furnished in the There were open

side of a gentle acclivity, and was proudest style of oriental richness. courts, paved with marble, protected from the sun by tent-like coverings of azure gauze; surrounded by galleries, enclosed with lattice-work, and supported by pillars of alabaster; while in the centre, fountains, hidden among flowering plants, threw up their slender crystal shafts, which fell again upon the fresh green leaves in glittering showers. Around these halls were many door-ways, leading to saloons of dazzling splendour, with ceilings of deep purple, spangled with silver stars, representing the midnight heavens. Silken curtains of crimson dye, from the looms of Ind, hung in graceful folds, before the loop-holes in the wall, through which the light came streaming in a glowing flood; and on the Persian carpets, which covered one extremity of the Mosaic floors, cushions of softest down were laid, inviting to luxurious repose. Aromatic gums and spices, continually burning in a silver basket, made the air heavy with their fragrance, and singing birds in ivory cages with gilded wires, filled the chambers with their untaught melody. Without the palace, lordly parks and terraced gardens, wooded hills and fertile valleys, undulating, in irregular succession, so far as the eye could reach, all belonged to the powerful Ali; and lofty mountains, scarcely visible in the blue distance, were the boundary which nature had herself prescribed to his domain.

"Riches cannot buy happiness, and the peace of the heart is more precious than gold." So often thought the owner of this fair inheritance, as he gazed on the treasures which he possessed, and marvelled they gave him so little joy. Once when the noon-day sun was blazing fiercely in the cloudless sky, Ali languidly re clined, in a covered balcony which looked towards the north, vainly waiting for the coming of sleep, to pass away another hour of his useless and wearisome existence. Two slaves, kneeling at his feet, gently agitated

the air with bunches of peacocks' feathers, and another standing at a little distance touched a stringed instrument with a light and skilful hand; while a fourth waited, in an attitude of submission, his lord's commands. "These flowers are withered," exclaimed Ali, throwing a garland from his brow. The obsequious attendant immediately replaced it by a freshly woven wreath. Its dewy coolness and exquisite perfume, the gentle sound of the lute, and the regular motion of the fans soothed the wearied senses of the chief; his eyelids closed, and the tired slaves, believing that he slept, spoke to each other in scarcely audible murmurs; but not a whisper, not a breath, escaped the ear of their half-unconscious master.

"Who was it Zarif, that passed but now, behind the palm trees, with the bounding step of the antelope and the glad song of the bulbul returning to his mate ?" asked one.

"Who should it be, Saad," returned the other "but Khaled the happy."

"The woodman who dwells in the cedar-forest ?" enquired a third.

"The same," replied Zarif; "when the sun scorches the tender grass, and when the night damps refresh the earth, he is ever at his labour, singing cheerily." "And wherefore is he called 'the happy'?" asked Saad.

"Because not even the princely Ali is happier than the poor wood-cutter."

"But knowest thou not, Zarif, that there is none mightier than our master, from the mountains to the sea, save only our Sovereign Lord, the Caliph, whom Allah preserve?"

"And Khaled hath but a hut of felled wood to shelter his wife and children," interrupted Zarif; "I know it well, yet is he the happier man, for he possesses a priceless jewel which, when he wears it near his heart or binds it in the folds of his turban, causes his home

to

appear to him, beautiful as the mansions of Paradise.

"But what jewel can he have of which our master hath not caskets full, a thousand times more precious ?"

Zarif bowed his head to the ear of his fellow, and said in a low tone, “Listen, Saad; our lord is the slave of an evil demon, and though he is rich, yet hath he not the one rare gem by means of which he may enjoy his treasures."

Ali started. The words pierced him like a dagger; he understood them not, but he felt their truth; and his countenance was moved, as he hastily rose up; but the frightened slaves thought that a dark vision had troubled his slumbers. And fain would the son of Mustapha have believed that in a dream only he had heard the sentence which haunted his memory ; but whenever he endeavoured to shake off the disagreeable impression it had occasioned, the conviction returned with redoubled force, that he was really under the influence of some malignant being, and he associated the hope of his deliverance therefrom, with the acquisition of the precious stone of which Zarif had spoken. Eagerly therefore did he look for the arrival of merchants, or other travellers, who might possibly carry among their wares, the wished for talisman; or might, at least, tell him where it was to be found.

He had not long to wait, for, noted as much for his profusion as for his wealth, Ali's palace was the frequent resort of traders, wandering dancers and musicians, and all such persons as had ought to gain from his bounty. The messenger whom he had dispatched to watch for the passing of any wayfarer through his domain, to press him to visit the dwelling of the chief, had scarcely started on his errand, when he encountered a train of camels, heavily laden, whose drivers declared themselves to be the servants of Abu Cassem, the most famous merchant of the East.

With joyful haste, Ali caused the trader to be

brought into his presence, and having bidden him welcome, demanded what merchandize he had brought. Opening his bales, Cassem displayed their rich contents, which he severally recommended to the notice of his patron.

"Behold! great prince," he exclaimed; "behold! treasures from every region of the world are at your feet. Mark well this scimitar; the temper of the bladeit is of Damascus steel-and the curious workmanship of the hilt. The sheath also, adorned with sparkling stones, is worthy of so perfect a weapon. Examine the texture of these shawls, woven from the soft wool of the goats, in the sweet vale of Cachmire.

"See too, these ornaments of gold, which a sultana might be proud to wear; the chain, formed of a hundred finely wrought links; the bracelets of the same pattern; and the anklets with tiny bells. A cunning worker in metal fashioned these silver goblets, so delicately chased; and yon kingly robe was embroidered by the skilful fingers of Indian maidens."

"And what jewels hast thou ?" inquired the son of Mustapha.

The merchant took from his girdle a small key, which he carefully fitted to the lock of an iron-bound casket; the lid flew up, and displayed to Ali's gaze the heaps of precious stones which lay within, sparkling in the sunlight, like the gleaming colours in the serpent's crest.

"Here," said the trader, "is the diamond, excelling in purity and brilliance all the other treasures of the mine; the topaz, which has surely won its golden radiance from the glorious fount of light; the ruby, redder than the glowing heart of the rose, in the gardens of Herat; the emerald, more refreshing to the eye than the verdure of the valleys through which I have passed to-day; and the sapphire, blue as the canopy of heaven above us, or as the clear waters whence these pearls, stainless as a Peri's tears, were taken."

"I need not such as these," returned the chief ; "Hast thou not a rare gem, a charm against evil?” "My lord has but to speak, and his will is already obeyed, his wish gratified. Such a jewel have I, in truth. Changeful in its hues as a chameleon, it is endued with a secret power to warn its wearer of the approach of death." And Abu Cassem held forth an opal, which was anciently believed to possess various magical properties.

"Can it ward off the advance of Azraël, or can it deliver its owner from the spells af the genii?” asked Ali earnestly.

In this case

“Nay, my lord, such virtue it hath not. Happy am I, however, that the mighty Ali seeks not that which his servant cannot produce. are amulets oft-times worn by men of various nations. With one of these around his neck, the Arab fears not the malice of the djins, and the Persian trembles not before Ahriman."

Ali turned impatiently away. "Thinkest thou, O Cassem," he said "that I am fool enough to trust in these worthless toys which please the ignorant and the timid? Hearken to me, I will tell thee a secret," he added, in a tone of repressed anguish. "Ali, the wealthy, the powerful, the envied, would give all that he possesses-houses, lands, gold-all, all-to win the jewel which alone can free him from the power of an evil genius, a demon whose malignant influence blights his very being."

Abu Cassem looked up with surprise. "May the princely Ali live a thousand years; but I comprehend not my lord's meaning."

The haughty chief already repented the confidence that he had reposed in a wandering merchant, and would willingly have recalled his words; but Cassem continued: "Will my lord pardon the presumption of his servant, and permit one who has been a traveller hrough many lands, to offer his humble counsel. Five