Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1874-09-24
A Malay Sailor Running a Muck.

AFTER protracted zig-zag tramp
through the exceedingly narrow, tortu-
Gus and filthy streets, permeated by an
atmosphere Oppressively hot and posi-
lively sickening; brushing past closely
muttted, carefully-veiled women, serious
looking, lOng-bearded merchants and
tradesmen, ragged soldiers and Bedouins,
all but stark-naked fishermen, sailors,
labOrers, slaves, etc, we finally reached
the bazaar, or market, where everything
that is Obtainable or manufactured in
Mascat can be bOught-from the we'll
known locuSts, a favOrite article of food,
to the most gorgeous diamond necklaces
OF the Orient My companions had just
finished their purchases, and hired a
| couple Of negroes to carry the goods to the
beach, when all of a sudden we were
startled by general stampede of all the
people Of that portion of the bazaar
which we had just left.
They came rushing madly after us, the
men shouting, the women screaming and
all of them gesticulating in the widest
manner What could cause such :sud-
den and universal flight of the popula-
ton?
Was it revolt among the rabble? a
dog afflicted with hydrophobia? sudden
attack of hostile Bedouins from the ada
| cent desert? or had the good people of
Mascat all gone raving mad simultane-
ously?-questions more easily asked than
| answered bystrangers.
! We turned around to look for an ex-
! PLANTATION from our negro mammals por-
! ters) whom we had engaged to carry the
| provisions to the beach, but not one was
! to be seen! They had. dropped their
! loads and fled with the crowd which still
rushed past us in dismay, stumbling and
| rolling over the bags of provisions. Anx-
| lous to get out Of the way of the terror
! stricken populace, which came down
| upon us like an avalanche, we quickly
| mounted the elevated platform of the
nearest Stall-a BARRIERS shop, or rather
a head-shaving establishment, for Mos
| lens rarely, if ever, shave their faces,
but universally their heads.
| From the exalted position we now oc-
Cupled on the platform we had good
view over the entire crowd pushing ire
sistibly on through the narrow street,
| and soon discovered the cause of the
stampede in the shape of an athletic
man, of dark olive complexion, in a state
OF absolute nudity, and apparently as
| sipperyskinned as an eel, bounding to-
ward us with the velocity of panther
| bouncing on its prey. An ugly-looking
| Malay "crees' Ga dagger, at least four
| teen inches in length, with a sharply
! pointed, flaming blade) was tightly
clutched in his right hand, gladiator
fashion, and dripped with blood; his
head was bent low like butting ram,
and everything indicated that the fellow
meant, nay, had already done, mischief
Indeed, we shortly afterward saw him
| plunge his knife up to the hilt into the
! breast of poor old fisherman, who had
not been feet enough to escape him.
| No sooner had the villain withdrawn his
| weapon when a young shOp-keeper,
attracted by the general uproar, rushed
| out of a side street, and, unconsciously,
| right into the jaws of death.
| The next object of attack was a
| phlegmatic, longbearded, heavy built
"dervish" (MOslem monk, with three
volumes Of manuscript under his arm,
! who dropped his library, took to his
/ heels ID right good earnest, and disap-
peared around the corner like a shadow.
! FrenZied by the escape of his intended
! vlctim the human tiger darted madly on
/ in his course of destruction. overlook
/ and grasped by the right arm a hand
j some young woman, who had been max
] ing strenuous efforts to Get out Of his
way; but the well-known waddIing gait
/ peculiar to Moslem women, and mainly
due to their far too spacious, hetasseled,
/ lemon-colored, morocco-leather boots,
was no match for the prodigious speed
Of the murderer. Just at this point the
bloody career of the desperate was
abruptly cut short by a well-mounted
Bedouin, armed with long lance, which,
/ on daShlng up behind tue murderer, he
drove deeply into his back at the very
moment when well-directed slash of a
sword in the hands of an armorer on the
neck of the assassin almost severed his
head from his body, and laid him out on
the ground stone-dead.
A feeling Of intense relief was mani