Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1894-05-23
ATL0YE'S COMMAND
By JOHN A. sTBUART.
copyright, 1875, by John Alexander stouart.l

moments, and sometimes weakness Is sal
vation. As the quircring grasp relaxed l
gradually sank lower and lower, till half
nv length trailed on the ground.
Two or three more little slips and my en-
emies could work their will. Thedarlncs;
and dizziness Of death were already upon
me when my knee struck some protuDer-
ance so that with the mighty speed
bounded like ball. 1t gave ne my op-
portunity. Finding myself well in the ar,
I concentrated all my strength, drawing
iercely with the lett hand. The lax mus
cles turned to steel in the moment OF su-
preme need. rose on that terrific pull
Then quicker than thought the girth was
let 90 and the right hand shot across the
saddle. The hooked fingers caught some
thing, and the next moment, wrigS!inG and
nearly blind from excitement and eXhaus-
tion, I lay half across the horses back.
Then, with such an effort as Z man makes
for his life, wriggled farther up, and be-
fore knew it was in the saddle and reach
ing for the rein. AS got it yell OF rage
went up close behind, and another spear,
less true in aim than the first, whiZzed past
and buried itself in the sand
For the next five minutes few il IN
slant expectation of death. Crouching
with the long spurs deep in my horses sides,
and my heart afraid to beat, peltcd On. t
was bound for bound Of pursued and pur-
suers, a race as OF hounds painting Gt the
heels of a stag that just managed to keep q
tongues length in front. But woe Eetide
the quarry in case OF nlishap or mistake!
Had anything gone wrong with me, had
nv girth broken or my horse stumbled Or
slipped or slackened pace for so much as
the tenth part of second, my blood had
been poured out on the desert.
Whittier was going, or whether there
were many or few about, could not tell.
I saw nothing but jumbled, feyerish
vision of the low craned head of the horse,
flying name and pair Of reaching fore
feet that never seemed to touch the ground,
but in my ears was Il noise that told me
death was riding hard at my back.
The spume fakes few up from my horses
mouth, wetting my face, and l could feel
the increasing heave Of his flanks. Now and
then, too, had a glimpse Of a rcd eye and
anostril like 81 pit full OF blood" 1t was
sheer cruelty to goad him on. But WHIT
were considerations of cruelty to one w Il
three fiends stretching within three yar's
for his life? I was cruel as cruel could b.,
plying the long sharp spurs as fast and rs
hard as heel could drive them, in spite OF
the croanings and shakings Of my victim.
So great was the strain Of terror that it
may well be imagined no fresh alarm could
affect me- Yet when 4 vicious cry went
up, as it appeared, at my very ear, beto!icn-
ing as fanced the triumph Of the Bedou-
ins, shut my eyes with 4 creeping, shud-
derinp horror that made me give little
scream. rode in darkness forWhat seemed
an endless time, momentarily expecting
the thrust Of cold steel IN the small of the
back. As it did not come ventuged to open
nv eyes, but nothing could have induced
me to look behind.
1t was now high noon and the sun III IN
candescent globe overhead. There may
have been clouds in the sky, but asSuredly
there was neither SHADOW nor breath Of
moving air on the earth. I stewed in my
soaked clothes IS If dissolving over q slo"
fire and gasred and wheezed like an asta-
matte shut up in an oven, Tor the GulTcr-
inc, simmerirg heat not only broiled the
body, but was as singing acid in the eyes
and nostrils and IS burning fumes II the
lungs.
All at once there came q sharp puff of
wind, not sweet and refreshing, but charged
with more poisons than ever chemist
dreamed of. Looking upward l saw q great
glare in the sky, as it were the reflection Of
some vast confagration, and even as
looked the glare swiftly deepened, till it
appeared the heavens themselves were Or
fire. Then the fiery redness was suddenly
overcast, and dull, ccppery hue took its
place, this yielding in turn, and very quick
IL, to deep purple, and that again to an
ominous black. All the while the wind
came in spurts of even greater force and
longer duration. ! was wondering what
all this might mean, when there burst upon
my ear a great, prolonged roar, as Of a
mighty flood lashed to fury, and turningto
the right hand quarter saw q portentous
black cloud rushing toward me with in
conceivable velocity The look showed me-
too, that was riding alone. The Bedouins
had abandoned the chase and were now
tearing off in another direction altogether
Ihad not taken in the situation when
was enveloped in darkness and gasping as
If bottle of volatile salts had been pressed
to nv nose. At the same time the wind
nearly tore me from my seat, and though
could see nothing l felt that NY horse had
turned tail to the blast and was drifting
like ship in a gale or cattle in driving
highland snowstorm. hugged his neck,
and my mantle few over my head. Well
for me it did, for this was the dreaded
simeon before which al Arabia falls down
and covers its face as close as cloth VII
roll. I lay unable to breathe and in cN
quisite torture, my horse scuddling before
the tempest. He stumbled often and
would have lain down but that Kept the
spurs to him. Had he had his will, in less
than half a minute we should both have
been buried beneath wreath Of sand to
lie there until the winds came again to Un-
earth our bleaching skeletons.
The storm passed on like a solid wall,
and as if by magic the atmosphere cleared,
though I could still see the black line Of
the whirlwind far ahead. looked eagerly
about for company, but found myself COM
pletely alone. No Bedouins IN pursuit, no
Bedouins in sight, nor indeed any living
thing The simeon had given me my life,
but it left me dosolate.
Dismounting and looping the bride over
nv arm, I walked little bit, shaking
loads of sand firm the folds of my dress.
Ny right leg, however, was so sore and
stiff that 1 was soon compelled to sit down,
though it was long time before had any
heart for surgery When at length got
sufficient command Of my nerves to ex-
anime the wound, found myself with an
ugly cash in the right thigh, from the
depths of which blood still oozed. The
clotted outer edges were fast hardening
and stiffening so that the pain grew cruelty
intense.
Perhaps it was because attention was
directed to my hurt that it became all at
once so sensitive, but the smallest move
ment now caused q pang that cut the
breath like stab Besides, was in
raging fever OF thirst. \ water skin dan
gled from my saddle bow, and reached for
it in hope Of relief. 1t was already crack
ing and shriveling III the funacelil1c heat
but there was q chance that some Of the
precious contents might still remain. Now
that the idea of it came to me my whole
z