The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-08-10
WRITTEN IN SAND.
Legend of Seiim and the Advice OF n Dumr
Deryish.

Legend of Seiim and the Advice OF q Dump
/ Dervish.
In certain country where bees
make honey and men eat it they have
the saying: Written in sand was not
written to stand" If you ask its
origin they tell you this story:
There formerly lived in that country
a young man named Selim who was
hopelessly given to procrastination.
He had received from his father a
small property, but, being too easy
going and indolent to make any move
toward increasing it, he had gradually
sunk into poverty. One morning, as
he was sitting in his hut eating his
frugal meal of sour curd and dates,
hungry dervish called at his door and,
without speaking, begged by signs for
a mouthful of food. Selim at once
babe him enter and help himself. The
dervish did so. and quickly devoured
all that was left upon the table.
When he rose to go he seemed
to wish to repay in some sort
his hosts kindness, and asked in panto-
mime that yriting materials might be
fetched. When Selim told him that
there were neither pen. in. nor paper
In the house he showed by gesture that
as he passed out he would write some
thing with his stick in the sand before
the door.
''Goodr' said the young man: 81 will
come later and read what thou hast
written"
Thereupon the dervish departed, but
Selim sat in his hut too lazy to stir
from his chair THE sun is hot now
he said to himself; ''when it is cooler
will go out" The day waned and night
fell. Il could not read the writing
now for the darkness reflected Selim;
81 will wait until morning" But dur
ing the night caravan passed by the
house and every trace of the writing
was obliterated
A year later the dumb dervish called
again at Selim's door to ask for enter
tainment, and seemed surprised to find
him as poor as ever. After they had
eaten he made a sign for the young
man to accompany him. Selim went
short distance and then lazily fell be-
Hill. Ic ucItISll CdIlc W Illc DoTOcT
of the desert, and pausing, wrote some
words in the sand with his staff. Then,
pointing to them significantly, he went
his way. Selim understood. but the
sun was hot and he was loath to exert
himself further. 81 will go this after
noon and see what he has written" he
thought. and lying down under a tree,
he fell asleep. BY and by, just before
sunset, he got up and went to read the
writing, but while he slept the wind
had come and blown about the sand
until not so much as a single letter re-
manned.
The next year the dervish once more
presented himself at Selim's hut and
seemed more than ever surprised at
finding him still miserably poor. This
time when he went away he took the
young man by the arm and led Dim
down toward the seashore, where the
sand lay white and fiat and hard.
however. Selim made an ex-
cuse to stop and tie his sandal, then,
being too sluggish to go on, he sat down
in the shade of great rock. The der
wish meanwhile wrote a sentence in
the sand, and after calling attention
to Invent away. 1t was little too
far from him to be read easily, SO the
Young man said: There is no hurry:
will go and look at it presently" But
before he knew it he was sound asleep,
and by and by the tide came up and
washed the writing wholly away.
Yet another year passed. and for the
fourth time the dervish knocked at the
be entered and saw the young man in
his rags he held up his hands with as
Truly, Allah is great he ex-
claimed. Here am |, dumb from
birth, permitted at last to speak and
declare smy wonder that there doth
exist in this world a person so lazy and
shiftless as thou. Three times have
offered thee good counsel which, If
Thy poverty, and thrice hast thou
proved too indolent to take IT,"
But. returned SeliIn, trying TO ex-
fuse himself. lin the first instance thy
good counsel was taken by the camel's
hoofs. in the second it was taken by the
Wind. and in the third it was taken by
he waves Tell it me now by word of
mouth that | may take II myself
"Abm said thc-dervish gravely, 81
lear it is too late-much / fear il al
ways has been and ever viii be too Late
for such as thou to profit by advice of I
any kind. 1t is this that wrote thrice /
n the sand:
he who does not willie he may what he should /
May not after do II when ne would"
OH said Selim, yawning. is that !
lil?'-W orthington's Magazine.
CEONIAG