Presently he appeared among the vaults, carrying an archer's bow on
his shoulder and a whip in his hand. Cords of many colours were lashed
tightly about his knotted legs; his massive arms were thrust through a
sleeveless tunic, and a fur cap shaded his face. His chin was covered
with a heavy, curling beard.
He appeared not to comprehend what the interpreter said to him at first.
But Vitellius threw a meaning glance at Antipas, who quickly made the
Babylonian understand the command of the proconsul. Jacim immediately
laid both his hands against the door, giving it a powerful shove;
whereupon it quietly slid out of sight into the wall.
A wave of hot air surged from the depths of the cavern. A winding path
descended and turned abruptly. The group followed it, and soon arrived
at the threshold of a kind of grotto, somewhat larger than the other
subterranean cells.
An arched window at the back of this chamber gave directly upon
a precipice, which formed a defence for one side of the castle. A
honeysuckle vine, cramped by the low-studded ceiling, blossomed bravely.
The sound of a running stream could be heard distinctly. In this place
was a great number of beautiful white horses, perhaps a hundred. They
were eating barley from a plank placed on a level with their mouths.
Their manes had been coloured a deep blue; their hoofs were wrapped in
coverings of woven grass, and the hair between their ears was puffed out
like a peruke.
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