was no response and when Gebhr, who was
riding behind him, did not cease lashing the camel on which he sat with
Nell, he thought it was not the camels that were so spirited but that
the men for some reason unknown to him were in a great hurry.

It occurred to him that they might have taken the wrong road and that,
desiring to make up for lost time, they now were speeding from fear
that the older gentlemen might scold them because of a late arrival.
But after a while he understood that such could not be the case, as Mr.
Rawlinson would have been more angered for unnecessarily fatiguing
Nell. Then what did it mean? And why did they not obey his commands? In
the heart of the boy anger and fear for Nell began to rise.

"Stop!" he shouted with his whole strength, addressing Gebhr.

"Ouskout! (be silent)!" the Sudanese yelled in reply; and they sped on.

In Egypt night falls about six o'clock, so the twilight soon became
extinct and after a certain time the great moon, ruddy from the
reflection of the twilight, rolled on and illuminated the desert with a
gentle light.

In the silence could be heard only the heavy breathing of the camels,
the rapid hoof-beats on the sand, and at times the swish of whips. Nell
was so tired that Stas had to hold her on the saddle. Every little
while she asked how soon they would reach then destination, and
evidently was buoyed up only by the hope of an early meeting with her
father. But in vain both children gazed around. One hour passed, then
another; neither tents nor camp-fires could be seen.

Then the hair rose on Stas' head, for he realized that they were
kidnapped.

VI

Messrs. Rawlinson and Tarkowski actually expected the children, not
amidst the sand-hills of Wadi Rayan, where they had no need or desire
to ride, but in an entirely different direction, in the city of
El-Fachn on a canal of the same name at which they were examining the
work finished before the end of the year. The distance between El-Fachn
and Medinet in a straight line is almost twenty-eight miles. As,
however, there is no direct connection and it is necessary to ride to
El-Wasta, which doubles the distance, Mr. Rawlinson, after looking over
the railway guide, made the following calculations.

"Chamis left the night before last," he said to Pan Tarkowski, "and in
El-Wasta he caught the train from Cairo; he was therefore in Medinet
yesterday. It would take an hour to pack up. Leaving at noon they
would have