I loved to shoot
with a cross-bow; and being one day upon the terrace of the
palace with my bow, a bird happening to come by, I shot but
missed him, and the ball by misfortune hit the vizier, who was
taking the air upon the terrace of his own house, and put out one
of his eyes. As soon as I understood this, I not only sent to
make my excuse to him, but did it in person: yet he never forgave
me, and, as opportunity offered, made me sensible of his
resentment. But now that he had me in his power, he expressed his
feelings; for he came to me like a madman, as soon as he saw me,
and thrusting his finger into my right eye, pulled it out, and
thus I became blind of one eye.

But the usurper's cruelty did not stop here; he ordered me to be
shut up in a machine, and commanded the executioner to carry me
into the country, to cut off my head, and leave me to be devoured
by birds of prey. The executioner conveyed me thus shut up into
the country, in order to execute the barbarous sentence; but by
my prayers and tears, I moved the man's compassion: "Go," said he
to me, "get you speedily out of the kingdom, and take heed of
returning, or you will certainly meet your own ruin, and be the
cause of mine." I thanked him for the favour he did me; and as
soon as I was left alone, comforted myself for the loss of my
eye, by considering that I had very narrowly escaped a much
greater evil.

Being in such a condition, I could not travel far at a time; I
retired to remote places during the day, and travelled as far by
night as my strength would allow me. At last I arrived in the
dominions of the sultan my uncle, and came to his capital.

I gave him a long detail of the tragical cause of my return, and
of the sad condition he saw me in. "Alas!" cried he, "was it not
enough for me to have lost my son, but must I have also news of
the death of a brother I loved so dearly, and see you reduced to
this deplorable condition?" He told me how uneasy he was that he
could hear nothing of his son, notwithstanding all the enquiry he
could make. At these words, the unfortunate father burst into
tears, and was so much afflicted, that pitying his grief, it was
impossible for me to keep the secret any longer; so that,
notwithstanding my oath to the prince my cousin, I told the
sultan all that I knew.

His majesty listened to me with some sort of comfort, and when I
had done, "Nephew," said he, "what you tell me gives me some
hope. I knew that my son