VII
A PRIZE WORTH WINNING
There was a group of several people standing about the caliph's gate asKanana emerged. They were apparently waiting, in careless curiosity, tosee the white camel start, and learn what they could of what was goingon in official departments.
The information they received was very meager, yet it proved sufficientfor more than one. They saw the white camel rise, with the veiledmessenger of Omar upon its back. As the driver looked up to receive hisfirst command their necks were bent in a way that betrayed theireagerness to hear. Only one word was spoken, however. It was "Tayf," thename of a city a short distance to the east of Mecca.
The camel-driver's cry sounded again through the streets, but thetwilight shadows were gathering. There were few abroad, and the crieswere not so loud or so often repeated as in the afternoon. When theyceased altogether, Kanana had turned his back upon Mecca forever.
The night wind blew cool and refreshing from the surrounding hills asthe little caravan moved out upon the plain, but Kanana was ill at ease.
It was still as death in the valley. Far as the eye could penetrate thedarkness they were all alone, except for five horsemen who left the gateof Mecca not long after the white camel, and were now riding slowlytoward Tayf, a short distance behind it.
Ever and again Kanana looked back at them. The faint shadows, silentlymoving onward through the gloom, were always there; never nearer; neverout of sight.
Leaning forward, he spoke in a low voice to the driver, "You walk asthough you were weary. The dromedary was brought for you. Mount it, andfollow me."
"Master," replied the driver, "the white camel is obstinate. He willonly move for one whom he knows well."
"You speak to the wind," muttered Kanana. "Do as I bid thee. Hear mywords. Yonder black dromedary has the fleetest foot in Mecca. He is thepride of the Caliph Omar. Mount him, and if you can overtake me while Idrive the white camel, you shall throw the dust of the desert in theface of Raschid Airikat, and have the white camel for your own."
The driver started back, and stood staring at the veiled messenger ofOmar. The word, "Mount!" was sternly repeated. Then he quickly obeyed,evidently bewildered, but well satisfied that he would have an easy taskbefore him, from the moment the white camel realized that a stranger wasin command.
Kanana spoke, and the camel started. The dromedary moved forward closebehind it without a word from the driver. The horsemen had approached nonearer while they waited, though Kanana had purposely given them timeenough to pass, had they not halted when he halted. They were still fivesilent shadows upon the distant sand.
"Faster," said Kanana, and the long legs of the white camel swung out alittle farther over the sand and moved more rapidly, in response.
The dromedary immediately quickened its pace without urging, and, amoment later, from far in the distance, the night wind brought the soundof horses' hoofs through the silent valley. It was very faint, butdistinct enough to indicate that the shadows behind them had broken intoa canter.
The camel-driver gave little heed to his surroundings. He was toothoroughly engrossed in the prospect of owning the white camel to carewho might be coming or going in a way as safe as that from Tayf toMecca.
Kanana, however, who could walk through the streets of the holy citywithout so much as knowing what the houses were made of, would haveheard the wings of a night-moth passing him, or seen a sand-bush move, aquarter of a mile away.
His life as a shepherd had, after all, not been wasted.
"Faster," said Kanana, touching the camel's neck with his shepherd'sstaff, and without even the usual grunt of objection, the animal obeyed.The sand began to fly from his great feet as they rested upon it for aninstant, then left it far behind; the Bedouin boy sat with eyes fixed onthe path before him, and his head bent so that he could catch thefaintest sounds coming from behind. The mantle that had covered his facefell loosely over his shoulder.
The dromedary lost a little ground for a moment, but gathering himselftogether, easily made it up. The driver was too sure of the finalresult to urge him unduly at the start. Soon enough the white camelwould rebel of his own accord, and till then it was quite sufficient tokeep pace with him.
The sound of horses' hoofs became sharper and more distinct, and Omar'smessenger knew that the five shadows were being pressed to greaterspeed, and were drawing nearer.
"Faster!" said Kanana, and the white camel broke into a run, swinging inrapid motions from side to side, as two feet upon one side, then two onthe other were thrown far in front of him and, in an instant, left asfar behind.
Still the dromedary made light work of keeping close upon his track,evidently realizing what was expected of him; but the driver saw withdismay how quickly the camel responded to the word of his rider, howeasily the man sat upon the swaying back--how carefully he selected thebest path for the animal, and how skillfully he guided him so that hecould make the best speed with the least exertion.
Many a night Kanana had run unsaddled camels about the pastures of theBeni Sads, guarding the sleeping sheep and goats, little dreaming forwhat he was being educated.
The sound of horses' hoofs grew fainter. They were losing ground, butnow and then the listening ear caught the sharp cry of an Arab horsemanurging his animal to greater speed.
"They are in earnest," muttered the Bedouin boy, "but they will not winthe race."
"Faster!" said Kanana; the camel's head dropped till his neck lost itsgraceful curve, and the great white ship of the desert seemed almostflying over the billowy sand.
For a moment the dromedary dropped behind. The driver had to use theprod and force him to the very best that was in him, before he was ableto regain the lost ground.
The sound of hoofs could no longer be heard, and Kanana was obliged tolisten with the utmost care to catch the faintest echo of a distantvoice.
"They are doing their best and are beaten, but we can do still better,"he said to himself with a deep sigh of relief, as he watched the desertshrubs fly past them in fleeting shadows, scudding over the silver-graysand.
The music of the sand, as it flew from the camel's feet and fell likehail upon the dry leaves of the desert shrubs, was a delightful melody,and hour after hour they held the rapid pace; over low hills and sandyplains; past the mud village and the well that marks the resting-placefor caravans, a night's journey from Mecca, without a sign of halting;and on and on, the dromedary always just so far behind, always doing hisbest to come nearer.
If by urging he was brought a little closer to the camel, the driverheard that low word, "Faster!" and in spite of him the camel gainedagain. Would he never stop?
The sounds from behind had long been lost when, far in advance, appearedthe regular caravan from Tayf. They approached it like the wind. Onlythe mystic salaam of the desert was solemnly exchanged, then, in amoment, the trailing train as it crept westward was left, disappearingin the darkness behind them.
When it was out of sight the white camel suddenly changed its course,turning sharply to the north of east and striking directly over thedesert, away from the hills and the beaten track to Tayf which he hadbeen following.
The driver could not imagine that such a man as sat upon the white camelhad lost his way. He silently followed till they passed a well thatmarked the second night's journey from Mecca toward Persia.
The driver and dromedary would very willingly have stopped here; butthe camel glided onward before them through the changing shadows of thenight, as though it were some phantom, and not a thing of flesh andblood.
By dint of urging, the driver brought the dromedary near enough to call:
"Master, we are not upon the road to Tayf."
"No," said Kanana, but the camel still held his course.
Driven to desperation, as the eastern sky was brightening, the drivercalled again:
"Master, you will kill the camel!"
"Not in one night," said Kanana; "but if you value your own life, comeon!"
Faster still and faster the white camel swept toward the glowing east,but the dromedary had done his best. He could not do better.
More and more he fell behind, and in spite of every effort of thedriver, the pride of the caliph was beaten.
Fainter and fainter grew the outline of the white camel against themorning sky, ever swinging, swinging, swinging, over the silver-graysea, with a motion as regular and firm as though it had started but anhour before.
As the red disc of the fiery sun rose out of the desert, however, thedriver saw the camel pause, turn half about, till his huge outline stoodout in bold relief against the sky, and then lie down.
Quickly Kanana dismounted. He caressed the camel for a moment,whispering, "We are two days and a half from Mecca! Thou hast donebetter than I hoped. Thou didst remember me yesterday in the templecourt. To-night thou hast cheerfully given every atom of thy strength tohelp me. To-morrow we shall be far apart. Allah alone knows for what orfor how long; but if we ever meet again thou wilt remember me. Yes, thouwilt greet thy Kanana."
The boy's dark eyes were bright with tears as he gave the camel the bestof the food provided for him; then, with sand in stead of waterperforming the morning ablution, he faced toward Mecca.
When the dromedary and his rider reached the spot, the veiled messengerof Omar was solemnly repeating his morning prayer.