hick lips, and woolly hair, had something to do with the aptitude
shown by the Soudanese to accept the new religion. But Abdul Achmet was
an honest fanatic, and neither intended to insinuate this nor thought
it.

On the whole, Harry much preferred to hear his black nurse Fatima talk.
She told him about her childhood, when she remembered playing about
among trees and in long grass with other little darkies; and their
fright when they heard the lions roar; and how once, when she had
wandered away alone, she saw two fiery eyes glaring at her from a bush,
and ran home, expecting to be pounced upon and eaten all the way. And
she described her parents' hut, with a low entrance, into which the
family had to crawl on their hands and knees. Then, while she was still
quite little, her tribe declared war against another tribe, and all the
young men went out to battle, and were defeated, and fled back to their
village to make a last stand in defence of their wives and children.
And she described a night attack, and the horrors of a massacre, the
burning of the huts, and the carrying off of the younger women, the
youths, and children; how they were sold to Arab merchants, and
underwent a fearful desert march; and how she cried for her mother at
first, but was bought by a man who treated her kindly, and was happy,
and forgot her native language and habits. All this she told in a
simple, artless way, and when she found that it amused her invalid she
repeated it again and again. But his interest did not flag for the
repetition. He was like a little child who has a favourite story, and
cries, "Again!" when told it, preferring it to risking a new one, which
might not prove so good.

And time flew by, and Harry Forsyth remained in this state of semi-
imbecility, free from anxiety about his mother and sister at home,
forgetful of all but his animal comforts and the superficial interest he
felt in such prattle as this. His bodily health improved before his
mental activity; perhaps it was owing to the freedom from worry
consequent upon this lethargic state of mind that he was able to pick up
some strength.

But he became able to move about and help himself, and wander out to the
fig-tree over the well, which the delighted Fatima thought extremely
clever of him.

One day, as he sat in his favourite spot, thinking of nothing in
particular, a body of horsemen rode up to the oasis, and the leader of
it dismounting came up to him, and