thou visit her, but wait till to morrow, that I may contrive some thing to suit thy case.”  Then she went a-foot to the palace of the Lady Budur and, accosting the eunuch in charge of the gates, made him a present and said to him, “I have a daughter, who was brought up with thy mistress and since then I married her; and, when that befel the Princess which befel her, she became troubled and sore concerned, and I desire of thy favour that my daughter may go in to her for an hour and look on her; and then return whence she came, so shall none know of it.”  Quoth the eunuch, “This may not be except by night, after the King hath visited his child and gone away; then come thou and thy daughter.”  So she kissed the eunuch’s hand and, returning home, waited till the morrow at nightfall; and when it was time she arose and sought her son Marzawan and attired him in woman’s apparel; then, taking his hand in hers, led him towards the palace, and ceased not walking with him till she came upon the eunuch after the Sultan had ended his visit to the Princess.  Now when the eunuch saw her, he rose to her, and said, “Enter, but do not prolong thy stay!” So they went in and when Marzawan beheld the Lady Budur in the aforesaid plight, he saluted her, after his mother had doffed his woman’s garb:  then he took out of their satchel books he had brought with him; and, lighting a wax-candle, he began to recite certain conjurations Thereupon the Princess looked at him and recognising him, said, “O my brother, thou hast been absent on thy travels’ and thy news have been cut off from us.”  He replied, “True! but Allah hath brought me back safe and sound, I am now minded to set out again nor hath aught delayed me but the news I hear of thee; wherefore my heart burned for thee and I came to thee, so haply I may free thee of thy malady.”  She rejoined, O my brother, thinkest thou it is madness aileth me?” “Yes.” answered he, and she said, “Not so, by Allah! ’tis even as saith the poet,

’Quoth they ‘Thou rav’st on him thou lov’st’:  quoth I, *
     ‘The sweets of love are only for th’ insane!’
Love never maketh Time his friend befriend; *
     Only the Jinn-struck wight such boon can gain: 
Well! yes, I’m mad:  bring him who madded me *
     And, if he cure m:  madness, blame restrain!’”

Then she let Marzawan know that she was love-daft and he said “Tell me concerning thy tale and what befel thee:  haply there may be in my hand something which shall be a means of deliverance for thee.”—­And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of da, and ceased saying her permitted say.

      When it was the One Hundred and Ninety-fourth Night,