style of a man who is versed in the details of
office. He introduced a female plaintiff, a
beautiful girl eighteen or twenty, of whom
we have not time to say more at present than
that she was a model of the Arab type in all
its purity. Scarcely was her interesting story
ended, when Djilali entered completely out
of breath, by turns fanning and wiping his
visage with the rich silk handkerchief which
habitually adorned his girdle. He ran about
the room in all directions, uttering innumerable
exclamations, all of which, however,
had a tendency to make you take him for a
man who had just accomplished a mission of
unequalled difficulty with an unrivalled
display of genius.

"Holy Sidi Bou Krari!" he shouted.
"May Sidi Abd Allah burn me to all eternity,
if ever I have had so hard a job! What a
bright idea of mine it was to go there myself!
By the benediction of him who has made you
victorious, and has raised you on high, there
isn't a man in the world who could have got
out of the difficulty, except your humble
servant; and you know I am not in the habit of
boasting."

"To whom are you speaking?" asked the
magistrate, quietly.

"These Oud-Medaguins are more stupid
than the asses they lead. Fancy that, at the
moment when I arrived, they had almost all
discharged their grain at the gate of the court
of administration. There was a heap there as
big as a mountain, and so well arranged, that
the men and their asses were underneath—
may Allah burn me if I am not speaking the
truth—and their corn on the top of them.
You know pretty well what the Arabs are.
In their hurry to get rid of their load, and be
off, they had completely caught themselves
in a trap. There were shouts, howlings,
kicks, and fisticuffs, enough to make you
tremble. I confess that I once entertained a
moment's doubt whether it would be possible
for me to set matters to rights."

"I am surprised at your doubting," said
the court. "And then?"

"Being well aware that words alone would
not produce the slightest salutary effect, I
caught sight of half-a-score good thick
cudgels that were lying amongst the stores of
wood, and with them I armed ten of the
stoutest out of the cavalry soldiers who had
escorted the party hither. I told them to do
exactly as they saw me do; namely, to lay
about them as hard as they could on the
whole heap of rubbish. We thrashed, and
thrashed away; in short, it was what I call
thrashing."

"I will believe you on your word this
time."

"To such good effect, that after a quarter
of an hour's manœuvering, at the very
outside, we succeeded in completely separating
the men, the asses, and the sacks, each in their
own corner. This done, we were obliged to
have the asses reloaded to make them enter
the magazine; but this operation being much
more simple than the former one, a few blows
with the cudgel, and even often a few punches
with the fist, were sufficient. Ouf! My
right arm is dislocated. The sons of dogs
shall dearly pay for the cudgelling which they
made me give them."

"That would be no more than just; nothing
but what is reasonable."

"If I were only paid," continued Djilali,
wiping his forehead, "in the old Turkish way,
according to the number of thumps bestowed,
I am sure that I should have made my
fortune." Then, as if suddenly inspired:
"But, in fact, Sidi, why don't you pay me by
the number of blows? They are my vested
rights."

"It would be no more than just. But,
you know, we have abolished the cherished
rights of chaouchs. I lament the
circumstance; but I can do nothing for you."

"Ah! Sidi, you are laughing at your
servant."

"You are wrong to entertain such a
supposition. But, if you please, have you not
killed, or at least wounded, some person or
persons in performing the operation which
you have just described?"

"Wounded! killed!" exclaimed Djilali,
in profound astonishment. "Did a rap with,
a stick ever kill or wound an Arab? On the
contrary, I have known many cured in that
way when they were ill."

"My dear Djilali, I have not the honour
to be a chaouch; and having lost nothing by
the suppression of the bludgeon, you will
excuse my not being unanimously of your
opinion on that subject. But, tell me, how
many donkeys were there in the cavalcade of
the Oud-Medaguins?"

"I counted six hundred and twenty-three."

"That's a good many. Are you quite sure
about the number?"

"When I say six hundred and twenty-
three, I ought to have said six hundred and
twenty-one. Because there were two—but
it is an incredible adventure; I am even yet
amazed at it myself."

"Let us hear the adventure. I am certain,
beforehand, that you have not been the loser
by it."

"It is perfectly inexplicable! Unless,
indeed, some conjuring marabout has been
working a charm and casting a spell."

"Really! I was not aware that you
believed in marabouts."

"Sidi, who could have caused you to doubt
it?" said Djilai, with the air of an innocent
clown when caught in the fact of stealing
sausages. "But you shall judge for yourself
if there is not something miraculous in the
matter."

"Out, then, with the miracle."

"My task ended, I was returning quietly
towards my tent, wherein I required a
moment's repose. After proceeding a few
hundred paces, on turning round, I perceived