his father's. He would have
recognized him among thousands and at a far greater distance! But from
the beloved grey head he turned a swift glance at the guide, who had
stopped in speechless horror, and supposing that a mutiny had broken out
among the prisoners, with swift presence of mind shouted hoarsely to the
other guards:

"Keep behind the convicts and cut down every one who attempts to
escape!"

But scarcely had his subordinates hurried to the end of the train, ere
Joshua whispered to his companion:

"At him!"

As he spoke the Hebrew, who, with his yoke-mate, headed the procession,
attacked the astonished leader, and ere he was aware of it, Joshua
seized his right arm, the other his left.

The strong man, whose powers were doubled by his rage, struggled
furiously to escape, but Joshua and his companion held him in an iron
grasp.

A single rapid glance had showed the chief the path he must take to join
his people True, it led past a small band of Egyptian bow-men, who were
discharging their arrows at the Hebrews on the opposite cliff, but
the enemy would not venture to fire at him and his companion; for the
powerful figure of the captain of the guards, clearly recognizable by
his dress and weapons, shielded them both.

"Lift the chain with your right hand," whispered Joshua, "I will hold
our living buckler. We must ascend the cliff crab-fashion."

His companion obeyed, and as they advanced within bow-shot of the
enemy--moving sometimes backward, sometimes sideways--they held the
Egyptian before them and with the ringing shout: "The son of Nun is
returning to his father and to his people!" Joshua step by step drew
nearer to the Hebrew combatants.

Not one of the Egyptians who knew the captain of the prisoners' guard
had ventured to send an arrow at the escaping prisoners. While the
fettered pair were ascending the cliff backward, Joshua heard his name
shouted in joyous accents, and directly after Ephraim, with a band of
youthful warriors, came rushing down the height toward him.

To his astonishment Joshua saw the huge shield, sword, or battle-axe of
an Egyptian heavily-armed soldier in the hands of each of these sons of
his people, but the shepherd's sling and the bag of round stones also
hung from many girdles.

Ephraim led his companions and, before greeting his uncle, formed
them into two ranks like a double wall between Joshua and the hostile
bow-men.

Then he gave himself up to the delight of m