r and bring her to reason.

The king himself came to hear the rights of the matter, but the
princess only persisted in her story, and as a proof showed the ring on
her finger. The king hardly knew what to make of it all, but ended by
thinking that his daughter was more crazy than ever, and without
further argument he had her placed in still closer confinement, with
only her nurse to wait on her and a powerful guard to keep the door.

Then he assembled his council, and having told them the sad state of
things, added: "If any of you can succeed in curing the princess, I
will give her to him in marriage, and he shall be my heir."

An elderly emir present, fired with the desire to possess a young and
lovely wife and to rule over a great kingdom, offered to try the magic
arts with which he was acquainted.

"You are welcome to try," said the king, "but I make one condition,
which is, that should you fail you will lose your life."

The emir accepted the condition, and the king led him to the princess,
who, veiling her face, remarked, "I am surprised, sire, that you should
bring an unknown man into my presence."

"You need not be shocked," said the king; "this is one of my emirs who
asks your hand in marriage."

"Sire," replied the princess, "this is not the one you gave me before
and whose ring I wear. Permit me to say that I can accept no other."

The emir, who had expected to hear the princess talk nonsense, finding
how calm and reasonable she was, assured the king that he could not
venture to undertake a cure, but placed his head at his Majesty's
disposal, on which the justly irritated monarch promptly had it cut off.

This was the first of many suitors for the princess whose inability to
cure her cost them their lives.

Now it happened that after things had been going on in this way for
some time the nurse's son Marzavan returned from his travels. He had
been in many countries and learnt many things, including astrology.
Needless to say that one of the first things his mother told him was
the sad condition of the princess, his foster-sister. Marzavan asked if
she could not manage to let him see the princess without the king's
knowledge.

After some consideration his mother consented, and even persuaded the
eunuch on guard to make no objection to Marzavan's entering the royal
apartment.

The princess was delighted to see her foster-brother again, and after
some conversation she confided to him all her hist