Mr. Tarkowski and Mr. Rawlison, who loved his little Nell more than his life, were delighted at the arrival of the children. The two young people greeted their fathers with equal enthusiasm, and at once began to inspect the tents, the interiors of which were all completely fitted up and prepared to welcome the beloved guests. They saw that the tents were as spacious as large rooms, handsomely fitted with a double roof, lined with blue and red flannel, and that the floors were covered with rugs. The Cook Company, which was so well thought of by the high officials of the canal, had done all in their power to make things comfortable and pleasant for them. At first Mr. Rawlison had feared that a lengthy stay in the tent might injure Nell’s health, but at last he gave his consent, because in bad weather they could always move to the hotel. But now, having taken a good look at everything, including the surroundings, he came to the conclusion that the days and nights spent in the open air would be a hundred times better for his only daughter than the gloomy rooms of a small town hotel. They were also fortunate in having fine weather. Medinet, surrounded on all sides by the sandy hills of the Libyan desert, has a far better climate than Cairo, and is not named “land of roses” without good reason. As a result of its protected position, and because of the moisture in the air, the nights are not nearly so cold as in other southernly parts of Egypt, and the winter is really delightful. In November the vegetation is most luxuriant. Date-palms, olives (not many of which are found in Egypt), figs and orange-trees, enormous nuts, pomegranates, and various other southern plants cover this beautiful oasis like a forest. The gardens are fairly overrun with acacias, lilacs, and roses, so that during the night every breath of air carries their overpowering perfume. One breathes here from the bottom of one’s lungs, and “does not want to die,” as the natives say. Heluan, on the opposite bank of the Nile, is the only other place with a similar climate, although it is situated much farther north, and therefore the vegetation is not so luxuriant.

But Heluan had sad associations for Mr. Rawlison, for it was there that Nell’s mother had died. Therefore he preferred Medinet, and as he looked at the beaming face of the little girl he resolved to buy some land and a garden here, to build a comfortable English house, and to spend every holiday he could procure in this favored spot, and perhaps, when his services were no longer necessary on the canal, to make this his permanent residence. But these were embryo plans for the distant future.

Meanwhile, the children had been flitting about like flies ever since their arrival, for they wanted to see all the tents, as well as the donkeys and camels hired by Cook, before dinner-time. But it so happened that the animals were grazing some distance away, so that the children could not see them until the next day. On the other hand, to compensate them for their disappointment, Nell and Stasch were delighted to see Chamis, the son of Chadigi, their good friend from Port Said. He was not one of Cook’s servants, and even Mr. Rawlison was surprised to see him in Medinet, but as he had previously employed Chamis to carry his instruments, he took him along now to run errands and perform other services.

The evening meal proved to be very good, for the old Copt, who for several years filled the position as cook for the company, took pride in showing his skill. The children told how they had made the acquaintance of the officers during the journey, and this especially interested Mr. Rawlison, whose brother Richard was married to one of Dr. Clary’s sisters, and had resided in India for several years. As they were without children, the uncle was very fond of his little niece, whom he only knew from photographs, and he inquired about her in all his letters. The two fathers were also much amused at the invitation which Stasch had received from Captain Glen to go to Mombasa. The boy took this invitation quite seriously, and made up his mind some day to visit his new friend on the other side of the equator. Mr. Tarkowski was obliged to explain to him that the English officials never stay long on duty in the same place—owing to the treacherous climate of Africa—and before he, Stasch, would be grown up the captain would be at his tenth post, or perhaps no longer in this world.

After dinner the whole party went outside the tents, where the servants put up canvas chairs, and prepared siphons of soda-water and brandy for the two gentlemen. It was now night and unusually warm, and the full moon made it as brilliant as day. The white walls of the ugly buildings looked green in contrast to the tents, the stars twinkled in the firmament, and the air was filled with the perfume of roses, acacias, and heliotrope. The town was now asleep. In the silence of the night all that could be heard was an occasional loud cry from the cranes, herons, and flamingoes, the sound of which came in with the breeze from the Nile toward Karoon Lake. Suddenly the bark of a dog was heard, which surprised Stasch and Nell, for it seemed to come from the tent they had not yet visited, in which were kept saddles, tools, and various things necessary in traveling.

“What a large dog that must be,” said Stasch.

Mr. Tarkowski began to laugh. Mr. Rawlison also laughed; then knocking the ashes off his cigar, he said:

“Well, it was no use to lock him up.”

Then he turned to the children.

“To-morrow, as you know, will be Christmas, and this dog was to be a surprise for Nell from Mr. Tarkowski, but as the surprise has begun to bark I am obliged to tell you about it to-day.”

When Nell heard this she quickly climbed on Mr. Tarkowski’s knee and put her arms around his neck; then she jumped on her father’s knee.

“Papa, dear, how happy I am, how happy!”

The embraces and kisses seemed endless; at last Nell stood on her feet, and looking into Mr. Tarkowski’s eyes, said:

“Mr. Tarkowski—”

“Well, Nell, what is it?”

“Now that I’ve found out he is here, I ought to see him to-day!”

“I knew,” cried Mr. Rawlison, pretending to be very much excited over the matter, “that this little fly would not be content with only hearing about it.”

Mr. Tarkowski turned to Chadigi’s son and said:

“Chamis, bring the dog here.”

The Sudanese at once disappeared behind the kitchen-tent and soon stepped forth leading an enormous animal in leash.

Nell drew back.

“Oh,” she cried out, seizing her father’s hand.

But Stasch, on the contrary, went into ecstasies.

“That is a lion, not a dog.”

“His name is Saba (lion),” answered Mr. Tarkowski. “He belongs to the breed of mastiffs, the largest dogs in the world. This one is only two years old, but is already enormous. Don’t be afraid, Nell. He is as gentle as a lamb. Chamis, let him loose!”

Chamis let go the leash and the dog, feeling himself free, began to wag his tail, to rub himself up against Mr. Tarkowski, with whom he had already made friends, and to bark for joy.

By the light of the moon the children admired his large round head with its hanging lips, his strong paws, his great size, which with the golden yellow of his whole body gave him the appearance of a lion. In all their lives they had never seen anything like him.

“With such a dog one could safely wander through Africa,” cried Stasch.

“Ask him if he can catch a rhinoceros for us,” said Mr. Tarkowski.

It is true Saba could not answer this question, but he wagged his tail still harder and rubbed himself up against them so confidingly that Nell suddenly lost all fear and began to stroke his head.

“Saba, dear, good Saba!”

Mr. Rawlison bent down over him, raised his head toward the little girl’s face, and said:

“Saba, look at this little lady. She is your mistress. You must obey and protect her—do you understand?”

“Wurgh!” Saba was heard to say in a deep bass, as if he really understood what was wanted of him.

And he did understand even better than one would imagine, for he took advantage of his head being nearly on a level with the girl’s face to lick her little nose and cheeks with his broad tongue as a sign of allegiance.

That made every one laugh. Nell had to go into the tent to wash her face. When she returned after a quarter of an hour she saw that Saba had laid his paws on Stasch’s shoulders, and that Stasch bent under the weight. The dog was a head taller than he.

Meanwhile bedtime had arrived, but the little girl begged to be allowed to talk for another half-hour to get better acquainted with her new friend. And they became friends so soon that it was not long before Mr. Tarkowski placed her on his back, as ladies ride. She was afraid of falling off, so he held her, and told Stasch to lead the dog by the collar. After she had ridden a short distance Stasch tried to mount this peculiar saddle-horse, but the latter quickly sat on his hind legs and Stasch unexpectedly found himself on the sand.

The children were just about going to bed when from afar off, on the moon-lit public square, two white figures appeared, running toward the tent.

Saba, who until now had been so gentle, began to bark in a deep and menacing manner, so that Mr. Rawlison ordered Chamis to hold him by the collar again. Meanwhile the two men, dressed in white burnooses, stopped before the tent.

“Who is there?” asked Mr. Tarkowski.

“Camel-drivers,” said one of the newcomers.

“Ah, you are Idris and Gebhr? What do you wish?”

“We have come to ask whether you will need us to-morrow?”

“No. To-morrow and the day after are great holidays, during which it is not customary for us to make excursions. Come three days from now, early in the morning.”

“We thank you, effendi.”

“And have you good camels?” asked Mr. Rawlison.

“Bismillah!” answered Idris. “Real saddle-horses with fat humps and gentle as lambs. Otherwise Cook would not have engaged us.”

“Do they not jolt considerably?”

“Sir, you can lay a handful of beans on the backs of any of them, and not one will fall off, no matter how fast they gallop.”

“If he’s exaggerating he at least does it in true Arab style,” said Mr. Tarkowski, laughing.

“Or in Sudanese style,” added Mr. Rawlison.

Meanwhile Idris and Gebhr still stood there like two white posts and carefully surveyed Stasch and Nell. The moonlight illuminated the faces of the two sand-drivers and made them look as if carved out of bronze. The whites of their eyes looked greenish from beneath their turbans.

“Good-night,” said Mr. Rawlison.

“May Allah protect you by day and by night, effendi!”

At these words they bowed and departed. Saba was evidently not pleased with the two Sudanese, and as they left he sent a deep, thunderous growl after them.