to inform her of her father’s presence; and, when he returned, the King asked him, “O my son what is the reason why the window of this Kiosque was not made perfect?” “O King of the Age, seeing the suddenness of my wedding,” answered he, “I failed to find artists for finishing it.”  Quoth the Sultan, “I have a mind to complete it myself;” and Quoth Alaeddin, “Allah perpetuate thy glory, O thou the King; so shall thy memory endure in thy daughter’s pavilion.”  The Sultan forthright bade summon jewellers and goldsmiths and ordered them be supplied from the treasury with all their needs of gold and gems and noble ores; and, when they were gathered together he commanded them to complete the work still wanting in the Kiosque-window.  Meanwhile the Princess came forth to meet her sire the Sultan who noticed, as she drew near, her smiling face; so he embraced her and kissed her, then led her to the pavilion and all entered in a body.  Now this was the time of the noon day meal and one table had been spread for the Sovran, his daughter and his son-in-law and a second for the Wazirs, the Lords of the land, the Grandees of the realm, the Chief Officers of the host, the Chamberlains and the Nabobs.  The King took seat between the Princess and her husband; and, when he put forth his hand to the food and tasted it, he was struck with surprise by the flavour of the dishes and their savoury and sumptuous cooking.  Moreover, there stood before him the fourscore damsels each and every saying to the full moon, “Rise that I may seat myself in thy stead!"[FN#185] All held instruments of mirth and merriment and they tuned the same and deftly moved their finger-tips and smote the strings into song most musical, most melodious, which expanded the mourner’s heart.  Hereby the Sultan was gladdened and time was good to him and for high enjoyment he exclaimed, “In very sooth the thing is beyond the compass of King and Kaysar.”  Then they fell to eating and drinking; and the cup went round until they had drunken enough, when sweetmeats and fruits of sorts and other such edibles were served, the dessert being laid out in a different salon whither they removed and enjoyed of these pleasures their sufficiency.  Presently the Sultan arose that he might see if the produce of his jewellers and goldsmiths favoured that of the pavilion; so he went upstairs to them and inspected their work and how they had wrought; but he noted a mighty great difference and his men were far from being able to make anything like the rest of Alaeddin’s pavilion.  And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

     When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-first Night,