Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Volume 20, September, 1877. — John Shaqi
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Volume 20, September, 1877.Various
History
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Volume 20, September, 1877.
Various
Literature, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Science -- Periodicals
When we remember that these large commercial reunions are held as often
as each week, we are prepared to recognize a degree of movement and
energy sufficient of itself to separate sharply the Kabyles from their
Asiatic coreligionists. Repose is not their chief luxury. The charms of
_kief_ are less irresistible than to the Arab or the Turk. The mere
labor, indeed, of reaching their rock-built homes exacts considerable
bodily exertion. Compared with a daily climb of some hundreds of feet
when the ploughman homeward takes his weary way, the toil of the
harvest-field below looks like recreation. A life which keeps the blood
circulating so rapidly cannot fail to develop a hardy race full of the
pride born of conscious strength, and not disposed to yield readily to
lords who exhaust their physical powers in scaling their eyries. Long
training has given the natives something of the agility of the monkeys
with which they share the crags. Kabyle sharpshooters obstructed the
completion of French hill-forts by ascending the parapet at night and
waking the garrison and the workmen with a storm of balls. The pursuit
of them, when driven back, was unavailing. The soldiers, encumbered with
clothing and accoutrements and shod with stiff leather, could hold no
headway with the Kabyle clad only in a tunic and grasping the cliffs
with four hands like the monkeys. Finally, dogs were imported, regularly
brigaded and regularly credited at the commissariat. Dogs are keen
distinguishers of persons and acute ethnologists. These traits, however,
were possessed alike by the African curs, which outnumbered the
quadruped Gauls and fully sympathized with the prejudices of their dusky
proprietors. This difficulty was fatal to the canine crusade. The
infidel dogs were too many for the Christians, and were soon able to
redevote themselves to older enemies, the jackals and hyaenas.
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