xxvn THE GENTLE ART OF POISONING 241 



to disturb his rest, for he has no belief in an 

 avenging deity, nor any lucid conception of a here- 

 after, and the only thing that troubles him is the 

 risk of discovery, a catastrophe which he employs 

 all his skill to avoid. 



The preliminaries all settled, Hamice finds that 

 Manjora is such a good fellow that it is distinctly a 

 duty to ask him to a quiet meal. This, however, is 

 most discreetly done ; there is no necessity to make 

 any definite appointment with regard to the affair, 

 and over such a ticklish operation time is not a 

 matter of consequence. So it happens that Manjora 

 chances to pass one day as Hamice is waiting to 

 partake of food that his wife is preparing, and, in a 

 most casual way, Hamice asks him to share the 

 meal. Manjora, being hungry, accepts the invita- 

 tion, and Hamice immediately repairs to the spot 

 outside the house where his wife is preparing the 

 food. From her hands, he takes the dish and, 

 carrying it through the hut to where Manjora sits 

 on a mat in pleasurable anticipation of a savoury 

 meal, on the way inserts a portion of the poison 

 into the dish of food, taking particular care to note 

 the exact position of the lethal stuff by some 

 distinct mark on the platter. 



' Come, let us eat, friend,' he says jovially, as he 

 puts down the food between himself and Manjora, 

 and soon they are eating and chatting, as if nothing 



R 



