Author: Henryk Sienkiewicz
Category: Nonfiction
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reason, did not want to mix in the matter, the other Bedouinturned Stas over with his back up and the punishment was about to takeplace, when at that moment an unexpected obstacle came.
At the opening of the niche Nell appeared with Saba.
Occupied with her pet, who, dashing into the cave, threw himself atonce at her little feet, she had heard the shouts of the Arabs, but, asin Egypt Arabs as well as Bedouins yell on every occasion as if theyare about to annihilate each other, she did not pay any attention tothem. Not until she called Stas and received no reply from him, did shego out to see whether he was not already seated on the camels. Withterror she saw in the first luster of the morning Stas lying on theground and above him a Bedouin with a courbash in his hand. At thesight of this she screamed with all her strength and stamped with herlittle feet, and when the Bedouin, not paying any attention to this,aimed the first blow, she flung herself forward and covered the boywith her body.
The Bedouin hesitated, as he did not have an order to strike the littlegirl, and in the meantime her voice resounded full of despair andhorror:
"Saba! Saba!"
And Saba understood what was the matter and in one leap was in theniche. The hair bristled on his neck and back, his eyes flamed redly,in his breast and powerful throat there was a rumble as if of thunder.
And afterwards, the lips of his wrinkled jaws rose slowly upward andthe teeth as well as the white fangs, an inch long, appeared as far asthe bloody gums. The giant mastiff now began to turn his head to theright and to the left as if he wanted to display well his terribleequipment to the Sudanese and Bedouins and tell them:
"Look! here is something with which I shall defend the children!"
They, on the other hand, retreated hurriedly for they knew in the firstplace that Saba had saved their lives and again that it was a clearthing that whoever approached Nell at that moment would have the fangsof the infuriated mastiff sunk at once in his throat. So they stoodirresolute, staring with an uncertain gaze and as if asking one anotherwhat in the present situation had better be done.
Their hesitation continued so long that Nell had sufficient time tosummon old Dinah and order her to cut Stas' bonds. Then the boy,placing his hand on Saba's head, turned to his assailants:
"I did not want to kill you--only the camels," he said through his setteeth.
But this information so startled the Arabs that they undoubtedly wouldhave again rushed at Stas were it not for Saba's flaming eyes andbristling hair. Gebhr even started to dash towards him, but one hollowgrowl riveted him to the spot.
A moment of silence followed, after which Idris' loud voice resounded:
"To the road! To the road!"
XI
A day passed, a night, and yet another day and they drove constantlysouthward, halting only for a brief time in the khors in order not tofatigue the camels too much, to water and feed them, and also to dividetheir provisions and water. From fear of the pursuit they turned yetfarther to the west, for they did not have to concern themselves aboutwater for some time. The downpour had lasted indeed not more than sevenhours, but it was as tremendous as if a cloud-burst had occurred on thedesert. Idris and Gebhr as well as the Bedouins knew that on the bedsof the khors and in those places where the rocks formed naturalcavities and wells they would, for a few days, find enough water tosuffice not only for their and the camels' immediate wants but even forreplenishing their supplies. After the great rain, as usual, splendidweather followed. The sky was cloudless, and the air so transparentthat the view reached over an immeasurable distance. At night theheaven, studded with stars, twinkled and sparkled as if with thousandsof diamonds. From the desert sands came a refreshing coolness.
The camel-humps already grew smaller but the animals, being well-fed,were, according to the Arabian expression, "harde," that is, they wereunimpaired in strength and ran so willingly that the caravan advancedbut little slower than on the first day after their departure fromGharak el-Sultani. Stas with astonishment observed that in some of thekhors, in rocky fissures protected from rain, were supplies of durraand dates. He inferred from this that, before their abduction, certainpreparations were made and everything was pre-arranged between Fatma,Idris, and Gebhr on one side and the Bedouins on the other. It was alsoeasy to surmise that both the Bedouins were Mahdist adherents andbelievers, who wanted to join their leader, and for that reason wereeasily drawn into the plot by the Sudanese. In the neighborhood ofFayum and ground Gharak el-Sultani there were quite a number ofBedouins who with their children and camels led a migratory life on thedesert and came to Medinet and the railway stations for gain.
Stas, however, had never seen these two before, and they also could nothave been in Medinet, for it appeared they did not know Saba.
The idea of attempting to bribe them occurred to the boy, butrecollecting their shouts, full of fervor, whenever the name of theMahdi was mentioned by them, he deemed this an impossibility.Nevertheless, he did not submit passively to the events, for in thatboyish soul there was imbedded a really astonishing energy, which wasinflamed by the past failures.
"Everything which I have undertaken," he soliloquized, "ended in mygetting a whipping. But even if they flog me with that courbash everyday and even kill me, I will not stop thinking of rescuing Nell andmyself from the hands of these villains. If the pursuers capture them,so much the better. I, however, will act as if I did not expect them."And at the recollection of what he had met at the thought of thosetreacherous and cruel people who, after snatching away the rifle, hadbelabored him with fists and kicked him, his heart rebelled and rancorgrew. He felt not only vanquished but humiliated by them in his prideas a white man. Above all, however, he felt Nell's wrong and thisfeeling, with the bitterness which intensified within him after thelast failure, changed into an inexorable hatred of both Sudanese. Hehad often heard, indeed, from his father that hatred blinds, and thatonly such souls yield to it as are incapable of anything better; butfor the time being he could not subdue it within him, and did not knowhow to conceal it.
He did not know to what extent Idris had observed it and had begun toget uneasy, understanding that, in case the pursuing party shouldcapture them, he could not depend upon the boy's intercession. Idriswas always ready for the most audacious deed, but as a man not deprivedof reason, he thought that it was necessary to provide for everythingand in case of misfortune to leave some gate of salvation open. Forthis reason, after the last occurrence he wanted in some manner toconciliate Stas and, with this object, at the first stop, he began thefollowing conversation with him.
"After what you wanted to do," he said, "I had to punish you asotherwise they would have killed you, but I ordered the Bedouin not tostrike you hard."
And when he received no reply, he, after a while, continued thus:
"Listen! you yourself have said that the white people always keep theiroath. So if you will swear by your God and by the head of that little'bint' that you will do nothing against us, then I will not order youto be bound for the night."
Stas did not answer a single word to this and only from the glitter ofhis eyes did Idris perceive that he spoke in vain.
Nevertheless, notwithstanding the urging of Gebhr and the Bedouins, hedid not order him to be bound for the night, and when Gebhr did notcease his importunities, he replied with anger:
"Instead of going to sleep, you will to-night stand on guard. I havedecided that from this time one of us shall watch during the sleep ofthe others."
And in reality a change of guards was introduced permanently from thatday. This rendered more difficult and completely frustrated all plansof Stas to whom every sentinel paid watchful attention.
But on the other hand the children were left in greater freedom so thatthey could approach each other and converse without hindrance.Immediately after the first stop Stas sat close to Nell for he wasanxious to thank her for her aid.
But though he felt great gratitude to her he did not know how toexpress himself, either in a lofty style or tenderly; so he merelyb
egan to shake both of her little hands.
"Nell!" he said, "you are very good and I thank you; and besides this Ifrankly say that you acted like a person of at least thirteen years."
On Stas' lips words like these were the highest praise; so the heart ofthe little woman was consumed with joy and pride. It seemed to her atthat moment that nothing was impossible. "Wait till I grow up, thenthey will see!" she replied, throwing a belligerent glance in thedirection of the Sudanese.
But as she did not understand the cause of the trouble and why all theArabs rushed at Stas, the boy told her how he had determined to purlointhe rifle, kill the camels, and force all to return to the river.
"If I had succeeded," he said, "we would now be free."
"But they awoke?" asked the little girl with palpitating heart.
"They did. That was caused by Saba, who came running toward me,