me, thou wilt incur my displeasure and I will never again visit thee or salute thee.”  Quoth Abu al-Hasan, “On my head and my eyes:  Allah preserve me from thy displeasure, fair lady!” Then she rose and went her way.  Such was her case; but as regards Ali bin Bakkar he remained in a state of bewilderment.  Now after an hour the damsel came to Abu al-Hasan and said to him, “Of a truth my lady Shams al-Nahar, the favourite of the Commander of the Faithful, Harun al-Rashid, biddeth thee to her, thee and thy friend, my lord Ali bin Bakkar.”  So he rose and, taking Ali with him, followed the girl to the Caliph’s palace, where she carried them into a chamber and made them sit down.  They talked together awhile, when behold, trays of food were set before them, and they ate and washed their hands.  Then she brought them wine, and they drank deep and made merry; after which she bade them rise and carried them into another chamber, vaulted upon four columns, furnished after the goodliest fashion with various kinds of furniture, and adorned with decorations as it were one of the pavilions of Paradise.  They were amazed at the rarities they saw; and, as they were enjoying a review of these marvels, suddenly up came ten slave-girls, like moons, swaying and swimming in beauty’s pride, dazzling the sight and confounding the sprite; and they ranged themselves in two ranks as if they were of the black-eyed Brides of Paradise.  And after a while in came other ten damsels, bearing in their hands lutes and divers instruments of mirth and music; and these, having saluted the two guests, sat down and fell to tuning their lute-strings.  Then they rose and standing before them, played and sang and recited verses:  and indeed each one of them was a seduction to the servants of the Lord.  Whilst they were thus busied there entered other ten damsels like unto them, high-bosomed maids and of an equal age, with black-eyes and cheeks like the rose, joined eyebrows and looks languorous; a very fascination to every faithful wight and to all who looked upon them a delight; clad in various kinds of coloured silks, with ornaments that amazed man’s intelligence.  They took up their station at the door, and there succeeded them yet other ten damsels even fairer than they, clad in gorgeous array, such as no tongue can say; and they also stationed themselves by the doorway.  Then in came a band of twenty damsels and amongst them the lady, Shams al-Nahar hight, as she were the moon among the stars swaying from side to side, with luring gait and in beauty’s pride.  And she was veiled to the middle with the luxuriance of her locks, and clad in a robe of azure blue and a mantilla of silk embroidered with gold and gems of price; and her waist was girt with a zone set with various kinds of precious stones.  She ceased not to advance with her graceful and coquettish swaying, till she came to the couch that stood at the upper end of the chamber and seated herself thereon.  But when Ali bin Bakkar saw her, he versified with these verses,