Beadle's Dime Library No. 157 — page 6: what you’re looking at

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

6) , Mourad, the Mameluke. tit =F ‘*No. I wished to ask if you dared to ride with me to Alexandria with a letter for the gen- eral. If you are afraid, say so, You are all he wore the uniform of the white: Iam of the mixed blood. You under- shoulder was a new epaulet, and the stripes | stand now? Let us see which is the braver of of a sergeant had lately been unpicked from his | us two.” sleeves, where the marks still remained on his The escaped Mameluke looked at the other in sty jacket. “He saluted stiffly. a singular way, and Lafangere watched them “Tam ready to go, general, if I can take two | keenly. Being a native Frenchman be knew friends witb me.” little of the customs and nothing of the feelings ‘Who are your friends?” | of the natives of the French Antilles, where the “They both long to see France, which one | institution of slavery had but lately culminated has not seen for twelve years.” . in the horrors of the St. Domingo rebellion. * And the other?” : He saw these two ee singularly alike “The other is Maitre d’ Armes Lafangere.” | in face and figure, unmistakably brothers, azing The general compressed bis lige. at each other with looks of intense batred an “Oo my word you creoles have assurance, | jealousy. Will they go?” The Mameluke’s face was just like that of the “They will; if [ask them, general. And we | Guide, the features somewhat sharper, the eyes three can get to Alexandria alive.” more fierce; but St. George’s hair curled in ‘‘Humph! I thought so. In fact, I have put | ringlets while there was no tinge of color on bis in the letter that St. George would bring it, but | olive cheek. | not you. The other.” Adrian looked at Emil, who. returned his e creole colored deeply under his olive skin | glance in the same burning way, and at last the and answered stiffly. younger brother said: ‘‘Very good, general. If he is preferred, I ** You wish to know if Iam afraid. I am the have no compla nt to make, though he is my | Count of St. George. Tell that to your com- younger brother.” — Oe rades here, the butchers, the grocers, the scull- The general looked keenly at him. ions. Tell them 1 am aristocrat to the back- ‘What romance is this you tell? You are | bone and that my father died in the Tuileries not from Martinique; you are’ from St. | defending the king against a mob of savages. Domingo.” Tell ‘them that, and then see if lam afraid to The new lieutenant smiled bitterly. die.” ““T know it, general. Unfortunately, our fa- Lafangere had listened with more patience ther had estates in both islands. ou are not a | than he would have shown six years before; creole, general; but you have married one, | but the sentiments of Red Republicanism were You should know there are brothers in the growing weaker in the French army under the i There was u general drawing back, for the desert was known to be swarming with Arabs. Only one man remained near the git and ides. On his « ' Antilles that white man’s law does not recog- sq nize; but God does.” | Emil St. George waited til] the other had The general listened attentively, and then | finished and replied gravely: ‘France still lives and needs the services of her sons, not that they should kill each other. The general sends dispatches to France by me. I have the privilege of taking two comrades with me by way of the desert, Will you be one of them?” The escaped Mameluke nodded. “T will go. But I tell you beforehand that the chances are against us. The country is full of enemies, exasperated by defeat.” “That is why [ask youto go. I needa brave comrade, and, though we hate each other, you are, after all, St. George as well as I.” Adrian favored him with a haughty sneer as bowed to the creole with a manner that showed some respect. “ Whatever they think about these things in the Antilles, lieutenant, 7 hold men for what they are worth in brains and courage alone, You have permission to seek your comrades, and you shall have the letter.” St. George turned away, highly elated, and found his friend Lafangere sitting on a captured guu, with a mournful air. ss Well, Lafangere, we have had a great vic- tory,” he remarked, he swordmaster made a grimace, ‘*So much the worse. If they had beaten us, we should have retreated to our re and gone | he retorted: back to France. As it is, we shall have to stay ‘*T am sorry I cannot return the compliment, and take care of this accursed burned up couh- | You have assumed the name of St. . try, where the Israelites used to be made slaves; and it served them right for coming here.” ‘‘How would you like then to go back to Alexandria to-night and sail for Paris at once with a dispatch?” asked St. George. Lafangere jumped up and gave a shout. ¥: y! Have I a chance? Heaven! I would go through another battle to get it. But yet an ee lied. the cept ely, “ but it i creole gravely, “ bu s fee rick. We must ride all the way to “No matter,” returned Lafangere obsti- nately. “Vlitry it, You andI can do it—at least we could if we had that brother of yours along. We three could storm the mouth of hell, I verily’ believe. Where is he, by the by?’ “] hardly know. I have not seen him since eee Pale wel Se cake Tie. e has been eRe the general ever since, I sup- which is as good as any other for you, but I, for one, do not recognize it as yours. I will with you because France needs us both; but, en at home, I warn you two St, Georges can not live. CHAPTER VI. THE BROTHERS. | A PARTY of wipes f villainous-looking Arabs on lean ponies | tunics and long cane spears, had just hal by the banks of the Nile near Damanhour to water their horses. All around them were fields of yellow wheat, trampled down by the passage of armies and beaten into the dust of the long summer. ‘“Oh, son of Habib,” said one Arab, ‘‘I begin to think that the Prophet has turned bis face from the true believers to smile on the Franks. Such a victory never waswon. The Mamelukes pose, telling him all about the country. I see | are scattered to the four winds and their power is e. : ‘That is because you don’t look in the right e Oh son of Ayoub,” replied the second, ‘‘the place,” retorted Lafangere laughing. ‘‘ Look | best g we can do is to make a friend of the on the other side of the general.” - | Frank general by killing all the Mamelukes we y indeed see the handsome face and | meet.” - we tive figure yee Mameluke deserter, ‘Easier said than done,” remarked a third. to Bonaparte; though, a moment before, | ‘‘The Mamelukes have pistols and on he bad not been visible. ! their horses are the of Arabia, while we The general seemed to be | to him | have only our and a few swords. The earnestly and poctensly’ while the young man | F listened with respect. . fire; but we must ke e- Presently he came over tothem, and said, with | lukes till they are a” a bi exe, George: : a were interrupted in their colloquy a 4 ‘The general says you wish to speak to me, | warn e from the scout, who sat on his tells me further that you bear the same | horse at top of the bank, watching the desert. _ namé as I. That is . How is it,and| ‘ What is it, oh son of Abd f asked Ibu t have you to say?” — Ba hoa Habib. ‘‘Whocomes?” — wont | ’ Pa See of haughtiness in his tone The scout held up three fingers the that marked the aceablo spirit of the old | sky, and made a circular motion’ is head Rigeeb noblesse, | as i wenger turban, | ‘creole ‘answered with just as much “ Three elukes,” muttered the son of 1e8S: : Habib. ‘Let’ us set on them, brothers, We ‘There is nothing stra about it. I am | are seventeen, and the three. It will earn your elder brother. That is all.”° — a pe oy of the to bring them in, or alive. he other St, George started back and laid his d on his sword. ‘You lie,” he cried fiercely. “I am my father’s only son, Adrian de St. George. I never had brother or sister.” Emil St. ’s mouth seemed to harden into lines of bronze as he answered: . ‘You are mistaken. I do not say yow lie, be- cause you are my brother, and I do not want to kill you. But yer father and mine were the same, oud he loved my mother better than Adrian de St. George turned white to the lips. ‘* Was that what )ou wished to say?” And as the son of Ayoub seconded the idea on e whole e intoa cana thensselves to wait for the coming of the Mame- es. In the meantime the advancing cavaliers were riding on can easy amble and any one close to them could see that, though their dress and arms those of Moslems, their faces were shaven the fashion of the Franks. ‘Tl see no traces of marauding Arabs,” the maitre d’armes observed, looking toward the mocnlit Nile. ‘The country seems to be 4 e a eS : 2 2 'S a = away, as it seppeuass right into the d s | | The Gascon dashed into ranks can kill them, for they are lords of the. friends with the Mam | razors, the a a all. What do you think has become deserted of them, Monsieur Mourad?’ Mourad the Mameluke shook his head gloom- ily as be answered: ‘*So much the worse for us. They have fled to upper Egypt, and will make head in more force than ever. Besides, I don’t wish you to call me Mourad. I am the Count of St. George.” | Lafangere smiled. ‘* We have no counts now; and my comrac here, is the only St. George I know. To us ven are Mourad the Mameluke, till you have earner: the title of a Frenchman, who loves France | better than a decayed noblesse.” | Mourad’s eye flashed. Coming back among Frenchmen after a twelve years’ slavery, brooding over the feudal glories of his house, he had not yet become educated to the republic, and, all through the journey Lafangere had kept taking the half- blood’s part and calling the aristocrat nothing but Mourad. The young man’s fierce spirit, chafing under the infliction, now burst out ia fury, and he suddenly cried out: | ‘Then get to Alexandria by yourselves. I can take care of my own head.” With that he wheeled his horse and dashed canal where the Arabs were in ambush, to sur- rounded in another moment and fighting for his life. The valiant sons of Habib, Ayoub and ‘Abdal- lah cha him simultaneously as he struck the bed of the canal, and splintered their cane lances on his mail shirt, knocking him out of the saddle before he could defend bimself. Then, with loud yells, a Me owt, down to finish him; but in a moment he was up, fightin fiercely, sweeping his razorlike scimitar sand him, and cutting off limbs at every stroke which reached his enemies. §till, they were too many for him and had the advantage of surprise. Just as he cut down the son of Habib, another Arab rode at him from behind, and trampled him down, when they all rushed in to kill him as he lay. — St. George and Lafangere saw him go over the bank and heard the yells, and the maitre WVarmes laughed savagely. \ ‘“‘Let him take care of his head now,” he cried. ‘‘The accursed aristocrat is well served. His friends have him.” But St. George drew a pistol. ‘*Comeée on!” he said, to the Gascon. “He is my brother, and God sees us. Let us go to his e. ; A louder burst of yells and the clash of swords came over the bank of the canal as he spoke, and Lafangere cried out: “Let them fight. It will clear our way to Alexandria.” For all answer St. George dashed at the canal and was over in another moment, when Lafan- gere heard a pistol-shot. The Gascon no longer hesitated. Drawing both pistols, be galloped to the canal and saw the creole hotly engaged with a dozen Arabs, while several more were busy round the _ prostrate form of Mourad, the Mameluke, whose _horse was trotting off, neighing wildly. he midst of the fray, firing both pistols as they nearly touched the _ bodies of a couple of Arabs, and then set to work with his saber, cutting — and left at the poorly ed Bedouins, ably seconded by his comrades. ' The Arabs, at the best of times, had been desperately afraid of the Mamelukes, and these three men, or at least two of them, seemed to be more formidable than any they had ever met before. Hemmed up in the narrow bed of the canal, they could not'surround the two men, who kept charging and cutting with their long sabers. The Arabs, rong I orant of fencing, rarely a trust Selaping ‘one side from a cut, but here cs tg no opportunity to do so. It was give and take, two men against a dozen; but. the two had armor and long sabers like dozen were naked and had only In sree tatstetos from the beginning of the the Arabs fled, leaving four dead men in canal, and Lafangere said: — ** Our bas had his allowance. He could take care of his head; but, after all, his head is only one that bas suffered in this little a A He er ee bis horse to ride away, when St. rge dismounted and went up to the ae of Mourad, which lay still at the of the canal. ‘“‘Help, comrade!” he said gravely. “My brother has been hurt, and s looking down at us now.” _ There was something so simple and solemn in his words that the Gascon, w d not, after all, a bad heart, immediately returned and as- sisted him to examine the body of Mourad. To their surprise they found no blood on it, b ge he was deadly pale and quite insensi- Lafangere felt his pulse and exclaimed: ‘It beats yet, but where is he burt?” Eomicboo S, Gor |