Napoleon's Egypt: Invading The Middle East - Reenactor.ru

136 NAPOLEON’S EGYPTstories. In the afternoon they took tea and fruits. Sometimes they went for boatrides. The luxuries they enjoyed, however, were outweighed by the crueltiesthey often endured. Moiret relates from her the story of a Circassian co-wife ofhers who went out to the mosque with an elderly slave. While out, she heard astrange accent and turned her head to see a European man conversing withsomeone nearby. The slave is said to have reported the infraction to the bey.“The furious tyrant grabbed the guilty one by the hair in the midst of us all andbeheaded her with a saber.”She finally broached her feelings, presumably through her French maidservant.“Out of your grace, young lover, charming warrior, pull me out of this detestablecountry and lead me to France, if ever destiny calls you there.” Hewrote that her tears added to her beauty, and that he promised her that hewould. He then pressed her, however, asking if he could hope to see his love requitedin accordance with this oath he had given her. He clearly wanted, notonly her gratitude for delivering her, but also an indication that she had realfeelings for him. She played hard to get. How could she be sure of the sincerityof his oath, she asked, “before it had been consecrated by religion and law?” For,she said, Frenchmen were renowned for their inconstancy, being inflamed witha passion that is soon extinguished. (If Frenchmen already had that reputation,it speaks volumes about their relations with local women.)Moiret represented himself as an exception. But he went on to press herabout which ceremonies of religion, exactly, she had in mind. She should not, hesaid firmly, expect him to take the turban, “or to submit to the humiliating operationthat is the distinctive sign of the Jew and the Muslim,” or to renouncewine, “which was invented by Noah.” He would not follow the example ofMenou, who had converted to Islam and taken the name of ‘Abdullah, settingthe tongues of the entire army wagging. He refused to be an object of ridiculefor his comrades. Finally, he said, “How can you believe me incapable of breakingmy oaths to you if I would break my ties to the religion in which I wasraised?”She in turn protested that she could hardly leave Islam, since the man shewas staying with, the merchant “Aboulferu,” was deeply attached to it andwould never countenance her conversion out of it.Moiret coldly replied, “We must then bid one another an eternal farewell,”though he wrote that he knew full well she would not.Zulayma offered a compromise. He should alert her when he was to returnto France, and she would accompany him, with her riches and jewelry, and oncein France his God would be hers. He wrote that thereafter he continued to see