never lost sight of him, supposing he was asleep,
entered the apartment to place himself on guard, with his sabre
uplifted and naked.

As soon as the King saw the gleam of the sabre he was seized with
terror, and a cry which he uttered brought to him all the officers of
his guard. Achib was arrested by his order, loaded with chains, and
led away to prison.

The next morning, after the first prayer, the King assembled his
divan, ascended his throne, and caused the man to be brought before
him whom slanderous and false reports and deceitful appearances had
exposed to the presumption of so much guilt.

"Ungrateful that you are!" said he to him. "Is it by putting me to
death that you would show your gratitude and repay my favours? I will
not delay to take signal vengeance on your detestable baseness."

Achib, having made no reply to these reproaches, was sent back to
prison.

Scarcely was he gone out, when two of the courtiers who were most
eager for his destruction approached the King.

"Sire," said they to him, "everybody is surprised to see the execution
of the criminal delayed. There is no crime equal to that which he
intended to commit; and you ought to give such a speedy example of
justice as your personal safety and the tranquillity of your people
require."

"Let us not be rash," replied the King, "in a judgment of this nature.
The criminal is in chains, and cannot make his escape. And as to
public vengeance, it will never be too late to gratify it. It is easy
to take away a man's life, but it is impossible to restore it. Life is
a blessing of Heaven which we ought to respect, and it becomes not us
to deprive our fellow-creatures of it without the most mature
deliberation. The evil, once done, can never be repaired. I have it
now in my power to reflect on what I ought to do, and wish not that
the future should have to reproach me with the improper conduct of the
present."

Having said this, the King dismissed the divan, ordered his hunting
equipage to be got ready, and gave himself up for some days to the
amusements of the chase.

On his return, he was again set upon by the enemies of Achib. The
longer, according to them, that this criminal's punishment was
delayed, the more the people were discontented. Clemency and
moderation ceased to be virtues when they spared such crimes as his.
These new remarks embarrassed the Sovereign, who had now nothing to
oppose to them, since the delay which he had granted