Gallantry And Humour

An Arab of the desert welcomed the arrival of an Arab chief in a Qasída recited by him, which terminated in the following [Arabic] distich:

Stretch out thy hand to me, the palm whereof Distributes largesses, and its back is kissed.

Accordingly the generous man held out his hand to be kissed by the Arab, whereon he said by way of a joke: "The hairs upon thy lips have scratched my hand." The Arab replied: "What injury can the bristles of a porcupine inflict upon the paw of a formidable lion?" This sally pleased the liberal man, who said: "I like this better than the Qasída," and ordered him to be rewarded for it with 1,000 and for the sally 3,000 dirhams.