But although the Queen's choice of a husband was thus ratified by the only section of her subjects who might possibly have raised objections to it, a great deal of exceedingly delicate negotiation and arrangement was found to be necessary, and a number of quite unexpected difficulties and hitches arose, before the path to the hymeneal altar was made perfectly smooth for the royal lovers; while, on the other hand, as the negotiations and arrangements progressed, it grew increasingly clear that a man possessed of Grosvenor's outside knowledge and experience was infinitely preferable, from the point of view of the national advantage, as a ruler, to even the most powerful and influential of the Izreelite nobles. By the time, therefore, that everything was settled, approval had become intensified into delight, and there was every prospect that Phil's reign would be a highly popular one. Then, in due time, came the marriage, which may be dismissed with the mere mention of the fact, since this makes no pretence to being a love story.

But although even a royal wedding may possess little or no interest for those for whose entertainment this story is written, it had a most important effect upon the fortunes of those whose adventures are here set forth. For, by the Izreelite law, it not only made Philip Grosvenor the Consort of the Queen, but it also put into his hands the actual government of the nation; it made him, in fact, the King, an absolute monarch, with power to shape and control the destinies of the nation as seemed to him good; with nobody to say him nay, whatever the nature of the decrees he might promulgate, and to whom even the Queen herself became subject. Then, with regard to Dick Maitland, it will be remembered that he, as well as Grosvenor, had been compelled to take an oath that he would never seek to leave the country without the royal assent. But, now that Phil was King, that assent was, of course, to be obtained easily enough; and obtained it was, as soon as the wedding was over and Grosvenor was securely installed in his new position. For, whatever inducements there might be for Phil to pass the remainder of his life in the strange, scarcely-heard-of land of the Izreelites, no such inducements existed in the case of Dick Maitland, who was now all impatience to return to England and provide for the welfare of his mother—if, haply, she still survived.

Accordingly, having in due form sought and obtained the royal assent to his departure from Izreel, Dick lost no time in completing his preparations for the long and perilous journey that lay before him. And, first of all, he presented Leo—now nearly full-grown and, thanks to careful and judicious training, a most amiable, docile, and affectionate beast—to Queen Myra, as the most cherished possession it was in his power to offer her. Of the horses which they had brought with them into the country he kept only the one which King Lobelalatutu had given him, leaving the rest with Phil—there being no horses in Izreel. Ramoo Samee, being given his choice, elected to remain in Izreel, in the capacity of stud groom; but Mafuta, Jantje, and 'Nkuku returned with Dick, as a matter of course. And, as a measure of precaution, Grosvenor arranged for an escort of five hundred Izreelite warriors to accompany the wagon through the country immediately on the other side of the border; for although the savage inhabitants had received such terrible chastisement that they were scarcely likely to interfere with anyone coming from Izreel, it was deemed wisest to run no risk of a possible hostile demonstration.

At length the day and hour of parting came, and Dick, fully equipped for his journey, presented himself at the palace to say farewell. The moment was not without its emotions, for although it had already been planned that at no very distant date Maitland should revisit Izreel, bringing with him certain matters which Grosvenor felt it would be highly desirable for him to possess as monarch of a people of such great potential possibilities as the Izreelites, both remembered that the journey from Bethalia to the nearest confines of civilisation was a long and arduous one, bristling with perils of every imaginable kind, and who could say that it would be accomplished in safety, or, if accomplished, could be repeated? For life is too full of chances for a man to make plans for the future, with any certainty that he will be able to carry them out. Therefore, when these two adventurous sons of the most adventurous nation on earth finally clasped hands and said their last words of farewell, though those words were entirely cheery and optimistic, the voices which spoke them were a little husky with feeling, and the firm, strong hand-grip was lingering, and relaxed with much reluctance.

Dick's ride from the palace through the town to the point of embarkation for the mainland was one long, unbroken ovation; for there had now been time for the people to recognise, and also to appreciate, the many fine qualities of the young Englishman's character; realisation of the enormous debt which they owed to him and to his friend, their new king, had come to them, and they were as unfeignedly sorry to witness his departure from among them as a naturally unemotional people could well be.

As he stepped into the swift-sailing cutter which was to convey him across to the mainland, where the wagon, already inspanned, was awaiting him, a letter was handed to him by one of two men who had just carefully deposited in the boat a well-filled leather portmanteau bearing Grosvenor's initials. The letter ran thus:

"Dear old Chap,—

"The portmanteau which accompanies this note contains Myra's and my own parting gift to you, in the shape of the finest diamonds which a gang of twenty men have been able to extract from the newly discovered mine during the last month. They are quite valueless to us, it is true, but in the dear old country to which you are bound they ought, even apart from the rubies which you are taking back, to make you one of the most wealthy men in the world. May God grant you health and long life to enjoy that wealth, and to employ it—as we know you will—in ameliorating the lot of those who are worse off than yourself! We confidently look forward to your return to Izreel in the course of the next year or two; but should unkind fortune forbid that return, think of us occasionally, and remember that in the far interior of Africa there are two hearts in which your memory will be cherished so long as life shall last.

"Yours, in undying friendship,—

"Phil."

My story is told. It only remains to add that, some six months later, Dick Maitland arrived safely in England, with all his treasure intact, just in time to rescue his mother from the grip of destitution that was on the point of closing relentlessly upon her, and to place her in a position of such absolute safety and luxury that it was months before the dear old lady could persuade herself it was not all a tantalising dream, from which she would sooner or later awake to again find herself face to face with the ever-recurring, harassing, heart-breaking problem of ways and means, and the even more painful state of anxiety and uncertainty concerning the whereabouts of her son that had so worried and distressed her during the past year.

As for Doctor Julian Humphreys, Dick nearly drove the good man crazy with delight by placing to his credit at the bank a sum so stupendous that he might have spent the rest of his days in riotous luxury, had he so chosen. But that was not Humphreys' way at all; his heart was set upon the relief of those who suffered the keen pangs of poverty through no fault of their own; and he thenceforth enjoyed the pleasure of doing good to the top of his bent, retaining his modest establishment at 19 Paradise Street, but greatly enlarging his surgery, stocking it abundantly with every drug, instrument, and appliance that could possibly ameliorate pain or heal disease, and continuing enthusiastically to practise medicine and surgery among the poor, without fee or reward of any sort, save an occasional expression of gratitude from some more than usually appreciative patient.

THE END