The Three Hundred and Eighty-third 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 the Sultan of the city said:—­In such a year I had a malady which none availed to medicine until at last an old woman came to me bearing a tasse of broth which when I drank caused health return to me.  So I bade her bring me a cupful every day and I drank it till, after a time, I chanced to ask her who made that broth and she answered that it was her daughter.  And one day I assumed a disguise and went to the ancient dame’s house and there saw the girl who was a model of beauty and loveliness, brilliancy, symmetric stature and perfect grace, and seeing her I lost my heart to her, and asked her to wife.  She answered, “How can I wed; I separated from my sisters and parents and all unknowing what hath become of them?” Now when the father of the damsels heard these words, tears rolled down his cheeks in rills and he remembered his two lost girls and wept and moaned and complained, the Sultan looking on in astonishment the while; and when he went to his Queen he found her lying in a fainting fit.  Hereupon he cried out her name and seated her and she on coming to exclaimed, “By Allah, he who wept before you is my very father:  by Him who created me I have no doubt thereof!” So the Sultan went down to his father-in-law and led him up to the Harem and the daughter rose and met him and they threw their arms round each other’s necks, and fondly greeted each other.  After this the old King passed the night relating to her what had befallen him while she recounted to him whatso hath betided her, from first to last, whereupon their rejoicings increased and the father thanked Almighty Allah for having found two of his three children.  The old King and his sons-in-law and his Wazir ceased not to enjoy themselves in the city, eating and drinking[FN#199] and making merry for a space of two days when the father asked aidance of his daughters’ husbands to seek his third child that the general joy might be perfected.  This request they granted and resolved to journey with him; so they made their preparations for travel and issued forth the city together with sundry Lords of the land and high Dignitaries, all taking with them what was required of rations.  Then travelling together in a body they faced the march.  This was their case; but as regards the third daughter (she who in man’s attire had served the Kunafah-baker), after being married to the Sultan his love for her and desire to her only increased and she cohabited with him for a length of time.  But one day of the days she called to mind her parents and her kith and kin and her native country, so she wept with sorest