They then presented themselves before the Khaleefeh, and related to him the case of Noor-ed-Deen; whereupon the Khaleefeh addressed him, saying, Take this sword, and strike off with it the head of thine enemy. And he took it, and approached El-Mo'een the son of Sáwee; but he looked at him, and said to him, I did according to my nature, and do thou according to thine. And Noor-ed-Deen threw down the sword from his hand, and, looking towards the Khaleefeh, said, O Prince of the Faithful, he hath beguiled me. So the Khaleefeh said, Do thou leave him:—and he said to Mesroor, O Mesroor, advance thou, and strike off his head. Mesroor, therefore, did so: and upon this, the Khaleefeh said to 'Alee the son of El-Faḍl the son of Khákán, Request of me what thou wilt. He replied, O my lord, I have no want of the sovereignty of El-Baṣrah, and desire nothing but to have the honour of serving thee.—Most willingly I assent, said the Khaleefeh:—and he summoned the damsel, and when she had come before him, he bestowed favours upon them both: he gave to them one of the palaces of Baghdád, and assigned to them regular allowances, and made Noor-ed-Deen one of his companions at the table; and he remained with him until death overtook him.
NOTES TO CHAPTER SIXTH.
Note [1.] In the old version, the person here named Enees-el-Jelees is called "The Fair Persian;" but I do not find her so described in any copy of the original. The name here given to her may be rendered "the Companion's Cheerer;" "Enees" being a term applied to any person or thing serving as an agreeable, cheering companion; and "Jelees" signifying "a companion," or "one in the habit of sitting with another."
Note [2.] "Khaṭṭeeyeh" is derived from "khaṭṭ," which signifies "writing," but which is also the name of a place (Khaṭṭ Hejer) in the province of El-Baḥreyn, a famous mart for spears. Of the figure of speech employed in the couplet in which this word occurs (considered by the Arabs an elegant mode of ætiology, and called by them "ḥosn et-taạleel") my sheykh gives the following example in a marginal note:—