forward on their journey without stay or delay for a term of five months, until they reached their home and settled them down therein.  Such was their case; but as regards the King’s son of Al-’Irak, after he had met the girl’s father on the road and had parted from him, without recognising him withal, he strave for return to his own land and behold, he wandered from the way and was confronted by a sea dashing with clashing billows.  So he was perplext as to his affair and his judgment left him and his right wits, and he knew not what he should do or whither he should wend, or what direction he should take or what Allah had decreed for him—­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 King suffer me to survive?” Now when it was the next night and that was

The Eight Hundred and 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 when the Prince came upon that sea he was perplext and wist not what to do, so he leapt from the back of the Father of the Pigeon and set his steed standing beside him that he might lean against his quarter[FN#532] when, of the excess of his night watching, he fell asleep and was drowned in slumber.  Then, by doom of Destiny the beast shook his head and snorted and set off at full speed making for the wild and the wold and was presently amiddlemost the waste.  Now when some two-told hours of time had passed, the Prince shook off his drowsihead and opened his eyes, but of his steed could see nor sign nor aught of visible trace.  So he smote hand upon hand and cried, “There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great,” after which he took seat by the side of the sea and sued comfort of Almighty Allah.  On the next day a ship suddenly sailed in and made fast to the shore, after which a posse of Jews landed from her and as soon as they saw him they fell upon him and seized him and pinioned him; then, carrying him perforce aboard, loaded his legs with irons.  So quoth he to himself, “Whenas Fate is so minded our eyes are blinded; however, patience is fairest and of Allah must we ask aidance.”  Hereupon the Jews again disembarked and filled their kegs with the water of an adjoining rain-pool, after which they trooped aboard and making sail voyaged over the billows of the ocean before them.  This lasted for a month, after which time they cast anchor beside a harbour-town, and presently swarmed out to