> forward, my companion avoiding any answer to my questions as to our goal,

until about noon we came to a rising mount in the midst of a beautiful

country with palms and scattered orange-groves.



The scene was a veritable paradise. Beautiful fruits peeped from between

the foliage, and every coloured, every scented flower, in agreeable

variety intermingled with the grass. Roses and woodbines, very much like

those in England, appeared in beauteous contention; while beneath great

trees were rich flocks of birds of various feather. At the foot of the

hill ran a clear, transparent stream, which gently washed the margin of

the green whereon we stood. On the other side a grove of myrtles,

intermixed with roses and flowering shrubs, led into shady mazes; in the

midst of which appeared the glittering tops of elegant pavilions, some of

which stood on the brink of the river, others had wide avenues leading

through the groves, and others were almost hidden from sight by

intervening woods. All were calculated to give the ideas of pleasure

rather than magnificence, and had more ease than labour conspicuous.



"Beautiful!" I cried, gazing entranced upon the scene.



"Yes. From the moment we left the city and passed through the ancient

gateway that you admired, we have been riding in my private domain. Here,

as far as the eye can reach, all is mine, the garden of the Sanoms. But

let us hasten forward. It was not to show you picturesque landscapes that

I brought you hither. We have much to do ere we return."



Skirting the stream, where flocks and herds stood gazing at their own

images and others drinking of the transparent waters, we found the river,

growing wider, opened into a spacious lake which was half surrounded by a

rising hill. From the lake, higher than the river, ran a glittering

cascade and over the pendant rocks fell luxuriant vines and creeping

plants. At the opposite extremity of the lake, which by its pure waters

exposed the bright yellow pebbles on which it wantoned, two streams ran

towards the right and left of the hill and lost themselves amidst the

groves, pasture and hillocks of the adjacent country. The prospects

around us were beautiful and enchanting. Lofty trees threw a delightful,

welcome shade, and the hill-side seemed covered with flowering shrubs,

which grew irregularly except where a torrent from the summit, now dry,

had during ages worn out a deep hollow bed for its rapid passage and

descent.



There were no roads or beaten paths in this secluded portion of the royal

domain, neither could there be seen any traces of habitation.



"Deep in yonder lake," said Omar, drawing up his horse suddenly and

swinging himself from his saddle near the spot where the waters,

springing from beneath some green, moss-grown rocks, fell with gentle

music into the river--"deep in yonder lake there lies a hidden mystery."



"A mystery!" I cried. "What is it?"



"Have patience, and I will reveal to you a secret known only to myself

and to the Naya; the secret that I told you must be preserved."



"But you say it is buried beneath these waters!" I exclaimed, puzzled.

"How will you reveal it?"



"Watch closely, so that if occasion arises you will remember how to

exactly imitate my movements," he answered, and when we had tethered our

horses, he led me away from the edge of the lake up the hill-side some

distance to where a number of points of moss-grown rock cropped up out of

the turf.



After searching among them for some minutes he suddenly stopped before

one that rose from the ground about three feet and was perhaps ten yards

in circumference, examining it carefully, at last giving vent to an

ejaculation of satisfaction.



"You see this rock, Scars!" he cried. "Does anything about it appear to

you remarkable?"



I bent, and feeling it with both my hands, carefully examined its side,

top and base.



"No," I answered, laughing. "As far as I can detect it is the same as the

others."



"You would never guess anything hidden there?" he asked, smiling.



"No."



"Well, watch and I'll show you." And with these words the Naba of Mo

approached the rock at a point immediately facing me, and placing his

hands upon the side, about two feet from the ground, drew out bodily a

portion of its lichen-covered face about eighteen inches square, that had

been so deftly hewn that when in its place none could detect it had ever

been removed.



Peering into the cavity thus disclosed I saw, to my surprise, what

appeared to be a small iron lever, thickly rusted, descending into some

cog-wheeled mechanism of a very complicated character.



"Now, watch the lake while I reveal to you its mystery," my companion

said, placing his hands upon the lever. With a harsh, grating noise it

fell back beneath the weight he threw upon it, and the harsh jarring of

cog-wheels revolving sounded for a few moments beneath our feet. Then, as

he set the mechanism in motion, my gaze was fixed upon the lake and I

stood aghast in wonderment.



As the lever was drawn and the rusty cogs ran into one another, the whole

mass of rock damming the lake above the small cascade where it fell into

the river, gradually rose, like a great sluice gate, allowing the waters

to escape and empty themselves, roaring and tumbling, into the winding

river beside which we had journeyed. It was an amazing transformation, as

imposing as it was unexpected. A few seconds before, the river, shallow

and peaceful, fed by its tiny cascade, rippled away over its pebbly bed;

now, however, with the great volume of water from the lake it rose so

rapidly that the swirling, boiling current overflowed its banks,

sweeping everything before it.



Nor was this the only result of pressing the lever, for at the opposite

end of the lake a similar outlet opened, and as I looked I saw the water

falling with a rapidity that was astounding. Hydraulic power was

evidently known to these strange semi-civilized people, yet the actual

means by which the lake was so rapidly emptied I was unable to discover,

all the machinery being hidden away in some subterranean chamber.



"By what cunning device is this accomplished?" I inquired of Omar, who

stood regarding the disappearing flood with satisfaction.



"This mechanism was invented ages ago by one of my ancestors," he

answered. "Its exact date no man can tell. But here water is given

mastery over itself, and so careful was its constructor to preserve the

secret of its existence that the slaves and workmen, all criminals, were

kept close prisoners during the whole time they were at work, and on its

completion they were all, without a single exception, killed, in order

that none should know the secret save the reigning Naba and his heir."



"They were murdered then!"



"They were all criminals who for various serious crimes had been

condemned to death. It is said they numbered over two hundred," Omar

answered.



But even as he had been speaking the water of the lake had so drained

away that its clean stony bottom was now revealed, the pebbles being

exposed in large patches here and there, while the deeper pools remaining

were alive with water-snakes and fish of all kinds. There seemed but

little mud, yet in the very centre of the great basin was a patch of

pebbles and rock higher than the remainder, standing like a small island

that, before the lever had been touched, had been submerged. Leading the

way, Omar descended to the edge of the lake, skirted it for some little

distance, until he came to a long row of flat stones placed together,

forming stepping-stones to the miniature island.



"Come," he said. "Follow me," and starting off we were soon crossing the

bed of the lake, being compelled to advance cautiously owing to the

slippery nature of the weeds and water-plants that overgrew the stones.

On gaining the island, however, a fresh surprise awaited me, for Omar,

halting amid the mud in the centre, exclaimed:



"Watch carefully, Scars. You may some day desire to act as I am acting;

but always remember that here any undue hurry means inevitable death."



"Death! What do you mean?"



"Wait, and you shall see," he replied, as stooping suddenly he turned up

the sleeves of his royal robe and groping with his hand in the mud, at

last discovered an iron ring, green with slime, which, grasping with both

hands, he slowly twisted many times. A hissing sound was emitted, as if

the action of untwisting the ring relieved some heavy pressure, admitting

air to a chamber that had been hermetically sealed. This surmise was, I

afterwards learned, correct. The unscrewing of this ring caused the sides

of a plate embedded in the mud to contract, and air, so long excluded,

entered the mysterious place below.



In a few moments, having paused to wipe the perspiration from his brow,

Omar, again grasping the slippery ring, gave it a sudden jerk and by that

means lifted the covering from a circular hole descending into an

impenetrable darkness, but bricked round like a cottage well in England,

and having projecting pieces of iron, forming steps.



"Now," exclaimed Omar, as together we peered into the mysterious opening.

"To descend at once would mean certain death."



"How? Is the air below foul?"



"Not at all. The ingenuity of my ancestor who constructed this place made

arrangements to avoid all that. The danger arises from a contrivance he

devised by which any person attempting to explore it and being unaware of

the means to guard against death, must be inevitably swept into eternity.

Now, in order to give you an illustration of this danger I will show you

the result of any adventurous person stepping down."



Taking from the mud a long iron bar, which he observed incidentally was

kept there for the purpose of guarding against death, he reached down the

shaft and placing the end of the bar upon the third step, threw his whole

weight upon it, saying:



"We will suppose you have descended until your feet stand upon this step.

Now, watch."



As the weight fell upon the step it gave way so slightly as to be almost

imperceptible, but suddenly from hidden cavities around the well-like

shaft there came six rings of long, sharp steel spikes, set inwards,

three above and three below, which, contracting as they came forward, met

and interlaced. In an instant I recognised what terrible fate would be

the lot of any adventurer who dared to enter that dark shaft. The action

of stepping upon that fatal projecting iron released hydraulic pressure

of irresistible power, and the unfortunate one, unable to ascend or

descend by reason of the danger being above and below, must be impaled

by a hundred cruel spikes, sharp and double-edged like spears, while the

bands whereon they were set must crush his bones to pulp.



I looked at this terrible device for producing an agonizing death and

shuddered. The precautions taken to prevent anyone entering the place

were the most elaborate and ingenious I had ever seen. Even if any person

learnt the secret of draining the lake, the shaft leading to the

mysterious subterranean place was unapproachable by reason of this

extraordinary mechanical device.



During five minutes the spikes remained interlaced, then automatically

they disengaged themselves, and slowly fell back into the cavity running

round the brickwork, wherein they remained concealed.



Thrice again did Omar repeat this action of pressing the bar upon the

step, each time with an exactly similar result, chatting to me the while.

Then, when for the third time the spikes had fallen back into their

places, he said:



"Now the secret to avoid this and lock the mechanism is to turn back this

little lever and place it in this catch, so. This cannot, however, be

done unless the step has been pressed three times."



And bending over he showed me another tiny lever thickly encrusted with

rust, secreted behind a movable brick in the first tier below the lake's

bottom. This he placed in position, securing it in a niche so that it

became immovable.



"Now," he said, "we may descend without fear," and with these words knelt

down, and after lighting a torch he had brought with him, commenced the

descent into the cavernous gloom. I quickly followed, my feet resting

for a brief instant upon the fatal iron projection, but no spikes came

forward, for the terrible mechanism was now locked. Deep down into this

circular shaft we went, the smoke and sparks from Omar's torch ever

ascending into my face as I lowered myself from rung to rung, until at

last, at considerable depth, we found ourselves in a kind of natural

cavern. The place seemed damp and full of bad odours, to which submitting

with patience we, by a long passage, sometimes crawling under rugged

arches, sometimes wading in mud and dirt, attained the end of the cavern,

where we stumbled on some narrow steps; but the torch shed little light,

and we became nearly suffocated by the noisome vapours.



"I thought you said the air was fresh here," I exclaimed good-humouredly

to my companion.



"So I did," he answered. "I cannot make out why it has become so foul.

The air-holes must have become accidentally stopped up."



The widening ascent was so intricate and clogged with dirt and rubbish

that we worked like moles in the dark; nevertheless, by diligent industry

we gained ground considerably, yet as we endeavoured to mount, the slimy

steps slipped from under us, and ever and anon we would come tumbling

down with a weight of dirt upon us.



After various labours, however, we suddenly entered a great cavern, quite

dry. From its roof hung great stalactites that glittered and sparkled in

the torch's uncertain light, while around the rough walls of this natural

chamber were heaped in profusion great heavy chests of iron and adamant.



With the torch held high above his head Omar rushed across to the pile

and bending, examined one chest after the other. Then, raising himself

as the truth suddenly dawned upon him, he cried in a hoarse, excited

voice:



"By the power of Zomara, we have been tricked!"



"Tricked! How?" I gasped in alarm.



"Cannot you see?" he wailed. "This, the Treasure-house of the Sanoms, has

been entered and its contents, worth a fabulous sum, have been extracted!

See! Each trunk has been forced by explosives!"



I gazed eagerly where he directed, and saw that the trunks of iron and

stone had been blown open by gunpowder, for on each remained a blackened

patch, showing plainly the means used to force the strong chest wherein

reposed the magnificent jewels, the vessels of gold, and the historic

gem-encrusted and invulnerable armour of the Nabas of Mo.



"Then this is the place the secret of which the villainous old Arab,

Samory, endeavoured to wrench from you by torture," I exclaimed, gazing

round the grim, weird cavern.



"Yes," he answered. "This is the Treasure house of my ancestors. Since

the days of King Karmos each Naba or Naya has added to the great store of

treasure amassed for the purpose of the emancipation of our country in

the day of need. Only the reigning monarch and the heir have, in any

generation, ever known the secret of how the Treasure-house can be

approached--the secret I have to-day revealed to you as Keeper of the

Treasure."



"But if you alone knew the secret, who could have ransacked the place?" I

asked. "The chests seem to have been recently opened."



"True," he answered, and pointing to a heap of bejewelled swords,

breastplates and helmets, that had apparently been hastily cast aside as

the least valuable of the great treasure, he added: "All the most

historic and beautiful jewels have been taken, and the gold vessels and

things of minor value left. See! It is plain that the theft was

accomplished in all haste, for there was scarce time to sort the gems

that are unique from those rivalled by others."



"It certainly looks as if the jewels were secured in feverish haste," I

said, at the same time picking up from the uneven floor a bronze oil lamp

lying overturned and discarded.



Together we set about making a systematic examination of the various

chests, numbering nearly one hundred. Those fashioned from single stones

were of great age, looking like coffins, while those of iron were

ponderous caskets bound with huge bands, studded and double-locked, with

great antique hinges of marvellous workmanship. With perhaps half a dozen

exceptions the lid of each had yielded to the charge of explosive placed

beneath it, while in many cases the whole side of the casket had been

blown completely out, injuring or destroying some of its valuable

contents. Jewellery and gems, set and unset, had been strewn about and

trodden into the dust by hurrying feet, and a few that I recognized at

once as of fabulous value had been overlooked. Stooping, I picked up from

the dirt a marvellously-cut ruby, almost the size of a pigeon's egg. But

the majority of the treasure-chests had been emptied. The place had been

visited, and the vast wealth of a nation stolen.



"For the first time in the long, glorious history of my land has the

Treasure-house been entered by thieves," Omar said, as if to himself. "No

mere adventurer can have been here; this great robbery is the result of

some base conspiracy. The treasure of the Sanoms, renowned through the

whole world as the most wondrous collection of magnificent and

unsurpassable gems, has been cleared out and the entrance re-closed in a

manner little short of marvellous. To-day is indeed a sad one for Mo, and

for me. My inheritance has been taken from me."



"By whom?" I inquired, continuing my way, examining one of the few chests

that had apparently not been tampered with. But, as in the gloom I

hastened from one casket to another, my foot suddenly struck against some

object, causing me to lose my balance, and thus tripped, were it not for

the fact that I clutched at the corner of the great chest, I should have

fallen upon my face.



Bending to examine what it was, I was amazed to discover the body of a

male slave, still dressed in the uniform of the servants of the palace,

but rapidly decomposing. It was the faint sickening odour emitted from

the corpse that had greeted our nostrils when we entered the place.



We both bent and looked at him, astounded at discovering, still imbedded

in his back, a long keen knife. He had been struck down from behind and

murdered, while in the act of securing some of the treasure, for his

brown withered fingers still grasped a beautiful necklet of magnificent

pearls, an ornament worth several thousand English pounds.



"That is one of the Naya's personal attendants," observed Omar,

recognizing the dress, but unable to distinguish the features of the

murdered man, so decomposed were they. "He perhaps participated in the

plot, and to secure his silence, or his portion of the booty, his

fellow-conspirators struck him to earth."



"But to whom is due the chief responsibility in this affair?" I asked.

"Surely you have some suspicion?"



"I know not," he answered. "Besides myself only the Naya knew the secret

means by which the treasure might be reached."



"Then in all probability she secured it before her flight!" I cried.



"That may be the truth," he answered in a tone of suppressed agitation.

"Immediately she obtained knowledge through her spies of my intention to

disobey her, she may have secured the most valuable of the jewels and had

them packed ready to take them with her if compelled to flee. Yet somehow

I cannot believe she has done this, for their removal must have attracted

attention. No, I believe we shall have to look in another quarter for the

thief." Then, bending again to examine the hilt of the knife embedded in

the body of the unfortunate slave, he added: "That poignard was hers. She

carried it always in her girdle, and it seems, after all, as though this

man was her confidant and assistant, and that here alone she closed his

lips by murdering him. Yet to her, life was more valuable than the

treasure, and I cannot believe that she risked detection and capture in

order to secure what she might afterwards obtain by the assistance of

hirelings."



"A dark tragedy has certainly been enacted," I said, glancing around the

gruesome place with its gloomy corners and crevices where the blackness

was impenetrable. "The theft has been accompanied by a secret

assassination at some coward's hand."



"Yes," he exclaimed, standing with folded arms and chin sunk upon his

breast. "The great treasure, belonging not only to our family but to our

nation, has been stolen, and I swear by Zomara's power that I will seek

out the thief and recover it. I am Naba, and it is my duty to my people

to restore their wealth to its hiding-place. Each successive ruler has

enriched his country by making additions to the store of jewels, and it

shall never be recorded that on finding the most valuable of our

possessions stolen, I made no effort to trace and recover them. True,

they have been abstracted in a manner almost miraculous for ingenuity and

rapidity, but from this moment I will not rest until they are recovered.

And you, Scarsmere, as Keeper of the Treasure-house, shall assist me."



"I am ready," I answered, excited at the prospect of this new task before

us. "We will spare no effort to seek the thief and recover the Treasure

of the Sanoms. It is, as you declare, a duty, and I am ready and anxious

to commence the search."