to keep
them--alive. Understand?"

"Yes," returned Seaton grimly, his eyes turning hard, "I get you all
right--but what he'll do and what he thinks he'll do are two entirely
different breeds of cats."

Returning to the others, they found Dorothy and Sitar deep in
conversation.

"So a man has half a dozen or so wives?" Dorothy was asking in surprise.
"How do you get along together? I'd fight like a wildcat if my husband
tried to have other wives!"

"We get along splendidly, of course," returned the Osnomian princess in
equal surprise. "I would not think of being a man's only wife. I
wouldn't consider marrying a man who could win only one wife--think what
a disgrace it would be! And think how lonely one would be while her
husband is away at war--we would go insane if we did not have the
company of the other wives. There are six of us, and we could not get
along at all without each other."

"I've got a compliment for you and Peggy, Dottie," said Seaton. "Dunark
here thinks that you two girls look good enough to eat--or words to that
effect." Both girls flushed slightly, the purplish-black color suffusing
their faces. They glanced at each other and Dorothy voiced the thought
of both as she said:

"How can you, Kofedix Dunark? In this horrible light we both look
perfectly dreadful. These other girls would be beautiful, if we were
used to the colors, but we two look simply hideous."

"Oh, no," interrupted Sitar. "You have a wonderfully rich coloring. It
is a shame to hide so much of yourselves with robes."

"Their eyes interpret colors differently than ours do," explained
Seaton. "What to us are harsh and discordant colors are light and
pleasing to their eyes. What looks like a kind of sloppy greenish black
to us may--in fact, does--look a pale pink to them."

"Are Kondal and Mardonale the only two nations upon Osnome?" asked
Crane.

"The only civilized nations, yes. Osnome is divided into two great and
almost equal continents, separated by a wide ocean which encircles the
globe. One is Kondal, the other Mardonale. Each nation has several
nations or tribes of savages, which inhabit various waste places."

* * * * *

"You are the light race, Mardonale the dark," continued Crane. "What are
the servants, who seem half-way between?"

"They are slaves...."

"Captured savages?" interrupted Dorothy.

"No. They are a separate race. They are a race so low in intelligence
that they c