Part 38 (1/2)
Nina, mean time, hurried back to her tohere she found little Mila sleeping on her couch She awoke her with a kiss
”Your task is nearly over for to-night,” she whispered, putting, at the same time, two keys into her hand ”Go, now, and lock rateful for your zeal, and you shall have your reward Keep your own counsel as before; and no one will suspect you”
Mila nodded, took up the keys, and slipped noiselessly back to the house tenanted by her grandfather
Fleetwood tried to follow the exaht broke that he closed his eyes in a deep slumber
”Humph,”rubbing his eyes ”There was little use locking up these lazy Maltese, unless they are addicted to walking in their sleep At all events they are honest, or they would not snore so loudly”
CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
The greater part of the population of the island residing near the harbour were assembled on the shores of the bay to enjoy, under the shade of the high cliffs, the deliriously cool air of the evening, and to welcome the return of their chief, whosefrom the ard
There were oldmen and maidens, who had coht sports, but chiefly to dance their favourite Romaika, which has been handed down to them from the earliest days of their heroic ancestors, when it was known under the more classic name of the Cretan or Doedalian dance
Century after century has seen it danced by the youths and enerations, on the self-sahbourhood--both on the islands and on the --the fit cradle of the arts and sciences; when that literature was produced which will last as long as the world exists; when those temples arose, and those statues caes have never been able to equal; when all that the huant had its birth; when her shi+ps traversed all known seas, and her colonies went forth to civilise the earth; when her sages gave laws to the world, and a handful of her sons were sufficient to drive back thousands upon thousands of the vaunted arlorious epochs to the ti the wisdoe of the tribes she had once despised--yet still, in abject slavery, while all that man cared for was destroyed, the sports of their youth were not forgotten; and as learned in youth, the parents taught their children to revive, as their only consolation in their radation
Thus, Homer's description of the dance in his days would answer perfectly, even to the very costuo:--
”A figure dance succeeds: A co hand-in-hand; The raceful in the glossy waistcoat
”Now all at once they rise--at once descend, With well-taught feet, now shaped in oblique ways, Confusedly regular, the ht they spring, And undistinguish'd blend the flying ring
So whirls a wheel in giddy circle tost, And rapid as it runs the single spokes are lost”
A the spectators was Nina, and after much persuasion she had induced Ada Garden to accompany her, with Marianna Ada had done so after due consideration, fro that it would be better to appear as ers, without appearing in any way to recognise them, or to take interest in theht it probable old Vlacco ru her to leave her tower; but Nina silenced hi her lord's absence, she had the chief command; and that if he would not obey, she would complain of his cruelty and tyranny, and declare that he was no better than a Turk
Marianna was delighted at once o and join the dancers, though her mistress would not allow her to do so; and even Ada herself felt her spirits rise under the genial influence of others' happiness She forgot that the handsoht up to becoazed on were taught to consider such deeds as justifiable and praiseworthy She saw in them, for the moment, only the descendants of the ancient Greeks; and in fore
Alas! that their own indolence and effeminacy should have reduced them so low that they should become the slaves of despots, and thus have all the vices inherent in a state of slavery Nina and Ada did not venture down into the bay ae, raised some thirty or forty feet above the sands, at the entrance of the ravine, where they could overlook the whole scene The old fisherroups, either on the rocks under the cliffs, or on seats for the sands The youths wore their gayest sashes, and their red fezzes set jauntily on one side; and the maids their best cyarlands of wild flowers, in rich profusion, streairls were very lovely, with tall, graceful figures, and their hair of auburn hue, which is as much prized now as of yore The ht have played on, and stringed instruuitar or violin The musicians were in appearance like the bards of old, ancientbeards; but they appeared, nevertheless, to reap as much pleasure froun to play as Nina and Ada reached the spot, and the dancers had forraceful girl, with a chaplet composed of flowers and shells, the spoils of the sea and land, and a garland of the sa like a scarf across her shoulders, led off the dance; a handsoirl's, ca man and a ly sedate pace, all following, in a rees, as the music became more lively and animated, so did the movement of the dancers increase in rapidity First, the fore the smooth sand at a rapid rate; then she suddenly turned, and setting to her partner, flew off, and darted under the upraised ar the rest after her; then she twisted a the rocks, on the shore, and eary of that movement, joined her hand to that of the youth at the other end, and co round and round at as rapid a rate as the feet of the dancers couldand dizzy, suddenly she broke the circle, and led off again in a line towards the sea, till she reached the very brink, where the sparkling wavelets washed the shi+ning pebbles andtill the water receded, she darted after it, and flew back before it caught her; though many ere in honour bound to follow her, in vain hurried their steps before the returning wave overtook thehter of theirwould, however, induce the and shaking their heads as they went in review before their older friends, ere seated as spectators, and the rest expected they were thus to visit all the groups; off again she darted to chase the retreating wave, and then once more to join hands in the lively wheel, and at last, overcome with their exertion, they sank on the sands exhausted, though they quickly again sprang up to renew their sport Several other similar sets were forer people, was led by little Mila; nor was it the least lively or joyous of them all
Ada Garden looked anxiously around to discover whether Fleetwood and his companions were there, and she soon perceived him and several other persons in the costu a number of the islanders, who considered the to sit quiet as spectators Fleetwood descried her; he was afraid alht suspect him Jack Raby was near him, and he whispered to him to be prepared, should the people they ith nise Marianna, and to rush up to where she was standing Ada watched the with some of the old people, noith others, till at last they reached a group below her The moment was not lost Master Jack uttered an ad directly up the cliff, in a way only a midshi+pman or a monkey can scraly well She shrieked with joy, and bent over the cliffs, exclai in Maltese,--
”My dear brother, hted to see you!”
Jack answered in return with his choicest gibberish, which did perfectly well to express all the sentiments of fraternal affection he was at that ; indeed, no one could have understood hi even to as said, they were all toothe dance, or the approach of their chief'sof thenot a little to the picturesque beauty of the scene Raby had no little difficulty in getting up the cliff--he had chosen so steep a place--and he was very nearly slipping all the way down again, just as he had reached the edge of the ledge, but all served to show the ardour of his affection By a desperate effort he sprang up and rushed into Marianna's ar the promise his captain had made for him; and to do Marianna full justice, she played the part of an affectionate sister to adhted toseparation, and yet they had never, to their knowledge, seen each other till that hted to see you,” exclaiave Marianna another kiss and a hug ”The captain has fixed on a boat to run off with, and we shall easily be able to launch her, and will have her ready near those rocks to the left there exactly atfor you under your tower He wants to know if that old rascal of a pirate locks you up every night as he did us Pretend to be speaking to ot another kiss Perhaps, in that respect, Master Raby rather overdid his part; but he was a young actor, and as his captain had ordered him to do so, he was not to blaive hi, as the Yankees say, and pick the lock, or we shall have to lower you out of theWe are not going to be stopped by anything You must prepare a line of so in case of necessity No one will suspect us; for we have been working away at the mistico all day, and she isn't off yet; in fact, we took care she shouldn't be, for there is every prospect of a cal-boat will answer our purpose much better The pirates, if they trouble their heads about us, think we are going to try and get away in the h my belief is, they don't intend to let us; and I should not be at all surprised but what they'll go this evening and rip off a few planks, or bore holes in her botto, lest we should betray the position of this island However, Miss Garden, be of good cheer, whatever our skipper--I beg pardon, Captain Fleetwood--undertakes is sure to be right in the end”