The Unexpected Encounter

THE CALENDER.

So you were off.

OSMIN.

No, truly. We stayed, and here is how. Hardly had the Princess set foot on the ship when the Captain—who was nothing but a pirate rascal to whom my master had foolishly addressed himself—set sail; so that we only had the trouble of the abduction, while the rascal kept the profit for himself.

THE CALENDER.

That could not have been a Muslim; it was certainly a Jew.

OSMIN.

We still saw the Princess struggling on the stern. In our despair, we would have gladly followed the ship, but my master does not know how to swim, nor do I. It was not safe for us to return to Ormus. We reached the nearest port along the coast. We found a ship destined for Egypt; the corsair seemed to us to have taken that route. We embarked, and then, away we went.

THE CALENDER.

It is high time you arrived. But one must forgive travelers for talking for a long time.

OSMIN.

Tired of running along the coasts for nearly two years without encountering either the Princess or the Corsair, we decided to push into the interior. We have not yet experienced any relief from our pains other than to swear at the top of our lungs—I against love, and my master against bandits. We give them to the devil a hundred times a day, and that is a relief.

THE CALENDER.

That is a very touching story.

OSMIN.

Oh, I have always been pathetic in my narrations. Finally, here we are in Cairo, without bread or crust, without fire or place. (to Ali, who has moved closer as if distracted) Come, my dear master, for extreme evils, one needs violent remedies. Make yourself a Calender, too.

ALI.

Me, a Calender!