aloud. Presently the King said, "O Darwaysh, relate to us thy
history, for needs must it be a singular;" but the old man began
to shed tears and said, "O King of the Age, I have a marvellous
adventure which were it graven with needle-gravers upon the
eye-corners were a warning to whoso would be warned." The Sultan
was surprised and replied, "What then may be thy history, O
Mendicant?" and the other rejoined, "O King of the Age, I will
recount it to thee."[FN#196] Accordingly he told him of his
kingship and the Wazir tempting his wife and of her slaying the
nurse, the slave-girls, and the Eunuch; but when he came to this
point the Sultanah ran out in haste and hurry from behind the
curtain and rushing up to the Darwaysh threw herself upon his
bosom. The King seeing this marvelled and in a fury of jealousy
clapped hand to hilt crying to the Fakir, "This be most unseemly
behaviour!" But the Queen replied, "Hold thy hand, by Allah, he
is my father and I am his loving daughter;" and she wept and
laughed alternately[FN#197] all of the excess of her joy. Hereat
the King wondered and bade release the second religious and
exclaimed, "Sooth he spake who said:--

Allah joineth the parted when think the twain * With firmest
thought ne'er to meet again."

Then the Sultanah began recounting to him the history of her sire
and specially what befel him from his Wazir; and he, when he
heard her words, felt assured of their truth. Presently he bade
them change the habits of her father and of his Wazir and dress
them with the dress of Kings; and he set apart for them an
apartment and allotted to them rations of meat and drink; so
extolled be He who disuniteth and reuniteth! Now the Sultanah in