Evening star., 1935-11-17

Damascus, and | knew before
opening = by the sloping, heavy
script It that it came from my old friend
Hussein Adrian Pasha. l couldn't imagine
why he might be writing to me after all these
years. unless, perhaps, he was contemplating
another visit to New York This would not
have surprised me greatly, for though an
Arab of the Arabs" and desert prince at
that, he was a confirmed globe-trQtter
But when began dipping into the rather
long letter, | saw that it concerned other
matters, so remote from Western civilization
that they might have happened on another
planet 1t concerned journey had made
with him in the spring of 1924 to the Nefud
the so-called Red Desert" and with the
strange drama which partially disclosed itself
in the household of another desert lord whose
guests we had been for brief time. What was
disclosed had been of such a nature that if
rumOrs of it had reached official British ears
in Baghdad, our host. despite his remote
isolation. would inevitably have been dis
tressed by a flying visit of the camel corps
police. Since the affair, however, was of
private family nature, and since, furthermore
Ihave no personal feeling that Christian ideas
of justice are necessarily superior to Mosem,
| agreed willingly with my friend Hussein
Pasha that we should, in a manner of speak
ing, forget what we had seen.
If had any regret that our lips were
sealed, it was not moral one. but merely
the regret that as a writer could make no
subsequent use of piece of material which
seemed to me not only dramatic but illu-
minatingly characteristic of a peculiar element
in Arabic psychology. had spoken regret
fully of this to Hussein Pasha, and now, as
read the letter, saw that he was giving me
the sequel to the drama and suggesting that
might now write freely the entire story
was living then - in 1924 - with Sheikh
Mitkal ell Fayez and the Benz Sakhr, in the
northern desert beyond Trans jordania Our
mutual friend Hussein Adran Pasha had come
out from Damascus to visit us in the encamp-
ment, and when he learned that Mitkal was
planning trip to the Nefud, he had decided
to come along with U.S. We had gone on horse
back with camels following.
We had been travelling in rude desert ease
for dozen days, entertained in various en-
campments and oases. when one morning
Mitkal said
II think we shall sleep tonight in the palace
of a friend have not seen since came last
to the Nefud two years ago." Turning to
Hussen. he added. 1T is that Zoran Pasha
who has not been north since the great war
when he fought for free Arabia against the
Turks"
II never met him." said Hussein, "but l
have heard that he was brave man and
philosopher"
YES" agreed Sheikh N1itkal II shall be
happy to embrace him."
Late that afternoon we reached an oasis of
date palms and. winding among its walls and
huts, came to vast walled garden with wide
open gates, unguarded, since the Wahhabi
were occupied with their own wars in the
south, and the times here were peaceful.
Zoran Pasha was at home As slaves helped
us dismount in the palace courtyard, he came
out to greet us. He was tall, handsome man
in the prime of life, dignified but cordial,
happy to see Mitkal and graciously hospitable
to us, for Mtkal's sake.
We dined on roof balcony, in style half