A. L. O. E.

“ Ali Khan was not the first gallant warrior who has shrunk from the effort of making a speech; however, after the pause of a few seconds, with manly frankness thus he spake:—
"Afghan brothers! we have been born amongst you, lived amongst you, and I had thought to stay amongst you to the end; but if you do not wish me for your chief, I tell you that I will only rule over free men, not over unwilling slaves. The world is wide—so is God's grace. We can seek for graves elsewhere. We will go, carrying with us our Christian faith, and leaving behind—our forgiveness." ”

“ It is only for a while that the fall of even the largest stone into a lake leaves eddies to tell where it fell. The world's darling passes away, and the thoughtless world laughs on.
Seven years had passed since Denis on his steed, and Walter trudging as his squire on foot, had traversed the mountain road, when a British force, invading Afghanistan, encamped close by the thicket where Sultána had encountered the leopard. Hundreds of camels were crouching on the ground, relieved for a-while from their burdens; hundreds of mules were tethered by the tents. ”

“ Study, a weariness to many, was to Walter Gurney a source of pleasure. He enjoyed it for its own sake, and not merely as a means to an end. The consciousness of success in every effort which he made, was exhilarating to the young man's spirit. Walter was like one who arrives so late in a hunting-field that he fears that he will never overtake the riders whom he sees at a distance before him, but who finds that his first-rate steed not only overtakes, but soon leads on in advance of them all. ”

“ The court-yard was clear, save of a few old women, and children too young even to enjoy the sight of a fray. As if seizing her opportunity, from a different recess from that in which she had at first disappeared, came forth little Sultána, her speed only checked by the necessity of carrying something with care. She climbed the ladder with the agility of a cat, not needing to make use of her hands. Wrapt up in what Denis recognised as a silk handkerchief of his own, was something which the child eagerly placed in the hands of Walter. "It is good, eat it—and quickly," said the girl. ”

“ The danger's self is lure alone."
This was eminently the case with the light-hearted Hibernian; and Walter shared the pleasant excitement. Then the future, which had been so dark before, shone out glittering before him like the snow-capped mountains in front. Denis talked of the voyage to England, and Walter's heart leaped at the thought of being, for the first time in his life, "on the blue waters of the boundless sea." He had often longed to hear the dash of the ocean waves, and inhale the briny breezes. England, too, was in prospect. The youth intensely desired to behold the mother-land. ”

“ All that the Christian holds most dear is beyond the reach of robbers; he can never lose his all. What marvel if that man is patient who knows that all things work together for his good,—and brave when assured that death itself is but the angel that uncloses the gate of paradise.
It was far otherwise with the miserable Denis, who, on account of his bonds, was utterly unable to keep up with Walter and the foremost Afghans, who soon passed beyond his view. ”

“ A straw may turn a balance; a single sentence change the course of a life. Walter was again on his knees, in a wrestling agony of prayer. He arose comparatively calm, but pale as a corpse. Walter sat down, opened his desk, and took out the letter which he had written to the bishop, but which he had not yet had resolution to send. He then, with unsteady hand, wrote another. It was a grateful one to Sir Cæsar, thanking him for kindness which could never be either repaid or forgotten, but bidding him a long farewell. ”

“ I'll make my escape from these thieves!"
"I fear that you will find escape impossible," said Walter.
"Impossible! there's not such a word in my grammar. To men with quick brain and strong arm there's nothing impossible!" cried Denis. "I shall certainly make an attempt to get off, and if the ruffians murder me, I'll just see what vengeance the English will take! Don't you feel a thirst for revenge?" he asked, turning with clenched hand towards Walter.
"The only revenge for which I thirst, is to see these fierce robbers transformed into civilised Christians," was the young man's reply. ”

“ Walter then turned towards the brave chief, and, after the manner of the country, locked him in a hearty embrace.
"The Lord be with you, and bless you, brother! and be your strong rock and fortress!" he cried.
"And bring you back to us soon!" exclaimed the chief.
"Mirza, you also are one of us," said Walter to another of the newly baptised; and embracing him the young evangelist added, "let my parting words to you be the exhortation of our Lord to His disciples—Watch and pray that ye fall not into temptation."
"You may trust me," said the Afghan; "my faith is as strong as my sword." ”

“ If it please Thee to prolong my life, let it be the one object of that life to glorify Thee by rescuing souls through the power of Thy spirit; it is the object best worth living for—the object best worth dying for! Where does the fiery pillar lead the believer but along the path consecrated by the track of the Saviour's own footsteps. He came to seek and to save the lost."
Very fervently did Walter Gurney plead on that tempestuous night for Sultána and her guilt-stained race. The sense of personal danger was almost lost in the intense realisation of the spiritual peril of others. ”

“ As a penniless adventurer he could hardly have aspired to the hand of Flora Dashley; but the heir of the wealthy Augustus Gurney might, without any presumption, ask her to be his bride. Walter sprang from his seat, and with rapid steps paced up and down the apartment. Satan tempted him—as he is so ready to tempt God's people—with arguments drawn from religion itself. Was not this letter, coming at so critical a time, an indication of the leading of Providence? What a talent to be used for God would be wealth devoted to the noblest objects! ”

“ Ali Khan had still his admirers and Sultána her friends even in that excited throng; but, as is usually the case, the louder voices and the more fiery spirits carried the day.
"Mustapha is our chief! Down with Ali Khan—hurl him from the rock!" shouted the renegade Mirza; and others took up the cry, "Mustapha! Mustapha! the true believer! Mustapha is the chief of our clan!" ”

“ Walter was gratified at beholding his companion's unfeigned sorrow, for he saw unbidden tears rising to the Irishman's eyes. But when the Afghans who had carried up the wounded captive had quitted the room, and the prisoners were left to themselves, the deepest source of Denis's trouble became apparent.
"The most unlucky thing that could have happened!" he cried. "You are lamed for ever so long. I know what a sprain is, for I had one when my horse came down in leaping a ditch. It's worse than breaking a bone. You won't be able for weeks to do more than hop round the room?" ”

“ Walter stood amongst the wild mountaineers as one in command.
"What is all this?" he said to the chief, who, springing down the steps, was now warmly embracing his deliverer. "What has caused this mad tumult?"
"The tribe are weary of a chief who is a Christian," was Ali Khan's brief reply.
"The tribe!" repeated Walter. "Not half of them are present. And do men without sense of religion," he continued, looking sternly around, "men who break the laws of him whom they call their Prophet"— (he pointed indignantly to the traces of the drunken revel) —"do such pretend to zeal for their faith!" ”

“ An Afghan seized on one, perhaps in hopes that the metal was silver, wrenched it open, then flung it from him with an exclamation of disgust, and a curse.
"Dogs of Kafirs! (unbelievers) ; they eat the unclean beast!" he cried, surveying the Europeans with a look of intense hatred.
"If we are to proceed, we had better go at once," said Walter to Denis. The Irishman's quick temper was as a lighted cigar, and Gurney saw that those around him were as gunpowder ready for explosion. ”

“ Where repentance has never been known, oh how weak is faith and how cold is love! The sense of sin makes faith look up to a Saviour; the joy of receiving pardon makes love pour forth her rich offering of self-sacrifice at His feet. They love much who truly feel that they have been forgiven much.
And another lesson had also been learnt by the quick pupil, the intelligent Afghan child. With the bright drops flowing down her cheeks, Sultána ran up to the wounded men who had been laid on charpais in the court-yard, ready for the rough surgery of the barber. ”

“ If the Christian had found the pillar of fire his cheering light in the dark hours of tribulation, the pillar of cloud was now shading him from the more dangerous glare of prosperity's sun. It was not only that it kept his life pure in the midst of many temptations, but it made him search his own heart. Walter became painfully aware that, while advancing in everything else, he was not advancing in spiritual life. Secular study sometimes encroached on time that would otherwise have been given to study of Scripture; and the image of Flora's dark eyes intruded often on his devotions. ”

“ Denis tried to laugh off his annoyance, but there was more of irony than of mirth in his laugh. "Hear how the young cock crows!" he cried, "when hardly out of the shell. He'll sing a different note when his feathers are grown. Good-night, my puritanical friend, I'm going to bed; as we start to-morrow, I hope that you'll awake in the morning a wiser and a merrier man." And taking up the solitary lamp, Denis retreated into the inner room, leaving Walter Gurney to darkness and his own reflections. ”

“ Half of the men of my tribe would not care were I to share the fate of the yellow-haired stranger. There were curses muttered to-day which I did not choose to seem to hear, as a Christian must not for a personal affront knock down a fellow with the butt end of a gun, or shoot him through the head. The fellows know that, and they take their advantage. Our Feringhee friend should never have come, or never have left us!"
"He will come again," said Sultána; "he promised to return to his Afghan children, and he never will break his word." ”

“ Walter had never felt sure that some fierce fit of anger,—nay, some mere caprice of Assad Khan—might not bring on himself a bastinado, or even loss of eyes or head. Young Gurney had pursued evangelising work under difficulties which most men would have deemed insuperable. No trophy had been won from Islam without a perilous conflict. In addition to this harassing state of insecurity, it had been no small trial to Walter to be debarred from all intercourse with men of cultivated minds,—to live amongst the ignorant and savage, deprived of access to literature. ”

“ The great iron key hung at the girdle of Assad Khan, for he never at night trusted it into any hands but his own. Such precaution was deemed necessary in that land of treachery and sudden surprises. Followed by those who had been sharing his banquet, Assad Khan stalked to the massive gate. The call for admittance had excited the curiosity of the females of his family, who, in their upper apartments, were having a feast of their own. Sultána, to whom childhood gave freedom of action, came down to behold and report. ”

“ Young Gurney, by lighting a lamp, soon dispelled the darkness. In the gaiety of his heart Denis drew his chair closer to Walter's, and was inclined to be quite confidential.
"I don't mind telling you, old boy—for I know you'll be silent as the grave—what is my great object in pushing on beyond the border. You'll not breathe a word to a soul alive."
"Mr. Denis," said Walter, "we are going amongst Afghans, one of whose characteristics is intense curiosity. We shall be questioned and cross-questioned on every point, and often silence is in itself a reply." ”

“ Large blue eyes, dilated with fear, fringed with long soft dark lashes, were raised towards her preserver with an eager wistful gaze. The girl's hair, in long rich plaits, fell over her bright red hurta, and was adorned with many a silver ornament. Walter was too well accustomed to Oriental taste to think the child's loveliness lessened by the numerous rings which weighed down her little ears, or even the jewel on one side of the delicately formed nose. ”

“ When Walter translated the chief's reply to Denis, the warm-tempered Irishman could not refrain from a burst of indignation at the cupidity of his captor.
"The unconscionable thief! he would ruin a Crœsus! he sells his black bread dear with a vengeance! Tell him I'm poor——"
"I cannot say that," observed Walter.
"You must meet a man on his own ground," cried Denis impatiently; "we are in the land of liars and thieves!"
"Does the Kafir agree?" asked the chief.
Walter did his best to negotiate more reasonable terms, but Assad Khan, stood firm to his offer. ”

“ When, on passing the frontier, Denis put spurs to his steed, and waving his right arm, shouted "Afghanistan at last!" his companion caught the infection of his exultation, and nothing for the time seemed more enjoyable than this wild foray into a dangerous land. A noonday halt was needed, both on account of the heat and the weariness of men and beasts. Denis selected a charming spot under the shadow of a high rock for the travellers' bivouac. A sparkling streamlet, dancing over pebbles, supplied the means of both bathing and relieving thirst. ”

“ The Hibernian thought exceedingly well of himself. One thing on which he prided himself was his tolerance; he extended it so widely that it embraced every form of spiritual error, and made him yield a little indulgence even to the devotion of what he would call a narrow-minded puritan like Walter Gurney.
When Walter went forth, he found his companion giving directions in most imperfect Urdu to the mule-drivers.
"Oh, come here and make these stupid fellows understand me," cried Denis; "they've no more brains than the beasts that they lead." ”

“ Denis—Dermot! nothing is gained, everything hazarded by making enemies of these men!" cried Walter. "That poor creature cannot limp on with its burden; we shall have to leave something behind."
"Put the boxes on your pony," suggested Denis; "your gun, rug, and other light chattels we'll heap on the top of the other mule's burden, and then turn this wretched brute adrift."
"That arrangement will never do," said Walter, who had a good deal more common sense than his older companion. "My pony could not carry a mule's burden, and the other animal is overladen already. ”