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66 he would take refuge in Constantinople, in Turkish, whence Alfred would chase him out in short order; finding himself in the toils he would skip over into Algeria, where he would have Eugene at his heels pursuing him through all the dialects of upper and lower Arabia; when he had reached that point he would seek shelter in the Bambara, the Galla and other jargons of the interior of Africa, where it required d'Abadie, Combes or Tamisier to force him out of his intrenchments. This time he answered me firmly in Spanish that was not very pure but was very distinct.

"WnaUna [sic] mujer muy bonita con sú hermana quien quiere hablar á usted." (A very pretty woman and her sister, who wish to speak to you).

"Introduce them if they are young and pretty; otherwise tell them that I am busy."

The rascal, who was something of a judge in such matters, disappeared for a short space and presently returned, followed by two women wrapped in great white burnooses with the capuchonscapuchins [sic] pulled down over their eyes.

I offered the ladies a couple of easy-chairs with the most gallant air that I had at my command, but noticing the piles of cushions, they made me a little sign with the hand to indicate that they thanked me and, throwing aside their burnooses, seated themselves cross-legged upon the floor, after the Oriental fashion.

The one who was seated facing me, in the ray of sunlight that came into the room through the opening between the curtains, was apparently about twenty years old; the other one, who was not nearly so