"What!" said Abdslem, "have I been so fortunate as to capture that notorious robber Ali el Bezz? God be praised."
"The day may not be so propitious to you as you suppose," said Ali: "'tis your turn to-day—but to-morrow—beware the 'Falcon's Swoop.'"
And Abdslem quailed before his prisoner, although bound and in his power; his triumph was also embittered by the dread of retribution, which, if Ali escaped, would inevitably fall on him, and even if he did not, would sooner or later overtake him at the hands of the Arab's family. Taking up the bag of money he accompanied the soldiers to the prison, and, after seeing Ali secured, returned to his own house intending to make his report to the Sultan in the morning.
CHAPTER X.
BLOOD FOR BLOOD.
n the day that consigned Ali thus treacherously to a dungeon, a small knot of soldiers were sitting at the Sultan's gate, performing a combined attack on a huge pyramid of Cuscusoo, into which they plunged their hands half-way to the elbow, and swallowed the large balls of granulated flour, which they squeezed up like snow in their fingers, and it was not till they had nearly demolished the mutton and fowls buried in this tumulus, that they found time to use their tongues for any other purpose.
"Praise be to God!" said Omar, wiping his mouth and shaking the grains from his beard. "Did you hear the news from Algiers?"