“Such, your highness, is the history of my First Voyage, and the incidents which resulted from it.”
“Well,” said the pacha, rising, “there was too much love, and too little sea in it; but, I suppose, if you had left the first out it would not have been so long. Mustapha, give him five pieces of gold, and we will have his Second Voyage to-morrow.”
As soon as the pacha had retired, the renegade growled out, “If I am to tell any more stories, I must not be checked and dictated to. I could have talked for an hour after I had met Cerise, if I had not been interrupted: as it was I cut the matter short.”
“But, Selim,” replied Mustapha, “the pacha is not fond of these sort of adventures: he likes something much more marvellous. Could you not embellish a little?”
“How do you mean?”
“Holy Prophet! what do I mean!—Why, tell a few lies,—not adhere quite so much to matter of fact.”
“Adhere to matter of fact, vizier!—why, I have not stated a single fact yet!”
“What! is not all this true?”
“Not one word of it, as I hope to go to Heaven!”
“Bismillah!—what not about Marie and the convent—and Cerise?”