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hold of the Turk's baggy trousers. Then, slowly and carefully, he drew

himself up and seized the leather belt that encircled the man's waist.

This firm grip gave him new confidence, and he began to breathe more

freely.

He now clung to the body of the Turk with both legs entwined, in the way

he was accustomed to cling to a tree-trunk when he climbed after

cherries at home. He had conquered his fear of falling, and took time to

recover his wits and his strength.

They had now reached such a tremendous height that the city looked like

a speck on the desert beneath them. Knowing he must act quickly, Rob

seized the dangling left arm of the unconscious Turk and raised it until

he could reach the dial of the traveling machine. He feared to unclasp

the machine just then, for two reasons: if it slipped from his grasp they

would both plunge downward to their death; and he was not sure the

machine would work at all if in any other position than fastened to the

left wrist.

Rob determined to take no chances, so he left the machine attached to

the Turk and turned the indicator to zero and then to "East," for he did

not wish to rejoin either his enemies the Turks or his equally undesirable

friends the Tatars.

After traveling eastward a few minutes he lost sight of the city altogether;

so, still clinging to the body of the Turk, he again turned the indicator

and began to descend. When, at last, they landed gently upon a rocky

eminence of the Kuen-Lun mountains, the boy's strength was almost

exhausted, and his limbs ached with the strain of clinging to the Turk's

body.

His first act was to transfer the traveling machine to his own wrist and to

see that his other electrical devices were safely bestowed in his pockets.

Then he sat upon the rock to rest until the Turk recovered

consciousness.

Presently the fellow moved uneasily, rolled over, and then sat up and

stared at his surroundings. Perhaps he thought he had been dreaming,

for he rubbed his eyes and looked again with mingled surprise and

alarm. Then, seeing Rob, he uttered a savage shout and drew his dagger.

The Master Key