What was that?

Had hell indeed yawned, and were the flames soaring up to the sky through
the riven shell of the earth? Had the firmament opened to pour living
fire and black fumes on the northern part of the city?

She started up in dismay, her eyes fixed on the terrible sight. The
whole sky seemed to be in flames; a fiery furnace, with dense smoke and
myriads of shooting sparks, filled the whole space between earth and
heaven. A devouring conflagration was apparently about to annihilate the
town, the river, the starry vault itself; the metal heralds which usually
called the faithful to church lifted up their voices; the quiet road at
her feet suddenly swarmed with thousands of people; shrieks, yells and
frantic commands came up from below, and in the confusion of tongues she
could distinguish the words "Governor's Palace"--"Arabs"--"Mukaukas"--
"Orion"-- "fire"--"Put it out"--"Save it."

At this moment the old head-gardener called up to her from the lotos-
tank: "The palace is in flames! And in this drought--God All-merciful
save the town!"

Her knees gave way; she put out her hands with a faint cry to feel for
some support, and two arms were thrown about her-the arms which she so
lately had pushed away: her mother's: that mother who had bent over her
only child and inhaled death in a kiss on her plague-tainted hair.




CHAPTER XV.