Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1894-07-06

ed in a somewhat blood.curdling tone.
Are the three white men there asked
the form.
eyes, they are there"
Then bring up that which Is made
ready for them, and let the men take ali
that can be brought from the thing that
floats"
Hardly had he spoken when men came
running up, carrying on their shoulders
neither more nor less that palanquins-
four bearers and Two spare men to pal
anouin-and in these II was promptly IN
Dictated we were expected to stow our
selves
Well" said Leo, lit is a blessing to
find anybody to carry Us after having IL
carry ourselves so long
Leo always takes IA cheerful view OF
things
There being no help for it, after seeing
tAe others into theirs, tumbled into my
own litter. and very comfortable l found
It. 1t appeared to be manufactured OF
cloth woven from grass fiber, which
stretched aud yielded TO every motion of
the body aud being bound top and bottom
to the bearing pole, gave gratlul support
10 the head aud neck.
Scarcely had | settled myself when,
accompanying their steps with monolon-
Gus song. the bearers started at swing
ing trot. For half an hour or so lay
there rejecting on the very remarkable
experience that we were going through,
and wondering if any of my eminently
respectable fossil friends down at Cam
bridge would believe me If were to be
miraculously set at the familiar dinner
table for the purpose of relating them. l
don't want to coyey any disrespectful not
ION or slight when call these good and
learned men fossils, but my experience is
that people are apt TO fossilize even at
university if they follow the same paths
too persistenlly. | was getting fossllized
myself, but of late my stock of ideas has
been very much enlarged. Well, l lay
and reflected and wondered what ON earth
would be the end of it all. till at last l
ceased to wonder and went to sleep.
suppose | must have slept for seven
or eight hours, getting the first real rest
that had had since the night before the
loss of the dhow. for when / woke the
sun was high in the heavens. We were
still journeying on at pace OF about
four miles an hous. Peeping out through
the mist.like curtains of the litter, which
ingeniousy fixed on the bearing-pole, /
perceived to my infinite relief, that we
had passed out Of the region of eternal
swamp. and were now travelling over
grassy plains toward cup-shaped nil
Whether or not it was the same hill thai
we had seen from the canal do not know
and have never since been able to discover
for rs we afterward found out, these
people will give little information upor
such points, Next glanced at the mel
, who we're bearing me. They were OF
t magnificent build, none of them bein!
, under six feet in hight, and yellowish II
color. Generally their appearance had
.
, good deal in common with that OF tn
East African Somait, but their hair wa
e not frizzed up, and hung N thick blacl
n locks upon their shoulders. Their Efed
d lures were aquillne, and in many case
q exceedingly handsome, the teeth beln
p especially regular and beautiful. Bu
n Notwithstanding their beauty, 1t struc
It me that; on the whole, l had never seen
!. more evil.looking set of faces. Their
was an aspect of cold and sulen cruelt
- stamped upon them that revolted me, an
h which in some cases was almost uncann
70 in its intensity.
- Another thing that struck me abol
81 them was that they never seemed to smil
! Sometimes they sung the monotonol
song of which have spoken, but whe
they were not singing they renamed
most perfectly silent, and the light OF
laugh never came to brigh.ed their SOL
Der and evil faces OF what race cou
!. these people be? Their language was
bastard Arabic, and yet they were
Arabs | was quite sure OF that. For o.
thing. they were too dark, or rather y
low. | could not say why, but | knt
their appearance filled me with a 81
fear, of which felt ashamed While
IL was still wondering, another litter came
jill alongside of mine In it-for the curtai
q" were drawn-set an old man clothed in
~ whitish robe, made apparently fro
e coarse linen, that hung loosely about hi
-. who, at once jumped to the conclusiC
i" was the sdadowy figure that had stood
the bank aud been addressed vs. "Fathe
nd lie was wonderful.looking old ms
he with snowy beard so long that the er
he of it hung oyer the sides of the litter, a
he had hooked nose, above which fla
ny ed out pair of eyes as keen as snake
] while his whole contenance was insti
led with a look of wise aud sardonic hun
nd impossible to describe on paper.
OIL "Art thou awake, Stranger he sa
led in deep and low voice.