The King's Talisman — page 23: what you’re looking at

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

14 THE KINGS TALISMAN. CHAPTER JJ. NOUREDDIN AND HIS HISTORY. When Noureddin had attained the age of eight years, Ali Kinah consented to relinquish all claims upon his time, and gave him in charge to Abdah Nazor, and under the tutorship of the wise old dervise the boy had grown to a man. At the time of which we write, the master had con- tinued his mental guardianship for the space of ten years, and now the youth had reached the boundary of_his fixed studies. During this time he had mostly resided with his father, save a few months in each year which he had spent among the mountain fastnesses; but his master’s lessons had been ever with him, and he had devoured them with avidity. Still Noureddin knew not why such care was bestowed upon him. His father was not really poor, but yet he could ill alford to-lose the assistance of his son, much less to give that son the means to pursue his studies further; but for all this, the corn-seller labored hard for his child, and the slightest wish on the part of the youth was sure to be an- swered by the father. Ali Kinah loved his son, and he felt a peculiar pride in beholding his mental and physical de- velopments; and the son loved his father, too, with a pure affection, and he promised himself that he should yet see the day when he might be able to repay his parent for all that he had done. : Slowly did Noureddin pursue his course down the moun- tain, sometimes overleaping wide chasms, and sometimes letting himself down from crag to crag by his hands. Few were there, even among the goat-herds at the foot of the Seir and Hor, that could navigate the rugged passes that led up EComichoo “S (Ee)