explain; but by dint
of signs he at length contrived to make them both understand that he
desired them to bathe, and afterwards don certain festive garments, to
which he respectfully directed their attention. Understanding at last
what the old fellow required of them, and also that he was in a most
desperate hurry, the two friends disappeared, to re-appear, about a
quarter of an hour later, bathed, perfumed--by their assiduous servants,
who insisted upon the process--and clad in garments of so sumptuous a
character that there could be no doubt the wearers were booked for some
exceedingly important ceremony.

They were immediately taken in charge by the obsequious Bahrim, who, by
expressive signs, invited them to follow him. Led by the major-domo,
the two friends rapidly traversed several corridors until they reached
another wing of the palace, finally halting before a closed door,
outside which two soldiers, clad in golden armour and armed with sword
and spear, stood on guard. Signing to the white men to remain where
they were, Bahrim opened the door, disclosing a drawn curtain beyond it,
and closed the door behind him, only to re-appear, some two minutes
later, beckoning his charges to follow him.

Not until having received the salute of the guards as they passed
through the re-opened doorway, and the door was closed behind them, was
the shrouding curtain withdrawn, and then Earle and Dick found
themselves in a small but most sumptuously furnished apartment, at the
far extremity of which were seated two people, a man and a girl.

The man was apparently between fifty and sixty years of age--and a very
fine specimen of Uluan manhood, as the visitors presently discovered
when he rose to his feet. Like most Uluans, he was dark complexioned,
his hair, beard and moustache, all of which he wore of patriarchal
length, having been originally black, though now thickly streaked with
grey. His features were well formed, clean cut, and aristocratic
looking, as they might well be, seeing that the man was none other than
Juda, the King of Ulua, and direct descendant of a long line of kings
whose origin was lost in the mists of antiquity. He wore a long sleeved
garment, which reached from his throat to his feet, the colour of it
being red, with a wide border containing an intricate pattern wrought in
black, white and gold braid. On his head he had a kind of turban of
red, black and gold, surrounded by a coronet that appeared