n meditated upon the means of getting
rich. His thoughts dwelt so much on this subject, that ambition at
length became a dangerous rival to the softer sentiment.

There was a grand festival in the harem. In the midst of it, the great
Schah Abbas dropped the royal aigrette, called jigha, the mark of
sovereignty among the Mussulmans. In changing his position, that it
might be sought for, he inadvertently trod upon it, and it was broken.
The officer who had charge of the crown jewels, knew the reputation of
Bebut; to him he applied to repair this treasure. None but the most
honest could be trusted with an article of such value, and who was there
so honest as Bebut? Bebut was enraptured with the confidence. He
promised to prove himself deserving of it.

Now Bebut holds in his hands the richest gems of Persia and the Indies.
Ambition has already stolen into his bosom. Could it be silent on an
occasion like this? It ought to have been so, but it was not.

"A single one of these numerous diamonds," said Bebut to himself, "would
make my fortune and that of Tamira! I am incapable of a breach of trust;
but were I to commit one, would Abbas be the worse for it? No, so far
from it, he would have made two of his subjects happy without being
aware. Now, any body else situated as I am, would manage to put aside a
vast treasure out of a job like this; but one, and that a very small
one, of these many gems will be enough for me. It will be wrong, I
confess, but I will replace it by a false one, cut and enchased with
such exquisite taste and skill, that the value of the workmanship shall
make up for any want of value in the material. It will be impossible to
see the change; God and the Prophet will see it plainly enough, I know;
but I will atone for the sin, and it shall be my only one. Sometime or
other I will go a pilgrimage to Mashad, or even to Mecca, should my
remorse grow troublesome."

Thus, by the power of a "but," did Bebut the Honest contrive to quiet
his conscience. The diamond was removed: a bit of crystal took its
place, and the jigha appeared more brilliant than ever to the courtiers
of Abbas, who, as they never spoke to him but with their foreheads in
the dust, could, of course, form a very accurate estimate of the lustre
of his jewels.

One day during the spring equinox, as the chief of the sectaries of Ali,
according to the custom of Persia, was sitting at the gate of his palace
to hear the complaints of his people,