The Soufi And The Targui

Two Souafa were brothers. Separating one day one said to the other: "O my
brother, let us marry thy son with my daughter." So the young cousins were
married, and the young man's father gave them a separate house. It happened
that a man among the Touareg heard tell of her as a remarkable woman. He
mounted his swiftest camel, ten years old, and went to her house. Arrived
near her residence, he found some shepherds.

"Who are you?" he said.

"We are Souafa."

He confided in one of them, and said to him: "By the face of the Master of
the worlds, O favorite of fair women, man of remarkable appearance, tell me
if the lady so and so, daughter of so and so, is here."

"She is here."

"Well, if you have the sentiments of most men, I desire you to bring her
here, I want to see her."

"I will do what you ask. If she'll come, I'll bring her. If not, I will
return and tell you."

He set out, and, arriving at the house of the lady, he saw some people, and
said "Good-evening" to them.

"Come dine with us," they said to him.

"I have but just now eaten and am not hungry." He pretended to amuse
himself with them to shorten the night, in reality to put to sleep their
vigilance. These people went away to amuse themselves while he met the
lady.

"A man sends me to you," he said, "a Targui, who wants to marry you. He is
as handsome as you are, his eyes are fine, his nose is fine, his mouth is
fine."

"Well, I will marry him." She went to him and married him, and they set out
on a camel together. When the first husband returned, he found that she had
gone. He said to himself: "She is at my father's or perhaps my uncle's."
When day dawned he said to his sister, "Go see if she is in thy father's
house or thy uncle's." She went, and did not find her there. He went out to
look for her, and perceived the camel's traces. Then he saddled his own
camel.

The women came out and said: "Stay! Do not go; we will give thee our own
daughters to marry."

"No," he replied, "I want to find my wife." He goes out, he follows the
tracks of the camel, here, here, here, until the sun goes down. He spends
the night upon the trail. His camel is a runner of five years. When the sun
rises he starts and follows the trail again.

About four o'clock he arrives at an encampment of the Touareg, and finds
some shepherds with their flocks. He confides in one of these men, and says
to him: "A word, brave man, brother of beautiful women, I would say a word
to thee which thou wilt not repeat."

"Speak."

"Did a woman arrive at this place night before last?"

"She did."

"Hast thou the sentiments of a man of heart?"

"Truly."

"I desire to talk to her."

"I will take thee to her. Go, hide thy camel; tie him up. Change thy
clothing. Thou wilt not then be recognized among the sheep. Bring thy sabre
and come. Thou shalt walk as the sheep walk."

"I will walk toward you, taking the appearance of a sheep, so as not to be
perceived."

"The wedding-festival is set for to-night, and everybody will be out of
their houses. When I arrive at the tent of this lady I will strike a stake
with my stick. Where I shall strike, that is where she lives."

He waits and conceals himself among the flocks, and the women come out to
milk. He looks among the groups of tents. He finds his wife and bids her
come with him.

"I will not go with thee, but if thou art hungry, I will give thee food."

"Thou'lt come with me or I will kill thee!"

She goes with him. He finds his camel, unfastens him, dons his ordinary
clothing, takes his wife upon the camel's back with him, and departs. The
day dawns. She says:

"O thou who art the son of my paternal uncle, I am thirsty." Now she
planned a treachery.

He said to her: "Is there any water here?"

"The day the Targui took me off we found some in that pass." They arrived
at the well.

"Go down into the well," said the Soufi.

"I'm only a woman. I'm afraid. Go down thyself." He goes down. He draws the
water. She drinks. He draws more water for the camel, which is drinking,
when she pours the water on the ground.

"Why dost thou turn out the water?"

"I did not turn it out; thy camel drank it." And nevertheless she casts her
glances and sees a dust in the distance. The Targui is coming. The woman
says:

"Now I have trapped him for thee."

"Brava!" he cries, and addressing the Soufi: "Draw me some water that I may
drink." He draws the water, and the Targui drinks. The woman says to him:
"Kill him in the well. He is a good shot. Thou art not stronger than he
is."

"No," he answered, "I do not want to soil a well of the tribes. I'll make
him come up." The Soufi comes up till his shoulders appear. They seize him,
hoist and bind him, and tie his feet together. Then they seize and kill his
camel.

"Bring wood," says the Targui to the woman; "we'll roast some meat." She
brings him some wood. He cooked the meat and ate it, while she roasted
pieces of fat till they dripped upon her cousin.

"Don't do that," says the Targui.

She says, "He drew his sword on me, crying, 'Come with me or I will kill
thee.'"

"In that case do as you like." She dropped the grease upon his breast,
face, and neck until his skin was burnt. While she was doing this, the
Targui felt sleep coming upon him, and said to the woman, "Watch over him,
lest he should slip out of our hands."

While he slept the Soufi speaks: "Word of goodness, O excellent woman, bend
over me that I may kiss thy mouth or else thy cheek." She says: "God make
thy tent empty. Thou'lt die soon, and thou thinkest of kisses?"

"Truly I am going to die, and I die for thee. I love thee more than the
whole world. Let me kiss thee once. I'll have a moment of joy, and then
I'll die." She bends over him, and he kisses her.

She says, "What dost thou want?"

"That thou shalt untie me." She unties him. He says to her: "Keep silent.
Do not speak a word." Then he unfastens the shackles that bind his feet,
puts on his cloak, takes his gun, draws out the old charge and loads it
anew, examines the flint-lock and sees that it works well. Then he says to
the woman, "Lift up the Targui." The latter awakes.

"Why," says he, "didst thou not kill me in my sleep?"

"Because thou didst not kill me when I was in the well. Get up. Stand down
there, while I stand here."

The Targui obeys, and says to the Soufi: "Fire first."

"No, I'll let thee fire first."

The woman speaks: "Strike, strike, O Targui, thou art not as strong as the
Soufi."

The Targui rises, fires, and now the woman gives voice to a long
"you--you." It strikes the _chechias_ that fly above his head. At his
turn the Soufi prepares himself and says:

"Stand up straight now, as I did for thee." He fires, and hits him on the
forehead. His enemy dead, he flies at him and cuts his throat.

He then goes to the camel, cuts some meat, and says to the woman: "Go, find
me some wood, I want to cook and eat."

"I will not go," she says. He approaches, threatening her, and strikes her.
She gets up then and brings him some wood. He cooks the meat and eats his
fill. He thinks then of killing the woman, but he fears that the people of
his tribe will say, "Thou didst not bring her back." So he takes her on the
camel and starts homeward. His cousins are pasturing their flocks on a
hill. When he had nearly arrived a dust arose. He draws near, and they see
that it is he. His brother speaks, "What have they done to thee?"

He answers, "The daughter of my uncle did all this."

Then they killed the woman and cut her flesh in strips and threw it on a
jujube-tree. And the jackals and birds of prey came and passed the whole
day eating it, until there was none left.