and he said, “I have fallen into it and I am sore ahungered.”  Accordingly they gave him somewhat to eat and he ate and travelled with them till they entered a certain city and it was on First day.[FN#405] So they passed through the market streets which were crowded and found the people in turmoil and trouble;[FN#406] and as one enquired the cause thereof he was answered, “Verily the Sultan hath a beautiful daughter who is possessed and overridden by an ’Ifrit, and whoso of the physicians would lay[FN#407] the Spirit and is unable or ignorant so to do, the King taketh him and cutteth off his head and hangeth it up before his palace.  Indeed of late days a student came hither, a youth who knew nothing of expelling the Evil One, and he accepted the task and the Sultan designeth to smith his neck at this very hour; so the people are flocking with design to divert themselves at the decapitation.”  Now when Abu Niyyah heard these words he rose without stay or delay and walked in haste till he came into the presence of the Sultan whom he found seated upon his throne and the Linkman standing with his scymitar brandished over the head of the young student and expecting only the royal order to strike his neck.  So Abu Niyyah salam’d to him and said, “O King of the Age, release yonder youth from under the sword and send him to thy prison, for if I avail to laying the Spirit and driving him from thy daughter thou shalt have mercy upon yonder wight, and if I fail thou wilt shorten by the head me as well as him.”  Hereupon the King let unbind the youth and sent him to jail; then he said to Abu Niyyah, “Wouldst thou go at once to my daughter and unspell her from the Jinni?” But the other replied, “No, O King, not until Meeting-day[FN#408] at what time the folk are engaged in congregational prayers.”  Now when Abu Niyyah had appointed the Friday, the King set apart for his guest an apartment and rationed him with liberal rations.—­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 Hundredth and Seventy-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 Abu Niyyah having appointed the Sultan for Meeting-day, when he would ensorcel the Princess, waited till the morning dawned.  Then he went forth to the Bazar and brought him a somewhat of wormwood[FN#409] for a silvern