CHAPTER XXXVIII
HIS HIGHNESS IN THE ORIENTAL CITY
When Louis and Felix returned to the street they found Scott and Morris bargaining for a horse with one of the Arabs who keep them to let. These men are found in the principal parts of the city; and when the horse is taken, they accompany him on foot wherever he goes. With the assistance of Munif they had made the trade, and Morris had mounted the horse. Scott and the guide attended him.
"I think we had better go to the landing, Flix," said Louis as soon as they came out of the hotel; and they started down the steep and filthy street.
"Do you believe now that the gentleman is the Pacha, my darling?" asked the Milesian.
"I have no doubt of it," replied the young millionaire. "He is dressed like a Christian now; but there is no mistaking his face. He is the handsomest man I ever saw in my life, not only in his figure-head, but in his form."
"I was just going to say the same thing; and he could make his fortune in a dime museum, with his circus clothes on, though his present dress shows him off to the best advantage," added Felix.
"According to all accounts, he is about as bad a man as ever lived, in spite of his masculine beauty, and he is as rich as Crœsus; a Mohammedan millionaire. The Portuguese gentlemen at Funchal said that he travelled all over Europe, Asia, and Africa on shore or in his yacht, and spent his money as freely as water," continued Louis. "He is a man of the world in the worst sense of the term."
"But how did the blackguard get here so soon?"
"We have not seen the steam-yacht in which he sails since we left Gibraltar; but she may be in the Bosporus or Golden Horn for all that. We stopped a day at Algiers, and the ship slowed down to the ordinary speed of the Maud. But he could have come here by land in much less time," Louis explained.
"Well, he is here, and it don't make much difference how he got here," said Felix. "But Captain Ringgold took him down so thoroughly in Gib that I should suppose he had had enough of him."
"That may be the very reason why he is here. Whether he is dressed as a Moor or a Christian, he has the Oriental love of vengeance in his bones, and his millions will enable him to gratify it at any expense," replied Louis.
"He is a more dangerous enemy than John Scoble,aliasWade Farrongate, ever was. Do you suppose he means to follow us all over the world to get his revenge for the upsetting the captain gave him?" asked Felix. "He can make it lively for us, if that is his idea."
"I don't know what he means to do, and I don't much care. I only hope the captain will not run away any more from this Mohammedan millionaire."
When they reached the landing they found that the Maud had gone off to the steamer; but she returned immediately, and they went on board of her to wait for the coming of Scott and Morris. Presently the horse appeared, leading the procession, with Scott in the saddle. They declared that there was no fun in riding horseback at a walk, and they had had enough of it. Munif went off to the Guardian-Mother with them, as Dimitri had done before.
Felix and Louis had kept their own counsel in regard to the Pacha, and the equestrian party had not heard a word about him. As soon as they went on board of the ship they hastened to the captain's cabin, where they found him looking over some letters he had just received. Louis told his story; and the commander listened to it with a frown on his face, as though it was not pleasant news.
"Of course Scott and Morris know all about this matter?" asked the captain.
"We kept it to ourselves," replied Louis.
"That was wise; and you will oblige me by saying nothing about it to any one. We will continue to attend to our affairs without regard to the Pacha. To-morrow we are to make an excursion in the Maud through the Bosporus and Golden Horn, and we shall ascertain whether or not the Fatimé is here."
Nothing more was said about the matter on board, and the next morning the entire party started on the excursion, the two guides attending them. The little steamer passed through the bridge of boats, and then coasted along the eastern shore, passing the navy-yard and several government buildings, the commander, Louis, and Felix keeping a sharp lookout for the Fatimé, but nothing was seen of her. After a run of about three miles they landed at the mouth of a stream and visited the mosque at Eyub.
"This is Eyub; the word means Job, who was an Arabian general buried here twelve hundred years ago," said Dimitri, as the party landed. "Thefirmanwill admit us to the mosque."
On their return the Maud followed the other shore, and made another landing at a place to which Dimitri gave a name which no one could remember ten minutes, from which they proceeded to a Turkish cemetery, which was full of interest to them. The sad-looking cypress grew in great numbers on the grounds, as in the miles of burial-places in and about the city. The most of the sail back was alongside the part of the city called Stambool.
The excursion was continued through the Bosporus to the Black Sea; and on the way the guides, Dimitri in the standing-room and Munif on the forecastle, pointed out all the castles and other objects of interest. They talked all the time, and the commander related some of his own experience in this part of the world. The Bosporus is about seventeen miles long. The Maud stood out a short distance into the Black Sea, which seemed to justify its name, for the little steamer began to jump on the billows so that the ladies soon saw enough of it.
The excursionists took a late lunch, and then proceeded to Stambool in the Maud, landing at a point quite near the Seraglio. They visited the Mosque of St. Sophia, or Ayia Sofia as the Turks call it. A wall, in which are three gates, extends across the peninsula from the Sea of Marmora to the Golden Horn. The principal one is the imperial gate, called the Sublime Porte, which has given its name to the Turkish government.
The party visited the Mosque of Solomon the Magnificent and of Achmet the next day. Another day was given to the walls and the Mosque of Sultan Bajazet. In the courtyard of the latter are immense flocks of doves, or pigeons, or they are there as soon as the grain is distributed. Birds and beasts fare better at the hands of the Mohammedans than men and women who become their enemies on account of religion or politics.
A piece of money was given to an old Turk who sat near a chest, and he scattered a quantity of grain, precisely as the same thing is done in the square of St. Mark at Venice. Thousands of pigeons alighted on the pavement, and the food was soon all gone. More money was given by various members of the party; and the birds settled two or three deep all over the court, crowding, scrambling, and fighting for the grain. They had their fill that day. They were very tame, and some of them ate out of the hands of the excursionists.
On the Sundays the ship was at Constantinople the Maud visited the shore to convey the party to church at the English embassy. Services were always held for the whole ship's company and the passengers in the cabin or on deck, consisting of singing, Scripture reading, prayer, and a sermon selected and read by the commander. On the second Mohammedan Sunday the party witnessed the services of the Howling Dervishes, which they regarded as a very disagreeable exhibition, though it was not prepared for them.
The Bazaar was extremely interesting to the ladies and not much less to the others. Many purchases were made of silks, rugs, and attar of roses, besides curious trinkets and useful articles, for all of them had money enough. A ride in carriages was taken to the Palace of the Sweet Waters,—the one in Europe, for there is another in Asia; but the ideas of Oriental splendor were not realized in the buildings or the waters. Scott declared that there were more and finer palaces on the Hudson than on the Bosporus. There were plenty of buildings at home that could "discount" anything they had seen in the Orient.
The party were kept very busy during the two weeks spent in Constantinople, though the sights they saw are not fully described in this volume.[1]By this time they began to feel that they had seen quite enough of this phase of the Orient; and they were looking forward with the most pleasurable anticipations to a change of scene, especially to the islands of the Archipelago and to Greece, which were the next regions to be visited. The Maud was regarded as an excellent investment by Captain Ringgold and Mr. Woolridge, for she had proved to be exceedingly convenient in visiting the sights of the city of the Sultan.
Nothing had been seen or heard of Ali-Noury Pacha till the day before the Guardian-Mother sailed from the Golden Horn. The company then landed for a visit to the Rue de Pera to purchase a supply of photographs. The guides had been dismissed the day before; and they preferred to do their shopping without any assistance, as the latter generally implies a commission to be collected afterwards by the guide, and is included in the price paid.
While those who were interested in obtaining souvenirs of their visit were in the stores, Captain Ringgold and Louis wandered through the street as far as Misserie's Hotel. They were talking about the Pacha, as they were alone, and wondering why they had not seen him before, since he was in the city. The commander had begun to doubt that he was there; but Louis suggested that he had probably had enough of his companion in Gibraltar. They were about to enter the hotel, when the elegant gentleman presented himself before them.
He was now dressed in full Oriental costume. Probably he had come by Vienna and the Danube, and had worn the European garments to escape too much attention from observers. Louis expected that he would "pitch into" the commander, and he braced himself to render him an efficient support. He even thought he could handle the Pacha alone; for the Moor, though five feet eight in height, was not heavier than the American boy. But His Highness did nothing of the kind. On the contrary, he bowed very politely, and stepped back to allow the captain to pass.
"Good-morning, Captain Ringgold," said he, extending his hand to him.
"Good-morning, sir," replied the commander; but he did not take the offered hand.
"Good-morning, Mr. Belgrave," he continued, quite as politely.
Louis was as civil as his companion had been.
"I desire to apologize to you, Captain, for my rudeness at Gibraltar," continued the Pacha.
"The apology is accepted, and I have no desire that you should humiliate yourself any further," replied the captain promptly. "But I wish to say that my sentiments in regard to you remain the same as before."
"Then you are not inclined to make friends with me?" added the Moor, biting his lips with chagrin and disappointment.
"I shall treat you like a gentleman while you behave like one."
"I was extremely interested with the very agreeable party I met in the cabin of your steamer at Mogadore, and I should be most happy to continue the acquaintance. If you suppose that I have any sinister motives, you are greatly mistaken."
"I have no ill-will against you, though you and your servants assaulted me in the street."
"If you will consider that you insulted me, you will take a different view of the subject," pleaded the Pacha.
"I simply expressed my views in plain language as they were then and as they are to-day," added the commander very mildly.
"You compel me to regard you as an enemy instead of a friend," said Ali-Noury, beginning to look very savage.
"That is my misfortune, but I cannot help it."
"Then you prefer my enmity?"
"I do not; but I do not tremble at even that."
"I came here on a mission in the service of my august master, the Sultan of Morocco. I have unlimited wealth at my command, and I can be of great assistance to you in your tour around the world," continued the Moor, still biting his lip, and evidently controlling his anger by a great effort.
"I shall be obliged to deprive myself and my friends of any aid you might render," replied the captain with dignity. "If you will excuse me now, I will attend to my own affairs."
"Then I will follow you to the ends of the earth till I obtain my revenge!" exclaimed the Pacha, as he retreated to the interior of the hotel; and he was plainly too wise to attack the doughty shipmaster again.
"What can he do, Captain?" asked Louis when they resumed their walk.
"He may annoy us, and we must keep our eyes open. It looks a little like another edition of Scoble; but I believe we shall be able to take care of ourselves."
The party returned to the Guardian-Mother, and nothing more was seen of the Moor; but at sunset they saw the Fatimé steaming up the Golden Horn. Captain Ringgold had made all his preparations for leaving. Mr. Sage had filled the ice-house with provisions, and the bunkers of both steamers were full of coal. At daylight in the morning the Guardian-Mother, followed by the Maud, was steaming out into the Sea of Marmora.
The cabin party happened to be at dinner when the Pacha's yacht came in; and she was seen only by Mr. Boulong, who was on deck while the rest of the officers and the crew were at supper. He was requested by the captain to keep his knowledge to himself. In the course of the following week the Pacha began to make himself felt, though his yacht did not appear on the scene at the time.
Into what adventures the big four tumbled while they were on board of the Maud, and all the party saw as the voyage continued, must be related in "The Young Navigators; or, The Foreign Cruise of the Maud."
[1]In "Cross and Crescent," one of the author's "Young America Abroad" series, may be found a much fuller account of the objects of interest to be seen in Constantinople, and he is not inclined to repeat himself to the extent required to do justice to the subject.
[1]In "Cross and Crescent," one of the author's "Young America Abroad" series, may be found a much fuller account of the objects of interest to be seen in Constantinople, and he is not inclined to repeat himself to the extent required to do justice to the subject.
ALL-OVER-THE-WORLD LIBRARY
By OLIVER OPTIC
Illustrated, Price per Volume $1.25
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A MISSING MILLIONOr The Adventures of Louis Belgrave
A MILLIONAIRE AT SIXTEENOr The Cruise of the Guardian-Mother
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