'There are asses who are fleet of foot,' I said, leisurely depositing my load at his feet; 'but the wise man regulateth his pace in accordance with three things: the heat of the sun; the welfare of others; and the nature of his burden.'
'That thou hast frequently paused on the way from Shubra to reflect upon these three things,'
replied Mohammed, 'I cannot doubt; depart, therefore, and ponder them at leisure, for I perceive that thou art a great philosopher.'
'Philosophy,' I continued, seating myself upon the box, 'sustaineth the mind, but the activity of the mind being dependent upon the welfare of the stomach, even the philosopher cannot afford to labor without hire.'
At that, Mohammed er-Rahman unloosed upon me a long pent-up torrent of invective—and furnished me with the information which I was seeking.
'O son of a wall-eyed mule!' be cried, shaking his fists over me, 'no longer will I suffer thy idiotic chatter! Return to Abdul the Porter, who employed thee, for not one faddah will I give thee, calamitous mongrel that thou art! Depart! for I was but this moment informed that a lady of high station is about to visit me. Depart! lest she mistake my shop for a pigsty.'
But even as he spoke the words, I became aware of a vague disturbance in the street, and—
'Ah!' cried Mohammed, running to the foot of the steps and gazing upwards, 'now am I utterly undone! Shame of thy parents that thou art, it is now unavoidable that the Lady Zuleyka shall find thee in my shop. Listen, offensive insect—thou art Said, my assistant. Utter not one word; or with this'—to my great alarm he produced a dangerous-looking pistol from beneath his robe—'will I blow a hole through thy vacuous skull!'
Hastily concealing the pistol, he went hurrying up the steps, in the to perform a low salutation before a veiled woman who was accompanied by a Sudanese servant-girl and a negro.
Exchanging some words with her which I was unable to detect, Mohammed er-Rahman led the way down into the apartment wherein I stood, followed by the lady, who in turn was followed by her servant. The negro remained above. Perceiving me as she entered, the lady, who was attired with extraordinary elegance, paused, glancing at Mohammed.
'My lady,' he began immediately, bowing before her, 'it is Said my assistant, the slothfulness of whose habits is only exceeded by the impudence of his conversation.'
She hesitated, bestowing upon me a glance of her beautiful eyes. Despite the gloom of the place and the yashmak which she wore, it was manifest that she was good to look upon. A faint but exquisite perfume stole to my nostrils, whereby I knew that Mohammed's charming visitor was none other than the Lady Zuleyka.
'Yet,' she said softly, 'he hath the look of an active young man.'
'His activity,' replied the scent merchant, 'resideth entirely in his tongue.'
The Lady Zuleyka seated herself upon the diwan, looking all about the apartment.
'Everything is in readiness, Mohammed!' she asked.
'Everything, my lady.'
Again the beautiful eyes were turned in my direction, and, as their inscrutable gaze rested upon me, a scheme—which, since it was never carried out, need not be described—presented itself to my mind. Following a brief but eloquent silence—for my answering glances were laden with significance:—
'O Mohammed,' said the Lady Zuleyka indolently, 'in what manner doth a merchant, such as thyself, chastise his servants when their conduct displeaseth him?'. Mohammed er-Rahman seemed somewhat at a loss for a reply, and stood there staring foolishly.
'I have whips for mine,' murmured the soft voice. 'it is an old custom of my family.'
Slowly she cast her eyes in my direction once more.
'It seemed to me, O Said,' she continued, grace fully resting one jeweled hand upon the ebony table, 'that thou hadst presumed to cast love-glances upon me. There is one waiting above whose duty it is to protect me from such insults. Miska!'—to the servant girl—'summon El-Kimri (The Dove).'
Whilst I stood there dumbfounded and abashed the girl called up the steps:
'El-Kimri! Come hither!'
Instantly there burst into the room the form of that hideous negro whom I had glimpsed above; and—
'O Kimri,' directed the Lady Zuleyka, and languidly extended her hand in my direction, 'throw this presumptuous clown into the street!'
My discomfiture had proceeded far enough, and I recognized that, at whatever risk of discovery, I must act instantly. Therefore, at the moment that E1-Kimri reached the foot of the steps, I dashed my left fist into his grinning face, putting all my weight behind the blow, which I followed up with a short right, utterly outraging the pugilistic proprieties, since it was well below the belt. E1-Kimri bit the dust to the accompaniment of a human discord composed of three notes—and I leaped up the steps, turned to the left, and ran off around the Mosque of el-Ashraf, where I speedily lost myself in the crowded Ghuriya.
Beneath their factitious duskiness my cheeks were burning hotly: I was ashamed of my execrable artistry. For a druggist's assistant does not lightly make love to a duchess!
IV
I spent the remainder of the forenoon at my house in the Darb el-Ahmar heaping curses upon my own fatuity and upon the venerable head of Abdul the Know-all. At one moment it seemed to me that I had wantonly destroyed a golden opportunity, at the next that the seeming opportunity had been a mere mirage. With the passing of noon and the approach of evening I sought desperately for a plan, knowing that if I failed to conceive one by midnight, another chance of seeing the famous prescription would probably not present itself for twelve months.
At about four o'clock in the afternoon came the dawn of a hazy idea, and since it necessitated a visit to my rooms at Shepheard's, I washed the paint off my face and hands, changed, hurried to the hotel, ate a hasty meal, and returned to the Darb el-Ahmar, where I resumed my disguise.
There are some who have criticized me harshly in regard to my commercial activities at this time, and none of my affairs has provoked greater acerbitude than that of the perfume called 'Breath of Allah.' Yet I am at a loss to perceive wherein my perfidy lay; for my outlook is sufficiently socialistic to cause me to regard with displeasure the conserving by an individual of something which, without loss to himself, might reasonably be shared by the community. For this reason I have always resented the way in which the Moslem veils the faces of the pearls of his harem. And whilst the success of my present enterprise would not render the Lady Zuleyka the poorer, it would enrich and beautify the world by delighting the senses of men with a perfume more exquisite than any hitherto known.
Such were my reflections as I made my way through the dark and deserted bazaar quarter, following the Sharia el-Akkadi to the Mosque of el-Ashraf. There I turned to the left in the direction of the Hamzawi, until, coming to the narrow alley opening from it into the Suk el-Attarin, I plunged into its darkness, which was like that of a tunnel, although the upper parts of the houses above were silvered by the moon.
I was making for that cramped little courtyard adjoining the shop of Mohammed er-Rahman in which I had observed the presence of one of those narrow high-wheeled carts peculiar to the district, and as the entrance thereto from the Suk was closed by a rough wooden fence I anticipated little difficult in gaining access. Yet there was one difficulty which I had not foreseen, and which I had not met with had I arrived, as I might easily have arranged to do, a little earlier. Coming to the corner of the Street of the Perfumers, I cautiously protruded my head in order to survey the prospect.
Abu Tabah was standing immediately outside the shop of Mohammed er-Rahman!
My heart gave a great leap as I drew back into the shadow, for I counted his presence of evil omen to the success of my enterprise. Then, a swift revelation, the truth burst in upon my mind, he was there in the capacity of imam and attendant magician at the mystical 'Blessing of the perfumes'! With cautious tread I retraced my steps, circled round the Mosque and made for the narrow street which runs parallel with that of the Perfumers and into which I knew the courtyard beside Mohammed's shop must open. What I did not know was how I was going to enter it from that end.
I experienced unexpected difficulty in locating the place, for the height of the buildings about me rendered it impossible to pick up any familiar landmark. Finally, having twice retraced my steps, I determined that a door of old but strong workmanship set in a high, thick wall must communicate with the courtyard; for I could see no other opening to the right or left through which it would have been possible for a vehicle to pass.
Mechanically I tried the door, but, as I had anticipated, found it to be securely locked. A profound silence
