Then he went to the stream and made the Wuzuwashing and when prostrating he laid his brow in the dust and prayed to the Lord，saying，'O Allah！ Thou who sendest down the dew，and feedest the worm that homes in the stone，I beseech Thee vouchsafe me my livelihood of Thine Omnipotence and the Grace of Thy benevolence！'Then he pronounced the salutation which closes prayer；yet every road appeared closed to him.And while he sat turning right and left，behold，he espied a horseman making towards him with bent back and reins slack.He sat up right and after a time reached the Prince；and the stranger was at the last gasp and made sure of death，for he was grievously wounded when he came up；the tears streamed down his cheeks like water from the mouths of skins，and he said to Kanmakan，'O Chief of the Arabs，take me to thy friendship as long as I live，for thou wilt not find my like；and give me a little water though the drinking of water be harmful to one wounded，especially whilst the blood is flowing and the life with it.And if I live，I will give thee what shall heal thy penury and thy poverty： and if I die，mayst thou be blessed for thy good intent.'Now under that horseman was a stallion，so noble a Rabite[87] the tongue fails to describe him；and as Kanmakan looked at his legs like marble shafts，he was seized with a longing and said to himself，'Verily the like of this stallion[88] is not to be found in our time.'Then he helped the rider to alight and entreated him in friendly guise and gave him a little water to swallow；after which he waited till he had taken rest and addressed him，saying，'Who hath dealt thus with thee？'Quoth the rider，'I will tell thee the truth of the case.
I am a horse thief and I have busied myself with lifting and snatching horses all my life，night and day，and my name is Ghassan，the plague of every stable and stallion.I heard tell of this horse，that he was in the land of Roum，with King Afridun，where they had named him AlKatul and surnamed him Al Majnun.[89] So I journeyed to Constantinople for his sake and watched my opportunity and whilst I was thus waiting，there came out an old woman，one highly honoured among the Greeks，and whose word with them is law，by name Zat alDawahi，a past mistress in all manner of trickery.She had with her this steed and ten slaves，no more，to attend on her and the horse；and she was bound for Baghdad and Khorasan，there to seek King Sasan and to sue for peace and pardon from ban.So I went out in their track，longing to get at the horse，[90] and ceased not to follow them，but was unable to come by the stallion，because of the strict guard kept by the slaves，till they reached this country and I feared lest they enter the city of Baghdad.As I was casting about to steal the stallion lo！ a great cloud of dust arose on them and walled the horizon.Presently it opened and disclosed fifty horsemen，gathered together to waylay merchants on the highway，and their captain，by name Kahrdash，was a lion in daring and dash；a furious lion who layeth knights flat as carpets in battlecrash.'And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the One Hundred and Fortyfirst Night，She said，It hath reached me，O auspicious King，that the wounded rider spake thus to Kanmakan，'Then came out the same Kahrdash，and fell on the old woman and her men and bore down upon them bashing them，nor was it long before they bound her and the ten slaves and bore off their captives and the horse，rejoicing.
When I saw this，I said to myself，'My pains were in vain nor did I attain my gain.' However，I waited to see how the affair would fare，and when the old woman found herself in bonds，she wept and said to the captain，Kahrdash，'O thou doughty Champion and furious Knight，what wilt thou do with an old woman and slaves，now that thou hast thy will of the horse？' And she beguiled him with soft words and she sware that she would send him horses and cattle，till he released her and her slaves.Then he went his way，he and his comrades，and I followed them till they reached this country；and I watched them，till at last I found an opportunity of stealing the horse，whereupon I mounted him and，drawing a whip from my wallet，struck him with it.When the robbers heard this，they came out on me and surrounded me on all sides and shot arrows and cast spears at me，whilst I stuck fast on his back and he fended me with hoofs and forehand，[91] till at last he bolted out with me from amongst them like unerring shaft or shooting star.But in the stress and stowre I got sundry grievous wounds and sore；and，since that time，I have passed on his back three days without tasting food or sleeping aught，so that my strength is down brought and the world is become to me as naught.But thou hast dealt kindly with me and hast shown ruth on me；and I see thee naked stark and sorrow hath set on thee its mark，yet are signs of wealth and gentle breeding manifest on thee.So tell me，what and whence art thou and whither art thou bound？'Answered the Prince，'My name is Kanmakan，son of Zau alMakan，son of King Omar bin alNu'uman.
When my father died and an orphan lot was my fate，a base man seized the throne and became King over small and great.'Then he told him all his past from first to last；and the horse thief said to him for he pitied him，'By Allah，thou art one of high degree and exceeding nobility，and thou shalt surely attain estate sublime and become the first cavalier of thy time.If thou can lift me on horseback and mount thee behind me and bring me to my own land，thou shalt have honour in this world and a reward on the day of band calling to band，[92] for I have no strength left to steady myself；and if this be my last day，the steed is thine alway，for thou art worthier of him than any other.'Quoth Kanmakan，By Allah，if I could carry thee on my shoulders or share my days with thee，I would do this deed without the steed！ For I am of a breed that loveth to do good and to succour those in need；and one kindly action in Almighty Allah's honour averteth seventy calamities from its doer.So make ready to set out and put thy trust in the Subtle，the All Wise.
