The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1894-09-14
HIS ADVENTURE.


Your oriental adventurei" asked Ned
amazed.
"Well, It's worth hearing" said Tom,
''if 1t did happen to me. 1t was when
was in Damascus, mere attache Of
grave diplomatic party, boy of 30, who
| might rs well have been left at home,
suppose"
IT had bought cigar cases and smoking
caps and tobacco bags and all sorts of
things" said Tom II had slippers and
scarfs for my mother, and was buying
pipe Of oriental style, with long stem,
and water bottle for the smoke to pass
| through, when great puffy bag OF black
silk which enveloped u lady paused near
me and squatted down before tho shop
Of young jewel merchant for tho pur-
pose of examining his bracelets
"Only the eyes of the figure were Wis
ible, but they wero blackcr and more
beautiful than those of any heroine Of tho
Arabian Nights Entertainments, and
they lit on me once, twice, threo times and
sent sensation through my heart to
which it was happily as yet stranger.
behind the figure stood a less carefully
That it was young beauty thus hid TN
der the silken balloon L had no doubt.
1.-THE jewel merchant was busy with his
wares. No one but the old woman saw
the beauty make little sign with her ex-
quisite hand, but she did it. The sign
seemed to say, Wait I waited.
what waited for hardly knew. My
repertory Of gesture is not large. No Eng
lishman's is. l nodded Yes. 1t suf-
feed.
'As she went away, guarded by her old
attendant, she repeated the motion.
"'Wait, it said again.
"There was a coffee house close at hand,
| open to the street like all the other shops.
There 1 squatted Oh cushion and slipped
and smoked.
II saw figure pass--pause-make a
sign to me.
''It was the old woman, the servant of
my mysterious beauty. l flung coin to
tho story teller and followed her
"She went on for o long while, until
| began to think she would never speak to
me; but at last she paused under the
shadow of the blank plaster walls of q
| house in quiet part of the city, and sud
| denly letting down q long wisp CT gray
| hair took from it n letters little crooked
thing, written on bright paper and
drenched with perfume
81 little English know it began.
My mother she English. 1 wait for you.
| Come
"'Where shall go?' I asked of the old
woman,
''She beckoned. Again followed We
walked on, she going before following,
until she paused before u white plasterod
wall, in which was q narrow door I'm
| locking this, she motioned mo to enter,
and, almost treading on my heels in her
haste, instantly slipped in after me and
relocked it,
Il found myself in tho most beautiful
! garden imagination can depict. Beyond
it was rose arbor Obeying the old WON
| ans motions, 1 entered the door CT this
fragrant retreat.
ION tho instant two beautiful arms
were cast about my neck and voice like
that of tho nightingale softly brcathed
these words:
"'Oh, how long have waited for you,
joy of my soul!'
lit was the girl whom l had seen at the
bazaar. knew her eyes and her hands at
cnce, and knew also that had met my
fate. loved her on the instant as well as
she seemed to love me"
Bother" said Dick.
II can't make you understand that de-
licious emotion" said Tom, signing.
''There we sat together, talking like lovers
who had been parted for years. She slip
ped ring upon my finger. gave her one
from mine. L vowed to bear her away to
| tho land where lovers were not the slaves
they were there and she promised to meet
me at the little garden gate at midnight. !"
"Going 1t fast, said Dick.
| Suddenly, as we sat there, the old
woman rushed into the arbor. She whis-
pered a WORD 10 my pcauuirul iaoyIoyo,
who wrung her hands in terror.
I" Fly for your life!' she said. II Allah
spares my life, Twill meet you at the gates
OF midnight. If not, adiou until we meet
In paradise.
| ''At midnight l sat upon the ston.
| bench again, clad in q coarse oriental
dress, but with pistol hidden beneath it.
I had resolved to die rather than 70 allow
her to be torn from me.
IT waited. The moon arose, round and
| yellow, in the sky. "A strange bird uttered
shrill cry. A dog barked. heard steps
within the garden and shrank back into
the shadow. They were not the steps G!
women.
/ <Ao L hSotICo oiiS tNto OPOhChi olN iohi
black slaves, bearing a burden, emerged
I therefrom. AS the moonlight fell upon
them 1 saw that they held the sides of n
great sack
"They marched away toward the river.
| AS watched them, dreading ] knew not
what, the old woman, with her hair d.
sheveled, rushed out of tho garden. and
wringing her hands pointed after them.
| "'What has happened? shrieked.
| "She threw into my hands q little note.
| I tore it open and read these words
"'Adieul The caliph has discovered all.
| was his wife, The fate of an ,infaithful
vito in this land Is to bo sewed up in u
| bag of lime and cast into the river. Adlcu,
| forever. MAZDA
with shrek, rushed after the no.
treating slaves and-awoke."
"Eh?'' said Dick. "AwoKeP"
"Yes," said Tom. THAT was when ]
was down with bad fever three years ago,
and Sam had been showing mo II Turkish
| pipe, and my black haired cousin Belle
| had read mo to sleep with the 'Howadji In
| Syria, and out Of these things my adven
| ture in Damascus with the beautiful
maiden was born. New York News.
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