“I am sorry to have startled you,” he continued, holding out his hand to assist her in getting up.
But, for a moment after she had arisen, Bettina stood beside him, making no effort to move on.
It was odd how little shyness she felt. It was easier to talk to this Indian; to explain to him what she was thinking and feeling than to any young man acquaintance of her own race.
“I wonder if you have ever read the Bible,” Bettina asked unexpectedly, and then, seeing the Indian looked startled, she laughed.
“Oh, I am not a missionary trying to convert you. It is odd, but this place suddenly made me think of a chapter in Revelations. I suppose because I never could have imagined anywhere else such a profusion of jewels.”
“I have read your Bible,” the young man returned. “But I do not believe in it for the Indian. For us our own religion seems best. Yet I think I can recall the verses you mean.”
“‘And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second sapphire; the third a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
“‘The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth a topaz; the tenth, chrysoprasus, the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.’”
The young man pronounced each word slowly and Bettina held her breath. Never could she have a more curious experience than this. She would never forget these past few minutes.
The air of the desert was like crystal—the place a marvel of strange color. And as the Indian recited, Bettina seemed able to count each jewel in the stones before her.