Malayan Literature_ Comprising Romantic Ta - Unknown

I send you to the city of Bagdad, taking my three children to their grandfather,
and my wife, the princess Djouher-Manikam, to her mother and her father, the
King Haroun-er- Raschid.' I set out, therefore, with the escort which
accompanied the princess Djouher-Manikam, and we arrived at our first halting-
place. When it was night I erected a tent, and the people of the escort all put up
tents around that of the princess. But Satan breathed into my heart a temptation.
This thought came to me: 'The wife of the King is wonderfully beautiful, and she
has such a pretty name! I will go and ask her to marry me.' So I entered her tent.
At that moment she was seated by her sleeping children, occupied in keeping
away the mosquitoes. The princess demanded, 'O my minister, why do you come
here?' And I answered, 'I have come to ask you to marry me.' The princess said:
'Have you no fear of God the most high? No, I cannot marry you. What would
become of me if I should do such a thing?' Then I said, 'If you will not agree to
marry me, I will kill one of your children.' The princess answered: 'If you kill my
child it will be by the judgment of God, and what can I do but to invoke his
name?' Then I killed one of the children. When he was dead I asked again if she
would marry me, and I killed another of the children. When this one was dead I
asked the same question. The princess answered, 'I cannot marry when I am
already married.' I said to her, 'If you will not, then I will kill the third of your
children.' The princess Djouher-Manikam answered, 'If you kill my third child, it
will be by the judgment of God, and what can I do but invoke his name, for I am
only a woman?' So I killed the third child. After the death of this last child of the
King, I put again my question to the princess. She would not consent to marry
me. I said to her, 'If you don't, I will kill you.' She answered: 'If you kill me, it is
the decree of God. But wait awhile, for I wish to wash my garments and cleanse
the traces of my children's blood from my body.' I said, 'It is well. We will have
the wedding-feast to- morrow.' She left the tent. It was raining in torrents. I
could not discover where she went. Such is my story, O king of the world."