round the village and whether he was likely to be
molested. Ziffak promptly replied that there could be no earthly
objection to anything of that nature, and springing to his feet, gun in
hand, he bade his friends good-bye, saying he expected to be back with
them at the end of an hour or so.

It cannot be said that Ashman had any special errand in view, when he
formed this resolution, which was explainable upon the well known laws
governing the human mind.

He was tired of idleness. The prospect of sitting for hours in the
darkening apartment, talking with Ziffak, who, instead of being willing
to give information, was doing his most to withhold it, was not
inviting, but beyond this, he was restless because he was haunted by
those marvellous eyes, peeping from behind the curtain in the king's
room, and that smile of recognition when the gaze of the two met,
thrilled him with a new and strange emotion.

It was this feeling which drove him forth. He wanted to escape the
prying scrutiny of his friends, who, he fancied, suspected his secret.
He wanted to walk in the open air and think and revel in the bliss of
his new delight.

It was growing dark, when he stepped outside of the building. There
was no light visible in any direction, though there would be plenty of
it later on. The natives appeared to be moving aimlessly about, and
one or two near at hand scrutinized him curiously, but they neither
spoke nor made any movement to annoy him. They had not yet forgotten
the lesson given by Ziffak some hours before.

To escape attention, he walked toward the river, passing down the long
sloping bank, until he reached the open, cleared space which has been
referred to as caused by the overflow of the water. Here the walking
was easy, and, turning his face up stream, he walked slowly as a man
does who is in deep thought.

A man who is revelling in the first dream of love is not the one to pay
close attention to his surroundings. He is so apt to be rapt in his
own sweet meditations, that he fails in the most ordinary observation.

Reaching the bottom of the slope, Ashman glanced behind and on his
right. He caught glimpses of several figures moving about like
shadows, but so far as he could judge, none of them was interested in
him. Dismissing them from his mind, he moved on.

He had walked less than one-third of the length of the village front,
when the form of a man slipped softly down the incline, following in
hi