d they knew what would come of
that. I told Fazli, last night, that the beasts must have more flesh,
and got an order from him that all the bones from the kitchens should
be given to them."

That evening when Dick, on his way to the apartments of one of the
officers, was going along a corridor that skirted the portion of the
Palace occupied by the zenana; a figure came out suddenly from behind
the drapery of a door, dropped on her knees beside him, and, seizing
his hand, pressed it to her forehead. It was, to all appearance, an
Indian girl in the dress of one of the attendants of the zenana.

"What is it, child?" he said. "You must have mistaken me for someone
else."

"No, Bahador," she said, "it is yourself I wanted to thank. One of the
other attendants saw you go along this corridor, some time ago, and
ever since I have watched here of an evening, whenever I could get
away unobserved, in hopes of seeing you. It was I, my lord, whom the
tiger was standing over when you came to our rescue. I was not greatly
hurt, for I was pushed down when the tiger burst in, and, save that it
seized me with one of its paws, and tore my shoulder, I was unhurt.
Ever since I have been hoping that the time would come when I could
thank you for saving my life."

"I am glad to have done so, child. But you had best retire into the
zenana. It would not be good for you, or me, were I found talking to
you."

The girl rose to her feet submissively, and he now saw her face,
which, in the dim light that burnt in the corridor, he had not
hitherto noticed.

"Why," he exclaimed, with a start, "you are English!"

"Yes, Sahib. I was brought here eight years ago. I am fourteen now.
There were other English girls here then, but they were all older than
me, and have been given away to officers of the sultan. I am afraid I
shall be, too, ere long. I have dreaded it so much! But oh, Sahib, you
are a favourite of the sultan. If he would but give me to you, I
should not mind so much."

Dick was about to reply, when he heard a distant footfall.

"Go in," he exclaimed. "Someone is coming. I will speak to you again,
in a day or two."

When he returned to his room, he told Surajah what had happened.

"It will, at any rate, give me a fresh interest here," he said. "It is
terrible to think that a young English girl should be in Tippoo's
power, and that he can give her, whenever he likes, to one of his
creatures. Of course, according to our English not