CHAPTER VI
THE PRINCE AND THE EMIR
In the reception room of the Prince's tent the lamps are lighted; onefastened to the stout centre pole, and five others on as many palingsplanted in the ground, all burning brightly. The illumination isenriched by the admirable blending of colors in the canopy of shawls.Within the space defined by the five lamps, on a tufted rug, the Mysticand the Emir are seated, both in _Ihram_, and looking cool andcomfortable, though the night outside still testifies to the heat ofthe day.
A wooden trencher, scoured white as ivory, separates the friends,leaving them face to face. In supping they have reached what we callthe dessert.
On the trencher are slender baskets containing grapes, figs, and dates,the choicest of the gardens of Medina. A jar of honey, an assortment ofdry biscuits, and two jugs, one of water, the other of juice ofpomegranates, with drinking cups, complete the board.
At this age, Orientals lingering at table have the cheer of coffee andtobacco; unhappily for the two of whom we are writing, neither of thegreat narcotics was discovered. Nevertheless it should not be supposedthe fruits, the honey, and the waters failed to content them. Behindthe host is the negro we already know as Nilo. He is very watchful ofhis master's every motion.
As guest and host appear now the formalism of acquaintanceship justmade has somewhat disappeared, and they are talking easily and withfreedom. Occasionally a movement of one or the other brings his head toa favorable angle, whereat the light, dropping on the freshly shavencrown, is sharply glinted back.
The Emir has been speaking of the plague.
"At Medina I was told it had run its course," the host remarked.
"True, O Hadji, but it has returned, and with greater violence. Thestragglers were its victims; now it attacks indiscriminately. Yesterdaythe guard I keep in the rear came to a pilgrim of rank. His litter wasdeserted, and he was lying in it dead."
"The man may have been murdered."
"Nay," said the Emir, "gold in large amount was found on his person."
"But he had other property doubtless?"
"Of great value."
"What disposition was made of it?"
"It was brought to me, and is now with other stores in my tent; a lawof ancient institution vesting it in the Emir El Hajj."
The countenance of the Jew became serious.
"The ownership was not in my thought," he said, waving his hand. "Iknew the law; but this scourge of Allah has its laws also, and by oneof them we are enjoined to burn or bury whatever is found with thebody."
The Emir, seeing the kindly concern of his host, smiled as he answered:
"But there is a higher law, O Hadji."
"I spoke without thinking danger of any kind could disturb thee."
The host drew forward the date basket, and the Emir, fancying hediscerned something on his mind besides the fruit, waited his furtherspeech.
"I am reminded of another matter, O brave Emir; but as it also ispersonal I hesitate. Indeed I will not speak of it except withpermission."
"As you will," the other replied, "I will answer--May the Prophet helpme!"
"Blessed be the Prophet!" said the Prince, reverently. "Thy confidencedoeth me honor, and I thank thee; at the same time I would not presumeupon it if thy tongue were less suggestive of a land whose name ismusic--Italy. It is in my knowledge, O Emir, that the Sultan, thymaster--may Allah keep him in countenance!--hath in his service manyexcellent soldiers by birth of other countries than his own, broad asit is--Christians, who are none the less of the true faith. Wherefore,wilt thou tell me of thyself?"
The question did not embarrass the Emir.
"The answer must be brief," he answered, without hesitation, "becausethere is little to tell. I do not know my native country. Thepeculiarity of accent you have mentioned has been observed by others;and as they agreed with you in assigning it to Italy, I am nothingloath to account myself an Italian. The few shreds of circumstancewhich came to me in course of time confirmed the opinion, and I availedmyself of a favorable opportunity to acquire the tongue. In our furtherspeech, O Hadji, you may prefer its use."
"At thy pleasure," the host replied; "though there is no danger of ourbeing overheard. Nilo, the slave behind me, has been a mute from birth."
Then, without the slightest interruption, the Emir changed his speechfrom Greek to Italian.
"My earliest remembrance is of being borne in a woman's arms out ofdoors, under a blue sky, along a margin of white sand, an orchard onone hand, the sea on the other. The report of the waves breaking uponthe shore lives distinctly in my memory; so does the color of the treesin the orchard which has since become familiar to me as the green ofolives. Equally clear is the recollection that, returning in-doors, Iwas carried into a house of stone so large it must have been a castle.I speak of it, as of the orchard, and the sea, and the roar of thebreakers, quite as much by reference to what I have subsequently seenas from trust in my memory."
Here the host interrupted him to remark:
"Though an Eastern, I have been a traveller in the west, and thedescription reminds me of the eastern shore of Italy in the region ofBrindisi."
"My next recollection," the Emir resumed, "is a child's fright,occasioned by furious flames, and thick smoke, and noises familiar nowas of battle. There was then a voyage on the sea during which I sawnone but bearded men. The period of perfect knowledge so far as myhistory is concerned began when I found myself an object of the loveand care of the wife of a renowned Pacha, governor of the city ofBrousa. She called me _Mirza_. My childhood was spent in a harem, and Ipassed from it into a school to enter upon my training as a soldier. Ingood time I became a Janissary. An opportunity presented itself oneday, and I distinguished myself. My master, the Sultan, rewarded me bypromotion and transfer to the _Silihdars_, [Footnote: D'Oheson.] themost ancient and favored corps of the Imperial army, it being thebody-guard of the Padisha, and garrison of his palace. The yellow flagmy ensign carries belongs to that corps. As a further token of hisconfidence, the Sultan appointed me Emir El Hajj. In these few words, OHadji, you have my history."
The listener was impressed with the simplicity of the narrative, andthe speaker's freedom from regret, sorrow, or passion of any kind.
"It is a sad story, O Emir," he said, sympathetically, "and I cannotthink it ended. Knowest thou not more?"
"Nothing of incident," was the reply. "All that remains is inferential.The castle was attacked at night by Turks landed from their galleys."
"And thy father and mother?"
"I never knew them."
"There is another inference," said the Prince, suggestively--"they wereChristians."
"Yes, but unbelievers."
The suppression of natural affection betrayed by the remark still moreastonished the host.
"But they believed in God," he said.
"They should have believed Mahomet was his Prophet."
"I fear I am giving you pain, O Emir."
"Dismiss the fear, O Hadji."
Again the Jew sought the choicest date in the basket. The indifferenceof his guest was quick fuel to the misgivings which we have alreadynoticed as taking form about his purpose, and sapping and weakening it.To be arbiter in the religious disputes of men, the unique consummationcalled for by his scheme, the disputants must concede him room andhearing. Were all Mohammedans, from whom he hoped most, like this oneborn of Christians, then the two conditions would be sternly refusedhim. By the testimony of this witness, there was nothing in theheredity of faith; and it went to his soul incisively that, instimulating the passions which made the crusades a recurrence of thecenturies, he himself had contributed to the defeat now threatening hislatest ambition. The sting went to his soul; yet, by force of will,always at command in the presence of strangers, he repressed hisfeeling, and said:
"Everything is as Allah wills. Let us rejoice that he is our keeper.The determination of our fate, in the sense of what shall happen to us,and what we shall be, and when and where th
e end shall overtake us, isno more to him than deciding the tint of the rose before the bud isformed. O Emir, I congratulate you on the resignation with which youaccept his judgment. I congratulate you upon the age in which he hascast your life. He who in a moment of uncertainty would inform himselfof his future should not heed his intentions and hopes; by studying hispresent conditions, he will find himself an oracle unto himself. Heshould address his best mind to the question, 'I am now in a road; if Ikeep it, where will I arrive?' And wisdom will answer, 'What are thydesires? For what art thou fitted? What are the opportunities of thetime?' Most fortunate, O Emir, if there be correspondence between thedesire, the fitness, and the opportunity!"
The Emir did not comprehend, and seeing it, the host added with adirectness approaching the abrupt:
"And now to make the reason of my congratulations clear, it isnecessary that thou consent to my putting a seal upon your lips. Whatsayest thou?"
"If I engage my silence, O Hadji, it is because I believe you are agood man."
The dignity of the Emir's answer did not entirely hide the effect ofthe Prince's manner.
"Know thou then," the latter continued, with a steady, penetratinggaze--"know thou then, there is a Brahman of my acquaintance who is aMagus. I use the word to distinguish him from the necromancers whom theKoran has set in everlasting prohibition. He keeps school in a chapelhid away in the heart of jungles overgrowing a bank of the Bermapootra,not far from the mountain gates of the river. He has many scholars, andhis intelligence has compassed all knowledge. He is familiar with thesupernatural as with the natural. On my way, I visited him.... Knowthou next, O Emir, I too have had occasion to make inquiries of thefuture. The vulgar would call me an astrologer--not a professionalpractising for profit, but an adept seeking information because itlifts me so much nearer Allah and his sublimest mysteries. Very latelyI found a celestial horoscope announcing a change in the status of theworld. The masterful waves, as you may know, have for many ages flowedfrom the West; but now, the old Roman impetus having at last spentitself, a refluence is to set in, and the East in its turn pour adominating flood upon the West. The determining stars have slippedtheir influences. They are in motion. _Constantinople is doomed!_"
The guest drew a quick breath. Understanding was flooding him withlight.
"And now, O Emir, say, if the revelation had stopped there--stopped, Imean, with the overthrow of the Christian capital--wouldst thou havebeen satisfied with it?"
"No, by Allah, no!"
"Further, Emir. The stars being communicable yet, what wouldst thouhave asked them next?"
"I would not have rested until I had from them the name of him who isto be leader in the movement."
The Mystic smiled at the young man's fervor.
"Thou hast saved me telling what I did, and affirmed the logic of ourhuman nature," he said. "Thy imperial master is old, and much worn bywars and cares of government, is he not?"
"Old in greatness," answered the Emir, diplomatically.
"Hath he not a son?"
"A son with all the royal qualities of the father."
"But young--not more than eighteen."
"Not more."
"And the Prophet hath lent him his name?"
"Even so."
The host released the eager face of the Emir from his gaze, while hesought a date in the basket.
"Another horoscope--the second"--he then said, quietly, "revealedeverything but the hero's name. He is to be of kingly birth, and aTurk. Though a lad, he is already used to arms and armor."
"Oh! by Allah, Hadji," cried the guest, his face flushed, his wordsquick, his voice mandatory. "Release me from my pledge of silence. Tellme who thou art, that I may report thee, and the things thou sayest.There was never such news to warm a heroic heart."
The Prince pursued his explanation without apparently noticing theinterruption noticing the interruption.
"To verify the confidences of the stars, I sought the Magus in hischapel by the sacred river. Together we consulted them, and made thecalculations. He embraced me; but it was agreed between us thatabsolute verity of the finding could only be had by re-casting thehoroscopes at Constantinople. Thou must know, O Emir, there is anastral alphabet which has its origin in the inter-relations of theheavenly bodies, represented by lines impalpable to the common eye;know also that the most favored adept cannot read the mystic letterswith the assurance best comporting with verity, except he be at theplace of the destined event or revolution. To possess myself of theadvantage, I shall ere long visit the ancient capital. More plainly, Iam on the way thither now."
Instead of allaying the eagerness of the Emir, the words excited it themore.
"Release me from my pledge," he repeated, entreatingly, "and tell mewho thou art. Mahommed is my pupil; he rides, carries shield, layslance, draws arrow, and strikes with sword and axe as I have taughthim. Thou canst not name a quality characteristic of heroes he does notpossess. Doth Allah permit me safe return from the Hajj, he will befirst to meet me at his father's gate. Think what happiness I shouldhave in saluting him there with the title--Hail Mahommed, Conqueror ofConstantinople!"
The Jew answered:
"I would gladly help thee, O Emir, to happiness and promotion; for Isee what afterwhile, if not presently, they would follow such asalutation of thy pupil, if coupled with a sufficient explanation; buthis interests are paramount; at the same time it becomes me to beallegiant to the divinatory stars. What rivalries the story mightawaken! It is not uncommon in history, as thou mayst know, that sons ofpromise have been cut off by jealous fathers. I am not accusing thegreat Amurath; nevertheless precautions are always proper."
The speaker then became dramatic.
"Nay, brave Emir, the will to help thee has been already seconded bythe deed. I spoke but now of lines of correspondence between theshining lights that are the life of the sky at night. Let me illustratemy meaning. Observe the lamps about us. The five on the uprights.Between them, in the air, two stars of interwoven form are drawn. Takethe lamps as determining points, and use thy fancy a moment."
The Emir turned to the lamps; and the host, swift to understand theimpulse, gave him time to gratify it; then he resumed:
"So the fields of Heaven between the stars, where the vulgar see onlydarkness, are filled with traceries infinite in form yet separable asthe letters of the alphabet. They are the ciphers in which Allah writeshis reasons for every creation, and his will concerning it. There thesands are numbered, and the plants and trees, and their leaves, and thebirds, and everything animate; there is thy history, and mine, and allof little and great and good and bad that shall befall us in this life.Death does not blot out the records. Everlastingly writ, they shall beeverlastingly read--for the shame of some, for the delight of others."
"Allah is good," said the Emir, bending his head.
"And now," the Mystic continued, "thou hast eaten and drunk with me inthe Pentagram of the Magii. Such is the astral drawing between the fivelamps. Henceforth in conflicts of interest, fortune against fortune,influences undreamt of will come to thy assistance. So much have Ialready done for thee."
The Emir bowed lower than before.
"Nor that alone," the Jew continued. "Henceforth our lives will runtogether on lines never divergent, never crossing. Be not astonished,if, within a week, I furnish, to thy full satisfaction, proof of what Iam saying."
The expression could not be viewed except as of more than friendlyinterest.
"Should it so happen," the Emir said, with warmth, "consider howunfortunate my situation would be, not knowing the name or country ofmy benefactor."
The host answered simply, though evasively:
"There are reasons of state, O Emir, requiring me to make thispilgrimage unknown to any one."
The Emir apologized.
"It is enough," the host added, "that thou remember me as the Prince ofIndia, whose greatest happiness is to believe in Allah and Mahomet hisProphet; at the same time I concede we should have the means of
certainly knowing each other should communication become desirablehereafter."
He made a sign with his right hand which the negro in waiting respondedto by passing around in front of him.
"Nilo," the master said in Greek, "bring me the two malachiterings--those with the turquoise eyes."
The slave disappeared.
"Touching the request to be released from the promise of secrecy,pardon me, O Emir, if I decline to grant it. The verification to bemade in Constantinople should advise thee that the revolution to whichI referred is not ripe for publication to the world. A son might beexcused for dishonoring his parents; but the Magus who would subjectthe divine science to danger of ridicule or contempt by prematuredisclosure is fallen past hope--he would betray Allah himself."
The Emir bowed, but with evident discontent. At length the slavereturned with the rings.
"Observe, O Emir," the Jew said, passing them both to his guest, "theyare rare, curious, and exactly alike."
The circlets were of gold, with raised settings of deep green stone,cut so as to leave a drop of pure turquoise on the top of each,suggestive of birds' eyes.
"They are exactly the same, O Prince," said the Emir, tendering themback.
The Jew waved his hand.
"Select one of them," he said, "and I will retain the other. Borne bymessengers, they will always identify us each to the other."
The two grew more cordial, and there was much further conversationacross the board, interspersed with attentions to the fruit basket andpomegranate water. About midnight the Emir took his departure. When hewas gone, the host walked to and fro a long time; once he halted, andsaid aloud--"I hear his salute, 'Hail Mahommed, Conqueror ofConstantinople!' It is always well to have a store of strings for one'sbow."
And to himself he laughed heartily.
Next day at dawn the great caravan was afoot, every man, woman, andchild clad in _Ihram_, and whitening the pale green Valley.