d understanding from Arthur that the
poor fellow's transport was caused by the tidings of the safety of his
master's son, he seemed touched, and bade that he and Eyoub should lead
the way to the place of durance of the chief prisoners. On the way
Ibrahim Aga interrogated both Eyoub in vernacular Arabic and Lanty in
French. The former was sullen, only speaking from his evident awe of the
Marabouts, the latter voluble with joy and hope.

Arthur learnt that the letter he had found under the stone was the fourth
that Estelle and Hebert had written. There had been a terrible journey
up the mountains, when Lanty had fully thought Victorine must close her
sufferings in some frightful ravine; but, nevertheless, she had recovered
health and strength with every day's ascent above the close, narrow
valley. They were guarded all the way by Arabs armed to the teeth to
prevent a rescue by the Bey of Constantina.

On their arrival at the valley, which was the headquarters of the tribe,
the sheyk of the entire clan had laid claim to the principal captives,
and had carried off the young lady and her uncle; and in his dwelling she
had a boarded floor to sleep on, and had been made much more comfortable
than in the squalid huts below. Her original master, Yakoub, had,
however, come to seize her, with the force described by Murad. Then it
was that again there was a threat to kill rather than resign them; but on
this occasion it was averted by Sheyk Abderrahman's son, a boy of about
fourteen, who threw himself on his knees before Mademoiselle, and prayed
his father earnestly for her life.

'They spared her then,' said Lanty, 'and, mayhap, worse still may come of
that. Yakoub, the villain, ended by getting her back till they can have
a council of their tribe, and there she is in his filthy hut; but the
gossoon, Selim, as they call him, prowls about the place as if he were
bewitched. All the children are, for that matter, wherever she goes. She
makes cats' cradles for them, and sings to them, and tells them stories
in her own sweet way out of the sacred history--such as may bring her
into trouble one of these days. Maitre Hebert heard her one day telling
them the story of Moses, and he warned her that if she went on in that
fashion it might be the death of us all. "But," says she, "suppose we
made Selim, and little Zuleika, and all the rest of them, Christians?
Suppose we brought all the tribe to come down and ask baptism, like as