id half-jokingly and
half-seriously:

"Listen, my boy! Who knows where, when, and under what circumstances we
may yet meet in life. Remember, however, that you can always rely upon
my good will and assistance."

"And you may likewise rely upon me," Stas answered with a bow full of
dignity.

IV

Pan Tarkowski, as well as Mr. Rawlinson, who loved Nell better than his
life, was delighted at the arrival of the children. The young pair
greeted their parents joyfully, and at once began to look about the
tents, which internally were completely fitted up and were ready for
the reception of the beloved guests. The tents appeared superb to them;
they were double, one was lined with blue and the other with red
flannel, overlaid at the bottom with saddle-cloths, and they were as
spacious as large rooms. The agency which was concerned about the
opinion of the high officials of the Canal Company had spared no effort
for their comfort. At first Mr. Rawlinson feared that a lengthy stay
under tents might prove injurious to Nell's health, and if he agreed to
the arrangement, it was because they could always move to a hotel in
case of bad weather. Now, however, having fully investigated everything
on the place, he came to the conclusion that days and nights passed in
the fresh air would be a hundredfold more beneficial for his only child
than a stay in the musty rooms of the small local hotels. Beautiful
weather favored this. Medinet, or rather El-Medineh, surrounded by the
sandy hills of the Libyan Desert, has a much better climate than Cairo
and is not in vain called "the land of roses." Owing to its sheltered
position and the plentiful moisture in the air, nights there are not so
cold as in other parts of Egypt, even those lying further south. Winter
is simply delightful, and from November the greatest development of the
vegetation begins. Date palms, olive-trees, which on the whole are
scarce in Egypt, fig, orange, mandarin trees, giant castor-oil plants,
pomegranate and various other southern plants cover this delightful
oasis as with a forest. The gardens are overflowing, as it were, with a
gigantic wave of acacias, elders, and roses, so that at night every
breeze carries their intoxicating scent. Here one breathes with full
breast and "does not wish to die," as the residents of the place say.

A similar climate is possessed only by Helwan lying on the other side
of the Nile and considerably farther north, but Helwan lacks