The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1936-01-10
By
ACHMED
ABDULLAH

to be outdone, ut is not the like Of US,
girls OF the Tartars, descendants Of
heroes, who will have aught to do with
manhood" And, quite gently, to '; Zu.
leika: rs that not SO, 8 my cousin?"
Indeed 49,"
Arm in arm the two young girls
walked away, while the two young men
looked after them, then looked at each
other; and 1t was Ali who announced:
-"And to think that only yesterday I
thought that your sister was the one
whose heart is like a battling, sweet
melody Of spring."
ITO think" was the reply, that only
yesterday there was in me a dream Of
your sister-a dream, by the same
dancing through the window and Light
ing on a pillow with russell hair tossed
upon it and a round cheek upon a hand
Like milk! What a fool I was-yester-
Iday!r
u have no use for women"
"Was it not the Prophet Moham-:
melon him the sa1ute-who wrote
that, of all Affections sent to the sons
OF Adam, woman is the most calam-
"The Prophet Mohammed-on him
the salute-was right"
Shall we go and seek mems COM
Eyes; And a bottle Of pleasant Per-
sian wine -"
"Or two ..."
O three 49,"
So they, too, left the garden. They
shared a bottle here and a bottle there:
reached, finally, Fahim's coffee house
in a dim, t%ortuous alley a little beyond
the Bazaar of the Siberian Traders.
less. crowded with rickety tables, across
the farther wall a great fireplace where
two huge half naked Mongols were
turning a quarter of mutton on a spit.
An odor of tobacco and opium and
roast meat and onions: a mingling of
shifting fire smoke and a livid candle
" q stss4 of un HUai human
toward the low, black beamed ceiling.
Gathered about the tables-some
pulling at gurgling, protesting water
pipes. others greedily and noisily eat
ing-Was a picturesque ~riffraff of tur-
baned and fur capped humanity. Men
of half central Asia's ruffianly races.
More rogues here than honest men; nor
rather stewing with longing for sins
yet to be sinned. Men whose eyes glis-
tened and whose palms itched when
they saw the two youths, richly dressed
and a little worse for drink; and who
controlled themselves-with an effort,
let us add-when a warning cough came
from a. corner of the room where the
shadows coiled densely and where a
man reclined on a divan, his left arm
about the ample waist of a blowzy,
brown haired woman, while the fingers
of his right were busy stuffing juicy
hunks of mutton down his throat.
another flask?" invited Ali.
by all means"
The wine-perhaps because it was
raw and sour-brought their grievances
back to them.
Calling US e%owards!"
arkand!"
II the best wrestler!"
II the best rider!"
Nowhere my equal in swinging the
battle ax!"
Nowhere mine in roping and break
ing a wild stallion!"
"Ah," more loudly, calling us cow
ards! And we the pick and pride of the
strong, fearless lads! Ali" Ali o.
truculently-for, after all, he was his
honor-dies the death!"
"Dies the death-with you permits
sion," cut in a voice, "at my hands!"
From the divan in the corner came
the speaker; tall and tough and battle
SCARED: his face as red as his beard
a silken gloss. Decidedly a fine figure
Of a man-brawny to the ankles, a
curved dagger at his hip, a long Turk
ish sword sticking out in back at a
defiant angle like a wren's tail .
He approached their table. He sat
down without being asked.
1T is boys Of your kidney I like"
pranking boys. All. I can see it by the
CLINT of your eyes-you have pith in
your bones. Pith yelling out Of you
like treacle from a broken pot. Pith-
and the desire to do grand Deeds" He
was silent; went on in a hoarse whis-
per: 1T is your sort I need-in my par
ticular trade"
what may it be?" inquired Mehmet.
II am a collector-of other peoples
pies horses and cattle. A Sitter
should they resist-of other peoples
throats. A lover-of other peoples
wives" He banged the table with his
fist, cried: "A bottle tapster! And let
it ba1 be Of bes YOU 5rd 6 : \ at The a7sst the t, Mine
he said: II recruit you, heroes, to gal
lop by my side."
"But-who are you?"
"The Red Hawk is the splendid name
by which I am known throughout High
Tartary."
"The Red Hawk =. ?"
Tn person" He flicked up his mus
taches right and left. twill you ride
with me. heroes?"
The two youths looked at each other,
the same thought in both their minds:
Calling us towards . :? Wah-
they will not call us towards when the
fame and fear of us will be round and
round the wide world in a umo of
wind!"
And Ali declared:
T am with you, Red Hawk"
It'll not be far behind" said Meh-
met.
Good. We ride within the hour. And
by Allah-before the end Of the
week we shall pull the Grand Khan's
beard to the disgrace of his nose. The
Grand Khan-pah," with a rumbling
hiccough-"a man whom I fancy as
IftJn oc @ fioor fooaioc a y9occ If