held. On one occasion, five thousand dinars were sent to him, and on another he was presented with an estate consisting of fourteen villages. The brief notice in Dowlat Shah's account of the Poets of Persia represents him as the finest writer of the age in which he lived. Hafiz thus speaks of him : Not all the treasured store of ancient days Barrackpore, December 20th, 1835. LAILÍ AND MAJNÚN. I. SAKI, thou know'st I worship wine; Wine! pure and limpid as my tears, With thee inspired, with thee made bold, And, rapt, of love and pleasure sing. Thou art a lion, seeking prey, Along the glades where wild deer stray; And like a lion I would roam, To bring the joys I seek for home; With wine, life's dearest, sweetest treasure, I feel the thrill of every pleasure: -Bring, Saki, bring the ruby now; Its lustre sparkles on thy brow, Α 10 And, flashing with a tremulous light, Its power, its wondrous power, in me. 20 -No ancestors have I to boast ; The trace of my descent is lost. That wine, which to the fever'd lip, With anguish parch'd, when given to sip, A veil o'er all distracting woes: That wine, the lamp which, night and day, 30 40 Which strews the path with fruits and flowers, And lifts the mind, now grown elate, "Tis not for thee their smiles to share : 50 "Tis the key of mirth, and must be mine: 60 The key which opens wide the door Of rapture's rich and varied store; Of kindness indescribable : Then, since I'm in the drinking vein, 70 Come, Saki, thou'rt not old, nor lame; Thou'dst not incur from a minstrel blame; A 2 Let him wash from his heart the dust of sorrow; Let him riot in social bliss till the morrow; Let the sound of the goblet delight his ear, Like the music that breathes from Heaven's own sphere. II. Mark, where instruction pours upon the mind The light of knowledge, simple or refined; Shaikhs of each tribe have children there, and each Studies whate'er the bearded sage can teach. Thence his attainments Kais assiduous drew, And scattered pearls from lips of ruby hue; Bright as the morn, her cypress shape, and eyes A thousand hearts were won; no pride, no shield, 80 90 |