d would
be well rid of such a useless rebel as I."

When the two slaves were ready, Foster demanded a piece of rope with
which he fastened the left and right wrists of the two men together.
Then, placing them in the midst of the soldiers, he led them out of the
prison and along the main street in the direction of the western gate of
the city. Passing through this the little party advanced into the
suburbs until they reached a part of the road beyond which pedestrians
usually found it convenient not to travel after dark. Here Foster
called a halt.

"I thank you," he said to the leader of the soldiers, at the same time
giving him a piece of money. "There is no further occasion for your
services, all danger of rescue being past. I can now take care of them
myself, being armed, as you see, while they are bound. Convey my thanks
and compliments to your commanding officer."

The soldier acknowledged the piece of money with a grave inclination of
the head, ordered his men to right-about-face, and marched back to the
Kasba, leaving the three slaves standing not far from the seashore, and
gazing at each other in silence.

"You seem to have forgotten me, friends," said the middy in English,
pulling a clasp-knife out of his pocket. "Yet you have both met me
before when we were slaves."

"_Were_ slaves!" repeated the Frenchman, who was the first to recover
from his astonishment, "are we not still slaves?" he asked, glancing at
the cords that bound their wrists.

"Not now," said Foster, cutting the cords with his knife--"at least we
shall soon be free if we make good use of our opportunities."

"Free!" exclaimed both men together, with the energy of a sudden and
almost overwhelming hope.

"Ay, free! But this is no time for explanation. Follow me closely, and
in silence."

Scarcely crediting their senses, and more than half disposed to believe
that the whole affair was one of their too familiar dreams, yet
strangely convinced at the same time that it was a reality, the two men
followed their young leader with alacrity.

The reader will remember that before parting from Foster that day Peter
the Great had taken special care to ascertain that he knew the
whereabouts of the rocks where the boat belonging to Brown and his
friends was concealed. As Foster walked along in the dark he thought a
good deal about this, and felt convinced that Peter must have had some
idea of the event that was likely to follow from his mi