"How," said the Vizier, "can the Caliph be of service to thee?"

"It is requisite," replied the stranger, "that my hand be stained with
the blood of the Caliph, before I summon this most mighty fiend!"--

"How!" cried the astonished Vizier, "would'st thou shed the blood of our
beloved master?--No, by Alla!"--

"Pardon me," rejoined the stranger, interrupting him, "and Heaven avert
that any thought of harm against the father of his people should warm
the breast of Abad; I wish only to anoint my finger with as much of his
precious blood as would hide the point of the finest needle; and should
this most inestimable favour be conferred upon me, I undertake, under
pain of suffering all the tortures that human ingenuity can devise, or
devilish vengeance inflict, to exterminate the hated race of banditti
who now infest the forests of the East."

"Son," said the aged Vizier, "I will plead thy cause; meet me here on
the morrow, and in the mean time consider thy request as granted."

"Father, I take my leave; and may the Guardian of the Good shower down
a thousand blessings on thy head!"

Abad made a profound obeisance to the Vizier, and they separated: the
latter to conduct the affairs of the state, and the former to toil
through the more menial labours of the day.

Morning came; Abad was at the appointed spot before sunrise, and waited
with impatience for the expected hour when the Vizier was to arrive.
The Vizier was punctual; and with him, in a plain habit, was the Caliph