Antoine Galland, from the telling of Hannā Diyāb · Complete work
The Jars of Oil
The Jars of Oil of 14. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
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Quoique le voleur eût parlé bas, Morgiane néanmoins fut frappée de la voix d’autant plus facilement, que le capitaine des voleurs, dès qu’il eut déchargé ses mulets, avoit ouvert, non-seulement ce vase, mais même tous les autres, pour donner de l’air à ses gens, qui d’ailleurs y étoient fort mal à leur aise, sans y être cependant privés de la facilité de respirer.
Toute autre esclave que Morgiane, aussi surprise qu’elle le fut, en trouvant un homme dans un vase, au lieu d’y trouver de l’huile qu’elle cherchoit, eût fait un vacarme capable de causer de grands malheurs. Mais Morgiane étoit au-dessus de ses semblables: elle comprit en un instant l’importance de garder ce secret, le danger pressant où se trouvoit Ali Baba et sa famille, et où elle se trouvoit elle-même, et la nécessité d’y apporter promptement le remède, sans faire d’éclat; et par sa capacité elle en pénétra d’abord les moyens. Elle rentra donc en elle-même dans le moment, et sans faire paroître aucune émotion, en prenant la place du capitaine des voleurs, elle répondit à la demande, et elle dit: « Pas encore, mais bientôt. » Elle s’approcha du vase qui suivoit, et la même demande lui fut faite, et ainsi de suite, jusqu’à ce qu’elle arriva au dernier qui étoit plein d’huile; et, à la même demande, elle donna la même réponse.
Morgiane connut par-là que son maître Ali Baba, qui avoit cru ne donner à loger chez lui qu’à un marchand d’huile, y avoit donné entrée à trente-huit voleurs, en y comprenant le faux marchand leur capitaine. Elle remplit en diligence sa cruche d’huile, qu’elle prit du dernier vase; elle revint dans sa cuisine, où après avoir mis de l’huile dans la lampe et l’avoir ralumée, elle prend une grande chaudière, elle retourne à la cour où elle l’emplit de l’huile du vase. Elle la rapporte, la met sur le feu, et met dessous force bois, parce que plutôt l’huile bouillira, plutôt elle aura exécuté ce qui doit contribuer au salut commun de la maison, qui ne demande pas de retardement. L’huile bout enfin, elle prend la chaudière, et elle va verser dans chaque vase assez d’huile toute bouillante, depuis le premier jusqu’au dernier, pour les étouffer et leur ôter la vie, comme elle la leur ôta.
Cette action digne du courage de Morgiane, exécutée sans bruit, comme elle l’avoit projeté, elle revient dans la cuisine avec la chaudière vuide, et ferme la porte. Elle éteint le grand feu qu’elle avoit allumé, et elle n’en laisse qu’autant qu’il en faut pour achever de faire cuire le pot du bouillon d’Ali Baba. Ensuite elle souffle la lampe, et elle demeure dans un grand silence, résolue à ne pas se coucher qu’elle n’eût observé ce qui arriveroit, par une fenêtre de la cuisine qui donnoit sur la cour, autant que l’obscurité de la nuit pouvoit le permettre.
Il n’y avoit pas encore un quart d’heure que Morgiane attendoit, quand le capitaine des voleurs s’éveilla. Il se lève, il regarde par la fenêtre qu’il ouvre; et comme il n’aperçoit aucune lumière et qu’il voit régner un grand repos et un profond silence dans la maison, il donne le signal en jetant de petites pierres, dont plusieurs tombèrent sur les vases, comme il n’en douta point par le son qui lui en vint aux oreilles. Il prête l’oreille, et n’entend ni n’aperçoit rien qui lui fasse connoître que ses gens se mettent en mouvement. Il en est inquiet: il jette de petites pierres une seconde et une troisième fois. Elles tombent sur les vases, et cependant pas un des voleurs ne donne le moindre signe de vie, et il n’en peut comprendre la raison. Il descend dans la cour tout alarmé, avec le moins de bruit qu’il lui est possible; il approche de même du premier vase, et quand il veut demander au voleur, qu’il croit vivant, s’il dort, il sent une odeur d’huile chaude et de brûlé, qui exhale du vase, par où il connoît que son entreprise contre Ali Baba, pour lui ôter la vie et pour piller sa maison, et pour emporter s’il pouvoit l’or qu’il avoit enlevé à sa communauté, étoit échouée. Il passe au vase qui suivoit, et à tous les autres l’un après l’autre, et il trouve que ses gens avoient péri par le même sort; et par la diminution de l’huile dans le vase qu’il avoit apporté plein, il connut la manière dont on s’y étoit pris pour le priver du secours qu’il en attendoit. Au désespoir d’avoir manqué son coup, il enfila la porte du jardin d’Ali Baba, qui donnoit dans la cour, et de jardin en jardin, en passant par-dessus les murs, il se sauva.
Quand Morgiane n’entendit plus de bruit et qu’elle ne vit pas revenir le capitaine des voleurs, après avoir attendu quelque temps, elle ne douta pas du parti qu’il avoit pris, plutôt que de chercher à se sauver par la porte de la maison, qui étoit fermée à double tour. Satisfaite et dans une grande joie d’avoir si bien réussi à mettre toute la maison en sûreté, elle se coucha enfin, et elle s’endormit.
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.
Although the robber had spoken low, Morgiana caught the voice all the more easily because the robber captain, as soon as he had unloaded his mules, had opened not only this jar but all the others as well, to give air to his men, who were very uncomfortable in there anyway, though not deprived of the means to breathe.
Any slave other than Morgiana, as startled as she was to find a man in a jar instead of the oil she was looking for, would have raised an uproar that could have caused great misfortunes. But Morgiana was above her kind. She understood in an instant how important it was to keep this secret, the pressing danger in which Ali Baba and his family stood, and she herself as well, and the need to find a remedy quickly without making any stir; and with her gift for such things she saw at once how to do it. So she collected herself that very moment, and without showing any emotion, taking the robber captain's place, she answered the question and said, "Not yet, but soon." She went up to the next jar, and the same question was put to her, and so on down the line until she came to the last, which was full of oil; and to the same question she gave the same answer.
By this Morgiana learned that her master Ali Baba, who thought he had given lodging to an oil merchant and no more, had let thirty-eight robbers into his house, counting the false merchant, their captain. She quickly filled her jug with oil, which she took from the last jar, and went back to her kitchen. There, after putting oil in the lamp and lighting it again, she took a large cauldron and went back to the courtyard, where she filled it with oil from the jar. She carried it back, set it on the fire, and heaped plenty of wood beneath it, for the sooner the oil boiled, the sooner she would have done what must be done for the common safety of the house, which allowed no delay. At last the oil boiled. She took the cauldron and went and poured into each jar, from the first to the last, enough boiling oil to stifle them and take their lives, and so she took them.
This deed, worthy of Morgiana's courage, carried out without a sound as she had planned, she came back into the kitchen with the empty cauldron and shut the door. She put out the great fire she had lit, leaving only as much as was needed to finish cooking the pot of broth for Ali Baba. Then she blew out the lamp and stayed perfectly silent, determined not to go to bed until she had watched what would happen, through a kitchen window that looked onto the courtyard, as far as the darkness of the night allowed.
Morgiana had not been waiting a quarter of an hour when the robber captain woke. He got up, opened the window, and looked out. Seeing no light and finding the whole house deep in stillness and silence, he gave the signal by throwing little stones, several of which fell on the jars, as he had no doubt from the sound that reached his ears. He listened and heard nothing, and saw nothing, to tell him that his men were stirring. This troubled him. He threw little stones a second time and a third. They fell on the jars, and yet not one of the robbers gave the slightest sign of life, and he could not understand why. Thoroughly alarmed, he went down into the courtyard as quietly as he could. He crept up to the first jar in the same way, and as he was about to ask the robber, whom he believed alive, whether he was asleep, he smelled hot oil and burning rising from the jar. By this he knew that his plot against Ali Baba, to take his life and plunder his house and carry off, if he could, the gold he had taken from the band, had failed. He went on to the next jar, and to all the others one after another, and found that his men had all perished the same way; and from the oil gone from the jar he had brought in full, he understood how he had been robbed of the help he was counting on. In despair at having missed his stroke, he slipped through the door into Ali Baba's garden, which opened off the courtyard, and escaped from garden to garden over the walls.
When Morgiana heard no more noise and did not see the robber captain come back, she waited some time and then had no doubt about the way he had taken, rather than trying to escape by the door of the house, which was double-locked. Content, and full of joy at having succeeded so well in making the whole household safe, she went to bed at last and fell asleep.
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.
The robber had whispered, but Morgiana still noticed his voice right away. That was easy, because as soon as the robber leader had unloaded his mules, he had opened this jar and all the others to let his men get some air. They were very uncomfortable in there, but they could still breathe.
Any other slave would have been just as shocked as Morgiana to find a man in a jar instead of the oil she wanted. Anyone else would have screamed and made a scene, and that could have led to disaster. But Morgiana was better than most people. In a moment she understood several things. It was important to keep this quiet. Ali Baba and his family were in serious danger, and so was she. And she had to fix things fast without making a fuss. Because she was so capable, she figured out how to do it right away. So she calmed herself at once. Without showing any feeling at all, she pretended to be the robber leader. She answered the question: "Not yet, but soon." She went to the next jar. The man inside asked her the same thing. It went on like that until she got to the last jar, the one that was full of oil. Each time she heard the same question, she gave the same answer.
That's how Morgiana found out what was going on. Her master Ali Baba thought he had let an oil seller stay at his house. In fact he had let in thirty-eight robbers, if you count their leader, the fake oil seller. She quickly filled her jug with oil from the last jar. She went back to the kitchen. She put oil in the lamp and lit it again. Then she took a big pot, went back out to the yard, and filled it with oil from the jar. She carried it back and put it on the fire. She put a lot of wood under it, because the sooner the oil boiled, the sooner she could do what had to be done to save the whole household. There was no time to waste. Finally the oil boiled. She picked up the pot and went from jar to jar, from the first to the last. Into each one she poured enough boiling oil to smother the man inside and kill him. And that is what she did.
It took great courage, and she did it without making a sound, just as she had planned. Then she went back into the kitchen with the empty pot and shut the door. She put out the big fire she had built. She left only enough to finish cooking Ali Baba's soup. Then she blew out the lamp and stayed completely quiet. She had decided not to go to bed until she saw what would happen next. She watched through a kitchen window that looked out on the yard, as well as she could in the dark.
Morgiana hadn't been waiting fifteen minutes when the robber leader woke up. He got up, opened his window, and looked out. There were no lights, and the whole house was calm and very quiet. So he gave the signal. He threw some small stones, and several of them hit the jars. He could tell by the sound. He listened, but he didn't hear anything, or see anything, that told him his men were moving. That worried him. He threw more small stones, a second time and a third time. They hit the jars, but none of the robbers showed any sign of life. He couldn't understand why. He was very alarmed now. He went down into the yard, making as little noise as he could. He crept up to the first jar the same way. He was about to ask the robber inside, whom he thought was alive, if he had fallen asleep. Then he smelled hot oil and something burned coming out of the jar. That told him his plan had failed. He had wanted to kill Ali Baba, rob his house, and, if he could, take back the gold Ali Baba had taken from the gang. He went to the next jar, and then to all the others, one after another. He found that all his men had died the same way. He saw that the oil in the jar he had brought in full had gone down, and he understood how someone had cut him off from the help he was counting on. He was desperate at having failed. He slipped out through the door that led from the yard into Ali Baba's garden. From there he climbed over walls from one garden to the next and got away.
Morgiana waited a while. She didn't hear any more noise, and the robber leader didn't come back. She was sure he had gone out through the garden. He wouldn't have tried the front door of the house, because it was locked twice over. She was very happy and relieved that she had managed to make the whole house safe. Finally she went to bed and fell asleep.