At these words Scheherazade,
perceiving day, gave the sultan notice of it, and forbore
speaking. Ah! dear sister, says Dinarzade, how grieved am I that
you have not time to finish this story! I should be inconsolable
if you lose your life to-day. Sister, replies the sultaness, that
must be as the sultan pleases; but I hope he will be so good as
to suspend my death till to-morrow. And accordingly Schahriar,
far from ordering her death that day, expected next night with
much impatience; so earnest was he to hear out the story of the
Grecian king, and the sequel of that of the fisherman and the
genie.
The Seventeenth Night.
Though Dinarzade was very curious to hear the rest of the story
of the Grecian king, she did not awake that night so soon as
usual, so that it was almost day before she called upon the
sultaness; and then said, I pray you, sister, to continue the
wonderful story of the Greek king; but make haste, I beseech you,
for it will speedily be day.
Scheherazade resumed the story where she left off the day before.
Sir, says she to the sultan, when the physician Douban, or rather
his head, saw that the poison had taken effect, and that the king
had but a few moments to live: Tyrant, it cried, now you see how
princes are treated, who, abusing, their authority, cut off
innocent men: God punishes, soon or late, their injustice and
cruelty.
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