French and Oriental Love in a Harem

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.