The Caliph, wondering at his absence,
had caused him to be everywhere sought for. At last he was drawn forth,
almost smothered from the wisp of linen, and wet even to the marrow.
Limping and chattering his teeth, he appeared before his master, who
inquired what was the matter, and how he came soused in so strange a
pickle.
"And why did you enter this cursed lodge?" answered Bababalouk, gruffly.
"Ought a monarch like you to visit with his harem the abode of a grey-
bearded Emir, who knows nothing of life? And with what gracious damsels
doth the place, too, abound! Fancy to yourself how they have soaked me
like a burnt crust, and made me dance like a jack-pudding the live-long
night through, on their damnable swing! What an excellent lesson for
your sultanas to follow, into whom I have instilled such reserve and
decorum!"
Vathek, comprehending not a syllable of all this invective, obliged him
to relate minutely the transaction; but instead of sympathising with the
miserable sufferer, he laughed immoderately at the device of the swing,
and the figure of Bababalouk mounting upon it. The stung eunuch could
scarcely preserve the semblance of respect.
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