Now when it was the second day, Al-Hayfa took seat in the assembly of converse.——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 King suffer me to survive?” Now when it was the next night and that was
The Six Hundred and Ninety-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 Al-Hayfa repaired to the saloon of séance, she and Yusuf, and summoned Ibn Ibrahim and bade the handmaids bring everything that was in the closet. They obeyed her bidding and fetched her all the contents, amongst which were ten robes of honour and three coffers of silk and fine linen and a packet of musk and a parcel of rubies and pearls and jacinths and corals and similar objects of high price. And she conferred the whole of this upon Mohammed ibn Ibrahim, the while improvising these verses:—
“We are noblest of lords amongst men of might; ✿ What we give and largesse bring the most delight:
And when we strive with our hearts and souls ✿ We strive in public nor rue our plight.
With me the pact no regret shall breed ✿ Save in head of suspecting envying wight.
I am none who riseth sans bounteous deed; ✿ I am none who giveth with felon sprite.”
And when Al-Hayfa had ended her poetry, Prince Yusuf largessed[[263]] Ibn Ibrahim and said to him, “Thou shalt have on my part one thousand dinars and twenty robes of brocade and an hundred she-camels and eighty horses (whereof the meanest is worth five hundred gold pieces and each is saddled with a golden selle), and lastly forty handmaids.” After which he began to improvise these couplets:—
“Good signeth man to sight and all men see ✿ Sahl’s son is lord of liberality:
Time and the world and mortals one and all ✿ Witness my goodness and for aye agree: