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The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 14 by Anonymous
page 23 of 450 (05%)
Sharper answered "Yes" he gave him the clear-watered stone,
saying, "What may be the price of this gem?"--And Shahrazad was
surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say
her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, "How sweet is
thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!"
Quoth she, "And where is this compared with that I would relate
to you on the coming night, an the Sovran suffer me to survive?"
Now when it was the next night and that was

The Three Hundred and Thirty-sixth Night,

Dunyazad said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied, "With love
and good will!" It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the
Sharper took the jewel in hand and turned it rightwards and
leftwards and considered the outside and pried into the inside;
after which he said to the Sultan, "O my lord, verily this gem
containeth a worm[FN#26] bred within the heart thereof." Now when
the King heard these words he waxed wroth with exceeding wrath
and commanded the man's head to be stricken off, saying, "This
jewel is clear of colour and free of flaw or other default; yet
thou chargest it falsely with containing a worm!" Then he
summoned the Linkman[FN#27] who laid hands on the Sharper and
pinioned his elbows and trussed up his legs[FN#28] like a camel's
and was about to smite his neck when behold, the Wazir entered
the presence and, seeing the Sovran in high dudgeon and the
Sharper under the scymitar, asked what was to do. The Sultan
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