Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-03-24

occurred to me To hire a proper OUTFIT
I started off cheerfully astride a lugu-
brious quadruped, misnamed Butterfly
dragging a pack-pony behind me.
After an encounter with a cinnamon
bear, wherein my scarlet parasol was
much more effective than my revolver,
got lost in a storm and was rescued by
hunter. He told me he couldn't think
why women had been invented at all
lent me all his blankets, and, over a
kettle of the blacklist tea I've ever seen
with green twig across it to keep il
from smoking, asked me what in tar
nation I though was doing" began
to wonder myself.
Wherever Undine and had gone we
had asked for whatever we wanted, from
the government yacht to native saddle
with the confidence Of children who had
never been refused.
This, 1 decided, was how one should
treat life. Assured of its friendliness,
one should ask from it, or give to it,
with equal confidence. What I asked
was adventure.
Adventure would be so much more sat-
isfactory if it were consistent as a Greek
drama Unfortunately, 1t is a pendulum
that swings between tragedy and farce.
once spent fearful night in the
Wadi Musa with three travellers, who
had forgotten their revolvers, while q
disagreeable and half-starved section
of the Wilad Ali, whose right to levy
custom we had refused to acknowledge,
discussed our immediate dispatch. In
the morning upset my only piece of
bacon into the sand which depressing
fact remembered long after had for
gotten the click of the rifle bolts that
had punctuated our night.
Another such instance occurred on an
abortiye attempt to penetrate Western
Arabia, when the late Emir Idris was in
power. 1t is tribal country and no cara
van has right of passage from the range
of one tribe to another unless accom-
panied by local "rafiqs or guide. We
were in the Tehama, the fiat country
at the foot of the barrier ridge, and
Jusuf was getting anxious.
"Wallahi, it should be here!" he ex-
claimed for the twentieth time. Il tell
you 1t is useless to go farther. Did not
the sheik say his guides would meet
us?"
The speaker raised himself clunlsily in
stirrups shaped like coal-shovels. He
was townsman and member Of the
emir's household, sent with me as wit
ness of his princes protection.
Allah save us: we have lost the way,
and if we enter the territory of the Ait
Amra without their sheiks guides to
speak. for US. we shall make no further
journeyings on earth"
The fat man looked around apprehen-
sively, as if he expected enemies to rise
out Of the earth. His purple robe was
caked with the dust of long days
travel, and his kufiya torn and stained
with sweat.
did not tell you that travelling was
no fit pursuit for the noble?" he re-
peated, with the querulous impatience
of child. had heard this reproach so
often since we left the capital of the
emtr five days before that 1 only looked
at my compass refiectively.
** u X
CINCE the dawn we had ridden south
east across a rolling desert, where
gazelles tempted our rifles and the wind
was scented with sage-brush. Unless I
had seriously miscalculated, this was the
place where the Ait Amra guides should
have met US. Anxiously I stared ahead
to some sand-dunes gilded by the sunset.
JoSuf's eyes were glued to my COM
pass. ut is that thing of magic that
has destroyed u.s." he said.
The Bedouin guards drew nearer to
look at the needle that so loved the
North Star. The tallest of them, Ahmed,
who had sworn northumberland with
me. leaned YEARLY on his rifle.
I'VE shall find a camping place in
the dunes" he said, land in the morn
ing the guides of Ait Anna will come
to us. Let us hasten, or the night will
catch u.s.
The baggage camels, which had COL
lapsed with the suddenness OF folding
chairs, were prodded to their feet.
With grunts from the animals and signs
from Jusuf, the little procession moved
onward AS we neared the dunes, the
half dozen armed Bedouins unslung
their rifles and spread to right and left
of the riders
To encourage their vigilance, I drew
revolver from the sash of my scarlet
native dress, but we were hideously at
the mercy of the attack. AS the ridges
closed around us in the dusk, realized
that any crest might hide a line of
snipers and cursed my folly in leaving
the open plain.
1t came with appalling suddenness--
the thing for which, unconsciously, ]
had been waiting A single shot broke
the velvet stiffness, through which
lahored our small caravan. Something
Whined past my ear, stirring my veil
Instantly. line of fire lit the ridge
on either side of us.
Trapped" A camel groaned and
fell to his knees. The Bedouins threw
themselves fiat in the sand, firing at an
invisible enemy. For second the blood
beat in my head and / turned my
frightened stallion at the rise. A figure
sprang up almost under my hoofs, and
my bullet caught it in the throat. One
of my own men was writhing on the
ground. Another lay so huddled hat
| knew he was dead.
I could have shouted and screamed
! the fury that felt, but my heavy dra-
peries impeded my movements, and, as
I str,,neled with them IL seemed that a