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“Who are you?” he said to the soldiers, who now surrounded him. “I would have eaten that dog and all of you into the bargain. Not yours the victory. It belongs to that man there. I looked in his eyes while we fought, and they disarmed me; there was no wrath in them.”

“Capital! Most marvelous!” cried Milhem. Forgetting dignity in his excitement, he sprang down off his horse and embraced the hero of the hour. “Thou, the timid one, to perform such a deed! Even I, who am called courageous, had hesitated to come between that wild beast and his prey.”

Shems-ud-dìn was near weeping. He could not believe that it was indeed he who had shown such presence of mind. He felt weak now, and dizzy, incapable of any action whatsoever.

By this time the crowd of townsmen had come up. Alarmed by what had happened, they stood silent by until the Bey remounted, when another rush befell, another struggle. “A boon, O our lord!”—“A boon!”—“Hear him!”—“Hear him not!” came the conflicting shouts. There seemed every prospect of a bloody fight under the very nose of the Sultàn’s appointed peacemaker.