h woman), partook of a silent supper.

Deeper and deeper grew the shadow of night over the defile. Warmer and
warmer, denser and denser, grew the air, until the twilight caused the
slopes of the mountains to soften in outline, and the rocks to seem to
swell and merge with the bluish-blackness which overhung the bed of the
defile, and the superimposed heights to form a single apparent whole,
and the scene in general to resolve itself into, become united into,
one compact bulk.

Quietly then did tints hitherto red extinguish their tremulous
glow--softly there flared up, dusted purple in the sunset's sheen, the
peak of Kara Dagh. Vice versa, the foam of the rivulet now blushed to
red, and, seemingly, assuaged its vehemence--flowed with a deeper, a
more pensive, note; while similarly the forest hushed its voice, and
appeared to stoop towards the water while emitting ever more powerful,
intoxicating odours to mingle with the resinous, cloyingly sweet
perfume of our wood fire.

The ex-soldier squatted down before the little blaze, and rearranged
some fuel under the kettle.

"Where is the other man?" said he. "Go and fetch him."

I departed for the purpose, and, on my way, heard one of the carpenters
in the neighbourhood of the barraque say in a thick, unctuous,
sing-song voice.

"A great work is it indeed!"

Whereafter I heard the two women fall to drawling in low, hungry
accents:

"With the flesh I'll conquer pain;
The spirit shall my lust restrain;
All-supreme the soul shall reign;
And carnal vices lure in vain."

True, the women pronounced their words distinctly enough; yet always
they prolonged the final "u" sound of the stanza's first and third
lines until, as the melody floated away into the darkness, and, as it
were, sank to earth, it came to resemble the long-drawn howl of a wolf.

In answer to my invitation to come to supper, the newcomer sprang to
his feet, folded up his manuscript, stuffed it into one of the pockets
of his ragged coat, and said with a smile:

"I had just been going to resort to the carpenters, for they would have
given us some bread, I suppose? Long is it since I tasted anything."

The same words he repeated on our approaching the ex-soldier; much as
though he took a pleasure in their phraseology.

"You suppose that they would have given us bread?" echoed the
ex-soldier as he unfastened his wallet. "Not they! No love is lost
between them and ourselves."

"Whom do you mea