Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1914-08-14

down below are the camel-hair tents
Of a few nomadic Arabs. There, at
any rate, is shelter from the cutting
blast.
But the Arabs are not hospitable.
They haven't any beautiful mares for
whose sake they are prepared to Hing
back the strangers gold. What they
want is food. II we barter with them
they will give us sack Of dried trut'
fies for a shilling. Think of it! A
sack of trufIies for a shilling.
The dragoman, who is in league with
the muleteers and the captain Of the
escort, insldlously approaches. "Ef.
fendl, here are the trufIles. magnificent
trufIles. Hotchy Botchy (Hadji Basha,
the cook) would like to make stew
and put some in. He has plenty OF
food from last night"
Taken for Tax Collectors.
This means that the dragoman
wants to sit inside an Arab tent and
smoke the narghileh OF consolation
rather than push on. What is a day
or less. Effendi?' he asks insidlously.
When one comes to think OF It,
what is day more or less? Tomor.
row we shall find Aleppo in the same
place. It will not move away with the
passing hours. Very well. Let there
be stew with trufTles in It."
In a moment all is gaiety and AMI.
nation. The old Arab sheik looks at
us lncreduously. and explains through
his dragoman, that he has taken US
for tax collectors. Hence his display
of abject poverty. VIII we come in
side?
We go inside the long, wide. felt
tent, with its fire of dried COW dung
in the middle. BY this time we are
used to the acrid fumes and pay no
attention to them. A hldeously ugly
old Arab spreads carpets for US
by the center pole. Cushions are
brought to support our elbows. In q
little while the stew with trufIles In
1t appears.
Yesterday the stew was distinctly
ordinary. Now there Is a divine aroma
about 1t which is waited insidiously up
our nostrils. The midday halt gener.
ally continues for half an hour. When
we smell the stew we know that today
It will last considerably longer.
1t does. Hotchy Botchy pours out
the stew In tin plates and produces
flaps OF unleavened bread which the
Arabs twist up and eat as the meal
progresses. The remains OF the stew
are polished off by the escort and the
Arabs outside. It seems wrong to
waste trufles on them, but they do
not think so.
But the climax OF the feast is when
Hotchy Botchy brings in big tin
cups OF coffee made with condensed
milk in the English way. He has first
roasted the berries, powdered them
in a mortar. and the cups hold half a
pint each. Turkish coffee is generally
a muddy mixture contained In an egg
cup. Hence the shelk dares not be.
lieve his eyes when he Is given half
a pint at once. but drinks a little and
fondly rubs his puckered stomach as
II goes down. Before he has finished
| the coffee he protests that ! shall
marry his eldest daughter and live In
the tent with him as long as the cof.
fee lasts. When ! mendaclously state
/ that I have four wives in FRANCISCAN
and q children he is grieved. but re.
spects me intensely. and offers to
show me a mare whose pedigree goes
back 1000 years.
At a signal from him the felt Ia
drawn away from what we imagine
to be the end OF the tent, and beau
tiful bay mare steps dalntlly into the
circle. comes behind her master. and
looks at us with the most exquisite
eyes | have ever seen. offer her a
lump OF sugar, but she will take II
from no hand but her masters. The
sheik explains that she can travel OF
miles day without fatigue. and W,
believe him. A little Arab boy crawli
between her legs and hangs on BY
her tail until she gently nibbles hii
ear. She is one OF the family.
When we part tho sheik presents
mo with fat sheep and I give hin
Ave tins Of condensed milk, two
pounds OF coffee and n cordial invita-
ton to dine with me at tho yoricl
club II he ever comes TO London. II,
embraces me and says he will. Thei
We smoke tho Darghlleh OF consola
ton, embrace once more and slowl,
get on our mules.