With their hands tied, the powerful sheik upset them as easily as though they had been bags of sand.
Raising Harry by the hair of his head with one hand and Terence with the other, he dragged them back to their places in the line where they had been already seated.
Sailor Bill saved himself from like treatment by rolling over and over until he had regained his former place. Colin was allowed to lie on the ground where the sheik had knocked him over.
Golah now returned to the pit where the woman stood half buried.
She made no resistance--she uttered no complaint--but seemed calmly to resign herself to a fate that could not be averted. Golah apparently did not intend to behold her die, for, when the earth was filled in around her body, her head still remained above ground. She was to be starved to death! As the sheik was turning away to attend to other matters, the woman spoke. Her words were few, and produced no effect upon him. They did, however, upon the Krooman, whose eyes were seen to fill with tears that rapidly chased each other down his mahogany-colored cheeks.
Colin, who seemed to notice everything except the fate threatening himself, observed the Krooman's excitement, and inquired its cause.
"She ask him to be kind to her little boy," said the man, in a voice trembling with emotion.
The shining drops that rolled from that man's eyes, and sparkled adown his dusky cheeks, on hearing the unfortunate woman's prayer for her children, proved that he was not a brute, but a man,--a man with a soul that millions might envy.
After leaving the place where the woman was buried, Golah walked up to Colin; and, dragging him to his feet, led him away to the other pit.
His intentions were now evident to all. The two individuals, who had aroused his anger and jealousy, were to be left near each other, buried alive, to perish in this fearful fashion.
"Colin! Colin! what can we do to save you?" exclaimed Harry, in a tone expressing despair and anguish.
"Nothing," answered Colin; "don't attempt it, or you will only bring trouble on yourselves. Leave me to my fate."
At this moment the speaker was thrown into the pit, and held in an upright attitude by Golah, while the black slave proceeded to fill in the earth around him.