up with every expression of
happiness at my good fortune. I, in the meanwhile, prostrated myself
to the ground before the king, who still kept surveying me with a kind
aspect.

'As soon as his majesty was gone, you ought to have seen the immediate
change which took place in the khanum's conduct towards me. I was no
longer "a child of the devil", "a maiden accursed"; but it was "my love,
my soul, light of my eyes, my child". I, who had never smoked before
her, was now invited to partake of her own pipe; and whether I would or
not, she thrust bits of sweetmeat into my mouth with her own fingers. As
for the Georgian, she could not stand the sight, but withdrew to another
place, to digest her envy as she might. I received the congratulations
of the other women, who did not cease repeating a long list of delights
that were preparing for me. Love, wine, music, jewels, fine clothes,
bathing, and standing before the king, were to be my future occupations.
Some talked to me of the best spells to secure love, and to destroy the
influence of rivals; others gave me the best advice how to get presents
of finery; and many again began to teach me the forms of speech and
compliment which I must use in case the Shah spoke to me. In short,
poor Zeenab, the most miserable and neglected of human beings, all of a
sudden found herself the object of universal attention and admiration.'

Zeenab here finished talking, and the joy which she seemed to feel
for the change which was about to take place in her situation was
so natural, that I could not find in my heart to destroy it by
communicating to her my forebodings of the danger which awaited her. She
little knew the horrible penalty she would incur, in case, when called
upon to attend the Shah, she should be found unworthy of his attentions;
for it was upon record, under such circumstances, that death, a horrid,
cruel death, had been inflicted, and that without appeal to any tribunal
upon earth. I therefore seemed to partake her happiness, and although
we felt we must be separated yet we were consoled with the hope that
opportunities of mutual intelligence would not be wanting.

She told me that one of the king's eunuchs was to call on the following
morning, to conduct her to the seraglio, and, when bathed and newly
dressed, she was to be delivered over to the department of the bazigers,
when her education was immediately to commence.

Hearing her name repeatedly called, she was afraid of