slave-woman
aside, and asked her whether Phabis was indeed a trust worthy servant
of the widow's. Evidently there was no treason to be apprehended and she
must obey the invitation, though it disturbed her greatly; but she was a
cautious woman, with not only her heart but her brains and tongue in the
right place, and she at once made up her mind what must be done under
the circumstances. While she gave a few decorative touches to her person
she handed the tablet to the waiting-woman, whom she had taken into her
own room, and desired her to carry it at once to her husband, and tell
him whither she had gone, and to beg him to return without delay to take
care of Dada. But what if her husband and son could not come away? The
girl would be left quite alone, and then... The picture rose before
her anxious mind of Marcus appearing on the scene and tempting Dada
on shore--of her niece stealing away by herself even, if the young
Christian failed to discover her present residence--loitering alone
along the Canopic way or the Bruclumn, where, at noon, all that was most
disreputable in Alexandria was to be seen at this time of year--she saw,
shuddered, considered--and suddenly thought of an expedient which
seemed to promise an issue from the difficulty. It was nothing new and a
favorite trick among the Egyptians; she had seen is turned to account
by a lame tailor at whose house her father had lodged, when he had to
go out to his customers and leave his young negress wife alone at home.
Dada was lying barefoot on the deck: Herse would hide her shoes.

She hastily acted on this idea, locking up not only Dada's sandals, but
also Agne's and her own, in the trunk they had saved; a glance at the
slave's feet assured her that hers could be of no use.

"Not if fire were to break out," thought she, "would my Dada be seen in
the streets with those preposterous things on her pretty little feet."

When this was done Herse breathed more freely, and as she took leave of
her niece, feeling perhaps that she owed her some little reparation, she
said in an unusually kind tone:

"Good bye, child. Try to amuse yourself while I am gone. There is plenty
to look at here, and the others will soon be back again. If the city is
fairly quiet this evening we will all go out together, to Canopus, to
eat oysters. Good bye till we meet again, my pet!" She kissed the child,
who looked up at her in astonishment, for her adopted mother was not
usually lavish of