the country. The thought of new
difficulties to encounter wakened his fighting spirit; he was
strangely elated and the dreadful langor which had seized him during
his journey disappeared.

"I am ready for another good fight," he told himself grimly as he
prepared for bed. That night for the first time since his
court-martial he slept the long hours through, and he rested as
peacefully as a little child.

Dressing himself with his usual care and holding his head as proudly
as though he still wore his country's uniform, Levy appeared at the
palace and was immediately ushered into the emperor's presence. His
quick eyes, long trained to notice the smallest detail, quickly took
in every feature of the richly appointed room, noting even the
fantastic carving of the chair on which the emperor sat, and one of
the rings he wore, a flat green emerald with a mystic letter carved
upon it making the jewel, so he judged, a sort of talisman. He smiled
in spite of himself as he remembered his own humble charm, the lucky
stone. Perhaps the pebble's usefulness was over; he could hardly call
his career especially fortunate just now.

Emperor Dom Pedro was a man of a few words. He murmured a few polite
phrases of greeting, asked Levy of his voyage and whether he had
completed the mission which had brought him to Brazil. "For if you
have," he ended, "I may have matters of interest to discuss with you."

"I am not quite finished with the business which brought me here,"
answered Levy, "but naturally I am honored by your majesty's request
to appear before you and not a little eager to learn what matters you
may care to discuss with me."

The emperor twirled the ring with its strange green stone about his
finger. "I have heard much of you," he returned, briefly, "and I need
men of your daring and enterprise in my service. Will you take an
important commission under the Brazilian government?"

For a moment Levy wavered. Already an exile in spirit, he felt he did
not have the courage to return to his native country. Here was an
opportunity for an honorable career which would bring him position,
wealth, all the excitement his daring heart desired. Then, curiously
enough, as he gazed at the emperor's ring, there flashed across his
mind the picture of a brown-faced boy upon the sands, a boy turning a
lucky stone in his fingers as he dreamed of a glorious career in the
country of his birth. He turned to the emperor and spoke quietly, but
wit