affair; upon which he entreated me to get leave of your majesty to perform the ceremony in the pavilion.  I sent him away with leave to hold the assembly, telling him I would take care to acquaint your majesty with it; and I ask pardon for having quite forgotten it.”  “Scheich Ibrahim,” continued he, “has certainly made choice of this day for the ceremony; and after treating the ministers of his mosque, was willing to indulge them with the sight of this illumination.”

“Jaaffier,” said the caliph, with a tone that plainly shewed his anger was a little mollified, “according to your own account, you have committed three faults; the first, in giving Scheich Ibrahim leave to perform this ceremony in my pavilion, for a person in such an office is not worthy of so great an honour; the second, in not acquainting me with it; and the third, in not diving into the bottom of the good old man’s intention.  For my part, I am persuaded he only did it to try if he could get any money towards bearing the charge of it; but that never came into your head.”

The grand vizier, overjoyed to hear the caliph put the matter upon that footing, very willingly owned the faults he reproached him with, and freely confessed he was to blame in not giving Scheich Ibrahim a few pieces of gold.  “Since the case is so,” added the caliph, “it is just that thou shouldst be punished for thy mistakes, but thy punishment shall be light:  thou shalt spend the remainder of the night as I mean to do, with these honest people, whose company I shall be well pleased with; and while I am putting on a citizen’s habit, go thou and disguise thyself with Mesrour, and come both of you along with me.”

The vizier would have persuaded him it was late, and that all the company would be gone before he could get thither:  but the caliph said he would positively go.  The vizier, who knew that not a syllable of what he had said was true, began to be in great consternation; but there was no reply to be made, and go he must.

The caliph then, disguised like a citizen, with the grand vizier Jaaffier and Mesrour, chief of the eunuchs, stole out of the palace together.  They rambled through the streets of Bagdad till they came to the garden; the door, through the carelessness of Scheich Ibrahim, was open, he having forgotten to shut it when he came back with the wine.  The caliph was very angry at this.  “Jaaffier,” said he to the grand vizier, “what excuse have you for the door’s being open at this unseasonable hour?” “Is it possible that Scheich Ibrahim makes a custom of leaving it thus all night?  I rather believe the hurry of the feast has been the occasion of this neglect.”

The caliph went into the garden; and when he came to the pavilion, resolving not to go into the hall till he knew what was doing, consulted with the grand vizier whether it was not his best way to climb up into one of the trees that was near, to observe what was going forward.  The grand vizier casting his eyes upon the door, perceived it stood half open, and told the caliph.  It seems Scheich Ibrahim had left it so, when he was prevailed upon to come in and bear Noor ad Deen and the fair Persian company.