Towards daybreak on the last night of the ninth month， the queen was seized with the pangs of labour； so she sat down on the stool of delivery and God made the travail easy to her， so that she gave birth to a male child， on whom appeared the signs of happy fortune. When the King heard of this， he rejoiced with an exceeding joy and rewarded the bearer of the good tidings with much treasure. Then， of his gladness， he went in to the child and kissed him between the eyes， wondering at his brilliant beauty；
for in him was the saying of the poet made truth：
God hath a lion given in him unto the forts of fame And in the heaven of high estate hath set another star.
Lo， at his birth， the spears shake all and all the wild deer start And all the chieftains of the folk and all the men of war！
So mount him not upon the breasts， for he shall surely deem That horses" backs for such as he the softer sitting are；
And wean ye him from sucking milk， for he eftsoon shall find The blood of foemen in the field the sweeter drink by far.
The midwives took the new-born child and cut the cord of his navel， after which they anointed his eyes with kohl and named him Taj el Mulouk Kharan. He was suckled at the breast of delight and reared in the lap of favouring fortune， and the days ran on and the years passed by， till he reached the age of seven. Then the King his father summoned the doctors and learned men and bade them teach his son writing and science and polite letters. This they did for some years， till he had learnt all that was needful，when the King took him out of the professors" hands and committed him to a master， who taught him horsemanship and the use of arms，till the boy attained the age of fourteen and became proficient in martial exercises. Moreover， he outshone all the people of his time for the excess of his beauty； so that， whenever he went abroad on any occasion， all who saw him were ravished with him and made verses in his honour， and even the virtuous were seduced by his brilliant loveliness. Quoth the poet of him：
A tender branch， that from the breeze hath ta"en its nourishment！
I clipped him and straightway became drunk with his sweetest scent；
Not drunken with the drunkenness of one who drinketh wine， But with the honey of his mouth fulfilled of languishment.
All loveliness comprised is within his perfect form， So that o"er all the hearts of men he reigns omnipotent.
By God， forgetfulness of him shall never cross my mind. What while I wear the chains of life， nor even when they"re rent！
Lo， if I live， in love of him I"ll live； and， if I die Of love-longing for him， I"ll say， "O rare！ O excellent！"
When he reached his eighteenth year， the tender down began to invade the table of his rosy cheeks， which were adorned by a black mole like a grain of ambergris， and he captivated the minds and eyes of all who looked on him， even as says of him the poet in the following verses：
He is become the Khalif of beauty in Joseph"s place； The hearts of all lovers dread him， whenas they see his grace.
Pause thou with me and fasten thy gaze on him！ thou"lt see The sign of the Khalifate set in sable[FN#120] on his face.
And as says another：
Thine eyes have never looked upon a fairer sight， Of all the things that are to see beneath the sky，Than yonder mole of brown， that nestles on his face， Midmost the rosy cheek， beneath the coal-black eye.
And a third：
I marvel at yon mole that serves the fire eternal， Upon his cheek， yet is not burned， all Kafir[FN#121] though it be；
And eke I marvel that he"s sent or God， with every glance To work true miracles； and yet a sorcerer is he！
The many gall-bladders that burst for him it is that make The shining fringes of his cheek so black and bright to see.
And yet a fourth：
I wonder to hear the folk ask of the water of life And question in which of the lands its magical fountain flows Whenas I see it well from the damask lips of a fawn， Under his tender moustache and his cheek"s perennial rose.
And eke "tis a wonder of wonders that Moses，[FN#122] finding it there Flowing， yet took no patience nor laid him down to repose.
When he came to man"s estate， his beauty increased and he had many comrades and friends； and every one who drew near to him hoped that he would become Sultan after his father"s death and that he himself might be one of his officers. He had a passion for hunting and would hardly leave the chase a single hour. His father would have restrained him， fearing for him the perils of the desert： and the wild beasts； but he paid no heed to him. One day， he bade his attendants take ten days" provender and setting out for the chase， rode on into the desert four days long， at the end of which time he came to a verdant champaign， full of wild beasts pasturing and trees laden with ripe fruit and springs welling forth. Then he said to his followers， "Set up the nets in a wide circle and let our general rendezvous be at the mouth of the ring， in such a spot." So they staked out a wide circle with the nets； and there gathered together a multitude of all kinds of wild beasts and gazelles， which cried out for fear of them and threw themselves in terror right in the face of the horses. Then they loosed the dogs and sakers and hunting lynxes on them and smote them with arrows in the vitals； so， by the time they came to the closed end of the ring of nets， they took a great number of the wild beasts， and the rest fled. Then the prince sat down by the water-side and letting spread the game before himself，apportioned it among his men， after he had set apart the choicest thereof for his father King Suleiman and despatched it to him；