This Personage Was No Other Than Aboo
Goosh ("The Father Of Lies" {39}), Who Was Taken Out Of Prison For
The Purpose.
The "father of lies" enabled Ibrahim to hem in the
insurrection and extinguish it.
He was rewarded with the
Governorship of Jerusalem, which he held when I was there. I
recollect, by-the-bye, that he tried one of his stratagems upon me.
I did not go to see him, as I ought in courtesy to have done,
during my stay at Jerusalem; but I happened to be the owner of a
rather handsome amber tchibouque piece, which the Governor heard
of, and by some means contrived to see. He sent to me, and dressed
up a statement that he would give me a price immensely exceeding
the sum which I had given for it. He did not add my tchibouque to
the rest of his trophies.
There was a small number of Greek Christians resident in Nablus,
and over these the Mussulmans held a high hand, not even permitting
them to speak to each other in the open streets; but if the Moslems
thus set themselves above the poor Christians of the place, I, or
rather my servants, soon took the ascendant over THEM. I recollect
that just as we were starting from the place, and at a time when a
number of people had gathered together in the main street to see
our preparations, Mysseri, being provoked at some piece of
perverseness on the part of a true believer, coolly thrashed him
with his horsewhip before the assembled crowd of fanatics. I was
much annoyed at the time, for I thought that the people would
probably rise against us. They turned rather pale, but stood
still.
The day of my arrival at Nablus was a fete - the new-year's day of
the Mussulmans. {40} Most of the people were amusing themselves in
the beautiful lawns and shady groves without the city. The men
(except myself) were all remotely apart from the other sex. The
women in groups were diverting themselves and their children with
swings. They were so handsome, that they could not keep up their
yashmaks. I believe that they had never before looked upon a man
in the European dress, and when they now saw in me that strange
phenomenon, and saw, too, how they could please the creature by
showing him a glimpse of beauty, they seemed to think it was better
fun to do this than to go on playing with swings. It was always,
however, with a sort of zoological expression of countenance that
they looked on the horrible monster from Europe, and whenever one
of them gave me to see for one sweet instant the blushing of her
unveiled face, it was with the same kind of air as that with which
a young, timid girl will edge her way up to an elephant and
tremblingly give him a nut from the tips of her rosy fingers.
CHAPTER XXV - MARIAM
There is no spirit of propagandism in the Mussulmans of the Ottoman
dominions.
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