The Vizier of the Two-Horned Alexander

ely what thee did with the jewels. I have been thinking about that all day; and I believe, if I had been with thee, I coul

eds of plans for carrying my possessions into another set of social conditions; but the fact of being obliged to change my identit

ps. Those would be available in any country and in any age, and the

rry to hear about the jewels, I will let all other subjects drop. When I reached my lodgings in Rome, I opened the box, and found everything perfect

r, "how thee remembered what they looked li

Abraham. It is impossible for me to forget anything of importance, and I remembered perfectly the appearance of those gems. But my knowledge of such things had been greatly improved by time and experience, and after I had spent an hour or two look

s, and had taken it to a lapidary, who readily bought it at his own valuation, and paid me with great promptness; but after he had secured it he asked me so many questions about it, particularly how I had come into po

ed a museum, to endeavor to sell my collection as a whole in some other country. As a professional dealer in gems from a foreign land I would be le

business which had brought me to the country. My collection would be as valuable to a museum then as at any time; for it was not supposed that the French were coming into the country to ravage and destroy the great institutions of learning and art. I made acquaintances in Ma

luable collection he had ever seen. Even if the stones had been worthless in themselves, their historic value was very great. Of course he wanted to know where I had obtained these treasures, and I informed him truthfully that I

ts, and I made a catalogue of them, copied from my ancient parchments--which would have ruined me had I inadvertently allowed

owed by officers of the law. I wrote to the dealer, but received no answer. One evening, when I returned to my lodgings, I found that they had be

"and leave thy jewels behind?

ger, was likely to be the legitimate owner of these treasures. Had my case been an ordinary one I should have courted investigation; but how could I prove that I had been an hon

a neighboring door-step, I was informed that the dealer had been arrested. I

cried: "Did thee really go away and leave thy jewels? Such a th

that it is impossible for any one to be living who might recognize me, I hope t

Crowder--"I shall go wit

may think," said he, "that I was too timid, that I was too ready to run away from danger; but it is hard for

with tears in her eyes. "Then t

spair is a welcome to death. A man who cannot die cannot truly

lad thee left those wretched jewels b

myself by day, and so got out of Spain. Soon after I crossed the

could only have carried away with thee one of thy diamonds, thee might have cracked it u

endeavors was to reach England, and I journeyed northward. It was nearly a month after I had entered France that I was at a little v

I had begun my work on the wall the country to the north seemed to be filled with cavalry, infantry, artillery, baggage-wagons, and everything that pert

was thinking of stopping work in order to eat my dinner, which I had with me, when a party of officers approached me on their way to a little hill in the field. One of them stopped

great Napoleon," almos

my ideal, and in appearance this man fell below it. His face was of an olive color which was unequally distributed over his features; he was inclined to be pudgy, and his clothes did not appear to fit him; but for all that he had the air of a man who with piercing eyes saw his way before him and di

o well for a stone-mason, and, moreover, your speech is that of a foreigner who has studied French.' It was odd that each of us should have remarked the accent of the other, but I was not amused at this; I was becoming very nervous. 'Sire,' said I, 'I come from I

d to speak the pure Castilian tongue, so that when the officer talked with me I could see that he was surprised, and presently he told the emperor that he had never heard any one who spoke such excellent Spanish. The emperor fixed his eyes upon me. 'You must have traveled a great deal,' he said. 'You should not be wasting your time with stones and mortar.' Then, turning to the officer who had spoken to me, he said, 'He unde

part of the wall and, interfered with by no one, passed quietly along the road to the house of the man who had employed me to do his mason-work, and seeing no one there,--for every window and door was tightly closed,--I walked into the yard and went to the well, which was concealed from the road by some shrubbery. I looked quickly about, and perceiving that I was not in sight of any one, I got into the well and went down to the bottom, assistin

noon --I crouched down as much as I could; but at such times I would have been concealed by the descending bucket, even if any one had chose

death of cold," said Mrs. Crowder, "stay

e used to it. An hour or two after nightfall I clambered up the well-rope,--and it was not an easy thing, for although not stout, I am a heavy man,--and I got away over the f

pt that it was beset with many hardships. I made my way into Switzerland and so on down

e. You can easily understand this when I tell you it was in 1512, twenty years after the discovery of America, that I had last been in En

country, I made my way there as soon as possible, and after visiting t

aculated Mrs. Cro

time I was very glad indeed to cease from roving and enjoy the comforts of a home, even though it were a humble

rence,' 'Simple Susan,' and all the re

of his daughter Maria. She used to come out among the flower-beds and talk to me, and as my varied experience enabled me to tell her a great deal about fruits, flowers, and vegetables, she became more and more interested in what I had to tell her. She was a plain, sensible woman, anxious for information, and she lived in a v

could have written it had it not been for my assistance. She thought well to begin the story by giving some explanatory 'Extracts from a Traveler's Journal' relative to Italian customs, but afterward she depended entirely on me for all points concerning

ntly engaged in observing and encouraging the growth and development of plants should himself grow and develop. Roses of one year are generally better than those of the year before. Then why is not

speech?" asked Mrs. Crowder. "I don't t

n said to me when I was working in the wonderful gardens of Nebuchadnezzar, and he was standing by me watching me prune a r

ent Mrs. Crowder and I li

rk should connect 'The Parents' Assistant' with the city of Babylon, but so

d filled in Ireland. I had under my orders fifteen slaves, and my principal duty was to direct the labors of these poor men. These charming gardens, resting upon arches high above the surface of the ground, watered by means of pipes from the river Euphrates, and filled

man, quiet and reflective, with very good ideas concerning nature and architecture. The latter I learned from his frequent remarks to me. I suppose it was because I appeared to be so much older and more experienced than most of those who composed his little army of gardeners that h

that some one had come from the dead to speak to me. But I suppose there was not

as each one began to speak, as if he and she were merely thinking aloud; the same quick, kind reference to me, as if

nto Media, and that he intended to establish there what would now be called an experimental garden of horticulture, which was to be devoted to growing and improving certain ornamental trees which did not flourish in the Hanging Gar

spoken to him about me and had said that he would take m

had lived long enough in that part of the world it would have been easy for me to make a journey into the surrounding country on some errand connected with the business of the gardens, and then quietly to disappear? But if I were to be taken i

my flesh creep when I think of thee living in company with the bloody tyrants of the past. And always in poverty and suffering, as if thee had been one of the common

likely to be noticed. I am sure Miss Edgeworth looked no older to me when I left her than when I first saw her. But she was oblige

er, a little maliciously, "

sband

ardeners, and, besides, in any case, she would not have s

she might have said more, but her

verty and misery, and now I will tell you something di

s. Crowder and I, alm

olute ruler. And thi

who afterward became Peter the Great. The late czar's young brother Ivan should have succeeded him, but he was almost an idiot. In this complicated state of things, the half-sister of Peter, the Princess Sophia, a young woman of wonderful ambition and really gr

, and knew how to play her part in public affairs. She presided in the councils, and her autho

essons to the princess. In this way she had become well acquainted with me, and having frequently called upon me for information of one sort or another, she concluded to make me her secretary. Thus I

oscow to attend to his private affairs on his great estates, and to be absent for more than a month; and after his departure the princess depended on me more than ever.

s necessary," said Mrs. Crowd

s attached to the royal sledge ran away just outside of Moscow. The princess was thrown out upon the hard ground, and badly dislocated her right wrist.

to use her hand and sign and seal the royal acts and decrees. She had a certain superstition about this which greatly agitated her. If she could not sign and seal, she did not believe she would be able to rule. Any one who understood the nature of the

ng, was lying on the table near her couch, and she was greatly worried because she could not sign it. I assured her she ne

d to it. She caused it to be given out that it was her ankle which had been injured, and not her wrist. She sent for another surgeon, and had him locked up in the palace when he was not attending to her, so that he should tell no tales. Her ladies were info

s. 'As I never sign my name with my toes,' she said to me, 'there is no reason why a sprained a

, I found she was in no condition to attend to business. She was irritable and drowsy. 'Don't annoy me with that paper,' she said. 'If the wool-dealers ought to have their taxes

stoppage would be a signal for a revolution. In order that this plan should be carried out, I must act for the princess regent; I must do what I thought right, and it must be done in her name, exactly as if she had

as if she would gasp for breat

thrust upon me. I set myself to work without delay, and, as I knew all about the wool-dealers' busine

e!" exclaimed

arouse the opposition of the court, and therefore I directed my principal efforts to the amelioration of the condition of the people in the provinces. It would be a long time before word could get back to the capital of what I had done in those distant regions. By night and by day my couriers were galloping in every direction, carrying good news to the peasants of Russia. It was remarked by some of the councilors, when they spoke

ecame very popular with the army, and I felt safe. I went in to see the princess every day, and several times when she was in her right mind she asked me if everything was going on well, and once when I assured her

had been able to do it, I should have made each d

t time thee was the only monarch in the world who was worthy to reign." And with a

tening to Moscow, on his return from his estates, and was then within three days' journey of the capital. Now I prepared to lay down the tremendous power which I had wielded with such immense satisfaction to myself, and with such benefit, I do no

eft her I did not execute them. I would not have my reign sullied by any of her mandates. That afternoon, in a royal sledge, with the royal permission, given by myself, to travel where and how I pleased, I left Mo

"that two or three times I expected t

"That is truly a wi

hat princess would have suited thee as a wife, and if thee had really married her and had become her royal consort, like Prince Albert