Ah! sister, says Dinarzade, you break off at the very best of the story. It is true, answered the sultaness; but, sister, you see I am forced to do so. If my lord, the sultan, pleases, you may hear the rest tomorrow. Schahriar agreed to this, not so much to please Dinarzade, as to satisfy his own curiosity, being impatient to know what adventure the prince met with in the castle. TWENTY-FIRST NIGHT. Dinarzade, to make amends for her neglect the night before, never closed her eyes, and when she thought it was time, awaked the sultaness, saying to her, My dear sister, pray give us an account of what happened in the fine castle where you left us yesterday. Scheherazade forthwith resumed her story, and addressing herself to Schahriar, said, sir, the sultan perceiving nobody in the court, entered the great halls, which were hung with silk tapestry, the alcoves and sofas were covered with stuffs of Mecca, and the porches with the richest stuffs of India, mixed with gold and silver. He came afterwards into an admirable saloon, in the middle of which there was a great fountain, with a lion of massy gold at each corner: water issued from the mouths of the four lions, and this water, as it fell, formed diamonds and pearls, that very well answered a jet of water, which, springing from the middle of the fountain, rose as high almost as the bottom of a cupola painted after the Arabian manner. The castle, on three sides, was encompassed by a garden, with flower-pots, water-works, groves, and a thousand other fine things concurring to embellish it; and to complete the beauty of the place, an infinite number of birds filled the air with their harmonious notes, and always stayed there, nets being spread over the trees, and fastened to the palace to keep them in. The sultan walked a long time from apartment to apartment, where he found every thing very grand and magnificent. Being tired with walking, he set down in an open closet, which had a view over the garden, and there reflecting upon what he had already seen, and then saw, all of a sudden he heard the voice of one complaining accompanied with lamentable cries. He listened with attention, and heard distinctly these sad words: “O, fortune! thou who wouldest not suffer me longer to enjoy a happy lot, and hast made me the most unfortunate man in the world, forbear to persecute me, and by a speedy death put an end to my sorrows. Alas! is it possible that I am still alive, after so many torments as I have suffered.”