Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1891-07-14
THE SON OF THE SHEIK.

YET, also the slgnb OF Jhe long Stfetch OF
dry mud bank, rising byshallow and barely
perceptible degrees TO the edge Of the desert
sands, and thus disclosed by the shrinkage
OF the Jeliffe during the hot months. Hal
can remember just how those mud banks
looked. They were very broad and very
black - except where they touched the
desert, and there the sand had sifted over
them in light, transparent sprinklings-
and in rapidly drying under the sun Of the
Sahara had cracked and warped into thou
sands of tiny cakes that looked for
all the world like little saucers in which
Indian ink has been mixed. Of you are an
artist, as was Thevenot, you will the better
understand this.)
Then there was the reach OF the desert
that drew of on either hand, and that
rolled away, ever so gently, toward the
place where the hollow sky dropped out OF
sight behind the shimmerng horizon,
swelling grandly and gradually like some
mighty breast, which, painting for breath
in the horrible heat, had risen in a final
gasp, and had then. in the midst of it, sud
denly stiffened and become rigid, while on
this colorless bosom of the desert, where
nothing stirred but the waxing light in
the morning and the waning light in the
| night, lay tumbled red and gray rocks,
| with thin drifts Of sand in their riffs and
creviees and gray green cacti squatting or
sprawling in their blue shadows. And
| there was nothing more-nothing, moth
| ing. nothing-except the appalling heat
and the maddening silence.
And in the midst OF it alive
Now I'VE" broadly and generally speak
ing, were the small right wing of General
Pawtrots division Of the African service;
speaking less broadly and less generally,
we were the advance guard Of said divis-
ion, and speaking in the narrowest and
most particular sense "we' were the party
of war correspondents, specials, extras, art
its, etc, who were accompanying said adj
vance guard Of said wing of said army of
said service for reasons herein to be set
forth
AS the long, fat black scow Of the com
missariat went crawling up the torpid
river, with the advance guard struggling
along upon the right, I'VE lay upon the
deck under the shadow Of the scow's avn
| ing and talked and drank kouscoussow.
forget now what had led up to it, but
Ponscarine had said that the Arabs were
patriotic, when Bah Azzoun cut in and said
something which | shall repeat as soon as
have told you about Bah Azzoun himself.
Briefly, then, Bah Azzoun had been born
twenty-nine years before this time at
/ Tlemcen, of kabyle parents-his papa was
a sheik-had been transplanted to France
at the age Of ten, and had flourished there
/ in a truly remarkable manner. He had
| graduated fifth from the Polytechnique;
| he had written books that had been "cour-
ronnees par pAcademie;" he had become
naturaized; he had been prominent in
politics-no one can cut a wide swath in
Paris in anything without hitting against
la politique; he had occupied important po-
sitions in two embassies he was a diplo-
mat of no mean qualities he had lots Of
influence; he dressed in faultless French
fashion; he had owned Crusader; he had
lost money on him; he had applied to the
government for the Office Of "Souschef des
buresux-Arabes dams POran," in order to
recoup; he had obtained it; he had come
on with us and was now on this, his
first visit to his fatherland since his tenth
year, on his way to his post.
VOLTA Bah Azzoun.
And when Ponscarine had spoken thus
about the patriotism Of the Arabs, Bah
Azzoun made him answer, ''The Arabs are
not sufficiently educated to be true pa
triots"
"Bahr' said Santander "a man does not
require to be educated in order to be a
patriot. And indeed, the rudest nations
have ever been the most devotedly patri-
otto"
"Yes," said Bah Azzoun, "but it is a
narrow and very selfish patriotism"
II can't see shat put in Ponscarine. "a
patriot is like an egg-he is either good OF
bad There is no such thing as a good
enough egg;' there is no such thing as a
good enough patriot il man is one al
all, he is perfect one"
II agree,n answered Bah Azzoun; "yei
patriotism can be more or less narrow
Listen and will explain"-he raised him
self from the deck on his elbow, and ges
tured with the amber mouthpiece Of hi.
chibouk. In looking backward upon the
gradual development OF patriotism in the
} minds Of men since the days when they
first began to band together, you can SEE
1t pass through FIVE very distinct stages
J Patriotism, first, was but love Of family
OF parents and kindred, but then as tn,
| family grows aud expands into the tribe
it, too-as merely a large family-become.
the object OF affection, Of patriotic devo
, ton. This is the second stage-the stage
OF the tribe, the clan, the gems; men cal
themselves OF the Gothic tribe, of the Clar
/ Chattan, of the Gems Fabianus. In tn,
third stage, the tribe has sought protection
] behind the Enclosure Of walls. 1t is the
age of cities; patriotism is the devotion
TO the city. Men are Athenians err
Grecians, Romans ere Italians, Carthagin
} ians ere Africans. In the next period pa
Y triotism means affection for the state, foi
l the county, for the province, and Burgun
) dian, Norman and Fleming give freely o
I their breast blood for Burgundy, Norman
dy and Flanders, while we Of today form
) the latest, but not the last, link Of thu
! lengthening chain by honoring, loving an6
serving the country above all considera
) tions, be they Of tribe or town or tenure
Yet 10 not believe this to be the last, TIL
highest, the noblest form Of patriotism
> No" said Bah Azzoun, "this development
shall 90 on, ever expanding, ever mount
9 ing, until, carried upon its topmost crest
Z we attain to that height from which w
can look down upon the world as our coun
try, humanity as our countrymen, and h
shall be the best patriot who is the leas
patriotic"
'Ah-h, fichtrel" exclaimed Santande
; listlessly, throwing a cushion at Bah Az
Z zoun's head, IVA te coucher. It's too no
TO theorize; you're either a great philoso
pheri Bah, Or large sized"-he looked q