conversing and saying, "By Allah, our Sultan hath not acted
wisely nor hath he any cause to be proud, since he hath made his
daughter's bride-feast a vanity and a vexation and the poor are
excluded therefrom. He had done better to distribute somewhat of
his bounty amongst the paupers and the mesquin, who may not enter
his palace nor can they obtain aught to eat." Hearing this the
Sultan said to the Wazir, "By Allah, needs must we enter this
place;" and the Minister replied, "Do whatso thou willest."
Accordingly the King went up to the door and knocked, when one
came out and asked, "Who is at the door?" The Sultan answered,
"Guests;" and the voice rejoined, "Welcome to the guests;" and
the door was thrown open. Then they went in till they reached the
sitting-room where they found three men of whom one was lame, the
second was broken-backed and the third was split-mouthed.[FN#131]
And all three were sitting together in that place. So he asked
them, "Wherefore sit ye here, ye three, instead of going to the
Palace?" and they answered him, "O Darwaysh, 'tis of the weakness
of our wits!" The King then turned to his Minister and said,
"There is no help but thou must bring these three men into my
presence, as soon as the wedding-fetes be finished, that I may
enquire into what stablished their imbecility."--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 Sixty-second Night,