Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-03-15

and she knet beside HIM the two little ha nds held
his face toward her very tenderly, and then one of
them smoothed the thick hair back from his forehead
You are betrothed,' he repeated, and am
your fathers guest Shall betray him?'
Il care nothing, neither for father. mother,
brothers, nor betrothed." Baraka answered:
g" shall give you the riches of Solomon if you will
take me- for will have no other man
There are no rubies, said the stranger. 'Show
them to me- and l shall believe"
The girl laughed very low; Did not know you
for a of little faith?" she asked. Il have
shown you my arm from the wrist to the shoulder.
Is it not like the tusk of young elephant! Yet you
have not believed l have shown you my ankles,
as l sat at the door; yet you believed not. have
unveiled my face, which it is shame to do; but you
could not believe. l have to you in the star
light when you were asleep, and still you have no
faith that love you though / shall be cast out to
perish if l am found here. But will give you
little handful of rubes, and you will believe, and
take me when / have shown you where you may
get thousands like them
She took from her neck bag of antelope skin, no
larger than her closed hand and gave it to him with
the thin thong by which it had hung
When you have seen them In the sun, you Will
want Others" she said Il will take you to the
place. and when you have filled your sack with them
you will love enough to take me away. 1t is not
far to the place. In two hours can go and come.
Tomorrow night, about this time, will wake you
again 1t will not be safe to unbar the door; SO you
must let down from this roof by camel rope,
and then follow me-.
VIHEN Baraka was gone the stranger sat up on his
w carpet and opened the small bag to feel the
stones for he knew that he could hardly them in
the Starlight but even the touch and the weight told
him something, and he guessed that the girl had not
tried to deceive him childshly with bits of glass.
Though the bag had been in her BOSOM and the
weather was hot the stones were cold as jade; and
moreover he felt their shape and knew at once that
they might really be rough rubies for he was we'll
versed in the knowledge of precious stones.
When the day began to dawn he went down from
the roof to the common room of the forehouse where
guests quartered; yet though there was no
other stranger there, he would not take the bag
from his neck to examine the stones, lest some one
should be watching him from place of hiding; but
afterward, when he was alone in the foothills and
out of sight of the town. searching usual for new
plants and herbs he crept into low cave at noon,
and sat down just inside the entrance, that he
could anyone coming while still long way off,
and there he emptied the contents of the little
leather wallet into his hand and saw that Baraka
had not deceived him; and as he looked closely at
the stones in the strong light at the entrance of the
cave the red of the rubies was reflected in the blue
of his bright eyes and made little purple glare in
them that would have frightened Baraka and he
smiled behind his great yellow beard
He took from an inner pocket folded sheet on
which map traced in black and green ink,
much corrected and extended in pencil; and he
studied the map thoughtfuly in the while the
eye followed did not lead toward the Red Sea and
Egypt, where Baraka wished to live with him in
marble palace and eat fat quails and fig paste.
she came to him again that night the roof,
- bringing with her small bundle, tightly rolled
and we'll tied up He wrapped his bla nket round her
DOuy, ana Drought IL up uIueT HtT dI1S 81 IldC
rope would not hurt her when her weight
it, and he let her down the soft edge
of the roof to the ground and threw the rope after
her; and he let himself over, holding by his hands,
so that when he was hanging at the full length of
his long he had only few feet to drop, for he
very tall, and the forehouse not high, and
he wished to take the rope with him.
Barakas house was at the head of the town,
toward the foothills; everyone sleeping; and
there moon. She followed the stony sheep
track that struck into the hills only few hundred
PAGES from the last houses and the stranger followed