youth, cried out to him, saying, “Allah prolong the king’s days! Indeed, he refuseth to present himself before thee, without order or leave.” Asked the king, “O Sa’ad, whence cometh this man?” and the Emir answered, “O my lord, I know not; but he is a youth fair of favour, amiable of aspect, accomplished in address, ready of repartee, and valour shineth from between his eyes.” Quoth the king, “O Sa’ad, fetch him to me, for indeed thou describest to me at full length a mighty matter.”[366] And he answered, saying, “By Allah, O my lord, hadst thou but seen our case with Hodhayfah, when he challenged me to the field of fight and the stead of cut-and-thrust and I held back from doing battle with him! Then, as I thought to go forth to him, behold, a knight gave loose to his bridle-rein and called out to me, saying:—O Sa’ad, wilt thou suffer me to be thy substitute in waging war with him and I will ransom thee with myself? And quoth I, By Allah, O youth, whence comest thou? and quoth he, This be no time for thy questions, while Hodhayfah standeth awaiting thee.” Thereupon he repeated to the king all that had passed between himself and Al-Abbas from first to last; whereat cried Ins bin Kays, “Bring him to me in haste, so we may learn his tidings and question him of his case.” “’Tis well,” replied Sa’ad, and going forth of the king’s presence, repaired to his own house, where he doffed his war-harness and took rest for himself. On this wise fared it with the Emir Sa’ad; but as regards Al-Abbas, when he dismounted from his destrier, he doffed his war-gear and reposed himself awhile; after which he brought out a body-dress of Venetian[367] silk and a gown of green damask and donning them, bound about his head a turband of Damietta stuff and zoned his waist with a kerchief. Then he went out a-walking in the highways of Baghdad and fared on till he came to the bazar of the traders. There he found a merchant, with chess before him; so the Prince stood watching him, and presently the other looked up at him and asked him, “O youth, what wilt thou bet upon the game?” He answered, “Be it thine to decide.” Said the merchant, “Then be it an hundred dinars,” and Al-Abbas consented to him; whereupon quoth he, “Produce the money, O youth, so the game may be fairly stablished.” Accordingly Al-Abbas brought out a satin purse, wherein were a thousand dinars, and laid down an hundred dinars therefrom on the edge of the carpet, whilst the merchant produced the like, and indeed his reason fled for joy when he saw the gold in possession of Al-Abbas. The folk flocked about them, to divert themselves with watching the play, and they called the bystanders to witness the wager and after the stakes were duly staked, the twain fell a-playing. Al-Abbas forebore the merchant, so he might lead him on, and dallied with him a full hour; and the merchant won and took of him the hundred dinars. Then said the Prince, “Wilt thou play another