Year: 1873




But how came that title of the Thou
sand and One Nights, which belonged
and still belongs, to all the European
collections of these Arabian stories
will tell you why; and in telling you
why i shall give you the whole back
ground on which all these various Ara
bien stories wherever found, are arrayed.
And the background is itself story,
and this is the way it runs


Once there lived wicked Sultan of
Persia, whose name was Schahriar and
he had many wives-like the Persian
Shah who went journeying into England
this summer past, and he thought of his
wives as stock owners think of their cat
tle-and l fear the present Persian Shah
thinks no otherwise.


Well, when this old Schahriar found
that his wives were faithless and deceit.
full as all wives will be who are esteemed
no more than cattle-he vowed that he
would cut off the chance of their siuning
by making an end of them SO it hap
pened that whatever new wife he espous-
ed one day, he killed upon the next.


You think the brides were foolish to
marry him, but many women keep on
making as foolish matches all the world
over and she who marries sot, is kill
ed slowly, instead of being killed quickly
with bow, as Scbahriar did his work.


Besides, all the women of the East
were slaves, as they are mostly now, and
subject to whatever orders the Sultan
might make.


Now it happened that this old Schah-
riar had vizier, or chief officer under
him (who executed all his murderous or.
Gers) and was horrified by the cruelties
he had to commit. And this same viz
ier had beautiful end accomplished
daughter, who was even more horrifed
than her father; and she plotted how
she might stay the bloody actions of the
Schahriar.


She could gain no access to him, and
could hope to win no influence over him
except by becoming his bride; but if she
became his bride she would have but
one day to live. So, at least, thought
her sisters and her father. She of course
found it very hard to win the consent of
her father, the vizier to her plan; but
at last she succeeded, and so arranged
matters that the Schahriar should COM
mand her to be his bride.


The fatal marriage day came, and the
vizier was in agony of grief and alarm.
The morning after tho espousals, he wait
ed i'm an ecstasy of fear, the order for
the slaughter of the innocent bride but
to his amazement and present relief, the
order was postponed to the following
day.


This bride, whose name was Scheher-
azade-known now to school-boys and
school girls all over the world = wa:
most beguiling of speeca, and mosi
charming story teller. And on the day
of her espousals she had commenced the
narration of most engrossing story tc
her husband the Schahriar, and had sc
a-tfully timed it, and measured out it
length, SO that when the hour came fol
the sultan to set about his cares of ofic,
she should De at its most interesting
stage. The sultan had been so beguileC
by the witchery of her narrative, and 81
eager to learn the issue that he put Of
the execution of his murderous design
in order to hear the termination of tb,
story on the following night.


And SO rich was the narration and s.
great was the art of the Princess Scheh
erazade, that she kept alive the curiosit
and wonder of the husband, the sultan
day after day, and week after week, an,
month after month, until her Fascinating
stories had lasted for a thousand an
one nights.


If you count up these you will fin
they will make a period of two year
and nine months-during which she ha
1, beguiled the sultan and stayed the orde
for her execution. In the interva