h of Madras. He has captured many of the Nizam's cities, and
several Mahratta provinces.

"In fact, he has accumulated, at Seringapatam, the spoils of the whole
of southern India, and those of the Hindoo portion of his own people.
The value of the jewels, alone, must be millions of pounds; and as he
himself, as they say, dresses simply, and only wears one or two gems,
of immense value, he may well have bestowed large quantities upon his
harem, especially as these would be, in fact, only loans, as at the
death of their wearers they would revert to him, or, indeed, could be
reclaimed at any moment, in a freak of bad temper.

"I have no doubt they had to ask his permission to give you the
presents, and as you, at the moment, were in high favour with him, I
daresay he suffered them to give what they chose, without inquiring at
all into their value. The gold he gave you was simply to procure your
outfits, and he left it to the harem to reward you, as they chose, for
the service you had rendered.

"Well, Dick, I congratulate you heartily. It places your future beyond
doubt, and leaves you free to choose any mode of life that you may
prefer.

"I congratulate you, too, Margaret, on the lad's good fortune; which
he has well deserved by his conduct.

"See this, my sons. Here you have a proof of the advantages of the
training your cousin has had. The quickness and coolness he has
acquired, by it, enabled him to make his way down through the fort at
the top of the pass, and to defend the ruined hut against fifty
enemies. Now it has enabled him to seize the opportunity, opened by
the attack of the tiger on Tippoo's harem, thereby gaining the
Sultan's favour, his appointment to the rank of colonel in the Mysore
army, a post in his Palace, and this magnificent collection of gems.
Without that quickness and decision, his courage alone would have done
little for him. We in India have courage; but it is because our
princes and nobles are brought up in indolence and luxury that the
English, though but a handful in point of numbers, have become masters
of such wide territories. Surajah is as brave as Dick, but he would be
the first to tell you that it is to Dick he owes it that, on their
first excursion together, he escaped with his life; and that, in this
last adventure, he attained rank and position, and has returned with
these valuable gifts."

"It is indeed, my lord," Surajah said. "The young lord has been my
leader, and I have