San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1891-01-15
Mnnnan,s nearL.E

hers were far away beyond the desert
sands. But the features softened, as did
the low, rich voice thatasaid-he knew
not whether to herself or him:
"And yet Gdipus came at last to her.
| 1t must be so ever if Gdipus will only
dare the test. IT'S his lack of courage, not
her inscrutability, that leaves woman
be she stone or fiesh-the riddle of the
agesr'
Then into the philosophy of the eng
maed past crushed the ruthless realism
of the present. The cockney groom APP
preached and said:
"Wud ye' leddyship ave me pull the
hale now?'
And waving his hand across the i'm
provised table over the possible Ptolemy
Lord Martindale's voice rang cheerily:
"Come to luncheon. These bloaters
are worth a dozen dead Pharaohs, you
know"
Without reply Edith moved toward
the others. But Latour saw her lip curl
strangely as her eyes rested upon her
husband. The next moment they
glanced into his, a strange, deep glow
in them, as she almost whispered:
You see, my Edipus has not yet
Gomez
That night they all visited the Ezbe-
kieh; and it was really within the walls
of Cairo that the woman of the party
found most to interest her. The palaces,
the mosques, with their marvellous min
arets, the bazars, with their sleepy
seeming but shrewd traffic, all pleased
her with their novelty. But it was the
shifting kaleidoscope of face and dress
and habit through which the orientali-
ty of the land most impressed her, and
night on the Ezbelieh always charmed
her.
Truly the Cairo dear to the artist and
the poet is fast fading, like mirage;
the Cairo dear to the British tourist
hOurishes like u green oasis against the
gray past. He who, with Hopes Ana
stasius, 'goes there expecting, If not an
earthly, at least an aquatic paradise,
finds filth and ruin. on the outside and
filth and misery within" L.Ea 4
But none of this obtrudes itself upon
the Ezbekieh, where Edith sat that night,
Latour again beside her, as had grown
to be a certainty now. Blase as he was
with sightseeing, and more disguised
with the average English speaking tour
list, he now proved a most complaisant
cicerone, never firing in explanation, and
each day suggesting some new jaunt for
the one succeeding
And really good excuse he had, for no
ordinary sightseer had Lady Martindale
approved herself. Her quick intelli-
gence. extensive reading and ready wit
he remembered as posing him often in
cadet days, and now, matured, they not
only frightened the toilsome round of
show places, but even invested them
with fresh motives for thought, Whether
he recognized the glamour Of this I'M
wonted contact he surely felt its charm,
and without Analysing he yielded to it
unquestioning,
And now they sat alone, Lord Martin
dale and Sir Roger having strolled off,
deep III the Suez canal affairs with a
prominent British banker from Alexan-
dria
About the beautiful park, with its
tall, waving palm trees, its acacias and
shrubs, lush in growth and rich in hues,
gathered groups as varied and as pict-
uresque as the world can show. Greeks,
Armenians and Copts, differing in dress
and port, mingled with grave, sedate
Turks and stolid faced Arabs, sinewy
Of
in their oriental garb moved quietly
among Syrians and native fellaheen;
while stiffly uniformed regulars of the
khedive's army strolled around with
picturesque Arnaouts, the white, full
skirts beneath their braided jackets
tightly bound by the sash ever orna-
mented with the double rows of pistols.
Nearer, around the principle cafe, the
groups were European, yet varying in
style and dress-Italian, Greek and
French merchants families, dotted with
occasional Americans, mostly of the
nouyeauX riches, and a goodly sprinkling
of unmistakable English; and for the
delectation of this group the garrison
band performed at intervals the national
airs of all nations.
Over the whole scene babeleG the hum
of many voices, cut by the cries of the
vendors of refreshments, and by an occa-
sional laugh, invariably coming from
the foreign groups.
For your oriental is sedate and seldom
yields to merriment of any sort, smile
being unusual and laugh considered
indecorous.
Lady Martindale had been silent longer
than her wont. Suddenly she looked up
at Latour and said: