Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1878-02-01

back his ears, and kicked with his strong
hind legs. A kick from a camel is no
joke, 1 can tell you. All the desert
guides knew Solimin, and, for his sake,
Ahmed was often hired to accompany
caravans. Nay, once, at Cairo, Solimin
was chosen to carry the sacred person of
the Khedive ON a days excursion up the
Nile bank, which event served the tribe
as a boast for months afterward.
1t was the year after this journey to
Cairo that Ahmed met with terrible
adventure. He and Mustapha, making
their way home after a long journey,
had lain down to sleep away the noontide
hours, according to the custom of desert
travellers. Their camels were tethered
beside them, all seemed secure and
peaceful, when, sudden as the lowering
of cloud, party of Arabs, belonging
to wild tribe at enmity with all men,
pounced upon them. Ahmed and his
son defended themselves manfully, but
what could two men, surprised in sleep,
do against dozen? In five minutes all
was over. The assailants vanished in a
cloud of dust, and Ahmed, who had been
struck down in the rush, recovered his
senses, to find csmels, baggage, belt,
money, everything gone, and Mustapha
wounded and motionless on the earth
beside him.
Ahmed thought him dead. They were
alone in the desert, hundred miles
from home, without food or water, and
with a groan of despair he sat down be-
side his sons body, bowed his head, and
waited until death should come to him
also. An Arab believes in fate, and
gives up once for all when misfortune
occurs.
But Mustapha stirred, and Ahmed at
once sprang up. There was nothing he
could do for the poor boy, except to
chafe and rub his hands but this was
something, for presently Mustapha re-
vived enough to speak.
care they ?" he asked.
eyes, the accursed ones, they are
gone, with all our goods and with Soil
min! The prophets curse light upon
them % And passing from despair to
fury, Ahmed threw sand upon his head,
and flung himself on the ground in help
less rage. Mustapha joined in with
groans and lamentations.
When the father and son grew calmer,
they began to discuss the situation
Ahmed knew of small unfrequented
oasis, about twenty miles away. It was
their only chance of safety, but could
they reach it J?
81 think I can walk" declared Mus
tapha, tying up his wounded leg in a
fold torn from his turban. But he
limped sadly, and his tightly pressed
lips showed pain as he moved. He was
faint with hunger beside. Neither of
the men had eaten since sunrise.
Suddenly Mustapha uttered a joyful
cry, and liitel something from the earth.
"The prophet be praised I' he cried.
"My father, here is food. The robbers
have dropped bag of dates"
Sure enough, there it lay, heavy bag
of dates, shaken off from some camel's
pack during the struggle. Heavy as it
was, and hard to carry, Ahmed would
fain have it larger. It was their safety
from starvation. A handful of its con-
tents satisfied hunger, and gave them
strength to begin their walk. What a
walk it was Poor Mustapha lay down
every half hour from pain and weakness;
the sand was heavy, the darkness puzzled
them. When morning broke, they had
not accomplished more than half the
distance. All through the hot day time
they lay painting on the ground, eating
now and then date, tormente1 with
thirst and heat; and when evening came,
they dragged themselves to their feet
again, and recommended their painful
journey. Step by step, hour by hour,
each harder and longer than the last,
moment by moment they grew more
feeble, less able to bear up, till it seemed
as though they could no longer struggle
on. AT last, tie morning broke. Ahmed
raised his blood-shot eyes, seized Mus
tapha's arm, and pointed. There, not q
hundred yards away, was the oasis, its
trees and bushes outlined against the
sky.
Poor Mustapha was 80 spent that his
father had to drag him across the short
dividing space. 1t was small oasis,
and not very fertile; its well was shal,
low and scanty, but no ice-cooled sher.
bet ever seemed more delicious than did
it's brakish waters to the parched tongues
of the exhausted men.
All day and all night they lay under
the shadow of the cactuses and the aca-
cia-trees, rousing only to drink, and
falling asleep again Immediately. Shade,
and sleep, and water seemed the only
things in the world worth having Just
then.
The second day they slept less, but il
was nearly week before they could be
said to be wide-awake again. Such q
pair of scare-crows as they looked
! Ahmed was almost naked. The rob-
bers had taken part of his clothes, and
the desert thorns the rest. Haggard,
wild, blackened by the sun, they gazed
at each other with horror; each thought,
"Do | look like that ?" and each tried tc
hide from the other his own dismay.
They could never tell afterward how
long they remained at the oasis. II
seemed years, but 1 do not suppose il
could have been more than weeks. All
day long they looked wistfully toward
the horizon, in hopes of O caravan. but
the caravan never came. Slowly the
dates dwindled in the bag; slowly the
precious water diminished in the well
little longer and starvation would be
upon them. They scarcely spoke tc
each other those last days, but sat each
by himself in sort of dull despair. Al
night, when they fell asleep, they
dreamed of food, and woke in the morn
ing to feel themselves hungry. 1t was
terrible
Then came morning when they rose
to find the hard desert outline, which
they knew so well, vanished and gone
and in its stead smooth, shining lake
fringed with trees and dotted will
feathery, fairy islands. So near j
seemed, and SO real, that it was al