thither, and sack the castle."

"Will there not be great danger in attacking the castle of a
magician?" asked the Stranger in somewhat anxious tones.

"Of course there will be," said the Captain, "but we are not such
cowards as to hesitate on account of danger. Forward, my men!" And on
they all marched.

When they reached the magician's castle, the order was given to scale
the outer wall. This the robbers did with great agility, and the
Hermit's Pupil was among the first to surmount it. But the Stranger
was not used to climbing, and he had to be assisted over the wall.
Inside the great court-yard they perceived numbers of Weirds--strange
shadowy creatures who gathered silently around them; but not in the
least appalled, the robbers formed into a body, and marched into the
castle, the door of which stood open. They now entered a great hall,
having at one end a doorway before which hung a curtain. Following
their Captain, the robbers approached this curtain, and pushing it
aside, entered the room beyond. There, behind a large table, sat the
great magician, Alfrarmedj, busy over his mystic studies, which he
generally pursued in the dead hours of the night. Drawing their
swords, the robbers rushed upon him.

"Surrender!" cried the Captain, "and deliver to us the treasures of
your castle."

The old magician raised his head from his book, and, pushing up his
spectacles from his forehead, looked at them mildly, and said:

"Freeze!"

Instantly, they all froze as hard as ice, each man remaining in the
position in which he was when the magical word was uttered. With
uplifted swords and glaring eyes they stood, rigid and stiff, before
the magician. After calmly surveying the group, the old man said:

"I see among you one who has an intelligent brow and truthful
expression. His head may thaw sufficiently for him to tell me what
means this untimely intrusion upon my studies."

The Stranger now felt his head begin to thaw, and in a few moments he
was able to speak. He then told the magician about the Queen's
museum, and how it had happened that he had come there with the
robbers.

"Your motive is a good one," said the magician, "though your actions
are somewhat erratic; and I do not mind helping you to find what you
wish. In what class of objects do the people of the city take the
most interest?"

"Truly I do not know," said the Stranger.

"This is indeed surprising!" exclaimed Alfrarmedj. "How can you
expect to obta