matter of the three maidens and their mother, I would have thee
make enquiry and find out their home and bring them hither; or
let us go to them in disguise and hear their history, for indeed
it must he wonderful. Otherwise how could they have understood
that we served them that sleight by marking their door and they
on their part set marks of like kind upon all the doors of the
quarter that we might lose the track and touch of them. By Allah,
this be rare intelligence on the part of these damsels; but we, O
Wazir, will strive to come upon their traces." Then the Minister
fared forth, after changing his dress and demeanour, and walked
to the quarter in question, but found all the doors similarly
marked. So he was sore perplext concerning his case and fell to
questioning all the folk wont to pass by these doors but none
could give him any information; and he walked about sore
distraught until even-tide, when he returned to the Sultan
without aught of profit. As he went in to the presence, his liege
lord asked him saying, "What bringest thou of tidings?" and he
answered, "O King, I have not found the property,[FN#145] but
there passed through my mind a stratagem which, an we carry it
out, peradventure shall cause us to happen upon the maidens."
Quoth the Sultan, "What be that?" and quoth he, "Do thou write me
an autograph-writ and give it to the Crier that he may cry about
the city, 'Whoso lighteth wick after supper-tide shall have his
head set under his heels.'" The Sultan rejoined, "This thy rede
is right." Accordingly, on the next day the King wrote his letter
and gave it to the Crier bidding him fare through the city and
forbid the lighting of lamps after night-prayers; and the man
took the royal rescript and set it in a green bag. Then he went
forth and cried about the street saying, "According to the
commandment of our King, the Lord of prosperity and Master of the