a loud crying and lament with exceeding lamentation and ejaculate, “Alas!” The Wazir took patience with him awhile, after which he said to him, “Except thou tell me the cause of this thine affliction, I will set this sword to my heart and will slay myself before thine eyes, rather than see thee thus distressed.”  Then King Asim raised his head and, wiping away his tears, said, “O Minister of good counself and experience, leave me to my care and my chagrin, for that which is in my heart of sorrow sufficeth me.”  But Faris said, “Tell me, O King, the cause of this thy weeping, haply Allah will appoint thee relief at my hands.”—­And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.

     When it was the Seven Hundred and Fifty-ninth Night,

She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir said to King Asim, “Tell me the cause of this thy weeping:  haply Allah shall appoint thee relief at my hands.”  Replied the King, “O Wazir, I weep not for monies nor horses nor kingdoms nor aught else, but that I am become an old man, yea, very old, nigh upon an hundred and fourscore years of age, and I have not been blessed with a child, male or female; so, when I die, they will bury me and my trace will be effaced and my name cut off; the stranger will take my throne and reign and none will ever make mention of my being.”  Rejoined the Minister Faris, “O King of the Age, I am older than thou by an hundred years yet have I never been blest with boon of child and cease not day and night from cark and care and concern; so how shall we do, I and thou?” Quoth Asim, “O Wazir, hast thou no device or shift in this matter?” and quoth the Minister, “Know, O King that I have heard of a Sovran in the land of Saba[FN#358] by name Solomon David-son (upon the twain be the Peace!),[FN#359] who pretendeth to prophetship and avoucheth that he hath a mighty Lord who can do all things and whose kingdom is in the Heavens and who hath dominion over all mankind and birds and beasts and over the wind and the Jinn.  Moreover, he kenneth the speech of birds and the language of every other created thing; and withal, he calleth all creatures to the worship of his Lord and discourseth to them of their service.  So let us send him a messenger in the King’s name and seek of him our need, beseeching him to put up prayer to his Lord, that He vouchsafe each of us boon of issue.  If his Faith be soothfast and his Lord Omnipotent, He will assuredly bless each of us with a child male or female, and if the thing thus fall out, we will enter his faith and worship his Lord; else will we take patience and devise us another device.”  The King cried, “This is well seen, and my breast is braodened by this thy speech; but where shall we find a messenger befitting this grave matter, for that this Solomon is no Kinglet and the approaching him is no light affair?  Indeed, I will send him none, on the like of this matter, save thyself; for thou art ancient