The King's Talisman — page 30: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE KING’ S TALISMAN. 21 position, the mutes dropped their hands by their sides, and the youth awaited his monarch’s pleasure, but not, however, without a feeling of astonishment and wonder at what had _ happened. ‘‘ Your father is not wealthy,” said the king, as he once more regained his composure. ‘He is poor, sire—quite poor and honest.” ‘¢'hen methinks his son should assist him,” remarked Modad, struggling hard to keep down the strange emotion that started up in his bosom. ‘‘My father, sire, has governed me as he thought proper. In all things I have obeyed his wishes.” «That is well,” returned the king, who seemed to have thrown off the perturbation that had at first affected him; ‘‘but I have an office for thee, which may afford thee oppor- tunity to repay thy father somewhat for the trouble of your education, for I have learned that your mind is well stored with early wisdom, and that your limbs are well tuned to the use of the sword and javelin.” ‘‘Sire,” modestly returned the youth, ‘‘I shall deem it an honor to perform any honorable service for your majesty. You may command me.” The king may have hesitated a moment ere he answered, but the hesitation was hardly perceptible. ‘Young man,” he said, ‘‘the duty which I shall require of thee will be honorable, and thousands there be of my subjects who would gladly accept the office.” ‘«‘Then why not give it into the hands of some one who 3 has more experience than I have?” ‘The business I have to intrust to thy care,” replied the king, ‘“‘is one that requires tact and knowledge of a pecu- liar kind, united to courage and individual skill; and from what I have learned of thee, I am confident that you will be just the person. You can retire for the night, for I shall send for thee early in the morning.” GEomicbooks:¢co