“Clear and clean is our seance from slanderous foe; * And from
     envious rival whose aim is blame: 
None hither may come save the cup-boy, and eke * Cup-comrades who
     never our fame defame.”

Upon the chandeliers themselves were inscribed these lines,

“I am raised in reverence high o’er head * For they see that my
     gift is the boon of light: 
I’m a pleasure to eyesight, so up with you all, * O Seers, and
     joy ye the joys of my sight.”

And upon the Palace-door was inscribed the following quatrain,

“This Mansion’s adorned * As delight to mans eye; O’er its door writ is ‘Welcome,’ * So safely draw nigh.”

And when they had finished this inscription over the doorway, they went forth from the entrance which stood at the head of the Great Hall and proceeded to a square of large space abounding in trees and enjoyable for rills; and they surrounded it with a fencing-wall built of rough stone which they stuccoed over and figured with various paintings.  Then they planted this garden with all manner fruit-bearing trees and fragrant herbs and flowers and firstlings of every kind and hue and they trained the branches after a wonderful fashion, leading under their shade leats and runnels of cool water; and the boughs were cunningly dispread so as to veil the ground which was planted with grains of divers sorts and greens and all of vegetation that serveth for the food of man.  Also they provided it with a watering wheel whose well was revetted with alabaster[FN#190]—­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 Six Hundred and Sixty-seventh 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 Architects set up in that palace-garden a water-wheel whose well was revetted with alabaster and whose wood-work and wheel were of chaunders-wood, whilst its pitchers were of fine porcelain and its cordage[FN#191] was of raw silk.  And when they were free of this work they edified amongst the scented shrubs and blossoms a towering dome based upon four-square walls of variegated marbles and alabasters studded with carbuncles[FN#192] and its ceiling was supported upon columns of the finest stone with joinery of lign-aloes and sandal, and they dubbed its cupola with jewels and precious stones and arabesque’d[FN#193] it with gold and