Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1908-07-16
The Judgment Of the Cadi.

Danlel
Shakespeare
The Gate of the Caravans opens
upon a grove of palm trees. Beyond
is the desert, stretching away pas
eye.shot, and cleaning like FURNISHED
brass in the fierce light of the tropic
sun.
Yusuf, the Arab boy who peddled
dates, crouched in the shadow of the
gateway, watching the approach OF 9
caravan. The shrill cries Of the cam
el.drivers came nearer and nearer,
and presently a long line of laden
dromedaries began to file through the
open gate, slouching along with noise
less tread and bobbing their long neckf
up and down to an accompaniment Of
complaining grunts. Some of the
drivers tossed "luck-money" to the
Arab boyS whom they noticed as they
passed, remembering the words of the
prophet: "The good that ye shall
give in aims shall rebound unto your
selves"
Perhaps, too, some of them felt
genuine pity for the lad, whose father
had owned many camels, and had led
many richly laden caravan safely
across the sandy wilderness, before he
and his fortune were swept away in
one of those terrible simoons, that, In
a moment, rushing from no one knows
whence, blinds, burns, and burles Its
victims, and sweeps on, no one knows
whittier.
It was Yusufs ambition to own
camel and travel with the caravans.
The sailors son loves the sea, though
his fathers bones lie bleaching at the
bottom of it; and Yusuf yearned for
the desert as only an Arab can, al
though he knew that somewhere in its
treacherous sands his fathers body
lay. Every day, at noon, when the
merchants closed their bazars and re.
tired for their midday nap, the little
date-seller would wander off to the
Gate of the Caravans and gaze wist-
fully on that great sea of sand OF
which 80 many tales were told.
He wondered now, as he watched
the camels file by, whether he would
ever be able to earn enough to buy
one of those great, grunting, silent
footed beasts. A driver had told
him once that even the cheapest camel
cost more than a hundred pieces OF
gold, and really good one twice as
much. The boy raised his hand to
his turban, and felt the one gold coin
that was tucked securely away in the
lining. Just one ! And he needed
so many more He picked up the
coppers the men had flung him
wishing in his heart they were gold
coins, too,-and followed dejectedly
in the wake of the camels, that could
still be seen at the far end of the mar
row street.
All at once, as he shufied along,
his bare foot struck against something
in the dust of the roadway that gave
forth jingling sound. He stopped
quickly, and picked up-a netted
purse of green silk Not little,
slender purse, but a big, fat, bulging
purse; and through its meshes the
boy caught the CLINT of gold ! Yusuf
slipped the purse quickly into the
bosom of his .tunic. He glanced fur
lively around. The street was de-
serted. No one had seen him pick
up the purse. No one need know he
had found it unless he chose to tell.
Need he tell ? He slipped back to
the shade of the gateway, and sat
down to think.
He sat there, turning the matter
over in his mind, a long, long while,
his hand pressed over the spot where
the purse lay. How heavy it was !
he dared not take it out to count his
treasures, but he knew by the weight
of it that here was the price of his
camel and more. Need he tell2
Whenever perplexed by doubt as to
what he should do, the orphan had
always had recourse to one magic
question: What would father have
done ?" Yusuf asked himself this
question now and answered: "Seek
for the ownerl"
Yes; find the owner. That is what
he must do. he rose "a little slowly,
it is true, because it was hard to give
the camel up). and started up the
street. Who had lost the purse7 He
didn't know, but it seemed likely that
it had been dropped by some one Of
the caravan. He would seek there
first.
Before Yusuf could come up with
the caravan, however, another actor