World Notes Egypt

It is recorded in the books of old that fair Scheherazade deflected the murderous intentions of her king and lord, Schahriah, by telling him stories every evening for 1,001 nights. She spun out tales of Aladdin and his magic lamp, of Sinbad's sailing on the seven seas, of Ali Baba and the 40 thieves. To titillate his fancy, she also spoke of three girls from Baghdad who danced & naked with a porter. Of a lady who beseeched two men to "pierce me with your rapiers." Of a woman's passion for a monkey, and a bear.

Schahriah, it is told, was enchanted by the stories. But many moons later -- last week -- the judges of Cairo were enraged by the erotic tales. They said 3,500 copies of two unexpurgated editions of The Arabian Nights must be destroyed. For shame, cried many a citizen of Cairo. "If they forbid all works that speak of sex," said Salah Eissa of the newspaper Al Ahali, "they will be doing damage to the study of all writing." Indeed, noted some Cairenes, the rulers were too strict in administering the laws of Islam. "A storm is brewing that augurs disaster," warned a celebrated scribe named Yusuf Idris. But do not despair. As the book of tales declares, Allah "alone can distinguish between the true and the false."