Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1894-05-02

a-....a...u..:
.-Nay," i repred. ''My Iord mas not
spoken half the truth"
"And thou wilt see she Is as good she
is beautiful" he said, q prophecy that was
fulfilled to the utternast, as this history
will show.
Many who have never set eyes on him
have been eloquent in the praise of the
Arab horse. Poet and painter and roman
Ger have Wed in delineating mis- matchless
excellences, physical and mental. But 1t is
not until you have eaten and slept and
fought with him in the desert, on the bat
t1efeld, beside the black tent in the green
pastures, until you have been his intimate
friend and comrade and learned to appreci-
ate his GOODNESS and courage, his power Of
endurance and gentleness and intelligence
and loyalty that you can know his many
high qualities. Yet perhaps only poet
could describe my Fatima, for in her
were surely combined the perfection of
equine virtue and beauty.
Never anything more lovely, more dainty
and proud moved on four legs
She was neither big nor heavy, but her
muscles were of whalebone and her bones
of the finest tempered steel. Her limbs
indeed were like wrought metal In the
frmness, cleanness and grace of them, and
the trunk in exquisiteness of curve and
symmetry of parts was such as sculptor
may have dreamed of, but has never
matched in bronze or marble. The sum
total of that animate loveliness-the silken
bay coat, the softly sloping shoulders, the
buoyancy of the curved back, the fiery
pride Of the arched neck, the full round
launches, the rich sweep of name and tail
the sharp, daintily poised ears, the broad
forehead and the fine muzzle, and, above
all, the spirit of the alert full orbed eye-is
beyond the power of any artist save ma
ture herself, nor does nature take such
pains anywhere out Of Arabia.
When Fatima found mein the saddle, she
began to glide through the giddy maze
with an case and fuency of motion that to
me was like foretaste of heaven. lplumed
myself on my horsemanship, for one OF the
few things I learned thoroughly as boy
was to stick on the back of anything that
could take bit between its teeth, and no
doubt had now the conceit to hold up my
head as a fit rider for the noblest of steeds.
But indeed an old wife could have sat that
supple, mincing creature with security,
though the upward glance Of her eye, with
its intimation of suppressed fire, told that
under different conditions she could behave
in totally different manner. was after
ward to prove how her spirit and behavior
varied with varying circumstances.
Presently the muezZin began to cry
plaintively from the 1ninarets, and the
soldiers and citizens trooped off to the
mosques to pray for pardon and victory.
leaving only few men to look after the
beasts. As my company in worship would
defile the sacred places of Moslem, l also
remained behind.
When the worshipers returned from their
devotions, the baggage camels were putinto
line and examined by the officers, the
horses and dromedaries being made ready
for their riders while the examination was
proceeding. Then came supper, and in
honor of the great occasion many sheep
were slaughtered and roasted whole over
big fires. The kissing carcasses had hardly
time to take brown crust when they were
torn asunder and eaten in huge mouthfuls
by ravenous host, who washed down the
burning meat with copious drafts Of
goats milk. AS did not care to enter the
lists in such contest, contented myself
with piece of doughy bread, some dates
and q cup of coffee
When the meal was over, characteristic
ceremony was enacted A calf only few
days old was led into the open space and
killed with a sword, its blood being made
to flow inward toward the CASTLE The an
imals life extinct, every man who was to
accompany the expedition stepped solemn
" over the body, which was then burned,
so that no dog or other unclean beast might
eat any part of the flesh. This is supposed
to bring good fortune, and an Arab army
could not be induced to take the field with
out first observing the sacrifcial rite. The
calf safely cremated, the men Immediately
mounted their camels and horses and
wheeled into line. Then Abou Kuram, 60
ing to the front, delivered a short oration
on the glory of war and the bravery of his
soldiers, which evoked uproarious applause
from the fattered.
Ere it died away the kettledrums were
rattling and the cymbals clashing the ad-
vance, and amid vociferous cries Of "God
save Abou Kuram; God give the victory
to Abou Kuram," the strangely assorted
troops swung slowly into line. The huge
serpentine procession wound tediously
through the narrow, tortuous streets, in
which two camelmen found it hard to
march abreast, but its tardy ceilings were
enlivened by the caperings and shoutings
of the mob who ran in front of us and hung
on our heels and, to their own immediate
peril, squeezed and pressed on both sides
of us.
On the outskirts of the town the people
stopped, finding the pace on the open
ground beyond their capacity in running;
So they stood there and yelled themselves
hoarse with blessings and good wishes,
which we acknowledged with resounding
cheers. AS we deployed into open order for
greater ease in marching caught last
glimpse of Said Achmet, who stood apart,
waving with his hands as if to signify he
had double interest in the receding col
umn. Both Tabal and myself waved our
adieu in return, and from me there went
with it heartfelt benediction.