can't fail to succeed now; the girl is caught, her
lover is at my beck and call, the old secret flight of steps is in
good order, Nitetis has been weeping bitterly on a day of universal
rejoicing, and the blue lily opens to-morrow night. Ah, ha! my little
plan can't possibly fail now. And to-morrow, my pretty Egyptian kitten,
your little velvet paw will be fast in a trap set by the poor despised
eunuch, who was not allowed, forsooth, to give you any orders."

His eyes gleamed maliciously as he said these words and hurried from the
garden.

At the great flight of steps he met another eunuch, named Neriglissar,
who held the office of head-gardener, and lived at the hanging-gardens.

"How is the blue lily going on?" asked Boges.

"It is unfolding magnificently!" cried the gardener, in enthusiasm at
the mere mention of his cherished flower. "To-morrow, as I promised,
when the Tistar-star rises, it will be in all its beauty. My Egyptian
mistress will be delighted, for she is very fond of flowers, and may I
ask you to tell the king and the Achaemenidae, that under my care this
rare plant has at last flowered? It is to be seen in full beauty only
once in every ten years. Tell the noble Achaemenidae; this, and bring
them here."

"Your wish shall be granted," said Boges smiling, "but I think you
must not reckon on the king, as I do not expect he will visit the
hanging-gardens before his marriage with the Egyptian. Some of the
Archimenidae, however, will be sure to come; they are such lovers of
horticulture that they would not like to miss this rare sight. Perhaps,
too, I may succeed in bringing Croesus. It is true that he does not
understand flowers or doat on them as the Persians do, but he makes
amends for this by his thorough appreciation of everything beautiful."

"Yes, yes, bring him too," exclaimed the gardener. "He will really be
grateful to you, for my queen of the night is the most beautiful flower,
that has ever bloomed in a royal garden. You saw the bud in the clear
waters of the reservoir surrounded by its green leaves; that bud will
open into a gigantic rose, blue as the sky. My flower..."

The enthusiastic gardener would have said much more in praise of his
flower, but Boges left him with a friendly nod, and went down the flight
of steps. A two-wheeled wooden carriage was waiting for him there;
he took his seat by the driver, the horses, decked out with bells and
tassels, were urged into a sharp trot and qui