But the little-enduring uncle did not the less cherish a grudge against the man who had dared to travel before him, and take his horses. However, as he had no further need for his dromedaries, he sold them to the conductor of a caravan, but only obtained for them living the same price as he would have gotten for the carcases. This loss Kéraban carried in his mind's ledger to the account of Seigneur Saffar.
We may assume that Saffar was not in Kertsch, else a little dispute would probably have arisen, which might have had serious consequences. He had quitted the town two days previously, by the Caucasus route. This was fortunate, as our travellers were about to travel by the lower road.
A good supper at the Hotel Constantine, a good night in comfortable quarters, made both the masters and servants forget past troubles. So a letter written by Ahmet to his fiancée at Odessa was the bearer of good news and a report of the journey as regularly accomplished.
As the hour of departure had been fixed for ten o'clock next morning, Van Mitten was enabled to explore the town. Rising with the sun, he found Ahmet on this occasion ready to accompany him. So they walked through the wide streets of Kertsch, which have paved footways and are swarming with multitudes of vagabond dogs. These animals are looked after by a man specially appointed to knock them on the head, but that time he must have been asleep, for Ahmet and the Dutchman had considerable difficulty to escape from the dangerous brutes.
The stone quay, built into the sea at the curve of the bay, afforded them a more secure promenade. Upon the quay are the governor's palace and the custom-house. At some distance out the vessels are anchored, for there is not much water in the bay, though the anchorage is good. The port has become very commercial since the cession of the town to the Russians in 1774, and there is a large salt depot there, the mineral being furnished from the mines of Pérékop.
"Have we time to ascend that hill?" asked Van Mitten, indicating Mount Mithridates, on which a Greek temple
