Al  Eosa^t  is  said  by  some  to  have  been  a  man  of  the  tribe
of  Eosa^  in  Yemen,  whose  name  was  Moh&rib  ibn  Kays ;  by
others  he  is  said  to  have  been  of  the  Benii  Sa*d  ibn  Thobyan,
and  to  have  been  named  *Amir  ibn  H&rith.  His  story,  and
all  the  verses  which  he  is  said  to  have  improvised,  are  given
at  length  by  Sherishi,  and  are  translated  from  Motarrezi  in  De
Sacy's  Chrestomathy.  I  have  space  for  only  a  very  brief  narra-
tive. AI  Eostf  i  had  found  a  fine  nabd  tree,  of  which  bows  and
arrows  are  made,  and  had  fashioned  a  bow  for  himself.  He  took
his  stand  in  the  night  to  shoot  wild  asses ;  he  shot  and  pierced
one,  but  the  bow  was  so  strong  and  good  that  the  arrow  went
through  the  body,  and  struck  on  the  rock  behind.  Al  Eosa*t,
hearing  the  sound  in  the  darkness,  thought  he  had  missed  his
aim.  Another  troop  came  by,  and  he  shot  again,  with  the  same
seeming  want  of  success.  At  last,  after  shooting  five  times,
he  broke  the  bow  in  a  rage.  When  morning  dawned  he  saw
that  five  asses  lay  dead,  pierced  with  his  arrows.  His  repent-
ance at  having  destroyed  so  excellent  a  bow  passed  into  a
proverb,  and  it  is  said  '*  More  repentant  than  Al  Eosa*l."  Ar.
Prov.  II.  776.  It  would  appear  that  Al  Eosa'i  was  less  prudent
than  Pandarus,  who  only  threatened  that  he  would  bum  his  boW
if  ever  he  returned  home.    Iliad  V«  212.
THE  TENTH  ASSEMBLY.
