thing to fear from you, surely.
Poor Abus! Through him you will always belong to us. In spite of the
Greek, ours you are and ours you will remain. The stars confirm it,
and you have always been faithful to the old woman. You are shrewd and
steadfast. You would have been the right mate for him who was also wise
and firm. Poor, dear, brave boy! But why pity him? Because the salt
waves now flow over him? Fools that we are! There is nothing better than
death, for it is peace. And almost all of them have found it. Of nine
sons and twenty grandsons, only three are left. The others are all
calm after so much conflict and danger. How long ago it is since seven
perished at once! The last three their turn will come too. How I envy
them that best of blessings, only may they not also go before me!"

Here she lowered her voice, and in a scarcely audible whisper murmured:
"You shall know it. My son Satabus, with his brave boys Hanno and
Labaja, are coming later in the evening. About midnight--if ye protect
them, ye powers above--they will be with me. And you, child, I know your
soul to its inmost depths. Before you would betray the last of Abus's
kindred--"

"My hand and tongue should wither!" Ledscha passionately interrupted,
and then, with zealous feminine solicitude, she asked whether the three
ducks would suffice to satisfy the hunger of these strong men.

The old woman smiled and pointed to a pile of fresh leaves heaped one
above another, beneath which lay several fine shad. They were not to be
cooked until the expected visitors arrived, and she had plenty of bread
besides.

In the presence of these proofs of maternal solicitude the morose,
wrinkled countenance of the old sorceress wore a kind, almost tender
expression, and the light of joyous anticipation beamed upon her young
guest from her red-rimmed eyes.

"I am to see them once more!" cried Tabus in an agitated tone. "The
last--and all three, all! If they--But no; they will not set to work so
near Pelusium. No, no! They will not, lest they should spoil the meeting
with the old woman. Oh, they are kind; no one knows how kind my rough
Satabus can be. He would be your father now, girl, if we could have kept
our Abus--he was the best of all--longer. It is fortunate that you are
here, for they must see you, and it would have been hard for me to fetch
the other things: the salt, the Indian pepper, and the jug of Pelusinian
zythus, which Satabus is always so fond of drinking.