The Indianapolis journal., 1902-04-27

tent. In spite of my doubts | composed my
self for the evening. 1 dozed where 1 sat.
or rather crouched on the ground, half
wondering whether l should ever reach
Keronan i'm safety. 1t was a quaint adven
ture. and I rather enjoyed its bold uncer-
tainty. The chief was snoring regularly
now: at times ] woke to hear the sound of
mis- heavy breath as he turned uneasily his
long form on the floor beside me. l wrapped
my burnous round my body as well 1
was able. and tried TO sleep. in spite of my
fear. and the obvious discomfort of my
present position.
About in the morning something stirred.
l awoke with a start, conscious of a touch
on my left shoulder. Happily. l had the
presence Of mind to keep quite still.
turned to look. A delicate hand, fair and
we'll proportiOned. stretched under the edge
of the tent canvas, and held out towards
me-to my intense surprise-a scrap of
written paper. / read on it in Informed
Arabic letters the single sentence written
in pencil in the pure Meccan dialect: Il
have found out that you are no Mussul-
man."
For a moment my brain whirled round
bewildered. What on earth could it mean?
The Arabian slave girl, then, had really
penetrated my clever disguise and, strange
TO say, had refrained froTl denouncing me :
Could womanly compassion have overcome
the prejudices Of her cruel religion? Did
she mean to betray me, 1 wondered in soul,
or was she going to keep her own counsel?
These Arab women will do anything on
earth for an adventure. Cooped up all their
lives in the harem of their own house
their monotonous existence. For it they
will face even the sack and the river.
/ lifted stealthily the hanging corner of
the tent and gazed into the inner apartment
for the women. from which we were sepa-
rated by the thin wall of canvas only. II
hands wave TO you out of mysterious tents,
no man of spirit can fail to follow them
The two Old Arab women lay fast asleep
on their prayer rugs upon the sandy
| ground: but the slave girl sat up. awake
and unveiled, for my eyes to gaze upon.
| She was beautiful. indeed. but with a look
| of utter terror and wild despair on her
sweet young face and strange appeal in
her big black eyes turned imploringly
| towards me as a last resource, l fancied,
| from a life of misery.
| She wished me to save her from her
| threatened fate. I supposed. And. indeed.
mad as the attempt appears to me now 1
think it over in cold blood. l would have
| given great deal that moment to effect
| her escape. But the thing was impossible.
| clearly impossible I gazed at her blankly
| in mute astonishment I knew I was hold
| ing my life by thread but she was very
| beautiful. If any of them awoke-the
| Sheikh or the wornen-they would kill me
| where lay as soon as look at me.
Would she risk so great a peril for mere
| intrigue?
| The girl raised the pencil once more and
wrote in Arabic again: eff you are not a
Mussulman, for heavens sake tell me so.
will not betray you. will keep your con-
| idence''
| didn't hesitate for a moment to take
the pencil and paper from her and write in
return: 'I am TO Mussulman am a Chris
| tian-an Englshman. Treat me as friend.
| What can do for you?'
The girl reeled, almost as if she would
have tainted when she read my answer.
and saw that her hands could hardly hold
the pencil Alright as she rapidly wrote few
| lines in reply. She held the paper up to me
in dead silence with very white face.
|
| ishment A sudden mist seemed to
din, nv ewes IT was strange, II
| was incredible - She had written in
| English.
For second or two. that fact alone was
| all I could take in. Then by slow degrees
the meaning of her message dawned dimly
across my bewildered mind. I read the
| words, and knew the whole strange truth.
! ''I am an English girl have come from
| India. They are taking me to Keronan as
| a present TO the Governor. If you are really
an Englishman, for honor's sake, help me-
| If you can do nothing else for me, at least
be merciful. and kill me this night here"
Heaven gave me strength to repress the
| cry of surprise and horror that rose spon-
| taneously to my lips as I read I seized the
pencil and wrote rapidly in reply, in Eng
| lish. of course: 'I will help you. if I die
| for IL. Thank heaven, l was moved to come
| in the same caravan with you. No more
| now. It's too dangerous. I will go back to
| my own part of the tent for the present
| AS soon ] can think OF any means of
| escape. I will lift the curtain and COM
municate again with you"
| The tears were rolling fast down the poor
| girls cheeks. and she clasped her white
hands in speechless agony; but she uttered
| no sound; neither of us dared to inter-
| change a spoken word one with the other
| 1 dropped the corner Of the tent stealthily
| and turned to revolve the matter at my
| leisure in my quarters.
AS l turned terrible and disconcerting
| sight met my glance. The Sheikh was sit
| ting up on his prayer mat facing me with
wide-open eyes and an expression of the
| fercest and most resolute hatred on all his
savage Arab features. l saw at once that
all was discovered. His body bent
slightly forward in the attitude of one who
watches intently, and he held his right
hand upon the scimitar-shaped knife at his
side, half drawn already from its curved
| wooden scabbard. We were lost, lost. lost
beyond hope or chance of recovery, The
rustling of the curtain must have woke
him as he lay. and he had no doubt
watched with those horrid eyes of his all
our short and speechless colloquy. Strange
to say, however, in spite of this pressing
danger that now stared me in the face
one feeling lay uppermost in my mind, and
.~ !