West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1891-11-26
THE mooklsH STORY TELLER
low 10 Eu.ortains Ills People with Fan-
cigul Tales of the East.

low Eo Eu.ertains Ills People with Fan
ciful Tales of the East.
Hall Cainc, author of "fhc Deem
ster" and other novels, has discovered
fioorish story teller The Moorish
story teller is not usually Moor,
] roperly so called, but or negro blood,
and comes from beyond the Atlas lie
! . familiar Ggurc ON the MohGrl.n cdan
holiday, Friday. IN the so,:, or market
place, of Moorish towns. surrounded
10y two, three or four lines OF listeners.
81 n scmi-circlc, he struIns on sort of
guitar, and tells his stories In gasps and
I'd srasms and with great fervor. His
fiorics arc not always Of kind that
] car repetition, but some are harmless;
and of that sort Mr. Caine gives, "a an
exaraplc, a story which be himself heard
in the solS ut Tangicr, and had trans
lated TO him by resident. Most Of
this oral literature of the market place
seems to be u sort of apocrypha 70 the
Arabian Nights" "Oncc there was u
rood man, and his name was Ali. He
Lad a Christian captive, beautiful
English girl. Ali was willing 20 make
her his wife II she would become Il true
believer. Praise the mcrciful Allah
aud his prophet the Lord Mohunmed.
tStory teller and audience touch their
foreheads.) She, on her part, was will
ing TO be Alis wife If he would become
Christian. One day Ali told her to go
down 20 his stable under his house and
saddle his favoritc horse.
"When she got TO the stable the horse
lifted both its forefeet and struck her
down. For n time she was insensible,
and when she recovered consciousness
she took the blow of the horse rs n
proof Of her unbelicf in tho true God
and his prophet. Allah save and bless
us. (All touch forehcads aSlin.) So
she went mp to Ali AID told him she be-
Iieved and would become his wife. Then
Ali sGid Go down again and saddle my
horse She went down, and the horse
struck her again. Olce more she re-
turned to Ali. 'Yoa wore not true be-
lever, said Ali; go down ayain.' Yet
again she went down 70 the stable, and
then Ais favorite horse suffered her 10
saddle him, and she brought him TO Ali,
and Ali married her, and she was true
believer for ever after. (Story-tellcr
stops TO make n collection; a good num-
Der Of copper coins are handed to him,
thcn he resumes.) Now we leave All
and go far away into the desert There
was n hght between good Moor and Q
great Christian chief. The Moor had q
beautiful wife, and the Christian killed
him and took his wife and rode away
with her. And one day he met Ali and
challenged him TO fight. But Ali had q
maggie sword, with which he cculd xii
whatever he could sec, no matter how
far away; so while the chief was boast
ing Ali drew his sword and swept it in
the mir. And when the Christian chic
cried: Come and fight me- Ali an
swered him: You are dead already
turn yourself round and you shall see.
Then the chief found that he haC
been cut SO clean by Ais marie SWORD
that he did not know that lie was dead
But he fell asunder as he twisted abou
and rolled off his horse into the sand
So the Moorish woman whom he haC
made captive rcjoiced. and she LOOKED
upon Ali and saw that he was goodly
man and offered herself TO hia to be hi
wife. But ali had got wife already
even the captive who had once been
Christian, So he would not take TIA,
Moorish woman, but gave her to an
other, and thus all was well and every
body was happy. Give thanks TO Allah
the uoerciful and mighty. More touch
ing OF fO-eheads and another collec
tiou.)" Then n story OF finer flavor
told with initiate aul too o3yious pan
tomiue, amid shrielzs OF laughter from
men and women, little boys and girls