The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1910-04-27

thekingM / a shattered granite
s NY legs dangled the side of that colossal fragment
II front Of vast coonnades stood clear and distinct
against the hot white sky Beyond lay bare hills In the dis
the left the muddy Nile amid fields cleaned like
thin silver thread in the sunlight
native in single dirty garment sat summing himself
headess sphinx hard by. carving
bis knife thick red ripe juicy eyed hard With gesture
M oriental poleness he offered slice 1t TOO tempting
TO refuse baking day though
shsesh
Aabi asked inouiringy of my Egyptian friend which s
being interpreted Are MussulmanT'
He shook his head firmly pointed with mods the
tiny blue
ed. with look Of pride. smiled acauiescence He
was a Nazarene a Christian.
In few minutes we Egypt
past and bad old days the British occupation the
effect of the condition of eahin To the
population valley course
the English has been social revolution For downrod
den oppressed desped these Coptc schismac at last find
suddenly the ends Of earth coregion
the ruling the country able boast themselves
In their old Mosem
speak but little colloqual Arabic myself though under
stand with when spoken the conversation between
u was necessarily somewhat sided But Egyptian friend
laid In his duky the Of his such
alarming extent that wonder before long whether
get back again to the hotel time
"Ah excellency" my Copt said slowly when asked
him last about the administration of Justice under mais
rule tbpcs were different then before the English came as
Allah wied stick, stick every month of the
No avaled We beaten for everything II
esb didn't pay his xes when crops were bad he was lased
till he found If Christian offended
Mosem official he stripped skin ruthessy bast
paded And then for ny II was death outright
hanging beheadng, slash a scmter" my
panlon brought bis hand round whrl with swishng force
ar II he were some unseen criminal on the bare
sand before him.
"The punished guilty"
remarked in Arabic looking vaguely at him.
"Ah. yes," he assented smiling. Allah ordained
sometimes then the saints kind We off
pected could tell Won strange story that once to
hard a adventure"
he The efendi might like perhaps It,
condemned death and NIL executed
tul ways Allah"
Coptic indeed speaking as they do
ana living so constantly among Aiussulmau population have
o he
accident OF language speaking Of the Christian God
Allah Fatalsm has taken as strong hold of their minds as
Of Islam itself "say on lightly
ree from "a story always of interest
friend Il brings grist to the mill am man of the pen
write down all the things that told
My Egyptian smiled again Then this tale of mine he said
showing all his white teeth and brushing away flies from his
spoke SHOULD you money it's
the thousand nights tell
al Cairo II happened TO me near Assout in Ismas days was
bold young then bold for Egypt My
pe Of ground by the river side that arward taken from
sby Ismail for the daira
~ In village lived sheik. very hard Mussul
Arab descendant the prophet the
est sheik for miles and miles around He had large white
house green while
his government lived in mud built low like
He had date palms many and dous and doura
patches. his buffaloes
Twas very rich Oh. rich powerful When he
went forth to town he rode on great white mule And he had
a harem too; his a
the girls who had them said for for
Cairo eyes like gazele's.
their nails stained red day with henna All the world said
heik he had the finest the
and and camels In plenty to do his bid
ding
81 Now a village Nusrani like a
beautiful young girl and her Laia Her
that child here-Zanobwho carries efendis
head her cheeks round soft
grape nundaon wed and she liked
evening and talked together under the
when the time drew for
marry her had with her there
sheik. He had the girl by the
draw with her face unveiled and,
Nuran she fired his soul and he wished to
away from put her into his harem
that my clothes my
NIL hat was
went up very white and fell
my face and asked leave TO see him.
"The sheik courtyard inside his house
spoke to him % sheik' boldly,
prospered you with exceeding prosperity You have
buaoes and cames menservants and maid
servants cotton and and You
drink day Of life and eat the fat of the
land full of beautiful women Now. In the
village where a Nusrani girl whose Is Iaa Her
mine and love her the thirsty land
loves water Yet hear sheik! Word brought
YOU this girl who mine plead
With you today the prophet pleaded with David the
king Benz Israel II take away from Laa,
my lamb lslaiN
the shek and cinched his fist and
was angry this he asked that he should
dare He called to his waited
hts nod this fellow he cried in his and tie him
hand and foot fog bid his naked back he
NAV know being Christian. nhde dog meddle with
the domestic affairs M6slens
Acquainted with his vienes by the nstrumenaty
hundred And tomorrow and bring Laa to and
Cont again eetey on herY