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 AN EARTHQUAKE

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thirty copecks, but at that moment the Sioni children began to hurl stones at their rivals. Bender and Hippolyte fled from the attack and walked rapidly to the next village, where they spent their well-earned money on bread and cheese. In this way the two friends went on for several days. They spent the night in mountain caves, and on the fourth day they down a zigzag path into the Kaishaur Valley. 1 e sun beat down on to them and they began to feel warm again after being so high up. pey found a number of people from whom they could beg, borrow, or steal, which cheered them up enormously, and they began to walk faster until they came to a place called Passanaur. There was an hotel there and a number of houses. The two friends were given some bread, and they lay down in the bushes opposite to the Hotel de France, that had a garden in which two bear cubs were fastened to a chain. Bender and Hippolyte enjoyed the delicious bread and a well-earned rest. Their rest, however, was soon disturbed by the hooting of motor-cars, the crunching of wheels on gravel, and the sound of voices. The two friends peered out through the bushes and saw two new cars draw up at the entrance to the hotel, prsitsky lumped out of the first car and the head of the Law and Life ’ section jumped out after him, and these two were soon followed by the various other members of the Stanok automobile club. ' Here we are ! ’ shouted Persitsky. ‘ Proprietor, we want fifteen shashlyks.’ j • t+’o ‘ Don’t you recognize him ? ’ asked Bender. it s the reporter from the Scriabin, one of the critics of our masterpiece. But fancy arriving so grandly, wonder what it means.’ Bender went up to the visitors, who by now were devouring shashlyk, and bowed in the most elegant fashion to Persitsky.
 * A favourite dish in the Caucasus,