he neither replied nor denied; and, when she set before him the
morning meal he continued in like case; so Quoth she, "O my son,
what is't may have befallen thee? Say me, doth aught ail thee?
Let me know what ill hath betided thee for, unlike thy custom,
thou speakest not when I bespeak thee." Thereupon Alaeddin (who
used to think that all women resembled his mother[FN#128] and
who, albeit he had heard of the charms of Badr al-Budur, daughter
of the Sultan, yet knew not what "beauty" and "loveliness" might
signify) turned to his parent and exclaimed, "Let me be!"
However, she persisted in praying him to come forwards and eat,
so he did her bidding but hardly touched food; after which he lay
at full length on his bed all the night through in cogitation
deep until morning morrowed. The same was his condition during
the next day, when his mother was perplexed for the case of her
son and unable to learn what had happened to him. So, thinking
that belike he might be ailing she drew near him and asked him
saying, "O my son, an thou sense aught of pain or such like, let
me know that I may fare forth and fetch thee the physician; and
to-day there be in this our city a leech from the Land of the
Arabs whom the Sultan hath sent to summon and the bruit abroad
reporteth him to be skillful exceedingly. So, an be thou ill let
me go and bring him to thee."--And Shahrazad was surprised by the
dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

When it was the Five Hundred and Forty-first 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, hearing his parent's offer to summon the