to the place whence he took her, and bring her the other.  The porter led back the whipped bitch to the closet, and receiving the other from Amine, presented her to Zobeide, who, bidding the porter hold her as he had done the first, took up the rod, and treated her after the same manner; and when she had wept over her, dried her eyes, and, kissing her, returned her to the porter; but lovely Amine spared him the trouble of leading her back into the closet, and did it herself.  The three calenders and the caliph, with his companions, were extremely surprised at this execution, and could not comprehend why Zobeide, after having so furiously whipped those two bitches, that, by the Mussulman religion, are reckoned unclean animals, should cry with them, wipe off their tears, and kiss them.  They muttered among themselves; and the caliph, being more impatient than the rest, longed exceedingly to be informed of the cause of so strange an action, and could not forbear making signs to the vizier to ask the question; the vizier turned his head another way; but, being pressed by repeated signs, he answered by others that it was not yet time for the caliph to satisfy his curiosity.

Zobeide sat still some time in the middle of the room, where she had whipped the two bitches, to recover from the fatigue; and fair Safie called to her, Dear sister, will you be pleased now to return to your place, that I may also act my part?  Yes, sister, replies Zobeide, and then went and sat down upon the sofa, having the caliph, Giafar, and Mesrour, on her right hand, and the three calenders, with the porter, on her left.

After Zobeide sat down, the whole company was silent for a while; at last Safie, sitting on a chair in the middle of the room, spoke to her sister Amine; Dear sister, I conjure you to rise up; you know well enough what I would say, Amine rose up, and went into another closet near to that where the bitches were, and brought out a case covered with yellow satin, richly embroidered with gold and green silk; she came near Safie, and opened the case, from whence she took a lute, and presented her, and, after some time spent in tuning it, Safie began to play, and, accompanying it with her voice, she sung a song about the torments that absence creates to lovers, with so much sweetness as to charm the caliph and all the company.  Having sung with a great deal of passion and action, she said to lovely Amine, Pray take it, sister, for I can do no more; my voice fails me; oblige the company with a tune and song in my room.  Very willingly, replied Amine, who, taking the lute from her sister Safie, sat down in her place.

Amine, after a small trial to see whether the instrument was in tune, played and sung almost as long upon the same subject, but with so much vehemency, and was so much affected, or rather transported, by the words of the song, that her strength failed her as she made an end of it.