The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 03 (of 10)
General
The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 03 (of 10)
Fairy tales; Tales -- Arab countries
And when he had ended his reciting he swooned away and did not recover
his senses till the morning, at which time there came to him one of his
father's eunuchs and, standing at his head, summoned him to the King's
presence. So he went with him and his father, seeing that his pallor
had increased, exhorted him to patience and promised him union with her
he loved. Then he equipped Aziz and the Wazir and supplied them with
presents; and they set out and fared on day and night till they drew
near the Isles of Camphor, where they halted on the banks of a stream,
and the Minister despatched a messenger to acquaint the King of his
arrival. The messenger hurried forwards and had not been gone more
than an hour, before they saw the King's Chamberlains and Emirs
advancing towards them, to meet them at a parasang's distance from the
city and escort them into the royal presence. They laid their gifts
before the King and became his guests for three days. And on the
fourth day the Wazir rose and going in to the King, stood between his
hands and acquainted him with the object which induced his visit;
whereat he was perplexed for an answer inasmuch as his daughter
misliked men and disliked marriage. So he bowed his head groundwards
awhile, then raised it and calling one of his eunuchs, said to him, "Go
to thy mistress, the Lady Dunya, and repeat to her what thou hast heard
and the purport of this Wazir's coming." So the eunuch went forth and
returning after a time, said to the King, "O King of the Age, when I
went in to the Lady Dunya and told her what I had heard, she was wroth
with exceeding wrath and rose at me with a staff designing to break my
head; so I fled from her, and she said to me 'If my Father force me to
wed him, whomsoever I wed I will slay.' Then said her sire to the Wazir
and Aziz, "Ye have heard, and now ye know all! So let your King wot of
it and give him my salutations and say that my daughter misliketh men
and disliketh marriage."—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and
ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the One Hundred and Thirty-first Night,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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