Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 108 — page 14: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

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If I choose to turn my Boston name into Portuguese, I’ve just as good a right as all the French Huguenots that went into England with William of Orange to make themselves English. Haven't I?” **I don’t dispute the right, sir,’ was the cold reply of Hamilton. ‘‘ Yourname may be Smith or Brown for all I care.” ‘But it’s neither, as it happens, cunnel, and Tll trouble you to remember it,” retorted the Yankee, a faint flush tinging his cheekbones. ‘** Here’s the Times, with the article quoted in the Bord du Nil, and 1 guess the Khedive won’t have to bastinado one editor this morning. lve heen an editor myself, cunnel, in a place where ! had to write with a revolver in each boot and n bowie down the back of mv neck; and I never took water yet on a statement of fact: nnd what’s more, if this French editor’s of my mind, he won’t do it either—not this time.” Hamilton had taken the paper from his hands as he began this little speech and did not at- tempt to stop his volubility, for his eves had al- ready caught the head-lines which told him the American spoke truly. . As for Sir Lumley Lawton, now that there was an open attack on him, he assumed the ap- pearance of iron calm which distinguished him at m times, and folded his arms to await Hamilton’s report. It was noticeable that, now the cold Northern races had met in open collision, the excitable and swarthy Egyptians and French had drawn nglishman a small eard on themselves out of the quarrel, and were looking | pipe hat on his head on. listening with hushed interest. Even testy old Halim Pasha had heen silenced by Hamil- | der, but no sign of recognition. | ton’s first furious denunciation of the Bord du Nil and his threat to appeal to the Khedive. The only quiet and unconcerned spectator seemed to be the Duke of Diamantina, who sat in his cane arm-chair, blowing rings of cigarette sinoke and watching the scene with a keenness that nothing escaped. Meantime Colonel Hamilton read the English article from end to end, with a countenance in which keen mortification struggled with the British sense of justice. A Frenchman would have refused to look at anything, an Italian would have torn up the paper; but the 7'imes was the sacred representative of British re- spectability to Hamilton, and he could not doubt but that the 7imeshad printed the article. When he had finished, he turned to Sir Lum- ley and observed in a dissatisfied tone: ‘You'll have to look to this, Lawton. It’s evident somebody’s put te this woman to per- sorate the Ranee and black-mail you. I’m sorry you couldn’t have got home sooner to nip itinthe bud.” Sir Lumley took the paper and looked at it himself with unmoved face till he had mastered its sense, when he said coolly: ‘This will shorten my stay here. I have only to go home to crush all this rascally con- Parelap ? I see this club is a terribly mixed af- fair, old fellow. I suppose your position com- pels you to belong to it; but, by Jove, / could- n’t afford to come here every day to meet a lot of cads. Ah, duke, is that yous Charmed to see you, ’msure. You must dine with us be- fore we leave Cairo, Can’t give you such luxuries as you have, you know, but a hearty English welcome we can promise for yourself ane your friends.” So saying, he bowed low to the duke, stuck on his hat ostentatiously before the Egyptian officers, lighted a cigar, sneering openly at them all, and then wa ked quietly to the door, twirling his cane as he went and whistling. Hamilton followed his example to the letter. The colonel was too much used to the swagger and bluster required in dealing with Orientals to be at all backward in bullying the Egyp- tians, and there was no one else to bully, for Dom Gil, the Yankee Brazilian, had qulesly withdrawn to the table, at which he bad been ne coffee and paper together, and seem ed to be once more absorbed in the news. _ Thus the Engiishmen might have been said to come off with flying colors out of the club, and so the Duke of Diamantina quietly remarked to LU asha: ‘““Those English are devils, but they are no cowards.” the stout Albanian veteran admitted. “T co almost he ve laughed at the bold bear- ing of that Sare Lomlee; bat, thank Heaven, | what it’s cracked np to be, old fellow. the elub is rid of him.” ‘* Herve comes auather of the race,” observed / | J The Duke of Diamondas. Diamantina, as Captain O’Shea, rubicund and | respondent, to keep the wolf from the door. jolly as ever, entered the club-room. What’s it for, old boy?” _ But the captain appeared to be an old habitué ‘Call it ‘political services,’ and pass it to of the club, as indeed he was, owing to his fre- | your account,” was the evasive reply, as Dom quent journeys to and fro from India, for the | Gil passed over the check he had mentioned to 'purehase of Government stores. He shook | tbe other. ‘hands with Halim Pasha, talked vile Irish- | Frankl He had | French or worse Arabic to the other officers, | | | | ! | | that wateh she stole, bad luck to her,” Jey isrich yet and the En ; | | Diamantina, ‘“‘ I just met that murderin’ old vil- | looked at in amazement and joy. ‘*TwohundredJiras! Smithand Brown, bank- ers! Why, what’s this for?” “ For an article in your last paper about In- dia. Smith and Brown are interested in a little lain, Lawton. Did ye see the blast the Times | claim on the British Government, and your gave him? bad luck to him! He’s gota face on | article hit the nail on the head. Keep it up, him like as if he was goin’ to a funeral and had- | Frankly, and I’ll bring you such auother next n't been esked to the wake. By the powers, it | week.” does my heart good to see him. Now that) Frankly looked hesitatingly at the check and vinegary old maid ‘Il maybe have to give up asked: _ “What articledo you mean? That Lawton business‘ I — copied that.” u and seemed to be hail-fellow-well-met with all. ‘* Ha, duke,” he broke out, the moment he saw | Diamantina blew a long curl of smoke ere he replied. ‘* Exactly. t for all that, Colonel Hamil- ‘Do not be too sure, my dear sir. Sir Lum- | ton and Lawton himself were nearly coming aglish courts are not | downtointerview you with a big stick about it.” kind to those poor devils of Hindoos.” | Frankly laughed. He was a thin, wiry man ‘Ah, ye don’t know English ways, your | with a firm chin, and ears set very close’ to his grace. The r Ranee may never get any sat- | head, one of the type that prize-fighters call isfaction out of the villain, but ye’ll see they’ll | “ game to the backbone.” send him to Coventry in England for this.” _ They might run on a snagif they tried that, ‘My dear sir,” responded Diamantina, lazily, Gibby,” he remarked. ‘‘ Do you remember the ‘‘as you say, 1do not know the ways of the time we used to do the local business down in English. What is this Coventry you mention?’ | Galveston. before the war’ Those Texans make ‘Coventry! Well, your grace, it’s a very an Englishman seem like a whale in shoal disagreeable place to visit. hen @ man gets | water, beside them. But go on. What am 1 there, no one will speak to him, and he might | todo?’ as well be dead as alive.” | ‘Keep this up; that’s all. There will be a “This must be a charming residence, this | heavy pressure on you to disavow any agree- Coventry,” observed the duke, with another | ment with thatarticlein your nextissue. When puff. ‘‘Lam obliged to you for the informa- | do you come out?” tion, capitan. Have you seen Senhor Hart this | ‘*'To-morrow,” morning, sir?” ‘*iExactly. Well, we want you to indorse ‘“Once: and he seemed to be full of business: | the article in an editorial, and bluff off the Eng: for he was running round in the sun bunting up | lishmanif he comes. If you do this, you’li get some one.” another check next week.” ‘Thank you, sir.” | Frankly hesitated again. The duke threw away the last remains of his | ‘“‘ Perhaps you don’t know what you're ask- cigarette and walked to the window, passing by | ing. As ae « as I copy the Times and keep & Dom Gil, who was still absorbed by the news. | still mouth, I’m permitted to starve in decent As he passed he dropped a few words in a low | quiet, but if I express an editorial opinion, 1 voice to the other, who paid no apparent atten- | lay myself liable to a visit from the police and tion to them, and then strolled into the billiard- | seizure of the edition.” room, leaving O’Shea talking to the Egyptians. | _ “‘ As far as that goes, my people will see that Presently Dom Gil got up, placed a tall stove- | the Khedive does not interfere with you. The and walked out past | edition will sell like wild-fire, and if you want O'Shea; who stared in his face with some won- ' the leader and the facts, here are both of them.” And Dom Gil pulled out a little roll of paper The Yankee’s face was so changed by the | and handed it to the other, whoran over it with clerical attire and tall hat from the physiogno- | the practiced eye of an exchange editor. my of Dom Gil thet O’Shea was quite excusable hen he had finished he shook his head. for asking Halim Pasha: ‘*Won’t do, Gil. Vd like to obli ‘‘Who’s that, gineral? Bedad he looks like | that’s too strong. Why, they could Death come out of the grave for a holiday.” for libel in any court in the world.” But Halim Pasha professed his own igno-| ‘‘ Well, suppose they do, and you have a rance. He had not seen the card given to | backer to pay the costs and Hamilton, who had ee it in his pocket, and, | How much will you take to fight it out?” C —_— — you, but ve me up like all the rest, had failed to recognize Dom Frankly considered a moment. Gil; so that the attempt ended in idle conjec- “The risk’s worth at least twenty thousand ture. ' dollars, and I should have to leave the country ask Dia- | in the end. You don’t know how strong the lish are here.” ‘Then here is something will satisfy you on all points,” said Dom Gil, quietly. ‘ Remem- y to secure you in Then, when some one proposed to mantina, they discovered that the duke bad left the club, and had been seen driving away on the new road across the bridge to the Pyramids of Ghizeh, the regular drive for fashionable | ber it’s in confidence and o visitors. case you have any doubts.” sp ee He handed Frankly a letter which the other CHAPTER XX. | vead slowly, two or three times, before he said _a word in answer. : ; AN EGYPTIAN EDITOR. Then he turned on Dom Gila face in which a Ix the meantime Dom Gil Grabador, after | great deal of emotion was manifest and replied leaving his club, continued his way, with a | to the other’s look of inquiry: tranquillity undisturbed by his unsuitable at- “Vos, Gibby, ’ do it. I never dreamed of tire (the thermometer stood at 98° in the shade) | this,” , to the business quarter of the Ezbekiah, where “And yet you might have known, if you he entered a building full of offices and tapped | hadn’t been a regular old duffer, George,” re- at the door of a little back room, which bore torted Dom Gil, with forced jocularity, two the legend, ‘‘ Bord du Nil—Bureau @ Editeur,” | suspicious ao standing in the corner of bis which in English is simply, ‘Tam Nie BANK | eyes. ‘I wouldn’t put you in a hole for all the —Epitor’s OFFICE.” money in Asia. ill you pitch into Lawton now? ‘By the great horn spoon which Nebuchad. nexsar used for his mush and milk, Pll scarify that old villain so that he’ll leave Egypt. You “ Butrez !” said a voice, and Dom Gil found | himself in the sanctum of the editor of that in- | fluential journal which had caused such a com- motion in the Khedive Club, The editor was a pale, keen-looking, middle- | see if I don’t.’ ; aged man, with a gray mustache and a general And the editor of the Bord du Nil tucked the air of overwork, incident to performing the | check into his ne seized his pen, and plung- r duties of proof-reader, leader-writer, advertis- | ed into his work as Dom Gil left the office, ing agent, reporter and book-keeper in one, in — the city of Cairo in May—with tho arduous of- CHAPTER XXI, fice of bill-collector thrown in. He had told | _ RETROSPECT AND PROSPECT. Dom Gil to enter in French, but it was in un-| TuHx little trouble at the Khedive Club did mistakable New York slang that he greeted | not affect Sir Lumley Lawton to any great out- him when the other was fairly inside, | ward extent. He had been in a measure pre- “Well, old fellow, what's the racket now? pared for it by the unexpected meeting with Spit her out quick, for I’m in a devil of a hurry | the Princess Euphrosyne Melapetros, and he to catch the mail.” And he seribbled away. | had no doubt in his own mind that she and the Dom Gil allowed his grim features to relax — lost Ranee of Krisbnapoor were one and the into a smile as he said: _same person. The very name, ‘‘ Melaetros,” ‘, et the mailwait. I've gota check to your was a mere Greek translation for the maiden order, Frankly.” | name under which she had passed in India; for George W. Frankly, editor in chief of the | it meant ‘‘ Black Stone ” (or Rock). Bord du Nu, threw down his pen and positively | How well he remembered Effie Blackstone in laughed as he turned to Dom Gil, though the | those old days before the mutiny! She was one tears were in his eyes as he did so. | of those unfortunate beings in Indian society, ‘Well, by Jove, that’s a thing ve not seen | occupying almost the same position once held for months. Running a paper in Cairo ain’t | by our own octorovns, though not accompanied I war | by the legal taints of slavery and bastardy, just sending & Jiue home to the old Spy, to ask | Her father, Eosign Blackstone of the Forty- tor the px sition of Heyptian and Levautiue cor- second Foot (of the famous * Black Waten ” of . comicbooks see you through. | fo