Upon this, the humpbacked groom approached Ḥasan Bedr-ed-Deen, and said to him, O my master, thou hast made us happy by thy company this night, and overwhelmed us with thy favours; but now wherefore dost thou not rise and go to thy house without thy being ejected? He answered, In the name of Allah;--and rose, and went out from the door: but the 'Efreet met him, and said unto him, Stay, O Bedr-ed-Deen; and when the humpback retires into the private closet, enter thou and seat thyself in the bride-chamber; and when the bride cometh, say to her, I am thy husband; and the King had not recourse to this stratagem from any other motive than his fearing for thee the effect of the eye;[IV_44] and this whom thou hast seen is one of our grooms:--then approach her, and uncover her face, and fear no evil from any one. [Illustration] While Bedr-ed-Deen was thus conversing with the 'Efreet, lo, the groom entered the closet, and seated himself; and immediately the 'Efreet rose before him, from the trough of water that was in the closet,[IV_45] in the form of a mouse, and cried Zeek!--What brought thee here? said the humpback. The mouse then increased in size, and became like a cat; and then increased, and became a dog, and cried, 'Owh! 'Owh! At the sight of this the groom was terrified, and exclaimed, Get away, thou unlucky![IV_46] The dog, however, still increased and swelled until it became an ass, and brayed in his face, crying, Háḳ! Háḳ!--upon which the groom, in terror, cried out, Come to my aid, O people of the house! But lo, the ass increased, and became like a buffalo, and, stopping up the place before him, spoke with the speech of a son of Adam, and said, Wo be to thee, O humpback! O filthiest of grooms! Upon this the groom was seized with a colick, and seated himself upon the slabs, and his teeth knocked together. The 'Efreet then said to him, Hath the earth become narrow to thee, that thou wouldst marry none but my mistress? But the groom was silent. Return me an answer, said the 'Efreet, or I will make thine abode to be in the dust!--By Allah, then answered the groom, I am not in fault; for they compelled me, and I knew not that she had a lover among the buffaloes; but now I repent before Allah and before thee. Then the 'Efreet said, I swear by Allah that if thou depart now from this place, or utter a word before the sun hath risen, I will slay thee: and when the sun hath risen go thy way, and never return to this house. And he seized the humpbacked groom, and, placing his head upside down upon the slabs, and his feet upwards, said to him, Remain here, and I will watch thee until sunrise.--Thus did it happen to the humpback. [Illustration] [Illustration]