r tents, and sat out on high seats to
view the country. It happened that a royal chasseur passed that way;
he was astonished at seeing their manners and their encampment, and
said to himself, "Perhaps the ambassador of some king is arrived;"
he stood [and amused himself by] looking on.

One of the _khwaja's_ messengers called him forward, and asked him who
he was. He replied, "I am the king's head chasseur." The messenger
mentioned him to the _khwaja_, who ordered a negro slave, saying,
"Go and tell the chasseur that we are travellers, and if he feels
inclined to come and sit down, the coffee and pipe are ready." [283]
When the chasseur heard the name of merchant, he was still more
astonished, and came with the slave to the _khwaja's_ presence;
he saw [on all sides] the air of propriety and magnificence, and
soldiers and slaves. To the _khwaja_ and the young merchant he made
his salutations, and on seeing the dog's state and treatment, his
senses were confounded, and he stood like one amazed. The _khwaja_
asked him to sit down, and presented him coffee; the chasseur asked the
_khwaja's_ name and designation. When he requested leave to depart, the
_khwaja_ having presented him with some pieces [of cloth] and sundry
rarities, dismissed him. In the morning, when the chasseur attended
the king's audience, he related to those present the circumstances
of the _khwaja_; by degrees it came to my knowledge; I called the
chasseur before me, and asked about the merchant.

He related whatever he had seen. On hearing of the dog's exalted state,
and the two men's confinement in the cage, I was quite indignant, and
exclaimed, that reprobate of a merchant deserves death! I ordered some
of my executioners, saying, "Go immediately, and cut off and bring me
the heretic's head." By chance, the same ambassador of the Franks was
present at the audience; he smiled, and I became still more angry,
and said, "O, disrespectful; to display one's teeth [284] without
cause in the presence of kings, is remote from good manners; it is
better to weep than laugh out of season." The ambassador replied,
"Mighty sire, several ideas came across my mind, for which reason I
smiled; the first was, that the _wazir_ had spoken truth, and would
now be released from prison; secondly, that your majesty will be
unstained with the innocent blood of the _wazir_; and the third was,
that the asylum of the universe, without cause or crime, ordered
the merchant to be pu