and the slave went about his business. The Moorman on entering
saluted his sister-in-law with the salami then began to shed
tears and to question her saying, "Where be the place whereon my
brother went to sit?" She showed it to him, whereat he went up to
it and prostrated himself in prayer[FN#71] and kissed the floor
crying, "Ah, how scant is my satisfaction and how luckless is my
lot, for that I have lost thee, O my brother, O vein of my eye!"
And after such fashion he continued weeping and wailing till he
swooned away for excess of sobbing and lamentation; wherefor
Alaeddin's mother was certified of his soothfastness. So coming
up to him she raised him from the floor and said, "What gain is
there in slaying thyself?"--And Shahrazad was surprised by the
dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

When it was ad the Five Hundred and Eighteenth Night,


Quoth Dunyazad, "O sister mine, an thou be other than sleepy, do
tell us some of thy pleasant tales," whereupon Shahrazad replied,
"With love and good will."--It hath reached me, O King of the
Age, that Alaeddin's mother began consoling the Maghrabi, the
Magician, and placed him upon the divan; and, as soon as he was
seated at his ease and before the food-trays were served up, he
fell to talking with her and saying, "O wife of my brother, it
must be a wonder to thee how in all thy days thou never sawest me
nor learnedst thou aught of me during the life-time of my brother
who hath found mercy.[FN#72] Now the reason is that forty years
ago I left this town and exiled myself from my birth-place and
wandered forth over all the lands of Al-Hind and Al-Sind and
entered Egypt and settled for a long time in its magnificent