at her head the while and sorrowing for her condition.  But about set of sun behold, in came her father who found his daughter aswoon; so he questioned his wife who began by recounting to him what they had noted in the old woman of prayer and display of devotion and how she had told them, “I have a daughter whom I am about to marry and the bridal festivities will be in my house.”  “And,” pursued the mother, “she invited us to visit her; so at undurntide I sent with her the girl; who at noontide came back bringing somewhat wrapped up and bundled, which be this.  But when she entered the house she fell to the floor in a fainting fit and she is even as thou seest; nor do I know what befel her.”  Then the father rose up and besprinkled somewhat of water upon her face which revived her and she said, “Where am I?” whereto said he, “Thou art with us.”  And when she had recovered and returned to her senses, and her condition was as before the swoon, she told them of the old woman and her ill designs and of her death and lastly how the clothes had been brought by herself from the house of the Bhang-eater.  As soon as her sire had heard her words, he set out from his home and sought the Sultan.—­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 would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive?” Now when it was the next night and that was

The Four Hundred and Fifth 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 whilst the Sultan was sitting behold, the Khwajah came in and complained to him of the Bhang-eater, whereupon he ordered a company to go fetch the accursed and they went off and found him not.  So they returned and reported accordingly.  Such was the cause of the Khwajah coming to the King and such was the case with them; but as regards the Bhang-eater, when he went off rejoicing to the Bazar in order to buy whatso the merchant’s daughter had asked him, he brought many a thing wherewith he returned to his lodging.  However as he returned he beheld the old woman slaughtered and weltering in her blood and he found nothing at all of the choice articles wherewith his house was fulfilled; so he fell to quoting this couplet:[FN#263]—­

“’Twas as a hive of bees that greatly thrived; * But, when the
     bee-swarm fled, ’twas clean unhived.”