us, but necessary, motions
which are essential to a happy result."

Saying this he advanced to the first guard in the line, and, throwing
himself into a vigorously picturesque attitude, pointed with two fingers
of the right hand at his eyes, trembling violently the while, as though
he was exerting some tremendous but subtle energy.

The first guardsman gazed at him in mute amazement, but would as soon
have cut off his own head as have objected to the operation in such
presence. He opened his eyes very wide with surprise, then looked at
the points of Baba's fingers, which caused him to squint horribly, and
finally smiled in spite of himself; whereupon the thought of having been
guilty of such undignified conduct caused him to turn deadly pale with
terror, all of which symptoms being regarded by the Dey as indications
of coming success, were highly satisfactory.

Suddenly sweeping his hands in front of the man's face, and making a
noise with his feet to distract attention, Baba whispered, "Shut your
eyes if you would escape death!" and terminated the whole operation with
a low growl.

The terrified man instantly shut his eyes, and Baba proceeded to operate
on the next.

He had operated thus on about six of the men when there was heard a
sudden crash and shouting in the guard-room. The disarmed guard at once
made a rush towards the door, but were driven back by the chaouses, who
sprang in and cut down two of the foremost with yataghans which were
already blood-stained.

"Traitor!" shouted the Dey, drawing his scimitar and leaping furiously
on Hadji Baba, but that worthy, being as active with his body as his
brain, parried the cut with a cushion, and running in on the Dey seized
him round the waist. It would soon have gone hard with him, however,
Hamet being a much more powerful man, had not Sidi Omar, with a band of
his janissaries, dashed in and secured him.

"But for enemies within thou hadst not overcome me thus easily," said
the Dey bitterly, as two of the soldiers held him fast, while others
bound his arms behind his back.

"Very true, Hamet," returned Omar, with quiet indifference of manner;
"and now it remains with thee to choose thy death, for that must be
speedily accomplished.--Ho! there, fetch the cup!"

A silver cup, filled with poison, was brought and presented to the
unhappy Hamet by his former friend, Sidi Hassan.

"My undoing has been caused by leniency to dogs like thee," said the
Dey, with