Translating Nouzha Fassi Fihri's La Baroudeuse: A Case Study in ...

looking like scarecrows set up to keep away the dark birds of prey that seemed to
be circling in clouds over the city, ready to dive in voracious swarms.
"They went with stealthy steps, as alert as when they had left the mosque,
seeming to be one with their bundles. A long time ago, I used to watch them
work, these giants with steel biceps. They had wide fingertips, and their
fingernails were eroded. Their faces were jovial and empty, their laughter was
frank, and their appetites were astounding. Knee-deep in colored water, their feet
rhythmically crushed the tanning leather while they chanted. When a sheep or
goat is skinned, the hide goes through several operations. The feltmaker pulls out
the wool and plucks the hair. The tanners soak the skin in lye, then in pigeon
dung, and finally in bran mash. Then they carry it to the river where they wash it
well to get rid of all remaining impurities. The skins are put in basins where they
are dyed red, brown, or yellow, depending on the intended use. Then the skins are
wrung out, and tanners carry them on their shoulders to Bab El Hamra and spread
them on the hillside. When the skins are dry, they bring them back to the tannery,
and, wearing wire shirts, they beat the skins in a rhythmic back and forth motion
to soften them. I utterly admired the tanners' physical strength, and I was stunned
by their gluttony. One day, someone brought a group of them a dozen loaves of
bread and a stew of preserved meat, dripping with fat. While his friends chanted
to the rhythm of their work, a stocky young man swallowed the meal that was
meant for ten men as though it were a piece of candy. When the hungry tanners
came and discovered the prank, they badgered him and dared him to demonstrate
strength equal to his appetite. At that moment, a rock-salt merchant arrived on the
scene with his donkey whose back was bent under a heavy load. Our young tanner
186