Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1936-01-04

Incorporated
(Copgrisht: 1888. By Achmed Abduiiahl
qN TWO PARTS PART ofgD
umE BY SIDE, at the southern ens
i Of the Square OF the One Eyed Pill
grim, the two old Tartar palaces
lowered grim and forbidding, rough
clouted Of granite and rubble, anS
around them the wind ever stalking
Stalking, it seemed like something
fierce and blooded and cruel: shak-
ing the fastenings Of windows and
doors with an angry fist: running back
toward the kitchens and stable and
outhouSes and causing the horses "a
whinny, the slaves to snap their fin
gers rapidly as 3 protection from the
wiles OF Shaitan the Stoned; then
running forward once more to charge
all the harder against groaning hntels
and posts.
A small garden connected the build
ingS A garden as tender and friendly
and green as the palaces were truculenE
and gray. A garden where, SO QueeTly,
the wind sank to q soft murmur. All
around it was a wall of white marble
cunningly fretted into q lacy, open
work design.
Tonight. behind this wall, peering
through, stopping q little so as not to
" -
boy and q girl and a girl and q
boy Holding hands they were. Giggling
at what they saw and heard, at the
two whitebeards out on the square
who were facing each other In the
dim, smoky light of torches held by
excited servants: ready and eager, no
doubt OF 1t, to fly at one another's
throats; swapping abuse with fluency
and black bile:
"Jackal Spawnl"
Eater Of Dirt"
"Jewl"
"Christianl"
'Ignoble impurityl"
"Aywah, compared to you a bedbug
is q hero in shining arTmor Of war
0 father Of dogsI"
Father Of dogsl" echoed one Of the
boys behind the wall in a whisper,
nudging the other boy. "And that is
no compliment to you-being his son,
my Ali"
Nor to my sister-being his daugh-
ter. Nor-coming TO think Of ito you, |
my Mehmet, since you are going to |
marry this same sister of mine. Nor,
finally. to your sister-since she win
be my bride"
And Ali smiled while, on the square,
q shrek Of rage was followed by a
threat and challenge:
'Now-by Allah-my steel to skewer
your Hverl'
steel to your own liver, o pimplel"
Then bright blades 1eaped from sill
yer Scabbards to the touch Of gnarled,
hairy fists. And so there was here In
the golden, the grand
khan's town, as bully and brisk row
as you could come across anywhere;
and, behind the wall, the two girls urg-
ing the two boys to interfere and put
Cfnf1 IN IL QT1d AIf oV1r1OsrFarfy1rr fhof
4 bit Of blood-letting might do those
ancient fighting cocks a world of good,
and Mehmet Opining that they would
not hurt each other much-they were
200 old.
YES" agreed Ali. and too fat"
Still, thrust 1t waS-though both men
we're old indeed. Lunge-though both
we're fat and wheezy. Parry and coun-
'erparry though the long years having
ittffened their bullying, knotted mus
lies, their shoulders moved clumsily
and q forearm pinked a broad chest
grazed, the clash of forged
ron quickening to a rattle; the hits
'lanhng savagely; war cries BOOM
ng:
aUllah kareeml"
"DeenI Deem; Fateh Mohammedl"
'Ullah kareeml"
A lusty, rowdy, roaring song Of
tr1fe. And, presently, here and there
bout the Square of the One-Eyed Pill
rim, windows opening. Heads leaning
ut to see what was the matter; heads :
I merchants and bankers, of priests
nd artisans and government officials; )
eads not crowned by turbanS, but !
he sun having died In the west and 7
urfew rlmg an hour since-by decent :
lannel nightcapS; wholesome angry !
nd some MISUNDERSTANDING from !
ouse to house:
What is it, neighbour"
Murder and mightl What is this
evils devising Of row."
"Peacel Let us have peacel"
Must we have our honest sleep dis
lrbed by every gutter rat in Islam?" o
And with our taxes going up year
fter yearl" z
who can these ruffians be-" o
Maybe robbers come TO plumber our >,
ch bazarsl"
Maybe" q shivering query" the u
The Lord His mercyl" q
For the Red Hawk assan ell Mesh y
di was his real name-was q red a
earded Turkoman who, for many =
lonthS now, had made the highways p
nd byways around Samarkand unsafe
" peaceful folk Here today he was .,
nd there tomorrow, dancing out Of u
re steppe with a handful of hard rid q
u AoA40WC46p otk4h411H swiftly tAklu Al~ -
avs at the spot where he was not ex- g
ected to be. Not-at least to believe a
leir own estimate of themselves, ~
lough / have my doubt that 1t was q
they were thieves 3
nd bandits. ut-said they-they were AZ
Dor men and hungry; and so, on y
ark night, they were wont to come o'
yer the seven hills and the seven o.
aters to help themselves to cattle OF m
1rses or caravan mans goods; and
would be at times people grievously
ounded or even killed; and then the 9
ed Hawk and his followers off and g
way by the light of the moons Lam 81
IN.
Therefore. from house to house, the
Y.
'Soldiersl"
"Policel Soldiersl'' az
Fear growing. Then, as down below
e torches f1ared sharply and bathed az
e scene in a food Of crimson, some "a
'dy laughed; somebody made caustic, -
Their weary comment ~
'Pah- nothing TO worry about. Moth co
z but Prince Mansur and Prince IT, 81