her high into
the air; at which time two philosophers,--one of whom it should be said
was myself,--were observing the course of the stars from the gallery of
a lofty tower. They perceived high above them the genius, Thetel, with
the fair Gamaheh, and at the same moment there fell upon one,--but that
is nothing to the present matter. Both magicians had recognised the
genius, but not the princess, and exhausted themselves in all manner of
conjectures as to the meaning of this appearance, without being able to
get at any thing certain, or even probable. Soon after this the unhappy
fate of the princess became generally known in Famagusta, and now the
magicians knew how to interpret the vision of the genius with the
maiden in his arms. Both imagined that the genius must certainly have
found some means of recalling the princess into life, and resolved to
make inquiries in Samarcand, where, according to their observations, he
had manifestly directed his flight. But in Samarcand all were silent
about the princess; no one knew a word.

"Many years had passed; the two magicians had quarrelled, as it will
happen with learned men,--and the more learned the oftener,--and they
only imparted to each other their most important discoveries from the
iron force of custom--You have not forgotten, Pepusch, that I myself am
one of these magicians--Well, I was not a little surprised at a
communication from my colleague, which contained the most wonderful,
and at the same time the happiest, intelligence of the princess that
could be imagined. The matter was thus:--by means of a scientific
friend in Samarcand, my colleague had obtained the loveliest and rarest
tulips, and as perfectly fresh as if they had been just cut from the
stalk. His chief object was the microscopic examination of the interior
portions, and, in fact, of the petal. It was with this view that he was
dissecting a beautiful tulip, and discovered in the cup a strange
little kernel that struck him prodigiously; but how great was his
astonishment when, on applying his glass, he perceived that the little
kernel was nothing else than the Princess Gamaheh, who, pillowed in the
petal of the tulip, seemed to slumber softly and calmly.

"However great the distance that separated me from my colleague, yet I
set off immediately, and hastened to him. He had in the meantime put
off all operations, to allow me the pleasure of a sight first; and
perhaps, too, from the fear of spoiling some