I was sick and this Sister of Charity in green and bronze silk tended
me with such care as never was before. The two wild beasts, the big
and the little, were there, each side of my couch, and, during my
delirium, I saw their mysterious, sad eyes fixed on me.
In her melodious voice, Tanit-Zerga told me wonderful stories, and
among them, the one she thought most wonderful, the story of her life.
It was not till much later, very suddenly, that I realized how far
this little barbarian had penetrated into my own life. Wherever thou
art at this hour, dear little girl, from whatever peaceful shores thou
watchest my tragedy, cast a look at thy friend, pardon him for not
having accorded thee, from the very first, the gratitude that thou
deservedest so richly.
"I remember from my childhood," she said, "the vision of a yellow and
rose-colored sun rising through the morning mists over the smooth
waves of a great river, 'the river where there is water,' the Niger,
it was.... But you are not listening to me."
"I am listening to you, I swear it, little Tanit-Zerga."
"You are sure I am not wearying you? You want me to go on?"
"Go on, little Tanit-Zerga, go on."
"Well, with my little companions, of whom I was very fond, I played at
the edge of the river where there is water, under the jujube trees,
brothers of the zeg-zeg, the spines of which pierced the head of
your prophet and which we call 'the tree of Paradise' because our
prophet told us that under it would live those chosen of Paradise;[15]
and which is sometimes so big, so big, that a horseman cannot traverse
its shade in a century.
[Footnote 15: The Koran, Chapter 66, verse 17. (Note by M. Leroux.)] "There we wove beautiful garlands with mimosa, the pink flowers of the
caper bush and white cockles. Then we threw them in the green water to
ward off evil spirits; and we laughed like mad things when a great
snorting hippopotamus raised his swollen head and we bombarded him in
glee until he had to plunge back again with a tremendous splash.
"That was in the mornings. Then there fell on Gâo the deathlike lull
of the red siesta. When that was finished, we came back to the edge of
the river to see the enormous crocodiles with bronze goggle-eyes creep
along little by little, among the clouds of mosquitoes and day-flies
on the banks, and work their way traitorously into the yellow ooze of
the mud flats.
"Then we bombarded them, as we had done the hippopotamus in the
morning; and to fête the sun setting behind the black branches of the
douldouls, we made a circle, stamping our feet, then clapping our
hands, as we sang the Sonrhaï hymn.