Orion.

"Well then, at this time, if by any possibility you can arrange it so,
you ought to remain at home, and devote yourself heart and soul to the
task I have to propose to you. I hate postponements. Ride straight at
the foe, and do not canter up and down till you tire the horses! that is
my principle, and not in battle only. Take the moral to heart!--And you
will have no time to waste; what I require is no light matter: It is
that you should endeavor to sketch a new division of the districts,
drawing on your own knowledge of the country and its inhabitants,
and using the records and lists in the archives of your ancient
government-offices, of which your father has told me; you must have
special regard to the financial condition of each district. That the old
mode of levying taxes is unsatisfactory we find every day; you will have
ample room for improvements in every respect. Overthrow the existing
arrangements, if you consider it necessary. Other men have attempted
to redistribute the divisions and devise new modes of collecting the
revenue. The best scheme will have the preference; and you seem to me
to be the man to win the prize, and, with it, a wide and noble field of
work in the future. It is not a mere sense of tedium, or a longing
for the pleasures of the capital to which you are accustomed, that are
tempting you to quit Memphis the melancholy...."

"No, indeed, my Lord," Orion assured him. "The duty I have in view does
not even profit me, and if I had not given my word I would throw myself,
heart and soul, into so grand a task, no later than to-morrow. That you
should expect me to solve so hard a problem is the most precious incense
ever offered me. If it is only to be worthy of your confidence, I
will return as soon as possible and put forth my utmost powers of
intelligence and prudence, of endurance and patriotism. I have
always been a diligent student; and it would be a shame indeed, if
my experiences as a youth could hinder the man from outdoing the
school-boy."

"That is right, well said!" replied Amru, holding out his hand. "Do your
best, and you shall have ample opportunity of proving your powers.--Take
my warnings to heart as regards the patriarch and the black Vekeel. I
unfortunately have no one who could fill his place except the worthy
Kadi Othman; but he is no soldier, and he cannot be spared from his
post. Keep out of Obada's way, return soon, and may the All-merciful
protect you...."

Whe