Antoine Galland, from the telling of Hannā Diyāb · Complete work
The Two Brothers and the Forty Riders
The Two Brothers and the Forty Riders of 14. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
Open the complete readerOriginal French
La sultane Scheherazade éveillée par la vigilance de Dinarzade sa sœur, racontoit au sultan des Indes, son époux, l’histoire à laquelle il s’attendoit:
Puissant sultan, dit-elle, dans une ville de Perse, aux confins des états de votre Majesté, il y avoit deux frères, dont l’un se nommoit Cassim, et l’autre Ali Baba. Comme leur père ne leur avoit laissé que peu de biens, et qu’ils les avoient partagés également, il semble que leur fortune devoit être égale: le hasard néanmoins en disposa autrement.
Cassim épousa une femme qui, peu de temps après leur mariage, devint héritière d’une boutique bien garnie, d’un magasin rempli de bonnes marchandises, et de biens en fonds de terre, qui le mirent tout-à-coup à son aise, et le rendirent un des marchands les plus riches de la ville.
Ali Baba, au contraire, qui avoit épousé une femme aussi pauvre que lui, étoit logé fort pauvrement, et il n’avoit d’autre industrie pour gagner sa vie, et de quoi s’entretenir lui et ses enfans, que d’aller couper du bois dans une forêt voisine, et de venir le vendre à la ville, chargé sur trois ânes qui faisoient toute sa possession.
Ali Baba étoit un jour dans la forêt, et il achevoit d’avoir coupé à-peu-près assez de bois pour faire la charge de ses ânes, lorsqu’il aperçut une grosse poussière qui s’élevoit en l’air, et qui avançoit du côté où il étoit. Il regarde attentivement, et il distingue une troupe nombreuse de gens à cheval qui venoient d’un bon train.
Quoiqu’on ne parlât pas de voleurs dans le pays, Ali Baba néanmoins eut la pensée que ces cavaliers pouvoient en être: sans considérer ce que deviendroient ses ânes, il songea à sauver sa personne. Il monta sur un gros arbre, dont les branches à peu de hauteur se séparoient en rond, si près les unes des autres, qu’elles n’étoient séparées que par un très-petit espace. Il se posta au milieu avec d’autant plus d’assurance, qu’il pouvoit voir sans être vu; et l’arbre s’élevoit au pied d’un rocher isolé de tous les côtés, beaucoup plus haut que l’arbre, et escarpé de manière qu’on ne pouvoit monter au haut par aucun endroit.
Les cavaliers, grands, puissans, tous bien montés et bien armés, arrivèrent près du rocher, où ils mirent pied à terre; et Ali Baba, qui en compta quarante, à leur mine et a leur équipement, ne douta pas qu’ils ne fussent des voleurs. Il ne se trompoit pas: en effet, c’étoient des voleurs, qui, sans faire aucun tort aux environs, alloient exercer leurs brigandages bien loin, et avoient là leur rendez-vous; et ce qu’il les vit faire, le confirma dans cette opinion.
Chaque cavalier débrida son cheval, l’attacha, lui passa au cou un sac plein d’orge qu’il avoit apporté sur la croupe, et ils se chargèrent chacun de leur valise; et la plupart des valises parurent si pesantes à Ali Baba, qu’il jugea qu’elles étoient pleines d’or et d’argent monnoyé.
Le plus apparent, chargé de sa valise comme les autres, qu’Ali Baba prit pour le capitaine des voleurs, s’approcha du rocher, fort près du gros arbre où il s’étoit réfugié; et après qu’il se fut fait chemin au travers de quelques arbrisseaux, il prononça ces paroles si distinctement, Sésame, ouvre-toi, qu’Ali Baba les entendit. Dès que le capitaine des voleurs les eut prononcées, une porte s’ouvrit; et après qu’il eut fait passer tous ses gens devant lui, et qu’ils furent tous entrés, il entra aussi, et la porte se ferma.
Les voleurs demeurèrent long-temps dans le rocher; et Ali Baba qui craignoit que quelqu’un d’eux, ou que tous ensemble ne sortissent s’il quittoit son poste pour se sauver, fut contraint de rester sur l’arbre, et d’attendre avec patience. Il fut tenté néanmoins de descendre pour se saisir de deux chevaux, en monter un, et mener l’autre par la bride, et de gagner la ville en chassant ses trois ânes devant lui; mais l’incertitude de l’événement fit qu’il prit le parti le plus sûr.
La porte se rouvrit enfin, les quarante voleurs sortirent; et au lieu que le capitaine étoit entré le dernier, il sortit le premier, et après les avoir vus défiler devant lui. Ali Baba entendit qu’il fit refermer la porte, en prononçant ces paroles: Sésame, referme-toi. Chacun retourna à son cheval, le rebrida, rattacha sa valise, et remonta dessus. Quand ce capitaine enfin vit qu’ils étoient tous prêts à partir, il se mit à la tête, et il reprit avec eux le chemin par où ils étoient venus.
Musean translation
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from Antoine Galland’s French text of “Histoire d’Ali Baba, et de quarante voleurs exterminés par une esclave” (Les Mille et une nuits, Le Normant edition of 1806, volume VI), paragraph for paragraph, and checked against the French before publication.
Sultana Scheherazade, woken by the watchfulness of her sister Dinarzade, told the sultan of the Indies, her husband, the story he was waiting for:
Mighty sultan, she said, in a city of Persia, on the borders of Your Majesty's lands, there lived two brothers, one named Cassim and the other Ali Baba. Their father had left them little, and they had divided it equally, so it seemed their fortunes ought to be equal. Chance, however, arranged things otherwise.
Cassim married a woman who, soon after the wedding, inherited a well-stocked shop, a warehouse full of good merchandise, and property in land. All at once he was comfortable, and he became one of the richest merchants in the city.
Ali Baba, on the other hand, had married a woman as poor as himself. He lived very meanly, and the only trade he had to earn a living and keep himself and his children was to go and cut wood in a nearby forest and bring it to the city to sell, loaded on three donkeys that were everything he owned.
One day Ali Baba was in the forest and had nearly cut enough wood to load his donkeys when he saw a great cloud of dust rising into the air and moving toward the place where he stood. He looked hard, and made out a large band of horsemen coming on at a good pace.
No one spoke of robbers in that country, yet Ali Baba had the thought that these riders might be robbers. Without stopping to think what would become of his donkeys, he thought only of saving himself. He climbed a large tree whose branches, a little way up, spread out in a ring, so close together that only a very small space parted them. He settled himself in the middle, all the more confident because he could see without being seen. The tree grew at the foot of a rock that stood alone on every side, much taller than the tree and so steep that no one could climb to the top from any direction.
The horsemen, tall and powerful, all well mounted and well armed, rode up to the rock and dismounted. Ali Baba counted forty of them, and from their looks and their gear he had no doubt that they were robbers. He was not mistaken. They were indeed robbers who did no harm in the neighborhood but went far afield to plunder, and this was their meeting place. What he saw them do next confirmed him in that opinion.
Each rider unbridled his horse, tied it up, and hung around its neck a bag full of barley that he had carried on its hindquarters. Then each of them took up his saddlebag, and most of the bags seemed so heavy to Ali Baba that he judged them full of gold and silver coin.
The most imposing of them, carrying his saddlebag like the rest, and whom Ali Baba took to be the captain of the robbers, came up to the rock, very close to the large tree where Ali Baba had taken refuge. He made his way through some bushes and then spoke these words so distinctly that Ali Baba heard them: "Open, Sesame!" As soon as the robber captain had spoken them, a door opened. He had all his men pass in ahead of him, and when they had all gone in, he went in too, and the door closed.
The robbers stayed a long time inside the rock. Ali Baba feared that if he left his post to escape, one of them, or all of them together, might come out, so he was forced to stay in the tree and wait patiently. He was tempted, all the same, to climb down, seize two of the horses, ride one and lead the other by the bridle, and make for the city driving his three donkeys before him. But not knowing how it would turn out, he chose the safer course.
At last the door opened again and the forty robbers came out. The captain, who had gone in last, came out first, and when he had watched them file past him, Ali Baba heard him close the door by saying these words: "Close, Sesame!" Each man went back to his horse, bridled it again, fastened his saddlebag, and remounted. When the captain saw at last that they were all ready to leave, he put himself at their head and rode off with them the way they had come.
Plain English translation
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from the same French text of Galland’s 1806 Le Normant edition, paragraph for paragraph.
Scheherazade's sister Dinarzade kept watch and woke her. Scheherazade then began the story the sultan of the Indies, her husband, was expecting:
Great sultan, she said, there was once a city in Persia, near the edge of your lands. Two brothers lived there. One was called Cassim, the other Ali Baba. Their father left them very little money, and they split it evenly between them. You would think they would stay equally well off. Luck decided differently.
Cassim married a woman who, not long after, inherited a shop full of goods, a storehouse packed with good stock, and some land. Suddenly Cassim was well off. He became one of the richest merchants in town.
Ali Baba married a woman who was as poor as he was. They lived in a very poor house. To support himself and his children, all he could do was cut wood in a forest nearby and carry it into town to sell. He loaded it on three donkeys, and those donkeys were all he owned.
One day Ali Baba was in the forest. He had almost cut enough wood to load up his donkeys when he noticed a big cloud of dust going up into the sky. It was coming his way. He looked closely and saw that it was a large group of men on horseback, riding fast.
Nobody talked about robbers in that area. Still, it crossed Ali Baba's mind that these riders could be robbers. He didn't worry about what would happen to his donkeys. He only wanted to save himself. He climbed a big tree. A short way up, its branches spread out in a circle and grew so close together that there was hardly any gap between them. He sat down in the middle. He felt safe there, because he could see out but no one could see him. The tree stood at the bottom of a rock that stood by itself. The rock was much taller than the tree, and its sides were so steep that there was no way to climb up it anywhere.
The riders were big, strong men with fine horses and plenty of weapons. They came to the rock and got down from their horses. Ali Baba counted forty. From how they looked and what they carried, he was sure they were robbers. He was right. They were robbers who never hurt anyone near home. They went a long way off to steal, and they used this place to meet. What he saw next made him even surer.
Each man took the bridle off his horse and tied it up. He hung a bag of barley around the horse's neck. He had carried the bag on the back of the horse. Then each of them picked up his saddlebag. Most of the bags looked so heavy to Ali Baba that he decided they must be full of gold and silver coins.
One man stood out from the others. He was carrying a saddlebag like everyone else, and Ali Baba guessed he was the leader. He walked up to the rock, very near the tree where Ali Baba was hiding. He pushed through some bushes and said, loud and clear, "Open, Sesame!" Ali Baba heard every word. The moment the leader said it, a door opened. He let all his men go in first. When they were all inside, he went in too, and the door shut.
The robbers were inside the rock for a long time. Ali Baba was afraid that if he climbed down to run away, one of them, or all of them, would come out. So he had no choice but to stay in the tree and wait. He was tempted to climb down, grab two horses, ride one and lead the other, and head for town with his three donkeys in front of him. But he couldn't be sure how that would end, so he played it safe.
In the end the door opened again and the forty robbers came out. The leader had gone in last, and now he came out first. He watched them all walk out past him. Then Ali Baba heard him shut the door by saying, "Close, Sesame!" Each man went back to his horse, put the bridle back on, tied his saddlebag on again, and got back on. When the leader saw that everyone was ready, he rode to the front and led them away the same way they had come.