Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 7.djvu/193

171 slave-girls of the Khalif Haroun er Reshid, by name Tuhfeh the Lutanist, and she, finding the bath crowded and no passing for the multitude of women and girls, asked what was to do; and they told her of the [strange] damsel. So she went up to her and considering her straitly, was amazed at her grace and beauty and glorified God (magnified be His majesty) for the fair forms He hath created. The sight of her diverted her from her bath, so that she went not [farther] in nor washed, but sat staring at the princess, till she had made an end of washing and coming forth [of the hot room], put on her clothes, whereupon beauty was added to her beauty. She sat down on the divan, whilst the women gazed upon her; then she looked at them and veiling herself, went out.

Tuhfeh went out with her and followed her, till she saw where she dwelt, when she left her and returned to the Khalif’s palace. Then she went in to the lady Zubeideh and kissed the earth before her; and the princess said to her, ‘O Tuhfeh, why hast thou tarried in the bath?’ ‘O my lady,’ answered she, ‘I have seen a marvel, never beheld I its like amongst men or women, and this it was that distracted me and confounded my wit and amazed me, so that I forgot to wash my head.’ ‘And what was that?’ asked Zubeideh. ‘O my lady,’ replied Tuhfeh, ‘I saw a damsel in the bath, having with her two little boys like moons, never saw any her like, before nor after her, nor is there the like of her form in the whole world. By thy munificence, O my lady, if thou toldest the Commander of the Faithful of her, he would slay her husband and take her from him, for she hath not her like among women. I asked of her husband and they told me that he is a merchant called Hassan of Bassora. Moreover, I followed her from the bath to her own house and found it to be that of the vizier, with the two gates, one giving on the river and the other on the street. Indeed, O my