"You hear all this, Arthur," said Silcote. "Can you tell me, sir, what became of Colonel Silcote?"

"He rode away after his regiment," said the French officer. I know no more."

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Have you any other details of the engagement which you can tell me, sir ?" asked Silcote.

Well, I doubt it," said the Frenchman. "There was the Princess Castelnuovo, who charged with the regiment; and there were two young English artists, whom she took prisoner by threatening them with her revolver. Beyond that I know nothing."

Altogether this looks very sad, Arthur," said Silcote. "But we will go on, and see the end of it."

CHAPTER LV.

THE PRINCESS'S TALISMAN.

"Is he dead?" said the Princess scornfully to James, coming up to him while he was quietly smoking in the sun in front of the Colonel's quarters at Pozzo d'Orno.

"Is who dead?" asked James, in surprise.

"Your new friend, Colonel Silcote; the man for whom I have sacrificed everything, and who has taken up with a boy like you; excluding me, and refusing to see me. he dead?"

"No, my lady. He is going on very well."

"He and I were both better dead. Will he see me?" "He says he will see no one whatever."

"Except you?"

Except me.

Is

He is a little off his head. He wants to fight again. I have told him that he is not fit for it; but he insists."

"He swears, certainly, but not at me."

"Would he swear at

said the Princess.

me, do you think, if I saw him?"

"I doubt he would, my lady."

"He has been doing it already, I suppose?

"No," said James, suddenly and promptly. "If he had done it once, I should not have allowed him to do it twice. But he has not done it once. My dear lady, he loves you as well as ever, but wants to fight again, and thinks that you would dissuade him from it. If you saw him, and did so, he would swear at you certainly. I will tell you the simple truth. He has forbidden me to let you see him."

"This is the very basest ingratitude," said the Princess. "On the contrary," said James, "he merely fears that you will persuade him to fight no more; and that he will not have strength of purpose to resist you."

Have you been persuading him to fight?" asked the Princess. "No. I am a credulous and foolish woman; but I cannot believe that you, with your gentle young face, could be such a wretch, such a villain, as that. Any money which you may get by the murder of Colonel Silcote will be a lifelong misery to you."

James thought she was mad. "You have puzzled me two or three times lately, my lady, and you are puzzling me more than ever now. I have tried to dissuade the Colonel from fighting any more, and indeed have pointed out that he, as an Englishman, has no business to be fighting at all. But he is resolute. God knows I would stop him if I could."

The Princess seemed satisfied. She came and sat beside James on the bench. James put down his cigar.

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You are a young smoker," she said, "and are extravagant. That cigar is one of Tom's own regalias, and cost sixpence. I paid for that cigar, and consequently know its price."

"I thought that the smoke would annoy your ladyship; that is all," said James.

"I see," said the Princess. "Your manners are very good. You are not one of those wretched young prigs of the present day who puff their tobacco-smoke into every lady's face as a matter of course, without any apology. But I regret to say that Tom has spoilt me in this matter. I like the smell of tobacco. "

James of course took up his cigar.

"Now we shall be comfortable together," said the Prin"You like cigars?"

cess.

'What else do you

like?"

Arthur had put this question to him before; and he had answered "Several things;" but it was a very difficult question. He gave a general answer.

"I think that I like most things, my lady."

"Do you like jewels?"

I daresay I should if I had ever seen any," said James. "But then you know I have not."

:

"They are very nice, these jewels," said the Princess. "Believe an old woman when she says that nothing satisfies the soul like jewels. A beautiful young man is a glorious thing a beautiful young woman is still more glorious. But they don't last. Your beautiful young man comes in time to look out of a bow-window in St. James's Street; and your beautiful young woman-why as for her, she may become anything which you like to put a name to. Do you understand me?"

"I thank God I don't," replied James.

"But with regard to jewels. They never change. Look at this sapphire. This is one of the finest sapphires in Europe. None but a Silcote would wear it on a battlefield. It is a frosted sapphire, the very rarest of jewels, scarcely ever seen. Ten thousand years ago the stone was exactly the same. Seven hundred years ago a magician in Thibet engraved these letters on it, which, as you see, let the eye through the frosted surface into the wine-dark depth of the jewel. Do you see?"

"It is wonderfully beautiful even to my eyes, madam." "It is a talisman, in fact. The magician sold it to Genghis Khan; it descended to Kublai Khan; Kublai Khan gave it to Maffeo Polo, who gave it to his nephew Marco; Marco, on his return to Venice from Genoa, gave it to the then Dandolo, from whom it descended to the Castelnuovos. The last Castelnuovo gave it to me, and I will give it to you-if you will let me see him."

"I doubt I should not know what to do with it, madam,"

replied James, extremely amused at finding himself named as last successor of a line which began by an Asian magician, went through Genghis Khan Polo, Dandolo, and ended in himself. She had used the exact kind of humbug which a London-bred boy, like him, would be the first to detect and laugh at, and he did not care a bit for the jewel, though indeed it was perfectly unique.

take it?" said the Princess.

I think not."

"I will see him," said the Princess.

"Then why did you not go in at once, half an hour ago, before you tried to bribe me? I have no authority to stop you; go in now. I think that you ought to do so. I certainly cannot stop you." "I never thought of that," said the Princess. "How very curious. Well, here is the bracelet for you at all events. The setting is common, but it is a valuable jewel."

I must decline it, my lady." "I am glad of that," said she. thing else. Do you like rabbits?" Why?"

66

"I will give you some

Boys generally do, and I would have given you some. Or a toy terrier, or a set of cricketing things; or a boat; or a pair of carrier pigeons; or a set of Waverley novels; or anything which you boys like. But I am glad you did not take my jewel. I should have hated you if you had, I know. I would sooner bind myself to pay your expenses at Cambridge than part with one of my jewels. Well then, I will go in and see him, and get sworn at. Is he alone?"

"He is quite alone. I must warn you, my lady, that his temper is very awkward. But it is right that you should see him. He will be furious with me, but it is right that you should see him. Be gentle with him." That I should be told to be gentle with me; with the

"Gentle with him, boy? gentle with him! Will he be woman he has ruined?" "I fear not."

CHAPTER LVI.

THE COLONEL RIDES AWAY INTO THE DARKNESS.

THE room was darkened from the blazing Italian sun, and she could scarcely see him. He was standing beside a window, the blinds of which were down, in full uniform, ready for the route, tightening some buckles of his swordbelt.

"Is that you, Sugden?" he said.

'No, it is I."

"Aunt? Why, I forbade him to let you in."

"But I came, nevertheless. Don't swear at me, Tom. I only wanted to see you again before the next battle. It was not so much to ask. Don't swear at me." "Swear at you, Aunty?" said Colonel Silcote. a dog?"

"Am I

"You do swear at me sometimes, now, you know. Let me have one more ten minutes of you. Let me kiss your curls once more. I swear that I will urge nothing. I swear that I will not urge you not to fight. Go; fight, if you will; and, if you are killed, I will abide the bitter end. Remember, Tom, that I am but a poor ruined old woman. They have all left me but you. Be kind to me for ten minutes: it is not much to ask. Only ten minutes."

She took out her little heavily jewelled watch and laid it on the table. "Only ten minutes of you," she said. Colonel Silcote, with his sword clanking by his side, came to her and embraced her. "Aunt," he said, "I believe that you are the best woman in the whole world." "I am only the most foolish," she said.

"I fear so also. Why could you not have given your money and your love to some one more worthy of them, instead of to such a worthless dog as your nephew Tom?"

"I don't know, I am sure. I suppose it was that I was fond of you."