silk and laid them up. Then he laid out Nuzhet el Fuad and did
with her even as she had done with him; after which he rent his
clothes and plucked out his beard and disordered his turban [and
went forth] and gave not over running till he came in to the
Khalif, who was sitting in the hall of audience, and he in this
plight, beating upon his breast. Quoth the Khalif to him, "What
aileth thee, O Aboulhusn!" And he wept and said, "Would thy
boon-companion had never been and would his hour had never come!"
"Tell me [thy case,]" said the Khalif; and Aboulhusn said, "O my
lord, may thy head outlive Nuzhet el Fuad!" Quoth the Khalif,
"There is no god but God!" And he smote hand upon hand. Then he
comforted Aboulhusn and said to him, "Grieve not, for we will
give thee a concubine other than she." And he bade the treasurer
give him a hundred dinars and a piece of silk. So the treasurer
gave him what the Khalif bade him, and the latter said to
him,"Go, lay her out and carry her forth and make her a handsome
funeral." So Aboulhusn took that which he had given him and
returning to his house, rejoicing, went in to Nuzhet el Fuad and
said to her, "Arise, for the wish is accomplished unto us." So
she arose and he laid before her the hundred dinars and the piece
of silk, whereat she rejoiced, and they added the gold to the
gold and the silk to the silk and sat talking and laughing at one
another.

Meanwhile, when Aboulhusn went out from the presence of the
Khalif and went to lay out Nuzhet el Fuad, the prince mourned for
her and dismissing the divan, arose and betook himself, leaning
upon Mesrour, the swordsman of his vengeance, [to the pavilion of
the harem, where he went in] to the Lady Zubeideh, that he might
condole with her for her slave-girl. He found the princess