ns of the good
people of Souffra, whose heads paved, as it were, the country for ten
square miles, when the beauteous Princess Babe-bi-bobu made her
appearance in the hall of audience, attended by her maidens and the
grandees of Souffra, who were the executors to her father's will. At the
head of them was the chief Brahmin, who looked anxiously among the crowd
for his son Mezrimbi, who had not made his appearance that morning. At
last he espied his rich dress, his mantle, his turban and jewelled
scimitar, but his face was muffled up in a shawl, and the chief Brahmin
smiled at the witty conceit of his son, that of having his own beauteous
person muffled as well as that of the now _scarred_ Acota. And then
silence was commanded by a thousand brazen trumpets, and enforced by the
discharge of two thousand pieces of artillery, ten square miles of
people repeated the order for silence, in loud and reiterated
shouts--and at last silence obeyed the order, and there was silence. The
chief Brahmin rose, and having delivered an extemporaneous prayer,
suitable to the solemnity and importance of the occasion, he proceeded
to read the will of the late king--he then descanted upon the Molean
controversy, and how it was now an article of the Souffrarian faith,
which it was heresy and impalement not to believe, that "moles were not
scars, and only blemishes when they were considered so to be." The
choice of the princess, continued the learned Brahmin, has however not
been made; she has left to chance that which was to have proceeded from
her own free will, and that without consulting with the ministers of our
holy religion. My heart told me yesterday that such was not right, and
contrary not only to the king's will, but the will of Heaven; and I
communed deeply on the subject after I had prayed nine times--and a
dream descended on me in my sleep, and I was told that the conditions of
the will would be fulfilled. How to explain this answer from above I
know not: perhaps the youth who was fortunate in discovering the flower,
is also the youth of the princess's choice.

"Even so," replied the princess, in a soft, melodious voice, "and
therefore is my father's will obeyed."

"Where, then, is the fortunate youth?" said the chief Brahmin; "let him
appear."

Babe-bi-bobu, who, as well as others, had in vain looked round for
Acota, was astonished at his not making his appearance, and still more
so when he did, as they thought, appear, led in