I will tell it to you,--from first to the last, listen;
Whose cure no physician can perform;
My pain is far beyond remedy,--listen."


O ye clothed in the _dalk!_ [195] this wretch is the prince of the
kingdom of Persia; men skilled in every science are born there, for
which reason the [Persian] proverb "_Isfahan nisfi Jahan_," [196] or
"_Ispahan_ is half the world," has become well known. In the seven
climes, there is no kingdom equal to that ancient kingdom; the star
of that country is the sun, and of all the seven constellations it
is the greatest. [197] The climate of that region is delightful,
and the inhabitants are of enlightened minds, and refined in their
manners. My father (who was the king of that country), in order to
teach me the rules and lessons of government, made choice of very
wise tutors in every art and science, and placed them over me for my
instruction from my infancy. So, having received complete instruction
in every kind [of knowledge], I am now learned. With the favour of God,
in my fourteenth year I had learned every science, polite conversation,
and polished manners; and I had acquired all that is fit and requisite
for kings to know; moreover, my inclinations night and day, led me to
associate with the learned, and hear the histories of every country,
and of ambitious princes and men of renown.

One day, a learned companion, who was well versed in history, and
had seen [a great deal of] the world, said to me, "That though there
is no reliance on the life of man, yet such excellent qualities are
often found in him, that owing to them, the name of some men will be
handed down with praise on people's tongues to the day of judgment." I
begged of him to relate circumstantially a few instances on that score,