They
surrounded me as I entered. The commanding officer said, "Prince, the
army has proclaimed the grand vizier sultan, instead of your father,
who is dead, and I take you prisoner in the name of the new sultan."
This rebel vizier had long entertained a mortal hatred toward me. When
I was a boy I loved to shoot with a crossbow. Being one day upon the
terrace of the palace, and 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. He never forgave me, and, as opportunity offered, made me
sensible of his resentment. But now that he had me in his power he
came to me like a madman, and thrusting his finger into my right eye,
pulled it out, and thus I became blind of one eye.
His cruelty did not stop here; he commanded the executioner to cut off
my head, and leave me to be devoured by birds of prey. The executioner
conveyed me to the place of execution to complete this 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 never
return, or you will destroy yourself and me."
I thanked him, 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 thus surrounded with sorrows and persecuted by fortune, I had
recourse to a stratagem, which was the only means left me to save my
life: I caused my beard and eyebrows to be shaved, and putting on a
calender's habit, I passed, unknown by any, out of the city.
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