ly.

And whilst Jill pinched herself to see if she was really there or no,
the eunuch, with joy-filled eye, and teeth glistening in a smile of
utter satisfaction, gently tightened his grip on the velvety, tawny
throat.

There was a stifled growl, a click, and the dead animal was laid at the
girl's slender feet.

"My favourite hunting cheetah, O! woman! Behold, Mustapha, shalt thou
spread the news of its untimely end as a warning to all those who, by
sign of hand or word of mouth or thought of brain, should desire to do
harm to thy mistress. And even shall thou tell me how yon dead beast
came to be prowling in the seclusion of thy mistress's abode."

Great beads of perspiration broke out on the face and neck of the
scared man, as he salaamed deeply before his master, and knelt to beat
his forehead upon the ground before the woman.

"Behold, O! master! And may Allah grant me years of life within the
blessing of thy shadow. A slave returning from the exercising and
feeding of four, O! master, of thy hunting cheetahs, came to me this
noon full of idle curiosity. Behold, I spoke with him outside the open
gate, and perchance yon dead brute crept in unnoticed, whilst I pointed
out the evil of his ways and those of his ancestors; also, perchance
fatigued and full of meat, the animal lay down and slept until she
heard the tread of thy honoured footsteps; perchance also thy slave,
fatigued and also full of meat, passing the hours in slumber, troubled
not to count the animals in his care."

For one moment there was silence as the Arab stood looking at the
trembling man, then Jill, laying her little hand gently upon the satin
sleeve of him whom she loved, whispered softly:

"A boon, O! Hahmed! I know--I _feel_ that you are planning the death
of this wretched man. I ask his life!"

By this time Mustapha was prone upon his face, piling imaginary dust
from the spotless mosaic pavement upon his woolly pate, scrambling to
his shaking knees on a word from his master.

"Get to thy feet and make obeisance to thy mistress, who in her
manifold bounty has saved this time thy worthless life. For behold, I
had planned to give my people a holiday in which to see thee whipped
round the wall of thy mistress's dwelling, until thou had died; then
would thy black skin have been ripped from thy worthless carcass, and
pinned to the ground before the camel paddock, so that in their goings
in and coming out they would have befouled wha