"How did you get here?"
"As an acrobat," replied the Khan of Aidin, with a smile. "I escaped disguised as a rope-dancer from your enemy's country!"
CHAPTER III
A Prince as an acrobat! Could there be a greater humiliation? Could there be anything in existence calling for more bitter revenge?
"Which way did you come, and what towns did you touch?" asked Timur of the Khan, who was seated at his feet.
"From Smyrna I escaped as a running footman. The people praised my running to such an extent that I felt compelled to prove how far I could go by running away altogether! In Aleppo I was a monkey-trainer! In Bagdad I turned somersaults! In Damascus I climbed by a rope to the Tower of Minarch! At Angora I put sharp swords into my throat; whilst in Szivasz I swallowed burning coals before the son of the Sultan!"
Timur Lenk counted on his fingers the names of the towns as the Khan of Aidin recapitulated them; Smyrna, Aleppo, Damascus, Bagdad, Angora, Szivasz—not one stone of them should remain! And the people who had been so amused by the acrobatic performances of a prince should bitterly deplore this! Little time should be given them to lament!
"And your children?" asked Timur of his protégé.
The Khan gave a sigh.
"They are kissing the whips of Bajazet's slaves."