n in Detroit. And this beautiful
ornament William delighted to wear, not merely because of its
intrinsic worth, which was considerable, but through regard for its
thoughtful and considerate donor."

"The two-nosed man did truly show himself a man of gratitude, and I am
glad to hear of such an instance. Yet from what you said of him in the
beginning of the tale, I should not have expected it of him. How often
is one deceived by appearances and how hard it is to trust to them."

"Even the wisest is unable to distinguish an enemy wearing the guise
of a friend, but we may bring to our assistance the aid of forces more
powerful than our poor little human intelligence. Let me present you
with a talisman which will ever warn you when any one plots against
you."

"How?"

"How? You must wait until some one plots against you and the talisman
will answer that question. Its ways of warning will be as manifold as
the plots villains may conceive. Here is the talisman, an Egyptian
scarabaeus of pure gold. So cunningly fashioned is it that not nature
itself made ever a bug more perfect in the outward seeming."

_What Befell Mr. Middleton Because of the Third Gift of the Emir._

Putting the scarabaeus in his left trousers pocket, Mr. Middleton
departed, and as he went about his affairs during the next several
days, he ceased to think of the talisman, but on the fourth day his
attention was recalled to it in a way that indeed seemed to prove that
it was a charm possessed of the powers the emir of the tribe of Al-Yam
had attributed to it. He was faring northward in a street car at
eleven of the morning, diverting himself with the study of the
passengers sitting opposite, when he became aware that the scarabaeus
in his left trousers pocket was slowly traveling up his leg. Had the
talisman been other than the heavy object it was, he would not have
noticed it, but it was of too considerable weight to travel over his
person without making its progress felt. Deterred by none of the
superstitious tremors which the unaccountable peregrinations of the
gold beetle would have excited in one less intrepid, he quickly thrust
his hand into his pocket to close it over another hand already there,
a hand which beyond a first little start to escape, lay passive and
unresisting, a hand soft and delicate, yet well-muscled withal,
long-fingered and finely formed. At the same time, a well-modulated
voice at his side exclaimed:

"Why, I did no