About fifteen paces from the mouth of the
cave we found three chairs placed, and here we sat and waited, for as
yet no dancers were to be seen. The night was almost, but not quite,
dark, the moon not having risen as yet, which made us wonder how we
should be able to see the dancing.
"Thou wilt presently understand," said Ayesha, with a little laugh, when
Leo asked her; and we certainly did. Scarcely were the words out of her
mouth when from every point we saw dark forms rushing up, each bearing
with him what we at first took to be an enormous flaming torch. Whatever
they were, they were burning furiously, for the flames stood out a
yard or more behind each bearer. On they came, fifty or more of them,
carrying their flaming burdens and looking like so many devils from
hell. Leo was the first to discover what these burdens were.
"Great heaven!" he said, "they are corpses on fire!"
I stared and stared again--he was perfectly right--the torches that were
to light our entertainment were human mummies from the caves!
On rushed the bearers of the flaming corpses, and, meeting at a spot
about twenty paces in front of us, built their ghastly burdens crossways
into a huge bonfire.
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