Presently the handmaidens piled upon the trays platters of silver and porcelain (whereof mention hath been made) containing all that lip and tongue gratify of the meat of muttons in fry and Kata-grouse and pigeon-poults and quails and things that fly of every kind and dye which hungry men can long to espy, and Yusuf saw inscribed upon the china dishes the following couplets,

“Platters of china fair * That all men’s eyne ensnare, None seeth in this our town * China of mould so rare.

Then he looked upon the silver plate and found it graven with these lines,

“Plate worked in silver of the brightest white * In height of
     beauty, O thou joy to sight,
When fully finisht and when perfect made * Becometh chargers
     peerless in delight.”

And portrayed upon the porcelain were all that grow and fly of geese and poultry.  Anon a handmaid brought in hand a knife wherewith to carve the meats, and Yusuf looking at the blade saw upon it letters gold-inlaid and forming these verses,

I am blade of finest grain * Wherefrom comes naught of bane:  Fro’ my friends all harm I ward * And thy foes by me be slain!”

Hereupon the handmaids ended the ordinance of the table and set everything in its own stead; after which the Princess took seat beside the Prince and said to him, “O my lord, hearten our heart and deign grace to us and honour us by eating with us:  this indeed be a day of joy for my union with thee and for thy lighting this my lodging with the splendour of thy semblance so bright and thy beauty so rare and for thine alighting at my home and thine opportune kindness and thine inner graciousness,[FN#209] O thou unique one of the Age and the Time, and O thou who hast no peer in our day and our tide.”  Now when Yusuf heard the words of Al-Hayfa he said to her, “Wallahi, O thou who the moons adornest and who the sun and the daylight shamest, O lady of brow flower-bright and of stature elegant-slight, O thou who passest in beauty and comeliness all mortal beings, O thou with smile like water sweet and mouth-dews like purest spring and of speech the softest, I wot thou art the lady of goodness and excellence and generosity and liberality.”  Then she again fell to morselling the Prince until they both had a sufficiency of food, whereupon she bade them fetch water for washing their hands after meat.  And they brought to Yusuf a basin of glittering gold, when he rejoiced with exceeding exultation the while he was sunk in meditation, and at times he gazed upon Al-Hayfa and his wits were bewildered and his senses seduced him to some- thing he would do with her for the abundance that was in her of beauty and loveliness.  But his reason forbade to him his passion, and quoth he in his mind, “To everything its own time,”—­ 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