night gave place to day she saw herself amidst mountains and
sands; nor did she know what she should do. However she found on
a hill-flank some remnants of the late rain which she drank;
then, loosing the girths of her horse she gave him also to drink
and she was about to take her rest in that place when, lo and
behold! a lion big of bulk and mighty of might drew near her and
he was lashing his tail[FN#200] and roaring thunderously.--And
Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and
ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad,
"How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and
delectable!" Quoth she, "And where is this compared with that I
would relate to you on the coming night, an the Sovran suffer me
to survive?" Now when it was the next night and that was

The Three Hundred and Eighty-fourth 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 when the
lion advanced to spring upon the Princess who was habited as a
Mameluke, and rushed to rend her in pieces, she, seeing her
imminent peril, sprang up in haste and bared her blade and met
him brand in hand saying, "Or he will slay me or I slay him." But
as she was hearty of heart she advanced till the two met and fell
to fight and struck each at other, but the lion waxed furious and
gnashed his tusks, now retreating and now circuiting around her
and then returning to front his foe purposing to claw her, when