The Topeka state journal., 1919-12-20
Breath of Allah

measuring Of the quantities, the secret
writing never leaves her hand"
What. the Lady zuleyka attends in
person ?"
ON the eve of the birthday of the
Prophet, the Lady Zuleyka visits the
shop of Mohammed er- -Rahrdan, accom-
panied by an imam from one of the
great mosques"
why by an imam, Father Abdul"
There is magical ritual which must
be observed in the distillation of the
perfume, and each essence is blessed
in the name of one OF the four arch
angels; and the whole operation must
commence at the hour of midnight on
the eye of the Mold en-Nebi.'
He peered at me triumphantly.
Surely" / protested, IAN experienced
altar such as Mohammed er- Rahman
would readily recognize these secret in
gradients by their smell?''
"A great pan of burning charcoal"
whispered Abdul dramatically, "is placed
upon the floor of the room, and
throughout the operation the attendant
imam casts pungent spices upon it,
whereby the nature of the secret es-
sences is rendered unrecoSnizable. 1t
is tine you depart, my son, to the shop
of Mohammed and 1 will give you a
writing making you known to him.
Your task will be to carry the mate
rials necessary for the secret operation
(Which takes place tonighD from the
magazine of Mohammed er-Rahman at
-hubra, to his shop in the Suk el-At-
tarin.''
The words well worth your while"
had kept time to my steps. or I doubt
if I should have survived the odious
journey from Shubra. Never can I
forget the shape. color. and especially
the weight, of the locked chest which
Rahman had accepted my service on
the strength of the letter signed by
Abdul, and of course, had failed to rec
ogn;ze in Said" that Hon Neville ker-
naby who had certain confidential deal
ings with him year before. But eX-
actly how 1 was to profit by the for
tunate accident which had led Abdul to
mistake me for someone called Said"
became more and more obscure as the
box grew more and more heavy. So
that by the time that 1 actually ar
rived with my burden at the entrance
to the Street of the Perfumers, my
heart had hardened toward Abdul the
Know-all; and, setting my box upon
the ground, I seated myself upon it to
rest and to imprecate at leisure that
silent cause of my present exhaustion.
The shop of Mohammed er-Rahman n
was at the end of the street remote
from the Hamzawi (Cloth Bazaar), and
as I stood up to resume my labors my
mood of gloomy abstraction was changed
as much by a certain atmosphere Of
eXpectancy-I cannot otherwise de-
I Gcrfhe nv Ia familiar smells nf
the place. 1 had taken no more than
three PAGES onward into the Suk ere it
seemed to me that all business had sud-
| denly become suspended; only the
Western element of the throng re-
manned outside whatever influence had
claimed the Orientals. Then presently
the visitors, also becoming aware of
this expectant hush as I had become
aware of it. turned almost with one
accord, and following the direction of
the merchants glances, gazed up the
narrow street toward the Mosque of
el-Ashraf.
And here I must chronicle a curious
circumstance. OF the Imam Abu Tabah
1 had seen nothing for several weeks,
but at this moment 1 suddenly found
myself thinking of that remarkable
man. Whilst any mention OF his name,
or nickname-for 1 could not believe
"Tabah' to be patronymic-amongst
the natives led only to pious ejacula-
tions indicative of respectful fear, by
the oficial world he was tacitly dis
owned. Yet I had indisputatle evi-
dence to show that few doors in Cairo,
or indeed in all Egypt, were closed to
| him; he came and went like a phan-
( tom. Once more depositing my burden
upon the ground, then, 1 gazed with
| the rest in the direction of the mosque.
| Then, stately through the silent
group, came a black-robed, white-tur-
baned figure outwardly similar to many
others in the bazaar. but followed by
| two tall muffied negroes. So still was
the place that I could hear the tap OF
! his ebony stick as he strode along the
centre Of the street.
/ At the shop of Mohammed er-Rahman
he paused, exchanging a few words
with the merchant then resumed his
way, coming down the Suk toward me.
His glance met mine, as I stood there
beside the box; and, to my arnazement
! he saluted me with smiling dignity and
passed on. Had he, too. mistaken me
for Said-or had his all-seeing gaze de-
tected beneath my disguise the features
of Neville kernaby?
Filled with misgivings. carried the
box along to the shop; but Mohammed
er-Rahman's greeting held no hint ol
suspicion.
BY heetness of foot thou shalt never
win Paradise he said.
Nor by unseemly haste shall I thrust
others from the path" I retorted.
1T is idle TO handy words with any
acquaintance of Abdul the Porter's,'
sighed Mohammed: well do 1 know It
Take up the box and follow me"
With a key which he carried attached
to a chain about his waist. he unlocked
the ancient door which alone divided
his shop from the outjutting wall mark
ing a bend in the street. A native
shop is usually nothing more than E
double cell; but desce nding three stone
steps. I found myself in one Of thosF
cellar-like apartments which are no