The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1867-09-06
At,isfetlaNtnuS.
STORY OF A PRECIOUS STONE

STORY UE' A PREUlUUS SIUNE.
LABoUT the beginning Of the cigh-
tcsnth century, poor Arab, unable to
cam Il comfortable subsistence by labor,
who possessed neither house nor lodg-
ing Of any kind, after working NIL day
in thc fields, habitually passed the night
among the tomhs. Once when the sum-
ma was hotter than usual, he happen
cd 10 be engaged in the cornticlds by Il
wealthy peasant, who lived near the ru-
ms f Achoris. As soon H. night fell, the
southwest wind blowing ike the breath
of O furnace across the Great Desert,
droNe every person to seek for shelter
within doors, or behind some walls or
rock. The individual of whose iudi-
gene We have spoken was called Sibbi,
andle had no friends or relatives TO
whom he could apply for assistance in
his distress. When the hour for closing
the dors Of the cottages arrived, there
fore, lc found himself excluded from
every dwelling, and wandered away
sorrovfully in the dark towards the
mounRins which ovcrhnng the valley
on th, eastern side. Arrived Mt the
rocka, painting and half.stihel by the
hot Wind, he climbed up littlo in
search of coolncss. Tho higher he
moultd the plcasantcr it became.
Through the great gaps in the rocks
whicllit times brought down Il current
of cast Wind upon the city, nothing nov
came bit Il sort Of eddy ofthe night air,
less scorhing than the fierce furnace
blast ,ppn the plain below. Sibbi felt
rcfrcslid by this slight improvement in
the stat of the atmosphere, and con-
tinued billing up through the rents in
the fucdof the precipicc till he reached
the edgGof the great cistcrn which once
supplied dtwenty thousand persons with
their dldy allowance Of water. Here
he sat down, thinking the air absolute
ly dclicius. Even the wind OF fifty
days was tempered into sweetness by
that clev;tion, and sportcd and played
among tie honcy-conhcd crags lik" Il
breeze Of Emma or Arcadia. RcfrcshCd
and sootled, 5ibbi at length slept and
the sun was already lighting UP the
desert, AID shcathing the broad river
with goli, when he awokc. Sibbi was
not II w,rshippcr of the picturesque.
He was hungry, and hunger is in@cnsl-
bic to thecharms of scenery. The hour,
he knew, would soon be mt hand when
he must lescend into the hot valley,
and moisen his coarse black bread with
the sweater his brow; too happy even
so to warl Off the threatened visit OF
death. BIT as he sat in this quiet and
breezy SPIT, he experienced extreme
reluctance to renew his lubOr'. Why
not enjoy lunger and idlencss for one
day" Heould lie in the shadow Of the
cliff, andFlok down proudly upon the
slaves, scGching and frying among the
dhourra stbblc below. He resolved to
en- JOY thiSuyury, and remained sitting
on the odg Of the cistern, gazing at the
heaps of wiitish dust with which two
thousand Pears had nearly f!lcd the
mighty res'rvior. His eye 0t length
alightcd % a small object that imno-
diately riyted all his attention. II
looked Ikea fragment of lunar light
cleaning Fftly and scrcncly inthe rich
sunshine, What could II be: 1t wasby
no means @Sy to descend into thc rc-
scrvoir, ant twhcn there it might prove
still less cas-, to climb out again. But
the love ofimvcnturc i generally the
feeling uppGmost in the mind Of an
Arab, Witout taking much counsel
Of fprudcnce,Sibhi lcapod into the els
tern, and VII beating heart approach
ed the objegwhich had lur"d him into
the gulf. Mere, 1aulied by two piece"
of challly stble, it lay drinking in the
morning liglt, and then rejecting ii
upon the eyesoltcued and subducd osiI
by magic. With the experience which
seems comnim to all orientals, he UNI
derstood it was some rare gem, and The
word which lc behcld CngraVcn on it,
surface might for aught he knew, be
the Great Name by which Sulcimar
transported the treasures Of kaf int
his regal palace among the cedars,
Slbbi had some scrllple about touch
ing this wonderful amulet, whose pow
ers might shake the moutains, and cal
up around him all the terrible legends
of the Jim. But courage came TO hin
rs he gaZcd. lfit be not supernatural
he thought, itmay still sell for Il grca
deal in Cairo; and emboldencd by thi'
practical consideration, SiDbi picked VI
the gem and concealed it carefully il
his bosom, The next question was how
to escape from the reservoir. The rocF
all round was smooth, polished anc
perpendicular, and little less than three
times his own height. But everybody
is acquainted with the mother of invcn
ton, who now came to the aid Of tn
captive Arab, so that by heaping NJ
great stones and quantities of dus
against the smooth and slippery cock
he contrived to escape from his prison
Sibbi now believed himself to be il
possession of wealth, and his heartwa
elatcd accordingly. lie descended hastl
ly into the valley, and without noticin
whether the wind that blew was hot o
cold, hurried along the path by the riy
er's side towards the Mother of Cite.
No one who has ever considered tn
| n NIL fatl 10