Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-04-27

I however, simply laughed on my surprise
/ bv remarkfng that between his beastly
4 French and the Arabs atrOcious English
/ thew were having a high old time. He
I fingered behind for several minutes with
/ the now thawed-out Arab and then Joined
! me.
e.wELL, WE DID CAIRO IN STYLE,
and when the time came for him to go /
/ got the Khedive's permission to run down
| with him to Alexandria osee him on. No.
1 He said he hadn't but few curiOsities,
! but he gladly accepted my offer to pass
! him through the custom house. MyTank
/ easily did this. They got under way in a
/ few minutes, bound for London, and back
/ | went to my duties at Cairo, for / was to
/ be officer of the day at the gardens.
son arriving there l found the place in
/ the widest confusion. The Arab attend
/ ants were chattering and gesticulating
/ wildly, the guards were dashing to and
/ fro in great haste, and the visitors were
moving i'm crowds to the aviary. just
then. with my curiosity all aroused, who
! should | see but the august person Of the
/ Khedive himself, his lips white with rage
/ and about fourteen thunderclOuds on his
/ brow.
".Were you here yesterday, STRIP he
/ sternly demanded.
/" i was, your majesty
w nom Qlu you seer
"'In reply, / went over all cOuldreca
of the visitors, including COnsuls, army
and navy guests from abroad, and so on
:. No one elser
"'None sire, except a friend Of mine from
/ America. But what, in Ailah's name, has
! happened, your majestyT
/ Happened, sirr he Numbered; the
! grossest outrage ever perpetrated on a
! sovereign. But | Will have terrible re-
venge,' and he swore Il terrible Arab
/ oath. Go, sir, and look at that aviary
Last night it contained the finest cOllec-
/ ton of birds in the world. This morning
not one of the whole number is left with a
tall
sit was certainly a most pitiabe sight.
There they We're, fully two thousand OF
the most gorgeous sylvan beauties from
every quarter Of the tropics, and every
one of them
MINUS THEIR TAILS.
''No more proud dress parades for the
bird of Paradise or the peacock or the
South American parrot. The priceless
| collection was ruined. So heartless, even
impious, did the deed of vandalism ap.
pear that the spectators first thought was
about the elaborate doom that awaited
the culprlt. | think the Khedive would
have made mince-meat of any one to whom
suspicion could attach. All Cairo was up
in arms. The entire police and detective
! force was put on the case. Every posi-
bic channel of information was worked
| but there was not the slightest cue OF
clew to the mysterious robbery. Even
the baggage of all visitors to the city was
searched on imperial order for any trace
of the missing tails. They found not a
leather, and when left there some three
years later, during which time the search
had been continued, no daylight was
thrown on the villain who had curUailed
the birds. 1t remains to this dav stand.
ing mystery in Cairo.
''NOw for the solution. Not long ago
while visiting Philadelphia, made a call
on "a lady friend of mine, who proceeded
to tell me of a most wonderful sight she
had seen only the day before. She had
! been paying visit to lady friend, and
proudly displayed a gorgeous new feather
she wore on her hat. ooh, that's moth.
| ing was the response, you ought just
to see the feathers my brother brought
from Europe. Most lovely things in the
world And with that she darted uI
stairs, and returned with an exquisite
! collection from tropical birds.
"My ears went up. Were they tail
feathersp
"'Yes, all of Them
'''And is her brothers. name George
BankY
eyes; but you look wonderfully inter
ested.'
1T didn't take me a long time to hunt
up brother George and faIly accuse him
OF owning the lost tails of Egypt. He
confessed with the coolest sang frOid, and
then went on to say that when l had sur.
prlsed him in the Arabs tent he was just
completing the contract. In return fol
$40 IN gold the greasy Mohammedan en-
gaged for the tails Of the entire collection
and would deliver them late on the even
Ing Of the day before the steamer sailed
What worried me most, he said, 'was
how to get them out of the country, and
you worked that at the custom house
Guess they'd have killed me, ehT
Yes sad /, 'and me too, as yOul
friend. Our remains wouldn't have filled
tomato cam"