he santon rushed from the royal
presence, and, descending into the city, hurried through its streets and
squares with frantic gesticulations. His voice was heard in every
part in awful denunciation: "The peace is broken! exterminating war is
commenced. Woe! woe! woe to Granada! its fall is at hand! desolation
will dwell in its palaces; its strong men will fall beneath the sword,
its children and maidens be led into captivity. Zahara is but a type of
Granada!"

Terror seized upon the populace, for they considered these ravings as
the inspirations of prophecy. Some hid themselves in their dwellings as
in a time of general mourning, while some gathered together in knots in
the streets and squares, alarming each other with dismal forebodings and
cursing the rashness and cruelty of the king.

The Moorish monarch heeded not their murmurs. Knowing that his exploit
must draw upon him the vengeance of the Christians, he now threw off
all reserve, and made attempts to surprise Castellan and Elvira, though
without success. He sent alfaquis also to the Barbary powers, informing
them that the sword was drawn, and inviting the African princes to aid
him with men and supplies in maintaining the kingdom of Granada and the
religion of Mahomet against the violence of unbelievers.

While discontent exhaled itself in murmurs among the common people,
however, it fomented in dangerous conspiracies among the nobles, and
Muley Abul Hassan was startled by information of a design to depose
him and place his son Boabdil upon the throne. His first measure was to
confine the prince and his mother in the Tower of Comares; then, calling
to mind the prediction of the astrologers, that the youth would one day
sit on the throne of Granada, he impiously set the stars at defiance.
"The sword of the executioner," said he, "shall prove the fallacy of
those lying horoscopes, and shall silence the ambition of Boabdil."

The sultana Ayxa, apprised of the imminent danger of her son, concerted
a plan for his escape. At the dead of the night she gained access to
his prison, and, tying together the shawls and scarfs of herself and her
female attendants, lowered him down from a balcony of the Alhambra to
the steep rocky hillside which sweeps down to the Darro. Here some of
her devoted adherents were waiting to receive him, who, mounting him
on a swift horse, spirited him away to the city of Guadix, in the
Alpuxarras.

CHAPTER V.

EXPEDITION OF THE MARQUE