the blood of the old sultan and his son.  On receipt of this ungracious reply to his proposals, the sultan and Eusuff had no alternative but to oppose so inveterate a foe.  They collected their troops, by whom they were much beloved, and marched to meet the enemy, whom, after an obstinate battle, they defeated, and Mherejaun was slain in the action.  It is impossible to resist the decrees of heaven.  From God we came, and to God we must return.

Eusuff, after the action, behaved with the greatest humility to the conquered, and had the body of the unfortunate Mherejaun embalmed and laid in a splendid litter, in which it was conducted by a numerous escort, in respectful solemnity, to the capital of Hind, and deposited with funeral pomp, becoming the rank of the deceased, in a magnificent mausoleum, which had been erected by himself, as is customary among the sovereigns of Asia.  The prince, at the same time, dispatched letters of condolence to the mother of Aleefa, lamenting the fate of Mherejaun, whom he had been, much against his will, necessitated to oppose in battle, and expressing his ardent love for her daughter, a marriage with whom was his highest hope, as it was his first wish to console the mother of his beloved in her misfortunes.

The sultana, who had received intelligence of the decisive victory and the death of her husband, and who expected, instead of such conduct, to see the victor besieging her capital, felt some alleviation of her sorrow in the prospect of saving her people from destruction, by consenting to an union between Eusuff and Aleefa.  Her answer accordingly was favourable, upon which the prince of Sind repaired to the lake, and conducting his willing bride to the capital of Hind, at the expiration of the stated time of mourning for Mherejaun, their nuptials were celebrated with all possible magnificence, amid the united acclamations of the subjects, who readily acknowledged his authority, and had no cause to repent of their submission to his yoke.  His next care was to inform the caliph Mamoon, who was then commander of the faithful at Bagdad, of the events which had happened, accompanying his petition with a great sum of money, and offerings of all the rarities the countries of Hind and Sind afforded; among which were ten beautiful slaves, highly accomplished in singing, dancing, and a talent for poetry.  They recited extempore verses before the caliph, but the subject of each was so expressive of their wish to return to their beloved sovereign, and delivered in so affecting a manner, that Mamoon, though delighted with their wit and beauty, sacrificed his own pleasure to their feelings, and sent them back to Eusuff by the officer who carried the edict, confirming him in his dominions, where the prince of Sind and the fair Aleefa continued long, amid a numerous progeny, to live the protectors of their happy subjects.

Adventures of the three princes, sons of
the sultan of china.