Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-11-07
MOUNT ARAFAT.

Hold, am not coward, as you all will
acknowledge since you know where have
travelled and where am now on my way,
but not for all the gold which these temples
once contained would ever undertake again
to ascend Mount Ararat, the accursed noun
tain
1t was De Thon who was speaking to US
three of his friends who were seated with
him one superb moonlight night among the
ruins of the temples OF Karnak, in Upper
Egypt. After long ramble through those
mute vestiges of the ancient civilization of
the Pharaohs, we had all stretched ourselves
on the warm sand that the winds of the desert
had heaped among the stones, and each one
seemed to have given himself up to his own
special reveries. De Thon, whom a fortu-
nate chance had added to our little COM
pany on the shores of the Nile when he was |
making his final preparations for voyage |
through the country Of the Gallas, had just |
come up to join us as he had promised. And |
it was he-this dauntless explorer of regions
hitherto unknown; this tall, powerfully
built fellow, six feet in his Moorish sandals
of red leather, whose superb figure and
proud bearing indicated no ordinary degree
Of energy, courage and daring, who was
openly confessing TO having been overcome
\ Dy fear at least once in his life 1t was GER
Elniy very strange, to say the least of it,
rs slowly seated himself on ruined col
reonhalf buried in the sand, and as if the
stiII lection of this adventure overcame him
ROM. ae began 70 relate it to us All the sur
H;o dings we're wonderfully in harmony with
OF ahve. Behind US, the majestic chaos
IN xtiins; masses of marble Jet black, and
seNlky white, and around us the silence of
that vast stretch of sand, only broken by the
distant howl of the jackal and the hou hou of
the owl
had Just been through the whole Turco-
Russian campaign in Asia Minor, and many
time had fought side by side with my friends
the Georgians and the kourles. As soon as the
war was ended stopped for time in Bay
azed. One day, l do not know why, this
Colossus of the Caucasus, whose snowy sum
NIT rose before me- and on which had been
gazing incessantly, seemed to exercise q per
feet fascination over me, and | determined
then and there to make the ascent. have
always been apt to yield to sudden impulses
hurried to the pasha, governor of the town.
to communicate my intention and ask his ad-
vice.
"Do not attempt it." he said. THAT
mountain is haunted by evil spirits; the Agri-
Dagh devours the impious who dare to tread
the green turf on its sides. But know YOU
NJ de Thon, and you never will give up this
wild idea. If you will go, choose twenty of
my best horsemen as an escort; they will &C
company you to the foot OF the mountain, if
you desire it, but not the boldest among them
would venture TO set his foot on the side of
the Mother of the World, from whose black
rocks even the birds flee in terror" had
already in my service the Albanian whom
you have all seen on board my ''Cahabieh,n
and who would follow me into the very laws
Of death. One day when bis body was about
TO swing from the gibbet for one of those
innumerGble pcccadilloes which cost mans
life in time of war, l had interceded for
him and obtained his pardon. He swore
eternal gratitude, and has shown himself
ready to prove it by the willingness with
which he has accompanied me in nv
perilOus wanderings to the center of Africa.
So | determined to start with Ali, and
after a rough ride we reached the foot
of Mount Ararat The chief of the escort.
who had frequently shaken his head in an
ominous manner as we rode along, now
quilted US without uttering a word to wait
our return near Nakhitchevan, and we were
left entirely alone, We had brought plen-
tiful supply of provisions These confded
to little shepherd who was guarding his
flock not far from us, and made him promise
to keep them for us and meet us at the same
place on our return in the evening. Then we
started TO make the ascent. Day was Just
breaking, the sky was pure, the atmosphere
calm, and We were quite sure Of being able
to return by twilight. How shall describe
the ascent Ararat is more than IL, 600
feet high, and often as we came upon the
scoria Of its eruptions we seemed to be adj
vancing to the assault Of bare and totter-
ing walls, which crumbled in fragments at
our feet. Still we got along bravely, tri-
unphing over innumerable difficulties, and
We finally drew near the summit Neverthe-
less, by this time the sun had already passed
its zenith. During our journey we had
gradually exhausted the stock of provisions
which we carried in our pockets, and to en-.
able US to struggle against the fatigue and
giddnesS consequent upon the ascent we had
emptied the last drop in our gourd | was
about to give the order to start on our re
turn, when my Albanian, who for some min
utes had seemed very nervous and disturbed
as he scanned the soil closely suddenly ex
claimed:
master, where are the stonesT7
what stones do you meanYn
"Why, the stones that we could see abov,
us, from where we were standing few min
utes ago. Those on which Noah's ark restes
during the deluge-where are theyf
You are crazy. Ali. Do you not see tina
they are covered by hundred feet of snow
Come, don't stop to think about that-come
let us hurry to begin our descent, or nigh
will overtake US, and see clouds gathering
on the plain below"
THAT is very Unfortunate replied he
''but we ought to be able TO see those stones
Woe TO him who climbs so high on thi
mountain and fails to touch with his an
the sacred rock from whence life descende
again upon the EARTH
By this time piercing, icy wind began {
blow
1t now seemed to me at each step that m
feet were weighted down with hundred poun
weights there was ringing in our ears, GU
breath came in quick gasps, and it was evl
dent that we must descend as quickly as DO:
sible to avoid sufYocation from the rarefaf
ton of the air. For awhile we proceede
without pause. We descended the slopes q
glaciers and stepped over the ridges of oil
sidian, shining and slippery as glass, but 500
the clouds envelopcd us, and we entirely Los
our bearings Stumbling along the stee
ridges OF the cone, We continued our descer
in zigzag fashion, while the sun san
lower and lower in the horizon. Finally "
emerged from the fog; patches of snow a
ternated with masses of blackened rock. W
were now in a ravine which we were con
PEELED TO cross. Suddenly my companio
stopped Master, look towards the cente
on that table of granite; there Is some OIL
there, Let us ask him the way
l advanced few steps, but what behe
made the hair on my head fairly bristle vii
horror, Yes, in the center of the grant
table a human form was crouching in ii
shadow. A gaunt and hideous old man thr
times the size of any living man. In his in
mense crooked fingers he clutched who
quarter of sheep, raw and bleeding, whic
be was devouring. The blood ran in stream
along his bony arms and dripped upon b
knees. A frightful smile distorted bis fac
1t was evident that All saw this gigant
phantom as well as myself, for he had turn,
as pale as a sheet, his hand cutched convr
slvely the carbine, which until this mome
had been slung to his belt Thad not strenp
TO address this grisly specter, though Ali d
not give me time to do So | saw him raj
MS carblne to his shoulder, and the repo
rang through the air. repeated a hundr,
times by the echo in the ravine But Ii
specter dld not stir; he seemed only to devo
us repast more greedily than before