course she said it only by her looks; and Agnes quite understood her.

Next moment a whole cluster of golden ringlets fell to the ground. For
one moment Agnes's eyes and mouth resembled three round O's. She felt
that something telling had been done, and thoughts of her mother flashed
into her mind, but Fatma's pretty little round face, with no eyes to
speak of owing to laughter, caused her to smile and then to laugh
heartily.

Having brushed the front hair over her forehead, and cut it straight
across, the energetic Zooloo next painted her eyebrows black with a
substance called kohl, causing them to meet over her nose in the most
approved form of Algerine elegance. Then she dyed her nails and the
palms of her hands dark-red with another substance named henna. The
first of these takes about a week to remove, and the last can be got rid
of only by the growth of the nail. Agnes was not aware of this, else
she might have objected. They finished up the adornment of the face by
sticking it all over with gold spangles.

"Now you look lovely," said Zooloo--with her eyes--stepping back and
surveying her as a painter might his _chef-d'oeuvre_.

"Do I? How nice!" replied Agnes.

Then the whole party broke into a chorus of laughter, and running to a
wardrobe tumbled out a mass of richly embroidered garments--in silk,
satin, muslin, damask, fine linen, and gold, that would have stocked at
least half a dozen European families with charading material for life.

From this heap were selected and put on a lovely pair of fair linen
drawers, of that baggy kind peculiar to Algerine ladies; also an
exquisite little caftan, or sleeveless jacket, of scarlet cloth, so
covered with gold lace that scarcely any of the scarlet was visible;
likewise a perfect gem of a cap of gold, not bigger than Agnes's own
hand, which Fatma put on in a coquettish style, very much to one side of
the head; saying, (with her eyes), as she did so, and laughing heartily
the while--

"You're not married yet, of course?"

To which Agnes replied, also with her eyes, innocently--

"No, not yet, but I hope to be soon." Whereupon the whole party laughed
immoderately and said, each one with her eyes--

"There can't be the smallest doubt whatever upon _that_ point!"

At this point they were interrupted by the entrance of Hanyfa, but that
lady, far from damping their ardour, took particular pleasure in
assisting. By her advice they cut off a good deal more