demanded every possible hospitality. We were soon surrounded not only by those who were ready to assist us, but by many others whose curiosity was too much for them. Some volunteered to take our horses, and some, not without misgivings on our part, were anxious to look after our more portable etceteras. There is, however, a certain interest about domestic life in the wilds of Anatolia which may not be disposed of too briefly, even though the ordinary khan has, in the earlier part of this chapter, come in for our consideration. I will venture, therefore, to ask my readers to restrain their curiosity till the next chapter, when I hope, in their goodlie companie, to spend a night in an odd Asiatic village, before proceeding farther in the direction of the Turkish head-quarters. 66 CHAPTER III. BAIL UP". CHASED BY BRIGANDS-THE DEVIL'S BOLTS- BARKIS THE DEVIL'S OWN-CELESTIAL ARTILLERY-DEAD THAT there is a certain sense of honour amongst thieves was never more practically illustrated than it was in that brigand village, where, it will be remembered, the Fates had elected we should pass the night, though I must confess to certain seriously grave misgivings, when I discovered we were surrounded by a ruffianly rabble who were all equally solicitous to look after our effects. Having partaken of bread and salt with their worthy leader, during which time he had arranged that his women-folk should make room for us, we at once proceeded to occupy their khan. It was a long, low, smoke-begrimed cabin, one portion of which was devoted to goats, sheep, and oxen, while the other, nearest the entrance and by far the most draughty, was dedicated to that other animal-man. We soon had a blazing log-fire burning, and squatted down in most approved Oriental fashion to smoke our pipes round about it, "for it's often very cold o' nights in those parts." Our peace was soon to be disturbed, however, by what were called the present-bearers, five or six dusky warriors, all picturesquely attired, each of whom in turn came forward and presented to us, with lordly air, some insignificant offering which was to be taken as a sign of good will; thus, I became possessed of a flint-stone, a leaf, a rusty nail or screw (out of an old matchlock, probably), a bead, some grains of sand, and a tent-peg. On receipt of each of these gifts, I had to express my profound gratitude, knowing full well they were only "sprats " to catch mackerel in the shape of backsheesh; a system of fishery as effectually practised in Kensington and Belgravia as in Kurdistan and Anatolia. But to continue. We had next to submit to an odd sort of confidence trick, which, since Williams had ascertained that we were actually in a real brigand village, that is to say, one in which the majority were "gentlemen of the road," I was at first very naturally loth to subscribe to. It appeared customary here for travellers to hand over all the valuables they possessed, that they might be taken from hut to hut for inspection, and their safe return, about an hour afterwards, was to be looked upon as a positive proof of good faith. Thus with so large and unscrupulous a majority, we made a virtue of necessity, turned out our knapsacks and pockets; surrendered our rings and watches; in fact, everything portable, save our gold belts and revolvers, even to some loose silver and coppers, which were all promptly carried off by our suspicious-looking entertainers. On the coast-side of Erzeroum none of these queer cus toms existed; but now that we were well up country, every fresh halt brought about a surprise, though even now we smoked our pipes in peace, having grown quite accustomed to look upon the laws of hospitality-held so sacred even by brigands as a rock to which we might safely cling; and indeed, long before we expected, our belongings were safely returned to us. A necktie of mine, with a steel spring, I heard, created no little commotion, for the click with which its patent band closed was so suggestive of a flint-lock pistol, that, fearing it would explode, they averted their heads when testing it. As the evening wore on, the brigands rode in twos and threes into the village, adding to the number of those who now filled almost every available space in the khan. Very formidable and effective too they looked, in their dirty, many-coloured costumes: their flowing turbans, curious assortment of inlaid weapons, and gaudy sashes. The novelty of spending a night with them was not without its charms, knowing, as we did, that, though we were fair game for their powder outside the village boundaries, we were now as safe, aye, safer perhaps, than we might have been in many Continental hotels. Early next morning, having distributed backsheesh to the village Elder and his immediate followers, we prepared to depart, and were not a little surprised, as you may imagine, to find the inhabitants of the whole place assembling to bid us an Asiatic bon voyage, which they put into practice by what was the nearest approach to kissing the hems of our garments; that is to say, prostrating themselves before us and kissing the tips of our jack-boots. This ceremony over we started riding slowly through the village till we approached the last hut within its boundary, when our guide, whose knowledge of Eastern peculiarities was perfect, halted a moment, shouting as he did so, in the most emphatic voice— 66 'Now, gentlemen, gallop for dear life. Once out in the open, we belong to the world; we are no longer their guests." He was right. No sooner had we put spurs to our horses than they were after us (unmistakable brigands now) in hot haste. They gave chase through a wood and out into an open upland, when we immediately turned on them and showed fight. Seeing that they were out of range, we blazed away with our revolvers |