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.)
