RIVAL DOCTORS.
Our entry into Adiba much resembled the procession in the Lord Mayor's
Show. There were trumpeters and drummers, camelmen armed with
matchlocks, horsemen with spears, and foot soldiers carrying bludgeons,
knives, and a variety of weapons. Crowds of people lined the principal
thoroughfare, leading from the gateway by which we had entered to the
palace of the Governor--for it was dignified by the name of palace,
though in reality it was by no means a sumptuous dwelling. Edwards and I
rode on either side of the great man, and our presence created a
considerable amount of interest, since the news had already spread that
we were Englishmen, and that one of us was a famous doctor. Yet, I
noticed that there were faces in the crowd that did not look on us with
favour, which, as I said to myself, was only natural in a country
hitherto practically forbidden to Europeans.
A separate apartment in the palace was allotted to us, and we were made
thoroughly comfortable, the floor being spread with rich Persian carpets
and hung with silken draperies; but the most delightful part of our
quarters was the flat roof, up to which a flight of steps led from the
corner of the room. The palace itself abutted on the fortified wall of
the town, and our room and roof-top formed a kind of bastion, surmounted
by a low parapet with loopholes. It had the advantage of seclusion,
since it was a little higher than the other buildings of the town; and
on the roof, during our stay in Adiba, we slept at night and enjoyed the
cool hours of the day.
Hardly had we settled down than Edwards was summoned to visit the sick
child, and as, during our march, I had always assisted him in his
medical duties, I went with him. We were conducted, through several
apartments, to the women's quarters, where we found Ali Khan and his
chief wife, sitting by the side of a frail boy of about twelve years of
age. The mother was weeping bitterly, and begged us to do what we could
to save the life of her only son. Three grave-looking and aged native
physicians were also present, and were evidently none too well-pleased
at our interference, one of them even going so far as to remonstrate
with the Governor for having called in a foreigner and an unbeliever, an
act which he pronounced to be equivalent to lack of faith.
"By the will of Allah," he said, "the child is sick; by the will of
Allah, he will either live or die."
[Illustration "'BY THE WILL OF ALLAH,' HE SAID, 'THE CHILD IS SICK'"]
"You speak with wisdom, O Sea of Learning," said Edwards quietly, "but
does the Prophet anywhere forbid the use of medicines for the relief of
a sufferer? If so, how comes it that you yourself practise medicine?"
"I and my brethren," replied the other, with an obvious sneer, "are of
the True Faith, and though we may possess as great a knowledge of the
art of healing as even yourself, we do not take to ourselves any credit
for our cures. They are effected through Allah alone. The works of
infidels----"
"Enough," shouted the Governor, cutting him short; "this is no place or
time for wrangling. These are my guests, and must be treated with due
respect."
Edwards's rival bit his lip with rage at the rebuke, and with a sullen
gaze watched the "unbeliever" examining the little patient. This did not
take long, and after offering some consoling words to the parents,
Edwards said he would go and prepare some medicines for their child,
adding that, if his instructions were properly carried out, he saw no
reason why he should not eventually recover. The Governor and his wife
were overjoyed at the news, but the old Arab doctor merely shrugged his
shoulders, and remarked "if it be the will of Allah."
"Well, what is the matter with the poor little chap?" I asked, as we
walked back to our room.
"He is pretty bad," said Edwards. "High fever. Been hideously neglected,
I should say. I shall try antipyrine, and then pile in quinine for all I
am worth."
"Those old native impostors mean to be nasty," I said. "The chief
villain would cut your throat as soon as look at you."
"I believe he would," said Edwards, laughing, "and display very little
surgical skill in the operation."
The medicine was soon prepared, and sent off by a servant, with
injunctions that he was to deliver it into the hands of the Governor or
his wife, and that it was to be administered at once. A little later, we
repaired to the Guest Hall, where a feast was to be given in our honour,
and where we were introduced to all the notables of the town. It was a
magnificent entertainment, and there was no lack of food, the principal
dishes consisting of camel's flesh, and sheep roasted whole. The Arab
physicians were there, and it seemed to me that they went out of their
way to make themselves affable, so I imagined that they had got over
their scruples concerning the infidel practitioner. Our old friend
Haroun, the captain of the Governor's escort, was also present, and he
told us that he was leaving Adiba in a few days, as he had to take his
men off on another expedition. Until then, we had thought that he and
his men were in the permanent service of Ali Khan, but now we gathered
that he was more or less of a free lance, and that he hired out himself
and his horsemen for the protection of caravans wishing to cross the
desert.
The supper passed off pleasantly enough, and the guests eventually
dispersed, when, expressing many good wishes for the speedy recovery of
his son, we took leave of our host, and, accompanied by Haroun, made our
way to our room. At the door we found two of Haroun's men armed with
naked swords; and, on inquiring why they were there, we were informed
that the Governor had given orders for them to be posted, to prevent
anyone entering our apartment. Haroun came in with us, and closing the
door behind him, said that he wished to have a word with us in private.
"Before long," he said, in a low voice, "you will desire to return to
Baghdad. Indeed the Governor dare not detain you here for any length of
time; for the news of your presence in the town will soon reach Majma
and Hayil, when the Governor will receive peremptory orders to send you
on your journey. The Amir of Hayil will not permit foreigners to sojourn
in Nejd; but, since he finds it to his advantage to keep on good terms
with the Turks, he will be afraid to lay violent hands on two Europeans.
Otherwise, so far as he himself is concerned, he would not hesitate to
have you put to death. Now, I myself make a living by safe-guarding
travellers in the desert; moreover, it is my desire to visit Baghdad,
where not only have I many friends, but also a brother who is a merchant
in the bazaar. For the protection afforded by my horsemen I will charge
but a small sum--only just sufficient for their maintenance. What say
you?"
"What can we say," I replied, "except that to journey with you would be
a great joy to us. But you told us a little while ago that you were
shortly leaving Adiba on other business."
"True," said Haroun, smiling, "but when I spoke I was counting on being
employed by yourselves. Shall we, then, fix a day for your departure?"
"That is hardly possible," said Edwards, "for I have undertaken to treat
the sick child of our good host, as a return for his kindness to us,
and it may be many days before he recovers; it may, indeed, be many
weeks."
"And you would remain here for so long?" asked Haroun.
"If the Governor wishes," said Edwards.
"But he will not wish it," said Haroun; "for, before the child can be
restored to health, Hayil will have ordered Majma to march against Adiba
and destroy it, for harbouring foreigners. The fear of Hayil is great."
"Well," said I, "if you will give us a day or two to see how events turn
out, we shall be able to decide as to the future."
"The future," said Haroun, with a sigh, "is known only to Allah. I
shall, however, remain here, in Adiba, for a space, in the hope of
journeying with you to Baghdad. But I would warn you that there are some
who, even now, are desirous of your speedy departure from the town."
The next few days were full of interest, as well as of a certain amount
of excitement. Both Ali Khan and Haroun were keen sportsmen, and each
morning we rode out with the former's hawks in search of gazelles, which
gave us some glorious gallops. We had also a lion hunt--not in the
programme, but forced upon us while hawking, and the memorable occasion
gave us an insight into the characters of our two Arab friends, at whose
dauntless courage Edwards and I were simply astounded. We were riding
home after a successful morning, when we saw a shepherd running across
the plain towards us and gesticulating wildly. He told us that a lion
had for some time played havoc with his flocks, and that he had just
marked him down into some thick bushes at a little distance. We all went
off at once, and Ali Khan, stationing the matchlock-men who accompanied
him round the beast's lair, ordered other men to throw stones into the
bushes, with the intention of driving the lion out. To everyone's
astonishment, this had the desired effect almost at once. There was a
loud roar, and, without any further warning, out bounded the great
brute, who knocked over one of the matchlock-men before a shot was
fired. Edwards and I, sitting on our horses a little way off,
instinctively pressed towards the lion, now standing defiantly over the
fallen man; but, before we reached the spot, we saw both Haroun and Ali
Khan simultaneously leap from their saddles and rush in. They were armed
only with the daggers which they had drawn from their waists, yet they
never hesitated until close up to the beast, when, to our surprise and
no little amusement, they stopped and addressed it in the most flowing
language.
"O lion," said the one, "do not waste thy strength on so feeble a man as
that."
"O king," said the other, "thy victim is an unworthy meal for thy royal
jaws. Try something of more noble blood."
Then with one accord they attacked their enemy in the most reckless
manner with their knives, and several men with spears coming up, the
lion was soon dispatched, when it was found that the matchlock-man had
received only a few scratches, though suffering from a severe shock to
his nerves. Many were the tales which we subsequently heard of the
daring of our two friends on similar occasions, and no one could say
which of them had slain single-handed the greater number of lions.
Such recreations as these, however, occupied only a fraction of our
time, and the remainder was decidedly dull, or if not dull, then full of
anxiety. Edwards soon discovered that his skill as a doctor was being
put to the test, for the days passed, and his patient seemed to make no
headway.
"Do you suppose," I asked him at last, "that they have been giving him
your medicine properly?"
"That is just what I have been wondering," he replied. "I do not believe
that they have. But I cannot imagine how Ali Khan and his wife, who are
both devoted to the child, would fail to do what I told them. However, I
will make certain about it, by going straight to the Governor and asking
him."
So Edwards went off, and, in the course of half an hour or so, returned,
with a face almost livid with rage. He did not wait for me to ask him
questions, but relieved his mind forthwith.
"Could you possibly conceive," he blurted out, "that the world could
contain such a pack of bigoted idiots? The poor wretched little beggar
is weaker than ever, and had not been given any of the things that I
prescribed. I only discovered it by the merest accident. When I got to
the room, I found one of the waiting-women watching over the sick child,
and she told me that his mother, worn out with grief, had gone to her
chamber to rest, while Ali Khan was busy administering justice in his
hall. I seized the opportunity, and tackled the woman about the
medicine. At first she pretended that she had never heard that I had
supplied any medicine; but after I had reassured her by swearing that I
would respect her confidences, and worked on her fears by telling her
that if the boy died she would undoubtedly be held responsible for his
death, and would probably frizzle in Gehennum, the old lady found her
tongue. Bit by bit I dragged from her the whole miserable story. It
seems that when my first draught was delivered at the sick-room, those
abominable old native doctors were all there, and they harangued the
Governor for his folly in consulting an infidel, about whom he knew
nothing, and whose medicines might be, and probably were, poisons. High
words followed, but in the end Ali Khan agreed that he would abide by
the decision of the mulla, who was immediately sent for. Perhaps you
have never seen a mulla playing the oracle. It is quite simple: he shuts
his eyes, opens the Koran, plumps his finger on to a line, and then
reads it out. Well, in this case, of course, the mulla said that the
Koran decreed that my medicine would be most harmful to the child, and
it was accordingly thrown away. The same thing has been happening every
day since, and the only medicine given to the poor little chap has been
some water swilled round a cup inside which the mulla has scribbled a
text. Is it not positively sickening?"
"What are you going to do?" I asked.
"I have done it," he replied, with a chuckle. "I saw that it was neck or
nothing, and fortunately I had taken some antipyrine with me. I made the
woman fetch the cup with the text inside, and I told her that I was a
bigger mulla than any mulla she had ever seen, and that I possessed the
Evil Eye, which I would cast on her and her relations for ever and ever,
if she disclosed a word of what I had said, or even mentioned that I had
been there. She was what they call 'all of a tremble,' and I gave the
child as strong a dose as I dared--antipyrine, Koran text, and all."
"Well done, old man," said I, slapping him on the back.
"It may be all right," said Edwards, "but it may not be. I am not very
sanguine, for I am half afraid it was too late. However, we shall know
to-night."
When we went down to the sick-room before going to bed that night, we
found the Governor, his wife, and the Arab doctors in a state of
ecstasy. The child was in what Edwards described as a "beautiful
perspiration," and we were naturally overjoyed. Then the principal
native doctor stepped forward and addressed Edwards.
"We have to confess to you," he said, "that none of your remedies have
been applied to the patient, as the mulla, whom the Governor consulted,
decided that they would be harmful to him. By the will of Allah, I and
my learned brethren have been able to ease the child's sufferings."
I looked at my companion, whose face was ashy white, but who kept
himself under perfect control. Addressing the Governor quietly, he told
him that he thought it would be injurious to the health of his son if
any further discussion took place in the sick-room, and he begged that
he would permit us to adjourn to another apartment, as he wished to make
a disclosure to him in the presence of the Arab physicians. The Governor
agreed to the proposal, and, bidding the doctors and ourselves follow
him, led the way to his private audience hall.
"What is it, my friend," he asked, "that you wish to say?"
"Great Lord of the Arabs and Protector of the Poor," said Edwards,
standing forth boldly, "it is most unpleasant for me, who have received
the greatest hospitality at your hands, to lay a complaint against the
members of your household. But I would beg of you to bear in mind that I
have only at heart the welfare of your sick child, and that anything I
say is solely for his good. You yourself did me the honour to place
confidence in me and seek my advice; yet, when I gave that advice, you
pretended to be satisfied with it, but, unbeknown to me, you rejected
it, because your mulla, who is in league with your court physicians,
pretended that your sacred book forbade the application of my remedies."
I trembled at Edwards's temerity, and the Arabs looked at Ali Khan as if
they expected him to rise in his wrath and destroy us both, but our host
merely bowed his head and told Edwards to proceed, which he did with
increased warmth.
"I am aware," he continued, "that I am not of your Faith, but I hold to
as great a belief in the powers of Allah as do yourselves. I maintain,
however, that although I am younger than the youngest of your
physicians, I have had far greater experience in the treatment of
diseases than he or any of his brethren. From the first I prescribed
such medicines as I considered likely to benefit the patient. You
yourself know that those medicines were thrown away. I knew it for
certain some few hours ago, though I had suspected it earlier. I only
discovered the truth on visiting the patient when he was alone this
afternoon. Then I understood that he had never been given my medicines,
and, in your absence, I took it upon myself to administer at once a
strong dose, the result of which is now apparent."
"Sire," broke in the chief physician excitedly, "believe not a word that
he says. He is seeking to misappropriate to himself the good that your
own physicians have accomplished. What proof is there that the child had
any of his medicines?"
"One person," said Edwards, "was present, and saw everything. It was the
waiting-woman, Habisha, but I made her swear to reveal what she saw to
no one."
The Arab doctors, evidently still believing that they had treated the
child successfully, openly derided Edwards's assertion, and Ali Khan,
wavering between loyalty to his own men and politeness to his guest,
thought to settle the matter by interviewing the waiting-woman. Edwards
at once realised the difficulty, for it was improbable that the woman,
with the foreigner's Evil Eye in her mind, would disclose anything; so
he volunteered to accompany the Governor, in order that the woman might
be assured that she could now speak. The quarter of an hour that the two
were absent was an uncomfortable one for me, left alone with the
physicians; but, to my relief, they ignored my presence, and conversed
amongst themselves.
The expression on Edwards's face, on his return, conveyed to me plainly
that all had gone well; and a moment later Ali Khan told the Arabs that
he had convinced himself that what his guest had said was true, that he
had actually administered a dose to his son, but that fortunately it had
been given in the cup which was inscribed with a text from the Koran.
Ali Khan now assumed a judicial air, as if pronouncing judgment in his
hall of justice, and he said that, after due consideration, he had come
to the conclusion that, although the foreigner had acted wrongfully in
secretly administering the medicine, nevertheless he had been requested
to treat the child, and that having once given the child his medicines,
it would be most dangerous to alter the course which had been commenced.
He therefore decreed that the foreigner should continue to treat his
son, and that his own wise and worthy physicians should refrain from
visiting the sick-room, until such time as he should invite them. I
could see that the decision was a terrible and an unexpected blow to the
Arab gentlemen, but they bowed politely to their master, asked
permission to retire, and pompously sailed from the room.
No sooner were we alone than Ali Khan, throwing off all reserve, seized
Edwards by the hand, thanked him fervently for what he had done, and
apologised for his own weakness in allowing himself to be influenced by
his doctors. Henceforward, he said, Edwards should have sole charge of
the sick boy, and he begged him to forget the past and to do all that
lay in his power to bring about his recovery. Edwards, of course, agreed
to do his best, on the condition that he was not interfered with in any
way, and he returned to his patient, with whom he now decided to spend
the night.
The next week was a most anxious one. Edwards almost lived in the
sick-room, being unwilling to risk the chance of some busybody undoing
all his work. The child had ups and downs, but by the end of the week he
was pronounced to be out of danger, and after that he regained his
strength so rapidly, that before many days Edwards was able to hand him
over to his parents to be taken care of. Their gratitude is
indescribable; there was nothing that they would not have done for us.
Ali Khan offered us horses, permanent quarters in the palace, and many
other things, all of which we politely declined, Edwards assuring him
that he had done nothing more than that which was due from a guest to
his host.
All this while, we were surprised that the Arab doctors never put in an
appearance, but we came to the conclusion that they were nettled by
Edwards's success, and so kept out of the way. That they had lost their
practice in the town soon became evident, as the gates of the palace
were besieged each day by sick people, begging for the advice of the
all-powerful foreign doctor. For some time Edwards did his best for
them, but at last he grew weary of the increasing labours thus thrust
upon him, and asked our host where his own physicians were. Ali Khan,
with some hesitation, then confessed that they had left the town, and
had gone off in high dudgeon, he knew not whither.
"But," he added, "while you are my doctor, I care not how long the
others remain away."
That night, just as we were going to bed, we heard a knock at the door,
and Haroun, who was still in Adiba, entered the room. We at once became
aware, from the mysterious air that he assumed, that he was the bearer
of news of no ordinary importance.