Part 38

A beautiful and touching scene will, perhaps, then be enacted. A chief of the highest rank, in despair at being defeated, throws himself into the mêlée to seek death, but is held back by the young men who gather round him, and beseech him to retire. "Thou art our father!" they will exclaim; "What will become of us if thou shouldst perish? It is our duty to die for thee. We will not remain as sheep without a shepherd." A handful of warriors still endeavour to make head against the foe, but they are swept away in the general rout, and soon find themselves by the side of their women. Every one, then, seeing that all is lost, devotes himself to saving what is dearest to him. As rapidly as possible they make to the rear, only from time to time facing about to check the pursuit of the enemy.

The audacity of desperation has more than once changed the face of things. Aïssa-ben-el-Sheriff, a child of fourteen, mounted on horseback with his tribe to repel an attack directed by Sid-el-Djedid. The Arbâa were beginning to give way and take to flight, when the boy, throwing himself before them, tried to stop them: "What!" he exclaimed, "You are men, and are afraid! You have been brought up in the midst of powder, and do not know how to burn it! Did you pay all that attention to your mares only to make use of them in flight?" And when the others replied, "Djedid! Djedid! Look at Djedid!" "Djedid," continued the child. "It is a single man that makes you flee! Behold, then, this terrible warrior, who puts hundreds to the rout, checked in his victorious career by a child!" With these words he dashed his spurs into his horse's flanks, and came up with the redoubtable warrior. Djedid, fearing nothing from a mere boy, was off his guard, but the latter threw himself round his neck, entwined his arms round him, and, leaving his own horse, hung by one arm, while with the other he endeavoured to stab him with his knife. Astonished at such audacity, and hampered in his movements, Djedid strove in vain to shake him off, but with all his presence of mind he was unable to parry the boy's frequent thrusts. Puzzled what to do, he slipped off his horse, hoping to crush Aïssa in his fall. The latter, however, succeeded in avoiding him, and throwing himself on the courser of the dreaded chief, rejoined his tribe, to whom he exhibited a trophy that made the oldest warrior blush for the momentary panic to which they had yielded.

Were it not that the conquerors usually build a golden bridge for the conquered, the latter might be easily destroyed; but the thirst for pillage gains the day, and the victors disperse in search of plunder. One despoils a foot-soldier, another a horseman whom he has overthrown; another, again, leads away a steed, and yet another a negro. Thanks to this disorder, the bravest of the discomfited tribe succeed in saving their women, and even their tents. When the pillage is at an end, the horsemen of the victorious tribe are anxious to return home, and their chiefs encourage the desire. "We have slain numbers," say they. "We have seized their horses, captured their women, taken their guns, and refreshed our souls by making orphans of these sons of dogs. Our best plan now is to go and sleep at such a place, for the enemy, strengthened by his reinforcements, may possibly resume the offensive and attack us during the night." The baggage is sent forward in front, and, protected by a strong rearguard, during the first few days they continue their march until nightfall.

In this species of warfare, the greatest respect is shown to the captive women. Men of low birth, indeed, despoil them of their jewels, but the chiefs make it a point of honour to restore them to their husbands, with their camels, their jewels, and their ornaments. They even take pains to properly array those who have been robbed, before sending them back.

In the desert, they make no prisoners, and cut off no heads, and they have a horror of mutilating the wounded, who are left, however, to themselves to escape or perish, for no one takes any trouble about them. Rare examples of cruelty do sometimes occur, but these are acts of private revenge, when men have recognised the murderers of those who were dear to them, a friend or brother.

On reaching their own territory, the tribe is welcomed by extraordinary rejoicings. The universal exultation betrays itself by the liveliest demonstrations. The women draw up their camels in a single row, and utter cries of joy at regular intervals. The young men execute in their presence a fantasia of the wildest description. Salutations, embraces, and interrogations are exchanged on all sides. Food is prepared for the warriors and their allies, and the chiefs collect the sum that is to be divided among them. A common horseman never receives less than ten douros, or an article of equal value. This recompense, called zebeun, is obligatory, and is given over and above the plunder each may have seized for himself; and, in addition to this, three camels are bestowed upon every cavalier who has lost a horse. It is needless to add that a larger sum than ten douros is offered to the chiefs of the allied tribes, whose influence has been so successful. They receive their share like the others, but in secret they are presented with money, or articles of considerable value, such as carpets, tents, arms, horses, etc., etc.

A generous hospitality is offered to the allies; and on the morrow, when they set out to return to their own territories, the chiefs mount on horseback and accompany them. After riding on together for two or three hours, they renew the mutual oath never to raise but one war-shout, never to make but one and the same gun, to come in the morning if summoned in the morning, and to come at night if summoned at night. In the desert, if feuds are keen and hereditary, sympathies, on the other hand, are also numerous and profound. The following verses illustrate the extreme degree of delicacy and devotedness to which the sentiment of friendship is carried by the Arabs:

If a friend does not walk as blindly as a child, If he does not voluntarily expose himself to death, Forgetting that suicide is a crime,

He shall have no place in the tents of our tribes. I will obey the summons of my friend. Though the morning light should be the reflection of swords, Though the darkness of night should be the cloud of dust raised by the tramp of horses, I will go to die or to be happy. The smallest of the sacrifices to which I have agreed is death. Can I live far away from the place of refuge so dear to me? Can I support the absence of neighbours to whom I have become accustomed.

It may be naturally asked why a tribe that is menaced with an attack, but will not make the necessary sacrifices to obtain peace, does not flee, instead of awaiting the assault. To flee, is to invite pursuit while in the disorder of a retreat. It means leaving one's country, exposing oneself to scarcity of water for the flocks, or even falling into the hands of some other enemy, who would certainly take advantage of this opportunity for pillage and revenge. The wisest plan is to choose a good position, assemble the allies, and await the enemy if confident in one's own strength, or else to make concessions if conscious of weakness.

"O Allah! save us and save our horses. Every day we lie down in a new country. It may be that She remembers our vigils with the flutes and tabours."

REMARKS BY THE EMIR ABD-EL-KADER.

How can any strange people contend with us, who are brought up in the highest sense of honour, even above all the tribes collected in the great assemblies? Do we not advance against the enemy on horses of pure race, terrible as raging lions, that gallop wildly along the perilous mountain path?

I have prepared, against the time when fortune shall be unfavourable to me, a noble courser of perfect shape, and which none can rival in swiftness.

I have also a flashing sabre which severs at a stroke the body of an enemy. And yet fortune has treated me as if I had never tasted the pleasure of bestriding an air-drinker;

As if I had never rested my heart on the virgin bosom of a well-beloved maiden, with legs adorned with bracelets of gold;

As if I had never felt the anguish of separation;

As if I had never taken part in the exciting spectacle of our blood horses surprising the enemy at the break of day;

As if, in short, after a defeat, I had never brought back the runaways to the fight, by crying aloud:—

"Fatma! daughters of Fatma!

"Death is a tax levied on our heads; turn the neck of your horses, and repeat the charge.

"Time turns upon itself and returns.

"Would that I could throw the world on its face!"

USAGES OF WAR.

On returning to their douars after a razzia, or an expedition, the Arabs of the desert proceed to divide the spoils in equal shares, a certain portion being set aside for special cases. Thus a cavalier who has slain another in battle is entitled to the horse of the deceased, to his arms, garments, harness, pouch, and djebira. "In fact, he has risked a life to take a life, and will have to answer before Allah for the death he has inflicted, rightly or wrongly." A horse that is captured without its owner being killed, is comprised among the general stock to be divided. If a horseman has been slain by several persons firing simultaneously, without it being clearly shown by whose hand he fell, his spoils are equally shared by all. In some tribes, the plunder reverts to the chief when it cannot be proved from whose gun the fatal ball was fired. Should a cavalier learn after the fight is over, that he has killed an enemy with his own hand, and be able to produce witnesses to the deed, he obtains restitution of the entire plunder of the slain.

When a tribe makes an expedition against another tribe, each individual retains whatever he has taken in haïks, burnouses, arms, and garments; but tents, flocks, horses, mules, camels, provisions, and grain, are public property. The chief alone is entitled, over and above an ordinary share, to thirty or forty ewes, or three or four camels, as the case may be. Even should he not have accompanied the tribe in person, he would still be assigned what is called the akeud ek-sheikh, or the sheikh's knot. If any one, not caring to join the expedition, has lent his mare to a friend, he shares the booty acquired by the latter. If the animal be killed and any prize is made, the value of the mare is deducted and paid over to her owner, for she had gone for the service of the tribe. Should the result be unfavourable, the owner puts up with his loss—"he sought his good fortune."

Whoever offers a supply of food to a party of horsemen is entitled to a share if the party prove successful, as he was interested in the expedition.

A "lance" [one share] is given to the farrier of the tribe, for he contributes his skill and labour to the success of the enterprise. To kill a farrier is deemed infamous. It is a deed that will recoil upon the guilty tribe, who will be pursued by a curse ever after.