being discernible only by reason of a greater
greenness in the palm-tops. Venomous green slopes beyond them again, a
fringe of dwarf forest, and the brazen skyline.

"On the right, and above me yet, the path entered a district of volcanic
rocks, gnarled, twisted, and contorted as with the agonies of some
mighty plague which in a forgotten past had seized on the very bowels of
the world and had contorted whole mountains and laid waste vast forests
and endless plains. Above, the sun, growing hourly more cruel; ahead,
more plague-twisted rocks and the scars dancing like running water; and
all around the swooning stillness of the tropics.

"The night sounds of the jungle had ceased, giving place to the
ceaseless humming of insects. North, south, east, and west lay that haze
of heat, like a moving mantle clothing hills and valleys. The sound of
falling water remained perceptible.

"And now, gentlemen, I must relate a discovery which I had made in the
act of removing Vadi's clothing. Upon his right forearm was branded
a mark resembling the apparition which I had witnessed in the night,
namely, a little torch, or flambeau, surmounted by a tongue of fire.
Even in the light of the morning, amid that oppressive stillness, I
could scarcely believe in my own safety, for that to Vadi the duty
of assassinating me had been assigned by this ever-watchful, secret
organization, whose stronghold I had dared to approach, was a fact
beyond dispute.

"Since I seemed to be quite alone on the plateau, I could only suppose
that the issue had been regarded as definitely settled, that no doubt
had been entertained by Vadi's instructors respecting his success. The
plateau upon which I stood was one of a series of giant steps, and on
the west was a sheer descent to a dense jungle, where banks of rotten
vegetation, sun-dried upon the top, lay heaped about the tree stems.

"Dragging the heavy body of Vadi to the brink of this precipice, I
toppled it over, swaying dizzily as I watched it crash down into the
poisonous undergrowth two hundred feet below.

"I made a rough cache, where I stored the bulk of my provisions; and,
selecting only such articles as I thought necessary for my purpose,
I set out again northward, guided by the sound of falling water, and
having my face turned toward the silver pencillings in the blue sky,
which marked the giant peaks of the distant mountains.

"At midday the heat grew so great that a halt became imperative.