ies."

"The king of China was extremely indignant with his daughter and
replied: "You have lost your senses and you must be treated
accordingly." So he had her shut in one set of rooms in one of her
palaces, and only allowed her ten old women, of whom her nurse was the
head, to wait on her and keep her company. He next sent letters to all
the kings who had sued for the princess's hand, begging they would
think of her no longer, as she was quite insane, and he desired his
various envoys to make it known that anyone who could cure her should
have her to wife.

"Fair Maimoune," continued Danhasch, "this is the present state of
affairs. I never pass a day without going to gaze on this incomparable
beauty, and I am sure that if you would only accompany me you would
think the sight well worth the trouble, and own that you never saw such
loveliness before."

The fairy only answered with a peal of laughter, and when at length she
had control of her voice she cried, "Oh, come, you are making game of
me! I thought you had something really interesting to tell me instead
of raving about some unknown damsel. What would you say if you could
see the prince I have just been looking at and whose beauty is really
transcendent? That is something worth talking about, you would
certainly quite lose your head."

"Charming Maimoune," asked Danhasch, "may I inquire who and what is the
prince of whom you speak?"

"Know," replied Maimoune, "that he is in much the same case as your
princess. The king, his father, wanted to force him to marry, and on
the prince's refusal to obey he has been imprisoned in an old tower
where I have just seen him."

"I don't like to contradict a lady," said Danhasch, "but you must
really permit me to doubt any mortal being as beautiful as my princess."

"Hold your tongue," cried Maimoune. "I repeat that is impossible."

"Well, I don't wish to seem obstinate," replied Danhasch, "the best
plan to test the truth of what I say will be for you to let me take you
to see the princess for yourself."

"There is no need for that," retorted Maimoune; "we can satisfy
ourselves in another way. Bring your princess here and lay her down
beside my prince. We can then compare them at leisure, and decide
which is in the right."

Danhasch readily consented, and after having the tower where the prince
was confined pointed out to him, and making a wager with Maimoune as to
the result of the comparison, he flew off t