Produced by David Edwards, Christine Aldridge and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) Transcriber's Notes: Passages in italics are surrounded by _underscores_. Passages in bold are surrounded by =equal signs=. Passages in gothic fonts are surrounded by +plus signs+. Other transcription notes appear at the end of this e-text. KHALED: A TALE OF ARABIA [Illustration: M. M. & Co.] KHALED A Tale of Arabia BY F. MARION CRAWFORD +London+ MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 1901 _All rights reserved_ COPYRIGHT 1891 BY F. MARION CRAWFORD _First Edition (2 Vols. Globe 8vo) May 1891. Second Edition (1 Vol. Crown 8vo) November 1891, 1892 Re-issue 1901_ TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I 1 CHAPTER II 22 CHAPTER III 43 CHAPTER IV 64 CHAPTER V 86 CHAPTER VI 107 CHAPTER VII 128 CHAPTER VIII 150 CHAPTER IX 171 CHAPTER X 192 CHAPTER XI 213 CHAPTER XII 235 CHAPTER I Khaled stood in the third heaven, which is the heaven of precious stones, and of Asrael, the angel of Death. In the midst of the light shed by the fruit of the trees Asrael himself is sitting, and will sit until the day of the resurrection from the dead, writing in his book the names of those who are to be born, and blotting out the names of those who have lived their years and must die. Each of the trees has seventy thousand branches, each branch bears seventy thousand fruits, each fruit is composed of seventy thousand diamonds, rubies, emeralds, carbuncles, jacinths, and other precious stones. The stature and proportions of Asrael are so great that his eyes are seventy thousand days' journey apart, the one from the other. Khaled stood motionless during ten months and thirteen days, waiting until Asrael should rest from his writing and look towards him. Then came the holy night called Al Kadr, the night of peace in which the Koran came down from heaven. Asrael paused, and raising his eyes from the scroll saw Khaled standing before him. Asrael knew Khaled, who was one of the genii converted to the faith on hearing Mohammed read the Koran by night in the valley Al Nakhlah. He wondered, however, when he saw him standing in his presence; for the genii are not allowed to pass even the gate of the first heaven, in which the stars hang by chains of gold, each star being inhabited by an angel who guards the entrance against the approach of devils. Asrael looked at Khaled in displeasure, therefore, supposing that he had eluded the heavenly sentinels and concealed an evil purpose. But Khaled inclined himself respectfully.