days." Then he expounded Al-Islam to the thirty-thousand men he
had captured in the first affair and exhorted them to profess and
take service with him. Twenty-thousand embraced the Faith, but
the rest refused and he slew them. Then came forward Jamrkan and
his tribe and kissed the ground before Gharib, who bestowed on
him a splendid robe of honour and made him captain of his
vanguard, saying, "O Jamrkan, mount with the Chiefs of thy kith
and kin and twenty-thousand horse and fare on before us to the
land of Jaland bin Karkar." "Hearkening and obedience," answered
Jamrkan and, leaving the women and children of the tribe in Cufa,
he set forward. Then Gharib passed in review the Harim of Mardas
and his eye lit upon Mahdiyah, who was among the women, wherewith
he fell down fainting. They sprinkled rose-water on his face,
till he came to himself, when he embraced Mahdiyah and carried
her into a sitting-chamber, where he sat with her; and they twain
lay together that night without fornication. Next morning he went
out and sitting down on the throne of his kingship, robed his
uncle Al-Damigh with a robe of honour; and appointed him his
viceroy over all Al-Irak, commending Mahdiyah to his care, till
he should return from his expedition against Ajib; and, when the
order was accepted, he set out for the land of Al-Yaman and the
City of Oman with twenty-thousand horse and ten thousand foot.
Now, when Ajib and his defeated army drew in sight of Oman, King
Jaland saw the dust of their approach and sent to find out its
meaning, scouts who returned and said, "Verily this is the dust
of one highs Ajib, lord of Al-Irak." And Jaland wondered at his
coming to his country and, when assured of the tidings, he said
to his officers, "Fare ye forth and meet him." So they went out
and met him and pitched tents for him at the city-gate; and Ajib
entered in to Jaland, weeping eyed and heavy-hearted. Now