and though they could not by any means guess at his reason, they agreed to follow his advice exactly.
As soon as the princess got into the house, she called for the head cook; and after she had given him directions about the entertainment for the sultan, she said, 'besides all this you must prepare an extraordinary dish for the sultan's own eating, which nobody else must have anything to do with besides yourself. This dish must be of cucumbers stuffed with these pearls;' and she opened the box, and showed him the pearls.
The chief cook, who had never heard of such a dish, started back, and showed his thoughts by his looks. The princess said, 'I see you take me to be mad to order such a dish, which you never heard of, and which one may say with certainty was never made. I know this as well as you; but I am not mad, and give you these orders with the most perfect sincerity. You must go and invent and do the best you can, and bring me back what pearls are left. The cook could make no reply, but took the box and went away with it; and afterwards the princess gave directions to all the servants to have everything in order, both in the house and gardens to receive the sultan.
Then the two princes went to the place appointed; and as soon as the Sultan of Persia came, the chase began, which lasted till the heat of the sun obliged him to leave off. While Prince Bahman waited to conduct the sultan to their house, Prince Perviz rode before to show the way, and, when he came in sight of the house, spurred his horse to tell the Princess Parizade that the sultan was coming; but she had been told by some servants whom she placed to give notice, and the prince found her waiting ready to receive him.
When the sultan entered the courtyard, and alighted at the portico, the Princess Parizade came and threw herself at his feet, and the two princes informed him that she was their sister, and besought him to accept her respects.
The sultan stooped to help her up; and, after he had gazed sometime on her beauty, struck with her good person, noble air, and a something indefinable, which seemed different from the country where she lived, he said, 'The brothers are worthy of the
