussulman had ten hands and every one of theten held a sword, we should still have enough to do to defend thyEmpire. Bear, oh Padishah! with my grey hairs, and pardon my temerity. Isee Stambul in the midst of flames every time it is illuminated for afestival, and full of consternation, I cry to thee and to the Prophet,'Send us help and that right soon.'"
Sultan Achmed continued all the time to smile most graciously.
"Worthy Ibrahim!" said he at last, "thou hast a son, hast thou not,whose name is Osman, and who has now attained his fourth year. Now Ihave a daughter, Eminah, who has just reached her third year. Lo now! asmy soul liveth, I will not gird on the Sword of the Prophet, I will nottake in my hand the Banner of Danger until I have given these youngpeople to each other in marriage. Long ago they were destined for eachother, and the multiplication of thy merits demands the speedyconsummation of these espousals. I have sworn to the Sultana Asseki thatso it shall be, and I cannot go back from my oath as though I were butan unbelieving fire-worshipper, for the fire-worshippers do not regardthe sanctity of an oath, and when they take an oath or make a promisethey recite the words thereof backwards, and believe they are therebyfree of their obligations. It beseemeth not the true believers to dolikewise. I have promised that this festival shall be celebrated, and itis my desire that it should be splendid."
Ibrahim sighed deeply, and it was with a sad countenance that he thankedthe Padishah for this fresh mark of favour. Yet the betrothal might soeasily have been postponed, for the bridegroom was only four years oldand the bride was but three.
"Allah Kerim! God grant that thy shadow may never grow less, most mightyPadishah!" said Damad Ibrahim, and with that he kissed the hand of theGrand Seignior, and both he and the Chief Mufti withdrew.
At the gate of the Seraglio the Chief Mufti said to the Grand Viziersorrowfully:
"It had been better for us both had we never grown grey!"
But Sultan Achmed, accompanied by the Bostanjik, hastened to the gardensof the grove of puspang-trees to look at his tulips.