reign. Hereupon she fell to ordering the Forty Virgins who were
still habited as Mamelukes and they served the Sultan for a while
of time till one day of the days when the Wazir came to the
presence and said, "O King of the Age, I have a daughter, a model
of beauty and loveliness, and I am desirous of wedding her with
the Sovran because one such as thou should not remain in single
blessedness."--And Sharazad 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 King
suffer me to survive?" Now when it was the next night and that
was

The Five Hundred and Fifth 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 quoth the
Wazir to the Sultan, "I have a daughter, a model of beauty and
loveliness and I am desirous of wedding her with the Sultan,
because one such as thou should not remain in single
blessedness." "Do whatso thou wishest," quoth the King, "and
Allah prosper thy doing." Hereupon the Wazir fell to preparing
the marriage-portion[FN#28] of his daughter, and of forwarding
her affair with the Sultan, until her wedding appointments[FN#29]
and other matters were completed. After this he caused the