“That drunkard in the depravity of his heart thought, if I was offended now, what then would be his treatment the next day, and what a commotion I should raise.  So he imagined it best to finish my existence [whilst he had me in his power.] Having formed this resolution in his mind with the advice of the hag, he put his patka [183] round his neck and fell at my feet, and taking off his turban from his head, began to supplicate [my forgiveness] in the humblest manner.  My heart was infatuated towards him; whithersoever he turned I turned; and like the handmill I was entirely under his control.  I implicitly complied with all he desired; some way or other he pacified me, and persuaded me to retake my seat.  He again took two or three cupfulls of the fiery liquor, and he induced me to drink some also.  I, in the first place, was already inflamed with rage, and secondly, after drinking such strong liquor I soon became quite senseless—­no recollection remained.  Then that unfeeling, ungrateful, cruel wretch wounded me with his sword; yea, further, he thought he had completely killed me.  At that moment, my eyes opened, and I uttered these words, ’Well, as I have acted, so I have been rewarded; but do thou screen thyself from the consequences of shedding unjustly my blood.  Let it not so happen that some tyrant should seize thee; do thou wash off my blood from thy garment; what has happened is past.’

“Do not divulge this secret to any one; I have not been wanting to thee even with loss of life.  Then placing him under the protection of God’s mercy, I fainted [from the loss of blood], and knew nothing of what afterwards happened.  Perhaps, that butcher, conceiving me dead, put me into the chest, and let me down over the walls of the fortress, the same as you yourself saw, I wished no one ill; but these misfortunes were written in my destiny, and the lines of fate cannot be effaced.  My eyes have been the cause of all these calamities:  if I had not had a strong desire to behold beautiful persons, then that wretch would not have been my bane. [184] God so ordained that He made thee arrive there; and, He made thee the means of saving my life.  After undergoing these disgraces, I am ashamed to reflect that I should yet live and show my face to any one.  But what can I do? the choice of death is not in our hands; God, after killing me, hath restored me to life; let us see what is written in my future fate.  In all appearance, your exertions and zeal have been of use, so that I have been cured of such wounds.  Thou hast been ready to promote my wishes with thy life and property, and whatever were thy means, thou hast offered [them cheerfully].  In those days, seeing thee without money and sad, I wrote the note to Sidi Bahar, who is my cashier.  In that note, I mentioned that I was in health and safety in such a place, and I said, “convey the intelligence of me unfortunate to my excellent mother.”