Wielding this weapon, apparently so inefficient when compared with that of Richard, the soldan stood resting his weight upon his left foot, which was slightly advanced; he balanced himself a little as if to steady his aim, then 5 stepping at once forward, drew the scimiter so dexterously that the cushion seemed rather to fall asunder than to be divided by violence. "It is a juggler's trick," said De Vaux, darting forward and snatching up the portion of the cushion which had been 10 cut off, as if to assure himself of the reality of the feat. The soldan seemed to comprehend him, for he undid the sort of veil which he had hitherto worn, laid it double along the edge of his saber, extended the weapon edgeways in the air, and, drawing it suddenly through the 15 veil, although it hung on the blade entirely loose, severed that also into two parts, which floated to different sides of the tent, displaying the extreme temper and sharpness of the weapon and the exquisite dexterity of him who used it. "Now in good faith, my brother," said Richard, "thou 20 art even matchless at the trick of the sword, and right perilous it were to meet thee! Still, however, I put some faith in a downright English blow, and what we cannot do by sleight we eke out by strength." brand: sword. This was a favorite word with Scott. Melech Ric: the Eastern name for Richard.—the Prophet: Mohammed, the head of the Arabic Church. - hedg'ing bill: a heavy knife used in pruning hedges. soldan sultan. - Excalibur: the magic sword of King Arthur. - Franks : the inhabitants of western Europe. - temper: the condition of metal as regards hardness and elasticity. exquisite: accurate, nice. A CELLAR IN SIBERIA GEORGE KENNAN GEORGE KENNAN (1845- ) is an American author, traveler, and lecturer. His fearless articles on Russia have attracted much attention. The unexpected discovery late at night of a party of countrymen, when we had just given up all hope of shelter, and almost of life, was a godsend to our disheartened 5 spirits, and I hardly knew in my excitement what I did. I remember now walking hastily back and forth in front of the snowdrift, repeating softly to myself at every step, "Thank God! thank God!" but at the time I was not conscious of anything except the great fact of our 10 safety.. There was no sound of life in the lonely snowdrift before us, and the inmates, if it had any, were evidently asleep. Seeing no sign anywhere of a door, I walked up on the drift, and shouted down through the stovepipe in 15 tremendous tones, "Halloo the house!" Halloo the house!" A startled voice from under my feet demanded, "Who's there?" "Come out and see! Where's the door?" My voice seemed to the astounded Americans inside to come out of the stove, a phenomenon which was utterly 20 unparalleled in all their previous experience; but they reasoned very correctly that any stove which could ask in good English for the door, in the middle of the night, had an indubitable right to be answered; and they replied in a hesitating and half-frightened tone that the door was "on the southeast corner.' This left us about as wise as before. In the first place, 5 we did not know which way southeast was, and in the second, a snowdrift could not properly be described as having a corner. I started around the stovepipe, however, in a circle, with the hope of finding some sort of an entrance. The inmates had dug a deep ditch or trench 10 about thirty feet in length for a doorway, and had covered it over with sticks and reindeer skins to keep out the drifting snow. Stepping incautiously upon this frail roof, I fell through, just as one of the startled men was coming out, holding 15 a candle above his head, and peering through the dark ness of the tunnel to see who would enter. The sudden descent through the roof of such an apparition as I knew myself to be, was not calculated to restore the steadiness of startled nerves. 20 I was dressed in heavy furs, which swelled out my figure to gigantic proportions; two thick reindeer-skin hoods with long, frosty fringes of black bearskin were pulled up over my head, a squirrel-skin mask frozen into a sheet of ice concealed my face, and nothing but the 25 eyes peering out through tangled masses of frosty hair showed that the furs contained a human being. The man took two or three frightened steps backward 66 and nearly dropped his candle. I came in such a questionable shape" that he might well demand whether my intents were wicked or charitable! As I recognized his face, however, and addressed him again in English, he stopped; and tearing off my mask and fur hoods I spoke 5 my name. Never was there such rejoicing as that which then took place in that little underground cellar, as I recognized in the exiled party two of my old comrades and friends, to whom eight months before I had bidden good-by as the 10 "Olga" sailed out of the Golden Gate of San Francisco. I little thought, when I shook hands with Harder and Robinson then, that I should next meet them at night, in a little snow-covered cellar, on the great lonely steppes of the lower Anadir. 15 As soon as we had taken off our heavy furs and seated ourselves beside a warm fire, we began to feel the sudden reaction which necessarily followed twenty-four hours of such exposure, suffering, and anxiety. Our overstrained nerves gave way all at once, and in ten minutes I could 20 hardly raise a cup of coffee to my lips. Ashamed of such weakness, I tried to conceal it from the Americans, and I presume they do not know to this day that I nearly fainted several times within the first twenty minutes, from the suddenness of the change from 25 fifty degrees below zero to seventy degrees above, and the nervous exhaustion produced by anxiety and lack of sleep. 10 15 This weakness, however, soon passed away, and we proceeded to relate to each other our respective histories and adventures, while our drivers huddled together in a mass at one end of the little hut and refreshed themselves 5 with hot tea. "questionable shape": see "Hamlet," Act I, Scene IV, lines 42 and 43. the Golden Gate: the harbor of San Francisco. Anadir: a river of Siberia. THE RICHES OF THE COMMONWEALTH JOHN G. WHITTIER The riches of the Commonwealth Are free, strong minds, and hearts of health; For well she keeps her ancient stock, Nor heeds the skeptic's puny hands, While near her school the church spire stands ; While near her church spire stands the school. Abridged. |