"Then," said the genius, "I tell you you have killed my son, for whilst you were
throwing about the stones, my son passed by, and one of them struck him in the
eye and killed him. So I shall kill you."
"Ah, sir, forgive me!" cried the merchant.
"I will have no mercy on you," answered the genius.
"But I killed your son quite unintentionally, so I implore you to spare my life."
"No," said the genius, "I shall kill you as you killed my son," and so saying, he
seized the merchant by the arm, threw him on the ground, and lifted his sabre to
cut off his head.
The merchant, protesting his innocence, bewailed his wife and children, and tried
pitifully to avert his fate. The genius, with his raised scimitar, waited till he had
finished, but was not in the least touched.
Scheherazade, at this point, seeing that it was day, and knowing that the Sultan
always rose very early to attend the council, stopped speaking.
"Indeed, sister," said Dinarzade, "this is a wonderful story."
"The rest is still more wonderful," replied Scheherazade, "and you would say so,
if the sultan would allow me to live another day, and would give me leave to tell it
Schahriar, who had been listening to Scheherazade with pleasure, said to
himself, "I will wait till to-morrow; I can always have her killed when I have heard
All this time the grand-vizir was in a terrible state of anxiety. But he was much
delighted when he saw the Sultan enter the council-chamber without giving the
terrible command that he was expecting.
The next morning, before the day broke, Dinarzade said to her sister, "Dear
sister, if you are awake I pray you to go on with your story."
