The King's Talisman — page 171: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

169° = 3 THE KING'S TALISMAN. had written, and then left the room as he had entered, slid- ing the panel carefully back after him. In three hours from the time at which Abdah Nazor left the chamber of the mute, he stood within his own cave upon the side of Mount Hor. At the farther end of the outer cave burned a brilliant torch, and drawing a wooden stool near to its blaze, the old man ran over the characters which the king’s mute had traced upon the parchment. Various— and varying were the emotions which came and went upon the reader’s face, and when at length he had finished the scroll, he turned to Noureddin,who had been silently watch- ing his movements, and said: «he time is nearer at hand than I had expected. Selina is safe within the king’s palace, and for the present she is well treated. Al-Bassa has not yet been found, nor will he be until some other than Modad shall bid him come forth. The king is working hard to entrap us, and at the present moment he has guards on the watch to see that we do not leave the city. Ha, ha! But for the Egyptians he has planned more surely. They are to grace the amphitheater, and be food for hungry beasts!” ‘No, no; the king will not do that!” Noureddin cried. ‘*Modad is capable of doing anything that baseness can suggest,” the dervise replied. ‘‘ But enough of the king for the present; I have a more weighty matter on hand. It now devolves upon me to give thee a treasure which I have for thy use and keeping. It was given to me when you were yet an infant; with me it was left to award it, or not, as I might judge best.” As the old man spoke he arose from his seat, lighted another torch, and having moved back a huge rock which guarded the narrow passage to a deeper cave beyond, he dis- appeared within it. Fifteen minutes must have passed ere Abdah Nazor re- turned, and to Noureddin they seemed like so many hours; EOmIichbooks.co