They fixed it up between them." They had been standing just within the folding doors upon a huge mat of bison skins.

In front of them lay a great square court, paved with many-coloured marbles laid out in a labyrinth of arabesque design.

In the centre a high fountain of carved jade shot five thin feathers of spray into the air, four of which curved towards each corner of the court to descend into broad marble basins, while the fifth mounted straight up to an immense height, and then tinkled back into the central reservoir.

On either side of the court a tall, graceful palm-tree shot up its slender stem to break into a crown of drooping green leaves some fifty feet above their heads.

All round were a series of Moorish arches, in jade and serpentine marble, with heavy curtains of the deepest purple to cover the doors which lay between them.