Page:Ballantyne--The Pirate City.djvu/408

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THE PIRATE CITY.

ing more especially on passages in which the loving Jesus seeks to cheer His people with prospects of rest and peace, such as—"Peace be unto you;" "Let not your hearts be troubled, ye believe in God, believe also in me;" "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Even the hardened among the wretched and demoralized sufferers there could not choose but hear and note the powerful contrast between the gentle voice of Almighty God that thus murmured within the prison, and the crashing voice of puny man that roared outside!

In the darkness of that night Bacri crept to the side of Mariano, and whispered hastily—"I may not get another opportunity to speak to thee. Just before I came hither Angela and her sister were taken from my care by force. They are now in the palace, under the care of Zara. Omar intends to keep them."

Mariano turned to reply, but the Jew had retired noiselessly as he came.

Early in the morning after the fight the prison-door opened, and a band of Turkish soldiers entered. The garish light of day, as it streamed over the dungeon floor, revealed the fact that the shattered frame of the Italian slave had found rest at last.

The soldiers looked fagged and dishevelled. Many of them wore bandages about their heads and limbs.