176 



THE RIDER KING. 



feet wliicli does not, however, prevent his leading 

 ns by the shortest path into every village that 

 aspires to mulct our slender store of sprig-muslin. 

 Wazira is our rogue, rich in all the perfections of 

 African cunning. A prayerless Sherif , he utterly 

 despises all Makafiri or infidels ; he has a hot 

 temper, and when provoked he roars like a wild 

 Least. He began by stubbornly refusing to carry 

 any load; but he yielded when it was gently 

 placed upon his heavy shoulder, with a signifi- 

 cant gesture in case of recusance. He does not, 

 however, neglect to pass it occasionally to his 

 slave, who, poor wretch, is almost broken down by 

 the double burden. 



Hahmat the Mekrani calls himself a Baloch, 

 and bears the proud title of Shali-Sawar, or the 

 Eider King. He is the Chelebi, the dandy or 

 tiger of the party. A good-looking brown man, 

 about 25 years of age, with a certain affectation 

 and girlishness of speech and tournure which bode 

 no good, the Eider King deals in the externals 

 of respectability: he washes and prays with arti- 

 ficial regularity ; he is ever combing his long hair 

 and beard; he trains his bushy mustache to 

 touch his eyes, and he binds on crookedly a huge 

 turban. His cue is to affect the Jemadar, to take 

 command. He would have monopolized, had I 



