"That is just why you should not thank me! Woman? By Allah! Has it not been said that woman is an inflicter of grief in love as well as in hate? Has it not been said: 'Among the philosophers, the Chinese; among the beasts, the fox; among the birds, the jackdaw; among men, the barber; and in all the world woman—is the most crafty?' Has it not been said, furthermore: 'The beauty of the lark is in its song, good manners are the beauty of an ugly man, forgiveness the beauty of the devotee, and the beauty of woman is virtue—but where shall we find a virtuous woman?' Wah!" he rumbled on. "I have always considered the female of the species a sort of walking, two-legged pest, whose mission on earth, like the mission of mosquitoes"—here he flicked a mosquito away with his tail—"is only to prevent our being too happy! No, no, my lord! Do not thank me!"
And the Hakim, still laughing disagreeably, was carried away by his slaves, while the Prince of Persia, reclining in his litter, left Shiraz.
He was serene and happy. The end of the first moon—and already he had acquired the
