them upon either eye as he had heard the Jinni prescribe; and hardly had two days gone by when he felt healed of his hurt and opened his eyelids and saw what was around him.  Then, after taking somewhat of its foliage, he came down from the tree and went on his wayfare until he entered a city and found him a lodging.  When this was done he fell to threading the streets and ways crying aloud the while, “I am the Leach, the Healer![FN#446] I am the Mediciner who can cure the blind!” whereat all the one-eyed and the sightless would summon him with outcries and he would apply to them somewhat of his leaves; and after two or three days (he superintending the while) they would open their eyes and see.  On this wise went by a term of time until at last the King of that city heard rumour of a new leach; so he sent to him and summoned him and said to him, “Art thou a clever Medicine-man even as they have informed me concerning thee?  I have a daughter ridden[FN#447] by a Jinni of the Jann and we desire of thee that thou unsorcel her.”  “And if I avail not to free her?” asked Mohsin, and the King answered, “Then will I kill thee even as I have slain a many before thee who have looked upon the face of the Princess.”  “And if I prove able to deliver her and fend her from further offence?” “I will give thee what thou askest of coin and hoards.”  “No, O King of the Age; this condition I will not accept:  if I free her I must take her to wife, for an I fail therein thou wilt slay me; and unless thou agree with me after I shall have saved her that thou e’en wed her to me”—­[FN#448] “’Tis well, O Shaykh; and for releasing her I give thee a delay of three months for visiting and healing her.”—­And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say.  Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, “How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, 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 Seven Hundred and Sixty-ninth 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 King covenanted with the Mediciner that the unsorceling of the Princess should be within three months; after which he set apart an apartment for him with all the furniture and appurtenances thereof and appointed to him rations of meat and drink.  So Mohsin abode with him the appointed time and he in the extreme of comfort and enjoyment; but when the three months were ended the Sultan sent for him and summoned him between his hands and said, “O Shaykh, the term is gone by.”  Hereupon Shaykh