Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-11-04
AN EGYPTIAN INCIDENT

plague" growled Colonel MACPHERSON
we come here every winter, sail up the
same old river, look at the same old pvra-
mids-no modern additions or improve
ments-see the same abominable old
images that have worn the same protesope
aspect for fifty centuries, and broil on the
same uncomfortable decks, and all because
that boy of mine wants to become known
as an Psychologist. To the duce with
beetles and sacred cattle Pm tired of il
ALL"
Out OF breath with the exertion neces-
sary to this long sentence, Colonel lavish
MACPHERSON leans back in his comfortable
armchair and closes his eyes for a nan
The cause of his trouble is not very appar-
emit, and as he sits there under the avn
ing, with his half pay running on at the
horse guards, with the rents of his deer
forests and sheep farms in the Highlands
faithfully collected and accounted for by
the factor, and with his membership fees
paid up to date at the Carlton and United
service clubs, one could imagine that even
Egypt would appear something other than
house of bondage. The colonel's daba-
beeh, with her big three cornered sail
trimmed to the breeze that ruffies the wa
tiers of the Nile and bears her onward to
Assouam and the Great Cataract, is as
quiet and restful albeit picturesque an OBJ
yect as one would care to see, as on this
December evening of 1870 she creeps up
the river, the lookout man on the bow
watching that the channel is followed, and
the steersman, impressive as a mummy.
leaning upon the long handle of the tiller.
Forward on the deck, face down or curIed
up in all sorts of odd positions, lie the
crew, molly collection of Arabs, NJ
bians and Osmanlis. There is nothing
stirring. The mark of the desert is on all
around. Even the sun, now nearly on n
level with the Nubian mountains away on
the horizon. looks tired and dusty. The
intense quiet bothers the colonel; so he
yawns and Srowls once more. He is a
wtdower with two children-the older a
lad of eighteen, who has already made
something of a reputation as a student of
Egyptian remains, having been enamored
of the land since the evil day when the
colonel first proposed to winter on the
Nile. The second Is a gentle lad of ten
years, well liked by everybody. He gives
his vote for Egypt every winter, because
Jack asks it as a favor. They are ashore
now after relics, and have promised to re-
port when the dahabeeh ties up for the
night at Assouam before warping her wav
through the cataract.
The colonel's eyes follow a movement in
the tangled group of figures on the deck
Two men rise. shouting at each other the
while. The colonel and the dragoman,
who has just poked his head out of his
room on the deck, look on lazily. Sud
denly one of the disputants makes rush
at the other-the CLEAN of steel is seen
and the crew close round the men, A
quick stroke, shout, anger changed to
ha I'll
the dagger of Aboo, powerful Arab, in
his breast.
All this so quickly that the colonel is
still growing that there is nothing stirring
to be seen in Egypt, when he reaches the
group, and, STOPPING over the wounded
man, draws the dagger out. 1t has left an
ugly wound, but not dangerous, and as the
wounded man is taken in charge by his
comrades the colonel turns to the drago-
man for all explanation.
With many profuse apologies the drago-
man tells how the two men were sleeping
side by side when the Nubian inadvertent-
ly put his foot against the Arabs face
That was all, and the dragoman smiled
and bowed.
The colonel, an old disciplinarian, looked
black as night In effective English he or
dered the dragoman, after he had discov-
important enough for Egyptian law to rec
ognize, to anchor the dahabeeh and send a
boat ashore with the culprit and his bag
gage. To the dragOman's question as to
how Aboo was to get back to Cairo the
colonel Numbered that he might walk.
The dragoman bowed and smiled-it was a
habit he had learned from French friend
in Cairo-and translated the coloners re-
| mark to Aboo, adding to them such little
pleasantries as he thought Of He could
walk. His shoes-this with a smile and a
bow directed to Aboo's bare feet-his shoes
might wear out, but So Aboo, having
obtained his dagger and an old ring-his
only article of baggage-goes ashore NUT
tering revenge, which the dragoman inter
prets to the colonel with smile and a
bow. The dahabeeh glides on, and in an
hour is moored at Assouam. The wander
ing relic hunters return and all aboard re-
tire, for is not the cataract to be traversed
at shutdown tomorrow?
Before sunrise Colonel Macpherson was
awakened by the shout OF the young gen.
tlemans body servant, who cried excitedly:
wake. master We can't find Master
Bob. Here is bit of paper that lay on
his bed"
While the colonel rubbed his eyes and
| looked at the scrap Of Arabic the man pro-
duced a commotion occurred outside, and
| the dragoman rushed in with Aboo's dag
ger in his hand. 1t had been taken from
| the breast of the Nubian stabbed to the
heart during the night. The boat that had
been lowed astern of the dahabeeh after
| Aboo's trip ashore was gone. There was
no doubt, explained the dragoman with
his customary smile, that the Arab had
lain ashore until the lights went out, swan
| aboard, knitted his enemy and left again In
the boat. At this the colonel, still holding
the paper in his hand, turns pale and
tremblingly gives it to JACK, who knows
Arabic Dragoman and crew crowd around
| wbile he slowly reads, 'Aboo might have
| killed the English dog tonight, but to steal
| tho nride of mis- tent was better revenge"
They searched for the fugitives with
.brintinp hearts after time, but never a
| - ~ tho hoy dead or living, did they