madman, but the Commander of the Faithful." And the superintendent

answered him, saying, "None lieth but thou, O foulest of the
Jinn-maddened!" Then he stripped him of his clothes, and clapping on

his neck a heavy chain, bound him to a high lattice and fell to
beating him two bouts a day and two a-nights, and he ceased not

abiding on this wise the space of ten days. Then his mother came to
him and said: "O my son, O Abu al-Hasan, return to thy right reason,

for this is the Devil's doing." Quoth he: "Thou sayest sooth, O my
mother, and bear thou witness of me that I repeat me of that talk

and turn me from my madness. So do thou deliver me, for I am nigh upon
death." Accordingly his mother went out to the superintendent and

procured his release, and he returned to his own house.
Now this was at the beginning of the month, and when it ended, Abu

al-Hasan longed to drink liquor and, returning to his former habit,
furnished his saloon and made ready food and bade bring wine. Then,

going forth to the bridge, he sat there, expecting one whom he
should converse and carouse with, according to his custom. As he sat

thus, behold, up came the Caliph and Masrur to him, but Abu al-Hasan
saluted them not and said to Al-Rashid, "No friendly welcome to

thee, O King of the Jann!" Quoth Al-Rashid, "What have I done to
thee?" and quoth Abu al-Hasan, "What more couldst thou do than what

thou hast done to me, O foulest of the Jann? I have been beaten and
thrown into bedlam, where all said I was Jinn-mad, and this was caused

by none save thyself. I brought thee to my house and fed thee with
my best, after which thou dist empower thy Satans and Marids to

disport themselves with my wits from morning to evening. So avaunt and
aroynt thee and wend thy ways!"

The Caliph smiled and, seating himself by his side, said to him,
"O my brother, did I not tell thee that I would return to thee?" Quoth

Abu al-Hasan, "I have no need of thee, and as the byword sayeth in
verse:

"Fro' my friend, 'twere meeter and wiser to part,
For what eye sees not born shall ne'er sorrow heart."

And indeed, O my brother, the night thou camest to me and we conversed
and caroused together, I and thou, 'twas as if the Devil came to me

and troubled me that night." Asked the Caliph, "And who is he, the
Devil?" and answered Abu al-Hasan, "He is none other than thou."

Whereat the Caliph laughed and coaxed him and spake him fair,
saying: "O my brother, when I went out from thee, I forgot the door

and left it open, and perhaps Satan came in to thee." Quoth Abu
al-Hasan: "Ask me not of that which hath betided me. What possessed

thee to leave the door open, so that the Devil came in to me and there
befell me with him this and that?" And he related to him all that

had betided him, first and last (and in repetition is no fruition),
what while the Caliph laughed and hid his laughter.

Then said he to Abu al-Hasan: "Praised be Allah who hath done away
from thee whatso irked thee, and that I see thee once more in weal!"

And Abu al-Hasan said: "Never again will I take thee to cup
companion or sitting comrade, for the proverb saith, 'Whoso

stumbleth on a stone and thereto returneth, upon him be blame and
reproach.' And thou, O my brother, nevermore will I entertain thee nor

company with thee, for that I have not found thy heel propitious to
me." But the Caliph coaxed him and said, "I have been the means of thy

winning to thy wish anent the imam and the Sheikhs." Abu al-Hasan
replied, "Thou hast," and Al-Rashid continued, "And haply somewhat may

betide which shall gladden thy heart yet more." Abu al-Hasan asked,
"What dost thou require of me?" and the Commander of the Faithful

answered: "Verily, I am thy guest. Reject not the guest." Quoth Abu
al-Hasan: "On condition that thou swear to me by the characts on the

seal of Solomon, David's son (on the twain be the peace!) that thou
wilt not suffer thine Ifrits to make fun of me." He replied, "To

hear is to obey!"
Whereupon the wag took him and brought him into the saloon and set

food before him and entreated him with friendly speech. Then he told
him all that had befallen him, whilst the Caliph was like to die of

stifled laughter. After which Abu al-Hasan removed the tray of food,
and bringing the wine service, filled a cup and cracked it three

times, then gave it to the Caliph, saying: "O boon companion mine, I
am thy slave, and let not that which I am about to say offend thee,

and be thou not vexed, neither do thou vex me." And he recited these
verses:

"Hear one that wills thee well! Lips none shall bless
Save those who drink for drunk and all transgress.

Ne'er will I cease to swill while night falls dark
Till lout my forehead low upon my tass.

In wine like liquid sun is my delight
Which clears all care and gladdens allegresse."

When the Caliph heard these his verses and saw how apt he was at
couplets, he was delighted with exceeding delight, and taking the cup,

drank it off, and the twain ceased not to converse and carouse till
the wine rose to their heads. Then quoth Abu al-Hasan to the Caliph:

"O boon companion mine, of a truth I am perplexed concerning my
affair, for meseemed I was Commander of the Faithful and ruled and

gave gifts and largess, and in very deed, O my brother, it was not a
dream." Quoth the Caliph, "These were the imbroglios of sleep," and

crumbling a bit of bhang into the cup, said to him, "By my life, do
thou drink this cup," and said Abu al-Hasan, "Surely I will drink it

from thy hand." Then he took the cup and drank it off, and no sooner
had it settled in his stomach than his head fell to the ground

before his feet. Now his manners and fashions pleased the Caliph,
and the excellence of his composition and his frankness, and he said

in himself, "I will assuredly make him my cup companion and sitting
comrade." So he rose forthright, and saying to Masrur, "Take him

up," returned to the palace.
Accordingly, the eunuch took up Abu al-Hasan, and carrying him to

the palace of the caliphate, set him down before Al-Rashid, who bade
the slaves and slave girls compass him about, whilst he himself hid in

a place where Abu al-Hasan could not see him. Then he commanded one of
the handmaidens to take the lute and strike it over the wag's head,

whilst the rest smote upon their instruments. So they played and sang,
till Abu al-Hasan awoke at the last of the night and heard the

symphony of lutes and tambourines and the sound of the flutes and
the singing of the slave girls, whereupon he opened eyes, and

finding himself in the palace, with the handmaids and eunuchs about
him, exclaimed: "There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in

Allah, the Glorious, the Great! Come to my help this night, which
meseems more unlucky than the former! Verily, I am fearful of the

madhouse and of that which I suffered therein the first time, and I
doubt not but the Devil is come to me again, as before. O Allah, my

Lord, put thou Satan to shame!" Then he shut his eyes and laid his
head in his sleeve, and fell to laughing softly and raising his head

betimes, but still found the apartment lighted and the girls singing.
Presently one of the eunuchs sat down at his head and said to him,

"Sit up, O Prince of True Believers, and look on thy palace and thy
slave girls." Said Abu al-Hasan: "Under the veil of Allah, am I in

truth Commander of the Faithful, and dost thou not lie? Yesterday I
rode not forth, neither ruled, but drank and slept, and this eunuch

cometh to make me rise." Then he sat up and recalled to thought that
which had betided him with his mother and how he had beaten her and

entered the bedlam, and he saw the marks of the beating wherewith
the superintendant had beaten him, and was perplexed concerning his

affair and pondered in himself, saying, "By Allah, I know not how my
case is nor what is this that betideth me!" Then, gazing at the

scene around him, he said privily, "All these are of the Jann in human
shape, and I commit my case to Allah."

Presently he turned to one of the damsels and said to her, "Who am
I?" Quoth she, "Thou art the Commander of the Faithful," and quoth he: