is no harm in that,” and the marriage-knot was duly knotted.  Then the bridegroom was led in procession to his bride with whom he remained a full month of thirty days, after which he craved leave to fare for his own motherland.—­And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say.  Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, “How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!” Quoth she, “And where is this compared with that I should relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive?” Now when it was the next night and that was

The Four Hundred and Fifty-seventh Night,

Dunyazad said to her, “Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the watching of this our latter night!” She replied, “With love and good will!” It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that Mohammed Son of the Sultan craved leave to return to his own motherland, when his father-in-law gave him an hundred clusters of the diamantine and smaragdine grapes, after which he farewelled the King and taking his bride fared without the city.  Here he found expecting him the ’Aun, who, after causing them to fill their ears with cotton, shouldered him, together with his wife, and then flew with them through the firmament for two hours or so and alighted with them near the capital of the Camphor Islands.  Presently Mohammed the Son of the Sultan took four clusters of the emeralds and diamonds, and going in to the King laid them before him and drew him back.  The Sultan gazed upon them and marvelled and cried, “Wallahi! doubtless this youth be a Magician for that he hath covered a space of three hundred years in three[FN#371] of coming and going, and this is amongst the greatest of marvels.”  Presently he resumed, saying, “O Youth, hast thou reached the city of the Sudan?” and the other replied, “I have.”  The King continued, “What is its description and its foundation and how are its gardens and its rills?” So he informed him of all things required of him and the Sultan cried, “By Allah, O Youth, thou deservest all thou askest of me.”  “I ask for nothing,” said the Prince, “save the birds,” and the King, “O Youth, there is with us in our town a Vulture which cometh every year from behind Mount Kaf and pounceth upon the sons of this city and beareth them away and eateth them on the heads of the hills.  Now an thou canst master this monster-fowl and slay that same I have a daughter whom I will marry to thee.”  Quoth the Prince, “I have need of taking counsel;” and returned to the ’Aun to inform him thereof when behold, the Vulture made its appearance.  But as soon as the Jinni espied it, he flew and made for it, and caught it up; then, smiting it with a single stroke of his hand, he cut it in two and presently he returned and