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would have prevented his going. He laughed only, and said, 'I know my enemy is waiting for me.' A little further on, a goat would have impeded him, but he gave the same answer, and went on his way. From that day the goose and the goat are animals esteemed by all good Sheeahs as sacred. As the saint entered the musjid, the traitor, who had been bribed, was standing behind the door hidden, and lifted his sword unseen of all but God and the saint. Strike,' said the saint, I fear not.' The weapon fell from the hand of the traitor, and the saint passed on. But the devil gives strength to his own, and the traitor watched the saint, and when he was bowing his head in earnest prayer, the traitor may curses light on him and all his posterity!-cut off the saint's head with one blow, and escaped. The two sons of the saint, Hassain and Hoossen, aided by God, carried on the war. And now the camp of the faithful was suffering dreadfully from One of the four daughters of Huzrut Aly was in the camp, beautiful as a peri, and she too was in torture for want of

want of water.

water. Her uncle Abas Alaam loved her, saw her sufferings, and, taking a skin for water, cut his way through the enemy to a well, and filled the skin with water, though exposed to the fire of an army. As he was carrying off the skin full of water, he was wounded in the shoulder, and his arm was disabled, and the skin of water fell to the ground. He seized it then with his teeth, and was wounded again as he carried it along. The enemy fired their arrows at the skin to let the water out, and when he arrived where his niece was, there was but enough to quench her thirst, and he laid down and died.

In the meantime the body of Huzrut Aly lay for a whole month undecayed in the musjid, which was at a considerable distance from the quarters of the faithful. Hassain and Hoossen determined to set out to bring in their father's body. All their female relations dissuaded them with many tears, saying, 'You too will be killed;' but they felt no fear, and prepared their horses, and a mule to carry the body, and set out fully armed. Arrived at the musjid, they found a tiger guarding

the body. They lifted the corpse, put it on the mule's back, and no sooner got outside the musjid, than they were furiously attacked. Holding the string of the led mule, they fought their way back, but the string was cut, and the mule went off with the body, and they fainting and wounded got back alive.

Soon after in a great battle the forces of the faithful were routed by the enemy, on whose heads be shame; and the two sons and the brother of Huzrut Aly were killed in the fight. Notice was brought to Lady Fatima, the widow of the saint, and she and her four daughters, weeping and barefooted, throwing ashes on their heads, went forth to seek for the dead. After long search in vain, they took refuge, tired and weary, in a tent.

And now behold the perfidy of slaves! Whoso trusteth in a slave will be certain to be betrayed, and the Prophet saith likewise. A slave of the saint saw them there, and, anxious to gain the favour of Yahudy, tore their veils from them, and turned them out of the tent with blows, and thus, with exposed faces, and barefooted, went forth the

weeping widow and daughters of the saint, with none to help them-a piteous case!

Weeping and lamenting, they wandered forth on the battle-field, and their great enemy Yahudy saw them, recognised them, and, smiling, left them to their fate. Hard as adamant the heart of the wicked! But faithless as slaves are and will be, yet now a slave befriended them; showing that, even amongst the worst of mankind, there are some good. This slave conducted them to a forest, where they might lie concealed, and Fatima spun, and her daughters ground corn, and thus they supported themselves, in retirement, ungazed upon by man. They had no veils, but Fatima and her daughters collected in the forest 180 pieces of rags, and, having wåshed them, made a sheet for a veil, which they wore in turn when they went out. Perseverance and trust in God will overcome all evils.

Things continued thus for a month or so, when a wicked band of the enemy, children of the devil, found them out, and murdered them all without pity, mercy, or remorse.

Such was the story of Hassain and Hoossen, as the queen told it to us, weeping as she told it, and we never heard it without loud lamentations and beating of breasts, and tears. A representation of the tomb of the martyrs, called the tazia, is carried in procession at the end of the Mohurrim, and buried.

In the palace, tazias of rich materials were always kept in some of the largest apartments, and carried about in procession at the Mohurrim. During the lifetime of Umjid Aly Shah there were only two of these tazias of silver, each with its silver altar before it; but in the reign of Wajid Aly there were nine of them, and they were kept in the silver baradhurry in the palace. The silver altars were covered with a black cloth, at the time of the Mohurrim, and on these altars votive offerings called alums, silver hands in shape, and daggers and swords and such-like, were displayed

to view.

On the floor between the tazias curiously shaped coloured lanterns were placed, with scented wax candles in them, which were lit at night. During the entire forty days the

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