No - not
as necessary, for she was life and soul to me, but a part of her
daily experience that she valued and would not easily part with.
That evening we were sitting outside the tents, near the camp
fire, of pine logs and cones, the leaping flames making the night
beautiful with gold and leaping sparks, in an attempt to reach
the mellow splendours of the moon. The men, in various attitudes
of rest, were lying about, and one had been telling a story which
had just ended in excitement and loud applause.
"These are Mahomedans," said Vanna, "and it is only a story of
love and fighting like the Arabian Nights. If they had been
Hindus, it might well have been of Krishna or of Rama and Sita.
Their faith comes from an earlier time and they still see
visions. The Moslem is a hard practical faith for men - men of
the world too. It is not visionary now, though it once had its
great mysteries."
"I wish you would tell me what you think of the visions or
apparitions of the gods that are seen here. Is it all illusion?
Tell me your thought."
"How difficult that is to answer.
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