CHAPTER V. THE TWO ALCALDES.
MARSILLUS commenced his address in the following words:--
"May Allah enlighten you, and shed his glory on you, for I haveassembled you to a council. Listen to this brief recital, and give meyour opinion on it.
"A lion, full of youth and strength, was gaping and yawning enough toput his jaws out of joint. He had done nothing for the day, but yet,wholly given up to idleness, he stretched himself on the warm sand,roasting first one side and then the other in the hot rays of the sun.An ant happened to pass close by him, painfully dragging a small fly.Seeing such great labour bestowed on so small an object, the lion burstout laughing. 'It is not very becoming in you to make a jest of me,'said the toiler, without ceasing from his task; 'I am weak, but I makefull use of the little strength Heaven has given me, while you, whomight do anything, are giving way to slumber before you have earned itby fatigue. Leave off smiling, for you are in the wrong. I am strongerand braver than you. Remember, 'a busy ant does more than a dozinglion.'"
Mahomet, who was leaning on a cloud, and happened to hear them, greatlyapproved of the ant's remarks.
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"By the divinity of the Ka'abah, by the shrine of Mecca, are not we likethis lion? We pass our lives in sloth and luxury, while the ruler of theFranks is hard at work extending his dominions. The day before yesterdayhe was in Aquitaine--yesterday he was in Lombardy--to-day he is inSaxony--to-morrow he may be in our kingdom. But do you, the sons ofthose whom Mussa led along the banks of the Rhone and the Saone--doyou feel inclined to sit still and wait his coming? If, gorged withprosperity, you have forgotten the past, the people of Nimes and Arles,of Narbonne and Bordeaux, of Toulouse and Chalons, do not forget itwhen they gaze on their ruined cities, their desolated cathedrals, theiroverthrown fortresses. Children of Alsamah, of Abdel-Rahman, Ambissa,and Marsufle, have at the descendants of Charles Martel, Eudes, andPepin! If these victorious names do not make your hearts leap, will theyquail at the recollection of our disasters at Poitiers? The bones ofour sires enrich French soil--the harvests the Franks reap have beenfattened by the blood of our bravest, which fed the fields. They areours, but we have been robbed of them. Let us go and win them backagain!"
The assembly received this harangue with terrific cheering. Shouts,observations, threats, and warnings were mixed in such inextricableconfusion that Marsillus did not know what to listen to. He remarked,however, that two of his emirs held themselves apart and maintainedsilence. When the tumult had subsided, he beckoned to them to draw near.
"Why do you keep aloof instead of sharing in the general enthusiasm?Answer, Abiathar--answer, Ibn al Arrabi. You are generally more livelywhen there is a prospect of war."
"Sire," said Abiathar, the Alcalde of Huesca, "I grieve to behold youundertaking an enterprise which will bring you no credit."
A threatening murmur ran through the assembly.
"This is a fearful responsibility you take on yourself," said, in histurn, Soleyman Jaktan Ibn al Arrabi, Alcalde of Saragossa. "Is it notpossible you may have reason to repent having called down upon yourselfthe wrath of the King of the Franks?"
This speech caused such an outburst of anger, that some of Marsillus'sknights drew their swords and threatened the lives of the two emirs.
"Verily, I feel no gratitude to you," said the King of Saragossa. "Ihope I may attribute the cowardly expressions you have just uttered toyour increasing years!"
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"In spite of our age, we lack neither strength nor valour," saidAbiathar, who turned a ghastly white with sheer rage; "and we provethat, I think sufficiently, by having the courage to talk reason tomadmen!" Several chiefs rushed at them with drawn swords.
"We don't in the least lack strength," said Ibn al Arrabi, as he seizedone of the most violent of his assailants by the throat, and flunghim twenty paces away. "Any one who doubts it can easily try theexperiment."
Marsillus descended from his throne, and placed himself between thecontending parties.
"Do you," he said to his knights, "reserve your ardour for a morefitting occasion. I thank you for having proved that I was right inrelying on your support. As for you, Abiathar, and you, Ibn al Arrabi, Ifeel obliged to you for your frankness. But your prophetic powers will,of course, have enabled you to guess that I shall confide the defence ofHuesca and Saragossa to others. Having, then, no office under the crown,you will be enabled to hear without regret the plans about which you areso full of caution and prudence."
With that he gave them the signal to withdraw. The two emirs bowed anddeparted. One month after they presented themselves at the Court ofFrance.