the Barbyses.

At times she would stroll among the rare beds of plants, and culling
fresh chaplets for her head, wreathe herself a fragrant garland,
ever finding some familiar scent that recalled her far off home in
all its freshness. Wearied of this she wandered among the jasper
fountains, and watched the play of those waters, the soft and
rippling music of which she might not hear, or still further on in
the many labyrinths of the garden and harem walks, would throw
herself upon some rich cushions beside a silver urn, where burnt
sweet aloes and sandal wood and rods of spice to perfume the air. At
early morn she loved to pet the blue pigeons that had been brought
from far off Mecca, held so sacred by the faithful, to feed them
from her own hands, and to toy with the golden thrushes from
Hindostan, and the gaudy birds of Paradise that flew about with
other rare and beautiful songsters in this fairy palace of the
Sultan.

Her companions watching her with loving eyes, never faltered in
their kindness and love for her. Indeed it seemed as though they
could not avoid tendering her this affection, she was so very
beautiful and gentle in all things. They had named her Lalla, or the
tulip, because of her love for that beautiful and delicate flower.

The Sultan looked upon the young Circassian--she had numbered hardly
seventeen summers--more in the light of a daughter than a slave, and
she who could have feared him else, even looked with pleasure for
his coming, and sought in a thousand earnest but silent ways to
please him. There was no spirit of sycophancy in this, no coquetry,
or false pretense; she was all simpleness and truth, and her conduct