the children he leaped towards them.
From joy he overturned Nell who extended her hands to him; he reared
himself on Stas; afterwards whining and barking he ran round both a few
times, again overturned Nell, again reared himself on Stas, and finally
lying down at their feet began to pant.

His sides were sunken, from his lolling tongue fell clots of froth;
nevertheless he wagged his tail and raised his eyes full of love at
Nell as if he wanted to say: "Your father ordered me to watch over you,
so here I am."

The children sat close to him, one on each side, and began to pat him.
The two Bedouins, who never before saw a creature like this, gazed at
him with astonishment, repeating: "On Allah! o kelb kebir!" ("By God!
that is a big dog!") while he for some time lay quietly. Afterwards he
raised his head, inhaled the air through his black nose resembling a
big truffle, scented, and jumped towards the extinct camp-fire, near
which lay the remnants of food.

In the same moment goat's and lamb's bones began to crack and crumble
as straw in his powerful teeth. After eight people, counting old Dinah
and Nell, there was enough for such "kelb kebir."

But the Sudanese were worried by his arrival and the two camel drivers,
calling Chamis to one side, began to speak to him with uneasiness and
even with indignation.

"Iblis* [* Iblis, one of the names of the devil in the
Koran.--_Translator's note_.] brought that dog here," exclaimed Gebhr,
"but in what manner did he find the children, since they came to Gharak
by rail?"

"Surely by the camel tracks," answered Chamis.

"It happened badly. Everybody who sees him with us will remember our
caravan and will point out where we went. We positively must get rid of
him."

"But how?" asked Chamis.

"We have a rifle, so take it and shoot him in the head."

In a case of urgency, Chamis might be able, for Stas had several times
opened and closed his weapon before him, but he was sorry for the dog
of whom he was fond, having taken care of him before the arrival of the
children at Medinet. He knew perfectly that the Sudanese had no idea
how to handle a weapon of the latest model and would be at a loss what
to do with it.

"If you don't know how," he said, with a crafty smile, "that little
'nouzrani' (Christian) could kill the dog, but that rifle can fire
several times in succession; so I do not advise you to put it in his
hands."

"God forbid!" replied Idris; "he would shoot us