artillery-but still at a great distance off; and their hearts bounded with a great hope that the English army was approaching. It was dusk before Meer Sooltan visited them; he seemed anxious and harassed, but nothing could be extracted from him save the remark that some rebels from the hills had been beaten away from the gates. The next day, what was their delight, and astonishment too, to see a very small body of English soldiers, evidently reconnoitring the walls! But their disappointment was equally great to see them retreat without accomplishing anything, or coming within signalling distance of the ramparts. At three o'clock the following morning they were flung out of their beds by a fearful explosion. The walls of the house shook as though they would topple over; the loose stones on the ramparts plunged into the ditch below; and well might Amy be excused for screaming out in dread horror, that the end of the world was come! A deafening roar of guns followed the explosion, succeeded by volley after volley of musketry. Blue lights of great strength were hung out by the Affghans near the Caubul Gate, which had been (as the twins subsequently ascertained) blown down by the explosion that had nearly laid their residence in ruins; and by the glare, as strong as day, thus artificially produced, could be seen a strong column of English soldiers

rushing for the gap in the defences. A fearful struggle ensued almost under their very eyes; the roaring of the cannon, the unceasing rattle of the musketry, the loud cries of the combatants under the gateway, where a fearful carnage was taking place, mingled with the fearful shrieks of the wounded and made up such a hellish din as neither of the Mertons had ever before imagined possible. They were both in the most fearful state of excitement, trying their utmost, but in vain, to attract attention to the barred window where they stood screaming and waving white clothes, when the doors of their apartment were suddenly flung open and Meer Sooltan, armed to the teeth, covered with grime, blood, and filth, entered savagely. He knocked Henry senseless with a blow from the butt of his huge pistol, then seized Amy by the neck, while a sinewy Ethiopian slave caught hold of her brother, and the two were dragged down to the level of the streets, and out into a narrow lane leading upwards to the citadel. The fresh air revived Henry, and brother and sister staggered on in perfect silence, a pistol being held close to the ear of each, while the turmoil of battle grew fainter, either because they were leaving its neighbourhood, or because it really was diminishing. The latter was the truth; for, strange as it may appear, the celebrated storming of Ghuznee took exactly two hours, no more and no

M

less, from the time the Caubul Gate was blown in, until the British flag flew triumphant over the citadel. But as the firing of cannon diminished in vigour, so did the speed of Meer Sooltan and the slave increase. Taking narrow and unfrequented paths in which they scarce met a soul (for all were gone to defend the main streets), the party traversed the entire breadth of the town, until at last a halt was made in front of a miserable-looking deserted house, with a sort of yard, in which were a few rude country carts and bullocks standing, surrounding it. Unlocking a door, the captives were thrust in head foremost, and the rest of the day was spent in a dark cell, in the utmost anguish of mind, and with an ever-present torturing despair of being found by their countrymen and restored to dear liberty-a liberty that had seemed almost within their grasp, and now was as far from them as ever! They could hear nothing whatever; they knew not if their countrymen had been ultimately successful or not; while time-such was the agonizing suspense they suffered from-appeared to pass with such sloth as to change minutes into hours.

Towards night, as well as they could guess for the darkness of the cell was complete, the negro flung in some coarse bread, placed a pitcher of water on the filthy floor, and retired without a word. Another fear