him and rose, he and the damsel, and followed him into the
garden; and lo! it was a garden, and what a garden! The gate was
arched like a great hall and over walls and roof ramped vines
with grapes of many colours; the red like rubies and the black
like ebonies; and beyond it lay a bower of trelliced boughs
growing fruits single and composite, and small birds on branches
sang with melodious recite, and the thousand-noted nightingale
shrilled with her varied shright; the turtle with her cooing
filled the site; the blackbird whistled like human wight[FN#47]
and the ring-dove moaned like a drinker in grievous plight. The
trees grew in perfection all edible growths and fruited all
manner fruits which in pairs were bipartite; with the camphor-
apricot, the almond-apricot and the apricot "Khorasani" hight;
the plum, like the face of beauty, smooth and bright; the cherry
that makes teeth shine clear by her sleight, and the fig of three
colours, green, purple and white. There also blossomed the
violet as it were sulphur on fire by night; the orange with buds
like pink coral and marguerite; the rose whose redness gars the
loveliest cheeks blush with despight; and myrtle and gilliflower
and lavender with the blood-red anemone from Nu'uman hight. The
leaves were all gemmed with tears the clouds had dight; the
chamomile smiled showing teeth that bite, and Narcissus with his
negro[FN#48] eyes fixed on Rose his sight; the citrons shone with
fruits embowled and the lemons like balls of gold; earth was
carpeted with flowers tinctured infinite; for Spring was come
brightening the place with joy and delight; and the streams ran
ringing, to the birds' gay singing, while the rustling breeze
upspringing attempered the air to temperance exquisite. Shaykh
Ibrahim carried them up into the pavilion, and they gazed on its
beauty, and on the lamps aforementioned in the latticed windows;