the staple, which she made fast, and tucking up her sleeves above her wrists, slid down and landed with them.  They carried her without the town, where they mounted, she and her lord, and fared on, with the guide in front,[FN#314] directing them on the way, and they ceased not faring night and day till they entered his father’s house.  The young man greeted his sire, who was gladdened in him, and to whom he related all that had befallen him, whereupon he rejoiced in his safety.  As for the tutor, he wasted whatso was with him and returned to the city, where he saw the youth and excused himself.  Then he questioned him of what had betided him and he told him, whereat he admired and returned to companionship with him; but the youth ceased to have regard for him and gave him nor solde nor ration as was his wont, neither discovered to him aught of his secrets.  When the tutor saw that there was no profit from him he returned to the king, the ravisher of the slave-girl, and recounted to him what the Chamberlain had done and counselled him to slay that official and egged him on to recover the damsel, promising to give his friend a poison-draught and return.  Accordingly the king sent for the Chamberlain and chid him for the deed he had done; whereat the king’s servants incontinently fell upon the Chamberlain and put him to death.  Meanwhile the tutor returned to the youth, who asked him of his absence, and he told him that he had been in the city of the king who had taken the slave-girl.  When the youth heard this, he misdoubted of his governor and never again trusted him in anything but was always on his guard against him.  Then the tutor without stay or delay caused prepare great store of sweetmeats and put in them deadly poison and presented them to the youth, who, when he saw those sweetmeats, said to himself, “This is an extraordinary thing of the tutor!  Needs must there be in this sweetmeat some mischief, and I will make proof of his confectionery upon himself.”  Accordingly he got ready food and set amongst it a portion of the sweetmeat, and inviting the governor to his house placed the provaunt before him.  He ate, and amongst the rest which they brought him, the poisoned sweetmeat; so while in the act of eating he died; whereby the youth knew that this was a plot against himself and said, Whoso seeketh his fortune by his own force[FN#315] attaineth a failure.”  “Nor,” continued the Wazir, “is this, O king of the age, stranger than the story of the Druggist and his Wife and the Singer.”  When King Shah Bakht heard the tale of Al-Rahwan he gave him leave to withdraw to his own house and he tarried there the rest of the night and the next day till eventide evened.

The Second Night of the Mouth.

When the even evened, the king sat private in his sitting-chamber and his mind was occupied with the story of the Singer and the Druggist.  So he called the Wazir and bade him tell the tale.  Answered he, “I will well.  They recount, O my lord, the following