then suleiman-bin-daoud rose up from his seat under the camphor-tree, and stretched his arms and rejoiced and said, ‘o my lady and sweetener of my days, know that if i had made a magic against my queens for the sake of pride or anger, as i made that feast for all the animals, i should certainly have been put to shame. but by means of your wisdom i made the magic for the sake of a jest and for the sake of a little butterfly, and behold it has also delivered me from the vexations of my vexatious wives! tell me, therefore, o my lady and heart of my heart, how did you come to be so wise?’ and balkis the queen, beautiful and tall, looked up into suleiman-bin-daoud’s eyes and put her head a little on one side, just like the butterfly, and said, ‘first, o my lord, because i loved you; and secondly, o my lord, because i know what women-folk are.’