abundant gifts, and forwarded to the bride’s father offerings of notable rarities.  As soon as the wedding ended, Mubarak said to the Prince, “O my lord, let us arise and wend our ways lest we lose our time in leisure, for that we sought is now found.”  Said the Prince, “Right thou art;” and, arising with his companion, the twain fell to equipping them for travel and gat ready for the bride a covered litter[FN#56] to be carried by camels and they set out.  Withal Mubarak well knew that the Prince was deep in love to the young lady.  So he took him aside and said to him, “O my lord Zayn al-Asnam, I would warn thee and enjoin thee to keep watch and ward upon thy senses and passions and to observe and preserve the pledge by thee plighted to the King of the Jann.”  “O Mubarak,” replied the Prince, “an thou knew the love-longing and ecstasy which have befallen me of my love to this young lady, thou wouldst feel ruth for me! indeed I never think of aught else save of taking her to Bassorah and of going in unto her.”  Mubarak rejoined.  “O my lord, keep thy faith and be not false to thy pact, lest a sore harm betide thee and the loss of thy life as well as that of the young lady.[FN#57] Remember the oath thou swarest nor suffer lust[FN#58] to lay thy reason low and despoil thee of all thy gains and thine honour and thy life.”  “Do thou, O Mubarak,” retorted the Prince, “become warden over her nor allow me ever to look upon her.”—­And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

        When it was the Five Hundred and Eleventh Night,

Quoth Dunyazad, “O sister mine, an thou be other than sleepy, tell us one of thy fair tales, so therewith we may cut short the waking hours of this our night,” and quoth Shahrazad:—­It hath reached me, O King of the Age, that Mubarak, after warning Zayn al-Asnam to protect the virgin-bride against himself, fell also to defending her as his deputy:  also he prevented the Prince from even looking upon her.  They then travelled along the road unto the Island of the Jann, after[FN#59] they had passed by the line leading unto Misr.[FN#60] But when the bride saw that the wayfare had waxed longsome nor had beheld her bridegroom for all that time since the wedding-night, she turned to Mubarak and said, “Allah upon thee; inform me, O Mubarak, by the life of thy lord the Emir, have we fared this far distance by commandment of my bridegroom Prince Zayn al-Asnam?” Said he, “Ah, O my lady, sore indeed is thy case to me, yet must I disclose to thee the secret thereof which be this.  Thou imaginest that Zayn al-Asnam, the King of Bassorah, is thy bridegroom; but, alas! ’tis not so.  He is no husband of thine; nay, the deed he drew up was a mere pretext in the presence of thy parents and thy people; and now thou art going as a bride to the King of the Jann who required thee of the Prince.”  When the young lady heard these words, she fell to shedding tears and Zayn al-Asnam wept for her, weeping bitter tears from