284 TRAVEL, ADVENTUKE, AND SPOKT. 



is a Turkoman superstition regarding a petition made 

 by a person on the eve of departure, and to refuse this 

 request is supposed to bring ill-luck on the journey. 

 Taking advantage of this, I urged that his majesty 

 had given me all the prisoners, but that there was in 

 his own palace a child detained. The Khan urged 

 that she did not wish to go ; I pleaded her not being 

 of age. He was silent for some time ; at length, 

 turning to the minister, he muttered, " Give him the 

 child." Shortly afterwards a beautiful little girl was 

 brought to me. It was very dark, so, taking a lamp, 

 I advanced to have a closer view of my hardly-earned 

 prize, when the little puss screamed out lustily, vow- 

 ing nothing should make her go to "that Russian 

 slave-dealer ! " The Turkomans were greatly amused. 

 Luckily, I had brought Eeerdee Yamoot with me, and 

 the little Shureefa made no objection to going with 

 him, jumping up behind his pony, and looking much 

 alarmed when I approached. She was about nine 

 years old, and I think I have seldom seen a more 

 beautiful child. We rode the whole of the night on 

 our return to our camp, and Shureefa gave Beerdee an 

 account of her separation from her mother, which he 

 translated to' me. " She was torn from me, and, 

 striking me on the forehead, exclaimed, Oh, luckless 

 one, would that thou hadst never been born ! " On 

 reaching our camp, the Eussians gave a shout at the 

 sight of Shureefa ; and the next morning she and her 

 little brother were brought by their mother to make 



