The innocents abroad; . ight shed a dim glory down upon one of the irrepres-sible memento-seekers who was pecking at the venerable sar-cophagus with his sacrilegious hammer. We struggled out to the open air and the bright sunshine,and for the space of thirty minutes received ragged Arabs bycouples, dozens and platoons, and paid them bucksheesh forservices they swore and proved by each other that they hadrendered, but which we had not been aware of before—and aseach party was paid, they dropped into the rear of the proces-sion and in due time arrived again with a newly-invented de-linquent list
The innocents abroad; . ight shed a dim glory down upon one of the irrepres-sible memento-seekers who was pecking at the venerable sar-cophagus with his sacrilegious hammer. We struggled out to the open air and the bright sunshine,and for the space of thirty minutes received ragged Arabs bycouples, dozens and platoons, and paid them bucksheesh forservices they swore and proved by each other that they hadrendered, but which we had not been aware of before—and aseach party was paid, they dropped into the rear of the proces-sion and in due time arrived again with a newly-invented de-linquent list for liquidation. We lunched in the shade of the pyramid, and in the midstot this encroaching and unwelcome company, and then Danand Jack and I started away for a walk. A howling swarm ofbeggars followed us—surrounded us—almost headed us off. Asheik, in flowing white bournous and gaudy head-gear, waswith them. He wanted more bucksheesh. But we had adopteda new code—it was millions for defense, but not a cent for. STRATEGY 627 bucksheesh. I asked him if he could persuade the others to de-part if we paid him. He said yes—for ten francs. We ac-cepted the contract, and said— IN^ow persuade your vassals to fall back. He swung his long staff round his head and three Arabsbit the dust. He capered among the mob like a very blows fell like hail, and wherever one fell a subjectwent down. We had to hurry to the rescue and tell himit was onlynecessary todamage them alittle, he neednot kill them.—In two minuteswe were alonewith the sheik,and remainedso. The per-suasive powersof this illiter-ate savagewere remark-able. Each side of the Pyramid of Cheops is about as long as theCapitol at Washington, or the Sultans new palace on the Bos-porus, and is longer than the greatest depth of St. Peters atPome—which is to say that each side of Cheops extends sevenhundred and some odd feet. It is about seventy-five feethigher than the cross on St. Peters. The first time I ever
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Keywords: ., bo, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectvoyagesandtravels
