the chest, moving and speaking." "Thou liest: what do they say?"
"They say, 'Where am I?'" "Would Heaven thou wert in Hell! Thou
disturbest the neighbours and hinderest them of sleep. Go to
sleep, would thou hadst never lived nor been!" So Khalif went in
fearful because he had no place wherein to sleep save upon the
chest-lid when lo! as he stood, with ears listening for speech,
Kut al-Kulub spake again and said, "I'm hungry." So in sore
affright he fled forth and cried out, "Ho neighbours! ho dwellers
in the Khan, come aid me!" Said they, "What is thy calamity
now?"[FN#290] And he answered, "The Ifrits in the chest say, 'We
are hungry.'" Quoth the neighbours one to other, "'Twould seem
Khalif is hungry; let us feed him and give him the supper-orts;
else he will not let us sleep to-night." So they brought him
bread and meat and broken victuals and radishes and gave him a
basket full of all kinds of things, saying, "Eat till thou be
full and go to sleep and talk not, else will we break thy ribs
and beat thee to death this very night." So he took the basket
with the provaunt and entered his lodging. Now it was a moonlight
night and the moon shone in full sheen upon the chest and lit up
the closet with its light, seeing this he sat down on his
purchase and fell to eating of the food with both hands.
Presently Kut al-Kulub spake again and said, "Open to me and have
mercy upon me, O Moslems!" So Khalif arose and taking a stone he
had by him, broke the chest open and behold, therein lay a young
lady as she were the sun's shining light with brow flower-white,
face moonbright, cheeks of rose-hue exquisite and speech sweeter
than sugar-bite, and in dress worth a thousand dinars and more
bedight. Seeing this his wits flew from his head for joy and he
said, "By Allah, thou art of the fair!" She asked him, "What art
thou, O fellow?" and he answered, "O my lady, I am Khalif the