Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1888-08-02

scene lighted by q flaming Eastern
lamp suspended from the rafters; in
the next shop q "tons0rial artist )"
plying his trade. or delicately stain
ing the finger and tonails of his patron
with red henna- There q leather mer-
chant among the yellow and red mo-
rocco, and here again worker in cop
per. Now we came upon q coffee
house. that sight so foreign to strang-
ers' eyes, the long, gold divans. the
turbaned head resting against white
walls, the line of shoes before each
seat, and the occupants sitting cross
legged upon elegant cushions, slipping
their coffee from wonderfully beaten
brass tumblers or fine little porcelain
cups. For moment We would hear
the thrum of an Arab guitar made Of
skin and decorated in gold and red
The next it would be the voice of a
Moorish mother singing her baby to
rest with the low monotonOus drone in
B minor.
Suddenly a turn would reveal tho
interior Of a smoking house. with the
white figures and long hookahs, FORM
ing picturesque groups through the
gloom. and always few yards ahead
we could distinguish the form of tho
Arab upon whom our guide depended
to lead us, through this labyrinth OF
tangled byways and alleys. Suddenly
we turned into place more narrow
and blacker than any we(had entered.
There was no lamp to show the pitfalls
here, and but for walking in line. our
hands resting on the shoulders of the
and fallen, or lost ourselves complete
ly in the night. When we emerged
there was a wider space ahead, and a
lamp showed us our guide, looking per-
plexedly about. The Arab had disap-
peared: two dusky figures, bare-legged
and clad in rough arab carpets,
the Turkish fez for cap, leaned
idly against the wall. These were
Nubians. The Arabs work was
done: he had betrayed the hiding
place of his fellows and glided off as
mysteriously as he had appeared, and
none of us had seen his face. These
two black boys only laughed to see
the anxious glances exchanged among
the foreigners and skipped off ahead,
reckoning us, with a knowing wink, to
follow. More steps, more slippery
cobbled alleys, more darkness, then
there broke upon our ear the weird,
unearthly sounds attending the festival
Aissaoui. If the slave who admitted
me was brought by Arab number one,
and therefore expected us, know not;
nor am l responsible for the seemingly
doubtful veracity of what l am to re-
late. will try faithfully to record
what I saw, and if it was in part a
farce and a mean deceptive trick. so
much the better for the credit of the
French Republic, which boasts to have
conquered, civilized. and in part re-
fined the haughtiest race under the
sun.
A winding, vaulted passage led us
into square room. Imagine an open
court paved in red tiles; an arcade all
around, and above balcony supported
by pillars. On three sides there were
rooms opening from the court, on the
fourth flight of steps and benches ar
ranged on either side along the wall.
BY the dim light in the surrounding
rooms We could perceive figures arrayed
in costly silks and white. gently swaying
back and forth as if unconscious of
any thing but the scene before them.
These were spectators and pilgrims,
and some, the guide told us, belonged
to noble and wealthy families in Al
giers. From the balcony above peered
anxious women's faces vailed to the
eyes. These women kept up contin-
ual low moan. and occasionally joined
in the most unearthly yell. But the
main interest centered in the court be-
low. where a dozen or more natives
squatted on the ground in circle, sway
ing, bowling. shouting. or laughing in
a fiendish manner, as the spirit moved
them, beating with unceasing same
ness of tune upon their tam-tams an
even, monotOnous noise, performed
with head. elbow and hand. In the
center of the group was small ar
rangement of stone and tiles (perhaps
an ATARI on either side of which were
two chanfrets of red-hOt Goals. At
tached to the pillars on all four sides
of the court were flA.ing oil lamps,
which threw weird, uneven light
upon the circle below, but so arranged
that our corner beneath the balcony
was entirely in shadow and was quite
unobserved by the excited participants
in the fete. They seemed unconscious
of our entrance, and q great clay water
jug shielded US from the view Of those
beyond. The scene was barbarous in
the extreme-the deafening sound of
the tam-tams, the shouting of the men.
the moaning of the women. with now
and then that terrible savage scream
which begun in high note and sank
gradually away to q chatter such as