66 TRAVEL, ADVENTURE, AND SPORT. 



horse was limping, and I observed that Hassan, with 

 his eyes fixed on the ground, after having led the 

 horse round a certain number of times, "put him about 

 and led him round in the reverse way. Although 

 the horse seemed to have had quite enough of the 

 ceremony, I knew that in the end it would be best 

 not to interfere. Had I ordered the horse to be taken 

 back to his picket before the performance had come 

 duly to an end, it would only have ensured the poor 

 animal being taken out at some unearthly hour of the 

 night, when Mr Hassan would first have assured him- 

 self that interference on my part was out of the ques- 

 tion. So I watched patiently till the horse was 

 brought back to his picket in the courtyard of the 

 serai. Hassan was then somewhat taken aback by 

 my hailing him from the terrace above : he knew that 

 from the position I then occupied I must have wit- 

 nessed the whole of the ceremony. In answer to my 

 inquiry as to what it all meant, he informed me in a 

 mysterious solemn manner that under the spot over 

 which he had led the horse a hyena had been buried 

 some years ago that a kecheekchee or guard of the 

 serai had assured him of the fact ! Hassan then 

 went on to say that, if a lame horse was led round 

 the grave of a hyena a certain number of times one 

 Avay, and then a certain number of times the other, 

 he would be a sound horse again ere the sun rose on 

 the morrow. Such was the solution of the mystery. 

 I held my peace, and repressed a smile. As to giving 



