The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922, December 28, 1917, Image 10
THE SEMI-WEEKLY TRIBUNE, NORTH PLATTE, NEBRASKA. King of the Khyber jRllfldS A omance f Adventure KING SEES YASMINI FOR THE FIRST TIME WHEN SHE COMES TO DANCE BEFORE THE THOUSANDS OF WARRIORS ASSEMBLED IN THE CAVERN Synopsis. At the beginning of the world war Cnpt Atliclstan King of the British Indian army and of Its secret service, Is ordered to Delhi to meet Yasmlnl, a dancer, and goes with her to Khlnjan to meet the outlaws there who are said by spies to bo preparing for n Jihad or holy war. On his way to Delhi King quietly foils a plan to assassinate him and gets evidence that Yasmlnl Is after him. lie meets lluwn Gungn, Yasmlnl's man, who says alio has already gone north, and at her town house witnesses queer dances. Ismail, an Afrldl, be comes his body servant and protector, lie rescues somo of Ya'sminl's hlllmen and takes them north with him, tricking the Hangar Into going ahead. The Hangar deserts him nt n dangerous time. lie meets his brother at All MasJId fort The disguise he assumes there fools even the sharp-eyed cutthroats composing his guard. He enters Khlnjan caves, thanks to his lying guides, nnd at a clinic hears of an Impending revolt led by BulI-Wlth-a-Beard, and goes to a meeting In tho cavern. CHAPTER XII. Continued. "Aye I Tho liar says tho Germans pave It to him. Ho Bwcars thoy will lond more. Who are the Qermans7 Who Is n man who talks of a jihad that lei to be, that ho should have gold coin Riven him by unhcllovors? I saw n German once, at Nuklao. He ate pig meat and washed It down with wino. 4ro such men sonB of tho Prophet? TValt and watch, say II" "Money?" sold King. "And Bhould bo rmfre money come?" This was courteous conversation nnd received as such many a long lenguo removed from curiosity. "Who nm I to foretell n man's kis met? I know what I know, and I think what I think I I know thee, hakim, for a gentle fellow, who hurt mo almost dot at all In the drawing of a butict cut of my flesh. What knowest thou bout me?" "That I will dress the wound for thoo again I" Artless statements are an useful In their way as artless questions. Let ho gutlo lie deep, that Is all. "Nay, nay I For sho said nay I Shall I fall foul of her, for tho sako of a sww bandago?" Tho temptation was terrific to nsk why sho had given that order, but King resisted It; and presently It occurred to the Pathan that his own theories on liio subject might bo of lutcrost "She will uso thoe for n reward," ho Mid. "He who shall win and keep hor ft Wrttriii-Looklna Beluchl Wa Thrust Forward at a Run, With ' Arms Lathtd to His Sides. ifaver may havo his hurts dressed and bla belly dosed. Her enemies may rot" i "Docs she call tho mullah Muham mad Anlm enemy?" King aBked him. "Nay, she never mentions him by tKuae." CHAPTER XII!. Tfco dance went on for fifteen mln vtes yet, but then quite unexpectedly all the arena guards together fired a volley at the roof, and the dance topped as If every dancer had been hit Panting foaming at tho moutli, kb of them the dauccrs ran to tholr cats and set tho crowd surgtug again, leaving the arena empty of all but the guards. Now a man stood up near the edge f .the crowd whom King recognized ; nd recognition brought no Joy with It She mullah without hair or eyelashes, mhe had admitted him and his party through tho mosquo Into the caves, rtrode out to tho mlddlo of tho arena Ul alone, strutting and swaggering. Ho recalled tho man's lust words and drow mo consolation from them, cither. "Many have entered I Somo went ut by n different road 1" Cold chills went down his bnck. All t onco Ismail's manner became unon uraging. Ho ceased to mako a fuss rer the dancer and beg'in to eyo King jftdewlse, until at last ho seemed un ajfcle to contain tho inallca that would aMl t&rtk. 1 ' LM "At tfe gate tW were only words 1" By TALBOT MUNDY Copyright by the Dobbt-Merrlll Company ho whispered. "Hero In this cavern men wait for proof 1" Ho licked his teeth suggestively, us a wolf docs when ho contemplates a moal. Then, as an afterthought, an though ashamed, "I lovo thee! Thou art a man after my own heart 1 But I am her man I Walt and seo I" Tho mullah In tho arena, blinking with his lashless eyes, held both arms up for sllenco In tho nttltudo of a Christian priest blessing n congrega tion. Tho great cavern grow still, nnd only tho river could bo heard sucking hungrily between tho smooth stono banks. "God Is great I" tho mullah howled. Tho crowd thundered In echo to him ; and then tho vault took up tho echoes. "And Muhammad Is his prophet I" howled tho mullah. Instantly they an swered him again. "His prophet Is his prophet Is his prophet I" said tho stalactites, In loud bnrks then In mur mursthen In awe-struck whispers. That seemed to bo all tho religious ritual Khlnjan remembered or could tolerate. Considering thnt tho mullah, too, must havo killed his man In cold blood before earning tho right to bo there, perhnps It was enough too much. Thoro wero men not far from King who shuddered. "Thoro are strangers I" announced tho mullah, as a man might say, "I smell a rati" But ho did not look at anybody In particular; ho blinked at tho crowd. "Bring them 1" ho shouted, nnd King suppressed n shudder for what proof had ho of right to bo there, beyond Is land's verbal corroboration of a Ho? Would Ismail Ho for him again? ho wondered. And If do, would tho Ho bo any uso? Not far from where King sat thcro was nn Immcdlato disturbance In tho crowd, nnd n wretched-looking Baluchi was thrust forward at a run, with arms laRhed to his sides and n pitiful look of terror on his face Two more Bn- luchls were hustled along nftor him, protesting a little, but looking almost as hopeless. Onco In tho arena, tho guards took chnrgo of all threo of them and lined them up facing tho mullah, clubbing them with their rifle-butts to got quick er obedience. Tho crowd began to bo noisy again, but tho mullah signed for silence. "These are traitors I" ho howled, and his voice was llko a wolf's at hunting timo. "Hear, and bo warned I" The crowd grow very Btlll. but King snw that oorao men licked their Hps, as If thoy well knew what was coming. "These three men camo, and ono was a now man 1" tho mullah howled. "Tho other two wero his witnesses I All threo swore that tho first man camo from slaying an unbeliever In tho teeth of written law. They said ho ran from tho law. So, as tho custom Is, I lot all threo enter 1" "Good!" said tho crowd. "Good I" They might havo been flvo thousand Judges, Judging In equity, so grave they were. Yet thoy licked their lips. "But later, word camo to mo saying they aro llurs. So again as tho cus tom Is I ordered them bound and held I Does any speak for them?" "Speak for them?" said tho roof. Thoro was alienee. Then thero was a murmur of astonishment. Over op posite to where King But tho mulluh Btood up, who tho Pathan had said was "Bull-wlth-n-bcard" Muhammnd Anlm. "Tho men aro mlnol" ho growled. His volco was llko n bear's at buy; It was low, but It carried Btrangcly. And as ho spoke ho swung his great head between his shoulders, llko a bear that means to charge. "Tho proof thoy brought has been stolen I They had good proof I I speak for them I Tho men aro mlnol" Tho Pathan nudged King In tho ribs with nn elbow llko a club and tickled his ear with hot breath. "Bull-wlth-n-beard speak3 truth I" he grinned. "Truth and a Ho together Good may It do him and them I They die, they threo Buluchlsl" "Proof 1" howled tho mullah who had no hair or eyelashes. "Proof 1 Show us proof 1" yelled tho crowd. Tho Pathan next King leaned over to whisper to him again, but stiffened In tho net There was u greut gasp tho sumo Instant, as the wholo crowd caught Its breath all together. Tho mullah In the mlddlo froze Into Im mobility. Bull-wlth-a-benrd stood mumbling, swaying his great head from sldo to Bide, no longer suggestive of a bear about to charge, but of ono who hesitates. The crowd wns staring at tho end of tho bridge. King stared, too, nnd caught his own brcnth. For Ynsmlnl stood there, Etnlllug on them nil as tho new moon smiles down on the Khyber I She had come among them llko n spirit all unheralded. So much moro beautiful than tho one likeness King had seen of her that for a second he doubted who she was, she Btood there, human nnd wnrm and real, who had begun to seem a myth, clad In gauzy silk transparent stuff that mndo no secret of sylphllko shapeli ness nnd looking nearly light enough to blow away. Her feet and they were tho most marvclously molded things ho had ever seen wero naked and plnycd restlessly on the naked stono. Not ono part of her was still for a fraction of a second ; yet tho wholo ef fect wns of Insolently lazy ensc. Her eyes blazed brighter than the lit tle Jewels stitched to her gossumer dress, and when u man once looked nt them ho did not find It easy to look awny again. Even mullah Muhammnd Anlm seemed transfixed, llko a great foolish animal. But King was staring very hard In deed nt something else mentally cursing the plqln glass spectacles ho wore, thnt had begun to film over nnd dim his vision. Thcro wero two brace lets on her arm, both barbaric things of solid gold. Tho smaller of tho two was on her wrist nnd tho larger on her upper arm, but they wero so alike, ex cept for size, and so exactly llko tho ono Rcwn Guuga had given him In her name nnd that had been stolen from him In tho night, that ho ran tho risk of removing tho glasses a moment to Btnro with unimpeded eyes. Even then tho dlBtance wus too great Ho could not qulto see. But her eyes began to search tho crowd In his direction, and then ho know two things absolutely. He was sitting where sho had ordered Ismail to placo him; for sho picked him out almost Instantly, and laughed as If somebody had struck a silver bell. And ono of thoso bracelets was tho ono thnt ho had worn; for she flaunted It nt him, moving her arm so that tho light should mnko tho gold glitter. Then, perhaps becauso tho crowd had begun to whisper, nnd sho wanted nil attention, sho raised both arms to toss back tho golden hnlr thnt camo cascading nenrly to her knees. And as If tho crowd knew thnt symptom well, It drew Its breath In shnrply and grow very still. "Muhammad Anlm!" sho said, and Bho might havo been wooing him. "That was n dovll's trick 1" It was rather an astounding state ment, coming from lovely Hps In such n setting. It wns rather suggcstlvo of a driver's whiplash, flicked through tho air for a beginning. Muhammad Anlm continued glaring and did not nnswor her, so in her own good time, when sho had tossed her golden hair back once or twlco again, sho developed her meaning. "Wo who aro freo of Khlnjan caves do not send men out to bring recruits. Wo know better than to bid our men tell lies for others nt tho gato. Nor, seeking proof for our now recruit, do wo send men to hunt n head for him not oven thoso of us who havo a lash kar that wo call our own, mullah Mu hammad Anlm 1 Each of us earns his own way In 1" Tho mullah Muhammad Anlm began to stroke his beard, but ho made no an swer. "And mullnh Muhammnd Anlm, thou wandering mnn of God when thnt lashkar hns foolishly been sent and hns failed, ts It written In tho Knla- mullah snylng wo should protend there wns n head, and thnt tho head wbb stolen? A 116. is n Ho, Muhammnd Anlm I Wandering perhnps Is good, If In senrch of tho wny. Is It good to lose tho wny, and to He, thou truo fol lower of tho Prophet?" Sho smiled, tossing her hair back, nor eyes challenged, her Hps mocked him nnd her chin scorned. Tho crowd breathed hard and watched Tho mul lah muttered something In his beard, and sat down, and tho crowd begnu to roar applauso at her. But sho checked It with a regal gesture, and n glnnco of contempt at tho mullah thnt was alono worth a Journey across tho "Hills" to seo. "Guards I" sho Buld quietly. And the crowd's sigh then was llko tho night wind In a forest. "Away with thoso threo of Muhum mnd Anlm's men 1" Twelvo of tho nrenn guards threw down their shields with n sudden clat ter and seized tho prisoners, four to each. Tho crowd shivered with de licious anticipation. Tho doomed men neither struggled nor cried, for fatal Ism Is an anodyne ns well ns an explo slvo. King set his teeth. Yasmlnl, with both hnnds behind her head, continued to smllo down on them nil as sweetly as tho stars shluo on a battlefield. Sho nodded once; nnd then all was over In a minute. With n ringing "nol" nnd n run, the gunrds lifted their vic tims shoulder high and bore them for ward. At tho river bank they pnuscd for a second to swing them. Then, with another "Ho!" they threw them llko dead rubbish Into tho swift black wa ter. There was only ono wild scream that went echoing nnd re-echoing to the rocf. There wns scarcely a splash, and no extra ripple at all. No heads camo up again to gasp. No fingers clutched nt tho surface. The fearful speed of tho river sucked them under, to grind nnd churn nnd pound them through long caverns underground nnd hurl them nt last over tho great cntn ruct toward the middle of tho world. "Ah-h-h-h-h 1" sighed tho crowd In ecstasy. "Is there no other stranger?" asked Ynsmlnl, searching for King again with her nmnzlng eyes. The skin nil down lils bnck turned thero and then Into gooseflcsh. And as her eyes met his sho laughed llko n bell nt him. She knew I She knew who he wns, how he had entered, nnd how ho felt Not a doubt of It I CHAPTER XIV. "Kurram Khan 1" the lnshless mullnh howled, like a lone wolf In the moon light, nnd King stood up. In thnt grim minute ho 'managed to seem about as much nt enso as a natLvo hakim ought to feel nt such an initiation. . "Come forward 1" the mullah howled. and he obeyed, trending gingerly be tween men who were at no pains to let him by, and silently blessing them, be cause ho was not renlly In any hurry at nil. Ynsmlnl looked lovely from n distance, nnd life wns sweet. "Who are his witnesses?" "I!" shouted Ismnll, jumping up. "I!" cracked the roof. "II I!" So that for a second King nlmost believed ho hnd a crowd of men to swenr for him and did not hear Darya Khnn at all, who rose from a place not very far behind where he had sat Ismail followed him in a hurry, llko a man wading a river with loose clothes gathered in ono urm nnd the other arm ready In case of falling. Darya Khan did not go so fast As he forced his way forward a man passed him up the wooden box that King had used to stand on ; ho seized it In both hands with n grin nnd a jest nnd went to stand behind King nnd Ismail, in line with tho lnshless mullah, facing Yasmlnl. Ynsmlnl smiled nt them nil as If they wero actors In her comedy, nnd she well plcnsed with them. "Look ye I" howled tho mullah. ."Look ye aud look well, for this Is to bo ono of us 1" King felt ten thousand eyes burn holes In his back, but the one pair of eyes thnt mocked him from tho brldgo was more dlscontcrtlng. "Turn, Kurram Khan! Turn that all may seo 1" Feeling like n man on a spit, he re volved Blowly. By tho tlmo ho hnd turned onco completely nround he hnd decided that Yasmlnl meant he should bo frightened, but not much hurt Just yet. So ho ceased altogether to feel frightened nnd took enro to look more scared than ever. "Speak, Kurram Khan!" Yasmlnl purred, smiling her loveliest "Tell them whom you slow." King turned nnd faced tho crowd, raising himself on tho balls of his feet to shout, like a man facing thousands of troops on parade. Ho nearly gnvo himself away, for habit had him un nwares. A natlvo hakim, given tho stoutest lungs In nil India, would not have shouted In that way. "Cappltln Attleystan King!" he ronred. And ho nearly jumped out of his skin when his own volco came rat tling back at him from tho roof over head. Yasmlnl chuckled ns a little rill will sometimes chuckle among ferns. It wns devilish. It seemed to say there wero traps not far ahead. "Where was he slain?" asked tho mullah. "In tho Khyber paBS," said King. "Now give proof!" said the mullah. "Words at tho gato proof in the cav ern! Without good proof, thero Is only ono wny out of here 1" "Proof!" the crowd thundered. "Proof!" tho roof echoed. Thero was no need for Darya Khan to whisper. King's hands were behind him, nnd he had seen what he had seen nnd guessed what ho had guessed whllo ho was turning to let tho crowd look nt him. His fingers closed on human hair. "Nay, It is short I" hissed Daryn Khan. "Tnko tho two ears, or hold It by tho Jawbone 1 Hold It high In both hands I" King obeyed, without looking nt tho thing, nnd Ismnll, turning to face the crowd, rose on tiptoe nnd filled his lungs for the effort of his life. "Tho head of Cappltln AttleyBtnn King Infidel knfflr British nrrfi ccr 1" ho howled. "Good I" tho crowd bellowed. "Good I Throw It 1" Tho crowd's roar and tho roofs echoes combined In pandemonium. "Throw It to them, Kurrnra Khan!" Ynsmlnl purred from tho brldgo end, speaking ns softly and as sweetly as If sho coaxed a child. "It Is the cus tom 1" "Throw It! Throw Itl" tho crowd thundered. Ho turned the ghastly thing until It lay face-upward In his hands, nnd so nt Inst ho snw It Ho caught his breath, and only tho horn-rlmmed spcctnclcs, that ho hnd cursed twlco that night, saved him from sclf-bctrnyal. Tho cavern seemed to sway as ho looked Into tho dead faco of his brother Charles. It Yasmlnl detected his nervousness eho gave no sign. "Throw It I Throw It! Throw Itl" The crowd was growing Impatient. Mnny men were standing, waving their nrms to draw attention to themselves. Catching Ynsmlnl's eyes, ho knew It hud not entered her head that ho might disobey. He looked pnst her toward the river. There were no gunrds near enough to prevent whnt he Intended ; but ,'ic hnd to bear In mind that the guards hnd rifles, and If he nctcd too suddenly one of them might enoot at him unbidden. Holding the head before him with both hands, he begnn to walk toward tho river, edging nil the while n little to ward the crowd ns If meaning to get nenrer before he throw. Ho reached the river and stood there. nis next move made every savage who watched him gnsp becauso of Its very unexpectedness. Ho held the head In both bunds, threw It far out Into tho river and stood to watch It sink. Then, without visible emotion of nny kind, he walked back stolidly to face Yasmlnl nt tho bridge end, with shoulders a little more stubborn now than they ought to be, and chin n shade too high, for there never wus a mnn who could net quite perfectly. "Thou fool!" Ynsmlnl whispered through lips that did not move. She The Crowd Was Growing Impatient "Throw Itl Throw Itl" betrayed a flash of temper like a trapped she-tiger's, but followed It In stantly with her loveliest smile. "Slay him 1" yelled a lonu voice, that was greeted by an approving mtrmur. "This Is n durbar!" Yasmlnl an nounced in n rising, ringing voice. "My dnrbar, for I summoned it I Did I Invite nny mnn to speak?" There was silence, ns a whipped un willing puck Is silent "Speak, thou Kurram Khan! Tell them why !" she said, smiling. No man could havo guessed by tho tone of her voice whether sho wns for him or ngnlnst him, nnd the crowd, beginning again to whisper, watched to seo which way tho cat would jump. Ho bowed low to her three times very low Indeed and very slowly, for ho had to think. Then he turned his back nnd repeated the obeisance to the crowd. "My brothers." he said, and his voice became thnt of a man whoso advice has been asked, and who gives It free ly. "Ye saw this night how ono man entered here on the strength of nn oath and a promise. All he lacked was proof. And I hnd proof. Ye saw ! How easy would It not havo been, had I thrown thnt head to you, for n traitor to catch it and hide It In his clothes, nnd mnke away with itl He could have used It to admit to these caves why even nn Englishman, my broth ers! If thnt had happened, yo would have blamed me I" Yasmlnl smiled. Taking Its cue from her, the crowd murmured, scarcely as sent, but rather recognition of the ha kim's adroitness. Tho game was not won ; thero lacked a touch to tip tho Bcnles In his favor, and Ynsmlnl sup plied It with ready genius. "Tho hnklm speaks the truth!" sho laughed. King turned nhout Instantly to face her, but ho salaamed so low thnt sho could not havo seen his expression had she tried. "If ye wish It, I will order him tossed Into Earth's Drink nfter thoso other three." Muhammnd Anlm rose, stroking his benrd nnd rocking where he stood. "It is the lnwl" ho growled, nnd King shuddered. "It Is tho law," Yasmlnl nnswered In a volco that rang with prldo and In solence, "thnt none Interrupt mo while I speak I For such Ill-mannered ones Earth's Drink hungers I Will you test my authority, Muhammad Anlm? Think yo! If that head had only fallen Into Muhammad Anlm's lap, the mullah might hnvo smuggled In nnother mnn with Itl" A roar of laughter greeted that thrust Mnny men who hnd not laughed at the mullah's first discomfiture Joined in now. Muhammad Anlm snt and fidgeted, meeting nobody's eyo nnd answering nothing. "So It seems to mo good," Ynsmlnl said, In n volco that did not echo uny more but rang very clear aud true (she seemed to know tho trick of the roof, ntul to use the echo or not ns she chose), "to let this hnklm live I Ho shall meditate In his enve a while, nnd perhaps he shall bo beaten, lest he daro offend again. He can no moro es T V I cape from Khlnjan caves than tho women who nro prisoners here. He may therefore live I" There was utter silence. Men looked nt one nnother nnd nt her, nnd her blnzlnc oves searched thn crowd swift ly. It wns plain enough that thcro were nt least two parties there, and thnt none dared oppose Yasmlnl's will. for fenr of the others. "To thv spilt. Kiirrnm TClinn 1" shft ordered, when she hnd waited a full minute nnd no mnn spoke. Ho wasted no time, no hurried out) of the arenn ns fast ns he could walk, with Ismnll nnd Dnrvn Tvlinn elnsn nt his heels. Ismail overtook him, seized him by tho shoulders, hugged him, and dragged him to the empty seat next to tho Ornkzal Pathnn. There he hugged him until his ribs cracked. "Ready o' witl" ho crowed. "Rendv o' tongue! Light o' life! Mnn ufter mine own heart I Hey, I love thee! Readily I would be thy man, but for bc- lpg ners I Turned the Joke on Muham mad Anlm! Turned It ngnlnst her enemy nnd raised a laugh against him from his own men 1 Rendv o' wit I Shameless ono! Lucky one! Allah was surely good to thee!" "Havo they taken All Mas. Id fort?" King whispered. "Nay. how should I know? Ask herl She knows more thnn nny man knows I" King turned to ask tho snmo nues- tlon of his friend the Ornkzal Pnthnn : but the Pathan would havo none of his questions, he wns busy listening for whispers from the crowd, watching with both eyes, nnd he shoved King nslde. The crowd wns very far from bolne satisfied. An angry murmur hnd be-, gun to fill the cavern as a hive is filled with the song of bees at swarming time, nut even bo, surmise whnt one might, It was not easy to persunde the eyo that Yasmlnl's careless smile and ensy poise were assumed. If she rec ognized Indignation nnd feared It sho disguised her fear nmnzlngly. Leisure ly, lunguldly, she rnlsed both nrms un til she looked like nn angel poised for flight. The little Jewels stitched to her gnuzy dress twinkled like fireflies ns. sho moved. The crowd gasped sharp ly. She had It by the heart-strings. Sho called, nnd four cunrds not un der one shield, bowing their heads and resting the great rim on their shoul ders. They carried It beneath her and stood still. With n low delicious lnugh, sweet nnd true, she spraig on It, and the shield scarcely trembled; sho seemed lighter thnn the silk her dress was woven from ! They carried her so. nnd In tho of the arenn before they had ceased moving she began to sing, with her hend thrown bnck and bosom swnllini? like a bird's. The East would ever rather drnw itn own conclusions from a hint let fall than he puzzled by what the West be lieves are facts. And nnrnbles nro not good evidence In courts of Inw, which Is nlways a consideration. So her song took tho form of a parable. And to say that she took hold of them and played rhapsodies of her own making on their heartstrings would bo to undervnlue what she did. They wero dumb while she sanir. hut tho rose nt her. Not n force in tho worMI could hnvo kept them down, for ir was deftly touching cords thnt uttm other forces subtle, mysterious, mes meric, which the old East understand which Muhammad tho prophet un derstood when he harnessed nvli in thn shnfts with men nnd wrote rules for their driving In n book. Thev rns in silence nnd stood tense. She sang of n wolf-nack trnthprinf from the valleys In .the winter snow a very hungry wolf-pack. Then of a stnlled ox, grown very fat from being cared ror. Of the "Heart of tho Hills" that awoke In the worm of the "Hills," nnd thnt listened nnd watched. "Now, Is Bho the 'Heart of tho Hills?'" King wondered. The rumors men hnd hrnrd nnrl tnlrt ncln in Tn.ii.. about the "Heart of tie Hills" In Khln jan seemed to have foundation. He thought of the strange knife, wrapped In a handkerchief under his snirt, with Its bronze blade and gold hilt In the shnne of a womnn ilnnrlni Tho woman dancing was astonishingly like Ynsmlnl, stnndlng on tho shield I Sho Bang about the owners of the stalled ox. who were busv nt hnv. defending themselves and their or irom nnomer woir-pacn in another di rection "far beyond." Sho urged them to wnlt n little while. The ox was big enough and fat enough to nourish all the wolves In tho world for mnny seasons. Let them wait then, until nnother, greater wolf-puck Joined them, that they might go hunt ing ull together, overwhelm Its pres ent owners nnd devour the ox! So urged tho "neart of the mils," speak Ing to tho mountain wolves, according to Ynsmlnl's song. Tho little cubs in the burrows know. Are ye grown wolves, who hurry eoT She paused, for effect; but they gnve tomjuo then because they could not help It, and the envern shook to their terrific worship. "AHnhl Allah 1" They summoned God to como and seo the height nnd depth nnd weight of their nlleglnnce to her! And becauso for their thunder thero wis no moro chnnce of being heard, .,i dropped from tho shield Hke a blossom. No sound of falling could have been heard In nil thnt din, but ono could seo sho mnde no sound. The shield bearers ran back to the brldgo and Btood below it eyes ngape. Disguised as he Is, King Is placed on trial for his life. At a critical moment a human head la thrusv Into his hands. When he sees the face, the shock Is ter rible. The victim Is (TO BE CONTINUED.)