Shortly after that the guests began to leave, and we were not sorry, especially Stephnos and Wrexham, who were anxious for bed after a before-dawn start, forty miles in the saddle, and a fight. Forsyth raved about Ziné without ceasing while he was undressing--we had put him into the second room. I don’t know how many different girls she reminded him of. Eventually we threw him out of our room, and left him to rave by himself. In the morning he was singing as he dressed. I remembered that from the time in Calcutta when we were fitting out--a bad sign--and said that he was going riding with the girls, as everybody else was busy with preparations for the council. Wrexham and I announced our intention of going to the meeting, and so Forsyth went off with the two girls. They told us they were going to meet Milos’s wife, who would be arriving about midday. I watched them ride out of the gate, Forsyth very smart for the occasion, for, if there is one thing under the sun Forsyth prefers to one pretty girl, it’s two. Under the moon, however, he seems to find one sufficient. The council meeting was at ten-thirty, and shortly before that Stephnos fetched us. The council, which met in a big room in the palace, consisted of some thirty men, heads of clan sections, and officials of different kinds. Wrexham pointed out to me the old chief who had settled with the prisoners after the raid the day before. He must have been tough for his years to have ridden in all that way and still look fresh as paint with his youthful colouring under his snow-white locks. But the Sakae are a hard crowd, and age slowly. He bowed to Wrexham as Stephnos gave us seats on carved benches ranged round three sides of the room. At the fourth was a raised dais, presently occupied by Kyrlos and his brother and two older men. On their right was seated an old man in long black robes armed with writing materials, whose business it seemed to be to take down important points during the meeting.