The Seven Hundred and Seventy-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 more that man cried to the lover “Come,” the faster did he run away; so the Fellah returned and said, “He misliketh to come and he hath fled.”  Hereupon he took seat together with the scald-head and the neighbours to dine off the scones of hand-rubbed grain, and the wife served to them whatso she had made for her lover’s eating and she would not touch aught thereof but left it for her spouse and for his servant and for the neighbours.  On the following day the Fellah went forth betimes to plough whilst the boy, delaying purposely at home, hid himself behind the door when behold, the lover entered to her, and she said, " ’Tis my desire that we forge a story whereby to slay my husband and Master Scald-head the servant.”  Quoth he, “How wilt thou slay them?” and quoth she, “I will buy for them poison and make it up in cooked food, so they may devour it together and perish together; after which we will abide, I and thou, making merry, nor shall the dead disturb us any more.”  He rejoined, “Do what thou willest,” and all this whilst the boy stood listening to them behind the door.  But as soon as the lover went forth the house, the lad arose and retired; then, donning Jews’ garb he shouldered a pair of saddle-bags and went about crying, “Ho!  Aloes good for use.  Ho!  Pepper[FN#473] good for use.  Ho!  Kohl good for use.  Ho!  Tutty good for use!” Now when the woman saw him she came forth the house and hailed him, “Ho thou the Jew!” and said he to her, “Yes, O my lady.”  Then said she, “Hast thou with thee aught of poison?” and said he, “How, O my lady?  Have I not with me poison of the hour?[FN#474] and whoever shall eat thereof in a mess of sweet milk[FN#475] and rice and clarified butter shall die within that time.”  “Do thou take this dinar,” continued she, “and give me somewhat of it;” but he rejoined, “I do not trade for moneys, and I will sell it only for ornaments of precious metal.”  Hereupon she pulled off one of her anklets and handed it to him and he, who had provided himself with half a loaf of Egyptian sugar,[FN#476] gave her the moiety thereof, saying, “Use it with sweet milk and rice and clarified butter.”  She took it in high glee, and arising milked the she-buffalo, after which she boiled the loaf-sugar in the milk and then threw it into a sufficiency of the rice and the clarified butter, fancying the while that she was cooking a mortal meal,[FN#477] and lastly she ladled out the mess into a large platter.  Now when it was sunset-time her husband returned from the field and was met about half-way by the boy who told him