It was with difficulty that Alroy could refrain from an admiring
exclamation, but Honain, ever quick, turned to him, with his finger
pressed on his mouth, and quitting the quadrangle, they entered the
gardens.
Lofty terraces, dark masses of cypress, winding walks of acacia, in
the distance an interminable paradise, and here and there a glittering
pavilion and bright kiosk! Its appearance on the river had not prepared
Alroy for the extent of the palace itself. It seemed infinite, and it
was evident that he had only viewed a small portion of it. While they
were moving on, there suddenly rose a sound of trumpets. The sound grew
nearer and nearer, louder and louder: soon was heard the tramp of
an approaching troop. Honain drew Alroy aside. A procession appeared
advancing from a dark grove of cypress. Four hundred men led as many
white bloodhounds with collars of gold and rubies.[29] Then came one
hundred men, each with a hooded hawk; then six horsemen in rich dresses;
after them a single horseman, mounted on a steed, marked on its forehead
with a star.[30] The rider was middle-aged, handsome, and dignified. He
was plainly dressed, but the staff of his hunting-spear was entirely of
diamonds and the blade of gold.
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