nstrument was wholly entrusted to its owner, who was
thenceforth constantly to keep his eye to it, and observe the movements
of the strangers. This the young Scotchman did, at intervals
communicating with his companions in a low voice.

"I can make out their faces," muttered he after a time, "and ugly enough
are they. One is yellow, the other black. He must be a negro; of
course he is, he's got woolly hair too. It's he that rides the camel,
just such another as this that stumbled over us. The yellow man upon
the horse has a pointed beard upon his chin. He has a sharp look, like
those Moors we've seen at Tetuan. He's an Arab, I suppose. He appears
to be the master of the black man. I can see him make gestures, as if
he was directing him to do something. There! they have stopped, they
are looking this way!"

"Marcy on us!" muttered Old Bill, "if they have speered the glass!"

"Troth! that's like enough," said Terence. "It'll be flashing in the
sun outside the sand. The sharp-eyed Arab is almost sure to see it."

"Had you not better draw it in?" suggested Harry Blount.

"True," answered Colin. "But I fear it would be too late now. If
that's what halted them, it's all over with us so far as hiding goes."

"Slip it in anyhow. If they don't see it any more they mayn't come
quite up to the ridge."

Colin was about to follow the advice thus offered, when on taking what
he intended to be a last squint through the telescope, he perceived that
the travellers were moving on up the beach, as if they had seen nothing
that called upon them to deviate from their course.

Fortunately for the four "stowaways" it was not the sparkle of the lens
that had caused them to make that stop. A ravine or opening through the
sand-ridges, much larger than that in which our adventurers were
concealed, embouched upon the beach, some distance below. It was the
appearance of this opening that had attracted the attention of the two
mounted men; and from their gestures Colin could tell they were talking
about it, as if undecided whether to go that way or keep on up the
strand.

It ended by the yellow man putting spurs to his horse and galloping off
up the ravine, followed by the black man on the camel.

From the way in which both behaved; keeping their eyes generally bent
upon the ground, but at intervals gazing about over the country; it was
evident they were in search of something, and this would be the
she-camel, that lay te