Page 282 - A Knight of the White Cross

Gervaise thought the plan an excellent one; and he was soon transformed,
Muley shaving that part of the hair that would have shown below the

turban, and then staining him a deep brownish black, from the waist
upwards, together with his feet and his legs up to his knee, and darkening

his eyebrows, eyelashes, and moustache.

"Save that your lips lack the thickness, and your nose is straighter than

those of Nubians, no one would doubt but that you were one of that race;
and this is of little consequence, as many of them are of mixed blood, and,

though retaining their dark colour, have features that in their outline
resemble those of the Arabs. Now I will take you to Ben Tbyn, so that he
may judge whether any further change is required before the servants and

slaves see you."

"That is excellent," the merchant said, when he had carefully inspected
Gervaise, "I should pass you myself without recognizing you. Now you can
take him into the servants' quarters, Muley, and tell them that he is a new

slave whom I have purchased, and that henceforth it will be his duty to wait
upon my wife, to whom I have presented him as her special attendant, and

that he will accompany her and my daughters when they go abroad to make
their purchases or visit their friends. Give some reason, if you can think of
one, why you have bestowed him in a chamber separate from the rest."

Gervaise at once took up his new duties, and an hour later, carrying a

basket, followed them into the town. It was strange to him thus to be
walking among the fanatical Moors, who, had they known the damage that
he had inflicted upon their galleys, would have torn him in pieces. None

gave him, however, more than a passing look. Nubian slaves were no
uncommon sight in the town, and in wealthy Moorish families were

commonly employed in places of trust, and especially as attendants in the
harems. The ladies were now as closely veiled as the Moorish women, it
being only in the house that they followed the Berber customs. Gervaise

had learnt from Muley that Ben Ibyn was one of the richest merchants in
Tripoli, trading direct with Egypt, Syria, and Constantinople, besides

carrying on a large trade with the Berber tribes in the interior. He returned
to the house with his basket full of provisions, and having handed these