"There is no doubt that many of them are worth a good deal of money," the Rajah said. "It is certain that Tippoo's treasuries are full of the spoils he has carried off, from the states he has overrun, and the ladies of the harem, no doubt, possess a store of the jewels, and could afford to be liberal to those whom they considered had saved their lives. Those seven, which you put together as the best, must alone be worth a large sum. I should think that the total value of the whole cannot be less than forty or fifty thousand rupees, so that, if those in your casket are handsomer than these, Dick, they must be valuable, indeed." Dick's casket was next examined. "Some of these stones are magnificent, Dick. Those three great diamonds could only be valued by a jeweller accustomed to such things, for their value depends upon their being of good lustre, and free from all flaws; but, according to my judgment, I should say that, at the very least, they must be worth ten thousand rupees each. That pearl necklace is worth at least as much. Those rubies are superb. I should say, lad, that the value of the whole cannot be less than fifteen thousand pounds. "The harem must be rich in jewels, indeed, to be able to make such gifts. Not that I am surprised at that. Tippoo had all the jewels belonging to the lawful rulers of Mysore. He has captured all those of Coorg, Travancore, and the other states on the Malabar coast. He and his father have looted all the Carnatic, from Cape Comorin to the north of Madras. He has captured many of the Nizam's cities, and several Mahratta provinces. "In fact, he has accumulated, at Seringapatam, the spoils of the whole of southern India, and those of the Hindoo portion of his own people. The value of the jewels, alone, must be millions of pounds; and as he himself, as they say, dresses simply, and only wears one or two gems, of immense value, he may well have bestowed large quantities upon his harem, especially as these would be, in fact, only loans, as at the death of their wearers they would revert to him, or, indeed, could be reclaimed at any moment, in a freak of bad temper. "I have no doubt they had to ask his permission to give you the presents, and as you, at the moment, were in high favour with him, I daresay he suffered them to give what they chose, without inquiring at all into their value. The gold he gave you was simply to procure your outfits, and he left it to the harem to reward you, as they chose, for the service you had rendered. "Well, Dick, I congratulate you heartily. It places your future beyond doubt, and leaves you free to choose any mode of life that you may prefer. "I congratulate you, too, Margaret, on the lad's good fortune; which he has well deserved by his conduct.