e forgotten that old tale. By the light
impression of one foot in the sand, by the herbage not being evenly
cropped, and by the ants being busy with the fallen grain on one side,
the flies, attracted by the honey, upon the other."

"Bah!" exclaimed the old lawyer. "Eastern tales are all gammon. I
don't believe in the East at all."

"Nor in people being cast ashore in desert places and having encounters
with Greek sailors. Nor in their having a faithful experienced
Mussulman guide, who fought for them and strove his very best to get
them out of their troubles, eh, Burne? Well, I do, and I'm very tired.
Good-night, Yussuf. You are going to sleep, I suppose?"

"No, effendi," said the Turk. "I shall watch till the stars say it is
two hours past midnight, and then I shall awaken you."

"Humph! Wrong again," cried Mr Burne testily. "I always am wrong.
What are you laughing at, sir?"

"At you, Mr Burne. I beg your pardon, I couldn't help it," said
Lawrence.

"Oh, I'll forgive you, boy. I'm glad to see you can laugh like that,
instead of being regularly knocked up with our troubles. I begin to
believe that you never have been ill, and were shamming so as to get a
holiday."

"Do you, sir?" said Lawrence sadly.

"No, my boy. Good-night. Good-night, Yussuf," he added, and then he
raised an echo by blowing his nose.

"Good-night, excellency," said the Turk, rather haughtily; and soon
there was nothing to be heard but the sighing of the night wind and the
low murmur of the rippling sea.

There was little to see, too, in the darkness, but the figures of the
reclining sleepers, and that of the grave sentinel, who sat upon a big
mass of stone, crouched in a heap and looking as if he were part of the
rock, save when he changed his position a little to refill his pipe.

The night passed without any alarm. The professor was awakened about
two and took Yussuf's place, and soon after daybreak the others were
roused, and the residue of the provisions was opened out.

"Be easier to carry when eaten," said Mr Preston laughing.

He looked serious directly, for there was a peculiarly sombre frown upon
Yussuf's brow, which suggested that he was thinking over Mr Burne's
suspicions of the previous evening, and his rather unpleasant way.

"Look here, Burne," the professor whispered, as they sat together on the
sand eating their spare meal, "I think, if I were you, I would make a
bit of an apology to Yussuf. He is rea