The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1912-11-30

mad no choice, the one was as badea
the other. So. II the young fool who
had bought the rug Of Ryanne told
the truth when he declared that Il
had been stolen again, then Ryaane
knew where It was; and he could b
made to- tell: he, Mahon1ed. would at
tend to that And when Ryanne con.
fessed, the girl and the other would
be conveyed to the nearest telegraph.
post. That they might at once report
the abduction to the English authori.
ties did not worry Mahomed. Not the
aeetest racing-camel could ind him.
and behind the walls Of the palace
Of Bagdad. only Allah could touch
him. He had figured 1t all out closely.
and he was an admirable strategist
In his way. Revenge upon Ryanne for
the dishonor and humiliation. and the
return Of the rug: there was nothing
moro beyond that.
Before George had the opportunity
Of speaking to Fortune. he was raised
from the sand and bodily lifted upon
his camel; and by way Of passing
pleasantly. his hat was TANNED down.
over his eyes. He swore as he pulled
up the brim. Swearing was another
accomplishment added to the list Of
transformations. He had deal to
learn yet. but In his present mood he
was likely to proceed famously. He
readjusted the hat in time to See Ry-
anne unceremoniously dumped into
pne Of the yawning pack-baskets, his.
arms and legs hanging out, his head
lolling against his shoulder, exactly
like marionette. cast aside for the
time being. A man Of ordinary STAN.
Ina would have died under such treat
mont. But Ryanne possessed an ex-
traordinary constitution, against which
vears Of periodical dissipation had az,
vot made no permanent inroads. More
over. he never forgot to keep his chin
up and his waist-line down. They put
him into the pack-basket because
there waS no alternative, being a. he
was incapable Of sitting upon cam
els back.
Next, George saw Fortune. unre-
listing, placed upon the camel, under
canopy. At least, she would know .
little comfort against the days long
rlde. His heart ached to SEQ her. He
Called out bravely to her to be Of
good cheer. She turned and smiled:
and he saw only the smile, not the
swift, decisive battle against tho on
let Of tears: she smiled, and he was
too far away to see tho swimming
eyes.
A bawling Of voices. a swapping Of
tho kurbash upon the TANKS Of the
cnmels. and the caravan was once
moro under way. George looked at
his watch. which fortunately had been
overlooked by the thieving natives,
and found 1t still ticking away brisk
~. 1t was after nine. It was q com.
fort to learn that the watch had not
been injured. Most men are method.
lcal in the matter Of time, no matter
how desultory they may be In other
things. There is a peculiar restful-
mesa in knowing what the hour is,
whether 1t passes quickly or whether
1t dragA
Further investigation revealed
that his letter of credit was undis-
tnrbsd and that he was the proud pos
a~asor Of six damaged cigars and a
box Of cigarettes. Instantly the
thought N being days without tobacco
smote him almost poignantly. He ives
an inveterate smoker, and the fact
that the supply WAS 10 pitiably small
gave unusual Sest to his craving. He
now longed for the tang Of tho weed
upon his lips, but he held out man
fully. He would not touch a Cigar or
cigarette till nightfall, and then he
made up his mind to smoke half Of
either. The touch, selfish and calcu-
lating, Of the miser. stole over him.
II Ryanne was without tho soother.
80 much the worse for him. The six
cigars he would not share with tho
archangel Michael, supposing that
gentleman came down for q smoke.
Forward. always forward, winding
In and out Of the valleys, trailing over
the hills. never faster, never slower.
Noon came, and tho brilliance Of aft.
ernoon dimmed and faded into the
short twilight. We're they never 70
Ing to stop? One hill more, and
George. to his infinite delight, saw q
cluster OF date-palms ahead. mile
or SO: and he knew that this was to
be the haven for the ship Of the des-
ert. The caravan came to 1t under
the dim light Of the few stars that,
had not yet attained their refulgenoe.
Under the palms were few deserted
mud-houses, huddled dejectedly to-
gether, like outcasts seeking the near
ness rather than the companionshil Of
the co.Infortunates. Men had dwelti
here once upon a time. but the plague
had dOuhtleaa countod thon, o,,t o,a