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_This Edition is Strictly Limited to
One Thousand Numbered Copies
for Mature Collectors of
Literary Curiosa
No. 899._
_French and Oriental
Love in a Harem_
_by_
MARIO UCHARD
_with Decorations by
Paul Avril_
[Illustration]
_Privately Issued
by_ FALSTAFF PRESS
NEW YORK
[Illustration]
CHAPTER I.
_Château de Férouzat_, ..., 18...
No indeed, my dear Louis, I am neither dead nor ruined, nor have I
turned pirate, trappist, or rural guard, as you might imagine in order
to explain my silence these four months since I last appeared at your
illustrious studio. No, you witty giber, my fabulous heritage has not
taken wings! I am dwelling neither in China on the Blue River, nor in
Red Oceania, nor in White Lapland. My yacht, built of teak, still lies
in harbour, and is not swaying me over the vasty deep. It is no good
your spinning out laborious and far-fetched hyperboles on the subject of
my uncle's will: your ironical shafts all miss the mark. My uncle's will
surpasses the most astonishing feat of its kind ever accomplished by
notary's pen; and your poor imagination could not invent, or come
anywhere near inventing, such remarkable adventures as those into which
this registered document has led me.
First of all, in order that your feeble intellect may be enabled to rise
to the level of the subject, I must give you some description of "the
Corsair," as you called him after you met him in Paris last winter; for
it is only by comprehending the peculiarities of his life and character
that you can ever hope to understand my adventures.
Unfortunately, at this very point, a considerable difficulty arises, for
my uncle still remains and always will remain a sort of legendary
personage. Born at Marseilles, he was left an orphan at about the age of
fourteen, alone in the world with one little sister still in the cradle,
whom he brought up, and who subsequently became my mother: hence his
tender regard for me. Nevertheless, and notwithstanding the fact that we
two constituted the whole family, I only saw him during the intervals on
shore of his sea-faring life. Endowed with truly remarkable qualities
and with an energy that recognized no obstacles, he was the best fellow
in the world, as you must have observed for yourself; but certainly he
was also, from what I know of him, a most original character. I don't
believe that in the course of his eventful career, he ever did a single
act like other men, unless, may be, in the getting of children--yet even
these were only his "god-children." He has left fourteen in the
Department of Le Gard, scattered over the different estates on which he
lived by turns after he had quitted the East; and we may well believe he
would not have stopped short at that number, but that four months ago,
as he was returning from the South Pole, he happened to die of a
sunstroke, at the age of sixty-three. This last touch completes the
picture of his life. As to his history, all that is known of it is
confined to the following facts:
At the age of twenty-two my uncle turned Turk, from political
conviction. This happened under the Bourbons. The character of his
services in Turkey during the contests between Mehemet Ali and the
Sultan was never very clear, and I fancy he was rather muddled about
them himself, for he served both these princes by turns with equal
courage and equal devotion. As it happened, he was on the side of
Ibrahim at the time that the latter defeated the Turks at the battle of
Konieh; but being carried away in that desperate charge which he himself
led, and which decided the victory, my unfortunate uncle suffered the
disgrace of falling wounded into the hands of the vanquished party.
Being a prisoner to Kurchid-Pasha, and his wound having soon healed, he
was expecting to be impaled, when, to his great joy, his punishment was
commuted to that of the galleys. There he remained three years without
succeeding in effecting his escape, when one fine day he found his
services in request just at the right time by the Sultan, who appointed
him Pasha, giving him a command in the Syrian wars. What circumstance
was it that cut short his political career? How was it that he obtained
from the Pope the title of Count of the Holy Empire? Nobody knows.
All that is certain is that Barbassou-Pasha, tired of his honours and
having returned two years since to settle down in Provence, started off
one morning for Africa, on a ship that he had bought at Toulon.
Henceforth he devoted himself to the spice trade.
It was after one of these voyages that he published his celebrated
ontological monograph upon the negro races, a work which created some
stir and gained for him a most flattering report from the Academy.
These leading events of his Odyssey being known, the more private facts
and deeds of the life of Barbassou-Pasha are lost in obscurity. As for
his physical characteristics, you will remember the great Marseillais
six-foot high, with sinewy frame and muscles of steel; your mind's eye
can picture still the formidable, bearded face, the savage and terrible
eye, the rough voice, the complete type in short of "the pirate at his
ease," as you used to say, when laughing sometimes at his quiet humour.
After all, an easy-going soul, and the best of uncles!
As for my own recollections, so far back as they go, the following is
all I have ever known of him. Being continually at sea, he had placed me
at school quite young. One year, while at his château at Férouzat, he
sent for me during the holidays. I was six years old, and saw him for
the first time. He held me up in his arms to examine my face and
features, then turning me gently round in the air, he felt my sides,
after which--satisfied, no doubt, as to my build--he put me down again
with great care, as if afraid of breaking me.
"Kiss your aunt!" he said.
I obeyed him.
My aunt at that time was a very handsome young woman of twenty-two to
twenty-four, a brunette with great black, almond-shaped eyes, and fine
features on a perfect oval face. She placed me on her knees and covered
me with kisses, lavishing on me the most tender expressions, among which
she mingled words of a foreign language which sounded like music, so
sweet and harmonious was her voice. I conceived a great affection for
her. My uncle let me do just as I liked, and allowed no hindrances to be
put in my way. Thus it happened that at the end of my holidays I did not
want to return to school again, and should certainly have succeeded in
getting my way, if it had not been that Barbassou-Pasha's ship was
waiting for him at Toulon.
You may imagine with what joy I returned to Férouzat the next year. My
uncle welcomed me with the same delight, and betook himself to the same
examination of my physical structure. When his anxieties were satisfied,
he said to me--
"Kiss your aunt!"
I kissed my aunt: but, as I kissed her, I was rather surprised to find
her very much altered. She had become fair and pink-complexioned. A
certain firm and youthful plumpness, which suited her remarkably well,
gave her the appearance of a girl of eighteen. Being more bashful than
at our former interview, she tendered me her fresh cheeks with a blush.
I noticed also that her accent had undergone a modification, and now
very much resembled the accent of one of my school-fellows who was
Dutch. As I expressed my surprise at these changes, my uncle informed me
that they had just returned from Java. This explanation sufficed for me,
I did not ask any more questions, and henceforth I accustomed myself
every year to the various metamorphoses of my aunt. The metamorphosis
which pleased me the least was that which she contracted after a voyage
to Bourbon, from which she returned a mulattress, but without ceasing
still to be remarkably handsome. My uncle, it should be mentioned, was
always very good to her, and I have never known a happier household.
Unfortunately Barbassou-Pasha, being engaged in important affairs,
stayed away three years, and when I returned to Férouzat, he kissed me
and received me by himself. When I asked after my aunt, he told me that
he was a widower. As this misfortune did not appear to affect him very
seriously, I made up my mind to treat it with the same indifference that
he did.
Since that time I never saw any woman at the château, except once in an
isolated part of the park, where I met two shadowy beings, closely and
mysteriously veiled. They were taking a walk, accompanied by an old
fellow of singular aspect, clothed in a long robe with a _tarbouch_ on
his head, who greatly excited my curiosity. My uncle told me that this
was His Excellency, Mohammed-Azis, one of his friends at Constantinople,
whom he had taken in with his family after they had undergone
persecution at the hands of the Sultan. He lodged him in another little
château adjoining Férouzat, in order that they might be able to live
more comfortably in Turkish style: those young persons were two of his
daughters.
After that year, I never again stayed in Provence: for my uncle, having
settled in China and Japan, was absent five years, and my only relations
with him were through his banker at Paris, with whom I enjoyed that
solid and unlimited credit which you envied so much, and of which I
availed myself with such easy grace and in such a superbly reckless
spirit.
You remember that I received a few months ago a letter announcing this
sudden misfortune, and requesting my immediate presence at Férouzat, to
remove the seals and open the will: my poor uncle had died in Abyssinia.
Well, the day after my arrival, I had only just got up, when Féraudet,
the notary, was announced. He came in, literally armed with documents. I
did not want to act like a greedy heir, but rather to put off for a few
days all the most material questions; my notary, however, informed me
that "there were certain clauses in the will which demanded an immediate
examination." My uncle had charged me, he said, with numerous trusts and
legacies "for the benefit of his god-children and of other parties
living a long distance off." All this was uttered in a mournful tone
suited to the occasion, and at the same time with the manner of a person
aware that he was the bearer of an extraordinary document, and preparing
me for its effect. Finally he opened the will, which was worded as
follows:
"_Château de Férouzat_, ... 18..
"I, the undersigned, Claude-Anatole-Gratien Barbassou, Count of
Monteclaro, do hereby declare that I elect and designate as my universal
legatee and the sole inheritor of my property: of all my real and
personal estate, and all that I am entitled to of every description
soever, such as ..., &c.: my nephew Jérôme André de Peyrade, the son of
my sister: And I hereby command him to discharge the following legacies:
"To my much-beloved wife and legitimate spouse, Lia Rachel Euphrosine
Ben-Lévy, milliner, of Constantinople, and dwelling there in the suburb
of Péra, First, a sum of four thousand five hundred francs, which I have
agreed by contract to pay her; Second, my house at Péra, in which she
dwells, with all the appendages and appurtenances thereof; and Third, a
sum of twelve thousand francs, to be distributed by her, as it may
please her, among the different children whom she has by me.
"Likewise, to my much-beloved wife and legitimate spouse, Sophia
Eudoxia, Countess of Monteclaro (whose maiden name is De Cornalis),
dwelling at Corfu: First, a sum of five hundred thousand francs, which I
have agreed by contract to pay her; Second, the clock and the Dresden
china, which stand on my mantle-piece; Third, 'The Virgin,' by
Perugino, in my drawing-room at Férouzat.
"Likewise, to my much-beloved wife and legitimate spouse, Marie Gretchen
Van Cloth, dwelling at Amsterdam: First, a sum of twenty thousand
francs, which I have agreed by contract to pay her; Second, a sum of
sixty thousand francs, to be distributed by her, as it may please her,
among the different children whom she has by me; Third, my
dinner-service in Delph, known as No. 3; Fourth, a barrel-organ, set
with four of Haydn's symphonies.
"Likewise, to my much-beloved wife and legitimate spouse, Marie Louise
Antoinette Cora de La Pescade, dwelling at Les Grands Palmiers (Ile
Bourbon), my plantation upon which she lives, including the annexes of
Le Grand Morne.
"Likewise, to my much-beloved wife and legitimate spouse, Anita Josepha
Christina de Postero, dwelling at Cadiz: First, a sum of twelve thousand
francs; which I have agreed by contract to pay her; Second, my pardon
for her little adventure with my lieutenant Jean Bonaffé."
If some very precise person should seek to insinuate his criticisms upon
my uncle's matrimonial principles, my reply would be that
Barbassou-Pasha was a Turk and a Mussulman, and that consequently he can
only be praised for having so faithfully obeyed the Laws of the
Prophet--laws which permitted him to indulge in all this hymeneal luxury
without in the least degree outraging the social proprieties--and for
having in this matter piously fulfilled a religious duty, which his
premature death alone, so far as we can judge, has hindered him from
accomplishing with greater fervour. I trust that the God of the Faithful
will at least give him credit for his efforts.
Having said so much on behalf of a memory which is dear to me, and
having enumerated the chief clauses of the will, I may add in a few
words that, after the payment of my uncle's matrimonial donations, and
the various legacies to his "god-children," with those to his sailors in
addition, there remained for me about thirty-seven million francs.
"But, these children of my uncle's?" said I.
"Oh, sir! everything is in order! The Turkish law not recognising
marriages contracted abroad with unbelievers, excepting in the case of
certain prescribed formalities which your uncle happens to have
neglected to go through, it results that his will expresses his
deliberate intentions. Moreover, he had during his lifetime provided for
the future of all his people."
I listened with admiration.
"So much for the legal dispositions of the will, sir," said the notary,
when he had finished reading it out.
"Now I have a sealed letter to hand to you, which your uncle charged me
to give after his death to you alone. I was instructed in the case of
your death preceding his, to destroy it without acquainting myself with
its purport. You will understand, therefore, that I know nothing of its
contents, which are for you only to read. Have the kindness, please, to
sign this receipt, declaring that you find the seals unbroken, and that
I have left it in your possession."
He presented a paper, which I read and signed.
"Is that all?" I asked.
"Not quite, sir," he replied, as he took another package out of his
pocket. "Here is a document similarly sealed which was addressed to me.
I was only to open it in the case of your uncle's will becoming null and
void through your death preceding his. This document, he told me, would
then give effect to his final wishes. Your presence being duly
established, my formal written instructions are to burn this document,
now rendered useless and purposeless, before your eyes."
Again he made me attest that the seals were untampered with, and taking
up a candle from the writing-table and lighting it, he forthwith
committed to the flames this secret document the provisions of which we
were not to know. He then departed.
When left alone, and still affected by these lively recollections of my
poor uncle, I began to think of the letter which the notary had left
with me. I divined some mystery in it, and had a vague presentiment that
it would contain a decree of my destiny. This last message from him,
coming as it were from the tomb, revived in my heart the grief which had
hardly yet been allayed. At last, trembling all the while, I tore open
the envelope. These were its contents:--
"My Dear Boy,
"When you read this, I shall have done with this world. Please me by not
giving way too much to your grief, and act like a man! You know my ideas
about death: I have never allowed myself to be prejudiced into regarding
it as an evil, convinced as I have been, that it is nothing but the
transition which leads us to a superior state of existence. Adopt this
view, and do not cry over me like a child. I have lived my life; now it
is your turn. My desire is, that this old friend of yours should be
cherished in your memory: you shall join him with you in your happiness,
by believing that he takes part in it.
"Now let us have a talk.
"I leave you all my property, desiring to create no business
complications for you: my will is drawn up in proper form, and you will
enter into possession of your inheritance, which, you may rest assured,
is a pretty handsome one. There is, however, one last wish of mine for
the fulfilment of which I rely simply upon your affection, feeling sure
that between us there is no need of more complicated provisions for
ensuring its execution.
"I have a daughter, who has always shared with you my dearest
affections. If I have kept this second paternity a secret from you, I
have done so because circumstances might occur which would render
useless the revelation which I am now approaching. My daughter had a
legal father who had the right to reclaim her when sixteen years of age;
she is free now, her legal father is dead, she will soon be seventeen,
and I entrust her to your charge. Her name is Anna Campbell, she lives
at Paris at the Convent of Les Oiseaux, where she is completing her
education. Her only relation is an aunt, her mother's sister, Madame
Saulnier by name, who lives at No. 20, Rue Barbet de Jony. It will be a
sufficient introduction for you to call on this lady and tell her your
name. She is aware that I have appointed you moral guardian to my
daughter, and that it is you who will take my place. In short, she knows
_all my intentions_.
"I underline these words, for they sum up my fondest aspirations. I have
brought up Anna with the view of making her your wife, and thus dividing
my fortune between you; and I rely upon you to carry out this
arrangement. If marriage is for a man but a small matter, it is for a
woman the most serious event in life. With you, I am confident that the
dear girl will never be unhappy, and that is the thing of most
importance. If I never return from this last voyage, you will have
plenty of time to enjoy your bachelor's life; but I count upon your
friendship to render me this little service by marrying her when the
right time arrives. At present she is scarcely full-grown, and I think
it will be best for you to wait one or two years. I can assure you her
mother had a fine figure. You will find their portraits in one of the
velvet frames in the drawer of my desk. (Don't make a mistake: it is the
one numbered 9.)
"Now that this matter is settled, it only remains for me to give you one
last injunction. If Férandet has followed my instructions, as I suppose,
he will have burnt a paper in your presence. This was a second will, by
which my daughter Anna Campbell would have been appointed my universal
legatee, had you not been living. So long as all happened in the right
order, you surviving me, you will understand I should not have wished to
complicate your affairs, by leaving you confronted with a lot of legal
formalities and intricacies. Such would be the consequence of a female
minor who is a foreigner inheriting jointly with you: this would have
plunged you into a veritable mire of technicalities, restrictions,
registrations, and goodness knows what. Nevertheless, it is necessary to
provide fully for the possibility of an accident arising to you before
your marriage with Anna. Our property would go in that case to
collaterals ... and God only knows from how many quarters of the world
these would not be forthcoming! As I wish my fortune to remain with my
children, it is indispensable that you should not forget to make
testamentary dispositions in favour of your cousin, so that the whole
property may go to her in the event of your death, without any more
dispute than there has been in your own case. I leave this matter in
your hands. You will find at my bankers all the indications of surnames,
Christian names, and descriptions which you will require to enumerate,
on the first page of my private ledger, where the account which was
opened for her commences, and yours also, forming a separate banking
account for you two. Madame Saulnier is accustomed to draw what is
required for her: therefore, until your marriage, it is unnecessary for
you to occupy yourself with this detail--all you have to do is to
confirm her credit.
"Now that we have settled this matter, my dear boy, go ahead! I do not
need, I am sure, to remind you to think occasionally of your old uncle:
I know you well, and that satisfies me. I thank you for what you have
been to me, and bless you from the bottom of my heart!
"Come, don't give way, old fellow: I am in Heaven, my soul is free and
rejoicing in the glories of the Infinite. Is there anything in this for
you to mourn over? Farewell."
After reading this letter, my dear Louis, need I tell you that I did the
contrary to what my poor uncle bade me, and that I gave way to my grief.
The tears streamed down my cheeks, my heart was breaking, and I could no
longer see this last word, "Farewell," as I pressed the letter to my
lips.
Such a mixture of tenderness and elevation of tone, such touching
solicitude to console my grief, such boundless confidence in my love and
fidelity! I felt crushed with my grief, proud only to think that I was
worthy of the generosity with which this noble-hearted man was
overwhelming me, prodigal as a father in his kindness. It seemed to me
at that moment that I had never loved him enough, and the grief at his
loss mingled itself with something like remorse. As if he were able hear
me, I swore to him that I would live for the accomplishment of his
wishes: from the depths of my soul, indeed, I felt certain that he saw
me.
When the flow of my tears had ceased, I did not want to tarry a moment
in the accomplishment of his last behests. I ran to his bed-chamber,
opened his desk, and found the two portraits. One, a valuable miniature,
represents a woman of twenty-five, the other is a photograph of Anna
Campbell at the age of fifteen. Although not so pretty as her mother,
perhaps, she has a charming childlike face; the poor little thing felt
uncomfortable, no doubt, when they made her sit, for her expression is
rather sulky and unnatural. Still she gives promise of being attractive
when she has passed the awkward age. I felt myself suddenly possessed by
a sentiment of affection for this unknown cousin, whose guardian I had
become and whose husband I am to be. Upon this cold picture I repeated
to my uncle the oath to obey his wishes; then, taking up a pen, I wrote
a will appointing Anna Campbell the universal legatee of all the
property which my uncle left us.
But one part of my inheritance, the most remarkable and the least
expected, was at present unknown either to the notary or to myself.
I don't wish to make myself out better than I really am, my dear Louis:
I must declare, nevertheless, that in spite of the very natural
bewilderment which I felt on finding myself the owner of such a fortune,
my first thought, when once I had disposed of the legal matters, was to
pay a tribute of mournful regrets to the memory of my poor uncle. I
should have considered it base ingratitude, not to say impiety on my
part, to have shown myself too eager to enjoy the wealth bequeathed to
me by so generous a benefactor. His loss really left a cruel void in my
heart. I decided, therefore, at least to live a few months at Férouzat.
I wrote immediately to the aunt of Anna Campbell, to express my
resolution to fulfil the wishes of my second father, begging her to
dispose of my services in every way as those of a protector and friend
ready to respond to every appeal. Four days afterwards, I received from
her a most cordial and elegantly-worded letter. She assured me of her
confidence in all the good accounts which my uncle had given of me; and
she gave me news of my _fiancée_, "who for one who is still only a
child, promises already to develop into an accomplished woman."
Having discharged these conventional duties, I shut myself up in my
retreat, and set to work.
For me to say that my retirement was not more distracted than I would
have desired, might perhaps be called a dangerous assertion; but what
could I do? Was it not my duty to acquaint myself with all that my uncle
bequeathed to me? And the Lord knows what marvels my château of Férouzat
contained! Every day I made some fresh discovery in rooms full of
curious furniture and antiquities of all ages and of all countries.
Barbassou-Pasha was a born buyer of valuable objects, and the furniture
was crammed with rich draperies, hangings, costumes, and objects of art
or curios: my steward himself could not enumerate them all.
But the most delightful of all these marvels is certainly
Kasre-el-Nouzha, my neighbouring property. Kasre-el-Nouzha was a
Turkish fancy of my uncle's. These three Arabic words correspond to the
Spanish Buen-Retiro; or, literally translated, they signify "Castle of
Pleasures." This was the retreat, separated only by a party-wall from
Férouzat, that was formerly inhabited by the exiled minister who had
fled from the persecutions of the Sultan. Picture to yourself, hidden in
a great park whose umbrageous foliage concealed it from view, a
delightful palace of the purest Oriental architecture, surrounded by
gardens, with flowering shrubs covered with a wealth of blossoms,
standing in the midst of green lawns, a sort of Vale of Tempé
transplanted, one might imagine, from the East. My uncle Barbassou,
conscientious architect that he was, had copied the plan from one of the
residences of the King of Kashmir. In the interior of the Kasre you
might fancy yourself in the house of some grandee of Stamboul or of
Bagdad. Luxuries, ornaments, furniture, and general domestic
arrangements, have all been studied with the taste of an artist and the
exactitude of an archæologist. At the same time European comforts are
gratefully mingled with Turkish simplicity. The silken tapestries of
Persia, the carpets of Smyrna with those harmonious hues which seem to
be borrowed from the sun, the capacious divans, the bath-rooms, and the
stores, all contribute in short to the completeness of an establishment,
suitable to a Pasha residing under the sky of Provence. A little door in
the park-wall gives access to this oasis. As you may guess, I passed
many an hour there, and I dreamt dreams of "The Thousand and One
Nights."
All this time I had never interrupted my labours; for you need not
suppose that my nabob's fortune could make me forgetful of my
inclinations towards science. In the midst of my numerous follies, as
you know very well, and in spite of the distractions of the more or less
dissipated life which I have led up to my present happy age of
twenty-six, I have always preserved my love of study, which fills up
those hours of forced respite that even the pleasures of the world leave
to every man who is conscious of a brain. The Polytechnic School, and
the search for _x_, in which my uncle trained me, developed very
inquisitive instincts in me. I ended by acquiring a taste for
transcendental ideas. This taste is at least worth as much as that for
angling. For my part, I confess that I class among the molluscs men who,
being their own masters, content themselves with eating, drinking, and
sleeping, without performing any intellectual labour. This is why you
call me "the _savant_."
I worked away, then, at my book with a veritable enthusiasm, and my
"Essay upon the Origin of Sensation" had extended to several long
chapters, when the critical event occurred which I have undertaken to
relate to you.
I had lived thus all alone for two weeks. One evening, on my return from
Arles, where I had been spending a couple of days upon some business, I
was informed that His Excellency, Mohammed-Azis, the old friend of my
uncle, whom I remembered to have seen on one occasion, had arrived at
the château the evening before, not having heard of the death of
Barbassou-Pasha. I must admit that this news gave me at the time very
little pleasure; but in memory of my dear departed uncle, I could not
but give his friend the welcome he expected. I was told that His
Excellency had gone straight to his quarters at Kasre-el-Nouzha, where
he was accustomed to dwell. I hastened to send my respects to him,
begging him to let me know if he would receive me. He sent word that he
was at my disposition and waiting for me. I therefore set off at once to
call upon him.
I found Mohammed-Azis on his door-step. Gravely and sadly he received me
with a salute, the respectful manner of which embarrassed me somewhat,
coming from a man of his age. He showed me into the drawing-room, in
each of the four corners of which bubbled a little fountain of perfumed
water, in small basins of alabaster garnished with flowers. He made me
sit down on the divan covered with a splendid silk material, and which,
very broad and very deep, and furnished with numerous cushions, extends
round the entire room. When seated, I commenced uttering a few phrases
of condolence, but he replied to me in Turkish.
This mode of conversing had its difficulties, so he, seeing that I could
not understand him, started off into a _Sabir_ or Italianised French,
pronounced in an accent which I will not attempt to describe.
"Povera Eccellenza Barbassou-Pacha!--finito--morto?"
I replied in Italian, which he spoke indifferently well. We thus managed
to get along.
I then related to him the accident which had brought about the death of
Barbassou, my uncle and his friend. He listened to me with a greatly
distressed air.
"Dunque voi signor padrone?" he replied, uneasily; "voi heritare di
tutto?--ordinare?--commandare?"--
"Let me assure you, Your Excellency," I answered, "nothing that concerns
you will be changed by my uncle's death. I shall make it a point of
honour to fill his place exactly."
He appeared satisfied with this reply, and breathed freely, like a man
relieved of a great burden. In another minute he asked me if I would
like to make the acquaintance of all his people.
"I should be delighted, Your Excellency, if you would present me to your
family."
He walked towards the door and summoned them by clapping his hands.
I was expecting to see the wives or daughters of my host appear
according to Mussulman custom, covered up with their triple veils. An
exclamation of surprise escaped me when I saw four young persons enter,
dressed in beautiful Oriental costumes, their faces unveiled, and all
four endowed with such glorious beauty and youthful grace that I was,
for the moment, fairly dazzled. I took them for his daughters.
Hesitating and bashful, they stopped a few steps from me. In my
bewilderment I could not find a word to say to them, until after their
father had said something to them, they came up to me, first one, then
another, and with shy graces and indescribable charms, each bowed and
saluted me with her hand to her forehead, then took my hand and kissed
it.
I must admit that I completely lost my head. I don't know what I
stammered out. I believe I assured them that they and their father would
find me, in the absence of my uncle, their respectful and devoted
friend; but, as they did not understand a word of French, my speech was
lost upon them. However that may have been, after a minute or so they
were sitting with their legs crossed on the divan, and all I was anxious
about was to prolong my visit as much as possible. Mohammed told me
their charming names. These were, Kondjé-Gul, Hadidjé, Nazli, and
Zouhra. He, like a proud father, was not backward in praising their
beauty, and I joined in chorus with him, and certainly succeeded in
flattering him by my enthusiasm regarding them.
Indeed, all four of them were of such striking beauty, and yet so
different in type, that you might have thought them grouped together in
order to form the most ravishing picture, their large dark eyes, sweet,
timid, and languishing like the gazelle's, with that Oriental expression
which we do not meet with in these climes; lips which disclosed pearly
teeth as they smiled; and complexions which have been preserved by the
veil from the sun's rays, and which--according to the ancient
simile--appeared really to be made up of lilies and roses. In those rich
costumes of silk or of Broussan gauze, with their harmonious colours,
revealing the forms of their hips and of their bosoms, they exhibited
attitudes and movements of feline lissomness and exotic grace, the
voluptuous languor of which can only be realised by those who have seen
it in Mussulman women. I imagined myself the hero of an Arabian story,
and mad fancies entered my brain.
While I was endeavouring, for appearance's sake, to talk with their
father as well as I could, they, growing tamer by degrees, began to
whisper together--now and then came a little burst of laughter, in which
I seemed to detect some mischief. I playfully responded by holding up my
finger to let them know I guessed their thoughts, and again they burst
out laughing like sly children--this going on until, after half an hour
or so, quite a nice feeling of familiarity was established between us;
we talked by signs, and our eyes enabled us almost to dispense with the
laborious intervention of Mohammed's interpretations. Moreover, he
seemed delighted to see us frolicking in this way.
In order to teach them my name I pronounced several times the word
"André." They understood and tried in their turn to make me say their
names. Hadidjé's was the occasion of much laughter, by reason of my
difficulty in articulating the guttural breathing. Seeing that I could
not manage it, she held me by both hands, her face almost touching mine,
and shouted "Hadidjé!" I repeated it, "Hadidjé!" This was charming and
intoxicating. I had to take the same lesson from each of them; but when
it came to the turn of Kondjé-Gul, it was a delirium of joy. By some
chance she let slip a word of Italian. I questioned her in this
language, and found she knew it pretty well. You may imagine my
delight! Immediately we overwhelmed each other with a torrent of
questions. Her sisters watched us with looks of amazement.
At this moment a Greek servant came in, followed by two other women,
bringing in the dinner on trays, which they laid upon small low tables
of ebony inlaid with mother-of-pearl.
Propriety and good breeding impelled me to take my leave after this very
long visit, and I prepared to do so. Upon this my young friends murmured
out a concert of confused words, in which I seemed to detect regret at
my departure. Fortunately His Excellency intervened by inviting me to
stay to dinner with them.
Need I tell you that I accepted!
I sat down on the carpet, as they did, with my legs crossed, and we
commenced a delicious banquet. Champagne was brought in for me, an
attention which I appreciated. My place was next to Nazli; on my left
was Kondjé-Gul, and opposite me, Hadidjé and Zouhra. I will not tell you
what dishes were served, my thoughts were set elsewhere.
"How old art thou?" asked Kondjé-Gul, employing in her Italian, which
was tinctured with Roumanian, the Turkish form of address.
"Twenty-six," said I, "and how old art thou?"
"Oh, I shall soon be eighteen." This "thouing" of each other was
charming. She then told me the ages of the others. Hadidjé was the
eldest, she was nineteen: Nazli and Zouhra were between seventeen and
eighteen, the age of fresh maturity among the daughters of the East,
who ripen earlier than ours. Our gaiety and the prattle of their voices
went on without cessation; but as they were drinking nothing but water,
I said to Kondjé-Gul, thoughtlessly,
"Won't you taste the wine of France?"
At this proposition she gave such a scared little look that the others
asked her to explain what I had said. This caused a great excitement,
followed by a discussion in which the father took part. I was beginning
to fear that I had given offence to them, when His Excellency at last
said a few words which seemed to be decisive. Then Kondjé-Gul, blushing
all the while, and hesitating with divine gracefulness, took up my glass
and drank--first with a little grimace like a kitten trying strange
food, so droll and amusing was it; then, later on, with an air of
satisfaction so real that all of them burst out laughing.
By Jove, I must say that at this frank abandonment I felt my heart beat
just as if her lips had touched my own in a kiss. Imagine what became of
me when Zouhra, Nazli, and Hadidjé held out their hands all at the same
time to claim my glass. They passed round the glass and drank, and I
after them, perturbed by emotions impossible to describe. This
unconstraint varied with bashful reserve, these fascinating scruples,
which they overcame one after another, fearing no doubt to offend me by
refusing things which they thought were French customs; all their little
ways in fact stimulated me, ravished me, and yet daunted me at times so
much that I dare no longer brave their looks--although the presence of
their father was a sufficient guarantee of the innocent character of
these familiarities.
When the meal was over, the same Greek servants cleared the tables.
Night-time arrived and they lighted the chandeliers. Through the closed
shutters there came to us perfumes of myrtle and lilac. Cigarettes were
brought: Zouhra took one, lighted it, and after drawing a few mouthfuls,
offered it to me. I abandoned myself to their caprices.
Now, Louis, can you picture your friend luxuriously reclining on
cushions, and surrounded by these four daughters of Mahomet's Paradise,
in their lovely sultana's costumes, frolicking and prattling, and all
four of them so beautiful that I don't know which I should have
presented with the apple if I had been Paris? I assure you, it required
an effort to convince myself that all this was real. After a little
while I noticed that Mohammed Azis was no longer present; but thanks to
Kondjé-Gul, who had quite become my interpreter, our conversation became
brisk and general. Hadidjé taught me a Turkish game which is played with
flowers, and which I won't try to describe to you, as I hardly
understood it.
If I were to tell you all that happened that evening, I should be
relating a story of giddy madness and intoxication. I taught them in
return the game of "hunt the slipper;" you know it, don't you? We played
it as follows: there was a ribbon knotted at both ends, which we held,
sitting on the floor in a circle, and on which slips a ring, which one
of the players must seize in his hands. This, upon my word, finished me
up. What laughter, and what merry cries! Each of them, caught in her
turn, chose me of course as her mark. Every moment I found myself seized
and held prisoner in their naked, snowy arms. Upon my soul, it was
maddening!
It was nearly midnight when His Excellency returned. I had lost all
reckoning of the time; now I felt I must really make off. While I was
getting ready and saying a few words to Kondjé-Gul, Mohammed Azis spoke
to Zouhra, Nazli, and Hadidjé. I fancied that he was questioning them,
and that they replied in the negative. Then he spoke at greater length
to Kondjé-Gul; he appeared to me to be pressing her to give him an
account of my conversation with her, and that the result did not please
him. I was annoyed with myself at the thought that, maybe, I had been
the cause of her being reprimanded. At last he certainly ordered them to
retire, for they came to me, one after the other, and each of them, as
on entering, bowed to me in a respectful manner, saluting me with her
hand to her forehead, and kissed my hand; after this they went out,
leaving me in a frame of mind disordered beyond description.
I was just about to offer some apologies to Mahommed, and make my peace
with him before I left (for I feared that he might for the future place
obstacles in the way of similar evening performances), when he said to
me, with an anxious air, in that dialect of his which I translate, in
order to avoid reproducing the scene of the _mamamouchis_ in the
"Bourgeois Gentilhomme:"
"May I be allowed to hope that your lordship is satisfied?"
"Satisfied, Your Excellency?" I exclaimed, affectionately grasping his
hands; "why, I am delighted! You could not give me greater pleasure in
this world than by treating me exactly as you treated my uncle."
"The young ladies, then, did not displease your lordship?"
"Your daughters? Why, they are adorable! My only fear is lest I should
not find them reciprocate the sentiments which they inspire in me."
"Ah! Then it is not because your lordship is displeased that you will
not remain here to-night?" added he, with an anxious look.
"That I will not remain here?" I replied. "What do you mean?"
"Why, Your Excellency has not expressed his will to any of them."
"My will! What will, then, could I express to them?"
"Considering that they belong to your lordship," he continued.
"They belong to me? Who?"
"Why, Kondjé-Gul, Zouhra, Hadidjé, Nazli."
"They belong to me?" replied I, overcome with stupefaction.
"Certainly," said Mahommed, looking as astonished as I did. "His
Excellency, Barbassou-Pasha, your uncle, whose eunuch I had the honour
of being, commanded me to purchase four maidens for his harem. Since he
is dead, and your lordship takes his place as master--I had supposed--"
"Ah!!!"
I won't attempt to render for you the full force of the exclamation to
which I gave vent. You may guess the feelings conveyed in it. In very
truth I thought I should go out of my senses this time. The dream of
"The Thousand and One Nights" was being realised in my waking hours!
This extraordinary and sumptuous palace was a harem, and this harem was
mine! These four Schéhérazades, whose glorious youthfulness and
fascinating charms had scorched me like fire, they were my slaves, and
only awaited a sign or token of my desire!
Mohammed, incapable of conceiving my agitation, regarded me with a
pitiful, confused look, as if he anticipated some disgrace. At this
moment the old Greek woman brought him the keys: there were four. He
handed them to me.
"Thank you," I said; "now you may leave me."
He obeyed, saluted me without a word, and went out.
As soon as I found myself alone, not intending to restrain my feelings
any more, I began to march about the drawing-room like a madman, and
gave free vent to the outburst of a joy which overwhelmed me. I picked
up from the carpet a ribbon dropped there by Kondjé-Gul, I pressed it to
my lips with avidity; next some scattered flowers, with which Hadidjé
and Zouhra had played.
Louis, I hope you do not expect me to analyse for your benefit all the
extraordinary sensations which I experienced at that moment. The events
which befel me verged upon the supernatural--the supernatural cannot be
described--and I know not any legend, romance, or novel, relating to
this world, which has ever treated such an astounding situation as that
of which I was the hero. Those severe middle-class parents who give
their daughters, for New Year's presents, M. Galland's "Arabian Nights,"
with illustrations of the amorous adventures of the Caliph of Bagdad,
would find such a romance as mine quite too "strong," simply because the
scene is not laid in Persia, or at Samarcand. Nevertheless, my story is
identical in character, and the most modest young lady might read it
without a frown, if only my name were Hassan instead of André.
Would you like to know everything that can agitate the mind of a mortal
in such a position as mine? Listen, then.
When I had succeeded in reducing to some extent my exaltation of spirit,
when I had at last persuaded myself of the reality of this splendid
fairyland, I sat down with my elbows on the window-sill--I felt the need
of a little fresh air. It was just striking midnight. What were _they_
doing? Were they thinking of me, I wondered, as much as I was thinking
of them? I began to examine the four keys which Mohammed had left me.
Each key had a tiny label, with a letter and a name on it--Nazli,
Zouhra, Hadidjé, or Kondjé-Gul. My eyes were still filled with their
beauty. Although far from artless, I felt embarrassed in spite of
myself, I might almost say shy. After the fascinations of this evening,
I knew that I was in love; I loved with a strange passion suddenly
developed; I loved to overflowing these beautiful beings, without being
able to separate one from another. So completely were they mingled in my
fancy, they might have possessed but one soul between them. By reason of
my certitude of equal possession, Kondjé-Gul, Hadidjé, Nazli, and Zouhra
constituted in my imagination a single existence, exhaling its
unrivalled perfume of youth, beauty, and love.
All this may appear absurd to you. I daresay you are right, but I am
only analysing for you an enchantment which still influences me like a
dream. While longing for the virginal delights which awaited me, my
tumultuous senses were plunged into certain apprehensions at once
anxious and sweet. How am I to explain it to you? Sultan though I have
been in my life, never before have I come in for such a delightful
windfall of pleasures, my heart having been generally occupied, as you
know, with much less worthy objects. All at once I was overwhelmed by
the idea that they had doubtless misunderstood the reserve which I had
affected in their company. According to their harem traditions, customs,
and laws, I was their legitimate master and husband: was it not quite
likely, then, that they believed me indifferent or even disdainful of
their charms? Troubled at this reflection, I was seized with a dreadful
pang of conscience. What could they suppose? Good heavens! Ought I to
wait till the next day to dissipate their doubts, and justify myself for
such strange coldness--coldness which may have seemed like
indifference? I had no sooner conceived this thought than my desire
concentrated itself upon one object, to see Kondjé-Gul again.
I knew all the domestic arrangements of El Nouzha. In the centre of the
edifice is a vast circular hall, to which the daylight is admitted by a
cupola of ground glass, supported by pillars of white marble. Lamps
hanging between the pillars give out a mysterious light. Once arrived
there, I listened. All was silent. I found Kondjé-Gul's chamber, and
went close up to it. I listened again, with my ear to the door. An
indistinct rustling which I heard, apprized me that she was not yet in
bed. With key in hand, I still hesitated before opening. At last I made
up my mind.
Picture to yourself a sweetly perfumed room, both rich and coquettish in
its arrangements, lined with Indian silk hangings of gay colours, and
illumined by the soft light of a small chandelier of three branches. In
front of a large glass Kondjé-Gul was seated, her long hair reaching
down to the floor. With her bare arms uplifted, and her head turned
backwards, she held in her hand a golden comb. Seeing me, she uttered a
little cry, got up with a bound, and blushing all the while, and fixing
upon me her great frightened eyes, she rested motionless and almost in a
tremble. Her agitation communicated itself to me.
"Did I frighten you?" I commenced, trying to speak with a firm voice;
"and will you pardon me for coming in like this?"
She did not answer a word, but lowered her eyes, a smile glanced
furtively over her lips, and then, with her hand on her bosom, she bowed
to me.
"Kondjé-Gul! Dear Kondjé-Gul!" I exclaimed, touched to the depths of my
soul by this act of submission.
And springing towards her, I took her in my arms to chase away her
fears; I kissed her brow, which she offered to me, pressing her face
against my bosom, with a lovely bashful look of alarm.
"You have come, then!" she whispered.
"Did you imagine I did not love you?" said I, as truly affected as she
was.
At this question she raised her head with an inexpressible languor and
smiled again, looking into my eyes, and so close that our lips met.
Louis, is it true that the ideal embraces the infinite, and that the
human soul soars into regions so sublime that the blisses of this world
below cannot satisfy it?... I did not want to quit the harem without
having also seen Hadidjé, Zouhra, and Nazli. Poor little dears, no doubt
they already fancied themselves disdained! I must dry up their tears.
You will understand by this time the complications in my uncle's will
which have prevented me, these four months past, from finding a minute
to write to you.
I will relate to you the incidents of this remarkable situation, of this
quadruple passion by which I am possessed to such an extent that I am
sincere in all my professions. You may tell me, if you like, from the
commonplace standpoint of your own limited experiences, that it is all
madness. I love, I adore, after the manner of a poet or a pagan--as you
like, in fact--but what does it all amount to? My uncle, who was a
Mussulman, leaves me his harem; what could I do?
If it should happen that your work leaves you a little leisure, _don't_
come to Férouzat; you understand? That's what we sultans are like! The
girls are dying to see Paris; very likely I shall turn up there one of
these days.
I need hardly impress upon you, I suppose, the advisability of keeping
this letter most carefully from the eyes of your wife.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]