Connecticut western news., 1900-10-18
TRACKING THE
 EGYPTIANS,
BY M. QUAD.
Copyright, 1900, by c. B. Lewis l

Copyright, 1900. by c. B. Lewis.l When the firm of Haywood, Stone & Co. of London established an agency at Cairo, Egypt. I was placed in charge. My business was the buying of rugs, vases, arms, cloths and whatever else might find sale in England. That was what I may call my general and legit- Innate business. As side line I was to pick up bargains in mummies. Up to the founding Of that agency in Cairo only a few museums in Europe or America had been able to secure speci- mems. To get hold of mummy with Il history required a couple of years diplomatic correspondence between governments, and the cost would run up as high as $30,OOO. Under the laws of Egypt 1t was death to disturb the dead without official permission, and death to any foreigner discovered try ing to ship a mummy out of the coun- try without special license. In justice to the old and respectable house have named l must say that they had no knowledge of my side line. I had partner in London who advanced the money and shared the profits. When was ready to begin business, we had orders for 30 mummies.
 Let me tell you that I had crafty part to play. In way the branch was under the supervision of the Egyptian government. At the end of each week I had to submit list of my purchases. All my shipments had to m oo tho a,Stn,pS nfHcialS Nv uora- rooms must always be open to official inspection. 1 was not told In so many words that all this watchfulness was to prevent me from dealing in num- mics, but of course I knew that it was My first step was to bribe every official who could obstruct me, and I had to move slowly in the matter and make no mistakes. Then an agent must be found to look up and ship me the specimens from points In the interior, and he had to be q nervy as well as an honest man. He In turn would have to find faithful men. and taken all In all 1t was bit of business to be handled with care. It was six months before I got 1t under way, and after once fairly In 1t there was not an hour In which I felt safe from discovery.
 In most cases the burial places In Egypt are easily to be got at. Most of our orders simply called for a speci- men, and 1t made no difference about the sex or whether there was a record attached. There were few museums In want of particular bodies. They wanted kings. queens, generals or poets who had been dead from 5000 to 5000 years. 1t Is perhaps unneces- sary to inform the reader that I always filled these orders. After getting a mummy into my warehouse l had a way of making 1t fill the bill and give general satisfaction. My assistant, who was a native antiquary, native doctor and a villain, was handy at un- wrapping and rewrapping and carving hieroglyphics and manufacturing rel ics. If there was fraud In 1t, 1 do not seek to defend myself. I simply say that if there Is a public demand for the mummy of Pharaoh 1t Is the duty of some agent to supply it as near as possible and keep people good natured. In the course of two years I shipped 56 mummies safely out of Cairo and landed them in London, and l am | frank to say that my dividends were considerably larger than those paid last year by the Standard Oil compa- ny or the Carnegie Iron works. The mummy business was booming. and l l was filling orders for anything up to | 10000 years old on demand when a | government official gave me hint that my business had been tumbled to. He exchanged his information for my $20 | goldpiece and went his way, and 1t
 was my business to put up job on the | khedive and square myself. l don't | know that any one had given me away i directly. but suspicion had somehow become aroused, and 1 was to be put
 under surveillance and caught red
 handed. My shipments suddenly ceas- ed. and the mummy market became
 dull After a couple of weeks my as-
 slstant villain went up the Nile toward
 the ruins of Memphis to look for a
 man. It was a live man and a particu- | lar sort of man he wanted, and when
 be found him the sum of $50 changed hands. Then the man died. At least | he was swathed in bandages which
 had come from the looms 2.OOO years | before, scented and spiced In Al | style and then put in a coffin which
 gave him away as having been dead all | most 20 centuries. The hieroglyphics | on that coffin and on a manuscript in-
 closed revealed the fact that the dead
 man was the celebrated fakir Sonadi
 Hassassan and that when he had slept
 his sleep he would awaken and begin
 another pilgrimage on earth
 The mummy reached my warehouse
 one afternoon, and within an hour a
 government official backed by a file
 of soldiers had arrived to make a
 search. There had been no conceal
 ment. The mummy occupied a con-
 spicuous position. They had caught
 me red handed In a way, and yet they
 could not understand why I had been
 so open about 1t.
 My dear sir," said to the official, q
 know the laws of Egypt. I am not
 dealing in mummies. The law does
 not say may not restore a dead man
 to life. At this present hour that thing
 there Is mummy. Tonight at 9 o'clock
 1t will be living man."
 What nonsense is thisT exclaimed
 the man as he struck the coffin with
 his cane. Do you think I am a child
 to believe such talesY