MUSLIH-ud-Din, better known under his poetical name of Sádi (acquired from his patron, the Persian king, Sád-Atābak), was born at Shiraz, in Persia, A.D. 1176. His father, Abdullah-supposed to be a descendant of 'Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of the "Prophet"-was for some time in straitened circumstances; but having obtained a petty. government appointment through an influential patron, his zeal, ability, and integrity raised him in the estimation of his superiors, gained for him promotion, and opened up a prospect of future advancement. Unfortunately, he died while Sádi was still a child, leaving him a trifling heritage, which soon disappeared, through the intrigues of false friends, and Sádi and his mother were obliged to live for a time on the bounty of a Saracen chief.