drums; while dogs
barked incessantly, and all night long the caravans of Mesopotamia
jingled to and fro. Then the cannon would thunder out its climax, and
the city would fall anew under the spell of the sun.

The moon of those Arabian nights was nearing its first quarter and
Matthews was waiting for it to become bright enough for him to fulfill
his true duty as a sightseer by riding to the mounds of Susa, when
Dizful treated Matthews to fresh discoveries as to what an unspoiled
town may contain. It contained, Abbas informed him with some mystery
after one of his prolonged visits to the bazaar, another _firengi_. This
_firengi's_ servant, moreover, had given Abbas explicit directions as to
the whereabouts of the _firengi's_ house, in order that Abbas might give
due warning, as is the custom of the country, of a call from Matthews.
Whereat Matthews made the surprising announcement that he had not come
to Dizful to call on _firengis_. The chief charm of Dizful for him, as a
matter of fact, was that there he felt himself free of the social
obligations under which he had lain rather longer than he liked. But if
Abbas was able to resign himself to this new proof of the eccentricity
of his master, the unknown _firengi_ apparently was not. At all events,
Matthews soon made another discovery as to the possibilities of Dizful.
An evening or two later, as he loitered on the bridge watching a string
of loaded camels, a respectable-looking old gentleman in a black _aba_
addressed him in French. French in Dizful! And it appeared that this
remarkable Elamite was a Jew, who had picked up in Baghdad the idiom of
Paris! He went on to describe himself as the "agent" of a distinguished
foreign resident, who, the linguistic old gentleman gave Matthews to
understand, languished for a sight of the new-comer, and was unable to
understand why he had not already been favored with a call. His pain was
the deeper because the newcomer had recently enjoyed the hospitality of
this distinguished foreign resident on a little yacht on the river.

"The unmitigated bounder!" exclaimed Matthews, unable to deliver himself
in French of that sentiment, and turning upon the stupefied old
gentleman a rude Anglo-Saxon back. "He has cheek enough for anything."

He had enough, at any rate, to knock the next afternoon, unannounced, on
Matthews' gate, to follow Matthews' servant into the house without
waiting to hear whether Matthews would receive him, to present