Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-03-09

Whether this passage had been built for
prayer or villainy, for the disposal OF burnt
offerings, idolators. vigils, fastings, or
amours. who could say? Lazarus never
knew; and never greatly cared.
His discovery occurred to him now, with
mental flash, and a crash like lightning
and thunder. It shot through him there
in the bazaar while Zahara was blushing
over the purple silk. When his soul started
and said: "If I see thee not 1 dief the
whole scheme seemed to spring to meet
him.
To make the story short, he confded in his
fellow Abraham, Zahara trusted Rebecca.
The man and the maid met. Abraham re-
vealed the situation. Rebecca bore the tale
to her mistress. Upon the seventh night
following the interview in the bazaar, the
daring lovers met below ground between the
palace and the temple.
To accomplish this end it had been neces-
sary for Lazarus te renew work upon the
temple. This he had found little difficulty
in doing; for his services were always in de-
mand. 1t had been less easy to make job
behind the priests quarters; but this OBJ
stacle, too, the young builder had con-
quered. Upon plea of late and solitary
labor, performed more skillfully by the
master without the men, Lazarus had man
the evening to the subterranean passage
from the temple entrance. He replaced
the stone behind him. The drowsy
priests did not notice whether or when the
builder left the temple. Lazarus pushed
through with hot haste; and with bounding
heart reached the extreme end of the passage
and stirred the grass-grown slide-moved it
quickly and quietly aside, and stretched out
his hand into the grape vine. This was the
signal of meeting. Midway of the vine he
grasped the soft fingers of Zahara. Zahara
had a spice OF the adventures in her; she
liked this daring business; it stirred her
soul and body. She darted behind the grape
vine and allowed her lover to draw her into
his forbidding trysting place without a
quiver. Abraham stood sentry; in the dark
at the mouth of the passage Rebecca watched
the palace. Lazarus and Zahara were
alone. He clasped her in the gloom with
out word, and when he had sufocated her
with kisses, in silence and darkness, he
raised temple lamp and stared upon her
beauty, like one gone mad with love and
joy. Zahara was little pale, but she
shone resplendent in that dreary place.
"Zahara! Brightness! Bright onel" cried
Lazarus rapturously, 81 risk my life for
thy lips!"
'And I my liberty for thine" replied
Zahara with a sweet pride. Then they
clasped, and spoke no more for the closeness
of their embrace, and that first meeting
gave no space for other speech or language
between them, but the language of the lips
and arms. They met rapturously and parted
soon and safely; Zahara and Rebecca re-
turned together to the palace. Abraham
and Lazarus departed by different ways to
their own places. All went as smoothly as
Nakl,s
to hinder or alarm the lovers The escapade
was undiscovered and repeated. In fact, it
was repeated for many a night.
These meetings were always necessarily
short, but they heightened insensibly and
Lazarus felt himself culver
ing between heaven and hell-the heaven of
her presence and the hell of losing it. Ia
hara enjoyed herself supremely without di-
yerting fears. The girl was born for a wilder
life than the poor prison of experience ac-
corded to Oriental maidens. She had posi-
bilities in her which the High Priest recog-
nized no more than they recognized her ec-
capacity to be voted into the
Sanhedrin. This adventure delighted her.
She waived its dangers away like a queen
and kissed the warmer for them.
AS the two become more accustomed to
each others precious presence they managed
into the wild scene. In their damp and
chastity rendezvous, with the light of the
lovers lamp faring wiid1ng upon their
faces, and their strained ears grown refined
by their new exercise, listening to every
sound beyond their own heart beats, Lazarus
and Zahara did the first conversing of their
lives.
Zahara returned quickly enough to the
subject, which had now mounted far beyond
their personal case, and had become the
main source of excitement, amity, or enmity
in Judea: the career of the Nazarene
Zahara remained firm in her repulsion to
this man, and to all which he represented
in the movements of her times. She had
her instinct of high-born against the low,
of culture against rudeness, of the conser-
hedrin against the dissenter, of ecclesias-
ticism against religious liberty, of young
and naughty woman against that which
she had not been educated to respect. She
demanded of Lazarus nothing less than
his entire desertion of the dangerous itin-
Grant agitator.
"Have not done enough that is disloyal
for thy sake?" inquired Lazarus, mourn
fully. "For thee 1 have not had converse
with the man for now longer than 1 dare
reflect upon. Each day vow unto myself
that 1 will see the face Of this Jesus, and
pray his forgiveness for ingratitude that
the man thou lowest ought to be ashamed
Of, o, my Zahara! Each night kiss thee,
and 1 behold him not"
''That is all very we'll as far as it goes"
replied Zahara, with a little feminine self |
satisfaction at her conquest of her lover.
''But that is not enough. I like not to see |
thee the dupe of such pretenders. Thou art |
not ike low-born men, deceived by sorcer-
er's antics as children and old women"
In vain did Lazarus reason with Zahara |
touching the true nature and achievements |
IF his friend, When he spoke of the modesty, |
The sincerity, the tenderness, the exquisite |
the God-like unselfshness of the |
man, Zahara stopped his lips with kiss;
when he related the marvels wrought bv the |
Rabbi, Zahara arched her pretty brows.
When he urged his thrilling neighborhood
histories of the sick girl and the blind man,
lahara said cures were common things.
When he insisted upon her own personal in |
1ebtedness to the SAVIOR of her life at Lake |
1ennesaret, Zahara smiled in a chilly, |
well-bred way, strongly suggestive of her
ather, except that her expression was so
lady-like.
"What wilt thouw cried Lazarus in Ge-
;pa1r, one night. 'What wilt thou, thenl |
Is there any test which thou wilt take OF the
honor of my words, or of the sanity of my
Judgment, or of the wondrous power and
character of him whom thou despisest and
revere, whom thou scornest and 1 obey? |
Dur hearts are one, Zahara. Our minds
should not be twain. Thy pertinacity griev- |
,th me for loves sake. Tell me then! What |
proof wilt thou take. of him or of me, that |
hou shalt consider the claims of this holy |
and selfforgettul MANI" |
"When with mine own eyes I behold him |
Thou imperious zahara!" groaned Laza-
rus. "Thou demandest the impossible of |