The Vizier of the Two-Horned Alexander

lf again in New York; and when I called at the house of my friends, I received from t

last saw him in which I did not think of him, and consider his marvelous statements from every point of view which my judgment was capable of commanding. I found Mr. Crowder unchanged in appearance and manner, and his wife was the same charming young

od foundation to your belief in what I have told you; but you are in too great a hurry: you must wait some years for that sort of p

tinue the recital of his experiences, which were of such absorbing interest to me that sometimes I found them occu

with material enough, and you can arrange it and put it in shape; that is, if, in the course of a few years, you consider that, in doing what I ask of you, you will be wr

en up the effort. If I should disbelieve him I would deprive myself of one of the most precious privileges of my existence, and I did not intend to do so until I found

shall be one of my hearers when I tell stories of my past life to you; but I can tell you this, my friend: she will believe every word I sa

that this charming lady was to b

Here you are, two young people, young enough to be my children: one is my wife; the other, I am proud to say, my best friend. You are the only persons in the world who know my story. You have faith in me, and the thought of that faith is the greatest pleasure of my life. Year by year you two will grow older; year by year you will more nearly approach my own age, and become, according to the ordinary op

had never contemplated. I c

on't you see how it affects me? But enough of that. Here comes

after dinner. If large ones are necessary, they can be smoked after I go to bed. I am getting very i

, and joined Mrs. Cr

ing always couched in the most correct English. There was a sweetness about her "thee" which had the quality of gentle music; and when she used the word "thy" it was pronounced so much like "thee" that I could scarcely perceive the difference. To her husband and child she always used the Quaker speech of the present day; and as I did not like being set

you would like to hear about, all you have to do is to ask me; and if you don't care to do this, I will tell you whatever comes up in my memory, without any regard to chronology or ge

elt what he did not wish to say--that we

the subject of her thoughts; "but I believe I have forgotten most of them. But here is something I should like t

ammatical conscience probably obtruding itself. Of course, I had nothin

I was surrounded at that doleful period appeared to be happier and better satisfied with their circumstances than any I have known before or after. There was little ambition, less responsibility; and if the poor and weak suffered from the rapacity and violence of the rich and strong, they accepted their misfortunes as if they were something they were bound t

an angel of light," M

ld have been obliged to go into a monastery, for in those days the monks were the only people who knew anything. They expected to do all the teaching that was done; but, for all that, a few

n any period you would have been a person of impo

at time I must have been a soldier, and the profession of arms, you know, is one I hav

ed Mrs. Crowder; "but even I cannot see how thee

volved in military operations, I let my hair and beard grow, and the white-haired old man was usually exempted. I have had far more experience in

at my trade, which was then that of a mason, I gave lessons to some young people in the neighborhood. Sometimes I taught in the evening, sometimes in bad weather when we did not work out of doors. No one of my scholars showed any intelligence, except

e, and showed a great capacity for imbibing it and retaining it. In

tty?" asked

her desire for knowledge that I taught her a great deal more than I would have

or young, would be sure to marry her before very long, and then there would be an

ing to her, thee married her

ssing me, "that I believe that Mrs. Crowder takes more interest in my m

se thee had to be married, and it is natural enough that

year or two of wandering through benighted countries where even kings and rulers could not write their names, and where reading seemed to be a lost

Mrs. Crowder and I

, that we should go from Europe to China in search of enlightenment and civilization; but that is what we did, and we found what we

Although we passed through all sorts of hardships and dangers, my wife was greatly interested in the strange things and people she met. Sometimes we travele

eriod of great intellectual activity in China. Literature and the arts flourished, and while the g

ied him. She had great ambition and great ability. She put down her enemies, and she put herself forward. She took her husband's pl

er no possible harm, and she was very eager for knowledge. My wife was an object of great curiosity to her, as she was so different from the Chinese women. But as poor Rina could never acquire a word of the language of the country, the empress soon ceased to take interest in her.

nately one of her generals was announced, and she did not press the question. As I was leaving the palace, one of the officers of the court took me aside, and told me that the empress was thinking of marrying me, and that I had better put on some fine

that men of my country believed that it was right to have but one wife, Rina would quickly be disposed of; so she had to decide whet

r eyes very bright; "I would have let her kill me. I w

wder; "for she would have had me all the sa

almost fiercely; "I would not have done anything to ple

to say, not to make herself an obstacle to the wishes of the empress. It was a terrible trial, bu

ess sent for me, as I

n the will of our sovereign,' I replied; 'in matrimonial affairs we do as we are comman

e thee was about it," said Mrs. Cr

she announced her intention of marrying me. 'I greatly need,' she said, 'a learned man for an imperial consort. My present husband knows nothing. I never trust him with any affairs of state. But I have never asked you anything to which you did

r?" asked his wife. "I

ould be made; but I have now postponed that ceremony. I find that military affairs must occupy me for some time, and it would be better for me at present to marry one of my ge

in her matrimonial forces, but I was wise enough to hold my tongue. When the general should cease to b

thee didn't ask any questions, and that thee c

out a year afterward the queen saw me. I was in the crowd near the palace, where I had purposely gone that I might be seen. She looked at me, but gave no sign that she recognized me. The next day an officer came to me, and roughly told me that the empress had no use for dotards in her dominions, and that the sooner I went a

money; but we went to a distant province, where I li

r Rina?" asked

could not speak the language, and it may be said that she gave up her life in her purs

tter," said Mrs. Crowder

usband, "I married

Mrs. Crowder, her

to be married, and to become as nearly as poss

several wives, did the

for a long time, for I found it impossible to prosecute my journeying. Eventually, however, we reached the island of Malta, where my wife lived to be over seventy. Travel, hardships, and danger seemed to agree with her. S

re thee got through with her. I don't approve of t

my female acquaintances; but now I found her to be a woman of keen intellect and quick appreciation. Her remarks, which were very frequent, and which I shall not always record, were like seasoning and spice to the narrative of Mr. Crowder. Never before had a wife heard such stories from a husband, and there never could have been a woman who would have heard them with such religious faith. Naturally, she showed me a most friendly confidence. The fact that we were both the loyal disciples of one master was a bond between us. He was so mu

ting married," said Mrs. Crowder. "Did thee e

questions from his wif

to tell you something which had not anything to do with wives an

, quickly; "that's jus

l give you a little instance of

tle town of Timnath. I became very much interested in one of the girls of my class. She was a good deal older than any of the others; in fact, she was a young woman. Sh

habit of marrying thy sc

d with some of his scholars, and if a girl pleases him very much it is not surprising that he should pre

flectively, "sometimes I would have enjoyed a long

"For many succeeding decades I have been widow

do with them. They could not boast much in regard to intelligence or education, nor were any of them in very good circumstances; and so, in spite of my years, she seemed to take very kindly to me, and I made up my mind

"as thee intended to take out

he came nearer, striding over the rough places, and paying no attention to paths, I saw that he was very broad-shouldered, with a heavy body and thick neck. His legs were probably of average size, but they looked somewhat small in comparison with his bo

man,' she said. 'He looks

seful on a farm,' I said; 'if his legs were as big as t

some questions about the country and the neighborhood. All the time we were talking he and my scholar were looking at each other, and each of them seemed entirely satisfied with the survey. The next day the girl was

lar flirt," sai

ow much better suited this stranger was to her, in point of years at least, I was not willing to

stranger. I found that he was a Danite, and lived with his parents in Zorah, and that h

ng my vines and fig-trees. Samson went home, told his parents of his desire to marry this girl, and in th

lions apart and threw down temples

ing to the custom of the times, would have been to take him aside, as soon as I found that he was paying attentions to my sweetheart, and fig

Mrs. Crowder. "How glad I

possible, I was probably better versed in the use of a sword than he was. But I did not care to kill him, and from what I he

erward very glad I did so, for she proved a tricky creature, and entered into a conspiracy to deceive her

ver met Delilah?"

active young person who was so successful in the grand competition of discovering the source of Samson's strength. In fact, it w

r, reflectively; "for thee, too, was possessed of a