The Genius answered: ‘A prince will arise who shall be as a thorn in the side of England, and the desolator of Europe. Terrible shall be the struggle between that chieftain and you! It will last many years, and the conqueror shall gain eternal honour and glory. So likewise shall the vanquished; and though he shall die in exile his name shall never be remembered by his countrymen but with feelings of enthusiasm. The renown of the victory shall reach the ends of the earth; Kings and Emperors shall honour him; Europe shall rejoice in its deliverer; and though in his lifetime fools will envy him, he shall overcome. At his death renown shall cover him, and his name shall be everlasting!’ When the Genius finished speaking we heard the sound of music far off, which drew nearer and nearer till it seemed within the hall. Then all the fairies and genii joined in one grand chorus which rose rolling to the mighty dome and pillars of the genii palace, and reached among the vaults and dungeons beneath; then gradually dying away it at last ceased entirely. As the music went off the palace slowly disappeared, and we found ourselves alone in the midst of the desert. The sun had just begun to enlighten the world, and the moon might be dimly seen; but all below there was sand as far as our eyes could reach. We knew not which way to go, and we were ready to faint with hunger; but on once more looking round we saw lying on the sands some dates and palm-wine. Of this we made our breakfast, and then began again to think of our journey, when suddenly there appeared a beaten track in the desert, which we followed. About noon, when the sun was at its meridian, and we felt weary and faint with the heat, a grove of palm-trees appeared in sight towards which we ran; and after we had rested awhile under its shade, and refreshed ourselves with its fruit, we resumed our march; and that same night to our inexpressible joy we entered the gates of our beautiful city and slept beneath the shadow of its roofs. CHAPTER IV NEWS FROM HOME The next morning we were awakened by the sound of trumpets and great war-drums, and on looking towards the mountains we saw descending to the plain an immense army of Ashantees. We were all thrown into the utmost consternation except Arthur Wellesley, who advised us to look to the great guns and man the walls, never doubting that genii would come to our help if we ourselves could not beat them off by the help of the cannon and rockets. This advice we immediately followed, while the Ashantees came on like a torrent, sweeping everything, burning the palm-trees, and laying waste the rice-fields.