her to acquit herself better of her
commission when a favourable opportunity might offer.

The next morning she repaired to the sultan's palace with the present,
as early as the day before, but when she came there, she found the gates
of the divan shut, and understood that the council sat but every other
day, therefore she must come again the next. This news she carried to
her son, whose only relief was to guard himself with patience. She went
six times afterward on the days appointed and placed herself always
directly before the sultan, but with as little success as the first
morning, and might have perhaps come a thousand times to as little
purpose, if luckily the sultan himself had not taken particular notice
of her.

On the sixth day, after the divan was broken up, when the sultan
returned to his own apartment, he said to his grand vizier: "I have for
some time observed a certain woman, who attends constantly every day
that I give audience, with something wrapped up in a napkin: she always
stands up from the beginning to the breaking up of the audience, and
affects to place herself just before me. Do you know what she wants?"

"Sir," replied the grand vizier, who knew no more than the sultan what
she wanted, but did not wish to seem uninformed, "your majesty knows
that women often make complaints on trifles; perhaps she may come to
complain that somebody has sold her some bad flour, or some such
trifling matter." The sultan was not satisfied with this answer, but
replied: "If this woman comes to our next audience, do not fail to call
her, that I may hear what she has to say." The grand vizier made answer
by lowering his hand, and then lifting it up above his head, signifying
his willingness to lose it if he failed.

By this time, the tailor's widow was so much used to go to audience, and
stand before the sultan, that she did not think it any trouble, if she
could but satisfy her son that she neglected nothing that lay in her
power to please him: so the next audience-day she went to the divan and
placed herself in front of the sultan as usual; and before the grand
vizier had made his report of business, the sultan perceived her, and
compassionating her for having waited so long, said to the vizier:
"Before you enter upon any business, remember the woman I spoke to you
about; bid her come near, and let us despatch her business first." The
grand vizier immediately called the chief of the mace-bearers, and
pointing