The aegis & intelligencer., 1897-01-22
J2St9 ,cllauc0us.
4 SERPENTINE REVELATION.
BY CHAS. KELSEY GAINS.

There were two of them that made
all the trouble. There were plenty Of
others on the boat, o: course. could
see them plainly emough-2O at least.
grouped about under the awnings or
leaning over the rail, oh-oh ing at ali
the odd sights of the shore. But he,
evidently. could see only those two.
Tney were both beautiful, but no
more alike than Il big, sweet, Old
fashioned rose, and Il dainty, yelvety
black pansy of the most highly cui-
tured type.
The pausy girl was petite, dark and
brilliant. She was from California,
they said, and very wealthy. Sne
dressed superbly-witha Il perfect sens e
of fitness, too, only there was some
thing aggressive and merciless III the
way she made the most OF every
natural advantage.
The other girl was tai! and blonde.
and rather quiet. Her hair was red
intensely red; but its massy coils we're
oi the rich hue of FURNISHED copper
and gllnted in the Egyptian sunshine
until you could hardly bear to look at
it. You did look at it however.
Just where she came from, or
whether she were rich or poor, no.
body seemed to know; but she
couldn't have been SO very poor, or
she wouldn't have been a passenger
on a luxurious excursion steamer la
zily creeping up the Nile.
He knew very we'll that the dark
one wanted him his scalp, at least.
Every body saw that; and it seemed
not unlikely that she might even be
willing to pledge her hand i'll exchange
for it, Whether the fair one wanted
anything that he could give he
couldn't tell Nobody on the boat
could tell; and So everybody guessed.
Probably she, too, was guessing, and
very likely guessed wrong. | WAS
pretty certain, however, that she
guessed differently at different times.
And who was he? Really, | don t
know--a graduate, possibly from
some college football team, for lie was
"a fine. athletic fellow, as fresh and
wholesome as Il young tree after
rain. Everybody liked him too well
to blame anybody for loving him-or
to forgive anyone for playing tricks
with him. He was tall and ruddy,
with boyish blue eyes and a great
shock of gold-brown hair. But there
is no law of nature to prevent u big,
fair man from falling in love with IL
keen little brunette with hair and
eyes like the night sky and the stars
that shine out of it-no, not even
though she be a shade the older OF the
two. The laws of nature are much
like the laws of man; they do not pre-
vent; they sometimes punish.
We had tied up at Luxor, an I'M
savory dump of mud huts and booths,
Of ta n
ancient Thebes Two or three hotels
lie along the river front, and behind
them rises the banded minaret of a
mosque. All through the plain are
scattered the half f-buried remains of
the monstrous structures of the
Pharaohs, which ever invade the vii.
lage; for on its margin the colossal
images which still guard the portals
of a ruined temple lift their battered
faces from deep excavation and
stare blankly down the narrow lanes.
But we had already inspected these
and had visited karnak-that aston
ishing wilderness of huge pylons, tow
ering columns, spire-like obellskS and
| tumbled stone, the like of which is
| not to be seen elsewhere in all the
earth. Christmas was TO be devoted
I to the Tombs of the Kings on the
west shore of the Nile; and in the
evening there was to be an Arabian
! fantasiyeh on the steamer in honor OF
/ the festival! y tree also was promised
/ with distribution of gifts.
! We started early III the morning,
! crossing the river in harges, the gut
+ turai chant of the MusIem buatmt il
T sounding IN our ears with most un-
. christian cadence, us they roWeG and
poied across the wide shadows. ~
j The barges finally grounded seyer"!
rods from the bank, the Arabs made
ready to wade ashore bearing the
passengers on their shoulders.
60, heavens exclaimed the lady OF
/ the raven tresses, shrinking back in
theatrical dismay, as burly native
! approached her. rs that the idea