suffer me to survive?" Now when it was the next night and that
was

The Three Hundred and Seventy-second Night,

Dunyazad said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be
other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short
the watching of this our latter night!" She replied, "With love
and good will!" It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the
director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting
and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that as regards
the mother of the maidens, when the ship broke up under them and
she bestrode the bulk of timber, she came upon the Rais in his
boat manned by three of the men; so he took her on board and they
ceased not paddling for a space of three days when they sighted a
lofty island which fulfilled their desire, and its summit towered
high in air. So they made for it till they drew near it and
landed on a low side-shore where they abandoned their boat; and
they ceased not walking through the rest of that day and those
that followed till one day of the days behold, a dust-cloud
suddenly appeared to them spireing up to the skies. They fared
for it and after a while it lifted, showing beneath it a host
with swords glancing and lance-heads' gleams lancing and war
steeds dancing and prancing, and these were ridden by men like
unto eagles and the host was under the hands of a Sultan around
whom ensigns and banners were flying. And when this King saw the
Rais and the sailors and the woman following, he wheeled his
charger themwards to learn what tidings they brought and rode up
to the strangers and questioned them; and the castaways informed
them that their ship had broken up under them. Now the cause of