Evening star., 1936-01-05
Magazine Section

cHtS, StOhuIk thiCh poSoSooiotho IA Oei
saddle bags. We rode off with forty
of their best camels.
The other group had been equally
successful. They had eight fine war
mares.
Luck was with us on Our escape.
Night closed in before we could be
overtaken. For sixteen hours we rode,
then we camped to pasture and water
our animals at a good-sized rain pool.
After that we made our way leisurely
back to the black tents of the Ruala.
On other similar raids, we some
times lost some animals or had some
men injured, but have never known
anyone to be killed except in actual
war raids.
Different it is today. The automo-
bile, the machine gun and the long
range rifle are used in raids. More
than that, the automobile, useful on
the desert in searching for pasture,
has brought the sons of the chiefs to
the city. Now frowsy Bagdad night
clubs get the money which once would
have been boarded to buy thousand
year-old coffee mortar. the symbol of
hospitality. And. worse, the Bedouins
have acquired new morality, get it
while the getting is good" Nowadays
the whole idea of the raid seems to be
to surprise and kill before the Others
have a chance to defend themselves.
Not a score of months ago was a
victim OF one of these modern raids,
only forty miles from the one | al
ready have described. No longer did
the leader ride up and proudly an
nounce his name, and boldly throw
out challenge to his enemy.
was riding with the chief of the
Ruala in his eight cylinder motor car.
followed by another car with five
slaves. From around hillock raiding
party sped in a fleet of nine automo-
biles. Four cars were equipped with
machine guns. Without warning they
blazed away. That we escaped was a
miracle. The little hand-hitches of
sand overgrown with camel grass
saved our lives, as the bumps dis
turbed their aim. We sped away.
Though none of us was killed heard
in the whistling bullets the brittle
death cry of the last stand of chivalry.
A few weeks later had a more vivid
demonstration from the young men of
the desert who have traded the fun
of the game for greed.
We we're riding back from falconing.
The birds we're perched on the wrists
of the slaves in the back seat of the
single car that carried our party. l
rode in front with the chief, Amir
Fuaz. Our regulation rifles were
stacked on the floor. We bumped
along a rocky. sandy trail skirting. a
small hill. AS we unsuspectingly
rounded hummock car roared out
of a coulee. a machine gun cut loose.
We stopped our car, sprang out and
turned it into barricade. We fired
at the motor as it ground to a stop
few yards behind U.s. The next knew,
Amir Fuaz with blood drenched arm
was wiping his kerchief against my
cheek as l lay under the car. saw
blood drip from the cloth. felt
gravel and grit in my mouth, but
when opened it out came the splinters
of four teeth and piece of bone -
and the bullet too.
The raiders fed The Amir and
attended the three slaves. All We
could do for them was to- dig three
shallow graves that their bodies might
rest while their souls sped to the car
peted couches Of the Moslem' S
heaven. We waited for night and pro-
ceedcd unmolested.
Thus the old game of the raid has
become cowardly robbery.
Amir Fuaz and his chiefs and
relatives have feet of twenty-one
American motor cars. which are